Gotham City

Dick

He was getting closer

Dick was scared, almost as scared as he had been on the night his parents died in front of him. There was a hulking super powered monster chasing him and he was on the top floor with nowhere to go or hide. The monster named Grundy was getting closer as if he sensed that his prey was running out of options and was ready to finish it as fast as possible. The entire building was shaking from the brutish beast as the simple concrete walls and beams struggled to withstand the force of his super powered temper tantrum.

A temper tantrum that was about to be directed right at Dick

"Okay got to figure out some thing" Dick murmured looking around the room for any thing he could use as a weapon, this was a broadcasting station but maybe he could find some thing to bar the door or to use to slam into him a T.V set or some thing along those lines. His search however didn't turn up any thing of worth and only further showed him that he both had no escape. There was nothing he could do to stop the beast.

"Okay" Dick said frowning and looking back at the entrance hearing the beast drawing nearer and nearer with each passing breath "got to stand and fight get past him so I can get back down the stairs" he murmured to himself trying to sound more courageous than he felt, when he had rushed to save The Batman he hadn't expected this, hadn't expected to be facing down a monster with nothing but his fist and training to back him up.

Then again what had he expected? He knew enough about Batman to know that danger was his bread and butter and when he jumped to save him he had been battling the creature. Was he really that much of an innocent in this situation? Or was he feeling more alive than he had in years, as alive as he had felt as a boy swinging on the tightrope with his parents.

Even if this was what he wanted he didn't have the time to focus on it now, the creature was on the staircase below him and in a matter of seconds he would burst through that door and go after him with all he got. Dick needed a plan, one that would get him out of the danger and allow him to reach Batman. If he could just dodge the massive creature, long enough to duck underneath him and get back to the staircase than he might survive long enough to see if Batman had any better ideas it was a shit plan and he knew it but since it was the only one he had at the moment it would have to do.

The door burst open and splintered the mighty steel warping as the powerful beast shouldered through it and popped out. Dick gulped and readied himself watching as the beast stepping into the room and looked at him his powerful muscles rippling as he regarded his prey. They looked at each other for a few seconds before the creature known as Grundy let loose a loud roar that shook the floor they were on. Dick felt his heart drop into his stomach but ignored it instead balling his fist and waiting for the creature to come at him.

He didn't have to wait long

"Grundy squash man!" Grundy roared bringing his fist together and swinging them towards Dick, he waited until the last minute before dodging out of the way and rolling to the left of the massive creature, as he moved he heard the splintering of wood followed by a roar of discomfort that made him smile and send a bolt of hope through his body. If he was lucky Grundy's first were trapped and he could use that to make his escape, if he wasn't lucky however than he needed to get out of their quickly before the creature could recover.

He got to his feet as fast as possible, moving towards the warped door and jumping through it. Dick grabbed the railing of the staircase and vaulted over it dropping down onto the next level and grabbing the railing, he used his gymnastic skills to quickly get down to the bottom floor of the 25-story building using the railing as beams to control his descent down into the lobby. It had been a while since he had done any thing like it but he had been a flying Grayson all his life and he accomplished the feat with an almost shocking ease.

He landed in the reception/lobby area and ran to the door ignoring the dead bodies littered all around the large room. Victims of The Joker's hostile take over no doubt and sadly there was nothing more he could really do for them especially with the monster currently on his tail. He tried his best to step over them trying to give them some sense of dignity as he made his way over to the shattered double glass doors that would lead him out to the streets and hopefully safety back with Batman.

He was a super hero right? Or at least he was supposed to be? The Batman was still some thing of a mystery in Gotham but Dick knew enough of the rumors to know he fought crime with an almost impossible energy and that some thought he was a super hero. If he was a super hero he would have to help dick.

Right?

Before he could reach safety the ceiling above him trembled and dust began to fall as large cracks began appearing in the stone. Dick watched as the ceiling caved in, big chunks of concrete cascading down in front of him and missing him by inches. Grundy appeared in front of him half hidden in the dust, but enough was of him was exposed that Dick could see his face a face that was glaring at him with so much anger and venom he was surprised he didn't drop right here and there.

"Uh oh"

…

Across the multiverse

217

The drone paused in its patrol and hovered in the sky it's blinking red light standing out amongst the bright starry sky as a omen, Africa was quite around this time of night the loud animals of the day going to sleep and hide from the stealthy quite animals of the night that prowled for food. The area around the village was devoid of any animals and all the tall grass had been cut and burned away to give the patrolling soldiers a clear view of the large wilderness and the surrounding area.

