Dating The Dark Knight

Chapter 41

GOTHAM CITY

Reduction in population. Check.

Senseless violence. Check.

Crippled police force. Check.

Disjointed team. Check.

Possibility for salvation. Unknown.

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"Cover me!" Kathy shouted as she pushed aside a temporarily paralyzed Analise from the view of one of Xenos' soldiers. As Analise fell unto the debris beneath her, panting as pain continued to sear up her body and immobilize her limbs, she thought back on how the terrible situation had further escalated.

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THE DAY BEFORE (CONTINUATION OF CHAPTER 39).

"Is everyone prepared?!" Kathy asked outloud as she stuffed weapons, such as daggers and small guns, into her holster.

"We're ready!" Eric announced with Ares, Analise and Nightwing by his side; all were ready with weapons.

"Good. We move out together and stay together." Bruce announced with emphasis on the last part. "This will prevent plans of separation and will encourage focus." He added as the others nodded. They had all received communicators in form of small ear-pieces.

"Let's move." Superman finished. With one last look at each other and the shack, they all headed outside. Superman and Analise flew while Kathy, Se'ir, Eric and Ares took the stealth van; Batman and Nightwing took the batmobile as Nightwing gave directions. The elementals were prepared but each of them still held their own fears, which,given their situation, were incredibly valid. No type of training was enough to completely prepare them for Xenos' plans. In the skies, Superman had his own anxiety about the situation, his goal was to neutralize the main threat as quickly as possible and deal with the aftermath in a timely manner; of course it was easier said than done, the alien knew that more than anyone, but the thought of more citizens dying was enough to fuel his determination. Next to him was the air master herself who had recently learned to take her abilities to the sky with the help of the others; yes, she was more nervous than ever, but she was also more prepared than she had ever been. "Hell hath no fury than Analise scorned" She thought to herself as she continued to focus on keeping up with Superman.

In the van sat Kathy, Eric, and Ares while Se'ir drove. Kathy had already been communicating with her squad situated in the city as they continued to do their best to evacuate civilians. As she shut off her primary communicator with an angered expression, she balled her fists tightly, signifying a slight decline in members of her force; unknown to her, Se'ir had been observing the red-haired commissioner's attempt to calm herself while her iris' flashed with multiple hues of blue. He sighed quietly and gave her the space she needed for now, he had his own nerves to calm. In the back, Ares tapped his feet impatiently; his emotions ranged from excitement to straight up fear. Xenos held his life-line, end of discussion. He was bringing his best to the fight today, for himself and for his comatose twin. Eric, on the other hand, remained completely still; he had been working with Xenos the longest and knew more than anyone else what to expect. Unfortunately, that wasn't sufficient enough to eradicate his concerns; he had betrayed Xenos' "trust" and although he wouldn't be severely harmed due to his role in the cause, he wouldn't be lightly handled either. Finally in the batmobile, Nightwing maintained his focus on the others and giving them accurate information, in a sense, it was a way to distract himself from the small fraction of uncertainty that bounced around inside him. Beside him was his unwavering former mentor, looking more prepared than ever, that's if you could crack the code of his facial expressions. Bruce had enough running through his mind, from the destruction of the city, to the death of innocent citizens and to Aphrodite's situation, but he knew he had to do his best to keep his focus on Xenos alone. The elementals had gotten much stronger, and although they could be hurt in the fight, they weren't in as much danger as the others. With the batmobile and his armored batsuit fully loaded with weapons, his strength and determination full, they raced to the heart of Gotham city to put up one of the hardest fight of their lives.