Moon Princess meets Dark Knight/Transcript

Chapter 1
"Not again! I'm late!" a girl screamed as she leaped out of her bed. The girl rushed into her closet and started grabbing clothing. Her two blonde pigtails followed her with flashing speed. She panted as she threw clothing wildly about the room, searching for her school uniform. "Why didn't you wake me up, mom?!" she shouted.

"I tried, Usagi, but you kept saying you'd get up on your own," a voice from the hall shouted back.

"I can't believe my mom made me late again!" Usagi grumbled. She threw off her pajamas and started changing into her school uniform. Usagi pulled her shirt over herself and started to quickly adjust her skirt. She leaped around and felt herself losing her balance as she struggled against her skirt.

A black cat, laying upon the sofa from across the room, yawned as her ears were assaulted by the wailing of her owner. "You're a young adult now, Usagi. You have to start taking care of yourself," the black cat with a crescent moon bald spot replied.

It wasn't unusual for this particular cat to speak. After all, Usagi had been speaking to this cat for a long time. However, ever since she met this cat, her whole life has been nothing but unusual.

"I'm only in Junior High, Luna!" Usagi shouted. She quickly slipped on her shoes, nearly tripping as she rushed over to the door. She regained her balance and darted through the door.

Luna sighed, "And to think, this is the moon princess we've been searching for all this time."

Usagi ran down the street as fast as she could. She ran wishing she could be like all the normal girls at school. Since she met Luna, she has been fighting monsters day in and day out as Sailor Moon, a champion of love and justice. It was hard enough being a sailor soldier. Enduring long nights and balancing school along with this new life caused her to shrivel down and cry more than once. It didn't help that her academic talents were lacking either. But now, she has discovered she is the moon princess, whom her and her friends had been looking for. She wished with all her heart things would go back to normal. In the back of her mind, however, a thought closely clung to her soul. Things would never be normal again.

"Hey, Usagi!" a voice came from behind. Usagi, still running, looked back to see another blonde girl with a red bow in her hair coming her way. "Late again, huh?"

"Minako?" she panted through her words.

"Well, don't worry. I'm pretty late too!" Minako said, trying to boost Usagi's spirit. Usagi smiled as she gazed upon her friend. A sudden relief came over her.

Minako then gave a large grin, "Race you there!" She then darted in front of Usagi putting a lot of distance between them. She panted as she disappeared from Usagi's sight.

Usagi ran with all her might, but looked up to notice that Minako was still distancing herself from Usagi. Pushing herself, she ran even harder, but still she was not able to gain Minako's speed. "Why do you have to be so mean?! Why does school have to be so far away?!" Usagi cried.

At an university in the city of Gotham, a strange man leads five others into a dark room deep under the football stadium. His rag-like clothing fluttering as his body moved. His face was hidden by a leather hood with jaw-like teeth covering where his mouth would be. Atop his head was a pointed hat. Two of the men were dragging around a large container, each of them holding one side. One other was hauling a long tube. The other two each carried a large brown bag. Strapped to the back of each of them was an AK-47, a deadly assault rifle. The crowd roars above them, shaking the room like an earthquake. "Perfect," the man spoke. A sly grin appeared underneath the threads of his mask. His yellow eyes widened with glee as thoughts of his experiment filled his head with joy and excitement. The thought of thousands screaming in terror obsessed him. He lifted his thin arm pointing towards an air handling unit. As he moved his arm, straw contained within his outfit waved like grains of wheat upon the wind. "Put the toxin there and begin hooking it to the ventilation system," The man ordered.

"Sure thing, Mr. Crane," one of the men replied.

"How many times must I remind you, simpletons?! I am the Scarecrow!" Crane snapped.

"Geez, sorry," the man apologized waving his hands in the air. His voice gave a disrespectful tone.

"Never mind. Just do as your told and make sure your masks are secure."

The men holding the canister and the man holding the tube made their way over to the large air handling unit. The man holding the tube staggered his way over, dragging half the tube across the floor. The other men set down the bags and unzipped them. They reached into the sack and pulled a gas mask over their faces. They adjusted until the mask wrapped itself tightly around their faces. The other three gathered around the masked thugs. The masked men handed the others their mask and repeated the former's process. They then gathered around the unit and started to remove the tubes connecting.

The Scarecrow focused his attention on the room, scanning for anything that would hinder his experiment. He then turned his attention to the mob, still fiddling with the air unit. "You!" The Scarecrow pointed at the tallest and largest of them. The man turned his head towards his boss. "Come with me. I want to make sure that we don't have any unexpected and unwelcome guests." The man slowly rose to his feet. He smiled as he cocked his weapon and followed his boss down the hallway.

One of the men scoffed as they walked off, "Who'd be crazy enough to mess with us?"

"What are you?! Stupid?!" another insulted.

"Want to repeat that?!" the first one glared at the one across from him, his fist clinched.

One of the other men stuck his arm out to barricade one from the other, "He's talking about the Bat."

The first one turned to him, "The what?"

The one who had delivered the insult earlier, grunted as he removed the tube from the air unit, "You ain't from around here, are you?"

"Nah. From Fawcett City."

Two of the men gripped the case they had brought. Grunting and struggling, they dragged the case towards the unit. They released a sigh of relief after they accomplished their task. One of them wiped his brow, "The Batman. They say Scarecrow and he go way back. Been in his business forever."

"Any of you ever seen this... Bat-guy?" He and another one had gripped the hose. They hoisted towards the case and tightly wrapped it into a connection on the device.

"Yeah, I saw him once. It was only for a second though and then that damn bastard broke both of my legs."

"I ain't ever seen him, but I heard he can turn invisible and he drinks human blood," he gripped his screw driver tightly in his hand. Placing the screw over the hole connecting the tube to the device, he twisted the first of many screws into the device securing the tube.

"Geez, and the Scarecrow wants us to go up against him?"

"You idiots talking about Batman?!" a voice from the hall shouted. The man, who had wondered with Scarecrow, strutted into the room. The entire gang turned towards their bigger ally. He grinned as he came upon them. Like a bunch of scared little children telling ghost stories, it was all he could do not to laugh.

"Yeah, you think he'll show up?" one of them turned and asked.

"I, for one, hope he does. I'm looking for a little payback!" he growled as he cocked his weapon.

"How do you kill a vampire though?!"

"Shut up! Batman ain't no vampire! He's just a freak in a costume! That's it! All you need is one bullet and then... BANG!" the others jumped in fright. One of them gasped. He quickly scanned to hope none of them noticed. The big man spoke again, "One... dead... Bat."

"Have you fools hooked up the container?" the Scarecrow asked, as he appeared from behind his henchman.

"Yeah, we hooked it up just like you told us to Mr. Crane-- I mean, Scarecrow."

The Scarecrow's eyes glared at the man, but quickly his gaze turned elsewhere, "Good, let us begin phase two. We need to redirect all the air flow to the stadium."

One of the henchmen relieved the pressure of the gas mask from his face. He carelessly dropped it to the floor. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a carton of cigarettes. He grinned as he removed one from the case. However, before he could put it into his mouth, the Scarecrow slapped it from his hand. "Hey, what's your problem?!" the thug snapped.

"I need you to be focused on the task at hand! Need I remind you that the fear gas is flammable?! If there is a leak while we are distributing it, it will explode and we will all die!" Scarecrow shouted. His eyes scowled at his taller opponent. His yellow eyes fixed upon the other's. "Second, if there is a leak now, you have just exposed yourself to the fear toxin. You will be nothing but a drooling idiot and an unwelcome variable in my experiment!" The Scarecrow reached down, picked up the mask and shoved it into the thug's chest, "Put your gas mask back on or I shall show you the true meaning of terror!"

The Scarecrow led the group into another part of the basement, with the exception of the first man. He scoffed as the others walked off. He snuck a cigarette and a lighter out of his pocket. He stuck the cigarette in his mouth and lit it with the lighter. "Screw you, Crane." he murmured. He exhaled with a puff of smoke, with a deep relief. He grin as he slipped the lighter back into his pocket. "See, no problem?"

He took the cigarette out of his mouth, exhaling more smoke. He smiled as he thought of the grim things he was going to do to Crane. Him and his trusty weapon, he felt all but untouchable. However, his grin vanished as a hand from the darkness wrapped itself around his mouth. He attempted to scream, but the hand muffled the sound. The scream was nowhere loud enough to be heard by anyone, save himself. He struggled and fought with all his might, but this force refused to release him. As his sight darkened, he felt a powerful force slam against the back of his head. His sight then went completely black.

The Scarecrow's men had been working tirelessly on the unit, redistributing the toxin to the stadium. They repeated the process of earlier, taking up less time. Crane looked around the room and only saw four of his men still with him. "Where is he?!" Scarecrow demanded. His eyes scowling the others.

The others stopped their work and scanned the room for the missing henchman. "Who? Don?" one of them asked. He then looked around and couldn't see him. "No idea."

"Find him!"

One of them grabbed his gun and started heading for where he last saw his ally. He exhaled as he marched down the hallway like a schoolboy who is forced to go home. When he arrived, Don was nowhere to be found. "Don?" he called. There was no answer. "Yo, Don? Where are you?" he called again. There was still no answer. His heart started to speed up a couple of beats. Sweat began to build up. His mind began to race. "Don?" he called once more, and this time he received an answer.

He saw a lighted cigarette fly past his face and onto the floor in front of him. He looked up and his pulse skyrocketed. His eyes widened and jaw dropped in terror upon his discovery. He saw Don's foot tied with a wire. He hung over him suspended by that thread. He was hardly breathing and his weapon was missing. "Boss! Boss!" He quickly tumbled his way back to where his allies were.

"What happened?!" The Scarecrow demanded.

"It-It- was insane! It's Don! He-he's was hanging upside down! Something attacked him!" the man stammered, trying to get his words together.

"Spread out!" Scarecrow ordered. Each of his men picked up their guns and scurried to their feet. They quickly turned on flashlights attached to their weapons. They all scanned the surroundings, their trigger fingers inch to pull as the slightest whim. They each took a point in the room and carefully monitored everything around them. As they searched, their breathing began to get heavier and more rapid.

One of them walked down towards one of the hallways. He surveyed the area, praying that there was nothing there. He breathed a sigh of relief when he was right. However, when he took another step towards the hallway, he was hoisted into the air by an near invisible wire. He screeched like a banshee as he entered the darkness. Everyone franticly fixed their flashlights at the spot where their ally disappeared, but by the time the light shined, he was gone.

"He-He's gone, man!" one of them shouted. His voice stammered and his breathing was almost uncontrollable.

"What the hell's going on?!" another said in a panicked frenzy.

The Scarecrow looked down at his hands and he noticed that they were... shaking. Sweat began to emanate from his face and soaked onto his mask. His eyes leered into the darkness as his mind guessed what force could do this. He knew he was right. There was no doubt about it. "It's him," he whispered. His men turned their heads towards Scarecrow. Their gas masks covered their frightened eyes from him, but he could still imagine those eyes. How they were desperate and hopeful that something, anything, would liberate them of their fears. He almost smiled, but couldn't. Not with him nearby.

"It's who?" one of them trembled. His light moving in a frenzied dance as his hands began to shake uncontrollably.

The Scarecrow continued to stare into the darkness of where his henchmen had disappeared. He gathered his words, "The only man who can invoke such terror into the master of fear. ... The Batman."

One of them started gazing the area carefully. He then heard a noise behind him. In panic, he turned around and fired his weapon. Shot after shot came from his gun. He wasn't sure what he was aiming at, but he just kept firing. Finally, the Scarecrow came to him and he stopped. "Stop firing, you idiot!" He then took the weapon from his henchman. "Get the fear gas into the ventilation system!" He ordered pointing down the hall.

