[CENTER][IMG]https://i.imgur.com/xpPFc9x.png[/IMG][/CENTER]

[b]Gotham City, Elliot Memorial Hospital
12:15 PM[/b]

[color=f7941d]"Is his condition stable enough to give witness testimony?"[/color]

The doctor gave Captain Gordon an odd look, the kind that stated exactly what had become the expected response concerning any known prominent member of the five families of Gotham: don't push things that aren't your concern, or you'll wind up six feet beneath the harbor. But Gordon had been adamant about being able to speak with Maroni ever since he had arrived with the police detail that was assigned to protect the wounded mobster. Captain Flass of Gotham Central may have been on Salvatore's personal payroll, and it wasn't exactly a closed secret, but Gordon was able to claim jurisdiction on this through one fortunate loophole: thanks to a victim of the previous night's assault who had been pressed into talking in exchange for lenience, this was no longer a simple shooting case. This was a Batman case, and the Major Crimes Unit of Precinct 27 were specifically assigned to any and all sightings of the vigilante until capture. Gordon narrowed his eyes and folded his arms as he awaited the doctor's response. 

"I-I suppose, yes, the patient would be able to give you a statement once he's been transferred to a room following recovery. But I should warn you, the surgery to the ligament was extensive. It's likely that Mr. Maroni won't be able to walk without the aide of a cane for the rest of his life, so he may be a bit... distraught."

Gordon fought back a smirk, knowing it would seem unprofessional. 

[color=f7941d]"Well, I'll try and be delicate. Wouldn't want him to file a complaint with the Commissioner, would we?"[/color], Gordon sarcastically replied, turning to one of his officers at the door. [color=f7941d]"Valley, you're on guard. Radio me the moment that he's available. I'm going for a smoke."[/color]

The officer nodded as Gordon headed for the elevator. By the time that he had reached the nurse's station, his phone began to vibrate, prompting him to produce it from out of his front pocket. There were a few messages that he'd missed - primarily from his daughter Barbara, who wanted him to go on a grocery run - but there was one message that primarily piqued his interest. Comissioner Loeb had personally texted him fifteen minutes prior, sending a forboding message...

[b][i]STAY WHERE YOU ARE, GORDON. HEADING TO YOU.[/i][/b]

[color=f7941d]"Oh, Christ."[/color]

The Captain clenched the phone in his hands, wishing he'd thought to take his smoke break even earlier - to have potentially missed this undoubtedly unfortunate encounter to come. There was no denying that Gillian Loeb was a man of considerable influence within Gotham, and if you got on his good side, you would be treated very well for the rest of your career. Gordon had unfortunately made the mistake of trying to be an honest, law-abiding cop ever since he'd joined the force. And in Gotham City, that wasn't the sort of mentality that earned you points with the Commissioner. You were expected to play ball, or you'd find yourself on the receiving end of a billy club until you did. 

The only reason that Gordon had even been allowed to be promoted to Captain in the first place was because the press had gotten to him before Loeb could silence the troublesome Lieutenant for good, with reporters labelling him as a hero cop for personally capturing the infamous serial killer Joe Collins, 'The Burnside Butcher'. In truth, he'd happened upon Collins in the midst of a botched robbery, only managing to nab the collar through sheer luck - and at great expense, as it was during this incident that Gordon had tragically lost his wife in the ensuing shootout. 

Jim's loss had garnered public sympathy, however, essentially making him untouchable - and it was to Loeb's absolute frustration, who'd put on the public face of entrusting Gordon with turning the most corrupt precinct in Gotham around under a deserving leadership. Loeb even commenced the promotion with a speech that decorated Jim as one of Gotham's top officers. 

That entire story was false, of course, because what had actually happened felt more like a demotion - Jim had been made Captain of the only precinct in Gotham who wasn't on the take. Therefore, the one that was assigned the cases that went nowhere. The one that was horribly underfunded. The one that every cop that had been made scared for not accepting a bribe eventually wound up serving with, in mortal fear for their families lives. A professional dead end, so to speak, for a man that Loeb couldn't personally have removed. 

As luck would have it, though, that was precisely why Gordon's unit had been assigned to The Batman. Whenever traumatized witnesses had first come forth describing a literal demon leaping out of the skies and beating the living hell out of would-be muggers and thieves six months prior, Flass passed the case onto Precinct 27 with a laugh, thinking it to be a wild goose chase to keep the meddling Gordon out of his hair for at least a  couple of months. But the more that the so-called "Flying Mouse" had hit hard at the operations of the bigger gangs, and eventually the five families themselves, it became no secret that Flass had regretted giving the collar away. Batman was a threat to the entire operation that ensured Flass' livelihood, and Jim wasn't about to let that slip through his fingers. Not without a fight.

