Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 20:24:43 -0800 (PST) From: Author James <authorjames2002@yahoo.com> Subject: Judgments of a Real Dark Knight 6 Disclaimer: This story, though maybe not in this chapter but in subsequent chapters, will have celebrities in it. I have no knowledge of their sexuality and this is not intended to imply their sexuality. This is all from my own mind. Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel and all related characters created by Joss Whedon. Copyright 20th Century Fox. Batman, and all related characters created by Bob Kane. Copyright DC Comics and Warner Bros. X-MEN, and all related characters created by Stan Lee. Copyright Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox. The Vampire Chronicles and all related characters created by Anne Rice. Copyright Anne O'Brien Rice. Star Wars and all related concepts created by or based on the universe created by George Lucas. Copyright 20th Century Fox, LucasFilms Ltd. and Lucas Books/Ballantine Books. I don't know for sure if I will use all the above elements, but just in case, I have myself covered. I have received many emails from people who have enjoyed it and some from those who do not. I would enjoy hearing from you. Any emails you send, please tell me what chapter and story you are commenting on. Thanks. authorjames2002@yahoo.com I also have several online messenger services. If you want to chat with me in real time, email me and tell me the services you use and I will tell you my screen name. Other stories in this universe written by other authors: "Tales of a Superhero Band" "Tales of the New Phoenix" Chapter 6 Meeting Contacts Later that evening, I sat in the garden looking up at the sky. Everything seemed so uncertain. It was a scary time for many. "Are you alone?" a voice asked. I turned around to see Punisher standing at the entranceway. "Yeah. Come on out." "I need to talk to you. You are trained for stuff like this." "What can I do for you?" I asked, trying to sound professional. "I'm worried about Ghost Rider." "Understandable. All of your friends seem worried." "But Johnny and I are more than friends. We're lovers." I nodded my head in understanding. "I feel like I'm responsible for bringing him into this. If it hadn't have been for me, he wouldn't even be Ghost Rider. He would be finding a nice normal guy to date. He wouldn't have to worry about his ex-wife and son thinking he's a freak. He wouldn't put them in danger." "Those are understandable fears. Tell me, how did he become Ghost Rider?" "He used a spell book and caused a spirit of vengeance to possess him. He did it because I was taken by the Friends of Humanity. He did it to rescue me." "Where did he get the supplies needed for this spell?" I asked. "I assume he had it. I had helped him unpack and saw the books." "So he could have done the spell at any time." "Right." "Sounds to me like you shouldn't blame yourself for him being Ghost Rider. He could have done some other kind of spell to get him in this predicament. At least now he has you to help him." The Punisher was silent for a moment. Then he looked up at me and nodded, and for the first time, I saw hope in his eyes. "Thank you." "You're welcome. We'll get him back for you." The Punisher nodded and left the garden. I was glad I could help him. We all need as much encouragement as we needed at this time. A few minutes later Lance came in with a young boy whom I recognized as Davey from the conference table. I stood up and went to Lance taking him into my arms. "How are you doing?" I asked. "I'm okay. How about you?" "About the same." "Davey wanted to ask you something." I turned to the youth. "What can I do for you?" "Don't think I'm weird or anything for asking you this. But why do you dress like a bat to help people? And why do you help people anyway? You have someone important in your life. You two could have a normal life together." "True," I answered. "But why I do what I do is because I can. I have an ability to help, as well as a desire to help. Which leads to the bat-suit. Batman in the comic books is a symbol of what man can do when he devotes his life to it. It shows to me that one person can make a difference. But it doesn't matter one's powers. I became Batman before I even knew I was a mutant. Being a hero doesn't mean having special powers or gifts. Being a hero is doing what you can with what you have." "Cool," Davey replied. "Thanks." He held his hand out and I took it. Then he left Lance and me alone. We sat down and held each other. The X-Jet took Lance, Garrett, Scott, Jessica, Blade, Punisher and I back to Orlando after dropping off Blade's friends in Columbus. I was tempted to be left in Columbus to see my family, but they had made their decision in not wanting me around, at least as a mutant. If I were to conform to what they wanted me to be, I would be more than welcome there. But what kind of love is that? How can anyone be truly happy if they are forced to quell part of themselves around those who should love them unconditionally? After disembarking and saying my "goodbyes" to Dylan, Melvin, Blake and the others, the six of us climbed into Punisher's Suburban and headed to the house. We showed up to Joey's surprise. "How did everything go?" he