WAYNE ENTERPRISES
Bruce Wayne walked into the large building for the first time in a very long time.
His father had started the company back in 1958 and it had struggled in the beginning. Thomas Wayne had descended down from a long line of wealthy relatives that dated back all the way to the formation of Gotham City. He had been a renowned doctor and conceived the idea for Wayne Enterprises as a philanthropic corporation to help the needy within Gotham and over time to expand throughout the world.
The death of his parents in 1968 was when the company had really soared to new heights. Their tragedy was the catalyst that made the company really take off and expand throughout the world. Thomas Wayne's best friend Lucius Fox had taken over after his friends murder and kept the company going strong until Bruce took the reins back in 1988 when he had returned from his travels abroad. Just before he began his crusade as Batman.
Now the company was being run by an ambitious man named Derek Powers. He had been a prodigy of sorts to Bruce once upon a time. He once had great potential and was a genius in the business world. He'd stepped up in a huge way when Bruce secluded himself in his mansion for all those years.
With the information that Harvey Dent, Jr. had given him, he now knew that his once hopeful prodigy had grown into a criminal and that it was his task to set that record straight. He found himself discouraged at the fact that another man under his tutelage, just like Jason Todd, had taken a dark turn from the path he had hoped for them.
Is their failure actually my failure? He wondered as he saw Derek Powers exit out of the nearest elevator.
"Mr. Wayne," Derek Powers greeted him in the hallway of the lobby and shook his hand. "It's so good to see you after all these years."
Bruce nodded. "I can't say the same, Derek. I wish this visit were under better circumstances though."
"What do you mean?" Derek asked confused.
"Perhaps we should go to my office for a little more privacy."
Derek hesitated. "Um, I actually took over your office. I've had it for several years now, in fact."
"Oh," Bruce said and then he grinned. "Didn't count on old Bruce Wayne stepping foot back through these doors, huh?"
Derek chuckled sheepishly, "Not really."
Bruce nodded. "Well, let's head up to your office then."
They took the elevator to the top floor of the building and were soon in what was once Bruce's office.
"Would you like some coffee?" Derek offered as he walked to an expensive espresso machine.
"Yes, thank you." Bruce said as he walked to the large window and stared out at the bustling city beyond. He always loved the view of Gotham City from that office. Everything seemed so peaceful from such a high perspective.
Derek handed him his coffee. "So, what brings you around here with such ill tidings?"
Bruce sipped his coffee and then answered matter of factly as he turned around, staring daggers at his former business protege. "You do, Derek."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that you've taken this company and started turning it into something it's not. Wayne Enterprises is a foundation built on peace and charity so you can imagine my dismay when I learn that my company has begun manufacturing weapons and chemical warfare. How does that promote peace and charity, Derek?"
Derek shrugged. "These aren't peaceful times, Bruce. Sometimes to promote peace and charity you have to mold it by force."
Bruce sighed. "You disappoint me, Derek. I thought you were the future of my company. I felt that when I retired you'd be the one to keep my father's legacy alive. Clearly I was wrong."
"No, You were right to believe in me," Derek argued. "I am the future of Wayne Enterprises. Your philanthropic views of the world are a thing of the past. Eventually this world will be at war again and we will be on the receiving end of a substantial sum of money when the military comes to us for assistance in arming their soldiers."
Bruce shook his head sadly and placed his cup of coffee on the desk. "You're fired, Derek."
Derek grabbed Bruce's discarded cup of coffee from off the desk and threw it across the office angrily. "You haven't set foot through these doors in years and now you think you can just barge back in here and fire me on the spot?"
Bruce nodded, "Yeah. I just did."
Derek's face turned bright red and he then swung his fist toward Bruce's face. The elderly man easily evaded the assault and used the younger man's momentum to trip him and make him fall on his face.
"You have till the end of the day to clear out my office."
Bruce then left without saying another word, leaving the former acting CEO on the floor to seethe in anger.
