Puzzles
“Keep looking. There has got to be something in there!” Rainbow Dash insisted.
“I am! Wait just a minute, Rainbow!” Twilight replied.
Rainbow had sprained her left wing pretty badly during the confrontation with Penguin and Grundy. Twilight was looking through her book of spells for anything she could use to help her friend. Regardless of what he said, Batman was going to need help. He had the same illness that was afflicting Joker.
Twilight, Fluttershy and Rarity were going to find and save Applejack from Riddler. This little battle they had in the museum had taken more time than they had hoped, and they needed to get back to the Church or else Applejack would die.
Twilight turned a page and looked at the spell. “Here’s one!” She exclaimed. “Renders an injured limb completely fixed in ten seconds flat!”
Rainbow grabbed the book and read the spell. “Where the hay was this thing when I broke my wing the first time?! Its like this was made for me!”
Twilight smirked and lowered her horn to Rainbow’s wing. She read the spell once more before she performed it. Instantaneously, the pain in her wing stopped. She flapped it a few times before taking off into the air for a test flight. She looped around the dinosaurs suspended from the ceiling a few times before she landed.
“Thanks Twi! You’re the best!” Rainbow said happily.
“No trouble whatsoever!” Twilight replied as they hugged.
They released and went toward everyone else. Rarity was talking to Freeze, and Batman was talking to Oracle. “Oracle. Change of plans, I’m going after the League of Assassins.”
Rainbow and Twilight looked to each other. “Assassins?” Rainbow whispered.
“How odd. This prison seems very strict yet very careless at the same time.” Twilight pondered. There was definitely something bigger going on here. She was thinking as hard as she could to try and figure it out. What was Strange planning?
Batman continued. “Penguin had one of the Leagues’ Assassins imprisoned in the museum. I recognized the insignia. She’s a member of Talia’s elite guard.” Batman paused for a few seconds before continuing. “Talia is not the goal, Barbara. I’ve uploaded Freeze’s unfinished cure. Looks to me like the answer is-” He was cut off.
“What is the answer?” Twilight asked.
Batman turned to face her. “Ra’s Al Ghul’s blood is the answer.”
She cocked her head. “I thought you said he was dead.”
“Are you sure this man can provide the missing ingredient?” Freeze interrupted as he walked over with Rarity. His robotic voice startled Rainbow and Twilight.
Batman turned to him. “I’ve met Ra’s Al Ghul many times. He claims to be over 600 years old, and I believe him. Which means something is keeping him alive.”
“Let us hope you are correct, Batman. After all, your life depends on it.” Freeze replied slowly.
Batman turned and walked up the stairs. Rainbow looked at Twilight once more before taking off after him.
Twilight turned to Rarity. “Come on, we need to go save Applejack.”
“What? What happened to Applejack?” Rarity asked.
“I’ll tell you in a bit. Where’s Fluttershy?” She replied.
They looked around. She wasn’t anywhere to be found. They walked around the display case that held the Assassin and saw her. She was sitting in front of a broken display case. Glass was everywhere on the floor by her. She was shaking.
They approached her cautiously. “Fluttershy?” Rarity asked. “Are you alright, dear?”
“Z-zs-z….z-z-zsa…” Fluttershy slowly trembled out.
She had a terrified look on her face as she stared at the button next to the display case. Rarity and Twilight looked at each other, worried. What had happened?
“Fluttershy?” Twilight asked. “What’s wrong?”
The only answer she gave was the same, trembled response. “Z-zs-z… z-z-zsa…”
Twilight looked at the button and pressed it. Fluttershy slowly sunk to the ground and plugged her ears as tight as she could. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she continued to tremble.
Penguin’s voice came on. “Take a good look into the eyes of a monster, a deeply disturbed killer, a man responsible for the murder and subsequent mutilation of over one hundred men, women, and children.”
They were terrified. Someone could actually be that evil? How? What happened? Twilight and Rarity were now shaking as much as Fluttershy. They stared at the display case as the recording continued. Fluttershy mouthed the name of the individual the same time Penguin spoke his name.
“You’re looking at… Zsasz!”
