Ohayho everyone! CJzilla here with the next update. In this chapter the fight between the Batman and Mr. Freeze and the Penguin turns. Enjoy.
As I tear down this city, alls CJzilla has to roar is this: R&R! Love... Hate... Review.
Moranofchaos2: Nice to see you in the Batman archives! Thanks for reading and reviewing.
eltigre221: Hey 221. Thanks for reading and reviewing.
Denygo: As soon as I saw "The Laughing Bat" this story came out of my head. Thanks for reading and reviewing.
AN: I own nothing of Sally Kempton's
"It is hard to fight an enemy who has outposts in your head."
-Sally Kempton-
Chapter 2
Frozen Flames
The sky was turned a menacing orange color as a massive pillar of smoke ascended into the night air. Flames lit the city street from a huge fire roaring through a local art museum. But to the Batman, he heard no roar from the fire. The burning building was out of focus through the crime fighter's eyes. The Dark Knight knew he was close to unconsciousness when he started seeing double.
Fighting through the haze of near black out, the Batman struggled to stand. Before him stood Mr. Freeze and Penguin, their silhouettes standing against the backdrop of flames. Penguin gave a jeering laugh.
"Who'd think that a dumb criminal partner-up between Penguin and Mr. Freeze would take down Gotham's premier superhero?" The bird-based criminal laughed, nudging his partner in the ribs. Mr. Freeze looked over the beaten and dazed Batman.
"Feels me with warmth, Penguin." The ice manipulator voiced, his tone indicating that he was pleased.
Penguin gave his squawking laugh before his blue eyes settled on the crime fighter that landed him in prison over and over.
"Let's unmask him before we lose the chance. Trust me, I've been here and he normally weasels out of-" The bird-like supervillain began, twirling his umbrella. But a shout from beyond the police barrier interrupted their conversation.
In the glow of the fire the two supercriminals saw the Gotham P.D. race up to them, at the forefront being Commissioner Ellen Yin and Chief Ethan Bennett.
"PUT YOUR HANDS BEHIND YOUR HEAD!" Bennett commanded, his aim resting between Freeze's eyes. "Both of you!"
The two villains cautiously raised their arms, eyeing the Batman and the police.
"Very well." Mr. Freeze acknowledged, raising his hands to the sky. "I'll put my hands… behind my head."
As he did, the ice manipulator began summoning his ice powers. A mini but super-concentrated blizzard formed above Freeze's head.
"It's time for Gotham finest to chill out." The ice controller hissed. Bennett and Yin were not budging even at the risk of being frozen so brittle, that the slightest touch could shatter them.
Just as Mr. Freeze was going to dispel the mini blizzard, no one saw the Batman get to his feet. The ice controller was tackled, knocked to his back by a semi-conscious Batman. Freeze gritted his teeth as he saw the Batman dig into his utility belt for another one of those super-heated plasma grenades. In that second, Penguin's umbrella crock handle shot through the air. The weighted umbrella handle struck the crime fighter at the base of his skull. A wet gasp escaped the Batman's mouth as he reeled backward as Penguin's crock handle fell to the asphalt with a metallic ping.
Mr. Freeze had a large enough window to seize the Batman by the throat.
"You don't know how many times I wanted to send you to your icy grave, Batman." The ice controller squeezed the Caped Crusader's neck. The Batman brought his hand upwards, still gripping a sphere of plasma.
Freeze caught his hand.
"Freeze, Batman." A thick layer of ice spread from Mr. Freeze's hands to the Batman's throat and hand. With the blackness of unconsciousness engulfing his mind, the Batman found that there was little he could do to fight back.
At that same moment, Penguin was dispatching any police officer within his range. With his umbrella fully opened, the bulletproof material blocked him from the rounds of projectiles fired at him. The bird-based villain grunted in irritation at the deafening sounds of the guns, fired nearly point blank on him.
"A waste of my perfectly good time." Penguin growled, pulling his katana from the umbrella. Swinging the large blade, he knocked the weapons out of officers' hands.
Suddenly, Ethan Bennett and Ellen Yin found themselves facing Penguin.
