Prey for the Hunter

Legend tells of a caped crusader Batman, guardian of New Gotham and his one true love Catwoman, the queen of the criminal underworld. Their passion left behind something extraordinary: A daughter, Huntress. Half-metahuman, she has taken up her father's mantle and under cover of the night, fights to protect the innocent and helpless. Joining her in this struggle, Oracle who was once Batman's protegee, Batgirl. She was caught in the crossfire of the war between Batman and Joker. Now she fights crime a different way: A master of the cyberrealms and mentor and trainer to heroes. Together, they have taken in a young runaway, Dinah. A metahuman herself with powers to open hidden doors to the mind powers that she is only beginning to explore. Together, these three are the protectors of New Gotham the Birds of Prey. My name is Alfred Pennyworth, and this is their story. Help! Help! Sometimes I just wanna be like other girls. Why would you wanna be like everybody else? Normality is overrated. Maybe, but I wouldn't mind trying it on for size every once in a while. I don't think it would fit. Is it too much to ask for a social life? For example, how am I supposed to meet a regular guy when I spend all of my evenings body-slamming scumbags? Are you feeling okay? This doesn't sound like you. Can't even find anyone decent enough to rescue out here. Okay, that's just rude. Oh, no, you do not mess with the outfit. Look at this. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find clothes that look sexy? Okay, normally the bad guys don't bounce. What the hell happened to you? Right. Okay. Jesse Reese? I'm Detective Claude Morton, just transferred from Bldhaven. What can I do for you? Well, they told me upstairs that if I'm looking for the bizarre, I'm looking for Jesse Reese. That doesn't sound too much like a compliment to me. It wasn't to them, it is to me. You got a corpse with a cause of death that could charitably be called "screamingly weird. " I'm tracking a killer with a fairly bizarre m. o. You mind if I take a look at those? That's Arnie Graves, petty thief graduating from purses to wallets gets his chest cavity burned out by acid. - Sound like your guy? - It's hard to tell. He never kills the same way twice. Although, this does have a special sick flair I've come to associate with his best work. So Bldhaven P. D. Sent you over here to catch this perp? No. They think I'm nuts. When I saw the murders in New Gotham, I put in for the transfer. And Bldhaven, they were happy to get rid of me. Now, my chief says this guy doesn't exist that no serial killer would use such a wide variety of methods. - What do you say? - I say this one does. That's the problem with only looking for things you've already seen. Makes you blind to the stuff that's, uh, right in front of your face. I hear you, but you might wanna keep that opinion to yourself if you wanna be taken seriously around these parts. Ask me if I care. Anyway, your chief assigned me to work with you until your partner gets back from vacation. So I guess he thinks I'm Mulder Junior already. All right let's go track this thing down. Hey. How high was that? - What, 10 stories? - Not nearly. Maybe five. What? What are you doing here? Trying to track down info on a guy with a big old smoking acid hole in his chest. Any insight? Yeah, maybe. What do you know about it? Just trying to help. Bet I solve it first. What do you say, cup of coffee loser buys? I don't think coffee's a good idea. I'm not all that thrilled about sharing information, either. - Why not? - I'll tell you why not. Because I don't even know your name. I have no idea who you are. I'm the girl that saved your life, remember? I'll tell you what, detective if this name thing's such a big deal for you, fine. You can call me Huntress. That's still not good enough. I mean So did you find out anything about that acid guy? Ugh. Nothing that makes sense. That sample from Helena's clothes is the same stuff that killed him. Which means he was murdered by exactly the same acid that he produces. Two metahumans hardly ever have the same powers so, um, what, acid guy ran into another acid guy who just so happened to be behind the dumpster? - How likely is that? - You mean, an evil twin? That sums up our likelihood issue. I've been through my research files, checked the database can't find anything on power duplication. So we've got a metahuman mystery on our hands. - You know who we should talk to? - Now, wait a minute. No one knows the metahuman community better than he does. - So you go. - He's not gonna tell a non-meta anything. We need to put an ear to the metahuman street. There's a metahuman street? - Yeah, just west of the magic kingdom. - Ha, ha, ha. - Fine, I'll go to No Man's Land. - Thank you. No Man's Land? Are there metas there? Can I go? On Fourth Street, yes, and not on a school night. How are you doing? It's exciting. At home, I hated going to school. There are no secrets in a small town. I was a freak and everybody knew it. Everybody. But here, it's like a fresh start. You know, no one even knows who I am. Well, you know where my classroom is if you need anything. You have your schedule? Locker assignment? - Okay. - Barbara you're channeling June Cleaver. Right. Sorry. Um Have