Date: Fri, 17 Dec 2004 07:27:37 -0800 (PST) From: Author James Subject: Return of a Real Dark Knight 38 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!!! Any emails you send, please tell me what chapter and story you are commenting on. Thanks. authorjames2002@yahoo.com I also have several online messenger services. If you want to chat with me in real time, email me and tell me the services you use and I will tell you my screen name. Chapter 38 Grind Stone 'It was nice to be back at the Center,' I thought as I pulled into the parking lot. 'I always find solace doing work. It helps me focus. And at the moment, I have too much on my plate to be effective for anyone. Lance, the children, Randy, the list goes on and on.' I climbed out of the car and closed the door to be met by Clark and John. "How have you been, Dr. McCoy? John was filling the group in on what was going on at home. Is this guy Sarah and Preston's brother?" "We'll talk about that shortly. I want to get everyone together. Have Dinah call Barry." Clark ran off to find the others and inform them what was going on. "You are concerned," John stated. "Of course. My family is coming unraveled as we speak. There's nothing I can do about it." "Then why did you come here if your family needs you?" "Because you guys are part of my family, too, and I won't abandon you." The two of us entered the Center and I greeted the receptionist and my secretary. Sitting down at my desk, I picked up a folder on top and looked through the information. There was a kid picked up the other night from the Department of Health and Human Services who needed a place to stay until foster care could be arranged. Poor girl had a sexually abusive father. The rest of the folders were interesting and tragic. I was grateful for the people who worked here. They could handle these situations without needing guidance. We've worked together so much that we know what to do. I noticed the newspaper on the desk, as well. The headline read: "Sams Challenges Current Legislation." Senator Walker Sams challenges the current legislation on same-sex laws. Passed three years ago, Senator Sams, who is making a bid for the White House, states the nation has moved away from traditional views held years ago. "We've see the deterioration of our great nation with the passing of laws allowing those different from us legal protections," says Sams. Gays, lesbians and those of supernatural origin are the groups whom Sams refers to. Many legislators back Sams's views and support his bid for the presidency. "We back Senator Sams one hundred percent," Congresswoman Alexis Willow states. "Sams knows what he is talking about and we believe he has the ability to take our once great nation back to what it once was: a power to be reckoned with in the world." These comments refer to over ten years ago when the nation declined in popularity after the 2004 elections. It is unclear what direction Sams wants to go, but current legal protections given to some minority groups are the focus of Sams's reforms. I closed the newspaper having read enough. I remembered well the reactions many in the country had over the 2004 elections. Many of us felt betrayed by the candidate we supported for conceding so quickly. Others were angered at the rest of the country for voting for someone who misled America into a war. The reasons for the war had been disproved shortly before elections, yet many still voted for the liar. It cut deeply into many Americans and the pain was not forgotten easily. A knock came at the door. "Come in," I called. The door opened and Clark stepped in. Closing the door behind him, he said, "Everyone is waiting." "I'll be down in a minute." "Okay," he said. When he didn't move, I looked up. "Can I help you with something else?" "Actually, I was thinking the same thing. I know you are going through a lot. John told us." I immediately became defensive. It wasn't any of their business what was going on in my home life. It didn't concern them. "We all want you to know that we are willing to help in any way. If you need to take a hiatus from training us, we understand." "I appreciate everyone's concern, but it really isn't necessary." Clark nodded and turned not convinced at my words. Once the door was closed, I took a deep breath. Then I stood, left the office, and went back to the room where I descended the ladder into the cave. Everyone stood around the cave waiting for me. "Hello, everyone," I said as I looked around. Barry ran in to join us. "Is there something goin' on?" he asked. "Lots," I replied. "As you all know now, Catman has been unmasked. He is the older brother of Lance's and my son and daughter. His name is Preston and he has been raised by a vampire to hate me. He believes I murdered his mother, which is untrue. What we, meaning Sarah, Lance, Preston, and I, are going to do is try to convince him of the truth. We believe he knows it deep down. But how can anyone so easily dismiss what they've always known to be true? It isn't easy." 'God knows I've experienced this,' I thought to myself. "What we would like for you guys to do is be careful. We don't want you coming in contact with him, if possible. Do whatever you can not to hurt him. I want him to see that we mean him no harm." I received nods all around. "Will he be trying to kill us?" "I don't think so. At the moment, it's me he hates. But that could be changing." I relayed to them what we experienced with the mind merging. "So this guy definitely is Sarah and Preston's brother?" Dinah asked. "Yes," I answered. "God, this makes life more difficult for them, doesn't it?" "It sure does," Sarah answered as she and Preston climbed down the ladder into the cave. "The question is, what can we do to help him? Nothing. If he doesn't want help, we can't force him to get it." "The only thing we can do is be there for him," Preston said. "I remember how much he cares about Sarah and me. Deep down, he is the same person he was years ago, the same protective older brother. He just needs to know that we accept him and love him in return." "But make no mistake, he is dangerous. If he feels threatened in any way or that