Plans go a gaggle

Billy and Freddy were disappointed when they met Miss Helen Wayne and Karen Starr and were informed they were being transferred to a private school… That was until Helen whispered “Cheese It” in Billy’s ear. Of course Freddy was a bit too busy admiring Miss Starr’s ample blouse to catch the message. Their reactions were recorded via hidden camera of course.

*

Kara and Dick didn’t wait in line for the club. Kara was dressed to impress on her night out, latex leggings, knee boots, a latex corset top and latex opera gloves. Dick by contrast was dressed in jeans and a button-down shirt. Barbara had messaged them that she was already inside.

“Sexy!” someone shouted at Kara as she walked by.

“Hay hot stuff!”

“They like your outfit,” Dick leaned in.

“That is the nickname for your butt Dicky,” Kara laughed.

Dick looked around and two guys were blowing kissed at him.

“Told you,” Kara smiled.

Barbara was next to the bar and waved at them. Dick and Kara both smiled at her. Barbara was dressed in a red latex mini-dress, green rubber opera sleaves and stockings and platform heeled booties.

“Sexy,” Dick smiled.

“What you are missing every time you leave Gotham,” Kara noted as she walked over.

Barbara embraced Kara with a French kiss. Dick followed and got a similar greeting with an extra hand down his jeans.

“Come on Boy Wonder,” Barbara whispered in Dick’s ear, “We have a VIP room upstairs with a bondage bed.”

*

An hour later, Batgirl and Nightwing were swinging from building to building looking for trouble. Oracle was tapping into a security system for a company with known ties to the now defunct Stromwell family. They had two hours before they would have to return to the club to make their exit.

“What’s your location boy blunder?” Robin called over the radio link.

“About five stories above you numb nuts,” Nightwing retorted.

Batgirl stifled a snicker.

“There seems to be abnormal power readings from Lexcorps building,” Alfred’s voice coolly informed the group.

“I’m on it,” The growl intoned, “Patrol with the other two.”

“Lets go boys,” Kara understood the orders, “Let’s take a swing around the warehouse district.”

*

The knock at the door was met with silence… The waitress was about to knock again when the manager nodded. Suddenly the door opened and Kara’s head stuck out. The three outside raised eye brows at her wearing a ball gag. Kara held up a rubber gloved finger to ask for a moment and then took off her gag.

“What’s up?”

“I was just checking to make sure everything was ok…” The waitress asked.

“Yeah, we were just taking turns with tickle torture, didn’t want to disturb the others,” Kara held up the gag.

“Mind if I come in?” the manager asked.

“Sure,” Kara opened the door.

The manager walked in and looked around. There were shoes and boots next to the coffee table in the private room. The bottle of champaign was still in the ice bucket unopened and the bottle of diet sprite was open and half empty with glasses on the coffee table. The manager looked at the pair on the couch, the red haired girl was laying back and holding a pillow over her face as the gagged boy was holding her bare feet under one arm and tickling the girl’s feet. The manger looked around and didn’t see any sighs that the three had been having sex…

Kara took out a folded wad of cash from her purse, she handed it to the waitress.

“We would be very grateful if you would just make sufficiently vague statements to keep our reputations intact,” Kara smiled.

“I am sure we will have nothing bad to say about you miss,” the manager said.

“Thanks,” Kara said, “Can’t making it too explicit or her dad with try to arrest us.”

*

“Tickle torture?” Alfred asked sternly as Kara walked over to get her breakfast.

“Needed something PG, but still kinky enough that you and Papa Gordon would disapprove of,” Kara said.

“Hay Alfred,” Dick said as he walked in, “What do you know about children of Ball-ieellly?”

“The children of Belial,” Kara said.

Alfred simply smiled and pointed behind them with a spatula.

“I told you no cheating,” Bruce said, “You need to work on your detective skills.”

“I already looked it up,” Jason said, “Doesn’t really help… can I get an expresso?”

“No,” Alfred declared as he poured a glass of orange juice for Jason.

“Oh?” Kara asked thinking, “I am going to have lunch with Jean-Paul.”

