I just found this on my computer and figured I'd share. This is the opening scene for our Dark Knight Returns-esk storyline we started that never really took off. A real shame too, it had a lot of potential.
A gray haired Bruce Wayne stands on a hill overlooking Gotham Cemetery. He rubs his
worn hands together trying to stop the ache of arthritis. The Fall sky is overcast with storm clouds in the distance. Thunder echoes far off into the early morning sky.
He stares at a large funeral below, taking place not far from the large monuments of Thomas and Martha Wayne.
A silver coffin, with a large American flag drapped over it sits surrounded by over one hundred mourners.
Bruce watches on as several marines give a 21 gun salute. A gray haired older man with wire frame glasses and a brown trench coat walks up beside him. Neither men speak a word for several moments until the older man reaches in his front pocket and pulls out a pack of marlboros. He shakes the pack and and offers one to Bruce.
Bruce shakes his head no. The old man shrugs and lights one for himself and takes a long hard drag on it. "Ahh. Nothing like a good smoke. Been a while."
"I thought you gave those up." Bruce said is eyes never unmoving from the the funeral below.
The man stares ahead puffing on his cigarette. "I did. But there's not much point to in now. Is there?"
"I guess not." Bruce said lowering his gaze, staring at the damp grass at his feet.
"I'm sorry Jim. I know I let you down."
Jim Gordon takes one last drag from his cigarette then drops to the ground crushing it with his boot. "Well you know Bruce........bad things happen."
Bruce shakes his head. "I should have been there. I should have told you who I was a long time ago. Maybe then.....things could have been different."
Gordon lifts his hand and gently places it on Bruce's shoulder. "Really Bruce, it's okay. You can't save everyone." The two men stand in silence for several minutes as the flag is folded and placed in the hands of a crying woman in a wheel chair.
"Do you think Barbara will be okay?" Bruce asks.
With a smile and a tear in his eye Gordon nods his head. "She's tough. She'll be just fine. Just the same though.......keep an eye on her will you?"
The two watch for a few more minutes as the casket is lowered.
"Well......I guess it's about that time." Jim said with a slight smile. "Got some old friends waiting for me."
Bruce Wayne turned and outstretched his hand. "Goodbye Jim. My friend. My partner."
Jim reached out and gripped Bruce's hand with both of his one last time.
He nodded and walked away. Bruce watched him go, before turning his gaze to the emptying funeral below.
When everyone was gone he walked down the hill to the grave. He reaches inside his trench coat and withdrew a single red rose. He holds it up to his nose and then gently drops it into the deep hole to the waiting casket below. As he walks away he turns and looks at the tombstone one last time.
Here Lies
James Gordon
Beloved Father, Mayor, and Friend
Murdered October 16, 2009
Gone but not Forgotten
Tears fill his eyes, "I'm sorry I wasn't there old friend."
He glances back to the top of the hill. Jim Gordon stands waving with a smile on his face. He becomes less and less visible until he fades away completely. The storm clouds are much closer now. A familiar voice in an english accent sounds behind him. "A storm is coming Master Bruce. The end is near......."
Bruce turns expecting to see the friendly face of his old friend and butler Alfred, but instead finds an empty dark alley. A young couple step out of a door way with a small child between them. A dark monstrous figure steps out of the shadows. Three shots sound, a woman screams, pearls scatter across the ground.
Bruce Wayne screams in rage and runs to his parents side. As he turns his father over he see's it's not the face of his father at all, but the acid burned face of his old friend Harvey Dent. He looks at his mother and sees the anguished eyes of a paralyzed Barbara Gordon. His younger self also lies dead on the bricked alley floor. Bruce turns him over to see the disfigured, scarred face of Tim Drake, his last Robin. Bruce stands shaking his head in disbelief.
The gunman turns the gun on him and steps closer where Bruce can make out his face. To his absolute horror he sees a mirror image of himself smiling back at him with a devilish grin.
