“Dammit!” Bruce exclaimed. He had been attempting to sequence the chemicals in the fear drug he had received from Dick. His life had been a whirlwind of emotions. Alfred left. He partnered with Tim when Tam disappeared into nothingness. Dick returned, working for a secret agency. Jason returned from the dead. And the threat of a great evil loomed over his head. Now, to cap it all off, Bruce had no idea what was in the drug, and where it originated from. There was one reference he found, but it was locked. Locked by A.R.G.U.S. Not even Tim could crack into it.
“Just go to that A.R.G.U.S. place,” Tim shrugged, “The way you brought it up with Dick… well, it sounded like you knew about it.”
Bruce was silent. The last time he had met up with an agent of A.R.G.U.S., it had been Amanda Waller. She had revealed that A.R.G.U.S. was responsible for Deathstroke. His name was Slade Wilson. He had served as an agent in A.R.G.U.S. He was desperate to move up the ranks, so he signed up to test an experimental drug. The test made him into a super soldier. He felt held back at A.R.G.U.S., so he became a mercenary. It paid better than A.R.G.U.S., so as a mercenary, he could support his family. It didn’t matter, because his family ostracized him. He went full dark after that. Slade Wilson died, as Deathstroke lived.
“Yeah, I know about A.R.G.U.S.,” Bruce nodded, “But there’s no way in hell I’m going to them for help.”
“Bruce, if you want to stop these big evil that’s supposedly coming, you might have to,” Tim pointed out, “I’m seventy-eight percent sure this drug has something to do with Scarecrow, considering it makes you see your fears.”
“No.”
“Bruce, you need to,” Tim said.
Batman walked straight through the front doors of the A.R.G.U.S. base located in rural New Jersey. None of the guards even tried to stop him.
“Waller,” Batman ordered.
The guards didn’t move.
“Bring me Waller.”
The guards slowly raised their machine guns, and circled Batman.
“You know this won’t work,” Batman said.
“Sorry, Batman,” one guard said, not taking his aim off of Batman, “Waller won’t be seeing you.”
Batman quickly activated a smoke bomb on his belt, and grappled onto one of the guards’s guns. He swung the gun around in a circle, disarming the other guards.
“Waller. Now.”
“We need Task Force X down here ASAP!” one guard hollered into his walkie-talkie.
Suddenly, green smoke filled the room. Batman was careful not to inhale the smoke. He placed two fingers by the his temple, and rotated them forwards. A clear piece of plastic slid over Batman’s mouth. He would eventually run out of oxygen if he left it down, but he intended to find an area free of the gas before that happened.
Batman activated Detective Vision, and identified the smoke’s compound makeup. He traced it, and found the origin of the green smoke. It came from a person who was surrounded by three other people and a giant.
The Suicide Squad, most likely.
Batman made his way towards the Suicide Squad. The smoke was thickening, making it harder and harder to see. He hit several walls, only to run into a dead end. The Suicide Squad was concealed behind a wall. Batman grabbed a cylindrical container full of blue putty from his belt. He smeared some on the wall, and backed away. The putty began to shake, until it let out a little explosion. The blast was enough to destroy the wall. Batman identified the five individuals standing in the small room behind the wall. They were, indeed, the Suicide Squad.
The woman releasing the smoke was a tall, pencil thin individual. Batman could see her bones. A tattered green dress hung over her tiny limbs, and stringy black hair fell over her eyes. Enchantress.
A thin man with a white mask and red eyepiece over his right eye stood to the left of Enchantress. The rest of his body was covered in black and red armor. He was gripping a sniper. A one-time ally of Batman. Deadshot.
Next to Deadshot, on the far right on the group, was a hulking, grayish-green, scaly beast. His eyes were mustard yellow slits, without pupils. He had massive fangs, some that stretched down off of his chin, and others that almost reached his eyes. Killer Croc.
