To Gotham by Midnight Part 3 

LOCATION: Gotham Natasha Romanoff's Apartment

2PM 

I'm suddenly awoken by a loud noise,

I think I must have slept through most of the day since it's late in the afternoon when my phone starts ringing. I rub my eyes as they adjusted to the light that blinded me as it swept through the curtains I scold myself for having such an unproductive day.

I bolt straight out of my bed to reach the phone but my bed sheets clung to my legs as if they didn't want me to leave them but luckily I get to my ringing phone just in time

"Hello?" I tirelessly say into the phone

"Afternoon Agent Romanoff we thought you would like to know that we have tracked that ship called the 'Midnight' it just left the Southern Atlantic Ocean its headed straight to Gotham City, we calculate that it should reach Gotham around 2 o'clock tomorrow morning" my ARGUS contact informs me, I grab a notebook and quickly write down the important information

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"Freighter Name: 'The Midnight

Drop off time: 2am Gotham Harbour 

Contents: £5 million worth of fire arms????? 

Name on Manifest: ?????????" 

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"Thank you, uh I don't suppose there was a name on the manifest or perhaps the registered contents of the cargo?" I hopefully ask the contact  

"No there wasn't, and Black Widow we're not your personal assistants" the contact tells me and abruptly hangs up, I look at my silent landline in disbelief,

I knew they still weren't fans and no matter how much good I did they will always hate me because I will always be Black Widow Assassin, Ex KGB, Killer and Traitor in their eyes,

 I always tried to avoid going to them for help they would always want something in return and those favours would usually test my moral compass.

I go over to my computer where they had sent me the live map to where the Midnight was at the moment,

 I make my way over to the kitchen to make a cup of coffee it was a bad habit that I had picked up since I moved to America not that I needed coffee to feel awake not that I was as reliant on it as say Bruce but I always seem to make a fresh pot in the morning,

I nervously check out my direct link on my phone to Batman but as expected there was nothing there

<Well of course the reception in space wouldn't be very good> 

But I kept finding myself worrying about my friend he was somewhere in the big unknown I'd like to think that if something did happen to him then I would know, that some sort of feeling of dread would wash upon me but truthfully if something did happen to him then I wouldn't know and that bothered me more than I would let on. 

I decide to distract through some work,

I overlook the Midnight's manifest it had previously stopped in a few places south of the border I suspect that the guns where boarded around there and hopefully whoever was behind the smuggling was on the freighter too.

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LOCATION: Bat Cave

12PM

In the Bat Cave I pack all the gear that I think I might need which includes some night vision googles, my new stingers that I've been desperate to give a good test run I wrap them around my slender wrists they must weigh at least one kilogram each when I first started using the stingers they would cause a lot of strain on my wrists but since the I've gotten used to it,

I pack some small but very  powerful explosives, my throwing knives, some smoke bombs and a good few grenades.

I knew that I was walking into the unknown and usually if my intel was this poor I would hold back but this was too important to let go but still the uncertainty of this mission made me feel uneasy.

Dick enters the cave on his motor bike he was probably here to meet Tim they were going to bring the animal fights down tonight, Grayson brings his bike to a stop next to my own 

"Hey Black Widow going after that weapons smuggling ring tonight?" He enquires

"Yeah hopefully it's going to be fruitful just gearing up before I head out" he takes off his helmet and I could swear his Mullet got longer everyday it would soon be as long as my hair I like to joke as his hair was becoming unruly and thick 

"Need any assistance I mean this job is a piece of cake why do you get all the fun?" he asks but I felt pretty prepared

"No thanks Dick I got this" I smile at him a ride out of the cave on my motor bike.

