I am at war.
Endless nights of self torture and hopeless battles upon one another have taught me that harsh lesson, night after night. Even with the progress my crusade has began to make, any true significance upon the city itself has yet to reach fruition. Some ask, with this in mind, why I even bother. Others ask that with this crusade, am I truly a protector, or simply one of the many people plauging Gotham, using both vengeance and hope to justify my means of existance? I wish I could truly say such thoughts were unfounded... but there is startling arguments to the contrary. Ever since my parents' murder... I seem to have attracted all of the wrong kind of people in the world. Ra's Al Ghul, my one time mentor. Harvey Dent, now the schtizophrenic Two-Face. Jonathan Crane, the sinister Scarecrow. Even The Joker. None of which existed before my arrival as a guardian protector to the city I wanted to save. It brings me back to the questions asked: Why do I do it? Why do I bother? Why do I
care?
The answer, I've found, is quite simple among a string of complications in going into this war: I, unlike many, am one of the few people left in Gotham that still believes in hope.
It's that thought that constantly brings me out into the night, like this one. That, aswell as other information I've aqquired from the city's underworld. While I myself consider this to be war, a true urban war has broke out in the past few weeks. With The Joker placed behind bars, following his massacre, he's seemed to inspire others into lunacy as quickly as he was captured. There are gangs... homages, to his madness, that I've had to crack down upon in recent nights. Such chaos has moved the mob into deeper ground, making it all the more difficult to keep tabs on them. The truth is, they don't fear their madness. Not as much as they fear me, at least. But I think they're using it to bring back a level of power over the city lost following Carmine 'The Roman' Falcone's murder.
A clear example of this lies in the scene I'm viewing right now. Perched upon a docking bay crane, on the Gotham pier, my night vision scope picks up a far too familiar scene: Two armed guards at the door of waterfront 39. Three on each of the other sides, with the front set's purpose serving as a liason between drug pushers. I've seen too much of this in recent weeks... something's going on. Something considerably big, if the punk I managed to scare into talking was anyone to go by. According to him and multiple others from the same gang, there's going to be a silent trade tonight. But it's not drugs. That happens underground, now. What they're trading tonight is far more valuble, if they're to continue. A wanted german mafia lord was flown into the city at 7:32 AM this morning. I know this, because Bruce Wayne has more than a few reliable sources working at the airport's main terminal. With the germany gang came a considerable amount of 'unregistered' cargo: Weapons. They're bringing a heavy amount of artilery, in order to serve as hostile protection to the city's drug rings. What they're trading off in exhange remains to be seen.
The police could've apprehended them. And were Captain Gordon incharge, they may very well have. But Commisioner Loeb thought it to be a waste of manpower. Now, they're free make the trade without interference. No cop will touch them. Luckily, they're too at eased to consider
my involvement.
I silently watch as a set of limosenes with foreign plates peel onto the lot. The guards step forward, speaking with the drivers, before moving them ahead. That's my cue. If I don't move now, the trade will be over before I can get the drop on them. Placing my scope back into my belt, I begin to work my way into the pier, climbing over towards the docking area off of the surrounding generator cables. If they truly feel as if they're going to bring guns into my city without concequence, they're in for a surprise. It's time to get serious.
"AHHHH! MOTHER OF GOD! PLEASE! PLEASE DON'T DROP ME!!!"
I'd be a little more concerned about the screams, but I made sure to isolate this one when I made all of that commotion on the bay. Both from his companions, and any possible surrounding notice. With a sharp tug, I've pulled him up by his ankle. He thrashes, naturally... but by the time we've faced eachother eye to eye, he's quick to remain still. I can practically taste the sweat beading off of his brow. Every step I've taken to ensure he remains petrified with fear has worked, so far.
"W... Where...", He mumbles, in disbelief.
"Holy ****."
"Yes.", I growl back.
"Very much so."
"W-What are you...?!"
"Something you never want to meet again,", I assure him, grabbing his scalp.
"So let's make this quick. What are you bosses trading off to the other gang?"
"W... I don't...", He mutters, shaking his head. "I ain't got nothin' to say."
Silence greets the air. Followed by more of his screams, as I let go of the line. But just before his skull reaches the pavement below, I grab it again, and pull him up. I don't have the time for games, so I'll take it out on him.
"You sure of that?"
He looks at me, ready to faint. But a quick shake convinces him otherwise, as he realizes that I'm not a nightmare that's about to go away, anytime soon. Eventually, he cracks under the pressure, and sells out the entire operation.
"W-We were contacted a few weeks ago. Some foreigner knew we were havin', uh... B... Bat troubles. They heard all about you, so they... they offered us, uh... protection. From you.
Please don't kill me....", He pleads.
