This is a What If? Death Battle featuring Scarecrow (DC Comics) and Alice Liddell (American Mcgee)
| Scarecrow vs Alice Liddell | |
|---|---|
| Season 1, Episode 7 | |
Vital statistics
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| Air date | 3/22/2021 |
| Written by | RohgeKiller |
| Directed by | RohgeKiller |
Episode guide
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| Count Dooku vs. Cinder Fall | Trigon vs Unicron |
Prelude[]
Wiz: There is no illusion greater than fear. Some have incorporated this idea into their very heart and soul, like Batman for example. But others prefer to use fear as more than just a tool.
Boomstick: And we don't mean naming your gardening tools after scary things, though I do like that idea. Some people are just so twisted that they can't help but want to see their victims screaming in terror. On the other hand, there are said victims who'd rather not be reminded of their tortured past.
Wiz: Like Dr. Jonathan Crane. The Scarecrow and master of fear.
''And I'm sure to get a brain''-Not the same scarecrow
Boomstick: And Alice Liddell. The creator and savior of Wonderland.
Much more badass than the Tim Burton version
Wiz: I'm the Wizard and he's Boomstick. And on this episode of Death Battle, we'll be studying the tactics, powers and skills of these two mentally questionable characters to find out who would win a Death Battle!
Scarecrow[]
Wiz: The words crime, pestilence and fear are synonymous with Gotham City. Winged terrors of all kinds flood the skys, giant crocodile men inhabit the sewers and absolutely no alley is safe.
Boomstick: Especially ‘Crime Alley’. They really should change that name, its bad for business.
Wiz: But out of all of the sick and vile inhabitants of Gotham, there is only one that inspires fear as much Batman. The self proclaimed ‘Master of Fear’ the Scarecrow.
Background[]
- Real name: Jonathan Crane
- Height: 6' 0"
- Age: Late 30s
- Occupation: Psychiatrist, Professor of Gotham State University
- M.D in Psychiatry
- Not the Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz
Wiz: Poor Jonathan Crane had a rather unforgiving upbringing. In most iterations of his story his father had left him before he was even born, so it was up to his inexperienced mother and overly religious grandmother to raise him.
Boomstick: I’m no twitter atheist but there are some God-fearing nutjobs who really shouldn’t be raising kids. Because his grandmother would abuse the baby John on a daily basis. I’m not just talking about the olé bend over the knee kind of abuse my drunken granddad would perform.
Wiz: It was because of his grandmother that Crane learned to fear Crows. She would spray him a chemical compound that attracted swarms of them to the poor helpless Crane. Combine that with the constant bullying he suffered from other children, and you had a serial killer in the making.
Boomstick: Why don’t those anti-bullying ads just highlight comic book origins? Their way more tragic than those poorly made vignettes and get right to the point: Don’t bully or that quiet kid will one day envelop the town in fear gas.
Wiz: And spread that fear he would. After years of physical and psychological abuse, Crane vowed to make those who harmed him pay and to never again be afraid of anyone or anything. Starting with his grandma who he poisoned with his own chemicals, forcing her to face her own hellish nightmares.
Boomstick: Heh heh, classic.
Wiz: Years later, Crane earned his Masters in Psychology from Gotham University and became a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum. Using the school's lab and prison cells as a testing ground. He would create a plethora of chemical hallucinogens that forced people to experience their greatest fears. And that is truly where the name Scarecrow was born.
Fear Toxin[]
- Can be used as a gas or liquid
- Powerful enough to affect the minds of Batman and Martian Manhunter
- Enough exposure can result in the subject becoming braindead
- Has numerous variations
Weapons and Armor[]
- Gas Mask (protects him from his own toxin)
- Fear Toxin
- Trauma Toxin
- Needle Claws
- Pistol
- Ragged costume
- Farming tools (scythe, pitchfork, sickles)
Abilities and Skills[]
- Genius level intellect
- 'Violent Dancing' style of martial arts based on the Crane style
- Expert Biochemist
- Textbook Psychiatrist (Has knowledge on every possible phobia)
- Skilled talker (once convinced a man to commit suicide)
Wiz: No matter its method, the Fear Toxins are Cranes primary weapon. He’ll use them to infect the minds of others and cause hallucinations so powerful that they can put a person in a state of shock at best, and even make them braindead as a result of overexposure. What happens to the person isn't always consistent, but traditionally the victim will suffer hyper realistic hallucinations that can result in said persons demise.
Boomstick: You ever done acid? Imagine that, but much worse. In fact his toxins are so powerful that even battle hardened warriors like Wonder Woman can't resist them.
Wiz: If all else fails and he can’t mentally destroy his enemies, then he will resort to physical violence. While not particularly deadly on his own, he does possess some minor martial arts knowledge in the form of a deadly, Crane style of fighting. This complements his use of scythes and pitchforks, though he rarely if ever actually carries any weapons at all.
Boomstick: But if he really needs to, bagfack has one final, Halloween worthy trick. If he takes enough of a beating, his body will start to grow and transform into the mighty Scarebeast.
Scarebeast[]
- Transforms into a giant monster with enhanced strength and endurance
- Physical strength can rival Killer Croc
- Naturally emits fear gas
- Used as a last resort
Wiz: The Scarebeast was a secret project by Dr. Linda Friitawa, who opted to create the ultimate weapon of fear. In this form, Crane is nearly unmatched. Claws and sharp teeth sprout from his limbs, he’s nearly bulletproof and his strength is on par with Killer Croc, who tore down a steel plated door with his bare hands.
