Terror of the Batman - a fan script

[Paul (ral)]

Great!

[Gotham Knight]

DUDE. Where have you been!!!?

[zDBZ]

Busy 

[zDBZ]

An update long in coming: the artist I had originally partnered with started posting pages for this story on BOF. I haven't asked him about posting it here, but if I get the OK, I'll stop posting script elements and start posting his pages. For now, here's the next bit:

INT. ARKHAM ASYLUM LOBBY – LATER THAT DAY

(The lobby is the only part of Arkham that seems human. It is clean, white, and neat. BRUCE WAYNE sits impatiently, eyeing a stack of old magazines as if unsure how to begin the cliché of reading them. He is spared the effort when a NURSE steps over to him.)

NURSE
Dr. Crane will see you now.

(BRUCE is led down the halls to the door to CRANE's office. It is open. There sits DR. CRANE, with the same dead eyes and same rat hair. BRUCE is frozen; that is his DR. CRANE!)

CRANE
Well, well, well. Bruce Wayne. The prodigal son returns. Come in, boy, come in. I don't have much time to spare.

(BRUCE is still frozen. The NURSE gives him a slight nudge, and he finally makes his way into the room, sitting down across from CRANE, who wears his curious, joyless smile.)

CRANE
It's been almost thirteen years, hasn't it? I lost track of you after you left the country. I've been quite disappointed in you, I must say. A dreary blue blood sitting in on boardroom meetings and throwing money towards charitable causes and inspiring politicians? You had such a talent for the power of fear. And such anger at something. I was so sure you'd find a role to play to make use of your...unique talents.

(BRUCE shifts uncomfortably; what is his old teacher getting at? And besides...)

BRUCE
I thought you were dead.



CRANE
But still so direct. The reports were greatly exaggerated, as it goes. Here I sit, a new addition to the Arkham family, studying the fears of the criminally insane.

BRUCE
Right. But you agreed to see me.

CRANE
I always have time for patients and old students, especially those with such morbid and fascinating pasts as yours. What can the good doctor do for you?

(BRUCE is frozen again; CRANE is alive?)

BRUCE
Nightmares. I've had nightmares.

CRANE
A rather dull ailment, but interesting if they're from your mind. Are they anything like the ones you used to have in your college days? I've quite a memory, you know. Falling pearls, spilt popcorn, horrid cries and a sinister saying – and what else? Some sort of monster. A bat, perchance?

(BRUCE freezes yet again. What did he mean by that?)

(A welcome interruption comes in the form of a phone call. CRANE answers, listens for a moment, then hangs up and rises.)

CRANE
Sit tight, dear Bruce. I shan't be long.

(EXIT CRANE)

(BRUCE allows himself a heavy sigh of relief before springing out of the chair and darting behind CRANE's desk. He pulls open the first drawer he can get his hands on and starts thumbing through the files when he realizes that he is standing on something other than floor. He looks down; at the feet of CRANE's chair is a pile of straw. He almost bends down to look at it when he spies a picture on CRANE's desk. It is of CRANE, from younger days. There are no glasses and his hair is not so slick, but the eyes are as dead as those that BRUCE just looked into. This is the CRANE that was the teacher of a young BRUCE...)

INT. A COLLEGE CLASSROOM – BRUCE'S MIND, B&W

(An adolescent BRUCE WAYNE sits in the front row of a large campus classroom. While the students around him seem bored, he is like a laser beam – intensely focused, eyes blazing with both some private demon and the thirst for the knowledge that will banish that demon. Conducting the class is DR. CRANE, a white lab coat over his tweed suit. He is the only soul besides BRUCE with any life to him as he pours his whole heart into his lecture. We get tight close ups on some of the things he has written on the chalkboard: "TERROR," "PSYCHOLOGICAL FRAILTY," "POWER OF FEAR.")

INT. COLLEGE HALLWAYS – BRUCE'S MIND, B&W

(BRUCE is walking down the halls. While everyone around him has a friend or a girlfriend or a companion of some sort, he is alone, draped all in black. He stops at a door marked "DR. JONATHAN CRANE." A poster has been tacked on. Again, we see close-ups of certain words: "FEAR EXPERIMENT," "VOLUNTEERS NEEDED.")

INT. A SMALL HALL CLOSET – BRUCE'S MIND, B&W

(In this land of pitch-black save for one square glass window through which minimal light shines, BRUCE sits in an old wooden chair, his hands and feet bound. Sweat pours down his face and he shifts and shakes in his chair, desperate to move toward the door but unable to do more than shuffle the chair slightly back and forth. In the room with him are a string of pearls tacked to the wall, a mess of popcorn spilt all over the floor, and eight large vampire bats flying about. BRUCE is already covered with bloody bites and nips – the only color in this world – and the bats show no signs of stopping. Through the glass, we see the silhouette of DR. CRANE, wearing his joyless smile and taking notes.)

