Gotham City, Equestriaby KumquatodorChaptersRoad to GothamThe Mark of the BatBruce Mayne: Jerk of the Century!Fluttershy the TerribleNight VS. KnightRoad to GothamThe Mane Six and Princess Luna gathered in the back of Luna's personal train. The car was fairly luxurious, with a dining area and, most important of all, privacy. Privacy was a good thing because, if ponies knew that there was such a place as Gotham City, there would be outrage. “So what's our mission, Princess?” Applejack finally asked. The Mane Six had asked this before, but Luna only responded with “There are too many people around”. When the Six were asked to help, they had only been told that they would be leaving to Gotham City for a few months on a semi-dangerous mission. With a little convincing to Fluttershy, they had all agreed to leave. Now that they were on their way, away from any eaves-droppers, Luna would explain. “What do any of you know about Gotham City?” she asked. “Well,” Twilight started. “I know it's a port city, famous for its Gothic architecture, and that it is supposedly cursed.” “How is 'Gotham' a name for a city?” Dash quipped. Pinkie replied with, “Maybe it's because of the architecture. Still needs more 'pony' in the name. 'Trotham' or–” “Regardless, there's also a relatively high violent crime rate,” Luna interrupted, neither able nor willing to listen to one of Pinkie's tangents. “Whatdya mean?” asked Applejack. “There's a...” Luna thought about how best to explain it. “high likelihood of being attacked if you go some places at night.” “By manticores or hydras?” Rarity questioned. Luna mentally groaned. Naivety, it seemed, was the price of utopia. 8 weeks ago. Luna trotted through the corridor on the way to meet her sister for a security briefing. Her first since returning from her banishment. Her first since she went insane. Her first since threatening complete omnicide. She gulped. "So, Princess..." her personal guard, Quick Wing, said, trying to ease the tension. "How's the Modern Equestrian lessons going?" "Quite fine." she said, remembering to be short-winded. "I have the basics, apparently, but no-pony can tell my S's from my F's. And I still have no idea why 'the Royal We' went out of style." Quick Wing chuckled. "Why did 'the We' even come in to style?" "You'd be surprised the unity it creates." She smiled. This was one of the few ponies outside the Six and her sister who had discovered, "No, you don't have to kiss her hooves or run screaming or stay mute until she leaves". "Musta needed unity after the Discord and Windigo thing, eh?" "Indeed..." Luna responded. "I'm awfully happy that stuff like war never really happens anymore." Luna raised an eyebrow. "What about in Griffornia?" It was now Quick Wing's turn to raise an eyebrow. "What about Griffornia?" "Surely there exists war?" "Conflicts, maybe. But war? Nah! No real crime, either." They arrived at the destination, where Quick Wing left the sisters to themselves."Bye" he said with a wave. Luna nodded. Luna hesitantly entered the room, where she was met with her sister's hug. "Sister! How are you?" Celestia beamed. "Fine, dear sister..." she looked around. A relatively small room, with an oak table that had a few files on it, and a large map on the wall. "How... is violence in the world?" "Whatever do you mean?" Celestia responded breaking the hug, "We -- I... was just talking with Quick Wing. He stated that violence didn't happen any more... Is this true? Has war ended? Has murder, rape, starvation, all ended?" "Well... Equestria's a utopia... We've had minor conflicts, but... No war... No crime, either..." "What of the rest of... Equus? What of Griffornia or Draconia or Canaaine?" Luna might not have been the cunning tactician her sister was, but she was still a genius in her own right, inventor of the abacus. She knew the fact that Celestia hadn't answered immediately was cause for concern. "If we were to describe the peace and happiness levels..." Celestia floated a paper over to Luna who took the paper in trembling hooves. Peace Levels (Harmony Units) Crystal Empire -- 9,001 Equestria -- 7,500 Draconia -- 4,000 Canaaine -- 3,500 Changeling Kingdom -- 3,430 Grifornia -- 3,000 Star City --2,500 Tartarus -- 1,000 Gotham -- 250 "Oh, sister..." Luna beamed. "This... This..." "That's why I called you here. D-Do you see "Gotham"? "Y-yes... It's less harmonious than Tartarus itself!" "Yes. It is also a city in Equestria." Luna stared at her sister, her mouth a gape. "Celestia..." "That's why I called you here. The situation stands..." Luna took a deep breath willing herself not to cry in frustration, and said, “There are 235 violent crimes per 100,000 citizens a year.” The ponies looked in awe. This was absolutely unacceptable. Everywhere else in Equestria, foalnappers would beg for forgiveness if they accidentally harmed their hostages. Rainbow Dash remembered Gilda telling her about Griffonia's less Utopian society, spending a large amount of time explaining what filly-abuse was. Rainbow nearly refused to believe that this happened more than once a century. That month, Rainbow petitioned for this to be stopped, but Princess Celestia responded "I would if I could, but... I can't fix a sovereign nation without invasions, and... even if I could... I don't know how I would stop this problem..." It hurt, knowing that Celestia was not omniscient. Of course, the ponies all knew she wasn't omniscient, but knowing a fact and being forced to confront it were to very different things. And every pony knew that they were going to have to confront facts once more. “How could a city become that bad?” Fluttershy half-asked, half-whimpered while hiding behind Rainbow Dash, shaking at the thought of her destination. Luna looked down at her hooves. “We tried to help. We truly did. And we failed every step of the way. We sent millions of bits to the mayor, but the money seemed to just... disappear. We would have investigated, but the Mayor ended up... dead... the next month. Tia calls Gotham her biggest failure... She even imposed martial law... Gotham only destabilized further.” The ponies all looked green. Fluttershy was in the dining area now, hiding under a table, shaking uncontrollably while Pinkie's mane straightened. “Who did it?” Rainbow Dash asked, recovering from the momentary sickness. “We don't know,” Luna responded. “I sent my best team to investigate possible corruption a few months back. An assassin, Deathstroke, decided to dampen that plan. We found eight of the guard floating in a lake. Two were never found. And one was found in the sewers, apparently eaten by a very large crocodile.” Luna looked up at her friends, the ponies that forgave her for turning into Nightmare. “You see why I didn't want normal civilians to hear about the place..” “But crocodiles are nice!” protested Pinkie Pie, her main inflating slightly. “I mean, sure, one might nibble on your leg, but they would never EAT you! They are nice and wonderful and––” “That's another thing,” Luna interrupted, feeling slightly bad about treating Pinkie that way. “This place seems to be like the Everfree Forest. The sky is different. Plants grow as they wish, though hard-working ponies have kept them in their place. Animals are more violent. Why people stayed here, I've no idea.” Fluttershy crawled out from under the table. She was crying.“Can't I go home?” “We need you to be here so we can fix the city.” Luna responded gently. “No you don't. You all can do it yourselves. I'm not needed!” “Please, Fluttershy, the Mane Six are needed to inspire the ponies to be more friendly. Please. We need you.” Luna was almost begging. She hate putting a pony into this position. Fluttershy was still shivering, crying a bit. With all the pressure put on her, she felt like she was going to crack, even with all her friends comforting her. “We'll be staying at Mayne Manor," Luna continued, ignoring all the guilt building in her. "It's the safest place in the city. It's probably even more secure than the castle. Bruce Mayne has state-of-the-art security in place. I pinkie promise you will be safe. I wouldn't have asked you to come if Mayne hadn't offered to let us stay at his mansion.” Fluttershy thought for a moment, then nodded. The city needed her, so she had to be strong. “Okay,” she whispered, then she went back under the table and curled into a ball. Pinkie and Rarity went to comfort her. “Bruce Mayne is still alive?” she asked. “Yes. Apparently, he was studying in Trottingham this whole time.” Luna answered, a slightly knowing smile on her face. “What studying was he doing that took 10 years?!” “I do not know. Perhaps you should ask him.” Luna looked around, then remembered that she had one last announcement. How am I going to say this? She thought about it for several seconds, all the while leaving Twilight to stare at her. “Princess?” Twilight asked. “Is everything okay?” “What? Oh. Um... Yes. Everything's fine.” Luna stepped away from Twilight a little, then called for all the ponies' attentions. “Some ponies claim there is a bat-monster in Gotham, but I assure you: there is NO monster.” Pinkie seemed to understand completely and immediately went back to planning a “Going Home” party for later. The other five took a few seconds to comprehend what they'd just heard, but when they did they all nodded and went back to their business. Rarity was still comforting Fluttershy. Meanwhile, Luna went on explaining the mission: be beacons of hope to show that the city could be better. Twilight was multitasking, thinking about the Bat-monster and planning possible methods to succeed. Luna said that it didn't exist, but Twilight was still curious. How did this superstition come about? What if there was a bat-monster. Surely bats would prefer warmer climates. So many questions formed... What was that about Gotham? The Mark of the Bat“Now entering Gotham City,” the conductor said over the speakers. 'Finally,' thought Luna. Twilight had asked no less than a thousand questions, though she did stop and take several minutes to write in her journal. Now that they had arrived, these questions would stop and they would all get some rest. Luna had raised the moon already, so that was done. All she needed now was some rest. At the announcement that they had arrived in Gotham, the ponies all looked out the windows. They realized that they were fairly high off the ground, riding a kind of monorail. The monorail, they saw, led across the city, several turns and tracks accommodating multiple trains. They all had a central hub in the heart of the city: Mayne Tower. Mayne Tower was an impressive skyscraper, gargoyles on every few floors. The top floor had two: Thomas and Martha. Mayne Tower was one of the few buildings to look clean. One of the few you could actually see through all the smog! All the buildings other needed a good washing, too, and a few buildings tilted slightly! Gargoyles were a common sight in the city. They lined certain buildings looking down to the world below. The gargoyles seemed to be watchful protectors of the residence. After further research, Twilight would learn that these gargoyles were called the Dark Knights of Gotham. Another peculiarity of the city was the sky. It was blood red. This made the city look even more gritty than it already did, with the building silhouetted by Luna's moon. Indeed, the “Red Sky” was an big attraction for tourists, and it was easy to see why. You would never see this kind of thing in Canterlot. *** The group exited the train, but not before throwing on some cloaks. These cloaks were enchanted to make the wearers seem unremarkable to anyone who wasn't paying attention. So they could walk past normal ponies without concern, with only the most observant pony noticing the group. Luna took note of the guards in the station. They were placed sparsely around the room, all armed with spears and armor. Why could a station possibly need armed guards? Luna also noticed that everypony took long strides to avoid getting close to these guards. Strange... Rarity was slightly confused. She noticed that almost everypony was wearing clothes. While such behavior was normal in high-society cities, these were not normal clothes. They were old, torn, uncomfortable looking. They seemed to almost choke the ponies. Why doesn't anypony discard those rags? Rainbow Dash was astounded at how high the pegasi were flying. It was as if they were trying to escape through the ceiling, like they were trying to stay as far away from other ponies as possible. Huh... Applejack was uneasy, especially about the guards. Those ponies were hiding something. She could feel it in her bones! What with the way ponies were avoiding the guards, she could just smell the corruption. Pinkie was... sad. There was no joy here. No euphoria. Normally she would do some hops and sing a song, but... That wouldn't work. This can't be happening! Never before had she felt the overwhelming despair that she felt here. Fluttershy couldn't take her eyes off the homeless that lined a wall, wearing rags and huddling together. She watched as they starved, feeling completely helpless. She couldn't fix this on her own. Twilight ignored the helplessness around her. Instead, she listened, swiveling her ears to hear a discussion on the bat. Ten minutes later, they realized they had made a wrong turn. Twilight stopped hypothesizing over the Bat's favorite snack, taking in her surroundings for the first time. They were on a street, but these streets were somehow worse than the others in the city. There was trash everywhere, spray-paint on all visible walls, and several discarded knives covered in what they all hoped was rust. They learned not to peer into the alleys. Whenever they did, they saw vaguely equine-shaped objects laying in the darkness. Applejack wished she could lie to herself and say, 'the ponies are just sleeping on the cold, rock-hard concrete. And they had some of my cupcakes. That's why they smell like dead cattle.' All the girls kept their eyes to the ground, eyes clenched shut to stop the tears. Even Luna seemed sick. 'Just don't use your sense of smell,' Rarity told herself. 