Nightmare in Arkham
Chapter 20: "Tick Tock"
-Barbara Gordon fiddled around with the ropes that held her hands together behind her back and eventually she was able to wiggle them free. She then began to work on the ropes that wrapped around her body that held her to the hand truck. She untied the ropes slowly knowing that, since her legs were no longer of use, she would fall down once there was nothing holding her up. However, once Barbara was completely free, she was dumbfounded to find that her legs still held her up! In fact, despite the fact that Barbara could not feel the lower part of body, she found that she was able to lift her legs, wiggle her toes, and even take steps. Barbara was puzzled; she brought a hand behind her back and, just as she thought, her hand had found the wounds. Barbara brought her hand up and saw that it was covered in blood. She looked at the knife that was still suspended in the air that had more of her blood on the tip of it.
-But if I can bleed…why can't I feel pain?
-Barbara took small steps as she tried to ground herself but she caught a glimpse of the Joker's skinless face as it stared blankly at her. This caused her to falter and, as she tried to turn away from the Joker, she fell backward. Barbara expected herself to bump into the mutilated fiend. Instead, Barbara passed through him the same way her father had when she held her hand out to him. When Barbara landed, the lower half of her body tumbled over her upper half and when Barbara rose, she was surprised to see that the entire upper portion of her body had stretched outward between her legs. Barbara pushed on the ground and her body twisted in a straight alignment as she stood on her hands. As Barbara relaxed, her back bent forward at a 360 degree angle at the site where the spine had been broken and Barbara snapped back upright in a standing position. Then suddenly, Freddy's words played in Barbara's head: You wanna know the secret of pain? If you just stop feeling it, you can start using it.
Freddy watched his screen with anticipation as he awaited the first of his victims to fall asleep. The Headless Horseman, the Mad Hatter, and the Bride's Maid were all standing by as they awaited their master's orders.
-"So, how does this usually work? When these people fall asleep do we just jump out and say 'Bo'?" The Bride's Maid asked.
-The Mad Hatter chuckled. "Oh no, no, nothing like that; not at all my dear. Just follow our lead, this type of work is easy to master very quickly."
-"Especially since we have the embodiment of fear as our teacher," the Headless Horseman added.
-There was loud beeping noise on the screen; the moment had arrived.
-"God I've missed that sound," Freddy said happily.
-"So what's the plan boss? You want us to leap on them from the shadows-"
-"Actually, you two gentlemen are free to go?"
-"Huh?" The Mad Hatter asked confused.
-"I won't be needing you. This one's just right for the pickin." Then he turned to the Bridesmaid. "But I want you to come with me," he said.
-"Who…me?" The Bridesmaid asked.
"Yes you child. I want you to get a feel for the hunt. But I think it best I start you off easy. Just do as you are told."
-"But…but the wedding-"
-"It can wait!" Freddy snapped angrily. Then he said calmly, "Besides, I thought you'd leap at the chance to avenge you're Puddin."
-"What do you mean? I don't have a Puddin."
-"Sure you do…or did; until those bastards killed him!"
-"Someone killed my Puddin?" The Bride's Maid asked without emotion.
-"Yes, now you can finally kill the pigs that broke your heart." Freddy said.
-"But I don't have a heart," the Bride's Maid responded casually pointing to the gaping hole in her chest.
-Freddy chuckled. "So you say; prove it to me. Help me kill those meat sacs."
-"Well….Okay." The Bridesmaid took Freddy's hand. Freddy then turned back to his minions. "In the meantime," he looked up at Barbara's catatonic body, "I want you to continue entertaining our guest," Freddy smiled evilly before vanishing in a mass of flames, taking the Bridesmaid with him as he set out to hunt his quarry.
-"Oh splendid!" The Mad Hatter exclaimed excitedly, "Chop! Chop!" he said turning back to the Horseman, "We're late! We're late! For a very important game!" The Mad Hatter rushed toward Barbara's prison but, right before he had a chance to leap back into Barbara's nightmare, the prison slowly began to glow a bright red.
