Oswald
Within a few weeks, word had gotten around of Maroni's death and the news of my succession as the head of the family soon followed.
Falcone was practically beaming at the news. Now his spy was the head of the rival family. Life couldn't be better for him. Little did he know I had even bigger aspirations for Gotham than playing second fiddle to him for the rest of my life.
Fish Mooney, on the other hand, had it in for me every chance she could. I was always getting roughed up by some of her thugs. This began to worry Nygma, so to assuaged him I now had Gabe and a few other men with me wherever I was out.
The attacks stopped after the first few attempts. With that I dismissed my entourage of bodyguards to get some privacy. This may have been foolish of me to do so, but I was fucking tired of my only moments alone were in my own apartment and I was getting stir-crazy.
I put on my coat, grabbed my umbrella, and left to disappear into the night for a walk in the moonlight.
Elsewhere in Gotham
"Welcome Dr. Crane," I heard a female voice say,"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me."
I looked around the darkly lit room that I stood in. The room looked to be an abandoned theater. Woman sat in a chair on the stage. She had dark skin that she almost blended into the shadows, with even darker hair with red dyed tips on her bangs. She wore a red dress to match her hair and gold hoop earrings.
She sat in that chair, a confident air about her. I was curious as to why she would be interested in my research, but I was equally intrigued in was the fact that this woman seemed to fear nothing.
I walked up the stairs to where the woman sat, careful to avoid the rotting floorboards of the stage as I approached the open chair across from the mystery woman.
"Do you know why I asked you here today, Dr. Crane?" She asked with a warm smile.
"I have somewhat of an idea. Your associate mentioned that you think you have a good test subject for my fear serum. Someone who would have the highest score on the Crane scale. Do tell, Miss..." I trailed off as I had not yet caught her name.
"It's Mooney, Fish Mooney." She held out her hand that I accepted with a firm shake.
"You are correct, Doctor. I, do in fact, know someone whom you'd be interested in using as test subject, and his name is Oswald Cobblepot."
Oswald
As the moon was at it's highest point in the sky, I decided that I should be heading back to my club to check in. I continued past the warehouse district and cut down an alley. I felt a presence following me.
Damn, why was I so stubborn about my privacy? Fish knew I'd be dropping my guard as soon as she laid off.
I tried weaving my way in and out of different alleys to get away from my pursuer, but with my bum leg, I couldn't move very fast.
I almost was to my club when I felt a firm arm grabbing me and another hand placed a cloth over my nose and mouth.
My last thought was of Nygma as my vision faded to black.
Nygma
I had found myself a new apartment, it was closer to work. It was smaller than my place before, down to one bedroom, but it would just have to do for now. I moved all of my equipment I had in my clean room to the clinic to downsize. I lived on the top floor and had a clear view of the entire city through large windows. I loved my new place, it actually helped that I left the old one. I seldom saw Kringle lurking around.
It was normal for me to not see Oswald for days at a time, so not seeing him since a few days prior was not at odd to me. I was just leaving work debating with myself if I should stop by and see him at the club if only for a few minutes.
I looked up to the door of my office to see Jim standing there.
"Hello Detective," I greeted grabbing my bag and jacket and headed for him.
"Want to grab a drink with me?" Jim asked.
I knew that was code for just sit there and listen to my problems for a few hours because I don't want to talk to anyone else about them.
I sighed inwardly and opened my mouth to decline the offer so I could go see Oswald, but he cut me off.
"I heard there's a really awesome club downtown, I want to check it out."
I blinked and sighed. "Sure, I guess." I murmured.
We put on our jackets and left the GCPD building getting into his car and he drove us downtown. He parked and we got out walking towards Oswald's club. I paused in the street before it and shook my head. No, everyone knew me in there and if Oswald spotted me in there with Gordon it would just cause more trouble than what it was worth.
"I think we should go somewhere else," I spoke up.
"Why?" Jim asked looking to me.
"I hear they have terrible wine," I responded just drawing at straws to get Jim to choose somewhere else to go.
"Then we'll stay away from the wine."
I grunted to myself and bit my lower lip and sighed heavily just following him into Oswald's club.
I had kept the fact that Jim and I met up sometimes after work from Oswald. I knew how Jim got under his skin, and he would never have anything to worry about but I just didn't want to discuss it.
We found a booth to sit at and I drank from a glass of water. This was going to be interesting.
