Prologue

The burning embers from the city rose to the air, permeating the black sky. Their light was the only thing to pierce the darkness of the ash. And atop one building, a lone figure sits, staring coldly into the abyss of destruction.

His fault.

This was his fault, wasn't it? This city had been torn to the ground because of...him. His failure. His...weakness. He winces at the thought of the word, knowing it to be true. If only he'd been faster that day…

No.

This is not his fault. How could it be? If wasn't his fault that they'd… No. He can't even bear to think of it. He looks to the sky in anguish, the moon's light just a blurry spot in the sky. His angered scream pierced the silent night, accompanied only by the faint ambience of crackling flames .

A single tear rolls down the figure's cheek as the same question tortures him again: even after this- all this- the burning hole in his chest is unsatisfied, the question eating away at his very soul:

"Was it worth it?"

Chapter 1

One year earlier…

Danny stared out into the cloudy blue sky with an expression of boredom, tapping his fingers against the armrest of his seat in a rhythmic pattern. The seat beside him was occupied by his sister, who was currently in a blissful sleep. Danny found himself growing envious over her ability to fall into unconsciousness in such an uncomfortable space, instead feeling the time stretch on endlessly as he stared out the window at the city surrounding them.

Gotham. Infamous home of Wayne Enterprises, 's, and, most importantly, the "Batman". Danny chuckled a bit to himself, finding the idea of a guy dressed up like a bat fighting crime more than amusing.

The unfathomably long car ride eventually drew to an end as they pulled to a stop in front a decent-sized building, a large sign stationed in the front that read the words 'Holiday Inn' in bright red, flashing letters. As his parents parked the car, Danny turned towards his sister and lightly shook her shoulder.

"Jazz, we're here! Wake up," Danny called quietly, watching as the older girl groggily blinked open her teal eyes and stared up at him with an uncomprehending, sleep-ridden gaze. She let out a tired groan and stretched away the stiffness that her muscles had gained from hours of being cramped in the small vehicle. A yawn escaped her lips as she stretched.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Get out!"

She kicked him, letting him fall out the half opened door, landing on his side.

Danny shot his sister a glare as he got up from the ground and dusted and himself off, sending the older girl into a fit of hysterical laughter. Danny rolled his eyes and pulled her out after him, getting a small shriek from her. She then toppled on top of him in an attempt to tackle him. His mother's teal eyes sparkled in amusement while she watched them through the rear view mirror, and she proceeded to chuckle as she got out the passenger seat.

"Okay, okay! Enough, you two! Let's get this adventure started!"

The two stopped wrestling at her words and they grinned eagerly, excitement bubbling in their chests. Vacation! They'd been planning to leave town for a while now, but something was always stopping them. Work and school got in the way every time, but now they had everything on hold to spend two weeks in Gotham. Of course, a city such as Gotham seemed like an odd place for a vacation, but it had been Jazz's idea. Mostly because of Batman.

The legend of the dark and mysterious figure had even reached their own small town a few times, where outside news wasn't common. Stories of not only a "Batman", but of crazy clown-people and little "Robins" that followed Batman around spread around Amity Park. Once, the rumors grew so intense that the mayor himself was forced to send a letter to the city of Gotham to confirm them. Despite a denial of the existence of a "Batman" from Gotham's mayor, a few small diehard believers still thought the legend true. Jazz, unfortunately, was one of them, and had begged their parents to bring them so that she could prove it so. Danny smiled at the whole idea, almost wanting to laugh at how ridiculous it was. More serious things nagged at the back of his mind, however.

Home. Now that he was out on vacation, there was no one there who was fully capable to protect it. There was always Sam and Tucker, who would undoubtedly watch over the town to the best of their abilities, but it was harder for someone without at least a ghost sense to know exactly where and and when there was trouble. Who knew what his villains might do without him to stop them?

Danny had never been away from Amity Park that long, and there was one nagging pest who kept coming to the forefront of his mind: Vlad. Leaving the town undefended for two weeks could spell a lot of trouble from the fruitloop, and he didn't want to take any chances. Danny could barely hold his own against the older male, let alone Sam and Tucker on their own. In the end, he had finally resolved to check in on the city during the middle of the night, when ever he was able to make the flight. He would stay long enough to make sure that all was well before returning and getting in as much sleep as possible, only until the rest of his family woke up. A risky plan, but the only one that he could settle on in the end.