"Keep talking, and I'll consider it."
He catches his breath, and continues.
"T... Turns out, my boss is in the black market. Tradin' and sellin' ****. Y-you know. And a couple months back, he got his hands on a couple of, er... i-interestin' items. Some of 'em didn't mean **** to the foreigners, but... but..."
"But what?!", I ask, angrily.
"He had a set of jewels! Rare crap that nobody else cared about! But in the german market, they go for big bucks! I... I don't know how, but they got my boss to agree to a tradeoff! He didn't want money, so we got the next best thing..."
"A germanic cartel."
He shakes his head.
"N-No. It kinda... it started out that way, but we were more interested in the weapons. Besides, my boss... he didn't... he didn't want to bring down anymore heat on us. Not after the cops and... y... you."
I've heard all I want to hear. Before he can say anymore, I drop him again, and pull later than before. His head doesn't crack... but it hits the pavement hard enough to knock him out. By the time he's tossed onto the ground entirely, I'm already gone, making my way towards the waterfront. All the while, I can't help but feel as if I've stumbled onto a stranger operation. Jewels? That's new, to say the least. But easily effective, given it's a plausible alibi. The german mob probably intended to smuggle them back across the border by posing as a band of museum collectors, when in reality, they'd only sell the jewels for a greater profit to their goverment, given their rarity. Even so, it's still theft. Still illegal. And it still ends with more weapons in my enemies' hands.
I won't allow it.
"Zo, ghentlemen. Zet us continue on vith zis affair."
I silently cross the rafters above, just as they're beginning the trade. The german leader makes his prescence known. Accent's already a dead giveaway. But it's his physical prowess that really makes him stand out. He's heavy set... but strong, probably, given he uses minimal guards or protection. Unusually pale skin. Probably resonating from one of the remote islands from the region. The other boss, I've met before. Umberto Maroni, of the struggling Maroni crime family. After the death of their father, Salvatore 'Boss' Maroni, each sibling took up a shared majority of the empire left over. Pina took over the mob enforcement, while Umberto seized the drug cartels. His appearance here tonight is no surprise... if not predictable.
Adjusting my cowl-microphone, I listen in, silently draping myself within the shadows. I'd attack instantly, but apart of the element of surprise is waiting for an enemy's most vulnerable moment to strike. I want them to be fooled into thinking they're really going to pull this off, building their confidence... before pulling the rug out from under them.
"You got it,", Umberto states, with a sly smirk. "These all the weapons?"
"Zees are... ze beginning of zem, yes.", He replies.
"My men are having ze rest flown in vithin ze week. Zees are zimply ze handhelds. By week's end, your men zhould have ze full zupply."
A later supply. Something to take note of, so I can intercept it when it arrives.
Umberto raises his eyebrows. "Full supply? What'a ya mean? I thought we were only gettin' a bunch of automatics."
"Oh, ve are delivering much more, Miester Marloni.", The german boss corrects.
"Ze jewels are indeed zhat valuble to my organization. You must underztand... ve vully intend to leave ze country with zem in our possession."
Umberto grins, wider.
"An' just what kinda weapons are you talkin', Mr. Whale?"
Whale. Tobias Whale. Now I know where I've seen him before... he's not exclusive to Germany. He's an international narcotics pusher, selling to riffrafts behind the scenes. I first encountered his kind of evil when I brought down the Moxon operation on the west end. He's dangerous. And worse yet, he's got the power to prove it.
Whale chuckles to himself.
"Oh, you know... ze standard protection againzt zuch ridiculouzity. I have zealt with zis myzelf, in New York. Handheld grenade... automatic range applicatzions... ze, how you zay, heat seekers?"
I sneer, listening to this. It's much worse than I thought. And Maroni's taking as much of it as he can in, with a clear amount of joy. He's that desperate for control of Gotham.
"Zis is not un problem, iz it Miester Maroni?"
Umberto moves forward, shaking Whale's massive hand, excitedly. "Oh, don't think a thing about it, pally. Infact, you may very well be the best thing to ever happen to this operation!"
"And I'm the worst thing to ever happen to it."
The entire room looks up, startled, as I leap down in an instant. Both men gaze in awe as I remove a handful of flash grenades from my belt, and toss them into the air. Their main wave of bodyguards are already affected by the flash by the time I land, as they drop their guns, trying to wipe the light from their eyes. I don't give them the time to recover. Immediately, I dig into them, knocking the first one into the nearest crate with a swipe trip. As the others begin to come to, I drop a couple of smoke pellets aswell, soon coating the entire warehouse. The rebreathers in my cowl's nosepiece generally allow me to breathe, as I silently make my way through the crowd, hearing numerous orders.
"Boss! BOSS!"
