Man-Bat came to a painful crash against the cold wet floors of the dark room. The monster groaned as its red blood permeated through the water beneath, the wound on its shoulder aches with every breath.
"My. My. The Man-Bat returns." A seductive voice calls out from the shadows causing Man-Bat to tense up as they look up to find themselves in the company of five terrifying figures.
"And without Langstrom or the Rider in your jaws. How disappointing." Spoke the source of the melodious voice as she sat atop a throne of bark and roses. Her appearance could make anyone blush at a mere glance of her luminous emerald eyes. She could truly be called the reincarnation of Gaia, with her emerald green skin, hair made of vines that consumed almost everything around her, and adorning a crown made from the rarest of flowers, truly she was the very definition of a goddess.
"I-I'm sorry, he outsmarted me and I needed to flee. I promise, it won't happen again!" Begged the monster as it kneeled to the floronic femme fetale. The ground shook, as to her far right emerged another figure of great power.
"You promise? Do you?" If the woman in green was a goddess, then the behemoth of a man that emerged was nothing less than a demon. He towered over both figures, face hidden behind a mask of black and white with red lenses that obscured his eyes. His massive form hid behind a black coat with white fur lining, his enormous hands wore black fingerless gloves with a plastic skull sitting in his right palm. At least they hoped it was a plastic skull as he shattered it with a single squeeze of his palm. "Little Bat. Your promises are as good to us as the scum on the bottom of my boot, they offer nothing but annoyances and irritation. So do not promise something you cannot keep up, less you be ruined like your lesser half."
"Now, now Bane. Ivy. Our friend here made a simple mistake, and an error in their true objective. This is not unsalvageable, not entirely at least." A third and final figure appeared between the aforementioned Bane and Ivy, a long black trench coat adorned his shoulders as he wore a pristine all white suit that displayed wealth and regality with matching gloves. His face was hidden behind a white cloth mask that obscured all facial features, not even his eyes could be seen behind his white veil of a face. Despite his calm and less grandiose appearance, there was a far more sinister and suffocating aura to this new figure. He kneeled down and pushed Man-Bats head so that they locked eyes with one another.
"Now then, care to tell us why you decided to attack our Rider problem? When you were specifically asked to monitor and then retrieve Langstrom from wherever the Rider might be holding him?" The monster groaned in pain as they tried to avoid their leader's gaze, only to have him pull it back with surprising strength. "Do you have an answer or not?"
"I-I'm sorry Doctor, it's just. I didn't know where he was hiding him and just seeing him, thinking about what he had done to Kurt. I got angry and I-"
"Shhh… that's enough. I'm not angry with you, after all it is our mission here in LAZARUS to save our lost children. So I can only commend you for wanting to do the same for our missing son." His grip on Man-Bats hairy chin now turns into a gentle grasp of their cheek. His tone is gentle and warm, able to allure anyone into a false sense of safety. "But you had a role, a role he gave you and that you failed. So there must be consequences, after all children never learn unless they're punished."
"N-No! Sir, I promise you I can correct this! I'll find Langstrom and ensure that I never fail again!" Man-Bat wobbled up to their feet, and spread out their wings in an act of desperate bravado. The Doctor chuckled as he stood up and produced a silver pocket watch with an engraved skull in the case, a faint 'hm' escaped his lips before closing it and turning to the monster under his control.
"Very well. I'll give you another chance to correct your error Man-Bat."
"¿Qué diablos estás haciendo, Muerte?" cursed Bane in his native tongue.
"I agree with the oaf, you're just giving her another chance Doctor?" asked Ivy with a glare towards the Doctor and Man-Bat. The Doctor ignored their complaints and held up a small black box from his pocket.
"However, only one. And don't worry about your fellow Man-Bat, I'll have someone else look into his whereabouts. You're going to fix Langstrom's failure in his stead, and to ensure it, you have until this time tomorrow to bring us Flass' head. Fail to do this, and well, you'll be answering to him instead." Man-Bat froze and began to shrink at the stakes presented. They shook their heads and turned to their commanders, growling before taking the box and bowing once again.
"I promise you and The Demon, Arnold Flass shall die a painful death!" With that, Man-Bat screeched once more before retreating from the building and into the shadows. Doctor Death sighed and turned back to his two accomplices who glared down at the humanoid leader of their cabal.
"Yes, yes. I understand your frustration with my decision. But trust me, even if she fails we benefit greatly. Perhaps Flass dies in the crossfire? We might even get more data on how our Great Leader's little pet has grown? Trust my plan and our leader's dream."
"I have nothing but trust in the dream, little man." growled the now agitated Bane. "It is you I have very little faith in. You lead us like common criminals, when we are anything but. I have no idea why our leader decided you should command this operation, and you have yet to show why."
"I concur with the giant once again, I respect you, Doctor Death, but this and many other decisions seem nothing but a wild risk to our operation. I'll hold my tongue out of respect for all you've done, but my patience is quite thin." spoke Ivy as she ran her hands through her thicket of hair.
"Trust. In. The plan. Good night you two." With that, Doctor Death vanished into the shadows from whence he came, followed by an angered Bane and an annoyed Ivy.
