Disclaimer: Batman is the creation of Bob Kane and Bill Finger and is the property of DC Comics along with all other DC characters that appear or are depicted. All characters from the show are to be seen as just that, the actors that portrayed said characters are not at all intended to be portrayed in this story.

A/N:
Hello there! Gotham recently ended with the birth of The Dark Knight, but what happens next after the cameras stop rolling? Well, the Dark Knight will continue his journey as Gotham's protector. However, as he continues his fight for the city; more dark forces will rise from the shadows to stand against him. This Story will mostly follows Bruce's life as he adjusts to being Batman and his impact on the city. Gordon and others will indeed be heavily involved, but I feel that Gordon (Though not knowing it) has passed the torch of the city's hero to Bruce,

Please note that this my theoretical idea of what a Season 6 should have been and if the show did indeed keep going I doubt they could legally do some of the stuff that is in this story because of that accursed Bat-Embargo. I have tried to carry over all the character's personalities from the show the best way that I can, so there might be a few odd moments from them, but I think that can be explained by the ten-year time jump that happened during the finale of the show.

I want to address one thing. This isn't going be written as being a show but instead will be written as a comic book (Like how Smallville has the Season Eleven comic continuation) This way the more outlandish aspects of the Batman mythos will not feel intrusive upon the show's tone. But I will try to keep the show's *timeless* age.

This Story is mostly focused around the first Year of the Dark Knight and his first meetings with his villains (The ones from the show and some that the show did not do). I'm going to try my best to balance the story between Batman's POV and the GCPD, but Batman is really fun to write. So there is no telling that this may become a Batman-centric story. I'll try my best to even it out the best that I can do.

Also one more thing. Other DC Heroes do exist in this story and will be referenced, but I am a little iffy about Batman meeting them. Let me know what you think about that and if you would like to see how this Batman would interact with some of them and which ones would you like to see?
So without any further ado.

[Character Designs]

- Bruce Wayne/Batman will begin the story with the suit he wore in the finale of Gotham and will have multiple suit upgrades throughout the story (My goal is to get him into the classic grey and black Batman suit akin to the comics)

- Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin is going to have his design from before the finale (But with the monocle). His costume in the final episode looked terrible, absolutely terrible.

- Edward Nygma/Riddler will have his look from the finale.

- Selina Kyle/Catwoman has her design from the Arkham Games (Which will be explained later on)

- Jeremiah Valeska/J/? will have the same appearance from the finale.

- Harleen Quinzel/? will be a cute blond woman as she is usually shown. But once she falls victim to the madness...she will take on a much more frightening appearance.

Keys

Bold Text = Batman talking with the voice modulator active.

Italics = Speech from the communicator.

* = sarcasm.

Year One

3 Months After The Beginning...

Gotham.

One word.

Just six letters.

One city.

However, the weight that it brought was unbearable for most with only a few who could hold it from collapsing in on itself. James Gordon, the Gotham City Police Department's commissioner of ten years, his most loyal friend: Captain Harvey Bullock. The once hardened detective now closest friend to Jim. And the one that lurks within the shadows of Gotham, preying on its criminals - protector of the innocent and punisher to the guilty. The one is only known as the shadow of Gotham who appeared on the scene just under four months ago.

Those are the three who stand between Gotham and absolute chaos.

This is their story

[GCPD]

"I got it, the Shadow!" Harvey offers, fiddling with his fingers with his trusty bottle of whiskey by his side.

"Excuse me?" James Gordon searches through a pile of paperwork. His eyes caught deep in the documents, files on the greatest threats to Gotham. It was just a regular day at the department which would spell disaster for any other city, but this was Gotham. Think of the foulest thing that a human could possibly do and there is a high chance that it would have already happened five times before you eat breakfast. This was not a city for meant for the faint of heart.

"This freak only comes out at night and beats the hell out of the underworld of Gotham. Crooks are even afraid of their own shadows, so I thought why don't we name him that? If we are going to be dealing with him; we might as well give him a name. I mean those guys in Metropolis gave their super...guy a name. Think of the bank that we can make on the Tourism" Harvey gave a light chuckle.