---
Twilight and Rarity walked next to Fluttershy back to Freeze. They said nothing. Fluttershy continued to repeat his name. “Zsasz…. Zsasz…. Zsasz…”
“F-Fluttershy, please.” Twilight gulped. “P-please stop saying his name.”
“Yes, dear. We know how you feel right now, but you must stop. Its not good.” Rarity agreed.
Fluttershy’s curiosity had gotten the better of her. When she escaped here the first time, she had seen a crazed man break the glass of the same display case and escape. She waited for him to leave before she continued outside into the cold. She wanted to know who he was.
Now she did. If there were anything that she would be afraid of for the rest of her life, it would be Zsasz. She prayed that she would never get the chance to meet him.
“Come on. We need to go help Applejack.” Twilight said. “Lets go. Forget about this place.”
Her and Rarity ran up the stairs. Fluttershy turned to freeze. He was just finishing up with making sure his armor was up to snuff. She turned back to Rarity and Twilight. “Um, g-girls?” They stopped and turned back. “I-I’m going to stay with Freeze. I can’t go out there unless I feel completely safe.”
Rarity stepped forward. “We need you, darling. We need your help to save Applejack.”
“N-no you don’t. Riddler said that he just needed Twilight.” She replied.
They looked at each other again. They weren’t sure about this. Not that they didn’t trust Freeze, but what if something happened to her?
“Fear not.” Freeze said, stepping behind Fluttershy. “Nothing shall harm her.”
Twilight slowly stepped forward. “At the Church, right?”
Fluttershy nodded.
“Well, alright then. Rarity and I will rescue Applejack, then find you after, alright?” Twilight said.
“We shall be in the abandoned Gotham City Police Department headquarters on the northeastern section of Arkham City. She will be safe there.”
“Thank you so much, Victor.” Rarity said. Her and Twilight ran to the door and left the museum.
Freeze followed them outside with Fluttershy tailing right behind him. Hopefully, this would be the last time she would ever see the inside of this place again.
They exited the museum and turned left. The cold air stung Fluttershy and she hid behind Freeze to prevent it from hitting her as much as she could. Freeze and Fluttershy walked swiftly onto a bridge that led up and over the alleyway below and onto the other side of the street. They continued along the sidewalk, passing refuse and garbage all along the way.
“How are you feeling, Fluttershy?” Freeze asked.
She didn’t answer right away. “I’m alright, I suppose. I’m worried about that man. What if he finds us?”
“If he does, he wont stand a chance against me. Not a soul in this penitentiary would dare cross me, unless there were a large number of them attacking at once.” Freeze said.
Fluttershy gulped. She hoped he was right.
They got to a staircase and walked down to the street below. They turned right and continued. Any henchmen they saw ran away in fear or simply stood and watched them nervously. This is the kind of security Fluttershy had been wanting ever since she got in here.
They turned right onto a large street. Behind them was an enormous door that probably led to a restricted section of the prison. On the corner was a small convenience store. It had a number of surprisingly large green vines making their way out from inside. The windows were smashed, and everything was falling apart. The store was called Baudelaire, and a woman named Pamela Lillian Isely had ran it.
She continued down the street with Freeze. They took a few more steps before he stopped. Out of the darkness ahead of them emerged four TYGER guards. Two of them had rifles while the other two had shock batons.
“There he is! All units converge on Freeze!” One of them shouted.
Fluttershy yelped hid behind Freeze as the guards approached them. He readied his freeze ray and pointed it at the captain. He fired and the captain froze where he stood, dropping his rifle. The rest of the guards ran toward them. Freeze strutted forward and punched the two guards with batons in the face. They screamed and fell to the ground. The remaining guard began to fire a few rounds at Freeze, which just bounced off his armor. He readied another shot and fired at the other armed guard. With the four guards incapacitated, Freeze turned around to see five more coming from large door behind them.
“All units engage Freeze but do not kill him! The Professor wants him alive!” One of the guards ordered.
As they rapidly closed in, Freeze intercepted a guard by grabbing him by the neck and raised him above his head. “Why does Strange want me?!” He demanded angrily.
The remaining guards held their fire, but quickly surrounded them. The guard tried to breathe as he attempted to loosen Freeze’s grip. “I-I don’t know!” He wheezed. “Its just orders! If you don’t then he’ll be forced to kill someone you love!”
