Tang Ri Shan
Red Wings
(This is a sequel to Beware the Batman: Conundrum. I suggest reading that story if you have not done so already)
Chapter 17
"ATTACK!" The Penguin's voice seemed to echo through the air.
Batman saw Dinah take a deep breath and let out a scream. He could literally see the sound waves leave the young girl's mouth and shoot towards him. Before he could react, they hit him, and Batman was knocked off his feet.
As he fell, Hawk, Dove, Vixen, and Condor surged forward, followed by Dinah, while Zatanna remained at Penguin's side, her gaze focused on her two captives.
I've got to get Robin and Oracle out of there! Batman thought, as he glanced at Dragon, catching the ninja's eye. Batman motioned towards Zatanna. Dragon nodded and darted away into the shadows.
Batman turned just in time to see one of Zucco's knives come towards him. He ducked, barely dodging the flying blade.
Dragon meanwhile, had pulled a blowgun from his belt. Lowering the scarf that covered his face, he crept around till he was behind Zatanna, took aim, and blew.
"Ow!" Zatanna yelped as the dart buried itself in her neck. She slapped at it, yanking it free, and upon seeing what it was, her eyes widened, then rolled upwards as she collapsed.
"Woah!" Robin and Oracle cried out as the magical aura holding them faded and they dropped to the ground.
"Oracle, Robin, secure Zatanna!" Batman yelled as he barely dodged a knife thrown by Zucco.
"Copy that!" Oracle leapt to her feet and raced over to the unmoving magician. "Robin, a little help here?"
"Right" Robin rushed over to help her and the two of them began dragging the magician towards a dark corner.
"Oh no you don't!" Penguin yelled, raising his umbrella.
Oracle grit her teeth. "Oh yes we do!" She cried before launching over the unconscious magician, spinning in midair, and delivering a devastating side kick that caught the Penguin in the chest.
"Awk!" The man squawked as he flew backwards.
"Wow!" Robin's eyes were wide. "When did you learn how to do that?"
"Commish's kid, remember?" Oracle smiled at him. "Plus self-defense training is one of the perks of working with Batman" She added as they lifted Zatanna up and dragged her to the side of the room.
"Is she okay?" Robin asked, nodding at Zatanna.
Setting her down, Oracle placed her fingers on Zatanna's throat, checking her pulse. "She's fine, it was only a sedative."
"Good, cause we need to get back in there" Robin turned back to the fray.
"No, wait!" Oracle stopped him. "We have to stay with her!"
"Why?"
"Think about it Robin" said Oracle "Zatanna is one of the strongest members of Penguins team. Her magic gives him a real advantage. We keep Zatanna away from him, we cut his power down"
"But Zucco..." Robin started to argue.
"Let Batman take care of him" Oracle pleaded. "Please Robin. I may know a few moves, but you're a better fighter than me. I need your help!"
Robin looked at Oracle, then turned to look at the fight raging behind him.
"Hold still, you flying rat!" Zucco cursed as another of his knives missed Batman by an inch.
"Not likely" Batman snorted as he threw a batarang. Zucco ducked at the last second and the projectile missed.
Batman gritted his teeth. Keeping one eye on Zucco, he quickly scanned the battlefield.
Condor was using his telekinetic abilities to hurl item after item at Man-Bat, preventing the mutant from getting close. Man-Bat screeched angrily as a flying chair hit him on the head, then lashed out, shredding the said chair and a table into slivers of wood with his claws.
Katana was dueling with Dove, who was holding a pair of iron pipes. Even with the metahuman's super-speed, Katana was holding her own, but Batman could see she was beginning to tire as Dove unleashed a barrage of super-fast blows.
Hawk and Metamorpho were hammering each other, but neither one seemed to be making a dent in the other. Hawk threw a punch, only for Memtamorpho to turn into a gas and Hawk's punch went right through him. Metamorpho slammed Hawk in the jaw with a stone fist, but the burly man just shook off the blow and returned the favor.
