As soon as I envelop her in my hug, she grips the shoulder pads of my armor, screaming in pain. I know how she feels, the burning in her veins, the grinding of bones as they reset themselves.

Finally as the last scream dies down, she goes limp, staring up at me with a tired, accusing glare. "What the hell did you do to me?" She asks in a voice more tired than the glare. I look down at her and release her, turning to pull on the mask again. "I saved your life, Rose. I gave you a diluted version of the serum that made me what I am." She stares into my cold blue eye, not finding the emotion I'm trying so hard to hide. She needs to perceive her father as strong, for her sake.

"There's more. I had wanted to tell you this earlier, but it's about your brother, Rose. Joe's alive."

Black-Bat

Gotham City, New Jersey
Night.

The air was cold. So cold you could see your breath. It was common for the winter but some thought that Mr. Freeze intentionally made it colder just to spite the city.

Cassandra Cain, known as the Black-Bat, paid no heed to the cold, enveloped as she was within her suit. Silently, she bounded from rooftop to rooftop, searching for a single site in particular. Barbara, the current Batgirl, had rigged a comm relay within Cassandra's cowl. It was-as with much of the Batfamily's arsenal-directly linked to the Batcomputer, and on this night, Cassandra had caught wind of another murder. Gotham was known for its murder rate, but this one stood out, in part because it was her first case without Bruce, and in part due to the killer's modish operandi. Whomever he or she was they were making it look as if the victims had taken their own lives.

Of course, the GCPD thought the cases were open-and-shut, and with this being Gotham, their attentions were elsewhere. The dispatcher had called the victim in, but no unit had responded yet. More time for her to investigate, in her opinion.

At last the crime scene came into view, and Black-Bat leapt from the rooftops to the alleyway with a grace that would have shamed an Olympic gymnast. Thinking back to what Bruce had taught her, she took notice of her surroundings first, switching the lenses in her cowl to the augmented reality that had come to be known colloquially as "Detective Vision." As she did so, she took in the brick walls, the strewn refuse, the overturned trashcan, before focusing on the victim himself.

He was young, twenty-one if she had to guess, with sandy brown hair and blue eyes clouding over. He lay slumped against the wall, gun in hand. Cassandra stepped forward for closer examination.

She didn't know why, but something about the dead always made her pause, whether from respect for the departed or fear that she might've killed, Cassandra didn't know. Approaching the victim with a hesitant caution, she realized that his arm had been broken, but not by external force. A clenching in her gut formed, and she knew.

"It's him." She whispered.

FREEDOM RINGS

---

PROLOGUE

---

Belle Reve, Metropolis
3:35 PM, January 4 2016

"LIVE. This is Kat Grant reporting with breaking news. Belle Reve Penitentiary has been broken into by none other than the long-time Iron Man foe The Mandarin. Though his current intentions are currently unknown, it is known that The Mandarin is a centuries old Chinese warlord who has previously conquered a third of China and built a personal army called the Ten Rings. Over the years he has had many schemes to achieve world domination, most of the recent ones foiled by--you guessed it: Iron Man. When the Ten Rings were attacking a middle-eastern city, they were cut short by the intervention of Iron Man, in his first public appearance. In years since, The Mandarin has had a long-standing vendetta against Iron Man, more so than any other 'hero'.

In his last known appearance, about a year ago, the Mandarin and his dragon, Fin Fang Foom, went head to head with Iron Man and his allies in an intense struggle that lasted for days. He'd almost killed the Invincible Iron Man before he was betrayed by Fin Fang Foom, at which point he was forced to team up with the injured Iron Man in order to come out alive. Though the exact details were never released as to how he lost his rings, it is known that they were scattered across the globe leaving him without any special abilities. Despite the obvious disadvantage, he still managed to slip by Iron Man and the entirety of SHIELD, until today that is.

Once again the exact details are unknown, but witnesses have reported that the Mandarin was seen with the majority of his rings breaking into Belle Reve. In the ensuing chaos, an unknown amount of prisoners have escaped from their cells and the prison grounds. The SHIELD response to this disaster is currently unknown, but it is assumed that they will do their best to care for the situation

Stay Tuned for updates. This is Kat Grant reporting."

---

Cafeteria, Belle Reve, Metropolis
3: 45 PM, January 4 2016

Stepping through a field of guards unconscious amongst dozens of inmates, the Mandarin took advantage of the chaos he'd created. If he was correct, all he had to was travel a little ways north within the penitentiary, and he'd find his missing ring, buried beneath several feet of concrete. Looking behind him, he found a conscious guard, shivering pathetically and almost letting out a whimper, pretending to be strong.

