CHAPTER 03: Storm Drain
Amusement Mile was certainly an interesting sight to behold to tourists brave enough to venture on its boardwalks surrounding a cluster of abandoned to semi-functional amusement parks.
But on that night, an addition to the strange sights was a girl sitting on the bench, lapping gently at an ice cream cone.
Her body was petite, like she was ten to twelve years old, with blue eyes and blond hair that was tied back with thick bangs around her face and four large ringlets that fell to the back of her neck.
What stood out about her was her outfit: a light pink Yutaka with a black choker around her neck, a white long skirt around her legs and black shoes at her feet.
She seemed to be thoroughly enjoying her ice cream, having a taken a liking to sweet and sugary things, and was completely engrossed in it until she heard someone call for her.
"Ah, so here you are Tama-san. I've been wondering where you've been."
The girl, referred to as 'Tama', looked to find a man approaching her. He was attractive and smartly dressed in business attire with orange eyes, sharp features and well combed black hair, save for the bangs that fell over the left side of his face.
"What's that you've got there?" he asked with a smile. "Don't tell me you killed somebody for it."
Tama shook her head.
"Oh, so you haven't killed anybody at all today?"
She nodded in response and went back to her ice cream.
The man sighed with an exasperated smile as he put his hands in his pockets.
"I suppose it's because you can't stand the stench of modern humans. Can't say I don't blame you."
He stood by her and took in the sights and the people passing by and minding their own business.
"But what do you think of this far away land and this city?"
Tama paused, her ice cream almost down her her cone, and then looked up with knit brows.
"I agree, it is interesting but I too find it deplorable." the man said. "On the bright side, there is no shortage of Ayakashis here. The blood of the Amakawa descendant has indeed drawn them."
Catching the man slightly by surprise, Tama sharply turned her head to him with an accusing frown.
"Hm? Why I am helping them and not feeding them to you?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Ah, That would be me honoring our agreement with the Demon's Head, remember? He has an interest in this city and this so-called Batman. It's simply out of my hands." he shook his head and shrugged innocently.
The young girl continued to frown, she never thought the two of them would actually conspire with humans but they found their new partner's proposal very enticing. Despite her and the man's hatred for humans, it would seem that the goal of the Demon's Head aligns with theirs to a certain degree. And besides, they had come to realize that humans had their uses to them.
Seeing her in deep thought made the man chuckle and pat her head.
"A pretty little girl like you shouldn't worry about these things, Tama-san. Have patience. After all, why fill your belly with snacks when you could have a heavenly full course meal?"
Tama looked at him briefly and, seemingly ignoring him, went back to finishing her ice cream. The man turned leave but then looked back at her.
"Oh, by the way. I hear my loyal servant, Ibaraki, has found a suitable host. Would you like to meet him?" he asked with an inviting hand.
The young girl crunched the last of her wafer cone, pushed herself off the bench and then nodded.
"Good. Then let's be on our way."
Batman could see it through the windshield as the Batmobile approached its destination. It was perplexing but with everything he had witnessed so far, he found himself unable to be surprised.
Arkham Asylum stood like a fortress in the distance with looming dark clouds over it like a demonic kingdom. Nothing unusual, except that the skies everywhere else appeared to be clear and the torrent of rain seemed to only focus on the facility.
The armored vehicle skid to a halt just outside the gates where he could see the GCPD had already gathered with Riot gear and their focus on the front gates, despite being wet in the rain. The canopy slid open and the renowned vigilante jumped out and approached them with his cape over his shoulders like a cloak.
Various police officers glanced towards him and momentarily froze in surprise. It wasn't because of the Batman himself; his presence in situations like this was business as usual. What surprised them was the other person who had jumped out and accompanied him: a masked woman wearing a purple kimono who had white cat ears on her head.
Himari followed closely behind him with one hand clutched at her scabbard, shifting her eyes side to side with suspicion until Batman stopped to the side of an older mustached gentleman wearing a trench coat.
"Jim." he addressed him.
Commissioner Gordon turned to him just as a flash of lightning reflected white off his glasses.
"Good you came. It's a mad house in there, more than usual." Gordon said as he exhaled smoke from his cigarette.
He paused, not failing to notice the masked woman next to Batman and it seemed that she noticed him too; her sights were totally fixed on him, only crinkling her nose as the nicotine smoke wafted towards her.
Gordon felt that he had seen her before but couldn't be sure when and where. Before he could ask about it, Batman spoke up.
"Did any of the staff make it out safely?"
The police Commissioner drew back his question before it left his lips and decided to follow the vigilante's cue and get down to business.
"A few, shaken and a little worse for wear but otherwise fine."
Gordon turned towards the Asylum's front gates with a grim expression.
"Unfortunately, the rest of them are being held hostage in the Admin Block. By inmates who took advantage of the confusion and overpowered the guards."
"Confusion...caused by what exactly?" Batman asked.
"According to the ones who got out, something tore through the place. They said it was a large rampaging creature."
This definitely caught Batman's and Himari's attention.
"A creature?"
Gordon nodded.
"I would've chalked the whole thing up to Crane's fear gas but then there's..." he trailed off as he pointed up.
"The rain. Yes, I noticed." Batman commented.
"We got eyes on the inside confirming that whole facility has been waterlogged. Damnedest thing I ever saw."
Himari stepped closer to Batman and spoke to him.
"Master, this storm isn't natural. It is clearly the work of Ayakashi."
"And, er, she is...?" Gordon asked, deciding now would be a good time as any for an explanation.
Batman and Himari glanced at each other in silence for a moment before Batman turned back to Gordon and answered.
"She's with me."
"Right." Gordon responded after looking at the two in doubt.
He mentally told himself that he should've known better, Batman wasn't usually forthcoming about himself and was pretty much an independent agent. But any friend of Batman's is a friend of his, if she even WAS his friend that is.
"In any case, we've got SWAT and a negotiator en route but no demands have been made."
"I doubt any will." Batman said cynically. "Tell your men to hold their ground. I'll get them out safely."
Batman then fired a grappling line at the high compound wall and reeled himself over it while Himari followed him by simply leaping after him. Gordon realized it was the same person he encountered earlier on the roof.
"Ten years in Gotham and you think you've seen it all." he muttered while shaking his head.
The flooding was thankfully not severe in the Admin Block and only amounted to wet floors and little seepage here and there. At the center of it was a large atrium style hall which had the kind security desk one might find typical in an insane asylum.
Normally, two of the correctional officers in Arkham would be stationed there but at the moment they, along with the rest of their comrades were tied to wooden chairs and at the mercy of various crazed men in orange jumpsuits.
They were psychopaths and thugs mostly armed with melee weapons ranging from knives to pieces of wood to metal pipes but some managed wrest the nightsticks and shotguns from the guards.
With them knowing that Gordon was probably calling in a negotiator, they decided that while they wait, they were going to teach their captives who now rules the roost in Arkham.
Officer Mills fell to his side while still tied to his chair, his badly bruised face barely allowed his mouth to open and release a gasp of pain. As he panted in agony he could hear the inmates's voices circling him, giggling and cackling like sadistic hyenas.
"Oooh, I think you hit im' a little too hard that time."
"You're right, he looks a little bent outta shape."
"Let's whack him from the other side. That oughtta straighten him out."
"Stop! You had your fun so just let us go, you bastards!" one of the other officers cried out in outrage.
An inmate approached him with a shotgun slung on his shoulder and toothy grin on his face.
