//------------------------------// // Chapter 21: Frost // Story: Young Amazons // by Wanderer D //------------------------------// Young Amazons By Ackbarfan5556 Executive Produced By Wanderer D Chapter 21: Frost     If there was one good thing Sunset could say about the severe cold front that was slamming Gotham it was the numerous chances for her to practice her heating spells.   The cold temperatures had certainly been a surprise for her, as winters at Canterlot High were nowhere near this extreme. Not even when she lived with Celestia in Canterlot did it reach this low, and the city was up in the mountains! The weather certainly wasn’t stopping Bruce in the slightest as the two of them were in the Batmobile and speeding towards Axus Technologies, where the Batwave had picked up an emergency.   The car parked in a quiet alley away from wandering eyes before the two heroes made their way up the side of the building. A large, gaping hole in the facade halted their progress. Batman held his hand up to silently tell Sunset not to move as they stood on the edge of the building.   “The guard is in stable condition, just needs to heat up a bit and get checked for a concussion, but aside from that, no other injuries.” Sunset heard a voice inside the building, more than likely belonging to an officer.   “I see,” Sunset quickly picked up Detective Yin’s voice. “And any idea if anything was stolen or was this just a smash job?”   “Not until we get someone from the company to get here and take inventory. As for the forensics team, they’re being held up by the weather, but they should be here soon.”   Yin sighed. “Doesn’t take a forensics team to know that this has Lynns’ fingerprints all over it: the hole, the building, few others fit the M.O.”   “If you say so, ma’am.”   “Well, head back downstairs, Quinn, and wait for the forensics team. I’ll join you shortly.” Sunset heard a pair of footsteps walking out of the room. “You two can come in now.”   As if on cue, Batman moved into the room through the hole with Sunset following suit. Sunset’s eyes widened at the mess she witnessed. The entire room was strung with wrecked machines and scattered papers; someone had been looking for something and wasn’t caring at all of being subtle about it.   “Sheesh, somebody certainly had fun breaking things,” Sunset said.   “Looks like Firefly was busy,” Batman observed as he kneeled and picked up a small piece of the wreckage. He inspected the piece for a moment and then dropped it to the floor.   “I don’t think it could be anyone else, everything about this fits him perfectly,” Yin told them before she walked over to the hole and ran her finger along the edge. “This hole was cut by extreme heat that had to have been focused into a beam; it can’t be anyone else.”   “Hold on, who exactly are we talking about?” Sunset interrupted.   “Garfield Lynns, calls himself Firefly. He’s a mercenary who uses a heat-proof armored suit and high powered heat beams to assist him in his sabotage or robberies, depending on what his employers want him to do. I stopped him last time when he was working for GothCorp.” Batman explained.   “He’s supposed to be in Blackgate right now, but I’m guessing he probably broke out sometime during the night. How he not only got out, but also got his high tech equipment back is still a mystery.” Yin said.   “Perhaps his new employers pulled some strings or helped him escape, seeing how he’s a thief for hire?” Sunset guessed.   “More than likely, the issue is trying to figure out exactly who his employer is,” Batman said as he looked over some more of the wrecked machinery. “Once that connection is made, it’s easier to figure out his pattern and be able to stop him.”   “Come in, Detective Yin,” Yin’s radio crackled to life.   “Go ahead,” she answered, raising her finger up to her lips. Batman and Sunset nodded quietly.   “Patrol unit just spotted a bright yellow streak of light blazing through the sky in the direction of Wayne Industries.” As soon as the officer on the radio said that, Batman turned around and started to head right back outside the building.   “Copy that, I’ll get over there as soon as possible,” Yin took her finger off the radio button and looked at Sunset. “And I’m guessing he’s already on the move.”   “Looks like it,” Sunset said before walking over to the hole as well. “Be careful, Detective, and try to stay warm.”   Yin gave a small smile. “You too, and try not to get burned, especially by Firefly.”   Sunset gave a silent nod before she stepped back outside, got back down to the alley and hopped into the Batmobile. The car tore its way through the empty cold streets of the city at a fast pace to Wayne Industries.   “So, what exactly do you think Firefly wants with your stuff?” Sunset asked. She could just make out the large building in the distance.   “I don’t know, there’s plenty of things the company has been working on that he could want to destroy or steal,” Batman said as the car quickly came to a halt before the roof opened. “But we’re going to find out soon enough.”   Sunset and Batman quietly made their way up towards the higher levels of the building, where they heard sounds of a room being trashed. The two of them soon reached the glass roof on one of the higher levels to see down into a large chamber.   