*Hey guys, long time no… read. I don't even know how long I've been gone, however, I'm sure it was over four months. This was because of many things. One being college. I had to work on three separate projects and a website and have them done for the portfolio show (which was a requirement for me to graduate) before having to work on my internship for a whole quarter. Two, I graduated, which means I had to deal with some financial crap. And thirdly, I STILL don't have internet, so I'm limited on the time I can post/update since I'll have to go to the public library to do so.

That being said, I've found myself wanting to write again and seriously couldn't just leave this story incomplete. I will inform you that I'm getting back on a daily schedule and am going to be posting/updating regularly. Unfortunately, it's a common thing to see on Fanfiction, writer's leaving for a long time before hopefully coming back. Writer's block, everybody hates it.

On a sad note, however, I'm sorry to say I will be discontinuing my other story Seeing Red. On a slightly happier note, I do have another story in mind and already have the beginning made up.

Last message, I have changed my username (and will be changing my picture) from MarshmellowCat to Dexterion. To help relieve any confusion that will surely follow for a short time, I will remind you all for the remainder of the story and post it on my profile. Now without further ado, read on my friends.

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Gotham City
Unknown; 12:40 EST
Saturday

The curtains blew inward from the wind coming through the open window. The cold winter breeze would send chills down any spine, but Batman's specialized kevlar kept that scenario at bay. The Dark Knight himself walked calmly towards the desk within the study, the frown on his face more prominent than usual. He glanced down at the papers laying on the polished wood, his eyes narrowing at their contents: schematics for the neural photon accelerator.

"Hello Bruce," a sad tone called out from the darkness, soon revealed to be an old man with a walking cane dressed in a formal suit. "If I may call you that."

"No, you may not." Batman replied, evidence of anger in his voice, but controlled. He straightened up from where he was hunched over the desk and turned his body facing the man.

"James?" he questioned, narrowing his eyes again at the look of the guy. It didn't make sense, James Ron was two years younger than him. He was supposed to be a criminally master minded 30 year old, not a man by the looks of ninety.

"Yes, it's me." The old geezer answered. "I doubt I need to tell you why I am the way I am."

"The neural photon accelerator." Batman's monotone never changed.

"I call it NiPA." James commented, coughing a bit afterwards before straightening his tie. "The prototypes still needed work when I first used it." He chuckled softly, "Sent me through a time rift and aged my body. When I got back, well…" His voice faded off, the rest not needed to tell.

"Why did you rebuild the device after I shut down the project?" Batman questioned.

James looked down in sorrow, "My wife was in a car accident. She died before the ambulance got to her. It was a drunk driver, two idiots who thought they could take a chance at life! She was 6 months pregnant, Bruce!" Batman's appearance didn't change and his monotone didn't change.

"So you tried to stop it from happening."

"It was my fault she left." James said, barely holding in his tears. "We had an argument." He looked up at Batman now, taking a few steps closer to him, the cane aiding in his balance.

"I want to turn my life around, to fix what I've done wrong. I just need the device from Dick and—"

"Mistakes are supposed to be learned, James, not righted."

"But I finished the flawed design! I have done the impossible, something you were too afraid of doing! "

"What you've done is endanger my son and this world!" Batman released a bit of his anger, warning James not to push him.

"The boy wasn't supposed to eat the device!" he yelled in anger, slamming his cane down on the floor. "That was his mistake, not mine!"

"The only one at fault here is you, James!" Batman's collective state took a turn for the worst. His presence became dark and imposing as he willingly allowed his anger to fuel his words. "You built the device after I specifically told you to drop the experiment! After I informed you of the consequences of messing with matters we barely understand! Your actions caused this mess, continuing will result in something far worse than advanced aging." With each sentence, Batman took a step towards James. James didn't move as the space between them began to vanish.

"What if something happened to Dick? What if someone shot him like your parents, wouldn't you—" The Dark Knight roughly grabbed his jacket and lifted him up off the ground, his face inches from the mans'.

"Dick is in danger right now because of YOU! It's because you recreated the device and planted it in his dish that night that he has to undergo surgery to remove it." Batman nearly shouted in his face.

"He's not undergoing surgery." James' physic also took a turn for the worse as he struggled out of Batman's grip, to which the hero let him go, and stood before the imposing bat. "By now, my men would have captured your doctor and trashed her clinic. You either give that boy to me now, or I'll order them to invade your mansion next!"

"Call off your men and return Dr. Thompkins to the police, James." The Dark Knight ordered in an eerily quiet tone.

"I will NOT have my precious device destroyed after the many years I've spent in perfecting its design! Dick can die if it means I'll get my family back!"

Wrong answer…

Leslie and Robin burst through the front door of St. Maire's Hospital, the Boy Wonder in question clutching his stomach tightly with his free hand, the other wrapped around the doctor's shoulder.

"I need an ER room, quickly!" she hollered, hopping over towards the front desk and ignoring the looks at them. It wasn't every day you saw the Boy Wonder in the same building as you, or in a hospital for that matter.