To the left of Enchantress was a tall, stocky man with a bushy brown beard. He had a blue beanie pulled over his shaggy brown hair. A few scars littered his face. He wore a blue coat on his torso, with a strap of razor sharp boomerangs across his chest. Captain Boomerang.
Finally, all the way on the left, was a Hispanic man with ink covering his body. The tattoos formed the image of a skeleton creeping up his bare body. The only clothes he wore was a pair of black pants. There were flames creeping up his arms, originating from his glowing fists. Diablo.
All members of the Suicide Squad, except for Enchantress, wore clear masks over their faces.
“Sorry, Batty,” Deadshot sighed, “But Waller’s given strict orders to be left alone.”
Batman said nothing. He couldn’t allow himself to use up the minimal clean air within his mask. Instead, he flicked a Batarang at Enchantress. Enchantress couldn’t block it, considering she was so focused on releasing the smoke. Instead, Captain Boomerang threw a boomerang to intercept the Batarang.
“Boomerang versus Batarang,” Captain Boomerang mused, “Looks like ol’ boomer wins.”
Batman grappled up to the ceiling, and hid in the shadows, preparing for a sneak attack. Diablo let flames explode out from his arms, brightening the room. Batman then spotted a steel vault door behind the Suicide Squad. In fact, the entire back wall was steel. He decided it was most likely the way to get to Waller. He needed to get by it.
Batman lunged down, taking out Captain Boomerang. Killer Croc reacted swiftly, snatching Batman up in his claws. Killer Croc smiled deviously, letting saliva drip off of his fangs.
“Careful, Scales,” Deadshot cautioned, “You can’t just devour Gotham’s hero.”
Killer Croc grunted, and squeezed Batman.
“Or squeeze out his organs,” Deadshot added.
Killer Croc loosened his grip. Then he flung Batman out of the room, back into the hallway. The impact caused Batman to gasp, sucking up the last bit of air in his mask. He had to the clear the gas, or escape.
“Batman, I got through the firewall blocking communications,” Tim said over the comms, “And it looks like you’re in deep shi- trouble. Let me help you out. It looks like there’s a clear room in front of you.”
The room behind the vault door. But there was no way in.
“Batman, do you copy?” Tim asked.
Batman was suffocating in his mask. He couldn’t respond. There was only one thing left to do. He retracted the mask, exposing himself to the gas.
“Blocked. Steel wall,” Batman got out before covering his mouth.
“Pfft. That’s easy. It looks like there’s a large heat source near you. Use it to melt the steel,” Tim suggested.
Of course. Diablo. Why hadn’t Batman thought of that? Batman began to bait Diablo. He propelled himself to the ceiling once again. And again, Diablo erupted in order to flush out Batman. This time, Batman kicked off of the ceiling, and over to the steel wall. Diablo directed his flames at the wall, melting it.
Batman grinned, and rushed into the room behind the steel wall.
“Enchantress, recall the poison,” Amanda Waller ordered. She was standing right in front of Batman, behind the steel wall.
The green gas vanished, and Batman could breathe.
“I thought we had a deal,” Waller smirked, “I keep away from you, you keep away from me. You broke your end of the deal.”
“You know what is in this drug,” Batman said, holding up a small vial of the fear toxin, “You’re going to tell me.”
“Under one condition,” Waller stated, “I can stroll on into Gotham whenever I want with my team, and you won’t interfere with whatever mission I’m on.”
“You and your team of crooks? No chance.”
“Hey, we’re not all bad,” Deadshot threw in.
“No deal,” Waller said.
“Fine,” Batman growled, “We have a deal. Now, what’s in the drugs?”
Waller sighed, muttering about some mission she had to deal with already. Agent Braverman or something. Over in France.
Finally, she said, “Come with me.”
Batman stood behind Waller at a computer. On the screen was the same schematics that Batman had seen before. The makeup of the drug. But key components were missing. Batman just wasn’t able to pinpoint where he had seen it, where it had come from, and how to manufacture an antidote.