"Aw, but the fun is just starting." he drawled, licking his chops.
The inmate trained the gun on him and the poor guard could only press himself back into his seat. His eyes widened in fear as sweat rolled down his face and his heart thumped.
"Now tell me..." the crazed gunman crooned. "Which one of your legs do you want me to blow off first?"
The other inmates behind him hollered and hooted in an ape-like frenzy as he pointed the shotgun back and forth towards each of the officer's legs.
"Left one?...or right one?"
And then he slowly lifted the muzzle up.
"Or maybe I should just go for your head instead."
But before anything could happen, a dark shape landed behind the inmate; prompting him to turn in startlement only for the muzzle of the gun to be grabbed by a gloved hand.
Using his strength, Batman forced the muzzle down while simultaneously using his other hand to grab under the gunstock and push it up as he turned and twisted the shotgun out of his grip before ramming the butt of the weapon into the inmates's gut, then smacked hard against his nose and then finally swinging it like a club and whacked him on the side of his head to knock him down.
"It's Batman!" one of the other inmates cried out.
Two of them brought up their own shotguns and aimed.
"You picked the wrong party to crash, freak!"
Before they could fire, Himari landed next to them and disabled the weapons by slicing the muzzles off with Yatsutsuna, causing them to stagger back.
"Huh? Who the hell is this chick!?"
"Who cares! Let's kill them both!"
The inmates separated into two groups which one engaging Batman and the other Himari.
The Dark Knight turned out of the way to avoid a knife being slashed at him and then retaliated from his position with an elbow smashed against the inmates's nose before following it up with an uppercut.
As he was done, he sensed two other inmates charging from behind with their fists ready to punch him. Batman quickly slid backwards and ducked under both their punches and then grabbed them by the back of their heads to slam both their faces to the floor.
Immediately, he took out his grapple gun and fired a line which tangled itself around another inmate whom he then pulled in to meet a boot to his face. A fifth inmate tried to ambush him but Batman grabbed him and threw his back to the wooden rails of a nearby staircase where the Caped Crusader delivered rapid punches to the man's torso until finally knocking him out with a knee to the gut.
Himari was handling her group with ease since, as a Bakeneko, she was much faster and stronger.
One inmate tried to swing a lead pipe at her but she parried with her sword and while forcing the pipe down, she jumped delivered a spinning kick to his face. As she landed, she struck another inmate to his head with the edge-less side of her sword.
Continuing her momentum, she engaged with a nearby inmate by jabbing the hilt of Yatsutsuna hard against his abdomen before grabbing him his jumpsuit's lapel and throwing him judo-style, sending him crashing into one of his comrades.
She easily sensed a fifth inmate charging at her back so she jumped into a backflip and landed her feet on his shoulder blades to stomp him into the ground.
After both Batman and Himari finished knocking out the remaining aggressors, Batman approached and crouched before Officer Mills.
"Hold on." he said as he began to untie him.
But Mills noticed something behind Batman where the security desk was, there was movement. A head slowly peeked out and Mills realized that there was one inmate left!
"Batman, look out!" Mills tried to warn him.
But just as Batman turned, the inmate yelled and leaped off the desk with a knife in his hand to bring it down on the Dark Knight. However, Himari reacted by intercepting him in mid-air with a flying kick.
She landed as he tumbled a distance away from her but he quickly scrambled to his feet and fixed his hateful eyes on her.
"Fuckin' whore!" he snarled and then charged with intent to stab at her.
SLASH!
The knife landed a foot away from the inmate...as well as his hand.
He screamed in pain, cradling his bloody stump as he stumbled back until his back hit the wall.
Shakily he looked towards the Bakeneko, she was hunched slightly with her hair a little disheveled and hanging over face like willow tree and obscured the whites of her mask. The edge of Yatsutsuna, held by her right hand, was now dripping in blood and the fingers of her left hand were branched with claws.
Her lips stretched into a sharp toothed sinister grin.
She slowly advanced towards him, dragging tip of her sword on the floor as if to sadistically torment her prey.
"N-no!" the inmate yelped in fear and slid to the floor. "Please, stay back!"
But just as Himari raised her sword up, she felt her wrist being grabbed and she turned to see Batman glaring at her intensely.
"We DON'T kill!" he growled.
She hissed as she yanked her arm and spun towards him.
"He tried to hurt you!" she argued.
Batman didn't budge on the matter and his white eyes bore into her without compromise.
"Regardless, I told you that if you were coming along, you will do as I tell you! I don't care if you're Ayakashi, step out of line again I will have you locked up here!"
And with that warning, he pushed past her to check on the dismembered felon; leaving her to scowl at him. She of course felt angry with him but the aggression that came from her bloodlust began to ebb away and left behind a lingering feeling of regret. It wasn't exactly guilt about her actions but it was more to do with the reality of where she and Bruce stood.
She was an Ayakashi and, whether he liked it or not, he was a Demon Slayer. The Slayer's creed was that any Ayakashi that posed a threat to humans must be put down.
Despite her pledge to protect him, she may very well be an enemy to him.
After Batman stopped the bleeding, he freed the guards and instructed some of them to evacuate the downed inmates but during that time he couldn't help but feel that something was terribly wrong.
"This can't be everyone. Where are the medical staff?" he asked Mills.
Mills visibly shifted anxiously which only heightened the Dark Knight's dread.
"They're with Zsasz."
Batman grit his teeth. Of all the lunatics he fought, he hated Victor Zsasz the most. He represented the kind of scum who had zero regard for life and if they were with him, then it would only be a matter of time before he lost them.
"Why? And where?"
"They had us all corralled but Zsasz convinced them to split us among them. He probably has them hauled up in the waiting room upstairs." Mills responded.
"Wait here until I get back." Batman said as he turned and walked away with a grim scowl.
He spoke again as he walked past Himari.
"Himari, stay with them."
"I think not!" she protested. "You are still my master and I will not leave your side!"
This only made him sharply turn and round on her.
"If I am your master, then as your master I am ORDERING you to STAY...HERE!" he asserted with a finger pointed downward.
Batman then fired a grappling line up and reeled himself to the upper floors. Himari fumed on the spot while the rescued officers, including Mills, witnessed the whole exchange and whispered among themselves.
"Master?"
"What's all that about?"
"You think she and the Bat got some kind of kinky thing going on?"
The waiting room was a simple large hall with comfy sofas placed at the walls except for one where a large LCD TV was hung for visitors to divert their attention.
Now it was dark with the only illumination being the white static on the screen. Below the TV was where the orderlies, nurses and doctors were huddled up. Tied and gagged, their gasps and sobs were muffled. Fearful wide eyes were fixed on the bald headed man standing in front of them.
Bathe in the eerie glow from the TV and with a large knife in one of his hands, he undressed in front on them till he was only in his underwear; revealing the tally mark scars that littered all over his body.
"Do you see the marks?" Zsasz asked them with a sick grin.
"They are self-inflicted. Every one lovingly etched like a map of hardened blood...charting my mission of mercy. For each scar, one kill."
He continued to monologue dramatically like he on stage while some his unwilling audience prayed the didn't decide to cut his speech short and get on with it. Others wished he did.
"I'm sure you wondering, 'With so many, how could he possibly keep track?'" he mockingly spoke for them. "Oh but I can, I remember every single one of them like a little memento."
As the light glinted off his crazed eyes, Zsasz began rubbing his finger at various scar lines while explaining about them.