-The Mad Hatter froze in place and starred in surprise as glass started to crack leaving bright, crimson red fractures that quickly covered the entire prison.
-The Mad Hatter's eyes shot open in horror as if he had just come to an unpleasant realization. Then, like an over-filled balloon, the prison exploded in a shattering flash that sent red smoke and glass fragments scattering in all directions. The two monsters drew back in shock. The Headless Horseman's horse leapt onto its hind legs neighing viciously as the rider was sent tumbling backward to the ground. The Mad Hatter coughed heavily in the crimson haze that now filled the room.
-Suddenly, the Mad Hatter was dealt a violent blow that knocked his head off and sent it rolling across the floor stopping just on the edge of the dark pit in the center of the room. The Mad Hatter's head faced the pit, his eyes wide with the fear of falling into that dark cavern. The Mad Hatter's headless body ran blindly about the room.
-When the smoke cleared, the Headless Horseman saw Barbara Gordon charging at him. He quickly took out his scythe and took a swipe at her but she bent her back at a 90-degree angel and grabbed the scythe as it passed over her. Her body flew through the air as she clung to the scythe. The Horseman held the weapon in the air with Barbara still hanging onto the end of the 10 foot instrument of death. Without warning, she leapt from the end of the blade and knocked the Horseman to the ground, pinning him where he laid. The scythe fell from his hand and landed on the ground out of his reach.
-"Tell me where he is! Now!" Barbara demanded angrily as the Horseman struggled to free himself from her grasp.
-The Horseman saw that his flaming head had fallen from his horse's satchel and was lying at his feet. He kicked the head and it rolled over to the Mad Hatter's headless body that was blindly running in circles trying to find it's own head. The flaming scarecrow head stopped within the Hatter's path and the body tripped over it. Thinking it had recovered its lost control center, it picked the head up and placed it on the stumpy neck. Now the Horseman had a second body he could control.
-While Barbara was occupied with the headless body within her grasp, the second body grabbed the scythe and violently struck Barbara vertically on her upper back with so much force that the blade penetrated through her chest and impaled her onto the body that lie beneath her.
-The Horseman's second body lifted the weapon into the air laughing victoriously as flames shot from his mouth; Barbara and the headless body were still sandwiched on the blade. "They say 'two heads are better than one', well, one head is just as good with two bodies".
-As the scarecrow head looked up at his slain trophy, Barbara looked back at him smiling. The scarecrow head gasped in surprise. "Yeah, well that head won't do you much good without a brain!" Barbara spat back.
-Barbara then slid her body farther back onto the blade until the whole thing had passed through her chest. Then she allowed her still impaled body to slide down the vertical shaft of the scythe toward her startled attacker. When her body reached the bottom of the shaft, Barbara kicked the scarecrow head in the face, knocking it off of the Hatter's body. Barbara landed on her feet and pulled the small end of the shaft out of her chest; her wound healed instantly. The Horseman's original body was still impaled on the blade and Barbara swung the scythe, driving the blade into a wall and pinning the Horseman's body against it. Barbara then grabbed the Hatter's body and threw it toward the same wall where it slammed into it and landed facedown over the handle of the scythe were it laid still next to the impaled Horseman's body.
-Barbara walked over to the Mad Hatter's head and grabbed it just as it was about to fall into the dark cavern.
-"Where is Freddy?" Barbara demanded holding the demonic face in front of her own.
-The Mad Hatter just smiled at her and said, "So, you've actually broken free from your nightmare. No matter, it's just a matter of time before the you wind up sleeping forever."
-"I am not afraid of you," Barbara angrily and bluntly stated, "Now tell me where Freddy is or so help me I will drop kick you into the pit!" Barbara snapped.
-"Turn around and see for yourself," the Mad Hatter said to her. Barbara turned around where she faced Freddy's screen and saw the profile of Dick Grayson lit up. It didn't take long for Barbara to realize what this meant and she gasped in horror. "No!"
-The Mad Hatter looked over at his body. A large pocket watch dangled from his coat. "Tick Tock! Tick Tock! You best hurry if you want to die alongside your boyfriend."
