Part XIII
"OK, so they're all set," Dick said, jogging back down the stairs to join Tim and Barbara after seeing the Shazam kids to their family van. "Uncanny how Billy made it back here just in the nick of time. But I guess that's magic for you."
"That's just it, though," Barbara said, her brow furrowed. "Those kids seem so...ordinary. They're sweet, hyper, a little goofy. But when Shazam walked in, and I realized the man I was seeing was really...well... If I hadn't seen those mall security videos, I'd never even think..."
"I know," Dick agreed with a somber wince. "All that power, all that strength… All in the hands of a fourteen-year-old. Unsettling doesn't start to cover it."
"It's like, that wizard granted him the ultimate wish," Tim said bitterly, his hands thrust deep in the pockets of his red and black jacket. "One word, and he has all the abilities of a superpowered adult. Say it again, and he goes back to being himself. And as if that's not enough, he can share those powers with his brothers and sisters." He peered up at Dick. "Tell me you guys aren't jealous."
"What, that Billy and the rest of those kids get powers and a short-cut, while we had to grow up the hard way?" Dick scoffed, but Tim's knowing stare made him sigh and run a hand over his dark hair.
"OK," he said. "OK, I'll admit, when I was a kid I wanted nothing more than to jump ahead – to be an adult detective on par with Batman…not just…"
"A sidekick?" Tim said, his eyebrow arched.
Dick grunted, and Tim smirked.
"Still, there's a lot to be said for the slow path," Dick said. "I can't help remembering what I was like when Bruce first took me in. Brash, hot-headed, impatient. Seething with anger and pain. If I could have said a magic word back then, confronted my parents' killers with the powers of Shazam…" He rubbed his arms and shook his head. "I'm not sure there'd be any coming back from that," he admitted. "Turns out, I needed that time. To gain experience, distance… To learn who I am, who I want to be, and grow into a hero in my own right. Ask Bruce, and he'd probably say the same."
Tim heaved a reluctant sigh and kicked at the floor. "Yeah, I guess," the teen grumbled. "Still sucks, though."
Dick smirked at him.
"Thing about being a boy wonder, kid," he said. "It doesn't last forever. Enjoy what you have while you've got it."
Barbara pursed her lips. "Consider it, though," she said. "Can you imagine Bruce as a child, being granted the powers of Shazam? A superpowered Batman without the training and maturity to channel and temper the rage in his heart…to keep him from becoming one of the mad monsters we fight against?"
"Yikes," Dick agreed. "I guess Billy's wizard knew what he was doing. Picking kids without some dark trauma haunting their past…"
"I'm not so sure, Dick," Barbara said pensively, tapping her fingers against the arm of her wheelchair.
"What do you mean?"
"Working with Freddy today…" She narrowed her eyes behind her glasses. "Something's bothering him, I'm sure of it. Something deep. He didn't say anything specific, and I didn't press. But I got the feeling, whatever it is, it's been eating away at him for a long time. Remember, these kids are in foster care. At some point, each one of them would have lost or been abandoned by the adults in their lives. I think—"
She cut herself off when Dinah walked up to their little group, dressed in black street clothes with her black bag slung over her shoulder.
"Well, I'm off," the fighter announced. "Good session today, everyone."
"Dinah," Dick said, drawing the blonde woman into their circle before she could reach the stairs. "You still sure you want to handle the daily training on your own? Because I—"
"Hey," the fighter said, "I've got the time and, unlike the rest of you, I'm not here as a volunteer. I can use the extra cash." She smiled. "Besides, I always liked training kids. All that eager energy should be a good morning pick-me-up."
Dick smirked. "I can't tell if you're joking or just nuts," he teased. "But, yeah, they did pretty well. For their first session."
Tim snorted. "Sure," he said dryly. "If you consider just about everything they knew about martial arts before today came from movies and video games." He shook his head. "So much to unlearn…"
"Like you were such an expert when you first started," Barbara teased, giving the teen's arm a fond nudge. "Still, at its heart, the training we're here to provide is about discipline, both mental and physical. That's important…especially for these kids."
Dinah narrowed her eyes at her.
"OK," she said. "Neighborhood outreach cover story aside, I think I've been pretty good about holding my questions back so far. But seriously, why are we training these kids? Who are they, that they got Bruce Wayne to come out to Philly this early in the morning – let alone all of you! Do they have some particular connection to that big Shazam guy? Are they expected to develop powers of their own? Or, is this one of those League things where only the top tier members are in the know?"
"Until we're told otherwise, I'd go with that last one," Dick said, meeting her dissatisfied glare with his firm gaze. "Just do your best with them, Dinah. Barb, Tim and I will be back same time next Sunday to check in and help out. In the meantime, if you find you need assistance or run into anything you're not sure you can handle, we're just a call away. OK?"
"What are you expecting?" Dinah said, regarding them all warily. "Do these kids have powers? Special abilities I should be aware of?"
"The kids?" Dick shook his head. "They're just kids."
"Somehow, I don't find that reassuring," Dinah said grimly, and advanced on Dick. "Just remember, I don't like being kept in the dark."
"Noted," Dick assured her, raising his hands. Dinah kept her glare fixed on each of them for a moment longer, then backed off and headed up the stairs.
"I'm meeting Ollie for breakfast," she said. "See you around."
"Breakfast sounds good," Dick said once she'd gone, and turned a smile on Barbara and Tim. "What do you say? My treat."
