Prologue: Carnivals and Conventions
A figure stood near the field, looking over the now empty fairgrounds. Trees swayed in the breeze, bits of wrappers, attractions, and food litter the trampled down grass. The evening was warm for late September, but that did not bother the person whom was observing the place.
The dry air from the last summer had caused the entire area to seem pale and yellow instead of the usually dark green of other years. The individual's eyebrows furrowed as they peered across the deserted land, tapping his foot impatiently, as though they were waiting for a late bus to work.
There was silence in the air, only broken by the occasional popcorn bag getting blown into a nearby tree. And there they stood, arms folded, poised ready to spring at a moment's notice. They waited. And they waited. Eventually the figure sighed. They glanced around one last time, and turned around made to leave.
"I'm disappointed, Spooks. I expected better patience from my collaborators."
The man whipped around, seemingly startled by the sudden voice. Underneath a tall oak stood another man, his stark white face pulled up into a hyena like grin that would make any sensible person tremble. His purple suit, red lips, and green hair were unmistakeable, even to the most ammature of people.
"I expected you to be here on time, Joker." The other man replied, straightening up, and pulling his mask down slightly. "Same for all of the others. Where are they?"
The Joker straightened up and took a step outside of the cover the tree gave him. His eyes held a crazed glint, like always, which unnerved even the Master of Fear. "They should be here shortly, but I'm not exactly sure when."
"Try now." A female voice said. The men turned to the new arrival.
"Ah, Ivy. Glad you could join our...little party." Joker said, his voice making even that sound like it held a hundred different meanings. "Have you heard from anyone else?"
Poison Ivy opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by the approach of multiple figures. Each approached in different manners, but within a few minutes, the grounds were occupied by Cat Woman, Bane, Joker, Poison Ivy, Dr Freeze, Humanite, and many other villains that stood in the shadows, all looking towards the first arrival expectantly.
"Well? Is the Project complete? I would hate to have wasted all of that time for nothing." Cat Woman asked, her claw like gloved hands twitching nervously. Other villains nodded in agreement.
The man straightened and played with the bits of straw that decorated his costume. "I've done all I can. So, if we don't have any last minute additions..." He paused, looking around at the 13 or so people who surrounded him. They were all silent. "Good. Then I think-"
"You think?" The large gorilla cut in. "Who made you the leader? Last I checked, you all appointed me to be in charge of this operation."
The man rolled his eyes, even though he knew that the primate would not see his annoyance through the mask. "Yes, yes, I know! Now, as I was saying, I propose that we start small. Banks, jewelry stores, nuclear power plants, stuff like that. Starting small is always a key to success."
"And you know this how?" Poison Ivy asked. "You've never succeeded that way. Barely any of us have."
"Yeah, well, not all of us can physically turn men into bumbling morons driven by chemical induced lust." Dr Freeze muttered, obviously irritated.
"Can we get back to the matter at hand?" Humanity said, preventing Poison Ivy from attacking Dr Freeze. "Heavens, this is why we gorillas should be the dominant species."
"Anyway," the man repeated urgently. "If the League takes notice, they'll send their weaker members to take care if it. The Project can work her way up the ladder. It'll be a good test to see how ready she is."
"And you believe Prodigy is ready? You've taught her all you know?" /p
"As much as I could. And as much as I expected the rest of you to have." I replied. They all nodded.
Joker folded his arms and frowned. "So, when do we put it to the test? Does it even have an identity?"
The man's hands clenched. "Tomorrow. Star City Bank. And yes, Prodigy has a new name. She even picked it herself."
"Well, what is it then, Scarecrow?!" Joker exclaimed, his anger rising.
"Grimm."