"Stop withholding your true feelings, coward. Serve someone greater than yourself, like me," evil flashed in his eyes as he commanded the guardian to abandon his post. In case he were to be met by resistance, he took choice out of the equation, using one of his rings he'd already had to sap the man of his free-will. "Rally some troops, there is some excavation to be done."

The guard, eyes now lacking any emotion or even alertness, marched away from the Mandarin, attempting to rouse several prisoners from their unconscious state. When they resisted, the guard merely pointed over to the grimacing figure that was The Mandarin. Garbed in a green robe, the oriental warlord looked down upon one man who was being recruited from a distance.

The inmate kicked one of his fellow prisoners, who also had been sprawled across the concrete floor. The other prisoner then stood up and began to whisper to the first inmate, who looked towards the Mandarin and nodded his head as they stood beside the guard, who pointed for them to head for the Mandarin. Before they'd submitted to his will, however, they'd turned around, facing the guard and the second inmate began putting his hand behind his back, fishing for something tucked away in the folds of his jumpsuit. He slowly produced a short blade and casually brought it to his side, intending to 'shank' the Mandarin's servant.

But the criminal was clearly unaware that The Mandarin was watching the entire proceeding. So, to keep his current servant from coming to harm, he forced a preemptive strike with the steel baton, clubbing the prisoners across the side of the head. Evidently it was time to choose some new minions. So the Mandarin had the guard abandon the unwise criminals and instead seek out someone a bit more.... obedient. Hitting the proverbial jackpot, the guard stumbled across the perfect candidate. Strong and durable, but not monstrously stupid or psychologically inhuman. He was formidable and truly powerful, but nothing that the mighty Mandarin could not make short work of. Conveniently, the guard stood next to Girder, who was also fast asleep, likely abandoned by his comrades when they escaped the prison an hour ago.

Exerting power over the guard, he had him strike Girder fiercely to wake him up. Girder's eyes flashed open and gritted his teeth. Before the Mandarin had even seen it coming, he threw his iron foot into the chest of the guard, launching him across the room. As an act of mercy, he forced the guard to sleep before controlling Girder himself.

"Come this way, Girder. I have need of you." The Mandarin motioned with his fingers, summoning the brute.

He did just so, scurrying without breaking into a run. When he was standing directly in front of him, The Mandarin looked into his eyes before allowing the brute any actions. It is said that the eyes are the window to the soul, and it would appear that Girder had a very malleable spirit about him. So the Mandarin turned his back and led him to a spot within the halls.

"Dig." It was a blunt command that was followed without hesitation.

Girder's fists pounded into the concrete floor, fracturing it over and over, hammering it relentlessly. A few seconds in, he'd already ripped out a whole foot of the floor. Then the process accelerated. And like a machine, he came to a complete stop when he knew he'd gone far enough.

"Retrieve it for me," The Mandarin whispered.

Girder reached his enormous hands down into the hand-made trench and lifted a trunk out of the bottom. He heaved and raised it into the hallway, where he set it in front of his temporary master.

"Very good, very good indeed," the Mandarin mused as he lifted the top of the trunk. Then, from a pile of jewels, he removed the object he'd come to retrieve, his ninth ring. "Only one more to go," he whispered excitedly. Then he promptly made his way toward the exit

"Put your hands in the air immediately or we will use deadly force!" A slew of security guards all encircled the Mandarin, meeting him at a corner in the entry hallways, each bearing arms that were trained on him.

Scoffing, the ring-bearer retorted, "No, you arrogant fool. Should I not be allowed exit, you shall be the ones to perish."

"This is your final warning!" A guard hollered, raising his club behind a riot shield.

"So be it," the Mandarin whispered as he raised his hands above his head. With a twisted smile, he chuckled "You've been warned." Suddenly, a wave of shadow washed over them all, their weapons disintegrated at the speed of a gatling gun. And before they had a moment to react, Girder had charged them all and threw them about.

As he walked away from the scenario and made an exit, he dramatically announced, "No man crosses the Mandarin and lives. Not ever again. Now for the final piece of the collection, to Okaara."

Arriving inside the Helcarrier, Kyle surged through the hall, staying directly above the floor and carrying a hard-light battering ram in front of him, charging any enemies that he'd seen within the halls of the flying headquarters. Quickly, he came inside the deck, where he saw Scott in charge. But, before he even had time to say hello, he was interrupted by a sudden message from the director of SHIELD.

"Rayner, where are you?" Instead of the usual chirp of the comm link, it came across an a static-saturated growl.

Bubbling with concern, he replied, "I'm going onto the deck, what is it?"

"They have her!" Fury barked, his voice cracking like a whip.

"Who," Kyle pleaded. "Who did they take? Maria Hill? Jessica Drew? Carol Danvers?"

"No," Fury paused, dramatically breathing. "They have Ketch."

