1Birds of Prey

Issue One

Gather the Flock

Dinah Lance stared with contempt at the cerulean ceiling high above her head. It had an air of serenity and normalcy to it; Dinah hated everything about it. She knew that having such strong feelings about a ceiling was stupid and enough to classify her as completely mad, but it did not change her opinion. It was aggravating to see it just up above her completely at ease while she was down on her queen-sized bed tossing and turning beneath a set of purple sheets her mother had given to her several years ago.

She vaguely remembered a time when sleep had a firm place in her daily agenda, but that was one of the many "luxuries" she had sacrificed over the past two years. Sleep, friends, and work all seemed an impossibility since Dinah had taken up the nighttime career of a super heroine. One night off was all she wanted. One night where she could forget about all the atrocities being committed and could relax.

Dinah let out a sigh of defeat as she sat over the edge of her bed. She did not get days off. She turned on her stylish opaque lamp that rested on the oak night stand to the right of her bed and let her eyes adjust to the sudden brightness of the room. The red digits of her alarm clock added to her frustration by persistently reminding her that it was one in the morning. Dinah childishly unplugged the device before reaching under her night stand to grab the skeleton key taped to its underside.

Dinah slowly stood and trudged across the soft navy blue carpet until she reached a large black chest which was concealed under an assortment of linens. She haphazardly flung the pillows and blankets from the chest' top and scowled at the double locked chest before her eyes.

"Don't act like you don't know why I'm angry," she said as she diligently turned the dial of the combination lock. She placed the first lock by her side before inserting the skeleton key into its appropriate keyhole. She opened the chest and took the one white box in the pool of photo albums and tossed it onto her bed.

The daily work routine. No matter how exciting your job may be, getting ready for it is rarely an adventure. Dinah let her forest green silk night gown slip off her pale body as she made her way back to her bed. She always wished she could be less of a paranoid freak and just keep her costume tucked under her bed or in a dresser drawer. The truth was that she was so frightened by the idea of being exposed as Black Canary that she would never even entertain the idea. It was not that she ever had anyone in her room or in her house for that matter as of late, but she liked to play it safe.

Dinah quickly put on her work wear and proceeded to the bathroom so she could tie her hair into a ponytail. One of the first lessons she had learned was that long hair gets in the way. Last thing you want is for a breeze to cause your own hair to blind you when fighting five men all of whom are twice your size.

As she tied her long blonde hair behind her head, Dinah could not help but groan at the sight of herself in the full length mirror hanging on the bathroom door. Her costume was less than modest. A black spandex one piece clung tightly to her body not leaving much to the imagination. If that was not bad enough, fish net stocking covered her legs making her appear more like a prostitute rather than a heroine. Dinah had never really been the ugly duckling and had had the unwanted attention of all the boys since she was thirteen. Of course people rarely tend to objectify you when you are beating them senseless so maybe she was just being crazy again. It was her own choice not to wear a different costume. The revealing little number was the only keepsake she had of her mother's crime fighting days and it just would not feel right wearing something else.

Dinah continued through the motions as she snatched a small mask from her bed and walked out onto her balcony. The Philadelphia skyline though not as renowned as that of New York City was still a beauty worthy of admiration. She enjoyed looking out at the city at night when it was nothing more than a city of lights, its people tucked away safely in their beds. It reminded her of the Philadelphia she had grown up in as a child, a peaceful beautiful city. Of course she knew the city had not changed just her perspective of it. People tend to see what they are familiar with. Children see innocence, adults see anything but. Dinah's perspective was about as bleak as you could get. As Black Canary she had stopped murderers, rapist, pedophiles, and every other real world monster people are afraid of. She had seen the worst of the city, but that does not mean she does not like to pretend it is not there some times.

It was time to stop pretending and to fight the monsters.

Dinah took the small Dark blue mask large enough to cover her upper face and put it on. "I guess its time to get to work," she whispered to herself before climbing down her fire escape into the city officially punching in for the night.

"I am not a vigilante." It was the only thought that passed through Catalina Flores' mind as she remained perched on the rooftop of the small deli waiting. In fact it was the only thought that had comforted her over the last hellish weeks of her life. She was a working cog in a broken clock, but it would not be broken for long. She intended to fix it no matter what the cost. Officer Catalina Flores would bring justice to those who feared it.

Sweat glistened on the forehead of the young Hispanic cop as she moved the binoculars from her face for the first time in an hour. "They're late or worse they knew I'd be here."

It was the they part that was killing her. They were her friends. They were her coworkers. They were cops.

This time the cops were the bad guys and she had to stop them. It had been one week since incriminating photos linking notorious crime lord Yuri Gakk to a recent string of murders had mysteriously appeared at the doorsteps of the station. Everyone on the force knew Yuri Gakk was a vile piece of scum, but nobody had ever been able to prove it. Catalina was the one who found the pictures. She was convinced that God himself had sent them. Finally one of the major players in organized crime in Philadelphia was going to be brought down. After finding the pictures she immediately went to her chief's office to show him what she had found. His reaction was less enthusiastic then her own. He took the photos and politely asked her to stay quiet about them until he said otherwise. Politely asked soon turned to threatened, and she was told that telling anyone about the pictures would result in her death.

