G5 Adventures in Scooby-Doo! and Batman: The Brave and the Bold

by ponydog127

Rating: everyone
Tags: Original Character, Mystery, Misty, My Little Pony: A New Generation, Adventure, Mane 5, Crossover, Alternate Universe
Length: 22353

The ponies leap back into an adventure with Scooby-Doo and the gang, this time teaming up with legendary Caped Crusader, Batman and some new friends to save Gotham City from a powerful new threat.

It has been three months since the defeat of Opaline, and Misty and her friends could not be happier... but when the Unity Crystals send them on a new quest, it's time for things to get super-powered as they reunite with their old Mystery Incorporated friends for a brand-new adventure.

When Scooby-Doo, Mystery Inc and the ponies run into notorious crooks who are too hot to handle, the Caped Crusader himself, Batman, swings in to save the day! After an unresolved case from Batman's past comes back to haunt him, and the mysterious Crimson Cloak threatens to take over Gotham City, Batman recruits our pony heroes, Mystery Inc and some brand-new friends to help him crack the case. Will their teamwork and friendship be enough to solve the mystery and foil the plans of the most dangerous rogue villains the world has ever known?

Pack your utility belts with gadgets, magic and Scooby Snacks as you take off on a mystery-filled, crime-busting magical caper like you've never seen!

(S2E1 of G5 Adventures)

Published 2023-08-15 01:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2023-08-18 15:06:19 UTC

Three Months Later...

Misty Brightdawn’s greatest wish, since her cutie mark, had come true, and it was such a relief to finally say it after so long…

Opaline Arcana was defeated for good, and Equestria was once again safe.

Sunny and her friends were now enjoying the fact that they no longer had to look over their shoulders for an impending threat… even though they did miss getting sent on the occasional Unity Quest, where they got to travel to different worlds, make new friends and be heroes in their own right.

And, even though the truth about her biological mother abandoning her was revealed by Opaline before her defeat, Misty honestly wasn’t worried-- she had an honorary pony family by her side that would help see her through everything that came their way.

Izzy was definitely the energetic one, showing off all the amazing things she’s been unicycling, showing Misty all the fun things to do in Maretime Bay, and being her friend in general.

Pipp was definitely the fashionable, but lovable sister figure of the group. It was actually Pipp who came up with the idea to dye Misty’s mane and tail a new batch of colors, a purple, pink and orange-like gradient, so she could symbolize her freedom from Opaline after so many moons.

Zipp was a sort of older sister figure that was nerdy, but in a good way-- Misty did a little reading from time to time on history, but only in the books Opaline gave her to read. Now that Misty was free, she could read whatever she wanted, including the true history of pony kind. But, her favorite fiction story was definitely a rare copy of A Hearth’s Warming Tail, which had been printed and re-printed since the early Equestrian era.

Hitch was like an elder brother to Misty, always looking out for her, teaching her things, and letting her have bonding time with Sparky. Speaking of the young dragon, he and Misty were getting closer and closer by the day, and when Pipp or Izzy was unavailable, Misty would be more than happy to take over dragon-sitting… once she got the hang of it, of course.

Finally, Sunny was definitely the elder sister figure, always looking out for her friends. Whenever she wasn’t busy, Misty would take over Sunny’s smoothie runs so she could take a break. Misty also loved to hear the stories of Twilight Sparkle from Misty, since Opaline fed her continuous lies. But no matter-- Misty was finally happy to learn the truth.

But on this one particular day, a new Unity Quest would begin, and this one will be quite a doozy.

XXXXXXXX

“So, why are we in the park exactly?” Misty asked her friends curiously as they walked into the park. “Maretime Bay Family Picnic Day isn’t until later.”

“We know, but we thought you might want a little surprise first,” Sunny said before glancing at the earth pony stallion. “Hitch, did you get the sapling from Sprout?”

“Sure did!” Hitch brought out a small tree sapling, but once she looked it over, Misty was still confused. “I’m not sure I get it. What does a tree have to do with a picnic?”

“We thought it would be fun for you to symbolize your freedom by planting a tree,” Zipp said. “So it can be shared by everypony.”

“Really?” Misty asked with wide eyes. “Yes, really!” Pipp said. “And we even composed a little song to go with the planting!”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Izzy asked. “Misty, when you start planting, we start singing!”

Misty nodded and dug a little hole in the ground with her hoof before putting the tree in, and the others began to sing softly, but got louder gradually.

All: Oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Everypony can

Oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Everypony can

Sunny: Just plant this seed
To be who you wanna be
Because the magic, it lives
Within you and me

Pipp and Zipp: It takes time to grow
And to learn on your own

Sunny, Zipp and Pipp: The transformation is beginning

By tapping her hoof gently into the soil, Sunny watched as the tree began to shimmer, glow and grow before their very eyes.

Izzy: Butterflies don’t get their wings
Over the night

Sunny: It all takes time

Hitch: Birds don’t just
Wake up and fly

Pipp: It comes from deep inside…!!

All: Find your light
Let it, let it glow
You got it, got it, go
Find your light
You got it, got it, go
Everypony can grow

Oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh (Pipp Petals: Gro-o-o-o-ow)
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Everypony can

Hitch: Just like a tree
Standing tall, so you see

Izzy: The roots are very deep in

All: Har-mo-ny!

Sunny and Zipp: It's not a race
Just go at your own pace

All: Everypony will be here waiting

Izzy: Butterflies don’t get their wings
Over the night

Sunny: It all takes time

Hitch: Birds don’t just
Wake up and fly

Pipp: It comes from deep inside…!!

The tree began to grow taller and taller, sprouting beautifully colored leaves, and everypony watching the sight gasped in awe.

All: Find your light
Let it, let it glow
You got it, got it, go
Find your light
You got it, got it, go
Everypony can grow

Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh (Pipp Petals: Gro-o-o-o-ow)
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Everypony can grow

Oh, oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh (Pipp Petals: Gro-o-o-o-ow)
Oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Everypony can

Misty: Grow...

Once the song was finished, the tree ceased it’s magical growing, and the group stood in pride at the wonderful thing they had created. “It’s beautiful,” Misty said with a smile. “Thank you all for doing this for me. It seems like only yesterday I had to watch out for myself, wondering if Opaline was going to strike again.”

Zipp frowned when she saw the anxious look on Misty’s face. “You’re worried about Opaline coming back somehow… aren’t you?”

“How can I not?” Misty asked with a shudder of fright. “She’s over 1000 moons old-- she could have been faking her death all this time so she can linger her way back into our lives.”

“Don’t worry, Misty. If Opaline were to show up again, we’d face her together,” Sunny reassured, placing her hoof on Misty’s shoulder. “Cause with our unity magic, we’ll have everything under control.”

“I hope you’re right, Sunny,” Misty looked back up toward the tree again. “I don’t want my new life here with all of you to get ruined by her again…”

But as they continued to stare at the tree, a bright glow caught them offguard. When they looked, they saw their cutie marks glowing in unison again. “Huh… that isn’t the glow we’ve been getting when we usually say stuff like this,” Hitch frowned. “It’s almost like…”

“The glow we get when we go on a Unity Quest!” Zipp cried. “The Unity Crystals must be calling us again!”

“Now?” Misty asked in confusion. “Why? Who are we facing this time?”

“I don’t know, but we better get back,” Sunny said before they galloped out of the park. “The crystals need us!”

Misty whimpered at that, hoping it wasn’t anything serious before she followed her friends. Then, they quickly proceeded up into the crystal room, Zipp grabbing her spy gear and Sunny grabbing some of her father’s research in case they needed it.

And by the bright glow of the crystals, our heroes set off on their newest adventure… and hopefully it wasn’t going to be a dangerous one.

Author's Note

This scene was heavily influenced by "It All Takes Time" and the lyric video that came out for it!

Get ready for a whole new season of awesome!

A Super-Powered Initiation

On the other side of the portal, the dark colors of the night sky covered the Earth in a deep blanket, tiny, twinkling dots being the only light...well, other than the headlights pulling up to an abandoned worksite. “All right, gang,” said a voice. “This is the place. Now all we have to do is put the plan into action.”

You guessed right-- this is Scooby-Doo and his mystery-solving friends, arriving at this abandoned, half tore down theater to solve their next mystery. “But usually,” Shaggy argued with a bit of sass, “Scoob and me are the bait in these so-called plans, so how is this one any different?”

“Simple,” Fred shrugged. “You and Scooby are gonna be bait for a ghost and his ghost puppet.”

Scooby gave Fred a deadpan expression, clearly not pleased. “They’re ghosts… it’s the same thing!”

Suddenly, a bright glow opened up from next to them, and out of it tumbled six figures, yelping and crashing to the ground before the portal closed. “Seriously?” Zipp asked with an aggravated tone. “After three months of NOT going on quests, NOW it wants to act up?!”

“Jinkies!” Velma exclaimed as the gang rushed to help them up. “This is a surprise!”

“Like, yeah!” Shaggy agreed as he and Izzy embraced. “We thought we’d never see you again since old fiery and evil is gone. What are you guys doing here?”

“On another Unity Quest, surprisingly,” Sunny admitted. “We’re just not sure what we’re facing yet. What mystery are you guys into this time?”

“Ghost puppets,” Scooby shuddered. “Oh… what’s so scary about puppets?” Misty asked, rubbing the dog’s head. “Zephyr Heights puts on the best puppet shows for foals and fillies.”

“It’s a long story, but we’ll explain once we get inside,” Daphne said. “You guys can actually help us with the plan.”

“Sure. We can sure wing it,” Zipp winked, leading the entire gang to chuckle and head inside.

XXXXXXXX

After about 10 minutes of explanations, the gang put the plan into action; while Fred, the girls, Zipp, Hitch and Izzy were preparing the trap, Shaggy, Scooby and the other ponies would act as live bait. After hearing that their friends would be bait with them, Scooby and Shaggy weren’t as nervous as they were before… but still quite nervous.

At this particular moment, while their friends were in the main auditorium, prepping a way to catch these ghosts, the ponies and Shaggy and Scooby put their plan into action, leading the ghosts around the building to buy their friends some extra time. “Scoob, I take back everything I ever said about birthday clowns!” Shaggy said as they stopped to catch their breath. “Nothing’s scarier than…”

Their eyes fell upon the puppets hanging all around them, and their freakish smiles and glaring eyes made the hairs on their necks raise up. “Puppets…” Scooby spoke as he and Shaggy shuddered. “Okay, I see what you mean now,” said Sunny, a tad bit disturbed herself. “Those really ARE scary!”

“I’m actually glad we use friendlier looking puppets back home,” Pipp said. “But… maybe we could fix these up later.”

A cackle was emerging behind them, and they looked to see that the ghosts have caught up with them before the girls, Shag and Scooby broke into a sprint again. “Like, man!” Shaggy shouted to the others through Pipp’s phone. “Why are the girls, Scoob and I running from the monster instead of anyone else?!”

XXXXXXXX

“It’s pretty much default behavior at this point,” Velma retorted before turning back to her friends. “How’s it coming, Fred?”

“Almost done,” Fred said after he and Daphne tightened something. “Counter-weighted pulleys, titanium weave mesh. And now… my most escape-proof trap yet. I call her… the Marionette!”

“...he names his traps?” Hitch blinked before Izzy gasped. “Like I name by unicycled friends!!” she squealed. “I knew we were gonna get along!”

“Incoming!” Scooby shouted as the doors flung open, and their friends and the bad guys ran into the auditorium, the ghosts laughing loudly. “It’s not ready yet, Shaggy!” Fred cried out, and Pipp immediately rolled her eyes. “No problem,” she replied with sarcasm lacing her voice. “We’ll just as the killer puppets to take a time out!”

The ghost puppet then broke off his lines and charged toward them, allowing just enough time for the girls, Shaggy and Scooby to hop onto the stage. But, as the ghosts were about to strike, some sort of boomerang landed in front of them, causing a large flash that scared the ghosts away. The gang looked around, puzzled-- where did that come from?

Just then, two figures jumped down from a hole in the ceiling and looked toward the doors determinedly. One was a masked crusader with an outfit looking similar to a bat, while the other was a female, crystal-like kirin, masked with a dark blue mask and cape.

But, the masked man was the one that got the ponies confused about, but the gang recognized immediately. “Jinkies!” Velma cried. “The world’s greatest detective!”

“Batman? What are you doing here?” Fred asked. “I go wherever puppet related crime rears its ugly head,” Batman explained before leaping up to the group with the kirin. “Well, thanks for the assist!” Daphne said with a chuckle. “You should be hanging out in malt shops,” Batman told the group sternly. “Not loitering in condemned buildings with mythical horses.”

“Uh, we're ponies, Mr. Batman, sir. Not horses,” Sunny said politely. “Just... wanna point that up.”

“Like, forget that for now, Sunny! Batman just told us to get a milkshake! I think we should listen,” Shaggy said, immediately wanting to get out of this. “Yeah! To the malt shop!” Scooby barked, but Velma stepped in with the shake of her head. “But, we’re here to solve a mystery,” she said, causing Shaggy and Scooby to whine and groan. “Leave the sleuthing to professional mystery solvers,” the kirin told them a calm, gentle voice. “It's not safe here for you kids.”

“Hey! No one calls us kids!” Daphne exclaimed with a frown. “Actually, a lot of people call us kids,” Shaggy recalled, thinking back. “Most commonly paired with the word ‘meddling’.”

“And who are you to tell US what we can and can’t do?” Zipp challenged the kirin, only for Hitch and Pipp to hold her back. “Zipp, she’s just trying to make sure we’re safe,” Pipp said. “It’s nothing against us personally.”

Zipp spared the kirin a glare. “It better not be…”

Ignoring the argument, Fred turned back to Batman and the kirin with a serious expression. “We are mystery solvers,” he said, “and we are profe--”

Suddenly, the lights suddenly went out as cackles filled the air, and everyone looked around before gasping as the ghost puppeteer went through the floor to get to them. “This vindictive ventriloquism ends now, you pernicious puppeteer!” Batman declared before he and the masked, crystal-like kirin charged at him, but instead of tackling him, they went right through! “Zoinks! He’s a ghost!” Shaggy cried in fear. “Not possible,” Velma rejected. “There's always a rational explanation.”

“Rationalize later-- trap now!” Misty shrieked. “Trap!” Fred reminded himself. “Right!”

As the ghost lunged at them, the gang ran off in separate directions for them to avoid the ghost. While Fred was trying to activate the trap with only a match and Izzy's horn for light, the others were trying to shake the ghost puppet off of Shaggy after he latched on tight. Fred finally was able to get the trap lever to move, but he mistakenly got Batman instead of the ghost. “Great!” Daphne cried. “You just trapped Batman!”

“Uh... we did?” Izzy blinked before gulping. “Heh... cool!”

“Iz, Fred, think!” Hitch cried. “If Batman’s in the trap, then where’s…?”

The puppeteer ghost appeared beside them, and when Izzy screamed and ran, and Fred jumped in his direction, the ghost appeared to be afraid of the fire on the match. “Afraid of a little fire, huh?” Fred smirked. “Looks like you met your match!”

But, just like that, the match went out, causing the gang to retreat to the outside. As Fred passed a crane, he got an idea. Using the blinding headlights, he stopped the ghosts in their tracks, and knocking some parts of the building on them, trapping them, much to the gang’s relief and delight. “Well, gang,” Fred announced, “it seems like we've finally gotten to the bottom of this mystery.”

