The Black Enigma: Raven, part 3

For the preceding chapters in The Black Enigma series, click the tab at the top of the page.

"So, what do you go by, flyboy?" I ask my tenuous ally.

"This ebony bird," he says cryptically, " is but a stately raven of the saintly days of yore."

"Okay," I tell him as I reload my harpoon lines, "you're really going to have to stop talking like that. It's creepy, and I have no idea what you're saying."

"It, like I," he responds smugly, "am The Raven."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Raven. Though, if you don't mind, can we keep the Poe to a minimum for the rest of the night?"

"I suppose," he chuckles. "Some people just don't appreciate literature."

"Let's get moving, smart ass," I say, as I turn around. I sprint to the edge of the roof and leap off. I soar across the gap and land smoothly on the roof of the adjacent building. I head toward the bay, leaping from rooftop to rooftop. I'm sprinting across the roof of an apartment building when I hear a dull hum approach me from behind.

"There's an easier way to do that, you know," The Raven says as he glides up next to me. He swerves behind me and hooks his arms under my armpits, lifting me once more into the air. We soar high over the city streets, the lights glimmering far below us like neon stars in an asphalt sky. We bank slowly down to the warehouses near the harbor, and I tell The Raven to land. We come to a silent landing on the roof of an abandoned meat-processing plant.

"Black Enigma to Brains," I talk into the tiny speaker in my glove.

"What the hell happened, Mark?!" Harvey shouts into my ear. "You've been silent for twenty minutes!"

"Our impostor planted a few explosives as a gift for whoever came looking for the bullet. I barely made it out."

"Well that was a huge waste of time. Come back home and we'll talk about our next move."

"Actually, I was hoping I could still go for that big drug bust we talked about earlier."

"Mark, you almost got blown up a half hour ago, now you want to fight a warehouse full of criminals?"

"I can handle it," I tell him slyly. "I have backup."

"Backup? What are you talking about?"

"Just trust me, here, okay?" Harvey says nothing. I can hear him groan on the other end of the line. "I'm going to need the location of that warehouse."

"You're a maniac, Mark," Harvey sighs. He takes another long pause and then finally continues. "Three blocks south from your current location, the one closest to the water. Warehouse 85."

"Your a doll, Brains," I tell Harvey as I grin cheesily. "A real doll."

I click off my communicator and turn back to The Raven, who is perched impatiently on the edge of the roof. He looks up at me and taps his fingers impatiently.

"Well?"

"Time to get to work."