"Gotham isn't the most tourist-friendly city in the world, Harv. Plus I doubt that our guy would be as welcoming for his picture being taken" The commissioner placed down the files on to his desk "No sign of Edward Nygma or Oswald Cobblepot, not since they busted out of that transport van. They have most likely gone underground"

"Ironic considering how the guy that caught them was dressed as" Bullock adds.

"Ed is patient and knows when to lay low, but Oswald? He doesn't exactly do his best work when desperate. He should blow his cover sooner or later"

[Elsewhere]

"WHAT? I have been stuck down in this dump for three whole MONTHS and you have NOTHING on HIM!" Oswald Cobblepot yells as he limps towards a group of armed men "I did NOT build my legend up in the streets of GOTHAM just to have it be wiped away by a lunatic who doesn't know that Halloween isn't until another few months!" he screams, face fully red. He takes a deep breath as he attempts to calm himself down "You better find out WHO he is! I want his blood! GOTHAM is MINE!"

"Hey, boss! It's hard to find out stuff about someone when they can take you out in less than a second. We need to be careful!" one of the thugs reply, leaving Oswald to grunt.

"I should have hired Zsasz, at least I can get a laugh out of him every now and then! I refuse to be intimidated by a wet-nosed, dumb son of a-" he short man limps away with an obvious aggressive stance. His eyes track the wall as he suddenly sees a shadow fly past the corner of his eye "Oh...no..." he gulps. He slowly reaches into his pocket as he pulls out a handgun. His eyes relentlessly searching for any sign. He draws his gun and before he could take a shot.

The gun was knocked away from his hand as it skids against the floor. Next to it seemed to be a small bat-shaped piece of metal that was curved into the ground "What ARE YOU WAITING FOR! SHOOT HIM!" he screams at the top of his lungs.

The group of four thugs looks around at the ceiling with no sign of the one in the shadows. Quickly one of the members' foot was tugged by something and before he could make any other move he was swiftly dragged across the ground and into the shadows of the room.

"Screw this! FIRE!" one of them calls out as the remaining three unloaded their weapons against the corner of the room. Short flashes of light gave them a glimpse of the edge of the room and there was no one there. Another one of the men were grabbed from behind and were pulled into the shadows as his muffled screams quickly fade into the darkness. A swoosh of fabric could be heard within the pitch-blackness. The remaining two moved back-to-back as they search the whole room. Oswald was left speechless as he looks up to the perch points as two white eyes glare back down to him.

Another swoosh of the cape and the figure had landed onto the ground and has taken out the remaining two thugs; ramming their heads together to knock them out cold. Oswald shaken by the sight looks over to the gun that was on the floor. The shadowed figure's eyes narrow "You will never make it in time" came a modulated voice as the white eyes stare him down.

"Timing is just one factor my friend, but what truly matters...is the execution" Oswald goes for the weapon. It happened again the figure rushed over and with a swoosh of its cape knocked him back. Oswald was now thrown against a wall and held there by the gauntlets of the mysterious figure "Who the hell DO you THINK YOU ARE!" the man screams down to the one that was pressing against the wall.

"I am vengeance, I am the night and I am the one who will keep criminals like you off the streets! The Riddler, where is he! I know that you two are working together!" the Batman growls. Oswald shakes his head.

"I'm not telling you squat, you hear me? I refuse to be bullied by someone who dresses like a BAT!" Cobblepot yelps.

"Innocent people are going to die if he is left in the city! You should know how unstable he is! He belongs in Arkham" the shadowed figure now clearly agitated throws him against the wall again with even more force; causing the smaller man to grasp.

"Look at that! The *Cobble*pot calling the kettle BAT!" Oswald retorts with a small laugh.

"I don't have time for this! Talk or I'll break your arm!" Batman threatens as he begins to twist the man's right arm. Slowly and more importantly painfully which earned a few painful cries from him. Unable to take any more. Oswald finally broke...mentally anyway.

"Okay! Okay! Okay! I don't know exactly where he is...but!"

"TALK!"

"Across town! Where the old narrows use to be! I swear that is all I know! I swear! We went our separate ways a month ago" Cobblepot spits out the words.

"If you are lying to me...I will be back for you..." the cape shrouded Oswald and before he knew it. He was hanging from the ceiling with robe tightly tide around him. The figure was completely gone and Oswald was left by himself with his crew.

