GOTHAM KNIGHT

By FAH3

Windsong Rehabilitation Facility

When the hell did he become an old man? He looked at his arms and hands and saw how the skin seemed to crinkle like paper. He had so many spots all over himself that he thought he must have looked more like a leopard at a zoo. Except you wouldn't see a leopard on a heart monitor with tubes up its arms and a tube up it's dick. There was a time that muttering his name would make anyone, including cops, cower before him like he was dinosaur that survived through extinction and looking for its next meal. Now look at him. He looked like just any other old sap waiting for the Grimm Reaper to come take them away. He didn't care how nice the staff here was, he'd rather be back at Blackgate just so he wouldn't hear most of these old farts moaning and groaning. The old woman in the room next to his had been shouting for almost seven hours last night before they finally brought her kid in there to shut her up.

"Morning, Mr. Moxon." His nurse said with that annoying smile on her face. He couldn't stand how she always made herself have that happy attitude. He did have to admit that she did have one hell of an ass on her. That was one of the few payoffs of being in this modern day roach motel. Every time she bent down, he got to see a sight that was better than anything he could steal from the Gotham museum. "Mr. Moxon, you have to eat your food." She said to him, noticing he hadn't touched his bowl of what was supposed to be oatmeal. It looked more like something his dogs had eaten and then threw up the next day. It smelt even worse.

"You want me to eat? Get me a medium rare steak with a mountain of fries smothered in ketchup, and a cold beer to wash it down with." He said.

"We've talked about this, sir." She said.

"Lady, I'm dying. So no matter what you feed me, it ain't going to do jack shit. So I just want to enjoy what time I've got left." He said.

"I tell you what, Mr. Moxon." His young nurse said as she stepped close to the bed to check his IV. "If you eat the oatmeal," she said and firmly grabbed his crotch. "I'll get you the magic blue pill next time my shift is over."

"I can work with that." Moxon said with a smirk.

"I thought so." The nurse said with a wink as she left his room, making sure she put more sway in her hips before she closed the door.

Reluctantly, Moxon reached for his mobile food tray and pulled it toward him. He looked at the bowl of oatmeal for a minute before swirling his spoon in it. He wouldn't even make Maroni or Falcone eat this mush. Maybe he could flush this crap down the toilet and convince his nurse that he had eaten this slop? No, that woman was too smart. She'd know he hadn't eaten it. It was cruel that when you're a kid, you learn how to take care of yourself. Then once you get old, you have to be treated like you're a baby again.

He raised a spoonful of oatmeal to his mouth when he saw the lights started to flicker. The only time the lights did that was when a bad storm would blow in. Thanks to a lucky shot from one of Falcone's men several years ago, his shoulder would hurt like crazy when rain would come in. His shoulder didn't feel anything right now. When the lights flickered again, he saw a large shadow standing in front of his bed. It was tall, it was broad, and it had two points at the top of its head. For a moment, he really did fear that it was the reaper or the devil himself that had come to take him away. When the lights came back on, he began to slightly calm when he saw that it was a person.

"I was wondering when I'd see you. How messed up do you have to be to dress up like a flying rodent?" Moxon said.

"You have information I want." The man before him growled.

"Get in line. If you're lucky, I might tell you to go to hell before I croak. Get lost." Moxon said.

"I'm not in the mood for games, Moxon. You're going to give me answers." The dark figure said as he walked to the metal stand that held his IV.

"Two words. Eat ShiAAGGHH!" Moxon shouted as Batman firmly grasped the IV bag and squeezed it slightly. "You can't do that! I've got a deal with the cops!"

"Do I look like a cop?" Batman asked before squeezing the bag again. "Tell me everything you know about Joe Chill."

"Chill? Never heard of AAGGHH!" Moxon shouted again. "STOP! STOP, DAMN IT!" Moxon said and began to breathe heavily as Batman let the IV bag slip from his gloved hand. "I hav-haven't heard from Chill in years. The last time I saw him was not too long after I was locked up in Blackgate."

"What did he want?"