Now, the entire genetic makeup was there. And a map to the side showed where ingredients could be found. There were hints of the ingredients in Santa Prisca, South America; the mountains of Tibet; and Arkham Asylum.
“Arkham?” Batman wondered.
“Yes. Some of the toxin is made with Poison Ivy’s plants,” Waller stated.
“Ivy… Red Robin, we’re going to need to have a chat with Ivy when I get back,” Batman said.
“Red Robin? What a horrible name,” Waller commented.
“Not my decision,” Batman grumbled.
“Now, take a closer look at the location in the Hengduan Mountains,” Waller instructed.
Batman peered at the range of mountains on the southeast portion of the Tibetan Plateau.
“Is that location familiar?” Waller asked.
“It’s where the League of Assassins operate out of,” Batman nodded, “But they shut down after I thwarted their attack on Gotham.”
“I’m well aware. That was when Batman first struck. That’s the kind of event I remember.”
“So Scarecrow is a former League of Assassins member?” Batman assumed.
“It seems probable,” Waller agreed.
“Am I also right to assume that not even you have files on all members of the League of Assassins?” Batman asked.
“Right,” Waller sighed, “And Scarecrow might not even be from the League. That’s just an assumption. When I assume, I make an-”
“I’m familiar with the expression,” Batman said, “If Scarecrow isn’t an assassin, what is he? Scarecrow sounds like a name the League would give.”
“First of all, Scarecrow might not even be a male. No more assumptions. We deal with facts. The fact is, we’re not even sure if that fear toxin belongs to Scarecrow,” Waller pointed out.
“Fine. So this toxin might not even be connected to Scarecrow. Either way, why did you lock the one reference to this particular fear toxin? Do you have something to hide? Did you make Scarecrow too?” Batman inquired.
“To the best of my knowledge, A.R.G.U.S. was not responsible for Scarecrow,” Waller stated.
“Alright. So our list of possible suspects include any member of the League of Assassins, and…?”
“It could be an inmate at Arkham. Someone close to Ivy. Most likely someone who worked at a shipping port. That’s where they would have come into contact with the components from Santa Prisca. It’s anyone’s guess on how they came across the ingredients exclusive to the League.”
“But it’d take an accomplished chemist to know how to make the toxin,” Batman pointed out.
“I was getting to that. So we’re looking for a former dock worker, current Arkham Inmate, with a love for chemistry. Or a dock worker that knows someone who’s a chemist,” Waller said.
“If I may ask, what were the ingredients gathered from the League and Santa Prisca?” Batman asked.
“A sample of the Tansik Herb was taken from the League,” Waller began.
“The mortifying herb,” Batman translated, “Ra’s used it on me early in my training. It generates terrifying hallucinations that it yanks deep from your mind.”
“Precisely. From Santa Prisca, there is Venom,” Waller finished.
“Venom? Like, the Venom that the Church of Blood was manufacturing?” Batman wondered.
“Right. An enhanced version of the Miraclo that Hourman used years ago,” Waller explained.
“I remember. We shot down the plane carrying them to Brazil,” Batman stated.
“That plane was stolen from the prison, Peña Duro, on the island of Santa Prisca. It’s in the Caribbean,” Waller said.
“The Caribbean? I thought the Venom was headed for Brazil,” Batman said.
“It was. Brazilians stationed on Santa Prisca figured they’d pick up the drugs because they were closer. Immediately, police on Santa Prisca began searching for the stolen plane. They found its wreckage next to crates full of Venom. They took the Venom back to Santa Prisca, where they learned of its power. The leader of Santa Prisca began to make more of the drug, pouring all of the government’s funds into its creation. Santa Prisca was in a state of emergency. The island nation was stony broke, and had drugged up brutes running around. Until recently. The Venom beasts vanished, along with all samples of the Venom.”