"This one is Daniel Slone, age 27. This one, Caroline Dane age 52. This, Jeffery Jahns, age 19. Ooh! this one is one of my favorites: Little Annie, age 11."
The scarred psychotic approached the huddled bound orderlies and as he did, their muffled cries increased in pitch and tempo.
"Now I know that you're all DYING to know, 'How many of us will become a part of him? All of us? Maybe some us?'" he acted out while tapping the knife against his chin.
Zsasz then spread his arms out in a welcoming fashion, like he was a messianic figure.
"Ask no more, my little zombies. Your salvation is at hand."
Within the cool metal confines of the large air duct, Batman crawled forward until he came across the grilled vent on the bottom. The light from the room below cast illuminated stripes upon his visage as he peered down.
He could see the orderlies huddled up at the wall where the TV was but no sign of Zsasz. He knew that Zsasz liked to pose his victims after he was done killing them. Did this mean he was he too late?
Batman focused his sights on the hostages and saw movement. No, they were still alive! But then where was Zsasz?
Even after adjusting the angle of his sights, he didn't see him anywhere; there wasn't even an area in the room where he could hide. Perhaps Zsasz heard the commotion from downstairs and could've gone to investigate or made himself scarce. Either way, Batman decided to act now rather than risk any further harm on the hostages and so, he positioned his foot above the grill and kicked it down hard.
Muffled cries erupted among the huddled group as saw the grate above fall to the floor, followed by Batman landing before them. Wasting no time, he quickly approached one of the orderlies, a woman, and then ungagged her.
"Oh, thank god!" she gasped. "I thought he was going to..." she couldn't continue as a sob threatened to spill from her lips.
"Where is he?" Batman asked.
He saw her eyes dart to the side and followed it to see a door next to the arranged sofas. Since it wasn't the entrance door, Batman assumed it probably led to one of the wards in the Asylum.
After untying and freeing all the orderlies, Batman pointed to the exit and instructed them to meet with the guards downstairs so they could be escorted out. When the room was cleared out, the Dark Knight took a breath and exited through the door that Zsasz apparently used.
On the other side, he found himself standing on a landing platform attached to a descending spiral staircase. It was part of a long corridor which at his level, had metal stems holding overhead lamps. While at the bottom, were rows of metallic doors that had name plaques and sliding peep holes. As he thought, this was one of the Asylum's wards.
This area was definitely waterlogged, Batman could see below that the corridor was filled ankle-high level water which meant that if Zsasz did go through here, picking up his trail would be difficult.
Batman looked over the railing to scan the water, hoping to find some kind of disturbance or perhaps a trace.
In a fraction of a second, he noticed a shadow being cast over him from above and a fraction after that came a horrifying yell as someone lunged at him.
He spun around and caught Zsasz by the throat but the scarred psychopath counted on that and unexpectedly jabbed a syringe hard into Batman's outstretched arm before pushing the plunger all the way down.
The sudden pain in his arm made Batman cry out and Zsasz took advantage of his momentary shock by kangaroo-kicking him in the chest with enough force to, surprisingly, cause Batman to release him, stumble back and fall over the railing down into shallow water below.
He landed on his front causing the water around him to splash, almost taking a mouthful of water. After pushing himself up, he looked towards his arm where the syringe needle was still embedded and his vision blurred.
Batman berated himself for being too careless as he pulled the syringe out. It was injected in one of the few areas of his costume that wasn't armored and whatever it was, was beginning to dull his faculties...and that was as far as his thought process could go.
His skull felt like a rock barely balancing on a stick and his mind was a hazy soup, it was only his sheer will that preventing him from totally blacking out.
Zsasz jumped down in front of him as he unsteadily got to his feet.
"Feeling a little...off are we?" Zsasz sneered before licking the side of his knife.
Batman charged at him with a punch but Zsasz easily sidestepped him and left him stumble slightly to a halt and willed himself to keep himself and turn around. Intense fatigue was setting in and his movements were feeling more sloppy, it seemed all those hours without sleep was coming back to bite him.
As Zsasz spoke again, Batman could hear the psychopath's voice feeling far away and his vision blur even more.
"I suppose that's what 20 mgs of Midazolam-Ketamine can do to you. Wonderful little sedative, keeps the folks here nice and quiet when the docs need them to be and there was plenty to go around so I figure it wouldn't be neighborly if I didn't SHARE!"
Zsasz came at him with rapid slashes and Batman managed to deflect and dodge most of it but because of his dulled movements, some of the slashes managed to meet their marks, some tearing into his suit and one noticeably leaving a long cut on his cheek.
"You probably thought I would start killing right away, didn't you? Tempting as it was, you have been under my skin for far too long, Batman. So it was only fitting that I cut you out first!"
The water at their feet sloshed as Zsasz attacked with slash after slash and Batman barely able to dodge. After the drugged crime-fighter ducked from an overhead slash, Zsasz took advantage of this position by clenching his other hand that was was still holding the knife and hammered down the butt of the handle against Batman's head.
This brought the Caped Crusader back down on the shallow water. The effects of the sedative dulled his motor functions further and he struggled to push himself back up.
Zsasz licked his chops in glee, the feeling of having the legendary Dark Knight at his mercy was more satisfying than he imagined and he intended to savor this moment.
"I saved a special place for your mark, Batman. Right here on my-"
Before he could finish, Zsasz heard a loud splash to his left and he turned his sights towards it.
It was Himari who landed in a crouch with her sword unsheathed.
He quickly reacted by bringing up his knife in defense but Himari was faster and zipped up to him with an upward diagonal slash that caught him by surprise by knocking the knife out of his hand with a CLANG!
But she didn't stop there. With a feral snarl, she pushed on with several slashes to Zsasz's torso. The scarred killer yelled in pain as bursts of blood erupted from his body before Himari suddenly grabbed him by his neck and shoved him against the nearby wall with her other hand holding Yatsutsuna's tip towards his head. Her hair disheveled and her breaths panting through sharp grit teeth like an enraged animal. If Zsasz could see her eyes through those white eye lenses, he would've seen them turn blood red.
In a stunned state, Zsasz looked towards his own chest to see large gashes that cascaded blood over the rest of his body.
"You...cut me?" he asked, looking shell-shocked.
With outrage, Zsasz lashed out his arms at her but her superior strength held him in place.
"My marks! My glorious canvas ruined! You cut me!" he raved.
"I'll do more than that, flith!" Himari growled at him.
Through his dimming vision, Batman could see what Himari was about to do and struggled to speak out.
"H-Himari...don't..."
"No, Master!" Himari yelled, glancing back towards him. "Spurn me all you want but I won't let him hurt you ever again!"
He was on the verge of passing out but he still tried to appeal to her.
"It's...not...in our place...to kill. It's what separates us...from...them."
Himari snorted and turned her narrowed eyes back to Zsasz, priming her sword to skewer him.
"I am Ayakashi, your human rules don't apply to me. Why I should allow this scum to breathe any further!?" she angrily asked.
His eyes couldn't stay open any longer and during this time a tiny part of him asked himself the same question. Nobody would miss Zsasz and although it would fracture the trust Jim Gordon had in him, maybe he could turn the other way this one time. He was so tired, oh so tired. But a bigger part of him gathered whatever resolve he could and tried to appeal to her again.
But this time, he spoke from the heart.
"Be-because...a life is still a life. It's what my...fath...er...tau-...me..."
And that was all he could manage before he slumped into unconsciousness.
