CLXXII
Epilogue: The Romantic Adventures of Tim Drake
Part Six: Chasing Phantoms to England

As I watched lamplight bounce off tiny dust particles floating through the space where the fleeting apparition of Suki-Anna Khan had appeared, Bruce slowly turned to stare at me inquisitively, visibly recounting old memories in the recesses of his mind. As he finished turning, Bruce snapped his fingers in recognition while stoic Alfred cautiously set down his burden of tea and cookies on the coffee table.

After the surreal moment we had experienced, we needed our memories of the past to establish our shared reality once more. I should have expected that as the CEO of Wayne Industries, Bruce would be aware of the strange tale of…

"Suki-Anna Khan… She was that girl genius who worked for LexCorp a few years ago, wasn't she? Rumor had it that Lex Luthor actually had her removed because she was the only person in the world who was smarter than he was."

As much as I had disliked Lex Luthor, I still had to defend LexCorp due to the lack of a conviction in the criminal case…

"Suki contracted for LexCorp, Bruce. She was never an employee, just the most expensive contract worker they've ever had. Her official IQ score was 282, but the only test she ever wrote was at the age of 11. Technically, Lex registered higher scores, but he performed IQ tests annually so that he could publish the results. There was an excellent probability that Suki-Anna would have scored in the 300's before her untimely disappearance… and maybe even overtake Lex for the IQ title.

Still… nothing connecting LexCorp with Suki-Anna's case was ever proven… Actually, her body was never found. It's true that LexCorp has a long history of well-paid executives suddenly disappearing off the face of the Earth, but there was no evidence tying them to Suki-Anna's disappearance… Her parents eventually gave up trying to find her and invited me to her memorial in Birmingham three years ago."

As Alfred softly took a seat beside me, he placed a gentle hand on my knee - his face conveying the obvious heartfelt sympathy he held.

"Was she someone you were close to, Timothy?"

"That's the strange thing, Alfred… I only met her once at a Symposium in London five years ago. She's this absolute legend in the field… The rest of us are still trying to catch up to her... Did you know she didn't speak for five entire years?"

Alfred offered both Bruce and myself cups of tea, then contemplated before replying.

"Extreme shyness perhaps?"

I chuckled.

"It wasn't that. I just don't think she saw people as… people. More like chemical interactions. She just felt that speech was transitory and meaningless… that we could do better as intelligent beings. At her memorial, her parents told me that Suki-Anna spent twelve hours a day writing out equations and theories from the time she was seven years old. She stopped talking when she was sixteen. I met her when she was twenty-one."

I drew a deep sigh as I recalled that one profound hour I had spent with her…

"It was one of the biggest tech Symposiums in the world… held in London that year. It was the only event Suki-Anna Khan had ever attended - because she apparently hated to travel. Only the best and brightest of us were there to discuss new and breaking scientific discoveries.

And that's where I saw her…

I inadvertently walked into a classroom at the Symposium where she was just quietly holding court on a blackboard, never speaking a single word. Everyone was just staring at her mad scribbles, attempting to decipher the formulas she was writing.

She wasn't even the one scheduled to do the presentation, but that didn't matter. Everyone was just standing and staring at this unkempt Asian girl scribbling away with chalk on a blackboard, like an artist at work.

Of course, being the arrogant nerd I am, I refused to become another spectator of her genius and instead grabbed my own piece of chalk. On the blackboard - where she had mystified the onlookers with the erudite runes of quantum mechanics - I just started to decipher and complete her equations without a single word, constructing a shared dialogue in the dust of calcium sulfate on slate.

We scribbled variables of quantum decoherence, Hamilton-Jacobi differentials and Ergodic Ramsey theory - spread across the board like alien verse. This was the pure language of logic manifested as a back-and-forth collaboration. No words, just the striking of white chalk against black slate - the only sound to be heard in the room as two duelists struck blows against common ignorance while conducting a symphony.

Over the next hour, she challenged me and brought me to whole new level of pure understanding. My mind grasped concepts that opened new worlds to me. I saw existence as she must have… a world not of guttural words, but of quantum chemical reactions.

In that time, our little crowd of on-lookers had grown to become standing-room only. To my shame Alfred, I had actually considered myself the brightest person I knew when I walked into that room… but I was soon humbled. I was nothing more than a dim candle held against the star-like brilliance of Suki-Anna Khan.

And yet, I became the Anne Sullivan to her self-imposed Helen Keller. All that she had written was only a description of the room around her in pure chemical formula with some custom bits I couldn't decipher. Suki-Anna lived in a world of shifting molecules that she could actually extrapolate based on the room's thermostat setting. It was as though she really could see the world at the molecular level.

