A.N.: No, the bat is not Bat-mite in disguise. You'll see what I mean.
"Kyoji-sama… I've done as you asked. Please… let me see him."
Goryu and Kyoji stood outside the room where she had tortured and abused Rouga and Bruce. Kyoji sighed, tapping his foot on the floor as he contemplated her request. He sighed, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Fine…" He drew out, annoyed and clearly reluctant. "I suppose a deal is a deal, so… I'll take you to see him. Of course, you'll have to wear a blindfold and don't bother trying to remember the car movements because we'll have him moved after you see him." Kyoji turned around and began walking down the hall, snapping his fingers. "Come on, bitch. I don't have all day. Let's go see your daddy."
As he said, Goryu was blindfolded and led into the backseat of a car. The car started up and was soon driving to the destination. Despite his words, Goryu did memorize the road direction, a fleeting hope in her that it would matter. That she could use it. She didn't know how and a large part of her was nagging at her brain for memorizing the car's swerving patterns instead of thinking of what she would say to her father after so long but she couldn't help it. Despite herself, she just couldn't help it.
The car made a hard stop, her body pulled forward but stopped by the seat belt. The door was opened and a male hand roughly grabbed her arm. The hand led her somewhere else, through another few corridors before they stopped and she heard a door open. She was led inside and then, her blindfold was taken off. Her eyes quickly became accustomed to the room and widened happily upon seeing who was behind the bars of the cage she stood in front of – her father. He was a frail man, shorter than her but had a soft look in his blue eyes. He was balding and had liver spots but otherwise seemed healthy.
"Father!" Goryu gasped out, smiling. Her father happily greeted her, hugging his daughter through the bars.
"Goryu-chan! My daughter… my beautiful baby..." He exhaled happily, the relief and joy seen in his eyes.
"Father..." She released him after a long embrace, looking over his figure. "How are they treating you? Are you okay?"
"I am well, Goryu. Your Father may not look it but he has steel in his soul."
"I know..." She smiled sweetly. "I know that better than anybody. It's been so long since they've last let me see you… Almost an entire year. Father… I'm… I'm so sorry..." Tears began building up in her eyes now. "I'm so sorry this is happening to you, that they're doing this to you… Keeping you in this cage like an animal… It's all my fault! It's all my fault and I'm so-"
"Shhh, shhh… My dear daughter..." He softly stroked her cheek, looking into her glossy, purple eyes. "I know they are putting you through difficulty. You do what you do, obey what you are told to do for my sake… Withstand the humiliation, the hate, the pain..." The man's voice began to crack and his lip quivered. "And I… I could not ask for a more dedicated daughter… I-" He sniveled, blinking back tears several times. "I want you to remember that no matter what you do, I will always love you and will always be proud of you… my beautiful, baby girl..."
Goryu smiled wide, tears openly flowing down her face. "Father..."
"Alright, okay. That's enough for today."
A blindfold was thrown over Goryu's eyes and she was once again beginning to get dragged away. "Wait, no! Please!"
"Be safe, Goryu-chan! I love you!" Her father shouted.
"Father!" Dragged out of the door, she heard it shut, once again separating father and daughter.
Bruce and Rouga panted softly, Bruce's body lurched forward and his head down with Rouga lying back in his chair, his head back and staring at the ceiling, his white hair over his eyes. Having just been put through physical and psychological torture, the two men were weary, tired and were panting.
"So..." Rouga began with a groan. "She was playful, eh?"
"If you're makes jokes in this situation, then you must really be suffering inside."
"Hell yeah I'm suffering… Damn… Aren't you? You going to tell me you were tortured before or something?"
Bruce sighed, sitting up and coughing up blood. His mouth tasted like copper but, having had blood fill his mouth several times in the past, he was used to it.
"Something." Bruce replied mirthfully.
Rouga groaned, chuckling. "You really enjoy that, don't you?"
Bruce shut his eyes, a small smile gracing his face. He breathed through the pain, allowing it to run its course. He knew he couldn't ignore it. "I have to hand it to her… she knew what she was doing. She knew exactly what she was doing. She made sure the pain was minute enough to where we wouldn't die but would feel for a long time… That look in her eye… I've seen it before on myself… she was repressing her humanity and human emotion to be a monster, to do what she needed to do… I can relate..."
"How are we going to get out of here?" Rouga wondered.
"Just give me a second." Bruce requested.
"What are you doing?" Rouga turned his head, raising his eyebrow as he watched Bruce.
Bruce began scratching his nails across the palm of his hand until his fake skin came off, revealing a lockpick underneath. He grabbed it with his fingers and then bent his upper body down to pick it up with his teeth, his business partner watching with interest. Bruce then began unlocking his cuffs until, eventually, his right hand was free. He grabbed the pick and repeated the process for his left hand.
"When I was young, I wanted to be just like the Great Houdini. To that end," Bruce unlocked his cuff and then went for his ankles. "I've studied every book about him and the art of escaping from traps. I've trained under talented magicians and learned about how to escape things like this."
"So, you were expecting to get into torture chairs, then?"
"Not especially. Locked water tanks, coffins, you know – the usual death traps." Bruce stood and began walking over to him, looking over the man's tortured body. He grimaced upon seeing that a few of his scars were beginning to look puffish and red around the wound, indicating an infection. "Did they… torture you before I was brought here?"
"Yeah..." Upon seeing Bruce's worried face, Rouga quickly added, "But it hurts far less than it looks, believe me. I've been through a lot worse."
Bruce didn't answer, just began working on the bonds that kept Rouga strapped to the chair. Rouga began to stand up, smiling.
"Ah, freedom… at… last..." He fell over, Bruce catching him in his arms before he hit the ground.
"Rouga! Rouga!" Bruce exclaimed.
