Chapter 6: Under the Hood
**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the locations or songs within this story, Young Justice and its characters such as Dick Grayson and Zatanna Zatara are strictly property of Warner Bros. and DC Comics. Songs that are being sung are not owned by me either, but are written and performed by Jesse McCartney, voice actor of Dick Grayson on Young Justice.
Dick, Zatanna and the Team had some time on their hands, as there were no assignments at all today. After a few weeks filled with missions and being back they just decided they were having a movie day, hanging out and talking while watching some of their favorite movies. After they finished watching "The Avengers" a superhero movie that came out a couple years back that a few of them hadn't had the time to see.
"Well that was a good movie; except they make it all look like a joke." Conner said laughing. "Everything Marvel makes is a joke, Spiderman, X-Men, Captain America, all of it." Tim said laughing. "Oh well, they broke some nice box office records though at least." Dick said nonchalantly. "So Nightwing, I've heard that you have quite a voice on you, mind if you sing us a little song?" M'gann said. "No he doesn't mind, do you?" Zatanna said smiling, and then turning to look at Dick. "Alright, alright I'll sing, but only because you asked so nicely." He smirked, "Let me get my guitar real quick."
Dick jumped over the love seat he and Zatanna were sitting on and ran to his room to grab his guitar. "Quite a man you have there, Zatanna." Cassie said happily. "Thank you. He really is, Cass." Zatanna smiled. "He's good looking, a great smile and beautiful blue eyes." Cassie continued. "Cassie…" "Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to make it sound like that I just…" Zatanna replied, "It's okay, Cass. I'd be talking the same way if he were yours."
They laughed at this as Dick returned to the room with his guitar and sat back down next to Zatanna. "Alright, well this is a song I think we've all heard on the radio more than once." He smiled as all eyes and ears were fixed on him. He strummed his guitar in a series of chords that was very relaxing.
"The sun goes down, the stars come out and all that counts is here and now. My universe will never be the same, I'm glad you came." He turned his attention to Zatanna and continued singing, "You cast a spell on me, spell on me. You hit me like the sky fell on me, fell on me. And I decided you look well on me, well on me. So let's go somewhere no one else can see, you and me." Zatanna's blushing was obvious as the others watched them intently and listened to it all.
"Turn the lights out now. Now I'll you by the hand. Hand you another drink. Drink it if you can. Can you spend a little time? Time is slipping away, away from us so stay. Stay with me I can make, make you glad you came. The sun goes down, the stars come out, and all that counts is here and now. My universe will never be the same, I'm glad you came. I'm glad you came."
He ended the song there, and the Team clapped for him. "Thanks guys, I'm glad to hear appreciation of my music." Dick said looking at all of his friends, and he put his guitar down and held on to Zatanna. "Oh and did I mention talented?" Cassie decided to say. "Shut up, Cassie." Barbara said, laughing.
"What did I say?" Cassie replied confused. Dick and Zatanna were cuddling on the couch not really paying attention to the rest of the group. The others got up to leave the two alone. Zatanna looked at them and said, "Where are you all going?" Raquel replied quickly, "Oh don't worry about us. We'll talk later, I'll call you alright?" "Okay, I'll talk to you later then."
The two lovers were left alone in the Cave, left to do whatever their hearts desire. They rarely got any time alone during the day when they were with the Team until they returned to Bludhaven. So they talked for a while as there was not much else to do but watch more movies and be lazy.
"So beautiful, there isn't much else we can do now, we've talked about everything." "Well… There is one thing we can do…" She looked at him, bringing her face in closer to his and locking her lips with his, climbing on him slowly and elegantly. "Zee, we shouldn't be doing this…" He said softly. "Shh, no talking, not right now." "And if we are doing this, we really shouldn't be doing this here." "Oh don't be a party pooper, babe."