But those brief words struck a deep cord in Himari and her tense features dropped along with her jaw as her eyes, which turned back to its original color, enlarged. Her sights turned back to Batman, the man she had sworn to protect, with an expression of absolute astonishment.
"Pft!"
She was brought out of it when she heard Zsasz stifle a laugh and then she turned back to see him brake out in chuckles and laughter.
"Ah-Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha!Ha! Oh, that's rich!" Zsasz laughed, finding Batman's words too absurd.
With anger, Himari flipped the sword in her hand and struck the side of his head with the butt of her handle.
His eyes were fed raw light as it slowly cracked open and he grimaced before his vision adjusted.
"Oh, thank goodness. The Flumazenil mix worked." he heard a voice.
It took after a few seconds of confusion before his faculties begun to function smoothly and he realized that he was back in the Asylum's lobby area. Of course like a banged up engine, it also brought about its strain, particularly the blunt ache that crept from his neck to the back of his skull and ears.
Just like every night, he felt like crap. But also like every night, he'd still live to see another one.
Batman sat up, biting back a groan as he did, and looked around to see some of the GCPD canvassing the area. And then he took notice of the nurse at his side, one of the staff he remembered rescuing from the waiting room, and that his suit's sleeve was rolled up from his gauntlet to expose the pit of his elbow. Probably for her to administer the Flumazenil as she indicated.
He also noticed Himari standing a short distance from him looking elsewhere with her hand to her scabbard.
"Please, take it easy." the nurse tried urging him as he stood.
"I'd listen to her. You sure you're feeling aright?" came Gordon's voice.
This prompted Batman to turn and see him approaching.
"I'm fine." Batman said. "What's the current situation?"
Jim internally chuckled to himself, remembering that it was always straight to business with him.
"I've arranged the band of hostage takers to be transferred to Blackgate. We're right now working with the personnel to check for other escapees."
Batman turned his sights towards Himari who didn't seem to pay him any attention and sure enough, he began to recollect the events before he passed out.
"And Zsasz?" he asked, almost in trepidation.
Gordon coughed a bit before responding.
"Stitched up, restrained and locked in a new cell."
A breath, that Batman didn't realize he was holding, escaped his lips and it was that moment when Himari had at last turned towards him. Neither his nor her face were readable as their gaze seemed locked on each other.
"Your, um, lady friend brought the both of you back here. Told us to deal with him however we felt was right." Gordon explained.
Batman honestly didn't know what to say. No words were exchanged between them but then again, he didn't think any were needed. He couldn't explain it but at that moment he felt there was a deep understanding between them; a trust which he didn't think would blossom.
Whatever the case was, he acknowledged that she respected his wishes and he was grateful for that.
"Master," Himari finally spoke. "The rain hasn't stopped."
His jaws clenched as he realized what that meant: Their mission was far from over.
"Jim, the staff mentioned that a large creature was the caused of all this. We need more information." Batman stated as he turned back to Gordon.
"I can help with that." came a different voice.
Both Batman and Gordon looked to see Officer Mills approaching them. It seemed that his wounds had been treated and he had a few plasters over his bruises.
"You saw it?" asked Batman.
"I didn't just see it, I knew who it was." Mills said with a shudder. "It was Waylon Jones."
Located at the very back of the Asylum, the Acute Psychiatric Ward was just a nice name for where they housed the worst of the worst, the dangerous costumed foes that Batman had battled throughout his war on crime.
As he and Himari walked through the flooded corridor, past the visible shears on the walls that were like claw marks, he noted that some of the cell doors were compromised thanks to Croc's state of frenzy.
Those cell doors were open with their occupants missing. Zsasz, who got out from here, probably decided to release the inmates from the other wards and incite a riot while the others followed Croc and escaped.
Just as Mills told them, the trail of destruction lead to blown hole in the wall leading to the outside recreational area. From where they stood, they could see down below towards the middle of the barely used basketball court where there was a large gaping hole on the ground.
"I'll say this, Croc certainly knows how to make an exit." Batman commented.
The Caped Crusader jumped off and glided towards it using his cape while Himari followed him by simply leaping and landing on the ground without qualm.
The the hole itself was certainly deep and the inside looked like a torn up termite mound with a few large pipes cut from each other and exposed while the rain from above poured on to them, making them function like lipped spouts sending streams of water to bottom-most chamber.
Batman landed on a sloping pile of rubble that acted as a 'bank' of a watery passageway. He then took a small pen-sized flashlight out of his belt and shone it over the tunnel ahead, it was apparent that the rain and damages had caused massive flooding inside the structure and he surmised that the water level could go up to one's waist, making the search all the more difficult.
He could hear Himari landing just behind him.
"What is this dreadful place, Master?" she asked.
"Underground sewer complex." he answered. "Originally part of the D'Angelo Sewage Treatment Plant. It was sealed up a long time ago for obvious reasons...not that it matters now."
He said that last part in a sardonic tone as he glanced up towards the hole's opening, in time for lightning to flash above them and temporarily illuminate their surroundings.
"Must we venture in there? The stench is horrible!" Himari asked as her face crinkled with disgust.
Batman attached the flashlight to the side of his cowl and then took the initiative by walking into the water. As he thought, the water level came up below his belt.
"The escapees are still in the wind and with these tunnels running all over the island, they could be anywhere right now."
After saying that, Batman glanced back at Himari. Even with his white lenses obscuring his eyes, she was able to interpret his grim expression.
"However, Croc remains a top priority and I'm willing to bet that he's still around." he said.
The Bakeneko steeled her eyes and large white ears towards the man-made cavern ahead. She suddenly felt like she was back in Noihara, about to enter a miasma-filled cave teeming with monsters. She had undergone many trials to earn her blade and she would regard this task as simply another one.
"You're right. I can still sense him, he is close by." Himari confirmed as her thumb flicked Yasutsuna out of its scabbard.
With a silent agreement between them, the two waded into the tunnels. The floor was too submerged for Batman to pick up any trail but Himari directed him using her natural hunting instincts. Deeper inside the complex, the duo noticed an orange glow and found it to be the lighting from the overhead lamps.
That wasn't the only thing they found. A few feet in front of them was something floating on the surface and the surrounding water was contaminated by a thick dark cloud, they both immediately knew what it was when the stench hit their olfactories.
When they approached it, Batman shone his torch on the thing to confirm that it was indeed the quarter portion of a human body, with the remaining being bitten off. Any other person would've felt sick on the spot but both Batman and Himari were seasoned warriors who have seen their fair share of horrors.
The remains consisted of the left ribcage area, shoulder and arm and it was still dressed in the tattered remains of a medical white coat. The attached name badge on the coat pocket pretty much confirmed to Batman the dead person's identity.
"Doctor Clarke." Batman said grimly.
Mills had told them that Croc had attacked and taken Clarke during his berserk state.
"We must be near." Himari surmised.
Batman put his flashlight away since there was no need for it here. As they continued on, he then decided that they should come up with a plan of action.
"It's just like with Killer Moth, we'll have to drive the Ayakashi out of him and then apprehend him. Remember, I don't want any more unnecessary deaths. Just what are we're dealing with anyway?"
"A Honengyo." Himari said.
Batman glanced back slightly.
"Honengyo?" he asked.
"They are Ayakashis who reside in a watery world of their own. For as shallow as the lake or river may be, it is like an ocean for them from which they drag their prey."
