AN: Booyah! I was a little worried I wouldn't get this done in time for Halloween, but I did it! I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter.
As always, eternal thanks to my lovely beta annbe11. She's got some great stories on her page so be sure to go check out her stuff. DO IT!
Also, this story has reached 200 FAVORITES! Thank you all! I love you all so much! I'll keep on working with this story and I hope you guys keep enjoying it.
Chapter 7 – All of Your Fears
Aaron Cash looked up from the dead radio he had been fiddling with when he heard the frantic gasping. Dr. Kellerman was beginning to hyperventilate again. He didn't learn after the first three times that that was a bad idea. Aaron grabbed the doctor by the shoulder and spun him around so they were face to face.
"Doc, you need to calm down," Aaron said. "You need to slow your breathing down."
Or else we're going to suffocate in here before anyone has a chance to rescue us.
The doctor, to his credit, did try to calm himself down and take slower breaths. Aaron nodded in approval before his eyes took in the small control room for perhaps the twentieth time.
This can't be where it ends, he thought. There has to be a way out of here.
Aaron and the doctor had been in this wing of the hospital when the alarm suddenly sounded. Before they had the chance to even react, the room started flooding with thick green gas that Aaron had no problems identifying. The two of them managed to escape the Joker Toxin by ducking into a control room, but they found themselves stuck instead. The system registered the biological agent flooding the room and locked all attempts at escape. That was when the air filtration system failed. They were stuck in a small, airtight room. That had been hours ago, or at least what felt like hours. Even Aaron could start to feel the air getting a little thin and Dr. Kellerman's multiple anxiety attacks were just using up the limited supply they still had. Two of the windows out of the control room were still covered by a blanket of Joker Toxin.
The only other remaining window, annoyingly bulletproof, was home to a pair of asshole inmates.
"Hey, Captain Hook!" laughed the one on the right. "How bout you crack the door a little bit? Give us a real laugh!" They both howled at that.
Aaron just grit his teeth and returned his attention to trying to calm down the doctor. The security officer knew he could find a way out of this for both of them if he had time.
He just needed more time. Dr. Kellerman looked out the window and his eyes bugged out. Wary of what else the inmates might be doing, Aaron looked back at the window. Instead of two inmates, a single figure now stood there.
"Batman!" Aaron cried happily leaping to his feet. "Thank God you're here!"
"Cash, are you okay?" Batman asked.
"The doc and I are alright, but we're running out of air. The next room is filled with Joker gas and we're locked in."
"Alright," Batman said with a nod. "Both of you hold on just a little longer. I'll get the fans running so you can get out of there. Try to stay calm." He pulled out his grapple gun and used it to ascend out of view. Aaron let out a laugh of relief.
"You hear that, doc?" he said, giving Dr. Kellerman a slap on the back. "Batman's here. We're getting out of this." Kellerman only gave a pitiable moan in response as he sat on the floor with his head between his knees.
Aaron heard the sounds of something large moving through the air vents and he saw shadows of something moving above the noxious green cloud of Joker Toxin. After only a few moments had passed, the fans suddenly roared to life and the room quickly cleared of Joker Toxin. When the system pinged to show the room was now clear of contamination Aaron immediately threw open the door and sucked in greedy lungfuls of fresh air.
"Thank you, Jesus," he said to himself as Kellerman also stumbled from the control room to collapse against the wall. Aaron heard a rustling sound next to him and Batman was suddenly standing there.
"Are you and the doctor alright?" Batman asked. Aaron took another long breath and nodded.
"We're okay. We just need a moment." He looked Batman up and down before suddenly seeing that his arm was in a sling. "Holy hell, are you alright?! What happened to your arm?"
"Joker happened," Batman said simply. "When you have your breath back, follow me. We need to meet up with the rest of the medical staff."
"We're right behind you." Aaron grabbed Dr. Kellerman by the arm and pulled him after Batman. Kellerman didn't need any prompting past the first few steps and soon the three of them were making their way into the winding hallways of the medical center. "What's going on? My radio cut out just before the room started filling with gas."
"Joker's escaped and he's running loose in Arkham," Batman answered. "He's stalling help from arriving, so that means he needs something here. I just don't know what."
