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This... hurt. He could not feel his face at the moment. Well, let's rewind first.A white figure was crouched on a building, overlooking the city. "Caity, do we have anything?" He questioned, voice modulator making his voice deeper.

"It is Gotham, sir. There is always something."

"Since the legend of the Bat started, they have gotten scared. No idea why, the no killing thing makes him a bitch. Not as bad of a myth." He retorted.

"Sir, are you saying you are also a myth, just a scarier one?"

"...we aren't going to discuss that." The man denies, squinting as he looked down below. "Bingo was his name-o." He said seriously, spotting a group of very suspicious men starting to group together. He tilted his head to hear what they were saying."You got tha goods?" A goon, the leader of his small group, said."Of course we got tha goods. Ya got tha money?" Another questioned, the guy in front of the back doors to the van. Probably where the weapons were."Of course. Black Mask follows tha rules. He would neva cross Cobblepot like that." A second goon on the first's side says.The first whips around and backhands him to the ground. "We don't say names! What if someone heard?"The figure up above scoffs. Black Mask and a man named 'Cobblepot'. He would be paying each a visit, once he found out who they were."I'm sorry. It was an accident. Won't happen again." The one who made the mistake apologized."See that it doesn't." The leader stated, then turned back. "Show us the merchandise, and you get your pay."The second leader nodded, then turned his focus to the two henchman beside the van doors. He counted twelve in total on both sides.The two next to the van each grabbed a handle and pulled, revealing several large crates. The second leader beckoned the first over, then opened a crate. "Ya like?"The first leader nodded. "I like. We'll take 'em."The second leader grins. "Good. 'Cause if ya didn't, I'd have ta kill ya." They both laugh, along with the rest of the goons, until everyone goes deadly quiet. "I'm serious.""I bet you are." A voice says up above, and before they can say anything, one gets yanked up by the throat and hanged on the corner of the building.A white figure drops down in the middle of the remaining eleven goons. "Who is this guy!?" A goon asks angrily."Me?" The figure questions. Then a blade seemingly appears under his left hand out of nowhere. "I'm the last thing you'll ever see."One of the goons charges at him and swings a right hook. He ducks, and angles his left hand up, and lets the blade glide across his throat. In an instant, his life is over, and they are down to ten."Next." He dodges a right from a goon, then spins away from a second, slashing their cheek with his blade.He reaches down to his waist, in-between his back and his side, then pulls a combat knife out. Now there was a blade pointing out of his left wrist and a blade held in his right hand.An enemy charged, and de dodged a right punch and instantly took the opening, shoving the forward facing knife into their throat, watching the red spill out from the opening and drip down their neck. They were down to nine, and he ripped it out.He dodged a punch from behind him, brought his leg up to block a kick, and swung his left arm at another's chest. All at the same time. The hits hit air, his leg, and his blade sliced across their chest. He turned to the guy behind him and stuck the blade under his left forearm right into their throat, then he tears it across roughly, a piece of the interior coming out of the wound.Down to eight.He dodged a swing from an enemy, doubling back again when they swing again, at least until he shoves the blade up into the chin, then watches it shoot vertically through their mouth then into their brain. Seven to go.He immediately has to dodge a punch from another. "He's killin' 'em!" One finally shouts. Considering he killed five of them in about four seconds, it was a delayed response. To him, at least. To them, it was an acceptable time for a retort.Someone throws a kick, and he shoves his knife into their leg, using his fingers to grab their leg, He then flips his knife quickly and stabs their thigh, before moving to their gut, then finally ripping it out and plunging it into their heart. He removed both blades and let them drop. Down to six in the blink of an eye."Too slow." The figure stated, cracking his neck. When they all came at him at once, it was a dodging game. He dodged a punch and sliced a leg, then immediately had to turn to perform two quick evades. When two came at him at once, he flipped the knife in his right hand into a forward grip before ducking under two punches at once.The blade under his left arm went into the left's heart, and the right went into their throat, both wounds being fatal injuries, he ripped both blades out harshly. Now they were down to four.More confident in these numbers, he let himself relax a little bit. To a normal person, that would be insanely unlikely for him to win. But for him, well, he just killed eight men in under fifteen seconds. Four guys was no problem.He lazily dodged a punch and sliced their cheek with the blade once more. When a guy swung, he raised the knife and jammed it into their gut. Then pulled it out, and jammed it in. Then yanked it out, then jammed it in again. Then yanked it out, and put it in again. Then he pulled it out one final time, flipped it around, then jammed the blade into their aorta artery.When he pulled it out, the goon dropped, dead before they hit the floor. When the aorta is punctured, you bleed out in seconds. It's fact.So, naturally, the aorta was his favorite spot to target. It was an instant death warrant, and he could taunt his opponent by leaving the blade in the wound for awhile. Because while leaving it in meant they were still alive, it hurt like hell.Anyways, they were now down to just three. The now slightly red but still mostly white figure stood there, looking all of them up and down. He grinned under his mask, rolling his arms back to pop his shoulders."C'mon." He invited with a word, eyes shifting from one, to two, to three, then back to one, repeat.Another charged at him, and he easily sidestepped, plunging the blade into their neck, then ripping it out. Down to two. He easily dodged a punch, ripping the knife out and turning, flipping the knife up.Sensing a presence behind him, he grinned. He decided to humor them, and let them get a punch in. He turned at a slightly slow speed, and felt the air shift as he punched.Then he felt something pierce his cheek, go through his mouth, then out the other side. He immediately pulled away, using his forearm to hit theirs and knock his arm away.He just got stabbed. In his cheek. The way blood was filling every part of his mouth, he could only assume that his tongue was sliced too.God, when the adrenaline wore off this was going to hurt. He felt the wind shift as a punch came, and he dropped the knife to grab their leg. He shoved the blade into their aorta, not playing anymore.He let the body drop, and rolled to grab his knife. The ground rubbed the handle of the knife stuck through his cheek. It caused a twinge of pain, but he otherwise was fine.He retracted the blade coming out of his left wrist, then stabbed their leg. He used his right shoulder to push him over. On top of him, he angled his head to line up with the enemies head. He pulled his left hand up, and hit the handle. It shoved the blade through his cheeks even more, but also through the enemies head. Down to zero.Lifting himself up, he retrieved his knife from the last one's leg and put it in his sheathe. Then he made his way to a good place.That was how we got to now. His face was killing him, and the knife was still in his face.He knocked on a door urgently. It was a safe enough door. No obvious gang markings, not too decrepit. He banged on the door once more, looking at the house intensely.The door opened and a concerned family looked at him. "Cn I brrw ur snk?" Came out of his mouth when they answered the door."What?" The father questioned.He pointed at his obviously needing cleaned wound, then mimed washing dishes. Then pointed at himself, made a motion of them handing something over, then he pointed at himself and mimed handing it back."You want to borrow our dishes?" The mother asked, and he shook his head. He did the motion again, then cupped his hands in a bowl like motion."You want to borrow our sink?" The father asked, then the figure nodded slowly. Hesitantly. Unsure that letting this obvious vigilante in his home was a good idea, but being a caring and giving person, would let it happen.They opened the way, and the figure moved to their kitchen sink and opened the cabinet. He reached in and grabbed the bottle labeled 'Bleach' and set it on the counter. Next, he gripped the knife handle and started pulling. Slowly, but surely, the knife came out.The family watched, and the young daughter gasped as the blade came into view. He dropped it in the sink, then pulled his bottom mask down, keeping his back to them.What he did next shocked the hell out of the entire family. He opened the Bleach and tilted his head, raising the jug. He then allowed it to pour into his mouth, then moved his head over the sink.The liquid swished around his mouth, then started pouring our of the stab wounds in his cheeks. That was why he positioned himself above the sink. To allow the Bleach to drain out into the sink.Eventually, he spit it out and pulled his blood soaked mask back up. Shaking his head, he grabbed the knife and slipped it into an unused third holster on his shin."Mm guna 'ake dis wit me." He got out, tongue sliced causing speech patterns. He tapped the knife, making it clear what he was referring to."O...kay, sir. We have no problem with that. Just... just don't ever put Bleach in your mouth around children ever again." The mother said, concerned for her children's safety."Ys, ma'am." He got out, then left the house, a blood drop or two falling onto the floor as he left.He pulled a shot out and injected himself with it. It was filled with adrenaline, and when adrenaline went through his system, his healing got faster. So, within an hour, his tongue was back to normal."Okay. Caity, track down known associates of Black Mask. We're going after him first." The figure said, poking the inside of his cheek, the tip of it going through the hole. Wincing, he pulled it out and shook it off."You got it, sir." The AI responded.
"And stop calling me sir. I didn't program you that way."
"True. But it annoys you. So I am going to keep doing it." She stated blankly.He rolls his eyes. "Sometimes I regret programming you with the ability to learn and adapt your own behaviors."

"No, you do not."

"No, I don't." He agreed.~~~~~~~~~~Michael Munroe. That was the name of the associate that would lead him to Black Mask. He crept into the mans apartment, blending into the shadows. The man was pacing, on the phone."Sir-" He stopped talking. "Sir, I know, but I don't know who took them all out. And from what I hear, the Bat doesn't kill!" He goes silent again. "Yes, sir. I'm sorry for yelling." He breathes out heavily, looking up at the ceiling. "Yes, sir. I'm-" he stops, hearing the man on the other side. "I'm working on it. I'm tracking down who did it.""Won't have to look very far." A voice spoke, then immediately rushed in. he grabbed the wrist holding the phone and twisted, making him drop it. He caught the phone, then pinned the man to the wall with one hand. He put the phone to his ear. "Is this Black Mask?" He questioned."Who is this!?" The man asked."The guy who murdered twelve people in under twenty seconds, then went back to blow your weapons to pieces. That's who I am." Oh, he forgot to mention that. During his healing time, he had went back and ripped one of his grenades off of his chest then tossed it in the back of the van. He closed the doors right after, obviously, then moved far enough away to cover his ass from the blast.The only effects it had on the environment was that it scorched the walls and knocked a few bricks loose. It also frayed the cable he hung the first guy with, so his body fell.Apparently, news of that meeting got back to him."You ruined my deal? I needed those weapons to take on the Bat!" The man said."So you are Black Mask?" The figure questioned intently. Good to know. "Where are you?"He laughs. "Like I would tell you that!""I was hoping you'd do this the easy way. Does he know where you are?" Munroe then tried to struggle, but the figure used his far superior strength to keep him pinned against the wall."Why does that matter any? And even if he did, he wouldn't tell you!" The newly assumed Black Mask yelled.
"Torture gets all of the answers a man needs. Especially when people start losing fingers. Michael here is about to go from ten digits to however many he has left when he's done talking. If he loses all ten, I'll move to his toes. Say bye-bye."