Vixen was now fighting Dragon. Batman winced as he saw the woman strike the martial artist with enough force to fling him across the room, but the man was back on his feet a moment later and charged back into the fray. He dodged Vixen's first strike, then struck back with a series of rapid blows to Vixen's arms. The woman gasped as her arms went limp, then growled and closed her eyes. Her teeth flashed and there was a faint glow coming from the bow tie she wore around her neck. The woman clenched her fists and smiled, before lunging at Dragon with surprising speed.
Dinah, aka Black Canary was now fighting Question. The two were exchanging martial arts moves and Batman had to admit the girl was good. She lashed out with a series of uppercuts that the Question was barely able to block. The question responded by sweeping Canary's legs out from under her, but the girl just back-flipped and landed on her feet. She drew in a deep breath, preparing to scream again, but before she could the Question flung something at her which exploded into a cloud of brown smoke, making Dinah choke and sink to her knees, tears streaming from her eyes.
Batman's gaze shifted back to his own fight, just in time to see another knife blade come shooting at him. Before he could move, a flash of red zipped past Batman and slapped the blade out of the air.
Batman turned to see Robin perched on a nearby crate, his hand raised. Leaping into the air, Robin threw several more red projectiles at Zucco. The projectiles screamed as they spun through the air.
Zucco narrowed his eyes and flipped backwards, but he wasn't quick enough. Two projectiles struck him in the chest and he fell hard to the ground.
"That felt good" Robin grinned.
"Robin, where is Oracle?" Batman demanded.
"Relax, she's keeping an eye on Zatanna" Robin said.
"You should stay with her!" Batman's eyes narrowed. "Leave Zucco to me!"
"Sorry Batman, but this is personal!" Robin answered
"Ya got that right" Zucco snorted, rising to his feet. "I'm gonna personally tear you apart!" He lunged at Robin, only to miss as the boy backflipped out of the way.
"Robin, stay out of this, leave Zucco to me!" Batman ordered, glaring at the boy.
Robin glared back as he dodged another attack. "Your suit doesn't give you barking rights over me!" He snapped. His eyes suddenly widened. "Hey look out!" He screamed.
At that instant, Batman felt someone jump on him from behind. Long thin arms wrapped around his neck. They were covered with patches.
The Scarecrow! Batman thought. One of scarecrow's hands flexed in front of Batman's face and a green mist seemed to seep from it.
"Don't breathe that in! It's fear gas!" Robin yelled. Reacting quickly, Batman grabbed Scarecrow's hand and spun away from the expanding gas cloud, flinging the thin man over his shoulder.
"Argh!" The scarecrow cried out as he landed on his back, hard.
"Stay down" Batman growled, leaning over the thin man, but a grunt made him look up just in time to see Robin knock Zucco to the ground.
The crook glared up at the masked teen, wiping blood from his lip. "Didn't your parents ever teach you any manners kid?" He growled.
Robin's widened, then narrowed and with a cry of rage he launched another punch at Zucco, but the man dodges it and responded with a savage hit to Robin's groin.
"Argh!" Robin cried out, recoiling from the blow, allowing Zucco to grab him and use a judo throw, sending the teen flying over his shoulder.
"If you're gonna play with the big boys kid, then you've gotta do better than that" Zucco taunted, pulling a pair of his knives from the ground. With a flourish, he threw them at the teen, who was just starting to rise.
Batman moved to intercept, but the boy recovered quickly and bent backwards, the knives sailing over him, missing his chest by inches.
Zucco roared a curse and reached for another knife, only to discover that he was out. He looked back up just in time to see a red-lined fist come flying at him.
WHAM! Robin's punch collided with the side of Zucco's face, sending the thug flying. He hit the ground, struggled to get up, then lay still.
"That was for my parents" Robin muttered darkly, rubbing his fist.
"Batman!" Batman looked up to see the Penguin standing on the loading dock, with the Scarecrow and all his birds around him, minus Zatanna, who was now being watched by Dragon.
"It's been a pleasure butting heads with you Batman, but it's over now" Said the Penguin.
"My thoughts exactly" Batman growled, reaching for a batarang.
"Uh uh uh" Penguin taunted, wagging his finger. "I'd hold back if I were you"
"Oh, and why is that?" Katana asked, raising her sword.
