"Detective Grayson?"
Dick hummed in question but continued to type away on his keyboard.
"There's someone here for you," the voice called out again.
Dick finished the tail end of his sentence and tore his eyes away from his monitor to where Denetsosie was standing in the doorway to the lobby. The man was wearing his usual hesitant expression. Before Dick could ask who, a small head of black hair poked out from behind the officer's back, followed by a hand clutching onto and shaking a brown paper bag.
"Timmy!"
Dick's face immediately brightened and, only taking a second to save and close the report he'd been working on, he stood up and bounced over to his brother. Tim let out a grunt as Dick engulfed him in a hug and stuck the bag further out from his body to save it from the embrace.
"Tell Rohrbach I'm taking my lunch early," Dick informed the other officer, snatching the takeout from Tim and leading them outside.
They walked around the corner and to the courtyard that sat beside the station. The sun was peeking out from behind the clouds and the breeze was light, so Dick plopped down on one of the umbrella-less tables. Tim followed, dropping his sunglasses onto his face to save his sensitive eyes.
"Not that I'm complaining or anything, but you normally just call," Dick commented, tugging the bag open from where it was stapled shut, "What's with the visit?"
"I needed to get out of the house," Tim shrugged, placing an elbow on the table, and shifting his weight to the side, "B and Jay are fighting again. Something stupid, but they're so loud. Plus, I wanted to test out the new zeta."
After Brenda had firmly told them no, Dick and Cass had found another, almost as suitable location for the new Bludhaven zeta outpost. They had decided on a phone booth a few blocks away from Dick's apartment, farther in the direction of the city's center. It was convenient and accessible, and although the area was slightly more crowded than Bruce would've liked, he approved the location anyways. The zeta beam had taken two days to be fully up and running, the installation process happening in the few hours before sunrise when most of the city was still asleep.
Dick pulled out two plastic containers, critically examined each of them through the transparent lids, and placed one in front of Tim and keeping the other for himself.
"They're the same," Tim snorted.
"I gave you the one with more veggies, baby bird," Dick retorted, snapping open his lid.
Tim made a face but knew better than to argue.
"Dami's hiding out at the mountain until it blows over," Tim said instead, knowing what his brother's next question would be.
Dick hummed around his spoonful of rice.
"Also, I brought this," Tim continued, producing a flash drive from the inside of his jacket, and placing it between them, "The guns are made of a Titanium-cobalt alloy, with a stainless-steel liner to counteract heat erosion. The actual design is unfamiliar, but I found three warehouses that have reportedly been shipped those materials in the last two months."
"Only three?" Dick asked, surprised, once he had swallowed his bite.
"Titanium's expensive, so it's not as popular for gun production as other alloys. Plus, these three places are unlisted, there's no information about them online. I had to cross-reference shipment logs from known suppliers and weed out all the legit businesses to even find them. Not guaranteed, but they're your best bet," Tim explained.
Dick felt a surge of pride.
"Thanks, Timmy, you did great," he said, reaching over and pocketing the drive, and grinned when his brother reacted adorably to the praise.
"You need backup?" Tim asked, "I brought my suit."
Dick opened his mouth to say 'sure' and surprised even himself when he hesitated. He didn't usually turn down his family's help, but...Perseus was already invested, so it would probably be best if he took her along. After all, she lived in Bludhaven so it would be easier for her to stay involved if the investigation took longer than expected. Yeah, that made the most sense, he rationalized.
"Nah, I'm good," is what Dick said instead.
Tim tilted his head, clearly suspicious by the change in heart so Dick kicked his shins from under the table.
"Eat your food," Dick scolded.
Tim dropped it and sighed, cracking open his container and maneuvering his fork around the vegetables to get the rice.
LINEBREAK
Dick convinced his brother to walk him the few hundred feet back to the station because he 'couldn't bear to make the journey alone' but really, he just wanted to spend as much time with him as possible. He had barely even made it through the door when Detective Rohrbach materialized in front of him.
"Good, you're back," she greeted crisply, choosing not to address the lingering teenager, "Someone reported a mugging, alley on 14th and 6th. Victim's fine but you should get there asap."
Amy was gone as soon she appeared, rushing off to take care of other fires that required her attention. Dick straightened his tie and turned back to his brother.
"That offer for backup still on the table?" he asked, smirking.
Tim groaned but followed him to his patrol car anyway.
"Technically, this goes against police protocol," Tim pointed out, unhelpfully, as he buckled himself into the passenger seat.
Dick turned his key in the ignition and glanced out the rear window as he backed himself out of the parking space. When the car was facing the proper direction, he flipped on the sirens and sped out of the lot.
"Remind me who here is the officer, little brother," he teased, weaving through the cars that had pulled to the side of the road for them.
"Remind me who here has actually read the handbook," Tim shot back, needing the seatbelt and the handle on the ceiling to steady himself.
"Rude," Dick muttered, "I read most of it."