"Wha-!" Then the figure hung up. He crushed the phone in his hand then dropped the pieces onto the floor.Looking at Michael, he kicked the mans leg, sending him to a knee. Then he brought his own knee up to kick Michael in the nose. While the man was disoriented, he grabbed the mans wrist and yanked it up, reaching back to pull his knife out at the same time."Did you think I was lying, Michael? I'm really going to cut off your fingers until you tell me where his location is." The figure said explicitly."I'm- I'm not telling you shit!" Michael shouted as the figure pushed his boot into his chest to force him down."Then off we go." He puts the blade to his finger, then starts applying pressure. The edge cuts into the skin, splitting it apart as red oozes down. The man still doesn't talk, and the figure applies both pressure.The blade starts pushing through muscle, and he screams loudly, because it hurts. Of course it does. Then it touches bone, and the edge starts grinding against the material. It takes a little more pressure then it pushes into the bone, not just against it.More screams ring out, and he doesn't bother paying attention to it. He has heard so many throughout his life that this one was just another to add to the pile.The blade cut through bone. And once he had put enough pressure to cut through bone, it easily went through the rest of the finger.The now separated finger hit the ground with a low thump, and the man was screaming in agony. The stump spurted blood, and from the way he was holding it, it ended up on his uniform. Resisting a face of disgust under the mask, he goes to lick the inside of his cheek out of habit. And when his tongue pokes through, it sends a twinge of pain through him and he reels back his tongue. Ouch."Ready to talk yet?" He questioned."I'm... I'm not..." He stuttered, losing ground.He flipped his knife forward handed, and plunged the knife into the aorta. His eyes tightened and he slumped the rets of the way to the floor, reaching up for the knife."I wouldn't." He stops to look at the vigilante. "I stabbed your aorta. You pull that knife out, you're dead. You talk, maybe I'll leave it in and call an ambulance." He lets the blade come out from underneath his left forearm. "And you might keep a second finger."The man still shakes his head, and he lifts the hand again, the man too weak. His face twists into one of discomfort at the pain in his chest, but he looks at the next blade.  "Please... don't-"The figure pushes the blade into his finger and it draws blood. Then, he starts sawing, deciding to do this as painfully as possible.He saws into the finger, sawing through the tissue, then the muscle. Then, he gets to the bone. And about halfway through that, he screams, "I'll talk!"He stops, and retracts the blade back, then looks him in the eye. "Where is he?""Either his penthouse in Lacey Towers or his office in the Diamond District. I swear!" He cried in desperation."Only two people own penthouses there, and one is on vacation right now. You saying Roman Sionis is the Black Mask?" He questioned."YES! HE IS! NOW PLEASE CALL AN AMBULANCE!" He cried out, hurting.
"Yeah, that's not happening."
"YOU SAID-""I said maybe. And when talking to the Ghost, you have to always pay attention to wording." he stated, then reached forward to grab the knife. Once he did, he yanked it out and watched the life leave his eyes. "Caity." Ghost called.

"Yes?"

"Check Lacey Towers surveillance footage. Let's see if Black Mask is home."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Ghost looked through his lenses as Caity scrambled through Lacey Towers security footage. Upon looking at it, he said, "Fast forward at six times the speed." He said."On it." She stated, then sped the tape up, His enhanced perception allowed him to catch exactly what was happening, at the increased speed. He watched as Roman Sionis left his office with an angry look about half an hour after his meeting disruption.And when moving up to right now, Caity stopped the footage. Roman hadn't shown back up, which meant he was in the Diamond District. Now only to find out which building was his."What building belongs to any known alias of Roman Sionis?" Ghost questioned."There are no online trails that dictate ownership. Privacy policy dictates companies go down online, but owners names do not." Caity explained."And we don't know what companies Sionis officially runs so we don't know which building one of his companies would own." Ghost filled in."Correct." Caity commended.Ghost takes a slow breath. "Okay." He finally releases, then follows up with, "Find the building that houses the paperwork for the Diamond District. Commercial buildings only. State policy says that every type of building has different paperwork filed. Industrial has their own building, commercial has their own building, residential has their own building."He sees feeds pop up on his HUD, then watches words he processes scroll by before they stop. A black line scrolls down the white letters until they stop over a line.'Crowne Commercial Housing' was the building name. It was so obvious. The Crowne family was one of the First Families and that's all he knew about them."Time to add another B&E charge to my record." Ghost jokes.

"Sir, there are no pictures or proof that you did anything at all. Plus, even before now, it was already extensive. What is another charge to the list?"

"Fair."
~~~~~~~~~~Breaking in was beyond easy. The security on this place was a joke, probably because it only had deeds and official records to buildings. Even in Gotham, buildings like these didn't get robbed all that much. The only times they did was when organized crime was still a big thing, but after the Bat booted them out, these places were hit next to never.Then Batman got a kid dressed in sparkly green underwear and all these forms of super criminal started coming out of the woodwork. He was mostly sure the rumors of a giant clay monster were just that, rumors. But in Gotham, he wasn't holding out hope that it was false.Gotham was weird, he noticed. Not in the Zatanna Zatara or John Constantine (fuck that guy) kind of way, but in the sense that this city no matter how much was done, no matter how many people died, no matter what was done at all period, crime didn't go down.It was a strange phenomenon, but this strange circumstance was why he chose Gotham.He would never run out of crime to stop. He could literally do this until the day he died.Shifting focus back to the topic at hand, he had Caity scramble the one camera that was in hi sway. There were three total, but only one would have caught him. Shoddy placement of cameras meant too easy security which meant papers was going to be easy.Moving through the building casually, he turned a corner and ran into a security guard. They looked up at him and instantly seemed to panic. "Who-Who are y-"Ghost grabbed a throwing knife and hurled it at him. The handle was the part that hit him in the forehead, knocking his head back into the chair, out cold.Enhanced strength meant he could throw things a lot harder. Which meant that if it hit someone, it did a lot more. Like, for instance, the handle of a small knife knocking someone out cold.Ghost stepped forward and retrieved the knife, slipping it back onto his belt before stepping through the door in front of him. Moving into it, he recognized that it was a passage to multiple rooms. He groaned."Fuck." He swore."What is it, sir?" The AI in question asked.The figure took a quick glance around. "You wouldn't happen to know which room the specific paperwork is in, would you?"The AI seemed to hum It seemed Caity was researching while she was 'thinking'. It was a habit he programmed into her as something she would be capable of to make her more human. Plus, it made him feel better about technically doing all of this shit completely on his own. At least he could talk to somebody."Either the door at the end of the hall or to your right of the last door." She spoke, and he blew a breath out."That's still two rooms to look through." He complains."It is. I suggest you get to searching." She sasses."Har har." He states, then moves to the last door on the right to look through that one.~~~~~~~~~~He read fast. It was how he was able to read through every single file in the first room in about forty-five minutes. Nothing that stuck out.So here he was, in the second room, thirty minutes down. He was scanning through files, reading every word to make sure it was what he needed. That was when he stumbled across one of the weirder names.Sonni Mariois. It was certainly a unique one."Caity." He spoke finally, after staring at the name for a little over five minutes. He used every trick to make it make sense, and he found one.

"I think I am seeing it, too."

"Sonni Mariois is an anagram for Roman Sionis. We got him." The vigilante remarked, scanning the file for an address.Then he found it. And he grinned under the mask, the slits from the knife earlier in the night expanding outwards with said grin.Commiting the address to memory, and Caity taking picture of it just in case, he put the file back. Clearly if it got lost or destroyed, one, they would know he broke in (the police might operate on the assumption that he would seeing things due to sleep deprivation then nodded off. Twice. He would have to knock him back out again on the way out.) and two, they would just replace it because clearly Sionis did it legally.Closing the cabinet, he stepped out of the office, making sure things were exactly the same as he left it. He walked down the hallway, then pulled the door open, stepping through it softly. Spotting the security guard again, he let the door close.They turned around, and right before they spoke, Ghost brought his left hand up and pushed it forward, the gloved knuckles from the far more experienced fighter hitting their cheek and sending them sprawling.One punch and they were knocked out. He continued on, then left through the same place he entered.~~~~~~~~~~"I love my job." Ghost remarked, looking across at the semi-tall building in front of him. It was about seven stories, and only two had windows. The seventh floor and the first floor. There was probably a freight elevator through floors two to six where the illegal goods must be stored get shipped down to a basement where they would be loaded out. And shipping in the supplies to make the goods probably operated the same, just in reverse.The AI whirrs in his ear. "I bet you do, sir. Waiting for Black Mask?" She questioned.
"Yeah. Did you hack their comms yet?"

"No idea that I was supposed to. On it now."

Ghost glares at the air. Her sass was something he didn't regret but got on his nerves occasionally. He keeps watch, squinting his eyes as his AI automatically adjusts his vison to zoom in.He doesn't look through the lobby, that was pointless. He looked through the office window, trying to spot any sign of a figure wearing a Black Mask."Is the boss actually here or are ya just fuckin' with me?" A goon asks."No lie!" A second goon literally grunts. "I saw 'im start takin' a phone call and he didn't sound too happy.""Caity." Ghost speaks."On it." The AI replies, then quickly starts searching.
"He was killed because you weren't able to get there fast enough!"

"Boss-"
"NO! My lieutenant died because of your incompetence! I don't want to see your face again!" Then the phone beeped, and he saw him approaching the office window. Caity zoomed out, and he unfolded his bow. Knocking an arrow, he pulling it back, he aimed at the glass,He released, knowing the explosive arrow would take out the window. Immediately after releasing the explosive arrow, he knocked a grappling arrow. He fired above the window, and when it imbedded in the wall, it was right around the same time the first one exploded from where it was stuck to the glass.The shards came out in a mix of pushing forward and pulling outwards. Some shards fell into the weirdly empty street below, while the others pushed into the room and put themselves in Black Masks chair, also spreading into his desk.Ghost pushed himself off of the building across from Black Masks right as the explosive goes off. When it starts to dissipate, he lands in the fog of where the explosive blew at.The deadly vigilante folded his bow back and put it back on his right shoulder for storage. He stood tall, pulling his arms back a bit to increase the intensity of his stature. It seemed to work, as when the fog cleared and Black Mask looked at him, the crime lord took a slight step back.He must have been quite the sight. A white figure being revealed from a cloud of gray, suit tinted slightly red from where he had been presumably slicing through his crew earlier in the night."You!" Black Mask spit out."Hi, Roman. Took longer than it should have to find you. Happy to see me?" Ghost questions sarcastically."Holly-" Black Mask looks back at his secretary.She is already pressing some buttons on her tablet, then putting her finger to her earpiece before speaking, "All units in the boss' office now! We have a vigilante!"Ghost just rolls his eyes. "Come on, now, you surely have to know that your poorly trained goons can't actually beat me." Three goons come charging into the room, one of them holding a damn baseball bat.He dodges a swing from the guy with the bat, then grabs the handle. He rams his left shoulder into their right, then yanks it. They release, and he adjusts the bat in his grip. He swings into their knee, watching it shift backwards. The joint moved permanently into the other direction, and the accompanying scream let him know that his knee was capital 'F' Fucked.They collapsed and the next to came at him at once. He dodged a hit from the one on his right, then shifted to the spot where the guy on the right was aiming, his arm extending. He pushed the arm up with the back, then pushed the front tip of the bat forward into their face.Before the other could react, he was already turning and letting the bat slide down into his hands, right at the bottom. He gripped it, then hit them in the nose, and he hit them hard. The bones cracking in their face was audible.They hit the ground, and he pulls the bat up. He shoves it down into their head, and he notices skin splitting apart. He quickly yanks the bat back and brings it back down, this time hearing the metal hit bone and the bone breaking off. He does it one more time, this time the signature squish of brain being splattered echo through the room."NO!" He hears a kid- wait what- shout, right as he does a quick spin and swinging the bat into the prior ones throat hard as hell. It instantly crushed their throat, and their hand scame up to grasp it. After a few seconds, they went limp, just in time too. More started pouring in.Ghost faced the door and go the bat ready, but he was real grateful for his instincts because he narrowly avoided a weird shaped throwing star from going into his arm.It went past him and into a wall, and he turned around with a glare, only to see a kid with an 'R' on his chest. "I thought people were exaggerating when they said that Batman was using a child soldier."The kid glared and threw another star at him, but he just dodged it. "You killed him!""Uh, yeah? What the hell are those things?" He ducked to avoid getting hit again. "Bird-a-rangs?"He heard charging, then turned around and hurled his baseball bat at them, hitting two in the noses. The tip of the bat and the bottom of the bat definitely broke noses, and he stepped back, cracking his knuckles."Soldier, we should probably just wait until they're all down." Ghost remarked."I'm not going to work with you!" He shouted."It's work with someone who clearly has the same goal as you, or work against me and against not only me but the goons coming at us, which would you prefer?" The one in tinted white questioned.The kid sucked in breath, realizing his point. "When Batman gets here, the deal is off." Robin states.
