Oh my gosh guys, I am so sorry you had to wait so long! Life happened and...grrrr... anyway, here's a longer chapter to make up for it!
Shout out's to the incredible: Aslgyrl, Jasmine Nightshade and (her brother?) Robin For Life (who's apparently commenting through her? Correct me if I'm wrong:) I herebye dispense cookies to you guys from the awe smacking awesomeness that is Agent A's kitchen!
ENJOY!
"Guys, meet Rusty and Tat!"
The team smiled, offering their various greetings. Standing in front of them was a well built old man, his hair gray and streaked with white at the temples. He was dressed in faded and stained blue jeans, a workman's shirt, a warm jacket, and a pair of hiking boots. Sitting placidly by his side was a fine looking Bloodhound with deep reddish fur.
Artemis grinned. "Can I pet him?" The man nodded and she squatted down in front of the dog. "Hey Rusty!" She greeted warmly, petting the dog's head.
Robin and the dog's owner roared with laughter.
"What?" she asked, confused and annoyed.
"Rusty is his name!" Robin laughed, pointing to the old man. "The dog's name is Tat!"
Artemis frowned. "Do I dare ask?"
Rusty's laughter had calmed a little and he answered her. "Don't fret miss. You're definitely not the first one to make that mistake! My given name's Rustle but my brother always called me Rusty, and it stuck. Been usin' it ever since."
Zatanna and M'Gann had also come to pet the dog, and the magician now looked up at him curiously. "So why did you name the dog Tat?"
Rusty reached down and grabbed the hounds left ear.
Holding it up so the kids could see, he ran his thumb over several old tears and cuts in the dog's ear. "T'other ear's the same. His last owner liked knives, duct tape, and cigarettes. When Tat came to me, he was cut up, a lot of his fur was ripped off, and he had more cigarette burns than I cared to count. Lady at the rescue said he was all tattered up. So we all call him 'Tat' for short."
Robin grinned. "Rusty and Tat's one of the best teams in the city. If anyone can find Coyote, they can!
Coyote starred into the surrounding darkness, straining his senses for some sign of life.
He heard nothing.
But the smells coming to his nose… He pursed his lips and released a long low whistle. Calling. Ahead of him, he heard the splash of footsteps and he quickly drew his knife, just in case.
A high pitched cackle rent the silence, echoing off the walls, and he grinned, sheathing it again. His hyena trotted out of the shadows, tail wagging and grinning from ear to ear.
His two legged pack mate had come back!
Coyote cupped the hyena's head in his hands and scratched at the animal's jaw line, moving up behind the ears and earning a happy groan. "Hey…you miss me? Hm?" The hyena yipped and he ruffled the longer black mane running down the animal's neck. "Yeah, I missed you too. What say we go home now, huh?"
The hyena yipped again, making him laugh.
He made a hand gesture and his friend turned away, trotting back the way he'd come. Coyote quickly stood and followed after him, careful to keep his eyes on him. The hyena's tawny brownish grey coat and black spots made it quite easy for him to blend into the murky dark.
He shivered.
He and the dark had never been close friends, not like the hyena before him, and certainly not like the Robin seemed to be.
An image of the Batman came to his mind, of the Dark Knight slowly backing up and disappearing into the darkness. No, he'd never been that friendly with the dark. But more recently, he'd lived through things that had made him fear the dark.
Gotham was a dark city, with much to fear lurking in its shadows.
A large blunt head nuzzled into his hand and stomach and he jumped. A pair of warm dark eyes glimmered up at him in the faint light, the eyes reflecting back a yellow green when the light caught them just right.
The hyena nuzzled him again, voicing a concerned whimper. He smiled and stroked the blocky head gratefully. It was friends like this hyena, animal though it was, that were teaching him again that he didn't have to be afraid.
"I'm alright now dear heart." He whispered. "Thank you."
The hyena's ears pricked up, and his tail slowly began to wag. When his pack mate didn't show any sign of moving he nosed at the teen's hands again, giving one of them a quick lick in the opening on the back of the fingerless glove.
If we're all done with this sap fest…? Your teeth are gonna rot right out of your head if this gets any sweeter. The snide voice in his mind muttered.
Coyote grinned, pushing the fear to the back of his mind. He gave the same hand signal as before and the hyena took point again. His senses were good, but his pet's were better!
"Well, if that's the case then I'm eventually gonna be gumming my food." He chuckled back good naturedly. "Because I don't see any reason to change!"
"Oh! Man Rob!"
