Chapter Six
The Growth Of Adversity
Batman and Robin dropped silently onto the roof of Ace Chemicals, followed an instant later by Nightwing and Batwoman, who touched down lightly behind them, Batman looked round slowly.
"Keep alert. We need to separate and find that eco-terrorist before he causes an ecological catastrophe. Nightwing, Robin, check the processing areas. Batwoman, we'll take the labs."
Without waiting for an answer, Batman sprinted silently forwards. Nightwing grinned, motioned for Batwoman to follow her partner, then turned and jogged off with Robin.
"Why does he usually team up with Batwoman?" Robin asked as he leapt over a gap. Nightwing laughed gently.
"Training. She relies too much on her powers, not enough on skill."
"I don't have powers."
"You have skill and ability." Nightwing shot back. "That's why you keep kicking her ass in the blue-kryptonite sparring area."
x
"Left, two figures." Batwoman whispered and Batman nodded.
"Stats?"
"Small, female. Young, maybe a year older than Robin. They're heading for a large vat. Batman? Where did you... okay, I'm coming!"
x
The vat stood in the middle of the greenhouse, a green glow emanating from it as the two figures climbed up onto the walkway surrounding it.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?"
"You know it." the other replied as they walked round the wide tank. "Ace Chemicals are already on the verge of bankruptcy, one more clean-up and they'll go out of business and stop polluting the ground."
"And hundreds of people will lose their jobs." Batman said, grabbing the doubtful figure and pulling off her mask. "Barbara Gordon?"
"Hey, let go!" the other figure shouted, twisting in her captor's grasp. "Get off me, Bitch!"
Batwoman looked down jast as the second girl swung a piece of metal at her. Releasing the girl's arm, Batwoman caught the pipe, but the girl turned and ran for the ladder.
"Batwoman!"
"On her!"
Batwoman leaped across the tank and landed just in front of the second figure, who skidded to a stop and began to back up.
"Who... who are you? No! I won't let you get me!"
"Just surrender, girl." Batwoman said, pitching her voice reassuringly. "I won't hurt... watch out!"
The figure tripped on the dropped pipe and Batwoman lunged forwards as she fell into the thick, green liquid.
"Pam!"
Batwoman reached unerringly into the liquid and pulled her out. Glancing round, she leaped down with her burden and dumped the slime-covered shape under a tap, quickly washing off the chemicals. After a moment, the slime flowed away, leaving the green-streaked girl slumped on the floor.
"Pam! Pam!"
"What's going on?"
"You need more security." Batman said, handing Barbara over to the confused guard who had just entered. "But first, you need an ambulance."
x
You're kidding." Robin said from the back seat of the Batmobile. "Barbara's friend Pamela Isley was the eco-terrorist?"
"Young, passionate, determined and stupid." Batman said. "I don't know how she talked Barbara into helping her."
"They're best friends at school." Robin replied. "Class above mine. I'll see if I can pick up any details tomorrow."
"Be careful." Batman replied, glancing out of the windscreen at the approaching cliff. "Don't risk your identity."
"I know." Robin sighed. "Hey, Kara, you did good."
"Thanks." Kara said, brushing her hair back and looking at her damaged gauntlet. "This glove's a write-off, though. What was in that gunk?"
"I'll examine it in the lab." Batman said as a sudden rush announced their passage through the waterfall and into the cave. A slight jar indicated that they had landed and Batman hit the button to open the cockpit.
"That was refreshing." Clark said, shaking his head so that the drops of water still in his hair were sent arcing. Batman ignored him and pausing only to grab the bag in which Kara's ruined gauntlet rested, headed for the lab. The others watched him go.
"He's getting... darker." Kara said. Clark draped his arm around her and gave her a reassuring hug.
"Yeah, but as long as we're here for him, he'll be fine. Come on. Let's get some food. I'm starved."
x
The hospital ward was almost silent, only a regular beeping interrupting the midnight stillness. The figure in the bed remained still, her pale skin tinged slightly green. On the table beside her, a lovingly-shaped but unpruned bonsai tree seemed to quiver, its branches appearing to reach towards the young teenager.
x
Barbara lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling and fighting to hold in the tears as she remembered how her father had expressed himself. He hadn't shouted, that would have been better, somehow. He had been cold, almost emotionless as he had explained to her how she had disappointed him, how she had betrayed his trust and how her actions had helped land her best friend in hospital, in a coma which the doctors had no idea if she would ever awake. The final act of grounding her had almost come as a relief, as it meant that Barbara no longer had to view herself through her father's gaze.
"Please, Pam." she whispered. "Please wake up. Please."
x
"How was school today?"
"Same as usual." Dick said as he scrambled into the limo. "Most of it I know already, got a bit of homework then out on the town again."
