The Man Known as Knight

It was late in Gotham; but the full moon was bright over the city and the streets were full of music and laughter. Loud groups of bar hoppers between stops stumbled down alleyways to pee behind the dumpsters. Couples walked out of the downtown theater into the night to wander the parking lot searching for their cars. No one was aware of the dangerous forces that lurked around dark corners. But the people were safe in their neglect - watched over by a guardian who did not sleep.

The Dark Knight stood erect on the ledge of the Gotham Adventist Church. His black spandex suit covered his body from head to toe. His pointed ears and waving cape stood out in his silhouette against a backdrop of the evening moon. He considered the time it would take to get out of it for a minute to take care of a persistent itch on his lower back.

He would need to talk to Alfred. The man had been in the family’s employ for 40 years and he still hadn’t decided on a laundry detergent. This one was giving him hives.

“The villain of this night is clear.” Batman monologued. “Gotham’s innocent civilians, partaking in the commerce of our dear city, have been handed over to the forces of evil by an unyielding menace.” He turned his shoulders and moved his hips, trying to relieve the itch. “That menace has a name, and it is Stingy Shopping.”

Suddenly, from the dark shadows of Gotham’s city streets, a scream echoed off the red brick and Batman’s head turned to listen. It was a single blood curdling scream that immediately set all of his senses on high alert and it was coming from just a few blocks away. His new helmet was fitted with ultrasonic hearing that had already located the exact location of the scream. The speaker was automatically tuned to only play frequencies that implied distress.

“Watch out Superman, you’re not the only one who can hear things.” Batman said as he ran across the edge of the church.

Down from the sky, a red and blue streak flew down, landing directly in front of Batman. The force of the impact cracked the concrete, making a small crater.

“You called for me?” The Man of Steel stood slowly, taking pleasure in the revelation of his immensity. Standing straight, the alien was seven feet tall. He was an intimidating presence standing over the Caped Crusader as if asserting his primitive dominance.

Batman attempted to push past, but Superman didn’t move.

“I got it, big man. Gotham isn’t a place for ‘Good-ol-Boys’.”

Superman smiled, “I could have sworn I heard my name. Then again, I was all the way up in space when it happened. I like to fly up there sometimes. It’s such an amazing view.”

Batman looked up at the star filled sky.

“I said your name.” He admitted, walking around the Man of Steel to get to the edge of the building. “But I don’t need your help. What I do need is to get going so I can save that woman that screamed. It’s my job. You have a good night.”

Batman repelled down into an alley by the old church and made his way across town. Ducking in and out of dirty alleys, climbing up and down fire-escapes, he rushed to where he had heard the scream and listened again for the woman’s voice. It took a moment, but he heard it again and this time she was close by.

Running along the edge of Gotham Bank, Batman realized that Superman was flying next to him.

“Hey, I thought I might be able to help you out.” Superman said, “You really don’t know what you’re rushing into here.”

“I told you, I’ve got it.” Batman took a hard right turn and repelled down the side of the bank.

From the alley, he spotted a man in a hooded coat following an attractive woman away from a biker bar.

“Hey, sweet cheeks. Need a ride home?” A man called out from another bar entrance as the woman passed. He and his friends exchanged lazy grins under the light of the streetlamp - the muscles in their faces relaxed from the booze. They could barely stand, but they could still make asses of themselves.

“Get bent.” She yelled back. Her voice matched the woman that had screamed.

The man walking behind her was only a few seconds back. He flipped the guys off as he went by in silence. He was closing in on her as they both walked out from under the streetlamp and disappeared. With the dark colored hoodie pulled up over his head, the stalker had become invisible in the shadows and the only indication that the woman was still walking up the sidewalk was the clicking of her heels.

Batman moved quickly down the street to follow them. Away from the light he was able to make out the shape of a man still walking behind the woman who had screamed. He took his bat-cable-tripping-dohickey out and threw it, wrapping around the legs of the unsuspecting stalker. He needed to come up with a name for that one. All these new gadgets all the time took a lot of work to master. Many other superheroes, Superman for instance, haven’t taken the time to craft a carefully selected team of experts to create gadgets for them all the time. No growth. No innovation.

After some effort, Batman got the stalker pulled up with some cable, hanging from the fire escape of an apartment building. He noticed that the woman was still there and was still screaming.

“It’s okay, ma’am. You’re safe now.”

“Safe from my boyfriend?” She yelled back.

Batman looked back at the stalker and considered the limited amount of information he had ascertained before apprehending the man. Principally, the reason behind the original scream. This woman seemed to scream over just about anything. She was screaming at him right now and he had just been trying to save her.

“You’re one hundred percent sure that this is your boyfriend?” Batman asked, pointing up at the man in the hoodie. “The way he’s dressed, and it’s pretty dark out.”

“I’m sure that he’s my boyfriend; can you please get him down from there?”

The Dark Knight cut the cable and the man fell to the ground with a thud.

“Oh my god, call an ambulance.” the woman shouted. “What did you do?”

He cleared his throat, “Be careful where you walk alone at night.” he said in his best gravelly voice. “The streets are dangerous.”

“What the hell.” The injured man stood slowly and checked himself to see if he was bleeding. His girlfriend helped him out of the cable wrapped tight around his legs.

“You menace, you,” the woman turned to continue yelling at Batman; but the Dark Knight had flown away silently in the night. It wasn’t flying in the traditional sense of the word, not the way Superman does it. Superman doesn’t have to rely on his intellect to find a way to grapple around the city. But it’s almost the same as flying.

A few minutes later, the Batman was home. Hanging upside down from the edge of Wayne Tower, he looked out at the city of Gotham.

“It is more clear to me now than it has ever been,” Batman said as he hung 75 stories above the street. “This city faces more evil than it has ever faced. We are fighting a battle for truth and justice against the very institutions that claim to represent truth and justice. Corruption and lies have infiltrated the core of this great city’s principles. That big blue buffoon knew what was going on and he intentionally kept it from me. All so I would embarrass myself.”

Batman pulled the mask off of his face and took a long deep breath of cool air.

“In the end, the city sleeps soundly tonight. The people of Gotham are heading home safe knowing that they have someone looking out for them. But one man cannot sleep. One man tonight is left wounded - wounded by the betrayal of a hero. The odds are against me. I am judged on my past instead of my future, and I have been cast out again and again because of that judgment. But there is a new dawn coming. As this city’s sworn savior, I will remain vigilant in the war on justice.”

There, with the blood rushing to his head, Bruce Wayne finally fell asleep.