GAH! So sorry for the late review! I'm telling you guys that we would have had this finished before if it weren't for a few reasons. 1: So much homework. 2: How freaking difficult it is to write for these characters. and 3: Hehe, Aeri's play rehearsals. Don't go blaming this on me, Nox. You caused this yourself. Says the girl who's in lurve with our Roy Harper. For the last freaking time, he's not Roy Harper. His arms say otherwise. He's Gambit. He's always throwing cards when the Director's bitching. Oh god. Wade calls you Rogue, remember? Rogue and Gambit had a thing. A...fonduing thing. You butchered that. Suck my non-existant-Bad Nox. No perverting this AN up.
Fine...So...Anyone read the ending of Death of the Family? I did. Then I told Aeri. She hit me. I tried to get her to admit her undying gay love for me not long after that. Yeah...how's the stomach? Heh, you've gotten better at sucker punching me. I know.You know what Aeri? No. You are the Genesis to my Angeal. The Tim to my Kon. The Nero to my Dante. Please tell me there's a point in this somewhere. I mean to say...that you will admit your undying love for me or else! Looking at all those groupings: Nero would dropkick you, Tim would blush and then deck you, and Genesis would recite Loveless again. But at least they're all in love with the person I grouped them with. You've been spending too much time with Libby listening to her crazy theories. ANyways, I'll disclaim everything with this: DISCLAIMED BITCHES!
...Classy...
Shove it. BTW: Chapter title comes from the song Corruption Garden. Translyrics by Kran, loves!
Chapter 3: The Chaotic Flowers and Repeated Miseries (Ash of a Flower)
There was one thing that was obvious: she wasn't in Gotham anymore. This was a fact that Batgirl became aware of as she was surrounded. In Gotham, the street thugs would be almost cowering at the mere sight of her. But here, in New York, they were smirking as they advanced towards her.
"A little far from home, huh girl?" one of them jeered.
"Don't worry, we'll give you a New York welcome."
"I'll show you a good time, girl." She grimaced at their words, although they were no worse than anything she heard in Gotham.
"Now, these odds aren't exactly fair," she began, pulling her collapsible staff from her belt. "Five against one? This'd only take a minute with my arms bound. I'd hate to think what that means for you guys."
"Get her!" Rolling her eyes, Batgirl slide into a stance. It was her first time back in the suit since the incident. It felt good, like waking up after a long nap. The thugs were no match for her, and by the time she was done, she wasn't even breathing heavy.
The sound of clapping grabbed her attention, and the caped girl turned to see...Nightwing?
"You're good," he said, hopping down from a fire escape. Steph cocked an eyebrow as she noticed a few key facts about the costumed young man. Firstly, his voice was slightly higher than Dick's. Secondly, he was a good four inches taller, putting him at 5'9. The costume he wore, although very similar to the Nightwing suit, was different as well. While it was primarily black and skintight, strengthened with what was probably Kevlar plating, there was a brightly colored bird logo on the chest. While Nightwing's had been fluid and sky blue, the young man's was sharp, almost jagged-looking, and an almost neon orange. A black and orange utility belt and a jagged domino mask completed the look. The young man smiled slightly at her, "Welcome to Soho."
"You must be Blackhawk," she stated, shortening her staff. "I've heard about you."
"I'm quite notorious," he replied. "So do tell, what's a Bat doing in New York?"
"I'm looking for someone. A ninja."
"These ninja wouldn't happen to have wings, would he?"
"In fact-"
"Damn," Blackhawk shook his head at her. "Do you know how many of you have been pestering us?"
"Excuse me?"
"No offense to you, Bat-Doll, but my city's been visited by half the Justice League in the past few weeks."
"Falcon's a popular person I suppose," Steph said, struggling not to clench her jaw. Was that how other heroes felt when met with Bruce's 'no-interference' rules? "Where can I find him?"
"Sorry doll, he's not really one for visitors. More of a 'I'll-call-you'-type of guy." She narrowed her eyes at the other hero, watching as he squirmed slightly under her gaze. "But if you patrol with me, he'll hunt us down."