"Ah, Commissioner! Chief! So nice of you come to the fire!" The bird-based villain smiled sweetly at the two of them. Then his expression turned dark. "And that... will be on your headstones."
Both seasoned officers dove at the portly man but Penguin caught every fist, every kick and every haymaker before they landed. Taking his umbrella, he flicked his wrist. The crock handle popped out of its housing and fell to the ground, a trail of chain behind it. Again, Penguin flicked his wrist and the crock handle caught around Yin's ankle. Before she could shake it, the villain gave the grapple a forceful whip, taking her feet out from under her.
Ethan charged Penguin, his fist cocked to hit the man in the face. The bird-based super criminal saw the move coming. Taking a firm grip of his umbrella, Penguin unsheathed the blade from the ferrule. Ethan came to a dead stop as the supercriminal stabbed the air around his head. As the deadly umbrella jabbed beside his head, Ethan caught it and held it. Thinking he had the upper hand, the police chief was very surprised to see a smile on Penguin's face. In that second, a blast of electricity shot through the umbrella, through his hand and dropped Ethan to the ground.
"A five-year-old judo student could see your moves coming a mile away." Penguin gave a big smile. "But what was I expecting from Gotham's two-bit police force?"
Then he gripped his multi-functional umbrella and drew his blade from the ferrule again.
"Here's hoping spilling your innards is more fun." The bird-based villain rested the tip of his blade on Bennett's throat. Saving the two police officer's lives, Mr. Freeze called to Penguin.
"Penguin." The ice manipulator called to his partner. Penguin spun and his eyes widened in surprise.
There was the Batman, completely encased in a block of solid ice.
"Cool, huh?" Freeze commented, his ice powers dancing on the fingertips of his cold-suit. Penguin laughed heartily as he clumsily ran up to the frozen crime fighter.
He was so ecstatic, he danced around the immobile hero.
"We got 'im! We got 'im! We got 'im!" Penguin cheered. "Gotham's shining Dark Knight! The Caped Crusader! Gotham's protector! FINALLY! He's nothing but a soggy ice cube brought to his knees by the Penguin and Freeze."
A frown fell on Penguin's face as he drew his blade. The pitiless villain flipped the sword in his hands, raised it above his head and drove it into the block of ice. The sharp blade easily passed through the thick frost and struck the frozen Batman. Both spiteful villains smiled greedily as Penguin's blade sunk into the helpless crime fighter.
"BATMAN!" Yin cried. Both Freeze and Penguin looked up to see the woman on her feet and aiming her firearm at them.
Ellen Yin pulled her trigger and the loud bang from the gun seemed to last a lifetime. The bullet sped through the air before the crackling of ice was heard. Yin had a moment to blink before she saw Mr. Freeze's fist outstretched. The icy villain opened his hand and the bullet, neatly encased in an ice cube, fell to the ground. The woman's mouth fell open.
Penguin vaulted off of his umbrella, spun in mid air and brought his heel across Yin's face. The woman's ragdoll body reeled to the side before she collapsed on the asphalt, motionless.
"Time out, chickadee." Penguin hissed at the female police commissioner. From behind him, Mr. Freeze sighed.
"This is most vexing." The ice manipulator saw more police reinforcements rush toward them. The chilly supercriminal stretched out both hands and commanded a large shield of ice.
The thick sheet of frozen water made a wall between the villains and the police and SWAT teams. Penguin turned to his crime partner and leaned on his umbrella.
"It ain't going to take long for the pitiful department to smash their way through that. We should-" Just then Mr. Freeze gripped the frozen Batman. "What are you doing?!"
The ice controller lifted the block of ice above his head and turned back to the burning art museum.
"That building's coming down, you little vulture." Freeze returned. "And I want the Batman on ice… permanently."
Penguin understood where his partner was coming from.
"Then have at it, Popsicle." The bird-based villain tipped his hat. The icy supervillain walked to the fire, a helpless Batman in his grasp.
Coming to the threshold of the burning building, Freeze set the frozen crime fighter to the ground.
"Ironic. You freeze to death in a fire." He gave a chilly chuckle. "Enjoy the inferno, Batman."
