"Watchtower is on standby. Is everyone in place?" Chloe asked over the com-link.
"We're all set out here, Home-Base," Cyborg answered. "Mission is a go."
"Alright, boys," Chloe said, turning to Clark and Oliver, "let's put on our smiles and mingle."
Oliver smiled and climbed out of the limo, offering Chloe a hand and helping her out. Clark followed behind as they headed into the University's large entertainment hall. Hundreds of people were already there and the constant talking created a dull roar. Chloe and Oliver mingled while Clark trailed behind them. After an hour, they still hadn't heard anything from any of the others.
Turning around to go get Chloe a drink, Oliver almost tripped over a young boy darting across the room with a handheld game device in hand. The kid didn't even slow down.
"What a rude kid," Oliver said.
Chloe turned to look and saw the boy disappearing into the crowd.
"What is it with parents letting their kids play video games? Especially in public like this."
"Oliver," Chloe hissed quietly. "That's Bruce Wayne's ward."
"Yeah, I just can't seem to get Dick to stop playing on that thing," a voice said behind them.
"Bruce," Oliver exclaimed in surprise, turning around to face the billionaire.
"Oliver," Bruce said. "I wasn't expecting to see you here tonight."
"It was a last minute decision," Oliver said with a shrug. "Chloe wanted a night out away from Metropolis, so we decided the fundraiser would be a perfect escape."
"And who's your follower?" Bruce asked, looking at Clark who pushed his glasses back into place.
"Oh, him?" Oliver said. "That's Clark Kent. He's a reporter from the Daily Planet. They wanted to do a human interest story on me, so he's been following me around all week. I managed to dodge when I came to the party, but I couldn't shake him this time."
"I see," Bruce said. "Try not to get into too much trouble tonight."
"We'll try," Oliver said with a grin.
"Oh, and if you'd like to see Gotham," Bruce smiled at Chloe. "Just let me know. I'd be happy to show you around. We could even visit my mansion. It's quite beautiful, especially at night."
With that, Bruce nodded to both of them and turned to leave. Oliver glared daggers at him as he walked away. Chloe just laughed and laid a restraining hand on Oliver's arm, leaning against his shoulder.
"Breathe, Oliver," she said. "I'm not going to go chasing Bruce Wayne."
Before they turned away, they saw Dick tearing across the room at top speed to Bruce's side. He skidded to a stop next to his guardian and shoved the video game at him. Bruce put one hand on his ward's shoulder and the two started walking away, talking quietly.
"Wow," Oliver said. "He really needs to teach that kid some manners."
"Bruce!" Dick exclaimed as he skidded to a stop next to Bruce. "We have a problem."
"What is it?" Bruce asked, taking a look at the screen of Dick's handheld device.
There was a large group of men approaching the hall. In the lead was a tall, gangly man wearing a burlap sack on his head. Bruce put a hand on Dick's shoulder and leaned down, listening as they walked.
"Scarecrow," Dick said. "And even better."
He shifted the viewpoint on the screen to show a screenshot of Black Canary, Cyborg, Aquaman, and Impulse on patrol around the University grounds.
"Great," he growled softly. "Just what we needed."
They paused near the stairs leading up and out of the room.
"Call Tigress," he told Dick. "And see if you can get Barbara out of here. I want all three of you to patrol the area. Don't be seen, by anyone. And I don't want any of you to come inside without my say so. Do not engage without my orders. I'm going to stall them."
"Got it," Dick said, taking off and calling the girls through his communicator. "Tigress."
"What's up, Robin?"
"Scarecrow's making his move. Batman wants us on patrol. I've gotta get Barbara away from her dad and then we'll join you. And yes, he covered all of the loopholes. Again."
"Aww… he never lets us fight anyone…"
In the meantime, Scarecrow entered the grand hall and stopped at the top of the stairs.
"Welcome!" he announced. "Welcome to my grand experiment. I'm delighted you all came. Even the President of the University! And I thought you didn't support my research. Said it was too dangerous, remember?"
"Scarecrow!" Commissioner Gordan yelled, interrupting the rant. "You know you're not going to get away with this. Batman will stop you."
"Ah, Commissioner Gordan," Scarecrow said, "It's so nice to see you step up as my first volunteer."
Scarecrow's thugs started advancing on the commissioner. Barbara was standing next to him, looking around wildly. From across the room, Bruce saw Barbara standing with her father and then noticed Dick frozen in the act of sneaking up behind him. Before the men could get close enough to use the fear gas on them, Bruce stumbled forward in front of the stairs, knocking over a table and some chairs and making a loud crash. He knocked into some of Scarecrow's men and caught the villain's attention.
"Srry…" he slurred, acting like he was drunk.
On the other side of the room, Chloe, Clark, and Oliver watched in horror as Bruce stumbled straight into the invader's men. They were watching, trying to figure out what was going on. And now they had a big problem.
"That idiot!" Oliver exclaimed, starting to move forward.