"I don't remember. It was years ago." Moxon said. He tried to gasp as Batman firmly grasped him by his neck and began to squeeze tightly. Moxon tried to pry the Dark Knight's fingers away from his throat but he may as well have been trying to pry open a steel trap. He wasn't sure he couldn't even make them budge if he was still in his prime. Moxon's eyes grew wider as Batman lifted him in the air and slammed Moxon against the wall so hard that it threatened t crack the dry wall and shook the hanging crucifix.

"I'm getting tired of these games, Moxon. Don't make crack open your skull and dig for the answers." Batman growled in a tone that would have made the Boogeyman afraid.

"He," Moxon gasped as he tried to take a breath through Batman's grip. "It was right before that slime Maroni took my territory. He let me know that he had finished a job for me."

"What job?" Batman asked. When the old mobster didn't say anything, the masked vigilante's grip tightened around his neck as he slammed him against the wall again. "What job?!"

"I put a contract on Ron Stoppable!"

"YOU DID WHAT?!" Batman demanded.


Blackgate Prison: Several Years Ago

Who would want to come visit him? His last wife left him for some bum in Reno, Nevada while his daughter, who was ashamed to have a mobster for a father, was off somewhere in the Bahamas spending her husbands money. Anyone he called a friend was either keeping their mouth shut or at the bottom of the Gotham river. So who had the nerve to try and visit him while he was locked up in here? As a guard escorted him to a table with a thick piece of bulletproof glass, with wire mesh in the center of it, he noticed a rather short and skinny man on the other side. His hair was slicked back with an obvious large amount of hair gel while a goatee of dark brown hair framed his mouth. He wore a brown leather jacket that had seen better days and you could see several beads of sweat on his forehead. It took him a minute to recognize him. He was the only person in his organization that looked like the bastard son of Christopher Walken. Joe Chill, or Joey as a lot of them called him. The guy was a low level grunt, a gopher. So what the hell was he doing here? Moxon slowly sat down and took the phone that hun beside him as Chill took the other.

"You better have a good reason for wasting my time, Joey." Moxon said.

"I found out about that broad that put you here, boss." Joe said.

"Is she dead yet?"

"No."

"Then why would I want to know anything about her?"

"Boss, the girl was Kim Possible." Joe said and didn't see any hint of recognition on his employer's face. "You know? She's the girl that goes around the world saving people and stuff?"

"I know who you're talking about, Joey. Has anyone shown interest in the contract?"

"That's what I came to tell you. No one wants to do the hit, there's just too much heat on this one. I mean, it's a girl who's saved the freaking world."

"What about one of the psychos she goes up against?"

"No can do there, boss. They're either locked up or not interested. Not to mention no one can find her."

"What do you mean no one can find her?" Moxon demanded.

"After she graduated from high school, she disappeared. Her site's down, her family's lips are sealed. No one knows where she is. She's gone, boss." Chill said.

"Damn it." Moxon said as he began to think. For a moment or two, both sat in silence under the watchful eyes of the guards until a small smile appeared on Moxon's face. "Put a hit on her boyfriend instead."

"Boss?"

"That blonde little shit that was helping her beat my boys to a pulp. I saw the way they were looking at each other. There's something between the two of them. If I can't rub that little bitch out, I'll make her suffer. What's his name? Robert? No. Ron. Ron Stoppable is his name. Five-thousand dollars for whoever rubs out that little snot. In cash!" Moxon said.

"I'll do it!" Chill said, wanting to pounce on the deal. Immediately, Chill saw the skeptical look on Moxon's face. "I can do it, boss. He's going to school here in Gotham. Please, Boss!" Chill asked.

"All right, Joey. Get a piece from a guy I know in Otisburg. His name is Doug, he hangs out in a bar called The Aces & Eights. Tell him I sent you. The next time I see you, Stoppable better be dead." Moxon said and hung up the phone.


"IT WAS YOU?!" Batman demanded as he gripped Moxon's throat with both hands and slammed him against the wall even harder, causing Moxon's back to pop and crack in several places it wasn't. "BECAUSE OF YOU, THE STOPPABLES ARE DEAD!"

"So Chill botched the job. What's it to you, anyway?" Moxon asked.

