Batman Beyond - Burning Passion of Love

Countdown

Batman Beyond 'Fan Fiction Story'

By Tayla Drago

Episode# 49 – Countdown

At Gotham University, an announcer inaugurates the World Science Symposium, a gathering of the world's greatest scientific minds to share ideas for new technologies. However, before the announcer can continue, Mad Stan hacks into his video feed and starts another one of his rants, claiming that technology is making people soft, and the only sane solution, as usual, is to 'blow it all up!'. Ah, again...?

"You think these ideas are new?" he starts blowing things up as always. "Forget it, man! It's the same old story. We're a push-button society. Technology makes our heads soft, our bodies weak, but I've got a new idea. Blow it up! Blow it all up!"

Batman arrives with Batwoman and they both confront him.

"Then how are supposed to make coffee?" Batman questions his enemy.

"And you think just blowing things up helps out other, Mad Stan?" same with Batwoman. Well, it doesn't! It really does not do anything."

From fighting with items to fire to stop this man hating machine person.

"(Be careful! Mad Stan's loaded with tons of weapons today!)" Gwen tells her partner.

"We're slaves to the machine, Batman and Batwoman! Someone's got to stop the madness!"

A quick fight ensues and though it seems to be a stalemate at first, Stan manages to escape.

"Great...He got away, again!" Batwoman argued. "Let's start searching all over town again once we get everyone out of here."

Out at the train station, Ro and Zeta 'Zeta's back with a new human girlfriend helping him out' arrive in Gotham, believing that Dr. Selig is supposed to attend the Symposium. Ro is surprised that Zeta knows his way around, and he explains that he's been to Gotham before—he even knows Batman and Batwoman personally. Ro is skeptical, but Zeta's earnest expression convinces her. However, Agent Bennett and the NSA are waiting at the station for him. They attack Zeta, causing the duo to run through the streets. As the agents pursue the duo across an intersection, Bennett tells an oncoming truck to halt, declaring themselves to be federal agents. The truck driver, Mad Stan, sees what he believes is another example of the government trampling someone's 'basic human rights'. The agents corner Zeta in an alleyway and hit him with an electromagnetic device that shuts him down. However, before they can take Zeta in, Stan rams his truck into the alleyway, grabs Zeta, and speeds away. Stan takes Zeta to his hideout, a houseboat in the harbor, and greets his pet Chihuahua, Boom-Boom. The dog is wary of Zeta and touches him, disrupting his holographic disguise and alerting Stan that he is really a robot. Believing that Zeta was sent by the government to kill him, Stan grabs a bomb and decides to turn the tables. Meanwhile, Ro calls 9-1-1 and says she needs Batman and Batwoman, thinking that the GPD keep him 'in a closet somewhere'.

"I saw the Royal Flush Gang. Yeah. And they were trashing City Hall along with Inque and Blight and a gazillion Jokerz."

Talking way too fast for Ro to try to get the two-crime fighting duo to come and help her out, but they're not buying any of it.

"Kid, this line is for emergency calls only!" the lady said to Ro. "You don't want to get in trouble, do you?"

"I'm already in trouble! I need Batman! Or Batwoman! Or both! Come on! You got him in a closet there, don't you?" the operator hangs up on her. "Twip."

The operator dismisses her as a crank, but, luckily for her, Bruce is monitoring the emergency band for Megan to send to her husband and sends Terry and Gwen to meet her.