Aaron opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by a figure leaping out from around the corner. It was an Arkham inmate in a red jumpsuit and an elaborate muzzle covering his mouth. Even though his whole face couldn't be seen, those burning eyes were very memorable.
"Higgins…" Aaron breathed, taking a step back and pushing Dr. Kellerman behind him. Higgins was one of Arkham's violent inmates and more than one of Aaron's coworkers bore claw marks from some of Higgins' more exciting escape attempts.
This time, however, Higgins was armed with two scalpels. Aaron could hear metallic laughter coming through the muzzle as he idly spun the scalpels around his hands and advanced on them.
"Stay behind me," said Batman as he strode forward to meet Higgins.
What happened next was an absolute blur of motion. Batman had wrestled one of Higgins' blades away in the first few seconds and by the time the scalpel had finished clattering across the floor, Higgins was on the ground unconscious. Batman wasn't even breathing hard as he stepped over the man's unconscious body and continued down the hall.
"Let's keep moving," he said. Aaron and Kellerman were more than happy to hurry after him.
"What about the other doctors?" Kellerman asked, finally bringing himself to speak. "I know that Dr. Young was in X-ray, so we should-"
"Don't worry, Doctor," Batman interrupted. "She and the others are being looked after."
"By who?" asked Aaron.
"I picked up some help along the way."
With that, Batman continued down the hallway, leaving the two men to follow him.
"Release me this instant! I'll have you arrested as soon as this is over!"
Nora groaned as the words of the rabid doctor washed over her like so many other insults in her life. She and Batman hadn't had any problems with rescuing the doctors on this floor, but it seemed that keeping them rescued was going to be a hassle.
One lady in particular, Dr. Young if Nora remembered right, had been very insistent that she be allowed to reclaim her research notes before the Joker got his hands on them. Seeing as the rest of the island was likely to make a Grimm-infested warzone look like an afternoon picnic, Nora was determined to keep her from wandering off.
Even if that involved grabbing her by the back of her coat and holding her off the ground.
Dr. Young's feet kicked back and forth in the air, trying to find some sort of purchase to help her escape. Despite all her squirming, Nora just stood still as a statue, not even feeling a burn in her arm as she continued to hold the woman aloft. A few of the surviving doctors and orderlies sat in a group a few feet away, shooting glances in their direction but refusing to engage in the confrontation.
"You have no authority to stop me!" shouted Dr. Young.
"Well I'm here with Batman. I'll bet you he has the authority," Nora said with a roll of her eyes.
As if summoned by her words, Batman emerged into the main medical chamber, followed by a doctor and a security guard with a simple claw prosthetic in place of his left hand. Nora nodded to Batman as he looked at Dr. Young in curiosity.
"What's going on here?" he asked.
"Officer Cash, arrest this child right now!" Young shrieked as she again tried to escape Nora's grip.
"She kept trying to run off to the mansion and get her research notes," explained Nora. "I'm just trying to keep her with the group."
"You don't understand what's at stake here!" Young said frantically. "If the Joker finds my research notes, the consequences could be unimaginable! I need to find them!"
"You won't stand a chance out there, doctor," Batman said calmly. "You need to stay here and stay safe."
"I won't let that madman get his hands on my life's work," she said, crossing her arms. "Neither of you have the authority to stop me from reclaiming what's mine."
Before Batman or Nora could offer a rebuttal to this, the officer stepped forward.
"I'll get her there, Batman. I know my way around the mansion. We can be in and out before anyone notices us." He smiled slightly and rested his hand on the pommel of the nightstick at his hip. "Besides, it's about time I had a little payback."
Batman slowly shook his head. "I don't like it, but-" They all went silent when they heard the telltale sound of the elevator rattling toward their floor. "Who called the elevator?" Batman demanded.
"No one here did," answered one of the doctors. "It must be coming from one of the lower floors." Nora deposited Dr. Young back on the ground and took out Magnhild.
Batman turned back to the whole group. "Cash, take Dr. Young. Get her notes and find a place to hole up until this is over." The officer nodded and lead Dr. Young toward the door. "Everyone else needs to get into the observation room. Barricade the door. Nora, with me."
