White Knight-Batman SI
- Thread starter Drkest
- Start date
Its moved out of that universe already. As for the future i don't know what it holds. I am thinking of dabbling into the DC movies cuz my knowledge fo other universe arent too well known to me.
Chapter 28-A Wicked Joke!
Chapter 28
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas was once more outside the Wayne Tower, the building and its surroundings had changed somewhat over the months, new security systems had been installed and it seemed the number of security personnel had been increased as well.
The periphery was once more filled with a throng of journalists heckling him for a quote. He would ignore them most of the time, yet the recent attacks on him and his family by the mayor had prompted him to give a small statement yesterday, something which went against his usual norms as he had his sources dig into why the man had turned on him like this.
Thomas had donated to the man's campaign, and though he wasn't the ideal person to lead Gotham, he was astute enough that he would do. Or so he had thought.
But he would deal with him when the time comes, as he pushed up the control stick and ascended the ramp to the gates, which were swung open as the man around them greeted him warmly.
"It is good to see you back, Master Wayne," and Thomas nodded, a smile appearing on his lips as he took in the all too familiar smell of the Wayne tower.
"It is good to be back," he said and could see the staff smiling and greeting him as he moved past them, though unlike most of them, he didn't miss how the person he was waiting for didn't have such a festive expression on their face.
"You don't look happy to see me. Should I fear for my future in this company," he joked, and the man's lips turned up, yet the tightness in his eyes didn't vanish.
"I am elated to see you, though I believe you owe me some answers," the man began, and Thomas nodded as he let the man lead him to the private elevator, and as the doors closed, he put in his own keycard.
"I had always known that you were smart when you walked into the board room as a mere teenager. Your eyes had held a certain glint of knowledge and maturity that I have seen in few men in my lifetime," the black man began as the elevator began to descend slowly.
"And then I was proven right when you formed the new division and made the leaps and bounds you made, transforming the very landscape of several industries," he said as he finally turned to face him.
"Yet even I didn't know that you were holding back this much, Master Wayne," he said, and Thomas smiled as the doors of the elevator swung open to reveal the hidden basement underneath the Applied Physics inventory, only accessible right now to two individuals in the entire world.
"If you knew about it, it wouldn't have been called holding back," Thomas replied as he moved out of the chair, the cybernetic exoskeleton spread over his legs and back, supporting his weight as he stepped up beside Fox, as they walked towards the massive case erupting out of the ground housing none other than his suit of armor.
"A motorized exoskeleton, machined with a special bulletproof, fire-proof ally, the cybernetics, the machining, and most importantly, the power source," the man began to list off as he looked at the shining piece of beauty.
"This is decades ahead of anything I have ever seen," the man began, and Thomas nodded.
"It is," he confirmed.
"I must ask you, why did you build such a thing?" Fox asked, and Thomas sighed as he looked the man in the eye.
"The short answer is because I could because the lives of people I care about were at stake, and I decided that enough was enough, that we needed a deterrent in the
face of such threats, one which would help me face enemies of scale you cannot even imagine," he answered.
"Enemies like the League of Shadows?" he followed on, surprising him with that name.
His curiosity and surprise must have shown as he raised a brow.
"Once doesn't live as long as I and not know a thing or two about such thing," he said, and Thomas nodded, yet still, the man was being naive if he thought the league was the end of things.
"May the Gods prove me wrong, but if my fears were to come through, these threats would make the League look like simpletons," he replied as he looked at the shining logo of the white knight, as fears he had long buried erupted in his heart.
This world was dangerous, he had always known that, yet he had tampered with his expectations about the extent of this danger, yet the incident with the league had opened his eyes. He had been caught unaware.
While his actions in the transformation of Gotham were good and virtuous, he had forgotten about just the nature of this world and what threats it could eventually pose.
There was silence as Fox thought over his words.
"I believe you," he replied, surprising him, as he frowned, for he was surprised. He had thought the man would ask for more, maybe even resign, not that he would let him.
"I have watched you grow up over the years, Master Wayne, and while I may not agree with you over certain things, but I have not known you to lie," he began as he took off his glasses and rubbed his temple.
"So, if you say such threats do exist, then I believe you," he began, and Thomas was relieved by the man's trust as he nodded.
"And yes, I had the software division patch up the vulnerability you used to remove all data related to the sighting of your precious suit," he said with a raised brow.
It was one of the most important things, any information about the sighting of his suit had been scrubbed off, most of it had been digital and all it had taken was a simple software to delete it all.
"And I still can not believe you left such a vulnerability on purpose," he sighed, and Thomas's lips turned up, making him stop as his eyes narrowed.
"That wasn't the only one, was it?" he questioned, and Thomas shrugged.
"What can I say?"
"Master Thomas, if such a thing is found out, the press and the government...." but before he could say more, Thoams cut in.
"Will do nothing," he replied, making the man frown.
"Every government, every competitor does the same. However, while they use the data for nefarious purposes, I only use it for the betterment of society, and if you are still at odds with this, have the software team look through the code and begin repairing it. They will catch up to me in..." and he pretended to look at a watch as he said.
"...decades perhaps," he challenged.
"I hope you know wh...." but his words were cut off once more as his cell phone began to ring, making him frown as he put it to his ear.
"What is it, Miss Heather?" he questioned.
"Sir, there are some people here demanding to see Master Wayne?" she remarked.
"Do they have an appointment?" he asked as Thoams frowned.
"Sir, they are from the Police, and they are saying they are here to arrest Mr. Wayne," her words made him still momentarily, and he could tell that Lucius was surprised as well as he asked forward.
"On what charges may I ask?" he questioned.
"For the murder of Carmine Falcone!"
0000
Back in Wayne Tower, a groggy Selina Kyle sat in the kitchen eating a healthy breakfast for the first time in months as suddenly a breaking news began airing on the TV, and she heard a voice she had thought she would never hear again.
"My name is Carmine Falcone, and if you are hearing this, I am probably dead..." the spoon halted in her hands as her head snapped towards the TV screen where the face of Gotham's mob boss was on the TV screen.
"...and the person responsible for my death was none other than Thomas Wayne!"
0000
As always, you can read ahead and support me through my Patreon. Help me write this and other such stories by becoming a Patron. It would be pretty awesome of you and would help me out quite a bit.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have a fun day!
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas was once more outside the Wayne Tower, the building and its surroundings had changed somewhat over the months, new security systems had been installed and it seemed the number of security personnel had been increased as well.
The periphery was once more filled with a throng of journalists heckling him for a quote. He would ignore them most of the time, yet the recent attacks on him and his family by the mayor had prompted him to give a small statement yesterday, something which went against his usual norms as he had his sources dig into why the man had turned on him like this.
Thomas had donated to the man's campaign, and though he wasn't the ideal person to lead Gotham, he was astute enough that he would do. Or so he had thought.
But he would deal with him when the time comes, as he pushed up the control stick and ascended the ramp to the gates, which were swung open as the man around them greeted him warmly.
"It is good to see you back, Master Wayne," and Thomas nodded, a smile appearing on his lips as he took in the all too familiar smell of the Wayne tower.
"It is good to be back," he said and could see the staff smiling and greeting him as he moved past them, though unlike most of them, he didn't miss how the person he was waiting for didn't have such a festive expression on their face.
"You don't look happy to see me. Should I fear for my future in this company," he joked, and the man's lips turned up, yet the tightness in his eyes didn't vanish.
"I am elated to see you, though I believe you owe me some answers," the man began, and Thomas nodded as he let the man lead him to the private elevator, and as the doors closed, he put in his own keycard.
"I had always known that you were smart when you walked into the board room as a mere teenager. Your eyes had held a certain glint of knowledge and maturity that I have seen in few men in my lifetime," the black man began as the elevator began to descend slowly.
"And then I was proven right when you formed the new division and made the leaps and bounds you made, transforming the very landscape of several industries," he said as he finally turned to face him.
"Yet even I didn't know that you were holding back this much, Master Wayne," he said, and Thomas smiled as the doors of the elevator swung open to reveal the hidden basement underneath the Applied Physics inventory, only accessible right now to two individuals in the entire world.
"If you knew about it, it wouldn't have been called holding back," Thomas replied as he moved out of the chair, the cybernetic exoskeleton spread over his legs and back, supporting his weight as he stepped up beside Fox, as they walked towards the massive case erupting out of the ground housing none other than his suit of armor.
"A motorized exoskeleton, machined with a special bulletproof, fire-proof ally, the cybernetics, the machining, and most importantly, the power source," the man began to list off as he looked at the shining piece of beauty.
"This is decades ahead of anything I have ever seen," the man began, and Thomas nodded.
"It is," he confirmed.
"I must ask you, why did you build such a thing?" Fox asked, and Thomas sighed as he looked the man in the eye.
"The short answer is because I could because the lives of people I care about were at stake, and I decided that enough was enough, that we needed a deterrent in the
face of such threats, one which would help me face enemies of scale you cannot even imagine," he answered.
"Enemies like the League of Shadows?" he followed on, surprising him with that name.
His curiosity and surprise must have shown as he raised a brow.
"Once doesn't live as long as I and not know a thing or two about such thing," he said, and Thomas nodded, yet still, the man was being naive if he thought the league was the end of things.
"May the Gods prove me wrong, but if my fears were to come through, these threats would make the League look like simpletons," he replied as he looked at the shining logo of the white knight, as fears he had long buried erupted in his heart.
This world was dangerous, he had always known that, yet he had tampered with his expectations about the extent of this danger, yet the incident with the league had opened his eyes. He had been caught unaware.
While his actions in the transformation of Gotham were good and virtuous, he had forgotten about just the nature of this world and what threats it could eventually pose.
There was silence as Fox thought over his words.
"I believe you," he replied, surprising him, as he frowned, for he was surprised. He had thought the man would ask for more, maybe even resign, not that he would let him.
"I have watched you grow up over the years, Master Wayne, and while I may not agree with you over certain things, but I have not known you to lie," he began as he took off his glasses and rubbed his temple.
"So, if you say such threats do exist, then I believe you," he began, and Thomas was relieved by the man's trust as he nodded.
"And yes, I had the software division patch up the vulnerability you used to remove all data related to the sighting of your precious suit," he said with a raised brow.
It was one of the most important things, any information about the sighting of his suit had been scrubbed off, most of it had been digital and all it had taken was a simple software to delete it all.
"And I still can not believe you left such a vulnerability on purpose," he sighed, and Thomas's lips turned up, making him stop as his eyes narrowed.
"That wasn't the only one, was it?" he questioned, and Thomas shrugged.
"What can I say?"
"Master Thomas, if such a thing is found out, the press and the government...." but before he could say more, Thoams cut in.
"Will do nothing," he replied, making the man frown.
"Every government, every competitor does the same. However, while they use the data for nefarious purposes, I only use it for the betterment of society, and if you are still at odds with this, have the software team look through the code and begin repairing it. They will catch up to me in..." and he pretended to look at a watch as he said.
"...decades perhaps," he challenged.
"I hope you know wh...." but his words were cut off once more as his cell phone began to ring, making him frown as he put it to his ear.
"What is it, Miss Heather?" he questioned.
"Sir, there are some people here demanding to see Master Wayne?" she remarked.
"Do they have an appointment?" he asked as Thoams frowned.
"Sir, they are from the Police, and they are saying they are here to arrest Mr. Wayne," her words made him still momentarily, and he could tell that Lucius was surprised as well as he asked forward.
"On what charges may I ask?" he questioned.
"For the murder of Carmine Falcone!"
0000
Back in Wayne Tower, a groggy Selina Kyle sat in the kitchen eating a healthy breakfast for the first time in months as suddenly a breaking news began airing on the TV, and she heard a voice she had thought she would never hear again.