"Fine by me."
"No killing." He warns."No promises." Ghost responds, pulling a knife out. A quick slash could take someone down in a moment. "Want one?""No! I'll use my hands." He says spitefully.He dodged a punch and put the knife through their arm and yanked through. He pulled it out and dodged a hit, shoving it into their gut and pulling it out before kicking them away, making sure it was in the spot he injured.This was going to be awhile.~~~~~~~~~~Twenty minutes later, because what else could be going on, he's noticing Robin getting tired. The kid, probably around seventeen or eighteen was using his hands, like he said. Except he wasn't using an efficient way to fight them, he was knocking them over and continuing on.Ghost on the other hand was making piles of bleeding goons. He wasn't killing anyone, because there was a child next to him and they didn't deserve to watch anyone's die (he didn't know the kid was there for the first two, not on him).Basically, Ghost was having an easier time than Robin, and that wasn't saying something because he was now getting more and more of his ass beat.Then, everyone stopped moving. Blood dripped off of the knife as he stared at the enemies slowly backing away. Then Ghost felt a presence behind him. "Batman." Ghost greeted."Who are you?" He questioned gruffly.Ghost ignores him. "Hey, Roman, you wanna come with us before shit really starts getting fucked up?" Ghost questioned.Roman took off running behind him, his secretary following. Ghost flicked the knife to clear it of blood before shoving it down in its holster, then bolting towards the window. He slid out of his, catching himself on jutted out concrete on the way down.Did he feel bad about leaving Batman and Robin up there to deal with the goons, not really. They signed up for that.He squinted and Caity activated the x-ray vision in his lenses. He found a car waiting out back, and sprinted around the building. Right when the car started up, he got onto the back. He released the knife built into his boot and stepped on the roof, imbedding himself in it. Then they started moving, and he placed a hand down to steady himself.Ghost felt his brain go haywire, then ducked to the right, the bullet missing him. He pulled his own gun out, and aimed at the hole. When he saw the little bit of light inside the car get covered, he squeezed the trigger twice.The first bullet bounced off of the one they shot, and he heard a grunt of pain come from the backseat. Sionis got hit. The second went inside of the barrel and to the firing pin, hitting it and causing a small reaction.It partially blew the gun apart, and it curved backwards into the shooters hand, who cried out in pain. He then aimed the gun at the engine and pulled the trigger twice. It went in, and he felt as the car started dying down, the car slowly to a halt in the middle of the road.If this was done during the day he would have been more concerned, but because it was at night and there was less traffic, he felt like they were fine right here.The car door opened, and the guy pushed himself out, right as the passenger door opened. Ghost aimed at the back of the driver doors head and fired, their body falling forward in a dead heap. He aimed at the passenger side, and due to him focusing on the driver first, they were now looking at him.He raised the gun and put the bullet in their eye, pushing through into their brain and dropping them. They fell back, and he aimed to the right side of the backseat before pulling the trigger, hearing a female cry out.He retracted the knife from where it was inside of the car then hopped off of it, backdoor in his sights. He held the gun up, then grabbed the car handle and yanked it open, enhanced strength easily beating the lock they had installed.The white suited vigilante came face to face with a black mask. "Hey, Roman." Ghost greeted, then reached out, grabbing him by his collar. The bigger man yanked him out of the car and onto the ground. When the secretary went to move for him, Ghost held the gun up at her face. "I'll shoot you if you move closer. Stay." She freezes. "Good dog." He equates, then pushes Black Mask into the ground.He easily towers above the man, gun held tightly in his hands. He aims it at him, feeling the weight. He knows doing this will trigger something big, he knows that, but honestly, he can't bring himself to care.He was doing this to die while doing everything he could to help people beforehand. No ulterior motive.The gun was level with his forehead, and he shook the mental nerves away. His ginger tightened on the trigger, then something hit it, knocking the gun away and merely grazing the mask with the bullet.Looking at the piece of mask missing, then whirling to where it came from, he saw none other than......Batman and Robin.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Ghost was staring down Batman and his sidekick. "I thought you two were busy." Ghost remarks."You tried to kill him." Batman said with heavy disapproval. Ghost shrugged before bringing his boot back and slamming it into Black Masks face, knocking him out cold."I did." Ghost confirms. "I do what you won't. Clean the city up permanently."Robin and Batman both glared. Robin retorted, "They don't need to die! They can be redeemed!"Ghost glares. "How many people have you indirectly killed because you refuse to put them down? How many graveyards have you filled because you refuse to do what has to be done? People like the Joker can't be redeemed. Hell, even the people most against the death penalty wouldn't say anything if Joker got executed. Nor would they for Sionis. So, why not?"Batman just stares. "Nobody gets to be judge, jury, and executioner." Batman states.Ghost growls. "I do. Because everyone else is too much of a damn pansy to do anything about Gotham's clear problem. And I have a feeling you're the reason it's a problem. You refuse to step up." Ghost grits out."I have no right to make that decision. Neither do you." the Dark Knight retorts.Ghost glares at the both of them. "I see. Guess that's the end of that, then." He turns and aims at Roman.Batman charged, and Ghost turned his body to send Batman charging past him. Robin threw a punch at him from below, and he dodged, grabbing the back of his head and shoving it into the ground.He ducks under a punch from Batman, even though the punch came from behind him. He turned in time to block a kick with his right leg, then threw the arm holding the gun towards his head.Batman himself ducks, and goes for an tiger claw uppercut, but Ghost pulls his head out of the way. He brings the butt of the gun down on his wrist, and Batmans arm went down.The white figure dodged as a projectile flew out and at him, and he watched as the newly dubbed bird-a-rang flew past him and bounced off of the Dark Knights armor. He turned and went for a kick to his head, but he threw himself back.A punch came from his right and he held his arm up to block it, but the hit never came. Feeling the wind shift lower, he moved his left hand to shove Batmans fist away. Nice try.He shifted back, going on the defensive, as it was now two on one. Granted, he was better than both of them, but they were both highly trained. Child or not, Robin has been around for nearly a decade. He has a lot of practice under his belt.They both charged, and he was forced to block and dodge. He prevented a hit from Robin by using his forearm, then used his bicep to absorb a hit from Batmans foot, aimed for his side. He shifted himself backwards to avoid punches to the head from both, and they hit each others fists.Robin, having work less protective gloves has to shake his hand out. Taking advantage of this distraction, Ghost moved forward and spartan kicked the kid, sending him backwards. He quickly tried to turn the gun on Batman, but the man knocked it out of his hand, towards where Robin was laying.Having both hands free, more possibilities were opened up for combat. He dodged a punch and grabbed his wrist, twisting it before throwing a punch at his mouth. Batman turned his head, and Ghosts fist hit the cowl.He yanked his hand before and let the man punch him, just the once. The Dark Knights right fist had connected with his cheek, and it burns, a lot. There was still a hole there. Batman pauses as he hears a drip come from his face."You didn't know? I had a knife go through my face earlier." Ghost says, then headbutts the man. He steps back from a punch, then he grabs Robins arm. He wraps his own arm around the kids arm. Then, he places his free hand on the kids face, and yanks with his other arm.The sickening pop that echos into the night stops Batman in his tracks. He had just dislocated this kids arm. As the kid screamed in pain and Batman hesitated, he shifted the kid to his other side before jamming the opening between his thumb and his index finger into Robins throat.He starts sputtering, then collapses to the ground, hand moving to his throat out of shock. Batman charged Ghost with a primal yell, and he dodged out of the (heh) Superman punch that came his way.He dodged two more hits then slammed his palms at his ears. As he was discombobulated, Ghost charged forward and pushed himself off of the other mans knee before kicking him in his chin, carrying through and landing on his feet."You're not the only acrobat here, bird-boy." Ghost said, then he threw a throwing knife at Batman. He narrowly dodged, the knife grazing his cheek and shifting pass, imbedding itself into a light pole. Batman charged again, going for a double hammer fist attack. Ghost moved out of the way, then simply kicked his hands. When they went up with the force, Ghost delivered a sidekick to Batmans stomach.When Batman went to charge, Ghost did a roll backwards and grabbed his gun, then brought it up. Batman, was again, knocked the gun away. Ghost dodged a hit, but in the process, ended up pinned to a car. Batman took advantage and advanced, then started going for rapid fire hits. He blocked one, two, three, eight, sixteen, then he just kicked his ankle. When Batman stumbled, he reached to the back of his belt.Batman got right in his face, and brought his hand back, but then a sharp bang echoed into the air. Batman took a step back, then looked down at his side. Red was leaking out of his suit, and the gun in Ghosts hand was smoking. Ghost brought his book up and kicked him, sending him backwards and to the ground temporarily.The man in white moved over to Black Mask and aimed the gun down at him, and he was about to execute him, when a voice yelled,"GCPD! Put the gun down, now!" An older man yelled.Commissioner James Gordon. Frequent partner of Batman, his inside man and the reason Batman can work with police.Father to Batgirl, not that he knew that. If he did, she wouldn't be out there. Same way he was going to know who Batman and Robin were by the end of the day tomorrow.He had two options. Leave or kill Sionis. He could only choose one. If he left, he might not get this clear of a chance to kill Sionis again. He was likely about to go to prison, based on the evidence the Bat probably had. But, he would be able to get away. They wouldn't shoot.On the other hand, he could just execute him right now. He wouldn't be a problem anymore. But, the police would open fire. He might not be able to get away after that, he might bleed out. Curse of Temporary Immortality or not, it would suck, majorly.Huffing in anger, he holstered the gun. Using the magnets in his gloves, he pulled his discarded gun over to him and holstered it."Freeze! Stop moving! You're under arrest!" Gordon yelled, starting to move closer. Ghost just grabbed a smoke grenade, held it up, then dropped it. The smoke came out in a burst, and when it cleared, he was gone."How do they do that?"~~~~~~~~~~He sat down in a cafe, then ordered the strongest coffee they have. He waited for about ten minutes, then a blonde man in a trenchcoat sat down across from him."John." The man greeted."G'day, mate. Saw ya on the news." The blonde said, pulling a flask out and taking a swig."Did they get my good side?" The other blonde man asks."Ya have a good side?" John questions."That's fair." The first man retorted, then grasped the coffee handed to him. "Thank you." He took a sip."What happened to your face? You look like absolute shite. No more than normal anyways." John insulted."I got stabbed through both cheeks. It hurt." He takes another sip of his coffee.The Brit hums. "I also saw that ya didn't... y'know. Off 'im. Why not? Ya would have been fine."The blue eyed man glares. "Only reason I would have been fine is because you fucked up. And I didn't do it because it still would have hurt, still would have needed time to heal, and I would have ended up in prison. None of that is preferable. I'll get another chance when the justice system fails." He takes a sip.John hums again. "Do ya go for black haired girls?""I'm not going out with anyone you set me up with ever again. Last time I did that, she ended up being a prostitute." The man remarked coldy."She's a fellow magician. And don't shame the ladys profession, she works hard for her job." He replies, taking a swig from his flask.He rolls his eyes with a heavy sigh. "Fine, Constantine. What's her name?""Her name is Zatanna Zatara, Mister Alaster."