Battle of the Birds: a DC Comics Fanfiction

Chapter 1

 A soft mist drifts across the dark-water harbor of Cape Carmine. Water crashes and twists around the Gotham Docks in a fervor, spraying foam and water onto the sidewalks and rusting railings skirting the water's edge. A large barge, half shrouded in the night, is moored along the docks. The towers of Gotham City are a backdrop to the boat and docks as the only light comes from a few streetlights and portholes along the ship's broad side.

High above the crash of the waves and the grounds of the docks, Magpie sits in a crouch from her vantage point on an elevated transit line that crosses over the dockyard. The salt-heavy air pushes the white hair of Magpie's bob cut wig into her face. A heavy layer of eyeshadow and mascara weighs on her eyelids and her teeth bit down on the dark lipstick of her lips, drawing the skin between her teeth as she waits, half agitated, half eager.

Tonight is the night that Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot, AKA the Penguin, is picking up a handsome shipment. A long black car and a white van sit near the docks as workers busy themselves up and down the deck of the barge. The distant clatter of boxes and cargo being moved, the occasional shout, the ring of a bell punctuate the velvety silence.

Magpie twists her fingers, gently rubbing her pale knuckles. She is dressed in her usual outfit, a busty leather corset, black leather panties, knee-high high-heeled boots, and with a feathered cowl around her shoulders. Her midriff is exposed while her thighs, breasts, and upper body is covered in a sheer see through fabric, lending a gray sheen to her body. If not for her vibrant white hair, she could blend into the shadows themselves. But she was never one to take the quiet or unacclaimed route. She was here to steal from the Penguin and she wanted him to know it. There is something nice about a powerful man cursing your name...

Beneath Magpie and on the streets around the docks, several men and three women are pacing between stacked shipping containers, keeping an eye on the area. She will need to get through them in order to reach the Penguin and his shipment. A sailor yells from the ship and the various guards turn to look as a guard appears at the top of the gangplank with a cart and three other men. On the cart is a large bulletproof display case. Even from this distance, the glittering sparkle makes the item impossible to miss.

Magpie's mouth slips open as she utters a small gasp of want. "Shiny, shiny," she mutters. Inside the display case is a massive uncut diamond of over 3,000 carats. Only visible due to the reflections it casts from the streetlights on the ground below, the body of the gem must be a beautiful sight to behold. Magpie will make it hers. It's the most beautiful thing she has ever seen.

With the diamond on the move, it is time to act. Magpie loops her hands on the edge of the transit line rail and drops to the ground with barely a sound. Between Magpie and the diamond is a small maze of stacked shipping containers. She stands up and walks to the first container, putting her back to the metal as footsteps echo from around the corner.

A man rounds the corner carrying a semi-automatic rifle and with a black gaiter pulled up over his face. He is dressed in black and wears light tactical armor. The gaiter has the white outline of a penguin's head and beak on the fabric, marking him as one of Penguin's men.

Before he notices Magpie, she flicks her hands, extending her lethally poisonous claws, and stabs them straight through the gaiter and slashes his neck. The man is simply walking by and then he suddenly falls at her attack. Magpie steps aside as he hits the ground, chuckling to herself.

"Good luck trying to slow me down," she whispers. The man convulses on the ground in a silent panic. The curare poison works fast, immobilizing him and sinking in its teeth as the life fades from his wide eyes.

Magpie steps over the man and peeks around the shipping container she is behind. An empty streetlight stands at the long end of a path between the containers. Instead of walking where she might be seen, Magpie leaps on top of the containers and advances at a crouch. She comes upon another armed man who is facing the water. With the coast clear, Magpie drops down behind him and leaps onto his back. She wraps her strong legs around his middle and wraps an arm around his neck, pulling him into a chokehold. The man drops his gun with a clatter and reaches up to pull at her hands, but it is no use. His voice crackles and gasps as he is unable to draw a breath and he collapses to the pavement on his knees. Alight with the excitement of her power over him, Magpie tightens her grip until he stops fighting and slumps to the ground, dead.