"You diseased maniac." Batman growled as he fought every want and desire to choke the life out of the man in front of him. He could feel his anger flare within him like a wildfire, but he knew that Moxon wasn't the one he wanted. Chill was the one that pulled the trigger, and Chill would be the one to feel more pain than he ever dreamed of. "If I were you, Moxon; I'd learn to see from the back of your skull. Because until the day you die, I will be watching you. From every single corner of every empty room, I will hang over your head like the shadow of death. If you put so much as a toe out of line, I will make sure that your last days are filled with so much pain and misery that you won't even be able to imagine that hell could even be worse." The masked man growled as he slammed his fist through the wall next to Moxon's head as the lights went out.

As the lights came back on, Moxon found himself back in bed. He panted heavily as he thought it was all a dream until he saw the hole in the wall above him. He swallowed a dry lump that had formed in his throat as he looked back down at his tray table and also saw a bat symbol carved into it as well.

"Mr. Moxon, is there anything wrong?" another nurse asked as he walked into his room.

"I'm fine. I think my crucifix just kept the devil away." The old gangster said.


"Batman, are you all right?" Oracle asked as he sped through the streets of Gotham in the Tumbler.

"I'm fine, Oracle." He growled as he dodged several cars that he almost rear ended while keeping his foot planted on the gas pedal.

"Your suit's sensors are spiking."

"I SAID I'M FINE, DAMN IT!" Batman shouted and slammed his fist through the communications panel of the tumbler before he brought it to screeching halt. He ripped the cowl off of his head, reached in, and ripped out the ear piece and microphone before tossing it into the empty passenger seat beside him.

Ron leaned his head back as he closed his eyes and tried to control his temper with the techniques he had learned years ago at Yamanuchi. Sadly, none were working. He kept seeing Moxon's smiling face as he confessed what he did. The night his parents were shot also kept playing over and over in his head until he finally screamed and kept punching the steering wheel of the Tumbler until his fist started to ache and his throat became hoarse. All these years, he thought it was just random chance that had lead them down that alley. That it was fate that made him into the Batman. All this time! If Ron's jaw clinched any harder he would probably start making his teeth bleed. He needed to calm down. He couldn't think or do anything else in this state. The last time he tried to be Batman when his temper was out of control he almost killed the Joker. Gripping the wheel tightly, he floored the gas and began taking the quickest way back to the cave.


Robin entered the cave on his new motorcycle, known as the Red Bird, and immediately saw that the Tumbler was parked. Something wasn't right with it. After Robin parked his cycle and dismounted, he saw that the tumbler was covered with various scratches and dents. When Ron drove this thing out in the city, he was usually a pretty good driver unless he was in a chase. Even then, the control Ron had over Tumbler was almost unrealistic. The onlytime it would receive this much damage was when whoever Ron was chasing tried to run him off the road or decided to take a few shots at him. To see the Tumbler dented and smashed to hell like this wasn't a good sign at all.

"Oracle, this is Robin. What happened with Batman?"

"He went to interrogate a suspect. Something to do with a cold case he's working on. I noticed his biometrics spiked afterward. When I asked him if he was okay, he said he was fine and all communications cut out. Even the GPS on the Batmobile stopped working. Is he at the cave?"

"The Tumbler is and it's dented to hell. You sure he wasn't in a car chase or something?"

"Don't know. I lost everything on the car about three hours ago."

"Okay. Thanks, Oracle." Robin said and walked to the main computer. He was brought up a layout of the manor above and saw nothing on the security monitors or sensors. When he brought up a layout of the cave, he saw that the simulator room was in use. He brought up the room's cameras and saw that Ron was stripped down to a pair of pants and fighting against several droids. Stoppable Industries and Wayne Enterprises teamed up and created construction robots that could work in areas that were too dangerous for people. The down side was the face plates looked too similar to the mask of the movie slasher Jason. Ron also made sure that he had several built for training uses in combat which came in handy. Their normal training would consist of each of them going up against three droids at a time, maybe four. However, Ron was fighting all three dozen at once!

"Ron, its Dick. You're going to hurt yourself! Shut the program down!" Robin said into the mic as he took his mask off.

"I'm fine!" Ron shouted back as he punched a robot so hard that he dented the face plate and scratched his knuckles which were already starting to bleed slightly.

"Like hell you are. Shut the program down!" Dick said into the mic and found he was being ignored. Dick tried to shut down the program from his end and saw that Ron had deactivated both his and Hanna's access codes. Not only that, he had disabled the safety protocols in all the droids. If Dick didn't do something, those droids were going to kill Ron!

