Ultimate Batman - ARC ONE 'The Return' - Part 3: Fight Night

Ultimate Batman -

ARC ONE: 'The Return'

Part 3: Fight Night

Inside a Residential building basement

Bursting through the stairwell doors into the massive concrete dimly lit garage, Commissioner Gordon looks over his shoulder to see Bullock struggling to keep pace with him as he clutches his gut and breathes heavily.

Sweated and breathing out thick plumes of cold white fog lift from his mouth and nose, Bullock leans up against a van, struggling to catch his breath.

Stopping his run, Commissioner Gordon tiredly turns back to Harvey, leaning down on his knees, “HARV! We have to keep moving!”

“I ain’t gonna make it Gordon!” Harv exclaims tiredly.

Gordon races over to him and throws his arm over his shoulder, “Yes you are! And then you’re going on a diet!” he says, helping him along.

However, Commissioner Gordon and Harvey both hear the doors kick open behind them.

“THERE!” points one of the three men in a black uniform with red lens rifles in their hands, racing out the stairwell with a radio in hand.

“WE HAVE THEM IN GARAGE!” the man shouts, as the three men behind him pull out their guns and shoot at them.

Diving behind a car, Harvey and Bullock run along the parked cars as glass windshield shatter behind them.

“KEEP GOING!” Commissioner Gordon shouts, turning around and shooting at the gunman who rolls behind cars.

Hearing the tire explode from his gunshots, having missed, Gordon takes off running to catch up with Harvey but as soon as he makes it past as van, a bare-chested man, his entire torso covered in tattoos, grabs Gordon and swings him over top a car trunk hood, punching him across his face and grabbing him by the throat.

“THISSSS IS AN HONORABLE DEATH!” the man hisses.

“AAARRRRG!!”

The man looks to see Harvey charge into the man, charging right into him, pushing him off Gordon and into a van and punching him across the jaw, “GO JIM GO!” Harvey yells but he is quickly overpowered and punched clear across his face, throwing him to the ground.

Sliding off the car to the ground, Gordon balls both his hands together and bashes the man across the face, sending him staggering momentarily. However the man plants his feet firmly, and turns to Jim with a blooded smile.

“Not bad, for a dead man.” he says as light rapidly brightens on his face!

Turning his attention, Jim Gordon and Harvey dive away a speeding car screeches to a halt, striking their attacker and sending him flying back!

Kicking the door Robin limps out the car, staggers around the car and observes the man sprawled out on the pavement and then turns to Jim Gordon and Harvey,

His face decorated with cuts and bruises, Robin looks at them both, “So…” he sighs, wiping his head, “...that happened.” he sighs, before pulling out three red ‘wingdings’, “Let uh skip the small talk....” he pants, tossing his wingdings to the wall, , “...and just run.” he says.

Robin stands confidently as the wall explodes as the smoke clears and reveals a pathwayl leading a way out the street , “GO!” he shouts, facing the tattooed man rising to his feet on top of the car.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Looking up at a black helicopter flying through the snowy winds and landing on a building Cheshire turns back to Black Mask standing in front of his SUV,

“I told you I wanted them ALL dealt with tonight! I told the Mobs they’d be dealt with so you better take care of it you freakin’whore!” Black Mask shouts, pointing his finger in her face.

Chesire quickly grabs his finger and twists it, causing Black Mask to drop onto his knees in pain, “I will blame anyone who divides from the road that the League shall carve and if you ever raise your voice to me again you pitiless poor excuse of a masked man, the genital-less animals of the earth will rejoice at their lot in life when they see the horrors I will have inflicted upon soul…and I will ensure the comforts of DEATH will remain out of your reach!” she says, releasing his finger as he curls over in pain, gasping in relief.

Turning to the six ninjas behind her, Chesire raises the tablet over her head, “GO!” she shouts, watching them dart across the street and disappear into the snowy winds.

~*~*~*~*~*~*

Meanwhile, some blocks away….

“YOU THINK YOU CAN STOP ME!” the tattooed man roars, sticking out his bare-muscled chest.

Twirling his red and black staff in hand, Robin narrows his eyes while extending his hand, calling him over, “I’m really tired, you’re annoying and i’m not letting you kill Commissioner Gordon you walking etch-a-sketch! So lets just get this over with.”

