Date: Sun, 10 Jun 2001 10:24:22 -0700 (PDT) From: Author James Subject: Adventures Of A Real Dark Knight 6 Disclaimer: This story, though maybe not in this chapter but in subsequent chapters, will have celebrities in it. I have no knowledge of their sexuality and this is not intended to imply their sexuality. This is all from my own mind. Scary!! People actually get a glimpse into my mind!!! 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. Star Trek and all related characters created by Gene Roddenberry. Copyright Paramount Studios. I don't know for sure if I will use all the above elements, but just in case, I have myself covered. In this story, which has been floating around in my head most of my life, you will find many universes merging, as the above copyrights reveal. I hope you all enjoy this. I appreciate any feedback that you may want to give. This story doesn't deal so much with sex, sex, sex, but more of my feelings that I struggled with and am starting to come to terms with. Part of his background is mine. I do hope that you enjoy it!!! This section of chapters is a continuation of my first story "Tales of a Real Dark Knight". I have received many emails from people who have enjoyed it and some from those who do not. I would enjoy hearing from you. Any emails you send, please tell me what chapter and story you are commenting on. Thanks. jmsotc@yahoo.com Chapter 6 Motherly Love "Mom! Don't be mad!" Brian said trying to diffuse the situation. "I was just..." "You were just betraying me," she said with a smile. The smile did not warm her tone or facial expression. There was definite anger there, definite hatred toward me. I could see it and feel it. Almost even hear it. "You will come over to me," Mrs. Freeze was saying, "and you will help me kill this meddling bat." I looked over at Brian. I knew his loyalty to his mother, which was good. But when your parent or parents are bent on destroying others, it's kind of unhealthy, you know? "No, mom." I was taken aback, as was Mrs. Freeze. "What?" she said in surprise. "I said, no. Batman has offered to help me change my ways. He's going to help me get rid of my anger. I'm not going with you. I'm not going to hurt others because of your issues. I have my own things to worry about." "You're leaving me...for him? Are you just as gay as Hunter? The rumors about Batman are that he's gay." She turned to me. "Is this true, Bats?" "Yes." Mrs. Freeze nodded her head and turned taking a few steps away from me. "So you are gay. Hmm, and what did you do to my son? Did you give him sex to convert him? Did you pleasure him beyond compare?" "What?" Freeze and I both said in unison. "You know, did you brainwash him? Do stuff to him to make him like you? I had a feeling you were a pedophile." My anger was kindled. I hated being accused of things that are untrue. And to think someone believed I would hurt a child infuriated me! "Mom, don't do this. He's a friend," Freeze intervened. "He's no friend of ours. He's only using you to get to me. Once he gets us both, your friendship will dissolve and you will end up in jail." "No, it's not like that." "Then what's it like?" "He's trying to help me." "Help you what?" "Help me get over this control issue you have with me. Help me get over the coldness I feel inside because I don't have a mother who truly loves me. Help me find some purpose to my life besides empty revenge." Mrs. Freeze's face froze into a look of contempt. "Is that so?" She looked right at me. "Yes. I want to help your son have a purpose in life. I want to help him get out of this place he's in. It will only get him killed, and you know it. "Why are you doing this anyway?" "You don't know? Isn't Batman supposed to be a detective? You're slipping with your name's sake." She turned to Brian. "You never told him?" "No," Brian said. "Hmm, some friend you are. You never bothered to tell your 'friend' about his worst enemy." "I highly doubt you are my worst enemy," I replied to her. "Highly doubt it? Let me see if I can change your mind." Mrs. Freeze pulled out her gun and fired at me. Brian and I jumped out of the way as the beam came right toward me. I rolled and came up to my feet. No sooner had I done this than Mrs. Freeze fired again at me. I jumped and grabbed the fire escape ladder, pulling myself up. The beam just barely missed me. As I pulled myself up, I heard another shot. Was Mrs. Freeze turning on her own son? I turned and saw Brian firing at his mother. "Leave him alone, mom! He cares about me and what I feel! Not like you! You are only concerned about yourself! You only worry about getting your revenge for what happened to dad!" "Don't talk back to me, boy!" Mrs. Freeze took aim. "I'm your mother." I flicked my wrist and a miniature metal bat popped out. I grabbed it and flicked the switch on it causing the "wings" to deploy. Then I threw it at her gun. It hit her hand full force and she dropped her gun. "You bastard!" she yelled at me. "Stop, mom! This is over!" Brian walked up to his mother angrily. "You think this is over, do you?" With that, she hauled off and punched him, knocking him to the ground. She bent down and picked up her gun. "I'll show you what's over." I couldn't let her freeze her own son. I popped out another bat and threw it. It hit her gun. The glass container holding her special freezing liquid burst out and landed on her, freezing her solid. Brian turned and looked up at me. I leapt off the fire escape and landed beside him. "Are you okay?" I asked. I reached down and pulled him up. "Yeah. For the first time, I think I am." Brian walked over to his mom's frozen state. "At least now her outside matches her soul. What should we do with