"My name is Carmine Falcone, and if you are hearing this, I am probably dead..." the spoon halted in her hands as her head snapped towards the TV screen where the face of Gotham's mob boss was on the TV screen.
"...and the person responsible for my death was none other than Thomas Wayne!"
0000
As always, you can read ahead and support me through my Patreon. Help me write this and other such stories by becoming a Patron. It would be pretty awesome of you and would help me out quite a bit.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have a fun day!
- Location
- England
The fire-proof ally was going to be Johnny Storm, but they couldn't get enough money together to lease him from MCU.
Who invited him to the party?
Last edited:
- Location
- Postcard from the Root
Was that Talia al Ghul appearing last chapter? Didn't expect to see her so quickly.
Chapter 29-Two Facets!
Chapter 29
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas Wayne found himself sitting inside a Gotham holding cell. A small white light illuminated the cell, as the seat opposite to him sat empty.
Yet he was aware that he wasn't as alone as it may seem, for a horde of people would be scrutinizing his every move from the other side of the two-sided mirror. His stay would be short-lived, no matter the evidence or the nature of the allegations against him, the Wayne lawyers were probably on their way here, while motions and appeals were being filed this instant on his behalf to secure his release.
The door to the room opened, and the all too familiar face of Gotham's newest DA appeared as Harvey Dent walked into the room.
"I didn't think I would be seeing you again so early, Mr Dent," he remarked as he leaned back in the chair, and the blonde shrugged.
"Me neither," he replied as he sat down in the chair opposite to him and slid forward a folder.
Thomas glanced at it, it was fortification of his right to have a lawyer present.
"Why would I ever sign that?" he said as he slid it back.
He raised his brow as he took a sip of water.
"I don't know, maybe to prove your innocence," he said, and Thomas smiled as he pushed it back.
"I am not an idiot, Mr. Dent. I am innocent, but I am also aware of my rights," he said and the blonde's lips thinned, and there was a momentary narrowing of his eyes as he closed the file and pocketed the pen.
"So, be it then, let us have a talk...."
"I am not saying anything until my layers are here, and by then, I can assure you I will be leaving this place, cutting short this rather lovely reunion," Thomas barked, and he could tell that he had foiled the man's plans as his brows twitched lightly, as Dent leaned back.
"I am surprised. I thought you would be more open, more willing to prove your innocence," he said to Thomas.
"As I said, I am innocent, and that will be proven in due time," he said, and Dent knew that he wasn't going to get a response.
"Still, you do know who Carmine Falcone was?" he questioned, and though the question was innocuous, Thomas knew that in the next series of questions, one wouldn't be.
So, he stayed quiet, smiling, as he waved at the mirror, knowing that a person on the other side would be listening to this whole farce.
0000
RACHEL DAWES
Rachel Dawes was pissed. She was livid, much more than she could ever recall herself being. She strode into the office and watched as her workers backed off until she walked towards the special interrogation room, having already learned where Thomas was being held.
The guards outside tried to stop her, but she gave them a pointed glare as she emphatically mouthed.
"Get out of my way!" They looked at each other, and maybe she realized the threat implied in her tone. She stepped out of her way as she entered the room.
And in there stood the cause of her anger, her boss.
"You!" she snarled as she pointed towards him, as he looked towards her surprised for a second.
"Do you have any idea what you are doing?" she questioned, as her eyes glanced at the rather calm and composed form of Thomas sitting on the opposite side of that two-way mirror.
"Yes, I do, and your reaction tells me that I was right to keep you out of it," and she made that connection about why she had been given a day off.
"Keep me out of it! Out of what this farce! You have arrested Thomas Wayne. Wayne, which judge even signed off on this warrant on the basis of nothing but a video," she shouted.
"A forensically authenticated video, and that was not the only thing," he said as he handed her a file, a file filled with evidence, planted, of course, she thought, for she knew that Thomas was innocent.
"This must be planted, of course," she said, and even then, this is all circumstantial at best," she argued as she handed him back the folder.
"I understand that he is your friend, but your friend is not as innocent as he may seem," he said, and she frowned.
Thomas was guilty of things, many things, yet murder he would never do. He was a businessman, and even as a teenager, she knew that he was of the more ruthless variety of businessmen, playing on the edge, yet she knew that the boy who had grown up with her would never do anything to harm anyone.
"Half the city is in his pocket, and all of us pretend as if he is some saint, but he is not. He is just as dirty as the mob. e all don't know it yet," he said, and she was surprised by the vitriol in his tone.
"Do you even hear yourself? You are comparing him to the Mob! Like the literal fucking Mob!" she balked, yet Dent shrugged.
"I am. Now let me have a crack at him before his team of lawyers show up," and with that, he left off and entered the room as she sighed loudly, gritting her teeth, her eyes darting towards Thomas, who seemed unbothered as he sat there impassively, his eyes darting towards the mirror as if he could look through it.
Dent sat down and began talking to him, and she could hear Thomas refusing to sign on and cooperate any further. She knew that this wasn't the first time he was being called in for questioning, though otherwise, it had been mostly for matters related to Wayne enterprises.
Dent was getting frustrated he had underestimated Thomas; many did because of his age, yet they forgot that Thomas was not a simple person for people his age would barely be out of university while he was leading one of the country's biggest Enterprises and changing the world.
She saw his lips turn up as he continued to frustrate Dent while he gave her a wave, making her smirk when suddenly the doors beside her opened.
She looked to the side and saw a team of lawyers walk in. Some of them had worked with a couple in the past, she recognized.
"It is good to see you, Miss Dawes," said Katherine Spencer, a very, very famous lawyer she had no idea worked for Thomas.
"You are Katherine Spencer," she said to the woman at the front, who seemed impressed.
"You recognize me?" she said as the other lawyers moved past her into the interrogation room.
"Of course, I would. I didn't know that you worked for Wayne Enterprises," she said, and the lady answered.
"I don't, at least not in the traditional sense. But Thomas is an investor in my firm, and I owe him a lot for that. So, if it is for him, I will be there," she replied.
Katherine Spencer was a big name who went after the Mob as a federal prosecutor, but a couple of years ago, she left her job disappointed and opened up a private firm to go after the big shots. Her office wouldn't let her prosecute. And now it made sense.
"Thomas talked quite a bit about you. He looks up to you quite a bit," she remarked, making Rachel blush as the doors opened behind her.
"Rachel!" Thomas's voice cut in, making her glance back, a nervous tension in her body as she didn't know how to face him.
"Thomas..." she tried to begin but was cut off as he spoke up.
"You still on for the dinner on Sunday? Alfred will kill me if you aren't there," he said as if he hadn't just stepped out of an interrogation office.
She smiled as she nodded, realizing that it was his way of telling her that things hadn't changed between them.
"Yeah, tell him I will be there," she said, agreeing to his offer.
"So, it takes me going into a holding cell to get you out of DC," he said as he looked toward Spencer, who rolled her eyes.
"Don't be a baby. You were barely in there for an hour," Katherine scoffed as Thomas's eyes narrowed.
"Yeah, an hour, and for that, I am going to waste one of yours. Tomorrow is Sunday. You will be joining us for lunch and no protests. Now I have to get back to my company," and with that, he was off, though just as he was about to leave the room, another voice cut in from behind.
"Don't get too comfortable, Mr.Wayne," cut in Dent as he stepped out, a glint in his eyes as he stared at Thomas.
Thomas stopped, his eyes narrowing as he glanced back, and that gaze sent a chill down her spine as she heard him mouth in an icy tone, one which she had never heard him use before.
"We will see about that?"
0000
Read ahead and support me on Patreon and help me write this and other such stories. Have a look below, and consider becoming a Patron. It would be pretty cool of you.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have an awesome day!
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas Wayne found himself sitting inside a Gotham holding cell. A small white light illuminated the cell, as the seat opposite to him sat empty.
Yet he was aware that he wasn't as alone as it may seem, for a horde of people would be scrutinizing his every move from the other side of the two-sided mirror. His stay would be short-lived, no matter the evidence or the nature of the allegations against him, the Wayne lawyers were probably on their way here, while motions and appeals were being filed this instant on his behalf to secure his release.
The door to the room opened, and the all too familiar face of Gotham's newest DA appeared as Harvey Dent walked into the room.
"I didn't think I would be seeing you again so early, Mr Dent," he remarked as he leaned back in the chair, and the blonde shrugged.
"Me neither," he replied as he sat down in the chair opposite to him and slid forward a folder.
Thomas glanced at it, it was fortification of his right to have a lawyer present.
"Why would I ever sign that?" he said as he slid it back.
He raised his brow as he took a sip of water.
"I don't know, maybe to prove your innocence," he said, and Thomas smiled as he pushed it back.
"I am not an idiot, Mr. Dent. I am innocent, but I am also aware of my rights," he said and the blonde's lips thinned, and there was a momentary narrowing of his eyes as he closed the file and pocketed the pen.
"So, be it then, let us have a talk...."
"I am not saying anything until my layers are here, and by then, I can assure you I will be leaving this place, cutting short this rather lovely reunion," Thomas barked, and he could tell that he had foiled the man's plans as his brows twitched lightly, as Dent leaned back.
"I am surprised. I thought you would be more open, more willing to prove your innocence," he said to Thomas.
"As I said, I am innocent, and that will be proven in due time," he said, and Dent knew that he wasn't going to get a response.
"Still, you do know who Carmine Falcone was?" he questioned, and though the question was innocuous, Thomas knew that in the next series of questions, one wouldn't be.
So, he stayed quiet, smiling, as he waved at the mirror, knowing that a person on the other side would be listening to this whole farce.
0000
RACHEL DAWES
Rachel Dawes was pissed. She was livid, much more than she could ever recall herself being. She strode into the office and watched as her workers backed off until she walked towards the special interrogation room, having already learned where Thomas was being held.
The guards outside tried to stop her, but she gave them a pointed glare as she emphatically mouthed.
"Get out of my way!" They looked at each other, and maybe she realized the threat implied in her tone. She stepped out of her way as she entered the room.
And in there stood the cause of her anger, her boss.
"You!" she snarled as she pointed towards him, as he looked towards her surprised for a second.
"Do you have any idea what you are doing?" she questioned, as her eyes glanced at the rather calm and composed form of Thomas sitting on the opposite side of that two-way mirror.
"Yes, I do, and your reaction tells me that I was right to keep you out of it," and she made that connection about why she had been given a day off.
"Keep me out of it! Out of what this farce! You have arrested Thomas Wayne. Wayne, which judge even signed off on this warrant on the basis of nothing but a video," she shouted.
"A forensically authenticated video, and that was not the only thing," he said as he handed her a file, a file filled with evidence, planted, of course, she thought, for she knew that Thomas was innocent.
"This must be planted, of course," she said, and even then, this is all circumstantial at best," she argued as she handed him back the folder.
"I understand that he is your friend, but your friend is not as innocent as he may seem," he said, and she frowned.
Thomas was guilty of things, many things, yet murder he would never do. He was a businessman, and even as a teenager, she knew that he was of the more ruthless variety of businessmen, playing on the edge, yet she knew that the boy who had grown up with her would never do anything to harm anyone.
"Half the city is in his pocket, and all of us pretend as if he is some saint, but he is not. He is just as dirty as the mob. e all don't know it yet," he said, and she was surprised by the vitriol in his tone.
"Do you even hear yourself? You are comparing him to the Mob! Like the literal fucking Mob!" she balked, yet Dent shrugged.
