The Batman
Chapter 2: Training and Will
Author's notes: Hello to all my fans. Sorry for not getting this up sooner. You see, I had school to deal with, and I had a tragedy in my personal life back in November. You see, in early September, my great-grandmother suffered a debilitating stroke that put her in the hospital and in a nursing home. Back in November, she got sick to her stomach, vomited, and she aspirated the vomit into her lungs and passed away, so I had to attend her memorial service. (I had known her for all seventeen years of my life now, so it was a shock to hear of her passing.) Plus, I'm having some emotional problems with a girl that I've fallen in love with, and I don't really know what to do. (If you guys have any advice as to what I should do, feel free to leave it in a review or send a private message to me.) However, without further ado, time for chapter two.
Oh, and also, I know I said that the next two installments would be Pokeshipping, but I changed my mind. I got the Batman Anthology boxset from my mom for Christmas, and after watching Batman Returns, I got an idea for what to do for the third fic. And May would be perfect for what I will do in the third and final story.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or Batman.
A gloved hand held a blue flower. The gloved hand belonged to a mysterious figure clothed in a jacket and balaclava. The figure stood in front of two oak doors that belonged to an old Japanese-style temple. The figure raised his hand and knocked on the doors, and they opened with a loud creak. The figure stepped in from the freezing cold of the Himalayans into the warmth of the temple. He looked around and saw statues of Buddha everywhere. He looked ahead and saw a man in a Japanese-style robe sitting on a throne.
The figure walked forward into the candlelight and removed his balaclava. The figure was a fatigued Ash Ketchum, and he had finally made it to his destination.
He looked across the room at the man sitting in the throne. "Ra's Al Ghul?" he asked. He heard the doors to the house close and found himself on the sights of soldiers with AK-47 rifles. Ash froze, and wondered in fear if these people were going to kill him.
"Wait." a voice with a thick British accent called. A bearded man in a business suit stepped out into the light. The man sitting in the throne said something in fluent Japanese.
"What do you seek?" the British man translated for Ash.
Ash took a deep breath. "I seek," he began, and took another breath. "I seek the means to fight injustice. To turn fear against those who prey on the fearful." He took the blue flower out of his overcoat and handed it to the man in the business suit.
Taking the flower, the British man held it up to the man in the throne. The robed man spoke once again in fluent Japanese.
"To become fear, you must first conquer your own fears." The man translated. "Are you ready to begin?" he asked Ash.
"I can barely stand." Ash said, out of breath.
"DEATH DOES NOT WAIT FOR YOU TO BE READY!" the man in the business suit shouted, before kicking Ash in the stomach. Ash grunted and fell to the floor.
"DEATH IS NOT CONSIDERATE OR FAIR!" the man yelled, kicking Ash again.
"And make no mistake. Here you face death." the man said softly, before attempting to kick Ash again. But Ash was ready, and he grabbed the man's foot, effectively blocking the kick. He then stood up.
"Tiger." The man challenged.
Ash pulled some fighting moves in the ancient Tiger fighting style, which were all blocked by the man. "Ju-jitsu." the man countered, hitting Ash in the side. Ash was knocked away, and he staggered for a few seconds before regaining his composure.
Ash got into another fighting stance.
"Panther." the man challenged again.
Ash attacked the man with Panther-style moves, and again, all of his attacks were blocked.
"You're very skilled." The man mused. "But this is not a dance." He grabbed Ash's face and head butted him, knocking him to the floor again. Ash was down for the count.
The man bent down and looked over Ash. "And you are afraid." he said softly. "But not of me." He took the blue flower and tucked it into Ash's front pocket. "Tell us, Mr. Ketchum. What do you fear?"
Then, there was the sound of the fluttering of wings, and a bat was revealed. Ash froze with fear. The man looked up at the bat, and smiled.
"I think that we've found your fear, Mr. Ketchum." he said with a smirk.
The man then looked at one of the guards, then nodded. The guard took out his AK-47 rifle and took aim. The shots rang out, and the bat flew away, terrified.
