AN: Happy Easter, guys! And yup, new fic! I'm still working on my other stories but I managed to get this one done early. Sorry if it seems too long but I thought one long prologue was better than 5 smaller ones.

Batman and all related characters are owned by DC Comics and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Batman is created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane.

Skull Girls and all related characters are owned by Autumn Games and created by Alex Ahad and Lab Zero Games.

CHAPTER 01: Chronicles of Four Birds

Cirques Des Cartes

"And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, we have saved the very best for last! Presenting, the ultimate showcase of death defying antics and raw power, the star-studded combo of Cerebella and the Flying Graysons!"

The crowd inside the large circus tent cheered as four people waved at them. Two of them, a man and a woman in colorful tights, were high above on a trapeze platform. Down below at the center ring, was a young dark-haired boy wearing the same kind of tights and with him was an attractive woman.

She was the most well known in the Cirque Des Cartes; With sea green hair that matched her nail polish and lipstick, purple eye-shadow with a matching diamond symbol on her left cheek, she was of average stature but had a notably large bust. Her outfit was an orange strapless low-cut dress with a triangle pattern band of cloth that circled her upper-arms and billowing cream sleeves. On her legs were orange and black boots with ends that pointed upwards.

But the most striking thing about her was what she wore on her head, it was an orange Living Weapon called Vice-Versa: it had a skull in its center that had a pair of long horns and its sides were morphed into two large muscular arms.

Her name was Cerebella and the boy with her was Richard Grayson.

"Ready to do this, Dickey?" she asked while still waving.

"You bet!" Dick said enthusiastically but then whipped his head towards her and scowled.

"Hey, I told you not to call me Dickey!"

Cerebella giggled as she picked him up with one of Vice-Versa's arms, she dearly loved the Graysons, especially Dick whom she considers a little brother she enjoyed messing with.

"Save it for later, Boy Wonder. It's showtime!" she grinned while Vice-Versa's other arm presented a large hoop.

"You've seen juggling acts and you've seen trapeze acts but you have seen them done together, folks?" the ringmaster voice boomed.

The act consisted of Vice-Versa literally juggling Dick and the hoop in the air. Dick wasn't thrown like a rag-doll, he twisted and flipped his body around with stylish grace, it looked like as if he was born to soar in the air. Alternatively, the hoop would be thrown high in the air where Dick's parents, John and Marie, would jump through it in mid-air and be caught by their partner swinging with the trapeze.

The audience 'ooh-ed' and 'aah-ed' at the high flying spectacle before them. And then came the grand finale.

"Let's do this, Bella!" hooted Dick.

"You got it!" Cerebella said as Vice-Versa grabbed Dick by his legs as she spun him around.

"One of the money, two for the show, three to get ready and HERE...WE...GO!" she finished as she threw Dick high in the air with enough force to send him off like a rocket.

The audience gasped, fearing for the safety of the boy but just as Dick was about to fall, his parents came swinging at just the right time. With his legs holding on to the trapeze, John held Marie by her legs, who in turn grabbed Dick's hand.

The family swung back together until the trapeze stopped its pendulum motion. With the three of them hanging, they waved to the audience as cheers and applause erupted, bringing the act to a close.

"Were you nervous, Richard?" Marie Grayson asked looking down towards her son as she held his hand tightly.

Dick looked up towards her, flashing his pearly whites as his blue eyes shined with enthusiasm.

"Of course not, Ma. I knew you'd catch me."

Marie smiled warmly back at him.

"And I always will, my little bird."

An hour later, after the crowds left, the Cirque Des Cartes began to wind down as some of the performers left to relax for the day but not without a stern 'debriefing' from Regina. With John and Mary at their trailers, Dick met up with Feng to have lunch. Feng was a young girl from the Dragon Empire and a fellow acrobat, the two of them have a rivalry of sorts.

"Feng, do you mind telling your ghost birds to quit picking on my sandwich. How are they even hungry? Aren't they supposed to be...y'know? Dead?"

Dick said this as he tried holding his sandwich away from two small-sized bird-like entities with very long tail feathers, one white and one black. They are normally perched on the sides of Feng's head.

"Maybe you should be the one telling them, 'my little bird'. You know what they say about 'flocking together'." Feng said with a teasing grin.

Dick's cheeks immediately became rosy.

"How did yo-...have you been talking to my mom again!?" he accused.

"Hehe. Nope." Feng said coyly and got up, the birds flew back to her hair. "Anyway I'm gonna go practice my routine. Enjoy you time in the limelight while it lasts, Boy Wonder. Cuz I'll soon come up with an act that'll knock your socks off!"

Dick snickered and grinned like an imp.

"Heh, you're gonna need all the luck you can get! And that's not saying much."

Feng blew a raspberry at him and walked off, leaving him feeling smug. Just before he was about to take a bite of his sandwich, a large orange hand landed on his head and roughly ruffled his hair.

"You should be a lot nicer to your girlfriend, Dickey-poo." Cerebella said as she plopped next to him, Vice-Versa still worn on her head.

The young boy frowned at her as he tried to smoothen out his hair.

"Don't call me 'Dickey-poo' and Feng is NOT my girlfriend." he said.

"You sure? Cuz I could tell she's totally into you." said Cerebella with a wink.

"She is?" Dick blinked in surprise.

With he realized what he said, he blushed he looked away with indignation and tried to save face.

"I-I mean, E-even if she is, she's not my type."

"Well I think you two would be cute together. Hey, If you want some advice, I'm always there to..."

Cerebella trailed off when she noticed someone standing in the distance, it was an older man with slicked hair and a landing strip goatee wearing square glasses and a maroon double-breasted suit.

"Is that Vitale!?" she gasped and then looked around frantically.

"Why didn't anyone tell me he was coming!? How's my makeup? Does my hair look okay?"

She checked herself out in whatever reflective surfaces she could find then smoothened out her dress like she was going out on a date before walking towards him.

Dick scowled intensely as he watched her leave, he was normally a happy-go-lucky kid but this was one of the few moments when he was downright furious.

"Vitale, you missed a great show today." Cerebella greeted him.

"Yes, Yes, I'm sure it was quite spectacular, my dear. But on a more serious note, I have job for you." Vitale said.

"What's up?"

"I want you to be at the Medici Tower tonight. Father is having a private dinner meeting and he's expecting some...uninvited company."

"But doesn't Black Dahlia usually handle the security detail?"

Vitale nodded.

"She does and she will but let's say I prefer to play it safe this time. This one has already disrupted many of our 'operations' and I fear that in his current state, father might have her a bit overtaxed."

Cerebella had been hearing about the mysterious Bat-like figure who had been attacking Medici members and disrupting their work over the past few months and it brought her blood to a boil.

"You can count on me, Vitale. No one messes with the Medicis and gets away with it!"