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LOCATION: Gotham Harbour

2AM (Roughly) 

It was pouring down with rain down at the Harbour the rain made a soothing taping noise against the hard wood on the board walk. I was absolutely soaked and freezing although I very rarely got cold growing up in Russia an all

When I was training in the Red Room where there was no such thing as central heating  the blankets that they gave us at night were thin and to test our endurance they made us fight in the snow wearing only shorts and tank tops on a regular basis they told us that the cold would boost our energy and sooth our constant aching muscles but I never believed that the teachers in the Red Room just liked to watch us all suffer, 

But that wasn't the worst bit, not by a long shot, sometimes if we disobeyed an order, did something wrong or broke a rule that was minor enough they would chain us up outside all night in the snow with no clothes on, I remember they would also throw cold water over us just to make the torment worse and I was a bit rebellious so no matter how much they tried to beat a personality out of me but they could never break me.

I remember the first time I received this punishment that night I truly thought that I was going to die,

I think I might have actually prayed that night which is something I never did I remember to everyone's surprise I lived through the long night but it took me days to get the feeling back in all areas of my body but I remember their smirks as they beat me I always wondered why they never killed me after all I did speak my mind often but perhaps in the back of their minds they always knew that I was meant to become the Black Widow. 

Suddenly I am bought back to the present by the low moaning horn of an incoming ship that wanted to dock, I look through the night vision googles and look at the name on the side of the ship it read "The Midnight" this was the ship transporting the guns.

<well at least my ARGUS intel was reliable>

I jump down to the boardwalk silently and take cover behind some crates moving almost cat like in the darkness.

 The freighter docks nearby I'm careful to stick to the shadows as a group of large men begin to unload the cargo,

I plan to wait it out until the cargo is all stored away and then plant the explosives when all of the cargo is stored together but I still need to find out who is behind the smuggling.

 I sneak my way towards the men, I try to spot if anyone was giving the men any orders but at first I couldn't spot anyone in charge, however suddenly I see someone that I recognized and a feeling of uneasiness

He was like a giant and stood at around 7ft tall and was all pure muscle and as he walked down the plank to the board walk I felt the wood shake just a little bit I should have guessed this seemed like something Bane would do.

I couldn't take Bane on directly,

 I had to be smart about this  I can't rush in I need a plan because even as strong as I am there is absolutely no way I would win in a hand to hand fight,

I need to take the guns out of the equation first so I silently follow the cargo that the men are hauling off the ship to a nearby warehouse.

They leave the Cargo in the warehouse on the far west side of the harbour,

 I climb onto the tiled roof to keep an eye on what they were doing, the ship workers leave the shipment with three armed guards they had their backs to the crates I jump down from the roof and land without making a noise.

I tap the one closest to me on the shoulder he turns around slowly only to be met by a Black Widow fist straight to the face the other two turn around alarmed at the sudden attack but before they can even pull the trigger on their guns I sting them both in the neck with my Widows bite this almost seemed too easy. 

<yeah too easy>

I turn around to the sealed containers they were guarding I use a nearby crowbar to force them open but my heart sinks when I look inside there was nothing in there,

This was too easy that was because it was a trap, 

I hear the double doors behind me open and I hear several clicks of guns all focusing on me

"Viuda Negra I'm surprised to see you I have to admit I was expecting the Batman" Bane says, 

<oh great I've stepped into a trap meant for Batman rookie move Black Widow>

I slowly turn around and I put my hands in the air not before grabbing a small smoke bomb out of my utility belt and hiding it in my clutched palms of my hands

"Well I'm sorry to disappoint but you'll have to do with the next best thing" I tell him, he has several armed men with him I couldn't take them all on at once so I drop the smoke bomb and in the confusion I retreat further into the dark warehouse.

They can't catch what they can't find and they can't kill what they can't catch.

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Thank you for reading Chapter 25 I've been writing a new book called "The Black Widow and Wonder Woman" if you liked this book I recommend that you check it out. Please let me know what you think please leave a comment below and if you liked it please leave a like :)

xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx  

Songs for Chapter 25

-"Confident" by Demi Lovato

-"Piece of me" by Britney Spears

-"Don't Stop me Now" by Queen

-"Stronger" by Kanye West

-"Waves" by Mr Probz