~[K]nightfall~
Chapter 3 – " Jumping to Conclusions." ~.~.~
Author's Notes:
This is part of my
Clark Kent is Batman... NOT! series. Click the link for the TOC, but you really don't have to read the whole series to understand this. Parts 1 and 2 of [K]nightfall might help, though. hehe!
I should have noted this in the first part, when Nightwing showed up – I'm sorry for not doing so. At the time this story takes place, Dick Grayson – who was the first Robin – is now Nightwing. The current Robin (because, yes, there's another one) is Tim Drake, a 13-year-old boy who just happens to live right "next door" to Bruce Wayne – there's a tunnel connecting his father's home to the batcave.
Many, many thanks to my betas – DJ, Sue and Jojo. Your help is truly invaluable. This story would not be what it is now without you. Thank you so, so much!! *hugs*
~.~.~
Metropolis - Search for Superman, day two"I'm sorry, but I'm not at liberty to divulge any further information," the woman from EPRAD's press relations office repeated for the second time. "Everything was in the official statement that we issued."
"Everything?" Lois interjected, annoyed. "There wasn’t any information in that statement! All it says is that EPRAD is currently examining the data that was collected."
"Because that's precisely what we're doing, looking at data and -"
"Yes, but we already
knew that! Surely by now you have some sort of idea where the debris hit, don't you? I mean, you have teams out there investigating crash sites!"
There was a long pause at the other end of the line.
"There are teams investigating the sites, yes," the woman answered. She was trying to be as nice as she could, but she was starting to sound every bit as annoyed as Lois was. "But not EPRAD scientists, miss. The searches are being conducted by the Department of Defense and the Coast Guard. We merely provide them with any relevant information to help them -"
"Ah! Then you admit that you
have information," Lois exclaimed, victoriously.
"Miss Lane, I'm very sorry, but I'm not at liberty to divulge any specifics -"
"Then let me speak to someone who will!"
"I'm very sorry, but -"
"Yes, yes, I know. You're not at liberty... Thank you."
Lois hung up the phone, frustrated. How was she expected to be able to report on the situation when people were being so blatantly unhelpful?
EPRAD's statements were as short as they were rare. The first one, the morning before, had simply been a confirmation that the Nightfall asteroid had been completely destroyed. This morning's press release merely indicated that they were currently analyzing data from satellites, radars, and other tracking systems. And of course, they kept insisting that special attention was paid to any piece of information that might indicate where Superman might have landed - if he had landed at all.
Already knowing that neither the Red Cross nor the Federal Emergency Management Agency had anything to say besides the fact that, so far, there was no evidence of any loss of life, Lois set out to call her contacts at the Department of Defense. She fully expected to be given the runaround there as well - but she couldn't just sit around and wait for an official news release to be issued.
There had to be a way to find out what was going on!
~.~.~
Gotham - Day two after Nightfall His memory was still very much missing in action. But he had managed to find out some more things about himself. Sadly, though, most of these things did not spark any memories at all – as he had hoped they might. The more he found out, in fact, the less he understood who he was or what his purpose was.
Apparently, he was
the Batman - a vigilante of sorts who fought crime in the city of Gotham. An elusive character who a lot of people seemed to believe was just an urban legend.
As he searched both for information and for a way out of the cave, he had discovered that there were several, smaller adjoining rooms to the main one. And he had made quite a few discoveries in these rooms, though none of them had helped spark his memory about who - or what - he was.
One room he had found housed a library, where he had found several thick scrapbooks filled with newspaper articles about the man whom the press had nicknamed 'The Dark Knight'. He had read every last article he'd been able to get his hands on. In doing so, had realized that he was able to read so fast that he could get through an entire scrapbook's worth of newspaper clippings in just a few seconds flat and not miss a single word. In fact, he was even able to recall every single word on every single page.
However, the lack of actual information he'd found about the Batman was astounding. In fact, several of the news reports he had read were conflicting. Some mentioned that he was merely a well-trained martial artist while others said he had super human abilities. Some even went so far as to claim that he was really an alien from another planet.
He had chuckled and rolled his eyes as he had first read the press's allegations that he might be an extra-terrestrial, but as he discovered more of the strange abilities that he possessed, part of him couldn't help but wonder if there was any truth to it...
One of these rooms was a gymnasium in which he found just about every type of exercise equipment - weights, exercise bikes, treadmills, ellipticals, rowers, climbers - in several different models and sizes. In using them, he had discovered that he was not only incredibly strong, but also incredibly fast.
He had picked up some of the weights absolutely effortlessly. One thing had lead to another until he had realized that there wasn't anything in the room he couldn't lift over his head – or balance on the tip of a finger, in fact. This, he knew, was definitely not something the average human being was supposed to be able to do.
Then, he had gotten on one of the treadmills, just to test out the theory that reading wasn't the only thing he could do at amazing speeds. He had outrun the machine's fastest speed in the blink of an eye, causing its electronic circuits to short out and create fireworks around him.
He had wondered for a moment how many of those he'd broken in the past. And then it had dawned on him that considering he was faster and stronger than any of the exercise equipment in the gym, they might simply be vestiges from a time when he needed them to increase his strength or speed.