Boomstick: To top it off, the Scarebeast can emit unlimited amounts of Fear Toxin from his body. So much so that it can cause severe nerve damage. The only drawback is, like everyone when they transform into monsters, he loses most of his cunning intellect.
Strength[]
- Can physically manhandle full grown men
- Has no issue swinging around heavy farm equipment
Durability[]
- Casually takes beatings from Batman
- Survived a mauling from Killer Croc
- Tanked a hit from a 'Venom' inmate
Speed[]
- Kept up with Green Arrow and Black Canary
- Capable of sneaking up on Batman
- Dodged/blocked multiple batarangs
Wiz: Scarecrow is often ranked with some of the deadliest villains in Batman's rogues gallery. He’s worthy to join the Legion of Doom, the Injustice league and is considered the Riddler's equal in intelligence. Makes sense considering he orchestrated a coup that flooded the entire city of Gotham with fear gas and let much of the criminals run loose in the city.
Boomstick: Even without the Fear Gas, Scarecrow is still dangerous. He’s a wiz at the human mind and knows so much about it that he once convinced a pair of guys to kill themselves just through words. His intelligence....its frightening sometimes. Oh, and he’s snuck up on the Caped Crusader on more than one occasion, keeping in mind that Batman is THE master of stealth.
Wiz: And despite not making physical contact with most of his enemies, once the Fear gas is administered it rarely matters how strong his opponent is. Everyone has a fear that can be exploited, and he's even been able to break the minds of heroes like Black Canary and even the Dark Knight himself on a number of occasions.
Feats[]
- Considered to be the Riddler's equal in intellect
- Anyone from Batman to Superman can be affected by his toxins
- Survived being mauled by Killer Croc
- Knocked out Catwoman with a single punch
- Masterminded the takeover of Gotham and revealed Batman's identity to the world
- Tanks multiple hits from Batman
- Lacks any and all fear (except from Bats)
- Held his own against Wonder-Woman (Injustice 2)
- Somehow planted toxin infused pumpkins all over Gotham in one night
Faults[]
- Not much of a physical threat without his toxins
- Isn't immune to his own Fear Toxins
- Rarely if ever carries a gun
- Prefers to terrorize or drug his enemies as oppose to killing them
- Fear toxin might not work depending on the subject
Boomstick: And yet it doesn't always work. People who have been repeatedly subjected to the toxins can gain some immunity to it, or you can just, you know, have the willpower to break free from it. Its rare but once that happens, there isn't much Crane can do.
Wiz: And Scarecrow does suffer an even greater weakness. While he is resistant to his own fear toxins, he too can be affected if he doesn’t have his gas mask, which filters out the chemicals. This can render him helpless to the very thing he’s known to subject others too.
Boomstick: It doesn’t help that he’s not considered a physical threat, and has even been knocked out with a single punch.
Wiz: And yet even Batman himself considers the frail, lanky Dr. to be one of his most dangerous adversaries. There is good reason to be afraid of what the crazed psychologist can do, and just how far he's willing to go to prove to the world that everyone has something to fear.
''Without fear, life is meaningless''-Scarecrow to Batman
Alice Liddell[]
Boomstick: When you hear the word Wonderland, what comes to mind? Mad rabbits and men with large hats sitting down for tea? Talking cats and caterpillars? A young woman in a blue dress wielding a knife and brutally killing monsters straight out of resident evil? Heh, lost you with that last one didn't I?
Wiz: Anyone unfamiliar with the American Mcgee version of Alice in Wonderland would defiantly say so. Unlike the child friendly Disney version that most people are familiar with, this one is much closer to the Tim Burton version but with less Johnny Depp. Indeed it is a strange and very odd world, created by the no less odd mind of one Alice Liddell.
Boomstick: Who is also not anything like her Disney counterpart....like, at all.
Background[]
- Name: Alice Liddell
- Height: 5'5''
- Age: Early 20s
- Former inmate of Rutledge Asylum
- Works at the Royal London Opera House
- Loves black cats
Wiz: Alice's childhood was one of tragedy. Her loving family, including her older sister Lizzie, had unfortunately died in an ''accidental'' house fire. The trauma brought upon her left her in a serious coma that lasted her entire childhood up until she was a teenager. And it certainly didn't help that nurses of Rutledge Asylum believed in shock therapy.
Boomstick: As was typical of classic London in the 1800s: If you didn't know what to do, just put it through even more pain.
Wiz: All this mental trauma resulted in something that no one saw coming, literally, as Alice created an entire world in her mind as a result of her survivors guilt. This, Wonderland, became her sanctum as well as a prison that was inhabited by strange creatures and ruled by the Red Queen...who happened to look like her late sister.
Boomstick: Wonderland? More like Wondering-how does a house fire equal J.R.R Tolkien levels of world building? Anyway, battling though every monstrosity in her way, she eventually defeated her inner demons to break free from her coma and into the real world. All seemed well until her past once again came knocking.
Wiz: In the form of Dr. Bumby, a cruel psychiatrist and the real mastermind behind her family's death... and the molester of her older sister.
