The Toxin's effect (part49)
"Will you keep staring at me or finally tell me how to mix this toxin? I don't like to waste my time on any stupid hoax" Scarlet crossed her arms with a frown after she and Scarecrow entered a house far away from the city. She thought he'd show her his little skills and tricks, but instead, he just kept staring at her the whole time silently like a psychopath his new victim. He seemed clueless, maybe a little overwhelmed. He had no idea what to do now, but at the same time, he didn't want to seem idiotic so he just stared at her.
Scarecrow was thinking though, thinking of what to do with Scarlet. He knew her, she liked manipulating people and using them for her good. He knew Scarlet just wanted to learn how to mix a toxin to kill more and more people, she just wanted to exercise her power over something she couldn't control, yet. But teaching her without profiting from the situation? Nah, Scarecrow wouldn't be a fan of it. If he showed someone his tricks and secrets it would be someone he trusted a lot, someone with who he had a strong bond - but this wasn't Scarlet. He didn't trust her at all, the reason he wanted her to be with her now, he didn't know either. Maybe it was because his father never reached this goal to have her with him. His father never had the chance to touch her, to speak with her, to look at her; he never had the chance to experience Scarlet as a whole - but Scarecrow did. He had all this, he now could do whatever he wanted to do with her, but for that, he needed to have an idea at first.
"Alright," Scarlet chuckled, walking a few steps forward to Scarecrow and looking at him deep into his eyes "I know this may be something big for you since your father never had the chance to get me, you can't believe that I'm standing in front of you and that you have the chance to fulfill all your hidden plans if you approach it correctly. But you never thought this would become true, right? You thought it remained a dream"
"Your manipulation tricks ain't working on me, Scarlet," Scarecrow claimed "My father and I studied you and your behavior long enough to know you are just a dazzler. Your behavior is a pure show consisting of hiding all your fears and insecurities from all the people that might not treat you with respect"
"Oh really?" Scarlet chuckled amused "You seem to know me better than I do but don't all the fans know the celebrities better than themselves?" she started joking "But jokes aside, I bet you hide all your fears behind your little costume. You're not a strong fearful man, behind your mask you're a little boy that never got a voice and right now, you're trying to show the world that you've been underestimated by everyone"
"I could say the same to you. You're nothing but a broken girl. You've never got the love and attention from your mommy and daddy which kids need. You got only hate and indignity in your life, no one told you they were proud of you when you did a task, and no one has ever told you they loved you when you needed it most" Scarecrow looked Scarlet deep in the eyes - he knew he got her. The shining and joy in her eyes faded completely and her eyes darkened - everything that was connected with joy, happiness, and excitement just vanished.
"At least I don't need a mask to cover my insecurities and fears," Scarlet chuckled darkly "See, a mask just signals to other people that you are too scared to show all of us your face and personality. You're too scared that anybody would recognize you and report you to the police, your too scared of the incoming consequences you need to go through afterward"
"You may be right at some point," Scarecrow started walking around Scarlet "Not everybody loves this thrill like you. Some prefer to hide in the dark as I do," Scarecrow stopped right behind her, he now had an idea of how to make use of her "But you see, before I show my weapon's secrets, I would prefer making a pact between you and me. I don't trust people like you. People like you lie a lot, they prey on everyone they see as a victim, they're megalomaniacs who think they could reach any goal in the world to become the greatest showman. But as well, I know people like you are huge fans of pacts and contracts since these guarantee you the benefit from any situation"
"Wow, someone's playing the high-intelligent card," Scarlet chuckled amused "You're not wrong, I'm indeed a fan of pacts but you also need to consider that I do not agree with each of them. It depends on the people who offer me such pacts, whether I can trust them or whether they can guarantee their loyalty. You know, why should I agree on a pact when this certain fellow has none of it, you understand me?"
"Oh, but I know you will agree to my pact since you long for learning to mix my toxin and you have no other choice than working with me," Scarecrow hummed "Without me, you'll never find out the secret behind it"
"That may be true," Scarlet turned to him with a huge smile, their faces were close to each other and their eye contact was oddly intense "But don't you think I'm smart enough to simply steal your little ampoule and analyze the substances you put in there? I mean, I have enough contacts who could do that for me"
"Oh, I know you are," Scarecrow snickered "You are like a dog that never stops biting until it gets what it wants. You don't think about consequences or anything, you're too stubborn to accept a simple no"
"That's what pacts are there for," Scarlet murmured slightly sarcastically "Now tell me about yours. I'm all ears" She hoped for something easy to do to gain his trust, something like a robbery or a simple kill, nothing she needed to overthink things too much or where she needed to put too much effort into it.
