Disclaimer: This story is fiction. There are two celebrities who will appear from time-to-time. The other characters are fictitious. Any similarities to persons living or dead are completely coincidental.
In this story, I have continued the adventures of Batman, my Batman, which his story first began in "Tales of a Real Dark Knight" in the Boy Band section of this archive. It spanned 250 chapters. You will find many universes merging, as the above copyrights reveal. I hope you all enjoy this.
Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, Angel and all related characters created by Joss Whedon. Copyright 20th Century Fox.
Batman, and all related characters created by Bob Kane. Copyright DC Comics and Warner Bros.
X-MEN, and all related characters created by Stan Lee. Copyright Marvel Comics and 20th Century Fox.
The Vampire Chronicles and all related characters created by Anne Rice. Copyright Anne O'Brien Rice.
I don't know for sure if I will use all the above elements, but just in case, I have myself covered.
I appreciate any feedback that you may want to give. I do hope that you enjoy it!!!
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Chapter 3 Dancing in the Dark
Catman came at me and tried to kick me. I grabbed his foot and spun him around dropping him to the floor. I rolled and brought my foot down on his chest. He clutched his chest and rolled away from me. He stood and his claws extended further than what they were originally.
"You don't stand a chance now, Bats."
Catman swung his claws at me. I dove to the sides as they sliced at my cape. I rolled up to my feet as he spun around bringing his claws around in a backhand. I grabbed his wrist and swung my leg up, kicking him in the face. Then I twisted his arm flipping him over to the ground. He brought his legs up and wrapped them around my head. Pulling forward, I fell forward and rolled into the skylight. He pulled hard enough to give me plenty of momentum to smash through the glass.
Screams rang out in the club and the dancers looked as the dark shape fell to the dance floor. Randy looked at the shape and saw it was his crush. His heart beat increased, his palms sweat, and he felt a stirring in his pants.
"Batman," he whispered.
I stood to my feet and looked around to see if Catman had followed me.
"Up here, Bats," he said.
I looked up to see him pounce down onto me knocking me to the floor. His claws went toward my face. He would have gouged out my eyes except for a chair hitting him in the back knocking him off me. I looked up to see Randy smiling down at me with a cute, puppy dog face.
'If he only knew,' I thought.
I flipped up to my feet and turned to face Catman. He reached for his whip and pulled it off snapping it at me.
"I've got many tricks, Batman, enough to end your life. You won't stop me."
He snapped the whip at me and it wrapped around my neck. He pulled on it jerking me forward. I fell at a table and hit it. The contents flew up into the air. The tightness of the whip went slack. I turned to see Catman dive at a bottle that was flying for Sarah.
'What the hell?' I thought. 'He protected her.'
Catman turned and tossed the bottle at me. I rolled away and it shattered against the table. He dove for the end of the whip, but it was too late. I had pulled it off my throat. The villain grabbed the handle of the whip and swung it up at the skylight. He pulled out a pellet and threw it down. The club filled with smoke blinding me and everyone else from his escape.
The fans were turned on and the smoke slowly cleared. But Catman was gone.
"That was so cool," Randy said coming up to me. "You are awesome, Batman."
I motioned for him to step back and shot a line to the roof. When I climbed onto the roof, I heard the sound of sirens. Someone had called the police. Thank goodness for that.
I looked around the rooftops trying to find Catman or a trace of which direction he headed. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any. He disappeared without a trace, much like he did when I fought him years ago.
Realizing there was nothing more for me to do, I returned to the house.
"How did things go?" Lance asked as he came into the basement followed by Justin and Jessica.
"Okay, for the most part. I ran into Catman."
"Catman? Why is he back?"
"I don't know. I don't think it is the same one, though, although his fighting style seemed similar, with some slight modifications. And something weird happened. He protected Sarah."
"What?" Lance replied.
"A bottle flew at her and he left me to stop it from hitting her."
"That's weird. I've never know a vampire to protect a human being."
"There are some who do, but they aren't the same species as Catman. Remember Armande?"
Lance nodded.
"Plus, I don't think this Catman is a vampire. He wasn't as strong and he didn't seem as big."
The door opened upstairs and we heard the kids. We quickly ran upstairs to meet them in the kitchen.
"Hey, guys," Jessica said.
"Hi, mom!" Randy replied. "You wouldn't believe what happened!"
"What?" she asked.
Randy related the story of how Batman crashed into the dance club to save them from Catman. Preston reminded him that it wasn't Batman saving everyone as it looked more like Batman getting knocked into the glass. Sarah seemed really shook up by what happened, and Preston confirmed that it seemed as if Catman were saving her from the bottle. She turned and went upstairs to the bathroom.
"I'll go talk to her," Lance said, and he followed her up the stairs.
"I think we better go," Jessica replied.
"You are welcome to stay here," I offered.
"Can we?" Randy asked excitedly.