'It's all fine! They're alive...' Seeing these corpses, the group were filled with new resolve. They would fix this city, come Hades or Poseidon. After several moments, Fluttershy heard a sound and reflexively looked behind herself. Then she saw him. “Um... girls?” Fluttershy whispered, her throat soar from the silent sobbing she had done while walking down the road. “Ya, Fluttershy?” Rainbow Dash responded, failing to hide the catch in her throat. “There's a... pony... who may or may not be... possibly following us.” The ponies turned around to see an orange earth pony with almost no mane. He was severely underweight, likely anorexic. He stopped in his tracks, looking to the group awkwardly. He was clearly nervous. Luna steeled herself, inserting authority into her voice. “May we help you?” “No, ma'am,” he said quickly turning back around to hurry off. “Hey,” Pinkie Pie appeared in front of him, inspecting him with a magnifying glass. “Are you following us?!” She got close to his face, her eyes magnified 10 fold. “Uh, n-no!” stammered the stallion. “I was just, uh,” he paused, “wanting your... pictures, yes, for my art.” The Mane Six and Luna thought about it. It was obvious the guy was lying. On the one hoof, this guy was spying. On the other hoof, he might leave them alone if they would give him the autographs. “Okay,” Luna finally said. “Do you have a camera?” The stallion looked confusedly, and then realization crossed his face. Then horror. He'd been caught. “N-no,” he said. He looked everywhere but at the princess in front of him. “You see... I was... well... uh––” “You were spying, weren't you?” Luna interrupted, her voice cold. “Y-yes,” the stallion replied. “Please... I'm sorry! I'll never do it again! Please don't take my art!” Luna looked at the pathetic creature. He was cowering on the ground, not unlike Fluttershy would do. 'Is this how bad the city is? Do you fear for your life after simple transgressions? And... Does he have scars on his cutie-mark?' Luna walked over to the shaking stallion and patted him on the back. “Do not worry. I won't hurt you. Why were you spying?” “Well,” he sniffled, then seemed to forget any sadness or fear that he had felt. He started to star at Luna more intently. “I don't know if I should say.” “Pleeaaassseee!” Pinkie begged, once again appearing near the stallion. He didn't flinch at her sudden appearance; his eyes were always on Luna. “I was paid,” he said, his voice now devoid of emotion. “Who? Who paid you?” Luna had a gentle voice now. The last thing she wanted to do was terrify this pony. She could only guess what he had been through. “I don't know,” he said. “What did he look like, then?” Luna asked. “He was no where near as beautiful as you,” he said, changing tones from emotionless to affectionate. Luna blushed, more at the awkwardness of the compliment than the actual compliment itself. “He was orange. Had a black mane. Looked kinda like Bruce Mayne. Couldn't have been the same pony, though. This guy had a deeper voice. And he had the dirtiest coat. He was clearly very poor.” the pony continued. He paused for a second, staring at Luna lovingly. “I bet you're not poor, though. You're too beautiful.” Luna was confused. 'What is this guy doing? Does he really think he had a chance?' After more contemplation, Luna decided to reject him gently; this guy was clearly unstable. “I–” Luna started, but the stallion interrupted her. “I have chosen you to be my next mark. Will you come willingly?” Luna thought quietly for a few seconds. If I turn him down, he might have a psychotic break. I should be kind here. I know! The stallion held his breath as he waited for a response. Then Luna levitated several bits over to the guy. “Mr.?” “Zsasz.” he responded, anticipation in his voice. “Here you go, Mr. Zsasz. This should cover your troubles. Now, please leave us alone.” her voice had subtle anxiety. He looked at the money in his hooves. Thinking. 'Maybe this kindness proves that the world isn't meaningless,' Zsasz thought. 'No! I need the mark!' “Nice try,” he said, not even trying to conceal his menace anymore. He tossed the money to the ground as the Six hid behind Luna, Fluttershy was in the early stages of a mental breakdown. Luna's horn was lit and ready. Though she wasn't the best at combat spells, she would certainly be able to take this underweight psychopath. “But you cannot separate me from my mark!” Zsasz continued, becoming more and animated. “I will drag the knife through the flesh and you will be––” Zsasz collapsed to his knees mid-sentence because of something in the sky: bats. A large colony was flying through the sky, their black bodies contrasting with the red skies. Zsasz got over the momentary shock and got back to his hooves, putting on some kind of weak fighting stance. “Leave me alone, Bat! I need the mark!” He turned to look behind him, then turned back, then checked his sides, over and over again as if expecting the Bat-pony to appear out of thin air. This gave the seven other ponies an opportunity to see his cutie-mark more clearly, or what was left of it. It appeared to be something to do with paint, but you could hardly make out the brush because of the scars covering it. Tally marks. The Six and Luna were watching, too paralyzed to move. This guy was unraveling in fear. Terror. “I will find you!” he threatened as he turned to Luna. In a desperate attempt, he charged. "You must be my mark!” But after a few steps, the colony overhead converged on a single target: Zsasz. The bats knocked the ponies lucid. As Zsasz struggled and screamed something about his 'mark', other ponies were running down the street. They didn't care where they ran, as long as it was away from that psycho. They slid to a stop when a luxurious chariot landed in front of them. “Are you the Elements of Harmony?” the passenger asked. The ponies nodded, not capable of coherent speech yet. “Get in!” the passenger ordered. The seven were happy to comply. They piled into the chariot. The chariot took off at speeds that Rainbow Dash could appreciate. They reached cruising altitude, and the seven tried to stop panicking. They looked around. It was a luxurious chariot, large enough to keep them comfortable. The passenger was an old pony, though he was much younger than Granny Smith. He wore an expensive-looking tuxedo that, along with his white mane's careful orderliness, boasted of great wealth. “Excuse my momentary lack of manners” the passanger, an almost elderly stallion, asked. “My name is Alfred Bitworth. I am the personal Butler of Bruce Mayne. When you didn't show up at the Iceburg lounge, I had assumed you got lost. When I found you, you all looked terrified!” “Yes,” Luna started. “We–” Dash interrupted. “We were assaulted by this crazy stallion who went on and on about 'his mark', whatever that means. He was getting violent, but I could've taken him in 10 seconds fl–” Twilight zoned out at this point. Luna's, and possibly her own, brush with death still replayed in her mind. That psycho could have killed them all. Well, Luna would have stopped him. But it was scary non-the-less. But something stopped him. Bats wouldn't just attack a single target like that. It wasn't in their nature. Something had to be directing them, controlling them. The Batpony. And Twilight vowed to find him, to think him for saving her. Bruce Mayne: Jerk of the Century!The ponies arrived at Mayne Manor. It was large, and though it was only half the size of Canterlot's castle, it was somehow more intimidating. Its yellow stonework was now covered in foliage trying to push its way into the cracks. The Manor's high towers were lined with large cameras that flashed several times, though obviously the collapsed towers were devoid of such instruments. The gardens off to the side were old and full of weeds, and beyond that was a forest, kept into place by magic runes placed there centuries ago. Alfred led the ponies up the steps, to the door. He stepped to the side and moved a stone out of its position to reveal a small hole. The butler levitated a seemingly random stick over to the hole, inserting it into what the ponies realized was a lock. The butler then removed the stick and snapped it in two. He took the now two sticks, then put one into the lock and threw the other into a hole in a tree. When the stick landed in the tree, one of the stones of the manner flip around to reveal a board covered in numbered buttons. Alfred pushed in a four number code, then the huge gates of the manner cracked open. "How paranoid is this guy?" whispered Rainbow Dash to no-pony in particular. She gasped when Alfred answered, "VERY. I have to look underneath the chariot every time I ride in it. He's afraid someone put a bomb under it. You'll have to forgive him." The ponies walked through a huge hall area decked with the cameras from. Up some steps flanked with photos of Waynes the ponies trotted, finally entering into a dining room. The table was covered in extravagant food, most of which only Luna had tasted before. There were eight plush chairs around the fine oak table. In one sat a large, handsome stallion wearing a puffy gown-like suit sprinkled with jewels. He was a darker shade of orange than Applejack, and his coat was far more orderly than anyone would have though possible. Not one hair was longer than any other, except for his relatively short mane. "Greetings. I realize that it is late, but I do not know how much food you've had, so I felt it necessaryy to have Alfred prepare a feast. You are under no obligation to partake in this meal, though. If you wish, Alfred will take you to your guest room. He will also take your bags. So, how many of you intend to eat." Apparently, all the ponies intended to eat. Despite their tiredness, they all hadn't had any meal of substance since the early morning. Also, Bruce Mayne was kinda gorgeous, and he did go to all the trouble of telling his butler to make a whole meal. "If you don't mind me asking, who designed you lovely suit?" Rarity asked. "I'm absolutely jealous!" "I did," said Mayne, a small smile playing on his lips. Rarity giggled at the joke, or at least she thought it was a joke. "So how was the trip here?" Mayne asked. "It was TERRIBLE! We stayed in a train for eight hours and, then, we got lost! We were attacked by this meany named Zsasz, who kept flirting awkwardly, and he wanted to cut us or something and we barely made it alive. Your butler saved us, so I'll have to throw him a party. Oh! Doyoulikeparties? Iloveparties. Iknow! Wecouldthrowa----" "I'mnota hugefanof parties, but there is apartyI'm goingto attend nextwee---" "Aparty!?!" "Yesaparty. Itneeds a planner.Wouldyoulike to help?" The other six ponies watched in awe as Mayne and Pinkie conversed at speeds faster than any of them could easily understand. Mayne was almost keeping up, though he often slowed to take a breath. How did he do this? After a series of event no one could be completely sure about, Pinkie had ended up leaving to plan some party. Mayne was panting hard, completely out of breath. The ponies stared at him in awe. "Wha-at?" he wheezed. "It got he-er awa-ay, dinin't it?" It took several seconds for him to fix his breathing pattern, but once he did, he turned his head to Twilight. "Everything alright? You look pre-occupied. Anything my money can do to fix it?" "Wha-Oh. Ah--no. Thanks. I'm just thinking..." Twilight said. "About what, if you don't mind my asking," "Uh... the Batpony," Twilight blushed. Bruce just stared at her for a second. Thinking. Then his eyes narrowed, staring not only into her eyes, but into her soul. "He saved you, didn't he?" Twilight gasped. "How did you know that? Pinkie didn't talk about that part, did she?" "No, she didn't. She said Alfred saved you. I deduced it. I studied detective work for eight months. I know some tricks." "But how did you deduce that?" Applejack asked. "There was a attractive young stallion sitting in front of her, the most attractive ever to live. He was wearing the most distracting garb in his closet. She was surrounded by gorgeous decor. Everypony else was marveling at something in the room, be it me or a portrait. If she was thinking about the Batpony for more than a half a minute, it would be likely that she had some kind of encounter, especially considering that she was attacked earlier. Alfred, though more agile than most ponies his age, would not be able to fight of a murderous pony. Batpony, however..." Twilight lifted her jaw off of the table. "What if you were wrong?" "Then I would be wrong, and lose nothing. But I'm never wrong." He smirked in an irritating fashion. "Well... uh... I-I'm going to find him. I owe him a thanks." Mayne leaned in close, though he was across a table, so it didn't matter. His elbows went into bowls of pudding and gravy. He seemed to ignore them, focusing on Twilight. He dropped his voice to a whisper, despite knowing the fact that everypony else at the table could easily hear him. "Now, you didn't hear it from me, but there are rumors that police lieutenant James Gordon secretly works with the Batpony. If you confront him about it, he would deny it. But if you say something like 'The Batpony save me and for that I am eternally grateful', well, I'm sure he would pass the message." "Thanks for the suggestion." Twilight said. She would have to meet this James Gordon. 'Side note,' she thought. 