"Master Bruce is attending a social event with Mistress Kara." Alfred said. "I believe that means..."
"Yeah! Robin and Nightwing patrolling Gotham!"
"Clark will be wearing the batsuit, I believe." Alfred said as he navigated through the localised traffic jam around the school gates.
"That's cool." Dick said. "Robin and Batman, making the streets of Gotham safe! Hey, that probably means I get to call shotgun in the Batmobile! I'm so sick of being stuck in the back."
x
"I can't believe we didn't take the Batmobile." Robin grumped as he peered over Batman's shoulder at the ground below. "I mean, yeah, this is cool and all, but I wanted, just once, to be in the passenger seat on a mission."
"Maybe next time, kid." Batman replied as he altered his flightpath. "Seems all quiet here. Let's move to the next quarter."
Robin sighed and turned over, settling down so his head was supported between Batman's shoulders, his gaze fixed on the distant stars.
"I hope uncle Bruce is having a good time." he said quietly. "'cause I'm starting to get..."
"Sirs, an alarm has just sounded at the hospital." Alfred's voice said. "You may wish to check it out, they've sent out a call for a SWAT team."
"Cool!" Robin grinned, twisting round so he could grab onto Batman's shoulders. "I'm secure!"
Batman smiled and his lazy flightpath changed to a fast dive towards the distant building.
x
Jim glared at the large plant which had almost-explosively grown up the side of the hospital, covering almost an entire wing. Although most of the patients had been evacuated, one of them, his daughter's partner-in-crime, had not been located. A rustling noise distracted him and Batman dropped down, his wings collapsing to form a cape. A moment later, a young lad clad in red and green landed next to him, his yellow wings folding in to become the lining of his short black cape.
"Who's the kid?"
The boy glowered and Batman's lips quivered as he managed to not smile.
"Robin, this if Lieutenant James Gordan. Jim, Robin. He helps out."
"Nightwing and Batwoman?"
"Elsewhere." came the reply. "What's the situation?"
Jim turned back and looked at the hospital. "That plant grew out of nowhere, took less than five minutes to reach that size. They got everyone except Pamela Isley out, they couldn't get into her room."
Screams interrupted Jim's recitation of events and all eyes turned to where the plant was rippling, moving in a way that nature had never intended as it retracted from the hospital, vines and branches curled almost protectively around a large closed flower. A few moments later, the last branch had vanished into the now-broken ground and Jim shuddered.
"Well, that wasn't creepy." he said sarcastically, glancing at his two companions, only to find empty space where they had been. "But that is annoying!"
x
"So what are we doing?" Robin asked as Batman opened the roof access hatch.
"There was something in that flower, or someone." Batman said. "I think it was Pamela. We're heading for her room now to see what happened."
Robin nodded and moved closer to Batman. "That plant was freaky."
"I didn't like how it moved either." Batman admitted. "Here we are."
The door opened to a scene of chaos. The window was gone, replaced by a giant hole in the wall, while the bed was reduced to a mangled pile of metal in the corner. Batman frowned and walked over to the hole, bending down.
"That's odd, the hole was made from the inside."
"What's this?" asked Robin, holding up something. "Looks like a shallow dish."
Batman looked at it and frowned. "That's a Bonsai tree holder... looks like it was used recently, there's still some soil in it. Here, take these and grab a few of those leaves."
Robin accepted the evidence bags and started to gather the odd leaves scattered around the room as Batman examined the remains of the bed.
"Okay, that'll do for now. Let's get back to the cave before the cops arrive."
x
"Those are bonsai tree leaves." Bruce said. "This one has a proper-sized leaf at the end, and a bonsai'd leaf just below it. That just doesn't happen. It shouldn't be possible."
"What worries me is what I saw in that flower-pod." Clark said. "It was a girl, but the pod was... feeding her. Vines attached to her, like life-support. And she was smiling. She seemed asleep, but she was smiling."
"It must have been something in those chemicals she fell into." Bruce mused. "They're complex, and unstable. I couldn't get much of a read on them before they disintegrated into their component parts. I have no idea of what effect it could have had."
"Judging from what we saw, it was freaky." Robin said, shivering slightly. "If I never see plants doing that again, it'll be too soon."
x
Barbara washed her face, trying to remove the tracks of her tears. Someone had taken her best friend from hospital. Turning, her gaze dropped to one of her newest T-shirts. Lifting it up, she scrutinised the logo emblazoned on it.
Barbara Gordon couldn't find her friend, but maybe, just maybe one of the Bat-clan could.
A new member. An independent one.
There was already a Batwoman. This called for another.
A Batgirl.
Her gaze sharpened.
She had a mission.