"Because if I lose, so does your little friend" Penguin sneered and stepped to the side, revealing a squirming Oracle being held tightly by Hawk and Condor
"Oracle!" Robin cried out.
"Oracle" Penguin's smile widened as he turned to his new captive. "So that's your name. Cute" He reached out and twisted a strand of Oracle's red hair.
"Hands off, creep!" Oracle snapped, struggling to break her captor's grip, but she couldn't.
"Oh, such spirit" Penguin smiled wickedly. "I'm going to enjoy breaking you"
"Do that and I'll break you!" Batman growled.
"And then we'll break what's left" Katana added. Man-Bat hissed and Metamorpho slammed his spike-ball fists together.
"I wouldn't be so trigger-happy if I were you" Penguin relied and a blade sprung out of his umbrella tip. Penguin held the blade up to the struggling girl's neck. Oracle froze and her gaze met Batman's
He means it! Batman realized and he held up his hands, signalling for the other Outsiders to back off. They complied.
"That's better" The Penguin smirked. "It's good to know you actually have some restraint. I hope you have a lot of it, for you see, I'm about to 'break ground' on my reign here as Gotham's new premiere crime boss, and I am not about to let a group of rag-tag heroes get in my way" Penguin's smile grew wider as he spoke. "So let me make this clear. Your little partner is going to be my guest until I have this city firmly in my grip. Should any of you make any foolish attempts to stop me, she'll be the one who pays the price."
"Don't listen to him Batman!" Oracle shouted.
Penguin whipped around and slammed the head of his umbrella against the side of Oracle's head. The girl slumped in her captor's hands, unconscious.
"Oracle!" Robin growled and started forward, only to be grabbed by Batman.
"Consider that a sample, Batman" Penguin sneered, knowing full well that he now had the upper hand.
"Sir, what about Zatanna and Zucco?" Hawk asked in a monotone voice.
Penguin'a eyes flickered from the magician and the crime boss, both unconscious on the ground, they were closer to Batman than they were to him. "Leave them" He said. "They're liabilities" With that he turned and strolled away with Scarecrow and the rest of his birds in tow.
Penguin paused at the door and turned back to him. "Remember Batman, any attempt at all to thwart me, and your Oracle will answer for it!" He said, before stepping out of the building.
"No!" Robin started forwards, but Batman caught him by the wrist and yanked him around.
"What are you doing? We have to rescue Oracle!" Robin tugged against Batman. Through the steel doors there came a bright light followed by the sound of helicopters taking off.
"What do you mean we?" Katana asked.
"You're done, Richard Grayson" Batman growled, ripping off the teen's mask.
"Kathy Kane's ward?" The Question stroked his chin. "How interesting. I wonder if she knows about this"
"Leave her out of this!" Richard snapped at the faceless man before turning back to Batman. "Besides, we have bigger problems to deal with right now"
"No, we don't" Batman corrected him, striding past him.
"Where are you going? We have to save Oracle!" Richard shouted
"Maybe you didn't hear me, there's no we in this equation." Batman stopped and turned back to Robin. "This was your final test, and you failed it"
"Test?" Richard looked confused. "What test?"
"My test to see whether or not you truly had what it took to be a team player" Batman said. "I knew that Oracle had gone behind my back to get your help. I know because I suggested that she should"
"What?" Richard's eyes widened. "She never said that!"
"Because I didn't tell her that directly. I ordered her to stay with you, hinting that the two of you could work together to find Dinah and the other missing teens. And, unlike you, Oracle followed my orders exactly. That's why I trust her, and not you"
"But I..."
"I ordered you to stay with Oracle, you didn't. I ordered you to leave Zucco to me, but you fought him anyway. You let your desire for vengeance corrupt your thinking and now because of that, Oracle's life is in danger. You're as dangerous as the Penguin is"
"I...I'm sorry" Richard's face fell.
"It's a little late for apologies." Batman said, lifting Richard's face so the boy was looking him in the eye. "So let me make this loud and clear. There are no more chances. If I ever see this costume again, I will deliver you to Commissioner James Gordon myself, is that clear?"
