Fandom Batman: Crusade in Darkness

[Birdsie]

Rules:
- I am always right.
- When I'm wrong, refer to the rule above.
- A person playing a character with control over an organization is responsible for playing NPCs from that organization. Gordon controls the police, Joker controls the Joker's gang, etc.
- Use proper grammar and paragraphing.
- Include your character's name and approximate location above each post.
- Have fun.

Useful Links for Players:
- A Comprehensive Overview of Gotham City, Locations and Organizations: Gotham City - Wikipedia
- Several Useful Maps:

Spoiler

First one is inaccurate but detailed.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/3c/77/1e/3c771e6c3e23db39415f145a48cb93a6.jpg

Second one is undetailed but very accurate.
https://78.media.tumblr.com/7d776fcba1b9ce7c2b3812e31ec6c842/tumblr_n38ijiZhaX1tx166zo1_1280.png

Third one is a little bit of both worlds; slightly (but not completely) accurate and slightly detailed.
https://pre00.deviantart.net/91f5/th/pre/i/2017/228/e/4/gotham_city_map_by_crow_453-db0k96t.png

- Wayne Manor

Spoiler

https://img00.deviantart.net/851e/i...nor___main_floor_plan_by_geckobot-d8juq4b.png
https://pre00.deviantart.net/f917/t...or___upper_floor_plan_by_geckobot-d8jv6l1.png

 

[Birdsie]

Epiphany santialessio fin Hammy Kitsune2202 June Verles Bixir Karcen User Inheritance

Let's begin!

Right off the bat (heh,) I'll assume the role of Commissioner James Gordon until such a time that another party has stepped forward in order to claim ownership of this character as an NPC. Any villainous characters presently not assumed by a player are by default either in (a) hiding, or (b) imprisoned. Either way, they are largely inactive, pushing aside minor background activities, like running their gang if they are hiding.

Bat-Family members whose roles haven't been taken are assumed to be busy/inactive/elsewhere at the moment.

Players are free to post.

 

[Inheritance]

Scarecrow​

Screams of the civilians unlucky enough to be in the bank rang through his ears. He cackled hysterically, now knowing that his newly upgraded dose of fear gas worked. Humanities' deepest fears...he would know them one day, but for now, he needed time and money. His developments and lab work was costly, and he needed a constant supply of money. When he worked as a psychiatrist, he made a good amount of money; though when he did that it left him little time for more important matters, and he began to shirk work enough that he needed to start robbing to get what he needed. Of course, he was first fired as a professor for pointing a gun at a child. But that was reasonable! He was teaching psychology, how else could he teach fear and phobia except for a hands on demonstration?

Dr. Jonathan Crane had never considered himself a petty criminal. It was stupid that a man of his talents would be reduced to robbing banks like cat woman or the joker. He was special, and this robbery was not because he wanted to induce chaos, but because it was a stepping stone in the mastery of fears and phobias. To master them would be...well he would be a God, which was an outlook he quite enjoyed.

He turned to watch the hired men load his money into the van. He didn't have to come out-he could have very easily been the getaway driver. But if he did that, his new formula couldn't be tested, and that simply couldn't happen. He watched as people ran around blindly as the fear gas penetrated their mind, causing them to see nightmarish visions. One of which blindly ran into him, causing her to collapse onto the ground. She looked up at him in terror, screaming even louder.

"Three blind mice...three blind mice..." He hissed, lifting up a sickle. He had taken to the name "Scarecrow" quite well. If that's what they wanted to call him, he would be one. "See how they run...see how they run..." He stepped closer, grinning. He could only imagine what she saw, and while he couldn't take the form of what she feared, he felt stronger and more invigorated when he was around his fear gas.

The woman shrieked and backed away, sobbing something about how she'd do anything. Scarecrow didn't hear it.

"They all ran after the farmer's wife..." He stepped closer and leaned in, sickle still raised. "So she CUT off their tails with a carving knife..." Upon saying 'cut', he brought down his sickle, slowly slicing her from her right eye down to the left side of her chin as he finished the line. Blood instantly began to gush out of the wound, starting a new pitch of shrieking. It wouldn't kill her, but with any luck it would mutilate her, making her a terror for other eyes to see.

He stood and turned, hearing sirens. It was time to leave. He wiped the bloody sickle off on a dead body and hoped into the back of the van. Some of his gunmen were having fun taking wallets and causing fear. No matter, they would be caught and dealt with. He got what he wanted. He had his most loyal servants in the van, and that was all he really needed. He turned around at the panicking people, including the sobbing woman that stared at him now, her one eye gashed open. The van began to pull out of the glass doorway it drove through, and as it left, he stared at the mutilated woman. Not in a yell, but loud enough that she could hear, he finished:

"Have you ever seen such a sight in your life, as three blind mice?"

Birdsie Epiphany santialessio fin Hammy Kitsune2202 June Verles Bixir Karcen User

(FIRST!!!)

​

 

[Epiphany]

Port Adams - Gotham Docks

As evenings went, it was late enough for the sun to be a distant memory while early enough for a little life to be left in Gotham. The Financial District had long since shut down but the port never slumbered. Not the industrial docks. Gotham had a number of docks, of course, most of which operated private boats, tour boats, hosted cruise ships or supported various maritime outfits like the Coast Guard. But only Port Adams had the water depth for the truly big boats. The massive cargo container ships like the Triple E-class container ship currently pulling in. No, trade never stopped, not even for night time.

Neither did crime.

At the other end of the dockyards, Poison Ivy stood on one of the boarding elevators for the shipyard cranes, massive towers of metal that could lift container after container with ease. Cranes so big it took an open-air elevator to reach the crewing station. She didn't need the crane at the moment, though. Instead, the redhead turned to face the Rogues Gallery that had bothered to respond to her call. Poison Ivy rarely bothered to be social enough to extend an invitation to others. Her antisocial tendencies were well known, especially by those who'd served time in Arkham Asylum with her. So when each villain had received a personalized invitation carried by a nearby plant that suddenly started talking to them, it promised something spectacular.

