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Legal disclaimer: I tend to liberally "borrow" DC adapted character profiles and art from the Earth-27 wiki created by Roy Westerman with principle art coming from digital artist Phil Cho. Other creators and artists are found there as well and I will specifically list any original creations with creator citations as I utilize them. In short, this is the single most comprehensive retelling of all things DC and beyond I have encountered. It's worth your time to explore.
Neo Joker cover art provided by provided by myself utilizing AI at
Free, similar commercial and private use art by myself can be found at at at the following URL: /users/brinmacen:17542437/
There I host a growing gallery of character portraits drawn from the DCAU series of stories.
That having been said, the properties, and their variations belong to DC Comics through WarnerMedia and its parent, the Discovery empire with notable exceptions. More on that in the footnote. I do not own DC characters or their interpretations and re-imaginings. My own characters are implied Public Domain since I have not included a copyright notice as required by the 1974 revisions of the copyright statutes and regulations. While an intellectual copyright is implied without the due symbols and language, all such considerations are generally voided under CC-BY-SA, which governs this site, unless duly noted otherwise.
Open Source attributions are listed after the story concluded to satisfy legalese requirements. And all "super" characters other than Open Source have been seen in comic books before barring any original characters coming from the Earth-27 Wiki or myself. You can look into Public Domain Superheroes Wiki and the DC Database Wiki's own vaults to verify this.
Although this is primarily set in the DCAU, I incorporate attributes of dozens of interpretations of each character, comic telling era, and medium into the telling.
Justice League Anthology order insertion
Justice League New Beginning: DCAU Series Part 1
Justice League Second Strike: DCAU Series Part 2
Justice League Past Imperfect: DCAU Series Part 3
Justice League Nuptials: DCAU Series Part 4
Justice League Cardinal Sin: DCAU Series Part 5
Justice League Twice Shy: DCAU Series Part 6
Justice League Darkness: DCAU Series Part 7
Justice League Family Affairs: DCAU Series Part 8
Justice League Conflict: DCAU Series Part 9
Justice League Crossroads:DCAU Series Part 10
Justice League the Corps: DCAU Series Part 11
Justice League Family Ties: DCAU Series Part 12
Claire Connelly: a DCAU Series Anthology story
Justice League Eternal War: DCAU Series Part 13
Justice League Shadows: DCAU Series Part 14
Justice League Night Falls: DCAU Series Part 15
Justice League Front Lines: DCAU Series Part 16
Justice League Convergence: DCAU Series Part 17
Justice League Ascension: DCAU Series Part 18
Justice League Courts: DCAU Series Part 19
Justice League Legions: DCAU Series Part 20
Justice League Power Ring Corps: DCAU Series Part 21
Justice League Daemonites: DCAU Series Part 22
Justice League Soldiers: DCAU Series Part 23
Justice League Downfall: DCAU Series Part 24
Justice League Aspirations: DCAU Series Part 25
Justice League Realms: DCAU Series Part 26
the Funtabulous Wedding of Drs Harleen Quinzel & Pamela Isely
Stars Collide: a DCAU Series Anthology tale
Blades Free: a DCAU series Anthology story
Hellequin & the Paragons: a DCAU series Anthology story
Superwoman & the Paragons: a DCAU series Anthology story
Empress Penguin's private little war - a DCAU series Anthology story
Oracle: a DCAU series Anthology story
Injustice Society: a DCAU series Anthology story
Disco Mummy: a DCAU series Anthology story
Enchantress' Peril: a DCAU series Anthology story
Killer Frost - Blades in the Heart: a DCAU series Anthology story
Wicked Witch: A DCAU series Anthology story
The Cult: a DCAU series Anthology story
Family in Crisis: a DCAU series Anthology story
Oracle Sees All: a DCAU series Anthology story
Dark Lord: a DCAU series Anthology story
Genesis Point: a DCAU series Anthology story
Evil Queen: a DCAU series Anthology story
Kalea-El: a DCAU series Anthology story
Glorith: a DCAU series Anthology story
Wickedest Witch: a DCAU series Anthology story
Red Hood: A DCAU series Anthology story
Music Meister: a DCAU series Anthology story
Beryl & Rose - Date Night: a DCAU series Anthology story
Family Bonds: a DCAU series Anthology story
Duet feat Music Meister & Upbeat: a DCAU series Anthology story
Phantasm & the Bat: a DCAU series Anthology story
Injustice Reigns: a DCAU series Anthology story
Marian Drews: a DCAU series Anthology story
The Bat Clan Reborn: a DCAU series Anthology story
Evil Delights: a DCAU series Anthology story
Music Meister of the Opera: a DCAU series Anthology story
Family Tragedies: a DCAU series Anthology story
Something Wicked: a DCAU series Anthology story
Plastic Woman: a DCAU series Anthology story
Repo Men: a DCAU series Anthology story
The Disco Mummy Strikes: a DCAU series Anthology story
Oracle Undercover: a DCAU series Anthology story
Oracle Knows All: a DCAU series Anthology story
Injustice For All: a DCAU series Anthology story
Dazaar the Arch Fiend: a DCAU series Anthology story
Frosted Blades: a DCAU series Anthology story
Fido: a DCAU series Anthology story
Lightning Raider: a DCAU series Anthology story
Family Struggles: a DCAU series Anthology story
Those Wicked Ways: a DCAU series Anthology story
Hella Fun! A DCAU series Anthology story
Domino Lady: a DCAU series Anthology story
Air Wave: a DCAU series Anthology story
Justice League Beyond Prologue: a DCAU Series Part 0
Lana Linda Lang - Superwoman: a DCAU series Anthology story
Oracle sees the Light: a DCAU series Anthology story
Justice League Beyond Lois Lane: DCAU Series Part 2
Red Hood's Calling: a DCAU series Anthology story
London's Calling: a DCAU series Anthology story
Wrath of the Phantasm
Knight's Fall: a DCAU series Anthology Story
Justice League Beyond Down the Rabbit Hole: DCAU Series Part 3
Justice League Beyond Further Down The Rabbit Hole: DCAU Series Part 4
Christmas Horror: a DCAU series Anthology story
Justice League Beyond Disco Mummy's Revenge: DCAU Series Part 5
Justice League Beyond Evil Incarnate: DCAU Series Part 6
Maxima: a DCAU series Anthology story
Injustices: a DCAU series Anthology story
Order of St. Batman: a DCAU series Anthology story
Grudge Match: a DCAU series Anthology story
Vacay: a DCAU series Anthology story
Deep Web: a DCAU series Anthology story
Meet n Greet: a DCAU series Anthology story
Justice League Beyond Reich: DCAU Series Part 7
Chaos Descends: a DCAU series Anthology story
The Jokerz were preparing for total war. Christina Bell, the Neo Joker, overlooked the Royal Court and watched as they distributed guns, knives, and dynamite to every Jokerz gang member. Hellequin had come through with the cash for her uprising. Marian Drews had financed Neo Joker's plan to bring Gotham City to its knees as she forced the citizens to descend into the chaos of an anarchy of their own making. She'd posted a one hundred million dollar bounty on Commissioner Barbara Gordon's head. Bonus bounties were offered for Det. Lt. Harvey Bullock, Det. Lt. Renee Montoya, and Det. Sgt. Jason Bard.