The Dark Knight 'hmed' in thought before trying to get more information.
"And this...Honengyo...it also manipulated the weather?"
"Indeed. Like its distant cousin, the Shachihoko, it can summon rains. But not usually to this extent."
Batman halted in his tracks before turning around towards her. He had noted that since arriving in Arkham that Himari had been suspicious about something and he had an idea what it could be.
"You think there's another Ayakashi involved, don't you? One that's been aiding Croc this whole time." he asked.
But Himari didn't respond. Instead Batman noticed that she was clutching her scabbard tightly as the wet purple kimono clung to her skin. Even with her mask on, he could tell that she looked extremely uncomfortable
"You okay, Himari? You seem tense."
"O-of course I am well! Just leave me be!"
Himari saw him pause after her little outburst and her face instantly sank with remorse and embarrassment while her cheeks turned red.
"Um, forgive me, Master. I feel foolish. I...I do not like being this deep in water." she mumbled.
Batman was caught off-guard by her behavior but then realized that...she is a cat after all. Try as he might, he couldn't help but smirk in amusement.
"Not a fan of being wet, huh? You don't seem to have any problem with being in the rain."
"Yo-you misunderstand!" Himari protested frantically. "I like being wet! I quite enjoy having a relaxing bath in a lake or under a waterfall."
Then in an uncharacteristic bashful manner, Himari fidgeted slightly as a blush formed on her cheeks.
"As a matter a fact, if you and I were to bathe together I'd find that very delighfu-"
She suddenly shrieked as the water around her erupted before she was dragged under.
"Himari!" Batman cried out.
He quickly reacted by diving towards her and grabbing her hand just before they submerged. Under the murky depths, they both had their eyes on each other and could see that they had their lips clamped shut to hold on to whatever air they could.
As he was pulled deeper along with her, he quickly surveyed his surroundings and could see nothing but an endless ocean. This prompted him to focus back towards Himari, particularly at the dark shape that had a grip on her legs. He then took out his grapnel gun from his belt and fired a claw with an attached cord.
After feeling the claw making its mark, Batman pressed a button on the gun which sent out volts of electricity along the line and sure enough, a muffled roar shook the duo followed by a series of large bubbles billowing from the source. The Dark Knight kept pumping voltage until a surging force pushed upwards against him and Himari until finally they were launched out of the water and fell against a concrete pavement.
Himari scrambled to her knees and gasped loudly before coughing as her lungs replenished its air supply. Her slowing coughs stopped when she felt a gloved hand on her shoulder and she turned to see Batman crouching down and looking over her to check for injuries.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
Her cheeks turned red and the ends of her lips slightly curled, the cold wetness didn't seem to bother her anymore but instead all she felt was a growing warmth in her chest.
The moment of course didn't last as an inhuman growl caught their attention.
Batman's white eyes widened and his teeth grit. Standing before him was indeed Killer Croc but severely changed. The Waylon Jones he knew was already a big man but now he was massive! He Towered over them at more than eleven feet with sharp spines, which in of itself was a foot long, jutting out of his back. His legs were now thicker and supported a huge long tail that had a wide spiny fin like a fish's.
That wasn't the only feature that was fish-like: while Croc's face didn't change much, there were two noticeable whiskers, like those from a catfish, that grew from below his jaw and extended all the way over his shoulders.
"BATMaNnNnnnnnnn...!"
The creature let out a low continuous rumble that vibrated the tunnel as he glared at his long time foe.
Batman and Himari pushed themselves up, eyeing the possessed Croc cautiously and readying their defense. Surprisingly, Croc staggered a bit and brought a webbed claw over the side of his scaly head.
"Hrgh, this feels weird. It's like another mind in my head!"
Croc then recovered, his maw stretched into a malicious shark-like grin as his eyes locked on the Caped Crusader.
"But it looks like we agree on ONE thing..."
Without warning, the creature surged forward only for Himari to jump ahead and deliver a samurai style slash causing Croc to recoil and twist back as blood spurted from below his eye.
"Graaagh! Little skank! I'll have ya for an appetizer!"
Croc bellowed before whipping his whole tail into her and sent her flying off the payment and back into the water. Not about let her escape, the giant crocodile/fish-man dove and disappeared in the water after her.
"No!"
Batman called out and tried to pursue when a sudden watery wave erupted in front of him. He briefly wondered if it was them returning to the surface but by the time he realized it wasn't the case, it was too late and was swept up in the wave before being knocked on the floor.
Globs of water remained around his arms and he could feel them suddenly drop in temperature and freeze, effectively shackling him to the ground.
"What the...?" he uttered and he tried to free his arms.
He knew very well that this couldn't be Mister Freeze's doing, there was no sign of the usual blast from his Freeze-gun. But then who? He got his answer when he set his sights ahead of him but was surprised when the culprit revealed herself from raised globs of water that formed into a humanoid figure.
She certainly wasn't what he expected.
The person who stood by his feet looked like teenage girl with short green hair and glaring red eyes that seemed to bore into him. All she wore was a soaking wet sundress that clung to her skin, to the point where her nipples and red panties were visible.
"Who...are you?" he grunted out.
Shizuku didn't respond and instead calmly walked towards him before, to his surprise, began to straddle him with her cold eyes still fixed on him.
However, despite her actions, he didn't react much. Her child-like appearance made him hesitant about fighting her but at the same time, he knew that appearances could be deceiving. So he waited, mentally readying to defend himself if necessary.
"Why?"
He was taken aback by the sound of her voice, it was like a whisper with barely any emotion.
"Huh?" he asked.
"Why are you so concerned for that Bakeneko? She's no less dangerous than the rest of us ~Nano."
"'The rest of you'. Then you're an Ayakashi too?"
He asked this as he secretly slipped out his laser-cutter from his glove and shone the beam on the ice. He had already tweaked the intensity since his last Ayakashi encounter and hoped it'd be enough to free him faster this time.
"One hundred years ago, my family was wiped out by the Jibashiri family. One of the twelve Demon Slayer families." she said with hateful eyes. "We were just living peacefully. ~Nano."
"I had nothing to do with that." Batman said.
"It doesn't matter if you did or didn't. ~Nano." Shizuku levitated a glob of water over her hand before it froze into an ice shard.
"The Awakening of the Demon Slayer will destroy the balance between Humans and Ayakashi. If I let you live, you will come after us for the sake of humankind again. ~Nano."
She said this as she raised the ice shard over her head, ready to stab him.
"Now die."
She brought it down but her wrist was caught by his now freed hand. This was a first for Shizuku, her normally dead expression shifted; with pupils shrunk, her eyes widened in surprise and her mouth opened. Propped with his other elbow, Batman held her arm in place. His angular white eyes and lips looking as taut as ever.
And just then, there was an eruption of water behind him which drew both their attention. Croc had resurfaced again, roaring in pain and pawing at his shoulder as Himari secured herself atop of it with her sword pierced into his scaly hide.
"Master!" Himari cried out when she noticed Shizuku with him.
Springing off Croc with her feet, Himari dislodged her sword and then swung it towards the green haired girl as she landed towards them.
Shizuku dodged out of the way by flipping over her and landing next to Croc. She noticed him him hunching with one webbed claw over his bleeding shoulder and clicked her tongue in annoyance.
"Must I do everything? ~Nano."
Croc growled in pain.
"Shut it, Short Plate! The kitty cat just got lucky."
While Himari helped Batman on his feet, the green haired girl levitated a glob of water over his wound and to the crocodile-fish-man's surprise, it actually began to heal.