~~~~~~~~~~He walked into the restaurant, not dressed that fancily. Just some clean jeans, his combat boots and a nice, buttoned down shirt with the sleeves rolled just below his elbows. He sits down at the table John Constantine reserved for him, getting a cup of wine. He would have preferred tequila, but this was a somewhat classy place, so nothing like that here.It was maybe ten minutes later when she showed up, and he was taken aback. She was bizarrely pretty, honestly. He stood up and pulled her chair out, and let her sit down before he pushed her chair in.He sat down in his own chair, and gave her a look. "Hi, Zatanna, right?" He questioned.The young woman, maybe about seven or so years younger than him smiled with a nod. "Yup. Kyler, right?" She asked.He nodded. "That's me." He replied."I hear you were apart of a military operation overseas? What was that like?" Zatanna asked, getting her own cup of wine and sipping it. She was wearing a modest, knee length black dress with a slit on the left leg. Made her look ravishing if he was allowed to say so himself, but that wasn't important at the moment.He was debating on how truthful to be in his answer. While he did go overseas and fought, he was taken by the League of Assassins while on unit and trained. It was that, or die, and he was trained by the best. Lady Shiva, Ra's al Ghul, etcetera, all played a part.And then he broke away and went home after six years. He was discharged, then chose to travel to learn even more martial arts. More languages. Considering that Ra's decided he could be better if he had serums in his body, he was given them to make the adjustments for all of this even easier. It enhanced his brain chemistry, his memory, his reflexes, everything. And he wasn't the only one. There were three others that had the serums and the same training, but two of the other three got out with him."It was difficult. I did some things I wasn't proud of, and I'm still trying to atone for those things." He replies, face stoic.Her face twists into an apologetic one, and she leans forward. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry." She said, genuine in her words."It's fine. I hear you're a magician? How do you deal with the heckling?" He asks, leaning forward to show interest.She shrugs. "I ignore them. The only time I bother to pay them any mind is when I know I can change their opinion by having them participate in a magic trick." Her grin turned conniving. "It's amazing to see, really."He nods, taking a sip of the wine. When he swallowed, he inputted, "I'll have to watch you do it sometime. When is your next show?" He asked, genuinely curious."The theatre on 14th, tomorrow night. I can set a ticket aside for you?" She offered.He gives her a soft smile. "That would be great. Though if the date goes bad, I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. But... either way, I'll be there."She smiles sweetly. "Okay."~~~~~~~~~~The next night, he was sitting in the front row. He had gotten a pass to go backstage if he so wished, and he definitely wished. He sat there as the lights went out and the spotlight focused on the stage, and she came out.She was wearing a small tuxedo, going down to cover her chest. It was a white button-up with a black suit jacket over it, along with a red necktie around her neck. She had on fishnets on both legs, heading down to her feet where they connected to black heels.When she saw him, she smiled. Then she focused on the crowd. "Good evening, everyone!" She cheered happily. They all gave a wave, though some yelled back happily. He didn't, he just gave a smile. "I am so happy you're all here! I have some very special people in the audience tonight! Let's get on with the show!" She cheered, then started.What he proceeded to watch went against everything he believed in. He didn't believe in magic, and because of this belief, he analyzed every trick he could find. He even came up with some of his own, so every trick she performed, he knew how it worked. Sure, there were some that he couldn't one hundred percent know because he had never seen them before, but he had theories on how they all worked.She seemed happy that he was paying rapt attention though. So he was content to figure them out and move on, and let him relay the fact that figuring it out was practically all that was keeping him interested but he was trying.Yeah, he was a dick. Yes, he wasn't very interested in magic. But she did, and he was attempting to stick it out to support her. She felt... off, to him. Sure, he knew genuine magic existed (John fucking Constantine was proof enough of that) but the way she was described and her show made it seem like she was a simple magician.But she knew John Constantine. And the other blonde man spoke highly of her. He was pretty sure she knew actual magic, but was just pretending to be the average magician. ANd her next trick proved that.She pointed at him. "You, sir! Would you please come on up?" She questioned, then gave a grin. He pointed to himself to make sure, and when she nodded, he stood up. "Could you leave your jacket in your seat?" He pauses, then shrugs it off before putting it back.What was left was a Justice League shirt, with a mix of all the symbols of the various members behind the words. Green Arrow, Batman, Superman, Black Canary, Wonder Woman, etcetera.He got onto the stage, she put him dead center. "What are you doing?" He whispered to her."Magic." She whispered back with a cheeky grin. Then she looked at the crowd and spoke louder, "I will spin him around, and he will be reversed! Cross-eyed! The words on the shirt mirrored! Tattoo on the opposite side!" She tried to hype up, and people perked up. No box to hide a potential change?He held up his right wrist to show the tattoo, it was an eagle with its wings spread, mouth open as it soared through the air. He held his left arm up to show that he had a second tattoo peeking out from underneath the t-shirt on the inside of his left bicep.She pointed her wand at him, then put a hand on his shoulder. "Now, spin!" She instructed, and turned him in a circle. He felt the magic flow over him, which confirmed his hypothesis. She knew real magic, because there was no way she could do this trick without the box without knowing.Plus, he had a similar feeling as to when Constantine accidentally cursed him. Magic had a similar feeling all the way around.When he stopped, he went to look down but found himself looking up instead. It took half a second before he realized if he wanted to look down, he had to look up. So, he did, and he found himself finally looking down. The words were flipped, and he raised both arms, and looked for himself. The tattoos were flipped, and he hummed.He hated magic.But the audience didn't.They cheered, and he glanced over to see her smilin at the praise. He forced a frown feeling so that he could actually smile, and it seemed to get wider. She spun him the opposite way, and when he stopped, he was back right.She gave him one last smile and watched him go back to his seat before she continued the show.~~~~~~~~~~Backstage, he stepped up to her. "Zatanna." He greeted, and she stood up quickly. She gave him a hug, then a kiss on the cheek before pulling back."Thank you for coming." She said gratefully.He hummed in acknowledgement. "No problem. It was... interesting, to say the least. John downplayed how good of a magician you were." He stated.She blushed. "I'm-I'm average." She tried to downplay herself."No. You're not. Be more confident." He told her.She was going to say something, then paused. "Bruce!" She said, and walked past him. He turned around, then saw no other than Bruce Wayne and Richard Grayson. You'd have to be braindead to not know who these two were.She gave Bruce and Richard a hug, and stepped back."It was a wonderful show, Zatanna." Bruce stated, which had Kyler nodding."Very good show, Z." Richard stated, then noticed Kyler. "Who are you?"He cleared his throat and stepped forward as Zatanna watched apprehensively. "Kyler Alaster. A... friend." He decided upon, and shook the kids hand."Dick Grayson." He introduced, shaking back. When he released, Kyler turned to Bruce.Bruce shook his hand, introducing, himself as, "Bruce Wayne. I'm an old friend of Zatanna's.""Again, Kyler Alaster. New friend of Zatanna's." The blonde said, then pulled his hand back.Zatanna bit her lip, then added in, "I hope you two can get along. Because hopefully the friend can turn into the boyfriend."Dick and Bruce looked between Kyler and Zatanna. "Oh." Bruce noted. "Congratulations?" He asked hesitantly.Zatanna took a step closer to Kyler. "We had a lovely date last night, and I reserved a ticket for him. I'm surprised he came. Most people wouldn't." She remarks."I told you I would." He replies, and she hums."Yeah, but-""No buts. I told you I would. So, I did. That simple. Alright?""Alright.""So, Kyler, what do you do for a living?" Bruce asked."Freelance. Odd jobs. Whatever gets me paid." He replies."Is all of it legal?""Other than a few OSHA violations, yes.""Where did you get so much muscle from?" Dick questioned.He looked at the seventeen year old. "I was in the military. Got it from there." He answers."You served?" Bruce questions, and his head pivots. Something on Bruce's cheek catches his eye."Yeah. I did. What happened to your face?" Kyler questions, and the fact that his hand immediately goes to the cut raises a major red flag. It looked awfully similar to the cut he gave Batman two nights ago. And the healing was correct."Accident in the kitchen." Bruce replies, and he looks at the kid. He was carrying his right arm a bit heavier than the other. Too much exercise, or a byproduct of having your arm completely dislocated?He was ninety percent sure these two were Batman and Robin. He held his hand out, gaining a look of confusion. He twisted it so that the tattoo was facing towards him, and held it to cover the top of Bruce's face."What are you doing?" Dick question."Checking to see if my tattoo is on the right wrist. Never been involved with magic before." He lies, and checks Bruce's jawline.Exact match. He was one hundred percent sure Bruce Wayne was Batman. One hundred percent sure that Dick Grayson was Robin."Oh, that makes sense. I did the same thing." Dick replies, and he hums before lowering his hand.Kyler turns to Zatanna, and leans down to kiss her cheek. "I have to go. I had to agree to take the graveyard shift to be able to make it to your show."She smiles while closing her eyes to accept it. Then she opens them when he pulls away. She leans up and gives him one too. "Good luck, Kai. I'll call you later." He smiles at her, then walks past the Dynamic Duo."Hopefully we can talk some more in the future." He relays, then leaves.The Ghost was about to torment Batman and Robin again.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Ghost was ready for the Batman. He had incapacitated the police officers on top of the GCPD and turned the Batsignal on. He was ready for the Bat and the Bird to show up.He hid in the shadows, watching Batman show up and carefully make his way to the Batsignal.Seeing Ghost would surely be a surprise, as who in their right mind not only go to GCPD, but go to the roof, take out the cops, and contact Batman directly while being actively hunted by both parties?So, doing this, he would probably be fine. After all, he already beat Batman once, while he was at the top of his game. Beating him while he was injured would be nothing.When the Bat analyzed he signal, Ghost couldn't help but notice that there was no bird."No Robin?" Ghost questioned, stepping out.Batman immediately turned and hurled a batarang at him, which he caught effortlessly. That was certainly rude. "You." Batman growled.Ghost grinned under his mask. "Yeah." As Batman got into a battle stance, Ghost raised a finger and shook it. "Considering you're healing from a bullet wound, I wouldn't."Batman glared harder. "I'm already healed."Ghost chuckles darkly. "Last I heard, Bruce Wayne wasn't a metahuman." He drops.Batman becomes even more hostile, but doesn't make any outwardly move. "How?" He doesn't even deny it.Ghost shrugs. "Very few people can afford your toys. Robin appeared at around the same time Richard Grayson was taken in by Bruce Wayne. Batman first appeared within a few weeks of Batman returning. And your jawlines match perfectly. That's why I cover the bottom half of my face." The man in white answers.Batman glares. "What are you going to do with this knowledge?"The white figure walked past Batman casually and flipped the switch off, before turning and leaning against it. "Simple. You leave me alone, and I don't gather evidence to leak your identity. And you keep your damn bird out of trouble."Batman forcibly made himself drop out of a combat stance. "Why would I agree to that?""God, you're slow." Ghost remarks stepping towards the edge of the roof. "Because, if you don't, the entire world will know who Batman is. And people knowing goes against what you have built so far." Ghost glares. "You do good work when you're not being a little bitch. Don't make me ruin it." Then he lets himself plummet from the roof.~~~~~~~~~~"Sir, was that the smartest move?" Caity asked as Ghost sprinted away, moving over obstacles. He parkoured to get around, not having any special gadget."No. I probably could have handled that better. Probably could have went without telling him I know at all, but I didn't do that because I wanted to toy with him. Not my best move by a long shot." Ghost responded.Caity seemingly hums. "And why is that? Is it because you just threatened the-"
"-goddamn Batman? Yeah, that's why. I just threatened one of the richest men on the planet. No doubt he'll be using everything he has to find me. Which will eventually lead him to-"

"-the League of Assassins. Particularly, one Talia al Ghul."