"Damn it!" he kicks and struggles.

[Arkham Asylum]

Lightning struck the world outside and heavy rain was storming.

A soft humming was coming from one of the cells. The one at the end. The room where everyone feared to enter. The door itself was locked behind five layers of barricades. From within the room sat a man who many knew to fear and to never run in to. In the middle a grotesque man restrained by a straitjacket. Whatever little hair that he had left were relegated to small strands. The room was almost completely dark with the only coming from outside the room.

A grim smile, one that came from nightmares themselves was plastered on his face "My kindred spirit...no...my soulmate. He's out there and I am trapped in here - but which one of us is truly imprisoned?" he laughs quietly "He needs me...I need him. We were made for each other" the man chuckles.

From outside of the room and at the end of the hallway stood two people. A blonde woman dressed in a with glasses and a man dressed in a neat-suit. He was mostly bold with a grey receding hairline and wore glasses over his eyes. Quinsy Sharp looks to the woman as he shows clear signs of being annoyed "For the last time, No. You don't want to get close to that...thing in there" he warns the woman.

The blonde shrugs "He's a sick man. He needs help. Isn't that why we are here? First, he gets beaten up that whacko dressed like a Bat and now he is being locked up like he's an animal. If I can just get one session with him that will be all I need to make a clear diagnosis. He can be restrained if you are really that worried that I might a danger" the woman tries to reason.

Quinsy Sharp recoils at the woman's words. He looked almost offended by the woman's cavalier tone. Sharp took Harleen's words as naïve, like a child who would be only seeing the world in black and white and not the ominous tones of grey that he saw. "He's not a man...he's not even human. He's a monster. And I am ordering you to stay away from him unless that is you want to end up like the last girl that got close to him. He twisted her mind and made her bloody crazy and to top it all off...he shot her dead without a second thought. The poor girl" the man replies.

"Please, I need this! This could finally be the thing that makes my career, please. He can't be all bad, I'm sure that he can be a bit of a joker every now and them. Please, I just need one hour with him! I'm sure that I can get to the bottom of Jeremiah Valeska's mind " the blonde replies as she asks with a sincere tone. Holding her hands together.

"Do not say his name! Whoever Jeremiah once was...that has faded...and an even greater monster has formed...The staff here and even the patients treat him like the god damn bloody boogieman. They have all agreed on the unspoken rule of not saying his name..." the man replies with the clear signs of fear plaguing his words. Just thinking of that monster was enough to make his hands shake and to sweat. The woman's interest was only increased as she saw the signs of terror on her Quinsy's body language.

"What do they call him then?" Harleen asks slightly nervous.

"J. Nothing more and nothing less, though I've heard some alternatives from his fans" the man replies.

"Alright. If I were to agree to this, we will need to set some ground rules...even more than the other patients. We'll talk tomorrow. Night, Dr. Quinzel" the man turns and walks off down and turns a corner; leaving the blonde on her own. Her eyes peek over to the end of the hallway and to the forbidden door. She slowly walks up and crosses the red tape that showed the boundaries of the cell. She hunches closes to the window of the door to get a look into the room.

"Don't worry Mr. J. I will do my best to help you, I swear. Everyone sees you as a monster, but I see someone who is troubled and needs help. I promise I will do everything that I can to help you. You're not a monster to me...understand?" she asks. She sees the restrained man with his back to her. His head slightly lifts. The Doctor waits a few moments in hopes that she would get a response.

"Okay, then...I'll be seeing you tomorrow. I'm Quinzel, Dr. Harleen Quinzel and I hope to get to know you...maybe I can show them that you are not the monster that they make out to be. " once again she waited for a reply. And to her surprise, she finally got one. The man slightly turns his head but still not enough to give her a view of his face.

"Dear me my sweet Harleen...no...it doesn't quite have the same ring to it. Tell me, do you like being called Harley?" J simply asks her.

"Uh...I...do not know. I've almost been alone, but uh...you can do that if you...like?" Harleen nervously replies to the man's surprisingly smooth voice that was on point to be almost relaxing. It was strangely seductive, something that she liked and wanted to hear more of. She could not explain the feeling, but somehow talking to him felt...right. She just reveals her feelings of being lonely to him like she knew that she could trust him.
"Harley...now that has a nice ring to it...or am I easily impressed? No...that can't be it. Well, Harley...I look forward to our first session...I'll tries not to disappoint..." the man let lose a small series of faint laughs as he sees lightning strike once more and the flash from it lights up his face.

