Batman: Hero of Gotham

1- "The Mark of Zorro"

10 years later....

10 year-old Bruce Wayne sat in the car, playing with toys of his. Thomas Wayne was driving while Martha was in the passenger's seat. "Bruce. Sit in your seat right, please." Thomas ordered as he noticed he was not sitting correctly.

"Yes, daddy." Bruce mumbled and sat correctly. Bruce was excited. They were going to see his favorite movie again. It would be his sixth time seeing it. He always wondered why the movie played whenever he wanted to see it but he ignored it. "Mom? Are we almost there?" He asked, impatient like his father.

"Just another mile, honey." Martha sweetly said.

Bruce grinned and could not wait to arrive. He played with his toys in which he loved them both. One of them was Bruce's favorite hero: Zorro. The other action figure was Zorro's villain. Bruce always made Zorro win whenever he made the two toys battle. Since Zorro was his inspiration, he made sure the bad guys never won.

"Keep it down back there, Bruce. We cannot be distracted while driving." Thomas said once he noticed Bruce was getting overexcited.

Bruce, not hearing his father, continued to practice his battle cry that he presumed Zorro had.

"BRUCE!" His father yelled over Bruce.

Bruce went silent until his mother finally spoke. "Your father is just trying to drive and he can't concentrate when you're back there making unnecessary sounds. I hope you understand now, Brucie." Martha always had sweet nicknames for little Bruce. After another minute, they finally arrived at the movie theater.

"Yes! Finally, we're here!!" Bruce exclaimed in excitement.

Once the car parked in the special reserved parking space for the Wayne family, Martha spoke. "Okay Bruce. You may exit the vehicle."

"Ok mommy." Bruce said, smiling as he opened the car door and got out. Bruce only took one of his toys which was of course Zorro. Bruce held his mother's hand as they walked to the entrance of the cinema. Thomas held Martha's other hand. The happy family arrived at the entry. As Thomas bought the tickets (which were half off), Bruce stood with his mother. After about thirty seconds, Thomas brought the tickets back to his wife and Bruce. Bruce grabbed his ticket and stuffed it into his pocket. Thomas led the way into the theater with Martha and Bruce behind him. The time was 7:54 PM. Since the movie was going to begin at 8:00, Martha didn't want the family to be late. Bruce loved "The Mark of Zorro" and it was truly his favorite film of all time. He surely did not want to miss even the previews before the movie. So, the three of them decided to skip popcorn and beverages and go straight to the theater. They arrived exactly one minute before the previews started. Bruce sat in the front row with his parents. He reached in his pocket to hold on to his toy when he suddenly realized he had misplaced it. He remembered taking it with him once he departed the car but he did not recall where he lost it. He ignored it for the time being and figured his parents would spot it on the way out of the theater. But, that did not happen. After the movie concluded, Bruce was not in a great mood. He wished he could search for his toy but leaving his parents without their permission was forbidden. Once they exited the theater, Bruce had his head down while they made their way to the alley where the car was located. On their way there, Thomas and Martha heard commotion up ahead. They shook it off as nothing and moved on to reach the car. Suddenly, a man in a cap with a big brown coat that seemed bigger than his scrawny sized body appeared out of the shadows of the alleyway. He approached the Waynes slowly. Thomas and Martha walked faster to get to the car. They didn't want any beef with this man. The man stepped in their way. Bruce hid behind his mother as the man cackled a horrifying laugh.

"May I ask who you are and what you're doing in our way?" Thomas asked, unsure if he should be afraid of the man who stood before them.

"Me? I'm Joe, Joe Chill to be exact. You are going to listen to every word I say. You get me?" The scary man said in a scratchy voice.

"Why would we listen to you?" Martha asked.

"Stay out of this, Martha. I'll handle this." Thomas said through gritted teeth.

"Let her talk, Tommy!" Joe yelled, startling Bruce who was terrified of this man. Thomas grew quiet as he let Martha speak.

"Why should we listen to everything you tell us?" Martha asked again. The man looked frustrated. He then pulled out a pistol.

"Well it's only common sense, right?" Joe Chill smirked. As soon as the crook aimed the gun at Martha, Thomas yelled.

"Wait!!" He pushed Martha out of his way and stood in front of her with his hands out to protect her and Bruce. Bruce was intrigued to hear what his phenomenal father would say next. "What do you want from us?" Thomas was willing to do anything to save his family. He'd give his own life for them if he had to.

"I want everything from you. Your money. All of your belongings. Everything. Now." Joe Chill guffawed a disgusting chuckle. Thomas's eyes widened. "What?! That too much for you, rich boy?"

"No. We'll give you whatever you want. You don't have to do this." Thomas said.

"I know. But I want to." The criminal then fired off the first shot that sunk into Thomas's chest. Thomas held the spot where the blood slowly poured out.

"Oh god! Thomas!" Martha screamed. Bruce was in shock. His father had just been fatally shot in the chest. Thomas fell to his knees. A look of terror crossed his face. Joe smiled an evil grin and shot Thomas again, this time in the head, killing him. Thomas's body fell to the ground, limp. He then aimed the gun at Martha.

"Please" was all Martha could say at the moment. Joe ignored her statement and sent a bullet into Martha's belly. This time, Bruce panicked.

"No! Mommy!!" Bruce shrieked. Joe also ignored Bruce's scream and collected what he wanted. Bruce knelt beside his two dead parents. The criminal looked at Bruce and aimed his pistol at him, too. Bruce slowly brought his head up to look at the monster that had just killed his family.

Joe surprisingly lowered the gun. "Curse it." He whispered to himself and ran away, back into the shadows. As Bruce heard sirens approaching the area, he cried. He wept like he never had before. He then noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see what lay on the ground beside him. His eyes widened as he realized it was the toy that he had lost earlier. He picked it up and held it tight, never wanting to let go.