[CENTER][IMG]https://i.imgur.com/0xjS780.png[/IMG][/CENTER]

[b]Gotham City, Precinct 27
Gordon's Office
7:00 PM[/b]

[color=00a651]"Captain, if I may? Keep this quiet."[/color] 

Captain Gordon narrowed his eyes as Agent Nashton placed Jim's phone back on the table. Thanks to a mysterious benefactor, video evidence had just made it clear that The Batman hadn't been responsible for the assassination attempt against District Attorney Dent. And yet Nashton, the man that Loeb had thrust upon the department to dictate how this investigation was going to go from here on out, had affixed a skeptical gaze throughout the entire behind-closed-doors briefing between Gordon's top officers, with Renee Montoya, Michael York, and Duke Thomas already sent off to work their own leads on who the actual shooter was. Not skepticism towards Batman's innocence, of course. That much was obvious. But to the very idea of exonerating the vigilante of the crime. 

[color=f7941d]"Want to run that by me again, Agent? Because it sounded to me like you just insisted that I divert my people from trying to capture a dangerous sniper running loose in Gotham."[/color]

Nashton massaged the bridge of his nose, frustrated, as if Gordon were several miles behind him in grasping the very concept of the Agent's current train of thought. It gave off more than a little bit of an air of condescension, but the Captain was quick to bite his tongue. After all, whoever Nashton was, he was undoubtedly used to higher-profile cases than this and was thinking in a way that Jim probably didn't even think to approach. Rubbing elbows with the Gotham City PD seemed to be about as fun for Nashton as it had already been for Gordon to have him. They were both in a bind.

[color=00a651]"Make no mistake, I do not believe that your department should lessen the security surrounding Harvey Dent anytime soon. Send your very best, if you must, to ensure that the true shooter doesn't attempt to prematurely end the District Attorney's life a second time. But if you make this video public and renounce Batman as a suspect, you're only making it easier on him. He could very well slip through our fingers, just as the perfect opportunity to put him in the crosshairs comes to us."[/color]

[color=f7941d]"Now just a minute."[/color], Gordon interrupted. [color=f7941d]"Are you suggesting that we keep this to ourselves and publicly accuse Batman of this? In order to, what... help our case against him? Because going after the man for vigilantism is one thing, Nashton. To say nothing of the countless assault and battery charges, or breaking and entering. Hell, even resisting arrest at the scene of a crime. All of that, we could easily indict him on. But going with attempted murder of a public servant is an entirely different ballgame, and it's one that I'm not willing to play if we know it isn't true."[/color]

[color=00a651]"Do we, though? Because I wonder."[/color], Nashton posited. [color=00a651]"The video simply shows the two men in a struggle near the scene of the shot. While it's very damning in it's suggestion that yes, the other suspect is the sole perpetrator and that Batman was simply interfering, there's nothing to also suggest that he was entirely innocent of this crime, either. The second individual could simply have been an accomplice."[/color]

Gordon side-eyed him, picking up the phone and rewinding the footage.

[color=f7941d]"You mean to say that there's plausible deniability?"[/color]

Nashton nodded. 

[color=00a651]"Think of it, Gordon. The public rallies behind Dent's proposed Anti-Batman task force if they believe the man is now targeting civilians aswell as criminals. We're given immediate funding by the Mayor. And then the binds that restrict us from capturing him are released.", he continued. "Before, they might have been lenient on the vigilante's relatively minor infractions. After all, however unlawfully, there are some that believe he's ultimately acting in their interest. But Dent is a respect civil servant, and right now, they fully believe Batman has crossed the line from altruistic crusade to personal vendetta."[/color]

The Captain was silent, watching as the caped vigilante violently struck out at a man who was clearly armed to the teeth. He was their suspect, there was no doubt of it in Gordon's mind. Killing wasn't apart of Batman's M.O. before now, and changing that all because Dent publicly condemned his actions didn't make any sense. The vigilante had never sought public approval and had never retaliated against bad press. 

But Nashton saw an angle, and it was clear that this was what he had already set his mind to. Regardless, it was an angle that Jim didn't like. Batman may have been a dangerous criminal, but he needed to go down for the laws he had broken himself. Not become a target for a proverbial witch hunt, especially for an actual perpetrator that was still on the loose. 