“One, My name is MAD DOG…” he snarls as saliva drips down his chin, “…and two…who said I was here for the Commissioner?” he snickers.

Robin narrows his eyes.

“Then I hope you’re getting paid a lot for this beating!” Robin snarls.

Brushing aside his long straggly hair from his face, Mad Dog leans forward with a snickering grin, “Oh don’t worry, I AM!” he snickers and bolts off the car while pulling out two large curved knifes, “C”MOOOOOOOOON BAT-WONDER!”

*~*~*~Meanwhile~*~*~

Bolting out to a snowy alley Commissioner Gordon and Harvey Bullock sprint down the dark alley to the street.

“MOVE MOVE!” Gordon shouts.

His nose red, his face pale from the cold as fog pours out his nose and mouth, Gordon’s blue scan the rooftop, but sees no one.

“KEEP GOING!” Bullock shouts, glancing behind him at the open hole, watching Robin get thrown into a car as Mad Dog leaps at him.

“WE shouldn’t have left him!” Bullock shouts, trying to keep up to Gordon.

“I know but...

“JIM!”

Gordon and Bullock skid to a stop in the narrow alleyway as two ninjas burst out a basement door ahead of them cutting off their path.

“GET BEHIND ME JIM!” Bullock shouts, pulling Gordon behind him as he whips out his 30. Caliber and shoots at the ninjas sprinting at them.

As Gordon watches in shock as Bullock, who is a good shot, shoots at the nimble ninja’s that spring off the ground and leap up along brick walls, twirling, flipping and dodging the gun fire.

“QUIT MOVIN’ YOU LIL SPIDER-PUNKS!!” he shouts, shooting at them until both ninjas leap up high to a 3rd floor residential window. One of the ninjas, hanging by his hand from a fire-escape pulls out his sword, while another sits crouched on a ledge, glaring at them with black hollow eyes.

The ‘click’ of Bullocks empty gun almost echoes across down the entire snow alleyway. Bullock grinds his teeth as the ninja’s eyes narrow while a smile under the black masks becomes apparent.

“Oh sugar.” Bullock mumbles.

“OUR TURN!” they hiss as the ninjas both let go of their high perch positions and drop to the snowy ground, unsheathing their swords.

Suddenly a ninja drops to the pavement between them, sprawled out and unconscious.

Everyone looks up at Huntress plummeting in the air, extend her long bo-staff that tightly wedges between the two brick building walls in the alley and uses her momentum to swings herself around the extended bo-staff like a gymnast on the uneven bars.

Quickly and powerful on the upward swing, Huntress bashes the second ninja in the face with both her feet off a fire escape. Perching herself on her staff she aims her crossbow downwards, “EAT ON THIS!!!” She shouts.

In perfect sequence, Nightwing plummets past her onto a fire-escape and dives across the alley, crashing through another apartment window after one of the ninjas.

Huntress looks down at Bullock and Commissioner staring at her, stupefied at what she just saw as she retracts the bo-staff and swings down to the alley via her gauntlet, landing before them on the snowy ground.

“You gotta go back for Robin!” Gordon exclaims.

Huntress looks up at the rooftops and spots dozens of ninjas leaping back and forth over the rooftop amidst the snow fall and slides on brass knuckles.

“Robin is the last thing we need to worry about…” Huntress gawks, before turning to Harvey and Commissioner Gordon, “ …YOU guys need to get out of here now.” She says, but notices the man-hole cover with steam coming out its holes.

Huntress narrows her blue eyes and hands Gordon a mobile GPS unit, “And take that.”

~*~*~*~

Apartment

Scrambling on the floor amidst a broken table in the abandoned apartment, the ninja unwraps the carbon fiber rope and gets on his feet, bolting for the door but Nightwing leaps out the hallway, bashing the ninja across the face.

Both men quickly, in a flurry of punches, move and counter-move their strikes until Nightwing grabs the ninja by the arm and backs him into the wall. Forcefully knocking his elbow into the ninja’s jaw, sending him into a daze, Nightwing is unexpectedly kicked back as the Ninja staggers away.

“WHAT are your plans?!” Nightwing roars, storming over to the ninja who staggers away from him.