“Thank hoofness for that,” Sunny said. “Velma, would you like to start us off in our explanation?”

“My pleasure, Sunny. You see, it all started when we got an anonymous e-mail asking for our help with a rash of bizarre thefts, all committed using puppets,” Velma showed the evidence on her tablet, leading Zipp to nod. “This could only mean the abandoned theater of Puppetto the Puppeteer,” she explained. “Locals claim his ghost began terrorizing them when they voted to tear it down.”

“Then I noticed Fredo using his hands and feet to steal jewels. We also found something else at the crime scenes-- banana peels,” Velma went on. “And Puppetto was frightened of a lit match,” Fred added. “But the real Puppetto was a trained fire-eater.”

“He also phased right through Batman's hand,” Daphne said, and Velma moved closer to the criminals. “Which can only mean that Fredo and Puppetto are really…”

Velma removed their masks, only to find a monkey and a space alien underneath them-- not what the gang was expecting. “A monkey and a space alien?” Shaggy questioned, and izzy hummed in thought. “Obvious in retrospect, though not something any common pony would suspect otherwise.”

“Not just any monkey/alien. This is the Martian Manhunter and Detective Chimp,” Velma said. “The superheroes? But why would two good guys resort to stealing?” Daphne wondered, and even Velma looked puzzled. “For once, I have no idea. Unless…”

A second of silence passed, and they looked up to see Batman and the crystal kirin on the roof, the former clapping, pleased. “Congratulations,” Batman said as they jumped down to the group. “You passed the test.”

“A first for me,” Shaggy said, and high-fived Scooby happily. “Batman?” Misty looked confused. “W-What test?”

“To see if you were ready to join our organization,” Martian Manhunter stated, cutting himself and Detective Chimp free, and the latter put on an old fashion detective hat. “Bravo! Good show, and all that rut!” he said before tossing them some small business cards. “Sunny Starscout and friends, Mystery Incorporated,” said Batman with a proud smile, “welcome to the Mystery Analysts of Gotham.”

Hearing this name caused Velma and Zipp to gasp in surprise and amazement. “The world’s preeminent crimebusting organization!” Velma exclaimed. “Velma showed me a bunch of stuff about it online, but… I never thought they were searching for members!” Zipp added with an excited grin. “This is a lifelong dream. What made you choose us?” Fred asked the superheroes. “We’ve been aware of your team for some time,” the kirin told them with a kind expression. “This was your initiation.”

“I knew something about the crime felt staged,” Velma said, and the chimpanzee tipped his hat to her, causing Shaggy to shudder. “Like, man, talking animals freak me out,” he said, causing Scooby to roll his eyes. “Yeah, tell me about it.”

“But wait… aren’t we…?” Hitch tried to ask, but Sunny merely stopped him. “Just let it go, Hitch.”

“Our next meeting is in a week,” Batman told them. “In the meantime, I could use your help on a few cases. I've made all the arrangements, if you'll follow me.”

“Jinkies! Batman needs our help?” Velma said excitedly as they walked along. As they did, Zipp walked closer to the crystal kirin with a sheepish look on her face. “Hey, uh… sorry for jumping the gun on you before. I had my suspicions up pretty high for the last couple months.”

“It’s all right, Zipp,” the kirin smiled. “I understand, you dealing with Opaline and all.”

“Wait… how did you know about that?” Sunny asked. “One of my superhero colleagues spotted you battling her in the Himalayas, so I knew that you would be great additions,” the kirin said. “By the way, my name is Ivory-- Ivory Justice of the Crystal Kirin clan.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ivory,” Misty said. “But, uh… is it just me, or do I feel a little underdressed to be working with a team of superheroes?”

“AGH!! You’re right!” Pipp shrieked. “We should be wearing our superhero costumes from when we saved Sparky! Ugh, why didn’t I think of that?!”

“Don’t worry about a thing,” Ivory stopped the ponies with a chuckle. “I know just the spell.”

Lighting her horn, she wrapped each one of the ponies in a sparkling chrysalis, and after a few moments, the chrysalises, one by one, opened to reveal the Mane 6 in their superhero forms, with Misty’s mane being reverted back to its original color so she wouldn’t be recognized. “Whoa… this is some serious magic skill!” Sunny said. “How did you do that?”

“It’s a talent of mine,” Ivory shrugged. “Come on-- we have cases waiting for us.”

But as they walked away from the abandoned theater, they were unaware of the crimson-colored figure watching them from afar… bent on revenge.

Author's Note

This is Ivory Justice-- all credits go to the creator.

Crystal Kirin by Kabuvee on DeviantArt

One Week Later

Only a week later, and it was the day of the big Mystery Analysts of Gotham meeting. Mystery Incorporated and their pony pals were ecstatic for their first time, wondering what it would be like, working with some of the biggest superheroes in Gotham City.

Meanwhile, Batman and Ivory had their hands and hooves full, trying to fend off the henchman of the villainous scoundrel, the Riddler, who was trying to steal gold from under the city. But while all the henchmen were still suffering from their blows, a helicopter began to lift the gold and the Riddler away. “Sayonara, my masked muttonhead!” Riddler cackled victoriously while Batman glared up at him. “Not so fast, you malignant mind boggler!”

Using his tethered bat-a-rang, Batman flung it toward the Riddler, and it wrapped around his feet, causing him to be pulled back to the ground and landing before them hard. “We’ve danced this dance before, Riddler,” Ivory sneered, with Batman keeping his stern look on, agreeing with his young kirin sidekick. “It always ends with you licking your wounds in a padded cell at Arkham Asylum.”

“True, you beat me one-on-one, Batman. But riddle me this, when is a villain like a mathematician? Answer, when it multiplies!” the Riddler cackled as more of his henchmen leapt into action. Only a second after that, Cat Woman showed up from the dark alleys of the city. “Did someone mention a dance? Meow…”

Suddenly, the Killer Croc leapt up from the sewers with a roar, surprising Ivory a bit. “I'm gonna make a nice bat gumbo out of you,” he told Batman, who merely smirked. “I anticipated your malevolent mathematics, Riddler, and brought some additional allies of my own.”

With this cue being spoken, Aquaman and Question approached him, along with Aquaman’s super pegasus sidekick Slipstream, a green pegasus with golden eyes, a burgandy and red mane and tail, golden feathers on her wings, a dark purple mask and cape and a cutie mark of a water symbol. “Outrageous!” Aquaman shouted. “Aquaman, Question,” Batman acknowledged with a nod. “Thanks for your assistance.”

“Could I ever refuse a call from the Batman?” said the Question, but this made Aquaman frown. “Crab cakes. You brought him? He's so annoying with all those deuced questions.”

“And how are you, Aquaman?” the Question asked again, ignoring the water-superhero’s previous statement. “See?” Slipstream gestured, trying to prove the point before moving closer to Ivory in a whisper. “Besides, he really creeps me out.”

“No offense, Slipstream,” Ivory said back, “but we have bigger issues to work with at the moment.”

Realizing they were missing out on the fight, the superheroes leapt into action, evading the villains' attacks and fighting back as best as they could, each using their individual strengths. “Let’s wrap this up, Question,” Batman advised after a few minutes of fighting. “We're due at the monthly meeting of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham.”

“A party, eh? Huzzah!” Aquaman said heroically, throwing Killer Croc into the ocean. “Meeting,” Ivory said before using her magic to blast one of the henchmen back. “Not party.”

“Anywhere I go is a party,” Aquaman boasted. “A party? So there will be dancing,” said Cat Woman, using her whip to knock Question into a nearby alley before all the baddies ganged up on the remaining superheroes. “Slipstream, Aquaman, use your hydrokinesis,” Batman urged, but Aquaman just looked confused. “My what-the-what?”

“Your water controlling powers!” Ivory tried to remind him. Aquaman, now realizing what they meant, did so and, along with Slipstream, trapped the villains in a spinning ring of water, while Batman sent an electric shock device to shock them enough to get them to surrender, flocking up in a pile. “Safe to say,” said Question, recovering after being knocked down, “that’s a wrap.”

“Then to the Mystery Analyst meeting,” said Batman. “Outrageous-- let’s get going!” Aquaman said excitedly. “Yeah! The sooner we get there, the more we get to kick butt!” Slipstream agreed. “It’s secret invite only, Aquaman. You guys aren’t detectives, as much as we'd love to have you there,” Ivory frowned. “Not detectives?” Aquaman frowned at this, not taking no for an answer while Slipstream seemed to understand. He and Slipstream could solve a mystery much better than they could, if they just gave them a chance at it. “Why, I'm a wiz at sleuthing out hidden undersea currents.”

“That's oceanography, not criminal investigation,” Slipstream whispered. “Plus, I can identify 900 species of fish on sight alone,” Aquaman added. “That’s ichthyology,” Batman corrected. “Precisely! And who's better at detecting those nasty hard to reach volcanic fissures, eh? Me, that's who,” Aquaman boasted. “Again, oceanography,” Ivory singsonged. “But thanks for mopping up.”

As soon as the topic was finished, the detectives got into their vehicles and sped off, leaving Aquaman and Foster behind. “Some pals,” Aquaman muttered. “Leaving me to do all the work.”

But, what he meant by him doing all the work was summoning a giant squid named Edgar to clean up. While he had the clean-up figured out, he got an idea how he and Slipstream could get into the Mystery Analyst meeting for sure.

XXXXXXXXX

Later into the night, the gang had arrived in Gotham for their first meeting of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham, and they couldn’t be more excited. “Wow... Gotham City is huge!” Sunny excitedly spoke. “I can't believe we're going to be trained by actual superheroes!”

“I know!” Misty nodded. “We could advance our superpowers to a whole new level! Just imagine how my butterfly speaking powers could evolve!”

But not everyone was focused on the things they could learn at this meeting. “So, dude,” Shaggy spoke as they drove, “there will be dinner served at the meeting, correct?”

“You just cleaned out a truck stop mini-mart on the way here,” Zipp said, shocked that Shaggy was still hungry. “No, I saved one box of cookies for later. Ahem… which is now.”

As Shaggy took out the box, Scooby managed to pull a quick manuver to steal almost all the cookies from Shaggy and ate them all in one gulp. “Like, dude, no fair!” Shaggy pouted as Scooby giggled. “You know what's the real mystery here?” Daphne asked. “Batman himself. I mean, who is he, really?”

“Under that mask, he could be anyone,” Fred argued. “Technically, not anyone,” Velma said. “Given Batman's observed height and proportions, combined with the necessary financial means, I've narrowed Gotham's ten million citizens down to a mere 6,052.”

“Maybe you can ask him yourself-- cause we’re here!” Fred announced to the gang. They soon approached a whole row of similar looking doors, gray and none of them sticking out specifically. “But which door is it? There are dozens,” Velma said. “No sign of a keyhole… or a door knob,” Fred noticed. But, as they looked at each door, Daphne saw something. “Wait, Fred-- stop the van!”

The van immediately halted, and they looked at the door that they stopped in front of. “Say my name, a myth forgotten,” Velma read, and immediately, the gang drew blanks. “Man, that is really bad haiku,” Misty blinked. “Or… good haiku? I can never tell, even though Opaline castle-schooled me for as long as I could remember.”

“Not a poem, an anagram!” Daphne said, writing something on the notepad she was holding. And what the others saw on the pad shocked them. “Mystery Analysts of Gotham!” Sunny exclaimed before they all turned to Daphne, confused and bewildered. “Word jumbles,” Daphne answered with a shrug. “Makes those long between-mystery miles just fly by.”

“And look, there's a gap in the bricks,” Hitch pointed to the wall. Fred got out his Mystery Analyst business card and slid it into the gap, and the door opened up before the Mystery Machine drove inside. It was then that they went through at least 10 more doors before they reached the location, and Batman and Ivory were waiting for them. “Welcome, Mystery Incorporated and Equestrians, to the Mystery Analysts of Gotham.”

“In a word… jinkies!” Velma said, and they all got out to greet the superheroes. “Some of our members you've already met,” Ivory spoke with a smile, just as Martian Manhunter and Detective Chimp came to meet up with them. “Are those Chocos?” asked Martian Manhunter, pointing to the box of cookies Shaggy was holding. “Um… yes?” Shaggy responded, only for Martian Manhunter to phase through the box and grab every single remaining cookie… and one that Scooby stole too. Izzy snickered and bumped Scooby playfully. “Nice one.”

Batman and Ivory then walked over to the computer, where Question was currently. “This is the Question-- our resident conspiracy theorist.”

When Question turned to look at the gang, the ponies yelped at the faceless man. “Jinkies…! What happened to his face?” Velma asked in shock. “Now that would be telling,” Question started to explain, but Daphne stopped him. “Never mind, we’re good.”

And at that moment, a pretty blonde-haired woman in a black jumper came forward with a dark blue earth pony stallion, light blue mane and tail, orange eyes, a pair of headphones, a dark red mask and cape and a cutie mark of a pair of headphones. “And this is Hoof Beatz, and our expert in Meta-Human Criminology, Black--”

“Canary!” Fred finished, zipping up to Black Canary and shaking her hand. “Wow! I’m a huge fan-- huge fan!”

“No autographs, Ascot,” Black Canary told Fred as she and Hawk walked off, and Fred romantically followed. Ivory pressed her hoof on a button, and a table for all of them flipped up and into their line of sight. “Everyone, please take a seat.”

“I call dibs on best seat!” Zipp and Pipp cried, flying toward the table and sitting beside one another. The others then followed to find their seats, but when Daphne sat down in one, it suddenly spoke! “Sorry,” it said, and Daphne jumped up to find it was a superhero molded into the shape of a chair.

With him was a white pegasus with a long, blonde mane and tail, brown mud-coated hooves, blue eyes, a pink mask and cape and a cutie mark of a snake. After Daphne caught her breath, the superhero reverted to his normal form. “This seat’s taken. See what I did there? I’m taking up the exact space of a chair!”

To this joke/remark, Batman sighed. “And how could we forget Paradise Serenity and Plastic Man?”

“A martian mindwipe should do the trick…” Martian Manhunter muttered. Plastic Man reached across the room to bring Daphne a chair before the meeting began. “As I was about to say,” Batman explained to the gang, “whenever any of us have a particularly baffling mystery, we present it to the group.”

“Speaking of mysteries, it's tradition for new members to pick our next case to solve,” Martian Manhunter clapped his hands, and a filing cabinet rose from the floor. “A filing cabinet?” Velma got up from her seat to approach. “Isn't that a little old school?”

“It’s our unsolved cases file-- a drawer for each hero,” Hoof Beatz explained, eyes trailing down the drawers on the cabinet until he grimaced at the final one. “That… would be Plastic Man’s…”

“Yeah. He likes to build up a bunch and solve ‘em all at once,” Paradise explained with a nervous grin. “But of course, I've only been a member for a few months, so, eh... what the heck?”

“By the way, I love what you did to your mane!” Pipp beamed. “An all natural mane conditioner?”

“Yeah! You're the first pony to have guessed that!” Paradise beamed. “And if you love music as much as I do, looking at your cutie mark,” Hoof Beatz stated, “we're all gonna be great friends.”

Velma then reached into Batman’s drawer, and pulled out a singular file. “Jeepers,” Daphne spoke with shock. “Batman only has one unsolved case?”

