Exchange

"You know, you filthy green servant."

Poison Ivy watched as Bane, with his gray eyes, looked down at the green vines tightly wrapped around him.

"This is all useless to me."

A grating voice came from the vines. A cold sweat trickled down Poison Ivy's temple. She raised her hands, and dozens, hundreds of roots and other plants grew from the ground, one by one reinforcing the already bound zombie Bane.

But this couldn't stop zombie Bane's movements.

The plants blackened and withered under the corruption of The Black, and then zombie Bane exerted a slight force...

Crack.

The giant monster slowly paced:

"Poison Ivy. Right? Can I call you Ivy? I heard that's what they call you."

Hiss!

A gunshot rang out.

Several shields made of wood rose from the ground around Ivy in mere seconds. The current fired by the Pulse Wave Gun only managed to pierce the first one before losing its power.

Plant Master Jason Wood lay beside them, barely brought within Poison Ivy's protective range. His eyes were tightly shut, like a real dead tree.

Poison Ivy and Killer Croc stood back-to-back, their eyes fixed on Deathshot, who stood beside zombie Bane.

His once somewhat handsome and dashing face was now completely replaced by rot and maggots.

Crossed fangs protruded from his jaw, strands of dark red rotten flesh hung from his lower jaw. Compared to these terrifying sights, his gray eyes were the only thing left on his face that could be seen.

Cheshire Cat still wore her mask at this point. Perhaps this was a sign that she still had a sliver of self-awareness, Poison Ivy wasn't sure. But such a faint self could not possibly shake The Black, so it was useless.

Sharp fangs grew unevenly, piercing her jaw and breaking through her swan-like fair neck, leaving a patch of black, bloody stain on her delicate collarbone.

The Ventriloquist had lost his glasses. He held a Thompson submachine gun, and the Batman doll he once cherished was discarded on the ground.

Insect limbs protruded from his mouth.

They were all infected by The Black, just like that guy named Bane. Poison Ivy had heard of him, the mastermind who released himself and his fellow inmates from Arkham Asylum, and now they had all become servants of The Black.

Without the protection of The Red and The Green, they were no match for the relatively powerful The Black in this area.

And then, finally... the one she least wanted to face:

Harley Quinn.

"No..."

Poison Ivy lowered her hands.

Harley Quinn's red and blue pigtails were now disheveled, black blood flowed from the corner of her mouth, stark against her chemically bleached skin.

And the dark green plant armor that Poison Ivy had meticulously woven for little Harley...

Had also been completely stained black.

"In the end... you still couldn't protect anyone, Ivy. But you still have a chance to make some amends."

She saw the monster with its disgusting muscles reach out to her: "We can make a deal."

"We only need you. The proxy of The Green. This woman and your companions are irrelevant. You call her Harley Quinn, right?"

"You care about her."

"And we just so happen not to need such an ordinary mortal."

Two voices spoke simultaneously from zombie Bane, the Two Hunters of The Black speaking together:

"Let's make a deal, one for many.

You know very well that neither the parasitic infection of The Black nor the immersion of The Green is an irreversible transformation. We only need you. This woman named Harley Quinn will open her eyes in a few hours and return home unharmed."

"And you, you need to come to our side... join The Black... Trust me, don't be afraid. The purification process is wonderful."

Killer Croc whispered to Poison Ivy, "Damn it, Ivy, you're not actually thinking of doing something stupid, are you?"

The green lizard lowered its head, opened its mouth, and searched its mind for something to persuade Ivy. Never before had he resented his poor eloquence so much.

He hadn't used his brain in so long that his mind went blank when he needed it, and he couldn't utter a single word.

So he finally grumbled, "You shouldn't join The Black, this isn't the right way."

After Killer Croc finished speaking, he wanted to break his own teeth.

Poison Ivy gave him a strained smile:

"I know what you want to say is, 'Even if I sacrifice myself, they won't let Harley go.'"

"Or you want to say: 'Death is the nature of The Black, how could they go against their own instincts?'"

"So you know all of that!"

Killer Croc nodded his head like a woodpecker: "Yes, that's exactly what I wanted to say!"

"If that's what you're worried about, then perhaps we can find another way to make a deal."

Zombie Bane pointed at Plant Master Jason Wood, who lay on the ground, completely defenseless.

"You don't want to be here, we understand. You don't understand The Black yet."

"Then how about someone else?"

"That guy lying on the ground, his name is Plant Master, right?"

"You've already betrayed him once before, so what's wrong with a second time?"

"How does that saying go? Either don't do it, or go all the way."

"You're already enemies anyway, aren't you? Trading the lives of enemies for the lives of your friends and companions is the best deal there is."

Even though Killer Croc didn't think he was particularly intelligent, he felt that the situation was dire.

Ivy looked as if she was about to be persuaded.

"Ivy, you absolutely must not..."

"I've decided."

Then Killer Croc heard Poison Ivy say, "This is the last resort."

"I'll trade myself for Harley."

Killer Croc felt like he was going crazy.

He understood, he understood what Poison Ivy was thinking. She couldn't give up Harley, nor could she bring herself to betray Plant Master, so that damned urge for self-sacrifice surged into her heart, making her throw herself into the jaws of the beast like a fool!

He opened his mouth, then felt his tongue tie itself in knots.

"Damn it,"

he said.

He saw Poison Ivy disperse the surrounding green plants, open her arms, and slowly walk away from him, towards The Black.

"Wait... wait!"

Killer Croc called out to Poison Ivy, his mind racing.

"There's still a chance! We still have one last chance! Batman! Ivy! Batman is on our side this time, he's not an enemy, he..."

Killer Croc was at a loss for words. He stammered for a long time, finally saying, "Batman can always solve everything—Batman always wins!"

Even though the zombie Bane couldn't make facial expressions due to the necrosis of his facial nerves, Killer Croc was still very sure that the other party was furious.

His grayish-white eyes flickered with malice.

"Huh? Is that your hope? Relying on others?"

"You've disappointed me so much."

"Even if Batman comes—what can he do? He's just a cowardly fugitive."

He said, "Batman can't change anything..."

But the next second, he was bitten on the back by a giant dragon's maw.

Batman!