Disclaimer: I do not own Batman or any characters he is associated with, they are the property of DC Comics.
Author's notes: Hello readers! This is an early update, but I didn't have much to do, and I knew what I wanted to do with this chapter before I started writing. I hope youu enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please rate and review, as always your comments are much appreciated!
Chapter 2: A change in Gotham's skyline
The streets of Old Gotham were always bustling with life, even after dark. A few solitary cars sped across the roads, with all sorts of people walking hastily on the pavements. The odd gunshot, scream and crash were common sounds and although they were unfriendly noises, next to no one even winced they were that used to it. All but one person, a small, thin man in his early twenties jumped a foot in the air at the slightest noise. He walked hurriedly, looking over his shoulder every yard or so. Mark Jones wiped his eyes, tears beading within them. He was scared. He was in debt to some bad people; he'd had no choice but to turn to the loan sharks to pay for his wife's hospital treatment. He turned into an alleyway, leaned himself against a wall, breathing heavily. He was trapped.
He almost fainted at the sound of someone calling his name. "Hey, Jones!" he turned to see three large, muscular men in leather jackets and jeans standing in V-formation at the entrance to the alleyway; all of them were carrying a baseball bat or another makeshift weapon. "You got the boss' money?" the one in the front demanded, "You know, you owe Mr. Sionis a lotta dough."
Mark felt his throat dry up instantly and couldn't bring himself to speak. He gulped a couple of times, trying to clear the arid feeling in his windpipe. "P-please," he stammered, "I need more time. My wife is recovering and not working yet so I'm trying to provide for her as well." He insisted, pleading. But this did not go down well.
"Oh, providing for your family are ya?" the man asked snidely "And who's gonna provide for Mr. Sionis, huh? You borrowed a lot from him, and now he wants it back, so I'll ask again. Do you have Mr. Sionis' money?" While saying this, all three men stepped slowly forwards, all the while hitting their weapons against their hands in a menacing fashion.
The young, terrified man stumbled backwards, pleading with his assailants "No, please. I can get the money, I swear. Just give me some time!" The men continued advancing on the man. "Times up, Jones." The leader said simply. He raised his bat, readying a strike on Mark's wide-eyed, scared face. He closed his eyes and ducked his head, bracing himself for the impact.
But none came. Instead, he heard a series of sounds of fist upon face and grunts. When he dared open his eyes and look up, a tall dark figure was standing over the broken men who were just threatening him. The figure seemed almost to be the darkness incarnate; it was all black save for two white specks on its pointy-eared head. Mark Jones watched in fear as the Batman bent down, lifting the leader of the three thugs up by the front of his jacket. "What is Black Mask up to?" said a deep, growling voice that came from the Dark Knight. When he got no answer, he twisted the man's arm behind his back and slammed him against the brick wall of the warehouse next to him, his feet off the ground. He asked again.
"I ain't telling you nothing." the man choked, his voice barely audible to the young man watching on. The Dark knight did not like this one bit. He slammed the thug's face into the wall, exploding his nose and breaking several of his teeth. Screaming, the thug fell to his knees, spitting out a mixture of blood, vomit and teeth. But Batman wasn't finished. He grabbed the man's hair, lifting his head and lay into him. Punch after punch came, the thug's screams of pain interrupted only by the impact of his attacker's fist on his face.
Mark Jones winced at every blow that Batman made against the thug. He actually came to feel sorry for the man who, just a few minutes ago, was preparing to do the same to him. He couldn't understand how one human being could do this to another. Assuming the Batman really was human, of course. "STOP!" Mark Jones' voice rang out, echoing in the alleyway, surprising even him. The Dark Knight looked up at him and Mark winced at the sight of the scowl he could see from what was visible of Batman's face. The Caped Crusader threw the thug to the ground and, with a swish of his cape, was gone.
Batman crouched atop one of the many gargoyles on the edge of Gotham's rooftops. He shook his head in disgust. He had lost control. Again. Two months had passed since he returned from his failed attempt of saving Jason Todd, and he had been having this problem ever since he got back. Whenever he saw a criminal, a lowlife scumbag getting a high from others' misery, he was blinded by a fierce rage and all he could see was the lifeless form of his young friend. Then the red came, unleashing the Dark Knight's violent fury on the criminals he swore to take down without ever sinking to their level.
He wrapped his long black cape around him in an attempt to shield himself from such parasitic thoughts. He closed his eyes and tried to find a sense of calm he usually had when in the Batman persona, but to no avail. The young face of Jason Todd was all he could see and his thoughts returned to that night. Finding out about the Joker and his whereabouts, racing to Keystone City as fast as he could, but finding nothing but an empty warehouse. Empty, but for the limp, lifeless body of Todd, his faced carved into a sinister smile, his eyes wide from the last scream he gave. Tears formed in Batman's eyes, clouding his vision and them pooling behind the lenses of his cowl which he pulled back to wipe them. Returning the black headdress, he thought back to all the adventures he had had with Robin.
A beep from his communicator interrupted his thoughts, followed by the cool, crisp voice of his butler. "Sir, I advise you return to the Batcave presently. There is something you should see." Alfred said with a sense of urgency to his voice.
"Alright Alfred, I'm on my way." The Dark Knight responded and with a sigh and a shake of his head to clear it, leapt off the rooftop, landing on the sleek, black, one-manned jet called the Batwing.
End of Chapter 2