EP.2- CREATURES OF THE NIGHT
{GOTHAM CITY.}
His bike roared as it sped through Gotham City traffic. By all accounts he should've been pulled over for speeding twenty miles back, but they couldn't catch him if they wanted to. As he escaped into a nearby abandoned canal, he flipped the switch on his throttle, signaling his arrival as a nearby subway tunnel gate opened up and allowed him passage. This elaborate creation and machinery led him down an abandoned subway tunnel lit with blue fluorescent lights leading him towards the garage, or as Alfred aptly nicknamed it, 'The Batcave'. As he reached his destination, he drifted in fast before coming to a screeching halt. He raced to the elevator, tossing his helmet to the ground without a care as he exited the machine and sped into the kitchen to find… well an odd sight is what he came across.
"Oh, Master Bruce. Welcome home." Spoke a smiling Alfred as he sat at the kitchen island across from a haggard Kirk Langstrom wearing a black hoodie to cover himself up. Kirk looked up and was surprised by the sudden appearance of Bruce Wayne, as if he was startled by the billionaire's arrival.
"Oh, Alfred. I didn't know you had company over, and you are?" Bruce extended a gloved hand to Langstrom, only for the man to recoil at the kind gesture offered. Bruce understood and retracted his hand, offering a kind smile instead to his fellow LAZARUS victim.
"I-I'm not too sure actually. I can't seem to even remember how I got here. All I remember is waking up to find Alfred treating me in bed. He says you both found me on the street but all I can remember is getting into a car and then… I think I saw a giant bat?" Bruce raised a brow at Langstrom's lack of recollection. He turned to Alfred, smiling as he sat down beside his butler and across from the doctor.
"I'm sorry to hear that sir, you've likely undergone a severe trauma. If you'd like, Alfred and I could bring you to the hospital for further recovery. We have a friend who can come and give you a check up, but for now we just need you to rest up. We'll talk about it later in the morning." Kurt sheepishly nodded in response, as Bruce stood up slowly and left the two men alone. Hours later, Alfred saw Kurt off to bed after another cup of tea between the two with no signs of Kurt's memories returning. He boarded the hidden elevator into the Bat-Cave and once again found his young ward hard at work at the computer running another analysis on Man-Bats DNA.
"I've already looked at that DNA sequence multiple times, I'm not sure you can find something someone with an actual medical degree couldn't." snided Alfred as he placed a cup of tea beside Bruce.
"Not Kirk's, Alfred. The other Man-Bat that attacked me tonight, it seemed different. Like it had more control over its actions compared to Langstrom did. It was genuinely angry." Bruce took a sip of his tea before stopping and raising a brow to his butler. "Magnolia? Really Alfred?"
"I have to get you to bloody sleep somehow, don't I?" he responded, his hands typing on the console to display Bat-Rider's HUD recording of the fight with the last Man-Bat. "My god, you're right. They seem like they wanted you dead. Well, more dead than usual."
"Exactly, this isn't like the others from LAZARUS or like Langstrom. Whoever was this second Man-Bat had reasons to fight me, personal ones, and that makes them easier to track down. I'll get in contact with Gordon, touch base on how Flass' information might help with the investigation. For all we know, he might still be a target since he was involved in some capacity."
"Very well, I suppose the night is still young so I'll keep a close eye on our house guest. And Master Bruce, please don't spend all night working again." Alfred exited the cave, leaving Bruce to stare at the recording of his bout against the second Man-Bat, an uneasy expression across his face as he watched the two crash onto the Arkham Manor floors. He quickly paused the video on the frame of Man-Bat fleeing the scene and began to scratch his chin in suspicion.
'That Man-Bat I fought, it was likely a hired gun from LAZARUS, sent to kill me more than anything else. Kurt was operating in a similar capacity, albeit to target Flass and possibly anyone else in their pocket. God knows what the second one's mission was, possibly to guard the Arkham Mansion?' Bruce broke away from his inner thoughts and reached for his phone, hoping that Gordon would have good news for him. He waited patiently only for the other end to pick up the sounds of gunshots and the screams of police officers. His heart sank just as fast as his eyes widened, it couldn't be.
"IT'S AFTER FLASS!"
"Oh no."
{GCPD HEADQUARTERS, OLD GOTHAM-5 minutes earlier}
On the neighboring rooftop, a black silhouette watched the building which housed their target. In their hand was a glass syringe filled with fluid that glowed an ethereal yet sinister green, which they promptly jabbed into the side of their arm and pushed down.
"Argh!", they exclaimed. Within seconds, the vial fell out of their hands and shattered onto the ground. Their veins glistened the same color as the poison flowing through them reached their heart, causing them to howl in pain, which was followed by the sounds of bones rearranging themselves and clothes tearing apart. With a loud and pained filled screech, Man-Bat #2 unfurled their wings and growled as they locked eyes on the GCPD building.
"For Kurt." With that, the monster leapt from the ledge and flew towards the windows of the building. It crashed through the glass and brick like it was styrofoam, terrifying the officer as it screeched out in anger before lunging forward and sinking their fangs into the neck of the nearest lawman. Their gunshots went off, doing nothing but further irritating the attacking monster, who growled and glared at the surrounding officers. "Bring. Me. FLASSS!"
It tore through the police officers like a burning knife through butter, breaking down the walls to the holding cells only to find it barren with no life. It growled in anger before receiving a shotgun blast to the back of the head. It did nothing but burn some of the hair on the nape of its neck. It slowly turned and found the trembling form of a terrified man who held the firearm to Man-Bats head with a quivering finger at the trigger.