Suddenly, Kyle's eyes exploded with surprise. He threw his jand through his hair and pulled it forward. He felt his heart skip like a jumprope after not pounding at all. But he only said three words.

"Where is she?"

"They took off heading East. Since you're the only Young Avneger who can fly, we need you to pursue them and relay your location shortly while we hold down the fort here."

Jason Todd was prowling Gotham City. The home he grew up in. The city that taught him everything about the world. The city he belonged to. It was his home, weather he liked it or not. He was following a trail of his own. Jason had caught on to the prison break in Blackgate. And it irked him. There were people on the loose that shouldn't be.

Jason could've been driving his motorcycle, but he had chosen to patrol old fashion way. There was something truly relaxing about swinging from roof to roof using the zip-line to do so. Jason jumped to the next rooftop, rolling as he landed. “It's here.” Jason noted to himself. He was at the known location of the second biggest cocaine ring on the east coast. He'd only gotten here by stalking one of the high-ranked members of the ring, one that had escaped Blackgate.

Jason stuck to the shadows, as he heard a muffled scream. He moved closer towards the sound, the large building's rooftop twisting. Jason completely silently dashed towards the sound, jumping up onto the chimney that blocked the vision of the young hero. A smirk curled under his helmet when he laid eyes on the long cloak and pointy ears of his former mentor. Looking down on the turned man who had his back turned to him, Jason was about to speak, when the former interrupted him.

“What are you doing here?”

“Oh you know. Following a compulsive behavior pattern taught to me at a far too young age by a crazy guy.”

“You've been hanging out with Nightwing, I see.”

“Dude's kind of a Dick. Didn't even show for the Titan meet and greet.”
Both chuckled. Jason jumped down next to Bruce. “So. We gonna do this for old times sake?” Jason asked. “You hate old times.”

Jason scoffed, as he kicked the door wide open, Batman dashing into the door, in the blink of an eye he had dispatched the two guards whom were guarding the stairs. The Batman was already down the five story stairway, down into the warehouse basement. Jason scoffed, as he followed.

“That wasn't very difficult.” Jason noted, as he walked up next to Bruce, both of their eyes peeled on every detail of the room. “They didn't think anyone would be dumb enough to break in here.”

Jason walked into the actual storage room, finding nothing more but a single opened crate.

“Or because they've moved their operation.”

Chasing down a HYDRA jet from a distance, tailing it back to it's hangar, Kyle made sure to maintain a relatively low speed compared to normal. He'd made his protective aura a daintily light tint of green that was fitting right in with the lightly toned blue of the upper atmosphere. From a distance, he'd look like a cloud, om the off chance he would be seen at all. In order to avoid being seen as a white human, he'd gone to even greater lengths, forming a cloud of gas constructed from his imagination.

After following the jet for several minutes, he saw it drop from the sky, steadily heading downward towards an island off the coast of America until it was on a course of collision with a barely visible miniature mountainside. However, with only five seconds before it would've crashed in a ball of flame, the mountainside opened nigh instantly, devouring the tiny jet before closing again. From the top of the mountain, from an almost unnoticeably small opening, a solid trail of smoke flowed outward and upwards. But then Kyle realized what the tiny hole was, the chimney for a hidden factory within an island.

"Rayner, have you located where they are keeping her yet?" Fury barked over the heavily distorted commlink.

Sighing, and with a bit of hesitation, he replied, "Ten Four, good buddy."

"Where are they, then?"

"Well... I just found it, and to be honest, I don't have a clue where I am, so I'll call it... Hyrda Island."

"Good work, Rayner. Now stand by while we send in reinforcements to your coordinates. They should arrive in--"

Injecting himself into Fury's sentence, he shouted, "They'll arrive after I'm done, I'm sure of it!"

With that, he instantly washed over his aura and cloud with a shade of grey that proggressively blackened until he was as dark as the chimney he began rocketing into. Holding his breath, he blazed a trail headed into Hyrda Island. At the bottom of the chimey's shaft, there was a small area where coal was being burned, perhaps to give the illusion that the opening was natural and geologically caused, or perhaps there was a more sinister purpose. Kyle didn't know, nor did he actually care, so rather than interfere with the seemingly irrelevant smog, he flew through the facility at breakneck speeds.

"We have an intruder! Repeat we have an intruder!" From behind him, he heard the deep and distraught voice of one of HYDRA's many soldiers.

And before he heard any responses from his superiors or coworkers, blaster bolts began to nip at the heels of his flying cloud, so Kyle surrendered his stealth approach altogether. Allowing the cloud to deteriorate into nothingness, he brightened up his costume to it's usual emerald tone, shining as bright as a green sun.

Deepening his throat and momentarily adopting a New Jersey style accent, he chuckled, "Hey, how you doin'?"