They arrived at the scene in a matter of minutes, and Dick parked his car at the curb, turning off the sirens but leaving the lights flashing.
"Come on," he gestured for Tim to step out, "I gotta lock the car."
Tim gave him a disbelieving look but understood that he couldn't leave an unlocked police car in the middle of the city, even in the daytime.
Dick heard a groan of pain come from the alleyway and immediately pulled out his gun. He began to creep down the street.
"I thought that lady said the victim was okay," Tim said, narrowing his eyes.
He followed a few feet behind Dick, body on full alert.
The alley wasn't exactly dark but the tall buildings on either side cast shadows down into the street. Dick approached swiftly, to get a clearer picture and was stopped short by a figure crouching on the ground. He had his back to the wall and was clutching his nose, red seeping through his fingers.
When he heard Dick, he removed his hands and looked up. His eyes widened and Dick hid a grimace at the state of the man's face. Dick didn't want to make a snap judgment, but the man looked like the cut and dry image of a thug, a beefy stature just barely hidden by nondescript dark clothing. Also, more obviously, a black ski mask lay at his feet.
"Uh," Tim said from behind him.
"Officer, you gotta help me out here," the mugger pleaded, "She's crazy."
"Oh please," a female voice snapped, and Dick turned, finally seeing what Tim was trying to gesture to him, "You tried to rob me."
Dick opened his mouth in surprise.
"Percy?" he asked, incredulous.
Persephone was standing on the other side of the narrow alley, arms crossed over her chest, in her usual jeans and casual hoodie. Her dark hair was pulled up high into a ponytail, revealing more of her face than Dick usually saw. He also saw a flash of something colorful around her neck, before she shifted, and it fell back behind the fabric of her hoodie. The woman in question narrowed her eyes, slicing her green irises in half, and threw up her hands in disbelief.
"Why, why do you keep showing up everywhere?"
The man on the ground flinched a little at her outstretched arms.
"Must be fate," Dick joked lightly, re-holstering his gun as he realized there was no immediate danger.
Honestly, he almost asked her the same question. It seemed like everywhere he went, she was there waiting for him. The coincidences were piling up as if something was trying to throw them together at every opportunity. Dick realized with a wince that while it may have seemed like mere coincidences to him, it probably came off as more suspicious to her, considering the timing could lead her to believe he was following her.
Percy scowled at his comment about fate, and Dick stared at the way her lips turned downward for a second too long.
"Ugh," she interrupted his moment, extending her foot to toe the ski mask on the ground, "The least you could do is plug your nose."
If the man flushed red, they couldn't tell through all the blood. Nevertheless, he took the advice, snatching up the mask and pressing it against his face to slow the bleeding.
"You know," Dick started, glancing between the mugger and her and shooting her a smirk, "This is the second time I've heard of you beating someone up, and the second time I've missed actually seeing it."
Percy's eyes almost seemed to twinkle and the slant of the shadows on her face highlighted her cheekbones, making her look regal.
"It's not that big a deal," she drawled, leaning back against the building and out of the previous lighting, "You probably beat people up all the time."
From the side, Tim snorted, finally making himself known. Dick was also amused at the statement. If only she knew. He leaned down, and lugged the still whimpering criminal upright, cuffing him, and walking him out the alley and into the patrol car.
To fill the silence left behind, Tim stepped forward and held his hand out to Percy, an old upper society habit ingrained in him since childhood.
"I'm Tim Drake," he introduced, jerking a thumb out to the side, "That idiot's brother."
Percy laughed and shook his hand without question.
"How many siblings does Dick even have?" she asked, raising her eyebrows, "How many more dark-haired kids should I expect to see lurking around?"
Tim chuckled and closed his eyes in mock exasperation.
"Too many," he shook his head, then paused, looking curious, "So how do you know Dick?"
"I don't, really," Percy snorted, "He's just always...around."
Tim looked highly amused at that, but before he could get the chance to reply, Dick returned from the car, frowning at the blood on the cuffs of his sleeves from arresting the criminal. He stopped short of the two of them.
"I've been meaning to ask," he said, looking at Percy, "Where'd you learn to fight?"
The woman shrugged nonchalantly.
"Summer camp for ADHD kids," she replied vaguely, "I'm a senior counselor now, so I still go on the weekends to help out and stuff."
Dick nodded, but before he could continue the conversation, Percy stood up from the wall and brushed off her jeans.
"Thanks for the assist, but I gotta go," she revealed, "I'll come by the station in the evening to give my statement. It was nice meeting you, Tim."
"Oh," Dick commented, wilting imperceptibly, "But my shift'll be over by then."
Percy paused in her movements, glancing at him.
"Okay?" she replied, with a hint of confusion, before shrugging, "That's nice, enjoy your evening off, I guess."
With those parting words, she shoved her hands inside her hoodie and leisurely walked out of the alley. The man in Dick's car flinched away from the window as she approached and turned right.
As soon as she was out of sight, Tim doubled over in laughter, leaning on the wall for support.
