Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews, they keep me going. I apologize that the posts have been sporadic at best. As always I don't own anything of Nolan's and I'm not making any profit form this story.

Lena had been dragged up to a lofted space that had served as an office some time in the distant past. The area was littered with trash and there was an impressive layer of dust accumulated on every surface. Rough hands deposited her unceremoniously into an ancient folding chair and the men stepped back just out of her peripheral vision. Several large crates sat in front of her, hastily pushed together, to serve as a desk for eight separate monitors. The majority of the screens seemed to show video feeds from around the city. One monitor contained several news channels running constant coverage of "The Gotham Crisis", which was thankfully muted, while another had column after column of scrolling code that Lena had no hope of teenage girl sat in a swivel chair between Lena and the glowing bank of screens. Barbra paused for a moment, assessing Lena, before she spoke in a brisk tone,

" First I have to apologize for the uncouth behavior of my associates, they got a tad over zealous when they mistook you for Bane,"

Lena was taken a back at this, the girl couldn't be more than seventeen yet she spoke with the assertiveness and sophistication of a thirty year old. When she remained silent Barbra continued,

"We took the liberty of searching your bag while you were unconscious. I regret the intrusion but in these dangerous times we can't really take any chances, you understand I'm sure." Lena was about to protest, but the young Gordon cut in,

"By the looks of that riffle you're carrying, assuming it is in fact yours, you are exactly the person we've been looking for. You are the sniper that has been such an effective thorn Bane's side."

"You appear to be as astute a detective as your father, allow me to offer a counter deduction that you and your comrades are a part one of the resistance factions, a substantial thorn yourselves," Lena bantered back.

A slight frown appeared on Barbra's face at the mention of her father but it was gone in an instant as she pushed the conversation forward,

"I wish to speak candidly, We want to recruit you for our cause, Miss...?" She let the question hag in the air.

"She's clever, no doubt picked up some up some tips from the commissioner." Lena thought.

It was a basic interrogation technique, most people don't realize how open silence after a question can draw a person into divulging more information than they intended to, feeling compelled to fill that silence. Lena decided that the direct approach would be her best option in her current situation so her reply was no nonsense,

"You can call me Evelyn, while I appreciate what your trying to do, I've just spent over a week with a mass murdering terrorist and I have no desire to repeat the experience. I just want to get home and stay off Bane's radar, I'm done playing hero for Gotham, and I don't see what use I could be to you anyways."

Lena concluded hoping to dissuade Barbra from the hard-sale speech she was gearing up for but she had no such luck as the young woman continued undeterred.

"A resistance group with no use for a highly skilled sniper, come now Evelyn I think we both are aware of your value."

The two women reassessed each other in the gloomy stillness that followed the statement before the younger continued her pitch,

"I understand, you got to close to the fire and you got burned, but this time we can protect you, we'll have your back."

Lena shot to her feet, her frustration finally boiling over as she conveyed in a low tone through clenched teeth,

"I don't need or want the protection of some unnamed rebellion whose intentions I know nothing of."

Barbra let out a tired sigh, seeming to age into that thirty year old for a moment as she tilted back in her seat and languidly gazed at the thoroughly agitated woman in front of her.

"We call ourselves the Batpeople, Evelyn, and our only intention is to protect the people of Gotham."

A quizzical look spread across Lena's face at the mention of the name but for a moment she couldn't place where she had heard the title before, then the realization dawned on her and open shock spread across Lena's features as her eyes darted to the grime covered row of windows near the roof of the warehouse. The pink blush of another frigid winters day was just starting to shine through as Lena asked in a crestfallen voice,

"Exactly what time is it?"

Bane stood in his usual pose, hands clasping the straps of his body armor, feet spread wide. The only difference this bone-chilling morning was the lack of his customary fleece lined jacket. As he surveyed the waterfront warehouse where the rebels were hiding out his mind flitted back to Daggett's penthouse. He had woken from a light but restoring sleep to prepare for the attack on the rebel faction that should cripple any future resistance against his army. He had emerged through the double doors into the main hallway heading towards the common living He passed Lena's door a satisfied smirk crossed his lips while he recollected his fruitful interrogation the day before, the memory was slightly tarnished by those curious scars painting her back but Bane put that out of his mind to focus on the days work ahead of him.

