Chapter Text
Duke huffed and puffed, head pounding, face throbbing, leaping across the bulkhead basement entrance and flying past a startled Old Man McGuthrie, out walking his dog as per usual. As if he could not see that it was actually a scorpion.
Everyone was as usual. And yet not.
Mrs. Gonzalez was sweeping the cornerstore’s stoop. Her teeth and hair kept falling off her head, so she swept them away, away, away.
Little kids stood at the corner with a parent or two, waiting for the bus. One turned to the other, split her open, and sucked at her bleeding flesh.
The mailman was walking into his apartment building. He was melting.
Did they not know?
Did they not hear the crashes and cackles echo? Smell the venom rolling in the distance? See the light of the bombs chasing his footsteps?
Did they not know that his world was ending?
“Mom! Dad!” He slammed the building entrance open, nearly hitting the mailman, who did not seem to notice his face was melting as his clothes sloughed off his skin. But he did not care. Duke took the steps three at a time, pulling himself up with his hands on the rails, trying desperately to reach the top floor - the elevator was always too slow. Brightness followed after, swallowing up the world behind Duke, and hiding the gas in its depths.
He went faster. He had to tell Mom and Dad. They needed to get out. They needed to -
He reached his door, and fumbled in his pockets for his keys. Since when did he wear yellow pants? But damn. No keys in his pockets, and he did not have time to check all these weird pouches - he did not remember borrowing Dad’s tool belt.
Duke backed up, getting unnervingly close to the creeping light, and rammed the door open. He didn’t expect that to work on the first try - he was not that big. Or was he? Duke looked down, and saw his legs stretch into the light, slowly crawling up his legs. “Mom!?” His voice cracked as the door slammed against the wall.
A shriek came from his bedroom.
“Daddy!”
One moment Duke was in the doorway, the next, he was in his bedroom.
But it was not right. His desk was gone, his ceiling posters replaced with glow-in-the-dark stars, and his bed was now on the ground, in the shape of a race car.
And in the middle of the bed was a very scared, feverish little boy, who was crying tears that floated up and set fire to the ceiling.
“Daddy!” The little boy burst into tears. “Daddy!”
“Who are you?” Duke felt for the little boy but could not figure out why he was in his room. Still, the kid needed to get out of here. He walked towards the boy, ready to pick him up and run. “Listen, kid, I’m sorry but you gotta run. The Joker has some venom gas, and it’s blowing this way, and I have to find-”
Duke didn’t even notice the man coming up behind him. Just a thwack! and pain exploded in his head. He ducked down, but the brightness rose up to meet him.
The man dropped the bat and covered his eyes. “Darius!” he cried, reaching towards the bed. “Son, cover your eyes!”
Duke’s head hit the floor, and everything went white.
–
“ … he’s heavy.”
“Shut up, what if they hear you?”
“Hear me? Alright, Miss Clunky Boots, if you -”
Duke heard the whishing of someone signing angrily. He dared not open his eyes - the voices seemed familiar and his head was pounding like hell. He was being rolled somewhere, on a stretcher? Maybe he was at the hospital.
“Yeah, okay. Damn, that orderly wanted a lot to keep quiet and let us in.”
“I know! A hundred bucks just to keep your mouth shut and open a door? Aren’t we heroes or something?”
Not a hospital then?
“For real. It always makes me feel better after a toxin night to see my mom. What did Alfred say to do next?”
More signing.
“Okay, we’re nearly there.”
Duke felt the stretcher come gently to a stop, and a heavy door swung open. Marvin Gaye’s ‘Theme from Trouble Man’ glided out, swirling in his ears.
“So, what? Do we just leave him here? I think his parents are asleep in the other room.”
“Let’s put him over there, and knock on the door. Hopefully they’ll wake up on their own. I think we’d maybe scare them, all dressed up.”
“Oh shit! I forgot his domino. I hope it doesn’t mess with the topical, that burn was nasty.”
A hand reached down to gently peel something off his face from around his eyes.
“There. Okay, Cass, do you think we should go?” A beat, then, “Okay. Duke, if you can hear me, Alfred’ll come around two to pick you up.”
“Dork, I wrote it on his arm. He’ll see it.”
The door closed quietly, and they were gone.
Duke fell back asleep.