Magpie steps away from the body and slaps her hands together to a job well done. She turns back to the shipping containers, ducking into a low run, when a single gun shot echoes near the transit line tracks. The crack of sound jars Magpie. She missteps and crumples to the ground in surprise, ducking out of habit at the gunfire. The first goon she took out, he must have fired in his final throes. She should have taken his gun away! Magpie knocked her fists against her forehead, stupid—stupid! She shook herself and went to jump back onto the containers when loud voices echo from the ship.

"What was that?!"

"Go check it out! We'll take the diamond!" Footsteps burst into a scurry and the sharp tap of heels echoed between the shipping containers. Magpie leaps up and grasps the edge of a shipping container when a blonde woman appears at the other end of the container.

"Hey—you!" she shouts. The woman, dressed head to toe in black, lunges in her direction, grasping Magpie's waist. Magpie yelps and let's go of the container's edge and drops to the ground, tumbling away from the woman. Magpie rolls to her feet and without looking, whips her leg into a sharp roundhouse kick, taking the woman off guard. The woman falls backwards and Magpie follows, landing on her chest and straddling her. Magpie delivers one, two, three kick hits to her temple and the woman falls back unconscious.

"Some back up," Magpie mutters. She needs to move quickly before the diamond is taken away. She can't believe she's botched this simple mission. She was so close! Magpie gets up and sprints towards the ship. She pumps her legs and extends her arms with her claws out. As she breaches the end of the stacked shipping containers, another woman appears before her with a throwing star tucked between her knuckles.

"Halt!" the woman snaps. She has dark red hair tied back in a ponytail. Her brown eyes narrow at Magpie as she pulls her arm back to throw her weapon. Magpie ducks and rolls across the ground, spinning out to take out the woman's legs. She collapses with a yell. Magpie leaps up and stomps on the woman's hand, knocking the throwing star away, slicing her slender fingers in its departure. Magpie whirls around then stomps her chest, the woman crying out in pain. Magpie's cowl and feathers lift up as she spins, tickling her cheeks and necks in the fast-paced moment. She breaks into a big smile and lands another heavy kick on her opponent, quickly knocking her out. Magpie steps over her and runs out onto the sidewalk of the dock just as the back doors of the white van are slammed shut and the black car is already pulling away.

"No!" she exclaims. Magpie lunges into a sprint but another throwing star whips through the air, nearly slicing her nose. Magpie backpedals and faces the assailant, a woman with short black hair. The woman smirks at her.

"Did you think I would let you go anywhere near the boss and his belongings?" the girl asks. Magpie snarls.

"You should if you know what is good for you. No one is stopping me from getting my shiny-shiny." Magpie lunges and engages with the woman. Her first blow is blocked and her recovery kick is swatted away. The woman laughs and launches a spinning kick at Magpie then follows up with a quick flurry of punches. Magpie ducks and bobs around the attacks, looking for an opening in the high-speed dance.

"Not a chance—you'll never steal from him," the woman says. She pulls back for a knock-out style punch but Magpie spies the wide opening she leaves in her confidence. Magpie side steps then swipes her claws at the woman, narrowly missing as she stumbled back. Expecting this, she followed and landed a solid kick at the woman's middle and knocked her to the ground. Falling back, there was a solid crack as her head hit the sidewalk and a small smattering of blood colored her chin and lip as she accidentally bit her lip on the impact.

Magpie turns from the fight to see the dockyard now empty. Both vehicles, with the diamond, are now gone.

"No!" Magpie yells. "Dang it!" She shakes out her claws and slashes the air in frustration. She was so close to getting the diamond. How could she have messed this up?

A weak laugh comes from the sidewalk. The woman is still conscious. She looks up at Magpie with squinted eyes and gritted teeth. "Did you really think you could steal it?"

Magpie jumps onto the woman and holds her claws before her eyes. "That diamond was mine. Where is it being taken?" she demands.

The woman chuckles. "It'll be all over the city but I'm sure boss will take it back to his hideout. He likes to keep his prized possessions close."

"The Iceburg Lounge?" Magpie asks.

"Nooo, of course not. That's an honorable establishment," she says. Her voice twists into a lick of sarcasm. Almost as if she is daring Magpie to try to go into the lair of her boss and all his goons. It looks like she knows what she is doing tomorrow night.