#5

"Catseyes and Snakeskins"

By Tony Thornley

Dick Grayson gingerly dabbed at his left shoulder. The gash that Brutale had made nearly two weeks ago was healing nicely, but it was still sore and his arm was still stiff. Alfred's repair job was working nicely, and both Alfred and Oracle had warned him to pad the area of the injury with more kelvar armor of Bruce's than usual. Dick pressed gauze to the stitches and pressed the medical tape down firmly. He moved his shoulder experimentally and nodded, then continued to dress.

Babs was making a trip into the 'Haven tonight, and Dick had promised to show her around the city, to some of the hotspots and restaurants. He quickly chose a Hawaiian shirt that matched the khakis he already wore. He then left his bedroom and entered the bathroom. He checked his hair, leaned against the sink and grinned at himself.

Hello handsome. You know you finally lucked out with this one. After Helena, Clancy, Kory... Babs is amazing. I just... I just wish I'd seen what I had in her sooner. We've been friends forever, and we've each had a crush on the other at some point. If only... All my life has been if onlys...

Dick pushed away from the sink and walked towards the door. He was tempted to grab a jacket, but with the humidity and the summer heat in Bludhaven a cool evening would be a great change of pace. He grabbed his backpack- which contained his Nightwing gear- to put in the car, opened the door and started walking towards the elevator, locking his door behind him.

Tonight's going to be a good night.

Roland Desmond glared at the young black doctor facing him from a hospital bed. He'd been trapped in this blasted hospital for too long, the management of his empire left to underlings for weeks. Desmond crossed his arms, playing his size for intimidation. It was working beautifully.

"W-well, Mr. Desmond, we could run a couple more tests, but I think we know what caused your heart to stop that evening two weeks ago."

"And that is?" Desmond growled.

"Your heart is enlarged," the doctor gasped. "It's weakening and is having trouble keeping up with your body."

"Do I have options?"

"A few," the doctor said. "One, a mechanical heart, an option which we're currently researching extensively. Two, a donor, although there are few humans your size and few animals whose hearts would actually work- pretty much just large primates and swine. Three..." The doctor's voice trailed off as an young female orderly brought Desmond's evening meal in on a rolling cart. She rolled it up to Blockbuster, who gave her a nod.

"Three?"

"Th-three i-is y-you let yourself d-die."

Desmond threw his beefy fist out, striking the tray of food and splattering the terrified orderly with cheap macaroni and cheese and beefsteak.

"That is not an option!" Blockbuster roared. "You find me a donor or a machine, or nothing else!" Desmond lept to his feet and shoved the bed away. "Do I make my point clear?"

"Y-yes!!" the young doctor squealed.

Desmond heard a dripping behind him and turned to the orderly, who had wet herself. He narrowed his eyes at her, looked at the small yellow puddle forming beneath her, and back at her face.

"Thank you for dinner," he growled. She fainted.

Dick took a deep whiff of his tiny spicy chicken before placing it in his mouth. Barbara grinned and took a bite of her own dinner. Several platters of Chinese food sat steaming before the pair along with mostly eaten bowls of hot-and-sour soup and bowls of steamed rice.

"You look like a regular gourmet there Grayson," Babs said.

"It's practicality," Dick said. "The stuff's excellent, but if you don't smell it you might get a piece with just a little too much pepper and-"

"I get the point. Thank you. The shrimp with lobster sauce is very good."

"Toldja," Dick laughed. He took another bite of chicken, then moved onto the broccoli beef.

"You know that there was a major Mafia shipment into town last week?" she asked, lowering her voice slightly.

"Blockbuster?"

"Maybe, but indirectly if at all," Babs said. "I think it's the Yazuka."

"Ah, that's what reminded you of it," Dick said, pointing at Babs with his fork. "You need to get out of your work and into dinner. You're not Oracle tonight." As if on cue, her cell phone rang. She checked the caller ID and looked up at Dick.

"It's the Atom, I need-"

"-To let him deal with it," Dick said, grabbing the phone and cutting Ray Palmer off. "You promised me no JLA, no Bruce, no nothing tonight. Nothing but you and me."

"Point taken," Barbara said, reaching across the table, taking the phone and turning it off.

