DISCLAIMERS/NOTES
1. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by DC Comics. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun.
2. As always, I'll point out this was written over a decade ago, when, here in the UK, Season 2 of the JL cartoon had yet to air. So Hawkgirl had not been revealed as a spy, and the massive, every-hero-in-the-DCU roster of Unlimited wasn't a factor. My timeline picks up after the Season 1 finale, "The Savage Time". All my Wayback Wednesday stories are numbered chronologically, if you get stuck.
3. There are aspects of these stories that, in hindsight, I would change. However, I have kept them as I originally wrote them for history's sake. Not laziness.
PART 4
The wind blew through the night sky, sending a chill through the air. But the woman hovering in the air did not feel the cold.
Batwoman looked over Bludhaven. It had been four years since she moved from Gotham… but the city was still a mess. Crime and deprivation spread like a cancer. In many ways, it was worse than Gotham itself.
Her thoughts turned to her family. It was a tough time… it had been a tough time for so long. Her father had become reclusive, single-minded… he withdrew himself from the family more often each day. It was like he apparently was, before she was born.
Batwoman sighed. How could this have happened? How could their lives have turned upside down so much? It had been ten years – TEN YEARS – but he never forgot. Never stopped looking. He never gave up, when just about everyone else had.
Jason was gone. And she missed him. He was her brother, after all. But… she was also the one he hated the most. She would always try and talk to him, try and make him feel needed… and he would always throw it in her face. As the years went by, she found herself missing him less and less…
But she was not worried about him, really. She was more worried about her parents. Her father's obsession was affecting the rest of the family… he was spending more time alone, and less time with them. Their mother's attitude had changed drastically. She was once a caring, happy woman. Now… it was like she was mourning their father's death, before he was even dead.
Her parents were the kindest, most wonderful people in the world… they deserved their last years together to be happy, filled with joy. Instead… her father was driving himself to an early grave, and he did not seem to care. And her mother… was suffering. Badly.
Batwoman suddenly heard a fire alarm from a few blocks away, and flew across the night sky. Within minutes, she reached Bludhaven's bank. It was the only one in the city, and it was in a terrible condition. Years of robberies had taken their toll on the building. The walls were cracked, burnt, the interior rundown, barely in working condition.
She soared down to the street, and landed at the bank's entrance. She cautiously went up the steps, and put her hand to the door. Her father would have approached the situation more stealthily, but she was stronger than him… she was less vulnerable to surprises.
She pushed the door slightly, and it swung open slowly. She peeked into the building, the alarm still ringing. She stepped through the doorway, and looked around.
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Everything looked normal… at least, as normal as Bludhaven got.
She took to the air, and slowly glided around the main area. The alarm was still ringing, so she concentrated on looking for anything wrong…
She stopped as she saw a foot behind a desk.
She softly landed on the ground, and strode around the desk. A few feet away, lay the security guard, face down.
She knelt down and checked his pulse. He was still breathing. She nudged his shoulder gently. "Sir… can you hear me…?"
"Heh… Baa…maa… heh…" came a mumbled reply.
Batwoman frowned. "Sir? Are you alright?" She slowly put her hand on his shoulder, and rolled him over onto his back.
Her eyes widened at what she saw.
The guard had his eyes wide open… and his mouth was pulled back…
Into a smile…
Batwoman could not believe what she saw. It could not be…
"Heh… Bat… man… heh…" the guard said through his teeth.
"Batman?" She was dumbfounded. "I'm Batwoman, sir. What…?"
Suddenly, the alarm cut off.
Batwoman looked around, and heard footsteps from the darkness.
"Hello, Grace," came a voice.
Batwoman got to her feet, and clenched her fists. "Who's there?"
"Don't you recognise me, dear sister?"
Her jaw dropped. She instantly recognised the voice.
"Jason…?"
"Jason?" the voice replied. "Jason is dead, my dear."
A figure stepped out of the shadows.
Batwoman stood there, speechless.
A man stood a few yards away, wearing a purple top. He had black pants and gloves, and a cape and cowl… like Batman…
But his bat insignia… the bat was grinning…
And so was he…
He pointed a gun at her. "You can call me…" he said, "Joker."
Batwoman's lip began to tremble.
"And as you can see…" he said, "I'm a lot happier."
/
Batwoman stared at the figure a few yards away, eyes wide.
The man stood there, grinning wide, pointing a gun at her.
"Jason…" she whispered, "what have you done? What happened to you?"
"I told, Jason's dead," the man said, "I'm now the Joker."
"But… how? Why?" Batwoman asked.
"They'll be time for explanations later…" he said. "Not that you'll be around to hear them…"
Suddenly, he slammed his foot on the ground, and the floor shook. The ground split apart, sending Batwoman off her feet. She landed on the ground, almost slipping into the crater made by the impact. She looked up…
The Joker was flying towards her, grin widening…
He crashed into her, and they went deeper into the ground. He began punching her hard, laughing as he did so. "Oh, sis, you have no idea how long I've dreamed of this…"
However, Batwoman managed to get her legs up, and kicked him away. He flew backwards, landing on the ground a few yards away. Batwoman crawled out of the crater, and got to her feet. She was a bit dazed, but stepped closer.
