226-230

Chapter 226: Alice, will you go to Wonderland with me? 

Meanwhile, back at the Mad Hatter's theater... 

Wearing his thick-soled shoes, the Mad Hatter hummed a lullaby from Alice in Wonderland as he bounced into the theater, adjusting a new hat. 

He was feeling a bit excited today. Not because he'd successfully controlled an enemy metahuman the night before, and not because anything particularly special had happened. It was simply because he was really looking forward to tonight's performance. 

A perfect day, he thought. Maybe today is the "perfect day" I've imagined. Maybe today I can get that feeling back. 

So, he put on a new tailored suit, made himself a new hat, and slipped into even thicker-soled shoes. Besides his face, he'd pretty much replaced everything he could. He felt radiant and absolutely sparkling today. 

The bloodstains on the stage were completely cleaned up, the sets were repainted, the hat-wearing actors were all present and accounted for, and the lights and props were ready – today's stage preparation was almost the most serious the Mad Hatter had ever undertaken. 

I say "almost" because he had prepared this meticulously once before, but that time, the ending still wasn't quite to his liking. 

"Boss, we brought her in." 

"That guy," dressed in a black suit, walked up beside him, bringing a blonde woman with him. He often brought young women from outside for the Mad Hatter; they would all eventually become "Alice" on stage, but the Mad Hatter had never managed to find the real Alice. 

And that's exactly why the "Alices" on stage were always disposable. 

"Oh my... she's beautiful." 

Full of anticipation, the Mad Hatter looked at the blonde beauty and gasped. The woman had a few freckles across her nose and a bright smile, and her long blonde hair shimmered under the spotlight. While she wasn't stunning in a jaw-dropping way, she had a gentle, warm presence that was just like the young girl from way back when. 

"Oh, Alice... it really is you..." 

The Mad Hatter's eyes started to look a little hazy. The smile of the blonde woman in front of him gradually overlapped with the person in his memory. He felt like he was back in his carefree teenage years. Back then, he was still in school, everyone was just a kid, he had a bunch of good friends, and his own life. 

Back then, his father still ran a clothing store. He was a first-rate hatter, serious and responsible with every hat he made. 

That day, he came home from school to the clothing store. There was a sign hanging outside the door that said "Teague and Son Clothing," and warm, bright light shone through the clean display window. 

"So, you're saying there's a girl—" 

"Not just any girl!" 

"Oh, of course." 

"Alice Dee! She's a super cool girl!" 

"Alright, how about we set aside this super cool girl for a moment so we can turn these materials into a good hat." 

"But, Dad, it's too tall..." 

"We just need to shrink it, Jervis. As long as it keeps its shape, the felt won't be damaged—and nobody's going to buy a damaged hat. At least, we won't sell hats like that." 

Jervis ran his fingers over the exquisite green felt hat. He loved how smooth and silky it felt. 

"This hat is so soft." 

"Haha, do you know what people used to use to process felt?" 

Jervis shook his head. 

"Mercurous nitrate. It's a toxic chemical—but back then, people didn't know it. Lots of hatters worked in factories, exposed to those vapors year after year. They'd get all sorts of illnesses—dementia, tremors, hallucinations, just like that old saying." 

"'Mad as a hatter'?" 

"That's right. Good thing we don't have to do that anymore, and we can still make the best hats." 

The father and son's voices echoed in the store. Jervis loved talking with his dad like this. And when it came to hats, his father could just go on and on. 

When he'd get really talking, his father would also teach him a lot of things along the way. He always spoke gently and reasonably. 

"Making a hat is like building a character, Jervis. You need a steady hand, consistency, patience, and diligence. There's no other way—you can't cut corners, or you'll end up with something defective." 

"Perfection might be impossible, but striving for it always pays off." 

Hearing his father's words, Jervis instinctively retorted, "Alice is perfect." 

"Oh, she might seem absolutely captivating to you, but, son, we shouldn't put people up on a high pedestal so easily. Because if even a slight breeze comes along, they'll shatter into pieces." 

"Okay..." 

Seeing his son look a little down, his father comforted him, "But hey, about Alice, maybe I have an idea." 

The next day, Jervis went to school as usual. 

Alice Dee, with her full head of blonde hair, was holding a book. She stood by the window looking out at the scenery, and in Jervis's eyes, Alice standing by the window was the scenery. 

So, he plucked up his courage and walked over, following his father's idea. 