"That's a good girl." Vitale grinned. "I will expect you tonight. Now if you excuse me, there's someone else I have business with."

With that, Cerebella decided to leave him to it and walked back toward Dick, feeling a little light on her feet as a love-struck smile grew on her face.

But the smile faded away as she neared Dick and noticed the way he was glaring at her.

"What?" she asked.

"What do you even see in that guy!? He's, like, a gazillion times your age!" Dick rounded.

Cerebella rolled her eyes and huffed. It was true that she and Richard had a warm brother/sister relationship but like all siblings, they had their differences and this was the one subject they heatedly disagreed on.

"Don't talk like that! Vitale has been good to us!" she argued.

It was true in a way, the Graysons were just a traveling act when Richard was a baby and they barely had any food to survive until the circus took them in. It was clear from the get go that the circus was owned and controlled by the Medici Mafia, most of the other performers were fine with it.

But John and Mary had a great sense of justice and witnessed many crimes ranging from murder to money laundering committed by Medici affiliated gangs using the circus as safe house. They had even been tasked to steal for them a few times. Dick wasn't blind to the situation, he had seen his parents argue time and time again about how guilty and unhappy they felt.

"Only because we're just glorified mercenaries!" Dick countered. "C'mon Bella, you can't tell me you don't see who they really are and what they do. He's just using you."

Cerebella seethed and stubbornly refused to let Dick's point get across.

"Vitale trusts ME, he could've chosen anyone but he chose ME."

"If it wasn't for Vice Versa, he would've never even batted an eye towards you."

"Richard Grayson, I am NOT having this conversation with you!" she erupted.

A tense silence fell over the two until Dick sighed and began to speak again softly.

"I'm just worried about you, Bella." he said. "I don't want to see you get hurt. You could do so much better than him and..."

Dick trailed off when he noticed in the distance someone he didn't recognize talking to Vitale.

"Hey, who's that guy?" he asked.

Cerebella turned around to see who Dick spotted.

"I know him..." she said thoughtfully. "That's Anthony Zucco, a high ranker in the family. That's strange, why would Vitale meet him here?"

He could've sworn he imagined it, but Dick noticed Vitale and Zucco briefly glance towards them, or more specifically at HIM, before returning to their conversation. He didn't know why but he felt a terrible sense of dread building in his stomach.

Little Innsmouth

"Is everything okay over here?" the feral woman asked with suspicion.

She was a feline-type Feral, evident from her long dark cat ears, tail, and claws but the rest of her appeared human. With light blue eyes and white hair in a bob-cut, she wore a fingerless gloves and a light blue striped crop top that exposed her midriff as well as the underside of her breasts. From her waist down was a belt with black hot pants and further down was the remains of pant leggings. But the strangest thing about her appearance were the wide jagged scars encircling various parts of her body.

Her name was Nadia Fortune, 'Nadia' to her friends and 'Ms. Fortune' to others.

"Are these guys bugging you, Minette?" she asked her friend, a young and pretty Dagonian girl.

Nadia was just lounging in the corner when she noticed Minette being called to a table with two goons who proceeded to flirt and harass her. What broke the camel's back for her was when one of them sneered at Minette, saying that she was "Pretty cute...For a stinkin' gill-girl".

"Go find yourself a sandbox, kitty!" one of them shooed at her, a man named Lawrence.

His companion, Riccardo, also waved her off nonchalantly.

"Yeah, we're just havin' a friendly chat with the little minnow here."

"Leave. Now. Or I'll throw you out myself." Nadia stated firmly.

Lawrence gritted his teeth and grunted in irritation

"Can't you take a clue, you flea-bitten tart!? Clearly you don't know who you're messing with." he growled as he reached for something at his belt.

Then suddenly, he whipped out a machete and charged at her as he swung it to chop her head off.

Which he would have, had a gunshot not knocked the blade out of his hand.

"And clearly you don't know how to to treat a lady." chuckled a voice near the smoking barrel of a handgun. "Mommy issues much?"

Lawrence and Riccardo looked to see a teen boy by a table. He wore a brown motorcycle jacket over a gray tee with black cargo pants and boots but the most distinctive thing about him was the white streak of hair in front of the rest of his black hair.

His name was Jason Todd.

"Huh!? Who's this punk? Where'd he get that gun?" wondered Riccardo.

Lawrence's face contorted in anger as he whipped out his own gun.

"Who cares!? Two can play that game."

But then suddenly, Nadia's head flew towards him and bit into his arm. Only her head, completely detached from her body!

"What the!? Getitoff!Getitoff!Getitoff!" Lawrence yelped in fright as he tried to frantically shake her off.

He was finally able to fling her head towards Jason who caught her with one hand nonchalantly like a basketball.

"What gives, Jay-jay!?" Nadia spat. "I totally had him!"

"Didn't want you to lose your head."

Jason cringed after he said that.

"Ha! You made a bad joke. I knew it! I AM rubbin' off on ya." Nadia laughed, her head almost jumping with joy.

"And now I'm beginning to regret it." Jason muttered.

Seeing the two goons recover and about to rush them, Jason tossed Nadia's head at them and jumped back into the fray.

"Whatever, it's ass-whoopin time so let's just keep our heads in the game, Nadia...ugh! That so wasn't intentional."

The two of them fought and gave Lawrence and Riccardo a run for their money until the Medici henchmen couldn't take it anymore and decided to retreat.

"Gah! These two are crazy! I'm outta here!" cried Lawrence as he ran.

"Wait for me!" Riccardo called to him.

But Jason tackled them both face down on the floor and had two handguns pressed against their heads.

"It's not nice to run off without paying for your meals."

"P-pu-Please! Don't kill us!" Lawrence pleaded.

"I'll think about..." Jason said. "In exchange for information: Where's Jack Naiper?"

Lawrence blinked at this.

"Naiper?"

"Ha! You're too late, kid!" Riccardo laughed. "Jack bit the big one after that ACE chemical job went south.

"Idiot! Don't tell him all that!" Lawrence gasped.

Jason's eyes widened and his expression went completely ashen like the wind had been knocked out of him.

"He's...dead?"

Thinking this would appease the boy, Lawrence nodded frantically.

"Y-y-yeah he is! Gone! Dead! Finito! Now that we told you'll let us go, right?"

Jason recovered with his eyes slowly narrowing and his expression hardened as he pushed the barrels of his handguns harder into their skulls.

"I said I'll think about it." he growled. "And I think the streets has more than enough of you scumbags running around!"

Lawrence and Riccardo gasped in horror, knowing what the boy was going to do.

"No! Wait!" Riccardo pleaded in futile.

"It's been nice knowing you, gentleman." Jason said darkly as he began to squeeze the triggers.

"Jason! Stop!"

