"Lovely," says Dick, surveying their surroundings with a disgusted grimace.
They had just finished descending an abandoned elevator shaft to get to the sewage system beneath the Transfer Room. The smell of the place is awful, to say the least. Mud and grime cover the brick walls, and drops of water leak through the ceiling, slowly splattering down to the numerous puddles spread out across the slimy floor. The place is incredibly dim, lit only by a few old lights hanging from the walls every couple yards.
"Isn't there supposed to be a, you know, cell for Killer Croc to be in?" frowns Jason, glancing about them in confusion.
"Yeah," Tim replies, pointing. "There was."
Jason, Dick, and Bruce turn to where Tim is gesturing. Built halfway into the far wall is what looks to have been a cage of some sorts. It's hard to tell now, as the majority of its front has been ripped apart. Metal pieces of what had once been cell bars lie about the floor, long covered over in grime and mud.
"Oh good," says Dick. "For a moment, I was worried this was going to be a boring trip to the sewers."
Surprisingly, Bruce doesn't seem all that concerned about the missing inmate. He holds up his scanner, pressing various buttons on it in concentration. Finally, he looks up. "I've tuned the scanner to detect any above-water plant life within fifty yards. It should lead us to the spores required to make the anti-Venom."
"Okay fine, but what about Croc?" asks Dick.
Jason grins. "I've got an idea."
/
Ten minutes later, the four of them are moving along the sewer passageways, with Bruce holding the scanner in the lead.
"There are some spores about twelve yards ahead, around the upcoming right corner," he says.
"I can see why this is no longer part of the current sewer system," Jason mutters. He glances down at the rotting floor beneath them, nervously eyeing the boards sloppily nailed down in a poor attempt at repairs. "Are we sure these platforms will hold? Because I'd prefer to avoid being dunked in sewage water if I can help it."
"They'll hold," assures Bruce, leading them around the passageway corner. "But they'll also send soundwaves through the water, giving away our position to Croc. So we need to move as carefully and quietly as possible."
Tim snorts. "Quiet isn't exactly one of Jason's strong suits."
Jason shoots Tim a glare. "Tim, I swear, I'll push you into that disgusting water myself."
"Jackpot!" exclaims Dick.
Tim and Jason raise their heads at the outburst, their eye widening at the odd sight.
Hanging from the ceiling are multiple plant roots, all at least a foot in diameter. They interweave together, creating something that looks rather like a hammock above them. The roots are a brownish red, and they seem to glow ever so slightly in the passageway's light. Clinging to them are multiple green plant spores about the size of basketballs.
"There's gotta be at least thirty of them up there," says Tim in excitement.
Bruce, Dick, and Jason all pull out Batarangs, aiming at various spores. They let the weapons fly, and three of the plants begin plummeting towards the wooden platform. Diving forward, they manage to each catch a spore before the plants hit the floor.
Tim crouches down between Jason and Dick as the spores are set on the platform. Eyeing the one before Jason with curiosity, Tim grabs a Batarang from Jason's utility belt and begins cutting open the plant tissue.
"Do you mind?" says Jason irritably.
"Not really." Tim's eyebrows raise in fascination as he pulls back the outer layer of the spore, revealing a neon green, gel-like substance instead. "Neat," he says. "I wonder why it glows though."
Jason shrugs, pulling out two clear vials from his utility belt. "It could be from a radiation leak of some kind," he says. Snatching the Batarang back from Tim, Jason uses it to scoop out chunks of the spore, which he then dumps into the vials. "Or maybe it's something they do naturally."
Bruce tucks away his own filled vials, and then glances over and Dick and Jason's. "That should be more than enough," he says. "Let's go."
Dick and Jason seal off their vials and secure them in their belts, and together the four of them start heading back towards the elevator shaft.
