Disclaimer: This story is fiction. There are two celebrities who will appear from time-to-time. The other characters are fictitious. Any similarities to persons living or dead are completely coincidental.
In this story, I have continued the adventures of Batman, my Batman, which his story first began in "Tales of a Real Dark Knight" in the Boy Band section of this archive. It spanned 250 chapters. You will find many universes merging, as the above copyrights reveal. I hope you all enjoy this.
Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel and all related characters created by Joss Whedon. Copyright 20th Century Fox.
Batman, and all related characters created by Bob Kane. Copyright DC Comics and Warner Bros.
X-MEN, and all related characters created by Stan Lee. Copyright Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox.
The Vampire Chronicles and all related characters created by Anne Rice. Copyright Anne O'Brien Rice.
I don't know for sure if I will use all the above elements, but just in case, I have myself covered.
I appreciate any feedback that you may want to give. I do hope that you enjoy it!!!
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authorjames2002@yahoo.com
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Chapter 1 The Dark Knight Returns
"I'm sure there is something I can do," I said on the telephone to some government worker. Thus were my days spent dealing with social workers and bureaucrats. That was the life of one who owned and operated a teen center, at least my particular teen center.
"I will inform my business manager and see what he can do. Have a good evening."
I hung up the phone exhausted from a full days work. Taking a big stretch, I turned my chair and looked out the window. Several of the teens that lived here were playing soccer in the back. They had been kicked out of their homes and families by parents who couldn't take care of them or simply didn't want to. I took them in. The Hunter Center for Teens took care of all types of cases. We helped out foster parent organizations, adoption agencies, and generally helped any teenager who needed it. We had several dorm rooms with three to four beds for the kids to sleep in and the ages ranged from four- and five-year-olds up to sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds. Occasionally we would have an eighteen- or nineteen-year-old come and we would help him or her out either by letting them stay a few days or pointing him or her in the right direction. Often times it was both.
The center stayed open twenty-four hours a day seven days a week. Troubled teens and children did not have trouble only from nine o'clock in the morning until five o'clock in the evening. They had trouble at eleven o'clock at night, at two o'clock in the morning. Trouble did not keep set hours. It could strike at any time. So the center stayed open, with counselors here during all hours to ensure safety and to address any need that came up. Sometimes trouble would come knocking at the door. But our security system kept troublemakers at bay until the police arrived.
I stood and left my office into my secretary's office.
"Did the problem get squared away, Dr. McCoy?" Mitchell, my secretary, asked.
"I think so. It will all be up to my business manager, they said."
"That should go well. You have some pull with your manager."
I smiled. "Yes, I do."
Grace, my business manager's secretary, shared the large office with Mitchell. She smiled at me with my comment. "Your business manager is free if you need to see him for anything."
"Thanks, Grace." I turned the doorknob and walked in.
My business manager did not hear me walk in. He was still turned, facing outside the window. He had the same view I did. I quietly walked up behind him and slid my hands around his waist. I leaned up and kissed the back of his neck, then rested my head on his shoulder.
"Are you sexually harassing me?" he asked.
"Always, Lance."
Lance smiled. "What brings you over here?"
"I just finished talking with the Department of Human Services. They said the grant could be awarded if we show a need. Do you think we have a need for the grant?"
"I will have to go over the books, but I think we do."
"Great."
I took a deep breath becoming intoxicated by his scent, and sighed, comfortable on his shoulder.
"This is a great position for cuddling," Lance said.
"Yeah."
After a moment, Lance said, "Oh, no."
"What?" I asked.
"The sun is going down."
"Great," I said, slightly disappointed.
"Are you going to work now?"
"Yep."
"Be careful." Lance turned and kissed me on the lips.
"I will." I gave his waist a squeeze, turned and left his office. "Have a nice evening, Grace, Mitchell."
"You, too, Dr. McCoy," they replied.
I headed out and went down the corridor. There was a small room where Lance and I kept clothes, a large bed, and a dresser. Sometimes, when the need arose, we would stay at the center. I entered the small room and closed the door, locking it behind me. I went over to the dresser and pulled it out. Underneath it was a trapdoor. I pulled that open, and descended the ladder. After pulling the trapdoor shut and moving the dresser with my mutant powers, I descended the ladder into the cavern below.
I reached the cavern floor and pulled open the closet. Taking off my shirt, I grabbed the black suit hanging on a rack, a suit that I donned every night to hunt the creatures of the night, whether they were human or nonhuman. I pulled the body suit and the boots on. Next came the gloves and finally the cape and cowl. I stood looking in the mirror and Batman looked back. I smiled. This was my calling. This was my destiny. And I was proud to do it.
"Oracle," I spoke and the computer came to life.
"Greetings, Batman."
"Good evening. Have you picked up any unusual activity on police scanners?"
