I Am The Night- Part Twenty by: Enemyoffun Steven Brown has a rough time, wanting to be a girl and hiding it from his angry abusive father. But when Steven gets a chance to express his hidden side through a fantastic opportunity, things change, including himself.

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Author's Note: Here's Ch. 19, the last chapter of this story...in a few days I'll post an Epilogue that will finish up the story. I'm happy with how everything turned out and hope everyone else too. I'd like to thank djkauf for the fantastic editing and DC Comics for their characters.

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Nineteen:

For a moment, I panicked, well not just a moment, more like several moments. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and the only thing I could hear was the pounding of my own heartbeat. I was outnumbered twenty to one and they were so much bigger than me. In most of my other fights, it was all about speed and being able to get my opponents before they saw me coming. I prided myself on it; it made me look mysterious and dangerous. The Bat takes you out even before you know what hits you---at least that’s what the word on the street was. I had a reputation of taking out the trash in such a way that criminals were running scared from their own shadows. Now in those scant few moments I had a crisis of conscience. Yes for once in my very short superhero life I actually feared that I might not be able to get out of this one alive.

That is until I remembered that I trained for this.

When that realization dawned on me, I controlled my breathing and stopped listening to my own scared heartbeat. Instead, I listened for theirs. Twenty guys and they were as scared as I was. I took another breath---this one without fear---and opened my eyes. It was still pitch black but it was far from scary anymore. As soon as the lights went out there was an overwhelming panic in the room. There had been murmuring and whispering but now all that was silent. OK, so not really silent. After I stopped listening for my heartbeat, I started listening for theirs. The first one was real close, almost on top of me. I couldn’t see him but he was making sound nevertheless. He was breathing heavily and wheezing. I could tell he was afraid because he was shifting around a bit, moving from one foot to the other in agitation.

He never saw it coming. Two well placed blows and I dropped him.

After that, I moved onto the next group. There were three of them together, panting and shifting with just as much fear as their fallen friend. I took them all out too. When I moved onto my fourth goon, that’s when they started to realize I was moving among them. That’s when they started talking too.

“Where is she?”

“Do you have her?”

“Do you?”

Then they started calling out names and responding, except those that I took out. When the five names didn’t respond, that’s when the panic started in. They started to move about, running into one another. That started some of the fighting, which I couldn’t have timed better myself. I didn’t see any of it, of course, but I definitely heard it. One of the guys panicked---probably running toward the door or where he thought the door was. He must have slammed into a group of his friends because the next moment there was shouting, someone called “she’s here” and there was a lot of commotion. You could tell they were beating the hell out of one another. Fear can do that to you. The group fighting got a bit bigger as others rushed into the fray. I stood back and waited, listening for the outcome. It didn’t take very long. I’m not sure how many went into the fight but there were only about four standing when it was done. I attacked then. I grabbed two stragglers first, pulling them down from behind, driving my fists into their faces for quick takedowns. Another one I moved in quickly and swept his legs out from under him with a low kick. The last one must have realized what was going on because he screamed. As soon as that ended, I pounced on him, knocking the wind out of him.

I slammed his head on the hard cement, knocking him out cold.

“Who’s there?” someone close by stammered.

I turned to the sound of the voice. The guy was panting heavily and moving. I stepped toward him. There was definite fear in the way he was moving. His breathing was rapid and his heart was beating a mile a minute. He kept backing up---I recognized the sound of his shoes scuffing backwards. He was trying to get away from me. He didn’t get very far, finally running into a wall of crates behind him. As soon as he did so, he panicked. I heard him fumble for something inside his coat and then the click of a gun. Anyone who was stupid enough to shot blindly in the dark was stupider than I thought. He squeezed off a couple shots, screaming as he did so. The bullets were nowhere near me but I did hear a thud, meaning I had one less goon to worry about.
He continued to fire until he emptied his clip then he shouted.