"Nice night for a walk," she said, in an airy, conversational tone with just an edge of a laugh to it. Just loud enough to carry to those who'd chosen to come to her call.

"That ship out there is the Mogens Mærsk. It's a quarter of a mile long. It's most of a football field wide. And it's cargo...you've seen those cargo crates transported by train or hauled away by trucks? It carries 20,000 of them."

"I see you've noticed the four men below me?" Poison Ivy added, gesturing to the quartet of dock workers who stood at the base of the open-air elevator she was using as a speech platform. "They have copies of the manifests, courtesy of the Penguin Organization. In thirty minutes, that ship will dock...and then I plan to take the ship. It's contents? Entirely yours for the taking. I've made the Port Authority my pawns, we should have little trouble from the docks. The Penguin Organization will be supplying the labor for looting that ship, for which they'll receive 50% of its value. The remaining 50% will be divided among all of you."

"And all you have to do to earn it? Make sure the Penguins unload the vessel and I sail off with the ship. A job this big may very well attract the attention of Batman himself. He is, of course, in love with me but the rest of his ridiculous family may be a problem to my plans. See that they aren't and you'll all be very rich."

Poison Ivy waved her arm once more in the direction of the oncoming container ship and her smile was vicious in the brightly lit night of Port Adam's dockyards. "How about it, boys?"

Oswald_C_Cobblepot Inheritance User Karcen Bixir

 

[June Verles]

The Plastic Man ​

Moving from your home town, to an arguably worse off location the infamous "crime alley" was probably a dumb move. It's true that in Cole City, his home turf, you couldn't buy a loaf of bread if you didn't posses some affiliation to a gang or the mafia, but plastic man wasn't someone to get his polymers in a twist over some menial stuff like that, Gotham would be the world stage he needed to get some real recognition for the first rate hero that he was.

But not even the illustrious Plastic man was immune to jetlag, which resulted with him sleeping for 3 days and missing 2 of his shifts at the JLA, that's the night club where the female workers dress like superheroes not the Justice League of America, and the manager got angry at him. He wouldn't be able to show his mug for a few more days until that old scrooge relaxed, so he needed some good way to gain some disposable income.

So when he heard on the grape vine that there was a bank robbery going on, he was the first man to respond. So what if the docks where arguably the more dangerous situation was placed was closer to him? You know how much latex costs to repair? Well nothing for him but you get the point.

A few minutes the crooks who accompanied Scarecrow in the van would be able to see what seemed like a man swinging from building to building in hot pursuit, soon enough they would also be able to hear what he was saying.

"Don't worry no more citizens of Gotham! Because your amicable district Plastic Man has come to the rescue... mhmm may need to change that a little bit."

Inheritance Birdsie

 

[Karcen]

Victoria normally didn't bother with team ups or gangs, she did not need to and did not work for the same reasons as others, money was only a minor concern to her all she wanted was Nora. The offer this time however, had been to good to pass up or at least sounded such as a plant had invited her and that was something that took a lot of work given how cold Victoria had to keep her home. Victoria had been curious as what ivy had planned to invite a recluse like herself out on some kind of big heist. Victoria took no pleasure in hurting anyone, she would rather everyone got out of her way and let her gather what she needed. Thus when ivy explained her plan Victoria was not to interested in the big score like others might be, she would only want very specific things and had to look over the specifics of the manifest to seek out the correct technologies and diamonds.

Looking it over there did seem to be a few select bits that She could use. The deal was not exactly the best for someone not interested in selling off what they got as the judgment of what constituted her percentage might be questioned when she took as many diamonds as she could and all the high tech things she could get her hands on. Still if she could trade her split for these select items then Victoria could come out ahead, the question was would the bats show up as while they might be able to stop batman, if he brought his colony with him then they would be in trouble. The risk was worth it if the things she wanted were given over a simple flat split. The assertion that batman loved ivy was rather amusing to Victoria as he didn't strike her as one that could fall for a villain given his dedication to justice even if it killed others.

" Rather than a flat cut of a sale i want to select what i require as payment from the ship manifest " Victoria said her voice distorted in an almost mechanical way thanks to the suit and her own altered biology. Victoria was clear though she would not tag along unless her deal was taken the others might nor care what was on the ship only about the cash, but not her .

Epiphany

 

[Epiphany]

Karcen
Poison Ivy waved an indifferent hand, behaving as a regal queen might...if a regal queen could be caught wearing as little as Poison Ivy wore anyway. Clearly she wasn't much bothered by the cold! "Yes, yes, that's why I brought copies of the manifest," she said. "Mark what you want then and that can be your split."

On the one hand, arguing over money was the most trivial aspect of this job. What did she care about money? What did money matter when the world was at stake? On the other hand, it was trivial and if that's all it took to keep Victoria happy, it might be a very good night after all.

Poison Ivy rubbed her hands together in eager anticipation before asking "Any other questions?"

 

[Inheritance]

Scarecrow​

He shoved up into the front seat as the car sped away. This was not as stealth mission, and he knew quite well that cops would be all over him when this went down. He had planned on it. Scarecrow was not one for rash decisions or stupid moves; he knew one wrong move could get him back in Arkham Asylum. But he knew well that another heist was going on tonight, and he knew that it would be a lot worse than some bank robbery. He also knew that if he could scramble the cops, it would be that much easier to get away.

That of course begged the question: Why not wait for the heist to go down first, and then that way he would have no cops?

Well the answer to that had a couple answers. For one, that would be too easy. What would be the sport of it if he just got away with it that easily? Two, it was impossible to predict those things. If he waited until the heist went down the bank could have been closed and he might not have been able to test his new gas. And finally, if he diverted the cop's attention, he might be able to cash that in with the people that were about to screw up a job of their own.

