Crisis of Infinite Batgirls update
After making sure he was properly trussed and sedated, they set the Joker up in the barest room they could find, where he was away from any sharp objects . After some conferring, Babs left to contact the police and Arkham to sort things out with them, trusting Cass to be able to keep an eye on him. Cass might be all insecure about whether Babs liked her or not, Steph thought to herself grouchily, but she would gladly give HER basic social skills to automatically inspire people to have confidence in her abilities like her moody friend did.
They had hopelessly begun to try to interrogate the clown about Time Lapse, with Steph asking the questions and Cass looming threateningly, when they were interrupted by a huge crash and some unfamiliar screaming and yelling outside, as well as much more noise Steph couldn’t readily identify. The two Batgirls exchanged looks.
“You go,” Steph said quickly to Cass. “You’ll more likely be able to handle whatever it is quickly and without help.”
“But-
“Someone needs to watch him and I can handle him while he’s just tied up! Go!”
After a second of reluctance, Cass nodded and sped out the door. Steph turned back to the clown, determined to get something out of him while her friend was gone. Even tied up and at a good distance, he creeped her out. He flashed his slasher smile at her, but she kept her jaw set. “Let’s talk about time travel and you, Joker.”
“So, you’re the third plucky little Batgirl we get in times to come?” the Joker hissed. “Niiiiice. Almost as full of vim and vigor as this year’s model.”
Steph froze. How did he-? No, she wasn’t going to let the Joker play her. She knew all about people like him.
“Let’s not talk about me,” she said, leaning forward a little and looking him squarely in those crazed green eyes. “Let’s talk about beating the crap out of you.”
“I like you. You remind me of my girl Harley,” the Joker said, cheerfully ignoring her once more. “Bouncy as all get out. You don’t let anything get you down.”
Stephanie snorted. “I’ve met Harley Quinn. The only thing we have in common is being blonde and making bad jokes.”
“Nah, you’re like Harley.” Joker said, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “See, my Harley Girl, I smack her down. I smack her down all the time. Sometimes damn near kill her. It’s fun, it helps me relax. And what does she do? She gets right back up again. She keeps coming back for more, shiny bruise still on her face. She always comes back up for more.” His smile was sick and satisfied now. “You’ve been smacked down a lot, haven’t you girl? And you just keep coming back to get it again. You’re like Harley. You LIKE it. I think you’re a little sicker than Harley, actually. You’ve got multiple smackers. I bet you got a man who tells you you’re not good enough… one who tells you to quit, to give up, to go back to the Bat-Kitchen and keep up morale?”
She tried to say something back, but all she could come up with was a strangled sort of growl. He grinned wider, if that was even possible.
“See, when I tell Harley that, I don’t really mean it. I know she’s competent. Too competent. I have to keep her in her place, make sure she doesn’t out-princess the Clown Prince of Crime. But your man-sorry, men-I bet they really mean it. I bet they really think you’re worthless. Second rate. And that gets your goat, don’t it just?”
“You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about,” she managed to say.
“Oh, I always know. That’s what’s so great about being me,” he giggled. “Poor little lost girl. All that cheer hiding something dangerous. Well, I know all about that.”
“Shut up. Seriously, stop talking. We’re supposed…to be tracking the…Time Lapse. You know him. That’s how you know all this stuff. Yeah. I mean, you haven’t even met Harley yet. Have you?” She felt so disoriented, like he’d punched her in the stomach. How was he doing this to her, just by talking?
“Time doesn’t matter for me,” the Joker said dismissively. “You’d have to be CRAZY to always check the time. I think time’s starting to go a little crazy itself, though. Everything does eventually, after a bad day. But enough about time. You FASCINATE me. You’ve been tortured, haven’t you?”
“Wha…” Her mouth was dry. Her heart was racing. How was he doing this to her? How did he know all this? She refused to show fear. She glared at him, fists clenched to stop her hands from shaking. But the edges of her vision were turning fuzzy and she heard him like he was talking through a tunnel. Notthisagainnotthisagain.
“I can tell. Torture victims…they’re all the same.” He was rocking back and forth on his chair now, the ropes holding him were straining and his feet were practically tap-dancing with glee. “There’re people who break. There’s people like you who get a tougher shell and soldier on with a smile on your face, ignoring how broken they are until…snap! Hey, don’t worry though, I like your smile. It’s full of pain, my favorite kind.”
“I…my smile is not full of pain. It’s a very nice smile! It is not a painful one!” She was hyperventilating, why was she hyperventilating…
“That’s called Pee Tee Ess Dee, honey,” he said, stressing each letter until it didn’t sound like one anymore. “It’s a disorder, and I know disorders. But I think you know that. I pulled your trigger and you went off with bang!” He clapped his hands together delightedly. “I saw you flinch when I said that thing about the kitchen and the morale… I’m betting someone said something like that when you were tortured? And I really remind you of that person…ooh, ooh, was it me? Did I torture you? Noooo…you would be way more broken if I’d done it. Now I’m jealous. A sweet girl like you, not getting the full Joker Torture experience? It’s a crime. You deserve it, baby. You are worth it. If you untie me, I can show you how it’s done.”