Oswald
My vision was hazy as my eyes struggled to focus as I came to. The last thing I remembered was being held from behind and a cloth being shoved over my nose and mouth. The rest of the events were a bit fuzzy. I believe I was placed in the back of some car or van. Then the brief sensation of being dragged up a hill with my feet hitting some wooden porch steps as I was brought into what seemed to be a house.
I was tied up in an armchair, my arms bound to each armrest and my feet to the front two legs of the chair.
As I scanned my surroundings, I gathered that I was in an abandoned house just outside of Gotham's city limits. The wood of the house was rotting and many of the windows were broken and boarded up. There was also a faint smell of smoke seemed from long ago, but still clung to the house. I suspected that a house fire had happened here, but it did not completely engulf the house.
I saw a man hunched over in the far corner of the room that I was held captive in. He was fiddling around with something on the table in front of him. When he heard me moving, he turned around.
"Good, you're awake. It works best when my subjects are conscious at the start." He replied.
This man was slightly taller than me, but not nearly as tall as Nygma, with large square glasses with brown frames and neatly kept blonde hair. He appeared older than me, and the way he spoke made him seem the scholarly type.
I was confused as to why I was brought here and what exactly he was meaning by"/subject/", but I knew it would only be a short time before I'd find out.
He was walking towards me now with a syringe filled with some yellow liquid in it. He knelt down and looked me in the eye.
"I've been told that you will get the highest score on the Crane scale. Shall we test that theory?"
He began rolling up my left sleeve to expose my artery below my elbow. He squeezed the trigger on the syringe to ensure that there were no stray air bubbles in the tube.
As the needle was stuck in my arm and the substance began coursing through my veins, I let out a long loud bellowing scream.
I hadn't even realized that I had closed my eyes as the needle punctured my skin. When I finally opened them again, I was released from my bonds, so I started to search for a way out of this house.
As I stood up, I had to catch myself on the chair I just got out of. When I finally got ahold of my legs, I continued down the hallway in front of me.
I looked in the first door on my left that turned out to be a bathroom with a classic claw foot bathtub. I jumped back suddenly not believing what I saw.
My dear mother was in that tub as water was overflowing from it washing towards my feet. As I stepped closer to the tub, I saw that her throat was cut cleanly, and the water overflowing from the tub was now mixing with her blood becoming a red pool of water for my trousers to soak up. As I looked around the room, question marks were written on the walls and on the mirror a message was written, What has outlived its welcome, and is sure to make dear Penguin cry?
This Bitch! was written in smaller letters below the larger riddle.
I huddled under the sink, holding my knees to my chest. Tears began flowing from my closed eyes.
It's just a dream. It's just a dream! I tried telling myself.
I have no idea how long I stayed huddled under the sink before I convinced myself that I need to find away out of here, and I was just seeing things.
What the hell was in that syringe?!
I continued through the house as I turned to head down the stairs, I came up to an open door, and without thinking I opened it. The large walk in closet was painted white. At the back of the closet, Detective Gordon was hanging by his necktie. Upon checking his body, he was also dead.
On his suit jacket pocket, there was a question mark, so I decided to check the pocket. What I found was an envelope with a card in it.
Who tried to reach for the stars, but could only get this high?
I flipped over the card, This guy!
I threw the card on the ground and fell to my knees grabbing at tufts of my hair.
It's just a dream, only a dream... I began banging my head against the nearest wall.
Again, I don't know how long I had spent in that closet, before I again convinced myself return to find a way out of here.
I closed the closet door and continued down the stairs. I made a left and entered kitchen.
I saw Nygma stand near the kitchen sink. I walked around to face him.
"Nygma, I'm so glad you're al...right..." As I walked into the kitchen, I saw a bloody lab coat covering a body that had been chopped up into tiny pieces.
The Nygma at the sink was cleaning a large kitchen knife. A large smile on his face. Sensing me approaching him, he turned to face me.
"How nice to see you, Penguin. Care to hear a riddle?" a big wide smile spread across his face.
I stayed silent wondering why Riddler was here, killing people I care about.
"Who loved cooking up things including a plague, but is now being cooked himself?"
I stared at the body laying on the kitchen floor in horror.
No, no, NO! It can't be! Riddler can't kill Nygma without killing himself...
"I'm sure you are smart enough to figure out this simple riddle." Riddler sneered at me.
I pulled off the lab coat to find Nygma's face staring up at me. I backed away.
"It's Eddie!" He cackled.
I continued to back away until I was in a corner. I curled up into a ball and grabbed tufts of my hair sobbing.
It's not real. It's not real. It can't be. Make it go away. Someone please make this go away!