Nora nodded before following him toward the elevator. She threw herself into cover and held Magnhild at the ready. The elevator continued to clatter and shriek as it got closer and closer to their level. Batman stood next to her, holding three batarangs between his fingers. The seconds seemed to pass like hours as Nora tried to prepare herself for whatever was coming for them.
When the elevator arrived, however, it was entirely empty. Nora stood up straight and lowered her weapon as the door rattled open.
"Taxi here for a Mr. Bat Freak and his dopey assistant," the Joker said over the intercom. Batman and Nora both grimaced before cautiously walking toward the elevator.
"Are we really taking this obvious bait?" Nora asked.
"It's the best way to get back on Harley's trail," Batman answered, stepping into the elevator. After a few moments of hesitation, Nora walked inside too.
Neither of them pressed any buttons, but the gate slid closed all the same. A screen in the corner of the elevator clicked to life and suddenly the Joker was smiling evilly at them.
"I honestly can't believe you fell for that, Bats!" he cackled. "Look at what we have here. The Caped Crusader and his little hanger-on trapped in a tiny metal box and hanging precariously over a great drop. Hehehehehe. Just a single push of a button and I end your interference forever."
Nora's eyes went wild as she looked around the suddenly stifling elevator call. This couldn't be how this night ended. There had to be a way they could escape. Maybe she could tear a hole in the gate and they could get out. She'd have to be quick.
When she lunged for the gate, however, Batman grabbed her shoulder and stopped her in her tracks. She spun around and stared at him with scared, incredulous eyes, but his gaze was entirely steady.
"Wait," he said.
'Wait'? We don't have time to wait!
"Say goodbye, Batsy," giggled Joker.
A tense, silent moment passed.
"Boom!" Joker said with a laugh. "Oh, don't worry, Shortstack. I'd never let the both of you off that easy. But I do have one big question for you, kiddo." Joker leaned closer to the camera and chuckled evilly. "What are you scared of?" The screen immediately turned off and the elevator began descending.
Nora swallowed around her dry throat for a moment before shrugging Batman's arm off of her shoulder.
"He could have really blown us up," she said, starring down at the floor. "How'd you know he was bluffing?"
"Because I know him," Batman said simply.
Nora opened her mouth to speak again when she was suddenly seized by a coughing fit. The back of her throat felt like it was on fire. Through her coughs, she saw that Batman was also coughing.
"No…" he gagged. "Not now..."
As the coughing fit passed over them, Batman suddenly turned to Nora, an intense look in his eyes. His good hand fumbled at his belt before he raised it, a syringe clutched in his fist. The needle darted toward Nora, seeming to move in slow motion as the dingy elevator light glinted off the narrow piece of metal.
Nora's eyes popped wide and she intercepted the Dark Knight, both of her hands locked around his wrist.
"What do you think you're doing?!" she demanded angrily.
"Helping you!" growled Batman. "Trust me!"
"I do trust you," she responded, "but not so much that I'll let you jab needles into me all night!"
"Nora, listen! You need-"
The sudden sounds of terrified screams stalled their conversation. Nora could see the elevator slowing to a stop in front of a dimly lit hallway with windows looking into what looked like operating rooms. That was where the screams were coming from.
Nora was running toward the windows as soon as the elevator opened. Her hands flew up to her mouth as she saw people in that operating room, both nurses and patients, all wreathing around and screaming.
"Get them off me! Get them off me!" one of the nurses screamed, clawing at his arms and neck so hard his nails left cuts in the skin.
"Get out of my head!" screeched another, who was trying to beat her head against the wall.
Way in the back of the operating room, Nora saw a man in a doctor's coat on his knees, his eyes wide with terror. A lanky figure stood over him, seeming to melt right into the shadows behind him. The lights in that area were broken, giving her only the vaguest look at the man who stood there. All she could make out were two shining orange eyes.
"Dr. Crane…" gasped the doctor, both hands scrambling at the spindly fingers locked around his throat. "Why are you doing this…?"
"Dr. Crane isn't here right now," said the figure, speaking in a voice that sounded like two knives scraping against each other. "Only… Scarecrow."
