Post by Deleted on Jan 25, 2013 7:52:34 GMT -5
Batman: A large split across the city from the west to the east end caused a majority of the bridges to collapse and break apart as roads were crushed and hell on Earth arrived in Gotham city. Batman hung from Wayne Tower, watching the devastation, power had gone completely out, an entire city purged into darkness. Batman held his breath when car lights suddenly began turning out throughout different sections…The Earthquake had stopped, but Gotham was already destroyed within a 5 minute period of tremors and loud rumbling. Batman grabbed his grappling hook wire and began climbing up the side of the building. <c>
Batman: Landing on the rooftop of Wayne Tower, he raised is hand to his helmet.- “Alfred…What happened?” “It appears sir that Gotham was struck by a massive Earthquake…According to the computers, Wayne foundation buildings have remained undamaged due to being Earthquake safeguarded.”
Batman: -Batman entered Wayne Tower from a roof access point and began making his way down to the R&D laboratory to use the computers, he opened up a list roster of people.- “Alfred…I’m emailing myself a list of names…Make sure all of them are reported found…We need to start plans for aid, contact the American red cross, we need immediate relief to people who could be trapped, I’m reprogramming Wayne Satellites to locate heat sources around Gotham, have the Bat computer monitor all of these locations, deploy the Batwing to my location.” “Very good sir…Commissioner Gordon has contacted the National Guard for their aid. I believe it will be most helpful.” –Batman’s eyes moved over the screen in front of him, seeing the damage of the city, every single section was crippled, buildings smashing into one another, key locations remained untouched however, Gotham Museum, GCPD building, Wayne Tower, Gotham Clock Tower, Arkham Asylum, Gotham Robinson Park, City hall, Gotham Cathedral,<c>
Batman: other landmarks. “Gotham city…This is the United States Coast Guard, you have approximately 48 hours to evacuate Gotham City before it becomes a No Man’s land and you are restricted to quarantine.
This is not an emergency helicopter; you must make your way by any means necessary to the North Bridge or East West bridge before they are destroyed. You have 48 hours to comply.” –At least four dozen helicopters flew over the city waving spotlights and shouting over loud speakers to spread their message.-Batman: and other landmarks^
Spoiler: When the world began to collapse, mom was all Stephanie could think of. Barely sentient again , she hardly noticed the cataclysm around her, even when Stephanie grabbed her and began pulling her from the couch. Stephanie looked to the window to see the building across the road topple. The sound of screaming metal and crashing mortar and rubble growing with each moment, a black crack shot up the wall with terrifying speed. The tenement was going to fall, she knew that now for a certainty, to fall and crush them both underneath like bugs. –C-
Spoiler: Another scream of metal as the fire escape shot downwards past the window folding on itself like paper, Stephanie picked up the hold all containing the few scraps of her Spoiler kit and looked out the window, as the glass cracked and slid outwards, it was a long way down. “If only we were still in the house in Gotham Heights” she thought at least there it wasn’t so far to the ground. And speaking of the ground.. where was it? As the building across continued to roll down in clouds of dust like waves and white horses, it seemed to topple into a bottomless pit. Maybe this was Gotham’s judgment. The room lurched, floorboards splintering upwards, no time Steph –C-
Spoiler: She looked left and right, the tenement was going to fall, there was no longer doubt, but the building next door looked a little more stable, for a few moments at least, she swung the grapple with all her might, latching onto a balcony, rich folks lived here once, before the whole neighbourhood went down the pan, she pulled, not rusted through at least, and tying on, hefted mom to the window, holding on as tight as possible hurled them both out into the roar of destruction.