His smile was so big…all teeth. His eyes were empty and endless. He was like a grinning skull…a black grinning skull, laughing at her… She could smell the blood and the metal. She could see the light of his stupid little miner’s helmet blinding her. Her legs were shaking, straining against the chains…no, no chains. She was here, she was now…. She used to get these things back in Africa. She had to get it together, she couldn’t…she couldn’t.
“You talk like a Batgirl, but move like a Robin,” the Joker mused. “A little like the happy one we used to have, but also a little like that new short angry one that just showed up. Or did I already kill him? I forget. My, this time thing! Anyway, I’m guessing you failed as a little Robin and you had to settle for the second rate sidekick?”
“Do…you…ever stop talking?” Steph gasped. She could hear the drill now she could hear it grinding she could feel it why was this happening?
“I like you as a Batgirl though. You’re spunky and smiley like Red, as I’ve said. That stitchy one is dour, I don’t like her. Batgirls are so fun to break. Almost as fun as Robins. If I break, you, is it a two-in-one? A bat and a bird, killed with one stone! Twice the fun in the sun?”
“Stop it, you filthy pig, it’s not going to work…” She wasn’t sure whom she was talking to anymore. Her body was aching right now like she really was there and she was swaying…and it wasn’t just a skull staring at her … it was Batman glaring disapprovingly, it was Tim yelling that she was a screw up, his eyes filled with pain…her mother’s “Why did you abandon me” look…Cassandra leaving her on a rooftop…
“You a screamer or a crier? Wait, let me guess. Crier. And you’re fond of insulting the torturer and making him madder. But that part only put a smile on my face!”
“SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP!” She lunged straight for him, whoever he was, disregarding the fact that her body was broken and bloody, determined not to let him hurt her again. She was pummeling him as hard as she could, her fists a quick succession of hammer strikes on that stupid grin. “This isn’t a game!” she found herself yelling out randomly and she couldn’t even see where she was now or what she was doing…she was disconnected from everything.
Cold white fingers closed around her throat. He’d gotten loose somehow. She should fight back, but she was so dizzy and lost…
There was the unmistakable sound of small bones breaking and a high pitched keen of pain …and she was back on the ground, lost in time with a bloody Joker and solid, strong Cassandra holding him by his limp white hand that now had several fingers sticking out at the entirely wrong angle.
“Ah, the Leather Lass to the rescue. You’re no fun,” the Joker pouted at Cass through bloody, swollen lips. “Lemme guess, Daddy issues?”
Cassandra ignored him, her black lenses flashing intensely at Steph. “What happened?”
“He…I…we had a heated argument…” Steph said weakly.
Cassandra helped her up with one hand, still keeping the other firmly gripped on the Joker just as Babs came running in. She screeched to a halt as soon as she saw them. “What the hell is going on?”
“We hit a bump in the interrogation,” Steph sighed, running her shaking hand through her hair.
“Harleygirl here just got done with her counseling, and I’ve started in on Miss Mopey. Bad father figure. Of course, you’ve all got that problem- parentless little things. S’why you can run around unsupervised in those distasteful skintight outfits, heehee.”
“He’s been going on like this?” Babs asked sympathetically. “Hearing his screechy little voice is worse than any torture, I know.”
“Pretty much,” Steph said, wiping her sweat and… tears…out of her eyeholes. Babs put her arm around Steph comfortingly. It was very strange, feeling the warm weight of that arm…to look into Barbara’s bright green eyes and see a different person-someone utterly and completely open and always trusting.
The Joker ignored this moment of affection and continued rambling. “Mopey here found a replacement with Bat ears, but if I know him, he’ll let her down somehow. Red…Red, I dunno about you. You’re happy, so I’m guessing you found a real daddy. Probably not a Mommy, but we can’t have everything. Poor girl here though…she’s got no one. She’s been her own mother and never had a daddy. Not even Batbrain lets her in…she’s truly alone. Ain’t it sad.”
“He won’t help,” Cassandra said shortly, her eyes still firmly fixed on her shaken friend.
Babs jutted her chin out stubbornly. “I’ll make him help.” She turned to Joker with fire in her eyes. “Where’d Time Lapse go?
“I’m starting to get the feeling you shouldn’t be here, Red…like you’ve retired or something. Maybe you should obey fate,” the Joker said cheerfully.
“You realize his goal is to kill Batman in his crib so none of us will ever exist?” Barbara said smoothly. She jerked her thumb toward Cass and Steph. “They filled me in.”
The Joker froze, his eyes popping and the grin suddenly forced.
“He didn’t tell you that, did he,” said Babs with satisfaction. “He’s going to make it so you’ll never get to kill Batman. Hell, you’ll never get to meet Batman. In fact, without Batman, could you even exist?”
The Joker had finally stopped smiling.
“A Joker without a Batman...” Barbara said sadly. “Tragedy.”
“No…comedy…in it…” the Joker mumbled, his smooth brow wrinkled. He looked utterly lost.
Babs leaned toward him, smiling sweetly. “Tick tock, Joker. Time’s running out.”