The blasts never stopped, but Kyle retaliated, viciously generating a terrifyingly beastly vision of the legendary Kraken sea-monster. With three separate heads protruding from it's core, it plucked up and swallowed several HYDRA soldiers and stored them safely within it's belly, all while it's torrential tentacles whipped against the comparatively miniscule figures garbed in green.

While his monster did the fighting for him, Kyle followed the labeling of sifns around the facility, all until he reached the brig. Peeking inside through a small glass opening, Kyle saw the Red Skull walking towards the exit of the area of imprisonment, and towards the very door Kyle was standing at.

Quickly shading himself ebony, he floated above the door while Red Skull marched out, accompanied by a pair of body guards. Rather than ignite another confrontation, he slipped into the brig above the villains while the door was sliding shut. From there, he began to manually search for Dani, more specifically the Ghost Rider. And before long, he found it. Smashing against the bars that held it captive, the incendiary beast was hissing and muttering something horrible when Kyle approached.

Rather than immediately release her, Kyle teased,"Funny meeting you here," as he looked at her from the outside.

Black-Bat

Having confirmed the conclusion to which she had arrived, Cassandra left the scene. Bounding across the rooftops, she fired a line off using the grapnel gun, letting the tiny titanium triweave fiber hoist her weight up and over a billboard, spreading her cape out as a way to let the sudden rush of wind drag her to a manageable speed. Black-Bat's next destination wasn't far from here, as she had prioritized her night based on concurrent cases. While the "Suicide Killer" case was her first one without Bruce's guidance, it wasn't the only open case she had.

Two nights ago, shortly after The Black Mask's breakout from Blackgate prison, many of Bruce's rogues gallery ended up escaping. In order to prevent another "Knightfall" scenario, Bruce had assigned each member of the Batfamily a set number of the villains to neutralize and apprehend. Bruce Himself was currently operating on a case with Red Hood, and Damian was partnered with Richard. She had caught Victor Zsaz. Tracking the serial killer was proving to be more of a challenge than she had originally anticipated, as he had no real set victimology or modus operandi, and the only real way to track his kills was the tally marks he placed on his own flesh.

But even a ghost leaves footprints, as Cassandra could tell from her own experiences. With a man like Victor Zsaz, what you needed to start with was the last known victim, and then work forward from there. Because Cassandra suffered from pronounced dyslexia, she compensated by using the Batcomputer with vocal commands and enabling text to speech. Calling up Zsaz's last publically recorded victim, she learned that his name was Seth DuPraix, a GCR sound tech. No known ties to any of Gotham's myriad criminal organizations. Unfortunately, during his escape and the two days that he had been free, the overtaxed and understaffed GCPD had recorded at least two more suspected Zsaz killings, although in all likelihood, the number was probably closer to four or five.

She had to stop him, that much was clear; if not for the numerous lives he had taken then for the countless lives she could still protect.

”Funny meeting you here.”

Ghost Rider stopped her rhythmic pounding. Fists slowed and lowered, and the glow of the runes faded. The marks were strong. But Zarathos’ will would not be held for long. She looked at Kyle, another member of the Young Avengers, one that was often spearheading a solo enterprise in a different corner of the world. Inside, Dani fought for control, hope renewed by the sight of one of her teammates. They were coming for her! She fought for words, but Zarathos silenced her. It was still stronger than her, and Ghost Rider was still an entity that refused a leash. The flames licked up her skull as she turned to face the boy.

“Lantern.” She said, voice bubbling with heat and the echo of a hundred souls. She pounded on the bars again, and screamed in frustration and anger – a terrifying sound that chilled your bones with fear – as the runes glowed and sparked and stood strong again. She leant closer and inspected the bars. The runes hissed from her proximity, but now that she looked at them closer, she saw that the marks were…amateur. Roughly hewn, lines vague and wobbly in places. They were not the carefully drawn spells and incantations of the grand Doctor Strange. They were weaker. They were…exploitable.

”Shield the bars.” She commanded, indicating for Kyle to coat the bars in the energy from his ring. He did so, and the bars glowed green. She grasped the bars, hands now able to grip the inscribed metal with the protective layer – but still close enough to garner a reaction from the runes. She leant forward, both hands gripping, and channelled Hellfire into her hands. Fire burst up her wrists from the sleeves of her jacket, and the runes began to react, slowly at first, and then sparking and a deep ringing as the magic began to overload. Ghost Rider began to scream with the effort and the retaliation of the runes and channelled more Hellfire into her hands, pushing harder and harder... ”NOW.” She roared, and Kyle dropped the shielding – and the runes gave out. They screamed in destruction and the bars exploded, shattering into tiny fragments and instantly melting in Ghost Rider’s fire. She hunched over, the conjuring exhausting her, but then began chuckling, a light chortle that morphed into a deep, throaty laugh.