“WHY IS THE LEAGUE OF ASSASSINS IN GOTHAM?!” he roars.

The ninja looks up at Nightwing almost upon him and stands erect, “YOUR DAY OF WRECKONING HAS COME!” he shouts, covering his clothed mouth with his hand, biting down on something.

“NO!!!” Nightwing shouts, racing over to him as the ninja drops his sword and starts to collapse.

Grabbing the ninja’s body, Nightwing watches the ninjas eyes tint yellow and roll back into his head with foamy saliva oozing out his nose.

“NIGHTWING GET OUT HERE!”

Hearing Huntress voice in distress puts Nightwing into high alert. Dropping the ninja’s body to the floor, he sprints across the dark living room and smashes out the window with post haste. Cold air greets Nightwing as he flies across the width of the alley, grabs hold of the adjacent window’s ledge and looks down the alleyway floor.

“Geezus…” Nightwing mumbles, taken aback by the sight of it all.

Standing center of the snowy alleyway, a lone Huntress stands center twirling her bo-staff with maddening skill and speed as dozens of ninja’s race at her from behind and front, trying to take her down.

However, before Nightwing can move, he watches as a skill ninja acrobatically jumps off another back and kicks Huntress across the face, sending her to the floor.

“NOOOOOO!”shouts Nightwing, watching Huntress fall to her knee as another ninja from behind raises up his sword to behead her.

Releasing his grip from the ledge, Nightwing drops but also shoots his grappling hook at the ninja, ingeniously aiming the hook to collide into the ninja’s blade, pinning it to the ground.

All the ninja’s look up like meerkat as Nightwing drops onto the ninja beside Huntress.

“HAAA CHEEE!” yells out a ninja.

Punching the ninja’s into unconsciousness, Nightwing’s quickly tackled from behind to the snowy ground and away from Huntress. However Nightwing rolls onto his back with his foe and kicks the ninja away as if he was on springs before jumping onto his feet.

Feet planted and fists raised, Nightwing could see the scenario all too clearly. This wasn’t a time for pretty moves or pulled punches. Three ninjas were by a clearly concussed Huntress and he had five between him and her. He had seconds at best before Huntress was overwhelmed. Glancing around, Nightwing could see his predicament quite plain. He and Huntress, nestled between two buildings in a skinny alleyway with enemies descending down the walls like roaches and more coming from every escape route - it was a kill box. A training scenario Batman simulated for hours even days at a time because Batman loved fighting like this and knew Dick hated it. And he did, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t good at it.

“So…” Nightwing sighs focuses his attention to the five ninjas in front of him, “...you surrender yet?” he smirks.

Immediately they all attack. Instinct kicks in and Nightwing goes into automation. He spins, deflects, spins, punches, kicks, and then deftly doles out pain to every attacker that comes an in inch near him with the sound of broken bones replacing whatever quip he would normally make. He had to get to Huntress, that was the goal and between the blow he could see her furiously, but weakly fighting. She flailing. Uncoordinated and losing fast.

“HUNTRAAS HANG ON!” Nightwing shouts.

And just like that, with a split second unfocused, a Ninja jumps on Nightwing’s shoulder and stabs him in the shoulder. Growling in pain, Nightwing flips him over, pulls out the knife before spinning around, slashing three foes back.

“RAAAAH!” Nightwing shouts, plunging the blade into every non-vital area of the human anatomy, “HUNTRAAAAS!” he calls out.

Not hearing Huntress and more ninjas filling in his line of sight to her, Nightwing pushes harder.

Grabbing one ninja’s arm that he breaks over her shoulder, Nightwing kicks another back and flips the blade he was stabbed with, grabs it between his fingers and flings it as fast as possible. Spinning through the air, the blade meets a Ninja’s wrist before he can impale Huntress from the side.

Punching that ninja across the face, Huntress spits out a mouthful of blood and glances at Nightwing, “BATMAN TEACH YOU THAT?!!” she shouts.

“TAKE A GUESS!!” he shouts back while finally being able to acrobatically flip over one ninja, grab him by the face and drops the ground, bashing his face to the icy cement. Standing erect, Nightwing spins around and hurls two small black balls that explode in all the ninja’s faces, backing them away.