Once Bruce was out of sight, Derek Powers stood back up and straightened his tie. He smiled maliciously and walked over to the large window and looked down at the street below. Within a few minutes, he observed Bruce Wayne exit the building and enter his car.
"A man with a mental breakdown can't run a company, Mr. Wayne." Derek Powers simply said.
GCPD
Damian Kyle walked into the Gotham City Police Department feeling more elated than he ever had been since arriving in Gotham City.
The Mutant Gang was no more and it was all thanks to Batman.
He'd never known until the moment he saw him as to whether or not he actually believed he existed. He'd of course read about him and saw pictures in the papers but he always kind of thought it had been a media tactic to try and keep the criminals in line.
Damian showed up for his shift a little early, feeling invigorated about patrolling the streets that night. Deep down he knew that he was secretly hoping to see Batman again.
He went to his locker and started suiting up for his shift. Before long, a patrolman stepped in.
"Hey, Kyle. The Commissioner wants to see ya."
Damian sighed. "Be there in a sec."
He had not made a very good impression with Commissioner Ellen Yindel thus far. Ever since he had confronted her about buckling down on the Mutant Gang she had been rather coy with him. Whenever they spoke it was usually a short conversation and to the point.
He grabbed his 9MM, checked the magazine, and chambered a round before securing it in his holster. He then shut his locker back and inexorably headed to the Commissioner's office.
He made sure to knock before entering.
"Kyle, get in here."
He did as he was told. He walked in and stood at attention in front of her desk. She was wearing thin framed glasses and wearing a sharply tailored navy blue blouse. He'd never seen her dressed so immaculately before. She was studying over some paperwork intently.
"Have a seat, Officer Kyle."
He did so. She kept him hanging for several moments longer before looking up at him.
"Kyle, what you did last night was incredibly stupid."
He nodded. "Yes, ma'am and I wanted to explain..."
She abruptly held up a hand. "It was incredibly stupid and with that having been said...I'm also very proud of you. It was incredibly brave of you going into the Mutant Gang's hideout. You should have of course called for back up after tracking them there."
Damian shrugged. "I think that was my intention. I kinda got knocked out before I got that far."
"And you found their hideout on your own?" She asked.
He nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I bailed out the Mutant Gang member Garrett Hodges and followed him and his scumbag friends to the old Axis Chemicals factory."
She smiled. "Not bad, Kyle. Their might be a future here for you as a detective."
Damian was taken aback. "Thank you, ma'am."
He wasn't used to Ellen Yindel being so cordial with him. She had a pretty smile and he found himself actually paying attention to her features as a woman as opposed to just being his superior.
She was clearly of Asian descent with straight black hair and light brown eyes. She appeared to be in her mid thirties which becoming Commissioner at that age was a phenomenal achievement. He also took note with glee that she had a substantial bosom which could be observed even while wearing her finely tailored navy blue blouse.
She smirked as she took notice of him studying her so intently. "Something got your attention there, Kyle?"
Damian cleared his throat, clearly embarrassed. "Um, no ma'am. I just noticed I haven't ever seen you dressed so immaculately before."
"A detective indeed," she joked. "I'm fixing to be visiting my father as soon as I finish with this damn paperwork. I haven't seen him in quite some time and wanted to dress nice for the occasion."
Damian nodded and stood up. "Very well, ma'am. If that'll be all."
"One more thing," she said. "Batman was really there?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"What was your impression of him?"
Damian thought for a moment. "He was incredible, ma'am. He definitely lived up to the legend."
"Yes, well...there is zero tolerance for vigilantism in Gotham City. We may have to address this problem sooner rather than later."
Damian was confused. "Problem? Commissioner Yindel, if it wasn't for Batman I'd more than likely be dead right now and the Mutant Gang would still be running amok in our streets."
Yindel stared at him a moment as her demeanor turned icy again. "Have a safe patrol, Officer Kyle. That is all."
He headed for the door and stopped. He turned back to face her. "Truth be told, we should get the Batsignal operational again. We're going to need Batman to get this city back under control."