Although for relics these looked like they were quite recent. They weren't even covered in dust. Unless they weren't his to begin with? He'd read about someone named Robin who was supposed to be his partner. Perhaps he was the one who used the gym?
A third room seemed to be a museum of some sort. In a corner of it stood a large, obviously mechanical Tyrannosaurus Rex, but there wasn't anything around it to give him any clues as to what exactly it was or why it was even there. Other items in the room seemed just as eclectic: a very large US penny, a single playing card – the Joker – in a silver frame, oversized bowling pins, an ancient looking sword. Sadly, there wasn't enough information pertaining to any of them to help him piece things together.
Further away and set in a display case was a costume much like his, though it appeared to have been made for a woman. Then, another costume, this one red and green – Robin's, he guessed – with a sign next to it that read '
A Good Soldier'. Was Robin dead? That might explain the man's absence... And what about the woman who had worn the other bat costume? Was she dead, too?
The cave held no real answers, it seemed. Only more questions.
He'd been here several hours – probably a day or so, he thought. He still had no idea exactly who he was, nor had he found a way out of this cave. The only possible exit he'd seen so far was a hole, way above his head, when he'd first taken notice of his surroundings. He laughed, thinking someone would have to be able to
fly in order to get out through there.
~.~.~
Metropolis – Search for Superman, evening of day two Lois gasped in horror as she arrived on the scene of a major pileup on the Metropolis Bridge. She'd seen accidents before, but never like this. The incident had occurred during rush hour, when traffic was at its most dense. It was chaos out there now. Complete and utter chaos.
Although emergency services were doing the best they could to get to everyone and try to clear the scene of the accident, it would be several hours before everyone was accounted for and traffic was restored on the bridge.
On an ordinary day, Superman would have shown up within minutes of the accident and the entire rescue operation would have taken very little time. But this wasn't an ordinary day and Superman was nowhere to be seen.
Nearby, a TV correspondent ended his live report by stating that it was at times like these when the people of Metropolis truly realized how much they took Superman for granted.
"Where is Superman?" someone behind Lois complained.
"I don't think he's coming back..."
"Yes, he is!" Lois exclaimed, turning her head back sharply.
"How can you be so sure, Lois?" one of the other reporters asked her.
"Because he said so," she explained. "And I believe him." I have to, her mind added silently.
~.~.~
Gotham, Wayne Manor - Day three after Nightfall The phone had had already rung several times before Bruce Wayne remembered that there was no one but him to answer it.
Alfred, his trusted ally – the loyal butler who had always been by his side – had left, just a few days ago. They’d had a divergence of opinions – to put it mildly – regarding Bruce's treatment and recovery. Stubbornly ignoring every last of Alfred's pleas that he should remain in his doctors' care, Bruce had rushed out to England the second he had found out that the woman he loved had been kidnapped. Refusing to be a part of anything that may cause his employer to further injure himself, Alfred had resigned his position and left the manor, but not before making sure that Bruce was safely back home in Gotham.
Frustrated, Bruce extended an arm and picked up the receiver. "What?" he thundered.
"Oh, uh... I'm sorry," said a startled man on the other end of the line. "Have I reached Wayne Manor?"
"Yeah."
"Oh, oh. Good afternoon! My name is Gabriel Dayton, I'm with the Department of Defense, sir, and I -"
"Defense? What the heck d'you people want with me?" Bruce asked, in his best clueless billionaire tone.
"Uh, Mister Wayne, is it?"
"Well, yeah. Who'd you think you were speaking to? What is it that you want? I haven't got all day."
"I'm sorry, sir, I didn't mean to catch you at a bad time," Gabriel apologized. "We're investigating a report that some debris from the Nightfall asteroid may have landed on your property. And, we were hoping to get your consent to send in a recovery team to -"
"Debris? Here? Really? Wow, that sounds
so exciting. Are you sure?"
While the ditsy playboy pretended to find the information absolutely fascinating, the astute detective in Bruce was busy trying to remember the events immediately following Superman's encounter with the asteroid.
There had been an earthquake that evening. He recalled having checked the security cameras in and around the Manor, but there had been nothing there. However, if the DoD wanted to send in a team, it meant that they had data available to accurately pinpoint the location of the fallen piece of rock they wished to retrieve. Perhaps the debris had fallen further away on his property – somewhere the cameras couldn't see?
"...and we would very much appreciate if you would grant us access to your property."
"Yeah, you know what? That's not going to happen. I'm not letting anyone lay a finger on my Laelia anceps."
"Laelia...?" Gabriel repeated, confused.
"Orchids, Gabe. Do you know how much each of them costs? Let alone how expensive it is to have them flown here from Mexico?"
"It's Gabriel, sir. And no, I can't say that I know how expensive -"
"Well, it's astronomical. Just ask my accountant. So, I mean, you can understand that it would be completely unacceptable for me to let you dig through my garden," Bruce complained.
"Sir, I'm sorry, but I must insist -"
"Besides, the way I see it, if there's a piece of the asteroid on my property, it's mine to keep. How much do you think a piece of this would sell for, Gabe?"