Grabbing Huntress, Nightwing pulls at her, “WE GOTTA GO NOW!” he shouts who turns and aims her crossbow at him.

“YEAH?!” she shouts, shooting an arrow at him. Dodging the arrow, Nightwing sees the arrow shoot straight into a ninja that drops to snow behind him with more running to meet them.

“NOT HAPPENING!” Huntress says, seeing more pile in behind Nightwing.

“Jeeezus…” Nightwing growls, grabbing Huntress by her hand and pulling her close.

Standing back to back, Nightwing looks to Huntress over his shoulder, “Look, stay on your feet, if you’re overwhelmed say ‘switch’ and we trade. We just need to outlast them.” he says.

Spitting out a tooth, Huntress smirks, “That the secret to Batman Training 101!” she chides.

Nightwing braces himself at the incoming attackers, “No. Its more like Wednesday night in Batman training.”

With that said, like a rush of water barreling down a closed pipe, Ninja’s rush at Nightwing and Huntress from both sides of the narrow alleyway as more crawl down from the sides of the building like roaches in an infested home.

“There’s too many!” Nightwing shouts, blocking a kick before swiftly punching the ninja in the groin, lifting him up, throwing him into another three ninjas racing at him.

“YAAAH!!” shouts Huntress , bashing a ninja across the face before twirling the ground as Nightwing leaps over her leg swiping under him that knocks a ninja to the floor.

“SWITCH!”

Instantly Nightwing turns around and flings his escrima stick in the direction that Huntress yelled watching it connect into a ninja’s face as Huntress rolls on the ground and springs up behind him, engaging his attacker.

“WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!” shouts Huntress before she’s bashed across the face by a ninjas.

Fighting off two ninja’s at once, Nightwing side-steps a sword about to run him through but guides the blade into another ninja before deftly punching his attacker away.

Then, from the corner of his eye, Nightwing sees Huntress punch away one Ninja before staggering again but staggeringly turn and im her crossbow at him, “DROP!” she shouts.

Dropping flat to the ground, Huntress deftly shoots one ninja over Nightwing square in the chest before rapidly shooting at three more, “UP UP UP!” Huntress shouts to Nightwing.

Springing onto his feet, Nightwing jumps over Huntress as she bends down and tackles a ninja before he can get at Huntress. Swinging him around, Nightwing throws the ninja face first into the brick wall before feeling a painful clear cut across his back and fresh blood meet the cold air.

“AAAAH!!!” Nightwing shouts, seeing a spray of blood flicker across the snow.

Overwhelmed with pain, Nighwing drops to his knee.

“STAY ON YOUR FEET!”

“I KNOW!” shouts back Nightwing as Huntress skids over the ice behind him, punching his attacker away before holding up her crossbow, blocking two swords from coming down on her.

“THAN DO IT AND HELP ME OUT!” Huntress yells.

Mustering his strength, Nightwing throws himself into one of the ninjas, as Huntress takes the other. Both taken out swiftly, Nightwing stands up, wincing in pain and looks to Huntress who nods at him. Her face bruised, blood coming from the corner of her mouth and nose, half her mask torn and a dense red stain on her lower left side.

Nightwing drops a ninja and sees more coming at him. Five, ten, he couldn’t count. He was too tired. They couldn’t keep this up. There weren’t any doors, windows, nothing. It was a kill box.

“DICK!!!”

Nightwing eyes open wide and turns around as does Huntress. On top of a 6 story building garage at the end of the alley, Nightwing squints, spotting a woman decked in green with a large smiling cat mask over her face as she stands beside Mad Dog, holding an unconscious Robin by the yellow cape off the edge.

“I THINK YOU’RE MISSING ONE!” she shouts, tipping up her mask to reveal her beautiful face and glistening green eyes as Mad Dog holds Robin over the edge of the building, “You can either surrender or attempt to catch him, you’re choice.”

“Who the heck is that?” Huntress grumbles.

“Cheshire!” Nightwing growls, “The Hand of Death within the League of Shadows.”

~*~*~*~*~*~

Meanwhile, Inside his SUV,

Black Mask, takes the phone his driver hands him, “Hello, yeah, take you heard me, when you get it….Take it.”