The girl watched keeping her self in the shadow of a large rocky outcropping that was serving as her temporary F.O.D , its where she had been for the last couple of hours using her binoculars to scoop out the patrol and drone paths as well as external security. When she got the order from Op center it hadn't said any thing about the high level security but based on what she had seen the soldiers were new and she wouldn't even be surprised if they had just arrived this morning or even later. Lily had already identified them, they were part of the lone wolf Private Military company. They were good better than most but still nowhere near as good as she was nor at her level with training.

Or at least she hoped

She put the high tech binoculars away and turned reaching for her simple grey duffel bag and pulling out the items she needed to complete her mission, first came her "costume" (at least she liked calling it that) it was simple just a black jacket with a hood that would hide her features and as long as she wasn't captured prevent any one from finding her identity, it featured a adapted camouflage system that would mask her heat to the drones and also change color to match the sand and rock outside the village. Next came her bow and quiver different from the ones she had used for hunting a few days ago. The bow folded out turning into a red compact bow with black stripes, she pulled the matching quiver onto her back before checking the string and pulling on the rest of her gear stowed in the utility belt.

She flipped the beaked hood up and moved it into place before fishing her phone out of her pants. Lily quickly flipped through the apps built into the phone before stopping on the one she was looking for, her phone was the latest from the tech department and it featured top of the line app and programing to help her with her assignation, she activated the software programs built in and began to move running into the tall grass and crouching out of the drones path.

Five minutes until the satellite moved into position

The jacket morphed mirroring the tall grass as she slowly moved through it; she kept her head down and kept going picking her way through the large class like a panther stalking their prey. She reached the edge in seconds and paused crouching and pulling out her compact bow, mentally counting down the last few seconds she had while she pulled out a arrow and knocked it into the string.

Her phone beeped

Every light in the village went off flickering and shorting out all at once, the minute the lights went out she popped out of the cover of the bushes and ran as fast as she could across the open space and keeping the blunt arrow raised and ready as she kept a steady eye out for any soldiers. The emp burst the satellite gave off would only last for a few minutes so she worked quickly reaching the perimeter wall they had built and switching her blunt arrow out for a another, she took aim as fast as she could and let the arrow soar waiting until it embedded itself into the top of the wall before hitting a small button on her bow. A matte black rope shot out of the shaft coiling down onto the ground next to her, she gave it a few tugs to make sure it was secured before climbing up it pulling her self up as fast as she could.

She reached the top of the wall and she hefted herself over before pressing a button on the top of the arrow, there was a soft whirring sound as the rope wound itself back into the arrow before clicking shut. Lily pulled it out of the wall and pushed it back into her quiver before silent dropping down the wall and into Okanga village. Seconds later a group of solders appeared above her moving to secure the area after the power outage. Lily waited for them to pass before stepping out of the shadow of the wall, she moved into the shadows of the nearest house and climbed scampering onto the roof and crouching at the top Okanga village stretched out before her a sea of buildings and half covered in shadows.

"Okay Ron Stoppable" Lily murmured pulling out her binoculars and peering into them.

"Where could you be?"

Gotham City

Dick Grayson

They starred at each other for a few seconds almost as if both of them were trying to size up the other one. Dick stood frozen trying to run away form the hulking giant, but his legs seemed to not want to work or they were just so terrified they had shut down along with the rest of his body. Grundy starred back at him his face devoid of emotion as if he was nothing more than a robot as he looked back down at Dick.

"Get down!"

Dick jumped back and ducked down watching as Grundy shuddered as if some thing hit him in the back rapidly, seconds later there was a loud cracking sound and foam began bursting out of his back crawling across his skin and covering him in a hardened pink crust. Grundy eyes narrowed, and he let out a angry roar as his head began moving rapidly as he contorted his body in an attempt to break out of the prison he found himself in.

"What is that? " Dick asked looking at Grundy as Batman appeared out of the shadows adjusting his gauntlet.

"High density poly more foam" Batman growled ignoring Grundy and moving to Dick "experimental but effective it should keep him contained until he calms down or the police come"

"Calms down?" Dick snorted looking over at the struggling monster and trying to imagine him calm "I'd like to see that" he finally murmured shaking his head and turning back to Batman.