Boomstick: I take it back, this is DARKER than the Tim Burton version. At least that one didn't have pedophilic doctors who played with Alice's mind in order to cover their own crimes. And with the trauma only getting worse, Alice returned to Wonderland to solve the mystery of her family's death and battle even more twisted monsters. All created by her own psyche.
Weapons[]
- Vorpal Blade and Vorpal Cleaver
- Playing Cards
- Croquet Mallet
- Jackbomb
- Ice Wand
- Demon Dice
- Jabberwock's Eye Staff
- Blunderbuss
- Deadtime Watch
- Pepper Grinder
- Teapot Cannon
- Umbrella
Abilities and Skills[]
- Size changing (Can become as small as a mouse or as large as a small tower)
- Butterfly Dodge
- Floating
- Underwater Breathing
- Invisibility
- Grasshopper Transformation
- Otherworlds (Can enter peoples dreams)
Wiz: All of Alice's victories against the forces of evil stem from her supernatural abilities, though she only has these in Wonderland or when entering the 'Otherlands' which is basically any other persons version of Wonderland. Because in the real world, she's about as harmless as a street mouse.
Boomstick: And golly, she has a lot of abilities. Butterfly dodge allows her to pass through opponents attacks, she can breath underwater, turn invisible, turn into a grasshopper-thing, and most notably, change her size. Good thing all those dresses are stretchable huh?
Wiz: She can shrink to the size of a mouse to unlock hidden pathways or grow to the size of a small house. In fact, she becomes so strong that even solid stone walls can't seem to stop her.
Boomstick: She also carries a small armies worth of weaponry, with her Vorpal blade being her most common. She can use that ordinary looking cleaver to cut through multiple enemies at once, even if their made of solid metal. But she's also got plenty of ranged weapons, including the Ice Wand, Pepper Grinder, Teapot Cannon and so much more. I guess it pays off having such a wild imagination.
Wiz: Indeed. Anything from a time stopping watch to an exploding croquet mallet. But even all that wasn't enough and in her most desperate times, Alice can go even further. May I introduce you to Rage and Hysteria Alice.
Rage and Hysteria Alice[]
- Rage Alice is a limited transformation
- Increase in damage and endurance
- Hysteria Alice can only be activated as a last resort
- Weapons are covered in blood
- Deals twice the damage and is completely invincible
Boomstick: Like any introverted teenager, Alice's anger builds up over time and is unleashed upon her unsuspecting enemies. Rage Alice is pretty straight forward: she gets angrier, scarier and deals more damage. Plus, she adopts the look of some crazed demon.
Wiz: Hysteria Alice is her last resort and can only be activated when in extreme pain. Along with sprouting claws and bleeding from every orphic, Alice deals twice the amount of usual damage as well as being completely invincible for a short period of time. In this state she is at her most powerful, yet also her most vulnerable as once it ends, she doesn't regain any of her lost health.
Strength[]
- Can damage foes much larger than her
- As Giant Alice, can topple stone walls and towers
- Can crush hordes of enemies, also as Giant Alice
Durability[]
- Normally fights off groups of enemies on her own
- Has survived being physically transformed against her will
- Hysteria Alice is completely invincible
Speed[]
- Average athletics
- Butterfly dodge allows her to pass through attacks
- Is fast enough to dodge/block balls of fire
Boomstick: But even without her raging hormones, Alice is still a genuine threat to anything that tries to take over her mind. She's defeated the Red King and Queen, their cyborg Jabberwock, card guards and so much more. It didn't matter what was thrown at her, she was carving and blasting away anything that came her way.
Wiz: This includes the massive chess pieces that blocked her way to the Red Queen, the Mad Hatter and most importantly, the Dollmaker. This supernatural entity embodied her psychiatrist Mr. Bumby, and could warp the fabric of Wonderland to his very will. Even once turning Alice into a doll, which still wasn't enough to stop her as she just willed her way out.
Boomstick: And if thats not crazy enough, she can enter another persons 'otherworld' and manipulate them from the inside. And while mayhaps intelligence isn't her strong suite, she is good at figuring out complex puzzles and escaping enemies far too tough for her, at least until she gets a piece of that 'Grow Me' Cake. Wish I could get some of that. It'll teach those beer thieving raccoons a lesson.
Feats[]
- Killed the Dollmaker, Jabberwock, Red King, Mad Hatter
- Defeated the Queen of Hearts and her minions
- Destroyed massive walls and towers as Giant Alice
- Withstood years of physical and psychological torture
- Managed to break out of an insane asylum
- Was able to decipher the murder of her family
- Constantly traveled between two different worlds
Faults[]
- Is very petite outside of Wonderland
- Her mind is a clusterfuck of mental instabilities
- Was knocked out by a single punch in the real world
- Basically killed Bumby with no actual effort
Wiz: However, her experiences in Wonderland do provide her with many of her greatest weaknesses. In battle she rarely thinks outside the box and usually just hacks and slashes at her enemies until they're dead. And while she is certainly powerful in Wonderland or the Otherlands, in the real world she is anything but and has no access to her abilities or weapons.
Boomstick: And even though she's managed to fight off her demons more than once, she still suffers from PTSD and even though Wonderland is safe for the moment, its made pretty clear that she is still not all together. But she's getting there.