The thug stumbled as he followed his boss's orders. "We'll kill the Bat!" Scarecrow stated. The other men readied their weapons once more. One man moved towards a gathering of pipes and saw something strange behind them. "He's here!" he shouted, feeling confident he had his enemy trapped. He made his way towards the strange thing, but when he arrived it was gone. "He's-he's gone!" he stammered. Suddenly, he was pulled into the darkness from above. He screamed as he disappeared.

The last one saw his partner disappear, "He's here, the Batman's here!" He looked above to see his friend drop on top of him. He grunted as he shoved his ally off of him and got up. He cocked his weapon and franticly searched for the Dark Knight. Sweat continued down his face, his heart beat continued to race. He looked up once more to see a figure shaped like a bat, coming straight towards him. He raised his gun to fire, but before he could pull the trigger, two large boots slammed into his face. His vision blacked shortly afterwards.

Scarecrow carefully marched backwards, scanning the room. He searched high and low for the Batman, but came up empty every time. As he backed up, he felt himself bump into something behind him. He knew instantly who it might be by the sweat on his own face. He turned around quickly, but before he could fire, a hand grabbed his weapon and forced it from his hand. Then another hand smashed against his face sending him a few feet forward.

As the Scarecrow laid on the ground, a man came from the darkness. The Scarecrow had never forgotten this man. Never forgotten that cowl, that revealed only his eyes, his mouth and chin. A cowl that had two pointed ears coming from it. It had been a symbol of fear to him for a long time. He had learned to fear that cowl. "It's over, Crane," the Batman spoke.

The Scarecrow quickly reached into his pocket, pulling out a syringe. He then leaped onto the Batman and stabbed him with the syringe. Batman struggled and finally threw him off. He then fumbled to the ground. The Scarecrow unleashed a maniacal laugh as he stood proudly over his foe. "That's right, Batman! Bow to the master of fear!" he then kneeled down beside his foe. "Bow to the Scarecrow!" the Batman unleashed another furious punch to Crane's chin.

The Scarecrow slowly regained his vision as he saw himself a few feet from Batman. The Dark Knight was slowly rising to his feet. The Scarecrow's eyes widened, "Impossible!"

Batman walked steadily towards him, "You were sloppy, Crane. I found traces of your new chemical in one of your labs. I was able to synthisize an antidote." The Scarecrow got up and threw a punch at the Dark Knight, but he moved. As Crane moved past him, he slipped a handcuff arm over one of his wrists and pulled him towards one of the pipes as he slipped the other arm onto the pipe.

The Scarecrow struggled with all his might as the Batman took a step back out of Crane's reach. "You think you've won, Batman?! Not even you can save all those people! I've pumped enough gas into that stadium to drive every man, woman, and child insane with fear!" Scarecrow gloated. He released another laughter of madness.

Batman quickly ran towards the end of the hallway into another room. When he arrived, he spotted the ventilation valve. He dashed towards it, put his hands on it and pulled with all his might. However, before he had a chance to shut it completely, he felt a large force hit him in the back of the head. His chest hit the floor hard. He quickly turned around and saw the image of a man with a steel pipe over his head. The man swung again, but this time Batman caught it in time. They struggled, pushing with all their might. Finally, Batman lifted one of his legs and kicked the man backwards. The man stumbled for a moment, but it gave more than enough time for Batman to rise to his feet. The man charged for the Dark Knight again. The Batman waited until the man swung his weapon before he caught it. While the man was caught off guard by his reaction speed, Batman quickly elbowed the man in the gut. He dropped like a sack of potatoes.

Batman tossed the pipe away and again focused his attention on the valve. He turned it with all his might, struggling and grunting as it slowly turned. He finally took a deep breath as the valve closed completely.

Commissioner James Gordon rallied his men into the stadium with alarming speed. They escorted person after person out of the stadium, taking most of them to a small medical clinic they set up nearby. Gordon over saw it all as officers continued to evacuate the stadium. "Make sure everyone sees the medics. I don't care if they've got symptoms or not," Gordon ordered the six men nearby.

"Yes, sir," they replied. They then each ran their separate ways, taking an exit of the facility.

Gordon then walked towards an alleyway, turning his front towards the operation. Somehow, he knew someone was behind him, and he knew exactly who it was. Gordon released a deep sigh, "Lots of injuries, some of them serious enough to be rushed to a hospital." A man then appeared from behind Gordon, a man in a large cape and cowl. "My men are still evacuating the stadium, but so far no casualties," he smiled as he announced the good news. "We got lucky. Thanks to you," he turned towards the Batman and smiled.

"I'm just the nightshift, Jim," Batman replied. "Your people have been working on this case 24-7."

They looked to the distance to see two police officers shoving a skinny little man with red hair into a police vehicle. Gordon and Batman knew it was Crane. He may have looked a lot less frightening without his mask, but he wasn't less dangerous. "Crane's being transferred back to Arkham Asylum," Gordon stated, glaring at Crane as their eyes met. "Let's hope he stays there this time."

"We can only hope," Batman said. The police vehicle then drove off into the distance, taking the Scarecrow with it.

Chapter 2
"Kunzite, how fares our progress of locating the silver crystal?" a woman spoke. Her yellow eyes leering at a tall man with long white hair.

"Queen Beryl, our search for the silver crystal continues," Kunzite replied. He lowered his head in his own disappointment. "But I have found a way of luring Sailor Moon into a new trap."

"Have you now?" Queen Beryl asked.

"Indeed, my queen. It involves using humans who hate humanity as much as we do," Kunzite began to explain. A smirk appeared on Queen Beryl's face, her eyes widened and ears focused on what her general had to say. "There is a place where humans keep these creatures locked away. However, if I were to bring them here, they would lure Sailor Moon out in the open. Then we could rid ourselves of her once and for all!"

"You underestimate Sailor Moon," a voice came from behind. Kunzite spun around to see a tall dark haired man stepping out of the shadows. His red cape flowed as he approached his white haired ally. "Sailor Moon is a worthy opponent and should be treated as such."

"My plan will defeat her once and for all, Prince Endymion. You worry too much," Kunzite boasted.

"And you worry too little. I suggest you take care, less you wish to end up like Zoisite," the prince pointed out.

"Watch your tongue!" Kunzite snapped. His eyes fixing themselves on the prince, burning with hatred.

"Enough, both of you!" Queen Beryl finally shouted. Kunzite then refocused his attention onto Queen Beryl. "You have peaked my interest, Kunzite. Tell me of this place that holds these creatures you speak of."

Kunzite grinned, "It houses some of the most dangerous humans on this planet. A place called Arkham Asylum."

Commissioner Gordon gazed upon the starry night sky, waiting for a friend. He stood beside a shining light with a insignia of a bat attached. It illuminated the night sky, as if it were an omen or a warning to all those who would do wrong in his town. Gordon turned his gaze to his right and saw a figure standing in the darkness, "You're late."

"Something came up. I left it on your front steps," the figure stepped out of the darkness and revealed himself to be Batman. Batman would usually leave dirt bags and scum on the front porch of the police station. It also wasn't unusual for Batman not to come at the first light of the Bat-signal.

"I'll have Bullock take care of it. We need to talk," Gordon replied. Gordon revealed a folder under his arm and handed it over to the Dark Knight. "A day and a half ago, fifteen inmates were transferred from Arkham Asylum to a facility in Tokyo. The Kat... um... uh... Damn, I had it," Gordon stumbled trying to remember the facility's name.

Batman began looking through the folder, "The Katsutoshi Psychiatric Hospital. It's the only medical facility in Tokyo that's equipped to house criminals such as these."

"Right, that one," Gordon then pointed out four photographs of certain inmates. "Four of the inmates hold a particular concern to me. Oswald Cobblepot, Harvey Dent, Waylon Jones, and Victor Zsasz." He revealed the four photos depicting a large overweight man with a monocle and a beaked nose, a man with half of his face burned beyond repair, a giant lizard man, and a man with tally shaped scars all over his body. Batman knew these men better as The Penguin, Two-Face, Killer Croc, and Mr. Zsasz respectively.

"Who are the doctors that approved this transfer?" Batman asked.

"Dr. Ginjiro Saitou and Dr. Kira Yamada," Gordon directed Batman's attention to a photo of a older grey haired male doctor and a younger red haired female doctor. "Dr. Yamada was the one who arrived to oversee the transfer and Dr. Saitou is the head of the medical staff there."

Gordon then gave the photos back to the Dark Knight, "All the paperwork checks out, and as much as I love seeing these scum bags leave my city." Gordon slowly turned around and started heading towards the Bat-signal light. He paused trying to gather his thoughts, "I don't know. Something doesn't feel right. I can't help, but feel something bad is going to happen. But it's way out of my jurisdiction." Gordon took a deep breath and started to turn back towards his friend, "Maybe you could look into--."

By the time he had finished turning around, the Dark Knight was gone, "That's the worse part about working with you."

---

Alfred Pennyworth had been the loyal bulter of Wayne family for many years. He would do what you would expect a butler to do: cook, clean, tend to his master's needs. However, this particular butler had extra duties that no one could ever suspect. He marched himself towards an old grandfather clock. The clock looked like it no longer worked, but didn't have a speck of dust on it. He readjusted the time on the clock and just as he did, the clock moved itself like a door opening to another room. It was incredibly dark, but Alfred was not intimidated. In fact, he had gone down this secret passage more times than he could remember. He followed the staircase down to a large cave with a huge computer monitor and several large processing units. Sitting in front of the monitor was none other than the master of Wayne Manner, Bruce Wayne. Or as most of the criminal underworld knew him better, the Batman.

Batman tapped several keys in front of him. Images of a red-haired woman appeared on the screen, as well as documents depicting this woman's life. The butler made his way beside his master. "I'm so glad you're expanding your social circle, sir," the butler commented watching the images of the young and beautiful woman. "But what would the criminals of Gotham think if they knew a woman was taking Batman's attention away from them?"

Batman raised his eyebrow. "Funny, Alfred," he sarcastically replied. He then tapped the keyboard again. The computer began to a search for information Batman requested. "I've been doing research on this woman for the past hour. Dr. Kira Yamada, she's a doctor at the Katsutoshi Psychiatric Hospital in Tokyo. Became chief medical assistant only a week ago," the dark knight continued. More images started to show on the screen. This time showing a medical facility with kenji on the side of the building.

"But if I go further into her past...," Batman typed several keys and the computer replied with a 'No results found' message. "Nothing. It's as if she just appeared one day."

"And this calls for concern, sir?" Alfred asked.

"It does," Batman punched his keys again, and revealed photographs of 15 men. "Two days ago, 15 inmates were transferred from Arkham to Tokyo. Four the inmates include; Oswald Cobblepot, Waylon Jones, Victor Zsasz, and Harvey Dent," one by one, Batman isolated each of the four men as he named them.

"Quite a nasty crew, aren't they?" Alfred replied holding his chin.

"Dr. Yamada and Dr. Saitou are the doctors that approved the transfer on Tokyo's side," Batman explained. "Mayor Linseed's just looking for some free publicity as well as aiding his campaign to clean up Gotham. He was probably overjoyed by the proposal."

"Such are the games of politicians," Alfred commented. "What about the other Japanese doctor?"

"Dr. Ginjiro Saitou worked at the Tokyo Medical University Hospital, until eight years ago, when he was discharged for a drug problem," Batman tapped several keys bring up a Japanese newspaper clipping. "He disappeared until three years ago when he built the Katsutoshi Psychiatric Hospital. He's been their lead medical professional ever since." Another image of the hospital appeared in a newspaper clipping. This clipping had the photo of a middle-aged man standing in front of a medical facility.

"And you think they are planning something with these inmates?"

Batman arose from his chair, "I'm not entirely sure what they're after, but I need of find out." Batman then turned towards a deeper section of the cave and started to make his way there. "Cancel all of Bruce Wayne's appointments for the next week," Batman requested. "I'm going to Japan."

---

Usagi sat upon the steps of the The Hikawa Shrine with a piece of paper in her hand. It had a lot of math problems and a large 25 in red marker. Tears looked as if they were ready to burst from her eyes. Sitting next to her was a young girl with short blue hair. Beside her was Luna. "Usagi, you really should study a little harder on your test," the girl explained.

