Post by Batman (Bruce Wayne) on Nov 7, 2015 23:15:25 GMT -5
Leviathan
Story By: Batman and Elle
Heroes: Batman, Talia Al Ghul
Villains: Kaizen Gamorra
Plot:
The night was dark and the moon was high, the sky was clear of clouds and the sounds of a failing twin turboprop Metro 25 cut through the air as it streaked above the city of Gotham. Behind the controls, Talia al Ghul was bleeding from the shoulder, a look of determination and annoyance on her face. Behind her were two bodies in non-descript military uniforms, no insignia, no acronyms, but they clearly worked for someone. Pushing forward on the lever, she looked at the readouts for the engines, one was down, the propeller was stalling and starting to smoulder as a voice came over the radio, cool and calm, slightly clipped accent, a British ex-pat who had been living stateside for too long.
Miss Ghul-...
"Miss Al Ghul, if you will, if you're going to threaten me, for Gods sake do it properly."
My apologise Miss Al Ghul you seem to be labouring under the delusion that we will let you get away from us. You do realise that you can't get away? That there is nowhere that you can hide?
Her eyes were drawn to the city laid out beneath her, the twinkling lights making one think of somewhere safe and secure- this was a misnomer, Gotham was anywhere but safe and secure. But it was her Beloved's home. And she needed his help.
"General, if that is what you believe, I won't take that away from you. Please, do you worst."
There was an intake of breath from the other end of the radio and Talia raised her Herstal and put two bullets through the radio. Boring conversation anyway. Standing from the seat with a wince, she made her way through to the back of the plane as it started to stall, alarms sounding and blaring around her as it began to go into a nose dive. Keeping her balance as the bodies of the men she had dispatched tumbled down, she found the last remaining parachute and proceeded to strap it on to herself. A pat of her jacket pocket reassured her that her prize was still safe as she gripped the emergency release handle on the side door and pulled with more strength than she thought would be necessary, another twinge of pain passing through her injured arm as the door wrenched free and went flying out into the night. The wind was buffeting around the plane, thick black smoke billowing from the busted propeller as she held onto the door frame, watching flames licking over the edge of the wing. Aim for the river she told herself as on the mental count of three she pushed out of the door and away from the plane, falling into the night as she prayed her mental calculations were correct and pulled the release cord on the parachute. The black silks billowed to life above her, catching her with a jerk as she hung in the harness, the plane still going down behind her as she tried her best to control her trajectory with one injured arm (the blood had soaked through her linen shirt now, this was basically a write off) and one good arm, still aiming for the river.
Her Beloved had probably seen this performance. Hopefully he would feel the need to investigate.
The Dark Knight was already wary of the situation as an unidentified aircraft began to rapidly descend upon the city and set its course for the river. A single parachute was released and began to drift towards the river, but to the surprise of any spectators there were three helicopters on an intercept course, T129’s began to close in, their twin engines thumped through the air as their predatory blades upon their crown twirled and swung their metal bodies to the left and right to maintain an a mobile attack formation. Upon their sides encased within missile pods were laser batteries with the key indicator being the bright red and pink lenses blocking where a missile warhead would usually be located. Their forward 20mm Vulcan cannon locked in upon her as each two-man crew drew their vehicles closer. Lasers would shoot out of the helicopters; intense heat rays that would scorch Talia’s skin and microwave her with a successful strike.
The air around her would grow increasingly hot as the lasers shot past her and slowly began to narrow closer and closer. A missed laser would strike at the chute at top of Talia’s conveyance and soon began to burst into flames. The sound of heavy artillery shot out from above the helicopters as a new threat arrived in the same of a predatory bomber. Bigger than an F-22, the Bat-Bomber was a large plane with quad gun nests divided among the two winds. Gripping the joysticks of the aircraft, Batman dropped the bomber into a slow speed beneath Talia for her to land upon the massive wing span. The shots that had rang out caused the helicopters to scramble formation and begin attempting to confuse their new enemy. Upon the roof a hatch would open allowing Talia to climb inside the bomber.
The first attack helicopter circled to attack from below the Bat bomber and tried to surgically gut the large bat-like aircraft. The second helicopter flanked the Bat bomber’s left shoulder in an attempt to keep it from banking left. The third attack helicopter approached from the right shoulder and above, aiming its 20mm cannon to damage as much of the bomber’s dorsal armor as possible. Batman was multitasking extremely at this point; stabilizing the bomber’s flight path so that Talia could land safely and get inside safely before taking evasive action. The battle could be seen clearly as insects preyed upon a large bird struggling for survival. “Ace, concentrate the left guns on our left flank and right guns on that right shoulder.” “Understood sir…” The computer radar offered Batman all the information he needed to spy on the enemies and their location. A tactical genius came to Batman’s mind as he strategized what his next move should be.
With a calm flip of two switches prompted the Bat Bomber’s ventral to unleash a glorious show of flares and chaffs blinded the first attack helicopter, a laser would strike upon a flare and someway or somehow the laser would reflect back causing the helicopter’s wing and laser pod to explode and cause the helicopter to sputter out of control. The left guns began unleashing volleys explosive magnetically charged debris that shredded the armor plating of the second helicopter causing its own engine to begin sputtering out, the third helicopter also followed suite as the firepower was overwhelming. “Ace, take over.” Batman stood up and began walking out of the cockpit to intercept Talia.