Rouga wheezed slightly, holding Bruce's shoulders as he stood on his own two feet. Using the man's shoulders as balance, he steadied himself. His eyes looked heavy, bags forming underneath them.
"I'm fine..." He said, determined and firm, letting go of Bruce's shoulders and standing on his own two feet. "Let's go."
Bruce nodded and the two made their way to the door, crouching by the side. They two nodded to each other before rising up and busting through the door, tackling the two guards outside to the floor and pounding on their face fiercly. Bruce coughed a bit, glancing down on his hand in which he coughed on. He saw blood.
"Are you alright?" Rouga asked, unable to see Bruce's hand.
Bruce quickly wiped his hand on his pants. "I'm fine, Rouga. Let's go."
Bruce and Rouga ran down the hall, stopping on a corner. Bruce took a quick peek before retreating back. "More guards..." He said, out of breath. His vision was dizzy and he was forced to grab the wall to keep himself study. A feeling of nausea nearly overwhelmed but he forced himself to keep it down.
"Ryu… are you okay?" Rouga asked him.
"I'm fine..." Bruce assured weakly.
"Are you sure?" Rouga persisted.
"I said I'm fine." Bruce said again, this time more forcefully.
"Alright..."
Bruce closed his eyes and thought. "Too weak… I can't fight these guards and protect Rouga at the same time… Interrogating them for the exit of this facility wouldn't work, at least not while Rouga is with me and I can't afford him out of my sight with his condition as bad as it is…" Bruce cringed slightly, the pain in the side of his stomach getting to him. "Our best bet is to find a map or anything of the like..."
"Come on." Bruce whispered. Rouga, looking pale, nodded and together they snuck past the guards.
"You know, it won't be long before they realize we've escaped." Rouga noted.
"Yeah… Wait… I've got an idea."
"What kind of idea?"
"How good are you at messing somebody up?"
"I grew up poor. Sometimes, you got into fights. What do you want me to do?"
Bruce and Rouga peeked around the corner and nodded to each other in silent agreement. Bruce tapped on the wall twice, loud enough for a guard to hear. The guard walked closer as Bruce prepared himself. Just as the guard prepared to turn the corner did Bruce and Rouga pop up, Bruce muffling the man and Rouga keeping his hand off the gun and taking it away. Bruce put the man in a chokehold, knocking him out before dragging him around the corner. Stripping the guard of his clothes, Bruce grabbed the gun and walked over to another guard.
Rouga watched as Bruce tapped the guard on the shoulder and motioned for the man to follow them. The guard went ahead of Bruce, walking down the hall out of sight of the other guards which allowed Bruce to knock the man out from the back with the butt of his gun. Rouga caught his body and dragged it around the corner, repeating the same process as Bruce. Rouga, now wearing a guard's uniform too, walked back around the corner and stood in the hall with a disguised Bruce. The unconscious bodies were hidden in a nearby bathroom, the two positioned suggestively together in one of the stalls.
Rouga hissed softly, his hand twitching as he resisted the urge to clutch his ribs.
"Rouga?"
"I'm okay..."
"Try to ignore the pain as much as possible. We need to blend in." Bruce informed him.
"You know who I really feel sorry for? Those poor bastards." He motioned to the unconscious guards that got stripped of their uniforms and balaclavas. "I'm sure they're going to have a headache when they wake up. Still, better them than us, I suppose."
Bruce and Rouga turned, beginning their slow stride down the hall.
"By the way," Rouga started, the two still somewhat away from the other patrolling guards. "It's really impressive how you understand how to sneak around and all that."
"Yeah. Several years of sneaking into the kitchen to steal cookies is finally paying off." Bruce replied.
"Hm… I never had cookies as a kid." Rouga stated softly.
Bruce glanced at him, a little surprised. "Really?"
"Well, like I said, we were poor so..."
"Wow… I'm… I'm sorry to hear that, Rouga. That's a shame."
Bruce and Rouga began walking amongst the other guards, blending in as one of them. "I need to find my way out of here… Damn… these wounds are distracting… I need to find a room with a map of the facility or anything of the like."
"You two!"
Bruce and Rouga hesitated for a split second, before turning around to face their rather loud and forceful caller. Another guard, the commander from how he carried himself, came up to Bruce and Rouga.
"I want you two to man the surveillance room." He motioned his head in the direction of which it is located. "The two men originally there have moved to another shift. You two will take over, understood?"
Bruce nodded but Rouga made a dramatic salute, prompting the commander to let off a low dismissive wave. "You don't have to do all of that."
The commander walked off and Bruce gave Rouga a look. He just shrugged. With the location of the surveillance room given to them, the duo made their way there, stopping in front of the door. The door itself had a small window which allowed you to see inside the room and was also the only way to see inside the room. The guards, from the angle of their patrol, would not be able to see inside without stepping up to the door and looking through that window. Bruce peered through it, seeing two men at the computer screen. They were on their phones, however, watching obscene pornography. Bruce shook his head and turned around quickly, standing on either side of the door with Rouga as they faced away from it. Guards still walked back and forth so the two men were forced to pretend as if they were actually guarding the room.
"So, that's the explanation to why we haven't been spotted sooner… I saw the cameras but had no way of taking them down. They would have spotted us earlier but we got lucky… Now, we need to wait until the guards stop patrolling the halls that lead down to this room and then we can take over the room, buying us some more time to escape."
Bruce felt a light tap on his arm and turned to see Rouga do a rock-paper-scissors motion with his hand. Bruce glanced up at his disguised face and Rouga nodded to him firmly. The rock-paper-scissors motion was something Rouga came up with before meetings. It meant "Let's just bust in and do it!". Its purpose was to give Bruce's business partner more confidence and make him feel more pumped up before every business meeting. Bruce never would've predicted that it would be used a silent communication gesture between the two. Bruce nodded at him in reply and the two quickly glanced right and left to see the guards have all walked their other way on their patrol. With the coast clear for a brief few minutes, Bruce and Rouga walked into the room, closing the door behind them, and alerting the attention of the guards inside. The duo pretended to be nonchalant at first until Bruce and Rouga knocked the men out with their guns. Rouga glanced at the content on their phones and snorted in disgust, throwing the phones to the floor and crushing them beneath his feet. Bruce and Rouga briefly raised their balaclavas as they looked at the screen.