"I told you, I'm Shizuku, not Short Plate. ~Nano."
"Water and healing powers...you must be a Mizuchi." said Himari.
"A Mizuchi?" Batman wondered.
He would later read that Mizuchis were mythical water serpents or dragons that were mentioned in many ancient Japanese texts involving heroes vanquishing them. He considered what Shizuku said about her family and it certainly threw these heroics into question.
"And you're the Sword of Noihara. Still siding with Amakawa scum while wearing a ridiculous mask no less." Shizuku stated.
Killer Croc stood and growled.
"I don't give a shit who or what she is! You can play with the kitty if you want, Short Plate. But the Bat is MINE!"
His reptilian eyes narrowed and locked on the Dark Knight but Himari stepped forward with Yasutsuna pointed at them.
"I won't let either of you lay a hand on my master! I'll fight both of you if I must!" she declared fiercely.
Himari charged at Croc before Batman could stop her but Shizuku intercepted her. The green-haired had her forearms immersed in globs of water which, when she swung at Himari, formed whip-like tendrils that lashed out at the Bakeneko. Himari dodged out of the way and quickly engaged Shizuku with a few slashes but Shizuku parried with the globs on her arms which she froze into katar-like weapons.
Trying to gain the upper hand, Himari slashed at her feet but the young girl flipped over her. As she did, she concentrated an orb of water near her chest which she used to fire a barrage of sharp ice shards. Himari expertly deflected every one of the shards with her sword but what she didn't notice was that one the shards she deflected sliced a pair of electrical wires near the tunnel wall.
Meanwhile, Batman barely dodged a swipe of Croc's webbed claws but the large crocodile-fish fusion didn't afford him any pause and immediately surged forward with an audible snap of his jaws.
Even as Batman swerved back, he could feel the bone-crushing force as Croc snapped at him again and again. But at the fourth time, Batman delivered a hard uppercut to his jaw which was powerful enough to spring his head up and stun him.
This gave him the opening he needed to rain rapid blow after blow against his soft underside, causing him to slightly stagger back and hunch. The Dark Knight then vaulted himself over the creature, at the back of his neck, where he grabbed the two long catfish whiskers and pulled hard while ramming his boot against his neck.
Killer Croc roared in anger and tried to grab at him but Batman moved himself just out of reach. The pain was causing him to go berserk and he resorted to ramming his shoulder against the sewer wall but Batman moved himself just enough to avoid being crushed.
Finally, in desperation, Croc charged straight ahead like a rampaging bull towards the sewer wall which had an array of gas pipes. Batman took the opportunity to flip off him as the hybrid creature crashed hard at the end of the collision course.
As Killer Croc groaned in a daze, something had immediately caught Batman's attention that caused his white eyes to go wide with alarm: the gas pipes that Croc had impacted with were ruptured and it happened to be near the live wires that were severed by Shizuku's ice shards.
"Croc, look out!" Batman tried to warn him with an outstretched palm.
But it was too late.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The explosion from the compromised pipeline rocked the foundations of the sewer complex, causing metal and concrete debris to fall from above and impact the shallow water around them with large splashes. Both Himari and Shizuku paused from their fight and swerved their sights around in alarm as smoke obscured their surroundings and debris rained around them.
That was when Batman noticed a much larger pipeline above, broken off by the sudden explosion and impacted against a metal platform above, sending a tumbling mass of metal towards the two Ayakashi girls.
He knew who it was going to hit and had to react fast and so, without much of a plan, he dashed forward and tackled her out of the way just as it fell where she stood while the other wasn't given a chance to react. Even as they both fell forward against the shallow water, he made sure to steadily cradle her head and lower back; making sure to keep his weight off her.
When he pushed himself up to inspect the green haired girl under him, he found her staring at him with dinner plate wide eyes and her cheeks tinged pink. It was an expression of confusion and astonishment, like what this man just did was unthinkable.
"W-why...?" Shizuku asked, her soft voice almost in distress.
Batman didn't respond and to his surprise, Shizuku seemed to melt and dissolve into the shallow water under her; all traces of her vanished before his eyes.
He didn't have time to reflect on her disappearance as he suddenly felt movement behind him. Looking back, he saw a large shadow, obscured by the smoke, that reared up and staggered with a dazed 'rrrrr' sound. Batman wondered if it was Croc but as it stepped into view, he could see that it wasn't.
The creature was as big as Croc had been and had the fish-like elements but it lacked the human musculature and the reptilian features. It's body was more eggplant shaped with a very wide head and maw. The Honengyo, now separated from Croc, glared at its human target with a growl before rearing back to launch itself at him.
But that was as far as it got because in a blink of an eye, a line drew it itself from the top of its head to all the way to the end of its pelvis. And just like that, it gurgled before its body split apart; its two halfs folding sideways like a banana peel as it dried up and scattered in the wind. Behind it was Himari with her sword held, having cleaved the creature from top to bottom.
Himari immediately joined Batman's side as he stood up. There was concern in both their expressions but neither had the chance to voice it out when their attention was pulled towards a sound they heard from the other side of the fallen mass of metal.
Killer Croc stood up unsteady with a groan and a hand on his head. The crocodile-man noticed Batman and Himari standing on the other side of the metallic debris but that wasn't the only thing that came to his attention: the entire complex was still unstable and debris continued to fall around him. Clearly the area was too dangerous to remain in and so he made a hasty retreat, diving into the water when he found it deep enough.
Batman could only scowl as he watched him get away. He knew that there was no point in pursuing, they would have to pull back for now.
"Damnedest thing."
Gordon chuckled he approached Batman and Himari who had returned to the outside the Asylum's gates, continuously splashed by the red and blue flashing lights of the nearby squad cars. As Himari expected, the rain had stopped and skies were much clearer. But, as it seemed to be in Gotham's nature, the night's darkness was as thick as ever.
"No warning or sign of letting up." Gordon remarked as he glanced up. "Storm just blew over like it wasn't even here."
"For now." Batman breathed out cynically.
Gordon knew what he meant; figuratively speaking, this is only a calm before the real storm. Hit with the reality of their situation, Gordon's voice changed to a more serious tone as he handed Batman a stack of manila folders which he procured from the Arkham staff.
"A registery and files of all the escapees. I'm sure you'll find some of the names here familiar."
Batman began to flip through them.
"What is the meaning of this?"
Victor Fries, known infamously as Mister Freeze, was seething as he stepped on to the shore.
During the chaos that erupted in the Asylum, Victor had managed to procure his confiscated cryo-suit and cold gun before escaping with the other inmates through the sewers. At around the junction tunnels, he separated from them without so much as a glance; he didn't care much for that rabble, he only had his own goals in mind.
The tunnel he took had led to the South Channel River where the rain water poured out. Crossing the river was not a problem for him, the beam from his cold gun created an icy bridge for him to simply walk across. It was at the end of the bridge where he was taken aback by the sight before him.
The shore was caked with snow and icy gale winds was blowing more of them. Victor knew that it wasn't winter and that NONE of this was his doing!
Victor's expression hardened with suspicion and anger as he walked up the snowy bank. The blizzard made visibility difficult but that was not a problem for him because of the specialized red-lens goggles he wore behind his glass dome helmet. He walked through the winds undeterred until he found a lone figure standing in the middle of the snow with its back turned to him.
"Are you one of Boyle's buffoons from GothCorp? Here to steal my technology?" Victor asked with narrowed brows.
