EXTRordinary

Bonus - Joker versus Jackson

*Spoilers*
Note - this bonus tale is merely for fanservice. I've had a lot of people enjoy Extraordinary and request more, but it is not something I have time to do. That being said, I couldn't resist writing a face-off between Joker and Jackson, set sometime between his crusade against Wellston Academy and his unmasking by Remi (he hasn't actually been unmasked yet as far as I've seen, but it's inevitable).

Anyhow, this will likely be the last bit of Extraordinary I ever write, so enjoy it!

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He stood before me, eyes glowing like embers. The wild card. The changer of the deck. The game-breaker. The conqueror of the Royals.

The Joker.

The masked man seemed to glow, not just with power, but with rage. The sheer force of his malice pushed me back a step, and I grimaced.

It was in that moment that I realized that Remi had been right. I shouldn't have waited so long to face him. 

I felt the lightning begin to dance between my fingertips. Good. I would need all the charge I could get.

The Joker said nothing, standing there in a white shirt and tie, looking for all the world like he was about to attend a business meeting instead of a brawl. 

"So," I smiled, "you probably know people call you the Shadow King, right?"

I wiggled my fingers mockingly, enjoying the way the lightning bounced between them. I was so charged up, both physically and mentally, that it was a struggle to keep my movement and words at a normal pace. 

I could do this. I could beat him.

The Joker said nothing, burning eyes regarding the impassively. It felt rather concerning, to be seen as prey and nothing more. That's all the Joker was. A predator and a bully.

But thanks to Remi, I knew something much more.

"You don't speak much, do you?" I sighed. "It would have been more fun to have a conversation before this all went down."

I raise my hand, preparing for the moment it would happen. I was probably going to regret this action.

"Then again," I smirked, oozing confidence I didn't truly feel, "hiding your voice is a good way to keep your identity secret, isn't it-"

This was going to hurt.

"-John."

In a flash, The Joker was in front of me, his fists bearing down towards me like a runaway freight train. Was that a teleportation ability he'd stolen?

I remembered my first fight with the man-mountain, how his punches seemed to take an eternity. But this was different. John's movements were so much faster.

But nobody was faster than me.

I felt a pressure in my head, something tight and sharp. My ears popped.

Moments later, John's fist hung nearly motionless in front of me. I smiled. I didn't have long to work, so I'd have to do all the damage I could. I would use Remi's idea, remove the mask and end the fight. But what was stopping him from teleporting away? I would have to make sure he couldn't use that ability again.

"Not so tough now," I grinned, marching towards him. 

The Joker hung immobile, mid-swing, frozen in the movements of the hands of a clock. I lived between the seconds, and I could fight here, too.

I marched up to his prim and proper shirt and punched him in the gut, once, twice, three times. The lightning from my fingertips left an impression there, ruffling his perfect shirt.