"There's the exit!" Rouga pointed to the top-left screen.
"Alright, I think know how to get out of here now..." He glanced at the bottom-left screen, seeing the room that they had left. It was empty, except for the unconscious guards that were strapped to the chairs Rouga and Bruce were previously in. "Now, we have to do something about this surveillance screen. If someone comes in and sees that screen, they'll know we escaped."
"I know, how about we just play yesterday's footage of the same time?" Rouga suggested.
Bruce smirked at that. "That sounds pretty good. Give me a second to figure out how to work this thing."
Bruce began typing on the computer, changing the current footage to yesterday's. "Now, if someone peeks inside, they won't see if we've escaped. They only way they'll know is if they personally cross by the torture room door."
"So, what about these guys? If someone walks in, they'll see these guys are knocked out."
"Here, give me a hand." Bruce reached down and grabbed a guard, sitting him in his chair. Rouga followed his lead, grabbing the other person and sitting him in a chair too. They positioned the guards' bodies to look as if they were sleeping on the job.
"Where are their phones?" Bruce asked. "If we put their phones in front of them, it will seem like they were slacking off and make the scene more believable."
"Um..." Rouga sheepishly glanced down at the floor. Bruce saw the broken phones and sighed in exasperation. "Sorry, Ryu. It just… irks me, seeing something like that."
"It can't be helped." Bruce threw the phones in the garbage before pulling the balaclava down on his face. "Let's go."
"Right." Rouga pulled down his mask and began walking, when he suddenly stumbled, collapsing on his knees. "Ah!"
Bruce spun around, crouching down and helping Rouga up. "Are you alright?!"
"I-" Rouga quickly pulled up his mask and spat up blood. He coughed hard, clutching his chest.
Bruce gritted his teeth, glancing at the door window. "That torture is probably affecting him worse than it is me… Those guards will start walking past the door any moment. If they hear him, they may look inside the room."
Bruce heard light footsteps approaching the door and Rouga's coughing continued to get louder and louder. His head quickly flashed back and forth between the door and Rouga, his mind working quickly to think of something.
BRRR! BRRR!
The light inside the room began flashing red as the intercom voice spoke.
'Attention all staff! Attention all staff! The two prisoners have escaped from their cells! It is believed they may be posing as one of the staff! All guards are ordered to take off their balaclavas and report to the commander for re-evaluation!'
"Damn it."
Bruce grabbed the gun and kicked the door out, quickly knocking out the guard that came their way. Bruce forced the pain from that action to lessen in its effect and grabbed Rouga's arm, who was stumbling out of the room, bleeding from his mouth. He put Rouga's arm around his neck and the two began making their way down the hall.
"What are you… doing…?" Rouga asked weakly. His eyelids were half-shut, as if he were ready to fall into unconsciousness at any moment but was fighting it.
"Don't worry. We're getting out of here. I know where the exit is now – it's close. Just hang on, Rouga!"
"No… I'll slow you down… Just… leave me..."
"Stop being melodramatic, you fool." Bruce and Rouga were forced to press against the wall as bullets were shot at them, keeping them pinned there. Bruce's eyes searched wildly for something he could in this situation. He closed his eyes and breathed hard.
"No other choice… Mother… Father… Please, forgive me… for what I am about to do..."
Bruce raised the gun and shot at the guard's hand forcing him to drop the weapon. He then aimed a power box behind him and shot it, the blast sending the guard to the ground, unconscious. Bruce and his friend began rushing, making a right around a corner.
"We're almost there… almost there!"
Two guards came from behind them and Rouga shot them in the chest, spraying at them with his rifle. Bruce grimaced but kept moving nonetheless. The two stopped at the exit to see that it was blocked because of a shutter door.
"Damn it!" Bruce exclaimed, turning around. "There has to be another one… but we can't go back to the room nor we can afford to spend time wandering around here… Someone could end up dead." Bruce gritted his teeth, struggling to figure out what to do, when all of a sudden, he saw it. His eyes widened, seeing it hanging from the ceiling and just staring at him. "Rouga… do you see that?"
"See what?"
"Up there! It's going to lead us..."
"I don't… see anything..." He groaned.
"It's flying away! Come on!"
"Wait! I don't understand! What's leading us?"
"The bat, man! The bat!"
Unseen to Rouga, a red eyed, red winged bat with pitch black fur was flying through the hall, leading them down it. A guard came running up to them but Bruce knocked him out by swinging his gun at their hand like a baseball bat. Bruce kept his sight on the flying black mammal, turning wherever it turned. He followed it wide-eyed and attentive, like a lost boy would by its parent. A couple of guards began shooting at them but Bruce shot the gun out of theirs hands, forcing them to run up to Bruce, close-combat style. Bruce kicked the first in the groin, knocking him down and the second he kicked out the knee but stumbled back, the pain of his body slowing him down. Before the guard could recover, Rouga hit the man in the temple with the gun, knocking him out. Rouga then stumbled forward, catching himself on the wall.
"Come on, come on." Bruce draped his friend's arm over his shoulders and then began walking forward again.
"Where are you taking me? Where?!"
The bat flew, flapping its wings until it turned the corner around another hall. Bruce turned with it and his eyes met a bright light at the end of the hall.
"The exit…!" Rouga exclaimed weakly.
"Come on." Bruce and Rouga hurried down the hall, the two of them coming into the yard outside where cars were kept. Rouga glanced behind them, seeing the glint of an object. Quickly realizing it was the scope of a gun, Rouga pushed Bruce behind him.
