It was almost peaceful—oddly serene, even—when Lucian's mind went into overdrive for the first time.
'No... not the first time,' he realized. 'I... that "dream" I had. It was a memory, wasn't it?'
The first time was with that fire back in his old life. He wasn't sure, but the way his mind accelerated now felt all too familiar, and his brain could only relate it to that memory. The only other things he remembered were charging into that burning building to do something, then chasing that one guy to kill him right after.
[ Your mind is drifting. Don't chase the rabbit. ]
Right. The present.
Lucian's eyes swam in their sockets, ratcheting around like old metal ball joints in desperate need of new oil. They stopped, focusing on a blurry figure that sharpened in his sped-up mental time. Maxine was right there, just across the street. Black Spider's gun was mid-flash.
Tugging at his own mind, Lucian's skull tingled as his neurons sparked away like pyrotechnics. In response, [Shield the Blameless] came to life the same way a grease fire would rage when doused with water. Two impacts slammed into his back when the bullets hit her. The transferred force carved shallow holes into his skin and flesh, grazing bone.
When Lucian sensed his brain slowing back down to real-time, he reached out over comms. "Play dead," he commanded in a level voice so only Maxine could hear.
Another impact struck him. He went full-ragdoll across the asphalt and slammed to a stop against a building. Pain spread across his body as hairline fractures formed in his right arm's bones. The damage would have been worse without his transformation and distressingly flexible joints. When he looked up from the ground, Maxine was mid-fall.
'Good,' he thought. His mood only improved when Black Spider turned around and left. He welcomed the grin that formed behind his mask.
Channeling what was left of his lifeforce, Lucian moved before Killer Croc could reach him to finish him off. He launched himself in Maxine's direction while still parallel with the ground, lifeforce erupting from his hands and feet. That gave him enough momentum to carry himself into a sprint.
Once he reached his partner, he slammed a gaseous ball of lifeforce into her body, and then grabbed the antidote shot along with an odd stone disc. Killer Croc was approaching fast by that point, enraged that his enemy had escaped.
Lucian met his charge once more. As he jumped, ki exploded from his feet again, giving him a significant vertical boost. Clearing Killer Croc's prodigious frame and then some, he hung in the air upside-down. Reaching 'up,' lightning flashed from his hand and slammed down into Killer Croc's back. While he was immobilized by the shock, Lucian jammed the injector's needle right into the poor thing's neck and hopped off once the device was empty.
Having hustled back to Maxine, he checked her over. "Hey. I'm here. How bad did you get hurt?"
She moaned in pain, struggling to rise. "Got fucked up pretty bad... your balls helped me out a lot, though."
Her words pulled a chortle right out of him. "Alright, cherry pepper's got jokes. Hang on tight. I'm finna get us outta here."
He tenderly scooped her into his arms and actively healed her present injuries—deep cuts and bullet wounds in a few places, but nothing fatal. Still...
'I need to make her stronger. I can't keep holding back, but I can't just fight with my all and leave her in the dust whenever I bring her with me. It might time to teach her the basics of ki control...'
Just nearby, a loud thud resounded. Killer Croc had fallen over, unconscious, now that the Venom and Fear Toxin had been purged from his system.
"Well, that's that," Lucian mumbled, cradling Maxine close. Using a tendril, he popped his communication line open. "Oracle, I got scales. What do?"
"Just leave him there," she replied. "I'll coordinate something, so leave him to me... and if you can, you should return to the main Batcave. You need to get some medical attention just to be safe. There's someone who can take care of you two over there."
"Thanks... Good to know," Lucian said in turn. "And keep tabs on Black Spider if you can. I got beef with him now, too."
...
[ Notice! ]
[ Quest: Monster Hunter - Knight vs Dragon has been completed. ]
[ Rewards: ]
[ Pseudo-Dragonhide Scale-mail [B]. ]
[ EXP: 2,000. ]
[ EXP to next level: 35. ]
...
Lucian reentered the Batcave with Maxie asleep in his arms. Waiting there was Alfred, carrying medical supplies with a food cart and gurney standing by.
"Phantom Knight. Wraith," he greeted in a dignified and even tone. "Come over here, please."
Lucian cruised over on tendrils that slithered ahead like a mass of snakes. He set Maxie down on the gurney to be taken care of.
Alfred approached, first removing her mask. "She's unconscious?" he noted, cocking a brow.
"Passed out on the way here," Luce replied. "I've mostly healed her injuries, but better safe than sorry. I'll leave her to you."
"Smart," said Alfred, already pushing the gurney away. "I'll call for you when I'm done attending to her. In the meantime, that cart's all yours. Make yourself at home."