For a few minutes, it's fairly quiet. But as they round the corner of the passageway, one of the wooden boards beneath Jason's foot shifts. Jason glances down, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. "Hey, guys…"
Suddenly, there's the distinct sound of water slapping up against cement sides of the sewer. Loose floorboards bang together behind them as a soft splashing grows closer.
"Here we go," mutters Dick.
"Move!" Bruce shouts.
They immediately burst into a run. The moment they do, the wooden boards behind them explode upwards in a tremendous crash, and a massive figure launches itself into the air, landing on the platform.
Killer Croc lets out a furious roar as he rushes forward, smashing wood beneath his feet and sending water flying everywhere as he chases the four down the passageway. The planks groan beneath the increased weight, threatening to crack and plunge them all into the watery depths below.
Bruce, Dick, Jason, and Tim race along, using what little light is available to step on the more solid boards as they try to put distance between them and the creature pursuing them. Gradually, the sound of rushing water ahead reaches their ears. "Almost there!" Jason exclaims. He squints into the dimness, trying to pinpoint the platform he's searching for.
Croc is getting closer. Only a few more feet, and he'll be within range to take one of them out.
"NOW!" shouts Jason. Immediately, he and Dick shoot their grappling hooks at the ceiling, soaring into the air. Bruce lunges forward and wraps an arm around Tim's waist; Tim grabs ahold of Batman's shoulder armor with his good hand as the grappling hook is shot, and together the two of them zip upwards.
Surprised by the sudden movement, Croc clumsily tries to skid to a stop. But he loses his balance and slides over the slippery boards onto an especially rickety-looking platform, crashing onto his side.
Bruce presses the detonator button on his gel device, and the platform Croc is on explodes, throwing the creature into the air, only for him to fall back into the water with a giant splash.
Water goes everywhere as Croc struggles to get back to the surface. But a sudden current wraps around him, and he's tugged towards the edge of a drop-off in the sewage river the platforms had been covering up. Desperately, he claws at the broken pieces of wood surrounding him, but it's too late. With a strangled roar, he tumbles over the drop-off, disappearing into the depths of the sewers below.
"Ha!" Jason cries triumphantly. "Told you it'd work!"
Tim smirks. "Well, now that Jason's ego has been properly fed, can we go?" he asks. "I'm gonna throw up if I have to keep smelling that sewer water for much longer."
Bruce shakes his head, adjusting his grip on the grappling hook. "We'll head back to the lab in the gardens. It should have everything we need to make the antidote."
/
"How's it going?"
Tim glances up at Jason, who had just come back in from patrolling the Botanical Gardens for the fourth time. Shrugging, Tim rests his elbow on the computer desk he's sitting at, propping his chin up in his hand. "We're close. But it's been more difficult than we had expected."
"The process is slow," Bruce says, not looking up from the lab table he's bent over. "And it takes a large amount of spores to produce even just a small dose of the antidote."
"If you guys need help with it, Dick and I can –"
"There's not much for you to do," says Bruce. He lifts a vial containing an emerald green liquid, holding it up to the lab's lights to get a better look at its contents. "How are the gardens?"
"Quiet. As they have been ever since Dick and I took out those five guards over an hour ago." Jason leans in closer to the computer Tim is working at, skimming over the data on the screen. "Dick went to check on Harley and her buddy down in the storage facilities."
Bruce finally lifts his gaze to Jason, and a frown crosses his face. "You should have gone with him."
"His comm is on right now," Jason says. "I can hear everything – don't worry."
"I don't care. You should have –"
The doors to the lab open once again, and Dick walks in casually. "Well, Harley's being as annoying as ever, but she's still where we left her, so that's somewhat comforting."
"See?" Jason says, waving at Dick.
"What?" asks Dick. Jason shakes his head, and Dick shrugs, looking over at Bruce. "How are you two doing with the antidote?"
"We're almost there," answers Bruce. "The chemical should be able to reverse the effects of the Titan transformation."
"Should?" repeats Jason.