Jason glanced back to see Yu Wan, a catfish Dagonian and owner of the restaurant. Behind the older Dagonian, Nadia and Minette looked on with worry.

"Please don't make a mess." Yu Wan beseeched. "It's bad for business."

The boy paused for a while before sighing and pushing himself off the two goons.

"Look's like today's your lucky day." Jason said to them as he walked away from them.

He then turned and aimed one of his guns at them.

"Now scram, ya bother me."

And with that he shot at their feet, prompting them to take off in a hurry.

"Thanks for your help, Nadia!" Minette gushed to her friend with sparkly eyes. "I don't know what I would've done without you!"

Minette then glanced towards Jason and her cheeks tinged as she absentmindedly played with one of the fins at the side of her head.

"Oh, And, um, yo-you were great too, Jason." she said shyly.

Nadia internally snickered, Jason was an attractive young lad and she knew that Minette had something of a crush on him.

But the boy didn't seem to acknowledge her, he had a far-away look in his eyes as he shuffled silently out of the restaurant.

Minette glanced down and sighed sadly but Nadia patted her shoulder in reassurance.

"Aw, don't worry about him, Minette. Jason's just having the case of the ol' teenage Nyan-gst."

Yu Wan placed a finger and his chin in thought. The old Dagonian cared for both Nadia and Jason like family and also worried for him.

"Hmm, perhaps I should prepare a special meal to cheer him up." he suggested.

"Nah, that's okay." Nadia shook her head with a cheerful smile. "I'll just go and have a chat with him.

Outside on the pier, Jason found himself leaning forward against the wooden railing with his elbows resting on top. Before him was a view of the sea crowded with fishing boats and yet he didn't focus on anything in particular.

"Hey there, Sourpuss. Cat still got your tongue?" came a voice behind him.

"Nadia please, I'm not in the mood for bad puns." Jason let out a breath.

The feline Feral strolled up to his side and rested her back and elbows by the railing before speaking again.

"I thought you'd be glad to know that Naiper is dead."

"Don't you get it?" Jason said turning to her. "We were robbed! The plan was to pay him back for what he did to us!"

Nadia frowned at him.

"No,...the plan was to defeat the Skullgirl and use the Skull Heart to wish our friends back. Naiper was just a side thing along way."

Jason turned his sights back to the sea where the sun's light was bracketed over the currents.

"Do you...really think things will be the same after we wish them back?" he asked.

"Hm? Why you ask?"

He then pushed himself back into a stand.

"We came back and well,..." he gestured to both of them. "Look at us, a couple of literal dead-beats too damaged to piece ourselves back together.

Nadina plucked her head off and tipped it like a gentleman would to his hat.

"I can piece myself back together just fine." she joked.

"But not me."

That was when Nadia dropped her jokey attitude and regarded her companion with pity.

She remembered the first time she met Jason, it was a few years after she was taken in by the Fishbone Gang, a band of Dagonian thieves. The crew had pulled off another heist when they came upon the young boy stealing the tires off their getaway car. Young Jason thought he was in trouble but the gang had a hearty laugh about the whole situation and they invited him to join them as they escaped the cops. Since then, Jason had been the newest member of their family, he finally had a place where he felt like he belonged.

It all changed years later when the Gang decided to pull off their most ambitious heist yet: stealing the Life Gem from Lorenzo Medici. They were successful but on their escape route they were intercepted by Jack Naiper, Carl Grissom's lieutenant and leader of the Red Hoods.

Nadia and Jason would never forget helplessly watching the horror of their friends, one by one, being hacked and sliced as the psychotic gangster laughed maniacally. Nadia went through the same horrible ordeal but Jason had a different fate.

She didn't know why Jack singled him out, maybe it was because the boy attempted to catch him off guard with a crowbar but whatever the case, Jason found himself being beaten by Jack violently with a crowbar for an agonizingly extended amount of time. He continued to have nightmares about the man's wild eyes and laugh.

It should've been the end of it when their bodies were dumped in the river but then something unexpected happened: Nadia's body-parts began to reattach themselves as she came back to life. It was because of the Life Gem she swallowed right before they got caught and because Jason's body was right next to her's, he got resurrected too.

But even Nadia knew that something about him had permanently changed and it was far more than the white hair.

"Look Jay-jay,..." Nadia said after letting out a breath.

"I know I can't stop you from doing what ya gotta do so tell you what: let's go to Ace Chemicals. They didn't mention a body, maybe it's there or maybe we'll find a lead. If we don't, then we'll focus on the Skull Girl."

The Feral's ears drooped a bit as she spoke softly.

"You're my best friend and I can't do this without you."

She then perked up and held a fist towards him with a toothy grin.

"So what do you say? Are we Meowtlaws, or what?"

Jason raised a brow and looked at her weirdly but she still kept her fist up. And sure enough, Jason slowly smirked.

"Heh, Fuck yeah, we're Meowtlaws." he said.

And they bumped their fists while declaring in unison.

"Meowtlaws for life!"

Canopolis

Everyone thought it would be a normal day at the Renoir Grand War Memorial, that is until the Half-Gigan Scythana suddenly attacked. It didn't take long before the Kingdom's elite commando unit, the Black Egrets, responded to the crisis.

Outside the Memorial, hundreds of panicked tourists and visitors were being lead to safety by Black Egret soldiers and among those soldiers was a young lad.

He wore a standard issue Egret uniform, a feldgrau-colored double breasted army-style suit with a tactical harness and a red armband with the Canopy Kingdom symbol. The only thing he didn't wear were the helmet and gas mask, exposing his medium length dark hair that parts in the middle and his blue eyes.

"Come in, Tim. What's your status?" his radio earpiece squawked.

"Evacuation is going smoothly, Molly." Tim responded. "How are things looking over there?"

Molly was the Egrets Communications Officer, a bespectacled woman with curly hair that spoke with a 1940s New Yorker accent. She coordinates and relays information from their Command HQ.

"Not good. Scythana's a lot tougher than we thought! She's already knocked out Panzerfaust and to make things worse, Princess Parasoul is facing her alone!"

"Sounds bad. I'm heading there now!" Tim said with narrowed eyes.

But just as the teen was about to run, his path was blocked by some Black Egret soldiers.

"Cadet Drake, we've been given strict orders." one of them said sternly. "Don't dessert your post until we've been told otherwise."

Tim froze and his expression turned hesitant. He respected the chain of command but at the same time, he'd never forgive himself if anything happened to the princess under his watch. And so he raised his forearm which had a keyboard device strapped to it and when he rapidly typed on it, a holographic display appeared with various command prompts typed.

"Sorry guys." Tim said and executed his program.

Immediately every Black Egret soldier hunched and staggered in pain as their radio ear pieces screeched with a high pitched noise. Tim quickly took advantage of this and ran past them. Back in HQ, Molly yelped and quickly threw off her headset.

