2943/Return to the Cave

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Return to the Cave
Date of Scene: 24 October 2017
Location: Batcave, Gotham City
Synopsis: Batman and Robin return to the Batcave after speaking with Albert Wesker. They are met by Red Robin and Alfred. A discussion ensues regarding both Wesker and the situation with Shiva having challenged Nightwing to a fight in the far future.
Cast of Characters: Batman, Red Robin, Alfred Pennyworth, Robin (Wayne)




Batman has posed:
    The Bat Cave can be eerily quiet, despite the steady hum of electronics and the faint shuffling of the many bats that call this place home. Occasionally there'll be a distant high pitched cry from one of the nocturnal creatures, but other than that the place is a good place for quiet introspection. A man can be left alone with his thoughts, and only hear the occasional distant drip of water trickling down the side of a stalactite.
    But tonight the silence ends as a distant sliver of light slices through the side of the cave as one of the entry chambers opens, allowing the roar of the Batmobile to be heard as the vehicle rolls across the gantry that leads it towards the turntable and the braced bumpers that catch the vehicle and eases it to a halt.
    No words had been shared between the Dark Knight and Robin as they returned from their evening patrol and dealing with what had passed. And none are shared now as Batman pushes the canopy aside and vaults out of the vehicle, cloak snapping behind him as he starts to walk towards the central area of the cave, his footsteps steady, countenance stern.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake isn't in costume, but dressed casually, in slacks and a cardigan over a t-shirt. He's been working on updating the computer database, reviewing new data and doing the necessary maintenance. Barbara does most of that, of course, but Tim likes to keep a hand in, both because she can't be everywhere at once and because he finds the underlying analytics fascinating.

He hears the telltale sounds of Batman and Robin arriving. Still a little strange to hear it from the other side. He has a half-empty cup of coffee nearby, overloaded with cream and sugar. He pauses his music, earbuds wrapped around his neck. He's been away mostly lately, doing some scouting of schools and generally being a bit out in the world. He had phased into young adulthood relatively peacefully, but that didn't make it any less awkward sometimes. "Batman," he says in greeting as his mentor arrives.

Alfred Pennyworth has posed:
     Alfred is of course waiting for their return. His stance one of expectation and poise as he holds a small metal tray with cups of coffee, and biscuits at the ready for the two returning heroes.

     Alfred's expression is flat, as he speaks in a reserved calming voice. "Ah, Master Bruce, I see you've decided to turn in early for the night." As Batman makes his way past the balding butler and his tray of confectionery goodness. Each of the biscuits on the tray is cut into the shape of a bat with wings outstretched widely, the bat symbol on a bright yellow background There are even two little red eyes on each of the bats.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
Although the encounter had been relatively without incident, what Wesker had shown Batman has Damian a little uneased. Removing his mask, and lowering the hood on his cape before he vaulted out of the Batmobile. His green eyes looked to the computer, only to be passed in order to go to the armory area. He grabs one of the cups on the tray along with a biscuit before he enters the armory. "Thank you, Pennyworth." Placing his sword in it's display, he takes a sip. He also removes a battered and beaten up batarang, placing it beneath it, in a place of honor, as it were. There was not much greeting for Tim, he still had his fair share of contention for the Robin before him it seems. He places his cape on the dummy on his side of the dressing area.

  Robin does make it out of the armory however, aproaching bruce and handing his father the memory chip from tonight's camera feed. "That man...was not right."

Batman has posed:
    The tall man sweeps into the nerve center of the Bat Cave, his footfalls heavy on the metal walkway that leads towards the bank of computers and monitors. Pushing the cowl back and revealing his features, Bruce Wayne says in the same rumbling voice towards the former Robin, "Tim."
    A few more steps take him past Alfred and he only briefly looks at the lovely confections, eyes narrowing slightly, and then a small smile. But he lifts a hand as he waves off the treat, pulling around one of the braced cushioned chairs before the computer and touching a hand to one of the datapads.
    A bevy of monitors spring to life, the systems offering a cascade of data before him that he'll peruse with a glance. "Not done for the night, Alfred." There's a pause, then he remembers his manners. He looks again at the cookies, then leans over to avail himself of one and murmurs. "Thank you."
    As Damian returns and voices his commentary on the meeting, Batman responds with his customary grunt. Not exactly agreeing nor disagreeing. Though it might be clear to Damian that his thoughts are still on the matter as the data he's bringing up and collating relates to what was discussed. He touches another keypad and murmurs, "Computer, contact Lucius. Fast Track the VGB replacement prototype. I need it in seventeen hours."

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake adds his own gratitude, taking the fresh cup of coffee as Alfred removes the mostly cold predecessor, "Thanks," he says, taking a careful sip. Just the way he likes it, more creamer than coffee.