A transmission came in onto the main screen of the cave, "Nightwing, there is…" Bruce paused, his eyebrows rising at the situation in front of him, his face much less serious than usual. "Ahem…" Zatanna got off of Dick quickly and they looked at Bruce's image on the screen and blushed. "Am I interrupting? I can call back later." Bruce said jokingly. "No, no you're fine. What's the news?"
"There's been an increase in heavy drug trafficking, but the strange thing is, crime is down. It seems we have ourselves a new player." "So you want us to find this mystery man then?"
"No, I want you and Zatanna to help me find him, this is something we need to be doing ourselves, I've already informed the League of our work, and they'll be ready for backup in case anything ever gets too ugly."
"Alright, I won't question your judgment, so when do you want us to be in Gotham then?" "Be here in a few hours, I have some things to do to prepare." "Then we'll see you in a few hours." "Good to hear, Batman out."
Dick looked over at Zatanna; she gave him a nervous smile, her wavy hair flowing next to her head. "Don't worry, Zee, the Court of Owls is gone and we're safe. Nothing else is going to keep us apart, okay?" "I'm just scared to lose you again"
Dick scooted in closer to Zatanna wrapping his arms around her waist and looking her in eyes, "You never lost me." He gave her a reassuring kiss. "I know, it's just scary, a new crime lord rising out of nowhere ever since the Court of Owls had been taken out of commission." "And I feel that he may have had a hand in it himself." He held on to her tight now.
Meanwhile in Gotham, a meeting of all of Gotham's biggest mob bosses and the leaders of drug trade was taking place in an old warehouse on the outskirts of the city. "Who called this meeting again?" "It doesn't matter right now. What matters is the Black Mask isn't liable to our protection anymore; in fact he's been losing territory and our money quickly." One of the mob bosses said.
"Who called this meeting? This isn't our problem anymore, its Black Masks problem now. But if we're not getting anything done here I'm out." A shadowy figure came out of the darkness on top of one of the warehouse walkways, wearing a leather jacket and black suit under it wearing a red metallic mask and holding a personalized AK-47, from above lashed out, "On the contrary, it's my problem now. Now I'm going to ask you to have a seat. I called this meeting."
"And why should we listen to you? Do you know who we are?" One of the mob bosses said. "I know exactly who you are; you're Gotham City's finest, the leaders of the drug trade." The masked man replied. "Okay we're listening."
"I'm making you a deal. All of you will answer to me now, you will receive protection from both Black Mask and Batman, but no dealing to kids on playgrounds, if you do, then you're dead. I want 40% of all cuts you receive throughout the city."
"And why should we listen to you?" One of the mob bosses replied again. The masked man threw down a duffle bag onto the meeting table from his place on the walkway above. It landed with a loud thud. "Take a look." One of the bosses unzipped and looked into the bag, a foul odor wafted its way through the warehouse as the faces of the bosses looked at one another in horror, and some even threw up at the sight and stench. "Those are the heads of all of your lieutenants. That took me two hours, think of what I could do in an entire evening. Just remember and make no mistake, I'm not asking you, I'm telling you." The mysterious man brought his enhanced and silenced AK47 to his hip and took aim at the table; he shot the bag to pieces in the middle.
The bosses jumped to the floor and took cover as he shot at their meeting table, and when they looked up all that was left was smoke, and the man was gone. "Well, 40% sounds good to me." One of the Mob Bosses said.
A large truck with an unknown shipment was driving quickly throughout the outskirts of Gotham in an attempt to make a delivery to their buyer. They were being chased by Batman; there were three thugs in the truck. The one sitting in the center speaks up and says, "I think we lost him."
Bruce jumped on the front of the truck cracking the front windshield and said, "I don't think so". The driver swerved the truck to the right into a turn and ran over tacks batman had set up to pop the tires of the truck and the truck lost control and hit a wall head on, with their large box flying out the back behind them.
One of the thugs thought he was safe, looking at his gun just outside of the window that he was reaching from, but a hand broke through the already cracked glass of the front windshield. Bruce picked the thug up and said sternly, "Who do you work for?" The thug replied, "We don't work for anyone, we were working alone."