"The easiest way to get what you want is proving to me your loyalty," Scarecrow chuckled amusedly when he saw her blank face, he knew this was a hard one for her since Scarlet was the one who let others prove their loyalty to her. She never needed to be loyal to anybody besides Jerome and eventually Theo Galavan - but even there she didn't need to make a single move since both of them came to her and wanted her.
"And how do you wanna make me do that? Want me to do some easy tasks for you to show I would be able to help you?" Scarlet frowned "You know this isn't a real task for me, eh? That would be like asking a police officer to catch a criminal, you know"
"I know," Scarecrow spoke in a nasal tone "That's why tasks and favors won't be enough for me," He walked over to a little table with many test tubes, a bunsen burner, and many chemicals in different colors. Most of them were in several yellow and green tones, some sheer liquids, and other tools that Scarlet had no clue how to name "Use your creativity, you always claim to be so clever, right?"
"Right," Scarlet mumbled, looking over his shoulder to see what liquids he used to mix new toxins "But you do know proving loyalty to another reveals your secret wish of a partnership with me. Why else would you wanna make such a deal with me, right? You indeed wanna reach that what your father could have never gotten - my nearness. And now since you're surprisingly astonished at me you can't finalize what your father's plan is with me," She chuckled "No, you want more. You don't just wanna know my biggest fears - you wanna know everything about me a-..."
"Wow," Scarecrow commented "It's fascinating how much you can interpret into a single claim," Though he knew what she said was true. He wanted to work with her, he wanted to make good use of her skills and tricks, he wanted to learn from her, he wanted to get to know her - but a personal ambition like this couldn't become true by just asking Scarlet friendly. She instead would make use of your vulnerability and play with your mind so that you'd become her stooge for life, and so he needed to trick her that she would just slide into it "Your fantasy is just amazing"
"Is it just fantasy?" Scarlet crossed her arms with a slight frown "I can see you're lying. Your pupils widen when you stare at me and I hear your breath becomes uneven when you speak - you're nervous, my friend, because you know I'm right"
"We have a deal now or not?" Scarecrow asked in a monotonous tone when he mixed the last substances to complete "Think wise, choose your answer wise. I won't offer you this a second time," He then filled the done liquid in some more ampoules and put them in his bags quickly before he turned back to Scarlet.
"Sure," Scarlet mumbled; she wasn't very amused about working for it but she was ambitious, and she knew she could make it "But you should prove loyalty, either. How can I trust someone when there's no guarantee he can keep his promise? I mean, you can just babble any hoax on me and use me for your good," She grinned darkly at him "You don't wanna make me mad, do you?"
"This energy we need when we attack people," Scarecrow claimed "Keep that energy for those moments, it'll be worth it," He chuckled bitterly "And now, we come to the next part of my plan"
"What next part?" Scarlet frowned before Scarecrow could say anything further. He had a plan? Was it his plan to find her? And all this was a part of his plan? This deal with her, and this second part of her plan? Did he plan to work with her and he was just messing with her head before?
"Do you think I make a deal with you without having a plan?" Scarecrow chuckled amused "I'm not like your so-called pals and jump straight into action on the fly, I'm smarter than them. Thanks to my father I've latched on to a lot of things by hearing whenever he was working"
"You're a little daddy's boy, huh" Scarlet laughed out loud "That's cute for such a supervillain like you. Didn't know people like me could have such a caring side" She then eyed Scarecrow with a grin "Now tell me, lil boy, what did your father teach you that you became such a super brain?"
"My father was a huge fan of planning and structuring," Scarecrow said "Whenever he planned to attack people he created a main plan and several band-aids in case one mistake would happen. He hated making mistakes after certain incidents and he wouldn't dare to let something like this happen again. You may know this little disaster, don't you?" He chuckled amused "I wanna be better than him, instead of leading from any made mistake I instantly plan well"
"Not bad for a newbie," Scarlet smirked "I'm sure we gonna have a lot of fun together, Mr. Scarecrow, so now tell me about your plan, I'm curious" She loved to see there was someone who agrees with her point of view, someone who understood her why having several band-aids were so important. It would
be a breeze with Scarecrow spreading this toxin throughout the whole city and watching people die of their fear. How amazing could that be? No hard work and getting the biggest profit!
"We pay Arkham Asylum a visit to test it, eh," Scarecrow placed his hand on her shoulder "We will surprise the lovely director and spray it right into his face to see how the oh-so-prudent man turns into a-..."
"I like your idea of a retaliation campaign," Scarlet admitted, "And how will you make sure to break in without someone catching us?" She frowned "The guards ain't that stupid any more than at the time I was there. It all changed, the personal, the boss, and regulations. It ain't the same old wreck as before"
"But every wreck has holes to sneak in, right?"