”Ahhh. Freedom, and the night is yet young. Red Skull is escaping.” She said, sighing wistfully.
“And how are we going to catch him?” Kyle asked, and there was a strange moment where somehow, the unmoving, flaming skull that was Ghost Rider’s face seemed to be smirking somehow. Her voice was smooth and almost a purr. As she spoke, a horse of bone and fire and little muscle constructed itself from the ground in front of them both, Ghost Rider herself putting a foot into a stirrup and and swinging herself up into the saddle.

”Kyle….we ride.”

"Who the hell is he?"

"He some kind of superfreak or something?"

"He looks like a dick"

Tim sat quietly twiddling his thumbs, ignoring the comments other customers were making around him. He had been sat at a table inside a popular downtown New York pizza restaurant in full costume for only a couple of minutes, yet to him it felt like forever. He resisted the temptation to leap up and shout at his onlookers. To make them go away and go about their business. Was it really necessary to sit and watch him? It wasn't like he was any different from then! Oh wait...

His trail of thought was lost however when he was approached by a large balding man who looked as if he was in his early forties. His apron and tired expression led the teen to believe that this guy was in charge of this place. He was right.

"Er... Kid Tail or whateva' yer' called?" He spoke nervously, obviously worried that Tim was one of those annoying villains that populated the city. "If you're not going to buy anything, yer' going to t' have t' leave"

"That won't be necessary, Sir!" The voice came from everyone's favourite web-slinger as he walked proudly through the door. Eyes flocked to him instantly as he made his way across the room, giving a quick wave to both Tim and the restaurant owner as he did so. Spider-Man stopped next to the two and slouched down into a seat, grabbing a menu. “Don’t worry Steve, he’s with me! I’ll just have a margarita please.”

“Hawaiian” Tim spoke with a nod and focussed his attention on his friend as the owner moved away, muttering under his breath.

“So Tim, what’s the problem?” Peter asked, leaning in closer to his clone. Tim explained everything that had happened in the simulation. His worries and dilemmas too. He was right; it was easier to discuss his problems with Peter. He listened well, and didn’t speak until Tim was done. When he was done, Peter sat back in his chair and scratched the back of his head, removing the slice of pizza he was eating from his mouth as he did so.
“You have to remember Tim that you always have to do the right thing…” He began before being interrupted.

“But doing the right thing doesn’t mean beating someone senseless!”

“I know but…” Peter stopped once again and scratched his head once more. “Just remember that with great power…”

“…Comes great responsibility! Yeah I know; that’s your answer to everything!” Tim sat up impatiently. “I want to be a hero Petey, I really do! I just don’t want to lose myself along the way.”

At that, Peter placed his hand on his clones shoulder, reassuringly. “It’s going to be okay Tim.”

At that point, the sound of a small siren wailed. Peter’s eyes shot to his wrist, where he began interacting with what looked like a watch. The hero rose to his feet instantly, pulling his mask down properly. “Sorry Tim! There’s been a situation!” He managed. “The Mandarin is back and as usually he’s causing an issue. Get back to the Titan’s, they’ll probably need you!”

With that the two heroes gave each other a nod before rushing to the exit. Within minutes Tim was sprinting across the rooftops, watching as his former mentor swung away on his webs towards Avenger’s Tower. Making his way back downtown, he headed towards the alley where the Zeta Beam Chamber was located, his mind still full of questions he had wanted to ask.

"To think we'd be fighting the Red Skull." Bucky smirked at that thought of paying back the SHIELD foe.

"Stay on the mission, Bucky. You are to get Ghost Rider out of there and retreat." Nick Fury's voice came through the ear piece.

"Don't worry, Fury. They won't even know we are here." Bucky responded casually. Captain America's words would ring true for only a few more moments. A HYDRA Aircraft was being used by the Young Avengers as a Trojan Horse to sneak into the HYDRA Base. The radio activated with various voices in the background and a main voice shouting that the base was under attack. Hanger doors opened for the aircraft to enter. Unbeknownst to HYDRA, they were about to meet the full team. "Our Objective is to get Dani out of here but, I'm adding to it. We capture the Red Skull. Pilot....open the door."

It was a pretty weird sight for the Air Craft doors to open and the first thing insight was a green Kraken Monster attacking the HYDRA forces. Bucky's first thought was that Kyle had effectively ruined his stealth approach. The leader of the team ran out of the Air craft first ignoring the kraken assaulting the HYDRA forces; he was more focused on the heavily armed HYDRA soldiers blocking the door way. The forces took notice of the Young Avengers quickly. They opened fire on their adversaries with intent to kill. Bucky's reactions were far too quick to take damage from the weapons as he tumbled and flipped past the bullets. He literally leaped over the head of the HYDRA forces and kept on running through the base. Signs painted the way to the holding cells.

