Bruce's scowl deepened. His entire frame shifted, as if preparing for combat. Finally, his lips pursed, and uttered: "Only on my terms."

"Gordon. You are casting the net to find him. Get the force out and on recon. Next, Dick, Tim, Barbara, Katherine, and Selina: We are the strike team. We will also be looking for the Joker, and once located we will close in and capture him."

Dick furrowed his brow, "Bruce you're not participating in this any further. If you try to fight the Joker in this state, you'll die. He will kill you."

Bruce glared intensely at Dick, studying his former partner for what he was going to do next.

"Get to work. Now."

The room shifted, Gordon, Katherine and Selina stood, Tim stopped leaning on the wall and Barbara shifted her weight to the balls of her feet. Everyone braced themselves.

"Bruce. This is a team you will lead. But the Joker just beat you within an inch of your life. You haven't healed enough to take him on. You'll be staying in the cave, and coordinating things from there."

The Caped Crusader straightened himself. "No. Stand down. I will complete this mission, and whether or not you're a part of it is up to you."

The frustration in Nightwing's eyes burned like a pile of dead leaves doused in gasoline. His fist clenched, ready to fire right into Batman's severely broken jaw.

Alfred, who had been simply observing up until this point, raised his cane, and jabbed Batman in the side with it, activating the built in Taser and pushing the already incredibly weakened Dark Knight into a state of unconsciousness.

His crystal blue eyes shot open as he sat up, on the Batcave's medical table. He winced as his feet made contact with the ground, every imaginable nerve flaring with pain. He stood and strode over to the Batcomputer, grinding his teeth as he sat down.

"Computer: Open primary communication frequency."

A blue window with fluctuating bars appeared on the screen. It was quickly followed by Gordon's gruff voice blaring out of the speakers, "… going on and on about how some man in a trench coat and converse saved him from a murderous clown over on the East End. The guy's clearly nuts, but it's a lead." Batgirl's much calmer voice piped in next, "Thanks, Dad. I'll skip to that area and keep looking."

Batman had heard enough. He rose and limped a step before the clear, British voice of Alfred went through the cave, "You might not wish to do that, sir. The medication you…" The pounding in Batman's ears distorted the words beyond recognition. The radio continued to blare in the voices that Batman had come to know well over the years, as he leaned on the console for stability. The Brit continued as well, "…worn off by now. It is actually quite remarkable you can stand at all." The aging butler rushed to guide Batman to the computer chair before he collapsed.

Alfred straightened and stood at attention. "Shall I make tea?" He inquired. Bruce grunted, and the butler went off to start the kettle.

"Computer. Identify and trace all transmitters on the Primary Communication Frequency."

Police badge, gold bat, red bat, yellow "R", cat, and blue hawk symbols appeared scattered across the map of Gotham, although they were all converging on the location of the gold bat.

Leaning forward to reach some of the keys, Bruce addressed the group, "Cave-1 online."

Dick paused for a moment before responding, "Copy that Cave-1. The Joker has been located with Harley over on the East End. We're all meeting there for immediate apprehension."