Inquiries of how to collect were streaming in from every district. Even admitted GCPD officers and Crows Security agents were vying for the prize. Punchline, J-Man, Card Queen, and Dee Dee were sending the Jokerz out to wreak havoc while everyone sought Gordon's head. Hellequin had gathered the Wonderland Gang for a special engagement in the affair. Red Alice, the Mad Hatter and their accomplices would strike the social ladder of Gotham City. They'd already proven they could get at Derek Powers. Charise Carnes and the other wealthy elites would be added to the target list. Jacob Kane, Mary Hamilton, Rocki Ballentine, and Kathy Duquesne would add the flavor of helplessness Neo Joker wanted projected.
Neo Joker had warned Knightfall, Empress Penguin, the Riddler, and Killer Croc to stay within their boundaries and allow the Jokerz free passage through the districts they controlled. The truest tests would come from the Narrows, East End, the Bowery, Otisburg, and Tricorner, now all claimed as protective fiefdoms of the Order of St. Batman.
Neo Joker bought Intergang's neutrality by returning their funds stolen from the banks formerly controlled by the Falcone Family. Over one billion dollars had been returned to port from the offshore freighter the cargo container holding it when Neo Joker recalled the ship from international waters. Intergang took the container back out to sea to deliver it to Metropolis. Intergang sent word that the Jokerz could run amok without interference so long as Intergang's own interests were spared.
The momentum for the evening had begun a week ago when Jokerz killed a group of investment bankers drunkenly harassing a young woman on the subway. Other killings of targeted corporate types involved in abusive behaviors had ignited the imaginations of the downtrodden. After the recent alien riots and Nazi interventions, people were tired of racial and social discrimination. Exploitation in any form was being met with violent resistance.
Neo Joker had gone on a local late-night show to promote her agenda. She gassed the audience and guests with Joker Venom before shooting the host on live television. Punchline was leading a strike to the power plant to destroy the generators. Deidre and Denise Dennis, known collectively as Dee Dee, had been sent back in time to insure the rise of the Jokerz. They'd already led gangs out of Devil's Square, the district the Jokerz loosely laid claim to. Card Queen was taking bands of Jokerz to Cherry Heights while J-Man took bands to Burnside.
Neo Joker was setting up an encampment of Jokerz in downtown on Founders Island. Clown masks were being passed out to volunteers wanting to join the tonight's epic showdown with the GCPD and the Crows. Most of Neo Joker's followers were simply civilians fed up with the status quo in Gotham. Rioting was already underway with minutes to go until Punchline destroyed the electrical plant. The Wonderland Gang would be striking out at a fundraiser for the Wayne Foundation hosted by Kate Kane. Bruce Wayne had donated his penthouse in Gotham City to the Wayne Foundation, so Kate frequently used it for benefits and presentations.
Both her father and stepsister were going to be present. Kane had sold his stake in Kane Industrial after retiring from the military to found Crows Security. It was a subsidiary of Wayne Powers. Derek Powers had just signed it away to Karen Starr in addition to his returning her corporate headquarters and production facilities and reimbursing her for the patents Wayne Powers was now using under license to Starrware. Smoak Tech and Queen Consolidated were also open once again with newly divested production facilities to bolster their original manufacturing base.
Derek Powers himself was putting a cheerful facade of adherence to recent federal court decisions reversing the Masked Leader's nationalization and sales of companies. Insiders reported his screaming tantrums that destroyed offices and their furniture. Kate had no clue that the Wonderland Gang was behind this adherence to the law or Powers' own recent generosity to the Wayne Foundation endowment. He'd be in attendance tonight to hob nob potential deals with lesser rivals.
Mary Hamilton owned the majority stake in Hamilton Dynamics. Jacob Kane still held ten percent of the company. Powers would be a predator seeking to narrow their share holdings with purchase offers. Kate knew Mary, an intern at Dr. Leslie Thompkins Clinic, had no interest in being a Board member. So she was vulnerable to Powers at this time, so soon after Catherine Hamilton's murder by Red Alice. Commander Kane was also vulnerable, having lost his second wife in the attack but yet still not forgiving Catherine for faking the DNA results that "proved" Beth, Kate's fraternal twin sister, was dead.
