[5 minutes before Bluebird and Orphan arrive, Wayne Tower top floor, Bruce's office]
"God, it's been over thirty-five minutes since they got to the warehouse, they should be here by now." The woman holding Batman captive said, groaning and complaining about the situation of having to wait for her preferred targets to arrive. "If they were true vigilantes, they'd be here by now."
Bruce scowled.
"They'll be here, and they'll put you down. Trust me. They know what they're doing." Bruce responded.
"Oh, you think so?" She said in a curious tone. "Well, we'll see, now won't we?"
She walked over to Bruce's desk and sat on top of it, facing him. She kicked her legs back and forth in boredom before looking around for anything interesting within sight and reach.
She couldn't find anything to catch her interest.
"God, you're boring." She blurted. "I guess I should stop saying that. I've been everywhere imaginable, and there've been no traces of a single higher being. But at the same time, I guess if there were a higher being, they'd be in a higher plane of existence, right? Nope, still wrong. Physical, of course, but celestial, truly divine beings? Not a chance. There's only one plane of existence and many, many, many universes.
"But I guess that's the problem of common expressions. Once it's ingrained into people's minds, they won't stop saying it, wether fact or not. Same with beliefs. At the core, people will always believe the same thing their entire life. No changing it."
"You're a lunatic."
"No, I'm right." She stood up and took a step toward him, leaning in at the same time. "Wanna know how I know? Well don't worry. I'll tell you when the others get here. It'll be one hell of a fuckin ride."
[Bluebird and Orphan, in the elevator, now]
"For a building that's on fire, I'm surprised this elevator still works." BlueBird said, breaking the silence for a moment, for it only to return. "So..." Bluebird still attempted to make dull conversation. "Cass...I—"
"Harper." Orphan interrupted. "No." Moments passed before BlueBird let out a large sigh and slid down the wall of the elevator and sat.
"This is weird, Cass." BlueBird said dryly, casting a thousand yard stare at the far wall. "These—these visions. Hallucinations. Whatever they are, they've never happened before. I don't know what's going on."
Orphan walked up to her and sat down right next to her, side-by-side. The small distance between them was quickly closed as Orphan slid closer.
"You're okay." She said. "What happened?"
"I...I don't know. Cullen and Steph were there but they were...dead." Bluebird tried to explain the horrifying visions, wishing not to dwell on them. "Their throats..." Tears began to form in Bluebird's eyes, and she hugged her knees, burying her face between them.
After a few moments, she lifted her head slightly and turned to look at Orphan. Orphan gave no response, other than a solemn nod. They sat in silence for a few heartbeats, the only sounds being the creaking and groaning of the elevator.
Out of sudden instinct, Harper reached into her pocket and felt around. After a moment, she found something that she didn't remember putting in her pocket. She took it out and examined it.
It was the note from the vision. She covered her mouth in disbelief and quickly tried to speak.
"No...Cullen! S-Steph!" She exclaimed in panic under her hand. Her thoughts scattered, and her tears formed faster. Orphan stood up and took Bluebird's earpiece and placed it in her own ear.
"Dick." She called out, no response. "Dick!" She called once more, and there was static for a heartbeat. "Dick!" She was shouting, and through the static she could finally hear the voice of Dick Grayson.
"Cassandra? Why are you on the comms? Is Harper okay?" He asked her rapidly, and she looked down at BlueBird, who was shaking beyond belief and nearly sobbing.
"No..." Orphan said after a moment of hesitation. "Apartment. Now."
"What? Why? I'm coming to the tower!" He said, deeply wondering why he would have to go to the apartment. He was currently racing over rooftops, trying to reach the Wayne Tower as fast as he could. It would be too big of a detour for him to go to the apartment.
"No! Cullen. Stephanie." Orphan said, and Dick stopped in his tracks, turned around and started sprinting. He knew Orphan didn't talk much, so when she did, he would have to listen. Her words were selective and her vocabulary limited, but her knowledge and general intelligence level was extensive. If she made a hard decision, she always somehow managed to make the smarter decision. Dick knew that, so when she commanded him to go to the apartment, that was what he was going to do.
Orphan took the earpiece out and tossed it to the floor as the elevator made a dinging noise, signifying that it was at its destination. She then picked BlueBird up off the elevator floor and waited for the doors to open.
As the two doors to the elevator slid to the side, the view was something they never expected to see.
In front of them was the remainder of the office of Bruce Wayne, destroyed, burnt and covered in soot. None of the books or pictures were understandable and the floors were littered with pages and pages of destroyed books. In the middle of the office, just in front of the desk, was Bruce Wayne, in the famous batsuit, with the mask off and tied up in a strange looking rope. In front of him, sitting on the desk, was a woman.
A woman who both BlueBird and Orphan guessed was the source of all the trouble.
"Hello, girls. I'm glad you're finally here." They said in an ominous tone as BlueBird and Orphan advanced. "Welcome to the fray.
"I've been waiting."