CHAPTER FOUR:
FIGHT ON THE ROOF
Luke Fox moved through Galway's Wayne Tower, looking for where his father had gone. He had come there a week ago, hoping to spend time with Lucius Fox before he would be returning to Gotham. There had been a time where his father was seemingly too busy to spend any kind of time with his son, but as Luke grew, he began to understand just how much went into his father's job.
They had been able to spend some time together in the last seven days, though Luke hoped they might be able to spend more. Maybe go eat a nice dinner, or find a theater where they could either watch a play or a move (he assumed his father would prefer the former, as he knew Lucius Fox was not one for the fictional stories).
He reached the door through which his father's office in this subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises. He could hear voices within, and so Luke knocked before entering. For a few moments he heard nothing. Then his father's voice came. "Come in!"
Luke entered and found his father behind his desk. He was looking over something on the computer in front of him, and while he could not tell what it was, Luke was sure that it was something important. He had seen his father working on many things over the years, and he still wondered what exactly his father had been able to craft. Luke walked to a seat in front of the desk and sat down. His father looked up from his work and smiled at him brightly.
"There you are," Lucius said. "I was just about to tell one of the other employees to go and get you. I wanted to know if you had something planned for us tonight."
"Well, yeah," Luke said. "I was really hoping that we could find a time to spend together. At least, more than we've been able to do already. I only have another five days before I have to return to Gotham, and I really wanted to see if there was something you wanted to see or something that might seem of interest for you to look at. Maybe a museum or a play, or just a good dinner. Something like that, you know? Just something good."
"I get it," Lucius said. "I've been a bit too busy with my work, and I realize how hard it can be for you to sometimes have a workaholic father." He chuckled, and Luke found himself smiling at the joke.
"You're a busy man, Dad. I know we had some issues when I was a bit younger, but I grew up and now I fully understand what it's like to be one of those people who has to run a company as big as Wayne Enterprises. Of course, I've always wondered why Bruce Wayne has never been able to run it by himself."
"Mr. Wayne's a smart man, but even the smartest men cannot accomplish their goals alone," Lucius said. "We all must work together with people in order for those goals to be seen through to the very end, or we might end up crumbling underneath all that pressure."
Luke nodded. "There was something I once noticed about the company, though. When I was going through some of the archives during my internship three years ago, I saw that there was a prototype of what appeared to be Batman's car. I wasn't sure what to make of that, so I wondered if maybe you have ever helped Batman out. If so, that would be awesome."
Lucius raised an eyebrow. "You were able to get into that area of the archives? Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised, since you've always been one of the smartest young men I've ever met, but I'm still surprised you were able to get through some of the firewalls I put in place so no one else would be able to access them."
"So Wayne Enterprises has actually helped Batman before? Why would he need us?"
"You have to understand that Batman didn't just create all his gadgets on his own. He needed a place where he could craft them, and he knew Wayne Enterprises was one such place where he could find the materials he needed to create them. So, over the years since he first appeared, he's been helping out Wayne Tower and using our resources to fulfill what he needs."
"That's awesome," Luke admitted. "Have you ever been able to meet him?"
"A couple times," Lucius said. "He started coming around before I was a major component of the company. I was here, but I started out on the lower end, and then made my way up, you know? But over the years, I've run into him a bit, and even collaborated with him a few times."
"That's awesome, Dad. What about Mr. Wayne? Does he know Batman's gotten help from his company at all? Have they ever met?"
"I think they've met before, though I can't be certain. I might have to talk to Mr. Wayne about that the next time we meet. He's busy in Gotham right now, though, so that's not going to be easy. He's supposed to come here in the next month or so."
"Are you going to be returning to Gotham anytime soon?"
"Yes. I've only spent a good deal of time here because this subsidiary needed a helping hand in case it was going to make it past some of the roughest stages of success. I'll be here a bit longer—maybe another month—and then I will be coming back to Gotham for the foreseeable future."
