Chapter 40

Two days passed by with no signs of the Joker making a move...

"He's a smart one, isn't he?" Barbara said as she patted Ace that was lying down on the floor of the batcave where she's staying currently. She even does her work from here since she keeps the files in her computer in her office and already synced it with the batcomputer. Her meetings were all done online.

"Yeah. It's unlikely that he had an owner that trained him before Alfred found him. He must have survived on his own in the woods..." Terry said as he looked at Ace.

"Once this blows over, I'll personally put him up for K9 training."

Terry made a wry smile. "That's probably for the best...he's too smart to just know basic tricks." Terry looked at Barbara this time. "You're planning on going home today, aren't you?"

"...I can't stay here permanently, Terry. It's not normal to stay in this dark and glum place all the time. I have a job. And let's face it, we can't round up the Jokerz anytime soon...we can't cower and fear for our lives here when the people of Gotham is out there in the open for them to terrorize. I'm the police commissioner and not a princess for god's sakes... I acknowledged this setup is temporary since the beginning when I agreed to stay here."

"...you're right. I was just so frustrated that I can't anticipate their moves and got too paranoid."

"I know what you mean...this just means that it's necessary for them to get me out of the picture first before they proceed with their other plans."

Terry stared at the ceiling and pondered over the situation. "You're planning on being bait..."

"Right...the Joker isn't patient. He'll be bored soon and start killing randomly just to snuff me out."

As Terry continued to stare at the ceiling, a glint of light caught his attention. It made him smile.

He looked at Barbara and said "You don't have to go outside to be bait..."

Barbara tilted her head and furrowed her brows.

----

"Hey, look! It's her!" The man in a van shouted to alert his companions and pointed at Barbara entering her house.

"Should we go in now?" One of them asked.

"Boss said to let her settle in first for a couple of minutes."

"Okay. In five minutes, we'll go in for the kill."

The men in the van waited patiently for five minutes.

"Let's go!"

They all put on their clown masks and cocked their guns.

They ran across the street towards the house in perfect formation.

"On three..." The leader said as he readied to open the door. "..one... two..." he took a deep breath before shouting "three!"

When he opened the door, there was no one there...

"Huh?"

Kiiiiii

Three police patrol cars came right after and blocked their escape.

The eight men gulped and immediately dropped their guns before lifting their hands up.

Batman came swooping down.

"Is the commissioner safe?" The vice-commissioner asked him.

"Yes...she's staying with a friend." Batman replied before looking at the thugs.

"The hologram worked. We got them."

"No. He's not here. This is a diversion."

"...Where do you think he's going to hit up next?"

"...I don't know. We're completely blind until we figure out what exactly their plan is..." Batman furrowed his brows. "Did you send men to Powers Tech like we planned?"

"Five units are already standing by there."

They assumed Powers Tech would be next after the Jokerz hit up WayneTech.

-Vice-commisioner!

It came from his radio.

"What is it?" The vice-commissioner replied.

-We got a call from Arkham! The Jokerz broke in, sir!"

The Vice-commissioner widened his eyes then, Batman shot up into the sky and flew towards the direction of Arkham.

-Meanwhile in Arkham Asylum-

"You must be Harley Quinn..." The big man in overalls said as he looked at the person inside the room. "We're here to break you out."

"...It looks like the rumors are true... Mr. J is back." She smiled and got up from her yoga pose.

Her blonde hair was neatly tied up into a ponytail and she wore nothing but her patient gown over her underwear.

As she got out of her cell, the members of the Jokerz made way for her.

"What's your name, big man?" Harley asked.

"My name is Bonk, Ma'am."

She scanned each one of them. "Is this all of you? You broke in with just ten people?"

"Yes." Bonk said proudly.

"...I'm guessing we're going to fight our way out of here as well?" Harley raised her brow as she smiled.

Bonk nodded in reply.

Harley held out her hand. Bonk looked at it and shook her hand.

Harley made a disappointed face as she slapped Bonk's hand in full force.

"Moron...I meant give me a weapon! You don't expect me to fight my way out of here with my bare hands!"

"Y-yes!" Bonk looked at his subordinate and asked him to hand a gun over. "Here you go, Ma'am. Sorry." He said as he handed a pistol to her.

Harley cocked it and put her hand on her waist and made a pose. "Alright! I'm ready!" She exclaimed with a wide smile. "I'm assuming you also hacked the cameras, right?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!...

"Argh!"

"Ugh!"

