1 A Punching Bag

The Story opens in a gym. There's a large young man hitting away at a punching bag. He could be no more then 6'5 and weighing 250lbs of pure solid muscle. His hands was wrapped in bandages and you could see blood from his knuckles were starting to dampen them. His body was covered in a layer of sweat and his breathing was labored.

Eddie. POV.

"Eddie Montez." I heard a deep voice say from behind me. I turned sharply with my guard up.

"Look, I rented the gym out for the night. So, fuck off." I looked around and still couldn't see who was there.

"I'm not here for that." I turned around to see the Batman standing right behind me glaring at me. "I'm here because you've put on the mask." I crossed my arms and snorted.

"Don't know what you're talking about." His glared deepened and he loomed closer to me.

"Your mother was Yolanda Montez, who was the Wildcat after taking up the mantle for the first Wildcat. Ted Grant. Who you currently stay with and who owns this gym." I kept the glare going on, but there was a thin bead of sweat going down my back.

"Not solid evidence." He backed away slightly.

"No. It isn't. I also saw you enter through the back entrance in the costume and seeing as there's no one else here." I hissed out loud. "That makes you the Wildcat".

"I didn't do nothing wrong."

"You're an unmarked vigilante. Someone will always think you're doing something wrong." He made sense to some degree.

"What does that make you?"

"The person who's giving you the option to hang up the mask or follow the rules." He fell back to that glare that looked like he was staring into my soul. I tsked and kicked the punching bag exploding it off the little hook it was on. "Strong".

"Yeah. The old man wouldn't have me be some weak shmuck." I walked over to the other bags and picked one up. Then walking back and putting it on the hook. "You probably already know that though." I glanced back at him and there was no response, he was just watching me. I shrugged and started punching the bag again.

"Hang up the mask or follow the rules. I'll call you tomorrow." I looked over at him just to see him gone. What a strange guy.

I finished my workout and went to the showers. I had fresh cuts from the night of taking down criminals. Say all you want but going bareknuckle was not a smart move to fight crime. Especially when you're powerless. I looked in the mirror to see a slightly crooked nose and a face covered in small scars. Years of underground fighting does this to ya. I ran my hand against my buzzed head and ran it across my chest. To the tattoo of my mother's face on my left peck.

It wasn't a smart investment but I was an angry kid who had just lost his mother. What could I do? I finished my shower and put on some clothes and locked up for the night and walked to Ted's apartment. I was staying with him for now. Taking care of him in his old age. Years f fighting crime did a number on the guy's body. He could hardly walk by himself, let alone go to the grocery store. So I did all the boring stuff for him.

"You were out late." I heard a gruff voice say to me as I entered the apartment. I chuckled and threw my keys on the counter.

"Yeah. Didn't the nurse tell you to make sure you get your rest?" I looked in the living room to see Ted leaning back on the La-Z-Boy with a beer in the cup rack.

"She told you to make sure I get my rest. You weren't here. I got worried."

"I'm a big boy old man. Don't got to worry about me." He scoffed and tried to stand up. I rushed over to him and helped him up. He just grunted.

"I don't want you fighting crime. That's how your mother died" He was always blunt.

"You and she taught me everything I know. I can't just not use it." We were trudging down the hallway and he was leaning on me heavily. Once there was a strong barrel-chested man who could out bench even the batman. Now was just a husk of that. Age caught up to him slower than the old society members. But it still catches up eventually.

"I still don't like it. It takes one bullet. That's it. No more Eddie Montez." We finally got to his room and I helped him into bed.

"Someone has to stand up for the little guy. The league can handle all the aliens and shit. I got the robbers and run of the mill pickpockets." I thumbed my chest and he just sighed.

"Speaking of the league. Dinah called me." He said as I grabbed his pills from his medicine cabinet in the bathroom.

"What she want?" I handed him his pills and he downed them.

"Said she wanted to mentor you." Why would Dinah want to mentor me? Hell, we only talked when she visits Ted.

"You tell her I was good by myself?"

"I told her to come over tomorrow to hear from you." I face palmed and sat in a nearby chair.

"Why would you do that?" His face was still grim.

"This is a dangerous game kid. Its best to have someone in your corner out there." I crossed my arms and leaned back.

"Yeah. That helped my mom a whole hell of a lot. She was on a league mission when she died right?" He just rolled his eyes and started coughing. I grabbed the water from his nightstand and gently handed it to him. He nodded in appreciation.

"That was no one's fault, Kid. She knew the risk. As we all do." I placed the glassed back down and sat down.

"You know I'm not a kid anymore. I'm 19." He laughed weakly.

"You'll still be that kid who showed up at my door with tears in his eyes with nothing but a bag of clothes on him. Your mother left me to watch over you. So, if I say you'll talk with Dinah, you will. If I can't stop you from knocking guys out then you'll be on a team of people who can watch your back." His eyes were closing with each word and his breathing was becoming softer and softer. "Like the good old days." He finished in a whisper and the room was just full of his light snoring.

I stood up and went to my room down the hall. I flopped on the bed and went to sleep.

Batman. POV.

"Computer pull me all the records of Eddie Montez." I was looking for all the information of Eddie Montez after news of a new Wildcat resurgence.

"Whose Eddie Montez?" I heard a light voice say form behind me.

"You should be asleep." I heard a chuckle and the person stood next to me looking at the screen.

"Couldn't sleep. Decided to see if you were back yet." Dick responded with his arms crossed and a smirk on his face.

I looked over the files and saw many pictures of him and his mother Yolanda Montez the Second Wildcat, and then him and Ted Grant the first Wildcat. A he got older the pictures were replaced with videos of him fighting in different countries in underground circuits and claiming victory each time. Robin gave a whistle when he saw him break a guy's arm by punching his elbow.

