A/N: We're now on the second-to-last chapter (Not counting the epilogue I have planned). This chapter takes place on Earth-32 which can best be explained as a Fusion Universe where all the people are combinations of characters from the main universe. So you get characters like Wonderhawk (Wonder Woman and Hawkman), Super-Martian (Superman and Martian Manhunter), and Aquaflash (Aquaman and the Flash). That's about all the information I have on the Earth for this chapter.
The world around Harley was an unfocused blur, she grabbed around in an attempt to stabilize herself. She staggered a few steps back and fell over just as the world became more solid again. Harley had been transported into a large empty warehouse from the looks of things. The sun had gone down outside, making the interior of the building hard to see in through the darkness.
"Hey Bat-Mite… You got any more soda water?" Harley slowly stood up from the ground. "I'm not feelin' so good."
"Coming right up." Bat-Mite snapped his fingers. A cup of mineral water appeared in Harley's hands.
"Thanks a million." Harley took a sip of her soda water. The drained the cup which vanished into thin air after all the liquid was gone. "You still freak me out, you know that?"
"Says the woman in love with a psychotic clown."
"Hey, don't knock it 'til you try it." Harley frowned at Bat-Mite. "Look, can you just explain where we are now?"
"Sure can." Bat-Mite floated a few inches higher. "This is Earth-32, the Fusion Universe. Here, everyone is some combination of people from Earth-0. For example, Batman in this world is fused with the Green Lantern and uses his power ring and detective skills to fight crime as the Bat-Lantern."
"Ooh, sounds interesting. What's Mr. J like?" Harley smiled.
"Well in this world, he's former district attorney Harvey Napier. But after getting chemicals thrown in his face during a court case he developed a psychotic alter ego, becoming Joke-Face!" Bat-Mite explained.
"So Mr. J's also Harvey in this world? Huh? I ain't sure how I feel about that…" Harley tilted her head at Bat-Mite. "What about me? Are me 'n Ivy the same person in this world? That'd be pretty cool."
"Surprisingly, you're not fused with her in this world." Bat-Mite said. "Actually, the Earth-32 Harley is nearby right now."
"Oh, really?" Harley smiled, now standing on her tiptoes to get closer to Bat-Mite. "Can I meet her."
"If you want, I just have one slight warning. In this world, the person you're fused with is-"
Bat-Mit was unable to finish his sentence when something smashed into the wall they were both next to from the outside, collapsing it. Harley dodged the debris and threw herself to the ground.
"Ugh... What'd you teleport me into this time?" Harley looked up at Bat-Mite, not ready to stand up just yet.
"You and the Bat Lantern are in the middle of a fight." Bat-Mite calmly explained. "Let's play the guessing game. Which one of you is in that pile of rubble?"
"Well, I ain't strong enough to kick Batsy around like that." Harley slowly began the process of standing on. "And if he has one of those lantern rings that makes him even scarier than before. So, I figure Bats is the one who punched me through the wall."
"Let's find out, shall we." Bat-Mite smirked.
Harley got to her feet fully as the rubble started to stir. She stared fixedly at the debris as whoever was beneath desperately tried to crawl out. Bat-Mite's earlier question to Harley was answered when a white-gloved hand with a power ring on it reached out from the pile.
"A ring… So that means I did that to Batsy…" Harley looked back and forth between where Bat Lantern was crawling from the rubble and where Bat-Mite was floating. After repeating this process a few times, Harley stayed looking at Bat-Mite. "Who did you say this version of me's combined with?"
"Oh, no one special…" Bat-Mite coyly trailed off. "Just a little guy called Bane."
"Bane… Hold up, I know that name from somewhere. And I don't like it…" Harley thought for a minute, trying to place a face to the name. "Oh, I know who Bane is!" her mood became much less cheery when she realized this fact. "Wait, that isn't good."
A wave of green energy surged out from the Bat Lantern's power ring, clearing out all the rubble. The Bat Lantern looked mostly the same as the Batman Harley knew. Only differences were his sleeves were black while his chest, legs, and cowl were coloured green. Instead of his iconic Bat Emblem, he had the symbol of the Green Lantern Corps on his chest.
The Bat Lantern did not appear to notice Harley just yet. He ignored her, looking out through the hole that had been made in the wall.