"Alice, there's a new... a new park, my parents said they'd take me there. My dad said... I mean, uh, maybe... uh, what I mean is, if you haven't been to that park yet, maybe we could..." 

"Okay." 

"Huh?" 

Jervis looked up at Alice in astonishment. Her smile at that moment was as bright as an angel's, almost radiating light. 

"I said, okay," she replied. "I'd be happy to go with you." 

"So, Alice, will you go to Wonderland with me?" The Mad Hatter grabbed the hand of the blonde Alice in front of him. The touch was still as soft as it was back then. 

Hearing this, the blonde girl in front of him smiled. "Okay, I'd be happy to go with you." 

"But, Boss, she hasn't put on the—" 

The abrupt sound of the henchman's voice shattered the Mad Hatter's fantasy. The warm glow and vision suddenly disappeared. The sets and props in the theater, and the crowd of people wearing hats, came back into focus. And Alice was right there beside him—but she was a whole half a head taller than him. 

He was back in the real world. 

"How dare you interrupt me!" Furious at his subordinate for breaking his dreamy, happy moment, the Mad Hatter immediately exploded in rage. He whipped out his revolver and shot the man in the stomach. "Get out! And never come back!" 

While the Mad Hatter still had a shred of sense, another henchman immediately helped their companion out the door. Now they needed to find a doctor fast; the guy might still have a chance. 

Back in the theater, the Mad Hatter turned around again and grabbed the hand of the Alice beside him once more. 

"Alice, will you go to Wonderland with me?" 

Chapter 227: No Reality Measures Up to the Dream 

"Alice, will you come with me to Wonderland?" 

"Didn't I already say yes? Of course." 

Oh my god. 

A wave of joy and sweetness welled up from the Mad Hatter's heart. Of course he knew what his goons were trying to remind him of—they wanted to point out that this Alice wasn't wearing the hat or wig. But what did that matter? In that moment, he was actually incredibly glad he hadn't made Alice wear the wig, because a controlled doll absolutely couldn't have given an answer like that. 

She had her own thoughts, she was a real person, not a puppet on strings, and she was willing to go to the fairytale Wonderland with him—all of it was beautiful, just like a dream. And he was totally happy to embrace this beautiful dream, because he was already a lunatic drowning in his dreams anyway. 

Whether it was acting, genuine feeling, survival instinct, or maybe because she was a nutjob like him, none of it mattered... What was important was that she really was that much like the Alice in his memories, and she'd said yes to his invitation, just like she had back then. 

His last "Alice" hadn't been so cooperative. He'd gotten everything ready for her too—the stage, the actors, the props, exactly the same as today. But when he tried to invite her to come into the fairytale world with him, she refused. 

"I would never be willing to be with a freak like you." That was her answer. And that was the answer the Mad Hatter hated most. 

"Alice, let's go." 

The Mad Hatter took the blonde woman's hand and led her into the door that read "Wonderland." Just like when Jervis led Alice Dee into the park back then. At that time, he was just a happy regular kid, and she was a cheerful regular girl. 

"Jervis, you two have a very important responsibility today—" His father said the first half sternly, but seeing the two kids looking a little nervous, he couldn't keep a straight face anymore and started laughing heartily: "Your mission is, you gotta have as much fun as possible." 

His mother also smiled gently at that moment. She took a few bills from her handbag and gave them to Jervis. "Jervis, honey, we're gonna give you some money. Whatever your guest wants, make sure you treat her well." 

Alice was very polite. She thanked the couple nearby: "Thank you, Mr. Jervis, Mrs. Tetch." 

"This way." The ticket taker in the red suit pointed inside and handed the yellow ticket to Jervis. 

"No way, your voice is weak, I can barely hear you." The Mad Hatter took the ticket and yelled at the ticket taker. At that moment, looking at the smiling Alice beside him, the memories in his mind seemed to come alive, overlapping infinitely with the reality before him. These jarring scenes, completely out of sync with his past experience, were magnified infinitely, appearing so blindingly harsh. 

This feeling wasn't new to him. In fact, he'd experienced it countless times. When he wasn't 'on stage,' his consciousness could only stay in the real world, where everything was blurry and distorted. Due to his long-term use of hallucinogenic drugs, his brain's hormone secretion was all messed up. 

Sometimes, he couldn't even tell if he was happy or angry, but he didn't really care. This trippy feeling happened to help him escape the reality he hated. 