"I think—that's the first time—" his brother trailed off, attacked by another fit of giggles.
"It's not that funny," Dick muttered, pouting.
Dick didn't mean to say that about his shift, but he regretted it now. The way Percy hadn't even known what he was trying to communicate was a blow to his ego that he could've lived without. There was just something about her, and every time they ran into each other, his thoughts couldn't help but linger on her for a while. Unfortunately, it seemed like she didn't share the same feelings.
"I can't wait to tell Jay," Tim snickered, as they made their way back to the car.
Dick not-so-lightly shoved his still laughing brother.
LINEBREAK
Just when he was beginning to think Perseus had just been messing with him, Dick found her.
So, she hadn't been kidding about the docks, it seemed. The other hero was sitting down on one of the smaller wooden outposts, a little ways away from where the main trading ships unloaded their cargo. It looked old and rickety, but that didn't stop her from swinging her feet leisurely over the edge. The tips of her boots brushed against the surface of the water, creating soft ripples in the otherwise still water.
As Dick approached her, he could see her mouth moving to form words, but he was still too far to read her lips. Her body stayed relaxed even as he stepped foot on the beginning of the dock, the wood creaking under his weight. It seemed she had already noticed his presence.
He walked all the way down, stopping to the right of her, and she scooted to the left to give him more room.
"Don't lean on that," she advised without looking away from the water, and Dick straightened from the pole he was about to shift his weight to, "It won't hold."
Dick poked the wooden pole experimentally and grimaced when it slanted.
"Thanks," he muttered, his mind flashing through the scenario of him toppling over into the water and Perseus laughing at his expense. He shook it away.
"Were you talking to someone?" he asked, wondering if she had a comm in her ear.
It didn't seem like it, but Dick had seen advanced tech before, and he would've liked to know if she was working with a team without his knowledge.
"The fish," she hummed, extending her arms back behind her to lean on her palms, "They make good listeners."
Dick's lips twitched upwards at the admission that she was just talking to herself.
"I've got the intel," he informed, "Three possible locations. We should knock them all out tonight if you've got the time.
"Sure," she agreed, but made no move to stand, "I got nothing else to do."
The moon was full that night, and Dick caught Perseus gazing at its reflection, a surprisingly clear picture in the water. She dipped her toe in, and the moon warbled. Dick took a moment to appreciate the beauty of the landscape. Next to him, he was aware of Perseus's chest rising and falling in slow, even breaths.
"You like the ocean?" he asked, finally breaking the silence.
His voice came out softer than he was expecting it to.
"It's safe, you know? Feels like home," she confessed, the answer taking a second to arrive.
Then, she laughed lightly.
"If I had nothing left, I could live out the rest of my life on a boat in the middle of nowhere, and I'd be okay."
Her tone was infused with humor, but the raw honesty tugged something in him.
"I feel the same way when I'm in the air," he felt compelled to share, and Perseus finally turned to look at him, "When I'm running and flipping over roofs, it feels like flying."
Dick pointedly didn't look down, unsure if he wanted to make eye contact. Thankfully, she turned her head away, and pulled her legs up, wrapping her arms around them. She rested her chin atop her knees. The pose should've looked vulnerable, or defensive, but instead, it looked comforting.
"I hate flying," she mumbled.
"You don't seem like someone who's afraid of heights," Dick huffed out in amusement.
"I'm not," she insisted, picking her head up, "Just really don't like flying."
Dick paused, then "You're weird as hell."
Perseus let out a short laugh. She unlocked her legs from her grip and stood up smoothly to face him. An amused smile played on her lips.
"'Nuff chit chat, bird boy," she said, "We've got work to do."
LINEBREAK
Nightwing took a few steps backward, planted his feet, and took off. With his running start, he jumped up and dug his heel into the wall, twisting his body at the moment of impact to push off and leap even higher. Percy gaped as he grabbed onto the railing that had originally been too high to reach and interlocked his calves around the vertical metal bars.
He leaned all the way back, dropping his arms and hanging upside down, allowing his body to swing slightly. The strands of his hair fell down away from his face, swaying along. The scene was like something out of a circus, and if Percy reached upwards with her hands, her fingers would just barely brush against his.
"Need some help?" he smirked at her.
"I can do it," Percy claimed, and hoped that she could back it up.
Nightwing used his core to pull his upper body upright, swinging himself over the railing and onto the landing to give her more space. Percy took a deep breath and copied his movements. Thankfully, she had enough power in her jumps that her hands, too, found the railing, even if it hadn't been as smooth as him.
The first location was the closest one, only about half a mile from the docks, so they had traveled by foot. The platform they found themselves on was built around an old window that peered into the warehouse and Nightwing wiped the glass with his hands to get a better look. Percy placed her head next to his to see for herself.