her?" "She should be turned over to the police." "The police?" Brian looked a bit concerned. "They would give her a fair trial. And they might be able to help her deal with her problems. She could be rehabilitated." "Like Hunter was rehabilitated?" Brian was turning angry. Not a good sign. "No. What makes you think that?" "Because this world is so evil and wicked and cruel and selfish." "Am I selfish, Brian?" This gave Brian a moment's pause. He was actually thinking it over, which was a good thing. "Actually you are one of the few people I know who is unselfish." "She needs help, Brian. We could all use some help to reconcile our past. We have all done things we aren't proud of, including me. For your mom, she needs to be at a place where she can work it out non-violently." "You did stuff in the past you're not proud of?" he asked. "Yes." "How did you reconcile it?" I motioned to my garments. "Still working on it," I answered. Brian looked at me confused. "I'm handling it differently than most would. This way works for me." I moved over to his mom and placed my hand over her head. Slowly the ice turned to water as I manipulated the atoms that are naturally hot. When the ice ended around her collar, I stopped. I wanted her to be able to breathe. I didn't want her dead. "You little prick! Let your mother loose!" Brian brought his wrist up to fire on his mother. I moved in the way. "Don't do it. She's not worth it. Not any more." Brian turned and walked away. I turned to face Mrs. Freeze. "What you've done to him is horrible. You've taken a child and turned him into a cold-hearted person. He does still have feelings. The suicide of his friend brought them forth. I will do all I can to bring them out so he can lead a happy normal life. "If you should ever get out of jail, hear me. If you should ever get out of jail, you will have no contact with your son, unless you've gotten rid of this vengefulness. If you come near him with the thought of turning him evil, I will hunt you down. Do you understand my words?" I could feel intense rage burning in my eyes. I noticed in the ice my reflection. My eyes were actually glowing. Mrs. Freeze had a front row seat to this and it was plainly noticeable as her face was in total shock. I turned and walked away. Not too much later, the police arrived to pick up Mrs. Freeze. I telephoned them and told them where she would be. After that, I met Brian on top of a nearby skyscraper. He was sitting with his head down. I felt bad for him. He just took a major step in his life. He rejected his mother and her ideology that ruled his life for so long. He allowed her to go to be arrested. His life is now unclear to him; he doesn't know what the future holds. Now it's up to him to chart his own course. "Hi, Freeze," I said walking up to him. He looked up at me. "Hi." "What are you thinking about?" "Everything...and nothing. I don't know. Part of me feels so horrible for letting my mom get arrested. She's my mother. How could I do that to her?" "It was best for her. She needed this. It's the only way she is going to get any help, if she even wants it. If she doesn't want help, she will not be able to hurt anyone." "I know. But, I miss her. Strangely, even after all she has done and said to me, I miss her." I walked up to Brian and sat beside him. I placed my arm on his back. I could feel his body shudder as he cried and sobbed. My heart went out to him. When I got home, I showered and went to bed. I had been so busy the last few days and nights I had not been able to get enough sleep that I needed. When I woke the next morning, I went into work feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world. "Good morning, Debbie," I greeted. "Good morning. You seem to be in a chipper mood." "I got enough sleep last night. It felt good." "Have you been out running the streets all night trying to save as many people as you can?" "You know me," I joked. Debbie had no idea how true that statement was. She knew I loved children and wanted to help as many as I could. She did not know I was Batman. "What's on the agenda for today?" "Carly is here already. She's not been sleeping well and her dad can't figure out what's wrong. I guess she's been having very intense nightmares." "Okay. Are they in my office?" "Yeah." "Thanks." I made my way to the office. Inside I found Carly and Hank, her father, sitting at the children's table playing. "Good morning, Carly. Good morning, Hank." "Hi, Eric." Hank got up and walked over to me, shaking my hand. "What's going on?" I asked. "She's been having nightmares lately. And I don't mean once in a while. It's been almost every night. She wakes up screaming and crying. When I go in to comfort her, she grabs me and will not let go. I've asked her what was wrong, and all she would say is 'mommy'." "Okay. Why don't you go for a little walk around the block while I talk with Carly? It will do you some good to get out for a few minutes." "Okay." Hank walked out of the office and I went over to Carly. "Hi, Carly." "Hi, Eric," she responded without looking up. She was busy playing with the dolls on the table. "I heard someone has been having some scary dreams. What are they about?" "Different stuff." Carly's hands kept playing and manipulating the dolls. I decided to help her be more specific. "I have a neat idea. Let's play with the dolls together. But what should we play?" "I don't know," Carly said. She was being very detached, which is not like her. She always enjoyed coming in and working with me. I had been seeing Carly not too long after I took Joshua's place. Carly's parents divorced and the court awarded her father custody. She would go every other weekend with her mother. She