A/N: Thank you for the reviews!
Chapter Seven—Plan C
Sarah nodded, agreeing with her father. "Waller, at any rate."
Diana tensed. "Waller?" she growled.
"We don't know that yet," Bruce said hurriedly.
"That woman took those boys from us?"
"Diana, we don't know that."
Sarah had never seen her mother so furious. "Bruce, who else would it be?" she exclaimed. "There's no one else who has the ability or resources to do it!"
There could be no arguing with that logic, and no one tried.
"Is there?" she demanded, looking from her husband's face to her daughter's.
"Not that I know of," Bruce admitted.
Diana nodded, her body tense with fury. "Then it was Waller. Waller did this. How dare she?"
When she shot into the air, apparently going to bypass the plane, Nick was ready, and went after her. He caught her at the entrance to the tunnel for the Batwing. "Mom, you can't just–"
"Let go of me, Nicholas!"
"No," he replied. "Mom, you'll kill her!"
Fifty feet below, Bruce wordlessly walked away, moving to the changing area. He might be getting on in years, but he still changed into the Batsuit in less than a minute. Sarah already had the Batmobile's engines turned on, though her eyes were still on the ceiling of the Cave. Nick seemed to be winning his battle with restraining their mother. Bruce got into the driver's seat, and within ten seconds, the Batmobile was gone, Reaper and the original Batman with it.
He didn't need to consult the GPS on the way to Waller's residence, making Sarah wonder how close the tabs he'd been keeping on the former Cadmus head were.
"Why?" she wondered aloud. "I agree it has to be Waller, but what's the motive? Getting DNA from you…probably wouldn't be too hard; you're spread all over Gotham, but Mom? How often does she bleed? And the genetic manipulation of Warren and Mary must have cost thousands, taken months if not years—why would she bother?"
"We'll find out," her father told her.
When they pulled up a block away from Waller's home, Bruce switched the car off and opened the canopy. "Give me thirty seconds."
She opened her mouth to reply, but the roof was already sliding closed. "Damn it, Daddy, I'm not one of your Robins," she muttered.
She gave him twenty, and ignored the narrow-eyed scowl he gave her when she caught up with him.
It was early evening, and he hadn't expected Waller to be in. She was definitely the workaholic type, that much he knew from experience. Their interests had always run contrary to each other, but that didn't mean there weren't instances where their methods were similar. Up to a point at least.
This was not one of those instances.
Waller was in, though, standing in the kitchen preparing dinner for one. It didn't surprise him she had no one, and nor did it stir up any sympathy. Again something he knew—no one ended up that alone unless they'd wanted it that way. He let himself in silently; Waller was bent over, head in a cupboard searching for something.
"We know."
She stood up without taking her head out of the cupboard, a string of swearwords the result. Batman didn't make a move to help her. When she did straighten, it was to find him six inches away from her, Batglare set to 'I'm-going-to-make-you-wish-you-were-dead' proportions.
Behind her, the kitchen window opened without a sound, and Sarah crept in, perching herself on the kitchen counter and taking up the ladle to stir the sauce bubbling away on the stovetop.
Bruce growled. "Terry. Now."
To her credit, she didn't try to immediately deny any involvement. "I've never been afraid of you before, rich boy, I'm not about to start now," she said dismissively.
"How do you feel about Amazons?" Sarah spoke up. It was gratifying to see Waller jump just before she spun around in shock.
She recovered well, pasting a smirk on her face. "I was wondering which Wonder Bat I'd get. Field trip is it?"
"I wouldn't be laughing if I were you," Reaper replied impassively. "Prometheus can only hold her down for so long."
"Really."
"Really. She's after your head, Mandy."
In all her sixty four years of life, Waller had never been addressed as 'Mandy'. It left her a little speechless.
Bruce resumed the reins. "We know that Matt and Terry are our sons. We just need the how."
"And I should tell you because...?"
"Because since Cadmus is gone, your security is significantly decreased," Sarah said.
Waller clearly disliked being surrounded. "It's still there," she snapped, crossing her arms defensively.
"Enough to withstand a direct attack from Wonder Woman?" she asked scornfully. "The odds are slim, trust me on that."
"And there really is no reason for us to stop her if you're being uncooperative," Bruce finished.
There was a long silence, during which Waller cursed the fact that she still, after all these years, could not tell what was going on behind Batman's cowl. And he'd trained his daughter equally well; Sarah's face was just as impassive.
