Chapter 4

Nightwing kept an eye out over the dark city of Gotham; the Joker had broken out of Arkham, again and there was sure to be trouble tonight. Batman was naturally out too, and they were all connected via Oracle who was feeding them information when they needed it.

"Does it surprise anyone anymore when the Joker breaks out of Arkahm?" Nightwing asked nonchalantly.

"No," both Batman and Oracle answered in unison. Nightwing snickered a bit at their joint response. What he hadn't told either of them, was that if he found the Joker first, he was going to get answers out of him, one way or another. So far though, they didn't even know where he was. They were waiting for him to make a move at this point, because when he did, it'd be loud and easy to track. He could never resist getting Batman's attention.

"Okay, I've got something, but it's not the Joker," came Oracle's voice over the comm link.

"What is it, Oracle?" Nightwing asked. He could hear the clacking of keys over the comm link before Oracle spoke again.

"A gang war has erupted in Cape Carmine. Black Mask's Crime syndicate and Bane's Street Gang are fighting over territory."

"The Joker's doing," Batman said darkly.

"How do you figure?" Nightwing asked.

"You've been out of Gotham for a while, but in that time the Joker has caused a couple gang wars. In a few months while you were in Bludhaven, Bane managed to sneak back into Gotham and carve out some territory in Cape Carmine." Nightwing was silent for a second, piecing the information together.

"So if Bane's Street Gang has been muscling in on Black Mask's drug trade-"

"All it would take is a little push from the Joker to start a gang war," Batman supplied. Nightwing snorted.

"Yeah, sounds like the Joker. I'd suggest going after Bane. Take him out, the GCPD can dispatch his gang, Black Mask takes the territory, and the gang war dies down faster," he suggested.

"Agreed. I'll meet you at Cape Carmine Lighthouse. If I know Bane, that's likely where he's hiding. Batman out."

Nightwing wasted no more time, pulling out his grappling hook and sailing through the night toward Cape Carmine. He hated the thought of helping a scumbag like Black Mask, but to avoid too many innocent casualties and end this quickly, that was the best way.

"Oracle, I need you to do something else for me," Nightwing asked carefully.

"What is it, Nightwing?" she asked.

"Keep watch for the Joker and let me know if you find any trace of him," he replied. There was a pause from Oracle's end as Nightwing waited anxiously for her reply.

"Will do," she finally replied.

Nightwing began preparing a plan in his mind as he made for Cape Carmine. Getting to the Joker would put him that much closer to finding Jason, provided he could get answers out of the sadistic clown. If he had to deal with Bane and his thugs to get to that point, so be it.

He'd run fresh out of leads to follow, and with nowhere else to turn, he had no choice but to go on as normal, waiting for the Joker, or someone to slip up, or for a new lead to surface. He damn well couldn't go around stumbling blindly in the dark. That would get him nowhere. What really bothered him, is the lengths the Joker had gone to keep Jason's location a secret, all the more reason for him to believe the teen was alive. You didn't go to all these lengths, work this hard, to keep the location of a corpse a secret.

Of course, when he arrived, it looked like a Warzone; Black Mask's men and Bane thugs at each other's throats, and the GCPD riot Squads trying to beak them up at the same time. The Joker was probably sitting in some dark corner somewhere, having a heyday watching them kill each other.

"Nightwing," came Batman's voice.

"Nightwing here. What is it Batman?"

"I'm going into the Lighthouse after Bane. Stay out here and try and break up some of the fighting. Help the GCPD keep the casualties to a minimum," Batman said.

Nightwing snorted and said "Bane nearly broke your damn back once. You think I'm going to let you go after him alone?" There was a brief silence on Batman's end followed by the sounds of combat. Was he already inside the lighthouse?

"Nightwing, listen. We need to keep casualties down. That's more important. Can you-"

"Yeah, fine. Just don't get yourself killed. Or crippled. But at least if you get crippled, I can punch you for being an idiot," Nightwing said in a teasing tone.

He wasted no time in getting to work, helping the GCPD take down Black Mask mobsters and Bane street thugs. Bane's men were the toughest, considering a good number of them were hopped up on venom, but they weren't anything he couldn't handle.

He briefly wondered what Bane had done to piss of Black Mask, but then, if the Joker was involved, and given Black Mask's temper, it wouldn't have taken much more than one of Bane's thugs looking at him the wrong way. And their numbers were many, on both sides. Whatever had happened between Bane and Black Mask, one thing was clear; they were both pissed.

"Nightwing, this is Oracle, come in."

"What is it, Oracle?" Nightwing asked, disabling a few more Bane thugs. He flipped over an attacking Black Mask mobster and threw a bolas at him, tangling him up before spinning in mid air and throwing an escrima stick at an approaching Bane thug. The man staggered backward and Nightwing followed up with a fierce kick to his stomach, sending him toppling over backwards.