*

Kara sat at the café looking at the sheet of paper with the phrase written on it. Far from the enticing outfits she had worn recently, she was dressed in a catsuit with a thick warm wool sweater dress and wool lined knee boots.

“Someone thinks you are a fornicator,” Jean-Paul said as he walked around Kara.

“Oh?” Kara asked.

“Children of Belial is a biblical reference,” Jean-Paul said.

“What would you like?” the waitress asked.

“Soup and sandwich of the day?” Kara asked.

“We have a nice hearty clam chowder and BLTs,” the Waitress smiled.

“both?” Kara asked Jean-Paul.

“Why not, a cup each of the soup and a sandwich?” Kara ordered.

“Sure thing, another cup of tea?” the Waitress asked.

“Yes please,” Kara said.

“A hot chocolate?” Jean-Paul ordered.

“Right away,” the waitress said as she left.

The pair waited for a minute before talking more.

“So what is this children of the Belial?” Kara asked.

“There are a few stories in the bible where people who act badly are called ‘children of Belial’ and are struck down by the righteous lord. Many of them are cited for sleeping with women, with and without their consent. And at least once they sexually assault a man,” Jean-Paul said.

“Great…” Kara said, “Who is Belial?”

“That is a harder story to answer,” Jean-Paul said, “He isn’t really described in the bible, but in other side books, he is described.”

“Other books?” Kara asked.

“Yes, you have heard of the Dead Seas scrolls?” Jean-Paul said.

“Heard of them,” Kara said, “Never read them.”

“Most people haven’t,” Jean-Paul shrugged, “Belial is cited in them as a sort of lord of evil, enemy of god and Satan like figure. But if he is an angel, fallen angel or straight up demon isn’t really well stated.”

“A demon lord…” Kara mulled the ideas in her head.

The various things all seemed to come together in Kara’s mind. She recognized the implications.

“Well, enough of this insult,” Kara smiled, “How is your work going?”

“I think we had a break through,” Jean-Paul smiled.

“Here you go,” the waitress said as she came back.

“Thank you,” Kara smiled.

The waitress put down the plates and cups. And as the woman smiled, and Kara put a folded bill under the now empty coffee cup and handed it and the dish under it to the waitress.

“Refill please?” Kara asked.

“Of course.”

The waitress went back to the register.

“What was your breakthrough?” Kara asked.

“Jervis managed to get the nerve impulse monitors down to a wearable size,” Jean-Paul said, “That means that we will be able to make brain-controlled prosthetics a reality.”

“Isn’t that a thing?” Kara asked.

“Well the other ones require surgery,” Jean-Paul said, “Ours don’t, and they have internal power supplies so we don’t need power cables.”

“That is interesting,” Kara smiled.

*

As Kara made her way down into the basement, she could smell the perfume. It wasn’t Selina’s…

“Come on down, there isn’t a point in stalking us,” Bruce called.

Kara finished walking down the stairwell. At the main terminal, Bruce was standing with his back towards her and next to him was Black Canary in her full gear, and very sour look on her face.

“Well hello mrs Queen,” Kara smiled.

“Not another joke out of you…” Dinah snapped.

“We are trying to stay light hearted and civil,” Batman growled.

The shift in tone and body langue made Dinah Lance in all her Black Canary leather body armor step back. Kara went to the terminal and spun a chair around and took a seat.

“You know I was being nice,” Kara said, “You and Olie have something special together… but, if you want I can show you how catty I can be as well.”

“You can’t keep protecting Selina like this,” Dinah turned her attention back to Bruce.

“I am not protecting her, I am protecting you and my city… last thing Gotham needs is a super-powered beatdown to level half the city,” Bruce noted.

“Oh come on,” Dinah said, “Like you and your brats don’t run around causing mayhem?”

“As far as the average person is concerned, Gotham just has really clumsy criminals,” Kara noted, “There are rumors, but those are dismissed just as quickly as they are brought up. Go out to the corner of main street and Broadway and start screaming that Bruce Wayne is the Batman, you would end up in a straight jacket. Most people would think you are talking about some sort of vampire thing and dismiss you for believing in vampires…”

“Vampires are real!” Dinah snapped.

