Chapter 1 – Hold.
It was a typically droll night in Gotham, a lone Black Merc sits, idling, on the commonly known boundary between Gotham's 'Upper' Distract and the murky Narrows beyond. The persistent patter of sleet hitting the windshield resonated loudly within the car, mimicking an almost soothing effect for its tired occupant, and thankfully blocking out the unmistakable sound of blaring sirens and ringing gunshots in the distance.
2:03AM.
Grumpy breathed deeply; taking a drag of his untouched cigarette, and another quick sip of his sour coffee, one eyelid threatening to close involuntarily at any moment. It seemed nothing could keep his waning focus at bay, the lull of sleep was imminent. He briefly rolled down the side window and flicked the redundant cigarette into a nearby bramble, the sharp inhale of painfully cold air awakening him, for now.
Damn you! Grumpy complained, trying unsuccessfully to get comfortable in his upright position, not coherent enough to try and pull the chair backwards, using the lever at his side. I don't care what the boss says, if he ain't here in FIVE minutes I'm outta here.
Wincing as he took another swig at the lukewarm liquid, he remembered the conversation he'd had with his boss a few weeks previous.
"When the, uh, Batman locks me up, that's not an IF, it's a when-" The madman waggled a crooked finger in Grumpy's anxious face, his purple gloves straining with the effort of the exaggerated gesture. "I've got a little job for you Grumpy, I want you to go see a Doc" A nutty laugh erupted from the Bosses' malformed lips; the tired makeup, applied generously in places, and not so much in others, wrinkled with each jovial spasm of his cheeks. Giving the unnerving impression that his face was slowly disintegrating before the Henchman's beady eyes. He gripped his belly, almost Santa-like, and gave one last throaty chuckle. "Grumpy? Doc? Snow White, get it?"
It seemed that Grumpy had no option, other than to 'get it'. A squeak of a laugh fell from his lips. Grumpy couldn't hide his uncertainty, being within this close a proximity to the infamous Joker himself, without him pointing a gun squarely at your head, was terrifying at best.
"I've know 'im for quite a long, uh, time" The Joker continued happily, completely aware of his companions discomfort. "I've arranged a meeting with 'im, but it's unlikely I'll be able to attend, being in Arkham and all. So I want you to go in my place. It would be impolite not to."
The Joker wrapped a long arm around Grumpy's stout frame, resting his head onto the henchman's shoulder, almost lovingly. He must be having a laugh? Grumpy thought, I'm not some errand boy. He grimaced, he would never voice his traitorous thoughts out loud though. He was in the Joker's employment, and if Joker said 'Shoot', he'd aim for the head. It was undignified, but it kept bread on his table.
"What's this meeting about Boss?"
"It's my way out of Arkham, Dwarf-y"
"How so?" Grumpy asked tentatively, his curiosity piqued, and yet unsure if he should ask. One wrong word could land you on the receiving end of a loaded pistol, and your head on a pike, for that added flair.
"A Toxin" The Joker said simply. Grumpy's brow furrowed in confusion. The Joker sighed against Grumpy's shoulder, mouthing something along the lines of 'dimwit' before continuing. "Me and the Doc have been, uh, working together" He spat out the words, as if the concept of team work was vulgar to him. "I've got the brains, for sure, but Science, it was never my thing, Grumps."
"So my ideas, and the Doc's Chemistry Set created a Toxin that when released will aide me in escaping Arkham".
Grumpy couldn't help but interrupt.
"-but, how will I know when to use the Toxin, and how? Will it disable the guards? Will it destroy the prison walls? Is it ingestible? What does it do?" Grumpy exhaled, he had so many probing questions, and these were just the tip of the iceberg. When you were in conversation with Joker, it flowed in quick succession, it was best to get your point across before he impatiently realised there was something much more entertaining across the room; last time it'd been a crate, stuffed with TNT. The Joker's attention span was incredibly weak.
"Hush" Joker hissed, gripping Grumpy's chin between his thumb and forefinger. The Joker's nonchalant stance, suddenly became an imposing one. His grip was just hard enough to sting, but not with the intent to cause injury. A bead of sweat trickled down Grumpy's bald forehead, and tears threatened his eyes. He tried to compose himself, not wanting to tempt the Joker even further with his display of cowardice. "We'll iron out the details later, for now, just remember, I owe you one" The Joker winked mischievously, although his tone was undoubtedly seething. "-and if you screw this up, that might just save your life"
Grumpy gave another impatient sigh, his fingers working to massage his throbbing temples. After tonight, I might go work for Penguin, he's a reasonable guy, with reasonable working hours. His squinted eyes focused solely on the dashboard of the Merc, a firm grimace on his face, pondering his current employment.
BANG!BANG!BANG!
Grumpy clumsily dropped his coffee onto his lap, at the loud noise. "Fuck" He hissed, his eyes darting angrily to hooded figure, who'd unceremoniously slammed their fists onto the hood of his car. Quickly, ignoring his sodden jeans, he pulled down his mask, and roughly pushed open the door, heaving himself onto the concrete. Hopefully he could scare the little weasel into pitiful submission; only certain folks in Gotham bore clown masks. He was on official business, he didn't need some low-life terrorizing him.
As soon as he'd exited the Merc, the figure stepped back fluidly, folding their cloaked arms across their chest, and tapping an inpatient foot. It was a rather feminine gesture, Grumpy noticed, bemused.