After a few moments of humming, the computer chimed it did not. I turned and walked over to the car Lance had built especially for me. It was black and shiny and sleek. The windows were tinted so dark, no one could see in. The doors had locks that locked from the inside. The only way to enter from the outside was to have the remote control keyless entry, which I carried in one of my belt units attached to the waist of my suit. I could also start the car up from the same clicker.
Pulling out the device, I unlocked and started the car. I climbed in the comfortable interior and pulled the door shut. As I sat in the cockpit, I turned on the onboard computer so I could stay in constant contact with Oracle. Putting the car in gear, I drove it down the long tunnel that opened a mile away from the center and out into the night.
It wasn't long before I entered downtown Orlando, the vast city unfolding before me. I drove to my usual spot, a dark alley well hid from site. When I climbed out, I locked the door. No one could break into the car. The glass was bulletproof and shatterproof. Hammers could be taken to the glass and it still would not break.
I climbed up a nearby fire escape to the rooftops and went to the edge, looking out at the vast city. The wind whipped past me ever so gently, ruffling my cape. I could feel the breeze through the suit. It was amazing how it kept me cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I loved it.
Taking a deep breath, I ran across the roof and jumped into the air, soaring across the open air and landing safely on the neighboring roof. This went on for about a half hour. Then a scream rang out. I turned and headed to where the sound came from.
In a few moments, I arrived at the person in peril. Looking down, I saw three muggers and a young woman. They already had her purse. One had the victim's hands held behind her back while another one was seductively pulling up her shirt. I pulled out one of my bats and hurled it at the one molesting the girl. The bat hit him in the back of the head. He let out a scream and clutched his head.
"What the hell?" he exclaimed.
The mugger rummaging through the purse looked around trying to find my location. I pulled out another bat; one with a cable tied to it, and threw it at the mugger. It wrapped around him, tying him up.
"What the hell is going on?" the man holding the girl wondered.
The molester pulled out a gun and looked around for me. His eyes met my location and he open fire on me. I ducked as the bullets hit the concrete. Using my powers, I melted the firing mechanism in the gun. He wasn't going to fire that gun at me or anyone else. Of course, he had no idea what I did.
"Come out where we can see you, Batman!" he called. "If you don't, I'll kill the girl!"
I could hear her sobs. My heart went out to her. What right did these men have for terrorizing a young girl? None.
"Here I am!" I called out as I stood in the open.
The armed man took aim and fired. I jumped off the roof of the building, opening my cape and striking fear into their hearts. He kept firing but nothing was happening. I landed on him, feet first. He fell to the ground unconscious. I turned to the man holding the girl.
"Don't come any closer, Batman! I had no choice in this! They made me come!"
"You always have a choice," I replied. "Like right now. Either release the girl and go quietly or I can force you to release her and you can go in pain. This is your choice."
The man's eyes were panicky. He looked from me to his two fallen comrades. Using my powers, I manipulated his muscles gently, causing his hold on the girl to relax. He didn't realize what I was doing. Once his grasp was loosened enough, the girl pulled away and fell into my arms. I moved her around me, putting her behind me.
The man pulled out a knife and swung it at me. I stepped back from his first swing. He swung a second time. I kicked his hand as it was coming back. He released the knife and it went soaring into the air. I turned and kicked sideways, my foot impacting the mugger's stomach. He flew into the brick wall behind him, slid down to the ground unconscious.
"Go call the police," I said to the girl. "I will tie these men up."
She nodded and ran out of the alley. Using my powers, I moved the three men together. I pulled the cable off the man I had tied up and placed the bat back in its pouch. I found a piece of pipe and molded it with my powers. I wrapped it around the men and ascended to the rooftops. I had kept watch until the police showed up, and then I left and continued my patrol.
Using my powers were not what it used to be. I had mastered some but not all. And when I used the ones I mastered, it was like flexing a muscle. I could not hold it indefinitely. It would weaken me. I had to rely on my physical strength and physical abilities, which, thanks to training with Slayers and Watchers, I was at peak efficiency. Some what so. My age was also a factor. I was thirty-six. Granted I wasn't in a wheelchair yet, but I wasn't twenty-four, either, when I began this crusade against evil.
The sirens of the police faded into ear shot. I jumped up to the fire escape ladder and ascended as the patrol cars pulled into the alley. Their headlights shown on the muggers tied up. I smiled at a job well down and headed off to my next assignment.
A cargo ship docked at the wharves on the East Coast near Titusville. The workers began unloading the ship. Several large pine boxes were loaded onto the crane and lifted out of the hold and onto a platform on the docks.
"Does anyone know who this belongs to?" a dockworker asked.
"The order says someone is supposed to be meeting the shipment. Has anyone arrived?"
"Not yet."
Headlights turned into the parking lot and a meek man exited the passenger side. He walked over to the offices and talked with the worker. After a few moments, they both came out.
