Disclaimer: I DO NOT in any form or fashion OWN any of these characters ALL CREDIT goes to DC. DC owns everything I repeat I do not own these characters. I am not making any money of this story I can promise you. So please do not sue me I ask again please do not sue me.
Hey Readers it's me Nomad88 and as Promised I'm back with another chapter in my Batman Beyond story and it didn't take 6 months LOL! This is basically the last chapter of this story….of this volume after this chapter is the epilogue were I attend to the final story threads while at the same time opening up new ones. I hope all of you enjoyed the last chapter and the Death of Bruce Wayne which will be addressed in this chapter and the next chapter. Anyway, enough of me talking but before I go I would just like to say Read, Review (A writer's Main source of Motivation) and most importantly ENJOY!
Chapter 25: Death of a Ghost and Rise of a Legacy
Neo-Gotham Slums- Office of Dr. Leslie Thompkins
Damian Wayne took a few steps forward and he reached out and touched the sheet that covered the lifeless body of his father Bruce Wayne. He grabbed the edge of the white sheet and he pulled it back letting his eyes roam over his dead father again with a stoic expression on his face. Damian's eyes locked onto his face and several emotions swirled within him but the emotion he settled on…focused on the most was anger. Anger, was an emotion that Damian had known for a long time; it was an emotion he was very comfortable with, and anger had been a part of him since before he could remember and the majority of it was centered on the man that lied before him….his father.
'For the longest time…for I don't know how many years. I've always wanted you to die, for you to be dead and now…..you are' he thought to himself still staring unblinkingly at him. Damian unconsciously balled up him fist, 'I've finally gotten my wish…..so shouldn't I be happy instead of just being…so….' he started before he felt soft withered hands wrap around his balled up fist.
Damian turned to the right to see Dr. Leslie Thompkins; she looked up at him with a solemn expression on her face and tears brimming around her eyes. While he may have been angry she was obviously quite sad, as she should be seeing as how she had known Bruce longer than he had; him and his alter ego Batman. Leslie gripped Damian's hand and then turned her eyes back to the dead Bruce Wayne, she could remember vividly the first day they had met, how he had landed in the alley not to far away from her 'hospital' beaten and bleeding but still managing to defeat the thugs that were trying to kill her; and now she was here for his death, and she would vividly remember this day for the remaining days of her life.
'Dammit Bruce….I told you this would happen if you didn't give it up' Leslie thought to herself squeezing Damian's hand again. Leslie sucked in a breath and used her free hand to wipe the stray tear that rolled down her cheek away.
Terry stood at the foot of the bed staring at his dead mentor long and hard, for him, this was a surreal moment and it was still sinking in, Bruce Wayne...no Batman, the original Batman was dead. It just didn't make sense to him, he couldn't be dead, he refused to believe it but….his eyes didn't lie to him.
"This….This isn't real, this is insane, he can't be dead" Terry whispered taking a shaky step forward.
"And why can't he be dead McGinnis?"
Terry turned his head to the left and his eyes locked onto Damian. Damian pulled his hand out of Leslie's grasp and he pulled his hood back over his head shrouding his face before turning to Terry.
"Why can't he?" Damian asked again his blue eyes stoically boring into the younger man.
"Because he's…he's…Bruce Wayne."
"No, I think you wanted say it was because he's Batman" Damian corrected still looking at him. Terry pursed his lips into a thin line and then he released a sigh.
"Yeah"
"Batman…is just that, A Man, and sooner or later all men die, even one as stubborn as Bruce Wayne" he replied turning his eyes back to his father letting his anger return to him. Damian's steely blue eyes roamed over the bruises and radiation burns adorned on his father's body and he immediately determined that Derek Powers was responsible but as his mind roamed over Powers something else caught his attention. He turned his head a bit again and he looked at Terry.
"How did you know where to find me McGinnis?" he asked scrunching his face up in confusion.
"After I found out where Bruce went Yinn asked me to pick you up" He answered.
"Wait you mean that you knew where he went…and instead of helping him you came and got me. WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING MCGINNIS!?" Damian snapped.
"HEY! It's not like I wanted to get you….like I said Yinn practically begged me to come and help you" Terry replied back.
Damian recoiled slightly at what Terry just said.
'Yinn…' he started to think before he instantly realized what Yinn was thinking, 'Dammit Yinn….I'll deal with him later, right now I'm gonna take care of Power as I should've done earlier.' he thought to himself turning away from his father and heading for the exit.
"WAIT!" Leslie shouted out making Damian stop in his tracks and turn.
"What is it?"
"You can't leave yet…Carolyn has to inject you…inject all of us rather with an anti-radiation drug…to counter the intense radiation that…" she started.
"I've already been inoculated and the kid's suit is radiation resistant." Damian replied, "Leslie I'll be back later…in the meantime can you do something about…."
"Don't worry, I've prepared for something like this years ago…..Carolyn and I will take care of everything."
"Thanks" Damian replied continuing out of the door passing by Carolyn who was injecting herself with a radiation inoculation drug.
Outside
Damian had a singular thought in his mind as he walked down the steps of Dr. Thompkins secret hospital building and that thought was to confront Derek Powers. While he didn't necessarily get along with his father and neither did he particularly like him that in no shape or form meant that he would allow someone to kill him or do him harm.
Damian stepped towards the cloaked Batmobile gritting his teeth and balling up his fist, the sting and pain of his injuries sustained during his battle earlier in the evening with Zander long forgotten in favor of the impending confrontation with the radioactive powered Derek Powers.
"HEY!" came a shout.
Damian ignored the shout and continued to walk, but suddenly he heard a whizzing and he whipped around and snagged the red batarang out of the air.
"The hell are you doing McGinnis" he snapped in a low voice.
"I could ask you the same thing" Batman replied reaching the taller and more seasoned vigilante.
"What does it look like I'm doing, I'm leaving" he replied tossing the batarang down to the ground and whipping around.
"You're going after Powers aren't you" Batman stated more than asked.
"…."
"I'm going with you"
"You're just going to slow me down"
"Bullshit" Batman responded falling in next to Damian heading for the batmobile as well. Damian glanced at him out of the corner of his eyes and then shook his head.
"Suit yourself" he replied.
The two reached the batmobile and jumped into the vehicle; the top slid close and the engines came to life. The batmobile rose into the air and flew away into the night.
In the Air- Batmobile
Batman pushed on the levers and turned the controls to the left making the vehicle turn left and head for the Wayne-Powers building. He was still in a state of shock, because he still couldn't believe that Bruce Wayne…the original Batman was dead, it just didn't make sense to him but it didn't have to make sense because his lifeless body was all the truth he needed. He shook his head a bit and then gave a quick look at his second passenger, Damian Wayne aka the Gray Ghost.
'I wonder what's going through his head right now.' He thought to himself 'Can't be anything good considering his father was just killed, but then again it doesn't seem like they were on good terms to begin with'
"What are you looking at McGinnis?" Damian asked.
"That's Batman, and I was just thinking about what you thought about your father dying, but before you say anything you mind telling me who those people were back there. You were pretty lax with your identity there….and mine, you kept calling me by my name"
"….the woman in the wheelchair is Dr. Leslie Thompkins and the other woman is her daughter Dr. Carolyn Thompkins…they're friends and have been friends longer than you've been alive. Your name means nothing to them so….relax; and as far as what's going in my head, its none of your damn business, just get us to Wayne-Powers." He snapped.
"So it's safe to say you're pissed" Batman replied brushing off his last comment "And here I thought you hated him"
"Mind your own business McGinnis" Damian snapped again with a little more force in his voice.
Batman pursed his lips into a thin line as a tense silence passed within the batmobile but it didn't last very long as Batman broke the silence.
"Okay, I see you don't want to talk about Bruce and I know you don't want to talk about you, so I guess we'll have to talk about….."
"How about we talk about nothing, how about we practice something called silence" Damian interrupted.
"Or…..you can tell me how it went with Kobra, didn't you say you had a lead on them and that Zander guy?" he asked.
Damian glanced at him for a second before turning back to the screen and releasing a sigh.
"It went as expected."
Flashback- Earlier in the Day 10:00- West Gotham
Detective Bullock and the Gray Ghost sat in the police issued vehicle staring at the inconspicuous looking Spa that was across the street.
"I can't believe this is one of the places that a terrorist organization would set up shop" Detective Bullock said while shaking her head.
