The aftermath of the fight with Deacon Blackfire left Harry with the need to go up to the rooftop to clear his head.
"Another test. Although not your greatest test."
Harry just smiled. He heard Talia coming, although he wished to ensure her enough time to make the first move. Harry turned his attention towards the gorgeous woman. He really wanted to figure out her purpose and what was going on and soon.
"Blackfire is done," Harry said.
"And with him, Grundy has been sent back," Talia said. "You have an ability to fight the darkness, because you won't hold back to do what is necessary. And that separates you from many."
Yes, Harry realized a long time ago he would have to make some tough choices. The more dangerous the threats were, the more likely Harry would have to get a certain amount of blood on his hands. A second passed and Talia reached around to grab the top of Harry's hand.
"Some will disagree."
"Yes," Harry replied. "And we both know what you're talking about or who you are talking about."
"He has a code," Talia said. "All of us should, but there are certain times where even the strongest of code will get tested. Batman has his own methods, as do you. And you will kill when needed, even if some do not disagree. But the world is not a very agreeable place."
"You and Lena have a history."
Talia corked her eyebrow and smiled.
"Yes," Talia agreed. "We do. Although we have agreed not to share details. Perhaps in time, you will learn. Do not hold too much contempt to Lena for her deception."
"I understand she has secrets," Harry said. "And she'll reveal what is necessary. And I'm sure I'll figure you out soon enough."
The smallest smile twitched over Talia's lips for second.
"Perhaps," Talia responded. "You are a man who will help lead the world to new heights. And I like the potential. Any woman will serve you and do so happily and without any coercion."
The seconds passed as Talia moved closer towards Harry. They locked eyes and were seconds away from locking lips, until Chloe's signal watch went off. Harry stiffened and turned his head for a brief second.
"Another time, beloved."
Talia slipped off into the shadows and Harry only could watch her go for a second before bolting off in the next direction to see what Chloe signalled him for. Lois and Chloe were about to cover the debate for Mayor, although with Blackfire decimated, there was not much of a debate to be had.
X-X-X
Lois and Chloe viewed, with bemusement and agitated, the boisterous form of Mayor Hamilton Hill standing atop of the podium. The news about Blackfire's demise had not hit the mainstream media just yet, and officially, he was missing.
"My opponent wanted a free and open debate, but he decides not to show up," Hill said. "If he can't be brave enough to be here, then what choice does he have in protecting all of you? If you elect me as Mayor, then I will do everything in my power to make Gotham City safe once again. That is a promise you can take to the bank."
"Yeah, what about Loeb?" Lois asked.
"Gillian Loeb was an unfortunate accident," Hill said. "And more proof this city needs a strong and stable leader. You've elected me as your mayor time and time again and I've done everything in my power to keep this city from slipping into chaos. And thanks to your support I will strengthen the Gotham City Police Force under new leadership. There's work to be done, but if you don't elect me as your Mayor, how do you expect me to do it?"
"And here we go, things will be different this time," Chloe murmured.
Blackfire really did fit right at home, with his cult of personality as a charismatic cult leader. Chloe could hear something on the outside. The sounds of bodies falling. One particular security guard stumbled forward and fell to the floor.
"Hands in the air, now!"
Several armed men, dressed in stylish suits, fired in the air. This made the entire group step back in terror. Even Lois and Chloe looked somewhat apprehensive as they waited for their guest to arrive.
These armed men stepped into the building, led by a man in a stylish purple suit, top hat which covered his face in shadows at the moment. The loud tutting of the man as he looked around caused chills to come down the spine.
"It looks like a funeral is about to break out in here. And it will if you don't bring forth the true face of Gotham City."
The man's head whipped up to reveal a pale face, sunken in eyes, and a wide, permanent smile. The man looked completely ghastly with his green hair.
"Bring him over Chucko!" the green-haired man yelled. "The camerman, make sure he's shooting on me. Make sure he gets my good side."
The gentleman cleared his throat. Seconds felt like minutes, and it was an agonizing eternity which passed.