"No. We'll stay at the apartment."
"Please, mom. Let me stay here tonight. I want to stay and talk with everyone."
"We could use some alone time," Justin said to Jessica.
Reluctantly, Jessica agreed. "Yes!" Randy replied.
"You need to get your stuff," Jessica replied.
"I can drive him over," Preston said. "We can get his stuff and then come back. That is if it's okay with you, dad."
"It's fine with me," I agreed.
"Okay. Then it's settled," Justin said.
The four left to get Randy's things and I went upstairs to Sarah's bedroom to check on Lance and Sarah. When I knocked, Lance said to come in. I found him sitting on the bed holding Sarah, who was crying heavily.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"There's a lot more to this guy protecting her than we realized," Lance said.
"What is it?"
I kneeled down in front of Sarah. She looked up at me and I could see torment in her eyes. She grabbed me and held me.
I mouthed the question, "What?" to Lance. He motioned to Sarah.
"What is it, Sarah? What's going on?"
"I've been...having dreams."
"Yeah? Go on."
"You'll just think I'm crazy."
"No, I won't. What is it?"
"I've been having dreams of this guy calling to me. He said he knows my soul and wants to meet me."
"How long has this been going on?"
"For a month or so. At first I thought it was just something passing. But the dreams are almost the same. He is calling to me. And I want to go to him. I desire him. I have feelings for him. It--It scares me."
"That's understandable. Your dad and I wouldn't let anything happen to you," Lance said. "We will protect you from anything."
"Even from me?"
We looked at each other.
"I didn't think so." She stood and went into her bathroom.
I moved up to the bed and sat next to Lance.
"Do you think it's Catman?" he whispered.
"If he's a vampire, he could very well use telepathy or mind control. But Catman didn't seem like a vampire. He didn't have the strength."
"Maybe it is the first Catman." Lance suggested.
"It's possible. I've got to find Catman."
About an hour later, Randy and Preston returned to the house with Randy's things. He stayed in the guest room next to Lance's and my bedroom.
Once everyone settled in for the night, the house was quiet, all except for me. My mind kept going over and over what happened earlier in the evening. I played over everything that happened, my fight with Catman, the way he protected Sarah, everything. And it didn't sit right with me.
Then a noise caught my attention. I listened and it sounded like moaning. And it was coming from Randy's bedroom. He must have been having a bad dream. I climbed out of bed and pulled on my robe. Quietly, I left the bedroom and went to the guest room. I slowly opened the door and there saw Randy masturbating. I closed the door and tried not to laugh.
"So like his father," I thought. I had seen Justin do the same thing years ago in the exact same bed.
Since I couldn't sleep, I went downstairs to the kitchen. Pouring myself some milk, I headed to the basement. I entered the small room and turned on the computer.
"Welcome, Batman," Oracle said. "What can I do for you?"
"I want you to run a search. Fifteen years ago, there was a thief called Catman. Follow all newspaper records and sightings until today. Compare all incidents and give me all the possibilities of events being perpetrated by the same person. Compare skill and style."
"Working," Oracle said.
I sat back and waited. A sound caught my attention and I turned and looked through the secret opening into our basement. No one was there.
"Complete," Oracle replied.
"Display records in chronological order."
Screen by screen I went through the newspaper and magazine articles relating to events perpetrated by Catman. They all had the same modus operandi. In fact, they all seemed superhumanly done. The only other thief who had those abilities was Catwoman, and she was a Vampire Slayer who long since retired. It couldn't be the same person. Something was definitely different about the guy last night and the Catman I was used to dealing with.
"Why Sarah?" I asked no one in particular.
Having done all I could for the night, I shut down Oracle, sealed up the opening and headed up to bed.
"Hey," Lance said as I climbed into bed. "You couldn't sleep either?"
"No. You couldn't?"
"I was sleeping okay, but I heard someone else up. At first I thought it was you, but the footsteps went down the hall. It was either Sarah or Preston."
'Hmm,' I thought. "Did you check on them?"
"Yeah. And they were both sleeping."
"I caught Randy."
"Me, too," Lance said with a smile. "Just like Justin."
I smiled at him and kissed him. "I love you."
"I love you, too."
Catman arrived at his lair and entered, pulling of his mask as he descended into the main chamber. Sitting in a chair at the other end, a rather high chair that resembled a thrown, sat a very young looking man. He smiled and his pointed canines could be seen.
"Welcome," he greeted Catman. "How did things go?"
"I ran into Batman tonight."
"What happened?"
"We fought. He fights well, but I can sense something strange about him."
"And that would be?"
"He doesn't seem strong, like you said. He seems weak, like a human, not strong like a vampire."
"Pay it no mind. Soon you will face off with him and the victory will be yours."
"I cannot wait to make him pay for what he did."
"In time, you will, my son."
To Be Continued...
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