An aircraft carrier only 30 miles out at sea from Gotham, on the bridge the General stood by his operations officer. “General, the attack helicopters are reporting optimal damage. The target has no been destroyed.” The General stiffened his chin. “This is my failure…I will speak to the Lord himself and explain. Commander, take over.” “Yes sir.” The General began to descend to the decks below where he entered upon a chamber dawning black walls, a red carpet, with golden staffs with a green sphere for lighting the room. A throne sat at the end of the room where a man sat upon it patiently meditating, the Lord was dressed in black armor with gold strokes surging through his armor like erratic lightning bolts. A red robe wrapped about his shoulders and arms as a gold helmet that looked to have been a cross between Ancient Egyptian and an ancient Japanese Samurai. Neon red eyes flared to life as the General entered. “News, General?”
“My lord, I’m afraid the infiltrator has escaped our pursuit. She has taken refuge in Gotham city. If you would allow, I shall demolish Gotham City and our plans will be safe.” “You have jeopardized our mission, General. That infiltrator now knows of *Basilisk* and our work is in jeopardy. No, General…You have done enough for us there is only one thing you can do for me now.” Kaizen Gamorra raised his hand outward and towards the General as a flare of crimson shot out of his hand in a crackling red lightning shot out from Gamorra’s hand at the General. In the passing moment Gamorra would summon a guard dressed in silver robes. “Instruct the commander he is now in charge. Tell him I want the Basilisk to submerge and begin preparations for the Leviathan…Gotham City will be sunk to the bottom of the ocean within the next twenty-four hours or the commander will suffer the same fate as his predecessor.” “Understood, milord.”
Talia's inner voice chided her as the three helicopters came thumping out of the night towards her. Cursing under her breath, her side arm was going to be like shooting peas at these things, armed as they were with what appeared to be... Yes, they were definitely lasers. The air around her started to boil and she was trapped. Unable to go higher, and the only way to descend quicker would involve a long drop and a sudden stop, a prospect that was rather unattractive to her. Luckily, their shots were going wild, focused as they were on stopping her, they were not taking their time to properly aim, and this urgency was paying to her advantage. Pulling herself up, making herself as small a target to hit as possible was her only course of action as a laser went wild, missing her by a mile, but managing to strike the top of her chute, causing it to burst into flames.
Oh hell....
The flames spread quickly as Talia started to fumble with the harness, perhaps she could angle her drop in such a way that she would hit something on the way down that would slow her descent. Her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a larger engine, heavier artillery as one of his more impressive toys came bursting onto the scene. He dipped low, bringing the bomber underneath her so she was able to drop down onto the wing in a crouch, finally hitting the release on the harness as soon as her feet touched metal, to detach the now smouldering parachute before the wind currents caught it and yanked her off of the bomber. The parachute went tumbling out into the night, a small ball of flame caught on the wind and pulled away from them. The shots from the bomber caused the helicopters to rethink their tactics as a hatch opened several feet to Talia's right. Keeping her balance at this speed and altitude was difficult to say the least, but not impossible. Staying as low as she could, thankful that the bomber was maintaining such a straight path she reached the hatch and slid inside, pulling it closed behind her. The clang resounded around her, sounding louder than it probably was as all external sound became slightly muted now that she was inside.
Looking around, she winced as the injury on her shoulder continued to remind her of its presence, the bullet was lodged inside the wound and she had not had the chance to extract it yet. Once more disregarding the injury, she turned her attention to the dark figure striding towards her, one she would know even in the darkness, even out of 10,000 other men, she would recognize him.
"Beloved..." She began, moving to meet him in earnest, a small smile ghosting on her lips as she looked up to him. "We must stop meeting like this...." Her hand went to the pocket to retrieve the small USB she had taken during her escape, holding it up and out towards him, in a situation like this, no matter how much she wanted to just rip off the cowl and kiss him, she knew that business, as always, came first. "You will want to see this..."
-He could almost feel his heart skip a beat, but suppression and urgency of the situation made any of that pushed aside and his attention drew to her injuries and the device that probably caused this whole thing. He offered to take it from her and if she gave it to him he wouldn’t think twice to place it upon his belt before rushing to wrap his arms around her to support her. “We need to get you to the medical room.” The bomber was a big plane, a small gunship or flying fortress. Ventral thrusters had made the vehicle come into a hover over the city as blue flares of heat emitted from the thrusters.
Batman would attempt to lead her down the main hallway and into a pocket room with only two medical beds and a surrounding counter that outlined all of the walls in the room. “Ace, I have Talia, she’s taken a GSW to the arm, take us back to base.” “Understood, sir. Give the lady my best wishes.” The vehicle began to rumble and shift indicating the hover mode had been turned off. In the moments that followed the vehicle would land inside the Bat-hanger; a collective of aerial vehicles hanging in the rafters of the batcave; the largest space particularly for the largest bird among them. The vehicle would attach to a single track that aligned with the landing gear and locked the vehicle in by that along, it resembled that of a bat’s claws latching onto a surface.