"Ngh!"

She immediately shot down the Jokerz that were trying to break her out after confirming the cameras are off. Bonk was the only one left alive, but only because Harley missed and hit his shoulder instead of his neck.

"Urgh!...What the hell are you doing!" Bonk shouted in resentment.

Harley quickly shot his arm which was holding a gun before he could point it at her.

"Argh!"

"Oopsie...I guess I've lost my touch for being in the slammer too long." She chuckled.

"We were trying to break you out!" Bonk shouted.

"Who said I wanted to be broken out of here?" Harley started circling around him. "I have only one month left until I get out of here...you want me to get another case?!" She shouted.

"!! B-but don't you want to see Joker again?"

"Fuck him!" Harley glared at Bonk. "...He never really cared anyways..." Harley frowned. "I'm turning over a new leaf! Boss Eduardo down at Blackgate already came by and assured I have a job once I get out of here." She smiled proudly

Bonk's face paled as he felt hopeless of his current impending death.

"So tell your boss not to bother me again!" She shouted at him.

What Harley said made Bonk's face turn bright again.

Harley scratched her chin with the gun she was holding and made a thinking pose. "Wait..."

What she says next once again took Bonk's energy away from him.

"...that would mean I'll have to let you go and Mr. J would get back his thug...I can't do that."

Bang!

Harley walked up to the fallen Bonk.

"Just in case..." She said as she smiled.

Bang! Bang!

"There.." She threw away the gun and skipped back into her cell and locked herself in. "La la la la~"

----

"Hey! You must be the new Batman! I'm Harleen Quinzel. You can just call me Harley. Harley Quinn." She said as she reached her hand out to him from her cell.

"What happened here?" Batman ignored her offer to shake hands.

In front of Harley's cell were dead members of the Jokerz.

"Well, they were trying to take me out of here. I refused and they got mad." She tried to look sympathetic. "They tried to attack me so,...I defended myself."

He narrowed his eyes at her. In Batman's mind, he doubted her statement. But what can he do?

Soon, the police arrived.

"Batman!" The vice-commisioner

"Vice-commissioner. Everything here has been dealt with. You should review the footage and question-"

"Don't worry about that. I just got a call that the eye of anubis was stolen."

Batman narrowed his eyes. The eye of anubis is a yellow diamond the size of a fist being kept in maximum security by a jewelry company.

"I already sent my men, but the Jokerz were gone when they got there. There's nothing we can do but to ivestigate the crime scene. That's probably what Joker was really after....Damn it!"

"...Did anyone got hurt?"

"Just some minor injuries..." The vice-commissioner looked around. "...unlike what happened here."

Arkham looked like a complete mess. There were wires hanging above the ceiling, busted pipes, holes on the walls, and dead bodies or the guards and the Jokerz lying around.

"...I'll leave this to you." Batman said.

"Sure thi-" When the vice-commissioner turned to face him, he was already gone.

As Batman flew, his frustration piled up more.

Was the threat to Barbara's life just a diversion tactic?

What will they do with a big yellow diamond and the piece of tech that they stole from WayneTech the other night? Sell it?

The Joker sometimes does that but would he really have no intricate plan upon returning?

Where are they hiding the mutant leader?

All of these things occupied his head as he flew. Everything is not clear.

He decided to call the batcave to inform Barbara and Alfred for now.

"Hello?"

-...

"Hello? Barbara? Alfred?"

-...

"Shit!"

Zoooom

Batman increased his flight speed to the maximum.

There is no way that Barbara and Alfred wouldn't be able to answer him. Something must have happened in the Batcave.

Swishhhh

As he passed through the waterfall, the batcave came into view.

He immediately scanned the place to find Barbara and Alfred.

The chairs and tables were rearranged and there were shards of broken glass everywhere. There was even blood on the floor.

"How..." Batman was speechless. The safest place he knows and it was infiltrated.

There seemed to be no sight of Alfred and Barbara in the common room where the batcomputer is.

He turned on his thermal vision to find them faster. And there they were. Barbara's and Alfred's heat signatures laying down in the infirmary. But they weren't the only ones there... an unknown heat signature was standing next to the two.

Batman ran to where they were and pushed the door.

He saw Alfred connected to a life support while lying on a bed unconscious. Barbara was on the bed next to him and she was drenched in sweat as she laid unconsciously.

Standing next to them was a man wearing a brown trench coat and a red helmet that covered his whole face.

Batman glared at him and asked "Who the hell are you?"