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Episode 0: A Bird's Beginning Part Two

Gotham City, June 15th 9:55 pm

There they were at another small business set up as a front. It was an appliance store with a large back room. He figured it was used as a way to carry big boxes and hide all the shipments of weapons. They looked on wards to the ally at the back of the building. There were definitely more guards than last time. He watched with his goggles as a truck pulled up and higher trained guards emptied out of the vehicle. There was no doubt that the Ra's Al Ghul was being more prepared in the light of tonight's fiasco but he didn't have enough time to move everything. They were already on his trail

"So what exactly can you do?" Robin asked Raven as they surveyed the area and counted the guards.

Raven hesitated. "Well… I guess in simple terms, I can bend shadows and darkness at will. I can construct them into solid weapons if I want to" She said. She didn't want to explain her entire lists of powers. She might say too much and inhibit her ability to escape; it was also way too complicated that even she couldn't fully comprehend and… it scared her. "I counted twenty six. You?"

"Same," Robin replied. "You can heal too. Can you heal anything?"

Her face twisted under her mask. She knew an interrogation when she heard one. It might be disguised as a friendly conversation but there was no getting around what it was. "If you're asking if I can heal cancer, the answer is no" She didn't want to talk about herself. She just wanted to get what her information. She needed it… "Who's that?"

There was a woman with pink, straight hair that reached her back and she wore a red fully body cat suit that flattered her figure and widened her shoulders. She certainly wasn't part of the League of Assassins; she didn't look familiar anyway.

Batman narrowed his eyes. That was strange. She almost looked like- footsteps from behind! He drew one of his batarangs and quickly turned around towards the noise. The young fighters followed suit; Robin drew his own weapon while Raven gathered darkness in her hands. Three figures emerged; there were three more heroes. Well whoopee, three more people to get in her way

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Where's the fire?" A green cladded man stepped out of the shadows into everyone's views. Batman and Robin lowered their weapons; Raven thought best to follow their example. Green Arrow, Speedy and- she got a good look at the young lady and she could not believe it.

It was Black Canary! She couldn't believe she was basking in her light!

"On a late run? Who's the girl?" Dinah was shocked to see another kid by Brue's side. She looked a little older than Robin judging by the height differences but she couldn't make out her face; it was just too covered. The black energy circling around her hands really caught the heroine's attention. "Take on a new sidekick?"

"No." Batman said curtly. "This is Raven. She had information on the League of Assassins. You're a long way from home Green Arrow." He'll explain the whole story to the two later.

"Same as you I bet. Although, we ended up following Greyeyes instead of the Assassins." answered Green Arrow.

"Camorouge… I'm guessing that's her," Batman gestured to the woman talking

"She's an assassin that stole some equipment from the military that can turn her invisible. She's being hired to help Sportsmaster transfer some weapons and documents but it's all a cover up. She's supposed to steal a list, a very important one" Batman formed a permeant line across his face. So, the girl was telling the truth.

"Secret Identities," He didn't ask. He didn't have to. Green Arrow nodded.

He said, "We were going to give you a call but we see you're already here"

Black Canary turned to the young girl. "How did you know about it?" A young girl like her shouldn't be mixed up in all this. That didn't sit right with Black Canary. There must have been more going on.

"Like I told him, I'm not saying anything until I get what I want" She sounded harsh but Raven actually admired Black Canary. When she saw her on the news once, her fighting style was remarkable and her technique was close to flawless. The control she had over her situation and her presence in the battlefield was applause worthy. However, this was no time to start fan-girling and groveling.

"And that is?"

She chose her battles. If she didn't say anything, Batman could have done so. Besides, it worked for one hero, why not the other. "My mother," she answered. A wave of empathy crossed Black Canary and Raven could feel it. It felt cool almost like a summer's breeze. That was so weird and different…

Green Arrow and Speedy looked at each other. Green Arrow asked Batman, "Should she be… going against the League of Assassins?"

"I can handle myself, thank you" Raven didn't like being ignored as if she wasn't there. She maybe young and not a hero but she could do with some respect.

