Ivy's City

Tim looked out in the moonlit night at what was left of Gotham City. Only a few days since the attack, and half of the skyscrapers were already covered with vines. The streets were overgrown with grass and weeds, and trees were beginning to sprout up all over the place. The occasional scream would still be heard every now and then, as the monstrous tree-like creatures found another survivor and carried him off somewhere.

From where he was perched on top of the remains of the Gotham Police Department building, he had a fairly good view of the carnage. Not as as good as if he and Barbara were still in the her hideout in the Gotham Clock Tower, but still decent.

For the past day or so Tim and his girlfriend had been hiding in a secret control room inside the Gotham Police Department building, built specifically for Oracle by her father, Commissioner Gordon. As he viewed the state of the city, Tim had couldn't believe it had only been a little over a day since things had gone to hell.

Batman had taken the Joker to Arkham Asylum after another capture, but it had been a trap by the mad Clown of Crime. He had staged an uprising as soon as he was through the gates, and the inmates had taken over. Apparently, the Joker had discovered one of the doctors there had modified Bane's Venom into an even more potent toxin, Titan. The Joker had planned on claiming it for himself to create and army of crazed super soldiers to conquer the city with. That's not what had happened, however.

In a way, it was ironic. The riot that Joker had staged to procure Titan had enabled one of the escaped prisoners to harvest it herself. Poison Ivy had acquired Titan, and used it to become more powerful than anyone had ever seen.

Tim wasn't worried as Barbara had initially been explaining this to him, he had full faith that Batman would thwart any attempt to wrest control of the dangerous substance, but that's when Oracle really broke down into tears. She insisted that Poison Ivy had seduced Batman, and that he had become one of her witless pawns.

Tim hadn't fully believed her, though he never would have said so out loud. He had wanted to rush to Arkham himself, if Batman was in trouble, he needed all the help he could get. Barbara had insisted they needed to warn her father, Commissioner Gordon, and the rest of the police. She had been in near hysterics, so Tim had agreed, hoping it would help calm her down.

Thankfully, a special elevator had been installed in the clock tower that Barbara could take down that would place the wheelchair she was in directly into a vehicle on street level, so they wasted no time in getting to the main building of the GCPD.

Robin had radioed ahead, and Commissioner Gordon was waiting for them at the entrance when they arrived, a concerned look on his face. As soon as Barbara wheeled herself out of the car, he rushed up to her.

"Dear God, Barbara, what the hell happened over there?" Gordon demanded, walking behind her wheelchair to help steer her inside. "One minute Batman is trying to find a cure for this Titan bullshit, the next thing I know all of Arkham Island is one big fuckin' greenhouse!"

Before Barbara could answer him, the ground shook as the sound of a cataclysmic explosion reverberated through the air. The thunderous sound barely had time to fade before screams and lesser rumbles began to fill the air.

"What now?" Gordon muttered through his clenched teeth as they ran inside. Gordon pushed Barbara's wheelchair. "I suppose it's as good a time to show you, we built a hidden room in here specifically for you," he said, talking to Barbara. "Hopefully it's up to your standards, but I felt it was time you had a place to work from her as well."

Before Barbara could even ask how he knew of her secret identity as Oracle, he rushed them back to a newly built room, hidden away and fortified behind secret doors. It had been built especially for his daughter, an almost identical war room to her location in the clock tower, complete with wall-to-wall monitors, a state-of-the-art computer where she could access security cameras and even take remote control of some of the departments more experimental and high tech weaponry, and it was even supplied with plenty of rations in case it had to be used as a safe room.

Barbara immediately turned the consoles on and hacked into police drones throughout the city, their video feeds coming on along the wall the monitors. As the images began appearing, they could only gasp at the horror they were seeing. Vines had begun to sprout from the ground, climbing up buildings and swinging at anyone within striking distance. Barbara gasped as she saw a large concentration of vines climb up her clock tower, until the tall structure was completely covered with them. In an instant, the vines twisted around and squeezed the sturdy building, and with booming crash, tore her secret home down to the ground. It only took a few minutes, and Tim couldn't help but realize that she hadn't insisted on seeing her father, she would have been crushed by the murderous plants.