All in all, it was better to do this now then it was to wait. So as his getaway driver sped through the streets, he was a bit surprised to see a very lengthy man swinging around trying to catch them. Plastic Man? Who the hell was that? He looked out the tinted window, squinting through his mask to see who this was.

"Lose him." He growled, and the van took a hard right down a one way street, watching his pursuer deftly follow. The van sped up, but he man continued to follow. "I SAID LOSE HIM!" He snapped, causing the van driver to swerve the wrong way down a street. Traffic was not too heavy, but in a matter of a minute they nearly hit 4 cars. When the man continued to follow, he slammed his fist on dashboard.

"Kill him!"

The back doors of the van swung open, and two men began to fire at this plastic man. Gunfire rang out over the beeps and screams of civilians. Scarecrow didn't expect this to work. Bullets never worked. But he figured it would be enough of a distraction that it would allow them to get away. There were cop cars all over the streets, but he knew that they would soon disperse. Besides, there was a small chance gunfire would work, and what could be better than killing another hero?

June Verles

 

[User]

Harley Quinn​

The sun drowned beneath the horizon, slowly leaving the city to fight the darkness with it’s scarce and dim lamp posts. At this time of night, the only people who roamed the streets were either crazy or criminal. Thankfully for Harley, she was both. But, well, if she was being technical, she wasn’t crazy. At least, not after being released from Arkham with a paper stamped with SANE on it.

She let out a small huff and rubbed the ink in thought. For just a moment, Harley wondered about taking a break and trying to find a real job. It wasn't because she was starting to feel guilty though. Crime was fun, Joker was fun, hell, even Arkham was fun, but Batman and his gang? It was just something she grew tired of dealing with. “Maybe I could just wait for puddin’ to get out,” Harley told herself aloud, a smile spreading across her face at the thought of the clown. She swung her legs over the side of the building and plopped down onto the fire escape below. Quickly, she made her way to the floor.

That was when she heard a voice. Harley spun around. Nothing was there, except an odd plant that rooted itself in between the cracks of concrete. It was talking to her, but she wasn’t listening much, too excited about the discovery.

“Oh! Pammy sent you?” She bent down, meeting the plant's eyes as though it were a person. She listened to what it had to say and grinned. Her thoughts of quitting crime disappeared. Humming to herself, she hurried to the location.

~

The clown busted through the doors, discreet suddenly foreign to her. “Hey, Pammy! Look! I’m finally out. Y’know, I didn’t think your plants could-” She cut herself off, her loud voice echoing throughout the spacious area. She stared at the group, then to Pamela, and flashed a sheepish smile. “Whoops. Am I late?”

She missed the entire introduction and only heard the part when Victoria mentioned payment. Her eyes lit up and she gave an animated thumbs up. “Count me in, Red!”

Oswald_C_Cobblepot Inheritance User Karcen Bixir​

​

 

[June Verles]

The Plastic Man ​

As he was approaching the van hot in pursuit Plastic man would soon find how harder it was to be the hero in the big city. It wasn't monkey swinging to the large buildings in hot pursuit, no it really was the pressure. He's done this multiple times back in Cole city but this time thoughts about negative media press really worried him, I mean what if they didn't find his gangly members appropriate? I mean as much as he enjoyed frolicking with fine members of the female gender he'd rather be a pg 13 hero than associated with tentacle porn.

A shiver ran down his spine at the thought as he could hear his entire career suffer a car crash... Opening his eyes with a confused frown at how realistic the sounds were he would look down at the street, seeing the van slam into other vehicles in order to gain more speed, which would've done the opposite effect they wanted but the dumber villains are the easier his job was, maybe Gotham wasn't so bad after all.

Lowering his altitude he would be able to limit the drift of the rammed cars by inserting his arms into the path of their tires to add extra friction. After they finally stopped moving he would remove his limbs and wave for a bit with a pained expression as if he just reached for cookies that were too hot. Looking forwards at the van his eyebrows would fold as he would drop on to the ground.

"So you like slamming into cars like it's the popular game Wario kart, owned by Wintendo, a subsidiary of Wayne corps and all images related to their characters are owned by them please don't sue me..." He would say as his shout would slowly devolve into a whisper as the fear from the possible wrath of the Wayne Corps washed over him.

Nonetheless, as unexpectedly, he turned into a turtle like object that still sported his colouring before beginning to spin rapidly moving towards the van, bullets just being shrugged off as a collision seemed inevitable.





Inheritance Birdsie

 

[fin]

Richard Grayson, the Nightwing
​

Yet another cold, and ghostly night in the city of Gotham. The neon lights of illegal casinos glowed bright into what was a star-less sky, thick clouds of smoke and gas escaping various factories and machine plants, and even in the thick of the night, cars and traffic still seemed to fill the ever busy streets. The only cities that seemed to rival Gotham's night life were New York and Las Vegas. Though in Gotham, there was a different meaning to the night life. Most everybody had a second identity when the sun disappeared, and their greed grew sinister. When their masks birthed a second half of their person, and suddenly they didn't have to follow rules of the day. Pretty shit considering how long the Gotham nights were. As for Detective Grayson, another day of tracking down the least of Gotham's crooks in the daylight had come to an end. But at night, when Nightwing was born, the real crime-fighting begun.

Admittedly, in his slightly over 8 months of working at the Gotham Police Department's Bludhaven unit, he'd already had Barbara hack into the police network to get first-hand reports of crime scenes, seeing as he no longer wanted anything to do with the big bad Caped Crusader. Ditching the Boy Wonder moniker (or being forced out of it, only to be replaced countless times over) was when of the best things to happen to Dick, but it came with it's woes. Money, information, and training only came slower than usual, but nothing Richard Grayson couldn't handle. As Richard walked towards the parking lot of the Bludhaven police station, his phone blinked alive, a notification from the app Barbara Gordon had developed for him to alert crime. She'd allowed him insight to all of Gotham's police department's alerts, and now blinked another. "Code 211, 245, Robbery and assault in Gotham bank. All units report, this one's a crazy. Over." Is it bad that Dick's eyes lit up at the crime?