Batman: ‘Two hours and thirty minutes into this hell on Earth.’ –Batman swung from one broken building to the next, coming to land upon Striker building. The broken down foundation, it collapsed in on itself, the upper floors remained intact while the lower floors were crushed completely. Batman saw Harvey and Bock waiting patiently in the distance Gordon’s voice called out on the radio.- “Anything yet?” “No, sir. Bats ain’t around…” “Give him more time…He’ll show up. We need him NOW more than ever. Keep holding position, Montoya, Floyd, and Tucker are going to check out City Hall, apparently there’s gang activity.” –Batman’s eyes softened hearing the words from James Gordon.- ‘Jim…tell me you’re not staying. You owe nothing to this city; you and I have shed blood for this city. We’ve been here for it through the good and the bad. Killer Croc’s rampages and killing sprees, Joker bomb threats, Riddler kidnappings <c>
Batman: Black Mask and his weapons dealing, even Ra’s Al Ghul’s and Scarecrow’s attempt to poison the city with fear gas…I’ve counted on you always, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for heroes like you, Jim. When I joined the Justice League, I had to know that Gotham was in good hands before I just left. If I am to leave; if I am to evacuate with everyone else…Jim should be the first to know. ‘ –Batman reloaded his grappling gun and fired it towards the east and began swinging towards City Hall, hoping to find Gordon.-
Spoiler: She always thought with the pills in her that mom would sleep through anything and she almost had. She was certainly up to the eyeballs now, and she had been a dead weight, they’d made it through several swings, as the tenements bellowed and fell behind them the dust was choking and the light faded more and more to a tiny yellow point as Stephanie tried to get them away, but mom was so heavy. She’d thought only a moment how odd it had felt to swing without the mask, holding onto mom not thinking of Spoiler, or Robin or the Batman. Just trying to live. Trying to live again, both of them. –C-
Spoiler: The arc changed, not with a sudden halt, but with the lack of an upward turn, no lurch in her stomach as the downward flight slowed and eased into the upward return, this time their flight continued at a tangent, the building was going and this time there was nothing to stop them. She pulled her mom closer, resting her cheek on the top of her mother’s head“ I love you mom” and she realized she even meant it. This was going to hurt, she wrapped herself around her mother. “OK gravity, final showdown, you win.” –C-
Spoiler: It hurt. It hurt even more than she’d feared, almost as if whatever they hit had moved to meet them. The pain was almost too much as the air was driven out of her, and something broke, she felt it, though she heard nothing beyond the roars and bellows of the masonry and steel twisting about her. Yes, something was broken, ribs probably, couldn’t breathe, her throat and lungs clogged anyway with the dust of the dying city as the world twisted to destruction around them. –C-
Spoiler: They were sliding, the sound of an explosion as more masonry crashed where they had been a second before and flipped over them and away. She held on tight as they slid, she remembered the great maw where the street had been wondered if they would ever stop slipping, and then the pain was back, they hit the bottom and the pain, like a knife in her chest was back, too much pain for no tears, and her leg too, she cried out, mom holding weakly to her, she was saying something but it was impossible to hear above the roar. Wedged down between massive chunks of masonry, Stephanie realized there was no sky, and even the faint yellow glimmer was gone. –C-
Spoiler: Even when the shaking of the earth and crashing of masonry above had stopped, the roaring in her ears continued and the pounding of her heart , the rushing of fear until she heard a small voice. “Stephanie… Stephanie love? Are we still alive?” She coughed, the pain almost unbearable, it was definitely ribs, she tasted the coppery taste, hoped they hadn’t gone into a lung. “Yes, mommy” she whispered, and held her tight.
