Chapter 6: Harley's 7 and Shaggy's 4
Gotham City Casino– Amusement Mile
"So, why don't we just dump a load of Scarecrow's gas into the museum's ventilation system, make off with the loot, and call it a day?" Killer Croc asked. "I mean, it'd be real easy to just walk in and–"
"Get the Bat on our trail faster than can say 'Masks on'?" Two-Face butted in, barely looking up from a colossal assortment of papers on the desk in front of him. "In case you forgot, this ain't some two-bit bank job."
"How about we go and ask Catwoman if she's inter–" Killer Moth began.
"Last I heard, the good Miss Kyle's tryin' to go legit. Besides, we've got enough hands on deck for divvying up the proceeds of both this and the mummy's curse as is."
"Speaking of, how are we splitting the loot?" Clayface asked. "Equal shares or…?"
"We split it 50/10/5." Two-Face replied. "Fifty percent for Harley, ten for Licciardi and Walker, five apiece for the rest of us." He turned to Pagliacci. "Consider it the severance package Joker would've never given you."
The Batcave
"Spoiler's descriptions of the other three 'weirdos' accompanying Rogers seem to match up with those in this article from the National Exaggerator." Batman said as a newspaper clipping materialized on the Batcomputer's screen.
"' Monsters in our midst– military cadets in rural Louisiana report 'ghoul school' next door'"." Alfred read. "I must say, sir– the writer definitely has a vivid imagination. A school for monsters– preposterous!"
"Given the Exaggerator's track record, I'd normally agree with you on that one." came the reply. "This time, however? It looks like the story's got legs."
"Explain, sir." an incredulous Alfred said.
"First clue is the origin of the sightings– one Calloway Military School, Montrivelle Parish." Batman replied. "According to parish records, the only other school nearby is Eleanor Grimwood's Finishing School for Girls, founded in 1921– a full thirty years before Calloway was established."
"Grimwood? What kind of family name is that?"
Batman was silent as he tapped a few keys, a flood of other clippings promptly joining the one from the Exaggerator. "Ever since that school was founded, Montrivelle's become a hotspot for supernatural sightings– the most recent being about a year or two ago, when one of the local swamp dwellers reported seeing a werewolf, a mummy, a ghost, a younger version of the Bride of Frankenstein, something resembling a potato with tentacles and a single eye, and what he thinks might've been a vampire."
"Are you sure it wasn't those…'Creature Commandos' that Misses Zatara and Diana occasionally work with?"
"Not unless they've drastically lowered their enlistment age, at least if the mummy's supposed height is anything to go by." He rubbed his chin. "Question is, what're our supernatural friends here doing in Gotham?"
Grant Park– same time
"Coach, what's that mean?" Tanis asked, pointing at a passerby.
"What's what mean?" came the reply.
"What's written on that man's shirt– 'Dakota Wasn't an Accident'."
Shaggy nervously swallowed. "It's a long story for another day. Like whenever we, like, pass by that neck of the woods." He looked up at his watch. "Now, where could the others have gone? It's, like, nearly time for lunch!"
"Don't worry about us, Coach. We're here." a familiar voice said.
Shaggy turned to face the source of said voice. There, standing a short distance away, were a sopping wet Scooby and Sibella, with Phantasma lazily drifting in the air just to the side.
"What happened?" Tanis worriedly asked.
"We learned that in addition to being beautiful and graceful creatures, swans are also pure evil." Sibella replied.
"Reah!" Scooby added.
" What's this about swans?" Shaggy asked.
Phantasma gulped. "…remember how the three of us were going to rent out one of those rowboats?" she said, nervously tapping her pointer fingers together.
Shaggy felt a pit beginning to form in his stomach. "What happened?"
"Well, we got attacked by a swan and it kinda pecked a hole in the boat." the spectral girl continued, an overwhelming feeling of dread working its way through her spine (or at least what would've been her spine in life). "And now, it's…um…at the bottom of the lake."
Shaggy gulped. "Why do I feel that, like, things can only get worse from here?"
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
Don't worry, folks– the plot's about to kick in soon. As for the "Dakota Wasn't an Accident" t-shirt, that's a reference to Static Shock, and I'll probably go into more detail on that one if/when Mystery Inc. crosses paths with Static, while the National Exaggerator was a tabloid that appeared in A Pup Named Scooby-Doo.