Catwoman #24

Issue Details

Synopsis

DOWN UNDER PART 3 - YOU MEET THE BEST PEOPLE AT ROCK BOTTOM As she and Princess Tinderbox are attacked in the Gotham Underground by Joker's Daughter, Catwoman can barely stomach the sight of the Joker's face, let alone explain why anyone would want to wear it. The girl claims that it is a face of power. Regardless, Joker's Daughter is just one more freak Selina has met in her quest to find her friend Rat-Tail. The leader of the Warhogs is developing a toxin to kill the entire city. Doctor Phosphorous could burn the city to cinders, and this girl claims to rule the submerged region called the Nethers, which is now run entirely by women. Those women soon appear behind her, and force Catwoman into the path of a floodgate before leaving her to fall into the depths of the Nethers with Tinderbox as their captive.   Meanwhile, Alice Tesla discovers that the diamond she had Catwoman steal for her is not made from the cremated remains of the dead at Young's Funeral Home, as advertised. It is obviously made from volcanic rock. Before performing more tests on the gem, she decides to check in on Catwoman, who is wearing her GPS watch.   Fortunately, Catwoman survived her fall, thanks to a last-ditch toss of her whip, which latched onto something. Landing safely, she soon finds herself hiding from a gang of Warhogs passing by. She realizes that they're carrying a charred body with them, and discovers with horror that these are the remains of Rat-Tail, who apparently didn't make it out of Charneltown. Even so, she decides it would be best to recover the body and see it buried where it belongs, in the Badlands. As she attacks the Warhogs, she spots one with a rat-tail trying to make an escape. Giving chase, she is relieved to discover that her friend didn't die after all. He just traded places with a Warhog. She is surprised to learn, though, that he is angry with her for having caused the war between the Penguin and the Rat-Tails for the Badlands. She apologizes, but he urges her to move on to what's next.   Seeking a way to get the virus sample she stole from the Warhogs topside, Selina checks her GPS watch, and discovers that they are in the tunnel that leads back to Charneltown. Rat-Tail, who just came from there, reveals that Charneltown has a series of pneumatic tubes meant for sending things to the surface. If Tesla could get to the other end, they could potentially get the virus out.   Meanwhile, the Warhogs hope to retaliate against Charneltown for the one of their number who was murdered there (and whose place was taken by Rat-Tail). Given that they rejected Doctor Phosphorous as a bride for Warhog's son, though, a retaliatory attack would come with more baggage than they could handle. One of the Warhogs' number, Zakaria, though, disagrees, and begins to lead a mutiny.   Alice warns Catwoman that, since she placed her GPS tracker on Tinderbox's butt, she will have to put the GPS watch in the tube along with the toxin, so that she can find it. Unfortunately, this will leave Catwoman and Rat-Tail without any objective means of navigation. In the meantime, though, Alice warns them to look out for a place so hot that it could turn rocks into diamonds.   Such a place exists, and that place is Dr. Phosphorous' hands. He has been working on this for some time. Each gem that he creates with his intense heat has just one flaw, and that flaw is explosive. The gems are bombs, of a kind. With them, he intends to shatter Gotham. With the hope that Tinderbox has gained control of the Warhog bunker, he believes the time to strike will be now, while the Warhogs are drunk on peace - unfortunately, he is mistaken about both. He is enraged to learn of the rejection and the kidnapping by the Joker's Daughter.   Joker's Daughter, meanwhile, is doing a fine job of convincing Tinderbox that she doesn't need her father anymore; that she could rule Charneltown. She suggests that, together, they combine their abilities and talents, and give Charneltown a taste of what they can do. From her place in the Nethers, Joker's Daughter can use iris gates to funnel water into any part of the Gotham Underground. She proposes that they drown Charneltown with a million gallons of water. Unfortunately, that plan goes somewhat awry, when she discovers that her ugly cat has been caught in the deluge, and may drown.   As Selina and Rat-Tail approach the pneumatic tube system in Charneltown, they are unhappy to discover that they will be washed away by wave of water before they can get to it. Hopefully, Selina calls out that they should meet at Rock Bottom if they are separated. Annoyed at the offence, Doctor Phosphorous, meanwhile, decides to send a fireball back at the Joker's daughter, regardless of his daughter's presence in the Nethers.   Meanwhile, as Alice attempts to discover the flaw in the diamond, she accidentally triggers its explosive potential, and is caught in the blast.   Unsure of her father's next move, Tinderbox agrees to ally with the Joker's Daughter against him, while Catwoman and Rat-Tail are lost in the water, along with the ugly cat.