Batman: “Sir, there is a broken down building nearby your location; it’s that of Ms. Brown’s apartment complex.- “I’m on my way.” –Batman swung changing directions.- ‘Jim would understand.’ –Batman arrived at the apartment 2 hours and 30 minutes later from the Earthquake’s pile in, the area seemed buried. Batman landed at the debris and looked over the scene.- “There’s at least 500 pounds worth of debris blocking them in…I’ll need to use some of the explosives on the Batwing…” –Batman taps his bracers and calls down the Batwing, the wind in the area picks up and Batman looks down on the debris.- “Based on the cavern size, there should be at least a day’s worth of air if they both regulate their breathing…Considering that’s not likely, they’ll only have four hours…If they were like this since the quake, then there’s only an hour and a half left of air.” –Batman turned around and began walking towards a fire truck that sat idle.<c>
Batman: -Manipulating the Batwing with his wrist console he caused the Batwing’s tow cable to latch onto the firetruck.- “I’ll use the firetruck as a shovel and push aside the debris…I’ll have to be careful.” “Indeed sir, I will be monitoring Ms. Brown’s vitals.” –The Batwing would soon shovel the debris out of the way revealing a thin layer of wall cracked and broken, Batman clutched his fist, tightening for the pain about to be shot through it. His teeth began grinding against each other as he slammed his fist through and reached inside the cavern to feel Stephanie’s head.- “Stephanie.” –Batman’s voice was plain, almost exactly like Bruce Wayne’s. – “Are you alright? Can either of you give me your hand?” –Batman offered his hand for her to grab onto, if they did he would lift them out and grab them pulling them to the surface of a broken down alleyway.-
Spoiler: Stephanie held her mother a long time, trying to recover her breath but it was impossible, it hurt too much, she turned away to look at the sky again, no sky, just darkness, they were wedged tight against a massive concrete escarpment, pale grey receding into the darkness above. To their other side bricks of a tenement, she had felt crushed under the oppression of the tenements since her return. When she’d died, her mom had slipped away from the world, the job had gone, the house had gone, everything had gone. Now the tenement was gone. Stephanie wanted to laugh but it hurt too much, she looked up again at the chunks of concrete, the twisted snakes of reinforcing steel wrenched naked from the buildings. She coughed, blood on the concrete, hoping again it was just in her mouth and not deeper. –C-
Spoiler: Her arms were free at least and the bag of what little equipment she had still on her back, so pitiful, Spoiler, what a joke, a grapple, lodged somewhere in the rubble, in the blackness, some smoke capsules, rope, trinkets, what had she been thinking taking on Gotham’s underworld with party tricks and toys? Batman had been right. She looked of the rope, must have let go in the fall or the slide. “Another triumph Steph” she stopped “No need to beat yourself now, you did what you could.” –C-
Spoiler: “Mom?” She looked at her mother, her mother’s eyes looked clouded weary, “Mom? Are you ok?” she couldn’t tell if it was the pills or something worse. “Can you answer me?”. Her mother’s head tilted back, eyes loose and unfocussed. “Ohhh mom” Panic began to rise again. “Its ok mommy, we’ll get out, someone will come.” She held tight again, there was breath and a heartbeat. “Oh God, please don’t take her, unless” She looked up again, so black, who knew how many tons lay above them? if they could ever be found. “Unless you mean to take us both.” –C-
Spoiler: The tears ran quietly, it hurt too much to sob and so they ran her face contorted with the pain of her injuries and the situation. “Not your fault Steph, not this time”. There were sounds, not far above, no… behind… but she couldn’t twist to see, sounds, human sounds not the sounds of debris raining or of the final shifting of the gargantuan broken bodies of the buildings of the city, human sounds, familiar sounds, a familiar voice, HIS voice. Stephanie twisted, it hurt like hell, she cried out again, even against the pain. “We’re here Batman… my mom, take my mom” She grasped her mother’s wrist trying to lift her towards him, not enough, put her arms around her mother’s chest braced herself against the pain and lifted with all the strength she had left ,a scream, she couldn’t help it, was her mother being lifted? Blackness came.
Batman: -Batman pulled Stephanie’s mother out of the debris and wrapped arms around her waist to fully support her weight, he settled her onto the bumper of the Fire engine, her head was bleeding, she had passed out from the injury and perhaps medicine. Batman’s detective vision read her pulse as 28 bpm, a little below average for someone unconscious, probably sleep medicine. Batman turned around an grabbed Stephanie’s and would try to carefully lift her out of the cavern she was trapped within.- “Stephanie, you’re safe now.” –Batman’s height and sized would seemly tower over both women, as he appeared to be 6’4” to both of the, however, the uneven ground and dark lighting made it difficult to judge.- “Are you alright? Do you need medical assistance?” <C>
Batman: –Batman brought Stephanie’s body close to his, allowing her to feel the strength and support of his frame. Touching his armor and giving resistance against him would feel almost like pushing a brick wall.-
Spoiler: By the time the darkness lifted and the she returned from where the pain had no hold to the world of light and agony, she had missed the words, missed the sound of concern in his voice, missed the gentleness with which he had lifted them both from danger. Missed everything. Instead as he cradled her he was testing her side for injuries, found the ribs, pressed ever so gently but it was enough, she cried out again, loud, her back arching away from the pain, causing a brief fit of coughing, making it worse, but she held on. “Don’t pass out again Steph… don’t show him weakness, show him… show him it’s ok” but the tears were in her eyes again. –c-
Spoiler: She tried to move, but he held her firmly, “Mom? How’s my mom?, she twisted her neck to try and see, but the pain was too much again and she slipped back limply “Please? Is she ok?” She coughed again, so hard to breathe, more blood, a little spray, she could see it in the air “Is she OK?”.