“Ruddy show-off he is,” Detective Chimp muttered. “A case even Batman couldn’t solve?” Zipp said in amazement, having watched some of Batman's victories on the news over tbe past week. “Oh, that’s--”

But suddenly, Batman took the file and hid it from them. “Not open for discussion.”

“But we wanted to--” Fred was about to protest, when a disguised Aquaman and Slipstream, the former disguised, burst through the ceiling and into the room. “I am Sir Arthur… Quirot of the Cleveland Yard,” Aquaman faked a French accent as he approached with a nervous looking pegasus, who only chuckled awkwardly as Aquaman continued. “You are all under suspicion.”

Ivory raised an eyebrow at Aquaman’s… odd behavior. She wasn't even sure how they found their way to the meeting location. “Aquaman? What are you--?”

“I shall ask the questions here!” Aquaman interrupted before poking a finger in Fred’s chest. “Where is the body?”

“Aquaman,” Batman said simply. “I know one of you is the guilty party,” Aquaman continued his ruse. “Aquaman…” Batman called again, but once again, Aquaman ignored him. “Und I never forget a face!” he said before approaching Question. “Although you seem to have forgotten yours! Ha-ha-ha, ha-ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

“Just so you know, I’m rolling my eyes,” Question deadpanned to the aquatic superhero. “Aquaman!” Ivory said fiercely, but a moment later, she sighed in defeat. There was no point arguing with him with this. “You can stay…”

“We can?” Slipstream blinked. “Wow... that was crazier than Aquaman’s plan, if I can be perfectly honest.”

“Outra-- ooh, uh… eureka!” Aquaman said, still posing his French accent. “So... your talent is to control water?” Sunny asked, approaching Slipstream and studying her cutie mark. “Yep!” Slipstream smiled. “Fastest pegasus in Gotham! And the only one who can dive under the water.”

“Wow...” Misty and Izzy said in awe. All of a sudden, one of the computer screens started to flash red, and an alarm began to echo throughout the building. “By the hordes of H'ronmeer, a crime alert,” Martian Manhunter flew to the computer, and Paradise merely chuckled. “Probably someone stealing televisions.”

“You'd know a thing or two about that, wouldn't you?” Black Canary asked playfully, and Plastic Man looked surprised while the white pegasus' ears folded back in embarrassment. “Look again,” Velma pointed to the screen. “That's a scientific storage facility used to hold materials that are especially dangerous or toxic in nature.”

“That sounds serious,” Zipp frowned. “Maybe we should investigate,” Daphne said, and this led Batman to nodding. “Agreed-- as new members of the Mystery Analysts of Gotham, I move that Mystery Incorporated take the lead on this case.”

When this was said, Fred smiled and went to say one of his most famous sayings: “Well, gang, it looks like we have another mystery on our hands.”

Author's Note

All credit goes to the creator of Slipstream and Hoof Beatz, the pony used to make Paradise Serenity.

Slipstream Ultimate Reference Guide by Centchi on DeviantArt

And by the way, if you forgot what the ponies' superhero forms look like, it's these:

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/mlp/images/6/6b/Mane_5_and_Misty_arrive_at_the_ball_C4E5.png/revision/latest?cb=20230626211550

Just... this picture doesn't include the capes.

Warehouse Scares

Wasting no more time, the gang and their new mystery-solving allies journeyed to the warehouse, and just like they suspected, it was dark and seemed to be empty… but the superheroes and the Mane 6 knew better.

They knew at any moment, a villain that could be waiting in the shadows could show up and attack.

Batman and Ivory stepped further into the dark warehouse, but then, a murmuring began to rise up… and only they could hear it. “Batman…” it rasped, causing Ivory's ears to flicker. “Batman…”

For years, Batman heard this voice, and thought it only affected him, when it affected Ivory too, after witnessing something... unforgettable as a filly. “Batman, everything okay?” Misty asked quietly, causing them to shift back to reality. “What? Oh, yes, I’m fine,” Batman nodded stiffly, and Zipp looked over the files for the warehouse’s inventory. “Hmm…” she muttered. “A dozen companies have used this storage facility over the years.”

“That could mean a lot of suspects to go through,” Hitch said. “Right,” Hoof Beatz said in an impressed tone. “We need to narrow down the suspect list to all those who’ve used it recently.”

Suddenly, there came a crashing and banging noise from the other side of the warehouse. “Sounds like whoever did it is still in here,” Black Canary spoke cautiously, which caused Ivory to turn. “Manhunter,” she spoke simply, and Martian Manhunter used his telepathy to scan the area… but something was off. “Odd… I’m not sensing a living being inside.”

“Zoinks! So whatever is in there isn’t… alive?” Shaggy gulped nervously, just as Fred noticed something. “Strange… the alarm seems to have been tripped intentionally,” he spoke, and Question soon caught on. “As if someone wanted us to come.”

“By Jove, this is starting to sound intriguing,” Detective Chimp spoke up. “Mystery Incorporated, this is your case. How do you wanna start?” Black Canary asked, but Fred was so deep into her beauty that he didn’t hear her right away. “Huh? O-Oh, right. L-Like we always do-- split up and look for clues!”

“Everyone take the one on your left,” Plastic Man said, immediately zipping over to Daphne and Pipp with a smirk. “Looks like it's you and me, dolls. Meow…”

“Ugh…” Pipp groaned-- she did not need to see that. “Okay, fine. You three search the north section,” Fred instructed. “Velma, Detective Chimp-- you take the south.”

“Oh, do try and keep up, won’t you?” Detective Chimp asked, sauntering off. “Oh, yeah? You try and keep up!” Velma said as she followed him. “Mentally, I mean!”

“Sunny, Izzy and Shaggy, you’re with Paradise, Question and Martian Manhunter-- search the east section,” Fred told them, and Nita nodded at the arrangement. “Like, sure,” Shaggy said sarcastically. “I’d love to search for an undead science thief with a faceless man and a space alien.”

As he turned, Martian Manhunter had morphed into a scary monster, making Shaggy jump into Scooby’s paws with a scream. “That never gets old,” Martian Manhunter spoke. “And Misty and Scooby? You go with Ivory, Slipstream, Batman and Aquaman. Search the perimeter storage units,” Fred told the remaining team. “Outrageous!” Aquaman said, and once the ponies and Batman went on ahead, he turned to Scooby. “I'll get him to spill the bat beans about that unsolved case yet, my canine compadre.”

“Outrageous!” Scooby giggled before he followed, leaving Hitch, Fred and Zipp with Hoof Beatz and Black Canary... just as Fred wanted.

XXXXXXXX

Scooby eagerly sniffed ahead with the ponies following behind, and Aquaman and Batman trailing the pack so they could talk... partially alone. “So, Batman,” Aquaman started. “Now that we’re alone… confide in your old chum A-man. What's in that old file of yours? Did you lose another Robin?”

“Just drop it, Aquaman,” Batman said, and he followed after the ponies and Scooby. That's when Aquaman knew something… there was definitely something bugging him. “Well, I’m not seeing anything suspicious,” Misty said with a frown, looking around. “But… that doesn’t mean that there isn’t trouble.”

“Hey… you good, Butterfly Defender?” Slipstream asked Misty by her superhero name. “Just… a little worried,” Misty said. “We’ve been sent on this quest for some reason… I just don’t know why. Opaline is finally gone-- I wasn’t sure if we were ever gonna see our Mystery Inc friends again. Why did the crystals send us out again?”

“All will be figured out in due time,” Ivory assured the unicorn. “We just have to focus on the case ahead.”

“Yeah… the case. Right.”

XXXXXXXX

At the same time, Sunny, Izzy and Paradise were walking alongside Shaggy, Question and Martian Manhunter on the east side of the warehouse. “These devices were activated recently,” Question spoke, causing Paradise to nod. “Radioactivity could do that.”

“Like, all this investigating is making me hungry,” Shaggy said before he began to reach in his pockets for something. “Now where did I put that last Choco--”

“MINE!!!” Martian Manhunter chomped the last cookie down as swift as lightning. “Dude, do they have manners on your planet?” Shaggy asked with a raised eyebrow as Martian Manhunter swallowed. “No, I'll search ahead.”

With that, he disappeared through the wall, and Sunny shuddered at seeing this. “I'm never gonna get used to seeing that.”

“Heh, I spent practically every moment of every day training with him and I still haven't gotten used to it,” Paradise said, looping about in mid-air. “At least I let people know when I'm gonna turn invisible before I turn invisible.”

“Ooooh… you must be super-supreme sneaky!” Izzy said cheerfully. “Heh… I don’t know about super-supreme,” Paradise said with a chuckle, “but… yeah. I get around. Come on-- let’s see if there’s anything around the corner.”

XXXXXXXX

Soon, on the other side of the warehouse, Black Canary, Fred and their pony friends navigated through the dark, no luck in finding anything. “So, Miss Canary,” Fred brought up a conversation starter, “what do you know about Batman's unsolved case?”

“Not much, Ascot. No one knows what it is,” Black Canary answered honestly. “Just now, he… he seemed worried,” Fred recalled his observations, and Hoof Beatz suddenly became steely eyed as he looked up at his comrades. “Worried… or guilty?”

“You think Batman could be hiding something from us that’s… criminal serious?” Hitch asked. “I don’t know,” Hoof Beatz said. “But a good detective develops theories. Whether it’s true or not is a different story.”

“You’re right,” Zipp said. “Come on. Let’s keep going.”

XXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, on the south side of the building, Detective Chimp and Velma approached a broken containment unit, and Velma peered at it closer. “Someone broke into this storage unit, and it looks like several vials labeled 'Isotope 29' have been stolen.”

“Three to be exact. You can see the indentations clearly,” Detective Chimp pointed out. “Clearly, there were four. There's a ring where it was standing alongside the others,” Velma pointed the fourth missing vial out to him. “But clearly, this was radioactive in nature,” Detective Chimp added. “The specific chemical makeup is unknowable.”

“And clearly, it was Isotope 29. The label ink left a faint imprint in the tray. Reversed, of course,” Velma spoke, and when Detective Chimp saw that she was right, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy, which emerged in a smirk. “Ruddy show-off... clearly.”

XXXXXXXX

Finally, we go to Plastic Man, Pipp and Daphne, who were searching in the chilly northern section. “Is it me, or is it getting cold in here?” Plastic Man shivered before Pipp finally decided to ask something. “So, what was that about stealing televisions?” she asked. “Oh, my real name is Edward O'Brian. Folks used to call me…”

At that moment, Daphne suddenly knew where she had heard that name. “Eel O'Brian? The most slippery thief ever sought by the Gotham PD? You're a criminal!”

“Correction, doll. I'm a used-to-be criminal. Ever since an accident made Eel O'Brian the stretchiest man alive…” Plastic Man began to say before he let off a huge sneeze, making himself inflate like a balloon for a moment before going back to normal. “I’m 100% hero.”

“Are you okay?” Pipp asked in concern as they watched Plastic Man shiver. “The cold messes with my stretching. You go ahead, I'll catch up,” Plastic Man spoke. “And… let’s keep this between us? It’s kinda embarrassing.”

XXXXXXXX

So, Daphne and Pipp left the sneezing Plastic Man to himself to rejoin the others in the middle of the warehouse. “Did anyone else find anything? Cause we found zilch,” Daphne spoke. “Actually, we did,” Velma spoke up. “We found that some vials of Isotope 29 had been taken from one of the storage units on the south side.”

“Like, what would an undead dude want with those chemicals?” Shaggy wondered. “I have no idea,” Sunny said. “But whatever they’re doing, we’ll figure it out. Together. Right, super-ponies?”

“Right!”

“You know it!”

“Oh yeah!”

“Definitely!”

The ponies all stacked their hooves on top of one another, and their cutie marks began to shine increasingly bright. “Whoa… I never get used to seeing my cutie mark glow like that!” Hoof Beatz said. “This unity magic stuff is pretty powerful.”

“But we can worry about that later, right, Cosmic Sunlight?” Misty asked. “Right,” Sunny winked. “Okay, let’s go over the facts again.”

“Batman…” spoke an eerie voice-- the same one that Ivory and Batman were hearing earlier. “Something is in here,” Question said, feeling some sort of presence as well. “Batman…” rasped the voice again. “I can handle this alone,” Batman walked forward a bit. “Ivory should lead you all head back to headquarters.”

“Batman…” the voice called, and this time, everyone else heard it echo through the building. Suddenly, a wisp of red mist swirled around before them before creating a cloaked ghoul with piercing red eyes. “You did this to me. Do you remember, Batman?” the ghoul asked. “Now, I’m back… back to make you pay. You… and all of Gotham.”

“Zoinks!” Shaggy cried as he and Scooby trembled. “What is that?!” Paradise shrieked. “A ghost!!” Scooby yelped, jumping into Shaggy’s arms while Ivory's eyes narrowed. “Who or what are you?”

“You may call me… the Crimson Cloak,” the being introduced, and Batman and the kirin remained steely-eyed and silent. “Is that the thing from your case?” Black Canary asked them. “What's this have to do with the missing vials?”

“Now's not the time, Canary,” Batman dismissed the question, just as the Crimson Cloak launched red ribbons to try to grab the group, but most were able to dodge them. “Have at thee, you felonious phantasm!” Aquaman shouted and tried to blast the Crimson Cloak with his trident, but the blast went right through, and the Crimson Cloak grabbed him and flung him, Slipstream, Ivory and Batman into the stack of crates.

When Black Canary tried to use her sonic warbler shriek to stop him and Hoof Beatz using his sonic DJ scratch, it proved ineffective, and the two of them, Paradise, Question and Detective Chimp were flung into the crates, leaving the gang and ponies to fend for themselves. “None of you shall escape!” the Crimson Cloak snarled to the gang. “Everybody!” Hitch cried. “RUN!!”

Shaggy and Scooby and the girls let out a scream, and the gang ran as fast as they could and split up to escape...

...that is, until the Crimson Cloak was surrounded by six super-powered heroes of Equestria.“Make sure he doesn’t go after the gang!” Sunny shouted. “Use all the superpowers you can!”

“Unicycling POWER!!” Izzy tossed several jump ropes at the creature, but phased right through and fell to the ground, useless. “Oh, sweet sauce horseshoe toss!”

“My turn!” Zipp shouted, and tried to use her lightning to strike, but the Crimson Cloak was able to avoid them. “Misty, think you can try now?”

“On it!” Misty nodded. “Butterflies… CHARGE!!!”

Some of the butterflies of Gotham flew in through the open windows and flew around the Crimson Cloak’s face, irritating him. “Get off of me, you puny insects!”

Eventually, he was able to get away from the butterflies and scattered the ponies enough so he could run in the direction Shaggy and Scooby ran off in, eventually cornering them. “Scoob, old pal, it's been nice knowing you,” Shaggy shuddered as he and Scooby covered each other’s eyes. “Likewise,” Scooby trembled, and as the Crimson Cloak struck, Batman swooped in and grabbed them.

Angered, the Crimson Cloak let out a roar before grabbing hold of two pipes and crushing them, causing them to leak out liquids that caused a series of small explosions as the group reunited and ran for the nearest exits. “Hey, what’d I miss?” Plastic Man asked. “Yes, what’s happening?” Martian Manhunter questioned. Ivory quickly looked ahead and saw something that could prevent them from escaping. “Plastic Man, those barrels are combustible! Cover us!”

