Chapter 19: Riot

. 3:09 AM

. John Kovic sat at the control panel, coffee in hand.

This was his third year at Arkham, and he was one of the longest-tenured. Most of his coworkers had left; after all, no one wanted to share the same air with those lunatics.

Night watch was boring.

He always liked to pass the time by zooming in on one of the surveillance cameras and staring at one of the lunatics—tonight, he chose Scarecrow.

Jonathan Crane sat motionless on the bed, like a dead crow.

John took a sip of coffee and put the cup down.

The incandescent light suddenly flickered briefly and then went out.

"Again..."

He thought it was a problem with the bulb's wiring, so he reached for the switch.

No effect.

He belatedly turned back to check the surveillance cameras, only to find that all the images had frozen for a moment, then went black.

Red warning lights lit up on the wall, a shrill alarm blared.

He jumped up, trying to activate the emergency system, but the safety gate, which normally opened easily, seemed stuck and wouldn't budge.

He paused for two seconds before finally reacting and picking up the intercom.

"System—"

The communication was instantly cut off.

"Fuck..." he cursed.

—————————

3:14 AM

Wayne Manor, Batcave.

Bruce had just stepped out of the training pod when an alarm suddenly appeared on the main screen of his computer.

It indicated an unusual situation at Arkham Asylum.

This instantly caught the attention of both men.

"There's a power outage at the asylum. There are no abnormalities in nearby buildings. This is a localized outage, suspected to be man-made," Alfred reported quickly, his face solemn. He opened the back door left at Arkham Asylum and surveyed the situation.

"Zone C, where the patients are housed, is out of control. All the doors have been unlocked, and the security system has been compromised."

Bruce put on his helmet. "How many people have escaped?"

"Unconfirmed. No information at this time."

"Notify Barbara Gordon."

Bruce quickly put on his armor and cape.

Alfred couldn't help but say, "Calling in police will take time. I don't think you can handle this alone..."

Bruce interrupted, "I've dealt with worse situations."

He had just moved when a soft sound came from the end of the corridor.

Jason stood there, his uniform already changed, mask in hand.

"I'll go with you."

Bruce paused, frowning.

"You stay."

Jason took a few steps closer, his voice low.

"You can't control this situation."

They stared at each other for a second, a rare moment of silence.

A silent assessment.

Alfred softly advised,

"You should give him a chance."

Bruce looked away and turned.

"Follow orders."

—————————

3:16 AM

, Arkham Asylum, Wing C underground emergency passage.

Three men emerged. The two at the sides, in combat fatigues, stood guard with guns. The man in the middle, handcuffed and wearing Arkham's uniform, bright orange hospital gown.

They boarded a black sedan, which quickly took off.

3:21 AM ,

the Batmobile arrived.

The area was a scene of chaos: fire, smoke, gunfire, explosions.

The shattered streets lay precarious.

The gates of Arkham Asylum were open, and many were still escaping.

"Get out of the way!" Batman shouted.

A dark figure swooped out of the sewers and pounced on Jason.

He barely resembled a human, with a crocodile's head, clawed hands, and a body covered in green scales.

Jason reacted quickly, rolling on the ground and striking him in the jaw with his two clubs. Batman followed

closely, leaping from the side and kicking Killer Croc in the back.

Clearly enraged by the blow, Killer Croc shifted his target, lashing out with his claws.

Batman slid backward to avoid it, then unleashed two stun grenades, landing precisely at Croc's feet.

There was a loud bang, a flash of light, and Killer Croc wailed and fell to his knees.

Jason seized the opportunity to restrain him from behind with a custom-made restraint. Batman quickly followed suit, cinching his mouth from the front. The restraints tightened instantly, the electricity activated, and the buckle closed.

————————

3:30

West Street.

The ground resembled a gaping wound.

Twisted vines emerged from underneath, appearing smooth at first glance, but upon closer inspection, covered in soft red thorns. They stretched freely, like the veins of a city.

Poison Ivy stood on the roof of a vine-wrapped bus, looking down at the two men below.

"Gotham belongs to nature—Batman, you're making the plants here weep."

She waved her hand, and the vines pierced them like spears.

Jason growled, "How did we mess with her?"

Batman scolded, hurling his special weed killer.

"Don't be distracted!"

With a bang, a vine as thick as a well burst from the ground and slammed into Batman.

He quickly dodged, but the vine still scraped his cape.

On the other side, Jason hooked his claws around a utility pole and used his knife to cut through the vines that attacked him.

"There's no end to these things!" he cursed under his breath.

Batman replied with a single word.

"Hold on!"

"This is going to be difficult—"

He threw the batarang, aiming it at the base of the vine. The sharp blade slashed away a large section of the plant, giving Jason a moment's respite.

Poison Ivy, standing high above, watched Batman use his special weed killer to destroy her plants, her face grim.

"You're doing this too, Batman?"

She continued to command the plants to attack the two, shouting angrily,

"I thought you were the only one who could see the truth—"

Batman dodged nimbly and used herbicide to remove several more venomous vines.

"You're crazy, Poison Ivy," a deep, oppressive voice came from behind the mask. "You're destroying my city."

"Destroy?" Poison Ivy repeated coldly, retorting, "No, I'm saving her."

Poison Ivy's vines were incredibly aggressive, and she had already laid numerous plant traps across the battlefield, leading to a stalemate.

Just then—

a dark figure leaped from the sky, landing effortlessly on the bus roof, behind Poison Ivy.

The figure quickly slashed through the vine wall with a dagger, then lunged with a punch.

Poison Ivy, realizing she was being attacked, panicked and summoned her plants to protect herself. Batman seized the opportunity to escape the plants' distraction, leaping up with his grappling hook, rapidly closing in on his target.

Unfortunately—

Poison Ivy barely dodged the figure's punch, but couldn't avoid Batman's elbow.

She collapsed unconscious.

The plants instantly withered, returning to their original form and scattering across the floor.

Jason followed, leaping onto the bus and looking up at the figure.

It was a girl.

She wore a black and gray combat suit, a black mask, and her black hair plastered to her cheeks.

She said nothing, simply launched her grappling hook and flew away, blending into the night.

Jason looked at the sharp figure and then at Batman.

"Did you call for help?"

"...No."