"Look out!"
BANG!
The shot fired, hitting Rouga in his lower stomach. Rouga fell back into Bruce, who quickly dove out of the way as rapid fire began firing down the dark corridor.
"Rouga! Rouga!"
No answer came. Bruce lifted Rouga up, ignoring the stinging sensation in his arms. He ran to a car and kicked the window in, knowing the guards were sprinting down the corridor to the outside yard right now. He threw Rouga inside and jumped in, ducking his head as bullets flew past them, breaking the window and nearly hitting Bruce. Bruce quickly jump-started the car and hit the gas, speeding out of the yard and breaking down the gate as they sped away, the guards still shooting after them.
Bruce made an immediate B-line for the hospital, stopping in the parking lot. He grabbed Rouga and rushed inside. Once alert to their condition, the hospital staff went to work securing Rouga in the emergency room. Bruce collapsed to his knees in the waiting room, breathing hard. The nurses began helping him up and getting him into a wheelchair when, suddenly, a loud explosion was heard outside. Shaky, Bruce ran over to the glass doors and saw where the plume of smoke originated. His eyes widened in dread and shock.
"The Batcave!"
"Sir! Sir, we need to give you medical attention!"
The nurse tried to pull him away from the door, but, without thinking about it, he knocked her to the ground roughly. He ran over to a cart that was being pulled that had prescription drugs on them and grabbed the bottle he was looking for. The people in the waiting room watched nervously as he downed several painkiller tablets and then ran out the door, making his way to the car. The sun was setting now, the sky orange.
"Have to make it… Have to make it!"
Konomi ran into the computer room, a tray in her hand. She had just come from giving food and comfort to Emi, who was still distant but no longer cold.
Yuu stood at the computer, staring at the screen. "Um… Konomi-san? You may wanna take a look at this..."
Konomi sat the tray down and glanced at the screen, widening her eyes when she saw it. "Oh… my God..."
On the security camera screen, it showed the yard, which the Batcave was located under, filled with criminals and gang bangers. Delinquents, professionals, all types. Some were sitting in vans, others were standing in the crowd, holding torches. Young men, shirtless with tattoos, guns in their hands. Females wearing hockey masks and Uzis.
From behind these rows of criminals and hockey mask wearing girls was a shorter one with pink twin ponytails with a small yellow streak. This girl made her way around the area, discreetly placing explosives around the place. It didn't matter how close they were to the thugs, however, considering they were all black labels. After having done this, the girl pressed her finger to her ear and whispered, "Yuko-sensei, all the bombs have been set! I've notified some of the criminal leaders too! The plan is a-go!"
'Begin the operation!'
Inside the Batcave, Konomi stared at the screen in pure shock. "W-what?"
"What are they doing here?" Yuu asked, baffled.
"Do they know… we're down here? Look!" On the screen, several criminals picked up axes and began picking away at the cargo boxes around the yard.
"This is bad… very, very bad..."
"I'll call the police." Konomi said, typing on the computer.
"The police? Is that a good idea?"
"No choice… There's too many for us to deal with alone. Even the security measures to the base won't be enough. What's going on…? It's not… it's not working! Something's blocking our signal."
"What does this mean?"
"It means they're here." Red Vixen walked up from behind them. Konomi and Yuu turned around as Vixen tossed the buxom red head a 9mm. "You're gonna need that. And kid, you might wanna get suited up or whatever you call it." She cocked her gun back. "They're coming for their leader."
BOOM!
A loud explosion was activated, destroying the roof of the Batcave and sending it falling down below. Criminals in the blast radius were launched all over the place. Some died when it exploded in their faces, others died when the blast sent them flying into buildings or into the sky, only for them to come down hard on the pavement. The criminals that were far enough not to be affected by the blast however, began moving in, shouting and ecstatic, not paying attention to the many body parts of their fellow criminals that lay strewn across the street.
When the Batcave rooftop exploded, the ceiling came down and nearly crushed the three females in the place. It did, however, destroy the Bat-computer. Konomi, disorientated, rose up from the ground, grabbing the gun. The place was dark and the only source of light was the hole that was made in the explosion.
"Vixen? Hunter?" Konomi called out weakly. Her head felt numb and when she reached to her forehead to touch it, she felt warm blood.
"Here..." Hunter replied. Konomi grabbed a flashlight from her pocket, shining her light on Hunter and seeing she was already in her costume.
"How… how did you… change so fast?"
"Ryu-kun taught me how."
"… Okay." Konomi turned around, glancing at the hole. "It's not going to be long before criminals start flooding the place. Look, I have to make sure Emi is okay. Find Vixen in this rubble and take the emergency exit. Understood?"
"But, Ko-"
"Is that understood?"
Hunter pursed her lips but said nothing more, simply nodded in compliance. Konomi nodded in return. "Stay safe, Hunter. For Ryu's sake."
Konomi turned and ran off down the opposite corridor. "You too..." Hunter softly replied. She then quickly got to work to finding Vixen, taking out her flashlight and searching through the rubble. "Vixen? Vixen? Vixen, can you hear me? Vixen!"
Outside, the criminals began crossing the street to get into the yard. The explosion site had bodies lying all over the ground and a small part of the next door abandoned building's collapsed rubble on the ground as well.
'You and Miki will infiltrate their base, pretending to be one of the criminals. Find one the Red Vixen and get the location of Mochizuki-sensei and Fiona.'
"Understood..." A disguised Mikoto replied. With a disguised Miki beside her, the two began making their way into the yard.
Mikoto watched as some criminals began peeking into the hole, grinning ferally.
"So, this is where the Batman's been camping out? I guess he's just a man after all. Peek-a-boo," the criminals poked his inside. "I see you."