"What happened?" asked Adam, who was standing behind her.

"Tim must've hacked our radio frequency again." she said. "I really gotta ask him to tell me how he does that next time."

The Memorial grounds were littered with unconscious Black Egret soldiers and even the mighty Panzerfaust was slumped in a corner. At the center of the plaza was a large impressive looking monument that looked like it took a big beating and at its base, two women squared off. One towered over the other with her blonde hair tied in a spiky bun, her Gigan heritage evident from her pointed ears, sharp teeth, claws and a long white horn with black stripes curving upwards from the side of her head.

The other was a tall woman with honey colored eyes and vibrant long red hair. She had a curvaceous figure and wears a black long-sleeve turtleneck shirt with an inverted cross necklace, black skirt and black heels. On her guard, she held up Krieg, a black umbrella-like Living Weapon that had golden 'eyes' around it, with one hand and a luger-style gun with the other.

She is the commander of the Black Egrets and princess of the Canopy Kingdom, Parasoul Renoir.

"For the last goddess-damn time, I'm innocent! That crazy professor made me do it!" Scythana yelled.

The Half-Gigan unleashed a punch which traveled far thanks to her stretchable arms, Parasoul back flipped out of the way and retaliated with a few napalm shots. Scythana guarded with her arms while she charged and then then delivered a kick.

Parasoul blocked the attack by holding up Krieg but the force knocked her on her back, leaving her open for Scythana to stomp on her with her large foot.

But just then, a thrown tear-gas grenade hit the Half-Gigan on her face, causing her to yell and then back away while coughing.

"Your Highness!" Tim called out as he rushed towards her.

"Timothy!? What are you doing here?" Parasoul asked in surprise.

"No time to explain." he said as he helped her up. "We'll need to take care of her quickly while we have the upper hand."

Parasoul noticed that Scythana was on the verge of recovering, growling as she squinted at them with teary reddening eyes.

"Roger. Can I count on you to back me up?"

Tim responded by taking out a cylindrical object from his harness which telescopically extended into a long bo-staff.

"Always, Princess." he nodded.

And with that, the two charged into battle.

A few hours later back at Headquarters, Parasoul stood in front a podium amid a sea of reporters. It was press conference held in regarding the battle at the Memorial.

"Your Highness, is it true that you were the one who single-handedly took down Scythana?" a reporter asked.

"I can't take all the credit. Cadet Drake was an instrumental help in apprehending her." Parasoul smiled as she glanced towards her loyal team. "He may be young and a bit reckless but he has proven to be one of our most capable recruits."

Tim, who had been standing to the side with the rest of the team, blushed in embarrassment.

"Oh great, she's putting me on the spot here." he grimaced.

"Do not be so modest, Young Drake." said Panzerfaust. "Even I was no match for Half-Gigan. Your way with swinging-stick is most impressive."

"It's a Bo-staff, Panzerfaust." Tim sighed.

Adam smirked and patted him on the back.

"Relax! You're a Black Egret now, kid. Being in the limelight comes with the territory."

"Princess Parasoul, any comments on Scythana's claims of innocence?" another reported asked.

"Unfounded." she responded. "There's no evidence to support her story. However, she will be granted a fair trial."

At that point, a lady reporter spoke up in a cooing manner.

"Speaking of trial, what's going on between you and Crown Prosecutor Dent? Could we be looking at a potential future pri~nce?"

This brought a few 'oohs' from some of the reporters, particularly those from the gossip rags.

Parasoul's cheeks almost matched her hair. The truth was that she and Harvey had only gone out a few times but she felt that there was not much chemistry between them. Nevertheless, she decided to just entertain his company anyway, she still admired his vision to clean up crime in New Meridian.

"No comment. Next question!" she said quickly.

"Your Highness, Jack Ryder from the New Meridian Tribune. How do you intend to deal with the Batman who has recently been appearing all over the city?"

This immediately got Tim's attention and he fixed his eyes on the reporter and was all ears.

"I beg your pardon?" Parasoul asked.

The reporters around Ryder began to laugh.

"Ha! Get this guy! Talkin' about some bat!" a reporter guffawed.

But Ryder didn't seem fazed by this.

"You chuckle-heads can laugh all you want but word is going around that the Bat has been attacking members of the Medici Mafia. Compound that with recent Skullgirl sightings and it doesn't take a genius to figure that the two are in cahoots."

What Ryder said got many of the reporters to murmur amongst themselves. It had been seven years since last Skullgirl appeared and terrorized the world and she was none other than Queen Nancy, Parasoul's mother. It made the Canopy populous fearful about future Skullgirl incarnations.

And recently, there had been a number of reports about Skullgirl sightings in the Maplecrest neighborhood and that she had been killing Medici affiliates. The recent news about the Batman was different, he never attacked the victims at their homes and he never killed them.

But with his mysterious and supernatural-like nature, Tim couldn't help but consider the possibility.

"Mister Ryder..." Parasoul began to speak. "The Bat of New Meridian is an urban myth but rest assured, hunting down the Skullgirl remains the Black Egrets top priority and if there is confirmation that this Batman is her ally then he will be hunted down as well. That is all."

With the press conference wrapped up, the Black Egrets retreated to their command center where someone was waiting for Parasoul. She was a little girl, about seven years of age, with short pink hair wearing a yellow raincoat, gumboots and hat. With her possession was another Living Weapon similar to Parasoul's. She was the youngest sister of the Royal family and Parasoul's sister, Umbrella Renoir.

"That was so BOOORING!" Umbrella whined. "It's not fair! Why does Timmy get to go on missions with you and I can't!?"

Parasoul let out an irritated breath while pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Because Umbrella, Timothy is older and has gone through the necessary training. Ask him yourself!"

Parasoul glanced behind her and noticed that the young cadet was missing.

"Where is Timothy, Adam?" she asked.

"Beats me, he just left without a word after the press conference." Adam shrugged.

The elder princess frowned immediately.

"I think I have an idea where he might be."

The inside of Tim Drake's private quarters was a complete mess. Written notes and crumbled papers littered the floor and the side of the wall had a map of New Meridian with a slew of newspaper articles, notes and photos pinned at various points and connected with red string. At his desk, was an open laptop where Tim typed furiously.

"An agent of the Skullgirl..." he whispered to himself. "Now there's an angle I hadn't thought about."

"So this is what you've been doing in your off-hours?" came a voice behind him.

Tim immediately spun around with enlarged eyes, like a deer in headlights or more like a kid caught with the cookie-jar.

"P-princess Parasoul! What are you doing here!?"

Parasoul took a few steps in the room, careful to not step on any of the littered junk. Her eyes were narrowed and she didn't look the least bit pleased.

