"Alright! Settle Down!"

Captain Gordon yelled from the podium as his echoing voice caught the attention of all the detectives in the conference room. Once everyone's undivided attention was on him, he then redirected their attention to the investigation board behind him to officially begin the quick meeting.

Things had been hectic since the most recent incident regarding the mob. A failed arms trade with the Salvatore Mob. With 2 dead and another 2 in intensive care, it wasn't too long for the media to get all over this case and claim it was another 'Batman' incident. Given how fast news outlets want the latest scoop, people can't make heads or tails of what's given. Either they praise this lone vigilante for his work and call out the 'incompetence' of the MPD or continue growing the mass hysteria in the kingdom. The entire damn department is getting sick and frustrated with this case.

"I need good news, people! Any leads, new evidence, uncovered patterns! What do we have!"

"We found a pattern, sir!" A young detective was first to raise her hand."Every other attack had someone of notable position in the Salvatore Mob. We believe our guy's next victim would be a Salvatore Captain. Unfortunately, we're having some real trouble tracking them down as most of them either died or quit and ran off ."

Another detective followed up afterwards. "All of the attacks were often screened by heavy non-natural mist. It would explain why many have a hard time getting a good look at our guy. Forensics suspect that our purp' might either be using a semblance or a special mixture of dust to cover his movements."

"Assuming our guy takes out that last captain, he won't be stopping there. This guy is pretty committed to completely eradicating the entire Salvatore Mob." pitched in Detective Bullock at the last second. "And you know what that means, Jim."

"1 less mob and more territory for the taking." Captain Gordon shivered and groaned at the prospect of it. Territorial Disputes and Gang wars were imminent if these murders were to continue.

"Alright! That Mob Captain will be our only lead to catch our vigilante! I want you all to continue searching every owned property of Salvatore Valestra! Lots, Warehouses, units! Everything!"

With that final remark, most of everyone in the room quickly left and went to work. That left only Captain Gordon and Detective Bullock in the room with privacy.

Bullock took this opportunity and took a sip out his flask. "We've been working pretty late, Jim. Hope things aren't too bad with you and Barbara."

"You don't have to worry too much, Harvey. She fully understands why." said Jim before looking out the conference window overlooking the streets of the city. "But that doesn't stop her from worrying about overworking myself"

A hearty laugh left Bullock's lips. "At this rate Jim, you'll never get me a god-kid."

Gordon couldn't help but chuckle alongside his old partner. This reminded him of the old days. "What the hell happened to this place? First we got some punk vigilante showing us up while the press is on our asses, yelling that we need to be defunded. You ever miss the days where all we had to worry about was the mob and petty crooks?"

Before the old detective could answer, another detective hastily entered the room and interrupted them. "Captain, one of the unit's under Salvatore's name checked out. We got ourselves a runner!"

The sound of wet and heavy footsteps continuously echoed in the dark alley's of Mantle's underbelly. Sounds of Police sirens and the roaring engines of an Atlesian bullhead weren't far behind either.

Things aren't looking too good for Chuckie Sol. First captains like him were dropping like flies then next thing he knew Salvatore had him and Buzz Bronski hidden in safehouses around Mantle for an unspecified amount of time. 'You and Buzz lay low for a while while we handle this. Treat this place as your own safe haven'. Initially, the place did make him feel safe and secure...that was until MPD decided to bust in and raid the place. Chuckie barely had time to jump down the fire escape before the cops broke down his door.

Now here he was, currently running and hiding in the dark while trying to evade the Mantle Police Department. Sweat profusely came down his face as his entire shirt and jacket became fully drenched. Because of his continuous long distance sprint and adrenaline out of Chuckie's system, it wasn't too long before his lungs finally gave out and forced him to stop and lean on a nearby wall. Luckly, he was able to evade police detection long enough for them to lose track of him. All he needed to do now was wait the police out.

Perhaps the worst was finally behind him.

"CHUCKIIIEEE SOOOLLL"

The moment Chuckie heard that deep menacing voice, he then noticed the tangibly dense fog that now surrounded him. A shiver went down his spine as he turned towards where the sound originated. From a short distance away was a terrifying figure that slowly made its way towards. Its shadowy hand reached towards him as it inched closer and called his name.

"CHUCKIIIEEE SOOOLLL"

Without too much of a thought, Chuckie immediately pulled out his piece and opened fire at the approaching silhouette. Four rounds were shot straight into its chest, yet the ghost form seemed unfazed in its approach.

"YOUR ANGEL OF DEATH AWAITS"

Panic started to sink in as his hands began to shake. Without much options left, Chuckie immediately made another break for it. Unfortunately, escaping wouldn't be as easy as the thick mist made it difficult to find any sort of exit. To make matters even worse, everywhere he turned the ghost figure was always not too far behind. His fear continued to build up as every corner he passed ended in a dead end.