"I think you mean could set up…..we don't know for sure, it's a potential location but I can believe it though if it is…..hiding in plain sight that's Kobra's MO. Though judging by the size of this place I would say it's more of a place of recruitment than their main base in Neo-Gotham."
"On a scale of 1 to 10…how bad are these guys?" she asked turning to him.
"Well all terrorist organizations are bad Detective…but these guys are about a 20. They just don't wanna harm innocents but they want to enslave them; kill anyone who wants anything remotely close to free will. They want to ensure that the only will that matters is the one of King Kobra"
"So these guys are the worst of the worst"
The Gray Ghost nodded his head.
"Great. So, what's the plan?" she asked.
"You going in their and asking if they are part of Kobra" he answered.
Detective Bullock looked at him quizzically and scoffed a bit.
"Seriously"
"Yes, I want you to go in there and ask the clerk at the front desk are they with Kobra. If they aren't the most that will happen is the clerk will look at you like you're crazy"
"But what happens if they are with Kobra?"
"Then they might try to kill you" he replied nonchalantly.
"It's nice to know my life means nothing to you"
"Detective…I'll be right behind you, no harm will come to you and just as a reminder….I told you not come but, you insisted" he said holding up his wrist and grabbing the dial on his watch.
"Wait how are you going to be behind me if they…" she started right as the light around him bended and he vanished from sight.
"Like I said Detective….I'm full of secrets, now let's go we don't have much time" he said opening the door to her squad car and then getting out.
"What have I gotten myself into" she whispered opening her own door and stepping out of the car.
Few Seconds Later- Inside the Spa
Detective Montoya Bullock entered the rather large spa and she looked around at what she assumed to be the waiting room. There were no chairs, no plants or any other type of furnishings; the only thing she saw was an open room with a desk at the far end and a door on the right side of the room.
'Weird' she thought to herself while walking towards the desk.
Montoya reached the desk and a lady in her late 20s rose up from the ground and smiled a sweet smile at her.
"Hello, how may I help you?"
"Hi" Montoya replied "I uh….um, I'm looking to start a membership to this Spa"
The clerk's smile dropped a little before she began to speak.
"I'm sorry but we're not open to the…public"
"Excuse me….this is a public place right?" Montoya asked with raised eyebrows.
"Well it depends on the class of public" The clerk replied.
Montoya scoffed a bit and then pursed her lips together.
"You guys must be Kobra" she stated seriously. The clerk's eyes widen a bit at the name she had dropped and as calmly as she could, used her right hand to hit the button that was under the desk.
"Kobra…what is that?" she asked trying her best to keep her smile.
The Gray Ghost caught the motion of the clerk's arm hitting the silent alarm.
'Well it looks like this is one of the safe houses' he thought to himself.
Click. The Gray Ghost turned to the slight sound, it was almost faint but his ears being trained to catch even the faintest of sounds turned around; his eyes widen as he saw several sections of the floor open up. He reached up to his goggles and tapped the side, his vision changed to a different spectrum and he was able to see the cloaked Kobra henchman creeping out from underneath the floor with weapons drawn and eyes locked up Detective Bullock.
'Well, this is interesting' he thought while curling his fingers into fists.
The Gray Ghost walked towards the first cloaked Kobra soldier and threw out a powerful sidekick; the kick struck the solider in the stomach and sent him flying back and to the ground causing him to gasp loudly in pain.
"AH!"
Detective Bullock whipped around when she heard the pained gasp and looked around but she saw nothing.
"What was that?" she whispered but she didn't receive an answer all she heard was more pained gasps and the sound of bones breaking.
"AH!"
CRACK!
"OOOMPH!"
SNAP!
"GAH!"
Montoya turned back around just as the clerk pulled out a weapon and aimed it at her.
"DIE!" the young clerk shouted.
"FUCK!" Montoya shouted ducking right as a laser beam erupted from the weapon.
BLAM! Went the sound.
The Kobra clerk cocked her weapon again and then ran around the desk that was in front of her and to her enemy, but just as she came around Montoya lunged up and speared her across the waist causing her to shoot upwards while they both went to the ground.
BLAM!
The Kobra woman smacked Montoya in the face with an elbow and then tried to aim her weapon but Montoya took the shot and grabbed hold of the weapon and managed to keep it away from her.
BLAM! Went the weapon going off again. The two women struggled with each other for control of the weapon, suddenly Montoya rose up and lifted her left knee and slammed it into the younger woman's side earning a gasp of pain. She lifted her knee again and slammed it into her side once more earning another gasp; the younger woman's grip loosened on the weapon and Montoya ripped it from her hands. She raised the weapon high and then brought the butt of the weapon across the girl's face as hard as she could knocking her out.
"Bitch"
The Gray Ghost punched another Kobra goon in the face and then lifted him up and threw him into the wall. The hood vigilante spun on his heel and delivered a solid roundhouse kick to the face of the last Kobra goon. He looked around to see that they were all unconscious and so he lifted his wrist up and turned the dial de-activating the cloaking device.
He turned around and then walked to the heavily breathing Montoya Bullock.
"Where the hell were you!?" she snapped
"Dealing with cloaked Kobra soldiers" he replied bending down and grabbing the head of an unconscious Kobra soldier. He pulled the mask off to reveal the face of a young man in his late 20s. Montoya stared at the younger man and then looked back up at the Gray Ghost.
"Cloaked Soldiers…you mean they were invisible like you were"
"Yes…No…. they weren't invisible just cloaked…bending of light to…forget it they're dealt with let's search this place" he stated tossing the mask to the ground and passing her.
The Gray Ghost made his way to the single door in the 'waiting room' and lifted his foot and kicked it open.
Staircase
The Gray Ghost peered down the winding set of stairs and then glanced over his shoulder at Detective Bullock who drew her weapon and cocked it back. He turned back to the stairs and he proceeded downwards.
Downstairs
The duo reached the bottom floor and found themselves in front of a metal door with a security pad on the side. The Gray Ghost reached into his utility belt and removed a small spray container; he held it up to the security pad and he sprayed it once over the numbers. He then reached up and tapped his goggles, making the vision switch to where he could see fingerprints on several numbers; he wasted no time in entering the numbers.
SWISH! Went the sound of the door opening.
"Do you smell that?" Gray Ghost asked.
"No"
The Gray Ghost quickly reached into one of the pouches on his utility belt again and he removed two nose plugs. He put one of the pair into his nose and they gave a beep, he then turned around and handed the other pair to the detective.
"Hurry, put this in your nose…it will protect you and administer an antidote" he stated.
"Antidote to what?"
"To the gas that was just released" he answered.
Montoya took the nose plugs and she put them into her nose, the plugs hooked around her nose and then gave a beep.
The Gray Ghost then ventured through the door and Montoya quickly followed behind him.
"GOOD LORD!" Montoya shouted in shock and disgust.
"Welcome to Kobra" The Gray Ghost replied in a jaded tone.
When the two walked through the door they immediately saw dozens of lifeless bodies on the ground. They were all contorted in a painful looking seizure and were foaming at the mouth, the people on the ground ranged from ages 18 to about 28, men and women cut down in their prime.
The Gray Ghost walked forward a bit and knelt down next to one of the bodies, he inserted the tip of his sharp gloved finger into the neck drawing some blood. His goggles toggled through several visions before stopping a pulling up the blood he had just gathered.
"I knew it"
"What is it?" Detective Bullock asked still looking at all of the dead inviduals.
"They were poisoned with a weaponized aerosol arsenic, it works quickly. They've only been dead about 2 minutes."
"Who are they?"
The Gray Ghost looked down at the uniforms they were wearing and then he lifted his head.
"New recruits…trainees being groomed here in Gotham and then being shipped off to Kobra headquarters….wherever the hell that is" he answered.
"Are they dead because of us…did we trigger this?"
"No, they aren't dead because of us…they're dead because they made the piss-poor decision to join Kobra. This is what happens to people in their organization, instead of being captured or detained they kill themselves or they are killed, this was their decision"
"Come on…look at them, they're just kids; they must've been brainwashed or something"
"It is a possibility. Kobra does implement brainwashing but that's only for key individuals. People whom they need to influence, I doubt that's what happened here. I bet these 'kids' as you put it were probably orphans…runaways…maybe."
"That's even worse, they aren't evil, they're just looking for a place to belong"
"Well, they found it…they belong to the dead now" he said in a low cynical voice, "Come on let's go…Zander isn't here and we shouldn't linger"
Upstairs
The Kobra clerk woman spit out some blood as she crawled towards her desk; after reaching her desk she felt under it for a second button and she let her finger hover over it for a second.