"I am. Now let me have a crack at him before his team of lawyers show up," and with that, he left off and entered the room as she sighed loudly, gritting her teeth, her eyes darting towards Thomas, who seemed unbothered as he sat there impassively, his eyes darting towards the mirror as if he could look through it.
Dent sat down and began talking to him, and she could hear Thomas refusing to sign on and cooperate any further. She knew that this wasn't the first time he was being called in for questioning, though otherwise, it had been mostly for matters related to Wayne enterprises.
Dent was getting frustrated he had underestimated Thomas; many did because of his age, yet they forgot that Thomas was not a simple person for people his age would barely be out of university while he was leading one of the country's biggest Enterprises and changing the world.
She saw his lips turn up as he continued to frustrate Dent while he gave her a wave, making her smirk when suddenly the doors beside her opened.
She looked to the side and saw a team of lawyers walk in. Some of them had worked with a couple in the past, she recognized.
"It is good to see you, Miss Dawes," said Katherine Spencer, a very, very famous lawyer she had no idea worked for Thomas.
"You are Katherine Spencer," she said to the woman at the front, who seemed impressed.
"You recognize me?" she said as the other lawyers moved past her into the interrogation room.
"Of course, I would. I didn't know that you worked for Wayne Enterprises," she said, and the lady answered.
"I don't, at least not in the traditional sense. But Thomas is an investor in my firm, and I owe him a lot for that. So, if it is for him, I will be there," she replied.
Katherine Spencer was a big name who went after the Mob as a federal prosecutor, but a couple of years ago, she left her job disappointed and opened up a private firm to go after the big shots. Her office wouldn't let her prosecute. And now it made sense.
"Thomas talked quite a bit about you. He looks up to you quite a bit," she remarked, making Rachel blush as the doors opened behind her.
"Rachel!" Thomas's voice cut in, making her glance back, a nervous tension in her body as she didn't know how to face him.
"Thomas..." she tried to begin but was cut off as he spoke up.
"You still on for the dinner on Sunday? Alfred will kill me if you aren't there," he said as if he hadn't just stepped out of an interrogation office.
She smiled as she nodded, realizing that it was his way of telling her that things hadn't changed between them.
"Yeah, tell him I will be there," she said, agreeing to his offer.
"So, it takes me going into a holding cell to get you out of DC," he said as he looked toward Spencer, who rolled her eyes.
"Don't be a baby. You were barely in there for an hour," Katherine scoffed as Thomas's eyes narrowed.
"Yeah, an hour, and for that, I am going to waste one of yours. Tomorrow is Sunday. You will be joining us for lunch and no protests. Now I have to get back to my company," and with that, he was off, though just as he was about to leave the room, another voice cut in from behind.
"Don't get too comfortable, Mr.Wayne," cut in Dent as he stepped out, a glint in his eyes as he stared at Thomas.
Thomas stopped, his eyes narrowing as he glanced back, and that gaze sent a chill down her spine as she heard him mouth in an icy tone, one which she had never heard him use before.
"We will see about that?"
0000
Read ahead and support me on Patreon and help me write this and other such stories. Have a look below, and consider becoming a Patron. It would be pretty cool of you.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have an awesome day!
- Location
- England
Pretty sure that's the wrong word there. 'waiver' would work. 'forfeiture' doesn't work, but does look like something that autocorrect could have mangled into the above.
KleverKil'Vanya
Ortillery Operator
Sooo why was the 'evidence' even remotely considered enough to do a very very public arrest? Every single person interacting with this knows Falcone is a mob boss who hated Wayne, this is something that would be quietly investigated not throw into the public space where it will blowback on the PD's assumed integrity
- Location
- England
Dent has a huge chip on his shoulder. His 'logic' goes like ... Thomas Wayne is very Rich. Thomas Wayne lives in Gotham. Therefore Thomas Wayne is rotten to the core. It doesn't help that Thomas is very popular and well known for his good works. Dent would like to be very popular for his law enforcement stuff and is jelly.
KleverKil'Vanya
Ortillery Operator
I mean with that logic Dent should take himself to trial for being on the take from at least 3 different crime families since he is a lawyer in Gotham?
He seemed decent enough to appear as a well-intentioned but flawed man before the chemical accident that brought forth Two-Face in the Batman Animated Series.
- Location
- England
It is an AU. My take is that Thomas' efforts (and successes) have been wearing on his nerves for some time. He 'knows' it's too good to be true and is eager to prove it. Even if it means bending procedures out of shape.
There is some overlap between lawyers and hypocrites.
Chapter 30-The Unravelling!
Chapter 30
ALFRED PENNYWORTH
The Wayne family had been under much turmoil since the return of Master Bruce, though he didn't believe him to be the cause of it all. It was just circumstances.
He had thought it all ended after Master Thomas had woken up in the hospital. The time he had been in the coma had been tumultuous, for a while it didn't feel as such, but only in his absence did it become clear how Master Thomas was at the center of nearly everything.
Even now, as the garden of Wayne manor entertained a small gathering, it wasn't much only old friends and families, and some new ones, he thought as he glanced towards Miss Katherine Spencer.
An accomplished lawyer he had heard and a not-so-simple person he had guessed as she sat alongside Miss Dawes as both ladies whispered conspiratorially to each other. From what he had managed to glean, the older woman was somewhat of a role model for Miss Dawes, not that she herself was any less impressive.
Miss Kyle Senior, for her little sister, had found the gathering too boring and had already left to go to a friend's house. She sat alongside Master Thomas as the lovebirds remained attached at the hip, with Master Bruce still yet to arrive.
It was a small affair, unlike what the manor would host when the young Masters were yet to grace the world, but still a rather lovely one and a much-needed improvement on the dreariness that had overtaken the home when the young Master was in the Hospital.
He approached the young Master, handing him his glass as Miss Kyle slid away from his lap.
"You seem rather spry for someone who has just been to jail," he added. The young Master smirked as he took his drink from him, a simple negroni, his drink of choice on special occasions.
"Ahh, I am, and it's all thanks to my dear friend here," he answered as he pointed towards Miss Spencer, who rolled her eyes.
"He was there for less than an hour, don't make him into a hero for this," she said and he saw Miss Rachel shift nervously a bit at that.
"And it was a second too long," Miss Kyle suddenly added from the side as she wrapped her arm around Master Thomas.
"He is innocent, and yet they had the audacity to arrest him over a damned video," she snarled in rage, and Miss Spencer nodded.
"Indeed, the attorney was being heavy-handed. The video needs to undergo a forensic to verify its voracity. He made a mistake when he overreached, and he will suffer for it if he decided to take this to trial," she added and Miss Dawes cut in.
"I might resign if he does," she added, and Miss Spencer cut rather quickly as she shook her head at Miss Dawes.
"Why should you? Just recluse yourself, and that will be enough."
"Yeah, she is right. There is no need to jeopardize your career over this. It will all blow over soon," added Master Thomas.
"But what of the media? They will make a scandal out of this. The whole city knows about us..." Miss Dawes said, sounding worried, but her words were cut short as Master Thomas chimed in.
"I will handle the media, as I have done so for all these years. There is no need to worry," he waved away her concern as he sipped his drink, as Miss Dawes smiled.
"A month ago, this city sang praises of him and called him an angel for what he had done to save them. And now they arrest him, and for what..." began Miss Kyle as they looked towards young Master.
"Even if he didn't kill Falcone, they should be thankful to whomever d..."
"Selina!" Master Thomas cut in, stopping her from finishing the sentence. He saw her grip her hand as the mood of the atmosphere turned sour. Thankfully, Master Bruce's arrival provided a much-needed break.
"I am sorry for being late," Master Bruce began as he walked in dressed in a fine suit.
"I had just heard that my brother had been arrested," he said with a smirk towards Master Thomas, who rolled his eyes as Miss Spencer and Miss Dawes laughed at the small joke.
He saw his eyes locked with Miss Rachel as the two of them hugged each other before he was introduced to Miss Spencer.
"I believe I have you to thank for getting him out of the prison," he said, and the woman smirked.
"It's a mistake I may come to rue," and with that, he joined them, and the garden became lively, and Alfred smiled at the simplicity of it all.
It was beautiful and intimate if the constant lapse of gazes between Master Bruce and Miss Dawes was anything to go by, and he wasn't the only one who had noticed that as Miss Spence's gaze continued to shift between the two.
"Ohh, speaking of that. For some reason, our little Master Thomas has some rather interesting slew of admirers," suddenly Miss Spencer cut in.
"Ohh, anyone I should be worried about," questioned Miss Kyle as she tightened her arms around Master Thomas's neck..
Miss Spencer seemed to stew on it for a second before she shook her head.
"Not that I can think of, though there was this one person." She suddenly began as everyone leaned in at those words.
"She was a rather interesting character; she somehow knew a bit about his investment in my firm. An ex army-woman, Diana Prince, I believe her name was, she could be a little challenge," she said with a smirk towards Miss Kyle, whom she was somehow already aware of. Alfred could guess why, though.
Miss Kyle's troublesome past was known to him, and he was also aware that Master Thomas had all that cleared away so that it would not trouble her anymore. He believed that he had employed Miss Spencer's services in that regard.
"I would like to see her try," spoke Miss Kyle as she made a face at that, and everyone chuckled except Master Thomas, who seemed to be in a daze.
"Are you sure that her name was..." but Master Thomas's words were cut short as his phone rang, and he wasn't the only one as the sound of various ringtones erupted across the table as everyone turned towards the phone. As for Alfred himself, he was still not used to carrying a phone with him, though he did have one, and even he felt it vibrate in his breast pocket.
However, he didn't need to reach for it as the sound of a cackle of a voice erupted through the ceiling as Master Thomas's phone began to play a video.
"Hello there, Gotham. It's your very own source of entertainment here, and today I am here to tell you about the two biggest frauds of this city." He moved a bit and found himself staring at the face of the same man who had brought Miss Spencer to them.
His face was covered with white makeup, his hair green though he couldn't tell through the black and white quality of the video. This was the man in the video that had aired a day ago, accusing Master Thomas.
This was the infamous Joker.
"I showed you one of them when we met previously as I showed you the true nature of the benevolent overlord Thomas Wayne and what a face it was. A murderer," he began to laugh as pictures of Falcone flashed on the screen.
"And you will be surprised to know that despite everything, your overlord runs free even today despite everything. The police, the criminal justice system, hopeless to prosecute him as they would do to you and me for stealing a loaf of bread," he continued, and he watched Master Thomas's lips thin.
All of them had their eyes glued to the screen now, faces tense as they heard him continue.
"And as for the second fraud, it is none other than the overlord of the night. The protector of the weak, the guardian of the poor. And what does he call himself," he frowned as he tapped his head comically.
"The Batman!" he finished his tone severe and cold and he watched Master Bruce's lips thin at those words.
"Ohhh! He is a hero, he catches criminals, protects the weak. I say lies! Lies! ALL OF THEM LIES!" the joker shouted, the video shook violently as he continued.
"He will go after the small-time crooks and criminals. The ones he can afford to go after, yet when it comes to true criminals, the overlords, and the rich bastards like Thomas Wayne, he will stand by and let them rape this city! He is no hero! What he is complicit!" the Joker announced, and he sounded ominous.
"Or he could prove otherwise, bring to justice the criminal mastermind that is Thomas Wayne, and show the city how he truly stands for justice," he continued rather nonchalantly.
"And just for motivation, every day that the criminal named Thomas Wayne walks free, I will unalive a random employee from his criminal enterprise. Hahahaha," and then he began to laugh as Master Thomas's expression turned grim.
"That will be all! Tadaa!" and with that, the screen turned gray as silence hung in the air. Everyone's face was ashen, and he watched as the eyes of the two brothers met before suddenly Master Thomas turned away and forced himself out of the chair.