Selina Kyle moved quickly, being careful not to walk with her legs too close together, cursing her fashion sense and the tight leather lining her thighs. She had to admit she felt absolutely fantastic. This job was her first trip into Bludhaven, but it was a big one. The Yazuka had brought a huge diamond into the Haven, and Selina couldn't resist. She slid along the wall, and raised her hands to the goggles she wore over her eyes. She adjusted the brightness, lighting the room to her.

The small collapsable display case was right in front of her, and the diamond sat squarely on top. Catwoman reached into her satchel and extracted a handful of chalk powder. She blew it towards the diamond, exposing the laser grid protecting the gem. It wasn't very elaborate, simple to diffuse. She extracted a set of double mirrors from the satchel and extended it into the laser grid, opening a gap just wide enough for her to pass through. She stepped forward cautiously and reached out to the diamond. She traced its simple lines and wrapped her hands around it, feeling the weight. She smiled then picked it up and slipped it into the satchel.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said a voice with a thick Asian accent behind her. Catwoman turned and the lights snapped on, overwhelming Selina's eyes. She ripped the goggles off and started rubbing her eyes furiously. She reopened them to a trio of blurs. One was growing bigger.

"Oh crap."

The ceiling above Dick and Barbara shook heavily. A few other people noticed the shaking. Dick stood up abruptly, but Barbara reached up from her chair and grabbed his sleave.

"I promised you," she whispered harshly. "Don't turn into a hypocrite."

"Yes'm," Dick said with a grin. He sat back down, picked up his fork, speared a shrimp and opened his mouth to put the seafood in his mouth. At that exact moment the ceiling shook again, and was this time accompanied by the ceiling caving in, bringing four figures with it. Dick jumped up again. He recognised one of the two females.

"Catwoman!" Babs gasped.

"An outnumbered Catwoman," Dick growled. Babs shook her head with a grin.

"Do your thing Wonder Boy."

Catwoman looked at her assailants as the restaurant they had crashed into emptied and unwrapped her whip from her belly. She faced a large beef of a man, a lithe tall woman, and a short man, each in a full body snake suit with different coloring. The tall woman moved first, jumping forward and contorting her body inhumanly, wrapping around Catwoman. Her long tongue slipped out at Catwoman.

"Back home, pythonss would eat catsss whole," she hissed.

"That what you're called," Catwoman gasped, "Python?"

Her body tightened around Selina for an instant, forcing the air out of her lung explosively. "It certainly isss," Python hissed. "Pit Viper and Cobra won't even have have to act to eliminate you." Python opened her mouth unnaturally wide and moved her mouth towards Selina's head.

A baton flew through the air, and struck Python in the roof of the mouth. Her body relaxed and unwrapped from Catwoman's body. Selina collapsed and began coughing. The baton flew back towards the thrower, who caught it deftly in his black gloved hand.

"You know, I've heard that you need to cook cat before you eat it," Nightwing said. "Too many diseases." Catwoman glared at him. Nightwing grinned and shrugged. Python picked herself up and turned to her compatriots.

"Another one," Python hissed. She motioned to the larger of the two men behind her. "He's all yours Pit Viper." The large man nodded and put his head down.

Dick anticipated the charge, but was surprised by the speed that Pit Viper crossed the distance. The large Asian knocked Nightwing down, then pinned him to the ground. Pit Viper opened his mouth, exposing a pair of oversized fangs, glistening with venom. Dick began groping on the floor for something he could use as Pit Viper licked his teeth prior to striking. He found a fork and grabbed it in his fist like a dagger. He swung his fist and slammed the fork into Pit Viper's ribcage. He howled in pain and released Nightwing. Dick grinned and drew his feet up to his chest. He kicked Pit Viper in the chest hard, sending him sailing into the restaurant's bar. Dick jumped to his feet, pleased about his conquest.

Catwoman snapped her whip at Python, the tip striking the woman's ribs. She hissed and slithered towards Catwoman. Selina dropped and swept Python's tail from under her. Python jumped up quickly, but Catwoman moved faster, snapped her whip again, and entangled Python in the wide leather strap.

The small man called Cobra stared at Nightwing, his tongue flitting in and out of his mouth. Nightwing looked closely at Cobra. He couldn't see any sort of seam in the snakeskin, and the fangs he'd seen in Pit Viper's mouth were by no means artificial. A flap of flesh popped out from each side of Cobra's head, and the man opened his mouth to expose his own fangs. A horrible thought crossed Dick's mind.