Batman would be attending to Talia’s wound in the meantime, preparing a blood bag and IV for her as she took off her shirt to expose the arm.
Talia relinquished her hold on the USB drive as soon as he raised a hand to take it from her, watching and ensuring that he placed it safely upon his person before she finally allowed herself to relax. She was safe at least for now, and she was with her Beloved. His arms supported her as he led her down the corridor of the surprisingly spacious aircraft, a clinical looking room with two hospital beds and a counter running around the walls. She moved and sat on one of the beds as he spoke to the artificial intellegence that ran within the ship as it wished her well, the gesture made her smile, just a small one as the ship around them rumbled, indicating movement.
She paid no mind to any of the rumblings and shiftings, sitting quite firmly on the medical bed as she watched Bruce move around, preparing the IV lines and the blood bag, of course he remembered her blood type, that was one of the things he was bound to remember. He removed her now completely ruined linen shirt, due not only to the blood stains but to the bullet hole seared in the front that she had completely forgotten about. The bullet was lodged, as he would see when he removed her shirt, in the now defunct vest she had been wearing beneath her clothing, there would be one hell of a bruise blossoming beneath the impact zone, but she was more lamenting the wound to her shoulder, the bullet would be a pain in more ways than one to remove.
The blood had dried on her shoulder, rivulets of dried crimson streaked down her tanned skin from the entry wound, and of course, there was no exit wound, the bullet and its fragments were nestled within the flesh and muscle of her shoulder. When he approached once more, she would raise her good arm before he had a chance to insert any IV lines into her, brushing her palm softly against his cheek, with the intention of pushing back his cowl to look on him properly. "Thank you for catching me Beloved...." There was another small smile on her face as she would lean herself up to brush her lips softly against his jawline. "I knew you wouldn't let me fall."
Once the IV was installed properly he reached to a try attached to the bed; the tray of utensils, dental floss, stitches, alcohol, and gauss were waiting patiently. The proximity of their closeness couldn’t have been ignored even more so as she leaned up to take shelter against him. He supported her against him and slightly tilted his head so his lips would brush against the tip of her nose. “You’re safe now.” He whispered despite there being no need to. “I need to patch you up.” The word ‘need’ held a bit more emphasis than Batman intended, almost as if his oxygen would be cut off if he didn’t tend to her wound. In a few moments he would patch her up and then sit next to her on the medical bed. “What happened?” Batman’s pointed nose wouldn’t be aimed at Talia, as he looked across the empty space in front and above her knees. His defined and squared chin was pronounced underneath his cowl and his white lenses were flipped back allowing those deep blue and cold eyes to see her natural beauty; even with her hair being in a bit of a mess after parachuting and multiple gunfights. The scent of gunpowder lingered upon her hair and skin, but dude to minimal wounds; it’s likely the intelligence agent that Talia was did more damage to her opponent than she had received. There was at least something good that came out of the League of Assassin’s training.
The medicinal smell of alcohol cut through the room, covering everything with its clinical scent. He patched up her wound with minimal fuss, the bullet being retrieved with ease and the wound itself packed and patched, all like clockwork. There was urgency that she never normally saw in his movements and she remained silent as he fixed her up. Once he was done, he sat beside her, asking her to explain what had happened. Shifting on the bed slightly, she tugged at the bulletproof vest she had been wearing, the velcro tearing loudly in the silence between them as she pulled it off over her head using her good arm, looking down at her stomach. The bruise was blossoming just below her rib cage, already dark and purple against her skin as she sat back down again beside him on the bed, tilting herself towards him as she ran her good hand over her hair to try and smooth it down, her dark brown eyes catching his blue ones and she didn't want to stop looking at him, despite his face being concealed by the cowl, she felt she could look at him forever. But he had posed a question, and it needed to be answered. "All of the information I was able to retrieve is on that USB I gave you... I came across something I do not believe I was supposed to know about, purely by accident and I did what you do and decided to investigate..." She shivered a little, the plane was getting cooler and since she was now shirtless, she was feeling the chill. "My investigations brought me across a clandestine Government operation, and from what I was able to ascertain, they are not exactly a task force for good. I was trying to sabotage as much as I could from the inside when I was discovered. Heavily outnumbered, I ran. And this is the first place I came to for help." Her gaze was still on him as she reached out and placed her hand on his gently. "You were the first person I thought of who I knew could help..."
“Hmm…” He mumbled as he thought about this information she had given him. “We need to find out what this is about.” Batman stood up and held his hand out to her his posture inviting for her to take it. His appearance resembled that of Zorro minus the hat, saber, and a charming mustache. If she took his hand he would lead her into the hanger where an elevator would descend them down into the main laboratory, a computer along with laboratory chemicals and forensic samples. Batman plugged the USB into the computer and began to scan through the files and began to narrate “ ‘Basilisk operation: Leviathan, a geological weapon focused on striking a continent at its landmass beneath the sea in order to have the oceans rise and engulf the surface land.’ ” Batman scanned the additional information as it laid out plans for attack striking at multiple continents. “According to this, Basilisk is a submarine that is also an aircraft carrier…Equipped with a Leviathan weapon. There’s a lot of incomplete information, I’ll need to get on board that submarine to find out more information…It also may be the only way to shut them down.”
