He'd been locked away in Arkham, captured by the one man he considered his equal. Joker had been found guilty for acts of terrorism and several accounts of murder, although they viewed his state of mind as completely deranged. Instead of Blackgate Prison he'd been transported to Arkham Asylum for the criminally insane, where he'd spend his life in a padded cell.
Joker's one true act of unspeakable horror had been the twisting of Harvey Dent's mind until he'd gone insane and became Two-Face. A name that had originally been given to him by the cops at Gotham PD because in the beginning they thought he was a two-faced liar. Although Dent became Gotham's white knight, Joker turned him into a villain and a monstrous persona. Rachel's death had sent the former DA over the edge and he threatened Commissioner Gordon's family and would have killed Gordon's son were it not for the Batman. Harvey fell to his death as Batman saved Gordon's boy but could not save Harvey.
Batman had taken the blame for Harvey's crimes and became an outlaw and a murderer in the eyes of the people, and only Commissioner Gordon knew the truth. Gotham's organized crime syndicates had been fought and defeated, the Batman disappeared and everyone had been given a false sense of safety and security. Meanwhile at Arkham, well known psychiatrist Hugo Strange had been appointed as Joker's doctor and he'd been having sessions with him. Sessions that provided little information about the deranged clown as Joker rarely gave an honest or even clear answer. It had been almost three years since Joker had seen the sun or even the night as he was never allowed to set foot outside and not even on asylum grounds. Every evening they'd force Joker to take part in another session with Dr. Strange, if he refused they'd rough him up something fierce. He hadn't worn makeup since they took him in and he'd been dressed in an orange jumpsuit with the tag "1108" on his back, they kept his custom made suit in storage.
Joker sat on a small stool that had a damaged third leg and the slightest movement made it seem as though the leg would break off entirely. He sat across Dr. Strange at a round table and it would have been an empty table were it not for the patient file that Strange held in his chubby hands. Joker anxiously licked his lips and the old scars on the corners of his mouth still stood out like a sore thumb. He never looked directly at Dr. Strange as Joker always looked at him from the corner of his eyes, he never respected the doctor enough to establish a proper eye contact.
"Do you remember what we discussed in our session yesterday? We talked about your parents and in particular your abusive father. Can you please tell me again about what your relationship was with him?" Dr. Strange said as he had an odd interest in domestic violence.
"My...father. Hm? Well, I loved daddy. Every Christmas he'd give me a hug and tell me how proud he was of me. Precious memories, especially one Christmas in particular," Joker said as he leaned in closer, his elbows slid across the table. "You see...my folks, they had little money to spend on holiday gifts. So my mother bought me a set of toy soldiers with whatever money that they had left for the entire month. Well...daddy...daddy found out. He grabbed my toy soldiers and forced them down my mother's throat, she bled out as her throat sprung open. He made me watch...made me see. Oh yes, I loved daddy."
"Interesting," Dr. Strange replied as he made notes and whatever stories Joker would tell during their sessions, he never lost interest in them.
"I just enjoy our little talks. You're such a good listener, I appreciate that in a fat guy," Joker mocked as he licked his lips again and tapped his fingers on the table.
"Your relationship with your mother. How was that?" Dr. Strange asked as he continued his observation of Joker's demented mind.
"Mommy? Well, she was as sweet as sugar. Do you know that even as a kid I had fanatasies of setting her on fire in her sleep? I never acted on my fantasies...never. Daddy had his fun with her, and with me, over and over. Mommy. That reminds me, is your mother still alive?" Joker asked as he raised his eyebrows.
"Fascinating. Such a powerful stimulance, your broken mind originated from the events you endured during your childhood," Dr. Strange stated as he cleaned his thick glasses.
Joker began to move back and forth on the stool and it made the wobbly third leg shriek as it was close to the breaking point. He seemed perfectly at peace with where he was, as though it wouldn't be forever, as if he'd get out sooner or later. He threw his head back and his long messy hair bounced and waved about, his hair was the only thing they hadn't touched. It was still green-ish and thick, although not nearly as greasy as it once was because they now force him to shower once a week.
"You guys spoil me. Fancy clothes and even roomservice, how did they know that orange was my color? I feel like...royalty," Joker said with a smile as he bared his yellow teeth.
"Yes well, I think that will be all for today," Dr. Strange said as he folded the files back togther and slowly stood up. His stuck out belly hung over his pants as he tugged at the white collar of his doctor's coat.
As soon as Dr. Strange stood up the door behind him opened and three guards stepped into the room and they all carried a shotgun. Two guards held their shotguns aimed at Joker while the third guard grabbed him by his hair. They dragged Joker out of the room by his hair and began walking him back to his cell.
"That's why I like this place. The personal touch makes it all worth...while," Joker scoffed with a chuckle to his voice as he felt a headache storm up.
"Shut up freak," the guard replied as he tugged forcefully at Joker's hair.
The guard pulled at Joker's hair so hard that it felt as though he'd pull off the top of his head. All of a sudden Joker had a hold of the shotgun that belonged to the guard who dragged him by his hair. He struck the guard in the face with the handle of the shotgun and he fell to the ground as his nose bled vividly. The other two guards cocked and aimed their shotguns at him, though he was quicker as he shot both of them in the stomach and their guts fell out like bloody spaghetti. The guard who's nose he'd broken laid on the ground and stared up at him with eyes filled with fear as his breath gasped in his throat.
"I always wanted to do...that. Although I'm disappointed, it was over too soon. Maybe I should just blow out your kneecaps and let you suffer. Hm? Nah," Joker said with an upbeat tone to his voice as he pulled the trigger and splattered the guard's brains all over the floor.
The shooting had alerted the other guards in the asylum and an alarm had been raised although it made no difference to Joker as he threw the shotgun away. He brushed a hand through his hair as he calmly strolled through the long hallway and apparently headed back to his cell. Within two minutes the entire hallway was filled with guards and they roughed him up and forced him to the ground. They kicked and spat on him as they wanted to extract their revenge on him for killing three of their own. Although Joker laughed psychotically and it didn't even bother him, they could rough him up all they wanted. Eventually he was thrown back inside his cell as they had bruised him up enough, they weren't allowed to kill him. His hands and feet were cuffed although he licked his lips in anticipation as he wiggled his right hand until something fell out of his sleeve. An ID badge that all staff members were required to wear so they could enter the many floors of the asylum. He stole this when they were beating him up, that was his plan all along. He killed those three guards so many more would come and he could snatch one of their badges without getting caught as they'd be too busy beating him to a pulp.
"Now the fun's really gonna start," he mumbled to himself as he tucked the badge back within his sleeve. It would all be a matter of time now and waiting for the right moment so he could escape this place.
Joker wanted Gotham to forget about him, he had his escape planned from the moment they first brought him to the asylum. He wanted to escape when the time was right so he could start all over again with his simple quest for chaos. A three year stay in a place like Arkham was long enough even for him. In those years he spent locked away he never stopped thinking about the one man he refused to kill. Batman was his only reason for wanting break out in the first place, and break out he will.