Justice: An Arbitrator's Journal

by Deadi1025

A massive Warp Portal appears above Earth and with it an Arbitrator who enters a Universe of Gods, Heroes, and Villains. The Imperium may have not existed yet in this time, but through him Its laws will be obeyed. Through Blood and Iron, he shall enact the Emperor's Justice whether the League or anyone else allows him or not. Judgement has come to those who come to harm Earth.

5. The Underworld

A/N: After a long delay and a little bit of waiting for those who wanted more, Chapter 5 has arrived. Thank you also for the support. I'm more than happy to know that you all are liking the story.

For this chapter, you will now enter the investigative mind of the Batman and the legends they tell of him as well as why all fear the Dark Knight.

You will also know a thing or two about our main character as seen by his peers.

Parks98 – Batman vs Judge Dredd is one of my favorite comics. But it's not gonna turn out that way.

OBSERVER01 – Gotham might as well be Disney Land as compared to any Hive City. And yes. There is a large chance that there will be some misunderstandings between the two in this chapter.

Ollanius Persson – Glad you do. You'll like him even more in later chapters. I promise you that.

Edboy4926 – Just as long it ain't the Stallone version.

ManwithaPlan113 – I see what you did there. Hahaha.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Underworld

The Police have already secured the area by the time the Batman arrived atop one of the nearby buildings. A medical chopper hovered noisily above the Police's heads as it carefully loaded a pair of gurneys before flying off to the nearest hospital. From behind the veil of shadows and away from any prying eyes, the Batman silently watched and observed the scene. The smoke was only a memory by then with a few wisps of smoke left and faint trails of rubble commemorating the explosion's existence.

The Batman recognized the Officers on the scene as Gordon's men from his department in Special Crimes. A perimeter of their police vehicles and yards of shimmering yellow tape covered the perimeter of intersection in the entire block. In the corner by the sidewalk was a large near perfect square hole. Curiously, an equally large metal billboard was leaning on a rundown Garbage Truck.

The firefight that swept the area was still fresh. Most of the Police Vehicles and asphalt ground were still pocked with bullet holes possibly from a high caliber weapon. Possibly from a sniper in a high vantage point. A problematic circumstance since the intersection was surrounded by many buildings with even more windows. Finding it would be like finding a needle in a haystack and would be a waste of time. The Batman knew that finding that shooter was not the priority as of the moment. Even if he did try to find him, the suspect would have been long gone already.

The Batman noticed one vehicle missing in the convoy's perimeter. He recalled seeing 2 Armored Vans with 5 police cruiser escorts leave the park hours ago. Now one Armored Van was unaccounted for. There was no doubt in the Batman's mind that the missing Van had the Arbitrator person in its hold. That Arbitrator was the reason for all of this. He was the person these villains were after. The question now, was why?

Spent shells and empty magazines littered the streets. Police Officers in the area were all strapped with bandages while bruises marked every part of their bodies. None of it looked life threatening thankfully. As fortunate as this was for the Police, none of it bode well for the Batman. He realized that all of this was meticulously planned but to what end?

The Batman thought long and hard trying to discern which of his Rogues would have the ability or the resources to prepare for something so daring and near perfect in so short of a time. Too many names came to mind and those alone are the villains he had faced in Gotham. There were also villains from beyond to take into account. These theories became more farfetched the more he thought about it. The possibilities were endless. A labyrinth of riddles that gave more questions than answers.

Before the Batman could think anything further, a Police Sniper emerged from inside the fire escape. The Batman barely had time to slip out of view. Thankfully, the Officer was too engrossed with his conversation over the radio.

"—just made it to the rooftop." A Police Sniper panted to his radio as he quickly marched off to the ledge of the rooftop. "Deploying Nest in 20. Over."

"Roger that. Be on standby. Over."

"I miss anything good? Over." The Sniper asked while he set up his equipment.

"Nothing much. Oh, the Commissioner just went down with three SWAT Teams. They came across some hobos on the way down but they didn't cause any problems. Ran off without us firing a shot. Apart from that, nothing else until they find anything down there. Over."

'10-4. Over." The Sniper replied. He was just about to do the finishing touches on his rifle when he felt something watching him from behind.

Without warning, the Sniper turned around in a split second with rifle at the ready and pointed it at the shadows in front of him. Despite seeing no movement in the past couple of seconds, the Sniper kept his aim and didn't bat his eyes away from the crosshairs. He knew there was something there. His grip on his weapon tightened the moment he heard noise coming from the dark. A figure darted out from behind a post. It struck a bottle and sent one crashing to bits. The clanging of metal rattled from the scrap heap piled nearby.

The Sniper readied himself as the unseen figure closed in on him until a yellow eyed figure appeared from the shadows with a hiss. He was about to pull the trigger only to find his threat as nothing more than a mangy stray cat with part of an ear missing.

The cat eerily stared at him suspiciously with its glowing eyes as it appeared larger with its hair raised to bristles. It bared its fangs at him and hissed back like a spitting snake. The Sniper had the good mind to shoot the feline right then and there for giving him a fright. He decided otherwise though since that would mean that he'll have to write a report about it in the Armory. A handful of pebbles were enough to have the cat skittering off to god knows where and out of the Sniper's hair.

"Fucking strays." He shook his head before setting his eyes on his scope.

The moment the Sniper turned his back to watch over the intersection, a shadow behind him came to life and left unnoticed before the Sniper felt the sudden change in the wind.

The Batman quickly jumped off of the ledge and spread his cape out like wings as he descended towards the grimy alleyways without incident. From the shadows near the alleyway's entrance near the Police Perimeter, he watched and waited parachuted down to the grimy alleyways away from any prying eyes.

Not that he needed to anyway. Everyone's attention was spent listening to the endless and undiscernible chorale of sirens from the traffic of cars as they moved at a snail's pace. No one would have particularly noticed or cared even if the Batman was standing right next to them.

An opening was about to open up for the Batman so he made a move to enter the perimeter but before he could step foot in to the light, the stray cat from earlier reappeared behind him. The curious feline lovingly rubbed its coat at the Batman's legs before diligently propping itself on top of a trash can right next to the Dark Knight.

"Good girl." Batman petted the feline. The cat simply stared back at the Bat with its two emerald eyes before jumping off and once again disappeared into the dark alley to nowhere.

The Police present in the area lacked the manpower but they did manage to set themselves up to positions in a way that would allow each Officer to cover an area effectively. Not to mention the Snipers on the roof. They did however had a myriad of other things to watch out for seeing as crowds of onlookers gathered at the edge of the perimeter and a fleet of cars were slowly crossing the intersection. With an unknown enemy to watch out for, the Police were prejudiced to anyone outside the yellow tape.

The Night by then had settled itself for the evening. The shadows on the walls were lengthening until the entire city was engulfed in a curtain of grim blackness. The lights in the streets, from the police, and from the vehicles simply made the shadows darker. These were nothing more than blind spots the Batman exploited as he easily entered the perimeter unopposed and began his own investigation right under the Police's noses. It was all child's play for him.

The Garbage Truck was evidently stolen. Signs of hotwiring made that conclusion easy. Broken windshields caused by the impact of the collision. Faint traces of blood splatter stains in the old leather seats. The foot breaks were stuck bolted to the floor. This made moving the Truck harder than usual.

The next thing he looked at was the large metal Billboard leaning next to it. No poster of any kind. Made from thick heavy duty industrial steel. Hastily cut that left rough edges and thick skid marks identical to the ones on the road. The metal handles holding the Billboard up the wall were blown to pieces by a smaller type of explosive. The Billboard itself was large enough to cover up the entire hole and heavy enough to hold its own.

The Batman then turned his attention to the near perfect square hole. He ran his hands around the blackened cracks and the surrounding debris. Or lack thereof. He only found pebbles and dust around it. The explosion came from the underground and were planted on the corners of the hole. The explosives used were military grade. Strong enough to blow about 3 or more layers of concrete. The weight of the Van did the rest.

The Batman could see it all play out in front of him now almost as if he himself was there at the time it happened to witness it all:

Gordon's convoy drove to the intersection from the west. An awaiting Garbage truck barreled down from the north and struck the Armored Van with great enough force to push it to the corner directly under the shadow of the Billboard sign.

Explosives from underground sent the Van falling down below. The type that throws more dirt in the air than flames. The Batman could already imagine the smoke covered streets that spread out for two blocks. Amidst the confusion, a second batch of explosives took down the Metal Billboard and covered up the hole. All that was left before the smoke cleared was to park the Garbage Truck on top of the Billboard. Locking it in place.

The Police would be out of their cars by then but the enemy Sniper on the roof pinned them down. Long enough for the perpetrator in the Garbage Truck to make his escape. The police were at the Snipers mercy. There was also a possibility of the Sniper buying his cohorts from underground time by continuing his onslaught before escaping.

Either case, the rest of the clues needed to solve this mystery were going to be found in the Underworld. Gordon and his men were already there. They climbed down earlier using rappel lines tied to their Vans. He could already here the old man barking orders from below. Perhaps it was as good a time as now to finally meet him. Out of everyone in the corrupt GCPD, Gordon was the only man he could trust to help shed light to this mystery for him.

Without hesitation, the Batman leaped down the hole. He soon landed on top of a wrecked Armored Police Van in the middle of a large underground chamber. A Crossroads per se due to the many tunnels surrounding it. Everything around him was pitched black marred only by the lights from over a dozen SWAT Officers. None of whom were pleased by the Bat's appearance since they immediately pointed it and their weapons at him.