"Thomas!" Miss Dawes spoke worriedly, for he was yet to heal completely, and even he was worried, much like everyone else who reached forward to help him but was forced back by Master Thomas's gesture as he stood up and picked up the cane from the side.
"I am fine," he said as he began to walk away.
"I need to make a call!"
And Alfred prayed to the Gods that they may take mercy on the Wayne family for hadn't they suffered enough.
And that was not the only call that would happen as the assistant commissioner of Gotham, J. Gordon, would receive a call from the DA's office.
"We need to talk!"
000
As always, you can read ahead and support me on Patreon. Help me write this and other such stories by becoming a Patron. It would help me out quite a bit.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have an awesome day!
ALFRED PENNYWORTH
The Wayne family had been under much turmoil since the return of Master Bruce, though he didn't believe him to be the cause of it all. It was just circumstances.
He had thought it all ended after Master Thomas had woken up in the hospital. The time he had been in the coma had been tumultuous, for a while it didn't feel as such, but only in his absence did it become clear how Master Thomas was at the center of nearly everything.
Even now, as the garden of Wayne manor entertained a small gathering, it wasn't much only old friends and families, and some new ones, he thought as he glanced towards Miss Katherine Spencer.
An accomplished lawyer he had heard and a not-so-simple person he had guessed as she sat alongside Miss Dawes as both ladies whispered conspiratorially to each other. From what he had managed to glean, the older woman was somewhat of a role model for Miss Dawes, not that she herself was any less impressive.
Miss Kyle Senior, for her little sister, had found the gathering too boring and had already left to go to a friend's house. She sat alongside Master Thomas as the lovebirds remained attached at the hip, with Master Bruce still yet to arrive.
It was a small affair, unlike what the manor would host when the young Masters were yet to grace the world, but still a rather lovely one and a much-needed improvement on the dreariness that had overtaken the home when the young Master was in the Hospital.
He approached the young Master, handing him his glass as Miss Kyle slid away from his lap.
"You seem rather spry for someone who has just been to jail," he added. The young Master smirked as he took his drink from him, a simple negroni, his drink of choice on special occasions.
"Ahh, I am, and it's all thanks to my dear friend here," he answered as he pointed towards Miss Spencer, who rolled her eyes.
"He was there for less than an hour, don't make him into a hero for this," she said and he saw Miss Rachel shift nervously a bit at that.
"And it was a second too long," Miss Kyle suddenly added from the side as she wrapped her arm around Master Thomas.
"He is innocent, and yet they had the audacity to arrest him over a damned video," she snarled in rage, and Miss Spencer nodded.
"Indeed, the attorney was being heavy-handed. The video needs to undergo a forensic to verify its voracity. He made a mistake when he overreached, and he will suffer for it if he decided to take this to trial," she added and Miss Dawes cut in.
"I might resign if he does," she added, and Miss Spencer cut rather quickly as she shook her head at Miss Dawes.
"Why should you? Just recluse yourself, and that will be enough."
"Yeah, she is right. There is no need to jeopardize your career over this. It will all blow over soon," added Master Thomas.
"But what of the media? They will make a scandal out of this. The whole city knows about us..." Miss Dawes said, sounding worried, but her words were cut short as Master Thomas chimed in.
"I will handle the media, as I have done so for all these years. There is no need to worry," he waved away her concern as he sipped his drink, as Miss Dawes smiled.
"A month ago, this city sang praises of him and called him an angel for what he had done to save them. And now they arrest him, and for what..." began Miss Kyle as they looked towards young Master.
"Even if he didn't kill Falcone, they should be thankful to whomever d..."
"Selina!" Master Thomas cut in, stopping her from finishing the sentence. He saw her grip her hand as the mood of the atmosphere turned sour. Thankfully, Master Bruce's arrival provided a much-needed break.
"I am sorry for being late," Master Bruce began as he walked in dressed in a fine suit.
"I had just heard that my brother had been arrested," he said with a smirk towards Master Thomas, who rolled his eyes as Miss Spencer and Miss Dawes laughed at the small joke.
He saw his eyes locked with Miss Rachel as the two of them hugged each other before he was introduced to Miss Spencer.
"I believe I have you to thank for getting him out of the prison," he said, and the woman smirked.
"It's a mistake I may come to rue," and with that, he joined them, and the garden became lively, and Alfred smiled at the simplicity of it all.
It was beautiful and intimate if the constant lapse of gazes between Master Bruce and Miss Dawes was anything to go by, and he wasn't the only one who had noticed that as Miss Spence's gaze continued to shift between the two.
"Ohh, speaking of that. For some reason, our little Master Thomas has some rather interesting slew of admirers," suddenly Miss Spencer cut in.
"Ohh, anyone I should be worried about," questioned Miss Kyle as she tightened her arms around Master Thomas's neck..
Miss Spencer seemed to stew on it for a second before she shook her head.
"Not that I can think of, though there was this one person." She suddenly began as everyone leaned in at those words.
"She was a rather interesting character; she somehow knew a bit about his investment in my firm. An ex army-woman, Diana Prince, I believe her name was, she could be a little challenge," she said with a smirk towards Miss Kyle, whom she was somehow already aware of. Alfred could guess why, though.
Miss Kyle's troublesome past was known to him, and he was also aware that Master Thomas had all that cleared away so that it would not trouble her anymore. He believed that he had employed Miss Spencer's services in that regard.
"I would like to see her try," spoke Miss Kyle as she made a face at that, and everyone chuckled except Master Thomas, who seemed to be in a daze.
"Are you sure that her name was..." but Master Thomas's words were cut short as his phone rang, and he wasn't the only one as the sound of various ringtones erupted across the table as everyone turned towards the phone. As for Alfred himself, he was still not used to carrying a phone with him, though he did have one, and even he felt it vibrate in his breast pocket.
However, he didn't need to reach for it as the sound of a cackle of a voice erupted through the ceiling as Master Thomas's phone began to play a video.
"Hello there, Gotham. It's your very own source of entertainment here, and today I am here to tell you about the two biggest frauds of this city." He moved a bit and found himself staring at the face of the same man who had brought Miss Spencer to them.
His face was covered with white makeup, his hair green though he couldn't tell through the black and white quality of the video. This was the man in the video that had aired a day ago, accusing Master Thomas.
This was the infamous Joker.
"I showed you one of them when we met previously as I showed you the true nature of the benevolent overlord Thomas Wayne and what a face it was. A murderer," he began to laugh as pictures of Falcone flashed on the screen.
"And you will be surprised to know that despite everything, your overlord runs free even today despite everything. The police, the criminal justice system, hopeless to prosecute him as they would do to you and me for stealing a loaf of bread," he continued, and he watched Master Thomas's lips thin.
All of them had their eyes glued to the screen now, faces tense as they heard him continue.
"And as for the second fraud, it is none other than the overlord of the night. The protector of the weak, the guardian of the poor. And what does he call himself," he frowned as he tapped his head comically.
"The Batman!" he finished his tone severe and cold and he watched Master Bruce's lips thin at those words.
"Ohhh! He is a hero, he catches criminals, protects the weak. I say lies! Lies! ALL OF THEM LIES!" the joker shouted, the video shook violently as he continued.
"He will go after the small-time crooks and criminals. The ones he can afford to go after, yet when it comes to true criminals, the overlords, and the rich bastards like Thomas Wayne, he will stand by and let them rape this city! He is no hero! What he is complicit!" the Joker announced, and he sounded ominous.
"Or he could prove otherwise, bring to justice the criminal mastermind that is Thomas Wayne, and show the city how he truly stands for justice," he continued rather nonchalantly.
"And just for motivation, every day that the criminal named Thomas Wayne walks free, I will unalive a random employee from his criminal enterprise. Hahahaha," and then he began to laugh as Master Thomas's expression turned grim.
"That will be all! Tadaa!" and with that, the screen turned gray as silence hung in the air. Everyone's face was ashen, and he watched as the eyes of the two brothers met before suddenly Master Thomas turned away and forced himself out of the chair.
"Thomas!" Miss Dawes spoke worriedly, for he was yet to heal completely, and even he was worried, much like everyone else who reached forward to help him but was forced back by Master Thomas's gesture as he stood up and picked up the cane from the side.
"I am fine," he said as he began to walk away.
"I need to make a call!"
And Alfred prayed to the Gods that they may take mercy on the Wayne family for hadn't they suffered enough.
And that was not the only call that would happen as the assistant commissioner of Gotham, J. Gordon, would receive a call from the DA's office.
"We need to talk!"
000
As always, you can read ahead and support me on Patreon. Help me write this and other such stories by becoming a Patron. It would help me out quite a bit.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have an awesome day!
It'd be funny if no one takes Joker seriously and just shoot him in the head before going back to business as usual since he's an absolute lunatic anyway.
xbox432
Lover of Editing
Hmm... I wonder? Will Thomas simply turn himself in to be held in prison? He would then be "held accountable" for justice. Though I'm not sure if he would do so, it would be the fastest way to call Joker's bluff about only killing people if Thomas is free. It wouldn't stop the psycho long term, but it would give Bruce and the Police more time.
And Diana has made an appearance? Heh, it was the younger brother's antics which drew her attention this time rather than the elder's. I wonder how that particular meeting will go?
And Diana has made an appearance? Heh, it was the younger brother's antics which drew her attention this time rather than the elder's. I wonder how that particular meeting will go?
"Tadaa" is for a presentation, "Tata" is for goodbye.
Chapter 31-Turmoil!
Chapter 31
JIM GORDON
Gotham was a strange city, a resilient city. He had spent nearly all his life in the city and had watched it wade through tough times with his own eyes. He had seen the streets fill with crime and hopelessness, seen the very people sworn to protect the innocents become the very monsters they were supposed to shield the populace from.
Yet the city was resilient, surviving through it all until the times had eventually gotten better. And loathe as he was to admit it, it was change driven by none other than the richest person in the city.
Thomas Wayne had done what he and the law enforcement agencies were supposed to, he had systemically hit the underworld that ruled the city by giving the people a path away from them to make an honest living, and he was sure that the man had done much more, to lessen the influence of the crime syndicates on everything.
And it had worked, people were fired, right people were promoted including him, and the bad guys were prosecuted. Thomas Wayne was no saint, yet to many in Gotham, the man was a hero.
He had misgivings about the man's intentions, yet to this day, he had yet to find evidence about his nefarious intentions, so he would give him the benefit of the doubt, for the man who had changed this city deserved it.
"You have to arrest him," spoke Gotham's DA. The young man, Harvey Dent, had seemed like a ray of light in the darkness, yet as he saw him sit opposite him, Jim doubted that maybe he had been too quick in passing judgment.
"I cannot. There is nothing to arrest him on," he replied, as he had to several others after the infamous video of the Joker began circulating everywhere. Sometimes he felt himself out of touch with everything that went on in the city. It seemed to be getting crazier and crazier.
"How can you say that? The allegations against him are an open secret, and yet you say that there is no evidence to arrest him," Harvey Dent lashed out. It was surprising to see this side of the shining knight of Gotham. However, he believed the men of his department had right of it when they gave him that other nickname.
Two Faced.
"And yet that is all they amount to—allegations. According to the law, there is nothing for me to arrest him for, and the reason you are here is because neither do you," he replied, not losing his cool as they sat in his office, surrounded by piles and piles of files.
"Bull shit!" the blonde cursed, and his eyes narrowed, yet the man continued.
"What about we frame it as protected custody?" came the question, and he chuckled.