Leslie released her grip on him and leaned in towards the nurse at the desk. "Please, he has a bomb in his stomach and I need to remove it." She whispered, trying to keep the public out of it in fear of the paparazzi… or worse.

The nurse stepped back with a squeak of surprise before running out and calling the doctors. Leslie knelt down to Robin and gripped his shoulders. The raven haired boy was doing his best to keep the moans in, hunched over from the pain with his eyes tightly shut.

"It's okay, I'm going to be able to remove it real soon." She reassured. "Just keep breathing in and out, like this." She began inhaling and exhaling in example.

Robin growled, "I'm not pregnant!"

James' back was slammed against the wall, a result in the punch he had received from Batman. The old man shut his eyes from the pain, something that would have been almost nothing to him if he were his appropriate age.

With his cane still clutched firmly in his hand, he placed his thumb up on the top and pressed down on a button. Within seconds, a swat of armed men burst into the room and surrounded Batman; their weapons aimed at his head.

Batman pulled out two batarangs, his feet spreading apart with bent knees. He glanced left and right before settling his glare down at James. The man was desperate and driven, two combinations that screamed suicidal maniac. He didn't' care about Batman's life, or Robin's; but that also meant he didn't care about his men's lives either… and possibly even his own.

"Kill him, do whatever it takes to stop them from stealing my NiPA!" James ordered, using the cane to stand back up on his fragile legs.

"Whatever it takes." Batman repeated, "Are these men really going to be able to kill me before this building blows?"

The men surrounding them physically froze in their spots, heads pivoting back and forth as strange looks were distributed.

"What?" James replied with confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"You're a desperate man, James. So it didn't surprise me that you'd be expecting my visit and took it upon yourself to plant a bomb downstairs should your men fail to bring me down. Which, of course, I'm sure everyone here knows the likely outcome would be the later."

"Wha—He's lying!" James hollered at his men, seeing how their weapons were beginning to lower.

"The neural photon accelerator is unstable, James. It's going to explode and destroy the world. You don't care about anyone, not even yourself." Batman concluded, relaxing his body and putting his batarangs away.

One of the men lifted his hand and pointing at Batman, but his attention was directed towards James. "I signed up for this to get revenge, not to die."

"And you're going to trust what he says?! He's lying, trying to persuade you to lower your guard!"

"Batman doesn't lie, though." Another stated, feeling a bit on edge standing above a possible bomb ready to explode any second.

"Grow some balls, ya pussy's!" One of the guys nearest to James shouted in a deep voice. "If I get a chance to take out the Bat, hell, I'm gonna take it! Bomb or not!" He growled as he raised his gun.

Batman's hand shot out, letting fly a batarang. The bat shaped object hit its mark, slicing away some layers of skin on the man's hand causing him to hiss and drop the gun he held. The others took action, raising their weapons as well, but the same just happened to them.

Batman disarmed every single one of them before battling a few in hand to hand combat. The rest took off, seeing no point in dying in a losing battle. James was among them, except his perspective of the situation was exactly the opposite. He stopped by his desk and pressed a hidden button underneath. He ran out of the room, as fast as he could anyway, and proceeded to escape to the roof.

Batman threw the last of the men down on the floor, kneeling beside him, grabbing his head, and punching him hard in the face; effectively knocking him out. The Dark Knight looked around the room, not seeing any sign of the old man. Standing up, he bolted towards the window; glancing up, then down as a conclusion was made. His grappling gun shot upwards, pulling him along with it once it hooked to the edge of the roof.

Robin opened the double doors of the E.R. and continue to hobble down the hall while Leslie followed, arguing with the doctors and nurses to let her take control of the situation. The elder woman opened the door to a prepped room, Robin going in and straight towards the bed. Two nurses stood waiting, one female, the other male, but were quickly ordered to leave by Leslie as she slightly fought with the doctor at the door.

"—Me believe that you are capable of performing an operation of this magnitude?!" The doctor argued, his voice laced with concern.

"I assure you, I have a degree and license in the medical field. Robin chose me to do the surgery, and that is just what I plan to do!" Leslie glared at him before gripping the door. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a vigilante to help!" And with that, she slammed the door shut and locked it.

The room was dramatically quieter now, save for a few grunts from Robin. Leslie rushed over and got straight to work.

"Okay, Robin, on a scale from one to ten, how would you rate your pain?" she asked, the question necessary for many reasons.

"Twenty!" Robin managed to spurt out. Leslie didn't giving him a second look as she fumbled with the drawers.

"Oh sh**." She whispered.

"What?" Robin replied painfully.

"I can't give you a sedative without risking an overdose and endangering your life."

"There's no time for that, just… do the surgery."

"What?!" Now Leslie was taken back. "You can't expect me to—"

"There's no time!" Robin interrupted her, his voice getting more serious now. "Please."

Her eyes darted back and forth, searching for another alternative than his choice. But she couldn't find any.

"Leslie…" His voice brought her back to the matter at hand.

She closed her eyes, "Just…" then swallowed hard, while picking up a scalpel. "Stay still."

*Please note, if you haven't read the above statements, I have changed my username from MarshmellowCat to Dexterion.