| Synopsis | - Henry Ballard remembers the Gotham City of 1847. It was a violent place, overrun by gangs of rapists and robbers. There was one gang, however, who was most powerful: the Court of Owls. He was their Talon then, and he is again, now.
Black Canary and Katana are struggling to fight off this Talon, as Tatsu's Soultaker Sword doesn't seem to be able to kill him. She explains that this is because the Talon has no soul. Pinned by the assassin, Black Canary desperately unleashes her ultrasonic Canary Cry, and is surprised to see that it does little more than temporarily daze her assailant when a normal man's skull would have shattered.
Katana and Canary had heard from Batgirl that Batman himself had put out a call to all of Gotham's vigilantes to deal with assassination attempts by the Talons of the Court of Owls. Not long after, they discovered that Poison Ivy had already been defeated by a Talon, and gave chase. Now, though, they are beginning to realize they are outmatched, and Katana pulls Black Canary away.
The pair run into The Church of St. Francis, where they fought with the Cleaners for the first time. As they hide inside the church, Dinah hears a familiar sound. The Talon hears it too, and he turns just in time to see Starling's car bearing down on him. The force of impact pins him to the hood of her car as she crashes it straight through the brick and mortar of the church wall. Starling approaches him, and yanks off his mask, not knowing the danger of getting too close. She is surprised to see that he appears to be a decaying old man.
Instantly, the Talon grips her by the neck, and will not release her throat, even as she unloads several rounds into his chest. He could easily kill her, but he wants to lure the others closer, so as to kill them all at once. He manages to grip Katana by the shoulders, and nearly snaps her neck. Fortunately, a rope suddenly loops around his neck, and the girls watch as Batgirl uses herself as a counterweight to hang him from the steeple of the church.
As the girls attempt to put some distance between themselves and the assassin, Batgirl explains that lowering the Talons' body temperatures takes them out of commission. They head to the Gotham Train Station, where they hope to find a refrigerated train car. Luring the Talon closer, they knock him onto the roof of the refrigerated car, and attempt to knock him in. Unfortunately, this proves more difficult than they thought - even with all four of them trying to force him down.
Suddenly, Poison Ivy - who is still very much alive - appears behind them, and dares the Talon to take her on again. She wraps him in vines, and drags him down into the refrigerated car, promising that her plant-biology will allow her to survive the sub-zero temperatures. As they close the hatch on her, she calls on them to remember to thaw her out later.
Ivy's return reminds Dinah of a promise she made to her months ago. The Birds of Prey are headed for the Amazon.
|
