Quick update, once again, but you can't keep a good girl down, expecially when she has nothing better to do with her time! And the chapter dedication goes to... Pirate Gyrl! Congrats on being smart! yes, for thsoe of you who have seen the original Batman, you'd recognise the Jack Nicholson remark, and you'd also remember the vat that makes a lovely debut tonight!
Pirate Gyrl: Once again, Congrats! Gald you loved that line, I thought it was rather poetic.
Savitri: Once again not logged in. Who says that teh creation refelct the creator! Just becasue I'm afraid of comitment doesn't mean she has to be! Even though she is, that's not the point! As for wanting more clues, Pirate Gyrl didn't need more, why did you?
des ires: Umm, what?.
SirNotAppearingInThisFilm: Monty Python! I love you already! Well, about not knowing her secret... just read on.

Now to those who think that Carm won't forgive Bruce, just try to imagine how much fun I'l have writing the next chapter. I'll dedicate that one to everybody who guesses Carm's reaction when and to where she wakes! (I say everybody because it should be obvious)

Oops

K.C. had not enjoyed her night. Not in the slightest. Falcone was in no mood to cooperate, half mad and completely ravaged. Valintino had wanted to study him for signs of the drug that had turned Gotham's Crime King into a desolate husk of what had once been grand. It didn't last long, the gunfight. Jack had shot Falcone in the head, losing all he'd worked for so long in one brief moment. He'd be sent on a suicide mission soon, there was no doubt about that. And it didn't help that there was the faint odor of burning flesh wafting from Carm's bedroom.

Flinging open the door, K.C. found a very desperate looking Carm. Tearstained, she sat on the bed, methodically burning the skin off of her forearm with her Dragon gloves. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU DAMN MASOCIST!"

She quickly snatched Carm's gloves and dowsed Carm's' arm in icy water. This had happened before, and after multiple experiences K.C. was excellent at treating burns. Fortunately Carm had only made headway on one of her arms; she'd once done both of her hands, making her useless and depressed until the skin had grown back, scarred and ravaged. Bruce had noticed but never said anything, figuring that if she wanted to talk about it she would.

Carm was in a mental shock. Unfeeling after her sporadic drive home she'd decided that the pain game would be the best way to distract her mind. Carm had always been unpredictable, prone to violence and mood swings in her childhood. Dragon had taken that away from her, balling all her instability into a fighting force that had targeted crime only by mere chance. But every now and then Dragon wasn't enough after some sort of trauma and Carm had picked up old habits again.

Sitting Carm down on the couch, K.C. began wrapping up her arm, disturbed that Carm wasn't even wincing slightly. When she was done she sat next to her stricken friend and rubbed her back, knowing words would come in their own due time.

"He tricked me." Carm continued to stare ahead, silent tears weaving down her face.

"Who?"

"Batman. He made me think he was Bruce, not Batman, and then tricked me into liking him," Carm paused, "almost love him."

It took K.C. a moment to register what Carm had just said.

Carm continued. "And now Valintino wants me to get dirt on Bruce. Should I tell him? Should I tell him that Bruce collects old comic books? Should I tell him Bruce's favorite color is black?" K.C. thought that those were odd questions to worry about, but she didn't interrupt.

Finally Carm shut up, staring at her bandaged arm like it didn't hurt enough. Wanting to take her mind off of things K.C. blurted, "Today's your birthday."

"I know."

"I didn't make you a cake. Lets make one! It'll be an absolute disaster, but it might be fun!"

Carm smiled slightly, an improvement. "You sound like a little kid."

"Little kids have it easy, why not sound like one?" K.C. bustled over to the makeshift kitchen and pulled out a little used recipe book. "How about pound cake? You know, I had the most awful night…"

K.C. blanketed Carm's mind with a gritty and overly-exaggerated tale of the night, and become so involved in her own story that she threw out the egg whites, and mixed the cake mix in with the new egg whites accidentally so that they never stiffened. The kitchen looked like a bag of flour had exploded (which it might have) but the end result was a dilapidated looking cake that was too rich even for K.C. who had an infamous sweet tooth.