Beth had returned to Gotham as Red Alice. She'd disbanded the Red Claws in order to undertake a personal mission of vengeance against her father and reintroduce herself to Kate. Kate had been the first to identify Red Alice as Beth. The twins had a complex relationship. Kate couldn't condone Red Alice's murder and crime sprees but she shielded Beth from Commander Kane's quest for vengeance all the same. Kane still refused to acknowledge Red Alice as Beth. She'd left a blood sample with Catherine's corpse to force him to run the DNA.
Bruce Wayne had given Kate the Wayne foundation to run to keep her from following his example and becoming another Batwoman. Kane had trained Kate for years following her dismissal from West Point so that she could take over the Batmen once he had them operational. Amanda Waller had blocked the transfer of command. She wanted Kane to hand over the reins of power to Ulysses Armstrong, the original Anarky who was now called Red Robin with Young Justice. Kane convinced Red Robin to drop out of the program to work for him. He was being groomed to assume command of the elite Batmen.
Kane had retired the presumptive replacement Bat Clan after securing 1st generation Miraclo from them. They lived on the Falcone family estate in Florida. Red Robin was assisted in strategic and tactical leadership by Captain Midnight and Sgt. Twilight. Kate felt obligated to keep Kane and Mary safe from Powers while they attended.
Other major tycoons that would be in attendance were Charise Carnes, Maxwell Lord, and Eve Tessmacher. Tessmacher was there on behalf of Lena Luthor, who declined attendance. Kate had truly hoped to be able to corner Mercy Graves and find out details of LuthorCorp's sponsorship of the new Batman International. Lord rarely involved himself in corporate dealings regarding Innovative Concepts these days, preferring to work as the Justice League Unlimited's ambassador the United Nations. Kate was pleasantly surprised by Claire Montgomery's arrival. As the founder and venture capitalist behind the Conglomerate super teams for hire, Claire represented a contrast to Candace Zither's Zither Security Group or Team Luthor combat armor suits for sale.
Zither Security had escorted Tessmacher as per their LuthorCorp executive and facility contracts. Duquesne Security handled the private security for most interests in attendance. Kathy Duquesne herself was a fashionably late arrival alongside Rocki Ballentine. Commander Kane spent a great deal of time on the phone with Agent Sophie Moore, the love of Kate's life, and the Crows' field commander. Kate stopped to check on Mary.
"I'm glad you could make it," she admitted.
"Derek Powers is eyeing me like I'm meat on a hook," Mary complained.
"He wants your shares of Hamilton Dynamics. Or at least enough of them to convince a majority of shareholder to merge with Wayne Powers," Kate sighed, "I'm afraid he's already persuaded Commander Kane to part with his."
"At least you don't call him 'the Colonel' anymore," Mary softly chuckled.
"Still, Dr. Hamilton, you'll have to make a decision of what to do with your voting shares," Kate advised her.
"I may have a solution," Tessmacher stepped in closer, "I overheard the last snippets of conversation. The Board at Hamilton Dynamics has gone on record voicing displeasure at your refusal to sell your shares to them. Have you considered a neutral third party?"
"I hardly consider LuthorCorp 'neutral'," Mary scoffed.
"I'm offering a sale, at a slight mark up of trading value, to a three-person consortium," Tessmacher explained, "Lena Luthor, Mercy Graves, and I have been looking for a research firm to conduct R LuthorCorp isn't equipped for. Hamilton Dynamics, on the other hand, is."
Kate was too stunned to speak but felt apprehensive for some reason. Mary asked the most pertinent question, "I thought LuthorCorp was already involved in genetic and biochemical research. You have the Everyman Project."
"The Everyman Project is a niche market," Tessmacher explained, "Hamilton Dynamics is mainstream. We'd even keep the same in honor of your mother."
"I don't know what to say," Mary confessed.
"I'm spearheading the purchase of a suitable company. Let me give you my contact information and we can schedule a full presentation of intent when you're ready to talk," Tessmacher offered.
"I'd like that," Mary and Eve Tessmacher exchanged phone numbers. Tessmacher gave Mary her office numbers as well as her personal phone.
"That seemed abrupt," Kate confessed.
"I've heard about the work Eve Tessmacher and Lena Luthor have accomplished on the research side of things," Mary told her, "Mercy Graves is an administrator but Lena and Eve are researchers as well as business leaders."
"I suppose I can make my offer now?" Derek Powers wore an oily smile, "I'll double whatever LuthorCorp is offering."
"No thank you, Mr. Powers. I'll consider one option at a time," Mary gave him a fake smile and a brush off. She and Kate mixed further into company. They got within earshot of the frosty meeting between Max Lord and his ex-wife, Claire Montgomery.
"Still trading in second rate heroes?" Lord sneered.
"My people bring a sense of corporate responsibility to their work," Claire dryly remarked, "The altruism is honest enough. But the paycheck insures that one of my people won't end up joining the Fourth Reich or some other super villain team to acquire a payoff. Are you still pretending to be a man of the people?"
"I take my roll at the United Nations very seriously," Lord promised her.
"But what's your angle, Max? You've never put yourself out on any project that didn't benefit you somehow," Claire reminded him.
"Global security isn't cause enough?" Lord asked.
"Word is you've been financing the Crimson Queen's further researches into mind control," Claire sipped her champagne.
"Enhanced, yet painless, interrogation techniques will improve the global order and minimize human suffering to get the same results," Lord shrugged.
"So selfless," Claire snickered, "Where was this Max Lord when we were married?"
"I was there everyday," Lord told her.
"That's my point, Max. You haven't changed. But your facade has improved," Claire admitted, "You're harder to pin down now."
Claire walked away from him before he could retort. Kate and Mary ended up at a window. The ebb and flow of lights and smoke indicated where fires had been set. Mary looked worried, "It's getting closer."
An explosion buffeted the windows and the lights went out. The penthouse's independent generators kicked in and the emergency lighting came on. Gunfire could be heard in the outer corridor. After several agonizing cries of pain the silence that followed loomed heavily over everyone. Then the doors to the outer corridor swung open. The Wonderland Gang had arrived.