Turning a corner, Bucky was met face to face with a rather large orange hair woman with bulging muscles. Behind her was the Red Skull with a glorious smirk on his face. "Oh look..a man to crush." The woman held happiness in the tone of her voice before grabbing Captain America by his throat and slamming him through the wall beside them. Debris covered Bucky's body as he shook his head at disbelief from the feat. His eyes caught Red Skull staring at him through the hole in the wall.

"Well well Captain America. I would stay and play but, I have things to conquer. I leave you with Amazon. Enjoy." Red Skull began to walk away whilst Amazon's body grew a size bigger as she began walking toward her new foe.

"I never get the cute women."

---

"Or because they've moved their operation..."

From the other end of a CCTV camera, Penguin watched the two vigilantes break in and find nothing but an opened, empty crate. Empty, save for a single porcelain figurine of a certain black-and-white bird. Penguin watched as Red Hood toe-punted it, smashing the statue in frustration. He grunted in amusement, and then turned, the semi-smirk quickly fading as he matched his gaze with the obsidian eyes that stared out from beneath the mask. Roman Sionis cast an intimidating figure, stood in the shadows of the grungy metal room. His eyes betrayed no emotion.

They were aboard Penguin's ship - the Final Offer - docked in Gotham Harbor, and Black Mask was a less-that-welcome guest - but invited nonetheless. It begrudged Penguin even more that he now owed Black Mask thanks - and had been saved a large amount of business by the man's 'advice'. It had been 'advice' received on the end of bullying and the threat of more...Penguin was not a physically intimidating man, and Sionis knew this, Sionis knew he was a coward. A scrupulous businessman and a sampler of the finer tastes, Penguin was. A fighter and one to stand against someone even more brutish than he, he was not. Black Mask thought that perhaps his empire might not be so hard to reclaim. Penguin's drug trade was minutes away from falling under his hand, and others could simply be bought out with the income Penguin was to kindly forward him - but there were other bosses in Gotham, ones with more loyal followers, ones with no fear of pain and intimidation. Black Mask could think of one right now. Or was that two?

"Fine." Penguin said, finally, his voice a rough cockney accent, carrying a envenomed edge. "If your...'Society' can smooth out the smuggling operation, then I'll pass 20% on to you." Black Mask didn't move, but Tattoo did. Coming out of the doorway, he pushed forward and seized Penguin by the fur collar of his coat, pulling the stubby, sneering man up and out of his chair. He raised a fist and brought it down, sucker-punching Penguin in the gut, releasing him at the same time. Penguin fell to the floor onto his knees and wheezed. Tattoo stepped backward as Black Mask finally moved, taking a pace closer to Penguin and bending at the hip, hands clasped in each other behind his back.

"That's not what we agreed on, Cobblepot." He straightened up, walking around Penguin to stand behind him and help him up, placing one hand under his shoulder and the other gripping his forearm. "And I didn't save your best dealer from both Blackgate and the Bat so you could-" Black Mask moved his hands down quickly as Penguin stood and seized the index and middle fingers of his hand, clasping them together and pulling tightly back- "cheap me out of what is rightfully mine anyway." Penguin yelled and went back to his knees, cradling his now-broken fingers in his other hand. "You're lucky I didn't sink this sorry excuse for a ship with you on it and just...'inherit' your operation. 60% is what I asked for. 60% is what I'll get."

Penguin looked up, furious and in pain. He spat, but finally nodded. Black Mask's eyes were still empty of feeling, his heart barely beating. He straightened the sleeves of his suit jacket and buttoned it up, nodding to Tattoo, who helped Penguin up and handed him a splint and bandage for his fingers. "Good choice, Mr. Cobblepot. I'll expect my first share in the morning. Don't try to cheat me."
Black Mask and Tattoo left, leaving Penguin alone in the Final Offer, contemplating how he had just lost the majority of the only business he had managed to truly seize as his own in this town.

Back on dry land, Tattoo walked slightly behind Black Mask, keeping an eye on alleys and the shadows behind shipping containers as they paced back to Sionis' car, the all-black Bentley that had taken them from Blackgate. They got in, Tattoo sitting facing Black Mask, driving away to the penthouse apartment Black Mask owned under a pseudonym. They were quiet for a time, and then Black Mask spoke. His voice was gravelly, but there was a tone of satisfaction at the edges.
"Is the Shark still in Arkham?" He asked, and Tattoo nodded.
"Yes, sir. Since his...incident with Freeze, he's been in a solitary cell with regulated breaks. But he's been using the breaks well." Black Mask smiled slightly beneath the mask, turning to the tinted, one-way window.
"So I've heard. His rackets will be useful. See to it that we get them. Or him, if not otherwise possible. One cannot build an empire without the currency to fund it, and Penguin's drug trade won't be enough on its own. Not with 60%." Tattoo raised an eyebrow, clearly quizzical. Black Mask waved down the question he knew was coming. "Because he knew I wanted it all, he knows how I get what I want and he knows he's lucky I let him keep his life, let alone the 40%. He's under our thumb, and his men will answer to him more readily than me. For the time being, at least."