With a flash of motion, the shrouded man's other hand came around and sank four claws into the doctor's shoulder. The claws were withdrawn and the doctor fell to the ground, convulsing and screaming just like all the others in the room.
That was when the Scarecrow person turned and looked right at Nora. She swore she could hear him chuckle before he suddenly dashed out of the room.
How dare he?!
Nora grit her teeth and ran to the next hallway, desperate to keep Scarecrow in her sights. Nora hoped Batman was behind her, but she did not have time to look back. Right now, she was a Huntress tracking her quarry.
The next hallway over was blocked by a heavy metal gate. As Nora slid to a stop in front of it, she gripped the bars and stared into the flickering shadows of the hallway. Scarecrow stood at the very end of the hall, looking over his shoulder at her with his shining eyes. He was dragging someone down the hall by the back of their neck. Nora recognized the captive immediately.
"Jim!" she yelled. Her hands tightened around the bars of the gate and yanked hard. The lock and hinges all shrieked in protest. Scarecrow chuckled again and dragged Commissioner Gordon back into the shadows. Nora relaxed her limbs and prepared for another pull.
"Nora, stop!" said Batman, grabbing her by the arm. "We can't afford to just rush into this situation without a plan!"
"Who cares about your plan?!" demanded Nora. "If you want to just wait here and let Jim die, go ahead! I'm gonna go do my job!"
She shoved Batman's hand away and, with a roar, wrenched the gate right off of its frame. She tossed it aside without another thought and charged down the hall into the darkness. The hallway turned at the end so she turned with it, desperate to catch up to Scarecrow. Dead ahead of her was a t-intersection with some mostly stable fluorescent lights above it.
The lights did a great job of highlighting the blood trail that snaked around the corner. Nora felt her heart leap into her throat as she brought Magnhild to a firing position and then stopped at the corner with her back pressed against the wall. She took a few stabilizing breaths before turning around the corner.
Magnhild almost fell to the ground as her fingers suddenly went numb.
Jim was slumped against the wall at the end of the blood trail. She saw bruises and cuts on his arm, meaning he had fought his attackers, but what made her heart stop was the bloody stab wound in his chest. After two hesitant steps, she rushed to his side and fell to the floor.
"No, no, no," she pleaded, feeling his neck in a desperate attempt to find a pulse. "Please. Please don't be dead, Jim."
Her search was fruitless and her hopes unfounded.
He was dead.
She heard a footfall behind her and turned over her shoulder to see Batman standing over her. His hand reached out to comfort her, but she swatted it away.
"This is your fault!" she yelled as she shot to her feet. Angry tears fell down her face as she gritted her teeth. "You weren't fast enough! I could have saved him if you weren't slowing me down!"
Batman just stared down at her with a stoic expression.
"I know you don't believe that," he said softly.
Her fists trembled at her sides before she turned away from him and rubbed away her tears. Once again, she desperately wished Ren was here. At the very least, he could quiet the roaring storm in her head.
"If anything, Nora, this is your fault."
She spun around and stared open-mouthed at Batman.
"Wh-what?" she gasped. "N-no it's not. How can… how can you say-"
"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be hurt right now," Batman growled. "I wouldn't have to make sure you don't get yourself killed just by walking down the hall." He strode forward, glaring down at her with burning eyes. "It would have been better for everyone if I had just left you right where I found you before you had the chance to ruin everything."
Nora swallowed, taking timid steps away from the enraged man.
"But… no, I've been trying to help. I have been helping!"
"Don't make me laugh," sneered Batman. "This is just what you do, Nora. It's time you finally accepted that. Misfortune follows wherever you go and innocent people get hurt while a worthless brat like you survives without a scratch. Just like with Kuroyuri. Just like with Beacon." Batman leaned forward and Nora swore that she could see actual flames burning in his eyes. "Just like with Pyrrha."
Nora's fist shot out and punched Batman across the face, snapping his head to the side. More tears were pouring down her face, but she was far past caring. Her mouth opened and closed, but she was unable to form any words.
That was when Batman started laughing. It was a frightening laugh, the kind that brought to mind shadows and the dark things that dwell within them. When he turned back to her, she saw actual flames burning out from the eyeholes in his mask.