The glass was dusty and slightly distorted the image, but Percy could clearly see the inside. A myriad of tired and metal contraptions was strewed all over the floor in a disorganized mess. There were only a handful of people inside, some using a welding torch, others tinkering with unseen projects. There was a large, shiny car to the side, and suddenly, a man wheeled out from underneath, sitting up to wipe his hands on a rag.
"They're customizing cars," Nightwing whispered beside her, "Altering engine capabilities and installing non-standardized gear."
"Oh," Percy said, confused, "That doesn't sound so bad, why's it unlisted?"
"It's probably illegal," Nightwing shrugged, "Either the cars are stolen, the enhancements aren't road legal, or the whole thing's a front for something."
"So, not what we're looking for," Percy sighed, her breath leaving a small patch of fog on the glass.
"I'll flag it," Nightwing suggested, pulling his face back from the building, "We can look into it another time."
Percy nodded, her face not betraying her excitement at the thought of continuing to work with the other hero.
"One down, two to go," she confirmed, before leaping over the railing and back down, knowing Nightwing would be following close behind.
LINEBREAK
Percy crept over the slanted roof on her toes, careful not to create too much noise on the metal grating. Once she reached a flatter section, she scanned the ground.
"Over here," Nightwing hissed, and she followed his instruction to find him standing over a skylight.
The second location was a standalone warehouse, only a few blocks from the city's edge. The wall of the building sported no windows, so they had had to climb onto the roof to see its inner workings.
Percy and Nightwing knelt, peering through while keeping their faces mostly out of view. Inside, heavy machinery took up about half of the room, and beside it, a row of worktables with fluorescent desk lamps. Only a few lights were on, and the machinery itself was at rest. The grey conveyor belts leading off the machines and towards the tables were stationary and bare. On the opposite side of the room were three wooden crates, lined up against the wall with bold black numbers printed on the sides.
"Definitely a gun factory," Nightwing observed.
"You sure?" Percy asked because there was not a gun in sight.
"Those machines," he pointed out, "They melt down the alloy and place it into those molds to form the different parts."
"I count four heads, none armed though," Percy whispered, tilting her head to make sure she wasn't missing anyone hiding in one of the corners of the room.
Nightwing hummed in agreement, but clarified, "Buzzcut's got a baton, blondie's got a taser, and blue-shirt might have a pocketknife, but you're right, no guns."
Percy threw him a look halfway between unimpressed and very impressed. The other hero just smirked back.
How he could tell all of that from through a skylight on the roof, she'd never understand.
"On three?" she asked, standing up and readying her foot over the glass.
"You got the door that time," he argued, "It's my turn."
Percy should not have found the childishness of that statement as endearing as she did.
"Fine," she grumbled, unable to say no to him but feeling put out anyways.
The other hero raised his boot in the air.
"One, two," Percy whispered slowly, "Three."
Nightwing slammed his heel down, shards of glass raining down into the room below, and dropped through the hole. The speed at which he disappeared was almost comical, and Percy spared her target landing a quick glance before stepping into the hole herself.
The floor came quicker than expected, and Percy let instinct take over, folding her body into a roll to absorb the impact. Her suit protected her back against the sharp pieces of glass. When she came up standing, Nightwing was already making quick work of the factory goons.
He had already thrown blue-shirt into the wall and was battling escrima sticks against baton with buzzcut.
"Save some for me," she teased, leaping up and kicking blondie in the side before the man could reach Nightwing.
"Saved you plenty," he grunted back, landing a hit to buzzcut's stomach and sending him back clutching his abdomen, "Watch out for—"
"Got it," Percy replied breezily as she whirled around to block a hit from the fourth goon, eyebrows, she named him.
Percy stopped his incoming punch by grabbing his outstretched wrist and yanking forward. Eyebrows's balance stumbled, and, still holding his arm, she curled her fingers and drove her knuckles upwards into the tendon under his armpit. The man yowled in surprise and pain, which allowed Percy to swing him around and throw him into blue-shirt who had been getting up off the wall.
She spent a second too long admiring her handiwork, and blondie lunged after her with his taser, catching her in the leg as she tried to dodge. Percy hissed in surprise as the familiar pins and needles sensation traveled up her body. For a second, her fingers twitched uncontrollably, but then she clenched them and thrust her fist into blondie's jaw.
The sharp crack that followed made him drop the taser, and Percy swung her other fist in the opposite directing, hitting his other cheek and making him do almost a complete rotation before he collapsed on the ground.
There was another movement behind her, and she turned fists first. She stopped her hands only two inches away from Nightwing when she realized who she was aiming for. She lowered her arms sheepishly when he put his up in surrender.
"I should've announced myself," Nightwing admitted before she could try to apologize.
Percy glanced around to make sure that all four of their attackers were incapacitated, before walking over to the crates, the other hero following. She positioned her right arm in front of her stomach and flicked her wrist, discreetly summoning one of her knives.
As Nightwing came to stand next to her, she jammed the blade between the sealed panels of wood and pushed down to separate them. The knife disappeared back into her wrist during the time she dropped her arm back down to her side.