"Come back here, Quinzel!" Bat Lantern yelled out to the large hole in the wall. "You haven't taken me down yet."
The sound of slow lumbering footsteps became audible and through the broken wall stepped who Harley presumed to be her Earth-32 counterpart. This world's Harley Quinn was a good foot or two taller than the original and quite a deal beefier. She wore a bodysuit similar to her Earth-12 counterpart only with the sleeves cut out and instead of a jester hat, she wore a red and black mask that covered up the entire face with only holes cut for the eyes. Although, the mask still had the dangly jester tails on it.
"Shouldn't've told me where to find you!" cheered the Earth-32 Harley. Her voice was slightly muffled by the mask. "Now Harley Bane can kill you!"
Bat Lantern's ring began to glow and he hovered off the ground a little bit. "Look at all the destruction you've caused, Quinzel. Stop this now!"
"Now can do, Batsy. Pam and Selina wan'cha captured and if it makes them happy then it makes me happy." Harley Bane took several steps closer.
"Hey… Am I invisible right now?" Harley asked.
"Absolutely not." Bat-Mite replied. "In fact, you might wanna hide."
"Oh… Good to know." Harley immediately dropped herself back to the ground. "So wait, what was this crazy version of me saying about Pam." she crawled behind what used to be part of the wall in an effort to hide herself.
"Right, so, in this universe, you, Ivy, and Catwoman are three of the biggest threats to Gotham." explained Bat-Mite.
"Really? Somehow, I don't believe it." Harley remarked.
"You might wanna get out of here. Being from the future, I have slight omniscience. And let's just say this place gets pretty destroyed."
"Oh… In that case can ya teleport me away?" Harley asked. "Maybe over to, I dunno… Can I go see Red?"
"No problem." Bat-Mite snapped his fingers, causing the destroyed warehouse and features in front of them to warp once more.
"Y'know something, this is getting less freaky now." Harley remarked.
"See, I told you you'd adjust."
"Didn't say it wasn't weird. It's just less weird."
The world stopped shifting around until it was a more recognizable shape. More specifically, Harley and Bat-Mite had been transported inside of what appeared to be a greenhouse
"Oh hey, I know this place." Harley looked up at the ceiling, noting the enormous vine coming down through the roof. "Red lives around here. Know where I can find her?"
"You know her better than I do, look for yourself." Bat-Mite replied. "Me, I'll just be watching. Let me know if you need me to swoop in and save you again though." he then disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Harley crossed her arms and let out a grumpy huff of air. "I can save myself, thank you. Now where the heck is Red?" she began to wander through the rows of mutated plants in search of Poison Ivy. "She'd better not try to attack me like some of the other ones… That'd be pretty-"
"Trespasser!" the familiar voice of Poison Ivy shrieked from out of Harley's view. A series of roots came out of the ground and coiled around Harley, keeping her in place.
"Oh, not again…"
"So, what do we have here?" Ivy's voice echoed through the greenhouse. "Explain yourself before I use my fear pheromones."
"Fear pheromones? Pammie, can you just let me down from here? I'm your friend… Well kinda. Lemme go and I'll explain."
"Harley? Is… Is that you?"
Out from the darkness in front of her, an outline that Harley recognized as Poison Ivy became visible. Although, even from the shadows Harley could tell that she was wearing a very different outfit. The Earth-32 Poison Ivy stepped into what little light there was in the room, making herself visible. Instead of her usual leafy attire, this Ivy was clothed much more similar to the Scarecrow. From head to toe, she was covered in somewhat loose fitting burlap which was topped all off with a pointed hat on her head. Vines grew all up and down the burlap.
As this version of Ivy got closer to Harley she slowly removed her mask to reveal an expression of confusion beneath it.
"The face… The voice… You seem like Harley… But you're so… Small." the alt-Ivy looked over Harley. "Who are you?"
"I told ya, Red. I'm your friend, Harley Quinn." Harley still tried to squirm free from the plants as she explained this. "Look, I got sent here from another dimension. Believe me or don't, your choice. Could you get me down from here though?"
"Fine." as soon as the alt-Ivy said this the roots around Harley loosened, dropping her.
"Could've made them let me down easier…" Harley mumbled, standing up.
"I still don't entirely trust you." alt-Ivy started to walk away.
Harley scrambled after the alternate-Ivy. "Hey, Pam! Wait up, please?"