"FOR KOBRA!" she said pressing the button.
Downstairs
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
The Gray Ghost heard the beeping and a message flashed across his goggles.
'Air pressure rising…..OH SHIT!' he thought urgently. He suddenly whipped around and jumped on top of a visibly shocked Montoya Bullock and covered them both with his cloak. Once they both were covered he hit a button on his wrist gauntlets and a thin shield activated right as the entire building erupted in an explosion.
KABOOOOOM! BABOOOOOOM!
Few seconds later
The Gray Ghost lifted his cloak and shook the debris off of himself.
"You alright?" he asked looked down at the heavily breathing Montoya.
"Yeah, fine. Thanks" Detective Bullock replied before looking around at the destroyed Kobra recruiting base. One minute they were surrounded by dead bodies and the next they were in a crater surrounded by ash and debris, "Did we…trip a wire?" she asked standing to her feet.
"Unlikely…probably a fail-safe of some sort; a way to eliminate any evidence."
"Jesus…."
"One of the most dangerous terrorist organization in the world….right up there with the League of Shadows and Leviathan"
"League of Shadows? Leviathan? Do I even want to know?"
"No, it's not important…..we need to leave"
The Gray Ghost reached to his utility belt and pulled out a grappling hook and fired; he wrapped his arm around the Detective and pulled them both out of the crater and to safety.
Present – Batmobile
Batman turned the controls to the right and made the Batmobile make a sharp right turn and continue it's rapid pace to the Wayne Powers building.
"So what happened after that?" he asked glancing through the corner of his eyes again. Damian heaved a sigh, shifting a bit in his uncomfortable and cramped spot in the batmobile before answering.
"What do you think, we continued the search for that bastard Zander. We kept on going down the list that Detective Bullock had printed off."
"And they all were Kobra recruiting spots?"
"No, not all of them, but a few of them were" he replied folding his arms across his chest.
Earlier 1:30pm- Kobra Base #3- Warehouse
The Gray Ghost jumped to the side dodging a laser that was meant for his chest and he threw a throwing star at the offending Kobra soldier nailing him in the hand and causing him to let go of his weapon. The Gray Ghost rushed forward and delivered a powerful and solid sidekick to the man's stomach. The Kobra solider went flying back and right into a group of Kobra soldiers knocking them all down.
He then whipped around with a backfist that nailed a Kobra soldier trying to sneak up on him. The hooded vigilante looked up to see his companion Detective Bullock holding her own by hiding behind what looked like an overturned bookcase, she was using it as cover while she shot any Kobra soldier within her range.
POW! POW! POW! POW! CLICK!
"Damn it" Detective Bullock growled returning to her cover; she unclipped her empty weapon and loaded in a full clip. A laser beam suddenly burst through the side of her cover, "JEEZ!" she shouted as she was showered with wooden splinters. She took a deep breath and rose up over her cover and unleashed her bullets upon the approaching Kobra men. She managed to hit two of them in the chest and then another in the head but as those three fell two more took their place and continued their firing upon her.
'Maybe I should've just stayed in the car'
The Gray Ghost grabbed a Kobra solider by the throat and effortlessly lifted him and used as a shield as he charged forward into the group of Kobra soldiers. He tossed the injured soldier to the side and jumped in the air and delivered a solid kick to the first soldier he saw; he landed on the ground and dropped down sweeping two soldiers off of their feet. He back-flipped out the way of a laser beam and he landed in a crouch and threw several more throwing stars that nailed the weapons of the men that were trying to kill him. .
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BOOOM!
"GAHH!" several of them shouted feeling their weapons explode in their hands.
'This is getting us nowhere' The Gray Ghost thought to himself steeping to the side and kicking a Kobra solider in the chest, 'We're wasting time…the more of these bases we hit the more likely it is for the main Kobra base here in Gotham to get wind of us…hmmm, perhaps that's what we want' he thought to himself shoving his elbow into the nose of Kobra soldier behind him.
The Gray Ghost jumped into the air flipping over several of the Kobra soldiers trying to surround him and he landed on the ground and ran towards Detective Bullock.
Detective Bullock turned to the right to see The Gray Ghost come into view and slide right next to her.
"I've known you for like five minutes and already I've been in 3 gun fights"
"And here I thought you liked danger" he replied. Detective Bullocks response was a smirk.
"Look I've got a plan." He stated while reaching into his utility belt again. He pulled out several black balls as well as two light blue throwing stars. He used his right hand to throw the black balls all around them shrouding the two of them in thick black smoke.
Detective Bullock had to shield her eyes and nose from the thick smoke.
The Gray Ghost threw his light blue throwing stars and then grabbed Detective Bullock by the waist and held up his grappling hook. He fired the hook upwards and towards the skylight where it smashed through the glass and hooked onto the edge of the roof. He tugged on the line and it pulled them upwards.
Roof- Across the street
The Gray Ghost landed on the roof and he released his hold upon the Detective and walked towards the edge, he peered across the street and at the shipping warehouse.
"Why did we leave, the fight was just starting to get good" Montoya said breathing heavily.
"Right" he replied dryly. The Gray Ghost reached up to his right ear and he removed an ear piece and then tossed it to her, "Put it in"
She looked down at the ear piece for a second before complying and putting it in her ear, once it was secure she immediately could hear the panicked voices of the Kobra soldiers from inside the shipping warehouse.
Warehouse
"WHERE DID THEY GO!" shouted one of the Kobra henchman while fanning the smoke away from himself and looking all around for the intruders but neither he or any of the other Kobra henchmen knew where they went. They all searched around the warehouse but they didn't see anyone.
"What do we do?"
"Who were they?"
"EVERYONE QUIET!" shouted the Kobra soldier that was in charge. He looked up to see a broken skylight and he knew that the intruders had fled the scene, "That was the Gray Ghost"
"Who?"
"Fucking new recruits" the Kobra leader snarled "CALL HEADQUARTERS NOW! WE NEED A NEW SET OF INSTRUCTIONS THIS BASE IS COMPROMISED!" he roared in anger.
The clueless Kobra soldiers nodded their heads and began to run about the warehouse but while they were doing that no of them noticed the blinking light blue throwing stars imbedded in the wall.
Roof- Across the Street
"They're calling their base" Montoya stated in slight shock turning to her hooded companion.
"All the fighting we were doing was getting us no where fast. Taking out Kobra bases is good and all but it's not our primary objective, our main goal is to find Zander."
"Yeah, so you keep saying, but what about them we can't just let them keep operating in Gotham"
"No choice at this point. I'll take care of them later, but not right now" he said.
"I know that's supposed to give me some relief…..but it doesn't" Montoya replied, "In fact…"
"Hush, I think they're making the call now" The Gray Ghost interrupted while putting a hand to his earpiece.
Detective Montoya threw him a dirty look before focusing on her earpiece and the voices from the warehouse.
Warehouse
The Kobra leader of the warehouse was standing in front of a computer screen staring at the hideous General Zander.
"General"
"What issssss it?" Zander hissed in a dangerously low tone that was almost demonic in nature. The Kobra soldier shied away a bit but he gather his courage and stood up straight.
"Sir, we've just had two intruders"
"Intrudersssssss"
"Yes sir it was the…."
"Gray Ghossssst" Zander interrupted venomously, "Thisssss isssss the third Kobra basssse he has hit today…he issss looking for me"
"I don't think so sir….he didn't ask about you….or maybe he was going to, that is until we chased him off"
"Chasssssed him off?!"
"Yes sir"
"You buffoon, you and a few recruitsssss can not chassse him off, either he isss ssstill in there with you or…"
"Or what?"
"He'ssss tracing thisss call, which isss likely the cassse"
"He's tracing this call?" The Kobra leader repeated "But….how is…what do we do?"
"End the call…..goodbye" said Zander.
The Kobra soldier opened his mouth to respond but his words were replaced by a powerful explosion.
BABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Outside- Across the Street
"End the Call" The Gray Ghost repeated to himself, "SHIT! GET DOWN!" he yelled diving at Detective Bullock just as the Warehouse across the street went up in a powerful and violent explosion, the force of the blast rattling the building they were on and shattering the glass. The Gray Ghost's cloak billowed as they continued to feel the wind from the explosion; Detective Bullock managed to roll her head to the side where she saw a giant column of black smoke and fire coming from where the warehouse once stood.