"S-Stay back! Stay back I say!" He fought to get that single order out. The Man-Bat growled and slowly approached the terrified man, snorting and snarling like a true animal. The man, clothes now stained from his terror, dropped the weapon and fled only to be lunged at by Man-Bat from behind. The monster pinned him against the walls with their hind claws binding them to the walls as it growled and leaned in towards the man's ear.
"Where is Arnold Flass?"
"I-In the garage! He and Gordon are trying to escape through the garage! Please just don't kill me!" he begged, tears streaming down his face only to have the monster vanish without a trace.
"Hurry up and get in the damn car!" yelled Gordon in frustration. With his gun in hand, he had taken the immediate chance and fled with Flass towards the garage. He'd been warned by his fellow officers that something had attacked the building and was screaming for Flass; it was easy to put it together that this was the same monster Flass had been saying wanted him dead. If he were a cop in any other city, he'd think Flass was on some form of drugs, but Gotham was not any other city.
"There's no use! It's here! It wants me dead and it's not gonna stop till I am!" Flass screamed. He was truly terrified, he felt the walls around him closing in as the doors blocking the rest of the precinct from the garage burst open. Man-Bat roared in anger as it widened its wings and bared its fangs, eyes trained solely on Arnold Flass.
"ARNOLD FLASS! YOU HAVE FAILED US! YOU MUST DIE!" It roared and prepared to lunge at the disgraced former officer, ready to kill him. Gordon leapt in between the two and fired at the monstrous Man-Bat. This just annoyed them and they continued to move forward, slamming their wing across Gordon's face with a grunt. The detective groaned in pain and was sent flying into the side of a nearby car, leaving Flass alone and defenseless.
"L-Listen! I promise, I won't tell anyone! No one would believe me anyway, just please! Please! I don't wanna die! GACK!" Flass' begging was brought to a halt as the monster's winged right arm morphed into a clawed hand that found itself wrapped around his throat in a vice grip.
"I'm sorry but you failed him, and thus, he has demanded your head." It growled.
{BACK WITH BRUCE}
Bruce fled to the bike, not even sparing a second to tell Alfred of his departure, and raced out of the garage at alarming speeds. Once the tunnel gate opened up, Bruce dashed into Gotham traffic and weaved through any vehicle in his way. With only a few miles separating him and the GCPD, Bruce focused his mind and summoned the belt to manifest itself around his waist. The belt buckle once again glowed a bright light that consumed his body before revealing the transformed state of Bat-Rider! With his black scarf flapping in the wind and his motorcycle, Bat-Rider twisted the throttle and blasted forward with a burst of flames coming from his exhaust.
"Master Bruce? What's going on?" asked Alfred over the comms. Bat-Rider stayed silent as he ignored his butler's query due to him nearing the station. Now in sight, he sped forward and rammed through the metal doors of the garage with his bike and took in the immediate sight before him. He sped forward and rammed his bike into Man-Bat, forcing the monster to release its prey, who fell behind the Masked Rider.
"Grab Gordon, get in the car and go!" he ordered. Flass nodded and did as ordered, grabbing the unconscious Gordon and booking it to the car before speeding off. Bat-Rider disembarked from his bike, locking his white eye lenses with Man-Bats beady reds. He cracked his gloved knuckles and took a fighting stance.
"Let's go." He muttered. The two bats rushed towards one another, meeting in the middle with Bat-Rider jumping forwards with a flying punch across his monstrous counterpart's jaw. Man-Bat growled as they hit the ground with Bat-Rider landing atop of them and grabbing them by the metaphorical collar only to be swatted back by their wing.
"Rider! Why? WHY MUST YOU MAKE THINGS MORE DIFFICULT!?" Man-Bat retracted their wings and charged forward, throwing punches at the Masked Riders' helmeted face. They were sloppy and untrained, allowing him to dodge them with ease before catching a punch mid-throw and elbow them in the face.
"It's what I do, I stop evil." He quickly followed up his attack by throwing a roundhouse kick to the monster's face, sending it crashing against a nearby wall. Bat-Rider slowly approached Man-Bat #2, clenching his fists as he prepared to deal a finishing blow to the monster. "Now, I have some questions for you."
"S-Stay back. Stay away from me!" Man-Bat trembled in fear, backing away in terror from the approaching black and gray Rider. With pure terror coursing through their body, tthey unleashed a powerful shriek that sent the Rider flying back and shattering the surrounding windows.
{THE APARTMENT, KIRK LANGSTROM'S ROOM}
"HGRGH!" Kirk fell out of his bed, body drenched in a cold sweat and growing paler by the second. His heart threatened to break his rib cage apart, and his nails began to burrow into the floorboards beneath him. He clutched his aching head, flashes of bats and a man in white haunting him before he felt himself finally fall over the edge.
"No. No. No. No. No…" he repeated to himself, screaming as his heart raced faster than ever before. His ghostly pale skin began to squirm and misshapen itself while green veins began to present themselves to the world, a loud snap echoing out while his bones broke themselves apart and reshaped themselves again into a new form. The hair from his head fell out within seconds, being replaced with a sudden surge of brown body hair that covered every inch of his form. His teeth elongated and misshapen themselves before his eyes sunk into his now beast-like skull before emitting a sinister red glow, alongside his arms morphing into large bat wings.