Years ago, Ferris Boyle was the CEO of GothCorp where Victor previously worked and had exploited his research to mass-produce cryo-based weapons. He was also responsible for the accident that changed him: doomed to never again walk on a summer's day with a warm hand to hold.
When the figure didn't respond, Victor aimed his cold gun at it and the weapon hummed to life.
"I will encase you in an icy tomb before I come with...you...?"
Victor trailed off as his jaw and his arm slowly dropped a bit when the person in front on him turned around. He could see her clearly but he couldn't believe it.
"N-Nora?"
Nora Fries stood before him, his beloved wife and the one he had dedicated his life to saving was standing in front of him in the cold outside her cryogenic chamber.
"Victor." she whispered.
The cold gun dropped to the snow as he rushed to her in concern, his large gloves tentatively cupped her face.
"You shouldn't be outside! Quickly! I can put you back in sleep again, I can still find a cure." he said in alarm.
Nora placed her hands on his and smiled reassuringly at him, the same warm gentle smile he had always remembered.
"There is no need for a cure, my love." the woman said. "The disease is gone, I am well again."
Victor felt himself shiver, and it wasn't from the cold.
"W-what? H-how? How is this possible?" he gasped in confusion.
His wife brought her fingers over the glass of his domed helmet as of caressing him.
"There will be time to explain later. Right now, all that matters is that we're together again."
Her words echoed in Victor's mind. As a scientist, none of this made sense to him. He had last left her chamber in a warehouse where he would come and retrieve her later. How did she get out? How could her illness just vanish?
But his heart, which had felt warmer than it had in years, knew that this was Nora. Her appearance, her voice, her touch, everything told him so. She's was right, nothing else mattered now.
"Yes..." he said softly as tears streaked from under his goggles and froze as it reached his chin.
Without hesitation, he slowly drew her in his embrace. "Together again."
Nora leaned in lovingly against the armored plate on his chest but unbeknownst to Victor, she only appeared as Nora in his eyes. In actuality, the woman was wearing a white kimono and had very pale skin with lips and hime-cut hair that was dark blue.
It wasn't Nora, it was an Ayakashi called a Yuki-Onna and she let out a soft evil giggle as she snuggled closer to him.
"Help! Somebody help me!" the homeless man cried out as he ran, zig zaging through the trees.
He was one of the many vagrants who favored Aparo Park, which happen to be across the North Channel River, as a 'night spot'. But on this night the poor man would have an unfortunate encounter.
A thin, sharp branch-like appendage reared back and struck like a snake, spearing him in his back. Stopped in his tracks, all he could do was utter a choking sound from his open mouth as he felt his insides being sucked out. Like a cartoony straw, the branch contorted with ballooned sections traveling from where it pierced it prey until the man fell from it as a dry husk.
The appendage belonged to an Ayakashi that looked like a dry old tree with jagged points, a Jubokko. There were other Jubokkos with it and they turned around to make way for a larger tree creature which used its roots to move like an octopus.
Unlike them, this tree looked more lively with vibrant leaves and pink/red flowers and this was the tree that the Jubokkos had taken as their queen.
This tree was Pamela Isley, aka Poison Ivy.
Her human body was fixed onto the tsubaki tree with her head and body visible but her arms and legs were melded into the wood and her red hair had become a sea of camellia petals. It was like she had become one with the Ayakashi, a union she didn't mind in the slightest.
"Come along, my subjects. We have a garden to tend to." she said sultrily
A pair of feet touched down on top of a water tower that overlooked the Gotham's Upper East Side. More accurately, they were like talons from a bird than anything human shaped. As this lanky figure stood erect, a pair of black bird wings on his back flexed and shed a few feathers in the process.
The clothing this person wore was of torn brown burlap and cotton that was crudely stitched together but the design appeared more priestly like those worn by Japanese Yamabushi monks with a pom-pom stole (called a Yui-gesa) draped around his shoulders and over his torso.
In his clawed hand was a long Buddhist ceremonial staff, his face was covered with a burlap mask with torn openings for the eyes and mouth. And over his head was a combination of a hood and a Buddhist style head shawl that had a long pointed end hanging at the back.
This creature was Jonathan Crane aka Scarecrow and he had been merged with a Karasu Tengu.
"Now, Gotham will know true fear!" his haunting voice declared.
Not far from the river's edge at the Bowery district, an altercation had taken place on a deserted street. Five muscular and burly figures, surely experienced in violent brawling, were writhing on the ground; bruised and bleeding from the beating they had received.
One would assume this was scene from a gang fight, except that the defeated beings weren't even human.
They appeared humanoid but their heads, skin color and additional shapes were indicative of Youkai and Ayakashi. And the source of their trashing came from a single person in front of them.
"K-ku-so...what's with this guy?" one them groaned.
"How could he be this strong!?" another balked.
Standing before them was muscular powerhouse with red skin, had a spiky white ponytail jutting from the back of his head and a single large horn grown from the center of his forehead.
An another Ayakashi obviously, but there was something different about this one.
Particularly that his face was covered by a luchador style mask that was all black with a white design that surrounded red eye lenses. Tubes ran from the back of his mask, adjacent to his ponytail, and ran over his arms that was connected to a dispenser device on his chest. It was pumping his body with green liquid, evident by the green veins that contrasted against his red skin.
He was none other than Bane, and he had somehow fused with an Oni.
"Do you all still insist in getting in my way?" he spoke dangerously with a Spanish laden accent.
Bane then goaded at the creatures with a gesture to come at him, an act that made them flinch.
"Then come, who's next? Which one of you shall I snap like a twig?"
The beaten Ayakashis huddled back in fear but before their plight could escalate, a slow rhythm of someone clapping echoed through the streets.
"Nicely done, friend. I see the spirit of Ibaraki suits you well."
Bane glanced behind him to see a well dressed Japanese man who was accompanied by a blonde petite girl that was wearing a pink Yutaka and had four large ringlets at the back of her head. It was Tama and her companion. The mercenary's red eyes narrowed as he turned halfway to address them.
"I need no one's spirit except for my own. Now, who are you?"
The smartly dressed man curled his lips as he took out one of his hands from his pockets and gestured to himself.
"Ah, of course. I realize that proper introductions are in order, I am Shuten Douji."
And he then gestured towards the blonde girl who's expression remained blank.
"And this is Tamamo no Mae."
Bane wasn't aware of it at the time but they were two of the three most powerful Ayakashis of Japan's history. The masked mercenary stared at them for a moment before looking back at previous opponents.
"Then these...things. They are your's?" he inquired.
"Yes, I apologize for my little subterfuge." Shuten said. "But I only wanted to test your capabilities and I must say, I'm impressed. How would you like to join us in establishing a new world order?"
"Pah! You are a funny little man." Bane scoffed.
He then took a few steps towards them menacingly.
"How about instead, I crush your skull and take your army for myself?"
Tama was about a take a step to attack but Shuten stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
"No need, Tama-san. I actually like this human." Shuten let out a humming snigger as he combed his fingers under the bangs on his face.
As Shuten pushed his hair up, dark protrusions grew out of the sides of his forehead, the whites of his eyes turned red and his teeth grew jagged. The sight actually caused Bane to reel back a bit.
"You may try if you'd like." his voice pitched to a demonic state. "After all, my powers aren't what they used to be."
Shuten then changed back to his previous form.