And then piece the whole damned thing together with a level of intellect that was actually frightening.

Soon, it became evident that she was reaching out to all of us to join in her pure language of formulae. She was conducting a silent revolution for anyone who would listen, and only I had taken up the invitation. Even Luthor himself would have had difficulty keeping up with her ability to quantitatively describe the world around her. Understanding was her passion.

We soon filled the entire blackboard so that it was more white than black and finally –at the end of it all when there was no space left - she just turned to me and smiled… satiated.

There was an audible gasp when Suki-Anna Khan actually spoke for the first time in five years, asking me what my name was.

So I told her.

We shook chalky hands, grinning like mischievous children. That was a moment I shall never forget, Alfred… my eureka-moment to perfect the WI-Screen technology. A new way to look at our world.

And that my friends, was the one-and-only time I ever met Suki-Anna Khan. Her parents invited me to her memorial because I was the boy who got her to talk… and also because she had no actual acquaintances."

Bruce pondered for a moment.

"But why would she just appear like that and ask for your help then, Tim? Her tone seemed genuinely concerned... almost distressed. Did we really just witness a ghost from your past? Or was that something else altogether?"

"No, I don't think it was a ghost… I think it was a weird array of nanites arranged to construct the hollow display of a person. If that's what happened, it's a pretty incredible and frightening use of our technology actually, one that I've never seen before… And I want to know how she did it… Ahhh, there we go."

Bruce and Alfred stared at me as though I had gone mad… when all I had done was open a WI-Screen… and start booking a flight.

"Tim… What are you doing?"

"Booking a flight to London of course. You heard her… she needs my help. I haven't signed your amended contract yet, Bruce, so technically I'm still on vacation. If you and Alfred will kindly provide me a lift to the airport, I won't have to bother calling a cab."

Bruce was incredulous.

"Tim, you can't be serious! Do you know how dangerous this could be?… At least wait until Raven gets back. She can keep you safe over there."

I know Bruce was just being cautious, but it was something I had to do. Someone who could control and solidify Wayne Industry nanites was incredibly dangerous. But I still made a joke about it anyways…

"I'm sure I'll be fine… so long as I don't bring a date along. In my experience, nothing has been more hazardous to my health than dates. So rest assured, I'll steer clear of any eligible young English ladies, trust me."

As always, Bruce failed to grasp my attempt at humor.

"That's not what I meant, Tim... This could be some kind of trap."

"Not likely… Pretty stupid trap if it was... Shall I book the cab then? My flight leaves in two hours and six minutes."

Bruce glared at me for a second and then grudgingly relented.

"…Fine."

I went with Bruce and Alfred in their limo. Before he would let me leave, Bruce made me promise to call him as soon as I landed and then keep him updated. Alfred mentioned a number of tea shops that I should visit in London if time permitted and wished me well, secretly every bit as concerned as Bruce but respectful of my decision to chase a Phantom across the Sea.

On my flight over a dark Atlantic Ocean, I recalled everything I knew about Suki-Anna Khan. She was the offspring of a Japanese engineer and an English-Pakistani industrialist. Even growing up in fashionable London, Suki-Anna never gave a damn about her appearance or the clothes she wore. As an intellectual prodigy, she lived in another world – the one in her mind where equations danced in an orgy of passion and possibility.

She was enthralled with movement and discovery - almost vibrating when confronted with new things.

But despite what Alfred may have suspected, there had never been anything romantic between us. Honestly, it was difficult to see her as anything more than just a brilliant mind constantly engaged in calculating the wonder around her. It was as though she were constructing the Universal Equation in her mind, assembling any little bits she ventured across.

The following year after our one-and-only meeting, Suki-Anna went on to become one of the most famous young academics in the world while I completed my second PhD at Gotham University, and accepted a position at Wayne Industries.

Months later, she had become one of LexCorp's highest paid consultants.

And then… almost four years ago, Suki-Anna Khan simply disappeared. Vanished without a trace. Of course, there had been rumors of foul play with LexCorp executives, but nothing had ever been proven in court… just another missing person in a world of missing people tied to LexCorp.

But… What if she had actually survived?

And how was I supposed to help her even if I did find her?

After a quick call to Bruce from my first class seat, I was once again granted access to the Wayne Industry servers and ready to do some serious investigative work. The flight was seven long hours, so I had time to kill. It was nice to be browsing something other than dating profiles.

The National Security Agency probably wouldn't be too happy if they ever found out I had tapped into their data banks, but they could get stuffed for all I cared. Being friends with the acting President had its moments.

I eventually traced the signal from the strange call to my condo, and it had originated from London… from Bethnal Green to be precise. After some careful triangulation, I even managed to nail down an address… An address registered to Scientific and Technological Advanced Research Laboratories.

