Freshman

Three years have passed since Jordan and his mother was "rescued" by the mysterious Dark Knight. Since that day, the boy has changed and not in a good way. He started training in the martial arts, working out, spending less time with his friends to work on a project, and visiting his mother in the hospital every day. All he can feel and see is rage and today will be the first time that Gotham has something to fear in the last few years. Now, Jordan picks up a tray in his middle school's cafeteria and enters the lunch line. He stays in that line for a few minutes until he reaches the front of the line.

"Will it be mystery meat or sloppy joes?" asked the lunch lady.

"Sloppy joes," said Jordan.

"Aww. You never try the mystery meat," said the lunch lady.

"I don't want to end up in the hospital," said Jordan.

"Come on. It's not that bad," said the lunch lady.

"Maybe next time, Jill," said Jordan.

"Alright," said the lunch lady.

The lunch lady picks up a sloppy joe and places it on the boy's tray. The boy exits the line and walks towards an empty lunch table. He takes a seat but doesn't start eating. He just looks around at everyone else enjoying their mediocre lunches.

"This is Brooks Middle School. Just another garbage middle in this garbage city. Tonight will be different. I will fix this corrupt city. Maybe I can become a member of the Batfamily if I impress Batman. That would be cool," said Jordan.

"Is that Jordan King?" asked Hector.

"I haven't heard that name in such a long time. Maybe it's because he just ignores that his friends even exist," said Darius.

Jordan looks up and sees his chubby Latino friend and lanky black buddy standing in front of his lunch table.

"Who are you guys again?" asked Jordan.

"Has he forgotten his two amigos already? Are we not popular enough for our resident basketball star?" asked Darius.

"Enough. The joke is no longer funny," said Jordan.

"Can we sit here and enjoy lunch with our local celebrity?" asked Hector.

"Sure," said Jordan.

The boy's two amigos sit down next to him.

"So, why have you been avoiding us?" asked Darius.

"Does it look bad for a jock to hang out with some nerds?" asked Hector.

"I only joined the team so Ryder and his goons could get off my back," said Jordan.

"So, ignoring your friends would get the bullies off your back? Not cool," said Hector.

"I've also been working on something different," said Jordan.

"What is this something?" asked Darius.

"None of your business," said Jordan.

"Relax. There's no need to be hostile," said Darius.

"I'm not being hostile. You're just annoying me," said Jordan.

"So, do you want us to leave? Are we not worth your time?" asked Hector.

"What do you want from me? I have the stuff to do. I am not obligated to hang out with you guys," said Jordan.

"But, we're supposed to be friends. You have to at least pretend to care," said Darius.

"Did you just come here to annoy me or chat?" asked Jordan.

"Maybe we don't even want to associate with you. Let's go, Darius. He isn't worth our time," said Hector.

The boy's two former amigos get up and leave him. He stares at them as they move to a different table with the rest of the school's nerds.

"They wouldn't understand what I'm getting myself into. Hopefully, they don't hate me," thought Jordan.

"It looks like you lost the only two friends you ever had. How sad?" said Ryder.

Jordan turns around and sees Ryder and his goons standing next to his table. Their usual cocky smirks lie on their faces.

"What do you want, Ryder?" asked Jordan.

"I just saw how you lost your pathetic little friends. I would have started laughing, but I didn't want to ruin the mood," said Ryder.

"Did you only come here to gloat? You can leave because no one cares about your opinion," said Jordan.

"What did you say, nerd?" asked Ryder.

"You heard what I said," said Jordan.

Ryder swipes Jordan's tray off of the table in anger after his authority has been questioned by his prey.

"You shouldn't have done that," said Jordan.

"What are you going to do about it?" asked Ryder.

"This," said Jordan.

Jordan proceeds to punch Ryder in the same spot that he did three years before. The punch is way stronger than before and completely shatters his nose. The bully falls to the ground in too much pain to continue to fight.

"That's for constantly harassing me and sending those Mutant goons to attack me and my mother," said Jordan.

"Bro, are you ok?" asked Ryder's goon.