“Scarecrow,” Batman growled.
“Again, we’re not sure that this fear toxin has anything to do with-”
“It does,” Batman said flatly.
“Well then. Glad I could help. I’ll be seeing you around,” Waller grinned.
“Let’s hope not.”
“Just go to that A.R.G.U.S. place,” Tim shrugged, “The way you brought it up with Dick… well, it sounded like you knew about it.”
Bruce was silent. The last time he had met up with an agent of A.R.G.U.S., it had been Amanda Waller. She had revealed that A.R.G.U.S. was responsible for Deathstroke. His name was Slade Wilson. He had served as an agent in A.R.G.U.S. He was desperate to move up the ranks, so he signed up to test an experimental drug. The test made him into a super soldier. He felt held back at A.R.G.U.S., so he became a mercenary. It paid better than A.R.G.U.S., so as a mercenary, he could support his family. It didn’t matter, because his family ostracized him. He went full dark after that. Slade Wilson died, as Deathstroke lived.
“Yeah, I know about A.R.G.U.S.,” Bruce nodded, “But there’s no way in hell I’m going to them for help.”
“Bruce, if you want to stop these big evil that’s supposedly coming, you might have to,” Tim pointed out, “I’m seventy-eight percent sure this drug has something to do with Scarecrow, considering it makes you see your fears.”
“No.”
“Bruce, you need to,” Tim said.
Batman walked straight through the front doors of the A.R.G.U.S. base located in rural New Jersey. None of the guards even tried to stop him.
“Waller,” Batman ordered.
The guards didn’t move.
“Bring me Waller.”
The guards slowly raised their machine guns, and circled Batman.
“You know this won’t work,” Batman said.
“Sorry, Batman,” one guard said, not taking his aim off of Batman, “Waller won’t be seeing you.”
Batman quickly activated a smoke bomb on his belt, and grappled onto one of the guards’s guns. He swung the gun around in a circle, disarming the other guards.
“Waller. Now.”
“We need Task Force X down here ASAP!” one guard hollered into his walkie-talkie.
Suddenly, green smoke filled the room. Batman was careful not to inhale the smoke. He placed two fingers by the his temple, and rotated them forwards. A clear piece of plastic slid over Batman’s mouth. He would eventually run out of oxygen if he left it down, but he intended to find an area free of the gas before that happened.
Batman activated Detective Vision, and identified the smoke’s compound makeup. He traced it, and found the origin of the green smoke. It came from a person who was surrounded by three other people and a giant.
The Suicide Squad, most likely.
Batman made his way towards the Suicide Squad. The smoke was thickening, making it harder and harder to see. He hit several walls, only to run into a dead end. The Suicide Squad was concealed behind a wall. Batman grabbed a cylindrical container full of blue putty from his belt. He smeared some on the wall, and backed away. The putty began to shake, until it let out a little explosion. The blast was enough to destroy the wall. Batman identified the five individuals standing in the small room behind the wall. They were, indeed, the Suicide Squad.
The woman releasing the smoke was a tall, pencil thin individual. Batman could see her bones. A tattered green dress hung over her tiny limbs, and stringy black hair fell over her eyes. Enchantress.
A thin man with a white mask and red eyepiece over his right eye stood to the left of Enchantress. The rest of his body was covered in black and red armor. He was gripping a sniper. A one-time ally of Batman. Deadshot.
Next to Deadshot, on the far right on the group, was a hulking, grayish-green, scaly beast. His eyes were mustard yellow slits, without pupils. He had massive fangs, some that stretched down off of his chin, and others that almost reached his eyes. Killer Croc.
To the left of Enchantress was a tall, stocky man with a bushy brown beard. He had a blue beanie pulled over his shaggy brown hair. A few scars littered his face. He wore a blue coat on his torso, with a strap of razor sharp boomerangs across his chest. Captain Boomerang.