Then Freeze gave the ice cube a kick. The ice slid across the ground and into the burning building. As soon as he saw the block of ice holding the Batman disappear into the flames, Mr. Freeze stepped back to the street. Standing beside Penguin and summoning a large blast of ice, Freeze covered the front of the building in brittle ice.
"One hit should bring the house down." The ice controller said out loud.
"And the Batman to his long-awaited demise." Penguin pointed his umbrella at one of the brittle pillars. He fired a single blade from his umbrellas ferrule.
The knife hit the frozen stone and caused a mesh of cracks to splinter the rock. Then the pillar collapsed, taking the rest of the building with it. A blast of dust and hot air shot over the street, knocking over Freeze's wall of ice as the burning art museum imploded. People ducked for cover as the tons of burning building fell, spilling out into the street and collapsing on top of itself.
The two villains started to laugh as they fled the scene; Penguin on his mini helicopter blades inside his umbrella and Mr. Freeze on a blast of ice. Their celebratory laughter turned to hysterical guffawing. The Batman was DEAD! The Caped Crusader was GONE; his nine lives up! Gotham's criminals FREE!
Across town, inside a crowded restaurant, there was one face plastered to the television set. The Joker could easily hold the entire diner hostage, but he crouched on the bar top, his attention thoroughly on the live news report being fed over the local channel.
The psychotic harlequin held a frown. The live footage showed the Batman knocked senseless. Joker couldn't admit it right now because his lips were pinched shut in concern, but he was inwardly rooting for the Batman, much like he normally did. Seeing Penguin and Mr. Freeze top the masked man with their cheap shots and powers incensed the clown. They were hitting too hard and too fast! Where was the prolonged fighting sequence? There was no fun in dispatching the Batman quickly; they never even had any time to watch the calculating look cross the super detective's face as he knew his back was against the wall, there was no moment to catch the crime fighter's hands tighten and hear the slight whistle of his fist right before it cracked across your face.
"Hey!" The Joker heard some frightened bar patron shout at him. "If you think you're holding all of us hostage you've got another thing coming! You hear me! I-!"
The woman was instantly silenced when the clown drew a bomb from the insides of his tattered straightjacket. The Joker didn't take his eyes off of the screen as he shoved it to her face.
"Silence… or this WILL be a hostage situation." The supervillain hissed, sounding even more dangerous now that his tone was serious. The fact that he didn't even pop off a joke or laugh, never entered the Joker's mind.
Joker watched the television and saw the Batman risk his life to save Commissioner Yin and Chief Bennett by tackling Mr. Freeze. He saw the icy villain grab the crime fighter's throat and his ice manipulations powers flood over the Batman's body. The clown's angry frown soon became nervous as he saw the Dark Knight not fight Freeze's ice powers.
"No…" The Joker whispered, clapping his hands on the television. Before his eyes, the Batman was thoroughly encased in ice.
Then Penguin came into the picture. The Joker saw the chubby man draw his sword. The Joker's breath left him as Penguin thrust his blade into the ice, into Batman. A horrible, thick feeling hit the man's chest, like he too felt the knife. Joker's brain called out to look away but his red eyes remained on the television.
The clown watched as Mr. Freeze carried the stabbed and frozen Batman to the burning art museum and throw the crime fighter within the unstable structure. A second later, my Freeze and Penguin's hand, the building collapsed over the street… over Batman.
"No! No! NO! BATS!" Joker cried at the screen. There was no sound, not even a heartbeat but the resounding wave of shock shooting through the harlequin's mind. "BATMAN!"
The clown fell onto his back over the bar top, his pale face going even whiter. The Joker shook so hard, he fell off of the bar and to his hands and knees. Stunned customers were frozen even more so, seeing the arch nemesis of the Batman brought to such a state.
"It can't-…" The Joker whispered, staggering to his feet. "It can't-… be real… Batman…"
Tragedy or humor, it didn't matter; the Joker would always laugh. But not even a chuckle formed as distress turned over and over in Joker's mind. The harlequin, so close to real tears, brought his head up. His eyes then came to the door.
"Can't be real…" Were the words that came from his mouth as he raced toward the door, shoving tables, chairs and people out of his way.
The dazed people inside the bar looked between the headlines and the unlit bomb on the floor.