"But I believe you and I have more in common than you think, Bane. The world that Tama-san and I hailed from in the ancient days was a world where only the strongest are fit to rule and the weak die. No complicated politics or social structures, purely survival of the fittest. We only want to bring that world back, here in this city."
Bane considered the demon's words. The world being described to him was no different from the world he grew up in, in Pena Duro. The same world where he became king. He admits to himself that he did have designs for this city similar to Shuten's. But as Gotham was a city ruled by fear, there was one personal obstacle in his way, an obstacle that was the source of his nightmares.
"And Batman? Where does he fit in your plans?" he asked.
"He will taken out of the picture." Shuten said as his smile turned malicious. "Once we turn this city into our dominion, then you and I will have our battle and decide who keeps the keys to the kingdom."
The masked mercenary mulled over Shuten's proposal for a short moment before walking right up to him, towering over his form.
"Fine, you have my interest...for now. But when we face the Bat..."
Bane clinched a raised palm into a fist, so tight that there was an audible sound constriction.
"He is MINE to break!" he declared.
"Fair enough." Shuten shrugged.
With an agreement reached, Shuten addressed Tama while gesturing towards their 'henchmen'.
"Tama-san,...I believe you've been left hungry long enough. You may have them if you'd like."
The group of Ayakashis reeled in shock and one of them scrambled to his fours to plead with the Oni lord.
"B-but Lord Shuten! You said you would spare us from her if we did as you asked!"
"Sorry, but our new world has no place for weaklings." Shuten responded apathetically.
There was nothing more they could say next as Tama charged at them without hesitation with her mouth open and her fangs bared. Bane looked on as the streets echoed with the sounds of flesh ripping, bones being crunched and the screams of horrific agony.
"Who is 'Subject J'?" Batman asked as he opened the last file.
Gordon made an acknowledging rumble sound and nodded.
"Wondered about that myself. According to the staff, he checked himself in about three days ago. The was no ID on him and he kept giving them a different story about who he was each time."
After Gordon shared that information, Batman read through the document and found that Subject J wasn't given a conclusive diagnosis other than 'severe psychosis'.
"Hmm. Unusual discoloration of the skin and hair...excessive contractions of the facial muscles, particularly the Zygomaticus major." Batman read out loud.
He remembered, the Zygomaticus major was the muscle that controls smiling.
"They also said that they confiscated all his belongings when he was admitted but we found this in his cell." Gordon said as he produced a clear plastic ziplock bag.
Inside the bag was a playing card, a Joker playing card.
Batman's angular white eyes tapered as he mulled over this information. It seemed that he would have a lot on his plate for the coming nights ahead.
At the sound of the Batmobile's return, Alfred quickly approached the circular platform just as Batman and Himari jumped out of the vehicle. His intention to greet them and inquire about their well being was curtailed when the stench of sewage hit him.
"Good heavens!" he grimaced while waving a hand in front of his face. "The two of you smell positively ghastly."
"Plodding around in the sewer will probably do that, Alfred." said Bruce wearily as he pulled back his cowl.
Alfred frowned at the two and began to lecture them in a fatherly tone.
"Well there shan't be anymore plodding on my nice clean floor until both of you have a hot shower!"
Bruce's eyes widened as he suddenly felt Himari press herself to his back while looping her arms over his chest.
"I can wash your back for you, Master." she purred.
Even through his cape and costume, he could feel her fleshy globes being rubbed up and down against him.
~puni puni~
"SEPARATELY, Miss!" Alfred stressed while flashing her a disapproving scowl.
Reluctantly, Himari released Bruce with a childish pout. Her presence brought an unresolved issue to Alfred's mind and so he turned his attention to Bruce with a somber tone.
"On a related matter sir, what shall we do about Miss Himari? Surely you don't mean for her to live outside the Manor?"
The expressions on both Bruce and Himari's faces washed away and they turned their gazes on each other. Alfred looked at them curiously as Bruce remained silent for a few seconds, he couldn't read what was going on in their minds but he could feel some kind of trepidation between them.
"No, Himari will be staying with us." Bruce finally said.
Himari's face literally lit up in front of him but despite that he found the sight adorable, Bruce was quick to bury those feelings and frowned.
"But only on a temporary basis until after we go to Noihara." he stated firmly. "I meant what said earlier: after the omamori is restored, our business is done."
Alfred's mustache stretched with his wide smile. He knew this was the most cordial as his employer was going to get and whatever Himari did or said during their mission must've left quite an impression on him.
"Very well then, I shall prepare one of the guest rooms. Miss Himari, if you would join me upstairs."
And with a short bow, Alfred took his leave. Himari didn't leave right away and remained on the spot with a slight smirk. Bruce didn't leave either, feeling that there were still things left unsaid between them.
"It is good to see that Alfred-sama hasn't changed. He has taken care you well." Himari broke the silence.
Bruce didn't respond and instead his thoughts went to the green haired girl they encountered, the Mizuchi. Particularly about how she seemed to hate humans and found it incomprehensible that a human and Ayakashi could work together. So why did Himari?
"I guess now is a good time as any to address the elephant in the room." Bruce suddenly said with a sigh.
Himari looked at him inquisitively as he spoke.
"How do know Alfred or my parents? That girl, Shizuku I recall her name was, mentioned you were allied with the Amakawas. I was under the impression that Ayakashis hated Demon Slayers."
The Bakeneko suddenly narrowed her violet eyes before walking right up to him and flicked at his nose sharply, causing him to yelp from the sudden action.
"What was that for!?" Bruce exclaimed.
"Don't call me an elephant again or I will scratch your carriage."
Bruce was honestly left flabbergasted and was momentarily at a loss for words but before he could explain what he meant, Himari walked past him and stood at the edge of the circular platform, a dark chasm stretched below her with only the echoing screeches of bats filling the silence.
"We Bakenekos are fiercely territorial and take pleasure in the hunt." Himari suddenly spoke.
It seemed that she had more to say after all so Bruce quietly listened.
"Because of that, my clan had been in conflict with humans for centuries and the ruling authorities tasked the twelve Demon Slayer families with our annihilation. The Amakawa family were among those tasked and that extended to your father. In fact, one of his first duties as a Demon Slayer was to slaughter my family."
Hearing this made Bruce's brows jump, he never previously considered what his parents actually did as Demon Slayers. There would have been a time when he considered Ayakashis as mindless creatures but he had seen enough to convince him that wasn't the case.
The thought that he father would kill sentient beings in cold blood was frightening.
"I was only a kitten when he caught us in our den with our guard down, it could've been the end for us. But he not only spared us but he also protected us from harm, violating his loyalty to the ruling authorities."
Himari turned towards Bruce with a fond smile.
"When asked why, he said...'A life is still a life'." she said with a palm to her chest. "He declared that he would only subdue Ayakashis and not kill them, believing that killing would only beget more killing from Ayakashi."
She dropped her hand with her eyes closed, silently reminiscing about the man who had shaped her life and how similar Bruce was to him.
"Right then and there, my family saw the value of compassion and mercy. And so, a pledge was made by which they swore to obey the Wayne family, even unto future generations." she said.
"So that's why." Bruce remark with awe.
Himari nodded.
"Lord Thomas and Lady Martha were good people and..." her smile turned sad and it looked like she was trying to hold back her tears. "I miss them too."
She didn't say anything more as she made her way to the cave exit to join Alfred upstairs. Bruce looked on as she left as his mind was bombarded with thoughts.
TBC