But the moment he was on stage, those happy times would flood back into his mind like a tide, starkly contrasting with reality. It made him feel extra clear-headed, making him aware of every single difference between now and that day, making him realize he was stuck in reality. 

They walked past the statue of Mr. Rabbit with the clock. The Mad Hatter saw Alice smiling at him, and the rabbit figure made an anxious sound. 

"Oh dear, I'm going to be late!" 

"Yeah, yeah, that's right...::" he thought. At least this rabbit statue was exactly like the one from back then. 

They walked through the black and white checkered hallway. Alice was standing behind him. In front of them was a bottle of bubbly drink with "DRINK ME" written on it, and a cake with "EAT ME" written on it. 

The scene from memory flashed back again. 

"The cake's too big, make it smaller... And this door, the doorknob should be... like, right around here." 

"But boss, just yesterday you said the cake should be bigger, and the doorknob should be a bit higher..." 

"Shut up, you idiot! My memory of that day is never wrong!" 

Bang! 

A gunshot rang out, and the gang member fell to the ground. The Mad Hatter, however, kept pulling Alice forward. 

Was that purple drink in front of him a little too dark? Or maybe the cake's color was darker too? That day in his memory should have been way more vibrant, way brighter. 

The two of them walked past the room with Colonel Caterpillar and the smiling Cheshire Cat. 

It seemed because of that gunshot just now, Colonel Caterpillar's voice was trembling a bit: "State, state your purpose." 

"Nice try, but you stuttered—try again." 

"State your purpose." 

"Yeah, that's the way." 

Even though he said that, he looked around and just felt like the Caterpillar in his memory was supposed to be more colorful, and the Cheshire Cat's smile should have been more innocent. 

Why was the Caterpillar so dark and ugly now? Why did the Cheshire Cat's smile look kinda creepy? But this shouldn't be happening! He'd grabbed everyone who was in the park back then. They were all old employees from way back, like over ten years. How could they mess up the sets and props? Were these guys just freeloading? The Mad Hatter was getting pretty angry. 

They walked past the Queen of Hearts. 

"Smile! Everybody smile!" 

Walking past the Lion and the Unicorn boxing. 

"Alice! You gotta be happier!" 

They walked past the room with chimneys shaped like rabbit ears, then the ice cream cart, then the Pool of Tears... 

"You're utterly captivated by this scene, Alice, our hands will be very close, and then you'll say: 'You know, Jervis, I wasn't sure I could have fun before, but...'" 

The Mad Hatter looked at the Alice in front of him, who was smiling gently at him, and the words he was about to say suddenly stopped. She didn't seem as pretty as the one in his memory either. The Alice in his memory was supposed to be gentler, more beautiful, kinder, more...:: 

He changed the subject and started talking about something else. 

"You know, Alice, I really like tea," he said. "These special teas can take me back to happy places I've been." 

"Some moments are so deep in memory, it's like they're branded there, living in your senses, living in your head, like a movie you can watch over and over." 

As he spoke, he pulled out a gun. 

Chapter 228: No Dream Can Replace Reality 

In front of "Alice," the Mad Hatter pulled out his revolver. His fingers stroked the gleaming metal barrel, as if he wanted to use the cold touch to confirm he was in the real world. 

"Alice" didn't react at all; she just kept watching the drugged-up lunatic ramble on. 

"After drinking the tea, thinking about those happy memories... it feels like being right there, so sweet, so... real." 

As he spoke, the Mad Hatter's gaze shifted to the cake and the bottle. He remembered the cake and the drink he'd had that day – they were so sweet. 

"Imagine, it's a dream you can live in. You can run and skip right through it..." 

His eyes slid toward the room with the caterpillar and the cat, but his focus was blurry, looking distant. Phantoms of the boy and girl ran and skipped, jumping over the trampoline in that room. 

"Imagine, in there, you're a knight in shining armor, tall and strong, sitting on a white horse. The whole world exists just for you, revolving around you. Every single detail of those moments was perfect." 

He looked toward the dessert stand. 

"The taste of sugar melting on your tongue." 

He looked at the glistening pool of tears. 

"Golden sunlight sparkling on the water." 

He looked at the Alice beside him. The girl's voice seemed to echo in his ear again. 

"You know, Jervis, before, I wasn't sure if I'd have fun, but... I'm really glad I came with you today." 

Back then, the soft touch of the girl's five fingers tightened in his palm. 

