[IC] Catastrophe Keeps Us Together [zitacamron95]

[Zitacamron95]

Gotham, a dark city with a high crime rate and an even worse justice system. The whole city was a mess of crooked cops, corrupt politicians, mob wars and costumed villains trying to take over the whole city. It was enough to make anyone's head spin with the high crime rate, and so many horror stories about what happened a week ago. Any reporter would be set for life if they were able to survive the city, they wouldn't have to worry about finding a new story it would just come to them. The city may have been full of terrible secrets, but some people still had some faith that this place would get better. There were good guys still around, and they were doing the best they could to make such a city better. Some people still found love in this city, and some people still found themselves happy in this place. Somehow there was some good covered up by all the bad, but that might have just been the thoughts of one particular Superhero.

Superman was flying overhead, he wasn't a fan of visiting this city, but he did have a good reason to be checking up on it. There were reports of a vigilante running around fighting all of the bad things that came from this city. This new hero was getting quite a lot of praise from the press lately, even Lois was starting to research into him for an article. Clark, on the other hand, was a bit more cautious about a new hero popping up in Gotham. Gotham didn't really have a good track record when it came to having people that were trying to save the city. Most of them ended up just as corrupt as the people they were fighting against, and some were just as corrupt to begin with. He wasn't so sure that Gotham gaining a new hero was a good thing for the city, or if it was going to just put the city into more turmoil. It was for the best that he figured out what was going on now, and who this new vigilante was before things get worse.

He scanned the buildings looking for this hero that was supposed to be the savior of Gotham. There wasn't much that people knew about him yet, just that he was some sort of masked hero catching the bad guys that the cops couldn't catch. He knew that he was wanted by the police officers, for multiple reasons. He also knew that this hero went by the name of Batman and wore a bat costume. Which, in any other situation, Clark would call ridiculous, but he couldn't really talk much with the fact that most heroes went around in costumes, and he was one of them. He didn't really know many of them picking an animal costume, but he wasn't there to judge someone based on the costume they decided to wear to fight crime. Though, he's heard others make fun of the idea of a grown man in a bat costume fighting crime. Right now, his only concern was making sure this vigilante didn't have an evil motive behind what he was doing.

[mmidnight]

Gotham City hadn't always been the dilapidated, crime-ridden, hell hole that it was today. Years ago, before the murders, when Thomas Wayne had been running things, there was hope and prosperity; people had been happy. All of the light had died with Thomas and Martha, ushering in a new wave of desperation, crime and poverty that now had a stranglehold on the people of the city by the sea. It was a dirty place, from the most isolated alley, to the freshly polished floors of the mayor's office, corruption had settled in and it was ready to stay for the long haul. Along the way, there had been people who sought to change that, to clean up the city but they were always quickly silenced by dirty cops, hardened criminals or the long reach of the mafia families. Bruce Wayne, son of Thomas and Martha, eccentric billionaire who had recently returned home, wasn't afraid to go up against these people in order to restore the city to its former glory.

The night was cold, and the wind blew hard against the flexible armor covering Bruce's skin as he sat atop one of Gotham's many skyscrapers. With Alfred in his ear back home at the Manor, Bruce could easily keep an eye on what was happening on the streets below. There was chatter from the police comms, word of a planned heist by some low-level thugs and a drup shipment that was coming in from the docks. It was going to be a long night, but crime had been down ever since Bruce had put on the Batsuit and had taken justice into his own hands. He was cleaning up the city, and making a difference and it didn't matter that not everyone was thankful for his vigilance, he was making their lives better both through Wayne Industries during the day and as Batman at night.

The black-clad man blended in with the shadows and he kept his eyes open as he sat silently. In the distance, the tech in his cowl picked up on a figure and Bruce squinted his eyes to make out the shape. “I think I've got company,” he relayed to Alfred, eyes now able to make out the shape of a man. That stupid cape would have been recognizable anywhere, and the red stuck out like a sore thumb even against the muddy darkness of the polluted Gotham skyline.

Superman.

The alien had been all over the papers and on every news channel since revealing his powers, but Bruce had always assumed he would stay in Metropolis where he belonged. Truthfully, Bruce didn't trust the man, thinking that an alien species needed to be studied more, and what was to say that he wouldn't one day turn on the people he swore to protect? Obviously, the people of Earth, or at least Metropolis, were too gullible for their own good.

Still concealed by the shadows, Bruce moved from his position, now seeking to cut Superman off before he could come any further into Gotham. This was Bruce's home, his territory and he had a right to it by birth. Perhaps it was arrogant thinking, but a flashy alien in a bright red cape and a blue suit wasn't the type of hero that the people of this city deserved. Using the tools from his utility belt and the training he'd learned from distant lands, Bruce swung from building to building before finally landing on top of a bank. He was out in the open now, facing Superman without fear.

[Zitacamron95]

Clark looked at the old tall buildings, as he made his way through the large city. He was hoping to find Batman somewhere within one, or near one. He wasn't sure how often the vigilante worked, and where he might show up. He didn't have the time to do the research, since this guy was new to the public eye. He knew that that didn't always mean that he hadn't been working the whole time, there were plenty of heroes that didn't get recognized by the public immediately, and it took even longer for them to get recognized by other cities. Though, Clark did work for a news company, and they did do a lot of research into what was going on around the world. He probably found out about Batman way before the citizens of Metropolis got word of the new vigilante in Gotham. It wasn't something he expected the rest of the city to care about, but he was sure that it'd be a small article somewhere in the newspaper, or a small topic on the news, just to fill up some space.

