A/N: Thanks for all those reviewing, it means a lot! I hope you all enjoy the next part of my story!
Chapter Seven: The Story
Batman glared at the screen, fists clenched with rage as Identity began speaking.
"Our story begins," he said, "with a young, inspired Politian who believes that he can change Gotham, much like you. He is charismatic, good looking, and has the people's support in all his endeavors. He has a good heart, and is willing to do whatever he can to see that change comes to Gotham, and that the corrupt politics are changed for the better."
Identity sighed, as if it was a story that touched his heart, then continues, "Unfortunately on his crusade for justice, he upsets many corrupt people. These people try to get to him through slander and lies, but the young man stays above it all. He knows that all people who TRULY believe in the cause will continue to listen and hope for a better world. Because he has many followers, he still manages to stay above it all. This is when the bad people get very desperate, when they get a taste of something they don't experience very often, defeat. They realize that fear will not be ruling this young man, for he has a vision."
Batman saw Identity's muscles tense up noticeably during another pause in his story. Where was he going with this?
"So one day, they hire a very evil man to take what is most dear to the politician, his lovely family. After this horrible tragedy, the young politician is broken, the evil men have bought off the right people, allowing his wife and child's murderer to walk free. This is when he sees how deep the roots of corruption spread, how vile the rich and the powerful truly are. He realizes the only way to stop the spread is to eliminate it violently and completely."
Suddenly, three new images appeared on the screen, the GCPD station, the Gotham City Community Center, where one of the largest charity balls the year was being held, and the courthouse, where many politicians and lawyers were discussing the Batman interrogation case. Identity was below them, standing tall. He pulled out his conductor's wand and tapped it on the table in front of him, then cleared his throat.
"Batman, you and I have not so different goals," He told Batman as he placed a music stand in front of him, "but you are still blind to the true corruption that eats away at this city. I am going to do you a favor because I respect your stalwartness, I will show you what happens when the corrupt and evil are punished."
Suddenly, music began playing in the speakers, a soft chime, a quiet percussion, soothing violins. Batman watched in horror as the people inside in around the buildings looked side to side in confusion trying to find where the music was coming from. Then, the unspeakable happened. The volume of the music began to grow as people started dropping dead randomly. There were no shooters, nothing but people randomly falling over and dying.
"Is it not beautiful," Identity asked Batman in a crazed voice, "retribution as swift and violent as a hurricane!"
The speed of the music continued to pick up as Identity waved his wand faster and people clutched their chest and died more quickly. All Batman could do is watch in frustration and rage as Identity killed off hundreds.
"And here comes the crescendo!" Identity laughed raising his wand up as high as he could. Time seemed to slow as he brought it down, Batman watching, anticipating whatever horrible thing Identity was about to do. Then, when Identity's wand reached the bottom, the three buildings erupted in a spectacular explosion of fire and smoke.
"Liberation!" Identity yelled, waving violently up and down as the buildings began to collapse on themselves, killing almost everyone inside.
Batman fell to his knees as he watched the death of about one hundred innocents unfold before him. He had failed them all. He had promised to protect those lives and he had failed them. He had let them die.
"Identity!" roared Batman, "I'm going to take you down, whatever it takes!"
Identity just shook his head and said, "Batman don't you see? I've just destroyed a quarter of the corruption. Because of that little message you sent to the police, many of them escaped. Even so, this is a great victory for the people; in the blast were some very evil men. Remember this Batman, this is going to continue because you sent out that message and warned the corrupt. I will end them if it takes destroying every structure in Gotham to do so. You cannot stop the cleansing."
Then, the feed to the television cut off, leaving Batman alone in the radio tower. Batman just knelt there in disbelief. How could this have happened?
"Mr. Wayne…"
Batman heard Eve over the comm. link and responded, "I failed them…"
"No, no you did everything you could! Because of your hunches, about four hundred lives where saved!"
"But around one hundred died!" Batman yelled, punching the wall with his broken hand in frustration. He was so angry he couldn't even feel the pain.
"Mr. Wayne there will always be casualty when there is war. You have to be able to keep fighting, for Gotham. You must stay strong during times like these."
Batman stood up and walked over to the tv and took a deep breath. Eve was right; he had to keep fighting. He was going to stop Identity, no matter what. With a powerful kick, Batman knocked the tv to the ground, then turned away. There had to be something in the broadcast that would give him a hint as to where Identity was.