Bruce takes several steps back and slips on the wet alley floor falling hard. He looks down at his bruised knees and realizes he is now his younger ten year old self. The monster stares at him with those empty soulless eyes. "You did this Bruce! You did this!" The monster screams into his face. "You're unwillingness to do what needed to be done has lead to the pain and suffering of all of those around you!"
Bruce watches on in horror as the face begins to transform into the bloodied image of Jason Todd. His former Robin. A deranged Todd reaches down and picks the young Bruce Wayne off the ground and holds him by his collar face to face, Bruce's feet dangle high above the ground. "Why Bruce! Why? Why didn't you kill him after what he did to me!?"
"It's all your fault!" Todd screams dropping him to the ground.
Bruce turns to run, but finds the only way out is now completely blocked by a large group of figures. One by one they step forward into the light. The giant beast of a man Bane cracks his large knuckles. The Penguin toasts him with a glass of champagne. Two Face flips a coin. Hush runs a scalpel across his thumb drawing a thin bead of blood. The Riddler effortlessly working a crossword puzzel lifts his head and tilts his hat towards him. The ancient Ras Al Ghul lifts his sword cane up to his head with a salute. Killer Croc licks the blood of a recent kill off his lips before smiling with his gigantic teeth. Black Mask's souless dark eyes stare at Bruce unmoving. Jason Todd walks around Bruce and stands alongside his enemies. He pulls a Blood, Red hood from his back pocket and slips it over his head.
Bruce looks down now to see that he is in his very first Batsuit. He looks down to see that his hands are now old and withered. He reaches back for his batarang in his belt but fumbles with it dropping it to the ground.
The thunder grows louder and louder until it takes on the sound of something else entirely. Laughter. Uncontrolable, hysterical, utterly insane laughter.
As the last figure steps out into the light and Bruce see's the painted pale, derranged face of a laughing Joker, a hand reaches out and touches on Bruce's shoulder.........
Bruce Wayne jerks awake grabbing the hand shaking his shoulder, twisting it sharply and tossing his assailant over his shoulder onto the floor. Bruce jumps on top of his opponent, his fist held high ready to strike. "Bruce! Stop! It's me, Dick!"
Bruce stares at the man beneath his foot for a few seconds shaking his head trying to clear it. The man's face seeminly changes before his eyes from the smiling sadistic face of the Joker, to the alarmed face of his old friend Dick Grayson. Bruce steps off of Dick's chest and leans on the large table next to him panting. He takes a quick look around checking his surroundings. 'Back in the cave' he thinks to himself.
Dick Grayson leaps to his feet effortlessly and dusts his three piece Armani suit off. He straghtens his tie. "Nice to see you too."
Bruce reaches over and with his shaking hands grabs a bottle of prescription pills off the table and pops the lid off. He downs several of the pills before dropping back into his large leather office chair.
"Damn Bruce, you don't look so good. Hell you're still half way into your suit. When's the last time you slept?"
Bruce Wayne looks down at the scarred batsuit still on his chest. Only his boots, gauntlets, and cowl have been removed. He runs his hands through his long sweat soaked gray hair. "What do you want Dick?"
Dick Grayson walks a few steps closer to his old mentor. "I came to talk about a few things.
Bruce leans back closing his eyes tight and rubs his temples with his hand. "I'm kind of busy Dick, get to the damn point."
"Well it's just that....Look, we saw you at Jim's funeral yesterday, and Talia and I got worried. You don't look too good."
Bruce Wayne stiffled a laugh. "So you and my wife......" "Ex wife." Dick interrupted. "She's my wife now Bruce."
"Right. You and my EX wife, are now concerned with my well being? That's rich."
"If you were really concerned you wouldn't have stolen my company AND my wife out from under me. If you were really concerned.........Dick. You would suit up and help me find the son of a bitch that killed Jim Gordon. You remember him don't you? The Mayor of Gotham City........ your friend! The father of your first true love Barbara."