"'Not right' could describe an entire host of people in Gotham," he says. "Who in specific?" he asks. He hasn't been on the ground in Gotham for a short while, but he kept himself updated remotely as much as he could. "By the way, I found a backdoor into the Arkham computer system. Should I take advantage or plug it up?" he asks routinely.

To Damian, he just gives a simple nod. He doesn't feel any resentment towards the new Robin, but recognizes that the kid probably sees him as either a rival or a threat and he doesn't want to cause waves. Being the Bat's right hand, even if you've been trained as a lethal weapon, even if you're his son, carries enough stress as it is.

Alfred Pennyworth has posed:
     Once the two have grabbed their respective buscuits Alfred slowly places the tray back away. The tray is placed onto a rolling tray that had been brought along for just such an ocasion. Though the contents on top of the tray, medical supplies, show that Alfred wasn't expecting the two to come back entirely in one piece. This was the way life was for the bat-family.

     "It never is, is it Master Bruce" Alfred comments with a light bit of banter towards the dark knight. His face turns slightly up to the smallest of smirks at his own joke as he walks over to watch through the displays before him. "Fascinating." He can't help but voice through the moment, leaning over towards the displays.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     "Albert Wesker, bio-terrorist. Apparently had his hand in something in Raccoon City. The monsters he created...were almost beautiful, surgically precise, and possibly just as deadly." Damian offers, looking up at the batcomputer.

  Damian looks to his gauntlet computer, looking to the display. "The Titans are hardly equipped for such a threat." A finger swipes across his display, and the gauntlet is again to his side. He takes out the T-Comm, and looks to it, checking in as it seems with the other Titans.

Batman has posed:
    Sidelong towards Tim, Batman murmurs. "Take it, close it, make it ours." But his attention and focus are on the monitors for now. A few flicks of a keypad and more data begins to cascade past. He frowns as he then slides a leather clad fingertip over one screen and pushes the display off to the side as the information gathers. He turns on his seat to more face the others in the cave.
    "Wesker," He offers in way of explanation, but then Damian explains further and so he lets the youngest Robin offer his insight about the matter, signalling his agreement with a small point of his finger in the young man's direction without looking.
    "I gave him access to a piece of equipment that may aid in the situation. But need to adapt to possible contingencies."
    He waves a hand and changes topic, "If any of you see Nightwing, I need to speak to him."

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake blows on his coffee a little bit to cool it, having come close to searing his tongue on the first sip. "Dick tends to check in when he feels like checking in," he says. The original Boy Wonder likes his independence, after all.

"I'll see what I can dig up on this Wesker's background. Everything I know about Raccoon City is pure unadulterated bad scene, though," he says. "I'm inclined to agree with Damian - the guy's probably not right in the head. How could you be," he says, "But if there's any chance of any kind of outbreak or bioweapon at hand here, yeah, strange bedfellows, I get it," he says.

Alfred Pennyworth has posed:
     "Sounds like this Wesker isn't exactly the nicest of fellows." Alfred states calmly, looking over from one monitor to the next reading through all that data with speed and ease, just like it doesn't mean a thing. His eyes narrow at the lines of text and data streaming across from one monitor to the next.

     "I'd hardly call his sort of work beautiful by any standards, but I suppose one is free to ones own judgement." A slight shudder down Alfreds spine as he realizes this Wesker man was exactly the kind of evil genius that he was trained to take down so many years ago. It was Blofeld all over again."He reminds me of an old friend from my war days." Alfred comments looking up towards the image with a bit of a grimace.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian huffs with a laugh. "You mean ream his ass over almost throwing away his life?" A devilish smirk appearing on his lips. Now that the cat is out of the bag on Dick's life choises, it is open season on him.

  "You may want to relay that to Barbara." Another smirk on his face before he takes a draw on the mug. "I believe she sees him most of all of us."

  "It's no Lazarus, but, these creatures. If one wanted to envelop a city into chaos, literally eradicate an entire populus. That would be how to do it. Any casualties, and they are infected, just another log on the fire." Damian blinks at the thought, only to sigh slightly, shaking it off.

Batman has posed:
    The only sign of tension that Bruce gives about Tim's answer regarding Nightwing is a slight clenching of his jaw, just a momentary hint of a scowl. But he nods in answer, accepting the truth of the statement. It's only then, however, that he takes a bite of the cookie, crunching an ear off and settling back in his chair.
    Towards Alfred, the Dark Knight says levelly, "What's happened there is a horror, and the only thing I'm interested in is developing a cure." He gestures with one hand sidelong towards Damian, telling the young man. "There is nothing redeeming in this matter, Damian. Nothing that can be drawn forth as a positive. No matter what the man might say."
    Then, for an instant he holds up the cookie and considers it. Just a small tilt of his head to the side as if something had occurred to him. He shakes his head and takes another bite, then sets it aside upon the computer desk. "Tim, if you get time I want you to put together surveillance data on the leading martial artists that are currently active in urban centers. Top twenty."