Black Mask looked out the window again. "Dent is our problem. He can't be bullied like Cobblepot. And his men are loyal to him over money. It'll have to be a...hostile takeover." Tattoo smirked, his hand unconsciously stroking the handle of the pistol on his side. Black Mask felt the weight of his own firearms, two automatic pistols hidden beneath his jacket in discreet shoulder holsters. "Dent and the Bat." He said, almost spitting the word. "And his young upstart wanna-be. The Bat I'll outmaneuver, when I decide to let him know I'm back to business. But if that kid sticks his nose in, call Wilson. I want it cut off and shipped to Blüdhaven."

Tattoo nodded. The car drove on.

“I know daddy.” Rose stood up, breaking free from her father’s loving embrace. Her legs proved to be shaky at first, and the blood beneath her skin still acted as if it were on fire, but it proved to feel more numbing than painful…like an icy-hot pack over her entire body. Finally stabilized, she ran her fingers through her now white hair before pulling off a hair tie from her wrist and put her hair up into a messy pony-tail.

“I lived with Joe remember? I grew up with him. It was him, me and mom, because you skipped out on your family all we had was each other.” She said, probably a little more venomously than was necessary, but she still held onto bitter feelings despite how many times she told Slade that she had forgiven him.

“When mom was killed, I left; I ran. Joe didn’t follow.” Her blue eyes looked downwards in an ashamed manner; something else she held onto with bitter feelings, but this time it was against herself.

“Can we just go home? I’m tired.” She asked, looking back up to her father’s masked face. It was an outright lie, and she knew that he probably saw right through her. Fatigue was the last thing that pulsed through Rose’s body right then, hidden beneath the continuous rush of adrenaline coursing through her blood stream. Had she not still been so mad at Jason, she would have just called him up right then and there to come pick her up and tear up the night like in instances before. But tonight she would go solo, she had a new body to test out now after all.

I snort. "Fatigue is the last thing on your mind. If you're anything like me, adrenaline courses through you. A test is required." I say. "And as to your brother, I did not abandon you. I protected you both. By staying in the shadows, I hoped to keep the two of you and your mother from my enemies. Believe me, Rose, I was there."

I pause a moment, considering whether to tell her more. "Your first dance recital, Gotham Elementary. I was there, in the third row, three seats from the center. I can recall every event I've ever attended of yours and Joe's. All I wanted was your safety." I pause, letting the words sink in, surreptitiously pressing a button on my belt. Twelve blocks away, the car I use for missions starts up, and heads here.

"Now that your safety is redundant, it's time you see what my world is really like. It's time for you to move further than errands. Today, Rose, you become my partner. You become The Ravager." The car arrives, skidding to a halt beside us. The dashboard pulls out to reveal her uniform, flanked by twin katanas and two handguns. I stride over to the driver's side, and get in. "So, do you accept?"

Wiccan, Hulkling, and Ben 10 all stayed in the same row and were waiting patiently for the chaos to unfold. Though a sudden sour note hit the air when Captain America suddenly made the call to capture Red Skull. “Oh man, we’re not cut out for this.” Wiccan muttered under his breath. “I mean who is that guy anyways?” Hulkling’s large green hand cupped Wiccan’s shoulder. Ben meanwhile though remained quiet, tapping his shoe against the bed and looking just as not happy with leader’s call. It wasn’t exactly the confidence booster that their leader, still rocking a dent in his head from the shield slamming into it, was making his own calls.

The ship landed and suddenly everyone had a moment of knowing what warfare was like for Bucky. Even though Teen Lantern’s giant kraken monster was rampaging through HYDRA forces. Wiccan upon getting out immediately provided shield support for the others while Ben twisted the knob on his omnitrix to Metacopy. His hair changing to black with a white tip up front. But that didn’t last as he grabbed Hulkling’s arm. Turning into a copy of the half skrull/half kree quickly. Sprouting wings and claws to swoop into battle. All the while making noises equating squealing glee as he flew around and kicked ass.

