Author's note: This chapter went a little bit longer than I expected it would but there was a lot I wanted to put in.
Gotham City
Batman and Nightwing (with their cowl and mask off) watched the recorded news of Wayne Tower on the Batcomputer.
"Man, that's harsh" said Nightwing.
"The question is: who is this attacker and what are they after" said Batman.
"The question is: do they know your identity or is it merely a large building" said Nightwing.
"We'll have to find this out" said Batman.
"Do you it's—" asked Nightwing.
"No; this was someone more organized" replied Batman. At that moment, Alfred entered.
"This arrived for you today, Master Bruce" said Alfred. He placed an envelope on the keyboard. Batman picked it up and ripped it open. Inside was a letter that said this.
Dear Bruce
Meet me in Crime Alley at nightfall. There's something I have to tell you.
PS: Bring your batsuit.
"Someone who knows your secret identity?" asked Alfred.
"It seems that way" replied Batman.
Later
Batman glided down into Park Row. He walked through an alleyway. He then came across something—a chalk lining of a man and woman with a rose bouquet. He kneeled down and memories flooded through his head.
Batman's flashback
A young Bruce Wayne with his mother and father (Thomas and Martha Wayne) walked out of the Monarch Theatre.
"Should we call for a taxi?" asked Martha.
"Nonsense; it's a lovely night, we could use the fresh air" replied Thomas. They walked past an alleyway. "This way, it's a shortcut"
"Are you sure?" asked Martha.
"Certain" replied Thomas "Gone down this way plenty of times" They walked down the alleyway. A shadowy figure followed them.
"Thomas, I'm still not sure about—" said Martha.
"Don't move!" said a voice. They moved around. Joe Chill, a small-time criminal holding a pistol, walked into the light. "You, the wallet, now!"
"Don't worry, I'll handle this" said Thomas. He slowly got out his wallet and dropped it on the ground in front of Chill.
"The pearls as well" said Chill.
"Stay by me, Bruce" said Martha quietly.
"Come on!" said Chill. Before Thomas could reply, Chill reached out and snatched the pearl necklace off of Martha's neck.
"Hey!" said Thomas. At that moment, Chill pulled the trigger and shot him in the stomach. He collapsed on the ground.
"Thomas!" exclaimed Martha. Chill shot her in the chest and she collapsed. At that moment, police sirens called.
"Man; cops!" exclaimed Chill. He ran off down the alleyway. Police cars pulled up near the alleyway. An overweight police officer with messy black hair and brown eyes and wore a long brown coat with a brown hat, yellow shirt, black tie, black belt, blue pants, and black shoes ran up to him.
"Out of the way, kid" said the officer. A young Jim Gordon (lieutenant at the time) ran up.
"Give him a moment, Harvey" said Gordon "Don't you know what he's just seen"
"Fine" said Harvey "You'll deal with the kid whilst I deal with the criminal" He ran after Chill. Gordon kneeled down to Bruce and put his coat around him.
"Hey; don't be afraid" said Gordon "Lieutenant Jim Gordon. Don't worry, I'll take you home" He took Bruce out of the alleyway.
Back to reality
I knew you'd come" said a female voice. Batman stood up and turned to a shadowy female figure. The figure walked into the light and revealed herself to be the catsuit woman. "Hey Bruce"
"Selina" said Batman.
"Please, call me Catwoman" said the woman. She walked up to Batman, pulled his head towards her with her hand, and kissed him on the lips.
"What is it you want?" asked Batman.
"News" replied Catwoman "Haven't you noticed it; villains have been disappearing. Last night, Joker and Harley Quinn disappeared from Arkham along with Two-Face with no trace. They're not the only ones as well—Clayface, Freeze, Poison Ivy, Killer Croc, and many others"
"What are you implying?" asked Batman.
"Someone's rallying them" replied Catwoman "Don't believe me; take this" She placed a flash drive onto Batman's hand. "Use the information wisely" She gave him a peck on his check then got out a whip from around her waist and used it to climb up a building.
"She's always slinky" said a voice. Batman turned around and saw Nightwing leaning against a wall.
"How much of that did you see?" asked Batman.
"Enough" replied Nightwing "Too much actually. But I got the idea; the villains are rallying together. I know what you're thinking, but we have an alternative"
"And what's that?" asked Batman.
"We send in the team" replied Nightwing.
Transformation
The next day
It was sunset at Wayne Manor. Dick Grayson sat on a couch drinking a glass of water. A large black great dane lay asleep on the carpet asleep.
"Ahh; it's good to be home" said Dick. He placed the glass on a table. Alfred walked up and placed the glass on a silver platter. "Thanks, Alfred" At that moment, the doorbell rang. Alfred turned to answer it. Dick got up. "Don't worry; I'll handle this" He walked towards the door. He opened it. "Excuse me, have we met before?" A 17 year old girl stood at the door. She wore a black outfit with bare legs, blue fingerless gloves with a red jewel on each of them, long blue boots that went up past her knees, a gold-coloured belt around her waist comprised of red jewels with a gold bird-symbol on the front, and a blue cloak with the hood up and a red jewel on it. She had Caucasian skin, purple lips, and two white eyes looking at him from under her hood. "Who are you?"
"Rachel Roth" replied the girl.
"What are you doing here?" asked Dick. Rachel walked in without replying. "Okay, better question; how am I going to explain this to Bruce" He followed her. By now, Rachel had sat down on the couch.
"Who is this, Master Dick?" asked Alfred.
"She says her name is—" replied Dick.
"Rachel Roth" said Rachel.
"What are you doing here?" asked Dick.
"I have come to join your team, Nightwing" replied Rachel.
"I'll have to see it to the rest of—wait, Nightwing?" said Dick.
"Of course" said Rachel "That is your name, isn't it?"
