*A/N: So after reading the comments the first excerpt received, it has been made clear to me that this story is worth continuing! And therefore here is the next chapter! ^^ Hope you like it, chapter three should be up this weekend :)
"Bruce?" Superman asked, surprised, as he studied the ominous black wolf in front of him. "Ah, finally! We've been looking everywhere for-"
"-Where are the others?" Batman interrupted as he peered out of the alleyway, making sure there were no officers in sight. "I take it the suppressant wore off on everyone?" He commented in regards to his friend's new form.
"Looks that way," Superman replied, taking a look back at his own tail, before studying his friend's jet-black fur and eerie golden eyes. "Flash and Lantern are out looking for Diana. Figured we'd cause less of a panic if I let the two of them search the city. Not every day you see a lion taking a walk through Metropolis," he joked. "Hopefully they'll find her and be here soon, if they even know where we-" his response was quickly cut short as Batman leapt atop the dumpster and let out a loud, long howl. Completely ignoring Superman's perplexed expression, he looked away and continued to bay at the night sky a second time, before jumping down from his perch and returning to the phone booth. "What was that?" chuckled Superman in confusion. "Didn't know it was a full moon tonight?" He commented as he looked up at the starry night sky.
"A wolf's howl can be heard from up to six miles away," Batman calmly replied as he proceeded to study the outside of the phone booth. "Ten, if done so in a scarcely wooded area. If the others are anywhere in the city, they'll hear that- like you did- and they'll know where to come looking." He continued as he turned around and kicked a panel of the phone booth with his hind legs, causing it to pop off and reveal a series of wires and switches. "We have to get to the Watchtower," Batman said as he began studying the various switches and wires. "Once there, I can use the lab to further examine the compounds in Grodd's serum and put together an antidote to change us back," he dictated as he began to fiddle with the switches and pluck wires free with his teeth.
"Sounds like a plan; but how are we gonna get there if you're taking the transporter apart?" Clark asked, watching several frayed circuits get tossed aside.
"I've already tried to gain access to the transporter manually. You can imagine how that ended," Bruce replied as he pulled his head out of the circuit box and stared down at Clark's paws sarcastically. "The only other option is to override the system and control it verbally."
"But how are we even going to do that?" Clark asked, still completely unsure of his friend's plan. "If people don't understand what we're trying to tell them, how will this machine?"
"Because I'm reprogramming it to do so," Bruce responded as he flipped another switch with his paw and pushed in a button with his nose.
"And if this doesn't wo-"
"-It will," Bruce bluntly interrupted as he spit out another wire and backed away from the circuit box. After a moment of studying the various circuits he'd removed, Bruce entered the phone booth and, ignoring the keypad that had failed him on his first attempts; he sat down and let out a long baritone growl.
"I take it it didn't work?" Clark asked skeptically; but as Bruce exited the booth and stood beside his friend, a satisfied grin slid across his face as the booth lit up and responded.
"Voice Recognized: Batman," the machine lifelessly remarked. Confidently, Bruce shot Clark a quick, sideways glance, before returning to work on the transporter.
"Impressive," Clark irritably sighed. "Now we just have to find Lantern, Flash and Diana and we can get out of here."
"They'll be here," Bruce assured, as he turned around and looked out towards the alley's entrance, his ears erect and his nose to the wind. "They're not far."
"How can you tell?"
"How often do you see golden eagles in the city?" Batman calmly replied just as the large bird of prey proceeded to swoop down from the skies.
"Lantern," Superman exclaimed as he watched John awkwardly land on the dumpster's edge and stretch his wings.
"You know, I never thought it would be this difficult, but I have to give Shayera credit," John said exhaustedly. "This is hard!"