He jumped in the batmobile and drove off back to the batcave on some of the less used roads; he didn't want to attract attention, which was the last thing he needed.
As he pulled off of the freeway into the forest path, he thought of what Eve had said. There would be some casualties during war, but this wasn't war. This was a criminal who had gotten his hands on some invisible murder weapon. Christian then remembered the Titan chemical he had picked up earlier. Maybe he could find all the answers in that serum.
Christian parked the batmobile in the batcave and jumped out. He went straight past Eve, who was standing near the batmobile with a concerned look, and when right to the bat computer.
"Computer, analyze 'Titan'," he told it, placing the small test tube inside one of the slots of the computer.
"What is that," Eve asked, walking up behind him.
"It's a chemical I came across while looking for Identity," Christian told her, "I think it may be Identity's mysterious murder weapon."
Finally the computer came up with an analysis along with past archived data of the titan formula. Christian hadn't known that his father had come across this stuff before, but then again, he didn't know much about his dad at all. He clicked on the old files and what he found stunned him. It was the true story behind the rumor of Batman's only murder victim, the Joker.
"This formula, it killed the Joker?" he said, stunned by this revelation.
Eve almost dropped her clipboard, and ran over to where Christian was. "What do you mean it killed the Joker?"
Christian pointed to the file and told her, "Look, apparently this is how Joker became that… monster during the huge Arkham Asylum incident years ago. This must be what happened to those two guards, Rage and Madness."
"I don't see how it killed him though," Eve said skeptically
"The serum, once it wears of it becomes dangerously poisonous, causing the victim's bodily functions to slowly deteriorate. But get this, there is no trace of poison, rather it seems as if the victim has died of disease."
"Wait, this means,"
Christian nodded, "I think we've found the mysterious murder weapon."
Christian told the computer to continue looking for possible modifications that could cause such quick and silent death. It has to be such a small dose that the people won't transform into those beasts. But it also had to be large enough to take effect. First though, he needed medical attention.
"Eve, do you know how to mend a broken hand?"
Eve turned towards him, confused, but then saw his purple, swollen hand.
"Good lord Mr. Wayne, what did you do?"
Christian laughed, "You should see what the other guy looks like."
Eve groaned at the cheesy joke and began working on Christian's hand. Christian winced as she went through and forced the bones back into place and wrapped his hand tightly in a cast.
"You need to lighten up on this hand," she told him, "stop trying to punch through brick walls."
Christian nodded and responded, "The monsters, they're tough. It's as if they can't feel anything."
"Just be more careful."
As she wrapped his hand, Christian watched his recording of the Identity broadcast. He knew there had to be something he could use, but what. Then he noticed something at the bottom corner of the screen. It was small, barely visible in fact, but when he spotted it, a grin broke out. He had just found Identity's location.
0000000000000000000000000000 0000000000
Kara sat at her hotel desk, working on the article she was writing for the Daily Planet on the recent Identity attacks. The only light that she was typing by was the small lamp provided by the hotel and the backlight of the computer. Jimmy walked up behind her and kissed her on the cheek, startling her a bit.
"Kara, why don't you go to sleep? It's getting late."
Kara laughed, "You're the one who needs this story in. How will the planet look if we're the only ones not covering these attacks?"
Jimmy nodded and told her, "Well then keep working hard. I'll be in bed if you need me."
Kara nodded and gave him a kiss goodnight. When he left, she went back to writing the story. What was she supposed to say about the turn of events? While the projected casualties were lower then Identity had originally planned, they were still insanely high. All of them were public servants, policemen, or rich folks. She and Jimmy were lucky that they had gotten that call from Eve about the bad flu going around, which of course was a cover up.
Then there was Christian. She knew wherever he was; he was blaming himself for these deaths, even though they weren't his fault. He was probably beating himself up over it, or some poor criminal that dared cross his path. Christian had been so frustrated recently and now with the league giving him dangerous warnings, it was a recipe for disaster.
As she continued to think about what to write, her phone went off. When she looked at the caller ID it said Conner Waller, the JL's code caller name.
"Hello?" she answered, putting the phone between her ear and her shoulder so she could continue typing.
"Kara, this is Conner. We need to meet."
Kara turned and checked if Jimmy was asleep. Just her luck, he was out like a light.
"What is it Conner, I really need to finish this story," she told him as she began the lead.