"It's Dick Grayson" said Dick.
"Don't try" said Rachel.
"You mean, you know—" asked Nightwing.
"This conversation is pointless" said Rachel "Just take me to your former mentor—Batman"
Meanwhile in the Watchtower
Aqualad and Blue Beetle were sparring in combat training. Aqualad managed to knock Blue Beetle across the legs. He helped Blue Beetle.
"You're getting better" said Aqualad "But you have to concentrate better"
"I get it" said Blue Beetle.
"Perhaps you should take it more seriously this time" said the Scarab.
"Yeah, yeah; that's what you said the last few times" said Blue Beetle.
"Pardon" asked Aqualad.
"Nothing" replied Blue Beetle. Superboy and Miss Martian watched on the sidelines.
"Jaime's been acting strange lately" said Miss Martian.
"I know" said Superboy.
"Maybe you should talk to him" said Miss Martian.
"I think he'll be just—" said Superboy before seeing Miss Martian's look "Okay; I'll talk to him" He walked over to Blue Beetle. "Hey, Jaime"
"Hey Connor" said Blue Beetle.
"Listen; I've noticed that you've been acting strange lately" said Superboy.
"Strange, me, no" said Blue Beetle.
"Sure, great comeback" said the Scarab sarcastically.
"SHUT UP!" said Blue Beetle.
"Are you sure you're not acting strange?" asked Superboy.
"Okay, I admit it; the Scarab's still talking to me" replied Blue Beetle.
"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Superboy.
"After Bart and Zatanna went to all that trouble to free me from the Reach's control?" said Blue Beetle "No way, people could misunderstand; and from what I heard, you guys don't like to talk about the idea of a mole on the team"
"Right, right" said Superboy "But the others are getting worried"
"I know" said Blue Beetle "But it's so hard; I mean, I keep trying to hide it but I can't. What's he gonna' so next; try to help me find a girlfriend?"
Meanwhile
Bart stood in front of the holographic screen of his device showing Nathaniel Tryon.
"I understand" said Bart "I'll make sure of it" He turned the device turned off. At that moment, Blue Beetle entered.
"Bart, we're ready" said Blue Beetle.
A few minutes later
Aqualad stood before the rest of the team.
"As you are aware, Batman has summoned us to track down Gotham's supervillains" said Aqualad "Our job is track them down and bring them to justice"
Meanwhile
Batman and Nightwing watched the Batcomputer's screen.
"Incredible" said Nightwing "She's managed to upload information, people involved, and even a voice recording" They brought up the recording.
"My fellow criminals, too long has the Bat ruled Gotham" said the voice.
"That voice" said Nightwing.
"Bane!" said Batman.
"Should've known" said Nightwing. A black light flashed from behind them.
"The time has come for us to rise up and take what is rightfully ours" said Bane's voice "I have given you all your instructions. You all know the plan; we will cause destruction around Gotham, overwhelming the Dark Knight until I can catch him and take him out myself. As of now, the Bat shall die!" The recording stopped.
"Are you sure Catwoman's not secretly working for him?" asked Nightwing.
"We have fought on many occasions, but she would never kill me" said Batman "I'm too important in her life"
"Can't believe I forgot that" said Nightwing.
"People always seem to forget things" said a voice from behind them "It's pointless" They turned around. Rachel stood there.
"What are you doing here?" asked Nightwing.
"I told you before; I've come—" replied Rachel.
"No, no, not that" said Nightwing "How did you get down her, into the Batcave?"
"I teleported" replied Rachel whilst pulling down her hood, revealing the rest of her face. She had blue eyes, medium-length black hair, and a small red diamond-shaped gem on her forehead.
"Teleported?" said Nightwing "What are you?"
"I am part demon" replied Raven "I possess the ability of empathy and can teleport myself anywhere I wish"
"I have to admit, that's impressive" said Nightwing.
"I guess I'm on the team then" said Rachel.
"What, no!" said Nightwing "You see; you can't just come to our door with some powers, know our secret identities, find your way into the Batcave, and then all of a sudden you're on the team. We have to determine things like origin, powers, attributes—"
"With all due respect, Nightwing, you are team leader and you know as well as anyone that the team needs more members" said Rachel.
"What are you talking about?" said Nightwing "I'm not team leader...not anymore. Aqualad is"
"Aqualad knows that you are destined to lead the team" said Rachel "You know it as well, but you deny it"
"It goes deeper than that" said Nightwing "A year ago—" At that moment, Batman stood up.
"I just heard from Aqualad" said Batman "They've arrived"
"We should end this argument" said Rachel "It's pointless"
"What is it with you and this "pointless" thing?" asked Nightwing. There was a short silence.
"That question is pointless" replied Rachel. Nightwing sighed.
"Fine; come with us and we'll see what the team thinks" said Nightwing "Oh; and if you're going to part of the team, you'll need an alias. You know, to protect your secret identity"
"Raven" said Rachel "That's my alias"
"Raven, huh?" said Nightwing. He hoped onto his motorcycle. Batman got into the Batmobile with Raven sitting in the other seat. They drove out of the Batcave.
A few minutes later
The team stood in Park Row. The Batmobile and Nightwing's motorcycle pulled over.
"Batman's here" said Batgirl. Batman, Nightwing, and Raven got out.
"Who's this?" asked Tigress.
"Everyone, this is Raven" said Nightwing.
"Salutations" said Raven.
"She's requested to join the team" said Nightwing.
"How'd she do that?" asked Bart.
"I'm not so sure about that myself" replied Nightwing "But she has some powers that might come in useful"
"A few powers, huh?" said Bart "She's gotta' fit in here just fine, eh Jaime. Jaime?" Blue Beetle didn't reply. He was just staring at Raven, not blinking, not moving. "Jaime, are you alright?" He pushed Blue Beetle in the shoulder slightly.