I stayed curled up for a while still crying my eyes out.
I just can't be alone. It is dark and scary to be alone. Please don't leave me alone here!
I had lost all hope of getting out of this house. I just stayed curled up in my ball of suffering.
Why bother? Nobody is waiting for me...I'd rather die than live a life alone...
Nygma
I looked over the table at Jim as he was already on his second beer, I was happy with just my water. He had been going on about how Bullock at work was telling him there was a point everyone needed to move on.
"That's...rough." I murmured quietly.
"This is why I feel like you're the only one I can talk to, Ed. Yeah, sure, we might not have gotten along before but...you were there when she died. You know." then he started going off on tangents about it being a murder and how no one believed him.
"Apparently Don Maroni died too from a sickness. The head man of a crime family, died of the flu? What? Really?" he asked in desperation. "And Flass...he was a shady one..dirty even, but none of this adds up. What do you think? You're so smart when it comes to this stuff."
I shrugged my shoulders. "I think it was just a freak outbreak of a sickness Jim. That's what makes viruses so unpredictable. Every person they enter has a different immune system which allows it to observe and mutate...some people can fight them off, and some people can't."
Gordon sighed heavily. "Yeah, I guess," he muttered staring at his bottle of beer. "I'll be right back," he stated before heading towards the bathrooms.
I watched after him and finished my glass of water. I was surprised no one had approached me, perhaps Oswald wasn't here. Or maybe he was too angry if he saw Jim there.
Suddenly, I looked up, and Gabe was standing there. "Gabe?" I asked with a smile.
His face wasn't welcoming. I immediately sensed something was wrong.
Uh oh...look at that face of concern, chuckled the voice inside.
I had a slight look of annoyance, it was doing so good at shutting up as of late.
"Have you seen Oswald?" Gabe asked sternly.
I shook my head, "Why..."
I knew the answer, if Gabe hadn't seen him no one had. The only other person close to him like this was me, and I hadn't seen him in three days.
"He went out last night and hasn't come back." Gabe stated. "I thought maybe he went to you."
"He has men assigned to him," I stated my voice cracking slightly with fear.
"He threw them off, went off by himself."
"He KNOWS better than that," I snapped. "With Mooney out for him and oh my god, fuck."
I was angry right then, after all the worrying I put into that man, and he ignores the only shred of advice that could have kept him alive.
I was scared too.
Where was he? Who had him?
"Do you have any idea where he went?" I asked looking back to Gabe.
He shook his head. "We've been scouring the backstreets of Gotham, and no one has seen anything."
I got to my feet seeing Jim approaching the table. He had confusion in his eyes when seeing me conversing with Cobblepot's right hand man.
"We're leaving Gordon," I stated firmly.
I knew I needed Jim to help me, he was great at what he did. I didn't care about anything else right now. Oswald was missing, and I had to find him. As far as I was concerned, Gordon owed me huge.
"Where?" Jim asked grabbing his coat as well.
"We have someone to find." I responded.
I looked to Gabe, and asked him to assign with us a few men. I buttoned up my jacket, and walked with Jim to the front. I needed to explain to him what was going on.
"Detective, I really hate to do this to you. I'm pulling my favor card you gave me for saving your life twice." I stated. "The head of the Maroni family went missing as of last night, I fear Fish Mooney is behind it, you're going to help find him."
Gordon was looking at me in bewilderment. "Why do you care about Cobblepot?" he asked.
"That's none of your business." I responded. "It's going to stay none of your business."
He nodded silently. "Fish is mine," he growled lowly.
"Good, let's go."
Oswald
I don't want to be alone! I wasn't sure if those words were internalized or had had begun mumbling them out loud on repeat.
"Oh come on, Penguin! I didn't picture you to become this sniveling ball of shit when I killed everyone close to you. Though, I should be thanking you, now that Nygma is dead, I can be free to roam Gotham stirring things up, causing a ruckus, if you will." He smiled at me, this was not a warm smile, but a devious one.
"I never pictured you as this pathetic... I mean you told me that you'd rule all of Gotham some day, but how can you when the thought of being alone causes you to become this blubbering mass? I half thought about killing your sorry ass, and taking Gotham for myself. That's not my style." His eyes lit up.
"I like my victims to suffer. Long, and hard. Since I hate the fact that you kiss and touch me, I won't be killing you anytime soon."
He turned back around to the sink to finish cleaning the knife. He set the knife in the sink and went to check on what was baking in the oven.