Bruce lets out a sigh, gesturing in frustration at the vial he had set down. "We have some samples of it made, but I'd like to run a few more tests just to be sure. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of the spores left for us to –"
Static bursts from the television monitor hooked into the wall overhead, and all four of them snap their heads up to watch as the screen flickers to life.
"Hello Batman!" exclaims the Joker, waving vigorously. "I do hope I'm not interrupting anything. Now, I know it's been a long, hard night for you, but good news! The party's about to start! And we've got something for everyone." The Joker skips off-screen momentarily, but a second later he's back, pushing a hospital stretcher into the camera frame. The stretcher is tilted upwards, and strapped to it is a terrified-looking Arkham security guard. Securely bound and gagged, all the man can do is watch as the Joker spins the stretcher in a circle, laughing loudly.
"We've got music, dancing, chemicals that create monsters!" says the Joker. "You don't want to miss it, Bats – and neither do your little sidekicks. I want to see all of them here."
Grinning, the Joker pulls out a gun from his jacket. "Now, I know that you can be a shy one, Bats, so here's a little motivation for you to get your brooding tush over here." The barrel of the gun is pressed against the forehead of the guard. "Every five minutes you aren't here, I'm gonna blast away one of the poor, innocent security guards or doctors we've been entertaining for the past few hours." The Joker looks down at the trembling man strapped to the stretcher. "How's that sound?" The man's eyes grow wide, and Joker's smile widens. Then he pulls the trigger.
The gunshot rings loudly through the TV's speakers, instantly followed by the soft splattering of blood across the camera's lens.
Jason and Dick both flinch harshly, and Tim can't help the small gasp that escapes him.
The Joker leans against the body of the security guard, laughing hysterically as he casually tosses the gun to the floor. "Hurry up, Bats! You don't wanna miss a single thing!"
The screen cuts to black, leaving everyone to stare in silence.
"So," Dick says quietly. "I guess this means time's up for making the antidote."
Bruce's mouth dips into a frown. "Tim, download the data we have onto your memory card." He spins back to the lab table he had been working at and picks up three vials of green liquid. "These are the only samples I have of the antidote right now," he says. He holds two of them out in Dick and Jason's direction. "You each take one, I'll keep the third."
Jason and Dick reach out, taking the vials and slipping them into their utility belts. Bruce snatches up an empty syringe nearby and quickly transfers the antidote from his vial into it. His hand hovers over his belt for a moment, but then he crouches down and slides the syringe into a small compartment hidden on the inside of his boot. He straightens and gives Dick, Jason, and Tim a grim look. "Let's go."
/
Never having been one for subtlety, Joker makes it easy for them to know where to go. Upon stepping outside of the gardens, they immediately catch sight of a small fireworks display going off in the distance. A few of them are regular fireworks, but others explode into giant arrow shapes, which point down at Arkham's Visitor Center.
No one tries to stop them. In fact, Arkham's grounds seem oddly deserted as they cross them, a fact which only increases their unease as they approach the Visitor Center.
There's a long outside corridor leading to the front doors of the Visitor Center. Lining either side of it are two rows of eight men each, all dressed in clown paint. Batman, Nightwing, the Gotham Knight, and Robin all immediately draw out their weapons upon seeing the men, but then they pause in confusion as the men burst into applause, shouting and whooping praise.
"What the hell?" the Gotham Knight mutters. He glances at Nightwing, who frowns in suspicion.
At the end of the hall is a large banner strung over the double entrance doors to the Visitor Center. WELCOME TO THE PARTY is painted on it in bright green paint; beneath the banner stands a clown-faced man, who watches them with crossed arms.
Clenching his jaw, Batman begins walking down the hall, looking only straight ahead as he passes between the lines of Joker men. Nightwing and the Gotham Knight glance at each other nervously, but they follow Batman, being sure to walk with Robin in-between them.
The yelling and cheering only grows in volume as they make their way to the double doors. Finally, the four of them come to a stop, staring at the man blocking the entrance expectantly.
"Well?" growls Batman.
