"Alfred..." ‘Batman’ murmured as he looked down at the fallen old man.
"No, no, no, Bat. I’d much rather you call Joker!"
The clown pushed himself up from the ground slowly, a wide grin splitting his face as he spread his arms like a showman taking center stage.
"How does it feel, Bats? Ever since you ca back to Gotham, you’ve been trying to clean up this filthy city. But all this ti, right under your nose, a crazy clown was living right beside you. Isn’t that hilarious?"
"You bastard!"
Whatever ‘hesitation’ ‘Batman’ was feeling vanished in an instant. He lunged forward and swung a fist—only for Joker to catch it with his bare hand.
"What..."
"Don’t forget what I used to do when I was younger, Batsy," Joker said, shoving the punch aside with surprising force. "I’m not that easy to deal with."
He followed up with a hard punch to ‘Batman’s’ face, the blow knocking him back a step.
"See? I told you. I’m not that easy."
‘Batman’ wiped a thin trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth, his expression darkening as he stared ‘coldly’ at the man before him.
"Alfred. Co back with . I don’t care what you did for the Wayne family. None of that matters. Just co ho. Co back to the Manor."
"Keep dreaming, Bat!" Joker snapped. "I’ve been too far gone for a long ti now! I’m not your loyal butler anymore; I’m the living face of everything you hate about Gotham!”
He scread the last words as he whipped out a handgun and instantly pulled the trigger.
‘Batman’ dodged on instinct. But instead of a bullet, a small triangular flag popped out of the barrel, fluttering in the air with Joker’s grinning face printed on it.
"You always fall for it. How many tis has it been now, Bats?”
Before ‘Batman’ could react, Joker lashed out with a kick. ‘Batman’ rolled away to avoid the strike, landing in a crouch.
"Bruce!" Kate shouted.
By now, she was back on her feet. Once she confird nothing was broken, she imdiately joined the fight.
Compared to ‘Batman,’ Kate's combat skills ca from military training. Her style was rougher and more aggressive. In so ways, she hit harder than him—because unlike him, she couldn’t always control the force behind her blows.
‘Batman’ could break a bone without leaving a scratch anywhere else. Kate didn’t have that kind of precision.
But Joker wasn’t like the ordinary thugs she was used to overwhelming.
Despite her strength and training, the Clown Prince of Cri outclassed her completely. His speed, his unpredictability—he overwheld her in seconds.
After just two exchanges, he locked her in a hold. A syringe filled with liquid laughing gas was already pressed against the artery in her neck.
"Thanks, Bat-girl. You rembered I wanted to run that experint."
Kate froze. Joker’s sudden speed and strength had completely caught her off guard, and now her life was in danger.
But while she was still stunned, ‘Batman’ wasn’t.
"Kate, move your head!" He shouted the command as he flung a Batarang.
Kate snapped out of it just in ti. She tilted her head slightly, and the projectile zipped past her cheek, shattering the syringe in Joker’s hand.
In that sa mont, ‘Batman’ lunged forward and tackled Joker, forcing him to release her.
"Bruce, I was just off my ga for a second."
Now that she was safe, Kate tried to justify how she got taken down by a seventy-year-old man. But ‘Batman’ wasn’t the type to be swayed by excuses.
"Alfred's skills are top-notch. He used to be an MI6 agent. If we’re talking pure combat, he’s way better than you. Even for , beating him one-on-one wouldn’t be easy."
Kate’s face turned slightly red. She knew it was true, but hearing it spelled out like that still hurt her pride.
Still, she quickly turned her focus back to the Joker. "One of us alone might not be enough. But together, we can take him down. Knock Alfred out, bring him back. Eventually, he’ll rember who he is.”
‘Batman’ nodded, ready to strike again. But before they could move, the lab’s main door exploded open with a thunderous blast.
Harley stepped inside, one hand gripping a rocket launcher, the other swinging a baseball bat lazily over her shoulder.
"Sweetie—Oh? Two Bats? No wonder the boys outside are gettin’ wrecked."
To pull off this rescue, ‘Batman’ had arranged for Deathstroke to launch a frontal assault on the Joker Gang's hideout as a distraction. Harley had co to report the sudden attack to the Joker.
"Kate, ti to retreat."
"But…"
She didn’t want to leave. Whether it was pride or a deep desire to bring Alfred ho, Kate wanted to keep fighting.
In her mind, sure, she couldn’t beat Joker, but ‘Batman’ could. And handling Harley Quinn? That was sothing she felt more than capable of.
"You want Deathstroke to fight the entire Joker Gang alone? He’s only been in Gotham for a few hours. He’s not fully prepared. He won’t last long. And these people…"
As he spoke, ‘Batman’ glanced toward Harley, then at the flickering muzzle flashes coming from beyond the lab’s entrance. Finally, his eyes landed on Joker.
"...they’re all lunatics."
With that, two special smoke pellets dropped from beneath his cape. Almost instantly, the room was flooded with thick smoke.
Using the cover, ‘Batman’ didn’t bother asking if Kate agreed. He grabbed her arm and leapt into the ventilation shaft, retreating the sa way he had co.
……
anwhile, outside the base, Deathstroke was locked in battle. Despite all the heavy weapons he had prepared ahead of ti, things weren’t going well. Not at all.
Because standing in his way was the hulking figure of Solomon Grundy.
"Of course," Deathstroke muttered, gritting his teeth as he popped his dislocated arm back into place with a sickening crack. "If Joker’s got a base here, Grundy was bound to show up."
He locked eyes with the massive undead brute.
"What I didn’t expect… is that you’d be acting on your own, without Joker giving the order."
By any normal logic, soone like Solomon—barely capable of thinking—would still be kept under strict watch, even by an ally. That’s how Deathstroke had planned it. He assud he wouldn’t get involved until after Batman and Kate had escaped. But Grundy moved on his own.
"My friend never tells Solomon what to do. Solomon gets a whole week to do whatever he wants!”
“That so?” Deathstroke smiled under the mask. “Sounds like a job a lot of people would kill for.”
With a swift motion, he reached behind his back and drew his twin blades.
“In that case, I guess I’ll stop holding back.”
Hearing that, Solomon readied himself for the attack.
But before they clashed, Deathstroke slamd his twin blades together. And instead of sparks, a thick burst of black smoke exploded outward, covering the battlefield and cutting off visibility for all the Joker Gang mbers nearby.
“What the—!”
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