American Comics: Today's Big News

Chapter 28: Locking Batman in Arkham

Under hypnosis, the prison guards accepted the fact that "Connors was sent by Batman."

So when it was time for fresh air, Connors and the Joker and the others sat on the concrete floor like good buddies, chatting and laughing.

Connors, adhering to the principle of "boldly hypothesizing and carefully verifying," casually recounted the "Brokeback Mountain" scene between Bane and Batman from the comics:

"You guys took turns causing trouble, exhausting Batman, and then Bane defeated him. Killer Croc hasn't made a move yet. Could he be digging a hole for you down there?"

"No, no, no, brother, you're wrong," the Riddler exclaimed first. Bane's appearance was not part of their plan at all.

The scarecrow nodded:

You're half right.

The clown licked the scar on his lip, looking completely unconcerned.

"According to my plan, laughing gas, fear gas, and gunfire will take turns washing over Gotham, and Batman will indeed be exhausted as a result, but Bane is not in the plan."

"Why?" Connors didn't understand. Bane's strength was too great. Even though his physical abilities had been improved to the level of the Master, which was the limit of human potential, he still couldn't fake an accident.

It's unreasonable to leave such a strong fighting force unused.

"That guy may look like a big guy, but he's got more ideas in his head than muscles, buddy. How about you team up with me?"

The Joker remains the most normal-looking one among them, ignoring his appearance.

He casually tossed the penguin aside, who was about to speak, and the clown's expression suddenly shifted from normal to manic:

"How about we team up to get Batman here?"

"Think about it, someone who always moves in the dark, wears a strange bat-like cloak, speaks in a deliberately low voice, and knows perfectly well that Arkham can't hold me, yet he keeps sending me here. Isn't he more like a madman than I am?"

Should Batman be locked up in Arkham Asylum?

Connors immediately gave the Joker a thumbs up:

"Great job, Ugly Master! How do you need my cooperation?"

"It's very simple, you just need to—"

The clown was about to reveal his "plan" with a maniacal laugh, sending Connors to his death, but the guy actually got up and left, leaving the rest of his words stuck in his throat.

Laughing gas, fear gas, and gunfire relentlessly bombard Gotham, keeping Batman constantly on the move. Then, with the help of Killer Croc, Batman escapes from prison, defeats the exhausted Batman, and imprisons him in Arkham Asylum.

But Bane wasn't in the plan and got there first. The Riddler was completely useless in this operation; he might have been tied up before he could even make a move.

But there's another possibility: this old rascal might have another plan in the making.

Connors walked toward the exit of the exercise yard, mentally rehearsing the Joker's plan.

Under the tense watchful eyes of the prison guards, Connors walked to the vicinity of the exit, and after confirming a safe distance, turned to the Joker and said:

"Jackie, the plan is brilliant, but just like you said, Bane does have a lot of ideas—he used your plan to successfully defeat Batman."

"Also, you should stay away from that spot."

He pointed to the spot where he and the clowns had just been sitting.

Before the words were even finished, the entire concrete floor was ripped off, dirt flew everywhere, and a terrifying roar came from underground.

Killer Crocodile!

Its rough, grayish-green skin is covered with scales of varying sizes. Although it still looks humanoid, its face and body are more like those of a crocodile.

From its head to its massive tail, three or four rows of raised scales resemble serrated teeth. Combined with the sharp teeth in its enormous mouth, if it were lying on the ground, it would look exactly like a giant crocodile.

Holy crap, Connors stared at the Killer Croc that emerged from the ground, standing nearly two and a half meters tall, its size comparable to Bane's. He began to wonder how the Master had managed to send this beast into Arkham.

The alarm blared throughout Arkham Asylum.

After the killer crocodile emerged from the ground, the prison guards began firing wildly, but the bullets struck the crocodile's body with clanging sounds, as they were all blocked by its thick scales.

Aside from Batman's four adversaries—the Joker, the Riddler, the Scarecrow, and the Penguin—the other ordinary prisoners fled.

The killer crocodile itself escaped along with the prisoners.

"No, you went through all that trouble to crawl out from underground just to escape from a hail of bullets?" Connors was a little confused.

Is this place here to help the Joker escape from prison, or to suffer?

The killer crocodile was almost oblivious to the bullets, but at this moment it still seemed to have encountered something terrifying, frantically lashing at the wall of the exercise yard with its claws and tail.

A hail of bullets grazed past the Joker, who paid no heed to Killer Croc's current state. He then madly walked through the rain of bullets toward the large hole Killer Croc had crawled out of, but the Penguin jumped in first.

Soon, the clown, the scarecrow, and the riddle man followed, preparing to jump in and escape.

Although the process went awry, the result was still that Killer Croc came to help him escape from prison. All the Joker needed to do was leave Arkham and redesign the plan to send Batman to an asylum.

But the first penguin to jump into the hole quickly flew out again, only to be accidentally wounded by a bullet aimed at Killer Croc in mid-air, splattering blood as he crashed heavily to the ground.

Clown, Riddler, Scarecrow: "?"

Connors: "Penguins can fly?"

"Stop! Stop now!" a prison guard shouted from the shooting tower high in the wall, and the hail of bullets quickly ceased.

All eyes lingered on the killer crocodile crashing headfirst into the wall, the penguin covered in blood, and the deep crater in the ground.

Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, a timid little head poked out of the pit, with white hair tied into twin ponytails, the ends of which were blue and red respectively. It was Harley Quinn.

Harley Quinn seemed to have been underground for a long time; her face was filthy, but this couldn't hide her natural beauty, nor could it conceal her radiant smile. She leaped up and waved to the Joker:

"Hi, Mr. J, is everyone here?"

Her gaze swept over the clown, then caught sight of the Riddler and the Scarecrow, while completely ignoring the Penguin lying on the ground.

"Harley Quinn! You charming little rascal! I knew you'd come—?"

?

The Joker opened his arms, but before he could finish speaking, he watched helplessly as Harley Quinn, covered in mud, pounced into Connors' arms.

"Little Pa! What are you doing here?"

It took her a full three seconds to jump down from Connors' arms, walk back to the edge of the pit, bend down and pull hard.

Dirt flew everywhere again. Harley Quinn pulled an oversized wooden mallet from the ground, slung it over her shoulder, and grinned at the Joker and the others:

"I'm not here to save you; quite the opposite, I'm here to stop you from leaving!"

At the same time, the killer crocodile finally smashed down the wall.

Connors was dumbfounded. He had come to advance the "Laughing Man" event in the gossip system, so what was Harley Quinn, this little madwoman, doing here?

Under the cover of Killer Croc, the Joker and his two companions ran outside laughing, leaving Harley Quinn dumbfounded.

"Oh no, I think I messed things up—"

What are we waiting for? Run! Connors grabbed Harley Quinn and followed the Joker.

Chasing after her would definitely be difficult, so he drove Harley around in circles, planning to return to his apartment in his muscle car first.

Then-.

"Where's the car?" Connors asked Halle.

Harley Quinn looked bewildered:

"I thought it was the Arkham Dean's car—to be used to ram the gate."