"Glad we could come to some sort of agreement," she replied, smiling brightly at him. He nodded slowly, before pressing a finger to his ear.
"Yeah….By Columbia?...Sweet, meetcha there." She stared at him as his hand fell, a childlike grin on his face. "A giant monster is attacking Ellis Island."
"A monster?" she repeated, allowing her sarcasm and disbelief to bleed into her words.
"Probably a lab experiment gone wrong, but its more exciting than thugs." He shrugged, pulling a grapping gun from his belt. "Let's go."
"Huh, there's actually a monster." Blackhawk turned towards her incredulously, causing her to shrug. The monster looked more like a giant seaweed octopus than Nessie, but at least it was exciting. "So, do you guys have an Order Boat or something?"
"That Order thing is Prophet propaganda," a voice said behind them. Batgirl turned slightly to see two others on the rooftop behind her and Blackhawk. One of them was dressed in a black bodysuit with a full mask over his head. Covering his eyes were a pair of tinted goggles, and a navy emblem consisting of three lightning bolts shooting from the center of a circle. The man next to him dressed much more simplistic: jeans, a black hoodie, and a black domino mask. The man in the bodysuit continued with a slight chuckle, "Wait 'till he spins this."
"You're-?"
"The Boltman," Blackhawk filled in. "Mr. Casual Friday here is Wham."
"Pleasure," Wham murmured, nodding to Steph, before turning to the Boltman. "Not gonna happen, yo."
"Bet I could," the taller man stated. Stephanie tilted her head to the side. Boltman had the deepest voice of the three, reminding her of a voice actor from one of the cartoons she had watched with her group of college friends. Something from the nineties, with Christopher Daniel Barnes in it.
"Man, you're not Zeus," Blackhawk laughed, shaking his head. "You'd never hit it from this distance."
Boltman turned to look at him, extending his thumb and forefinger to make the appearance of a gun. He pointed the 'gun' at the monster, his mask pulling slightly around his jaw: he was smiling. "Watch me."
A bolt of lightning shot from his finger tip and flew towards the creature; there was no other way for Batgirl to describe the sight. The electric hero turned to his teammates as the bolt struck its target, causing the giant seaweed monster to wither and plunge back into the water. Blackhawk sighed, almost pouting at the sight. "Man, that was anti-climatic."
"Don't be too upset," Wham began, pointing to a shadow racing towards them in the water. "We got this."
"Shouldn't we evacuate the citizens from here?" Batgirl questioned, looking down from the roof at the hundreds of civilians who had shown up to gawk at the monster. If it was coming towards them, they were in danger.
"It's New York," Blackhawk replied, the distaste evident in his tone. "Do you honestly think they'll listen?"
"Wham, you got five minutes before-"
"I'm aware," Wham cut in, raising an eyebrow at Boltman. The lightning user coughed awkwardly before continuing.
"So you do that. We'll get the people to safety and all that heroic shindig. And Falcon-" Boltman paused, looking over at Ellis Island. "If you want to see how real heroes fight, we could always use an audience."
"I think you got that backwards, Bolt," a strangely familiar voice stated, coming from the comm link in Blackhawk's ear. The hero hissed, all but ripping the device from his ears. Steph cocked an eyebrow at the excessive volume, while Wham and Boltman just exchanged looks. "Quit hacking the links, kid. Things like that only land you in trouble."
"I doubt that our guest really minds knowing what we're saying," a feminine voice replied. "Now I'd suggest doing your jobs, instead of acting like this is Homecoming or somethin."
"Tch, I hate it when she's right," Blackhawk groaned, leaping off the roof. Batgirl and Boltman followed after him, with the later immediately ordering everyone to clear out.
"Who's she?" the Gothamite asked, as the black and orange clad hero replaced his comm.
"A colleague. One of Falcon's many, many connections. She's our eyes and ears in the city."
"Hn, sounds like someone I know."