"The door was ajar. You're obviously distracted, Cadet Drake and I now see why."

"Look, it's not what it looks like. I'm close to figuring out who Batman is, I just need a little mor-"

"Have you already forgotten the situation with your parents?" she asked sternly. "It was an obsession like this that lead to it!"

Tim clammed up and swallowed a bit.

"Your Highness..."

"I'm not just the princess or your commanding officer, Timothy. I'm also your friend. I thought that would mean no secrets between us."

The young cadet froze and then finally hung his head and sighed.

"I know. I'm grateful for what you've done for Mom and Dad. I understand that back then I've made a big mistake and you thought I'd be safer with you than them."

Parasoul didn't respond immediately, she instead turned towards Tim's wall map and stared at it as she spoke.

"That's not the real reason I took you in." she said.

Tim looked at her curiously.

"It's because you're smart, Timothy. Too damn smart for your own good! One of these days, that intellect is going to land you in trouble that even I can't save you from."

Tim remained quiet and Parasoul found herself looking over the articles that Tim collected and in an impulsive move, she removed one of the photos to look at it closely. It was only shadowy silhouette, a candid shot of a figure in the air gasping on some kind of wire with a frightened mobster held by a choke hold as large bat-like wings opened from his back.

She thought that perhaps some of Tim's curiosity was rubbing off on her since she couldn't help but feel a bit fascinated by this mysterious figure.

"Why are you so interested in the Batman anyway?" she asked.

Tim was surprised by the question and was even more surprised that he didn't have much of an answer.

"I...I don't know. I guess I just want to know what makes him tick, why he does what he does. Despite his possible connection to the Skullgirl, I don't think he's a bad guy. I know it sounds dumb but I just have this gut feeling that he...he..."

"He what?" Parasoul asked, looking at him.

After some hesitation, Tim continued.

"He needs someone."

Grand Cathedral

"VALENTINE!"

A blood-curdling yell of fury echoed against the walls of the cathedral as a young girl with a frightening appearance marched inside. Her face was covered with stitched hide mask that only had eye sockets to reveal glowing red orbs. Her brown hair was tied in Chinese-style hair loops and she only wore a sleeveless ragged dress but had nails embedded in her skin but the most frightening thing was the large shuriken-like blade held by a mechanical appendage that was attached to her spine.

Before her was a blue-haired, big-breasted woman who has grayish skin, a bandaged eye-patch with her visible eye being blood red with a cross shaped pupil and wore an outfit that looked like a combination between a nurse and a kunoichi.

"Ah, Painwheel, You made it." Valentine greeted, her smirk hidden behind her face mask.

"Nowhere to run, Valentine. This time I WILL kill you!" Painwheel declared.

Behind Valentine, a blonde-haired nun with glowing red eyes spoke in an overlapping demonic voice.

"Who is this abomination, Lady Valentine?"

"Just an experiment, Double...one that worked a little too well." the ninja nurse said as she stepped forward.

"Invoking Command Protocol 51, Access code: 36E-25-40. I order you to return to lab 0 and forget what you saw here."

Painwheel stiffened a bit but then relaxed and gave a mocking chuckle.

"Heh. It won't work, Valentine! I'm in control now!"

"Fascinating! It would seem my theory was correct. Your blood is resonating with the Skullgirl. The closer you get to her, the stronger your psyche becomes."

"This won't do." Double said with a frown. "Let us dispose of her at once."

Then from the darkness came a voice.

"No! This one is MINE."

Double glanced to her side and from the dark emerged someone else.

He was a small boy, barely taller than Princess Umbrella, that was just ten years of age with spiky black hair and red eyes. He was draped with an oversized black coverall lab coat with the hood covering his head loosely and the rest of the material functioning like a cloak. Underneath was a red howie lab coat with black gloves and boots. He held over his shoulder a Kanata blade that resembles a surgical scalpel.

"Why are you here, Damian?" Valentine asked wearily.

"I've been observing your experiment, Mother." Damian stated. "And I disagree that it works as well as you think. In fact, I'm here to expose it's glaring faults!"

The Kunoichi Nurse regarded him for a moment and then shrugged.

"Fine by me."

All the while Painwheel stepped back as her red eyes and mask sockets enlarged in shock.

"What!? Mother!?...This little boy...is your son!?" she balked.

Damian grinned with mocking contempt and he held the Scalpel-Katana ready to strike.

"So you CAN put two and two together after all, Creature. Would you like to learn your ABC's next?"

The boy lunged with a wide slash but Painwheel reacted quickly and deflected it with an extended spike that grew from her elbow. Damian didn't let up and slashed again and again, each time Painwheel deflected with various spikes that grew from her limbs.

Anger slowly began to consume the tortured girl and the jaw portion of her mask stretched open to reveal savage teeth behind taut strings. With a roar, she suddenly seized Damian by his neck and hoisted him up, causing him to drop his sword and struggle with grit teeth.

But then her expression faltered and she dropped him before taking a few steps back while clutching her head. It was the "Carol" part of her personality trying to fight against her violent tendencies, the last thing she wanted was to harm a child.

"G-Get out my way, kid. I don't want to fight you!"

Damian picked himself with his eyes narrowed as he wiped his chin with the back of his fist.

"Tch! Of course you don't..."

The boy then charged again, Painwheel snapped out of her hesitation and focused her red eyes dangerously at her opponent. With a growl, she swung the giant buzz saw on her back towards him horizontally but Damian flipped over it and landed himself atop of her shoulders.

"Because you know you that you'll lose!"

With that declaration, he took out a syringe filled with purple liquid and stabbed her in the neck. Painwheel cried out and tried to grab him but he flipped off her shoulder and landed some distance away. When she tried to rush after him, she realized that her movements began to feel stiff and slow.

"Urgh! What...? Ca-can't...move."

The boy flashed her a smug smirk before he cooly turned his back to her as he went to pick up his sword.

"Hmph. Pathetic! I hardly see what mother sees in you."

Desperation began to take over Painwheel, the jaw portion of her mask stretched again to reveal her teeth as she growled. Summoning every ounce of her rage and pain, she used it to force her muscles to work and rushed at the boy in a fit of blind rage.

"RRRAAWRH!"

And just like that, there was dead silence. Painwheel froze when she was just behind Damian, because of the sword he used to do a backwards stab and impale her.

When he pulled the blade out, she fell to her knees; a bloody splotch spread over her dress and dripped to the floor.

"NNGH!...NO! I can't die here!" Painwheel gasped as she struggled to stay up.

But try as she might, she slumped to the floor.

"I'm...so...close..." were the last words she was able to get out before she fell still as her glowing red eyes dimmed and blood pool formed underneath her.

"What a pity. I guess she just wasn't ready yet." Valentine sighed to herself.

