Splinter Cell

Time.

Time was the one enemy that the Batman couldn't defeat, couldn't prepare enough for, and lately, the thing that the Dark Knight felt he was running out of.

It was a feeling that had dogged him since before he arrived on New Earth. Since Nightwing had first vanished and he spent sleepless days researching what had become of his protege only to have the cave and manor fall down on his head when he didn't figure it out. In one fell swoop he lost his home, Alfred, Cassie, Tim, and even Ace. All the things that helped ground him, helped keep him sane, were gone. For all he knew his world was too. Time had run out for all of them and he couldn't be far behind.

Attempts at adjusting to this new world had only increased his sensitivity to the ebbs and flows of time. Each encounter was more dangerous than the last. From attempts to rebuild his wealth creating new enemies and encounters with the governmental forces scared of so-called dimensional vagrants, to the reemergence of enemies such as Riddler and Joker, each deadlier than the ones he knew from his home dimension, it was as if time itself was warning Bruce that things were coming to an end. He didn't want to believe it of course, but each time he put the cowl on, something that seemed to happen more frequently than ever before, he wondered if he was losing a step, if the aches he felt were a sign the Batman's days were limited. In those moments, however brief, he also wondered if he could hang up the cowl and focus strictly on getting home if there was even one to return to. If not perhaps he needed to consider living life for once. After all, this was not his world nor his city.

Such moments always passed swiftly however because no matter where he was or what was happening he realized that New Earth and perhaps all realities needed a Batman. The event that drove away his darker thoughts this night was the death of a man. Lee, a prominent businessman had been assassinated, killed in Chicago while the Dark Knight had been in New York playing the most recent round of Joker's sickening game. While the press wondered how something could happen to such a man known for his charity work and kindness, Batman wondered whether it was a rival clan, an inside job, or a traitor in the ranks that resulted in Lee's demise. After all, the Caped Crusader was well aware that the man belonged to a clan of trained warriors, ninjas not unlike the League of Assassins from his own reality.

His investigation into the Cross Clan had been brief and not nearly probing enough. As it stood, he knew they had played a roll in the assassination of various world leaders and prominent figures throughout New Earth's history, again bringing to mind the League. What he didn't know unfortunately outweighed what he did. What were their goals? Where they simply for hire or did they have grander schemes? How were they structured? How closely related were the members? All this and more plagued his thoughts as he sought to bring justice to Lee's killer. After all, even if he was an assassin, he was still killed on what Batman was determined to claim as his turf.

The other thing he knew was that there was at least one young man, a member of the Cross Clan, that had encountered Spider-Man some months previous. He'd seemed determined to shutdown a human smuggling operation and even went out of his way to alter his lethal methods in order to accommodate the webslinger. Whether that meant he was redeemable or merely less bloodthirsty than his relatives remained to be seen, but from his perch Batman watched the young man race away on a motorcycle. Having been alerted to his arrival in Chicago thanks to the new security measures his company had installed in the airports, Batman made certain to drop by Blake's temporary location in order to place a tracker on the boy's bike. From there it was merely a matter of waiting for Cross to get his orders and following the young ninja to his destination. Then the Dark Knight would once again see just how close time was to being done with him...

 Phantom

Just as the Batman had predicted, the young ninja led him straight to who he had to presume was Lee's murderer. The crime scene had been anything but simple. The Dark Knight Detective noted the way the killer had drawn the act out, like a cat toying with a mouse, wounding the victim, letting it have a glimmer of hope that escape was possible, only to deliver another damaging slice that kept them limping on. In Batman's experience such a kill was unusual for a ninja. Of those few individuals left in the modern world who could legitimately be considered true ninja, none would ever stoop to such levels of torture and depravity. It was unprofessional and went against the common ninja code of most clans: to strike silently, swiftly, and fade away without a trace.


This was not the handiwork of a true assassin. It was more of a calling card, like those that the psychopaths back in Gotham, would leave. A message and a display of power all at once. The fact that the man who committed this act was a ninja and had broken so thoroughly from the usual practices of such men, spoke volumes. He was well trained, deadly, and willing to use his skills in a less than discreet fashion.


Such observations were proven correct as Batman watched the young Cross drop down to confront the elder ninja. Despite moving with a fluid ease that reminded Batman of his own proteges or even himself at an early age, when he first truly started to hone the skills that would allow him to wage his war on criminality, the uncle was able to out maneuver his nephew. If not for whatever ability, be it neo-human gift or tech based, that allowed Phantom to phase through the wall, the battle would have been ended in record time. Still the boy's instincts and speed served him well, sparing his head for the moment at least.


