[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ZeePpcI.png[/img][/center][indent][sub][color=white][b]SEASON ONE[/b][/color][color=FDE311] Sensation & Wonder[/color][/sub][sup][right][b][color=white]BATWOMAN:[/color][/b] [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKV3nM_IFlQ][color=FDE311]Masks[/color][/url][/right][/sup][/indent][indent][indent][indent][hr][/indent][/indent][/indent][indent][color=white][sub][b]Park Row [color=FDE311]♦[/color] Gotham[/b][/sub][/color][/indent] [indent] [color=FDE311][i]'Two shots ring out into the Gotham night, and a boy watches his parents die. That moment will haunt him for the rest of his life. Haunt him, but also drive him. He would shape his body and soul into a relentless weapon of vengeance, taking up a mask to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. That mask consumed him. In his mind he became the mask, as if the terrified little boy he used to be had died with his family. It made hunting down his parent's killer all the easier: two shots rang out into the Gotham night, and that mobster gunman died. The Tally Man was born.' [/i][/color] Six months ago, Batwoman found herself standing across from him. They were in the cramped apartment of his most recent target, a former loan shark on Falcone's payroll. The old man had flipped for the FBI when Two-Face murdered Carmine Falcone. Maybe Tally Man hadn't gotten the message. More likely, he just didn't care. He blamed everyone even remotely connected to the Falcone crime family for his tragedy. No amount of blood would sate him. Every mobster in Gotham could be six feet under and he'd still conduct his war. [color=586EB5]"This isn't about you, Batgirl."[/color] He loomed, shadows and flowing clothing making him look more like a phantom than a man. If nothing else, he had taste for the theatrical. [color=586EB5]"Do not give your life for this scum. Walk away."[/color] She stood vigilant over the barely conscious form of the ex-mobster. The bullet wound in his side wouldn't be fatal if she could get him to a hospital. [color=FDE311]"Come on, its been Bat[i]woman[/i] for months now. Didn't you get my emails?"[/color] She paused, glancing around the room. Plenty of furniture to break his line of sight: a couch in the middle of the room, a coffee table to the right and a shelf-full of Coppola and Scorsese DVDs to the left. No real hard cover, though. Gotta keep on the move to avoid getting tagged. The armor in her suit was thick, but it could only take so much punishment. [color=FDE311]"You're sick, Robinson. Killing this man isn't going to help you."[/color] [color=586EB5]"That's not my name!"[/color] Tally Man roared, and his guns soon joined the cacophony. Batwoman grabbed the heavy leather couch in the center of the room and dragged it up into the line of fire. The tech in her suit whirred as it worked to make up for her less-than-peak upper body strength. Her cover lasted less than a second before bullets tore a line of holes through it, narrowly missing their target. She shoved the couch toward Tally Man and dove to the left, scrambling to close the distance. He went right, placing a coffee table between himself and her as he took aim. [color=FDE311]"I really don't want to hurt you, Eddie."[/color] She rounded to the other side of the couch, the [i]Godfather[/i] box-set in hand. The original and [i]Part II[/i] banged into both of Tally Man's wrists, ruining his aim, while [i]Part III[/i] shattered against the man's nose, knocking him off balance. The Barbara of three years ago could've gotten to him before he steadied himself. The Barbara of now, though? She took three shots to the center of her chest, pain burning through her body. Those would leave a mark but she had to keep going. Had to lunge across that coffee table and stop Eddie Robinson before he could hurt someone else. She misjudged the distance. Instead of planting her foot in Tally Man's chest, she fell straight through the table, wood and glass flying in every direction. He didn't waste any time planting the barrel of a gun between her eyes. [color=FDE311][i]'The dreaded Batwoman, brought down by the Tally Man of all people. Bruce would be so disappointed.'[/i][/color] "Leave the broad alone ya fookin' clown!" A chair slammed against Tally Man's back. He still pulled the trigger. Instead of putting a hole through Barbara's head it took off one of her cowl's ears. That tough old bastard that'd been lying on the floor a few moments ago had dragged himself to his feet and bashed their attacker with a dining room chair, saving her life. He was thanked for his efforts with a pistol whip to the face. Batwoman kicked Tally's legs out from under him, bringing him to the floor. Babs had to fight the years of instinct screaming at her to bash his face in until he was a bloody, unconscious mess. All the anger in her blood- all the rage- still burned hot as ever, even after trying to ween herself off it. [color=FDE311]"...Damn it all."[/color] She kicked away his weapons and pulled a pair of handcuffs from her belt. [color=FDE311]"You're going to Arkham, Robinson. And you're not leaving [i]prematurely[/i] this time."