Deadman Returns!

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

It seems trite to say that it was a cold and stormy night in Gotham, but it was, on the night that Deadman Boston Brand returned to that most forboding of cities in the USA. A den of scum and villainy that more often than not seemed more suitable for being burned off the face of the Earth like Pompeii, or washed out to see like Atlantis, and yet somehow it still persisted and small beacons of hope and light would continuously fight back the darkness.

Perhaps this is why Deadman was called back there. He had spent many months in the Himalayas since the great war with Mordru (and Mordru) and was beginning to feel a certain sense of spiritual peace. But then something like a pang of hurt, or guilt, drew him back to the reality that far too much evil was still being practiced, especially in this supposed bastion of civilisation. And despite it's many defenders such as Batman, Robin, Ragman and Huntress, there was always a need for more people to fight away the darkness.

So Deadman came back, pouring from the soil of his grave and into the cemetery he knew so well, looking around at the cold and stormy vista from East to West, and finally floating his way into the city itself. "It feels crap to be home."

Nothing much had changed in Gotham in the year or so he'd been away, by all appearances. Just by scanning through some news archives he read that he Riddler and Scarecrow were apparently now reformed, that crime boss Rupert Thorne was now dead, and that Max Shreck was making inroads into Metropolis, but... "These things are transient. Reformation is only as permanent as the criminal wants it to be. Death is no object in this world full of mystics. And corrupt business tycoons always crawl back to the relative safety of Gotham when their plans go bust."

He floated past the window of Andrei's Gondola, one of his favourite restaurants from his mortal days. It wouldn't hurt to go inside, take a body, and maybe enjoy a meal... And then he sees a very familiar criminal face at one of the tables.

Comments

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

Jervis Tetch, seated in the tallest chair he could find, appears to be having quite the celebration. Perhaps he'd come here for Andrei's annual elementary school fundraiser, to make his contribution to such a worthy goal. And the children seem to be enjoying it--assuming that near-sobbing, quiet, terrified children can be said to enjoy anything.

The other patrons don't seem to mind at all, though. They quite like having Uncle Jervis take care of their kids. They're so grateful, in fact, that they seem all too happy to assist the restaurant staff with each and every need Jervis might have.

"Fry me! Fritter my wig! You two fetch more tea for young Jeffrey over there, he seems to have spilled his. And What-you-may-call-um? Can you keep an eye out for the March Hare? He always runs late for our little get-togethers. And oh, What-was-his-name, you're doing an excellent job. Keep it up! Remember, all guests over twelve today receive a free hat upon entry."

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

"Oh great." Deadman scans the restaurant from outside the large window, spotting the multitude of hats spread around the patrons. For some reason some of the staff seem free of the hats (maybe they cook better with free will), and after a few seconds of pondering, he forces himself through the window and into the body of a waiter.

Picking up a tray of tea and crumpets, he observes to see what this lunatic is up to.

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

"Thing-um-a-jig! More biscuits! They're quite delicious. I might just bring the chef home so I have them all the time!"

The capped-waiter nearest to Deadman nods wordlessly, and begins to move back to the kitchen. Hatter watches him go, and rolls his eyes upon seeing the one with the shirt labeled "Jonathan."

"What is it now? I agreed to let your chefs have their own minds so they could cook properly, and you kept yours solely to serve as a potential hostage. But I'm growing tired of your complaints. One more and you'll have ruined my tea party, and I warn you, I do not react kindly to a ruined party."

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

Deadman is surprised by the mental fortitude of this waiter. From reading his surface thoughts he can tell that he had intended to go behind the counter and pick up the owner's revolver to get rid of the top hat wearing nutjob, but Boston is quick to override such inclinations. And a stern talking to Andrei when all this is over about having guns in a store is definitely needed.

He makes his vessel stride towards the Hatter, with tea and crumpets proffered, and a big forced smile. "For you, sir. Tea. Crumpets. Jailtime."

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

Hatter actually laughs at this.

"Now now, 'Jonathan.' Candle-ends and Toasted-Cheese are keeping a firm eye on anything Bat-like for me. I've collected all the cellular phones and cut the main line. And I've blocked all entrances and exits save one, where my people stand guard ready to bring all entrants into the fold. And as if that was not enough, with a word I will have my loyal subjects beat you to the ground. I'm afraid a return trip to Arkham just isn't in my future."

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

Deadman makes his vessel frown, and get quite close to the buck-toothed villain's face. "I don't think you can trust your men, Tetch. They look a little like they could turn on you, or each other."

And to prove it, Deadman forces himself out of the body of Jonathan, making the waiter drop his tray, and flits into the body of the servant he referred to as Candle-ends, making him throw a punch at Toasted-Cheese's face. Any more actions than that would demand a sever contest of wills between Boston and Hatter's mind-control devices.

He jumps back out of the thug, and seeps back into Jonathan. "Apologies, I appear to have dropped my tray. But good grief, your men appear to be attacking one another!"

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

The Hatter's eyes narrow as the possibilities flash through his mind. Possible malfunction in the technology? It couldn't have been a burst of free will--people aren't likely to throw random punches, really. Perhaps just a glitch, an extra synapse fired. But it was timed so conveniently, and meta-humans and hero types tend to show up just when you don't expect them to. Perhaps it was this boy...

Or perhaps the Bat is outside, with some device that interferes with Hatter's own. That damned Bat, always showing up at times like this!

Fine. If that's how it's going to be, Hatter isn't going down easy.

"We'll just have to give them something else to attack, then. Candle-ends! Toasted-Cheese! I do believe we've found our Snark."

The two men begin to lumber forward towards 'Jonathan,' their dead eyes betraying no sign of the harm they aim to cause him.

