-22 Universe IF Line: Crazy and Undead (Joker’s Perspective) (Ch 22)

“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is a rebellion.”
——Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus
————
Gotham, Arkham Asylum.
The clown’s hands were firmly fixed to his body by a corset, and his whole body was fixed to the seat by chains. The light shone on his dark green curly hair, and from his brow down, it was all shadows.
The door opened and closed, and footsteps were heard.
There was only one person who dared to be in the same room with the famous criminal emperor.
…
Then he slowly smiled:
“Good day, Bat.” Looking up at Batman, the Joker saw his old enemy reflected in his irises. He whistled, his smile widened, and he said, “…Long time no see, Bat.”
“What is it?” Batman showed no expression.
“Do I have to have something to see you?” Normally, the clown would be happy to go around in circles and talk about business… or even nothing but nonsense, but today, the matter itself is more interesting:
“Well… haven’t you noticed? About this world… oh, I don’t mean that there is another person in the game between us. To be honest, although I don’t want to admit it, I have gotten used to the fact that you are my most philandering lover… Sorry, let’s get back to the topic.”
The clown’s voice gradually became quieter, and then he spoke slowly, his voice was soft and gentle, with some pity and regret:
“I have lost everything, I myself no longer exist, and not long ago I was the favorite of the gods.”
“They tested me and gave me Pandora. She has countless treasures, but also more dangers.”
“They forced me to kiss her enviable lips, then pulled me away – and threw me into the abyss.”
(Goethe’s “Marienbad Elegy”)
…
The Joker is using metaphors, and he’s good at using them.
Pandora refers to Batman, and the gods refer to fate. Compared with Marion Bader’s tragedy, the whole plot is more like a summary of his own experience.
Batman looked at the clock in the room, “Eleven eleven. If you just want to tell a story, I don’t mind paying a million for medical treatment in the ICU.”
“Oh, you still have no sense of humor… So in the final analysis, it’s just a dream, a time travel, or maybe a crack in space, a possible future? I can’t tell… Anyway, I know the future.” The Joker leaned forward, his acid green eyes locked on the goggles – the lenses seemed unable to block his vision, and he looked into Batman’s eyes.
“The future is bad,” he said softly.
…
What kind of future would be bad for the Joker?
It is definitely not a future where the Joker and Batman are entangled, but a future where one of them wins… But maybe it’s not bad for him, it only proves that there is a winner in the debate between the two.
The Joker said, “I saw you kill me and then turn into a monster.”
He said: “A disgusting monster that bears both of our names, but is as disgusting as a maggot.”
Batman didn’t say whether he believed it or not, he was like a solid wall, cold and silent.
“You are Angerboda, the mother of monsters, and I am Loki, the god of lies… Then, in front of everyone, you gave birth to a monster that could destroy the world.”
The green eyes were fixed on Batman’s forehead, as if that was the uterus, and the monster would be born from Zeus’s hard skull like Athena.
Batman looked at the Joker, and seemed to read something from his unusual expression: “Go on.”
The clown licked his teeth and lips, his scarlet tongue looming like a snake’s tongue: “It seems you believe me.” He lowered his head and gestured to the corset tied in front of his chest: “Untie it… I can’t run away.”
…
“The child you gave birth to is not Fenrir, who devoured Odin, not Jörmungandr, who orbits the world, not Hela, who leads the army of the dead… The child you gave birth to is the father of Zeus – Kronos, who controls time.”
“This Kronos who was born in your brain has been looking for his father on the timeline…that is, my existence. He is trying to prove! He is his mother!” The clown seemed to be telling something extremely absurd, and he couldn’t even help laughing.
Full of disdain, arrogance and deep contempt.
“He’s chasing me! I’ve seen his silhouette countless times… but I’m always one step ahead of him! Haha! He’ll never be able to prove that he’s his own mother!”
The clown’s laughter gradually became somewhat hollow and pathetic: “…He can never become his mother, but as long as we cling to him, he will always be born.”
“We have to think of a way.” He said, “Let me wear a condom, or you take a few pills… or get a vasectomy, ah…” The clown became a little fragile again, with pale skin, like a plaster statue that would fall into powder if touched:
“That won’t work… As long as we love each other, he will be born.”
He looked at Batman with a sad expression: “What can I use to keep you? I give you the thin streets, the desperate sunset, the moon in the wilderness, I give you the sadness of a person looking at the lonely moon for a long time… Dear, what can I use to keep you?”
…
A madman, an illogical, ambiguous madman, these specious words were just another third-rate story he made up when he was bored.
As of now, it’s just a grandiose theatrical performance.
If it were someone else, they would probably think so.
…
Batman looked at him and said in a hoarse voice: “I saw him too.”
The green eyes suddenly glowed with an incomparable light, and the hidden sadness and anger disappeared without a trace. The Joker became interested: “Oh, I know, I understand, because – I am Batman.”
Just like asking where the Joker is, there’s no point in asking Batman why he knows certain information.
They don’t care about this.
“The Barking Maggot… You still remember his name, right?”
The newly-made nickname expresses the Joker’s personal feelings towards him. He said enthusiastically: “This is a common enemy… We have to cooperate, Batman. You know, I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time. Maybe we will really have a child, but to be honest, we have to prepare milk powder, a crib and a small quilt for him.”
“…God knows how much I looked forward to the fruit of our love, but that disgusting thing took up this wonderful idea.”
“Let’s deal with him, let’s kill him…” The Joker seemed sincere, yet extremely hypocritical: “Let’s work together and save the world?”

Người mua: Thần Vô Nguyệt, 27/03/2025 18:11