“I’m on it-- literally!” Plastic Man responded before wrapping himself around the group as a huge ball and rolled outside just as the warehouse exploded. Luckily, everyone else was safe, but Plastic Man seemed a little disoriented from the explosion. “I’ll help Plastic Man, Ivory,” Paradise assured. “You guys do what you need to do.”

“Thanks,” Ivory smiled, and Paradise pulled Plastic Man to a safer place. “Aquaman, Canary-- put that fire out before it spreads!” Batman spoke. “Chimp and Question, check for any innocent bystanders!”

“Follow my lead,” Black Canary told Aquaman. “Of course, my siren sister,” Aquaman nodded. Black Canary then let out a sonic shriek which burst open a fire hydrant, and Slipstream and Aquaman guided the water to put out the fire. “What can we do to help?” Fred asked. “You and the others need to get someplace safe,” Batman told them. “Meet me at the malt shop on the corner of Spears and Ruby.”

“But we were just--” Velma tried to say. “Go!” Ivory said sternly. “We’ll be in contact soon.”

And as the gang rushed away to do as they were told, the sound of sirens faded into existence… and all Ivory hoped was that this wasn't what she thought it was going to be... a complete disaster waiting to happen.

Stories Come into Light

The gang swiftly retreated to the malt shop Batman told them to go to, and once Sunny and her friends got changed out of their superhero costumes (Ivory could always put them on later), they sat down at a large table and a waitress came over to them. “So, what are you kids having?”

“Like, 5 chocolate shakes, my good woman. What are the rest of you guys having?” Shaggy laughed in amusement. “Oy… four more, please,” Velma ordered, and the woman nodded before heading to the back to make the order. “What’s the matter, guys?” Fred asked the ponies, who didn’t look too happy. “I thought you guys would be more enthusiastic than this. You saved us.”

“The Crimson Cloak almost got Shaggy and Scooby, and we couldn’t do anything to stop him,” Misty sighed, looking at her hooves in slight shame. “He’s really powerful! Almost as powerful as… she was.”

Scooby could sense that Misty was still shaken about Opaline, and tried to comfort her by nuzzling her. “She’s gone now, Misty... you don't have to worry anymore.”

“But… Fred has a point,” Sunny shrugged to her friends, who looked at her in confusion. “We should be gathering information, not sulking about what we could have done differently.”

“I guess...” Misty sighed with a shrug. “Let’s just wait for Batman and Ivory to get here and then we can figure this whole mess out.”

Just then, the door opened, and a man followed by several police officers headed to their booth. “I've been looking for you hippie mystery solvers,” he said, pulling out a badge. “Detective Harvey Bullock, Gotham PD.”

“What's going on, detective?” Fred asked innocently. “Fred Jones, I'm investigating a robbery at Gotham Chemical Storage. Wouldn't know anything about that, would ya?” Detective Bullock asked, narrowing his eyes at Fred. “Have you tried splitting up and looking for clues?” Fred asked. “It always works for us.”

“Yeah, yeah, I'm sure it does, cupcake. Here's a clue for you,” Detective Bullock whipped out a photo of the Mystery Machine driving away from the explosion site and put it in Fred’s face. “This was taken at the scene of a break-in. Whole building destroyed.”

Misty squeaked at the sight of the photo, wondering who could have taken such an alarming piece of evidence. “Wait, who took that photo?” Velma asked, studying the photo a little closer. “Anonymous tipper,” the detective responded coldly, taking the photo away from her. “That's your gang's little flower power van, ain't it?”

“We’re not a gang!” Daphne objected. “Like, sure, collectively we often refer to ourselves as ‘the gang’,” Shaggy spoke, using quotation marks for the last two words. “But we're not a real gang. I mean, we're a gang, but not technically a ‘gang’ gang,” Fred added, and Velma nodded at this. “And we weren’t involved with that theft!”

“Yeah?” Detective Bullock tucked the photo away. “Where you been the last couple hours?”

“...ruh-roh,” Scooby gulped. “Uh… I’m afraid we can’t tell you that,” Sunny spoke, and Izzy quickly shook her head in agreement, causing the detective to smirk. “Well, ain’t that convenient.”

“Hang on one second. They’re mystery solvers. How can you suspect them of a crime with just one little photograph?” Zipp asked with a cold tone. “Seen it before,” the detective responded, crossing his arms. “Cop spends so much time thinking like a criminal, he starts acting like one.”

“Actually, that’s a well-documented… a-and clearly unsound phenomenon,” Velma changed her wording after receiving a glare from Shaggy, Misty and Scooby with a nervous giggle. “All right,” Detective Bullock pulled out some handcuffs. “You kids are comin’ with me, after I search your van.”

“You can’t do that!” Daphne argued. “And we're not going to let you!” Hitch agreed as his gaze narrowed. “We promise you that!”

And so, the Mane 6 stood ready to fight for their friends' safety... just before Batman and Ivory arrived. “That’ll do, Detective Bullock,” Batman said sternly. “I'm sure Commissioner Gordon would be interested to hear you're arresting citizens without a warrant.”

“Gee, I can't seem to find it. Must've left it at the precinct,” Detective Bullock said as he felt his jacket. “Come back when the donuts are fresh, Bullock,” Ivory sneered, making it clear she didn’t like the detective. “You know what my Cosmic Crystal Blast can do to someone when they’re not expecting it.”

“This ain’t over, Bats. I’ll be keeping an eye on you and your little horsey friend… bet on it,” Detective Bullock warned Batman before he and his men left, shoving Ivory a bit before they walked out the door. “What can I get you, Batman?” the waitress from before asked. “Buttermilk-- over ice, please.”

“Phew… that was close,” Misty sighed in relief. “We got here as soon as we could,” Batman told the group as he and Ivory sat down. “The others are out working the case, but Bullock complicates things.”

“Batman, what happened earlier?” Velma asked. “And who is that Crimson Cloak? An old villain?” Fred questioned. “A new one-- we’ve never seen him before,” Ivory shook her head... just before she seemed to realize something. “Unless…”

“What does that mean? Is he wearing a disguise or some sort of illusion?” Daphne asked, confusion spread across her face. “It doesn’t seem possible,” Batman said, bringing out a small device. “I've checked and cross-checked the entire criminal database in the Batcave computer.”

“Batcave? As in the actual Batcave?” Velma found herself growing excited. “Jinkies! When do we get to see that?”

“You don’t,” Batman told them, making Velma frown before going through several villains on the device. “Gentleman Ghost, Clayface, Joker-- anyone who could do this is either in Arkham Asylum or Blackgate Penitentiary.”

“Batman, you have to tell us what happened,” Daphne urged. “We’re all part of the Mystery Analysts-- we help each other solve cases,” Fred agreed. “Yeah,” Scooby nodded. “It’s what we Scooby-Doo.”

“Ooh, that’s good,” Izzy told the Great Dane. “You should trademark that.”

Ivory looked up at Batman and nodded slowly… they were right. If they wanted to help, they needed to know the truth.

Begrudgingly, Batman took out the case file he had taken away earlier. “Your unsolved case!” Pipp gasped with wide eyes. “No one outside yourselves has seen the contents of this file,” Batman explained, opening the file. “It was during my first year as a crime-fighter, a few weeks after I found Ivory as a young filly.”

Everyone sat intently as Batman continued the story, not noticing the sad gaze Ivory was giving off. “I'd intercepted a report of criminal activity at a secret lab. That malevolent mastermind Professor Milo had been conducting a teleportation experiment that had gone horribly awry. I’d easily subdued Professor Milo,” Batman went on, “but his two henchmen, Doctors Leo Scarlett and Wade Magny weren’t so lucky.”

“What happened?” Hitch asked as he and Zipp took notes. “The hold of the portal was so strong, it began to suck them inside, causing Batman to go and try and pull them from it’s hold,” Ivory explained quietly, causing the ponies to quietly gasp. “Leaving Ivory someplace safe, I finally pulled them free… or so I thought,” Batman continued, sounding sort of… remorseful. “I’d saved Dr. Magny… but Leo Scarlett…”

This caused the gang and all the ponies to be brought into stunned silence, not sure what to say… if they should say anything at all. Misty seemed to be taking it the hardest, and wiped her eyes of silent tears. “It was my fault,” Batman spoke. “He was the only life I ever lost.”

“Wow… so that’s your unsolved case,” Fred spoke up. “Even though I originally never took part in the mission, sometimes we both can… hear a voice in our dreams,” Ivory spoke uneasily, ears folding back. “But I never thought it was real. Now, to see what he’s become…”

“How could he be back?” Daphne wondered. “Because it’s a real ghost!” Shaggy exclaimed. “Yeah, a ghost,” Scooby nodded, and this caused Fred to turn to Batman reassuringly. “Don't worry, Batman,” he spoke for the group. “Mystery Incorporated and the Unity Squad are going to help you and Ivory solve this case.”

“Wherever it leads,” Daphne agreed with a nod. “Like, where’s Professor Milo? He’s the most likely suspect,” Shaggy pointed out. “He met his fate in a rodent-related incident a few years ago,” Ivory spoke, leading to looks from the gang. “Don’t ask.”

“Did Leo have any family?” Velma asked. “Only Leo’s father, Sam Scarlett,” Batman pulled out a photo from a newspaper article. “A world-class scientist in his own right. After the accident, he swore revenge. But he was a broken man.”

But then, as she looked at the newspaper article and thought about the story that was just told, Daphne came up with something. “Velma, give me your notebook.”

Velma obliged and Daphne took out a pencil to begin writing. “You said the other henchman's name was Dr. Wade Magny? But look what happens when you rearrange the letters.”

“Edward Nygma!” Fred spoke, and Batman studied the name for a moment in surprise. “How could I have missed that?” he wondered before Ivory realized with a smile. “Word scrambles.”

“You know it,” Daphne smirked. “Amazing! Like, who’s Edward Nygma?” Shaggy asked. “I don’t know,” Scooby shrugged while the ponies remained clueless, but unfortunately… Batman knew exactly who this guy was. “The man who would become the most twistedly clever criminal I've ever faced-- the Riddler.”

“The Riddler?!” the gang cried out. “All this time… I never realized he was involved with Professor Milo,” Batman spoke. “We have to question him. Do you know where he is?” Velma asked, causing Batman to nod. “I do, but you need to stay behind.”

“Are you kidding? We’ve explored tons of spooky places!” Zipp spoke in determination, but Ivory's violet eyes grew stormy. “You’ve never been anyplace like this.”

Ivory's Story/Arkham Asylum

Everyone (after they had gotten their drinks, slurped them down and paid the waitress) got into the Mystery Machine, and under Batman’s directions, went to Arkham Asylum to question the Riddler.

He may have been their only lead, but at least it was something.

Along the ride, Ivory (after giving the ponies back their superhero forms) was unusually quiet, and Sunny was first to notice this. “Hey…” she said, earning Ivory’s attention. “Is something bothering you?”

“Oh… well… I was just thinking about that incident that Batman was telling you all about… along with some other things,” Ivory admitted, looking away from the group for a few moments. “Things that happened when I was little.”

“You can talk to us about it if you want,” Sunny said gently, wanting to be there for her. “I always find it easier to tell ponies what’s bothering me, so I don’t feel so alone.”

“We’ll be here for you,” Zipp promised the kirin with a smile. “No matter what.”

Ivory looked down at her hooves for a moment before sighing. “All right. Do you remember how Batman said he found me as a filly?” she asked, causing the ponies and Shaggy and Scooby, who were in the back seat with them, to nod in confirmation. “Well before it was Batman training me, it was my father and myself. We wandered the forests together before we came to Gotham, and I learned a lot of magical skill from him.”

“Did… something happen?” Hitch asked softly. “Well… yes,” Ivory said, trying to keep the memories from bothering her too much. “When I was about 8, we wandered into the city, and then some… dangerous men came out of hiding, hoping to auction us off for rare horses. My father held them off while I ran away, but when I came back after an hour… my father was gone, taken by the thugs in their van. I chased after them, but… I couldn’t keep up. I stayed for a month under the Gotham bridge until Batman found me and offered to train me into the superhero I am today.”

“Wow… I’m so sorry, Ivory,” Misty frowned, putting a hoof around the kirin as a sign of comfort. “That sounds horrible.”

“It was for a while,” Ivory said, “but I have new friends now, and they look out for me the way my father would. I’m still trying to find him, but… maybe someday, I’ll be able to.”

“And maybe we can help you,” Sunny said. “For now, let’s get back to working on this case.”

Ivory nodded to this. The past was the past, and her friends in the present needed her now more than ever.

XXXXXXXX

Soon enough, the group arrived at Arkham Asylum, and since the gang was with Batman, they had permission to come inside. Lining the halls were cells containing Batman’s most dangerous foes lay defeated and lying in wait to take Batman down. “Arkham Asylum…” Velma muttered as they walked down the hall. “This should be a fascinating insight into the supervillain psyche.”

“Like, Batman was right. We should've stayed behind. I'm man enough to admit it,” Shaggy spoke honestly. “I’m dog enough,” Scooby nodded immediately. After they stopped, Scooby began to sniff around until he got to a cell at the end of the hall, which he peered into to see the Riddler sitting inside. “When is a dog not a dog?” he asked, making Scooby's head tilt. “When he’s pure bread! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!!”

This caused Scooby to immediately whimper and step back toward his friends. “I’ve come to get answers, Riddler,” Batman got straight to the point as Misty came and stood beside her canine friend reassuringly. “I know you were working with Professor Milo the night of the accident.”

“Took you long enough,” the Riddler sneered with a smirk. “But before I answer your questions, you must answer mine. When you say my name, I vanish-- what am I?”

“I got it-- a coward!” Shaggy spoke fearfully. “In other words... let’s vanish!” Misty shouted, and she, Shaggy and Scooby tried to escape, but, Zipp Fred and Daphne held them by their shirts and tails. “The answer is… silence,” Velma answered with a calm smile. “Ooh… I like this one,” Riddler smirked, crossing his arms. “Silence it is.”

“We're running, not screaming!” Misty cried, and the masked blue unicorn, Shaggy and Scooby broke free from their friends' hold screaming and running down the hall. “Time to break your silence, Riddler,” Ivory stomped her hoof furiously. “How did you get mixed up with Milo and Scarlett? What happened the night of the accident?”

“Fresh out of school, I was brilliantly evil, but too young. I hadn't figured out the whole supervillain thing yet,” Riddler answered. “So, you came up with a fake name and joined up with Professor Milo's gang,” Fred spoke, and Riddler confirmed it with a nod. “I convinced the rather impressionable Leo Scarlett to join up with me.”

“Impressionable? You convinced him to join a super villain gang and sent his life on a downward spiral!” Zipp flared up her wings in anger. “And not to mention, the machine wasn’t ready!” Sunny agreed, stepping forward. “This was as much your doing as it was Professor Milo’s!”

“And now,” Pipp agreed with a narrowed gaze, “you’ll have to live with that for the rest of your life behind bars!”

“Ahh, you pathetic little ponies forget-- I wasn’t the one who failed to save poor Leo Scarlett,” Riddler addressed with a smirk, causing the ponies to tense slightly. “Thank you for saving me by the way… Batman! Ha ha ha ha ha!!!”