INT. COLLEGE HALLWAYS – BRUCE'S MIND, B&W

(BRUCE leans up against a wall, listening in on the conversation taking place inside the nearby dean's office. CRANE is being torn a new one by the DEAN. We cut quickly inside the room to see the DEAN hurl down a report, and we get close-ups on the words "UNETHICAL" and "TERMINATED.")

EXT. COLLEGE GROUNDS AT NIGHT – BRUCE'S MIND, B&W

(It is night. BRUCE watches as fire trucks depart, and we see that an entire wing of the school has smoke and steam pouring off of it; there has just been a fire.)

EXT. A COLLEGE NEWSSTAND – BRUCE'S MIND, B&W

(A newspaper sits at the top of the newsstand, bearing the headline "FIRE ENGULFS SCHOOL" with the sub-heading "DISMISSED PROFESSOR CRANE PRESUMED DEAD.")

[Azrael]

Good stuff. Hope you get his permission so we'll see the finished pages.

[Paul (ral)]

Agreed!

[zDBZ]

INT. CRANE'S OFFICE – DAY

(The sound of the door opening snaps BRUCE out of his recollections, and he quickly throws the drawer shut and jumps back into his chair. CRANE steps into his office but does not take his seat.)

CRANE
I warned you I hadn't much time to spare; it seems I have even less than I thought. You'll have to come back later, I'm afraid. Take notes on your nightmares and drop in next week, would you?

(BRUCE nods. He gets up and hurries past CRANE, not even stopping to shake his hand. He strolls down the hallways, clearly not wanting to stay near his old teacher any longer than he has to. Along the way, he passes a man in a big overcoat and a fedora pulled down low over his face. As BRUCE passes, this man turns and looks. We see that it is HARVEY under the hat.)

(HARVEY now makes his way into CRANE's office and sits down across from the doctor's desk, tossing the fedora aside with contempt.)

HARVEY
I hate hats. What was Bruce doing here?

CRANE
You of all people should know to respect doctor-patient confidentiality. I caught your little speech on the television today.
(He sits down behind his desk.)
That little scene likely won you another hundred votes.

(HARVEY grunts. He has begun flipping his coin again.)

HARVEY
I want this to stop.

CRANE
So you've told me before. Yet you've been most uncooperative in the details.

HARVEY
What else do you need?

CRANE
I'd like a chat with your "him."

HARVEY
(The coin has just been tossed; he catches it and stares.)
What?

CRANE
Come now, Harvey. If you won't tell me his name...

HARVEY
Do you have to?

CRANE
As your doctor, I must insist.

(HARVEY sighs. He shrugs, a "do what you will" kind of a thing. CRANE's joyless smile returns. He draws a pocket watch from his tweed suit and begins to tick it back and forth. HARVEY watches it intently, and his eyes slowly shut. His head droops forward as if he were asleep, but he begins to flip his coin again. It is not the nervous, constant action of HARVEY, however, but a slow and deliberate toss.)

CRANE
Knock, knock. Who's there?

(The head lifts up, but the look in the eyes is not HARVEY. This is the dreaded "him," who we will refer to for the present as DENT.)

DENT
What do you want?

CRANE
Testy, aren't we?

DENT
Aren't you here to kill me?

CRANE
So the DA hopes. Tell me, does he know what you do?

DENT
You mean, can he read my mind?
(DENT gives a cruel laugh.)
Not anymore. He used to. Now only when I want him to.

CRANE
Then I may be frank. It's not your death I'm after.

DENT
What do you mean?

CRANE
Surely you'd enjoy coming out of the closet, so to speak? You want to have free reign over the body you share with our old Harvey, don't you? Answer some questions and I may yet find a way to liberate you.

(DENT catches the coin and glares at CRANE. At that moment, it is hard to say which has a crueler pair of eyes or which is more unnerving to the average constitution. Finally, DENT begins to flip the coin again and utters another laugh.)

DENT
Alright, doc. I'll bite. What do you want?

CRANE
Your name, for one.

DENT
Can't say I got one. Never got one from Harvey. I've just been around.

CRANE
Harvey's been most vague about how long, though. I know only that you've been with him since he was young. He first remembers you after an incident with his dear old dad, but was vague as to the details. Enlighten me.

DENT
What's he said about Pop?

CRANE
That he was a sort of man of God with a weakness for liquor and a penchant for child beating.

DENT
(Chuckling)
That's him, the son of a bitch. And he wasn't no fan of blacks either. He fooled around with Mom one night after a bottle of vodka and when he heard a baby was on the way, he had to marry her.

CRANE
What sort of a preacher was he?

DENT
Presbyterian. Real old-school.

SCOTSMAN
Presbyterian, you say? And predestination along with it?
(DENT nods.)
What did he think of young Harvey Dent? Was he "on the list," as it were?
(DENT shakes his head.)
Tsk, tsk, tsk. Poor Harvey. And what did he think of that? How has he felt about free will throughout life? Does he control his fate?

