Date September 13th, 2013

Renee Montoya, who is armed with a pistol, runs down the stairs, nearly dying. She opens the door to meet a man in a gang mask but he raises his hands defensively.

"Hey, hey, hey! It's me, it's just me." His voice sounds familiar to Renee and she quickly learns who this person is as he removes his mask. It's Tim Drake.

Renee starts to erupt into questions. "What? The hell are you doing here? She demands to know in a harsh whisper.

"Stepping up." Tim responds, making Renee proud. Tim asks, "Are you hurt?"

Renee shakes that off. "Forget about me. We need to get the others out of here."

Tim asks, "Where are they?"

"Down stairs, in the lobby. Being held by Black Mask's thugs."

"Do you know what he wants?"

"To take over Falcone's Empire." Renee informs him. "He didn't want us to steal the glory so he burned the photos that would've put him behind bars."

Tim takes all this information in and says, "Well, I don't know about you, but I think he's gonna be highly disappointed when he goes to jail with Falcone."

Renee smirks. "I was hoping you'd say that," She tightens her grip on her pistol.

"We need to lure the thugs out of the room one by one and then we deal with Mask,"

"So, Die Hard stuff?" Renee raises her eyebrow, making Tim chuckle. He always appreciated her humor.

A voice comes through her stolen radio. It's Black Mask. "Commissioner? You can hear me, I'm sure. Just pay attention; don't respond. Being a generous guy, I'm ready to strike a bargain with you: If you emerge from your hiding place with no desire to harm me, then me and my men will depart from the building. I'll start shooting at anybody I see if you don't, however,"

Tim and Renee look at each other in concern for the other people.

"You have 20 minutes. Tick Tock!"

Renee tries to shake off the terror and says, "He doesn't know you're in the building?"

Tim shakes his head. "No, I don't think so." Tim starts to gain confidence. "That means we can take him by surprise."

Renee shakes her head. "No, my men are still down there." She starts to lose composure. "Plus everyone else in the building. The only way for us to take them all down is if we get back-up."

Tim sighs in frustration as he too is losing his composure. He begins to remember how challenging this whole Caped Crusader stuff is and at times, it feels hopeless.

Then, hope starts to glimmer as Renee looks up and says, "My office."

Tim needs more details. "What about it?"

"I have a spare radio in my desk drawer that we can use to contact for help." Renee explains.

Tim is catching on. "While giving the others outside information on how to help save the hostages." Tim thinks it's a good way to go but he deflats, to Renee's confusion. "Your office is on the third floor and we have no idea how many guys are in this place."

Renee takes his opinion into consideration but doesn't think this will be a problem. "Then we better be quick about it."

Tim knows he isn't going to say no to her since this might be the only way to save the hostages and stop Black Mask so they walk up a flight of stairs.

On the way, Tim thinks to himself about what he's doing. He has to admit, he feels like it's been a lifetime since he's done something like this and he can't help but feel like he should've done something like this sooner. This whole city has been eating through each other and he was here. He could've done something about this but he quit.

As he contemplates himself, another masked goon finds them and they engage in a fight.

"Hey! You're not supposed to be down here!" The thug tells them.

They are able to take him down quickly but as he gets on the floor, he finds a blunt object near him and he hits Tim with it. He falls on the floor.

Tim doesn't know what's happening to Renee and to the goon. All he knows is that he's on the floor, his head dizzy and something is echoing in his head; The Joker's laughter.

It's as venomous as he remembers and memories of that day start to floor back to him.

The Joker kept hitting Red Robin with his crowbar as he laughed and laughed. He always found other people's suffering hysterical. Batman watches this with a hint of water in his eyes, glistening. While he may not have been the best at showing it over the years, he still cared and loved Tim Drake as…well, as a third surrogate son.

Jason Todd was different. He was aggressive and lived on the streets at a young age. From what Tim had heard, his father was abusive and his mother was a drug addict. He died at the hands of the Joker with that same crowbar that he struck Tim with.

The Joker struck him again.

"Jkrrrr…plssse!"

He ignored his rival and was ready to take the final swing at Tim Drake as the Boy Wonder laid on the floor, unable to get up from the drugs. One final swing from him could've killed him, it really could've. But that idea was thankfully stopped when footsteps were heard;

A young couple with their daughter were walking down the alley, feeling carefree and lucky. The Joker grinned at this, another set of victims for the day as he forgot about Batman and Robin's existence and was merely focused on the family of three as Robin looked on, trying to shake off the drugs.