“I let him use my Komedy Klub base. Cleaned that thing out years ago,” the Clown Prince muttered, slumped and defeated. “Get there quickly, okay?”
Babs’ grin could have matched the Joker’s. “I’ll drag this loser back to Arkham while you two head to the Klub. Wait for me a block from there, we’ll come up with a plan.”
Babs and her hostage were gone in a flash of yellow.
“No denying, she’s the smart one,” Stephanie said. Cassandra grabbed her by the arm and dragged her to the corner. Cass thrust her friend in front of her and examined her critically.
“You okay?” she demanded
“Yeah…he just…y’know…said things,” Steph mumbled awkwardly.
“All he has is words,” Cass pointed out. “Words are stupid.”
“I know…I mean…well, they should be, at least,” Steph muttered, resolutely refusing to make eye contact.
“Was it about when you…died?” Cassandra demanded abruptly.
“I didn’t die. But yes, it was,” Stephanie snapped. “Look, Cass, let’s stop talking about this. We need to do what Barbara said and head out.” She whipped around and marched in the general direction of where she knew the Komedy Klub to be.
“What was up with that noise earlier, anyway?” she called over her shoulder at her following friend.
“Time,” Cass shrugged.”Those things- dinos- …came, then left.”
“-dinosaurs? Are you serious? Oh, this is bad,” Steph heaved a sigh. “This has gotten so out of control so fast. I’m with Babs here. This is JLA stuff. I’m used to dealing with ganglords and now I’m fighting timelords.”
Cass seemed unimpressed. “Both’re dangerous.”
“Yeah, I know, you can take ‘em,” Steph shook her head and smiled. “Well, we’ve got Babs now as well, even if it is a young Babs. With your powers combined, we’ll figure a way out of this mess.”
“Yours too,” Cass said sternly.
“Thanks for the confidence boost, Cass, but I couldn’t even handle a tied up guy.”
Cass considered this seriously. “I… had trouble with the Joker…first time.”
Steph stopped, genuinely surprised. “Really?”
Cass nodded. “Babs too. He can see…your brain. And with…the Bat…”
Steph remembered something Babs had once said. “He has a thing for Batgirls. And Robins. And by extension, girlfriends of Robins.”
Cass smiled. “You’ve…been all.”
“Special me.”
They had arrived at the Komedy Klub. It had been temporarily vacated after the last bombing by someone who had rightly thought having the place in Gotham was just asking for trouble. The eerie clown sign wobbled in disrepair, grinning blankly over the damaged green building. But inside, a light blinked.
“He’s in there,” Steph breathed, and Cass jerked her to a hiding place behind a crumbled wall.
“Wait for Babs,” she muttered.
“Definitely.”
They waited, Steph trying desperately to work on a plan. However, Cass interrupted her flurried thoughts. “Steph. I’m…bad. Aren’t I?”
Steph knew it was the flash of the future Cass had felt before that was bothering her now, and she replied firmly. “Cass, one hundred percent no bullshit? You and Babs are the best people I know. You are the anti bad. Bad can never touch you.”
“But I k-“
Steph put up her hand, not meeting Cass’s eye. “You killed a guy after being brainwashed by your Dad, and not knowing what you were doing, you killed your Mom knowing she’d be resurrected almost immediately and with a renewed sense of peace thanks to your actions. Blah blah blah. People make mistakes. I don’t care if you strangled a puppy, Cass, you’re good. Never forget that. It’s other people not being there for you that messes it all up, and that includes me.”
Cass didn’t seem to know what to say, even moreso than usual. She bit her lip and looked off into the distance. Now it was Steph’s turn to ask. “Cass? How can you just forgive me? You know I faked my death, caused you grief, and wasn’t there for you. But the instant I show up, you’re not… mad or anything. Why?”
Cass looked bemused at the question. “Because you’re here now.” Then another rare smile. “And you’re good.”
Steph felt her eyes burn. She was so stupid and emotional. “Really?”
Cass nodded. “Know better than anyone… people need to run away….sometimes.”
Steph was overcome, for more reasons than Cass knew. She grabbed her friend’s hand, which caused Cass to jerk a little in surprise. “If I die, I’m glad it’s as Batgirl. And I’m glad it’s with you and Babs.”
Cass nodded. She seemed a little overcome herself. “Same.”
“Hey, hate to interrupt,” Babs’ voice sounded. Steph jumped, Cass didn’t, and they both looked up to see a redhead grinning down. “But no one’s dying. Now, what’s this guy’s weakness?”
“Well,” said Steph, flushing a little and dusting herself off. “He doesn’t really have one. He’s got loads of tech-“
“Fighting’s my level,” Cass noted.
“Yeah, that too. The main thing is that his time box is in disrepair. That’s why all this weird stuff is happening. He could only use it once more anyway, and then he’d risk destroying time for good. We need to get that thing away from him, if we can. Then you can fix it and undo all this.”
Babs looked alarmed. “Me? Fix that?”
“You’re the one that broke it in the past…I mean, the future. You don’t have those skills yet, I know, but we could get some help. Booster Gold has to come eventually.”
“Who’s Booster Gold?”
“Scratch that, maybe he’ll come. But that’s all I know that we can do.”