Tim shrugged. "Alfred made sure I ate before I came. But I could go for a waffle. Maybe pancakes. And some bacon. Scrambled eggs, hash browns, hot chocolate…"
Barbara smiled. "I can look up some local restaurants on my phone," she said, already reaching for the device. "Ooh, or how about an old fashioned diner?"
"Bruce?" Dick stepped through the training room's double-doors and called over to the mirrored corner, where the powerful man had taken off his jacket and begun going through a weight-lifting routine. "Breakfast! You in?"
"You three go ahead," Wayne said without breaking rhythm. "Have fun."
Dick waited a beat longer, then another after that. When Wayne didn't look up, Dick turned and headed to the elevator with Barbara and Tim.
Wayne continued with his weights until the sound of his team's voices and footsteps had faded from the street outside. The moment he knew he was alone, he headed straight to the row of lockers lined up against the wall behind the desk. Within moments, Batman stood before the corner mirrors, his focused glare seeming to try to penetrate the reflective glass.
"Magic," he grumbled darkly to himself. "It would have to be magic."
Attaching a scanner to his batphone, he scanned the mirror, then texted the results and a question to one of his most trusted magical sources—
—Only to step back in startled alarm when a sudden portal flashed open and the man himself appeared beside him.
"Jason," he said, irritably blinking away the spots left by the magical portal's blinding light. "I didn't expect you to come in person. Last time we spoke, I got the impression you—"
"The situation has changed, Batman," the immortal occultist said, the streak of white in his auburn hair gleaming under the room's artificial light. "And I'd rather our discussion take place in person rather than over these devices." He gestured to his phone and the comm device nestled in his ear.
Batman frowned.
"Then, what I saw in that mirror was real," he said. "Not just a trick of the light."
Raising his hands toward the mirror Batman had indicated, Blood muttered briefly to himself, then paused, his long face seeming to grow even longer.
"Your hunch was right, Batman," he said. "The image was a projection of magic. As for your question about whether it originated from the Source…" Blood lowered his hands and stepped away, his lips tightly pursed.
Batman narrowed his eyes behind his mask, noting the genuine concern on the demonologist's face.
"What is happening, Jason?" the detective pressed. "What can you tell me?"
Blood turned to face him, his eyes troubled.
"The imbalance at the Source has held relatively steady for months," he said. "There had been a general sense among the magic community that it would eventually correct itself, as it has many times in the past. But this is no longer the case. Within the past few hours, the imbalance has sharply worsened. The rippling effects are being felt across the magic-using world. Now..." He raised his hands again, turning his intense focus to the mirror. "The residual traces I'm getting are very faint. The projection cannot have lasted long. But...it is as if...something...someone within the Source itself is calling out...calling for it's champion... Yet, the message has not been received..."
He blinked, and swiveled sharply to face Batman.
"I'm curious how such an image could appear to you," he said. "If it was indeed projected from within the Rock of Eternity, a mortal such as yourself should not have been able to see it at all. Unless..."
He frowned deeply, walking slowly around Batman as if trying to trace his aura. The detective stood still, patiently waiting and observing.
"You've recently been exposed to a massive surge of mystical energy," the immortal realized, and strode quickly from the room into the hall. Batman followed like a shadow, watching closely as the former knight of Camelot stepped cautiously into the storeroom, where he peered curiously at a small, singed spot on the dusty ceiling. "This room is practically humming with it. Tell me what occurred here."
"It was Shazam," Batman told him.
"The Wizard's heir?" Blood regarded him. "That explains the message. But if he was here, why was it not received?"
"He had left before the projection appeared," Batman said, and Blood frowned.
"Off on an Earthly mission, no doubt. I warned against inducting him into the League. Magic's Champion has responsibilities that extend far beyond this Earthly plane. If he—"
"This champion is young and inexperienced," Batman retorted. "The 'Earthly plane' is all he knows."
Blood seemed to expand, his intense eyes growing even sharper. "So, you take it upon yourself to train him in your ways, prioritizing this world over—"
"He'll be working with Zatanna," Batman told him, and Blood scowled, his expression deeply grim.
"You will tell him he is wanted at the Source," he said.
"If that's the message."
Blood grunted.
"Tell him also to beware a trap," he said. "The Rock of Eternity was not merely the seat of the Wizard S.H.A.Z.A.M.! Without a guardian in place to keep the balance, malevolent forces will rise to take advantage. Powerful entities that may not all trace their origins to this vibrational realm. He and his Family must be prepared."
Batman regarded him. "Perhaps you—"
"Now is not my time to intervene," Blood said, and intoned a few words of power. A blindingly bright portal snapped open in the hall and he strode straight to it, looking like the long pupil in the center of a cat's eye as he paused to face Batman. "But, I will do what I can to assist on my end. Tell the Wizard's Champion from me... I wish him good fortune in the trial ahead."
The portal snapped closed, leaving the corridor empty and dim. Batman stared for a moment, then tapped the comm device in his ear, flicking off lights and securely locking doors as he left the building and headed for the newly activated remote link to the Watchtower.
"Zatanna," he said as he moved. "We need to talk."
To Be Continued...
References Include - Justice League: A Knight of Shadows; Justice League Unlimited: Kid Stuff, Initiation; The Balance; Justice League: Dark; Young Justice; Justice League Action; Batman: The Animated Series; Shazam! (movie); Shazam! Volume 1, by Geoff Johns; Batman: Curse of the White Knight, Book Four.
Thanks very much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! There's more coming soon, so please stay tuned! :D