Batman was no different. He tried to shake from the rope, even so much as plead through his gagged mouth, unable to speak. But the Joker paid no mind and took out his gun from his coat.

"Are you sure this is the way to the car?" The woman asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure. I gotta say, I'm glad I was able to get off work today to be with you both." The man said.

The young girl hugged her father. "I love you, daddy!"

The father picked up his little girl and lifted her in the air before putting her down and hugging him. "I love you too, Holly." He looked over to his wife. "Chole, how about we go get some ice cream?" He suggested, making the child grin with excitement.

Chloe smiled. "I think that's a good idea."

The grinning freak walked up to the family, his itchy trigger finger barley resisting. "Ha ha ha ha, ain't this touching? We should put this in the photo album," The Joker laughed as he began to raise his gun. The family stopped in their tracks. "Say cheese!"

"Oh my god…RUN!" The father yelled with fear for himself and his family. The Joker always knew how to put the fear of the devil into everyone in Gotham. The father tried to get them to run but it was too late.

*BANG*

The gun went off and Arthur fell to the ground, clutching the part of his body where the bullet hit; His chest. His wife's scream filled the alleyway. "ARTHUR!"

*BANG*

The young mother fell to the ground beneath them, motionless as blood circled their body and the pavement. The girl's face flooded with tears at the sight of his dead parents.

"Mommy? Daddy!" Holly desperately and violently shook their bodies. "Wake up! Please wake up!"

The Joker took pleasure in this tragedy and crouched to Holly's level and tightly put his hand around her neck, preventing any escape from the psychotic slayer. "Oh, don't be sad, little girl. C'mon, let us see a smile."

Then, his flower on his suit squirted out gas that hit Holly's face. For a moment, it looked like it did nothing…before childish laughter was heard out of her mouth. She laughed uncontrollably and clutched her body as it ached. She fell to the ground, unable to control himself. Tears started swelling before she, along with his parents, died as well but with a hideous grin on her face, similar to The Joker.

This enraged Batman as he too lost his parents at a young age but unlike Holly, he was able to live to tell the tale. His viewpoint darted back from Tim Drake's bleeding body to the dead family on the pavement and finally, to the crowbar that was discarded on the ground. He ripped the rope and gag off of his body and yelled, "JOKER!"

The Joker's demented smile grew wider. "There we go. Hit me like you mean it, darling!"

Batman tackled him and began to mercilessly pound on his body. But Joker was used to this and laughed through the pain.

"Hahahahahahahahaha…"

"Stop!"

*PUNCH*

Joker coughed up blood and gave off a devilish smile. "Never! I'LL NEVER STOP, HAHAHAHAH!"

"Stop!"

*PUNCH*

Joker fell to the ground but The Joker's injuries were no different than all the others he had received in the past and just taunted Batman.

"Uuh! No, I'll keep…"

"Stop!"

*PUNCH*

"Your family will be next!" Joker promised.

""No…you'll stop." To Tim, it sounded like Bruce was almost pleading for Joker to end this cycle of violence as he landed another punch on him.

*PUNCH*

Joker spit out both blood and a tooth from his mouth before turning back to Batman, who had grabbed him by his suit. "...You still don't have the guts, don't yah, Bats?"

"Stop!"

*PUNCH*

Joker sighed in defeat but his smile slowly started to form, despite the bloody chipped teeth. "Then I guess I'll see you when I break out of Arkham…again!"

"Stop," Batman could no longer yell. Now, his effort of commanding the clown was practically a whisper.

*PUNCH*

"Don't you get it, Bats? This, all of this, it's not going to stop. It's never going to stop. It's just going to be you and me, destined to dance together…in the pale moonlight…forev–"

*CRACK*

Joker was interrupted by the sound of his own neck snapping. He fell to the pavement as the Dark Knight stood over him, shocked by his own actions.

Batman did it. He finally did it; He broke his code that night after Joker's last and worst rampage of all time, maybe even the worst rampage done by anyone in all time. And let's be honest, who could blame him?

As Joker landed on the ground, his final, dying breath escaped his body in the form of green smoke. Batman took in what he had done before looking back to Tim. He ran to Red Robin and held him in his arms.