"I have a report on the Joker here. The GCPD has issued an alert that the Joker is holding up a Charity Event in Midtown," Oracle reported. Nightwing smirked slightly; now was his chance.

"Thanks. I'll take care of it."

"Wait, it looks like Batman is in a pinch. He made need back up!" Oracle quickly put in. Nightwing bit his lip, debating which needed his attention.

"Batman, do you need assistance?" Nightwing asked. A few moments pause, and the sounds of combat.

"No. Go get the Joker, I'll handle Bane," Batman replied.

"Right. Nightwing out."

"Nightwing-"

"You heard him, he's got it under control!" Night answered before grappling up to the roof top above.

The Joker laughed maniacally as he fired an assault rifle at the roof, the guests of the charity even huddled on the floor, the Joker's clowns gathering up their valuables.

"A gang war and a charity robbery all in one night! What more could a clown ask for?" The Joker asked, giggling like a lunatic. He snapped his fingers and said "ooh, I know what'll liven this party up!" The Joker put a gas mask on his face and the sprinkler system began pumping Joker toxin into the room. The Joker cackled when everyone in the room started laughing uncontrollably.

"Now it's a party!" Even the Joker's clowns were being gassed, but he didn't seem to care. At least, until the gas stopped, and the room started to vent.

"Alright, whose the party pooper?!" The Joker shouted, kicking one of his men out the window, the man screaming as he fell.

"Oopsie daisy!" The Joker cackled. Nightwing entered the room, escrima sticks in hand as he strode toward the Joker.

"Sorry to rain on your parade, but the party's over," Nightwing said smoothly. The Joker cackled again and fired the assault rifle at him. Nightwing dived out of the way and threw a wing-ding, electrified, and blew up the gun. The Joker shouted and dropped the gun's remains.

"You need to lighten up! You're less fun now that you;re all grown up and into your big boy pants," The Joker said with a giggle.

Nightwing snorted and replied "and you need a straight jacket, preferably at the bottom of an oceanic trench." The Joker laughed and threw toxin grenades at Nightwing.

"I've always hated you, making Batman weak. Perhaps I killed the wrong bird boy. Maybe I'll pluck your wings next!" The Joker taunted with a demented giggle. Nightwing avoided the grenades and charged at the Joker. The Joker quickly opened his jacket to reveal a detonator.

"Uh, uh, uh! Not so fast! You can either fight me, or diffuse the bombs at Gotham General Hospital and Gotham City Orphanage! They're set to go off in ten minutes! Do you think you can beat me and diffuse them in ten minutes?" The Joker said with a twisted grin, laughing like a manic. Nightwing growled.

"You're bluffing."

"Am I? Wait ten minutes and find out!" Nightwing cursed and lunged out the window, grappling his way toward Gotham General.

"Batman, Oracle, I don't know how much truth there is to it, but the Joker claims there are bombs in Gotham General Hospital and Gotham City Orphanage! Alert the bomb squad now, we have maybe 9 minutes!"

"On it!" Oracle replied.

"I've apprehended Bane. Heading to the Orphanage." Batman replied.

"Gotcha. Making my way to the hospital. Nightwing out." Nightwing raced across the roof tops, typing commands on his gauntlet computer. Moments later a high-tech glider he named the "Wing Glider" flew into sight. He jumped off the rooftop and grabbed onto the glider, making for Gotham General.

The building came into sight almost a minute later.

Fuck. Down to seven minutes. Gonna be cutting it close...

He dropped down to the building below and began running a scan of the building for any anomalies.

"Oracle! We have six minutes!" He shouted, slightly panicked.

"I know, I'm working, I'm working!" she said frantically. He could hear the keys clacking lower than ever.

Five minutes...

"Got it! Basement level! Go!" Nightwing didn't waste any time. He dived over the roof of the building and let gravity take over for a few moments before grappling the rest of the way down, then raced through the building. People shrunk back, startled cries escaping their lips as he raced through the building at his top speed.

He dived down a stairwell, leading to the basement level and flipped on his mask's x-ray vision.

Four Minutes...

"There!" he said to himself, racing toward the bomb. He slid to a stop on front of it and carefully opened it up, finding the timer inside; two minutes fifteen seconds.

"Wait, Nightwing! Scan it first!" Oracle shouted. Nightwing scanned the bomb with his holo-computer and waited, impatiently, for Oracle's report.

"One minute! Come on Oracle!"

"I'm working as fast as I-oh, okay, here it is! In this order, cut the blue wire, then yellow-and-black stripes, red, then black," Oracle replied. Nightwing began cutting the wires in order, but the bomb didn't stop counting down.

"It didn't work!" Nightwing called.

"What? No! Nightwing, get out of there now!" Oracle shouted. Nightwing cursed loudly and dived behind a support beam and then the bomb went off...spraying confetti everywhere with a Joker head with a sign in its mouth that said 'bang'. Nightwing turned and growled.