The Batman stood tall and menacingly in the face of the armed Officers. The plumes of smoke the wrecked Armored Police Van was belching under him made for the more terrifying presence. Especially for the SWAT Officers looking at him with their night vision goggles. Despite outnumbering the Bat and having all the guns in the room, some Officers couldn't help but quake in their boots upon seeing the Dark Knight towering above them. It was looking at the devil himself with those eerily white eyes and long draping cape that crawled down the Vans sides like tendrils that melded well with the shadows.

The SWAT Officers' reactions were mixed from accepting to hostile. Some put theirs down immediately and moved back to give him room to jump down to their level. A few kept their distance as the Bat passed by their way. Some did the same but kept him in their crosshairs the entire time. Others were simply stunned upon seeing the Batman up close for the first time and wouldn't move from the spot.

It was a momentous and a rare occasion to see the Batman up close because the citizens of Gotham see him as more than a caped crusader. To them, the Batman was a legend. An urban legend told in rumors and in whispers. Some would even call him a cryptid like Bigfoot or the Mothman.

To the Police of the GCPD however, the Batman was a specter that watches from the shadows. A silhouette in the dark. A figure with a billowing cape atop a skyscraper. A monster and a hero. Many of them hated the Dark Knight due to his stance of being above the law but deep down they knew that they needed him. Not in perpetuity but only for the time being because they knew that they hadn't have the strength or power to challenge the true monsters of their society. A bitter pill to swallow.

This was the real reason many in the GCPD hated the Batman. They hated themselves because of their fear. Fear of him, the fear of Gotham's criminals, and fear for their families if they ever crossed either of them. They hated themselves for being too human. This hasn't stopped some Police Officers from respecting the Batman though. Most notably, Commissioner Gordon.

"I was wondering when you were going to show up." Commissioner Gordon said while lighting himself a cigarette. "I just didn't expect you to come in this late."

The old man appeared to be the only one in the chamber who wasn't startled by the Batman's appearance. He didn't even turn to welcome the Bat when he arrived. He was too focused on working with what little he had in the crime scene. This inadvertently forced the Batman to come to him.

"Thought you already quit, Jim." The Batman said whilst he approached. "That stuff will kill you, one day."

"There are worse vices." Gordon replied as he puffed out a silver stream. "Like this goddamn job for example. But God, how I love it."

"That makes two of us." The Batman smirked. "So what's the situation, Comissioner?"

"A goddamn massacre, that's what." Gordon replied coldly.

With a flashlight on hand, Commissioner Gordon showed the Batman the corpses scattered around them like autumn leaves. The foul stench of the sewers paled in comparison to the scent of fresh blood and the poisonous scent of their rotting bodies. Their pale bloodied faces showed the Officers their last moments in life in a macabre fashion. Thankfully these were generously covered by the dark. Gotham has never ceased to surprise Gordon with all its morbidity and its bleakness. He wasn't even sure if he was walking on damp stones or bloodied pools because his feet felt like it was sticking on something at every step. He gave off a heavy sigh and carefully massaged the bridge of his nose to stem the stress that boiled inside him.

"What have you found out?" The Batman asked.

"Nothing that you haven't seen here." Gordon led the Batman around the scene. "We were ambushed and the Van fell here where they were waiting. They started with the front while another team moved in the back. Tear gas was used to incapacitate the passengers judging on the leftover residue in the Van's Cargo hold but they were attacked by these hobos before they could escape."

The Batman found the Van in more disrepair than what he first expected. Bullet holes the size of a nickel marred the front side of the Van. Some rounds struck the radiator and caused some steam streaming out but the engine wasn't the source of the smoke.

"17 dead. God knows how many injured judging by the limbs and the blood splatter left behind." Gordon led the Batman back to the Armored Police Van. "Two of them were ours."

It was tragic to find the sorry state of SWAT Officers' bodies lying on their seats. They were torn to bits by high powered rounds that were strong and relentless enough to shatter thick bullet proof glass. Cut to ribbons by metal shrapnel and bladed glass that flew off at them when the windshields shattered. Smoldering and burnt black from a Molotov cocktail that smashed on their laps. The flames were gone but the white smoke and the smell were still there.

"Officers Jacoby and Mills." Gordon introduced the Batman to the two bodies. "The First Team barely had time to take the fire out when they were clearing the scene for us. Forensics need to have a look at them first so we can't move them just yet but I've got to say, this was not the best way for them to go."

The Batman simply nodded back.

A couple of SWAT Officers nearby had their helmets off and humbled themselves in front of the bodies. The Batman heard some of them giving the fallen a prayer. These were their Brothers in Service after all and wanted to lay them all to rest with a cloth over their heads. Forensics however needed to document the scene and they were still in enemy territory. So the bodies stayed as they were much to everyone's chagrin.

"4 bodies are from what looked like mercenaries." Gordon said. "We're waiting for forensics to identify them since they were all picked clean. Probably by the vagrants before we scared them off. My best bet is that these mercenaries are locals. The type with military backgrounds based on the equipment and what we've seen here. Two of them were injured. We had to fly them out to the nearest hospital before you came in."

"Any ID on those two?" The Batman asked.

"Yup. And you wouldn't believe who we picked up." Gordon paused to smoke his cigarette. "Temple Fugate and Bette Souci."

"Clock King and Plastique." The Batman said. He was all too familiar with their exploits given their previous clashes in Gotham. They may not be that big in his radar as compared to the Joker or Mr. Freeze but that didn't make them any less dangerous than the others. "Plastique is just a hired gun but Clock King on the other hand is capable of planning all of this out in short notice. I'll pay them a visit later."

"I doubt they'll have anything to say to you, Batman." Gordon scoffed.

"They will once I am through with them." The Batman glowered.

"Oh, I don't doubt that." Gordon sighed. "But do you mind waiting a couple of months? Both of them are comatose and near critical condition."

"How?"

"Medics said that Plastique suffers from a concussion and internal bleeding. Her face looked like it got pummeled by a freight train. The Clock King had it easier. 3rd degree burns from possible electrocution at the chest cavity from something that burned through the suit, light Kevlar, down to his skin."

"And you're sure that none of these people have anything to do with that?" The Batman pointed at the rest of the bodies. Vagrants and squatters by the looks of their rags.

"This is the Underworld we're talking about, Batman." Gordon made mention the people called Gotham underground. "Everything here's off the grid. Folks outside of the system. Topside, we call this place Hell. Outcasts and Meta-humans would call it a haven. The type that a certain someone might want to have in his ranks."

Gordon pointed his flashlight at one of the vagrant's corpses. Etched on the center of the dead man's chest was a scarification tattoo not unlike that of the Mursi and Surma Tribes the Batman saw in Africa. The tattoo was a dagger shaped like a sprouting flame. The Symbol of the Blackfire Cult.

"Deacon Blackfire." The Batman spitefully.

"Yeah." Gordon said gravely before flicking his cigarette off into the dark. "Looks like we have him to deal with now. He's probably have his stinking hands on them right now."

"I take it that some of your Officers are missing as well?" The Batman deducted that Gordon wasn't the type who'd leave a hostile individual in the back of a Van without any form of escort.

"Officers Allen and Kitch." Gordon turned to the Batman for the first time since the start of their conversation. "Their good Cops. Bring them back in one piece."

"I will." The Batman nodded.

Something glistening on the ground caught his eye. Picking it up, he found it to be some badge of sorts. A badge made of blood red wax imbedded with a Florian Cross and other intricate carvings. Two pieces of parchments trailed behind it.

Each contained hand written inscriptions written in some form of Latin that the Batman could barely understand. They were written as a form of prayer and provided the Batman a glimpse of the religion that the Arbitrator follows. The most he could make out of it were something along the lines of:

"May the Emperor Bless this Faithful Servant to spread Thy Word"
"May the Emperor Protect this Warrior and let me Die with Glory"
"May the Emperor Shield me from the Heresies and Lies of the Enemy"
"May the Emperor's Will be with me as I uphold His Justice and Fight in His Name"

A symbol of a two headed eagle was imprinted in the bottom of the parchment. The same eagle that the Batman found on both the Arbitrator, his ship, and his Journal. He surmised that this symbol must be their religious icon and this Emperor being their god. As fascinating as this was for the Batman, it also garnered him a lot of suspicion due to how fanatically extremist all of this sounded like.

"Found something?" Gordon asked.

"Tell me about the Arbitrator." The Batman said as he pocketed the badge.

"Not planning on beating him to paste too, are you?" Gordon asked. "The kid was already banged up as it is. Looked like he just came straight out from a warzone when I first met up with him. He smelled like it too."

"Kid?" The Batman was more concerned with that particular detail than anything else Gordon said about the Arbitrator.

"Not a kid per say." Gordon shrugged. "I just got a hunch that he's younger than what we've expected after I talked to him. Not that I got much out of that conversation. What I do know is that he's not from here. This planet. So he's not human. He's also said he's a part of some kind of Galactic Police Force.

The Batman already knew his extra-terrestrial background and his occupation as some form of Lawman. The Journal had made a clear distinction of that. What the Journal never got to distinguish was its author's actual age. He has always pictured him as a grizzled veteran who has served in many campaigns as he had scars. Ironically, Deathstroke immediately came to mind. The revelation of the Arbitrator as nothing more than a youth came as small surprise for him.

