Random Peep: Lol I sense a disturbance in the joker's enjoyment of his game. Then again he's never had to fight someone like Raven. Anyways awesome job, can't wait to see what happens! =P
Ahah! I don't think you're the only one that's noticed. Glad you liked!
Angelic Toaster: Yayyy! I love how you write Raven! She's always so real and incredible in your stories! I think you're one of the few people that can really write how ALL of the characters-not just raven-truly are! And then manipulate them a little bit for your stories, but it always works out so well! Can't wait till the next update!
Gah! You made me blush! Ahah I'm glad you think so. However you have also sent me into a spaz while writing this chapter to make sure all the characters were still themselves haha.
Eagle wolf05: sorry for not reviewing the last 3 or 4 chapter I got sick and when I'm sick all I do is sleep I'm starting to love this story I can't wait for what the joker has pland for raven keep up the good work and the updates
No worries :) and I hope you're feeling better! Glad it's growing on you!
UnderMyWing: Sorry about getting my review in late, I'll try to stay on top of things as best as I can. Another great addition to the already captivating story, and I must admit I was not expecting the gas to be bomb, that was a nice touch. Joker could use a little more sarcasm in his taunts, just to make things more lively. Can't wait to see what happens in the next chapter.
Ahah no problem. I have a lot on with college so my updates are becoming somewhat slower. Glad you liked the chapter, and that I managed to surprise you somewhat. I'll take that into consideration!
Umbra8191: great chapter i can't wait for the next update.
Glad you're enjoying it :)
Havelock Vetinari: Ah, I particularly like Joker's interactions with Raven.
I get the feeling that Mr. J might not be focused on Jinx or the Bat Family afterall.
And her holding back the Joker's customary surprise explosions?
Nicely done.
A bunch of maniacs with guns vs Raven, Starfire, Jinx, & Cyborg... Hm, I wonder who has more firepower there...
Joker knows he can't win by now. What's he planning?
Oh, uh, superficial grammer & structure seemed fine, too.
Ah, good! Hmm and maybe not….
It was quick thinking on Rae's part. Ahah I wonder. Somehow I don't think it's going to be Uncle J. And good!
I'm a Lover not a Hater: I love Mr.J's traps. :)
Ahah! Mr J used to love them too. Until Raven came along.
Concolor44: WooHOO! Nice! Raven using her abilities in a logical manner! Love it! Honestly, I think if she had some time to plan, she could take him out by herself.
So Joker intended for that bomb to kill them. I don't like his games. Probably not to the extent that, say, Robin doesn't like them (especially right now), but ... no. Not my thing at all.
Ahah I think she could. I mean, she has the abilitie to sneak up behind him. Bind the mad man in her telekinesis and BAM. Of course, she has the problem of her empathy to deal with. Not sure how she would react, being so close to the loony. Ahah I don't think anyone likes his killer games. But could you imagine the Joker just going for a wounding shot. Oh, sure, if he was going to say, drop you out the window later just for laughs.
Table for Two: Gaaaaahhh :3 I really love this story ya know. I check my e-mail pretty constantly nowadays. Thanks for that :p haha.
ANYWAY.
So. I really like how in this chapter the Joker is just ALWAYS over their shoulder it seems. Not to mention while Raven's trying to contain an explosion that could cost them their lives, which was a bad call on Robin, but way to pick up on it Raven! n_n You write these action and suspense scenes very well. It's refreshing. And edgy. I love it! I'm looking forward to the next surprise you have in store! So let's go team! :3
Catch ya later,
Table for Two
Is this the first time I've seen your pen-name on my review list? Anyhow I'm glad you're enjoying it! It was a bad call on Robin. Either his obsessions about certain villainy has caught up on him again or he was worried about Star. But yeah, quick thinking on Rae's part. I'm glad you think so. I'm always worried about them!
A/N: It took me longer to write this than I thought it would, mainly because of college work, but I also spent a lot of my time laughing at the part in the Dark Knight where the Joker drops some woman out the window after Bats says 'Let her go'. AHAH! 'Very poor choice of words' indeed!
The large, black bird rose silently out of the floor, shrinking enough to release the hero and villain before it sank back into the old, cracked tiles. Jinx nodded at Robin with a small smile and they started forward.
Six men were walking towards the room the others were in, each holding what Robin identified as Mini-UZI carbines. It was a relief after seeing some of the fire power the Joker's men often carried around Gotham. They shadowed the two at the back, before covering the thugs' mouths with their left hands to silence any protests. Working in almost perfect synchrony, both teenagers broke the thugs grip on their guns with their right hands, before bringing it across into a choke hold, pressing the inside of their forearms tightly against their throats. The remaining four men remained oblivious to the fact two of their team mates have been taken out.
A green star bolt shot out of the doorway, and only just missed one of the men. The deafening sound of gunfire filled the narrow hallway, and Jinx, using the gun she had taken from the unconscious thug, stepped up to the next closest, ramming the butt of the semi-automatic into the back of the man's head. His yell of pain and surprise was covered up by the sound the guns were making and he dropped to the floor. She smashed the gun into the back of his head again, knocking him out cold.
She turned towards his partner, grinning when she saw Robin standing their instead. She moved over to him and leaned in so he could hear her over the noise of the last two gunmen, pulling the magazine out of the UZI and placing it on the floor. "I'll get Baldy."
She ghosted closer to the shaven and heavily tattooed thug before throwing a hex at the gun. The next shot he fired jammed into the barrel and the pressure blew it back out the end of the gun. His side burst crimson and he dropped to the floor, yelling in pain. Robin finished his guy with a solid swing of his bo-staff, kicking the gun out of the unconscious man's hand before turning to glare at Jinx.