"Hill, is a fake and not the face of Gotham City," the gentleman in purple stated.
"You can't do this to me!" Hill snapped. "I'm the Mayor…"
"Shut it, junior!" the gentleman barked. "As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted, this charlatan is not the face of Gotham City. This is not the man who can protect you. And if he doesn't show up, then I will make sure that you all wish you were never born."
"Who is that?" one of the women asked in nervousness.
"WHO DO YOU THINK?" The Mad Clown snapped. "It's Batman. It's been Batman this entire time. Oh, some of you say he's an urban legend, a fraud, fake news, a scam, a scheme, this, that, and the other thing. But trust me, he's real. Real as you and me. Real as the swimming pool that Mayor Hill so handily bought with your tax dollars."
"That's an unfounded accusation!" Hill snapped.
"I told you to shut it!" the clown stated. "If you want anything done right in this city, then Batman is the man who you will have to face. And he's the man who will come here, if he knows what's good for each and every one of you."
The clown looked into the camera to make sure it got its good side.
"I know you can hear me, Batman!" he crowed. "Come here. For every minute you don't show up, I'm going to take out one of these poor people."
"What is this joker doing?" Lois asked.
Suddenly, the criminal clown turned around and faced Lois with a murderous and pointed gaze.
"What did she call me?" the clown asked
"Joker, boss."
"Joker, Joker, it rolls off the tongue, and it's the one thing I'm missing to complete the package," the clown commented with a wide grin. "I like it. And just for that, Ms. Lane, I'm killing you last, and the quickest."
Chloe took advantage of Joker's temporary diversion to activate the signal watch. Although things were getting a bit tense with Joker and his men here. And Chloe felt similiar chills regarding Joker that she did in Blackfire's presence earlier. The two of them had to be somewhat connnected, she feared.
"But, first, let's have some fun!"
X-X-X
Superman stopped short to see Wonder Woman and Nightwing standing outside. Nightwing held up her hand and Superman dropped to the ground.
"There's this new psychotic villain inside," Nightwing said. "Calls himself Joker and he has a thirst for publicity, and not in the good way."
Nightwing put up the security feed just in time to reflect one of the members of the press get shot and drop down to the ground.
"Why can't we go in?" Wonder Woman asked. "Innocent people are in there..."
"There's a bomb," a grim Nightwing interrupted. "Motion sensors and I believe one of the goons has a deadman switch. You hit the wrong person without disabling the signal and there will be countless innocent people murdered."
Harry closed his eyes and locked onto Lois and Chloe who were in the thick of things, as usual. The loud ticking and grinding noise of the bomb had been heard for them.
"Three minutes," Nightwing said. "One wrong move and we're all done."
The video feed of the Gotham News Network flicked over on the screen. This new clown who looked to be wearing a more demonic representation of Blackfire's face mask, only Harry was not sure if it was a mask, sauntered into the area. Hill and his aides had been rounded up with Joker holding the vial in front of his face.
"Oh, don't worry, Hill, it's not meth," Joker said. "I know your son would be all over it if it is. But it's something much more interesting."
The chemical in the vial released into the face of Hill, his aides, and certain members of security. They all coughed, gagged, and went laughing mad. The crazed gaze in their eyes continued to escalate when the entire group rocked back and forth. They looked completely wicked as their faces contorted into gruesome smiles
The laughter grew by each passing second right before they began to claw their eyes out. Blood spurted onto the ground. Joker leaned back against the wall and viewed the carnage, with amusement and a tiny bit of disinterest as well. They clawed their eyes out a little bit more as they rocked back and forth with more blood spurting.
"Well, it's a work in progress."
Joker tapped at his wrist, as if miming a watch.
"I'm waiting Bats. I'll run out of people if you don't get here soon. And I'm really bad about counting. I might do a few extras just for the hell of it."
A dark figure swooped into the background. Only briefly did the group outside pick it up on camera, before he disappeared back into the shadows.
X-X-X
From the rafters, Batman jumped down. One of the goons figuratively lost his head and began firing erractically. Batman took him down with a double foot stomp from the rafters which folded him up.