Freeze stood there angrily. Fluttershy was trembling at his feet. One of the guards had his rifle aimed directly at her while the other three were pointing at Freeze. She didn’t dare open her eyes. She simply sat there and trembled while she made light squeaks and whimpers.
“Fine. I’ll go, but on one condition. She will accompany me.” He said. He lifted the guard closer to him so they were face to face. “And absolutely no harm is to come to her while she does. If she is harmed in any way, I’ll kill you where you stand in the most unpleasant of ways. Am I understood?”
The guard nodded and Freeze released him. The guard that was pointing his rifle at Fluttershy switched to Freeze. They took his gun and they all walked toward the large door into the restricted part of Arkham City. Fluttershy was shaking violently as they went inside. She didn’t know what Strange had planned for Freeze, and frankly she didn’t want to know.
She just wanted to go home.
---
“My goodness! He really spends that much time just scattering puzzles and riddles all over the place?!” Rarity asked Twilight as they ran down the street.
“From what Batman told me, yes. He proves himself smarter than anyone else by leaving riddles. If they can’t solve them, they usually die.”
“My word! Is that why he wants you?”
“Probably. I assume that he wants to prove that he’s smarter than me. It should be interesting.”
Twilight led the way as they rounded the corner. The Church was in view. Just as Fluttershy said, the banners had been replaced with brown sheets with green question marks all over them, and a large green glowing question mark was sitting right on top of the steeple.
“This is the medical center? The safest place in Arkham City?” Rarity questioned.
“It was.” Twilight replied.
They walked in the gate and toward the door. They opened it and stepped inside. Twilight shut the door behind them and looked around the interior. The inner door was cracked open slightly. Twilight set her hoof on it and opened it slowly. The inside of the church felt colder than she remembered. Everyone was gone. It was painfully silent and she felt very uncomfortable just standing there.
Her and Rarity walked inside and closed the door. Rarity looked around the inside of the church while Twilight walked forward.
There was a large sheet suspended above them with a projection on it. Twilight squinted her eyes to get a better look at what was on the screen. Her eyes widened and she ran toward it. “APPLEJACK!”
The sheet had a live video feed of the Element of Honesty herself trapped in a room where the walls were closing in from every direction. She was bucking the walls back to keep them from closing in on her.
“So.” A distorted voice said from nowhere. “You’re the famous Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight looked around. “Yes! I am! What do you want?! Release my friend now!”
“I’m afraid I cannot do that. Applejack is currently in the middle of solving one of my riddles. She can’t leave until she solves it.” Riddler said.
He appeared on the screen and looked at her in the eye. “Don’t worry, I’ve got one for you too!”
Twilight stomped her hoof to the ground angrily. “I’m not playing any of your games, Riddler! Release Applejack now or else I’ll make you release her!”
He held his arms up and sarcastically admitted defeat. “Oh no! Please! Don’t hurt me, pretty little pony! I’m so scared!” He was just trying to make Twilight angry now and it was working. “You really think you can best me? You think you have some sort of advantage over me? You don’t! You have nothing!”
“Not nothing.” Rarity said as she joined Twilight’s side. “She is the wielder of the most powerful Element of Harmony: Magic!”
Riddler threw his arms up in the air. “Here we go with this nonsense. You actually expect me to believe you? There is no such thing as magic!”
Twilight grinned. “Oh really?
---
Applejack wheezed and spat. She had no idea how she was still going. She had bucked the walls as hard as she could for hours to the point where her back hooves started cracking and bleeding. She had lost energy long ago and was now running on what little endurance she had left. She wouldn’t last much longer.
She gave one final buck to the wall before finally collapsing to the ground. “Ah… ah give up…” She moaned. “Ah’m so sorry, everypony. Ah.. Ah tried mah hardest…”
Lying on the ground, she cried softly and waited for her inevitable fate. She couldn’t do this anymore. Riddler had won, and she had lost. The walls to her left and right began to move inward. Inch by inch, she remembered Equestria for what it had been for her. She remembered her friends, her family, Ponyville, all of it. She only wished that she could have done more for everypony.