She took his hand as he led her out into the hangar, the array of aerial vehicles all nestled together as they walked together towards an elevator. She kept herself pressed close to him, still feeling the chill, now even more so as they descended down deeper into the main laboratory. The smell of chemicals was pervasive as she made sure to remain stood as close to him as she could for warmth, one arm wrapped around her waist as best she could due to the bruising as her eyes scanned over the screen as Bruce narrated the contents that were laid out before them. "If they have these capabilities... And they know I have this information..." She looked up at the taller man. "They will strike Gotham. They know I am here, and they will not risk this information falling any further from them than it already has..." She went to move away from him to start preparing, faltering for a moment with her back to him, a pained expression on her face that he wouldn't see, sharp and sudden movements were causing her pain at that moment, she had to compartmentalize it back, remember her training. She'd let it slip for a moment by letting her guard down around him and if they were to undertake this mission, she couldn't let it slip again.
Batman looked at her as she began to falter. “That’s why they sent those helicopters after you…You need to get some rest while I make plans for locating that submarine.” Batman came to stand with Talia from behind her. “Alfred can take you to my room, you can rest and I’ll come and get you when I’m ready to leave.” Batman’s hand would reach to her undamaged arm and slide across it to ease her tension. His other hand would come to her hip and give it a gentle grip as he brought his nose to her hair with his head settling against the back of her head. “Trust me…beloved.” He whispered his last word to her. As his breathing passed over her, his strength unbearably noticeable to her as she could feel him uncompromising with her weight at any point. “I may need to contact some friends in the Justice League…It’ll take time to do this, you won’t miss much.”
Come with me, lie beside me, rest with me, please ... She left the words unspoken as he held her, his hand settling on her hip as he whispered words into her ear, his presence behind her was like a rock, solid and steady. She leaned her back against his sculpted physique, her eyes closed as she just took a moment to steady herself. She focused her hearing and she could hear his heart beat behind her, a steady thump-thump that beat in time with her own, and she knew, she knew what they had to do was important but these moments were so rare, these utterly perfect moments where it was just him and her, and no fathers, no colleagues, no siblings- no-one to get in the way and just for a moment, she wanted to be selfish, so she spoke. "I do... I do trust you Beloved..." Her hand came to rest on top of the one resting on her hip, her entire weight leaned back against him now, her lithe figure a stark difference to his. "And I understand that what we do here is important it's just..." A pause, weighted, before she let the rest of the words tumble from her lips. "I wish you would lay beside me once more Beloved... Holding me in your arms like there is nothing more in the world than just the two of us. A selfish request, I know..."
He took her hand into his and raised it to his lips to kiss it.”Get some rest…I’ll join you soon.” His hand on her hip slipped across her stomach to give her a gentle caress; a longing for that intimate pleasure and time with her. He waited a moment before slipping away and going back to the computer to analyze the systems on the Basilisk submarine searching for a method of detection and location beacon. He began typing calculations that would indicate what kind of affects the leviathan weapon would create to indicate it was active.
She was led away to another elevator, taking her up into the mansion proper, the elderly gentleman Alfred who seemed to serve as Bruce's confidant, butler, partner and was just generally the ying to Bruce's yang. Talia liked the old man, he had an air of properness about him and was always very courteous. Walking just a few steps ahead of her, she never touched a door as he opened them all for her, opening the final one to the master bedroom with a slight flourish. The place was lavish, beautiful four poster bed to one side, the furnishings were all antique, a massive window with heavy black out curtains drawn over dominated one side of the wall. Alfred was moving around the room, retrieving several items that he laid out on top of the perfectly made bed for her. "I believe you would care to clean up before you rest, the ensuite has everything you will require..." He placed a huge fluffy white towel on top of the bed sheets before looking over to her, a professional, courtious smile on his face. "If you do require anything else, please do not hesitate." Talia bowed her head in thanks, a small smile on her face. "Thank you Mr Pennyworth, it is very much appreciated." The butler excused himself from the room, closing the heavy door behind him as Talia made her way across the room, examining a few things here and there before walking through to the ensuite bathroom almost as big as the bedroom. The facilities were shining white, golden fixtures polished to a mirror sheen as she looked into a large mirror that adorned one of the walls, frowning at her appearance. The bruise under her rib cage seemed larger than she remembered, a blossoming purple mark over her tanned skin. The dried blood streaked down her right arm, long drops reaching almost as low as her elbow, the bandage tightly secured over the wound. Her hair was, well it was a mess and she reeked of gunpowder and the coppery tang of blood. Removing what was left of her clothing, she left it in a neat pile to one side as she stepped into the massive shower, turning the faucet handle as water started to pour from the head in a blessed, warm torrent. She stepped beneath the water and closed her eyes as she lifted her face to the steady stream of water, sighing internally as it cascaded over her skin and hair, slicking her hair back against her skull. Turning her face away from the water as she rotated beneath the shower head to cover all of her she started to sing, softly, an old Arabic song that she remembered from long ago.