Finally, all the way on the left, was a Hispanic man with ink covering his body. The tattoos formed the image of a skeleton creeping up his bare body. The only clothes he wore was a pair of black pants. There were flames creeping up his arms, originating from his glowing fists. Diablo.
All members of the Suicide Squad, except for Enchantress, wore clear masks over their faces.
“Sorry, Batty,” Deadshot sighed, “But Waller’s given strict orders to be left alone.”
Batman said nothing. He couldn’t allow himself to use up the minimal clean air within his mask. Instead, he flicked a Batarang at Enchantress. Enchantress couldn’t block it, considering she was so focused on releasing the smoke. Instead, Captain Boomerang threw a boomerang to intercept the Batarang.
“Boomerang versus Batarang,” Captain Boomerang mused, “Looks like ol’ boomer wins.”
Batman grappled up to the ceiling, and hid in the shadows, preparing for a sneak attack. Diablo let flames explode out from his arms, brightening the room. Batman then spotted a steel vault door behind the Suicide Squad. In fact, the entire back wall was steel. He decided it was most likely the way to get to Waller. He needed to get by it.
Batman lunged down, taking out Captain Boomerang. Killer Croc reacted swiftly, snatching Batman up in his claws. Killer Croc smiled deviously, letting saliva drip off of his fangs.
“Careful, Scales,” Deadshot cautioned, “You can’t just devour Gotham’s hero.”
Killer Croc grunted, and squeezed Batman.
“Or squeeze out his organs,” Deadshot added.
Killer Croc loosened his grip. Then he flung Batman out of the room, back into the hallway. The impact caused Batman to gasp, sucking up the last bit of air in his mask. He had to the clear the gas, or escape.
“Batman, I got through the firewall blocking communications,” Tim said over the comms, “And it looks like you’re in deep shi- trouble. Let me help you out. It looks like there’s a clear room in front of you.”
The room behind the vault door. But there was no way in.
“Batman, do you copy?” Tim asked.
Batman was suffocating in his mask. He couldn’t respond. There was only one thing left to do. He retracted the mask, exposing himself to the gas.
“Blocked. Steel wall,” Batman got out before covering his mouth.
“Pfft. That’s easy. It looks like there’s a large heat source near you. Use it to melt the steel,” Tim suggested.
Of course. Diablo. Why hadn’t Batman thought of that? Batman began to bait Diablo. He propelled himself to the ceiling once again. And again, Diablo erupted in order to flush out Batman. This time, Batman kicked off of the ceiling, and over to the steel wall. Diablo directed his flames at the wall, melting it.
Batman grinned, and rushed into the room behind the steel wall.
“Enchantress, recall the poison,” Amanda Waller ordered. She was standing right in front of Batman, behind the steel wall.
The green gas vanished, and Batman could breathe.
“I thought we had a deal,” Waller smirked, “I keep away from you, you keep away from me. You broke your end of the deal.”
“You know what is in this drug,” Batman said, holding up a small vial of the fear toxin, “You’re going to tell me.”
“Under one condition,” Waller stated, “I can stroll on into Gotham whenever I want with my team, and you won’t interfere with whatever mission I’m on.”
“You and your team of crooks? No chance.”
“Hey, we’re not all bad,” Deadshot threw in.
“No deal,” Waller said.
“Fine,” Batman growled, “We have a deal. Now, what’s in the drugs?”
Waller sighed, muttering about some mission she had to deal with already. Agent Braverman or something. Over in France.
Finally, she said, “Come with me.”
Batman stood behind Waller at a computer. On the screen was the same schematics that Batman had seen before. The makeup of the drug. But key components were missing. Batman just wasn’t able to pinpoint where he had seen it, where it had come from, and how to manufacture an antidote.
Now, the entire genetic makeup was there. And a map to the side showed where ingredients could be found. There were hints of the ingredients in Santa Prisca, South America; the mountains of Tibet; and Arkham Asylum.