Hearing the Riddler’s taunts made the ponies’ and Ivory’s blood boil, narrowed gazes plastered onto their faces. “Enough! Crimson Cloak-- what is he?” Batman sneered before the ponies had a chance to react. “Perhaps he's fate,” Riddler responded. “You failed to save Leo's life, now he's come for yours. So, I leave you with a final riddle. What's black, white and red all over?”

“Is it a… red, black and white zebra?” Izzy asked, causing the ponies to look at her. “Whaaaaat? It could happen.”

“Everyone in this world knows that, Iz-- a newspaper!” Fred assumed. “Wrong!” Riddler snapped with a smirk, causing the group to look at him once again. “The answer, dear Batman, is the last thing you will ever see. The black of his shadow, his white-hot fury and a descending red shroud of your doom! A-ha ha ha ha ha!!”

“This is a dead end…” Batman muttered, turning away as Riddler sat back down in his cell. “Lest you think me a complete monster, you'll find his remains, the sleeve of his lab coat, laid to rest at Arkham Cemetery-- on the grounds of this very asylum.”

“Let's go,” Ivory spoke with a growl as the Riddler's shrill laughter filled the air, sending a shiver down the gang's spines as they followed the superheroes away.

XXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, Shaggy and Scooby and Misty were running as fast as they could, when they suddenly stopped… right at the doorway to the cafeteria. “Like, who knew Arkham had a cafeteria?” Shaggy spoke as they went inside, looking at all the different foods they were serving that day. “Bates Burger, Hanni-bowl, Pasta Al Capone. Sounds scary, but it sure looks delicious.”

“Well, I know I could definitely eat,” Misty shrugged, feeling of her empty stomach. “What do you say, Scoob?”

To this question, the Great Dane licked his lips hungrily. “Let's seek asylum.”

XXXXXXXX

As for the others, they were wandering the halls in search of their scaredy-cat friends. “Misty!” Zipp cried. “Shaggy! Scooby-Doo!” Fred called out. “Where are you?!”

“Sorry, Batman, they run off sometimes. A lot, actually. Okay, every single time,” Daphne apologized to the caped crusader. “And Misty… well…” Sunny tried to say. “...she’s had a lot on her mind, which resorts from where she unfortunately grew up.”

“Flight is a natural response to the unknown,” Batman spoke honestly, and Ivory smiled reassuringly. “We’ll find them.”

“Batman…” the Crimson Cloak rasped, causing the others to stop with a gasp as he appeared before them, looking even more threatening than before. “Leaving so soon, Batman?”

“Jeepers! It’s the ghost!” Daphne cried out. “What do you want, you pestiferous poltergeist?” Batman asked as he and Ivory stood in front of the gang. “Why, your demise, of course,” the Crimson Cloak answered before grabbing Batman and hoisting him high above the floor to the horror of the others. “Zipp, Pipp!” Sunny said as she shifted into her alicorn form. “Help me get Batman out of these things!”

“On it!” Zipp and Pipp shouted, and the three of them pulled against the Crimson Cloak’s ribbon-like bonds to try and pull them off the caped crusader. “How fitting it should happen here,” the Crimson Cloak told Batman, “among all your enemies.”

Luckily, Pipp was able to pull on the one ribbon that cut Batman loose, but the Crimson Cloak disappeared as Batman fell to the floor. “Thank you, Harmonizer. You as well, Cosmic Sunlight and Royal Bolt,” Batman said after a bit of panting. “No problem,” Zipp said. “Now let’s get outta here and find the others.”

But suddenly, after she said that, the lights went out, leaving the building completely dark. “He’s turned off the power!” Daphne said with a gasp. “But the cell doors are electronically operated,” Velma realized. “That means…”

And without another word, the villains began to open their cell doors and walk toward them, and Hitch realized there was only one solution to this. “Batman… what was that you said about running?”

“It’s a natural response.”

“Yeah, that. RUN!!!”

Batman flung his bat-a-rang at the villains, knocking them down and continuing to fight them with Ivory while the others made a swift break for it.

XXXXXXXX

In the cafeteria, Shaggy and Scooby carried many plates stuffed with food with Misty walking beside them, and in that moment, they were almost happy to be there. “You may have to be crazy to get in here,” Shaggy told them, “but you'd be even crazier to leave. Ha ha ha ha ha!”

“Ooh, that's a lot of puddin', puddin',” said a voice. Everyone looked in front of them to see Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn before them, looking smug and determined and causing Shaggy and Scooby to freeze, while Misty stood nervously with them. “You weren't going to eat that salad, were you?” snarled Ivy, just as Harley zipped in front of them, causing the group to whimper nervously. “Ivy gets real upset when folks ain’t nice to plants!”

“This? Uh… garnish,” Shaggy answered, taking the salad off his top plate. “Purely decorative. We’ll just put it back for the next evil mastermind to enjoy.”

“Y-Y-Yeah,” Misty trembled. “N-No need to get all upset about it.”

“Hmmm… you must be new to these parts, bug horse,” Ivy flicked Misty in the nose. “In here, we make the rules.”

“Oh, gotcha. Gotcha,” Misty nodded quickly. “So, um… we’ll just get this food and we’ll be on our way, Miss Ivy. Not gonna cause anymore trouble.”

But then, Harley whipped out a gigantic mallet, making the group yelp in surprise. “Whoa, where did that come from?!” Misty blurt out. “Beats me,” Harley answered as she advanced. “Beats you too!”

The criminally insane Harley tried hitting them with her mallet, but they leapt out of the way in time. But Shaggy backed into someone, feeling of his face, realizing it was Two-Face, causing Shaggy and Scooby to scream and throw food all over the villains.

The three friends immediately knew there was going to be no safe way out of the situation… especially when Two-Face tossed a salad right at them, causing Shag, Scoob and Misty to duck…

...letting the salad fly right into Harley's face. “Ohhh… so it's like that, is it?!” she taunted menacingly befire leaping onto a table. “FOOD FIGHT!!!!”

All the villains Batman ever encountered began to toss food left and right, messes all over the room while Shaggy and Scoob pulled their Equestrian friend underneath a table to avoid the flying food. “We're pinned down!” Misty cried. “We'll have to eat our way outta here!”

Scooby looked around before his eyes settled on the door-- and as crazy as it sounded… she was right. It may be their only chance. “Let's roll!”

So, the three of them rushed out into the food-flying scene, Misty holding up a magically created shield while Shag and Scooby grabbing food, stuffing it into their mouths and running out of the cafeteria, food residue still on them as they crashed into the others. “Girls, Shag, Scoob!” Fred cried, and Shaggy panted tiredly. “Like, the villains are all out!!”

“We know!” Sunny said. “The Crimson Cloak let them out, and they’re right behind us!”

“We can’t let them escape into the city!” Hitch cried in panic. “Everyone out!” Batman commanded as he and Ivory kept an eye out for any villains coming their way. “Quickly!”

“You don’t have to tell us twice!” Izzy shouted before the group ran off. They proceeded to run around the prison for a while, splitting up so not many villains would be able to chase them at once, and Batman and Ivory took the liberties of beating them to pulps if they came into contact with them.

Soon, they all managed to regroup as they ran in the same direction. “We need to seal off the outer exit before they get out!” Batman said, and they all ran to the exit, with Velma and Zipp closing the door, and Batman used one of his devices to seal the door shut. “Phew,” Zipp sighed in relief. “That was close.”

“If those criminals had escaped, it would’ve been a disaster,” Ivory helped Zipp onto her hooves. “Man, the real disaster is all that food going to waste,” Shaggy interrupted. “Yeah…” Scooby hung his head in sadness. “I wanted seconds.”

“I’m just glad everypony made it out of there safe,” Misty said after giving Shaggy and Scooby a look. “Did you find out anything from Riddler?”

“We did, but it was mostly taunts toward Batman,” Hitch frowned. “Let’s look for where to go next before anything else happens.”

“Guys… look,” Daphne gestured ahead, and all of them stood together before a graveyard on the backside of the prison. “Arkham Cemetary!” Velma said with a gasp. Knowing that whatever the Riddler was talking about would be in there, the group lit up whatever flashlights they had and navigated the mist till they found a singular crypt with a question mark over the door-- the Riddler’s symbol. “This must be the place Riddler was talking about!” Fred realized as they approached it carefully. “Like, I have a plan,” Shaggy spoke up. “How about we don’t open the spooky crypt?”

Of course, this plea went unheard as Fred, Hitch, Ivory and Batman pushed the crypt door open, and once Batman turned on his flashlight, the mist seemed to form a ghostly shape. “Zoinks!” Shaggy leapt into Scooby’s paws. “A ghost!”

And as quickly as it appeared, the ghostly mist parted just as Batman stepped inside. “No… it’s another dead end,” Batman said before turning to his sidekick and the Great Dane. “Ivory, Scooby?”

“Mmm-hmm,” Scooby nodded before he and Ivory entered the crypt, the dog vigorously sniffing while Ivory lit up the crypt with her horn. Suddenly, Scooby was about to step his paw into something on the floor, immediately noticing it and barking to alert the others. “Like, Scooby-Doo found something!” Shaggy said, and Batman’s flashlight shined down on the object, to which Velma recognized. “A footprint!”

“Good work, Scooby,” Ivory said, nudging the dog playfully before using her magic to seal the footprint in crystal, allowing Batman to pick up the sample. “Let’s get going,” Batman said. “We need to test this sample to get more clues.”

The Chase is On!

After collecting a footprint sample from the Arkham Cemetary, Batman and Ivory led Mystery Inc and their Equestrian friends back through the cemetery to get to the van.

But as they approached the van, the group noticed something was wrong-- the door of the Mystery Machine was wide open! “Someone opened the hatch!” Pipp exclaimed before gasping. “Someone could be stealing by Sapphire Stone Makeup Collection!”

This caused most of the ponies to look at her strangely. “What? It's extremely rare. Someone could go to desperate measures to get it.”

“I think that's the least of our problems, Pipp! Because, like,” Shaggy gulped, “that someone is still there!”

It was true-- the shadow of someone at the back door of the van was still there, and Shaggy and Scooby yelped and jumped into Velma’s arms for protection. “Guys…” she strained as Detective Bullock walked into view. “It’s just Detective Bullock!”

Shaggy and Scooby were then dropped onto their backs, but Izzy and Misty were there to help them back onto their feet. “Hey! You can’t search the van without a warrant!” Hitch exclaimed. “That's a serious violation of rights!”

“This time, I brung one,” Detective Bullock showed it to the pony sheriff before putting it back in his pocket. “And that ain’t all, hippies.”

As soon as he had spoken, most of the superheroes from earlier, except for Aquaman and Slipstream, stood by the detective’s side. “The Mystery Analysts of Gotham!” Misty exclaimed, instantly relieved to see their friends. “I may not be you super-freaks’ biggest fan, but I thought you’d wanna know about one of your own going bad,” Detective Bullock told the superheroes, gesturing to Batman and the gang. “Batman and his mystery pals let out half the inmates.”

“Inciting a riot?” Paradise asked in shock, unsure of what to velieve. “Is this true?” Martian Manhunter questioned sternly. “We didn’t do that!” Zipp tried to defend. “I-It was the ghost!”

Zipp immediately knew that sounded stupid when she said it, so she internally slapped herself after she finished speaking. “A ghost… right,” Detective Bullock said sarcastically before turning to Detective Chimp, Black Canary and Hoof Beatz. “I was just about to search their van, but be my guest.”

Detective Chimp and Hoof Beatz climbed into the van, the former pushing things aroumd before he found an empty vial in the floorboard, and Detective Chimp lifted it up to see. “The stolen Isotope 29?” Velma asked in shock. “You mean the stuff that went missing from the warehouse?” Izzy blinked. “Why would that be-- ohhhhhhh... now I get it.”

“Hmm…” the Queston muttered. “Curious.”

“You said a mouthful. If you had a mouth,” Detective Bullock told the faceless sleuth. “Those were not in our van. Someone put them there!” Daphne said. “Detective Bullock, us superheroes personally vouch for Mystery Incorporated,” Sunny explained calmly. “We’re working together.”

“Then I'll take that as an admission,” Detective Bullock told the earth pony mare. “You and your friends just became people-- er, ponies of interest as well, young mare.”

That’s when Izzy noticed the smoke bomb on Batman's belt, getting an idea if things went wrong. “There is an explanation for this,” Batman started. “I'm sure there is, but there are procedures to follow,” Black Canary told him. “And right now, you and the gang are prime suspects.”

“And you have been acting a bit off of late, old chap,” Detective Chimp then added. “Beatz? Paradise?” Ivory said, sounding a bit fearful. “You... don't think we did it, do you?”

“We don't want to believe it, Ivory,” Paradise said, ears pinning at the fact they were not able to defend their friends. “But like the Analysts always say... procedure comes first.”

“Yeah,” Hoof Beatz agreed. “Sorry, Ivory... but we have to follow our heads on this one. Not our hearts.”

“Arrest ‘em all! Including the Bat!” Detective Bullock exclaimed, making the ponies gasp, pretty afraid in that moment. “As a former crook,” Plastic Man molded his hands into a pair of handcuffs, “I have to admit, this does look bad.”

“We haven’t done anything! We were framed!” Velma cried. “Come along quietly,” Detective Bullock simply ignored her plea. “Don’t try anything stupid.”

“Like this?” Izzy grabbed the smoke bomb and threw it on the ground, causing a large amount of smoke to blind the superheroes, making them cough and allowing the group to run for their freedom. “To the Batmobile?” Fred asked. “No time,” Batman said, and everyone leapt into the Mystery Machine. “Drive!”

“You heard the man!” Shaggy yelled to the driver, which was Scooby himself. “Paw to the metal!”

Scooby switched the van into gear before slamming on the gas, causing the van to lurch forward and out of the grounds of Arkham Asylum… a bit out of control, I might add.

When the smoke finally cleared, the superheroes and Detective Bullock saw they had disappeared, causing Detective Bullock to sigh heavily. “The guilty always run.”

“Detective, we’ll bring them in,” Hoof Beatz promised, and they each set off after the escapees in different methods; Plastic Man bounced along, Black Canary rode her motorcycle with Detective Chimp, Martian Manhunter and Paradise flew, and Hoof Beatz rode his skateboard.

XXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, in the Mystery Machine, everyone hung on for their lives as Scooby twisted and turned wildly throughout Gotham’s busy streets. “That was a good idea you had, Izzy,” Ivory said as she and the lavender unicorn steadied themselves from the van’s rough turning. “Using a smoke bomb to distract the others long enough for us to make our getaway.”

“Yeah… a good idea… but stupid. VERY stupid!” Izzy said as the van took a sharp turn, causing her to fall backwards. That’s when Hitch noticed the superheroes gaining on them. “Guys! The Mystery Analysts are right on our tail!”

“We’ve been chased by a lot of things before,” Daphne said, “but never superheroes!”

Scooby gulped nervously, but turned the steering wheel rapidly to head down another street. “Whoever’s at the wheel is driving like a mad-man,” Black Canary said, watching as the Mystery Machine nearly took out several civillians. “Indeed,” Detective Chimp said. “They need to be stopped before someone gets injured!”

“Let me show ‘em the proper hand signals,” Plastic Man stretched his hand out in front of the van, growing it larger in order to stop the van from going further. “Scooby, turn left!” Batman said. “Left-- copy!” Scooby nodded firmly, but instead turned the wheel right. “He doesn’t know directions,” Batman said, a tad annoyed. “Duh,” Daphne responded. “He’s a dog!”

