Date: Mon, 9 Jun 2008 14:36:03 -0700 (PDT) From: Jason Decade <femtoka2@yahoo.com> Subject: Prince of Gotham 10 Prince of Gotham Chapter 10: V for Vengeance Disclaimer: This is my perspective on characters that belong to DC comics. So all rights and stuff go to them except for the character(s) that I make Up. "Tell me who he is." the guard said, "Who is Batman? I chuckled, the thought of telling someone the truth about it all was ridiculous, and "I'm Batman". I said. "Throw him back in." the guard said angrily. I smiled triumphantly, I was right. I was Batman. - - - - - - - - - - After weeks in a cage, I found myself wondering what was going on. Every day I had gotten a note from the wall. Each note described my mom's life. Basically how she got to know my dad. The last note had made me start paying attention. I couldn't stop thinking about everything that had happened. How I had gotten here. I sat day after day and as if the daily beatings weren't enough, the notes from my mother...they were heartbreaking. The notes told me about how she was beat. The notes also said something about love. Some flaw. The days went by quickly with the notes. The incessant questioning was very against the grain. The notes urged me to stay strong. It took me weeks to come up with a plan suitable for escape. I waited in the middle of the room, watching sun slide to the front of the room, that's when they came. They came. They steadily opened the door, not thinking of me as a weapon. My powerlessness had given them a false sense of security. While they beat me, I absorbed their moves, learned their styles, and came up with my own. As one dragged me out, another stood with a giant club. I grabbed the club with all the quickness I could muster and swung it around the air, clobbering the guard that held me. I jumped into the air, levitating there for a second and kicking the other guard to the ground. I grabbed the keys from the guard and quickly moved to my mother's room. I opened the door and walked into the room. No one was there, just a note. "I knew you would make it to this room. A month, two weeks, four days, six hours, twelve minutes, and fifty seconds, just the time your mother took. This is the finishing of your training. There are secrets that have no choice but to be spilled. To your left, you will find a costume, tailor made for you. And weapons. These weapons will help you on your journey. You will do justice; you will do what Batman can't do. You will find me, for I hold the secrets you wish to know." -Ra's Al Ghul I walked to the side and stared at the pile of red cloth, " Elektra, eat your heart out." I said to myself. I shed the bag they had given me and slipped into the form-fitting Red cat suit and slipped on the utility belt with holsters and slid on the cut off jacket that stopped at my Pecs. It was black and red, like the mask, that fit just over my features. The nose was pointy, like a bird and the cat suit had an insignia on it, a large H; apparently he wanted me to figure out a name that begins with *H*. I smiled as I looked myself over, then saw the shining silver and picked up the Sais, "Ra's, you know the way to my heart." I said, twirling them. On the base, they had the *H* insignia on them. I smiled, thinking to myself. It had been months. Ra's Al Ghul had done all this to get me to see. He had a secret of mine and I'm guessing I won't find the answer anywhere else. I have to find him. Maybe he was right, Batman never fully gave anyone full justice, he always had mercy...there's no mercy, not anymore. Just as I came to my realization, there was commotion down the hall and I quickly holstered my Sais and slipped out of the room. - - - - - - - - - - "Find my son, I don't care what you do, find him!" Markus bellowed through the condo. The whole S.W.A.T team and every agent in Gotham were on the case. It had been months with no leads. Markus felt it all happening again, he was losing someone very close to him, his son. Just as he had lost his wife. Ra's Al Ghoul would pay dearly. Markus had all kinds of connections and could use them anytime he pleased, "I want him here, now!" "Ask and you shall receive." I said, standing in the doorway. Dad whirled around, along with the rest of the room, " Phoenix?!" he shouted, hugging me. I didn't hug him back, "Arrest him." I frowned. "What?" Dad asked, looking at me. I handed the cops an envelope, "He's just as guilty as anyone." I said, my voice not conveying any emotion. Commissioner Gordon looked over the papers, "Looks like he's telling the truth, arrest him guys." he said. "What?" Dad said, "Think about what you're doing." "Thought about it." I said angrily, "This is what you deserve." As they took him away, there was a twinge of sadness within me, but it went away quickly as he left. I turned to the rest of the people in *my* living room and told them to leave immediately, there was somewhere I had to be. It was early morning and the day was just beginning, so I headed to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready for the day. It was going to be a doozy. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - As Bruce Wayne stood in the doorway of the Gotham's most prominent newspaper, he wondered about last night. He had been so sure that Phoenix would have been at that building. It was the perfect place to hide him. And just hours ago, Phoenix's father had been taken to jail. As he stood, trying to give orders to this room full of people who'd probably been in journalism since they'd been into their diapers. He had let the staff in on the incarceration of their boss and the *still* missing status of their second in command, leaving him. Dick had come along, mainly to laugh at the doorway, but partially to help. Just as he was about to go into a speech about keeping in tradition, there was a commotion and even Dick looked back. "Coming through." I said, making my way through the crowd, "The boss is here." "Phoenix?" Dick asked, surprised. "The one and only." I said, walking into the conference room, "And it's time to get to work, people. I run a tight ship, you already know that. My father just went to jail, so if Captain Marvel isn't fighting something big and nasty, then we're leading with that." I turned to Bruce, "You should probably leave now." I said, walking to my office. As I looked at the huge pile of papers on my desk, I sighed to myself, "I said you could leave." "What? No thanks?" Dick asked. "Dick." Bruce warned, "Are you alright? We..." "Peachy." I said, not bothering to turn, "I've got work to do, Gotham's a mess and they need a real hero." "What's that supposed to mean?" Bruce asked, still a bit in shock. I smiled, "It means change." I said, "Something is about to change." "Are you okay?" Dick asked. "I'm better than okay." I said, turning to them, "I've been away for far too long, it's time that Gotham has a reason to be afraid." "Sounds like vengeance." Bruce said. I thought about it, then walked over and got so close to Bruce that I could feel his breath, "Oh no, Bruce, it is." I said, walking back to the desk, "Now, go." Bruce and Dick looked taken back and turned, leaving the room. I smirked to myself. This was going to be fun. Renee Vaughn left club Rigsse, she counted her tips. She had given the dance of her life. This was the last bit of money that she needed to move away from Gotham and make a new life for herself. Renee had been from one job to the next and finally landed on this job after she had her baby, Micah. Micah's father had been a two-bit criminal, who just happened to work for the Joker. She had cried at first, but there was nothing she could do. He had helped commit a crime, a wide open crime. She no longer worried about herself or Micah's father, she only worried about Micah. He deserved to be brought into this world with a mother and father and be taken care of, just like any other person. Everything was great now; she had enough money to move to Metropolis or even back to Oklahoma. "Give me your money no one gets hurt." A deep voice said, holding a gun up to her head and putting his other hand out. Renee's first thought was "*NO!*," but then she thought about her baby at home. She raised her hand and as she slid him the money, a knife came from nowhere and went through the man's hand and blood sprayed everywhere! She looked to the source of the knife and saw a man dressed in a red semi-cat suit. Another hero. He was holding an identical knife. I walked over to Renee and snatched her money from the ground, "Maybe you can use those heels for more than spiking the pole." I said, "Run." Renee looked half offended, half gracious and took off with her money. The thug pulled my sai from his hand and tried to impale me, but I moved and used the other sai to cut him and grab my other sai. I ran to the wall and jumped off, kicking him in the chest. As he staggered back, I twirled my Sais over my head and stuck a sai through his sternum. I felt something when I did. A mixture of regret and excitement. "What have you done?" a dark voice said behind me. I heard a cape in the wind and before I could move, Batman was checking on the thug. "He deserved it." I said quickly, noticing Robin, "The kid shouldn't be out here." "Kid?" Robin asked, "I'm older than you." "Only in age." I said, walking off, "And age ain't anything but a number." I said, disappearing. "Is he alive?" Robin asked. "Barely, we need to get him to a hospital." Batman said. "What's with Phoenix?" Robin asked. "I don't know." Batman said, "But he's not the same person." I found my way to the rooftops and watched as the scene finished. The cops were coming and Batman stayed. I couldn't. I did the right thing, he was a robber, a petty thief and he had to be shown that he was wrong. Justice is not blind and it sees all. Just as quickly as I was alone, I wasn't. "You cause that scene?" A feline-like voice said behind me. I shrugged, turning to see Catwoman, "Little ole' me?" I asked. "Nice hardware." She said, gesturing to my Sais. "Perceptive, but you are a thief." I said, turning to the scene, "Barely more than he is." "Thanks." She said sarcastically. I smirked, "Oh yeah, you're a hero now." I smiled. "Not a hero." She purred. "Using feminine wiles to get what you want?" I smiled, "Clever, but it doesn't work on everybody." "Especially not guys in cat suits, huh?" she said casually. I nodded. What did she mean? Was I that transparent? "What's the name, anyways?" she asked. "I'm