"Grundy isn't inherently evil" Batman explained looking over at Grundy "he was convinced by The Joker to distract me and join his little team, after the night ends he will return to his swamp outside of Gotham and go back to his slumber"

"And we are just going to let him do that?" Dick said angrily folding his arms "after he tried to kill me he doesn't get any consequences"

Batman starred at him for several long seconds, long enough for Dick to realize he might be debating about slapping him or kicking his ass. Instead however he did some thing else some thing that shocked Dick and made his mouth drop open a little in surprise, some thing he would have never expected him to do ever.

He smiled at Dick

"Grundy" Batman said turning to the monster "if Dick says he is sorry for throwing a mug at you will you apologize for trying to kill him?" he asked patiently as if he was speaking to a small child.

Grundy starred at Dick for a second before nodding a pleased smile crossing his face.

"You can't be serious?" Dick snapped glaring at Batman; he didn't say any thing but gave Dick a look that clearly said apologize, Dick growled shooting him an angry look before turning back to Grundy and pushing his anger away.

"I'm sorry I threw a mug at you" Dick mumbled looking down at the ground and folding his arms.

"Sorry Grundy tried to squash little man," Grundy murmured looking down to.

"Now that were all on good terms" Batman said turning back to Grundy "Where is the Joker at Grundy?" he asked patiently.

"Grundy doesn't know" Grundy growled, "Funny man wouldn't tell me where he was going afraid I would blab"

"Of course not" Batman growled shaking his head and turning to Dick "what's going on out in the streets?" He asked.

"Chaos" Dick said snorting, "When I was in Old Gotham the gang violence was just getting started and that's not even taking into account the mass looting and mass hysteria people are freaking out every where"

"In other words the city needs me" Batman said turning back to the doors "The Joker is going to have to wait"

"The city is going to need a lot more than just one guy" Dick snorted "especially if the Joker is running around and no one is trying to stop him or find him"

"So what exactly do you suggest "robin"?" Batman asked turning back to him and folding his arms "If I don't bring order to the street then some one will get hurt"

"That you stop folding your arms and glaring me down for one" Dick said "and that you let me help I can go down to Old Gotham and convince every one to disperse I can bring order to the streets"

"Really? And how is one man going to disperse a entire mob?" Batman asked

"Aren't you just one man?" Dick asked raising an eyebrow "what the difference between you and me?" Dick challenged raising an eyebrow "except me being warmer"

"Training and gadgets" Batman replied before sighing and turning back to Dick "I have a… Friend who can go and help Old Gotham you don't need to put yourself in danger"

"Than that leaves you and me to track The Joker" Dick said watching Batman "I don't care what you try to say to me or do to dissuade me you need my help this city is in turmoil and every one who you come across will be gunning for you I can keep them off your back while we look for The Joker and I can provide you with support"

Batman opened his mouth as if to argue before a light on his gauntlet began to beep rapidly, he turned and Dick watched a small holographic interface appear before Batman blocked it. Batman hit a few buttons and a beautiful woman's face appeared Dick couldn't hear what she said but he saw Batman's shoulder tighten as he listened and he could tell he was getting angrier and angrier. He finally mumbled some thing and shut it off before turning to Dick and frowning.

"Turns out The Joker isn't hiding at all" Batman said "instead he decided to take a stroll down Old Gotham with a small army of rioting civilians"

"Sounds like you definitely need backup then" Dick said smiling and walking towards the door "besides if you don't I can just hop on my bike and go there any ways with out your help I might die but you know its your choice"

"This isn't a game!" Batman growled grabbing his shoulder and turning him, their eyes met and Dick felt his bravado wavering for a second. The cowl hid most of Batman's features but Dick could see the fear and worry in his eyes, fear and worry that were aimed at Dick. Dick thought that Batman was being difficult about him joining up but maybe it was more than that maybe he was afraid of what would happen to him if he did.

"I know that" Dick said gently brushing his hand away "I know what I'm signing up for but if my parents taught me any thing it's not to run when some one is in need and right now Gotham and more importantly you need me and my help I'm not backing down so we can keep arguing or we can go get out there and save the day and you can decide what to do with me when it's all said and done"

"Fine" Batman said brushing past him and going to the door "but some rules first" he said gesturing for Dick to follow him as he held open what remained of the shattered door and gestured for him to for through.