"Oracle, it's me. I need you to access the simulator in the cave and shut it down! Hurry!" Dick said as he saw Ron beat the ever loving piss out of each droid that tried to attack him. "Ron, what were you thinking?" Dick asked himself.


Gotham University

"What the hell were you thinking?" the teacher asked as he looked at a cake that was supposed to look like the logo for the Gotham Sharks football team. That's not what it looked like at all. "I'll ask you again. What the hell am I looking at?" he asked the girl on the other side of the table.

"It didn't come out the way I hoped." She said.

"I can see that!" he snapped at her. Their teacher was a world renowned gourmet chef known as Elliot Weiss. He owned three restaurants in New York, was about to open one in Gotham, and had his own cooking show on the Fine Dinning Network. He was also well known for having a low tolerance for anyone that didn't give him their absolute best. "I thought I was giving you an easy assignment since your Home Economics teacher kept going on about how talented you were. Your teacher must either be the stupidest hag that ever walked the Earth, or confused you with someone that actually had talent!" he said as he picked up the cake and threw it into a garbage can.

"I've had to finish several other assignments." The girl tried to say.

"THAT'S NO EXCUSE! When you do this professionally, you have to remember several orders and try to cook them at same time! Not to mention that each customer will want it prepared a certain way, which you also have to keep in mind. I asked for a shark, you gave me a mutated dolphin that looked like it just had the living piss beaten out of it!" the man screamed in her face.

"Dude, lay off!" one student spoke, causing the middle aged man's already face to turn a shade darker. "Everyone screws up now and then."

"Not in my class they don't!" he shouted back. "What's your name?"

"Ron Stoppable." The blonde young man said as the angry chef marched toward him.

"You've failed."

"Do what?!" Ron asked.

"You dare challenge me in my kitchen? You've failed!"

"But he did his assignment." Another student spoke up.

"I'm not talking about his assignment. He and now you have failed the entire semester. Maybe that will remind you that I'm the teacher, and you're the students. I decide who passes and who doesn't. In the kitchen, I am God!"

"Chef Weiss!" a deeper voice shouted from the doorway. There stood the dean of Gotham University himself. On more than one occasion, Chef Weiss had flown off the handle at students in such a way that it made Gordon Ramsey look like self esteem coach. It was always rumored that he had been a severe control freak and perfectionist but the dean didn't give the rumor any credit. Not until last semester after Weiss threw a tantrum on a student for having a minor imperfection on a pastry dish. He had screamed in her face so loudly that he almost made himself hoarse and threw the dish across the room before stomping and spitting on it. After the girl ran out of the classroom, she was found half an hour later in the women's rest room. She had tried to kill herself by overdosing on anti-depressants she had been prescribed. Weiss kept his job, but after he had been ordered to take anger management classes. Hence the reason he was now here. "May I have a word with you?" the dean asked as he stepped out into the hall.

"Yes, sir." Weiss said. As soon as the man was out of the classroom, he turned back to the two students. "You better pack your bags and head to whatever Podunk piece of shit town you came from. I will make sure neither of you will ever enter a professional kitchen." He said before heading out into the hallway.

"What a douche." A young man said in the back said.

"Believe it or not, I've dealt with worse." Ron said as he let out a sigh and remembered some of the fits Mr. Barkin would throw. A shiver ran down Ron's back at all the times he had to put up with the man as his principal, teacher, monitor in detention, and co-worker at Smarty Mart. "Actually, I think I'd rather be dealing with this guy right now."

"YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" Weiss shouted from outside the classroom. It was so loud and so sudden that it actually made several of the students flinch in their seats. After a few more moments, the dean entered the classroom and adjusted the glasses that kept slipping down his rather wide nose.

"I'm afraid Mr. Weiss will no longer be teaching this class, nor will he be an employee of this University. Until we can find a suitable replacement, this class is temporarily suspended. As an apology for Mr. Weiss' actions, you will all be getting a passing grade for this recent semester."

All of the students were pleased to hear the news and immediately began getting ready to leave. Ron would love this news if it was one of his other classes. When it came to cooking, this was one of his passions and one of the rare occasions he really didn't feel right getting an easy grade. Ron quickly made his way to the dean as he was walking out the door and stopped him as quickly as he could. "I don't mean to be nosy, but why are you letting Chef Jerk go all of a sudden?" Ron asked.