"You better get good pictures of this, Lumen," a woman's voice rang out as the seaweed monster rose up again. The heroes turned towards the sound, spotting a raven haired woman and a short blonde girl. The girl was carrying a camera, and unsurprisingly, she was someone Steph had met. "This'll be front page material."
"Piss off, Nox," Rin spat, snapping a few pictures. "I'm more than competent at my job."
"Hey, get outta here!" Blackhawk yelled at them, as he pulled two escrima sticks from his belt.
"Oh, Dick's gonna have a field day with this one," Steph thought, shaking her head before returning her gaze to the seaweed creature. "A bit of ice would do the trick. But who's controlling it? Please let it be some unknown freak and not-"
"You!" Poison Ivy roared, eyes landing on Boltman, who looked around in mock confusion. "You dare hurt one of my babies?"
"Well, there's a reason it's called a concrete jungle," he replied, sliding into a boxing stance.
"You will pay for-"
"You know Ivy," Batgirl began, extending her staff. "Why don't you hop off that Creature from the Atlantic Lagoon and surrender? I'll even throw in the handcuffs and ride to Arkham as a bonus."
"Batgirl," Ivy hissed, flicking her wrist at the heroes. Tentacles of seaweed snapped out, going for each of them.
"So," Wham asked, seemingly appearing from thin air. He was shaking slightly, which being paired with a pained grimace, did little to set Steph's mind at ease as the group dodged tentacles. "Anyone have a freeze ray?"
"Not on me," Batgirl replied, fishing ice pellets out of her belt. "But I've got something that could work instead."
"Ice grenades?" Blackhawk questioned as she pegged one at the tentacle closest to him. It froze instantly, allowing him to shatter it with a well-timed hit with his sticks. "I've got a few of those back at base."
"Congratulations," Boltman started, punching at two incoming tentacles. Electricity leaped from his fist, burning the seaweed until it was little more than ash on the ground in front of him. "You proved that you're incapable-"
"Do save the banter for our 'fearless' leader," Wham groaned, catching a tentacle with two fingers. He let go of it for a split second, before grabbing a fistful and ripping the tentacle off. Ivy shrieked at him, earning a grin from the hero. "Where's the challenge, Ivy?"
"Don't tell me you came all the way here from Arkham to play in the water," Bolt called out.
"Egging her on isn't the brightest idea," Batgirl warned, tossing a few more pellets in an attempt to hit Ivy, only to be blocked by the seaweed. Her trip to New York wasn't going at all the way she had planned. All she wanted was to talk to Falcon about that night in the warehouse, not to fight Poison Ivy alongside the most unknown group of heroes she had ever seen.
"Why's th-" Blackhawk's query was cut off as a tentacle wrapped around his waist, throwing him into the air. He went flying towards the distant island, earning a loud cackle from Ivy. Much to everyone's surprise, another laugh joined in with hers. Rin stood as close as she could to the monster, with her camera at the ready.
"Look behind you," Rin giggled. Ivy glared down at her, speaking loudly.
"Foolish bag of meat. You think that I would-"
"No seriously. Look behind you." Ivy turned around, just in time to get a boot to the face. She flew from the plant creation, landing roughly on the ground in front of Batgirl. The blonde looked up to see Blackhawk and Falcon landing before them. Rin turned towards the group, snapping a few pictures, just as Nox came bouncing over.
"Did you get the-?"
"Yeah, I did," Rin replied smoothly. The photographer smiled as she questioned, "Is the Wicked Bitch of the Garden out?"
"Judging by the lump on her head…yes?" Wham offered.
"I can see the headline now: Guardians and Bat team-up to take out a Gotham City Rogue," Nox grinned, earning a shudder from Rin.
"Needs work."
"No one asked your opinion, Lumen." Rolling her eyes at Nox, Rin snapped another picture. Steph shook her head at them, only to notice to swaying wall of seaweed.
"That's not good," she muttered, only to hear a hum of agreement from Boltman.