"Now look what you've done," he said chidingly with a shake of his head. "Lashing out at everyone, just like you always do. It's a real mystery how Ren has been able to put up with you all these years."
Nora shuddered and took a few more trembling steps back. "Stop it… please stop it…"
"You deserve to be punished," Batman said with a cruel smile as he reached for his mask. "You need to be punished for EVERYTHING!"
Batman whipped off his mask and suddenly his entire body was engulfed in flame. Nora shrieked and fell back, desperately scrambling away from him. The fire dripped from his cape like napalm and skittered across the floor and up over the walls. In moments it seemed like the entire hallway was engulfed in flame. Nora felt the burning heat on her face as her eyes widened in terror. Batman stared down at her, his face a mess of burning flesh, and grinned.
Nora screamed and jumped to her feet before fleeing down the hall. The thing that had once been Batman screeched in anger and suddenly the fire was chasing her. She turned one corner and then another, but the flames always seemed to be licking at her heels, promising nothing but agony.
As she barreled around another corner, Nora saw a door standing slightly ajar. She sprinted for it as the hallway seemed to inexplicably become bigger. She felt like she was slowing down, despite how hard she ran. Her body felt clumsy, felt wrong. The roar of the flames was growing ever closer as she finally reached the door. She crashed through the door before turning and slamming it closed behind her. Her entire body trembled as she panted. She could barely stand up straight as her heart hammered in her ears.
"Please don't go around slamming doors, sweetheart."
Just like that, Nora's heart stopped. Her lungs forgot how to breathe. Her body froze in place.
No. It can't be.
Nora turned around and gasped.
The place she found herself in was a typical slum apartment, with a tiny living room-slash-kitchen with a rotting door that led to an even tinier bedroom. A bathroom barely the size of a closet was situated in one of the corners. Bare bulbs hung from the ceiling to cast buzzing, paltry light over the outdated furniture, the cheap holo-screen that was playing a quiet news report, and the beaten-up heater that sat against one wall, trying to stave off the Mantle chill for the room's occupants. Everything about the room was old and dirty and observers wouldn't be faulted for being disgusted by it. But Nora saw something entirely different.
Home. The first and last place she had truly called home. It was here. It was all here. The threadbare carpets covering uneven wooden flooring where she had sat and played. The piles of dust that collected in the corners that no one ever had the time to clean up where she had drawn stick figures and sunshine. The abused and worn dining table with one of its legs supported by a hardcover book so old that the title on the cover was no longer legible. The sole bit of life from the room came from a vase of roses that sat on the table
Nora could feel tears coming to her eyes as she looked over it all again.
"What's wrong, sweetheart? Was it those boys again?"
Nora felt her throat close up when she looked at the speaker. Her mother sat next to the frost-covered window, using a small sewing kit to mend a pair of socks as she idly rocked back and forth in her rocking chair. She had a blanket drawn up to her chin and her long orange hair cascaded down her shoulders like a shower of sunset. She was looking at her with eyes so kind and a smile so sweet that Nora could actually feel her heart breaking.
"Oh, I bet it was. Come over here, dear. How about you come sit next to me?"
A soft laugh came from across the room. In an armchair in the corner of the room, Nora's grandfather leaned forward over his lap, whittling a piece of wood into the shape of an animal. Almost all of the toys Nora had grown up playing with had been made by her grandfather. The aging yet muscular man glanced up and gave her a sparkly-eyed grin before turning back to his work.
"Don't you worry your head, honey. Your child is tough. A few more years and those punks will regret ever causing trouble."
It was only then that Nora finally managed to find her voice. She swallowed past the lump in her throat and desperately reached out before letting out a hesitant croak. "M-Mom? Grandpa?" Her voice was higher pitched than it should have been, making Nora startle in confusion. Her hand was smaller than it had been before. She looked down at herself and gasped.
She was a child again. That explained why her body felt so clumsy while she was running.
That thought shoved its way to the front of her brain at the same time her nose detected the smell of smoke. There was still a fire. They needed to escape. In a panic, she ran forward and grabbed her mother's arm.
"Mom! There's a fire! We need to get out of here now!" she cried. She attempted to pull her mother out of her chair but the woman just gave a soft laugh.