-Barbara jerked her arm back and hurled the Hatter's head far over the dark chasm. Luckily, as the head was screaming on the way down, the open mouth caught itself on one of the railings that stretched across the various catwalks over the pit. Barbara then leapt onto the Horseman's horse and shouted "HEAH!" causing the beast to sprint out of the large double doors that led to the balcony overlooking the nightmare realm. The horse leapt over the balcony as a bolt of lightening crashed in the sky and it let out a loud "neigh" as it descended into the streets of Arkham City.
In the waking world Dick Grayson sat upright on his bed with a textbook opened over his lap. He had been awake for over six hours now with his head buried in lectures that he had already sat through in class and now he was on his last spark of energy. Dick was surprised at how tired he was, for he had barely slept at all since Barbara's attack. Now, it looked as if all the lost time was starting to catch up to him. Dick did not resist the urge. He rested his back against the wall that his mattress was leaning against and allowed the sweet feeling of slumber to wash over him. Instead, he was flung through a vortex that opened up right behind him as his back was pressed against the wall.
-Dick remained asleep even as he was cast through the void. The journey felt like he was drifting along in a dream. Eventually, the long passage way ended and Dick was cast out through a mirror that hung on a wall inside of a decrepit old room and the impact of his head meeting the hard ceramic floor jolted him awake.
-Dick rolled around on the floor turning his head in every direction in a startled fit. When he calmed down and got a clear picture of his surroundings, Dick was left dumbfounded and confused.
-"How the hell did I get here?" Dick asked himself. At first he thought that he had somehow sleepwalked into another room on campus; but then the possibility that he had been kidnapped quickly popped into his head. Dick looked around the room for something he could use to defend himself if the latter were true. But as he looked, he came face to face with his reflection in the mirror and was dumbstruck by the reflection: he was in his Robin outfit. He even had his utility belt.
-"Batman?" Dick called out, "Batman, are you here?"
-The only sound that returned was Dick's echo. Then suddenly, Dick heard someone calling him. It sounded like a female voice and it wasn't long before Dick recognized the voice of Barbara Gordon.
-"Barbara? Barbara, is that you?!"
-"Dick? Dick?"
-"Barbara, where are you?" Robin called out. As Robin turned his head searching for the direction the voice was coming from he noticed a large door at the far corner of the room that was slightly cracked. Robin slowly approached the door and opened it. Robin found himself standing outside in a spooky, dilapidated alley way as the clouds thundered above him. He had absolutely no idea where he was, but it sure as hell wasn't within Gotham. Even the most deserted part of the city wasn't this ransacked.
-A gust of wind blew past Robin and let out a howl as it pasted down the alley that sounded like a banshee wailing. Suddenly, Robin began to feel a cold shiver starting to rise up his spine.
-"Hey, relax. What could possibly be out here that you couldn't handle?" Robin said to himself trying to sound confident. Robin began to walk down the alley way.
-The alley was like a labyrinth that had no exit. Every twist and turn was shrouded in darkness and the only way Robin was able to navigate through them was by the dim light of the moon that shone down when the clouds moved away from it and by the flashes of lightening that cracked like steel whips overhead. Every time the passageways were illuminated, they displayed masses graffiti covering the walls, cars that had been flipped onto their sides, buildings with large chunks of concrete on the verge of falling from the exterior, and sometimes Robin would catch a glimpse of what looked like zombie children hidden within the shadows that would disappear in the blink of an eye. After a few minutes of wandering, the anxiety within Robin's body began to increase significantly.
-As Robin turned another corner in almost complete darkness, he heard a noise and turned just in time to see a shadow escape onto the rooftop. Robin froze in fear.
-"God dammit, this isn't funny! Whoever you are come out and show yourself!" Then Robin heard another sound. This time it was a child's giggle. Robin turned around just as a flash of lightening broke the clouds and he saw three children skipping rope. "What the…?"