Hunter glanced up and saw several criminals standing over the hole, aiming guns at her. She quickly dove to cover as the criminals began firing off. As she ducked behind rocks, she saw movement to the right of her peripheral vision. Pushing small rocks off of her, Red Vixen sat up with pain wracking her body.
"Vixen, stay down!"
Widening her eyes, the woman complied when bullets began whizzing their way past them. From above, the criminals standing over the hole waved the rest over.
"Come on! We found the motherfuckers! Ahahah!"
They began jumping in, standing amongst the collapsed ceiling rubble. Some of them began going off in the separate corridors while the rest began exploring the room. One of these people was Mikoto.
Overlooking the chaotic operation, Yuko stood on a rooftop, her white hair flowing in the air with a pinkish hue. "Hitsugi, the criminals are beginning to enter the base but I saw some running away after the explosion. Have you taken care of the ones on your end?"
'Yes. I'm dealing with some now.'
BRRR-RRR-RRRRR!
The sound of Hitsugi's turrets nearly drowned out her own voice as Yuko quickly turned off the comm-link, eager to cut that noise out. Yuko made her way down from the building and stood in the alleyway. Several criminals, those who had witnessed their comrades blown up before their eyes, began running down the alley, scared and too shaken to continue. They stopped upon seeing Yuko, poised and deadly.
"Who the… WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?!" One of them screamed, frightened and whimpering
Yuko unsheathed her sword and pointed it at them. "You will not be allowed to leave this area. I will excise you here and now."
"What?!"
They never felt a more painless blade touch their skin and they never would again, except in the life afterwards.
In the Batcave, Hunter and Vixen were being pinned down by the oncoming onslaught of criminals, their bullets only being slowed down because of the rubble. Hunter pulled out an arrow and lodged it in her bow, taking aim at the criminals above the hole. She fired the arrow, the projectile detonating in the middle of the hole and blocking their entry with a large electric net.
"Can't believe I had to waste that…" Hunter silently remarked, annoyed.
Mikoto took her revolvers after seeing the hole being closed up from a projectile. She narrowed her eyes and began taking aim at the darkness. The rest of the criminals began spreading out, searching for Hunter and Vixen.
"Are you alright?" Hunter whispered.
Vixen nodded slowly, standing up and pulling out her submachine gun. "Those bastards..." Vixen rose up and began aiming her gun at the criminals that she could see.
"Wait!" Hunter exclaimed. "No!"
It was too late as Vixen had already pulled the trigger, taking the lives of several criminals. The rest, hearing the gunshots, either fired back or ducked to the ground, most doing the latter. Vixen began walking around the rubble, intent on going to the emergency exit.
"Vixen, stop it!"
Mikoto, who was one of the people ducking down, widened her eyes in recognition. "So that person is Red Vixen? The bitch we need to interrogate?" Mikoto pressed her pocket, reassuring herself that the object given to her, a syringe containing Miki's truth serum, was still there.
Vixen made it to the corridor when Hunter shouted, "Wait for me!" From behind cover, several criminals began taking shots at Hunter, forcing her to stay low, and keeping her pinned down. Vixen began aiming for them when some of the others shot at her as well, forcing her to duck.
"Sorry, kid. Every woman for herself." Vixen took off down the direction and once they realized the bullets had stopped completely, all of the criminals rose up and began spraying at Hunter's direction. Mikoto and a few others got up and took off after the Red Vixen.
Konomi busted into the room where Emi was being kept, the girl wildly scurrying away from the door. Konomi was currently wearing a SAT gear suit, specially customized by Bruce himself, just for a situation like this.
"Emi-chan, calm down – it's me!" Konomi removed her helmet, showing the confused girl her face. This calmed her down a little but the frightened look on her face and the wariness in her dark purple eyes remained.
"What's-what's going on?"
"We've been infiltrated. Criminals are coming to kill us and we need to leave now." Taking out a key, Konomi unlocked the handcuffs chaining her to the wall.
"W-what? Aren't we in a prison facility?" Asked a bewildered Emi.
"No. We're in the Batcave." Konomi stated matter-of-factly.
Before Emi could widen her eyes and sputter, two criminals came bursting in, machetes in hand. Emi screamed from their sudden entry as Konomi spun around and shot the two of them in the neck with tranq darts, the sleeping liquid working instantaneously and putting them down. Gunshots could be heard coming from the main room.
"We have to go. I have to keep you safe. I owe your mother that much, at the very least." Konomi glanced behind her, staring Emi right in the eyes. She sympathized with the poor girl, she really did. She was already going through several types of emotional difficulties before this happened and now, she had to deal with the mental strain of processing everything else. Still, Konomi didn't have time to comfort her. She needed to get her out of here, safe and alive. Whatever happens next is whatever happens next.
"I... I..." Emi stuttered, still hopelessly confused and unable to comprehend the events happening so quickly in front of her face.
"Just trust me! I promise, I will protect you!" Putting her helmet back on, Konomi strapped a bulletproof vest on Emi and led her out of the cell, instructing the girl to keep her hand on the suit's belt. Konomi began making her way back down the corridor, criminals sprinting down at her. They shot at her with all types of caliber weapons but the bulky armor made their bullets futile.
"My turn." Switching to rubber bullets, Konomi began firing off at the criminals, knocking them out hard with the bullets. She managed to catch a glimpse of one silhouette taking cover behind a ceiling rubble rock. The dust from the explosion polluted the corridor and made it difficult to pierce through visually.
This person was Miki, holding an assault rifle in her hand. Miki popped out of the corner and began firing at Konomi, who had Emi stay down while she took the brunt of the bullets. What surprised Konomi, however, was how the bullets were chipping away at the armor.
"Are those armour piercing rounds?!"