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

Well Deadman isn't going to let his host get beaten up just for being unlucky enough to hold the soul of Boston Brand right now. He jumps out, making Jonathan stagger backwards in a realistic display given the approaching zombies, and floats over and back into Candle-ends.

And now it's a clash of wills. His supernatural power, his faith in Rama Kushna, and the force of good within him, versus the terrible technology at the Mad Hatter's disposal.

He forces Candle-ends to raise an arm, but this time it's not to throw a punch at his colleague. Instead, it's to grab the cap on his head, and fling it free.

And then he launches himself at Toasted-Cheese. Confuse the little bastard.

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

Now that? That is unexpected. For Hatter, anyway. Toasted-Cheese doesn't have enough mind right now to unexpect anything. He goes down quickly, before Hatter's shock can remind him that oh right, he has to MAKE Toasted-Cheese defend himself.

Except now Toasted-Cheese's hat has fallen off as well. Damn the luck!

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

Quite frankly, Deadman doesn't know whether removing the hats from any of the civilians might give them some kind of psychic or even physical shock. With one of Hatter's obvious lumbering thugs he was willing to take the risk, but he's not going to start lobotomising innocent kids just to break them from Tetch's control.

It had occurred to Deadman to invade the Mad Hatter's body, but having tried that with the Joker and experiencing a trauma nearly as bad as being shot off a trapeze, he's not so keen on possessing other Arkham inmates.

So he tries something a little different, and makes Candle-ends take a running dive at the Mad Hatter in his weird high chair, hopefully dislodging the criminal's hat at the same time.

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

Hatter's eyes widen, and he scurries out of his chair as quickly as possible. Granted, that isn't very, and it only serves to make Candle-ends tip the chair over.

Hatter falls the short to most but a bit longer for him distance to the ground, and his hat goes flying as he does.

His hat. Which allows him his control over the devices scattered around him. His victims don't return to their senses, but instead they just...glaze. They aren't free from control, they just don't have any orders right now.

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

Making his host smirk a little, he extracts himself, and then manifests in front of the Mad Hatter in his scarlet costume.

"You've not committed any crimes here yet, Tetch. And there are no outstanding warrants for you that I know of. I'm guessing you worked with the Suicide Squad or some other misfit group in the past few months."

He floats a few feets from the ground, and lowers his face to the diminuitive villain's. "My advice? Seek help like your friends Edward Nygma and Jonathan Crane have. But I'm going to keep your hat."

Deadman floats back into Candle-ends and makes his vessel pick up the green top hat.

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

No no no. He needs that hat. It's his favourite hat. It goes with everything and and and it oh it has the best things. He always feels most at peace wearing that hat. He can't stand not having it, he just can't.

"Wait!"

He scrambles in his coat and pulls out a small remote control, which he pulls out and points at Candle-Ends.

"Th-th-this button will make all the microchips self-destruct. It won't be a big explosion, but it will be enough to light the hats on fire. If you touch my hat, I'm going to light everybody else in this room on fire."

He's crying, though he doesn't really know it. All he knows is that he NEEDS his hat, and he'll do anything to get it.

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

"You aren't going to do that, Tetch." Well, this got a lot more complicated very quickly. It serves Deadman right for trying to reason with a lunatic. "Because if you do, I'll crush your hat in my hands."

Candle-Ends takes a step forward. "You can have the hat back, provided you allow me to remove whatever mind-control technology is plugged inside. And I promise I won't damage the felt material."

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

He doesn't trust this...whatever it is. He's torn. He wants to push the button, just to prove he can, he WILL, HE IS NOT TO BE LOOKED DOWN UPON AND TREATED AS A CHILD.

But he needs his hat. It's his favourite. He NEEDS it, or he's going to go back to Arkham where it's loud and crazy and terrifying and NO. The hat makes everything better.

He can recreate the device, of course. But that's just it. Some part of him in the back of his mind thinks that the device in his own hat is important somehow. As if he'd ever use his own technology on himself like that.

No. The hat is all that matters.

"F-fine. Just give me the hat back. Please."

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

In Candle-ends body, Deadman delicately removes the device from the hat and proceeds to crumple it in his hands. He then steps forward and hands the hat back to Tetch.

It's possible he's been using the wrong tactic with this madman, so he softens his voice, and bows his head as he passes the hat over. "I apologise for upsetting you. Your hat is safe, but now it's time to go. The tea party has finished."

[ten-of-six.livejournal.com]

He snatches the hat from the other's hands, and quickly thrusts it on his head. He waits for that euphoric feeling, the one that makes it all bearable. He waits. And he waits again.

It doesn't come. Something is WRONG with his hat.

"M-m-m-my hat! What did you do to it? You RUINED it!" He's practically foaming at the mouth, shaking and shivering. He's both terrified and furious and it isn't clear which is the stronger emotion right now.

Everything seems to be closing in on him. All the madness and the the horror reaching across everything, coming for him. He can fix this, a small voice in the back of his mind says. He has other hats. They'll keep it all away. They'll keep him happy. Not like this harlot of a hat, abandoning him just when he needed it most!

Candle-Ends is all but forgotten as Hatter's mind goes into panic. He has to escape run run run run run new hew that's all he needs. Another hat.

He looks a little like a frightened chipmunk as he surveys the room, and then breaks for the closest exit.

[deadazdillinger.livejournal.com]

Candle-ends shakes his head as Tetch bolts for the exit. There's no legal action to be taken against him, so he's got to concentrate on helping the civilians recover as the hypnosis wears off.

Deadman has a feeling that he and the Hatter may meet again, but he also prays that Tetch might actually get the help he direly needs.