Gordon had no time to ruminate on the fate his daughter had escaped, however, as the building shook from an explosive crash as screams came from the entrance and alarms started blaring.

Gordon pulled out his handgun and started for the door. "Stay here," he commanded Oracle and Robin. "It's safer and you can be my eyes and ears to what's going on."

Gordon didn't give them any time to argue as the large metal door, disguised as a wall on the other side, opened and he stepped through.

"Wait!" Barbara called out, overwhelmed at everything that was happening. She wheeled to the door, grabbing her father by the hand. "I don't...how did you know?" Was all she could bring herself to ask in the moment. Screams and gunshots rang out from the rooms beyond, and taking one last look at his daughter before turning away, he gave his Gordon smiled lovingly.

"You're my daughter, Barbara," he said softly, pushing some buttons on the side of the door. "I always knew." And in an instant, the door slid back in place, and her father was gone.

Oracle stared at the cold metal barrier only for an instant, then quickly went back to the computer screens, sniffing back a tear. She quickly changed the views of the monitors from the chaos going on in the city to the chaos happening inside the police department. Like in the city, vines and plants had started to grown inside the building, with large pods that would shoot spores at anyone in their near vicinity.

Oracle quickly set up the security cameras on her feed, and she and Robin both watched as the Gotham City police tried to put up a fight. But like weeds in a garden, the plants and growth seem to regrow and spread faster than it could be fought back.

Soon, they could only observe as Gordon and a few other survivors fought their way into heavy weaponry, donning flame throwers to hold back the growth overtaking them.

For a moment, it seemed they had the upper hand, as the vines quickly withdrew from the burning flames, and the pods succumbed to a fiery destruction. Barbara sighed with relief as her father and the rest began to make their way back to them, but then, emerging from one of holes in the ground left by a vine, a tall, tree-like creature emerged.

It was humanoid in shape, a trunk that split off into two legs, two arms, and a bulbous mass on top resembling a head, but its skin seemed to be of bark, with branches forming into leaves growing sporadically from its back and arms. Standing at around 7 feet, it moved quickly despite its size.

It grabbed one policeman before they could even fire at it, using him as a human club to swing at another. Tossing aside the limp body it had used as a weapon, it took a giant step onto another officer, and inside their sound proof sanctuary, Tim could only imagine the sound of the man's bones crunching. After that, it was only Gordon left. He tried to shoot it with his flamethrower, but he was in its large, branchy grasp before he could do any damage.

Oracle screamed in fear, and started towards the door, intent on trying to save her father, but Robin held her back. He knew they if they left now, they were sitting ducks, and were as good as dead themselves. He tried to get her to turn the monitors off, or at least avert her eyes, but she watched in anguish as the monster grabbed Gordon in both arms, and ripped him in two.

Oracle let out a scream of pain that would have been heard in miles, if not for their surroundings, and Robin could only hold her in her grief and sobs, frightened at the speed at which the city's police force had been summarily wiped out.

They simply sat there in each other's arms for hours in grief-stricken silence. Neither had the words for what had happened. Tim was the first to speak, it was morning, and dawn would be breaking in the outside world.

"We need to contact the Justice League," he said somberly. "They'll know how to defeat Ivy, and they can find Batman and free him from Ivy's influence."

"I tried," Barbara said weakly. "After I contacted you, I tried sending out a message to the Hall of Justice. It didn't go through, Batman changed the encryption code." Her voice was almost monotone and broken. She didn't move from Tim's arms.

Tim's mind raced, trying to think of how to get help. He had never imagined a world where he wouldn't have Batman to help support him. "Well, we won't need to message them," he reasoned out loud. "The city is being overgrown by killer plants, that alone is bound to catch their attention." He nodded his head, reassuring himself. "Yeah, they'll come."

"Batman had sent a message prior to changing the code," Barbara chimed in her monotone voice. " It looked like he was at the Batcave after leaving Arkham. He stated that he would handle Ivy, he didn't need their help. No one is coming, Tim."