"Listen closely," she said coldly. "The Batman is a criminal. No Batsignal will be utilized as that would show support for vigilantism. If you see that caped criminal out there then you will do your job and arrest him. Do you understand."
Damian dismissed his earlier prognosis of her being an attractive woman and deduced that ultimately she was just an insufferable bitch.
He nodded. "Yes, ma'am." Not a chance, bitch.
With that he stormed out of her office and slammed the door shut.
GOTHAM CITY HALL
The day was finally over.
Harvey Dent, Jr. was exhausted and looked forward to going home and getting some much needed rest. He said his goodbyes to the staff and exited city hall. He made his way down the steps two at a time.
His red Porsche was parked across the street and he started heading that way. His cell phone rang and he answered.
"Dent."
"Good evening, Junior."
He immediately recognized the voice. It was Carmine Falcone. His rage began to immediately surface.
"What the hell do you want, Falcone?"
"Just to congratulate you, is all. The word is out and you're apparently soon to be the new Mayor of Gotham City."
"That's right, asshole." Harvey, Jr. sneered. "And be ready. As soon as I'm in office I'm taking you and your whole criminal empire down with you."
Falcone chuckled. "You're such a joker, Junior."
"The joke's on you, Falcone."
"No, my dear boy," Falcone said. "You're the joke. Enjoy the rest of your day."
With that Falcone hung up.
Harvey, Jr. stood their speechless for a moment staring at his phone. That was a weird conversation and he pondered on whether or not it was some kind of veiled threat.
He shook his head as he approached his car. He fumbled in his pocket for the keys. It was then that he had the feeling he was being watched.
He looked around, surveying his environment. Across the street he saw a strange man. He looked like a clown. The clown was staring right at him and waved.
Harvey, Jr. waved back, feeling kind of awkward and slightly creeped out. His phone started to ring. He looked at the number and didn't recognize it. He looked back up and noticed the clown had a phone to his ear. The clown motioned for him to answer.
Harvey, Jr. hesitated and then finally answered. "Hello."
The voice on the other end snickered. "You wanna hear a joke, Harvey Dent, Jr?"
"Who the hell are you?"
"Do you wanna hear a joke?" The clown repeated the question.
Harvey, Jr. rolled his eyes. "Sure, why not."
"Okay," the clown began. "What did the Joker say to the Mayoral candidate?"
"I don't know. What?"
"BOOM!"
Before Harvey, Jr. could question him, he noticed the clown flick a switch on some device he was holding from across the street. A noise came from underneath his car and he then knew exactly what was going on.
He started to run in the opposite direction but before he got two paces, the car exploded and blew him across the street.
He screamed in agony as fire enveloped him and started burning half of his face off.
WAYNE MANOR
Bruce Wayne observed the inside of his home and realized that he had his work cut out for him if he was going to get the place cleaned up before Vicki Vale arrived in two hours. He took his coat and tie off and rolled up his shirt sleeves.
He sighed and muttered, "Time to embrace my inner Alfred."
He then commenced to undergoing the task of cleaning up his home. It was no small task but within an hour and a half he had it looking somewhat manageable again. He filled up several garbage bags of trash and dusted extensively. He swept and mopped the floors and at 5:45 he finally stopped and observed his handiwork.
He was very pleased with what he had accomplished. Not nearly up to the code of his old butler but not too shabby for an over the hill billionaire who had never really cleaned anything in his life.
It was then that he heard a laugh echo throughout his home. That laugh caused him to go cold with dread. It wasn't the laugh he had heard a few nights before when Jason Todd had snuck into the Batcave. This one was far more familiar and the sheer memory of it froze him with terror.
He followed the sound of the laughter into the living room and then he saw sitting on the couch was none other than The Joker.
He sat there with a martini in his hand and that all too familiar maniacal smile planted on his face. It wasn't Jason Todd though. It was Jack Napier, the original Joker, long thought dead. He wore the same outfit he had worn the night he'd supposedly died thirty years prior with his purple hat laying beside him on the couch.
