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I don't own anything. DC Comics, and anything that it publishes, is not in anyway owned by me. It is all owned by rich, talented people. I'm a nobody. Please don't sue me.
Report of Land
"Um, not to point out the obvious or anything, but how can we possibly be late?" Stephanie asked.
Commissioner Avery huffed. "I expected you to be here sooner after your associate contacted me."
"Who?" Stephanie asked, glancing back at Cass, who shook her head.
"He called himself Oracle," Avery said. "E-mailed us every bit of the paper trail we'd need to prove four of my officers were paid to frame you for Judge Haversham's murder."
Cassandra was shocked for a moment, before smiling slightly. She had been expecting Barbara to find them, especially with all the national attention their efforts were attracting, even if they never released their presence on the news. As angry as Cass was at her, she was glad that her former mentor was looking out for them.
"Oh," Stephanie said.
"Are you not working for this Oracle?" Avery asked, looking at them with penetrating eyes.
"No," Stephanie said. "We did, back in Gotham, but we hadn't been in contact."
"Well, he's still looking out for you," Avery said. "I suspected you were from Gotham. You meet the description I've heard about a vigilante from there, although I don't recognize your friend."
"Yup!" Stephanie said. "I'm Spoiler. She's Silent."
"I can see that," Avery said dryly. "I take it from your presence here that you planned to confront me about the police being after you."
"Yeah," Stephanie said. "Sure, we're vigilantes and all, but come on! What city doesn't have a few? And it's not like we're trying to take your credit or anything. We just want to help!"
"I'm aware of that," Avery said calmly. "I have no intentions of arresting you. I've been trying to do something about Mandragora's network since I was hired, but you've done more good in a few months than I've accomplished in years."
"Then what's with the attempts?" Stephanie asked. "Is this gonna be one of those 'pretend we hate each other because you wear a mask' things?"
"No," Avery said with an amused snort. "This is about my daughter, who is being held by one of Mandragora's men. He wants you arrested, or dead. Not too picky."
"Oh," Stephanie said nervously. "I like the pretend idea better."
"Well, we're going to be doing some pretending," Avery admitted. "If I try to rescue my daughter, they'll kill her. Of course, if they kill her, they know I'll bring them down or die trying. Frankly, kidnapping her reeks of desperation."
"The whole thing's been sloppy," Stephanie pointed out. "They made about fifty mistakes at the crime scene."
"You busted Mandragora's best man, and none of his replacements have been up to snuff," Avery said. "It helps that Mandragora's a paranoid old bastard, and he promotes based on loyalty more than merit. Most of his people couldn't find their ass with both hands."
"Of course, sloppy also means more collateral," Stephanie said carefully.
"Like the kidnapping," Avery agreed. "Which is why I've been waiting for you to approach me."
"You want us to find your daughter?" Stephanie asked.
"Yes," Avery said. "And you can't let Mandragora know. If whoever is behind this finds out, then they could kill her."
Stephanie saw the picture sitting on the desk and walked over to look at it. The Commissioner's daughter was a sweet looking girl of around eight, with dark skin and a cheerful grin. Stephanie couldn't help but wonder if she would smile like that again by the time they found her. Clenching her fist with determination, she vowed to save her no matter what. "Is that her?"
"Yes," Avery said, her face softening for a moment, revealing just how tired and stressed the woman was. "Her name's Carly."
"Don't worry, we'll get her back. We'll even lead your cops on a few chases in front of some thugs if you want, make sure Mandragora knows you're playing ball."
Avery smirked for a second, before she became serious again. "That shouldn't be necessary. Just get out there and find her... please."
"Hey, don't sweat it!" Stephanie said confidently. "I've been doing this for years. We'll find her. I promise."
Before Avery could say anything else there was a knock at the door, and the Commissioner turned toward it. "Just a second, let me get that..." she said before trailing off as she noticed that both girls had disappeared in the few seconds that her head had been turned. "How the hell did they do that?"
Billy ran, his lungs burning, a painful stitch in his side seeking to pull him to a stop. Despite that he kept running, as hard and as fast as he could. He hadto get away. He had to.
Something slammed into his side with the force of a car crash, sending him flying into a pile of stinking garbage. Rotten meat from the nearby Chinese restaurant covered Billy as a trash bag burst open, but he didn't even have time to notice the terrible smell before he felt himself spun around and pressed into the dirt by a boot to his head.
"Oh, god," he whimpered as the foot pressed harder.