"Over there, he's... AGH!"
"What the-...The Batman! How'd he get wind'a our tradeoff!?"
"Obviously your men are razher quick to talk, Marloni!"
"Ah shaddup, ya fat tub'a lard! If I didn't need the weapons, I'd plug one in ya mysel-"
The gas fades, and suddenly, both men realize that all of their guards are down and out. Only I remain, infront of them, as I drop the last thug from my grasp, and slowly make my way forward. Maroni's quick to pull out a gun. But as quick as he is, the quicker I am, as a stray batarang slices through the crevice of his index finger and thumb. He drops the weapon, wincing in pain, as I stare at him.
"Been a long time, Umberto.", I growl, stepping over one of his men.
"I warned you once. Obviously I won't be able to be as lienient, this time."
Maroni looks to Whale, frightened, before stepping forward, pathetically putting up his fists.
"I... I ain't afraid a' no freak!"
He charges me, yelling at the top of his lungs. But neither skill or grace are attributes that Maroni posesses. He swings at me, but I duck, grabbing his arm and twisting his elbow. It cracks, making Maroni scream, as I spin, and down him with a roundhouse kick. Easier than I imagined. But it isn't long before I hear a faint clapping. Turning around, I notice Whale's looking at me, amused.
"You are ze... how you say, Vatman, yes?"
"I am.", I respond, walking over to him.
"And your selling weapons into my city, Whale."
"Your zity. Of courze.", Whale nods, with a chuckle.
"Zell me, Vatman. Are you a man of opprotunity? I could make you a very zenerous offer."
"I'm not interested.", I growl.
"Infact, I want you to turn your men and yourself into the police by sunrise."
Whale laughs.
"Ah, but you forget, I am on stay by connection of ze German law. I am perfectly zettled in your Gotzam Zity."
Anger surges from within me. But nevertheless, I somehow find the opprotunity to smirk.
"Is that a fact?"
"AAAIIIEEE!!!"
Whale hits the water, hard, struggling to keep afloat. With his size and stature, he'll sink instantly. And I'm well aware of that, as I hold a lifering in my hand, far enough away so that Whale can't reach it.
"Help me! I veg you!", He pleads.
"I vill do anything zou want! Anything!!!"
"You're to leave Gotham City in no less than two hours, along with everything you sold to Maroni.", I order, dangling the lifering off of my finger.
"And when you return to Germany, you're to turn yourself in, and confess to everything. The cartels, narcotics... even your goverment's corrupted officials. It all comes out in the open."
He's obviously hesitant. But eventually, he agrees, screaming as he begins to sink into the water.
"I vill! I vill! Pleeease!"
I throw the lifering in, and pull, just as he grabs it. Eventually he drifts over to a ladder, where he takes little time in climbing back onto the pier. But by the time he's made it, I'm standing over him, waiting. He screams, just as I grab him, and surprisingly manage to lift him off of his feet. I can thank the renforcements in the gloves, for that.
"And if you ever return to Gotham again, heaven help you...", I growl.
"I'll hunt you down until your dying day."
He nods, understanding, as I drop him, and turn to leave. But a thought occurs, and I find myself making my way back into the warehouse. Might aswell make sure none of the others managed to sneak the jewels or the weapons out during the fight. Stepping around the unconcious guards, once I'm inside, I step onto the staircase leading to the upper office. That's probably where Maroni kept his insurance, should anything about his tradeoff end up going awry. As precisely as it did.
Wait.
Something's wrong. I just heard footsteps inside the office. Taking out a batarang from my belt, I swiftly make my way up the stairs, holding my breath for another thug to easily take down. But by the time I sneak around the doorway, and peer in... my surprise overwhelms me, as I accidentally drop my weapon in shock. The person turns, revealing itself to be a woman, in actuality. A woman in a costume. And she has the jewels. For a moment, we stare at eachother, in silence. Neither of us expected the other, obviously.
"Well...", She purrs, as if a species of feline.
"This... is embarassing."
My shock takes a backseat to instinct, as I quickly move, trying to grab her. She flips over Maroni's couch with an agility I've never seen before, and kicks it, tripping me slightly. I land on my knees, teeth gritting, as she laughs, and leaps to the open window.
"That's what happens when a cat crosses your path.", She warns, before... strangely, blowing me a kiss.
"Better luck next time, handsome."
By the time I've moved back to my feet, she's already leaped out onto the pier.
"Wait! STOP!"
But it's too late. I make it to the window only a few seconds after, and she's already out of sight. Only the unconcious Tobias Whale remains. But the jewels... they're gone. Dammit, they're gone. She got away. It's in this moment, in the face of ironic defeat, that I fully emphasize my original point...
I am at war. And it may never end.