DENT
The little brat was scared sh*tless. He thought he was a bad seed. He believed every word that bastard beat into him.
(The scene fades into the black and white memories of HARVEY and DENT, with DENT's words serving as narration for the visuals.)
Then one day when he's up at Wayne Manor playing with that dim bulb Bruce, Dr. Wayne notices that Harvey's got some big bruises. He asks what's up. He coaxes the truth out of Harvey. And Dr. Wayne's shocked by this. He tells Harvey that he's not a bad seed. That his bastard dad has it all wrong. That he controls his own life. Well, later that night, Pop comes home and he's had a good day. Really let the church ladies have it with the fire and brimstone. But he drinks on good nights and bad nights. Bad nights it's whisky; good nights it's vodka. And he takes a nice chug of that. He pulls out the coin. He's told Harvey his whole life that he's damned because the coin always comes up heads, which gets him the belt. He flips it. And little eight-year old Harvey jumps up and grabs the coin. He sees that it's two heads. And scared little Harvey goes bat-sh*t. He pushes Pop back towards the fireplace. The bastard's too drunk and too stunned to push back. Harvey grabs the vodka bottle and smashes it into Pop. The glass is all stuck in his chest. He falls back into the fire. And by the time Mommy comes home, Harvey's curled up in a corner, crying his eyes out because he finally had the guts to take out the old man.
(The memories end; we are back in CRANE's office.)
And that's my first memory. Mommy never fought back against Pop, and she don't know what to do now. She makes Harvey shut up about it and hushes the whole thing up. She starts dating again. And Harvey thinks this proves Pop was right, him killing and all. When Wayne gets shot later, he thinks that's punishment for what he did. And he goes through his days trying to be a stand-up guy like Wayne was. He tries to prove to himself that he's a good seed. But he always thinks back to that night and Pop's words. He shuts them doubts away. And they become...

(DENT gestures to his face, which has a horrible grin on it. This grin fades when he notices the smile worn by CRANE, who has eagerly taken in the entire story.)

DENT
What's all this to you, doc?

CRANE
Do you know what I am?

DENT
A doc.

CRANE
My specialty – my passion – has always been fear. Fear of bats, fear of rats. Fear of larks, fear of the dark. A little fear here, a little fear there – all the fear that's anywhere. I had quite the career once passing on my knowledge of the subject until a little...disagreement over ethics arose –

DENT
I care. What the hell does this have to do with me?

CRANE
Such class. But to the point. Harvey is so loved, so adored. He is the hope of this city. Have you ever wondered what would happen to the people if all of that came tumbling down?

DENT
(Impatient)
No.

CRANE
I have. I've long since learned that to conduct an experiment around such a subject is frowned upon, but I have found ways around such technicalities. All I've been missing is a knight in shining armor to turn into a monster.

(DENT begins to catch on. He starts flipping his coin again).

DENT
What are you driving at?

CRANE
Do you object to Harvey's body and mind being put through unbearable anguish and suffering?

DENT
(Smiling)
Not as long as I can use it when it's done.

CRANE
Then I propose to release you from imprisonment. And all I want in return is for you to be as horrid and despicable as possible upon your release. Can you manage?

DENT
(Laughing)
I'll do my worst. How you gonna get me out of here?

CRANE
In due time, good sir. The arrangements will be made tonight. For now, though, I must bring back Harvey. You just sit tight and plan what you'll do to our fair city. And remember – our little secret.

(DENT catches the coin again.)

DENT
What's in this for you? What do you want to do this for?

CRANE
And *that* is my little secret.

DENT
This is all on your head, doc.

CRANE
Tah tah.

(CRANE snaps his fingers. DENT shuts his eyes, and HARVEY opens them.)

HARVEY
What did he say?

CRANE
Oh, this about your father and that about you. As your doctor, I find it best you don't know.

HARVEY
Why?

CRANE
Are you going against my advice?

HARVEY
What good's it done me so far? He's still coming out, isn't he?

CRANE
(Beat)
Testy. I remind you that you came here without appointment today. I have other business to attend to this evening, as I'm sure do you. We will discuss this at your next regularly scheduled appointment next week.

(HARVEY grunts his frustration but says nothing else. He rises, retrieves his hat, and marches out the door. CRANE watches him leave like a hawk. Once HARVEY is out the door, he looks down at the pile of straw on the floor. He lifts his leg up on to his desk, and we see there is a tear in his trousers through which the straw is falling. CRANE takes out his needle and thread and begins sewing.)

[zDBZ]

Got the OK from my artist to show the comic panels here:

[zDBZ]

[Silver Nemesis]

That artwork is excellent, zDBZ. The black and white format works to its advantage, lending it a moody Burtonesque ambience. And it's precisely the right time of year for a spooky Halloween tale.

I don't usually read fan fiction, but I'll definitely look forward to seeing more of this.