"The pick-up guy is here. He said there should be a large pine box around six feet long in the bay area. He is supposed to take that now. The rest of the things are to be delivered by truck tonight to the address in Orlando."
"Hold on. We'll take a look."
The workers went down into the hold of the ship. Several minutes later, they came up carrying the box.
"If you could please take it to the car," the mild-mannered gentleman asked.
"Sure thing."
They took the box to the car and loaded it on top. The gentle man tipped them fairly well and climbed in the passenger side. The car got underway heading west toward Orlando, Florida.
"Just a little bit longer," the man said, "and you can awaken, my lady."
I patrolled the city for a few hours and nothing came up. It was a nice, quiet evening, which I was always thankful for. I went back to the car and headed to the cave. Once there, I changed into my normal clothes and went to the bedroom to shower. After grabbing my briefcase, I headed out of the center. As I left, I said my goodbyes to the night receptionist and headed out to the car. April's car pulled up and she climbed out.
"Hi, Eric," she greeted.
"Hello," I replied. "Things have been quiet."
"Those are always nice. It means no teens are having problems tonight."
"Yeah," I said. "Take it easy."
"You, too," she replied and she headed into the center.
April was one of the teen counselors I had hired to work at the center. She took the evening shifts often, even though I've told her many times I would give her some days and afternoons shifts to balance it out. She kept telling me not to worry about it.
I climbed in my car and headed back to the house. It didn't take long to get there. I pulled into the garage and went inside.
Lance was standing at the sliding glass doors looking out at the night sky. I walked up behind him and placed my hands around his waist and leaning my chin on his shoulder.
"Hey," he said as he folded me into his arms. "How did things go tonight?"
"Okay. A fairly slow night. Had a mugging to deal with. I can't understand for the life of me why people want to take money from someone else. What, they don't know how to get a job?"
"At least you stopped them."
"How are the kids?" I asked.
Sarah and Preston were twins that Lance and I adopted around thirteen years ago from a woman who was murdered by a vampire. The two were so young they didn't remember their life before. Lance and I knew they were well-loved by their mother. The problem, however, was that their mother was a prostitute who could not afford to care for them properly. When I, as Batman, found her dying, I promised to take them in and raise them. Lance readily agreed after hearing their story. Thankfully, the laws had changed in Florida around that time enabling us to take in the two children. They had a good life, a happy family. They were well taken care of.
"They are okay. They got their chores done by the time I got in. They are sleeping now."
I nodded. They were perfect children, but I think I have a little bit of a bias.
"I got a call from Justin while you were out. He, Jessica and Randy are coming in tomorrow."
"That will be nice."
"Yep," I replied with a smile on my face. "I don't know about you," I said, "but I would love to have a hot bubble bath and sip on some tea."
"Sounds like a plan. Can I join you?"
"I wouldn't have it any other way," I remarked as I pulled him into a deep kiss.
We went upstairs. I slowly undressed him and he me. I spent a little time teasing and fondling him. He did the same to me. Then we headed into our remodeled bathroom and climbed in the Jacuzzi. The air bubbles massaged our bodies as we lay in each others' arms. It was heaven.
The black limousine pulled up to the old mansion on the hill and entered the opening gate. It drove all the way up to the carriage house and stopped. Both the passenger and the driver climbed out. After untying the box on the roof, the chauffer picked up the box himself and carried it inside. The door opened to a massive foyer that ran the length of the house. Legs sat in the middle of the foyer and the chauffer placed the pine box on top.
The gentleman gave leave of the chauffer who went back out to the car where he stayed until needed. "Having a zombie as a chauffer is nice," the gentleman muttered. "Sadly, he is not good at conversation."
A scraping sound came from the box and the gentleman turned his attention to it. "You awaken," he whispered with anticipation in his voice.
The scratching ceased and the lid was pushed off as if there were no nails holding it in place. A pile of dirt fell to the floor as the body buried inside the box sat up. A red haired pale woman with piercing violet eyes turned to the gentleman. "Hello, Jonathan," the woman said.
"Hello, Miss."
"I trust I am in America?"
"Yes."
The woman looked around. "Nice home, but where are my things?"
"They are being delivered as we speak."
"Excellent. And my ladies in waiting?"
"They will be here with the rest of the supplies. Until then, it is just me and chauffer."
The red haired, pale lady climbed out of the dirt and headed up the stairs. "I need a bath."
To Be Continued...
Welcome to the future! Well, Eric and Lance's future. The last few chapters of "Judgment" set up what was in store for what would be the continuing years of the Real Dark Knight. I hope everyone is as excited about this as I am. I have so much in store for you, some of which was set up in the "Tales of a Real Dark Knight" saga. So sit back, relax and enjoy each new chapter as the future of our hero unfolds!
Questions and comments, as always, are welcome!