DISCLAMER: I don't own any DC Comics characters or settings.

Hard to believe this all started 48 hours ago.

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"…..I am proud to accept this award, on behalf of all who work to ensure that Gotham will once again stand proud as a shining becan to a brighter future."

It was a dark Saturday night in the Wayne Manor, and Bruce Wayne was pacing around, practicing a speech he was to give to half of Gotham, when he accepted the "White Knight" award in two days. Thirteen-year-old Dick Grayson, his foster son, was sitting on of Wayne's many couches, playing a video game, and half paying attention. Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce's butler and closest friend, was standing by, also listening.

"Well?" asked Bruce, with one eyebrow cocked. "What do you think, Dick?" He barely seemed to notice that Bruce was talking to him, but he looked up from his videogame and said slyly, "Sure, you can give that speech, or to save time, I could fly over in the batwing and drop knock-out gas on the crowd."

This suppressed a smile on Bruce's face.

"I, for one, hung on every word." said Alfred. "Still, I'll see to it that pillows and blankets are available for those who acquire them." Dick put his hand up for a high-five, still not looking up from his video game, and Alfred slapped it.

"Don't worry, sir." Alfred continued.

"You still have two days to work on the speech before Gotham honors the good works of Bruce Wayne…"

Alfred looked out the window, and saw the ever famous bat signal.

"…And, speaking of good works, it seems the city requires some from the Batman." Dick snapped out of his videogame. "Al right!"

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"What's it tonight, Commissioner?"

Batman and Robin were in the batmobile, on their way to Arkum Asylum. "It's Strange." Batman remembered Dr. Hugo Strange, a head Doc at the Asylum. Although, to everyone else, he was known as a mad scientist.

"He's requesting to see you. He won't say why."

"I doubt it's to thank me for the new accommodations."

Somehow through his psycho experiments, Doc. Strange had ended up in one of the insane cells himself, something Batman had decided would be best for him. Hugo had always been fascinated by the Batman, and did anything and everything to try and see the man behind Bat's cowl.

As Robin and Batman approached the cell where they kept Strange, Batman warned him about the Doctor. "Be careful what you say in front of him, Robin. Strange may be a madman, but he's also a brilliant psychologist. If he finds an opening, he'll mess with your head." As they approached, guards passed the Doc's cell, peered in, wrote down notes, and passed to the next cell. (That was something they did to everyone at Arkum.)

Batman approached the cell, to see Doc. Strange sitting in the middle of the room completely still in handcuffs, with a smug smile on his face. There were papers hanging all over the room, and it was pitch dark.

"I don't usually make house calls, Doctor. What do you want?"

"Thank you for coming, Batman." said the low voice of Hugo as he looked through the door's large peephole to The Dark Knight. "..And what I want is your help, with an experiment I'm conducting.

"You see, I'm going to release a toxic agent into Gotham's air. It's odorless, invisible, and extremely fast acting. It will twist the body, and weaken the mind, turning those infected into monstrous, living drones."

Hugo leaned forward.

"Zombies, answerable only to me! Each victim, in turn, would become a carrier, infecting others. Sadly, if the antidote isn't administrated within 48 hours of infection, the condition becomes irreversible." Then, he chuckled evilly.

"If the toxin is being released everywhere," asked Batman, "Why won't you be infected, Strange?" Hugo held up a small skinny bottle of yellow liquid. "I've already taken the antidote." He stuck it out the large peephole. "…which, I'm sure, could be very useful to you." Hugo shook it a couple times, and then dropped it. Batman tried to catch it, but it shattered on the ground, making a large puff of the yellow, gassy antidote expose into the air. "Oops!" said Hugo, grinning. Suddenly, the alarm went off, causing Hugo to say, "Ah, that would mean the toxin is being dispersed throughout Gotham as we speak!"

A faint, but growing louder, noise arose from the hallway. The groans of zombies! "Robin!" said Batman. "Filter on!"

They both put on their gas masks. "Now that you're safe from the toxin, perhaps we'll watch Gotham go down together." Hugo said, evilly, "Let the games begin!" Batman and Robin again heard the groans of the Zombies, and they both got into attack positions. One of the guards came out of the darkness, a zombie with off-white hair, and grey fleshy, wrinkly skin. Some of the skin was chipped, some with spots of black, and his mouth was deep red. His teeth were yellowy brown, his gums dark pink. His eyes were pure black, like he had put paint all over them. He attacked, but Robin and Batman jumped over him, in a flip, and landed behind him. Seeing this, the zombie started the other way, dodging at them again. "Get them!" screamed Hugo. The zombie ran fast at Batman, and Batman got him with his cape, and threw him over to the other end of the dark hall. The zombie got back up, one vertebrate at a time. When he did get up, 2 other Zombie-guards were with him, ready to fight Batman and Robin. No more than a second later, more and more zombies approached. They were surrounded!

"This isn't over, Strange!" said Batman, through his gas mask. "You're right, Batman." answered Strange. "It's just beginning." All the Zombies charged at once, but Batman and Robin both used their Batlines to get away.

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As they were driving away in the batmobile, with their gas masks still on, Robin collected an air sample. As the computer was doing this, he looked out the window. Everyone in Gotham was a zombie! He became slightly worried, but he shook it off. "How did Strange pull it off?" asked Robin with amazement. "With clinical provision, I want to know WHY." answered Batman Alfred came in on the batradio, as Batman had contacted him.

"Sir?"

"Hugo Strange has released a toxic agent into the city's air. Stay in the cave. The filter system should keep you safe. And notify Barbara."

Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Commissioner Gordon, was Batgirl, Batman's second sidekick.

"We'll need backup."

"Straight away, sir."

"Analysis complete." The computer stated. Robin examined it. "The chemical analysis shows nothing weird! The air is safe to breathe."

"The toxin must have dispersed quickly after it did its damage." They both took off their masks.

"But the drones are carriers."

They headed toward the Bat signal, which was still in the sky.