"I really can't say anything, Mr. Stoppable. Trust me when I say you might want to distance yourself from Mr. Weiss." The dean said and left. This made Ron confused even more and wanted to find out what in the world was going on. Ron went back to the classroom to clean up his station and took his time. Everyone else was cleaning their tools and stations as fast as they could so they could leave which was what Ron was counting on. By the time Ron was finished, he was the only one left in the room. After quick glance, he activated the Kimmunicator watch that Kim gave him before she left.

"Long time no see, Ron." Wade said with his usual cheerful demeanor.

"Hey, Wade. You think you can do me a favor?"

"Sure. What's up?"

"My professor was just canned and they're giving everyone a passing grade for the semester. Can you see what's going on?"

"I don't see why not. What's the guy's name?"

"Chef Elliot Weiss."

"Weiss?" Wade asked, stunned to hear the name. "That guy is a known ticking time bomb. I'm surprised he'd be willing to go into teaching." Wade said as he accessed the school's database." Whoa!" Wade said as he looked at his screen. He began to explain to Ron what had happened with the student that tried to overdose and his anger management classes that were mandatory. "There's more. It turns out he only went to two courses and then punched out the psychiatrist in charge after some sort of disagreement."

"Can you say psycho much?"

"That's not why he was fired. Another student of his tried to slash his tires two days ago, but Weiss caught him. He broke the student's nose, cheeks, and several of his ribs. When he was leaving, Weiss tried to run him down with his car."

"You've got to be kidding me." Ron said. All of a sudden, Ron wasn't sorry for getting a pass for the whole semester. "Thanks, Wade. Oh, is there anything from Kim?"

"We finally got an e-mail from her. She said she's learning a lot about her biological family and taking several online courses." Wade said.

"Thank God. It's almost been a month and a half since I got an e-mail from her."

"Apparently she's really wrapped up in finding about where she comes from."

"Did she say anything else? Maybe something about when she'll be visiting?" Ron asked.

"She mentioned that she sent you message. It's probably in your inbox now."

"Thanks, Wade. Take care of yourself."

"You too, Ron." Wade said and cut the transmission. With that, Ron gathered his things and went back to the dorm he was staying in. He was about halfway toward the exit when he heard all too familiar shouting again. Back trapping his steps, Ron saw Chef Weiss was arguing with the dean again and Weiss' face was so red it was unbelievable. Ron was about to leave when he saw Weiss ball up his fist and punch the dean in the side of his head so hard that it actually knocked the old man unconscious. He didn't stop there. Once the dean was on the ground, Weiss proceeded to kick the man repeatedly in his chest and abdomen. Ron moved on instinct as he ran down the hall as fast as he could and swept Weiss' feet out from under him. "Leave him alone and walk away." Ron said in a calm but irritated voice.

The look on the former teacher's face showed that he had lost all self control as he stood back up and took several swings at Stoppable. Ron was able to easily bob and weave to avoid getting his. There was no form at all, just random rage. Weiss' launched a fast right jab that Ron easily dodged and heard a loud and sickening crunch. Weiss had punched the wall when Ron moved and his limp fingers and shivering hand indicated that he had just broken his hand. The anger in the man seemed to boil even more as he reached for the black package he had been holding with him. Unfolding it, he revealed it was his assortment of various kitchen knives and had seized the largest one possible. With the large knife in hand, he attacked Stoppable with screams of primal screams of anger.

Ron's mind was on full alert now and could see this man was now intent on trying to kill Ron. Ron backed away and saw Weiss was trying to bring the blade down in attempt to stab Ron in the neck. Ron blocked with his forearm before kicking Weiss in the shin. As the pain distracted the mad chef, Ron was able to firmly grasp the man's wrist and twist it. Weiss dropped the knife right before Ron used his other hand to grab him by the hair and slammed him against the wall. Before Weiss could try and move, Ron punched Weiss in the face with enough force to knock him unconscious. With Weiss finally down, Ron went to check on the dean and heard him wheezing horribly.

"Can't – breath." The man said.