"Yeah well, it's not like this is any easier," shouted Wally as he clumsily stumbled into the alley. "You know those moments, as a kid, when you imagine what it would be like to have a tail?" he sighed, speaking between gasps of air. "Well, it's not as fun as I thought it would be," he joked as he sat down in front of Superman, cautiously minding the placement of his friend's tail, being sure not to sit on it or his own. Still focused on finishing the booth, Batman finally paused and turned from his work to acknowledge the presence of his teammates, looking from Lantern, down to Flash. "Hey GL, see," Flash exclaimed as he stood up and walked towards Batman, studying his ominous new appearance. "What I tell ya? He's not a bat!" He said excitedly, while walking a lap around Bruce, studying his long tail and think black fur. Annoyed, both Bruce and John rolled their eyes and tried to ignore Wally's observation. "See, even a total jerk like Luthor isn't that unimaginative," he laughed as he looked from Batman's large paws to Green Lantern bronze-tinted wings and dagger-like talons. Shaking his head in response to the remark, Batman proceeded to turn back to the phone booth, until his attention was caught by the beautiful spotted leopard that shyly turned into the alleyway and looked around at the menagerie of conversing animals. Covered in intricate rosettes and spots- some of which, closely resembling the stars that had adorned her uniform- she casually entered the alley and made her way toward the phone booth. Before she noticed him staring, Bruce quickly spun around and stuck his head back into the circuit box to complete his task.
"Thank Hera," Diana sighed happily as she entered the alley and greeted her friends. After sharing her relief that everyone was together with Superman, she approached the jet black tail that stuck out of the phone booth. "Batman?" she asked curiously. At first Bruce didn't respond, pretending to be too focused on his work; but after sudden jolt of pain shot through his body- someone pulling his tail- Bruce finally turned to acknowledge her presence.
"Diana," he finally replied as he stared, in awe, at the various rosettes spattered over her coat. Before he could utter another word, Wonder Woman cut him off in an attempt to start a conversation.
"A wolf," she commented as she examined the thick black fur that covered Bruce's body, and his shining amber eyes. "Funny, but this suits you," she laughed.
"Don't get used to it," Bruce replied, his ears dropping briefly as he turned back to his work, embarrassed. "Alright it should be ready now," he continued as he pushed the panel back onto the circuit box and slipped the extra wires under the dumpster.
"We're not all going to fit at once." Superman advised as he proceeded to direct his team. "Flash, you and Lantern will cause less of a panic, so you two will go through first. Batman, Wonder Woman and I-" suddenly the sound of cars rushing down the street and police sirens wailing, drowned out their plans as the team frantically retreated to the shadows to hide.
"You sure this is the right place?" asked one of the officers as he stepped out of his car. "We've already had men scan this area and come back with no results."
"A woman in one of these buildings says she saw a polar bear come through this alley, and others have been complaining about a stray dog howling all night…" Despite the sour expressions on both Clark and Bruce's faces, John, Wally and Diana couldn't help but cover their mouths and force back the urge to laugh. As the officers examined the alley further, John watched from a fire escape as the officers passed by Clark and Diana- hiding behind the dumpster- and made their way toward Wally, crouched beneath an overturned couch. Seeing their window of opportunity, Bruce- hiding in plain sight, thanks to his solid black coat- quietly signaled from the shadows for Superman and Wonder Woman to enter the phone booth. At first Diana stared at him as if he were crazy- eyeing the tranquilizer guns in the officers' hands; but the harsh glare in Bruce's stern, yellow eyes solidified his command, and obediently, both Diana and Clark managed to slip into the booth without being seen. Once inside, Clark nodded as Bruce snarled at the phone booth- activating the teleportation sequence, while also gaining the officers' attention.
As one of the officers turned in Batman's direction and approached, he was suddenly startled by the robotic monotone of the teleporter's audio system. "Voice Recognized: Batman," the speakers said as the officers spun around just in time to see a flash of light engulf a leopard and a giant white lion! Firing their weapons at the sight, the men became even more confused when the lights faded, revealing that the two big cats had somehow vanished! While they proceeded to check the mysterious phone booth, Bruce looked up at John and signaled for Wally to get ready to make a break for the booth. Quietly, John managed to fly past the officers and exit the alley. While the men continued to look inside the booth, Wally exited his hiding place and began to creep forward, just then, the men were startled by the sound of breaking glass and a trash can hitting the sidewalk. Immediately they reacted and ran out of the alley to the scene of the noise, allowing Wally and Bruce to jump into the teleporter. Shortly after, John returned and perched on Bruce's back as he prepared to activate the machine.
"Good work, John," he commented before barking into the speaker and activating the teleportation sequence.
"Same to you; but what are we supposed to do when we get to the Watchtower?" John asked as the booth began to light up.
"Leave that to me," Bruce replied as the final flash of light sparked in the alley and the three were ported up to the Watchtower.