AU - The aftermath of Forever Evil if it had occurred in the old DCU. A series of drabbles and ficlets most focusing on the friends and family of Nightwing. Part one - Scream. Black Canary hears a scream not her own.
This little series is mostly personal wish-fulfilment – I liked Forever Evil, but felt that the emotional impact would have hit much harder before the reboot, where Nightwing had a lot more friends and connections.
Tears are Forever
Scream
Black Canary knew that there were some sounds you never forgot. The first time she'd let out a canary cry was one of them. Then, it had seemed like the loudest, most devastating sound possible. She still recalled her own ears ringing in the aftermath. She had never imagined that the scream of another would burn into her memory so much that her own would seem to pale in comparison.
Then the Crime Syndicate came and took Nightwing, plucking him from the sky before he could even react. They'd flaunted his capture, unmasked him, beaten him, before wiring him up to the murder machine. To the bomb that only his death could diffuse.
They'd tried to rescue him. Teams across the globe had worked tirelessly to get him. She had Huntress had been working with Oracle, who had remained remarkably calm under the circumstances. Oracle's commands had come across loud and clear through her communicator, directing them to where the syndicate were holding Nightwing. The remaining members of the Justice League were only slightly ahead of them.
She'd been so close. Just a few more minutes and she'd have found a way to join them, maybe a way to stop the sequence of events with Oracle's help. She'd reassured her friend all the way, telling they'd find him, get him out – that it would be okay.
Yet when the vidfeed had popped up on a nearby screen, she'd still been too far away. She hadn't been able to do anything but watch as Batman tried and failed to diffuse the bomb. Still, she'd held out hope, right until Luthor had attacked Batman, leaving the Dark Knight trying to regain his footing, powerless as Luthor apologised quietly before suffocating Nightwing.
She still remembered the horrifying sound of the heart monitor flat-lining and the once-proud hero's head slumping forward lifelessly before the feed was cut and the screens went black.
That was when Oracle screamed.
END