'What's with these rediculous names? James Gordon? Zsasz?' *** The ponies had all retired to bed, including Twilight. She was too busy planning too think about the ridiculously large bed or the perfectly temperature pillow. In fact, she only noticed the box when she laid on top of it. Shook lucid by the sharp edges going into her back, she sprung off her bed, then examined the box. It was, of course, beautiful. On it, it had a tag. To Twilight S., From Bruce M.. She undid the wrapping, feeling a bit guilty at tearing the jewel-encrusted paper. Inside was a dress that somehow fit her perfectly. It was, again, perfectly en-jeweled with real diamonds. She could imagine Rarity fainting over its beauty. In the box was also a note: Dear Twilight Sparkle, A beautiful dress for a beautiful mare. Please do not tell the others Elements. If they knew I made you such presents, They would become such a scare. Sincerely, the last Mayne. Twilight read the card over several times. He had been so nice to give her these gifts. Was he just trying to be friends? Was he trying to be something more? Did it matter? Bruce Mayne had been arrogant, sure, but he could be useful in finding Batpony. He had so many resources... No! I can't allow myself to take advantage of him like that. Ponies are ponies, not tools to throw away when you're done! Twilight silently scolded herself for her manipulative plots. "I was stupid and careless!" she heard a voice in the next room say, a strange one. A dark one. A scary one. "Shh, sir... they'll hear!" said Alfred's voice. What was going on? Some guy was scolding himself. Who? No-pony could possibly get in hear with that lock unless Alfred let them in. She had been away from the room for five minutes, so they couldn't have let anypony in... Could it have been Bruce? Alfred called him "sir". His voice DID sound fake earlier... to high. Maybe? No. He had no reason to hide his voice. Unless he was that paranoid. It was possible. But he locked his house so no-pony could enter without his permission. Why disguise his voice? What was he protecting? Then it hit her. He had deduced that she had been saved by Bat-pony. If he was Bat-pony, he could know that, and claim it to be deduction. If Mayne was Bat-pony, he left for ten years to perfect his magic to terrify criminals. Mayne must be on level with the Princesses if the legends were true. The legends, she gathered from Luna, involved a monster teleporting several times, fighting off several ponies, flying, controlling weather, disrupting magic, and even moving the sun backwards. If these legends were true, then Mayne would be very powerful. And she knew how to be sure. She would perform a spell so that she could see a pony's magical aura. Yes. Then she would confront Bruce if her theory was correct. Her horn started to glow, and she started to sweat. The magic flowed from her as she recited Latin. Then it stopped. She looked down at her hooves and saw a bright purple aura around them. It worked. There was a small bit of magical residue that marked her hoof steps. But wait... The spell wouldn't last till morning. She would have to do this again. Unless...Why should she wait? She could go see Mayne to thank him for the dress, then she would see his aura and prove that he was Batpony and thank him. Yes. *** Twilight crept out of her room. She tip-hoofed down the hall. She saw Luna's hoof-steps along the way, teaching her not to look directly at them. Luna's magic residue was so bright that it gave Twilight head-aches, though Rarity's hoof-prints were not too terribly bright. She found Bruce's hoof-prints and followed them. Her theory was failing, though. His magical hoof-prints were not bright; they were dull. She had to make sure the spell was still working just to make sure. All ready starting, her curiosity took over as she followed the spectral hoof-prints down halls, up stairs, down stairs, in a circle, on the roof for some reason, and her journey culminated at... a wall. A dead end. What? This would mean that he had a secret hide-out behind the wall. She marked its location for later. It might be useful. She turned back ready to go back to her room. As soon as she did, however, she met eyes with Bruce Mayne, who had appeared out of nowhere. He stuck a hoof over her mouth to muffle her scream. "Quiet. Ponies are sleeping." he whispered and smirked. "Speaking of that, I better," Twilight started, about to trot off. "You were following me, weren't you?" Twilight stopped, and turned to face him. "What?" "You heard me..." his voice still had the playful arrogance it usually had. "Well... I... I thought... It... I don't have to answer you!" She whispered very aggressively, already forgetting her excuse. She turned back around to trot off, but she jumped back when she once again met eyes with Bruce. "Weren't you just---" "Why were you following me?" "How do you know I was following you?" "Your horn is glowing. You turned your head when you looked in the exact place that Luna stepped. You followed my hoof-steps perfectly. I know that because I followed you from the stairway you went up." He smirked at her blush. She was suddenly feeling very stupid. "... Yes. OK. I... I thought you were Bat-pony..." Twilight blushed slightly, then looked into Bruce's eyes. Bruce just stared at her, and the look on his face told her she was right. He was Bat-pony, and he was looking for a way to prove otherwise. She smirked, knowing she had beaten him. Her smirk dropped, however, when Mayne responded with his own smirk. "That's funny. I was thinking that YOU were Bat-pony!" Fluttershy the Terrible"What would give you that idea?" she asked, trying not to seem shaken by his stare. Sure, his smirk made him look playful, but his eyes were cold and analyzing. "Let's look at your traits, shall we?" he smirked even bigger. "A powerful mare with a strong devotion to harmony. Busy workaholic that disappears for days at a time. Most powerful unicorn since Starswirl the Bearded. Friends with billionaire princesses who share devotion to harmony and capable of amassing more tools than ever. Smart pony. Has a friend, a master flyer. And master theater mare. And a superstrong earth mare. Arrive in Gotham. Attacked, but somehow saved. Ultra powerful friends... And you're telling me that not one of you is the Bat-pony, or that a combination of you aren't?" "W-well, umm..." Twilight couldn't think of a response. "So you ARE the Bat-pony!" he proclaimed. "No! But I can't prove... Hey, what's behind this wall?" "A secret," he said, blushing. "What, your Bat-pony costume?" "N-no. A shrine." Twilight's eyes widened. "To whom?" "To you..." Twilight was dumbfounded. Could this be an act? "W-What?" "You heard me..." "Look, I..." she was interrupted with a ringing, much like that of an alarm clock. Mayne went up to the source, a small device with a plastic ear/mouth piece attached to a box with a wire. The box read "WAYNE PHONE" "Yes." Mayne answered, putting the "phone" to his face. Mayne's voice was much deeper than his normally nasally voice. "Yes... How many? I'll be there" He put the phone down and walked out of the room in some pace. Twilight followed. "Weren't you just---" "I'm busy. Go to bed." "What are you doing?" "A secret. Go to bed." "No. You were telling me about a shrine and then---" "I'm busy. Go to bed." He was walking through a corridor that was dimly lit. "Where are you going?!" she asked as they went into a medical bay. "Get several beds ready. We are about to get visitors." Mayne said to Alfred. Mayne turned to Twilight. "Ponies have been poisoned. They're coming here. Tell the others." He stormed off. Twilight turned to Alfred. He looked very serious. "Tell them!" She galloped off to her room. She had often visited the castle, so navigating this was a peace of cake. "Everypony get up!" she shouted down the guest corridor. "Wha?" Rainbow muttered, half awake. "Ponies have been poisoned! They have to be treated here!" "Calm down. What's going on, exactly." Luna asked in a calm voice. "I don't know. Mayne hasn't told me anything. He just told me to take you to the medical wing!" *** A group of police officers brought in at least twenty ponies. They were writhing in fear, screaming about whatever they were hallucinating. It was all the police ponies could do to tie these ponies to the beds. Fluttershy tried her hardest to calm them down, but she was apparently terrifying. "STAY AWAY!" proclaimed one patient. When she took a step closer, the patient took to trying to strangle herself. The ponies had to use magic to restrain them, and the glow caused even more screaming. Everypony except Luna was crying at the immense fear ponies had been feeling, and she had come close to breaking. Being the strongest magic user, she attempted to cure the ailment with magic. When she tried, a pony had a heart-attack in sheer terror. This was the breaking point for almost everypony in the room. After two hours of screaming and a few more heart-attacks, Bruce Mayne burst through the door, looking like he had just fought off a pack of timber-wolves. He was carrying a few vials of a liquid. He loaded it into a syringe and injected it into a pony's foreleg. The pony screamed a bit more, then stopped thrashing. His breathing stabilized, and he fell asleep. Soon, all the drugged ponies shared the fate. "Where did you get the cure?" Luna asked, a small catch in her throat. "I found it." he said, panting. "Are you all okay?" He looked to every ponies. The doctors nodded, used to this kind of thing in Gotham. The police were playing checkers throughout the screaming, and just looked up to nod before going back to their game. The Mane Seven were certainly not "okay". Luna, on the outside, was okay. She looked composed and as calm as possible in this situation. On the inside, though, she felt like Nightmare again. She had killed. Accidentally, of course, but still. The doctors had warned her, but she thought her skills were so above the doctors' that she wouldn't hurt the patient. Twilight was helpless. Her one asset, magic, just terrified ponies. Rarity had never felt so useless. She was never a fighter, but now she could do nothing. Applejack was desperately trying to convince herself that this city could be fixed. As the Element of Honesty, though, she couldn't bring herself to lie to herself. Rainbow was trying to ignore the screams. Trying her hardest. Even after they ended, she could still hear it. And she would for several nights thereafter. Pinkie, like Luna, was feeling like a murderer. She had opted to "laugh the ghosties away". This resulted in five heart-attacks. And Fluttershy... she was silently dying inside ever since she watched one pony try chew his own leg off... Night VS. KnightPinkie Pie was not happy at all. After a day long train ride, she had to trot through the saddest station ever with guards sneering at her and the homeless ignoring her. After walking through an alley-way filled with corpses (she couldn't deny it now), her friends and her were attacked by meany-mcmeany-head Zsasz. OK. This vacation was salvageable. She had gotten a nice dinner of some exotic form of sugared hay. She got to talk with super-duper-cutie Bruce Mayne. She even got to plan a party to be thrown in a week. Cool. Then the poor drugged ponies had been brought in. She laughed them to screaming death. By accident, she had to remind herself. By accident. Oh, she needed a party. She was going to have a party, too. When Twilight and Luna got back from talking with Commissioner Gordon about what the hay happened last night. Rainbow Dash was feeling decidedly less awesome than she would have liked to feel. She hadn't gotten sleep last night, and not for lack of trying. Every time she got still and quiet, and her breathing slowed and her eyes closed, she would be jolted awake by screams that would disappear as soon as she woke up. She had come to Luna, and asked her to fight the nightmares off. Luna said that they were based on psychological trauma. That they were permanent without therapy. Great, Dash thought. Now I'm crazy. Applejack was asleep. Well, perhaps "mildly catatonic" would be a better word to describe her. It was easier this way, she rationalized. Now she didn't have to lie. "They're corpses!" she could now say, smiling. "And those ponies died of heart attacks!" She repressed a giggle. "And, we'll never fix this city!" Of course, as a trade off, she could only stare lazily off into the distance with that wide smile. It was worth it. Now, she could be totally honest, and not a liar like before! She noticed that she hadn't had any thoughts for several moments, so she thought up a new thought. "I'm insane!" 'I am Fluttershy', Fluttershy knew. 'What does that mean?' she thought, and immediately answered, 'Well, I am kind. The kindest. And that's what the city needs!' That makes sense. She would be kind. To everypony. Yes. She'd even find that Zsasz guy and help him with his art. He sounded like he needed a kind friend. Rarity kept her eyes to the ground, but stopped when she bumped into Twilight. She realized she had to look straight ahead. So that she didn't mess something up. Twilight and Luna needed clothes for their mission, because, according to Mayne, not wearing clothes would be an "invitation". Well, Rarity understood that she was useless, so she made the clothes. But they weren't too pretty. Pretty clothes are distracting. She was perfect for the job of making ugly clothes; she couldn't make pretty clothes if she tried because, as evidenced by last night's horror-show, she was useless. She even failed at making ugly clothes. Look at how pretty the dresses she made were. She failed at making nondescript dress. How useless she felt. The Bat, still conversing as Bruce Mayne, analysed. Twilight might have considered having a mental breakdown, but that would make her fail the mission to save Gotham. If she failed to save Gotham, Twilight would have failed Celestia. And Twilight couldn't allow herself to fail Celestia. He gathered this from the "Want-it-need-it incident". Twilight had always needed mental help, he concluded, But she isn't a dire case. Luna is jaded. She's always been. The twitch in her eye when you compliment her. She doesn't care. The slight, out-of-it nod when you mention the future optimistically. She puts her head down oh-so-slightly when you talk about the present. She tenses when you talk about the past, unless you talk about the time surrounding Star Swirl the Bearded. Mild-to-severe-depression. Repressed anger. In love with Star Swirl. Nothing new. Nothing to worry about. May need help, but not immediately. Pinkie Pie. Hypomania, possibly mania. Also, diabetic, but she keeps it a secret. She needs help, but she is remarkably resistant to trauma. Self worth judged by friendship. So long as she has friends, she will survive. As for the others... Immediate psychological help required. "We should keep them out of the city..." Mayne told Luna and Twilight silently. "Your friends are... out of it..." "I-Is this normal? Rarity keeps saying she's useless, an---" Twilight