“WHERE ARE YOU?”

I moved in close so my face was right next to his ear. “Here” I said softly.

I could smell his urine before I knocked him out with a couple of kick blows. I stopped and listened after that. The room was deathly still. But I waited a few minutes nonetheless. I needed to know for sure if I got them all. When I was certain I walked over to where I thought I threw the goggles. I had a pretty good idea where they landed because I heard them hit something metal. It didn’t take me long to find them---even in the dark. But it helped that I pulled out my little pen light to search for them. They were exactly where I thought they were. I picked them up and slipped them on, the darkness disappeared when I activated them, replaced by the green. I scanned the room and sure enough, there were twenty goons lying on the ground. Most were unconscious---one was dead but all of them were out of commission.

Then I looked over at Tim. He was still tied to the chair in the middle of the room and he looked pretty bad. I rushed over to him, grabbing his chin as I bent down. I looked him over. His face was battered and swollen. There was a nice cut above his left eye and it looked like someone pulled out a tooth or two. He was barely conscious but managed to register me when he saw me. He smiled and then groaned.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” he said softly.

I found myself crying. “You shouldn’t have done this either” I said angrily then wrapped my arms gently around him. “What the hell were you thinking?”

“I couldn’t let them hurt you.”

“So you ran off to be the big brave hero?” I wanted to punch him but instead I kissed his forehead gently. “You don’t need to protect me, I told you that.”

He nodded. “I know but I couldn’t have lived with myself if something happened to you.”

I didn’t say anything to that but my heart was dancing. I wanted to squeal like a little girl. Instead, I looked around for something to cut his ropes. I wish I brought a knife or something. Instead, I went for the broken glass of the lights. I started sifting through it to try to find a good piece but then I found something better. My hand froze over it for a second. I stared long and hard at it then snapped around. I looked up into the rafters but there was no one there. How in the hell? I looked back down at the bat shaped shuriken. It was his; there was no doubt about that. My heart started pounding in my chest at the implication. He was here; he was the one who took out the lights!

I snatched up the little metal bat and ran quickly over to Tim. I started cutting his ropes but he grabbed my hands, shaking his head.

“There’s no time, Sionis is still here.”

“What? Are you sure?”

He nodded. “I overheard him earlier, they’re moving everything tonight. They have a container ship, he’s going to run.”

I bit my lip. “I need to get you to a doctor.”

He shook his head. “I’m fine. You need to go get that son of a bitch before this starts all over again somewhere else.”

I nodded then leaned forward kissing him long and hard. “This conversation isn’t over. As soon as I get back, you and I are going to have a long talk.”

He smiled. “I look forward to it.”

I left him to cut his own ropes with a piece of glass---I might need the shuriken. I ran off toward the door that Sionis and his spike-headed goon must have escaped through. It led right outside. The air was cold and biting. It was snowing, too. There was a long line of tracks leading away from the warehouse, going toward the docks. By the size of them, it was a large truck, probably like the one that did those deliveries. I cursed, realizing I was too late. I bit my lip and looked around. There had to be something. Then I saw it, half obscured in the shadows, Tim’s bike. They must have dragged it back here when they caught him. I ran over to it, noticing the keys were still in the ignition. There was no helmet but I didn’t need it. I hopped on, gunned the engine and took off.
It took me a bit to get used to it but I got a handle on it. As I swerved and skidded in the snow, I realized that whoever suggested that I have a motorcycle was wrong. What I needed was an armored car or a tank. Something fast---maybe with a jet engine or something. Anything was better than a motorcycle. I could barely control it. But luckily, I didn’t have very far to go. The warehouses and docks were fairly close together. I followed the tracks and saw the outline of the truck up ahead. I slowed down as I approached. As soon as I stopped, I saw the truck clearly. The back was open and two pig-masked goons were unloading a large wooden crate. Behind them, I could see the large looming presence of the container ship.