Wiz: Alice Liddell has certainly been through a lot in her relatively young life. But no matter how much you break her, the little girl from London is more than ready to defend her Wonderland from even the toughest of foes.
''You've used me and abused me, but you will not destroy me!''-Alice to Bumby
Intermission[]
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. And we've run the data through all possibilities.
Boomstick: It's time for a Death Battle!
Pre-Fight[]
It was a quiet night on the streets of London. It was rare for little to no traffic to be flooding the senses, piercing the windows and keepings its residents restless. But this was one of those exceptions.
While the streets may have been cleared, the opera house was packed to the rafters. Folks of all statues came from miles to witness such marvelous plays and sonnets from some of Europe's finest. For many this was a once in a blue moon opportunity.
For Alice Liddell, it was Tuesday.
She, the young girl in a common red dress, was but a simple stage worker. Or at least that's what she would prefer you to think. But regardless of whether or not anyone noticed her, it was plainly obvious that she wanted nothing to do with anyone and preferred to stay out of the way. And thats how it usually was.
As something on stage provoked a surprise reaction from the crowd, per usual, Alice took notice to some unknown fragrance in the air. It smelled of rusty metal being set ablaze and she would have assumed the worst had anything else seemed out of the ordinary. Rising to her feet and watching as the other stagehands simply waited for their que. Nothing she hadn't seen a thousand times.
But something wasn’t right. Not at all.
The screams didn’t fade like they normally would once the suspenseful scene was over, which was usually followed up with laughter. Rather they amplified beyond the young woman's expectations and she had to wonder if something went wrong on stage. Did one of the play members fall off the platform? Did one of the lights start a fire?
She peeked her head out from behind the curtain and could confirm that it wasn’t a fire, and nobody was hurt.
It was so much worse.
The attendees were frantic; like tortured and broken inmates who’d just escaped an asylum. Men and women were screaming and clawing at their own faces, tearing flesh and ripping out teeth from their maws and the mouths of their fellow man. Others were crawling away, desperate to flee and even stepping on those that had fallen as if they were nothing but inanimate obstacles.
Even the stagehands fled like birds upon seeing a cat, tearing through the curtains and sheets like paper. Rushing past the starstruck Alice who felt her knees quiver. At the center of it all was a mass of green gas that spread like fire. It moved in such an unnatural way that you’d have thought it was being controlled by puppet strings.
Out from the smoke and barely visible to the naked eye was a man dressed in the most peculiar of clothing. From the neck down he looked like the average gentleman that came to spoil themselves with women and wine. But from there was where things got strange as he wore a very twisted, almost skin-like mask. Brown and baggy like with two slits for the eyes.
And he was now heading straight for the stage.
Now it was Alice's turn to flee. But before she could properly catch her bearings, one of the performers rushed right by her and knocked her off her feet. Her head colliding with the wooden stage and nearly rendering her unconscious. Though she would have greatly preferred that if she knew what was to come as the man stood over her.
‘’Alice Liddell.’’ The man said with a voice akin to sandpaper. His right hand was gloved in some twisted amalgamation of claws and syringes. In his other was a handle with a nozzle attached to some unseen source.
‘’W-who are you?’’ She said firmly yet worried that someone here would know her name.
‘’They say you’ve overcome your fears? I’m here to put that theory the test.’’ The man said before aiming the nozzle at the young woman and expelling more of that horrific gas. The young woman held her breath on instinct but it was too much, the putrid smell eroded her senses and she felt herself succumbing and falling to near unconsciousness.
When Alice finally did open her eyes she no longer recognized her surroundings. Actually, that's not entirely true. She didn’t recognize it at first but after making it to her knees, she realized that she was back at the old Rutledge Asylum. Yet it was warped, even more corrupt that she remembered. The roof was missing, the bars were bent in many off directions and there was a giant hole at the center of it all. It looked more like a maze made out of the prisons foundation.
To be frank, it almost reminded her of Wonderland. All the way down to the headaches it gave her.
'’Poor Alice.'' Said that scratchy voice from above her. To her horror, the man in the mask was now the size of a building. Looming over her like a hawk, and looking about as deadly as a high pitched laugh emanated from his 'mouth'.
''I'm afraid your mind is too far gone to be cured. We'll have to take some drastic measures.''
Part 1: Face your fears[]
With a perverted laugh, Scarecrow raised his hand and dug his syringed fingers into the ground, which cracked open and from the earth came horrid things that to anyone else would look like something straight from their nightmares.
Madcaps and broken chess pieces that swung their deformed bodies wildly. Just some of the many enemies Alice had to face during her time in Wonderland.
‘’Remember these?’’ Scarecrow cooed, watching the young woman taking a few steps back. Gasping, she jumped back and nearly tripped over herself dodging a blow from the deformed chess piece.
Even though it was certain she was no longer in the real world, Alice found herself defenseless against the creatures from her past. Backing into a broken guard rail, Alice found herself stuck between a rock and multiple angry creatures. Hopelessly grasping for a blade that wasn’t there.
‘’Oh bugger.’’ She muttered, taking in a breath and focusing on the environment around her. Looking for anything that could aid her. It was in this moment of weakness that Crane said…
‘’You have an interesting mind, Miss Liddell.’’