Richard stared into Batman's eyes for a long moment. "Crystal" He finally said. He even sounded defeated, then turned and walked away. His shoulders slumped as he disappeared out the door.
"As much as I hate to agree with the kid on anything, shouldn't we be doing something about Oracle?" Metamorpho asked.
"What can we do?" The Question argued. "With Penguin holding her hostage?"
"We can't just sit back and do nothing!" Katana argued, drawing her sword again
"But the Penguin will be expecting us to try to rescue her" Man-Bat countered.
"Man-Bat is right" Batman intervened. "Penguin's using Oracle as a shield, and with his Birds of Prey, he's just as strong as us. Fortunately for us, like every crook, Penguin made a mistake."
"And what would that be?" The Question asked, trailing after Batman
"Leaving one of his birds behind" Batman answered, approaching Dragon, who was still monitoring Zatanna.
"Ah" Metamorpho smiled. "I see. if Zatanna is as powerful as you say she is, Penguin's strength will be reduced without her."
"It's not just that" Batman said. "Penguin's control over the birds appears to be more complex than employer and employee. He's brainwashed them somehow, controlling them. We find out how, we can free the Birds of Prey from his thrall. Without his birds, Penguin will be easier to take down."
"Hmm, interesting" Man-Bat mused, stroking his chin.
"But what about Oracle?" Katana asked.
"I've got a plan to get her back" Batman said "But in the meantime we have a lot of work to do. Take her back to the cave."
Metamorpho nodded and picked up the slumbering magician.
Batman turned to Katana and was about so say something when he heard a ringing in his ear. "What is it Alfred?"
"You're being summoned, sir" Alfred said simply. "Gordon's turned on the signal"
"I'm on my way" Batman turned to Katana. "Gordon's calling. I'll go see what he wants, you help get Zatanna back to the cave. See what you can come up with, but keep an eye on her. I don't want her leaving the cave until she's cured, understood."
"Got it" Katana nodded, then Batman whirled and raced out of the room.
A half-hour later:
Batman quickly found himself on the rooftop of Police Headquarters. Commissioner Gordon was alone, staring at the lit signal in the sky.
"What is it, commissioner?" Batman asked, striding out of the shadows.
Gordon slowly turned around, his mouth set in a firm scowl. He glared at Batman with such venom that the dark knight actually took a step back.
"Hello Batman" His voice was cold. "I was wondering if you could help me with something"
"What?"
"It seems that my daughter, Barbara, has disappeared." Gordon started walking towards him. Batman noticed that both the man's hands were clenched into fists. "I don't suppose you would know where she is, would you?"
Batman's face didn't change. "What makes you think I would know where Barbara is?"
Gordon's eyes narrowed. "Because I just found out that she, and the hacker known as Oracle, are the same person, and I know Oracle works for you, so I'm gong to ask you one more time!" Gordon smoothly drew his gun from its holster and aimed it at Batman. "Where is my daughter?" He growled.
Batman didn't move, didn't speak. Gordon's glare sharpened and he took a step forward. "I'm not going to ask you again" He said.
"Commissioner, I need you to calm down, for your daughter's sake" Batman said.
Gordon's gaze narrowed further. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't shoot you right now"
"Because Barbara's in trouble." Batman said. "And I'm the only chance you have of getting her back safely"
"And you expect me to believe that?" Gordon snapped.
"Believe what you want, Gordon. But I think you know what will happen if you think with your heart, rather than with your head" Batman countered.
After a few tense seconds, Gordon's scowl wavered and he lowered his weapon. "You're right" He sighed.
"How did you find out?" Batman asked.
"I guess...I guess I've pretty much always suspected it." Gordon said, shouldering his weapon. "Ever since the incident with the Ion Cortex, I've learned that things aren't always what they appear to be. I remember that you used the password 'Oracle' for the Cortex, and then when I heard her code name for the first time, it just clicked."
"I see" Batman's jaw twitched.