Alfred rushed in from the hallway, panicked as he witnessed the emergence of Man-Bat. The two shared a single glance before the monstrous form of Langstrom burst through the glass window and took off into the night sky.
Alfred stood in shock for several minutes before racing out of the room and towards the cave. As he reached the console, he began to display the footage of Bruce's fight with Man-Bat #2, showing the creature screeching as Bat-Rider falls to the ground in pain from their sonic attack.
{BACK WITH BAT-RIDER, GCPD}
"Master Bruce! Bruce, are you okay!" The Masked Rider held his hands against his ears in pain, the sudden surge of agony from Man-Bat's attack discombobulating him and leaving him open as he was instantly tackled by the beastial enemy into a nearby patrol car. The monster pinned him down and proceeded to punch him across his masked face, each one sloppier than the last which gave him enough room to front kick his foe away from him.
"I-I can hear you. But I'm a little bit busy!" he groaned, summoning the grappling gun in his hand before rushing forward to regain ground in the fight. Man-Bat #2 hissed and did the same, only to be knocked back with an elbow strike to the right of the head followed up by another left roundhouse kick. The monster knew it wouldn't win this fight, the Rider was too skilled in comparison to itself.
"There's no point to this! I have a traitor to kill!" Its wings reformed instantly as it flew out of the entrance, likely going after Flass and Gordon. But Bat-Rider was fast, firing out his grappling cord which latched onto its left leg before pulling the Masked Hero off the ground and into the sky again. "What?! What are you doing?"
"Stopping you!" With a click of a button, Bat-Rider propelled himself closer to the flying monster before latching onto its back and placing it in a chokehold. "Why? Why did you attack me at Arkham Manor, and what do you know about Langstrom?"
"Like! I'd t-tell you!" The monstrous bat bucked here and there, often crashing into nearby signs and building structures in an attempt to shake off their pursuer. It was to no avail. The Rider clung on to the monster for dear life and strengthened his hold on their neck.
"Master Bruce! You need to listen to me!" yelled Alfred, his voice finally breaking through his master's focus, "Langstrom! He's escaped and he's-"
"SKREEEEEEE!" A blur of fur crashed into the two other Bats before all three came to a crash landing through the windows of an office building. Bat-Rider tumbled and crashed against a pillar, his body in pain as he slowly picked his head up and saw something that made his heart sink once again.
"K-Kirk?! Is that you?" Man-Bat #2's tone changed as their wings retracted into their arms once again, slowly approaching their counterpart with open arms. The other Man-Bat snarled at the gesture, he had seemingly become feral as he was now oozing slime from his mouth and his eyes darted all around. But upon their meeting, Kirk began to purr as #2 held his head and said in a softer tone. "Kirk, I-I finally found you."
"Hey, wait! Don't go near him he's-" Before the hero could stop them, Man-Bat #1 widened its wings and curled them around his doppleganger before flying off into the night at alarming speeds. Bat-Rider summoned his grappling gun to pursue them but instead was blasted several times in the chest by Man-Bat #1s compressed sound waves which knocked him out of the nearest window and towards the ground. "Crap!" The Rider held up his grappling gun and fired upwards, barely saving himself as it latched to a ledge allowing him to swing into another office space on a lower floor. Tonight was definitely a painful one, he thought this while standing up and looking up at the clear night sky.
Alfred commented, "I take it this last minute bout offered no reward, sir?" Bruce had forgotten he was on the line. Bat-Rider fled the building, ducking into the nearest alleyway as he waited for his bike to finally arrive at his location.
"Obviously not, but Kirk. He seemed different the moment he and the other Man-Bat encountered one another. See if the bug I planted in Francine's office picked up anything, I'm gonna contact Gordon and see if he and Flass are okay."
"Understood sir, but don't you think you should hurry back to the cave? I can't imagine that your body's happy with the amount of damage it received on top of your short wait time between transformations."
"I'll be fine, Alfred, keep in touch and let me know what you find." He hung up before racing off into Gotham traffic. He groaned and held his stomach, the yellow glow from his belt's core beginning to slowly dim, signifying a lack of power. He revved up his bike and continued forward, his Rider form vanishing in a burst of smoke, leaving behind Bruce Wayne, whose face was far more exhausted than hours before. His vehicle had also changed from its intimidating black form to a sleek Zero SR Motorcycle.
{BENEATH SPRANG BRIDGE}
After almost an hour of driving, Jim Gordon leaned against the side of the patrol car and lit what felt like his tenth cigarette of the night. He'd recovered from Man-Bat thrashing and took over the wheel before then sending out a code on the radio signaling that he and Flass survived the attack. He only hoped 'he' intercepted the call and was on his way with some good news, and by the sound of a motorcycle engine approaching he did. He pulled up with a screech, and his face was obscured by a black motocross helmet and visor making it impossible to parse his identity.
"Jim, how's Flass?" he'd asked, his voice no longer filtered through his Rider form but still deeper than one could easily recognize.
"He's fine, passed out in the back seat but he'll live more or less. How about you? You look like crap." Jim puffed out a cloud and began to approach the edge of the platform that oversaw the waters of the Atlantic. Bruce, or just Rider at this point, followed and stood beside the investigator as they watched the waters below rage on and the sun begin to rise over the city skyline.
"The monster was a bit more difficult than I expected, it didn't help that it had backup." Jim coughed before throwing his cancer stick onto the ground.