And that made her realize that she may not be as defenseless as he thinks. In fact, she might just have the upper hand. So just as the chess piece was upon her, Alice shrunk in a cloud of butterflies, ran under the confused brute and grew to normal size from behind it. Her Vorpal blade now in her hands.
Like everything else from Wonderland, it stood no chance and it was in pieces before it could even react. Same could be said for the madcaps, and shortly after cutting through them in a mindless bloodrage, Miss Liddell stared daggers into the giant Scarecrow.
‘’Ah. So you aren’t so weak after all.’’ Said Crane's high-pitched voice. Sounding less worried and more intrigued by his 'patients' actions. Saying ''Lets try that again.'' and summoning more creatures from Alice’s past. Though this time she was ready and effortlessly hacked and disemboweled the amalgamations. Blood spewing from their bodies and soaking the young woman, who smiled eerily.
‘’Hmmm, I think you need a little more.’’ The Scarecrow said in his twisted way before opening his massive maw and releasing more of that repulsive Fear Gas onto Alice's form.
She unwillingly breathed in lungful's and felt herself growing weaker by the second. The smell of ambers burning her nostrils and peeling the skin from her eyes. Dropping her blade and falling to her knees as voices began to creep their way into her mind. Voices she never thought she'd hear again.
The shrill of a vengeful Queen: ''There is no method in this madness!''
A housecats delusional rambling: ''I can't know everything. Pretend you're an orphan – oh! That was rude, you are.''
The demeaning tone of a manipulator: ''The past must be paid for.''
Just when it felt that her ears were going to burst, the voices stopped as the air began to whip around Alice and blow away the very foundation of the world. Before she could think to do anything, The Scarecrow closed his hand and multiple straightjackets ensnared her entire body, save for her head. One of Scarecrow's many syringed fingers looped between her feet and pulled her up to him.
‘’Let. Me. Go!’’ She screamed and squirmed to no avail. Cranes hideous mask contorted into a horrific frown from her angle.
‘’Hmm. Carcerophobia: Fear of imprisonment.’’ He said. Not in a mocking way, more akin to a detective studying a crime scene. Not unlike anyone he’d previously fought. ‘’Pyrophobia: The fear of fire. Basiphobia: Fear of falling great heights. Your constant trepidation and distress is like an endless mine of wealth for someone like me.’’ He continued, grabbing her head and turning it as if attempting to fix a lightbulb.
‘’You’re a wretched man! I won’t bend to you.’’ Miss Liddell snapped, attempting to break free from her metaphysical bindings. Attempting to call upon her Vorpal Blade only resulting in the voices returning tenfold, breaking her concentration and, combined with the bloodrush, was taking a toll on her strength.
But the mad doctor wasn't finished with her just yet. He was having far too much fun to stop and, turning to the endless abyss behind him with Alice still in his grasp, he spat more gas into the well. Transforming it into a cyclone of fear. Holding Alice just above the well and slowly dipping her you would a candy apple to cinnamon.
"Let us probe deeper then."
As she felt herself being lowered, Alice tried to hold in her breath as to lessen the effects of the gas. Try as she might, even in a dream she was still subject to some laws of normality and unwillingly took in another breath. Her eyes sinking into her skull while the sounds of laughter echoed off invisible walls. Giving her horrific hallucinations that only she could witness.
"What is it you fear the most? Imagining a Wonderland without you, perhaps?" Crane asked much like a psychiatrist would, but with added venom. "Or maybe, you still feel the guilt of what happened that night." He continued to chip at her mental sanity as she closed her eyes and squirmed in his grasps.
''No, no, no, stop!'' She pleaded as her eyes, while closed, were forced to relive that horrible night. The one where everything and everyone she loved had been forcefully ripped from her. The one she'd tried so desperately to forget and what Scarecrow wanted her to remember.
"The one where you failed to save your sister. The one where you let family DIE!" He roared in a distorted voice upon lifting the frantic Alice to eye level. ''Because you did let them die, didn't you?''
Screaming "NO!" and opening her eyes before literally snapping away her bindings and breaking free from the jacket in a flash of light, much to Cranes surprise. Her dress transforming as well. No longer the attire of a simple stagehand, and was now in a bright blue dress that accompanied the fire in her eyes.
At the same time of her release, she finally summoned her Vorpal Blade and dug it into his hand, causing him to draw it back and finally drop her. Using her dress like a parachute, Alice summoned her Pepper Grinder and fired upon her giant opponent.
Crane blocked the blasts with his hands, caught off guard by his victims' sudden boost of vitality. ‘’This is my mind, you despicable field. And it's not the first time I’d had to defend it.’’ Alice proclaims as she lands on another broken platform. Scarecrow growls and brings down his giant clawed hand to impale her.
Using her butterfly dodge and leaving a jackbomb in her place, she then summons her mallet and smashes his fingers just as the bomb goes off. Resulting in a miniature explosion that sends Scarecrow back in shock. Even with his gigantic size, it only seemed to give the young woman more to shoot at. This became even more evident when her vorpal blade suddenly launched itself from her grasp and into the left eye hole of his mask.
While there was no blood, it was clear Scarecrow still felt the pain just as the blade then left his mask and back into the hands of the determined Alice. She would make this foul man pay for threatening her mind.
