The next day, Batman and Iron Man were making their way through the snowy, wooded rural areas of southeastern Latveria. They had made use of an old tunnel that the Liberty Brigade used to sneak into the country and take out its Hydra bases back in WWII, when Latveria was forced under the boot of the Reich. Doctor Doom allegedly had the entire country under his surveillance, but he had no idea that two American superheroes had gotten past his border.

A stream trickled in the forest, despite the freezing weather. This stream went directly past the village that was now in Batman and Iron Man's sights. The two hid themselves behind some trees that seemed to stretch into the heavens. With feedback popping up all around the visor in his helmet, Iron Man scanned the village. Residents donned in simple clothing, some having dirt splattered all across them, were going about their business. Some were shoveling their driveways, others were going on walks to work or somewhere, and some kids were playing in the snow. But even in this village, there was a statue of Doctor Doom. It was a bronze, towering statue, where Doctor Doom held the whole world in his hand.

"What an egotist," Iron Man muttered to the Dark Knight, rolling his eyes.

"You'd know all about that, wouldn't you?"

"Oh, don't get on a pedestal with me, you're no better."

'Is Bruce sure that Harley and Ivy are in this particular village?' asked J.A.R.V.I.S. It was Stark's artificial intelligence, named in honor of his late butler.

Bruce scowled. "I am sure. I have a tracking device in their home."

Iron Man scoffed. "You've always been good at trusting people, Bruce," he said. While Stark could be skeptical himself, if he recalled correctly, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy were genuine about leaving the world of supervillainy. They had stayed completely under the radar for a year, enjoying their lives together across the ocean from Gotham.

Iron Man looked over at Batman. "Didn't Harley and Ivy reach out to you after Jason's death, offering their condolences?"

At this point, Batman's frown softened, and in an extremely rare moment, his shoulders relaxed just a bit. "They did. I should make it clear that I genuinely wish they've turned away from a life of crime. I hope that I am wrong."

Then that scowl, the one that Iron Man had gotten to know so well for years, returned to his face. "But I can't afford to take any chances. Especially not after Jason. Now let's go."

And so Batman and Iron Man snuck their way through the village. They headed north, with Iron Man activating his stealth and sound dampener devices so the villagers wouldn't hear his hulking suit. During their recon, Iron Man got another look at the villagers. The children running around in the fields seemed happy, smiles shining on their faces as they played tag or hide and seek. And the adults chatting with each other about the weather or Doctor Doom's latest orders did not wear fear on their faces. But that didn't mean there wasn't any. For few in this country had the courage to speak out against their ruler. Doom's word was law, after all. If they tried to go public against Doom, their lives would be forfeit.

Too bad for Harley and Ivy that it was one of the only countries in the world that wouldn't immediately send them back to America to serve several life sentences.

The sky was beginning to glow a luminous orange, its light reflecting off Iron Man's armor. The clanking of his armor, even if softened by the grass and twigs beneath his feet, should have alarmed someone by now, but Tony's tech kept those noises muffled. Everyone was still going about their merry way.

"Okay, we're nearing their home. There it is," Batman said to break the silence.

He pointed at a two-story house that was coated a heavy shade of lavender, with red-brick roofing. It had a lush garden, with flowers and plants that couldn't be found anywhere else in Europe. It looked like the place alright. Batman and Iron Man darted over to the back of the house, where the village wouldn't be able to see the two. There were two large windows on the first floor of the house, but curtains hid away whatever was inside. But the back door also had a small window atop it, so the heroes headed over to it. Iron Man was the one to peer his head into the window, which revealed what was going on inside.

The walls were painted a lovely azure sky blue color. The kitchen floor was wooden-tiled, compared with a metal silver fridge and freezer. Harley was over by the stove, cooking something on a frying pan. She wore a pink sweater, hot pink short shorts, and furry slippers. Ivy began approaching Harley from behind, wearing no clothing but having leaves covering the more sensitive parts of her body. Ivy reached in and hugged her petite love from behind.

With sound amplifiers in his armor, Iron Man was able to hear Ivy say, "How are you doing so far, Harley? Making pancakes again?"

Harley giggled. "I finally think I got the recipe down."

"I can tell, since you haven't started a fire. Or broken anything in a fit of rage."

Harley slapped Ivy's shoulder. "Oh come on, Red! It was way getting too hard the first time. But this time, I got it right, just for me and you."