"Don't stop eating, drinking, and being merry on our account," Red Alice smirked.
"You made a mistake coming here, murderer," Kane snarled.
"Dear, sweet Door Mouse, deal with daddy dearest," Red Alice instructed. Door Mouse hit Kane with a taser. The man went down in convulsions.
"It seems you forgot your body armor," Door Mouse heckled him. The March Hare led the gang members in aiming at the crowd. Tweedledee and Tweedledum began setting up a remote broadcasting system. The Mad Hatter twirled and clapped her hand in delight.
"Now, can we all just get along?" Red Alice laughed.
"Why are you here?" Kate pushed through the crowd.
"We're making a documentary. It's entitled 'The Rich and Shameless Begging for their Lives'. It's premiering on live television," Red Alice told her sister, "Of course, the local stations will run the rewinds after the cable news gets its live feed."
"That's why you needed to hit the gathering. Because we still have power," Kate surmised.
"Good guess, Katie Kat," Red Alice chuckled, "I guess cousin Bruce isn't the only detective in the family."
Hellequin strode in at that point brandishing her baseball bat, "Now, now. We've got to take care of the pregame show."
She gut punched Lord with it and then hit him over the head, "No last minute reprieves coming from this one."
Kathy Duquesne and Rocki Ballentine tried to maneuver into an opening in the crowd. Red Alice rolled her eyes, "No theatrics from the former Batwomen, please. You'll just get people killed."
"You won't be able to hold us," Charise Carnes predicted.
"Your personal bodyguard works for us now," Red Alice told her. Sally Sarasota came in with glazed eyes, "The Mad Hatter made her a job offer she couldn't refuse."
"I speak for us all when I refer to our hostage insurance policies. Settlements will take time to acquire," Derek Powers said in a snit.
"We don't want your money," Hellequin told him, "We're simply holding you until the court of public opinion arrives."
"What court?" Charise wanted to know.
"The very public taking the streets back tonight. They'll want their reckoning with the 'let them eat cake' crowd," Red Alice snickered.
"I want to eat cake," the Mad Hatter told her. Anna Wilson had been Jervis Tetch's last Alice before his death. Anna continued in the role of Alice with the Wonderland Gang until Red Alice appeared with Door Mouse and persuaded Anna to use her technical and engineering genius with nanotech to become the new and improved Mad Hatter, "We should throw one last tea party for the condemned."
"Very well, dear," Red Alice knew the Mad Hatter would be inconsolable otherwise, "Take over the catering staff and have your way then."
The Mad Hatter giddily clapped her hands and then began dosing the servers with nanotech dust. Charise Carnes was infuriated. If she revealed publicly that she was Knightfall, Bonecrusher would be released from the Mad Hatter's control and they'd be allowed to leave. But her goals as Knightfall made her fellow prisoners victims of legalized criminal behaviors. They'd turn on her if they survived whatever kangaroo court Neo Joker was bringing to the doorstep.
Charise knew the Mad Hatter's nanites had infected Sally Sarasota's brain through her capillaries in her eyes and nasal passages. It would take over twenty-four hours to flush them out of her system. For now, Bonecrusher was pinning Jacob Kane to the floor. The Tweedles alerted Red Alice that they were ready to begin transmitting. The idiot savants had a satellite transmission system erected so they could jam into national transmissions. Major network studios in NYC were unaffected by the power outage as were GBCN and LXTV in Metropolis. For once, Charise's hopes rested on Barbara Gordon.
The GCPD was besieged. The rioters were barely being kept out of the building by the amassed police force. Gordon had recalled every available unit to fend off the roving band of Jokerz enlistees. Punchline had led her strike team downtown to reunite with Neo Joker. Card Queen, Dee Dee, and J-Man had incited riots in Burnside, Cherry Heights, and Gotham Heights. Agent Moore and the Crows were responding to those Districts. Fortunately, it seemed, Mayor Sebastian Blood had vanished within his home district of the Narrows. Neo Joker wasn't parading Blood around so it seemed wherever he was, he was still safe. The city's aldermen and women couldn't say the same.
"Commish, we just lost Chinatown and Millers Harbor," Bullock warned her, "Montoya and the SRU are holdin' off the Jokerz but they ain't gettin' out either."
Communications through police band radio was still up. Capt. Molly O'Moore of SWAT had been the first to spot GCPD units joining the Jokerz. Several officers within headquarters had already tried collecting on Neo Joker's bounty. It seemed half the city's population had risen up in protest. Not surprising considering what they'd just endured at the hands of President Jackson Mason resigning the Presidency and handing it over to a clone of Adolf Hitler. Under "Von Hoogstraten's" administration, half the country had tried to consign the other half to concentration camps.
"Most of these people aren't Jokerz. They've legitimate grievances against the recent events and are reacting to Neo Joker's blitz of podcasts and talk radio. That television performance where she killed television celebrity socialites and their fans just tipped the scales in her favor with all the festering resentments out there," Barbara explained.
"Who'd a thunk killin' da 'Real Housewives of Gotham City' woulda launched a crusade?" Bullock was mystified.
"Those reality stars showed callous indifference to the suffering of the 99% of Gothamites that endured the original Nazi Occupation's depravity. They became a flash point for the elites that benefited from Von Hoogstraten compared to those that suffered as Gotham became one of the last cities to rebel against the Nazis," Gordon sighed, "They became a generic face for a social class that the common person wants to see humbled and suffer as much as they do."
"But why take it out on da City Council?" Bullock wondered.
"The City Council voted to empower the Fourth Reich and Imperialist Forces to come in to quell the alien riots," Gordon said sadly, "Despite the previous Occupation period and its abuses of power and ethnic segregation. Blood actively opposed the decision and led the resistance to the Nazis here in the city."