Luke was about to ask another question, but his eyes flicked to the flatscreen television above on the wall behind and above his father's head, and he found himself shocked at what was being reported. "What in the name of God?"
Lucius turned around, picked up the remote, and unmuted the television so they could hear the report.
"Yes, Andrew, it does appear that something major has been going down in the city," Vicki Vale said. "Gotham has, of course, been known for its high number of criminals and supervillains, as well as its high number of superheroes that are staples of the city. Many scuffles have broken out in Gotham, as a result, and there have also been many casualties. Today is yet another example, with what appears to have been a fight not far from the docks of Gotham. The sound of gunshots ringing through the air, and even high-pitched laughing, has been reported. Sources report that the laughing was likely produced by The Joker. Not far from the scene, there were also signs of the villain known as Two-Face, also known once as Harvey Dent, the former District Attorney who was scarred by the mob boss Sal Maroni during a trial. There is no word on which heroes were involved in the battle, though it is likely that Batman himself is one of them, as he is never far from the scene.
"Gotham doesn't appear to be the only city where major events have occurred recently, with Metropolis reporting a fight between Superman and Lex Luthor taking place. Central City, Coast City, and others are reporting heroes and villains engaging in battles, and it is unknown what is causing this sudden uptick in crime. This is Vicki Vale reporting for Gotham WGOB News. Back to you, Andrew."
"Thank you, Vicki," Andrew said. "In other news, the Prime Minister of Sweden visited Washington today…"
Turning the sound off again, Lucius turned to Luke.
"What was that about?" Luke asked. "All those cities suddenly being attacked by supervillains? It's almost like they all came together to try and take down the different heroes. But how could they have done that?"
"I don't know," Lucius admitted. "If Superman fought Lex Luthor and Batman fought Joker…I wonder who else was fought by the heroes. But you're right. It seems like these supervillains worked together to try and bring down the heroes. I don't know for sure if that worked, since we aren't connected to the heroes in any way, but it does seem as though there's a group of villains out there. If they've teamed up, then the Justice League is in for the fight of their lives. I'm sure it'll all work out, though."
"Have you ever met any of the villains of Gotham?"
"I came close to meeting Joker once, at a charity ball Bruce Wayne hosted. I have to admit that it was one of the scariest moments of my life. The Joker is ruthless, hiding his malice behind that smile and his laughs. He will stop at nothing to do horrible acts on those around him. There was a point where I thought I might die. But something kept me from thinking negatively, from thinking I would never be able to make it out of there alive."
"What was that?" Luke asked, curious.
"It was you," his father answered. "Thanks to you, I was able to get away from the fear I felt as I looked into The Joker's eyes. And so, when Batman and some of his allies appeared and took him and Harley Quinn and their goons back to Arkham Asylum, I was relieved and happy to know that my prayers to see you again had been answered."
Luke smiled, and he wanted to walk forward and hug his father, but before he could, he heard something that he could not automatically describe.
They were near the top of the building, on the seventy-fifth floor. Whatever they were hearing was coming from the very top, and it was a sound that Luke could not put together. Looking at his father, who looked back at him with the same kind of confusion that he possessed, they hurried out of the room to see what it was that was making these strange sounds.
Luke could still hear it as he hurried up the stairs that would take them to the top of the building, and he could swear that he heard grunting and yelling. But there was no way people could be fighting at the top of Wayne Tower, right? Who was crazy enough to climb all the way to the top of a seventy-five story building just so they could fight someone else? It didn't make a lick of sense, but he wouldn't be able to know for sure what was going on until they saw for themselves.
The climb up there wasn't too far, and Luke had trained, but there was a part of him that was telling him to be cautious, as though he already knew whatever was up there might be dangerous. He didn't understand that at first, but he guessed he would soon find out.
Twenty minutes before this, Spoiler found herself ready to face off against Talia and her ninjas. Of course, she knew she couldn't just jump into battle against them without thinking. That would pretty much be suicide because of how well they were trained.
She was going to have to wait for the right moment, look for an opening she could exploit. Having fought Talia before, she had learned from whatever mistakes she had made in that battle and was ready to rectify them here.