***

Suited up in the spandex black and blue Nightwing suit and armor, Dick sped down the Gotham streets, grip tightening over his sleek back motorcycle. "Good to see you, Pat. Sorry I'm late." Dick spoke into the JLA comms, pressing the ear piece on the right as he spoke. He maneuvered the wheel with skill, avoiding the spray of bullets aimed for him and his current partner on the scene, the Plastic Man. He followed after as the Plastic Man now transformed into a turtle straight out of the Mario games, and sighed as he hadn't even had the chance to formulate a plan.

"This better work, Pat."

Inheritance June Verles Birdsie

 

[Oswald_C_Cobblepot]

(I am so terribly sorry for being so late, I had college stuff to do and I just couldn't find the time for a proper post)

It was never a question of money with him. Since Oswald Cobblepot, Gotham's other secluded, yet immensely popular billionaire, had access to practically infinite amounts of money and that meant that Penguin, likewise, had access to practically infinite amounts of money. No, he did not need the money. He took it as collateral, as a means of blending in, so to say. It was, also, not a question of thrill seeking with him. He was never like those egomaniacs and perplexing lunatics that went in and out of Arkham, that enjoyed the screams and blood. He could care less for that. So, why - why was he even there? Okay, he was never there, but why did Penguin participate?

Ever since Oswald Cobblepot decided to establish the Penguin Organisation and create the Penguin persona, he had only one goal in mind. Gotham. He only ever wanted Her. It was not a matter of tyranny, nor domination, rather of enlightenment. Gotham was down in the abyss. And She needed to be saved. Certainly, the GCPD was logistically incapable of dealing with this madness and he did not trust the masked vigilantes more than he could throw them. And he couldn't throw them very far. They helped, that much was sure, but ultimately - what they left behind them was a rotten status quo that left Gotham in the same abyss She had been before they arrived. She needed a resurrection, a renaissance and it was Penguin, or rather Oswald Cobblepot, that had a plan for that. But, that was the future. ''I am the future'', he murmured to himself in his office atop the luxurious Iceberg Lounge, the best place to be in Gotham. He hated being there, not because he disliked the place, he adored it, but he hated it because everyone loved it. But he had to keep appearances. Oswald Cobblepot had to be an entrepreneur, a bachelor and solitary, yet generous and kind man. He could not be Penguin without being Oswald Cobblepot, and he could not be Oswald Cobblepot without being the Penguin.

Some time ago, he received a business offer, so to say, from the woman calling herself Poison Ivy. Basically an eco-terrorist, she needed his input in a job. She wanted his personal participation, the naïve fool. He would, of course, supply the brawn, even send Vladimir to represent him but that was it. It was not time for him to reveal himself, not even to the criminal underground and it was certainly not the occasion to do so. He was not certain as to Ivy's endgame with this plan, but it was, he was certain, just another outburst of criminal insanity, just another specific, egoistic, goal-orientated scheme that had no general or global incentive. Most of the lunatics in the city were like that. They had no style, they had no ardor - it was just bloody, goddamn chaos and he detested it. At this very moment, one or two among them, the Clown or the sophisticated Grim Reaper, probably made havoc somewhere and it was, surely, a matter of moments before he would hear the sirens of the GCPD rushing past the Lounge to some unknown location. ''Pathetic'', he whispered.

He turned on the communication between Vladimir and him. The suit, a very steampunk-style combat costume with a concealing penguin-shaped mask on top, had a communication device and a camera that allowed him to hear and see - everything. Things seemed be in order. His men were listening to the woman's orders, waiting to proceed. They seemed to be infatuated with her. It was true, she was exceptionally beautiful, but to actually witness how mindless his henchmen were was still a disappointment. ''I'm working with idiots'', he said. ''Oh, hello boss. Everything's in order so far'', replied Vladimir with a strong accent. ''Good. Let me speak to Ivy'', he said. As Vladimir activated the long-distance microphone inside the mask, a screeching, bird-like voice suddenly started coming out from the strong Russian guy. It's how Penguin communicated. It's how he kept his secrecy. It's how he saved people's lives, since - those who actually saw him, they were now dead. ''I assume this little soirée of madness has a point, Pamela? I doubt you just needed help with hijacking a ship, however large it may be. Why are we here, Pamela? Why do you need this ship?'', he asked.
( Epiphany Inheritance User Karcen Bixir )

 

[Karcen]

In Gotham the police always had more on their plate than they could handle from average crooks to super villains. Today they added a new issue to the plate a new serial killer. They couldnt pin it to any known killer or villian there was none of their tale tell signs this was somone new. This person didn't only kill as they had managed to link a list of people that had been found nearly catatonic their minds shattered or reduced to incoherent babble. The only saving grace was everyone attacked it killed was soon revealed to be a criminal a criminal of some sort. Still they had gone over every scene with a fine tooth comb and found nothing it was like a ghost had killed them. The police might have to ask the bats for help as whoever was doing this was not human. The truth was likely stranger than any theory they had after all who could suspect a child could do all of this or fathom why.

 

[Birdsie]

Batman - Gotham Docks​

Spoiler: Cutscene. Skip!

Dedication, analogous to loss.

For every moment you spend dedicated to something, you spend something else - time, effort, possibility. Dedicate yourself to one work, and you can't choose the other while having less time for your family. Time is limited in this world, and the options are many; the world is divergent from the points of choice you can make. And yet, dedication is a way of living, if not life itself.

Once upon a time, there was a boy who lost the thing he held dearest: his parents. Even if dedication is analogous to loss, he had nothing worthwhile to lose anymore. That was when he decided to dedicate himself to something for the first time, and perhaps the last time: vengeance.