Gordon didn't seem to notice, because he kept speaking. "But I wasn't sure about it until she called me earlier tonight about getting that plate traced. Barbara doesn't know that there's a gadget in my desk phone that lets me record conversations on it. One of our technicians has developed a program that can compare different snippets of speech, looking for matches. I compared Oracle's voice from the call against vocal samples we've gathered of Gotham's citizens.
"Clever" Batman raised an eyebrow.
"You can imagine my surprise when Barbara's name popped up. I had the technician repeat the test five times to make sure." Gordon shook his head. "I just don't understand. Why didn't you tell me?"
"It was Barbara's secret to tell, not mine" Batman answered
Gordon snorted. "And did you ever stop to think about how I would feel about this?"
"Many times, Gordon, I assure you" Batman took a step forward. "But Barbara's skills as a hacker are very proficient. As you may remember, those skills helped save the entire city from the League of Assassins, and they've saved my life, and the lives of my teammates, on more than one occasion since then."
"Teammates?" Gordon raised an eyebrow. "I knew you had a partner Batman, but I never suspected you were a team player"
"A recent development." Batman said. "Ever since my encounter with Deathstroke, I've learned it pays not to work alone. To that end, I've built a team I call the 'Outsiders', Barbara is one of them."
"And how many people are on this 'team' of yours?" Gordon cocked his head.
"A few" Batman answered. "You already met most of them when we encountered Two-Face"
"I see" Gordon nodded. "And this 'team' is going to help us get Barbara back?"
"'Help us'?" Batman countered
Gordon's eyes narrowed and his voice turned cold as he walked right up to Batman. "If you think you're going to keep me out of what's coming, think again. You saw how bad Harvey Dent was, and he was motivated by simple greed. I have a father's fury on my side, that, combined with my authority, would not bode well for you at all!"
For a moment, Batman just stood there, then he gave a small smile. "No, I imagine it won't"
"Once Barbara is safe, we will talk about this again in more detail, but right now, I'm trusting you have some sort of plan" Gordon said.
"As a matter of fact, I do, and if you want to contribute, listen carefully" Batman began explaining what he wanted Gordon to do.
Meanwhile, in the Batcave:
"Warning! Warning! Unauthorized access detected!" The Batcomputer suddenly started beeping.
"What did you do?" Katana and Alfred rushed over to where Metamorpho had been leaning on the counter.
"I didn't do anything!" Metamorpho backed away, his hands in the air.
"It's not him" Alfred's fingers flew over the keyboard. "Someone's hacking into the Batcomputer's systems!"
"Is that even possible?" Katana's eyes widened
"I thought it wasn't, but clearly I was wrong" Alfred frowned. "Computer, isolate the signal and connect with the intruding source!" He ordered.
"Connecting now" The computer replied. After a minute, a face appeared on the screen.
Alfred's eyes widened. "Miss Kathy Kane?" He gasped.
"Ah, Alfred Pennyworth. How long has it been?" Kathy Kane smiled at them.
"Ten years, at least" Alfred's frown was back. "I'm afraid we're a little busy at the moment"
"Yes, I do apologize for the abruptness of this communication, but I simply must speak to Batman at once." Kathy said.
Alfred and Katana exchanged a glance. "I'm afraid Batman is out at the moment" Katana said. "And if you're going to..."
"I assure you, Miss Yamashiro, this call is not about the performance of my young ward, disappointing though it was" Kathy said.
Katana's jaw dropped. "How did...?"
"How did I find out about you?" Kathy smiled. "The same way I found out about your boss, through the use of a keen eye and intellect and hard investigative work." She laughed at the looks on their faces. "Rich widows like me simply do not twiddle our thumbs all day and night you know, which brings me to the topic at hand..." Kathy cleared her throat, and reached off screen. Alfred and Katana could hear the clicking of keys. Kathy glanced back at them, as if waiting for an answer.
"We're listening" Alfred said finally.
"I understand that you face a particular dilemma in the form of Oswald Cobblepot, AKA the Penguin, and his group of meahuman protectors, the Birds of Prey" Kathy began.
"Yes, a problem that your ward escalated" Katana jabbed
Kathy frowned. "Yes, I heard about Oracle. Regardless of Richard's actions however, his role in this struggle has had its benefits"
"Miss Oracle would probably disagree" Alfred argued.