"There was something too." Gordon continued with a grave tone. "Be careful being around him. He's got a little bit of hell coming from him. Something you have in common apparently. This guy means business and I bet he's the type who'd do anything to get things his way."

"I'll keep that in mind." The Batman said as he made his way to one of the tunnels in front of him. "I'll see what I can find. You and your men go Topside. Gotham still needs the GCPD."

"Yeah, well do that. But how do you even know that's the right way.

"There are no bodies this way." The Batman said. "This is where they probably went when the Arbitrator and the others ran off."

"What?" Gordon and the other Officers asked. They were taken aback and were confounded by their words. But before any of them could ask, the Batman was long gone by then.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Darkness never posed a problem for the Batman as he walked down the forgotten tunnels at a quickened pace. Even as a child, darkness never scared him. The shadows never got in his way nor did the suffocating walls that appeared to close in around him. Ironic as it sounds, bats scared him more as a matter a fact.

Darkness is his ally, as Bane once put it. It couldn't have been farther from the truth. Darkness was a weapon that allowed him to take down dozens of hostile vagabonds that got the way of his investigation. Darkness turned him into a monster that many superstitious Cultists feared with many running away before him less they face his supposed wrath. Darkness hid him from any prying eyes as he tracked down the Arbitrator's group and from large mobs that would be too troublesome for him to face. Darkness made him into a legend and many people – civilians and villains alike – whispered his name in fear.

But there was more to the Batman other than being a creature of the night. He was more than a caped crusader dressed like a bat. He was also 'The World's Greatest Detective'. Though the name was not as eye catching as 'the Dark Knight', his intuitive skills as a detective was of more use to this situation than his skills as a crime fighter.

Gordon correctly concluded that the convoy was ambushed by the mercenaries. The mercenaries were going to use the chaos in the city as a distraction and escape unnoticed through the unused subway. They killed the drivers and incapacitated the passengers before making their escape. But before they could take one step out of the Crossroads however, they were attacked by the Blackfire Cultists. A fight broke out and all the mercenaries were butchered. The Cultists then proceeded to loot everything not tied down like they ought to do while at the same time had the Arbitrator and two SWAT Officers in their stinking mitts.

The reason why any of the GCPD gave a damn was because of their men. No man left behind, after all. That, and the fact that the Arbitrator had a lot to answer for.

The Batman agreed with the first part of this scenario. The evidence stood by these too. But what came after the mercenaries' ambush was where their story parted ways. Whereas Gordon believed that the Cultists had their hands on the Arbitrator, the Batman believed that the Arbitrator and the Officers escaped out of their own volition but at the same time being chased down by the Cultists.

The first piece of evidence he found were on the corpses scattered around them in the Crossroads. From both the Mercenaries and the Cultists.

The Batman wouldn't be able to call himself as the BAT-man if he didn't have the ability to see in the dark. Apart from wearing the costume that is. Thanks to the optic devices in his cowl, the Batman was able to look at the crime scene in a better light than Gordon and his other Officers.

This was not to say that Gordon wasn't a good detective. Given time, he would have figured out himself. The man just didn't get much out of the scene due to the dark. Stress added more to his limitation. Gordon also missed a very important picture, the Cultists do not take prisoners save for their most macabre of celebrations.

The Mercenaries' death were no doubt morbidly brutal yet they were also done in an unorthodox manner. Bodies were blown and torn to pieces from well-placed high caliber rounds. Laceration burns coiled on one of the bodies like a deadly embrace. Limbs were torn apart and smashed in the most creative ways. Blunt force trauma that tore off body parts from root to stem. Multiple signs of electrical burns that charred flesh down to the 3rd degree.

The possibilities these being done by Meta-humans under Blackfyre's Cult were still considered. Super strength and elemental powers were common superpowers but these injuries were found on the corpses of their fellow Cultists as well. But here was where the second piece of evidence came into play, the Arbitrator's Journal.

The Journal had helped the Batman paint its author in a more familiar light. With it, the Batman was given access to the man's thoughts, his past, and probable actions that made it easier to track the man down at present. But the Journal didn't always have all the answers however. There were some parts where the Batman was required to piece some parts together like the corpses in the Crossroads and its connection to the Arbitrator.

The Journal may not have described the man's fighting style in detail but it did make many mentions of the Arbitrator's tools of the trade. Namely his electric powered 'Power-Maul' – which the Batman pictured as and blunt mace - and his large caliber Service Pistol. Both were strong enough to 'Crush an ogryn's head to paste' and 'Shot a Genestealer till it was cut in half', as the Journal Entries would put it. The Batman didn't know what an ogryn or a genestealer are but they sounded formidable from their names alone.

The man's near fanatical devotion to the law and his cult-like religion made it easy to discern that he had a particular disposition when it comes to dispensing criminals in his duties. As well as giving the Batman a glimpse of his personality. Stubborn, merciless, and relentless. If it weren't for the fact that the Arbitrator had no qualms in killing, the Batman would have seen him as a man after his own heart. Put two and two together and all possibilities led to Arbitrator making it out of the Crossroads on top.

With all that in mind, the Batman could already picture the most possible scenario occurring in the Crossroads.

The Mercenaries ambushed the convoy and killed the Van's drivers. They then moved in and knocked the rest out with Tear Gas save for the Arbitrator who overpowered them. He then enlisted the two Officers and held ground against the incoming Cultists. Hoping that the GCPD would arrive in time to save them. That would have taken time and it didn't take long for things to go very dire for them.

There were simply too many Cultists, too many entrances in the Crossroads for them to cover, and the lack of cover there made it a death trap. Retreat was their only option and they escaped into the tunnel systems where they could have some advantage over the Cultists due to the many bottlenecks they could use against them.

This doesn't make things any simpler for them however. If not more difficult. The Cultists had the home field advantage over them let alone the ability to properly fight in the dark at a certain degree. Both were something the Underworld is most infamous for. Even the Batman had some difficulty fighting them down here in the tunnels in his past encounters with them.

The same however could not be said for the Arbitrator however. The Journal had many entries regarding the many expeditions he took part off that led to places similar – if not worse – than the Underworld. Three of which sounded more like full military Campaigns or 'Crusades' as he put it. The Arbitrator just barely survived every encounter given how hellish every one of those turned out yet many entries mentioned him being more than eager to go back at it again.

The Arbitrator never fully described them in his writings detail but the casualties he tallied were abysmal with thousands being killed in the opening encounters. The drawings did a better job described the monstrous horrors he faced and the grim bleakness of the places he's traversed in. The Underworld might as well be a kid's playground to him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The road ahead became too quiet for the Batman's taste. He was beginning to feel that he made a wrong turn somewhere. He began to feel that he had made a mistake. The trail getting cold and there were hardly any clues left for him to work with. The Arbitrator's party might as well have been miles ahead of him despite their obvious injuries.

The Batman's stubbornness denied him any doubts and pushed himself forward at a quickened pace. He could only hope that he doesn't come across one of their bodies around the corner soon or worse, got captured by the Cultists. It didn't take long for him to encounter some of them when he entered a large chamber.

The chamber was large with over a dozen pillars scattered about. Half of them were broken to disrepair. Eroded to the point that they exposed rusty metal poles inside. Others had already fallen to pieces and the metal within were naught but dust. The Batman could almost hear the remaining pillars groan under the weight. Give another decade or so and the entire chamber will collapse in on itself.

The Cultists were in no better shape. Fresh wounds and bruises pocked their body like a plague. The three of them left standing struggled to stay on their feet as they bled from under their filthy rags. There were others too but these ones were curled up on the side and dead from wounds similar to what the Batman saw back in the crossroads. The Arbitrator and the others were here recently and these curs just happened to know where they are.

"Alright, which one of you'z ain't dead?" A voice echoed from around a corner.

"Barely!" One voice called out with a quivering voice. "But I think I want to."

"Fuckoff, sod." The first one cut him off followed by a kick. "Quit being a drama queen."

"Son of a bitch!" a second voice cried out.

"You're far from being dead 'fore I'm through with you. Get your ass up, Gregor. We still got work to do."

"We just got our asses kicked here, Gil." Gregor whined. "Jorgie, Gunnar, Ally, Eggo, and Lany're probably dead. Oh, and my arm's bent in the WRONG FUCKING WAY! So how in the Hell are we any fit to go after that Red-eyed freak?"

"Like this." Gil replied. A loud sound of a limb snapping echoed in the chamber. Followed by an agonizing scream.

"JESUS CHRIST!" Gregor hollered in pain. "AAAGH! The fuck was that for?"

"I just fucking fixed you, you ungrateful piece of shit." Gil shot back. "I lost my fucking right ear. How the fuck do you fix that? So get your ass up 'fore Blackfyre skins us alive!"

Ed kicked Gregor harder. It didn't take much for Gregor to get the big picture. Despite the pain, he forced himself to stand up before Ed would get a chance to kick him again. Gregor was in no position to fight back.

And get the fuck up, Marko, you lazy son of a bitch." Gil kicked another man on the ground. "I know you're not dead yet. I smell you pissing yourself just now."