"What can you even do?" Speedy interjected. What was this 'Twenty Questions'? She didn't have time for this. She had a goal to reach and time to use

She said, "I can manipulate shadows; think Green Lantern but less gaudy"

"She can heal too! My wrist was basically shattered until she fixed it up"

Well, they could tell by the gesture that the girl wasn't malicious, at least they thought so. That still left a whole slew of questions and that didn't garner their trust. Green Arrow couldn't help but think it was weird that Batman was able to make an alliance so quickly. In the heat of the battle, maybe but a mission like this? That was weird. He could never tell what was going on in Bruce's head. He looked at Batman and caught his head. The dark hero nodded as a symbol to trust him. The green hero would just have to wait.

"We're going to have to the cut chit chat short. Time is of the essence" Batman broke the silence. Right… Raven had to remember that they were doing a job; she was so busy getting wrapped up in other people's emotions and speculations. Her head was starting to hurt.

The small team turned to the edge of the building and looked down the alleyway.

Black Canary asked, "So what do you see?"

Batman answered, "They're getting ready to move everything."

"So what's the plan?"

Gotham City, Get 'Em All Appliance store, June 15th 10:01 pm

Sportsmaster had to be cautious and quick. With the Batman on his tail he had to move all this stuff quicker than originally planned. He had to get to Ra's Al Ghul as soon as possible; there was a traitor amongst them.

"Camo! We got to get those boxes! I'm not getting paid because you want to take your sweet time," he growled at the broad. He didn't like her but she stole a lot of stuff for the League so Ra's found her useful even though neither of them trusted her. He had a thing for keeping useful folks around.

There was a small crash that came from the side alleyway.

Camorouge replied "How about you do something useful with your mouth and tell your flunkies to be more careful?"

"Well, I outrank you so how about you check it out, unless you have a problem with that…" He dared her to test him. They both knew she was walking on thin ice with the League and if she wanted to complete this mission then she had to obey. He wasn't giving her enough time to stay inside to invade the system. She had to make this quick.

She growled and shuffled towards the noise. Stupid cu- what the…? A lower rank member lied on the floor obviously knocked out. There were a couple of arrows that surrounded the body. There just had to be another one of them. Well, they're plan was fucked. An arrow whizzed towards her but she managed to dodge and rolled away from the attack.

"They never seem to go down on the first arrow," Green Arrow amused. He drew another arrow while Black Canary jumped down for an attack. She swung at the thief. The two had a small dance of punches, dodges and kicks.

Camorouge quickly turned her invisible suit on. Something complicated just had to happen.

Sportsmaster should have known better. His hopes were way too high. He rolled his eyes as he blocked another batarang. Separate the two so he could be easier to take down. He was playing it smart. He pulled his weapon out.

Sportsmaster rushed at the Batman. He dipped and weaved right as he was about to reach him and slashed downwards with his machete. Batman parried with one of his gauntlets and the blade clashed against the metal strapped to Batman's arms with a shriek that sent sparks flying into the air. The mercenary was quick and uppercut slashed at the hand to hand warrior, attempting to catch Batman from stem all the way to stern.

Batman sidestepped to the right just enough and the blade passed a hairs breath from his face.

Green Arrow was having a bit of a hard time to pinpoint the invisible woman while Black Canary had a tough time to dodge the upcoming attacks. Green Arrow was able to take down the guards that tried to jump in. Raven took noticed and concentrated her energy. Her eyes glowed white. Shadows reached from the gutter of the alley and tiptoed across the ground. It searched and it looked through everyone's energy. A feeling of pride, channeled anger and hurried eagerness crept through Raven. She found her! Darkness wrapped around the body from the feet to the shoulders. Camorouge gasped as she was suddenly restrained and a feeling of darkness covered her body in such an unpleasant way.

With her form revealed, Black Canary was able to throw a punch across her face and an arrow shot at her back. Electricity ran threw her body from the shot; it completely fried her suit's system. Shadows released her as she was finally exposed and fell on the floor. Camorouge would just have to rely on her skills. She rolled out of the way from another arrow and Black Canary was quick to follow with another swing.

The fight between Camorouge and Black Canary had taken them dangerously close to the edge of the alleyway and Black Canary had her back almost to the wall, despite her counter offensive.

Camorouge was still open for more attacks though and the heroine was not done.

