Katt Girl, Robin, & The Harley Kidd: Chapter 21: First Mission by Chad Sheefel 11/25/19
A couple of days had gone by since the attack at Wayne Manor. The attack left about 10 members of the Red Hood dead. Azrael had become a great addition to the family. He was able to do many things that required heavy lifting. Alfred feared that Bane would soon be mounting an attack. He and Azrael were building reinforcement structures throughout the Manor. Alfred had managed to melt down many of the metal statues, then used them to shield the windows. Thomas and Martha Wayne were avid collectors of artillery used during The Revolutionary War. Alfred refurbished the three canons they had bought at an auction at Fort Wayne. (Fort Wayne was named in honor of Anthony Wayne. He was a Colonel for the Continental Congress and a commander in the Pennsylvania regiment just as the war began in 1775.)
Using ropes, swords, and barbed wire, Alfred began setting up traps within a few yards of the premises. They dug large holes and disguised them as part of the ground. Large spotlights were also put all around the property. Azrael made himself a protected outfit out of knights body armor and samurai equipment. Azrael knew the size of Bane's army. He also knew Wayne Manor wouldn't withstand much of an attack. Alfred looked around, he still wasn't satisfied with the overall protection either. Based on what Azrael said about the size of Bane's army, Alfred feared the worst.
Gabby, Lola, and Richard trained hard in the cave below Wayne Manor. They looked like three members of the US Olympic team. Somersaults, uppercut punches, and flying kicks were just some of the fighting skills they had been working on. Blocking, dodging, and disappearing were other qualities that Alfred had taught them. They were becoming quite the dynamic trio of acrobats, and they were fast learners. Later that evening, after supper, Alfred held a meeting with them.
"Are you three ready for your first mission?" Alfred asked.
The excitement in their eyes was all the acknowledgement Alfred needed.
"We need to be more prepared for Bane's army. I am going to send you three on a reconnaissance mission. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, will be to make your way to Wayne Enterprise ... undetected, and meet with Mr. Fox. He dabbles in the arts of creating military grade weapons for the government. I want you to retrieve these weapons and bring them back … undetected."
The kids began doing flips and somersaults because they were so excited to get some action. Their outfits were in a large, walk-in safe Alfred had installed a couple years back. Once their outfits were on, they began to discuss what they should call their dynamic trio.
"How about, The Kidd, The Katt, and The Kanary." Gabby asked in a joking voice.
"I think we should be called, The Akro-Bats." Richard said as he did a backflip.
"What about, Tri-Force or Triple Threat?" Lola suggested.
"Look at the emblem on your shoulder." Alfred insisted.
They all look at each others' shoulders. There is a symbol on it.
"D3!?" The kids all ask at the same time. "What are we, The Mighty Ducks?" Lola piped up.
"You three are The Dynamic Trio…. And it was easier to make the emblem that way." Alfred responded. "Plus, you can detach the emblem and use it as a weapon or small shield." Alfred chuckled, as he noticed the kids were still unsure about the name he chose for them. "And, once you make it to Wayne Enterprise … undetected … Mr. Fox will show you many other upgrades for your outfits."
Alfred had found a back way out of the cave. It actually lead to the small cave that, Bruce and Chad used as a fort, when they were younger. It was now the exit point for D3 headquarters. As they walked down the narrowly crafted tunnel that Alfred managed to chisel out, the bats didn't even respond anymore. They had almost become domesticated. D3 thought they were at a dead end, until Alfred removed a fake stone. It seemed so real. Once removed, it lead to a small shaft and a step ladder. Alfred made his way up the ladder, pushed up on a board, just above his head, and came out under a desk that was sitting in the small cave.
The cave still had some of Bruce Wayne and Chad Grayson's old drawings on the walls. You could tell, based on some of the pictures, they had their good moments and they had their bad. One of the pictures was a drawing of Bruce throwing a chair at Chad in 8th grade. Apparently, Chad had carved initials into one of Bruce's favorite set of drum sticks. "CWH." which meant, "Chad Was Here." Bruce had just got them signed by Ringo Starr. As Alfred felt the nostalgia in the air, he instructed D3 to follow his exact orders. They were happy to oblige. He sent them with a map, compass, night vision goggles, binoculars, rations, and water. Each one of them had a tracking device.
"Be sure to use your communicators, by chance that you might get separated. "Alfred insisted as the three heroes dashed off into the night.
They were barely out of his sight, and Alfred was already worried. He gave them the safest route he could, based on the information that he received from Azrael. Unfortunately, part of that route would go through the Narrows. Bane's men would barely ever go there. Only the destitute and downtrodden lived there. Bane felt that was punishment enough for their sins. If D3 hits a detour in their route, it would take them close to the river side. After the stories Bruce told him about the giant crocodile, Alfred was hoping they could keep away from that area. He also wanted to keep them away from the toxic cleanup site at Axis Chemical. Other than wanting to keep them away from the toxic fumes, rumors had been going around that the place was haunted by a couple ghosts. Alfred didn't usually believe in such things, but he wasn't taking any chances with his three brave cadets.