"Sweetheart, there's nothing worth being scared over." She freed her arm from Nora's grip and rubbed her head soothingly.
"But I'm being serious, Mom!" Nora cried. "We have to run!"
"There's no reason to run," her mother said with a smile. She looked down at Nora with her warm, caring eyes. "Don't you remember? You already killed us."
The room suddenly seemed darker. Ice suddenly lanced through Nora's heart as her fingers went numb. Her mother gave another laugh as she turned back to her sewing.
"Look at that, Dad," she said calmly. "It's almost like we're not even worth the memory."
"You're just lying to yourself," Nora's grandpa said to her. "Pity that you even think you can protect other people after you killed your own family."
Nora staggered back from her mother's side, heart once again pounding in her ears and her breath coming in gasps.
"N-no, i-i-it wasn't like that," she pleaded. "I'd never hurt you. Either of you."
"Enough with the lies," her grandpa said with a shake of his head. "Haven't we told you that lying is a sin?"
"I think it fits just fine," her mother said with a smile. "Been nothing but a burden and a curse on anyone you've ever met." She looked Nora right in the eye and giggled. "Sometimes I think we should have listened to your father and just left you out in the cold when you were born. Everything would have been better then."
"Hear hear," said her grandpa. He made a particularly vicious cut to his wooden block and raised his hand before hurling his knife right at her. Nora yelped and jumped out of the way of the blade, but that sent her on a collision course with the dinner table. The table capsized and the vase of roses was sent flying through the air. Nora gasped and tried to grab it, but she was far too late. The vase shattered against the heater in the wall, splashing water over the device. The heater sparked wildly before bursting into flames.
The old walls and floor of the apartment went up like kindling.
"Oh dear," Nora's mother said mildly as flames climbed her chair and her blanket. "It seems it's happening all over again, Dad."
"Heh," he said as fire worked its way up his trouser leg. "Did you honestly expect any different?"
"Not at all!" she said with a laugh. He soon joined in with his own booming laughter.
Nora could only watch helplessly as the flames consumed her mother and grandfather. She could hear their flesh crackling. She could hear the ceiling above groaning as it lost its support.
"Mom… Grandpa… No…" she said.
"You should have burned with us from the beginning!" they both howled. Then they laughed as the flesh sizzled from their bones.
Nora's panic took over and she ran for the window. She made a desperate leap and crashed through the glass, that insane laughter still ringing in her ears. The second her feet made contact with the floor again, she was running. No matter which ways she turned, that laughter was right behind her. She didn't know where she was. She didn't know where she was going. All she knew was that she needed to run.
Eventually, she took one turn too many. She skidded to a stop right at the lip of a deep black void. Her arms pinwheeled like crazy in an attempt to keep her balance, but she managed to avoid falling into the darkness. Behind her, the laughter was reaching a fever pitch. It felt like it reverberating in her bones, even drowning out her racing heartbeat.
Then, out of nowhere, there was silence. Slowly, as though scared she might disturb some sleeping beast, Nora turned around to look the way she had come.
Standing in front of her, with claw marks cutting into his chest and blood staining his clothes, was Ren.
Nora's hands covered her mouth as she gasped. He was deathly pale and stared at her with a look of cold attachment. She could make out the soft drip-drip-drip of blood landing on the floor beneath him.
"Ren?" she said, barely louder than a whisper. He maintained his blank stare and slowly shook his head.
"We were supposed to keep each other safe, Nora," he said tonelessly. "Why did you leave me? Why weren't you there when I needed you?"
"Ren, please! I swear I didn't-" she tried to beg. Ren lunged forward before she could finish her sentence. He shoved her over the edge and left her to fall into the darkness below.
Nora barely felt the sensation of falling. All she could feel was the pain in her heart as she continued to stare into those cold eyes all the way down.
"Ren…" she breathed. "Please…"
Then she landed hard on something metal. The back of her head slammed onto the surface and she saw no more.
AN: Hey everyone. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I'm gonna try to get one more chapter of Excelsior published before the end of the month but then I'm taking a break. NaNoWriMo is starting soon and I'll be focusing on that for a while. If things go well, I might have a brand new story to post when December rolls around. I hope you are all staying safe out there.
Happy Halloween!