As the elevator doors opened, Gordon was greeted with a particularly flustered looking Commissioner Loeb. Practically shoving the Captain against the wall of the lobby, Loeb grit his teeth as he got directly into his subordinate's face.

[color=aba000]"There you are, you interfering little shitstain..."[/color]

Gordon composed himself, but stared back, defiantly refusing to give into the Commissioner's abuse.

[color=f7941d]"Now just a minute, Gill. Before you even start with this, you and I both know that I have every right to be here. This is our case because you know exactly who attacked Maroni."[/color]

[color=aba000]"I don't want to hear it, Gordon!"[/color], Loeb spit back, releasing the Captain from his grip. [color=aba000]"I've been lenient with you on these... insubordination in the past, but you're stepping onto thin ice this time. And even your buddies at the Gotham Herald won't be able to save you if you keep this up. You know damn well that Maroni is off limits."[/color]

[color=f7941d]"And why is that, sir?"[/color], Jim asked, sneering. [color=f7941d]"Because he's a prominent citizen, or because he's a prominent contributor to your campaign for re-election?"[/color]

Loeb spun around, enraged, ready to strike the Captain for that comment. But Gordon was quick to acknowledge the oncoming doctors and nurses that were just returning from their lunch break, heading directly for the area and completely oblivious to Loeb's growing hostility. Knowing that he didn't want to cause a scene, he relented, lowering his tone of voice ever so slightly. 

[color=aba000]"I'm going to ignore that for the moment, because you've caught me in a generous mood. But my generosity only extends so far, Captain. You'd be wise to remember that in the future."[/color]

Gordon began to walk past him. 

[color=f7941d]"Oh, I'm very aware. Now if we're done, I was just heading off prepare for writing up Maroni's statement. So if you don't mind..."[/color]

Immediately, Loeb grabbed him by the arm. 

[color=aba000]"I do, actually. You didn't let me finish. When I said I was in a generous mood, I meant to say that I came here with a more tangible purpose than reminding you of who's in charge."[/color], Loeb began, his venomous tone slipping into a whisper. [color=aba000]"Clearly, that damn vigilante is proving too much of a task for your department to handle. Everyone in this city knows it the second that he lights up one of those giant floodlights in the sky, telegraphing your department's failure. You've been chasing smoke and mirrors for six months, and you still have nothing to show for it. That's why I'm giving the case to someone more qualified, so that this department might stand a chance of cleaning up your mess."[/color]

Gordon ripped his arm away. 

[color=f7941d]"Like hell you are. You'll need my department's cooperation if you want to strong-arm me away from this. Like it or not, we have the most extensive intel on The Batman in the entire city. Your boys wouldn't know where the hell to begin."[/color]

Loeb smiled. 

[color=aba000]"Oh, I didn't say your department was completely [i]off[/i] the case. I'm not a complete fool, James. I know what a nightmare of legal tape that would be to try and navigate. But seeing as you are no longer fit to lead the investigation, the precinct is going to be following the lead of a new head investigator that will report directly to me. Someone who will have authority over each and every one of you, able to keep your precinct in line in a way that you can't."[/color]

Gordon's eyebrow raised. 

[color=f7941d]"What in God's name are you talking about?"[/color]

[color=00a651]"I believe, Captain, that your superior was referring to me..."[/color]

Turning around, Gordon was met with the outstretched hand of a stranger standing before him, dressed far from conspicuously. Jim's eyebrow raised high as he noticed the man's attire: dressed from head-to-toe in a slavishly pressed green three-piece suit, the individual looked directly into Gordon's eyes from behind a pair of tinted sunglasses, his face slightly obscured by the brimmed fedora that matched his suit. Gordon hesitantly shook the man's hand, causing the mysterious stranger to to smirk. 

[color=00a651]"Edward Nashton, sir."[/color]

[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/lcd8tZt.png[/IMG]

[color=00a651]"I am something of a specialist on these matters."[/color]

Gordon quizzically glanced back. [color=f7941d]"'These' matters?"[/color]

[color=00a651]"Oh, yes. I deal with extreme personalities, you see. Serial murderers, compulsive opportunists, anarchists in the making. Even the occasional costumed lunatic, of which your 'Batman' is far from the first. They all fancy themselves to be human riddles, ready to be solved. And I assure you that I am more than up to the challenge."[/color]

Loeb slapped Gordon on the shoulder, grinning. 

[color=aba000]"You two will be seeing quite a bit of eachother, Gordon. Just remember that if he tells you to hop, you're to reply with 'how high'. Got me?"[/color]

The Captain narrowed his eyes as a clearly-pleased-with-himself Loeb headed down the hall, towards Maroni's intended room. Nashton watched Gordon's reaction carefully, as if he were scanning a book for information. 