Story By: Batman and Elle
Heroes: Batman, Talia Al Ghul
Villains: Kaizen Gamorra
Plot:
The night was dark and the moon was high, the sky was clear of clouds and the sounds of a failing twin turboprop Metro 25 cut through the air as it streaked above the city of Gotham. Behind the controls, Talia al Ghul was bleeding from the shoulder, a look of determination and annoyance on her face. Behind her were two bodies in non-descript military uniforms, no insignia, no acronyms, but they clearly worked for someone. Pushing forward on the lever, she looked at the readouts for the engines, one was down, the propeller was stalling and starting to smoulder as a voice came over the radio, cool and calm, slightly clipped accent, a British ex-pat who had been living stateside for too long.
Miss Ghul-...
"Miss Al Ghul, if you will, if you're going to threaten me, for Gods sake do it properly."
My apologise Miss Al Ghul you seem to be labouring under the delusion that we will let you get away from us. You do realise that you can't get away? That there is nowhere that you can hide?
Her eyes were drawn to the city laid out beneath her, the twinkling lights making one think of somewhere safe and secure- this was a misnomer, Gotham was anywhere but safe and secure. But it was her Beloved's home. And she needed his help.
"General, if that is what you believe, I won't take that away from you. Please, do you worst."
There was an intake of breath from the other end of the radio and Talia raised her Herstal and put two bullets through the radio. Boring conversation anyway. Standing from the seat with a wince, she made her way through to the back of the plane as it started to stall, alarms sounding and blaring around her as it began to go into a nose dive. Keeping her balance as the bodies of the men she had dispatched tumbled down, she found the last remaining parachute and proceeded to strap it on to herself. A pat of her jacket pocket reassured her that her prize was still safe as she gripped the emergency release handle on the side door and pulled with more strength than she thought would be necessary, another twinge of pain passing through her injured arm as the door wrenched free and went flying out into the night. The wind was buffeting around the plane, thick black smoke billowing from the busted propeller as she held onto the door frame, watching flames licking over the edge of the wing. Aim for the river she told herself as on the mental count of three she pushed out of the door and away from the plane, falling into the night as she prayed her mental calculations were correct and pulled the release cord on the parachute. The black silks billowed to life above her, catching her with a jerk as she hung in the harness, the plane still going down behind her as she tried her best to control her trajectory with one injured arm (the blood had soaked through her linen shirt now, this was basically a write off) and one good arm, still aiming for the river.
Her Beloved had probably seen this performance. Hopefully he would feel the need to investigate.
The Dark Knight was already wary of the situation as an unidentified aircraft began to rapidly descend upon the city and set its course for the river. A single parachute was released and began to drift towards the river, but to the surprise of any spectators there were three helicopters on an intercept course, T129’s began to close in, their twin engines thumped through the air as their predatory blades upon their crown twirled and swung their metal bodies to the left and right to maintain an a mobile attack formation. Upon their sides encased within missile pods were laser batteries with the key indicator being the bright red and pink lenses blocking where a missile warhead would usually be located. Their forward 20mm Vulcan cannon locked in upon her as each two-man crew drew their vehicles closer. Lasers would shoot out of the helicopters; intense heat rays that would scorch Talia’s skin and microwave her with a successful strike.
The air around her would grow increasingly hot as the lasers shot past her and slowly began to narrow closer and closer. A missed laser would strike at the chute at top of Talia’s conveyance and soon began to burst into flames. The sound of heavy artillery shot out from above the helicopters as a new threat arrived in the same of a predatory bomber. Bigger than an F-22, the Bat-Bomber was a large plane with quad gun nests divided among the two winds. Gripping the joysticks of the aircraft, Batman dropped the bomber into a slow speed beneath Talia for her to land upon the massive wing span. The shots that had rang out caused the helicopters to scramble formation and begin attempting to confuse their new enemy. Upon the roof a hatch would open allowing Talia to climb inside the bomber.
The first attack helicopter circled to attack from below the Bat bomber and tried to surgically gut the large bat-like aircraft. The second helicopter flanked the Bat bomber’s left shoulder in an attempt to keep it from banking left. The third attack helicopter approached from the right shoulder and above, aiming its 20mm cannon to damage as much of the bomber’s dorsal armor as possible. Batman was multitasking extremely at this point; stabilizing the bomber’s flight path so that Talia could land safely and get inside safely before taking evasive action. The battle could be seen clearly as insects preyed upon a large bird struggling for survival. “Ace, concentrate the left guns on our left flank and right guns on that right shoulder.” “Understood sir…” The computer radar offered Batman all the information he needed to spy on the enemies and their location. A tactical genius came to Batman’s mind as he strategized what his next move should be.
With a calm flip of two switches prompted the Bat Bomber’s ventral to unleash a glorious show of flares and chaffs blinded the first attack helicopter, a laser would strike upon a flare and someway or somehow the laser would reflect back causing the helicopter’s wing and laser pod to explode and cause the helicopter to sputter out of control. The left guns began unleashing volleys explosive magnetically charged debris that shredded the armor plating of the second helicopter causing its own engine to begin sputtering out, the third helicopter also followed suite as the firepower was overwhelming. “Ace, take over.” Batman stood up and began walking out of the cockpit to intercept Talia.
