AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings Boils and Ghouls (Yes I'm doing the Cryptkeeper schtick; sue me). Welcome to my little tale of superheroic fantasy and the macabre. Just to note that this takes place in the Dark Knight's early years. But think less an origin story and more of a "first week on the job" type a story. Also these characters are not owned by me. Those credits will be down at the bottom...
... with that; enjoy!
CHAPTER 1 - Welcome to Gotham City
Gotham City, NJ - a metropolis crawling with living contradictions. The sight alone inspires awe with its pretty lights and dreamlike architecture. But looks can deceive when you take a look inside these walls. A free range buffet of robbers, pushers, users, abusers, and derelicts protesting the unfair wages of the industries griping the land with an iron fist. If ever a place gave new meaning to style over substance, it would be Gotham City.
Inside of a lavish penthouse, one robbery was taking place. The culprit was sitting on a chair with her feet on the desk. She was reading the latest issue of the Gotham Gazette newspaper filled with outlandish stories to make the National Enquirer blush. In addition to missing cops, reports sprang about a mysterious looking creature.
"Residents Claims to Have Photographed Mysterious 'Batman'!" It read.
The image on the front depicted a shadowy humanoid resembling that of a Bat. This 'Batman' had all the city talking. From children on school playgrounds warning others about it to the gun-happy loons crying "shoot to kill" if they come in contact. However the reader of this paper had a different agenda.
Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream
Make him the cutest that I've ever seen
Give him two lips like roses and clover
Then tell him that his lonesome nights are over
Sandman, I'm so alone
Don't have nobody to call my own
Please turn on your magic beam
Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream
The voice was female. She put down the paper revealing herself - Catwoman. This thief was young, seductive, dressed in black and gray and armed with cat claws and a bullwhip. She reached into her pocket to turn off a portable music player from where the song came from.
"Don't you just love the oldies?" Catwoman said.
She eyed her captive - a middle-aged gangster: Rupert Thorne. He was bound, gagged and tied up in a chair to the right from where she was. The cat burglar giggled at his attempts at struggling.
"What's the matter, Rupert?" She drew out her claws. "Afraid your money can't buy you out of getting her eyes scratched out? Probably should've thought that before you and your boys tried to rob me last week."
Thorne was visibly nervous. Her blades were inching up to his throat. But she stopped once the first pore of sweat splashed on the sharp metal.
"Lucky for you, my business tonight isn't about you," she laid the paper in front of him to get a good look.
Catwoman walked up to a bookcase as he was reading. She skimmed through the books as she were looking for a particular title.
"Now I know what you're thinking - me and Batman? Partners?" She pondered.
As a copy of "Don Quixote" was pulled out, the bookcase split in two; opening up. It was a walk-in closet with a safe at the end. Catwoman was beside herself. The book also had a bookmark with the numbers: 14 - 15 - 27.
"No way!" She walked inside.
Rupert pulled a strange, black blade and silently cut his ropes off. It began to get even more surreal when he pulled his face off, revealing it to be a mask.
After entering 14 - 15 - 27 on the knob, the safe opened up. Inside were rubies, diamonds, and copious piles of cash. Catwoman was picking at it like a kid in a candy store.
"Put then I thought to myself, 'Who knows? He could also have nine lives. Maybe he treats the world like a ball of yarn, like moi. So naturally this cat got curious," she concluded as she closed the safe.
Catwoman returned to the office only to discover Rupert missing - sort of. His ropes were cut, the clothes were tattered and his skin came off, revealing to be a costume. She dropped her bags and skimmed through the clothing.
A flap of fabric was heard and she felt a pair of eyes watching her. The cat-burglar slowly stood up and looked to her left. What she soon saw made smile a Cheshire-cat grin.
"Meow."
There he was. The Batman; standing outside the glass door with the full moon behind him and dead leaves blowing in the wind. He was stoic; standing six feet and five inches with his are catsuit with little black stripes. He stood daggers at her, while Catwoman just had her bedroom eyes on him.
"Well, well," she unclipped her whip. "You do exist after all. I knew you couldn't a resist a gangster like Rupert Thorne. And speaking of irresistible…"
She purred in delight. Batman continued to stare at her with only his breathing being the closest to a reply. The winds blew on his vampire-like cape; revealing a set of bat-handcuffs on his belt. Catwoman looked at the cuffs where her grin only got more devilish.