Fortuitously, his way out would come from a hanging metal ladder of a fire escape from the side of a building. While doing so could possibly get him spotted by the MPD, it was better than the alternative. Without a second thought, the Mob Captain rapidly climbed for his life and went straight for the roof, not noticing that his firearm slipped from his hand.

Once at the top, only options for escape were ledges of the roof or a door that led to the inside of the building. Chuckie made a beeline towards the opposite end, but found no fire escape down and too large of a gap between buildings. His final option left was the door on the roof. However, his efforts would only be fruitless as no matter how many times he shook the handle, it wouldn't fully turn. It was locked.

"CHUCKIIIEEE SOOOLLL"

And he had run out of time.

Being in a more open space, Chuckie finally had a better look at his pursuer. It was as if he was standing in front of the Grim Reaper himself; body hidden beneath black cloth with a gray weathered wraith-like cloak and hood while a skull mask covered its face.

The Mob Captain was scared shitless to say the least. His heartbeat went faster with each step the reaper took with its claw hand coming closer and closer to his face.

That was, until it stopped dead in its tracks as it was then engulfed in someone's shadow.

Whilst the ghost reaper took a couple steps back, something from above then dropped right before the Captain. Before Chuckie could react, he felt something slam into his face as his whole world turned black.

With him out of the picture, Batman turned towards his main target. Complete silence overtook the roof as both figures analyzed each other. While neither one moved out from their forms, both had the same question in mind: Who shall take first blood?

Batman acted first, swinging his cape to stun his opponent. The Phantom reacted by ducking beneath the move, only to be kneed in the face. Stumbling back on his feet, the Phantom barely had time to sidestep a jab before countering with two strikes to the Batman winced in pain, the Phantom used this opportunity to side kick him once more in the chest, sending him a couple steps back.

Having a fair distance between them once more, both combatants heaved heavily at the hits they've taken. This wasn't going to be easy.

Once again, Batman acted first by rushing towards his opponent. While the Phantom initially prepared for an upfront assault, he was immediately blindsided when the vigilante twisted out of his grasp and turned to place himself behind. Without a second to waste, Batman forced him into a headlock. But even when in a bad position, the Phantom continued to struggle as he began to elbow the vigilante's sides. With each blow, Batman winced and cringed as the pain to his ribs continued to grow. It was only when he felt a cold and painful blow pierced through his suit did he finally kick his opponent off.

Even when both are beaten and battered, the pair forced themselves to stand to face each other once more.

However, their fight was then interrupted when a light from above lit up the entire roof.

"This is the MPD! Get on your knees and place your hands over your head!"

At that exact moment, multiple cops burst through the roof door and surrounded Batman's front. Some went over to check out the still unconscious Mob Captain while most of them had their weapons drawn and pointed directly at them.

Captain Gordon couldn't fully believe what he was seeing. There they were, 2 different costume clad vigilantes. One dressed like a ghost while the other was dressed like a Bat. Gods, Harvey ain't gonna let this down.

"Don't move! Keep your hands where we can see them!" yelled Gordon once more before approaching the pair with handcuffs.

Before Gordon could reach either of them, large amounts of fog developed around the Phantom, to the shock of the officers. Using their surprise as a window, Batman plainly threw himself off the roof. Snapping out of their shocked states, all officers converged towards the edge, only to find no Phantom on the roof and no Batman on the streets.

Gordon cursed himself for letting them get away while Bullock looked down at the street below.

"What was that about there being no 'Batman'?"

"Gah!"

Bruce winced as he dropped his lightly scarred body in the ice bath. The fight from the previous night had really taken a toll on him. His entire core and chest were sore and hurt like a bitch. It's been long since he had actually been this hurt.

While Bruce relaxed his muscles in the bath, Alred made his presence known by dropping off towels, bandages, and first-aid. "It's not everyday that I see you in such a condition, Master Bruce."

"He was strong, Alfred. Stronger than any other person I've seen in Atlas." Bruce said as he placed a wet towel on his own face. " And experienced too. Not many civilians know how to defend themselves like he did"

"The Police might be onto something. Academy training and Huntsman work would explain his fighting expertise." added Bruce.

"Then that narrows it down to the hundreds of Huntsmen and Huntresses currently in the Kingdom." Alfred sarcastically said.

Bruce's eye peaked out of the head towel to glare at his caretaker. Best to shift to a different topic. "I'll have to swing by Applied Sciences later. Next time I face that Phantom, I'll at least be prepared."

"Phantasm, sir."

"What?"

"The press had begun calling him 'The Phantasm', sir."

Having removed the face cloth, Bruce turned to face the butler, who handed him a newspaper. 'BATMAN VS THE PHANTASM: TWO MYTHS COLLIDE'.