The Joker's destination lie across the city; the south end of Main Street where the Caped Crusader fell.
Commissioner Ellen Yin's eyes snapped open. Her eyes adjusted as reality came back to her. She felt an oxygen mask on her mouth and heard a sudden clank beside her. Yin turned her head to see a medical cot lowered to the ground. She saw three of her officers above her but their voices were garbled. Truthfully, she wasn't listening. The woman sat up and shook the daze of the Penguin's stroke from her head. Medics swarmed her, urging her to lie back down but Yin had all ready spotted the burning art museum, collapsed. Her mouth fell to the ground.
"Yin!" She heard her name. Looking up she saw Police Chief Ethan Bennett racing up to her. "Sir! The Batman's inside the building!"
The oriental beauty blinked and zipped to her knees, pushing medics out of the way as her chief came to her side.
"Say again, Ethan." Yin rushed, looking him straight in the eyes. She gave him a look that could splinter stone; she would surly kill him if he was joking with her.
"Batman!" The lean black man pointed to the inferno. "He's inside the structure!"
Yin scrambled to her feet and ran toward the fire trucks, Bennett on her heels.
The Gotham Fire Department had three of their truck on the scene. Torrents of water were bellowing from the large hoses, quelling small portions of the fire. Yin's eyes came to a stop on the Fire Chief. The tall, muscle-bound man barked orders over his radio, directing the few firefighters he had.
"It's too hot for water! Get the foam in there!" The fire chief shouted.
"Chief!" Yin called to the man. The fire chief turned to the sound.
His eyes widened when he saw the battered Police Commissioner race toward him.
"Commissioner! You should be in an ambulance!" The fire chief looked even more worried than usual. Yin grabbed the front of his fire-proof uniform.
"Get that fire out! We have a guy inside!" She pleaded. "Get more trucks here! We HAVE to save him!"
His face went straight as he turned back to his radio.
"We have an officer inside the fire! Repeat! Officer down! I want every available man on this fire NOW!" The fire chief shouted over his radio.
Yin's eyes were wide as she saw the carnivorous flames fight off the water. The fire raged, shooting smoke and resisting any attempts to stomp it out. It was like looking into the eyes of a dragon as it fought for possession of the Batman's life. Adrenaline did nothing to quench the feeling of helplessness as Yin stood there, watching the inferno dance. Nothing… could survive this.
Ethan caught up with his friend and he too, silently watched the roaring blaze and the firefighters battle it. Then the firefighters switched from water to special flame retardant foam. That's when progress was seen. A small portion of the building was doused and three firefighters braved the insane heat. Seconds passed like hours as everyone held their breath. Within two minuets, the three men emerged with a limp form carried in their hands. It was the Batman, the Penguin's sword still speared through his chest.
"Ethan! Get an ambulance over here right now!" Yin pushed her friend toward the police blockade. Ethan never hesitated to run for the nearest medic.
Yin ran over the firefighters as they carried the limp Dark Knight to safety. The woman was late but saw that the Batman was being fitted with an oxygen mask.
"He's alive but in bad shape." One of the firefighters said, his tone showing the urgency of the crime fighter's condition. "He needs medical attention ten minuets ago!"
The oriental woman crouched beside the unresponsive Batman. His costume was bone dry, even though he was frozen in ice, indicating the level of heat he was put through. The skin exposed on his face was significantly burned. The Penguin's blade, skewered through his chest was too hot to touch; one could only imagine hot steel running through vital organs.
And then Ethan and about four medics came rushing in, a med cart in tow. Yin and the firefighters were pushed off of the critically injured crime fighter. The woman watched as the Batman was carefully but swiftly put on the stretcher and wheeled to an awaiting ambulance.
"Ethan, I want you to follow that ambulance!" Yin called to her police chief.
"Good! We'll both follow. You need some medical attention too." Bennett pointed to the direction of his car.
"You follow. I'm going with Batman." And the woman ran after the Dark Knight. She hopped into the passenger side of the emergency vehicle just as the Batman was loaded.
Bennett raced to his car as the ambulance screamed away from the scene, precious cargo in tow.
R&R! LONG LIVE ROCK!