fun. I'll see you later. Okay, I'm Dinah Redmond. I'm new, thanks for having me. Come on, Dinah. We all wanna get to know you. Why don't you start with where you're from? Well, um, Opal, Missouri. It's small. Um, it's not much of a town, actually. However, it is where the term "zipper" was coined. So if any of you have zippers, you have Opal to thank for that. And, um that's where I'm from. Can I sit down now? Okay. Invisibility. That would be a good power to have. Hey, you guys. I'll see you later. Bye. Wade, hi. Hi. Um, listen, about Tuesday night. I was wondering I know it's really short notice, but my folks are coming through town No, no, I totally understand. You need to cancel. That's fine. Actually, I was hoping you'd come to dinner with us. Nice deer-in-the-headlights impression, very subtle. Well, Wade, I don't know. Maybe that's not such a great idea. Don't worry about it. They're great. - You're gonna love them - I'm not worried about that. Just, what if they don't? Don't what? See me the way you do. Yeah, good point. After all, you're funny and interesting, maybe a little bit mysterious. They'll probably run screaming. They'll like you. Know how I know? How? Because I do. So, uh, give me an idea of what gets classified as bizarre in New Gotham. I've seen some things there's just no sane explanation for. I left my sanity behind a long time ago. It was slowing me down. Yeah, I hear that. I have seen perps that could shoot electricity out of their hands who'd jump 10 stories and land on their feet. Perps who could turn into bugs. - Is that a lot of little bugs or one big bug? - Both. Have you ever run across anybody who could turn himself into water? What, like a liquid guy? No, that's a new one, even for me. Yeah, tell me about it. Morton, you know we're talking about things that no normal person can do. Because we're not talking about people. We're dealing with something very dangerous here. Don't ever make the mistake of thinking those creatures are anything like us. - The word "creatures" is a little extreme - It isn't. Look. What if I could make all this make sense to you, Reese? What if I could give you the answer to all the crazy things you've seen? You all right? Yeah, sometimes I just get these headaches that knock me flat on my ass, like now. Look, uh, I gotta go home. We'll finish this conversation in the morning, okay? Yeah. Yeah, sure. Building's closed, my friend. You shouldn't be in here. - What do you want? - I want you. Hey, man, I did nothing to you. It's not about what you did it's about what you are. Whoa, whoa. You really don't wanna push me. Back off. I warned you. No way you heard me. Quite right. Lime mandarin soap with just a hint of New Gotham grime. I'd recognize that scent anywhere. You smelled me. Come, my delectable little peach pit, let me buy you a drink. It's on the house. Hey, Frosty. Helena, why such a stranger? Oh, you know. All work, no play. The usual for me, Frosty. And if memory serves, vodka rocks for the lady. Coming up. So the mysterious and provocative Huntress has chosen once again to grace me with her presence. It's been too long. Funny. To me, it never quite seems long enough. Twenty-three days, 14 hours, seven minutes and three seconds. - Stop it. - Can't. To never forget a sight, sound, taste, touch or smell. That's my gift and my curse. I thought your curse was to be the metahuman with the world's most annoying power. Yeah, that too. A meta pickpocket was killed. It looks like by someone with the same powers. Have you heard anything? Nothing. In fact, I've never heard of two metas with exact power overlap. Do you think that's even possible? I don't know what I think. Something strange is going on, though. Thank you for the drink. Yeah, no problem. I'll, uh, put it on your tab. Oh, that's right, you don't have one. Because that would require more than a semi-annual visit. Tell me something, is it the cocktail peanuts or the meta-only policy that makes you so uncomfortable? I'm half-meta, Gibson, the other half is human. - Just keep your eyes open, okay? - They always are. And you know they never forget. Come on, Helena, how about another round with us poor lost souls? Hey, zipper girl. - How's it going? Zipper girl? What? That was a good one. Hey, you gotta call that, man. - I'm out of here. - All right, Frosty. We'll see you. - Me too. - All right. - What the hell are you doing here? - I just am skipping school. Yeah, I could see that. How did you find this place? Have you been poking around in my mind again? Actually, I looked it up in the Yellow Pages. - What about the? - Secret entrance? Yeah, there was this guy out front, I sort of saw him coming out. Look, school, uh I'm not exactly fitting in. Hard to do when you're not there. Come on. I'm walking you back. I'm not gonna be responsible for you getting in trouble. Technically, skipping is truancy. Why is school so terrible? Did something happen? Not exactly. I just thought it was gonna be different here, you know? People still stare at me and they won't talk to me. I can see it coming. It's gonna be just like home. Newsflash: It's high school. The closest thing our society has to institutionalized torture. They're staring at you because every new kid's a freak. I just don't see the point of going to