"Just get that bastard," said Ryder.

"On it," said Ryder's goon.

One of Ryder's goons tries to punch Jordan, but he easily dodges the punch and knees him in the stomach. He then headbutts him and knocks him unconscious. The other goon tries to hop in, but Jordan jumps into the air and kicks the goon in the face, causing him to fall to the ground. The second goon tries to get back up and he just gets stepped on and knocked out. The people in the cafeteria are just shocked.

"Does anyone else have something to say!" exclaimed Jordan.

The students in the cafeteria don't respond and start eating faster than ever before. Everyone is scared of the boy, even his friends. Jordan quickly walks towards the exit of the cafeteria and opens the large red doors. He takes a large breath of the fresh air and he cools off.

"Forget school. I have stuff to do," said Jordan.

Two hours pass. Jordan walks off the bus and walks to the entrance of the hospital. He enters it and walks up to the receptionist. It's an older lady that is not fond of her job. She slowly looks up with a bored expression and addresses the boy.

"You again? Do you have anything better to do?" asked the receptionist.

"No," said Jordan.

"Ok then. She's still in room 206. Still haven't woken up yet. May never will," said the receptionist.

"She will. Bruce Wayne has too much money for her not to," said Jordan.

"Why did that Bruce kid decide to help you two? He doesn't even know you," said the receptionist.

"He does things that many people will never know the reasoning about. I understand why, but you never will," said Jordan.

Jordan walks away from the desk and walks towards the elevator. He reaches it in a few slow strides and presses the up button. The doors open and he enters the elevator. He presses the two-button and the elevator's door closes and he ascends to the second floor. He reaches the second floor, walks out, and slowly walks towards his mother's room. He makes it to the room and enters it. He sees his mother, resting in the same position as usual. He takes a seat next to her bed and signs in relief.

"I'm glad to see that you're still here. I miss you. Even though I see you every day. When you do wake up, I'll be here for you. I will take care of you. Teach you how to walk and do other things like a good son. I'm sorry that you're in this state. It's my fault of course, but I hope that you forgive me because I will never forgive myself. I can't talk for long because I have things to do tonight. You always joked about me getting off my lazy butt and getting a job sometime in the future and I have one now. Hopefully, it's permanent. I will love to do it forever. I'm kind of crazy. Good night, mom. I'll see you tomorrow. Tonight, I become a man," said Jordan.

Four hours pass. Jordan now grabs a couple needles and starts to sow an interesting costume. The month is May, but he seems to be making a Batman-themed costume. He continues to knit until he sees something in the sky. He places his suit on the table and walks over to the window. He looks through it and sees the bat signal.

"It's my time," said Jordan.

Jordan grabs his costume and quickly puts it on. It is a simple costume. A large bat symbol lies in the center of the costume. Most of the suit is grey except for the black cape, black hood, black gloves, black boots, black knee pads, and black elbow pads. He places a bat-shaped mask on his face that only covers his eyes, but he places his hood over his head, concealing his identity. He places his gadgets into the thick grey utility belt and places them on his waist. Jordan lifts the window and slowly exits his apartment. He then pulls out his grappling hook and grapples to another building. He lands on the rooftop and jumps from rooftop to rooftop towards the GCPD building.

"This is way more fun than last time. Practice does make perfect," said Jordan.

Thirty minutes pass. Commissioner Gordan sits on the rooftop of the GCPD headquarters, waiting for someone to show up.

"What is taking him so long? He's usually on time," said Gordon.

"Are you referring to the Batman?" asked Jordan.

Gordon turns around and sees the newest vigilante on the block looking at him from the top of the entrance to the GCPD via the rooftop.

"Who are you?" asked Gordon.

"I'm new in town," said Jordan.

"Do you work with Batman?" asked Gordon.

"Not officially, but I want to put criminal scum in cells," said Jordan.

"I like to hear that. So, there's a robbery at Ace Chemicals. We don't know who's partaking in the robbery, but they're there for something. Stop them," said Gordon.

"I won't let you down, Jim," said Jordan.

"What's your name, kid," said Jim.