Robin burst into laughter. "Come on KF! It's not that bad!"
Wally grimaced and covered his mouth and nose with his hand, glaring at the open man hole cover leading down into Gotham's sewer system. "I don't know what sort of favor you called in to get him out here with his dog, but this is worth two! You totally owe him for the stench alone!"
The old man in question was currently on his belly, peering into the sewers with the help of a flashlight. Hearing Wally's exclamation, he looked up at the speedster in surprise. "What stench?"
Wally's jaw dropped and the team lost it. Amidst the laughter, Artemis tapped the underside of Wally's chin. "Better close that up Baywatch, before something flies in! Not that you don't have room!"
Wally's jaw snapped shut and he grinned back. "Oh yeah? Like what?"
Artemis folded her arms and gave him a smug look. "Well for one thing, Gotham's home to one of the biggest bats you've ever seen…"
Wally opened his mouth to retort and stopped. "…touché…"
Conner rolled his eyes at the two. Even he could tell that those two had a thing for each other! Out of the corner of his eye he saw Zatanna lean over slightly and whisper to M'Gann about how the only ones who didn't know they had a thing for each other was them!
Glancing at the others, he was amused to see that Kaldur and Robin were both nodding. Apparently they'd heard as well.
Shrugging at the Archer and Speedster, he walked past them to the open manhole and peered inside. "We gonna go after him? Or are we just going to stand here all night?"
Kaldur nodded, resuming his role as leader. "Indeed. Our quarry's head start is only growing the longer we delay. M'Gann, would you be kind enough to lower our companions to the floor below?"
Conner shrugged his shoulders. "I can handle myself." He answered, and jumped down through the man hole. He landed in ankle deep sludge with a dull splash. The clone immediately switched to infrared, scanning up and down the tunnel for any sign of threat.
No one down here but me. He thought to the others.
M'Gann was quick to lower Rusty, Tat, and the rest of the team down into the sewer. Seeing the muck the rest of the team was standing in, she chose to remain hovering about a foot above the floor.
The only one's who seemed completely and utterly unfazed by the dank sewer was Robin, Rusty, and Tat. Rusty even went so far as to squat down in the muck next to Tat, who was happily taking in all the interesting scents and sounds in the sewer.
"Okay Rusty! You and Tat go ahead and do your thing! But don't let yourselves get to far ahead of us. Gotham's sewers are even worse than it's alleys." Robin warned the old man grimly.
Rusty nodded. "Okay Tat! You heard the man! Find him!"
The Bloodhound's nose when down in a flash and he was pulling at his leash, searching for the illusive scent of the hyena. It was harder down here, but he kept casting around for the scent.
"Will he be able to pick it down here?" Artemis asked curiously. "I heard hounds can't track through water."
Rusty chuckled, moving with Tat to allow the dog room on the leash. "Water's got nothing to do with it. The only time that works is if the hounds a young, inexperienced one. Tat's neither. If there's anything to be found, he'll find it."
The baying of the hound suddenly rang out through the tunnel, echoing off the walls. The hound hauled on his leash, straining against it. Laughing, the old man slogged through the muck after his dog.
"Told ya he would!"
"Come on, up you get!" Coyote encouraged.
Yet another reason in my fifteen mile long list of reasons for us to ditch the pooch. The voice in his head grouched.
Coyote sat up angrily, wishing he could glare at his mind's unwanted guest and knowing he couldn't. He settled for glaring straight ahead at nothing in particular. "We've already discussed that. And you have my answer. No. We will not 'ditch the pooch'." He leaned forward and peered back into the sewer pipe.
Several feet below, the hyena was pacing anxiously back and forth staring up the steep slope at him. No matter how often they came this way, he always had a problem here.
"Come on! You can do it! Jump!"
The hyena yipped and began to climb doggedly up the slope, paws digging into the loose shale. It took him several minutes to get up the five foot ramp, but he couldn't of looked prouder than when he came through that broken grate and stepped into the moonlight.
Coyote smiled and caught the hyena's head in his hands, ruffling the fur on his cheeks playfully. "Good job! You did so good!"
The hyena wagged his tail and nosed Coyote, delivering several licks to his pack mates throat and jaw. The human laughed, and he voiced his own answering cackle. He liked it when Coyote made that sound!
Coyote laughed again and stood when his pet began to insistently nose at his belly. "All right. I know you're hungry. I am too!"
He moved off. His temporary home wasn't far away.
His eyes roamed across what he had come to think of as his back yard. He, his hyena, and that dratted voice in his head had taken up residence in the broken down ruins of an old building.