Konomi began acting quickly, shooting back at her target, unsure of who it really was. Miki turned back down into cover, crouched down and laid on her belly, firing at Konomi's armor with her advanced armor-piercing rounds. Konomi switched her gun to the grenade launcher attachment equipped to it and began firing tear gas grenades at her enemy. Miki jumped back upon seeing a grenade land and when it started spewing gas, she quickly put on her gas mask as Konomi began moving forward. Seeing her enemy getting closer, Miki pulled out a flash grenade and threw it to the ground.
BANG!
The loud ring and bright light disorientated Konomi long enough for Miki to come out, holding a powerful shotgun in her hand, and shoot Konomi in the midsection. Konomi fell back with a thud, grunting in pain.
"Tough armor but it slows the speed of the user..." Miki walked over to the fallen woman and slid Konomi's weapon behind her. She bent down and took off the helmet, seeing her face-to-face. Emi sat in the corner, fearful.
"Where is Mochizuki?"
Defiantly, Konomi spat on Miki's gas mask, glaring at her. Miki just sighed and wiped it away with the back of her hand.
"That… was childish. But fine… if you want play it like that," Miki reached in her pocket and pulled out a syringe. "Then it's time to take a timeout."
"No matter what, survival is the most important thing – stay alive. Kill who you have to, use who you have to but stay alive! That's what I swore I would do. Love, life, puppies… They are all menial to me when it comes to my own self. I'll do what needs to be done, even if what needs to be done is heartless and cold." Those were the thoughts currently running through Vixen's mind as she ran toward the exit.
Mikoto chased down Red Vixen, the woman shooting back at her as she ran down the corridor. Prior to properly chasing her, Mikoto had killed the criminals and now, was focused on catching her target who was speedy and in black heels, no less. The bullets whizzed past her, the young girl keeping up the pace. She took out her revolver gun and aimed at Red Vixen. She smirked and mouthed a 'bang' before firing her weapon, hitting the woman in the leg.
Red Vixen fell over, falling on her ample chest. She quickly turned over and began shooting at Mikoto, who expertly dodged the bullets by whipping side-to-side. Mikoto came close enough to kick the gun out of the Vixen's hands and aimed put the barrel of the gun to her forehead.
"You blew up our house and shot our teammate in the stomach. It's been past time for some fucking payback and you know what they say… Payback's a bitch." Mikoto sneered.
Before Mikoto could pull the trigger, she was forced to dodge an incoming arrow from behind that nearly hit her in the neck. Mikoto spun around and instinctively began shooting down the corridor at her enemy. Her enemy, Hunter, had a few cuts on her face and suit but was otherwise no worse for the wear and dodged the bullets that came firing her way. Suppressing her fear and embracing the adrenaline, Hunter stood and aimed her bow at her disguised senior, holding the string of the bow back with an arrow in it.
"Who the fuck are you?" Mikoto demanded.
Hunter remained silent, keeping her bow trained on Mikoto. Red Vixen just looked on, shocked to see Hunter helping her.
Mikoto pulled back the hammer of her gun, loading her next bullet. "Answer the motherfucking question or I'll shoot, bitch. Last chance."
Miki stood up, a dazed Konami coming to. "I appreciate your honesty."
"Leave her alone!" Emi screamed, having built up her rage and courage, and charged Miki. Without even looking, Miki loaded her shotgun with rubber bullets, raised it and shot her in the stomach, launching her onto her back.
"E-Emi..." Konami reached out to her weakly. Pulling out her pistol, she aimed the barrel at Konomi's head. She turned off the safety and narrowed her eyes, focusing her pinpoint sight on the woman's temple.
"Feel blessed… that you ally with him." Miki stowed her gun away and glanced towards Emi's way. "She's that girl who had staged that kidnapping…"
Miki walked over and lifted the girl up, the rubber bullets having knocked her out. She then contacted her team via comm-link.
"Listen, everyone, I have the location of Mochizuki-sensei. I repeat, I have his location. Follow these coordinates..."
Mikoto nodded slightly as the message came through, turning her attention back to the archer in front of her. Hunter kept her bow steady, though behind her hood, a bead of sweat ran down her head.
"We'll finish this shit next time." Mikoto backed away, keeping her gun pointed at her. The roof above them blew open and a rope came down. Mikoto grabbed it and she was pulled up. All the while, the two girls kept their eye on another until they were out of each other's sight. When Mikoto was gone, Hunter let out a sigh of relief, lowering her bow.
"Ah… thank goodness..."
"I don't get it..." Red Vixen stated, sitting up. "Why?"
Hunter didn't answer immediately, instead walking over and checking the woman's wound. She grabbed a small tool and carefully worked on extracting the bullet. After tossing the bullet away, she reached for a bandage from the pouch she had strapped around her leg and wrapped Vixen up.
"Because a certain man taught me to save who I could, no matter who they were. Simple as that."
"Heh..." Hunter draped Vixen's arm around her shoulders and helped her up. The two began walking toward the exit, continuing down the hall. "It was nothing personal… When you grow up on the streets, you learn to leave who you can behind and survive, no matter what it takes… Your group was strong but once it lost the Bat and its base, there was no point in sticking around anymore or putting my neck on the line anymore…"
"Well, you're not on the street anymore. You're with us, like it or not. We agreed to protect you and until that decision is revoked, we'll continue to do so. We're not going to chew you up and leave you lying dead on the sidewalk. We just want to help."
Vixen lowered her head, chuckling to herself. Her chuckling slowly increased into laughter that echoed around the walls. "'Just want to help', eh? Now, that is something I've never been told before in my entire life… You're alright, kid."
"So… does that get me an A in class?"
"Hell no."
"Darn."
The two shared a laugh.
Konomi snapped back to reality, quickly trying and failing to collect her bearings. "Wha-what happened? One moment I was shot… the next..." Konomi pressed a button on her suit and it opened, allowing her to sit up. She grasped her stomach, her abdomen in pain. She remembers dealing with a blast to the stomach but the suit's armor had proved to be strong enough to protect her gut from getting pierced. The cost was the bullet shredded the armor itself, rendering the stomach piece useless. She still felt the blunt force of the attack, however. Her legs shaky, Konomi stood on her feet and looked around, unable to find Emi.
