ÔÇ£YouÔÇÖre unusually quiet,ÔÇØ said Bruce Wayne.
Terry McGinnis, also known as Batman, didnÔÇÖt even bother raising his head at the unseen voice, instead continuing to work studiously at the old-fashioned locks as he answered eloquently, ÔÇ£What?ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£I mean,ÔÇØ Wayne said patiently, ÔÇ£that normally youÔÇÖd be filling up the comm with all sorts of chatter. Got anything in mind?ÔÇØ
Batman let out a sigh of triumph as the lock snapped open only to groan as behind the latch, a new series of electronic locks gleamed. Silently cursing security companies and their near paranoid installations, Batman lifted the pad to reveal the workings of the alarm and raised a finger to a system as the omnicomputer installed into his Batsuit began to slice its way in. ÔÇ£IÔÇÖve been thinking about a friend. Well, not my friend, but his dad. Step-dad I mean. Big-ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Armory.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£ThatÔÇÖs him,ÔÇØ Terry said with annoyance,ÔÇØ You know it wouldnÔÇÖt kill you to call him by his real name.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Somehow I doubt Big Jim is the name printed on the birth certificate. Besides, always keep things impersonal. Saves a lot of trouble,ÔÇØ Bruce said.
ÔÇ£YouÔÇÖd be the expert right?ÔÇØ Terry deadpanned. ÔÇ£But anyway, IÔÇÖve been thinking. He gets out of Jail soon, but no oneÔÇÖs going to hire him. So why donÔÇÖt we-ÔÇØ
Bruce cut in curtly, ÔÇ£Wayne-Powers is not going to rehire him.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Thanks for letting me finish. What I meant was, why donÔÇÖt we as in Batman hire him? I was looking through the old records in the computer and itÔÇÖs not like you havenÔÇÖt done something like that before. Earl Cooper did a good job, and besides heÔÇÖs good at other stuff besides lethal weaponry. That goo gun of his was pretty good against me, and he knows his way around cars.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Hmm, it is tempting,ÔÇØ Bruce admitted.
ÔÇ£I know right?ÔÇØ Terry grinned. ÔÇ£And-ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Which is why IÔÇÖve already started to reroute some funds and cleared out a workshop,ÔÇØ Bruce finished.
You never let me do anything, Terry said in his most childish voice.
ÔÇ£IÔÇÖm letting you track down the rogue scientist McGinnis.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Yeah yeah. S.T.A.R. Labs nutcase, escaped with experimental supplies, wants to make a Time Machine.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Time Travel isnÔÇÖt a dream,ÔÇØ reminded Bruce.
ÔÇ£Yeah, StaticÔÇÖs bad jokes proved that,ÔÇØ said Terry. ÔÇ£Aha! Gotya,ÔÇØ he said as the computer finally finished. Batman removed the panel into the old warehouse and made his way in through the maintenance shaft. He moved down as far as he dared before he looked through the slitted viewpoints.
ÔÇ£What do you see?ÔÇØ asked Bruce.
A test of course. Another way for Terry to test his burgeoning detective skills.
Cot at the southeast corner, looks like it hasnt been used though. Some rations bars, already eaten, old passage that looks like a bathroom and of course, the big honking machine right there and the crazy old guy working on it.
ÔÇ£Personal effects, what about the warehouse itself?ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Old manufacturing plant meant for building circuit boards. Shut down after Powers outsourced to India a decade ago. Looks like the good DoctorsÔÇÖ got the power running though,ÔÇØ Terry noted.
ÔÇ£Well spotted,ÔÇØ Bruce said approvingly. ÔÇ£And the Doctor? Tell me about him.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Walker Gabriel, age 54. Graduated top of his class from the University of Metropolis, and completed postgraduate work at U.C. Berkeley. Joined S.T.A.R. Labs right out of graduation and hasnÔÇÖt looked back. Unmarried, no children. As lonely as you can get. Anyway, guyÔÇÖs pet project has been time travel and finally he just snapped a few days ago after being dismissed. Grabbed everything that wasnÔÇÖt nailed down and worked his way over here where S.T.A.R. Labs doesnÔÇÖt have any influence. The Justice League decided to foist this on me because they have better things to do than slum it out in Gotham.ÔÇØ
ÔÇ£Thank you for your commentary on his life and yours. Stick to the facts next time besides, looking at the stolen parts, it looks like he took some tritium with him. If he uses it carelessly, he can take down a quarter of the city,ÔÇØ Bruce rapped.
The next few minutes passed by silently as Terry worked his way into a dark corner and waited for a chance to pounce the scientist. The man was obviously high-strung and every few minutes, a free hand patted a coat pocket reassuringly. The size and bulge suggested a compact laser pistol, not something Terry would have normally worried about, but for all he knew it might have been some prototype antimatter rifle or anything else that could punch through his suit.