"I knew that was coming" Dick murmured looking outside and taking a deep breath, when he stepped out of that door his life would change and it would never be the same again. He would be put into dangers that he had never known before and his only source of comfort would be a man with the personality of an angry bear.

Could he handle that?

"Fine" Dick said pushing past Batman and out onto the street "why don't we talk about it on route?" He said determined to show his eagerness to his new mentor however he could.

"What have I gotten my self into" Batman murmured before following his new "partner" out onto the street.

…..

217

It was easier to find the house than she had thought

After skirting the edges of the village Lily finally found a large villa like mansion that wasn't in any of the original pictures of the village, of course the whole village itself was changing so the pictures were not the best reference but since it was the only manor in the village she would have to assume that it would be reserved for the new mayor of the town who she believed was Ronald Stoppable. She made her way towards it using the houses for cover as she stayed in the shadows, even though it was nighttime the village were still fairly active and it was small enough that she would be in trouble if any one saw her. Woman and children of all shapes and sizes walked around her chatting with each other happily in their native tongue as if they didn't have a care or worry in the world. Lily watched them go by an unseen viewer to each and every one of their lives, they knew nothing of her or her mission and she marveled at their ignorance as she continued to make her way to her target. Lily wondered what it would be like to live a normal life to know none of the things she knew, had none of the abilities she had been trained to employ to take down whoever she was told to or who needed them.

She frowned and pushed the thoughts away, before Absolution before Father took her in she had been nothing but a homeless child wandering around and begging for food in the streets of New York City. Her mother dead of an overdose and her father a coward who ran at the first sight of responsibility and a family, nothing to comfort her during the night but a raggedy little bunny and a fire if she was lucky. She was only six when she became homeless and she would have died on the streets if some one hadn't shown up and offered her a chance to get off the streets and make a life for her, at that time she would have done any thing just for some food so she readily agreed and let the stranger whisk her away into his black SUV without a second thought for her own safety.

Next thing she knew she was being trained, given a purpose and mission and the tools she would need in order to complete it as well as a family to call her own. Lily felt whole and needed for the first time in her life and she used that feeling to propel herself up to the top of all her classes becoming the best agent in her graduating class and one of Fathers top operatives. She still remembered the day fondly when she stood up on the platform and Father smiling at her before handing her the phone that would give her missions…

Such thoughts were distracting and Lily shook herself out of them before continuing on her journey, thinking about her journey wouldn't help her now and she was close enough to the villa that she could see the slanted roof peeking out in the skyline above her. She quickly found the nearest building and began pulling herself up moving as quickly as she could off of the ground and onto the rooftop above her, she loved climbing partly because she was so good at it and partly because it was one of the few things she remembered doing before she was homeless, in a far off home she could barley picture with a mother she didn't even know.

She frowned and pushed the thoughts away; she was getting distracted again, which wasn't good in her line of work. Even more so when the target she was about to go after was designated a level five threat which meant it was the most dangerous assignment she could have ever asked for a true test of her skills, Usually a rookie agent like Lily wouldn't even be on the case but she was the only agent in Africa and therefore the closest. Lily smiled and climbed up onto the roof pulling her bow off of her back and looking at the villa with breathless anticipation. While some might be worried or even scared about their target being so dangerous Lily could barely contain her self and her anticipation. If she managed to kill this Ron Stoppable her rep would shoot up and Father himself would probably come and see her to thank him. Lily wanted nothing more than to please father it was her mission it was her purpose in life.

"Okay" Lily murmured to herself pulling out her bow and selecting a special arrow from the quiver on her back "let us see what we got here" She murmured to herself drawing the arrow back and taking careful aim with her bow, she double checked that her calculations were correct in her head before nodding in pleasure. Lily released the arrow and it shot out rippling through the night, the black arrow sailed through the sky and then arced downing landing on the balcony of the villa right where she had been aiming for. She watched the red light on the shaft blink on before putting her bow down and pulling out her phone and connecting it to the arrow. She watched as the screen filled up as the arrow unleashed a high intensity sonar pulse that began mapping the entire house onto her phone screen, Lily waited until the sonar had finished mapping the house before she carefully studied the house forming her plan of attack and exit strategies just like her training dictated she do. The house was empty of any one, which gave her ample time to prepare and get ready for her target.