Pale, grey white ruble lay everywhere, bricks, pipes, metal rods, and things he had no name for poked out of broken stone and concrete. Ahead of him, the hyena cackled and leapt away over the debris, disappearing into the shadows. He sighed.
A little over a year and a half ago, his home had been stolen from him. He was forced to come here. Coyote stooped and picked up a stone, chucking it at a bit of shadow to his left. He wasn't sure if he could ever go back there. Could ever see his friends or family again. In fact, he knew he couldn't. Not while that man was still a threat.
He shook his head. I'm trapped here. He thought sadly.
No you're not! The voice in his head yelled in exasperation. You could go anywhere you wanted, easy! But you insist on staying here in this cesspit of a city and playing the hero! If we're trapped here, it's because you won't give it up!
Coyote bared his teeth in a snarl. "I stay here, because this is where I have to stay." He growled aloud. "I'm a part of this mess now, and so help me I'm going to help clean it up!"
Whatever. The voice muttered in a tone that brought to mind someone throwing their hands up in the air and storming away. Go cower in your little hidey hole you sniveling coyote! I'm not wasting anymore breath on you tonight.
Coyote raised his eyebrows and grinned, climbing over a large girder beam. "Is that a promise?"
He burst into laughter at the voice's indignant reply. He'd had to lie to a friend earlier, and it had really bothered him. Now that he and his 'little annoying voice' inside his head were back on their usual arguing terms, his night was beginning to look up!
He hopped down off a boulder, a new energy in his step as he made his way towards the back of the wreckage, where more of the walls had toppled in.
As he walked he hummed a jaunty little tune to himself.
Coyote slipped behind a half collapsed wall. On the other side, several walls and doorways had fallen in, forming a sort of sheltered courtyard with just the one entrance.
Near the back, stood his makeshift shelter.
It had taken him several weeks to gather all the rubble from the courtyard and pile it up, building a sort of hollow mound with the slabs of broken rock. Once he was finished with that, it'd taken him several weeks more to dig out the floor, lowering it and making his living space inside larger.
He continued to hum to himself as he slipped down through the small entrance into his ruble dugout. He'd banked the fire earlier that evening, burying their wrapped supper in the embers to cook while they were gone.
"The day the squirrel went berserk, in the First Self-Righteous Church, in that sleepy little Town of Pascagoula." He sang aloud.
He got the fire stoked up again and fished their dinner out of the embers, laughing at the words of the song as he sang. "It was a fight for survival, that broke out in revival! They were jumpin' pews and shoutin' 'Hallelujah'!"
What in the name of insanity are you singing?! The voice in his head yelled.
Coyote rolled his eyes. "Mississippi Squirrel Revival, by Ray Stevens." He laughed. "My Grandmother loved that song!" Leaning out the door, he let off a piercing whistle.
A cackle rang out from the courtyard. The hyena's blocky head was shoved through the small entrance a moment later, an almost questioning look on his face. But that look went away the minute he smelled the food. He slid down the dirt embankment to the floor and laid down at Coyote's feet, his eyes never leaving the wrapped packages in Coyote's hands.
He knew what was in those!
Coyote grinned. "I know what you want! Here you go, you earned it tonight!" He set the packet on the ground and unwrapped it, revealing a baked potato. A sad look crossed his face as he sliced it in half and sprinkled some salt on it. "I just wish I had more to give you! That's not nearly enough for a growing pup like you!"
Reason number seven hundred and fifty million why we need to dump the pup.
Coyote rolled his eyes, unwrapping his own supper. He wasn't going to get into this again.
He cut his own potato in half and sprinkled on the salt, chuckling quietly to himself. His grandmother would've had a thing or two to say about his eating with the knife he'd been fighting with just that evening, even if he had held the blade in the fire to clean it first!
The hyena's head suddenly snapped up, ears pricked forward. The animal slowly got to his feet, hackles rising. A low growl began rumbling in the barrel chest. But then, as if someone had flipped a switch, all signs of aggression ceased.
Coyote cocked his head, following the animals line of sight.
The hyena was still standing, staring at the entrance to their little home. When his pet ignored food, you could bet that whatever had his attention should have yours as well! Someone was coming.
The sound of footsteps came to his sensitive ears, and a familiar smell to his nose, making Coyote relax. He knew who was coming, that was why the hyena had stopped his growling and let his hackles down. The only reason he was still standing was to let his pack mate know that someone was coming.
A small voice called from just outside the door. "Coyote? Are you there?"
