The Court of Owls

Dead silence.

The door opened automatically. No, not the gentle unlocking of a deadbolt. This was someone gripping the handle and forcing the wooden door open with brute strength! The lock screamed in protest, the metal core tearing through the cheap plywood, clinging stubbornly to the twisted metal frame. A gust of wind rushed in, carrying the chill of the outside world into the apartment.

Bang.,Thud.

Harley Quinn shuddered. She regretted getting distracted by the skeletons, not noticing the approaching figure outside the door. During her countless days and nights in Arkham, she should have honed her senses to the utmost. The evening was drawing to a close, the last rays of sunlight streaming in through the broken door, casting a long shadow in the room. It was as if because of this little light, the existence of darkness itself had meaning. Then... it was gone. Harley Quinn slowly picked up her backpack.The tall figure stood at the door. The light vanished as the day finally surrendered to night. Harley Quinn sighed heavily.

"You are such a hard to find girl." She heard Batman say. Silence.Harley Quinn stared at the figure who entered. The corners of her mouth slowly turned upward, and a manic giggle bubbled up in her throat.

"Ah!!!"

She screamed hysterically, "Oh my god, not you again!!!" She stumbled over to a nearby tree – a miniature dragon blood tree grown by Poison Ivy – and started banging her head against the trunk. "Aghhhh, damn it, god! Batman will never, ever, find Harley Quinn!"

"I have some questions for you."She heard Batman's familiar, deep voice. "Like, where can I find your good friend Poison Ivy?" Harley Quinn stopped hitting the tree. She tilted her head. "I need your help."

"Sorry, sweetie. I've kind of moved on. "Harley suddenly became very normal, as if the one who was crazy just now was not her at all. "Look, Ivy's hanging out with some bad guys. She and Plant Master are planning to turn the whole world green. I need to stop them. They're a dangerous duo, Harley. A lot of people could get hurt, even... Never mind, it's probably useless telling you this. But there's one more thing you need to know. Ivy could get hurt, or even killed."

Batman's words hit her mark.Harley had to admit, Batman knew their relationship well. Hearing that Ivy might be in danger did stir something in her... but it was just a fleeting impulse. "No. I don't want to get involved in your shit anymore." Harley replied, "I've said goodbye to the cape, tights, and mask. I just want to be a normal person now."

"Really? What a pity you are not." Harley Quinn followed Batman's gaze and saw the four skeletons sprawled on the floor. She grabbed her pigtails and let out another hysterical scream. She whirled around and grabbed Frank, the Piranha Plant, who was pretending to be an ordinary potted plant. "Jerk, jerk, jerk, jerk, jerk, you killed them—"

"Blaming your murders on a plant won't reduce your sentence, Harley Quinn." Harley slapped the plant twice. "I advise you..." Harley Quinn jumped up and down on the Piranha Plant. "Your emotional outburst..." With a crash, Harley Quinn lunged towards the window. If she could break it, she could escape this room! She calculated the distance. Even Batman, unless his arm could change into...!!!"

"Okay, I surrender." Adam retracted his arm, setting Harley down. The massive dinosaur limb shrank instantly, like a deflating sponge, returning to its normal human size without even tearing his clothes. Such a blatant violation of the law of conservation of mass would leave 90% of the world's scientists baffled, but for Gothamites, anything Batman did was par for the course. No matter how Batman won, it was simply expected. Harley had grown accustomed to it. After all, Batman always wins, and will always continue to win.

......

In Bane's hideout. People often imagined masterminds like him dwelling in mysterious submarines or airborne military bases. But it's not.It was just a run-of-the-mill Gotham hotel room. Bane occupied the entire sofa with his 2.15-meter frame, listening to a news report.

"The city government's decision to deploy the National Guard is a complete disregard for morality, justice, and responsibility"

"Batman? I must say, masked vigilantes breaking the law like this are hardly comparable to real heroes."

"Let's give a warm welcome to our true heroes, Mayor Carlo and the head of the National Guard, with thunderous applause and heartfelt gratitude." The experts on TV and those fat-headed officials were still chattering. After recapping the situation, they quickly moved on to discrediting Batman and praising City Hall's actions. Bane, the muscular monster was thinking. Honestly, if he wasn't planning to break the Bat, he'd almost feel sorry for him. Batman worked tirelessly for this city, while the upper echelons of City Hall and Gotham's elite were utter fools.

He couldn't believe anyone could be stupid enough to broadcast their military movements on TV.Batman? No one took the most dangerous figure seriously. The well-dressed individuals on TV only cared about boosting their own popularity by smearing Batman and glorifying themselves. They were more like vultures circling carrion than the lunatics in Arkham. They mocked the Dent Act, belittled Jim Gordon, denied Batman's capabilities, and dismissed everything he'd done for Gotham over the past decade. They blamed Batman's presence for attracting these costumed lunatics, framing the current chaos as a clash of madmen. They proclaimed that only the army could restore order, only City Hall could bring change.

But they never considered. Why Harvey Dent had lost all faith in the justice system. Why Edward Nygma had descended into madness. Why the once-honest Arnold had been arrested and imprisoned. Gotham was rotten to the core. Bane knew this better than most Gotham natives – he'd sensed it the moment he arrived. "Batman and his so-called super-criminals are all insane and twisted. We must take this opportunity to end their reign once and for all." Bane scowled. The words on TV grew more repulsive by the second. The self-proclaimed experts, with their greasy hair and powdered faces, reeked of arrogance. Even Bane found them nauseating. He muted the TV, unable to bear the noise any longer.

Boom!

A muffled sound from above made him frown. Boom!He sighed. "Enough. Can you three finish the job already?" He barely finished his sentence before the ceiling caved in with a crash. His three men, Zombie Man, Caveman, and Birdman, along with an owl-masked figure, broke through the wooden ceiling and rolled down.

"Stop, Bane! City Hall has mobilized tens of thousands of National Guardsmen against you. The Court of Owls intends to fight you." Bane sighed again. "Who are you? Never mind—"