"Don't call me Pam. I don't know you…" alt-Ivy glanced over her shoulder at Harley. "Well, this version of you."
"So what can I call you."
"You may refer to me by my alias. Poisoncrow."
"Is that really the best you could come up with?"
The alt-Ivy sighed. "My Harley always said the same thing…" she lowered her voice to make an aside to herself. "Speaking of which when is she coming back?"
Poisoncrow and Harley entered what seemed like a living room. It had a couch, a rug, and a few chairs and the walls all had vines growing up and down then. Of course, Harley had known Ivy long enough to not be disturbed by this.
"So, can I sit down anywhere?" Harley looked around the room.
"Sure 'Harley' go ahead. I'd like to have a conversation." Poisoncrow sat down on one of the chairs.
"Thanks, Pam. Uh, I mean Poisoncrow." Harley went over to the couch and sat down.
"So, you're from another dimension, eh?" Poisoncrow made a pyramid shape with her fingers. "I've always had a passing interest in multiverse theory."
"Yeah, I'm mostly the same back on my world. Used ta work at Arkham, met Mr. J, you're my best friend. 'Cept I never got hopped up on Bane Juice." Harley explained, wildly gesticulating as she went on. "You're about the same. But you don't do the whole scarecrow gimmick. You got kind of a sexy thing going on."
"Interesting… I personally find fear to be a much bigger motivator than sexuality." Poisoncrow crossed her legs. "Even the strongest willed man can bend to my whims thanks to fear."
"Huh… Plants and fear, never woulda thought that'd be a good combination."
"Trust me, they go together just find. Before I was transformed, I wrote many papers on the subject in college."
Neither woman got the chance to pursue the subject any further when a series of loud, enthusiastic knocks were heard from the door.
"Oh, Harley's back." Poisoncrow glanced at Harley. "The other one."
"Yeah, I figured. You should let her in."
Poisoncrow stood up and made her way across the room. Harley sprung up from the couch and hurried after Poisoncrow.
"Do you think I should explain myself to… Uh, myself?" asked Harley.
"I'll do it. The, uh, Bane Juice, as you put it. It makes her very excitable. I understand her the best." Poisoncrow remarked.
"Yeah, my Ivy understands me best too." Harley agreed.
"Take a few steps back. She has very poor spatial awareness." Poisoncrow advised.
Harley stood back and the door swung open, violently slamming into the wall once it was fully opened up. In through the door stepped Harley Bane, looking just about the same as the last time Harley saw him.
"We did it, Pam!" Harley Bane put her arms around Poisoncrow up and lifted the smaller woman up. "Plan worked just like ya said! Batsy was so busy fighting me, he didn't even see Selina sneakin' up behind him."
Harley Bane lifted up part of her mask, uncovering her pale face. She brings her face closer to Poisoncrow and the two of them kissed for a moment.
Seeing this, the original Harley flinched in surprised. "Oh, uh, are you two all… Kissy-kissy?"
"Yes." Poisoncrow bluntly said while she was placed down by Harley Bane. "Please try to sound less awkward." she looked back up at Harley Bane. "Where's Bat Lantern?"
"Who's she?" Harley Bane looked at her alternate self, ignoring Poisoncrow's question.
"I'll tell you if you tell me where Bat Lantern is."
"Oh, right. Selina's got him." Harley Bane looked back out through the open doorway. "Come on in Selina!"
A figure descended low enough to be framed by the threshold. The woman appeared to be Catwoman's Earth-32 equivalent. She wore the same tight black bodysuit as the Catwomen of other places in the multiverse but the entire thing was coloured a bright shade of purple and on her chest and forehead were emblems that resemble stars. Slung over her shoulder was the unconscious body of the Bat Lantern. A purple glow surrounded the alt-Selina as she floated in through the door.
"Hello girls, hope I'm not late." the alt-Catwoman remarked. "Bat Lantern was surprisingly easy to subdue. Nobody escapes the claws of the Cat Sapphire."
"Jeez, what is with the names in this dimension." mumbled Harley.
This comment caused Cat Sapphire to take notice of Harley. "I'm sorry, who is this woman and why is she dressed like a miniature Harley?"