Bruce tightened his grip on the man's neck after he finished his sentence. The man flinched, but Bruce only said "Lie to me again and running into a wall head on won't be the most painful event of your night."
The box lid opened up, and flew into the air and landed with a thud; steam came from the box following the lid as well. A large imposing figure made its way outside of its prison and stepped onto the ground, it resembled a large human being with red eyes, shirtless and green pants, but it was clearly mechanical.
"What the hell is that thing?" The thug in Bruce's grip said. "It's Amazo, it's designed to absorb and mimic the powers of superhumans." "What kind of superhumans?" Amazo brought his arms down upon the ground and struck it hard, the earth shook and a shockwave came out like a small earthquake towards Bruce and the thug.
Bruce jumped out of the way and brought the three thugs to safety, throwing some explosives at the android to slow it down. "Big ones." He replied quickly. It picked up one of the tin cargo boxes and threw it at Bruce, and Bruce dodged swiftly but it hit the truck and exploded.
Bruce hit another cargo box with a thud. On one of the cargo boxes behind Bruce appeared a pair of dark figures, one in a black leotard with a blue bird on it, and one with a magicians outfit on. Dick called out to Bruce, "Packs quite the punch for a toaster on steroids, huh? You look like you could use a hand." Bruce replied sharply, "I could." "Alright, let's get going then."
Dick jumped down from the boxes ready to fight, Zatanna following close behind, landing without making a sound. Quickly he and Bruce jumped to face their attacker with lightning agility. He pulled out a pair of iron knuckles, first kicking it, landing on his hands and pushing himself up again, landing a swift strike across the face of the android, ripping a chunk of its artificial skin. Bruce followed up with a knee to its face.
"Eit eht diordna pu." Zatanna spoke as a rope came from thin air and tied up Amazo. Amazo shrugged the binds off and broke them with ease. Bruce and Dick threw a few more punches landing solid blows in the process, and then using explosive Batarangs to slow it down.
Amazo used laser vision, modeled after that of superman on the ground to destabilize it and make a futile attempt to attack Bruce and Dick. They jumped out of the way, but Amazo flew toward Dick and grabbed him, flying up with him into the air.
Bruce grappled onto Amazo's leg following close behind as they flew up. Dick, cool and collected says to Bruce, "I wouldn't be offended by a few suggestions." "He has the same weak points as a human being." Dick pulled out twin stiletto knives made of steel and titanium alloy, meaning they were light and quick for situations fighting artificial opponents.
He first hit him in the face with the hilt of one of the knives Then he stabbed Amazo in the temple with both knives at the same time, causing it to let go of him, and Dick dove down to the earth, pulling out the pair of hidden glider wings that he rarely uses and glides down to the ground safely with Bruce following close behind, next to Zatanna. Amazo follows them down once again, but crashing hard on the ground.
The android once again gets up and shoots lasers at them again, and they dodge quickly, but barely. Dick jumps out of the way, doing a few flips as a show of his skill as an acrobat, as it is only focused on him. Zatanna speaks out and says "Dlofdnilb raeppa no eht diordna." As she says that Bruce jumps over it and sticks putty over its eyes.
Dick asks, "Plastic explosives?" Bruce hits a detonator and it explodes, leaving Amazo without a head. "Yep." He replies with a smile. Amazo fell to the ground with a thud, ending his rampage. "Nice! Great work, now, where are those three guys you captured?" "Over there." Zatanna replied to him.
They walked in an intimidating fashion over to the three thugs. "This shipment was meant for the Black Mask, I doubt you're behind this, who do you work for?" The driver of it spoke, in a typical New Jersey accent, "We're not working for anyone, and this is our gig, all our idea." Bruce looked over at Dick, "Let it go." Dick replied with a smirk, "Got it."