"It was such a perfect day. You'd never want it to end..." 

He murmured about the happiness of that time, like a delirious dream, talking to himself. Though his eyes were on the "Alice" beside him, his gaze seemed to pierce through her, looking into the farther void. 

"And then?" 

"Then... the fairy tale ended." 

"Alice, do you want... do you want to go to the dance with me?" 

"Oh." Alice Dee looked at Jervis, who was a full head shorter than her. She smiled at him. "I think we're all going, a group of friends, you know? We'll have lots of fun." 

"Oh... okay." 

"Jervis, the doctor doesn't recommend you take that medicine. He says the side effects are severe... problems with your mental stability, increased aggression, pathological obsession, paranoia, psychopathy... son, those aren't good words at all." 

"But I want to be taller, Father. Everyone at school is taller than me. I'm starting to look more and more like a little kid." 

But in the end, at the junior high graduation dance, Jervis, who hadn't gotten any taller, walked up to Alice Dee. 

She wore a beautiful green dress tonight and looked even prettier. 

Jervis saw her laughing and talking with a few friends, so he walked over and grabbed her hand like last time, wanting to ask her to dance. 

However, the girl's hand didn't tighten this time. Instead, she pulled away. 

"I'm really sorry, Jervis." Although she spoke polite words, there wasn't much apology on her face. Instead, there was a hint of disdain and mockery. "I like you, really... but not that kind of like." 

If her expression had been more genuine, her apology more sincere, would he still have taken that medicine? 

Jervis didn't know. 

"The fairy tale ended, and Alice grew up. She left me there." The Mad Hatter looked at the "Alice" beside him and said, "But the real Alice wouldn't leave me there. She would never mind my height." 

"Yes," the blonde Alice replied. "I wouldn't mind your—" 

"Shut up!" 

Hearing this "Alice's" answer, the Mad Hatter suddenly erupted in an angry roar. "You're not my Alice! You're not as beautiful, gentle, kind, generous, sparkling... as she was! You're just imitating her!" 

He raised the gun in his hand and aimed it at the Alice in front of him. The more she resembled that person, the angrier the Mad Hatter became. Every second she was in front of him reminded him of the former Alice, of that memory, and every second also reminded him that in the real world before his eyes, there was only this theater, only this fake Alice. 

The real Alice could never come back. She was... by his own hand... 

He didn't want to be dragged back to the real world. Because for a long time, what addicted him wasn't the drugs, but the dream-like fantasy. 

"Get rid of her! Get rid of all these people! Get a new batch!" 

He shrieked hysterically, his twisted face becoming even more vicious and ugly. He aimed the gun at the Alice in front of him and pulled the trigger. 

Bang! 

A shot rang out, but no one fell. 

"You really are pathetic." 

Alice's voice suddenly shed its warmth and innocence, becoming calm and steady. Her expression held a hint of mockery, and her demeanor shifted to maturity, as if she'd instantly grown from a girl into an adult. 

"You'll never find your Alice, Mad Hatter. Even if your Alice actually had a change of heart and came looking for you, she'd only see an ugly, short freak." 

A mutated, tough vine shot out in front of the woman, blocking the bullet for her. Immediately after, more vines burst from her body, tearing apart the Alice dress she was wearing and revealing soft, plant-woven inner armor. 

"I went through the trouble of dyeing my hair blonde and doing a disguise just to deal with such a pathetic lunatic. It was completely unnecessary—I should have just sent in a potted plant." 

"Poison Ivy...! How dare you, how dare you pretend to be her and trick me! How dare you use Alice's identity to say something like that to me!" 

The Mad Hatter clenched his fists tightly, his bulging, round eyes bloodshot, almost popping out from rage. Gritting his teeth, he threw a teabag directly into his mouth and raised the gun at Poison Ivy again. 

"I'll kill you!" 

"Face reality, Mad Hatter." Poison Ivy sneered, ripping the disguise from her face. "Your Alice is never coming back. And guys like you, even if you become a super-villain, you're still the bottom of the barrel." 

The Mad Hatter's eyes seemed about to tear open. He kept pulling the trigger, emptying every bullet in the cylinder, but they were all blocked by the barrier of vines. 

"Kill her! Kill her!" 

His angry voice echoed through the theater hall. By all rights, everyone should have swarmed her at this point, drowning Poison Ivy in a sea of people. But now, the theater had fallen into an eerie silence. 

