Batman: Arkham Echo (Joker's Daughter AU! OC Arkhamverse Fanfic)

Ch.3: Cauldron of Bats

"I am good, but not an angel. I do sin, but I am not the Devil." -Unknown
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A/N: I'll be switching to Third Person POV to make things easier for me to write and to describe what goes down. Hopefully it doesn't disrupt the flow of the story...

Also, trigger warning, mentions of attempted sexual assault

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Gotham was never short on criminal activity, unsolved mysteries or domestic terrorism. The city that many considered their home was also seen as another man's playground. One person's workplace could be another's primary target or testing ground for experiments. One couple's apartment can become a flaming inferno within a matter of minutes or even seconds. A double murder could occur in an alley somewhere and the only survivor could be an eight-year-old boy.

A young boy who would grow into a man with a strong sense of justice and his own moral code...

A man who would become a symbol, a seeker for reform and a firm believer in hope and giving others something to believe in...

Standing atop of a gargoyle on a tower, a figure looked down at the darkened city below. Pointed animalistic ears protrude menacingly from the face-concealing cowl, coming from the sides and the top of his head. A long dark cape bellowed swiftly into the brisk late winter breeze behind him, complimenting the black bat symbol on his warm gray chestplate. His armored boots pressed into the stone of the decorative stone beast. Given the amount of shadow obscuring the rest of his otherwise disguised face, his eyes looked like endless voids of ivory. To a cowardly criminal, he appeared to be a living shadow, a deadly denizen of the night.

This was Gotham's emblem of hope and justice, a talented and inquisitive detective, the Dark Knight himself... Batman.

After listening to the GCPD police radio, he learned that a dead man and an injured accomplice was discovered in an alleyway. Apparently, he had appeared to be killed during a supposed altercation. A squad of officers was on their way to the crime scene to investigate and identify the victim and the motive. Batgirl and Robin were on the move to the location, the same way as him.

Grappling and gliding from building to building, Batman was able to get to the scene in record-breaking time. The police squad had just pulled up and were cuffing the injured criminal at the scene. The GCPD commissioner, Jim Gordon, steps out of his vehicle and out towards the crime scene, a cup of coffee in his hand. Everyone was getting the scene ready as one officer began putting yellow 'Caution' tape up. As this was happening, Batgirl and Robin landed at the far end of the alley.

"Jim..." Batman said evenly to the commissioner as his eyes scanned the walls of the buildings.

"Batman..." Gordon replied back with a similar cool tone.

"Commissioner..." Robin greeted warmly, his voice reassuring and ever laid-back.

"Robin... Batgirl..."

"What happened here, Jim?" Batman asked, hoping to find an explanation as soon as possible.

"Two sex offenders... one's dead, the other has a dislocated jaw and broken teeth. My guess is as good as yours." The commissioner explained before taking a swig of his coffee. Batman trekked over to the crime scene, looking for any clues or evidence.

"Their intended target fought back?" Batgirl questioned, curiosity peaked at the possibility of an offense gone wrong.

"That's our working theory. But, we're also keeping an eye out for potential conflicts relating to other crimes that Tom and Jerry here have on their records." Jim stated, a gurney carrying the bagged body of the dead man wheeling by.