I pulled out my batarang and let it fly. It spun through the air, clipping one of the pigs in the head. He dropped like a ton of bricks. His companion couldn’t hold the heavy box by himself and dropped it on his foot. I ran forward, catching the batarang as it came back around to me. He saw me coming and reached into his coat. I jumped on the crate, causing him to scream. I cut him off quickly with a hand over his mouth. His eyes widened and teared up as he struggled from the pain.

“Your boss, where is he?”

I didn’t move my hand but his eyes pointed toward the ship.

I punched him in the face, using the batarang so it must have hurt like hell. He fell forward unconscious and I left him there. I crept along the side of the truck, moving toward the front of it. I looked at the ship. There was a long wooden gangway leading up to it and a pig-masked guy at the top, holding a machine gun. I let fly the batarang. It hit him in the side of the head. He careened forward and fell off the boat, landing hard on the ground. I grimaced and moved on. I ran up the wooden platform, moving without making a sound. There were two more guards patrolling as soon as I got on board. I took them out with a split kick. I’m not really up on all my boat lingo so don’t knock me for not knowing where I was going. I moved along the side, making my way toward the front of the ship.
About halfway along the side of the little structure in the center, Mr. Metalhead stepped out of one of those large circular openings---gangways maybe. He didn’t see me at first but as soon as he turned out, his eyes opened. I moved fast, throwing a first at his face. But he saw it coming, throwing his arms up to block me. He was huge, at least six five so he towered over me. He was all muscle too apparently. I could see it through the outline of his black leather outfit. It was clear that he was the muscle behind this operation. It was also clear that he wasn’t going to go down as easily as the others.

I threw another punch, hitting him low. He staggered back and I kicked him in the side. He caught my foot and pulled me toward him, right into his fist. Suffice to say his fist was about as big as my head. When my face slammed into it, it hurt like hell. But I had barely anytime to think about it. After punching me, he pulled me close and lifted me off the ground by the front of my costume. I was like a rag doll in his arms. He tore me over his shoulder and tossed me hard into the deck. Hitting it at that speed hurt like hell. It knocked the wind out of me. But he wasn’t done. He came at me as soon as I was on the ground. He kicked down at my chest. I rolled away just in time.

I rolled to my feet, wincing from the pain but still able to stand.

“You’re the great Batman, I’m not impressed,” he said with a laugh.

I rolled my eyes. I was tired of correcting people but couldn’t he see the boobs? I decided to skip the small talk. I waited for him to come. My training was all about using your opponent’s strength against him. He came hard and fast just like I predicted he might. But unlike my predictions, he didn’t get close. All his blows were from far away as if he was anticipating that I might try something. He was a skilled fighter, better than me in fact. Every punch I threw at him he seemed to be ready for as if he was reading my moves. It was starting to get taxing. I knew what he was doing. He was trying to get me out of my comfort zone and try something stupid but I wasn’t going to fall for it. I was also getting tired of playing fair. If I didn’t do something fast I was sure he’d eventually get the upper hand.

So I cheated.

I reached into my pouch and pulled out my penlight. He took a quick jab which I dodged then I shined the light in his face. It caught him off guard enough for me to go in for a nice blow. I caught him under the chin. He staggered backwards then I drove my knee into his chest. It was dirty but if I hadn’t done it, I would have been here for hours. But even with those two blows, he staggered back to his feet. I wasn’t about to let him get at me again though. I punched him across the chin again then grabbed a hold of one of his head spikes. I pulled him around, swinging him like he did me then let him go. He staggered and stumbled right toward a wall of crates. He was going too fast to stop and crashed into them headfirst.

The wall toppled and the crates fell on top of him, pinning him to the deck. He didn’t get up after that. I smirked and let out a huge sigh of relief, glad that this was finally over. Now all I had to do was get Black Mask and end this thing once and for all. I turned my head, looking at the stairs that lead up into the cabin. As I started to go toward them, a shot rang out and a bullet hit the ground in front of me, inches from my left foot. I looked up and saw him standing at the rail on the flight desk, holding a pistol. He fired again---near my right foot. I took a step back.