Percy saw the look Nightwing was giving her and smirked at him.
"Secret," she grinned, and her partner rolled his eyes before reaching up and pushing the lid off the box.
As they peered inside, the smile fell from her lips.
The crates were full of guns, deadly and decidedly illegal ones, but not the ones they were looking for. These guns didn't have glass cylinders, empty or otherwise, in the place of magazines, or the weird sleek barrel design that their target guns had.
"Are you kidding me?" Percy groaned.
"Two down," Nightwing agreed, "Hopefully it's the last one?"
Percy huffed, annoyed at their luck.
"I'll call in a tip to the BHPD later to come get these guys," Nightwing sighed, running a hand through his hair, frustrated.
Suddenly a thought occurred to Percy, and she tried to smother her laughter. That would be the third time Dick would arrive at the scene to see the aftermath of her 'beating people up' as he had phrased it, without actually having seen her fight.
She had run into the cop just earlier that day after some poor man had tried to steal her wallet. She did feel kind of bad for breaking his nose but trying to rob someone in broad daylight was a mistake on his part and choosing her as his target was an even bigger one. He had tried to take her camp necklace that she always wore hidden under her clothing thinking that it could be valuable, and Percy had outwardly reacted to the threat before she even had a chance to process what she was doing. Hence, the bloody nose.
She had called it in to the police, and it was just her luck that that only cop she knew Dick Grayson would be the one to show up. Him and his younger brother, Tim, who had the same gleam in his eyes as Annabeth when she encountered something particularly fascinating to her. While it was weird, and maybe a little concerning, that he seemed to be everywhere she was, she didn't entirely dislike him. He was kind of amusing, and Brenda tolerated him, which was high praise coming from the woman. Plus, his siblings, or the ones she had met so far, were adorable, especially Cass, who had somehow managed to pick out Percy's greatest strength and weakness just by staring at her intensely for six or so seconds. Adorable. She didn't exactly understand why he wanted to share his work schedule with her though...
Anyways, if Nightwing alerted the BHPD, and Dick showed up, it would raise the count to three, and that thought made Percy laugh.
The hero in front of her cocked an eyebrow at her in confusion, and Percy flushed slightly, realizing that the laugh hadn't been in her head.
"It's nothing," she hurried, "Just thought of something funny."
"About the BHPD?" Nightwing asked, slowly.
Was Percy imagining it or did he sound the slightest bit offended?
"No, just...just forget it. Inside joke," she tried to wave it off.
The other hero was still looking at her weirdly, so Percy tried to deflect.
"Alright!" she announced, a little too loud, "Third location. Let's go, yeah?"
LINEBREAK
Their third and final possible location for Blockbuster's gun manufacturing facility was a few miles outside of the city, reachable by either a nine-minute drive or a ninety-minute walk. Percy and Nightwing had decided, naturally, to circle back to get a vehicle.
"This is my Wingcycle," Nightwing announced proudly, gesturing to the sleek black and blue bike beside him.
The hero gracefully swung his leg over the side and leaned his arms forward on the handles with a pleased smile tugging at his lips.
"Wing...cycle..." Percy repeated, raising her eyebrows, and trying to desperately mask her blatant staring with an aura of being unimpressed by his naming skills.
He wasn't even doing anything, just lounging, no, sitting on the motorcycle. People did that all the time, Percy tried to remind herself, this was normal.
"Do you wanna get on?" he asked, tilting his head, "Or are you gonna take your chance with that walk?"
"I bet I'd still get there before you," Percy shot back half-heartedly but stepped forward.
She planted her left foot into the ground next to the back tire and swung her right one over, just as Nightwing had done. She shifted in her seat until her feet were well adjusted on the platform. Unsure of what to do with her hands, she rested them on her thighs.
She almost couldn't remember the last time she felt this awkward, this specific brand of nervousness, but suddenly something resurfaced. A memory of her, aged fourteen and forced to dance with her best friend to throw off the scent of a manticore. She remembered trying desperately not to think of the fact that Annabeth was taller than her, that her long curly hair made her look older, and how sweaty and gross her own hands must be...
Percy shut down that train of thought before history repeated itself. Just to be sure, she discreetly wiped her palms on her suit.
Nightwing flipped a switch in the center of the bike and twisted the left handle. The engine roared to life, and he kicked his left foot up off the ground.
"Hold on tight," he murmured, just softly enough for her to hear, as the bike started to jolt forward.
Not normal, Percy bemoaned silently, illegal.
But she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Nightwing's waist anyways. She gripped the wrists of her opposite hands, refusing to place them anywhere else, and turned her head to watch the buildings zip by instead of resting it on his shoulder.
As they picked up speed and the skyscrapers bled into concrete buildings spaced apart by trees, the cold wind on her face and in her hair was enough to distract her from how close she was to the other hero. Firmly telling herself that the fluttering in her stomach was just the result of the loop from the highway's exit that Nightwing had just tilted the bike into and not for any other reason, Percy closed her eyes, savoring the adrenaline.
