Chapter 25: Master Plan Revealed
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any DC characters or logos.
Joker sat in the very same chair that Killer Frost had been bound to weeks earlier. Staring around the Watchtower's interrogation room, he was actually rather impressed by the large number of questioning devices in the chamber. Lie detectors, computers, voice analyzers, and large stacks of paper lined the edges of the room, and from the looks of them, the Justice League used these devices on a regular bases.
No doubt Batman was usually the one to in charge of criminal interrogation aboard the space station. The Clown Prince of Crime had been fighting Batman for many years, and had seen the Dark Knight force information out of countless villains. The Caped Crusader was good at using psychology to force information out of people, but this rarely worked on the Joker himself, and both of them knew it. Being completely crazy did have some advantages.
As these thoughts went through the Joker's mind, a triumphant smirk crept its way onto his face. Besides, even if they did send him back to Arkham Asylum, he'd be out in a matter of weeks, or maybe even less. It had become a regular cycle by now, and there were even instances when he spent time in that institution just to get some rest. After all, the infamous manic had broken out of his cell so many times it had become a weekly event at the Asylum. Some times he would even leave his room to go for a walk around the place, just to return willingly an hour later. No matter how many times that those fools increased the security on and around his cell, the Clown Prince of Crime would always find a way to escape.
The more he thought about this, the more his thoughts began to shift towards Batman. Yes he hated that miserable flying rodent more than any other villain in Gotham. Despite neither of them having any superpowers, the two of them were part of what may be one of the longest standing rivalries in the history of crime. One day, the infamous lunatic hoped to prove to the world that his comedic genius and unique sense of humor were better than mask and a bag of gadgets.
As he continued to ponder over the way his career as a villain had gone so far, the creaking of the door interrupted his pattern of thought. The insane villain grinned as he caught sight of his most hated opponent. Batman sidled into the room, closing the door behind him with a metallic clang. The Dark Knight stepped forward into the light, bearing down on the Joker with a look of loathing and disgust.
"Joker…" Batman hissed, glaring at the crazed villain.
The Clown Prince of Crime grinned through the shadows, his teeth visible in the dim light of the interrogation room. "Well if it isn't Batman. I was surprised when you sent those miserable dogs after me. I heard that you and your playmates have been busy dealing with Slady and his little club."
The Caped Crusader approached Joker, looking calmer than he had seconds before. "We need some information and I need that you were a member of Deathstroke's Secret Society of super villains."
Joker laughed manically for a few moments before answering. "Oh come now Bats, you must be slipping if you hadn't heard that I left that crowd."
"Actually… I did, which is why I told Nightwing and Batgirl to keep an eye on you." Batman replied. "It appears that they were successful in capturing you clowns…"
A wild look of understanding dawned on Joker's face, making him seem oddly cheerful for someone in his predicament. "I get it now… You think you can get me to sing like a bird and tell you where they are. Is that it?"
Batman nodded solemnly, looking as if he would like to strike him. "Tell me what I want to know, or I will personally see to it that you will regret it." He replied in a low tone of voice. Reaching over, the Caped Crusader seized him by the throat, lifting up the chair as he hoisted Joker into the air.
The clownish villain laughed manically, looking completely deranged. "Oh come now Batman, you and I both know that you don't have it in yourself to kill me. If you wanted to, you would have done it years ago."
The Dark Knight shot him a death glare, dropping him onto the ground like trash. The insane villain struggled for a few moments, attempting to free himself from the steel binders shackled around his arms and legs. Moving behind him, Batman kicked the back of the chair, pushing him into an upright position.
Joker laughed again, looking completely unfazed. "Your methods may drive some people into madness, but me… I'm already crazy." He finished, giving the hero an insane look of triumph as he spoke.
"Talk…" Batman hissed, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Why do you care about what happens to the Legion of Doom anyway?"
"What an insult… I couldn't care less for that group of party poopers." Joker spat, looking thoroughly enraged. "Not a single one of them let me have my fun while I was in the fold."
"Then why waste my time… just tell me where they are right now."
Joker smiled again, his expression widening. "And why would I help you. As much as I hate them… I despise you even more." Joker commented, sitting back in his chair as if he were relaxing after a hard day's work.
The two enemies sat in silence, both of them glaring at each other through the dim light. After a few moments, the Joker thought of something that could benefit him. "However… I could be persuaded to tell you what you want if you give me something I want…"
"Such as?"
The Clown Prince of Crime smiled again, pretending to think as he watched Batman's patience beginning to surface. "Oh, I don't know… maybe… a pardon for all of my past endeavors."