shopping for a new one. I'm thinking something Phoenix-y." I said. "How...Marvel Comics of you." Catwoman said. "Huma." I said quickly, "It's a firebird, basically Phoenix, but...it fits." "Why named..." she looked at me, "And suited after a Phoenix?" I looked at my suit, "I keep on rising from the ashes." I said, "Corny, but true." "I hear you." Catwoman smiled, "You shouldn't stay out too late, there are some crazy people out there." "Crazy. It's the world I live in." I said, turning to the edge, "Don't commit a crime." "I'll try." Catwoman said sarcastically. "It's not just a warning." I said, looking back at her. I looked at her and fog rose around us and I pulled my grappling hook from my belt and aimed it, swinging away from the building and into Gotham. As I swung from building to building, I felt something. It was wrong. It was off and suddenly I felt something hit me hard enough to fall from the air and roll across the building I was swinging over. I stood up slowly and held my side. As I looked around, Nightwing dropped onto the building, right in front of me. "Sorry, I wasn't supposed to hit you, I was..." Nightwing said, offering his hand. I kicked his feet from under him and stood, "No problem. It's not gonna be that easy." I half smiled. Nightwing got to his feet, "I didn't come here to fight." He said, "You have to stop, Bruce is looking for you." I smiled, "Really? Batman's looking for me. Feels like this is gonna be a showdown." "Phoenix..." Nightwing said. I frowned, "Name's Huma." I smirked. "Huma?" Nightwing asked, "Stop it, you're Phoenix." "Phoenix died." I said quickly, "Ra's Al Ghul showed me the way. Justice is about more than justice. It's about Vengeance." "Vengeance isn't the way." Nightwing preached. I punched him, "Feels like it to me." I said, tilting my head, "God, Bruce did a number on you, didn't he? Vengeance drives Bruce. You think he's doing all this out of the goodness of his heart? No! He's doing this because he's parents got offed. Well, my mom got offed, my dad's a jailbird, and I'm a powerful magician. Vengeance is the only way." "Criminals deserve to reflect on what they've done. It's too easy for them to just..." Nightwing preached. "Shut up." I shouted, "I don't believe that. Bruce soured your mind with his little speeches. I'm not as gullible. Criminals deserve to feel what they've caused." "How does that compare?" Nightwing asked. I sighed, "They don't deserve to live. I learned a lot about myself in that prison. I learned about my strength and that I really am the only hope for Gotham." "Really?" A dark voice asked, causing me to turn. When I did, a fist hit me in the face and I fell to the floor, smiling up at him, "You really have taken a dive off the deep end." "Careful, Brucie, you really don't want to hurt my feelings." I said, "I mean, haven't you already lost one Robin?" Batman's face hit a new intensity that I had never seen. The slits that were supposed to be his eyes lowered and his mouth closed together. "Aww, looks like I hit a nerve." I smirked, "Something strange is going on, Bats, and you'd better crack the case before I do. There won't be enough left for you to indentify, even if you are the greatest detective on Earth." "What happened to you at that compound?" Batman asked. "I saw past your bullshit." I said, closing my eyes, "You feel that? Crime." I said, opening my eyes and twirling my Sais, "Time to find the naughty criminal." I said, jumping from the building and I was immediately embraced by the shadows. "Give me your money!" a guy with a gun shouted at an old lady. I walked up behind him; my Sais poised for action, and slashed his back, "Sorry, looks like you'll have to rob someone else." "Who..." the woman asked. The man got up and pointed the gun at me, "Say goodnight, pal." He hissed. Something in the way he said it caused me to stop. That voice, I had heard it before. As he shot the gun, time seemed to freeze and I stepped out of the way, watching the bullet slowly go to where I was. I stood beside the man and chopped off his arm, grabbing him by the shoulder and pinning him against the wall with my Sais, "Goodnight, pal." I smiled. The old lady nearly died of a heart attack right there, but found her breath. "A hand for a hand." I smirked, walking away. As I walked away, the man reached down for the gun and as he was about to shoot the woman shouted and I threw a Sai into his sternum, hitting his heart right away. I turned to him and walked back. As he lay on the ground, I bent down and watched in horror as his life slipped away. I reached over to touch his face and stopped. He was dead...dying, right in front of me. There was a battle of emotions in me. He was a bad guy, but did he really deserve to die? I remembered back to Ra's Al Ghul and my mother's letters. He was bad and the system could not punish criminals like him because they didn't care. For a split second, I felt remorse for him, but it faded quickly as I smiled. My smile took even me by surprise. There was an awkward pause before the lady said anything. "Is he alright?" she asked. I got up and wiped my Sais off, "He's fine." I said, walking away. - - - - - - - - - - If you like this story, please write me and tell me so.