"Wait, you're saying there's another monster that can take out ten of my men running around at the same time?!"
"It's nothing we can't handle, Jim. I already have a lead on where they could've gone, all that matters now is you keep Flass alive and safe. For all we know, he could unintentionally lead us to the bigger catch behind all of this."
"Or he would likely just end up dragging more men to their deaths, I swear a year ago I wouldn't think twice about throwing Flass to that thing." Jim clenched his teeth as he felt his phone vibrate in his coat pocket. "Crap. I gotta cut this short, but I'll drop Flass off at a local spot for the time being. Harvey and Merkle will stand guard while I deal with stuff on my end. The press won't like this attack."
"I know you'll do a good job, but the other two officers, can they be trusted?" Bruce asked, a brow cocked underneath his helmet. Gordon gave a confident smirk in response to his "partners" doubts in his choices, Bruce's fears were put to rest by that simple look. "I'll take it back, then. Keep in contact with me, I'll let you know what I find on my end."
"Got it, and do yourself a favor. Invest in a better disguise, you look like a creep." He finished, walking towards the patrol car as Bruce returned to his motorcycle and chuckled before speeding off in the opposite direction of Gordon. As Gordon drove, his phone rang out once again, forcing him to finally answer. "Yeah. Yeah Barbara, I know I'm not home. I'll be there soon, trust me, I just gotta finish something up at work first."
{THE BATCAVE}
Bruce groaned as he stretched while seated at the computer, his jacket thrown to the floor and helmet placed beside him. He placed his head in his hands while watching the recording of his battle against Man-Bat #2, trying to solve the puzzle of the monster's identity.
'It's clear as day that the monster's sonic attack was the trigger for Langstroms' transformation. But that still leaves the question of not only their identity, but why? I still lack how and why the second one was able to activate Langstrom's transformation.' Bruce scratched the stubble of chin as he pondered the question more. He paused the video, stopping at the frame of the two fleeing the scene together, Langstrom wrapping his winged arms around the frame of the second one gently before taking off.
"I see that you've once again taken to obsessing over that footage instead of sleeping." Alfred arrived from the elevator, a tray of oatmeal and a cup of coffee in hand. Bruce didn't bother looking over at his guardian, eyes focused solely on the image displayed before him.
"Did you manage to pull anything from the bug left in Francine's office?" he asked, taking the cup of coffee from the tray as Alfred placed it beside him. Alfred released a heavy sigh in response to his master's comment.
"Nothing but meetings, phone calls, and a half hour of her eating a sandwich. Nothing too much of note there, but then again, I am but a lowly butler and former actor. I am no detective, afterall." snided Alfred as he began to return to the elevator. "By the way, did you ever look into that comment I made about getting more help? I was serious as a matter of fact."
Bruce ignored his request and switched the monitor from his helmet to the video recording of Dr. Langstrom's office. The woman seemed different now as she sat at her desk, on edge with her fingers tapping against it as if she was counting down to something, constantly checking her watch. Her frazzled and unkempt signaled that she was in a rush before leaving her home. That's when he had a spark of an idea, and proceeded to finish the rest of his coffee before racing towards his motorcycle, even grabbing his helmet and jacket before racing back out onto the streets of Gotham City, a location already in mind for his next clue.
{CHERRY HILL, GOTHAM CITY}
Barbara stared out of the window blinds, her eyes drawn to the noisy clustered streets below the old fourth floor apartment she shared with her father.
"Babs! Sweetie! Are you ready for school yet?" yelled a grisled and gruff voice from down the hall. Speaking of her father…
She sighed and proceeded to hop off of her twin mattress and proceed to get dressed. It had been a year since her father moved to Gotham City and now almost a month for her, so far most if not all of the city was nothing more than a hellscape of traffic and drunken bums sleeping on the stoop of her apartment building. If she wanted that, she could've just stayed in Chicago, but that's just how things were in life. She and her dad had to come to Gotham after his transfer last year, the only upside being her getting accepted to Gotham Academy on a Gymnastics Scholarship. Overall, she just missed her old home. This city wasn't her home, it was nothing but a stranger. She sighed heavily and finished her routine as she straightened the red tie of her school uniform and brushed her shoulder length red hair.
"I'm ready, dad." she yelled, finally leaving her room to find her father waiting for her by the door. He'd only just returned home, she could tell by the bags under his eyes and the stink of sweat, the strong stuff that he only drank to ensure he didn't fall asleep at the wheel.
The drive to Gotham Academy was a quiet one for the two of them, Jim breaking the tension here and there with little questions like how her day was prior or how she was adjusting to the change. As such she would respond with her own small replies that shut the conversation down in an instant.
"So… I saw on the news that there was an attack at your job last night." Jim tensed up at the wheel, his face even paled as he heard her statement. "You okay?"
"What? Of course I am, it was just some freak in a costume. Nothing at all to worry about Barb. Let your old man worry about the criminals like that, you just focus on your studies."
Just like that, Barbara knew it would be a losing battle to push further. Even back in Chicago, Jim was never the type to talk about the job after hours. Not even to his former wife, he'd barely give any details or just straight up avoid the subject for fear of worrying them. Before they arrived at the school, Gordons phone began to ring, which he quickly answered.
"This is Gordon, what's going on?" His eyes widened as he listened in on the other end, quickly stopping at the drop off area and unlocking the door for Barbara. "I understand, I'll pass on the message and be there as soon as I can." He hung up his phone and gave Barbara a small smile before watching her leave as he sped off. She simply sighed in response, already used to this behavior from her father from her childhood.