-Robin slowly approached the children as they continued to play. The lighting continued to break seconds after each flash and it gave the appearance that the children were moving in slow motion. The children turned to Robin and he stopped in his tracks. Then suddenly, the children began singing the dreaded nursery rhyme. With each verse that passed, it sounded like hundreds of other children's voices joined in but these children were nowhere in sight, even as the lightening illuminated Robin's surroundings. Then all at once, the three children disappeared and the singing ceased. Robin felt someone tap him on the shoulder.
-He shot is head back, gasping in surprise. Barbara was standing right behind him with a child-like smile on her face. Robin faltered on his words as he tried to speak and before he had a chance to say anything Barbara shouted, "You're it!" before running off down another alley turn.
-Robin tried calling to her but was so dumbstruck by what he was seeing that all he could get out was, "Hey w-…How….?"
-"Catch me if you can?!" Barbara called out.
-Robin chased after Barbara but when he turned the corner she was already cartwheeling onto the rooftop while laughing like a little girl. She leaned her head over the edge and glanced at Robin for a second before giving him a winking chuckle and darting off.
-"Barbara wait!" Robin shouted but to no avail. Robin took out his grapple gun from his belt and quickly made his way to the top of the building. Awaiting Robin at the top of the building was a young girl who had her back turned to him. Robin could barely make out who he was looking at because the clouds had once again obscured the light from moon.
-"Barbara?" Robin whispered as he slowly approached the girl standing before him. When he reached the girl he gently placed a hand on her shoulder and she turned around just as a flash of lighting cut across the sky revealing the mangled face of the Bride's Maid.
-Robin screamed in terror as he fell onto his back at the horrid sight. Then the Bride's Maid started sniffing the air. Her inhales became louder and heavier with every whiff she took.
-"OOOOOHH! What is that sweet aroma?" She asked with pleasure. She took another long sniff of the air. "OH YES! The delicious smell of fear!"
-Robin started to back away and the Bride's Maid's eyes shot directly toward him causing him to freeze in his tracks. The Bride's Maid licked the teeth around her severed lips before pouncing on top of Robin and pinning him down. Robin frantically tried to fight the nightmare woman off of him but she held onto him with the persistence of a lion holding onto its kill. Eventually she managed to subdue Robin in a position where he could do nothing but cry out as the Bride's Maid gleefully sniffed up and down his body, pressing her lifeless face into his neck and hair. Robin didn't know if it was an overwhelming sensation of fear or anger that gave him the strength to fight back but he managed break a hand free and strike the monster in the face. The impact caused the Bride's Maid's head to swing off to the side, but then she slowly turned her face back toward her prey and continued feasting off of Robin's fear as if nothing had happened.
-"That'll do pig. That'll do". Freddy's voice called out. The Bride's Maid froze and lifted her head, turning it in every direction trying to find where the voice was coming from. Robin saw his opening and struck the Bride's Maid again. This time the blow was to her chest. But as Robin tried to bring his hand back, he felt that it hand gotten stuck in something wet and mushy. It was then that Robin noticed the gaping hole inside the creature's chest that still had walls covered in dark, inky blood. The Bride's Maid still took no notice of the blow she was dealt and didn't look down until she heard the sound of Robin spilling his guts onto the ground beside him.
-Robin yanked harder and his hand slipped out of the Bride's Maid's chest while the Bride's Maid looked on undeterred. The glove on Robin's hand was caked in chunks of viscera from the monster's open cavity and the sight of it caused Robin to vomit again, this time on the Bride's Maid's bloodied clothes. The monster shrieked as the miasmic bile poured onto her and she jolted off of her victim.
-"YOU RUINED MY DRESS!" The Bridesmaid screamed in horror before slapping Robin hard across the face.
-As Robin looked on in both bewilderment and horror, a voice said, "You sure have a way with women, doncha Dick?"
-Robin darted his head around and saw Freddy standing less than 10 feet away from him. The dream demon had his arms folded as he looked down on Robin with a fiendish grin. Then he slowly started to walk toward the young hero. Robin slowly rose to his feet, keeping his eyes on Freddy the whole time. His eyes scanned the monster as he approached, taking in the burned flesh, the battered hat, the sinister, animal-like teeth that protruded from his smile, and the look of pure evil that shined in his eyes.
