001. un: damian wayne. audio. ourpowers.

[batricide]

I'll keep this short and simple.

My name is Damian Wayne. If this has any meaning to you, I suggest you contact me before I feel the need contact you.

As for the rest of you, how many of you know how to fight? I don't mean a tussle in the school yard, I mean a fight for your life. If you don't, I suggest you learn. Fast.

Comments

[robintohood]

I'm a busy guy. Had things to do. Places to go. Goons to keep in line. You know how it is.

[Jason's tone is casual and maybe has a hint of impertinence. Jason doesn't know Damian as well as older Jason does. He's wary and is trying to assess first]

What's this about?

[batricide]

Can't I reconnect with my family without an ulterior motive?

[ no. ]

I wanted to get a read on where you all think this is going.

[robintohood]

A read on what? The guilds and the bullshit going on with Fantastic?

[It's a guess but the last few months have been... eventful]

[batricide]

[ he rolls his eyes. a visible, dramatic roll. ]

Unless you think some other concern is equally pressing?

[robintohood]

[Jason shrugs, unfazed]

Big world, lots of bullshit happening, and I got a busy schedule.

Fantastic's a dumbass and believes his own crap. Plus, a guy like that in power means he's got enablers and people who see him as a useful tool.

Why? What do you got?

[batricide]

[ damian shrugs. ]

It's mirroring my home. [ flatly. ] Except they're keeping the likable idiot as a front to appease the masses. There's no way that idiot was smart enough to do any of that

[robintohood]

That or he's a better actor than we think. Either way, leadership like that doesn't happen just because of one guy. Others have to be involved somehow.

[batricide]

Right. The way I see it, you kill the figurehead, topple the whole thing. For a while. They scatter once they're exposed to the light.

[ a pause. ]

I'm just not sure if we're there yet.

[robintohood]

We're not. Got more details you wanna share with the rest of the class? We don't know how he got up there in the first place.

[As much as Jason loves a good fight, he'd rather not come into a fight blind if he can help it]

[batricide]

I'm not much of a sharer.

[ It's a lie. It's mostly Damian trying to determine whether or not his own dealings in this kind of hostile takeover have blinded him to what's happening. Is it just a new leader making a flashy statement with corporate backing?

Or, more concerningly, is it the baby steps that the world took on its way to the Regime? ]

[robintohood]

[In a matter-of-fact tone]

That's gonna be a problem if you really want people to help out with this.

[Every version of the BatFamily Jason has heard of so far seems to have serious trust issues. Hell, he's got trust issues too so he can't judge too harshly. But he's assuming Damian didn't send out that message for shits and giggles]

[batricide]

I'm not looking for help.

[ on this, at least. he still has to go home and kill his clark kent to put his universe back in order ]

Just your perspective.

[robintohood]

[Interesting answer...]

This is more than just lobbing off the head of a mob boss and the rats scatter. You need a lot more resources and support on your end too. And you need a lot more intel before you do anything else first. Fantastic using the Fixer to manipulate people and warp public perception was just a sample of what he might have backing him.

Plus, it might not be enough just to get rid of the figurehead. What's to stop the real bad guys from just installing another tool to distract us?

[batricide]

It's in how you kill him. Expose all the misdeeds and then behead the beast, you have a population that's empowered and ready to tear down the whole system.

It also makes the rats scatter.

[robintohood]

If you're gonna make a show of it, make sure there's nothing that's gonna burn your stage. The official channels are being monitored and blocking out the truth.

We're still some odd steps short of getting rid of all this. Clear those channels and there might be a chance.

But depending on who else gets involved with this, you might have another problem.