"My mom is going to kill me when she sees this!" Usagi cried. While Usagi knew for sure her mother wouldn't actually murder her, it didn't make her feel any better. "What am I going to do?" She turned to the girl sitting next to her named Ami.

"You need to focus more on your studies, Usagi. It's important that you have a balance of both mind and body," Luna explained.

"If you want, I could tutor you," Ami offered.

Usagi wiped a tear from her eye and smiled at her friend, who replied in kind. Just then a gust of wind picked up and stole the test sheet from Usagi's hand. It soared through the air and flew itself into the face of an unsuspecting girl. A girl with long black hair. She pulled the test from her face, her eyes squinted on Usagi, "Usagi!"

"Rei, don't look at my test score!" Usagi snapped as she ripped the test from Rei's hands.

"It's kind of hard when someone can't hold on to it! You practically threw it in my face!" Rei yelled. "Besides, its a good thing I saw it! You need to assert yourself!"

"But studying is hard and boring," Usagi moaned.

"You are such a crybaby, Usagi!"

"And you're just a meanie!"

"You're an embarrassment to the Sailor Senshi, Usagi! You can't do one thing on your own!" Rei ranted.

Usagi's eyes started to water, "Why are you always so mean to me, Rei?!"

Ami sighed deeply, "I wish those two wouldn't fight like this."

"You and me both, but they are two different sides of the same coin," Luna replied.

---

That night, Usagi tossed and turned. She moaned as if she was about to cry. She kept hearing a man's voice in her dreams. "Study harder, dumpling head," she recognized that voice, an irritating voice and yet... "Don't give up, Sailor Moon," she visualized a tall man in a tuxedo wearing a white mask that covered his eyes. "Crying never solved anything," he was a handsome man and her heart ached when she saw him. But she couldn't stop seeing him. She didn't want to stop. "I am Prince Endymion, servant of the Dark Kingdom and you are my enemy, Sailor Moon."

"Tuxedo Kamen," she whispered as tears ran down her face. Usagi's tossing and turning awoke a slumbering Luna. Luna glanced over to Usagi and noticed the tears in her eyes.

"Poor Usagi. She's probably thinking about Tuxedo Kamen again," Luna thought. Tuxedo Kamen had been Sailor Moon's crush and savior more times than Luna cared to count. It was only recently that Usagi had discovered the identity of her savior. A boy she was constantly bullied by named Mamoru. When he was converted to the side of the Dark Kingdom, it broke Usagi's heart. The nights were long, filled with tears and sad dreams. Luna had tried her best to comfort her, but she would continue down her path of sorrow. "I wish there was something more I could do for her," she thought, but it was futile. She just put her head back down and tried to sleep.

Alfred appeared in the Bat-cave to see an empty spot where Batman's car once was. He looked towards an armory of Batman's gadgets and weapons. He saw his master preparing himself for his journey. "I don't know if you've noticed, sir, but your car seems to be missing," Alfred stated as he made his way towards Batman.

"It's on its way to Japan. I had it sent out the day I decided I needed to investigate this. It will be useful if I have to face Croc," Batman replied. He pulled a bat-shaped boomerang from his armory and folded like a piece of paper. He then slipped it into a empty slot on his belt.

"And naturally, I suspect that you've already come up with a clever ruse to dispel suspicion," Alfred knew Batman was one to think things through completely before making a move.

"Bruce Wayne is going to attend the Nakamura Life Foundation, where he is going to donate seven vehicles to families who lost their's in the Tohoku earthquake several months ago," Batman explained. He pulled another piece of equipment from his armory. This time a gun with a hook in the barrel, his famous grapple gun. "A freighter carrying the vehicles will also be carrying the Batmobile and is scheduled to arrive two days after Bruce Wayne. It will give me time to get my bearings. It's been years since I've been to Japan."

"Sir, I could send Master Drake with you," Alfred was referring to a young man who Bruce had taken under his wing. Tim Drake, a young intelligent boy, who would become Robin the Boy Wonder.

"No, he's needed here. I can handle the inmates on my own," Batman turned away from his armory and headed towards his computer.

"Sir, will you be back in time for--," Alfred was then cut off by Batman,

"No." He then turned towards his butler, "Tell them I'm sorry. I can't be there this time." He then continued on his way towards the computer and sat down without saying another word.

"Of course, sir."

Chapter 3
Usagi and a tall brown haired girl wondered down the street from the schoolyard. Usagi had a sad look in her eye. She looked at her taller friend as they started for home, "Do you think I'm a bad Sailor Senshi, Mako-chan?"

Makoto, or Mako-chan as everyone called her, raised her eyebrow, "What brought this up?"

Usagi lowered her head, "Rei thinks that I'm an embarrassment."

"Rei is just upset because of what happened to Mamoru and she's taking it out on you," Mako-chan explained.

Usagi had almost forgotten. Rei had a huge crush on Mamoru and Tuxedo Kamen, just as she did. She wondered if Rei spent sleepless nights as she did. Just as they began to turn the corner, a policeman stopped them. There was a huge crowd of police and reporters all around this corner in front of the headquarters of the Nakamura Life Foundation. A podium stood at the very center of it all.

"Hey, what's the big idea?!" Mako-chan snapped.

"I'm sorry, but I can't let you through here. I must ask that you go around," the officer politely asked.

"What a joke!" Mako-chan yelled. "We got to go around this stupid thing."

"Mako-chan?" a soft voice spoke. Usagi and Mako-chan turned to see Ami come to their side.

"Ami, what are you doing here?" Usagi asked.

"I was on my way to my tech class when I was stopped by this mob. There are reporters everywhere," Ami explained.

"What's going on here anyway?" Mako-chan asked.

"As clear as I can tell, there is suppose to be some kind of press conference going on. A big figure from America is here for something. That's why there is so much security," Ami looked up towards the podium and noticed several Japanese men, but didn't see any American.

"He's probably just a stuck up moneybags," Mako-chan grunted.

"Hey!" they heard another voice come from behind them. They all turned to see Minako rushing towards them.

"So, is that American guy here?!" she asked with a smile. She was practically jumping up and down.

"We haven't seen him yet," Usagi stated.

"Oh, I really wanted to see him," Minako sighed.

"He's probably an overweight drunk and a hick. And he's probably-" Mako-chan started, but her eyes widened as she saw a tall dark haired man approach a elderly Japanese man. He smiled as he shook his hand.

"-drop dead gorgeous."

"Wow, he's a real dream boat!" Minako gushed.

Ami just giggled. It wasn't unusual for Mako-chan and Minako to fall for a guy just by their looks. And this American certainly was attractive.

"My one and only true love is my Tuxedo Kamen, and I will find a way to free him from the Dark Kingdom," Usagi announced.

Minako's snapped her fingers with joy, "That reminds me, I have something to ask you." She opened her bag and started digging through her things. She finally pulled out a newspaper clipping, "What do you guys know about this mysterious caped figure?" The newspaper had a photo of a caped man leaping off a rooftop. Usagi's eyes widened as she scanned the photo.

"Mysterious caped figure?" Usagi asked.

"Yeah, they say he appeared out of nowhere and started beating up bad guys," Minako explained.

Ami started to read it carefully, "'Police responded to a disturbance last night. A woman, who was attacked by a criminal, was rescued by what some are calling a vigilante. While the description of the man was incomplete, the woman described him as wearing a mask and a long cape. Police are now calling this man, 'The Caped-Crusader'."

"Could it be Tuxedo Kamen?" Usagi asked herself. Her eyes started to fill with hope,  "It has to be him! Who else here wears a mask and a cape?"

"Do you think that it's Tuxedo Kamen breaking free of the Dark Kingdom?" Mako-chan asked, as if she could read Usagi's mind.

"There's no way of knowing unless we find him," Minako said.

"I know it's him!" Usagi declared. She ripped the newspaper from Minako's hand, "He's reaching out to me and I'm going to find him!" She darted off into the distance before anyone could stop her.

The three girls just stood there, dumfounded. "I think she's a little too excited about this," Ami guessed. The other girls agreed her guess was right on the money.

"I sure hope she doesn't try anything on her own," Mako-chan stated. "Especially with what's been happening the last few days."

Ami and Minako nodded. "We'll have to be extremely careful about what we do as Sailor Senshi for a while," Minako explained. "Which means sticking together as a team." They each prayed that Usagi would also take their advise. Somehow, they feared she might not.

Reporters repeatedly flashed their cameras upon the podium as an elderly Japanese gentleman took to the stand, "Ladies and gentlemen, as the president of the Nakamura Life Foundation, I have personally seen the charity and generosity of others in the recent months since that horrible earthquake. The day that affected all of us." He viewed the reporters as he would in a normal speech, scanning the entire area. "But because we have come together as a nation and as a community, many of us have been pulled out of the depths of our despair. Our city has been built on honor and generosity and I am pleased to introduce to you a man who values these morals as well as I do." He smiled as he prepared for the climax of his speech, "The president of Wayne Industries." He turned, his arm pointing at the American, as he started to stand, "Bruce Wayne."

The reporters started to clap as Bruce shook hands with the president of the life foundation. He then took to the podium, "Thank you, Mr. Nakamura, and thank you all for inviting me into your country." Many reporters eyes widened as he spoke. Bruce spoke Japanese as naturally as his introducer did.

"My father, Thomas Wayne, had an ideal. An ideal that we who have the power to make a world a better place have a responsibility to do just that. An ideal I share deeply with Mr. Nakamura. Therefore, Wayne Industries and the Nakamura Life Foundation are donating seven vehicles to families who still do not own one due to the recent earthquake." The reporters started to clap again, this time more vigorously than previously.

"In addition, I personally will be donating 40 million yen to the Nakamura Life Foundation to do my part in helping restore your families homes and your lives," Bruce announced. The group was even louder than ever. The president of the charity organization stood up and shook hands once again with Bruce, solidifying their agreement.

---

Bruce Wayne was escorted to his motel room by a young Japanese woman. "Thank you, Miss Hashimoto," Bruce said politely as the girl opened the door for him.

"You are most welcome, Mr. Wayne. Should you need anything else I will be happy to get it for you," she replied with a smile. Bruce set his two suitcases down near the bed. It was a very nice motel room. A large room with plenty of luxuries that most people spent a lifetime saving for. Of course, for Bruce, it was enough.

"I'd like no more interruptions, please. I've got a lot of forms to fill out tonight and it's been a long day," Bruce finally replied.

"Of course, Mr. Wayne," the lady closed the door as she left, leaving Bruce alone. Bruce opened his suitcase and removed all of the contents to reveal a lead casing at the bottom. He placed his palm against it and a blue light waved under his hand back and forth. After a brief moment, the casing opened to reveal a suit with an insignia of a bat. He pulled it from its confinement and started to take off his suit and tie.

After a few seconds, his work clothing was off and he was in a costume of a giant man-bat. He slipped his cowl over his face. He then placed his work clothing neatly back into his suitcase and tucked it under his bedding. Just as he did, he heard the door handle to his room start to turn.

"Mr. Wayne," the girl open the door greeting her guest. She was pushing a cart which carried a large tray of food, "I know you said 'no interruptions', but--," she cut herself off when she saw the room was completely empty, save for the suitcases her guest brought in. She scratched her head, wondering where Wayne could be. Little did she know that Bruce Wayne was gone for the night.

---

Atop the roof of the motel, Batman activated a radio receiver in his cowl. "Alfred, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clearly, sir," the butlers' voice spoke from the receiver.

"I've been doing some investigating since my arrival here. There have been four unexplained murders since the arrival of the inmates from Arkham," Batman explained.

"Have you ever considered that it could be a coincidence, sir?" the butler asked.

