Weeks later, they were on patrol. The Red Hood was still at large, but his latest activity was in Metropolis. Tim was perched atop a new construction site, scanning over the east end of the city, while Batman and Finch were on the lower level waiting for their target. Within the last few weeks, noteworthy criminals still were turning up dead. Bruce had been given a lead on Killer Croc frequenting the East End as of late. So he figured he'd wait, and see if the Red Hood would make an appearance. Beneath them they spotted Croc lift up a manhole cover, and dash into the nearby building. Finch edged forward toward the edge of the building, ready to spring into action. Robin hopped down to their level, and perched next to Finch. Below a window shattered, then a blood curdling scream echoed up the side of the building.
The three of them sprung into action, shooting their grapple guns across the alley, and swooping down through the large already broken window. Inside there were groups of women and children rushing out of the back room.
"Please! Croc is taking the children!" One woman pleaded to Finch.
Batman and Robin ran ahead to the back room, but narrowly missed two large filing cabinets, thrown in their path. They tossed some smoke bombs. Croc snarled and threw his fists about, trying to feel for them. Not getting any luck from this, he took the two children under his arms, and jumped through the back window. He slammed hard onto the metal fire exit, and continued to jump down one flight after another. Robin and Batman closely followed, and Finch eventually caught up to them. Croc was running down a dark alleyway, leading to an old underground sewer access.
There was one last clear roadway before the sewer entrance. Batman readied his grapple gun. But a brief flash of red caught his attention. To his left Finch had shot her grapple gun at Croc's shoulder, and was pulling herself in. As she pulled in her legs they crossed through a bright red laser beam.
"Robin! Cut her line!" Ordered Batman, as he shot his grapple gun ahead, and jumped.
Within seconds Robin tossed a batarang, cutting Finches line, and Batman swooped in, grabbing Finch before she fell to the ground. As they spun around Batman heard the loud boom of a long range rifle. Croc stumbled forward, then fell to the ground, still holding tight to the children. Batman followed the path where he last saw the laser line up to the top buildings. Pressing his hand to the side of his cowl, his lenses glowed red as he scanned for heat signatures along the top buildings.
"He's dead." Robin called out, as he tugged hard at Croc's arm, trying his best to free the screaming child.
"There he is!" Batman pointed to a tall building not far from them.
Robin freed the boy, who ran off to the alleyway.
"Finch stay with the children, and call the cops. Robin… With me!" Batman shot his grapple gun up, and pursued the Red Hood.
Dashing through construction site, leaping across one rooftop after another, every attempt Batman and Robin made to capture the Red Hood was thwarted.
"He's good!" Robin said, after he watched the Red hood cut his grapple line.
"Too good." Batman said leaping down to the Botanical Research Atrium below.
As Batman landed on the ground, he spotted the Red hood, standing in front of a large glass box. Robin landed beside, and cocked his head in wonder at this sight.
"Where's the rest of the team?" The Red Hood questioned as he crossed his arms.
"What is this Red Hood? Batman demanded.
"Always the impatient one. Well… If you must know." He stepped off to the side. Revealing a large glass box, with four large steel vessels surrounding a tied and gagged Poison Ivy in the middle. "This my friend… Is a chemistry experiment." He pulled out a hand held remote, and pressed the button. "Tell me Bruce. What do you get when Chlorine Trifluoride interacts with glass?"
"Who is this guy?!" Robin questioned, more concerned with the Red Hood knowing who Batman was.
Bruce pulled an explosive batarang out, and readied to throw it at the case.
"You sure you want to do that?" The Red Hood questioned, stopping Bruce. "Those canisters are being fed from from the basement level. And… In case you didn't notice, we are in a glass building next to the bay." He strode over to the side of the case, and tapped at the glass. Ivy squirmed in her bindings. "See… You've got to think of it in a different way. The single death of a person who doesn't deserve to live… Or the deaths of us, and any person in a three mile radius." He dipped his head with this, emphasizing his point.
Bruce's attention was on the canisters holding the gas. Each had a series of lights on the sides, indicating the time left before top vent released. Then he looked over to the remote in the Red Hoods hand.
The Red Hood's full attention was on him, and shrugged at this observation. "Oh here." He tossed Batman the remote. "You can keep it. I don't really need it anymore. It only works once."
The remote burst into flames, and Batman dropped it to the ground.
"These however…" Red hood stepped away from the case, which lifted about a foot from the ground, revealing four devices connected to the base of each side of the square case. "Now this is where you come in. These bombs you can handle… But only as a team." He took a few steps backward, " Each is set for sixty seconds… And they will be triggered by-." A low beeping sounded within the case. "The release of the gas. Just think of it as a usual training exercise." He said this last bit of information with his back to them, walking away.
"Robin get to the opposite side, and do exactly as I tell you!"
The bright green-yellow gas spilled over the top of the open cylinders, and began to go clear as it filled the case. The rope around Ivy burst into flames, followed by the tears streaming down her face. As she gasped from the pain, the gas exploded within her, and the rest of her body erupted into flames from the inside out.
"Fuck!"
"Focus on the bomb Robin! Grasp the red metal collar with both hands, and pull it straight up. It's magnetized! Don't let it touch the sides."
Within the case, Ivy was flopping about, and most of her flesh had been burned away. With one final movement, she leapt forward and slammed into the glass where Robin was disarming the bomb. He lost focus with this, as her charred hand slid down, leaving a burning blood trail down to the steel base of the case.
"Robin!"
"Yes!" Robin replied through his horror.
"Disconnect the wires in this order: Blue, Yellow/Black striped, Red, then Black."
"Alright, Now what?"
"You're done! Now the other one!"
With only five seconds left on the second set of bombs they were finally in the clear. Robin fell to his knees, and Batman strode around the case. Ivy was reduced to a fine powder on the ground, but the gas was still feeding into the case.
"We need to turn off the source of the gas." Batman said, as he walked toward the stair access archway.
Robin pulled himself up, and as soon as he got on his feet he quickly darted off to the side and vomited.
Batman turned and waited for him. He held his chin, and took in a deep breath. Despite the horror he just experienced, the initial shock of realizing the identity of the Red Hood made it difficult for him to think straight. So many years had passed, and though he always kept those feelings of regret at the back of his mind, they now flooded it and overwhelmed him.