Professor Fear III

Chapter 46

The Joker had created a circus of the city – quite literally- there were all sorts of unstable amusements.
Scarecrow saw at it all from the bell curved mirror on the sixth floor of the building he was in. The whole room was empty of objects.
"Whaddayah think Crow?" Joker asked, coming to admire the view at the window too.

"Very Creative, Joker, nicely done,"
"Where's your girl now?" He was trying to tease, trying to provoke reaction.
"Couldn't I ask you the same?" Scarecrow was more than certain that Ivy and Harley were spending a lot of time together now.
"I know Harley will come back to me eventually she craves the...insanity, uncertainty, the roughness, I'm sure you understand,"
"As a psychiatrist, yes." 
"Daria is nothing without you, so she craves you and craves meaning through you,"
"Once again,  I am fully aware of the art of analysing human behaviour."

Joker's eyes began to change. Scarecrow noticed that the air was slightly smoky looking. Then he smelled it. A smell he knew all too well.
Daria had deployed the fear gas cloud early.
It was beginning settling over Gotham as the hours passed.
Joker looked completely confused for a good few moment and then started laughing.
"Now this is a trip!"
Scarecrow had figured there was a chance that Joker did not have fears. That was the method to his madness. That's what made him seemingly invincible to the public eye. He had no restraints. Fear is the ultimate restraint.
If anything, this was like a strange trip where the room would pulse, and sounds would mix. Joker would be high and confused for a bit and then adjust.

A new sound was heard.
"Do you hear that?" Joker asked.
"Of course, It's a chorus of screams, the chaos has truly begun."

Harley had started screaming immediately. Bugs of all kinds were crawling all over her. She was gaining weight, breaking the dress and both Joker and Ivy were dying in front of her. It was terrifying. It wouldn't stop.

Ivy smelled the fear gas in the air.
Scarecrow cooked up something big.
She quickly got to using the kitchen of the office building they were in. She would use herself and her botany to create a cure for Harley. For now, she put Harley to sleep with a strong dose of valerian root and chamomile.


Daria had stopped running and put on her gas mask. The gas cloud was visible as a hazy orange fog encapsulating the whole city and city borders. People starting running around in frenzy. Car alarms were going off, windows were smashing, screaming and crying was heard. Daria kept on heading towards the parts of Gotham she was more familiar with. After not too long, strange colorful exhibits were populating the streets. They looked both childish and creepy at the same time. One item was a large purple box with a handle. Daria decided to kick the handle.
the box lid flew open and out bounced a large plastic version of the Joker's head attached to springs.

Not so far along was a colored clown statue, shaped in a comic style. It had a shirt that said: 'hit me!', so Daria hit it and moved to the side quickly, on a hunch, as three flares came shooting out, burning the wall across the street.

Fun toys.

Daria was beginning to feel hungry. She decided to go find the nearest donut shop and take whatever they made before the fear gas hit.

Not only were many left over, but their coffee machine was still on. The employees must have been ., gone outside and then been scared off.

"I hereby commandeer this place," she declared to her audience of herself. The place was completely empty. She helped herself to a maple donut and a cinnamon donut. After all, the amount of running and being awake earned this caloric intake.
She sat there, alone, in a booth with no necessary whereabouts and she felt an amazing sense of peace. Law, order and necessary behaviour didn't exist right now. It was fascinating. A strange time.

Daria wish she had a way of contacting Jonathan and asking if he'd given her immunity to his toxin yet without her remembering. She wasn't certain if it was safe to take her gas mask off.

She decided to grab a few bags more of donuts and put them in a grease stained handbag an employee left. She found, in another employees bag, a flask. She filled it with coffee from the machine. For now, she would have to see if any of the high-rise buildings escaped the cloud.
Most people didn't approach her. The gas mask probably made her look like a terrifying demon to them unless they were phobics locked in their own personal worst fear on repeat.

Upon finding a fancy hotel. Daria entered and clicked to go to the penthouse floor. Nothing stopped her.
The elevator doors opened, and she found herself in what looked to be a jungle on the top floor.
Ivy's work no doubt.
It was slightly above the gas cloud and its own little ecosystem. It was a perfect find. The jacuzzi had been untouched by the plants and Daria couldn't wait to try it out after she chilled with her not-so healthy packed lunch.

Scarecrowdecided to use one of his needles on Joker. He wanted to see if there was alimit that invited in a fear of any kind.
"You druggin' me Scarecrow? We might have a problem with that,"
"I'm just quenching my curiosity."
"I'm makin' ya thirsty?" He did indeed sound a little bit drunk.
Or maybe just as he always was.
"Don't do something you might regret, Scarecrow,"
"Thank you for the warning, Joker,"

After spewing hysterical laughter like a fountain of madness, Joker passed out.
Fascinating. Scarecrow didn't know if he wanted to pursue the particularreaction further than that. After all, studying human behaviour and humanreaction to drugs was his true fascination and passion.

Speaking of Fascinating and Passionate... what is Daria up to now? Hewondered.