"When have I ever been that lucky?" Batman asked. "The murders all match Zsasz's M.O. However, in the last several days, there have been no reports of missing inmates or criminals. Something more is going on here. I've hacked into the police frequencies and just picked up a call. There seems to have been an attack. I'm heading there now to see what I can find. I'll keep in touch."

Batman made his way to the address that was last heard on the radio frequency. Leaping rooftop after rooftop. Finally, he arrived at an alleyway between an old restaurant and a watch repair shop. Down below he spotted a woman with a gash clear from ear to ear. Blood stained her clothing as it swam down her neck. He made his way down to the victim, but there was no need to check a pulse. She was already dead. The Dark Knight reactivated his radio receiver, "Alfred, I was too late. The victim was murdered. Same way as the others, a clear gash through the throat."

"Oh, dear," Alfred remarked.

"I'm setting up a crime scene. The police haven't arrived yet, so I'll need to be quick to collect the evidence I need," Batman explained. He then switched his cowl to a special lens that allowed him to see traces of finger prints anywhere in the alleyway. He looked around for any sign that might point him to the killer. Finally, on the woman's chest, he spotted a finger print in the blood. He pressed his finger on the edge of his cowl and scanned the print. His cowl's computer then matched the print to a list of criminals he had on file. It turned out, the prints belonged to someone the Batman knew.

"I know who the killer is. It's Zsasz," Batman told his butler after seeing the cowl declaring a 97% match of Victor Zsasz. Zsasz was never one to cover his tracks, the problem always came from catching him once he started killing again. Something was different about this particular kill however. Batman knew that Zsasz would pose the people he killed. Unlike previous cases, this body wasn't posed. "Why?" he asked himself.

"Oh, dear. That evil man... Is it possible he is responsible for all those deaths?" Alfred asked.

"Possibly, but I'm not ruling anything out. If Zsasz has escaped, Dr. Saitou is hiding it," Batman deduced. "I'm heading to Dr. Saitou's home to see if I can find anything on the inmates. And perhaps, get some face time with him."

"Let me know if I can help in anyway, sir," Alfred replied before the connection was shut down.

Batman turned his attention above and reached for his belt. He revealed his grapple gun, pointed it towards the ledge of the building, and fired it. Like a fast moving elevator, the grapple pulled the Dark Knight to the roof before the police lights spotted him.

Batman made his way to the home of Dr. Saitou. It was a small building. Several windows on the side made it easy to sneak in. At least, for him it would be. He saw the doctor's vehicle, clearly stating that he was home. None of the lights were on in the house, he was no doubt asleep. He knew that he would be able to sneak into the house and search for evidence and then would have a chat with Dr. Saitou.

Batman propelled himself to the first window on the right side of the house. From his utility belt, he dug out a lock pick and started to dig at the window. After a few seconds fiddling with his lock pick, he was able to unlock the window. He quietly and carefully opened the window and snuck into the house.

He surveyed his surroundings. It was dark, but thanks to the night vision lens embedded in his cowl, he had little trouble seeing in the dark. He noticed he was in the doctor's dining room. It was untidy and unorganized. Dishes were left piling in the kitchen and the dining table had merely been wiped off, not cleaned. Floor had traces of food and wine on the floor. Two of the chairs had been sat in recently. Batman suspected the doctor might have had company earlier tonight.

Batman exited the dining room to the entry hall. The front door was unlocked. He looked to the upstairs. There was a long hall extending into two different rooms. He deduced it was a bathroom and a bedroom. He looked towards his right to see an office. He decided to head there first.

Upon entering the office, he noticed a computer sitting on a desk. When he arrived to it, he tapped on the keyboard, taking it out of sleep mode. He clicked on the keyboard several times and began a search for any information dealing with the Arkham transfer. The computer showed a 'No results found' message when it was done. He searched his history browser, but found only an email request for data from the hospital itself. With that lead at a dead end, Batman started then to look through the drawers of the desk, fingering through the files inside them. He searched each of them, but he found no information on the Arkham transfer.

Batman knew it was time to question Dr. Saitou. He marched back to the entry hall and quietly made his way to the second floor. When he reached the top, he saw at the end of the hall was a closed door. He assumed that this room was where the doctor was sleeping. He carefully made his way to the door and quietly opened it. He scanned the room and saw a shape under the covers of the sheets of the bed. It was still, too still. Batman made his way to the bedside, being as silent as he could. With alarming speed, Batman ripped the sheets of the figure to reveal a older man with his eyes wide open. But he didn't react to Batman at all. In fact, he just laid there with his eyes and mouth wide open.

Batman placed his fingers on the doctor's neck, trying to find a pulse. Sadly, there was none. "Dead," Batman said to himself. He placed his hand on his neck and felt something odd about it. "The windpipe has been completely crushed. This man died a slow death. This isn't like Zsasz at all, which means I have another killer on my hands."

He switched to his special lens and found finger prints on the doctor's throat. He quickly scanned them and accessed his database. Unfortunately, he found no matches to the finger prints he found and the ones had on file.

"Alfred, I was too late. Dr. Saitou is dead," Batman said as he contacted his butler.

"This is not turning out to be a good night, is it? Who was the murderer?" Alfred replied.

"I'm not sure yet. The finger prints I found on the body don't match any I have on record. I'm sending you the image of the prints. I need you to run a search on every known criminal in Japan. See if you can find a match," Batman then tapped a button on his gauntlet, sending the image from his cowl back to the butler.

"And what will you be doing, sir?"

"I'm heading towards the hospital itself. I couldn't find anything on the Arkham transfer in his home. If he doesn't keep it here, that leaves the hospital as my only lead. Have the Batmobile meet me there."

Batman then disconnected the call and made his way towards the window of the bedroom. He then leaped out into the night.

Chapter 4
Usagi dragged herself down the street after a long day of studying at Ami's. Luna kept up with her quiet easily, slowing down her pace to keep with Usagi's. "I'm proud of you, Usagi. You sure studied hard tonight," Luna said.

Usagi yawned and rubbed her eyes, "What's the point of studying? I'll never get it."

"Don't be like that, Usagi. You just have to focus on the important things," Luna explained.

Usagi gazed up at the moon. She wondered if she was a bright and intelligent girl in her past life. She wondered if she would ever be again. Just then, a man in a cape flew across the rooftops overhead. Her eyes lit up as she saw the man. It was only for a brief moment, but she was certain to who it was.

"Tuxedo Kamen?!" She shouted.

"What?! Where?!" Luna asked. She franticly searched for him, but found no trace.

"He was up in the rooftops! He's searching for me!" Usagi leaped with glee.

Luna just raised her eyebrow, "Usagi, he's working for the Dark Kingdom! Of course he's searching for you! He wants the silver crystal!"

"Tuxedo Kamen, I'm coming to save you!" Usagi shouted as she ran back down the street, following the caped man.

"Usagi!" Luna yelled after her. When she didn't turn around, Luna gave chase. "This isn't what I meant when I said focus on the important things!"

---

Batman continued his path from rooftop to rooftop heading straight for the hospital. But something steered him from his path. As he passed overhead, he saw a group of men breaking into a bank. He perched himself on the rooftop above them and noticed a familiar face among them. Or faces in this case.

A man with half of his face completely scarred. Harvey Dent, also known as Two-Face, rallied several guys into the building. Two of them stood guard outside with Dent. "Keep moving," He called out. "The Dark Kingdom wants this stuff."

Batman's eyes widened a bit. Dent was speaking Japanese as clearly as he could English. The odd thing was that Dent had never learned Japanese. He then quickly analyzed the building. The kenji translated into 'Tokyo Star Bank'. He looked down on the streets and the numbers didn't match Dent's usual M.O. He knew right away that something was very wrong. He thought it best to stay put and follow them when they left to see where they were going. Hopefully, he would get his answers then.

---

Usagi dashed down another street, trying desperately not to lose Tuxedo Kamen's trail. "Tuxedo Kamen must have come down this way," she ran down another alleyway and into a back alley. She didn't see any sign of Tuxedo Kamen, but she did spot a group of men taking bags from a building. "What are those guys doing?" she wondered.

"Usagi!" Luna cried out. Usagi nearly jumped out of her skin. She turned around fast to see Luna perching herself on a garbage can next to her. "Finally, you slowed down. I've been calling you for the last block."

"What do you think those guys are up to?" Usagi asked pointing towards the group of five men. Luna scanned them. They were gruff men. Their tattoos representing a loyalty to a particular gang. Their scars indicated a long history of violence in their lives.

"Usagi, I think they might be robbing the place," Luna stated.

Usagi's eyes jumped, "You think so?!"

"Usagi, keep your voice down!" Luna said, trying not to yell.

Usagi covered her mouth and was silent for a bit. Finally, she uncovered her mouth to speak, "What should we do?"

"You should call the others, they look like a nasty bunch," Luna suggested.

Usagi nodded and started to dig out her communicator from her pocket, but then she hesitated. "Wait a minute."

"What's wrong?" Luna asked.

Usagi squinted as she thought about the others. How they always pick on her because she can't do things on her own. "I can handle this myself!" Usagi stated.

Luna's eyes would have surely popped from her head if not attached, "Say what?!"

"If I call the others, Rei will just make fun of me again. Besides, it's not like any of them are monsters anyway," Usagi explained.

"This isn't a question of pride, Usagi. This is just a safety precaution and you are part of a team," Luna attempted to explained, but it was in vain. Usagi had made up her mind.

"Moon prism power, make up!" She shouted. Her clothing on her started to transform. A uniform then appeared in its place sporting long red boots, long white gloves with red trimmings, a white sailor suit with a red bow in the front, and a blue miniskirt. Finally, she wore a tiara and had red gems in her hair where her odangos were. Everyone in Japan would have recognized her as Sailor Moon.

---

The thugs dragged sack after sack of cash. One of them turned towards another, "What the heck is this Dark Kingdom he keeps yapping about?"

"Who cares? As long as we get a cut," the other replied.

"Stop right there!" they heard a voice say. They turned to where the source of the voice came from to see a young girl standing on top of a dumpster. "How dare you rob a store from people who just want to earn an honest living!" Sailor Moon shouted. "I will not allow you to steal from innocent people!"

"I am the soldier of love and justice, Sailor Moon!" She then pointed to her opponents, "In the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"

The Dark Knight looked to his right to see a lone young girl standing up to five thugs. "What is that girl doing?" he thought to himself.

"Sailor Moon," a voice spoke. Sailor Moon then witnessed a man walking out of the building. She could only see the left side of his face, but his clothing was black on one side and white on the other. "The Dark Kingdom said you'd come. They want you dead." He then turned his face to reveal the right side of his face. Usagi gasped in shock at seeing his disfigurement. "Kill her!" he ordered.

Batman's eyes widened a bit at that order, "No coin toss. He's not acting like Dent at all."

Sailor Moon leaped off the dumpster and prepared herself for her approaching adversaries. "Sailor Moon Kick!" she shouted as she lifted her leg. She swung as hard as she could at her opponent, but her kick was easy to catch. The thug then tossed her on her back. She hit the ground hard and started to back away from her two opponents. Tears started to develop in her eyes from the pain. She found herself against the wall of the alley. One of the men tore a board off the side of a crate and handled it like a club.

"Pretty face," one of them commented. "Let's see if it's still pretty when I'm done with it." She closed her eyes, and shielded her face from her enemies, hoping it was just a nightmare. Just before the men attacked, the Dark Knight appeared from behind them and smashed their heads together.

"What the hell?!" one of the men still standing shouted. The rest of the thugs started to rush over there to see what attacked them.

The Batman quickly dove towards Sailor Moon and wrapped his arm around her waist. At the same time, he grabbed his grapple gun from his belt. "Hang on," he told her. She then wrapped her arms around his neck. He fired his grapple gun and propelled themselves to the rooftops. Within a few seconds, they were gone.

"What the hell was that?!" one of the thugs asked.

"Who cares?!" Two-Face shouted. "Get this stuff out of here!"