Of course, she hadn't been alone when she had last fought the Demon's daughter. It had been she, Batgirl, and Nightwing who took her on together, and even then they had a great deal of trouble because of the fact that Talia had been trained pretty much since birth to be an assassin.
She was alone here, and that made this upcoming fight even harder. Even if she could find that weak spot, would it be enough for her to take Talia down? She prayed that she would not make an error that could result in her death.
Inhaling and exhaling, she closed her eyes and then opened them.
"You're stalling, aren't you?" Talia asked her. "You are not sure if you have what it takes to take any of us on. Isn't that right?"
"Wow, you're nowhere near as stupid as Batman told me you were," Spoiler taunted. "Here I was thinking I could outsmart you. But I guess I was wrong. With such an astute observation as that, I don't even know how I could possibly win! Just go ahead and kill me, why don't you? It'd be better than hearing you spew clichés the whole time."
"You have, and always will be, an insolent child," Talia said. "I knew from the very first moment we met that you were not going to respect me in the way that I should be. You were always going to act like a brat who doesn't know what she wants."
"Maybe so," Spoiler said. "At least I don't see my evil father as someone who I can trust. At least I don't see the horrible things he's done and find positives with them. I actually became a hero just so that I might be able to stop my father."
"And that was a mistake," Talia retorted. "You should have gone ahead and given up. No one wants you. No one wanted you then, and no one wants you now! So go ahead, give up! You are a disgrace to all of humanity!"
She began circling Spoiler, who did the same. She eyed her opponent closely, remembering her training. Maybe it hadn't been for this exact moment, but it was possible that it would be enough to keep her alive so that she could untie her friends and let them hurry into Wayne Tower, where they might be safe.
There's a chance for me to go ahead and break their bonds, she thought. Once I see that right moment, then I can go ahead and do it. There's the ninjas, and I think I'll have to take care of them first. But I was able to take one of them down at one point, by taking him off-guard. If I can repeat that, then maybe I can defeat them all. It's not going to be easy, but I didn't become a hero just because I believed it would be a piece of cake. I became a hero so that I might be able to help people.
They continued to circle each other, and Spoiler thought for a moment that this would never end, that Talia might just give up. Of course, that was a silly thought, but a girl could dream, right?
"Why is it that you're even wanting to take these children, Talia?" she demanded. "You went ahead and took them just because you wanted to, is that it? You couldn't get Batman to love you forever, and so you decided that kidnapping was the perfect substitute for adoption, right?"
"I do not think I have ever met someone quite as annoying as you," Talia said, pure contempt in every syllable.
"Maybe you should come back to Gotham and give Arkham a try. Then you'll find some of the most annoying people you've ever had the misfortune of meeting. Riddler's one of them, and so is Penguin at times. But Killer Moth might be the worst of the worst. No wonder Batgirl took him down so easily."
"You cannot possibly understand my true intentions," Talia said to her. "You cannot possibly understand why it is that I am doing this, you simple-minded urchin!"
"Does it have to do with Ra's? Are the Lazarus Pits not working quite as well as they used to? Is he so weak without them that he needs the youth of children to rejuvenate himself? If that's the case, then I feel for you. I really do. But kidnapping children in order to meet your goal is not the answer, Talia. There has to be another way."
"You know nothing! You cannot begin to comprehend the truth of the matter! I'll give you one more chance. Leave here right now, and you will not be harmed. If you even so much as try to follow us, however, then I will kill you and everyone you love."
Spoiler's eyes narrowed. "I'm sorry, Talia, but I can't do that. These children have families, and I am not about to let you take them from them forever. If I have to fight you and the League in order to prevent this…then so be it."
"Very well," Talia finally said. "If I cannot persuade you to leave, then the only sensible thing left to do is to kill you. Prepare for death, child, because it will be cold and dark where you are going."