But when he found himself faced with a possibility to have revenge, he found his own soul wanting. Taking the teachings of his parents to heart, he found mercy for their killer. But now, he was left alone in the darkness, with nothing to hold dear but their fleeting memory, and nothing to dedicate himself to but the memory of their loss.

So he found a new dedication. To protect, nurture. So that no one would have to walk the same path he did, and so that no one would make the wrong choices.

Over his years, he forged not just his body, but his mind and spirit into a weapon of the hunt. Dedication spent in aggravating pain and compromise, spending the hard-earned fruits of his parents to prolong their memory in a twisted, but well-meaning form. It didn't matter anymore. He forged himself further; perfected methods of fighting, finding, deceiving. Over the years he refined them, refined himself; refined his dedication.

And that dedication led him to this day.

******

Communications, the flow of information in the underworld: Usually, it was done by sending messengers or through electronic communications, more rarely through the infamous 'word on the streets.' Batman kept tabs on all of these sources to keep himself in the loop so that he could be one step ahead. The entire persona of 'Matches Malone,' a small-time Gothamite criminal was handcrafted for the specific purpose of infiltrating the underworld and intercepting such 'words on the street.'

Problems arose when it came to smaller groups or subtler ones, with better planners and more illusive rackets. The big gangs were easy to predict and even easier to react to. Organizations like the Intergang, or whatever mercenaries or thugs the Riddler got a hold of were more tricky.

Perhaps Ivy thought he wouldn't notice since her message was delivered through anomalous means. Or maybe she didn't care.

Either way, it was a big arrangement - someone who observed the movements and actions of the underworld community would notice the shift in behaviors; the suspicious, sudden agitation at this particular time. Too large to slip by his notice.

Perched on a gargoyle in the eastern City Hall District, on one of the taller office buildings, Batman had a good view of Port Adams.

He'd already determined the probable goal and approach.

A Triple-E class container ship was going to pull into Gotham tonight. Ivy must've deemed it to be a major source of pollution and decided to take it out of the course. The invitation of villains meant she'd pay them, but Ivy wasn't one known for material wealth or stakes in gaining such. The profit for her was the destruction of the ship, but she could pay everyone else in the cargo.

Smart, but not smart enough.

A lot of cargo there and normal thugs wouldn't bother without something extra to convince them it was worth their time. They'd need the manifesto, a way to 'claim dibs' on items of worth. Ivy wasn't one for the small tactics, so she delegated. The most likely to be involved in an operation of this scale in the docks would be Penguin's Organization, and that meant the Port Authority was under their thumbs. They would also likely support a large part of the labor for the big-shots. Like a giant buffet of items for handpicking; a robbery festival. Then, once everything they deemed worthwhile was cleared out, Ivy would step in and take care of the ship itself.

Troublesome, large, but it'd last a while. It gave Batman windows of opportunity to take down the operation with a zone of comfort.

He already alerted the GCPD, but given the density of villains and metahumans that will be in the vicinity, he talked Gordon down to let him go in first, and hang back to capture anyone who ran or got away - or to come in as reinforcements if required. The GCPD was already setting up subtle cordons around the docks, alongside help from other departments. He also had Black Swan on standby in the area. He felt queasy involving her in something this size, so he decided not to - but it was good to have someone trustworthy nearby in case he needed medical aid, retrieval, or even just someone to run interference.

An attack of this size, with whatever major players in Gotham decided to answer meant a diverse pool of dangerous psychopaths to deal with. There was a robbery by Scarecrow elsewhere in the city just now - a genuine coincidence or a planned distraction? Doesn't matter. Plastic Man and... Nightwing were on it. If not Plastic Man, then Batman trusted Nightwing to handle it, at least.

The strategy was planned, and Batman's counter-strategy was in place. The board was set, the pieces were in place - now it was time for the game itself, for the tactics and counter-tactics.

"Oracle, are you reading me?" Batman asked over comms.

Epiphany User Karcen Bixir Oswald_C_Cobblepot santialessio animegirl20 June Verles fin Inheritance

 

[santialessio]

Oracle -- The Bat Cave

"Ready as I'll ever be," Oracle replied.

She had eyes all over the dock, and eyes on Poison Ivy. There was a man in a suit with her, too, but Oracle couldn't make an exact determination of who it was. Unsurprisingly, Batman wasn't plainly visible on camera, but she had a vague idea of where he was. What concerned her more than the people at the docks was the approaching vessel, and its potential contents. The Mogens Mærsk may have looked liked an entirely normal ship, but there were rumblings that some very important crime organization bosses wanted in, and Oracle imagined Poison Ivy did as well.

"You got eyes on Ivy?" she asked Batman, before switching her eyes to a different monitor.

The bank. Scarecrow was up to no good, with bullets flying everywhere. Oracle was more than familiar with his signature distraction. Luckily, The Plastic Man was on the case. It was nice to have an ally from the JLA. Trailing close behind him was Dick Grayson, a distinct member of the Bat Family.

"Nightwing, be careful, but also don't lose sight of Scarecrow," Oracle said over comms. "He's on a roll right now, and we need to make sure he has no incentive to keep going."

Briefly turning off the channel, Barbara took a look at all the cameras she had pinged. There was crime everywhere. When had Gotham gotten so bad?

Birdsie Oswald_C_Cobblepot June Verles fin Inheritance Epiphany

 

[Inheritance]

Scarecrow​

He heard the other one before he saw him, but it made no difference. The men in the van shot at both, but of course it seemed that Gotham heroes were just impervious to such crude firearms. If there were two on him, it was only a matter of time before the Bat appeared...or he was going for the larger heist. If that was true, then he had nothing to worry about. A few wannabe heroes were no threat to him. The van swerved into a parking structure and sped into the basement. Plastic man would need a second to drop off the buildings before following them in here, so he would have time to set up.

