Batgirl couldn't move, she was frozen to the spot in panic and anger.
NononononoNONONONO!
"Were going to hide this delightful human being away from you, and you will have to find her within five hours, or boom boom" Joker explained wrapping an arm around Harlequins shoulder and rubbing her arm with his hand, if it had been anyone else the action would have been charming, comforting but this was the Joker, it was just plain creepy when he did it.
Please Batman, oh dear god please! Just this once can you hurry the fuck up! If it were Robin you'd already be here you BIG FAT BASTARD!
"There is a single clue, it's hidden at the bottom of Gotham river. The timer starts when you leave the building" Joker informed her as Harlequin lead the hostage away and Joker followed soon after her.
"Have fun my darling little Barbara, and pray you are swift" Joker told her with a light chuckle before he left and Batgirl was left alone.
Her legs gave way beneath her and she collapsed onto the floor, using her arms to keep her head from crashing into the floor. The last thing she needed was to fall unconscious, her body was on fire, or at least that's how it felt to her.
Ignore it, you have to ignore it! You've got to get out of here and get to Gotham river now!
She lifted up her arm and dialled Batman's comm. link number and waited for the answer.
"Batgirl? Batgirl where are you?" Batman's voice was rushed and Batgirl could swear she heard some panic as well but she put it down to her mind playing tricks on her because of the burning.
"I'm…I'm fine, but Joker has a civilian hostage" She muttered into her wrist communication link and staggered towards the door, she waited for a reply. The timer started the moment she left the building so she would wait until she had explained the situation and then she would get to Gotham river as fast as she possibly could.
"Where?" His voice seemed strained and uncomfortable but yet again she ignored it, she was too pissed off with him to be concerned.
"Don't know, he just said there was a clue at the bottom of Gotham river, I'm heading there now, we have five hours until Joker blows the civilian sky high" Batgirl finished and cut off all communications with Batman before she ran as fast as she could, ignoring the horrific burning sensation as she called her Batbike and checked her GPS.
"How far to the Gotham river?" She groaned into her voice activated GPS system.
"2.5 miles" came the automated response and Batgirl looked up at the Batbike approached, Joker obviously hadn't taken her that far if it had gotten to her that quickly.
Or he brought it here to speed up the game. Son of a bitch.
She leapt on and drove as fast as she possibly could to Gotham bridge, the largest bridge in Gotham that covered the largest section of the Gotham river, the most logical place to look.
She braked hard and pulled over hidden by a beam, she wasn't at the bridge.
Since when has Joker ever been logical? Idiot, stop thinking like Batgirl, start thinking like Joker…
"You remind me of him, Mr Jay. You both have the same madness, that's why I like you so much"
Batgirl swallowed hard, she had denied it before, but now she was starting to think that Harlequin was right. They both had the same madness, maybe Batgirl had it less than he did but she still had it, still played his game. Why? Because a part of her, was enjoying this. Enjoying the game, the hunt.
Don't think like Batgirl or Barbara, think like him, it. Embrace the madness just for a little while…
She stood and stared out at the world looking at it in the eyes of the Joker, it was a vision only they had, a vision they unknowingly had shared for years. But now Batgirl knew, and she saw the world in a whole new light, no, not light. A whole new shade of black.
"He's going to be where it's brightest, we would never go towards the light" She muttered absentmindedly to herself and turned to face the river, she could see the Gotham bridge and the river beneath it, it was very dark. No, wait, over there was some light, a sparkle.
"The sewage connection, it's there" She muttered and got back on her bike, readjusted her GPS system and sent Batman the coordinates.
Hehe…this is kinda fun, I like this new world…it's so pretty…WHOA! Stop, focus Barbs, your not a physco like he is, and you're on a rescue mission!
She arrived five minutes before Batman and Robin did but none of them spoke, they just stared at the darkest part of Gotham river.
"So this is where they pump all the drugs and shit" Batgirl muttered and Robin glared at her, she turned to face him.
"What? You got a problem pipsqueak?" She asked him in a slightly angered tone.