“Okay, we’ll make it work,” Babs squared her chin, eyes glinting. “Cassandra, you’re the one who can keep him occupied. Stephanie, distract him. I’ll go for the box.”
“Sounds good,” Steph said, impressed by the Oracle she heard in Babs’s voice. “But, um, before we go, since its heartfelt confession time over here…” Steph got up from her sitting position and faced Babs directly. “I know Cass takes getting used to, but if you have a problem with her, you need to spit it out.” She looked over to her friend. Cass reflexively looked down at her boots.
Babs bit her lip, looking both embarrassed and pensive. “I don’t have a problem with you, really,” she addressed Cass. “It’s more of…a question. Stephanie said you two were my legacy, but it seems to me like you’re mostly imitating Bruce. I suppose that makes me a bit uncomfortable, so much of him and the, you know, darkness in there.”
As much as she wanted to jump in and protest, Steph opted to let her usually silent friend speak for herself. Cass looked up and tilted her head.
“Both.”
“What?”
“Learned… from both of you. After all…you learned… some from him,” Cass struggled. “You were there some…when he wasn’t. Helped with…feelings… reading and stuff. But…not you or him in me. Just me. The darkness is…”
“There is no darkness,” Steph interrupted firmly. Looking at Cass, she realized for once she could read what Cass was thinking, what she was desperately trying to say and couldn’t put into words. “Babs, look at my girl here. She has the worst past you could dream of. But you know what’s written all over her, even though she can’t admit it? Something you once said being Batgirl was all about, and something you believe in now. Cass and me…and you…were the same. It’s not about revenge for any of us. For me and Cass? It’s about moving on from our past, not holding onto it. It’s about becoming a better person and making a better world.”
She slung her arm around Cass, and she could practically feel the girl’s face heat up beneath her mask. “Cass, tell her what you’re- what we’re- about. It’s in the way you and I move, so you can’t lie about it.”
“Hope,” Cass whispered, making it sound like more a breath than a word.
“Damn straight.”
Babs stared at them both for a minute, her expression unreadable. Steph wondered if she’d laid it on a little too thick. Cass was certainly burning up under there. But then, her future mentor smiled.
“Well, that’s good, because we’re going to need all the hope we can get,” she put out her gloved hand. “And for the record, if I’ve got to have a legacy, I’m glad it’s you two. But try not to overdose on that good cheer, Steph. You could always transfer the extra to Cass.”
Steph laughed. “You have no idea how many times you’re going to say that in the future.” She thrust out her hand on top of Babs’s, and Cass followed suit a little more gracefully.
“Go Team Batgirl!” Steph yelled exuberantly. “Let’s trap us a Time Tool!”
“She always like this?” Babs asked Cass, who nodded. She shushed Steph so they could begin sneaking in.
The place should have been easy enough to infiltrate, since it was unguarded and they were aided by Cassandra’s stealth and Babs’s technical know-how. But despite all the creeping and computing both women did, alarms went off as soon as they set silent foot in the empty stage hall, where all the chairs had been flung against the wall and the wide stage had been turned into a lab full of crackling equipment. Time Lapse was curled against a table working at his time box with a wiggling silver instrument. He jumped up as soon as the alarms sounded.
Babs cursed. “Invisible undetectable alarms from the future!”
“I can’t believe you managed to say that and not make it sound silly,” Steph said.
“Let’s get going!”
Cass was already cleaving towards Time Lapse like a black arrow. She met him head on, but when she tried to hit him, her fists slammed into solid air. This didn’t perturb her, though, and she continued to dance around him, beating on the bubble that protected him with all her might. Sweat glistened on the villain’s forehead. Some part of him was afraid she might break through. He clasped his time box with one hand, the other groping for a weapon.
Steph jumped on the lab tables, stomping and crushing everything she saw with wild abandon. She threw every object she could get her hands on at the villain, knowing Cass would be able to dodge any projectiles. Not that she needed to, Steph had been ace pitcher on her softball team. Moving targets weren’t too difficult.
Lapse had to wind his force field down so it only conformed to his body in order to hit Cass back. He grabbed a gun from nowhere and shot some sort of ray, but Cass dodged it. He tried to target Stephanie, but every time he turned, Cass was in his face. Now that the force field only just covered his body, she was able to pick him up and throw him into the wall. It didn’t hurt, but no doubt it annoyed him and caused him to drop his gun. The villain was at a disadvantage fighting one handed. If he truly wanted to take Cass on, he would have to let go of the Time Box.
Instead, he chose to hit Cass WITH his hand holding the box. Cass ducked easily, causing the man to stumble with the force of the missed blow. A lurking Babs popped up behind and swept his legs out from under him. As he fell, Steph saw his hand fumble to hold on to the mechanism. Seizing the opportunity, Steph threw the wrench she was holding and knocked the thing out of his grip and into the air. Babs caught it before he could, and Cass jumped on the villain knees-first, pinning him to the ground.
Babs held the device in the air triumphantly.
“We did it!” Steph squealed.
Then around them, the world began to shake.
Time Lapse let out a horrible, strangled laugh.
“What…what’s happening?” Steph stammered.