"Wha; oh, just fine!" said Blue Beetle, snapping out of his thoughts "I'm just fine"
"I'm not so sure about that, Jaime" said the Scarab "I felt your heartbeat increase" Blue Beetle didn't reply.
"Team; as you are aware, Gotham City's super-criminals have rallied together" said Batman "But we have discovered something else about it; Bane is behind this. We have recently acquired information for locations that the villains are hiding. I'm not going to exaggerate; they are armed, they are dangerous, some of them are unstable, but most importantly, they will kill you the first opportunity they get. If you want to back down, do it now" All of the team stepped forward. "We are sending you in as groups of three. Superboy, Miss Martian, Beast Boy, go to Brideshead. Tigress, Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, go to district outside Gotham Zoo. Nightwing, Batgirl, Robin, go to City Hall district"
"All three of Batman's protégés on the same team!" said Robin "Alright!" He put his hand up, ready for a high-five. Nightwing and Batgirl just stared at him. "Okay, you left me hanging" He put his hand down.
"Finally; Aqualad, Blue Beetle, go to Gotham Park district" said Batman "And take Raven with you. Remember, stealth-tech" Aqualad, Bart, Wonder Girl, and Robin turned on their stealth-tech.
"What about you, Batman?" asked Aqualad. Batman got into the Batmobile.
"I will patrol around Crime Alley" replied Batman "Be careful and take care" He drove off.
"You heard Batman; team, move out" said Aqualad. They moved out. "Nightwing told us that you possessed powers, but he did not specify them"
"I'm am part demon" said Raven "I am adapt at sorcery and draw my power from my emotions" She pulled her hood up. "I have been monitoring your team's activities for some time now and decided to join you" Blue Beetle stared at her.
"Jaime, your heartbeat is rising again" said the Scarab. Blue Beetle didn't reply. "Jaime, why aren't you replying?" Blue Beetle still didn't reply.
"Raven, you might not be ready for this work" said Aqualad "People get killed"
"If you'd experienced what I've experienced, you'd know I'd be ready for it" said Raven.
A few minutes later
It was now nightfall. Nightwing, Batgirl, and Robin stood on a roof in the City Hall district. Nightwing looked down at City Hall with a pair of binoculars.
"Why are we watching City Hall as if we're on a stakeout?" asked Robin.
"A formal party is being held there; full of people to hold hostage" replied Nightwing "It's an obvious target"
"What if there's a full on attack?" asked Batgirl.
"Then we spring into action" replied Nightwing "But they'd have to be very impulsive" At that moment, there was a loud array of gunshots. He looked down at the street outside the City Hall. Commissioner Gordon and a line of police with armour and shields stood there fighting back goons. "Seems they decided to go full on; let's go"
Meanwhile in the district outside Gotham Zoo
"Are you sure you know where you're going?" asked Wonder Girl.
"I used to live in Gotham City" replied Tigress "I know where I'm going" They walked up to a large metal gate with the words Gotham Zoo written at the top of it. "We're at Gotham Zoo" She overheard faint words coming from within the zoo. "And I think we have a rogue inside there" She jumped up onto the gate and started to climb.
"Wait; this place is locked off at night" said Bart "We're not allowed in there at night" Tigress landed on the other side.
"C'mon" said Tigress "Unless you want our guy to get away" Wonder Girl flew over the gates whilst Bart vibrated his molecules through them. "Let's go" She ran off.
Meanwhile
Nightwing landed into the crossfire. He got out his Eskrima sticks and started to beat up the goons with them. Batgirl and Robin landed as well. Robin got out his birdarang and threw it, hitting three goons in the process. Commissioner Gordon got out a megaphone.
"This is Commissioner Gordon" said Commissioner Gordon through the megaphone "Stand down now, criminals!" At that moment, a goon got out his gun and aimed it at him.
"Gordon, watch out!" shouted Nightwing. The goon fired and it hit Gordon in the shoulder. He collapsed. Nightwing and Robin ran over to him.
"Is he alright?" asked Robin. At that moment, a woman ran up to them. She had tan skin, dark brown (almost black) hair, and brown eyes and wore a black top with a grey jacket, sandy-yellow trousers, a black belt, black shoes, and a badge around her neck. She checked Gordon's pulse.
"He's alive" said the woman "But he requires medical attention"
"Who are you?" asked Robin.
"Detective Renee Montoya" replied the woman "I'll get him to shelter and try to remove the bullet. Provide cover"
"We're on it" said Nightwing. Montoya dragged Gordon off to shelter.
"Squad One to Squad Two" said a goon through another goon's comlink "We've successfully taken them"
"All men, retreat" said the goon "Our part is over" All the goons retreated.
"They just retreated" said Batgirl "Curious"
"Tell me about it" said Nightwing. He walked up to an unconscious goon. "White down the right side and black down the left; I smell Two-Face" Nightwing walked over to Montoya who was undercover. "How's Gordon?"
"He'll be fine" replied Montoya "But he requires further attention. We'll take him to Gotham hospital"
"Whilst we check on City Hall" said Nightwing. He, along with Batgirl and Robin, entered City Hall. No one was inside, but there were signs that they had left not on their own intentions. "Hey; where are they?" At that moment, a video projector projected a transmission onto the wall. It was the Riddler.
"Oh no; everyone's disappeared!" said the Riddler "Is it possible that I, the Riddler, has taken them hostage?"
"Riddler!" said Nightwing "What have you done to them?"
"Calm down; they're safe, for now" said the Riddler "But they might not be within a 24 hour radius"
"Give them back or—" said Nightwing.