He flashed a hand signal to the hyena and the animal immediately relaxed and laid down again to attack his meal. Calling up to the door, Coyote added "I'm here. Come on in Thomas."
There was a scuffling sound and then his guest scrambled down into his den. It was a dirty little urchin, Coyote wouldn't of guessed him to be more than eight or nine. The boy was dressed in a pair of dirty jeans and a t-shirt, with a tattered old trench coat. A mop of dirty brown hair hung down in his face, almost grey in places from the dust.
Ooh! Yet another stray dog in search of a feeding!
Be nice. Coyote thought back irritably. He's saved our lives a couple times now you know.
He eyed the boy. Thomas looked tired. Coyote raised his eyebrows, concerned. "Are you all right?" The usually chatty street rat didn't answer immediately. That wasn't normal. "Thomas? What's wrong?"
Thomas gave him a grim look. "He's at it again. The hit's on the Craig party this time."
Coyote bared his teeth and leapt to his feet. "No!" Thomas watched him pace around the small interior of his den. He finally stopped in front of the boy, staring down at the eight year old. "I won't let him do this again Thomas. I won't!"
Like you have a say in the matter?
Clicking his tongue at the hyena, he grabbed up bow and quiver from a hollow in the wall of ruble. The hyena quickly bolted down the rest of the potato, darting up the embankment and out the door the instant he'd finished. Coyote followed him, pausing in the doorway to say a few words to Thomas.
"You have my word Thomas, I will stop him!" His face softened a little. Thomas was tired, he could barely keep his eyes open! He gave the boy a gentle smile. "Get some sleep Thomas, you look tired."
He put his untouched dinner in the street rat's hands and patted him on the shoulder. "No one will bother you here. Blankets are in the corner." Coyote darted out the door then, jogging across the courtyard without a second glance back and whistled for his hyena.
Coward. The voice accused.
"Who? Me?" Coyote asked, following the hyena through the half collapsed wall. "Ha! You'd be right! I barely do anything for him, but the way he thanks me you'd think I'd just handed him a hundred dollars! I don't do near enough to earn the thanks I'm given!"
For once, the voice had no answer. Coyote sighed and shook his head. The hyena shoved it's head under his hand, giving a quiet whine. He chuckled, rubbing the blocky head. "Come on dear heart. There's no rest for the weary."
The saying is there's no rest for the wicked.
He chuckled, shrugging his shoulders. "You can be the 'wicked' if you want, but us? We're definitely the 'weary'!"
"Uhhg, how much farther can this thing go?" Wally groaned, slogging along behind Rusty and Tat.
Ahead of them all Conner had point, his ears straining for any sound ahead or behind, and eyes sweeping the tunnels ahead with infrared. The clone didn't even glance back as he called over his shoulder to Wally. "Mind keeping it down so I can listen ahead? It's hard enough listening past Tat."
"Oh? If that's a problem you should've said so!" Rusty answered, surprised. To the dog he added, "Tat, shut your trap!" The baying of the hound ceased immediately. The team starred at the dog in surprise. Though completely and utterly silent, Tat continued to strain on the leash, leading them on through the dark tunnels.
Artemis arched her eyebrows. "Well that's useful! But isn't the whole point of a Bloodhound to be really loud to scare out whatever they're tracking? Why'd you teach Tat to be quiet?"
Rusty grinned. "I take Tat hunting with me on weekends. Can't have a big mouthed old hound scaring off my game. So I taught him to shut up so's he could stalk."
Artemis nodded. "Clever."
Robin grinned. "Speaking of clever…! Rusty, I forgot to ask, how's Tat2 doing? You've had him for a couple weeks now, right?"
Zatanna gave the Robin and Rusty a curious look. "Why Tattoo?"
Robin laughed. "Tat Two. Not tattoo." He gestured at Rusty, a silent invitation for the old man to take up the tale.
Rusty gave her a grim smile. "Tat's previous owner was a backyard breeder for Blood hounds, even had 'em registered! When he got busted, they took Tat an' his parents away from him. About a month ago, the rescue shelter got called out on a dog fight. Chip in one of the dogs I.D.'d it as bein' from the same litter as Tat. Soon as he was patched up enough to hold out, I brought him home."
Rusty chuckled, readjusting his grip on Tat's leash. "Poor thing was just as tattered up as his brother was, and my grandkids are completely nuts about Tat, so they insisted on naming the new pooch Tat2."
"Will this second dog be trained in the same manner as Tat?" Kaldur asked curiously.