"Yeah, why the hell are you still here? Go home and play with your dolls or something, were gonna save the civilian" He told her grumpily and she growled at him.
Over my rotting corpse.
"You know what? I put up with you before, but right now I am really starting to consider throwing you into that pile of shit we call the Gotham slug dump" She snarled at him and he took a step back, startled at her outburst and she hissed slightly and clenched her teeth together in pain though she ignored it the best she could.
Sudden movements and angry outbursts make the pain worse, damn that sucks.
The slug dump was the name for the part of the Gotham river the three of them were currently staring down at, it was where drugs, blood money and bodies were dumped by criminals trying to clear their names. According to rumour it was so filthy that if you swam in it for more than five minutes you'd start to mutate. It was one of the rumours in Gotham that Batgirl didn't doubt for a second. Not that she gave a shit right now.
She turned to her bike and pulled out the gear she was looking for in the small heatproof compartment near the engine.
"You can't go in there! The waters toxic!" Robin exclaimed to her and she glared at him and sent him a very malicious smile.
"Do I look like I give two shits?" She demanded and pulled the oxygen mask onto her face and then the goggles on as well. She turned to the water and a hand landed on her shoulder, she looked back and went to glare at Batman but she paused. He was geared up as well, ready to dive with her.
"Robin, monitor the movement from here, and alert us when we start to run low on oxygen" Batman ordered, and both of the dived down into the filthy water before Robin had a chance to complain.
That's right, can't let Robin touch the dirty infected water but Batgirl? Hell yeah, let the shit mutate.
She swam down and switched on her thermo-night vision, she had found a way to merge thermo vision and night vision and boy was it coming in handy right, pity this one was a prototype and still had a few bugs in it.
Where would it be? Somewhere bright, shiny…somewhere dead.
Doing her best not to vomit Batgirl swam down to the corpses that littered the bottom of the slug dump and checked their faces, most of them were rotted beyond recognition but some of them were still reasonably fresh. She checked seventeen of them before she found the one she wanted. A big smile had been carved into the face and it was hardly rotted at all.
Fresh…not been dead longer than a day…male in his mid thirties…Harlequins father perhaps? Who knows, grab what you need and get the hell away from the dead guy!
"Batgirl it's Robin, you've barely got any oxygen left, get out of there now or your going to drown"
Just a second clucker.
Resisting the urge to shudder she reached forwards and grabbed the only shining thing on the person, a air tight plastic bag with a piece of paper inside, she gripped it tightly and turned to kick up for air.
Oh you've got to be kidding me!
Her foot was caught, on a rotting corpse, when she had put her foot down onto what she presumed was the ground to kick herself upwards she had crushed a corpses ribcage and now the bones were digging into her legs and preventing her from getting up for air.
"Oxygen levels, eleven percent, time remaining, three and a half minutes"
Fan-bloody-tastic.
She kicked at the corpse with her free foot and tried to collapse the ribcage further but it didn't help.
"Batgirl, get out of there, NOW" Robin ordered and she made a mental note to yell at him later.
Come on please, I'm on a rescue mission I can't die here!
She started to panic, she was going to die and so was…no, no she couldn't let that happen!
She kicked again and felt something move behind her, she went to turn but found she didn't need to. Batman gripped her under the arms and used her weight to push himself downwards and crush the corpse with both of his feet, releasing her. He then proceeded to drag her to the surface.
Ha! Not dying today bitch!
She reached the surface and ripped of her mask, sucking in some clean air before cackling triumphantly, Batman and Robin both stared at her for a moment until she held up the airtight plastic bag.
"What does it say?" Robin asked eagerly as she opened the bag, she then proceeded to glare at it.
"Well?" Batman asked and she huffed and held it up to them both.
Death comes at the beginning and at the end.
Hey peeps!
Okay so this didn't quite turn out how I had imagined, but that's okay, you can all hate me in a chapter or two when I screw Barbara up even more. :- ) haha!
So I hope you guys noticed Babs going a wee bit nuts during this, as I am building up to borderline insane. Hehe, am I the only person that likes torturing her favourite character? Surely I'm not the only one right?
Read and Review guys!
Tulip Out.