EXTRA

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Gotham, Mountain Drive, 1007 - 16 hours and 15 minutes to the end:

— Why are you going to tell him you're going? After all, where are you going? — Bruce asked impatiently, chasing his girlfriend down the hall.

— Metropolis, I told you before! — Selina answered harshly, already in front of the door of Damian's room — And I better say goodbye to him and let him know that I'll be back in a few days than just disappear, as you all do!

The bat was silent, staring at some point - as if the blush did not reveal the shame he felt.

The cat, sneaky as always, infiltrated the son's room in absolute silence. She spent a few seconds watching him play with his older brother before finally warning about his presence:

— No kiddo, you have to turn to the left... — Dick pointed to the screen — Quick, to the left!... the other left!

— I better give up, this game is too difficult... — Damian murmured passing the control to the eldest. The truth is, Richard was too excited to explain things correctly.

— The other left is called right, Dick — Selina smiled, approaching them and sitting next to the son — Damian, I'll tell you something, but I need you to be happier for me than sad, okay?

— ... I'll try — The child smiled, giving all the attention he had to her.

— I need to travel to an important job as a model... — She paused when she saw his smile completely fall apart — ... It will be quick, I promise to come back before you miss me.

— ... Do you really promise to come back, mom?

— Asking so, I promise anything! — The cat hugged him, practically pulling the child into her lap, and they stayed in a tight hug for a long time, a hug unlike any other that Selina had ever given... a hug that would leave part of her stuck there.

It was obvious that Damian would miss her, just as she would miss him.

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Metropolis, Daily Planet, Lois Lane room - 12 hours and 43 minutes to the end:

— So you have an office... — Selina walked around the room, dropping her purse and coat on the table while snooping on the decoration.

— Let's say I am persuasive enough to have one — the journalist smiled and shrugged — But I didn't call you here just to see my new room.

— Oh no? I was about to send some pictures to the bat... he'll love to know that Clark doesn't have a room yet!

— I also did not call to tease my husband! — Lois let a laugh escape, settling in the chair — Remember Dr. Garner? I know you remember! So: ... — She looked for something in the piles of papers on the table, picking up a folder — ... here it is!

— ... I hope all these papers are photos — Selina murmured, finally sitting down in front of her friend and willing to take the serious tone they needed — Did you discover anything about him?

— Except that he adopted the name of a deceased doctor years ago, that that place does not have the proper licenses to operate as a neurological clinic and that he buys lots of smuggled substances... nothing! Oh, I was forgetting: ... — the journalist fired and, as if that pile of information was not enough, she pulled one of the sheets out of the folder — ... here, do you recognize? No, you don't! Do you know why? Why aren't they just using Gotham docks for trafficking, they're starting to use Metropolis docks too! And do you know who one of the customers is? You know?

— ... Maybe the...! — it was interrupted before completing.

— Joker! — Lois smiled, a smile that is about to finish a puzzle — You said the doctor was talking to someone on his cell phone, it must have been the Joker!

Selina sighed heavily, analyzed that blurred map with a marked area and then mumbled a simple question, but one that put everything to waste:

— Why would they be together?

— ... Why do they hate Batman?

— Lois, I love your theories ... All of them! Maybe that Wonder Woman might be involved I didn't like it very much, despite being great — She held her friend's hands, trying to think of a practical way to end it — But Dr. Garner or whatever the name is this doctor doesn't know about Batman. Even I imagined he had suspected, but he would have said something already if he knew. Besides, Joker would have already gone after Bruce...

— What about the traffic in chemical compounds? — The reporter wanted to hold on to a twinge of hope, whatever it was, to pretend that it was all over - that they already had someone to blame.

— I will take a look at this alone, the bat is too busy... — Selina commented while taking the folder.

— ... We will take a look at this for ourselves.

— Lois...!

— I can help!

— And the Super?

— Clark is busy at one of those space meetings.

— Your son?

— Sleeps at ten.

Lois Lane continued to look determined, convinced that she could help much more than with a simple fruitless investigation and her baseless theories.

— ... Right! — the cat finally agreed.

Lois Lane is really persuasive.

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Metropolis, East Coast Docks - 27 minutes to end:

— I expected something more interesting than that...

— We are in Metropolis — CatWoman raised her shoulders.

— I'm glad I didn't come in heels... I would hate to revive Stilletto for anything!

— If I had said something over the phone, I could bring one of my clothes to you... — The cat lifted one leg and showed the heel — Orthopedic.

— Could you, please, not be so fabulous? — Lois let a laugh escape — Damn... I'm about to have my cover story and look at me: jeans, running shoes and my husband's worn sweatshirt...