''Enough!'' The demented Scarecrow roared before slamming his fists upon the stone platform, breaking it into a great many pieces that then began to float around the void. Miss Liddell managed to dodge the blows and leap off the soon to be broken ground, once again using her dress like a Mary Poppins umbrella. That was until Scarecrow seized her in his grasp. Holding her in the palm of his 'normal' hand, he raised his other one and intended to squash her into a bloody stain.
He would have succeeded had the little woman stayed the same size.
Alice rose her foot and suddenly grew to massive size, stomping on his hand and pinning it to the 'floor'. Before long, they were of even stature and before Scarecrow could think to react, she tackled him and knocked him backwards. Backwards being straight into the bottomless void where both of them began to spiral around like paper in a tornado.
Their respective visions being warped and torn apart as they exited the dream realm. Having been forced back into the real world, both Crane and Alice were tossed aside by the unseen force and knocked to the wooden floor of the stage. Exactly where they had first encountered one another.
Absolutely astonished and mortally mystified by the turn of events, Crane was the first to make it too his feet and quickly assessed the situation. Now back to square one, he realized that despite all convention, the young Liddell had somehow resisted his gas and pulled them back into reality. As for Alice, she quickly registered their current location and was more than happy to have rid that parasite of a man from her mind.
But the young woman had no time to recover as Crane was upon her the minute he realized what happened. His vile clawed hand outstretched as he pinned her to the ground. While Crane was not intimidating in the physical sense, neither was Alice, who had to use both hands to keep his deadly digits from piercing her neck.
‘’How are you doing this?’’ Growled a bemused Dr. Crane. Using his other hand to restrain Alice just before plunging his blades into her collar, making her scream and injecting her with even more toxin. And yet she refused to surrender to his tricks and while he went high, she went low and nailed him in the crotch. The blow made him gasp and roll off of her, but it didn’t keep him down for long. Alice has managed to make it to her feet before Crane but knew outrunning him wasn’t an option, but even as her mind swirled from the overdose of toxins, she had one thing he didn’t...
‘’How? You’ve absorbed enough toxins to drive 100 men insane!’’ Crane said, no longer amused and genuinely frustrated at Alice's lack of fear. Even as she held her injured collar, the last Liddell showed no signs of backing down.
‘’As you can see, I’m already quite mad.’’ She responded with a hint of dependence. But Crane wasn't amused in the slightest and reached into his lab coat, pulling out a pistol that he luckily remembered to bring...for once.
''Without fear, life is meaningless.'' He declared before taking aim upon the defenseless Alice, who had none of her previous weapons from before. And Crane knew if he couldn't scare Miss Liddell, then there was no reason for her to live any longer.
But Alice wasn't ready to die just yet.
The moment the bullet exited its chamber, she was already gone from sight. Vanished without a trace, much to the dismay of Crane, who worried that he may have inhaled some of his own toxins. And he wasn't entirely ready to throw that theory out the window as the world began to warp around him.
The stage disappearing and being replaced with the courtyard of a prison. The curtains morphing into the two story walls, covered in barbed wire. The words 'Arkham Asylum' were plastered above the rather large doorway, across from the guardrail. It was all too familiar for Crane, who'd been thrown into this cesspool far too many times to count. But even still, he couldn't believe he was 'here'.
''No...no, this isn't right. I'm not supposed to be here.'' He muttered, looking around for any sign of escape while also checking his mask for holes. But somehow he knew this wasn't the gases doing.
''If you ask me, you never should have left.'' Said a voice from behind. Floating to the ground from above, Alice Liddell, back in her blue dress, was now the one invading Cranes mind. Having taken only a few moments to see what a vile man he truly was, she was fully prepared to end the so called Dr. before he could do more harm. ''Yes, I know all about you now. All the people you've hurt.'' She spat.
''How could you kn...'' He was about to ask before coming to the conclusion on his own. A wicked smile under his mask. ‘’Haha. Now I see my error. I can’t defeat you in your own mind, but now that we’re in mine…’’ He took a step back before kicking the gas canister over, breaking the nozzle and releasing a cloud of fear toxins.
He stepped inside the gas and allowed himself to be enveloped, transformed, altered into something else. Something that Alice had never faced before. A wicked laugh erupted from the cloud before something even worse withdrew itself. It looked like a massive, warped version of the Scarecrow she'd fought in her mind. Only so much worse.
This, Scarebeast, was easily more frightening than even the Queen of Hearts. And even Alice knew that this wouldn't be an easy fight as the Scarebeast made its way towards her. ''...I have complete control. And if you won't submit to your fears, then you'll die here.''
Part 2: The Madness of Insanity[]
Swinging its massive chain, the Scarebeast charged Alice with deadly intent and hurled its weapon at the stone faced woman. Fading right through the chain in a cloud of butterflies, Alice tossed multiple playing cards at the large beast before firing upon it with her pepper grinder.
The attacks having little effect other than making Crane laugh, planting seeds of doubt into Alices mind as she dodged the massive arms of the beast before her. Like always, she had to keep herself at a distance. Even as it quickly closed the distance.
Shrinking under the Scarebeasts attack and giving herself more distance before firing back once more, with the beast simply tanking them and healing at his leisure. Despite permanent frown on its monstrous face, Alice could tell that he was enjoying this.