Jack lifted the trunk of their car with ease, and the siblings raced to get the luggage. A few minutes later, they were hustling along towards the lobby, bags and suitcases in hand. As they approached the massive building, Danny marveled at his surroundings, the hotel grand in scale, with large, shining windows in abundance. As they swung the doors open, the fresh smell of disinfectant spray hit their noses, causing Danny to scrunch up his nose in distaste and let out sneeze.

"Let's go!" Maddie said with a smile, unable to reign in her excitement over the prospect of finally getting to spend a relaxing vacation with her family.

Jack's large figure towered over the oak-wood desk in the front lobby, and their family stood behind him as he signed in and conversed with the elderly man behind the desk. The hotel employee handed his father a slip of parchment paper with information on it, as well as a brochure, and Jack turned to face his family with an eager grin.

"Well, this has cost a good $140 already. Let's make it count!"

A young man in a an almost nauseatingly bright green suit approached them, pushing a bulky, golden luggage carrier in front as he loaded it with their bags and suitcases. The bellhop led them to their room, where he proceeded to hand them they're key card. He then bid them a farewell, and Jack handed the man a decent sized tip before they walked inside.

Jazz went straight to their bedroom to unload their luggage, while their parents went into the kitchen. Danny went to the living room and explored the rest of the area as he also helped to arrange some of their stuff around the room. And the man who took them to their room, a sinister smile on his face as he closed the door, went up the stairwell, an evil chuckle escaping his lips.

Danny groaned tiredly as he slumped in the uncomfortable sofa in the living room of their hotel room, a yawn escaping his lips. With half-lidded eyes, he curled up against the cushion of the couch, feeling sleep pulling the edges of his mind. Just as the ebony-haired boy was about to fall into unconsciousness, a voice pulled him away, accompanied by the presence of his mother.

"Danny, are you busy?" his mom asked him distractedly, nose buried in one of the brochures that they had received on the day of their check in. "They're having a tour in an about an hour at an art museum down the street. You'd love it!"

"Mom, can't you take Jazz? I'm kind of tired from being dragged around the mall all day yesterday." And from flying out to Amity last night, but she doesn't need to know that...

"Surprisingly, Jazz is spending the day with your father. Now get ready! I want a mother-son day today!" Maddie left the room with those parting words, leaving Danny to let out another groan and bury his face into the sofa in defeated acceptance.

Six days. Six days of flying back and forth at night and doing nothing but activity after activity during the day is all that it took to both mentally and physically exhaust the fourteen-year old. He was barely getting any sleep at night anymore, his returns slower from exhaustion, and when he did, it was only a couple of hours at a time. And while Danny was more than used to the lack of sleep, the constant stream of recreational acts in Gotham left him feeling even more exhausted than usual.

He groaned, rolling out of the bed in exhaustion. A loud has escaped his lips as he rubbed his eyes, now a nearly bloodshot red from the stress of being awake so long. The world was becoming a blur, and he was dizzy as he headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth. As he turned the knob, he fell forward, unable to keep his balance. His mother looked at him, head turned in confusion and concern.

"Danny? Danny, are you alright?"

All that came from his lips was a grunt. While his head throbbed from the impact, the floor suddenly didn't seem so uncomfortable. His eyes began to further shut, the world turning soft…

"Danny!"

Danny jerked awake, remembering that he was on a bathroom floor.

"Oh, uh, sorry mom."

only smiled gently and shook her head.

"That's fine, Danny. I can go by myself. Now get some sleep! I'll stop by the bank, go pick up your father and sister from the library, and then I'll come back and see if you're feeling up to it. Sound like a plan?"

Danny only nodded and muttered something abstract, somehow managing to drag himself back off of the floor and he reach the bed. He collapsed on top of the soft mattress before tugging the covers over his head. A chuckle escaped his mother's lips before she grabbed the keys and walked out of the room. Only vaguely aware of his mother's departure, it didn't take long for clawed hands of unconsciousness to drag him under, the raven-haired teenager slipping into blissful darkness.