"Kara this isn't up for debate. We're already in Gotham, so meet us on top of the Sionis Skyscraper."
Kara sighed in defeat, "Fine, I'll be there in a bit."
She quickly grabbed her Superwoman costume and put it on, then flew out the window into the cold night air. When she reached the top of the skyline, she used her super vision to scan the city for her teammates. She found them, just as Conner had said, on top of the Sionis building. Kara knew exactly what this meeting was going to be about, and she didn't want any part of it. Even if she did show up, no one would actually hear her out because she was too 'emotionally close' to the situation.
She landed on the roof and saw all the new leaders of the League, Superman, Miss Martian, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and Green Lantern.
"Good, we're all here," Conner said, "and I assume you all know why."
"This is about Batman isn't it?" Wally (the Flash) asked
Conner nodded, "While his dad quit a long time ago and Batman is technically not associated with the league, his actions are still bringing us a lot of trouble."
"I don't see what he's done, I mean the other Batman pissed off just as many moms as this new guy is," Cassie said, trying to calm her boyfriend down.
"Cassie, he acts like a criminal!"
Miss Martian intervened, trying to moderate the conversation, "Please, we should not fight. Why don't we ask Kara what she thinks? She knows Christian better then any of us."
All of them turned towards Kara who shot M'gann a glare for putting her on the spot. "I think before we talk about our course of action we should talk about our reasoning. I mean are we really going to bring in the Batman just because he makes us look worse?"
"Kara we can't make a decision based on your lingering feelings for him!"
Within three seconds of those words leaving his mouth, Kara punched Conner square in the jaw, knocking him down.
"Why the hell did you ask me to come out here then!"
Connor got up, and glared at Kara. "We were hoping you would be mature enough to try and convince him again."
"I told you he won't listen, he's as stubborn as you are!" Kara yelled
The other league members seemed to be backing up slowly; no one wanted to be punched next.
"Look Kara, if it makes you any more confident I'll come with you," Flash told her, trying to calm her down.
"No, no I'll go by myself. Just, don't expect any results," Kara sighed, floating back down to the roof.
"Well just to make sure, I'm going to come with you," Conner said, "This needs to get through to him, I won't talk to him through his secretary anymore."
Miss Martian shook her head in protest, "Conner, if you go I believe that Batman will be even more difficult to deal with."
"No, he needs to know that the way he acts won't be tolerated. He needs to know that there are boundaries that he can't cross."
"Well he hasn't killed anyone, right?" Flash asked, a bit confused as to what boundary Batman had crossed.
"The problem is that he is dangerously unstable. You saw how close he got to killing that man, what happens when he is really put to the test. With the way he conducts things, he is dangerously close to crossing the line."
Kara scoffed, "So we're going to take him out for something you think he's going to do?"
"Look, you saw how angry the government is getting at us because of him as well. I would rather not have a conflict between us and the nation," Conner explained, trying to get Kara to see reason.
"Fine, but first you have to let me talk to him. Give me one last chance to convince him to stop before you go to war," Kara asked, looking at Conner seriously.
Conner sighed and waved her off, "Go ahead, but after that I will come and intervene.
Kara nodded and flew off towards Wayne Manor. She tried to stay over the cloud line so that no one would spot her and somehow connect her with Christian.
"How the hell am I supposed to stop this," she asked herself.
She knew if there was a clash between Christian and the League, the damage would be catastrophic. Christian, of course, would be too stubborn to see reason and walk straight into Conner's challenge. Conner, who also would be too stubborn, wouldn't be able to see the possible consequences that could come from this fight.
Kara floated down on the balcony of the main bedroom, where she saw Christian on his laptop watching Identity's video over and over again with a huge smile.
He didn't seem to notice her, so she knocked on the glass door to get his attention. Christian looked up and saw her standing outside, so he got up and slid the door open.
"You know we have a front door right?" he asked, showing Kara to a seat.
Kara sat down in one of the armchairs in his room and turned towards him. "Christian, we need to talk."
"What about?" he asked, pulling up another chair to sit across from her.
"You need to heed the League's warning. You need to stop this."
Christian laughed, "Oh really? Or else what, you'll send more people down here to have these lectures with me?"
"Christian you act like a criminal! The police are even going to issue a warrant for your arrest because of your actions!"
This made Christian laugh even harder, to Kara's despair, "I am a criminal, what I do is against the law. But unfortunately, the law cannot stop men like this."