“No shit, but the average man on the street doesn’t believe in them and have no experience with them… so we try to keep them safe from such terrors and destruction,” Bruce said.

“And if you try to come out here and make your cape arrest,” Kara noted, “Selina will fight back and this time she has the homefield advantage… And we don’t want to render half the city homeless because you had to call in the equivalent of a nuclear strike.”

“The league can be even more surgical than you…” Dinah snaped.

Bruce turned around and pressed a button.

“Green Arrow respond…” Bruce called.

The screen came on and it showed a tied-up Ollie Queen in a dark alley.

“I am sorry, the idiot you are trying to reach is currently out of service,” Jason’s voice came over the line.

“Fuck you kid!” Ollie snapped.

“Hawk please respond,” Bruce called.

The video feed switched to an image of Hank in a leather jacket handcuffed to a toilet with some duct tape over his mouth.

“Someone thought they were smoother than they were…” Kara recognized Kate’s voice.

“Dove please respond,” Bruce called.

The camera feed changed to and image of Dawn passed out over a bar table snoring with a half a beer next to her.

“What the hell?” Dinah snapped.

[Clark get in here before Bruce break out the kryptonite shrieken,] Kara said in Kryptonian.

“What did you say?” Dinah asked.

“She told me to stop trying to sneak around,” Clark said as he landed next to Dinah, “He wouldn’t risk your safety…”

[Do you think I am not ready to make sacrafices?] Bruce asked in Kryptonian.

“What are you say?” Dinah asked.

“Maybe you should give her your primers on Kryptonian Cousin,” Kara said.

“Cousin?” Dinah said.

“You think just because you have Superman you can do what ever,” Bruce said, “That is an absolute lie that will get people killed.”

“How would you know?” Dinah snapped.

Kara reached up and turned off the power dampeners in her earrings and leaned back in the chair… She smiled as she started to float up to the roof of the cave.

“What?” Dinah gasped.

“I know just how much damage a Kryptonian can cause, because I adopted on myself,” Bruce sighed.

“And he doesn’t really trust me to wonder the city at full power either,” Kara said as she exhaled and floated back into the chair.

Bruce hit a key on the terminal and Kara’s power dampeners flicked on when she still had a few inches before she landed. Kara thumped down into the chair.

“I know I am grounded for a week,” Kara said.

“Wait…” Dinah said.

“Dinah, lets go…” Superman said.

“Are you scared of him?” Dinah asked.

“No… But the Butler with the Bazooka is pretty scary, especially since Bruce has kryptonite in the shells,” Superman pointed over at the figure in the alcove.

“You wouldn’t let him shoot us,” Dinah said.

“I have no say in the matter,” Bruce noted coldly.

“Of course you can, he works for you,” Dinah said.

“Not really, he works for the lady of the house,” Bruce said, “And since I am unmarried, he has been continuing his duties as laid out my late mother….”

“I doubt pointing a bazooka at someone,” Dinah started.

Bruce made a gesture and Kara understood which button to push.

A video came on from ages ago, it was of two goons in ski masks running as a younger Alfred calmly stalked them shooting with a rifle…

“I thought Wayne hated guns,” one of the goons shouted.

“He does, unfortunately for you my employer charged me with taking what ever means needed to protect her family and her household,” the young Alfred snapped as he reloaded the rifle, “Now tell your families that if they ever think about hurting young master Bruce, I will not hesitate to execute every last one of them.”

Dinah turned and looked at the older Alfred. When their eye’s met, Dinah shuttered as terror ran down her spine.

“Let’s go,” Superman said.

“Your associates will be available in a few days, after GPD had a chance to speak with them,” Alfred stated.

Despite the slight smile, Alfred’s tone made it clear that this was an edict of a god. The pair from the Justice League went to the metal panels that served as beacons for the teleportation network and disappeared. Kara got up and went towards the elevator.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” Kara said.