had a difficult time with the divorce, as any child would, and I had to help her see her feelings and help her deal with them. She had been doing very well until now. "Maybe we can play one of your visits with mom. Want to? I can be you and you can be your mom." "Okay," she said. I took up the little girl. She picked the woman. I had my doll come bouncing into the kitchen from outside. "Hi, mommy," I said. "What are you doing? Don't come running in here! I could have spilled this all over the floor!" "Sorry, mommy." "Yeah, whatever." Carly had her doll walk out of the kitchen. I decided to have my doll follow hers. "Mommy, why are you so mad at me? I didn't mean to scare you. I'm just happy." She did not respond. I decided to force some interaction. I had the doll turn and knock over a flowerpot. It elicited a response. "Watch where you are going! You knocked over my plant!" Carly had her doll come up and smack my doll. "You are so clumsy! Why do I even bother?!" I had my doll cry. "I'm sorry, mommy. I didn't mean to, honest." "Of course you did! There are days I think you were born into this world just to hurt me and irritate me!" Carly's doll "grabbed" my doll by the hand and drug her over to the couch. Carly was really into the moment. The mother doll pulled the daughter doll onto the couch and there she "spanked" the child. Only this wasn't a normal spanking. This was a repeated blow to the body, not just the buttocks. "Now go to your room, and don't come out till I tell you!" Carly moved the daughter doll just to the other side of the "living room" and she had the mother doll say, "I honestly don't know about that girl." Carly moved through picking up the knocked over toy flowerpot, then had her doll go back to her normal routine. "Wow, Carly. That was pretty real." Carly went on playing. "Does that happen at your mommy's house?" Carly looked up at me and I could see the tears forming in her eyes. "All the time." "What stuff do you do that mommy does that?" "Spill my milk, drop a plate, knock over stuff, get my pants a little dirty, all kinds of stuff." "Does daddy know about this?" "No. When I'm with mommy, I'm her responsibility. That's what she says. That's what I heard dad tell her one time." I understood why her dad said that. He was trying to get the point across to Carly's mom that she is mom and needs to be responsible for her daughter. Carly's mom, however, may be saying it just as an excuse for her actions against Carly. "What does mommy use to hurt you?" "Her hand, mostly. One time she used a wooden spoon, and her curling iron." "How did you feel when she did that?" "Scared. I knew she was going to hurt me. When I looked at her, her eyes looked mean." "Do you want mommy to act that way?" "No. I get scared so much." "I might be able to help, but we are going to have to tell daddy, okay?" Carly became quiet and still. "Will daddy still love me after we tell him?" "Of course he will. You're his daughter. What makes you think your daddy won't love you any more?" "That's what mommy says. If daddy found out, he would not want me any more." "Mommy was saying that to keep you from telling. She knows what she does is wrong and she doesn't want to get in trouble." "I don't want mommy to get into trouble," Carly said anxiously. "I shouldn't have told you! I don't want her to get into trouble." "Carly, calm down. Mommy will get help so she doesn't do these things. If we tell daddy about what mommy has done, we can get her help." "Promise?" "I promise I will do all I can to get her help." "Okay." We Carly's dad got back I sent Carly to the playroom while I took her dad into my office. "Have a seat, Hank." "Thanks." Hank moved over to the couch and I went to the chair. "What's going on with Carly?" "From what I've been able to determine is that Gloria is being rough when she disciplines Carly." "Rough? In what way?" "She disciplines her for little things and the discipline seems to be very...violent." "Gloria's abusing Carly?" "I think so." "That bitch..." "Hank, calm down." "Calm down? How can you tell me to calm down when my daughter is being abused by her mother?" "Because we know. We can talk with the courts and get them to revoke visitation rights and order counseling for Gloria." "Counseling won't change her! She doesn't want to be helped! Damn her!" I knew what Hank was feeling. Even though I have never had a loved one abused, I knew what it was like to feel betrayed and hurt. I knew the bitterness of his anger. It could get very violent towards perceived injury. Of course the injury to Carly was real, but Hank could take it too far. I could not allow that. "Hank, please. Carly was afraid of this reaction. She doesn't want Gloria to be in trouble with this." "Don't tell me you promised she wouldn't get in trouble!" "I promised Carly I would try to get her help. Whether you like Gloria or not, she is still Carly's mother. Even though she abuses Carly, Carly still loves her mother. It's not something you can change. The best we can do is keep Carly safe from her until she gets the help she needs. But I need you onboard with me so you and I can help Carly. If we don't get Gloria help, Carly will not be able to trust us. Are you with me?" Hank hesitated. He was an intelligent and I knew he was thinking over what I said. "All right." "Good. I'll go down and talk to Carly for a little bit. You come out when you are calm, okay?" "Okay." I left my office to give Hank time to calm down. To Be Continued... What do you think of Freeze becoming one of the good guys? I always wanted to have a good guy Mr. Freeze...and I got it! Yeah for me! Ha, ha, ha! More good stuff to come, especially the footage of the videotape.