{OTISBURG, APARTMENT OF KIRK AND FRANCINE LANGSTROM}
It took only seconds for him to crack the lock, and Alfred two minutes to disable the security feed in the apartment. As Bruce entered the building, he took note of how extensive and large said residence was. It was far fetched for two on a college professor's salary to afford a penthouse apartment in one of Gotham's richer neighborhoods.
'Alfred is monitoring Francine's office, and by the looks of this place she hasn't been home since yesterday morning, as evident by the plates in the sink and the coffee mug on the counter. This alone feeds my theory, but without evidence, it'll stay just that. A theory.'
He stalked the rooms of the apartment, finding the untouched guest room with little to offer his investigation. He proceeded to the study only to find it locked, much to his surprise.
'A locked door, well that's not at all suspicious.' It took him two minutes to pick this lock. For it to be harder to break into than her front door must mean something inside is worth the extra security. Once it was opened, Bruce' eyes widened as he quickly dialed Gordon.
"Gordon, I know who our second Man-Bat is. Tell Bullock and Merkle to meet us at Gotham Cathedral, make sure they bring Flass and back up." He swiftly fled the apartment, with him stuffing something into his jacket pocket as he left. Once on his bike, he sped off as he made contact with Alfred.
"Alfred. I need you to send out a message for me…"
"Ready when you are sir."
{GOTHAM CATHEDRAL, HOURS LATER}
The cathedral was one of the oldest structures in Gotham, constructed under the orders of Abraham Whisper who had been baptized and sought to bring a great blessing to Gotham. It was as nightmarish as it was beautiful, with the gargoyles standing guard of the belltower being able to watch every corner of the city. A lone woman scaled the steps of the building, adorned in a beige trenchcoat and blonde hair held up in a ponytail with her eyes hidden behind black visors. It was like she stepped right out of a noir picture.
The eerie sounds of the door opening sent shivers down her spine. She slowly entered the candlelit cathedral with her eyes taking in everything around her, taking just as much caution while approaching the confessional booth, only stopping to take final stock of all that surrounded her and said booth.
"I'm here," she said with a whisper. "Now, were you telling the truth?"
"Yes…" answered a masculine voice from the other end. "I know where your husband is, and what happened to him. All I ask is that you pay the agreed fee, and I'll ensure his safe return. Do we have a deal?"
Silence. She slowly reached for something in her coat, a grimace beginning to form on her face as she produced a small syringe device.
"A deal huh? You really think it would be that easy, Flass? To bribe me and escape your fate? I'm sorry, but it's not that easy." She raises the syringe and readies her exposed neck vein. However, the curtain hiding her swishes open and blinds her with the lights from a flashlight held by a grimacing stern face. Jim Gordon, flashlight and badge in hand, struck fear and shock into the woman as her disguise fell apart, revealing her true face.
"Doctor Francine Langstrom. You're under arrest for the assaulting of several officers, the threatening of a civilian, and the possession of an illegal substance." He reached forward, grabbing her wrist and holding it in place as he glared at the syringe of green fluid. Her eyes dulled, she felt as if her heart would burst from her chest in that very moment as Gordon began to read her rights out to her. In the distance, she could see him standing out amongst the shadows in his all white attire and his "eyes" locked with her own.
"N-no. no. I-I can fix this! I can do this!" she began to scream and fight Gordon. Her body went cold, and she began to sweat profusely as her eyes continued to dull only for her screams to increase in volume and power. Responding to her call, the first Man-Bat shattered the stain glass mural above them screeching as he charged towards Gordon with his fangs bared wide and talons ready to tear the investigator apart.
"NOW!" yelled Gordon, releasing his grip on Francine and ducking as he avoided the monster's attack. At that moment, the roar of a bike engine filled the room as the shadowy motorcyclist shattered the wooden doors of the cathedral with his bike. The vehicle landed and was quickly used to ram into Man-Bat, sending it into the nearby altar.
"Gordon! Are you and Flass okay?" asked the biker, rushing to help Gordon back to his feet. Flass quickly emerged from the other side of the confessional, his face panicked as he watched the monster slowly stand up with the help of Francine Langstrom.
"I'm fine! I'll get Flass out of here, you just deal with Mr. and Mrs. Addams!" yelled Gordon. The helmet-wearing biker nodded as he gestured for the two to leave the building before tucking in his left arm and placing his right against his chest with a clenched fist. A bright yellow light began to pulsate from his waist, as his belt appeared to signal his transformation.
"Transform!" he yelled. In a burst of blinding light and steam, the black-clad stranger was replaced with the imposing visage of Bat-Rider. "Surrender, Francine. For your benefit, if you take that serum one more time…."
The look of terror on her face morphed into anger. She held her monstrous husband close and began to growl before releasing the empty syringe onto the church floor. Green veins appeared her body began to also experience its own metamorphosis. In a painful display of change, Francine now stood alongside Kurt as Man-Bat #2, the two monsters roaring at their fellow bat-themed figure. Bat-Rider looked at his feet and exhaled as if disappointed by this turn of events before clenching his hands and taking a fighting stance.