sound down. "No, Twilight... This isn't normal..." "Look, we should probably send them to a trained psychologist. Somepony good. I have a net worth of 56,000,000,000 bits. Anything is worth it. We should start this as soon as possible." "I propose we do this immediately after we meet the commissioner." "Good idea. Meanwhile, we should have Ms. Rarity make dresses for you before you go out. This might break the illusion that she's useless, and it would also fix a problem..." "What problem?" Twilight asked. Mayne bit his lip. "When ponies don't wear clothes... It's seen as an... invitation... for... misbehavior... Even though it shouldn't." "What do you mean?" After an awkward conversation and waiting for Rarity to make the dresses they trotted to the GCPD building. Twilight had to hand it to Mayne, he wasn't as... flirtatious as he could have. I guess he does have a heart. Luna and Twilight couldn't help but feel embarrassed at all the police officers staring at them... suggestively... They were directed to the roof where Jim Gordon took his break. Apparently, "Jim" was a nickname for "James". Gotham and it's naming conventions. After climbing up a somewhat lengthy staircase and a using a prototype elevator, they arrived outside. Jim (James?) was sitting out smoke a... thing. A cigarette? Did Equestria even make those? He was an unicorn, old and worn. He had a few marks on his horn, indicating that there had been some violence at some point. Interestingly, there was a flood-light on the roof. In the smoggy darkness, she couldn't tell that it is special. "Hello?" Twilight coughed. "Hey," he said almost sound bored, and not at all startled by her appearing behind him. Gordon looked out at the city, leaning over the of roof's guard rail. "We came to ask about last night's... problem." Luna didn't seem affected by the smog, perhaps because she was an alicorn. Twilight wished she were an alicorn, but she knew that it was too ridiculous to happen. "Ah. There was a mad pony. A psychological alchemist by the name of Crane. He used his position to test his new potion on his patients. When we found the patients, we took them to the calmest place they could be treated at: Mayne Manor." "What happened to crane?" Twilight asked. Gordon hesitated. "If you read the official report... I-it says a tactical effort by Gotham's finest took down Crane and his men." "'Official report'?" Luna asked slowly. "Yes." "Is that what really happened?" Luna asked, annoyed. "Well... Evidence points to Crane's capture the work of an anonymous vigilante, described by the criminals as resembling a giant bat..." "The Batpony?!" Twilight was getting excited. "Y-yes. That's what the tabloids are calling him." "Oh! I want to interview the prisoners and---wait! I've heard that you worked with the Batpony! Is it true?! What's he like?! Oh, he saved me the day before yesterday! Could you thank him please!?" Twilight was actually starting to sound like Pinkie Pie now. She stared at the Commissioner, her eyes wide. "O-Official policy---" Gordon started before being interrupted by a new voice. "Thank me yourself. Then leave." The ponies turned to the source of the voice, a patch of shadows cast from a taller building obscured the pony. Twilight was very much excited, doing a small little dance. She channeled Pinkie Pie with a series of "Omigosh"es until Luna sternly interrupted her, reminding her that she was not a child. "Umm... excuse me..." she blushed, trotting a little towards the shadow. "I want to thank you for saving me before. So thanks..." "You shouldn't thank me..." the voice sounded almost sad. "What are you talking about?" Twilight said, trotting towards the shadows. "You saved my---" she stopped mid-sentence when a throwing knife landed next to her. It was shaped like a bat. She looked at wide-eyed. "You're getting too close," he said simply. She realized that she was just before the threshold of darkness, so close that she could practically reach her hoof out and touch it. At this distance, she could also see the vague outline of the Bat's shape. He was tall, about as tall as Luna. This was due to him being bipedal, much like Spike. He had horns on his head, and she could just make out the yellow and black shape on his chest. A stylized bat. Twilight was now unsure this thing was even equine. "And besides," it continued. "I sent Zsasz on you..." "What?" she almost whimpered, backing up. "Zsasz is a schizophrenic who has convinced himself among his delusion that harmony is unobtainable for a living pony. He kills and marks his flesh in remembrance because he is sure that it is the only true generosity. I looked to convince him he was wrong. He was being hunted by the police, but he had managed to allude them. He could not allude me. I disguised myself as a homeless stallion. Zsasz liked to look at train stations for his next victim, and it just so happened that the you all were going to arrive that night. Considering that you all are symbols of the best equinity, I knew you would offer him money despite the fact that he followed you. So I made sure he followed you, and hoped he would not go completely homicidal until you showed him generosity. I hoped that this generosity would convince him to turn himself in. It didn't work, and he attacked you. I was on the skyscrapers watching you in case he went off, but I shouldn't have put you in harms way for the 28% chance that he would reform." The ponies looked at him(?), mouths agape. No... This didn't fit Twilight's theories at all. "You were under no threat of death, but the trauma is still real, which brings us to the next point..." His tone hadn't changed. "Wait... you..." Twilight's voice was shaky. "You sent Zsasz..." "That doesn't matter anymore. You need to leave." His tone was flat. "I'm afraid we cannot do that..." Luna stepped past Twilight, towards him. "We are the Elements of Harmony and the Princess of the Night. We have to stay until the city is fixed. And we cannot have vigilantes upstaging police and sicking innocent ponies." Luna's horn lit up a deep blue. "Wait..." he said, no urgency in his voice. "Hear me out." Luna hesitated, and then extinguished her horn. "If you don't leave, you will make the city infinitely worse." he still hadn't changed tones. "How so?" "Stop me if I'm misinterpreting your plan. You will give the ponies of Gotham an idea to aspire to. You plan to show them what can happen if they only surrendered to friendship, because friendship is magic. Do I have the right idea?" "Yes. Why wouldn't that work?" Luna's tone was getting more aggressive and she stepped closer still. She was now at eye level with the Bat, and Twilight and Gordon had watched with baited breath. Twilight had only heard rumors, and Gordon had only saw the effects of his work. To Twilight's shame, she actually started a bet with Gordon that Luna would win the fight. "Because you're out of your depth." the Bat's tone did not change, but Luna couldn't help but feel she was being antagonized. "True or false, the presence of the drugged ponies with you made you uncomfortable?" "True, of course, bu---" her tone was getting exasperated, but then she was interrupted. "How many of you were driven insane?" There was a silence. There was a heart beating loud. She realized it was her heart. And then the fight started. "How dare you!?" Luna lit up her horn, but before she could attack, the knife right behind her exploded. It might have hurt a normal pony, but it wouldn't hurt Luna. The bang did, however, shake her horn off target, missing the Bat who flew off towards a nearby roof across a gap. The Bat had crossed the line, and so she was ready to attack. She lit up her horn, but was startled by a loud bang. This caused her to miss her shot. A pegasus? No matter. She zoomed in front of him. This is amazing! Triple Hammerhoofs to muzzle, back spin kick. He turned his forelegs parallel to his chest and jammed the hard side into her muzzle, just left of her nostril. This was a weak spot. Left, right, left. He followed up with a back spin kick, but Luna sent a foreleg up to block it. The Bat's leg stopped immediately in it's tracks, possibly injured. I can't even see their strikes! Foolish. Just another brawler. Doesn't he know I'm a warrior princess? With his leg straight up, he contorted himself so that he spun and ducked under her foreleg, coming up with an uppercut to the jaw. Luna didn't flinch. Instead, she jammed a hoof into his chest. It was too fast to block. Too fast to see. He walked backwards, clumsily. It was one thing to walk forward, another thing to walk backward. The former was merely a skill that took years to develop. The latter was nigh-impossible for a pony to do correctly. Both were hard to do with bruised/broken ribs. He fell back on his rear, scooting backwards on his haunches. She's too strong. Too fast. Go to Strategy H.. He took a moment of reprieve while Luna slowly approached. He got back to an upright position, only to be tackled by Luna. I couldn't see her move! I've won. This is where I meet the Pancration champion of 237. What if... "It's over!" she yelled. The Bat was on his back, Luna's hoof raised for the final blow. She was laying on top of him, her hind legs keeping his hind legs from raising. While this stopped the Bat from leveraging her to her back, it did leave his forelegs free. She hadn't worried about them, as his punches couldn't hurt her. But while his punches couldn't hurt her, electricity could. For you see, in the position they were in, her chest was exposed. Not usually a problem in combat. However, a mare's chest is very vulnerable to electricity, connected to several sensitive nerves. And he just happen to have electrodes in his belt... She screamed in pain as the equivalent of .01% of a lightning bolt jolt through her. That does not sound like a lot, but it was enough to make her heart skip a beat. She felt much to hot, and you could swear her body was smoking. However, she was on top of him, and so some of the voltage went through him. He had tried to keep his suit insulated, but no insulator is perfect. So while Luna took the brunt of it, he still took more than he wanted. After they both stopped convulsing, he pushed her off from on top of him. She was at least 300 lbs., and in his condition, it was hard. He started to walk away, when: "Princess Luna!" Twilight's voice. Far away. No hoofsteps. Unicorn. She'll use Magic Blast. Relying on instinct, he rolled, which hurt with his overly-tense muscles, bruised ribs, and aching lungs. In that split second, Twilight missed him. She missed him again as he went into a trot, too fast for her to aim. But now she had him in her sights. She would hit h--- Luna was still conscious, rising too. This all stopped when the Bat rushed to her and picked her heavy frame up slightly for use as a shield. She was jolted awake in pain when Twilight's Magic Blast hit her in the side. She was still conscious, but in pain. "Stay out of this, Twilight!" she growled. She felt herself move as the Bat got out from under her, starting to rise. She used the fact that she was moved to her advantage, and jammed her head into the Bat's side. If that rib wasn't broke before, it was now. He skidded across the roof, stopping against the rail. He used said rail as support. Luna was rising. Now was his only chance to beat her. If they fought for any longer, he would either loose or fall unconscious. With only half a second of thought, he attacked. In one last sprint, he galloped. He reached her just as she had risen to her full height. He stepped on he haunches, bringing her back down to her knees. He climbed on her back as she lit her horn. She would get no chance to use it, though, as he pressed a button on his belt that dropped a specific pepper from his gauntlet. This pepper, which was not permanently damaging, entered her eyes. She screamed and bucked, which just got him closer to his horn. He had went to Phase 2 immediately after he pushed the first button. With one deft, selectively-magnetic hoof, he took his sonic-disrupter. When she bucked, this got him close enough to put it to her horn. When it contacted the magic aura surrounding it, her magic reverberated, into her body. You see, magic waves and sonic waves both operated in similar ways. Similar enough to alter one with the other. And when the magic waves reverberate into you, it tenses all muscles, including the heart. It also clears the stomach out by pressing down on the stomach, then pulling up on it, giving it enough kick to start the victim vomiting. This wave hit several organs, but this is not a worry for all ponies, and Luna was the top echelon of ponies when it comes to durability. Of course, this was not very healthy for a horse to experience no matter their durability. Equally unhealthy for anything is to have sonic/magic waves go directly out one's ears and nostrils. The sonic disrupted caused just that, because magic needed a way out due to the pressure differential in the body. This would be enough to render any being unconscious. Finally, the alicorn went limp under him. He tossed a thing towards Twilight. The thing covered the area in thick smoke, and he used this smoke to fly off. Or at least, it looked like he flew off. In reality, he had shot off his grapple. She couldn't tell through the smoke. Battle Diagnosis: My injuries: Bruised shin, at least one broke rib, four bruised ribs, two(?) ribs sprained, 8 overtaxed muscles from electricution, dislocated shoulder from lifting too much, one pulled muscle from lifting too much (miraculously not a tear!), possible concussion. Total Recovery Time: 10 months. Next Night Out: Tomorrow. Change in Schedule: Negative. Luna's injuries: Vision loss, possible scorched throat. Disturbed eardrums. Startled heart. Burned sinuses. About 46 overtaxed muscles Total Recovery Time: 1 month Next Night Out: 3 days. Change in Schedule: Unlikely. He shook his head to stay awake as he ran across roof tops to the cave entrance... A mile or two away. Incidentally, he would collapse when he arrived, and would only wake up just before Luna and Twilight got back from the hospital. Author's Note Yeah, I think the previous chapter's aren't to good, but apparently, people like them, so I'll be updating. See you soon!