When they merged onto another, busier highway, Nightwing skillfully maneuvered them through the lanes and between cars. Percy couldn't help but let out a giddy laugh as they swerved particularly close around a large truck.
In front of her, Nightwing chuckled, and she felt the vibrations move from his chest to hers.
"Having fun?" he asked, and actually turned around to look at her when he did.
Percy pinched his side to get him to face the road again.
"I've never been on a motorcycle," she admitted, breathless.
Nightwing took that as a challenge, it seemed, because he somehow managed to go even faster, leaving the rest of the cars in the dust behind them. Percy squeezed her arms a little tighter in response.
The ride was over too soon for Percy's taste, and the Wingcycle glided gracefully to a stop in the grass. Percy peeled her arms off of the other hero's waist and forced herself not to think about it too hard. Instead, she scanned her surroundings and turned back to Nightwing just as he shut off the engine and the lights.
"We'll go on foot from here," he explained and pointed north, sensing her confusion, "It's about a quarter-mile."
Percy hummed and began to walk in the direction he had indicated, trying to slow her heartbeat.
"I'm guessing you enjoyed it then," Nightwing said, casually bumping her shoulder, "Your first bike ride?"
"Can't beat swimming," Percy replied automatically, but then shot him a quick smile, "But yeah, it was awesome."
"Swimming?" the other hero scoffed good-naturedly, "Like you could hit one-oh-eight going freestyle."
Percy shrugged in response and wisely kept her mouth shut. It wasn't exactly freestyle, more like... propelling herself through the water like a bullet. But she could get up to, and over that speed, easy. Though, it probably wouldn't be best to drop that knowledge on Nightwing now.
"I said I liked it, what more do you want," Percy snarked back.
And maybe she more than liked it, and maybe the speed and adrenaline were only half the reason, but again, that was not information she wanted to share.
Percy's strides were fairly large, and they reached their destination quicker than expected. Nightwing did a quick scan for hostiles around the perimeter and after deeming it safe, they made their way to the outside wall, ducking behind trees for cover.
Nightwing held out his hands at waist level, palms upright, and Percy took a few steps back, flicking her eyes up to where the wall met the roof. She looked back down, locking eyes with the other hero, and ran forward, placing her right foot into his hands. When Nightwing pushed up powerfully, Percy used the momentum to grab onto the thin ledge, pull her chest up, and straighten her arms underneath her. She wedged her foot in a nearby crevice and climb up, onto a shallower part of the roof.
Then, Nightwing crouched down and jumped, his impressive vertical allowing him to reach the same ledge that Percy had grabbed onto. Not having the same momentum, she had, however, he adjusted his grip and swung his body from left to right and back again. Once he had built a wide enough arc, on the next upswing, he put all his pressure into his fingers, and pushed, his swinging feet finding the same crevice Percy had used. He raised one hand up, breaking his carefully constructed balance, and in the split second before he fell backward, Percy grabbed onto it, hauling him up to the same part of the roof as her.
Percy could tell he had planned that move, holding his hand out to her like that, and when he shot her a thankful smile, she found herself returning it.
They found another skylight and crouched down beside it.
"Nine heads," Nightwing whispered, "No Blockbuster."
"What does the guy even look like?" Percy asked because she had heard a lot about him in the last couple of weeks and still felt like she knew close to nothing.
"Trust me, you'll know," Nightwing responded, dryly.
How helpful, Percy pouted and gazed back down.
This warehouse had an extremely similar setup to their second location, with machinery, worktables, and crates. The difference was that Percy could see a couple of people sitting at the workstations, tinkering on firearms. A couple of the thugs were milling around each other, shoving and laughing. One reached over and plucked a gun off one of the stations, pointing it at his colleague jokingly. The room's fluorescent lights bounced off the sleek grey muzzle of the gun.
"Bingo," Percy breathed.
"This is the place," Nightwing agreed.
Another burlier man stomped over to the one holding the gun and snatched it out of his hands, placing it back with the man who was building it. He seemed to reprimand the others harsher for loitering and the thugs returned to work, heads hanging low.
"When we go in, we can knock them all out except for that one," Nightwing pointed at the burlier man, who Percy had also recognized as their de facto leader, "We're gonna need to talk to him."
Percy nodded and stood up, centering her foot over the window exactly as she had done before.
"Wait," Nightwing called out, furrowing his brow, "How well can you fight without seeing?"
The other hero had pulled out a small canister and it only took Percy a second to realize what he was talking about. It was the same kind of smoke bomb he had used during that bank robbery where she had first met him.
"Excellently," Percy grinned, putting both feet back on the ground.
Nightwing rolled his eyes and pulled out a screwdriver and wheedled the screws out of the window's frame. Very quietly and very slowly, he lifted the glass up and out of the fixture and placed it to the side.
"As soon as it fills up, we go," he instructed, and Percy nodded once.