“Arkham?” Batman wondered.
“Yes. Some of the toxin is made with Poison Ivy’s plants,” Waller stated.
“Ivy… Red Robin, we’re going to need to have a chat with Ivy when I get back,” Batman said.
“Red Robin? What a horrible name,” Waller commented.
“Not my decision,” Batman grumbled.
“Now, take a closer look at the location in the Hengduan Mountains,” Waller instructed.
Batman peered at the range of mountains on the southeast portion of the Tibetan Plateau.
“Is that location familiar?” Waller asked.
“It’s where the League of Assassins operate out of,” Batman nodded, “But they shut down after I thwarted their attack on Gotham.”
“I’m well aware. That was when Batman first struck. That’s the kind of event I remember.”
“So Scarecrow is a former League of Assassins member?” Batman assumed.
“It seems probable,” Waller agreed.
“Am I also right to assume that not even you have files on all members of the League of Assassins?” Batman asked.
“Right,” Waller sighed, “And Scarecrow might not even be from the League. That’s just an assumption. When I assume, I make an-”
“I’m familiar with the expression,” Batman said, “If Scarecrow isn’t an assassin, what is he? Scarecrow sounds like a name the League would give.”
“First of all, Scarecrow might not even be a male. No more assumptions. We deal with facts. The fact is, we’re not even sure if that fear toxin belongs to Scarecrow,” Waller pointed out.
“Fine. So this toxin might not even be connected to Scarecrow. Either way, why did you lock the one reference to this particular fear toxin? Do you have something to hide? Did you make Scarecrow too?” Batman inquired.
“To the best of my knowledge, A.R.G.U.S. was not responsible for Scarecrow,” Waller stated.
“Alright. So our list of possible suspects include any member of the League of Assassins, and…?”
“It could be an inmate at Arkham. Someone close to Ivy. Most likely someone who worked at a shipping port. That’s where they would have come into contact with the components from Santa Prisca. It’s anyone’s guess on how they came across the ingredients exclusive to the League.”
“But it’d take an accomplished chemist to know how to make the toxin,” Batman pointed out.
“I was getting to that. So we’re looking for a former dock worker, current Arkham Inmate, with a love for chemistry. Or a dock worker that knows someone who’s a chemist,” Waller said.
“If I may ask, what were the ingredients gathered from the League and Santa Prisca?” Batman asked.
“A sample of the Tansik Herb was taken from the League,” Waller began.
“The mortifying herb,” Batman translated, “Ra’s used it on me early in my training. It generates terrifying hallucinations that it yanks deep from your mind.”
“Precisely. From Santa Prisca, there is Venom,” Waller finished.
“Venom? Like, the Venom that the Church of Blood was manufacturing?” Batman wondered.
“Right. An enhanced version of the Miraclo that Hourman used years ago,” Waller explained.
“I remember. We shot down the plane carrying them to Brazil,” Batman stated.
“That plane was stolen from the prison, Peña Duro, on the island of Santa Prisca. It’s in the Caribbean,” Waller said.
“The Caribbean? I thought the Venom was headed for Brazil,” Batman said.
“It was. Brazilians stationed on Santa Prisca figured they’d pick up the drugs because they were closer. Immediately, police on Santa Prisca began searching for the stolen plane. They found its wreckage next to crates full of Venom. They took the Venom back to Santa Prisca, where they learned of its power. The leader of Santa Prisca began to make more of the drug, pouring all of the government’s funds into its creation. Santa Prisca was in a state of emergency. The island nation was stony broke, and had drugged up brutes running around. Until recently. The Venom beasts vanished, along with all samples of the Venom.”
“Scarecrow,” Batman growled.
“Again, we’re not sure that this fear toxin has anything to do with-”
“It does,” Batman said flatly.
“Well then. Glad I could help. I’ll be seeing you around,” Waller grinned.
“Let’s hope not.”