"So, yer thinkin' he's safe from da Jokerz?" Bullcok couldn't believe it.
"I think he's safe from the recruits. Neo Joker probably has her own plans for him," Barb told him, "Plans we need to interfere in."
"Commissioner, we've run out of rubber bullets and tear gas canisters," O'Moore reported as she briskly approached, "I have a chopper on the roof to get you to the NYPD. Commissioner Sawyer is willing to afford you a mobile command unit to direct affairs here. She's sealed off traffic from Gotham to New York."
"I'm not leaving Gotham. Have me taken to Wayne Manor. I'll be safe there and in communication," Gordon instructed.
"Word is you wouldn't be alone there," O'Moore told her, "Jaina Hudson airlifted Selina Kyle's household to Wayne Manor."
"Of course she did," Gordon said grimly, "For the same reasons I'm going. Wayne Manor is currently the safest location in Gotham's periphery. Bruce also has the means to connect with the GCPD airwaves. I'll be in touch, Captain. Harv, you're in charge until you hear from me again."
"I ain't the Deputy Commissioner," Buullock protested.
O'Moore cast a weary sidelong glance at Gordon, "Worthington was killed in his home as the riots began."
"Mayor Blood invoked his special privilege and promoted you to 'Captain'," Gordon fished a badge out of her jacket pocket and gave it to Bullock, "It's on file."
"Ya gotta be futzin' wit' me," Bullock grumbled.
"It's temporary, Harv," Gordon promised him, "I'll take that ride now."
"Let's get you to the roof," O'Moore summoned two SWAT officers to ascend the long stairwell with the Police Commissioner. On the roof, a helicopter did a touch and go long enough to pick Gordon up. The pilots were surprised to hear Gordon's revised destination. The helicopter itself was to land in Manhattan as soon as it dusted off from Wayne Manor.
Julia Pennyworth met Gordon on the lawns, "Selina said you'd come."
"How's Bruce responding to the crisis?" Babs asked.
"He and Ms. Hudson have been using sat phones to contact Homeland Security," Julia told her, "So far, the President isn't authorizing an intervention. Seems it's bad optics so soon after the military tried to invade. The governor won't deploy the National Guard for similar reasons. They seem to have Gotham cut off but the war is ours to fight."
"Bruce hasn't tried leaving the grounds, has he?" Barbara wondered.
"Father prevented Selina from leaving but otherwise, Mr. Wayne hasn't made a move," Julia was puzzled by the question.
"How did Bruce handle meeting Helena?" Barbara was dying of curiosity.
"He acted like she was ordnance about to detonate," Julia laughed.
"Commissioner Gordon, you've been expected," Jaina Hudson admitted.
"Barbara," Bruce said coolly.
"My other half is waiting for you to take over the Batcave," Jaina told her, "Alfred and Selina will keep Julia busy."
"And why am I working with the White Rabbit?" Barb complained.
"She has access to corridors of power denied even to the GCPD," Jaina smirked, "I'd use her if I were you."
"Then I'd better get started," Gordon went to clock and opened it to descend the hidden stairwell behind it. Bruce latched the clock closed.
"Putting her together with the White Rabbit is volatile," he warned Jaina.
"Having Barbara, Selina, and I under the same roof is downright explosive in nature but you didn't hesitate," Jaina advised him, "I believe they can work together once they sort their differences out. I contacted Butch Candon liked we agreed with Selina to do. The Newsboy Legion is standing down for the duration of the riots."
"Any word from Holly Robinson and Kitrina Falcone?" Bruce asked.
"None," Jaina frowned, "You concentrate on budging Waller and I'll try and persuade Vandal Savage to intervene. Catwoman and Catgirl are on their own for now."
"Have you tried to contact the Order of St. Batman?" Bruce could hardly say the name.
"I'm certain Commissioner Gordon will find you back channel to Father M'Buttu and use it," Jaina chuckled, "She does hack the Bat Computer on a regular basis."
"And how would you know that?" Bruce stiffened.
"You can relax. I have an arrangement with the Network Gordon works with as the hacktivist called the Commish. I feed Cypher data in exchange for answers. She's obtained information that could only come from someone with backdoor access to your system," Jaina told him, "Barbara obviously trusts Chloe Sullivan. You don't seem to have much choice these days. I know you've determined that Overwatch is Felicity Smoak. I also know you keep Barbara's connection open because you haven't deduced who Oracle is yet. Let's just say those with vaster resources than your own have also failed to."
Jaina hesitated before plunging onward, "I'm still surprised you managed to drive Alfred off."
"Alfred is where he needs to be," Bruce said stiffly.
"Yet you still insist on disavowing Helena as your heir," Jaina said sadly.
"She'll have her trust fund," Bruce grew even stiffer.
"But not her father. You tried that with Dick and Tim. How's it working for you?" Jaina chided him, "Should I even mention Jason Todd?"
"Jason received any inheritance he could've expected when he looted Batman Incorporated sites," Bruce grew angry.
"It must really gall you that Lena Luthor and Mercy Graves invested in the project when Derek Powers shut it down," Jaina observed.
"I don't trust any Luthor," Bruce growled.
"You have your reasons not to," Jaina admitted, "But Lena did order Mercy Graves to give them autonomy. Something you never did as Batman."
There was a knock at the study's door and Julia entered when bidden to, "A helicopter just landed outside and dropped of a new visitor. She's says she's expected."
"Did she give a name?" Jaina was mirthful.
"She said she was Sec. Waller's reply to your request," Julia shrugged, "That's all I could get. She's waiting in the foyer with enough gear bags to saddle an elephant."
"Let's get introduced," Jaina went to make her way to the foyer. Bruce was afraid of the possibilities of who it could be. One name in particular made his gut go cold. When he saw her, it froze over completely.
"You can go back now," Bruce told his former fiance, Andrea Beaumont.
"Not according to Waller. She also mentioned you're not in a position to dictate terms," Andrea told him.