“That’s far enough little girl” he said with a stern voice.

But there was something familiar about it too. I’d heard that voice before. It took me a second but finally it came back to me: it was my Dad’s boss. The guy from the warehouse, the one who tied me to the chair and tried to burn me with the red-hot crowbar. The one I ended up burning instead. That’s why I recognized the name Roman; his goons had called him that. I groaned inwardly. I wondered if he was wearing the mask to hide his burned face.
“It’s over, Sionis,” I said, not taking a step but looking at my options.

There was no way I could get up there without being shot. So that left only one other option. I slowly reached into my pouch and took out the boomerang---my batarang. If I could distract him and get a clear shot, I might be able to take the gun from him. It was a long shot but it was worth a try.

He laughed. “You think you’ve stopped me because you shut down this little operation of mine. I have business deals in several states and a big overseas market. You haven’t beaten me you just slowed me down. As soon as I dispose of you---my little nuisance---I continue right where I left off.”

“The police have Friitawa in custody, Thrill is done.”

He looked mildly surprised for a second but recovered quickly. “Thrill may be over but there are other drugs, much more potent ones.”

The sound of sirens in the distance was the distraction I was looking for. It caused him to turn his head and I let fly with the boomerang. It soared through the air right toward him. He turned and fired, blasting it out of the air. He laughed but that’s what I wanted. He lowered his gun in his laughter and that’s when I let fly with the shuriken. I figured he’d pull something like that. In fact, I counted on it. The bat shuriken whipped through the air and hit him in the hand, taking the gun from it. He screamed in pain and I charged the stairs. I took them two at a time, racing up to the top. When I got there, he was pulling Bruce’s “batarang” from his hand. He saw me and panicked. He made a run for the wheelhouse door, throwing the bat at me before turning and pulling it open. I caught it in midair and threw it back just as quickly, hitting him in the back of the leg this time.

He screamed in pain again and crumbled to the ground, halfway in the wheelhouse.

“Stay away from me” he whined as he crawled into the wheelhouse.

I walked slowly behind him, driving my foot into his back. He gasped as I knocked the wind out of him. He didn’t try to crawl away after that. I flipped him on his back. He was panting but he was still conscious. I bent down, grabbed the front of his shirt and lifted him off the floor. He stared wide eyed in horror from beneath his terrifying black skull mask. Terrifying to him but not to me.

“What the hell are you?” he gasped.

“I’m the Bat,” I said and head butted him, knocking him out cold.

I dragged him over to the railing and zip cuffed him to it to leave for the police.

The police arrived a few minutes later; it looked like the whole police force. I pulled out my cell phone and called Oracle. “It’s done,” I said when she answered.

“Good now get out of there.”

I clicked off the phone and slipped into the shadows, moving down the stairs in the dark. I stayed in the shadows as the cops stormed the boat, guns drawn. There was too much activity going on for them to notice me so I managed to slip away in it. I found Tim’s bike, got on it and went back to the warehouse. When I got there, it was swarming with police too. They already had a lot of the goons in custody, dragging them outside. I slipped in through one of the open doors and looked around. Tim’s chair was empty, the cut ropes lying nearby. I sighed with relief, though I was sure he was going to be ticked when he saw his bike was gone. I’d worry about that later.

I started to walk away when I caught sight of Detective Gage. Why he was here and not at the ship was beyond me. He was bent over near the pile of glass and it took me only a second to realize what he was doing. When he stood up, he had the second bat shuriken in his hand. I sighed and took a step toward him. When he turned around I was standing there, he jumped about ten feet. After he recovered, he let out a big sigh.

“I could have shot you,” he said, his hand on his gun.