"Or what?" said the Riddler "You'll take me down? You don't even know where I am. Instead, how 'bout a little game; throughout Gotham I have hidden riddles, riddles that will put your brains to the test. If you answer them correctly, you'll find your precious citizens. Now, let us begin. Riddle me this; you hear it speak, for it has a tongue. But it cannot breathe, for it has not a lung. What is it?" Nightwing, Batgirl, and Robin huddled in together.
"Okay; it can speak because it has a tongue but it can't breathe because it doesn't have a lung" said Nightwing "Think carefully"
"What's the matter?" said the Riddler "Do your inferior minds ach?" Robin turned around. He noticed a lone bell on the table.
"Bell?" said Robin quietly "Guys, I think I got it; it's a bell"
"Are you certain?" asked Nightwing.
"Heh; should've made that riddle harder" said the Riddler "Oops!" Nightwing smirked.
"Ah; so it is the bell" said Nightwing.
"Okay, you got that one right" said the Riddler "But that's merely the first one. You'll never figure out the rest of them" The projection stopped. Nightwing walked up to the bell and picked it up. He looked inside. There was a small rolled up note. He unrolled it and read it.
"I have two arms, but fingers none" read Nightwing "I have two feet, but cannot run. I carry well, but I have found I carry best with my feet on the ground. What am I?"
"I'm guessing we have to go out" said Robin. They went out. By now, the police had gone.
"Now what could it be?" said Nightwing. They walked along. "Keep your eyes peeled for something that's meant for carrying. He looked over at an abandoned shopping trolley. "It can't be that; it has four legs" He looked over at an abandoned motorcycle. "Maybe it's...No, it isn't. Just doesn't fit"
"Nightwing, I think I found something" said Batgirl. Nightwing ran over to her. She was standing in front of a wheelbarrow in the street.
"A wheelbarrow?" said Nightwing. Robin walked over.
"Of course" said Batgirl "It has two arms, but doesn't have fingers. It has two feet, but it cannot run. And it carries well"
"You're right" said Nightwing "And look, there's a container inside it" He picked the container up and unscrewed the lid. Inside was a note. He read it.
"Who spends the day at the window, goes to the table for meals, and hides at night?" read Nightwing. They all thought for a moment.
"That's easy; a fly" said Robin.
"That's right" said Nightwing.
"Except one thing; where are we going to find a fly?" asked Batgirl.
Meanwhile
Tigress walked stealthily through the zoo.
"I'm still not sure about this" said Wonder Girl.
"Call it a hunch, but I've got a bad feeling about this" said Bart.
"Shhh, both of you!" said Tigress quietly "I think I've found him" She peered two bushes aside, revealing the petting zoo. They walked in quietly.
"What now?" asked Wonder Girl quietly.
"Shhh!" said Tigress quietly. She peered over the top. A man sat on a seat in a paddock with a long table. He had Caucasian skin, blue eyes, and long blonde hair. He wore a blue old-fashioned coat with a grey coat and a pale yellow shirt underneath that had a long collar, a black belt, black and grey chickened trousers, brown shoes, black gloves, a large black bowtie with yellow speckles, a pocket-watch hidden away in his top pocket, and a blue top hat with a yellow brim and a price card on it. On his right was a rabbit on a chair and one his left was a gerbil on a chair. He was pouring tea into teacups.
"More tea, March-Hare?" asked the man.
"Ha; talk about "mad as a hatter"" said Tigress quietly. She got out her crossbow. She jumped out and pointed her crossbow at the man. "Don't move!"
"Ah; Alice, you're back" said the man.
"Alice?" said Tigress confused.
"Alice" said the man "That's who you are, aren't you?"
"It's Tigress" replied Tigress.
"Oh; you've grown so much" said the man "Do you remember my friends; the March Hare and the Dormouse?"
"That's a rabbit and a gerbil" said Tigress "What kind of supervillain are you?"
"I'm the Mad Hatter" replied the man.
"Mad Hatter?" said Tigress "Should've known this'd happen someday"
"Quite" said the Mad Hatter "Now; sit down"
"Ha; I don't think so" said Tigress "You're coming with me!"
"I said—sit down" said the Mad Hatter.
"Or what?" smirked Tigress "You'll ask for the Queen of Hearts to lop off my head?"
"I'll make you sit down" replied the Mad Hatter. At that moment, two goons wearing card outfits with price cards stuck to their heads jumped into the paddock and ran at Tigress. Before Tigress could even shoot, the goons grabbed her by the arms. She struggled. The Mad Hatter stood up and walked over to her. He got out a price card and tutted. "You need to learn some table manners"
"What is that thing?" exclaimed Tigress.
"My mind control device" replied the Mad Hatter "We'll see you through the looking-glass" At that moment, there was a flash of yellow and red and the price card disappeared from his hands. "What?"
"About that..." said a voice. The Mad Hatter turned around. Bart stood there with the price card in hand. "...finders-keepers!" At that moment, Wonder Girl jumped out. With a quick move, she lassoed the two card guards up.
"Fallen like a deck of cards!" smirked Wonder Girl.
"Good one" said Tigress.
"Wait; where's the Mad Hatter?" asked Bart. The Mad Hatter was nowhere to be seen.
"For someone as mad as a hatter, he sure can disappear like the Cheshire Cat" said Wonder Girl "Oh; sorry"
"That's okay" replied Tigress "Now c'mon!" They ran off.
Shortly
"Let's face it, we've lost him" said Wonder Girl. At that moment, there was a rustle in the bushes. Tigress got out her crossbow and shot a knockout gas arrow into the bushes. As the gas was released, two card goons collapsed out of it.
"Do these guys ever get tired of being beaten?" smirked Tigress.