---

Sailor Moon rested her head against her savior's chest. She smiled as tears started to roll down her face. "Tuxedo Kamen, I knew you would come. I knew you weren't evil at all." She slowly rose her head to gaze upon her savior, but she didn't see the man of her dreams. Towering over her was a man of her nightmares. She gasped and leaped back in fright, staring at a terrifying image of a bat. She whimpered in terror as the man glared at her.

The man then turned around towards the edge of the rooftop and revealed his grapple gun once more. He then turned to Sailor Moon, "Go home." He then fired his grapple gun at another rooftop and flew off into the distance.

Sailor Moon stood there silently, unsure of what to do. "Usagi!" a familiar voice shouted. She turned towards another side of the rooftop to see Luna, climbing over the ledge. "Usagi, are you alright?!"

Sailor Moon nodded. She was trembling, but otherwise unhurt. "Usagi, what happened to that caped man? Was it Tuxedo Kamen?" Luna asked.

"No, it was... someone else," Sailor Moon replied. She couldn't get the image of the caped man out of her mind. That scowl he had on his face frightened her.

"Usagi, you have got to be much more careful. You could have been seriously hurt!" Luna scolded.

"I know," she moaned. She then shriveled to the ground her head in her arms, "I'm sorry." Luna came up to her and licked her hand. Sailor Moon smiled at the kind gesture. Luna did the same.

"At any rate, I think it's a good idea to follow that man in the cape. There is something I don't like about him," Luna said.

"F-follow him!" Sailor Moon shrieked.

"Come on, Usagi. I want to know what he's up to," Luna then leaped to another rooftop and then waited for Usagi. Sailor Moon slowly got up and followed Luna to wherever this fearsome man was going.

Chapter 5
Having lost Dent's trail, Batman was forced back to the path of the hospital, his one and only lead. Batman approached the hospital's front entrance. It was dark, all the windows were closed and lights shut off. Which was odd, considering the inmates would need constant surveillance. He hoped he would find his answers inside.

He picked the lock on the door carefully. Just when the door was unlocked, he opened it slowly and scanned the room. There was very little security for a hospital for the criminally insane. He marched inside and spotted the secretary's computer. He tapped on several keys to enter a search program. He then input 'Victor Zsasz' for the search specifications. A few seconds passed and the search program replied with a 'No results found' message.

"No record that Zsasz even exists. That's probably why the police haven't connected Zsasz to the other murders. Someone is hiding something," Batman thought. "It could be the same person who killed Dr. Saitou."

He checked Harvey Dent's name too, but the result was the same. He deduced it was pointless to look for the other inmates. Their names wouldn't be on record either.

He made his way towards the end of the hallway to a pair of doors that said 'Caution: Inmate Area'. Batman opened the doors and entered the hall. He passed room after room, quickly glancing into the rooms. The inmates were in their cells, but they were not moving. They didn't blink, they didn't wander or perform any movement. It was as if they weren't even there.

He entered another part of the prison and finally found a security team and a group of doctors. They looked like they were all in some kind of trance. They were just standing there. He approached one of them, and they didn't even move. He snapped his fingers in front of a man's face, but still didn't react. "They're barely breathing." he thought. He then pulled a flash light from his belt and shined it in the man's eye, "Pupils aren't contracting even slightly." The Dark Knight heard a loud banging sound on the other side of a door, several feet away.

Batman opened the door to see a red haired woman speaking to several men. They were loading several bags of items into a large tan van. The woman turned around to greet the Dark Knight. "Well, what do we have here?" she asked.

"I'll ask the questions, Dr. Yamada," his dark voice boomed. He slowly approached her, "Where are the inmates you transferred from America?"

"Why, they are all here, under the best of care," she stated. Batman quickly scanned them and noticed that they were all men from the transfer. The inmates behind her just kept working. They didn't say anything and didn't even acknowledge Batman was in the room.

"The other doctors are in the next room. They are all under some kind of trance. Care to explain that?" Batman demanded. His eyes piercing at her.

"That's... That's terrible. We should call the police," she turned away, but Batman grabbed her wrist tightly.

"There is no record of any of the inmates on file. You and Dr. Saitou are the only ones who were responsible the transfer. I want to know why you wanted them!" he snapped.

"Then why don't you ask him?" she spoke, but she was incredibly calm for someone who was just being assaulted.

"Dr. Saitou is dead," he announced.

Her eyes didn't move. She didn't seem shocked, or angered, or any emotion of any kind. "Oh, that's terrible," she said as if she was trying to sum up as much distress in her voice as she could.

"You don't sound too devastated," he stated.

"Maybe I've dealt a lot in death," she snarled. She then gave the Batman a cruel smirk and put her hand on his chest. Her hand then grew five times its size, grabbing Batman. Her arm then extended to an incredible length and shoved him into the wall behind him.

Batman shouted in pain, his vision blurred as his back was overwhelmed by pain. He looked down Dr. Yamada's arm, whose eyes were a bright red hue, staring down at him. Her teeth were sharp as daggers and twice their normal length. Batman was then hoisted into the air by the same arm and tossed against the wall on the other side of the room. He dropped to the floor hitting it hard.

Batman started to get up slowly, but tumbled back to his knees. He looked up to see a towering figure with green scales for skin standing over him. The creature picked him up by his cape. "Foolish human, you shall suffer for interfering with the Dark Kingdom," it said.

Killer Croc was known for his hatred for Batman, but he wasn't loyal to anyone. Nor was he smart enough to know another language. And yet he wasn't speaking English, but Japanese. Like Two-Face, he wasn't acting like himself at all.

Croc tossed Batman to the center of the room. He then approached the fallen Dark Knight and picked him up by his cape once more.

"No. Leave him. He is nothing," Dr. Yamada said.

Batman quickly and without drawing attention to himself placed a small device on Croc's leg before he was tossed to the side like a used rag. He held perfectly still, not that he was strong enough to move right away. He just wanted to make sure they thought he was unconscious.

"We only want Sailor Moon. We must find her and take the silver crystal from her, to give to our great ruler," she explained to her much larger ally.

"Yes, master," Croc replied.

"Now, come my pet. I'm letting you off your leash tonight," she commanded.

---

Sailor Moon and Luna had been waiting outside the Katsutoshi Psychiatric Hospital, much to Usagi's dismay. She was still hesitant about following the caped man. The creepy atmosphere of the hospital didn't help either, "Are you sure he went in there, Luna?"

"He's got to come out of there sometime," Luna stated.

In the distance, they saw a medical truck pull up to the back of the hospital. "Something must have happened," Luna said. They watched as two people jumped out of the truck and walk to the back of the vehicle. "I wonder what they are doing at a place like this."

Then a huge green skinned monster appeared from the building and loaded itself onto the truck. Sailor Moon almost squeaked in fear at his dagger-like fangs, razor sharp claws and incredible size. It was hard to tell, but Usagi felt that thing was probably seven, maybe ten feet tall. "That is one big monster."

"Usagi, you've faced scarier things than that," Luna explained.

"No, I haven't," Sailor Moon moaned. A red haired woman enter the vehicle as well, climbing in the back with the giant beast. The two men then closed up the back of the truck and headed towards their respective seats. After returning to their vehicle, they drove back to the road and towards the distance.

"I didn't see the caped man anywhere. Perhaps we missed him," Luna thought out loud.

"Well, I know it's not Tuxedo Kamen. How about we just go home?" Usagi suggested.

Luna turned towards Usagi, "We can't just leave, you know that! We have to find out what the Dark Kingdom is up to and to do that, we have to go inside that hospital!

Usagi's eyes shot wide open, "What?! You want us to go in there?! In that spooky hospital?!"

"That's what I was suggesting, yes," Luna said.

"Luna, I don't want to. You saw that monster! What happens if something bigger comes out of there?!" Sailor Moon whined.

"For goodness sake, you're Sailor Moon! You are a champion of justice and you have faced much worse things than a scary hospital building! Now come on!" Luna ranted. She then headed towards the hospital building.

"Tonight is officially the worse night of my entire life," Sailor Moon cried. She then got up and followed her cat.

---

Luna and Sailor Moon approached the back of the building with caution, not sure what they would find. They couldn't see very deep in the room, just total darkness. "It sure is dark in here," Sailor Moon pointed out.

"There must be a light switch somewhere near," Luna guessed as she scanned near the entry way. She spotted one, "Sailor Moon, to your right."

Sailor Moon did what she was told and sure enough, to her right was a light switch. She flipped it and the lights started to flicker one by one, starting from their position and going to the back of the room. They didn't see anything of great importance, just some wooden crates. Then the lights shined in the middle of the room. They saw a man in a long black cape lying on his chest, motionless.

"What's that?" Sailor Moon pointed towards the man on the ground.

Luna and Sailor Moon carefully made their way to him. "Sailor Moon, is this the man you ran into tonight?"

Sailor Moon nodded. They kneeled were beside him, "Do you think he's... dead?" She then pulled out a wand with a crescent moon shaped tip from her pocket and started poking the man's shoulder. He didn't move. She poked him again, still nothing. She poked him one more time, and he started to moan.

She let out a gasp and crawled back a foot or two. The man started to get up. He looked up to see the young girl he had saved earlier tonight. "I told you to go home," Batman stated. He forced himself to his feet and grabbed his rib. He figured he had at least one cracked rib and he was still in a lot of pain. He wasn't worried though. He'd lived through worse.

Sailor Moon noticed him grabbing his ribs. "You're hurt?" she cried, standing up and approaching him.

"I'm fine. Now go home. This is too dangerous. I won't involve an immature child," Batman replied. He then headed towards the back exit of the building.

"Immature child?!" Sailor Moon snapped. That had been the last straw, she had been made fun of one too many times, "I am Sailor Moon, the champion of justice and sworn enemy of the Dark Kingdom."

Batman's ears perked up. If she knew the Dark Kingdom, he might be able to find out what his enemies are up to through her. He turned around, "What do you know about the Dark Kingdom?"

Sailor Moon's mind started to go to work. She smiled a large smile, "I can tell you all about the Dark Kingdom! I can even help you stop their evil plan!"

Batman approached her quickly and got in her face. This forced Sailor Moon's smile to quickly disappear from her face, leaving a shocked and frightened look. There was silence in the room for several seconds. Batman finally turned around and started back to the exit, "Let's go."

Sailor Moon smiled as the Dark Knight spoke. She then picked up Luna and started to follow him. "Sailor Moon," Luna said. Sailor Moon slowed her pace down a bit. "What do you know about the Dark Kingdom?!" Luna asked raising her eyebrow.

Sailor Moon completely stopped in her tracks, "For your information, I know lots!"

"I sincerely doubt that," Luna replied.

"You coming or not?!" Batman's voice boomed from outside. Sailor Moon refocused her attention on the exit and rushed after the Dark Knight.

Chapter 6
Sailor Moon approached the Batman as he tapped on his gauntlet. Then a large sound, like an engine of a car revving, was heard nearby. Two bright lights appeared from the darkness coming straight towards them, getting faster and faster. As it got closer, Sailor Moon could see it was the shape of a car. As the car approached them at a great speed, she and Luna covered their eyes, knowing they might not escape. The car then swerved and screeched as the brakes stopped the car just a few feet short of them. Sailor Moon and Luna uncovered their eyes to see they were still in one piece. In front of them was a long black car with wing-shaped tail fins. Batman then approached the driver's side of the car. Sailor Moon saw the top of the car open up to reveal a driver and passenger seat, as well as several odd looking devices.

"Wow, that is one cool car," Sailor Moon whispered to Luna.

"Sailor Moon, I think we should be careful. It could be a trap," Luna whispered in Sailor Moon's ear, supporting herself on Sailor Moon shoulders.

"Oh, come on, Luna. How can someone evil have a car as cool as this one?"

"Nephrite did," Luna pointed out.

"Yeah, but he turned out to be good in the end," Sailor Moon reminded as she saw Batman leap in the car.

"Not the point!" Luna growled.