The man took Ash by the hand and helped him up off the floor. Ash looked at him, puzzled. The question he had been wanting to ask was burning. He finally worked up the courage to ask.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The man smiled again. "My name is merely Ducard, but I speak for Ra's Al Ghul, the man on the throne." He pointed, indicating the expressionless man in robes.
"So, you're the man who left me the note?" Ash asked.
Ducard smiled again. "He remembers." he said. He turned to Ash. "So, you seek the means to fight injustice? You will have to be trained, and I will need to know if you are really looking to fight injustice, and not just in this for the personal gain."
Ash grimaced. "I lost my mother to the worst man in the world. Isn't that enough to prove myself? The woman who carried me around in her womb for nine months, and suffered through labor for almost ten hours to give me life. The woman who would comfort me when I was picked on by my rival Gary, who was the neighborhood bully. The woman who was always there for me when I needed help with my life. The woman who explained the concept of love and sex, and the personal relationship between a man and a woman, when I was confused during puberty? The woman who gave me advice the night she was killed about marriage when I was still engaged with my fiancé? Yeah, she was taken from me by an evil man who wanted to feel the pleasure of taking another person's life."
Ducard's smile widened. "That's all I needed to hear. You are truly in this for the long run." he said. "But first, let's get you rested, cleaned, fed, and shaved. You begin your training tomorrow."
The Next Day…,
Ash and Ducard were standing out on a balcony overlooking the Himalayans. "Do you still feel responsible for your mother's murder?" he asked Ash.
"My anger outweighs my guilt." Ash said coolly.
Ducard smiled and held out his arm. "Come." he beckoned to Ash.
Over the next three years, Ash trained with the League of Shadows. It was now time for his final test.
Ash was in the main chamber of Ra's Al Ghul. Ra's Al Ghul was sitting in his throne, whilst Ducard was standing next to it. Ash and Ducard were both dressed in ancient Japanese-style ninja uniforms.
Ra's Al Ghul began to speak in ancient Japanese.
"Ra's Al Ghul said that if you want to be Death's Journeyman, you cannot feel it." Ducard translated. "Ready or not, death does not wait. Death is not considerate or fair. And make no mistake. In this chamber, you are facing death. Do not return to this room until you are ready to join the League of Shadows."
Ash bowed and stepped outside. He was at the obstacle course for his final test. He ran up and found Ducard standing in front of the entrance to the course.
"This way Ketchum." he said. "There is no space in the League for hesitation." He then turned around and went inside the course. Ash followed him. He came to a platform with a ladder leading up to it. Ducard was on top of the platform.
"You've already tempered your fists." Ducard said. "I know you understand violence. But anger alone will not win your battles. A ninja is thought invisible. But invisibility is largely a matter of patience and distraction. In the next room, you will find three men. Attack one of them, and show me that you have the will to be ruthless."
Ash climbed the ladder and went to his first challenge. Ash then crouched to make himself less noticeable in the shadows. He saw three ninjas in front of him. One of them had an Uzi 9mm Micro-SMG. Ash knew that foes with guns were the most dangerous, so he knew that he had to take care of the one with the gun first. Ash snuck up on the ninja with the gun and grabbed him from behind, forced him down on the floor, and punched him in the face, knocking the ninja out.
Ducard was watching this. "Excellent, Ketchum." he said. "Destroy the strongest of your opponents first, and then others will fear you and fall at the mercy you deny them. We'll carry on." He then turned around and went deeper into the challenge course. Ash followed him.
He came to another room with a staircase. He looked and saw Ducard standing in the doorway to the next area. Ash attempted to go through that area, but all of a sudden, steel bars came down over the doorway, blocking his route.
"You would not have come to this place if you were seeking the easiest path." Ducard said. "This way is barred. Find another way through."
Ash turned and quickly ran up the staircase where he came to a dead end.
"There are more ways around a door than a key." Ducard said.