"Go back to wherever she flew you out of, Andrea," Bruce advised her.
"Andrea," Jaina mused, "As in Beaumont? Bruce has told me so little about you. You're like the Holy Grail of women in his life. Everyone gets judged and condemned by the standard you set."
"And you're Jaina Hudson. Your reputations proceed you," Andrea shook her hand, "I take it I'm expected in a certain place?"
"Oh God," Selina groaned as Julia brought her in as well. Pennyworth retreated to give them privacy. Selina asked the obvious question, "Who did we piss off to get your company brought here?"
"Commander Kane has fallen off the grid," Andrea explained, "Sec. Waller sent me to reconnect him with her."
"He's at the Wayne Foundation benefit," Bruce told her, "He's quite safe."
"The penthouse with the lights still on?" Andrea asked, "I'm afraid armed guards are posted all around that space."
"Anybody whose anybody is there tonight," Jaina told her, "Excluding us."
"Including the Wonderland Gang?" Andrea asked.
Selina gasped. Bruce gave her a wary eye, "Let me guess, Holly and Kitrina's target tonight?"
"Is there any way of calling off Catwoman and Catgirl?" Andrea asked.
"They'll be radio silent for now," Selina told her.
"What am I missing?" Jaina interrupted, "Just who the hell are you?"
"Waller is willing to let you in on my secret because Bruce shared he was Batman with you," Andrea told her, "But, treachery comes with a life sentence in Belle Reeve."
"Bruce didn't have choice in the matter," Jaina told her, "White Rabbit figured it out while we held Bruce for ransom alongside the Red Hood and Poison Ivy."
"That explains that then," Andrea sighed, "My terms are absolute though. Waller wants you alive as a guinea pig. I'll simply kill you. Your counterpart won't be able to save you and she can't exist without you. Am I clear?"
"Except for the part of why you think you could manage to kill me," Jaina growled.
"She's the Phantasm," Selina said coldly, "The one killer even Batman couldn't stop."
"And here I was thinking the Phantasm was a man," Jaina smirked.
"A useful fiction," Andrea shared, "It keeps investigators from looking my way."
"But you've known," Jaina looked pointedly at Bruce, "Just like you've known about the White Rabbit and I and stayed silent."
"As much fun as this resolution could prove to be, I need access to the Cave," Andrea told them, "I assume Barbara Gordon is already down there?"
"Yes," Bruce said tersely.
"I know my way there," Andrea hefted her duffels and left the foyer behind. Selina and Jaina still looked at him expectantly.
"She works for Waller now," Bruce was defensive, "She'd receive a pardon for any crimes I linked her to."
"Convenient," Selina huffed before exiting herself.
"A house full of Batman's exes," Jaina chuckled, "This'll be fun after all."
Andrea dropped her gear at the base of the descending stairwell. Before her stretched the massive Bat Computer. Gordon was seated at it while White Rabbit twirled in a office chair.
"Andrea," Barbara's greeting wasn't much warmer than Bruce's had been, "I take it you're Waller's answer to our crisis?"
"I'm here to re-establish contact with Commander Kane. Crows Security has several outstanding contracts with the Dept. of Meta-Human Affairs that require his immediate attention," Andrea explained.
"You had to see the penthouse on the way in. It's the building with the lights still on," Gordon said stiffly.
"And held hostage by the Wonderland Gang," Andrea informed her, "The markets and banks are shut down by the power outage so the guests are being held for the Neo Joker's pleasure."
"That's a deduction," Gordon sniffed, "Why come to it?"
"Red Alice has personal business with Kane, Kate Kane, and Mary Hamilton. She doesn't need an audience for that. But Red Alice and the Mad Hatter frequently cooperate with Hellequin, who is Neo Joker's girlfriend. Neo Joker has staged everything to make a point," Andrea told her, "Comm sats have detected a break-in signal prepped and ready to go from that penthouse. Neo Joker claims to be a social justice warrior tonight. How better to prove it then put the one percent on trial?"
"The GCPD precincts are barely maintaining their perimeters. The Crows are facing the same. Individual units were overrun or joined Neo Joker's cause," Barbara said bitterly, "How do you propose to even get in there?"
"By forging an alliance with the Order of St. Batman," Andrea told her, "Catwoman and Catgirl are already affecting an entrance. You're already aware of Batwing's DEO ties. Waller simply recommended exploiting them to grant Azrael and his people immunity for a rescue."
"With a body count," Gordon grimaced.
"There will be one anyway," Andrea told her, "This way you get a choice of which side plays the victim."
"How do you propose to even get there from here?" Barb asked.
"The brand new flying Batmobile," Andrea smirked, "White Rabbit will take the controls and drop me off in the Narrows where I'll meet with Azrael and his cohorts."
"You seem very sure of yourself," Gordon noted.
"I'm the Irene Adler to Batman's Sherlock Holmes," Andrea said, "There aren't many that can say that."
"No, there aren't," Babs conceded, "Can you even fly that thing?"
"Done it before," White Rabbit snickered.
"Time is running out for the rich and shameless, Commissioner," Andrea prodded her, "What's your decision?"
"Suit up," Gordon grated.
"We're down to live rounds," O'Moore reported to Bullock, "Montoya reports the same. All the other precincts turned on each other and were overwhelmed when Jokerz loyalists inside the precinct tore down the barricades."
"Agent Moore at da Crows says they're down ta just holdin' HQ," Bullock said grimly, "They've had dozens defect as well. The Commish called in sat footage from a Wayne Powers weather bird. It seems a former Kane Industries factory still held by da Crows is bein' defended as well. Moore don't know nuthin' bout the site."
"It's in the Bowery," O'Moore studied the street topography, "That plant has been closed for a dozen years. There's no security detail assigned to it because it was stripped down to the concrete walls."
