A/N—This is part two of Dick Finds a Jump Drive that was written round robin style on the BMWW Forum. This chapter was written by The-Lady-Isis and DaisyJane.

Disclaimer—All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 4

(Diana's Apartment, Five minutes earlier)

"I don't understand," Donna said.

"What's not to understand?" Diana asked dully. "'It's not worth it'."

"Love is always worth it," her AI self said, reminding her of what they both believed in.

"Not for Bruce! Any version of him, apparently! Think about it - the real Bruce obviously loved me, but not enough to tell me, or share it with me in any way. He created you instead - me but not me, someone he could have without risk. And now his virtual self is doing it to you. You heard it from his own lips. Loving us would make him suffer."

Virtual-Diana lapsed into silence, unable to disagree. He had said that. Even now, after everything, even knowing that he couldn't be hurt, that he would live forever unless his code was somehow erased... Bruce still didn't want her. Them.

"Great Hera," she sighed. "This is worse than loving him as a mortal."

"Worse?" Donna frowned.

"The program will live forever. I'll have to do the same, trapped in cyberspace with him and knowing that he won't let himself love me. It's Tartarus in virtual form."

Donna nodded, her mouth turned down at the corners. Then she tilted her head. "Did you hear something?"

Virtual-Diana listened. "No."

"Are you sure? I could have-"

"I said: HELLO THERE!" came a shout from the computer.

They all turned with expressions more of surprise than fear to see the Joker and Harley Quinn in Diana's computer. "Joker! What-"

"Very smart computer virus, yada yada yada - I'd have more patience and explain the whole thing to you," the Joker said, stepping out of the screen, "but since you're both stone deaf, we're just going to cut to the chase. That ok with you, Harl?"

"Sure is, puddin'!"

"Great!"

Diana or Donna might have been able to stop them - had their com-links not chosen that moment to go off. Dick's voice sounded urgently in both their ears. "Diana, cut the internet link off to your computer, right-"

"Unhand me, you-"

Diana and Donna both heard the angry tones of the AI Diana, and turned horrified gazes on the computer - to see the Joker and Harley dragging the unconscious princess into the computer. Donna rushed toward the desk, but found her palm pressed against glass only.

The Joker gave a jaunty wave, and then the three of them dissolved. Seconds later, Diana's computer literally died, smoke and sparks flickering up from it. She was gone.

Donna touched her hand to her com-link. "Dick, mini-Diana, she's gone, the Joker, he-"

"I'll get Babs and meet you there in twenty," he said quickly.

Less than twenty minutes later, they were all assembled in Diana's apartment, virtual-Bruce there via Barbara's laptop. He was glaring at everything and everyone. "I've tracked them so far," Oracle explained. "They've breached the FBI database - but one of its security mechanisms is that the internet connection is severed as soon as that happens. They're trapped there. And you said they hadn't deleted Diana's....program?"

"Didn't look that way," Diana said, shaking her head.

"Which is worse than anything," Bruce interrupted hotly. "He could be rewriting her code or deleting parts of it or anything his sick, twisted mind can come up with! You have to upload me into the database, Barbara."

"I can't! The only way to get there is to actually go there! It's closed-circuit now, we have to physically go there to get her out."

"The Joker could do anything to her in that time!"

"Then I guess we should quit arguing and go then, shouldn't we?" she shot back.

"Why?"

They all stopped and stared at Dick's quiet question. "...what?" Donna asked tremulously.

"Why should we go? I mean, she's not actually real. You're the real Diana, she's just lines of code," he reasoned. "What is there to rescue?"

Dick knew what he was doing. This whole situation went beyond weird and part of him couldn't believe how much he cared about basically two computer programs. But AI Bruce was all he had left of his mentor and it made him strangely happy to have something of Bruce left. He also could see how much AI Diana meant to AI Bruce, just like the real Bruce must have loved the real Diana. He couldn't help his mentor but he could help the AI version of him.

"Dick, I can't believe you could mean that," Donna said giving him a hurt look. Dick returned her stare and gave an almost imperceptible twitch of his nose. Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly and Dick knew she had gotten his signal and would play along. Their years of friendship and working together had their benefits.

"Well, she is just a program and now she is affected by the Joker virus. She won't be the same and she could cause a great deal of damage to our computers. Babs, you wouldn't reload a program that has been messed up by a virus. You would just get rid of it and get or write a new one. And we don't need her because our Bruce program can do the job of safeguarding the information in the computer located in the Batcave. You don't need her, Bruce, to do that and she would just distract you from your mission," Dick stated as the three women gave him shocked stares though he knew Donna was faking.

AI Bruce glared at him from Barbara's laptop before turning to Diana. "Diana, call Sarge Steel and see if he can use his connections to get us access the FBI mainframe. Donna transport up to the Watchtower and get two high capacity jump drives. Barbara, I will need your help in uploading me past whatever corruptions that the Joker virus may have done to the mainframe. I will remove the Joker virus to one of the jump drives and the princess to another. I am sure that between the two of us we can fix whatever damage the Joker may have done to her programming as long as he hasn't deleted her. Now let's get moving."

"But, Bruce, wouldn't it be better to run a antivirus program through the FBI mainframe?" Dick said.

"That may destroy the princess," AI Bruce replied.

"Why do you care? You don't need her and you really shouldn't risk your own program to save her," Dick continued, "You really should just get back to the Batcave and fix the computer there." He was actually enjoying himself now. AI Bruce was just as much full of crap as the real one. Bruce pretended that he didn't need Diana but he created a AI version of her because he did. AI Bruce was willing to be destroyed to get his princess back and he had the gall to tell Dick to stay away from Donna.

"You are not needed, Nightwing, you can leave," AI Batman said dismissively.

"I'm Batman, not Nightwing and there is nothing you can do to make me go. Why don't you just admit that you love her?" Dick demanded as his voice rose in anger.

The three women just watched the two confront each other. Barbara was thinking that it had been a long time coming, and only wished that the real Bruce was here. Donna was proud of Dick for trying to get the truth out of cyber Batman and Diana just felt pain as she wished that it could be her Bruce.

"I don't know what you are talking about," AI Bruce responded.

Dick sighed in exasperation. "Donna, I will go with you to the Watchtower; my uniform is in the Batwing. Give me a moment and we can transport up."

"Okay," she said as she headed for the spare room where her uniform and armor were. Diana was already on the phone and AI Bruce was instructing Barbara about the various ways that Joker virus could block his entry into the mainframe.

Barbara looked around and noticed that everyone was occupied and said softly to AI Bruce, "He is right you know about everything he said."

"I know," was all AI Bruce said before getting back to work.