The walls stopped moving and began to make an unusual mechanical whirring. She opened her eyes and saw a familiar purple glow surrounding both walls. She felt a combination of surprise, confusion and hope.
“Tw-Twi? Where are ya?” She wheezed.
---
“What?!” Riddler’s voice exclaimed. “No! How are you doing that?!”
Twilight was focusing all her magic into jamming the mechanism that controlled the wall’s movement. It was much tougher than what she was used to, but her friend’s life was on the line, and she wasn’t going to let it end this way.
Straining, she unleashed all the power she had into stopping the gears. She had to destroy them. She had to make sure Riddler would never be able to do this ever again to anyone.
“Just…. Just one second, Applejack! I’m getting you out of there!” Twilight grunted.
On the projection, Applejack looked around slowly. She seemed completely unaware of what was happening. Riddler had tortured her to the point of physical and mental exhaustion. She wasn’t going to be able to get out of there on her own.
“This is impossible! There is no such thing as magic! You can’t be doing this!” for the first time, Riddler looked panicked. He dug his fingernails into his hair as he saw what was happening on the screen.
“I am doing it!” Twilight smirked. “Now tell me where she is or else I’ll destroy the place!” She ordered.
“You wouldn’t dare!” He retorted. “You will never find her in this place! She’s locked away in a location known only to me and I will never tell you where she is! I win!”
She gritted her teeth. “Rarity, get my book.” Rarity levitated the book in front of Twilight and turned to a page. “Go to the teleportation chapter.”
Rarity turned to the chapter while Twilight stayed firm on memorizing every single detail of the room Applejack was in. This was going to be a risky jump, but she had to take it. If Riddler wouldn’t tell them where Applejack was, then Twilight would go to Applejack.
She found the spell she wanted and read it. “Rarity, no matter what happens. Stay here. I’ll find you after I get Applejack.”
Rarity nodded. “Good luck, Twilight.”
Twilight’s horn glowed to the brightest intensity and she zapped away. On the projection, Rarity saw Twilight appear next to Applejack. She tried to shake her awake for a moment before the projection shut off completely.
“NO! NO NO NO NO NO!! YOU CAN’T DO THAT! THAT’S CHEATING! IT’S NOT FAIR! NOBODY OUTSMARTS THE RIDDLER, NOBODY!” He yelled.
Rarity grinned. She could only imagine the tantrum he was throwing from where he was.
“I swear to you Twilight Sparkle, I will have my revenge! You will pay for this, ALL OF YOU!” He warned angrily.
She waited for him to continue. After a minute of silence, she figured he was gone. She was glad she couldn’t hear him whine, but she was also worried that she couldn’t see Twilight and Applejack anymore.
Rarity sat down where she was, hoping Twilight and Applejack were okay.
---
Twilight appeared right next to Applejack. She was lying down and looking at her blankly. She looked like a mess. Her back hooves were cracked and bleeding in multiple places, she had bruises all over her, and her mane was a wreck. Twilight noticed her cowpony hat lying a few feet away. She must have discarded it earlier.
Twilight placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Applejack! Are you alright?”
Applejack continued to stare blankly, causing Twilight’s heart to stop. Eventually, she slowly blinked and smiled up at her friend. “Always nice to see you, sugarcube.”
Tears flowing, Twilight wrapped her hooves around Applejack and hugged her as tight as she could without hurting her. She sobbed lightly as she was reunited with her friend once again. Applejack couldn’t return the embrace, but she cried also.
“Ahm glad ya’ll found me when ya did.” She said weakly. “Ah aint sure how much longer ah could’ve lasted in here.”
“Me too, AJ.” Twilight sniffed. “How do you feel?”
They released and Applejack lay back down on the ground. Wincing as she made contact. “Ah aint gonna be much help to ya, unfortunately. That gal-darn Riddler did a number on me. Ah can hardly move anymore.”
Twilight looked at her friend sympathetically before perking up. She turned and reached into her saddlebag. “I’m sure I have just the spell that should make you feel better in no time!”
She looked around in her saddlebag for the book. She paused and checked the other pocket. A worried feeling washed over her. She took the bag off and looked inside the pockets again. She reached her nose inside and visually checked every nook and cranny inside the pocket. She repeated this process in the other side.
