5411/A Tale of Two Bats

A Tale of Two Bats
Date of Scene:	22 September 2018
Location:	Gotham City
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Man-Bat, Batman

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Man-Bat has posed:
At night Gotham is frightening enough with villians dotting every square mile of some parts of the city, but there are other things lurking in the shadows, things that the average Gothamite knows nothing about, and usually doesn't care to fathom because they could be mugged at any moment. Tonight such a creature is flying above Gotham's skyline. The dark shape blots out the Bat Signal momentarily as it passes, sonar helping the bat creature find its' way over or around buildings. The sound of its' wings are the loudest noise it makes, at least to human ears. Most are unware of the creature's passing and those who do catch a glimpse aren't fast enough to record evidence.

Batman has posed:
    As the creature flies, its mere presence pings several sophisticated detectors mounted to television receivers, lightning rods and even metallic statuary across Gotham's rooftops. Atop one such parapet stands the Dark Knight, a handheld device bathing his cowl in a faint green glow. He moves quickly, the controls linked to both his gloves and the mask he wears and the transmission times shaved down by cutting edge hardware to a gap of mere microseconds. He may not be able to lay eyes on the creature yet, but he certainly knows it's out there.
    With the slightest twitch of an eye, he allocates three drones circling in a holding pattern high above the city and directs them to search the designated area. They drop down and begin to carefully trawl for any sign of it, nose-mounted cameras transmitting directly back to the Batman's heads-up display.
    Whatever it is, he has no plan of letting it go on unchecked. Monsters, in his experience, should never be left to their own devices.

Man-Bat has posed:
The creature doesn't think like a criminal, or even as a human, indeed it is nothing like Batman's usual quarry. The creature is hunting for its' next meal, neither good nor evil. A lone, vulnerable homeless man huddles next to a trashcan fire. The creature begins to descend, speeding up as large wings pull back.

Batman has posed:
    It is a strange fact of Gotham - the Batman seems to be wherever he is needed. It has been attributed to everything from the ability to teleport to a dark pact with the Devil. In truth, it is mere preparation. He has been watching the creature for some time now, and an analytical mind like no other has compelled him to position himself just where he needs to be. As the creature begins to descend, he sees it. More importantly, his heads-up display overlays its data with that of a secluded camera mounted not far from the homeless man to calculate a projected route with ninety percent accuracy.
    The Dark Knight needs no more evidence than that. He launches himself from his hiding place, landing almost soundlessly atop the tar-papered rooftops and rolling as he does to carry his momentum. He's close but even at this range he doubts he can outpace the creature as it falls through the air. He makes a call. His grappling gun is fetched from his utility and he fires it, thumb immediately hitting the retract switch as it embeds itself in the concrete of a nearby parapet. He is propelled at speed, releasing the line and effectively firing himself upwards like a bullet. His trajectory meets the creature fifteen feet above its intended target, and the Batman turns his shoulder in an effort to tackle it out of the air and onto a nearby rooftop.

Man-Bat has posed:
Dr. Kirk Langstrom doesn't get to eat tonight, at least not as Man-Bat! The creature has never been attacked before, never had to compete, and until now had no comprehension of natural predators. Batman manages to take the bat creature completely by surprise and it has no chance of evading, falling with Batman onto said rooftop.

Man-Bat shrieks loudly in surprise and then in pain as the landing bruises it a bit. Shaking its' head as it rights itself, the bat monster calculates the threat level of the Dark Knight, opting to fight him. Long claws immediately lash out, attempting to rake Batman's chest open.

Batman has posed:
    Batman quickly leaps backward, but he's had limited time to properly evaluate the size and natural weaponry of the Man-Bat. As such he misjudges slightly, and the claws manage to scratch him albeit not as deep as they might have. The bat symbol upon his chest is bisected, revealing flesh beneath and three new cuts. The pain is easily compartmentalized in the back of his mind and the wound is nothing life threatening. He's had worse - or at least he convinces himself as much.
    "Hnh."
    He notes the raw strength of the creature and his internal strategy adjusts. There is no simply overpowering it or beating it into submission. He will need to tangle it up. Force it to get in its own way. Something small and metallic clatters to the ground before him and he launches himself into the air, turning in an elegant spiral over Man-Bat's head to land behind it. The small, metallic object on the ground then detonates. A stun grenade. The detonation is accompanied by a deafening crack and a blinding flash.
    His own cowl shields him from the brunt of it, and he's had more than enough practice in blind fighting. From behind, a leg pistons out to plant a kick at the base of Man-Bat's spine.

Man-Bat has posed:
The creature instinctively wheels around to try to claw Batman as he jumps over him, expecting him to try and run away like anything else, albeit more acrobatic. However this does not end up being the case. Man-Bat shrieks as his sense of sight is scrambled by the flash grenade, desperate sending out sonar to try and figure out where he is in relation to his surroundings. But it's to no avail, and Batman's kick injures the creature.