Nightwing tossed the device into the hole. They both heard the second it hit the ground with a soft clang and the hissing noises that erupted afterward. They also heard the consequent shouts of anger and panic from the men inside. Once the smoke had begun spilling over the side of the skylight, Nightwing jumped in. Percy grabbed the glass, and lowered herself down, hanging by the edge with one arm. With the other, she slid the glass over the opening, trapping all the gas. Finally, she let go completely, dropping down into the unknown.
Miraculously, she landed directly atop one of the thugs she was trying to take down. He never even saw her coming, and as Percy fell, she brought her elbow down on the back of his skull. Thug number 6 went down like a sack of flour.
It was easier for Percy to fight in complete darkness rather than try to peer through the smoke, so she closed her eyes and listened. Her ears twitched, footsteps, hesitant but too heavy to be Nightwing.
Percy struck her arm out, elbow first, hitting her target right in the face with pointy bone. Thug number 4 let out a yelp of pain and tried to blindly attack back, but Percy heard the swing of every fist and dodged each one, making it look like he was trying to fight smoke. Once he finally stopped, arms at his sides and slightly out of breath, Percy lashed out with her leg, her toes connecting with his ribs, and he fell to his knees clutching them. Percy next jabbed her toes into the inside of his thigh, and he flinched violently, knees finally collapsing. He reached out with his arms in a last feeble attempt to land a hit, but Percy grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back, rendering him useless.
Percy opened her eyes, blinking, to see how much of the fog remained. It was starting to slightly dissipate now, through the vents, but she still couldn't see any farther than two feet in front of her.
Thugs 2 and 5 appeared together, side by side, and sneering. Percy took a step behind her and found Nightwing's back pressing into hers, her sword digging uncomfortably into both. Thugs 7 and 9 circled him in the same fashion as 2 and 5. Percy caught a flash of metal at the edge of the room and registered the fallen escrima sticks.
Percy flicked both her wrists out, summoning her knives. She flipped one so she was holding the blade portion and, without looking away from her opponents, held it behind her. Nightwing grabbed ahold of the handle she was offering almost immediately, and Percy sent out a quick prayer that it wouldn't disappear into her wrists while he still had it.
Twirling the knife between her fingers, Percy tensed her body and felt Nightwing do the same.
"Go," she breathed, for Nightwing's ears only.
They separated simultaneously, pushing off each other's backs and startling their opponents.
Percy went after thug 5 first, swiping the knife briefly over various parts of his body as he tried to punch her. One slash over his knuckles, one down the outside of his dominant arm, another up the inside of his opposite bicep, and two over his abdomen. Deep enough to draw blood, but not enough for permanent damage. Nevertheless, the man hissed in pain and retreated slightly, leaving the route clearly open for thug 2.
Thug 2 had thought out his approach more and struck the second Percy took a pause to breathe. She saw him coming last minute and ducked to the side, sliding her knife back into her wrist. His fist only slightly clipped her jaw. She placed two hits into his right ribs, grabbed his arm, positioned her body so her back was to his chest and judo flipped him to the ground. Still holding on to his arm, she twisted it painfully before dropping him.
She looked around for Nightwing, to see him engaged with thug 9 and trying to inch over to where his escrima sticks lay on the ground. Thug 7 was down for the count, 3 and 8 were cowering behind one of the worktables, and 1, their target was slipping out the front door.
"Shit," Percy realized, sprinting over to him.
She caught the edge of his collar and yanked him back into the room. He fell flat on his back and groaned before flipping over to get up. Before he could get far, however, Percy flicked his wrist and placed her knife at the edge of his throat.
"Yield," she ordered, and the man slumped immediately.
Nightwing returned to her side, escrima sticks attached to his back once more. He pulled out a pair of zip ties and Percy retracted her knife as he reached out to cuff the man.
"I, uh, dropped your knife somewhere back there," Nightwing admitted, sheepishly, and yanked the zip ties a notch too tight, "Sorry."
Percy snorted and walked over to the back of the room under the guise of looking for it. If he had let it go, it was probably already back in her suit, but she took the opportunity to examine the wooden crates. She pried one open the same way she had at the second location and frowned. Then she popped the others open as well, but her expression only deepened. The guns were there, neatly lined up amongst a bed of straw but every single one was missing the eerie purple liquid ammo.
When she returned to Nightwing, he had finished securing the wrists of all eight other thugs and was standing over their leader, waiting for her to begin questioning him.
"Crates are mostly full, but there's no ammo," she murmured, leaning over to deliver the bad news privately, "They're all missing the cylinder."
Nightwing gave her no verbal response but tensed.
"Who are you making these guns for?" Nightwing demanded the leader.
The man scowled at the ground fiercely.
"'Dunno, I just follow the instructions and get paid," he spat out.
"Where do the orders come from?" Percy inquired, softer but just as authoritative.
The man shrugged, deciding to come clean.
"Some guy comes 'round here randomly to check our progress, gave us the schematics for the guns in the first place, and told us to just keep makin' 'em. Creepy fella, kinda short 'n lanky."