"If you mean Hell, then wouldn't that be 'hot and damp' instead?" Spoiler joked. She could see that she was infuriating Talia further, and that was exactly what she wanted. If she could get her to lose control, then it was possible she could take her down. That was how she had been able to defeat Bane on her own some months ago.
But instead of Talia herself coming forward to confront her, she found that Talia wanted the League ninjas to do so. This didn't surprise Spoiler too much, since it wasn't like Talia was just going to let them hang around and watch the two fight. This did mean that Spoiler was going to have to battle several of them at the same time, which could easily prove to be a challenge.
Inhale, then exhale, she thought, doing exactly that. You can do this. You've taken on many of Arkham's inmates before, and they were all in a group. If you could do that, then it's possible for you to battle these guys…even if they are much better trained than almost all of those in Arkham.
Two of them stepped forward first. Spoiler moved forward, too, and dodged a hard punch that was sent at her head. She sent a kick into the ninja's shin, hearing them grunt in response. It wasn't the exact response she had been expecting, but she guessed that many of these guys had also been trained so that they would not automatically feel the pain a regular person would.
Another punch, followed by a kick from that same ninja, but she dodged both of them and retaliated with a flurry of punches to their abdomen and chest areas. Several grunts resulted from the blows, and with one kick to the chin, the ninja fell on their back, seemingly unconscious.
Treading with caution around their body, knowing they could easily jump back to their feet and attack her again, she moved on to the next ninja, who was much burlier than the last one. She could see their eyes, which were a dark brown color. As they moved around slowly, Spoiler did the same. She could see this ninja was trying to find her weaknesses. While she knew she was nowhere near perfect, Spoiler did not actually know what her weaknesses were supposed to be. Maybe this fight would allow her to understand them better than she had before.
This ninja was also much quicker than before, dashing forward and trying to grab her with both hands, seemingly to choke her and cause her to lose consciousness, allowing Talia to finish her off. Before they could even come close to getting their hands on her, though, she backflipped away twice, then jumped over them as they dashed at her again. Right as they were able to reorient themselves, Spoiler kicked them across the face, and they dropped to their knees in pain. Spoiler then kicked them again, and they fell into what appeared to be unconsciousness.
Two down…and a good number to go. She still had a chance to figure this all out, though. Her classmates were almost free, and she could taste victory on the tip of her tongue. A punch was aimed at her head right at she thought this, this time from one of the much smaller ninjas. This one had to be nearly as short as she was—she was five-foot-nine, still taller than Tom Cruise but shorter than nearly every other ninja and Talia here—but that helped her by allowing her the chance to punch and kick them without having to jump up or just reach. A few more grunts sounded as her blows landed, but this ninja was not yet on the ground. She had to focus on them instead of anyone else that might be trying to draw her attention away. If another ninja or Talia herself joined the fight, then she would have to focus on more than just one opponent, but so far that was not the case.
I'm even closer to finishing this, she thought. I can finally find a way to prevent this from escalating further and save my classmates. It's hard to believe I'm doing something kind for Harry and Biff, but hey, sometimes weird things are bound to happen.
"Die!" hissed the ninja, and Spoiler was surprised to hear them actually speak. She was sure they were all capable of speech, even if it was in another language, but she had seldom heard it from them up to this point.
One punch, two punches, three punches.
All of them came near her, but Spoiler evaded every single one, and the ninja blinked in surprise. Their stance had a weakness in it, and once she saw it, Spoiler lunged and swept their legs out from under them. They fell and hit their head. If they had been standing on a much harder surface, then she might have been worried.
But the top of Wayne Tower was made of a somewhat softer material than concrete, and so they merely joined their previous allies in dream land when they hit their head. Looking up at Talia and the other ninjas once she had taken this last one down, she wondered if any of them besides Talia could actually pose a real threat to her. She would gladly welcome it if they could.
"You're doing much better than I expected," Talia complimented in a begrudging manner. "But your prowess now comes to an end. You are going to know what it feels like to be impaled. My men have held back thus far, but no longer. Have fun with a knife in your belly, stupid girl!"