He pulled it out and thrust it in my face,"Would you like someone pie?" He paused gauging my reaction."No? Well I thought you might considering how often you try to eat me up in the bedroom. Come on, you know you want some Nygma pie!" He started laughing maniacally.
I closed my eyes and put my hands over my ears. I began banging my head against the nearest kitchen cabinet.
Make it stop! I can't stand it anymore! Everyone has left me alone! I don't want to be alone! I sobbed and sobbed rocking back and forth in the tiny ball that I had curled my body into.
Nygma
We were at the GCPD building, I was making two cups of coffee for myself and Jim while he sat at his desk on the phone with his partner.
"I don't fucking care how late it is Harvey, get down to Fish Mooneys place and find her!" He shouted into the phone before slamming the phone down on the receiver.
I handed him his cup of coffee and drank from mine. I was trying to stay calm but my hands were shaking too bad. I ended up setting down the cup pacing nervously. I was trying to think but only the voice was there.
Does it really matter if he's gone, I mean come on Ed. You were fine alone before and this changes nothing
I growled to myself trying to shake him off. I managed to force him into silence before approaching Jim's desk again.
"We gotta get out there and look. Feet on the ground" I suggested.
"Nygma, let me do what I do" came his stern reply.
I sighed weakly trying to drink more coffee as I stood there. I was scared for Oswald, something inside me balked in fear in learning his disappearance. The stakes were different this time, he was worth more dead than beaten half to death.
I sat down across from Jim's desk, in Harveys seat. I was impatient and starting to get irritated, because I couldn't shut the voice up in my head.
Jim looked to me quietly. "Why is it that you're so keen on helping Cobblepot, Ed? I thought you told me you were staying away from him...are you two you know.."
Fucking? Why yes
I narrowed my eyes. "Oh yes, Detective, because I'm gay I must be sleeping around with every man in town."
He blinked, "Oh, I didn't mean to upset you..."
I sighed and took off my glasses rubbing the bridge of my nose.
"His men are pulling the favor card on me, you know the favor card I'm pulling on you." I replied.
"Why do you owe him favors?" Gordon asked.
"Remember the night I got shot, and he pulled us from the fight?" I asked him. "Well, you woke up and just fucking left me there, Jim. You left me in the care of a lunatic. Of course, he wouldn't harm you, you are Detective James Gordon, he needs you, but what about me? No one seems to care Nygma's life was at stake. So, I'm kind of indebted to him for not slitting my throat."
A look of realization washed over Jim, "Oh" he murmured quietly looking away from a moment.
"Well, I'm doing this to make up for that then."
"That's why this entire place is fucked to hell, Jim. No one does anything out of compassion anymore, it's always about favors. I owe this person this, and so forth. If the lot of you people started giving a shit about other people and helping them out because you are a decent human being, then maybe Gotham wouldn't be as screwed up as it is."
He swallowed and nodded. "I'm sorry," he murmured.
"We're past apologies, I just want Cobblepot found."
"For example, Jim, what am I getting out of you coming and talking to me about Barbara and your feelings? Absolutely nothing. I do it because I am a compassionate person." I sighed irritably.
He nodded at that, "I am grateful for you because of that I am sorry I have been acting selfish."
I just waved my hand in the air as if I was waving it off. I returned to my coffee.
Jim's cell began to ring and he grabbed it answering it as he walked away from his desk.
I took a drink of coffee and put my glasses back on.
See, that's the type of man you need, the voice suggested as I watched Jim yelling in audibles into his phone. Look how he takes charge
I rolled my eyes, I had an inkling of a feeling that this Riddler had it out for Oswald. Oswald took charge just fine.
But maybe it's the fact you can't have him that you're still attached to his hip like a puppy. He's straight as an arrow and yours is broke.
I gritted my teeth together.
Ahh yes I know everything Eddie, you still fantasize about that man, it's like you can never let go of your first love
"STOP" I screamed slamming the mug into the desk where it broke.
Jim looked up to me, "What?" He asked.
"Nothing," I seethed going to clean up the mess I made.
I am never going to stop, Eddie boy
After a few hours of me sitting there listening to the insane voice, Jim finally called for me.
I jumped up as he was grabbing his jacket. "We think we found the place" he stated excitedly grabbing his gun and tossing me his spare one. "Not going to let you go in unarmed this time, do you know how to use that?"
"Yeah," I responded as I followed suit.
We headed out of the GCPD building and met up with Detective Bullock and Gabe's men outside of an old abandoned place.
The place gave me the creeps, the moon was poking out from the clouds illuminating it.
