"Joker's going to take over Gotham?" Scott repeated questioningly. "How?"

"Right now, Gotham is in the pocket of different gangs and criminal organizations," Harley explained. "The government wants people to think it's in charge, but they haven't held real authority in Gotham for years."

"What about Batman?" Scott asked.

"What about him?" Harley dismissed. "Bat-brain's gone, and any hope of the government retaking the city went with him. Once Joker sweeps aside the other gangs and bosses, he'll own this city from top to bottom, and it's unlikely he'll stop there."

"Joker will spread out to all neighboring cities," Scott reasoned.

"Yep," Harley confirmed. "He'll have enough guns and people to resist even a direct attack from the military."

"But, he won't fight a direct campaign," Scott realized. "His strength has always come from sowing chaos in order to weaken his opposition."

"Exactly," Harley confirmed. "The military might have a larger and more well-armed force, but they have more to defend. Joker can strike anywhere he pleases, burn it down and retreat."

"A scorched earth technique," Scott reasoned. "If he causes enough damage, the citizens will demand the government do something."

"Once martial law is declared, the military will be out in the open, patrolling the streets," Harley added.

"Of course!" Scott exclaimed. "Military bases and government buildings are well defended by layers of security, but if Joker can draw them out, get them to spread themselves across the city, he'll be able to pick them off at his leisure. Joker can decide which target to strike, when, and how hard to hit them to inflict the maximum amount of damage."

"Over time, Joker will wear them down while continuing to build his own forces," Harley added. "Eventually, the tables will turn, and he'll control almost everything and burn down the rest."

"Governments worry about protecting civilians, limiting the kinds of military action they can take," Scott said. "Joker has no such limitations, doing whatever he wants to accomplish his goals, no matter the collateral damage."

"It's why he's going to win," Harley stated firmly. "When one side is limited and the other isn't, the war is already over. It's only a matter of time."

"Joker could still get crushed if the government moved against him before everything is in place," Scott suggested.

"True," Harley agreed. "However, they won't because they are limited by the law, and the law won't let them send in a military strike team to deal with what they believe to be a common criminal. They hesitate while his plans move forward."

"Their indecision will be their undoing," Scott concluded.

"Yep," Harley concurred. "A government of the people is another weak point he'll exploit."

"How so?" Scott prompted.

"Most folks in this country are unconcerned about what doesn't affect them," Harley told him.  "So, all Joker has to do is create enough damage and casualties for the citizens to believe no good can come from trying to hold the city. The military with pull out and play right into Joker's hands."

"For the purpose of bowing to public opinion, they'll hand Gotham over to the Joker on a silver platter," Scott grumbled. He flopped his head back against the sofa pillows in frustration and immediately regretted it as his headache returned.

"Essentially," Harley confirmed. "He'll use Gotham as a base of operations to expand his influence to other places and repeat the process. By the time anyone realizes the noose he's put around them, it will be too late to keep him from tightening it."

Scott closed his eyes, wondering how the world could so quickly spiral out of control.

"What about the other heroes?" Scott questioned. "I know Batman's missing, but what about Flash, Wonder Woman, or Superman? Couldn't they get involved?"

"They have troubles of their own," Harley answered. "In fact, Joker had been stoking the fires in other cities, helping their criminals cause trouble in order to give the heroes something else to concentrate on besides him and his endeavors here."

Scott couldn't believe the entire world might fall into the murderous hands of a psychotic clown.

   ***   

Scott sidestepped a stab by Harley's knife, the gleaming blade passing his ribs by mere inches. He swung his own weapon, but she easily ducked under the knife.

It had been two weeks since Harley started instructing him on how to fight. The injuries from his initial beating were mostly gone, but he'd accumulated a few more from Harley's full contact training regimen. Although the pace of the routine was brutal, Scott pushed himself to his absolute limit. He'd collapsed from exhaustion three different times during the first week, but his body was starting to adapt.

Backing up, Scott tripped over a table. He intentionally threw himself backwards as he started to fall, adding extra momentum and enough to clear the table and land on the carpeted floor instead. When he hit the ground, Scott continued his roll, performing a backwards summersault and getting his feet under him again. Harley placed her free hand on the surface of the table while she cartwheeled over it. When Scott managed to stand up, she was already attacking, forcing him back with her quick knife strikes.

