2017.01.04 - The Dynamic Duo on Penguin's Trail Part 2
Early morning, and the Dynamic Duo have been sitting in an alley in the Batmobile for the last two hours, watching a series of rotting warehouses at the edge of the Gotham waterfront. Wide ice-slick parking lots and piers surround the gap-windowed rusting hulks. Spits of snow occasionally fall. No cars pass by.
Robin shifts in his seat and sips his coffee. "This is... amazingly boring, Batman," he says with a slight smile. "Are you sure 'Matches' got the right intel?" he says, referring to the Dark Knight's favorite underworld persona. "Nothing looks like it's going down." He still keeps a careful eye on the surroundings, and on the Batmobile's various sensors for any sign of activity, though.
"Sometimes we need to be exceptionally patient," Batman replies from the driver's seat. It's hard to tell exactly what he's looking at, but his gaze does seem trained on the dilapidated warehouses. "The source was as truthful as any criminal ever is."
Just then a sleek Humvee pulls up in front of one of the buildings. It sits there, looking very out of place among the run down warehouses. "Now who could this be?" Batman asks softly.
Robin sits up and quickly puts his coffee in the holder, the teen getting ready for action. He leans forward, frowning slightly. "Scanner has his plates - out of town, listed as stolen six months ago, not for that vehicle of course," he says, looking at the feed from the Batcomputer. "Good question. Should we take a closer look?" he says, looking at the cowled man in eager anticipation.
"Let's get ready for company," Batman agrees, unbuckling his five-point harness and opening the driver's side door. He gets out and waits for Robin to emerge before he sets the Batmobile's defenses.
Moving down the alley, he keeps to the shadows. The heavy fog seemed to add an extra layer of insulation that further served to hide the Dynamic Duo and muffle their already quiet footsteps. At the entrance to the alley, Batman pauses and aims a tiny, directional microphone toward the Humvee which just sits there with its engine running in the cold winter morning.
Robin gets out and stays close to the grimy brick walls of the alley, the brightly-costumed teen having to go that extra mile to remain concealed even in the fog. His small boots threaten to slip on ice, and he eases over the obstacle. He glances at Batman, and then back to the warehouse, keeping watch on the Humvee in case people enter or exit.
It's not long before a white limousine pulls up behind the Humvee. By some unspoken agreement, the occupants of both vehicles exit to meet each other. And lo and behold but it's none other than Oswald Cobblepot, the Penguin, who gets out of the limousine and waddles over the icy ground to meet the unknown passenger of the Humvee.
Batman makes a signal with his free hand, indicating that Robin should wait. The directional mic is trained on this curious meeting and Batman quietly presses a button on his utility belt that will commence a recording of whatever might be said.
Robin tenses and then nods when Batman gives the signal, and waits, barely breathing as he watching the felonious fowl conduct his business. His gloved hands close into fists in anticipation, then he forces himself to relax and breathe. The icy wind clutches at his bare legs but he doesn't make a sound.
Whatever is said at the meeting, presumably only Batman can hear. It looks as though the Penguin is only talking to the occupants of the Humvee. Nothing appears to be exchanged except words.
"She will deliver as promised if you deliver?" Batman questions softly. "Who is she and just what will be delivered?"
"Could Catwoman be in this after all?" the Teen Wonder asks under his breath, knowing that Batman can hear him.
Batman shakes his head. "I don't think so," he replies in a hushed voice.
The meeting seems to come to a close with both the occupants of the Humvee heading back to their stolen vehicle and the Penguin beginning to waddle back to his limousine. Batman quickly stows away the directional mic and says a terse, "Now!" before springing into action. He jinks off to the left, heading toward the Penguin, leaving the mysterious strangers to Robin.
Robin jumps forward like an uncoiling spring, the Teen Wonder racing across the icy parking lot to the humvee - already the teen's hand is at his belt, and he vaults on top of the Humvee's roof. Gunfire goes ping, pang, ping as someone in the truck loses their nerve and shoots at the roof - deafening everyone inside. The young crimefighter leaps to safety, chucking a handful of smoke pellets into the open driver's-side window. PAFF! The interior of the car fills with smoke, even as Robin dodges over the hood of the car to the opposite side.