Ivy tightened her grip ever so slightly. "I don't doubt it."

On the other side of the window, Iron Man looked over to Batman for a moment. "Aw, aren't they cute?" he said, chuckling. Batman did not respond, instead keeping the face that he always had glued on. There were a few seconds of silence, a silence that Iron Man broke with, "Well, anyway."

He readied his hand blaster, and a light emanated from it before the blast fired out towards the door. In an instant, the door came crashing down. Harley and Ivy both leapt off the floor, their mouths agape and their faces aghast. Iron Man, completely unfazed by their reactions, simply walked up to the two.

"Hello, ladies. Sorry to interrupt your lovely breakfast!"

Harley's look of surprise quick morphed into fuming rage. She lifted up her frying pan from off the stove and smacked Iron Man's helmet with it.

"What's the big idea here?!" Harley shouted, before bashing the helmet again. "Red and I are reformed, remember?! Haven't caused any ruckus in ages!"

Iron Man simply stood there as the former sidekick of the Joker brought her frying pan upon him a few more times, while grunting and growling. It wasn't creating so much as a dent, but that didn't stop Harley in the slightest. Without stopping to catch her breath, she continued on with, "And you can't do shit to us here! Not on Latverian soil! So get lost, and go fight some actual supervillains!"

Finally, the Invincible Iron Man broke his silence. "I do believe that you could be doing more to atone for your crimes than living in some remote village under the rule of a egomaniacal dictator," he began, following it up with a sigh. "But we'll shelve that discussion and save it for another time. And besides, that would require the two of you to not relapse."

Ivy crossed her arms and furrowed her brow. "Relapse? What?! We haven't been in contact with anyone from our old lives, aside from the occasional Skype with Selina!"

With that in mind, Iron Man was beginning to really let the situation settle in. If Harley and Ivy really were in league with the Joker and Doctor Doom, would they have really just been standing around cooking pancakes? Perhaps they were trying to maintain a façade to avoid suspicion until the big event? That was a stretch, the playboy had to admit to himself. But not impossible.

Finally, Batman said, "We wanted to make sure that that was truly the case. Now, how this conversation goes will depend on how Harley can answer this one question."

Iron Man watched as Batman walked over to Harley, looming over the tiny lady. She did not seem deterred by him in the slightest; more irritated and ready to knock his teeth out at any given moment.

That didn't stop the Batman from asking his question. "The Joker. You haven't been in contact with him, have you?"

Harley's face now longer shone a look of irritation. Now, it sported rage, and burning hatred. Instead of knocking out teeth, Harley's fiery eyes and clenching teeth showed a woman who wanted to smash Batman's skull in with her frying pan and then tear out the Dark Knight's insides with her bare hands and feed them to the wolves in the woods. Iron Man's proton cannon whirled around in preparation for Harley to strike. And indeed, Harley did charge towards Batman, only for Ivy to jump in and hold back her beloved.

"Fuck you, Batman! You think I would throw my life away, my wonderful and peaceful life that I've built with Red, to go back to that heartless sack of shit?! He wasted years of my life with emotional torment! He doesn't care about anyone but himself! If you think for a single moment that I would ever -"

"Okay, okay, you've made your point," Iron Man said, stepping in-between his comrade and his psychotic acquaintance. Then he looked over to the former. "You know, something tells me that she's not involved in whatever mess the Joker is creating."

"We just needed to be sure," Batman replied. His shoulders were stiffer then ever, and he kept his eyes firmly locked onto Harley. "But consider this a warning. With the Joker in Latveria, he may try to track you down."

Ivy scoffed. "We're not worried about that twisted freak. If he comes by, I'll inflict all the pain he inflicted upon my Harley, ten times over, before turning him into compost for the earth to devour."

"Except for his head! We'll hang his head up as if he was a deer!" Harley added, poking Batman's suit with every word.

Iron Man thought back to his earlier point, about how Ivy and Harley chose to hide out in a rural village rather than become allies to the superhero community. And then the thought back to their words just now, showing their complete willingness to end the Clown Prince of Crime in a brutal, brutal fashion.

"Come help us, then. If you really want to kill him so badly, then help us do the deed."

Batman placed his hand on Iron Man's armored shoulder. "Damnit, Iron Man, we're not going to kill him!"