asked as he watched the others enter. He was especially taken with Blade and Punisher, two whom he has never met. "Things went," I replied. "Is it bad?" he asked. I turned around in the middle of the living room. "Very bad." "Like, America threatened bad?" "Worse than that. What happened in New York is just one of many problems the world is facing. Sure the acts may plunge us into a war that will divide America, but there are acts that threaten the entire human race. And most of these people will have no idea what is going on." I turned around and walked to the kitchen. I stopped long enough to ask if anyone was hungry. No one was so I went into the kitchen and got a glass of ice tea. Lance came in and sat at the stool. "Eric, are you going to be okay?" "Yeah," I replied. "I just need to regroup and get myself in order. I'll be able to deal with things better when I have some organization as to what to do." I finished my tea and headed back into the living room. Jessica was listening to Garrett whispering in his ear. Joey was busy looking at Blade and Punisher. "Let me introduce you," I said. "Joey Fatone, this is Blade, Scott, and the Punisher. Scott, Blade, Punisher, this is Joey." Blade and Punisher nodded. "Hey, guys," Joey said with his large and enchanting smile. "We met a few days ago," Scott replied. "I remember," Joey replied. "Eric," Garrett said. "Would it be possible to use your telephone? I would like to contact Kara, the Watcher in Orlando. She needs to know everything that is going on." "Fine. Arrange a meeting with her and Batgirl tonight. You, Blade, Punisher and Huntress will join me in meeting her. Have her get Nightwing and Robin to the meeting as well. "Jessica, is there anyway to get Brian here?" Jessica looked up at Garrett. "There should be a way to get him here through the Council, right?" Garrett nodded. "Make it so. We are going to need as many people on this, both here and wherever we need to go. "Scott, when are we supposed to meet Northstar?" "In a few hours." "Good. You and I will do that, bring him back here, and then all of us head out to meet Batgirl." Scott and I pulled up to the small café in the SUV. We climbed out and entered. Our attention was quickly taken when we heard some rude comments being made about a patron. "So those pointed ears are because you're Vulcan, right?" someone said laughing. There were several others around him laughing as well. "They are real," was the response by an unseen person. "Let me see." The man's hand reached down when suddenly it was slapped away. "You had those ears altered on purpose?" someone else asked. "Man, that's fanatical!" "I was born like this," was the reply. "We'll find out what all you can do," the leader said grabbing at him, "you fucking fairy." The man fell forward and then quickly launched into the air. His friends stepped aside and watched as their "leader" fell into a nearby table. A foot was in mid-air around where the man's mid-section was. Then it lowered to reveal for the first time the man to whom the foot belonged, a young man with black hair and blue eyes, and pointed ears. He also had a patch of white hair as well. "That's him," Scott whispered in my ear. "I recognize his face from his bio." I nodded to him. "Let's see how he deals with this situation." Northstar slide out of the booth and looked at the men surrounding him as he stood up. He was approximately five feet eleven inches in height. He walked past them toward Scott and I. "Jean-Paul?" Scott said as he neared. "Yeah. You Scott Summers?" "That would be me." "Good. Let's go." Jean-Paul walked past us out the door. Scott and I looked at each, shrugged, then followed him out. Once outside he turned to us. "Who are you?" he asked me. "My name is Eric McCoy." "Is that any relation to either Doctors McCoy?" "Hank?" Scott asked. "And he means the Doctor from Star Trek." I replied. "No. No relation." "Ah," he replied. "You're here about Apocalypse and Mystique." "Mystique?" I replied. "I had a run in with her over the summer. She should be in jail." "That's what you think." Jean-Paul looked around. "Say, can we get out of here? Some place safe, perhaps?" "Let's go," I said. Jean-Paul, Scott and I arrived at the house and entered. Garrett was on the phone talking with Kara, Batgirl's Watcher. Blade was listening to him. Punisher, Jessica and Lance were in the kitchen chatting about her and Justin's relationship. "Hello, everyone," Jean-Paul greeted. "This is Jean-Paul, also called Northstar," I replied. We went around and introduced everyone to each other. "So," I began, "I thought Mystique was in jail. Over the summer, I met her in Sunnydale and caught her robbing and killing people. I watched the police car drive away with her. How did she get out?" "Apocalypse broke her out of the police car not long after you got her. The officers were in pretty bad shape when I found them. The two mutants had already gone." "Where did they go?" "That's the interesting part. There are many places Apocalypse could have gone. He's been sited in England, northern Africa, and Asia, as well as the United States, Canada and South America." "What does Apocalypse want with Mystique and the others?" "Simple. They are to be the Four Horsemen of Apocalypse." "Conquer, War, Famine, and