Batman: Landing on the rooftop of Wayne Tower, he raised is hand to his helmet.- “Alfred…What happened?” “It appears sir that Gotham was struck by a massive Earthquake…According to the computers, Wayne foundation buildings have remained undamaged due to being Earthquake safeguarded.”
Batman: -Batman entered Wayne Tower from a roof access point and began making his way down to the R&D laboratory to use the computers, he opened up a list roster of people.- “Alfred…I’m emailing myself a list of names…Make sure all of them are reported found…We need to start plans for aid, contact the American red cross, we need immediate relief to people who could be trapped, I’m reprogramming Wayne Satellites to locate heat sources around Gotham, have the Bat computer monitor all of these locations, deploy the Batwing to my location.” “Very good sir…Commissioner Gordon has contacted the National Guard for their aid. I believe it will be most helpful.” –Batman’s eyes moved over the screen in front of him, seeing the damage of the city, every single section was crippled, buildings smashing into one another, key locations remained untouched however, Gotham Museum, GCPD building, Wayne Tower, Gotham Clock Tower, Arkham Asylum, Gotham Robinson Park, City hall, Gotham Cathedral,<c>
Batman: other landmarks. “Gotham city…This is the United States Coast Guard, you have approximately 48 hours to evacuate Gotham City before it becomes a No Man’s land and you are restricted to quarantine.
This is not an emergency helicopter; you must make your way by any means necessary to the North Bridge or East West bridge before they are destroyed. You have 48 hours to comply.” –At least four dozen helicopters flew over the city waving spotlights and shouting over loud speakers to spread their message.-Batman: and other landmarks^
Spoiler: When the world began to collapse, mom was all Stephanie could think of. Barely sentient again , she hardly noticed the cataclysm around her, even when Stephanie grabbed her and began pulling her from the couch. Stephanie looked to the window to see the building across the road topple. The sound of screaming metal and crashing mortar and rubble growing with each moment, a black crack shot up the wall with terrifying speed. The tenement was going to fall, she knew that now for a certainty, to fall and crush them both underneath like bugs. –C-
Spoiler: Another scream of metal as the fire escape shot downwards past the window folding on itself like paper, Stephanie picked up the hold all containing the few scraps of her Spoiler kit and looked out the window, as the glass cracked and slid outwards, it was a long way down. “If only we were still in the house in Gotham Heights” she thought at least there it wasn’t so far to the ground. And speaking of the ground.. where was it? As the building across continued to roll down in clouds of dust like waves and white horses, it seemed to topple into a bottomless pit. Maybe this was Gotham’s judgment. The room lurched, floorboards splintering upwards, no time Steph –C-
Spoiler: She looked left and right, the tenement was going to fall, there was no longer doubt, but the building next door looked a little more stable, for a few moments at least, she swung the grapple with all her might, latching onto a balcony, rich folks lived here once, before the whole neighbourhood went down the pan, she pulled, not rusted through at least, and tying on, hefted mom to the window, holding on as tight as possible hurled them both out into the roar of destruction.