"Would you ladies mind passing a message on for me?" he inquired, tilting his head to the side. The two women walked over to him, out of the reach of the soon to fall seaweed tower. "Tell Lawson that I said thanks for all the press."
"Sure thing, Boltman," Nox said, slightly dazed. Falcon rolled his shoulders, his wings flexing with his movements. He turned to Blackhawk, nodding slightly.
"You got this? I have to…speak with Batgirl for a few moments."
"You got it, boss," the escrima stick wielder grinned. Nodding curtly, he took to the sky, leaving Batgirl to grapple after him. Distantly, Steph could hear Wham and Bolt shouting something to Falcon, but it was lost in the wind.
"Who are you?" Steph asked as Falcon successfully led them to the motel she had been staying in for the night. He opened to window to her room and gestured for her to go inside. She did quickly, turning towards him with a faint scowl as he slide into the room, his wings seeming folding into his back.
"You tell me," Falcon replied.
"You're a member of Batman Inc. Recent, I take it, but you've known us for some time now. My guess is that you used to run with Nightwing when he guarded this city. You have a team of your own, but your uniform carries an insignia not used to identify either you or the team. Therefore you were a member of something else before your venture into heroics. Possibly a Chinese society of ninjas, judging by your suit." Pausing, she smiled, "How's that for deductive skills, Damian?"
"Close," Falcon nodded. "But no cigar."
"Then do tell."
"I am the Batman of New York, made only so in the past month. Before that, I did freelance work for the group and its members. My team and I have been protecting this city for the past three years. Most of us have some sort of affiliation to either the Inc or to the League. You're spot on with the costume note, which was something none of us thought you'd get." He chuckled quietly, before continuing, "It's not a Chinese ninja society, especially sense it'd have to be Japanese for it to be ninjas. However, I was an assassin."
"How'd you know where I was staying? And why were you in Gotham?"
"We flagged your alias, 'Stephanie Drake'." She laughed slightly at that. Barbara had given her the alias for laughs, not expecting that she'd use it. "Batman had sent over a list of ones you had. And to answer your last question; I found something he needs to see."
"What's that?"
"The Red Hood."
AN: This chapter is CCCCCCCRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAA APPPPPPPP! Seriously it is. I didn't write Bolt and Wham well enough. I don't disagree. Ugh! Some best friend you are. Just saying. Besides take it slower next time. Stop taking more than you can swallow. You know that I'd rather choke than spit right? XD NOX! What did I tell you?! Did you tell it to me before or after you decked that one guy for grabbing your ass? After? There's your answer.
Answer Times:
Sand Torrent: Yo Hawkie! I say: Peanut Butter Jelly Time! I say: No more Skyrim. Is that anything like No More Mutants? Hopefully. That reminds me of the arguement you and Flare had about Skyrim and Zelda. Skyrim sucks in comparison to Zelda. It sucks so much that it gives Verge a run for his money. Hehe, I see what you did there. But yes...Zelda is better. That game rating thingie was a lie!
FallenUpStairs: *rebuilds pedestal* Aeri, be a good girl and guard this, will ya? Fallen is trying to knock stuff down. Bite me, Nox. Wher-hehe, I shouldn't say that when your brother could read this. But Fallen, thank you for the compliments! However, this chapter is my worst so far so its probably a big let down. Fallen, thank you. Oh, and do keep my brother in line. He's a bit crazy, especially when he's in Rasta mode.
Side Notes: HEhe, I made an appearance! And Rin is secretly in love with a hero other than Aquaman. Funny, I wasn't informed of this piece of character devolpment. Um...look a giant seaweed monster! That was probably the lamest thing you've ever come up with. Do not make me get out the duck tape Aeri. Or any prank I can think of in the next week. Try me. Come the fuck at me sis. Oh, its on like Donkey Kong. Don't start singing, Nox. You'll shatter glass. That's it! When I get my hands on you, you'll be sorry. That's not what you said last night. :P
Gan: to infinity and beyond.
As much as she pisses me off, she does that and I get chill again. Tch, Italians. Anyhoo: see ya next time lovies.