"Then maybe he really is duping Ivy!" Tim insisted, a thought occurring to him. "I can sneak to the Batcave, maybe he's still there!" He stood up, checking the monitors to see if the coast was clear outside. "You wait here, I'll make sure it's safe. If he's there, I can make sure he's not under Ivy's control. If he's not there, at least I can bring back some more equipment." With a plan in mind, he was beginning to feel more optimistic. "Once he's back with us, we can figure everything out and we can fix things."

"You can't bring him back!" Barbara screamed, startling Tim. "If he's there, the only way to save him is to fucking kill him," she said more calmly as she pulled herself up into her chair again. She looked around the desk frantically, smiling when she finally found a small USB device. "But if you plug this into the Batcomputer, I can link up to it and change the code back and send a message the Hall of Justice." She was becoming more excited herself, typing furiously at the keyboard. "Then they can come and burn that green bitch and all her precious plants into the Goddam ground."

Tim took the USB without a word before opening the door and silently moving outside. He couldn't believe that Oracle had suggested killing Batman, but knew she was still dealing with her grief. As he moved to the rooftop, he thought about what he would do if Batman was there and under Ivy's control. As he walked out into the cold dawn, the sun covered by the smoke of burning rubble everywhere, he hoped all he had to do was plug the USB in, and the Justice League would take care of everything else.

Making sure the coast was clear, Robin crept out into the ravaged building, making his way to the roof. His eyes scanned the skyline as the sun rose above the horizon, and saw what Ivy had accomplished in only a few short hours. He looked out over at the rubble that used to be the Gotham Clock Tower, and thought of how Barbara was handling everything.

"OK," Barbara's voice cackled into the small earpieces in Tim's ear. "Wayne Manor is at the outskirts of the city. I doubt Ivy's influence could have reached it yet, even with her enhanced powers, so just stay hidden as you move through the city and we should be fine."

"That's assuming she isn't there already," Robin responded. "But it's still the best shot we've got." He began jumping across the rooftops, as silently and inconspicuously as he could. As he was jumping between a warehouse and The Iceberg Lounge, a scream in the alley between the buildings below caught his attention. Creeping to the edge of the roof, Tim looked down to see The Penguin run out of a side door of his club, along with several of his goons. They didn't get far, however, as several vines shot out from after the door, grabbing several of Penguin's men and dragging them back inside. One would have grabbed Cobblepot as well, but he turned around and aimed his umbrella at the incoming vine. As it grew close, flames burst from the tip of the umbrella, holding the vine at bay.

Then with a crash, another large tree monster appeared, bursting through the doorway, creating an even larger hole through the wall as it burst through. Penguin's flames held it at bay at first, but when it noticed its bark was too thick for the flames to catch on, it grew braver and walked closer.

Tim froze, unsure of what to do. All of his instincts and training told him to save Cobblepot, villain though he was. But despite his brain yelling at him to do something, Tim didn't move. Fear held him fast, fear of this new threat, fear of not having Batman to back him up if things got bad, so instead of swooping down to save the day, he stayed out of sight and called Oracle.

"Barbara, there's another tree monster," he said quickly, putting his fingers to his ear to turn on the earpiece. "It's attacking the Penguin, how quickly can you get a drone here to help?" Tim lowered his voice as a scream below rang out. "We don't have a lot of time!" Tim emphasized.

"Are you ok? Did it find you?" Barbara's voice replied, sounding surprising unworried and calm. Robin waited a moment, thinking she would ask about his location, but after a short silence simply answered.

"N-no, I'm fine, but- " The brick foundation of the building where Robin was hiding shook as a loud thud echoed up from above, as Penguin's screams were cut short suddenly. Robin peeked over the edge of the ledge to see the tree creature walking away, dragging a limp Cobblepot in its hand, leaving a long streak of red behind it. Robin could only stare as the creature walked away, ashamed of his own impotence to help.

"Then what's the problem?" Barbara's voice cackled through, tearing Tina away form his train of thought.

"I...we...could have saved him," Robin said softly. He stood up and slowly began moving across the rooftops again. "We're supposed to be heroes, aren't we?" he asked softly, almost to himself.

"There was no point in saving Penguin," came Oracles curt reply. "All that matters is that you get me connected to the Batcomputer so we can contact the Justice League! What good would saving Oswald Cobblepot do if it meant you'd get captured or killed?"