"It's all right, sir. We'll get you help." Ron said as he pulled out the Kimmunicator to call Wade.

"What a mess." The patrolman said as Weiss was hauled away and the dean was loaded into the ambulance with broken ribs and a punctured lung. "You did good, kid. There's not a lot of people he would have stepped up like you did."

"I'm lucky I knew martial arts. Do I have to go with you?" Ron asked him.

"Given the statements we took and the footage everyone had with their cell phones, I doubt it. Not to mention this guy has a history of anger issues. I think the only problem you're going to have is when those videos get posted on YouTube tonight." The officer told him.

"Thanks for the help officer?"

"It's Gordon. Officer James Gordon." The patrol man said.

"I'm Ron Stoppable." Ron said as they shook hands. "If we meet again, I hope it's on better terms."

"So do I." the officer said before heading to his car. As the car drove away, Ron decided to head back to his dorm and get some rest.

By the time Ron had returned to his dorm, word of what he had done was already well known all over campus. There were many variations, but most of the people he passed were giving him high fives or telling him how cool, awesome, or incredible his fight was. He wouldn't be surprised if someone had recorded his fight and posted it by now. The attention was a little unusual to him. The entire time he and Kim had teamed up to save the world, Kim was the one that got the attention and credit while he stood in the background. Safe to say he didn't really enjoy being in the spotlight. He was close to his room when he bumped into Crawl. He was one of the many students there and had a reputation as a bit of a party animal. Truth be told, he looked like a left over Generation X-er from the 90's and didn't care what other people thought of his looks. It was hard to believe from the way the guy acted and talked that he was one of the University's star Mathematicians.

"Ron-man! Hey, buuuudy. Heard about the chef going loco." He said as he gave Ron a high five.

"News travels fast, huh?"

"It's worse than little old ladies at a church service, mi amigo. Oh, some guy called looking for you while you were out. Cat something?"

"Wildcat Grant?" Ron asked.

"That's him, bro. He a friend or something?"

"Dude, you've never heard of him? He was a big time boxer right around the time the Rocky sequels came out." Ron said. What Ron said was a bit of an understatement. Wildcat Grant was a major heavyweight championship boxer and had defended the title time an time again. He lost his title when word got out that he was spending most of his nights as a costumed vigilante by the same name, Wild Cat. Now he was running his own gym and doing his best to train the next generation of boxers. Ron had found it during his first month in Gotham City just so he could have a place to train his Monkey Kung Fu. Grant himself was so impressed with Ron's moves that he gave him a membership and had been teaching him how to box. Ron couldn't help but wonder why he was calling.

"Sorry, bro. I'm not into the whole macho violence entertainment thing unless it's professional wrestling." Crawl said. "I've got to get to my trig class. I've been majoring it for two years, but I'm thinking about dropping it."

"Why?"

"Too easy, bro. I'm looking for something that's more challenging." Crawl said as he began to walk away. "Oh! Tell the two old people in your room that I said hi." Crawl said as he looked at Ron while walking backwards before turning and almost running into a freshman.

"Old people?" Ron asked himself as he opened the door to his room and was surprised to see his parents. His dad was sitting in his desk chair and watching the news on his flat screen while his mother was flipping through one of his ultimate game guides to Zombie Mayhem trilogy. "Mom? Dad?" he asked, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Ron, do you actually play these games? I knew games had come a long way since Super Mario Brothers, but this is down right frightening!" his mother said as she looked at various pictures from different gameplay screen captures.

"Believe it or not, it's actually tamer than several others. What are you two doing here and where's Hanna?" Ron asked.

"With all the time we've taken off from work to raise your sister, we realized it was rather lonely without you around. So we decided to surprise you with a visit." His dad said as he stood and gave his son a hug.

"Don't worry about, Hanna. Anne offered to take care of her while we're here."

"She did? I thought she was still keeping herself busy." Ron said. According to his last letter from Mrs. Dr. P, she was doing extensive research on a radical new surgery technique.

"She finished that ages ago. So, how's college life treating you?" his father asked.

"It's been an adjustment. A lot of the time, it feels like a daycare center where everyone smokes." Ron said.

"I hope you're not smoking too. Oh Lord, you're not going to frat parties and binge drinking too?"