"Get in," Batman said as he waited impatiently for the girl. Sailor Moon approached the car slowly and placed her hand on the side. She then hoisted herself inside the car and sat in the passenger seat. She thought it odd since she was use to the passenger seat being where the masked man was sitting.

Batman pushed a button on the arm rest of his seat and the roof of the Batmobile shut tight. He then started down the road following where Sailor Moon had seen the ambulance take off to. Batman tapped on several keys on his dashboard. The screen nearby blinked and then words appeared stating 'Receiving Data from Batcave'. He tapped on the screen again, and it flashed once more. It revealed a search for the fingerprint Batman had found earlier. And the results were 'No Match Found'. Batman held his chin. Either someone was good at covering their tracks or never existed in the first place.

Batman turned to the girl, who was staring out the window the whole time. "What do you know about the Dark Kingdom?"

Sailor Moon wasn't really paying attention, but when Batman spoke she guessed he wanted to know about the Dark Kingdom. "Well... they ... umm..." she was nervous, but she gathered her words and started to talk quickly. "They mind control humans and make them do whatever they want for their evil purposes!"

"I know," Batman said.

Sailor Moon was quiet for a minute. "Oh," she finally squeaked. She thought for a minute and came up with something else that this man might not know, "They look like humans, but they're really not humans. They're actually monsters in disgui-!"

"I know," Batman said, getting impatient.

Sailor Moon was quiet again. She didn't know what else to say, but then it came to her. "They are after this silver crystal, which I have, so they can give-!"

"To their great ruler," Batman finished for her. "I know. What can you tell me about him?"

Sailor Moon didn't know what to say, but that didn't stop her from trying, "Um... Uhh..." She stumbled for anything she might know on this great ruler. But she didn't know anything about him, just that he wanted her silver crystal.

"You don't know anything about the Dark Kingdom, do you?" Batman finally speculated.

Sailor Moon's head sunk into her shoulders. Luna just smiled and came to Sailor Moon's ear. "Well, that was impressive, Sailor Moon. In the few minutes that we've known him, he's proven he knows more about the Dark Kingdom then you have in the last few months," she whispered.

"Shut up, Luna," Sailor Moon mumbled under her breath, so as not to draw attention to herself.

"Seriously, what would Rei say if she saw you now?" Luna asked. Sailor Moon already knew the answer, it would probably be how she lied to this man saying that she knew a lot about the Dark Kingdom. She needs to pay attention when the others discuss something serious. She needs to eat healthier... The list goes on.

"I don't see you coming up with more information. Aren't you suppose to be my animal guide or something?" she whispered back to Luna. Batman's eyes then turned to Sailor Moon.

"You okay?" Batman asked as she noticed she was whispering to her cat.

Sailor Moon nearly leaped out of her skin. She could freak this guy out by revealing that her cat could talk. She quickly came up with an excuse. She smiled and started laughing, "You see, my cat likes to pretend she can talk, so she nibbles on my ear and pretends she's whispering something to me. Isn't that funny?!" She then started to laugh again, hoping that the man would follow her example. He didn't. He just looked at her with that same scowl on his face. Her laughter quickly died off and she sunk back into her seat.

It was a quiet drive. The caped man had hardly said a word. He had only been tapping on several keys on his dashboard as a screen came up. She saw wording on the screen, but couldn't make any sense of it. It was in another language.

"English probably," she thought. It was getting too quiet for her taste, she needed to converse with someone. But since Luna needed to keep quiet to dispel suspicion, there was only one other person to talk to.

"So, what's your name?" she asked with a bright smile on her face. The Dark Knight just sat there, still scowling, still silent.

"Maybe he wants me to go first," she thought to herself. Without a second thought, "I'm Sailor Moon and this is my cat, Luna," she introduced. However, there was no reaction from Batman. He was still just as silent as before.

Sailor Moon was getting a little irritated. She wasn't used to being ignored this much. She then thought of that newspaper article about the masked man beating up criminals. "Are you the Caped Crusader everyone's been talking about?" she asked.

Still, Batman was silent. He didn't even so much as look at her. "Hello?" Sailor Moon asked again, praying for any kind of response. Sadly, she was disappointed again. Batman did not budge and didn't even make any attempt at a conversation.

Sailor Moon started to feel really uncomfortable at this point. She started humming out loud, hoping that the quiet would go away. Moonlight Densetsu was one of her favorite songs, but even humming that seemed to only make it quieter. She started to feel a bit warm. She looked around for any kind of air conditioning. There were so many buttons and switches, way more than on any normal car. Her mind boggled at what each and everyone of them did. She started to reach for one, "Is this your air conditioning?"

"Don't touch anything," Batman finally spoke. Sailor Moon quickly withdrew her hand, perhaps out of shock that he had spoken, or perhaps she was merely doing what he asked. He then tap on his screen and a rush of cool air started to flow into the vehicle. Sailor Moon breathed a sigh of relief and Batman continued driving without saying another word.

The air conditioning drowned out the silence a little bit, but it was still fairly quiet. She looked at the screen and saw a button that looked like it might control a radio. Music would definitely help drown out the quiet. "You don't mind if I turn on the radio, do you?" she reached for that defining button.

"Don't touch-!" Before Batman could stop her, she activated the rear thrusters on the Batmobile. The car shot down the road at an incredibly high speed. Sailor Moon and Luna started screaming as they were coming up on cars in front of them fast. Batman quickly swerved to the right to avoid another vehicle and to the left to avoid another. Down the road, coming up fast, he saw a line of vehicles and not enough room to pass them all unless he drove on the sidewalk. He quickly hit the sidewalk driving around the vehicles. Trash cans soared through the air, throwing piles of trash everywhere as the Batmobile smashed into them. Batman got himself back on the road just before he hit any pedestrians.

Up ahead, the Dark Knight saw a intersection with a stoplight going his way. He only had a second before he would ram into the cars in front of him and he was going too fast for the brakes to prevent that. He had to move and he had to move fast. He quickly turned to the on coming lane and swerve through the intersection, dodging vehicle after vehicle. Car horns blared at the Batmobile as it ran the red light. Some even poked their head out of their windows, shouting at them. Finally after clearing the intersection, he deactivated the rear thrusters and started to slow down.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Sailor Moon whimpered really fast. She was shaking at what nearly happened. What she nearly caused. Batman stopped the car completely and glared at her.

"Let me make this very easy for you," the Dark Knight growled. "You don't say anything, you don't touch anything, you don't do anything unless I tell you to! Understand?!"

Sailor Moon whimpered and nodded, tears started to build in her eyes. Batman turned back to the wheel and started down the road again. Sailor Moon slunk back in her chair without saying another word and just let the silence overwhelm her.

Chapter 7
Batman looked at his screen to see a red blinking light in the center of it. He then stopped the car and put it in park. "What are we doing?" Sailor Moon asked.

"We're going after an animal," Batman said as he hopped out of his car. "Stay in the car."

Sailor Moon got up on her seat, "I'm not just going to stay here. I'm going to help you!" She then saw Batman open up a man hole. Sailor Moon revealed a disgusted look on her face as the Dark Knight stood over it. "You're not going in there, are you?"

Without even looking at her, Batman leaped into the manhole. Sailor Moon just sat back in the car. "Sailor Moon, what are you doing? Go follow him!" Luna shouted.

"I'm not going in there! There are alligators in the sewers!" Sailor Moon cried.

Luna raised her eyebrow, "Sailor Moon, don't believe such stupid superstition."

---

The sewers of Japan were a lot cleaner than the ones back at Gotham, but they were still quite filthy. Of course, the Dark Knight's attention was hardly on the sights or the smells. He was focusing on the tracker beacon he had placed on Killer Croc's body. He carefully scanned the area, searching for any movement that might indicate a 8 foot reptile. He noticed some small movements in the water, most likely caused by rats or small insects.

He then noticed activity behind him, as if something was trying to sneak up on him from behind. It might have worked against anyone else, but not him. He noticed it was a lot more motion than the other animals had provided. He deduced it could only be one thing.

He turned around calmly as a giant monster burst out of the water and stared at the Dark Knight. "For the Dark Kingdom," Croc spoke. Batman quickly revealed a gadget from his belt. It looked like a small taser. He fired the weapon at Croc. Two needles launched into Croc's skin and started to send electrical currents throughout his body.

Croc screeched in agony, but still started for Batman. The Caped Crusader quickly dropped his taser weapon and grabbed his bat-grapple. He launched into the air, through the manhole and pulled himself out of Croc's path.

---

"For the last time, Sailor Moon," Luna explained, for what seemed to be the hundredth time. "Alligators in sewers is just an American superstition. There are no alligators in the-."

Luna stopped as the caped man appeared from the manhole and started running away from it. Sailor Moon and Luna raised their eyebrows and leaned out of the car. Then the ground where the manhole was exploded as a giant alligator-man ripped his way to the surface.

Sailor Moon and Luna ducked in the Batmobile and slowly rose their heads just past their eye level, "Then what do you call that?!" Sailor Moon snapped.

Croc rose to his feet and glared at the Dark Knight. Batman revealed another taser-like weapon at Croc and fired again. Once again, the taser penetrated Croc's flesh and electrocuted him. But he wasn't stopping. He charged for the Dark Knight. Batman started to roll out of his path, but Croc quickly grabbed his cape. He lifted Batman off the ground and tossed him into a brick wall. He fell to the ground hard.

"Croc's not acting like himself. He's actually using his head rather than going off instinct," Batman noticed rather quickly. Croc grabbed the Batman by his arms and growled at the Dark Knight.

"Hold it right there!" Sailor Moon finally shouted. She stood on top of the Batmobile and pointed towards the giant. The animal turned his head towards the young girl. "If you want to pick on someone, pick on me! I'm Sailor Moon, the champion of love and justice! And I will punish you in the name of the moon!"

Croc growled with anger, "Sailor Moon, the Dark Kingdom wants you dead!" Due to his focus on Sailor Moon, he completely forgot about Batman, who quickly used his legs to push off Croc. The force of this kick not only caused Croc to stumble, but let go of his victim as well. Batman landed to his feet.

Croc tore out a lamppost from the ground and held it over his shoulders like a baseball bat.

Sailor Moon then leaped off the car and headed behind the monster. "I got him!" she shouted. She revealed a small wand and started to prepare her attack. Croc turned away from the Dark Knight towards the little girl.

"No! Get out of the way!" Batman snapped, rushing towards her. Before Croc could swing, Batman threw several batarangs aimed at the gator's knees. The gator yelped out in pain as the pole went straight for Sailor Moon. She gasped as she couldn't move before it was on top of her.

Like lightning, Batman slipped underneath the gator's legs and tackled Sailor Moon. Her and Batman rolled to avoid the lamppost that would have surely crushed her. Batman rose to his feet and fired another taser at Croc. This time, however, Croc grabbed the wires with his bear hands. While still shocking his hands, he still had control and pulled Batman over his head and sent him flying behind him.

Batman quickly tucked and rolled to avoid injury. He turned to face the monster coming towards him, that's when he heard Sailor Moon's voice again. "Moon Healing Escalation!" The wand in her hands started to shine and unleashed sparkling lights towards her opponent. As the lights touched Croc, he shouted in pain. He struggled, as if to fight the lights. He stumbled onto a parked vehicle, crushing it, and then fell to the ground.

Several seconds later, Croc opened his eyes and shook his head. Then Batman noticed something about him when he finally spoke, "Where... Where the hell am I?" He was speaking English once more.

"Whatever that girl did, it seems to have reverse whatever Dr. Yamada did to him," Batman said to himself.

Croc then turned his head and looked straight at the Dark Knight. "Batman!" He then got up and growled at the Dark Knight. "I'll tear you apart this time!"

Batman pressed a switch on his gauntlet and the Batmobile's headlights flashed into Croc's eyes. Croc cried out as he used his hands to block the light. But this was just a ruse, the real attack came when two harpoon like bolts fired from the car. They dug into Croc's skin and sent electrical voltage into Croc's body. He shouted as the electricity continued. Finally, Batman pressed the same switch on his gauntlet and the electricity ceased. Croc toppled to the ground without making another movement.