"Somebody is wrackin' up a body count dere," Bullock pointed the corpses surrounding the plant facility, "Da Jokerz have actually fallen back."
"What's that?" O'Moore pointed at an aerial object, "That looks like someone in wingsuit glider."
"But dere's nowhere ta jump from around dere," Bullock radioed Gordon and asked for verification of what the image had captured.
The object in question was one Jim "Red" Albright, code-named Captain Midnight. Albright had developed a gravity defying Nth metal belt that used his glider wingsuit to fly with. Ichabod "Icky" Mudd served as Sgt. Twilight, Captain Midnight's technical support. Albright was the Batmen's advance scout and reconnaissance agent. Red Robin had the Batmen deployed around the secretive headquarters fending off waves of Jokerz' recruits.
Red Robin was well aware they were average citizens just fed up with the status quo but Punchline had them in a frenzy and trying to penetrate the base. The more the Batmen resisted, the more people Punchline sent at them. The Batmen were Jacob Kane's militarized adaptation of Batman. They served Waller's national security interests across the globe. This was their first domestic operation. No one had ever attempted to penetrate security until tonight.
The heart of the base was the underground labyrinth known as the Bunker. They could abandon the surface and the factory would appear as abandoned and neglected as it was. Red Robin had already dressed own the perimeter sentry that opened fire in the first place, betraying the importance of the facility. Now Punchline was willing to trade lives to learn its secrets.
Ulysses Armstrong recalled the Batmen back to the Bunker and blew the self-destruct charges that brought factory down atop of it. They still had access points spread across Gotham so they weren't trapped. But now the Jokerz and the rest of the world would know something worth killing for had been here. Jacob Kane and Amanda Waller would crucify the sentry. Red Robin would shield him as best as he could but he knew the man's career was over with.
Kane himself had gone silent after the power outage. He needed Captain Midnight in the air around the Wayne Foundation gala to find out if something were amiss. He sent Sgt. Twilight and Albright down a service tunnel to exit at Millers Harbor and reach Founders Island. Red Robin began readying the Batmen for their first domestic deployment in case Waller authorized a rescue op. Instead, he received satellite traffic ordering him to stand down and secure the Bunker from unexpected entry.
Neo Joker reveled in the anarchy she'd unleashed. Card Queen was directing the rioters near the Crows' corporate headquarters. Dee Dee had charge of containing and overrunning the Special Response Unit. J-Man could wrap things up at the GCPD's central precinct. It was time for Christina Bell to collect her prize at the Wayne Foundation. She'd had generators brought in to power Central Plaza's big screens and transceivers. The signal from the gala was already transmitting. Neo Joker knew network television channels were running it in the background waiting for a development. She would give them a major development.
After her parading billionaires for public trial and execution, she'd honor her agreements with Emperor Blackgate and the Scarecrow. Ignatius Ogilvy and Jack Crane were expecting mass releases of prisoners as the riots climaxed. She'd empty Blackgate Prison and Arkham Island. Most of the liberated would be offered a home within the Jokerz. Arkham's standard patients would easily fit in. Some of the convicts would as well. Those that refused would simply be disposed of rather than complicate Neo Joker's plans for Gotham.
The streets were being cleared so her convoy could reach Founders Island. Portable generators were again in supply to power a single elevator. Neo Joker began shuttling her acolytes to reinforce the Wonderland Gang. She had plans for Red Alice and her merry band. The question remained whether Hellequin would remain loyal to her vision for Gotham or side with her friends? Christina Bell loved Marian Drews to the best of her capacity but the siren call, of her destiny rang in her ears. If Hellequin didn't hear it as well, she'd be disposable.
Neo Joker arrived at the penthouse to find the billionaire set blubbering and making outrageous offers to secure their freedom. The Tweedles began overriding transmissions as Neo Joker strutted in front of the camera so that the network feeds would switch to the unfolding action.
"My mission, here in Gotham, is to expose the fact that humanity at its core is all corrupt. That people will choose death and violence as first recourse rather than a last. My joke on Gotham is that the citizens have revolted against their fellow citizens to seek vengeance for what's been done to them. So I'm giving them that chance," Neo Joker announced, "We've laced the this penthouse, filled with the one percent of Gotham's societal richest class and laced bombs around a ferry transporting average workers from Manhattan to Millers Harbor. In fifteen minutes both bombs will go off. Unless one side or the other activates a detonator that the ferry captain should have found by now as the engines were disabled. I am now handing the detonator over to the so-called 'elites'. At midnight both bombs will go off. The only other choice is to detonate the other bomb early. Cameras on the ferry and the cameras in here will record the deliberations. Afterwards, society can judge what was right or evil about the choice."
"Are you insane?" Derek Powers raged.
"I'm certain Dr. Jack Crane would agree with you," Neo Joker laughed, "The elevators have been disabled once again. So your captors will share your fate."
Neo Joker gave the word for Jacob Kane to be released. She handed him the detonator, "The choice will be yours, Colonel."
"I didn't sign up for this," Red Alice told Neo Joker. A strobe and the sound of rotor blades filled the air as a helicopter hovered over the balcony and dropped a rope ladder.
"It's too bad it was chosen for you. You lack vision, Red Alice. You're shortsightedness is going to cost you," Neo Joker told her at gunpoint. She opened her jacket, "If I die, both bombs go off. So, I wouldn't start plotting my murder just yet."
"This wasn't the plan," Hellequin grated.
"This was always the plan," Neo Joker corrected her, "I just didn't tell you this part so you'd make an honest choice of whether or not to join me."
"What are you waiting for, Kane?" Derek Powers screamed at him, "Push the damn button!"
"They'll do it to you if you hesitate," Neo Joker laughed and laughed as she went to the balcony door, "Coming?"
"I'll take my chances," Hellequin told her, "But that was the plan all along, wasn't it?"