"Bring it on," he said, unafraid, as Kurt flew to the air and flew towards him while Francine lowered herself and pounced him on all fours. Bat-Rider clenched his fists and raced forward, leaping upwards into the air and knocking Man-Bat #1 back with a flying roundhouse kick to his face. Once he landed, avoiding Francine's charge, he quickly drew his grappling gun from his gauntlet and fired it into Kurt's monstrous wing, causing him to scream as his wing was now injured.
"DON'T YOU DARE HURT HIM!" screamed Man-Bat #2, lunging forward as she sank her fangs into Bat-Riders shoulders. He groaned in pain as her teeth found their way into the grooves of his armor. He grabbed her head before leaping upwards and through the church roof with little trouble. Man-Bat #1 growled before pulling out the hook embedded in his shoulder and chasing after them, finding his bride and Gotham's Masked Rider wrestling on the cathedral's roof.
Man-Bat #2 released the Rider before tossing him off the edge, crashing into the graveyard below with a painful crash onto a tombstone. From afar, he fired several bolts of compressed sound in rapid succession, with them sparking against the Rider's armor. The two monsters leaped down to finish the job, only for the Rider to roll away and back onto his feet. It was followed by him clenching his right fist before slamming it across the jaw of #1 and his right leg into the chest of #2, who catches it and holds him in place.
"Damn you, Rider! You ruined everything!" screamed the monstrous bride of the Man-Bat. Bat-Rider struggled against Man-Bat #1, who latched onto him and sunk his fangs into the Rider like his bride. Bat-Rider screamed in pain before placing his hands against the buckle of his belt and activating the bright surge of light which blinded the couple. Now was his chance; using the distraction, he kicked Francine away and flipped Kurt over his shoulder with a skilled judo throw. The two monsters slammed into one another and were forced to watch as Bat-Rider leaped into the air, the core of his belt shining bright before he descended with a flying drop kick.
"GRAH!" Man-Bat #1 screeched in fear before flying off into the air, leaving Francine behind as Bat-Rider began to slowly approach her. Man-Bat #2 groaned and looked into the eyes of her fellow Man-Bat, and pushed him out of the way as she was sent flying by the impact of Bat-Rider's kick. She crashes through several tombstones as she's suddenly transformed into her human form, now sporting the same injuries as her monster form.
"It's over, Francine. Give up and turn yourself in, and we can help you. Both of you." He stopped, recognizing the fear in her eyes as she clutched her arm and glared at him. He knelt down and slowly held out his hand to her. "I know what Lazarus did to you, you and Kirk. But you don't have to serve them. You don't have to be what they made you. Just help us take them down together."
She stared at his gloved hand, her eyes slowly looking up into the ghostly whites of his mask. Then, she proceeded to laugh.
"T-Together? Together? Don't you understand! We can't stop him! You can't stop him! No one can! H-He's too strong." her lip quivered, and she was now on the verge of tears. "I had no other choice, he… they said they'd kill Kirk once he failed them. I needed to save him!"
"I know, but there are other ways. Kirk can be saved. We can get him treatments and even help him control it."
"Oh, that's incorrect, Rider." The air around Bat-Rider and Francine took on a sudden enormous amount of weight. From the darkness, the ghostly white glow of Doctor Death drew their attention as he stood in the shadow of the cathedral. His pocket watch ticked away in his gloved hand as he looked at the two. "You, better than anyone, know how such a procedure leaves marks. Permanent ones at that."
If it were not for the mask that hid his face, all that would be seen on the Rider's face was a visage of pure and unrestrained rage.
"Death! How?! How are you here?" he asked, his fists balled with rage and a desire to drive them through the head of his fellow masked man. Bat-Rider screamed in anger and charged forward with a raised fist. Only for Doctor Death to snap his fingers, causing a surge of intense pain to course through the Rider's body and forcing him down to his knees. This caused him to chuckle. Death stared at his watch again before returning his gaze to the Rider.
"Now, now Francine. I believe we had an agreement and a deadline too." Death chuckled as he held up his watch, a smile vaguely seen beneath the snow-white veil of his mask before slamming it shut. "In fact, a deadline that passed two minutes ago. Say goodbye to Kirk, my dear."
Francine staggered to her feet, clutching her stomach in pain as Doctor Death stood before her and the Rider. Only to fall at his feet as she lay between both mysterious figures.
"P-Please! Just give me another dose, and I'll stop Flass! I'll finish him quickly; just don't-" Doctor Death placed his finger against his mouth and snickered as he stared past the grieving Francine and at the angered Bat-Rider. The latter snarled at him from the ground. He knelt down and gently cupped her cheek with his gloved palm, whispering as he spoke to her.
"It's too late. You've already served your purpose anyway, Man-Bat." As he removed his hand, green veins again appeared on her body, followed not by the discomfort of transformation but by the screams of intense unlivable pain. "And I learned this time to always mark my toys."
"STOP THIS! DEATH!" The Rider demanded of his foe. His gloved hand clutched the grass as Francine took her chest in agony, the green veins spreading faster with every passing second enhancing the pain she felt. Doctor Death sighed, wiping his hands with a handkerchief as he proceeded to leave the screen of the battle.
"SCREECH!" bellowed Man-Bat #1 as it descended from above with its talons aimed at Death. The masked scientist paid no attention to it as he snapped his fingers again, bringing the airborne monster to the ground. He looked at the three monsters before him and waved before vanishing in a surge of smoke, leaving no trace of his existence. Once gone, Man-Bat and Bat-Rider were finally free of Death's grasp, with Man-Bat rushing to Francine's side, holding the dying woman in his clawed arms. If one listened closely, it would seem like it was mourning her pain as it rubbed its snout against her cheek.