"Apparently, she's Harley but from another dimension." Poisoncrow explained to her associates. "I know it's far fetched, but I believe it. I think I've heard stories about the Justice Titans travelling to alternate realities."
"I wanna help you guys out with Batsy." Harley stated.
"Fun!" Harley Bane clapped her hands together. "We already got some plans for him!"
"Selina, you go set up Bat Lantern in the greenhouse." Poisoncrow glanced at Cat Sapphire.
"Don't worry, I'll keep him nice and secure." Cat Sapphire floated on through the house and back towards the greenhouse.
"Follow me Harley. Both of you. I need to go put my mask back on." Poisoncrow walked off back towards the living room.
Harley Bane lumbered after Poison Crow and Harley hurried after the two of them.
"So what'd you three catch Batsy for?" Harley asked. "Are you gonna kill him?"
"No, no… That would be too simple, brutish. I'd like to conduct an experiment." Poisoncrow made it back to the living room and picked her burlap mask up from off the couch. "Bat Lantern claims to be a man with no fear. But everyone fears something, even him. And I intend to find out what." she pulled the mask over her face.
"Aww, are you covering up your pretty face?" Harley Bane said.
"It's an intimidation tactic, sweetie. We've been over this." Poisoncrow grabbed her pointed hat off the chair and affixed it to her head. "Alright, now we're ready for the fun to begin."
Poisoncrow strolled towards the greenhouse at a leisurly pace. Both Harley Quinn and Harley Bane followed her. As they walked, Harley looked up at her Earth-32 counterpart.
"So, uh, how are things around here?" Harley asked. "You see Mr. J recently?"
"'Course not. Good riddance to that two-faced creep." Harley Bane replied. "I mean, he was nice when Harvey was in charge, but when Joke-Face was in control I didn't like him. Anyway, now I got Pam."
"You should give Mr. J another shot. He ain't so bad back in my world."
"Ah, you're just saying that. Trust me, I used to tell Pammie that same stuff. But ever since she pumped me up with Venom I've barely even thought of Joke-Face."
The conversation was cut short when the three women entered the greenhouse and Poisoncrow chose to talk to them. "Harley, and, erm, other Harley, please pay attention. Don't do anything cute, we're trying to frighten Bat Lantern."
"Don't worry, I know exactly what to do!" Harley Bane cheered.
Poisoncrow led the two of them to the middle of the greenhouse where Cat Sapphire had set up the still unconscious Bat Lantern on a chair.
"Ah, there you are girls. I was getting bored." Cat Sapphire looked over at her associates. "Do we start now?"
"Of course. But first, let's take a few precautions." Poisoncrow held a hand out in front of her. A series of vines erupted from the ground and bound Bat Lantern to the chair. "Someone take his ring off. I wouldn't want that ruining our plans."
"No problem, Pammie!" Harley Bane got closer to Bat Lantern. "I can handle this." she took Bat Lantern's right hand and began pulling on the ring. The ring refused to budge so Harley Bane put more force into her pulling. "Dammit, this thing's one tight!"
"Hmm, it must have some kind of built-in defence against this." Poisoncrow theorized. "Alright, we'll just have to try something else." with a wave of her hand, more vines came up from the ground and wrapped around Bat Lantern's ringed hand. "That should do it. Now the fun really begins. Someone wake him up."
"Oh! I can do it." Harley volunteered. Giggling, she stepped up to Bat Lantern and lightly slapped him on the face. "Hey, wake up! These ladies got some questions for you!"
Bat Lantern slowly regained consciousness. "What… Hrm… Who are you?"
"Let's just say I'm from outta town. Anyway, I'll let these three take it from here." Harley stepped back.
"Thank you. You all follow my lead." Poisoncrow got in closer to Bat Lantern. "Now, Bat Lantern, let's see how well that willpower of yours holds up after a dose of my fear spores." the vines around Bat Lantern released a cloud of yellow pollen into the air. "Go ahead, try to resist. The toxins will find their way into your body."
While Poisoncrow continued her experiment, Harley backed herself up until she was right next to Cat Sapphire.
"So, Selina, what's your story?" Harley asked. "With the glowy stuff, I mean. Back on my world you're just a plain old cat burglar."
"I'm one of the Star Sapphires. You see, we're powered by love. In my case, my love for the Bat Lantern." explained Cat Sapphire.
