Hey guys! Update! YAY!
So, some personal stuff: I studied so much for finals and it paid off (thank you God!) and I finally graduated high school this past Saturday (6/21/14). I'm moving into my college dorm next Sunday though (6/29/14) for mandatory summer classes and I'll be there pretty much all summer long. Also, I finally saw Man of Steel! I know that I am so behind on that, but anyways... it was awesome! Which leads to our next topic...
Story/fanfiction stuff: I've started working on the next story for the Knight of the Castle series, entitled World's Greatest Detective. Although I'm thinking of changing that name, I don't feel too happy with it. More information about it soon! Also, I finished writing the rest of Batman Begins, and I'm hoping to post it all before I have to go to college. Guess what... there is one more chapter, and then an epilogue and this story is finished! This chapter is a bit short, but the next one will be much, much longer. I know where I want to go with the series and have it all mapped out. Some of you have asked for a Justice League bit; I'm still debating it. But just to let you all know; any suggestions you give me are not ignored. I do think all of them over. So if you had an idea, don't hesitate to tell me!
NOTE: A few of the reviews for the previous chapter mentioned the use of the name 'Gotham' instead of Manhattan or New York. This was purposefully done; Gotham is actually a nickname for NYC, and the fictional city is partially based off of Manhattan. Because of this, I had planned to use the names interchangeably, but if that confuses anyone or seems odd, I can just as easily not do it. Tell me what you think!
Also, thank you all for being so patient with me and my sporadic updates. I'm trying to change this habit, I really am!
Disclaimer: It all belongs to DC Comics and ABC. All I own is the concept, the Masked Assassin, and the grammatical errors.
Alrighty then, on with the story!
The fire moaned, swallowing up more and more of the warehouse. Castle had yet to wake up; the blow he had taken to the head had been powerful. It had been less than 20 minutes, but already the building's structures were falling apart. The fire was growing hotter, melting the metal beams; the ceiling creaked in warning.
A beam fell not even five feet away from Castle, and the jolt of its impact woke him up. He started, looking around with bleary eyes before he started coughing roughly. His lungs yearned for air, and Castle found the desire difficult to satisfy. The lack of oxygen prevented him from moving around too much; he found himself laying on his back, staring at the burning ceiling as his vision faded, his mind drifting towards unconsciousness once more.
As darkness encroached his vision, he could vaguely hear the tapping of footsteps approaching. Looking over, he saw a man dressed in ninja attire.
"…ichard…"
His eyes began drooping shut, feeling the life drain from his body.
"Ri…ard…"
The man was at his side now, trying to maintain Castle's attention, but the battle was already lost.
"Richard…"
His eyes shut closed.
With a sharp and silent intake of breath, Castle shot up to a seated position, eyes wide open. Looking around, he saw that he was no longer in the burning warehouse, but on the couch in his study. Confused, he saw the TV on, but muted, with a live news report about the warehouse fire.
He saw the Masked Assassin only seconds later, standing with his back to the writer, observing the books on display. Castle looked at him; the man hadn't noticed the writer was awake yet. Standing up, Castle watched him for a moment before speaking, his voice tinted with hope. "Dad?" he questioned warily. "Is that you?"
The Assassin didn't move for a moment, instead growing stiff. Eventually, he turned to Castle, shaking his head. "I'm sorry to disappoint you Richard," he apologized, "but I am not your father." Castle deflated slightly, but nodded in understanding. It had been a foolish hope to begin with, and Ra's knew which buttons to push to distract him. Damn Ra's. Pushing personal feelings aside, Castle grew professional once more.
"You were right about Ra's," he acknowledged. "You tried to warn me, and I didn't listen."
"I didn't realize you were unaware of his true nature," the Assassin said in reply, equally apologetic. "You are lucky to be alive."
"Thanks for that, by the way." Castle looked at his watch. Five o'clock; a little over an hour since Ra's left him in the warehouse. They needed to act quickly if they wanted to stop him and the League of Shadows.
"Ra's has a fear-inducing toxin in his possession," he began, "and he's planning to release it onto the population. I need to stop him."
"I'm at your service," the Masked Assassin assured. Castle nodded.
"There'll be an extraction team coming in for Ra's," he realized, knowing that the terrorist wouldn't stick around to die with the city. "Can you find the rendezvous-point?"
"I have an idea of where they'll be." Castle could sense the man's smirk under the mask. "And what shall you do?" the Assassin asked, already knowing the answer. Castle turned and began walking away.
"I'm going after Ra's," he confirmed, "and I'm going to put an end to this."
Her phone rang and without checking the caller ID, Selina picked up. "Hello?"
"Miss Kyle."
The thief's body grew tense as she swallowed roughly. With an apprehensive breath, she spoke. "Mr. Castle."
"I need your help."
Selina paused, an incredulous look on her face. "And why would I help you?" she asked smugly.
"To save the city," came the response.
After the Masked Assassin had left, Castle realized that neither Alexis nor Martha were around; he began to panic. In the Batcave, Castle used the supercomputer to track them through their phones, seeing that they were unharmed and spending the day out shopping. Castle watched them via security cameras, but knew that he couldn't go after them himself.
"Sorry to disappoint you, handsome," Selina scoffed over the line, "but I'm not the hero-type."