The group of goons rushed Batman one at a time. Batman dodged underneath the attacks. The punches from the Dark Knight knocked him down to the ground.
Suddenly, Joker unleashed a jack-in-the-box with a springing boxing glove. Batman dodged the attack and came back to engage Joker. Joker raked, clawed, and headbutted at Batman. Batman blocked some of the criminal clown's dirties tricks and hurled him about like a ragdoll. Joker did a slight twisting roll and landed on the ground with a very thunderous crack.
"Stop, or I'll detonate the bomb!" Joker yelled. "I'll detonate all of the bombs. I'm a man on the edge and I don't have anything left to lose."
This momentary distraction caused Joker to stab through Batman's leg. Batman staggered a few inches back and groaned.
Lois rushed over, and brazenly picked up the gun. She pulled the trigger and a loud bang echoed through the air.
Green smoke surrounded them all. The second the smoke cleared, Lois had been left holding a gun which had a cartoonish "bang" flag sticking out of it. Joker gazed upon Lois and began to cackle like a madman. Lois took another step and a half back. Joker walked forward and leaned over into Lois's face.
"I like the spunk in this one," Joker said. "And some guts. Some real guts. Too bad I'm going to have to spill them all on the floor."
The second Joker went for Lois, a blur picked her up and got her out of the way. Another figure swooped in and helped the first figure get rid of all of the hostages.
Joker took a step back to come face to face with Wonder Woman and Superman. Superman reached over, and grabbed Joker by the labels only for Joker to edge out of his coat and drop to the ground. Joker dropped some exploding playing cards on the floor and sent miniature explosions through the room while he cackled.
Superman had to divert his attention from Joker to stop parts of the building from falling onto civilians. By the time he got the building steady, the cackling clown disappeared into the night.
X-X-X
Joker might be a bit crazed, but even he knew about the dangers of punching above his weight class. As fast as his legs could carry him, Joker ascended upstairs. And right behind him, in pursuit, was Batman. Batman zipped up and went after Joker.
"Oh, you don't understand how the game is played, do you Bats?"
Batman discharged a Baterang and Joker did the same thing with an exploding playing card. The two fired shots at each other and they exploded off of each other.
"We play the game. And we'll go round and round on this Merry-Go-Round of Death. Until one of us stops. Or maybe we don't ever stop."
Joker ascended a top of the bell and swung it back. Batman dodged the attack and Joker came down to the ground. The two played a game of cat and mouse.
"If you can catch me, what are you going to do to me?"
"Put you away," Batman growled. "Like any other criminal."
"Oh, please, like I'm like any other criminal!" Joker chortled. "Blackfire sacrifice himself to give me life. And now here I am, Gotham's most notorious. You need me. And I need you! Together, we are like peanut butter and jelly, two sides of the same coin."
Joker pulled out a bomb shaped like a clown head. The clown head whirled through the sky and Batman deflected the attack. The explosion caused large parts of the upstairs area to splinter and Batman and Joker to take a tumble out of the window.
Batman reached for his grapnel hook, until Joker grabbed onto him and prevented him from doing so.
"Let me go!" Batman growled.
"Oh, we're going down together. Unless you knock me off and let me fall. But, you won't do that?"
Batman kicked Joker off and the two of them hurled to the ground. Joker bent his body in mid-air and dropped numerous marbles to the ground. The loud chortle came from the clown when he came closer and closer to the ground. Batman reached for his grapnel hook only to realize that Joker had sabotaged it.
Suddenly, Superman came in and caught Batman before he hit the ground.
The dust settled. Harry scanned the ground and there was no Joker. It was almost like he vanished without a trace. Although something told Harry he would be back.
X-X-X
"The threats are getting more insane."
Superman's statement spoke for them all. The trio of Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman met on the rooftop.
"We're building up to something," Wonder Woman said. "Something bad. Something bigger than any of us are ever going to fight."
"Yes," Batman agreed. "But, to what end?"
