ʀᴇᴄʟᴜsᴇ! homesick

CH 26 Part 2: Showdown

Everyone rushes to get back in their uniforms, grabbing weapons, grappling hooks, anything they can get their hands on.

I start to get ready as well, I don't know why, but I just had to see Jason.

I go up to my room, to go and grab the extra web fluid I had just developed, just in case I have a web block.

I get ready to go, until Bruce tells me he doesn't want me to come. I open my mouth to argue, but he said that I was too emotionally compromised.

In other words, I was banned from going.

Emotionally compromised, my a-

Language, a voice harks in my mind, and it reminds me of my dad, in turn I just roll my eyes.

Instead, Bruce replaces me with Batgirl on the team that's going.

I'm stuck on monitor duty with Oracle, watching through the cameras in their suits.

They go to the building where it all started, well, ended, where Jason died.

Everyone's coms are on, and I hear every breath, and every movement.

On the way, they spot the Red Hood, soaring upon the rooftops.

They fight.

I'm annoyed at Bruce, so out of spite and a little bit of anger, I ignore what's going on.

It's not going well, as far as I can tell, none of them manage to good a good hit in.

"Clue master hits better than you Nightwing." The Red Hood insults Nightwing, who looks hurt after being compared to the D rated villain. "Batgirl, no offense, of course."

Batgirl tenses up, which is unusual for the crazy girl, and she lacks a quip to throw back at him.

He eventually leads them to the room, where the Joker is.

"One more step, and I shoot the Joker. One more step, and I'll blow this place up again."

It was a trap.

I don't think I've ever seen fear flash across Batman's face. Not for him, but for his family.

"I bet you're thinking, why? It's simple. I wanted to see you suffer as much as I had Bruce. When you realized there was nothing you could do, that you were gonna die, and no one was coming to rescue you."

"Jace,-" he starts.

"You lost the right to call me that when you let the Joker go free." He threatens.

Bruce asserts, "I put him in Arkham, I didn't let him galavant around-"

"How many times have you imprisoned him? No we both know he needs something much more permanent. Don't patronize me for something you were too scared to do Bruce." Jason declares.

Jason cocks his gun, and Dick, Stephanie, and Bruce tense forward, while Tim, Cass, and Damian try to shy away. "The only way you save the Joker, is by killing me... It's me or him B."

The Joker laughs, laughs, laughs. "With a gun? I thought you had better style than this, Jason. You know a crowbar-"

He hit him with the butt of his gun. "We can't get you too excited, can we?" The Joker's mouth starts bleeding, mixing with the red make up on his face. He licks it.

I couldn't watch it anymore.

I ignore Barbara yelling at me to stop, begging for me not to go, but I put on my mask and race off to stop Jason.

This was not going to end well.

He was about to make a huge mistake, one he would regret this for the rest of his life. Someone was there to stop me from making the same mistake, but who was there for Jason? I had to stop him.