"Stop! Don't touch her." yelled the masked hero. Bat-Rider ran forward only to stop as he watched the following scene, as Man-Bat sank his fangs into the woman's neck. Within seconds, the green veins slowly vanished as they left Francine and found themselves on Man-Bats until nothing was left. Francine's body went limp as she slipped into an unconscious state.
"Impossible."
Man-Bat #1 screams in pain, clawed hands clutching his throat as his monstrous form screams in pure agony. Bat-Rider rushed to the monster's side, only to lash out and again take to the sky, leaving him and his unconscious bride. Bat-Rider ran to her side, releasing a relieved sigh as he found her heart still beating.
"Alfred. Contact Gordon, I have Francine in custody, but I'm going after Kirk. He's escaped again."
"Understood, sir. But are you okay? Death was-"
"I'm. Going. After Man-Bat. Goodbye." hanging up their comms, he knelt down and rubbed his gloved fingers against Francine's cheek. Before vanishing without a trace, the sounds of police sirens neared the horizon.
{OTISBURG, APARTMENT OF KIRK AND FRANCINE LANGSTROM}
He parked his bike in the nearby alleyway before grappling toward the shattered window of the Langstrom home. Green blood dripped from the edges of the broken glass and led to the injured and wounded Man-Bat whimpering in pain as his monstrous body began to fail him.
"Kirk," spoke Bat-Rider, a voice heavy with grief, as he slowly approached the dying monster. The green veins now nearly consumed him; all he could muster were simple growls. Its body gradually reverted back to the frail human form of Kirk Langstrom.
"Francine." With that final word, Kirk Langstrom's soul left his dying body. Bat-Rider knelt down and gently closed the man's eyes before carrying him away the bridal style to the couple's bed. He gently placed him there and covered his body with a blanket before leaving the scene. This wasn't a victory, not for the Rider, at least.
{GOTHAM GENERAL HOSPITAL, EAST END}
They only managed to reach the hospital by the skin of their teeth and a generous nurse willing to free up time. Jim sat on the balcony, the dying remains of a cigarette on his lips, looking out over the rising sun of the city. He hated this feeling. While Flass survived and was tried for his crimes, Francine Langstrom was now comatose. In the hospital room behind him, Francine Langstrom lay in bed with tubes and monitors keeping track of her condition. She was stable.
"How is she?" asked Bat-Rider as he slowly emerged from the shadows of the hospital balcony. Jim snuffed out the cigarette and turned to his masked partner; despite the mask, he could tell that something had bothered him.
"She'll live, albeit in a coma. Docs said whatever she had pumping through her system was equivalent to injecting herself with arsenic. But by a miracle, it didn't kill her, but the shock of it did a number. What about the other one?" The Rider clenched his gloved fists as he turned away and stared out at the city to avoid looking at Jim.
"Dead. Dr. Francine Langstrom was poisoned. The other Man-Bat saved her by draining it from her before leaving to die on its own. I'm sorry, Jim."
"Don't be. It's life, isn't it? Not every case has the happiest ending, but the ones where we can even save a single person, much less two. That puts it all into perspective and makes you glad you intervened. At least that's how I see it." he said with a chuckle. The Rider stood silent before turning to face the bedridden Francine behind the glass door. He nodded and leaped onto the balcony ledge, turning to Jim one last time.
"I'll make sure she's taken care of Jim. Just make sure Flass makes it to the courthouse in one piece."
"And what are you gonna do?" He asked with his arms crossed. The two men stood beside one another as the sun arose and illuminated the darkness of Gotham, with the sunlight signaling a new day. Bat-Rider then held up the same black box taken from Langstrom's apartment and opened it to Jim revealing the contents inside. A syringe with three vials of the same green fluid created Man-Bat #2.
"I'm going to do what I do best and investigate. At the cathedral, there was someone else watching the fight. I'm going to find them, and I'm going to stop them."
With those final words, Bat-Rider vanished without a trace leaving the disgruntled detective alone. He exhaled loudly, dialing a number on his phone as he lit another cigarette.
"Hey, sweetie. Sorry about this, I'll be home soon, but Officer Montoya will be over to take you to school. I even asked her to stop by that café you like on the way. Thanks, sweetie."
{GOTHAM CITY SEWERS}
"AAAAHHH!" yelled the rotund man as he fell into the waters of Gotham's sewers. As he emerged from the waste filled waters, he coughed and struggled to keep his head above water. He stared upwards, only to find his trapper shutting the manhole above him leaving him in the darkness. "Hey! Hey! OPEN UP! Let me out of here!"
He jolted to the left, he swore something just brushed past his leg in the water. Seconds later, he felt it once again on the other side forcing him to try and swim away from what swam in the water with him. It was all for naught however, as he was quickly dragged down by a strong force with the murky waters of the sewer now holding a tinge of crimson.
With the threat of the Man-Bats in the past, what danger lies in wait for our heroes? What is the secret behind the pale white mask of Doctor Death? And what is the monster that lives underneath? Find out next time-Same Bat Time! Same Bat Channel!
NEXT EPISODE
BAT-RIDER EPISODE 3
REPTILIAN!