Better to wait and look for a good time to take down the man. Patience was something not many people would have figured Terry McGinnis to have, but it had been something Batman had been forced to learn quickly. All the bruises and bumps heÔÇÖd gotten from being just a half-second too fast had taught him that lesson well. Luckily for him, the scientist seemed to be on the verge of completion. GabrielÔÇÖs surprisingly steady hands attached the last circuit board in before he welded in the steel plates to cover up the vulnerable insides.
As machines went, Terry had seen better assembled ones in his shop class. The whole thing looked like it was on the verge of falling apart, with the only remotely stable looking portion a clear and opensphere of glass balanced on a metal stand. Sparks began to finally die down as the old man lifted his protective mask and shoved the welder aside. He started laughing at his success and finally calmed down enough to place his laser pistol on an unmoving conveyer belt that doubled as a worktable. Having been working for the better part of three days, the man finally turned and yawned.
Batman couldnÔÇÖt have been given a better opening even if had been giftwrapped.
A single tackled had the man pinned against the manufacturing belt far from the laser pistol. ÔÇ£Sorry Doctor, but I have to bring you in,ÔÇØ Batman said keeping his grip fairly loose. After all, it wasnÔÇÖt like he wanted to hurt the guy or anything.
Gabriel didnÔÇÖt even bother to argue, instead bringing up a knee to try and force Batman away. Batman idly took a step back to dodge the poorly placed knee only to be surprised by an electric shock.
ÔÇ£Wh-what?ÔÇØ He asked dumbly.
The doctorÔÇÖs watch was sparking. ÔÇ£Something we designed for the NSA,ÔÇØ Gabriel said in answer to BatmanÔÇÖs questioning look. ÔÇ£Made as a last ditch protection device. Only good for a one time use,ÔÇØ he explained as a hand reached into pocket and activated a remote. The factory came alive and a set of sparking things Terry had no name for lunged for his body. Terry backflipped away from the writhing machine only to be blasted back from a laser shot. The suit took most of the impact, but Terry still reeled.
HeÔÇÖd been trying to take it easy on the old man, but Terry knew he had to finish things quick. He took a smoke bomb from his belt and hurled it at the ground as his rebreather came up. The coughs made from the aging Doctor made it simple to pinpoint him, but sheer luck saved the man as a one of the factoryÔÇÖs welders punched into BatmanÔÇÖs stomach, and threw him into Time Machine. The impact shuddered the whole frame, and the already shoddily made machine took the blow as a sign to activate. The glass sphere shut and an ominous countdown timer started.
ÔÇ£Doctor,ÔÇØ Batman rumbled threateningly.
ÔÇ£I-IÔÇÖm sorry Batman, but thereÔÇÖs nothing I can do. ItÔÇÖs a failsafe,ÔÇØ he said quietly.
For his part, Batman tore off the electric saw installed in his belt and began to try and cut his way out, only for the saw to make little, if any headway.
ÔÇØThe glass, itÔÇÖs from the new S.T.A.R. Labs Space Division. ItÔÇÖs designed for the new spaceships. Your saw canÔÇÖt cut through it,ÔÇØ the Doctor said sheepishly. Undeterred, Batman ripped out a plastic explosive before wrapping a length of detcord. But the machine had now begun to glow an unearthly white, and the Batsuit couldnÔÇÖt block out the light entirely. Just as the machine activated to full power, Batman triggered the explosives, only to make the slightest of holes.
Too late though, as unearthly forces began to distort the space around him. The now broken glass let in energy which played havoc with the BatsuitÔÇÖs electronics and the last thing Batman heard before he vanished completely was a panicked ÔÇ£Terry!ÔÇØ from his mentor. And then he was gone.
---
Newly revised with an expanded opening. In the end, I decided to not add in some of Kayeich's changes as I'm still relatively unsure as to how dramatic I'll make this. It's not like every story needs an epic plot involving Gods and such. I've also decided to set this before the Batman Beyond comic, but also I'm going to consider it non-canon. Tell me what you all think.
So far, I've planned it out to:
Terry lands in Star City where he mixes it up with Green Arrow and Question.
He calls Superman in after some deliberation, goes to the Watchtower where's he's held until people can decide what to do.
Rumors spread, people like Cadmus hear about the future Batman and such.
Bruce takes Terry to Gotham, he teaches him some of the stuff Older Bruce can't do as well, etc...
And that's all I got for now.
Also, wow, thinking on it, all the Batman Beyond comics are retarded. First off, in the Batman/Superman annual, Superman is angsting about Lex Luthor basically being a God-King of Metropolis... when the JLU's main headquarters in the Beyond timefram was located centrally in Metropolis. Then we have the Joker kidnapping Alfred, which is also stupid because there's no way he would care who Alfred was.