An aircraft carrier only 30 miles out at sea from Gotham, on the bridge the General stood by his operations officer. “General, the attack helicopters are reporting optimal damage. The target has no been destroyed.” The General stiffened his chin. “This is my failure…I will speak to the Lord himself and explain. Commander, take over.” “Yes sir.” The General began to descend to the decks below where he entered upon a chamber dawning black walls, a red carpet, with golden staffs with a green sphere for lighting the room. A throne sat at the end of the room where a man sat upon it patiently meditating, the Lord was dressed in black armor with gold strokes surging through his armor like erratic lightning bolts. A red robe wrapped about his shoulders and arms as a gold helmet that looked to have been a cross between Ancient Egyptian and an ancient Japanese Samurai. Neon red eyes flared to life as the General entered. “News, General?”
“My lord, I’m afraid the infiltrator has escaped our pursuit. She has taken refuge in Gotham city. If you would allow, I shall demolish Gotham City and our plans will be safe.” “You have jeopardized our mission, General. That infiltrator now knows of *Basilisk* and our work is in jeopardy. No, General…You have done enough for us there is only one thing you can do for me now.” Kaizen Gamorra raised his hand outward and towards the General as a flare of crimson shot out of his hand in a crackling red lightning shot out from Gamorra’s hand at the General. In the passing moment Gamorra would summon a guard dressed in silver robes. “Instruct the commander he is now in charge. Tell him I want the Basilisk to submerge and begin preparations for the Leviathan…Gotham City will be sunk to the bottom of the ocean within the next twenty-four hours or the commander will suffer the same fate as his predecessor.” “Understood, milord.”
Talia's inner voice chided her as the three helicopters came thumping out of the night towards her. Cursing under her breath, her side arm was going to be like shooting peas at these things, armed as they were with what appeared to be... Yes, they were definitely lasers. The air around her started to boil and she was trapped. Unable to go higher, and the only way to descend quicker would involve a long drop and a sudden stop, a prospect that was rather unattractive to her. Luckily, their shots were going wild, focused as they were on stopping her, they were not taking their time to properly aim, and this urgency was paying to her advantage. Pulling herself up, making herself as small a target to hit as possible was her only course of action as a laser went wild, missing her by a mile, but managing to strike the top of her chute, causing it to burst into flames.
Oh hell....
The flames spread quickly as Talia started to fumble with the harness, perhaps she could angle her drop in such a way that she would hit something on the way down that would slow her descent. Her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a larger engine, heavier artillery as one of his more impressive toys came bursting onto the scene. He dipped low, bringing the bomber underneath her so she was able to drop down onto the wing in a crouch, finally hitting the release on the harness as soon as her feet touched metal, to detach the now smouldering parachute before the wind currents caught it and yanked her off of the bomber. The parachute went tumbling out into the night, a small ball of flame caught on the wind and pulled away from them. The shots from the bomber caused the helicopters to rethink their tactics as a hatch opened several feet to Talia's right. Keeping her balance at this speed and altitude was difficult to say the least, but not impossible. Staying as low as she could, thankful that the bomber was maintaining such a straight path she reached the hatch and slid inside, pulling it closed behind her. The clang resounded around her, sounding louder than it probably was as all external sound became slightly muted now that she was inside.
Looking around, she winced as the injury on her shoulder continued to remind her of its presence, the bullet was lodged inside the wound and she had not had the chance to extract it yet. Once more disregarding the injury, she turned her attention to the dark figure striding towards her, one she would know even in the darkness, even out of 10,000 other men, she would recognize him.
"Beloved..." She began, moving to meet him in earnest, a small smile ghosting on her lips as she looked up to him. "We must stop meeting like this...." Her hand went to the pocket to retrieve the small USB she had taken during her escape, holding it up and out towards him, in a situation like this, no matter how much she wanted to just rip off the cowl and kiss him, she knew that business, as always, came first. "You will want to see this..."
-He could almost feel his heart skip a beat, but suppression and urgency of the situation made any of that pushed aside and his attention drew to her injuries and the device that probably caused this whole thing. He offered to take it from her and if she gave it to him he wouldn’t think twice to place it upon his belt before rushing to wrap his arms around her to support her. “We need to get you to the medical room.” The bomber was a big plane, a small gunship or flying fortress. Ventral thrusters had made the vehicle come into a hover over the city as blue flares of heat emitted from the thrusters.
Batman would attempt to lead her down the main hallway and into a pocket room with only two medical beds and a surrounding counter that outlined all of the walls in the room. “Ace, I have Talia, she’s taken a GSW to the arm, take us back to base.” “Understood, sir. Give the lady my best wishes.” The vehicle began to rumble and shift indicating the hover mode had been turned off. In the moments that followed the vehicle would land inside the Bat-hanger; a collective of aerial vehicles hanging in the rafters of the batcave; the largest space particularly for the largest bird among them. The vehicle would attach to a single track that aligned with the landing gear and locked the vehicle in by that along, it resembled that of a bat’s claws latching onto a surface.