Bruce closed his eyes, knowing that when he opened them that the ghost from his past would be gone. He opened them and The Joker was still sitting there.
The Joker chuckled. "I'm really here, Bruce. Or should I address you as Batman?"
"You're dead." Bruce simply said.
"Am I?" The Joker asked as he stood up from the couch. "Can the Joker truly be dead while the Batman yet lives. After all, without me there would be no Batman and without Batman there would be no Joker."
Bruce shouted in fury and dove at The Joker, trying to tackle him to the ground. He only managed to run straight through where The Joker had stood and collapsed on the other side of the couch and hit the floor hard.
He slowly got back to his feet and looked cautiously over the couch. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that The Joker had vanished. It had only been a figment of my imagination.
Then the laughter erupted right next to his ear and he spun around in fear. The Joker was standing right next to him.
"You can't get rid of me that easily, Batman." The Joker said. "We're linked, you and I."
"You're not real!" Bruce shouted as he backed away from his cackling archnemesis. "I'm hallucinating."
The Joker nodded as he kept approaching Bruce and sarcastically said, "Duh! Glad to see your detective skills haven't diminished"
"Why am I hallucinating about you?"
"That's the wrong question to be asking?" The Joker stated.
"What's the right question?"
The Joker paused dramatically and then snickered. "The question is, why are you hallucinating?"
Bruce stopped retreating and thought about that. "I've been drugged." He thought back to when he could have been drugged and then he remembered that Derek Powers had given him a cup of coffee. It must have been laced with something.
"Holy Ballgags, Batman!" The Joker exclaimed sarcastically. "I think you've figured it out."
"But why of all things would I hallucinate about you?" Bruce wondered, mostly to himself.
"Isn't that obvious?" The Joker asked. "You've missed me. Why else would I be here?"
The Joker then laughed maniacally and it was so loud inside of Bruce's head that it was like a cannon reverberating throughout his skull.
The doorbell then rang. Bruce looked from the still cackling Joker over toward the lobby. Vicki!
"We have company, Bruce." The Joker stated. "Shall I go answer the door?"
Bruce ignored him as he approached the door. She was indeed punctual, having arrived exactly at 6:00. He opened the door and there she stood, looking beautiful as ever.
She wore a gorgeous violet dress that extended down to just above the knees complete with make up and a perm that matched the way her hair had looked thirty years ago when he had first met her. She was absolutely stunning.
The Joker was right behind his shoulder and exclaimed, "Wow! What a night for reunions."
Bruce winced and Vicki noticed. She asked with a worried expression. "Bruce, what's wrong?"
Vicki could not see The Joker beside him which confirmed that he was indeed hallucinating. The hallucination was all to real to him though and if it wasn't resolved quickly then it would probably be his undoing. He hated having to cancel on her but it had to be done. Perhaps she would forgive him and they could try again another night once he found a cure. If there was a cure.
"Vicki, I'm sorry but we have to postpone our date. Something has come up."
"Oh yes, something has come up," The Joker chuckled. "Come up in my trousers, that is." He burst out laughing at his own joke.
Bruce winced again.
Vicki placed a worried hand to his cheek, "Jesus! You're burning up. Are you feeling okay?"
Before he could answer, her phone rang. She smiled apologetically as she answered "Vale."
Bruce stared at her as the speaker on the other end spoke. Her eyes gradually got wider with each passing word from the person on the phone.
She stammered, "I'll be right there." She then hung up the phone. She gave him a haunted expression. "I have to go, Bruce. Will you be okay?"
"What's wrong?" Bruce ignored the question.
"Harvey, Jr.'s car was blown up. He's in intensive care."
Bruce's heart skipped a beat at the news. "I'll go with you."
"Are you sure?" Vicki asked. "I think you might need to go see a doctor."
"That'll wait," Bruce said.
"Road trip!" The Joker declared. "Wait, I have to go get my hat!"
Bruce closed his eyes tightly, trying to shutter out the hallucinatory presence that would not go away.