“Stupid, stupid girls. You got it wrong,” Time Lapse said softly. “The box wasn’t the source of my power. It was what was keeping my power in check. And now that you’ve taken it away…” His smile was almost blissful. “…you three are going to destroy each other.
They had hopelessly begun to try to interrogate the clown about Time Lapse, with Steph asking the questions and Cass looming threateningly, when they were interrupted by a huge crash and some unfamiliar screaming and yelling outside, as well as much more noise Steph couldn’t readily identify. The two Batgirls exchanged looks.
“You go,” Steph said quickly to Cass. “You’ll more likely be able to handle whatever it is quickly and without help.”
“But-
“Someone needs to watch him and I can handle him while he’s just tied up! Go!”
After a second of reluctance, Cass nodded and sped out the door. Steph turned back to the clown, determined to get something out of him while her friend was gone. Even tied up and at a good distance, he creeped her out. He flashed his slasher smile at her, but she kept her jaw set. “Let’s talk about time travel and you, Joker.”
“So, you’re the third plucky little Batgirl we get in times to come?” the Joker hissed. “Niiiiice. Almost as full of vim and vigor as this year’s model.”
Steph froze. How did he-? No, she wasn’t going to let the Joker play her. She knew all about people like him.
“Let’s not talk about me,” she said, leaning forward a little and looking him squarely in those crazed green eyes. “Let’s talk about beating the crap out of you.”
“I like you. You remind me of my girl Harley,” the Joker said, cheerfully ignoring her once more. “Bouncy as all get out. You don’t let anything get you down.”
Stephanie snorted. “I’ve met Harley Quinn. The only thing we have in common is being blonde and making bad jokes.”
“Nah, you’re like Harley.” Joker said, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “See, my Harley Girl, I smack her down. I smack her down all the time. Sometimes damn near kill her. It’s fun, it helps me relax. And what does she do? She gets right back up again. She keeps coming back for more, shiny bruise still on her face. She always comes back up for more.” His smile was sick and satisfied now. “You’ve been smacked down a lot, haven’t you girl? And you just keep coming back to get it again. You’re like Harley. You LIKE it. I think you’re a little sicker than Harley, actually. You’ve got multiple smackers. I bet you got a man who tells you you’re not good enough… one who tells you to quit, to give up, to go back to the Bat-Kitchen and keep up morale?”
She tried to say something back, but all she could come up with was a strangled sort of growl. He grinned wider, if that was even possible.
“See, when I tell Harley that, I don’t really mean it. I know she’s competent. Too competent. I have to keep her in her place, make sure she doesn’t out-princess the Clown Prince of Crime. But your man-sorry, men-I bet they really mean it. I bet they really think you’re worthless. Second rate. And that gets your goat, don’t it just?”
“You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about,” she managed to say.
“Oh, I always know. That’s what’s so great about being me,” he giggled. “Poor little lost girl. All that cheer hiding something dangerous. Well, I know all about that.”
“Shut up. Seriously, stop talking. We’re supposed…to be tracking the…Time Lapse. You know him. That’s how you know all this stuff. Yeah. I mean, you haven’t even met Harley yet. Have you?” She felt so disoriented, like he’d punched her in the stomach. How was he doing this to her, just by talking?
“Time doesn’t matter for me,” the Joker said dismissively. “You’d have to be CRAZY to always check the time. I think time’s starting to go a little crazy itself, though. Everything does eventually, after a bad day. But enough about time. You FASCINATE me. You’ve been tortured, haven’t you?”
“Wha…” Her mouth was dry. Her heart was racing. How was he doing this to her? How did he know all this? She refused to show fear. She glared at him, fists clenched to stop her hands from shaking. But the edges of her vision were turning fuzzy and she heard him like he was talking through a tunnel. Notthisagainnotthisagain.
“I can tell. Torture victims…they’re all the same.” He was rocking back and forth on his chair now, the ropes holding him were straining and his feet were practically tap-dancing with glee. “There’re people who break. There’s people like you who get a tougher shell and soldier on with a smile on your face, ignoring how broken they are until…snap! Hey, don’t worry though, I like your smile. It’s full of pain, my favorite kind.”
“I…my smile is not full of pain. It’s a very nice smile! It is not a painful one!” She was hyperventilating, why was she hyperventilating…
“That’s called Pee Tee Ess Dee, honey,” he said, stressing each letter until it didn’t sound like one anymore. “It’s a disorder, and I know disorders. But I think you know that. I pulled your trigger and you went off with bang!” He clapped his hands together delightedly. “I saw you flinch when I said that thing about the kitchen and the morale… I’m betting someone said something like that when you were tortured? And I really remind you of that person…ooh, ooh, was it me? Did I torture you? Noooo…you would be way more broken if I’d done it. Now I’m jealous. A sweet girl like you, not getting the full Joker Torture experience? It’s a crime. You deserve it, baby. You are worth it. If you untie me, I can show you how it’s done.”
His smile was so big…all teeth. His eyes were empty and endless. He was like a grinning skull…a black grinning skull, laughing at her… She could smell the blood and the metal. She could see the light of his stupid little miner’s helmet blinding her. Her legs were shaking, straining against the chains…no, no chains. She was here, she was now…. She used to get these things back in Africa. She had to get it together, she couldn’t…she couldn’t.