৹ ◎ ◉ ◎ ৹
Smoke flew up into the night sky. It appeared almost white against the midnight backdrop due to the flames that burned harshly down below. Embers shot up now and again, each one punctuated by a loud pop or crackle. All around, a different symphony sounded.
Vicious blows struck hard against flesh like mallets on war drums. Every impact forced shouts and grunts as fists or weapons collided with bodies. Boots stomped hard on the ground during the struggle, trampling on those who had fallen. Though gunshots could be heard, they were distant, occurring far past Blackgate's crumbling fortifications.
Batman ducked a swollen fist that swung to take off his head. He then slipped into the enemy's guard, locking his arms around the shoulder and heaving. With great exertion, he slammed his opponent into the ground neck-first, knocking him unconscious.
Such tactics would have killed normal men, yet the enemies were anything but. In the surroundings, many more brutes laid on the ground in similar states of defeat.
Panting silently through his nose, Batman reassessed the battlefield. He had dealt with most of the en-Venomed fighters with Signal and Nightwing's help. All that was left were the normal ones, who were being dealt with by the police. As for the inmates, they raged against everyone in the free-for-all. Batman and the police... Bane's small army... Even their fellow inmates served as suitable targets.
Batman hustled out from Blackgate's grounds and back into the world outside. Ambulances hurried back and forth, rescuing whomever they could. Their lights and sirens acted as beacons for the wounded, or those that carried them. Affording his mind a chance to wander, he thought back to the scene that played out just before the all-out brawl.
...
Bane had been waiting at Blackgate, wordlessly standing off with whatever Gotham's police department could spare. When Batman arrived, battered and exhausted, he orated a spiel.
"Ah... Bat Man. How lucky for you," his monologue started. "If anyone else came, I would have stayed to kill them... but there is no difference."
He raised his arms ceremoniously, putting into focus his ragtag army standing against Blackgate's imposing walls. While he continued to speak, Batman gave hushed orders to the police, who organized according to his contingencies.
"This is a message, a challenge, and a gift. You are not long for this world, Bat, and to you, I present this! This is what your beloved Gotham will look like once you are gone. This!" he paused, letting his arms fall slowly back to his sides. "... Is what your legacy will be."
Then, inevitably, both sides exploded into motion.
Batman's faction moved first. The police opened fire while some of the gangsters that Nightwing turned earlier went to charge ahead. In retaliation, some of Bane's men shot back. Some charged. Others—a few too many—suddenly swelled.
As Batman advanced, those on Venom immediately singled him out. Even as he tried to chase after Bane, he simply couldn't—the enemy forces were too overwhelming. As Bane made his escape, Batman couldn't remove himself from the brawl quickly enough to catch up.
Gritting his teeth in frustration, he resolved to neutralize every hostile he could find instead, and vowed to track down Bane as soon as the fighting in Blackgate was over.
...
Now, back in the present, Batman slumped behind a still-standing piece of wall. Nightwing and Signal approached, standing strong despite their exhaustion. In his mind, Batman cursed his aging body.
"Signal," he called out. "I'm sorry to call you out here when it's so late."
Signal—Duke Thomas—shook his head. "Don't mention it. I knew things like this would happen when I put on the suit. We all make sacrifices, remember? I'm just making mine."
Batman thinned his lips—a tell that he couldn't hide in his exhaustion. He needed to call Signal out from the manor when he realized he couldn't chase Bane himself. That he and Nightwing would not have made it through the night on their own. It was a reserve measure for situations like this one, where he had been put in a disadvantageous situation and let an enemy slip.
Rising from the ground, Batman asked, "After breaking up the fighting here, did you manage to find Bane's trail?"
Signal nodded. "For such a huge guy, he's terribly evasive," he remarked before explaining Bane's route, which he tracked using his power over light.
As expected, even through multiple detours and diversions, Bane's escape path ultimately led to the Sionis Estate—the place where Black Mask should have died to Red Hood's hands long ago. It was inconceivable how that cockroach of a man survived a bullet to the head, but it mattered no longer.
"Return to the cave," Batman ordered. "We'll regroup and recover. The others just gave word that all three aggravated rogues have been saved, so we have time to rest."
Making an effort to hide his limp, Batman only let Nightwing walk by him as they made to board their ride home. Signal flew away and took a quick route instead of joining them in the Batmobile they had summoned.
'My time's coming fast,' Bruce thought. '... Gotham should be fine when I can't fight anymore, but...'
He closed his eyes, sighing the thought away.
৹ ◎ ◉ ◎ ৹
Maxie groaned, which she immediately regretted. Her throat protested its dryness in response to her vocalization, and it put her in a bit of a snippy mood.
"Here," said a voice that quelled her irritation, far faster than it cropped up.