"I'm surprised," Scarlet claimed when Scarecrow and she walked through the halls of Arkham Asylum to arrive at the director's office at a fast pace "Arkham's got the same old spots to sneak in as in the past. I thought they finally fixed this problem"
"Some things never change," Scarecrow answered "Arkham is nothing but a place full of corrupt cops and holes to sneak in. Nothing's safe there, even the dumbest patients find a way to escape, but I'm sure you already know it from your own experience"
"Sure, as long as you can guarantee to escape the same way we got in. I don't wanna spend another time in this rat hole, even though I've had some interesting experiences in here," Scarlet muttered when she then discovered the director's office. She and probably Scarecrow too heard noises like panting, something's burning, and mumbling "Over there"
"You're now ready to see the toxin's ramifications on people, Scarlet?" Scarecrow tightened the grip on his scythe when they both walked straight to the office, he was excited for this moment "Are you ready to see the transformation of a human being into an anxious little deer that's running away from the wolfpack?"
"Hell, yes I am," Scarlet said excitingly. She was excited to see how these toxin works, at least Scarecrow could just have babbled some shit about it.
Now he could finally take revenge on the man who let people do all those cruel things to Scarecrow while he was in Arkham, the time before his advancement. Right now, his only target was revenge on the man who did all this to him. He should feel all the anxiety and sorrow he has felt during the time he was there. He should feel degraded, humiliated, and like a piece of shit that no one wanted. He should feel helpless, caught in jail or a labyrinth with no way out - and this is what his toxin was good for.
When they entered the office, they saw the director burning some papers in a bin, probably to hide something from the public. He seemed scared of something since he did it so hectically, he probably wanted to keep some bad secrets for his own. No one should probably know what a bad person he was.
"Covering your dirty footprints, Warden?" Scarecrow claimed when he started slowly walking towards the man while his scythe's blade scratched on the chattels. The man instantly turned around to him, frightened, he looked at Scarecrow as if he had seen a ghost. Who was that guy? How did he know him? What did he want from him? "It's too late, I'm afraid. Your dirty deeds have stained you."
"How'd you get in here?" Warden dared to ask with a slight stammer, then he looked at Scarlet "Scarlet Patel... How did you-..." He was shocked to see her, she was the Grin Reaper in person. Whenever she was around, people died, no matter whether it was with her hand or not.
"Come on," Scarecrow chuckled "You don't spend three years in this hellish place without picking up a thing or two. Right, Scarlet?" He didn't break eye contact at all with Warden when he rammed the scythe into the table plate. He wanted to see Warden's reaction - he was frightened, but at the same time he realized something. Three years in Arkham? A young boy? And this Scarecrow costume? There had to be a connection. This all sounded so familiar. Was it him? No, he was so anxious and so innocent. How could it be him?
"Indeed, pal," Scarlet chuckled amusedly when she stepped nearer, too "My time in Arkham was marvelous. You heard Gotham's newest gossip through the guards, for therapy, you've been walking through every hall so you know every path of the building to escape, and you've made some great acquaintances"
"Johnathan?" Warden dared to ask, he completely ignored what Scarlet said. He was more interested in the question: Was it him? All the hints might fit with him, the scarecrow, the three years...everything.
"That's right," Scarecrow answered, walking nearer to Warden "I'm not the same frightened boy you threw in a cell. No treatment, no therapy. Just some ice baths, and some sick electric shocks once in a while!"
"You know you could just leave. I wouldn't tell anyone," Warden stammered, his anxiety rising. He knew this day would be his last one to live. He saw this fire in Johnathan's eyes, he wanted him to feel the same things he has felt during the three tears, revenge was written on his so-called forehead.
"I don't wanna leave, Warden, and I'm sure Scarlet doesn't wanna leave either," But before Scarecrow could keep talking, Warden's phone was ringing, for Warden himself, it was just perfect since this would give him some extra minutes to live, depending on the call's importance - he thought wrong. When he wanted to answer the call, Scarecrow smashed his scythe against the phone, destroying it with all the power he had.
"Now, are you paying attention?!" Scarecrow yelped angrily when Waren flinched back not to get hurt. He was extremely scared of the old little Johnathan boy, he would have never thought this anxious boy would become so aggressive and have brutal thoughts. For Scarlet, it was pure entertainment. You should have seen Waren's face! It was full of angst, you could see he was secretly begging for someone to come and help him, and at the same time, he knew there was no way out.
"Yeah," Warden stammered, walking a few steps back to lean against a shelf, making intensive eye contact with Scarecrow. He was erratic, Warden thought, what did he do to himself that he became such an outrageous man? He wasn't himself anymore, the anger and madness were taking over. He became a monster, his inner monster broke out of jail of mind and now was messing with his head.