"Then again, that's why they're called pawns" said a voice. They looked up and saw the Mad Hatter sitting in the tree. "Oh wait; that's chess"
"Get him!" said Tigress. Wonder Girl swung her lasso up at the Mad Hatter but he jumped into a nearby enclosure. Tigress ran up to the wall, shot a zip-line arrow at the top of it.
"Wait; now we're going into the actual enclosures?" said Wonder Girl.
"Too much for ya'?" said Tigress "Now c'mon; he's getting away" Wonder Girl flew over the wall whilst Bart vibrated his molecules through the wall.
"Oh; you've all arrived" said the Mad Hatter who was sitting atop a gate. He pulled a rope and opened the gate. A large rhinoceros ran through. Tigress reached for an arrow before realising that she had run out.
"Damn!" said Tigress "Out of arrows!"
"I thought you never run out of arrows" said Bart.
"No; I said one time that "I wish I never run out of arrows"" said Tigress. They dodged the rhino's charges.
"Doesn't anyone think it's strange that that rhino seems a bit overly aggressive?" asked Wonder Girl. Tigress looked carefully and noticed a price card on the rhino's head.
"Leave this to me" said Tigress. In a quick move, she jumped onto the rhino's back and pulled the price note off. The rhino collapsed unconscious.
"He's getting away!" said Wonder Girl whilst pointing to the Mad Hatter who was running off.
"I've got him!" said Bart before zooming off.
"I suggest we get out of here before that rhino pulls himself together" said Tigress. She ran up to a wall and climbed over it. Wonder Girl flew over the wall. Both of them ran after Bart. Bart ran faster and faster after the Mad Hatter. The Mad Hatter ran up to a small complex. He opened the door and went in, slamming the door as he went. The door slammed so fast that Bart slammed face-first into it. Tigress and Wonder Girl caught up.
"Why didn't you vibrate your molecules?" asked Tigress.
"That came just too quick" replied Bart. Tigress tried to open the door, only to find out it was locked.
"Locked!" said Tigress.
"Stand back" said Bart whilst beginning to back up "I'm gonna' need some distance to get in and open the door"
"Don't worry" said Tigress "I've got a quicker way" She walked up to the door and smashed the glass open with her foot. She squeezed in. Bart and Wonder Girl followed her.
"Now we're breaking and entering?" said Wonder Girl.
"It's okay if we're going after a bad guy" said Tigress "Beside, I don't think anyone's here" At that moment, she bumped into somebody.
"Woah!" said the person "Hey; what are you doing here?" Tigress looked up at him. He was a middle-aged man with short brown hair and brown eyes who wore a long white lab coat, a grey shirt, a black belt, and blue pants.
"Who are you?" asked Tigress.
"Dr. Kirk Langstrom" replied the man "Who are you?"
"We're...um, just this team of superheroes who are looking for this criminal called the Mad Hatter" replied Tigress.
"Seems a little risky" said Wonder Girl quietly.
"Don't worry; I don't think he bites" said Bart quietly.
"Okay..." said Langstrom somewhat confused.
"He ran in here but there's no sign of him" said Tigress "Do you think he escaped?"
"We could check the cameras" said Langstrom. They walked off. What they didn't notice was that the Mad Hatter peered at them behind a closet door with an evil grin on his face.
"Time to put the plan into action" said the Mad Hatter quietly to himself.
Meanwhile
A small white mouse with a small price card on its head ran onto a desk. It held a small pill with its tail. It walked up to a glass of water and dropped the pill into it. The pill dissolved. The door opened and it scurried off. Tigress, Bart, and Wonder Girl with Langstrom entered the lab. A woman stood in the room looking at something through a microscope. She wore had long blonde curly hair and brown eyes and wore glasses, a white lab coat, green shirt, and black pants.
"Francine, I found these three coming in" said Langstrom. The woman looked up "This is my wife—Francine"
"Who are they?" asked Francine.
"We've just come looking for an escaped supercriminal and your husband was kind enough to let us use the cameras" replied Tigress. Langstrom walked over to a desk, picked up the glass of water, and drank it. He almost collapsed for a second.
"Kirk, are you okay?" asked Francine.
"I'm fine" replied Langstrom "Just a little dizzy. That water had a little kick to it" He walked over to a group of screens and turned them on. They showed different areas in the zoo. "Hmm; he must have knocked out the white rhinoceros"
"Yeah; we saw him" said Tigress.
"I thought—" said Bart before being nudged in the belly by Wonder Girl.
"You okay, Dr. Langstrom?" asked Tigress.
"I'm fine!" replied Langstrom "You don't have to talk so loud though"
"Sorry" said Tigress confused. Bart picked up a book and started to flip through it.
"I was wondering; what are you doing here?" asked Wonder Girl.
"We're doing biological research" replied Francine "We're seeing how animal DNA can be affiliated with medicine"
"You guys sure seem to have a big interest in bats" said Bart whilst closing the book shut "I mean, most of your books seem to be about them"
"How long have you been doing this for?" asked Wonder Girl.
"About eight years to be precise" replied Francine "Though we've had delays" At that moment, Kirk let out a loud growl of pain. "Kirk!" Kirk stood up and started to shake wildly. He started to grow brown hair all over his body. His eyes turned yellow with pupils disappearing. His fingers grew long and sharp like claws. Finger-like parts burst out of the sides of his arms and grew membrane in between them. His toes sprouted black claws and grew larger. His muscles bulged out. His ears grew larger and pointer and opened up. His teeth turned into sharp black fangs. Finally, the rest of his face shaped into a bat's face.
"By Olympus!" exclaimed Wonder Girl. What stood before them was a vicious creature half-man half-bat. The only bit of clothing that remained on it was a pair of tattered pants with the belt still attached. The creature let out an ear-splitting scream. It then jumped up through the roof, smashing through the glass, and flew off.
"Kirk!" exclaimed Francine.