"You like to play rough as well? Ooooo already we have a lot in common. So much I want to dig my claws into," she drew out said claws and wiggled her hips, ready to pounce.
"But first, let's cut to the chase."
Catwoman ran to the door and smashed against the glass towards Batman. They landed in a rooftop flower bed. The garden was filled with roses and daisies. She looked over and noticed he had a rose in his hand.
"For me? You shouldn't have," she snatched the flower from him.
The cat burglar rose up and took another look at him. She bit her bottom lip; fearful that he might've been fatally injured. As such, the thief extended her boot leg out to poke his chest.
Batman rose up in a heartbeat and lunged forward. Catwoman cracks her whip; lashing him on the chest. Now they're moving faced toward each other, moving in a circular motion. She readies her whip for another crack while he hunches over like a lion.
"Down, boy!" She teases.
He takes a foot which prompts her to whip him again on the stomach. Batman glanced down at the mark without even flinching. Catwoman gulped in fear once he looked back at her, now walking menacingly towards her.
Lucky for her, a train rolls by on a bridge next door to the penthouse. She wastes no time to jump onto the moving car-roof. Catwoman makes her way through the passenger halls.
Inside the dining car were various customers enjoying their meal. One person even had the same issue of the Gazette. He began to scoff at the sensationalism of the story.
"Giant bats and cats. Looks the media is running out of fake news stories," he said.
His stuffy wife agreed, "Sounds like these writers have seen way too many horror movies."
A waiter came by with a set of sushi that they ordered. Just then, Catwoman came buzzing through the car, prompting some looks from a couple of passengers.
"Dine and dash? Just the cat's pajamas," she snatched a piece of sushi from the waiter.
His mouth dropped in amazement at what just happened. Batman walked by slipping him an hundred dollar bill. The waiter looked at the cash and giggled.
"Welp, at least I got booze money."
The train went down the tracks past a wax museum. Catwoman swung her way into the back entrance of the establishment.
Inside she hid in the horror section of the museum; patterned after a graveyard. All around were statues of the most famous monsters of film, tv and literature. She hid in between the statues of Count Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. Catwoman tried to run, but her boot pressed a button making the Frankenstein statue utter a roar sound. As a result, she flinched and tripped next to a fake tombstone. Her heart was racing like a jack-rabbit when she got herself back up. The thief soon regained her smile once a familiar bat shadow appeared.
"Batsy!" She ran over to him, "Y'know I don't care what the others say about you. You're fun!"
He didn't respond. Batman was covered in dark shadows with a fog machine spitting out tons of fog.
"Just the way we danced all over. Imagine what else we could do. Us! The King and Queen of Gotham! Even you must admit that's… purrrfect."
Catwoman tried to purr her way onto him to yet again to response. This time she extended her arm out to him. Suddenly his body turnt around to her with a weird-rope sound. The thief was confused at what was happening until the full horror was unveiled.
The fake lighting in the museum flashed, showing a skeleton in Batman's costume. It was hanging from a rope hidden in darkness courtesy of the cardboard black castle in proximity to the tree prop it was tied to. Catwoman let out a blood-curling scream at this horrific sight. She had another jolt when police suddenly burst down the door.
"FREEZE!" Police Captain Jim Gordon screamed. "Hands where we can see them."
Before she could raise her hands, smoke spewed from the skulls mouth. It obscured the cops, trying to see their way through. The real Batman snuck up and snatched Catwoman away from the police. He fired his grapple and fled away from the scene.
"Hold your fire!" Gordon shouted as some cops fired their guns.
Back outside, Catwoman watched the action from a few buildings in the distance. The wax museum entrance was surrounded by red and blue lights plus more badges. She breathed a sigh of relief.
"Tall, seductive, cunning and hated by the cops? Looks you and I are a match made in he-"
She stopped herself once she turnt around to notice he wasn't there. The thief looked out into the darkness of the woods far off from the city. Catwoman soon enough got her naught groove back.
"You can't hide from me forever," she smiled. "Because this kitty is soon gonna steal that pretty face of yours."
TO BE CONTINUED
"Batman" and other characters are owned by DC Comics and Warner Bros. Entertainment
"Mr. Sandman" is owned by The Chordettes and Cadence Records