Batman shook his head, looking as if he had reached the end of his patience. "No."
"Oh c'mon Bats… I heard you gave Lexy a presidential pardon, why not me?"
"That was different."
"And why would you say that it is different?" Joker commented, grinning confidently. "He was a naughty, and just because he does you spandex-wearing fools a favor, you chose to grant him complete forgiveness for his crimes. Sounds to me like the system's just as crazy as I am."
"There were some complications… Now, I'm giving you one more chance to tell us what you know."
"Doesn't sound like there's much in it for me."
The hero had reached the end of his tolerance. "Enough… I gave you a chance to cooperate, but now we'll have to handle this in a different way." Batman replied, turning his back to the insane villain. " J'onn he's all yours." He replied, signaling for the Martian. In a matter of seconds, the green alien had phased through the door like a ghost. Batman gave him a quick nod as he stepped aside, deciding that they had no other alternative at this point.
J'onn J'onzz took a few steps towards the Joker, his hand outstretched like a weapon. After a few moments, the alien closed his eyes as the he began to probe the villain's mind for the answer to their question. The Martian's eyes gave off a crimson red glow as he fell into a meditative trance, searching through the insane criminal's twisted thoughts. After a few moments, the Martian fell to his knees, turning to Batman for help.
The Caped Crusader crossed the room, helping the Martian stand as he led him over to a chair on the other side of the room. "J'onn… what happened."
The Martian exhaled in shock as he stared at the Joker's unconscious form. "Having such a twisted mind, I could not see his thoughts without using a slightly more complicated method of probing his mind. It was simple enough a task to find the information we sought, but the little that I was able to see of his mind was definitely different from that of the average person."
Batman nodded in response. "That was to be expected… did you get everything he knew about Deathstroke's plans."
"Yes… we'll meet in the control room to discuss this matter later, but perhaps you should send the Joker back to Arkham before you do anything else." J'onn replied. After a few moments, the alien brushed off his cape and strode from the room, giving Batman a small nod as he left.
Turning around, the Dark Knight noticed that Joker had regained consciousness. "You cheated…" he spat, glaring at Batman like an angry hyena. "That wasn't fair."
Batman ignored the Joker's yelling as he thrust a syringe into the villain's arm, injecting him with an anesthetic. The drug worked quickly, rendering him unconscious. Turning back towards the door, he signaled to the personnel standing guard outside.
"Send him back to Arkham." He ordered. The two workers nodded, and in a matter of seconds they had seized the Joker and carried him off to the transporter.
Letting out a slow breath, Batman followed after them like a silent shadow.
WITH NIGHTWING
Nightwing walked through the halls of the Watchtower, glad that he had succeeded in capturing the Joker. Barbara was with him tonight, but despite the fact that she had chosen to accompany him tonight, the two heroes remained strangely silent towards each other. They had shared a brief relationship a while ago, but the break-up was the least of the reasons why they were acting so distant. The two of them had a difference in opinion about many things, thus fueling the conflict between them. Yet over the years, they had always managed to remain friends.
Tired of his cold behavior, Batgirl moved in front of him, holding her arm out. "Will you talk to me already? You've been as silent as a mouse ever since we handed clown boy over to the League."
"What?" he answered nonchalantly, avoiding her piercing gaze.
"Why the hell do you think Batman wanted us to capture the Joker? I mean… what could he possibly know that's so important."
"It's League business…" Nightwing answered, looking indifferent to the fact.
Batgirl laughed at him, sounding slightly amused. "You sound just like Bruce. Just tell me what's going on."
Nightwing gave her a blank stare. "If you really want to know so much, then ask him yourself…"
"You really are Bruce's sidekick." Barbara answered, smiling devilishly behind him back. She had a feeling that what she had just said was bound to get a rise out of him.
The former boy wonder scowled at her, casting her an irritated glare. "Fine, I'll tell you if you promise never to say that again…"
"Deal." She replied, looking triumphant.
"I heard word that the Joker quit that Secret Society of villains that's been causing so much trouble around the world."
Understanding dawned on her face after a few moments. "So if Joker was a member, then…"
"Exactly…" Nightwing interjected. "I had a feeling that we might be able to get some information out of him. So I decided to go back to Gotham and capture him for interrogation."
"You captured him?" she replied, sounding indignant. "Who was the one who bound the creep, and allowed you to render him unconscious?"
Nightwing gave her a shadow of a smile as they continued to walk. "I guess you do deserve some credit…"
"Thanks for including me." She replied, giving him a small laugh.