Suddenly Carm stood up, spraying flour everywhere. "K.C! You're a genius!"

K.C. looked totally lost and just nodded continually while Carm laid out her half-baked plan.

Jack was quite literally sweating his skin off. Ever since the night of the gunfight when he'd accidentally killed Falcone as well as any hopes of staying number two in Valintino's gang he'd lost quite a few pounds just by worrying. It was undeniable that he'd be "removed" and the only remaining question was when it would happen. He'd gotten the call just moments before, and now he was waiting outside the "Gardening" room.

The clicking of expensive high heels warned him of Felecia's approach. Hastily he straightened his suit and tie, calling his composure back in a sparse moment. With a haughty grin he followed her into the steel room, pretending not to notice the gun hostler bugling under her coat.

She sat down as soon as she began talking. "Gerodi isn't happy with you, but you ain't stupid so you knew that already. So he's got a job for you, and if it goes off without a hitch he might consider your forgiveness."

Jack tipped back in his chair, smiling unnervingly. "Piece of cake. Wada I gotta do?"

"Carmine Lordly just phoned. She's got a new acquisition, but it took her enough of a hassle that she want Gerodi to pick it up himself. Of course we know that ain't gunna fly so you're going down to the Narrows to pick it up for him."

This sounded easy. "What's so dangerous about that?"

"That's where Dragon makes her stomping grounds, as well as Batman. You'd be wise to be careful."

The bum was nothing special, just another one of Gotham's homeless. Yet there was that way she seemed almost to follow Batman out of the corner of her eye, like she was watching him. Pulling her wide brimmed hat down even further, she got up, swaying drunkenly, spitting right under Batman. There was a bit of an ordered way about her disheveled-ness, and the way she moved suggested that she was carrying something she didn't want him to see. That wasn't unusual, there was going to be a gang purchasing down the streets, she was most likely a body guard of some sort.

A moment or so later Dragon came hurling around the corner, leapt from a garbage can to a fire escape to cling to the wall, just above where Batman had concealed himself. She paused, seeming to get her bearings – and dropped. Landing square on his shoulders, she drove him to the ground. She landed several nice punches to his face, unhindered by his mask, and before he could fight back she grabbed his cape and pulled it over his head.

Cursing colorfully, he detangled himself, fully intent on following Dragon. Unfortunately she had left no trace to her direction, and he could not for the life of him decide how she'd gotten off the marooned rooftop.

Dragon had a new toy, a very handy new toy. She'd added a long pouch to the back of her suit, and with the click of a button the pouch opened and "wings" magnetically sealed to her arms, legs, hands, and feet, turning her into a human glider. With another touch of a button the memory cloth (courtesy Lucius Fox of Wayne Enterprises) went springing back into the hidden pouch.

She shouldn't have done that, now he'd follow spend the whole night trying to find her and then her plan would go straight down the flusher. Still, she couldn't resist. Perching where she'd planned with K.C., Dragon virtually disappeared, and the fantastic thing about her suit was that night vision goggles couldn't spot her and it was coated so that to heat detectors she was nothing more than a warm breeze.

Below her the exchange began.

Jack stepped out of the car, looking very impressive in his pinstripe suit. Upon seeing K.C. in place of Carm he sauntered forward. "So, where's Carm?"

Just at that moment Batman sailed up behind Dragon, having finally found her. She held out a gloved hand, motioning for him to be quiet. He felt rather insulted by being snubbed, but nonetheless he listened to the conversation below, tuning in just to hear the last word. His breath caught in his throat, making Dragon smile sadistically.

K.C. just shrugged nonchalantly, perfectly aware that up on the roof Dragon would be going berserk. "She had a previous engagement, so I'm here to deliver. Problem, Jack?"

Jack sneered thinking that it was a problem, he didn't trust K.C. "Not at all. In any case, Valintino couldn't make it either, so it's not like she's missing anything."