“Hey, Daph!” Zipp scolded. “This is no time for hurtful comments!”

Scooby charged right through Plastic Man’s hand backwards, allowing the group to move off in another direction. “Where’d they go?” Hoof Beatz asked, stopping his skateboard and looking around. “I don’t know-- I lost sight of them during the chase,” Paradise said before sighing. “Ivory, ponies… I really hope you know what you’re doing…”

XXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, Scooby directed the Mystery Machine into desolate parts of Gotham City… someplace Batman and Ivory knew the league wouldn’t look. “Where are we going?” Velma asked, looking at their surroundings. “They call it… No Man’s Land,” Batman spoke. “If there’s one place the heroes will never find us,” said Ivory, “it’s in the creepiest part of town.”

Scooby took a series of sharp turns once entering No Man’s Land, but after the last turn, they were heading toward a brick wall!

Everyone screamed as Scooby planted on the brakes, luckily coming to a stop before they hit the wall. But that moment of relief didn’t last long-- two thugs were heading in their direction, growling. “You guys make a run for it,” Ivory told them. “Batman and I will hold them off as long as we can!”

But before she could make a move, Pipp put a hood on her shoulder to stop her. “Shag, Scoob and I got this!” said the pink pegasus. “Just stay low and stay hidden.”

Batman and Ivory immediately wanted to protest, but Ivory's gut told her that she needed to trust her friends.

As the rest of the group hid, Shaggy and Scooby opened the back of the Mystery Machine, dressed in football attire, confusing the thugs entirely. “Dudes, where you been?” Shaggy asked as the thugs looked at one another. “We throw this killer tailgate party and you guys are just showing up now?”

“The game starts in five minutes!” Pipp agreed with a frown, causing Scooby to huff. “Not cool.”

The thugs looked really nervous and ashamed with themselves, and Shaggy sighed and prepared them a couple of hot dogs. “Here, down these quick. Can't bring food in the stadium.”

Quickly enough, the thugs prepared to put ketchup on the hot dogs, only for Shaggy and Scooby to grab the bottles. “What are you doing?” Pipp asked with a sneer. “No one puts ketchup on a hot dog-- mustard and relish only! Like this!”

Shaggy and Scooby squirted mustard and relish in the thugs’ faces, causing them to reel back, and the group took the opportunity to escape, with Scooby driving and Zipp directing and showing him what to do.

Batman and Ivory sat there for a few moments, taking in how that actually worked before Batman finally spoke up. “There's no possible way that should have worked.”

Velma only shrugged with a smile at that statement. “Just go with it.”

XXXXXXXXX

As the gang drove down the road, they had no idea that they were heading into villain’s territory-- more specifically, one of the villain’s hangout places.

Along the side of the road was a bar where many of the Mystery Analysts’ foes, specifically Batman’s foes, were playing pool, making bets, and drinking different varieties of drinks.

Two of these were the Joker and the Penguin, preparing to toast to themselves and the world of crime around them. “Here’s to crime,” Joker laughed before an impact tossed them from their seat. Turns out, the Mystery Machine, with Scooby at the wheel, had barged right through the wall and sent different villains flying. “Ooh... sorry about that,” Zipp groaned. “I guess I need more practice on this driving instructor thing.”

Quickly, Batman scooped Scooby up, put him in the back seat and took their place just as the Penguin noticed them. “What?! Hippies have invaded our sacred sanctorum!” he cried to the other villains. “And the Caped Crusader was at the wheel!”

Needless to say, the villains were not at all pleased, and this made the Unity Squad and Mystery Incorporated to become even more nervous... if that seemed possible. “Hang on, guys!” Ivory said, and Batman quickly reversed and sped off, but the Joker pulled out a set of car keys and turned to the others. “Come on, you nefarious nobodies,” he said. “Let us A-listers show you how to skin a bat!”

XXXXXXXXX

The Mystery Machine rolled down the road at top speed before hearing a missle coming past them, and Batman was able to swerve out of the way in time before it hit.

Zipp and Fred gasped before peering out the window, noticing the Joker and several more villains piled up in his vehicle as the Joker laughed. “Is there room in this wacky race for the mountebank of menace?”

“Is that... the Joker?!” Zipp asked, hearing of and seeing the face from different sources. Batman looked in the mirror before seeing Penguin and several more vehicles in his vehicle, chasing them as well. “And Penguin...”

The chase proceeded with several more items, including rubber ducks, giant playing cards and umbrellas being shot out at the group, and eventually, the Joker launched a good group of villains onto the top of the van to attack. “This is insane!” Daphne said, panicked. “We can't outrun superpowered heroes and villains in the Mystery Machine!”

“We won't have to,” Batman assured, pushing a button on his utility belt which summoned the Batmobile, and once it was good and beside the Mystery Machine, Batman used a steel device to connect the steering wheel and gas pedals to keep the van going. “Ivory, get them in the car,” he instructed. “I'll cover you.”

Batman then swiftly climbed out of the window to fight the villains, and Ivory swiftly opened the van door. “This way, everyone!”

As the Batmobile's roof opened, the crystal kirin immediately leapt into the passenger seat. Needless to say, the others began to get worried, Shaggy speaking first. “Like, she wants us to jump?!”

“From a moving car?!” Fred asked. “Into a moving car?!” Sunny shrieked. Scooby immediately said no to this, but Daphne and Pipp had no problem with it and immediately jumped in. “That was fun!” Daphne said before waving to the others. “Come on, gang!”

Hitch sighed reluctantly. “Fine... GERONIMO!!”

He quickly leapt out of the van and into the seat beside Pipp, panting to himself. “That... was... HORRIFYING!! You guys get in here so we never have to do this again!”

Then, it was Izzy, Sunny, Fred and Scooby leaping to the Batmobile, and then Misty and Zipp. But as Velma and Shaggy went to jump, a bump in the road caused them to stumble, but Fred and Scooby were able to catch them before they hit the ground.

When Batman finally defeated some of the villains and jumped into the Batmobile, they drove off just as the Mystery Machine crashed and fell into a ditch. “Huh, it may just be me,” said Izzy, “but it feels like you lose more Mystery Machines that way.”

When the group looked ahead, they gasped as Martian Manhunter quickly appeared from the ground, grabbing the Batmobile and halting it in its tracks. “Stop this, Batman,” the martian warned, “before you go down in flames.”

“You first,” Batman said, pushing a button that made a box of Chocos pop out, making Martian Manhunter stop holding the Batmobile so it could zoom away. Sooner or later, they came down to the railroad tracks, but Plastic Man stretched across the tracks to slow them down. “Sorry, Bats. End of the line.”

Suddenly, a train sounded, and the group screamed as the Batmobile leapt to the top of the train, going across it for a few minutes before speeding off once again.

XXXXXXXXX

As for the villains, they found the Mystery Machine in the ditch, but no kids, ponies or Batman within. “Aww, curses!” Penguin growled. “The bat winged boob and those beatniks have blown the belfry!”

“But as car chases go,” joked the Joker, “it was a gas! Ha ha ha ha!”

“Well, look who we have here.”

Suddenly, the villains turned to see the rest of the Mystery Analysts not too far away, and Plastic Man smirked. “New plan-- let’s bash some bad guys.”

“I’m down,” Paradise said with a smirk, and the Mystery Analysts all leapt into action, unaware of where the others might be heading.

Into the Batcave

After escaping the villains and the rest of the Mystery Analysts, Batman drove the Batmobile a good ways, with Ivory next to him, and the crystal kirin turned to the others. “Sorry for the tight squeeze, everyone. We’re almost there.”

“It’s all good,” said Shaggy, shifting uncomfortably in the back seat. “Except for the bat-a-rang I think I’m sitting on.”

“Try not to shift your weight then,” Batman advised. “Could be an exploding one.”

This caused Scooby, Misty, Zipp, Izzy and Velma to gulp and move away slightly in case something were to go wrong. “Where are we headed, Batman?” Fred asked. “Someplace you can lie low until we can clear your names,” Batman said vaguely. “And yours,” Hitch reminded. “By helping us,” Velma added, “you guys have become fugitives as well.”

Ivory sighed as her ears pinned back. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”

As they went to the outskirts of the city, the Batmobile drove through a cave entrance until it revealed a high tech superhero lair inside. “What is this place…?” Zipp wondered in awe, glancing around the cave. “Jinkies!” Velma exclaimed as they got out. “We’re in the Batcave!”

“As in the actual Batcave?” Daphne asked. “Based off of the bat guano I just stepped in,” Velma gagged, “I’d say yes.”

Finally, Shaggy, Scooby, Misty and Sunny got out of the van, and Misty grabbed the bat-a-rang from Shaggy’s rear. “Better,” she said, tossing it aside… only for it to explode in a corner of the cave, making her ears fold down in embarrassment. “Whoops…”

Batman and Ivory glanced at her for a moment before they turned to walk toward the computers. “We have some investigating to do,” Ivory said. “But please, make yourselves at home.”

“No problem with that!” Pipp said, flying up a bit and taking selfies. “This cave is totally trendy!”

“Like, it definitely has the whole cave thing going for it,” Shaggy agreed with a hum of thought. “But the giant penny and Dino don't exactly scream bat.”

“Those do!” Daphne pointed to several older costumes in the nearby display case. “Wow! Batman’s first uniform!” Fred gasped. “And Robin, the Boy Wonder!” Velma added. “Batgirl’s got the cutest cape ever!” Daphne said, and Shaggy smiled at the sight of the fourth costume. Like, those flashy threads can only be Nightwing's! Ha ha!”

“And look, Scoob,” Zipp pointed to the dog prop in the fifth costume. “Who knew Batman had a dog?”

“I did,” Scooby shrugged with a giggle. “That’s Ace the Bat Hound!” Velma exclaimed. “These are all of Batman’s sidekicks!”

“Former sidekicks,” Batman reminded. “All of them moved on to bigger and better things,” Ivory said. “But being Batman’s trainee now has been super rewarding… even if that’s all I’ll ever be…”

Sunny and Misty heard this statement and frowned, but decided to keep quiet for now so nothing would stir.

Suddenly, music came from one of the television screens, and Daphne pointed up to it. “That one! The press report!”

Ivory hit a button, and the press report came onscreen, with none other than Detective Bullock coming onscreen. “Detective Bullock, you can't actually believe Mystery Incorporated is behind these crimes?” asked a male reporter. “This all started right after they arrived in Gotham,” Detective Bullock explained. “And this time, we got it all on camera.”

This caused the entire group to gasp in shock, just as footage of Shaggy sneaking out the isotopes with a scowl came onto the screen. “Norville Rogers, better known by his gang call sign, Shaggy.”

“Shaggy?!” everyone cried, looking toward the taller teen in green. “There you have it, folks,” said a female reporter. “Undeniable proof that Mystery Incorporatedis guilty of--”

The mute button was quickly pressed as the group looked at the footage again... even though they knew that the footage was faked and that Shaggy would never do something so villainous. “Really has his trademark slouch,” Zipp said, causing Daphne to slowly nod. “And his toothpick arms.”

“And his soulless, beady eyes,” Scooby agreed, causing Misty to shove him scoldingly. “Scooby! Shaggy is your best friend!” she said. “We all know him better than to steal those isotopes!”

“Misty's right. There's no possible way that's Shaggy!” Velma studied the footage again. “He walked right past a box of donuts!”

That's when Fred suddenly had a thought. “You don't suppose Detective Bullock and his men could be...?”

“No. Stay here,” Batman dismissed, standing up. “It's too dangerous for you all to be out on the street.”

“Where are you both going?” Daphne asked as Batman and Ivory got up. “Back to where this all started,” Ivory said with a steely gaze. “Milo's lab. Something about that event still doesn't add up.”

“Ivory... do you really wanna go?” Pipp asked softly. “You haven't been back there since you were a filly.”

“...I don't want to, but I have to,” Ivory admitted with some hesitancy. “To clear your names and make sure you don't suffer behind bars. You're all too good to suffer that fate.”

But as they continued to walk away, Shaggy suddenly decided to speak up. “You mean, we have to stay holed up in this cave... without sustenance?”

“Or anything to eat?” Scooby added. “Well, there is a supply of food in--” Ivory was about to say, but Shaggy and Scooby zipped off before she could finish, leaving her to sigh. “The Bat Dehydrator.”

The dehydrator went to work, dehydrating some food like meats and cheeses and salads into smaller pieces. “It's been shrunk,” Shaggy said in shock. “What horrific device could do this to food?”

“It's evil-- evil, I tell you!” Scooby howled. “It allows me to eat high-caloric meals on the go,” Batman explained. “You know, I bet you two would love eating this stuff,” Ivory smiled at the boys. “Why don't you give it a try? For us, at least?”

Shaggy and Scooby hesitantly picked up the plate and each took a piece of food before eating them, and Shaggy couldn't believe how good it was. “It's like eating a full course meal!”

“In one moisture free bite!” Scooby agreed, and they downed the rest of the food, becoming full pretty fast and belching loudly. Ivory was caught offguard, but ultimately giggled, patting Scooby on the head before getting in the Batmobile, with Batman closely behind. “But, Batman, we wanna help,” said Zipp as she and Velma approached. “Even if we can't get out there and kick some flank.”

Batman tossed Velma the footprint that they took a sample of earlier. “This mud isn't native to the area. Find out where it came from.”

“You're letting us use the Batlab?” Velma asked with a chuckle. “Of course,” Ivory spoke with a small smile. “We are partners, after all.”

And just like that, the Batmobile zoomed out of the cave. “Come on, guys. Let's get to work,” Zipp said. “Batman and Ivory are counting on us to get some work done.”

The group split off to do their individual tasks... well, all except Pipp, Shaggy, Scooby, Sunny and Misty. The blue unicorn was silent as the thought of something, eventually deciding to speak. “Guys... do you think Ivory feels guilty for not being able to protect her dad?”

“I think so,” Sunny said with a nod. “Why else would she want to become a superhero? She'd want to make amends for things she couldn't do when she was a filly.”

“Let's talk to her when she gets back,” Pipp advised gently. “Right now, we have a lot of work to do.”

Clues Coming Together/We're a Family

Batman and Ivory sat in silence during the entire drive over to Milo's lab, and when they finally arrived, Batman turned to his young sidekick. “You know you don't have to come in with me. That mistake was mine, and it has nothing to do with you.”

“...look, you gave me everything. Food, a home, good allies and a chance to do good in this city,” Ivory said, her eyes longing and determined all at once as she gazed at her partner. “And until today, I never told anyone about my father other than you. Those ponies, and the gang and that... that stinking adorable dog took the time to listen and understand the both of us. If I can help them out of trouble... it'll be like making up for not protecting my father as a filly.”

Batman understood where the kirin was coming from, and nodded. He knew that family was important, especially to her. “I'm glad that's clear,” Ivory nodded. “Now, let's get to that lab and clear the gang's names.”

Ivory expertly leapt from surface to surface while Batman used his grappling hook to swing up to the tip level. They removed the police tape and Ivory began to use her horn to pick the lock when a hand punched the door down, causing her to shriek.

Turns out, Aquaman and Slipstream had arrived on the scene, and Aquaman spoke up with a smile. “Indulging in a bit of bat sieuthery, are we?”