The actors on stage, the backstage crew, the lighting and prop technicians, the patrolling Hat Guards, even the henchmen outside the door had all stopped moving. 

"Don't count on it, Mad Hatter," Poison Ivy responded coldly to his roaring. 

"You've been checkmated." 

Chapter 229: Not Running Away 

The Mad Hatter's angry shouts echoed through the hall. 

"Idiots! What are you all doing?! I told you to kill her!" 

However, the rest of the people in the theater still didn't react to the Mad Hatter's words. None of them charged forward, neither the regular folks wearing hats nor the gunmen without them. 

"Don't bother struggling. You don't have any manpower left." 

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! I have ultimate control over them, I should! There's no way they'd betray me—my hats wouldn't betray me!" 

The Mad Hatter couldn't grasp what he was seeing. He pulled a remote control from his pocket, desperately mashing the red button on it, but it was still useless. 

Thump! 

The sound of a heavy object hitting the floor rang out. Only then did the Mad Hatter notice a Falcone family gunman in a suit suddenly go limp and collapse. His body writhed on the ground, his expression hazy and happy, like he was seeing some beautiful hallucination. 

This first person dropping was like a signal. After him, the sounds of bodies hitting the floor rang out one after another, and everyone in the theater started going down, one after the other. 

"Why do you think I've been standing here talking to you forever?" Poison Ivy asked. "Did you really think Riddler would just send me running in here to die?" 

Hearing Poison Ivy's mockery, the Mad Hatter smashed the remote control in his hand in a fit of rage. He reached into his hat, pulled out a micro submachine gun, and aimed it at Poison Ivy. 

"What did you do?!" 

Poison Ivy smiled. 

"Of course you didn't notice what I did. Look around you. You had all this set up, didn't you?—The cake, the soda, the candy, the powdered sugar... They're all so sweet they've dulled your sense of smell, making it impossible for you to detect the floral scent in the air." 

She lightly stroked the small flowers threaded through her armor. Right now, these flowers were the source, subtly and continuously spreading a faint floral scent through the air. 

"Pretty flowers, aren't they? She's a special strain I developed. The scent they release produces a decent hallucinogenic effect. The only catch is the target needs to stay in the floral environment long enough. I was a little worried I wouldn't have enough time—lucky for me, your 'play' was long and boring enough." 

"You witch—" 

The Mad Hatter pulled the trigger immediately. A hail of bullets instantly sprayed from the muzzles of the two micro-SMGs in his hands, blasting towards Poison Ivy, only to be blocked by layers upon layers of vine walls. But he didn't stop, still cursing wildly as he unleashed his firepower on her. 

Of course, you could also call that powerless fury. 

Looking at the Mad Hatter, who could still hold his guns, Poison Ivy ignored his noisy curses. Instead, she raised an eyebrow in slight confusion. "While I don't know what you just ate, this floral scent shouldn't have an antidote, at least not a temporary one. It's strange. I clearly dragged this out long enough... why aren't you on the floor yet?" 

She didn't know that the Mad Hatter had popped more pills by now than she'd smoked cigarettes. This freak had long since been brewing up teabags filled with various chemicals that mess with your nerves and body for years, and drinking them: drugs to soothe the mind, drugs for forced calm, drugs to heighten emotion, drugs to remove pain, drugs to boost aggression... 

By today, what flowed in his veins was hard to call simple blood; it was more like a mixture of pharmaceuticals. His tolerance had become incredibly strong from this daily routine of high-dose drug use. The hallucinogenic floral scent had a very limited effect on him. 

Actually, the fact that he's even alive today, given this level of heavy drug use, is practically a miracle. 

"Miss Pamela, you can't exactly drive someone crazier if they're already completely nuts." 

Suddenly, a voice came through the communicator on the Mad Hatter's chest. It was Mr. Freeze, using the comms device to talk. 

"Victor? Your nose is pretty sharp." 

"We're not fools. We wouldn't let the Mad Hatter oversee an area without any surveillance—as you can see, his mental state is... unstable." 

"Oh? And you're not exactly a sane madman, are you?" 

While she was talking, Poison Ivy wasn't holding back with her actions. She lightly raised her hand, pushing the vine wall straight towards Mad Hatter. The situation wasn't right for dragging things out any longer, waiting for the floral scent to take full effect—she had to finish this quickly. 

