Author's Notes:
Yay! I'm finally done with this chapter! Yeah, I hit a writer's block a couple times, but here it is at last!
Please R&R and enjoy...
Gotham
A little less than half an hour after leaving Blüdhaven, Dick and Coba arrived at Wayne Manor. They entered the large structure, closing the door behind them, before having the grandfather clock slide away from where a cavern leading to the Batcave was and grimly walking down the stone steps. As soon as they entered, a gruff voice greeted them. "Spellbinder got away?"
"Glad to see you too, Bruce," Grayson muttered under his breath.
"Yeah," Coba gravely answered Bruce, immediately surprised that her voice was still raspy from nearly being strangled to death by Deathstroke. She looked around the cave. "Where are Terry, Dana and Herbst?"
Bruce swiveled around in the computer chair. Coba suppressed a shudder, recalling that the most recent time he had done that nearly caused her to fall off the edge of a cliff in shock, right before learning the truth of how they were related... "Terry took Dana home," Bruce said sagely, bringing the girl out of her thoughts. "She was still in a state of shock, but not to the point she needed to be hospitalized. Herbst is resting on the other side of the cave, in the lab." His tone hardened. "What happened out there?" Bruce demanded to know. "Where's Spellbinder?"
"Deathstroke happened," Dick answered bitterly, his eye narrowed in a fierce glare at the mention of the villain's name. And yet, Coba could sense something else in his voice, something like fear. Without needing to ask, the girl knew why he was feeling this way: Slade had nearly killed both him and Coba, though Dick was more worried about Coba than he was himself, and Coba vice versa. "Spellbinder got away," the man added.
Wayne sat bolt upright in surprise at the news, his eyes betraying his shock and concern. "Are you both all right?"
"Yes, we're fine," Nightwing reassured him. "We might need to check Coba's neck to make sure nothing's damaged, though."
"It's nothing," Brooklyn stated, her voice still rasping. "It's just the bruising: makes it painful to speak around it. I'll be fine, really."
Bruce was noticeably relieved that the two of them were not in bad condition, yet there was still a hint of concern in his eyes for the youngest. "What happened? And be specific," he prompted Grayson.
The original Batman's first sidekick explained everything about how they had chased Spellbinder down, and Slade's unexpected intervention and short tussle with them.
"He thought something strange just before he left, Bruce," Coba said once her grandfather was done speaking. "In his thought he stated I wouldn't be so lucky next time, but then he stated the same about you. Why would he go after you?"
"I'm Batman, remember?" Bruce pointed out.
"You were Batman," Dick corrected.
"I still am Batman," Bruce persisted, a bit irritated.
Before Dick could say anything, Coba jumped to her father's defense. "Physically? No. Mentally? Yes."
Wayne nodded in agreement at Coba's words, some sorrow in his eyes. "Besides, mine and Slade's paths have crossed several times. It's only natural that he'd still hold a grudge against me, even as a weak old man." He was silent for a moment, then he looked back at Coba. "Why don't you go up and get some rest? You've had a rough time tonight."
Not as rough as usual, though, Coba thought, wisely choosing not to say it out loud to avoid upsetting Bruce. She could clearly tell that he was trying to get her out of the cave for reasons aside from her encounter with Slade, the man who had been out to kill her since her infancy, but said nothing. Instead, she turned to Bruce and Dick. "Alright. Good night, both of you."
"Good night, kid," Grayson stated, managing a smile as he side-hugged his granddaughter. Bruce, however, remained gravely silent.
Coba returned Dick's hug before turning and walking out of the cave. What are they going to be talking about? she wondered. She shrugged it off. Well, if it's extremely important, one of them will tell me tomorrow. Or will they? she thought suddenly, suppressing an uncomfortable shudder. If they don't trust me, how can I trust them? How can any of us hope to defeat Slade without that trust? Coba shook her head as she stepped into the manor. Don't go jumping to conclusions, kid. They haven't proven any of that yet. But... will they?
~!~
After over two hours of running, Spellbinder came to a stop in front of an old abandoned warehouse. He cautiously peered through the broken windows, then walked through the doorway, which only had a half-unhinged steel door. The psychologist glanced around at his surroundings apprehensively. "Hello?" he called.