The tires screeched loudly as they turned into this near empty parking structure. Sliding into a parking spot, the men dawned their masks and stepped out with guns. Scarecrow was excited to test out his new formula. He knew Nightwing would be right on his tail, and waited inside the van. Once the two heroes were in sight, his men would unleash a rain of bullets, and when that didn't work, he would launch fear gas all over the van. If they wanted their money back, they would go through him.

June Verles fin

 

[Oswald_C_Cobblepot]

Gordon was ready to go home. It was a long day, and the aged commissioner honestly thought he deserved a good night's rest. Sure, the last time Gotham had a quiet night was several centuries ago, but he presumed that if none of the Freaks did anything by now, the rest of the force could handle it. He had no clue how wrong he was. Gordon took his raincoat and greeted the remaining officers, wishing them a good and peaceful night. But, just as he put his hand on the cold, metal knob, he froze in place. ''Umm, commissioner Gordon..'', a female voice called from the back o the room. He hated the ''Umm, commisioner Gordons'', because it was never followed by something pleasant like ''You forgot your purse'', or ''Have a pleasant night'', or ''There's an earthquake'', rather by the information that, for one, one of the lunatics decided to cause havoc late on and, two, that he couldn't go home. ''Yes, O'Hara?'', he asked, still hoping he could just slip behind the door and that it was all a big misunderstanding. ''I think you should come and hear this'', she said. His hopes were crushed like bugs on a windshield. ''Might as well shoot me, goddammit!'', he roared to himself and went into her office.

O'Hara was a good, young and dedicate policewoman with a very strong sense of justice. She was also around Barbara's age, which is why Gordon not only protected, but also liked her as his own child. But he hated her ''Umm, commissioner Gordons'', he really did. ''Yeah, O'Hara? What is it?'', he asked entering her small office. She pointed towards a small television set. The news were on and they were showing a scene of utter chaos in downtown Gotham. The culprit? Jonathan Crane, know better by his alias - Scarecrow. ''For fuck's sake! How did we not know about this? Why was there no alarm, no calls?'', Gordon roared, looking at his colleagues. ''Nothing, sir! No silent alarms, no calls!'', a young desk officer said. ''Commissioner, it seems that Scarecrow attacked so unexpectedly and rapidly that no one stood a chance. They all went mad!'', O'Hara added. ''Well how the fuck did the news team find out before us?'', he yelled again. ''A lucky shot. They were doing a public opinion thing when they heard the screams'', she explained. ''Fuck them! Lucky goddamn bastards! Bullock, Alvarez! Gather the men! I want this freak back in Arkham tonight!'', Gordon yelled.

(...)

Police sirens were taking over all the noise in the city as Gordon's team rushed through the streets. Alvarez was in charge of catching Crane, while Gordon and Bullock went to the scene of the crime. Gordon found out, while on the way, that Nightwing and a new guy, Plastic Man, went after Crane, so he sent Alvarez and his team as back up. ''Yo, Jim'', called Bullock, ''this thing is fucked up. It's total chaos in there. It seems Crane upped the formula, again. The medics and the firemen don't know what to do. People are going crazier by the minute!''. Gordon heard the screams of the people still present in the bank. He saw the confused, almost scared faces of the brave medics and firemen, who had been doing everything they could, but this situation was out of hand even for him, and he had experience. ''Harvey?'', he asked. ''Yeah, commish?'', he replied instantly. ''How many are left in there?'', Gordon continued. ''Based on what we know, about a dozen'', Bullock replied. ''Good. Take your team and take them down. Be gentle. I don't want any injuries. Use tear gas if necessary, but I want them out of there. The medics will take care of the rest, once we manage to subdue them. Understood?'', he roared. ''Yes, sir! Yo, guys, over here!'', Bullock called his team and started giving them orders. Observing the situation, Gordon looked at the night sky, thinking where Batman might be and why he wasn't here. After a few moments, his mind returned to the present state. ''Alvarez! Come in! Status report?'', he asked via the communication device.
Inheritance Birdsie fin June Verles (the latter two, you have my permission to RP Alvarez if necessary)

 

[Bixir]

• Payneface - Gotham Docks
• Copface - Murder Scene

• 
  It had been a long time since he had been with these people. A long, long time. Trying to make sense of that gap in his memory was a fool's errand. It was particularly impossible, considering that it was not one gap, but several, long stretches of life that may as well never have been there at all. Simply being here made the man who knew himself only as Clayface threatened to unseat any semblance of reality he had, yet he did not feel out of place. He knew that he was right to be here. It felt right. Poison Ivy was not unfamiliar to him, or these others, to varying degrees. A familiar world, for a familiar man. At least, he thought it was. Would they remember him?... did it matter?
  
  His gelatinous face rippled as his attention glazed over everyone here, patches of his face crudely bubbling up against the glass dome that contained what passed for his head. Most of the substance didn't adhere to the glass, designed to keep him comfortable and loose in this impromptu suit, though the inevitable splotches of dried residue all across the surface couldn't help but be noticed. This suit was not his first, and, the outcome of tonight's activities withstanding, would ideally not be his last. The rest of his body appeared like the kind of clothing any well-respected man of Gotham's criminal elite would wear. A dusted tuxedo, more impressive that it lacked any of the residual clay so blatantly displayed on the glass dome. There were adjustments, armored joints and compartments that could not be completely concealed that kept Clayface's questionable composition secured within this body. Was it even his body, or more of a homunculus? The idea of a distinction seldom crossed his mind, pushed to the recesses of his attention lest it take him away from what was about to unfold.
  
  He snarled before looking up at Poison Ivy, doing what little he could to appear presentable as he ambled forward. His stature was hardly uniform, never mind as proper as he hoped to appear. There was no mistaking the look in his eyes, even in his monstrous state. She did not need to use her pheromones to keep Clayface attentive, if her powers even affected something like him.
  
  "I'm with the bird. Whadda you get outta this, Green? Not that I mind gettin' the better deal or anythin'..."
  