"No! No, no, no. If I did anything like that, I'd loose my scholarship." Ron said which wasn't true. He had gone to two parties, and that was with one of his new classmates as a wing man. He didn't really care for it and didn't really care for the alcohol. So anytime he was invited to a party, he usually said he had homework or research to do and would go to Grant's gym instead. After everything he and Kim used to do in high school, the party life felt rather tame. "So, how long are you guys here?"

"Only for the weekend. So, what's there to do in Gotham City?" his dad asked.

"Not really sure. When I'm not doing school work, I've been taking boxing lessons."

"Boxing? Ron, I thought you would have grown out of that fighting phase when Kim left." His mom said.

"Now dear, it's good that Ron knows how to protect himself. Even in a city like this, it's better to be safe than sorry." His dad explained.

"But, there is one place I like to go in downtown. It shows old movies on the weekends and its one of the last standing theatres from the Golden Age of movies. It's called the Monarch theatre." Ron said.

"The Monarch? It sounds very classy." His dad said.

"Not too classy, but it the people that own it do their best to keep it in shape. I think they're showing an old Basil Karlo movie tonight."

"Basil Karlo?" his mother asked. "He used to be one of my favorite actors when I was growing up. He always knew how to play the perfect villain, almost as good as Vincent Price. I even heard Hollywood is thinking about remaking one of his films."

"Not another remake." Ron muttered to himself. "So, you want to go see it? I'll pay for the tickets if you buy the popcorn."

"Since it's one of your mother's favorite actor's, why not?" His dad said.


If it had been a normal human, the wave of punches Ron had just delivered would have rendered the robot temporarily deaf, shattered its nose, and most likely would have fractures its larynx before Ron took it down by sweeping the robots legs out from under him. Sweat was pouring off of him in small rivers with his hair now looking like a complete matted mess as he grabbed another robot and slammed it into another before launching powerful kick that knocked both of them to the ground. He was so lost in his fights that he didn't see the blood covering his knuckles or hear Robin's constant banging on the door to the training room. Their learning software was now adapting as they started to pair off in small groups before trying to attack Ron. When that proved ineffective, their numbers kept growing and growing. Despite Ron's discipline and speed, the machines were starting to land at least one below every so often. Soon the one blow was slowly starting to add up. Though faint, bruises were starting to make themselves known and fatigue was beginning to set in. Ron ignored it and continued to ignore his body's complaints and kept battling robot after robot. He didn't see the blank metal faces of androids, he just saw his face. That one face. The face of Joe Chill in every single one of them.

His teeth were clenched as he kept launching assault after assault in an effort to smash that face. He wasted to see that face break and watch it bleed. To watch the pain that gunman had caused him to echo in his. Despite his mind pushing himself, his body was loosing its edge. The androids were landing more punches as it became harder for him to try and put as much strength as he could behind each punch or kick. He felt cold and hard metal fists strike him in the face more than once as he switched techniques in an effort to use their own momentum against them. He was still finding himself trying to catch his breath as more of the machines were landing more blows. As he glanced at the blank face plate of one android, he saw his own reflection in the face plate that was covered in smeared blood. As soon as he saw that image, another memory began to surface. Both of his parents laying on the alley floor, lifeless as their blood began to pool underneath them. In the blood, he saw his own reflection. The look of pain at his loss in his own eyes as he not only watched his parents die, but the person he once was die as well in the light of the moon.

He was so lost in the memory that he didn't see the punch coming. The android landed a blow to Ron's left check and almost broke it as Ron's world spun and he almost lost his balance. He blocked the following punches with his arms and kicked the droid in the chest, but it didn't have the power he tried to put into it. Instead of knocking the droid off of its feet, it only staggered. They droids were regrouping as they planned a new attack as Ron did his best to keep a fighting stance while breathing heavily and fight off the ache his muscles were filled with. As the droids began to advance, he heard the secured door behind him being forcibly opened before a blast of intense energy shot forward and slice into the machine's chests and sever their power sources. The androids collapsed as smoke, sparks, and the smell of burning metal filled the room. Ron turned to see a very worried Kim in her blue and red uniform looking at her with a worried look.

"Ron, what the hell were you doing?" she asked him.

"I had it under control." Ron said as his voice revealed how exhausted he really was.