-As Robin gazed upon Freddy's odd-looking sweater, his eyes caught sight of a part of the sweater where a chunk of fabric had been ripped from the collar. Then Robin's gazed turned toward the bladed glove as the fingers extended straight out revealing the full size and power of the instrument of death. The sight of the claw caused Robin to freeze in both fear and shock, the dots had connected in his head: the four stab wounds, the piece of fabric Barbara was clutching, the children singing that song…Robin's look of fear shifted to anger.
-Freddy stopped just a few steps from Robin. After a moment of silence Freddy said with a smirk, "Penny for your thoughts chief?"
-"It was you," Robin bared his teeth and shot his index finger at Freddy as if he were trying to inject his rage into him, "IT WAS YOU! You're the one who attacked Barbara!"
-Freddy only chuckled at the young hero and replied, "Well, Super-boy, if it's any consolation…she didn't scream as much as you did."
-Robin growled at Freddy and took a hard swing at his head but Freddy dodged it effortlessly. Robin swung at Freddy again, and again, and again but Freddy's agility was too fast for him to land a successful blow.
-"I'd say you fight like a girl," Freddy said, "But nearly every girl that's fought me in the past few days had me on the ground by now…even Barbara." With a burst of fury, Robin plowed the bottom of his boot into Freddy's face and knocked him down. Then he took out his metal fighting staff and pinned it against Freddy's chest while his foot pushed down on his stomach.
-"Why?! Tell me why you did it!" Robin demanded pressing his stick and his boot harder down on Freddy's body.
-Freddy just looked up and smiled before replying, "Well, I guess just like every other maniac in this town of yours'…" Freddy disappeared and then reappeared behind Robin who abruptly spun around and looked upon Freddy, amazed by his power, "…I just got a lot of issues!" Freddy then struck Robin up the side of the head with the back of his gloved hand before kicking him in the balls. As Robin fell to his knees clutching his mid-section in agony, Freddy grabbed Robin by his hair and lifted him off the ground. "But you ain't one of them."
-After enjoying the sight of Robin struggling within his grasp for a few seconds, Freddy spoke, "Ya know, you could save yourself a lot of trouble if you just answer me this one question. I may even be obliged to set your girlfriend free." Robin stopped struggling and froze in surprise.
-"What?" He asked in disbelief. Freddy spun Robin toward him and smiled widely at him.
-"That's right kid, just answer me this one simple question and little Barbie Girl get's to wake up."
-Robin tried to respond but had a hard time doing so because every time he opened his mouth the only sound that escaped was the anguish from the pain a top his scalp. But Freddy could tell by Robin's eyes that he was willing to hear the question.
-Freddy threw Robin to the ground and leaned his face right into Robin's and asked, "Tell me who Batman really is."
-Robin was silent for a moment, hesitant to respond. "Who…who are you?"
-Freddy raised his glove and the blades let out a metallic "shink". "I'm something you're not kid: I am eternal. Now answer the question."
-Robin was at a loss. He remained silent as he contemplated what to do. So if I give up Batman's identify, this…thing will let Barbara go. But what if he doesn't? Would Barbara want me to give up his secret for her? What will he do to Batman once he knows who he really is?
-"Tick Tock! Tick Tock!" Freddy said sweeping his index blade back and fourth like a clock pendulum; "You best give me an answer soon. The longer you wait, the longer your little friend has to suffer."
-That statement almost tore the answer from Robin's mouth but he caught himself at the last second. As much as it pained him to think of what horrors Barbara may be enduring, there was way too much at stake for him to trust the word of this sadistic maniac. Robin decided he would take this freak out and rescue Barbara himself.
-"No," Robin said looking Freddy straight in the eyes.
-Freddy bared his teeth in anger and grabbed Robin by the collar of his suite. "Come again?!"