"Call me, Barbatos," said Jordan.

"Barbatos, take them down and bring them to justice," said Jim.

"I will," said Jordan.

Jordan pulls out his grappling hook and grapples away from the GCPD headquarters.

"So, you let that kid go to Ace Chemicals and get himself into danger," said Batman.

"I knew that you would come. He has nothing to worry about," said Jim.

"What's his name?" asked Batman.

"He said 'call him Barbatos'," said Jim.

"The bat god huh? That's pretty original," said Batman.

"He's inspired by you," said Jim.

"I know," said Batman.

"Then, go make sure he doesn't get hurt," said Jim.

"I will," said Batman.

Batman pulls out his grappling hook and grapples away from the GCPD headquarters. On the other side of Gotham a few minutes later, Jordan gets close to reaching Ace Chemicals. Before he can hop onto the next rooftop, he hears someone behind him. He tries to kick the person behind him, but the person grabs his leg.

"Whoa there, buddy. I'm an ally," said Robin.

"Robin? The boy wonder? I should have predicted that you would come," said Jordan.

"You must be the new guy that Batman told me about," said Robin.

"Batman knows that I exist? That's so cool," said Jordan.

"So, you're a fanboy, huh?" asked Batgirl.

Jordan trunks around and sees Batgirl standing behind him.

"You came too? I must be dreaming," said Jordan.

"You're not. We came to help," said Robin.

"I didn't ask for any," said Jordan.

"You will need some. You're still a rookie. This is your first day out," said Robin.

"It's probably Penguin and his goons. There's nothing to worry about," said Jordan.

"We need to work together. Working as a group can help us get the job done quicker," said Batgirl.

"I know, but I want to prove myself," said Jordan.

"You can be the lead. We will back you up," said Robin.

"Wait, what?" asked Batgirl.

"If the kid wants to prove himself, let him then. He won't be able to prove that he's a hero if we do all of the work for him," said Robin.

"You know I'm older than you right?" asked Jordan.

"You don't know how old I am," said Robin.

"You're 13 and Batgirl's 21. Your identities aren't hidden that well," said Jordan.

"You're bluffing. You don't know who we are," said Batgirl.

"I'm a big fan of Batman. I'm intelligent and very observant, so am I bluffing, Barbara Gordon?" said Jordan.

"No way," said Barbara.

"That's scary," said Robin.

"There's no need to be afraid, Dick. Only criminals should be scared of Barbatos," said Jordan.

Jordan hops off the rooftop and glides towards the chemical plant, leaving the two sidekicks shocked.

"I think Bruce will like him," said Dick.

"Yeah, he will," said Barbara.

Inside of the chemical plant, multiple criminals move large canisters of chemicals into a truck. Jordan slowly crawls through a vent and reaches the end of it. He quietly opens the vent and exits the ventilation shaft. He crouches and slowly moves through the chemical plant until he sees the man or reptile behind the heist, Killer Croc.

"Hurry up. We have to get out of here quickly before the bat shows up," said Killer Croc.

"He won't be coming tonight, but he's not needed. I can take you down with ease," said Jordan.

The overgrown crocodile looks up and sees Jordan standing on the railing of the second-floor platform.

"Who are you supposed to be?" asked Killer Croc.

"I'm new in town. You're going to be the first supervillain that I take down, so I won't hurt you too much," said Jordan.

"Do you think that a pipsqueak like yourself can beat me, then you must be crazier than the Joker. Get him, boys," said Killer Croc.

The croc's goons aim and fire at the young vigilante. Jordan easily dodges the gunfire as he flips and jumps on the platform. He then jumps off the platform and grabs a couple Batarangs out of his utility belt and throws them into the guns, blowing them up. He lands on the ground and starts to beat down on the goons. He punches one of them in the face with enough force to instantly knock them out. He then dragon kicks another in the chest and sends him flying into another goon. He pulls out a gadget from his utility belt and throws it at the downed goons. They are electrocuted with a high voltage and knocked out. A goon charges at the vigilante, but he is easily dealt with with a few precisive blows to his nerves. The last two goons try to handle the vigilante, but Jordan just jumps over them and slams their heads together, knocking them unconscious.