The man smirks. "Welcome to the party."
Suddenly, the four clown-faced men closest to the double doors draw out dart guns, aiming at each of the vigilantes. With surprisingly speed and accuracy, they fire the guns, hitting their targets before any of them have a chance to even fully turn around.
One of the darts flies into the side of Jason's neck, imbedding itself into the small bit of skin showing between the bottom of his helmet and the collar of his jacket. Jason might have been impressed by the marksmanship, if he hadn't been the one to get hit by it. He lets out a small grunt as a spark of pain shoots through him; reaching up, he tears the dart free. But the damage has already been done, and he feels a dizzying coldness spread throughout him as he staggers forward.
The sedative is fast; already Jason's vision is blurring. "Robin…" he slurs, reaching towards the dark figure he assumes is his brother.
"Knight?"
The voice is distant, muffled. Jason gasps, straining to draw in choked breaths. He hears something that sounds vaguely like a heavy body hitting the ground, followed by a second thud. Then his legs are giving out, and he crumples to his knees.
His vision is almost completely black now. He thinks he may have fallen on his side, but everything feels so fuzzy…it's hard to tell.
There's the sound of faint laughter.
And then silence.
/
Jason wakes up with a low groan, curling in on his side and clutching his head. He can't recall the last time he had a headache this bad before.
What the hell happened? He blinks hard, trying to remember how he had gotten to…wherever he is.
Then the memory of what occurred outside of the Visitor Center comes back to him, and he jerks upwards into a sitting position. "Batman?" he calls out, trying not to sound as frantic as he feels.
Frowning, he glances about him. He's in an empty, dark room; there's no furniture, no windows – nothing. Just him.
"Shit," he mutters. How could they have been so stupid? They knew it was a trap going in, but to walk into something that obvious? Jason lets out a frustrated breath, running his hands through his hair. He freezes, then drops a hand to his face, running it down his cheek.
His Gotham Knight helmet is gone.
He struggles to control the panic threatening to surge up within him at the realization. Without his helmet, or a domino mask of any kind, the sudden vulnerability he feels is overwhelming. Who had taken his helmet off? Who has seen him since?
Jason glances down, and isn't surprised to see that his utility belt has been removed as well. He's also missing his jacket, and unfortunately the plain t-shirt he wears beneath it isn't doing a very good job of keeping out the room's chill. Jason sighs, rubbing a hand across his forehead and desperately wishing he had a pain-reliever pill from his utility belt right now.
"Oh good! You're awake."
Startled, Jason spins around at the voice, trying to pinpoint where it had come from.
The Joker laughs, his voice somewhat crackling as it filters through the speakers. "My, you're quite jittery tonight, Jason! Is something bothering you?"
"Where the hell are they, Joker?" Jason says savagely.
Joker lets out a chuckle. "They're being taken care of, don't you worry, my dear Robin. You, however, have a special surprise waiting. Several, actually."
"I don't feel like playing your damn games, Joker," snaps Jason. "Where are they?"
"Patience is a virtue you never excelled at, Jason," tuts the Joker. "Maybe you'll learn some by the end of the night. Now, why don't you pick yourself up off that filthy floor, and go see what festivities I've got made up in your honor. It's either that, or sit in this room and rot while I disembowel your little family."
Gritting his teeth, Jason stands, turning to face the double doors to the room as they slowly swing inwards. Hanging from the outer doorframe are giant letters made up of flashing lightbulbs, spelling out two words suspended in the air:
JOKER'S FUNHOUSE
Behind the words is a purple stage curtain, which completely obscures whatever lies beyond it from Jason's view. Carnival music seeps into the room, making the hairs stand up on the back of Jason's neck as he approaches the doorway. Swallowing, he stretches out his hand, wrapping shaking fingers around the edge of the soft material.
Jason pauses, closing his eyes for a moment. Then he sets his jaw, determination coursing through him.
He takes a deep breath, and rips aside the curtain.