Artemis's absolute favorite book was Alice in Wonderland. The stories Lewis Carroll wrote were a rare source of bonding with her old sister. She could remember before Jade had become the cold, cruel person she was today, when they would read the book together. At the time Jade acted like she was to old for it, and was just reading it for Artemis. But Artemis knew the truth, that Jade enjoyed the book just as much a she did, if not more. Perhaps the idea of escaping to a magical world without rules or order appealed to Jade.

It clearly appealed to Jervis Tetch. The man was muttering something about Alice as he prodded Artemis with his revolver. Artemis felt a bit sick when she saw Jade had based her persona as an assassin on the Chesire Cat. Tetch took it a step further. His eyes were distant, as if he couldn't even see the real world anymore. His outfit looked unkempt, clearly stuck in the evidence locker for too long. His gigantic hat was torn at the brim. He was a perfect picture of madness, and Artermis was trapped in a stairwell with him.

Artemis knew that timing was going to be key in order to pull this off. She had to get away from the other criminals and the hostages. If Two-Face or Hush could see her, they would shoot her dead without hesitation. Two-Face would have flipped a coin first, but she didn't want to take those chances.

She had no idea where the Mad Hatter was taking her, and had no intention of finding out. She listened to the patterns of his steps. Tetch was a short man, and had to take the stairs one at a time. He had to move even slower to keep the revovler aimed at her. She waited until she heard his first foot touch the step, then swung back her leg before the second foot could follow. The Hatter's foot got caught on her shin as she swept him off balance. Artemis sidestepped, allowing the Hatter to fall in front of her.

Tetch tumbled down the stairs until he hit a wall. He turned up at Artemis and raised his gun. He fired too late, as Artemis was already sliding down the banister towards him. The shot echoed throughout the confines of the staircase. Artemis was momentarily stunned by the soudn, but kept her focus on the target. As she slid towards him, she stretched out her foot and kicked him in the jaw. Tetch went crashing back into the wall.

Artemis kicked the gun away before the Mad Hatter could grab it again. He howled in impotent rage and charged at her. Artemis blocked his grip with her elbows and drove her shin into his gut. He grunted and his body went slack. Artemis grabbed him by the overcoat and slamed his tiny body against the rails, knocking him out for good.

"Alright, who's next for Truth or Dare?" said the Joker, leering at the students as he walked by them one at a time.

"Go die in a fire, freak," said Helena, earning an exasperated sigh from Barbera. Helena's aggressive attituted could become a real danger if they weren't careful.

"Why don't you go next, Harvey boy?"

Two-Face rummaged through his pocket. "I'll need my coin."

Hush groaned. "I can't believe you people. I don't know what's worse, the fact that the clown thinks this is a slumber party game or that you guys are going along with him."

He rubbed his bandaged head in his hands. "How did I ever get stuck with you people?"

Scarecrow looked up from his notepad to say," It probably has something to do with the whole serial killer thing. The GCPD frown on that, for some reason."

"Shut up, or I'll shoot you like I shot Cavendish."

Joker clapped his hands together with excitement. "By the way, we should really do somehting about Dr. Dead Body over there huh? Hey, Harvey, that's gonna be your dare. Go show the corpse to the police to let them know we're not joking. At least, not more than usual."

Hush let out another groan at that last line. After flipping his coin, Two-Face lifted the body over his shoulder, slinging his assualt rifle over his back.

As he left, Scarecrow said, "By the way let us know if you see the Mad Hatter. He's been gone a while."

Killer Croc growled, "That's a good point, actually. It won't be long until the Bat shows up."

DIck and Barbera glanced knowingly at each other. Batman was off-world on a mission with the Justice League. Nobody would be coming to save them any time soon. They would have to save themselves.

It didn't take long for Artemis to find the security checkpoint where this fiasoc of a field trip began. Although the hallways were as disorienting as they were intended to be, all Artemis had to do was backtrack. Her father had trained her well in orienteering. Sportsmaster's little "lessons" came in handy for all sorts of superhero activities.

She sifted through the backpacks until she found her own. She was glad that her foresight had told her to bring her costume, a small crossbow, and a single quiver. She hoped Dick and Babs had thought ahead as well. Luckily enought, both of them brought a spare costume and utility belt.

She could see the sirens of the police blockade outside. Unfotunately, the door was sealed tight, its metal frame too thick for even her explosive tipped arrows.

She had to come up with a plan. She was hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned. Her priority had to be the hostages' safety. The best she could hope for was that a blitz attack would give the students enough time to crawl away. Maybe then she could reunite with Dick and Babs, then take the creeps head on.

It was a long shot, but she didn't have any other options.

"Well, this is the point where the hostage scenario gets a bit boring," said the Joker. "At this point we're just waiting for the police and or Batman. And since Tommy dearest dealt with Cavendish, I can't kill any of you to establish a threat. Any of you have any good ideas on how to pass the time?"

"How about jumping out windows. You try it first," said Helena.

Joker leaned in close and whispered in her ear. "You know, you're the only one here who's even slightly funny. I'll save you for second-to-last."

Dr. Quinzel tried in vain to calm the other stuedents down. "If we do what they say, they'll probably let us live. They don't have a reason to kill us right now."

"Why would I need a reason?" said the Joker as he brandished his switchblade.

"That's all I needed to hear." Alberto's voice came from the back of the room, quiet but stern. A small pistol wavered in his hand. "I think this has gone about far enough."

Joker laughed, more out of surprise than anything else. "Where did you even get that?"

"I picked it up off one of the dead guards while you weren't looking. Now let us go or I'll shoot."

To Be Continued