The Knight Who Fled in Panic

The Gargoyle beneath Chu Men's feet exploded into a cloud of stone dust.

Chu Men vanished from the spot.

Batman reacted instantly. He had already run through dozens of countermeasures in his head.

The Kryptonite ray in his left hand surged to full power, sending a green beam of high-energy light straight ahead.

With his right hand, he drew three Batarangs, ready to cut off Chu Men's path.

Bang!

Chu Men smashed straight through the fluorescent green beam.

The Kryptonite radiation struck him without so much as disturbing a crease in his clothes.

He pushed through the green light and appeared before Batman. The distance between them vanished.

Danger warnings flashed red across Batman's lenses.

He tried to retreat, but his legs could not keep up with Chu Men's speed.

Chu Men raised his right hand and slapped him across his masked face.

Batman instinctively threw up both arms. The specialized armor on his bracers overlapped to shield his head and chest.

The composite material could withstand close-range fire from a high-caliber sniper rifle.

Crack.

The armored bracers Batman had trusted caved in and snapped.

The specialized ballistic ceramic shattered. The force passed through the armor and into the bones of his arms.

A string of fractures cracked through the air.

The slap lifted Batman clean off his feet.

He flew downward at an angle, his back smashing through the glazed tiles atop the clock tower.

Broken tiles and wooden beams fell with him.

Boom!

Batman crashed into the clock tower's main chamber below.

Dong—!

The deep, enormous toll echoed over Gotham City.

A human-shaped dent appeared in the brass bell.

Batman slid off the bell and slammed onto the stone floor amid dust and splintered wood.

His battle armor was wrecked. The Miniature Reactor on his left arm had burst open and was belching black smoke.

He opened his mouth, and blood poured out, dripping down his chin onto his black suit.

The impact had jarred his organs out of place. Both arms hung limp at his sides, useless.

Dust filled the bottom of the clock tower.

Batman lay at the bottom of the crater, his left arm bent backward.

Cracks covered his armor. Blood ran down his chin and into the hollow of his collarbone.

Wind rushed through the hole.

Chu Men descended through it and stopped half a meter above the floor, his hands in his pockets.

"Kryptonite? Creative name." Chu Men landed. "Try a different color next time. That green looks awful."

Batman gritted his teeth and reached for his Utility Belt with his right hand.

Three silver spheres flew from his hand and struck the stone floor.

Pop.

Thick smoke spread. Laced with lead powder to block vision that could see through walls, it could also render any thermal imager useless.

Lead really could block his sight. Chu Men stared at the smoke without moving.

Batman pressed against the mossy stone wall, edging toward the archway on the right.

"Hide-and-seek?"

Chu Men stepped over the rubble.

Batman pressed a button on the side of his belt.

Emitters sprang open on his armor's shoulders, flooding the area with high-frequency infrasound from every direction.

Tuned to the inner ear's balance organs, it could make an elephant dizzy and sick in a second.

A low hum resonated through the air.

Chu Men frowned and dug his right pinkie into his ear.

"Too loud."

Red light gathered. Two beams pierced the smoke and sliced through Batman's shoulder armor.

Sizzle.

The emitters melted into liquid metal. Heat spread through the armor, making Batman's shoulder muscles spasm. The infrasound stopped.

He staggered against the wall and reached for his belt again.

Two metal spheres rolled to Chu Men's feet.

Liquid Nitrogen Grenades.

Click.

A freezing blast engulfed the surrounding area.

The temperature plunged to a hundred degrees below zero. White frost crept across the floor tiles, freezing Chu Men's lower body solid.

Batman braced his left hand against the wall and fired a grappling hook with his right.

Crack.

Chu Men casually lifted a leg. The ice encasing his legs shattered into powder and fell to the floor.

"You've got some fun stuff in that belt."

Batman stared at the unharmed Chu Men, his chest heaving harder.

Is that Superman in Metropolis as strong as this monster?

Batman drew three Batarangs, blue arcs dancing along their edges.

He turned and hurled them with all his strength. The Batarangs tore through the air toward Chu Men's face.

Chu Men raised his right hand and caught them between his index and middle fingers.

The three electrified metal Batarangs were crushed together. Blue current crackled across the back of his hand.

"Keep your toys to yourself."

Chu Men tightened his fingers.

The alloy Batarangs crumbled into metal dust and fell to the floor.

Batman had never expected the Batarangs to hurt him. As he threw them, he pressed a hidden switch in the emblem on his chest.

The powerful searchlight atop the clock tower overloaded. Blinding white light lit up the night sky and shone straight into Chu Men's eyes.

Chu Men did not even blink. Artificial light that weak meant nothing to him.

As the light flared, Batman smashed through a stained-glass window and rolled out of the tower.

Chu Men walked to the window.

A dead-end alley lay below. Dragging his broken arm, Batman stumbled toward the sewer manhole at its far end.

Every step left another pool of blood.

Chu Men leaned against the windowsill. Heat gathered in his eyes.

He watched Batman bend down and pry at the heavy cast-iron manhole cover with one hand.

Two red beams shot from Chu Men's eyes and skimmed across Batman's back.

Hiss.

His bulletproof cape caught fire and burned to ash.

The heat swept over the armor on his back, leaving a charred mark.

Batman grunted and fell into the muddy water. Gritting his teeth, he hooked his right hand under the manhole cover and pulled it open a crack.

He did not look back up. He knew that if Chu Men had wanted to kill him, he would have died a hundred times over by now.

Chu Men was toying with him like a cat with a mouse.

Batman dragged himself into the sewer.

Only the sound of rain washing away blood remained in the alley.

Chu Men watched the manhole cover without moving.

If he crushed the bat on the first day, it would be far too boring.

Chu Men turned, flew through the hole in the clock tower's roof, and vanished into the stormy night.