"He was hip firing and I technically didn't shoot him. He shot himself. That wound won't kill him." The meta human quickly defended herself.
"Is it safe?" Cyborg asked from inside the room.
"Yeah." Robin put his bo-staff away as Jinx walked over to the bleeding thug.
"You don't want that broken thing anymore." She muttered, pulling the gun from his grip and tossing it aside. "How many more of you are upstairs? Include traps too."
He spat at her, it falling a few centimetres short of its mark. She nudged his wound with her boot, and he tried to double up as a pained gasp left his lips. "How many more of you guys has the Joker got? And how many more traps has be planned out?"
"Jinx!" Robin started to move towards the meta human, planning to push her away from the man.
"Ugh! A lot!" He gasped. "I don't know. Twenty?"
"Traps or men?"
"Men."
"And how many traps?"
"That…"
"It won't be a nudge next time." She threatened. "How many?"
"Three. Two small and one fancy one."
Jinx stepped back and looked up at Robin. "Now we have info, and your hands are still clean. Everyone wins."
He looked at Raven as though she was meant to talk some sense into the meta human, but she just stared back. He frowned at her before looking back at Jinx. "This isn't how we work!"
"How you work. Are you going to knock him out, or shall I?"
He walked past her. "Raven, get us up to the top floor. Let's finish this."
Jinx smiled slightly at the thug. "Lights out."
Raven stumbled as her soul-self receded, and Jinx caught her arm. "Robin, we have a problem."
The rapid changing emotions of the Joker had hit her mental shields to forcefully, catching Raven off guard, and fighting them off had grabbed most of the girl's attention.
"How long can you hold it for?" Robin asked
The empath shoved Jinx off her, and tried to straighten herself up. "I…" Her face folded into a deep set frown as she tried to think past all the white noise that was attempting to fill her mind. "Not long."
"Hopefully we won't be long." Robin muttered. He glared at Jinx before he set off down the corridor, stopping at the first door and shoving it open, giving the room a quick glance before moving on.
"I think your tough ass villain routine irritated him." Raven chuckled at Jinx, before setting off after their leader, trailing one hand along the wall for support.
"She going to be okay?" The meta human asked Cyborg.
"Sure. As soon as she gets her arse out of the building."
"Which she won't." Beast Boy added, watching Starfire rush to try and help the teenager in question. "She's way too stubborn for that."
"What's even happening?"
Cyborg started to move after Robin and the two girls. "You know Rae's an empath, right? Usually she blocks out most of what she picks up from other people, since her powers are affected by emotion. Apparently she's finding it harder to block the Joker. I don't know why. I don't even know how the whole empathy thing works. Not really."
"So what's going to happen when they're like, in the same room as each other?"
"Hopefully nothing. Hopefully she'll just have the bad balance and stuff." Cyborg shook his head. "Otherwise the answer's nothing good. Come on; we need to catch up to those three."
He sped up to a jog, readying his sonic cannon as he watched Robin swing open another door, and scan the room with his eyes.
"Save your energy." Raven spoke up. "The guy said there were twenty thugs left, and I can feel twenty two people all down the end of the hallway."
"Are you certain?" Starfire asked.
"Mhmm." She took a few more steps, before wincing as the corridor seemed to spin slightly, throwing off her balance again. "I think I have a headache."
"No surprise there." Cyborg muttered. "If they're all in the same place then… Yo, Rob! Slow down."
The boy wonder looked back. "No. We need to find him before he realises we've skipped a few floors."
"No, we need to figure out the layout of the room they're all camped in, and come up with a plan other than 'let's charge in and get shot to bits'. I'm all for simple plans, but becoming a watering can was never on my list wish."
Beast Boy chuckled at his friend's self inflicted joke.
Robin came to a stop, frowning. "Raven, which room are they in."
"I don't know. Just somewhere down the end of the hall." She shrugged. "You know I can't be any more specific that direction."
"Cyborg, get the map of the floor up." He moved back down the corridor to them. "Raven, I want you to take out some of the men first, without being noticed. That's a given no matter what we're up against. If all twenty have guns, we're not going to last long at all. And then…"
"You want to order her to go home." Cyborg interrupted him.
"I'm fine." The empath shook her head. "I'm not leaving."
"Guys… what's that smell?" Beast boy asked, instantly grabbing everyone's attention.
"What?" Jinx frowned.
"I do not smell anything." Starfire shrugged.
"You mean you're finally picking up how awful Tofu smells?" Cyborg sniggered. "Because the only thing I can smell right now is soya."
"Guys, now is not the time." Robin frowned.
"But I'm not joking! It wasn't here a minute ago!"
"You're lucky I planned for this!" Speakers switched on, letting the Joker's voice echo down the hallway. "Stick around long enough, Robbie, and you might even recognise this. Of course, that is if you don't die first. But at least you'll go with a smile on your face!"
"Joker gas!"
"Eehee! Bingo! Jack pot! You're a winner! You have two choices. You could leave the building. That'd keep you safe from my lovely cocktail, but then little old me would escape, and have time to set up something else. Your other choice would be to let your black bird teleport you straight into the room we're in. Don't worry; it's properly sealed and ventilated. Now, wouldn't that be cosy. Sure, you might be at a disadvantage, but you still get a shot at taking me out. Now, you couldn't turn that up, could you? Raven was right, by the way. If you head down the hall you'll see a white door. It's locked, padlocked and booby-trapped, so by all means, try opening it. You'd only loose a few fingers. So, what do you say? Of course! I forgot to mention the third option! Silly me! See, I wouldn't be one to argue if you just wanted to stay where you are. I'll even make sure Bats hears the news. Personally, of course. The media is just… so insensitive. It doesn't understand the individual."
Everyone turned to look at Robin.
"Your call." Cyborg said. "But make it quick."