Death," I muttered, remembering my Bible College Training. Jean-Paul nodded. "Precisely." "That's what he wants with Dasro, Juffrey, and Ghost Rider, as well. Ghost Rider, though, is a good guy. Is there any way he can force the position on any one?" "It's possible. Mr. Sinister is very intelligent. No doubt he has studied many ways to control people." "We've got to stop them. But tonight, we meet Batgirl." I pulled the bat car up to the alley and climbed out. Huntress pulled up behind me on my motorcycle. Garrett was holding onto her and climbed off the bike first. Northstar came running up behind them. "Here is where she said to meet," Garret replied. Punisher's Suburban pulled up at the end of the alley with Freeze and Cyclops and they climbed out. "Garrett!" someone called out. We looked around and then up finding the Watcher waving to us. We climbed up the ladder to the roof and found Batgirl, Nightwing and Robin waiting with a woman who was obviously Batgirl's Watcher, Kara. "Hello, Kara," Garret greeted. "Pleasure to meet you. Sadly it is in such dire circumstances." "That is the way of the Watchers," Kara replied. "We do our duty." "Of course. Let me introduce you. This is Huntress, my Slayer. Blade, Punisher, Mr. Freeze, Cyclops, Northstar and Batman." "And allow me to introduce you to Batgirl, Nightwing and Robin." The two groups nodded to one another. Then I stepped forward. "It is good to see everyone again," I began. "I wish we had time to enjoy each other's company. But the events of the past few days indicate we don't have much time. There is a threat growing on two fronts at the very least. One is a war with vampires. Another with mutants. And we are going to need everyone helping on this one." "That's what Batgirl was telling us," Nightwing said. "Is this mutant powerful enough to do what everyone claims he can do?" "Very much so," Cyclops answered. "He is very, very old and practically immortal. And his only desire is to conquer and rule." "How do we defeat this guy?" Robin asked. "That's a good question," I answered. "We're not sure how. But we aren't in this alone. We have hundreds, if not thousands of others helping us deal with the Apocalypse situation. We are going to defeat him." "Where do we come in? And how can we help?" "I'm thinking of us dealing with both problems. We break up into two teams, one to stay in Orlando and deal with the vampire war. The other to find out information on Apocalypse and deal with that threat. I suggest that those who deal with the vampires are Batgirl, Nightwing, Robin and Freeze. All of you have been trained to deal with vampires any way. It would do the city well to have all of you fighting to defend it. The rest of you, Blade, Punisher, Huntress, Cyclops and Northstar work with me and help us uncover Apocalypse's plans. Does anyone have any questions or concerns about this?" All were quiet. "I would leave the information about the vampires to the Watchers. They know more about the vampire threat than any of us." Kara nodded and stepped up. "I've been in contact with the Council and it appears we will be having several species of vampire to deal with. Many will be the soulless kind you are used to battling on a nightly basis. They are strong and ferocious. But they are easier to deal with than the others. "There is a species that is allergic to silver, fire, garlic and ultraviolet rays." "I've dealt extensively with that species," Blade answered. "So has Punisher." Kara looked at him and nodded, acknowledging his wisdom. Then she addressed the rest of the group. "You will be equipped with silver stakes and other silver weapons to deal with this threat. "Another species, perhaps the most dangerous, are those that are only vulnerable to sunlight and fire. Stakes, holy weapons, garlic and silver have no affect on them. They do have souls, however, which means it is very possible that there will be few of these kind waging war on humanity. Indeed, several have been in contact with the Council and have the desire to protect humanity. "There is another species that we are concerned about. However their actual involvement is still unknown. These creatures are very primal creatures. They appear human and can move about in sunlight. The only way to know they are vampire is when they are about to feed. They transform into a bat-like creature. The only way to kill them is to wound them severely, whether with blade or other sharp object." "Thank you," I said to Kara. "Garrett will remain here and keep in contact with both Kara and the X-MEN keeping us informed as to how the others are doing. With any luck, in a few months time, we will have the threats eliminated. "This is a dangerous time. The fate of humanity rests in the balance of these powers overcoming humanity. We must do all we can to stop them. You have all been brave. And I have no doubt in my mind that we will succeed. Is there anything further?" Again, no one responded. "Good. We have our jobs to do. Let's get to work." To Be Continued... This chapter is a little bit longer than usual. But lots of stuff has happened. And even more is to come. Don't forget to check out "Tales of a Superhero Band", "Tales of the New Phoenix", and "Marvel Knights" for continuing events in this storyline.