"Fuck. Not again." Marko groaned as he felt the warm mess he made trickling down of his pants. On the bright side, at least he felt warmer now given the usual chill air permeating in the Underworld. On the embarrassing side, Marko stepped on someone's limb and fell over with a cry while feeling the bruises on his sides crushing him from the inside. "Why're you going crazy over what old Blackfyre has ta say? The old man's at the end of his rope last I heard. Sick over some flu or from something he caught from some broad, am I right? Haha"

"YOU! WILL! NOT! SPEAK! OF! THE! PROPHET! LIKE THAT!" Gil shouted and struck the boy clear in the face.

"Any of you got a light?" Marko asked behind gritted teeth.

"Am on it." Gregor answered as he set up his tools to make a torch.

Gregor pulled out a thin plank of wood sticking out from one of his comrades. He then tore a long piece of cloth from his shirt and tied it at the tip. Now the hard part was igniting the damn thing because of his broken arm that made it damn useless. He kept the torch up with his feet while striking a match from its box. The matchstick sparked and smoked but not long enough to light up the whole torch. It was like watching an ape open a banana albeit minus the entertainment value.

"Gimme that!" Gil shouted impatiently and pulled the torch from Gregor. "I'll die from old age 'fore you turn that on."

Gil fumbled in his pockets and got his own lighter. After no more than two strikes, sight finally returned to the three vagabonds in the warrens of the Underworld. The three men squinted at the sight after being denied of it for what felt like a lifetime but they never turned away from its warmth and its light. For fear that they would soon be denied of it once again.

The torch lit the entire chamber for them and revealed the carnage surrounding the three men. The massacre that they barely survived from. Their disdain and anger with each other from earlier quickly mellowed down and turned morose the moment they saw the bodies of their dead. What was even more painful to watch was their friends who were breathing their last as they laid dying in front of them. Marko thought it best to close his brother's deadpan eyes as to make his death look more peaceful than when he first saw it.

"Let's get out of here." Gil said. His voice quivered for a bit but quickly grasped it before it spilled.

Gil turned around with the torch in hand and led the others the way out towards an opposite tunnel. The procession quickly halted after a few steps however. The moment Gil saw an imposing shadow right front of him. A shadow was unlike the ones around him as it did not retreat from his torch's light. It must be no more than his mind playing tricks or his own imagination as the shadow remained even as he pointed his torch right at it.

To the surprise and immediate horror of the three cultists, the shadow came to life and grew larger as their fear and imagination took hold of them. What they saw in front of them was a creature. A creature with two pale white eyes that materialized from thin air behind a dark veil of shadow with long tendrils akin to long flowing hair dancing from an unfelt breeze.

Tales of the Batman were as prevalent amongst the squatters of the Underworld as they are in the streets of Gotham. The difference being their depiction of the Dark Knight is equal as one would see and fear the devil himself. Even more so because they believed him to be the actual devil of their already bastardized religion. They saw him as a Wraith. A Specter that prowl the tunnels that hunted the faithless and the weak as they put it. He Who Dwelled In Shadow. They believed this legend so much so that the denizens feared the dark even more than the outsiders and huddled around what little light they could muster for themselves.

Such was the case for Gil when the Batman grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up in the air. He had his torch but not as a weapon but something akin to how one would hold a crucifix against the Devil. He'd never dare strike the Batman but instead used it to shield himself away from him and the darkness he displayed. This revealed the Batman's face however and this was much more terrifying for the sniveling vagabond.

The other two could do nothing more but prostate themselves with their heads on the ground and prayed to the Batman for mercy. Either way, all of these fell on deaf ears but the Batman played the part either way since the illusion it gave of him helped in getting answers. A factor made more efficient due to their overly superstitious nature.

"Tell me about the Arbitrator." The Batman glowered with a deep voice.

"T-t-t-the who?" Gil stuttered and avoided the Bat's gaze.

The Batman dropped Gil on the floor between the two kneeling men.

"The one who did this. The one you were after. WHERE IS HE?"

The Batman's voice, though not loud, was powerful enough to boom throughout the entire chamber. The vagabonds tremble in fear at his presence and could do little else but obey.

"I-Is that what he's called?" Marko asked only to fall silent when the Bat glared at him.

"It was crazy." Gregor said. "Thought it was gonna be easy at first. Caught wind of them down the tunnel near Slum's field. There were 'bout 40 or something of us at first. and we chased them now. But these ones were smart. They knew. Looked like they knew the place as well as we did. Had us go round in circles and had us guessing which tunnel to take. Widdled us down to 'round 16 on one turn. Then down to 8 after another. But that's when they stopped running. Didn't even see them coming till we hit the ground."

"They ambushed you." The Batman summarized.

The Batman looked at the pillars in the chamber. It was a perfect place for the act for unsuspecting goons. Judging by the positions of the bodies scattered around him, the Arbitrator and the Officers attacked from three different sides of the chamber.

"Ya." Gregor nodded feverishly. "Jumped out from nowhere. 'Specially the big one. The one with the red eye. He shouted 'fore he lit up his hammer and smashed us to paste. Kinda something like what Prophet Blackfyre says in his sermons. Anywho, he went after Eggo and Gunnar cuz they had the lights. Struck us all blind after that. Didn't fire no shot the entire time either. None of them did. They just kept whacking us till we're black and blue."

"Yeah, why is that?" Marko asked.

"They didn't shoot as not to reveal their presence to your friends. Smart." The Batman commented.

"They beat us down like damn dogs eitha way. With the butt of their guns. T-the cops I mean. Sounded like they liked doing it too." Marko found the nerve to speak out. "But not. Not like the other one. The big one with the red eye. Now that one. That one was no man. That one's a Demon. Terrifying and strong. Strong enough to lift a man with one arm while striking throwing a man across the room with another. H-he isn't human. He gave me the shivers just thinking about it."

"What were these words he yelled?" The Batman asked. "The one you said that was like what Blackfyre might say."

"I dunno. I don't remember. Believe me." Gregor raised his hands defensively but the Batman's glare pushed him to remember. "He says, 'Victoire aut Mortis'. I don't know what it means."

"I never expected you to." The Batman retorted.

"A new demon walks in our unholy halls." Gil mumbled to no one in particular. He spoke like he was in a trance "Second only to the devil but more terrifying than thou. He is unstoppable for no earthly weapon could slay him. Whether it be of stone, wood, or stone. The End is nigh and he is the harbinger. The second coming is here. I hear THEM speaking to me. I hear Him seeping into my wounds."

"Where is he now?" The Batman ignored the madman's rantings and asked the boy, but Marko looked away.

He then looked to Eli, but the man was still petrified and struggled to speak a word. Let alone breathe. All that was left for him was the decrepit old Gregor. He felt a twang of pity towards the already battered men and would have hated to have to beat them senseless for information he sorely needed. Much to the Batman's good fortune, the old man thought it wise to speak out.

"I think…I think I saw them go off. Off to the Western tunnel." Gregor spoke. "I heard them say something about the exit. Going off to find the exit."

"Which way would they take?"

"I-I dunno. I swear!" Gregor said as he began urinating on himself. Life in utter darkness gave them a good sense of direction but it gave them a bad sense of distance.

An echo of gunshots erupted from afar. The sounds came from the Western Tunnel. The sounds were faint but they were loud enough to startle the three men and made them jump from their seats. By the time they opened their eyes, the Batman had already gone. None of them noticed the man's disappearance out of their own fear and said nor spoke nothing more until the torch burned down to Gil's hands. Something that happened after the better part of the hour later.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Batman immediately raced to down the Western Tunnel the moment he heard the first shots. The gunshots continued as the Batman ran down the winding tunnels. Thanks to the sonars imbedded in his cowl, he was able to accurately pinpoint the source of the gunfire and raced towards its direction.

None of it gave him any relief however. The Arbitrator and the Officers must have been desperate if they risked being discovered by discharging their weapons. To fire their weapons frantically showed their desperation. Revealing the great danger they found themselves in. Every shot only forced the Batman to push himself faster. Almost praying that he makes it in time. The sounds were louder now but the Batman knew that he was frankly nowhere near the source.

In his haste, the Batman never realized that the empty halls were once again eerily silent. The sonar had nothing left to pick up on save for the water gurgling at his legs and the soft trickling water inside the pipes. To make matters worse, the Batman found himself in a Fork on the road with no way of knowing where to go to next. There was also not a clue in the area that he could use to track the Arbitrator and the two Officers. One wrong move in the wrong tunnel would kill the trail cold and the chance of him finding anyone would go down the drain.

The Batman would have spent a longer time in that Fork if it were not for something he noticed about the water around him. It was stagnant for quite a time now and filthy with garbage of all shapes and sizes bobbing on top of it. But then the garbage started moving towards the tunnel on the left. Even the garbage from the tunnel behind the Batman and from the tunnel on the right was floating towards the tunnel on the left. The water was as high as his leg when he first dropped into the Fork but now it was decreasing at a fast rate down to his knees. The current also flowed towards the tunnel on the left.

It was not much to work with, but it was enough to convince the Batman that the left tunnel was the right path for him to take. Given the fact that the Underworld is a rotten and abandoned place, only an outside force could make a drastic change in its pace. Something happened at the end of this tunnel that was the cause of the draining water. It was here he would find the Arbitrator. A chance that he was wrong never crossed his mind as he was ready to bet it all.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The muddy river of muck and scum led to another spacious chamber with a sizeable hole on the floor somewhere in the middle. Streams of water and filth from all 4 corners from 4 opposite tunnels met and spilled into the endless pit below.