"It was a fucking fake! God dammit!"

"Same here," Batman replied over the comm link.

"Damn that clown," Nightwing growled. He lost his chance at getting answers, and finding Jason. Who knew when he attacked next? He sighed deeply an raked his hands through his hair before making for the exit.

"Oracle, any location on the Joker?" Nightwing asked. Oracle was typing away on the keyboard.

"No, sorry, I don't have anything," she answered moments later.

"Well, how are the victims are the charity event?"

"The medics have arrived and are administering the antidote as we speak. Joker's thugs are being taken to Arkham Asylum. No casualties." Nightwing sighed in relief, but also kicked himself mentally; he'd been so focused on capturing the Joker, he hadn't even given a single thought to helping those people. And he began to consider, that maybe Oracle was right; maybe he was obsessed.

"I'm sorry Jaybird," he murmured to himself, leaving the hospital.

Dick retired to his Gotham apartment and changed back into civilian attire; a blue t-shirt and dark jeans. He flopped down onto the couch, flipped on the tv and sighed, running his hands through his hair. Tonight had not gone down how he'd hoped, and he didn't really have the heart to continue patrolling. He felt like he'd failed Jason again, but at the same time, he knew he did the right thing.

"What is it, Bruce?" Dick asked without turning his attention from the tv. Batman was standing in front of his window, watching him. He pulled off his cowl and stepped further into the apartment.

"Dick, I'm concerned about you," Bruce said evenly, crossing his arms over his chest. Dick glanced up at him and quirked an eyebrow.

"What? Why? What now? Is this about Jason again?" Dick asked in an annoyed tone. Bruce shook his head.

"No. It's about what you asked of Oracle. To alert you to the Joker. That's unlike you, especially during a different mission."

"So? What's the big deal? If the Joker showed up, I wanted to know, so I could-"

"Interrogate him?" Bruce interrupted. Dick snorted and turned his attention away from Bruce.

"What if I did? He knows where Jason is, he's the only one that does. I wanted answers, and what better place to get it than from the source."

"The Joker is dangerous, and you know it. If he knows you're looking for Jason, he could set a trap for you. You're being reckless. It's unlike you." Dick growled and got to his feet, staring down Batman.

"Maybe I'm just willing to do what it takes to find him! I'm the only one who hasn't given up on him!" Dick shouted. Bruce kept his calm, because he knew this anger was coming from pain. There were many times when he took that pain out on the criminals as of late...so he understood.

"Just...be careful, Dick," Bruce answered, his expression softening. He pulled his cowl back on and left out the window. Dick stared after him for a few minutes, anger starting to settle...because deep down, he knew Bruce was right. And considering he'd been hunting down the Joker's thugs and questioning them, it seemed likely that the clown knew he was looking for Jason.

Dick sighed., scrubbing his face with his hands. It didn't matter, he wasn't going to quit, but Bruce was right about one thing; he was being reckless. If he wanted to capture the Joker and get answers without dying or getting severely injured, he needed to be careful. The Joker was a dangerous adversary, not to be taken lightly.

Bruce sat in the batcave, staring at the batcomputer with his cowl off. Alfred came in moments later, bringing him some tea.

"Here you are Master Bruce, just as you asked," Alfred said smoothly, placing the tray down beside him. Bruce took a cup of tea and sipped it slowly.

"Thank you Alfred." Alfred bowed his head and retreated. Bruce's eyes were drawn once again to the video file...the file he hadn't been able to look at in weeks. Resigning himself to watch it again, maybe he could find...something...that part of him that believed that Jason was still alive kept prodding him, because he really wanted to believe Dick. But his logical side kept telling him that Jason was dead; they all saw the footage. The Joker shot and killed him.

He started up the footage again, watching it with a more critical eye. The Joker's laugh rang through the cave again and Bruce forced his emotions down when Jason came onto the screen, crying. He felt his rage boil when he saw the Joker again, and then the gunshot...But something he'd missed happened now, because he looked away when the Joker fired the gun.

The camera moved toward Jason; his eyes were closed and he appeared dead, but...Bruce's eyes widened in shock as he jumped up from the chair, sending it toppling backwards, and slamming his hands down onto the computer. How the hell could he have missed that?! The scene passed, but he quickly rewound it, and froze it as his eyes scanned over the scene once, twice, three times...

"There is no bullet wound," he murmured. The only blood he saw was from Jason's earlier wounds. He looked dead, but he was merely unconscious. There was no bullet wound...

And suddenly he felt anger at his own stupidity. If he had just watched the footage more carefully, just ignored his own feelings for five minutes he would have fucking seen that before! He could have helped Dick search for Jason all this time! Because maybe, just maybe, Jason really was still alive!