  Epiphany Oswald_C_Cobblepot User Karcen Birdsie
• 
  
  
  The man flashed his badge, not waiting to see if he cleared the checkpoint or not before bending under and through the tape that setup the perimeter. He didn't look back to see whatever kind of stare he was getting for being so forward, nor did he really care. Gotham had never much been for straight shooters, as much as the boys on the beat tried to prove otherwise. More importantly, he could hear the guy that had been keeping watch over the scene already walking away and cuing up his cruiser to get the hell out of there. This wasn't a bad part of town (ignoring that all of Gotham technically fit that description), but for what had been happening lately, he couldn't blame the guy for abandoning his post here. There wasn't any real risk of someone messing with the crime scene; there wasn't much of anything to disturb, and what had been left behind of the victims was disturbing on its own, even by Gotham standards.
  
  So why was he out here in the first place? Morbid curiosity? He didn't expect to find out anything that the cops that had come through hadn't already, which amounted to about jack shit. He wasn't any detective, even if the boys had no reason to think otherwise. The badge was legitimate after all, down to matching the identity of the person that had flashed it. Mostly. There was something about these happenings, though, something that couldn't keep him away. It was a mystery, but not just like the conventional kind, where there were next to zero leads on what could bring you closer to the truth. It was an invitation to whatever primal darkness lied at the heart of this city. But more than that, it was a challenge to the mystery of the man bearing witness to what was left behind.
  
  If there was anything a mastermind hated most, it was being outdone.
  
  Letting out a hoarse sigh, the stranger started pacing the scene, ignoring the blubbering mess at the center of it for the time being. Taking it all in was the first step, probably. He didn't know a damn thing about what he was doing, but it felt right to him. The only thing he did know, was how to use himself to pick up on details of the scene that no one could. Not even the Bat, with all his fancy gizmos and computers. His clay could feel things, replicate things, on a level that for all intents and purposes was like a magic spell. He could try to use that kind of trick on the victim... but that wouldn't do much of anything. From the way it looked, there wasn't even anything left in there to make sense of...
  
  ...then again, there was only one way to be sure.
  
  Karcen Birdsie
  

 

[Birdsie]

"Affirmative," Batman said, the visors in his cowl magnifying his vision eight times.

Batman squinted, observing as another person of interest stepped forward in Ivy's direction. That one was... strange. Batman pressed a button on his wrist, changed the vision mode to infrared, then to a visual sonar.

"Oracle, I can confirm Clayface is present. So is Harley Quinn, Ms. Freeze and another person of interest who is probably Penguin. I will wear a mask to prevent Ivy's pheromones from affecting me, shock gloves to incapacitate Clayface. Once I go in, I'll prioritize taking down Clayface, while throwing batarangs to distract Harley, Freeze and Ivy. Penguin's mental profile - or what little of it we have - suggests he will either run or stand back, given his tendency towards concealment. I'm not comfortable with the risk, but it'll have to do - tell everyone to be ready on standby. Anything else before I move in?" Batman asked, already slotting a slim, black rebreather into the otherwise clear mouthpiece of his cowl.

Epiphany User Karcen Bixir Oswald_C_Cobblepot santialessio animegirl20 June Verles fin Inheritance Bixir

 

[Epiphany]

User
The arrival of one Harley Quinn immediately put a smile on Poison Ivy's face. She stood atop an elevator crane intended to lift operators up to the mega-sized cargo container unloading cranes used for servicing the really huge ships that docked in Gotham. It gave her a clear view of the villains assembled as well as the hired muscle, and the dock workers she'd charmed. "Oh sweet Harley, you're always welcome to join my jobs." With a gesture towards one of the controlled workers holding a cargo manifest, she added, "Talk to one of the boys and they can make sure any toys that strike your fancy get set aside just for you."

The chaotic blonde woman's loyalty was always suspect, thanks to her obsession with that ridiculous clown, the Joker. Yet time and again, they'd been drawn back together. And Poison Ivy couldn't deny the appeal in pulling off another job with the help of a woman who understood that insane solutions were needed for an insane world.

Oswald_C_Cobblepot Bixir
Of course, the mysterious leader of the Penguin Organization chose to speak up right about then. The redhead twirled one finger through a lock of her hair before grinning in the docklights. "Why are all of you here? Because even a rainforest couldn't move that much product. And even if I had one handy, a rainforest alone couldn't stop Batman. I know. I've tried. But just in case he hears of this, all of us together should be more than enough. Each of us have fought the Bat and his little seedlings. Each of us have beaten him even as he's beaten us." Clenching a fist, she hammered that fist into the open palm of her other hand. "Tonight, we'll get rich, we'll get our revenge or perhaps both. That's why you're here."

"And as for why I want the ship?" Poison Ivy grinned, all trace of her anger at being foiled by Batman vanishing as she stretched her arms about her head to stretch her spine. Which did admittedly impressive things with her nearly bare bosom. "Does it really matter? Let's just say I have a little cruise in mind and Batman himself won't be able to stop it once it gets going But none of you really care what I plan to do with that ship, do you. It's what's on the ship that's worth your while. Let's get started, shall we boys?"

Turning, she gazed down the docks at the massive Triple E class container ship as it finished docking. "Ah, the petals have opened. Time to harvest the nectar. Let's get to it!"

With that, Poison Ivy hopped off the crane elevator and landed nimbly in the pack of entranced dock workers who'd come with the manifests. At her direction, they and dozens more turn and begin to march down the docks towards the ship. For her part, Poison Ivy marches with them, one hand on the railing separating the dock from the water below. And the other gripping a writhing tendril, ready to be animated and unleashed at a moment's notice.

 

[Karcen]

Victoria cared little for what ivy had planned for the ship as in truth she doubted they would actully manage what she planned. Batman was sure to somehow get word of this he always seemed to get word of everything and this would be no diffrent. Victoria had her own plan now, she would take what she wanted till batman showed up then leave she wasn't about to bother staying in something likely doomed.