Nightwing glanced over to Percy and shook his head softly. Not Blockbuster then, Percy realized, and this guy probably didn't even know he was working for the crime lord either.
"What about materials?" Nightwing prodded, "And where do the guns get shipped out?"
"That guy, I was telling you 'bout. He gets us the stuff and comes to pick up the shipment when it's full. Don't know any of the details 'cause he won't tell us. We just sent a batch out last week though, so he probably won't be comin' 'round here for a while," the thug explained.
Percy turned around, and Nightwing followed her.
"Whoever that guy is, he probably takes the guns back to Blockbuster to load them up. No way these guys know anything else if they don't even know who they're working for," Percy whispered quickly and lowly.
"You're right," Nightwing replied, then frowned, "Another dead end."
"What's our move?" Percy huffed, mirroring his expression.
Nightwing tilted his head to think, then reached down into his belt and pulled out a handful of small circular objects, displaying them to her in his palm.
"Wreak havoc first, ask questions later," Percy confirmed, raising her eyebrows, "I like the way you think. I'll get these guys."
Percy turned back around to the thug, lightly kicking him in the calf to get his attention. His head shot up.
"Alrighty, up up," she ordered, and when he didn't move a muscle, she reached behind her and unsheathed her sword, pointing it forward, "Let's go."
The man on the ground scrambled to get up. Percy turned and pointed Soteria at the other eight heads and herded them into standing.
"Out the door," she instructed, jerking her chin to the exit.
Behind them, Percy was aware of Nightwing flitting from corner to corner of the large room.
All nine men stumbled forward in a line. Thug 4 was still limping from where she had twisted the muscle in his inner thigh and Percy bit her lip to keep from smirking in amusement.
She kept them moving until they had all reached the edge of the property, where she directed them to sit with their backs against the trunk of a particularly wide tree. Nightwing joined them out a few moments later, holding a large, corded rope. Percy grabbed one end and they wrapped it tightly around the tree, securing the criminals.
Nightwing then offered up his wrist to her and slid his fingers over it in a complex motion. A small hologram appeared, depicting a keyboard and a diagram of several spherical points connected to each other with dashed lines.
"Yes, please," Percy said eagerly at the unasked question.
She shot a quick grin at him and brushed a finger over 'enter' on the keyboard.
LINEBREAK
Dick steeled himself in anticipation. For a second, everything was silent.
Then, an enormous boom rocked the ground, the building shaking and collapsing in on itself. Neither he nor Perseus stumbled, but the thugs behind them yelped and shielded their eyes from the outgoing debris.
Perseus had stopped at just the right spot, Dick noted, as ash and dust settled a few inches from his feet. Bright and dark flames licked the edges of the walls, reaching up and around where the roof used to be. The woman beside him rocked back on her heels as they watched Blockbuster's entire manufacturing facility burn to the ground. Dick spared her a glance. In the yellow light, the flames reflected in the whites of her mask, and strands of hair fluttered away from her face. Her sword was still out beside her, tip twirling leisurely into the grass. Dick thought she looked deadly.
She turned to leave them, and Dick allowed himself a second to feel vindictive before falling back in line with her as they walked back to their ride home.
"Already called the police," Dick said, "They'll be here soon to make arrests."
"Number four," Perseus snickered unexpectedly.
Dick had no idea what the other hero was talking about, but he was starting to get used to the random quips. Even then, he wondered what exactly was so amusing about the Bludhaven Police department. He knew his precinct wasn't the cleanest, but it was hard not to take it personally, even if he didn't have a clue of what she meant.
"We'll have to wait before continuing this," Dick revealed, "Canary says Kai needs a little more time."
He didn't mean to let the name slip, he was always so careful about his connections, but once they were out, he found himself not really minding. Perseus, to her credit, barely acknowledged it, just nodding in acceptance.
Reaching his Wingcycle, Dick mounted the vehicle, and twisted the handles, the engine roaring to life once it recognized his fingerprints. Perseus placed her hands gently on his waist to steady herself on the seat behind him and then leaned forward to grip him more firmly.
"Let's go home, 'Wing," she hummed.
The scent of gasoline and salt water grazed his nostrils as he turned the bike around. Perseus's arm pressed against his left side to account for the change in direction. Focusing on the twinkling lights of the Pryst building, Dick practically flew down the highway, smiling at the other hero's delighted laughter.
Notes:
I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! And I'd be so grateful if you let me know what you thought! Your comments are like fuel :)
Anyways, here is another long ass chapter because I won't be able to update next week. I'll have one out the week after though.
We're finally getting into the romance, bro I'm so excited. Got some fun stuff coming up soon too
I planned it all out, so there's going to be 19 chapters plus an epilogue one, and actually I think the chapters are going to be generally about this long from now on because there's a lot to cover still
Also, to everyone who commented against the love square...whoops. It's happening. It'll be a fun time though, I promise
See you guys soon!