Finally, Clark managed to look forward and found the man he was looking for in front of him. He quickly came to a stop, seeing the man standing there looking right at him. He wasn't really prepared for this kind of encounter, he was hoping more to see the Batman in action, and just kind of watch him work a few times. It was more like he was making sure that this guy wasn't just pretending to protect these citizens. He wasn't exactly sure that there was any need for him to even intervene right now. However, he did understand that he didn't blend in with anything and he would easily be spotted by anyone that looked up in the sky. That was kind of the point of his costume to begin with, that and he didn't really get a choice in the colors of the costume.

He just looked back at the man completely in black, with his face covered by a mask. "You must be Batman," Clark finally said. Well, that was quite an obvious thing for him to say. Who else could he be? He was dressed up like a bat, and there was really no way to mistake the design for any other animal. He wasn't really sure why those were the first words out of his mouth, but they were already out there. He wasn't really sure if that was his own stupidity or the fact that he wasn't really sure if he had anything to say to this guy to begin with. He wasn't there to have a friendly conversation with the guy, he was just worried about the city. Though, just jumping right into questions wasn't really a polite thing to do, nor could he just ask if the man was truly trying to protect the city.

[mmidnight]

Something that Bruce had always regretted was not buying Gotham's airspace. Perhaps if he had done that, there would have been a way to keep Superman out of his city. What the man in blue did for Metropolis was all well and good, but Gotham was a very different place with different people and much higher crime. There was a part of Bruce that doubted Superman's ability to deal with some of the rogues and mafia men who had come to power over the last few years. It wasn't something simple like giant monsters taking large chunks out of an urban area, it was men—flesh and blood humans who were ruthless and willing to do anything in order to terrorize the city's population. Bruce knew the streets and he felt that it was solely up to him to clean them up.

“You're observant,” Bruce replied, his own cape billowing gently behind him in the wind. He kept his eyes focused on Superman, ready to act at a moments notice if the alien were to attack. After studying the other man Bruce knew that he didn't stand a chance against such brute strength and force, but he still had a few tricks on his utility belt. He had trained with some of the best fighters in the world over the years and the key to winning was staying ahead of the competition. The man in the batsuit firmly believed that he could outsmart Superman when it came right down to it and his cunning only added to his learned skills. The other man should have thought twice about coming to Gotham for anything other than the impressive nightlife.

Unmoved from his spot, Bruce continued to stare at Superman's unmasked face, trying his best to read his intentions. “Is there something I can help you with? You're a little far from Metropolis,” he said, curious about what the other man could actually want if it wasn't a fight. However, Bruce wasn't one to stand around and talk during patrol and he was quickly growing annoyed about being away from his post. There were miles of city streets that needed to be looked over, and crimes that could be intervened on before they became a bloody scene. Superman's presence was preventing Bruce from doing his job, from protecting the weak and vulnerable, and keeping him from the cause he had selflessly taken on. Bruce didn't think that lives needed to be sacrificed over an unnecessary and unwarranted pissing contest.

[Zitacamron95]

Clark noticed the fact that the man was ready for a fight. Clark didn't plan on starting one unless he had good reason to, whether that be because this man decided to start a fight or if this man decided to harm the innocent. Though, he was quite sure that he could easily take this guy, as far as he was concerned The Batman didn't have any superpowers, but could have been because nobody's been able to report about them. He did have to be careful, but unless this guy knew about his weakness there wasn't much concern when it came to a fight. Even if this man did know about his weakness it wasn't like he had a chunk of kryptonite at the ready, not unless he was Lex Luthor, who seemed to be the only human being that carried around green kryptonite. He was almost positive that he'd win in a fight against The Batman, there wasn't really much stopping him from picking this guy up and bringing him to jail right now. It wouldn't be that hard with the superstrength and the ability to fly.

He wasn't too happy with the man's attitude as well, the body language showing that the man was ready for a fight, the way he spoke wasn't exactly welcoming. It wasn't like Clark was expecting the man to be extremely welcoming, but he was quite sure that this man already saw him as an enemy, which wasn't something he liked. He may have just gotten used to being treated like a hero everywhere, but either way it didn't make him too pleased to find out that this guy was all that pleasant to talk to. It made everything seem like this man wasn't really understanding the idea of being a hero. The public looked to them as idols, whether they liked it or not. This man was going to influence the way other people acted, and Clark was rather disappointed that it seemed like it wasn't going to be good for the people that idolised The Batman. That wasn't something Clark really needed to focus on right now though, there were more important factors to being a hero that did matter more.

"I came by to check out the new hero," Clark shrugged, finally figuring out an answer to the question. He couldn't just blurt out that he wanted to make sure that this guy was actually a good guy. Though, he was pretty sure that could be gathered by what he had just said. He couldn't cover up everything that he was doing, that'd be unfair and also a complete lie. He wasn't the best a lying. "I was hoping to see you in action, rather than meeting like this," Clark added to his already terrible explanation. He needed to talk to Lois about better ways to interrogate people. This already wasn't working out too well for him.