Chapter 14:
Frank Boles had betrayed us.
You know, there's nothing - and I mean nothing - more disgraceful then betraying your fellow-man for a rogue-doctor who obviously has problems and a guy who has no dress sense, no morality and no sense of humour. It's completely below the belt to do something like that and personally I would rather die then become Joker's little pet. I don't know this 'Gordon' guy but its clear to me he's high on the list of command and also very important to the dark knight so it's preferably not a good idea to piss off Mr. Brooding either. I'd seen Frank Boles while I was still in my treatment cycle and believe me; I knew the whispers about him were true as soon as I laid eyes on him. How he was so arrogant that he was the best guard at Arkham that the great narcissist himself Edward Nigma was a shadow compared to him. How he constantly was caught totally wasted at work with the smell of alcohol permanently fixed on his breath. How he abused his responsibility as a guard so he could hurt even the meekest of patients in the Asylum who have done no wrong. How he was a monster reminiscent of Lyle Bolton aka Lock-up, who patients here still talk about with hushed tones and fearful voices.
So when we came on his defiled body, I was not at all sad about his demise.
The traitor was strapped tightly to a prisoner movement handcart that I had seen often to help transport some of the more aggressive patients/prisoners from point A to point B. His face was frozen in a horrific look of shock and fear that he had last felt before his new 'friends' had shot him and laughed about it while he bled out. The trademark green spray paint was sprayed disturbingly on the guy's face in the Joker's gimmicky smile, that I found not funny and in bad taste. A chain was wrapped around his legs, holding a sign up that read 'dead end, which was also unfunny and in bad taste. Seriously the joker must by now know how in bad taste and unfunny he is. Mustn't he?
"Joker must have figured out how I was tracking Gordon. Officer Boles' trail stops here!" The B-man spoke in an accent that I wanted to investigate thoroughly. He never uses slang or normal coarse language reserved by the inhabitants of the lower classes so therefore logically he must be high up on the food chain. Then there was that self-confidence and aura of charisma about him reserved for public speakers I'd seen on the news. I've heard that voice before perhaps? On TV I suppose.
Who are you dark knight? And why do I get the feeling I know you from somewhere?
"And so does our chances of finding the good commissioner alive without a bullet hole in his greying head!" The silken drawl of Selena just spelled out what we were all thinking but were afraid to speak out loud. No more leads, no more help and therefore no more hope for finding this 'Gordon' guy. Well, can't blame us for trying can you?
A warped sound rang out against the almost cutable silence held by all of us as someone attempted to contact the B-man with a radio that had exceptionally bad signal. He flicked a few switches and the noise intensified so we could all hear the impending conversation clearly. I looked at the Batman and formed the instant opinion that he must be from old money, due to the fact that I'm sure no one could afford any of his equipment or keep his accent clean of urban slang. So; Batman is currently a tall, rich, brooding guy who has a hero complex that would make the questioners here in Arkham cry in despair. Interesting.
" ... Can you hear me, Batman? I know you can!" A voice emerged from the warped and distorted sound as if a creature from the ashes. It imbued words with colours, shapes and textures like a paintbrush in the hands of a great artist creating their legendary masterpiece. It was a medley of aspirated consonants mingled with growled vowels that was considered standard of any urban gothamite yet seemed slightly beautiful for the ears unlike the rest of the men I have met. It carried fumes of arrogance and firmly stated pride while keeping its almost charismatic charm and elegance. Oh gods, that voice is as good as sin. "Yes, it is I. Edward Nigma, the Riddler and more importantly your intellectual superior. My genius has allowed me to easily hack into your primitive communications!" Edward Nigma? Riddler? More likely he's the new toy for me to play with. Ye-Gods that voice is to die for! Or kill for … wait what? Snap out of it Hailey, my dear, and stop acting like a nymphomaniac psycho who instantly falls for guys because of their creamy-dreamy voices that rival even the most beautiful of artworks … do I need to slap myself? No? Then behave! And do close your mouth honey, you're not a simpering bitch who drools after men. The Batman, actually from now on I shall call him B.M for short, tapped a few buttons on the device on his arm but I was unable to see exactly what he was doing but I predict that he must be trying to get a location on Eddie dearest. So predictable.