"Christian, that doesn't mean you can ride around breaking all you want and scarring anyone you want just to reach a goal. If you keep going down this path I'm afraid…" Kara swallowed nervously, "I'm afraid we're going to lose you."
"As far as your concerned," Christian scoffed bitterly, "I'm already gone."
"Christian please; what will happen if the League decides to take action? What will you do then?"
"Then," Christian answered, "Then we'll see how a mere mortal holds his own against gods."
Kara gasped when she heard what he had said. Gods? That's what he thought of them as? Not friends, not loved ones, but just gods casting harsh judgment on him? Kara's eyes started to well up with tears, how could he say that after all they had been through! Clenching her fists, she yelled, "Christian you're still a child! You see us as imposing figures trying to control you when all we want is to help!"
Christian glared at her, "If you wanted to help the world you would through any care about your image in the wind! This war is not about how you look, but how you fight!"
"That's all you know isn't it? The fight is all that's left in you?"
Christian stood up and got up in her face, glaring at her with fury, "After I let my own baby sister die along with my father, yes. That's all I have left."
Kara suddenly grabbed his head and pulled his lips into hers violently. The two held each other tight, as if they were letting all these emotions out in that single kiss. As they pulled apart, Kara whispered in his ear, "Christian, please come back to us."
Christian stood back completely disarmed. She had just shown compassion when all he had shown her was rage. She had done what he felt he could never do. She was stronger then him.
"Kara…" he started to say, but she put her finger over his lips.
"Christian, if you continue fighting everyone, we won't be able to be together."
Christian sighed as Kara walked towards the balcony door and was about to fly out. Before she left, she heard his voice call to her.
"Kara, please," he said, "Please wait for me."
Kara nodded in understanding, then turned and flew off into the cold night sky. Christian stood and watched as his one true chance of happiness flew away.
As he continued to look up to the sky, wondering if he had made the right choice, Eve cracked open the door and asked, "Are you alright sir? I heard a commotion."
"I'm fine Eve, thank you. I'm just readying myself, tomorrow it ends."
0000000000000000000000000000 0000
Identity sat, sweating in a small dim room. He had screwed up, a careless error caused by hubris.
"I'm sure you already know that he's on his way."
Identity nodded, "We can move! The revolution can still succeed!"
"That won't be necessary," said the figure across from him, "You have outlived your usefulness."
"What do you mean? There is still so much to do!"
The figure cackled and responded, "so much to do? Sunny we already got all the Titan formula into Gotham while you and your merry band of masked men were raising hell!"
"So, you never believed?" Identity asked in disbelief. He had been had, tricked, duped by a lunatic.
"No, but while you were raving on televisions and blowing up buildings, which I will admit you were quite talented at, I was slipping in the Titan drug with no resistance. With the Batman and all of the police focused on you, no one noticed the small bug slipping things into this fair city. It's time to stop stealing the spotlight from the real star of the show. I'm going to show the world just how insignificant you really are in the grand scheme of things. You will not die in a battle of dire straights, but in an embarrassing defeat by the hands of one of your own."
Identity shot up, enraged, and yelled, "You cannot stop this now! I have come too far to be killed by a madman!"
"Oh, that hurts? But you know what hurts even more?"
Suddenly, Identity felt the hook of a crowbar crashing through his skull violently, breaking his neck with a blood-curdling crack.
"That," the figure laughed
With his last breath, Identity turned to see his courier standing over him holding a bloodied metal crowbar with a smile on her face.
"Kiddo you had pizzaz, but you were to cocky. You just had to gloat, and now Bats is already on his way!"
Identity shuddered, then fell silent, killed by the hands of his own messanger.
"Kinda ironic, don't ya think?" she laughed, giving Identity's body a good hard kick, "too bad he didn't last as long as we originally planned."
The figure patted the courier on the head and said, "But dear, this is what I planned! Batman is already in hot water with the police and those spandex wearing idiots they call the Justice League, what do you think it'll be like when they see him near the corpse one of his greatest enemies!"
The courier cocked her head in confusion, "How do you plan on doing that?"
"Like any normal citizen," he responded, pulling out the phone and dialing three numbers. Placing the phone next to his ear, he called, "Hello? Police? I'd like to report a murder…"
A/N: OOOOHHH, didn't see that coming did you? Identity is merely a pawn in the plans that I have for this story!