"Is it just me or did he just turn into a giant bat?" said Bart.
"No; it's just you" said Tigress "Of course it's a giant bat. How are we going to stop him?"
"I know how" said Francine.
"How?" asked Tigress "I mean; how many times has your husband turned into a giant bat?"
"He has once" replied Francine.
"Oh...sorry, no offense" said Tigress.
"None taken" said Francine "Many years ago; he was starting to grow deaf so he created a formula to help deafness, but it instead turned him into giant bat. Batman was able to sedate him and I extracted his blood and was able to create an antidote. I still kept some around just in case it something like this happened again"
"You find it" said Tigress "But we've got one super-bat flying towards Gotham City as we speak. We'll lead him to Robinson Park, meet us there. C'mon, we've got a bat to track down" They ran out.
"For god's sake, don't hurt him!" shouted Francine. Tigress, Bart, and Wonder Girl ran out of the door.
"Okay; Kid Flash, since you're the fastest, go on ahead" said Tigress.
"Right away!" said Bart before zooming off.
"What about us?" asked Wonder Girl.
"We'll get there in our own way" replied Tigress. She walked up to a tree and grabbed something from one of the branches. It was a pack of arrows.
"I just knew that you ran out of arrows faster than usual" said Wonder Girl.
"Yep; split my arrows into two packs" said Tigress "Had a feeling that I'd might get into a situation where I'd continuously fire arrows. Looking back on it now, it seemed a little unnecessary, but we can't talk about it now" She ran up to a car and smashed the side window opened with her crossbow and squeezed in. "Hop in" Wonder Girl squeezed in.
"I wonder how we're going to explain this to Batman?" asked Wonder Girl.
"Explain what?" asked Tigress.
"How we broke the law to protect the law" replied Wonder Girl.
"What; you're going to tell him about this?" said Tigress.
"You know how to hijack a car?" asked Wonder Girl.
"It's just like riding a bike" replied Tigress.
Meanwhile
"Found the bullet" said Batgirl whilst picking up a bullet with a note attached to it. They had been searching for riddles ever since the Riddler first gave them the instructions. This was their twelfth riddle. "What is big and yellow and comes in the morning to brighten mum's day?" They looked around the streets. Robin noticed that a yellow school bus was parked right next to a small building.
"I think I know" said Robin "A school bus"
"Let's see" said Nightwing. They ran onto the school bus.
"Over here" said Robin. They ran over to a typing board on the wall that was next to the building. A small screen was on top of it. There was a note on it. Batgirl picked it up and read it.
"You are in a room with three monkeys" read Batgirl "One monkey has a banana, one has a stick, and has nothing. Who is the smartest primate?"
"One has a banana, one has a stick, one has nothing?" said Nightwing "That's confusing?" They thought about it for a few seconds. Suddenly, Nightwing came up with something. "Wait a minute; it says "who is the smartest primate", and it says that the person is in the room" He walked up to the typing board and typed in "You". At that moment, the walls opened up revealing a secret passageway. They looked down it. "Why is there always a secret passageway?"
Meanwhile
Tigress and Wonder Girl drove down the street.
"How are we supposed to locate him?" asked Wonder Girl. At that moment, they heard screaming.
"Simple; follow the screaming" replied Tigress. Crowds of people ran around them screaming. Some of them started to run on the road. Tigress tried to swerve to avoid them but ended up crashing into a fire hydrant. "Why do they always run on the road?" They got out of the car. They noticed that Man-Bat had landed at a market area and was scoffing on mangoes. "There he is!" They walked up close and quietly. Tigress accidently stepped on a stick. Man-Bat's ears picked it up. He turned his head around to face them, screeched, and took flight.
"Didn't see that coming" said Wonder Girl.
"No time for that!" said Tigress "He's getting away!" They ran after Man-Bat until they lost him. "Lost him! Kid Flash, do you read me?"
"Loud and clear" replied Bart through Tigress' comlink.
Meanwhile
Bart zoomed along the road.
"Can you see Man-Bat?" asked Tigress through Bart's comlink. Bart looked up at a building that he was running towards. He noticed that Man-Bat was perched atop it.
"I see him" replied Bart into his comlink.
"What's your location?" asked Tigress.
"Just outside Robinson Park" replied Bart.
"Perfect" said Tigress "We'll be there. Tigress out"
"Let's see if this actually works!" said Bart to himself. He zoomed closer and closer to the building until he reached it and ran upwards, right up the wall. As soon as he reached the top, he lunged up and grabbed hold of Man-Bat by the back. Man-Bat screeched and flew up. "Ah, no you don't!" He held on tight. At that moment, Tigress and Wonder Girl arrived.
"What's that?" asked Wonder Girl.
"If I had a guess, Bart tried to help us take down the bat by keeping him occupied long enough" replied Tigress.
"Time for us to jump in" said Wonder Girl. She flew up into the air, swung her lasso, and caught Man-Bat in the left leg. She pulled him down further. Tigress shot a zip-line arrow at his right leg and pulled him down further. Wonder Girl landed on the ground.
"Nice going" said Tigress.
"Thanks" said Wonder Girl. Bart let go and landed on the ground.
"There; now all we have to do is bring him over to Robinson park and—" said Bart shortly before Man-Bat used all his strength to fly up, taking Tigress and Wonder Girl along with him.
"Hang on, Tigress" said Wonder Girl.
"Hang on?" said Tigress "Do I have a choice?" At that moment, they reached a building
"Tigress, put your legs up!" said Wonder Girl. Too late; Tigress hit the roof and rolled over. Wonder Girl stay on and started to climb her lasso. "I guess it's down to me now!" She grabbed onto Man-Bat and started to pull him down. "The bigger they are...the harder they fall!" At that moment, Man-Bat flew backwards and slammed her into the wall of a building. She fell down unconscious but got caught in midair by Man-Bat. He flew around with her.