Up on the roof Dragon screamed her rage, and before Jack had a second warning she was on him. K.C. knew that was her cue to run, and run she did, hightailing it around the corner. Dragon had Jack pinned to the wall, and was about to snarl several question that would be littered with naughty words. At that moment, however, he drew his gun and tried to shoot her brains out. It didn't work, thanks to Batman and a right hook. Stunned, Dragon dropped Jack, and slowly backed away.

Batman paused only to pick up Jack himself and hurl him over the street. He then headed straight for Dragon who was glowering menacingly. "I didn't ask for your help."

"I wasn't waiting for you to. I have questions for you –"

"And you want them answered," sneered Dragon. "What a pity, because you aren't getting any and thanks to you, that vile man I was busy beating senseless just got away." Indeed, Jack while the two were busy Jack had jumped back into his car and was in the process of escaping.

Batman grimaced and muttered, "Follow me."

Slightly intrigued and having no way of catching up with that car, she did. Batman clicked something in his hand and an engine whirred to life. Hulking in front of her like a gigantic beast was the Batmobile.

Batman nimbly leapt into the driver's seat. "Want a lift?" Dumbfounded, Dragon nodded and clamored into the other side of the car.

Loud would be a good way to describe the Batmobile. Fast would be another good way. It didn't take long for Batman to catch up to Jack, the real problem was getting him to pull over. Banging him constantly (with no visible damage to the Batmobile) they chased him down into the most vile part of the Narrows and cornered him into the factory district. Pinned up against the wall of a military testing plant, Jack jumped out of his car and fumbled with the door.

"Run him over," Dragon muttered through gritted teeth.

Batman was seriously considering it, but Jack finally opened the door and sprinted in. Before he could protest, Dragon jumped out. "Thanks for the lift." And disappeared after Jack.

Something in the way she said it kept him from just leaving her there. Something in the way she sprinted after Jack made him sprint after her. And something in her rather feral sounding scream made him run even faster.

He found the two on a balcony that over looked a great bubbling vat. Dragon was absolutely whaling on Jack. Roundhouse kick to the torso, right hook in the jaw, knee in the groin, flame in the pants, swipe across the back, she was absolutely unmerciful. At that moment it hit Batman that if she'd wanted to, not even an army could have kept her from killing him in that ally several minutes ago. He paused briefly to wonder what had stopped her, but didn't stop long. If he let her she'd kill Jack, so Batman grabbed her hand as it flew up to strike Jack again.

He was about to say something along the lines of a retribution, but Jack took his opportunity and held his gun to Dragon's temple. She grimaced and mouthed, "Smooth move, X-lax."

"Alright, Bat, if you don't want me blowing her brains out you're gunna turn around and leave us to our business." Batman guessed that wouldn't be safe. Still, he turned around.

At that moment several things happened at once. First Batman kicked Dragon in the center of the armored spine that ran down her suit, sending her sprawling backwards. Realizing that she was going to go over the edge she used the momentum and arched into a back flip.

Second, Jack fired his gun. The bullet missed Dragon's temple only by the good grace of God and instead cut millimeters above Dragon's eyebrow, blood freely flowing into her eyes.

Third, Dragon grabbed Jack, bringing him hurling back with her, and dangling just feet above the boiling vat of goo. Batman lunged forward, leaving a brief vacuum of space where he'd been standing, and grabbing her arm, began to pull her up. Jack, in blind panic began firing at anything that moved, and hit the Dragon's wrist. Fortunately for her, her wrist, unlike her forehead, was well protected by her gloves, and her only reaction was a slight spasm and quick burst of flame due to being hit in the tendon. Unfortunately for Jack, that spasm made her lose her grip for a fraction of a second, spilling him into the vat.

In shock, Dragon slumped against Batman and pulled one of her gloves off, revealing scarred hands that made Batman suck in his breath. As if wiping off sweat she moped her forehead to better get a look at the boiling vat. She muttered, "I didn't mean to do it, Bruce, I didn't mean to do it." And she blacked out.

Cackle Once again, imagine how much fun teh next chapie should be to write! REVIEW OR MY FRIEND THE BOILING VAT WILL PAY YOU A VISIT!