Chloe grabbed his arm and stopped him.
"He's so drunk he doesn't even know what he's doing," she said. "We have to help."
While Bruce continued to drunkenly apologize to the thugs, Scarecrow started descending the stairs.
"Bruce Wayne," he said. "You'll be perfect for my first volunteer. Even better than the commissioner."
As Bruce played up the distraction, Dick leapt forward and grabbed Barbara's wrist, pulling her after him. They ran out of the room to meet up with Tigress as Scarecrow reached Bruce.
"Wha? No—No.." Bruce said, stumbling backward as he came face to face with Scarecrow. "Na me… don hurt me.."
Two of the thugs grabbed Bruce and held him still while Scarecrow sprayed him with the fear gas. Bruce stiffened and started shaking as the gas took hold. Scarecrow turned around to continue talking to the crowd and then Bruce started screaming and yelling.
"Get him out of here!" Scarecrow ordered angrily.
His men complied, dragging the billionaire out of the room.
"Go," Chloe hissed at Clark and Oliver. "I'll be fine. I don't know what he just did to Bruce, but we have to stop him from doing it to anyone else."
"But Chloe—" Oliver started to say.
"Go!"
Both men ran out of the room. Clark was back in seconds and stood out of sight on the outer edge of the room, waiting for Oliver to get back, trying to hold to the agreement to work in pairs. Now that Bruce was out of the room, Scarecrow was continuing to rant as his men moved throughout the room, spraying the gas as they went. As the men came closer and closer to where she was standing, Chloe tried to disappear into the crowd, but she bumped into one and turned around and caught the gas right in her face. Clark didn't see her get gassed because at that moment Oliver came back.
Outside of the hall, Bruce had made quick work of the thugs. Glancing around to make sure he was alone except for the unconscious men, Bruce took off his jacket and un-tucked his shirt. He pulled it up slightly to reveal his costume and utility belt. Reaching into one of the pockets, he pulled out the fear gas antidote and dosed himself. Feeling the effects start to wear off, Bruce grabbed his jacket and took off to retrieve his cape and cowl from the Batmobile.
Oliver shot a grappling hook, pulling himself up into the air so he could drop in front of Scarecrow while Clark ran over. Their sudden appearance interrupted Scarecrow and he just stood and stared at them for a moment.
"A new variable," he said after a moment. "I'll have to study on this for a while."
Without another word, he turned and headed out of the room. The men standing with him followed, leaving the others scattered around the room to the authorities. Oliver started chasing after Scarecrow while Clark sped around the room and took out the thugs. He paused after taking out the last one, turning to go join Oliver when someone bumped into him, letting out a scream. Clark turned around in shock, and gasped when he saw who it was.
"Chloe?" he said in surprise, but she didn't respond.
He grabbed her arms and tried to get her to focus on him, but she started thrashing and screaming.
"Chloe!" Clark yelled. "Chloe, snap out of it!"
Oliver heard Clark yelling Chloe's name and came running back. He took a look at her, taking a deep breath to steady himself. She was still thrashing, trying to get away from Clark.
"Get her out of here, Clark," Oliver said. "I'll get the others and meet you back at the hotel."
"But—"
"Just get her somewhere safe," Oliver snapped.
Nodding, Clark picked up the still flailing Chloe and sped out of the room at top speed.
"Green Arrow to JLA," Oliver yelled over the com-link as he ran out of the building. "Return to command center. Home-base is down."
"We're coming, Green Arrow."
Batman arrived back in the grand hall to find Scarecrow leaving. Batman started to go after him, but then he heard Clark yelling and turned to see him shaking Chloe. Knowing that paramedics would be on the way with the antidote, he was ready to leave them there when he saw Clark scoop her up and take off. Growling, Batman stopped his pursuit and let Scarecrow go. He moved up to the roof, watching as Oliver took off running, the others joining him as he passed them.
He swung back inside and dropped into the shadows near one of the exits where Commissioner Gordan was inspecting the thugs Bruce had taken out earlier.
"Aren't these the men who took Bruce Wayne?" one of the security guards asked.
"Yeah," Gordan answered. "They are."
"Then where's Wayne? Do you think they took him?"
"And knocked out their own men?" the commissioner said. "No, Batman was here."
Gordan dismissed the guard and stood up.
"What happened here?" Batman asked, not moving from where he was.
"Well," Gordan said, running a hand through his hair, "Green Arrow showed up again with a new friend and Scarecrow took off. I didn't realize they were patrolling Gotham now too."
"They're not," Batman stated, taking off again.
He headed straight for the Batmobile. As he climbed in, Helena's voice crackled over the communicator.
"Batman?"
"What is it Tigress?"
"Scarecrow and his men took a woman with them when they left."
Batman didn't answer for a moment, slamming a fist into the steering wheel as he peeled out, driving full speed through the streets of Gotham. He had already placed the extra antidote he kept in the Batmobile in his utility belt and he had to get it to Chloe as soon as possible.