Catalina Flores was less than thrilled with this scenario. She had to do something and she did. She went to every informant she had and called in every favor owed to her and what she found out frightened her. It was not just the chief. Apparently nearly ten percent of the city's police force were employed by those they were suppose to protect the innocent from. One out of every ten cops was playing for the other team. Catalina was determined to make sure these photos ended up in the right hands, whomever's they may be. She could not go to her fellow officers because she honestly had no clue who was a "good guy" and who was not. She decided she would take care of the problem herself.

"I am not a vigilante," she thought to herself again. It was a lie, and she knew it. Her ordinary police uniform was replaced by an orange spandex body suit with a black spider insignia on the chest. Thick black combat boots covered her feet, and a black mask hid covered the lower half of her face. She was not dressed as Catalina Flores. She was dressed as the Tarantula. The costume had remained untouched for five years and she was hoping it stayed that way. Catalina was taking on a new identity to help the city, and she would not abandon it no matter how much she wanted to. Tarantula looked down to the one piece of officer Flores she carried with her, a standard 10mm. pistol holstered at her side. She was ready to use it if she had to.

Down below the small section of 17th street was devoid of life. Street lights illuminated the city trash cans and parked cars that filled the street. From what her intelligence had gathered tonight was the exchange. Her very own chief was going to trade the evidence away for cash only yards from the building atop which she hid. Catalina had never been a typical cop, and Tarantula was planning on showing Chief Kennedy why.

"Where the hell are these guys," muttered Brook Fortune before sipping at her cup of coffee. She had expected to get punched, cut, and even shot at, but she was not prepared to wait on a rooftop for forty five minutes being cooked alive by the hot summer night that added to the week long heat wave.

"Yo tin man. You sure we got the right spot?"

"First off I would appreciate it if you don't call me tin man. Secondly I am positive that this is where the exchange will take place. Be patient for once, Wing," said a deep voice from the communicator is Brook's ear.

"I'm just saying if I don't get to punch someone tonight, I'm going to end up recycling you."

"Puh-lease. You would not be able to perform the most menial of tasks without me breaking it down for you step by step."

"You gotta work on your insults big A. Anyway...," Wing trailed off as a police car slowly turned onto 17th street and parked in front of a small red building with the name Rex's Family Deli painted in white letters above the entrance. "We got a problem, A."

"What is it this time," came an annoyed reply.

"We got a serious situation here. Police just showed up," Wing informed her colleague as she eyed the plump 40 year old caucasian male in the driver's seat.

"You're right. We have a very big situation. Any sign of the cops and our dear friend Mr. Gakk will hightail it out of there. We may not get another chance like this to take Yuri Gakk down so...," Wing ignored the constant muttering from her communicator and watched as the driver walked out onto the sidewalk. All the signs were there. He was as fidgety as a five-year-old on a sugar rush and had an indiscrete brown envelope tightly clenched in his left hand. He was the seller.

"Shut up for a minute," Wing told A. "What exactly is Yuri supposed to be buying at this exchange?"

"I don't have any specifics. Why? Do you know something I don't?"

"This cop, I think he's the seller. He's a nervous wreck down there and he is carrying some kind of envelope." Wing examined the street and saw that it was still empty. "I'm moving in," she whispered as she took her communicator and placed it down next to her coffee. "Sorry Big A don't need you lecturing me on the stupidity of my plan."

Wing was not much for the fancy display. Her costume was simple. She wore all black spandex from head to toe. It made it easier to hide in the shadows that way. Of course she was more of a charge in and fight kind of girl so she really did not see the point in the color.

"Shit," she whispered to herself as a long white limousine turned onto the street and slowly drove toward the police car. "I guess Mr. Gakk does not mind standing out at all. I have to play it safe now. If Big A is right and Yuri came for the exchange he is going to have protection. Lots of protection."

Wing watched as several men in identical black suits stepped out of the car with Yuri Gakk climbing out behind them. Yuri Gakk had a look of disgust almost permanently painted on his face. He wore a white suit and his curly blond hair drooped down to his shoulders. He was a tall man at almost six and a half feet and very slender yet intimidating. Wing picked up her communicator once again. "Never mind the power play, A. Player number two has arrived and..."

"And what? Wing is something wrong," came a concerned voice from the once again discarded intercom.

Wing stared in disbelief as a woman dressed in orange leaped off of the deli rooftop and crashed down into the group of men surrounding Yuri Gakk. The woman jumped to her feet and gave a left hook to a balding guard to her left before delivering a spin kick to two others that had been behind her. The guards were oblivious to what was happening. Half of them were trying to make sense of the situation while the other half for getting their teeth kicked in. Wing had seen enough. Why should the crazy orange girl get all the fun?