“Slipstream, Aquaman! Not really a good time,” Ivory said in a polite tone. “But we heard about all the trouble you, the horses and your hippy sidekicks are in,” Aquaman informed, and Slipstream nudged him scoldingly. “What he's trying to say is... we wanna help.”

“They're not hippies,” Batman corrected. “And you're not--”

“Not detectives. I know, by Neptune,” Aquaman grumbled. “I'm here to lend my fists, not my wits.”

“And Ivory? You know I would do anything for you,” Slipstream said, nudging her friend gently. “I wanna help you through whatever this is. Just say the word.”

Ivory looked worried for a moment, but looking up at Batman, she sighed reluctantly. “Fine. But follow our lead.”

“Outrageous!” Aquaman cheered while Slipstream pumped a hoof. “I shall call this, 'The time I helped Batman defend a gang of horses and juvenile delinquents'!”

Slipstream and Ivory rolled their eyes... when was he ever gonna learn? They began to go inside the building, and not even a few yards in, Batman and Ivory began hearing the voice again. “Batman...”

“Are you guys okay, Batman?” Slipstream asked in concern, noticing the Dark Knight's changed demeanor. “Did you hear... a voice?” Batman asked vaguely, and Aquaman shook his head. “Sorry, old chum,” he responded negatively. “My hearing's as sharp as a swordfish, but...”

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the darkness, and the superheroes stood ready. “I heard that!” Aquaman shouted... just before Question appeared from the shadows. “Question?” Ivory asked, completely surprised. “What are you doing here?”

“Following the threads, same as you,” Question explained as they all regrouped “They all lead here, but it's a dead end.”

“It-- it can't be!” Ivory said with worry. “It's the only way to clear Mystery Incorporated! And Sunny! And the others!”

“The gang isn't behind this,” Question assured her gently. “I'm sure of that.”

“Well, look who's finally learned to have a little faith. And for a change, you're not ending every sentence with a question. I can't tell you how annoying that was. Pull it in for a hug, my blank-faced buddy!” Aquaman hugged Question tightly, causing Question to groan. “Guess I picked up a few bad habits working with you and Batman.”

“You've even developed a sense of humor! Well... of sorts,” Slipstream said as Aquaman set Question down. “This is a night for rejoicing!” Aquaman declared. “That'll have to wait, Aquaman. There's evil afoot,” Batman told him. “Crimson Cloak has rebuilt Milo's teleportation machine.”

“And if he activates it,” Ivory shuddered, “who knows what he may do.”

Suddenly, the entire lab began to shake, and everyone looked on in shock to see the Crimson Cloak materialize in front of them. “Welcome, Dark Knight!”

“Okay, that is scary!” Slipstream shrieked, ears pinning as she stepped back. “Can't be real!”

“It isn't,” Batman reassured her. “But I suspect I know who it is. Leo Scarlett's father, Sam.”

He then decided to speak up to the ghostly being, hoping he could change things around. “Give yourself up, Mr. Scarlett. This won't bring Leo back,” he said to the Crimson Cloak. “Let me help you, please.”

“That name means NOTHING to the Crimson Cloak!” the being declared. “Then… what is it you want?” Ivory asked, a little worry laced within her voice. “Not you, meddlesome creature,” the Crimson Cloak sneered before looking at Batman again. “But you, of course, Batman.”

The Crimson Cloak then attacked, going for the heroes at every angle. Unfortunately, no matter how hard they fought, Batman, Aquaman and their Equestrian friends were caught in the Crimson Cloak’s clutches. “Batman! Aquaman!” Question tried shooting at the Crimson Cloak, but it knocked him into the wall, and causing some debris to fall on him. “Question!” Ivory screamed. “NO!!”

“Don’t worry about him, protege of the Dark Knight,” the Crimson Cloak sneered. “Fear for yourselves…”

And that was the last thing that Ivory remembered before being knocked out.

XXXXXXXX

Back in the Batcave, Velma put a sample from the footprint under the microscope to study more closely. “Now to see if I can identify the soil from this footprint. Zipp, can you get me some water to put in this dish, please?”

“Coming right up!” Zipp said. But while their attention was on something else, the mud actually came to life and went back into the footprint, just as Velma and Zipp returned. “Oookay,” Zipp blinked. “That was weird.”

“Guys? Something strange...” Velma turned to call to the others, but when they re-turned around, the footprint had disappeared entirely. “...is going on.”

Suddenly, a giant bug made of dirt sprung up from beside them, frightening Zipp and Velma enough to make them run. “Jeepers!” Daphne exclaimed. “The mud’s alive!”

“But how?!” Hitch screeched, and soon, everyone else joined the chase as they ran past. “Okay,” Misty panted, “so now we’re in a chase with possessed dirt?!”

“Oh, I don’t know!” Izzy said, panting exhaustedly. “Dirt can be a lot of fun! But still… not really used to it chasing us!”

“Clearly, the chemicals in the stolen isotope spilled into the ground,” Velma said quickly as they ran, “resulting in stimulation of the silicon particles which--”

“Velma, this isn’t helping!” Zipp interrupted. “There’s no rational explanation for this!”

“Not the mane, not the mane! NOT THE MANE!!” Pipp shrieked, diving to avoid the dirt. “But,” Fred said as he avoided dirt, “it must be linked with the case somehow!”

“You think?!” Scooby shrieked, and the monster leaping at them caused the ponies to split the gang up, and the ponies to stand ready. “Take this you big bug!” Zipp stomped the ground, causing lightning to try and shock the monster, but it did no good. Neither did Pipp or Sunny’s superpowers! “It’s no good!” Hitch said. “It’s like it has no reaction to our superpowers!”

The ponies then screamed and ran, with Sunny realizing one thing. “We need Ivory and Batman!”

XXXXXXXX

Ivory slowly began to open her eyes, head throbbing in pain, before she realized something-- she and her friends, including Batman, who was awake as well, were tied up, hanging upside down from the ceiling as the Crimson Cloak materialized below them. “Awaken, Batman,” it hissed. “You wouldn't want to miss the final moments of you and your little friends’ lives.”

Ivory, truth be told, was scared upon this, and Batman could sense it. Nevertheless, he let the kirin speak to try and reform the ghostly figure. “Leo, listen to me,” the kirin said with sad and scared eyes. “We--”

“Leo is gone,” the Crimson Cloak snarled. “There is only the Crimson Cloak!”

“But you don’t have to be!” Ivory pleaded. “You can be so much more than a villain bent for revenge!”

“You don’t know what it was like for me!” the creature snapped. “Floating in that teleportation portal, not having anyone to save you?! Batman deserves the same pain I felt so long ago…”

Ivory closed her eyes with a sniffle at that, not wanting the one who saved her as a young filly to perish like her father. “I'm sorry,” Batman tried to apologize. “Let me help you.”

“Too late. You didn't save me,” the Crimson Cloak sneered, moving over to a lever. “And no one will save you. Behold! I have repaired what you destroyed!”

He began to activate the machine just as Aquaman and Slipstream began to wake, and Slipstream tried to comfort her frightened friend. That's when Aquaman saw the Crimson Cloak begin to bubble and groan, causing him to gasp. “Suffering sand dollars! I know you're a ghost, but pull yourself together!”

That's when Batman suddenly realized who was behind this entire ruse. “Great Scott, that's it! How could I have not known?”

XXXXXXXX

Everypony was back in hiding in the Batcave, trying to make sure that the mud monster didn't see them. “Fred...!” Pipp, Zipp, Velma and Daphne said quietly while Velma and Daphne shook him. “Plan...!”

“Okay, okay,” Fred ultimately came up with an on-the-spot idea. “Misty, Shag, Scoob? You're...”

“The bait?” the three friends chorused, looking at the wall with deadpan expressions on their faces. “Shocker.”

“Don't worry,” Sunny assured them. “I'll be right there to help in case things go out of hoof.”

Suddenly, mud dripped down on their heads, and this ultimately led to one thought... the mud monster was right behind them.

The four screamed and ran, causing the monster to chase them all around the Batcave, and once they were close enough to the dehydrator, they parted ways and let the monster dive inside. Hitch strained as he and Fred pressed against the door. “Turn the dehydrator on!”

Velma pushed the lever, and everyone pressed up against the sides to keep the monster from escaping, and the water was quickly drained from it, turning it to dust within minutes. “Phew...”

“See, guys? This is why mud is so dangerous for the mane and other pony parts!” Pipp said with a bit of emphasis. Velma quickly decided to ignore that and hummed at the dust inside the machine. “It's only dust.”

“This is all starting to make sense now,” Daphne said before going to the computer. “There's only one villain who could be responsible. Watch this.”

Pressing a button, Daphne instantly showed who was responsible, much to the shock of the others. “No way!” Shaggy cried. “I don't believe it!” Fred exclaimed. “Believe it!” Zipp told her friends. “We've got to warn Batman!”

She pushed her hoof on the button to contact Batman through his utility belt, but all the group saw was the Crimson Cloak, causing them to gasp. “He and Ivory have been captured!” Sunny cried. “We have to go out and help them!”

“How?” Shaggy asked her. “We're wanted by every police officer, villain, and superhero in Gotham!”

Scooby nodded quickly, just as Fred turned to the costumes in thought. “What is it, Fred?” Misty asked “Plan B,” Fred told her. “And B is for bat.”

The rest of the gang seemed to get what he was saying, and as they smiled wide, Fred turned to look at Izzy. “Multi-Crafter, I'm gonna need some help with these costume fittings.”

“Say no more, Frederoni!” Izzy said in a determined tone. “One set of gang-sized Batman themed costumes coming right up!”

XXXXXXXX

Within a matter of 20 minutes, the gang was all suited up and ready to go.

Scooby was dressed as Ace the Bat Hound

Shaggy was Nightwing

Fred was in the original Batman costume

Velma was Robin, the Boy Wonder

Daphne was dressed as Batgirl

As the gang adjusted to their new gadgets and outfits, Misty felt a rising feeling in her gut to say something, so she stepped forward. “Guys? In case we... we don't make it out of this alive... there's something I need to say.”

As all attention was turned on her, Misty took a deep breath before she began to softly sing.

Misty: What is the key to a family? (Oh, oh)
What is the key to a home?
What is the part that I'm missin' (Oh, oh)
To help me find where I belong?

Shaggy: I'm searchin', I'm lookin' for somethin'

Scooby: Something that comes from the heart (From the heart)

Shaggy: Like, cause sometimes you need somethin' to lift ya up
And help to reignite your spark

Misty was surprised to hear her friends singing along with her, but ultimately smiled and sang the next verse.

Misty: E-E-E-Even when it feels so confusin' when you're alone

Shaggy, Scooby and Misty: You kno-o-o-ow we've got each other to find our way home

Cause I've got you and you've got me
We're closer than close friends, yeah, we're a family
If you're feelin' low or incomplete
You've always got me, yeah, we're a family

The ponies felt so moved when they heard this, and ultimately decided go join in.

Hitch: Together when there are good times (Oh, oh)
Together when times are tough

Misty: Times are tough

Sunny: Together when things need celebratin'
And when you think that you've had enough

Zipp: Cause I-I-I-I-I know you better than anypony else

Ponies, Shaggy and Scooby: And you-u-u-u-u know me better than I know myself

Cause I've got you and you've got me
Cause when you're with your friends, yeah, you're with your family
Keep 'em in your heart 'cause that is the key
Oh, when you're with your friends, yeah, you're with your family

I've got you and you've got me
Cause we are just friends, no, we're a family
When you're feelin' lonely or incomplete
Don't forget about your friends, yeah, they're your family

Oh-whoa, oh, oh, oh
Oh-whoa, oh, oh, oh, oh-whoa-oh
Oh-whoa, oh, oh, oh

Cause when you're with your friends, yeah, you're with your family

After the song ended, she looked toward her touched friends. “Misty... that was beautiful. We loved it,” Sunny smiled. “Thank you.”

“You're welcome. But we can talk more about it later,” Misty said. “Cause our hero friends need heroes right now.”

Unmasking of the Crimson Cloak/The Final Battle Ensues

Back in the lab, the Crimson Cloak was dangerously close to activating the teleportation machine fully, and Batman was developing a plan to get them all out. “Slipstream, Aquaman, keep him distracted.”

“Will do, Bat-a-boo,” Slipstream smirked. “I'll masterfully misdirect that malevolent miscreant,” Aquaman added before he turned to the Crimson Cloak. “Hey there, buddy. Let's not be too hasty with those buttons. After all, theft is one thing, but this...”

“No loose ends.”

“Oh, yeah-- loose ends,” Slipstream said as Batman began to cut the ropes around him loose. “That reminds me of the time Mera made her famous squid entrail casserole.”

“Oh, unfortunately,” Aquaman continued, “the squid had gone bad and…”

“Ah ah ah,” the Crimson Cloak caught onto Batman’s scheme. “No tricks, Dark Knight.”

He quickly tied up Batman’s hands to one of the support beams before turning to the control panel. “And now, dear Batman, it’s your turn to be scattered everywhere!”

He slammed on a button, fully activating the machine, much to the horror of Slipstream and Ivory. “So ends the world’s greatest detective,” the Crimson Cloak said before he started bubbling up again. “And what's left of Gotham City will be the criminal underworld's to do with as it pleases!”

Suddenly, a bat-a-rang flew out of nowhere and hit the switch, causing the machine to switch off. “What?!” the Crimson Cloak snarled as a bat-shaped figure rose from the darkness. “Desist with this depraved disintegration, you diabolical despot!”

Then, from out of the shadows of night, emerged the ponies and the gang in their superhero attire. “The Unity League and the Bat Gang have arrived!” Fred declared, and then, the group shouted together, striking poses, “Prepare to face… the hammers of justice!”

But after a moment of striking poses, Izzy giggled optimistically. “This is fun! Can we do this every Unity Quest?”

“Don’t ruin the moment, Izzy!” Zipp shushed her, and they all resumed their poses until Shaggy spoke up. “Like, um… what’s next?”

“This!” Sunny said as she shifted into her alicorn form. The ponies leapt down from their position while most of the gang swung down using their grappling hooks. When Shaggy tried to follow, he stepped too far back, fell and did three 360 spins in mid air before landing on his feet. “Pega-tastic!” Slipstream said in awe. “Now that’s what I call an entrance!”

“MORE DISTRACTIONS!!” the Crimson Cloak snarled before splitting into several different parts, and each part formed into a Batman villain lookalike for the gang to deal with. “Jeepers!” Daphne cried. “He’s turned into Bat villains!”

“What do we do?” Misty asked worriedly, and as the villains ran their way, Scooby had only one thought in mind. “RUUUUN!!!”

And that’s just what the gang did, running throughout the building several times before most of them, except Zipp and Fred, became cornered, the ponies lined up to defend their powerless friends. “Like,” Shaggy said, “isn’t someone supposed to say ‘holy something’ about now?!”

“Oh, um… Holy surrounded by Bat villains!” Velma attempted. “Mmm… not quite,” Daphne said, not feeling that to be the right phrase. “Try… Holy custer’s last stand, Batman!”

“How are you so good at this?!” Hitch wondered. “NOW!!” Fred cried, and the ponies sent down smoke bombs before Sunny, Zipp and Pipp flew higher to escape the villainous imposters, and the rest used their grappling hooks. Once solid again, the Crimson Cloak looked to the rafters in confusion. “Huh?”