[Elsewhere]

"GCPD! Don't move!" Jim Gordon calls out as and Harvey barge through into the room holding the guns at the ready. They both look around the room and sees Oswald Cobblepot and what looked like four henchmen all tied together and hanging from the ceiling.

"Holy moly. Looks like our friend has been busy" Harvey observes.

Oswald looked over to them "Jim! Please get me out of here before he comes back!" he calls over.

"If this is tweedled dumb where is tweedled dee?" Harvey looks to Jim.

"I heard that! And FOR you Information Ed is most likely on the receiving end of a Batshit insane lunatic! How can you arrest me yet let that thing roam around Gotham!" Oswald growls.
"Unlike you. He's a man of few words" Gordon replies as he slides his gun back into his holster.

"Speaking of which. I got a few words for you...and spoiler alert! None of them are complimentary!" Cobblepot tries to struggle against the rope.

"This is great! Cobblepot is right here and our pal is about to take down Nygma! If this keeps up I may be able to start drinking before 5 again!" Harvey gave a chuckle.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that my friend! See Ed wouldn't have been sitting on his ass this whole time. His ego would never let him not challenge this so-called Dark Knight of Gotham! Most likely he has a plan to deal with your friend..." Oswald laughs "Ed has been planning all this time to kill that bat! And your dear friend is walking right into his trap!" he adds.

Across Gotham

From the rooftops, a shadow moves between buildings. Gliding between them and sometimes graplin over to the next one. Settling on a gargoyle that oversees the city. Rain hits hard down onto the buildings and streets as lightning strikes behind the dark knight. Lifting his hand to a button on his neck. The figure looks over to the edge of the city "Lucius, Stay on standby. I should be closing in on the Riddler...and after reading his file. I am damn sure that he knows that..." Batman leaps off of the gargoyle and expands his cape as he glides across the cityscape.

"Don't worry. Bruce. I've got your back" Lucius replies through the communicator. Gliding downward the dark knight lands on top of the two-story building. He looks around as he steadily begins to walk across the roof. His head suddenly turns as a green light turns on which captures him in its glow.

A man dressed in a green suit covered in question marks stood atop over the next building. Holding a cane in one hand with the tip being in the shape of a question mark. He steadily applauds the cloaked figure beneath him "Hmm. I knew that Oswald would sell me out to save his own hide, but he lasted three more seconds than I originally calculated" the man looked at the watch on his wrist as he gives an amused look over to the shadowy figure "Oh no, my watch is just a few seconds behind".

"Riddle me this, dark knight, what has two pointy ears, a cowl, and cape and is going to play my game?" the Riddler taps the cane against the roof as he smirks "I have been waiting to say that for so...long. You have no idea..."

"You must not have heard. I'm not into playing games" the Batman growls roughly as he walks towards the Riddler.

"You don't have a choice. See this platform that I am standing on?" the Riddler points to his feet where they were standing on a green circular plate "It's a pressure plate and the moment that I step off of it. Boom! The bombs that I have planted all over the city will go off that is...if you fail our little game, but If you can prove that you have the higher intellect by answering all three riddles correctly; The pressure plate will deactivate and you can take me back to Arkham!"

"What bombs? Where are they?!"

"Yeah...like I would tell you. Now I will show Gotham why no one makes a fool out of the Riddler! Win this game and guess all three Riddles correct, that's the only way to stop the bombs are if you are thinking about refusing to play. you'll have a three-minute time limit. I was originally going to make it just one minute, but I then realized that I like three more" The Riddler holds up his cane "Let's begin with a practice one just to get you in the mood! Riddle me this Dark Knight, how far can you run into a forest?"

"You really are insane. I am going to put a stop to this!"

"The Riddle! Answer it!" the Riddler spits.

Batman remained still as he looks up to the man in the green suit "Halfway, any further and you would be running out"

"Congratulations, world's greatest detective! Did you figure that one out all by yourself?" Riddler laughed as he spins the cane in his hand "Now let's begin the main event!"

Chapter End.