"I'm sorry?" Gabriel asked, surprised.
"How much do you think a piece of the asteroid would sell for?" Bruce repeated, in a slightly impatient tone.
"Mister Wayne, sir, with all due respect, I don't think that the debris are yours to sell," Gabriel said, trying his best to sound authoritative. He knew that Bruce Wayne was an odd and eccentric man, but he hadn't expected him to be unreasonable.
"Gabe, Gabe! Where's your sense of entrepreneurship?"
"My sense of...? Mr. Wayne, I'm sorry, but -"
"Hey, listen, Gabe, my masseuse just arrived, so I'm going to have to let you go. Pleasure talking to you!" Bruce said as he hung up the phone, not giving Gabriel any chance to retaliate.
A minute later, having decided on a course of action, he picked up the phone again and hit one of the speed dial numbers.
"It's me," he said, knowing that this would suffice as an introduction. "I need you to do something."
"Do you need Tim for this - or Robin?" the boy asked.
"Either. Both. Whatever works."
~.~.~
Metropolis – Search for Superman, day three For the third day in a row, Lois had managed to convince Perry that although Clark never actually showed up in the newsroom, he was still out there and calling in with information several times a day. Or at least she
hoped she was still fooling their chief editor.
Today's excuse hadn't been too hard come up with, thankfully. She'd told Perry that Clark had spent most of the previous evening at the site of the pileup on the Metropolis Bridge, gathering information, quotes and reactions, until the road had been reopened to traffic, well after midnight. Then she'd said that he'd gone off to meet with city officials to follow-up on the story, after having taken the morning off – which wasn't altogether uncommon for a reporter to do when they'd spent the previous night on the job.
In reality, Lois was the one who had spent most of the night at the scene of the incident. She was the one who had met with city officials for more information, the next afternoon. And, if anyone had taken a morning off, it was certainly not her!
She had turned in two-people's worth of articles and sidebars, all of which had both her name and Clark's on the byline. Perry hadn't questioned it. He wouldn't have had any reason to; most articles they turned in on a normal day were joint efforts anyway.
Lois had then spent part of the evening at Clark's place, with his parents. She told herself she was doing it to offer them support, but the truth was she couldn't bear to spend the evening alone with her thoughts. Thoughts that were slowly turning from hopeful to hanging dangerously close to hopeless, as more time passed.
The Kents hadn't heard from their son; they knew as little on his whereabouts as anyone else did. And while they too had tried to stay optimistic at first, their distress was now quite obvious. Lois could see the pain in their expression just as much as she knew they could see it in hers. Neither of them had spoken much at all that evening. They'd just sat there, sipping Oolong tea while eyeing the phone, the door, and the window repeatedly. Every so often, they would exchange nods and some semblance of encouraging smiles, but not much more. Although none of them knew the right words to say anymore, spending an evening in each other's company brought them the comfort they needed to go on another day.
The long hours, the extra work and the anxiety over Clark's well being had taken their toll on Lois. She had gone home that night, completely exhausted.
When she entered her bedroom, the first thing she noticed was the little black and white teddy bear sitting on her pillow; the one Clark had won for her at the Smallville Corn Festival, just a few short weeks ago.
She took her shoes off and climbed into bed, grabbing the stuffed animal and hugging it tightly close to her heart.
"I miss you," she said, tears stinging her eyes. "Please hurry back."
~.~.~
Gotham - Day three after Nightfall How could he not have figured out that the exit was behind the waterfall? It was so obvious! Granted, his memory of this place was as completely nonexistent as any other memory he might ever have had, but his common sense should still have been intact.
While he was busy beating himself over the head for his shortsightedness, his enhanced sense of hearing picked up something; a cry for help. Immediately, instinctively, he cocked his head to the side, concentrating on the sound in order to pinpoint its location. Whoever it was, they were in dire need of assistance.
This, he thought to himself as he sprinted towards the source of the commotion, sounds like a job for Batman!
~.~.~
End – Chapter 3. ~.~.~
Bottom Dweller's Notes:
I've sort of sped up some of the events that take place in Bruce's life in the aftermath of the "Broken Bat" story, in the comics. But that's all I did to it unless you count the fact that I axed Jean-Paul Valley, the guy who becomes Batman (with Bruce's blessing) after the real Dark Knight is put out of commission.
In case anyone wonders about the memorabilia in the museum room, down in the batcave, I didn't make any of it up – these are all things that Batman really keeps down there:
- the mechanical Tyrannosaurus Rex comes from an adventure on "Dinosaur Island"
- the US penny is a trophy from Batman's encounter with the Penny Plunderer
- the playing card is obviously from the Joker...
- the sword is Deathstroke's (though he's not exactly the guy we saw on L&C)
- Batgirl's costume, which was Barbara Gordon's before Joker rendered her paraplegic. (Barbara's father is Commissioner James Gordon, by the way.)
- Robin's costume, which was worn by Jason Todd (the second Robin.) The words "A Good Soldier" are meant as an epitaph. Jason Todd was killed by Joker.
- the bowling pins I'm not really sure where they're from, though, I just know they're supposed to be there.