[/color] [indent][indent][indent][hr][/indent][/indent][/indent][indent][color=white][sub][b]Arkham Asylum [color=FDE311]♦[/color] Gotham[/b][/sub][/color][/indent] [i][color=FDE311]I'm writing my doctoral thesis on childhood trauma and its connection to violent behavior. There's decades of research to pour through. Its a messy, complicated and sometimes contradictory topic. Lots of opinions, and everybody's biased one way or another. Hard to parse the truth in all the noise, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.[/color][/i] Five months ago, Barbara Gordon found herself sitting across from him. Edward 'Eddie' Robinson was a troubled man. His parents both had extensive criminal records and connections to organized crime prior to their son's birth. Then they wanted out. Wanted their son to grow up with parents he could be proud of, and as far away from the world of drugs and violence that they'd endured as children themselves. It was not a life easily escaped, however. Their grave markers proved as much. Eddie didn't like making eye contact. He kept his chin against his chest, eyes flickering rapidly between his shoes, the floor and the locked door behind him. Arkham was not a place built for patient comfort. It was a dark, hard place, meant to keep its prisoners locked away and trapped in their own, injured minds. Many of Gotham's residents thought it to be a place of evil. They said its walls had seen so many horrors that the very stones of its foundation were infected with it. The Asylum's corrupting influence was supposed to reach everyone in its halls- the patients, the guards, the staff. Barbara Gordon knew more than one wizard on a first-name basis, but she wasn't overly superstitious. Evil was not an otherworldly power, slipping into the human psyche; it was born of man, and it could be cured by men. It was the systemic deinstitutionalization of Gotham's mentally ill, evidenced by tens of thousands of patients in its facilities decades ago to less than seven thousand in the modern day. [i][color=FDE311]'That part's going in the paper, too.'[/color][/i] She pressed the record button on a handheld analog audio device, placing it down on the table in front of her. [color=FDE311]"So, Mister Edward Robinson,"[/color] she began, opening his file to remind herself of his history, both personal and medical, [color=FDE311]"you agreed to partake in a study I am conducting on childhood trauma as part of your treatment program. I just wanted to reaffirm your consent for the record."[/color] [color=586EB5]"Uhh- yeah, yeah. The guys in here say you're the only doc who ain't a freak or a psycho."[/color] He paused for a beat. [color=586EB5]"But please stop callin' me that name."[/color] [color=FDE311]"Alright. What would you like me to call you?"[/color] [color=586EB5]"Told you already, I'm the Tally Man."[/color] Barbara sat forward, crossing her arms. [color=FDE311]"Let's start there. Why do you identify with your criminal alias over your birth name? Are there negative connotations there?"[/color] [color=586EB5]"It just ain't who I am anymore. Simple as that."[/color] [color=FDE311]"You've reacted violently in the past over being referred to that way."[/color] Eddie squirmed. [color=586EB5]"I'm sorry 'bout that, I just..."[/color] He looked around, anxious, nervous. Like somebody he couldn't see was watching him. Barbara reached an open hand out toward him, offering it. [color=FDE311]"You can share safely here. Anything you wish to keep between us stays in this room, you have my word."[/color] He didn't take her hand, but he did visibly calm at the gesture. [color=586EB5]"I don't have any problem with Eddie. He was a good kid, stubborn, should'a listened to mom more. But I ain't him. Ed was too good for what had to come next."[/color] [color=FDE311]"But the Tally Man wasn't."[/color] He nodded. [color=586EB5]"Tally Man wasn't."[/color] [indent][indent][indent][hr][/indent][/indent][/indent] [i][color=FDE311]'We were making good progress. Tally Man was willing to talk about his life as Eddie, but only if we treated him as a different person. It turned out he didn't just not hate Edd, he loved what he used to be. Loved his parents and all they tried to give him. The hate that filled his heart belonged to more than the Falcones- it belonged to every two-bit criminal who preyed on the good people of this city. He'd cut a bloody trail across Gotham's underworld and keep going until the whole world paid for what was done to him. I've gotta convince him this isn't the way.'[/color][/i] Two months ago, Barbara decided to take a risk: she would show Tally Man his true face. She carried two objects into the interview room, concealing each under a simple piece of cloth. They were the key instruments in making the patient confront the truth of who he was, what was done to him and how he could move beyond it. He didn't seem too happy about the arrangement, at first. She brought out the mirror and asked him who he saw, and he wasn't as willing a participant as she had hoped. Got dodgy with his answers after 'me' wouldn't suffice, refused to look at it head on, like seeing his own face would curse him or something. After no shortage of prodding, Barbara got him to admit that he hadn't used a mirror in quite a long time. The lop-sided shave of his facial hair made a lot more sense in that context. Then she pulled the cloth off his mask and learned what unhappy [i]really[/i] looked like. [color=586EB5]"Why do you have that?!"