“Where are you going?” Bruce asked.

“Change my underwear,” Kara said, “Now I know where you learned pycho bat’s ‘I’m going to eat your soul’ glare from.”

“Alfred, you weren’t going to really shoot them… were you?” Bruce asked.

“Hmmm, you dare question my resolve?” Alfred retorted.

*

Kara returned via the elevator this time. She stuck her head out to make sure the coast was clear.

“No stand off?” Kara asked.

“No such luck,” Bruce said from the computer, “Now Alfred is just being stubborn.”

Kara looked as saw Alfred with a duster in one hand, a binder from the table in the other and the bazooka strapped across his back. Alfred smiled and put the binder back where he had been dusting and moved over a few steps. Kara went over the to computer terminal and picked up the paper she had had with her all day.

“I figured it out,” Kara said.

“How much did you get from Jean-Paul?” Bruce asked as he leaned back.

“Most of the Christian religious stuff,” Kara said, “But that is only part of the puzzle… Raz is setting up a parallel recruitment network in North America… And he is doing so under a new brand name to avoid connection to his other networks that people already know about. It’s like how major record labels hire a guy to set up a ‘new small independent’ record label.”

“Go on,” Bruce said calmly as he folded his hands in his lap.

“Over the last few decades the use of Islamic related texts and references have been getting too much scrutiny, so they switched to a rather obscure Christian Bible reference to attract local recruits. Their initial port of entry is Montreal in Canada and from there they moved into Detroit here in the states and moved out from there. They have primarily followed these rail lines, right to the Gotham on their way from New York City to Boston.”

“So close,” Bruce smiled.

“What did I miss?” Kara asked.

“Alfred?” Bruce asked.

“They are not looking for naughty boys to recruit,” Alfred said, “Rather they are going to look for rather upright Alter-Boys to seduce and corrupt, the idea is to have rather upright members of the community in their grasp to advance their agendas.”

“They are bringing up the threat of the Children of Belial to recruit the god fearing,” Bruce said.

“Shit,” Kara said.

“You did get a lot closer than Jason did,” Bruce said as he stood up.

“But how did you already know about it?” Kara asked.

“A gentleman approached a friend of mine that is an Anglican minister,” Alfred said, “I looked into it for him and Master Bruce.”

“Dick did pick up on the soup kitchen connection,” Bruce noted.

“Soup kitchen?” Kara asked.

“The network they were traveling along were logistical lines for soup kitchens,” Alfred expanded the thought, “Not just rail lines.”

*

Around ten O’clock on the thirty first, Kara and Selina’s clan had all come to see Selina off at the Train Station. Kara knew what was planned… After seeing Selina off, Kara went to meet up with Dick, Barbara, and Kori for lunch in town. She had gotten a text message from Jean-Paul stating that he saw someone with flyers warning of the dangers of “the Children of Belial,” at the soup kitchen. Kara texted him to not start a fight. They plaid it cool all day. Around seven Alfred went to drop off a dinner at Selina’s apartment and scout out what was happening in her absence. Later that night as Maven, Holly and Kitty were relaxing and getting ready for bed, Catwoman was to attempt to break in only to be interrupted by a ‘Gargolye attack.’

The concept was to observe the girls reacation to see if she would be able to handle a life in the Cape and Cowl community… That was the plan…

“Oh this is going to be awesome!” Jason’s gleeful and excited voice came over the open channel.

“Everyone panic,” was Barbara’s immediate and deadpan response.

“You haven’t even heard the news,” Jason interjected.

“You have news that makes you happy,” Kara noted.

“AKA, everyone prepare for horrible things to happen,” Dick finished the thought.

“Not all my news ends in disasters,” Jason half heartedly defended himself…

“Only the news that makes you giddy,” Bruce added, “Base run scans of the objective’s security systems.”

“In the elevators,” Jason said, “Jinny, Little Barda and Garfield are going to try and arrest Catwoman on their own. Seems they over heard some comments about the Justice League heroes being unable to do the job and decided to do it on their own…”

“Ok, slight change in plans,” Selina’s voice came over the line, “Let’s see how my kittens handle themselves and clean up afterwards.”