The hole was not made by any industrial tool nor was it done in part of the sewer's construction. It was made only recently since the broken stones lacked any signs of erosion from the passing water as well as hastily due to the lack of order and uniformity in its making. Instead, the Batman concluded that it was made by some powerful creature with the strength to break through concrete and have sizeable claws that could easily scratch stones. A few rogues came to mind, but the Batman didn't want to jump to conclusions just yet until he had substantial evidence. That all changed until he found a something seated on the corner nearby.

The Batman turned on his thermal vision and approached the person. He sighed when he found no sign of any heat signatures on the body. Another dead man. After a closer look through his night vision however, the Batman saw something that made him step back in shock. The body was Officer Stanley Kitch of the Gotham SWAT Team.

The man sat leaning on the side with his face bruised and makeshift bandages tied around him. His Kevlar had deep scratches on it with some pieces of reptilian claws stuck on the armor. This effect was similar to the scratches the Batman found on the walls around him. The large bite mark that tore off the man's shoulder helped narrow down the one responsible for the mess.

"Killer Croc." The Batman said.

Evolution took a big step backwards when making this piece of work and made him into a monster. Sated only by cannibalistic hunger and driven by feral instinct. It was a miracle that creature is still able to talk. A fact that surprised the Bat on his first encounter with the beast. Unsurprisingly, the Underworld would be a perfect home for this creature.

One piece of evidence did surprise the Bat was the fact that Officer Kitch wasn't killed by Killer Croc. The Croc did take a large chunk off of the man after all but this didn't finish him off. Painful no doubt and infectious no less, but it wasn't what killed him. Officer Kitch was killed by a knife in the heart and the Batman knows that Killer Croc doesn't use any weapon that wasn't sticking out of him. The Officer's Kevar was zipped open and was stabbed straight in the chest with an 8 inch knife. Done in one smooth move. This had the Arbitrator's hands all over it.

It was only a matter of whether or not any of them are still alive however. The Batman must go down that hole and ask the Killer Croc himself if he's eaten them or not. It wasn't the best plan nor was it the safest bet, but it was the closest way of finding out the truth.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The fall was much shorter than what the Batman expected and he found himself in a large wide tunnel. A storm drain with stomach high water coursing fast like a river downstream. The noise from the water pouring on him from above made his sonar senses close to being useless. Thermal would also be of no use against a cold blood like Croc so the Batman settled for his night vision. It didn't take much time to find Killer Croc though. The Batman easily found him leaning heavily next to a wall half submerged in the water.

The Beast was as exhausted as he was wounded. Blood spilled from his mouth as he struggled for heavy breaths. Some of the teeth from his monstrous jaws were shattered and bloodied. His armored plates were cracked and chipped with more blood seeping through. Black marks from possible burns and bullet holes pocked his leather skin. The worst of his injuries was shown when he raised his left arm and showed the large chunk that was missing from his left hand. The wound has taken everything save for his index and his thumb. The bleeding has stopped but it left the hand still fresh and meaty. Only time will tell whether or not Killer Croc's healing factor includes regenerating lost limbs.

Killer Croc took notice of the Bat and growled as he rose up from the murky water at full height. The Beast towered over the Batman with his bright yellow eyes. All 7 and a half feet of scales, leather, and teeth. A magnificent specimen of wonder for any man of science.

The Beast looked at the Batman hungrily while the latter stared at him indifferently. The Batman was unmoved by its show of force but kept his guard up regardless. Namely by grabbing hold of his batarangs hidden under his cloak. Despite defeating the Killer Croc many times, the monster was still twice his size and could rip his head off with a swing from his massive arms.

"Hell you want, Bat?" Killer Croc snarled with a gravelly voice. His voice sounded tired and was coarser than usual.

"Answers. You attacked Police Officers as well as a very important individual." The Batman accused. "I need to find them and now."

"Yeah." Killer Croc grinned as he licked his lips. "Took a bite outta one of them too. Very tasty.

The Batman grimaced and cracked his knuckles. Disgusted by Killer Croc's vilest and most revolting desires, he almost gave in to his own desire to beat the answers out of Killer stayed his hand however and stood strong. Questions are surer to answer from a more cooperating foe.

"But you didn't finish him off." The Batman asked. "You never got to any of them. Because you'd otherwise be bragging about it right now."

"Yea, I would. Neva got da chance." Killer Croc glowered. "Red eyed bastard got 'n 'da way."

"Where is he now?" The Batman pressed. "The man with the Red eye."

Killer Croc snarled but the truth was hard to deny as it laid bare. He raised his mangled hand for the Batman to see.

"Gave me this." Killer Croc gritted his teeth. "'E didn't taste gud eitha."

"He's called the Arbitrator." The Batman said. "What happened to him?"

"So yer gonna go after 'im yerself, eh?" Killer Croc chuckled gutturally. "Good luck ta ya. You gonna let me go if I do?"

"I might consider it."

"Hmmmm. Dey was here, alrite. Went ta my spot while I was sleepin'. Clamor'n an' splash'n round like brats. Dey're argu'n 'bout somef'n. Wasn't pay'n 'ttention. I dunno. But I got hungry. So I snuck up on im unda wata. Dey didn' see me at first cuz dey was bicker'n. But dey 'came quiet sudd'nly. Dey all kept an eye out. Dat Arby-th'n 'specially. I fink 'e saw me. 'E was looking at me somehow but I do know tha' 'is eye went red. Lit up. So I moved fast an' went fer 'im furst. I surprised 'im from 'da back. Den i chomped 'im 'n his shoulda.

Killer Croc paused to spit out a handful of broken teeth before continuing.

"Dat wun was a tuff nut ta krack. Smashed ma best teef afta da first bite, y'see. But I kept a good hold uv 'im an' dragged and clobba'd 'im inna wata. Bastard didn't hold off or nothin' an' fought bak da hole time. Had ta let 'im go quik 'cos the other two koppas shot atta me so I throwed da Arby-th'n off hard ta a wall. Den I went afta 'dose otha' two. Koppas was good. Dey shot me loads 'a times. Koppas wer' fast. 'Ad me scratch'n all ova da walls tryin' ta hit wun uv im. I sliced wun uv 'der guns in two den punched 'im. Da otha Koppa clobba'd me wid 'is gun. All dat did wuz gettin' 'im close for me ta take a big chomp off a 'im."

Killer Croc licked his lips and revealed his savage yellow teeth pocked with dried blood. The Batman glowered as he watched the Croc's satisfaction glimmer from the monster's eyes. His hold on his batarangs tightened in fuming anger at the thought of Killer Croc eating human flesh. His grip on his weapons went to the point that his fingers began to bleed. Ignorant of the Batman's boiling fury, Killer Croc continued his story.

"I got da otha Koppa's gun 'fore 'e could shoot me den I clawed 'im outta da way. Did'n know if I got 'im deep but it sent 'im splashin in da pool. Was 'bout ta finish 'im off too wen dat Arby-fella came about. 'E called me a, "Filthy Mutant" an' I autta, "Take a bite outta dis!" or somefin. Fore I knew it, 'e blew me hand ta bits wid 'is gun. Hurt's like a bitch and me ears got hurtin' cuz da gunshot was so loud. Me ears were still ringin' wen he clobbered me wid 'is club. 'is blows wer tuffer dan I thought from da pipsqueak. Now dis Arby-fella. Bastard can take a hit. Punched 'im 'ard inna 'ead loads a times. Sounded like a gong evry time. He shuvved 'is club in me mouth, looked at me inna eye den said, 'Choke on dis' 'fore da club lit up in blew den zapped me inna mouth. It burned like hell. Still hurts too. I kicked 'im offa me but he shot at me again wid a bigga one. Slower one too. I got ta smack it ta da floor but da shot blew up unda me. Sent me crashin down 'ere. Lucky me dat da current wuz fierce cuz wun ov dem dropped a pineapple after me. Shuld be dat Arby-feller. Wuz up river while it went boom downstream. Dat wuz good enuff fer dem I rekon. Wuz down 'ere lickin' me wounds till you came droppin' by."

Both men fell silent after Killer Croc has said his peace. The Batman glared at Killer Croc and surmised that the beast told him all that he knew and held nothing back. Truth be told, Killer Croc made for a terrible liar. He exaggerates his stories for sure. But he would never lie. Especially not to him.

"You got watcha want, Bat?" Killer Croc asked.

"More or less, Croc." The Batman replied.

"Can I go now?" Killer Croc stood.

"Not yet." The Batman stopped him with a gesture. "I want to know how to get out of here."

"Hmpf." Killer Croc scoffed. "Thought 'oo was 'ere ta look fer dem? Now ya wanna get out?"

"The Arbitrator and Officer Allen are looking for the exit." The Batman explained. "I find the exit then there's no need to waste time finding them."

"Der be three ways outta 'ere from 'ere. All uv dem goes far apart. How can ya tell if dat Arby-fella goes da way ya want?"

"Let's just say that I know that the Arbitrator has a good sense of direction. He'll go for the closest exit that's far from the Cultist's reach. So are you gonna tell me? Or am I going to have to beat it out of you?"