"My God" she whispered shielding her eyes from the heavy wind.
Present- Batmobile
"Jeez, these Kobra guys are willing to kill their own men?" Batman questioned.
"Of course they are, like I told Detective Bullock capture is not an option for them and just to stop the possibility of someone opening their mouth they'll kill them"
"We have to stop them"
"You mean I'll have to stop them" Damian corrected.
Batman turned his head and gave him a hard look but Damian wasn't even looking in his direction.
'Jackass' Batman thought to himself pushing on the controls a bit harder.
"So what happened after the warehouse explosion?"
Flashback
The Gray Ghost helped the Detective to her feet again and together the two walked back to the edge of the roof they were on and looked at the completely demolished warehouse.
"Damn it" he whispered slamming his fist on the edge, "My device didn't complete the hack"
"What device?" Detective Bullock.
"I planted a remote hacker in the warehouse along with a listening device. I knew that they would contact their main base here in Neo-Gotham" he said raising his left wrist and tapping the top portion of his hand. A holo-graphic mini-computer sprang up and he began to type into the computer.
Detective Bullock raised her eyebrows at the holographic computer.
"You really are full of surprises" she said, "I bet that comes in handy"
"From time to time" He said over his shoulder while continuing to type into the computer.
On the screen a red dot was shown and the Gray Ghost determined that the red dot represented the warehouse; his fingers flashed across the screen and a map of Neo-Gotham was shown.
"What are you doing?" Montoya asked.
"I was only able to get a partial trace on where they could be…hopefully if I can narrow the area down and then cross reference it with the list you printed off"
"We'll find them quicker" she finished.
BEEP! BEEP!
"Got it…Central Gotham"
"Alright….let's head to my car and check the list"
The Gray Ghost nodded his head and swiftly turned around heading for the metal ladder that would take him downwards. Detective Montoya followed behind him but she threw one last looked at the destroyed warehouse and the still rising column of smoke.
'What have I gotten myself into?'
Later- 3:30pm- Neo Gotham Convention Center Building
"Here?" Detective Bullock questioned as she and the Gray Ghost sat in her car surveying the busy and populated convention center.
"Perfect place for an organization like Kobra to hide" her hooded companion replied folding his arms across his chest, "The perfect place to monitor for someone who doesn't belong and also the perfect place for leverage."
"You mean using innocent civilians"
"Yeah"
"Wait….we don't know for sure that this is their main base"
"True but I have a gut instinct about these things…this is the place" he stated strongly.
Montoya leaned back in her seat and released a sigh, her injuries were still hurting her but she had put that to the back of her mind in favor of her current mission, which was to find Kobra.
"So what's the plan?" she asked.
"The plan is to wait until nightfall and I'll sneak in while you wait here"
"What"
"Detective, while, going against my better judgment I've allowed you to come along with me on the skirmishes with the other Kobra bases…well if my hunch is correct then for your safety you're going to stay here"
"Screw that, I'm a grown woman I know what's safe and what's not and you're not going in there alone"
"I knew you would say that" he replied shaking his head
"Good becau….." she started, her mouth opened and before she could finish her sentence a flash of movement caught her attention. The Gray Ghost's left hand shot from his chest and stabbed her in the leg with a syringe and he pressed down on the plunger, "GAH!" she gasped. Montoya growled and pulled out her gun but the Gray Ghost grabbed and bent her wrist making her drop the weapon.
"Just relax" he said calmly.
"FUCK YOU! WHAT DID YOU INJECT ME WITH!" she screamed.
"A sedative" he answered in that same calm tone.
"A SEDATIVE!"
"I'm serious about this Detective, I move better on my own and I can't keep worrying about you, not if I'm going to go up against Zander so you are going to stay here. The sedative I gave you is pretty potent so you should be feeling….."
"Whoa….my….head" Montoya said.
"Light headed" he finished.
Montoya heard his very very faint voice; she shook her head as her vision began to swim.
'No' she thought slowly to herself. She grabbed at her seatbelt but for the life of her seat could get a good grip on it.
"Re….lax….De….tective" came the Gray Ghost faint voice again. She turned her head towards him and she looked at him; with the last bit of strength she could muster she reached up with her right hand and clumsily grabbed at his hood. She pulled it back and off his head only briefly getting a look at him before she passed out and saw nothing but blackness.
The Gray Ghost caught her head and he gently leaned it back towards her seat cushion. He then pulled his hood back over his head and eyed the convention center.
'Now here comes the par that I hate…the waiting'
Nightfall
The Gray Ghost surveyed the Neo-Gotham Convention Building from a heavily shadowed roof. He used his specially designed goggles to search for a discreet way into the building. He tilted his head upwards towards the roof and he spotted something moving; tapping his goggles they switched to a different spectrum of light and he could see the cloaked Kobra soldiers guarding the roof.
'Hiding in plain sight…..well I'm not getting in that way, and no doubt they have people blended into crowd and they are definitely looking for me. So, that only leaves one way for me to get into this place'
The Gray Ghost looked down towards the street and his eyes zeroed in on a manhole that was out of the way.
'Great' he thought to himself before jumping off the edge of the building.
Sewers
SPLASH! Went the sound of the Gray Ghost feet hitting the freely flowing sewer water; he looked around for a second and then started towards the right.
While trudging through the thick, stinky and dirty sewers of Neo-Gotham the Gray Ghost kept his eyes open for anything that looked out of place, anything that would lead him to the Kobra base. He came to a stop and looked upwards.
'I'm right under the convention center now, there should be something around here' he thought to himself, 'Could I have been wrong?'
The Gray Ghost turned around and looked behind himself and considered going back but his decision was taking from him as the ground beneath his feet opened and he fell through the opening.
Down Below
"OOMPH!" the Gray Ghost grunted as he hit the metal flooring, "….what are you a rookie" he whispered to himself. He managed to push himself up a bit but it was only enough to see several men dressed in Kobra outfits with their weapons trained upon him. They opened fire and several streams of electricity fired out and hit him dead on.
"GAHHHHHHH!" he shouted feeling the electricity shocking him. He continued to scream out until he dropped back down to the ground completely unconscious.
BRPP! BRPP! Went the sound of the Gray Ghost goggles; the highly advanced goggles recognized his unconsciousness and the automatic identity protection feature activated. From the corners of the goggles thin metal platting started to form around his exposed face, the metal spread and spread and effectively encased his face and shielded his identity from the approaching Kobra soldiers.
Few Minutes Later
ZAPPPPPP!
"AHH!" shouted The Gray Ghost as he was forcibly awaken from his forced slumber by a direct shock of electricity to his neck, "Grrrrrr" he growled.
The Gray Ghost looked around to see that he was in an underground Kobra laboratory with dozens of Kobra soldiers and scientist running around.
'Looks like I was right about the Kobra base being here' he thought to himself. Looking around some more he noticed that he was tightly strapped upright to an operating table with several Kobra soldiers with weapons aimed at him; he could feel his mask covering his face but what he couldn't feel was his utility belt around his waist.
'Dam…' he started to think before his nerves were set alight.
ZAPPPP!
"AHHH!" he shouted again as he felt another electric shock to his neck.
"I've waited a long time for thissss Ghosssst" came a hissing voice.
The Gray Ghost turned his head to the left and from the side the hideously mutated Zander came into view and in his clawed hands was his utility belt.
"Zander"
"I knew you would find your way here" Zander continued while coming to stand right in front of the captured Gray Ghost.
"Did you now; good for you. What is Kobra planning to use the nerve gas for?" he asked.
Zander stepped forward and back-fisted him across the face.
"You need not concern yourself with the affairsssss of our Organization" Zander hissed again, he grabbed the Gray Ghost by the throat and squeezed a bit. The Gray Ghost gagged a bit because of Zander's strength and the grip on his throat; he was bending the metal covering cutting off his air supply a bit.
"General Zander…..our Leader is on the line for you" came the voice of a Kobra soldier
Zander stopped his squeezing and glanced at the soldier behind him, his glowing red eyes made the soldier shrink away with fear. Zander's tail rattled loudly before he quickly let go of his mortal enemy the Gray Ghost.
"On ssssscreen"
From the top of the underground lab a large screen lowered down in front of them and turned on; the screen fizzled for a second before an image of King Kobra, the shrouded leader of the Kobra organization appeared in all of glory. Every Kobra affiliate bowed their head upon seeing him and slammed their hand to their chest in a salute.