'Is that all you-," said Jordan.

Jordan is unable to continue speaking when Killer Croc smacks him across the room with his long tail. The boy flies into the wall, creating a small dent in it.

"So, you were able to deal with my cronies? Not surprising for a member of that Batfamily, but you can't beat me alone," said Killer Croc.

"Who said that he was alone?" asked Dick.

Killer Croc looks up and sees Batgirl and Robin crashing through the window on the ceiling. They pull out Batarangs and throw them into the steel floor.

"You missed," said Killer Croc.

"Did we?" asked Barbara.

Killer Croc looks down and sees the Batarangs start to beep. He tries to move before they explode, but he's too slow. The floor under him explodes and he starts to fall into the ocean. Jordan sees the villain falling to his doom and dives into the hole to save him. He reaches the crocodile in seconds and grabs his leather jacket. He then grabs his grappling hook and grapples up to the platform.

"You saved me," said Killer Croc.

"I didn't save you because I wanted to. If we were alone, I would let you fall to your doom, but you need to be brought to justice," said Jordan.

"Even though you saved me, I won't go to Arkham quietly," said Killer Croc.

"I know, so that's why my allies are preparing to deal with you now," said Jordan.

Killer Croc looks down and sees Batgirl and Robin wearing thick gloves. They touch the crocodile man and he is electrocuted until he passes out.

"Is he out?" asked Barbara.

"Yeah, he's unconscious," said Jordan.

Ten minutes pass. After ten minutes of nearly dead silence, the unconscious Killer Croc is placed in a giant prison transport. The two sidekicks and the rookie stand together as they see the supervillain being driven to Arkham Asylum.

"How long do you believe that he will stay in the Asylum?" asked Jordan.

"Maybe a few days," said Dick.

"It gets annoying that the villains never just stay in prison," said Barbara.

"But, we will be there to put him back in a cell and protect Gotham," said Jordan.

"You know our identities, so what's yours?" asked Dick.

"I can't tell you guys that. I would like you guys to find out as I did," said Jordan.

"How did you find out?" asked Barbara.

"I found out Batman's identity and the rest was easy. I am a fan after all," said Jordan.

Jordan walks away as the sidekicks of the Dark Knight are dumbfounded by the vigilante's intelligence. Jordan grabs his grappling hook and grapples to a rooftop. He grapples to another taller rooftop and puts his grappling hook away.

"I knew you would come to find me, Batman," said Jordan.

"You did good tonight. You took down Killer Croc with the help of Robin and Batgirl. You have earned a gift," said Batman.

"A gift?" asked Jordan.

Batman pulls a phone out of his utility belt and hands it to the young vigilante.

"What is this?" asked Jordan.

"It's a Batphone. It's connected to the Batcomputer. If you want to help us protect Gotham, you will need who you're fighting and how to beat them. Plus, we will be able to contact you when we need you. Welcome to the Batfamily," said Batman.

"Thanks. I've always wanted to work with a legend like you, but I have things to do, criminal's butts to kick, and a city to protect. Barbatos has to take flight to protect Gotham from itself. Have a good night, Bruce," said Jordan.

Batman's eyes widen as he hears his real name be muttered by the boy.

"Jordan?" asked Bruce.

"Duh," said Jordan.

"I didn't know that you would become a vigilante. I always knew that you were smart, but not this smart. How did you know?" said Bruce.

"It was pretty easy. Randomly, selfish billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne just renovates my apartment building and decides to pay my rent. You should have tried harder," said Jordan.

"I wasn't trying. Just trying to help," said Bruce.

"Thanks for that, but my mother is still in her coma. That means that I still have to do this. Just for her. See you later, Bruce, and tell Alfred that I said hi," said Jordan.

"Will do," said Bruce.

Jordan hops off the roof and grapples away as Batman watches him. A smile forms on his face as he sees the kid follow in his footsteps.

"I need to stop inspiring kids to do this," said Bruce.