“You talk like a Batgirl, but move like a Robin,” the Joker mused. “A little like the happy one we used to have, but also a little like that new short angry one that just showed up. Or did I already kill him? I forget. My, this time thing! Anyway, I’m guessing you failed as a little Robin and you had to settle for the second rate sidekick?”
“Do…you…ever stop talking?” Steph gasped. She could hear the drill now she could hear it grinding she could feel it why was this happening?
“I like you as a Batgirl though. You’re spunky and smiley like Red, as I’ve said. That stitchy one is dour, I don’t like her. Batgirls are so fun to break. Almost as fun as Robins. If I break, you, is it a two-in-one? A bat and a bird, killed with one stone! Twice the fun in the sun?”
“Stop it, you filthy pig, it’s not going to work…” She wasn’t sure whom she was talking to anymore. Her body was aching right now like she really was there and she was swaying…and it wasn’t just a skull staring at her … it was Batman glaring disapprovingly, it was Tim yelling that she was a screw up, his eyes filled with pain…her mother’s “Why did you abandon me” look…Cassandra leaving her on a rooftop…
“You a screamer or a crier? Wait, let me guess. Crier. And you’re fond of insulting the torturer and making him madder. But that part only put a smile on my face!”
“SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP!” She lunged straight for him, whoever he was, disregarding the fact that her body was broken and bloody, determined not to let him hurt her again. She was pummeling him as hard as she could, her fists a quick succession of hammer strikes on that stupid grin. “This isn’t a game!” she found herself yelling out randomly and she couldn’t even see where she was now or what she was doing…she was disconnected from everything.
Cold white fingers closed around her throat. He’d gotten loose somehow. She should fight back, but she was so dizzy and lost…
There was the unmistakable sound of small bones breaking and a high pitched keen of pain …and she was back on the ground, lost in time with a bloody Joker and solid, strong Cassandra holding him by his limp white hand that now had several fingers sticking out at the entirely wrong angle.
“Ah, the Leather Lass to the rescue. You’re no fun,” the Joker pouted at Cass through bloody, swollen lips. “Lemme guess, Daddy issues?”
Cassandra ignored him, her black lenses flashing intensely at Steph. “What happened?”
“He…I…we had a heated argument…” Steph said weakly.
Cassandra helped her up with one hand, still keeping the other firmly gripped on the Joker just as Babs came running in. She screeched to a halt as soon as she saw them. “What the hell is going on?”
“We hit a bump in the interrogation,” Steph sighed, running her shaking hand through her hair.
“Harleygirl here just got done with her counseling, and I’ve started in on Miss Mopey. Bad father figure. Of course, you’ve all got that problem- parentless little things. S’why you can run around unsupervised in those distasteful skintight outfits, heehee.”
“He’s been going on like this?” Babs asked sympathetically. “Hearing his screechy little voice is worse than any torture, I know.”
“Pretty much,” Steph said, wiping her sweat and… tears…out of her eyeholes. Babs put her arm around Steph comfortingly. It was very strange, feeling the warm weight of that arm…to look into Barbara’s bright green eyes and see a different person-someone utterly and completely open and always trusting.
The Joker ignored this moment of affection and continued rambling. “Mopey here found a replacement with Bat ears, but if I know him, he’ll let her down somehow. Red…Red, I dunno about you. You’re happy, so I’m guessing you found a real daddy. Probably not a Mommy, but we can’t have everything. Poor girl here though…she’s got no one. She’s been her own mother and never had a daddy. Not even Batbrain lets her in…she’s truly alone. Ain’t it sad.”
“He won’t help,” Cassandra said shortly, her eyes still firmly fixed on her shaken friend.
Babs jutted her chin out stubbornly. “I’ll make him help.” She turned to Joker with fire in her eyes. “Where’d Time Lapse go?
“I’m starting to get the feeling you shouldn’t be here, Red…like you’ve retired or something. Maybe you should obey fate,” the Joker said cheerfully.
“You realize his goal is to kill Batman in his crib so none of us will ever exist?” Barbara said smoothly. She jerked her thumb toward Cass and Steph. “They filled me in.”
The Joker froze, his eyes popping and the grin suddenly forced.
“He didn’t tell you that, did he,” said Babs with satisfaction. “He’s going to make it so you’ll never get to kill Batman. Hell, you’ll never get to meet Batman. In fact, without Batman, could you even exist?”
The Joker had finally stopped smiling.
“A Joker without a Batman...” Barbara said sadly. “Tragedy.”
“No…comedy…in it…” the Joker mumbled, his smooth brow wrinkled. He looked utterly lost.
Babs leaned toward him, smiling sweetly. “Tick tock, Joker. Time’s running out.”
“I let him use my Komedy Klub base. Cleaned that thing out years ago,” the Clown Prince muttered, slumped and defeated. “Get there quickly, okay?”
Babs’ grin could have matched the Joker’s. “I’ll drag this loser back to Arkham while you two head to the Klub. Wait for me a block from there, we’ll come up with a plan.”
