Chapter Three: The Great Escape
XII
"She's Very Pretty"
The appearance of Barbara's face on a holo-screen in front of him interrupted his reverie. Oracle announced an incoming video call from Barbara Gordon on his private line. Bruce spread his hands across the image to widen the screen and accepted the call.
"Hello, Barbara… I would like you to meet my wife, Raven."
It was a rare moment when Barbara Gordon was dumbstruck. She was looking at a dark-haired girl in the exact same spot she had been the night before. She looked like to be about twenty, dark-haired, perhaps northern European. There was something foreign about her appearance. There was a red Bindi1 stone on her forehead. Certainly, she was attractive, but not drop-dead gorgeous. But mostly she looked… melancholy. Like some angst-laden, skinny undergrad from Gotham U in weird clothes.
"…Nice to meet you, Mrs. Wayne. Was I interrupting anything, Sir?" In her mind, Barbara pushed aside a sudden, silly notion to get her hair dyed black. He's married… he's married… to a girl!... He's married….
"Not at all Barbara. I've brought in Raven to help us with our search."
"Alright. Ready to report. I'm engaging scramble mode… now." The screen went fuzzy for a second and then returned to clarity.
"On a side note, you'll be interested to know," continued Barbara, "that the Mayor announced his resignation only minutes ago. He vehemently denies Nigma's allegations, but does not want to continue his term under "a cloud of implied impropriety and innuendo." His words. Seems the D.A. had a meeting with him just before the announcement."
"Let's hope that was the only backroom deal the Mayor had brokered. I'm sure the police will have a full inquiry. What of the search?" inquired Wayne.
"There were very strange goings on four days ago at #7 Chapper2 Street in the suburb of New Haven. I'll bring up the satellite feed now…
As you can see, there's an individual approaching from the south at 6:40 AM. Tracing the path backwards, we have confirmed this is Big Blue as he touched down in New Haven Green just seconds prior and strolled over as a civilian. It appears he flew in from Washington with an elapsed flight time of… 23 seconds, mostly over the Atlantic."
Bruce attempted to calculate that kind of speed in his head, and made an educated guess at somewhere around 10 miles per second, close to Mach 50. Slower than light-speed but certainly faster than a speeding bullet. What would the military do if they ever got their hands on Raven who could teleport between worlds in the blink of an eye? Bruce suppressed a cold chill.
"What's also interesting is the USAF flew a jet precisely below his flight path when he approached land. This was labeled as a 'training exercise'. We speculate this was to cover the sonic boom local residents would have heard as Big Blue approached land. I'm putting together a project of all 'training exercises' conducted by the USAF over coast lines of the past ten years. It should give us some real insight into the movements of Big Blue." Barbara Gordon never lacked initiative.
"At 6:40 AM, it appears Big Blue is allowed entry into #7 Chapper Street, the residency of Scott and Barda Free. The only thing we could find on these two was that he's a high-profile escape artist who tours under the stage name of Mister Miracle and Barda is his wife. They were granted special immigration status in 2017. That part was really hard to track down."
Bruce would never admit this to Barbara, but he had attended the Mister Miracle act several times on Scott's tours through Gotham. Bruce had always been fascinated with the art of escapology. Scott Free didn't look like an alien, but his escapes were certainly unworldly. Barbara continued:
"At 7:02 AM, there is a bright light that can be seen emanating through the Free's second story windows for five seconds, and then… nothing else. Fast-forwarding to 1:00 PM... you can see several government and police vehicles investigating #7 Chapper, but Big Blue was not spotted further. There have been no USAF training exercises since."
"Are the authority's still there?" inquired Bruce.
"They are, but not much else. Authorities removed twelve truckloads of belongings that day. The place must be gutted by now. Official press releases describe the residence as housing low-level radioactive materials and requiring decontamination."
"Barbara, I really need to know where they took those items."
"Already on it, chief. Looks like…the Air National Guard base on Boston Post Road near New Haven. Not too far away from the scene of the crime."
"Give your team my thanks, Barbara. Make sure all necessary precautions are taken to cover up our tracks."
"Yes sir. And… it was very nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Wayne. To be honest, we thought you might be an urban legend." Barbara broadcast her patented megawatt smile.
"Thank you. Please… call me Raven."
Once the call ended, Bruce began to formulate their next move…
"She's very pretty," whispered Raven, staring forward with her hands on her knees.
"Huh… Barbara?" Bruce asked. "I suppose she is…. Oh, don't you start too!"
"I'm sorry, my love. There are things I… so badly want to give you, but dare not. I know it pains you… as it pains me. I have been an outsider all my life. That you would accept me completely - even though my love for you can only be given as a sister instead of a wife… My failings and your greater benevolence. How should I deserve such love?"
Bruce took his wife into his arms and brushed a small tear from her eye.
"Shhh. Your failings have allowed us - and our world - to live. I only need you by my side, now and forever. You deserve my love. My failing is how little of it I can return … I have a selfish heart." They held one another in silence for moments, in tender compassion and heart felt emotion.
"Alfred," called Bruce, "I'm afraid we're going to have to abandon you. Take your time returning."
"Of course, Master Bruce. Shall I confirm reservations…" When the smoke spilled over into the front seat, Alfred realized he was suddenly quite alone. Alfred Pennyworth hoped this wouldn't become a trend. Their car rides were excellent opportunities to discuss Bruce's plans and directions for Wayne Industries. Alfred was on the board after all…
1. A Bindi is the forehead decoration, often a jewel, that south Asian women wear just above the center of their eye brows. DC defines Raven's as a "Chakra", to help her to control the darker passions of her soul-self. This fanfic is educational, non?
2. Yes, in our world it's Chapel Street. I wanted to use Chapper as it's close to the French word for Escape which is ychapper. Clever, non?
Author's Challenge #2: 50 FanFic points to CalMom72 for guessing Mister Miracle and Big Barda!