Wing braced herself as she leapt off the rooftop down toward a car parked below. Pain seared through her back as she landed with a thud on the trunk before rolling onto the sidewalk. She crawled up to her feet silently cursing every action movie that had made similar stunts look easy. Sharp shrills of a car alarm killed the silence of the street as Wing raced across to join the fray.

Wing smiled as she felt bone and cartilage break beneath a hard jab to one of the seven anonymous faces that protected Yuri. Wing kicked another guard hard in the shin before elbowing his in the chin. She turned to see the woman dressed in orange slam the cop onto the hood of the white limousine before letting him roll onto the pile of groaning guards.

Wing was disappointed. The fight was already over and she barely got to throw a punch. She turned toward Mr. Gakk and gave him a sinister smile from beneath her black mask. "Yuri, I'm disappointed. I was expecting a little more of a fight tonight."

"Who the hell are you," asked Tarantula forcefully turning Wing around to face her.

"I'm Wing, but I'll also be the girl who kicks your ass if you get rough with me again. Now if you'll excuse me I have a crime lord to intimidate."

Wing turned back to Yuri Gakk who was screaming Various phrases in Russian incomprehensible to Wing. She turned back toward Tarantula. "Now you have him screaming. Are you happy," she said mockingly before being engulfed in a strange black energy that proceeded to toss her through a display window of a shoe store next to the deli.

Tarantula watched in confusion as the strange energy washed over the street before retreating back to a strange slender man now standing in front of Mr. Gakk. The man wore a pair black dress pants and a black sweater despite the hot weather. Black sunglasses covered his beady eyes and a black top hat rested atop his head. He carried a short black staff in his hand with a small opaque orb attached to its top. His face was an unnaturally pale white especially in contrast to his outerwear. Tarantula took a step back before glancing at the brown envelope that had been dropped next to the police car. She looked back at the strange man who wore a wide sly smile on his face. She leapt toward the envelope desperate to get what she came for. She landed hard on the cement as the black energy swept the package up and pulled it toward the man.

"Now that was not very nice was it. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Shade and you are whom exactly?"

Tarantula sprinted toward Shade fist clenched and ready for combat.

Shade let out a indignant snort before surrounding her in black energy and carelessly tossing her into a brick wall.

"That was quite rude of her," he told Yuri with smile as he handed him the envelope. He looked back at the now motionless Tarantula. "They did not put up much of a fight now did they."

"Kill them," ordered Mr. Gakk as he hurriedly climbed into his car.

"If you wish, but I really do not see the need for it."

Car alarms, gun shots, and some guy screaming in Russian. All these sounds told Black Canary that she was going the right way. "Time for a good ole fashion fight," she thought as she arrived at her destination. Unconscious bodies littered the tiny part of 17th street and single man dressed in black stood in front of a running limousine.

Before she could finish examining the battlefield black energy wrapped around her body from the neck down binding her completely. She struggled fruitlessly as she glided toward the sole man standing.

"I'm sorry for this my dear, but judging from your adorable little costume you are associated with those two," Shade said gesturing to the two unconscious costumed females lying at his feet. "It is really just more efficient to dispose off all three of you in one swift move. I'm also short on time so we will have to skip pleasantries such as knocking you out first. "

Dinah gritted her teeth as the energy squeezed the life out of her."You don't have to be sorry because you're not going to kill me."

Shade tiptoed a single step closer toward Dinah. "Now you've peaked my interest. How exactly do you plan on his escaping your bonds," Shade cockily asked her well aware of how futile her struggles were.

Black Canary did not need to say anything. Black Canary was a metahuman. Metahuman are people with powers humans can only dream of. Dinah could emit destructive sound blast from her mouth in the form of what she called her canary cry. Dinah pursed her lips, wave after wave flew forth.

Shade had only a moment to cover his ears before he was tossed from his feet through the limousine's windshield. Glass cut embedded into his flesh and things went blurry as he bled onto the limousine's alabaster leather interior. Windows and street lights shattered as the blast made its way down the street.

She let out a sigh of relief as the dark energy seeped off her body and flew through the broken windshield of the limo. A frightened driver stared in disbelief at Dinah and at the groggy man by his side.

Sure the Canary cry did the job, but it also took a lot out of her. Dinah knew that her opponent would wake up soon and she did not want to be there when he did. She looked at the cop car and smiled at the sight of its keys still in the ignition. Dinah needed a moment to process things, but she did not have time. Everything had happened so fast. One minute she heard loud noises. The next she is pummeling another meta.

She looked at the two woman below her. Unless she was horribly mistaken, which she usually was, they were heroes like her. Why else would the bad guy want them dead? Even if they were not, she was not about to leave them to die. She put the women in the back of the squad car hoping they were not going to try to kill her. It was only a matter of time before more cops showed up or whoever owned the vehicle she about to steal which meant she had to hurry.

Dinah climbed into the driver's seat and stomped down on the gas pedal. Okay I have the wheels now to find a place to go. A police siren blared from a nearby street. "Okay never mind that. Maybe I'll just drive for now." Dinah drove off as fast as she could confused and in pain. She was starting to really regret not taking the night off.