Another shriek and a crack confirms Batman's well placed strike. While not yet disabled, the creature has been wounded, and is disoriented. Still vulnerable, the creature lashes out where he expects Batman to be, only to find thin air.

Batman has posed:
    It would be a nobler thing to work out if the creature can speak or why it is doing what it does, but that can come later. He activates the sub-vocal mic in his suit:
    "Alfred, prepare the containment cell for a visitor."
    -You're bringing ... /that/ home, sir?-
    Batman doesn't answer, instead turning his full attention back to Man-Bat. The creature may not be as deft a combatant as he is, but he has already had a taste of the raw strength there and he isn't about to underestimate it.
    As the creature lashes out at nothing, the Dark Knight swoops in under the outstretched arm and strikes with a closed fist against its exposed ribs. He opts for quick, painful attacks as he looks for an opening. His free hand goes to his belt and fetches from it a small, blue gel capsule. He palms it for now.

Man-Bat has posed:
The creature shrieks again as pain floods his' senses once more, this time in the ribs. Even more desperate to eliminate the threat that Batman represents, the creature wildly lashes out with both clawed hands in the direction that the attack came from, even bringing his jaws to bear to try and lock his jaws onto Batman's throat if he can find him.

Batman has posed:
    The creature lunges at Batman's throat, and that is where he finds his opening. He takes a quick, gasping mouthful of air and proceeds to hold his breath. As Man-Bat lunges at him, the Dark Knight sidesteps the clawed strikes and brings up his other hand. He brings his gauntleted wrist up before him, seeking to capture his arm in the creature's jaws to occupy its fangs with the most armored part of his body. It is then that he squeezes his fist shut, crushing the gel capsule within.
    From the spaces in his hand a pale, blue-white smoke begins to rise. It quickly begins to fill the area, a small amount to keep the effects localized. The gas itself is an unusual mix of remifentanil and carfentanil. Likely to have undesirable impacts on a normal human, but perhaps enough to render the creature unconscious - at least briefly.
    His eyes narrow behind the cowl. His lungs already burn within his choice as the exertion leaves him shorter of breath than he had hoped. He fights back the urge to gasp for air and risk breathing in the gas. He drops the crushed remnants of the capsule and moves a hand to his belt, seeking to grab up the rebreather oxygen mask there.

Man-Bat has posed:
Dr. Kirk Langstrom momentarily believes that he has found victory as his jaws clamp down on.. something. But when blood doesn't fill his mouth, the creature releases his grip, only to find himself grabbed, and then inhaling some gaseous substance. The creature manages to shriek again, but only for a moment as he does not know to hold his breath, and the gas quickly fills his lungs. It isn't long before he becomes light headed and begins to lose consciousness, first falling to his "knees", and then onto the ground.

Batman has posed:
    -Well, I suppose that's a 'yes' then.-
    Alfred's voice pipes through the comms as the Man-Bat goes down. Batman wastes no time moving in, fetching a pair of heavy duty binders from his utility belt and wrapping the first set about the creature's wrists and the other set about its ankles. They're designed for the likes of Killer Croc and Amygdala, so he remains confident in their ability to hold the creature should it wake up. He pauses a moment to look down at the gauntlet on his right arm, the metal severely dented and scratched by Man-Bat's jaws. Beneath he feels the deep, burning numbness of injury but he ignores it.
    -I'd ask what bat-creatures eat,- says Alfred, -But I fear I already know the answer. Not enough considering all the effort certain people put in to preparing dinner.-
    "The plane is en route," Batman says grimly, glancing up as the sleek fighter jet-like vehicle slows to a hover several feet above them. From the base, a compartment extends and the Dark Knight quickly moves to try and lift Man-Bat into it. The passenger compartment by the look of it. An uncomfortable fit but large enough.

Man-Bat has posed:
Dr. Kirk Langstrom fades in and out of consciousness before finally succumbing to the gas entirely, knowing only darkness for now as he lays helplessly in the plane.

Batman has posed:
    It only takes a moment before the plane is en route back to the Batcave. From the cockpit, Batman glances down at the camera feed showing the unconscious Man-Bat in the passenger compartment. He frowns. This is the sort of enemy he's not entirely used to. Predatory but for no real reason beyond simply being an animal. The bipedal physiology suggests some sort of higher thinking being at least theoretically possible. All this he resolves to include in the new file he'll be opening for the creature once he has him locked away in the Cave's holding cell.
    As a pale, smoky light begins to glow on the horizon early morning gives way to late night. The Batwing tips to take cover within the low clouds that seem to hover perpetually over Gotham City. Before long, the plane passes out of the city limits and into the heavily wooded grounds of Wayne Manor. Secluded and unseen, the very ground seems to open up to swallow the plane and very soon it is as though it was never there at all.
    "Alfred, contact Tim. We've got a lot of work to do."