"Okay Ronald Stoppable" Lily said putting her phone away and looking at the house "Let's see what you got"

…

Dick

"I still can't believe you have a fucking plane" Dick said watch the back of Batman's head move back and forth as he adjusted their flight path, after Batman explained the "rules" to him (which mainly just involved following his every order and not getting himself killed) he led Dick into a back alley a few feet away from the media building where he revealed a hulking black ship hovering a few inches off the ground. The machine looked like a monstrosity a cross between a helicopter and a jetfighter bristling with weaponry and other strange things Dick couldn't even begin to figure out.

Before Dick could make a comment about Batman and his "ride" his new "mentor" was already in and activating the helicopters powerful engines. Dick knew his mentor or whatever Batman was would leave him if he didn't hurry so he quickly jumped up climbing into the back seat and watching as the canopy slid shut and sealed with a faint hiss. The helicopter lifted up and its engines roared to life blasting them out of the alleyway and towards Old Gotham.

"Gotham is a big city I usually use my grapple gun to get around but this has two seats" Batman replied in a nonchalant manner that made Dick snort, he was already pretty impressed with Batman and his arsenal before the "Bat-plane" (or whatever he called it) but now he felt like the costumed vigilante was just showing off. Which begged the question, what was his true identity? Dick figured he had to be rich, rich enough to afford the toys and the training that the Batman had displayed both with him and in the home videos he had managed to see of him in action. So whoever the Batman was he had major money to back up his little hobby and used that money to gain the training to boot.

Dick shrugged and put the information away, he was as curious as any one else would be to figure out the Batman's most coveted secret but he wanted to earn them for himself. If he was going to be his protégé then he would have to eventually trust him with his secrets and for now he was content to make his own deductions and wait to see if they were correct. He had no doubt that in time he would figure out the Batman's secret once he had earned him and taken his place as Batman's protégé it was his new mission in life the thing that would give him his purpose, he was okay with being a boxer but now he could be some thing more and he could do some good in this city.

"So who informed you The Joker was in Old Gotham?" Dick asked shifting in his seat and trying into to brush against any thing that looked sensitive.

"A friend of mine"

"A friend?" Dick asked raising an eyebrow at his short answer "I didn't think you had many of those" he joked.

"A good detective has good informants"

"Right" Dick snorted "of course your not exactly a detective are you?"

"Look if you don't like my methods-"

"Oh it wasn't a dig if any thing it was a compliment the police in this town did nothing to help the people of Old Gotham they need some one like you out there"

"Uh huh" Batman said in a tone that suggested he didn't believe him "my contact said he was starting to rile up a mob full of people what looked like normal citizens and not any gang members"

"Why not the criminals?" Dick asked curiously "wouldn't they work better if he wanted an army?"

"That would be true if he wanted an army" Batman said grimly "The Joker has a mission tonight a mission to show me that chaos and disorder will win every time versus law and order he isn't touching criminals because he doesn't want criminals he wants normal people to join him just so he could show me that all chaos is a persons true color"

"So all this just to prove a point?" Dick asked raising an eyebrow "That clown really is crazy"

"Not all criminals are in it for monetary value or power Robin" Batman said frowning and guiding them across the Gotham night sky "I used to believe that to when I first started my career but then the Joker appeared and more and more "super villains" followed in his wake and I realized money or power wasn't the only mission that could drive a person to extremes all it took was some one to escalate first"

"So what was yours?" Dick asked breaking off Batman's lecture as his curiosity got the better of him "as far as I can tell you're not in it for the money and you seem to serious to be in it for the thrills so why are you doing this? What's the Batman's mission?"

"Justice" Batman said in a tone that made it clear that was all he was going to say on the matter, Dick rolled his eyes and leaned back letting it go for now. He got more out of Batman than he had expected so he was fine to give the man a reprieve from his investigation into his life, more would come with time and Dick would learn the truth about the Batman what drove him and what guided him.

"Were meeting my contact in the alley way below" Batman said pulling the throttle back, the Bat-plane whined as its powerful engines slowed down moving into a angled position and causing the ship to hover above the alleyway. Batman reached over and hit a ship and a sheet of metal slid down over the canopy blocking their view of Gotham.

"Security measures in place, lockdown complete" A robotic female voice said over the speakers "opening hatch in five seconds for extraction"

"Hatch?" Dick said glancing at Batman and raising an eyebrow "what hatch?"

