The Mad Harley Quinn: First Meeting

When Link woke again, he found himself lying on the hard bed in solitary confinement.

His whole body ached. Even his bones felt numb from the electric baton.

But he had no time to dwell on it.

He closed his eyes and carefully felt for changes in his body.

His mind was no longer a chaotic mess on the verge of bursting. The mad thoughts and jumbled knowledge that had flooded in seemed to have found a strange balance, settling into an instinct he could call upon.

This was his S-rank reward: [Chaos Force].

A power that acted on the mind and on probability.

It could not be seen or touched, yet it was everywhere.

Link almost felt as though he could "see" the emotions flowing around him.

The irritation left behind by patrolling guards, the fear in the dreams of the inmate next door, even the faint hunger of cockroaches foraging in cracks in the wall... The whole world looked more alive to him than ever before.

Like a surfer, he could ride those waves of emotion. He could even reach out and gently change their course.

He could, for instance, make someone on the verge of exploding with rage suddenly find the whole thing pointless.

The corners of Link's mouth lifted before he could stop them.

What an... incomparable gift.

After two days in solitary, the guards finally let him out and dumped him in the common yard like trash.

The afternoon sunlight held no warmth as it fell across faces numb or crazed.

Link found an inconspicuous corner and stood against the wall. Like a ghost, he watched this little world of crime while searching for a suitable test subject.

It did not take long.

Two burly inmates began shoving each other over half a moldy cigarette. Their curses grew louder, and they looked ready to start swinging.

The other inmates immediately crowded around, howling with excitement at the prospect of a free, bloody show.

Link fixed his gaze on the more hotheaded of the two, a bald man.

To Link's senses, the bald man's emotions were a burning fire, full of violence and aggression.

Link focused, trying to "touch" that fire with his mind.

He did not try to put it out. Instead, he flicked a trace of confusion into it, as lightly as dropping a pebble into a lake.

"Why do you want to hit me?"

"No, why does he want to hit me?"

"Why am I here?"

"Who am I?"

The bald brute's raised fist froze in midair.

The anger drained from his face, replaced by utter bewilderment.

He looked at his fist, then at the man in front of him, then at the jeering crowd. His eyes held the wonder of someone seeing the world for the first time.

"Fuck it. What's the point?"

The bald man muttered under his breath, lowered his fist, and walked away, leaving his opponent just as baffled and the spectators disappointed.

A fight on the brink of breaking out had simply vanished.

The other inmates had no idea what had happened. Only an inconspicuous older inmate in one corner gave Link a thoughtful glance before lowering his head again, as if he had seen nothing.

Link leaned against the wall, his expression unchanged, though excitement surged through him.

It worked!

The feeling was incredible.

Without lifting a finger, he had played with another man's emotions.

And this was only the beginning. If he grew stronger, he might make an entire charging army lay down its weapons and ponder the meaning of life.

With this power, his chances of escaping had risen by at least fifty percent!

But it was not enough.

He still needed a key: a guide who knew Arkham from the inside and could help him establish himself in Gotham after the escape.

He began searching the crowd.

Scarecrow? No. He was a gloomy scholar, good for nothing but spreading fear.

Riddler? Even worse. That narcissist would only hold him back.

Link's gaze passed over one twisted face after another until a commotion at the far end of the yard caught his attention.

Several heavyset female inmates had surrounded a slender blonde woman.

Her golden hair was tied in two little pigtails. She wore an ill-fitting patient's uniform, and the clown makeup on her face was smeared.

She clutched a battered Joker doll, watching the women around her with the wary glare of a cat guarding its food.

"Harley Quinn, hand over that piece of junk. We could use a toilet brush," the fat woman leading them said with a nasty grin.

"No! Puddin' gave it to me! Get away from me, you fat pigs!"

Harley Quinn shrieked, her voice edged with hysteria.

"Still got a mouth on you!"

Enraged, the fat woman grabbed Harley by the hair and slammed her to the ground. The other women swarmed in, punching and kicking her.

Harley fought back like a true madwoman, biting and scratching, but they soon pinned her down.

They snatched the Joker doll and tossed it from one woman to another, laughing as they did.

Harley lay on the ground, watching them play with her "treasure." The fire in her eyes slowly died, leaving only a deathly, hopeless stillness.

She stopped struggling and lay there, dazed, like a puppet whose soul had been pulled out.

Link watched in silence.

Harley Quinn.

The infamous Harley Quinn.

She had once been one of Gotham's finest criminal psychologists. Then that bastard Joker had twisted her mind and turned her into his most loyal—and most pitiful—follower.

There was no pity in Link's eyes, only an almost cold appraisal.

Right now, she certainly looked pitiful.

But Link saw something deeper.

She knew every corner of Arkham and the weaknesses of every dangerous criminal inside it.

She had elite gymnastic skills and a brilliant mind.

Most importantly, she knew Gotham's underworld inside out.

She was not a princess in need of rescue. She was a razor-sharp Swiss Army knife Joker had thrown away.

And now that knife lay right in front of him.

A plan so bold it bordered on madness quickly took shape in Link's mind.

One person could escape. So could two.

Why not take this "knife" with him and make her his weapon?

Link's gaze cut through the noisy crowd and settled on the figure lying on the ground. His eyes gleamed like a hunter's at the sight of perfect prey.

It's settled, then.

I'm taking her with me!