A quick, rushed blow had opened Camorouge up for another attack and Black Canary obliged her, putting a simple sidekick into the villainess' stomach, doubling her over. Black Canary followed that up with a quick rising uppercut.

A few guards rushed over to help take down Batman. Speedy withdrew an arrow and shot it towards a couple of guards. Their swords were shot out their hands.

Raven formed a sword in her hand. She hopped down followed by Robin as they play second defense. During the first blows, Raven concentrated on her defense and let her muscles settle into the rhythm of swordplay. Her movements were raw yet they had a nice polish touch. She was poised and graceful like a dancer but her strikes were powerful and dangerous. Her moves were kept unpredictable. Robin took noticed; she was trained and trained well. She was at the same stage as him; she had been through the basics and taking on advanced skills.

When the henchman slashed backhanded in a return blow, Raven thrusted her blade vertically and caught it before it cut her in half. She kicked at the man behind her while she blocked from another man that came from the left.

Taking the opening and using the environment to his advantage, Robin ran up and back flipped onto the wall and pushed off towards the henchmen. The maneuver sent him front flipping towards his opponents and just before he reached the swordsmen, Robin flattened his body out, feet first. Instead of colliding with his adversary though, Robin opted to wrap his feet around the man's neck instead.

The maneuver caught the man off guard as he was recovering his wits, once again.

Robin gave him an apologetic shrug mid air. As if to say, "sorry" for what was going to come next. He flipped the man and threw him into another, taking them both down.

Robin used his momentum in a creative way, rather than piling into his opponent. He jerked to the right to avoid an attack and swung around the next henchwoman rushing him. Then, when he was directly behind his opponent, Robin grabbed the henchmen, jumped into the air and angled his body towards the ground, putting the weight of his jump into a powerful throw.

The henchman was pulled off her feet violently and was thrown across the floor. She skidded and tumbled along the ground, uncontrolled. She was stopped by the other end of the alley floor, about five feet from the wall at the back of the other side. A groan escaped her lips as the pain from the attack started setting in and then enabled her useless.

"It's in here!" Raven called out to him. Robin turned to see the adults fighting with the two mercenaries. They're nasty moves were giving the heroes a run for their money. He took it upon himself to go with Raven. He couldn't just leave her to go alone in there. He took initiative and went with Raven. She ran into the building with Robin not too far behind her.

They snuck into the building. There were only a couple of people standing by as everyone was outside dealing with the commotion. "Maybe we should wait-," Robin started.

"No. Everyone is busy outside and we can't wait for someone else to be called in," she explained.

Shadows rose up from the ground and grabbed a guard to swing him across the building's backroom. The other guard looked towards that direction with his weapon drawn. Robin came up from behind; he jumped and kicked him in the head. There was no one else in the way, finally

"See? Easy," Raven said. The two went up to an unusual metal door. It was a sore thumb in a store and if no one else came back to look, no one would have notice it.

Raven started punching in numbers. Her fingers pressed code after code and button after button.

Access Granted

They were in! She started to get nervous; maybe she could finally stop her search, maybe this was the end. They opened the door and stepped inside.

There was a large computer that almost took up the small room along with a couple of boxes and a chair. Robin immediately sat down on the chair. He could probably do this faster than her.

"Can you hack it?" Raven asked as she stood guard by the door.

Robin answered, "Yeah. It should be a piece of cake." The mainframe looked simple to bypass. There was definitely some expert computer work in the security system but nothing he can't break. Just got to give him a couple more seconds… He was in! "Alright, I got it!" He actually did it! He really had a knack for it. They didn't call him the boy wonder for no reason after all

Raven approached the computer. Robin went away and try to find the right code for the file. "Try JL219," she said. Robin turned and gave her look. "Just do it, ok? We don't have all the time in the world."

Robin typed it in and a file popped up. He clicked it on and behold to unecrypted folder to his surprise. There was the list of every Justice League member and to his better knowledge most of them were correct. "I just need to take it and destroy it through their entire system," Robin said. He inserted an unique flash drive into the computer

Raven shrugged. "That's fine by me." She didn't care what happened as long as she could get what she wanted.

"Alright I think I got it!" With the right technology, he was able to receive the information.

"Don't destroy it yet! I need to see where my mother is," Raven reminded him.

