Chapter 100: Built Different Part 1

Soon after the call with Arias came to an end, Commissioner Gordon returned to focusing on the situation at hand, communicating with various officers over what their options were. 

It was already widely known that the police department wouldn't negotiate with criminals; even if they wished to, they couldn't, as it was against the law. 

During his many years as commissioner, Gordon had faced numerous hostage situations—some that ended well and others that ended horribly. He knew that if they couldn't manage to sneak in a rescue party, they had no choice but to let the hostages die. 

Right now, the best thing they could do was delay the situation while they explored their options. 

As he was doing just that, the crowd behind him once again began to murmur loudly, which caught his attention and caused him to look back. Upon doing so, he immediately saw the cause for the commotion. 

Hovering above the crowd gathered beyond the police boundary was Wonder Woman. She too remained beyond the boundary set by the police, but her presence was too grand to ignore. 

"Dammit," Gordon muttered, worried that Arias might have sent her for a more frontal approach. He sighed and rushed over to the boundary to confront her. 

Diana remained stoic, her gaze firmly fixed on Arkham Asylum in the distance. Even when the commissioner arrived at the boundary, she kept her arms crossed and her gaze elsewhere. 

Gordon had to speak using a megaphone due to the crowd yelling and cheering at Wonder Woman's presence. "Wonder Woman, I'll have to ask you to vacate the premises. If you're unaware, those without the authority cannot intervene, or it will be against the law," he reminded quickly. 

Those who had loved ones and friends held hostage were especially loud, desperately begging her to save them. 

Given her nature, it was very hard for Wonder Woman to ignore the cries for help. It was even harder to stand still as innocent people had their lives endangered by the criminals within the Asylum. 

Doubtful as she was, she chose to trust Arias on this. As for her answer to Gordon: "It isn't against your laws to just be present." 

She only said those words and proceeded to hover even higher above the masses. Gordon was unsure what Arias was planning by sending her, but it was true that her presence there wasn't breaking any laws. 

Meanwhile, at the far rear of Arkham Asylum, Slade and Harley, who wore alternative outfits to mask their identities, were carefully making their way through the dark woodland and quickly approaching the facility. 

It was, of course, surrounded by police on all sides, with two helicopters constantly lighting up the open areas of the facility in case any inmates, or in this case, "patients," tried to make a run for it. 

Under normal circumstances, entry onto Asylum grounds would have been very tricky for the duo, but thanks to the numerous corrupt officers under Arias present, a blind spot was left. 

Wasting no time and with no difficulty, Slade and Harley made it into the Asylum and arrived in the botanical gardens area of the facility. 

Once there, Slade touched his earpiece and spoke. 

"Operator, we're in. Do you copy?" he whispered while looking around the area, scanning for potential entryways into the building without being seen. 

The operator in question was, of course, Barbara, who was providing support in the comfort of her bedroom, using only a PC, notebook, and headset. 

"[Oh, umm, copy, yeah. What's your status?]" she asked awkwardly, caught a bit off guard by the entirety of the situation. 

She was used to dangerous situations but not in this way. 

She had grown accustomed to doing dangerous tasks herself, knowing she had the support of Alfred back at the Batcave and sometimes Robin by her side. 

This time, though, she was essentially directing the operation. Her decisions and actions would have an immense impact on not only the result but also the lives of the people involved. 

In her mind, it was far more difficult than just beating up bad guys. 

As for Slade, he was well within his element and didn't falter. While Harley… was just Harley. 

Slade kept a close eye on her body language, but she seemed her usual odd self, despite knowing that the operation involved the Joker. 

"We're in the botanical gardens, requesting a secure entry point. The door is a no-go, too much traffic. We need alternatives." 

"[Alright, give me a second…]" 

With just a few clicks, Barbara brought up a real-time 3D plan of the Asylum, with Slade and Harley represented as two green dots. 

"[Okay, there's an automated garbage disposal chute that will lead you right into the first floor. It looks like the patients still have their collars on; I can hack into them and keep track of their movements inside.]" 

After Barbara said this, Harley smiled as she recalled a wonderful memory. "Oh yeah, forgot about those. If you get too far from your cell, they go boom, and lemme tell ya, it ain't pretty." 

… 

It took less than a minute for the duo to make it inside using the route Barbara had shown them. Once inside, they remained out of sight while reviewing their objective. 

As they were doing so, Barbara's voice resounded in their earpieces, providing information. 

"[Rather than approaching the targets immediately, you should first secure the collar control device for the Asylum patients. According to the signal I'm getting, it's in a cell? That can't be right.]" 

"Well, maybe some lucky inmate took it off a guard." 

"[Not possible; this is the main control device, held only by the warden. If it were in anyone's hands, it would be the Joker. But in the videos he posted, he had a collar, along with every other inmate visible.]" 

"Well, we won't get answers by speculating. Give us directions." 

… 

While the operation within the Asylum was progressing, Arias remained in his office within the Markovic Tower, quietly seated in his chair, contemplating. 

As he was doing so, his door slowly swung open, and two figures wearing cleaning attire appeared. 

He nonchalantly cast his gaze in their direction before muttering, "Last I checked, my workers don't clean during operating hours. Though, I must commend you for sneaking this far; you're truly professionals at what you do." 

The two female workers cast each other knowing glances before shutting the door and facing Arias. They said no words and instead just took out their small weapons they concealed within their equipment. 

Under normal circumstances, such could have been seen through by Slade's security detail; however, they purposely left blind spots in their security. 

Seeing as the two weren't going to speak, Arias stood from his seat and took off his jacket before rolling up his sleeves. 

"I think you'll find I'm very different from your everyday target…"