his siblings are threatened, he will attack. He's been trained by a vampire, so, no doubt, he would not hesitate to kill. We don't know that for sure, but I don't want anyone to take that risk." "What, exactly, do you want us to do?" Barry asked. I took a deep breath. "I want him to be followed." Several people gasped, including Preston and Sarah. "That's not going to build his trust," Preston added. "I know. But he doesn't know any of you. You will be able to follow him without his recognizing you. He won't see any of you as a threat if he doesn't know who you are." "Why are we following him?" "I want to know where the real Catman is. I want to find out where he's been hiding. Joseph may take us to him." Everyone looked around. "We can do this," Clark finally stated. "We can use our abilities, and I don't mean just our powers. We can use our minds. We can come up with shifts in following him so he never sees the same person twice in one day." Clark went on to explain his ideas, which were quite good for someone so young. After the meeting, everyone broke to their respective rooms in preparation for tonight. The girls enjoyed discovering new ways to style their hair along with what make-up made them look different. Clark was the only guy who experimented with this. His solution, shall I say, was different. He changed his hair style, slouched, wore baggy clothes, and put on a pair of glasses which greatly diffused the blue in his eyes. If nobody paid close attention, they would easily see someone different. Across town, Joseph sat in the public library investigating the death of his mother by looking at newspapers from ten years ago. He read the police reports and the newspaper articles reminiscing about what he witnessed. He also looked up information on the city's mysterious protector, the one known as Batman, though many believed he didn't really exist. He read about several sittings which happened at different places. Several even said they thought it was a Batwoman instead of a Batman. Of course, those descriptions changed as well. At one time, it was believed she was Caucasian with red hair and the next she was believed to be of African descent. Who knew how accurate the reports were? The one commonality they had was that the "protector" saved people from what they called "terrible monsters who bit them". Back then, if someone said "vampire", they would be laughed all the way to a mental institution. Now, however, it is commonly know that vampires exist, though they are still quite the mystery as far as the human world is concerned. All Joseph knows is that laws have been enacted, rather rapidly in fact, granting full protections to some vampires. Many still keep their vampirism to themselves, preferring to remain anonymous. Others are open about it, especially Alan Blood, a nationally, if not internationally, known figure head who has fought for vampire rights ever since the vampire war ended. He's gained some notoriety, claiming he's been around since the time of King Arthur. No one can really prove or disprove the years vampires place on their ages, so nobody knows for sure. 'There have been bodies found all over the city a few months prior to her death. However, they don't go as far back as Batman's appearance in Orlando. He's also been active in Los Angeles even before moving to Orlando. Could it be that he didn't kill my mother and what I saw was merely what my mind placed together along with the pieces that were given to me? If so, I've been the puppet of the killer of my mom. Son of a bitch!' Joseph slammed the archive book down and stood up. He left the building and walked downtown. 'It can't be real. It just can't be. If this is true, everything I've ever been told, everything I've ever believed in has been a lie. I've been duped. My God, what have I done?' As he walked, he noticed someone moving through the crowd who had followed him since he left the library. It was a young African-American boy about his age, give or take a year or two. He couldn't figure out why the guy was following him. So, he turned into an alley and headed deep inside to see if the young man would follow in there, too. He watched as the African-American walked to the mouth of the alley, glanced down it, then continued on. 'Maybe I'm just seeing things,' Joseph thought. 'Maybe I'm just being paranoid. If Catman finds out that I know what really happened, would he keep me alive? Probably not.' Joseph continued down the alley to the other side of the building. When he emerged he looked left and right and then turned right, heading back in the direction of the library, only this time on the other side of the block. As he walked, he kept an eye out behind him for any sign of being followed. He might be paranoid, but he'd rather be safe than sorry. 'What the hell?' he thought. 'That's the same guy who was just following me. He might have changed clothes, but that's still him. How did he change clothes so fast?' Then his mind answered him as he remembered when he fought Batman at the club a while ago. The guy wearing all red that could move super fast showed up to help Batman. 'So, you're helping Eric, huh? Let's see how good you really are.' Joseph turned down the corner and stood. Barry came up to the end of the block and kept walking. He looked around to see if he could find Joseph and, sure enough, he found him leaning against the wall waving to him. Barry looked in the direction he was heading and kept walking. 'Time for a change of followers,' he thought. After going down the rest of the block and being sure that he himself wasn't being followed, he radioed Clark to get Clark to take up where he left off. Clark radioed that he would be right there. Seconds later, Clark arrived. Barry told him what Joseph was wearing and wished him luck. "Luck? Why?" "Cause if that crazy bitch can figure out I'm following him, no matter how drastically I change clothes, he's got a good eye and can pick almost anyone out." "Then we'll just have to make it confusing for him," Diana said as she, Dinah, Arthur, and Ella showed up, too. "We must make sure he doesn't see us together, though." To Be Continued...