As they continued to walk together, it felt like old times. The female hero had always liked pestering him on occasion, and now she remembered why they had been friends for so long. He had always been a stubborn piece of work, but that was just who he was. Dick Grayson was a reliable friend and an excellent hero who always put one hundred percent of his effort into something that he believed in. While the answer that he had given her was vague, it was what she wanted to know, so there really wasn't mush of a reason to complain. Considering all of this, she decided that it would probably be a good idea to change the subject.
"So, are you seeing anyone." She asked, trying to add to the conversation.
The former boy wonder turned his back to her for a second, his expression softening. While he wasn't the kind of person that you would consider heartless, Dick Grayson was never great at expressing his emotions, and that had often caused complications. "Actually… yeah."
Batgirl tapped him on the shoulder, looking curious. "Who is it?"
"Why are you so interested in my love life." He replied in an indignant fashion. "Are you jealous or something?"
"You wish!" she replied with a laugh, looking thoroughly amused by his reaction.
The former sidekick smiled as he thought of what to say. "And what's with my love life. What about you and Bruce."
Barbara blushed, looking slightly angry. "That's been over for a while. The last time I checked, Batman had an interest in Diana."
"I think he's afraid of commitment…" Nightwing stated. "From what I heard, he doesn't think it would work."
"You're one to criticize." She replied sarcastically. "Your girlfriend's that alien girl from your old Teen Titans team, right? Wasn't her name Starfire?"
Nightwing nodded solemnly, looking slightly nervous. "I'll admit that there were complications in that relationship, but I've been trying to make it up to her for what I did."
Batgirl raised an eyebrow, giving him a look of disbelief. "And how do you plan to do that. Take it from me, you were never the romantic type."
"I talked to the Martian, and apparently Starfire has Watchtower duty today. I thought it would be a good idea if I paid her a visit tonight before I left."
Batgirl nodded, looking slightly disappointed. "Oh, I had been hoping that we could talk for a while. Maybe I should go back to the transporter, and head back to Gotham." Barbara replied, glancing at her watch. "It's getting kind of late anyway."
The former boy wonder nodded, realizing that she was doing him a favor by letting him go to see his friends. "Sorry, maybe some other time."
"No, it's fine." She replied, giving him a small peck on the cheek as she turned to leave.
"Thanks Barbara…" he replied, giving her a small smile as she headed in the opposite direction towards the main hanger. He just hoped that Starfire had finally forgiven him for leaving her all alone years ago. Granted he hadn't been the one to dissolve the Teen Titans, but without him, they all drifted apart. Perhaps what Starfire had said years ago was true, but he hoped that he could earn the trust of his teammates again.
From his most recent conversation with Starfire on the communicator, the other four Titans had all gotten back together, and had begun to see each other during their free time. While being a member of the Justice League was often a very busy life, they had still been able to rekindle their old friendship. He hoped that one day he could do the same.
Bringing his thoughts back to the present, he continued to walk through the hallways of the Watchtower. Turning into the cafeteria, he was surprised to find Starfire sitting as if she were waiting for him to arrive.
"ROBIN!" she exclaimed in a jubilant tone, pulling out a chair for him to sit.
The former boy wonder gave her a shadow of a smile as he crossed the room and took the seat next to her. "Star… it's Nightwing now, remember?"
Starfire looked embarrassed. "Oh, sorry. It is just that you were Robin for so long that I had grown used to calling you by your old name."
"Just call me Nightwing, or Dick." He replied. "I don't go by that title anymore.
The Tamaranean princess nodded, giving him a big smile as she did. "It is just wonderful to see you again." She replied.
Looking around the table, Nightwing began to wonder where the other members of his old team had gone. "Hey Star… Where are Cyborg and Raven?"
"They are currently on duty." Starfire replied. "Beast Boy has also joined us here as well, and become a full time member of the League like the rest of us."
"I see…"
"Do you plan to stay with us?" Starfire asked, looking hopeful at the prospect.
Nightwing shook his head solemnly. "I'm sorry Star… but I came here on League business and I'm not planning on staying here for too much longer."
"Oh, I understand…" the Tamaranean replied, her tone remarkably softer than it had been moments before. "Can you stay and catch up with the others before you go. I am certain that Beast Boy will be most happy to see you after four years."
"I guess that wouldn't be a bad idea."
The alien princess gave him a jubilant smile, filled with childlike excitement. "Excellent! We can meet in the place where Raven is staying and discuss the old times." She exclaimed joyfully, her eyes alive with happiness.
"Same old Starfire…" Nightwing muttered under his breath as his girlfriend seized him by the wrist, dragging him through the hallways like a new dog. He probably looked pretty foolish right now, but this time he would make an exception.