Road to GothamThe Mane Six and Princess Luna gathered in the back of Luna's personal train. The car was fairly luxurious, with a dining area and, most important of all, privacy. Privacy was a good thing because, if ponies knew that there was such a place as Gotham City, there would be outrage. “So what's our mission, Princess?” Applejack finally asked. The Mane Six had asked this before, but Luna only responded with “There are too many people around”. When the Six were asked to help, they had only been told that they would be leaving to Gotham City for a few months on a semi-dangerous mission. With a little convincing to Fluttershy, they had all agreed to leave. Now that they were on their way, away from any eaves-droppers, Luna would explain. “What do any of you know about Gotham City?” she asked. “Well,” Twilight started. “I know it's a port city, famous for its Gothic architecture, and that it is supposedly cursed.” “How is 'Gotham' a name for a city?” Dash quipped. Pinkie replied with, “Maybe it's because of the architecture. Still needs more 'pony' in the name. 'Trotham' or–” “Regardless, there's also a relatively high violent crime rate,” Luna interrupted, neither able nor willing to listen to one of Pinkie's tangents. “Whatdya mean?” asked Applejack. “There's a...” Luna thought about how best to explain it. “high likelihood of being attacked if you go some places at night.” “By manticores or hydras?” Rarity questioned. Luna mentally groaned. Naivety, it seemed, was the price of utopia. 8 weeks ago. Luna trotted through the corridor on the way to meet her sister for a security briefing. Her first since returning from her banishment. Her first since she went insane. Her first since threatening complete omnicide. She gulped. "So, Princess..." her personal guard, Quick Wing, said, trying to ease the tension. "How's the Modern Equestrian lessons going?" "Quite fine." she said, remembering to be short-winded. "I have the basics, apparently, but no-pony can tell my S's from my F's. And I still have no idea why 'the Royal We' went out of style." Quick Wing chuckled. "Why did 'the We' even come in to style?" "You'd be surprised the unity it creates." She smiled. This was one of the few ponies outside the Six and her sister who had discovered, "No, you don't have to kiss her hooves or run screaming or stay mute until she leaves". "Musta needed unity after the Discord and Windigo thing, eh?" "Indeed..." Luna responded. "I'm awfully happy that stuff like war never really happens anymore." Luna raised an eyebrow. "What about in Griffornia?" It was now Quick Wing's turn to raise an eyebrow. "What about Griffornia?" "Surely there exists war?" "Conflicts, maybe. But war? Nah! No real crime, either." They arrived at the destination, where Quick Wing left the sisters to themselves."Bye" he said with a wave. Luna nodded. Luna hesitantly entered the room, where she was met with her sister's hug. "Sister! How are you?" Celestia beamed. "Fine, dear sister..." she looked around. A relatively small room, with an oak table that had a few files on it, and a large map on the wall. "How... is violence in the world?" "Whatever do you mean?" Celestia responded breaking the hug, "We -- I... was just talking with Quick Wing. He stated that violence didn't happen any more... Is this true? Has war ended? Has murder, rape, starvation, all ended?" "Well... Equestria's a utopia... We've had minor conflicts, but... No war... No crime, either..." "What of the rest of... Equus? What of Griffornia or Draconia or Canaaine?" Luna might not have been the cunning tactician her sister was, but she was still a genius in her own right, inventor of the abacus. She knew the fact that Celestia hadn't answered immediately was cause for concern. "If we were to describe the peace and happiness levels..." Celestia floated a paper over to Luna who took the paper in trembling hooves. Peace Levels (Harmony Units) Crystal Empire -- 9,001 Equestria -- 7,500 Draconia -- 4,000 Canaaine -- 3,500 Changeling Kingdom -- 3,430 Grifornia -- 3,000 Star City --2,500 Tartarus -- 1,000 Gotham -- 250 "Oh, sister..." Luna beamed. "This... This..." "That's why I called you here. D-Do you see "Gotham"? "Y-yes... It's less harmonious than Tartarus itself!" "Yes. It is also a city in Equestria." Luna stared at her sister, her mouth a gape. "Celestia..." "That's why I called you here. The situation stands..." Luna took a deep breath willing herself not to cry in frustration, and said, “There are 235 violent crimes per 100,000 citizens a year.” The ponies looked in awe. This was absolutely unacceptable. Everywhere else in Equestria, foalnappers would beg for forgiveness if they accidentally harmed their hostages. Rainbow Dash remembered Gilda telling her about Griffonia's less Utopian society, spending a large amount of time explaining what filly-abuse was. Rainbow nearly refused to believe that this happened more than once a century. That month, Rainbow petitioned for this to be stopped, but Princess Celestia responded "I would if I could, but... I can't fix a sovereign nation without invasions, and... even if I could... I don't know how I would stop this problem..." It hurt, knowing that Celestia was not omniscient. Of course, the ponies all knew she wasn't omniscient, but knowing a fact and being forced to confront it were to very different things. And every pony knew that they were going to have to confront facts once more. “How could a city become that bad?” Fluttershy half-asked, half-whimpered while hiding behind Rainbow Dash, shaking at the thought of her destination. Luna looked down at her hooves. “We tried to help. We truly did. And we failed every step of the way. We sent millions of bits to the mayor, but the money seemed to just... disappear. We would have investigated, but the Mayor ended up... dead... the next month. Tia calls Gotham her biggest failure... She even imposed martial law... Gotham only destabilized further.” The ponies all looked green. Fluttershy was in the dining area now, hiding under a table, shaking uncontrollably while Pinkie's mane straightened. “Who did it?” Rainbow Dash asked, recovering from the momentary sickness. “We don't know,” Luna responded. “I sent my best team to investigate possible corruption a few months back. An assassin, Deathstroke, decided to dampen that plan. We found eight of the guard floating in a lake. Two were never found. And one was found in the sewers, apparently eaten by a very large crocodile.” Luna looked up at her friends, the ponies that forgave her for turning into Nightmare. “You see why I didn't want normal civilians to hear about the place..” “But crocodiles are nice!” protested Pinkie Pie, her main inflating slightly. “I mean, sure, one might nibble on your leg, but they would never EAT you! They are nice and wonderful and––” “That's another thing,” Luna interrupted, feeling slightly bad about treating Pinkie that way. “This place seems to be like the Everfree Forest. The sky is different. Plants grow as they wish, though hard-working ponies have kept them in their place. Animals are more violent. Why people stayed here, I've no idea.” Fluttershy crawled out from under the table. She was crying.“Can't I go home?” “We need you to be here so we can fix the city.” Luna responded gently. “No you don't. You all can do it yourselves. I'm not needed!” “Please, Fluttershy, the Mane Six are needed to inspire the ponies to be more friendly. Please. We need you.” Luna was almost begging. She hate putting a pony into this position. Fluttershy was still shivering, crying a bit. With all the pressure put on her, she felt like she was going to crack, even with all her friends comforting her. “We'll be staying at Mayne Manor," Luna continued, ignoring all the guilt building in her. "It's the safest place in the city. It's probably even more secure than the castle. Bruce Mayne has state-of-the-art security in place. I pinkie promise you will be safe. I wouldn't have asked you to come if Mayne hadn't offered to let us stay at his mansion.” Fluttershy thought for a moment, then nodded. The city needed her, so she had to be strong. “Okay,” she whispered, then she went back under the table and curled into a ball. Pinkie and Rarity went to comfort her. “Bruce Mayne is still alive?” she asked. “Yes. Apparently, he was studying in Trottingham this whole time.” Luna answered, a slightly knowing smile on her face. “What studying was he doing that took 10 years?!” “I do not know. Perhaps you should ask him.” Luna looked around, then remembered that she had one last announcement. How am I going to say this? She thought about it for several seconds, all the while leaving Twilight to stare at her. “Princess?” Twilight asked. “Is everything okay?” “What? Oh. Um... Yes. Everything's fine.” Luna stepped away from Twilight a little, then called for all the ponies' attentions. “Some ponies claim there is a bat-monster in Gotham, but I assure you: there is NO monster.” Pinkie seemed to understand completely and immediately went back to planning a “Going Home” party for later. The other five took a few seconds to comprehend what they'd just heard, but when they did they all nodded and went back to their business. Rarity was still comforting Fluttershy. Meanwhile, Luna went on explaining the mission: be beacons of hope to show that the city could be better. Twilight was multitasking, thinking about the Bat-monster and planning possible methods to succeed. Luna said that it didn't exist, but Twilight was still curious. How did this superstition come about? What if there was a bat-monster. Surely bats would prefer warmer climates. So many questions formed... What was that about Gotham?
The Mark of the Bat“Now entering Gotham City,” the conductor said over the speakers. 'Finally,' thought Luna. Twilight had asked no less than a thousand questions, though she did stop and take several minutes to write in her journal. Now that they had arrived, these questions would stop and they would all get some rest. Luna had raised the moon already, so that was done. All she needed now was some rest. At the announcement that they had arrived in Gotham, the ponies all looked out the windows. They realized that they were fairly high off the ground, riding a kind of monorail. The monorail, they saw, led across the city, several turns and tracks accommodating multiple trains. They all had a central hub in the heart of the city: Mayne Tower. Mayne Tower was an impressive skyscraper, gargoyles on every few floors. The top floor had two: Thomas and Martha. Mayne Tower was one of the few buildings to look clean. One of the few you could actually see through all the smog! All the buildings other needed a good washing, too, and a few buildings tilted slightly! Gargoyles were a common sight in the city. They lined certain buildings looking down to the world below. The gargoyles seemed to be watchful protectors of the residence. After further research, Twilight would learn that these gargoyles were called the Dark Knights of Gotham. Another peculiarity of the city was the sky. It was blood red. This made the city look even more gritty than it already did, with the building silhouetted by Luna's moon. Indeed, the “Red Sky” was an big attraction for tourists, and it was easy to see why. You would never see this kind of thing in Canterlot. *** The group exited the train, but not before throwing on some cloaks. These cloaks were enchanted to make the wearers seem unremarkable to anyone who wasn't paying attention. So they could walk past normal ponies without concern, with only the most observant pony noticing the group. Luna took note of the guards in the station. They were placed sparsely around the room, all armed with spears and armor. Why could a station possibly need armed guards? Luna also noticed that everypony took long strides to avoid getting close to these guards. Strange... Rarity was slightly confused. She noticed that almost everypony was wearing clothes. While such behavior was normal in high-society cities, these were not normal clothes. They were old, torn, uncomfortable looking. They seemed to almost choke the ponies. Why doesn't anypony discard those rags? Rainbow Dash was astounded at how high the pegasi were flying. It was as if they were trying to escape through the ceiling, like they were trying to stay as far away from other ponies as possible. Huh... Applejack was uneasy, especially about the guards. Those ponies were hiding something. She could feel it in her bones! What with the way ponies were avoiding the guards, she could just smell the corruption. Pinkie was... sad. There was no joy here. No euphoria. Normally she would do some hops and sing a song, but... That wouldn't work. This can't be happening! Never before had she felt the overwhelming despair that she felt here. Fluttershy couldn't take her eyes off the homeless that lined a wall, wearing rags and huddling together. She watched as they starved, feeling completely helpless. She couldn't fix this on her own. Twilight ignored the helplessness around her. Instead, she listened, swiveling her ears to hear a discussion on the bat. Ten minutes later, they realized they had made a wrong turn. Twilight stopped hypothesizing over the Bat's favorite snack, taking in her surroundings for the first time. They were on a street, but these streets were somehow worse than the others in the city. There was trash everywhere, spray-paint on all visible walls, and several discarded knives covered in what they all hoped was rust. They learned not to peer into the alleys. Whenever they did, they saw vaguely equine-shaped objects laying in the darkness. Applejack wished she could lie to herself and say, 'the ponies are just sleeping on the cold, rock-hard concrete. And they had some of my cupcakes. That's why they smell like dead cattle.' All the girls kept their eyes to the ground, eyes clenched shut to stop the tears. Even Luna seemed sick. 'Just don't use your sense of smell,' Rarity told herself. 