The Hunt for a Bat VI
(3rd Person POV)
Batman was still on the roof after having knocked out the woman. He knew who this was. The way she fought was marvellous and her battle intelligence and intuition were top-notch. He had to change his attacks three times in this fight because she suddenly changed her posture due to instinct. He was impressed but ... that was it. This Batman was different from the one from Earth-1 or Earth-0. He didn't have the same problem with trauma as the other had.
Batman from Earth-0 was Batman and Bruce Wayne was his mask. For our Batman things were different. He never really had a mask on. He was both Bruce Wayne and Batman at the same time. Even if it might seem like it, he wasn't playing a game when he was Batman. As soon as the suit was on, he became Batman. That doesn't mean that he suffered from a personality disorder. No that meant that his drive was at its peak. All of his templates but especially Thanos and Rick would go through anything to achieve their goals. And Bruce Wayne was similar to that. And this Batman had inherited all of this and became something new.
So while our Batman still stayed himself, he was very driven when the suit was on. He would always do what was necessary to get the best result. But that didn't mean that he could have fun while doing it. It just meant that he knew when to have fun and when being serious was better. If he liked to toy with criminals and use them or turn rehabilitate them or even kill them, it was all part of his plan. Sosuke Aizen ain't got nothing on this Batman.
.
Batman used Chi to have the woman stay unconscious for a moment. He had to take care of the hostages quickly and then he would talk with her. He knew that she was an assassin but he didn't have her as a mercenary on the 'Whatever' list. She was different and he knew that since she was a member of the League of Assassins, she wouldn't just take jobs like she used to. The fact that she was here now, could only mean that Ra's sent her to see how it was going with Batman. To judge his capabilities and potential threat. Or she was truly paid and just wanted to see him in action before she attacked him.
Batman calculated the first option to be 82% more likely. But there might be more to it since he didn't have all the facts. He would have to see whether he could find David Cain. He didn't like the man ... at all. And if they ever met, he wasn't sure what he would do to him. But he would use the harshest of Emotional Damages that he could, that was certain.
.
Batman used his grappling hook to get to the roof of the building where the hostages were held. Checking on all the traps, he makes his way around them and does the easiest thing he can. He makes his way to the air vents. There he takes out something special from his utility belt. He holds a few small black balls in his hands. He has created different versions of these filled with all kinds of gases that he might use in a fight. These ones are filled with anaesthetic gas. He drops them and then leaves there. It shouldn't take more than 10 minutes for everyone to fall asleep, given the size of the room, the volume of hte air inside and the amount of people.
- 10 minutes later -
Batman observes everyone and sees that all the hostage takers as well as the hostages themselves have fallen asleep. After making sure that it is taken care of, he contacts the GCPD anonymously and then leaves. He still has to talk to the woman.
.
.
(Batman POV)
"How was the object? Did it arrive?", I asked Sebas after I called him on the multipurpose tool.
"The 'package' has arrived sir. It worked flawlessly. I have given our guest a nice room in the basement, sir."
"Very good. Activate the protocol and ask 'him' to keep me updated if anything doesn't work."
"Will do, sir."
I waited for 10 minutes after coming back from dealing with the criminals who held the hostages. The GCPD has already arrested them and now I'm waiting for this lady to wake up. I have already deleted everything on her 'spying devices'. Everything is gone, I don't want to give Ra's or Talia anything to work with. Not because I'm worried but because I want to mess with them. I'm sure that I'll meet them sooner or later.
After deleting everything, I also uploaded a very pesky virus that should go unnoticed. And apart from that, there is also a nice little extra that will surely surprise them.
.
The woman begins to wake. I can hear her breathing has changed ever so slightly. She is very good, but not good enough.
"You can stop pretending.", I tell her and see that she understands her situation. She opens her eyes and looks at me. I can tell she is trying to get a read on me, but it's no use. I have reached a higher level of self-control than she can imagine. My body control is superhuman right now.
After not saying anything for a few minutes and only looking at each other, she finally sighs in frustration.
"What do you want?", she asks me.
"What is your name?"
"I go by Lady Shiva."
"And what is your real name?"
"Shiva is my name."
"I mean your birth name. It isn't Shiva."
"Why do you want to know my real name? I don't ask you for your name do I?"
"..."
"..."
"Fair enough. Now tell me Sandra Wu-San ... why are you here?"
.
.
(Shiva POV)
[Picture]
I wake up after being knocked unconscious. I don't open my eyes, just like my training tells me to. If you wake up, pretend to still be unconscious to get information and potentially surprise the other person and turn the situation around. But I don't hear anything. Except for his voice.
"You can stop pretending.", I hear him say. After another few seconds, I open my eyes and look at him. He is standing there with his imposing figure. Didn't he leave? Why is he still here? The information that I was told, doesn't suggest torture to be something he practises. But he hasn't fallen into any category yet. His strength, skill with the blade as well as unarmed combat ... everything seems unreal.