Harley scoffed. "He has to come to us if we're going to kill him. I fear that if I leave this village and hunt him down, then the psychotic voices in my head will kick in again and I'll go back to the maniac I was before. That's why it's best for Red and me to just stay here and never leave."

Then she walked over to the billionaires, a grin forming across her face. "But if you're going to kill him, by all means, do it. I won't shed a single tear. No one in the world will."

Iron Man sighed again. "I cannot control how you live your lives, of course, but are you absolutely sure about this?"

Ivy wrapped her arm around Harley's shoulder, and shot a death glare towards Batman and Iron Man. "Yes, we are sure. We are happy here, happier than we've ever been before. Now, get out of our home, and go kill the Joker already. This is the only time I'll ask nicely."

Iron Man and Batman exchanged looks with one another. It was very clear that their business here was settled, and any more time spent here would just be an intrusion. So they nodded towards one another, and without saying a word, left the house, to meet up with Batgirl and Spider-Man.

"Yeah, I don't really blame her for reacting the way she did," Spidey said to Iron Man and Batman. Once more, they were on the rooftops of Vienna, overlooking the majestic and elegant Belvedere Palace. It was dusk now, an orange sunset consuming the sky around it. "I mean, the Joker abused the crap out of her. Of course she would take offense at the thought of you two asking if she went back to him."

Spidey was not facing the two Vanguardians at first, but then he whipped his head around and pointed. "I think you two need to take a class on social customs."

Iron Man rolled his eyes underneath that helmet of his. "Put a sock in it, webhead. Have you and Batgirl found anything?"

"Nothing. We have no idea what business the Joker could possibly have in Latveria. But here's a thought. What if the Scarecrow, Riddler, and Doc Ock are all somehow involved?"

Now Spider-Man truly had Iron Man's attention and all of the latter's attention was on him now. Batman was the same; underneath his scowl was a quiet murmur of confusion. And rightfully so. Why had Parker mentioned these three seemingly unrelated villains?

"Yeah, you're gonna have to back up a bit, buddy," Iron Man said, making several motions with his hands. "You didn't mention the part where that makes sense."

Spider-Man shook his head and sighed. "None of them have been seen for a few weeks now, have they?"

"That's not abnormal for Nygma or Crane," Batman rebutted, not moving so much as a muscle other than his jaw as he spoke. "Nygma tries to work on riddles complicated enough to outdo his previous stunts, while Crane likes to modify and strengthen his fear toxin. And you of all people should know how unpredictable Otto Octavious can be."

"Okay, but hear me out," Spider-Man replied, raising a finger up. Right at that moment, the sunset happened to intensify its glow, shining across Iron Man's armor. "So Barbara and I have been trying to find anything on the Joker's whereabouts. We got nada, but we've heard murmurs of other villains popping up across Europe. Namely, the three I just mentioned."

Spider-Man then began pacing around. "Also, remember that Giganta and Moonstone have been in Latveria working for Doom ever since HYDRA fell. Could Doctor Doom possibly be trying to form a secret society of super-villains or something?"

Iron Man had no immediate response to that. He stood in place, contemplating what Peter had just said. It was not impossible for supervillains to band together for mutual benefit. It had happened before over the years. But the thing was that it was well-documented that supervillain groups would inevitably fail, either through the efforts of the heroes or through betraying each other due to their own egos. The real wrench in that idea, however, was the one thing most supervillains were united on: their hatred of the Joker.

"Okay, okay, I know you guys are skeptical for whatever reason," Spider-Man pre-emptively added on before Iron Man and Batman could cast any doubt on his theory. "But come on, can't you see some logic in this? Batman, aren't you supposed to the World's Greatest Detective? Looks like I may be giving you some competition."

Iron Man scoffed, waving his hand. "Okay, kid, you haven't earned that cockiness -"

"He does have some fair points," Batman said before Iron Man could finish. Iron Man paused and turned his head to face the Dark Knight. "Doctor Doom has been willing to create alliances of supervillains in the past. While they've been repeatedly foiled, Doom's egotism and willingness to recruit criminals is very well-established. The only thing that I'm lost on is why on Earth he would suddenly recruit the likes of the Joker."

Not even Batman could fathom that mystery. Another mystery, Iron Man wondered, was the absence of the fourth superhero here.

"So, Batgirl is on her way, right, webhead? Don't tell me you guys have some big assignment that she's working on right now."