— And a gauntlet... of Batman.

The two looked at each other and started laughing.

There was no danger of anyone hearing, after all, that new port area had virtually no security: deactivated cameras, no guards, no employees - except for a sleeping porter, who did not notice the two women infiltrating there.

In short, a great place to receive goods in quantity.

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Metropolis, East Coast Docks, Shed 21 - 23 minutes to end:

— The door locking from the outside is not a good sign, is it? — the journalist asked while trying to open the entrance again.

— It's just a security mechanism... — CatWoman replied analyzing it around, had already turned on the lights. There were few boxes stacked in one corner of the shed and, at the other end, there was a half-open laptop — Apparently this is where orders are organized.

— I don't know... it's too empty... — Lois started walking around the practically empty place — ... From the information I got, the goods arrived today! It was supposed to be full!

— So he already sought — Selina replied calmly. She watched the boxes, the walls, the ceiling, especially where she stepped - and went on like that, walking slowly to that laptop computer — Where did you get the information?

— Gang member, he was caught at dawn... — he replied and tried to drag one of the boxes, surprising himself for being much lighter than he expected — I think these things are empty! — She got ready and, using the handle with the gauntlet of the HellBat costume, she hit a punch against the boards of the box to be able to open it — I don't believe it... — the voice was now of discontent and incredulity.

— What do you have there? — Selina asked without taking her eyes off the computer, where there was only a screen saver with the clock marked "00:21". She thought it was just the wrong time, only until she heard her friend's response:

— A crumpled paper written "HaHaHa"! — The reporter took it and showed it, still irritated — Do you believe that!?

— ... What the hell! — swore.

— Yeah! What kind of crazy puts this in a box!? — The rhetorical question, asked in a harsh tone, made it clear how unhappy she was with that joke - her story had gone down the drain.

It's a trap, Lois! — Selina warned her, trying to get some access through the computer. The only thing she managed to do besides the "screen saver", however, was to see the images from a security camera that showed Joker and Batman fighting in an area that she didn't recognize — He wanted to let us find this, keep me away from Batman!

— Great! I can already imagine tomorrow's subject: "The Joker was in Metropolis and made the famous reporter of the Daily Planet one of his victims"! — Lois kept her tone irritated, taking the opportunity to discount the anger by breaking the other box. He ended up having a discreet laugh afterwards, a little more relaxed — More crumpled papers, this guy loves to scribble...

— These roles may not mean anything, we are dealing with an unpredictable person and... — She was silent. The fight between clown and bat ended badly, very badly.

— And crazy! — The friend completed for her, laughing once more before continuing: — ... Where is my husband when I need him?

The cat didn't answer anything, nor had she even paid attention. She was absorbed with the images that the screen showed: Batman falling to the ground, knocked out, with the Joker sticking hooks in his back and seeming to talk and laugh... When the joke was over, he appreciated what he had done and, as if he were no longer enough, triggered something that started pulling the hooks up.

— Batman needs me!

This time, all Lois Lane managed to do was laugh. He laughed out loud with laughter until he lost his breath, then he recovered and started laughing again, in a cycle. Selina, who already knew those symptoms very well, pulled her friend as far away from the boxes as possible.

— Use the gauntlet! — said, holding the journalist's arm aiming at the door — Use this thing right away! — Lois did nothing more than obey and release a strong burst of orange power at the door. She was still laughing. It was comical not to have thought of something so simple before — I'll leave you at the concierge and come back, I need to find a way to help him...

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Metropolis, East Coast Docks, Concierge - 11 minutes to end:

Selina took her friend practically dragged to the cabin - lucky she was not exposed to so much gas, otherwise she would be in the same state as Lois. As soon as the two entered, the journalist tried to break free from her friend's arms and flee, failing miserably in the process. The justification came out in a hysterical cry:

— He is dead! — Lois said between laughs, despite the panic in his eyes: the sleeping porter they had seen before, the only employee they saw there, would not wake up.

— How did we not notice before!? Damn it! — Selina wanted to hit some slaps in the face because of inattention. However, he preferred to do something more useful and use the phone in the booth — No signal, great! What else is missing!?

— ... Acid? — the journalist asked with a broken voice, she was no longer able to speak.

CatWoman was silent.

That computer display did not indicate the release of laughing gas in the room... it was indicating the time when Batman would be killed. Joker was playing with her, a cruel joke, where she couldn't do anything for the bat but watch.