Batman: ‘Two hours and thirty minutes into this hell on Earth.’ –Batman swung from one broken building to the next, coming to land upon Striker building. The broken down foundation, it collapsed in on itself, the upper floors remained intact while the lower floors were crushed completely. Batman saw Harvey and Bock waiting patiently in the distance Gordon’s voice called out on the radio.- “Anything yet?” “No, sir. Bats ain’t around…” “Give him more time…He’ll show up. We need him NOW more than ever. Keep holding position, Montoya, Floyd, and Tucker are going to check out City Hall, apparently there’s gang activity.” –Batman’s eyes softened hearing the words from James Gordon.- ‘Jim…tell me you’re not staying. You owe nothing to this city; you and I have shed blood for this city. We’ve been here for it through the good and the bad. Killer Croc’s rampages and killing sprees, Joker bomb threats, Riddler kidnappings <c>
Batman: Black Mask and his weapons dealing, even Ra’s Al Ghul’s and Scarecrow’s attempt to poison the city with fear gas…I’ve counted on you always, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for heroes like you, Jim. When I joined the Justice League, I had to know that Gotham was in good hands before I just left. If I am to leave; if I am to evacuate with everyone else…Jim should be the first to know. ‘ –Batman reloaded his grappling gun and fired it towards the east and began swinging towards City Hall, hoping to find Gordon.-
Spoiler: She always thought with the pills in her that mom would sleep through anything and she almost had. She was certainly up to the eyeballs now, and she had been a dead weight, they’d made it through several swings, as the tenements bellowed and fell behind them the dust was choking and the light faded more and more to a tiny yellow point as Stephanie tried to get them away, but mom was so heavy. She’d thought only a moment how odd it had felt to swing without the mask, holding onto mom not thinking of Spoiler, or Robin or the Batman. Just trying to live. Trying to live again, both of them. –C-
Spoiler: The arc changed, not with a sudden halt, but with the lack of an upward turn, no lurch in her stomach as the downward flight slowed and eased into the upward return, this time their flight continued at a tangent, the building was going and this time there was nothing to stop them. She pulled her mom closer, resting her cheek on the top of her mother’s head“ I love you mom” and she realized she even meant it. This was going to hurt, she wrapped herself around her mother. “OK gravity, final showdown, you win.” –C-
Spoiler: It hurt. It hurt even more than she’d feared, almost as if whatever they hit had moved to meet them. The pain was almost too much as the air was driven out of her, and something broke, she felt it, though she heard nothing beyond the roars and bellows of the masonry and steel twisting about her. Yes, something was broken, ribs probably, couldn’t breathe, her throat and lungs clogged anyway with the dust of the dying city as the world twisted to destruction around them. –C-
Spoiler: They were sliding, the sound of an explosion as more masonry crashed where they had been a second before and flipped over them and away. She held on tight as they slid, she remembered the great maw where the street had been wondered if they would ever stop slipping, and then the pain was back, they hit the bottom and the pain, like a knife in her chest was back, too much pain for no tears, and her leg too, she cried out, mom holding weakly to her, she was saying something but it was impossible to hear above the roar. Wedged down between massive chunks of masonry, Stephanie realized there was no sky, and even the faint yellow glimmer was gone. –C-
Spoiler: Even when the shaking of the earth and crashing of masonry above had stopped, the roaring in her ears continued and the pounding of her heart , the rushing of fear until she heard a small voice. “Stephanie… Stephanie love? Are we still alive?” She coughed, the pain almost unbearable, it was definitely ribs, she tasted the coppery taste, hoped they hadn’t gone into a lung. “Yes, mommy” she whispered, and held her tight.
Batman: “Sir, there is a broken down building nearby your location; it’s that of Ms. Brown’s apartment complex.- “I’m on my way.” –Batman swung changing directions.- ‘Jim would understand.’ –Batman arrived at the apartment 2 hours and 30 minutes later from the Earthquake’s pile in, the area seemed buried. Batman landed at the debris and looked over the scene.- “There’s at least 500 pounds worth of debris blocking them in…I’ll need to use some of the explosives on the Batwing…” –Batman taps his bracers and calls down the Batwing, the wind in the area picks up and Batman looks down on the debris.- “Based on the cavern size, there should be at least a day’s worth of air if they both regulate their breathing…Considering that’s not likely, they’ll only have four hours…If they were like this since the quake, then there’s only an hour and a half left of air.” –Batman turned around and began walking towards a fire truck that sat idle.<c>