~*~*~*~*~

Surrounded by ninjas, Nightwing and Huntress raise up their weapons as a sea of swords slide out their sheathes and point at them.

“Good boy…”smiles Cheshire as her hair blows in the gusty snow wind, “…now...i like my men all to myself.” She smiles.

Huntress looks at Nightwing, “Listen don’…”

POW

Suddenly Nightwing sees a red mist emerge beside him as a bullet shoots into Huntress chest!

“NOOOOOOO!” Nightwing screams, watching Huntress immediately fall back to the white snow, her eyes open in shock.

“HUUUUUUUNTREEEAAAAAAAAS!” Nightwing shouts, rushing to her aid.

“TAKE HIM!” Cheshire shouts as three ninja quickly bash Nightwing on the back of his head, knocking him out as he falls ontop of Huntress..

From the rooftop, Mad Dog watches Cheshire turn away and walk to the other ninjas behind her as a Black Helicopter sits behind them.

“START IT UP!” she orders.

“Why not Kill them both and be done with it!” Mad Dog snaps.

“That’s not what we are hired to do.” Cheshire coolly responds, “Besides, it’s not profitable.”

“WE HIRED HANDS NOW?!” Mad Dog shouts, “To be at the call of a man who has no honor!”

“No.” Cheshire retorts, glaring at Mad Dog from over her shoulder, “We the League of Assassins, Black Mask is just a pawn in a much larger war, and the first rule of war, never execute pawns until the King is on the board.” She says, looking at the unconscious and bruised Robin, “And I intend to get him on the board, so he can see them all die.”

“And of the Commissioner?”

Cheshire sighs, “And what of him?.” She says, walking to the helicopter

~*~*~~*~Meanwhile…Sewers~*~*~*~*~

Running through the dark sewers with a flashlight in hand, Detective Bullock runs through the wet smelly sewers of Gotham as he holds a G.P.S device with Gordon holding out a flashlight behind them.

“I think we’re clear. Huntress made a good call to come down here.”

“We’ll dem kids distracted em.” Bullock grumbles, “But this don’t feel right.”

“Renee’ is dead, Nightwing, Robin and Huntress are in the middle of a battle for our lives and ninjas are after us.” Gordon says, “None of this is right.”

However tired and out of breath Bullock looks at the glowing blue screen of the GPS and looks up wet metal walls to see a an iron ladder on the grimy walls.

Letting out a foggy breath, Bullock looks at him, “Well right or not right, after ta’night Jim, you officially are leaving Gotham…”

“I’m not…”

“WE are being hunted!” Harvey snaps, “Hunted and by assassins and ninjas and the Batman’s family can’t even help you…you did the right thing Jim, sounded the war-horn on the Mob…but there a time when you gotta even say, the batman left and as much as you wanna do what’s right…Gotham ain’t worth savin’. There’s somethin’ poisonous in this city and it’ll never go away…that’s why batman left, that’s why he’s not here and that’s why, we’re in the sewer while Renee’s body freezes to death on a rooftop and thirty some odd comes are dead! THAT’S WHY! SO DON’T TELL ME THAT YOU AIN’T LEAVIN’ AFT’A TA’DAY! ITS OVER JIM! YA AIN’ CHRIST! SO LEAVE IT HERE WHILE YOU STILL CAN JIM!” he shouts.

Commissioner Gordon remains silent as Harvey simply looks at him in the glow of the tinted yellow light of the flashlight.

“’I’m not leaving.” Gordon says simply.

Harvey smirks and shakes his head, “Ya know what, fa’get it.” He says, climbing up the iron ladder, “Ya wanna be my guest, go ahead.” He says, “But this cities gonna eat ya up Jim, an I’m not letting that happen to me.” He says as he reaches the manhole cover.

Carefully, Harvey pushes up the manhole cover. Seeing nothing but snowy empty street, Harvey carefully climbs out to snowy abandoned street.

Clenching his jaw nervously, Harvey shines his line down the dark street as James Gordon emerges from the smoking man-hole cover. Gordon’s aged eyes immediately catch sight of the avenue sign on the corner, ‘Castor Avenue’ and ‘10th’ Three blocks away from the Police Precinct. He could get back up and stop this madness.