Dick Grayson shook his head, "You know I can't do that! You know I swore to never wear the suit again after.....after what happened to Tim...... And as for Barbara you leave her out of this!"
"Remember Bruce it was you that made me CEO after Lucius retired. It was you that drove Talia away! Don't lay these things at my feet. You did this all to yourself. You let this obsession drive everyone you cared about away! Why Bruce? Why? You can't save them all. All you're doing is hurting those around you."
Bruce leaned forward in his chair and stared at his former partner."What happened to Tim was...tragic....but he chose that path alone!"
Dick shook his head in disbelief. "You were gone! It was my job to take care of him! Azrael did more harm than good! and...and.....Tim was just a boy, when the Venom corrupted his mind....I can't do it! I can't live that life anymore!"
Dick Grayson walked away from Bruce toward a large ledge and peered over the side. "I......I....I didn't want it to be like this. You're......you're the closest thing I have to a father Bruce."
In a flash Bruce Wayne was on his feet holding Dick over the ledge by his collar. "You took everything away from me! Don't you see! Talia was MY wife! And you took her from me! And you come to MY home and call ME Father!"
A familiar, english accent voice sounds from behind him. "Stop this! Both of you!" A gray haired Alfred stands leaning on a cane staring at both men.
Bruce Wayne pulls Dick away from the ledge and tosses him aside. "Get out....and don't bother coming back. You are dead to me. You will never again call me friend, partner, and you sure won't ever call me Father again. I'm changing the security codes...next time you enter this cave..you won't be leaving...at least not in one piece."
Dick straightened his suit again. "If that's how it has to be. Than so be it. One more thing. We're stopping all development into your advanced sciences division. From now on your on your own. No more cars. No more suits. No more gadgets. It's time to STOP Bruce. Give it up. It's time for a new Batman."
Bruce turned his back on his old friend. Dick turns and walks out. "Take care of yourself Alfred." he says laying a gentle hand on the old butler's shoulder. "And take care of him. You're all he has left. He's just a selfish old man now." With that he walks out of the cave. Bruce looks down at his shaking hands and walks over to the large glass case holding Dick's Robin costume. He slams his fist through the glass shattering it. He grabs the suit and squeezes it tight in his hands before tossing it over the ledge into the deep chasm below.
Alfred shakes his head. "Why must you two fight like this Master Bruce? You know why Ms. Ghul left. You can't live in a marriage where your partner never sleeps by your side. Where every night you live in fear if your husband will even come home. Master Grayson was there for her, you weren't."
Bruce's eyes stare at his oldest friend before lowereing to the floor. "She knew what she was getting into when she said 'I do' I just don't understand Alfred..Why did it have to be him? Of all the men in all of the world, she picks him."
Alfred walks over and lays a towel on Bruce's bleeding hand. "Love is blind Master Bruce. You should know that better than anyone. How many times did you look past the sins of Ms. Selina Kyle....
"That's enough Alfred....lets not bring Selina into this..it's just.....I had such great plans for that boy."
"That may be Master Bruce. But did you ever think just maybe the lad had plans of his own. He's come a long way from the boy in tights. He's become a very successful businessman. As CEO he's taken Wayne Enterprises further than your father ever could have envisioned. The most successful company in the world. With Ms.Ghul's help he even managed to buy out the remnants of LexCorp. He's a man now, a very good man, and has been for a very long time."
"You can't do this alone Master Bruce. Have you ever considered that maybe Master Grayson is right? That perhaps it is time for a new Batman."
Bruce stares at his bloodied hand. "Every day Alfred. Every single day.,,,, Barely above a whisper he says "But the man that was supposed to take over just walked out of the room....." then with a smile he says, "But I'm not alone Alfred. I have you......"
Alfred returns a saddened smile. "That my lad, is what breaks my heart the most...."
It's been a long long time, but I wanted any former Gotham Club members to make themselves known in here and maybe we can talk about all the good times we had. Just say which characters you played and give a brief introduction if you want XD