"Exactly. And when she hears about who exactly Batman is looking for, she'll be paying me a visit. And that would mean she would know that I'm alive and reports of my... 'death', are exaggerated."
Caity takes a moment to respond, seemingly trying to gather her thoughts. You know, if she were human. "She will be very... angry, if she were to discover your living status. Especially since the last time you parted..." Caity trails off."I had told her I loved her... but that I couldn't be with her because I needed to fix a dangerous issue, and because of her loyalty to her father." Ghost answers, stopping. Someone pokes their head out of the window across from the rooftop he's on and waves, so he gives a confused wave back. "She said she would consider leaving to be with me. And I told her if I made it back, I would love that. Then I faked my death, so she likely assumed  the dangerous mission killed me. Knowing I'm alive but didn't come back might have her trying to kill me because I didn't actually die."He can feel the brow Caity would be raising if she were human. "So, you are not scared of the fact that you threatened the Batman, it is the fact that his digging will have Talia al Ghul coming for you. and you do not want to face her?"Ghost takes a minute, analyzing his own brain. Was  that really it? Was the reason he realized that maybe threatening the Batman was a poor move really because he didn't want to see Talia?"Fuck." Ghost swears, having come to the answer."Indeed. I have reports of suspicious activity at a warehouse near you, maybe about twenty or so, ranging from small melee weapons to large firearms." Caity tells him.
"Hello, misplaced aggression."
~~~~~~~~~~Looking down, he glared. Three guards circling the front. He maybe had time to take out two at most if he was fast, but the third would spot him. How would he be getting around that?He could always use guard number three as an entry warning. Could cut off his hands and toss them. Or walk in with him like a hostage and just slit his throat as a sassy start to the fight that is definitely waiting inside.Sure, he could always take out all seventeen inside stealthily, no problem. He's a master at it, despite his very bright color scheme. He was trained by the best, and he even took that to another level that was unforeseen.But where was the fun in that?He unfolded his bow and knocked an arrow, and when he got a gap, released it. The arrow flew into someone's eye, and he knocked a second arrow in half a second. He fired at the second guard, and hit them in the heart, causing them to crumble.The third noticed the other two, and looked around quickly. Ghost flipped forward off of the building, knocking an arrow and aiming. Midway through the flip, he is upside down and releases the arrow. It whooshes through the air, and it pushes through their throat.They drop the gun and move their hands to their throat as he lands, doing a roll to absorb the impact throughout his body. He folds the bow and attaches it back to his right shoulder, then steps towards the man who is holding his throat.The arrow pierced his jugular, but said arrow was also keeping any blood from spilling out. He grabbed them, then pulled them towards the warehouse entrance. He entered quietly, and stepped right out in front of everyone else. "HEY!" Ghost shouted, moving his left hand to grasp the shaft of the arrow.It got everyone's attention, and the rest all move to surround the front of him. Just by eyeballing it, he would say it's more fourteen people in front. Two of them have assault rifles, six have handguns, three have baseball bats, one brought a goddamn hammer, and two brought knives."Okay, you all are actively doing something illegal. I might not have killed you if it was maybe drugs for adults. But guns that can get innocent people hurt, no go. So, I'm going to kill you. All of you. And seeing as someone thought that a goddamn hammer would do the job, I'm going to make that assumption true by just killing all of you with it." Ghost states.A gun yells, "There's, like, fourteen of us, and only one of you! What makes you think you can win!?"Ghost grins, grip on the arrow shifting as he spins it in the guards neck."I'm the best there is." He replies, then rips the arrow out of their neck before kicking their body into the assault rifles as they unload.They fill the body with bullets as he sprints off, diving over a box and flipping over it, tossing a throwing knife  mid-air and pushing through someone's armpit, severing the artery there. Their arm goes limp before they collapse, dying from blood loss. Down to thirteen. He crawls along the floor to get behind a larger pile of boxes to stand up, shrugging off invisible dirt."Send in the hammer guy to come get me and I'll surrender!" He shouts, lying his ass off.He hears them argue before he's sent, and he looks at a railing to see the reflection. Indeed, there he was, the hammer guy. He waited, and when he got close, he reached out and grabbed him before pulling him in.The guy swung, and he ducked under it before bringing his hand him, using the bottom part of his palm to hit him in the nose.The hammer guy dropped the hammer, and Ghost reached down. He opened his hand to grab it, and when it hit his hand, his hand curled around it. He flipped the hammer around and swung the claw end through hammer guy's throat.He pulled it out, and the blood poured from the exit wound, before they went to fall. He grabbed their shirt and tugged them up before moving to the side. He knew they were waiting. So, dramatically, he tossed the corpse down out from the exit of where he was hiding.They opened fire, but he was already slinking away. He got on top of a big stack of crates as they rounded the corner, and he looked down at them, rolling his eyes. They were down to twelve, and it was pitiful.The last guy was holding an assault rifle, so he hopped down behind him. The assault rifle turned, and he brought the hammer up and hit him in the throat with the flat end. The impact on their throat forced it in, and cut off their airway, so they started choking. He rushed forward and used extreme force to hit someone in the back of the head, and he could hear the fracturing of their skull.One turned around and he flipped it, shoving the claw end into their eye. He kept it there as he pushed back, kicking one enemy into the rest and knocking them down, the stretch of which pulling the hammer further into their head and bringing them to the ground. He shoved the hammer down into the socket to pierce into the brain before he ripped it out and rushed off.They were down to nine now. And as he ducked behind a corner, he got an alert from Caity."Sir, your cell phone is receiving a call." Caity told him.He took a breath with a confused expression, before whispering, "Who?" He shifted away, aware of the fact that they were hunting for him now, with intensity.

"Miss Zatanna Zatara."

Ghost grits his teeth. "Put it through.""Sir?" Caity double checks."Answer, shut off the voice modulator." Ghost says, gripping the hammer tightly as he hears someone approaching. He shifts the hammer so that it's claw side out.'Hey, Kyler." Zatanna says... sweetly? Why sweetly?"Hey, Z." Ghost says, swinging the hammer into one's knee and pulling, ripping their kneecap off before bringing it back again and slamming it into their ear, forcing it all the way in.The handgun falls to the floor as he pushes back towards the guy in front, using the corpse to absorb the bullets."What's going on? It's so loud and are those... gunshots?" Zatanna asks."At the end of an action movie. What's up?" Ghost questioned, pushing the body into the guy with enough force to rip the hammer out. Ghost then swung it at the back of their neck, going in before yanking, the claw pulling on the spine hard enough to snap it, making them crumple, to the ground and bring him too.He tugged at it, before pulling it loose and rolling backwards to avoid a baseball bat swing down. He flipped the hammer so that the flat side would make contact if swung."I was just wondering if you would like to go out to see a movie tomorrow night? Or...maybe tonight you could come over...?" Zatanna asked hesitantly.He swung the hammer into the wooden bat, the metal easily tearing through the wood. He pushes the mans face into a box, bouncing it. He quickly tosses the hammer into his left hand before he slams the flat side into their temple, pushing the skull in.They drop into a kneel, leaning against the box, then he pulls it back and swings for the same spot again, easily making contact and crushing their brain."I would love to." He responds, grabbing a handgun that peeks around the corner he's hiding of, pulling them towards them and getting the claw end of the hammer to the cheek.He rips it out, yanking the gun away. While they're kneeling on the ground, he winds up and brings it down on the back of their head, piercing their brain and killing them. Down to five.He rips it out of their head and gets away as more bullets start to fly, feeling one whiz by his arm. He didn't get hit, but almost.He breathed a bit heavily, pressing against a box and clutching the hammer to his chest, spreading the red substance from the hammer onto him. He wasn't panicked or anything, just needing to reorganize.If his memory was correct (it was), there were three guys with handguns, one baseball bat, and one knife.Thinking about this rationally, he could take out one more with a handgun before finishing the last four at the same time.Realizing this, he whistled to get one's attention. Based on the way they were moving, they were hurriedly pointing the gun to check where he was."Love to... what? The movie or... coming over?" Zatanna asks.They pointed towards him, rounding the corner and he slammed the flat head of the hammer into their wrist, forcing the gun to drop of their hand. He slammed the top of the hammer into their throat, before sweeping their legs out from under him.Ghost crawled over the gunman and slammed the hammer into their face once. Then he raised it and brought it down once again, the second strike completely shattering their nose. He did it a third, fourth, and fifth time, the last of which breaking into their face cavity. With a sixth and final strike, the entire front part of their face was caved in, the blood bouncing up onto his body.He could feel some of it dripping down his forehead below the hood of his suit,"Both. Let me finish the movie, take a shower, and I'll be right over." He replied, moving to the middle and banging on a box, getting their attention. He climbed up to a vantage point, and waited for all four."Where is he!?" A goon shouted, scared out of his mind. Could you blame him?"I don't know, I just heard this loud banging." A handgun goon replied.He jumped down, slamming the hammer down onto a handgun. He turned and pushed a gun up to avoid fire before turning and ramming the back of his shoulder into them forcing them back. He turned back and twisted their wrist, making them drop the gun. He kicked it mid-air to send it flying away.He flipped the hammer and turned, sending it into the thigh of one. He ripped it out and turned, giving a punch to one before shifting and putting it into the head of the dropped guns goon. Three left.He grabbed the bat mid-swing and pulled it to the side, flipping the hammer and bringing it down, going through the wood.They stumble back because they were pulling, and he ducks below a gunshot while spinning around, quickly flipping the hammer mid-dodge before slamming it into their pelvis. He tugged down, putting them on their knee before pulling the hammer up, the flat end hitting them in their chin and knocking them down.He dodged a stab from the half-bat, but deflected it and sent it into the knife goons stomach. He took the claw end of the hammer and slammed it into their chest, ripping it out then putting it back in over and over again.Eventually, they fell backwards, dead. Two to go.He released the hammer and dodged a low jab from the goon, and he responded by grabbing their wrist, adjusting how they were holding it, then forcing it up into their own aorta. They dropped from the pain as he let go, then the white but also red figure ripped the hammer our of their dead friend and brought it down on their head.He pulled it out, and stepped over to the last one, slowing kneeling beside them.They looked up at him, holding their testicles... or where they used to be... in pain. "Please..." they begged.He brought the flat end up then brought it down on their chest."Oh-" Zatanna started.He brought the hammer up.
