The Lone Knight (Under The Cowl Book #1)

CHAPTER 28

     Stephanie threw her last baterang only to watch it bounce off the Mask of Ruin.

Distance was the only advantage she had in this fight. It gave her that extra couple of second to formulate a proper plan, shake off any nerves, and escape what may prove far too dangerous.

All Stephanie had left between her and the extremely powerful being capable of conjuring destructive magic with little effort was her staff and her grappling gun when she wasn't leaping to get from behind the cars and light posts for cover.

"You sure you just don't want to air out whatever grievances you seem to be holding on to with words?" Stephanie shouted, her way of trying to buy time for whatever plan Renee seemed confident about. All I have to do it hold him here. A concept easier said than done.

Stephanie stuck her head out from behind the car where she hid.

But already Ruin knew exactly where she was hiding, hovering over her head before putting a dent in the car or shoving it aside with one hand to strike ferocious intimidation into her heart.

Stephanie fired her grappling gun towards the nearest car and zipped herself from one side of the street to the other.

She skid her heels against the blacktop to avoid the wreaking blast from Ruin's conjured wave of destruction at the last minute.

From the corner of her eye and without time to stop, Stephanie saw a few of the cars she hid behind fly nearly twenty feet up off the ground as she continued to fire her grappling gun circling high and low around Ruin.

Dangerously close to becoming a pancake, Stephanie had never been more grateful for the grueling hours of shin splintering jumps, the agonizing stretching between her legs, chest, and back, along with the breathe stealing plummets from heights she found intimidating when she thought she'd seen it all before.

Learning to master the art of acrobatics from the Birds of Prey was definitely a time in her life she knew she'll never forget. And she had the scars to prove it.

Stephanie leaped into the air and whipped out her staff.

Over the head of Ruin she swung her staff down hard.

Fast with his reflexes, Stephanie watched Ruin grab her staff and use her momentum against her.

Swung over his head and slammed to the ground. Stephanie didn't hear a crack come from her back, but she sure did feel the air leave her lungs the second she came in contact with the unforgiving blacktop.

With her staff ripped from her grasp, it gave Stephanie no time to wallow in her pain. She opened her eyes and quickly rolled out of the way of Ruin's heel aimed to crush her skull under his boot.

On her knees but quick to climb back to her feet with a backwards roll and back flips she found easier to pull off without the use of her hands.

Stephanie ducked and dodged out of the way of Ruin's strikes. Moves she'd seen before under Batman's tutelage.

Matching his strikes, Stephanie cringed with every fist she connected despite the padded gloves to protect her hands. It was like hitting a rock wall riddled with jagged edges.

Stephanie was getting nowhere.

Pushed back by a back hand across the cheek, Stephanie stumbled. Unbalanced and seconds from falling on her ass, Stephanie watched the windup of Ruin's clenched fist.

There was no time to dodge.

Ruin stepped forward with one foot pointed in Stephanie's direction ready to knock her head clean off her shoulders.

But met with a force more powerful than a locomotive in Daria Zartron's fist, Ruin's vanished into the distance and through a couple brick walls in the blink of an eye from where he stood.

"Who said we were finished." Daria shouted with exhausted breath chased by the rise of her shoulders, the expansion of her chest, and the flex of every muscle seen from underneath her uniform. The rush of adrenaline was on high for this Kyptonian.

Stephanie clumsily dropped to the ground in front of Daria, her hands first to hit the pavement.

Embarrassed, the cool exit Ruin offered with the unforgiving smite carried in his fist didn't look too bad she thought. "I had that under control, you know." Although, saved from a pulverizing death had it perks too.

"Right."

Stephanie watched Daria roll her eyes, but not too long after watching the Kyptonian extend a helping hand.

"You wish to save Bruce Wayne. And I wish to put an end to Ruin. We set aside our differences for now and work together; we both can get what we want."

"What about my arrest?"

"One thing at a time, that's all I can promise."

"I think we can work something out." Alec appeared with a scorched trail of lightning on his heels.

"You happen to run that by Clay first?" Daria asked.

"I did."

"And?"

"Well, you know Clay, a hard nut that one. What he doesn't know won't hurt him. Oh, the magician you used to replace Rachel, clever. I had planned to use her against you after this was all over."

"What changed your mind?"

"Let's just say your friend had a lot to say about you."

"You ladies done chatting?" Daria mocked.

"Hey, I'm no lady." Stephanie walked around to pick her staff up off the ground, "I'm Batgirl."