''Is that the best you can do?'' Cranes distorted voice echoed as his head twitched before swinging its massive chain once more. The hook latched around Alice's arm and pulled her closer, forcing the blade from her hand as well as nearly dislocating her shoulder. As the Scarecrow dragged her struggling body, she summoned her Ice Wand and took aim, firing a blast of ice at the waiting monster.
The first blast crashed upon his fingers, freezing them solid. Before the second could freeze him entirely, he teleported away in a cloud of smoke before reforming directly behind the prone Alice. Feeling his disgusting breath on her neck, Alice called for her Vorpal Blade and twisted onto her back to slice at Cranes descending hand.
Her smile, which had returned when her blade cut right through the Scarebeasts wrist like butter to sever the hand, all but disappeared as his other hand wrapped around her head. Lifting her high above the ground and threatening to crush her skull. It very well could have as the beast roared in fury and pinned her to the ground, its maw gaping.
Until she activated her Deadtime Watch and froze the twisted Dr. solid. With her body still trapped beneath its massive claw, Alice summoned her Teapot Cannon and charged it to its maximum potential. Pointing it directly at the Scarebeasts gaping maw just as time reset, and fired. Needless to say, the Beast was certainly caught off guard as a barrage of scalding hot liquid engulfed his maw, practically burning right through it.
The attack forced him back and freed Alice from his grasp for the time being. But as quickly as she got to her feet, the overwhelming amount of Fear Toxins were finally taking their toll. Even with full control over her powers, she was still hearing the voices of her loved ones echo throughout her mind. As such, she barely had time to react as a massive Scythe came swinging from the clouds.
From the shadows came an enraged Scarebeast with eyes as red as fire, ready to burn the little woman before him. That's if the meters long Scythe didn't do the trick. Its sharpened edge coming just close enough to make Alice flinch.
‘’I will MAKE you scream!’’ He roared, tearing open the very fabric of the world with his claws. Unleashing a storm's worth of crows that rushed towards Alice with murderous intent.
Using her butterfly dodge, she sped in every direction possible to scatter the swarm. Up and over the equipment of the courtyard like a mouse being chased by a dozen cats. But sooner than later, they caught her and swarmed her vision. Nearly blinded, Alice was completely defenseless as the blunt end of the Scythe collided with her stomach.
The impact launched her from one end of the courtyard to the other. Crashing and burning before the large metal gate. The Scarebeast merely laughed before charging her once more. As she struggled to even lift her arm, Alice felt her legs shake and nearly give away. Looking up at the monstrous creature about to cleave her in two with those soul piercing eyes and sadistic smile.
With little choice left, Alice surrendered herself to the nightmare and summoned her blade once more. Bloody tears falling from her eyes.
Her skin became pale white as she faced her foe and screamed. The wail created a massive shock-wave that tore apart the sound barrier and much of the Scarebeasts tattered skin. Before the Dr. could even take a step back to assess the situation before him, an enraged Alice was already upon him.
Blood already dripping from the Vorpal blade as it cut through the tendons and muscles of the Scarebeast, causing him to roar in discomfort and swing wildly. Firing a wave of Toxins upon her nubile form that had little to no effect. The crazed girl simply shrugged it off and continued her attack.
Trading attacks with their respective teleports, Crane grabbed the girl by her foot and threw her to the ground with a sickening crack. Racking his claws against her prone form, spewing blood. Though this only seemed to enrage Alice even more. Her smaller, more agile body ducking under and over the psychotic beast. Screaming all the while.
Both realizing that only the complete destruction of the other would end this bout.
Even as the world seemed to tear itself apart around them, they still kept at it. She was slicing and carving up his larger body faster than he could possibly imagine, and within seconds of activating her Hysteria mode, Alice had brought the Dr. to one knee. Having to use the Scythe as a third leg until his other healed...if it healed in time.
The Hysterical Alice didn’t let up and threw her blade like a shirken, lodging it into the ‘mask’ of her foe and grabbing her Teapot Cannon once more. Fully charged, it blasted away the Scarebeasts left arm entirely.
Letting out one final roar of agony, the Scarebeast thrusted his Scythe forward and caught the little Alice in her shoulders. Pulling back, he grew as large as he could possibly get with his remaining power and smashed his fist, which had grown to the size of an iron door, into Alice.
The blow caused the ground below them to implode and with it, seemingly every last drop of Alices power as her rage finally ended. Taking no chances, Crane opened his hand to seize the prone woman from the crater the impact had made.
And then Alice grew, and grew, and grew some more. Until it didn’t matter how big the Scarecrow could make himself. He was never going to come close, not with her having more control over his mind than he’d given her credit for. This may be his world, but her ‘Wonderland’ never truly left her.
And that ultimately spelled his doom.
The small one no more, Alice gave one final smile to the stunned Scarebeast before raising her boot. ‘’Oh no.’’ Was all the good doctor had time to let out as Alice crushed him beneath her heel. Popping like a frog under an automobile tire.
Reaching down and picking up the bloody corpse of the Scarebeast as if it was an angry spider. She reached out and plucked the mask from the monster's head, and may as well have removed the head entirely as the body then crumbled to dust in her palm.
The same could be said about the world around her as its opacity faded ever so slowly. Pulling her back into the real world. The courtyard being replaced with the damaged stage, the walls becoming the tattered curtains and the stone melting into wood. And there at the center of the stage was a crumbled, twitching, maskless Dr. Crane. His eyes wide with terror, akin to those of his previous victims. His mind now broken in more ways than one.