Robin asked, "Do you have a name or something?"

"Angela."

He typed it in. "There's a few. Don't you know her last name?"

Raven ignored him and looked at the computer. She typed in a few buttons of her own. "There." She clicked on a picture of a young girl. Her file blew up on the screen.

She looked so… young. She couldn't have been older than eighteen. Her eyes were wide with curiosity but not with innocence. She had such a sad look in her eye. She looked so much like her. Their hair flowed the same way with the same widow's peak. She was a little pale but didn't have the same inhuman skin tone she had.

Angela Roth. Her last name was Roth. Raven didn't know how she felt when that name rolled off her tongue. She was seventeen when she went missing fourteen years ago. She was so young and so naïve.

She clicked on another button to dig deeper into her file. Last seen in Gotham! Last seen…

Raven eyes widened and her shoulder slunk. Last seen dead.

Police reports indicated they found a dead body of a young lady who recently gave birth. Dental records and eyewitnesses identify Jane Doe as Angela Roth. Killer has not been found and the case was labeled cold

She was dead… Shadows wrapped around the room as it darkened. He lied to her. They stretched out and crept outside the door way. The streets were blackening like vision. Her fists clenched as she looked down. She closed her eyes. Darkness widened throughout the building. She could feel the blood pumping in her ears.

"I'm sorry." A hand touched her shoulder. It was warm. It was like smooth hot chocolate coming down your throat as enlightened your taste buds. It was a nice cup of chamomile tea before bed or a heated blanket when you settle in bed after a long, cold day. Shadows retreated into the corners and darkness calmed for another day.

She took out the flash drive and handed it to Robin. "A deal's a deal. You can destroy it," she whispered. She sounded so disappointed. He could hear it drip from her voice. He implanted the virus into the system. Robin looked back at the girl. She looked so disappointed but… not sad.

"Robin," a stern voice called out. He turned to see Batman in the doorway. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I got it done and the list." Robin raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I be ok?" Robin held out the flash drive. Batman looked at him and then Raven.

"Because she almost took us out!" Speedy exclaimed as he appeared. "She attacked us!" He pointed at Raven. She turned around to the heroes surrounding.

"Which made Sportsmaster get away," Batman said as he scowled down at the teenager.

Robin was confused. "She was right here the whole time and I'm fine" He figured someone needed to give her a break. She just found out her mother gone and he knew how it feels to lose a parent young.

"Well who else can bend shadows and snap three people's neck?" Speedy accused.

Green Arrow and Black Canary examined the two guards outside the computer room. They were ghostly white. Their jaws were unhinged in an unnatural way. Eyes rolled to back of their heads. Their hands were reaching out and bones stuck in a sickly way.

Black Canary looked the young girl as she looked frightened but not by them.

Raven held her hands. "I-I didn't mean to!" she stuttered as she backed further into the computer.

"I know." Black Canary said as she pushed passed the boys. "You don't have full control." She put her hands on her shoulders as she knelt down to her eye level. "It's ok."

Gotham City, June 15th 10:32 pm

Raven stood back as the heroes circled around to have their little meeting. They were gathered on top of the roof as the police and ambulance circled around the appliance store. Camorouge was being shifted off to jail with the rest of the goons.

Raven stared over the city. Somewhere in this city, she was born and somewhere in this city, Angela died. Angela died and Raven wasn't left with any answers. She stepped on the edge on the building as she looked away from all the commotion and all the hassle. She was going to be in some deep shit.

"Don't go anywhere," Green Arrow said as he glared at her. She put her hands up in a defensive position. She knew how to pick her battles. She plopped down on the edge. She could run from whatever prison they lock her up in. They didn't know everything about her powers. The inhibitors could only cancel out what they knew right? She could be sneaky about it…

"Hey." Black Canary stepped behind her. "Mind if I join you?" Raven shrugged. She didn't care. Black Canary took a seat next to her. They looked out at the city. There were so many bad things that took place there but it was their home. "I'm sorry about your mother." She shrugged again

Raven pulled her knees to her chest. She never turned to face the blond heroine.

"I was so close," Raven whispered.

"I'm sure your mom was a great woman," she tried to reassure her.