Dick pressed a button, which controlled the crane which the lifeless Amazo hung from, it fell fast dropping right over the top of the three thugs' head, and the fear in their eyes was evident as the driver cried out, "Ahh!" IT stopped just a foot above their heads, "Alright I'll talk, just stop, just stop!" Dick raised the body of Amazo again, oil dripping from it as it rose.
"The Red Hood, we're working for the Red Hood! We don't have any choice. He's got u…" His sentence was cut short as he took a bullet to the chest, and collectively his two friends as well, they all toppled onto one another, lifeless.
Dick grabbed Zatanna and got behind cover, while Bruce also got behind cover. "The shots came from the rooftop, a sniper." Dick looked back over at the three lifeless bodies. "A good one." They emerged from their cover, realizing if the sniper wanted them dead, he would've shot them.
Bruce pulled out a pair of binoculars. "Do you see him?" Dick asked. "Yeah." Bruce said, as his jet came overhead, he left to chase the sniper, and he took Amazo into the jet with him.
"Hey wait!" Dick said, realizing that he was being left there, "Right, leave us with them." He looked at Zatanna, who was staring at the bodies of the thugs. Dick pressed a button and called his wing cycle to him, he and Zatanna got on and rode away from the scene, to Wayne Manor.
He received a call on his commlink; it was Tim, "Everything alright over there?" "Yeah, we're alright." Dick replied, "Alright, just checking, where's Bruce?" "He's chasing a criminal right now; we're heading back to Wayne Manor. See you there, Nightwing out." "I'll be here."
"How are you holding up, Zee?" "I'm fine." "Fine… you just saw three lives taken before your eyes, I doubt it." "Let's just get back home, alright?" "Okay, and did you say home? It's been a long time since either of us has called the Manor by that name." She was silent the rest of the way back to Wayne Manor.
They entered through the Batcave, being greeted by Ace the Bat-hound, and Tim. "Well hello you two lovebirds!" Zatanna said, "Hi." Softly, she walked to the elevator and entered. And Dick just walked up to talk to Tim. "Hey Tim, we just killed an Android, Bruce has it in his jet, and he's pursuing someone they call the Red Hood as of right now. She's a bit shaken she saw a few of the people we were interrogating get killed."
"Really, well okay, I have some things to do down here." "Okay, Zatanna and I need to 'debrief', alright?" "Okay I won't bother you." "Good, I'll see you soon." Dick walked into the elevator and rushed to his and Zatanna's room flipping a few different ways.
He took off his domino mask, like always revealing his beautiful ocean blue eyes, placing it into his wrist utility. He opened the door, taking his gloves off, and his boots off. Zatanna was sitting on their bed, pondering, he came up to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and put her head on his chest.
"It's okay, everything will be okay, Bruce will be back with the killer, or at least good news." "I know, but it brought me back to the day of when my father became Doctor Fate, and how he still and possibly always will be him." "He's still in there somewhere, Zee. I know it." "You think so?" "I know so."
He picked her up a little more, softly, bringing her head closer to his. She looked at him, and moved even closer, pressing her lips to his. He kissed back and wrapped his arms around her waist, as she put her hand behind his head wrapping her other arm around his neck.
A call came in on his commlink; it was Bruce, "Nightwing; Come in Nightwing." "Nightwing here" He let go of Zatanna quickly, and looked at her bringing the commlink away from his face. "I'm sorry, come on let's go." She looked back at him, disappointed. He slipped his gloves back on, and put the commlink back up to his mouth.
"Alright, go ahead." "I didn't catch him…" "It's okay; we'll catch this guy." "I know, just meet me down at the cave." "We'll be down in a second, Nightwing out." Dick started moving toward the door when Zatanna's sweet voice reached his ear. "Dick, we don't have to do anything, we could just go back to Bludhaven."
"Duty comes first; we can go home after we stop this Red Hood. Now come on, please." Still speaking softly to her, and she got up, taking his hand. "I love you Dick." "I love you too, Zatanna." They reached the Batcave, greeted once again by Ace and Tim, who were gathered around Bruce's large supercomputer that was in the center of the cave.