"Fine," she growled. She had no doubt that they wouldn't let Diana actually kill her, but the same protection did not extend to her property and possessions. "I'll tell you."
There was a low noise from Batman that was easy to interpret as you're damn right you will.
Waller crossed her kitchen and moved into the living room, opening the laptop that sat on the coffee table. While they waited for it to boot-up, she sat down, rubbing her forehead. "I knew this fucking thing was going to bite me in the ass one day. Took years, and more money than federal budget puts aside for education. All for one—maybe two—scrawny kids. Hardly worth it."
Bruce frowned. "Then why do it at all?"
"I felt it was necessary," Waller replied somewhat evasively.
"Why?" Sarah asked. "It would have been cheaper and less time-consuming to–" She cut off, her mouth falling open as she stared incredulously at Waller. "It was you," she said quietly. "When Nicky and I were kids..."
On the other side of Waller, Bruce's fists curled. "That was you?"
The look on Waller's face indicated she was developing a conscience. She winced slightly. "I'm not proud of it."
"You're not proud of it?" He took a step forward, and demonstrated that while he may be getting older, he was still capable of moving far faster than expected. He had one hand around Waller's throat, and her pinned against the wall before Sarah could blink. "Do you have any idea what we–"
Sarah put herself between her father and Waller. "Dad," she said quietly. "Let her go. It's over. Nicky and I are both fine."
Bruce didn't seem to be listening, and Waller was turning purple. "Daddy! Look at me! I'm here." Her hand touched his jaw lightly, forcing him to look at her. "I'm here," she repeated softly. "Let her go. She's not worth it."
He was still for another three seconds, then let go of Waller. "I should let Diana kill you," he spat at her. Without another glance at her or Sarah, he left through the open window silently.
"Tell me everything you know. Now." Reaper's tone did not leave any room for negotiation.
Waller stared at the girl, no, woman in front of her, and then sighed. Rubbing her neck carefully, she slipped past Reaper and over to the computer. Slipping a disc into the drive, she began to copy and burn several files onto it.
"It took what happened with Lex Luthor and Brainiac for me to see that the Justice League really did have the world's best interests at heart," she said. "They weren't always right, but they were not seeking power to take over and become like the Justice Lords." Waller glanced at Reaper. "You do know about the Justice Lords, don't you?"
Reaper didn't reply, just stared at her impassively. Waller decided to take that as a yes. She continued. "I spent the next several years content with that knowledge, though I did watch them carefully. One can never be too careful, especially with an enormous group of metahumans and only a few non-metas to stand as the group's conscience."
She sighed. "The years started to pass. I was very much aware that Bruce Wayne suddenly had a son and daughter, purportedly through a one-night stand with popular fiction writer Diana Prince." Waller snorted. "It wasn't difficult to figure out just who she really was. Still, sweet as it was, I didn't think much on you and your brother, at first. Babies aren't exactly useful in fighting global crime and extraterrestrial threats.
"But soon enough I began to see that things were changing. The Justice League was getting older, branching out and having families of their own. Shayera Hol and John Stewart, Wally West and Linda Park, Clark Kent and Lois Lane all had twins within the next few years after your birth." Waller chuckled. "I did hear that that coincidence did make your father pause, considering the odds of all four couples having twins."
"Stay on task, Waller," Reaper interrupted. "Everything you know about my family."
Waller pursed her lips. The girl was being deliberately rude...just like her father. Damn, but he really had trained her well, better than she'd thought he would. "Watching the Justice League move on to different things worried me. The entire world counted on them to protect it, but few among the League were truly immortal. Soon they'd be too old to keep going. The Founders especially worried me. I knew that someday the League would need new leaders."
The computer beeped, signalling that the burning was complete. Waller took the disc out and held it out to Reaper. She took it wordlessly.
"Whether you believe me or not, I had come to greatly respect and admire your father. I watched him save the day over and over again with nothing but his wits, body, and will. Superman may have been the face of the League, the one the public looked to when they needed answers from the League, but your father was the true leader. The idea of the world being without him, without Batman, was unacceptable to me."
Waller forced herself to stare Reaper in the eyes. "So I decided to prepare a new one for when he grew too old. You and your brother were the obvious choices."
"Our genes don't define who we are, Waller."