Hey brother! There's an endless road to rediscover

Hey sister! Know the water's sweet but blood is thicker

Oh, if the sky comes falling down, for you

There's nothing in this world I wouldn't do

Maddie hummed along to the country song, sometimes singing quietly along with the lyrics at parts of the song that she actually knew. She concentrated on the road in front of her, stopping at a red light as she tapped her fingers to the beat of the song against the steering wheel.

Hey brother! Do you still believe in one another?

Hey sister! Do you still believe in love? I won-

The song was interrupted when her phone rang shrilly, effectively cutting off the song since her phone was connected to her car. She accepted the call immediately, reading off the contact name as Jazz.

"Hi, sweetie! How are thing going over there?"

"They didn't have the book I wanted, but I found a really cool one about the legend of the Batman!" Jazz chattered excitedly, and Maddie could imagine the eager glint that her daughter's teal eyes always held when she spoke of something that she was passionate about.

On the other side of the line, Jazz giggled a little, having already taken some peeks into the book. The Batman was everything she'd imagined and more! Flying, disappearing, fighting, he was the whole package for a hero. Only a few people, other than criminals, had ever witnessed him in action. But those that had had some amazing stories to tell. A shadow figure, quick as lightning and stronger than ten men.

"Jazz? You there, honey?"

Jazz's daydreaming came to a halt. She blinked and shook her head, crashing back to reality.

"Yeah, mom. What's up?"

"The art museum's having a wonderful event today! I was going to go with Danny, but he seems tired. So I was wondering if I could pick up you and your father and we could all go together?"

Jazz chewed her tongue in thought. She had her book, and she wasn't going anywhere special now.

"Sure, why not?"

"Great! I'll pick you guys up and we'll stop by the bank and be on our way!"

"Alright, mom. We'll be waiting out front."

"I'll be there in ten minutes."

True to her word, Maddie's silver sedan pulled to a stop in the front entrance of the library an exact ten minutes later. Jazz piled into the back seat of the car, while Jack's large form somehow managed to easily slide into the small passenger seat beside his wife.

The twenty-minute drive to the bank was filled with light chatter between husband and wife, while Jazz quietly started on her new book about the Batman and everything that he stood for.

Once the three finally arrived at 'Gotham Bank', they were able to quickly find a parking spot before they made their way to the large, revolving door that was stationed in the center of the massive building. The inside was crowded enough that the married couple had to wait in a decent-sized line, while Jazz proceeded to sit in one of their lobby chairs and continue reading.

The wait lasted for about an hour before they even got close to the front desk, until there was eventually only an elderly couple in front of them, conversing with the young, female bank teller.

Elsewhere…

Bruce stared at the screen, wide-eyed. It had been an agonizing week of painful observations. The new gang, known only as "The Zodiac", had been on the rise recently, and they were like nothing he'd ever seen before. Four kidnappings, six murders, and nearly eight robberies. The strangest part being that they had no patterns, and left no traces. The only reason anyone knew they existed was their calling card, a bold print Z on a blank sheet of paper. A member had been caught for the first time yesterday, and after a brutal interrogation, had confessed that there would be another robbery today. Trouble was, the man had passed out before revealing which bank.

So here he was, reviewing the past robberies, attempting to find some pattern. So far, he had only one lead: the bank members. They only seemed to attack banks that had members with some sort of connection to them. For example, the Gotham People's Bank was robbed after a member had called the police on them. A Wells Fargo had been robbed after addressing the issue of beefing up security. That left about two options: Rockefeller International Bank and Gotham City Business Affairs bank. GCBA's chairman had also mentioned making the banks more, specifically against The Zodiac. RIB, however, had a member in the police force, who had helped arrest a member of The Zodiac. It wasn't hard, they would be more likely to go after RIB….

He got up from his chair, decision made.

Hey everybody! Kinzy and Cam here! Welcome to our coauthor! Enjoy, and leave some reviews, so we can stop being silly and get better!

~SweetyKinz and Dr. camfiction~