Vaulting over the roof of the limousine, Batman lands between the Penguin and the supposed safety of the luxury vehicle. "Batman!" the Penguin snarls, his face contorting with fear and anger. He raises his ubiquitous umbrella and a net shoots out of it, uncoiling as it flies through the air toward the Dark Knight.
Dodging to the side, Batman lets fly a batarang. It strikes the Penguin's hand, causing him to drop the umbrella with a wordless shout of pain. He spares a glance for Robin upon hearing the gunfire, but seeing the Teen Wonder handling the situation, he darts forward, closing in on the Penguin.
Robin rolls over the hood of the truck and pulls the passenger-side door open - reaching in, he yanks a gunman out onto the pavement, and kicks his pistol away. Smoke billows from the cab and the teen moves to the back door - he does the same thing, and pulls out another man. This one is ready for him, though, and gets in a good solid one-two punch on the boy. Robin grunts and takes the hits, then delivers a good right cross to the man's jaw, spinning him around. Another man leaps out and tackles the boy, who folds and drops, using his powerful legs and the man's momentum against him to throw him clear. Then he rolls up into a fighting stance as the man he punched rushes him again.
The Penguin never was much of a fighter and he backs away from Batman with his arms up, squawking about giving up. The limousine driver has no sense of loyalty and throws the car in reverse, trying to peel out of there as fast as he can. Batman throws some mini batarangs at the limousine's tires, trying to puncture them and disable the car. Heedless of whether or not the tires are damaged, the limousine driver punches the gas and the car screeches away.
Taking the Penguin in hand, Batman secures the criminal with some zip-ties and leaves him sitting on the icy ground as he joins the fight against the occupants of the Humvee.
Robin grunts as the man closes on him and gut-punches him, then goes for his ribs. The Teen Wonder gasps as the man hits him where he got hit the other night, and he goes to his knees, taking a vicious kick to the ribs and his head. Staggering against the car, the boy grunts as he takes two more shots to the stomach, the man he tossed now getting up and grinning, seeing the youth on the ropes as it were.
Robin gasps and rallies, dispatching the man beating on him with an uppercut, but then he's sent reeling back into the smoky interior of the Humvee by the second assailant, who kicks him hard in the chest.
Grinning, the assailant looks like he's about to reach into the cab to grab the Teen Wonder, but then he looks up at sees the shadow of the Bat approaching...
Batman closes with the man like a prize fighter going for a title weight belt. He delivers several punishing blows to the assailant's body then finishes him off with a stiff uppercut. The man falls back, the fight beaten out of him and Batman looks around to see if there's anyone else still standing who needs taken care of.
Grimacing, the Teen Wonder slides out of the cab to the icy ground, biting back a groan as he lands. "Thanks," he says as he checks the cab - no-one else inside. He kneels to zip-tie the men, and then gets to his feet. "What did fish-face have to say?" he says as he adjusts his cape, which is twisted about a little.
The Dark Knight glances back to where the Penguin is sitting on the cold, cold ground muttering curses. "That he gives up," he answers Robin, offering a hand. "Are you all right?"
Robin nods quickly. "He got in a few good shots and he didn't do my ribs any favors, but I'm good," he says, waving to clear the smoke from the interior. He slips into the passenger-side seat to begin searching the car. "So far, just some ammo and .. huh. That's weird." Robin hands out a sheaf of pamphlets for the Gotham Zoo. "I guess these guys were big donors to the zoo fund, huh?" he says. All of the pamphlets have tickets to the big fundraiser the zoo puts on every year in January.
Batman nods, taking the pamphlets and looking over them. They seem somewhat out of place but he carefully tucks them away for further study. "I wonder just what their interest is in the zoo. I know the Penguin has donated to it in his guise as a legitimate businessman. But who are these men? Anything else in there?"
Robin rummages through the glove compartment and begins checking methodically every place you can hide things in a big truck. "Some typical smuggling mods, but nothing in them -- couple of guns, two tickets to the last Knights game, and several and I mean several strip club cards." He slides out into the icy night, dusting his hands.
Batman nods curtly. "Good work. I'll just give the Gotham police a call and let them know where they can pick up the Penguin and some out of town thugs. I'll also give them some of the information about the jewelry heists. But I still think there's more to this than what it seems."
Robin nods as he wraps his short cape about his shoulders. "I'm guessing we're going to that fundraiser?"