The four of us glanced about frantically as the tremors continued. GCPD officers shouted in alarm and ran to grab their weapons, setting up barricades by the main doors.
"What the hell was that?" Barbara cried as I moved to shield her from the falling debris.
Before anyone could answer her, an image of Scarecrow, cloaked in darkness, invaded the computer screen.
"Gallant police force of Gotham; I have a message for you," he announced menacingly. "You are not safe. You are not protected. Batman will not save you. This is the end for you, Dark Knight." By then, our angry eyes were glued to the screen. How dare that villain come after the brave men and women who stayed in Gotham while others fled in fear?
"Like hell it is," Oracle scoffed, shutting the video off. "The Batcomputer's back online, guys. I'll do what I can."
"Time to kick some ass," Dick grinned wolfishly, twirling his escrima sticks excitedly.
"Don't get cocky," Jason warned, "I told Crane that my militia wouldn't attack the precinct unless we were out of options."
"Wait, you knew about-argh, forget it!" I snarled, knowing that arguing with my predecessor would only waste precious time.
"We can all talk about this later!" Barbara exclaimed, grabbing my arm. "We need you guys to get out there right now! Just be careful, OK?" she pleaded, anxious eyes staring into mine.
"I promise. Those militiamen won't hurt you again," I replied earnestly, planting a quick kiss in Oracle's fiery hair before taking off towards the exit.
Dick and Jason were right on my heels as I rushed through the quaking prison, the prisoners cheering at the possibility of being broken out during the militia's assault.
"Keep your guns trained on that door!" Sergeant Hanrahan cried as we entered the reception area. She and some other officers were taking cover behind an overturned vending machine at the foot of the stairs. "We are not dying in here! We've come too far! Let's show 'em what it means to be GCPD!"
"I pity them," Jason sniffed as we neared the parking garage. "These cops have no idea what they're up against."
"They're stronger than you know," I countered, whipping out my staff in anticipation. "Protecting a city like Gotham is no walk in the park."
Red Hood glared and opened his mouth to reply, only to be cut off by Nightwing. "Jason," he breathed, regarding him seriously. "This is the point of no return. Once we go through this door, you're either fighting with us, or against us. Our deal still stands," he reminded the younger man.
Red Hood pressed his lips together, turning to face the heavy double doors. The thought of taking up arms against the men he's trained and fought with was, no doubt, weighing heavily on his mind.
Sighing at Jason's silence, Dick moved in between us, bracing his hands against the doors. "They're probably storming the garage by now. Red Hood, stay close to me. Robin, get in the Batmobile and cover us." I nodded obediently as another blast shook the building.
Wasting no more time, Nightwing rushed into the parking lot, Jason and I right on his heels. Two large transport vehicles flew into the view, skidding to a stop next to the Batmobile. Their side doors raised open, and a mob of militiamen poured out, armed with metal rods, electric gloves, and shields.
"If it isn't Batman's team of brats," one of them sneered, cracking his fists. "This won't take long, boys."
"I need this place locked down! Right now!" Dick barked into his communicator, charging at the nearest man with lightning speed. Jason rushed in behind him, flipping over a shielded soldier before grabbing him and throwing him to the ground. Just then, the heavy door leading to the rest of the parking garage slammed shut, plunging the area in a darkness that was parted only by the spinning red lights overhead.
I made a mad dash towards the Batmobile, only to be blocked by three men; one brandishing a long knife, and the other two with electric charge coursing through their armor. I disarmed my first opponent with my staff, spinning and kicking him out of my way. His two companions lunged at me, and I danced backwards to avoid their sparking fists. I reached into my belt and activated the Batmobile's battle mode using the remote. The car fired non-lethal rounds from its secondary cannon, hitting my opponents from behind and taking them down.
My path clear, I jumped into the armored vehicle's cockpit and maneuvered into the main fray, electrocuting any militiaman who came too close. I couldn't help but admire Nightwing and Red Hood as they moved in sync, watching each other's backs and taking out their adversaries with deadly combo attacks. Jason, especially, was a force to be reckoned with on the field. He moved with the grace and power of a big cat, each of his blows leaving the militiamen out for the count. While his fighting style lacked Dick's acrobatics and flamboyance, it certainly was no less impressive.
Meanwhile, I tasked myself with taking down any stragglers before they broke through the doors and into the precinct. One by one, they were knocked out by the Batmobile's cannons until Dick and Jason were surrounded by unconscious bodies.
"Whew!" Nightwing exhaled through our comms. "These guys don't mess around!"
"They shouldn't," Jason replied haughtily. "I trained them, after all."
"Now isn't the time!" I cut in, calling Cash on the Batmobile's onboard computer. There were surely more enemy forces to be dealt with outside. "We need to get out of here, Cash! Open the shutter doors," I ordered of the police officer.
"I'm trying! Power's out!" he panted in exasperation on my screen. "This is it. They're gonna tear the building apart!"
"Robin, the schematics say there's a generator on the outside of the building. Go!" Oracle exclaimed from her computer. I nodded, and addressed my two comrades outside of the Batmobile.
"We have to find another way out!" I told them over the comms.
"Up there!" Dick pointed to a large vent in the wall covered by a fan. "Do you think we can get through that?"
"No problem," I replied, firing the Batmobile's winch at the fan and tearing it out of the way. Dust and debris fell to the ground, and Nightwing and Red Hood jumped back to avoid injury.
"Let's go!" I called, leaping out of the car and grappling up to the vent. The tube opened up into some sort of maintenance area, the only exit a narrow shaft in the wall.
"Ladies first," said Jason as he and Dick entered the area. Ignoring him, Nightwing jumped up to the shaft and crawled through. I followed right after him, with Red Hood taking up the rear to watch our flanks.
A metal grate covered the end of the vent, and I watched as Nightwing tore it out of the wall with a few well-aimed kicks. We found ourselves in an empty elevator shaft, the carriage many storeys above us.
"Only way out is up," said Dick, firing his Batclaw up at the carriage. Jason and I watched as he zoomed up before grabbing a ledge, almost out of sight.
"There's another vent here!" He called to us on the comms. "Wait for me to get out of the way!"
Seeing Nightwings barely-discernable form disappear into the wall, I shot my Batclaw up to the ledge. Flying up to the ledge, I caught my breath and pulled myself into the narrow shaft, knowing that Red Hood wouldn't be far behind. I crawled through the vent until I reached an open grate above me. I leapt out as another blast shook GCPD's headquarters.
Nightwing stood, frozen, a few paces before me as he looked out at Gotham from a behind a large, shattered window. Light fixtures and debris fell from the ceiling as explosions rocked the building. I ran forward and blanched at what had appeared on the dark streets below us.
Dozens of tanks advanced on the precinct, firing again and again on the building's crumbling facade. Helicopters and aerial drones hovered menacingly in the air, their propellers roaring angrily. Slowly, but surely, Scarecrow's militia was destroying the last sanctuary of the courageous and righteous Gothamites who would lay down their lives for this broken city.