"Okay look, we don't know what we are going to run in to, we split up into two groups and stay close," instructed Gordon pulling out his weapon.
Oswald
A cold sweat coated my face when I next came too. I was still hunched in the fetal position leaning against a cabinet in the kitchen.
I heard a laugh coming from behind me. I turned to look over my shoulder and saw a large menacing smile on Riddler Nygma's face. He was now holding the cleaned kitchen knife over my head.
"What's a sad excuse for a man once all of his friends and family are gone?"
He swung the knife down towards me. "YOU!" He said through clenched teeth.
I screamed closing my eyes tight, and holding my arms out in front of me as protection. Each slice he made caused me pain. I saw blood pouring out of my arms as he continued to hack at them.
It was then I began to hear something familiar through the fog.
"OSWALD! OSWALD, WHERE ARE YOU?"
The voice seemed frantic and desperate to find me.
Who's voice is that?
I opened my eyes and a light began cutting through the fog. I stared up straight into Nygma's face. A look of concern written on his face.
I backed away from him moving towards the the corner of the kitchen.
"NO, DON'T TOUCH ME! I DONT WANT TO BE TORTURED BY YOU ANYMORE! I'VE ALREADY BLED ENOUGH! I HEARD YOU... I'M A SAD EXCUSE FOR A MAN. I'M DONE WITH SEEING YOU KILL EVERYONE I EVER CARED ABOUT! JUST FINISH ME OFF ALREADY, RIDDLER!"
I covered my face and began rocking back and forth muttering,"Make it stop...make it stop." over and over again.
Nygma
I stopped seeing him the react the way he was lowering my gun to the floor holding up my hands wondering if he was afraid of the weapon.
Jim came in behind me.
He was watching me quietly holstering his weapon as well seeing me put down mine.
"Oswald?" I asked softly approaching him my palms still facing towards him.
"He seems to be in some kind of sleep state..or something." muttered Jim.
No shit Sherlock, any other not helpful observations?
I knew there was no way to snap him out of this, he seemed to be drugged. Drugged with what? I did not know.
Looking up upon hearing Gordon's voice, Oswald looked up at Gordon.
"Jim Gordon, old friend, is that you?...No it can't be...I...I saw you hanging by your tie in the upstairs closet." Oswald then collapsed into sobs,"No, no, no, this can't be real."
"No, no,the riddles...the riddles. Everyone is dead, and YOU killed them!" I spat back at Nygma, "The Riddler, 'you' did, leaving riddles for me to solve...He drowned my mother in a tub and slit her throat, hung Jim by his necktie, and chopped up the Edward side of you into tiny pieces with a kitchen knife, and baked him into a pie, and tried to make me eat it...When that didn't work he just slashed the knife at me, cutting me open...I just want this all to end..." Oswald cried out.
I blinked at that and side glanced to Gordon who was just stunned as he listened to his ramblings.
Fuck. This would be awesome to explain later. I sighed looking to Oswald. "How could he kill a part of me without killing himself?" I asked.
I turned to Jim and told him to call an ambulance. There was nothing I could do at that moment, I didn't even know what he was on.
Jim stepped from the room to call 9-1-1 and I looked to Oswald again.
"Oswald, stop." I whispered. "No one is dead, he didn't kill anyone. I love you, and you got to break out of this. "
Oswald
"I don't know, you were lying covered up in your lab coat blood was everywhere in this kitchen, but all 'you' cared about was cleaning your goddamn kitchen knife and checking on the oven..."
I lowered my head resting my forehead on my knees.
The fog was starting to lift, and I heard a voice whisper to me.
"What has happened to me, Neg? The last thing I remember...before traipsing through this house of horrors...was this tall...scholarly...gentleman injected me with something..." I embraced Nygma and collapsed into sobs again And continued to sob into his chest.
Nygma
I swallowed at his words, so it was indeed someone who had injected him with something. I held him close trying to soothe him and looked up to Jim who walked in.
I braced Oswald up on his own and walked up to Jim telling him what Oswald had said.
He nodded and went to see if the others had found anything.
I knelt down to Oswald wrapping my arms around him again since no one was in the room.
Oswald
Feeling Nygma's arms around me, I began to feel safe. I stopped shaking and rocking. My breathing was slowing to a normal level.
Slowly, I could feel the effects of the mental ordeal that I had just endured. I faded in and out of consciousness. As I was feeling myself fading out for good, I reached up to touch Nygma's face.
"Thanks for finding me, Neg." I whispered to him.
My hand then dropped to the kitchen floor as I faded to black.