Sure enough, knives were being unsheathed by the ninjas, and some of them retrieved their staffs. Spoiler had a trick up her sleeve, though, as she retrieved a weapon of her own. The Wayne Enterprises-crafted staff she possessed was soon back in her hands, and she opened it up and pointed it at the nearest soldier.
Finding herself surrounded within moments, she held up her staff even higher and readied herself for round two. This round was going to be harder with the presence of weapons involved, but she had already dealt with such things in Gotham. She was surprised, though, as she looked around that there were no guns.
She guessed that was one thing the League and Batman and the rest of the Family had in common. They had enough honor not to use such a weapon.
Parrying one of the attacks with a blade just longer than that of a kitchen knife, she pushed the ninja back and aimed her staff at their knees. Another grunt, but not enough where she was able to take them down. So, she whacked them across the face as they were recovering from the last attack. They went down like the three others before them.
One of the ninjas was slashing wildly at her, and one was coming up from behind, pointing the knife straight at her. Waiting for them to be in the right position, Spoiler then jumped out of the way, causing the two ninjas to come within only a few feet of one another. Spoiler knew they weren't going to just go ahead and collide, even though she felt that might become one of the greatest things she had ever seen, and so she was forced to have to figure out a new way to take the both of them down.
Since one's back was turned and had not yet been able to turn around to face her once again, she swept their legs out from under them, and once they hit the surface of the top floor, she slammed the butt of her staff into the abdomen. They sputtered and fell silent a moment later.
The other ninja was ready to avenge their fallen comrade, but Spoiler had something in store for them when they were ready to attack. Before they could take more than three steps forward, all she had to do was whack them across the face. This somehow lifted the ninja off their feet, and they spun in the air before landing hard and going limp.
As Talia watched, she could not believe what she was seeing. Sure, these were nowhere near some of her best men, and one of her very best had not yet joined this battle, but she had expected so much more from those who had accompanied her. For them to be beaten by a mere child was nothing short of infuriating.
Why am I tarrying even further? she asked herself. Father is not going to be happy with me, and I am none too keen with enduring his wrath yet again. If we could only take this little girl down, then we might be able to get to him that much sooner. But how?
She wasn't the only one whose thoughts were racing through her mind as she watched Spoiler battle the ninjas. Blair was extremely shocked that one of the heroes she had never seen as having a substantial role in Batman's crusade against supervillains and corruption in Gotham take all of these ninjas and assassins down with such ease.
"It looks like your men are nothing but losers!" she called over to Talia. "If you really thought you were going to come out on top with a performance like that, then you might as well give up and try again next time!"
Talia had begun gritting and grinding her teeth, and Blair realized she may have pushed her too far.
But Talia didn't focus all her anger and aggression on her. Instead, Blair found that Talia was focusing fully on Spoiler, and she could not help but wonder what she was about to do.
At the same time, Spoiler had been able to take down another two ninjas. Even though she felt some sweat running down her face, she did not feel exhausted. Instead, she felt hope, happiness, empowerment, and satisfaction in being able to fight off all her enemies. These ninjas did not pose anywhere near the level of threat that she had expected. Maybe this was just one of those off-days for them?
There was still some anger in her as a result of the fact Talia had even thought about kidnapping children in order to fulfill whatever evil goals which she and her father hoped to accomplish. But as she slammed her staff into another ninja, she found much of that anger either gone for good or in the recesses of her mind.
There was no reason for her to think about all of that right now, especially since anger was powerful enough to completely control whoever believed it could help them.
That ninja had fallen by the time she completed that thought, and she looked right at Talia, while also being aware of the other ninjas in case they tried to attack her. She turned her full attention to Talia at that moment.
"Is it just you and me now, Talia?" she asked. "You should have known we would learn about your presence in Europe sooner rather than later. Even though I understand you want your father to live, this is not the way to do it."
"You are still a child, and therefore, you know nothing," Talia chided.
"When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground," Spoiler said.
"What?" Talia said, confusion forming on her face.