Batman would be attending to Talia’s wound in the meantime, preparing a blood bag and IV for her as she took off her shirt to expose the arm.
Talia relinquished her hold on the USB drive as soon as he raised a hand to take it from her, watching and ensuring that he placed it safely upon his person before she finally allowed herself to relax. She was safe at least for now, and she was with her Beloved. His arms supported her as he led her down the corridor of the surprisingly spacious aircraft, a clinical looking room with two hospital beds and a counter running around the walls. She moved and sat on one of the beds as he spoke to the artificial intellegence that ran within the ship as it wished her well, the gesture made her smile, just a small one as the ship around them rumbled, indicating movement.
She paid no mind to any of the rumblings and shiftings, sitting quite firmly on the medical bed as she watched Bruce move around, preparing the IV lines and the blood bag, of course he remembered her blood type, that was one of the things he was bound to remember. He removed her now completely ruined linen shirt, due not only to the blood stains but to the bullet hole seared in the front that she had completely forgotten about. The bullet was lodged, as he would see when he removed her shirt, in the now defunct vest she had been wearing beneath her clothing, there would be one hell of a bruise blossoming beneath the impact zone, but she was more lamenting the wound to her shoulder, the bullet would be a pain in more ways than one to remove.
The blood had dried on her shoulder, rivulets of dried crimson streaked down her tanned skin from the entry wound, and of course, there was no exit wound, the bullet and its fragments were nestled within the flesh and muscle of her shoulder. When he approached once more, she would raise her good arm before he had a chance to insert any IV lines into her, brushing her palm softly against his cheek, with the intention of pushing back his cowl to look on him properly. "Thank you for catching me Beloved...." There was another small smile on her face as she would lean herself up to brush her lips softly against his jawline. "I knew you wouldn't let me fall."
Once the IV was installed properly he reached to a try attached to the bed; the tray of utensils, dental floss, stitches, alcohol, and gauss were waiting patiently. The proximity of their closeness couldn’t have been ignored even more so as she leaned up to take shelter against him. He supported her against him and slightly tilted his head so his lips would brush against the tip of her nose. “You’re safe now.” He whispered despite there being no need to. “I need to patch you up.” The word ‘need’ held a bit more emphasis than Batman intended, almost as if his oxygen would be cut off if he didn’t tend to her wound. In a few moments he would patch her up and then sit next to her on the medical bed. “What happened?” Batman’s pointed nose wouldn’t be aimed at Talia, as he looked across the empty space in front and above her knees. His defined and squared chin was pronounced underneath his cowl and his white lenses were flipped back allowing those deep blue and cold eyes to see her natural beauty; even with her hair being in a bit of a mess after parachuting and multiple gunfights. The scent of gunpowder lingered upon her hair and skin, but dude to minimal wounds; it’s likely the intelligence agent that Talia was did more damage to her opponent than she had received. There was at least something good that came out of the League of Assassin’s training.
The medicinal smell of alcohol cut through the room, covering everything with its clinical scent. He patched up her wound with minimal fuss, the bullet being retrieved with ease and the wound itself packed and patched, all like clockwork. There was urgency that she never normally saw in his movements and she remained silent as he fixed her up. Once he was done, he sat beside her, asking her to explain what had happened. Shifting on the bed slightly, she tugged at the bulletproof vest she had been wearing, the velcro tearing loudly in the silence between them as she pulled it off over her head using her good arm, looking down at her stomach. The bruise was blossoming just below her rib cage, already dark and purple against her skin as she sat back down again beside him on the bed, tilting herself towards him as she ran her good hand over her hair to try and smooth it down, her dark brown eyes catching his blue ones and she didn't want to stop looking at him, despite his face being concealed by the cowl, she felt she could look at him forever. But he had posed a question, and it needed to be answered. "All of the information I was able to retrieve is on that USB I gave you... I came across something I do not believe I was supposed to know about, purely by accident and I did what you do and decided to investigate..." She shivered a little, the plane was getting cooler and since she was now shirtless, she was feeling the chill. "My investigations brought me across a clandestine Government operation, and from what I was able to ascertain, they are not exactly a task force for good. I was trying to sabotage as much as I could from the inside when I was discovered. Heavily outnumbered, I ran. And this is the first place I came to for help." Her gaze was still on him as she reached out and placed her hand on his gently. "You were the first person I thought of who I knew could help..."
“Hmm…” He mumbled as he thought about this information she had given him. “We need to find out what this is about.” Batman stood up and held his hand out to her his posture inviting for her to take it. His appearance resembled that of Zorro minus the hat, saber, and a charming mustache. If she took his hand he would lead her into the hanger where an elevator would descend them down into the main laboratory, a computer along with laboratory chemicals and forensic samples. Batman plugged the USB into the computer and began to scan through the files and began to narrate “ ‘Basilisk operation: Leviathan, a geological weapon focused on striking a continent at its landmass beneath the sea in order to have the oceans rise and engulf the surface land.’ ” Batman scanned the additional information as it laid out plans for attack striking at multiple continents. “According to this, Basilisk is a submarine that is also an aircraft carrier…Equipped with a Leviathan weapon. There’s a lot of incomplete information, I’ll need to get on board that submarine to find out more information…It also may be the only way to shut them down.”