"-um-"
He brought it down onto their chest again.
"-yeah-"
He brought it up once more.
"-I can-"
He brought the hammer down again.
"-definitely-"
He brought it up.
"-give-"
He swung down once more, chest finally caving in and spurting up blood, exposed ribs shown to the outside.
"-you-"
He brought it up for another swing.
"-time for-"
He brought it down once more, making blood spurt further onto the floor. He just crushed their heart. He just couldn't stop.
"-a-"
He raised it up for another blow.
"-shower before-"
He swung down again, ignoring the fact that he was already dead."-you get here." She finished, finally for him, but for her, it was a single, continuous sentence.He brought the hammer up to swing again, but it slipped out of his hands and went flying across the room. There was too much blood on it for him to keep a good grip.He stood up, wiping his hands on his pants, but nothing changes. His pants are equally as bloody, and he just knows he's going to have to soak his uniform in his blood solvent."Yeah, Z, I'll be there. Give me half an hour, forty-five minutes, tops." He said, exiting the building, passing by a dozen bodies on his way out. He stepped out onto the street and looked at the limited civilians, who were staring in shock.Yeah, he would be too if a vigilante just walked out in a red suit. Especially if there were some missing spots that were white. The white could easily be mistaken for highlights, there's so much blood on the suit."Okay. I guess I'll see you in have an hour, forty-five minutes tops?" Zatanna questions, and he can hear the smile in her voice.How that smile wouldn't be there if she knew about this."Yeah. You will. See ya, Z. Bye for now. Text me the address.""I will. Bye for now." She hangs up, and he hums."Modulator." He commands."On it, sir." Then he leaves.~~~~~~~~~~Batman walked into the warehouse, looking around at all of the bullet holes. A lot happened here.He stepped up to Gordon, looking down at the chest that had been caved in. What had done this?"Batman, we've been waiting on you." Gordon stated.The Dark Knight grunts. "What happened here?"The man blows a breath out. "Well, clearly, it was a violent one. Seventeen dead, two discovered outside, fifteen inside. The two outside were discovered with arrows in their eye and heart respectively. The last one killed with an arrow we assume was a guard outside, because there was a third gun outside but only two guards, and he was closest to the entrance." Gordonw as walking and talking, Batman following. The Commissioner points to the body, "The arrow prevented them from bleeding out, but it was removed roughly, like they ran. And based on the bullets on their corpse, they were used a human shield."Batman nods. "Arrows implies training. He's skilled?"Gordon nods. "I assume so. He killed seventeen men on his own. And fourteen of which was with a weapon that originated here."Batman scowls. "I saw the chest cavity of the victim in the four close to each other. Was it an enhancing weapon, like an exosuit? This looked like an arms deal."Gordon laughs, shaking his head, which raises Batman's confusion level. What was so funny?"That's the thing, it was something anyone can use." Gordon remarked."What was the weapon?" Batman questioned."A hammer.""A hammer?""A hammer."Batman paused. "A sledgehammer? A mallet?"Gordon blew a breath out. "A claw hammer. The kind you can buy at the hardware store."Batman looked around at all of the blood on the boxes, the corpses laying about. He would say that it would take a lot of luck, but the arrows are skill based. He had a guess. "What color were the arrowheads?" Batman asked."Hard to tell, but from what blood rubbed off, white. Why?"Batman just turned and walked away. After their conversation, Ghost came to this warehouse and killed seventeen people, fourteen of which with a simple hammer. He needed to find him. Now.He got in the Batmobile, and instantly Dick and Alfred were both on screen. "How was it, Master Bruce?" Alfred questioned.Batman glared at the road. "Seventeen people are dead. Killed by the Ghost."Dick pulls his eyebrows together. "Seventeen, that's a pretty normal amount-"Batman cuts his ward off, "Fourteen of which were murdered using a claw hammer."Dick pauses while Alfred raises an eyebrow. "A claw hammer?" Alfred questions.Dick adds, "You can just get those from a hardware store." He bites his lip. "What do we do now that he knows our identities? And now this massacre to add onto the others? It clearly shows how dangerous he is, and that level of skill is pointed directly at us. Let me back out there so I can help.""No, Dick, you need to stay there. He hurt you once, he's not going to do it again." Batman stated."You're keeping me benched?" Dick questioned, irritated."Yes." he answered, and the bird stormed away."Well, sir, you handled that with grace." Alfred sasses.'Now now." Batman grit out. "What do you have?"
"Nothing much, sir. All I have is a tactic used by only one person; Talia al Ghul. It could be a coincidence. Or..."
"Or she trained him." Batman states. "Thank you, Alfred. In the meantime, do some digging on Kyler Alaster. I want to know if he's a good person for Zatanna to be with."
"As you wish, sir."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Kyler stepped up to the door. It wasn't a very lavish place, which threw him for a look. She made enough money to afford a better place, but she didn't. Why?That was definitely going to be on the list of questions he would be asking her. The first obviously being why she wanted him to come over. Her show was earlier that night, it hadn't been that long since she saw him.The blonde knocked on the door and stepped back, knowing he had to act casual. It would be no problem. It wasn't like he had killed seventeen people, fourteen with a hammer, less than an hour ago.Did he get the blood off of his forehead? He wiped his hand fully off of it, and checked. Yeah, he got it all. Why was he checking? He had no idea, he knew he got it all before he left the house.The door opened, and she was in a pair of sweatpants and a tank top. She looked amazing, though she looked casual."Zatanna." He greeted plainly, giving her an obvious once-over.The woman gave him a beaming smile, and he felt lighter at the look. "Kyler, hey. I wasn't sure you were actually going to come."The man gave her a very pointed look. She should really know better than that. "I told you I would show up to the show. I told you I would come over. If I wasn't going to, I wouldn't have said that I was."She shuffles from side to side idly, suddenly nervous. It was very clear to see even to the untrained eye. And since his was trained, he clocked it immediately. "You want to come in?" She offers, moving to the side to provide an opening."Of course." he answers, stepping into the door and letting her shut it behind him. Then he questions, "So, why did you want me over?"He can hear her stop moving and her breath hitch behind him. She was embarrassed of the reason, that he could tell. Things most people don't recognize is that most people have the same tells. An obvious indicator of being embarrassed about something, is a hitched breath when they have to talk about it. It happens everytime.The ravenette finally answers, "Don't take this the wrong way, but, uh, well, I kinda wanted to see you again. It's why I set aside the tickets. And I didn't get enough of you to, well, myself. So, I figured... why not invite you over and make sure?"He turns around, not revealing anything on his face, which he knows he definitely has to fix. A robot as a secret identity was not a good way to prevent connections to him being the Ghost."That's fair enough, I guess." He replies, shrugging off his jacket. "Anywhere I can put this?"He looks at her face, and she's staring at him blankly. He tilts his head in confusion, not understanding what he was looking at. Kyler glances down to look at himself, and then he notices it. He's wearing a sleeveless shirt, and he spends most of his day exercising. So, naturally, his arms have gotten bigger.He raises an eyebrow, then remarks, "Go ahead and take a picture. I'll wait." This seems to snap her out of it, and she points to a hook by the door. He moves to it and hangs it up before turning around. "So, what did you want to do? Netflix, maybe?"She blushes a bright shade of red, looking anywhere but at him. "Yeah. Netflix works."~~~~~~~~~~Kyler and Zatanna were laying on the couch. It was a pullout couch, so it folded out into a bed. He was on one side, she was on the other, and they were watching a romance-comedy. Personally, he preferred horror movies. At least then he could take some tips on how to terrify the shit out of people when he had to.Saw was his favorite, because it inspired a lot of interrogation techniques. He used one last week that he learned from one, and it worked wonders."Every girl's dream. A guy showing up at two in the morning playing the cheesiest song you can possibly play, interrupting her sleep schedule and not being a total creep for following her home to even pull it off to begin with. Definitely what I want to happen to me." Zatanna sasses, and he snorts in amusement."I don't think you watch romance movies correctly." he quips, looking at her out of the corner of his eye.She laughs slightly, replying, "I just find some of the actions these guys take a bit creepy. I would be putting someone on the moon for something like that." She added, passionate about the subject.He turned his head to look at her, and was taken aback. She looked serene, the spark in her eye glinting in the low light. She seemed happy. Good, even.As he was shamelessly staring, which even surprised him, he wasn't going to lie, yelling was heard above. He glanced up at the ceiling, pulling his eyebrows together."What's happening there?" He questioned.Zatanna sighed deeply, and he assumed it was a regular occurrence because of it. Nobody has that reaction if it was every once in awhile. "My upstairs neighbors are a small, very dysfunctional family. They yell a lot. You get used to it."Kyler hums, deciding to ask his question from earlier given the opening. "I've been meaning to ask, why live here? You can definitely afford somewhere better."She takes a breath. "If I live somewhere better, paparazzi will never leave me alone. And I'll have to watch myself around other tenants so they don't do anything. At least here I can be me and avoid anyone trying to get a cheap picture for some quick cash." She explains. Kyler nods, then hums. "What?" She questions.He just asks, "If we start dating, you realize that I'll have to watch myself with that too, right?" The blonde man accepted her explanation, it made sense. He would probably do the same in her position.Her eyes widened as she gave him her undivided attention. "I didn't even think about that. Would you even want to handle that? If you don't I understand, we had a nice time and it was all I can ask for-""Z." He called, and she gave him her attention, shutting her mouth. "I can handle it. Everything will be fine." He tells her, though he does realize that if that becomes the case, then going out as the Ghost would be so much harder. If he's going to be stalked for simply dating her, donning the suit and killing people at night would be harder to do.She stares at him searching his face for a lie. After a minute, she decides there aren't any. She surges forward and cups his face, at the same time slamming her lips into his own.It took him a fraction of a second before he reciprocated, using the hand he wasn't leaning on he gently cupped hers. Their lips molded against each other, moving in sync and exchanging saliva.He pushed her back gently, and she turned over, moving onto her back fully. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and let one slip up into his hair.Kyler put his arms on both sides of her and leans down, feeling as her hand grips onto his bicep with strength. He pulls away, not because he actually has to breathe, but because he did need to maintain his cover as a regular guy and he would need to."You want to slow this down at all?" He asks her, wanting to make sure this was still okay."Not at all. Keep going." She tells him, and he huffs in amusement."Yes, ma'am." He replies, and leans back in.