"Emi? Emi? Where did you go… Emi!" Konomi was unable to stay long because she saw criminals running down the corridor. "More?"
She picked up her rifle and fired down at the hall, knocking out a few with her gun. She ran down the hall, keeping an eye out for the girl. "Emi! Emi!"
No sign of her met Konomi's eye. She exhaled, keeping her mind focused. "Stay calm, Konomi. Stay calm… she's probably not dead. Maybe when I blacked out, she wandered off… I don't know where but hopefully she's still safe."
Bruce was forced to put the brakes on the car, stopping several blocks from the yard. The large plume of smoke from the explosion was even more fierce up close, cars honking and people running away from the sounds of gunfire. Police had arrived, attempting to suppress the criminals. Most of the criminals were either shot dead or ran away, to which they were either subtly killed by Yuko or stabbed in the chest by Sayo, who had stopped blasting her machine guns when the police arrived. Unable to continue by car, Bruce stepped out and stumbled to the ground, falling to his knees. He stifled the urge to cough and stood up, running down an alleyway. He made a turn around building, coming upon some stairs that led down to a bank near the river that was underneath an extremely wide bridge. He saw several criminals standing around, pissing in the river and lurking in wait. Bruce sighed, shaking his head quickly. The want to fall down and collapse was getting much greater. He came down and faced the thugs, the criminals taking notice of him and smiling widely.
"Hey, now, you're lookin' a bit worn there, mister."
"Yeah, bro..." The thug began spinning a chain. "Maybe you wanna… sit down."
"Move." Bruce ordered them.
The first thug came at him with a chain, swinging at him. Bruce raised his arm and the chain wrapped itself around it. He grabbed the chain and threw the boy into the river. Another thug jumped onto his back and Bruce spun around, gritting his teeth. He grabbed the thug's head and punched him in the nose several times, before taking hold of his head and flipping him into the water below. The third one managed to tackle him to the ground and tried to push the knife into Bruce's throat. Bruce pressed back against the criminal's wrist, his weak and tired arms giving way to the the pressure. Desperate, Bruce fought through the weakness and twisted the man's wrist, disarming him of the blade before kicking him into the water. Bruce then stood up and began stumbling down on his path.
SWISH!
Mochizuki raised his head when he heard the sound of a sword cutting through the door. The door opened and in walked Yuko and Oriha.
"Sensei!"
"Mochizuki-sensei!"
"Yuko… Oriha..." He said weakly.
Yuko grimaced. "How horrible… he tortured them..." She cut Mochizuki from his bonds and caught him in her arms. She sat him in the wheelchair she had Oriha bring in. "Sensei? Sensei, can you hear me?"
"Yuko… is that you?"
"Yes, I'm here. We're getting you out of here. You and Fiona."
"Yuko… Thank you… I'm sorry..."
"For what?"
"For ever… doubting your loyalty..."
Yuko just shook her head. "Never mind that. Now, come on."
Bruce continued down the bank until he came along a pipe opening in the sewer. One of the emergency exits led out into the tunnel and the quickest exit from there was that opening. Water slowly flowed out of the open pipe and into the river. Bruce saw unconscious criminals floating out of the pipe and onto the pile of criminals that lay on the bank. He heard the sound of approaching footsteps and braced himself. He was pleasantly surprised when he saw Hunter and Vixen come at the edge of the pipe instead.
"Hunter!"
She whipped her head to the side upon hearing Bruce's voice, widening her eyes upon seeing his face. "Ryu-kun!"
Hunter and Vixen hopped down from the pipe, using the bodies of criminals as cushion and landed on the bank. Hunter pulled down her face mask and ran up to Bruce, kissing him passionately. He returned it, holding her tightly. Vixen stood on the side, averting the her gaze of their reunion and staring at the river solemnly.
"You're safe..." She said happily, stroking his cheek.
Bruce nodded, glancing up at the pipe. "They retaliated, didn't they? Black Label, I mean."
Yuu sadly nodded, lowering her head. He put his finger under her chin and raised it back up, looking her in the eye. "We'll be alright… we're not dead yet."
She smiled at him and hugged him tightly. He ignored the sudden instinct to push her away from his pained, injured body and embraced her softly.
"Where's Konomi?" Bruce asked after releasing her.
"I don't know." Yuu replied. "She told me to take this emergency exit so I assumed after she got Kazuma, she would take the other one."
"I see..."
"She's alright. I know she is." Yuu assured him.
"Yeah, I know she is." Vixen stated, motioning behind them.
"Ryu!"
Bruce spun around to see Konomi sprinting towards him. He grinned, he couldn't help it, and ran to her, meeting her halfway and she joyfully embraced him when they met. The two, weak but ecstatic, collapsed on their knees, holding each other. Konomi couldn't stop laughing nor could she stop smiling as she left light kisses on Bruce's face and neck. Bruce just maintained his small smile, holding her in his arms.
The door to the hotel opened and Black Label, in their civilian garb, returned to their room, wheeling Mochizuki in. Fiona was sent to a hospital to deal with the internal bleeding that came about from Batman's torture. The police and Black Label managed to cut the criminal force down enough to make the last few retreat.
Currently, the police were supposed to be investigating the wrecked Batcave but Hijiri mysteriously ordered them to leave the crime scene. Yuko decided she would have a word with him about that later but what was important at the moment was getting Mochizuki to a safe place.
"I see..." Mochizuki said weakly, an oxygen mask on his mouth. "So Arashi planned this?"
"He did, yes. I had to execute it due to his sickly nature but his mind is growing sharper, Doctor." Yuko told him.