"Maybe I am a madman, Miss Pamela. But regardless, I'm not stupid. The moment I realized something was wrong, I headed straight for you. And now—" 

Just as he finished speaking, a bone-chilling cold surged up suddenly. Ultra-low temperature frost froze the entire wall next to the theater. The building materials became incredibly brittle at that temperature. 

CRACK! 

A huge gap suddenly appeared in the wall, and Mr. Freeze, holding his freeze gun, walked in through the opening. 

"And now... I'm here." 

Meanwhile, on the other side, Cody was pedaling frantically through the night on a bicycle. 

Batman screeches came from behind him, the glare of the flamethrower also lit up the night sky, and the high-pressure water streams from the Bat-jet rained down like a heavy shower. But he completely ignored these distractions, focused solely on pedaling his bicycle and scrambling away. 

His gun couldn't even hit the sky anyway, so what was there to say? If he could run, he should just bolt. 

"Sol, what's the situation over there?" 

Penguin's voice suddenly came through the communicator. Clearly, he hadn't been able to connect with the Doctor's comms—which wasn't surprising. Batman had just been set on fire, and his fur, along with his communicator, got burned. 

So he replied in that controlled, indifferent tone: "I am currently withdrawing." 

"?" 

Penguin was taken aback for a moment, then immediately asked: "What about Batman ?" 

Cody looked back. Batman was currently duking it out fiercely with the Bat-jet, though naturally, he was doing zero damage to that tough metal shell. Meanwhile, Firefly on the side was taking the opportunity to fly towards the edge of the battlefield. 

"Is nearing defeat." 

"What about Firefly?" 

"Is currently fleeing." 

"What are you doing?" 

"I am withdrawing." 

"What the hell do you mean you're withdrawing?! And why is Firefly running off? Wasn't he about to defeat Batman ?" 

"No, Batman is about to defeat Batman . Firefly cannot defeat the Bat-jet." 

Penguin paused for a moment: "No wonder..." 

He looked over at Joker, who was sitting in a chair, his face grim, the downturned corners of his mouth practically screaming 'Happy.' 

So Penguin turned back and said: "You can't run, Sol. Get back there and help Batman immediately." 

But Cody paid him no mind, still pedaling his bike furiously. 

"My last instruction requires me to act according to Batman commands, and I am currently executing a tactical withdrawal based on that instruction." 

"This is not running away." 

Chapter 230: Not a Fight 

"No, this is running away." 

The Penguin said with absolute certainty into the communicator, "This is undeniably a retreat. Anyone evaluating this would say the same." 

Thor remained silent, just pedaling the bicycle harder. The buzzing of the furiously spinning gears, chains, and motor grew even louder, loud enough to be heard on the other end of the comms. 

"Listen, Thor, we need you to go back and find Batman .We don't need you to hit the Batwing, but at least tie up Batman or Firefly for him. That's really important." 

"That conflicts with Batman orders, I can't--" 

"Enough, just shut up for a second." 

Penguin sighed. He hung up on Thor and called Mr. Freeze instead – the remote button was in his hand. 

"Mr. Freeze, I need you right now--" 

"Hold on a second, I'm a little busy right now!" 

At that moment, Mr. Freeze's voice came through the communicator. From the sounds of combat coming from his end, it sounded like he hadn't managed to take down Poison Ivy just yet. 

"You and Mad Hatter together still haven't handled it?" 

"We could have, but..." 

"Fries, Pamela, and Tetch, all three of you are coming back to Gotham PD with me!" 

Hearing the low voice on the other end of the comms, Penguin almost instinctively jumped up. 

"Batman?!" 

"Mad Hatter has already been tied up by Batman, his hat even got knocked off by a Batarang. Now it's just Poison Ivy and I dealing with him alone." 

Penguin turned to look at the Joker, who was still expressionless but whose mouth was drooping even lower now. 

"Alright, alright, listen to me now. Use the remote immediately to call Thor over. Langstrom is almost finished by the Batwing, we don't know why there are two Batmen, but things are more critical on your end, so hurry and get Thor over there!" 

"Alright," Mr. Freeze sighed. "This night really sucks... I'll call Thor to help." 

"Boss, any orders?" 

The sudden reply made Penguin frown involuntarily – why did that voice sound so close? Like he was right next to him... 

"Boss, any orders?" 

No, he was right next to him! 

Penguin's head snapped towards the doorway. The Psycho Cyclist, still in his black robe, was standing in the lobby, pushing his bike. 