"You uncultured swine," Spoiler retorted. "So, are we going to do this thing or what?"
Talia moved her hand to her hip, and Spoiler wondered what she was reaching for. She saw the hand go into the pocket, and watched very closely in case it was a gun. But when her hand left the pocket, Talia had what appeared to be the hilt of a sword. Raising an eyebrow, she had the urge to laugh at this, but her eyes widened as Talia pressed a button on the side that faced up at her, causing the full blade of a sword to appear.
"Oh, crap," she said aloud. "I'm both kind of scared, and also more than a little jealous. Where did you get that, and where can I get one?"
"Do you ever shut up?" Talia hissed.
"Funny enough, Batman told me not to give up on my humor. He said it really comes in handy when dealing with other villains that never shut up. Joker, Riddler, Harley Quinn…Kite-Man."
Talia had had enough of her, it seemed, as she ran forward, the sword pointing right at her chest. Knowing that she needed to get out of the way as soon as possible, Spoiler leapt upward and fired her grapnel gun towards one of the communication towers. When it found something to connect to, she swung to an area behind Talia, and dropped down. Talia wasn't stupid, though, and she immediately whirled around and sent multiple kicks at her.
Her mind once again switched to the time she'd fought Talia before, and once again to how she had needed help in order to defeat her. She had no help here, and she was not sure how she was going to confuse Talia enough to take her down. This was one of the most dangerous women in the world. When first told about her, Batman said that she was up there with her father, Deathstroke, Lady Shiva and David Cain, and Deadshot. He had also explained that while they were far more adept at assassinations, she was just as powerful in hand-to-hand combat as almost any of the others. So, this one-on-one fight filled her with dread.
If she hadn't dodged just in time, it was possible Talia's sword would have slashed into her flesh and immediately killed her. She was quick and agile, which helped her greatly in fights like this.
As Talia sent a stab towards her abdomen, Spoiler retaliated with her staff, and much to her shock, she was able to land a hit. It was hard enough for the smack to echo across the rooftop, and when Talia felt that area on her left cheek, there was a large red welt there.
"That should not be," Talia breathed in shock. "How?"
"I'm just as shocked as you are," Spoiler said. "But also really happy. In fact, it gives me a lot of hope."
"Hope? You feel hope, even in my presence? Isn't that beautiful? Well, your hope is about to be extinguished."
Across the rooftop, Susan had to admit that this ally of Batman's was more powerful than she had expected. Unlike Blair, she did not know who Spoiler was, but she felt like she had seen her before. Maybe in one of the well-publicized fights with one of Gotham's many supervillains.
Not only that, but the way she moved was very familiar. There was the possibility that she had just learned many of her skills from places all around Gotham, but Susan still could not help but feel as though she already knew Spoiler.
As Spoiler continued her fight with Talia, she looked quickly over at her classmates and nodded at them so that they might understand they would be all right, that they would soon be returned to their families.
"You've lived longer than I expected," Talia was forced to admit. "Most others would have already been impaled, and thus, killed. What is it that sets you apart?"
"I learned a while back that if you want to keep alive in Gotham, you have to keep moving," Spoiler answered. "And if you are forced to fight, then you're going to have to stay on your feet and also keep moving, looking for any openings in the movements of your enemies. I'm sure that's what you've been doing this whole time. I'm surprised you haven't already found one with me, since you watched me beat all your men with ease."
"You think I wasted my best men on you?" Talia threw back her head and laughed. "Delusional is the word that best describes you. These are mainly those who were available, with only one or two whom I personally trust. You have gotten off easy, but you are now about to see what it's like to be killed by the Daughter of the Demon."
"What a joy," Spoiler muttered.
Before she could attack again, one of Talia's men suddenly grabbed her from behind.
"Weak," Talia said. "You are weak, and you will always be weak. You fight better than I would have expected, but that won't stop you from meeting your end."
"If you're going to kill me, then why don't you just shut up and get it over with?" Spoiler demanded.
"Very well."