“No, no, no, no, no, oh Celestia no.” She repeated to herself frantically.
She searched every crevice, every corner, every inch of the bag. The book was nowhere to be found. She threw her bags to one side and looked all over the room. She ran from one end to the other searching for the book. She had left it back at the church.
“No! No, no, no!” She yelled, stomping her hoof. “How could I have let this happen?! I’ve always been so organized! Why did this have to happen now of all times?!”
“Simmer down, Twilight.” Applejack said. “What’s going on?”
Twilight exhaled and told Applejack about everything. Her and Rainbow finding the book, about how Strange’s meddling with the Elements has started Equestria’s death clock, and how they rescued Fluttershy, Rarity, and Mr. Freeze. She also shared about how Pinkie’s disappearance, and about Joker. Applejack seemed pretty blown away.
“Oh mah gosh. Equestria’s dying? That’s awful! We gotta stop Strange no matter what! He’s bad news no matter how you look at him.” Applejack commented.
During their conversation, she had managed to pick herself up off the ground and was now sitting up. She still couldn’t walk well, but at least she was getting better. Twilight was pacing back and forth as she thought of a plan. She needed that book. It was the only way to secure Applejack’s safety.
“We need to find a way back.” Twilight said to herself.
She turned to Applejack. She was just staring at the ground. There was no way she would be able to do much else except for walk, maybe. Which meant Twilight would have to do most of the work in order to get out of here. She hoped that she wouldn’t get the chance to confront Riddler again, but if she did, she vowed that she would make him pay for what he did to her friend.
Twilight turned to Applejack. “AJ?” She began. “What is your limit on what you can do physically?”
Applejack grunted and slowly got to her hooves. “Well, Ah reckon that I can walk around a bit, maybe run, but Ah aint gonna be much more help than that.” She looked at Twilight apologetically.
Twilight nodded. “That’s fine.” She walked over to the cowpony and gave her a grin. “Come on! Lets find a way out of here!”
---
Rainbow Dash followed Batman outside. She shivered slightly as the chilly air hit her once again. Batman walked down the steps and pressed a few buttons on his gauntlet before putting his fingers to his ear. He must have been talking to someone on the other end. Rainbow looked around the area while Batman had his conversation. He said something, but she didn’t quite catch it.
She was looking for the first part of the Ninja’s trail: blood. As uncomfortable as it made her, she had to follow it. There wasn’t much else she could do unless she went off to find Pinkie Pie alone. She wanted to do just that, but there was no way she could do it alone. She wasn’t like Batman. She needed help.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a little red on the ground to her left. She got closer and, sure enough, it was a tiny pool of blood.
“Batman! I found some blood!” She said.
Batman walked over to her and knelt down beside the pool. “This blood matches the Ninja’s. Nice work.”
She smiled. Batman arose and walked forward. Rainbow followed him, pausing for a second at every blood puddle they passed. They got to the tram station and walked around the stairs.
“Can anybody hear me? Over!”
The radio that Rainbow stole from the Penguin thug began to intercept a transmission from two other thugs inside.
“I hear ya. Its chaos here, the boss has vanished.”
“What?! Where’d Penguin go?!”
“No idea. One minute he’s all ‘Batman’s going in my trophy case!’ The next, nothing, zip! I don’t like it.”
“Think he’s dead? Did Batman kill him? You been back to the museum?”
“The museum’s locked down. Those undercover bitches took it over. I knew we should have killed them!”
“So what’s the plan?”
“Lay low. See any of Joker’s crew, kill ‘em.”
The radio chatter ended. Rainbow couldn’t help but smile. They had finally beaten the Penguin and saved her friends. Now the bad guys were on the run.
The trail continued up and around the platforms. Batman expertly traversed all through the abandoned station while Rainbow Dash stayed right on his tail. Any inmates they did encounter were quickly dealt with.
Eventually, the trail led to a rooftop on the other side of the street. Batman quickly followed it up the wall and onto the top of the building. He stopped at a pile of discarded, bloody bandages.
“The blood trail has ran out.” He said.
Rainbow looked at him. “What do we do now?”
He knelt down beside the bandage. “The only way we’re going to find that Assassin is to locate more evidence.”