"He's pretty hardcore." I hummed in response.

"He's taken up the mantle of Wildcat. So far he hasn't killed anyone but due to his. History. He'll need to be monitored." The videos stopped and pictures of him in Juvenile detection started showing up and then in prison in multiple different countries. Robin gave another whistle.

"How old is this guy?"

"He's 19."

"How has he been in prison so much?"

"He broke out of them. He was only in for winning against the country's government. He bet he could beat their best fighter. He won all of those fights."

"So he's good at fighting. So what?" I glared at Robin when he said that.

"If left unchecked he could be a threat for any hero without powers. He comes from a line of heroes. Trained by two of the best hand to hand fighters in the world. One of them having trained me and if he was in his prime would be a challenge, even for me." I stopped glaring and looked back at the screen.

"Sorry."

I just hummed.

"I'm in communication with Black Canary. I'm going to try to make him join your team." He didn't look pleased.

"You just said, this guy needs to be checked. It doesn't make sense to dump him on us."

"No, it doesn't. He is relatively new to being a hero. A smaller team would do him better than the entire Justice League. He has the skill but not the experience, just like all the current members of Young Justice." He nodded at that.

"Whatever you say."

"Good. Now go to bed." He smirked again and rushed off up the stairs. I watched him as he went with a small smile on my face.

Eddie. POV.

"So you want me to be your sidekick?" I was sitting across from Dinah on the couch while she sat next to Ted who was just watching us two on his Laz-E-Boy.

"That wouldn't be the exact word. You'll just join me on patrols and I'll be there to help guide you." I took another sip of my coffee and put it back down.

"That sounds an awful lot like a sidekick." I leaned back into the couch with my arms crossed. She just looked to ted who just glared at me.

"You'll do whatever she says boy. Or so help me, I'll shove that cowl up your…"

"Now that's not really needed Ted." Dinah interrupted Ted before he could fully threaten me.

"I'm listening to the offer." I gestured to Dinah while glaring back at Ted.

"You'll do more than listen!" He was forming a fist and he was gritting his teeth at me.

"That's enough boys!" Dinah said and her voice was amplified with her sonic powers. It shut both of us up and I leaned back into the couch. "Now. Eddie. There's a team of younger heroes that you're free to join. The offer is there. If you choose to accept, then I'll be placed as your mentor. That's the deal." She just crossed her legs and crossed her arms waiting for me to respond.

"Take the deal kid. For this old man." I looked to Ted and could see him rubbing his knee with a mournful expression. I sighed and threw my head back.

"Fine. I'll join your team of runts, there's not much bad guys here anyways."

"Fantastic. I just have to tell Oliver the news and then I'll take you to meet the team." She stood up and pulled out her phone and went to the kitchen for privacy.

"Thank you, kid." I heard Ted say softly and I just grunted.

"Don't start crying. It'll be real uncomfortable if you did. Plus, I could meet some super-hot chicks along the way." He chuckled at that.

"Good. You haven't had a girlfriend since, what's her name." I rolled my eyes.

"Her name was Tatiana and I thought we had something special." He laughed even louder, and I joined him. I stopped when my phone started ringing. I pulled it out and it said unknown caller. I answered it.

"Hello?"

"Good decision Eddie." It was Batman.

"Well, I try." I heard a gruff hmm and the phone hung up.

"Who was it?" Ted asked me.

"Batman." He just nodded and he grabbed his beer and took a swig.

"Creepy guy" I nodded and downed the rest of my coffee. Dinah walked in with a smile on her face.

"Alright, suit up Eddie. We're going to meet the team now."

"Give me a minute." I walked to my room and opened the closet. I pressed against the wall, and it shifted to the left. Inside the hidden walk-in closet, were lines of Wildcat suits. From Ted's, to my mother's, and now mine. Three generations of Wildcat all in one room. My suit looked very similar to Ted's but I went with the pitch black of my mother's suit and I had a grey belt with a claw mark as the buckle. The buckle if turned all the way to the right turned into knuckle dusters for the major threats. I also had the feline eyes placed on the eye slits. It had multiple different vision settings so I could see during different circumstances. It had night and heat vision as of right now, but more room to add on later.

I was never much of a tech guy, the only thing I was interested in was breaking down the suits and making them better. That's as smart as I'll ever get. Working with my hands and just adding simple modifications to things. I actual got the idea for the feline eyes after winning some night vision goggles off of some German dude when I was fighting in Germany.

I put on the suit and walked out to the living room.

"My god, it's like looking into the mirror." Ted said softly and I just shifted nervously. He had never seen me in the suit before. He knew what I did and how long I been doing it. But he never wanted to look at the suit again. "It looks good on you kid." He said with a small smile that didn't reach his eyes. I just walked over to him and placed my hand on his shoulder.

"I'll be fine. You're meds are on the nightstand. The remote is right there and make sure you use your walker. I don't want to come back to see you lying on the floor. Nurse Lindsey will come by to check on you later today if I'm not back soon enough." He just nodded at everything I was saying.

"I may be old, but I'm not helpless." I smiled.

"That's not what your knee and heart say. If you be careful, I'll be careful." I stood up and stuck out my hand. He just nodded in defeat.

"Whatever you say kid." He took my hand and shook it with the strength of his former self.

"alright, let's go. We're burning daylight here." Dinah said from the hallway leading to the door. I went to leave but Ted stopped me grabbing my hand. I stopped and looked at him confused. He just nodded, his eyes were full of worry and his face was tight. I just nodded back, and he let go. I turned and walked away.

Time to meet the losers.