I have a strange feeling when I look at him like this. I feel my adrenaline keeping me from feeling most of the pain. He doesn't move and waits for me to speak. I use this chance to get more information. I wait for him to speak again. I want to see his posture and whether or not he gets impatient. But it doesn't look like it.
After a few minutes, I sigh. It is no use to play this game right now. I am injured and I don't believe that he has any interest in giving me first aid. My chi is blocked, and I see a few acupuncture needles. He is really skilled and knowledgeable. Again I have this strange feeling. It is the feeling I have when I finally find something interesting. A strong enemy that I can train to surpass.
.
"What do you want?", I ask him.
"What is your name?"
"I go by Lady Shiva."
"And what is your real name?"
"Shiva is my name.", there is no way I'll tell him my real name. I have gotten rid of that a while ago. I am now Lady Shiva and no longer Sandra Wu-San.
"I mean your birth name. It isn't Shiva."
"Why do you want to know my real name? I don't ask you for your name do I?"
"..."
"..."
"Fair enough. Now tell me Sandra Wu-San ... why are you here?"
My heart sinks as he says my name. He seems to know more than he lets on. Then why did he ask me? Is he interrogating me? But for what? I didn't see him interrogate Deathstroke or KGBeast. Although, KGBeast might get interrogated later. I won't talk though, I am far too well-trained for that.
"You will talk. Make no mistake, you will talk.", he says.
!!!
Can he-
"A hard question indeed. But not important right now. What's important is for you to tell me what I want to know. After that ... we'll see."
"I won't talk. I won't tell you anything. Do your worst."
"You might believe yourself to be immune to questioning, but you were never questioned by me. Now make this easier for yourself and tell me ... why are you here?"
Millions of thoughts run through my mind right now. I can't seem to think straight right now. What is this? A drug. I am immune to truth serum. I also don't feel inclined to tell him except for the slight tiny sliver of fear that makes its way into my heart and that I have to stop forcefully from taking over.
He just wants to know why I'm here, but telling him would mean telling him what I do and who I work for. Maybe I can twist it slightly and work with half-truths. What's going on with me? Why am I this unsure of myself?
"Did you drug me?", I finally say. It is a good strategy, to answer a question with another question. It answers the question but at the same time doesn't answer it.
"I did. Now tell me what you are doing in Gotham."
"What did you drug me with?"
"..."
(!!! Warning for those with slightly weaker stomachs. Don't read further !!!)
He doesn't say anything and instead takes something out of his belt. I can't see exactly what it is but ... oh no. An acupuncture needle. He approaches my face and in quick succession stabs me with three needles, muting me and then he uses another one to stab at a very particular spot which I don't know about. He stabs me with the small needle and then ...
"MMMMMMMMMMMMNNNNNN"
PAIN! So much pain like I have never felt in my life. It feels like all my nerves on the right side of my body are on fire, but I can't scream to release the pressure. It is so painful.
"MMMMMMMMMMNNNNNN"
I don't know how long he lets me in this state, but after what feels like hours, he finally takes it out again and also removes the ones on my face and neck. I breathe heavily. I have never felt something like that in my entire life. I thought I was mostly immune to pain but this ...
"Haaaaaaa ... haaaaaa ... haaaaaa..."
"Speak!"
.
.
(3rd Person POV)
"...", Shiva doesn't say anything. Batman sees she is very shaken. She did not expect him to do that to her. Batman doesn't like torture. This is not really torture what he's doing but he wanted to show her that he is dangerous. He is not a happy-go-lucky kind of guy who simply allows criminals to run all over him and his city. She would go back tonight and tell the League of Assassins what happened and when she does, she will tell him about what Batman did.
Batman is no pushover. The Thanos template and the Rick template aren't for show. The potential for cruelty that Thanos has is immense. Batman simply has control over himself and is healthy mentally. But if he is pushed, he will unleash the worst nightmares on his enemies and he has no problems using any means necessary.
That doesn't mean that he likes to do it. He only wanted to get a point across. It was time to stop this 'Hunt for a Bat' and turn the tables. It would seem that the Bat needs to go hunting himself.
"Your loyalty honours you. But it is misplaced. I wanted you to tell me what you were doing here. All you had to do was tell me, that you were gathering intel. Take this as a warning from me. Leave Gotham and tell Ra's and his slave of a daughter, that they better stay away, or I'll come for them.", Batman says and then ... leaves.
_______________________________________________________________
What's up, guys. So I wanted to ask whether you could check out my brother's stories. He is the one who edits my chapters. This is definitely not him btw. so if you have the time please have a look: The serene Swordsman is the name of the story.
Cheers.