CHAPTER 1

MONKEY BUSINESS

KRASH!

A gloved hand smashed through a jewelry display case. Shards of broken glass glittered among the diamond necklaces and bracelets. The hand scooped up the jewelry and shoved a handful into a sack.

“Three minutes!” shouted a man in a lion mask. He checked his stopwatch as four other men and women in animal masks broke more display cases.

A man in a rhino mask laughed as he filled his sack with diamond rings. “No one can stop the Zoo Crew!”

“You said it,” agreed a woman wearing a zebra mask.

A man in a monkey mask shook his head. “What a stupid name,” he mumbled as he shoved necklaces into his bag.

“Come on!” Lion Mask shouted. “We now have two minutes and thirty seconds before the cops respond to the silent alarm.”

“What about the Bat?” asked a woman in a tiger mask.

“My response time is much faster,” answered a menacing voice from above.

The five criminals looked up to see a dark figure swoop in through the open skylight.

“It’s … it’s Batman!” shouted the man in the rhino mask.

With a blur of motion, four Batarangs whistled through the air. Each of the whirling bat-shaped weapons struck the criminals’ wrists. They yelled in pain as they dropped their bags of loot.

“Let’s get out of here,” said the man in the lion mask.

The five thieves ran for the door as the Dark Knight swooped down from above. Batman tackled the man in the rhino mask and the woman in the zebra mask. They were knocked out before they hit the floor.

The remaining three crooks ran out of the store and onto the dark sidewalk. “Split up,” ordered Lion Mask. “He can’t catch us all.”

“Wanna bet?” asked a young boy’s voice. Robin somersaulted into view and landed in front of the crook with the lion mask.

The thief swung at the young crime fighter, but the Boy Wonder was too fast. He easily ducked the punch just before landing one of his own. The lion mask spun around the crook’s head as he tumbled backward.

The woman in the tiger mask ran down the sidewalk. But she skidded to a stop when another crime fighter dropped down in front of her.

“Easy there, tiger,” Batgirl said as she squared off against the thief.

The woman scratched at Batgirl as if she had real tiger claws. Batgirl blocked three attacks before delivering a spinning kick. The crook flew back to land on her unconscious boss.

“Leave the scratching to Catwoman,” Batgirl said with a smirk.

Meanwhile, the man in the monkey mask huffed as he sprinted down the nearby alley. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure none of the crime fighters were following him. That’s when he ran into a brick wall. Actually, it only felt like a brick wall. The man fell to the ground after smashing into Batman himself.

The stunned criminal raised his hands. “I surrender! I surrender!”

“Good,” Batman said as he slapped handcuffs onto the thief’s outstretched wrists.

The Dark Knight dragged the crook back up the alley. “That’s the last of them,” Batman said as he shoved Monkey Mask onto the pile of unconscious criminals.

Batgirl attached Monkey Mask’s cuffs to the others. “This is certainly a colorful crew.”

“Batman, look!” Robin pointed to the city skyline. A round spotlight reflected off the clouds above. There was a dark shape of a bat inside the spotlight—the Bat-Signal. It was how Police Commissioner Gordon called the Caped Crusader when there was trouble.

Batman put a hand to his ear to listen to a report on the police radio. “Solomon Grundy is smashing up the arts district.”

“Want me to handle it?” asked Batgirl. She put her hands on her hips. “You two can take the rest of the night off,” she joked.

“You know the rule,” Batman said.

Batgirl sighed. “I know, I know. Small-time crooks are fine, but no taking on the heavy hitters by ourselves.”

“And Solomon Grundy is a very heavy hitter,” Robin said as he rubbed his jaw. “I know. I’ve been hit by him before.”

Batman pressed a button on his Utility Belt. Within seconds, the Batmobile skidded to a stop on the street beside them. The hatch slid open.

“We’ll take care of Grundy,” Batman said as he and Robin leaped into the open car. “Wait here for the police to arrive and then catch up to us.”

Batgirl gave the Dark Knight a casual salute. “You’re the boss.”

As the Batmobile sped away, Batgirl turned to the heap of criminals. “Since you’re the only one still awake, maybe you can tell me something … What’s with the animal masks?”

Unfortunately, the conscious criminal was gone. The monkey mask and a set of open handcuffs lay on the sidewalk beside the pile of crooks.

“Oh, boy,” Batgirl said as she scanned the area. There was no sign of the missing thief. She turned to see if the crook was escaping down the street but was too late to see the metal sewer cover slide back into place.

* * *

Below the streets, the crook trudged through the filthy sewers. Without his monkey mask, the criminal was easy to recognize as one of Batman’s biggest enemies—Edward Nygma, also known as the Riddler.

“I can’t believe I had to team up with such a blundering bunch of dimwits,” the Riddler grumbled as he stomped through the sludge.

The villain shook his head. “I used to be one of the great Gotham City villains. My name used to be feared right alongside the Joker or Two-Face. Now I’m stuck in the sewers like an animal … like Killer Croc!”

Nygma came to a metal ladder and began to climb. “If only I could solve the ultimate riddle … how to defeat Batman.” The villain reached up and slowly opened the metal lid. He peeked around, but the street above was deserted.

“Good,” he said as he carefully climbed out of the smelly sewer tunnel. “No sign of Batman or either of those Bat-brats.”

As the Riddler dusted himself off, he remembered overhearing Batman’s rule. “They’re not allowed to face the heavy hitters alone, are they?” he asked. “So Batman worries about the youngsters, huh?”

A plan formed in Edward Nygma’s mind. A plan that would take down Batman once and for all.

“Positively delightful,” the Riddler said with a grin. Then his nose twitched and his smile faded. “But first … a shower.”