But Spoiler had a plan. She was very flexible, thanks to her gymnastics training and her training with Batman and the other members of the Family. She raised her leg straight up quickly enough so that her foot slammed into the head of the ninja holding her.
Groaning from the impact, the ninja stumbled backward, and their grip loosened on her enough where she was able to free herself. Leaping forward, she dodged another swing of Talia's sword.
She found herself close to her classmates, all of whom were staring at her with awe. She raised her right hand and waved at them.
"You're amazing," Blair complimented.
"Who taught you all of these moves?" Susan asked.
"It helps that Batman trained me," Spoiler said. "But I should probably add that you should not try any of what you have seen here at home. Now wait here, and I'll get you guys out of here."
She left them where they were tied up and confronted Talia again. The dangerous woman was fully glaring at her, and she could see that she was being examined. Whatever the exact thoughts that swirled through Talia's mind were, Spoiler did not know. But if she had to guess the subject of every single one of them, she could only assume they were focused on killing her.
"Get her!" Talia shouted out, and Spoiler realized she would have to not only fight Talia, but also the other ninjas that surrounded them. This was going to result in a very difficult fight, but she hoped that it was one she could still win. "If she tries to escape, you have my permission to kill her. Whoever does so will then be rewarded."
"You think I'm going to try to escape? Just how stupid are you, Talia?" Spoiler began laughing as a result of this absurdity. She saw Talia's right eye twitching, and she became serious once more as the ninjas began to advance on her. "Let's get one thing straight: I am here for the teenagers you kidnapped. I don't have to fight you. You can let them go, and I'll let you go."
"That cannot happen, stupid girl. You have already prolonged my father's suffering, and there are consequences that stem from that. I hope you believe in a higher power, because you are about to meet them if that's the case."
One of the ninjas lunged at her. She flipped away from them, then kicked another that had come even closer. She inhaled and exhaled so that she could catch her breath, then went right back into the fray.
Using her staff, she hit one in the face and another in the abdomen, causing them to double over in pain. She ducked another's punch, and succeeded in catching another's kick. She pushed, and they fell backward, causing another of the ninjas to trip.
If these were the less-trained ninjas, then she couldn't possibly tell how difficult the others were. These guys seemed like nothing more than usual black-clad Arkham Asylum inmates. She could take them down with ease, with her only major challenge here on this rooftop being Talia herself. And thus far, Talia had not shown her everything that she was capable of.
After another few ninjas had been knocked down or knocked away from her, she found Talia was coming right at her. She walked backward, waited for Talia to brandish the sword, and ducked under the first slash, then jumped over the second. Talia grunted in annoyance. In response, she aimed a strike at Spoiler's abdomen, who danced away as quickly as she could.
When Talia was preparing another strike, Spoiler struck her in the abdomen, which caused all the breath to go out of her. But this moment of success did not last long, as Talia recovered and stared Spoiler right in the eyes.
Three slashes were thrown at her, and she was forced to dodge each one of them in quick succession. She felt fear, as she did not want to be sliced apart by any of them. Then again, who did?
But just as she was about to retaliate with her staff, Talia performed a round house kick that caught her in the jaw. Spoiler yelled out in pain, and she felt herself rise into the air from the hard impact, before falling onto the surface of the roof.
Sitting up, she saw Talia had been able to dash away and now had the ropes that connected to the binds that held her classmates in her hands. Spoiler's eyes widened yet again.
"Don't you dare!" she shouted.
"As I said before, you are weak!" Talia shouted back. "Batman should be ashamed that someone as weak as you has joined his so-called 'Family'. I have won, and if you attempt to follow us, know that you will find yourself at death's door very soon."
Spoiler saw her classmates eyes and the horror that danced within them. She readied herself to stand and try to stop Talia, but the Demon's daughter suddenly dropped a smoke bomb, which clouded Spoiler's vision.
After closing her eyes for a few moments, then opening them to make sure she could actually see through the smoke, she found a horrible sight:
Talia had escaped.
Her classmates were gone.
She had failed.