These three weren't wearing suits- they were half snake!

Cobra moved faster that Pit Viper, but Dick was ready this time. A spritz of pepper spray filled Cobra's eyes. The snake-man cried out, and Dick acted quickly. He punched him with a hard left hook, then a firm uppercut to the chin. Cobra clawed at his eyes and opened then to see a black blur punch him square in the middle of the face, knocking him out.

Python flexed her muscles, and Catwoman heard a snap. The whip broke, and before Selina could act, Python was wrapped around her again.

"Ready to see the inside of a snake's gullet?" she hissed.

"How about we see it from the inside out?" Nightwing grabbed the back of Python's neck and squeezed a nerve, forcing her to go limp.

"What are you?" Nightwing asked.

"We are the new breed," she hissed. "Our kind is rising, and soon others like us will take over Gotham, and the rest of the country. Soon, normal human beings will be pushed aside by halflings such as ourselves."

"Heard it before," Nightwing said. He threw Python against the bar, knocking her unconscious. Oracle wheeled herself from behind an overturned table. Dick drug Python's unconscious body out onto the floor and began running his hands over her body.

"Getting a little frisky there?" Catwoman asked.

"I'm looking for a seam," Dick said. "I don't think these are costumes and I want to make sure."

"Good idea," Babs said, stopping next to Nightwing and watching as he turned Python over and continued his search. He looked up at her and shook his head.

"This is no suit," he declared. "This woman is half snake."

"Can you take a blood sample?" Oracle asked. Dick nodded and took and vial from his belt. Oracle took it, found a vien in Python's leg, and quickly extracted a full vial of blood.

"I'll have some contacts at STARLabs check on this," she said. Dick nodded and stood.

"Catwoman, are you o-" Nightwing turned to where Catwoman had stood, but she was gone.

"Looks like Ms. Kitty-cat was in a hurry," Oracle said.

"Indeed it does," Nightwing replied.

"The genetic splicing is incredible," Oracle said. "My contact at STAR said it was Cadmus quality work, but calls to the Project revealed that they had nothing to do with these creatures."

"Wow," Dick said into his cordless, pacing around his apartment. "Find anything else out?"

"Yep," Oracle replied. "Seems our three friends are Yazuka toughs who disappeared a couple weeks back. Dinah's been out bending some arms in the underworld and found out that last they are heard from they were headed into a small town in the mid-West, uhm... Forestberg, Iowa. They weren't heard from until tonight, although they were a couple Mafia deaths that had looked like a snake had either crushed or bitten the victims. Give you one guess who..."

"Right," Dick said. "So what about this town in Iowa?"

"It seems to be a black hole of sorts. People will spend the night, but suddenly disappear come morning. A few days later, loved ones will hear from them, say that they're staying in town indefinitely and not to try to contact them and not hear from them again. The few who went trying to find their loved ones disappeared without a trace."

"Formal investigations?"

"You got me," Babs grunted. "I'd like to take a trip out there soon to check on it. You wanna come?"

"Well..." Dick said, a strange feeling filling his gut. "I- uh... better."

"What Dick? Something wrong?"

"Gut feeling."

"Don't worry. Besides, who's going to mess with a trio of well known heroes? We'll kill 'em dead."

Dick laughed. "Very funny. Good night Babs. Love you."

"What was that Dick?!" Oracle asked, surprise in her voice.

"Uhm, I'm sorry, that just, uh..."

"Don't worry about it." Dick could hear the smile in Barbara's voice. "The feeling is mutual." The line clicked dead. Dick stared at the phone for several seconds.

"Slick Grayson," he muttered to himself. "Very slick."

Roland Desmond was dying. He knew it, but he wasn't about to resign to it. No, death would not take him quietly, if at all. He would fight the Grim Reaper until he tasted the metal of his scythe. But first, he had affairs he wanted to deal with.

"Shrike," Desmond growled to the man across from him. "This is simple. Bring Nightwing to me, alive, within a month."

"A pleasure," the assasin said. "Mind if I ask why alive?"

"I wish to kill him myself."

Next: What is Liqud Fear? Find out as the Flash guest stars!