"I want all three of you on patrol around the city. Now," Batman ordered. "Contact me the moment any of you finds any sign of Scarecrow and his men or their hideout. Do not engage."
"You got it," Robin answered.
Batman parked the Batmobile in an alley near the hotel Oliver and the rest were staying at. Taking to the rooftops, Batman went full speed toward their room.
Clark arrived back at the hotel room in record time. Chloe wasn't screaming anymore, but she was still thrashing around. He was afraid she was going to hurt herself. Bart was the next one to arrive, showing up only moments after Clark.
"What's going on?" he asked, eyes wide in panic. "Is Chloe gonna be ok?"
"I don't know," Clark said, then yelled over the com-link. "Clark to Watchtower. Emergency. Clark to Watchtower."
"Watchtower here. What's going on?"
"Tess," Clark said in a panic. "Chloe got gassed with something from someone called Scarecrow. She was screaming, but now she's just thrashing around. I can't get her to hold still or snap out of it. What do I do?"
"I don't know," Tess said. "Let me see if I can find anything."
"Hurry," Clark said. "She could be dying."
Oliver swung in the window, closely followed by the rest of the group. He yanked off his hood, tossing his sunglasses to the side and ran over to where Clark had Chloe on the couch. Sitting down next to her, Oliver pulled Chloe closer to him, trying to keep her from flailing around while Clark talked to Tess. She wasn't having much luck.
"I'm sorry, Clark. I'm trying. But Gotham doesn't publish much detail on their criminals. All I know is it's some kind of fear gas, and it will kill her if it isn't counteracted."
"So what's the antidote?"
"I don't know!"
A sudden movement at the window had everyone except Oliver whipping around, ready to intercept whoever was attacking. Oliver just held Chloe closer, trying to talk to her and break through the gas' effects. Batman melted out of the shadows and strode forward.
"Move!" he snarled at Clark.
"I don't have time to deal with you right now," Clark snapped back, standing between Batman and Chloe. "We'll leave when she's ok."
"Then get out of the way," Batman ordered, pulling a small bottle out of his utility belt. "If I don't give her this antidote now, she'll die."
Shocked, Clark let Batman pass. He leaned down and sprayed a mist in Chloe's face and she immediately stopped flailing around. As Batman straightened back up and turned to look at Clark, Chloe fell against Oliver, whimpering and clutching at his shirt.
"Thank you," Clark said, still not entirely sure what was going on.
"This is why I told you to stay out of Gotham!" Batman snapped. "You could have all been killed."
"Clark!" Tess suddenly yelled through the com-link. "We have another problem."
"What is it now?" he asked. "Chloe's going to be fine, I think. She's been given an antidote."
"It's Lois—" she started to say.
"Great," Clark groaned, interrupting. "Where is she? I'll come get her."
"That's just it, Clark. I don't know where she is. Just who has her."
"Who?"
"Scarecrow… I was watching footage from the university, trying to find anything that would help me find an antidote. She was sneaking around outside when he came out. I don't know if they gassed her, but they definitely took her with them."
"Oliver," Clark said. "Oliver, Lois followed us here. Scarecrow took her."
"Again," Batman growled, "this is why I told you not to come here! I have to find her now. If I don't, Scarecrow will kill her."
"Batman?" Robin said on the communicator.
"What is it?"
Oliver stared at Batman for a moment, confused as to who he was talking to.
"We found Scarecrow's hideout. They're in the abandoned research lab down by the docks."
Clark, who had been using his super hearing, heard the transmission. Before anyone could say anything, he took off. Bart started to chase after him, but Batman stuck a foot out and tripped him, sending Bart flying into the wall. Oliver was still studying Batman.
"He's going to get himself killed," Batman snarled, turning to leave.
"Wait, you can't go alone," Chloe said, sitting up.
The effects of the gas were gone now. She was still shaky, but back to normal.
"None of you can handle Scarecrow," he said darkly. "So stay here."
"But you'll need help handling Clark," Oliver said, squeezing Chloe's hand and getting to his feet. "With Lois in danger he won't be thinking clearly."
"Fine. You, let's go," Batman said, point at Oliver, and then he spoke to Robin over the communicator. "I'm on my way."
Nodding, Oliver started to follow Batman when something clicked in his head. He froze.
An earpiece… Not a hearing aid, an earpiece like we wear… And when the terrorists attacked the party… It was frustration. I wasn't imagining things… And tonight. He wasn't drunk, it was too fast he was acting… And no one ever sees Batman save him…
"You're Bruce Wayne!" he yelled, pointing at Batman.
Batman stopped at the window and looked at him.
"Took you long enough," he said, scowling. "Let's go, Robin Hood."
"Hey!" Oliver exclaimed. "Not Robin Hood. I don't wear a feathered hat!"
Batman just turned around and disappeared out the window. Not wanting to lose him, Oliver took off after him, grabbing his glasses as he went. The group in the hotel room just looked at each other in shock over the revelation.