[color=00a651]"I take it that you're no fan of Commissioner Loeb."[/color]

[color=f7941d]"You're a regular world's greatest detective."[/color], Gordon replied. [color=f7941d]"And what division are you from, exactly?"[/color]

Nashton lowered his glasses, smugly staring back. There was something off about the look in the man's eyes. As if they were there, but there was nothing - no empathy, no disgust, no genuine feeling at all behind them. 

[color=00a651]"Let's just say that my direct superiors don't answer to any Mayor. They answer to the [i]President[/i]. And that, I'm afraid, is all that I'm authorized to tell you at the moment."[/color]

Brandishing a walking cane, Nashton enthusiastically swung it upwards, so that it laid behind his neck. 

[color=00a651]"Really, Captain Gordon, you look as though you're suffering from stress. Allow me to alleviate some of that by sparing you of any negative predilections of my intentions, here. Despite Loeb's wishes, I am in Gotham to be your primary weapon in capturing The Batman, and [i]nothing[/i] more. I was once a profiler for the Coast City Police Department, but I turned that trade into something more [i]malleable[/i] with the agency I'm currently under. If you wanted to see a collection of my greatest hits, I have a file waiting for you back at the precinct that is a perennial mile long."[/color]

Before Gordon could reply, Nashton walked past him and began to stroll towards the elevator, indicating that he should follow.

[color=00a651]"So for now, I'll let [i]you[/i] catch me up to speed. And only take over when I see fit to do so."[/color]

The Captain stared as the bizarre man, who seemed to revel in talking a mile a minute, turned around in the open elevator and awaited him. 

[color=00a651]"To quote a classic, Captain... Shall we play a game?"[/color]

[b]Gotham City, Financial District
1:45 PM[/b]

[color=8882be]"Are you quite sure that you're up for this? I'm certain Mr. Dent would be more than happy to accomodate a rescheduling."[/color]

[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/FCC5MbP.png[/IMG]

Alfred's worried tone aside, I have no reservations about meeting with Harvey for tonight's rally. Although I can't entirely say that I've fully bounced back from the disturbing imagery I was subjected to thanks to the lapsing of my own sense of reality, Bruce Wayne will nevertheless always have engagements that are more important than the whims of a brief psychological break. It's a lesson that I'm slowly learning the hard way, given it's not been easy to establish a more public version of myself that's willing to act in a manner befitting a man who could never do what I do at night, but the charade is starting to take effect. I just have to keep at it, and let everything else slip when in 'character'.

[color=DarkGray][b]"No, Alfred. As much as I would love to miss a rally created with the express purpose of smearing my name in the public eye, we need this to happen. If I'm to be effective at what I do, The Batman has to be seen as an enemy of the law. And Harvey is my link into that world."[/b][/color]

Alfred looks back at me through the rear-view mirror, questionably. 

[color=8882be]"Right. And the point of this elaborate game of self-ostracization is what, again?"[/color]

I look back at him, sternly. 

[color=DarkGray][b]"The police in Gotham aren't to be trusted. And that's because they're all complacent, waiting for men like Salvatore Maroni to wave a stack of money at them in order to let loose any moral obligation to protect the streets. If I turn Batman into public enemy number one, that enforces the idea that he's to be feared among the citizens. Which legitimizes the need for the police to fear him, aswell, if they're committed to playing the part of public servant."[/b][/color]

With a scoff, Alfred makes his skepticism clear. 

[color=8882be]"An interesting theory, lad, but I've got a better one. If Bruce Wayne is seen tarnishing the Batman in public, it furthers the dividing line in suspicion. They won't think you'd actually be crazy enough to devote time and resources into running a smear campaign against yourself."[/color]

I look back out at the passing city. 

[color=DarkGray][b]"Well, it certainly doesn't hurt to cushion my alibi."[/b][/color]

[color=8882be]"And you're most certainly [i]not[/i] crazy enough to actually think that this is going to do you anything but harm, either, one would hope. I was under the impression that the entire point of this crusade of your's was to appear as a symbol of hope for the city. Not a blight to be cursed at the very mention of."[/color]

[color=DarkGray][b]"The public's never going to fully accept what I do, Alfred. And with good reason. I acknowledge the... extreme nature of what The Batman has to be."[/b][/color], I explain. [color=DarkGray][b]"It's a dangerous thing to be putting myself against people like Falcone and Cobblepot, and the innocents that I'm trying to keep out of harm's way need to be separated from the very idea of supporting me even in a tangential way so that they're never put in the crosshairs for the sake of goading me. I'm not out to be anyone's hero. I'm just doing what needs to be done."[/b][/color]

Though I can tell he wants to counter that, Alfred remains uncharacteristically silent. As he turns the corner leading onto the block to the District Attorney's office, where I'm meeting Harvey to discuss the plans for the Anti-Batman rally, my phone suddenly vibrates. I pull it out and answer, without checking who it is. Because I have a suspicion that I already know the answer.