Before Batman could answer him, the floor below his feet slid open. Dick saw Batman unclip his seat belt and slide out of his chair plummeting out of the plane and glide down to the alleyway below. Dick watched Batman easily glide down and growled trying to keep his anger in check, the man was testing him trying to see if he had the guts to really work with him while also showing him that if he did work for him he wouldn't hold his hand. Dick was angry, angry that Batman was still testing him but he was impressed both in the ease of which Batman reached the ground and his lack of coddling the teenager.

"Okay Dick you may not have a cape but you're an acrobat" Dick murmured grabbing his seat belt and taking a deep breath "just aim for the metal railing and you will be fine" he told himself.

Dick unclipped his harness and took a deep breath; he closed his eyes and tried his best to picture himself back in the circus practicing up in the air while his parents watched on. He felt his fear and worry wash away and opened his eyes slipping out of his harness before he could lose his center, he dropped through the air for a few seconds before he landed on top of the rusted balcony. He flipped over the railing and made his way down using his skills to control his descent down landing on the street with a simple roll and walking over to Batman.

Batman was standing off to the shadows chatting with a stunning girl in a mate black body suit; it was molded to her body so that her every curve was showcased and the zipper was undone down to her belly button showing off smooth pale skin and a pair of stunning "assets", a belt was slung across her hips and a supple black whip hung from the back of her belt and gave her a tail like appearance, a simple black cat mask kept some of her features hidden and a pair of orange tinted goggles did nothing to hide her electric green eyes.

"Whoa" Dick said walking over to Batman and checking out the girl "this is your informant?" Dick asked turning to Batman and raising an eyebrow.

"Well hello handsome" the girl purred winking at Dick before turning back to Batman "since when did you get a side kick"

"He's not my partner" Batman growled narrowing his eyes and looking at the girl "just finish your report Catwoman"

"I'm new here" Dick said holding out his hand "My name is Robin I'm Batman's new partner and is he always this grouchy?"

Catwoman gave a soft bell like laughter before taking his hand "It's nice to meet you I'm the very sexy and infamous Catwoman and yes he is always this grouchy remind me to tell you about the first night we met-"

"Enough!" Batman growled glaring at them and folding his arms "you do realize there is a maniacal mad man waltzing down the streets gaining an army of crazed and fearful citizens is this really the time?"

"And the fun is over" Catwoman said rolling her eyes before turning to Batman "The Joker is a few blocks away most of the people on the lower west end have massed behind them he's been surprisingly charismatic as more and more people are coming to join his crew I managed to get most of the criminal off the streets after I whipped them into shape" She said shaking her ass and causing her whip to flick back and forth "thanks for the toy by the way"

"Of course he is" Batman said shortly ignoring her flirting "Let's move in and take him down hopefully the people of Gotham will disperse once he is down" Batman said turning to the opening of the Alleyway.

"Wait a second" Dick said running over to Batman "You're just going to go in there and beat up every one until they give up?" He asked trying to keep his voice even.

"Intimidation and fear will stop the citizens" Batman said scoffing slightly "once they see me and I scare them they will turn around and run back home leaving The Joker powerless he isn't that good of a fighter and he should be easy to take down"

"And then what?" Dick asked raising an eyebrow and glancing over at Catwoman "you beat him up and hand him over to the authorities and every thing goes back to normal"

"Is that not what's supposed to happen? Batman asked in confusion.

Dicked sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose "you've been operating as the Batman for two years now yet half the city still thinks you're a myth or a masked vigilante half of them hate you and the other half our not entirely convinced your real"

"What's your point?"

"My point is that you told me The Joker wants this to be a battle for the city as well as a battle of ideologies" Dick said pointing at the street "that's his mission if your mission is justice and order then you need to prove it to Gotham you need to confront the mob and convince them to go home convince them to give up looting and chaos and instead wait for this to be all over you do that and not only will you become Gotham's true hero but you will crush The Joker and you will deal him a crushing blow"

"The kids got a point Bat" Catwoman said sauntering over them and stopping next to them "if you just intimidate and hurt them until they leave when this is all over you'll be seen as a menace and more and more people will flock to The Joker and crime"

"So you want me to trust the people of Gotham?" Batman snorted trying to keep the hesitance out of his voice"That could go horribly wrong"

"Even more of a reason for you to do it" Dick said shaking his head "you don't believe in this city any more and that makes you rash and impulsive you do this for your self as well as the people of Gotham and you won't be disappointed"

Batman starred at them for several long minutes his jaw working up and down as if he was weighing his option. He finally nodded and turned towards the opening of the alley way his cape billowing out behind him as he continued his march. Dick turned to Catwoman and she shrugged stepping forward and joining the Dark Knight and his march, Dick's eyes narrowed and he joined them walking with them out of the alley and towards the direction of the army.