— You will be fine — She tried to sound optimistic, no matter how hopeless her were — There is this kind of antidote here, it will work for shortness of breath — She smiled, making her friend sit on the floor and taking a kind of syringe disassembled in a compartment very well hidden in the suit. Unceremoniously, she stuck the needle in Lois and injected the liquid.

— And... and you? — asked the other, losing control and laughing once more.

I need to help Batman — He smiled from the corner, taking Lane's gauntlet and hurried out.

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Metropolis, East Coast Docks, Shed 21 - 6 minutes to end:

Selina entered the shed avoiding breathing - the Joker 's poison used to have a greenish color, but this time it was practically imperceptible, however she knew that gas would dissipate fast.

She took the laptop, allowing herself to sit near the exit before doing what she wanted. Joker was so busy in one of his speeches that he didn't even notice those actions; he avoided looking at the hanging bat, he didn't want to imagine the outcome of that fight. Cunning, she managed to connect the gauntlet to that computer - after all, what would be the Bat's armor without a touch of technology - and, through this, managed to penetrate the private locations of the machine and start downloading the files.

There were lots and lots of data there, probably useful, and she was trying to stay focused on transferring that data instead of watching Joker torturing Batman. However, at one point, reinforcement for the bat arrived in the Batmobile - which she thought was Tim or Dick. She followed the short fruitless pursuit; then he returned to paying attention only to data transfer when the killer clown hung on the bat, scaling and hurting him even more.

The transfer was already at 97%

The time display indicated only one minute.

There would be no time to help Batman.

Selina looked at the bat again through the cameras, he remained motionless, with the Prince of Crime clinging to him and laughing. She didn't want this to be the last time she saw her boyfriend, but she had to admit: he would die like a hero.

She always imagined that the end of that fight would be with another loser, however, there is no way to lose when you are on the right side... and she envied that, because Batman was always on the right side - side that she would not do part, because there was nothing to hold her there.

The data transfer is finally over.

She sent everything she had collected to the Batcomputer - her last good deed, because the next ones would be as dirty as needed to defeat the Joker once and for all.

Speaking of which, the bastard was getting something out of his pocket, probably one of his deadly toys.

He pressed it against Batman's cheek at the end of a smile.

It was literally the end.

The computer showed "00:00", indicating that it was all over, and then it exploded.

Among the few things Selina managed to think about before completely losing consciousness, was how unpredictable that damn maniac could be... and that, even at a distance, she and the bat would have the same end, at the same time.

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Metropolis, East Coast Docks, Concierge - a few seconds after the end:

Lois was curled up on the floor. She could breathe, but she couldn't control the muscles in my face, continued with that pathetic and forced smile, which made my cheeks numb.

When she heard the sound of an explosion, she thought it was just another hallucination caused by that drug - heaven, she would be lucky if she managed to write a worthy story until the next morning.

— Mom...

She laughed.

He recognized his son's unmistakable voice, thinking it was a hallucination too. Even the dead doorman she chose to believe was an illusion.

— Mom, I swear I didn't disobey badly!

The journalist finally focused on the vision towards the door and there was her son, wearing the "fantasy" of Superboy, with the cape wrapping part of Selina, who was in his arms... that seemed a bad sign.

— ... Is... — Lois had to interrupt the question to give a low laugh and finally continue: — ... Alive?

His lips curled in a thin line. His gaze fell on the woman he held in his arms, with the cloak that covered what could no longer be recognized as a body. The journalist had a fit of laughter while a few tears ran from her eyes, only making the moment even worse.

— I-I'm just going to try to fix things and come back here, I swear! — It was all that the boy managed to say before the sobs came - there was no doubt, it was Jonathan — It will be all right!

Lois Lane just let another laugh out, long and distressing. She had no idea what had happened, but when Joker was involved in something, one could only hope for the worst.

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NOTE

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Few people know, but the only time the Wayne Mansion physical address was mentioned was during the Batman: The Animated Series (that Batman cartoon that was shown on TV). In the animation Batman: Beyond (my favorite), the Wayne Mansion remains in the same place and very similar to how it was before, except for some added "modernities".

Lois said something about "reviving Stilletto" and here's the explanation: in the TV series Smallville, Lois Lane becomes a crime fighter with a costume, mask and all, called Stilletto. All of this happened when she went to save her cousin from an assault - wearing a beautiful evening dress with high heels - and the bandit thought she was "another one of those heroes in costume".

Still talking about Lois, in Superman (Rebirth) n. 5, she uses the gauntlet of the Infernal Bat costume very well. To this day, I don't know if she gave it back to Batman - since she considers it a souvenir - and I don't even know if Superman helped rebuild the BatCave in the moon…