Hello everyone. Guess what? I still don't own the Batman.

Strange New World

part 5

BZZZT

Batgirl's eyes opened wide as her cowl released a small electric charge into her neck. A few moments of panic went through her rudely awakened mind.

Where am I?

Why can't I move?

How did I get here?

Where is that hot dog smell coming from?

After a few seconds, she remembered that she was lying in the alley next to Police Headquarters. She could not move because her hands were still cuffed behind her back. She had gotten here by jumping off the roof, and sadly, the hot dog smell was coming from her, as she was lying in the remains of a smashed hot dog cart.

As she began to process this information, she became aware of a small voice in her left ear. It was babbling on and on. Abruptly, she realized that it was Alfred talking to her.

"A-Alfred?" she croaked, surprised at how weak her voice was.

"Oh thank goodness!" cried the old butler. Are you alright?"

"I'm not sure.'

She looked down at herself. Luckily, the cart had broken easily and cushioned her fall a bit, though a sharp corner had torn through part of her shin. She had taken a beating on the way down. She landed on her side, which was good, because landing on her back would have meant landing on her hands. All in all, her suit had prevented broken bones, but she was left with some nasty bruises and a leg that might need stitches.

She had tuned out again to what the butler was saying, but as she began to pay attention once more, she suddenly remembered that Batman and Robin were not right. Alfred had to be warned.

"Alfred listen to me. Something's wrong with the other two. They beat up a bunch of police, and I don't know where they are going next."

"They are coming here," said Alfred, panicking. "I don't know what has gotten into them, but they're inside the mansion and coming down. Their vital statistics from their suits show that they have been infected with some kind of mind altering drug, but it doesn't say what it is."

"Right..." Barbara paused, trying to come up with a solution and get up among the wreckage of the cart with her hands still pinned together. "You try and talk some sense into them. I'll go find out what they were infected with."

"I'll try, Miss. They're coming down the lift now...I am not sure if I will be able to contact you again."

"Don't worry. If worse comes to worst, barricade yourself in the prison cell."

"Yes, I understand. They are here now. Good luck." The line went dead.

As Batgirl worked her way to her feet again, she got the keys to the cuffs out of her boot. With a bit of dexterity, her hands were free again. Unfortunately, that was the least of her problems. She was in bad shape, (hey, no one survives that kind of fall scott free, okay?) and her leg needed attention. Not only that, but she stank of grease and mustard. Not exactly the most professional position to be in.

As she staggered back to her bike, she managed to climb on and get moving again, her cape billowed out behind her, still dripping with hot dog juice.

Even though she knew that no one was home, she still had to be careful getting into her house. If any of the neighbors saw her, it would be a career ending disaster. Normally, she would leave her bike in a secure location, like the secret compartment beneath the dumpster two blocks from her house, but today, she just left it in the small space next to her apartment building, hidden behind some trash cans. She used the grapple to climb up to her four story window. Once she was there, she collapsed rather ungracefully onto the floor.

The lights were all off in her apartment. But even in the dark, the outline of her room was visible. In one corner were her bed and a nightstand with a few pictures frames on it. Along the wall was the closet that held her clothes, as well as a secure lockbox where she kept her more secret attire. There was also a desk with a computer and a shelf for books. On the floor were scattered weights and exercise equipment of different sizes and shapes. It was, really, a normal room..

As she pulled herself off of the floor, she yanked off her cowl and flicked on the lights. She had no fear that her dad would be coming home soon; he would be down at the police headquarters all night, probably trying to figure out the same thing that she was. What was going on?

It was now about five in the morning and she knew that the dynamic duo would not come out for the rest of the night. Right now, she needed the time to tend to her injuries.

As she fixed her bruises and bandaged her leg, she thought over the facts.

It all started when they went to talk to Doctor Strange. It was after that when they started to attack people, she thought to herself as she gave the bandage on her shin one last tug before starting to repair her suit. Luckily, she had the tools for the job, given to her by Alfred, of course. As she began to patch the different layers back together, she remembered that tomorrow was Saturday.

Perfect. I can sleep through the day and be prepared for the night. And until this problem with Batman is solved, Pop will be at the office 24/7.

After she had put away all the first aid materials and stored her suit and gear in her fingerprint protected lockbox, she turned off the lights and was asleep before she even had time to worry about what had happened to Alfred.

Sorry that this chapter was not quite as action packed as the last one, but dont worry, mystery, suspense, and villains are alll coming up quickly.

I am trying to wrap up this storyline so that we can continue to investigate other stories centering on the batgirl. Ideas and constructive criticisms are appreciated!

By the way, I have had several suggestions to pair up various people in these stories. What is your opinion on pairings for either Batman, Robin, or Batgirl? What about Alfred? Hey, even old butlers need a little love.