He entered the living room and even with the darkness of early morning settled around him Bane could sense something was out of place. His sharp eyes took in the now empty dinning room table but before Bane could consider the implications of the missing riffle he felt a cold breeze play at the side of his neck. He turned toward the glass wall and noticed the sliding door was slightly ajar. A shrewd suspicion was mounting as Bane made his way out into the openness of the balcony. In the dim light he spotted the swaying rope on the railing.

Bane let the handmade rope play out through his fingers as conflicting thoughts stirred within him. While he felt a twinge of pride at the craftsmanship and ingenuity of his captive, especially her choice of anchoring knot, a raging exacerbation at her gall was battling for control over his conscious. Bane had turned his back on the cityscape and walked to the threshold of the apartment when he glanced towards the front door and noticed the empty hook that only a few hours ago had held his jacket. With a disgruntled growl Bane slammed his fist into the glass of the balcony door and it was a testament to the strength of the laminate glass that it survived the impact, an intricate spiderweb of cracks radiating from Bane's fist.

Coming out of the memory Bane flexed that hand carelessly as his men got into position around the building. After discovering his little bird's flight Bane had the building thoroughly searched but to no avail, she had cleverly slipped through the chinks in his security, all the while Barsad stood at his side with a look of reserved admiration which only served to enrage Bane all the more. He called off the search in order to conduct the raid on the rebel encampment.

"Once we've ground this nuisance into extinction I can resume the search for my little bird," Bane thought with a self-satisfied grin.

With his men in place, cameras ready to record the action, and Bane perched dramatically atop the commandeered tumbler Barsad handed a mega phone up to his commander and the show began.

"People of Gotham, my men and I are here today to right a terrible wrong that has befallen this great city since its liberation from corruption. The rebels hold up in the building you see behind me are usurpers of justice and wish to see the people once again enslaved to the wealthy elite. They call themselves the Batpeople, their idolatry of the vigilante is further proof of their misguided intentions. If they surrender now they will be brought to the people for judgment, should they choose to resist they shall be destroyed."

Crisp silence hung in the air upon the conclusion of Bane's speech. In defiant answer, gun report issued from the building and the terrorists took cover. With a smirk firmly in place behind the mask Bane boomed,

"So be it" and nodded to his men who promptly opened fire on the warehouse.

The turrets on the tumbler swiveled around and took aim at the structure before letting loose a volley of destruction. As the explosive payload found its mark the warehouse was engulfed in flame, black smoke rolling off across the pale morning sky. Bane's enjoyment of the scene was cut short however when one of his men came running up and exclaimed,

" Sir, one of the rebels has escaped out the back entrance."

"Well than I assume you have detained them." Bane replied in agitation.

"The rebel was thrown onto the river by the blast, the men haven't followed for fear of the unstable ice."

Bane pushed the man away in disgust and headed to the far side of the warehouse. The heat licked at the exposed skin of his face, neck, and arms as he and Barsad stood on the bank of the Gotham river that separated Downtown from Midtown Gotham and sure enough he spotted a body sprawled on the ice about a hundred and fifty feet off shore. As they watched the figure got unsteadily up and began stumbling north across the ice to the opposite bank. Barsad, with unmasked amusement asked,

"Is that rebel wearing your coat?"

Things happened in rapid succession after Lena had comprehended the amount of trouble they were in. She relayed the information she'd over heard from Barsad just a few hours ago to the resistance members and in returned it was explained to her that the warehouse had been the command center for the Batpeople but it was moved the previous day due to a security breach.

"That's all well and good for everyone else in your little club but we need to get the hell out of here before Bane and his merry men show up." Lena commented dryly.

"There are tunnels under this facility we can use to escape, Duncan and Phil will keep watch and provide cover fire while we move out." Barbra stated in a clipped tone that had all the authority of a general on the battlefield.

As if in reply to her commands Bane's booming voice echoed mechanically from outside. Lena froze at the sound of his voice, her throat going dry at the thought of her emanate recapture. During Lena's internal panic attack the two men had left the office, assault riffles in hand, to provide a distraction for their escape. Barbra had turned back toward the monitors, rapidly typing at the keyboard in an effort, Lena assumed, to dismantle the computer as error signs began popping up on the individual screens.