He stayed by the bandage and stared at it for a few moments. Rainbow knelt beside him.
Suddenly, something hit the back of Rainbow’s head. She cried out in pain and fell to the ground. Batman did the same. Rainbow’s vision was foggy and she strained to see clearly. She looked up and around at her surroundings. On the building to her left, the Assassin yelled and jumped to the other rooftop. Batman saw her too and rose to his feet.
“The only way to find Ra’s is to get a tracker on that Ninja.” Batman said as he started running.
Rainbow followed beside him in the air. “Give me the tracker! I can follow her faster in the air!”
Batman leapt to the building and spread his cape. He caught the ledge and pulled himself up. Simultaneously, he reached into his utility belt and produced a small black tracker. He handed it to Rainbow and she took it in her mouth. She then booked it as fast as she could after the already far away Ninja.
“Get back here!” She ordered through gritted teeth.
The Ninja wasn’t slowing down. She vaulted over obstacles and gaps like it was nothing. However, Rainbow still had air superiority. She closed in on the Ninja in a matter of seconds. After running along a wall, the Ninja turned and swatted Rainbow with her right arm, causing her to lose her balance.
She shook her head and quickly recovered. The Ninja was already on another rooftop. Rainbow growled and took off after her again. She rounded a corner along the outside of a building and began to catch up once again. The Ninja landed on a rooftop and turned a 180. She surprised Rainbow again and socked her right in the nose. Rainbow yelped and flew backwards a few feet before landing. This time, the Ninja closed in with her sword drawn on the Pegasus.
Before she delivered the blow, Batman tackled the Ninja and they rolled a few feet forward.
“Batman!” Rainbow yelled. She spit out the tracker and Batman caught it as he got up. He then began to scuffle with the Ninja for a moment before he placed the tracker on her right shoulder. She pushed him back and placed her blade at his throat on the ground. Batman stayed still.
“You only continue to live because the great Ra’s Al Ghul allows it!” The Ninja hissed.
Two more Ninjas appeared behind her. One of them put her blade at Rainbow’s throat, causing her to gasp in surprise. She knew that warning only applied to Batman. It didn’t apply to her at all.
Out of nowhere came a whistle. The other Ninja turned her head swiftly to see something hit her right in the face. It then hit the Ninja restraining Rainbow Dash. Rainbow caught a glimpse of a hooded figure carrying a staff leap backwards and stand battle-ready to fight the remaining Ninja restraining Batman.
The Ninja looked outraged. “Call him off!” She warned.
The figure stepped forward, swinging his staff expertly. “I can take her!” He said.
“Stand down.” Batman said calmly.
The figure paused a moment. Then hesitated, almost like he didn’t want to comply. Eventually, the staff retracted and his posture relaxed.
The Ninja gave one last warning to Batman. “Do not follow us.” She holstered her sword and flipped away in haste. She was gone.
Rainbow got to her hooves and ran to the figure. “That was awesome! You totally kicked their butts all without breaking a sweat!” She exclaimed with a huge smile.
The figure was a bit shocked at the sight of a brightly colored pony complimenting him on his combat skills. He didn’t respond right away. “Uh, thanks! I guess...”
“I’m Rainbow Dash!” She introduced.
“Robin” He replied. “What are you exactly?”
Rainbow looked embarrassed. “Well, it’s kind of a long story, but I’m a pony and I kinda got stuck here in Arkham City with my friends.”
Robin still looked confused. “Okay…” He slowly said.
“I didn’t need your help.” Batman interrupted.
Robin and Rainbow both turned to Batman. “Really?” He said. “That’s not what it looked like from where I was standing.”
“I had it under control. Why did Alfred send you?” Batman asked.
Robin had a face of concern. “He was worried about you.”
Batman reached into his belt and produced a vile of blood. He tossed it to Robin. “Take this. Get it analyzed and start searching hospitals and emergency rooms. Anyone with this blood in them will be dead within 24 hours.”
Rainbow was now more worried and more confused. What was going on with the blood? She didn’t know about any of this.
“Whose blood is it?” Robin paused. “Oh, its yours isn’t it? I’ll get it to the hospitals and then I’ll come back. You need my help here.”
