I woke up with a siring headache. As I moved around I found that my hands were tied together behind my back and I was bleeding, badly. Looking around I found a large open warehouse. It was dark and smelled of mold. I got to my knees and tried to stand, but almost immediately fell back to the ground. The concrete was hard as my face hit because my arms could not break the fall. Yelling was hopeless since there was obviously no one around.

A door screamed open and an ominous aura filled the room. His voice sent chills down my spine. "Honey, I'm home!" He proclaimed as a dastardly smile appeared on his face. THE JOKER. Immediately, my body tensed and I drew into myself. With a crowbar stained with what I assumed was my blood, the Joker laughed, "Don't worry, this is only going to hurt…a lot." The shrill laughter brought back memories of the past few days which were filled with torture and pain. [Since I had no recollection of time, I had no idea what day it was or how long I've been here.] Inching away did little, but amused my captor. I had to give up my futile escape when the crowbar smashed down on my back.

I felt the clothes fall from my skin. Shivering only showed my frailness. The thick velvet liquid pooled beneath me until the Joker moved me aside with his foot. With the crowbar he inspected the new bruise on my cheek from falling on the concrete. Sincerely he replied, "Now I try my hardest to keep your face unharmed and you do this. What a shame." Eventually after what seemed like hours of torture I passed out.

When I awoke Joker was gone, but not for long. With a new adrenaline I flipped over and got my hands in front of me. Using them to steady myself I stood, painfully. I searched for a way out and found an old ventilation shaft. Barely fitting through the opening I pushed myself through. Behind me I heard Joker's voice, "My sweet! Don't worry Uncle Joker." I pushed his voice away as I began to see the light at the end of the ventilator shaft.

Nearly blinded, I ran over the dirt and through the open space. Before I could escape to the safety of a nearby lake that lead to downtown Gotham I heard a gunshot. Looking down I saw the blood ooze from the newly made wound. Using the last strength I could muster I dove into the lake and swam.

My vision was blurry as I reached the opposite bank. Crawling was the only thing I could do. Fearful of being found, I headed for the nearest dark alley way. I breathed heavily and tried to slow the bleeding to no avail. Pain stripped away other feelings until I felt an oddly familiar aura close-by. Standing was tough and walking was nearly impossible, but I moved slowly towards my target.

Just over head I could see him, my savior in a black cape. "Batman!" I rasped, but he could not hear me. He was engrossed in his binoculars staring at a point across the street. Finding a metal trash can I kicked it with all my might trying to gain his attention. It worked! He peered down at the commotion as I revealed myself from the shadows. I saw him moving down the building when everything turned black and I hit the cold concrete.