Batman: Hero of Gotham

12- An Early Reunion

Bruce arrived at Cobblepot Park at 6:06 AM. He didn't understand why Oz wanted to meet so early but he shook it off as nothing. As he stood in front of the main entrance to the park he noticed a few dangerous men standing in the park, smoking cigarettes. This gave Bruce old memories of when he killed Joe Chill. "Where are you Oz?" He asked himself out loud. He reluctantly carried on up the stairs and walked past the entrance. Surprisingly, the smokers didn't notice Bruce and if they did notice him, they were ignoring him. Bruce saw a newspaper thrown on the ground and he read it to himself. It was about him shunning Falcone the night before. He rolled his eyes and let the wind blow the newspaper away. Bruce gave change to a homeless man who was lying in bags of garbage to pass the time. 

"Thank you, sir." The homeless drunk wheezed. Bruce walked away. He suddenly received a text from someone. It was from Oz. He read it.

"Running a bit late. Meet you by the statue." It said. Bruce realized he was standing right in front of the statue of Oswald's father. 

"Great." Bruce said to himself, sighing. He walked around, avoiding the smoking men. As Bruce stared at the statue, he heard footsteps coming from behind him. He thought it was Oz but before he could say anything, the person beat him to it.

"Watch. Wallet. Cash." The man spoke. Bruce turned around and saw one of the smoking men with a knife in his hand. "Or this goes through you." Another man stepped up on the other side of Bruce. 

"You heard him, man."

"Go ahead. Try and take it." Bruce threatened.

"The hell'd you say?!" The man with the knife yelled.

"End him." The other man said. Just as the man with the knife was about to stab Bruce, another familiar voice spoke.

"Gentlemen!" It was Oz. 

"Oz?" Bruce asked.

"Keep walking, alright? This doesn't concern you, twerp!" The man with the knife said to Oz.

"You see...that's where you're mistaken. My old mate and I have some catching up to do...and you're ruining the fucking moment!" Oz suddenly slammed the man with the knife in the face. "C'mere!" He grabbed the guy and threw him to the ground. Oz picked up the knife. "You think this'll do you any good? You're just pathetic, you know that?!" Oz kicked the man in the belly. The unarmed man went for Bruce while he was distracted but Bruce simply jumped out of the way. Bruce rammed his fist into the man's chest. Oz picked up the man who had the knife and kneed him in the throat and slammed his face into the statue, knocking him out. "Stay down!" Oz yelled. The unarmed man pulled a gun on Bruce. Oz punched him in the back of the head and Bruce grabbed his gun. Bruce hit the man in the side of the neck with the gun, knocking him down to the ground. Oz kicked the man. "This used to be a nice place. Low lives like you don't belong anywhere! This is my park! Mine! You hear that?! Get the hell outta my sight before you end up like your freakish friend over there!" Oz pointed at the other unconscious man. The man who had the gun got up and ran away. Oz turned to Bruce. "Ha. Hey there, Bruce! You've got a little something there on your chin." Oz wiped off the blood mark on Bruce's face. "Woo! That was a right little scrap, eh? Nothing kickstarts the system like a dash of adrenaline, right? Besides, someone needed to deal with the rubbish situation here anyway." 

"Hey, I could've handled that myself."

"You mean a knife handle in the back? Cause that's what would've happened, mate. No offense." Oz said with his British accent noticeable.

"Yeah, right. Thanks."

"It's been what...two decades?"

"You know what? I haven't been mugged once that entire time."

Oz chuckled a pleasing laugh. "That wasn't why I brought you here, mate. Right now, I'm trying to recognize the little Bruce I used to run around this place with. Back when it wasn't like this. This park...it used to mean something. A place that was safe for kids and for families. People came from all over to visit. Mum and Dad, they put so much work in here."

"This place is a wreck. It's better off bulldozed."

"This park still matters to me, Bruce. It's all my folks, left behind. This city chews right through people." Oz took a sip of a portable wine he had with him. He sat down at a bench and began talking again. "Mum. Committed to Arkham. Dad. Ended it himself, he did. My family's fortune...there's nothing left, Bruce."

"I know. Alfred told me."

"S'funny, huh? Same place that ground my family to dust...gave you the good life. Used to run in the same circles, we did. Hobnobbing parties. Round the world the vacations. Unlimited potential. Now all I've got is this...shit of a park."

"I'm sorry, Oz. No one should have to go through that."

"Thanks, Bruce. But we're not the only ones suffering. Y'know, when I saw you at the party last night I thought...Bruce Wayne...hasn't changed a bit. But maybe I was wrong. Shouldn't have been a surprise when I saw you with Carmine Falcone. Made himself right at home, that oily bastard. Wish I could've punched that grin into the back of his throat."

"Falcone was uninvited guest--that's it. I never want to see his face again."

"On that, we can agree in earnest. Falcone's made a stack of cash and corpses a mile high ruining families like mine. All he needs is a little push and...he's gone. It'll be a treat to watch him hit pavement." Oz then noticed he was being grim and he pointed it out and apoligized. "Sorry, mate. This reunion got a lot more grim than I planned! Things are gonna be on the upswing soon though. A revolution is knocking on Gotham's door...and I'm here to let it in. Which brings me to you, Bruce. You see, you throw a rock in any direction, you break a window that Wayne Enterprises owns. As the 'rich and powerful' go, you top Gotham's list. But when my revolution starts, we're going to smash windows and cross off names all the way down. like I said, it's not gonna be pretty...it's gonna be beautiful."

"That's a battle you won't win, Oz."

"No? Oh I've learned a thing or three since we were kids. I have got great affection for you, Bruce. I really do. Which is why I'm warning you. When this whole thing starts...make sure you're on the right side." Oz patted Bruce on the back and walked away. "Good seeing you, Bruce, but...I've got some rocks to collect. Cheers." Bruce then got a text from Alfred. 

"Press conference for new hospital starts soon. Car waiting on south side of park." It read. Bruce walked away, heading back to his car with new information about his former friend, Oswald Cobblepot.