I looked around, conspicuously, before centring on a security camera that appeared to be watching every move. I slowly yet confidently walked a few paces around, testing that theory, before concluding that I was correct. That camera is watching me and therefore someone else is watching me. Given the choices, I would say it was either Joker, Harley or Riddler however if indeed it was Joker or Harley then by now they would have made some remark on the tanoy. Riddler it is then. So, he's interested in the two women hanging around B.M and I know that Catwoman is a high-class thief so he's not interested in her. Me then, and therefore he can't find any files on me. So he wants to know who I am, and he's interested in my connection to B.M. That gives me an advantage as he doesn't know who I am or what I'm capable of. The use of a camera suggests he is close but not in the Arkham facility itself since I guess it would be too dangerous to be on site. Therefore he's in Gotham so he can carefully manipulate B.M's movements and actions. The amount of machinery he would need to use to tap into Arkham security would be immense so that would create a lot of excess heat. Therefore, if he was an idiot, then the B-man could scan Gotham for irregular thermal energy but he isn't an idiot so he would want to hide the excess heat. How do you hide heat, well you would use an insulator of some sorts and there hides how I can find him. The background noise in the transmission, that's another clue. It sounds like electrostatic nonsense to the untrained ear but I can hear that through it there is background noise, specifically traffic from passing cars outside a second floor window along with faint voices that have the distinct tone of an Old Gotham citizen - not henchmen but people carrying on their ordinary daily lives. I've seen maps of Gotham when they first brought me here as they tried to make me tell them where I was from before my amnesia and if anything stood out. I recalled them clearly into my mind and tracked down highly populated areas matching this description. Old Gotham, roads, houses with two stories, and finally the breaker of the ice; insulation. Obviously a criminal would want to get their hands on materials, and talk says that the Broker, also known as Sherman Fine, can get you those materials without causing notice. So, houses in Old Gotham near a packed road with connections to Sherman Fine. Got you, Eddie. I smiled, savouring my new victory, before acting on my new intelligence.
"Mr. Nashton, also known as the Riddler. Genius intellect, vast stores of esoteric and trivial knowledge that he uses to commit his crimes. Obsessive compulsion to prove himself as being the superior to the individual known by the public as Batman. Uses clues, riddles and traps in order to test individuals who fall into his hands and has the philosophy that only the smartest individuals should survive. Nice little Bio, you know but you see … you're not particularly intelligent at all. Heck, I have amnesia and yet even I could figure out exactly where you are and how to bring you down. Not to mention the fact I've already solved the mystery of who Batman really is, unlike a certain person I might add!" I let out a hysterical bout of laughter, earning the freaked out looks on both Batman and Selena's faces. What Riddler didn't realise is that during my little speech, I was close enough to Batman to pickpocket one of his Batarangs which I promptly threw with pin-point accuracy to destroy his little toy camera. Of course, I had my suspicions on who Batman really is but I still don't know who specifically. I was completely bluffing out one of the supposedly 'intelligent' members of Gotham's criminal league and wasn't even breaking a sweat.
"What!" you know Riddler, your voice is very alluring when you're totally pissed off at little old me. You are after all, very cute when you're angry at me, and boy are you angry right now. I mean, everyone knows he desperately wants to find the identity of Batman so why not prey on this little fact? Especially if it's as fun as this. Oh, Eddie, how adorable you really are.
"Oh Eddie, didn't you know that? Well, I suppose only the your intellectual superior would be able to guess the Batman's name. After all, his name is the thing that can destroy or protect the entirety of Gotham if anyone ever found it out, so I imagine he'd keep it close and away from your petty mind. Face it Edward, you're second fiddle and if you dare to even try to come here to try to steal his name from my lips, I'll cut you so deep that you'll be in agony for days upon days. No words can describe the horrors I will inflict and believe me when I say you'll be begging me for death once it starts. So do yourself a favour, and fuck off!" My voice betrayed no sympathy, no fear and definitely no hint of the laughter I hid behind a stone smile. These people … how do they cope with their small little minds, it must be so boring. They honestly can't sense a bluff if their lives depended on it, oh the karma! I wouldn't even kill a person, never the less torture them so why are they taking my threat so seriously. I mean, come on! The looks on their faces are as genuine as anything and they have no idea that I've completely lying my ass off here. Oh, this is so much fun!
"You … you wouldn't … Batman's name … you can't of found it … you're lying … you have to be!" The poor guy was stuttering, how adorable! I've managed to turn the 'great genius' into a stuttering fool - how's that for entertainment? People are so stupid!
"Ta-at Eddie, we've got people to kill and monsters to slay. Run along and play with some other little pimpsqueek would you!" I dramatically dismissed him with my hand, even though he couldn't see it, to add to my bluff. The communication cut out and I found myself being stared down by my two best friends in the entire world, oh joy!