"I can assure you, Mr. Dent, his guards have arms more costly than our yearly salaries; he is well protected," he replied, and the man was clearly frustrated. Jim didn't understand him, he was affected as well, and his whole units were now looking for this so called joker.
The truth was that he had reached out to the Waynes through a common friend and had been assured that they were looking into it personally as well. While he was proud of his force and men, he was also aware that the Waynes could devote ten times the resources of the city to this cause, and according to Rachel, they already had.
"I understand your frustration, but the city cannot appear to be buckling to a madman, and that is what this 'Joker' is. Thomas Wayne is a citizen and shall enjoy the rights and freedoms afforded to him by law," he replied, and the man smirked.
"Do not sugarcoat it. Just say that you are in his pocket as well," Dent taunted, and Jim's eyes narrowed.
"Be careful of how you speak, Dent," he warned.
"So, what I do not lie, the man prances around as if he is a hero, yet he is a crook. A smart crook but a crook nonetheless, and he may be innocent of the crime the 'Joker' may accuse him of, but I am sure there are plenty that he is guilty of," Dent answered, and Jim sensed that some part of that vitriol seemed personal, a shame for he had pegged Dent to be a better man.
"Then you may find them and arrest him for that, but until then, he will be a free man," he replied as the two of them stared into each other's eyes.
"That will be all," he finished, for the pile of files was not going to lessen by itself, and his wife and Barabra would be wroth with him if he was late again today, something which was seeming more and more probable by the second.
"So, you won't do anything about him," Dent asked, and he shrugged.
"Bring me a legitimate warrant, and I will give you my men," he answered.
"So, be it then. But I want to meet him,"
"Who?" he asked with a frown.
"Your friend in the Dark! Batman!"
0000
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas Wayne stood infront of the whole staff of his company. A few cameras were locked onto his face to broadcast the message to the other places as well, where he could not be present at the moment.
"I know all of you must have seen the video circulating everywhere by now, so I will not waste your time by focusing on that but will move on to the reason for which I have gathered you all today," he began, his voice booming across the Hall as Lucius hung behind him.
"Wayne Enterprises has prized itself as the backbone of this city; through tough times and hardships, we have not wavered as a family or a company and have stood tall and proud as the symbol of hope and strength for everyone. And we shall continue to do so for years to come. Some of you may be scared, some of you distraught, but I wish to assure you that we have taken measures to ensure the safety of you and your families," he assured them. He was spreading his men thin, yet he would not buckle down t Joker's level.
"Yet I understand that these are unprecedented times, and I shall do right by the people that are Wayne Enterprises. So I make you all an offer. If any one of you finds the times too tough, and so anyone of you who may wish to leave the company will be offered generous terms," and with that he stepped back.
"Now, back to work," and with that, the people dispersed as whispers broke out in the Hall.
"This could cost us a lot of money," Lucius added from the side.
"We can always make more money. Plus, with the economy as it is, few could even risk leaving a job at Wayne Enterprises. No, we will have little to no departures," he replied. Wayne Enterprises was truly a monstrous company; the hiring process was tough for all in Gotham. We knew that once you were hired by us, your life would be made as long as you were willing to work hard.
There were no mass layoffs, no pleasing the investors, for the Waynes decided how the company ran, and the Waynes were royalty to the people of Gotham.
"Any leads on this 'Joker' fellow?" Lucius questioned as they began to make their way towards the elevator.
"Not yet, but soon. I have run a sweep over half the city. I will find him, and then I am going to end this little game of his," Thomas snarled in rage, for truly he was getting tired of all this.
He had made a mistake in allowing all these problems to fester, yet that was over. This was not a game, this was reality, a reality where people's lives were at stake, and he would live it out now with his own rules. Not Joker's, not Batman's but his own.
And they regarded Joker as an existential threat.
Suddenly, just as they were about to enter the private elevator, they were interrupted by one of the staff.
"Mr. Wayne. Mr.Fox, please wait," and he stopped and looked up and found a secretary rushing towards them both.
"What is it, Barabra?" he questioned.
"Sir, a board meeting has been called!"
And he frowned at those words.
"A board meeting, but how?" Fox questioned. For one, it would need substantial holdings in their company to call a meeting, and few had the guts to do so when they knew that all their motions would be denied, for Wayne Enterprises was owned by him and Bruce.
"Sir, it's an emergency session, and the government is somehow involved!"
0000
BRUCE WAYNE
Batman found himself once more in the underbelly of the city, at the base of one of Gotham's biggest crime syndicates headed by Gambol. His men lay around him groaning in pain and agony, for he had little time for patience today, as less than twelve hours now remained in this 'Jokers' warning, and he had to find his location before the man carried out his revenge.
Gambol, the man who controlled a major chunk of the gangs, backed away as he stepped towards him, his eyes bulging with fear as Batman stepped towards him, the broken glass crunching under his feet.
"What do you want?" he asked, his voice quivering as he didn't answer immediately. The man picked up the gun from the ground and began to fire at him. The bullets yet bounced off of his suit like nothing.
And then Bruce kicked at his hand, breaking it as the man groaned in pain, and tried to kick punch him, but he ducked under it and hit him in the gut, making the brass-knuckled roll off his hand and fall to the ground with a thud as he held him by the lapels of his now ruined suit and pushed him against the wall.
"Where is he?"
"Who?" he asked in fear, and his eyes narrowed.
"The idiot you guys let loose. Where is he?" he asked again, his voice thick as he punched the man once more.
"Him! That bastard, I will tell you, just let me go!" and with that, he told him an address, and then Bruce hit him once more, knocking him out, and yet, just as he finished, the lights in the room suddenly went out.
"I am afraid you will not be making it out of this place, Bruce Wayne," a mechanical voice cut across the room. The very presence troubled him as he activated the night vision on his mask.
'How the hell did he know that name'
He thought as his eyes landed on the hulking figure of a man. A mask covered much of his face, and he wore a sleeveless vest that seemed to weigh tons as he stepped out of the shadows.
"Or shall I call you by the name you chose," he continued.
"Batman." He finished with a flourish as he put out his arms, and alarm bells rang out in his head.
"Who are you?" he questioned.
"I am Gotham's reckoning!"
0000
In another corner of the city, Seline Kyle found herself sitting in a place she had never thought she would visit again as she sat opposite the man who had replaced her father, her uncle, as the Italian mob boss.
"So, I am here. Now tell me where I can find this 'Joker'?" she questioned with an angry snarl, for being in this place tore up her insides, yet she was also aware of just how much Wayne Enterprises meant to Thomas, and so if I for him she had to come back to the place that haunted her, she would do it.
"I did not ask for you?" the man suddenly answered making her frown, but before she could say anything, a shot was fired and the whole table was painted red with his blood as his body fell away.
"You did not. But I did!"
0000
Read ahead and support me on Patreon and help me write this and other such stories. Help me out if you can it would be pretty awesome of you. 😊
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Have an awesome day!
JIM GORDON
Gotham was a strange city, a resilient city. He had spent nearly all his life in the city and had watched it wade through tough times with his own eyes. He had seen the streets fill with crime and hopelessness, seen the very people sworn to protect the innocents become the very monsters they were supposed to shield the populace from.
Yet the city was resilient, surviving through it all until the times had eventually gotten better. And loathe as he was to admit it, it was change driven by none other than the richest person in the city.
Thomas Wayne had done what he and the law enforcement agencies were supposed to, he had systemically hit the underworld that ruled the city by giving the people a path away from them to make an honest living, and he was sure that the man had done much more, to lessen the influence of the crime syndicates on everything.
And it had worked, people were fired, right people were promoted including him, and the bad guys were prosecuted. Thomas Wayne was no saint, yet to many in Gotham, the man was a hero.
He had misgivings about the man's intentions, yet to this day, he had yet to find evidence about his nefarious intentions, so he would give him the benefit of the doubt, for the man who had changed this city deserved it.
"You have to arrest him," spoke Gotham's DA. The young man, Harvey Dent, had seemed like a ray of light in the darkness, yet as he saw him sit opposite him, Jim doubted that maybe he had been too quick in passing judgment.
"I cannot. There is nothing to arrest him on," he replied, as he had to several others after the infamous video of the Joker began circulating everywhere. Sometimes he felt himself out of touch with everything that went on in the city. It seemed to be getting crazier and crazier.
"How can you say that? The allegations against him are an open secret, and yet you say that there is no evidence to arrest him," Harvey Dent lashed out. It was surprising to see this side of the shining knight of Gotham. However, he believed the men of his department had right of it when they gave him that other nickname.
Two Faced.
"And yet that is all they amount to—allegations. According to the law, there is nothing for me to arrest him for, and the reason you are here is because neither do you," he replied, not losing his cool as they sat in his office, surrounded by piles and piles of files.
"Bull shit!" the blonde cursed, and his eyes narrowed, yet the man continued.
"What about we frame it as protected custody?" came the question, and he chuckled.
"I can assure you, Mr. Dent, his guards have arms more costly than our yearly salaries; he is well protected," he replied, and the man was clearly frustrated. Jim didn't understand him, he was affected as well, and his whole units were now looking for this so called joker.
The truth was that he had reached out to the Waynes through a common friend and had been assured that they were looking into it personally as well. While he was proud of his force and men, he was also aware that the Waynes could devote ten times the resources of the city to this cause, and according to Rachel, they already had.
"I understand your frustration, but the city cannot appear to be buckling to a madman, and that is what this 'Joker' is. Thomas Wayne is a citizen and shall enjoy the rights and freedoms afforded to him by law," he replied, and the man smirked.
"Do not sugarcoat it. Just say that you are in his pocket as well," Dent taunted, and Jim's eyes narrowed.
"Be careful of how you speak, Dent," he warned.
"So, what I do not lie, the man prances around as if he is a hero, yet he is a crook. A smart crook but a crook nonetheless, and he may be innocent of the crime the 'Joker' may accuse him of, but I am sure there are plenty that he is guilty of," Dent answered, and Jim sensed that some part of that vitriol seemed personal, a shame for he had pegged Dent to be a better man.
"Then you may find them and arrest him for that, but until then, he will be a free man," he replied as the two of them stared into each other's eyes.
"That will be all," he finished, for the pile of files was not going to lessen by itself, and his wife and Barabra would be wroth with him if he was late again today, something which was seeming more and more probable by the second.
"So, you won't do anything about him," Dent asked, and he shrugged.
"Bring me a legitimate warrant, and I will give you my men," he answered.
"So, be it then. But I want to meet him,"
"Who?" he asked with a frown.
"Your friend in the Dark! Batman!"
0000
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas Wayne stood infront of the whole staff of his company. A few cameras were locked onto his face to broadcast the message to the other places as well, where he could not be present at the moment.
"I know all of you must have seen the video circulating everywhere by now, so I will not waste your time by focusing on that but will move on to the reason for which I have gathered you all today," he began, his voice booming across the Hall as Lucius hung behind him.
"Wayne Enterprises has prized itself as the backbone of this city; through tough times and hardships, we have not wavered as a family or a company and have stood tall and proud as the symbol of hope and strength for everyone. And we shall continue to do so for years to come. Some of you may be scared, some of you distraught, but I wish to assure you that we have taken measures to ensure the safety of you and your families," he assured them. He was spreading his men thin, yet he would not buckle down t Joker's level.
"Yet I understand that these are unprecedented times, and I shall do right by the people that are Wayne Enterprises. So I make you all an offer. If any one of you finds the times too tough, and so anyone of you who may wish to leave the company will be offered generous terms," and with that he stepped back.
"Now, back to work," and with that, the people dispersed as whispers broke out in the Hall.
"This could cost us a lot of money," Lucius added from the side.