"Agreed" For a second, Kathy looked hurt, but she quickly regained her composure. "I've been spending the last few hours investigating a curious gas that was brought to me by Richard and Oracle a few hours before the battle at Crane Chemicals" At Kathy's words, Alfred and Katana exchanged a look. "From what I've learned, it appears to be some sort of hallucinogenic gas that forces the victim to visualize their worst fears"
"So it's basically a kind of fear gas?" Metamorpho grunted.
"Basically, yes" Kathy nodded. "the brainchild of the Scarecrow, AKA Professor Johnathan Crane"
"So Crane is the scarecrow" Man-Bat's eyes narrowed. "I knew it!"
Kathy nodded "Yes, and it seems he has managed to make his ideas on fear a reality. I theorize that prolonged exposure to this fear gas will nullify the mental defenses of the victim, in this case, the birds of prey."
"And once their defenses were down, Penguin stepped in to make the necessary changes" Man-Bat added
"So, what exactly are you two saying?" Metamorpho grunted.
"Basically, Scarecrow used the fear gas to break the wills of the Birds of Prey, allowing Penguin to reprogram them any way he wanted. Batman was right, Penguin and Scarecrow brainwashed them" Alfred explained. He looked angry.
Kathy continued. "I've managed to break down the formula for the gas and I've developed a possible counter-agent to it. I theorize that this counter agent may nullify the effects of the fear gas, and undo the brainwashing temporarily."
"So you're basically saying that you can fix this problem?" Metamorpho asked.
Kathy shook her head. "I'm not making any promises, but I think it should work. Of course, its effectiveness may depend on how long and how often the person was exposed to the fear gas. The more times they were exposed, the less likely my antidote may work." She sighed. "If only there was a member of the Birds of Prey we can test it on"
Alfred and Katana exchanged a smile. "In that case, I believe we can help each other." They both stepped back to let Kathy see the unconscious Zatanna, sprawled out on a table.
Kathy's eyes widened "Is that...?"
"One of Penguin's birds of Prey, Zatanna" Katana smirked up at the monitor.
Kathy stared, and then she laughed. "Why am I not surprised? But then again Alfred, the Batman doesn't let just anyone work for him"
"It might make our lives a bit easier if he did" Alfred cracked a smile.
"Did you just tell a joke?" Katana gasped. "Who knew you had a sense of humor?" She smirked.
"I'm still human, I'll have you know" Alfred said to Katana before turning back to the screen. "Now, would you mind sending those formulas?"
"Sending now" Kathy smiled and a minute later the computer beeped. Two lines of text, one red and one green, appeared next to her picture.
"Hmmm" Man-Bat leaned forward, studying the formulas. "Impressive" He said after a minute. "Very impressive. You are quite the chemist, Miss Kane"
"Why, thank you!" Kathy purred, beaming at the mutant. Katana rolled her eyes under her mask.
"Do you think it will work?" Alfred asked Man-Bat
"Hard to say" The mutant replied, studying the formulas again. "But the formula appears to be sound. It should be effective"
"Good enough. Metamorpho?" Alfred turned to the elemental mutant, who was already glancing at the formulas. "Can you generate that?"
"Sure, but which formula am I following?" Metamorpho asked.
"The red one" Kathy said, leaning forward on the screen.
Metamorpho studied the red text, and then turned to face the table where Zatanna way laying. "Stand back" He warned, raising a hand.
Dragon, who has been next to the table, retreated and the others lined up against the counter. Metamorpho frowned in concentration and opened his hand. A red mist erupted from his palm and shot towards the unconscious woman.
And Cut!
It's hard to write action scenes! It took a lot longer than expected to write this chapter, and we aren't even in the final scenes yet! But we're getting close!
So it finally happened, Robin chose his desire for justice/vengeance, over his love for Oracle. Will he be able to redeem himself in Batman's eyes? Will Oracle be rescued, or will she be broken like Dinah was? And how will the fact that Commissioner Gordon knows about his daughter affect the outcome of the final battle?
All this and more is waiting in the next chapter, so stay tuned!
Until Next Time!