The older woman shrugged. "At first, I thought only to clone the two of you, to start from scratch. I hired someone to get close to your father and obtain a DNA sample from both you and your brother. You might remember her...Selina Kyle?"
Reaper's hands twitched just slightly, but otherwise she said nothing.
"Whatever you may think of that woman, she loved your father in her own way. She saw how much he adored his children, and backed out of the contract. Would you believe she even returned every cent I paid her?" Waller leaned back in the computer chair, thinking back. "You already know about Plan B," she said. "It failed even more spectacularly than Plan A."
Reaper crossed her arms in front of her.
"Plan C was to ignore both you and your brother entirely-"
"Why?" Sarah demanded. "I don't have powers, I never will. Why wasn't I my father's heir?" Her voice didn't hold venom, but cold curiosity.
"Simply because you're female," Waller replied. "I'm all for female empowerment, as you can imagine, but statistically it's single white males who are the ones most likely to make the difficult decisions when the chips come down. Who opt for the greater good rather than appeasing their own emotions."
"Sacrificing the few for the good of the many?" Reaper asked. "And you think you know my father? He'd never sacrifice a single life, even if it saved the whole planet." Except his own, she added silently.
"Anyway," Waller continued, "statistically you weren't going to do what was necessary, so we still needed a replacement Batman. That meant creating a new life-form altogether."
Sarah glared at her, leaving Waller in no doubt that their views of what constituted 'necessary' were very different.
"I was able to obtain DNA samples from your father—not particularly difficult, since most of Gotham is stained with his blood—and your mother. That was considerably more difficult, but my contacts managed it. I then sought out a young couple that matched the psychological profiles of Thomas and Martha Wayne. When they came into their doctor's office for flu shots, I simply had them injected with a nanotech solution that rewrote their reproductive materials with that of your parents.
"About a year later, Terry McGinnis was born."
"Again, Waller, genes–"
"I know, child, I know," Waller interrupted irritably. "That's why overwriting Warren and Mary McGinnis' DNA was only the first phase. It takes more than DNA to make a Batman. Tragedy is an even more vital ingredient."
"And just add flour and water and bake at four-hundred for forty minutes," Reaper said snidely. Waller ignored her.
"I kept a close watch on the McGinnises after Terry was born. The boy had a very happy life—two parents who adored him, plenty of friends at school... and a huge love for the Grey Ghost, like any other child. Do you remember when The Grey Ghost Strikes came out?" At Reaper's nod, she continued, "Terry was eight years old that year. His parents took him to see it as part of his birthday present."
Waller paused, watching the younger woman. Reaper caught on quickly, which didn't surprise her. "No..." she breathed, horrified. So much for perfect emotional control.
Waller nodded. "Yes," she said. "I ordered a hit on Warren and Mary McGinnis, giving the time and moment to do the deed—in the parking garage after the family had left the theatre. Sound familiar?"
Reaper didn't reply, but her fists were tightly clenched at her sides.
"There was just one problem—my assassin refused to pull the trigger. She told me that Batman was obsessive, that he would do anything to complete his mission, but he would never, ever resort to murder. She would not dishonor everything he stood for, and if I truly wanted someone to be like him, to embody his beliefs and ideals, I too had to step back and let nature take its course." She sighed. "So I scrapped the project, though I did still keep an eye on Terry and his family, just in case. About a year or so later, Matthew was born."
She gestured to Reaper's belt. "That disc has all of the information on it about Project Batman Beyond, as I liked to call it," she told her. "Everything I have on the McGinnises from the point that they first came to my attention to the day Warren McGinnis was murdered. My notes on the earlier incarnations of the project are there too, observations I'd made about you and your brother during your time in the Cadmus facility. Everything. Do what you like with it."
At first, the younger woman said nothing, just continued to stare at her. Waller fought the urge to squirm, hating that those eyes could still make her feel like a misbehaving child, even after over two decades.
"I'm only going to tell you this once, Waller," Reaper finally said. "Stay away from my family—genetic or otherwise." Then she was gone, out the same window her father had leapt from earlier.
Waller watched until her dark silhouette faded into the darkness. It didn't take long. When she turned back to her desk, though, it was to find two things. The first was a USB Flashdrive, plugged into the laptop. Retro stuff, but it would still do its job. The second thing was a note.
Your hard drive is being disintegrated. I'll be watching you, Waller. Always.
A/N: Review please!