She took his hand as he led her out into the hangar, the array of aerial vehicles all nestled together as they walked together towards an elevator. She kept herself pressed close to him, still feeling the chill, now even more so as they descended down deeper into the main laboratory. The smell of chemicals was pervasive as she made sure to remain stood as close to him as she could for warmth, one arm wrapped around her waist as best she could due to the bruising as her eyes scanned over the screen as Bruce narrated the contents that were laid out before them. "If they have these capabilities... And they know I have this information..." She looked up at the taller man. "They will strike Gotham. They know I am here, and they will not risk this information falling any further from them than it already has..." She went to move away from him to start preparing, faltering for a moment with her back to him, a pained expression on her face that he wouldn't see, sharp and sudden movements were causing her pain at that moment, she had to compartmentalize it back, remember her training. She'd let it slip for a moment by letting her guard down around him and if they were to undertake this mission, she couldn't let it slip again.
Batman looked at her as she began to falter. “That’s why they sent those helicopters after you…You need to get some rest while I make plans for locating that submarine.” Batman came to stand with Talia from behind her. “Alfred can take you to my room, you can rest and I’ll come and get you when I’m ready to leave.” Batman’s hand would reach to her undamaged arm and slide across it to ease her tension. His other hand would come to her hip and give it a gentle grip as he brought his nose to her hair with his head settling against the back of her head. “Trust me…beloved.” He whispered his last word to her. As his breathing passed over her, his strength unbearably noticeable to her as she could feel him uncompromising with her weight at any point. “I may need to contact some friends in the Justice League…It’ll take time to do this, you won’t miss much.”
Come with me, lie beside me, rest with me, please ... She left the words unspoken as he held her, his hand settling on her hip as he whispered words into her ear, his presence behind her was like a rock, solid and steady. She leaned her back against his sculpted physique, her eyes closed as she just took a moment to steady herself. She focused her hearing and she could hear his heart beat behind her, a steady thump-thump that beat in time with her own, and she knew, she knew what they had to do was important but these moments were so rare, these utterly perfect moments where it was just him and her, and no fathers, no colleagues, no siblings- no-one to get in the way and just for a moment, she wanted to be selfish, so she spoke. "I do... I do trust you Beloved..." Her hand came to rest on top of the one resting on her hip, her entire weight leaned back against him now, her lithe figure a stark difference to his. "And I understand that what we do here is important it's just..." A pause, weighted, before she let the rest of the words tumble from her lips. "I wish you would lay beside me once more Beloved... Holding me in your arms like there is nothing more in the world than just the two of us. A selfish request, I know..."
He took her hand into his and raised it to his lips to kiss it.”Get some rest…I’ll join you soon.” His hand on her hip slipped across her stomach to give her a gentle caress; a longing for that intimate pleasure and time with her. He waited a moment before slipping away and going back to the computer to analyze the systems on the Basilisk submarine searching for a method of detection and location beacon. He began typing calculations that would indicate what kind of affects the leviathan weapon would create to indicate it was active.
She was led away to another elevator, taking her up into the mansion proper, the elderly gentleman Alfred who seemed to serve as Bruce's confidant, butler, partner and was just generally the ying to Bruce's yang. Talia liked the old man, he had an air of properness about him and was always very courteous. Walking just a few steps ahead of her, she never touched a door as he opened them all for her, opening the final one to the master bedroom with a slight flourish. The place was lavish, beautiful four poster bed to one side, the furnishings were all antique, a massive window with heavy black out curtains drawn over dominated one side of the wall. Alfred was moving around the room, retrieving several items that he laid out on top of the perfectly made bed for her. "I believe you would care to clean up before you rest, the ensuite has everything you will require..." He placed a huge fluffy white towel on top of the bed sheets before looking over to her, a professional, courtious smile on his face. "If you do require anything else, please do not hesitate." Talia bowed her head in thanks, a small smile on her face. "Thank you Mr Pennyworth, it is very much appreciated." The butler excused himself from the room, closing the heavy door behind him as Talia made her way across the room, examining a few things here and there before walking through to the ensuite bathroom almost as big as the bedroom. The facilities were shining white, golden fixtures polished to a mirror sheen as she looked into a large mirror that adorned one of the walls, frowning at her appearance. The bruise under her rib cage seemed larger than she remembered, a blossoming purple mark over her tanned skin. The dried blood streaked down her right arm, long drops reaching almost as low as her elbow, the bandage tightly secured over the wound. Her hair was, well it was a mess and she reeked of gunpowder and the coppery tang of blood. Removing what was left of her clothing, she left it in a neat pile to one side as she stepped into the massive shower, turning the faucet handle as water started to pour from the head in a blessed, warm torrent. She stepped beneath the water and closed her eyes as she lifted her face to the steady stream of water, sighing internally as it cascaded over her skin and hair, slicking her hair back against her skull. Turning her face away from the water as she rotated beneath the shower head to cover all of her she started to sing, softly, an old Arabic song that she remembered from long ago.