Towards their destiny

…

Metro City International Airport

Victoria

She fidgeted in her seat, trying her best not to look nervous as flocks of people moved all around her. She felt her chest tighten and she looked down picking at her breakfast and trying her best to look like a calm confident woman. It was a good thing her protector had managed to buy her some jeans and a T-shirt to replace her dirty pajamas or she would have looked out of place in the airport. She felt better with some real clothes and she had managed to make her self look presentable in the airport bathroom.

It was hard to believe that a few short hours ago some one had attempted to kill her and destroy her name. It was even scarier to realize they would have succeeded and if it hadn't been for the strange mysterious stranger she was traveling with, she would be dead with out him killed and another victim. Victoria liked to think of her self as a hard-hitting reporter (most journalist did) but now that she was in danger she could feel her courage rapidly decreasing with every second that passed. She was way out her depth, pulled into some conspiracy she could never have imagined in danger of dying and with no one she could trust.

It was strange to think that back in college she had wished for this pinned for it while busting her ass. Her dreams filled with investigating some deep mysterious conspiracy that would save people, she wanted to be a big name reporter and the fame and money that went along with that. Sure she cared about justice and peace and all that but Victoria had a mission and it was fame and wealth and obtaining a lot of both. If some good came out of that then she was happy but she knew who she was and even though some may call her greedy she could live with that. Every one wanted more for the most part yet few actually reached the next level, of course none of them had her legendary drive.

"You can do this" Victoria murmured narrowing her eyes and curling her fist "This is what you've been waiting for your chance to become a legendary reporter if you keep calm and professional and see this thing through you'll be famous and rich but you have to get a drip"

She pictured herself in her dream home and smiled feeling her confidence returning with every second. She hadn't expected men to be shooting at her and trying to kill her but she would be safe in Africa and surrounded by the biggest story of the century. Plus Ron Stoppable trusted her for some reason, which meant that the story was all hers! She would give him the publicity of a lifetime and in return she would become famous and rich when they freed Africa. All she needed to do was keep clam and focus on her mission and soon her dream life would be in grasp.

"You look like you're in a better mood" Her protector said sliding into the chair across from her and placing his water bottle down "I am glad to see you have calmed down it will make traveling much easier I think"

Victoria resisted the bolt of lust that ran down her body at the sound of his sexy voice and chewed her lip; there was another benefit of continuing on her path and it had to do with her handsome and mysterious protector. After they reached the airport he disappeared ducking into a bathroom and coming out seconds later in regular clothing, he was wearing a simple black T-shirt that did little to hide his muscular physique and a matching pair of black faded jeans, his face was still covered though but this time only in a simple black hair and large sunglasses that his some of his features but couldn't disguise his handsome distinguished features.

"Enough about me" Victoria said leaning in with her best sexy flirt "I haven't properly thanked you for saving me yet handsome" She purred. She knew she was being… Blunt with her advances but it had been months since she had any sexy that combined with him being the sexiest man she had ever laid eyes on (even though she still couldn't see his features!) was enough to make her need a release sooner rather than later.

And their flight wasn't for another two hours

"There is no need to thank me" The Stranger said taking a sip of his water bottle "I was only doing what my employer employed me to do plus I could not allow a innocent life to be killed it would dishonor me to let you die when I could have done some thing to prevent it"

"Uh yeah" Victoria said frowning a little, the man was very… Zen like not at all how she would have imagined a mercenary to be. Where was the bad boy mercenary type she saw on T.V? Some thing told her he wouldn't get her advances so she dropped it.

For now

"Do not worry Ms. Valentine" The Stranger said looking at her "It should be how you say smooth sailing from here on out?"

"Well I'm sure you can handle any situation that comes along" Victoria said eyeing him up and down again as if he was nothing more but a piece of meat "so what are you getting out of this job? Is it money? I would assume that's what mercenaries work for"

"No Ms. Valentine nothing so material" He said shaking his head and chuckling "I simply owe Ronald Stoppable a favor plus I am hopping to challenge him in battle again while I am there"

"Challenge him to battle?" Victoria asked raising an eyebrow and making note of his use of the word again "Why do you want to fight him?"