"I don't even think he could save you from her," Stephanie's cheerful voice said as she strolled casually down the alley to where Cassandra held the criminal to the ground. "If you're smart you'll start talking."
"I don't know nothin'!" he rasped, only to whimper as Cassandra ground his head into the concrete with her foot.
"Ouch," Stephanie said. "That looks like it hurt. Are you sure you want to get her mad? 'Cause that's just dumb."
"What do you want to know?" he finally asked, his voice shaking.
"Someone set us up," Stephanie said. "Got the police after us. He works for Mandragora. We need a name."
"I don't know!"
"You know something," Stephanie said dismissively after a quick glance at Cassandra.
"I heard some rumors," the man said. "Just some guys talkin' 'bout one of Mandragora's lieutenants running a big job. But I don't know anything else! I swear, not even a name!"
Stephanie glanced at Cassandra, who nodded reluctantly. "You know, this sorta thing wouldn't happen if you weren't a scumbag drug dealer," Stephanie said conversationally. "Maybe you should think about cleaning up your life."
The two vigilantes used their grapples to reach the rooftops and soon began running, sticking to the shadows to avoid notice. Eventually they settled in on top of an eight story building, crouching low and looking down at the busy streets below. "He was our best lead in hours, and nothing," Stephanie grumbled.
Cassandra popped her neck and stretched, looking up at the sun in the sky above. She had never spent any significant time in costume during the day before, and it was a novel experience to be questioning crooks in broad daylight. They had left immediately from the police headquarters, and hadn't paused in their search. Unfortunately, they had learned little, even after so many hours of looking.
"For someone sloppy... no one knows... anything," Cass said.
"Well, I guess he was bound to be good at something to make it that high in the ranks," Stephanie said.
Cassandra pushed back her sleeve to reveal her watch, frowning at it thoughtfully as she carefully read it. "Work time."
Stephanie jumped before checking her own. "We can't. That little girl... she's all alone with criminals. Who knows what they're doing to her. Some criminals are just bad guys. Some, though..."
Cassandra felt her heart go out to her friend as she became lost in memories of her own past with her father's criminal organization. "Still, have to work. Save less people... living on streets."
Stephanie sighed, rubbing her face through her mask. "I know. It's just..."
"Will find her," Cass said, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Promise."
Work was almost impossible to concentrate on for Cassandra that day, thoughts of the victim still spinning in her mind. She had also been up for twenty-four solid hours, most of that time spent hunting for leads that went nowhere. She was exhausted and frustrated, and wanted to rush out and track down the criminals right that second. Instead, she had to spend eight hours cleaning filthy hotel rooms.
When her shift finally ended she all but ran back to the apartment. She was just finishing changing when Stephanie dragged herself inside. She had deep bags under her eyes, and her hair was a mess, but despite her exhaustion, Cass could see her friend's determination. Cassandra spent several minutes microwaving food while Stephanie changed, and the two of them ate quickly without speaking.
For three more hours they hit the streets, searching for leads and intimidating every criminal they came across into telling everything they knew. Most of those criminals had already heard about their rampage, and Cass could read the pure terror in their postures when they saw them. Despite that, they learned nothing.
"There's got to be a better way!" Stephanie exploded after they finished securing another group of gang members. "We should go to where the criminals are!"
Cass cocked her head curiously until Stephanie elaborated.
"We should go back to that bar," she said. "It was full of criminals. I bet one of them knows something."
"Too many," Cassandra said. "Get killed, no one find."
"I know!" Stephanie shouted, her hands shaking from tension and exhaustion. "I know! But if we don't... if we don't... damn it, Cass!"
Cassandra hesitated for a moment. She knew that if Batman was there he would send them both home and demand they get some sleep. On the other hand, Batman would push his body even further before resting. With a child on the line, how could they not push themselves to the limit as well?
Finally, Cass sighed. "Okay. Dangerous. But maybe only way."
Stephanie straightened up before rubbing her face tiredly through her mask. With an act of will the blonde vigilante brought her hands under control before taking a deep, cleansing breath. "Okay. Let's do this."
The bar was as run-down and sleazy as it had ever been. They paused for a few minutes to listen to their bugs, which they had already had to replace twice as the cheap off-the-shelf devices had broken down. Unfortunately, while they were working, they didn't hear anything of use. After a bit Stephanie put her receiver away with disgust and stalked towards the front door of the bar. Without a moment's pause she kicked the door as hard as she could, the textbook perfect kick knocking the cheap wooden door from its hinges, sending it falling into the room.
