One of the biggest things I was going to miss, I reflected as I swam up through the murky waters of unconsciousness, was Bell's cooking. She'd said
that the breakfast she had prepared for me would 'help with the recovery' after I Gated, and it appeared she was right. I was still drained, but I
didn't feel like Loon Soup, more like a thick chunky stew. I took a deep breath to brace myself, and opened my eyes.
A looming sky was overhead, dark clouds reflecting the sullen light of a city. I did another physical check, and figuring I might as well, sat up. It
didn't hurt nearly as much as I expected.Looking around, I appeared to be on a common rooftop. Air exchangers poked their blunt snouts into the night air,
and a low retaining wall masked the city from me. I rolled over and began to lever myself to my feet, when a menacing roll of a voice froze me in a rather
awkward posture.
"Care to explain what you're doing in my city, stranger?"
I held my position for a moment while my mind raced. The unfamiliar voice was confident, aggressive, and firm. Obviously someone on his own turf, and secure in
his power.
"At the moment, standing up. Then I was planning on checking out my bike. From there, I'm not sure." I replied, inwardly pleased with the
stability I managed to put in my own voice. Bell's cooking helped a lot, but I was still as weak as the proverbial kitten. I resumed my movement, standing
slowly and keeping my hands in plain sight, and looked around me with more focus. As I scanned past a pool of darkness at the corner of a roof entrance, my
peripheral vision caught movement, and I looked straight at it, to see a cowled figure in light body armor step out of the concealing shadow.
"So you're saying that you appeared out of nowhere in a flash of light, in the middle of _my_ city, and you're 'not sure' why you're
here?" The menacing figure in black ground out. My mind had spun back up to full speed surprisingly fast, and I considered his language and body language
for the split second I had before my next move. While aggressive, and intimidating, my rooftop stranger had made no actual threats, unless I counted him
keeping his upper body concealed by his cape - which I thought was a very sound tactical idea. That fairly well dictated my next step.
"I'm afraid that's exactly correct, sir. If you'll permit, I'll right my bike, and get out my ID. It should help explain things. To start
with.. I'm not from around here." I finished my statement facing the man, who I had dubbed 'Mr. Spookypants', due to his predilection for
theatrics. He was starting to remind me of Chris, in fact, and I kept that in mind, given my initial meeting with that Guardian type..
Mr. Spooky nodded, one short chop of his square chin under the half-mask, and I followed through, slowly righting my bike and giving it a once-over, shutting
off the key and verifying that all the bits that were supposed to be on, were on. I turned to face Spooky again, and slowly went for my ID pocket, with the
police-approved two fingers. I opened the ID on my palm, and let it run through it's spiel. Mr. Spooky seemed interested, and I closed my ID with a snap
(that failed to startle him), and opened my face shield.
"My name is Douglas Q. Sangnoir, Sir, and I am not from this world, or even this dimension. Given that you're a 'good guy' here, I'm
pleased to meet you." And I extended my hand on the last beat. Mr. Spooky considered it for a moment, then extended his and shook my hand. His grip
matched the rest of his persona - firm and strong, without the knuckle-crusher that some men needed to prove themselves with. He release my hand and took a
step back.
"Welcome to my City, Mr. Sangnoir. For now, I'll take your word that you are who you say you are, so welcome to Gotham. I'm Batman."
"No can brain today. Want cheezeburger."
From NGE: Nobody Dies, by Gregg Landsman
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5579457/1/NGE_Nobody_Dies
that the breakfast she had prepared for me would 'help with the recovery' after I Gated, and it appeared she was right. I was still drained, but I
didn't feel like Loon Soup, more like a thick chunky stew. I took a deep breath to brace myself, and opened my eyes.
A looming sky was overhead, dark clouds reflecting the sullen light of a city. I did another physical check, and figuring I might as well, sat up. It
didn't hurt nearly as much as I expected.Looking around, I appeared to be on a common rooftop. Air exchangers poked their blunt snouts into the night air,
and a low retaining wall masked the city from me. I rolled over and began to lever myself to my feet, when a menacing roll of a voice froze me in a rather
awkward posture.
"Care to explain what you're doing in my city, stranger?"
I held my position for a moment while my mind raced. The unfamiliar voice was confident, aggressive, and firm. Obviously someone on his own turf, and secure in
his power.
"At the moment, standing up. Then I was planning on checking out my bike. From there, I'm not sure." I replied, inwardly pleased with the
stability I managed to put in my own voice. Bell's cooking helped a lot, but I was still as weak as the proverbial kitten. I resumed my movement, standing
slowly and keeping my hands in plain sight, and looked around me with more focus. As I scanned past a pool of darkness at the corner of a roof entrance, my
peripheral vision caught movement, and I looked straight at it, to see a cowled figure in light body armor step out of the concealing shadow.
"So you're saying that you appeared out of nowhere in a flash of light, in the middle of _my_ city, and you're 'not sure' why you're
here?" The menacing figure in black ground out. My mind had spun back up to full speed surprisingly fast, and I considered his language and body language
for the split second I had before my next move. While aggressive, and intimidating, my rooftop stranger had made no actual threats, unless I counted him
keeping his upper body concealed by his cape - which I thought was a very sound tactical idea. That fairly well dictated my next step.
"I'm afraid that's exactly correct, sir. If you'll permit, I'll right my bike, and get out my ID. It should help explain things. To start
with.. I'm not from around here." I finished my statement facing the man, who I had dubbed 'Mr. Spookypants', due to his predilection for
theatrics. He was starting to remind me of Chris, in fact, and I kept that in mind, given my initial meeting with that Guardian type..
Mr. Spooky nodded, one short chop of his square chin under the half-mask, and I followed through, slowly righting my bike and giving it a once-over, shutting
off the key and verifying that all the bits that were supposed to be on, were on. I turned to face Spooky again, and slowly went for my ID pocket, with the
police-approved two fingers. I opened the ID on my palm, and let it run through it's spiel. Mr. Spooky seemed interested, and I closed my ID with a snap
(that failed to startle him), and opened my face shield.
"My name is Douglas Q. Sangnoir, Sir, and I am not from this world, or even this dimension. Given that you're a 'good guy' here, I'm
pleased to meet you." And I extended my hand on the last beat. Mr. Spooky considered it for a moment, then extended his and shook my hand. His grip
matched the rest of his persona - firm and strong, without the knuckle-crusher that some men needed to prove themselves with. He release my hand and took a
step back.
"Welcome to my City, Mr. Sangnoir. For now, I'll take your word that you are who you say you are, so welcome to Gotham. I'm Batman."
"No can brain today. Want cheezeburger."
From NGE: Nobody Dies, by Gregg Landsman
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5579457/1/NGE_Nobody_Dies
![[Image: happy.gif]](http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/happy.gif)