Babs and her hostage were gone in a flash of yellow.
“No denying, she’s the smart one,” Stephanie said. Cassandra grabbed her by the arm and dragged her to the corner. Cass thrust her friend in front of her and examined her critically.
“You okay?” she demanded
“Yeah…he just…y’know…said things,” Steph mumbled awkwardly.
“All he has is words,” Cass pointed out. “Words are stupid.”
“I know…I mean…well, they should be, at least,” Steph muttered, resolutely refusing to make eye contact.
“Was it about when you…died?” Cassandra demanded abruptly.
“I didn’t die. But yes, it was,” Stephanie snapped. “Look, Cass, let’s stop talking about this. We need to do what Barbara said and head out.” She whipped around and marched in the general direction of where she knew the Komedy Klub to be.
“What was up with that noise earlier, anyway?” she called over her shoulder at her following friend.
“Time,” Cass shrugged.”Those things- dinos- …came, then left.”
“-dinosaurs? Are you serious? Oh, this is bad,” Steph heaved a sigh. “This has gotten so out of control so fast. I’m with Babs here. This is JLA stuff. I’m used to dealing with ganglords and now I’m fighting timelords.”
Cass seemed unimpressed. “Both’re dangerous.”
“Yeah, I know, you can take ‘em,” Steph shook her head and smiled. “Well, we’ve got Babs now as well, even if it is a young Babs. With your powers combined, we’ll figure a way out of this mess.”
“Yours too,” Cass said sternly.
“Thanks for the confidence boost, Cass, but I couldn’t even handle a tied up guy.”
Cass considered this seriously. “I… had trouble with the Joker…first time.”
Steph stopped, genuinely surprised. “Really?”
Cass nodded. “Babs too. He can see…your brain. And with…the Bat…”
Steph remembered something Babs had once said. “He has a thing for Batgirls. And Robins. And by extension, girlfriends of Robins.”
Cass smiled. “You’ve…been all.”
“Special me.”
They had arrived at the Komedy Klub. It had been temporarily vacated after the last bombing by someone who had rightly thought having the place in Gotham was just asking for trouble. The eerie clown sign wobbled in disrepair, grinning blankly over the damaged green building. But inside, a light blinked.
“He’s in there,” Steph breathed, and Cass jerked her to a hiding place behind a crumbled wall.
“Wait for Babs,” she muttered.
“Definitely.”
They waited, Steph trying desperately to work on a plan. However, Cass interrupted her flurried thoughts. “Steph. I’m…bad. Aren’t I?”
Steph knew it was the flash of the future Cass had felt before that was bothering her now, and she replied firmly. “Cass, one hundred percent no bullshit? You and Babs are the best people I know. You are the anti bad. Bad can never touch you.”
“But I k-“
Steph put up her hand, not meeting Cass’s eye. “You killed a guy after being brainwashed by your Dad, and not knowing what you were doing, you killed your Mom knowing she’d be resurrected almost immediately and with a renewed sense of peace thanks to your actions. Blah blah blah. People make mistakes. I don’t care if you strangled a puppy, Cass, you’re good. Never forget that. It’s other people not being there for you that messes it all up, and that includes me.”
Cass didn’t seem to know what to say, even moreso than usual. She bit her lip and looked off into the distance. Now it was Steph’s turn to ask. “Cass? How can you just forgive me? You know I faked my death, caused you grief, and wasn’t there for you. But the instant I show up, you’re not… mad or anything. Why?”
Cass looked bemused at the question. “Because you’re here now.” Then another rare smile. “And you’re good.”
Steph felt her eyes burn. She was so stupid and emotional. “Really?”
Cass nodded. “Know better than anyone… people need to run away….sometimes.”
Steph was overcome, for more reasons than Cass knew. She grabbed her friend’s hand, which caused Cass to jerk a little in surprise. “If I die, I’m glad it’s as Batgirl. And I’m glad it’s with you and Babs.”
Cass nodded. She seemed a little overcome herself. “Same.”
“Hey, hate to interrupt,” Babs’ voice sounded. Steph jumped, Cass didn’t, and they both looked up to see a redhead grinning down. “But no one’s dying. Now, what’s this guy’s weakness?”
“Well,” said Steph, flushing a little and dusting herself off. “He doesn’t really have one. He’s got loads of tech-“
“Fighting’s my level,” Cass noted.
“Yeah, that too. The main thing is that his time box is in disrepair. That’s why all this weird stuff is happening. He could only use it once more anyway, and then he’d risk destroying time for good. We need to get that thing away from him, if we can. Then you can fix it and undo all this.”
Babs looked alarmed. “Me? Fix that?”
“You’re the one that broke it in the past…I mean, the future. You don’t have those skills yet, I know, but we could get some help. Booster Gold has to come eventually.”
“Who’s Booster Gold?”
“Scratch that, maybe he’ll come. But that’s all I know that we can do.”
“Okay, we’ll make it work,” Babs squared her chin, eyes glinting. “Cassandra, you’re the one who can keep him occupied. Stephanie, distract him. I’ll go for the box.”