Sailor Moon slowly approached the giant crocodile. She hadn't seen a monster resist her magical healing powers before. She was a bit terrified. She reached out to place her hand on him. "Don't go near him!" Batman snapped. She quickly retracted her arm to her chest and glanced at him.

"He's still dangerous," he stated. Sailor Moon did what he asked and took several paces away from the monster. He then walked back to his car and opened the trunk of it. Inside was a large steel collar. He dragged it out of the car and headed straight for his fallen opponent. He slipped the collar around the neck of Killer Croc and locked it tightly into place. He then activated a wireless connection in his cowl to activate the collar. After making sure the collar would subdue Croc incase he awoke, he made his way to the Batmobile, with Sailor Moon right behind him.

Chapter 8
Batman and Sailor Moon continued down the road. Batman tapped on the screen of his vehicle and it brought up a message saying 'Connecting to cowl computer. Initiating face recognition software.' He continued down the road until the screen blinked. It revealed a gruff looking Japanese man, whom Batman recognized. He had seen him earlier tonight as part of Two-Face's gang.

"What are we doing now?" Sailor Moon asked, seeing the face on the screen. Unlike the Dark Knight however, she didn't recognize this man.

"I need information and this man has what I want," Batman replied. He continued down the road as his screen blinked again, giving him exactly where to find him.

---

The Batmobile parked itself outside a night club. Sailor Moon looked around and noticed that this was a rundown part of the city. A lot of graffiti and gang symbols. "This is a bad neighborhood," she whimpered.

"I know," Batman said as he leaped out of the car. "Stay behind me," he started to head for the nightclub entrance. Sailor Moon finally leaped out of the car and followed the Dark Knight closely.

---

Takashi Konoe had just been relaxing for the night. He was enjoying his drink and his company as two young women slid right next to him. "Payday never was so sweet," he thought to himself. He put his arm around the waists of each woman and drew them closer. However, they leaped away when they saw a man in a long dark cape kick in the door of the place. All eyes stared at the caped man who marched in without so much as a word. They then notice a little girl walking behind him. All eyes were suddenly on her.

"Who's the freak in the outfit?" he heard one of the patrons speak.

"Who cares? I'm looking at the hotty next to him," he heard one of the others speak.

Batman started to approach Konoe's table when one of the patrons put his arm in his path. "Sorry, pal. That's as far as you-." Before he could finish, Batman grabbed his arm, twisted it behind his back and shoved him out of the way.

The man stumbled as he was thrown by the Batman, but he regained his footing. "Oh, that's it!" he shouted as he dashed for the Dark Knight.

He threw a punch at the caped man, but Batman quickly turned and caught his attack. Before the thug could react, Batman's fist dug into the man's stomach causing him to lose his breath and then elbowed him in the chin. He dropped to the ground hard and didn't get back up. Sailor Moon leaped back by the entrance, shocked at what she had just seen.

"Get him!" one of the other patrons shouted, grabbing a cue stick. He charged towards the Dark Knight, swinging his stick like a samurai sword. He swung to the Batman's left, but he easily just stepped out of the stick's path. He swung to his right, but again, Batman easily dodged. He then thrust his weapon towards Batman's stomach, but the caped man stepped back and grabbed the cue stick. With all his might, the Dark Knight forced the stick into his assailant's stomach, causing him to let go of his weapon. Batman then smashed the stick into his opponent's face. He dropped to the ground instantly with Batman tossing his weapon to the side.

Another one came from the side with a cue stick, swinging at the Dark Knight. Batman quickly blocked with his gauntlet and before the man could react, he delivered three quick jabs. One in the stomach, one in the ribs, and one in the face. They may have been quick, but they were still devastating. The man hit the ground like a sack of potatoes.

Another one came at the Dark Knight with a broken beer bottle. He attempted to stab Batman, but the Dark Knight was quick to move. He then wrapped his arms around the thug's arm. He then forced one of his arms up and the other down with incredible force, causing his enemy's arm to bend in a way it wasn't suppose to. The thug screamed in pain, tears building in his eyes. The Batman then tossed the man to the side, fearing nothing else from him.

A man came from behind the Dark Knight and tried to preform a sneak attack. However, before he could lay a finger on Batman, the Dark Knight smashed the back of his fist into the crook's face without even turning his body.

As the Dark Knight approached Konoe, the women beside him ran out of the Dark Knight's path. Konoe reached for a firearm from his coat pocket, but before he could point it at his opponent, a flying bat-shaped object hit his hand. He yelped out in pain and dropped his weapon. He tried to pick it up, but the Dark Knight quickly grabbed his shirt collar and dragged him off of his seat.

Batman then pushed Konoe into a wall, holding him by his shirt, "Where's Two-Face?!"

Konoe struggled to break the Dark Knight's grip, but he wouldn't budge. "I- I don't know," he stammered, trying to find his words. The grip around his collar began to tighten. He grunted in pain as he was lifted off the ground a little higher.

"Wrong answer," Batman growled.

Sailor Moon had seen the whole thing, whimpering in terror. She'd never seen anyone act so cruel to her fellow man. Especially not a good guy. She rushed over to the Dark Knight and grabbed his arm, "Stop it! You're hurting him!"

Batman turned to her quickly. "Let go of me, now!" he shouted. She quickly let go of his arm and stepped back in fright. Tears started to roll down her face. Batman turned back to his enemy, "I said, where is he?!"

The man struggled again, but the Dark Knight would not lose hold. "Okay... I'll talk," he struggled through the Batman's grip. "But not to you," he then glanced at Sailor Moon with a grin. "I'll talk to her."

Batman glared at his enemy for a moment or two, then tossed him to the ground. He turned to Sailor Moon, "Wait for me in the car."

"But-."

"Do it!" Batman cut her off. She hesitated for a moment, but then she turned around and walked outside.

As soon as she was out of sight, the thug took this opportunity to grab a broken beer bottle from the ground. He then charged at the Dark Knight hoping to catch him off guard. It didn't work. Batman redirected his movement to avoid the attack. He then grabbed the man's arm, twisted it so he would drop his weapon and forced him to the wall once again, pushing his head into the wall with his spare hand.

"Now let's try this one more time," Batman spoke.

---

Sailor Moon had been outside for a while. It seemed like hours, but it was only a few minutes. Finally, she saw Batman march out of the bar.

"Let's go," Batman ordered. He marched past Sailor Moon without even looking at her. She thought about the thug and about the man Batman was looking for.

"What about... Two-head... guy?" Sailor Moon asked, desperately trying to remember the name of the man they were looking for.

"I know where he is," Batman replied.

Sailor Moon's eyes widened a bit. She then thought about how Batman had treated that man at the bar. "He may have been a crook, but even he didn't deserve to be treated like that." "You didn't hurt him, did you?" she whimpered.

Batman finally faced her, "I said, let's go." It was clear to her that he was losing patience, but that didn't stop her from saying what she wanted to say.

"No! Why do you have to act like a big jerk all the time?!" she shouted, tears running down her face. "Why do you have to treat people the way you do?! Why are you such a big meanie?!" she sniffled as her words flowed onto the Dark Knight.

Batman didn't even flinch at her words. He just continued to glare at her. He finally approached her. Her tears still ran down as he came to her. "If you want to help me, you've got two options," he started. Sailor Moon wiped a tear from her cheek and paid attention. "Either stop crying and get in the car or go home!" Batman shouted

The Dark Knight turned and headed towards his vehicle without another word. Sailor Moon stood still and silent, tears rolling down her face. She finally wiped away her tears and headed to the car. She didn't want to, but she knew in her heart, she needed to. She needed to be strong and fight against the forces of evil. No matter who she had to work with. She approached the side of the car and leaped inside. Her eyes were still red from the tears. She looked towards Luna hoping she would noticed this. Hoping that Luna would provide some words of comfort, but with Batman so close, she couldn't say anything. Luna just gently licked her hand. This made Sailor Moon smile, even a little.

Batman turned on his car and sped down the road as if nothing had happened.

After several minutes, Sailor Moon finally worked up the nerve to ask a question, "Why do you act like you do?" She didn't know why she asked, she wasn't expecting a response.

She was greatly surprised when he said, "I wish I didn't."

She was both shocked and confused. She was shocked that he actually responded to her question and confused as to his answer. "He wished he didn't? I don't get it." she thought to herself.

"Then why?" Sailor Moon asked.

"Because I have to," Batman said, not even turning his head to look at her.

This made her even more confused. "Because he has to?" What does that mean?"

"I don't understand," she admitted. She hoped that he would explain it to her.

Batman drove silently for a second or two. Finally, he spoke, "I hope you never do."

Sailor Moon still didn't understand completely, but she was starting to. "What happened to you? What made you who you are?" she thought quietly as her mind pondered what horrible tragedy can create a man such as this.

Chapter 9
Batman and Sailor Moon finally approached an abandoned warehouse on the waterfront. It looked like any other old warehouse, but she knew that Batman stopped here for a reason. The ceiling of the car pulled back to reveal an opening once more and Batman climbed out. "Wait here," he ordered.

"What?!" Sailor Moon stood up quickly. "I'm coming with you!"

"No, it's too dangerous," Batman stated.

This made Sailor Moon angry, "You asked me to come with you! You wanted me here to help you! Now I'm here! Let me help you! You don't have to do this alone!"

Batman was silent for a moment, he then smiled. "You know, you might be right."

Sailor Moon's eyes widened. The Batman then turned around. He was smiling. That was the first time Sailor Moon had seen him smile since they met. It was a wonderful sight.

"I've been doing this on my own for so long, I've pushed everyone else away," Batman confessed. "I'd hate to admit it, but I need your help."

Sailor Moon revealed a great big smile on her face when he said he needed her help. "Really?" she asked.

"Yes," Batman stated, "I have a plan. Sit down and I'll explain everything."

Sailor Moon sat down with a smile. She sat silently and focused on every single word the Dark Knight was going to say. A second later, Batman's smile disappeared from his face and back to his scowling look. He then spoke, "Car, lockdown mode."

In an instant, the car roof shut tight and all machinery inside the car shut down. Before Sailor Moon realized what had happened, she had been trapped in the Batmobile. She pounded on the window, screaming, "You big jerk! You lied to me!"

Batman just turned towards the warehouse without even giving her a second glance.

Sailor Moon finally stopped pounding on the glass, knowing it was useless. She folded her arms and grumbled something under her breath. "Well, that worked well, Usagi. He played you like a fiddle," Luna stated.

"Shut up, Luna," Sailor Moon grumbled.

---

Batman snuck into the warehouse. There were several crates along the walls. He continued down the room and heard a voice. "Well, it's that human from earlier tonight. You are a persistent little worm, aren't you?

He recognized the voice as Dr. Yamada. "I was hoping for the Sailor Moon brat, but you'll do." she taunted. He looked to his right and out of the shadows, stepped a fat well-dress man with a beak-shaped nose. He revealed a umbrella. Normally, an umbrella wouldn't cause much worry. Unless it was in the hands of the Penguin. He would manipulate his umbrella to be a tool of murder. It would carry hidden within it a blade, or even bullets that he could fire like a machine gun.

Batman guessed by the way the Penguin was pointing his weapon, it was the latter of the two. He moved out of the way, just as the Penguin fired shot after shot from his umbrella. Batman quickly rolled behind several crates, giving him cover. Shot after shot dug into the crate. Batman quickly stuck his arm and head out of the protection and threw a batarang at his opponent. The projectile knocked the umbrella out of his opponent's hand.

As the Penguin bent down to pick it up, he was tackled by Batman. He was sent several feet, sliding across the floor. Batman picked up his umbrella and pressed a button on his gauntlet. Just as he tossed the weapon aside, a man with tally shaped scars all over his body appeared. He was carrying a knife and he dashed towards the Dark Knight swinging his weapon. Batman grabbed his arm before it could touch him and tossed him into a pile of crates.