"I cured myself. You see, I feared the scarecrow," Scarecrow reached his arms out, and you could feel his grin under his mask "And now we are one"
"Johnathan, please. If you just-..."
"You're not listening to me, Warden!" Scarecrow yelled that Warden flinched in fear "Johnathan Crane is no more! Call me by my true name! The Scarecrow!" This was the moment when Warden was trying to grab a gun from his desk to shot at Scarecrow, but at the same Scarlet pointed her gun at Warden - she wanted to shoot, something in her signaled she had to protect Scarecrow for some odd reasons, did he mean something to her? In this short time? That would be a little too clique-like, wouldn't it? Or was she just too caught in the scene that she had the urge to shoot? Maybe.
Scarecrow though, was faster with spreading his toxin into Warden's face. Warden suddenly started to scream loud, the toxin had to do something with him immediately. Maybe it felt like burning when it touched the skin? Or was he just scared of the repercussions? Was he informed about this toxin? Did he know what it was capable of? Did he know the aftermath?
Warden started to sweat, but not just a little, he sweated like he's been having high fever or running a marathon. He became disquiet, his eyes first focused on Scarecrow, then hectically, almost full of panic his eyes motioned to Scarlet, then back at Scarecrow, then Scarlet. You could see in his eyes that something changed in him. But what? Was he hallucinating? Was he hearing voices? Seeing creatures? Was he seeing blurred? Or maybe all of it? His breathing became more uneven, his hands and knees were shaking in fear, he almost couldn't stand upright, he seemed to panic, the toxin did its work - and this was the moment where the strength in his legs gave in and he fell to the ground, groaning. He stared at a certain point in his room to focus, probably to tell reality from the toxin
"Did you know my father was a genius?" Scarecrow claimed "He wanted to end fear, for my sake, because he loved me. So tell me, what do you fear, Warden?" Scarecrow waited a while for Warden's answer, instead, he saw how he vainly tried to fight against the toxin "Something from your childhood, maybe?" Scarecrow laughed maniacally.
For Scarlet, it was glorious to watch. Scarecrow was right: he indeed turned into an anxious little deer that was trying to run away from a wolfpack. This oh-so-fearful man turned into a scallywag, a sissy, a little worm you can't work with. This toxin was marvelous, it was better than every shotgun, every knife and rope, better than every weapon that could kill a human being. The excitement and adrenaline rush she felt pumping through her veins was much bigger than every other time she planned on killing someone. She was sweating with trembling hands, and seeing this process made her nervous even - but in a good way. Her heart was beating faster, breathing became heavier, but at the same time, the feeling of lust was rising. She was surprised about herself that such a toxin could satisfy her needs so quickly and intensively, no other weapon has achieved that, yet.
"Face your fears," Scarecrow said when Warden screamed louder and louder, trying to crawl back away from the fear he saw from the toxin "Face your fears and defeat them" This was the moment when Warden grabbed the pistol he used to use to kill Scarecrow and shot around - he probably shot his biggest fear, he was trying to do it to defeat it, to become fearless, to become stronger than ever! According to his huge amount of shots though, he seemed to miss his target several times, so that's why he stood then up and ran out to the halls - still shooting.
"Did I overpromise?" Scarecrow chuckled amused. He saw the fascination in Scarlet's eyes, he saw the need in her eyes to know how to mix this toxin. She wanted to use it for her plans, she saw this as a new opportunity to become the Queen of Gotham again - but of course, Scarecrow wouldn't make it so easy for her to gain her goal. He at least needed to profit from that, too.
"Not at all," Scarlet smirked as she looked at him "This toxin is the key to revolution. Gotham's gonna fear us most and the GCPD won't have a chance to detain us" She already made plans on how and where to use this toxin. She already made plans for who should become her next victim. She was obsessed with this toxin. It fascinated her so much, she wanted to see more of it, maybe she even could get some ideas on how to enhance the toxin. The victim should get the feeling of being caught in a world with their biggest fears and there's no way out, they should become more aggressive, they should hallucinate more, and there should be a long torturing way until they die. Amazing that idea, isn't it?
"I like your optimism in 'us'," Scarecrow walked closer to her "But sometimes people shouldn't be too optimistic about things. Mostly they don't work afterward"
"The more effort you put into something, the better," Scarlet said "So with precontriving certain things with the toxin. You then have a certain agenda and structure which makes it easier for you to reach popularity"
"That's what you're doing with me, right?" Scarecrow chuckled amused "That's why you pointed your gun at Warden when he tried to shoot me. You wanna impress me to reach your goal of learning how to mix this toxin," Scarlet remain quiet about this - he was right. This was exactly what she was doing, she couldn't deny it nor sugarcoat it "Keep going"
