TDK Rises Alteration: Return of the Joker

Here we were. The final moment. Bruce felt it.

He felt Bane lift him in one swift motion, but it was all slow to him. He knew what came next.

He'd break his back over his knee. How practical. It'd waste him for good, and Gotham would fall to hell.

However, sometimes God gives you an ace in the hole. And Bruce really didn't expect this one.

The rata-tat-tat of a machine gun went off in the background. His vision was already blurry when he was dropped, and so when Bruce turned to look, he didn't see much.

But this is what he would have saw.

The Joker. Walking in like he wasn't surrounded by Bane's thugs and the big brute himself.

Bane was down on one knee, clearly the one to take the shots to the back, but he surely had a vest.

"Good choice of words there, Bane my boy."

He is standing in front of a blown through wall. All of Bane's thugs were seized by Joker's own, all adorning their own clown mask like they should be.

"But Batman is mine. Not yours." he begins to pace around Bane, a wide grin on his face. "Same goes for Gotham."

He then abruptly leaps down, snatching Bane's mouthpiece in his hands, tugging hard.

"It is mine. Who are you to stake claim to someone elses things?"

Bane's eyes rolled as he looked up, clearly out of it. "You do not only have quarrel with me now..you quarrel with the League of Shadows. Ra's Al--"

"is dead?" Joker would look on boredly. "Duh. That's been a thing for a while now, were you not paying attention?"

Joker would stand then, pulling back the rear of his gun and striking Bane in the face hard. In this quick exchange, one of the pipes from the piece would blow. In pain, Bane would hunch over, clutching his mouth and making a muffled scream.

Joker stood over him, face equivalent to a growling dog. "That's right. Bow."

He stepped, and a dagger stuck out of his shoe. He struck Bane in the front, the dagger reaching wherever it could.

"You fall. I rise."

Bane now laid limp on the floor. An action was repeated throughout the room to the rest of Bane's thugs. Except all met a quick end.

Bruce laid there, bleeding and semi-broken. Joker had won. And how smart he was! Wait until your enemy is vulnerable, and then reappear. Bruce should have known. Arkham didn't quite have a good track record for keeping it's inmates in too long.

Joker knelt down, actually setting down his gun when he did.

"Hello there Brucey." he looked up for a second. "and cat." which was followed by the clicking of heels as Selena ran.

"So.." Bruce coughed, and Joker looked back. "...what now?"

"What do you mean?" Joker said, genuinely confused.

But that was it. Bruce had been beaten like a stray dog, and had abruply passed out.

Joker stood, motioning for his boys to grab the bat.

He watched them shuffle him out, and he turned to throughouly examine everything once more before he left.

Brown eyes looked above. Oh, so that's the armory eh?

And look at Bane. So much promise, but he is clearly fighting for the wrong reasons.

"You win only if you fight for yourself." he'd speak to the unconscious person. "I breathe chaos. And you are nothing but a pawn in this war you wage."

With that, he'd turn on his heels. Off to Wayne manor.

----

Bruce woke with a start, and shot up. Too bad he forgot his wounds. Oops.

And ow.

He plopped back down, taking in slowly he was in his mansion. They let him keep his family home. How nice.

His head turned, and he about threw up in surprise.

Hello, Joker.

"Hello, Mr. Wayne."

He was wearing his usual with the exception of his coat. Everything else checked out normal, except his eyes looked tired and his smile was more of a smirk of Bruce's reaction then to having him cornered. Why was he here?

"U-uh your the guy who crashed my--"

"Save it. I know your the Batman." he'd slide his tongue over his scars, and look away in a 'whatever' sort of way.

Silence.

"Why'd you save me?" Bruce finally managed.

"Were you really out when I said everything in the cave?" he asked in surprise. "Batman and Gotham are for me. No one else." a pause. "I am quite surprised at you, actually, Batman. You've beat the League before, so what's the problem?"

"He's stronger. In every way." to be blunt.

"Bullshit. Woo, muscle." he'd wave his arms. "I single handedly came in and brought this city to it's knee's and I promise I am not a GI Joe. Everyone has their flaws, Bruce." he'd hold up a finger.

Silence.

"Let me hand you a pro tip if I may. I left Bane unconscious. No, I did not kill him because it is YOU who must defeat him. Gotham is about to fall to anarchy. My favorite, but unfortunately only when it is caused by mwah." he'd put a hand to his chest. "So I'm gone after our chat. But it's silly really, you know, you complete me, as I've said before, and so I cannot let you die."

"We are destined to clash forever. You inspire me to do bad. But don't let that depress you because, if not me, someone else will stand for evil as you see now. But like every hero, you will always overcome. So overcome already!"

He stood, brushing off.

"Your too much fun. So I was your guardian angel this time Batman."

"Why don't you help me defeat Bane?" Bruce bursted out, a little confused.

"Because I am no hero. Bane just pisses me off. It's like trying to watch a little kid grow up to be a power ranger. Pathetic. He shames people like me."

He'd get real close now. Super close. Gay close. Uhhhhhh...

"Don't dissapoint me."

And then he'd walk out, smiling all the way and even a laugh as he slammed the door.

And he was right. It was time to fight.