"Closest wun iz goin' down dis tunnel an' outta da storm drain. Otha wun on da north gows rite above da Cultist's Home Turf. Wouldn't wanta go der less yar reely deprate. Prefer followin' da path inna east an' it'll take ya ta da uppa levels. Just find wateva' drain ya can find den yer outta 'ere."

Little did Killer Croc know that the Batman had already disappeared by the time he stopped talking. When the Batman decided to do that was beyond him. Apart from humiliating him by leaving him talking to himself like an idiot, none of that mattered to him at all. Killer Croc was simply relieved to be rid of him as well as being glad that the Batman kept his promise. He shuddered the thought of being locked in Arkham again. The food they served there were simply terrible and many nights were spent starving in the confines of his cell.

The very thought of food alone made his stomach grumble ravenously. He was denied a good meal after his battle with the Arbitrator so his hunger was insatiable to the point of discomfort. The only thing to match this was the injuries the bastard gave him. Injuries that will limit his ability to hunt for some time. It will take weeks for his hand to grow back. Looks like he had to settle for scraps for the time being.

Something in the air made his nose twitch and his eyes widen with glee. There was a faint scent of blood coursing in the air. Fresh blood. The very thoughts of the meal awaiting him were too much for Killer Croc to bear. His bloodlust drowned his mind with feral instincts and his voracious hunger unleashed the beast within him. Killer Croc climbed out of the hole just as a large group of Cultists made their way into the same chamber. Armed with nothing more than makeshift weapons out of scrap, wood, and glass, these poor souls made for an easy meal. A feast that was long delayed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

While the scent of blood triggered Killer Croc's bloodlust, it was the sound of gunfire that set off the Batman. He was on his way into the eastern tunnel before the first shots were fired. The shots were echoing from the eastern tunnel which meant that he was on the right path to the Arbitrator. While it was good news for the Batman, the same could be said for the Cultists who now know where they were.

The Arbitrator's party kicked the hornet's nest that sent every Cultist in the Underworld in a frenzy. The Batman could hear the Cultists' uproar of cheers, wild hollering, and boisterous gunfire all around him coming from the other tunnels. Like roaches, mobs of Cultists emerged from every opening imaginable. From the cracks behind shadows, to the dugout holes on the floors, and out the tunnels en masse. The Batman was forced into a situation where he was forced to fight them off while at the same time had to move forward to meet up with the Arbitrator's group.

The Cultists were easily taken down after one hit but the fact that there were many of them in his way delayed him and wasted precious minutes beating them down. They swarmed at him like moths to a flame. Dozens of hands emerged from the shadows and grabbed the Batman while beating, biting, and clawing him like wild animals. They succeeded in pulling his cape and pinning him to the ground while continuing an onslaught of attacks from both their fists and their weapons. Spitting, cursing, and swearing him after every strike.

"DEATH TO THE DEVIL! DEATH TO THE SHADOWS! SALVATION TO THE FORSAKEN!"
"DEMON! DEVIL! BASTARD! WHORESON! CUNT!"
"THE UNDERWORLD BELONGS TO US! ITS PEOPLE, TO BLACKFYRE!"

The Batman was vulnerable to both their fists and their words but thankfully his armored suit and cowl took the brunt of their attacks. It did little to get him up his feet however since the Cultists still had their hands on him. Thankfully the Cultists were an undisciplined rabble.

Cultists who weren't within reach to attack the Batman, were beginning to attack the ones who were so they could get their hands in beating up the Batman themselves. They began fighting each other to the point that some of the Cultists holding the Batman down were pulled out of the way to make room for the newcomers. This of course gave the Batman an opening he was beginning to desperately need.

Reaching into his utility belt, the Batman unleashed a thick cloud of tear gas that incapacitated the Cultists around him. With more room to maneuver, he easily overpowered the disoriented mob with a flurry of blows that took down every Cultist that got in his way one after the other.

With his belt in hand, the Batman deployed gadgets and weapons that took the rest of the Cultists. Smoke pellets incapacitated them easily as they collapsed in the ground coughing their lungs out. Flashbangs blinded them and left them inanely wandering the dark in panic. Batarangs sliced and cut them at every throw and left them crying on the floor bleeding. Every swing of his fist, every kick, every move he pulled sent every mad eyed cultist within reach bleeding on the corner beside him.

As astonishing as the Batman's ability to take out many of the enemy in quick succession, this did little to stem the surging tide of Cultists who were charging in at him from the dark. Fresh troops spewed out from the nearby tunnels and surrounded the Dark Knight. There were nearing close to a hundred as their lines trickled out of the tunnels.

Hopeless as all of this would seem for the Batman, the Cultists on the front unexpectedly stopped on their tracks just a few meters away from the grim avenger. The looks on their faces under the light of their torches looked hesitant and confused. Not one of them dared to take another step.

They dared not move since they have come face to face to the true power of the Batman.

Fear

An art the Batman has mastered to perfection. A weapon him an advantage over the largest of foes. A cautionary tale that kept criminals in line. A tale that made him into a monster that made even the hardiest of men fear the shadows.

To the mob of Cultists barring his way however, they saw something more than just fear. What they saw was absolute terror. The Batman stood alone in the tunnel but surrounding him were over dozens of their comrades to the point that they were piled on each other like mounds. Some were unconscious but most of them were injured, beaten, and battered. How these men and women wished that these people were the latter.

Their comrade's painful moans and weeping cries made for a haunting thing to hear. Their chorale of suffering echoed throughout the Underworld. A myriad of voices speaking their woes, weeping prayers, bleeding laments, and all. Every vagabond began hearing it from the walls as though it spoke. Or like ghosts who whispered from behind their very ears.

The mob of Cultists standing before the Batman however had it much worse. Apart from taking the brunt of their comrades' horrid wails, they also smelled their stink of blood, the putrid stench of their feces, and the reek of trickling piss that soaked the ground beneath their very feet. Their terror were so intense that the newcomers themselves started soiling their own pants as the cowered in the spot.

"Who's next?" The Batman calmly challenged.

Like an avalanche, the Cultists fled his presence. They ran as fast as their legs could take them. Their commotion started a stampede that stepped on and crushed on their own comrades as they began squeezing and piling on each other through the narrow tunnels to escape. They clawed, they struck, and they burned their own comrades just so they could escape what they perceived to be the devil who they thought was hot on their heels.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They will hide in their hovels and cowered in the face of any shadow that came their way. They will gather among their campfires and tell others of the time they witnessed the Batman himself in all his terrifying glory. They will tell stories will spread like wildfire in their thoughts and in their nightmares while keeping the grim legend of the Batman alive. They will know fear and respect the Batman for it.

The road ahead was clear and so the Batman moved out. Any more bands of Cultists that come across him ran the other way screaming or bowed down and cowered in his presence. The gunfire from the Arbitrator's end persisted but they were beginning to sound scarce. Time was running out. The Batman could only hurry his pace and pray that the Arbitrator and the others make it out alive.

It didn't take long for him to start hearing their voices echoing from afar. Along with a loud clang that the Batman assumed was the Arbitrator's mace. A good sign for the time being.

"Filthy mongrels! Run back to your hovels! Run back to the dark! That's all you're good at!"

The Batman assumed that it was the Arbitrator shouting and taunting the Cultists he was in combat with. He had to admit that he admired the boy's ferocity and defiance against the face of the odds stacked against him.

"The only thing you have in common with your gods is your worth! Nothing! The Emperor accepts all! He is willing to forgive! All it will cost is your life! Ave Deus Imperator!"

The Batman started coming across the fruits of the Arbitrator's handiwork. The man left behind many bodies scattered along the tunnel. Like a trail of breadcrumbs paved the way for him. Though some of the people were left for dead, many were battered and injured who struggled to crawl as they writhed in the ground.

The sounds of battle and the inaudible shouting had ominously ceased however. He was beginning to fear for the worst the moment he arrived in a large tunnel chock-full of bodies. The smell of blood and gunpowder permeated the air as the bodies of Cultists – both dead and barely alive –stacked upon each other in piles.

Carefully, the Batman treaded around the bodies and soon found the Arbitrator sitting in the middle of the tunnel with his mace twirling between his hands. He was no more than a silhouette hunched over but the moment the Batman stepped forward, a bright red light lit up from the man's face before it sat upright. Almost as if the man was waiting there for the Batman to appear.

What one sees in reality is always more surprising than what one tends to imagine. The Arbitrator was everything the Batman had expected. The man before the Bat was everything as formidable and fearsome looking as what he's heard from the others. They were also accurate with how they depicted the man's red eye. It DID make him look like a demon and the Batman felt a pang of discomfort being looked at it.

What the Batman didn't picture was the sheer brutality that the Arbitrator went through. Blood trickled down the man like it fell on him like rain. His armor was dented, chipped and unkempt with large gashes scratched on it. The smell the man gave out could only be described as putrid and out of this world. But none of that compared to this sinister aura the man was emitting. He couldn't put his finger on it, but it felt unnatural.

The Arbitrator also made similar observations to the newcomer. His reaction was more hostile. As though he startled by the Bat's appearance. With a menacing growl, he forced himself up despite his visible exhaustion and possible injuries. He readied his weapons and stood tall to face the bat. The Batman could feel the sheer hatred coming from the Arbitrator's tone when the man spoke to him.

"I knew they'd send someone bigger right about now." The Arbitrator venomously said. "I didn't expect they'd send their best."

"I am not one of them." The Batman replied.