Just then, Two-Face grabbed Batman from behind, wrapping his arms around his neck. Batman could barely breathe, he needed to act fast. He quickly reached back and slammed his hands into Dent's ears, discombobulating him. He then grabbed his chin with one hand and the back of his head with the other. He pushed forward on the chin, causing Dent to release his grip, and forced him down towards the ground. He then delivered a quick jab to his face.

Batman looked around him to see eleven more thugs surrounding him. One by one they appeared from the shadows. Some of them holding pipes, some of them planks of wood, some of them unarmed. One of the men holding a pipe charged at the Dark Knight and swung at him. Batman blocked the attack and dug his fist into the man's chest, sending him back several feet. Another with a plank attack Batman from behind. The Dark Knight stepped to the side avoiding the attack. As he moved, he pushed his opponent. The combination of his own momentum and Batman's counter, caused him to tumble to the ground. Batman avoided a fist coming straight for him. He grabbed the attacker's arm and using his momentum, tossed him into another thug.

Before Batman could react, Dr. Yamada attacked the Dark Knight with the same maneuver she had used earlier. The Dark Knight tried to break her grip, but it wouldn't let up. She then hoisted Batman into the air and threw him to the ground. Batman tried to rise to his feet, but couldn't. He looked up to see the inmates surrounding him. Before they were on him, Batman quickly pressed a button on his belt. They grabbed him by the arms and lifted him to his feet. Batman struggled to break free, but they would not let go of their enemy. "Well, human," Dr. Yamada taunted as she approached the strange costumed hero, "It seems you have gone in over your head."

Batman just stared at the monster that now barely resembled Dr. Yamada, "You were the one who killed Dr. Saitou."

"How did you know?" Dr. Yamada asked

"I suspected it from Dr. Saitou's house. You killed him because he began to ask questions about the American inmates. He requested certain files to his home."

"Well, I must say I'm impressed."

"That's not all I've found."

Dr. Yamada's eyebrows rose, "What?"

"You are a monster from the Dark Kingdom, sent here to find and kill Sailor Moon. You need to obtain a silver crystal and you used the criminals from America to lure her into a trap. Mind control prevents you from having to pay them, so you gave away the money you stole to the henchmen they hired. You also erased all files pertaining to the transfer, which is why the police haven't connected any of the crimes."

"Clever, but you can't stop us. We'll kill you and then we'll kill Sailor Moon," Dr. Yamada stated. The Dark Knight's eyes didn't even move. "What's the matter, human? Too scared to say anything?"

Their eyes met, burning with anger and hatred. Despite being surrounded and facing down a monster, Batman showed no fear, "You have no idea what fear is."

---

Sailor Moon pressed every single button in the Batmobile three times and yet none of them seemed to work. "Luna, we've got to get out of here," she moaned.

"Easy for you to say," Luna had been picking at the lock for several minutes with her claws. The lock, however, was more complex than she had expected. "All you've been doing is pushing buttons that don't work."

Luna then thought it might be a good thing those buttons don't work. Last time Sailor Moon touched something she wasn't suppose to, they nearly caused a catastrophe. They then heard a noise like something unlocking. The door to the Batmobile then opened itself up. "Luna, what did you do?" Sailor Moon asked.

"I don't think that was me," Luna admitted, pulling her claw from the lock.

"Come on. That guy might be in trouble," with lightning speed, Sailor Moon leaped from the car.

"Sailor Moon, he told you to stay here!" Luna shouted. She didn't know why she tried, she knew Sailor Moon was going to rush right into danger.

---

Sailor Moon snuck into the warehouse and saw several men holding her ally. Staring down at the man in the long black cape was a red haired woman. The Dark Knight then shot her a look. It was the scowl she had come to expect and yet there was something more about it. He didn't look surprised to see her at all. Like he had been expecting her. He then reached for his belt. "What do you think you are doing?" the woman asked.

Several small orbs dropped from his belt to the ground. They exploded on contact, releasing a smokescreen. The men started to hack as the smoke concealed them and the woman. Sailor Moon ran towards where the smoke had appeared. She tried to dig her way through the smoke, but she couldn't tell where she was going. She felt an arm wrap around her waist and let out a small gasp, but it was muffled by a hand covering her mouth. She then heard a whisper in her ear, "Hang on and keep quiet." She instantly recognized the voice as the Caped Crusader.

Batman shot his grapple gun to the high ceiling and hoisted both him and Sailor Moon to the rafters. The smoke still covered most of the warehouse and the men were still hacking and coughing through the smoke. Batman set Sailor Moon on the beams and turned towards the ground, "Stay here." He then leaped off the rafters and into the heart of the smoke.

With the smoke covering all of the ground, Sailor Moon could only guess what was happening through the sounds she heard. Her heart coiled as she heard a man scream as if he was in agony. She jumped as she heard a hard crashing sound, as if someone's fist had slammed into someone. After a few seconds the smoke finally cleared, the men who were in prison uniforms were all on the ground, unconscious. All that was standing in the room was a woman with sharp fangs and a man dressed like a giant bat.

Dr. Yamada launched her long arm at the Dark Knight, but this time, he was ready. He rolled out of his attacker's path and tossed a batarang at her. The batarang dug into her skin like it was made of Jello. The woman grinned as the weapon did little harm to her. A moment later, the batarang unleashed an electrical current into her body. The woman screeched in pain. She reached for the batarang and ripped it from her body. She then tossed it at the Dark Knight. Batman stepped to the side to evade. Yamada swung her other arm at Batman, but again he avoided. Again and again, she swung, crying like a madman. But again and again, Batman would dodge, still as silent as ever. Yamada, in time, caught on to Batman's pattern and slammed him into the back wall.

She stared down her opponent, her face right in his, "Did you really think you could beat me, human?"

Batman glared right back at her, "No, but I'll bet she can."

The monster raised her eyebrow. "She?" Dr. Yamada asked.

She then heard a voice coming from behind her, "Moon Healing Escalation!" She turned to see the one she had been searching for, Sailor Moon. Her moon shaped wand launched hundreds of lights at her. Yamada screamed as the lights dug into her, breaking her apart. Her body shape began to fade until there was only dust remaining.

Batman made his way to the little girl. She smiled as he approached her. There was silence for a second. "Good work," he finally broke the silence.

"Well, isn't this a delightful surprise," an English speaking voice said. The Penguin appeared from the shadows with his umbrella in hand. Batman pushed Sailor Moon behind him, shielding her behind his cape. Sailor Moon didn't know who this man was or what he was saying, but she stayed behind the Dark Knight.

"I may not know what in the world is going on, but I don't look a gift-bat in the mouth," Penguin taunted as he pointed his umbrella at Batman. He then started to pull the trigger, but it wouldn't move. He tried to pull with all his might, but the trigger stuck, as if it was magnetized. "No matter. This will just make things more personal," he pulled apart his umbrella to reveal a knife.

Sailor Moon gasped as the short, stubby man started to approach them. From behind the Penguin, Zsasz also appeared. "Two marks for the price of one... Are you and your little friend ready, Batman?" He held the knife in his hand tightly, like a cat ready to strike. "Ready to receive the gift of salvation?"

"You know how this works, Batman," the disfigured Two-Face stated as he appeared from behind Zsasz. He flipped his coin in the air several times, as if he couldn't help himself. "So, how's your luck?" He flipped the coin in the air one more time. But before it could hit his hand, Batman threw several bombs at their feet. They exploded with a black smoke that caused them to hack and cough.

Slowly, their coughs became weaker as if the gas wasn't just a smokescreen. Zsasz realized it was knockout gas. He shouted in anger and dashed where the Dark Knight was standing. He swung his knife at Batman, but the Batman caught and redirected his arm before the blade could touch his body. He then kicked Zsasz in the kneecap, breaking his leg.

Moments before Batman had unleashed his knockout gas, he had slipped Sailor Moon a small gas mask. She held it tightly against her face and closed her eyes, hoping that the nightmare would be over soon. When she opened them, the only one who was standing with her was the Caped Crusader, a gas mask, similar to hers, held tightly to his face. Batman then said something, not that Sailor Moon understood it, "I make my own luck, Dent. You should know that better than anyone." He then turned towards the exit and left, Sailor Moon right behind him.

Chapter 10
Batman and Sailor Moon started down the road when Sailor Moon finally spoke, "I guess you're going to take me home, huh?"

"One stop first. There's something I have to do," Batman replied.

---

After purchasing some flowers and nearly scaring a local florist out of his skin, Batman took Sailor Moon to a deserted alleyway. He pulled up by it and opened the door. "Stay here," Batman said as he leaped out of the car.

Batman revealed two roses and walked down the alleyway. It was so much like the one in Gotham. The only alleyway that mattered to him. Graffiti, litter and other kinds of filth decorated the place. He looked up to the moon, shining so brightly. It shined that bright a long time ago. A very long time ago. He finally stopped and perched down on one knee. He gently placed the roses on the ground. It was all so clear to him, even after all these years. The movie theater, the rain, the gunshots. It all flowed back into his mind so clearly, as if it was yesterday. "I'm sorry. I couldn't be there this time." Another year gone by. Another year since three people died in Gotham's Crime Alley.

Sailor Moon came from behind Batman. He noticed she was there, but didn't move. Sailor Moon couldn't see the Dark Knight's face, but could since a sadness coming from him. A deep heartache. Sailor Moon had a million questions, but there was one that stood out. "Who are the roses for?"

Batman was silent. Almost as if he didn't even hear her question. Part of him wished he didn't, part of him wished he could forget. But he knew deep down, no matter how hard he tried, he'd never forget, "My parents."

Batman slowly stood up and marched past Sailor Moon without saying another word. Sailor Moon looked upon the roses. She didn't know what to say. What could she say? She couldn't even imagine what she would do if she lost her parents. She couldn't even fathom what this man was going through, how long he was going through it and how long it would take for him to heal. She simply followed Batman back to the car, leaving nothing but the roses and the memories.

---

Ikuko Tsukino prepared the morning meal as usual for her husband and two children. However, she was distracted when she saw Usagi walking down the hall. "Usagi, what are you doing up?" she asked.

Usagi greeted her mother with a smile, "Just getting ready for school." Usagi grabbed her lunch bag from the table and started for the door.

"You're up early today, Usagi? It's not like you at all. What's going on?" she asked. Usagi stopped in her tracks. She then turned to her mother, still smiling.

"Nothing," she responded. A silence fell over them. Usagi then hugged her mother. She tightened the hug as if she would lose her if she let go, "I love you, mom."

Ikuko was surprised. It was unusual for Usagi to hug her like this. But she wasn't complaining, she was happy. She wrapped her arms around Usagi, "I love you too, sweetheart." She finally gave Usagi a gentle nudge to the door. "Now hurry or you'll be late for school."

Usagi followed her mother's instructions and headed out, trying to contain her tears.

---

The inmates had been transferred back to Arkham Asylum. Without Dr. Yamada's or Saitou's influence, they had nobody to take them in Japan. The doctors, guards and inmates at the facility were all found unconscious when authorities arrived. Batman predicted the facility would be shut down in a few weeks. He tapped on his computer listing all the inmates. He then pressed another key which revealed a blonde girl with two pigtails.

Alfred approached from behind staring at the screen, "Isn't she a bit young for you, Master Bruce?" Batman just glared at his butler, clearly thinking that joke was not funny.

"Her name is Usagi Tsukino. She helped me during the investigation in Japan," Batman explained. "She's definitely someone I'll have to keep an eye on."

"As a potential sidekick, sir?" Alfred asked.

"No, just someone who we might want to keep track of."

"Very well. Good night, sir," Alfred finally turned and headed upstairs. Batman remained silent at his computer, continuing his vigilance against injustice. Forever destined to fight evil by moonlight... alone.

The End