Cassandra had no choice but to follow her friend into the silent bar. They hadn't taken the time to survey the room, and her heart fell as she saw how many people were present. No doubt due to their rampage through the underworld, many criminals had decided to hide in the bar together, seeking safety in numbers. The end result was a room packed with more than a hundred angry, rough-looking people.
Only Cass could see Stephanie's sudden apprehension, but she pushed past it, strolling into the room like she owned the place. "Listen up! I'm looking for one of Mandragora's lieutenants. The asshole decided to frame me and Silent for a murder, and we're pissed about it. Now, you can either give him up, or we can vent some of our anger on all your faces."
One of the large, heavyset bikers set down his beer and stepped forward. "There's a price on your heads. A big one. Enough to be worth splittin' a hundred ways."
"Alright," Stephanie said, cracking her knuckles. "I've got nothing against breaking some faces. If you know something, try to make sure you can still talk when we're done with you."
The first attack came from the side while Stephanie was seemingly distracted looking at the loudmouthed biker. The attacker was a lean gang member wearing loose jeans and a red jersey. He simply picked up a stool, walked up to Stephanie's flank as quietly as he could, and swung.
The attack hit nothing but air, as Stephanie had noticed his approach despite concentrating on the rest of the room. Ducking, she then spun low, sweeping the man's feet and sending him crashing to the ground. As she nonchalantly stood back up, the rest of the bar took the sudden motion as a sign to begin.
Cassandra crashed into the next group to make their move. She used a sweeping attack, which, to the casual observer, looked like a single wide kick as she took three bikers out of the fight. Before they even hit the ground she was already moving, her fists lashing out furiously, each blow at full power and aimed at nerve clusters that would incapacitate. Normally Cass took more care to take down her opponents with less pain and risk of serious injury, but seeing the sheer numbers arrayed against them she decided to forget such niceties and go for instant yet lasting takedowns.
The melee swirled around the room, Cassandra and Stephanie both skilled enough to use the numbers against the crowd. They ducked, whirled, and danced through their clumsier opponents, redirecting attacks into other enemies and causing their would-be attackers to cluster up ineffectually. Furthermore, despite their presence as a uniting foe, some of the criminals took advantage of the confusion of the fight to settle scores between each other.
Ten minutes after Stephanie had kicked in the door most of the room was unconscious, with the criminals still standing being the wariest, having avoided attracting Cassandra's notice during the fight, as those who did went down quickly and stayed down. Stephanie had made a good accounting for herself as well, her knuckles sore from beating more than two dozen thugs unconscious.
Both vigilantes were sporting an assortment of injuries despite their domination of the fight. Stephanie had a slight limp from a painful hit to her knee, and her side was a mass of bruises. Cassandra had fared somewhat better, although a lucky hit to her chin had left her jaw throbbing and filled her mouth with the taste of blood.
Seeing that those still standing were less interested in attacking, Stephanie stalked towards one of the remaining criminals, having noticed that he had two people standing next to him like bodyguards. The two guards moved to intercept, but despite their imposing sizes Stephanie was able to flip one to the ground, dislocating his arm as she did, before stomping on the other's foot and sending him into unconsciousness with an elbow to his temple. Barely slowed, she continued to stalk the now frightened man that they had been protecting.
"Hey, I didn't do nothin'," the man said. "I'm just an innocent bystander!"
"Innocent?" Stephanie snorted. "Please. I doubt anyone within a block of this dump is innocent. Now, you're gonna tell me who set us up, or I'm gonna show you what Batman taught me."
"B-Batman?" the man said.
"That's right," Stephanie said, darting forward to grab the man by his collar and shove him back against a table. "I worked for the Batman for years. He taught me all kinds of fun things to do to two-bit hoods like you. I'm getting a bit rusty being here in Hub City, so I could use the practice."
"Oh god..." the man said, his eyes rolling around in panic.
"Wrong answer!" Stephanie shouted, shoving him hard enough to slide over the table, crashing to the floor behind in a shower of beer and glass. He staggered to his feet, but by the time he did Stephanie was on him again, this time pinning him to the wall. "Talk!"
Cassandra had been watching her friend work admiringly. She had improved quite a bit while Batman had briefly made her his Robin, and she had learned even more working with Cass in Hub City. Despite her exhaustion, Cassandra couldn't help but smile happily as she watched Stephanie crack the thug.