"Lord Kobra" the Gray Ghost snarled.
"Ghost" Lord Kobra replied back in the same tone, "You are a major pain in my ass, you and your network of ridiculous dressed idiots"
"I'm not so sure we're the ridiculously dressed ones Kobra" The Gray Ghost threw back.
Lord Kobra narrowed his eyes and leaned forward in his throne.
"Tonight you will suffer tonight, and each and every agonizing second of your suffering will be recorded for my amusement. You will beg for death but it will not come until I am satisfied and then…only then will I allow your life to end"
"Masssster…..shall I begin?" Zander asked with a hint of eagerness in his voice.
"Yes…..start with his feet"
Zander turned away from the screen and the looked at the Gray Ghost while letting a smile form along his mutated face.
"I've waited a long time for thissssss" he hissed.
"As have I" The Gray Ghost stated "FLARES!" he suddenly yelled.
The utility belt in Zander's clawed hand heard the commanded and suddenly dozens of flares spewed out of several pouches. The Flares flew out and exploded in a shower of light blinding everyone in the lab.
The Gray Ghost took advantage of the temporary blindness everyone was experiencing and deftly slipped out of the binds that held him down. Once he was free he pushed back on the operating table making it flip horizontally and allowing him stand upright on it, he looked around to see that everyone was still wiping their eyes trying to clear their vision. The Gray Ghost pulled his hood over his head and then leapt off of the operating table and slammed both of his feet into Zander's chest sending him flying back. The mutated General felt the powerful blow and himself going backwards, his rattlesnake like tail hit the ground and pushed up allow him to spring and flip upright and land on his bare clawed feet. He hissed and rubbed his red glowing eyes; his vision was still blurry so he barely managed to make out a charging gray blob and but suddenly his vision cleared and that's when his eyes widen as the gray blob reached him and turned into a gray a fist.
The Gray Ghost reared his left hand back and then came forward with another hard shot to Zander's exposed face knocking the beast of a man for another loop.
'Got to take him down now, hard and fast' Gray Ghost thought to himself coming in with a hard and powerful uppercut. The blow lifted Zander up a bit and sent him to the ground and as he hit the floor his grip on the utility belt was lost and it slid across the ground. The hooded vigilante dove and grabbed his belt; acting quickly he reached into one of the back pouches and pulled out several throwing stars. He gripped his stars and then looked around, it didn't take him long to spot the main computer console within the Kobra lab. He reared his arm and threw the throwing stars with perfect accuracy and they each imbedded themselves into the console and gave a synchronized beep.
Screen
Lord Kobra slammed his fist down onto his chair as he saw the Gray Ghost escape his restraints.
'Damn Him! He refuses to die' he growled in his mind; his eyes widen as he saw his enemy throw the throwing stars at the computer.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" he shouted knowing the vigilante could hear him.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"
The Gray Ghost whipped around to the large screen to see Lord Kobra staring at him.
"Downloading, since you won't tell me what you're doing I'll find out for myself" he replied.
"NO!" He roared "YOU IDIOTS STOP THE DOWNLOAD! ZANDER KILL HIM!" Lord Kobra continued.
TCHSSSSSSSSS TCHSSSSSSSSSSSSS
The Gray Ghost turned to the sound and he had just enough time to lean back from the tail whip by Zander's rattlesnake like tail, but while he managed to avoid taking any damage Zander's tail hit his utility belt and sent it flying away from him.
Zander turned around and then lunged at the Gray Ghost full of fury and anger, the Gray Ghost back-flipped and Zander sailed over him. He sprung off his hands and landed in a crouch. A shadow formed over him and he turned his head to see Zander's claws heading right for him, he leaned to the side but Zander's claws managed to catch some of his cloak and his flesh.
"GRAH!" he grunted in pain rolling to the side and to his feet.
"RAHH!" roared Zander charging at him with his razor sharp claws again. The Gray Ghost flexed his fingers and the sharp talons on his gloved hands extended a bit more. Zander came in with a low sweeping strike and the strike was matched by the Gray Ghost.
SRKHH! Went the sound of the sharp claws and metal talons meeting in the middle; Zander came around with his other hand for a mid-ranged strike but yet again the strike was block by the Gray Ghost's talons.
SRKHHH! SKRHHH! SKRHH! Went the sound of the two clashing. Zander jumped in the air and brought both of his hands down, the Gray Ghost jumped to the side but Zander had been anticipating that and right as he landed his tail shot out and grabbed the hooded vigilante by the ankle. Zander jerked his body to the left and as a result the Gray Ghost went flying across the lab until he hit the ground hard. He rolled along the ground for a second before rolling up into a crouch.
'Damn it; that fucking tail of his…..his speed and strength are eventually going to get the better of me. I have to do someth…' he started.
CLICK! CLICK! CLICK!
The Gray Ghost looked to the left and right to see that the Kobra soldiers had finally recovered and had their weapons trained upon him ready to take his life.
"NO!" yelled Zander while running towards the Gray Ghost "HE'SSSSSS MINE SSSSSSSSTOP THE DOWNLOAD!"
The Kobra soldiers obeyed the command and lowered their weapons and ran towards the computer. The Gray Ghost held his ground as he saw the soldiers run away and Zander charging right for him. The seasoned crime fighter secretly reached into his left glove and he removed a black object, and then charged forward himself.
Zander had his enemy dead in his sights and as the two neared he bared his sharp teeth and flexed his clawed hands. He came across with a swipe but the Gray Ghost dropped to the ground and slid between his legs avoiding the tail and coming out behind him. Zander stopped and whipped around just as the Gray Ghost scraped the black object across the ground and then tossed it at him.
BOOOOOOM FWASSSHH! Went the sound of the object exploding and letting out a stream of fire.
"AHHH!" yelled Zander as the fire spread across his body burning him, "AHHHHH! AHHH!"
The Gray Ghost turned away from his burning enemy and eyed the Kobra Soldiers at the computer console.
'Need a few more minutes before the download is complete' he thought to himself running over.
Computer
"STOP THE DOWNLOAD!" Lord Kobra yelled again.
Two Kobra soldiers tried to grab some of the throwing stars but they released an electric shock stunning them. Another Kobra soldier tried to go for another one of the stars but the Gray Ghost suddenly appeared and knocked them away.
"Nobody is stopping anything" He declared delivering a hard cross to the Kobra soldier that was trying to turn his weapon onto him.
Kobra Headquarters- Location Unknown
Lord Kobra sat on his throne and watched through the communication line as the Gray Ghost took apart his men. He balled his fist so hard that a few droplets of blood spilled from his palms.
Lord Kobra turned his head to the left and glanced at the men standing next to his throne.
"Is the Jet within range?" he asked.
"Yes sir" one of the men replied.
"Tell them to fire, we can't afford to let that hooded bastard know of our plans"
"Yes sir, but what about the General?"
"We have Zander's DNA…we can make another one" Lord Kobra replied turning back to the screen and to the Gray Ghost "Months of hard work…..gone because of you. I hope you burn in hell"
Neo-Gotham- Skyline
A combat jet flew swiftly through the darkened cloudy sky and over the Neo-Gotham City, and inside the jet was a Kobra solider.
BEEP!
The Kobra solider reached over and the button that was beeping.
"Hail Kobra" the pilot said.
"The Coordinates have been sent to you make it a direct hit"
"Yes sir"
"Hail Kobra"
The pilot cut the line and began the process of pulling up the coordinates that had been sent to him.
Kobra base
DEET! DEET! DEEET! DEET!
The Gray Ghost kicked a Kobra soldier in the face and then he turned to the sound and he spotted his utility belt.
'I know that sound…Kobra uses a certain signal for their aircrafts, thank God Rose was able to crack it but if that's going off it means…..oh shit. Lord Kobra is going to blow this place up….but the people. DAMN IT' he thought urgently. The Gray Ghost quickly reached up to his single ear piece and he tapped it.
"DETECTIVE! DETECTIVE WAKE UP!' he shouted while diving out of the way of several bullets.
Outside the Convention Center- Police Car
"DETECTIVE! DETECTIVE WAKE UP!"
Montoya stirred at the loud yell in her ear.
"Ugh..." she groaned while her eyes fluttered open and came into focus, "Where am I?"
"You're in your car" The Gray Ghost answered over the line.
Montoya heard his voice and her memories instantly came back to her, she turned to the right and he was gone but she could hear his voice clear as day. Her eyes scrunched up a bit before she realized she was still wearing her earpiece.