Meanwhile
Tigress and Bart watched this from Robinson Park.
"What are we gonna' do now?" asked Bart. At that moment, a Taxi pulled up on the curve. Francine got out.
"We end this" replied Tigress. They ran up to Francine. "Got the cure?"
"Yes" replied Francine whilst getting out her bag "Sorry I wasn't here sooner; someone took my car" Tigress stayed nonchalant. Francine got out three vials of liquid from her bag. "I found four vials; I kept one aside for reverse-engineering just in case" Tigress took the vials and placed them on her belt.
"I've got three shots" said Tigress "Better not blow them"
"What's he doing with her?" asked Francine.
"I'm not sure" replied Bart "He seems to be just flying around and holding her out to make us know. Almost as if he's—"
"Holding her hostage" said Francine "Curious; this is not bat behaviour" Tigress noticed a top hat shadow in a building.
"Do you think he's still got human level intelligence?" asked Bart.
"Oh maybe not" said Tigress "I'll be back" She ran off"
"Be careful; we can't afford to lose those vials" said Francine.
Meanwhile
The Mad Hatter stood in a dark room of a building. He watched Man-Bat flying around.
"Twinkle, twinkle, little bat!" sang the Mad Hatter "How I wonder what you're at! Up above the world you fly, like a tea tray in the sky. Twinkle, twinkle, little bat! How I wonder what you're—"
"At?" said a voice. The Mad Hatter turned around and saw Tigress had entered. "Yep; my sister always used to read that to me as a child"
"Ah; Alice, so good of you to arrive" said the Mad Hatter.
"You're behind this, aren't you?" said Tigress.
"Indeed I am" replied the Mad Hatter "I have powerful friends; and they helped me reverse-engineer the Man-Bat formula into pill form. Whilst you and Dr. Langstrom were talking, one of my mice sneaked it into his drink"
"Yet that's not the only thing, isn't it?" said Tigress.
"Yes" replied the Mad Hatter "I hid microscopic nanobots into the pill that control his mind; he's my living puppet now!" He laughed evilly.
"You're insane!" said Tigress "And I will stop you!"
"How?" said the Mad Hatter "You don't even know how I'm controlling the nanobots; I'm not holding a remote, I'm not next to a computer, so what is it?" At that moment, Tigress punched him in the nose and grabbed his top hat. She threw it onto the ground and stomped on it. Sparks flew out of it. "How did you know it was my hat?"
"Easy" replied Tigress "You couldn't make it too obvious but you needed to keep it on you at all times, as a form of fashion to be precise" The Mad Hatter picked up his squashed hat.
"No!" said the Mad Hatter "You fool!" Tigress noticed that Man-Bat started to swerve from side to side and his head shoot sparks a little. "Without my nanobot control, the Man-Bat is reduced to a rabid animal" Man-Bat gained consciousness again and screeched.
"How do I slow him down?" asked Tigress.
"You can't" replied the Mad Hatter "If you had wanted to stop him, you should've taken my hat and used it to land Man-Bat safely" Tigress perched herself up on the window.
"I'll do it in my own fashion" said Tigress. She jumped out of the window, shot a zip-line arrow at Man-Bat's leg, and pulled herself up. At that moment, Wonder Girl regained consciousness. "Stay on, Wonder Girl. I've got the cure. Damn; should've asked for an injector!"
"What does that mean?" asked Wonder Girl.
"It means I'll have to do it manually" replied Tigress. She climbed up onto Man-Bat's back, got out a vial, and drew closer to his mouth. He noticed it, screeched, and started to swerve around wildly. Tigress dropped the vial. "Drat; one down" She got out another vial and unscrew the lid. Unfortunately, all the liquid poured out. "Two down; have to get closer"
"Wait; you mean—" said Wonder Girl before Tigress got out the third vial and stuck her hand in Man-Bat's mouth. "Ehhh!" Man-Bat started to shake his head from side to side.
"Sorry, Dr. Langstrom" said Tigress. She unscrewed the lid and poured the cure down Man-Bat's throat. Man-Bat screamed and gurgled before shrinking back to his original size and shape. "Great; got him back to normal, except—" They started to fall from the sky. Wonder Girl started to fly and grabbed both Tigress and Langstrom. She flew them safely to the ground in Robinson Park. Bart and Francine walked up to them. Francine walked up to the unconscious Langstrom.
"Is he alright?" asked Wonder Girl. Francine checked Langstrom's pulse.
"He'll be alright" replied Francine "I'll care for him"
"Anyways; I saw how you gave him the cure" said Bart "You may want to wash your hands"
"It's over" said Francine.
"I'm afraid not" said Tigress "Do you want to know why he turned into that super-bat? It was the Mad Hatter; he used a sample of the formula in a pill and used nanotechnology to control him. What's more; he claimed he had powerful friends"
"Who?" asked Bart.
"He didn't say" replied Tigress "But I can only say this; it's far from over"
Meanwhile
Nightwing, Batgirl, and Robin walked through the secret passageway. They reached a dead-end.
"Dead-end!" said Batgirl.
"Maybe not" said Nightwing. He walked over to a small square-shape in the wall. It turned out to be a panel. It turned on. The Riddler appeared on it.
"Congratulations" said the Riddler "You've proven that you have minds that could almost challenge mine"
"Cut to the chase, Riddler" said Nightwing "We're through playing. Where are they?"
"Uh uh uh; just one riddle left" said the Riddler "And to make this one more interesting, I've made this one a..." A wall closed behind them and sprouted spikes. "...I believe the phrase is "a matter of life and death"! Riddle me this; what is easy to get into, but hard to get out of?" The wall started to move towards them.