"He's called Darkseid," Superman said. "And he's coming. And he has agents everywhere. His interest is on Earth and he is after me."
"If he's after you, then he won't let anyone stand his way," Batman said. "Which means, there will be more like Blackfire and Joker being polluted by his influence."
"At the very least," Wonder Woman said. "But, we're only as strong as we are if we stand together."
"Agreed," Superman replied. "Maybe some kind of League of Heroes?"
"I'll consider the offer," Batman said. "But, you should know that with threats like Joker out there, Gotham City is going to be in danger. But, if you need a hand, I'll come."
"That's all I expect," Harry said. "How about you, Diana?"
Diana smiled and responded with a crisp nod. "Always."
"But, Gotham City will come first," Batman said.
Nightwing popped up to join them, just as Batman took off. She just smiled, shook her head, and turned back towards Superman.
"I wouldn't take it too personally," Nightwing said. "It took a very long time for me to get him to open up and even now, it's hard to get him to communicate."
"Don't worry, I don't take it too personally," Superman said. "So, about that coffee?"
Nightwing flashed him a smile. "Whenever you're ready."
"Just have to check up on a couple of friends and if they're fine, I'm all yours."
Wonder Woman and Nightwing viewed Superman fly off without another word. Both would have to agree that he was one of a kind and the world would be a lot worse off if he was never around.
X-X-X
"Only in Gotham City could a Mayorial Election end with both of the candidates dead in the same forty-eight hour period," Lois summarized.
Harry, Chloe, and Lois sat in the hotel room. The trio would return to Metropolis in the morning and to be honest, they were happy to see the back of Gotham City.
"Well, I named a crazed madman," Lois said. "And I swear I thought he was either going to gut me or propose marriage."
Chloe pulled a face at the statement. One could say that was not a preferable outcome for either.
"No body," Chloe said.
"I looked everywhere," Harry said. "It was almost like he got swallowed up by the same supernatural force which spawned him."
"Lovely," Chloe said. "Just lovely."
Harry looked out of the window and Chloe put a hand on the shoulder of her longtime friend and lover. A split second passed as Harry turned around to lock eyes with Chloe.
"Just thinking about something that James Gordon told his daughter," Harry said. "People like Blackfire had strong personalities which could prey on people who are willing to find a way to belong."
"Yeah," Chloe said. "And this guy, he was inspired by Blackfire."
"And Blackfire had to die," Lois said. "For him to be born. That's inspiration."
"That mask," Harry said. "Blackfire dying got him what he wanted. A manevolent force of chaos which the likes of which the world had never seen before."
"Yeah, I know," Chloe remarked. "I don't think we're ever going to forget this."
Harry figured about as much. Talia said there was more to come. And with the looming presence of Darkseid, Harry was glad he forged some new allies and reinforced some old ones. When the war came to this world, he had a feeling that he would need all of the help he could get.
X-X-X
The Gotham City morgue had enough of a terrifying atmosphere without several bodies brought out from the swamp.
"Dumped in the swamp," one of the morticians said. "Shot and mauled to death."
"All of them messed up," another one said. "Well, except for this one. This one looks pristine for a corpse."
"Man, that's a messed up way to put it."
Yet, it was the truth. The dark-haired man laid on the table resembled someone who was sleeping and not someone who was dead.
"He's not going to rise up from the dead, is he?"
"Oh, don't be stupid. That only happens in m...argh!"
The man rose up from the table and grabbed the mortician by the neck mid-sentence. His eyes flared into a crimson shade before a loud crack echoed through the room. The man rose up once again.
Davis Bloome walked forward and picked up a sharp metal tool to stab the creature right the chest. Blood spurted all over the place as the man fell down to the ground.
The zombified Bloome pressed his fingers into blood. He lurched over to the wall and traced a familiar S-shield in the wall in blood. The walking corpse of a man stared at the symbol, almost transfixed at what he gazed upon.
Then, Bloome lifted up the large jagged piece of metal and stabbed it straight into the wall.
Satisfied, for now, Bloome turned around and walked into the Gotham City night.