"Powered by love, huh? I bet I'd be a great Star Sapphire." Harley stared up at the ceiling, caught up in a new fantasy.
"Being a Star Sapphire requires a very mature mind." Cat Sapphire stated. "And if you're anything like Harley Bane, I don't think you'd manage it. No offence."
Harley glanced over at her Earth-32 counterpart who was watching Poisoncrow interrogate Bat Lantern the same way a birdwatcher observes their subjects.
"None taken, I guess." Harley replied.
Poisoncrow turned away from Bat Lantern and approached Harley and Cat Sapphire. "Selina, you're up. He seems to be more resistant to my toxins than anticipated. You may be able to break him since you're more personally connected."
"I'll do my best." Cat Sapphire grinned and got closer to the Bat Lantern.
Once the Cat Sapphire was gone, Harley Bane went up to Poisoncrow and Harley.
"You did great over there, baby!" Harley Bane pushed past Harley and hugged Poisoncrow. "Did you get him to crack? You were doing a lot of whispering."
"Not yet. But before the end of the night we will break the bat." although her mask hid her face, Harley was sure Poisoncrow as grinning. "Now please put me down."
"Oh, right, right, right." Harley Bane set Poisoncrow back on the floor. "Hard to take the criminal mastermind seriously when she's being cuddled."
"It's fine, I don't think he saw. It didn't look like much was getting through to him at all in fact." Poisoncrow glanced back over at Cat Sapphire and Bat Lantern. "I think Selina might need some help, I'm going in there." she confidently walked back towards her victim.
Now without Poisoncrow, Harley looked up at her multiversal counterpart and tried to make some conversation. "So, uh, how'd you get so bulky? I've always been more of an acrobat."
"I used ta be like that too." Harley Bane nodded. "But then, Pam got tired of me getting hurt all the time. So she whipped up a special serum she called Venom. After she gave it to me I got super duper strong. Had to change my whole fighting style, but it was worth it."
"Back on my Earth, Red made me something like that. It made me a little stronger but mostly it means I can hang around her without getting poisoned." Harley took a moment to go over Harley Bane's story. "Did it hurt when you got strong all of a sudden?"
"Took a little getting used to, but nah. Didn't hurt." Harley Bane flexed a bicep. "I'm glad she gave me that Venom, now nobody is able to hurt me."
"Huh, well, I never thought I'd be able to pull off looking muscular. But you certainly make it work."
"Wow, thanks a lot!" Harley Bane put an arm around Harley, squeezing her.
"Heh, that's a bit much." Harley tried to wriggle out of Harley Bane's grip.
"Harley! Get over here!" Poisoncrow yelled. "I think Bat Lantern's about to wake up."
"Wait, which one of us?" Harley asked.
"Both of you! Just hurry!"
Harley Quinn and Harley Bane rushed forward over to where Poisoncrow and Cat Sapphire were gathered around the Bat Lantern. Harley Bane clapped her hands together and looked over Bat Lantern. "So how's our guy doing?"
"So far he's been completely catatonic." Cat Sapphire paused for a moment after saying this. "And Harley, that pun was not intentional, before you ask."
"The point is he's starting to notice us." Poisoncrow gazed directly into Bat Lantern's eyes. "Hello there, how's the Big Bad Bat doing?"
Bat Lantern squirmed and muttered something unintelligible.
"I'm sorry, is my mask disturbing to you?" Poisoncrow gestured to her burlap visage. "Good, that's the idea."
"You won't get away with this, Crane…" Bat Lantern muttered. "I've withstood galactic threats with twice your power."
"Sometimes, my dear Bat, the most terrifying things are those close to your home." Poisoncrow leaned in closer to Bat Lantern.
"Hold on, your last name's Crane?" Harley looked over at Poisoncrow. "Back in my dimension, your last name's Isley."
"Not important right now, Harley." Poisoncrow kept her gaze fixed on Bat Lantern. "I'm trying to set up a certain atmosphere and you're not helping."
"Sorry." Harley Bane replied.
"Wasn't talking to you, sweetie."
"Calling me sweetie isn't very scary."
"Ladies, keep focused." Cat Sapphire spoke up. "He's too quiet for my liking…" she leaned in towards Bat Lantern. "Do you have anything to say, darling?"
"You might want to close your eyes." Bat Lantern looked up at the women surrounding him.