The Tamaranean Princess released his wrist, allowing him to run of his own accord. While Nightwing was normally a calm and collected individual, he raced after her in an attempt to keep up. Glancing backwards, he caught sight of Batgirl who had been heading in the same direction. Barbara Gordon laughed at the former boy wonder, having seen him in his previous predicament.
"Can't get the girls to stop running away from you?" Batgirl called after him.
Turning around, Nightwing flashed her a small smile. "Wait till you get into a relationship. I promise I'll get a lot of mileage out of it." He shouted back towards her as he continued onwards to the main hanger.
Entering the main room, he broke out of his run, ascending the stairs where Starfire was already waiting.
WITH SLADEDeathstroke stood with his group of associates, all of them admiring his new base outside of Jump City. While it wasn't as large as the place back in Metropolis, he felt that abandoning and destroying his old hideout was a necessary precaution. Word on the street was that Joker had been captured, and if the Martian was able to extract any information out of him, the League was sure to attack.
He was disappointed by the sudden problem, but it was easily remedied, and he had much more important things to worry about right now. Grinning behind his mask, he turned towards the large monitor in front of him. On the giant computer screen was a full-scale diagram of the Watchtower's layout, as well as a copy of their current work schedule.
The information on the monitor was the key to their victory, and had been extremely difficult to obtain. Luckily for him, he had Warp's help. The futuristic villain was extremely useful, able to create portals that could lead them almost anywhere in time and space. It had also been how they had entered the Phantom Zone and captured Doomsday, and how many of the villains had made their escape from the Justice League's grasp.
Using his technology, Warp had teleported several Legion members into one or the old Project Cadmus laboratories and steal copies of the Watchtower's Blueprints. While Cadmus had long been shut down, their institutions still contained anti-superhero information that had never been deleted. Slade had shared his plans with the main members of the Legion, but had received little cooperation so far.
"You can't be serious!" Metallo snapped, glaring at the masked villain. "An attack on the Watchtower! What madness is this?"
Slade turned away from his associates. "Clam yourselves, I have not finished explaining the Master Plan.
"What Master Plan?" Mirror Master asked. "The one where you have us waltz into a fortress filled with active superheroes and get ourselves captured."
"Mirror freak's got a point." Killer Frost added in, looking slightly unsure.
"We would be fools to just walk in and try steal the last crystal." Sinestro replied, earning nods from Star Sapphire.
"I'd be willing to bet that even Joker wouldn't have went for it." Poison Ivy said with a combination of amusement and disapproval in her voice.
Slade let out a hollow laugh as he listened to their cowardly pleas.
"I fail to see what's so funny." Toyman asked, cocking his plastic covered head to the side in confusion. "If your plan doesn't work, then it could be the end of us."
Klarion snorted, looking slightly irritated. "They have a point you know…"
The masked villain ignored them as he formulated a plan in his head. The Watchtower was filled with powerful heroes, but if they could somehow thin out the ranks, than it would be possible to infiltrate. Use of Warp's equipment would complicate things because the Space Station probably had some kind of defense against outside infiltration through the use of technology. The League had a lot of experts that could easily build devices to counter Warp's vortex device. The more an more he thought about it, the more he began to doubt the mission.
Thinking back, he remembered when Lex Luthor hijacked the Watchtower's laser cannon and targeted Cadmus Headquarters. The blast had been so powerful, that it had nearly decimated the surrounding town. As he went over this in his mind, he remembered hearing about the heroes leaving to help the people. Of course… the answer had been in front of him the entire time. Such a factor had always been present in his battles with the Teen Titans. The weakness of every hero was their foolish desire to protect the people.
Turning to his grumbling associates, Deathstroke smiled behind his mask. The plan that he had just formulated was perfect.
"What's so amusing?" Mirror Master asked, sounding annoyed at this point.
Slade laughed again, looking insane. "I have just figured out the weakness of the Justice League."
Poison Ivy cocked an eyebrow. "And that would be what now?"
"Their foolish desire to defend the weak." Slade replied, turning back towards the monitor. Seizing a remote from the control panel, he pointed it at the computer screen. In a couple of clicks, the Blueprints of the Watchtower vanished, three-dimensional image of the Earth appearing on the screen. "Here is my plan."
"It's just a picture of the world." Clayface said, looking disappointed.
"Be silent, and allow me to finish my explanation." Slade replied in a calm tone of voice. "I recently obtained some state-of-the-art nano-technology which I have applied to my robot army."
Klarion cast his employer a confused look. "I thought that you wanted to use magic, not technology."