[/color] He roared, loud as the first time the two of them had met. Before Babs knew what was happening he was leaping out of his chair and wrapping his hands around her collar, dragging her face inches from his. His breath stunk of the garbage allegedly called food that the Asylum served for lunch. [color=586EB5]"Why do you have my face?"[/color] Barbara didn't move an inch. She didn't allow herself to flinch, or for her breathing to accelerate in the slightest. Remain calm. Any sudden movements and he might cross a line he couldn't come back from. [color=FDE311]"Slow it down. I need you to explain why you're upset, carefully and honestly. We've talked about this: you don't need to communicate your feelings through violence here."[/color] He didn't budge. He was holding her so close their noses were brushing against one another, yet still this close up he refused to look Babs in the eye. [color=586EB5]"You...you need to give that back."[/color] [color=FDE311]"Why do you want to hurt me?"[/color] [color=586EB5]"You stole my face."[/color] [color=FDE311]"You have your face. This is a piece of cloth."[/color] [color=586EB5]"Its not- its not that simple, okay?! They're both me."[/color] [color=FDE311]"Why do you wear it?"[/color] She moved her own hands, ever so slowly, up to his. She made sure he could see that she was only laying them on top of his own, and not trying to force him off of her. [color=586EB5]"It- it scares them-"[/color] [color=FDE311]"Tell me the [b]truth[/b]-"[/color] [color=586EB5]"It keeps me safe, okay?!"[/color] He screams again. His grip on her collar loosens, but he doesn't let go. [color=586EB5]"It- it makes it easier-"[/color] [color=FDE311]"To kill?"[/color] For the first time since Barbara Gordon met him, Robinson looked her in the eye. There was an unimaginable amount of pain burning behind them. [color=586EB5]"Makes it so I- so...Eddie...don't feel so guilty after."[/color] [indent][indent][indent][hr][/indent][/indent][/indent] [i][color=FDE311]'Eddie Robinson was still a scared little boy, hiding from what happened to his parents. He'd just traded in a teddy bear and a safety blanket for a mask and a murderous crusade. The violence was the only way he knew how to convey to the world the injustice done to him. Tally Man didn't make Eddie happy. I just had to show him another way to feel safe. [/color][/i] Yesterday, Barbara Gordon handed Eddie a certificate verifying his mental well-being. So long as he continued his weekly therapy sessions, kept up on his medication, and showed no signs of regression, Eddie Robinson was a free man. She'd fought like hell to keep him from being sent over to Blackgate. That place was nearly just as bad as Arkham, only she couldn't be around to watch his back in there. It was a risk. She knew that. But she also knew the kind of man Eddie could be. His capacity for empathy, despite his personal pain, almost matched another man she knew. [color=586EB5]"Thank you, doc. I- I can't ever repay the good you've done for me."[/color] Eddie shook her hand too tight and too fast, his eyes wet with the beginning of tears. She pulled him in for a hug. [color=FDE311]"You can thank me by getting out there and making the most of your life, Ed. You've got a lot of it ahead of you. And don't forget to check in with me, alright? Your new therapist's a great man, don't get me wrong, but I want to make sure you're doing well myself. Remember to check out those places I gave you, too. They're great places to work, and they don't care what's on your record."[/color] [color=586EB5]"Yes, yeah, of course I will. Thank you so much. I don't ever wanna end up back here. The people in there..."[/color] He shook his head. [color=586EB5]"Stay safe, doc."[/color] Barbara had left that incident two months ago out of her official reports. Something like that would've kept Ed in Arkham for another year, at least- and more importantly it would've gotten him transferred to another psychiatrist. That would've been the end of his recovery. It was rash, sure. And if anybody found out she could've had her license revoked. But no one deserved to be stuck in that place for long. It'd chewed up and spat out every decent person who ever walked in the front door. None of those people had learned how to defend themselves under Batman. [color=FDE311]"You don't have to worry, trust me."[/color] None of them had tangled with every monster in Gotham from Bane to the Joker to the walking corpse of Jason Todd. [color=FDE311][i]'None of them were Batwoman.'[/i][/color] Today, Barbara Gordon successfully defended her doctoral thesis from the examination committee at Gotham University. She pulled out her second cellphone and shot a text to what must have been the most encrypted group chat on earth, full of everyone she'd ever called family. Minus dad. She'd tell him over dinner if he wasn't busy saving the city. [quote=B. Gordon]I passed!! From now on that's DOCTOR Gordon to all of you :toot [/quote] [/indent]