“She has a hand set?” Dick asked.

“No, I have a cowl mounted setup,” Selina chirped.

“She has a cowl set?” Barbara asked.

“FOCUS,” Batman growled.

“I got a green rat getting off the elevator one floor down,” Barbara called over the channel, “Couldn’t see inside the car from this angle.”

A few seconds passed.

“I got Jinny and Barda exiting a floor above,” Barbara added, “Little Green crawled in a hole.”

“They have delusions of grandeur…” Jason snickered.

“And this is where they start to fail,” Selina said as they watched Jinny and Barda try to break a window to get access to Selina’s balcony.

The pair shouldered into the glass only to be bounced off it. This made Jinny confused and Barda angry.

“Little Barda isn’t familiar with Hurricane Glass is she?” Dick observed.

“She is about to get another surprise when she does break the window…” Selina snickered.

Jinny pulled out one of her great uncle’s revolvers and shot the window… Flashing red lights went off and metal shutters came down inside and of the windows.

“I live with rich paranoids,” the others could hear the shrug in Selina’s voice…

“And the police are on the way,” Barbara’s voice made it clear she was reading some sort of alert being transmitted.

“Where is the rat?” Jason asked.

“Got eyes on it,” Kara noted, “Coming out a vent shaft on the floor of the family room area… and Isis is after him.”

“He doesn’t realize it either…” Dick was stifling a snicker.

“Stop playing and eat him already Isis!” Selina snapped.

“Got another one stalking him,” Dick snapped.

“Zachy is getting ready to pounce…” the glee in Selina’s voice was palpable.

A red and brown shorthaired cat leapt from a book case onto the green rat trying to sneak around the apartment. The green rat panicked and ran shifting into a larger racoon… More cats were attracted by the noises that he made. The green Racoon transformed again to a Great Dane… And that was when Maven walked into see what the noise from the cats was. The green dog looked at the young woman. Maven didn’t hesitate, she reached back into the hallway she came from, pulled out a taser and shot the dog. She kept hiting the trigger as Garfield spasmed and morphed partly into a human and partly into a camel. Maven called something and Holly came over with a cricket bat and as Garfield loosened up for a second, Holly wacked him over the head twice. Maven then shocked the green monster again. The pair went back and forth until Garfield was completely comatose. Kara watched as Maven pulled a phone out of the back pocket of her cut off jean shorts. She spoke for a minute…

“Miss Kyle’s associate Miss Donald is on the phone asking for advise on detain a quote green mutant shapeshifter,” Alfred’s voice came over the link.

“Tell them to roll him out on to the balcony,” Bruce responded.

“Looks like Jinny and Barda are trying to get back on the elevator… it is locked down,” Barbara informed them.

“Unlock the door to the roof,” Batman intoned.

As the two ladies were moving the comatose would-be hero young Kitrina Falcone walked into the family room area and arched an eyebrow at the sight. Maven turned to talk to Kitrina.

“What is she saying?” Jason asked.

“She is explaining that this thing broke in somehow and they are dumping him out on the balcony,” Kara informed them.

“Didn’t you lose your hearing aid privileges?” Jason asked.

“Lip reading,” Bruce intoned, “Boys, go get them off the roof and over to another building.”

As Jinny and Barda came out on the roof from the observation room above Selina’s penthouse, they looked around. Jason and Dick in their Nightwing and Robin gear jumped over to the other rooftop.

“Hello ladies…” Jason said with his link open, “Relax, we are going to make sure you don’t get arrested… besides, you know Head Mistress Wayne will be waiting with detention slips for you on your return.”

That got groans from the two young ladies trying to be heroes. Dick picked up Jinny leaving Jason to grab the taller and heavier Lil’ Barda. They move swung off the roof as the police turned onto the street with Selina’s building. Kara looked down and saw that Kitrina was helping Maven and Holly move the green boy.

“I think she passed the test…” Selina’s voice purred with delight.