~~~~~~~~~~They lay there, spent from the last hour. Zatanna was breathless, and from the way she was laying, not able to move correctly. Her eyes were wide as she stared at the ceiling, and his ears were ringing from how loud she had screamed in his ear."That..." Zatanna trailed off."Was great?" He finished for her, rhetorically."Yeah..." She breathes out, and he hears the slight rumble of her stomach. But he only heard it due to his hearing, so he didn't say anything. Instead, he reached for his pants and put them on, buttoning them before moving to the kitchen."You hungry?" He asked, starting to search cabinets, knowing the answer.She thinks for a minute before nodding. "Yes. I can make me-" She goes to get up."Lay down, Z." He tells her with conviction, and she does. "What will happen if you stand up before eating something?" He asks her, getting everything out to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.She bites her lip, looking down at her body, noting just how shaky she was at the moment. "I'll probably fall over." Zatanna answers.He starts spreading the peanut butter across a piece of bread, nodding. Kyler confirms, "You'll definitely fall over."She lauh=ghs, and he smiles a little as he shifts over to the jelly, tossing the butter knife in the sink before putting the peanut butter up.Starting to put jelly on bread, he hears louder shouting from upstairs. He can make out the words "Dumb", "whore", and "little girl". All of which make him frown, and he glances at Zatanna."You ever hear sudden loud thumps from them?" He questions, tossing the spoon in the sink and putting the jelly in the fridge before folding the bread on top of each other.He walks over to Zatanna and offers her the sandwich, which she accepts while she looks at his body again. Her eyes traced over the scars on his body, the tattoo on his right peck, the foreign letters tracing down his side.She was also able to see the white arrowhead tattooed on his right shoulder blade, along with the brand on the lower right side of his back. The League of Assassins need to know that you can handle what they ask of you, and he could. But now... he regretted it."Thank you." She told him, taking a bite. She chews and swallows, then answers his question. "Occasionally, but those are only when the really bad ones happen. It's Thursday, so I think we're okay. Friday is usually the worst."That's an abuse pattern. He watches as she finishes the sandwich while he confirms evidence in his head. That was definitely a pattern of abuse, one day a week a thump is heard, frequent yelling.As she finishes her sandwich, he tilts his head. Stomping, angry stomping. "I'll be back in a minute."Her eyes furrows in confusion. "Why?" Zatanna questions.A yell and a thump is heard, before there's a second and third, almost like someone was trying to stand up only to get beaten down. "That's why." he answers, swinging the door open and rushing for the stairs.There were three types of people that he hated the most, specifically. Murderers of innocent people, child predators, and abusers. The first two were always an instant death sentence, and the last was up to the victims.He pushed up the stairs and went over his checklist of rooms and where they were. So, when he found where the sounds were coming from, he beat on the door. After a second without an answer, he did it again.He heard Zatanna come up behind him, and he spared a glance at the woman. She had thrown on his shirt, which covered her to her mid thigh. She was covered.The door swung open, and a bald man was a long beard glared at Kyler. The man was about average height, so around 5'10, three inches shorter than the blonde."What." The man hissed angrily, and he could smell the alcohol on his breath. It was strong. Today must have been a bad day for him.Through grit teeth, Kyler said, "We heard a noise and wanted to check to see if everything was okay."The man glared and adjusted his hand on the doorframe, allowing Kyler to see the bruised knuckles. He hit something. "Well, everythin' is perfectly alright. You can go back to bed." He tried to shut the door, but Kyler pushed against it, and being stronger, it swung back open."You see, I don't quite believe you." He said, and a girl, maybe around fourteen or fifteen walked across the opening, holding her nose. Blood was pouring out between her fingers.Kyler's eyes were obviously trained on her, so the man turned around. Upon seeing it, he yelled, "You dumb fuckin' whore, you were told to stay fuckin' that way!" He shouts, then turns fully to walk back. "First you get caught screwin' yourself in the school bathrooms and now you can't obey your father!?" He yells, then starts walking back.Kyler steps forward and grabs his shoulder, spinning the man around. With his right, he balls it into a fist and swings, hitting the man in the jaw and sending him to the floor. He was out cold, passed out on the floor.He looks at the two girls, the bleeding one backing up into a wall. He holds a hand out, knowing that Zatanna saw that he decided to pointedly not to turn."I'm not going to hurt you. Does your mom live here, too?" As he asks, an older woman came around the corner, sporting a very old black eye."Who-Who are you?" The woman asks, scared, especially after noticing her husband at his feet."Look, your daughter needs a hospital. With the amount of blood coming out of her nose, it's a major break. There could be shards stuck, and they need to be removed." He pulls out his wallet, and pulls out all of his cash. Counting it quickly, he came up with three thousand.He offered all of it out to her."Take this. Take her to the hospital, get her checked out, and consider divorcing his ass. Neither of you deserve this." The woman takes a hesitant step forward. "Come on. It's important." The woman grabs the cash, then grabs a set of keys out of a basket."Come on, Danielle, I'm taking you to the hospital." The woman speaks, and the girl follows her mom without question, still holding her nose. On a quick glance, he noticed that it was bent out of shape.As they walked out of the door, he looked down at the man. Kyler waited until they were gone, and he heard their footsteps trail down the hallway, heading towards the elevator. That was when he decided to crouch down, and line up.He threw a leg over him, and he crawled on top. He didn't touch the man, instead on one knee over him. He pulled his hand back and swung, hitting the man int he nose, adding a bit of enhanced strength.The man's nose gave instantly, a sickening crack echoing out across the room. He just gave the man a matching broken nose. He then stood up, and stomped on the man's groin, hoping it would eliminate any possibility that he could have a second.As he took a step back, he spit on the man, hating the man as he was.The blonde stepped out, passing by Zatanna. He left the door wide open, and Zatanna followed as he headed for the stairs. Zatanna had to keep up due to his fast pace, his clear stride. He was now on a mission. He couldn't kill this guy now, it would be obvious who did it. The link would be obvious.But... he could project. Go after other known abusers. He was sure a quick trip through Reddit and he'd find a few easily. Plus, numerous guys on the street would know so he could talk to them. Maybe in exchange for not shattering their kneecaps or stealing their femurs (he did it one time and it was mostly on accident, but the threat usually worked), they give him names of abusers to go after.This might make him a bit stranger than normal, but while he stopped crime he came across, occasionally he had a focus type of the night. He got in moods where he wanted to go after specific types of criminals and he targeted them in their own homes.Imagine it this way. You watch a show because it's just a good show. No other reason. Then something happens in the show that puts you in a specific mood, let's say a comedy mood. So, you switch to a show that's primarily a comedy.That was how it worked for him, except instead of shows, it was criminal types."Kyler." She called, him gaining quite a bit of distance. "Kyler!" She called, and he stopped, hand on the door. He turned slightly so he could see her face, and she trotted up to him."What?" He asked her.She took a deep, steadying breath. "What was that? You broke his nose. You gave her all of the money in your wallet. Just... why?"Kyler releases the door handle, turning to look down at her. "The orphanage I was placed in when my parents were murdered wasn't a good one. The children beat me and the caretakers beat me worse. I hate abusers, and I can recognize the patterns of abuse when I see it. The yelling. The fact that it hits it's peak one day a week, a Friday. A weekly payday, or a meetup with friends. A sudden thump to the floor, spoiler alert, that's someone hitting the floor. I can't stand it. So, I stepped in. He broke her nose, I broke his. She was a child, and didn't deserve a major nose break. She's at most fifteen. So, I paid for her hospital bills. And I'll continue to monitor them, because I'll be damned if I'm letting that happen when I can stop it." He ends his speech end there.She takes a moment, staring at him blankly, for the second time that night. After a long few moments, she reaches a hand up to the back of his head and brings him down, connecting their lips. It's searing, frenzied, not at all like the first one.Eventually, she pulls away to breathe, and leans their foreheads together. "Date me." She orders.He huffs in amusement, closing his eyes, because just staring at her forehead was weird. "You got it." He pauses. "Damn, you're the first girlfriend I've had since high school."She laughs, reaching up to peck his lips again. "Don't worry, I'll catch you up on the latest trends." She says, then pulls away, grabbing his hand. She opens the door and drags him along, pulling him up to her apartment.~~~~~~~~~~It was two in the morning, and she was sleepy. They had cuddled on the pullout while watching another movie, this time an action one because their blood was pumping. When it ended, he heard her yawn. He gently ran his fingers through her hair, and she hummed in contentment.Twenty minutes went by, and he eventually heard her breathing even out. She was asleep.Considering she had given him his shirt back eventually, all he needed to do was throw on his boots, slide his belt back around his pants, and grab his jacket.He wrote a small note and left it under a room temperature glass of water, so that there would be no condensation ring on the paper before he left.He pulled his phone up and entered his Caity app, and hit talk. He brought it up to his ear. "Yes, boss?" The AI spoke."Search Reddit for abusers. I'm in a mood tonight."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Talia moved to her quarters. She noticed as she walked down the hallway that it was suspiciously quiet. She also noticed that there were no guards, which was abnormal.There were always guards here. It was a rule. And the lack of them were setting off warning bells in her head. She frowned, marching to her quarters. She walked in and shut the door, moving to a dresser, or as good of a dresser one in the League could get.She grabbed a bottle and opened it, before pouring it into a small glass. "Beloved." She greeted, taking a small sip, then lowering the glass a bit. "Normally I would be delighted, but considering your covert infiltration, I would say you did not come for a... social call."Batman grunts from behind her. "You would be correct. The Ghost. Tell me what you know." He got out, but Talia didn't answer.Instead, she turned around and took another sip. "I see you did not bring your child. Is he grounded?"He glares at her. "That's none of your business. Now-""I heard what you said, beloved. I simply do not know what you are referring to. Back to Robin, why not bring him? Surely he did something to earn your ire." She remarks with a smirk, taking a sip.As she drinks, Batman growls. "I don't have time for this." He stomps towards her and grabs her by the throat, shoving her back to the dresser, her spine arching as she drops her glass. She grabs his wrist, giving a grin."It seems whoever this 'Ghost' is, he is upsetting you. Is he why Robin is not here?" Talia remarks, seemingly unaffected."He killed a hundred people in less than a week! I need a name!" Batman interrogated.Talia glares up at him. "I do not know who he is. I am of no use to you." She spits back, not liking his current tone."He uses your methods! Your training! You trained him!" He yelled, then tightened his hold. Clearly, Batman was losing it.She headbutted him, then when he stepped back, kicked her right leg into his side. He took the hit and a loud grunt was heard. He took a step back, then held his side, and she tilted her head."You are hurt." She observes.He grits his teeth. "He shot me.""He... beat you?" Talia questions.Batman grunts. "Me and Robin. At the same time. That kind of skill, left unchecked, is dangerous. He is killing people in my city and needs to be stopped."Talia takes a step back, pushing herself into the dresser. It couldn't be him. He died. She knows he died. Her most loyal warrior told her so and they wouldn't lie. Unless...Unless they thought he was dead, too. He had the skills and knowledge necessary to make even they believe he was gone."Tell me, does he only murder those deemed as criminals in the eyes of your laws?" Talia questioned.Batman gave her a look. "Yes. Why?"Talia felt the air leave her lungs. There was no possible way. He was chosen to be her beloved long before the man in front of her came into the picture, and she still felt strongly. "He is supposed to be dead."Batman took a step closer. "Tell me his name." He said threateningly.Talia gave him a look, and it had a slight ounce of fear in it, which made the Dark Knight take a step back. Talia was never scared. Sure, she helped Batman, but that was to make him like her. And her father only made her worried, or nervous. But never scared."Beloved, I cannot help you. Please leave." She told him curtly, then went to walk out the door.But Batman merely grabbed her arm and pulled. "Not until you tell me his name."Talia looked at him, and merely stated, "I wish I could. But what he would do to me is a lot more severe than what you could possibly dream of. But if that is not enough, I have more loyalty to him, than to you." She leaned closer. "And as a warning, Dark Knight. Do not cross him. Do not get in his way. He is better, and a lot more skilled than you or I. He causes my father to me unnerved. Be very, very careful with what you do next." She pulled her arm away than walked out the door, leaving Batman with his thoughts.If Talia and Ra's al Ghul were scared of him, it only begged two questions.How skilled was he really? And who the hell is he?