Rusty shrugged. "Still have t' see about that. He's got a lot of scars from those fights. Tat2 was pretty roughed up, an' not all wounds are physical. The trick is finding out what those scars'll let him do, and then helping him stretch those scars out and work past them. See what he's got a knack for."
Kaldur nodded thoughtfully. "It seems to be a wise course of action."
Rusty nodded. Glancing down at the dog he added, "Another wise course 'd be getting ready t' tangle with the hyena. 'cording to Tat, he went up that incline there." He gestured at a steep, shale covered slope in a small alcove just off of the tunnel they were in.
M'Gann. Robin. Assume stealth mode and take point.Kaldur ordered over the psychic link.
The heroes in question nodded. Rusty starred in amazement, mouth slightly agape, as Robin darted up the shale slope without so much as a sound and faded into the shadows above and M'Gann simply disappeared all together right before his eyes!
Seeing the look, Wally grinned and patted his shoulder. "Yeah, ya never quite get used to that."
I got nothin'. Robin reported after several minutes.
I don't sense anything either. M'Gann agreed.
Conner shrugged. "Then let's keep moving." He gently picked up the hound leash and all and jumped up through the broken grate, completely bypassing the mass of sliding rubble. He swept the ruins with his infrared.
Nothing.
Behind him, he could hear his friends scrambling up out of the sewers. He snorted. Wally complained about the smell, Conner would've loved to hear what he'd say if he could smell it through Conner's nose! The minute Rusty was up and out, the clone was quick to give him back the leash. He didn't want the man to think he was poaching his dog!
"Can Tat pick up the scent again?" Zatanna asked, looking around at the broken down buildings.
"You heard her Tat. Find him! And shut your trap." Rusty said in answer, using words similar to the ones he'd used before. Again, the hound nailed his nose to the ground. He was quicker this time in picking up the scent, leading them on a very circuitous route through the decrepit old buildings and mounds of crushed concrete.
Where are we? Artemis thought across the psychic link. Nothing's familiar and I got turned around in the sewers.
This is all that's left of the old Maxwell and Harington buildings. Robin answered silently. He scrambled up onto a pile of concrete, craning his neck. It reminded his friends of the Meer cats they saw standing watch on Animal Planet . Two Face blew them up before I became Robin. It used to be a popular spot for teenagers to hang out, but rumor has it that the place is haunted by victims of the bombing, and lately something's ticking said specters off. It's on our list of places Batman and Robin need to check out sometime soon.
Wally cocked his head. Why?
Robin did a front flip off the pile of rock. Because the probability of the haunting being legit is about as slim as a three legged plow horse winning the Kentucky Derby. If this place is haunted, it's haunted by the living. And they're hiding something.
The hound suddenly froze, eyes locked on something ahead of them. Rusty motioned frantically for them to duck, and they all dove for the nearest pile of rocks. Peering cautiously over the debris, they followed the hound's line of sight.
Give you three guesses who's haunting this place…" Artemis thought with a smirk.
Walking through the ruins towards them, was none other than the hyena they'd been tracking. And walking beside the animal was the Coyote. He was in human form again, and he appeared to be carrying something.
Their eyes widened when they realized he was carrying a little boy!
Kaldur's grey eyes narrowed thoughtfully as he watched the teen approach with his burden. Our primary concern is the child. Wally, can you retrieve the boy from him before he has a chance to react?
The redhead nodded, eyeing his target. He could manage that, no problem!
The rest of the team will focus on containing and capturing Coyote and the hyena. M'Gann, lift them up. The strange mist that allows Coyote to transform seems to emanate from the ground. If he is unable to touch the soil, it is possible it will not affect him. Robin, Artemis, you both have nets, correct?
The two nodded.
Use them. Zatanna, be prepared to counter any magic he tries to use if you are able. Conner and I will be prepared to intervene should he still manage to escape our hold. Understood?
The team nodded their heads.
Out in the open the hyena suddenly stopped.
Time was up!
Then go!
DUN! Dun! dun! Lol, evil cliff hanger at twelve o clock! And Jasmine Nightshade, thank you for pointing that out about Conner, I didn't know! I could've sworn it was one of his normall abilities, but maybe not... Anyway, I'm gonna let this stand because I'm lazy and he needed to feel usefull (quails under Conner's glare) ...I am so glad he doesn't have heat vision...
See that little blue button down there? Yeah, that one. You know what it does? It makes the next chapter come faster! (crosses heart and puts on inocent expression) Honest!
Until next time...