Tim was all suited up and ready for a fight, along with Barbara, Bruce and Alfred. "Hello, you two lovebirds!" Tim said with a smirk. "Hey Tim, how are you feeling? Hello Babs, long time, no see." "Hey there Dick, are you keeping well? Hi Zatanna! How are you?" Barbara replied with a smile. "We're both doing great, Babs." "Well I'm doing good, just eager to kick some drug lord behind." "That's good, and Bruce, I have a flash drive, got this shot from a snitch."
He walks up to the computer and plugs it in. "He says that this guy's been making serious moves." Bruce looked at the shot, a man running, the one he had chased earlier, "The Red Hood."
"Might be, he bears a resemblance to the original." "Several criminals have utilized this persona." "One criminal in particular. But he's locked up." "Not his M.O. either, like I said before, there's been an uptake in heavy trafficking, but yet crime is down." Alfred walks up with a cup of coffee for Bruce and Dick, "Indeed it is; Master Bruce has gotten almost 3 hours sleep in the past two days, a true busman's holiday." Dick replies "But he is locked up, like a lot locked up."
He turns around slightly and says, "Maybe we should take a visit." Only to notice Bruce is already in the Batmobile, and it's starting up. "Could you just once say let's get in the car? Is that so hard? Zee, stay here with everyone, I'll be back within an hour or so. We're making a trip to Arkham." He flipped up into the top of the Batmobile and it took off as soon as it hit the seat.
"After all these years, I still don't understand him." Zatanna said to everyone who remained in the cave. She let out a sigh, feeling a hand on her shoulder, it was Barbara. "Don't worry so much about him, he's Dick Grayson, Nightwing, and he's with Bruce, the best protection possible, those two are unstoppable together.
"I know they are; I just worry for his safety after that whole Court of Owls thing." "They'll be fine." Tim shot a big smile, and then looked at Alfred, and then to Jason Todd's costume stand. "I wonder what he'd say if he were still here."
Dick and Bruce reached Arkham, and entered the Jokers cell with permission of the guards. When they entered the first thing the Joker said when he woke up to look at them was, "You look good, been working out? You could probably use some sun. But, then again, who am I to talk about sun?" He began laughing hysterically. Bruce set a picture of Red Hood on the table.
"He's calling himself the Red Hood, what do you know about it?" "That he has horrible taste! When I wore that number, it was classy, a more flashy Maitre D than motorcycle fetish. Ah these kids today." Dick cut in, "I don't think he has too much involvement… He's been locked up for almost four years now."
"Oh Bird Boy, you're so much less fun now, all grown up, in your big boy pants. But still, better off than his replacement, right? Even tougher making it with the Yuks, when you're worm food." This made Bruce furious; he picked up Joker and threw him against the wall, holding him there in a chokehold. Joker said tauntingly, "You gonna do it this time? Or are you just gonna put me in another body cast for six months, eh?" He laughed again.
Dick put his hand on Bruce's shoulder, "No, this isn't our way, put him down." Bruce dropped the Joker, "I'm sorry…" "I know." The Joker spoke again after he hit the ground with a thud, "Back to the matter at hand, this new hoodie… Do you think I would stir up all this trouble, and not make sure you knew it was me?"
He began laughing again. Dick picked the Joker up and knocked him out with a swift punch to the face, then set him back on his bed. "Alright let's get out of here now."
Dick and Bruce got out of Arkham very quickly, and they began a chase of Red Hood, joined by Zatanna, Tim and Barbara. "Alright this should be it, make sure to stay out of sight you three" Dick said to Zatanna, Tim, and Barbara. Now looking at Zatanna, "I've taught you all I can about stealth, so this should be a piece of cake to you." She just smiled and nodded"
"I've added a few new toys that should come in handy from my wrist utility; it can now shoot darts, and wing-dings." "I think we should move, he's already on the rooftops of Black Masks building." Red Hood goes to take control of the helicopter, and he does by himself, knocking out the pilots and killing the guards who are guarding the shipment.