"Good… Good..."
Mikoto walked into the bedroom, turning on the lamp light and widened her eyes. "Wha..."
"What is it, Mikoto?" Miki called from the next room.
"Arashi… He's… He's… gone!"
Arashi stumbled through the tunnel, holding the wall for balance. He felt sickly and weak. His mind was weary, dizzy. Nauseated and the feeling like his lung was going to come up through his throat, the boy made his way to the East side river bank on the other side of town. It was nighttime now, the moon shining in full glory. It reflected beautifully off of the river, like a celestial mirror. Arashi collapsed, his brown hair falling over his face and he glared at the ground, his determined self refusing to let him stay on his knees. He picked himself up and began walking along the river.
"I know you're here..." Arashi said. His knees wanted so badly to buckle under him but he refused them the pleasure. He refused him the pleasure. "I know you're watching me… Show yourself… SHOW YOURSELF!"
"Hello, Arashi."
He spun around wildly, glaring daggers at the being that stood before him – the Batman in all of his glory.
Arashi panted heavily, his chest going up and down in each, exaggerated motion. "You… You… hurt her… attacked her house and burned the memories of her mother to the ground… You're working with the woman who destroyed a hospital for a persona vendetta, hurting the city in the process..." Arashi stumbled over to Batman, grabbing his cowl. "Tell me! What do you fight for? You claim justice but it's a lie… All of it…"
Batman grabbed the boy's head and pushed him to the ground, Arashi too weak to resist. On his back, the boy groaned in pain, his body unable to take the impact it made on the ground. He rose up with a grunt, glaring up at Batman who simply stood there.
"What is your justice about?" He panted. "Tell me! How did it start… With tragedy?"
Batman never responded.
"With pain? Fear? Anger? You attack us and hunt us as if we are criminals… Maybe we are criminals. But if we, those who attack people who bully others, are criminals… then you, who kidnap elderly men and burn the houses of girls are a criminal too… you're not different from us… you're a criminal as well, working outside the law. You're a black label… and I will stop you..."
Arashi pounced forward, punching Batman in the face. Batman lurched back, wiping his chin. Arashi kicked him in the stomach but Batman took the hit and grabbed boy's leg, lifting him up and then throwing him to the ground. Arashi landed on stomach, coughing a small bit of blood. Before he could get up, Batman put his foot on the back of Arashi's head.
"You attack me for another reason. It's not because I'm a criminal, that I do what I do or that I oppose your leader. You attack me because I'm everything you're not. I'm your superior and like a dog threatened, you can't handle it."
"Shut up!" Arashi gritted his teeth, struggling to raise his head. "I don't care… who the hell you think you are…! I… will… SURPASS YOU!" Arashi raised his head, causing Batman to stumble back. Arashi placed his hands on the ground and his weight on his hands before kicking Batman in the stomach. Arashi rolled forward and spun around as Batman pounced him, punching at his face. Arashi crossed his arms and blocked the attack, skidding back from its power. The pain wracking from Arashi's body started to affect him again as he doubled over, clutching his stomach.
"No…! Not again..."
Batman stood over him now, glowering down at him. "Enough." Batman kneed the boy in the face, knocking him on his back. Arashi held his nose, looking at him.
"My justice is tempered by allowing the criminals plaguing the city to fester, to continue to grow, break out of jail and wreak havoc again. I will forever exact my justice, destroying anyone who opposed this. You are inferior; how dare you get in my way!"
"No!" Arashi rose up, standing on his two feet. His body was hunched over, giving him an animalistic air about him. "You got in my way! You made my friends cry, attacked my leader and got in the way of his ideals! You and your damn justice are in my way! I will take you down, with every ounce of my being… I swear this upon my best friend's grave. No matter what, I will avenge their tears!" Arashi charged forward, tackling Batman into the water. They dived further, Batman and Arashi maintaining tense eye contact. It ended with Batman fading away into a dark, ghostly mist that dispersed behind Arashi.
Above the boy, hanging beneath the bridge and over the water was a small black bat. This bat had glowing red eyes and when it opened its wings, they were blood red. The bat was rare, never having before been seen in Tobioka City. An odd expression on its face could be faintly seen – the animal looked as if it had a pleased smirk as it flew deep into the night.
Fujino watched the television that was set up in her kitchen, sitting in her evening kimono and sipping warm tea. Her maid was washing dishes.
'A large gang war was seen taking place today at the abandoned shipment yard. Rumors have surfaced that it was the lair of the Batman, a terrorist who was been responsible for blowing up several police stations throughout the city. Strangely, the police have not investigated the area and the police captain has offered no reason as to why. The area has been closed off and restricted from public view. Dozens of criminals lay grotesquely on the street as-'
Fujino set her tea down, sitting her cheek in her hand. "Good… I suspected that Black Label attacked Batman in retaliation… With the police unable to investigate, it should buy him time to destroy any equipment that could pin him in a situation he doesn't want to be in."
"You have such great forethought, Fujino-sama." Her maid complimented her.
"Thank you, Memma. I-" Fujino was cut off by the sound of a loud, fast beeping sound. She furrowed her brow but then widened them in speedy recognition. "Memma, get dow-"
BOOM!
"Taisei-sama, the bomb has detonated."
The boy cackled hysterically, nearly falling back in his chair with laughter. "Good, good! Now… run, little girl, run!"
A.N.: Chapter 20 is finally done! Please forgive me if I made any errors. It's a long chapter so I may have missed some things. That was a long write, trust that. 100,000 words now, too. Not too shabby, if I do say so myself. Anyway, I hope you guys are enjoying this fic and all its twists and turns. I hope you'll continue to stick with it as progresses. So, please let me know what you thought as reviews are always nice and actually encourage me to update a story more often, believe it or not. Thanks for reading and supporting and as always, see ya next chapter.
Green out.