Angel among Heroes

Chapter 17: Along came a Bird

The following days were spent recovering whatever members of our lost team as we could. John had essentially disappeared with Zatanna, the demons and monsters in their department needing to be put back to where ever they came from. Artemis, now Tigress, had been training consistently. Finally, her sister Cheshire joins the fray, the two taking care of the older sister's child. Roy was ecstatic to find out about the baby, his clone from Cadmus labs having been the culprit. But, on the other hand, Connor was weary of the young mother and her child. His memories of Cadmus are holding him back, the friction between them becoming a constant hassle to work around. 

"Babe?" Wally said, attempting to snap me back to reality. My mind still cast off on how different I felt now. The darkness in me had been put in a storage facility for safekeeping, the other magical relics too powerful to let loose being there. John figured it was the best place until the other League members came back and could make an actual decision. Feeling a slightly chapped pair of lips mesh with mine, I felt myself return to my body. A smile crossed my face as I turned to face Wally. "There you are," He smirked. 

"Sorry, just in my head is all," I sighed, looking down at my wrist. Wally noticed, his arms wrapping me in a hug. 

"Don't worry. He's locked up. A shame because he's still a part of you, but it can't be helped. Who knows what would happen if he escaped?" Wally imagined, his own eyes staring into space. 

"You're right. Best not to worry about it," I said. Then, the sounds of a baby reached my ears, the sisters walking into the room holding the tiny babe. My hands instantly reached out to take the tiny infant into my arms. "Aww, Lian, it's okay, Hunny." I hummed, cradling her. 

"Sorry to ask you to do this. I'm sure you'd like to get back out into the field," Tigress said. Her green eyes reflected her words in earnest. 

"It's alright, with everything. It's best if I stay here until necessary," I smiled at the babe. "Plus, I get to spend time with my little best friend, Lian. Isn't that right, my little fighter?" I cooed at her in my arms, her face lighting up into giggles and smiles. Cheshire stood protectively nearby, her mother's instinct forcing her to regret every time she had to go out, even if she didn't want to admit it. 

"Alright, Cheshire and I will be doing some recon. Hopefully, we can find where Beast Boy and Beetle ended up," She said, sighing. Her love for her team showed as the worry on her face grew intensely. Wally gave her a reassuring smile. He stood in thought for a moment. 

"I'm sure they just held up somewhere with each other like M'gann and Connor over there," He finally said, his fingers pointing to the lovey-dovey couple behind him. The two have been inseparable since Chesire joined. I couldn't help but wonder if I was missing something. 

With a quick goodbye and some last-second kisses on Lani's forehead, the pair disappeared. The zeta tubes announce their departure, the lights dimming before they light up again. "Well, that was fast," I smirked at Wally. 

"One three. Black Canary to Mount Justice." The tube announced, my eyes looking to Wally in confusion. The last information we had on her was her being held captive with the Flash, Batman, and Green Arrow. Looking back to the tube, I watched as her slender form was revealed. Her usual black top was torn in different places, the blue jacket on her shoulder not much better. Her stockings ripped all to shreds. 

"A-08, Harleen Quinzel to Mount Justice." It rang again, the pigtailed anti-hero crying with her broken bat in front of her. 

"These aren't easy to make, you know! I took hours on this!" She wined, Canary scoffing at her. Her eyes followed Canary's as she spotted us. "Oh, my, god. I knew speedsters ran fast, but that kid was something else. Only been three months, and you've already popped one? How did that work, by the way? I didn't think you'd have any of the matching parts?"