Beside him was none other than that horrid mask, which was no longer of much use seeing as he was in no position to use it. Taking a deep, cognitive breath, Alice approached the feeble Dr. and plucked the mask from the ground.
‘’I have a feeling you won’t be needing this.’’ She said. Taking one final look into the crazed eyes of the once promising doctor to find barely a shred of sanity left. Turning her head in victory and walking off the now ruined stage with a sigh. Slightly irritated at the prospect of having to find a new job.
Results[]
Alice Liddell
- +Mental fortitude to defeat her fears
- +More weapons and abilities
- +Supernatural abilities are more deadly
- +Hysteria and Gigantic Alice
- -Could fall for Scarecrows mental tricks
Scarecrow
- +More experience dealing with mental patients
- +Fear Gas would affect Alice’s Wonderland
- +Scarebeast is a physical powerhouse
- -Has little defensive options
- -Fear Gas effects could be nullified or turned against him
Boomstick: As the old saying goes: Never have a psychological contest with someone who can enter your mind and leave you braindead.
Wiz: Let's be honest here: This battle was never going to be decided in the physical realm. Scarecrow thrives on being one step ahead of his opponents mentally, and Alice could literally access people's minds. So this would come down to who could break the other first.
Boomstick: Specifically, could Scarecrow destroy Alice's already mentally challenged mind before she breaks his. The short answer is, maybe, with enough time. Dr. Crane is a walking textbook of all phobias and could exploit Alice's fears, but it's not like she’s a stranger to people trying to mess with her mind anyway.
Wiz: The fear gas was without a doubt Scarecrow's greatest weapon against the former asylum patient. Against anyone else, it could warp his opponents mind to his will, project hallucinations and even drive them mad… if they weren’t already. Which is where our biggest factor comes into play.
Boomstick: In case it wasn't already made clear, Alice is already kinda nuts. Sure this can be used against her and Scarecrow could exploit her fears, but its nothing she's never done before. Plus, some people can resist the fear gas just through sheer willpower, or pure insanity. And Alice has a bit of both.
Wiz: Alice has already faced creatures much more terrifying than even the Scarebeast, including the Jabberwock and The Dollmaker, the latter being able to spread his influence over the entirety of Wonderland. And even when confronted by him and physically transformed against her will, Alice had the mental fortitude to break free.
Boomstick: And we know what you’re thinking, but Scarecrow could warp the minds of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. Shouldn’t he be able to do the same to Alice? Again, maybe, but for all of those cases he always needed some variant of his toxins. Like adding Kryptonite to Superman's or changing the strength of his others to affect Batman, and he’s no stranger losing family. And since Alice is already used to ‘creepy as fuck doctors’ messing with her mind, he’d need to give her something worse than what she’s already used to.
Wiz: And while the Scarebeast is a physical unit that can overpower almost anyone with its strength and endless radiation of fear toxins, it's nothing Alice has never fought before. Physical strength was not much of a factor considering she is easily weaker than almost all of her normal foes anyway.
Boomstick: Except for when she grew to the size of a building and gained the strength to crush entire armies. Plus, its been said that she can warp other peoples minds to suit her needs, like when she did it to Richard Wagner. And when they are in the mental world, Alice has way more weapons and abilities at her disposal than Crane, who by this point could only keep pumping in fear gas and hoping that something in Alice snaps.
Wiz: Unfortunately for Crane, an angry and determined Alice is the last thing he wants. Not only is his most powerful form physically overpowered, but even his own mind would be susceptible to Alice's ability to travel to and manipulate the ‘otherworlds’.
Boomstick: Crane has shown resistance to mental attacks in the past, but the big difference between him and Alice is that he has yet to conquer his own fears. Even the Mad Hatter knew as much when he entered Cranes mind. And sure, Alice isn’t exactly all there, but at least she had two games to actually fight her problems head on, while Crane is still very susceptible to his own toxins. It's why he wears that ugly mask.
Wiz: For all his experience dealing with Arkham's patients, Dr. Crane has simply never faced anyone like Alice. Her mental fortitude and supernatural abilities trumped everything the Scarecrow could throw at her and more.
Boomstick: Crane was so afraid by the end, it's a ‘Wonder’ he was able to ‘Land’ at all.
The Winner is Alice Liddell
Next Time[]
Music[]
Trivia[]
- This is essentially a battle of the opposites as Crane is a psychiatrist who uses peoples personal fears against them while Alice was an asylum inmate whose entire journey has been fighting her personal demons.
- This will be more of a psychological battle than a physical one.
- Crane and Alice both had their fair share of tragic childhood moments, with each one damaging their respective psyches for years to come. Though of course they handled it very differently.
- Without their signature weapons/abilities, both are rather weak in the physical sense. Crane can only become the Scarecrow when using his Fear Gas, and Alice only has access to her abilities in Wonderland or in the 'Otherlands'
- Scarecrows main method of attack is using his Fear Gas, which brings out a persons worst nightmares. Alice suffers from PTSD and the trauma brings upon her own twisted nightmares.
- This was initially going to be Alice Liddell vs Laughing Jack (Pastamonsters), but after some more thorough research (thanks kirbysakurai)it was decided that it wouldn't be much of a fair fight, so Jack was replaced with Scarecrow.