<div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;"><span class="bbc_u"><strong>Arms and Espionage</strong></span></span></div><hr/><div class="floatleft">(https://i.pinimg.com/736x/3e/bf/a3/3ebfa3d0a6b84b11765aad83c2d496d4.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong>Batman (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=276885.msg13605226#msg13605226)<br/><strong>Location:</strong>Arizona, USA — "American AAE" weapons manufacturing plant<br/><strong>Date/Time:</strong>Oct. 25, 2017 - 0300<br/><strong>Tagging:</strong>Zatan (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=276885.msg13602880#msg13602880)<br/><strong>Content:</strong><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Classic Stealth Action</div><div class="spoiler_body">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAioZzuhOQg</div></div><hr/>It was a good thing that Zatan had brought them to the roof without prompting, because Batman—for the first time since being trained in ninjutsu—broke his silence without meaning to.<br/><br/>"Shit."<br/><br/>Instantly, he grabbed hold of Zatan and pulled him down to the floor. He'd know that mask anywhere. It'd damn-near been the last thing he'd ever seen on more than one occasion. Bane had crippled him for months. The Joker had nearly driven him mad on several occasions. But<em>him</em>? He was at the top of a<em>very </em>small list of people that Batman considered deadly adversaries. Just a single run-in, years ago when the two of them first met, had resulted in a shattered ulna and a near-death experience. It had taken the combined forces of Nightwing, Robin and what was left of himself to keep him from detonating a bomb in Gotham City Stadium.<br/><br/>That had been their<em>first</em>encounter. It wouldn't be their last—or even the most dangerous. Slade Wilson was a viscous mercenary with incredible training and superhuman durability. Either one of those things by itself, Batman could easily handle. Together, though, they made an incredibly formidable opponent. Throw in years of experience in wetwork, black ops and mercenary contracts, and Deathstroke might just have been the deadliest human in the world.<br/><br/>Walking into this fortress without knowing he was involved in its operation was absolutely<em>inexcusable</em>.<br/><br/>Over the lip of the roof, he could see Deathstroke standing silently in the center of the platform. If there had been any question what the object was a minute ago, it was answered. Clearly, it was some type of teleportation platform. Another inexcusable lack of information—devices that dangerous and complex needed to be accounted for wherever they popped up. The Justice League couldn't afford any unexpected visitors popping up on the table during dinner.<br/><br/>All in all, this mission had gone from bad to worse in less than a minute, and it didn't show any signs of slowing down.<br/><br/>After a moment, Deathstroke seemed satisfied with whatever had caused him to pause. He walked off to the left of the platforms, opened a door, and vanished from view. The soldiers hadn't even hesitated in their duties. There hadn't been any pomp or circumstance. Nobody shouted "officer on the deck!" or even seemed to acknowledge beyond avoiding his gaze. There was no doubt that he was a big player, but the lack of subordination didn't sit well with Batman. Did it mean there was somebody else here calling the shots?<br/><br/>Was Deathstroke just a hired gun for somebody far more sinister?<br/><br/>Batman was all too aware of Zatan lying right next to him, also peering over the edge of the roof. Master of Magic he may be, but there was no way he'd be able to stand up against Deathstroke in a straight fight. That was something<em>he</em>could barely do. If this mission went badly, Zatan would be in an inordinate amount of danger, surrounded by heavily trained mercenaries armed with equipment Deathstroke would have mandated personally. One hit in the throat; one swift kick to the abdomen; one trigger pulled a fraction of a second too fast, and Zatan would be dead before he hit the ground. And that was assuming Batman was able to deal with Slade by himself.<br/><br/>That was an unacceptable risk. Zatan was too important to the League to gamble on a mission like this.<br/><br/>Still, somebody had to investigate this place. There was only one location that those weapons could have come from. And now that Deathstroke had been seen here, there was reason to think he was in charge of the militants who had assaulted Metropolis. There was no walking away from this mission. If that meant Batman had to go in without backup, then that's just how it would have to be.<br/><br/>Slowly, Batman slid himself back from the edge of the roof. "Go home," he said after Zatan followed suit. "Back to the Watchtower."