Batman: Hero of Gotham

16- The Docks

Batman arrived at the docks of Gotham at 6:44 PM. "Alfred, I'm at the warehouse. No sign of Catwoman's contact. It's quiet." Batman reported to Al.

"The sound of an ambush." Alfred warned. "Stay on guard." Batman opened the doors to the warehouse. Once he opened it, he stepped inside and witnessed the horror that had occurred.

"This wasn't a hand off. It was a massacre." Batman said to Alfred.

"How many?"

"I'd have to count the pieces." Batman said.

"Good lord. Who could've done such a thing?"

"That's what I'm gonna find out." Batman got on the mic with Lieutenant Gordon. "Gordon. Eastside Docks. Warehouse 133."  Batman walked around to visualize what had happened. He examined some a huge scorch mark on the ground. "It's a volatile chemical. Potential psycho-active nerve agent. Vile stuff."

"Be very very careful with that. Who knows what effects it may have." Alfred said.

"Have the computer catalog the compound for further analysis." Batman ordered Alfred.

"As you wish." Al replied and left to start the procedure. Batman explored more and saw a pile of organs on the ground with blood surrounding the body parts. 

"Nothing left to bury." Batman said. He linked the scorch mark to the exploded human remains and analyzed it. "Whatever exploded...did so with enough force to obliterate the person standing next to it. But the chemicals themselves were inert, non-explosive."

"Well, it appears to have made a pretty big boom." Alfred said through the earpiece. 

"I'll see what I can piece back together." Batman told Al. He then inspected a dead mercenary that was lying on the ground. "I've seen these outfits. Same mercs that broke into City Hall." Batman walked over to a shipping container door and opened it. "The canister exploded, sending shrapnel right through the container door."

"For once, I'm glad that you arrived after the heist." Alfred said. "Your armor wouldn't have protected you against that." Batman looked at a piece of rubble still attached to part of the container. It had a bullet hole in it. 

"Looks like a bullet started this."

"A normal bullet couldn't have caused that explosion."

"Doesn't appear normal--the point of entry's melted." Batman wandered more and found pallets. "Hmm. Canisters were stored here. Canisters of what though?" Batman then found a dead cop with bullets in him. "The force grows thinner every day." Batman walked across to the other side of the warehouse and found another dead police officer except this one had his face completely burnt almost to the point where bone would be showing. "This man has been badly burned...but the damage seems to originate from inside his skull. What did this?" Batman pulled out a bullet extractor and stuck in the cop's head, finding the bullet and extracting it. "Sensors say it's an incendiary round. Phosphorous residue. This could have superheated the contents of the canister."

"Causing the aforementioned boom."

Batman looked at the dead officer's hands. "Blood. Broken nails. bits of human flesh." He stood up and saw only a few feet away was a dead mercenary only his face was brutally beaten. Batman groaned in disgust. 

"That bad?"

Batman examined the mercenary's face. "Face slashed. Throat torn open."

"So, not natural causes then."

Batman checked the mercenary's pocket. He found a business card for the Skyline Club. "Skyline Club." He said aloud. Batman put the card in his pocket and moved on. He linked the dead cop's bloody hands to the dead mercenary and came up with a solution. "That cop shredded this merc to pieces. Bare handed."