[color=DarkGray][b]"Bruce Wayne."[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"Tell me you're not going to this ridiculous little show of Harvey's."[/i][/color]

I sigh to myself, cursing the fact that I even picked up. 

[color=DarkGray][b]"Nice to hear from you aswell, Selina."[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"Oh, please. Skip the foreplay. If you were interested, you'd be the one to call. Most [b]sane[/b] men do, anyway."[/i][/color]

I smirk. 

[color=DarkGray][b]"Wouldn't know anything about that. So what do you have against what Harvey's doing?"[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"For one thing, it's a complete waste of taxpayer money. A stunt designed to invoke paranoia, and if Dent hasn't noticed, we're all [b]teeming[/b] with that as is. Practically comes with the territory of living in this city."[/i][/color]

[color=DarkGray][b]"Well, first of all, it's not being funded by the taxpayers. I'm footing the bill on this."[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"And [b]you[/b] don't pay taxes? That isn't my point, Bruce."[/i][/color], Selina argues. [color=92278f][i]"All of this false bravado is toxic for real issues that need to be tackled in Gotham. Engaging in a social event with the sole purpose of pointing out the obvious fact that some masked vigilante may not, infact, be the most stable individual in the world is far from where these idiots need to be lending their attention."[/i][/color]

I nod as Alfred opens the door for me after parking, stepping out of the limousine myself. He's getting good at taking the cues for this whole 'Bruce Wayne's butler' act we've developed. I didn't even have to remind him, this time.

[color=DarkGray][b]"I won't argue that there are more pressing concerns in the city than Batman, Selina, I just... think that he's a scary individual that needs to be dealt with. And a dangerous one, at that. Did you hear what he did to Salvatore Maroni?"[/b][/color]

Her tone becomes more indignant. 

[color=92278f][i]"Like Sal has ever been a saint. I'm honestly more pissed at the Bat-creep for not shooting him in the head instead of making him a cripple."[/i][/color]

I pause, looking at the phone. 

[color=DarkGray][b]"You don't mean that."[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"And what if I do, Mr. Pacifist?"[/i][/color], she asserts. [color=92278f][i]"Look, I know that men like Maroni are generally part of the crowd you associate with these days - which, by the by, is [b]not[/b] what I intended for you whenever I took your charity case of needing to mingle with Gotham's elite after you came waltzing back into town. But that doesn't change that whatever this 'Batman' is doing, he's doing it to the right people."[/i][/color]

There's a bit of surprise in what I'm hearing, given that Selina is the daughter of the city's most notorious crimelord. But then again, she's never been exactly shy about how she feels about her father. Were it not for keeping up appearances and perhaps even some kind of blackmail that he has against her, I'm sure that she and Falcone would be estranged. I guess in some ways, she's playing as much of a part as I am. 

[color=DarkGray][b]"Whatever the case may be, he's as much of a criminal as any of them. And the police aren't really doing anything about it, from the looks of things, so maybe it's up to the people to take charge. Harvey's passionate about bringing him in before he inspires imitators, and I'm inclined to agree with him. We can't have a city that thrives on vigilantism [i]ontop[/i] of crime."[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"You say that like it wouldn't be more interesting..."[/i][/color], Selina murmurs. [color=92278f][i]"But fine. I'll [b]concede[/b] that maybe, just maybe the costumed freak needs to go before he starts giving people ideas. I've already heard horror stories about the people that Carmine has seen Oswald Cobblepot entertaining, lately. It's practically a masquerade ball down at that cheaply decorated nightclub of his."[/i][/color]

I raise my eyebrow. 

Interesting. I didn't realize The Penguin was keeping colorful company.

[color=DarkGray][b]"So you're saying you'll be there?"[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"Jesus. You really can't do this without me, can you?"[/i][/color], she replies, practically holding back laughter. [color=92278f][i]"Fine. As usual, I'll come to your rescue and endow you with my sociable know-how. But you owe me. As much champagne as I can drink, on your tab, and I get to pick your suit for the Gotham Knight Gala. Deal?"[/i][/color]

[color=DarkGray][b]"I've seen your taste in fashion, and it's making me want to reconsider even going to that."[/b][/color]

[color=92278f][i]"Screw [b]you[/b], Wayne."[/i][/color]

I smile as she hangs up. 

Sometimes it's the little things.

[color=DarkGray][b]"Good news, Alfred. Turns out The Batman has at least one supporter."[/b][/color]