[color=f7941d]"This isn't the way."[/color]

Nashton leaned against the table, leering.

[color=00a651]"I'll admit that I can see why it might not be your preferable cause of action. But it may prove to be the crucial bridge we need to ending a citywide threat once and for all. And do not take this as me thinking in a manner such as Commissioner Loeb, Captain. I've read your file, and I am no more a fan of dirty politics as you are. It is also no secret that the corruption in this city runs rampant, so if you help me on this, I will do whatever I can to make room for your department at other intervals. But I was assigned here to capture The Batman. And the way I see it, this is how we capture The Batman."[/color]

Gordon shot him a glare.

[color=f7941d]"This is how you turn the city against Batman. But that doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. We're officers of the law, Agent Nashton. And I will not tolerate bending the facts to fit our version of them just to appease Mayor Thorne."[/color]

[color=00a651]"And what are our facts, may I ask?"[/color], Nashton shot back, indignant. [color=00a651]"You received a series of text messages on your phone? From whom, exactly? An anonymous source with a callsign? There is nothing about that to apply as tangible evidence in a court of law. Your eyewitness would have to step forth and reveal themselves to prove that the video isn't a forgery, among other things. Provided that the eyewitness and the Batman aren't even the same person to begin with."[/color]

Gordon stood up from his chair.

[color=f7941d]"The argument's no flimsier on [i]your[/i] side, Nashton. There's a difference between nailing a man to a cross and burning the cross while he's still attached. What you're proposing is no different from throwing an innocent man out to the wolves. You light the fire on this, and Batman just might get burned by Dent's task force. That's not what my department wants. We want him alive to stand trial."[/color]

Nashton raised his finger, ready to make a counterpoint, but then stopped. Seemingly content to regather his thoughts, the Agent pulled out a cellphone from his own jacket pocket and began sorting through a series of images that looked to be on an encrypted server, repeatedly stroking the screen with his index finger as he spoke. 

[color=00a651]"Question. I take it that before this video dropped into your lap, you were familiar with The Batman's reputation for never getting caught on film?"[/color]

Gordon raised an eyebrow.

[color=f7941d]"I'm aware of that, yes. It's the entire reason that he was able to perpetuate the idea of being a myth, those first few months. We've had tech specialists look into possible theories on whether or not he could be carrying a focused EMP, given every witness testimony filed with the Precinct complained of cellphone outages whenever they tried to take a photo or video. But it's still only a running theory."[/color]

[color=00a651]"And one of which I would personally subscribe. But I also suspect that whatever method he's using, Batman hasn't [i]always[/i] had the luxury of that discretion."[/color]

Nashton handed Gordon the phone as he sat back down. The Captain looked at the photo presented and removed his glasses, eyes widened. Unable to comprehend what he was even looking at, at first. But there it was, clear as day. The Batman, as clear as any photographic evidence had ever presented. And more importantly...

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

[color=f7941d]"That officer... That's Marcus Driver."[/color]

Agent Nashton stood up straight, arms folding across his chest.

[color=00a651]"A former Lieutenant of this precinct. You knew him."[/color]

[color=f7941d]"Knew him? I helped [i]train[/i] him. He was one of the best officers I've ever worked with. He held the Major Crimes Unit together for over five years. We even held his retirement party just last month, but..."[/color]

Jim fell silent. Nashton sneered. 

[color=00a651]"But?"[/color]

[color=f7941d]"But... he always maintained that he was beaten half to death by Falcone's men. A whole group of them that we were never able to identify. And he never once mentioned an encounter with Batman. The only reason he was able to claim disability was because of the fact that he'd sustained nerve damage from the assault. Christ, he packed up with his wife and kids and moved to Florida..."[/color]

Nashton pulled up a chair and sat down, bringing himself at eye level with a clearly shaken Gordon. 

[color=00a651]"That photograph was never made public because my superiors [i]prevented[/i] it's release. We've had it for five months, meaning that it was taken just after the vigilante's first encounter with the five families. Had this been made public, your Lieutenant Driver would have been able to give us the ammunition we needed against The Batman before this even [i]escalated[/i]. Instead, he ran away. Rendered a cripple by a masked vigilante taking the law into his own hands, and the lunatic had made him too scared to even tell you."[/color]

The Captain got back up and leaned against the window, shellshocked. 