-"I won't do it!" Robin screamed with rage. He then kneed Freddy in the stomach, causing him to lose his grip on him. Then Robin delivered a powerful upper-kick to Freddy's chin that sent him staggering back. Robin charged at him and landed two successful punches to Freddy's face before finishing up with a head butt that sent Freddy to the ground. Robin then grabbed his fighting staff that lay beside him and ran at Freddy as he still lay on the ground. Freddy looked up and saw the attack coming and back flipped into the air and out of the way before the blow was dealt.
-"Tell me where she is! Now!" Robin demanded.
-Freddy smiled. "And what? Spoil the fun we're having?"
-"So help me God, I will-"
-"You'll what? Burn me alive?" Freddy said mimicking Dick's words from Chapter 9. When Freddy spat the words "burn me alive", his body became spontaneously engulfed in roaring flames. Robin backed away in terror, dropping his fighting staff. Freddy started walking towards him, still covered in fire. "Hate to break it to ya kid, but someone beat you to the chase…on more than one occasion. And every time, I just keep on rising from the ashes like a phoenix."
-As Robin continued to back away he soon found himself teetering on the edge of the building. He looked down and, much to his shock, the building was now twice as high off the ground as it was before. A rush of fear overcame Robin and he screamed as he tried to keep himself from falling over the edge. When he turned back around, Freddy's left hand wrapped around his throat and dangled him over the edge. The hand itself was not burning but the arm attached to it was and Robin watched helplessly as the hellfire on the creature's body danced in front of his eye. Robin could feel the heat from the fire as it seared the body of its host. Then, something appeared out of the corner of Robin's eye.
-Robin's eyes shifted from Freddy and he was face to face with the Bride's Maid. Freddy noticed his morbid creation standing beside him with her attention focused on Robin and he brought his arm in a little closer, knowing that the female monster had been drawn by the new scent of fear that radiated off of the Boy Wonder. As the mutilated zombie face drew closer to Robin and sniffed him like a hungry wild animal, the fear within him escalated, enticing the Bride's Maid to keep sniffing him with even more ardor. Then, as her face came within less than two inches of his own, the Bride's Maid's blood-soaked tongue crawled out of her mouth and slowly slithered up Robin's neck, over his cheek just centimeters away from his eye, and off the top of his forehead. The monster slowly backed away and stared at Robin for a moment before going into a spitting fit of disgust.
-"BLAH! YUCKER-OONIE!"
-Freddy chuckled at his minion, "Never judge meat by its smell little one. Sometimes it's good for butchering but not eating."
-She stared back at Robin with her black, sightless eyes as the flames on Freddy's body cast a demonic glow onto her own body.
-"Say goodbye, sweetie," Freddy said to the Bride's Maid.
-"Ba-BYEEE!" The Bride's Maid responded in a sing-song tone while waving farewell to Robin.
-"Alright Bird-Boy," Freddy snatched the grapple gun away from Robin's belt and the flames on his body engulfed it, reducing it to a molten puddle beside Freddy's feet. "Let's see if you can fly!"
-Just as Robin started to scream, Freddy's hand let go of his throat and he was sent plummeting into the dark abyss of the alley below. Robin's screams echoed through the alley as he descended to what would become his last moment of life. Robin had about 15 seconds before he landed and as he saw the ground drawing nearer, thoughts of his parents played through his mind. Now he knew the terror they must have felt nine years ago as they plunged to their deaths as he was forced to watch helplessly. In the back of Robin's mind, a clock seemed to tick away every second as his life drew to a close. When Robin was just five seconds from colliding with the solid concrete, he closed his eyes, half expecting to wake up in his own bed and half expecting to be reunited with his parents.
-Then suddenly, Robin was seized by a force that seemed to drag him off his collision path with death and sent him veering off to the side before his body came to a halt. Robin opened his, eyes moaning in confusion; his vision blurred from the shock of his near death experience. When his sight returned, he saw that he was being held in the arms of a tall woman with her face concealed by a mask. At first he thought it was Barbara, but when he was able to fully focus he could see the woman's cat-like appearance.
-"Catwoman?" Robin asked surprised. The feline woman smiled at him.
-"Guess it's actually lucky for you that I crossed your path," she said before dropping Robin onto his behind.