Shadowblade's taunting and mention of a sidekick being near, caused Batman's eyes to narrow. The elder ninja was clearly aware of his presence, a feat that was truly impressive. Batman had taken all the usual precautions to avoid detection while tracking Blake and his motorcycle, yet this killer had detected him all the same. It briefly took him back to his training and to another ninja that had proven to be nearly on par with the Dark Knight himself.



Shaking such thoughts from the forefront of his mind, Batman dropped off the ledge of a nearby, higher building, gliding down to the crime scene with ease. As his cape unfurled around him giving him the appearance of an otherworldly creature, Batman made eye contact with Shadowblade. In that moment he knew just how dangerous an adversary he was facing and knew that stopping the man while preventing his nephew from being killed or fulfilling his clan issues contract, was going to be as difficult as anything he'd attempted since arriving on New Earth.



“This is over. It ends now.” Batman promised, gravelly voice booming in the dark.

 Phantom

Ninjas.

Batman was more than familiar with the practices of ninjas. He had studied the martial arts and techniques of the ninja, the skill set becoming the basis of how the Batman operated. Aside from the training, he had clashed with various types of ninjas over the years. Ra’s Al Ghul’s League of Assassins had more than their fair share of the shadowy warriors within their ranks, with Talia even having an all female contingent of bodyguards. Lady Shiva frequently used fellow martial artists best described as ninjas to run interference, distracting Batman and his allies from her true motives. One particularly interesting adventure had left the Caped Crusader squaring off against a group of ninjas from another dimension, their skill considerable despite the rather comical Foot Clan moniker.

As he battled Shadowblade however, Batman was not reminded of any of them. His skill was such that Batman found himself focusing more than usual, pushing himself to match the speed and precision of his strikes. Each time he deflected that blade, failing to catch it on the spiked arm guards he wore for just such occasions, he couldn’t help but compare the crazed assassin to someone else entirely, a ninja whose hatred was not for Batman, but Bruce Wayne. A man who like Shadowblade arrogantly believed he was the best combatant alive, who mocked those he saw as lesser, and who possessed the same murderous rage hidden behind the façade of the ninja.

But like Kyodai Ken, he can and will fall, Batman mused, thinking of that other student of Master Yoru for the first time in many years.

They continued their battle at breakneck speed. For every slash parried or ducked, Shadowblade similarly avoided the kicks and punches of the Bat. Most fights with an unknown opponent of some skill began with Batman testing the waters, discovering just how talented an enemy was and what disciplines they practiced. There was none of that in this fight. Shadowblade did not stick with a single style, switching between what worked best for a given situation in a manner not all that dissimilar to Batman himself. Most martial artists were good, fluid in their motions, but this enemy moves like water or the shadows themselves, flowing around and under attacks, searching to get under his guard while enjoying the dance all the while. In some ways it was like fighting Deathstroke, only unlike Slade, this was not business nor was it personal. Instead, Batman felt that for Shadowblade it was a game, a test, a strange attempt to compete against the most skilled opponent he could find.

Lashing out to hit a pressure point in the shoulder, only to find empty air, Batman was temporarily distracted by Blake’s renewed attempt to confront his uncle. The sidekick was block before it struck his stomach, but only barely, the force nearly knocking the air from him. In the blink of an eye he was once again engaging his nephew, mocking him, and Batman felt a twinge as he recognized the pain and rage in the boy’s face. It was not like Jason, but it was like what he saw in the mirror. The face of pain, of the void that existed from the loss of his parents.

Seizing the boy’s blade and turning back towards Batman, the Dark Knight did a swift “bring it” gesture with one hand, while producing the Batclaw with the other, firing it into the wall behind Shadowblade. Rushing the ninja with a jump kick and simultaneously allowed the motor of the Batclaw to pull a brick free of the wall, sending it hurtling towards Shadowblade’s back in hopes the ninja could avoid only one or the other of the attacks. With any luck Batman could end this quickly as a drawn out fight would leave both he and the ninja exhausted, but either way the battle had to end before Blake involved himself once more, possibly dying in the process. Bruce knew the rage the younger Cross was feeling and he knew that had he attempted to bring in his parent's murderer at the same age, he likely would have been a greater danger to himself than anyone else.




 Phantom