Night Sentinel

The dark settled deep over the skyline. A spent steel ball bearing had drifted into the narrow lip of the zinc drain gutter. In high wind, rogue metal rolls. It strikes the flashing. It shatters the silent perimeter. I lowered my stance against the cold roof gravel. I gripped the lance with both gauntlets, pressing the blunt end of the shaft firmly against the curved steel sphere. One controlled push nudged it into a soft bed of weathered moss tucked within the masonry corner. It sank silently. Total stillness restored. Gotham sleeps undisturbed.