high school. I mean, I already know what I wanna be. A superhero. You don't need algebra for that. - You need it to have a normal life. - I don't want a normal life. I want my life. I've spent the last 15 years hating myself because I was different. I'm done with that. I am what I am, and I'm never gonna be ashamed of it again. Not to interrupt the meta-pride parade but you do know you can be a regular person go to school, and still be who you are. Yeah, I guess so. I just wanted to see what it would be like to be a regular meta. Let me tell you something. It's not all that it's cracked up to be. They call themselves metahumans but the real word for what they are is dangerous. Let me get this straight. Every metahuman has a different ability. But you can't tell by looking what they can do. - That's right. - And they look just like regular people. - They're everywhere. - Ha. Okay, so, what you're telling me is there's this secret subculture right underneath our noses. Come on, man. How is that possible? A generation ago, there was a man a vigilante who prowled New Gotham's nights claiming he was fighting for justice. All the while, and I'm not kidding about this he was dressed as a bat. Okay, now I know you're messing with me. A grown man fights crime and he does it dressed as a giant flying rodent? I think it's safe to assume he had some issues. He called himself the Batman. Oh, okay, that's creative. Oh, I didn't make it up. The point is, he attracted criminals. It was a prestige thing to fight him. You know, make your mark in the underworld. That only explains why there are so many criminals here in New Gotham. - All metahumans can't be criminals. - Why not? Their kind is drawn to crime, they think they're above the law. What about this flying bat guy? - He fought crime. He was a metahuman. - No, no, no. He was human all the way, he just, you know, had a scary dress sense. Anyway, he vanished about seven years ago, but the metahumans stayed had families, built lives here, they're here still. Some even married humans. You don't even wanna know how screwed up those kids are. You know what I'm talking about, Reese, I can tell. All right, um, look. I met this woman a few weeks back. But she was no criminal. People who have nothing to hide aren't afraid to come out into the light. Let me guess. You don't contact her, she comes to you. Well, usually she just sort of shows up but over a dead body. Maybe we'll get lucky and another one will turn up. It's the same killer I've been tracking, I can smell it. Hey, hey, easy, easy. It's okay. I've got some more in my car. I'll be right back. Well, well. Another corpse and here you are. Why am I not surprised? Well, hello to you too. - What do we have? - Ahh, we don't have anything. I have a crime scene. You have gotta start answering some questions. - It's Frosty. - Wait a minute, you know this vic? He's frozen. Somebody must have killed him with his own power. It's true, isn't it? You're one of those meta-things, aren't you? "Things"? You think I'm a thing? I don't know. Why don't you just tell me? What the hell are you? I mean, you damn sure aren't normal. I mean, come on, look around you, none of this is nor God, I hate it when she does that. - You're kidding yourself. - What? It'll never work between you and Reese. I'm his new partner. First, I made sure he knows what you are. - And second - Second? - I'm about to kill you. Okay, first, you really should do something about that headache of yours. And second I don't kill easy. Well, looks like someone's finally met her match. Oh, man, you came out of nowhere. I didn't see you. Are you okay? Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. The guy nearly killed me. Tried calling Reese to warn him about his new partner, the bad lieutenant. He didn't believe me. In fact, he kind of hung up. This guy is as good as me. Me. First we got acid guy who was apparently killed by his own powers and next we got a guy in ice. Frosty. One day he's making frozen margaritas, next day he is one. I had to call Gibson and tell him. He's getting the word out for people to lay low until we solve this thing. This, uh This cop, he seemed to take on your abilities. He seemed to mimic your every move. What if we're dealing with a metahuman who can mirror other metahuman powers? I still don't understand how I got away. I got across the street and then suddenly, I don't know, he just stopped. Maybe his abilities have a fixed range. Based on the street layout where you got away it looks like minimum safe distance is about 20 yards. Great. How do I beat a guy I can't get close to? I don't know yet. Wait, you said You said he got a nasty headache when you got near him, right? What if we could use that? But if I'm close enough to give him a migraine I'm close enough for him to mirror my powers. - I need to do more research. - Research? People are dying. We need a plan. You know what? Forget it. Helena, come on. Don't walk away. You don't understand. You can't. You're not like me, like us. Last night I heard Wade's mother telling him that I wasn't good enough for him because I didn't have legs that work. Yeah, you're right. What do I know about being different? Barbara I'm sorry, I really am. And the truth is even though Wade's parents may be