“Sounds good,” Steph said, impressed by the Oracle she heard in Babs’s voice. “But, um, before we go, since its heartfelt confession time over here…” Steph got up from her sitting position and faced Babs directly. “I know Cass takes getting used to, but if you have a problem with her, you need to spit it out.” She looked over to her friend. Cass reflexively looked down at her boots.
Babs bit her lip, looking both embarrassed and pensive. “I don’t have a problem with you, really,” she addressed Cass. “It’s more of…a question. Stephanie said you two were my legacy, but it seems to me like you’re mostly imitating Bruce. I suppose that makes me a bit uncomfortable, so much of him and the, you know, darkness in there.”
As much as she wanted to jump in and protest, Steph opted to let her usually silent friend speak for herself. Cass looked up and tilted her head.
“Both.”
“What?”
“Learned… from both of you. After all…you learned… some from him,” Cass struggled. “You were there some…when he wasn’t. Helped with…feelings… reading and stuff. But…not you or him in me. Just me. The darkness is…”
“There is no darkness,” Steph interrupted firmly. Looking at Cass, she realized for once she could read what Cass was thinking, what she was desperately trying to say and couldn’t put into words. “Babs, look at my girl here. She has the worst past you could dream of. But you know what’s written all over her, even though she can’t admit it? Something you once said being Batgirl was all about, and something you believe in now. Cass and me…and you…were the same. It’s not about revenge for any of us. For me and Cass? It’s about moving on from our past, not holding onto it. It’s about becoming a better person and making a better world.”
She slung her arm around Cass, and she could practically feel the girl’s face heat up beneath her mask. “Cass, tell her what you’re- what we’re- about. It’s in the way you and I move, so you can’t lie about it.”
“Hope,” Cass whispered, making it sound like more a breath than a word.
“Damn straight.”
Babs stared at them both for a minute, her expression unreadable. Steph wondered if she’d laid it on a little too thick. Cass was certainly burning up under there. But then, her future mentor smiled.
“Well, that’s good, because we’re going to need all the hope we can get,” she put out her gloved hand. “And for the record, if I’ve got to have a legacy, I’m glad it’s you two. But try not to overdose on that good cheer, Steph. You could always transfer the extra to Cass.”
Steph laughed. “You have no idea how many times you’re going to say that in the future.” She thrust out her hand on top of Babs’s, and Cass followed suit a little more gracefully.
“Go Team Batgirl!” Steph yelled exuberantly. “Let’s trap us a Time Tool!”
“She always like this?” Babs asked Cass, who nodded. She shushed Steph so they could begin sneaking in.
The place should have been easy enough to infiltrate, since it was unguarded and they were aided by Cassandra’s stealth and Babs’s technical know-how. But despite all the creeping and computing both women did, alarms went off as soon as they set silent foot in the empty stage hall, where all the chairs had been flung against the wall and the wide stage had been turned into a lab full of crackling equipment. Time Lapse was curled against a table working at his time box with a wiggling silver instrument. He jumped up as soon as the alarms sounded.
Babs cursed. “Invisible undetectable alarms from the future!”
“I can’t believe you managed to say that and not make it sound silly,” Steph said.
“Let’s get going!”
Cass was already cleaving towards Time Lapse like a black arrow. She met him head on, but when she tried to hit him, her fists slammed into solid air. This didn’t perturb her, though, and she continued to dance around him, beating on the bubble that protected him with all her might. Sweat glistened on the villain’s forehead. Some part of him was afraid she might break through. He clasped his time box with one hand, the other groping for a weapon.
Steph jumped on the lab tables, stomping and crushing everything she saw with wild abandon. She threw every object she could get her hands on at the villain, knowing Cass would be able to dodge any projectiles. Not that she needed to, Steph had been ace pitcher on her softball team. Moving targets weren’t too difficult.
Lapse had to wind his force field down so it only conformed to his body in order to hit Cass back. He grabbed a gun from nowhere and shot some sort of ray, but Cass dodged it. He tried to target Stephanie, but every time he turned, Cass was in his face. Now that the force field only just covered his body, she was able to pick him up and throw him into the wall. It didn’t hurt, but no doubt it annoyed him and caused him to drop his gun. The villain was at a disadvantage fighting one handed. If he truly wanted to take Cass on, he would have to let go of the Time Box.
Instead, he chose to hit Cass WITH his hand holding the box. Cass ducked easily, causing the man to stumble with the force of the missed blow. A lurking Babs popped up behind and swept his legs out from under him. As he fell, Steph saw his hand fumble to hold on to the mechanism. Seizing the opportunity, Steph threw the wrench she was holding and knocked the thing out of his grip and into the air. Babs caught it before he could, and Cass jumped on the villain knees-first, pinning him to the ground.
Babs held the device in the air triumphantly.
“We did it!” Steph squealed.
Then around them, the world began to shake.
Time Lapse let out a horrible, strangled laugh.
“What…what’s happening?” Steph stammered.
“Stupid, stupid girls. You got it wrong,” Time Lapse said softly. “The box wasn’t the source of my power. It was what was keeping my power in check. And now that you’ve taken it away…” His smile was almost blissful. “…you three are going to destroy each other.