Ash then heard a grinding sound. He looked up and saw some chandeliers being lowered down to his level. Ash jumped off the staircase and grabbed the first chain, and then jumped from chain to chain until he reached the door above the doorway he was supposed to go through.
He ran down a hallway until he came to a room with an ancient Japanese Samurai weapons storage cabinet and a steel grating across the floor. There was a ladder leading up to the ceiling rafters.
"Throwing weapons are a ninja's hand, not his fist." Ducard said. "By them, a man may surround and confuse his enemies." He pointed to the weapons cabinet. "Shuriken wait before you. Take them, and I will train you in their use."
Ash ran up to get to the cabinet, but all of a sudden, flames burst out in the grated area of the floor. The fire blocked his path.
"Shuriken wait for you on the far side of these flames." Ducard said. "Ninjitsu will make you invisible and immortal in the minds of your enemies, but you will still be nothing but a man."
Ash turned around and climbed the ladder that lead to the roof's rafters. He edged his way carefully across one of the support beams, so he wouldn't lose his balance and fall into the flames below. He got to the other side of the flames and jumped down. He ran to the cabinet, opened it, and took the shuriken. All of a sudden, a trapdoor opened, and Ash fell through.
"Always mind your surroundings, Ketchum." Ducard said. "Every gift is a potential trap."
Luckily, Ash had not fallen too far and landed on some soft ground. He saw a few huts rising up, but no way to climb up to them.
"Look around your environment for opportunities, Ketchum." Ducard said. "Your environment will only work to your advantage if you make it do so. Use the shuriken to create a path before you."
Ash looked and saw a ladder being held by a chain. He threw a shuriken star and cut the chain. The ladder came down, and Ash climbed up it to the first hut. He then saw a bridge suspended by another chain. He threw another shuriken star and cut it down, bridging the gap between him and his objective.
He looked over and saw a door with a bell above it. Ash threw another shuriken star, and rang the bell.
"What is the pass phrase?" The guard ninja on the other side of the door asked.
Another door opened, and there was Ducard again.
"You can't enter there until you have completed one last challenge." Ducard said. He turned around and ran down a hallway. "Follow me." he said.
Ash went down the hallway and saw Ducard.
"In the room beyond, you will find your next to final test. One of intimidation." Ducard explained. "The three ninjas in the next chamber have been instructed on the pain of death to keep the pass phrase from you. Don't make yourself known until you've become a wraith in their minds."
Ash ran and found another ladder bound by a chain. He used a shuriken star to cut it loose, and climbed up to the balcony above the chamber. He then saw a steel pole that ran across the chamber. Ash jumped up, grabbed it, and brought his legs up, and then began to shimmy across the room, as to be undetected by the ninjas below.
Ash overheard the ninjas talking below.
"Did Ducard tell you what to expect?" the first ninja asked
"Quiet." The second ninja said.
"I don't trust Ketchum." the third ninja said. "He's not one of us. There is a violence to him."
"All the more reason for silence." the second ninja said.
Ash dropped down to the opposite balcony, and saw a cage supported by a cable. Ash used a shuriken star to cut it down. The cage came down and crashed on the ground floor. The crash frightened the three ninjas.
"Ketchum did that!" one of the ninjas yelled. "He's out of his mind!"
"He's one man, and still in training." another ninja said. "We can handle him."
Ash jumped down to the ground floor, where all three ninjas drew their swords. All three of them ganged up to attack Ash, but Ash used his advantage over them to dispatch the first two quickly. The third one began to cower in fear from Ash. Ash chased him and grabbed him and held him up by his throat.
"You know what I want." Ash said to the ninja dangerously.
"Please… don't…" the ninja said weakly. "Ducard would kill me."
"And I'll make you wish I would!" Ash said, head butting the ninja. "What's the pass phrase?"
"Please… it's Looking Glass." the ninja said. Ash then slammed the ninja to the ground, knocking him out.
Ash then went back to the bell. He threw another shuriken star at it. It rang.
"What is the pass phrase?" the guard ninja on the other side of the door asked again.
"Looking Glass." Ash replied.