Also know as S.T.A.R Labs.

…Interesting.

S.T.A.R Labs was a multinational, private research company with over forty labs spread across the globe, although they had no official lab in London. This particular address was classified as a 'storage facility'… which only made me more curious.

Tapping into recent satellite imagery of that address showed me a small facility surrounded by a large white wall. Over the past week, there had been minimal traffic, only three courier deliveries.

To all outside appearances, it really did look like an unmanned scientific, storage facility.

Could Suki-Anna have simply closed herself off from the world? Was she contracting with S.T.A.R. Labs to focus on her work uninterrupted? I had no difficulty picturing her alone, continuing on the Universal Equation, describing the world around her as a series of interacting formulae alone in some private lab.

But then… why would she have called me, pleading for my help?

And why would she tell me to hurry?

At least now I had a place to start.

We touched down in Heathrow at dawn.

After passing through Airport security, I finally hurried into an available Black Cab, shielding my eyes against the blinding sunrise. It wasn't until my cab started driving on the left-hand side of the road that it truly dawned on me that I was in another country.

Thanks to the London traffic snarl, I realized I would have plenty of time to shoot Bruce a quick video message and update him of my findings regarding S.T.A.R. Labs. Meanwhile, a hundred scenarios ran through my head…

Would I find Suki-Anna Khan alive and well? Had she made a breakthrough discovery that she wanted to share with me? Or did S.T.A.R. Labs have a darker agenda? Was Suki-Anna being held against her will? If she was in trouble, I could call Bruce...

And as the leader of the Free World, Bruce Wayne was all the backup I would ever need.

But if she was alive and well, why had she let her parents go through the emotional trauma of her memorial? Did she want them to believe she was dead for some reason? Was she trapped in some bizarre experiment with S.T.A.R. Labs and could only send a nanite-message? And why would she send it to me and not the police?

And then there was the outcome I feared most… That S.T.A.R. Labs would deny all knowledge of Suki-Anna Khan. That I would be turned away at the door by some angry, burly guard. Then what? Have Bruce launch a military invasion on Britain?

Or just wait for Raven to return from her mission to a hopeless star and set things right again?

Even though my friends could be heavy-handed in my personal life at times, I still had incredibly powerful allies. But first, I had to try this alone. Suki-Anna had asked for my help and somehow I felt like this was something I had to do on my own.

So… eleven hours after receiving that strange call from Suki-Anna Khan, I was standing in front of a high-walled S.T.A.R. Labs storage facility in Bethnal Green on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, looking at the security interface monitor.

I reached out and pressed the red intercom button, not sure of what to expect.

The face of an older, tired-looking gentleman popped onto the monitor. By his faded uniform, I assumed he was a security guard and had been for a very long time. He spoke with (what I could only assume) was a Cockney accent.

"Fish, food or pharmaceuticals, mate?"

"Excuse me?... I'm here to see Suki-Anna Khan… She called me from this location."

"That so? Well, pop both those thumbs on me box and we'll have a look at ya."

It was obvious that he didn't know who Suki-Anna Khan was… or he was an excellent liar. Placing both thumb prints on a monitor was a common means of identification these days, so I did as he requested. The accent and heavy slang was difficult to decipher, even though we both technically spoke the same language.

"Septic tank, are ya?... A mister Timothy Drake of Gotham. Right, just let me ring quick to the lab and see if y'er wanted."

I resisted the urge to open a WI-Screen for a Cockney-to-normal-English translation app. I wasn't sure why this guard would refer to me as a 'Septic Tank', but at least he seemed open to the idea of granting me access if Suki-Anna was actually in there.

But then, why was this brilliant woman who was supposed to be dead living in a S.T.A.R Labs depot anyways?...

"Yep… She's expectin' ya. Careful of the path now, you'll wanna stay straight on it, mister Drake."

Expecting me?! Could it really be her?... I gazed in amazement as the man-door quickly slid open, allowing me access to the yard's interior. Slowly, I proceeded into the bright morning - towards the Lab's front entrance. Towards a white door against a white building on a hillside, with nothing but the big blue sky beyond.

It was almost someone else who reached out his finger to press the Intercom button at the front entrance. It was almost like a dream. And when the front door opened, I wondered if it was a dream. The vision, the flight, this place…

And now the woman who stood in front of me…

The unmistakable face of Suki-Anna Khan.

Author's Note:

'Septic Tank' in Cockney Rhyming Slang translates as 'Yank' or American. The 'Fish, Food or Pharmaceuticals' remark will be explained next chapter in 'The Lives of Suki-Anna Khan'.

But will Tim finally find the love that has eluded him? And why was Suki-Anna hidden away from the world for almost four years?