Batman: -Manipulating the Batwing with his wrist console he caused the Batwing’s tow cable to latch onto the firetruck.- “I’ll use the firetruck as a shovel and push aside the debris…I’ll have to be careful.” “Indeed sir, I will be monitoring Ms. Brown’s vitals.” –The Batwing would soon shovel the debris out of the way revealing a thin layer of wall cracked and broken, Batman clutched his fist, tightening for the pain about to be shot through it. His teeth began grinding against each other as he slammed his fist through and reached inside the cavern to feel Stephanie’s head.- “Stephanie.” –Batman’s voice was plain, almost exactly like Bruce Wayne’s. – “Are you alright? Can either of you give me your hand?” –Batman offered his hand for her to grab onto, if they did he would lift them out and grab them pulling them to the surface of a broken down alleyway.-
Spoiler: Stephanie held her mother a long time, trying to recover her breath but it was impossible, it hurt too much, she turned away to look at the sky again, no sky, just darkness, they were wedged tight against a massive concrete escarpment, pale grey receding into the darkness above. To their other side bricks of a tenement, she had felt crushed under the oppression of the tenements since her return. When she’d died, her mom had slipped away from the world, the job had gone, the house had gone, everything had gone. Now the tenement was gone. Stephanie wanted to laugh but it hurt too much, she looked up again at the chunks of concrete, the twisted snakes of reinforcing steel wrenched naked from the buildings. She coughed, blood on the concrete, hoping again it was just in her mouth and not deeper. –C-
Spoiler: Her arms were free at least and the bag of what little equipment she had still on her back, so pitiful, Spoiler, what a joke, a grapple, lodged somewhere in the rubble, in the blackness, some smoke capsules, rope, trinkets, what had she been thinking taking on Gotham’s underworld with party tricks and toys? Batman had been right. She looked of the rope, must have let go in the fall or the slide. “Another triumph Steph” she stopped “No need to beat yourself now, you did what you could.” –C-
Spoiler: “Mom?” She looked at her mother, her mother’s eyes looked clouded weary, “Mom? Are you ok?” she couldn’t tell if it was the pills or something worse. “Can you answer me?”. Her mother’s head tilted back, eyes loose and unfocussed. “Ohhh mom” Panic began to rise again. “Its ok mommy, we’ll get out, someone will come.” She held tight again, there was breath and a heartbeat. “Oh God, please don’t take her, unless” She looked up again, so black, who knew how many tons lay above them? if they could ever be found. “Unless you mean to take us both.” –C-
Spoiler: The tears ran quietly, it hurt too much to sob and so they ran her face contorted with the pain of her injuries and the situation. “Not your fault Steph, not this time”. There were sounds, not far above, no… behind… but she couldn’t twist to see, sounds, human sounds not the sounds of debris raining or of the final shifting of the gargantuan broken bodies of the buildings of the city, human sounds, familiar sounds, a familiar voice, HIS voice. Stephanie twisted, it hurt like hell, she cried out again, even against the pain. “We’re here Batman… my mom, take my mom” She grasped her mother’s wrist trying to lift her towards him, not enough, put her arms around her mother’s chest braced herself against the pain and lifted with all the strength she had left ,a scream, she couldn’t help it, was her mother being lifted? Blackness came.
Batman: -Batman pulled Stephanie’s mother out of the debris and wrapped arms around her waist to fully support her weight, he settled her onto the bumper of the Fire engine, her head was bleeding, she had passed out from the injury and perhaps medicine. Batman’s detective vision read her pulse as 28 bpm, a little below average for someone unconscious, probably sleep medicine. Batman turned around an grabbed Stephanie’s and would try to carefully lift her out of the cavern she was trapped within.- “Stephanie, you’re safe now.” –Batman’s height and sized would seemly tower over both women, as he appeared to be 6’4” to both of the, however, the uneven ground and dark lighting made it difficult to judge.- “Are you alright? Do you need medical assistance?” <C>
Batman: –Batman brought Stephanie’s body close to his, allowing her to feel the strength and support of his frame. Touching his armor and giving resistance against him would feel almost like pushing a brick wall.-
Spoiler: By the time the darkness lifted and the she returned from where the pain had no hold to the world of light and agony, she had missed the words, missed the sound of concern in his voice, missed the gentleness with which he had lifted them both from danger. Missed everything. Instead as he cradled her he was testing her side for injuries, found the ribs, pressed ever so gently but it was enough, she cried out again, loud, her back arching away from the pain, causing a brief fit of coughing, making it worse, but she held on. “Don’t pass out again Steph… don’t show him weakness, show him… show him it’s ok” but the tears were in her eyes again. –c-
Spoiler: She tried to move, but he held her firmly, “Mom? How’s my mom?, she twisted her neck to try and see, but the pain was too much again and she slipped back limply “Please? Is she ok?” She coughed again, so hard to breathe, more blood, a little spray, she could see it in the air “Is she OK?”.