Meanwhile though, Hulkling stayed behind Captain America’s lead a few steps. Helping provide back up but also making sure Cap wasn’t about to go and do something stupid. Which sure enough happened as he got smashed around by the rather large man hater. As she gloated about getting to break Captain America though, a sudden smash through the wall next to her with a superman punch revealed Hulkling as he landed the punch square on her jaw. He dusted himself off landing as he reached out for Captain America’s hand. “Come on Cap lets get this she beast.” Hulkling called out to him.

Family Gathering Part One

Three hours had passed since Zsaz had been handed on a silver platter to the GCPD. While she thought them almost incompetent, she had to admit that men like Renee Montoya and Harvey Bullock, not to mention James Gordon, were all honorable cops doing the best they could with what they had. With Bruce out helping Jason, Gordon had asked her to stay behind. She obliged, hugging the shadows of his office. "You asked me to stay." She said. "So what is it?"

Gordon sat down at his desk, letting out a sigh. From a large stack of case files, he pulled out one that was by comparison, thin. "I know Batman is out doing something else, but since you're here, I thought I'd give you a case I wanted to hand off to him." She took the file, opening it. The cameras in her mask scanned it, creating an MP3 file for her to peruse. Gordon didn't wait for her to finish reading when he started. "Murder, out in the Bowery." She looked up, her interest piqued. "Name?" "Victim's name is David Calhoun. He worked at Hamilton Hill High School as a basketball coach, volunteered at the Y. His work information and particulars are in the file, along with Bullock's notes."

Black Bat closed the file and set it back down on Gordon's desk. "So why field it to us?" Gordon leaned back in his chair, and blew out an air of frustration. "No leads. Guy had no enemies, committee on the neighborhood watch, et cetera. Hell, we couldn't even find any forensic evidence. M.E. said the cause of death was a single headshot, but we have no holes in the wall, no shells. I mean, the bullet was still in his skull for chrissake."

She nodded, halfway out his window. "I'll look into it." Gordon tried to say a word of thanks, but when he looked up, she was already gone.

From what the MP3 told her, David Calhoun was found in an apartment near the Bowery's waterfront portion. This being the neighborhood it was, ingress wasn't hard. And with the case file, she used the Batcomputer to set up a virtual render of the crime scene. Single GSW, but no exit wound on the body. Bullet itself was....virtually untraceable. a hand went up to the stitched mouth of her cowl. "Oh God." She whispered.

Behind her, a man walked into the room, a gun in one hand.

"Hey, Cass. Daddy's home."

"Kyle....we ride."

Call me crazy, but I'm not too big a fan of the idea of expecting Satan's little pony to giddy up and carry us to freedom. So I made my own thing. And by 'my own thing', I mean to say that I generated a green lion that had eyes that were the blackest I'd ever seen. Cocking my head and looking at the flaming girl, I kneeled and gave a little curtsy, chuckling to myself before hopping onto the back of my construct and saddling myself.

I dropped my boot into the back thigh of my beast and barked, "Giddy up, Green Liontern." With that, the lion took off, pouncing in great bounds, going a good ten feet at a time. But Dani's horse, if my lion was the General Lee, the horse would be Greased Lightning.

Shortly after we took off, my lions momentous bounds were overtaken by the thunderous clops of the dark horse's feet. Neighing like a dragon was caged within him, the horse huffed small jets of flame and smoke from his nostrils.

But my lion, though less fear-inspiring, was just as astounding to look at. With a seaweed colored mane and overall lime fur over it's body. Every time he lunged forward, I felt my body be flung upward, constantly feeling like we were going to hit the ceiling. But, as we neared the exit of the corridors of the prison section, a trio of our teammates came into view, standing against a sturdily built woman who seemed to be able to hold her own against all three super-teens.

Dani's horse was the first of our transports to arrive on the scene. As she rode up towards the battling metahumans, a smoking chain pied with flecks of a molten orange and devilish red materialized before the psycho goth-girl threw it in the air, twirled it with a ghoulish grin, and launched it before it closed itself around the ankle of the woman attacking our teammates. From there, the woman did a 180 and spun to look at the approaching warrior. That's when Dani yanked her chain (no pun intended) and the heat of the links seared the woman's skin, releasing a ring of black smog that showed the woman's misdeeds like a film as they dissipated.

[B]"I come bringing vengeance to you disgusting servants of the Red Skull. Prepare to be cleansed," the Ghost Rider hissed as she tightened her chain, savoring the sinner's scream.

At that instant, I hopped off my lion, which then proceeded to tackle the hell out of that psycho hellspawn and her hell-horse. From there, I willed a bunch of Doc Oc style tentacles into existence that mounted themselves onto my back while I charged the woman and smacked her aside with a lash of hard-light. My teammates hooted and hollered, except a certain uptight bastard with an A for 'Asshole' stamped on his forehead.

"Ya' guys miss me?"