Silent Knight

Chapter 10

I awoke in the Batcave. I wasn't sure how I got there. I climbed from the bed and was met with Alfred eagerly awaiting my presence.

"Good evening to you, sir! Are you feeling any better?" he asked.

"...What... day is it... Alfred?"

"December 15th, sir. You've been out for two days." he replied.

With no time to waste, I got out of my bed and started hunting Victor Fries. I scrolled through all of Gotham, looking for some trace, but nothing came up. And then I remembered the tracker I had implanted. After scanning the city for it, I found it in Gotham's main plaza. He was there. I had to stop him. I suited up and ran for the Batmobile as fast as I could when I was stopped by Alfred.

"...Sir, you can't possibly be trying to stop him in your condition..." he said.

"My condition? Alfred, Gotham doesn't have time for my condition. I have to stop him now or he'll get away again, and potentially ruin Gotham."

"...Sir... I really do wish you had more regard for your body..." he trailed off as I left. Driving like all of life itself depended on it, I reached Gotham's main plaza in no time. It was bustling with people. Everyone gawked in awe at the Batmobile. I parked it in an alleyway where Alfred could easily remote drive it back and went on foot.

Fries was nowhere to be seen. The tracker pointed directly at the center of the plaza, but there was only a Christmas tree there. You could see through the tree, he wasn't hiding there. But then I saw the distinct shape of the tracker on one of the presents. He knew of my tracker. And since it was on the present I knew something was wrong with it.

"Woah, we got all the cosplayers today!" said one man. He was relatively distant from me. Suddenly I felt an icy hand on my shoulder and turned to see Fries.

"I reveal myself to you, Batman. You don't reveal me." he said. He pushed a button on his bracer and the presents and the tree exploded with some form of freezing compound, covering the plaza in thick ice. 12 people were impaled and killed by flying frozen debris, 22 injured, 52 frozen in the blast. 12 of them parents. 4 children. 18 staff for the festivities. 6 were businessmen. The rest were unknown or known criminals. Everything they cared for or worried about was suddenly gone.

I went to punch him and cracked something wrong on impact. He threw me into the center of the plaza and marched up as I was trying to get my footing on the icy terrain. He grabbed me by the neck and held me in the air. I desperately kicked at his suit, to no avail, and he hurled me through a crowd of people onlooking the destruction.

"Citizens of Gotham... Is this your savior? A man who reveals not his face but his oppression on you all? One who hides in the shadows unlike the representatives of the 'justice' he claims to be?" He said. "Well, even they won't be able to stop me... I have created a device, Gotham, that will suspend this wonderful city in a frozen winter wonderland eternally! And finally, I and my dear Nora will walk this civilization undeterred!"

"...No...!"

Everyone looked my direction as I fought against the pain. I stumbled to my feet, wiped the blood from my mouth and charged at Fries one last time. I struck one of the tubes of chemicals pumping through his suit and he recoiled from the impact. I went to break another but instead received a hammer to my chest. I was sent flying through the air at the mere force of the impact and landed on top of the Batmobile.

"No one shall stop me, Gotham. And to the Batman..." he said. "This does not concern you." Suddenly something appeared on his visor. Some form of notification.

"...It does now." he said menacingly.

In shambles, I tried to get up but couldn't. I was far too injured. I could barely breath, I could hardly move my body and I couldn't even think straight. I didn't have time to think, though. He was heading my direction.

I looked at my chest and the armor had been broken by the hammer. No wonder it hurt so badly. I dropped my head back onto the Batmobile and rested for a moment. Citizens stood staring at my defeated state, looking from the enclosing Victor Fries, waiting to see what I would do next.

With the last bit of strength I had left, I climbed into the Batmobile, turned on the shutters, canceling noise from the outside world and keeping my voice in the car, and told Alfred to drive me home. I lost consciousness soon after.

December 18th. I awoke in the Batcave again, a very worried Alfred looking at me with fear in his eyes. The fear went away when he saw me wake up.

"Good heavens, sir! You had me mortified! You can't just do that!" he said.

"Alfred..."

"Yes, Master Bruce?" he asked eagerly.

"...Get my workshop ready."

"...Your... Workshop, sir?" he replied.

"...I'm gonna need to up my game for this guy."