Inbetween

Chapter Twenty Three: Fear Toxin

I want to start making original content on my profile as well but I don't know what to write about lol
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Batman woke in an abandoned warehouse, the flickering lights cast ghastly shadows around him, and the silence made the hairs on the back of his neck stand. His wrists were tied to a beam and he dangled above a vat of some unknown black liquid. His head was pounding and the longer he hung the weaker he grew; he could feel his muscles straining and failing to keep him steady. He held onto the rope knowing that it gave him an extra sense of security over the liquid. His heart was pounding in his ears and he knew he had to figure a way out sooner rather than later.

A soft groan caught his attention and he turned his head or see Superman tied to a large piece of green, glowing kryptonite. He had beads of sweat rolling off his forehead and his skin was much paler than usual.  He could see Clark's just barely moving, the hero looked weak enough for anyone to beat, Bruce couldn't bear to see him that way; it made Bruce's heart sink to his stomach. He wriggled from his bindings trying his best to untie the knots on his wrists. If he could get at least one off he knew he could swing away from the liquid and move Clark away from the kryptonite.

He pulled himself up and tried his best to loosen the knots once again; he wriggled his wrists and knew that he had to do something drastic. He sucked in a deep breath and forced one of his wrists through the rope hole. His wrist cracked from the pressure and he did his best to stifle a groan. A soft grunt escaped his lips instead he struggled as his wrist slipped out of the hole and fell limp; the pain from his bone-breaking was immediate and he knew there would be nasty swelling soon. Lucky there was no damage to his hand and he brought it up to untie his other hand. Just before the rope was loose enough he started to swing himself away from the vat of liquid beneath him. With enough momentum, he untied himself just at the right moment and landed directly on the concrete ground.

His back hit the ground instantly knocking the wind out of his lungs. He let out a stifled cough and rolled to his side. Bruce pulled himself up off the ground and dragged himself to Clark who was taking shallow breaths. He quickly untied him and pulled him away by his arm. The farther he pulled Clark away from the Kryptonite the better he was starting to look. He hid them behind one of the many rows in the warehouse; he rested Clark against the shelf and crouched beside him. He started slapping Clark's cheek gently trying his best to wake the other man. Clark let out a weak groan and cracked his eyes open.

"Br-Batman?" Clark caught himself before he could expose Batman's identity.

"How're you feeling?" He spoke softly but his eyes kept darting around checking to see if anyone had entered.

"Never better." Clark wheezed and pulled himself up.

"We need to get out of here." Bruce stood up and checked one of the corners near them.

"Any sign of Ivy?" Clark shook his head as his nausea subsided.

"No, but I'm sure that's not a good sign." Bruce cupped his limp wrist and sighed.

Superman stood up and checked the other side of the shelf; the room glowed green due to the kryptonite. It cast odd shadows across the room and obscured most of the materials in the room. Bruce scanned the room for all windows and exits; he found two exits and all the windows looked as though they could not be opened. He suppressed a sigh and went back to Superman who was now floating a couple of inches off the ground.

"I don't like how quiet it is," Superman admitted and Batman nodded in agreement.

"Someone should be in here watching us." Bruce noted, "or at least monologuing."

"Great point." Superman sighed, "come on."

Superman pulled Bruce closer to him so they could fly off but Bruce's wincing caught his attention and he instantly dropped the other hero's wrist.

"What's wrong?" His eyebrows knitted together and scanned Bruce with his x-ray vision, "your wrist?"

"I'm fine" Bruce waved him off, "right now let's just focus on the task at hand."

Clark nodded and grabbed Bruce by his other wrist. He started to lift off the ground when the speaker's feedback echoed throughout the room. The sharp ring made both men cringe but Clark kept flying higher still holding onto Bruce.

"Welcome, gentlemen!" Scarecrow's haunting voice boomed throughout the room, "leaving so soon?"

Bruce felt his chest burn with anxiety as Scarecrow continued to speak, "I want you two to experience true fear."

Superman looked down at Batman whose face was steely. He landed them on top of one of the staircases and tried to break open one of the large windows. The glass didn't waiver and Superman winced at the impact. Bruce spotted several cameras throughout the room all with blinking red lights. Some followed them while others were pointed at certain parts of the room.

"Relax, gentlemen, fear is inevitable." The speaker cut off and green gas seeped out of the vents in the room.

Batman reached for his air purifiers but when he opened his belt all of his utilities were gone. He sucked in a deep breath trying not to let his demeanor crack but he could feel the panic start to set in. Clark looked back at him with wide eyes.

Ivy's voice crackled through the speaker, "try not to kill each other, we need you two for the rest of the plan."

"I don't need to breathe." Clark reassured Bruce, "I'll get us out of here."

Bruce nodded as he held his breath. He knew he could hold it for up to three minutes; he was hoping in that time that Clark would find a way out. Superman flew from window to window testing to see which would break. All the windows seemed to be indestructible and Bruce could start to feel the ache in his lungs from holding his breath for so long. Clark tried the exits but they were bolted shut and lodged with small bits of kryptonite.

Batman was starting to feel light-headed and once Superman landed beside him he knew that they had no way out.

"And one last thing, boys." Ivy drawled, "there's kryptonite in the gas."

A lump formed in Clark's throat and he tried the windows again. Gas started to spread farther into the room and was slowly creeping to their level. Clark moved close to Bruce so that his next words couldn't be heard by the cameras.

"I'm sorry." His lips jutted downward, "I can't get us out."

Bruce looked as though he was nearly going to pass out, "it's not your fault."

Bruce wanted to say: I love you and none of this is your fault. But he hesitated. By the look in Clark's eyes, he could tell that Clark understood exactly what he meant.

Just as Superman was about to speak the gas reached them. It circled around them and as Bruce struggled to hold his breath Clark crumpled to the ground the fear toxin wrapping around him. Bruce couldn't fight it anymore and sucked in a small breath; it was enough to knock him off his feet. His vision grew blurry and the room began to spin. He looked over at Clark one last time before fully passing out.