"And thus the culling of our flock continues." Double said with satisfaction as she joined her palms in a prayer. "May the Great Trinity have mercy on this lost soul."

Damian scoffed as he cleaned the blood of his blade with a white cloth.

"I don't recall seeing your Trinity doing anything to help, Shapeshifter. If they're so great, they should come down here and clean up their own messes."

A portion of Double's face morphed into a horrific hodge-podge of faces and its visible red eye glared at him.

"Watch your tone, Boy!"

"Make me, you ugly mess of barf!" Damian fired back.

"Enough." Valentine said to both of them and turned to her son.

"Damian, be a dear and get rid of the body, would you?"

With a sulky face, Damian made a "tt" sound before walking over to Painwheel and dragging her out of the Cathedral by her back collar, leave a blood trail as a result.

"I suggest you put that boy of yours on a leash." Double said to Valentine.

"Damian gets the job done." Valentine said with her arms crossed and eyes closed. "His attitude is no concern of mine nor should it be of yours."

The Nun's lips slowly stretched into a cunning smirk.

"Tell me...does he know? About the identity of his father?"

Valentine opened her working eye and flashed the shapeshifter a questioning look.

"And what, pray tell, does that have to do with anything?" she asked

"It's been all over the news, the return of the heir to Wayne Enterprises. The two of you had some... history, no?"

The Ninja-Nurse closed her eye again in dismissal.

"Ancient history. I could care less about Wayne or Wayne Enterprises."

"Hmmm...I wonder." Double crooned, her smirk growing wider.

"Is that all?" Valentine asked impatiently.

Double dropped the attitude and switched it with her usual Business-like tone.

"What of the planned assault on Lab 8?"

"On schedule. No need to worry."

"Good." Double nodded. "Then I shall expect results soon."

With nothing left to be said, Valentine took her leave.

Outside the dark Cathedral, Valentine could see the sky beginning to turn red from the setting sun. Night will arrive soon and she grew excited from the anticipation because she knew that New Meridian was only truly alive at night.

After she passed through the front gates, she stopped with a hand on her hip and glanced sideways.

"You're still breathing too heavily. It's a dead giveaway." she chided.

Leaning with crossed arms against the compound wall in a darkened corner was Damian.

"Who said I was trying to hide?" he said.

"If you say so. Where's Painwheel?"

Damian approached her with a disgruntled expression.

"I stopped her bleeding and accessed her subconscious routines to send her back to the Lab. She won't remember the last 24 hours."

"Nice work on that last stab." Valentine smirked under her mask. "Though a little sloppy. Your angle nearly hit one of her vital organs."

"Maybe I wasn't trying to miss." Damian muttered.

"Hm?"

"I could've just dumped her in the river, you know!"

Valentine internally chuckled. She was well aware that her son carried a deep resentment for Painwheel, akin to sibling rivalry. Despite that poor girl's circumstance, Painwheel was as much Valentine's creation as it was BrainDrain's. So, in a twisted way, she could be considered Painwheel's mother.

The busty woman pulled down her mask with a finger to reveal a catty smile, one that was marred by a small scar that ran down her lips.

"My, something sure has your feathers ruffled! I haven't seen you this cranky since I tried to wean you off my tits."

"Don't use that kind of language with me." Damian said. "Why do you keep depending on that...that CREATURE when I'm more qualified to defeat Marie!?"

Valentine's eye widened and smacked the boy upside the head.

"Idiot! Keep your voice down!" she hissed.

She quickly looked around and lead the boy to a secluded spot where they couldn't be seen or heard.

"Damian, I already told you why we need to maintain appearances. Marie is just too powerful right now." Valentine explained.

Seeing her son's crossed expression unchanged, Valentine tried approaching from a more personal angle.

"Look, I know I haven't been much of a teammate...or a mother. But you need to trust me when I say that we need to be patient."

But Damian was having none of it and rounded on her.

"It was being patient that got auntie Christmas and rest of the Last Hope killed! Please Mother, I'm STRONGER, more SKILLED and I won't be affected by the Skull Heart!"

"No."

"WHY NOT!?"

The memory that fateful day flooded her mind; the lifeless bodies of her teammates, Double holding Damian by his neck ready to end him and Marie holding her Scythe around her own head.

Had her own life ended then, she would have had no regrets but not when it came to Damian. It's true that she agreed to serve Marie in hopes that she could find a way to stop the Skullgirl cycle once and for all but she also jumped at the opportunity if it meant keeping him alive.

She wanted to tell him that she couldn't lose him like she did her comrades, that she was willing to sacrifice anyone but him. But of course, she knew it would only spur him on and so...

"Because I don't trust you, Damian. You're too arrogant to realize your own weakness and I won't have you jeopardize our mission. If you make any move against Marie, you'll have to go through me."

Valentine got in her battle stance.

"Think you can take on Mommy, kiddo?" she taunted.

Damian didn't give much of a reaction as she expected but she did notice his fists tightly clenched and shaking as his jaw clenched. And then suddenly, he turned his back to her.

"Tell the shapeshifter that I'll be leading the charge against Lab 8..."

He glanced back with hateful eyes.

"This is, if you're continuing to let her pull your strings." he spat with venom and just left.

Valentine sighed and shook her head with exasperation. She thought that maybe she underestimated his intelligence and that he was reminding her more and more of his father day by day.

She frowned and placed a hand over her heart, she berated herself for acting like such a lovesick schoolgirl but no matter how much she buried her emotions, her heart still twitched at the thought of him. Where had he gone this whole time? What was he doing right now? Would he even recognize her?

Her eye narrowed as her hand clinched.

"No." she thought. "I threw that life away years ago. There's no point thinking about it now."

Below Wayne Manor

The bats hanging up on the stalactite-festooned roof were woken early by the unusual sounds echoing off the cave walls. They gazed irritably down below towards a circular platform where a young man was back-flipping, dodging and avoiding attacks from, unbelievably enough, a trio of impossibly long yellow serpents.

They struck with lightning speed at where he stood, fangs missing him by a hair, but with every snake dodged another attacked again from a different angle, undulating in the air like it was being whipped.

The young man himself was only wearing a gym vest and a pair of black track pants, showing off his well built physique. He was also had the kind of face that women found attractive with his dark hair, dark blue eyes, square jawline and boyish features.

After dodging another attack, he readied himself in a martial arts stance as all three yellow snakes reared themselves like the mythical hydra and launched themselves one by one. But he was ready of them: The first one he took care of with an uppercut, he sidestepped the second one and delivered a chop to the neck and finally the third one was knocked out with a spinning kick.

All three serpents lay on the floor, knocked out with their mouths open and then they were pulled back as if they were retracted. The base of their bodies happen to be attached to a living weapon, a whip that had Sumerian style wings as a guard called the Pazuzu Whip.