But Batman was badly beaten as Red Robin was. He struggled to help him and when all hope seemed lost, a black battle car pulled up in front of him. Dick called it the Batmobile and the name kinda stuck. The Batmobile was both a heavily armored tactical assault vehicle and a personalized custom-built pursuit and capture vehicle that is used by Batman and Robin in their fight against crime.

The door opened to reveal a young woman in a dark purple batsuit except for the cowl, the boots, and the cape, which are all black. On the streets, she was called Batgirl. But between her closest and personal friends and family, she's Barbara Gordon, the daughter of the deceased Commissioner Jim Gordon.

She hurried out of the vehicle and was frantic. "Oh my god. Batman, Robin! Are you okay?!" Batgirl stopped in her tracks when she saw The Joker's lifeless body on the pavement. "What happened–"

"Help me get him in the car!" Batman cuts her off. She immediately grasped the situation and did as she was ordered. Both he and Batgirl carried Tim over their shoulders and into the vehicle.

Batman then asked her, "What about Gotham's water supply?"

"Me and Batwoman were able to get it back to normal. I got your transmission and I left to help. She's looking after it now and Nightwing is getting people out of Gotham General."

Batman nodded and, with Batgirl's help, he got into the driver's seat and said, "Get in. We're heading back to the cave." She understood and jumped in the back seat.

The Batmobile drove away as Batman was both driving to their base and keeping a shoulder on Tim. "Breathe, Tim. Just breathe." Batman said in a startled tone, afraid of what might happen to him "You're going to be alright. I'm going to get you all fixed up."

Tim falls back in his seat, his eyes slowly dazed before shutting.

"No, Tim! TIM!"

"Tim, wake up! Renee is shaking Tim rapidly. He gets his senses back and gets up. He breathes heavily as he awakens from the awful thing he had to re-experience.

"Are you alright?" Renee asks Tim, helping him up from the floor.

Tim is stupefied. He doesn't respond automatically, instead he takes moments to breathe in and breathe out while fighting back tears.

He doesn't know why these memories keep popping up since he thought he was over it. Ah, but Tim guesses that you can never get rid of the things that matter and that life definitely matters since he has somewhat reentered life as a vigilante.

Finally, Tim answers after what feels like an hour. "I'm fine. How about you?"

Renee helps him up from the ground. "I took down a thug, so that's good."

Tim is able to chuckle. "Sorry I missed the action."

They continue to make their way through halls before they stop at an office door that reads Renee Montoya – Commissioner. Both of them rush into the room and dig through the desk where they find a radio. Renee begins to tinker with it while Tim stands guard with Renee's gun in hand.

Black Mask paces around a circle of people overlooking a watch on his wrist as three men keep a watch out, armed with Ak47s.

He counts down. "Five…four…three…two…one," Black Mask says aloud. This makes some of the hostages very tense as they lay on the ground. Black Mask nods his head to one of his goons. "Kill them."

People gasp as the goons aim at them. Nothing is preventing them from pulling the trigger.

"STOP!" They turn to see Renee walking down the stairs, unarmed. "Don't. Please."

Black Mask glares at her before raising his hand. "Hold your fire." The goons lower their guns. He walks up to her, getting uncomfortably close as Renee looks at him with disgust. "You made the right choice."

To his surprise, she is not scared or pleading for her life. She's calm and collected with no trace of fear in her system. She looks like someone who's in control of the situation. Wait a minute…

Tear gas is thrown in the room by S.W.A.T. Teams. The rival gang runs and an all out shootout ensues. Bullock gets up and directs the hostages outside to safety. He then knocks a masked man down and steals their gun. "Say hello to my little friend!" He enters the battle against the Masked Men.

Tim Drake, his mask still on, is also getting everyone out to safety. Bullock asks, "Who the hell are you?"

He doesn't know that Tim Drake is under the mask and he thinks that's for the best. He likes the guy and respects his detective abilities but Tim knows he has a prejudice against vigilantes and he doesn't want to think of what he would say if he found out the truth.

Tim says in a deep voice. "A Good Samaritan."

Bullock wants to ask more but he is shot in the shoulder. "Bullock!" Tim yells, forgetting to deepen his voice. He grabs Bullock and places him on his shoulder, dragging him out of the Police department as shots are fired in all directions.

Black Mask and a few guys hide behind a pillar, avoiding fire. The men yell at their boss. "We gotta get out of here!"

Black Mask considers it before he finds Renee Montoya, fighting back against all of the tear gas and bullets. He glares at her and turns back to his men. "She's not leaving this place behind…Time for plan B."