"Hello to you, too."
Spellbinder spun around in surprise to see Shriek standing there. Shreeve channeled his suit, then sent a sound wave at Billings. Spellbinder jumped out of the wave's path just in time, causing it to strike a wall and blow a hole in it. He looked back at his assailant. "Are you insane?!" he yelled.
Shriek smiled behind his sound mask. "You tell me. You're the psychiatrist." He lifted his arm up, ready to fire another wave at Ira.
"You'll bury us both!" Spellbinder protested.
"That's the least of my worries," Shriek retorted.
The villainous psychiatrist now knew that there was no chane of talking sense into the sound genius. With this in mind, he pulled out the sphere from his satchel and held it in front of Shriek. It flashed white after a moment...
...just as Shriek released another sound vibration.
The energy from Spellbinder's sphere collided with the energy of Shriek's sound blast, causing a cyclone to form between the two villains. The cyclone soared upwards towards the roof, instantly breaking through it and leaving a large hole there. Shriek and Spellbinder stood where they were for a moment, unsure of what to make of what had just happened.
"Impressive," a voice said from behind. "That was more than I had hoped to see, though I didn't anticipate that you would possibly attract outside attention."
Shreeve and Billings turned in shock to see a large male figure standing at the edge of the shadows. The man gazed at them through his only eye. Spellbinder was the first to recognize him. "You're the one who—" he started.
"Yes, I am," the man cut him off. "I also took the liberty of getting your equipment back for you."
"You left the note on them to meet you here, as well?" Shriek inquired. He glanced at Spellbinder, then back at the man. "And why didn't you say anything about him?"
"Some things are better left unsaid," the man stated matter-of-factually.
"This isn't one of them!" Spellbinder snarled. "There is no way that I'm working with him!" He pointed meaningfully at Shriek.
"Nor I him," Shriek growled, peeved about being singled-out by the psychiatrist.
The man glowered at them through the only eye hole in his mask. "You don't have much choice."
The two villains were about to attack him when a large computer screen popped up from behind them. How can there be a computer like that in this dump? Shriek wondered, not realizing that Spellbinder was thinking the same thing. The screen split into three parts. One part each showed the villains' labs, but the other part showed something that shook the sound expert to his core. There, in a small apartment complex, was a pale-skinned man. Ollie! Shreeve almost shouted. Despite being rough on him sometimes, Shreeve secretly admired Ollie, though mostly for his ability to obey without question.
"Let me put this into terms you'll understand," the one-eyed man stated. "If you join me and agree to pool your skills, I guarantee that your equipment—" he glanced at Shriek— "and your partner—" he shifted his gaze back to both villains— "will come to no harm. If you disagree... well, you won't like the consequences for yourselves or your life's work."
And I thought I was insane, Shriek thought, successfully suppressing a shudder. He did not need to be told to know what the man was planning if he and Spellbinder did not cooperate: to destroy their labs, Ollie, and place them back in prison. Shriek glanced at Spellbinder, then the screens, then Spellbinder again, then at the strange man. "You have my cooperation." I really did not want to be the first to say that, he thought ruefully, but it had to be done. For my work. For my freedom. For Ollie.
Spellbinder looked at the one-eyed man as well. "You have mine as well... Deathstroke," he said tonelessly.
"Good," Deathstroke said darkly. "You are welcome to stay here for the night. We shall begin tomorrow." At that, he turned and left the large room, grinning darkly to himself behind his mask. This time, Bruce, you won't be getting off so easy. The same goes for your little psychic daughter.
After Deathstroke left, Spellbinder and Shriek glared at each other before going to opposite sides of the warehouse and leaning against large crates, not once turning their backs on each other. Once again, both reluctant partners thought the same thing: What am I getting myself into?
~!~
As soon as Coba entered her bedroom, she shut the door and sat on her bed. She turned on a small radio that was on a small table next to her bed, then pressed a few buttons. Bruce'll have my head if he finds out I'm doing this, she thought, but something tells me that I need to know what he and Grandfather are talking about. After a second, she was hearing the rest of their conversation from a mic she had hidden beneath the Batcomputer.