Looking around Lena suddenly realized that not a single person was paying her any attention. Seizing upon the opportunity she slipped from the office and made her way back to the ground floor. Lena could still hear Bane's amplify voice though she couldn't make the particulars of what he was saying.

"I'm sure it's just more of his megalomaniacal bullshit." Lena muttered to herself as she shuffled along towards the opposite end of the warehouse.

Along the short trek to the back exit Lena had come across her bag, mercifully repacked, and she slung it over her shoulders once again. A tense silence permeated the air which caused Lena to pause and look around curiously. The two men named Phil and Duncan stood at a row of windows with their riffles shouldered taking aim while approximately fifty feet to her right crouched the younger man Lena had seen earlier. He was lifting open a heavy floor hatch that was pitted with rust, grunting slightly from the effort. A second later he looked up and spotted Lena giving her a look of mild confusion. She was a few short steps from the door and Lena gave the man a friendly wave before turning fully towards it

"Exit stage left," she thought and before the young man could shout a protest all hell broke loose.

Lena dove out the exit door as bullets began riddling the warehouse. She emerged into a junk lot with an expansive view of the Gotham River. Lena dashed forward with the vague idea to escape east down the river bank in the confusion but she hadn't made it far before a group Bane's men discovered her. Lena was poised atop the embankment with gun totting men jogging up to her, yelling demands that she stop and put her hands up. In that moment Lena was utterly lost, she placed her hands on her head in complete defeat and waited to be taken captive again. But before a single man could reach her the world exploded.

The men, who just moments ago had been an imposing wall coming up behind her, disappeared in a hell-storm of flying debris and fire. While Lena had been shielded from the majority of the shrapnel, she was unprotected from the concussive force of the blast which sent her cartwheeling through open space, flinging her into a heap on the ice. As she hit Lena's body flattened out and the pent up momentum of the explosion sent her pinwheeling across the smooth surface.

Lena came to with her face pressed against the searing cold of the ice bound river. A deafening ring pulsed in rhythm with her racing heart as Lena staggered to her feet, adrenaline the only thing fighting off the shock that was threatening to engulf her mind and drive her back into unconsciousness. It was probably a good thing that Lena's senses weren't well focused at the moment because it kept the logical part of her mind from screaming at her to return to the shore and not venture out onto the newly frozen river. The only thought Lena's traumatized brain could manage was 'Home', and with that mantra replaying on a loop in her head Lena started the seven hundred foot journey across the rest of the Gotham River to Midtown and her home.

Bane was in complete astonishment of his little captive's sudden reappearance in the last place he would have ever expected to find her. His surprise stalled him for only a few short moments until he regained himself and ordered his men to pursue her across the ice. The men shifted uncomfortably at the demand and none moved to comply. Bane was about to reissue the order in a furious tone when Barsad spoke up,

"Boss, I think the men are wary to venture on to the ice, after all we just lost several of the perimeter patrol to the explosion, wouldn't it be wiser to radio the men stationed on the Malcolm Bridge to search the northern bank and pick her up on the other side?"

Bane took in the anxious looks surrounding him, many were the on the faces of the new recruits and he had to conceded the point realizing that most all of the men had witnessed first hand the numerous exiles plunge into oblivion on the East River. Barsad moved off to radio the bridge patrol while Bane continued watching his little bird's flight, she had made it three quarters of the way and he had no doubt she would reach the other side, though his men had been reluctant Bane knew the the more shallow, more narrow river that cut between Downtown and Midtown was a much safer crossing than the East River where the exiled were sent. With his work at the warehouse concluded Bane made his way to the convoy of vehicles to join the search for his captive calculating her return to the penthouse before nightfall. As he leaned back in the seat of the Humvee he thought with a smug grin,

"With the rebels taken care of I'll have plenty of time to unravel the mysteries of my little distraction."

It would appear that an idle Bane is not Lena's friend so hopefully more trouble pops up to keep him busy. Well there it is hope you enjoyed it I had to stop it a little short this time if I hadn't it would have been very long and my poor fingers would be bleeding. Thanks for sticking with me and as always feel free to send me any comments or concerns.