Batman snapped his eyes open, finding himself ln the bed back at Twilight's Castle, 'Luna must've sent us back to reality all ready... I'm not sure how long I've been asleep, but I just hope it wasn't longer than I thought.' he rubbed his head, sitting up on his bed and looking down at the ground.
"What the-" he asked, seeing broken glass on the ground. Batman noticed a strange glass container lying on the floor next to his bed and picked it up, using his Detective Vision to scan what's left inside, 'No... Ra's managed to get his hands on enhanced Fear Toxin... But the question is... How did he manage to get all of us?' the thought was left in his head, trying to piece everything together as much as he could.
He clenched the glass, his armor protecting him from the shards, 'But why do this now? Why bother waiting to do this in the first place... Unless he's planning this. Of course... Why go through all this trouble? He could've ended me and purge this world and headed back to Earth whenever he wanted...' he stepped out of his room, finally understanding what is happening. Spike tried to call for him, but the Dark Knight ignored him as he reached the map room.
Batman had requested that Twilight and Spike call the girls over after they finished eating for him to elaborate on what's been happening during the past week. He stood up from his crouched position, holding the empty plate in his hand before letting Twilight use her magic to lift it away from him.
"What happened, Batman?" asked Spike, who hadn't witness the nightmare events from the night before.
Batman looked at the dragon, "Something important. I finally figured out Ra's Al Ghul's plan for us and Equestria. And I'm not liking what I came up with."
Spike raised an eyebrow at his comment, "A-Are you sure?"
"Yes. I'm surprised that it took me this long to figure it out." replied Batman.
Eventually the girls had made it to Twilight's castle, getting the message from the alicorn herself. They each sat around the thrones, with Batman and Spike standing in the center next to the Crystal Map. "Yo, Bats! Surprised to see ya up and about after that crazy nightmare you had! What was that all about?"
"Old memories. Nothing to be concerned of."
Rarity put a hoof on her chin, "I do not know that... The Joker seemed hellbent on killing you inside of your own mind. You seem to have more enemies than we initially thought."
"Yeah, that Joker guy was really messed up. Are ya sure yer fine after that experience?" Applejack wondered.
Btman scowled, "I told you already. I'm fine." he emphasized his words just to make sure that they don't bring it up ever again. For his sake and theirs. 'The less they know of him... The better. Those are memories I swore to lock away to keep something like that from ever happening again. And last night proved me right in my assumption.'
"Back on topic... I figured out that we were injected with a chemical known as Fear Toxin. It causes the victim to experience their worst fears and break their minds. It was used by another foe of mine, Scarecrow, who I haven't seen in almost two years. It seems that Ra's Al Ghul managed to get his hands on an enhanced version. But what confused me was how he managed to get here and injecting each of us with a sample."
"What are you saying?" asked Twilight.
"Do you have any enemies that can do that without being spotted?"
"Without being spotted? T-Twilight... You don't think?" began Fluttershy, cutting herself off.
"No... Why would they join a monster like Ra's Al Ghul?" Twilight replied.
"Well, don't be cryptic! Spill it out!" Dash groaned.
Twilight gulped. Seeing no other possible option for Ra's plan, "He must've found the Changelinegs. They're a species that are able to change into the shape of anypony. They could've blended in and walked in here without us knowing. If that's the case, then Chrysalis must've joined him..."
"What? But they can be anywhere!" Pinkie shouted.
"How do I know that none of you are spies?" asked Rainbow Dash, feeling suspicious, "How do we know Batman's not a spy?"
"That's crazy, Rainbow Dash. We would've figured him out." Applejack responded.
Batman looked at each of them, "You don't have to worry about being tricked. I have a foe like that on my world. He too has the ability to shapeshift. So I upgraded my cowl to make sure that the person has the actual biological structure, meaning that I can tell Clayface or a changeling apart based on whether or not their bones are real and organic and not morphed by their unique constant changing bodies." he revealed. "Each of you are indeed the real deal." he assured. "But there could be a changeling here in Ponyville since they managed to sneak in here last night."
Batman spoke once more, "I'll check Ponyville and make sure that we're safe from these changelings as you called them. I'll let you know if I find anything strange. What do they normally look like?"
"They look like us, but more buglike." the purple alicorn explained.
"Got it. My cowl shall be able to spot an anamoly at any point. I never needed to use it here until now."
Batman made his way out of the castle and activated his Detective Vision, scanning each of the ponies standing and wandering about outside, 'Everything seems normal so far... I can tell that the bone structures of these ponies are normal. Perhaps I should look deeper.' he suggested himself in his head. The Dark Knight turned his head left and right, checking to see if everypony was the real deal. He had to stop a few times to double check, but he moved on once he saw things were clear.
'Wait...' he scanned something off about a pony. The mare was purple with a yellow mane. 'Her bone structure is off compared to the other ponies I investigated. She must be one of the changelings. Now, why would they stay here knowing that I was still here? Big mistake on their part.'
Batman started pacing toward the fake pony. Her eyes slowly went wide upon the sight of Batman closing in. She started to slowly trot away, not to draw any attention to herself. She turned her head back to see the Dark Knignt following her still. She moved faster, Batman doing so as well. Eventually, in fear she began to run. The vigilante started to make a sprint, "Stop!" he ordered, trailing after the fake mare as fast as he could.
While running, the Dark Knight pulled out a batarang and moved his arm back, doing his best to aim it perfectly. 'Time it just right...' he mused, moving his hand a little. He flicked his arm, thowing the projectile in the mare's direction, she stopped in her tracks upon seeing the batarang, allowing Batman to tackle her, "You! Show me! You're not a real pony at all!" the hero shouted, holding the pony down with his elbow.
The fake pony struggled in his grasp but relinquished, changing into a black mothlike bipedal creature, "Fine! You found me out! What do you want?"
"I know you're working for Ra's Al Ghul! You better tell me what he and your queen are planning before I put more holes in your body!" Batman threatened.
The changeling squirmed in his spot, the Dark Knight raised his fist, "Okay okay! They and the other changelings plan to attack Canterlot today! That's all I know! I swear!" he revealed. Batman paused for a minute, but he punched the creature unconcious, holding the body over his shoulder.
"We have to leave right now." he told himself.
"All according to plan." Ra's chuckled.
Chrysalis groaned, "Why did you let him reveal our plan? We had the element of surprise!" she scolded.
Ra's Al Ghul stood from his spot, "Prepare the army. We needed to give them time to get there before we attack. After all, you wanted to kill the ponies and I want to end Batman. With all the heroes and opposition in one place, we can conquer all of Equestria in one attack." he said.
Chrysails aighed, "Very well. I will ready the changeling army and use the Warp Crystal to send us all to Canterlot to begin our attack." she said, doing what she just spoke to him about.