"...So how's Coba's training going?" Bruce inquired.
"It's going good, but she's trying to rush herself and keeps losing focus," Dick answered solemnly. "She doesn't want to stop for breaks, and that's hurting her physically, considering how often she falls."
"Then get her to slow down and manage her balance!" Bruce growled. "She'll get killed by Slade if she doesn't learn properly."
"I know that," Grayson said as calmly as he could, though Coba could sense the rising impatience in his voice. "But she's scared, Bruce. Not just for herself, but for the rest of us... especially you right now."
"Why would she be afraid for me when Slade's after her?"
"He's after you as well, remember?"
"I'm surprised he's not after you: you were one of his major opponents. I was more of a minor." Bruce let out a sigh of despair. "There's something I don't like about this that I'm missing. Coba might feel the same way, but—"
"But what?" Dick said a bit harshly.
Bruce remained silent, then sighed once more. "I don't want to scare her even more." He paused again. Brooklyn imagined he was noticing Dick's confused look. "He might know I was Batman, and he may come for Coba."
"Come on, Bruce: that's not his style. If he wanted to do that, he'd have done it a long time ago."
"He might not have known about my identity until now."
"I think he's known for a long, long time," Dick replied sagely. "It's against his code of conduct to say it directly."
"And I suppose you would know that better than anyone else," Wayne stated bitterly. "You were his apprentice, after all."
Coba's eyes grew wide in shock. "What is he talking about?" she wondered quietly.
"I thought I told you not to bring that up," Nightwing growled. "Besides, I've taken more notes of his behaviors since then, when fighting him."
"Have you told Coba about it, yet?" Bruce inquired, a hint of concern in his voice.
Dick was silent for a brief moment. "No. I'll tell her when I feel she's ready to know."
"That may not be soon enough."
"Hey, it's not just my secret she'll be dealing with," Dick snapped. "She's still bothered by what she found out last night about herself, Damian, and you." Coba could invision her grandfather shaking his head. "There's more than that, Bruce. She's worried about displeasing you."
The first Batman was silent for a moment. "I may never be pleased with anything she does, after knowing what I know about her," he said sadly.
"You're upset that she has powers, aren't you?" Grayson said angrily. "I know you have a thing against people having them, especially if they're injected into them, but it wasn't her choice, nor is it her fault." Dick lowered his voice. "She's still your daughter."
Bruce did not respond, but only Batgirl knew what he was thinking, despite being in another room: I don't know if I can accept her as such, now. But if I told her that, it would break her heart.
Coba shut the radio off downheartedly after a few more minutes, knowing for sure that the conversation was over, and blinked back confused tears. What hope do any of us have of surviving if we keep trying to keep secrets from each other? she wondered sadly. How can the damage be repaired? She shut off her bedroom light, then lay down and pulled the covers over her shoulders. After a few more uneasy minutes, she drifted into a fitful sleep.
Yep, the feels begin to surface even more in this one. We begin to see some tension between Coba and Dick form, and even more tension between our main character and Bruce. Well, I'll be honest: some of that is a bit based on the song "Truth" by Seether (I notice that the song kinda fits with "Return of the Joker" (and I love the song for some reason)). If you haven't heard it, at least read the lyrics: you'll see what I mean.
What exactly does Slade have in mind for Shriek and Spellbinder (three villains with names that start with S, XD) to do for him? Why is he targeting Bruce as well? Will Dick ever tell Coba about him being Slade's apprentice? Will Bruce ever come to a decision about his feelings for Coba? These questions and more will be answered as the story continues.
There is a character poll from "Last Resort" up on my profile page. You may vote for your favorite character(s (up to three of them)) if you would like. There is also a community I made that contains Batgirl Beyond stories: some are of my BOTF series, but most are not. If you feel like reading stories concerning a future Batgirl, then feel free to browse through what I found. If you would like to be a member of the community, let me know. I'll be more than happy to let you join! :D
Have a great rest of your day! :D (Yeah, I use a lot of emoticons as of late.)