"YOU DRUGGED ME!" she shouted.
"Yes I did, get over it" he snapped. Montoya reached up and touched the earpiece in her ear.
"GET OVER IT! NO I WILL NOT GET OVER IT YOU…."
"SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME! PEOPLE ARE IN DANGER!"
Montoya closed her mouth and she turned to the convention center.
"Danger?"
"Yes, there is a aircraft on the way to blow up the convention center….you have to get those people out of there"
"How?"
"I DON'T KNOW GET CREATIVE! YOU WANTED TO HELP SO HELP!" he shouted before the line went dead.
Montoya pursed her lips into a thin line and released a sigh.
"Get Creative huh….I can do that" she replied while starting up her car.
THROOOM! THROOOM! Went the sound of the thunder followed by the heavy rain.
Inside the Convention Center
Dozens of Neo-Gotham citizens were inside of the Convention Center walking around and enjoying the activities within the large center but the peaceful tranquility was interrupted by a set of bright high beams and loud honking. The people inside turned towards the entrance just as a police car came crashing through the doors.
CRASH! HONK! HONK! HONK!
Detective Bullock swerved as she crashed through the Convention center entrance; she hit her horn again alerting all of the people that were potential in her way.
HONK! HONK!
"MOVE GODDAMN IT! MOVE!" she yelled. The Detective swerved to the right and slammed both feet down unto the brake pedal, her car turned the right and started to slow down until it came to a complete stop, "…..What a rush" she whispered to herself before shaking her head and getting out of the car.
A crowd of people gathered around Montoya's car and they were looking at her like she was a mad woman. Montoya eyed the gathered people and she took a deep breath.
"Everyone listen to me head to your nearest exit right now" she said urgently.
"Excuse me who are you?" asked a man that looked like he was the manager of the Convention Center or at least someone that part of the staff.
"I'm with the NGCPD Now please…."
"Ma'am you are giving these people quite the scare…if there is an emergency there are certain protocols…." The Manager started before he saw Detective Bullock pull out her glock and raised it in the air.
POW! POW! POW! POW!
"EVERYONE GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE NOW!"
POW! POW!
"AHHHHHHHHH!" the people screamed as they turned and clamored for the exit.
In the Air
The Kobra jet flew through the heavy rain and over the Wayne-Powers building. The sensors in the cockpit locked onto the coordinates of the Neo-Gotham Convention Center.
"Target is locked…deploying destroyer missiles now"
The Kobra pilot flipped several switches which released the three destroyer missiles.
Underground Base
"ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! ATTACK IMMINENT! ATTACK IMMINENT!" went the sound of the Kobra alarm systems. The Kobra soldiers and scientist were running wildly to any exit they could find but all of the exits were sealed shut trapping them all inside. The Gray Ghost looked around at the flashing red lights and at the scared henchman.
'He's going to kill all of them just to stop me from downloading…..whatever he's up to its big…I hope Bullock got all of those people out' he thought to himself turning to the computer.
Up Above
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"COME ON LET'S GO! GET OUT OF HERE!" Detective Bullock hollered at the top of her lungs.
POW! POW!
Down Below
The Gray Ghost reached up and tapped his goggles and a message appeared across the eyes.
"Download 94% complete" he read "NO, I need more time."
TCHSSSSS TCHSSSS
"RAH!"
The Gray Ghost turned just in time to be tackled from the side by an angry and burnt Zander; the two of them went rolling across the ground with Zander landing on top trying to sink his teeth into the Gray Ghost's neck but the vigilante managed to keep him at bay with his feet and hands but it was still proving to be difficult because of Zander's increased strength.
"ZANDER! YOU IDIOT KOBRA IS ABOUT TO BLOW US ALL TO HELL!" He yelled while grabbing Zander by the jaw.
"ASSSSS LONG ASSSSS YOU'RE DEAD!" he hissed backed pushing his mouth and razor sharp teeth towards his enemy.
"GRRRH!" The Gray Ghost strained trying to keep him at bay, another message then flashed across his goggles, 'Oh No…..g-g-otta…get…f-free'
The Gray Ghost jammed his right forearm into Zander's neck while using his left hand to jam his clawed fingers in Zander's right eye.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Zander screeched in pain. The Gray Ghost kicked him off of him and then rolled away. He rolled up and grabbed his cloak wrapping it around his body and then hit the button on his wrist gauntlet. A thin shield emitted from his cloak just as the rockets burst through the roof and ignited the lab in a fury of fire and destruction.
KABOOOOOOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOOOM!
Up Above
KABOOOOOOOM!
Detective Bullock's eyes widen as she saw part of the building explode and fire and debris heading her way; as quickly as she could she turned around and began to run towards the hole she made with her car.
BOOOOOM! BOOOOM!
The Detective glanced over her shoulder to see that the fire was gaining on her.
'MOVE YOUR ASS MONTOYA! MOVE!' she yelled in her mind. She increased her pace and she could see the hole coming closer and closer; gritting her teeth the Detective jumped and sailed towards the hole, the force of the explosion pushing her out of the hole and to the outside.
"OOOOMPH!" Montoya grunted as she went skidding across the wet pavement until she hit mailbox. She grunted in pain but her pain was forgotten as she stared up in shock at the collapsing Convention Center.
KABOOOOOOOOM! CRUMBLE! CRUMBLE!
The building exploded outward and then caved inward kicking up dust, rain and debris and sending waves and waves of out into the streets blinding the crowd of people that barely escaped certain death.
Montoya coughed and fanned the dust away from her wet face and shakily stood to her feet, she sucked her teeth in pain and then looked at her arm which had a bad burn on it but before she could survey the rest of her injuries her attention was drawn to the screaming and yelling coming from the people she had saved from the explosion. She was about to walk to them but she stopped in her tracks and turned her head back to the destroyed building.
'I need to know if The Gray Ghost escaped. I hope he's still alive' she thought while limping her way over to the building.
Convention Center
KRZZZ! KRZZZ! Went the sound of the shield surrounding the Gray Ghost malfunctioning and then cutting off; the Gray Ghost released himself from his cloak and stood up. He took in a deep breath and then looked around, he didn't see any sign of the Kobra soldiers nor did he see any sign of Zander, all he saw was destruction. He looked upwards to see the darkened cloudy night sky and that's when he realized that it was raining and it was raining hard; he lowered his head down his eyes locked to where he last saw the computer and as expected the computer was completely and utterly destroyed.
"Damn it…so close"
WHOOOO! WHOOO! The Gray Ghost turned his head as he heard the sirens in the distance, instinctively he reached for his grappling hook but his utility belt was gone.
"Damn it that's right" he whispered while holding up his right wrist gauntlet; he tapped two buttons and he waited.
Detective Bullock walked around a crumbling wall to see a deep deep ditch, she limped towards the ditch and there in the center was the Gray Ghost, she was relieved to see him and she was about to say something when movement caught her eyes. She turned to the left and she saw some type of creature slither from out of the ground and she scrunched her eyes but immediately recognized the creature as Zander because of his rattle snake like tail.
"Master Wayne!" came the astonished voice of his partner Yinn.
"Yinn…I need you to pick me up."
"Are you alright?"
"I've been better…look I lost my utility belt"
"You lost it?" he questioned.
"Long story….look I lost it and it had all of my…" he started but didn't get a chance to finish because of the shrill voice.
"LOOK OUT!"
The Gray Ghost turned just as a severely burned Zander slashed at him, scratching some of his flesh and tearing his gray cloak.
"GAHHH!" The Gray Ghost yelled in pain. Zander heard the yell and he relished in the sound he came around again with another slash and caught more of the Gray Ghost skin which earned another yell of pain. Zander then whipped around and smacked him with his rattle snake like tail sending him flying back and to the ground.
SHRIPP! Went the sound of the Gray Ghost's cloak ripping in half, he heard the sound and felt his cloak rip away but he couldn't dwell on it or on his injuries. The Gray Ghost rolled on his shoulder and then to his feet and used both of his hands to block the second strike from Zander's tail. After he blocked the strike he stepped in with a kick but Zander caught his foot and used his superior strength to lift him up and slammed him down to the ground before spinning and tossing him away again.
Detective Bullock watched as the two fought each other tooth and nail but it was obvious to her that the Gray Ghost would need her help. Looking to her right she saw a metal pole that had been blow out of the ground and was leaning in such a way that she would be able to slide down and into the ditch. Montoya pursed her lips into a thin line and made her way over to the pole.