Gabby was the fastest of the three. The other two were fast, but she seemed to have blazing speed. They were trying to time themselves. It was about a ten mile trek, and they couldn't take a straight path. It required running through trails, swinging from trees, climbing buildings, and leaping rooftops. (Okay, they didn't have to swing from trees, but it made for some fun practice.) Bane had over 40,000 soldiers surrounding Gotham City in a 10 mile radius. That left very little room for carelessness. They figured they could make it to Wayne Enterprise in a little over an hour, if all went smooth. That also meant they would need to average 6 to 7 minutes a mile.
D3 made it through most of the wooded area leading up to Wayne Manor without any resistance. That was over half the trip. But now they were getting closer to civilization, and they knew they had to be on their toes. They stopped for a second, to look at the map, for further instruction. Alfred had drawn an "X" which was marked for each area they would need to make it to on their journey. It appeared it would take them through a dark area leading to the Narrows. As they made their way through, they could see people lying on the ground. They couldn't tell if they were dead or sleeping. Suddenly, they could hear someone screaming. They checked it out by using their binoculars and night vision. It looked as if it was a mother and her son running away from some of Bane's men. Bane's men were laughing as if they were toying with them. Finally, about 4 men surround the mother and child. The boy only seemed to be about 5 years old. The men looked like they were going to get aggressive with the mother. Lola instantly reacted without discussing a plan first. She leapt down toward one of the men in the group, while at the same time, extending her bat, and then... Whack! smashing one of them across the head. The other men were startled, then two of them drew their weapons... Snap! Gabby cracked her whip and knocked one of the mens' gun out of his hand. The other man's gun flew out of his hand, after a D3 emblem hits his wrist. The team of D3 quickly retired the men. It almost felt too easy to them at this point. They ran over to the mother and child.
"We can help you! We can show you a path that will lead you to safety." Gabby stated.
"What are your names?" Richard asked.
"My name is Catherine, and this is my son Jason." She said in a scared voice.
Gabby looked at Catherine. She could tell that Catherine was a major drug user because the needle marks were all up and down her arms. She looked frail. Jason looked meek and hungry. Lola held out some rations that Alfred had prepared for the three of them. They gladly accepted the rations and a little water, then Catherine and Jason made their way down the path that D3 told them about. Suddenly, D3 heard a vehicle approaching them. They ducked off and hid in the shadows. It appeared to more of Bane's men. Two of them got out of the vehicle and walked over to the unconscious men. They began tapping them on their faces to wake them up. Richard realized that his emblem was still lying on the ground just off the side of the road.
"What happened to you guys?" One of the men asked as the others were waking up.
"Did you get hit by the Red Hood."
"Naw, they didn't get hit by the Red Hood." The other man stated. "They wouldn't be alive right now."
"We barely got a look at them. They were so fast … and violent." one man said, while still seeing tweety bird in his eyes.
"They looked like a cat, a clown, and a canary." the other woke man said.
Then they noticed the D3 emblem on the ground. "What does D3 stand for?" one man asked.
"I think it stands for the Mighty Ducks." the other man said while shrugging his shoulders.
"I thought you said they looked like a cat, a clown, and a canary. Which is it?
They got on their CB radio, then they told their commander about their situation. Then, they all jumped in their military vehicle, and started heading off in search of their attackers. D3 watched them as they drove off, making sure they didn't go the same direction as Catherine and Jason. After that, they looked at their watch, and realized they needed to make up ground.
"Alfred's going to be mad when he finds out you already lost your emblem." Gabby said to Richard.
"Well, maybe he will come up with a different name for us." Richard joked.
"So much for being…. Undetected." Lola smirked.
"You know what, Richard? I think we should start calling you Dick from now on." Gabby teased.
They decided to put all jokes aside and headed into the Narrows. As they scaled the smaller buildings, they could see hundreds, maybe thousands, of people lying on the ground, camping under tarps and sheets, or standing around burning barrels. It was such a sad sight to look at. So many factionless, so much potential wasted. And to think, it was already like this before Bane turned Gotham into a war zone. (Apparently, after Martha and Thomas Wayne died, nobody tried keeping up on providing homeless shelters for the extremely poor. Plus, Gotham had gotten colder and more desensitized to cruel, inhumane behavior.)
They are about two miles away from Wayne Enterprise, when they come across an obstacle in their way. Bane had posted men in new areas that Azrael thought were vacant. This meant they would need to take a detour. To the left was the Axis Chemical cleanup site, the other path was along the riverside.
"Well, which way should we go? If we go one way, we might encounter a large crocodile, the other way, a couple ghosts." Gabby asked.
Chapter Recap: (Alfred turned Wayne Manor into a fort to prepare for Bane's men. Alfred sent Katt Girl, The Harley Kidd, and Robin on their first mission as D3. They must get to Wayne Enterprise and retrieve some items from Mr. Fox. The kids fend off four of Bane's men that surrounded a woman and a child by the name of Catherine and Jason. They hit a snag on their way, and must decide to take a detour through, the Axis Chemical cleanup site, or they could take the riverside.)