Raven's dug her nails into her arms. "I don't know. I've never met her."

"And I'm sure she loved you."

"No, she didn't." She quickly shut down whatever pitiful speech she was trying to give her. Raven didn't feel pity but understanding from the older woman; she just couldn't stand cliché pep talks.

"You don't know that," Black Canary said softly.

Raven didn't respond to that. "I just wanted some answers. Who was she? Is Raven the name she gave me or someone else? I didn't know her so it's not like I'm sad that I found this out. I just-," She couldn't wrap her head around it. "This whole plan was stupid."

Dinah stared down at her. The young girl had skill and so much potential. "I don't think so. You cared and had enough heart to search for her. You didn't quit no matter what even though you were face to face with Batman himself" she joked. Raven smirked. That was also stupid. "Robin said you knew what exactly to look for. I saw you fight too. You were trained."

Raven frowned. That was even more stupid. If she wasn't being so rash and so impatient. She was impatient for no reason; her mother was dead. She pulled her mask down from her face. She revealed a tired expression and grey skin.

"I was trained by the League of Assassins." That was twist Black Canary wasn't expecting but made sense the more she thought about it. "They took me in and trained me. He said- Ra's Al Ghul said he knew where my mother was. I waited and I waited but he wasn't giving me any answers. He was bluffing; he was lying… I was in control at first but my powers are increasing faster than I can put a handle on. Peter Marrot. He was scum; he turned people in to be executed by the Assassins but his wife was so sweet. I met her when I was sent to protect them while they moved. She made me cookies to thank me for my hard work. She was so excited about her baby and raising her with Peter but now..." She said sweet as if it was a foreign words. She looked down at her hands.

Dinah "Black Canary" Laurel Lance remember blowing everyone's eardrums the first time her canary cry emerged. Half the class remained deaf and some of them didn't make it to their next birthday. She remembered feeling all the regret that circled around her and the dread the weighed her down when she found out her mother died. She rested a hand on Raven's shoulder. Canary touch felt like so relaxing like a calm breeze whisking her worries away.

"You know I saw you on the news once?" Raven said as she finally looked at the heroine. "I remember how you took all those men down. You were poised and in control. They were bigger than you, maybe stronger but not better. I always looked up to that," Raven admitted. They smiled at each other. Black Canary felt so…homey. It was nice…

"Alright, I think we figured out what to do with you." Green Arrow, Batman, Speedy, and Robin all walked towards the girls. The two stood up. "As soon as you tell us everything-,"

"She was raised by the League of Assassins. They lied to her about her mother so she was forced to stay with them," Black Canary said curtly. They widened their eyes.

Green Arrow snapped out of his stupor. "Well, you don't have any control of your powers. Star Labs have a-,"

"I'll train her." Black Canary said.

"What?!"

A twist of occurrence made everyone look her with shocked expressions "We were talking. I think she could be a good hero; she can save a lot of lives."

"Are you crazy? Did you see what she did?" Green Arrow approached her

She put her hands on her hips. "Crazy?" She glared at him and dared him to say another word. Green Arrow turned to Batman for some assistant. The Dark Knight wasn't touching that with a ten foot pole.

Batman didn't know about this. She would be hunt down by the Assassins if they weren't too careful but she was also hiding something. If she was willing to open up to Canary now, why not more later? He also had to do his own research on Angela Roth...

"She needs protection from the Assassins. They'll come after her and I'm not letting her be locked up. Star Labs is just another prison. She's needs guidance and proper training. She'll get it with me." She was right and she knew they knew she was right.

Train with Canary and be a hero? She couldn't believe what she heard. Could she do it? Could she be better than her parents? It did sound pleasing to her.

Egypt, June 15th 11:51 pm

"So I lost the Gem?" Ra's Al Ghul clinched his wine glass as he looked out his window.

"Yes. We're sorry sir," a member said nervously.

Her power was becoming overwhelming but it was a power he found useful. He drummed his fingers on the arm of the chair. He planned his next steps carefully.

I hope everyone enjoys the second chapter! Raven's past will be explained down the road. I will enjoy all the criticism if anyone is willing to dish it out! Next chapter is the start of the series! I hope switching from different POVs wasn't too confusing. See you soon!

Peace~