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake nods at Batman's request, "Of course, the actual parameters of what defines a top martial artist can be difficult to quantify, but I can probably manage a few variations on a list, especially with the caveat that I can add-on a few honorable mentions to keep the fuzzy edges to a minimum. It's not like everyone would be available anyway," he says. He'd be hesitant to put himself in that list, although he probably is, maybe even close to the top ten. Not in the same level as the two in the room, however.

His fingers start to dance across the keyboard, flicking through various databases and doing the job he's been given. "Even if valuable scientific data can be gleaned from such a disaster, that doesn't make it worth it in exchange for the cost of human life," he says.

Alfred Pennyworth has posed:
     There's an uncharacteristic silence from Alfred as he looks towards that image on the screen, features narrowing. He feels the back of his hand, an old faded scar, and memories flood back of another mad scientist who needed stopped years prior, and what he did to Alfreds wife.

     It's a long look of thoughtfulness, as he purses his lips for a moment, setting back on the conversation as he lets the pro's do their thing. Yet there is certainly something about this whole thing which bothers Alfred to the core.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian looks a bit off put by Batman's message. "One can see the amount of work something like that had to have gone through."

  Damian continues to occupy his time with acrobatics, he moves to a handstand, only to lift one hand, and push on his fingertips. He holds there a second before dipping down, and back up. "Besides this room, and any other metahumans, I only know of one prize-winning martial artist that had come to Gotham recently." Another push up. "Tommy Oliver, I saw him when I was...in front of the Monarch." Not saying exactly why he was in front of the Monarch Theatre.

  "He was looking for some of his students that had made it here from Angel Grove. He got tangled up with the italians, they wanted him for their fights."

Batman has posed:
    A nod is given in Tim's direction, what passes for a thank you from the Dark Knight. But it serves him decently. He turns back to the displays and the bank of monitors, keying up a few streams of data to progress while he gains his feet, the cape swirling around the back of his legs as he turns. His gauntlets lift to the neck of his uniform as he begins to detach the cape and cowl with a faint click, stowing it over his arm.
    Despite his gruffness, despite his manner, Bruce is keyed to those around him. Especially Alfred. So when he passes the older man he pauses briefly to touch a hand to his shoulder and tell him, "Thank you, Alfred." A small ghost of a smile is given, but then he's stepping past and towards the display case where he begins to disarm, the gauntlets and belt being set aside for now.
    Over his shoulder he'll lift his voice after listening to Damian's words. "This matter with Shiva has made me consider that we need to be more focused in that regard. Rotational training. For the next two weeks. Just to see where we are. I'll come up with a list in the morning." Or rather the afternoon.

Red Robin has posed:
Tim Drake winces a bit. He knows what training with Shiva is like, was one of the first that Bruce ever put under her tutelage. Shiva doesn't go easy, not ever, and he knows he'll have sore ribs by the end of the first session. She liked picking on his ribs, called it 'tickling'. Even when it occasionally made him cough up a little blood. He'd learned to watch his tongue with her after that.

What a hell of a business they were in.

"I should have a functional database by then. The Arkham thing will keep me up a bit late, just to make sure I don't leave any nooks and crannies open. Don't need Anarky or some other wisecracker sneaking through the edges and turning our advantage into theirs," he says.

Alfred Pennyworth has posed:
     Alfred gives a calm and silent nod towards Bruce. The hand on his shoulder enough to bring him out of whatever mental pit-trap he'd managed to fall into.Walking back over towards the tray he grabs one of his own biscuits and takes a bite out of it. Never trust a chef who won't eat their own cooking they always say.

Robin (Wayne) has posed:
     Damian looks to Bruce, giving an uneasy look. "Rotating with whom?" He wasn't sure if this was more of a training thing, or if this was possibly a punishment of some sort. "And who's the poor sap that gets stuck with me?" Damian was laser-focused when it came to combat, probably only rivaled by Bruce. But this did come with years of grueling dovotion to the League of Assassins. "And does it involve swords?" A chuckle from the Robin that hardly shows any other emotion than anger.

Batman has posed:
    For Damian, Batman tells him, "Everyone gets a shot at everyone." But then at Tim's words Batman nods again, though now divested of most of his equipment, just the armored body suit is left. He looks over at the group of men and peers between them. "These next few weeks will be telling." Others might mention something about thanking them for their support. Something might be said about how he believes they're all strong enough to endure. But with Batman he conveys that sentiment in four words, "Let's get to work."
    And that said he turns away, moving silently towards the training area and its myriad gymnasiums he reaches over and flicks on the display on the wall there at the entrance and tells it, "Computer, remove safety constraints. Run scenario Shiva 14." And as he says that the doors close behind him, leaving the others to their thoughts and each other.