"It would seem that the Press believes both you and this 'Phantasm' character are fighting over who would rule Mantle's underworld." continued Alfred as Bruce skimmed through the paper. "Although the police believe both of you are merely accomplices to the string of recent murders."

Bruce grumbled as he threw the paper away, much to the displeasure of his caretaker. "Damn Press these days."

Seeing no other request being made, Alfred first picked the newspaper from the floor and left his charge to his lonesome. Bruce then attempted to relax himself once more in the freezing water to continue his slow healing process.

Nothing significant would happen at Wayne Manor until later on. It was an hour after Bruce had left for Wayne Enterprises. Alfred was in the middle of dusting the shelves and tables when he heard a knock at the front door. The old butler was surprised to say the least. He wasn't expecting any visitors.

It's when the door knocked for a second time did Alfred make his way to the front entrance. Having opened the door, the butler had not expected to find a young woman standing by the entrance. She wore casual white attire with a shawl and glasses to mask her face; although Alfred could still see strands of loose white hair underneath it all.

"May I help you, young miss?" asked Alfred.

"I'm here to pick-up Bruce." The young woman responded before looking behind him. "Is he here?"

"I regret to inform you that Master Bruce had already left for Wayne Enterprise. Although, he had not mentioned any sort of special occasion today."

"He didn't?" The woman sounded genuinely shocked. "Odd. We planned to take an impromptu trip around the city. I thought he'd be excited to learn more about what our father's built together."

It was then Alfred realized who she really was. "My word! You must be Nicholas Schnee's daughter. Please forgive Master Bruce's negligence as of late. He has been quite busy as of late."

Willow blushed at the recognition. "No need for any sort of apology. His hands must be quite full if he had to leave the gala without saying a word."

Alfred internally cursed his charge's rudeness. He was going to have quite the talk with him once he returned. "Master Bruce mentioned that he will be visiting the Applied Science division of Wayne Enterprises. Perhaps you can meet him there."

Willow brightened at the news. "Ah, thank you...uh.."

"Pennyworth, Alfred Pennyworth."

"And, what exactly do you plan on using these items for, Mr Wayne? Another spelunking trip?"

Lucius asked while he and Bruce traversed the Applied Science division. While he didn't question the previous list, the man was quite surprised to find Bruce Wayne at his desk with a new list of specific items the very next day.

"Uh, boxing, actually."

Mr. Fox gave him a suspicious look before guiding him to a nearby crate. Reaching to the sides, Lucius unlocked the crate first before lifting the cover to reveal its contents. The contents were different sized thin plates.

The man picked up a single plate to present to Bruce upclose. "Specialized Carbon fiber plates that can be slipped underneath clothing. Light, flexible, and extremely durable. While most of these are tear resistant, the thicker pieces can stop any sort of stab wound."

"How about bullets?" asked Bruce.

"Anything, but a straight shot."

Now he was impressed. "How come they didn't put it in production?"

"Well, since all Huntsman and Huntresses often have their auras unlocked at an early age, academies and the military didn't see the point of spending 500 grand on this type of insurance." replied Lucius. "And I don't think there's a market for the millionaire boxing and spelunking business."

A concerned look shadowed Bruce's face as he turned towards the R&D head. "Look, Mr. Fox…"

"Yes?"

"If...you feel uncomfortable with this-"

"Mr. Wayne, if you don't want to tell me exactly what you're doing...when I am asked, I don't have to lie." said Lucius before giving the billionaire an earnest look. "But don't think of me as an idiot."

Bruce merely smiled at the look before nodding. "Fair enough."

Returning the smile, Lucius then guided the Wayne-son back to his desk before taking a seat. He, once more, looked over the given list.

"While I am unsure about some of these items on the list, I'm sure it will all be ready by tonight. I'll have them sent to your home with a couple more things as an added bonus." Fox said as he removed his glasses. "Now then, I believe we have a visitor"

It was then Bruce noticed the sound of approaching footsteps from behind him. With a quick turn, the Wayne-son was surprised to see an approaching Willow Schnee. As she approached him, the Gala event from the previous night began coming back to him, causing him to cringe and curse at himself for forgetting their initial plan.

"Willow! I am so so sorry" Bruce apologized before explaining himself. "Something had recently came up last night and next thing I knew-"

The Schnee Heiress simply raised her hand to shut him up. Once he stayed quiet, Willow spoke. "You don't have to explain anything, Bruce. You're a very busy man and things would often slip your mind. Just promise that you won't make it a habit, alright?"

Bruce nodded in response. "Right. Sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it. Now, we probably would have to cut some things out of our itinerary and head straight to the big stuff."

Willow then reached out her hand towards Bruce. "Shall we?"

I do not own any of the characters. All characters and names used are owned by either Rooster Teeth and Detective Comics (DC)

Next update would be an Omake for Rise of the Girl Wonder.