Bruce pulled out one of his main suitcases, holding a missile launcher. Red Hood was about to fly off when he felt something hit his helicopter, and pulling the trigger once more Dick unleashed the EMP blast.
Red Hood desperately tried to control the helicopter and then said to himself, "I was wondering when you guys would get here." Then looking out the window of the helicopter he saw Bruce and Dick standing outside of it, with Dick holding the EMP launcher.
Dick looked at him and said, "Hmm, I like this, where can I get one?" The helicopter started falling down, and the only thing holding it was one cable. Red Hood stared and yelled out at them! You wanna dance? Then let's dance." Dick stapled down the cable to the top of the building in about twenty different places. As the helicopter was falling Red Hood jumped out onto another building.
Bruce jumped down, putting one of his own grappling hooks out and sticking it to the side of a building to help hold up the helicopter then slid down the cable as nearly 8 of the heavy duty staples came out of the building; only a few were holding the Helicopter up.
It held the helicopter up, only about thirty or so feet above civilians and the ground. However, Bruce was still sliding, the cable burning his gloves. Dick swung down on a grappling cable and grabbed Bruce; they swung up to the building Red Hood was on.
He saw them swinging towards him and said to himself, "Okay then, nice night for a run" He then jumped off on a building, rolling on his side, smashing through a floorboard then crashing a plank and rolling down it to a lower floor. Bruce and Dick came close behind him, very quickly accelerating the chase.
As they walked into the building Red Hood smashed through the wall boards, grabbing a small propane tank that was conveniently placed next to the unfinished wall then smashing threw the glass window falling and he threw the tank up toward the window he jumped from, Bruce stopped by the window while Dick was right behind the pair of cinderblocks.
Red Hood pulled out his pistol, he shot the tank and it exploded, Bruce rushing back behind the cinderblock, while Dick took cover behind it as well. Zatanna saw this and it scared her a bit, she let out a gasp as she saw Red Hood falling with the explosion, knowing Dick and Bruce were in the building.
She was relieved when she saw Dick and Bruce jumping out of the window just as soon as the debris cleared more, they jumped out of the window the ground with a roll, from another spot on the building that was in construction, running across the steel bars, they caught up to Red Hood quickly.
Dick was first to catch up, using the bars to his advantage, as he was more agile than Bruce was. On the chase Red Hood jumped from the construction building onto a regular finished one. He jumped off again, building to building, running performing impressive feats of parkour. Finally Red Hood jumped onto a blimp, and then around the corner of a building he shot at the building Bruce and Dick were on.
"He's good." Dick said, "Yes, he's putting on quite a show." Bruce said sharply. The shooting stopped, as Red Hood made his escape. But Bruce and Dick chased him, jumping from the blimp to the building he was on.
Red Hood jumped form the building, Bruce shot a grapple around him, and the cable wrapped around his leg. But before it tightened around his leg, he cut it. A surprised look came across his face; Dick however shot a dart out at Red Hood, hitting his body armor, looking as though it didn't do any damage.
He pushed off of one building onto the ledge of another to the top of the glass monorail station, and swung down using a hanging cable used by the station, breaking the glass and getting into the station. They jumped down, following him, and as they did they heard a beeping noise. Seeing a few bombs rigged to blow up.
"Move!" Bruce said quickly as he and Dick ran away from it, it blew up knocking t hem onto the rails below. Dick grasped his ankle, as it was hurt. They heard a motorcycle revving, and Bruce looked over at it. Red Hood yelled out, while Bruce's HUD was filming it, "You haven't lost your touch, Bruce!" As a train was passing by them, he disappeared.
Dick and Bruce moved off of the rails, away from the train, and Zatanna, Barbara and Tim showed up to the scene. "We lost him." was the first thing Tim said. "I'm sorry you two." Dick just said. "It's fine, we'll catch him later, just get me back to the cave."