“I can handle it. You’re needed in Gotham. Things could get worse, much worse.” Batman replied.
“You think? If Strange really knows who you are, what happens if he tells everyone? How will you-?”
Batman grabbed his shoulders. “Trust me. I’ll find a way.”
Rainbow’s jaw dropped. Strange was a pain to everyone in every way. He knew who Batman was? How? What did he want to do? Who all was involved? She had to know more. This was just too interesting a topic to just let go.
Robin handed Batman a device and walked toward the edge of the rooftop. “If you need me, you know where I am.”
“I know. Now go!” Batman barked.
Robin gave one last look to Rainbow Dash and jumped off the building. She sat there, stunned. If he was right and Strange really knew who Batman was, he could ruin Batman’s life. All the people he fought, all the people he knew who hated him would now know who he was, and they would do all they could to kill him 24/7.
“Uh, Batman?” Rainbow got to her hooves and took a few tentative steps toward him. “What’s going on with the blood?”
Batman put away his gadget and paused for a moment.
“Joker has sent samples of his poisoned blood to hospitals all over Gotham. If an antidote isn’t found in time, millions of innocent people will die.” He said.
Rainbow was dumbstruck. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t even know if she believed it. Batman continued to head towards the Ninjas tracker while Rainbow followed close behind. Along the way, Batman told her about some of the things that Joker had done in the past. Including more details about his escape attempt from Arkham Asylum one year ago. Rainbow asked where Penguin had gotten his hands on the TITAN formula if Batman had destroyed it all. He didn’t know, but he was going to find out.
They passed the Church, the broken highway, and many other buildings as they continued toward the industrial section of Arkham City. There, Rainbow saw the Steel Mill for the first time. It was gloomy, dark, and wickedly scary-looking. Still, she expected more. They both landed on a railing that was high above the street below.
“That’s the Steel Mill?” She asked.
“Yes. That’s where Joker is.” Batman replied.
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Good thing everypony else isn’t with us. They’d probably be way scared.”
Batman looked at her. “You aren’t scared?”
She shook her head. In all honesty, she wasn’t scared at all. She’s seen a much scarier factory back home.
Batman stealthily walked along the railing toward the right of the factory. Rainbow followed directly behind as quietly as she could. As they continued, she saw a large hole in the ground. It looked like a massive crater that could be seen on the moon. What was it for?
“That’s where the Ninja went.” Batman whispered.
Rainbow noticed all the clown thugs surrounding the hole. Each one had a gun. “How do we get in?” She asked.
Batman pulled out one of his bat shaped boomerangs. “I’ll take care of them.”
Rainbow nodded and turned her attention back to the ground. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something bright and pink moving toward the hole. She squinted her eyes at it.
“Pinkie Pie?” She whispered.
She saw her friend being escorted by two clown thugs toward the hole. They weren’t armed like the rest. She got Batman’s attention. He nodded and waited. Rainbow wanted to explode. Why was he waiting? Her friend was there and she needed to be saved right now! What if they killed her?
“Wait for the signal to save her.” Batman said, sensing her agitation.
Rainbow exhaled and nodded. She watched Pinkie Pie talk to the thugs for a moment before she turned around. She then engaged in a conversation with no one for a few seconds. She was still herself despite her situation. Another moment passed and Batman threw the boomerang, hitting a thug square in the face. He fell to the ground and the others went to his aid. Pinkie Pie went with him.
“Not yet.” Batman said, pulling out a small white ball.
The thugs surrounded their fallen comrade, trying to revive him. In that moment, Batman threw the ball toward the group. The next second, a cloud of smoke engulfed them all.
“Now!” Batman said as he leapt off the rail.
He closed in on the cloud and disappeared inside. Rainbow also leapt off and zoomed toward the cloud. She squinted her eyes to try and see any pink. She caught the smallest glimpse of it and accelerated. She entered the cloud and exited immediately afterwards, carrying her best friend on her back.
---
Fluttershy and Freeze were being escorted down a long hallway filled with cameras and TYGER guards with guns. All of them were pointed at Freeze.
As they rounded a corner, they were met by a guard with a red military beret and an assault rifle. Presumably, he was the guard in charge. The guards that had escorted Freeze and Fluttershy handed over all the weapons they had confiscated from Freeze. They began to remove Freeze’s armor. Fluttershy was worried that it would hurt him if he was exposed to the elements again.