The Gray Ghost delivered two punches to Zander's face and then grabbed his enemy's head and brought it down to meet his knee. Zander's head snapped back but he wasn't out of the fight, he lifted his foot and delivered a solid front kick to the Gray Ghost's stomach.
"OOF" he grunted before ducking under a quick clawed strike but Zander had expected him to duck and as he ducked he hopped up and delivered his own knee to the Gray Ghost's protected face. The knee strike was so hard that it broke the face plate that was covering the Gray Ghost's face; he went back and to the ground and spit out some blood. Zander took advantage and stalked over to him, he bent down and wrapped both of his hands around the Gray Ghost's neck and applied pressure while lifting him up in the air.
"UCK!" he gasped feeling the grip, Zander's claws were kept at bay by the metal covering around his neck but the pressure of his strength was causing the metal to bent inward and choke him.
"DIE!" Zander rasped out.
"AH!" the Gray Ghost gasped trying to struggle.
"I told you….you would die tonight Ghossssssst"
"HEY!"
Zander's amusement was halted by the call, he turned his head to the right and he saw Montoya standing a few feet away with her glock trained directly on him, his one good eye widen in shock.
"PAYBACK IS A BITCH!" she shouted right before pulling the trigger.
POW! The bullet erupted from her weapon and went flying right through Zander's skull and through the other side. He instantly let go of the Gray Ghost and he shakily reached up to his head.
"UCH!" he gasped feeling the hole, he gasped again and took a step in the direction of Detective Bullock.
The Detective looked on in slight shock before she narrowed her eyes and fired two more bullets each shot ripping through his skull and destroying the last few sparks of brain activity and effectively killing him. The eye of the mutant General Zander rolled back and he fell to the ground dead.
The Gray Ghost ripped the metal siding guarding his neck off and he gasped and greedily sucked in the much needed air, he turned his head a bit and he saw Detective Bullock running over to him. He forced himself to his feet and then he turned around fully and he looked at the dead Zander who was only a few inches away from him, he rubbed his neck and closed the distance.
"Careful" Detective Bullock stated.
The Gray Ghost stood over the dead Zander in a mixture of shock and relief.
'I guess I wasn't the one that was going to die today'
"Are you okay?" Detective Bullock asked.
"Fine…thanks for the save." He replied.
"I owed you" she said walking forward and standing next to him. The two of them stood over the dead Zander among the ruins of the Kobra lab that spread over an entire block.
"God…..today has been once of the weirdest days of my life" Montoya said releasing a sigh of relief and then looking around at all of the destruction.
"Today wasn't even remotely close to my weirdest day…to me it's just another day." The Gray Ghost replied.
"Well…you certainly live an interesting life"
"You don't know the half of it" he said letting out a grunt.
Suddenly the wind around them kicked up heavily and the two of them were forced to look upwards. The Gray Ghost eyes widen as he saw the batmobile descend downwards and touch the ground. The top hatch open and Batman stood up out of the vehicle.
Present- Batmobile
"So what does that mean for Kobra, are they finished operating here in Gotham?" Batman asked.
"I don't' know, my instincts are telling me no, despite the fact that their main base was destroyed. I'm inclined to think that another one of their secret bases will just pick up the slack."
DEET!
"We're coming up on Wayne-Powers now" Batman stated while pulling back on the controls.
Inside- Wayne Powers
Batman and the Gray Ghost entered through the front entrance of Wayne-Powers and they were both drawn to the destruction in front of them. They both looked upwards and saw the giant hole that was allowing the rain in from the outside.
"Well the hell happened here?" Batman asked.
"Better yet how come the cops haven't shown up yet?" The Gray Ghost asked looking up and tapping his goggles.
"The Cops are stretched pretty thin right now because of the Jokerz and Knightbreed" Batman answered looking around and inspecting the area.
The Gray Ghost goggles switched to a different lens and the giant hole in the building had a neon green trail.
"Just as I thought"
"What?"
"Powers did this…this whole place is covered in his radiation."
"You can see it?" Batman asked.
"Yes, this place is covered with his trail"
"Can you determine which way he went?"
The Gray Ghost looked around for a long minute trying to determine which way Derek but the lobby was too saturated with radiation, but while he was looking around his goggles automatically zeroed in on a glob of black ooze on the ground. The goggles brought up the black ooze and the Gray Ghost recognized it, 'Inque' he growled in his mind.
"Well, do you know which way he went?" Batman asked.
"No, too much saturation...but I do know he wasn't alone. Inque was here."
"WHAT!"
WHOOOOO WHOOOO! WHOOOO!
Batman and the Gray Ghost turned to the sound of the sirens.
"Now they show up" said the Gray Ghost.
"We need to go" said Batman heading for the door, The Gray Ghost grunted but quickly followed after him.
Later- BatCave
The Batmobile pulled into the bat-cave and came to a stop, the top opened and the first person out was the Gray Ghost; he pulled back his hood to reveal the beaten face of Damian Wayne. Damian looked around for a minute until his eyes landed on Yinn who was standing with his back to him and facing the Bat-Computer.
The Gray Ghost balled up his fist and he ran forward.
Yinn stood still, but then he suddenly ducked and that's when Damian sailed over him with a flying kick.
"Master Wayne….you're back" said Yinn cheerfully.
Damian landed and grunted a bit because he was injured but he pushed it aside and whipped around. He came in with a mid-ranged strike that Yinn deftly blocked. Yinn blocked the strike and threw out his own that Damian blocked with his forearm, Yinn threw out a straight kick that Damian blocked with his shin.
Batman hopped out of the Batmobile and his eyes widen at the sight of Damian and Yinn trading swift blows with each other.
"What the hell?" he whispered; he pursed his lips into a thin line and then flicked his wrist and produced a batarang.
Damian threw out an elbow that Yinn blocked; after he blocked the attack he grabbed Damian's arm and tried to put it in an arm lock but Damian shifted the momentum and tried to counter the lock with his own but Yinn felt the counter and countered with own but again Damian slipped out of the lock.
The two fighters stood still in a tussle of strength but their instincts kicked in when they heard the whizzing of a batarang. They both separated just as the batrang passed between them.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?' shouted Batman landing in the middle of them.
Yinn and Damian stared at each other for a long minute before they both relaxed and took a deep breath.
"Why did you let my father die Yinn?"
"WHAT!" shouted Batman
"I did no such thing Master Wayne"
"You let him walk out of here and into certain death" Damian accused.
"Your father is….was a grown man that made his own choices. I offered to help him but he refused"
"Why didn't you call me?" Damian demanded.
"Because I knew that Kobra was more important" Yinn replied.
"That wasn't your decision to make Yinn"
"Well then Master Wayne it's a good thing that I didn't make that decision…..You did."
Damian recoiled a bit and then turned away.
"Damian…did you really think that your father wouldn't do what he said he was going to do; from the things that you've told me about him and from my own assessment of the man….he is definitely a man of his word. He said he would handle Powers and he did"
"And he's dead"
"Isn't that what you've secretly wanted?" Yinn asked, "Well it's finally happened…you should be happy right…..RIGHT!"
Damian turned back towards Yinn and stared him in the eyes; as this was going on Batman was looking back and forth between the two and wondering just what was going on. Finally after a long minute Damian released a sigh and turned towards the bat-computer averting his gaze away from Yinn.
"Pack our things Yinn…..we're getting the hell out of here"
"So you're running away?" Yinn asked.
"NOW YINN!" Damian yelled "Please….I need to leave this place" he added in a whisper.
Yinn studied Damian for a minute before nodding his head.
"As you wish, but before we leave….your father left something for you on the computer. A message that you need to hear"
Yinn turned away and went towards Batman who had pulled his mask off to reveal the face of Terry McGinnis.
"Come with me Terry" said Yinn softly.
"You let the old man go out of here by himself?" Terry asked.
Yinn released a sigh and glanced at Terry.
"I'll explain my reasoning once we've left the cave, the message that Damian is about to play is something he needs to hear….and hear alone" Yinn replied in a hush voice while leading Terry towards the batmobile.
Damian glanced to the left as he saw Yinn and Terry hop into the batmobile and start up the engines. The Batmoblie lifted up into the air and then flew out of the cave leaving the enigmatic vigilante by himself. Damian turned his eyes back to the bat-computer and he stared at the blank screen…staring at his reflection. He stood there for a while just listening to himself breathe, his mind was replaying Yinn's words to him, mostly because it was a question he had been asking him since seeing his dead father. It was something that he had always wanted but now that he has it….. shouldn't he be happy.