"Do you know whose car you just dented?" Grumpy spat, his words muffled by the mask, but nevertheless intimidating. Standing at measly 5'6 Grumpy was short for a man, but he had the weight of ten men behind him, and two coronaries to prove it.
"I'm assuming yours" The figure spoke a matter of factly; the voice was distinctly female, unfamiliar, and surprisingly…bored. "I think that because, The Joker, AKA your employer, wouldn't drive something as indistinguishable as a black Merc, don't you agree, Grumpy?" The figure clicked her tongue, and cocked her head sideways, awaiting a response.
"You-you're the Doc?" Grumpy wondered, taking in her mostly concealed appearance.
She matched him equally in height, although her tall physique was partially athletic, he could almost make out a hint of curves beneath the black smock she adorned. She had some strength behind her, he noted, his eyes straining fruitlessly in the dark. He assumed some folks might mistake her for slight or more so, average. Her face was mostly cloaked in shadow, but he could make out the firm, thin line of her lips, and ghostly pale skin, contrasting painfully in the pitch black night. The rest of her was hidden from view, aside from a wild lock of curly black hair, escaping from the lining of her hood. If he were to walk by her in the street a few days after this meet-up, he wouldn't have a hope of recognizing her; perhaps that was the idea.
"I'm here for the exchange." She stated flatly. Grumpy squinted suspiciously at her, her American accent seemed almost phoned in, there was suppressed intellect behind her words, and definitely a hint of something else. It was faint, but distinct. He just couldn't put his finger on it.
"Well-" Grumpy started, unsettled by her blank stare. The tense atmosphere had trebled within the short span of a few seconds. Grumpy shifted nervously, praying to get back into the sanctuary of his coffee- stained car. This woman, whoever she was, evoked a tremor of unease in Grumpy. Perhaps it was the air of mystery surrounding her, or the fact that her unseen eyes, seemed to bore into him, carefully examining him, as he had done her.
"So hand it over" Grumpy spat quickly, mustering up the last bit of courage he had.
"Certainly" The woman politely replied, as if she was handing over his change, rather than some Biological Weapon.
She pulled out a small canister, about the size and style of a grenade, from her coat pocket. She threw it loosely to Grumpy, and Grumpy fumbled to catch the thing. She made no move to pull out another.
"That's it?" Grumpy hissed angrily. "ONE, grenade? I can buy one of these from any gun shop worth its salt, I'm meant to free the Joker with this?" He gasped incredulously, The Joker must be having a laugh. Maybe that's all this is? A smug giggle at my expense.
"That-" The woman began, pointing sharply at the Grenade, "-is a highly compressed Toxin, when you pull its plug, it will emit a potent gas, that can and will engulf the whole of Arkham Asylum, you'll be able to walk freely into Arkham and retrieve your boss without anyone questioning you. You have ONE hour. I'd suggest you wear a Gas Mask, as these things have no qualms with taking out the people who release them, and The Joker is too flippant to assure your safety by purchasing an antidote from me." She spoke quickly, without taking a single breath, her words were spoken with such confidence and ease, that Grumpy had trouble forming his next question.
"Can you guarantee that it'll work?"
The Doc sighed, the first emotion she had exhibited during the entire conversation. Suddenly it seemed like the night air had turned bitter cold. "It WILL work, I can guarantee that it will work." Her words were filled with venom, Grumpy stepped back and gripped the handle to his Merc, although she hadn't moved any closer to the Henchman, he was starting to feel claustrophobic. "However, the one thing I can't guarantee is that your pitiful incompetence will be able to do this job without killing yourself. A simple mind like yours, won't be able to handle the glaring effects of my Toxin. So yes, without Human Error-" Her voice rose considerably, only to drop back into a steady whisper, as if her outburst hadn't just occurred. "-your Boss is as good as free."
I'm surrounded by fucking loonies. Grumpy groaned inwardly. Maybe a new job isn't the way forward, maybe i need to move to a new state.
"Now," The woman exhaled, glancing at her watch in haste, starting to dismiss Grumpy with sharp nod. "I've got to go" Wait, what?
"Wait!" Grumpy called, his eyes wide, but she was already down the embankment. She moved at a fast, ridged pace. "How will I find you if this all goes tits up?"
Her response was short and sweet, and resonating the same bored tone as before. The cloaked figure didn't even hesitate, and continued marching forward. "You won't. If you mess this up, you'll be dead, or at least wish you were."
Grumpy was alone again, and undeniably shaken.
Who is she? Grumpy wondered cautiously, before climbing unsteadily into the car and driving back to the warehouse, to begin his plans. He pocketed the grenade and made a mental note to keep it on his person at all times. He couldn't have some trigger-happy Henchman dissolving half of Gotham. He had a long week ahead, and he figured he wasn't sleeping a wink tonight anyway. She took care of that. Grumpy shuddered again, before hitting the gas pedal.
…
Well guys, I hope that's an alright opening for ya. I'd love to hear your comments and reviews; critical or compliments. The next chapter isn't going to be in Grumpy's POV(he isn't integral to the story),I just wanted to get an atmosphere going. I'm wanting to introduce my OC more thoroughly next chapter, and maybe an appearance from Doctor Crane at some point. I'm sorry to say that this story might be a little bit of a slow burn, 'cause I do want to make sure that I cover all angles ETC.
Updates HOPEFULLY should be semi-regular, but I can't make any promises.
I don't own the rights to Batman, Dr Crane, or anyone mentioned in this Fanfic, except my OC.