"I wouldn't think so either." The Arbitrator grimly chuckled. "Your lot are too proud to put yourselves with this scum's level."

The Arbitrator pointed at one of the injured cultists on the ground. To further his point, the Arbitrator motioned to stomp the life out of the man. A batarang got in the way of that and unbalanced the Arbitrator when it struck him in the foot. The Batman didn't give the Arbitrator a chance to recover and immediately gored the man. He disarmed the Arbitrator from his mace and pinned him in place on a wall with his arm barring the Arbitrator's throat.

"STOP!" The Batman shouted. "I'm putting a stop to this! Stand down and come peacefully before I make you."

Try as he might, the Arbitrator did not falter in the face of the fearsome glare of the Batman. It was clear that the man was not intimidated by neither him nor his threats. The only thing the Batman did in his vain attempt to disarm the situation was making the Arbitrator angry.

"GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF ME, NIGHT LORD!" The Arbitrator screamed.

The Arbitrator fiercely grabbed the Batman's bracers with an unexpected unnatural strength. So much so that the Batman could hear his bracers slowly being crushed under the weight of the man's fingertips. Struggle as he might, the Arbitrator was easily prying the Batman's arm off of from his neck. A few more seconds and he perceived that it was possible for the Arbitrator to snap his arm in two.

The Batman began with a series of kicks aimed to the Arbitrator's sides but every hit felt like he was hitting a brick wall. The Arbitrator struggled but held firm before the Batman punched him straight in the unarmored part of his face. It dazed the Arbitrator for a moment but quickly countered by kicking the Batman off of him. The kick was stronger than the grip as it sent the Batman crashing into the other wall.

The Batman got up just in time to dodge the fist that just imbedded itself in a wall. He tried striking back while the Arbitrator was stuck on the wall but the man freed himself by crushing the wall like cardboard and threw rubble at the Batman followed by a punch. The Batman dodged these unconventional attacks and quickly leapt backwards. Widening the distance between the two of them.

"You're strong." The Batman mused.

"Don't patronize me, heretic." The Arbitrator spat. "I can't think of a worse insult."

The Arbitrator's unnatural aura from earlier suddenly became stronger as though the air around him started to feel heavy. Near suffocating to the point of discomfort and a twitch of fear in the end of his fingertips. All of these were easily handled by the Batman as his will and his mind was too disciplined and honed to falter against tricks like this. Despite this, it was still something he couldn't ignore entirely.

"What are you?" The Batman couldn't help but ask. It was the same question that has plaguing him since he first laid eyes on him back in the park. Despite all he's accumulated from the Journal, from other witnesses, and from what he's seen right now; the answer continued to elude him.

"Judgement." The Arbitrator said before throwing an electric bolas at him.

The Batman quickly ducked to dodge the projectile but this left himself open to the Arbitrator who swung wide for his head. He barely had time to dodge this attack when it struck him. It clipped his head but thankfully the fist only grazed him by the brow.

The Arbitrator's attacks were heavy and parted the air as it passed but due to the man's exhaustion, these strikes were surprisingly slow. This enabled the Batman to nimbly dodge the Arbitrator's strikes as they danced in combat along the tunnel. The Arbitrator in turn was not able to land a single hit on the Batman. The Caped Crusader was too fast for him and was clearly more skillful. With every strike the Arbitrator made, the Batman was able to hit him with three.

The Arbitrator changed tactics and tried grabbing him for a grappling move but the Batman was still one step ahead of him. The Batman kept his distance and struck back with lightning speed to whatever opening. He also easily countered the Arbitrator's own attacks with quick grapple moves that made openings for surgical strikes that struck the man's pressure points.

It was too soon to call the fight one sided despite the obvious advantage the Batman has over the Arbitrator. Battles are won when one of them is beaten or has surrendered. The Arbitrator however wasn't showing any signs of backing down. The Arbitrator remained unfazed despite facing the brunt of these attacks. Whether it was out of will or out of stubbornness, the man persevered and kept going as though none of the Batman's attacks had any effect. The Batman also realized that he barely left a dent in the Arbitrator's armor.

A change in tactics is in order and the first step in doing it was aimed towards taking off the Arbitrator's helmet. The Batman deployed smoke grenades and followed with a flurry of batarangs that struck the Arbitrator in the arms, chest, and his helmet. Save for one that weakly embedded itself on his belt, the rest of the batarangs harmlessly fell on the floor.

"You're fast, Night Lord." The Arbitrator said between heavy breaths before spitting out blood to the side. He plucked out the batarang and crushed it to pieces before tossing it to the ground. "But your toys are as cheap as your faith, Blasphemer. Any more tricks to disappoint me with?"

"Just one more." The Batman nonchalantly replied before flipping a switch.

The discarded batarangs scattered around the Arbitrator's feet activated and sent one powerful surge of a high frequency sonic boom. The Arbitrator immediately fell on his knees and covered his ears while he cried out in pain. His hands were madly shaking and his senses were out of control to the point that he vomited in the floor.

"What witchcraft is this?" The Arbitrator cried as he struggled to get up on his feet.

The Batman didn't satisfy him with an answer. He didn't even give the Arbitrator an opportunity to recover as he swooped in and tackled him to the ground. Pinning the Arbitrator in place, the Batman punched the Arbitrator in the exposed part of his face before he pried the helm off of him. The moment he did however, the Arbitrator kicked the Batman off of him and followed it by a solid punch that sent the Batman skidding on the floor a few meters away.

It costed the Batman a tooth but his attempt had costed the Arbitrator of his helm. This gave the Batman a significant advantage over his foe. Without the helm, the Arbitrator was now devoid of any abilities that it gave him. Most notably, the ability to see in the dark. The shadows were once again in the Batman's side and he melded into its cold embrace.

On a plus note, the Arbitrator was now a softer target now without his helm. Taking him down wouldn't be much of a problem for the Batman anymore. But despite all of these advantages arrayed before him like a thanksgiving feast, the Batman hesitated. The Batman waited. There was still many things he didn't know about the Arbitrator. For all he knew, the Arbitrator might have a trick or two in his sleeve.

Given his record, the only advantage the Arbitrator had over him was his willingness to kill. A skill that the man was quite capable of pulling off if the Batman wasn't careful. One wrong move from his end, and the Arbitrator CAN kill him.

And so the Batman stuck in the shadows from a safe distance. There he watched the Arbitrator get up on his feet and listened to his rants. There he waited. At the same time he studied the Arbitrator. He observed this man and wondered just what kind of person he is.

"Typical for a Night Lord. To dwell in the shadows." The Arbitrator stated venomously. "Hiding like the gutless Salvar that you are. You who abandoned His Light shall ever know only Darkness."

The Batman was no more than an arm's length from the man but was careful with keeping up with the illusion. Even when the Batman saw the Arbitrator stumble on his mace and picked it up. The Batman motioned to move but saw the Arbitrator collapse the baton and holster it in his belt.

"You are the most craven of His Legions." The Arbitrator saidcoldly. "Mediocre. Cowards without honor Fear is your true calling. Your weapon. As if you were good for anything else. Fear. For the faint of heart it may strike true, but not to me. I have nothing to fear for I have faith. For the Emperor is with me. So you have already lost this fight, Night Lord. You have damned yourself from His love. But I will be more than happy to convert you. Allow me to show you the Emperor's Light!"

The Arbitrator suddenly turned to face the Batman and viciously grabbed him in the throat before lifting him up a foot from the ground. The Batman was shocked. He didn't expect the Arbitrator to be able to see him in the dark. Let alone catch him off guard. He found these answers the moment he came face to face with the Arbitrator's horrid scarred snarling face and a right eye that began to glow a sinister crimson red.

The eye was bionic but it wasn't the type that the Batman could stare in awe and wonder. Instead, the Arbitrator's eye was a gruesome display of science and medicine that looked like it was sloppily hammered down onto the boy's skull. They were nothing like the simple and compact augmetics made by the scientists of Wayne Enterprises. The lenses were too big and the mechanism used for this one were bulky and large that it almost took up a quarter of man's face.

A second it costed him and a second was all the Arbitrator needed to tip the scales back to his favor. Too engrossed by the Arbitrator's eye, the Batman was quickly blinded when it blasted him with a flash of bright light. His night vision goggles made things worse and left him blinded long enough for the Arbitrator to slug him in the chest with his mace. In addition to the blunt force damage, the mace also blasted him with a powerful surge of electricity that sent him crashing to the ground.

The Batman's armor thankfully lightened the blow but it still left him with a few cracked ribs and some bruises that will hurt in the morning. The armor also saved him from being electrocuted but it did short circuit some of his gadgets. That included all of his vision optics. That meant he was still blind even IF he got his eyes back. To add insult to injury, the mace damaged the bat logo on his chest.

On the bright side, the Batman was still conscious. All he needed to do was to buy himself time for his eyesight to get back and for his internal systems to reboot itself to full operation.

"Still awake I see." The Batman heard the Arbitrator say. He also heard the man's footsteps walking away before coming to a stop. No doubt went to retrieve his helmet before going back to him. "Appears the Emperor has seen it fit to keep you conscious as to allow you to hear your Judgement. Despite all your sacrilege and betrayals, the Emperor remains ever so generous."

"I've never betrayed anyone my entire life." The Batman found himself answering back.

"So you say." The Arbitrator replied dismissively. "But I don't care. You carry the burden of your Father's sins. That makes you a heretic. That makes you guilty. That makes you a traitor."