Although Tim couldn't argue with that, he couldn't help but worry that Barbara's tone conveyed more annoyance than any actual worry for his well being. He said nothing, however, as the thought of Superman and the rest of the league swooping in to save the day gave him no small amount of comfort.

As Tim moved past the skyscrapers, warehouses, and factories, Ivy's influence seemed to grow less prevalent. It was clear her focus seemed to be in the center of the city. The green overgrowth and large, dangerous pods became almost nonexistent, as Tim neared the secret entrance to the Batcave under Wayne Manor, he almost felt comfortable and out of harm's way.

As he looked back to take one final look at the city behind him, however, he saw the green plants slowly overtaking the tall steel structures, and knew he had no time to waste.

Cautiously making his way onto the secret path, he came to the large waterfall that hid the entrance to the Batcave, and taking one last look around to make sure he saw nothing suspicious, made his way inside.

As Tim made his way further in the darkness, he cursed that his simple mask across his eyes didn't include night vision like Batman's, he didn't even think to bring a flashlight with him. Thankfully, he had been in the Batcave enough times to walk around blindfolded, and he was going slowly enough to keep his ears open for any unfamiliar noises.

The ground underneath him felt like the usual stone and dirt earth, so as the fading light at the entrance of the cave faded behind him, he gradually picked up his pace. His footsteps echoed in the cavernous expanse as he delved into the main chamber, the only sound he heard was the rustling of bats along the walls.

Nearing where the large, wall-sized computer, he stretched his arms out and sighed with relief as he felt the cold steel and metal surface. Moving his fingers gently along the surface, he pushed the buttons that brought the screen to life. With a whirl the large screen displayed the login info, and with light from screen he plugged the USB into the slot.

"Barbara, its in," Robin said, "The coast is clear." She didn't respond, but in a moment he saw typing appear on the screen as she remotely hacked into the computer. Within a few minutes she had cracked the code, and as images and options popped up on the screen, faster than Tim could comprehend what was being done.

"Barbara, Bruce shut off all the power last time he was here, turn the lights back on, I can try to find some working equipment."

From his ear came an exasperated sigh. "Fine, but make sure Wayne Manor doesn't light up, we can't alert Ivy to where we are. Even when I get the message out, it'll take awhile for the league to get here."

As she was talking, images and computer code flashed across the screen, but then, lights along the came on, illuminating the entirety of the cave. As they did, Robin's heart dropped.

Instead of the usual damp, stone walls, Robin saw nothing but vines and foliage, plants crawling up from the ground almost to top of the cave. The rustling he had mistaken for bats nothing but the sound of leaves rubbing up against each other. As his eyes scanned the room, he saw a shocking sight.

Slightly further up from where he was, near the entrance that led to Wayne Manor, he saw Nightwing, Dick Grayson. He was in a standing position, held several feet above ground lever and against the wall. It looked as if the plants had grown over him, holding him tight against the cave wall. Shocked at the sight, Tim walked closer and saw to his horror several things. First, Nightwing was completely nude save for the simple black mask across his face, and his a large flower that covered his apparently erect penis, its long petals wrapped around the shaft, creating the appearance of when a hummingbird sticks its long beak deep inside a flower for the nectar.

Secondly, as he grew nearer, Tim saw that more than just growing around Nightwing, the plants had in parts grown through him. Vines grew around and through his appendages, as if he was being incorporated into the plants themselves rather than just being held in place by them.

The final realization was that he was still very much alive. The flower at his groin throbbed at regular intervals, and seemed to act as a sort of suction cup, sucking at his cock and drawing out and drinking his semen. At every pulse Nightwing would twitch and a dreamy smile would pass across his lips.

"Dear god," Robin said aloud. "Barbara, we were wrong, Ivy's been here, and we have a huge problem," he said, panic starting to creep into his voice and heart.

"Goddammit, I knew this felt too easy!" Came the short reply through his ear. "I can see him on the one camera not covered by a vine. Kill him and get out of there." Barbara's voice was cold and matter-of-fact, and it took a moment for Tim to even process what she had just said.