"We can always make more money. Plus, with the economy as it is, few could even risk leaving a job at Wayne Enterprises. No, we will have little to no departures," he replied. Wayne Enterprises was truly a monstrous company; the hiring process was tough for all in Gotham. We knew that once you were hired by us, your life would be made as long as you were willing to work hard.
There were no mass layoffs, no pleasing the investors, for the Waynes decided how the company ran, and the Waynes were royalty to the people of Gotham.
"Any leads on this 'Joker' fellow?" Lucius questioned as they began to make their way towards the elevator.
"Not yet, but soon. I have run a sweep over half the city. I will find him, and then I am going to end this little game of his," Thomas snarled in rage, for truly he was getting tired of all this.
He had made a mistake in allowing all these problems to fester, yet that was over. This was not a game, this was reality, a reality where people's lives were at stake, and he would live it out now with his own rules. Not Joker's, not Batman's but his own.
And they regarded Joker as an existential threat.
Suddenly, just as they were about to enter the private elevator, they were interrupted by one of the staff.
"Mr. Wayne. Mr.Fox, please wait," and he stopped and looked up and found a secretary rushing towards them both.
"What is it, Barabra?" he questioned.
"Sir, a board meeting has been called!"
And he frowned at those words.
"A board meeting, but how?" Fox questioned. For one, it would need substantial holdings in their company to call a meeting, and few had the guts to do so when they knew that all their motions would be denied, for Wayne Enterprises was owned by him and Bruce.
"Sir, it's an emergency session, and the government is somehow involved!"
0000
BRUCE WAYNE
Batman found himself once more in the underbelly of the city, at the base of one of Gotham's biggest crime syndicates headed by Gambol. His men lay around him groaning in pain and agony, for he had little time for patience today, as less than twelve hours now remained in this 'Jokers' warning, and he had to find his location before the man carried out his revenge.
Gambol, the man who controlled a major chunk of the gangs, backed away as he stepped towards him, his eyes bulging with fear as Batman stepped towards him, the broken glass crunching under his feet.
"What do you want?" he asked, his voice quivering as he didn't answer immediately. The man picked up the gun from the ground and began to fire at him. The bullets yet bounced off of his suit like nothing.
And then Bruce kicked at his hand, breaking it as the man groaned in pain, and tried to kick punch him, but he ducked under it and hit him in the gut, making the brass-knuckled roll off his hand and fall to the ground with a thud as he held him by the lapels of his now ruined suit and pushed him against the wall.
"Where is he?"
"Who?" he asked in fear, and his eyes narrowed.
"The idiot you guys let loose. Where is he?" he asked again, his voice thick as he punched the man once more.
"Him! That bastard, I will tell you, just let me go!" and with that, he told him an address, and then Bruce hit him once more, knocking him out, and yet, just as he finished, the lights in the room suddenly went out.
"I am afraid you will not be making it out of this place, Bruce Wayne," a mechanical voice cut across the room. The very presence troubled him as he activated the night vision on his mask.
'How the hell did he know that name'
He thought as his eyes landed on the hulking figure of a man. A mask covered much of his face, and he wore a sleeveless vest that seemed to weigh tons as he stepped out of the shadows.
"Or shall I call you by the name you chose," he continued.
"Batman." He finished with a flourish as he put out his arms, and alarm bells rang out in his head.
"Who are you?" he questioned.
"I am Gotham's reckoning!"
0000
In another corner of the city, Seline Kyle found herself sitting in a place she had never thought she would visit again as she sat opposite the man who had replaced her father, her uncle, as the Italian mob boss.
"So, I am here. Now tell me where I can find this 'Joker'?" she questioned with an angry snarl, for being in this place tore up her insides, yet she was also aware of just how much Wayne Enterprises meant to Thomas, and so if I for him she had to come back to the place that haunted her, she would do it.
"I did not ask for you?" the man suddenly answered making her frown, but before she could say anything, a shot was fired and the whole table was painted red with his blood as his body fell away.
"You did not. But I did!"
0000
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Harvey Dent would be a punchline of an "Evil Lawyer Joke" because of his other nickname by those who saw such attitude and disliked him.
Chapter 32-Breaking the Table!
Chapter 32
BRUCE WAYNE
"I am Gotham's reckoning!" came the answer, ringing alarm bells. He could already tell that they were being surrounded as he spoke, their movements all too familiar to him after years of training in similar manoeuvres.
"The League?" he realized as the man.
"Indeed, at least what is left of it after your brother decided to hunt us down," came the answer, his voice thick and grizzly as the giant of a man stepped forward.
"But no matter, we shall soon have our revenge and finish what we began in Gotham," came the answer. Bruce reached for his mask to alert Thomas of what was coming his way when suddenly, a massive boom ricked the room.
BOOM!
"AGH!" he grunted in pain as electric shock from his helmet rippled through him, and he felt his vision darken once more as his night vision went out.
"There is no need to tell your brother, and he shall soon learn of it himself," the grizzly voice rang out as his eyes adjusted to the darkness.
"Look at you," suddenly the voice seemed angrier as he felt a punch rip past his face before he blocked a kick, though not before another hit his gut; even through the Kevlar, it hit him, making him grunt.
"You have forgotten that Darkness is your ally and have lost your way," he shouted even as they engaged in a fist fight. Bruce hit him as well, yet the giant man was unmoved, and his attacks did not seem to have any effect on him.
"You have grown weak, and now your weakness shall cost you!" he was kicked in the gut and sent railing back into the wall, his back cracking as he fell down.
"AGHH!" he tried to get back up, yet he was injured rather badly. He reached into his belt and took out two grenades, a flashbang and one with sleeping gas.
He opened them both and flung them across the room.
BOOM! The flashbang went off, and he tried to race away, yet he suddenly had to scream out in pain as a massive steel rod was impaled down onto his leg.
"ARGH!" he screamed in pain as the grizzly man stepped forward and picked up teh sleeping gas grenade, walked towards him, and crushed the filter in his mask as he put it below his nose.
Bruce held his breath as he looked the man in the eye, yet he knew that it was futile. He would have to breathe.
"Who are you?" he asked again as blood dripped down his face, and he felt his vision blur as the answer came far too late.
"I am Bane!"
0000
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas Wayne walked towards the Board meeting room with a fury in his steps as he moved through the Halls, his mind racing as he tried to think up just what was going on.
All of this reminded him of the whole thing with the League and the whole disaster that had been. He had vowed to himself that he would not let such a thing happen again.
And as he pushed open The doors to the meeting room even as the secretary rushed to stop him.
"Mr. Wayne," but her voice faded into the background as he stepped into the room filled with the Wayne Enterprises board of directors and an all too familiar intruder.
"You!" he snarled in rage, as his eyes landed on Pierce as he stood at the head of the table with smug grin on his face, the blonde bastard smiled as he spoke up.
"Hello there, Thom..."
"Shut it!" Thomas cut him off as the man flushed as his eyes landed on the inhouse Council sitting at the side.
"What the hell is this?" he questioned as Ramesh spluttered.
"Sir, the government..."
"They think you are a threat to an essential community asset," Pierce's voice cut in, making his face twist.
"And who are they to think they can even do anything like this with a private enterprise!" he questioned.
"The government of Gotham," Pierce replied as he was handed a legal document, one which mentioned how, under special circumstances, the government of Gotham was stepping in to protect an essential community asset.
Half the shit was something he had never heard, nor would have half the damned lawyers in this city. Yet essentially, it was that 'Thomas Wayne is too controversial and dangerous to run a company this size.'
"This piece of jargon won't stand for a day in any court! I knew Mr. Mayor was dumb, but this is insanity. I have taken this company to heights not even imaginable, and they think they can oust me from it," he said with a chuckle as he looked Pierce in the eye and tore the whole paper into bits and pieces and threw it to the side.
"You think you are the right person to run this company. You were a buffoon who earned his wealth by riding on the coattails of men better than you," Thomas insulted him as Pierce grit his teeth, his face flushed in as the Board room was filled with silence.
"No!" Pierce managed to eek out and Thomas chuckled.
"Then who do they think they can replace me with," he questioned, and suddenly teh doors behind him were opened once more as the clack of heels rang out into the room.
"That will be me," came the voice of a woman, and he glanced back and stilled. She was a black-haired beauty, taller than the average woman, dressed in a fine Black dress. Her green eyes stared straight at him, and the striking resemblances to another face weren't quite lost to him as he gasped out.
"You...." his mind raced as he realized that this whole thing was much bigger than he had first thought.
She walked to the seat opposite him, beside Pierce, and looked him in the eye as the whole room hung in silence.
"I am..."
"I know exactly who you are," Thomas said. He saw her eyes widen for a second, surprised at his words, yet she didn't shift as she smiled sweetly.
"That is good then. You must know that while not a genius like you, I have quite some experience running a business, and I would appreciate it if you would make this transition peaceful. This whole arrangement will only last until the charges against you have been investigated. So, I am hopin..."
"Leave us!" his voice rang out across the room as he glanced down at his watch at the message he had just received from Lucius.
'It's done'
"What..." a few members questioned, as he looked up and spoke up a bit more emphatically as he pointed his thumb at the doors.
"I said, leave us!" he spoke again, and the people in the room shifted as they began to file out one by one, leaving him alone with the woman who sat opposite him, who was now looking at him with curious eyes.
The men left the room one by one until it was empty. Apart from them, of course.
And immediately, her demeanour shifted. Gone was the ambitious and polite CEO, and then appeared the second in command of the League of Shadows, the girl who had survived through hell.
"It seems there is no use pretending with you," she said as she placed her legs on the table.
The angel of death. Talia Al Ghul, her real name: Talia Ducard.
"I had heard that you were quite uncanny in just how much you know. It seems they were right," she said, and he grit his teeth.
"What are you doing here?" he questioned.
"If you know my name, then you must know that as well," she replied, and he indeed did.
"I shall do to you what you did to me. I will take everything from you, just as you took it all from me," she said scathingly.
"I did nothing of the sort. Your father was a victim of his own hubris; your anger and rage is misguided," he replied.
"So, let me give you the same offer I gave him. Stop and go back to whichever hole you crawled out of. Otherwise, I will go to war, and I can assure you will not like that," he threatened because he was done playing this whole game with a glove.
The tension in the room was palpable as she looked him in the eye.
"You truly are interesting, but I am not afraid of you, so war it is, Mr. Wayne," she said, and Thomas stood up, his watch ringing with another message, and he smirked.
"Then war it is. And I am afraid your services are no longer required," he replied, making her frown as he took out his phone and, after opening a recently received document, flung it across the table towards her.
"Whatever shit 'jargon' you used to get here was just thrown out in the Court," he said as he saw her eyes skim over the document.
And with that, he stood up and reached for the door.
"Don't let the door hit you on the way out," and as he twisted the handles, the door didn't budge as he felt it locked.
His head snapped back, and he saw her smirking at him.
"You weren't the only one who came here with surprises," she began as she walked out of the chair. Both of them walked toward each other, and the screens inside the room lit up.
His eyes widened as he saw the faces of the two people on the screen—Bruce and Selina.
"Where are they?" he asked in a snarl, his mind already racing as he tried to think of a solution.
"They are alive," she replied.
"For now?"
And with that, the room was suddenly filled with half a dozen men, who dropped down from the roof from nowhere, surrounding him as she put forward a piece of paper and a pen.
"But that could change really quickly."
He backed off, slowly his back to the great glass walls of the floor as he pretended to read the proposal, it was an admission of guilt for the murder of Carmine Falcone, Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle.
"An interesting little ploy," he commented, for it was indeed clever.
The admission basically pinned all these murders on him and donated all his holdings and assets to an unknown charity, which he suspected was a front for the League.