"My Father?" The Batman asked. The Arbitrator's words struck a chord with him. His thoughts of his father, Thomas Wayne, immediately came to mind. "What do you know of my father?"

The Batman's night vision was back online but his own vision were still blurry. He could barely make out the Arbitrator towering over him.

"There is not a single Adept who doesn't know about your Father. The founder of the 9th Legion. The Night Lords. His origins. His rise. His deeds." The Arbitrator said. "But every soul in the Imperium knows about him taking part of the greatest Heresy in existence as well his bloody legacy that left mountains of dead."

The Arbitrator finished off by pointing at the Batman as to show him that he was the fruit of his Father's legacy. Whatever that means.

"What are you talking about? What Heresy? What Legacy?" The Batman asked. More confused as ever. The noble image of his father were slowly torn apart. Despite this, the Batman stubbornly defended the name of Thomas Wayne. "My father has done so such thing! He was a good man. A man of the people. He saved many lives and was generous and loving to all. He was…is a good father."

"I am not surprised." The Arbitrator scoffed. "A thrall would always believe their masters to be just no matter the deed. Even if when treated like a pawn to their selfish machinations, you continue to revere them as though they were Sons of the Emperor himself."

The Arbitrator pointed his crackling blue mace at the Batman's face as though he was accusing him.

"Your Father, was an indecisive mad fool who became the very thing he swore to destroy. A weak man who fell prey to chaos and pledged himself to Enemy. He damned himself. He abandoned his kind. He betrayed the Emperor!"

"SHUT UP!" The Batman shouted.

His powerful voice echoed throughout the tunnels. So much so that even the moans and the cries of the injured cultists around them trembled and didn't dare say another note. Silence fell between the two afterwards to the point that one could hear a pin drop.

"You know nothing." The Batman soon spoke with a deep tone that could have frozen hell over.

"I know enough." The Arbitrator said. Completely unperturbed by the Batman's grim speech. He even sounded amused. "I know enough is that he is dead and will trouble no one anymore."

"I know." The Batman whispered. "I was there."

The memory of that night has never left the Batman. The day his parents died in some forgotten alleyway before his very eyes. He could still remember it as clear as day as though it happened just yesterday. It was there that this darkness in him first appeared. Eating away inside him. Growing ever so stronger in the passing years until Bruce Wayne was naught but a distant memory and left only the Dark Knight in what was left of his hollow shell.

The nightmare still persisted in his dreams however. Even until now.

"Then know his shame." The Arbitrator replied coldly. "And know that he died by our hands. And the rest of you will follow soon. I swear you that."

"LIKE HELL YOU WILL!" The Batman roared and leapt at the Arbitrator.

The Batman's usual cold and calculated demeanor were all but forgotten. His infamous discipline and silent brooding were thrown out the window. The Batman didn't hold back at every swing of his fist. He took the Arbitrator down and began pummeling him with wild abandon. The Arbitrator didn't leave himself open to the abuse. The man fought back and got to throw a few solid punches but in the face of the Batman's determined fury, he might as well be an ant against a giant boot. The Batman swept any attempts to get himself overpowered aside and broke the Arbitrator's arm so he wouldn't have that many problems as before as he continued his attack. He followed by tearing the Arbitrator's helm from him and used it to smash the boy's face to a bloodier pulp until the helm slipped from his hands.

Rage blinded the Batman more than the blood splattered on his own face. It blinded him from seeing that the Arbitrator was already knocked out and bleeding. Might have even gotten himself a concussion while in the middle of drowning in his own blood. The man was barely moving but Batman just kept on punching. It was one thing to insult the memory of his father but it was something else completely to threaten his family. He'd die before he'd let anyone harm the very people he loved. He even considered killing those responsible before they'd ever get a chance of doing it.

"Get off of him!" A voice called out from out of nowhere and pushed the Batman off of the Arbitrator. "Get me a medic here!"

Despite being shoved to the side, the Batman quickly rolled himself upright and took out a handful of batarangs at the ready. He was about to throw them to his unexpected assailant but held back the moment he saw that the man who interrupted him was none other than Officer Allen.

A squad of a dozen SWAT Officers armed to the teeth came with him led by Captain Sawyer. The woman wasted no time and ordered the Officers to secure the area before making a call to HQ about their findings. The medic busied himself with reviving the wounded Arbitrator while Officer Allen kneeled right next to him and tried to keep the Arbitrator from sleeping to an early grave.

Despite the sudden appearance of all these people, the Batman's attention was entirely focused on Officer Allen.

The Underworld has done a big number on the Officer. In a span of a couple of hours, the rookie now looked more like a grizzled war veteran. The Batman could already imagine the man earning his 1000 yard stare after the hell he's possibly gone through. His once pristine uniform looked like it got thrown in the meat grinder while splattered with a torrent of grime. It actually made him stick out like a sore thumb amongst his peers.

"Hey. Stay with me, man. It's me. It's Cris." Officer Allen said and lightly shaking the Arbitrator awake. "You told me to go but now I'm back. And…and I brought help. Can't leave a brother behind right? I'm a stubborn bastard. C'mon. Say it with me now, man. I'm a stubborn son of a bitch. I shot you remember? Back in the van. I fucking shot you, right? Stay with me, man. Your emperor's calling you!"

Officer Allen dropped everything what he was doing the moment the Batman stepped forward and pointed his gun at him. An insolent gesture and foolish move to be sure but Officer Allen appear to have conviction with what he was doing. His breathing were as steady as his aim. Officer Allen looked determined to shoot the Batman without hesitation if the Dark Knight ever give him a reason to. The Batman also sensed the absence of fear in the man. An absent fear of him.

"The fuck d'you do to him, you bastard?" Officer Allen demanded.

"Let's calm down, everybody." Captain Sawyer tried keeping the situation under control. "Let's not lose our heads because of a little mix-up. So please. All of you. Stand down."

"Why are you defending him, Officer?" The Batman countered. Ignoring Captain Sawyer's words.

"I got my reasons, Bats." Officer Allen barked. "He may be an ass, but the bastard had my back. Didn't ask for it. Didn't want it. But the guy kept me alive the whole way. He even stayed behind to hold off these bastards so I could go back to my boy."

Officer Allen looked back at the Arbitrator who was being in the middle of being revived by the medi.

"Let's just say that I owe him." Officer Allen conceded and lowered his weapon.

"The Arbitrator killed Officer Kitch though." The Batman calmly argued. "I cannot let that slide."

"Oh and beating him up to a messier pulp's gonna fix that?" Officer Allen challenged.

Captain Sawyer and the other Officers were shocked by this revelation. Even the Officers who were keeping an eye out for any enemies turned their sights at Officer Allen and the Arbitrator. The bond between servicemen was like a bond of brotherhood for the Officers of the GCPD. The Batman wouldn't even be surprised if one of the Officers here would walk up and shoot the Arbitrator on the spot. Especially since Officer Kitch was quite a popular person in the Precinct.

"Is what the Bat is saying true, Cris?" Captain Sawyer questioned. One hand was already on her pistol. "Did this guy kill, Stan?"

"He did." Officer Allen sighed. "I hated him for it. I wanted to kill him for it too. But he said that it was a mercy."

"What did he mean by that?" Captain Sawyer asked suspiciously. "Mercy?"

"On our way out, we were attacked by Killer Croc. The Arbitrator drove that reptilian fuck away but Stan got hurt. He got poisoned by the Croc's bite. I bet the bastard never bothered brushing his teeth. The Arbitrator said that we weren't going to survive if we bring him with us and he wasn't going to survive the trip anyway because of his injuries. Before I knew where he was going with that info, he stabbed Stan in the heart."

Officer Allen paused to wipe the tears from his eyes.

"I wanted to kill him there and there. But I gave him a chance to tell me his peace. I begged him to tell me why. All he said was that he did it out of mercy and respect. I just realized what he meant just now. He killed Stan so he wouldn't suffer from the poison. My guess for the other one part was so he'd die like a soldier. Keep his honor intact or some shit like that."

"I got a pulse!" The medic suddenly called out.

The tension between the three parties quickly dissipated as all attention went directly to the Arbitrator. The Arbitrator started fidgeting and lightly coughed in between struggled breaths. The medic quickly placed a respirator on the man's face and began setting up a gurney for him. Three Officers volunteered to carry the Arbitrator while the medic kept hold of the respirator on the man's face.

"We need to get him out of this shithole, Captain." The medic urgently reported. "We still might lose him."

"Alright." Captain Sawyer nodded before motioning to the other Officers to move out.

"We'll straighten this shit out later." Captain Sawyer said to both the Batman and Officer Allen. "So don't go tearing shit out till we get out of here alive and after we clear all our heads. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, Captain Sawyer." Officer Allen nodded before limping out. Another fellow Officer gave him a shoulder to lean on.

Captain Sawyer turned to the Batman only to find him gone. When the man decided to do that was beyond her but she considered it rude either way. With nothing else requiring her attention in the tunnel full of moaning injured people, Captain Sawyer simply spat on the floor and walked off to catch up with the others.

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A/N: Don't be shy when posting your reviews. I'd be more than happy to read what you all think.

Up next will cover a little bit about the Arbitrator's background as well as a villain who has earned an audience to one of the Dark gods. Till next time. The Emperor Protects!