ISOH-Chapter 4

Legal Disclaimer-Hey-WB and Marvel own the rights, I'm just playing in the driveway here. Don't mind me....

Authors Note-Psst-Goldstranger-It's Grammar and thanks, I went back, repaired and you'll notice the changes in Chapter 3. To everyone, I apologize for my lack of usual posting, life is getting interesting, the news is getting depressing, and I won some MX DVD's that are stuck somewhere between CA and FL. Sigh.

"Do you know how much I hate that name?" Dick groaned as Brennan got up, "The papers all say it, Bruce laughed about it. I'm not a boy. I'm a man."

"Hey, it's great to not have him call me that," Jesse headed for the computer lab, "Dick, come with me, maybe I can hook you up to the mainframe back at the mansion."

Dick smiled. It was great to be getting some help.

"Ladies, let's get this Riddler guy," Brennan started, a plan beginning to form, "I think we can help these guys out."

About an hour later, Dick Grayson had the satisfaction of knowing he could trust Jesse Kilmartin. Jesse had not only provided an opportunity to get online, he had shown him the easiest way into the Bat Computer that he could think of. It helped to be around a fellow computer geek, he could talk shop with him about firewalls and hard wiring. Jesse was impressed by the younger man's wealth of knowledge; it was hard to believe that he had only been with Bruce Wayne's machines for a little over a year.

Adam Kane in turn was grateful that they had diverted Grayson. Wayne was worse off than he let them know. The biotoxin had been troublesome to discover, but indeed Wayne had inhaled parts of it. It was slowly eating away at the capillaries in his lungs, causing his lung function to diminish. The sleep was at least prompting healing of the concussion.

"It's amazing to have him here," Emma said as she entered the med lab, breaking the silent concentration that Adam had let himself fall into, "I mean Batman is a living legend."

"A very sick legend," Adam admitted, "I didn't want to tell Dick that, I don't think he can take it."

"He can, he's pretty strong minded," Emma said, "Anything I can do to help?"

"Sadly, no," Adam walked back to the computer where he had run another blood test, "I'm concerned about him, but I am running a test to counteract what was done to him. This biotoxin is quite simple; the antidote should be as well."

"You have an antidote already?" Emma asked.

"It's going to take time to synthesize, but yes, I do," Adam's reply was automatic, he was already thinking ahead, "I just wonder if I can make enough for Gotham City."

"You can," Emma looked into her mentor's eyes.

Adam smiled and went back to work. Emma went to see if she could help her friends in the other parts of Sanctuary. She found Brennan putting plans together with Shalimar, while Jesse and Dick were deep into computer talk and rewiring. It was looking like there was a plan in place.

Meanwhile on the edge of Gotham City, the Riddler sat in a chair shaped like a question mark, observing his minions working on the vats of biotoxin that were being readied for a big release on Gotham. His eyes never left the process while he scribbled several riddles on a piece of paper that was covering his all time favorite news headline "Batman and Robin, Missing."

"Ah, and to think that I am responsible for the missing bat, how about that!" he thought aloud, "Ah, when do I release this amongst the city..."

His riddles were quickly becoming ransom notes.