Behind the captain, another guard pressed an intercom button on the wall next to a door. “Prisoner’s here, sir.”
The voice that responded was Strange’s voice. “Very good. Send him in.”
“But we haven’t gotten the suit off yet. He’s dangerous! Are you sure?”
Strange replied calmly. “Of course. Victor Fries and I have much in common. We will be fine.”
The guard walked toward Freeze. “Head through the door, the Professor will see you now. That,” He said, pointing to Fluttershy “needs to stay out here.”
Freeze grabbed the guard and held him in the air. The other guards raised their rifles at Freeze’s head immediately. “She will accompany me inside, and that is that.”
He dropped the guard and walked toward the door. Fluttershy squeaked and followed Freeze as close as she could. She tried to stay away from the guards as much as possible.
Another guard opened the door and Freeze and Fluttershy walked inside. There was an empty chair in the center of the darkened office. This must have been Strange’s personal office. There was a tape recorder sitting on a small table to the side of the chair. In the shadows to the right sat the warden himself: Hugo Strange.
The door shut and Fluttershy sank down to the ground as much as she could. She could feel his eyes on her. Was he wondering why she was here as well, or did he understand why? Either way, he gave an evil grin at the duos entrance. A grin that made her very, very scared. Freeze simply stood there, unmoved by being in Strange’s presence.
“Welcome to my facility.” He greeted. “Please, take a seat.”
“I prefer to stand. Why am I here.” Freeze retorted, his robotic voice making him all the more intimidating.
Strange chuckled lightly. “Oh Victor, there will be plenty of time for that later. Right now, I wish to get to know you; discover how you came to have such a frosty outlook on life.” He smiled at his pun.
“I have nothing to say to you.” Freeze stated. “You may have taken my weapons, but my suit still has considerable offensive capabilities.”
Fluttershy sank backwards, afraid of what could happen next.
Freeze continued. “I will freeze the marrow in your legs. Each bone will shatter and fracture while you remain completely aware of your impending paralysis, begging me to end you.”
Fluttershy winced at the thought. She sincerely hoped that Freeze wouldn’t do that to Strange. No one deserves that kind of torture, not even him.
Strange simply sat back in his chair with the same wicked grin spread across his face. “I don’t think you will do that, Victor.”
Freeze looked surprised at Strange’s remark. “Really? Why not?”
“Simple. If you hurt me, your wife will die.”
Stats
Page generated in 0.034 seconds
Total duration
1,017 users online
2,179,989 hits today, 2,561,572 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Well, things are really getting into motion now! Twilight beating the Riddler was priceless
, and Batman, Rainbow and (maybe) Pinkie are about to face the Demon Trials! 
Well it will make more sense if only Bats and Rainbow did them, since Pinkie can't fly or glide, although, she can always play her classical "No laws of physics" game 
.
Riddle me this:
I stand with you morning, noon, and night.
Should you need the time, I'm just within sight.
What am I?
1801608 A shadow?
1872908
You know, I just noticed, but Batman must be the only superhero whose cape actually has a function to it, unlike other heroes, who only have it for the heck of it. Well, there's also Spawn, but his, wasn't technically a cape; it was a demonic weapon that could become anything.
Lols I loved how Riddler reacted to Twilight's magic. Like an atheist meeting the real Santa Claues. Here's a thought;
"HEY RIDDLER!" Applejack yells. "Riddle me THIS!" She then bucks Riddler in the face. "How many stars do ya see!?"
I've been reading your story while listening to both "Batman Arkham City In game Soundtrack" and "Batman TAS Original Score".
1885228 Thank you so very much! You have no idea how happy that makes me feel!
I have to admit seeing the riddler have complete mental breakdown was pretty hilarious
I wonder if Riddler will fall back and come up with harder challenges specifically for Twilight
...
Rainbow Factory reference?
1801608 a clock?
Hah!!! Twilight outsmarting the Riddler. Loved it!!!
Well except Batman... and now a cute little purple horse.
Fluttershy might have been safer going with her friends.
I’m guessing you’re referring to the rainbow factory?