small-minded jerks they weren't trying to kill you. Someone's murdering my people and I can't just stay here figuring out what his favorite color is. I have to find him. I have to stop him. Let me guess, you're seeking safe harbor in a stormy sea of normalcy. A haven from the harsh winds of societal misunderstanding. Excuse me? Why are you here? Well, my friend, Helena The delectable Huntress sent you? With a message for me, perhaps? No. Ha. Um, what I mean is she doesn't exactly know I'm here. Oh, no matter. Welcome to my sanctuary away from the prying eyes of an unkind world. Can I interest you in a fruity drink? Oh, yeah, that's a good shot. Anyway, so that's why I opened up this place. Right now it's a twister of a world. And I'm the basement. Dinah. Isn't it a school night? She's saying you tried to kill her. - She tried to kill me. Believe it. - That's not her m. o. It doesn't fit. - How can you be sure? - How well do you know her? - She saved my life. Yeah, and what'd she get? A cop in the pocket, how convenient. These creatures are animals, they think like animals. It's nothing but survival. Man, if you think she gives a damn about you, she doesn't. What the hell are you doing? What, not using your super-powers tonight? Why are you doing this to him? Afraid that Reese here's gonna see that you're a thing? Reese, stop her. She's crazy. Let me down, you're killing me. Reese, help me, Reese. Shoot her. For God's sakes, Reese. Shoot her. Let him go or I'll shoot. Shoot her. You gonna pull that trigger? He's the killer you've been looking for. - Reese - You gotta see how this looks. You're the one trying to kill him. And you are one of those metahuman creatures. What if I am? You wanna shoot, go ahead. If you think you can hit me. You're right. I'm not like you. Does that make it right for you to kill me? No. No, it doesn't. I expected more from you, Reese. Reese. Your turn. Huntress. Oracle, Reese is shot. Get an ambulance at Fourth and Hennessey. What's happening? Did you get away? Yeah. There's no substitute for experience when it comes to scaling tall buildings. He must have gotten far enough away for him to lose his powers. - Now I've gotta wait for him to catch up. - What? There's one way this thing's gonna end. Like you said, I can't beat him. But he can't beat me, either. - We go down together. Tell me where you are. - I'll come fight him with you. - If I don't stop him, he'll keep on killing. I can't let him do that. Don't you do this. Please you can't face him alone. We'll figure this out, just get out of there. Huntress. - Gotta go, date's here. - Huntress. Huntress. We've gotta do something. If I can access the GPS from her comm set we'll find her. - I know what you are. - Then you know you can't win. You're killing your own kind. Why? I'm not your kind. You're a monster. And as long as even one of you exists, I'm a freak. This pain in my head comes from you. Every time I get near one of you I change into something I don't wanna be. Into something that I hate. So I am going to destroy all of you. And when the last one of you dies I'll be normal. I'll be free. And I'm the one in therapy. You're going to die just like all the others. Maybe, but I'm gonna make you work for it. You'll die too. I can live with that. How does that feel? Twice the pain? You subhuman bitch. Back at you, bitch. Helena. Helena. Helena, no. Helena. This isn't what we do, Helena. We don't kill. Maybe death is too easy. Maybe you should stay alive, locked in a cell to rot your head splitting thinking of what you've done. There's a difference between staying alive and living. If you wanna know if I killed him I didn't, he jumped. - You look terrible. - And you don't. Another perk of the meta lifestyle. I heal quick. On the outside, anyway. I can't decide if I should thank you for not shooting me or beat you senseless for drawing a gun on me. You know things like me are dangerous and violent. Are you saying that you aren't dangerous and violent? Absolutely, I am. But not because I'm meta. - Look, I'm just I'm not used to - No. It's time for you to listen. Metahumans are just people. Not all metas are bad, just like not all cops are good. There's lot of metahuman criminals in New Gotham. Because there's a lot of criminals here, period. And as for me, I'm half-meta and I'm half-human and I am proud of both. I never thought you killed him. But beat him to a bloody pulp? That one crossed my mind a few times. Hey, why won't you just tell me your name? Because the first time we met you asked me who I was. But last night, you asked me what I was. I won't tell you my name. You haven't earned it. I'm sorry. Gibson's so great. Yeah, give him time. Hey, how'd the thing with Wade's folks go? Short version? Complete and utter parental rejection. Well, they just don't know you. Not any more than Reese knows me. And we can't really tell them, can we? What do you think it's like for Morton? You know, to hate yourself so much. He didn't understand. It's not what you are, it's who. Hey, what do you say we head down to Gibson's, the three of us misfits? I think we deserve a night out. Helena? Damned straight. And I can't think of a better place to spend it. - Gibson's it is. - Uh What happened to wanting to be like other girls? I got over it.