"Sadly, I knew you'd make the wrong choice," Neo Joker blew her kiss, "It was nice while it lasted."
"Bitch will pay," Hellequin vowed as the chopper lifted away.
"Well? Use the detonator," Red Alice panicked.
"No, those people on the ferry can't afford not to come home," Kane lectured his daughter, "We can afford to die. Our legacies are insured."
"I am not dying for some peons on a boat!" Derek Powers went to lunge at Kane. Hellequin's bat intercepted his stomach in a swing to reach the bleachers.
"Shut the futz up," Hellequin snarled, "One of the caterers planted the bomb earlier today. Whoever they are, they're a true believer in Neo Joker's plan. We have to force a confession out of them."
"You mean torture them," Kathy Duquesne said sourly.
"I mean we use the Mad Hatter's mind control to our advantage," Hellequin clarified. A server pulled a pistol out of her jacket, pressed the barrel to her chin and fired.
"I need a little more to work with," Mad Hatter said innocently.
"Are you people aware there's a bomb strapped to the balcony?" Catwoman asked as she and Catgirl climbed over the railing.
"Can you disable it?" Kane asked.
"Do I look like a bomb tech?" Catwoman asked.
"Waitaminute!" Catgirl called out, "There's someone down there unhooking it!"
Kane saw Captain Midnight take the bomb out to the river and drop it in the water. Powers wheezed, "What if there's a second one?"
"I'm not blowing up a ferry full of people," Kane said firmly.
"Then let me do it," Powers snarled.
"You are aware, I presume, that you're on an international stage?" Red Alice pointed at the camera.
Powers stomped over to the befuddled Tweedles and smashed the camera against the floor, "Now I'm not."
"I think it'll take years of PR to undo the damage you've done to yourself tonight," Eve Tessmacher told him, "Meanwhile, I have a Team Luthor unit dispatched from Metropolis to secure the building."
"We'll be leaving then," Red Alice told everyone, "Hatter?"
The Mad Hatter directed the affected caterers and serving staff to forming a human barrier between the Wonderland Gang and the exit. Red Alice pulled Hellequin towards their retreat, "We can still get out before the Luthor drones arrive."
"The Joker's genetic memory imprint on Neo Joker was more successful than he'd ever realized," Hellequin was barely containing her fury, "She'll be joining him soon enough."
"I thought you said he was dead," Red Alice wanted confirmation.
"He is," Hellequin supplied it, "She will be too."
"We'll be more than happy to help," Red Alice grinned, "But first, we exit."
"You can't let them leave!" Powers was boiling into a tantrum.
"Mr. Powers, I suggest you calm down," Charise advised him, "Before you shred what little dignity you have left to you."
"Well, we'll be going as well," Catwoman warned everyone, "We've done our misdeed for the day."
"You're not Selina Kyle," Kane confronted her.
"No, I'm not. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't still get out of my way," Holly Robinson warned him.
"Commander, please do what she says," Kate intervened.
"She's a thief," Kane angrily accused.
"Not today, I'm not," Catwoman smirked. She showed off the empty contents of her backpack. Catgirl did the same. Kane tried one last tactic, "I should bring you in for child endangerment."
"You'd have to arrest the guardian of every Young Justice member to make that stick," Catgirl mocked him.
"Dad, let them go," Mary pleaded. Kane relented in the face of both his daughters' opposition. The Cats repelled down the building and entered a deserted apartment. The owners were out of town. Holly and Kitrina changed clothes and used their backpacks to stash their costumes. Now they had to cross districts to return to the Kyle brownstone.
Team Luthor descended moments later. One unit secured the ground floors while the second unit assessed the security situation surrounding Eve Tessmacher. Team Leader One reported on the elevators' condition, "We can restore power to the elevator bank but you're all safer here."
Kane and Kathy Duquesne agreed. Kane retrieved his own sat phone from the coat closet and contacted Sophie Moore, "Agent Moore, what's your status?"
Moore's report was grim. Multiple defections from once trusted agents had killed several Crows agents and forced a retreat back to the bunker-like corporate headquarters. Kane assured her Kate was fine and ordered her to hold fast to their position.
Kane contacted Waller, "Madame Secretary, I suppose you're aware of the situation on the ground in Gotham."
"I am," Waller's voice replied with some aggravation, "Red Robin reported bringing the factory facade down because one of your Batmen lost fire discipline and drew the Jokerz' attention to the site. The Bunker is secure and Captain Midnight has advised Red Robin as to the fuller situation in Gotham."
"So we can deploy?" Kane hungered for the order.
"You will stand down, Colonel," Waller snapped, "It's bad enough there's a body count the GCPD will investigate at the factory site. I have an agent in play in Gotham. The Phantasm is in command of the Department's response. I suggest you focus on keeping your public agents alive."
"Will the Governor mobilize the National Guard and State Police?" Kane asked.
"Negative. There are still bad optics from the Von Hoogstraten administration's tenure in office. Gotham is blockaded. No one gets in and no one gets out," Waller told him, "So I suggest you make do with what you have."
"So Homeland won't respond either," Kane groused.
"Bones has sought Presidential clearance to send specialists in. He was denied on every front. All that's left now is personal appeals for help. You, Commander Kane, lack the authority to do so," Waller reminded him, "The plea would have to come from Mayor Blood or Commissioner Gordon. Blood hasn't been seen since the riots began and Gordon never arrived at her checkpoint with NYPD."
"So we're being hung at as dead meat on a hook," Kane said bitterly.
"Don't underestimate Gordon. She has resources you could only dream of," Waller chuckled nastily.
"I have my own damn resources if you'd just allow me to use them," Kane snarled.
"Don't shit in your own house," Waller hung up.
Kane had seen operations go bad before but he'd never felt this helpless since his wife and Beth were kidnapped by Red Claw. His entire military and civilian careers were based around never feeling that way again. But it seemed he was doomed to anyway.