She sat up and accepted the glass of water. Putting it to her lips, she chugged the whole thing and nearly drowned herself. Some of the water spilled in her haste, but the refreshing coolness was worth it.
Returning the glass to Lucian, she wiped her chin and neck. "How long was I out...?"
"Not very long," he replied. He appeared somewhat dirty, hair all messy without the intentionality it usually had. Maxie knew she must have looked a lot worse.
Checking her own body, Wraith clothing replaced with plain gowns, she found that her wounds were all gone. She did have scars leftover, and though many, they were minor. She recalled taking a handful of shots, mostly around her limbs. One or two also caught her side, and now, they had healed into little dot scars that could easily hide among her freckles.
Worse than her bullet scars though, were the slashing wounds from her attacker's blades. She received them in the initial scuffle, and were isolated to her arms. She figured they could be explained away as workplace injuries if anybody pried...
In the end, she could only chuckle at the consequences of her choices. "I don't know how to feel about these body mods," she said. "I'm more of a piercing type of girl."
"We could probably make them disappear," Lucian suggested as he joined her on the medical bed. "Given more time, it'd be a guarantee."
Staring down at her right hand, Maxie fell pensive. She squeezed her fist a few times, watching the root-like scars shift around her knuckles. "No," she replied. "It's weird, but... I wanna keep them all as a reminder."
He took her hand into his, rubbing his thumb over her scar tissue. "You sure?"
"Mm," she replied. "What we did back there... it was stupid," she added. "I should've stayed behind. I wasn't ready, and it cost you..." When she paused, Lucian leaned his head on hers. He was purring as well—literally like a cat—and a little smile blossomed on her face as she continued. "You should've gone as your other alter ego."
"Miss Maxine is right," said a dignified voice.
There was an elderly man in the white room with them, who sported a butler uniform. Maxie failed to notice his presence, and she just knew that the girls would be disappointed in her.
The butler-type man continued, approaching with a silver tray in his hands. "In the future, I advise against doing anything so rash... and it seems like I'll have to teach Batman this lesson again."
"Again?" Maxie parroted.
"It's happened before," the butler replied. "And pardon the late introduction... I didn't want to ruin your moment." He set down the tray he'd brought—presumably filled with food judging by the fancy cover—and stepped back. "Alfred Pennyworth. I've been keeping Batman and people like you alive since my master was but a boy."
The cogs in Maxie's head, cold and slow-moving with her recent rousing, worked to pick up speed and connect some dots. "Pennyworth? You mean the Pennyworth? The one with—"
"I serve the Wayne family, yes," Alfred interrupted. "I say this only to prepare you for what comes next. That, and your lover here has already figured it out himself. Do apologize to Miss Brown on my behalf, though this situation is fitting considering her moniker."
With a nearly-blank face, Maxie chuckled. It was more of a gag of disbelief, really, but the difference didn't matter. "Huh... I totally see it now," she muttered.
While she looked down at nothing in particular, contemplating her existence, Alfred checked his bare wrist. "Well... now that you're awake, I must make my leave. The others should be returning soon. Please, enjoy the food, and do check on your loved ones."
...
Following Alfred's advice, Lucian called up Bailey. Maxie had left her phone behind in the apartments, so things ended up that way. The conversation that followed was... 'energetic.'
Over the course of their talks, both sides confirmed each other's situation. Bailey and Brodie were safe, having been kept within Wayne Enterprise territory—the riots had only affected Gotham's denser, lower-class regions. Owing to that, Maxie confirmed to herself that the suburbs were likely undisturbed as well. As for why Brodie was at Bailey's workplace, he had been bunking with her in the crew's barracks on company grace.
When it was their turn to tell, Lucian and Maxie came up with a cover story. They wove together their tale of boredom, stating that they had gone out for a nighttime walk and ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Luckily, their siblings bought the story, and were only glad that they were safe.
When the call ended, a sullen look that fell on Maxie's face. Lucian noticed and asked if she was alright.
She pursed her lips, nibbling at them. "No," she admitted. "I will be, but... well, I just feel terrible."
He mulled over what he should say next. In the end, he went with another question. "Do you still want to do this with me?"
"No," Maxie sighed. "I mean, I still do, just not for a while... I just held you back, didn't I?"
Lucian clenched his fist idly, digging his nails into his palm for physical stimulation. It was primarily to distract from the heavy stare that bore into the back of his skull. "Yeah... quite a lot."
Again, Maxie breathed in and blew it all out through her lips. "I think I'll just lay low for a while," she mumbled. "I really wanna keep helping you, but I rushed things... I'm sorry I wasn't more useful."
