Chapter 10

Days had passed, as Bruce Wayne was on the phone with Commissioner Gordon in the Batcave, his voice disguised as Batman.

"Yeah that's right Batman He's somewhere in Gotham. We know that his next move is tonight. Our boys overheard relaying his plans to his men. He's going to try to blow up the whole of Gotham Square. I think he knows we're onto him, so he's gonna try to take out as many people as possible."

"Fine Commissioner, I'll go downtown and see what I can do," Bruce replied keeping his voice under the guise of the Dark Knight.

"Right! Contact me if anything goes down, Gordon out."

As Bruce hung up the phone, he went briskly to his costume chamber. The chamber door went up like an old castle gate. Alfred stood ready for anything as Bruce entered the chamber.

He grabbed a pair of his many boots and gloves and placed them in front of a bench as he put on one of his armor-clad, dark gray bodysuits. He proceeded with his black boots and then placed his scalloped gloves on each hand. Lastly, he raced over to a far wall, where a series of his capes and cowls were hanging in an upright position. He grabbed one and fit it neatly over his head, securing the cape behind him and finally assuming the mantle of the Dark Knight detective.

He walked out of the chamber for Alfred to take notice of his transformation. Alfred stared as he always did and a small shutter of dread came over him. He quickly handed Batman a fully loaded utility belt. After putting it on, the Batmobile went into exit mode.

"Good luck tonight Sir," Alfred wished as Batman was already in the Batmobile ready to set out on his nightly ritual.

The Batmobile shot off like a rocket up the exit ramp and out of the dark cave.

Around 8:45 pm, the Batmobile reached downtown. The car's door flew open and Batman exited. As the Batmobile drove off by way of remote control, a group of theatrically clad henchmen appeared ahead, armed with various weapons. Batman met each thug with a punch as they began to surround him. He grabbed one and threw him with a mighty force. As another caught Batman's boot square in the face, he went down with a mouthful of blood.

As the remaining goons encircled the Dark Knight, he gave one a fist to the mouth and tripped him. As the goon went down, another grabbed Batman from behind. Batman leaned forward, flipping him over his shoulders, and then as he hit the ground, Batman met him with a tremendous kick to the ribs. Batman looked quickly behind him and noticed a lone guard beginning to back away in horror. Batman backed him into a corner and grabbed him.

Throwing the goon against the side of a building Batman uttered, "Where's your boss? Where's the Joker?"

The goon barely able to speak exclaimed, "I can't tell you. He'll kill me!"

"Wrong answer," Batman declared as he punched the goon in the gut. "Tell me now," the Dark Knight warned as he began to lift the goon from his feet.

"Okay Mr. Batman. I'll tell you. He's inside the Clocktower. That's where he's running tonight's operation. He's got three hostages. Security guards I think. And he's gonna blow up the Square at 10:00 tonight."

"He's a fool. Gotham Square is a quarter of downtown," Batman mumbled to the guard as he threw him against the building.

Meanwhile, on the other side of downtown, the Batmobile raced through the streets picking off guards one by one with the various non-lethal armaments installed in the impressive vehicle. Moments later the car met its owner on the corner of a well lit street next to the Adams & Toole Shopping Plaza. As the Dark Knight got in the cockpit of the Batmobile, a commotion was heard on the other side of the street. Some late night shoppers were waving and motioning towards the Batmobile as it sped away.

The Batmobile cruised through downtown Gotham City in route to the Clocktower. Batman knew that if the Clocktower in Gotham Square was to go, then so would Wayne Tower and Police Headquarters. That would be a terrible loss for the city as well as Bruce Wayne. The Joker had to be stopped. The Batmobile's clock read 9:25 pm. Batman took the Aparo Expressway to get to the side of downtown that was Gotham Square.

Moments later, the remarkable vehicle coasted from the Expressway past Aparo Park and into Gotham Square. As Wayne Tower came into view, the Batmobile turned to another block and sped through the Square. Coming up on the right was Police Headquarters. Once again the car curved left and drove a few more blocks. As Batman came across the Clocktower, he noticed it's exterior flooded with the Joker's goons. He knew he would have to attempt a sneak attack in order to avoid the mob outside the tower.

Batman drove a few blocks away from the Clocktower to play it safe and park the Batmobile inconspicuously. As he parked, it wasn't long before he exited and was on his way to meet the Joker.

As the Dark Knight approached the city block that housed the Clocktower, he began to wait in the shadows, in a nearby alley undetected. He needed a quick diversion. He took a small black hook shaped device from his belt and quickly removed a small barrel shaped device from the heel of his boot. He put the two devices together to construct a sonar-gun. He set the sonar to a low frequency and briefly removed himself from the shadows pointing the gun towards the entrance of the Clocktower. As he pressed the small button on the sonar-gun, he quickly returned to the alley for cover.

In a moment's notice, a weak noise came over the sky. Suddenly there was a black mass forming above the Clocktower. A horde of bats came rushing down on top of the crowd of Joker's henchmen.

As the crooks struggled, Batman rushed through them, seemingly invisible due to the violent swarm of bats covering them. He gave two men at the top staircase of the entrance a hard shove. The two men tripped down the stairs, creating a domino-like effect, leaving Batman free to enter.

As the Dark Knight stepped inside the massive tower, he turned off his sonar and returned it to his utility belt. Everything was dim. He could see a hall in front that led to a dimly lit opened entrance.

The Joker perhaps? Batman wondered as he raced to the entrance. It was nothing but an old janitor's closet. He looked around the hall to see any apparent signs of the Joker. He noticed nothing. He abruptly took the small staircase that led to the elevator.

Once in the elevator, he saw the onboard clock. It was 9:45 pm. Batman had fifteen minutes to find the Clown Prince and put a stop to his fiendish scheme. As the elevator sounded Batman knew he was running out of time.

The large bronze elevator doors opened and Batman realized now that he had gone to the observation deck. As he stepped out, he could hear the maniacal laughter of his foe. He knew he was close.