“Looks like Nightwing’s plan wasn’t a total…”

“HIISSSSS”

Hearing the snake like ‘hiss’ behind them, Harvey Bullock and Commissioner Gordon turns around to see two black decked ninja’s step out from between two buildings.

“oh greeeat.” Harvey grumbles, watching the ninjas pull out their sword and stalk towards them casually, dragging their sharped mirror-tipped swords along the pavement.

The scraping metal sword on cement fills their ears as James watches the first ninja arrogantly point his sword at them while second one slowly circles them like a shark circling a floating carcass.

“So close…soooo close.” The ninja snickers, his voiced muffled by the black cloth mask over his mouth “…but not close enough.” He says, stopping next to James Gordon, extending his sword to his face.

“You may kill us but you won’t win!” Gordon spits, sniffling and wiping his red nose, “Batman will…”

“IS GONE!” shouts the first ninja to Bullock.

“And now we’re here.” The second ninja says to Gordon, “To pick up the pieces. To bring order to this poisoned jungle. To protect what Batman has left open for attack.”

“Funny I don’t feel protected with dem’ swords at our throat!” Bullock chides.

The ninja swiftly bashes Harvey over the eye with the sword handle.

“HARVEY!”

“EH UH!” the second ninja chides, sliding his swords blade just under Gordon’s chin, making him back away from Harvey on the snowy ground, holding his bloodied forehead.

“Ancient proverb tale speaks of how two warriors coming to an ancient city where weeds overgrew to protect the ground…” The first ninja states, “…the warrior, before he could toil the land and enrich the soil, first had to CUT and HACK and SLICE away the weeds…you two…are the last of the weeds to cut before we toil the land.” He hisses, nodding to the first ninja who stands over Harvey, and gently places his sword to the back of his neck.

“JIM!” Harvey cries out in fear, feeling the sharp blade on the back of his neck.

“Ha-harvey I’m sorry!” Jim exclaims, “I’m sorry I dra - ”

“It’s alright Jim!” Harvey interrupts, “It’s alright.” He repeats, closing his eyes tight as the ninja lifts his sword over his head, ready to behead him in the street.

ZIP

The First Ninja drops his sword and clutches his throat before looking at the second ninja and dropping to the ground unconscious!

Bullock at him shock, trembling as the second ninja grabs Gordan and pulls him in front like a shield while placing the blade under his neck, “WHO'S THERE! WHO DARE DEFIES US! SHOW YOURSELF!!”

Narrowing his eyes, the ninja looks up at the snowy buildings, but sees nothing but thick falling snow coming down from the dark skies.

“You know a modern day proverb, or saying I guess kinda comes to mind…” Gordon whispers.

“SHUT UP!” The ninja shouts, pressing the sword against his throat as he looking around, trying to spot his hidden attacker.

“…the phrase was in a movie after a group of thugs had the nerve to step onto a man’s property they thought he didn’t care about…”

“I SAID SHUT UP YOU OLD FOOL!”

“…they came on his property many times before this one time, but it wasn’t to rob him, it was to harm the ones he protected…”

Suddenly the bright xeon white lights beam from the shadows of an alleyway, blinding Gordon, Harvey and the ninja.

“AND YOU KNOW WHAT HE SAID!” Gordon shouts over the deafening revving roar of an engine before elbowing the ninja in the gut and throwing him forward into the light roaring out the alleyway.

Gordon dives away as the black armored Batmobile skids to out the alleyway, hitting the ninja and rockets him across the street and shattering through into a boutiques glass storefront.

Holding his throat, Gordon looks behind him to see Harvey staring in shock at the Batmobile.

The growl of the batmobile was like that an ancient beast. Watching the top lifting up, bleeding out dense red light, Batman steps out the car to the snowy street and looks at the ninja sprawled out in the shards of the in the window storefront.

Walking towards him, Batman looks at the ninja twitching among the glass and debris and stares right into his eyes, “And He said, ‘Get off my lawn.” he growls in a deep voice, watching the ninja lower his head back and pass out.

Gordon motions to say something but notices Batman’s blue eyes turn away from the ninja and look up at snowy night sky as the Bat signal shines overhead.

“I got the call.”

To be continued…..