"Any ideas?" asked Robin. The wall got closer and closer.
"Oh dear; are you...stumped?!" said the Riddler "You're in real trouble!" At that moment, Nightwing got it.
"Of course!" said Nightwing "Trouble; the answer is trouble" Riddler sighed.
"Fine; you were correct!" said the Riddler disappointed. The wall stopped. "But you have no idea where I am" The panel turned off and the wall in front of them opened. They walked in. They found lots of people typed to each other with duck tape over their mouths. Robin ungagged one of them.
"Help!" said the person "That creep took us!"
"That's why we're here" said Batgirl. Nightwing looked up at a security camera.
"Get them out of here" said Nightwing "I'll find Riddler"
"But Nightwing, we don't know where he is" said Batgirl.
"He's here" said Nightwing "I know he is"
Meanwhile
The Riddler sat in a room full of screens that showed his security camera footage. He held a long green cane with the top resembling a question mark. He noticed Nightwing walk away.
"Those little heroes may have beaten me this time, but I'll be back!" said the Riddler to himself. At that moment, the door to the room fell down. Nightwing walked in. "What, how'd you know I was here?"
"Because I know you too well, Riddler" said Nightwing "You were going to overlook our defeat yourself and then escape. If we won, you'd still escape" At that moment, the Riddler slammed a button on the control panel. A force field appeared around him. He smiled evilly.
"Did you really think I'd come unprepared?" smirked the Riddler. He slammed another button. A group of guns appeared out of the walls and started to shoot. Nightwing dodged the shots. A gun pointed towards his back and got ready to shoot when a birdarang suddenly swung past and cut the gun off. Nightwing turned around and saw Batgirl and Robin running in.
"I told you two to get those people out" said Nightwing.
"And we did" replied Robin "That doesn't mean we couldn't rush back in to help you"
"Good point, well made" said Nightwing "Stand back!" He got out a wing-ding.
"No, no, NO!" exclaimed the Riddler as Nightwing threw the wing-ding at the button. It slammed in so hard that it hit the circuitry from within. This caused sparks to fly out and eventually exploded.
"Everyone okay?" asked Nightwing as the smoke cleared.
"Yes" replied Batgirl.
"I am" replied Robin. The smoke cleared more and more. They saw the Riddler lying (seemingly dead) on the ground.
"Wait a second; did we just...kill the Riddler?" said Batgirl.
"No; it can't be" said Nightwing.
"Oh no; is this the end of me?" said a voice. They turned around. It was a TV screen with the Riddler on it.
"That wasn't you" said Nightwing.
"Of course not; do you really think I'd put myself out like that" said the Riddler "Anyways; now for the main event!" The seemingly dead Riddler stood up, smiled evilly, then started to grow and get bigger until eventually he became Clayface. "This is the end of you three, starring Clayface!"
"I will crush you!" snarled Clayface. He roared and his hands turned into spiked hammers. He slammed them down at them.
"Remember guys, electrocuting him won't work" said Nightwing.
"Then what do we do?" asked Batgirl. Nightwing searched his belt but found no pills.
"Damn; forget to bring those cement pills" said Nightwing "Seems I'll have to improvise"
"Wait; improvise?" said Batgirl as Nightwing ran up to Clayface.
"Keep him busy" said Nightwing "Hey; over here, mud pile!" Clayface stomped up to him. "You know what, that was the worst impersonation of Riddler ever; I knew it was you but I wanted to play you" At that moment, Clayface lunged out his arm, grabbed him, pulled him inside him, and absorbed him.
"Nightwing!" exclaimed Robin.
"No!" exclaimed Batgirl.
"Emm; that was truly a performance to die for!" laughed Clayface. He laughed evilly which eventually turned into a roar.
"What do we do now?" asked Robin.
"What Nightwing said" said Batgirl whilst getting out a batarang "Keep him busy" She threw the batarang at Clayface who simply absorbed it. Robin got out his bo-staff and ran at the Clayface. He slammed it into the big monster whom simply pulled it in and absorbed it. Fortunately, he let go before it was absorbed.
"Doesn't anything hurt this guy?" said Robin. Batgirl got out her batrope, shot it at Clayface, and shot electricity through it. Clayface simply pulled it out and laughed evilly.
"I thought you know that wouldn't work!" snarled Clayface. He ran at her when suddenly he started to swell up. He gave a weak sigh then exploded. Nightwing stood up in the clay.
"Nightwing, are you alright?" asked Batgirl.
"Never better" replied Nightwing "Well, you know what I mean"
"Is Clayface—" asked Batgirl.
"Don't worry about him" replied Nightwing "He's been in worse situations"
"What did you do to him?" asked Robin.
"Electrocuted him from the inside" replied Nightwing "He's only invulnerable from the outside"
"Eh, Clayface sucked anyway" said the Riddler. Nightwing walked over to the screen and followed the cords over to a cupboard. "You may have taken him, but you'll never take..." Nightwing opened the door wide. "...moi!"
"You obviously didn't think too hard on that part of the plan" said Nightwing. Batgirl grabbed a large piece of paper that was hanging on the wall and wrapped it around the Riddler.
"No!" exclaimed the Riddler "I told you years ago; I'm strictly Belle Reve, not Arkham!"
Shortly
Nightwing, Batgirl, and Robin walked out of the lair with a wrapped up Riddler. Renee Montoya and a group of police were parked outside. They walked up to them.
"Here, we got him" said Nightwing.
"Good work" said Montoya.
"We subdued Clayface" said Nightwing "He's inside and likely to reconstruct. Take caution"
"We will" said Montoya.
"Well, two down" said Batgirl.
"Let's just hope the others are having similar luck" said Nightwing.
Author's note: The Riddler sub-plot payed homaged to Batman: Arkham City.