'Goddamn it' he said in his mind. He released another sigh and rubbed his hand down his face. Damian grabbed the chair that was next to him and pulled it back and sat down.
"Computer On" he stated strongly. The Bat-Computer hummed and then turned on, "Access Damian Wayne"
BEEP! DEET!
"Pull up last known recording file from Bru…..from Batman"
BEEP! DEEET! The screen flashed through several files before one file pulled up on screen.
"Open file and play recording" he commanded.
The file on the computer opened an image of the elderly Bruce Wayne could be seen; Damian scrunched his face up in a scowl and leaned back in his seat and prepared himself for some type of last will lecture.
Recording
"Damian…..…my son. There are so many things that I….should say to you, should have said to you but, I think the most important of all those things are these two words. I apologize.
Damian's scowl instantly dropped and he straightened up in his seat.
I apologize to you because I have failed you as your father. I failed you and I know that many times it seemed like you had failed me it was really I that had failed you. I wasn't there for you….Bruce Wayne, didn't raise you…..Batman did, and Batman is a very… over critical….over bearing, intimidating, cold, and angry person…..he had to be for the type of life that we were involved in, but Damian there is another side to life….a side that I denied from you. That side is gentle, accepting, warm and even understanding of the mistakes that we make because we're human…..that side, that fatherly side is something that you needed and I didn't give it to you. It wouldn't be until years later…that I thought about this and I couldn't help but think about what your grandfather my father Thomas Wayne would say and not just about how I raised you but about my own life as well…..living in the darkness, operating in the shadows. When Talia first brought you to me….you had been semi-indoctrinated into the way of the league of shadows and…and I should've gone a different way in your upbringing. I know that your mother always talked about Batman and how Batman was your father but I really should have been letting you get to know Bruce Wayne….the man beneath the bat, but since I'm being honest….I honestly think that Bruce Wayne died with his parents in that alley… all of those years ago…I…"
Damian swallowed hard as he studied his father's face. His father had always, worn a stoic expression on his face, careful to never let his emotions show and for the first time in ages that expression was gone. Damian studied his father's face and he could see several emotions and the primary emotion he saw was…..regret.
Damian, I know that I never really said it when you were here but I want you to know that I am Proud of you. I know growing up with me hasn't been easy and I know how the loss of our family has affected you and I know about all of the sacrifices that you had to make to ensure the losses wouldn't continue, I thank you for that and for everything that you have done…My son I am proud of you. When you were here you gave above and beyond and I never gave you the recognition that you deserved and for that I apologize, and I never blamed you for leaving, if I were you I would have left too and I'd never have come back, but you did. You're here for Kobra and I have no doubt in my mind that once you settle things with Kobra you'll leave Gotham but son…..I'm asking you to stay. I told you that I would handle Powers but something tells me that I won't survive the encounter, and if….when, I'm gone there won't be anyone here to guide Terry, and help him protect Gotham. I know I don't have any right to ask this of you seeing as how you have forged your own way as the Gray Ghost….but I'm going to ask anyway, will you be Terry's guide….will you continue what I….we have built…will you continue the Batman Legacy. Even though you may not wear the cape and the cowl, you are still every bit the Batman I trained you to be…and that is what Terry needs….what Gotham needs, you've seen for yourself what has happened since Batman disappeared and what has happened since the return. Gotham needs Batman….Gotham needs you and Terry, I see something in him and I'm certain that if you stay long enough you'll see it too. I want to be clear though Damian…this isn't a demand or me manipulating you. You can choose to leave and if you do…make sure to lock up the cave for me. Damian…..I…..I Love You…
Damian sat glued to his seat staring at the screen, he lifted his hand off of the stop button on the computer and he pressed another button that was right next to the stop button. The video recording of his father rewinded a bit before he pressed play.
"Damian…..I…Love You…."
Damian hit the stop button again and he let his eyes fixate on his father. A large weight had been lifted from his shoulders; the anger that had been gripping him started to fade away as it was replaced by a feeling of relief. For most of his life he had been waiting to hear something like this from Bruce. He had been eagerly waiting for those words that every son wants to hear from their father. Damian closed his eyes briefly; he felt something…..something welling up inside him…he could feel the stone walls around his emotions starting to crumble. Emotions that he had spent years pushing back were rushing to the surface as he let the message replay over in his mind. His father, Bruce Wayne, Batman….a man known for never apologizing had apologize to him….to him and him alone and not only that…he said he was proud of him, and not only was he proud of him but he loved him as well, something he hadn't been sure of…and that's all any son ever wants…the assurance, the approval and the love of their father.
Damian opened his eyes and he pressed the rewind button again and then the stop button.
"Damian…I…..Love You"
The emotions were pushing forward and more urgently, Damian tried to fight it but after fighting it for so long he…stopped. The feeling of anger completely melted away a feeling of sadness gripped him as the reality of the situation finally hit him….his father was dead, and before he died he left a message….no….an apology, a sincere apology just for him. Damian hit the rewind button again and then the stop.
"Damian…I…..Love You"
"I…..I Love you too…Dad" he whispered as a single tear rolled his down his face, and with that single tear falling several more began to follow until tears were flowing freely and for the first time in a long time, years even, Damian Wayne…..cried.
Few Hours Later- BatCave
Damian was still sitting in the chair staring at the screen, his tears long since dried and a look of intense focus on his face. Damian sucked in a breath and then turned his head to left to see the batmobile enter the cave. The vehicle lowered down to the ground and the engines shut off; the top slid back and out jumped Batman and Yinn with several packed suitcases.
Damian swiveled away from the computer and stood up out of the chair and began to walk towards the two of them.
"What did the old man say on the message?" asked Batman as Damian approached them.
"….what I needed to hear" he replied cryptically "There is a message on there for you too McGinnis. I've already pulled it up so all you have to do is either tell the computer to play it or press play."
Batman pulled his mask off to reveal the face of Terry McGinnis; Terry looked at Damian and then looked at the Bat-Computer, without needing another prompt he walked past him and towards the computer. Damian watched him go for a second before turning back to Yinn.
"All of our bags are packed Master Wayne"
"Good, you can unpack them upstairs" he replied walking past him and towards the batmobile.
"So is it safe for me to assume that we're staying?" Yinn asked a knowing smile creeping along his face.
"Your assumption would be correct…..and Yinn, about earlier….."
"No need" Yinn interrupted knowing exactly what he was about to say. Damian stopped in his tracks and lowered his head a bit before raising it up and turning a bit.
"Thanks"
Yinn replied with a smile.
Damian turned and continued his trek towards the batmobile.
"Where are you going?" Yinn asked.
"If we're going to stay, I have a lot of work to do and people to see. My first stop is Metropolis…..to see a woman by the name of Amanda Waller, I'll be back soon." He replied jumping into the batmobile.
"WAIT! Master Wayne"
"Yes Yinn."
"If we're going to stay here….what does that mean for the Gray Ghost?"
"…..it means for now, the Gray Ghost is dead" he said before tapping a few buttons which made the top of the batmobile slid shut. The engines started up and the vehicle rose into the air and then rocketed out of the bat-cave.
End Chapter: Read and Review: Hey Readers it's me Nomad88 back again with the closing comments. WHEW! I know that this chapter took forever to get out and I have several excuses as to why the first is that I wanted to get this chapter just right….I wanted to bring the right emotional tone to this chapter and I hope I succeeded. I know it got kinda sappy at the end there but I think the sap is very necessary, and I hope all of you reviewers feel the same. I hope the action scenes were up to my usual par….and oh how many of you like the team up and chemistry between Damian and Detective Bullock….they have a fun dynamic and a much different relationship than her father had with the original Batman. Well Ladies and Gentlemen….my loyal readers we are now at the end of this story…there is one more chapter left. All of the storylines have been closed but closed in such a way that they can be re-opened at a later time. It has been a wild and eventful ride my loyal readers but now it's time for it to come to end…..or at least this volume. If anyone has any questions, comments, rants, or raves just leave it in the review or just send me a PM and I'll get back to you ASAP. This is Nomad88 saying later.
Ps: THANK YOU! To everyone who has stuck with this story until its end, ONE CHAPTER LEFT! WHOOO! I hope to see you all there for the epic conclusion of Batman Beyond Volume 1. This is me saying later….
Next up: Epilogue: A Funeral and a New Era Begins