"Bullshit." Kim said. Even now, after all they had been through, it was rare when she cursed like that. She only did that when she was really angry or really worried. From the looks in her eyes, it was both. Ron walked past her and grabbed a towel that was waiting on a railing as he saw Robin's worried look as well. He ignored it and walked to the main computer where his chair was waiting for him. "Ron, will you talk to me?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Like hell! You've been acting so moody that you've got everyone worried and you try to kill yourself in there!" Kim protested.

"I have safety protocols in place to prevent any real harm."

"That you disabled, Boss. If Kim hadn't come along, they would have killed you." Robin said. The glare he received from his foster father didn't only scream "shut up," but also said that they were going to talk about it later.

"Ron, the last time you did something like this was when Doomsday," Kim began but couldn't finish. There was still too much pain with the memories of that battle and the baby she lost as a result of it. There was also the pure ice ball of fear that went through her when she remembered pieces of the fight and how ready she was to tear that monster apart. "Was when you thought I was dead. Now something has got you so worked up that your putting yourself in danger again. Not what is it?" Kim demanded but received no answer as Ron sat in his chair and looked at the information on the bat computer. "I am not leaving until you say something to me."

"Piss off." He mumbled.

"Richard, give us a moment." Kim said to the young man behind her. Dick knew whenever Kim used his full name that things were about to get ugly. Not wanting to be in the crossfire, he went straight to the elevator that lead to the mansion above them. He didn't even change out of his uniform as Kim spun Ron's chair around and glared at him with their noses almost touching.

"Ronald Dean Stoppable," she started as she accentuated every letter. "I have known you for most of our lives and we've been through too much for you to act like this." She said and still received the silent treatment. "I'm not moving from this spot and I'm not letting you leave. I'm not only your friend, but I'm the mother of your child and I deserve more than this." Ron was silent for a few more moments before he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"The Black Mercy." He said as he looked into her eyes. "After I managed to get it off of you, it latched onto me. I don't know how, but I relived that night. All of it." Ron said as he opened his parents file and brought up the mug shot.

"Is that?" Kim asked.

"Him." Ron said with every ounce of venom he could muster. "His name is Joe Chill. I was able to find out why he was in the alley that night. It was a hit." Ron said as he found himself balling his fist again. "There was a hit out on me and he took the contract. But my parents were killed instead."

"A hit? That doesn't make sense. Who would put a hit on you?" Kim asked him.

"Does the name Louis Moxon ring a bell?" Ron asked as he glanced at Kim again. He saw her face was blank at first before she finally remembered. "He did it to get even for what we did to him." Ron said.

"That son of a bitch." Kim whispered as she let the news sink in.

"I don't know whether or not I should thank Mongul. Without the Black Mercy, I probably wouldn't have remembered what he looked like. But – that dream. Everything felt so real. I had everything I wanted in my life. I had you and our kids all together under one roof. I also had my parents again. I know they barley raised me, but I know they still loved me and did what they thought was best. I could smell my mom's perfume, I could feel my dad's hand on my shoulder. Then that dream was ripped away as I relived that night. Every goddamn detail was exactly as it happened in every way." Ron said as he slouched forward and buried his head in his hands.

Kim walked around the chair and wrapped her arms around Ron and held him close. She knew how he felt at that moment. Having to go through the experience of what the Black Mercy offered and have it ripped away was unlike anything she had ever endured. For Ron having to relive the night he lost his parents had to be agony on another level. As she held him close, she closed her eyes as she recalled her own experience.

"I was on Krypton," she started. "Everything was beautiful and exactly the way Jor-El had showed me. You were even there." She said as she felt her tears begin to form behind her eyelids. "We had a good life, and even a family. We had our little girl with us." Kim said as her voice cracked, bringing up the baby that would have been. "When I realized it was fake, it was like I was there when Krypton was destroyed. I could actually hear the people screaming in fear as the world came apart. I was in the middle of it all, and I was holding our daughter as she looked at me and begged me not to leave her." Kim said as the tears fell. She hadn't even told Jon about this in their therapy sessions. It was just too hard to talk about it. Ron enveloped Kim in his own arms as they held each other in the light of the computer's large monitor. For now, all they had and all they needed was each other.

"I've always got your back, KP." He whispered to her.

"Me too."