Deathstroke nodded, looking sinister. "That will come to pass when the crystals are mine, but I must improvise for now." Clicking on multiple locations on the diagram, a few points lit up on the surface of the Earth's image. "By having my armies of robots attack these separate locations, we can distract the Justice League long enough to launch our strike on the weakened space station. These locations are strategically placed around the world to spread the League as far as possible from one another."
Metallo smiled, looking completely deranged. "So if we attack the innocent people on Earth for no apparent reason, than those fools will have no choice but to come and help."
"Precisely…" Slade replied, his visible eye glimmering maliciously through the eyehole of his mask.
"How long do you think it will take before they destroy your cheap robots and realize that it was a trap?" Warp questioned, looking slightly unsure. "If they figure it out, there's not much hope that we'll succeed."
The masked villain laughed again, his voice low and venomous. "That will not be an issue. I assure you that I have already developed two solutions to that problem. To begin with, I have created more than enough killing machines to satisfy the requirement, and I have already obtained information on where in the Watchtower the Justice League is hiding the last crystal."
"And what if they return in time." Clayface replied. "Those guys always seem to show up at the worst possible time."
Slade had anticipated these uncertainties, and had already thought up a countermeasure for it. "In that case, I have already assembled multiple devices in the different locations. These devices will activate as soon as they are appear via the Watchtower's transportation system."
"What do they do?" Sinestro asked.
The masked villain smiled proudly at his own intelligence. "The devices will interfere with the Justice League's transporter signal. By doing this, they will not be able to use the Watchtower's transporter without leaving the area, or destroying the devices.
"I see." Toyman replied, bouncing on his feet and clapping like an excited child. "I can hardly wait."
The unruly group of villains exchanged uneasy glances, but nodded in approval of the plan. If this went well, they would be one major step closer to achieving the ultimate goal. Turning on his heel, the masked villain left the control room, entering the main meeting room. The room was the size of a small cathedral, with a normal ceiling rather than a tall structure. The entrance that he had just used led to an elevated platform at the end of the room, allowing him to get a decent view of the rooms occupants. Many more villains had joined the organization than before, and he would need all the help he could get for this next mission.
Criminals of all sorts occupied nearly every seat, filling the hall to its maximum capacity. As he eyed the crowd of unruly villains, Slade couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment. Nearly every member of the Legion was present for tonight's meeting, and he had earned the loyalty or respect from almost all of them.
The primary members of the Legion stood on the platform behind him, having followed him out of the control room moments earlier. Sinestro, Metallo, Warp, Klarion, Clayface, Star Sapphire, Mirror Master, Captain Cold Poison Ivy, Toyman, Killer Frost, Roulette, and Giganta, stood behind him as they bore down upon the room's occupants.
There were even more members present tonight than during their first meeting, among these villains were Mr. Freeze, Psimon, Killer Crock, Livewire, Ding Dong Daddy, Twoface, Cheshire, Turtleman, Deadshot, Mumbo Jumbo, Bizarro, Doctor Alchemy, Atomic Skull, Puppet King, Volcana, Heatwave, Control Freak, Major Disaster, Johnny Rancid, Plastique, Evil Star, Scarecrow, Electrocutioner, Killer Moth, Clock King, Doctor Light, Cheetah, Blockbuster, Riddler, Professor Chang, Doctor Destiny, Sonar, Brother Blood, Roulette, Trident, Luminous, Mad Hatter, Atlas, The Ventriloquist and Scarface, Captain Boomerang, The Master of Games, Plasmus, Cinderblock, and Overload.
"My friends…" Slade called across the room, causing the unruly mob of criminals to turn their heads towards him. "Tomorrow, we begin the ultimate plan. Soon, the world will see the end of the Justice League… and the beginning of our dominion."
His statement earned a chorus of terrible cheers and evil laughter from the audience. Many of the villains clashed their glasses together in a toast, as the world's most powerful villains joined in the celebration. If Deathstroke's plan succeeded, all of the riches, money, and power, would belong to them.
Slade simply grinned behind his mask as he returned to the control room to finish the details of tomorrow's plan.
NOTE TO READERS: Happy New Year! Sorry for the cliffhanger, but you'll have to wait a little bit for the action chapter(s). The fun begins next chapter, so please review and I'll see if I can get it up on the website. I was limited in the use of villains to a certain degree, thanks to Killer Frost eliminating Shade, Parasite, Goldface, and a number of other villains during the events at the end of Justice League Unlimited. I thought of using the members of the Hive Five, but thought against it, considering that they're more of an annoyance than real villains. (They really are the Hive Five now thanks to Jinx leaving) Again, I hope you guys all have a Happy New Year.