The men's eyes can be seen widening behind their masks. "Boss, that'll kill us all!"

"I know what I'm doing, so DO IT!" Black Mask yells at them.

The men ponder their options before one of them takes out, what seems to be, a detonator. Black Masks turns around in all directions, staring at the pillars and staircases and says, "Light 'em up."

Tim Drake puts Bullock in an ambulance. Bullock tells the cops and others that he's a Samaritan doing good before Tim tells Bullock, "I'm doing back in." In his deep voice.

Tim feels the sleeve to his suit being tugged on by a hand. He turns and sees it's Bullock. He tries to speak. "Mask, he…has the pla..ce wired…"

Tim couldn't get a reaction because behind them, an explosion goes off in the Police Department. Everyone from Doctor to Officer to Pedestrians are knocked back to either the concrete or the cars. They hear crumbling as the building's roof falls into the building as everyone is panicking. Screams are heard as panic ensues in the streets of Gotham. Tim looks at the damage in horror and races back into the fray, hoping that no one was hurt too badly.

He gets back in, without remembering how he did so, and carefully walks into the damaged building. The once proud building standing as a pecan of hope and bravery is now nothing more than a dark and infested property that's cluttered and filled with rubble and roofs that will fall on people in an instant.

He walks through hallways and spots several lifeless bodies of either Mask's crew or the brave officers that are unable to go back to their families.

Renee Montoya crawls out of a pile of rubble but is not concerned for her own safety. She needs to know that at least others are okay.

She then hears footsteps, it's a man wearing fancy shoes. She leans back on a pile of debris and sees The Black Mask, his suit cut up and holding a handgun. He's alone.

"Yeah, sorry about the wreckage, Mon. But you left me with no other option."

Renee sits up and spits in his face. "You bastard! You won't get away with this!"

Black Mask removes the spit off his mask and wipes it on his suit. "I already have. And here's a reality check for you, Commish," He raises the gun at her face. "This bastard…has this entire city in his grip."

*BANG*

Tim's heart stops; He has heard a bullet shot and is in a state of panic. He travels down more wreckage as a voice starts to become clearer.

It says, "I'm gonna leave you like this so you can take all that in," The voice belongs to The Black Mask and footsteps are heard as they walk away. Tim runs and finds Renee Montoya on the ground, blood coming out of her stomach. Tim runs to her aid.

"Renee, Renee!" He shouts.

She winces. "No need to shout, I can hear you." Tim gets a Kleenex out of his suit and tries to apply pressure on the wound when she stops him. "Listen…You have to stop this…You need to come…back,"

Tim nods. "I know. Stay with me, I'll get you help!"

She coughs. "Please, Tim…You're all Gotham has…" Renee's eyes start to water and stir. "You're a good man…promise me…you'll stop this…"

Tim looks down at her and her body. He knows that she's right. That Black Mask needs to be stopped. But her making him promise makes this an even more dire situation.

Tim nods as tears blow through his eyes. "I promise. I swear it to you."

Renee gives a weak smile but it's somehow comforting. One final breath escapes her mouth before her body becomes still, along with her eyes.

Tim knew that this was it. That she wasn't going to make it…but that doesn't make this less heartbreaking. He breaks down as he has lost another friend, a family member even.

But she will not be forgotten. Tim will make sure of that.

'Her promise will be fulfilled.' Tim swears to himself.

Author's Note: I'm probably going to get serious hate for Batman killing Joker, as the Batwoman show did when it was first revealed. But to be honest, I find it weird that everyone wants Batman to kill Joker but when he does do that, everyone says that's out of character for him.

In the words of Harry Potter, "It's curious, don't you think?" ( From Deathly Hallows Part Two )

I think the idea of Batman killing Joker is an idea that hasn't been explored enough. If you disagree, sue me. But while I do applaud Batwoman for taking the risk, they didn't execute it well. They didn't explain why Batman did kill him or where the hell Batman is and plothole was never resolved before the show's cancellation.

I think we all know what this will lead to and it's going to be, without a doubt, the darkest thing I ever made and if dark stories are not for you then I suggest that you click off this story.

I was going to add the whole thing where a bunch of people are being led to their deaths for Joker to kill them but this thing is dark enough for what I have planned, so think of it as an act of mercy on my part.

I look forward to putting my ideas in this, so, to quote the genius of Mark Hamil's Joker, "Stay tuned…you won't believe your eyes."