"Wha-"'
An explosion of green light erupted from the Bat Lantern's wrapped up fist. The plants binding him were vaporized and the light disoriented the four women.
Harley rubbed her eyes, hoping this would make her see faster while she backed away from the area. She walked back right into a table that had some plants placed on it. This caused Harley to trip over and knock over the table as well. For several moments, she lay on the floor. After just a couple more seconds, her eyes recovered and she was able to see properly again.
"Sheesh, Batsy's a lot tougher around here." Harley began to stand up at a gradual pace. She got to her feet fully and then noticed the whole room was bathed in green light. "Do I wanna look up?"
Dreading what she'd see, Harley looked up and above her Bat Lantern was floating, emanating a green light. He had burst through the ceiling and near him Cat Sapphire was also hovering. Judging by the occasional bursts and flashes of light, the two of them appeared to be engaged in combat.
"I'll let them sort their differences out by themselves." Harley backed away again, this time taking care not to trip over anything. "Maybe I should leave now…"
"My… My babies…" Ivy's voice weakly trembled from somewhere near her.
"Or maybe not…" Harley swivelled her head around, trying to find Poisoncrow. "I'm coming, Red! Just give me a second." she followed Poisoncrow's voice and soon discovered Ivy's Earth-32 counterpart lying on the ground with her arms around a clump of burnt up vines. "Uh, Red are you gonna be okay?"
"He burned up so many of my beautiful, beautiful plants…" Poisoncrow pulled herself up off the ground and put her arms around Harley's shoulders. "Help me up…"
"Okay, I got you. Don't think I've ever seen Red cry before back home." Harley helped Poisoncrow get back off her feet.
"I'm not crying, I got dirt in my eyes." Poisoncrow claimed, now balancing themselves again. "God, my poor, poor babies. They got destroyed and I didn't even get Bat Lantern to break. Do you know where Harley is?"
"I'm right here."
"The other one."
"I'm here too!"
Harley and Poisoncrow noticed Harley Bane enthusiastically barreling towards then. Fearing the potential impact, Harley shut her eyes but to her surprise nothing happened. Opening them up again, Harley saw that Harley Bane had stopped in front of them and wrapped up Poisoncrow in a hug.
Harley Bane pulled her mask partway up and kissed Poisoncrow on the cheek. "You're alive still! Ooh, your mask tickles."
"Here, let me get it out of the way." Poisoncrow pulled off her mask and hat, discarding them to the side. She leaned in and kissed Harley Bane on the lips.
"Well, everything seems to be wrapping up here." Harley paused after she noticed a large flash of purple and green lights. "Mostly."
"Are you saying you're leaving now?" Harley Bane turned to her counterpart, still holding Poisoncrow in her arms. "But I was just starting to have fun…"
"She doesn't belong her Harley. It's her time to leave." Poisoncrow looked over at the original Harley. "Actually, how do you travel dimensions?"
"I teleport." Harley bluntly stated. "Well actually, this little floating guy teleports me."
"What…"
"I'm serious. I say the word and he gets me out of here, just like that. Watch." Harley cleared her throat and looked up above her. "Hey Bat-Mite, I'm ready to-"
Harley abruptly blinked out of existence with no kind of fanfare at all. Poisoncrow and Harley Bane were left staring at the empty space where Harley once stood.
"You know somethin'... That was pretty anticlimactic." Harley Bane continued to stare at the spot.
"Well, at least we're done here. Now put me down." Poisoncrow looked back at the ground.
"Girls! I'm in need of some serious assistance!" Cat Sapphire's voice echoed down from above.
"On second thought, maybe we're not done." Poisoncrow grinned and turned her attention towards the aerial battle above her. "Let's go Harley, our little spacecop hasn't seen the last of us."
"You got it, Pammie! Batsy won't know what hit 'em!"
A/N: For this chapter, I originally had an idea where the people had be combinations of Batman villains and Green Lantern villains. The only one that ended up making it was Cat Sapphire. I considered doing Sinestcrow (Sinestro and Scarcrow) and Larfleeze Quinn (Larfleeze and Harley Quinn) but in the end I decided I didn't know enough about the Green Lantern continuity to make it work. Anyway, next chapter takes place on Earth-44. Which is the Earth where there are no Metahumans. Instead, all heroes and villains are robots.