"When I was a child my father decided he wanted to see the world" The Stranger explained "we were very wealthy and he, my mother, and I traveled in luxury across continents and oceans but my father wanted more he wanted to see every thing there was to see our travels started taking us outside of the normal places and into more dangerous and inhospitable conditions finally one day my father decided that he wanted us to climb the infamous Mount Everest my mother argued against it I was only six at the time and not even grown men would try it but my father wouldn't hear a word against it we packed and began the climb leaving the regular world behind us"

"You climbed Mount Everest when you were six years old?" Victoria said her jaw dropping open a little as she tried to imagine doing that as a kid.

"I did" The Stranger said smiling a little "very well to but about half way up we experienced a catastrophic mishap my father broke his leg in a botched climb and we were stranded during a huge snow storm my father tried to get up and look for help but he was out of commission and so I was forced to go out into the snow storm and find some help from the team who was shadowing us" He shuddered at the memory before he took a deep breath and continued "I wandered out into the snow storm and tried to find my way over to their base camp but the snow storm was bad and I soon became lost and disoriented I don't know how long I walked but eventually I became tired and collapsed in the snow"

"So how did you survive?" Victoria asked leaning in curiously unable to hide her burning curiosity.

"I came to about a day later in a warm wooden hut surrounded by people in strange clothing I did not recognize it they spoke in English but they had an accent I couldn't place they explained to me that I had fallen close to their village and that they had brought me to their village to save me from the cold" He paused and looked away before turning back to her "I asked them about my parents and I found out they did not make it though and they froze to death during the snowstorm"

"I'm sorry" Victoria said touching his hand "I'm sorry for your loss my father… He died when I was six to he was a soldier who died in a car bombing in Iraq"

"Then you know how devastating that can be when your young" He said touching his hand back and smiling softly "in one foul swoop I was an orphan and trapped in a strange place deep away from society and all I knew, as I recovered I found out that my rescue had come at a price the village I found my self in had a strict rule no one could leave the village once they entered it my rescuer saved me but In doing so he was exiled in return for my passage in to the village the village chief a man named Lie Kung was kind enough to adopted me and took me on as one of his student"

"Student?" Victoria asked raising an eyebrow "a student of what?"

"The village as it turned out was founded by a group of martial art experts who wanted to reach another level of perfection and discipline, they decided to build a village far away from civilization and all material desires even though it was centuries ago the village continued that tradition every child began his training into martial arts from the minute they could walk and continued practicing over and over again throughout the years never ending their training until they passed from the mortal plane even though I was an outsider and already way behind in my training in their eyes I was a citizen of the village now and therefore I would be required to train like all of them"

"So you became a martial artist?" Victoria said raising an eyebrow "because you had no choice?"

"I was a orphan boy who was stuck in a strange land" He said shrugging "so even though I had no choice I took to the training I was behind already and I knew the longer I stayed behind the more and more I would be prosecuted for being different so I worked harder than any one else pushing my self as hard as I could to get to the top of all my classes I used to spend hours in my room punching buckets of sand and rock in order to strengthen my fist, it turns out I was actually really good at it and by the time I was 16 I was the top student in the village and my adopted fathers best pupil"

"So what happened?" Victoria asked raising an eyebrow "How did you end up leaving the village?"

"When I turned 18 I decided that I had learned all that I could in the village" he said "I realized that in order to bring the enlightenment my people wanted so much I needed to set out into the world and perfect my skills with other people even if it meant I could never return I left the village and told them I would be back once I reached the mystical next level of martial arts now I travel the world fighting and training learning all that I can and trying to fulfill my mission in hopes that when I do I can free the people in my village and show them a new way of life"

"And what does Ron and fighting him have to do with this?" Victoria asked in confusion "I thought he was only a side kick and Kim Possible was the one with the fighting skills?"

"A few months ago one of my contacts informed me he was looking for a challenge to test his own skills" He explained "It is not well known but Ron is known in most circles as a master of monkey kung fu so I approached him with a challenge and he managed to defeat me after a lengthy battle" he paused and straightened a little in his seat "he is the only one that ever has managed to defeat me and I believe my enlightenment lies with him"

"I see" Victoria said checking her watch "it's about time to go to our gate" She said getting up "what's your name by the way? I can't keep calling you hunky stranger" She said with a wink.

"You can call me Danny and your right it's time to go"