Instead of following Ivy Victoria grapped up a few of the workmen for herself. She had other plans than letting them grab whatever they were going to help her and only her. She would find the brightest looking if the 6 men she grabbed and hand him the manifest with the things she wanted and an address written on it that was not normally there.

" You will be helping me there will be a change of plans. You will gather these items and leave as soon as possable or when Batman shows " she explained not planning on having them unload more than just she wanted " Take whatever get away vehicle you can and go to that address and you may each take a pound of diamonds from this haul" she continued giving them her offer which was insane pay in the end if they got enough. With that the small gang of men would hurry up to go find their new targets followed by Victoria herself.

 

[Epiphany]

Even as Batman's set up his plan of attack, the villains of Gotham city are upon the ship.

The Mogens Mærsk is a giant of a ship. Arguably the largest ship anyone here has been around, because it's one of the largest ships ever made. By the time the police are in a position to properly ensnare every bad guy who tries to make a run for it, the walkway has been lowered and disembarkation has already begun. This part of the docks doesn't get a lot of pedestrian foot traffic, especially at night, which results in a whole lot of stares at the crowd following the scantily-clad redhead.

Those stares turn into blank stares as Poison Ivy just walks up the ramp. Numerous flower buds strewn throughout her hair have opened and, even at night, there's the faintest irridescence that shimmers in the air. Pollen of some kind? Some kind of airborne intoxicant? Whatever the case, the people she walks by don't appear to be a problem for anyone...which leaves the interior of the cargo ship free game for anyone to take advantage of.

The actual interior hallways are fairly cramped and narrow for the most part. Thankfully, accessing the main deck is simplicity itself; just don't go into the ship proper since the walkway naturally connects to the top-deck. Thousands of cargo containers are stacked atop of each other, their contents mysterious if not for the various manifests that the Penguin Organization had circulated around. The ship is already remarkably empty otherwise, mostly owing to the sheer number of containers vs. a minimal amount of crew needed to actually operate the vessel...most of whom were only too happy to get off while the tedious work of cranes unloading containers was queued up to begin.

And meanwhile, scores of thugs stood by, ready to begin looting.

User
Meanwhile, Poison Ivy tilts her head in Harley's direction and even crooks an arm in the blonde's direction, an open invitation to 'escort' her if the other woman is so inclined. "I'm headed for the bridge, Harley. I think you'll want to come along." The redhead gave her partner-in-crime a rather beguiling look, followed by a wink as she added, "Assuming you'd like to see how a ship like this handles."

 

[Birdsie]

Batman

Spoiler

Suddenly, power in the whole block went down. The streetlights, lamps on the cranes, and floodlights whose luminescence reflected off of the surface of the black waters turned off in the whole docks district, and darkness reigned.

A group of thugs clustered together closely, holding their guns up in alarm. A dark shadow glided above them and perched itself on a street-lamp. It dropped a tube at their feet, before gliding away in another direction, towards another group, while the previous one was beginning to choke and slump into unconsciousness. Those who weren't in groups would be picked off silently using other methods. The big shots were left for later.

The Bat was here.

Epiphany User Karcen Bixir Oswald_C_Cobblepot santialessio animegirl20 June Verles fin Inheritance Bixir

 

[Inheritance]

Scarecrow​

After waiting in the garage for several minutes, he realized there was nothing coming. It seemed Plastic Man and Nightwing had either dipped or realized that fighting him on his own terms was a bad idea. That was fine, it just gave him a better chance to escape. When the sirens started, some of the men began to panic, moving about and starting to break formation.

"Stop freaking out. The police won't do anything." He hissed, preparing for the raid. He figured they would have tear gas masks as well, and knew he would need to react accordingly. With a quick motion, he ripped a gun from one of his lackey's grasp, and started firing at the lights in the structure. Darkness overtook them, darker than a moonless night.

"Get away from the Van. Hide in the Shadows. They can't see in their masks in the darkness."

His men moved to their positions quickly, much more adept than any common criminal. These 12 were ones he actually trusted to perform simple tasks, and helping him escape would be one of those. They lined up on the walls preparing to shoot the the one entrance. They would have gas masks probably, but once they came into the darkness, they would have to take off their masks, and when that happened, they would know fear.

Birdsie Oswald_C_Cobblepot

 

[ManyFaces]

A while ago Harvey Dent, or rather Two-Face didn't care much for the eco-terrorist antics that Poison Ivy usually had up her sleeve. However upon receiving one of her plants threading outside of one of his hideouts mouthing off about some sort of worthwhile prize all it took was a coin flip to decide whether or not he should check out what she had planning or to mind his own business and go about on a heist with his gang.
The coin decided it would be best if he went along for better or for worse, but just to be safe he brought two of his men equipped with tommy guns. The plant had instructed them to go to the docks and board a boat known as the Mogens Mærsk so all it took was some driving in an unmarked vehicle and a good eye on the look for anyone clad in spandex. "If she double crosses us i'll give you the signal, then all you gotta do is shoot." He said to his men knowing well enough that they could at least prove well enough as a distraction. Then they parked around some of the shipping containers, Two-Face exited with his guard up and a man on both his sides.

But upon arriving at the ship currently there was no sign of trouble and Ivy had just gone through her plans which seemed reasonable enough given so far he'd seen at least five of his fellow rogues all probably packing more than enough fire power to turn a certain flying rodent themed hero into swiss cheese. But he knew even twice the amount of people could be aboard the ship and somehow The Bat would still have the upper hand, hell he bet they'd end up with guns pointed at one another if The Bat didn't show given how everyone certainly had ulterior motives... But he already flipped his coin so this was the path he would stay with his men close by.

Epiphany Bixir Karcen Oswald_C_Cobblepot User Birdsie
(It's kinda disorienting to hop in late but I hope that was an acceptable intro!)