"WTF!?" Penguin's composure shifted slightly at that moment. "It's only been five minutes since the call! Did you freaking fly back?!" 

"Boss, any orders?" 

The Psycho Cyclist's tone remained mechanical and calm. Just looking at his demeanor, anyone would think he was a loyal grunt who followed orders without question. It was impossible to imagine this was the ultimate slacker who had, in just five minutes, encountered the enemy, folded, ditched his teammates, retreated, and then hightailed it back to base camp. 

At this point, the Joker's mouth also twitched. He reached for the revolver tucked in his waistband, looked at it for a moment, then put it back. 

"I really wanted to just shoot him," he said. "But this whole thing reminds me of Chuck. Heh, these two are almost funny." 

Meanwhile, Mr. Freeze asked through the communicator, "Cobblepot, what's going on? What's the problem over there?" 

"Nothing, Fries -- just give the order directly. Thor's already run back. According to him, it was Batman orders." 

"Even while controlled, his survival instinct is still kicking in? That guy, Thor..." 

At this moment, Poison Ivy, who was holding off Batman on the scene, was gradually getting overwhelmed. "Fries, if you don't come help, we're all done for!" 

"Keep your vines holding on for a few more seconds, Pamela -- Thor, get to the Mad Hatter's theater right now and help!" 

"Copy that, copy that." 

Hearing this, Thor immediately hopped on his bike and vanished from the lobby in a flash. 

Right now, Batman, Mr. Freeze, and Poison Ivy had fought their way from inside the theater to outside. Mad Hatter was still tied up on the ground, feeling extremely vulnerable. Every now and then, a Batarang would whiz past him, or a blast of ice would sweep near him – and he couldn't move at all. 

"Pamela, cut it out with that damned psychedelic toxin and let my guys clear their heads!" 

Poison Ivy blocked the flying Batarangs with a wall of vines, then lashed out with poisoned thorns at Batman. "I told you, that hallucinatory effect has no antidote – not even I can undo it." 

"Why wasn't Fries affected?" 

"Idiot, look at that sealed armor of his! You think he wouldn't design himself an air filtration system?" 

Mr. Freeze didn't say much. He swept his freeze gun across Batman's position, but the target was as agile as a ghost, and his armor seemed extremely resistant to cold. The chill didn't slow him down one bit, making the possibility of freezing him slim to none. 

"Batman came prepared. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had an air filtering mask ready." 

"No kidding, he's always prepared. That mask is something he always keeps on hand." 

Batman listened to their conversation, his face still expressionless. His actions continued to focus on dodging and interfering. 

At this moment, the situation on the battlefield maintained a strange sense of restraint. Not only had the fight moved to a sparsely populated outdoor area, but all attacks were deliberately avoiding the bystanders wearing hats around them. After fighting for so long, there were no casualties on the scene. 

Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze both noticed this. They exchanged glances and simultaneously had certain suspicions. 

"Hang in there, Pamela," Mr. Freeze said, intentionally aiming a freeze beam wide, leaving an opening Batman could use to close in. 

When he saw that Batman didn't seize this opening, he became even more certain of his idea. "The Psycho Cyclist is coming over right away. It'll be three against one, at least we can get away safely." 

"No," Batman interrupted. "None of you are leaving." 

Poison Ivy immediately understood. She shook her head and replied, "Batman, you can't win. The hallucinatory effect of the flower scent will wear off in half an hour. Then, you won't have any chance." 

"What?" Mad Hatter, tied to the ground, perked up. "Just need to last half an hour? Then we're saved!" 

None of them paid him any mind because the information exchange was complete. Mad Hatter was completely an outsider at this point. 

"Speaking of which, Scarecrow has fear gas, and Joker has laughing gas," Pamela said, casually waving her vines. "Why doesn't Batman usually wear his mask? He'd get hit a lot less, right?" 

"You think a mask can stop the gases those two came up with?" Mr. Freeze also fired a beam casually. "Those two gases can enter the body through the skin and also penetrate any filter. A mask's effectiveness is practically zero." 

"What are you guys doing?" Mad Hatter, lying on the ground watching, suddenly felt a bit strange. "Why aren't you using a hostage threat--" 

Whiz! 

A tranquilizer Batarang hit him square in the shoulder. Mad Hatter's head slumped, and he passed out cold. 

(End of Chapter)