The person wielding it was woman with lilac colored skin, dark purple hair, pointed ears, a devil-like tail and had a pair of long horns that grew from her forehead. She wore a mask on her face, dominatrix styled boots and gloves, and a tight stylized one-piece suit that barely hid her large chest and thighs.

"Mmmmm...Your stamina has improved, Bruce." she purred. "Good, I love a man with staying power."

She ran towards him and attacked with a few punches and kicks and Bruce met them with a series of blocks and counters. The demonic looking woman continued to chat with him flirtatiously as they sparred.

"You have been a good student but as much as I can do this all night, it's no fun without a reward at the end. So how about it, Stud? You beat my snakes...I beat yours?"

"Do you speak anything other than lewd innuendo, Victoria?" Bruce asked in an annoyed tone as he blocked a punch.

"It's Deep Violet, hun." she corrected. "I already told you that Victoria is my boring alter-ego."

When their training session had at last come to a close, Bruce moved to pick up a towel to wipe the sweat off his hair while Deep Violet stretched the kinks out her body.

"Ahhhh, that felt good." she sighed.

She then joined Bruce near a large computer, where she plopped herself over a work table behind him and picked up the newspaper that was on top of it.

"Looks like you've been making the headlines." she said while reading it. "Heh, it takes me back to when I first started out."

Violet smiled as nostalgia flooded her mind, she thought about her crime-fighting career and the time she teamed up with a rag-tag group to stop the Skullgirl, Selene Contiello, fourteen years ago.

"I'm sure you understand why I retired but...maybe someday,...when I feel ready, I could join you out there."

She said this as her smile became fonder and her cheeks turned red. She knew she shouldn't be feeling this attracted towards her 'pupil'; after all, she was so much older than him. But she couldn't help herself, he brought out...feelings in her that she hadn't felt in a long time.

But the mood was lost when she noticed that he was standing and typing away at the computer without acknowledging what she said.

"Can't you revel in a little victory for once?" she asked after clicking her tongue in irritation.

"Manhandling a bunch of punks isn't going to stop Lorenzo Medici." Bruce responded without turning.

"But it's still better than when I found you bleeding on the streets."

Bruce paused from his typing and turned to her.

"What happened that night was only because they weren't afraid of me."

It was a year ago when Bruce returned from his training, he had "ventured out" in nothing but civilian clothing and a balaclava to hide his identity. He attempted to stop a sex traffic ring in the red light district but all his training couldn't prepare him for the amount of Medici goons that vastly outnumbered him. In the end, he was just one man and afterwards he was left for dead, broken and bleeding.

That was when a certain high school teacher stumbled upon him.

"And that's why I decided to train you, help you get your crime-fighting feet wet. You've realized the criminal's superstitions and cowardly ways." Violet then held out the paper's front page to him. "And as you can see, it's working."

"But it's not enough." Bruce sighed as he shook his head. "Striking from the shadows can only get you so far. I need to send a message, hit them hard where it hurts."

Violet looked at him with a morbid expression.

"Take it from me, Bruce. You can only go so deep before you can't climb up anymore. This mission of yours, it can make you lose sight of what's important."

"None of that matters anymore, not since..." Bruce trailed off.

The demonic-looking woman looked at him sadly. In a way, she blames herself for not bringing the justice that Bruce needed. She did everything she could to help him but she knew that this path he had chosen is paved with tragedy and loneliness and wished she could convince him to allow more people in his life...before what's left of his soul was lost forever.

"Then let me teach you one last thing..." she smiled while closing her eyes.

Tossing the paper aside, Violet strolled up to him before she suddenly took hold of his head and crashed her lips to his.

Bruce's eyes popped wide open, whatever was going through his mind came to a sudden halt and he didn't even know what to think.

"Mmmmmph~..." she moaned lovingly and took it a step further by pushing her tongue in and played with his tongue before exploring the rest of his mouth.

As she continued to make out with him, he was still trying to figure out what came over her but then soon got caught up in the moment and was about move his lips with hers when suddenly he felt his foot being yanked, causing him to fall on his back. And to add insult to injury, she brought her high heel down on his abdomen; causing him to wince with a choking sound.

Looking up, he could see Violet looming over him in a domineering manner; Leaning on her thigh with one arm while holding her Pazuzu Whip with her other hand. It seemed she secretly used it to trip him.

"The lesson here is to stay vigilant, even a kiss can be a weapon." she said with a grin.

Bruce frowned with annoyance and as if the universe continued to pour salt on his wound, the next thing that happened was the elevator door leading to the manor opened and out came his butler, Alfred Pennyworth.

The older gentleman froze with widened eyes seeing his employer and charge under the heel of the skimpy mature woman.

"Ahem. Master Bruce, Miss Violet. I hope I'm not interrupting your...erm, session?"

"Oh, don't mind me, Mister Pennyworth. I'd welcome a voyeur or two." Violet responded with a wink.

"Yes,...quite." the butler said awkwardly. "My sources have informed me that there appears to be a closed-doors meeting of sorts scheduled at the Medici Tower tonight."

Bruce immediately pushed himself off from under her and stood.

"Then this is it. The costume and the weapons have been tested, it's time for the real deal."

He walked over to a cylindrical pod, both Butler and the former crime-fighter following him.

"Alfred, is the suit's final build ready?" he asked.

"Yes sir."

Alfred pressed a button against the wall and the cylinder slid open, the lighting from its inside flooded over them as Bruce fixed his steely eyes upon it like it was calling out to him.

"I dig the horns." Violet chuckled.

Medici Tower

Not all businesses took place in Lorenzo Medici's office; the Medici Tower also happen to house his private penthouse at roof level, it was also where he sometimes conducted private meetings with his most trusted associates.

He was the king of this castle and it could be considered a home away from home, but as of late it had become his asylum and his associates could see why.

They were all seated in the dining room which had a long table with a skylight over it, allowing the moon to light up the room. Their meals were being served by a man who had a strange gait as they kept their eyes at the head of the table.

The rumors about him being unwell weren't far off, he looked like he had aged several decades. It was no wonder why he wanted to keep this meeting private.

"Alright, let's get on with it."

Lorenzo spoke as the food server lit the ornate candlestick next to him.

"I have a lot on my plate right now and I'm NOT talking about my cacciatore!" he snapped.

Some of the men at the table sweated nervously, the man didn't look happy or stable and they wondered who among them would be the victim of his wrath.

"First thing's first, Why haven't any of you shitheads got my Life Gem back!?"

"I might have some news, father." Vitale responded. "While trying to locate the River King's daughters, two of my men had an...encounter with a feral whom, according to them, was able to, er, detach her own head."

Carl Grissom, who sat across from Vitale, shot him an incredulous look.

"So? She sounds like a freak that belongs in your circus...or even that new mental institution."