The guard ninja opened the door for Ash. Ash then made his way back into the throne room, where Ducard and Ra's Al Ghul awaited him.
"Welcome Ketchum." Ducard said. There was a prisoner suspended in a cage. "You have come to your final lesson. Lower the prisoner in his cage."
Ash walked up and pulled a lever. The cage lowered.
"Excellent. Now, come here." Ducard said.
Ash walked up to Ducard.
"We have purged your fear. You are ready to lead. Ready to become one of the League of Shadows. But first, you must demonstrate your commitment to justice. He is a murderer and a thief. He cannot be allowed to live." Ducard said.
"No." Ash protested. "I'm no executioner."
Ra's Al Ghul spoke, in perfect English this time. "You must have the will to act." he said. "Or you are not fit to lead these men into Cerulean."
"Cerulean!?" Ash said, surprised.
"As there national hero, you are ideally placed to strike at the heart of criminality." Ra's Al Ghul said. "That city has become a festering wound of suffering and injustice. It cannot be saved, and must be allowed to die."
Ash walked over to a torch lighting the room. "You can't believe in this." Ash said in disbelief. Ash then began to pull out a hot iron from the torch. Ducard saw this.
"Ketchum!" he said. "What are you doing?"
"What needs to be done." Ash responded. He then threw the iron into an area full of gun powder. The gun powder caught on fire and exploded, causing a fire throughout the monastery.
"YOU ARE A FOOL, KETCHUM!" Ra's Al Ghul yelled, and then he jumped over the railing separating them and went to attack Ash, supported by two League ninjas. "YOU WILL DIE!"
Ra's Al Ghul and the two ninjas ran up to attack Ash. But Ash's will was enough to make him able to fight off the two ninjas and the much more experienced Ra's Al Ghul.
"HELP ME, PLEASE!" Ash heard the prisoner call. "I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"
Ash looked and discovered that he had one more Shuriken star. He threw it at the chain holding the prisoner's cage up. The cage fell to the floor and crashed open.
"This way out." the prisoner beckoned. Ash began to run after the prisoner. "Quickly, we can escape!"
The prisoner ran up to a door and opened it. Ash ran down the hallway and came to a room, where he saw Ducard suffering. Ash picked Ducard up and carried him fireman's style. An explosion rocked the room, propelling Ash and the injured Ducard through the window. They both landed outside on a slippery icy slope.
The unconscious Ducard began to slide down and make his way toward the fall into the canyon below. Ash dove and slid after him, and caught Ducard before he fell to his death. Ash then used the spikes in his ninja gauntlet to dig into the ice and stop both of them from falling into the canyon. This caused a pain like Ash had never felt before. Ash screamed out in pain, but was able to pull Ducard up and take a small breather.
Later…,
Ash was carrying Ducard through a small village that he had passed on his way up the mountain. He came to a medicine man's hut and left Ducard with him.
The medicine man looked at him. "I will tell him you saved his life." he said. Ash gave a respectful bow. He then asked the medicine man if he could borrow his cell phone. The medicine man obliged, and Ash got a hold of a telephone operator. The operator connected him to Cerulean City, a number he wanted to get a hold of.
"Hello, Alfred." he said. "Did you miss me?"
The next day…,
The private plane that Ash had gotten ever since he became Pokemon Master was waiting for him at a local airstrip. The plane opened up and a flight of stairs came down. There was Ash's butler, Alfred.
"Master Ketchum." he said, as Ash approached. "You've been gone a long time."
"Yes I have." Ash replied.
"You look very fashionable." Alfred said, noticing Ash's Japanese style ninja garb, stained in mud. "Apart from the mud."
Author's Notes: Sorry it took so long. The whole part you saw with the training was taken out of the Batman Begins video game for the Nintendo Gamecube, Microsoft Xbox, and Sony Playstation 2. So, I'm following the Batman Begins/The Dark Knight storyline, but adding a few of my own twists, and even referencing some of the stuff that happened in the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher storylines. So, read and review.