'It's all fine! They're alive...' Seeing these corpses, the group were filled with new resolve. They would fix this city, come Hades or Poseidon. After several moments, Fluttershy heard a sound and reflexively looked behind herself. Then she saw him. “Um... girls?” Fluttershy whispered, her throat soar from the silent sobbing she had done while walking down the road. “Ya, Fluttershy?” Rainbow Dash responded, failing to hide the catch in her throat. “There's a... pony... who may or may not be... possibly following us.” The ponies turned around to see an orange earth pony with almost no mane. He was severely underweight, likely anorexic. He stopped in his tracks, looking to the group awkwardly. He was clearly nervous. Luna steeled herself, inserting authority into her voice. “May we help you?” “No, ma'am,” he said quickly turning back around to hurry off. “Hey,” Pinkie Pie appeared in front of him, inspecting him with a magnifying glass. “Are you following us?!” She got close to his face, her eyes magnified 10 fold. “Uh, n-no!” stammered the stallion. “I was just, uh,” he paused, “wanting your... pictures, yes, for my art.” The Mane Six and Luna thought about it. It was obvious the guy was lying. On the one hoof, this guy was spying. On the other hoof, he might leave them alone if they would give him the autographs. “Okay,” Luna finally said. “Do you have a camera?” The stallion looked confusedly, and then realization crossed his face. Then horror. He'd been caught. “N-no,” he said. He looked everywhere but at the princess in front of him. “You see... I was... well... uh––” “You were spying, weren't you?” Luna interrupted, her voice cold. “Y-yes,” the stallion replied. “Please... I'm sorry! I'll never do it again! Please don't take my art!” Luna looked at the pathetic creature. He was cowering on the ground, not unlike Fluttershy would do. 'Is this how bad the city is? Do you fear for your life after simple transgressions? And... Does he have scars on his cutie-mark?' Luna walked over to the shaking stallion and patted him on the back. “Do not worry. I won't hurt you. Why were you spying?” “Well,” he sniffled, then seemed to forget any sadness or fear that he had felt. He started to star at Luna more intently. “I don't know if I should say.” “Pleeaaassseee!” Pinkie begged, once again appearing near the stallion. He didn't flinch at her sudden appearance; his eyes were always on Luna. “I was paid,” he said, his voice now devoid of emotion. “Who? Who paid you?” Luna had a gentle voice now. The last thing she wanted to do was terrify this pony. She could only guess what he had been through. “I don't know,” he said. “What did he look like, then?” Luna asked. “He was no where near as beautiful as you,” he said, changing tones from emotionless to affectionate. Luna blushed, more at the awkwardness of the compliment than the actual compliment itself. “He was orange. Had a black mane. Looked kinda like Bruce Mayne. Couldn't have been the same pony, though. This guy had a deeper voice. And he had the dirtiest coat. He was clearly very poor.” the pony continued. He paused for a second, staring at Luna lovingly. “I bet you're not poor, though. You're too beautiful.” Luna was confused. 'What is this guy doing? Does he really think he had a chance?' After more contemplation, Luna decided to reject him gently; this guy was clearly unstable. “I–” Luna started, but the stallion interrupted her. “I have chosen you to be my next mark. Will you come willingly?” Luna thought quietly for a few seconds. If I turn him down, he might have a psychotic break. I should be kind here. I know! The stallion held his breath as he waited for a response. Then Luna levitated several bits over to the guy. “Mr.?” “Zsasz.” he responded, anticipation in his voice. “Here you go, Mr. Zsasz. This should cover your troubles. Now, please leave us alone.” her voice had subtle anxiety. He looked at the money in his hooves. Thinking. 'Maybe this kindness proves that the world isn't meaningless,' Zsasz thought. 'No! I need the mark!' “Nice try,” he said, not even trying to conceal his menace anymore. He tossed the money to the ground as the Six hid behind Luna, Fluttershy was in the early stages of a mental breakdown. Luna's horn was lit and ready. Though she wasn't the best at combat spells, she would certainly be able to take this underweight psychopath. “But you cannot separate me from my mark!” Zsasz continued, becoming more and animated. “I will drag the knife through the flesh and you will be––” Zsasz collapsed to his knees mid-sentence because of something in the sky: bats. A large colony was flying through the sky, their black bodies contrasting with the red skies. Zsasz got over the momentary shock and got back to his hooves, putting on some kind of weak fighting stance. “Leave me alone, Bat! I need the mark!” He turned to look behind him, then turned back, then checked his sides, over and over again as if expecting the Bat-pony to appear out of thin air. This gave the seven other ponies an opportunity to see his cutie-mark more clearly, or what was left of it. It appeared to be something to do with paint, but you could hardly make out the brush because of the scars covering it. Tally marks. The Six and Luna were watching, too paralyzed to move. This guy was unraveling in fear. Terror. “I will find you!” he threatened as he turned to Luna. In a desperate attempt, he charged. "You must be my mark!” But after a few steps, the colony overhead converged on a single target: Zsasz. The bats knocked the ponies lucid. As Zsasz struggled and screamed something about his 'mark', other ponies were running down the street. They didn't care where they ran, as long as it was away from that psycho. They slid to a stop when a luxurious chariot landed in front of them. “Are you the Elements of Harmony?” the passenger asked. The ponies nodded, not capable of coherent speech yet. “Get in!” the passenger ordered. The seven were happy to comply. They piled into the chariot. The chariot took off at speeds that Rainbow Dash could appreciate. They reached cruising altitude, and the seven tried to stop panicking. They looked around. It was a luxurious chariot, large enough to keep them comfortable. The passenger was an old pony, though he was much younger than Granny Smith. He wore an expensive-looking tuxedo that, along with his white mane's careful orderliness, boasted of great wealth. “Excuse my momentary lack of manners” the passanger, an almost elderly stallion, asked. “My name is Alfred Bitworth. I am the personal Butler of Bruce Mayne. When you didn't show up at the Iceburg lounge, I had assumed you got lost. When I found you, you all looked terrified!” “Yes,” Luna started. “We–” Dash interrupted. “We were assaulted by this crazy stallion who went on and on about 'his mark', whatever that means. He was getting violent, but I could've taken him in 10 seconds fl–” Twilight zoned out at this point. Luna's, and possibly her own, brush with death still replayed in her mind. That psycho could have killed them all. Well, Luna would have stopped him. But it was scary non-the-less. But something stopped him. Bats wouldn't just attack a single target like that. It wasn't in their nature. Something had to be directing them, controlling them. The Batpony. And Twilight vowed to find him, to think him for saving her.
Bruce Mayne: Jerk of the Century!The ponies arrived at Mayne Manor. It was large, and though it was only half the size of Canterlot's castle, it was somehow more intimidating. Its yellow stonework was now covered in foliage trying to push its way into the cracks. The Manor's high towers were lined with large cameras that flashed several times, though obviously the collapsed towers were devoid of such instruments. The gardens off to the side were old and full of weeds, and beyond that was a forest, kept into place by magic runes placed there centuries ago. Alfred led the ponies up the steps, to the door. He stepped to the side and moved a stone out of its position to reveal a small hole. The butler levitated a seemingly random stick over to the hole, inserting it into what the ponies realized was a lock. The butler then removed the stick and snapped it in two. He took the now two sticks, then put one into the lock and threw the other into a hole in a tree. When the stick landed in the tree, one of the stones of the manner flip around to reveal a board covered in numbered buttons. Alfred pushed in a four number code, then the huge gates of the manner cracked open. "How paranoid is this guy?" whispered Rainbow Dash to no-pony in particular. She gasped when Alfred answered, "VERY. I have to look underneath the chariot every time I ride in it. He's afraid someone put a bomb under it. You'll have to forgive him." The ponies walked through a huge hall area decked with the cameras from. Up some steps flanked with photos of Waynes the ponies trotted, finally entering into a dining room. The table was covered in extravagant food, most of which only Luna had tasted before. There were eight plush chairs around the fine oak table. In one sat a large, handsome stallion wearing a puffy gown-like suit sprinkled with jewels. He was a darker shade of orange than Applejack, and his coat was far more orderly than anyone would have though possible. Not one hair was longer than any other, except for his relatively short mane. "Greetings. I realize that it is late, but I do not know how much food you've had, so I felt it necessaryy to have Alfred prepare a feast. You are under no obligation to partake in this meal, though. If you wish, Alfred will take you to your guest room. He will also take your bags. So, how many of you intend to eat." Apparently, all the ponies intended to eat. Despite their tiredness, they all hadn't had any meal of substance since the early morning. Also, Bruce Mayne was kinda gorgeous, and he did go to all the trouble of telling his butler to make a whole meal. "If you don't mind me asking, who designed you lovely suit?" Rarity asked. "I'm absolutely jealous!" "I did," said Mayne, a small smile playing on his lips. Rarity giggled at the joke, or at least she thought it was a joke. "So how was the trip here?" Mayne asked. "It was TERRIBLE! We stayed in a train for eight hours and, then, we got lost! We were attacked by this meany named Zsasz, who kept flirting awkwardly, and he wanted to cut us or something and we barely made it alive. Your butler saved us, so I'll have to throw him a party. Oh! Doyoulikeparties? Iloveparties. Iknow! Wecouldthrowa----" "I'mnota hugefanof parties, but there is apartyI'm goingto attend nextwee---" "Aparty!?!" "Yesaparty. Itneeds a planner.Wouldyoulike to help?" The other six ponies watched in awe as Mayne and Pinkie conversed at speeds faster than any of them could easily understand. Mayne was almost keeping up, though he often slowed to take a breath. How did he do this? After a series of event no one could be completely sure about, Pinkie had ended up leaving to plan some party. Mayne was panting hard, completely out of breath. The ponies stared at him in awe. "Wha-at?" he wheezed. "It got he-er awa-ay, dinin't it?" It took several seconds for him to fix his breathing pattern, but once he did, he turned his head to Twilight. "Everything alright? You look pre-occupied. Anything my money can do to fix it?" "Wha-Oh. Ah--no. Thanks. I'm just thinking..." Twilight said. "About what, if you don't mind my asking," "Uh... the Batpony," Twilight blushed. Bruce just stared at her for a second. Thinking. Then his eyes narrowed, staring not only into her eyes, but into her soul. "He saved you, didn't he?" Twilight gasped. "How did you know that? Pinkie didn't talk about that part, did she?" "No, she didn't. She said Alfred saved you. I deduced it. I studied detective work for eight months. I know some tricks." "But how did you deduce that?" Applejack asked. "There was a attractive young stallion sitting in front of her, the most attractive ever to live. He was wearing the most distracting garb in his closet. She was surrounded by gorgeous decor. Everypony else was marveling at something in the room, be it me or a portrait. If she was thinking about the Batpony for more than a half a minute, it would be likely that she had some kind of encounter, especially considering that she was attacked earlier. Alfred, though more agile than most ponies his age, would not be able to fight of a murderous pony. Batpony, however..." Twilight lifted her jaw off of the table. "What if you were wrong?" "Then I would be wrong, and lose nothing. But I'm never wrong." He smirked in an irritating fashion. "Well... uh... I-I'm going to find him. I owe him a thanks." Mayne leaned in close, though he was across a table, so it didn't matter. His elbows went into bowls of pudding and gravy. He seemed to ignore them, focusing on Twilight. He dropped his voice to a whisper, despite knowing the fact that everypony else at the table could easily hear him. "Now, you didn't hear it from me, but there are rumors that police lieutenant James Gordon secretly works with the Batpony. If you confront him about it, he would deny it. But if you say something like 'The Batpony save me and for that I am eternally grateful', well, I'm sure he would pass the message." "Thanks for the suggestion." Twilight said. She would have to meet this James Gordon. 'Side note,' she thought. 