The young heroine’s eyes locked onto the lone figure that was in the chamber. A black and yellow armored man with a large jetpack like device on his back stood in the middle of the wreckage that he made before moving towards a large liquid storing tank.A black motorcycle helmet concealed his face beneath the black visor.    “On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love sent to me! Seven deadly canisters!” the armored thief sang.   “I wouldn’t be in such a jolly mood if I knew I was heading right back to Blackgate,” Batman interrupted as he landed on the ground floor several yards behind Firefly.   “Ah, Batman, didn’t think you’d find me this quickly,” Firefly said with a hint of a growl in his tone. Sunset soon dropped down next to the Dark Knight before Firefly turned his attention towards her. “And I see you’ve brought the sidekick with ya. Tell me, sweetheart, how much does working for the flying rodent pay?” he snickered.   “Big talk coming from an insect that I can easily swat,” Sunset smirked.   “Yeah? Swat this!” Firefly held up his hands before the top of his wrists glowed a bright yellow. Both Sunset and Batman rolled away to avoid the beams that Firefly shot out. The beams made contact with the wall behind where they once were and caused a small explosion.   Batman quickly went on the offensive as he tossed out a smoke bomb towards Firefly. He was unable to be able to see which gave Batman his window to charge forward and punched the mercenary in the face.   Firefly stumbled back as Batman threw a few more punches before he held up his fist and a trail of fire shot out from underneath his wrist. Batman jumped back and kneeled to cover himself in his cape as the fire surrounded him. Thankfully for him, the cape was fire resistant.   “Had enough time to throw on a few new toys for you, Batman. Your little cape won’t protect you forever.” However, Firefly’s taunting and attention being solely focused on Batman left him wide open for Sunset to attack him.   Sunset ran towards the armored man and tossed several energy blasts towards him. Firefly was completely taken off guard when he was hit several times and knocked to the floor. Batman quickly threw off the flames and got right back on his feet   “Wait, that magic stuff was real? I thought that was just people being crazy!” Firefly grunted as he got back up.   “I’ve got plenty more for you unless you give up,” Sunset said, charging up another volley.   “Sorry, but I’m on the clock right now, so I’m gonna have to cut and run.” He charged up his pack and quickly propelled himself back to where he was before leaving a yellow streak of light following him.   Firefly picked up a large cylindrical container and locked it onto his suit as he looked upward towards the glass roof. However, just as he was taking off, Sunset projected an energy whip and wrapped it around one of his legs.   “Oh, no you don’t! You’re staying grounded!” Sunset grunted as she tried to drag him back down.   “Oh, so you want to go for a ride then? Well, hang on!” Firefly kicked his pack into high gear and Sunset was soon being dragged along in the air. Firefly laughed as he spun her around a few times before he caused her to slam into a support beam.   Sunset grunted in pain as she collapsed on the ground, unable to get up. Her incapacitation was something that Firefly was quick to try and take advantage of as he landed and aimed his wrist at her.   “Gotcha!” Firefly shouted, charging up his beam, only to find a batarang slice through the fuel line on his arm. The sudden force of pressure and fluids shooting out of the severed tube caused Firefly to drop to his knees and attempt to patch up his damage.   Sunset glanced up to see Firefly carving a hole in the roof, trying to bring it down on top of her. Batman quickly turned towards Sunset and got her out of the way, giving Firefly his chance to take off. His rush to escape however caused him to drop a silver tube from the container as he flew away.   Batman dusted himself off as he helped Sunset onto her feet as she caught her wind. “You okay?”   Sunset groaned as she felt pain shooting through several parts of her body. “Not sure, I think something might have broke,” she sighed, sitting back down on the ground. “I’m sorry, I should have considered that he might try to drag me.”   “Happens to the best of us. Firefly took me for a ride too last time I fought him.”   Sunset nodded, feeling a bit better knowing that, though that wasn’t stopping the pain her body felt. She then glanced around the room and saw the mess that was left. “He certainly knows how to trash a place, that’s for sure.”   Batman said nothing as he stepped away from Sunset to check out the tube that Firefly dropped on the ground. The metal cylinder was laying on its side before he rolled it over to show off some wording in bold letters. LN2.     When they returned to the Batcave, Bruce had Alfred take a look at Sunset and just as they suspected, she had cracked a few ribs from the impact. Sunset was down for the count for the time being. “Something on your mind, Master Bruce?” Alfred asked, handing a cup of warm tea to Sunset.   “Something about this doesn’t make sense. What exactly could Firefly want with several canisters of liquid nitrogen? There’s also the problem of still not knowing what he stole from Axus earlier.” Bruce said as he paced the room.   “I doubt Firefly would want the liquid nitrogen for himself, that sounds more like something his employer would want,” Sunset said before she took a sip of tea. “This is very nice, Alfred. Thank you.”   “You’re most welcome, Miss Lucciola,” Alfred gave a slight bow before walking over to Bruce. “Sir, you should probably calm down. Pacing across the room will not help you solve this mystery.”   Bruce nodded before he sat down and took a deep breath. “You’re right, Alfred, but I’m just worried about whatever Firefly and his bosses have planned.”   “I’m sure we’ll find out, Bruce. Firefly strikes me as the type of guy who is bound to make a mistake sooner or later,” As soon as she said that, the computer went off. “Slip up?”   “Looks like a kidnapping at the Gotham Cryogenics Lab, and judging from that ice, it looks like Mr. Freeze is the culprit,” Bruce said.   “Mr. Freeze?” Sunset questioned. When she asked that, a picture came up on the computer of a man wearing a strange suit of armor that covers most of his body. His head, however, was exposed, but completely encased in ice with the silhouette of a head and two glowing red eyes practically piercing through the ice.   “Victor Fries was a small-time jewel thief that I was chasing before he ended up having an accident in the Cryogenics Lab,” Bruce explained. “I did try to save him, but he cared more about getting his jewels rather than his own life. Now, the accident has turned him into a walking blizzard.”   “I see.” Sunset then suddenly gasped. “Wait, liquid nitrogen, you don’t think—”   “That Firefly is working for Freeze? My thoughts too,” Bruce said. “In the meantime, you should focus on getting some rest and recovering from your injuries.” “No!” Sunset quickly stood up before wincing in pain as she sat back down. “You can’t take both of them on by yourself!” she tried to argue. “Look at yourself, Sunset, you need to heal and going out there is only going to make things worse for you. It’s best you don’t take risks for the next few weeks.” Sunset was about to continue her argument, but sighed in defeat. She knew he was right, and there was no changing it. She gave a small nod before Bruce pulled over his cowl and headed down to the Batmobile, leaving her alone with Alfred. “Okay, I’ll just go back home and rest, maybe use the time to keep practicing spells or try and find Equestria,” she explained. “Or perhaps spend some time with your friends?” the faithful butler suggested. Sunset nodded. “Actually, that might be an even better idea. I’m starting to get the feeling they might actually be starting to suspect something.” “Then it’s probably best that you dispel their suspicion. Come on, I’ll take you back to your apartment.” “So, you mind telling us how you hurt yourself?” Pamela asked Sunset as she and Barbara sat on the floor in Pamela’s room. She had invited her friends over shortly before she was going to leave with her mother to visit relatives in Ohio for Christmas. “Well, I basically wasn’t looking where I was walking, tripped over the leg of my couch and ended up landing on my chest. Ended up bruising it bad, but nothing truly serious, that’s all,” Sunset explained.  Pamela and Barbara noticed Sunset wincing in pain which led to them knowing that she got hurt. “My mom says you should put something cold, or something warm on it to help heal it, that’s what she used whenever I had a bruise.” Barbara said. “That’s what I read when I looked it up, I already iced it earlier so I’m feeling better, at least more so that when I did soon after it happened. It’s a good thing gymnastics training is on pause at the moment, I think I would’ve had to miss some practices,” Sunset said. “What about fencing, how have you been doing with that? I know you’ve had to miss several practices already there,” Pamela pointed out. Sunset rubbed the back of her head. “Yeah, Mr. Winters certainly has been very lenient with my absences, so I’m certainly lucky about that. Honestly, I think he might be one of the best teachers we have.” “Aside from Ms. Vann.” Barbara smirked. Sunset chuckled. “Right, of course Ms. Vann.” “Hey,” the girls turned around to see Pamela’s mother poking her head into the room. “You girls all right in here?” “Yeah, we’re all good at the moment, Mom,” Pamela smiled at her. “Hey, is it okay if you could make us something to drink?” “Sure, you girls want some hot chocolate?” “Yes, please!” All three girls said in unison before Pamela’s mother closed the door and left them alone. “So, hey, while you guys are here, I thought maybe I should give you your Christmas gifts,” Pamela got off her bed and pulled out some bags that were hidden underneath them. “Wait a second, Pam, you didn’t need to do that for us,” Barbara tried to tell her. “We’re all just friends here, we don’t have to give each other Christmas gifts.” “I agree with Barb on this one. Just hanging out with each other is perfectly fine,” Sunset added. Pamela sighed. “Look, you two might not want to give gifts, but it’s different for me.” “How so?” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Look, these past couple of months has been a real change to my life, and you two—” she paused “—I honestly don’t deserve your friendship sometimes.” “Pam, what are you talking about?” Barbara asked. “I know I’ve said this before, but I’ll do it again. Before I met you two, I was in a dark place.  Always a bit of a loner throughout much of my life at school, nothing to truly comfort me except for my love of plants.” She paused to gather her thoughts. “Then there was high school and the times where I thought I honestly found someone that truly shared my interests, that I could actually be friends with, only to be a complete fool and made to feel terrible for my passion.” “No one is going to blame you or hold that against you, Pam, especially for what that jerk Veronica did to you last year,” Barbara told her. “I’m somewhat glad I wasn’t here last year. Veronica sounded like a total queen bee,” Sunset said. “Yeah, thank goodness she graduated. Still, picking on an underclassman, talk about low.” Pamela chuckled. “Thank goodness I met you two, but I still risked our friendship because of my stupidity.” “Pam, stop right there,” Sunset interrupted. “If you’re going to bring up the whole graffiti and vandalism streak you went on, don’t. Look, you had some aggression you wanted to get out, and we understand, but we just wanted to help you because you’re our friend, you know?” Pamela sighed. “I know, but I feel like I don’t deserve it because of that. I dragged you two into it, and that should’ve been it. I shudder to think where I would be if wasn’t for you girls.” “Hey, Pam, let’s not focus on the what if’s alright? Let’s focus on now. We’re all friends and we’ll stick together, okay?” Barbara said. Pamela smiled as she gave a nod. “Thanks, you two. I just needed to hear that. Now then, come on, open your bags!” Both girls nodded and pulled out two small bonsai trees that were in the bags. “I thought you two would like them, good indoor plants that can help spice up a room,” Pamela said. “Gee, thanks, Pam, this thing looks great,” Barbara gently placed her hand against one of the small bushes to get a feel for it. “I think I know a perfect place in my room this could actually go.” “I know I could place this on my table in my living room back at the apartment,” Sunset said as she looked over hers. “That table just looks somewhat boring with nothing on it.” “Glad you two like them, it was the least I could do,” Pamela said. “Seriously though, Merry Christmas you two.” As soon as she said that, the three of them saw some flashes coming from downtown before the lights flickered in the room. After a few moments, it calmed down. “Huh, that was weird,” Sunset said. “Was that the Bat?” Pamela asked. “Maybe, think Alicorn might be with him too?” Barbara asked. “Who knows, but whatever happened, it clearly was big,” Sunset said. “Certainly hope that everyone’s okay,” Pamela muttered. Sunset gave her a pat on the back. “Don’t worry, Pam, knowing those two, they probably are.”   Sunset took a deep breath as she returned to her apartment with her bonsai tree back in her bag. She placed it on the table before sitting down and relaxing on her couch. She made a quick call to Bruce over the communicator to try and figure out what that light show was. Apparently, Freeze was planning to permanently set Gotham in an ice age thanks to modifications he had built into this suit. Firefly was to keep Batman and the police distracted until it was too late, but as usual, the plan failed. Gotham could enjoy the holidays without being frozen to death by a crazed meta-human. A strange sound suddenly came from her room. Sunset jumped up off the couch. Worry crossed her mind as she feared someone broke in. She slowly made her way to her bedroom. She stood right outside of it before she gently pushed open the door.   To her relief, she didn’t find an intruder, but rather a large wrapped present on her bed. She walked up to it and looked at the card that was attached to it.   ‘Dear Sunset,’ the card read as she opened it. ‘Considering that it’s the season for giving and that you’ve been taking fencing lessons, I thought maybe you would appreciate the gift I’ve left you.’   Sunset put the card down and quickly tore open the paper to reveal a brown cardboard box which she opened to reveal the gift. Inside was a long silver rapier inside a black sheath with a black handle grip and impressive detailing on the silver handle guard. Sunset then looked back at the card.   ‘Now, while the sword looks normal, there’s some considerable magic within it that should be able to come in handy when you do your thing. Hope it works out well for you, and I hope you enjoy it. Merry Christmas, your proud mentor and friend, Zatanna Zatara.’   Sunset smiled as she picked up the sword, removed it from its sheath and held it tight in her hand as she made some small motions with it. She could almost feel a wave of energy flowing through the sword.   “Merry Christmas, Zatanna,” she said as she sheathed the sword.