Batman
Gotham City
Docks
He watched the sun rising above the docks from a crane. Light was slowly starting to cast down upon the faded paint of the buildings, the half-rusted warehouses, and the dated shipping boats. The whole place was decrepit. Another cause and symptom of the trouble that plagued Gotham. He could see many hostiles down below through his radar in the cowl, most of them armed. There were no ships expected in the docks for another few hours at the least according to the schedules, and nothing high-profile enough to require this much security. Combined with the lack of uniforms, he was sure his hunch was correct.
Though it is always best to be sure... Batman stalked his way along to the edge of the crane, hunched over at the end staring down. He could see one of the goons patrolling around the area, soon to be passing below underneath him. Grapple at the ready, he looked back up to observe the area again and make sure that nobody was around to see, and more importantly, hear what was going on. They were not, most in and around the warehouse, with some also lingering around the proximity of a nearby boat. He wondered which of these was concealing the Riddler from him as his prey unwittingly made its way into position.
Swift as a shadow, quiet as death, the Batman leaped down from its perch, gripping his quarry in spite of their struggles, before bringing it back to roost.
"Tell me where the Riddler is or I drop you." He loosened his grip to drive home the point, too focused on his own investigation to notice the helicopter hovering behind him.
"Aaah! No! T-The boat.... no, wait! The warehouse! One of them, I'm not sure..."
"Grateful for the help." A sideswipe to the jaw with his right fist saw the henchman's head snap in the other direction and lose consciousness. Then he dropped. Cable around the leg ensured the cops would be able to find him hanging there in the morning.
He instinctively flinched at the sound of a gunshot. And another, and another. Behind him a helicopter in the sky was raining terror down upon the Riddler's hapless lackeys.
Moon Knight. Suddenly he felt as if this race to the Riddler was more serious, one which he had to win, for Nigma's own sake.
Batman leapt down from the structure, cape allowing him to glide across the docks. He landed upon one of the distracted cronies, before knocking him out with ease. Life signs across the dock had halved as Moon Knight bulldozed his way to Riddler.
"What the-? You too?" One gasped upon seeing Batman. Before he had a chance to fire his vision was filled with smoke. By the time it had cleared, the Dark Knight was behind him and he was unconscious.
Scans indicated Moon Knight had left the helicopter now, gunning his way to the warehouse. Batman meanwhile beelined for the shrimping boat, stopping at the sight of a corpse face down on the ground.
He turned the body over, noting the crescent moon carved into the forehead.
This is what he believes to be justice? All I can see is another murderer. "Alfred, Moon Knight got here first. Multiple casualties, one of whom he has left a signature behind on. Uploading it to you now. Get me all similar results. Military and police databases, internet, wherever. Look out for anything not in St. Roch or Gotham." All around the docks he was picking up bodies, none showing life signs. Stomachs burst open, faces mutilated, bodies decimated beyond recognition. He was in a crime scene. If one did not know better they would have assumed this was the work of the Joker or Two-Face, not an alleged crime-fighter.
"And what a fascinating signature your new friend has. I shan't be asking for it anytime soon. I am seeing tomorrow's headlines already: '
Batman and mystery killer commit murder spree at docks'." Vigilantes like him would have less allies in the paper come tomorrow, that was for certain.
He turned to the warehouse, audio picking up two voices. He managed to catch the tail-end of their conversation.
"-and save the most likely spent ammo for that gun, I am standing in a bulletproof Plexiglas case that is sure to absorb your bullets before you can break it." Irritating voice. Mocking tone. No voice recognition needed. Riddler.
"Let's wait for the Batman then shall we." And Moon Knight.
Batman heard multiple gunshots, assuming it was a test of the bulletproof glass. On the opposite side of the warehouse to him he noticed a gaping hole in the wall, clearly broken through. Moon Knight's entrance, not an exit. But scans only indicated one individual however. The glass case was empty.
Definitely the boat then. He thought, grappling his way onto the side. Guards all around. He shimmied along the rails until he was below one, then cracked his head against the metal and climbed aboard, darting for the shadows. From there he could scan the boat, try and get a fix on which one was Riddler. Struggling with the chatter on deck, instead he grappled up to the roof of the bridge for a better look, taking out another guard approaching around the corner on the way. From there Batman laid low and patiently waited for Nigma to appear.
Soon enough the chance presented itself, as Riddler came up on deck talking about leaving and something about choosing him or a friend, though Batman was unaware of who that concerned. For now however there was something more important. At Edward's appearance Batman shot up, shooting the nearest henchman with the Batclaw and yanking sharply, slamming him against the wall. "Give up now Riddler, it's over."