'What's with these rediculous names? James Gordon? Zsasz?' *** The ponies had all retired to bed, including Twilight. She was too busy planning too think about the ridiculously large bed or the perfectly temperature pillow. In fact, she only noticed the box when she laid on top of it. Shook lucid by the sharp edges going into her back, she sprung off her bed, then examined the box. It was, of course, beautiful. On it, it had a tag. To Twilight S., From Bruce M.. She undid the wrapping, feeling a bit guilty at tearing the jewel-encrusted paper. Inside was a dress that somehow fit her perfectly. It was, again, perfectly en-jeweled with real diamonds. She could imagine Rarity fainting over its beauty. In the box was also a note: Dear Twilight Sparkle, A beautiful dress for a beautiful mare. Please do not tell the others Elements. If they knew I made you such presents, They would become such a scare. Sincerely, the last Mayne. Twilight read the card over several times. He had been so nice to give her these gifts. Was he just trying to be friends? Was he trying to be something more? Did it matter? Bruce Mayne had been arrogant, sure, but he could be useful in finding Batpony. He had so many resources... No! I can't allow myself to take advantage of him like that. Ponies are ponies, not tools to throw away when you're done! Twilight silently scolded herself for her manipulative plots. "I was stupid and careless!" she heard a voice in the next room say, a strange one. A dark one. A scary one. "Shh, sir... they'll hear!" said Alfred's voice. What was going on? Some guy was scolding himself. Who? No-pony could possibly get in hear with that lock unless Alfred let them in. She had been away from the room for five minutes, so they couldn't have let anypony in... Could it have been Bruce? Alfred called him "sir". His voice DID sound fake earlier... to high. Maybe? No. He had no reason to hide his voice. Unless he was that paranoid. It was possible. But he locked his house so no-pony could enter without his permission. Why disguise his voice? What was he protecting? Then it hit her. He had deduced that she had been saved by Bat-pony. If he was Bat-pony, he could know that, and claim it to be deduction. If Mayne was Bat-pony, he left for ten years to perfect his magic to terrify criminals. Mayne must be on level with the Princesses if the legends were true. The legends, she gathered from Luna, involved a monster teleporting several times, fighting off several ponies, flying, controlling weather, disrupting magic, and even moving the sun backwards. If these legends were true, then Mayne would be very powerful. And she knew how to be sure. She would perform a spell so that she could see a pony's magical aura. Yes. Then she would confront Bruce if her theory was correct. Her horn started to glow, and she started to sweat. The magic flowed from her as she recited Latin. Then it stopped. She looked down at her hooves and saw a bright purple aura around them. It worked. There was a small bit of magical residue that marked her hoof steps. But wait... The spell wouldn't last till morning. She would have to do this again. Unless...Why should she wait? She could go see Mayne to thank him for the dress, then she would see his aura and prove that he was Batpony and thank him. Yes. *** Twilight crept out of her room. She tip-hoofed down the hall. She saw Luna's hoof-steps along the way, teaching her not to look directly at them. Luna's magic residue was so bright that it gave Twilight head-aches, though Rarity's hoof-prints were not too terribly bright. She found Bruce's hoof-prints and followed them. Her theory was failing, though. His magical hoof-prints were not bright; they were dull. She had to make sure the spell was still working just to make sure. All ready starting, her curiosity took over as she followed the spectral hoof-prints down halls, up stairs, down stairs, in a circle, on the roof for some reason, and her journey culminated at... a wall. A dead end. What? This would mean that he had a secret hide-out behind the wall. She marked its location for later. It might be useful. She turned back ready to go back to her room. As soon as she did, however, she met eyes with Bruce Mayne, who had appeared out of nowhere. He stuck a hoof over her mouth to muffle her scream. "Quiet. Ponies are sleeping." he whispered and smirked. "Speaking of that, I better," Twilight started, about to trot off. "You were following me, weren't you?" Twilight stopped, and turned to face him. "What?" "You heard me..." his voice still had the playful arrogance it usually had. "Well... I... I thought... It... I don't have to answer you!" She whispered very aggressively, already forgetting her excuse. She turned back around to trot off, but she jumped back when she once again met eyes with Bruce. "Weren't you just---" "Why were you following me?" "How do you know I was following you?" "Your horn is glowing. You turned your head when you looked in the exact place that Luna stepped. You followed my hoof-steps perfectly. I know that because I followed you from the stairway you went up." He smirked at her blush. She was suddenly feeling very stupid. "... Yes. OK. I... I thought you were Bat-pony..." Twilight blushed slightly, then looked into Bruce's eyes. Bruce just stared at her, and the look on his face told her she was right. He was Bat-pony, and he was looking for a way to prove otherwise. She smirked, knowing she had beaten him. Her smirk dropped, however, when Mayne responded with his own smirk. "That's funny. I was thinking that YOU were Bat-pony!"
Fluttershy the Terrible"What would give you that idea?" she asked, trying not to seem shaken by his stare. Sure, his smirk made him look playful, but his eyes were cold and analyzing. "Let's look at your traits, shall we?" he smirked even bigger. "A powerful mare with a strong devotion to harmony. Busy workaholic that disappears for days at a time. Most powerful unicorn since Starswirl the Bearded. Friends with billionaire princesses who share devotion to harmony and capable of amassing more tools than ever. Smart pony. Has a friend, a master flyer. And master theater mare. And a superstrong earth mare. Arrive in Gotham. Attacked, but somehow saved. Ultra powerful friends... And you're telling me that not one of you is the Bat-pony, or that a combination of you aren't?" "W-well, umm..." Twilight couldn't think of a response. "So you ARE the Bat-pony!" he proclaimed. "No! But I can't prove... Hey, what's behind this wall?" "A secret," he said, blushing. "What, your Bat-pony costume?" "N-no. A shrine." Twilight's eyes widened. "To whom?" "To you..." Twilight was dumbfounded. Could this be an act? "W-What?" "You heard me..." "Look, I..." she was interrupted with a ringing, much like that of an alarm clock. Mayne went up to the source, a small device with a plastic ear/mouth piece attached to a box with a wire. The box read "WAYNE PHONE" "Yes." Mayne answered, putting the "phone" to his face. Mayne's voice was much deeper than his normally nasally voice. "Yes... How many? I'll be there" He put the phone down and walked out of the room in some pace. Twilight followed. "Weren't you just---" "I'm busy. Go to bed." "What are you doing?" "A secret. Go to bed." "No. You were telling me about a shrine and then---" "I'm busy. Go to bed." He was walking through a corridor that was dimly lit. "Where are you going?!" she asked as they went into a medical bay. "Get several beds ready. We are about to get visitors." Mayne said to Alfred. Mayne turned to Twilight. "Ponies have been poisoned. They're coming here. Tell the others." He stormed off. Twilight turned to Alfred. He looked very serious. "Tell them!" She galloped off to her room. She had often visited the castle, so navigating this was a peace of cake. "Everypony get up!" she shouted down the guest corridor. "Wha?" Rainbow muttered, half awake. "Ponies have been poisoned! They have to be treated here!" "Calm down. What's going on, exactly." Luna asked in a calm voice. "I don't know. Mayne hasn't told me anything. He just told me to take you to the medical wing!" *** A group of police officers brought in at least twenty ponies. They were writhing in fear, screaming about whatever they were hallucinating. It was all the police ponies could do to tie these ponies to the beds. Fluttershy tried her hardest to calm them down, but she was apparently terrifying. "STAY AWAY!" proclaimed one patient. When she took a step closer, the patient took to trying to strangle herself. The ponies had to use magic to restrain them, and the glow caused even more screaming. Everypony except Luna was crying at the immense fear ponies had been feeling, and she had come close to breaking. Being the strongest magic user, she attempted to cure the ailment with magic. When she tried, a pony had a heart-attack in sheer terror. This was the breaking point for almost everypony in the room. After two hours of screaming and a few more heart-attacks, Bruce Mayne burst through the door, looking like he had just fought off a pack of timber-wolves. He was carrying a few vials of a liquid. He loaded it into a syringe and injected it into a pony's foreleg. The pony screamed a bit more, then stopped thrashing. His breathing stabilized, and he fell asleep. Soon, all the drugged ponies shared the fate. "Where did you get the cure?" Luna asked, a small catch in her throat. "I found it." he said, panting. "Are you all okay?" He looked to every ponies. The doctors nodded, used to this kind of thing in Gotham. The police were playing checkers throughout the screaming, and just looked up to nod before going back to their game. The Mane Seven were certainly not "okay". Luna, on the outside, was okay. She looked composed and as calm as possible in this situation. On the inside, though, she felt like Nightmare again. She had killed. Accidentally, of course, but still. The doctors had warned her, but she thought her skills were so above the doctors' that she wouldn't hurt the patient. Twilight was helpless. Her one asset, magic, just terrified ponies. Rarity had never felt so useless. She was never a fighter, but now she could do nothing. Applejack was desperately trying to convince herself that this city could be fixed. As the Element of Honesty, though, she couldn't bring herself to lie to herself. Rainbow was trying to ignore the screams. Trying her hardest. Even after they ended, she could still hear it. And she would for several nights thereafter. Pinkie, like Luna, was feeling like a murderer. She had opted to "laugh the ghosties away". This resulted in five heart-attacks. And Fluttershy... she was silently dying inside ever since she watched one pony try chew his own leg off...
Night VS. KnightPinkie Pie was not happy at all. After a day long train ride, she had to trot through the saddest station ever with guards sneering at her and the homeless ignoring her. After walking through an alley-way filled with corpses (she couldn't deny it now), her friends and her were attacked by meany-mcmeany-head Zsasz. OK. This vacation was salvageable. She had gotten a nice dinner of some exotic form of sugared hay. She got to talk with super-duper-cutie Bruce Mayne. She even got to plan a party to be thrown in a week. Cool. Then the poor drugged ponies had been brought in. She laughed them to screaming death. By accident, she had to remind herself. By accident. Oh, she needed a party. She was going to have a party, too. When Twilight and Luna got back from talking with Commissioner Gordon about what the hay happened last night. Rainbow Dash was feeling decidedly less awesome than she would have liked to feel. She hadn't gotten sleep last night, and not for lack of trying. Every time she got still and quiet, and her breathing slowed and her eyes closed, she would be jolted awake by screams that would disappear as soon as she woke up. She had come to Luna, and asked her to fight the nightmares off. Luna said that they were based on psychological trauma. That they were permanent without therapy. Great, Dash thought. Now I'm crazy. Applejack was asleep. Well, perhaps "mildly catatonic" would be a better word to describe her. It was easier this way, she rationalized. Now she didn't have to lie. "They're corpses!" she could now say, smiling. "And those ponies died of heart attacks!" She repressed a giggle. "And, we'll never fix this city!" Of course, as a trade off, she could only stare lazily off into the distance with that wide smile. It was worth it. Now, she could be totally honest, and not a liar like before! She noticed that she hadn't had any thoughts for several moments, so she thought up a new thought. "I'm insane!" 'I am Fluttershy', Fluttershy knew. 'What does that mean?' she thought, and immediately answered, 'Well, I am kind. The kindest. And that's what the city needs!' That makes sense. She would be kind. To everypony. Yes. She'd even find that Zsasz guy and help him with his art. He sounded like he needed a kind friend. Rarity kept her eyes to the ground, but stopped when she bumped into Twilight. She realized she had to look straight ahead. So that she didn't mess something up. Twilight and Luna needed clothes for their mission, because, according to Mayne, not wearing clothes would be an "invitation". Well, Rarity understood that she was useless, so she made the clothes. But they weren't too pretty. Pretty clothes are distracting. She was perfect for the job of making ugly clothes; she couldn't make pretty clothes if she tried because, as evidenced by last night's horror-show, she was useless. She even failed at making ugly clothes. Look at how pretty the dresses she made were. She failed at making nondescript dress. How useless she felt. The Bat, still conversing as Bruce Mayne, analysed. Twilight might have considered having a mental breakdown, but that would make her fail the mission to save Gotham. If she failed to save Gotham, Twilight would have failed Celestia. And Twilight couldn't allow herself to fail Celestia. He gathered this from the "Want-it-need-it incident". Twilight had always needed mental help, he concluded, But she isn't a dire case. Luna is jaded. She's always been. The twitch in her eye when you compliment her. She doesn't care. The slight, out-of-it nod when you mention the future optimistically. She puts her head down oh-so-slightly when you talk about the present. She tenses when you talk about the past, unless you talk about the time surrounding Star Swirl the Bearded. Mild-to-severe-depression. Repressed anger. In love with Star Swirl. Nothing new. Nothing to worry about. May need help, but not immediately. Pinkie Pie. Hypomania, possibly mania. Also, diabetic, but she keeps it a secret. She needs help, but she is remarkably resistant to trauma. Self worth judged by friendship. So long as she has friends, she will survive. As for the others... Immediate psychological help required. "We should keep them out of the city..." Mayne told Luna and Twilight silently. "Your friends are... out of it..." "I-Is this normal? Rarity keeps saying she's useless, an---" Twilight sound down. "No, Twilight... This isn't normal..." "Look, we should probably