"Jason… look, whatever happened," she said. "let us help you. Come home. Dad can…"
"DON'T MENTION HIM TO ME!" Joker yelled, diving at her and hitting her hard. She soared into the wall, cracking it on impact. She slumped to the ground, the wind knocked out of her.
He went over to her. "For years you undermined me… treated me like a baby. Well… looks like the joke's on you." Batwoman looked up, as he raised his foot…
Suddenly, she threw her hands up, and caught the boot as he sent it down. They struggled for a few moments for leverage, before she pushed him back. He went flying backwards, smashing out of a window onto the street.
She got to her feet and ran to the window. "Jason… are you…"
Before she could finish, he grabbed her by the throat, and threw her outside. Her head hit a waterpipe, smashing it. Water flew into the air, soaking the street.
She shook her head, attempting to clear it, but he lunged at her, and landed with all his weight on her stomach. He then began ramming her head into the sidewalk, until she created a small crater in the concrete.
"You always used to cut me down," he spat. "Treated me like a poor little brother who couldn't make it without his brothers and sisters. Well, you were WRONG! Do you HEAR ME? Now I have the power… the power to…"
Suddenly, Batwoman blocked his fist, and sent her own into his face. His head flew back, but before he could recover, she picked him up and shot into the air, taking him thousands of yards up.
They flew far above the city's rooftops, and she stopped in midair, and held his arms apart. "What are you doing this for?" she shouted. "You're our BROTHER! Why are you dressed up half like Dad and half like Joker?"
His lipstick-rimmed smile turned into a sneer. "Because they're the two people who have the closest things to father's in my life…"
Batwoman's eyes widened. "What…?"
"You ever wonder what happened to the Joker?" he asked. "He wasn't murdered in prison… I freed him, and he taught me everything he knew… and I taught him everything I knew…"
"You… what?" Batwoman stammered. "How…?"
Suddenly, Joker kicked her in the gut, and grabbed her shoulders. He then spun around, and dove towards the city fast, holding her down.
They plummeted towards a solid steel-roofed warehouse, Batwoman unable to break free. Just as they reached the building, he pushed her away, and the momentum sent her crashing through the roof.
She fell down into the warehouse, and hit the ground hard. The debris from the steel roof followed her down, crushing her as they landed. The mountain of debris laid there, unmoving.
The Joker glided down and landed on the ground. He approached the debris, chuckling.
However, the steel suddenly burst outwards, sending him to the ground. Batwoman slowly staggered to her feet, breathing hard. She was bleeding profusely, as she hobbled out of the debris. She fell to her knees, as her breathing became ragged.
She slowly put her hand to her ear, and activated her cowl radio. It took a few moments for the signal to come in, and when it did, it was filled with static. "Batman here."
Batwoman closed her eyes, trying to get the air into her body. "Thomas… Thomas…"
"Grace… what is it…?"
She choked as blood dripped from her mouth. "It's… Jason…"
Suddenly, the Joker landed infront of her, and jammed his hand onto her head. Electricity then shot out, and she screamed in agony. "ARRRRRGH!"
Joker got to his feet, as Batwoman lay facedown on the ground. The signal had gone out… the radio fried.
He bent down, and picked her up by the cape. He held her outwards, her feet dangling a foot off the floor. "You really have no idea how long I've dreamed of this moment," he said. "You were the one who always berated me… degraded me. YOU, Grace, are the one I hate the most… except for our dear father, of course."
She slowly looked up. "Why… are you doing this… how could you… align yourself… with the Joker…?"
He grinned, then threw her face-first into the ground. As she tried to lift herself up, gasping for air, he walked around her. "The Joker treated me more like a son than Dad ever did," he said. "He took me in… treated me like an equal… he respected me. He tried to make me the best I could be… while you just tried to bring me down as much as you could."
"That's… not… true…" she whispered. "We… love you…"
"Really?" he said, his eyes wide. His angry face then relaxed, and he smiled. "Here… let me give you a hand…" He held it out infront of her.
Slowly, she raised her arm to take it…
Once the grip was made, the electric shock ring was activated again, and thousands of volts of electricity shot again. She screamed, then slumped to the ground, body smoking.
He knelt down, and picked her up by the throat. He held her out infront of him, and pulled off her mask.
Grace looked at him, face swollen and bleeding.
Joker slowly reached for his utility belt, and removed a long pole…
He held inches from her face, and pressed a button on the object…
A two-foot blade shot out of the handle.
"You love me?" he said quietly. "Don't make me laugh."
He held her out further, and aimed the blade, his smile widening…
"Jason…" she gasped, "don't…"
"Say goodnight, Gracie!"
He then rammed the blade into her stomach…
Grace's eyes widened, gagging for air…
The back of her costume stuck out like a point…
The blade had gone straight through her…
He then released her, and she slumped to the ground with a thud.
He looked down at her, as she lay motionless.
His lips curled upwards, and he put his hand to his head…
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
TO BE CONTINUED