"Her description matches that of Nadia Fortune from the Fishbone Gang, the same that stole the Life Gem."

"Bullshit." Grissom said, looking cross. "She's dead, my men made sure of that."

"Think about it, Carl. How else could she be walking around unless the jewel was keeping her alive?"

"Then what the fuck are you idiots waiting for!? Find her!" Lorenzo yelled.

"Patience, Father. I believe I have a lead and I have someone in mind to track her down." Vitale explained calmly.

Lorenzo slumped back on his seat with a dangerous glare.

"Well forgive me if I don't seem to be brimming with confidence, my boy." he said bitterly. "Especially with the NMPD being unusually proactive lately."

The old Medici head then pointed his glare towards a certain person seated at the far corner of the table and spat out his words with venom.

"Something you'd like to add to that?... COMMISSIONER!?"

Commissioner Gillian Loeb gulped as all eyes fell towards him.

"I-it-it's not my fault, Mister Medici. It's the new Lieutenant on the force, Jim Gordon. He's a loose cannon!" he weakly explained.

"Then fire him! What you think I have you in my pocket for!?"

"He came personally recommended by Harvey Dent. You know how it would look if I did that."

Surprisingly, Lorenzo felt that he had a point and mellowed down, slumping back to his chair with his fingers interlocked in thought.

"Right. Dent." he muttered.

The new Crown Prosecutor was proving to be another thorn to his side thanks to Princess Parasoul's endorsement, it seemed that he was willing to continue where she left off. Lorenzo decided that he would deal with Dent in due time. For now, he focused back on Gordon.

"What about family?" he asked.

"Divorced. But he has a daughter staying with him." Loeb said.

"If I may..." interrupted Vitale. "Gordon is only half of the problem. I have been told that he has an informant within our ranks."

"A rat, huh?" Lorenzo mused with disgust. "Then am I right to assume you're already taking care of it?"

Vitale took a bite of his food, his lips curling at the corners as light glinted of his glasses.

"Very much so."

A slew of unconscious goons were scattered on the above rooftop complex, mostly henchwomen wearing outfits that resemble playboy bunnies with skull masks.

They were the underlings of Black Dahlia, Lorenzo's personal enforcer. She was a tall woman with white hair tied in a braided chignon, wearing a black dress with a long circular doily cape and a black fur hat that had a jewel hat pin with feathers. Her face was hidden by a black veil and only a single glowing eye was visible through it.

Slowly she navigated over the bodies while sweeping her mechanical arm which had a large gun mounted on it, trying to find her quarry as her visible eye glanced back and forth. To her side she noticed sudden movement and she unleashed rapid gunfire.

The shadowy figure with the membranous cloak darted and bounded across the rooftop, being chased by the stream of bullets until he disappeared in a dark corner.

"Slippery one, aren't you." Dahlia remarked in a smooth voice.

She walked around searching as she spoke loudly toward the intruder.

"Though I have to say, it's not everyday I see someone take out our entire security personnel. I'm almost half-way impressed."

Dahlia stopped and she raised her gun which switched to a different type of ammo.

"But you what they about about vermin?" she asked. "Take away their hiding place and they scatter like bugs."

With that, she fired volleys of incendiary rounds at every dark area. She missed but the momentary illumination allowed her to spot him.

The shadowy figure with angular glowing white eyes leaped away and flung three spinning projectiles.

Dahlia raised her gun-arm to block and all three of them embedded themselves on her. She lowered her arm to curiously look at the bladed bat-shaped throwing weapons but what she didn't expect was them exploding.

She screamed and staggered back but kept her footing. Looking at her arm, she could see that the gun-part was damaged and she clicked her tongue in annoyance before she looked towards her silhouetted opponent.

"Alright stranger,..."

The Medici enforcer readied her other arm before her where a blade popped out of her elbow.

"Let's see how you dance." she challenged menacingly.

His angular white eyes grew narrower.

"And now, we come to the real matter at hand...the Skullgirl and the Batman." Lorenzo said with a grim sense of finality.

"I have an idea, sir." Ottomo, Lorenzo's loyal right-hand spoke up.

He was quite tall with thin limbs, wore a dapper suit and spoke in a mechanized posh accent. His head was metallic, with a long horse-like muzzle that ended in grille type vents.

"In the news today, the Renoir Princess publicly pledged to hunt them both if there was an association between the two. Perhaps if we plant the right evidence, and leave a few breadcrumbs..."

Ottomo took his food with a fork and brought to his head which opened up to reveal a cockpit where a tiny pink salamander with a potbelly, derby hat and a cigar in his mouth was at the controls.

He was Tom, a Dagonian who was also Ottomo's pilot. Tom took his cigar out of his mouth and chomped on his food.

"...And Hey! Bada-bing, Bada-boom, two birdies wit one dame." he spoke with his mouth full.

Lorenzo dragged a finger over his wrinkled chin as he considered the idea.

"Not a bad idea. But Renroir won't work with us."

"I have a different solution in mind, Father. You remember Eliza?" asked Vitale.

The Medici head blinked in surprise.

"Eliza? Why would she help u-"

Before he could finish, the food server who was bringing Lorenzo an open vine bottle tripped and fell, spilling its contents on not only the carpet but getting some on Lorenzo's pants.

Needless to say, Lorenzo was livid and his chapped lips twisted in a snarl.

"Cobblepot, you nincompoop!" he yelled.

The man on the carpet looked up fearfully, he was thin and had a crooked beak-like nose, pale skin and black hair that was messily plastered on his head.

"S-s-sorry, M-mister Medici." he stammered.

Lorenzo grabbed the man by his lapels and shook him as he exploded in rage.

"You and your damn waddling legs! I should have you locked in a freezer! I should have a pile of fish shoved down your throat, you...you...FUCKING PENGUIN!"

CRAAAASSSH!

The above skylight shattered as two bodies crashed through and landed on the table. The men around the table gasped and scrambled away in fright, except for Lorenzo who froze in horror as his eyes widened. Cobblepot took advantage of his state and scrambled away as well.

Sprawled on the table was Black Dahlia, groaning as the mechanical parts of her body sparked from its damages and standing above her was none other than the Batman, scalloped cape flowing and curtaining around his gray bodysuit which had a bat shaped emblem on his chest.

"Gentleman, you've eaten well." he spoke in a deep growling voice.

He continued to speak as he walked over the table towards Lorenzo who shrunk back into his chair, looking like his heart was about to give out.

"You've eaten New Meridian's wealth, its spirit. But your feast is at an end. Because from this moment on..."

Batman hunched towards Lorenzo, the light from the lit candle illuminating the exposed portion of his face. The Medici head put his hands up in defense as he whimpered.

Batman ended his sentenced as he extinguished the flame with his gloved fingers.

"None of you are safe."

TBC