send them to a trained psychologist. Somepony good. I have a net worth of 56,000,000,000 bits. Anything is worth it. We should start this as soon as possible." "I propose we do this immediately after we meet the commissioner." "Good idea. Meanwhile, we should have Ms. Rarity make dresses for you before you go out. This might break the illusion that she's useless, and it would also fix a problem..." "What problem?" Twilight asked. Mayne bit his lip. "When ponies don't wear clothes... It's seen as an... invitation... for... misbehavior... Even though it shouldn't." "What do you mean?" After an awkward conversation and waiting for Rarity to make the dresses they trotted to the GCPD building. Twilight had to hand it to Mayne, he wasn't as... flirtatious as he could have. I guess he does have a heart. Luna and Twilight couldn't help but feel embarrassed at all the police officers staring at them... suggestively... They were directed to the roof where Jim Gordon took his break. Apparently, "Jim" was a nickname for "James". Gotham and it's naming conventions. After climbing up a somewhat lengthy staircase and a using a prototype elevator, they arrived outside. Jim (James?) was sitting out smoke a... thing. A cigarette? Did Equestria even make those? He was an unicorn, old and worn. He had a few marks on his horn, indicating that there had been some violence at some point. Interestingly, there was a flood-light on the roof. In the smoggy darkness, she couldn't tell that it is special. "Hello?" Twilight coughed. "Hey," he said almost sound bored, and not at all startled by her appearing behind him. Gordon looked out at the city, leaning over the of roof's guard rail. "We came to ask about last night's... problem." Luna didn't seem affected by the smog, perhaps because she was an alicorn. Twilight wished she were an alicorn, but she knew that it was too ridiculous to happen. "Ah. There was a mad pony. A psychological alchemist by the name of Crane. He used his position to test his new potion on his patients. When we found the patients, we took them to the calmest place they could be treated at: Mayne Manor." "What happened to crane?" Twilight asked. Gordon hesitated. "If you read the official report... I-it says a tactical effort by Gotham's finest took down Crane and his men." "'Official report'?" Luna asked slowly. "Yes." "Is that what really happened?" Luna asked, annoyed. "Well... Evidence points to Crane's capture the work of an anonymous vigilante, described by the criminals as resembling a giant bat..." "The Batpony?!" Twilight was getting excited. "Y-yes. That's what the tabloids are calling him." "Oh! I want to interview the prisoners and---wait! I've heard that you worked with the Batpony! Is it true?! What's he like?! Oh, he saved me the day before yesterday! Could you thank him please!?" Twilight was actually starting to sound like Pinkie Pie now. She stared at the Commissioner, her eyes wide. "O-Official policy---" Gordon started before being interrupted by a new voice. "Thank me yourself. Then leave." The ponies turned to the source of the voice, a patch of shadows cast from a taller building obscured the pony. Twilight was very much excited, doing a small little dance. She channeled Pinkie Pie with a series of "Omigosh"es until Luna sternly interrupted her, reminding her that she was not a child. "Umm... excuse me..." she blushed, trotting a little towards the shadow. "I want to thank you for saving me before. So thanks..." "You shouldn't thank me..." the voice sounded almost sad. "What are you talking about?" Twilight said, trotting towards the shadows. "You saved my---" she stopped mid-sentence when a throwing knife landed next to her. It was shaped like a bat. She looked at wide-eyed. "You're getting too close," he said simply. She realized that she was just before the threshold of darkness, so close that she could practically reach her hoof out and touch it. At this distance, she could also see the vague outline of the Bat's shape. He was tall, about as tall as Luna. This was due to him being bipedal, much like Spike. He had horns on his head, and she could just make out the yellow and black shape on his chest. A stylized bat. Twilight was now unsure this thing was even equine. "And besides," it continued. "I sent Zsasz on you..." "What?" she almost whimpered, backing up. "Zsasz is a schizophrenic who has convinced himself among his delusion that harmony is unobtainable for a living pony. He kills and marks his flesh in remembrance because he is sure that it is the only true generosity. I looked to convince him he was wrong. He was being hunted by the police, but he had managed to allude them. He could not allude me. I disguised myself as a homeless stallion. Zsasz liked to look at train stations for his next victim, and it just so happened that the you all were going to arrive that night. Considering that you all are symbols of the best equinity, I knew you would offer him money despite the fact that he followed you. So I made sure he followed you, and hoped he would not go completely homicidal until you showed him generosity. I hoped that this generosity would convince him to turn himself in. It didn't work, and he attacked you. I was on the skyscrapers watching you in case he went off, but I shouldn't have put you in harms way for the 28% chance that he would reform." The ponies looked at him(?), mouths agape. No... This didn't fit Twilight's theories at all. "You were under no threat of death, but the trauma is still real, which brings us to the next point..." His tone hadn't changed. "Wait... you..." Twilight's voice was shaky. "You sent Zsasz..." "That doesn't matter anymore. You need to leave." His tone was flat. "I'm afraid we cannot do that..." Luna stepped past Twilight, towards him. "We are the Elements of Harmony and the Princess of the Night. We have to stay until the city is fixed. And we cannot have vigilantes upstaging police and sicking innocent ponies." Luna's horn lit up a deep blue. "Wait..." he said, no urgency in his voice. "Hear me out." Luna hesitated, and then extinguished her horn. "If you don't leave, you will make the city infinitely worse." he still hadn't changed tones. "How so?" "Stop me if I'm misinterpreting your plan. You will give the ponies of Gotham an idea to aspire to. You plan to show them what can happen if they only surrendered to friendship, because friendship is magic. Do I have the right idea?" "Yes. Why wouldn't that work?" Luna's tone was getting more aggressive and she stepped closer still. She was now at eye level with the Bat, and Twilight and Gordon had watched with baited breath. Twilight had only heard rumors, and Gordon had only saw the effects of his work. To Twilight's shame, she actually started a bet with Gordon that Luna would win the fight. "Because you're out of your depth." the Bat's tone did not change, but Luna couldn't help but feel she was being antagonized. "True or false, the presence of the drugged ponies with you made you uncomfortable?" "True, of course, bu---" her tone was getting exasperated, but then she was interrupted. "How many of you were driven insane?" There was a silence. There was a heart beating loud. She realized it was her heart. And then the fight started. "How dare you!?" Luna lit up her horn, but before she could attack, the knife right behind her exploded. It might have hurt a normal pony, but it wouldn't hurt Luna. The bang did, however, shake her horn off target, missing the Bat who flew off towards a nearby roof across a gap. The Bat had crossed the line, and so she was ready to attack. She lit up her horn, but was startled by a loud bang. This caused her to miss her shot. A pegasus? No matter. She zoomed in front of him. This is amazing! Triple Hammerhoofs to muzzle, back spin kick. He turned his forelegs parallel to his chest and jammed the hard side into her muzzle, just left of her nostril. This was a weak spot. Left, right, left. He followed up with a back spin kick, but Luna sent a foreleg up to block it. The Bat's leg stopped immediately in it's tracks, possibly injured. I can't even see their strikes! Foolish. Just another brawler. Doesn't he know I'm a warrior princess? With his leg straight up, he contorted himself so that he spun and ducked under her foreleg, coming up with an uppercut to the jaw. Luna didn't flinch. Instead, she jammed a hoof into his chest. It was too fast to block. Too fast to see. He walked backwards, clumsily. It was one thing to walk forward, another thing to walk backward. The former was merely a skill that took years to develop. The latter was nigh-impossible for a pony to do correctly. Both were hard to do with bruised/broken ribs. He fell back on his rear, scooting backwards on his haunches. She's too strong. Too fast. Go to Strategy H.. He took a moment of reprieve while Luna slowly approached. He got back to an upright position, only to be tackled by Luna. I couldn't see her move! I've won. This is where I meet the Pancration champion of 237. What if... "It's over!" she yelled. The Bat was on his back, Luna's hoof raised for the final blow. She was laying on top of him, her hind legs keeping his hind legs from raising. While this stopped the Bat from leveraging her to her back, it did leave his forelegs free. She hadn't worried about them, as his punches couldn't hurt her. But while his punches couldn't hurt her, electricity could. For you see, in the position they were in, her chest was exposed. Not usually a problem in combat. However, a mare's chest is very vulnerable to electricity, connected to several sensitive nerves. And he just happen to have electrodes in his belt... She screamed in pain as the equivalent of .01% of a lightning bolt jolt through her. That does not sound like a lot, but it was enough to make her heart skip a beat. She felt much to hot, and you could swear her body was smoking. However, she was on top of him, and so some of the voltage went through him. He had tried to keep his suit insulated, but no insulator is perfect. So while Luna took the brunt of it, he still took more than he wanted. After they both stopped convulsing, he pushed her off from on top of him. She was at least 300 lbs., and in his condition, it was hard. He started to walk away, when: "Princess Luna!" Twilight's voice. Far away. No hoofsteps. Unicorn. She'll use Magic Blast. Relying on instinct, he rolled, which hurt with his overly-tense muscles, bruised ribs, and aching lungs. In that split second, Twilight missed him. She missed him again as he went into a trot, too fast for her to aim. But now she had him in her sights. She would hit h--- Luna was still conscious, rising too. This all stopped when the Bat rushed to her and picked her heavy frame up slightly for use as a shield. She was jolted awake in pain when Twilight's Magic Blast hit her in the side. She was still conscious, but in pain. "Stay out of this, Twilight!" she growled. She felt herself move as the Bat got out from under her, starting to rise. She used the fact that she was moved to her advantage, and jammed her head into the Bat's side. If that rib wasn't broke before, it was now. He skidded across the roof, stopping against the rail. He used said rail as support. Luna was rising. Now was his only chance to beat her. If they fought for any longer, he would either loose or fall unconscious. With only half a second of thought, he attacked. In one last sprint, he galloped. He reached her just as she had risen to her full height. He stepped on he haunches, bringing her back down to her knees. He climbed on her back as she lit her horn. She would get no chance to use it, though, as he pressed a button on his belt that dropped a specific pepper from his gauntlet. This pepper, which was not permanently damaging, entered her eyes. She screamed and bucked, which just got him closer to his horn. He had went to Phase 2 immediately after he pushed the first button. With one deft, selectively-magnetic hoof, he took his sonic-disrupter. When she bucked, this got him close enough to put it to her horn. When it contacted the magic aura surrounding it, her magic reverberated, into her body. You see, magic waves and sonic waves both operated in similar ways. Similar enough to alter one with the other. And when the magic waves reverberate into you, it tenses all muscles, including the heart. It also clears the stomach out by pressing down on the stomach, then pulling up on it, giving it enough kick to start the victim vomiting. This wave hit several organs, but this is not a worry for all ponies, and Luna was the top echelon of ponies when it comes to durability. Of course, this was not very healthy for a horse to experience no matter their durability. Equally unhealthy for anything is to have sonic/magic waves go directly out one's ears and nostrils. The sonic disrupted caused just that, because magic needed a way out due to the pressure differential in the body. This would be enough to render any being unconscious. Finally, the alicorn went limp under him. He tossed a thing towards Twilight. The thing covered the area in thick smoke, and he used this smoke to fly off. Or at least, it looked like he flew off. In reality, he had shot off his grapple. She couldn't tell through the smoke. Battle Diagnosis: My injuries: Bruised shin, at least one broke rib, four bruised ribs, two(?) ribs sprained, 8 overtaxed muscles from electricution, dislocated shoulder from lifting too much, one pulled muscle from lifting too much (miraculously not a tear!), possible concussion. Total Recovery Time: 10 months. Next Night Out: Tomorrow. Change in Schedule: Negative. Luna's injuries: Vision loss, possible scorched throat. Disturbed eardrums. Startled heart. Burned sinuses. About 46 overtaxed muscles Total Recovery Time: 1 month Next Night Out: 3 days. Change in Schedule: Unlikely. He shook his head to stay awake as he ran across roof tops to the cave entrance... A mile or two away. Incidentally, he would collapse when he arrived, and would only wake up just before Luna and Twilight got back from the hospital. Author's Note Yeah, I think the previous chapter's aren't to good, but apparently, people like them, so I'll be updating. See you soon!