"Selina, I'm not asking for myself," Castle said softly. "I'm asking for my daughter." At this, heard a sharp intake of air on Selina's end. He waited silently and patiently for her to respond, but they were running out of time.
"What do you need me to do?" Selina finally asked, making Castle sigh in relief.
"Crane's been working with a terrorist group; they're going to attack the city in less than two hours and they know who I am. They'll go after my mother and daughter. I need you to get them out of the city and to keep them safe."
"You trust me with that? With your family?" Selina's voice was filled with surprise and doubt. "After I tried to kill you?"
"I'll admit, I have my reservations," Castle began, "but I'm starting to think that maybe there's more to you." Castle paused, choosing his words carefully. "You may be a thief… but you're not a killer, Selina."
In her apartment, Selina nodded, her eyes shut closed. "Ok," she agreed. She heard the line cut, and knew he ended the call.
As she got up and prepared for tonight, Selina felt a sudden tightness in her chest. She shut her eyes closed for a moment, realizing why the feeling was there. She would never ever admit it, but she didn't want to let Richard Castle down.
In the Batcave, Castle began to suit up. Like Ra's had said; it was time.
Using the information Castle had sent her, Selina easily found Martha and Alexis. She couldn't spot anyone tailing them, but still proceeded with caution. The two were about to exit a shop when Selina finally intercepted them.
Alexis gasped in surprise, grabbing Martha's hand tightly. "You!" she exclaimed, taking a step back. Martha looked at Alexis confused before seeing what her granddaughter was staring at.
Selina held her hands to her sides, showing that she wasn't going to harm them. "I don't know how much the two of you know―"
"We know that you've been trying to kill my dad!" Alexis hissed quietly, anger painting her voice. Selina blinked at her in surprise.
"Oh… Ok."
It was Martha who spoke next. "You listen here," she began, her voice calm but her eyes dangerous, "I don't know what you plan to do right now, but if it's my son you're trying to hurt, then you are playing a very dangerous game."
Selina shook her head. "I'm not here to hurt you," she promised. "Rick sent me."
Alexis crossed her arms. "My dad sent you? You? The woman who has been trying to kill him?"
"Look, you don't have to like me; you don't have to even trust me," Selina argued, "but at least listen to me. You two are in danger. We have to get out of the city, now. Crane is launching his attack tonight." Seeing that the redheads refused to budge, Selina looked at Martha, "July 21, 1996."
At this, Martha's eyes widened, her mouth opening slightly. After a few moments, she nodded. "Alright. Let's go."
Alexis looked at Martha in surprise. "Grams?"
Martha turned to her in reassurance. "It's alright Alexis." She squeezed her hand gently. "We have to go."
"The water's been poisoned; one of our own experienced the effects of this poison, and she nearly died," Montgomery told Mayor Weldon over the phone. "We need to evacuate the city now!"
"Captain, do you understand what you're asking me to do? Order an evacuation New York City over an attack that may or may not occur?" Weldon said over the line.
"We still don't know who Crane was working with," Montgomery insisted. "They could still―"
An explosion rocked the building, making all of the officers stumble. Montgomery was one of the first ones to recover; he rushed to the window and looked down, following the smoke to its origin. He felt his heart sink to his stomach.
There was a massive mob of people wearing orange jumpsuits pouring out of the building. "The inmates are escaping!" Montgomery heard someone yell, and that was what snapped him into action.
"Get all available units to make a perimeter; I want the area surrounded within a five-block radius!" he barked. "I want that hole blocked off and a head count of how many inmates are still locked up."
As the NYPD began struggling to get the situation under control, Ra's al Ghul and a group of his men were preparing the micro-wave emitter.
"Spread the word, gentlemen. And the word is…" Ra's announced, flicking the machine on, "panic."
DU-DU-DUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMM!
Ok, so I told you I'd be giving you info about the next story soon? Well, it's soon now!
World's Greatest Detective: Genesis - It's been three years since the Batman first appeared to protect Manhattan, and he's grown a reputation within both the criminal underground and the legal system. However, Richard Castle is having trouble separating his two very different lives. His lack of writing has little to do with writer's block and everything to do with being a vigilante. But when he crosses paths with Detective Beckett, he finds a muse for his new book series. Between this and being the Batman, Castle may have his work cut out for him.
That's the general summary. Essentially, it follows the Castle storyline for seasons one and two, but with differences due to Castle being Batman. Each episode will usually be one chapter, and will be written in a variety of ways: a complete rewrite of the episode, showing a change in one or more scenes, doing a post-episode scene, and so on. Here's a general schedule showing what to expect for this series after Batman Begins:
World's Greatest Detective: Genesis
The Dark Knight posted simultaneously with World's Greatest Detective: The Dark Knight
Knightfall and World's Greatest Detective: Knightfall
World's Greatest Detective: Rise
The Dark Knight Rises and World's Greatest Detective: The Dark Knight Rises
These are the main storyline fics; there will be other fics posted as side stories, such as Villain Origins. The side-story fics will be updated sporadically, or according to whatever fits the main storyline.
I hope that seeing this shows you guys that I'm in this for the long haul! And I'm really excited about it too! Be sure to follow my Knight of the Castle tumblr for updates and news on the series (which will appear more often, now that we're really getting into the mix of things!) The url is on my profile page in the Knight of the Castle section!
Thank you guys for reading and for reviews!
Katrina
