Bluejay: The Protégé of Black Canary

Candelabras and Chandeliers

My heart lurched into my throat so quickly, I nearly vomited all over the floor. Of course The Penguin wanted Dick Grayson. There was probably no amount of money a father wouldn't pay to get his son back. Penguin must have deducted that Bruce's ward wasn't in the ballroom, and was sending these men to find him. So, before the two men could notice me, I ducked from my cover and sprinted towards the doors.

"Jackie, no!" Wally tried to call after me, but I wasn't listening.

I slipped behind the doors, praying Ski Mask and Angel Tattoo hadn't seen me enter first. I ran down the hallway and hid behind the flower arrangement right as the doors creaked open. I almost had to slap a hand to my mouth to cover my frantic, panicked breathing. Peeking through the roses like I had only an hour before, I saw the two bulky figures of Penguin's men speaking to someone inside the ballroom.

"Guard the doors." One of them instructed in a gruff voice, and then the doors slammed shut.

I couldn't waste any more time. I needed to find Dick before they did. I took off down the hallway, my heart pounding in my chest. Dick was clever, but what was he going to do if they found him? I imagined one of them holding a gun to Dick's head, or them dragging him into a vehicle to use as a hostage. The taste of sour bile rose in my mouth. I couldn't let that happen, but I no idea where he was in this stupidly massive mansion! Anxiety grew in my stomach. My head whipped down the hallways, trying to decide which one to go down. I had to get to him first!

"Hey, superpowers? I think now would be a great time to kick in!" I hit my temples with the heels of my palms, trying to jumpstart my mystery megagene.

I felt an odd tugging sensation in the pit of my gut, and I gasped, whirling around. I expected to see Dick, but instead I gritted my teeth with irritation. A tall, grandfather clock lay at the end of the hallway, with swaying brass pendulums and intricate designs carved into the wood.

I growled, frustration growing inside me. I grabbed a fist full of my hair, my eyes darting around. Could he be up the stairs? Hidden in the kitchen? I bit down on the inside of my cheek, a feeling of hopelessness eating me from the inside out. If I can't find Dick, I'll just take out the Tweedle Brothers first, I decided.

I backtracked, trying to find the Penguin's two men. I felt like I was in a live action version of Tom and Jerry, only the sizes were reversed. But thankfully, they weren't very hard to find. They were louder than a symphony of lawn mowers. With their backs turned to me, I saw The Penguin's men kicking down one of the doors with their thick, muddied shoes.

The man wearing the ski mask had a long dagger strapped to his leg, and the other with the angel wing tattoo on his bicep held a gun in his arms. Fantastic, I thought bitterly. The lock gave way with a shudder, and the doors flew open for them. Grinning with one another, the two men stepped inside appeared to be one of Bruce's offices.

"Come out, come out." One of them taunted. "We won't hurt you... much."

I could feel my blood begin to boil from where I watched them, concealed over the corner of the wall. My eyes zipped to the nearest weapon I could find, and snatched a golden candelabra from a display table near a staircase. I weighed the metal in my hands. It would have to do for the moment.

"Doesn't look like the rat's in here either. Let's move on." One of them suggested, but not before pocketing a few valuables they found around the room or kicking over a chair.

I shook out my remaining nerves. Here goes nothing. I charged into the room and targeted the nearest man, swinging the metal candelabra at the side of Ski Mask's head. He was the one with the gun, so he needed to go down first. A pained grunt came out from his mouth as the stick smacked into the side of his skull. He stumbled and let out a cry from the pain, so I took that as an opportunity to kick sharply at the back of his knees.