"Doesn't matter to me if you were 'useful'," Lucian asserted. He projected his voice silently, like the low and comforting hum of an electric fan on a warm and lonely night. Then, reaching around her shoulder to hold her against him body, he added, "I was honestly just glad to have you with me. And, even if it didn't feel that way, you were useful. More than, even."
Maxie chuckled, voiceless and halfhearted. She tucked her head under Lucian's chin and rubbed her crown against it. "Dork..." she mumbled.
...
Later, Maxie's clothes were returned, miraculously repaired. Having her suit up again, Lucian left the Batcave's medical wing with her. In the main chamber, they met up with some familiar masked faces. Those present were Batman himself, Nightwing, Spoiler, Orphan, and Signal. Red Hood had too much to deal with back in the streets, while Red Robin and Robin were still outside to help deal with the aftermath of the night's events.
Among those in the Batcave, Batman seemed the most exhausted. His posture was off-kilter, and his movements were sluggish. Nightwing was similar—just to a lesser extent—and Signal looked more worn-out from exertion as he had no obvious injuries. Spoiler and Orphan, though wounded, were still somewhat energetic. Their uniforms were also stained with floral residue.
As usual, Spoiler was the quickest to greet the ghosts as they came out. She fussed over Wraith like a doting older sister, while Lucian gave Batman and Nightwing the man-nod, which they reciprocated in their own ways. Wraith mentioned her short conversation with Alfred, to which Spoiler groaned. Then, in acceptance of the situation, she took it upon herself to explain everyone's identities without need for some dramatic unmasking.
Wraith easily accepted and understood most everything about the bats. She still had questions, but figured that they would all be answered in due time. Lucian, meanwhile, pretended to be 'surprised.' His expressions were subtle, but enough to portray what he wanted them to see. He did have doubts about his performance, however.
'She's staring at me...'
[ Can't help it. Cass can perfectly read body language, remember? Of course you're sus to her. ]
Of course, during the introductions, everyone unmasked. The only one that needed more formal introductions was Signal—or as he was now known to the ghosts—Duke. He seemed quite eager to get to know the new 'metahuman' affiliated with his family, which shone to Lucian though his swirling black-and-gold lifeforce aura.
Regrettably, getting to know each other had to be set aside once again. The night was no longer young, and everyone needed to recover. Batman called only for a quick discussion to see where everyone stood—especially the newcomers—before rest.
Spurred forward by Lucian's wordless encouragement, Wraith stated that she wished to step back for a while. Batman approved the decision, praising her for the wisdom in it. That was followed by assurances that she would be welcomed back if and when she returned. Spoiler, though saddened by the news, expressed approval like Batman did. She knew all too well how Wraith must have felt after what transpired.
When Lucian was asked what he planned to do, he doubled down on his desire to participate. That led to the next part of the short discussion: their plans moving forward in the aftermath of Black Mask's designs for Gotham.
Lucian agreed to step back for a while and focus more on stamping out any third parties that planned to take advantage of the riots' aftermath. He was asked, as the Manticore, to take advantage of his flight and rapidly-growing power to patrol Gotham far more efficiently than any of the bats currently and reliably could, barring Signal. In effect, the Manticore would become the moon to the Signal's sun.
After settling all other matters that needed to be handled, everyone was told to rest up. The ghosts were even offered to stay the night in the manor. Seeing Maxie's eyes glimmer at the prospect, though Lucian really didn't want to, he agreed.
...
Unwilling to sleep, Lucian found his way behind the manor after waiting for Maxie to doze off. He went and sat on the edge of an ornate fountain, where he began attempting to channel lifeforce through the water just to see if he could. Some time later as he made decent headway into the endeavor, someone joined him in the silent night.
"Bruce Wayne," he greeted, eyes still fixed on the sparsely-illuminated water. "Never would've thought you'd be the one behind the mask."
Bruce snorted, and sat down on the fountain's edge to watch what Lucian was doing. "It's a good cover. If I were someone else, the closest I'd get is imagine that I sponsor Batman's activities."
"The greatest superpower of all," Lucian remarked. "Money."
He silently kept suffusing the fountain water with his lifeforce. As he did, Bruce watched silently, wearing an easy, tired smile. Eventually, he asked Bruce to dip his hand in the water—and he obliged.
Lucian grinned at the way Bruce's lifeforce 'stiffened' when his injuries started healing rapidly. As miraculous as that was, it was also costly to the fountain—its glow dimmed to the point where there was barely any left.
Still stunned at the marvel of indirect healing, Bruce recentered himself, and decided to bring up exactly why he came out to see Lucian in the first place. "Lucian. I'd like to talk to you about something."
—=—=—=—=—=—=—=—
nnnggghngnnghhhh...
I hate holidays
This group of humans forced me to travel around with them and get social in crowds...