"But I am afraid I am not playing," he replied as the window behind him broke and the league's assassin fired at him. A few bullets hit his bulletproof hit, making him wince in pain as he jumped down.
0000
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BRUCE WAYNE
"I am Gotham's reckoning!" came the answer, ringing alarm bells. He could already tell that they were being surrounded as he spoke, their movements all too familiar to him after years of training in similar manoeuvres.
"The League?" he realized as the man.
"Indeed, at least what is left of it after your brother decided to hunt us down," came the answer, his voice thick and grizzly as the giant of a man stepped forward.
"But no matter, we shall soon have our revenge and finish what we began in Gotham," came the answer. Bruce reached for his mask to alert Thomas of what was coming his way when suddenly, a massive boom ricked the room.
BOOM!
"AGH!" he grunted in pain as electric shock from his helmet rippled through him, and he felt his vision darken once more as his night vision went out.
"There is no need to tell your brother, and he shall soon learn of it himself," the grizzly voice rang out as his eyes adjusted to the darkness.
"Look at you," suddenly the voice seemed angrier as he felt a punch rip past his face before he blocked a kick, though not before another hit his gut; even through the Kevlar, it hit him, making him grunt.
"You have forgotten that Darkness is your ally and have lost your way," he shouted even as they engaged in a fist fight. Bruce hit him as well, yet the giant man was unmoved, and his attacks did not seem to have any effect on him.
"You have grown weak, and now your weakness shall cost you!" he was kicked in the gut and sent railing back into the wall, his back cracking as he fell down.
"AGHH!" he tried to get back up, yet he was injured rather badly. He reached into his belt and took out two grenades, a flashbang and one with sleeping gas.
He opened them both and flung them across the room.
BOOM! The flashbang went off, and he tried to race away, yet he suddenly had to scream out in pain as a massive steel rod was impaled down onto his leg.
"ARGH!" he screamed in pain as the grizzly man stepped forward and picked up teh sleeping gas grenade, walked towards him, and crushed the filter in his mask as he put it below his nose.
Bruce held his breath as he looked the man in the eye, yet he knew that it was futile. He would have to breathe.
"Who are you?" he asked again as blood dripped down his face, and he felt his vision blur as the answer came far too late.
"I am Bane!"
0000
THOMAS WAYNE
Thomas Wayne walked towards the Board meeting room with a fury in his steps as he moved through the Halls, his mind racing as he tried to think up just what was going on.
All of this reminded him of the whole thing with the League and the whole disaster that had been. He had vowed to himself that he would not let such a thing happen again.
And as he pushed open The doors to the meeting room even as the secretary rushed to stop him.
"Mr. Wayne," but her voice faded into the background as he stepped into the room filled with the Wayne Enterprises board of directors and an all too familiar intruder.
"You!" he snarled in rage, as his eyes landed on Pierce as he stood at the head of the table with smug grin on his face, the blonde bastard smiled as he spoke up.
"Hello there, Thom..."
"Shut it!" Thomas cut him off as the man flushed as his eyes landed on the inhouse Council sitting at the side.
"What the hell is this?" he questioned as Ramesh spluttered.
"Sir, the government..."
"They think you are a threat to an essential community asset," Pierce's voice cut in, making his face twist.
"And who are they to think they can even do anything like this with a private enterprise!" he questioned.
"The government of Gotham," Pierce replied as he was handed a legal document, one which mentioned how, under special circumstances, the government of Gotham was stepping in to protect an essential community asset.
Half the shit was something he had never heard, nor would have half the damned lawyers in this city. Yet essentially, it was that 'Thomas Wayne is too controversial and dangerous to run a company this size.'
"This piece of jargon won't stand for a day in any court! I knew Mr. Mayor was dumb, but this is insanity. I have taken this company to heights not even imaginable, and they think they can oust me from it," he said with a chuckle as he looked Pierce in the eye and tore the whole paper into bits and pieces and threw it to the side.
"You think you are the right person to run this company. You were a buffoon who earned his wealth by riding on the coattails of men better than you," Thomas insulted him as Pierce grit his teeth, his face flushed in as the Board room was filled with silence.
"No!" Pierce managed to eek out and Thomas chuckled.
"Then who do they think they can replace me with," he questioned, and suddenly teh doors behind him were opened once more as the clack of heels rang out into the room.
"That will be me," came the voice of a woman, and he glanced back and stilled. She was a black-haired beauty, taller than the average woman, dressed in a fine Black dress. Her green eyes stared straight at him, and the striking resemblances to another face weren't quite lost to him as he gasped out.
"You...." his mind raced as he realized that this whole thing was much bigger than he had first thought.
She walked to the seat opposite him, beside Pierce, and looked him in the eye as the whole room hung in silence.
"I am..."
"I know exactly who you are," Thomas said. He saw her eyes widen for a second, surprised at his words, yet she didn't shift as she smiled sweetly.
"That is good then. You must know that while not a genius like you, I have quite some experience running a business, and I would appreciate it if you would make this transition peaceful. This whole arrangement will only last until the charges against you have been investigated. So, I am hopin..."
"Leave us!" his voice rang out across the room as he glanced down at his watch at the message he had just received from Lucius.
'It's done'
"What..." a few members questioned, as he looked up and spoke up a bit more emphatically as he pointed his thumb at the doors.
"I said, leave us!" he spoke again, and the people in the room shifted as they began to file out one by one, leaving him alone with the woman who sat opposite him, who was now looking at him with curious eyes.
The men left the room one by one until it was empty. Apart from them, of course.
And immediately, her demeanour shifted. Gone was the ambitious and polite CEO, and then appeared the second in command of the League of Shadows, the girl who had survived through hell.
"It seems there is no use pretending with you," she said as she placed her legs on the table.
The angel of death. Talia Al Ghul, her real name: Talia Ducard.
"I had heard that you were quite uncanny in just how much you know. It seems they were right," she said, and he grit his teeth.
"What are you doing here?" he questioned.
"If you know my name, then you must know that as well," she replied, and he indeed did.
"I shall do to you what you did to me. I will take everything from you, just as you took it all from me," she said scathingly.
"I did nothing of the sort. Your father was a victim of his own hubris; your anger and rage is misguided," he replied.
"So, let me give you the same offer I gave him. Stop and go back to whichever hole you crawled out of. Otherwise, I will go to war, and I can assure you will not like that," he threatened because he was done playing this whole game with a glove.
The tension in the room was palpable as she looked him in the eye.
"You truly are interesting, but I am not afraid of you, so war it is, Mr. Wayne," she said, and Thomas stood up, his watch ringing with another message, and he smirked.
"Then war it is. And I am afraid your services are no longer required," he replied, making her frown as he took out his phone and, after opening a recently received document, flung it across the table towards her.
"Whatever shit 'jargon' you used to get here was just thrown out in the Court," he said as he saw her eyes skim over the document.
And with that, he stood up and reached for the door.
"Don't let the door hit you on the way out," and as he twisted the handles, the door didn't budge as he felt it locked.
His head snapped back, and he saw her smirking at him.
"You weren't the only one who came here with surprises," she began as she walked out of the chair. Both of them walked toward each other, and the screens inside the room lit up.
His eyes widened as he saw the faces of the two people on the screen—Bruce and Selina.
"Where are they?" he asked in a snarl, his mind already racing as he tried to think of a solution.
"They are alive," she replied.
"For now?"
And with that, the room was suddenly filled with half a dozen men, who dropped down from the roof from nowhere, surrounding him as she put forward a piece of paper and a pen.
"But that could change really quickly."
He backed off, slowly his back to the great glass walls of the floor as he pretended to read the proposal, it was an admission of guilt for the murder of Carmine Falcone, Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle.
"An interesting little ploy," he commented, for it was indeed clever.
The admission basically pinned all these murders on him and donated all his holdings and assets to an unknown charity, which he suspected was a front for the League.
"But I am afraid I am not playing," he replied as the window behind him broke and the league's assassin fired at him. A few bullets hit his bulletproof hit, making him wince in pain as he jumped down.
0000
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- Location
- England
As long as it didn't Rickroll the room.
suit, I presume.
Last edited:
Chapter 33-A Show on Demand!
Chapter 33
THOMAS WAYNE
The news in Gotham was all reporting on the same thing.
~Brother's Feud turns bloody!~
~Thomas Wayne, and his Villain Fiancee! ~
~The Fight to control Wayne Enterprises! Gov. Steps in!~
~Thalia Ducard! Who is Bruce Wayne's estranged wife~
There were a hundred different forms of the argument, yet all of them boiled down to the same thing. That somehow, in the fight for the Wayne fortune, he had killed Bruce and was now on the run.
Thomas himself was in his bunker, watching the city unravel as doubt crept into people's hearts and the city prepared to tear itself apart. This was carnage.
"I did not know Mr. Bruce ever had a wife," Lucius added from behind as they bunkered down in a secretive underground facility.
"No," he replied. When news of government interference emerged, and he had not received any signal from Bruce's tracker, he realized that something might be wrong. He had ordered the man to either relocate or dispose of all their secretive inventory as a precaution.
An action he was quite thankful for, given how everything had turned out.
"Neither did I," he said as he watched the live feed of Thalia Al Ghul addressing the press and telling them how she was Bruce's estranged wife and had been called back by him because he felt that his life was in danger.
"But what will we do now? The Police suspect us for murdering your brother, and without him, there is no Batman to solve this whole mess," Lucius pointed out, and Thomas nodded.
"The league was not alone in this," he replied, referring to the feeds from various Gotham prisons. The video showed several individuals wearing joker masks helping the inmates escape.
Thomas sighed as he plopped back into the seat.
"The league has made it so that I cannot act as Thomas Wayne, and with both Selina and Bruce captured, I have to be very cautious in how I act," he said. Even now, he was using their recently launched satellites to look for both of them, monitoring every digital signal in the air.
"Though I understand the necessity of it all, I still find it highly inappropriate," Lucius said as he looked over the massive screens, and Thomas sighed. He could sympathize with that sentiment.
"Truthfully, I do not like using it as well. But we are living in interesting times, and I refuse to hamper myself for my loss would mean my enemy's victory, a victory that would result in the loss of thousands of lives," he said as the computer pinged.
"Found them!" Thomas smiled at the first good news of the day.
"Selina is in the city, though Bruce is in a plane moving out of the country," Lucius pointed out towards the moving dot.
Then he saw all the news networks shift and a video began to play.
~Hello, Everyone! ~ and it was the Joker. The camera shook violently as the Joker smiled into the camera.
~I Hope you haven't missed me~ he said as he kissed the screen, smearing its edges with his red lipstick.
"Try to angulate the location of the feed," he said, and Lucius nodded as they tried to find the location of the transmission.
~Today, I have a special guest for you. She was delivered to me by some very special friends! She is feeling a bit down, so I would like for all of you to give a warm welcome to~ and Thomas felt a chill run through him as the camera shifted and showed a face much familiar to him.
"Selina!" he gasped out as the location of the feed matched with the earlier location of Selina.
Lucius was worried as well and Thomas saw him glance towards him.
~Tadaa! I am pleased to present to you Thomas Wayne's partner in crime, the daughter of Carmine Falcone, Selinaaaaa~ And Joker laughed and Thomas's fists balled up as he saw the bruises on her face.
~Of course, there were little complications in this, and our friend was not wholly cooperative, but in the end, my jokes did the trick, and we became quite close friends~ and then he turned towards her placing his face by hers as he put the camera infront of them.
~ Didn't we?" he smiled, and he could see Selina nod.
~We did~ she remarked.
~And in the course of our friendship, she shared an itsy bitsy secret with lil' old me~ Joker began, and Thomas's eyes narrowed.