“You would have missed,” I said, plucking the shuriken out of his fingers. He didn’t even flinch.

He frowned at that. “I take it all this was your handiwork then?” he asked, waving his hands around the warehouse.

“The Black Mask is done. If you follow your men to a cargo ship on the docks, you’ll find him tied to the flight deck.”

Gage sighed in relief. “So it’s over then”

I nodded. Well maybe for him and Black Mask but not for me. He started talking some more but my mind was elsewhere. He turned around but I was already slipping away into the shadows. I didn’t want to stay around and wait for his guys to show up with cuffs for me. Like it or not, I was still breaking the law doing what I was doing. I think it was time for me to make a clean getaway. As I walked toward the door, I looked at the bat shaped thing in my hand. I was ready drop after the night I’d just had but there was one more place I had to go before I called it a night.

I headed for Tim’s motorcycle and smiled.

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I ended up driving the motorcycle to the Manor. I was going to ditch it in the alley where I parked my car but the car was gone. It seems that Tim liberated my car like I did his bike. I guess it was only fair. But I was glad to see he at least got out of there before the cops showed. I couldn’t help but think about him the whole way to the Manor. He did all of that for me and as much as I wanted to kill him for it, I thought it was the sweetest thing in the world. Stupid beyond all measure but very sweet. After our fight the other day I was convinced he wanted nothing more to do with me. When he refused to take my calls, I thought that was the end of things. I cried so many times over it. But it turns out he didn’t call because he couldn’t. I guess that brought me a tad bit of solace. But that still didn’t mean I wasn’t angry at him. As soon as I dealt with Bruce, Tim was next.

I pulled up in front of the Manor twenty minutes later, my cape flapping in the breeze. I wondered if I would have to climb the gate but as soon as the bike pulled up to it, it opened. It was clear that I was expected. I drove on through and around the side to the garage, the door opened for me. When I pulled inside, I saw my Focus. I sighed in relief again. I wasn’t sure he had taken it but I was glad he did. I pulled the bike into the only empty spot and got off. I went to my car instead of directly into the house. I opened the truck and took out the large duffel I kept there. I usually kept my costume in the trunk and my clothes in the duffel. I looked around to make I wasn’t being watched by any cameras then stripped out of the black leather suit. I groaned and winced as I did so, feeling tonight’s many bruises. When I got home, I was in need of a good soak. I tried not to think about it as I pulled on a pair of sports tights and a loose t-shirt, the clothes I usually wore after a night of crime fighting. Then I made my way for the stairs, carrying my sneaks and socks as I did so.

I went straight for the tower. Halfway there, Ace found me. He nearly bowled me over when he jumped up to lick my face. I dropped to my knees and wrapped my arms around him, surprised that I missed him so much. I was actually surprised that I missed this place so much. It felt like a second home to me for the time that I spent here. It was warm and welcoming, not at all scary like I first thought it was. I felt comfortable here, more so than even at home which was strange.

When I got to the tower, Alfred was waiting for me. He had a silver tray in his hand, a steaming hot cup of cocoa sitting on it. I smiled as I approached him. I took the cup and took a sip. It was made with melted hot chocolate, it was delicious. “How did you know I needed that?” I asked as I set the cup back on the tray.

He smiled. “Master Bruce likes a nice hot cup of tea after a long night. I figured this might be more appropriate.”

I smiled then nodded toward the tower. “Is he up there?”

Alfred smiled. “Yes and he’s been waiting for you.”

I smiled and kissed his cheek then made my way up the tower stairs, Ace at my heels. I took the stairs slowly, one at a time. When I got to the locked room, I fought back the urge to try the door. I knew what was on the other side. Knowing that and the last time I was here, put a fire in my belly. I took a deep breath and stormed up the rest of the stairs to the rooms up there. I threw open the door to the parlor, expecting to storm through it into Bruce’s room and chastise him for tonight. What I didn’t expect was him sitting there waiting for me. He dressed in a pair of blue silk pajamas, a cane rested across his lap. He smiled at me, stopping me dead in my tracks.