Scott dodged a swing toward his face, but Harley managed to catch him in the stomach with a spinning kick, knocking him back against the wall. She was on him instantly, holding the knife to his throat. Scott tapped the edge of his own weapon against her ribs to show the contest was a stalemate. Harley grinned.

"Not bad," she praised, taking a step back and lowering her knife. "I think you're ready to start sleeping in your own room."

"Rats," Scott jokingly lamented. "Your sofa's very comfortable."

"I know, and I want it back," Harley replied. "How can I enjoy it if your carcass is always draped across it?"

"Want to take turns?" Scott suggested.

"I have a better idea," Harley countered. "How about I kick you out and take back what's mine?"

Scott and Harley shared a brief chuckle, but it ended when one of Joker's men knocked on the door.

"Boss called for a meeting," the man reported, and Harley nodded in acknowledgement.

As the messenger departed, Harley threw her knife across the room to spear a painted target on a block of wood attached to the far wall. She smiled at Scott with her hands on her hips. Scott grinned as he accepted her challenge, throwing his own knife and stabbing into the target right next to Harley's blade.

Harley's smile widened, and she tossed Scott a towel before picking up one of her own. Scott cleared the sweat from his face and arms, dropping the towel in a laundry basket on his way out the door behind Harley.

Joker and several of his top ranking thugs were already in the main room of the comedy club when Scott and Harley arrived. Standing behind Joker was a man in a demon clown mask. Scott knew it was one of the men who'd tried to kill him, but the beating had been so chaotic, he couldn't be sure which of the five men stood in the room with him.

"Now that we're all here, this is the plan for tonight," Joker explained. He spread out a map on the large table everyone gathered around. "We're going to need lots of weapons in the days ahead, and our old friend the Penguin has all the hardware we could ever need. Rather than buying the guns, which is way too expensive, we're going to kill him and take the guns anyway!"

The meeting paused while Joker lapsed into a fit of cackling laughter. When he composed himself enough to continue, Joker explained how the attack was to be handled.

"The Penguin's warehouse is in the old museum here," Joker said, pointing a long finger toward the appropriate location. He tapped a secondary spot close by. "Unfortunately, the police station is here. Response time will be an issue, so we can't afford to be cautious on this one. We'll have to storm the place and push right through without stopping. We'll probably have to fight the cops on the way out. I know it sounds like suicide, but I'll be behind you all the way."

"I have a suggestion," Scott put forward.

Joker's smile turned instantly to a scowl as he glared daggers in Scott's direction. By the way the clown's hands clenched on the edge of the table, Scott knew if Joker didn't like his suggestion, Scott was most likely going to be shot dead on the spot.

"I can get you the extra time," Scott added quickly.

"Go on," Joker growled through gritted teeth.

"Take twelve delivery vans, loaded only with a driver and one gunner," Scott explained. "Have them drive to this point."

Scott indicated a spot on the far side of Gotham.

"There's a government building there," Scott explained. "When your vans arrive, have the gunmen kick open the back doors and come out shooting. The politicians inside will only get a glimpse of the vehicles starting to unload before they run and hide, and they'll think your whole army is there. The call to the police should bring out most of the force. Give the distraction team a radio, and when the cops do arrive, we'll know it's time to move against Penguin. Even if the cops figure out the ruse, they'll be across town. If we can guess their routes, we can lay ambushes, park cars across the roads to force them to go the long way, and put snipers on the roofs to harass them and shoot out tires to delay them even further. If done right, we'll have enough time to finish the Penguin and clean out his supplies before the first squad car even gets within sight."

Joker laughed hysterically. "I knew there was a reason I didn't shoot you!"

As if a switch had been thrown, the laughter cut off, plunging the room into an uncomfortable silence.

"Since it was your idea, you get the vehicles," Joker told him. "Don't take all day about it because you're also going to be leading the attack on the Penguin!"

Joker started laughing uncontrollably again, holding his sides. Scott swallowed hard, wondering how he'd gotten himself into this mess.