~Now tell us all, why did Thomas Wayne kill his brother~ he asked, and he saw Seline shift nervously.
~Tell us. Tell us.~ Joker sing songed creepily before suddenly his face shifted.
~TELL ME!~ he suddenly screamed, and he saw Selina's gaze shift off the camera for a few seconds continuously, her eyes narrowing slightly before she looked into the camera and gulped.
~Thomas Wayne killed his brother...~ and she stopped again, her gaze shifting off camera once more.
~Because Batman was a thorn in his plans to control Gotham...~ she again, and for the third time, her gaze shifted to the side.
~And why was that?~
~Because Thomas Wayne is Batman~
And the silence in the bunker was deafening.
~And so here we have it, Wayne's little secret. Bruce Wayne, the billionaire playboy, was the masked hero protecting this city~
~Thomas Wayne has robbed us of this hero. He is a villain masquerading as a messiah. And he should be brought to justice!~ he raged, and Thomas stilled as he saw a timer appear on the video.
~The city is already in his control. And so I must carry this burden by myself ~ and then he stared into the camera.
~Surrender yourself within an hour to the people of Gotham. Otherwise...~ he pointed the gun towards Selina and made a mock shooting gesture.
~Hahahahaaahaha...I will be waiting~
And then the feed cut off, leaving only a timer behind.
The silence in the bunker was chilling, much like his own rage, as he stared at the screen.
"What will you do, Thomas?" Lucius questioned, and Thomas looked at the screen once more; Bruce's location was more than an hour away. If he were to try and rescue him, he would have to give up on Selina.
"I need to make a call," he said and moved to the back of the bunker as he took out his special cell and dialed a number.
"What can I do for you, Thomas?" came the voice of his lawyer.
"You told me you were contacted by a Diana Prince rather recently. Is there any chance she left you a way of contacting her?" he questioned.
"Yes, she left a number," came the answer.
"Good, send it to me."
And with that, the call ended as he dialed the number he received, and after two bells, the ringing stopped.
"I need your help." He got straight to the point.
"How can I help you, Mr. Wayne?" came the answer from the other side.
"I need you to crash a plane."
There was silence on the other side for quite sometime before the answer came.
"Send me the coordinates. I will see what I can do."
With that, the line went off, and Thomas sent Bruce's location to the number, as Lucius added from behind.
"Who was that?" he questioned.
"A friend in the making," he replied.
"I believe you were talking about your brother's place. But that still leaves Miss Kyle and this whole secret of Batman's identity," Lucius added, and Thomas nodded.
"It does indeed, but you are missing something very important, Lucius," Thomas added as he pressed a button on his phone, and a suit emerged out of the ground, this one much different than his white knight armor. Much darker in color and very similar to the armor of the masked vigilante that roamed Gotham's streets.
"Anyone can wear a suit," he said as he turned towards the suit.
"The Joker wanted a show. I will give him one."
0000
Rachel Dawes sat in her room watching the news, her heart sinking with every second as both Thomas and Bruce's phones remained turned off. She did not believe the news, but there was something wrong, something massively wrong.
And it was time that she got some answer, and so as she was about to leave her little abode with a trench coat in hand a car, a very familiar car stopped infront of her door, and a very familiar face stepped out of it.
"Alfred," she spoke in surprise and worry as the old butler opened the car door.
"What are you doing here?" she questioned, and the butler's expression was somber.
"I am here for you, Miss Dawes," he said.
"But where is Bruce and Thomas? What's going on?" she questioned in a flurry as the old butler.
"You will soon have all the answers, but first, you need to come with me," had it been anyone else, she would not have entered the car, yet this was Alfred. So, reluctantly she did and surprisingly the car was not empty as another person was already inside.
His face was angulated, and he had an obscure contraption attached to his eye that gleamed an ominous red.
"Who are you?" she questioned cautiously.
"I am the one who's been keeping an eye on you and the old man for Mr Wayne."
0000
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THOMAS WAYNE
The news in Gotham was all reporting on the same thing.
~Brother's Feud turns bloody!~
~Thomas Wayne, and his Villain Fiancee! ~
~The Fight to control Wayne Enterprises! Gov. Steps in!~
~Thalia Ducard! Who is Bruce Wayne's estranged wife~
There were a hundred different forms of the argument, yet all of them boiled down to the same thing. That somehow, in the fight for the Wayne fortune, he had killed Bruce and was now on the run.
Thomas himself was in his bunker, watching the city unravel as doubt crept into people's hearts and the city prepared to tear itself apart. This was carnage.
"I did not know Mr. Bruce ever had a wife," Lucius added from behind as they bunkered down in a secretive underground facility.
"No," he replied. When news of government interference emerged, and he had not received any signal from Bruce's tracker, he realized that something might be wrong. He had ordered the man to either relocate or dispose of all their secretive inventory as a precaution.
An action he was quite thankful for, given how everything had turned out.
"Neither did I," he said as he watched the live feed of Thalia Al Ghul addressing the press and telling them how she was Bruce's estranged wife and had been called back by him because he felt that his life was in danger.
"But what will we do now? The Police suspect us for murdering your brother, and without him, there is no Batman to solve this whole mess," Lucius pointed out, and Thomas nodded.
"The league was not alone in this," he replied, referring to the feeds from various Gotham prisons. The video showed several individuals wearing joker masks helping the inmates escape.
Thomas sighed as he plopped back into the seat.
"The league has made it so that I cannot act as Thomas Wayne, and with both Selina and Bruce captured, I have to be very cautious in how I act," he said. Even now, he was using their recently launched satellites to look for both of them, monitoring every digital signal in the air.
"Though I understand the necessity of it all, I still find it highly inappropriate," Lucius said as he looked over the massive screens, and Thomas sighed. He could sympathize with that sentiment.
"Truthfully, I do not like using it as well. But we are living in interesting times, and I refuse to hamper myself for my loss would mean my enemy's victory, a victory that would result in the loss of thousands of lives," he said as the computer pinged.
"Found them!" Thomas smiled at the first good news of the day.
"Selina is in the city, though Bruce is in a plane moving out of the country," Lucius pointed out towards the moving dot.
Then he saw all the news networks shift and a video began to play.
~Hello, Everyone! ~ and it was the Joker. The camera shook violently as the Joker smiled into the camera.
~I Hope you haven't missed me~ he said as he kissed the screen, smearing its edges with his red lipstick.
"Try to angulate the location of the feed," he said, and Lucius nodded as they tried to find the location of the transmission.
~Today, I have a special guest for you. She was delivered to me by some very special friends! She is feeling a bit down, so I would like for all of you to give a warm welcome to~ and Thomas felt a chill run through him as the camera shifted and showed a face much familiar to him.
"Selina!" he gasped out as the location of the feed matched with the earlier location of Selina.
Lucius was worried as well and Thomas saw him glance towards him.
~Tadaa! I am pleased to present to you Thomas Wayne's partner in crime, the daughter of Carmine Falcone, Selinaaaaa~ And Joker laughed and Thomas's fists balled up as he saw the bruises on her face.
~Of course, there were little complications in this, and our friend was not wholly cooperative, but in the end, my jokes did the trick, and we became quite close friends~ and then he turned towards her placing his face by hers as he put the camera infront of them.
~ Didn't we?" he smiled, and he could see Selina nod.
~We did~ she remarked.
~And in the course of our friendship, she shared an itsy bitsy secret with lil' old me~ Joker began, and Thomas's eyes narrowed.
~Now tell us all, why did Thomas Wayne kill his brother~ he asked, and he saw Seline shift nervously.
~Tell us. Tell us.~ Joker sing songed creepily before suddenly his face shifted.
~TELL ME!~ he suddenly screamed, and he saw Selina's gaze shift off the camera for a few seconds continuously, her eyes narrowing slightly before she looked into the camera and gulped.
~Thomas Wayne killed his brother...~ and she stopped again, her gaze shifting off camera once more.
~Because Batman was a thorn in his plans to control Gotham...~ she again, and for the third time, her gaze shifted to the side.
~And why was that?~
~Because Thomas Wayne is Batman~
And the silence in the bunker was deafening.
~And so here we have it, Wayne's little secret. Bruce Wayne, the billionaire playboy, was the masked hero protecting this city~
~Thomas Wayne has robbed us of this hero. He is a villain masquerading as a messiah. And he should be brought to justice!~ he raged, and Thomas stilled as he saw a timer appear on the video.
~The city is already in his control. And so I must carry this burden by myself ~ and then he stared into the camera.
~Surrender yourself within an hour to the people of Gotham. Otherwise...~ he pointed the gun towards Selina and made a mock shooting gesture.
~Hahahahaaahaha...I will be waiting~
And then the feed cut off, leaving only a timer behind.
The silence in the bunker was chilling, much like his own rage, as he stared at the screen.
"What will you do, Thomas?" Lucius questioned, and Thomas looked at the screen once more; Bruce's location was more than an hour away. If he were to try and rescue him, he would have to give up on Selina.
"I need to make a call," he said and moved to the back of the bunker as he took out his special cell and dialed a number.
"What can I do for you, Thomas?" came the voice of his lawyer.
"You told me you were contacted by a Diana Prince rather recently. Is there any chance she left you a way of contacting her?" he questioned.
"Yes, she left a number," came the answer.
"Good, send it to me."
And with that, the call ended as he dialed the number he received, and after two bells, the ringing stopped.
"I need your help." He got straight to the point.
"How can I help you, Mr. Wayne?" came the answer from the other side.
"I need you to crash a plane."
There was silence on the other side for quite sometime before the answer came.
"Send me the coordinates. I will see what I can do."
With that, the line went off, and Thomas sent Bruce's location to the number, as Lucius added from behind.
"Who was that?" he questioned.
"A friend in the making," he replied.
"I believe you were talking about your brother's place. But that still leaves Miss Kyle and this whole secret of Batman's identity," Lucius added, and Thomas nodded.
"It does indeed, but you are missing something very important, Lucius," Thomas added as he pressed a button on his phone, and a suit emerged out of the ground, this one much different than his white knight armor. Much darker in color and very similar to the armor of the masked vigilante that roamed Gotham's streets.
"Anyone can wear a suit," he said as he turned towards the suit.
"The Joker wanted a show. I will give him one."
0000
Rachel Dawes sat in her room watching the news, her heart sinking with every second as both Thomas and Bruce's phones remained turned off. She did not believe the news, but there was something wrong, something massively wrong.
And it was time that she got some answer, and so as she was about to leave her little abode with a trench coat in hand a car, a very familiar car stopped infront of her door, and a very familiar face stepped out of it.
"Alfred," she spoke in surprise and worry as the old butler opened the car door.
"What are you doing here?" she questioned, and the butler's expression was somber.
"I am here for you, Miss Dawes," he said.
"But where is Bruce and Thomas? What's going on?" she questioned in a flurry as the old butler.
"You will soon have all the answers, but first, you need to come with me," had it been anyone else, she would not have entered the car, yet this was Alfred. So, reluctantly she did and surprisingly the car was not empty as another person was already inside.
His face was angulated, and he had an obscure contraption attached to his eye that gleamed an ominous red.
"Who are you?" she questioned cautiously.
"I am the one who's been keeping an eye on you and the old man for Mr Wayne."
0000
Read ahead and support me on Patreon and help me write this and other such stories.
www.Patreon.com/Drkest
Have an awesome day!
- Location
- England
That was a pun worthy of Robin in Teen Titans.
That should be "plane".
Yes, technically that is a word. I'm not sure what you think it means there, though.
But then everybody would have to move to Bloodhaven. Or, worse, Detroit.
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