“Hello Stephanie” he said as if we’d never had an argument at all.

I stared at him wide eyed for a few seconds. I wasn’t expecting this at all. I’m not sure what I was expecting but it wasn’t this.

I was speechless for a few seconds until I finally found my voice. “You have some nerve,” I said angrily.

I pulled the shuriken out of my pocket and threw it at him. The plan was to make it stick in the back of the chair near his head. But Bruce snatched it out of thin air like it was made of paper. He twirled it around his fingers lazily and then it disappeared. Poof just like that. I hadn’t realized sleight of hand was one of his tricks.

He smiled. “I studied with an illusionist for a few months when I was about your age or so.”

I frowned. “Cheap tricks aren’t going to stem off how pissed I am at you right now.”

He smiled some more. “Neither is that smile of yours?” I added quickly.

He nodded. “I imagine you’re not really sure what to make of what’s going on. A month ago I was bed ridden and tonight---you already know by now---I was throwing these things” He flashed the shuriken in his hand. “Into lights. I haven’t been entirely honest with you.”

I crossed my arms in front of my chest. “You think?”

He smiled and grabbed the cane. He stared at it for a few seconds then used it to push himself to his feet. I looked at the cane and wondered if it was for my benefit or for his. He seemed to know I noticed but he didn’t get rid of it. He winked though which meant it was a fake. He walked over to me and put his hand on my shoulder. He held it there for some time and then sighed. Then he brushed some of my hair out of my face. “I was trying to keep you safe from harm,” he said finally.

I pushed away from him. “What is it with men in this house and thinking they have to protect me? I can handle myself.”

Bruce laughed. “I’ve noticed.” He looked at the shuriken. “You definitely proved that tonight and every other night for that matter. I’m really proud of what you’ve accomplished in such a short time too.”

I smiled. “I had help.”

He nodded. “Barbara and Onyx have been keeping me well informed.”

I frowned at that even though Babs told me Bruce was keeping tabs. “So what’s all this been then, some kind of fun for you?”

He shook his head. “On the contrary. When I first started allowing you to do this, I thought about you as a replacement. I’d given up after my accident. But after you showed me how much you cared about the people of this city and you and Tim tried to take care of it in my stead I realized that this was much bigger than me. I forgot why I got into this in the first place.”

I nodded. “So that’s why you helped me tonight?”

“Yes” he said and then smiled. “That’s why I want to continue to help you too.”

Now I was confused. “What are you talking about?”

“Onyx has taught you everything that she can. If you’re going to continue this---if we’re going to continue this---then you need a new teacher.”

I was shocked. “What are you saying exactly?”

“I’m saying that if you’ll have me, I want to teach you everything that I know.”

He held out his hand. I took a deep breath. I wasn’t sure what to do or say. I wanted to take his hand but at the same time, there were so many things I wanted to do with my life. Did I want to spend all my free time stalking the city, looking for bad guys? I only did this because he refused to help me and now here he was extending his hand to me, asking to help me. It was all a bit daunting. But exciting too. This is what I wanted; this is what I’ve always wanted. Here was my chance, a chance to become the person that maybe I was meant to be. I was scared out of my mind when I looked at his hand but at the same time I was more excited than I’d ever felt in my entire life.

I took a deep breath. I can do this I think. I reached for his hand and stopped. “If I do this there can’t be any more secrets, understood?”

He nodded. “No more secrets, I promise.”

I smiled. “Then you’ve got yourself a deal”

I shook his hand and in doing so felt like I was finally where I was meant to be.

Author’s note: As I’m sure all of you know, comments are life blood to an author. I’m not begging or demanding, but I certainly would appreciate anything you have to say (or ask). It doesn’t have to be long and involved, just give me your reaction to the story. Thanks in advance...EOF