“Have a taste of the Bat Dehydrator!” Zipp slammed her hoof down on a button, and all the water from the Crimson Cloak got sucked into the machine, leaving nothing but twitching dust in its place. “I can’t believe it!” Ivory said in amazement. “You did it!”

“We just did what you guys woulda done,” Misty said. “You know, if you weren’t tied up and everything.”

“You guys stay here,” Sunny told her friends. “I better get them down before the police and Mystery Analysts get here and think we did this.”

XXXXXXXX

Soon enough, after Sunny used her alicorn powers to cut Batman, Aquaman and their pony sidekicks free, the other Analysts arrived with Hoof Beatz and Paradise, as well as Detective Bullock and some other officers. Plastic Man looked around with a frown at the damage that was done to the property. “Looks like we missed the party.”

“We all did.”

Everyone turned to see Question, safe and not harmed, coming out from the debris that fell on him earlier. “Took me a while to dig myself out from under all that rubble.”

“Hey… Ivory?” Hoof Beatz said, coming closer. “We’re really sorry if it seemed like we ever thought you would do this. We know you wouldn’t.”

“We knew you were going through a hard time with whatever was in that case file, like Batman was,” Paradise added. “We should’ve cut all of you some slack and stuck by you. Can you ever forgive us?”

“Of course I can. We’re a team, remember? Now and forever,” Ivory said before bringing her friends in for a hug. “Aww…” Scooby cooed, looking at Misty. “That’s so sweet.”

“Yeah… it really is,” Misty nodded softly as they brought the dusty remains of the Crimson Cloak over. “Now for the unmasking,” Zipp said. “Unfortunately, there’s really not a mask to pull off this time.”

“Allow me,” Velma added a drop of water to the dust, allowing it to take shape. “Observe-- the Crimson Cloak is actually… Clayface.”

“His real name is Basil Karlo,” Daphne said as Pipp brought up information about him on her phone. “An actor who was transformed into living clay,” the pink pegasus explained, “and can mold himself into anything.”

“Or anyone,” Ivory added. “That’s why my telepathy didn’t pick him up,” Martian Manhunter realized. “But for what motive?”

“I picked up a corrosive bacteria strain. My body was breaking down, getting harder to maintain my shape,” Clayface explained. “It was easier to split into several parts.”

“Been there done that,” Martian Manhunter and Plastic Man said at once. “But how could a teleportation machine help?” Black Canary wondered. “I was offered a cure,” Clayface continued. “Just another acting role, I guess. All I had to do was help him by stealing the isotopes and framing you kids.”

“Help who?” Detective Bullock questioned. “The real culprit behind this entire plot,” Batman said. “The Riddler.”

“The Riddler?!” everyone questioned, and Clayface nodded in confirmation. “Once he had the machine, he would hand over a cure. I suppose he was just acting, too.”

“And with us taking the blame,” said Sunny, “the Riddler would be free to carry out whatever plan he had with this machine, and we wouldn’t be able to stop him.”

To this, Detective Bullock sighed. “All right. Guess you kids ain't guilty of anything. Except maybe bad taste in fashion,” he said, leading the officers out. “Okay, let's get this ball of mud back to Blackgate.”

As they walked away with Clayface, Izzy felt a twinge of sympathy in her heart for the shapeshifter. “I almost feel sorry for him. Even if he did try and kill us and let a prison riot go on.”

“He’ll be fully rehydrated, Multi-Crafter,” Batman told her as they left the lab, “once he’s securely back behind prison walls.”

“Now, see here, old chap,” Detective Chimp spoke up. “How could Riddler have orchestrated so complex a plan from Arkham?”

“...because the Riddler was never at Arkham.”

“Jinkies!” Velma cried. “Wow,” Fred shook his head. “I-I don’t understand.”

“Outrageous!” Aquaman said. “Okay,” Hoof Beatz said, “I’m completely confused.”

Once everyone was silent, Batman used his walkie-talkie to contact the security guard at Arkham to check on the Riddler. When the guard said the Riddler was still in his cell, Batman didn’t believe it. “Check again.”

This time, the guard went to the Riddler’s cell and tapped on him, watching as he crumbled to dust. “What?! Arkham to Batman! It’s not the Riddler! It’s--”

“Another Clayface decoy,” said Batman, putting the walkie talkie away. “So… he’s out there?!” Hitch cried. “Roaming the streets?!”

“Where is he?” Zipp asked. “Closer than you think,” Ivory said, just as Batman put handcuffs on the Question. “I believe you kids are owed a true unmasking.”

Batman ripped off the Question’s faceless face, revealing none other than the mastermind criminal underneath. “THE RIDDLER?!” everyone shrieked in shock, and Paradise blinked for a few moments. “Okay, this is getting redundant.”

“Incredible!” Black Canary said. “How long was he posing as the Question?”

“Ever since our fight at the bank a day or two ago,” Ivory said. “So,” said Fred, “Clayface pretended to be the Riddler.”

“Giving the Riddler the chance to ambush the Question!” Misty said as Pipp crossed her hooves. “A sneaky shell game if you ask me.”

“Blazes! How did you suss that out, good man?” Detective Chimp asked. “We didn’t,” Ivory said. “We were too distracted by the Crimson Cloak… and each, our own sense of failure.”

Batman then went over to Aquaman with a smile. “It was Aquaman's keen observational skill that noticed Question's changed demeanor.”

“What the what?” Slipstream blinked in surprise. “Oh, right. Yes, of course, old chum,” Aquaman slapped Batman on the back. “Don't mention it. We detectives have to stick together! Ha ha ha… um…”

“Is being a superhero all about the twist endings?” Izzy asked. “Cause it feels like there are a lot in this quest-- more than last season, even.”

“Like, it feels weird that we didn't solve the crime or do the wrap-up, even,” Shaggy said as Fred began to look downtrodden. “Yeah, maybe you were right to begin with, Batman. We aren't ready for the big leagues.”

“Actually, you’ve more than earned your place on the Mystery Analysts team,” Batman told the groups. “Ivory and I wouldn't have reopened or solved this case at all… if it weren't for you meddling kids.”

As Velma shook Batman’s hand, Ivory pulled Misty, Sunny and Scooby in for a hug, which the three gladly accepted before Batman approached the Riddler. “Okay, Riddler, it's time to get you back to your cell at Arkham.”

“And to think,” the Riddler sighed, “I almost got away with… oh, wait. I did get away with it.”

Zipp gave him a narrowed, confused gaze. “What are you talking about?”

“One last riddle-- how is this moment like the end of a boxing match?” the Riddler asked. “Because the gloves are off!”

He quickly detached the handcuffs and threw off his disguise, giving him enough time to run back inside the lab. “After him!” Sunny shouted, and they all ran after him, back into the main sector of the lab, where the Riddler’s henchmen were waiting. “End of the line, you warped wordsmith!” Zipp shouted. “You and your goons are outnumbered! Uh… did I say that right?”

“Better than me, actually,” Ivory chuckled. “This game has just begun!” the Riddler told the superheroes. “You should know that the answer to every riddle is an even bigger one!”

He activated the lever, activating the machine once more before a platform raised the teleportation machine out of the building, creating a hole in the roof so it overlooked the entire city. “With this device, I can riddle your precious city into oblivion!” the Riddler shouted. “It can vaporize entire sections of Gotham! I need only pick a target, press a button and zap-- it vanishes… FOREVER! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!”

Everyone stood from the ground in horror as the Riddler used the screen in front of him to select a target. “First up… say goodbye to City Hall!”

“Riddle me this-- what just hit you?” said a male voice before the Question punched the Riddler back down to the ground. “Answer? The Question.”

As the Riddler fell to the ground in defeat, the other Mystery Analysts took care of the goons, leaving them all heaped up in a pile. “Question!” Paradise shouted from below. “Lower the shield!”

The Question pushed the lever down again, but the device still wouldn’t turn off. “It’s not working!”

“We need to shut it down!” Fred shouted. “I’m afraid it’s on a chain reaction,” Martian Manhunter explained. “It cannot be stopped.”

“Batman!” Velma cried. “You’ll have to destroy it!”

Batman prepared to swing up there and destroy it himself when the same rasping voice was heard again… but this time, Scooby could hear it too. “That voice…” Batman muttered. “How can we still be hearing it?”

but Fred looked around and listened with a frown. “I don’t hear anything!”

“Me neither!” Daphne shrugged. “I heard it!” Scooby said, and Ivory turned to the dog in surprise. “You did?”

Scooby nodded before he spotted a figure floating within the portal, eyes widening as he pointed to it. “And see it!”

“Bangers and mash!” Detective Chimp shouted as soon as the others saw it. “It looks like… a man!”

“I know who it is! We need to reverse the polarity!” Batman said as he swung up to the platform. “Impossible! It’s too late, Batman!” Martian Manhunter said. “It’s not impossible-- we can all help!” Zipp said. “But we have to work together as a team!”

“Shaggy, Pipp, Izzy, Fred, Daphne, Detective Chimp!” Velma gave some orders. “Flip every other relay to reverse phasing!”

Everyone rushed off to do what they could, but Ivory remained frozen in fear for a few moments. Sunny seemed to know what she was thinking, and approached her with Scooby on the other side. “You wanna help, don’t you?”

“How did you know?”

“Lucky guess. We wanna help too. I can carry you up there,” Sunny said, picking Ivory up in her aura and flapped her wings. “Scooby, follow my lead!”

Scooby darted up the rubble as a staircase, just as Batman secured his grappling hook to the side of the platform and inched closer to the portal, trying to grab whoever was within. “Can’t get leverage…”

Suddenly, the railing began to fly off, and Sunny gasped upon noticing it. “I’ll try to keep hold of you two so you won’t fly in, but we have to do it NOW!!”

Ivory and Scooby understood, and as Batman was nearby halfway into the portal, he felt a tug on his cape. It was Scooby, whose tail was grabbed by Ivory, and her tail was grabbed by Sunny as they worked as a team to rescue Batman and the unknown victim from within.

Down below, everyone else was holding on for dear life as the power of the portal seemed to be at its peak. “Hurry!” Velma shouted. “It’s about to overload!”

Batman strained and finally grabbed Scooby’s paw, giving the group the signal to pull as hard as they could, finally pulling Batman and the victim out of the portal before it finally exploded.

That’s the last thing Sunny remembered before the entire world went dark.

A Mystery Finally Solved/Heading Home

Everyone could only look on in worry as their friends remained unconscious after they fell from the platform after the teleportation machine exploded… and the ponies were trying not to fear the worst, but… it was hard. Aquaman finally moved Batman’s cape so they could get a clearer view. “Batman?”

A groan finally came from Sunny, who stirred as her alicorn form faded away. “Did we do it…?” she asked. “Is everypony okay?”

“We’re fine now!” Misty said joyously as Sunny’s friends enveloped her in a huge hug, cheering and laughing. Scooby woke next, giggling and rolling over to be included in the hug, which now included Shaggy. Ivory woke next, slowly getting to her hooves, and then, Batman and the young man from the portal woke up, the young man feeling himself. “I’m… alive?”

“Leo Scarlett,” Batman smiled. “Welcome home.”

Ivory gasped and ran over to Batman hugging him tight, causing him to rub her down gently. “Aww…” Misty smiled. “Ivory found a family with Batman. That’s so sweet!”

“It is,” Zipp nodded. “But first, we have work to do.”

XXXXXXXX

Leo Scarlett was checked out by some EMTs immediately after getting out of the portal, and Velma decided to explain a few things to Batman and Ivory. “Your first encounter with the machine put you in tune with the teleporter's frequency.”

“But only when you were near the isotopes used in the original device,” Hitch added. “So,” Ivory spoke, “that's why we kept hearing him at the crime scenes!”

“Now we understand why you didn't tell us about all this,” Paradise told Ivory. “But what matters is, you don't have to live with the voices anymore.”

“There you are!” said a voice, and an elderly man came toward Batman. “Professor Scarlett,” Batman greeted. “Thank you, Caped Crusader, for saving my son!” said the professor, shaking Batman's hand as Leo approached. “I can't give you back the years you've lost, but I'm sure you have many more ahead.”

And with that, the professor and his son got in their car and drove off to get reconnected after so many years. “So, Bats,” said Black Canary, “how does it feel to have your unsolved case solved?”

“It feels... good,” Batman admitted. “But I couldn't have done it without my friends. Especially Ivory, the ponies and Scooby and the gang.”

Pipp let out a squeal at that. “He just called us his friends! Us! Eee-hee-hee!”

“You realize that leaves him with a clean slate of solved cases, right?” Detective Chimp said before scowling. “Overachiever...”

“There'll be no living with him now,” Plastic Man muttered. “As if there was before,” Martian Manhunter agreed before he and Plastic Man high fived. Batman then turned to the gang, admiring their new attire. “Mystery Incorporated, you filled those suits well.”

“Aw, shucks,” Scooby giggled. “And in more ways than one,” Ivory said. “For too long, I always thought my father's... death was my fault, and the case we abandoned always made me think of not being able to save him. But... you helped me think differently. I can finally let go and rest, knowing my father is in a safe place... and so am I.”

As she said these words, suddenly, Ivory began glowing and lifting off the ground. “Wha... what is this?” the kirin said in surprise. “What's happening?!”

As the magic continued to circle around her, fairy-like wings began to form on her body, causing everyone to gasp and cheer in delight. “Wings?” Ivory spoke. “I-I don't understand. I'm not even a pony. How could I have done this?”

“Because... being able to let go of the blame for your father's death gave you new hope,” Sunny told her. “And in doing so... it gave you wings, making you--”

“A kirin alicorn?” Pipp asked with a squeal. “This is really turning out to be something!”

“Yes, heh...” Ivory flapped her new wings. “It really is.”

Velma sighed and finally took off the mask and put on her glasses. “Finally, we can relax.”

“Nope, afraid not,” Fred took off his mask, prompting the other gang members to do the same. “Tonight is our last night in Gotham.”

“Aww...”

“Then until our next adventure,” Batman said. “It's been an honor, Mystery Incorporated.”

He and Ivory bid everyone farewell and as they began to walk away, Velma pulled out her notebook. “Actually, there's one remaining mystery that we've finally solved.”

“The biggest question of them all, who is the Batman?” Fred crossed his arms, and Zipp smirked victoriously. “And we finally figured out the answer.”

Shaggy and Scooby nodded, and this caused all attention to be on them as Daphne continued. “Batman is the warmest, kindest, most big-hearted soul we've ever met. A great big teddy bat.”

“Aww...” Plastic Man and Paradise cooed. “Then, I hope you'll keep that to yourself,” Batman told them. “The criminal underworld would have a field day if they knew.”

“Your secret is safe with us,” Sunny said with a smile, and Hoof Beatz merely chuckled. “No promises.”

Suddenly, a portal opened nearby, prompting Misty to sigh. “We better head home, guys. See you soon, everyone! Thanks for everything!”

With that, and several waves goodbye, the ponies sped off and jumped into the portal before it closed. Before Batman and Ivory went off a few seconds later, Batman pulled out a bat-shaped cookie from his utility belt. “I almost forgot,
a bat snack for Scooby. You've earned it.”

He tossed the snack to Scooby, but before it could get to Scooby, Shaggy caught it in his mouth as Batman and Ivory swung and flew out of sight, and Scooby let out a howl to the sky: “Holy Scooby-Dooby-Doooooo, Batman!”