"Yes, yes she is on her way. She needed to make a call to her father first."

And speak of the devil. Right as Spidey finished talking – something Iron Man thought an impossible feat -, a grappling hook whipped itself onto the top of the roof. And in a few moments, a yellow glove clung onto that same roof edge. Batgirl was finally here. There were signs that she had been in a scuffle. Namely, some patches of dirt across her suit and a blood stain on her cowl and her cheek. Blood that definitely belonged to whoever she had beaten up.

"Sorry I'm late, everyone. Got caught up dealing with some muggers and purse snatchers," Batgirl said, wiping the blood away from her cheek. "Did Peter tell you about the other villains?"

Iron Man tilted his head. Should Spider-Man's spidey sense have not gone off with some muggers? Then he jolted up; the spidey sense only went off when Spider-Man himself was in imminent danger. Otherwise, the damn thing would be ringing alarms in his mind every second of every day of his life.

Batgirl placed her hands on her hips. "What we need to figure out now is how to strike against Doom. We know where 'Castle Doom' is – and what the hell kind of name for a building is that – but he's the ruler of a country, and unless he declares war on America, we can't just barge in and invade. What we need is to -"

Spider-Man jolted his head up, making Batgirl pause. He grunted and groaned, placing his other hand on his forehead. He rapidly looked over his shoulder while shaking his fist. It only took a nanosecond for Iron Man to deduce what was happening.

"Even when we are not around, we can still see you," a voice echoed through the air. It was a high-pitched voice with a taunting tone. Iron Man looked around, but saw nothing. His scanners, however, detected a heat signature. It kept flickering on where this heat signature actually was, as if someone had hacked in his armor and was causing it to glitch. "For even when you don't realize it, our eyes see all. What are we?"

Iron Man had already deduced the identity of this figure. But before the Riddler could be found, there was a flash of light, followed by everything going black.

When Iron Man woke up, he could have sworn that he felt déjà vu overriding every other sense in his body. That it was consuming his entire being. For this was exactly like when HYDRA had managed to capture the entire Vanguard of Justice and imprison them, ready to have them executed. However, this was not the same situation.

Instead of the entire Vanguard being present, it was just him and Batman, plus Spider-Man and Batgirl. Instead of being chained up, they were in cells with bulletproof glass holding them in. Instead of Albrecht Krieger and Helmut Zemo walking over to greet them, it was a group of supervillains. The Riddler finally revealed himself, tipping his verdant hat with a smug grin on his face. Accompanying him were the Scarecrow, Giganta, Doctor Octopus, and Moonstone. Lucia von Bardas, the second-in-command of the Latverian government, also stood with them, her plain white out standing out amongst all the colorful outfits on display. And in the center was the leader himself. Doctor Doom had his arms crossed, his scarred face hidden behind an imposing suit of armour cloaked in an emerald cape.

Outside of the cells, everything had a glowing emerald tint to it, with green bricks and flooring abound. Doctor Doom walked up to Iron Man's cell.

"Did you honestly think that you could sneak into Doom's country without him knowing?! Doom sees all in Latveria! You only left because Doom let you leave, to drop your guard and make you easier to capture. Now, bask in the glory of Doom!"

And then, the cackle. That all-too familiar cackle. The insane, uncaring, malicious cackling. From behind doom emerged him. The one they were truly after. The one who, more than any other criminal, needed to pay for his atrocities. Iron Man watched as he went over to Batman's cell, standing a few feet away from Doom.

"I thought you would try to face me alone, after what happened to your boy wonder," the Joker said, looking Batman in the eye. Then he extended his arms out, while whipping his head to the left to look directly at Iron Man. "But you've brought even more friends for me to play with!"

Then he tapped on the glass in Batman's cell. "How's that Castle fellow doing? He still in a coma after he tried hunting me down? I regret that he was only hospitalized. I'll bring my A-game this time, like I did with Robin!"

The Joker followed that up with another sinister laugh. Underneath Iron Man's helmet was an icy death glare. Iron Man knew what had to be done. If the Dark Knight was still unwilling to kill the Joker after this, then the Joker would die by Stark's hands, instead. Whether it was by blasting him with repulsor rays or by snapping the twisted jester's neck.

The Joker's smirk did nothing to dissuade those feelings. "Let the fun begin," he cackled.