[color=f7941d]"I didn't..."[/color]

[color=00a651]"Nor could you have known. My agency was tasked with keeping The Batman's existence a secret in the wake of the metahuman crisis, in the event that he was one of them. A decision which was left out of my hands, unfortunately. But I'm telling you [i]now[/i] to make a point. You've been lied to on all sides of this, Captain. All for the sake of protecting a man who willfully inflicts damage to men and women you've known. Men and women you've [i]trained[/i]."[/color]

Gordon looked back at him, the clear resentment for the Agent gone. There was only a look of uncertainty replacing it. He had trusted Driver with his life, and all this time, this had been kept from him. If he was lying about that, how was Gordon to say that he wasn't hiding something else? Something worse that the vigilante held over him, or threatened him with? It wasn't as if the former Lieutenant had been some rookie. Something would have had to have been said to coerce him into not even mentioning his true attacker.

[color=00a651]"Help me to end this, Gordon. I don't want to have to force you to do it, so I'm asking you. Not for Loeb, not even for my Agency. But to put this man away before he [i]does[/i] decide that killing off public servants might suite his needs."[/color]

The Captain wasn't sure of what to say.

On one hand, Nashton had basically admitted to knowing fully well that Batman wasn't responsible for the attempt on Dent. But on the other, there was clearly a ton of information that the Agent knew about The Batman that his department didn't. And if he could have a resource like that as an ally, in a city where those were particularly hard to come by...

[color=f7941d]"I need some assurances."[/color]

Nashton leaned back, a smile beginning to form across his lips. 

[color=00a651]"Name them."[/color]

Gordon adjusted his glasses, handing the phone back to the Nashton. 

[color=f7941d]"Firstly, we do not exonerate the man who really pulled the trigger. We continue the hunt for the would-be assassin and bring him in for questioning. Off the record, if need be. But we still do the due diligence for Dent's sake. Letting the other man walk isn't an option."[/color]

The Agent shrugged. 

[color=00a651]"Gotham breeds criminality. From what I can tell, it practically thrives on it. It's far from a stretch to be able to say that this individual has committed any number of other crimes that would justify a warrant."[/color]

Gordon narrowed his gaze. 

[color=f7941d]"Secondly. I want you to share everything your agency has on Batman. Every file, every suppressed incident. All of it comes straight to me."[/color]

Nashton smirked. 

[color=00a651]"I believe I can do you one better."[/color]

Pulling up his phone once again, Agent Nashton brought up a logo that made Gordon's eyes go wide once again. 

[color=f7941d]"That [i]can't[/i] be..."[/color]

[color=00a651]"Riddle me this, Gordon. I am the gatekeeper of all the world's knowledge and protect it with my life, yet if a single crack appears on my person, I find myself entirely compromised. What am I?"[/color]

Gordon stared quizzically at Nashton's question. 

[color=00a651]"The answer, of course, is a shield. Specifically, S.H.I.E.L.D's intelligence on The Batman. My agency was able to hack their servers last month, and so far, we've remained [i]entirely[/i] undetected. Any and all information that is sent Nick Fury's way about your vigilante, I have in the palm of my hands. And I extend that palm to [i]you[/i]."[/color]

Placing the phone on the table, Nashton leisurely pressed it forward. 

[color=00a651]"At your convenience."[/color]

Captain Gordon stared down at the phone, looking directly into the emblem of the world's foremost peacekeeping organization. A level of authority that superseded municipal government and the highest ranking offices of power. S.H.I.E.L.D. was never even considered to be on the cards for co-operation with an inner-city police department because of the fact that they dealt with worldwide disasters, and yet they still found it in their best interest to keep a dossier on the man Gordon had relentlessly pursued for six months. Why? What warranted [i]their[/i] interest in The Batman? 

Gordon grabbed the phone and initiated the login sequence.

[color=f7941d]"I guess you're not giving me much of a choice."[/color]

The smirk on Nashton's face grew wider.

Even without the assurance of his task force, the hunt for The Dark Knight had officially began.

[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/vU1HUmd.png[/IMG]

[color=00a651]"You won't regret it."[/color]