~~~~~~~~~~Batman flew into the Batcave, no closer to answers than he was before.  He got out and moved to the Batcomputer, tearing his cowl off as Dick and Alfred looked at him. It seemed Alfred was still amidst research while his ward was doing homework, getting Alfreds help when needed."How was your trip to see Miss al Ghul, Master Bruce?" The butler asked."A waste of time." Batman grunted angrily.Dick looked up with furrowed eyebrows, the seventeen-year-old furrowing his eyebrows. "How? She always gives you whatever you want to know.""Not this time." Bruce grunted, Alfred moving so the man can sit down in the chair and pull up the cowl's play of the fight.It was very jumbled, and Dick winced before rubbing his arm when he heard the pop of his arm. It was even more sickening in person, and it hurt. A lot."Well, why wasn't she able to help?" Alfred asked.Bruce replied, "Because she has more loyalty to him than she does to me." He replies, pausing when his face comes into frame. "All I know about him is he had League training, Talia al Ghul has a higher loyalty to him than me, and he's supposed to be dead."Alfred furrowed his own eyebrows. "Dead, sir?""She seemed shocked that he was alive. Especially when I said he only went after criminals. And that he beat me. Until then, she had no idea what I was talking about. So, either she's lying about what she actually knows-""Which she could be doing." Dick jumped in."-or she genuinely had no idea what I was talking about, and it was news to her also." Bruce said, leaning his chin into his hand.Alfred raised an eyebrow. "Do you believe the latter?" He asked.Dick shook his head. "I don't.""I do." Bruce said.""Why?"" Alfred and Dick asked in two separate tones.Bruce sighed before spinning the chair to face the two. "Because, I looked into her eyes after she had the realization.""And?" Dick questioned."She looked scared. Like she was hearing about a dead man walking." Bruce explained.Alfred paused, before asking, "Talia al Ghul? Scared?"Bruce nods. "She told me to stay out of his way. To not cross him or get in his way. As he's better than me or Talia when it comes to combat." He takes a breath. "Even Ra's is scared of him."Alfred's and Dick's eyes widen. Dick asked, "The Ra's al Ghul? Even more reason you should put me back in the field.""Even more reason you should stay out of it." Bruce retorts, and Dick glares."I can help!"Bruce leaned forward. "He dislocated your arm at the shoulder as a warning, Dick. Imagine what he would do to you if you chase after him after the warning was issued."The sidekick glared. "And what are you doing?""My job.""It's my job, too!""No, Dick! End of story!" Bruce yelled, and the teen glared."I'm going upstairs." He said, then turned to walk away.Bruce sighed watching him leave, slumping down into the chair. "What do I do, Al?" He asked."I do not know, Master Bruce, as I have never been in this situation before." The butler replies.The Batman sighs, before turning to the screen. "Any other leads I can chase down tonight?"The butler shakes his head. "No, sir. But I have dug up everything on Kyler Alaster. Very interesting background." Alfred types, and pulls up all sorts of files. "Most of it is redacted due to the nature of his overseas activities."Bruce raises an eyebrow. "So, he wasn't lying about serving?""No, sir. In fact, he was a model soldier. A perfect one. He had barely been there six months before he was selected for a special unit. They went on several dozen operations over the course of four years, one of which being a multi-month long operation in Bolivia." Alfred said.Bruce leaned forward. "Bolivia... that sounds familiar.""That is because it is. It made waves around the world when a rumor of just four American soldiers snuck into the country, and took down the entire Santa Blanca drug cartel, all on their own. It made front page, national news. However, the U.S. government denied any part in the conflict. Mostly to avoid starting an international incident. It was called Operation Kingslayer." Alfred said, the information flashing across the screen as he typed.Bruce hummed. "And he was apart of this team?""He was leading the team. Call sign 'Eagle.' He was in charge. Most confirmed kills during the four years he served." Alfred said."What happened after?" Bruce asked."Well... that's the thing, sir... nobody knows. Right before the end of his second tour, he went out on assignment. The three team members he took with made it back, he did not. He was declared M.I.A, then almost seven years later, he limped to the base and gave them his identification. They let him in, scanned him for injuries, and noticed a plethora of scars, lining up with torture. He was sent home, but after that, nothing. A clear history, then he randomly popped back up in Gotham six months ago. In the presence of John Constantine." He says, showing a picture of the two blondes meeting at an airport. Then at a coffee shop just afew days ago.Bruce leaned forward, looking at it. "That's how he knows Zatanna... But how does Constantine know him? He doesn't meet with people like that unless it's for a reason."Alfred raised an eyebrow. "It seems they meet once a week for coffee. No more than an hour if they stretch it. They seem to be, dare I say it, friends."Bruce hummed. "John Constantine doesn't have friends. He has people he uses. And Kyler has to have some use." He stands up and puts the cowl back on.Alfred gives him a look. "Surely you aren't about to go interrogate a sorcerer?""Warlock." Batman corrects. "And yes.""Well, before you go, a thing to mention from Mister Alaster's background." Alfred says, and Batman turns around. "He is an orphan, his parents taken from him around the same time yours was. He was transferred to a Gotham orphanage because no other orphanage in his home state wanted him because of his spreading rumors of abuse. Then he wound up in a known abusive orphanage that kept him, and through reports, they became his new favorite.  Ran into the law a few times." He takes a breath.Bruce gives him a look. "What is it?""James Gordon dealt with every single case with Kyler Alaster in it. If you want a test of character, he would be the best to go to. It depends on what kind of information you want first. How he is now, versus how he was then? There are pros and cons to both." Alfred relays.Batman stands there, and he ponders. Which should he go to first? Whichever he went to tonight, he would have to wait until the next day to talk to the other."Which would you suggest?" Batman asked.Alfred answers, "If you go talk to Mister Constantine, you will be able to learn who he is now and how he will treat Miss Zatara presently. But, Mister Alaster may also be lying to him, or Mister Constantine will refuse to talk. However, if you go to the Commissioner, you will only get how he acted in the past which, while giving you a good prior psychological profile, you will only get bare minimum. It will not tell you how he will treat Miss Zatara. But, he is also more likely to tell you the information freely."Batman takes a minute, then turns to walk for the Batmobile. He had made his decision.~~~~~~~~~~John was walking to his office, smoking a cigarette. He was tired of this very long day, bouncing from shop to shop to see if their restock had any of the ingredients he needed.He walks into the office and goes to flip the switch, but it doesn't come on. So, naturally, he flips it off before flipping it back on. Then back off, then back on. "Oh, bugger off, mate." He says, turning to look into a corner. "What do ya want now?" He questions, walking forward and to the small séance table and setting what little he was able to get on it.He had a new spell to try out, to see if he could reverse the curse he put on Alaster. He had been working on this cure the entire year he has been on contact with the man, as penance. He made him immortal for a thousand years without aging, he had to be the one to fix it. And... he could guess how painful being immortal would be. So, he felt he had to. For the first time in his life, he felt so much guilt that he was going out of his way to be good.Working with Batman on that one case of his didn't count. He got something selfish out of it, so it wasn't selfless."Kyler Alaster." Batman said, and John felt his heart drop. Oh, no. "Who is he?""A mate I met on my latest trip ta England. Got along. He's as much of an arsehole as I am." He says, not turning to look at him."So, he isn't going to treat Zatanna well?" Batman questioned."Oh, he is. He is amazing with those he likes. I would trust him with my sister. If I had one. Could leave him with your boy while he's in a coma with all sorts of blokes after 'im. He's a protector, which I definitely judge 'im for, but I can't stop him." John replies, turning around. "Is there a point to this little... interrogation?"Batman grunts. "I was making sure he wasn't going to be with a monster." He replied.John snorts, inhaling a bit too much of his cigarette and making him cough a bit. "She could be with so much worse. Can't believe your only concern is her safety. It's his you should be worried about. He might be arrested if the paparazzi harasses 'im. He likes his privacy."Batman nods, taking it into consideration. "And if he decides to pursue a relationship with Zatanna...""Paparazzi will be all over 'im. Plus, he is very vocal about his politics if asked. You better hope nobody asks 'im about the effectiveness of Batman, or the so-called philanthropy of Bruce Wayne. His words, not mine." He remarks.Batman grunts. So, he might be speaking about Bruce Wayne if asked. But he could handle that. Afterall, what damage could a soldier do?"Thanks for your time." Batman says, then moves for the window.John takes a puff off of the cigarette, before remarking, "I didn't exactly 'ave a choice, now did I? Ya broke inta my office."Batman just huffs before leaving.~~~~~~~~~~Zatanna was looking through her email, it being about noon so she was wide awake. Eventually, she came across an offer. She would be getting paid around five grand flat for her to play... at the Iceberg Lounge. She knew who it belonged to. Who didn't? But... she was known for never refusing a show. And if she refused Penguin, he would know about it, and he would vocalize it.She also knew he would try to... get with her. But he was absolutely repulsive.She noticed a plus one, someone she wanted to bring to her show that would support her. It was known throughout the community that she rarely brought one, if ever.The world was going to know who her new boyfriend was by the end of tonight.~~~~~~~~~~Kyler was sitting in his own apartment, working out with intensity. He had a long night ahead of him, he had a large list of abusers ready for him to go after. He was beyond ready to fuck shit up.Then his phone rang, and he released a small groan, "Caity?" He released."It is Zatanna Zatara, sir." The AI echoed out from the speaker on the bar counter.The blonde released a small groan. "Having a girlfriend is tedious as hell, and it's been..." he checks the watch on his wrist as he does a pull up on the bar. "Ten hours." He says."Well, sir, you decided to say yes. Why is beyond me." The AI replies."She's cute. Good at sex. Funny. And a trustworthy person to be around when I'm bored." He remarks, then finishes his set before dropping down. He grabs his phone, then answers before holding it to his ear. "Yeah, Z?"The woman speaks, "I have an invite to a show here in Gotham. It's a sketchy place, but I do have a plus one invitation and I wanted to know if I should jot you down as said plus one, or if I should check no and leave it blank?"Kyler takes a minute. It would ruin his plans for tonight. But... he could always save the list for another time?"Yeah. I'll be your plus one." He says, then just mouths the word 'fuck'."Okay! Awesome! Oh, uh, warning. This is a pretty high profile event. There will definitely be press." She informed.He hums. "That's fine. I'll deal with it." Kyler replies and she smiles."Okay, well, I'll text you the details when I get all of them." Zatanna relays.The blonde nods. "Alright. I can't wait." He tells her with a chuckle.The ravenette takes a breath. "Okay. See you there. Dress a bit nicely. Kind of like our first date." Zatanna tells him.Kyler nods with a slight breath, picking a gun up off of his coffee table and aiming down the sight. He tilted his head, and that was when he realized that he was shooting with a slightly bent sight. "I will. See you there."
"Alright. Bye, Kai."
"Bye."She hangs up, and he sits down and grabs a piece of equipment that helps. He will be damned if he works with defective gear.