The Lone Knight (Under The Cowl Book #1)

CHAPTER 44

Where am I?  Stephanie asked herself, slowly rubbing her hands across the cold and hard ground pressed against her bottom and the soles of her feet. 

She slowly stood up off the ground. 

The air smelled of mold, followed by a humid draft she felt swing up under her chin.

In one direction darkness lied, where behind her the light of the moon shined. 

Inside a cave, Stephanie could see she was not far from the exit. It was not too late to leave and turn back, escape from the darkness ahead.

"You've turned away from the unknown before. Why stop?"

Stephanie turned to look back at the darkness in response to who's there. Afraid to call out, she waited, hoping the voice was only in her head.

"What's wrong? It's closer now, means it's easier the second time to run away."

"Who's there?!" Stephanie shouted.

"Why do you care, you're just going to run away like you always do."

The voice started to become clearer, and quick to tick her off.

"Why should I think you are any different than the rest? You all wear masks to hide who you really are, who you refuse to show the world. You tell yourselves it's to protect your loved ones, from those who are dangerous enough to seek vengeance against you. But what's the truth? Will you share that truth or will you lie like the rest of them?"

"The criminals I face are dangerous, and if they learn who I am my friends and family would not be safe."

The voice scoffed mockingly; in a way it sounded as if she's heard it all before. "Why did I bother to expect the truth from a known coward?"

Stephanie clenched her fist, anger ensued. "Am I supposed to give you the answer that makes you right? Fine, I love the mask. I love to stop bad guys from stealing, hurting other people, and even killing. I love it when a dangerous individual who won't bat an eye to shoot me dead pulls me away from my life as Stephanie Brown. Is that what you want to hear? Or can you not stand the fact that I've already done my share of self-reflection. Perhaps it's you who needs to take a closer look at yourself." Stephanie began to walk toward the darkness. "We all have our reasons for wearing a mask, but none of us should be punished or vilified for running away. What give you the right to hold us to a standard you're not even willing to meet? Or do you not consider the darkness your mask?!"

Passing through the darkness, Stephanie expected to step into a world of nothingness, a pitch black world left with nothing but the words from her inner most thoughts; biggest fears, the loudest doubts, and strongest dislikes. But on the other side Stephanie found herself face to face with who she's seen in the mirror all her life.

Dressed in the uniform of the Spoiler and half her face covered by the Mask of Ruin, the other half painted the picture of her battered self. Eye bloodshot with a single tear scrolling down the cheek and a busted lip split off-center after one too many back alley fights.

"I guess it is no surprise to you that this is the face I've chosen to take."

Stephanie had no immediate words as she stepped closer. And from where she stood she could see the fresh gunshot wound slightly below the shoulder on her other self. It's the same wound she suffered at the hand of Black Mask. And down by the right hand was the bloody stain from a beretta bite dripping through the glove she wore. Stephanie couldn't remember the first time she fired a gun. But the look of horror on Black Mask's face as he stared into the barrel of his own gun aimed between his eyes was a sight burned into her brain.

Stepping forward out of thin air behind her other self, Stephanie watched Black Mask appear. And on the other side she watched Darla Aquista appear out of thin air too. A gunshot wound on Darla's side and a trickle of blood scrolling down from the corner of her lip was an image Stephanie did not wish to relive. Because the truth was, she wanted dead Darla dead the second she watched her kiss Tim. And not long after that her wish was granted due to a gang war she started. 

"You can't escape them, the memories of your past. And now that we are one I will never let you run away from your past again."

Stephanie flexed her jaw, took in a deep breath and asked "Who says I'm going to run?" Stephanie raised her head to look up at the dark sky within the batcave. "This is my home. You wish to ruin not just everything around you, but those who decide to play host to your power. You are no different than Zatanna. But without a host you are just a mask. You have no real power unless we submit to you. You feed off our insecurities, our hatred, and our loss; I'd say I'm the perfect host for you. But everyone you've taken control over has accepted their ruined fate. I've accepted I'm broken. But I've also accepted that I can live with being broken, only to build myself back up again. I can live with the pain I've cause others. The mistakes I've made that cost lives. Because I know that I may be alone today. I won't be tomorrow."

The Mask of Ruin began to crack. Crumbling from the top down and falling at Ruin's feet. "What's going on?" Ruin asked while attempting to hold the mask together only to fail and watch it fall between its fingers.

A shadowy pool of dark light subtly seeped through the cracks on the mask.

Suddenly Stephanie began to feel a pull of some kind on her face. It's as if something was scraping against her skin and removing what's there. But nothing was there.

The mask shattered and erupted inside the batcave with a massive cloud of black shadows covering every inch of the cave until there was nothing Stephanie could see around her.

Leaving her trapped in utter darkness.