Her distraction ended abruptly as she charged with every bit of speed she had, her body reacting without thought. She was nearly upon her target before she realized what had set off her instincts so strongly, her heart in her throat as she finally saw the danger. One of the gang members still standing had pulled out a handgun and was a heartbeat away from shooting Stephanie in the back of the head.
Everything slowed down, Cassandra's every step seemingly taking forever as she watched the play of muscles in the criminal's hand as he began to pull the trigger. She was a step away as she watched his finger pass the point a hair trigger would have fired, and her fingers had just made contact with the metal of the barrel when it finally shot. Continuing her motion, Cassandra knocked the gun from the man's hand and delivered a precise palm strike to his chest.
Everything returned to normal speed as the sound of the gunshot hung in the air. Cassandra's eyes locked for just a moment with the gunman as his eyes bulged in terror as his heart didn't beat. Part of her was horrified for what she had done, delivering a blow that would kill. Part of her felt a vicious satisfaction from some deeply buried part of herself as the person that had tried to kill Stephanie slowly died.
Cassandra turned her head, terrified of what she would see, before heaving a sigh of relief as she met Stephanie's concerned gaze. An inch to Stephanie's right Cassandra could see a bullet hole in the wall of the bar. She had saved her friend with the slight touch of her fingers which had redirected the barrel just before the gun had fired.
Cassandra looked back into the terrified gaze of the man, his face turning blue as blood no longer flowed through his veins. Just before he succumbed to unconsciousness her hard darted forward, striking him in the chest once again. He collapsed to the ground with a gasp as his heart restarted.
"Funny thing; I might have learned from Batman," Stephanie said to the room. "But normally? I play good cop. Now are you gonna tell me what you know, or are you gonna find out how often Silent can restart hearts?"
"Anthony Burgess," the man Stephanie held to the wall said. "I heard Anthony Burgess is doin' some big job, tryin' to mess up you two. Don't know any details. He knows how to keep his mouth shut, and so do his boys."
"Where is he?" Stephanie demanded.
"I dunno... I swear! I really don't! He's layin' low somewhere, and he hasn't told anyone where!"
Cassandra swept her gaze over the bar before giving Stephanie a nod. The two vigilantes then stalked from the room, leaving the handful of criminals still vertical to care for their comrades. Once they were outdoors they fired grapples and took to the roofs.
A block away, Stephanie collapsed against a raised area of the roof, breathing deeply. "Okay, that was dumb."
"Reckless," Cassandra spat angrily. "Too many. Didn't even check. Could have died."
"Hey!" Stephanie said, just as mad. "We beat 'em. And we got the info. I'll admit, that wasn't my brightest idea, but it worked."
"Next time?" Cass asked. "What if slower. Big gun. Hole in head."
Stephanie swallowed. "Alright, that was a bit close. But it all worked out."
Cassandra stood up, furious. "Always works out... until it doesn't. Then too late."
Stephanie looked away, not saying anything, but Cass could see that her words weren't getting through. No matter how close the call, Stephanie still didn't see what was wrong with rushing in. "Reckless."
"Shut up!" Stephanie shouted, jumping to her feet. Her entire body shook from a combination of exhaustion and nerves, but her voice was steady. "I'm not stupid. I've been doing this for years, okay! I know the score. And in case you forgot, a little girl is being held by Anthony Burgess. Right now. That's a hell of a lot more important than maybes and could have beens!"
"Always is!" Cass shouted back. "Always lives on line. Always victims in danger. Never a game! Never simple! Always reasons... for this time special. This time kidnap victim, okay to rush in. This time hostages, okay to rush in. This time, this time, this time! One time, be this time too many. Then dead! Then I all alone!"
Cassandra choked back a sob at the thought of losing Stephanie as she watched a hundred thoughts chase themselves through her friend's body language. Pulling off her mask, she read the surprise in Stephanie's body as her friend saw her anguished expression. "Can't lose you. Mean too much. Take too many chances!"
Stephanie swallowed hard, unable to meet her friend's eyes any longer. They stood in silence for over a minute before Stephanie finally spoke again. "We're wasting time. Let's save that girl... and I promise. I'll be more careful, okay? And if I die, you have permission to kill me again."
Cassandra laughed wetly for a second as she put her mask back on. She knew that her friend still didn't get it, deep down. But there was nothing else she could say.
And a little girl's life was on the line.
