"It doesn't make sense."
"It does make sense."
"Nope, pretty sure it doesn't"
"Rachel-"
"Like I get it, were spies, this is a spy school. But that doesn't mean we're suddenly equipped to teach at said spy school. A few months ago I was graduating from high school, I should not be in charge of shaping the minds of the future generation."
"Please, you're not shaping any minds your teaching gymnastics." Rachel glared across the table at Tiger who seemed to be regretting the conversation more and more as it went on. Flicking her pen at him she rolled her eyes as he caught it in mid-air without looking up from the notebook he was writing in.
"Show off." Raising his gaze he looked at her incredulously.
"You're calling me a show-off? That's literally the definition of the pot calling the kettle black." Sitting back in her seat she crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"All I'm saying is, I should not be in charge of children. It's weird that they're almost as old as me." How are they supposed to respect me if they see me as one of their peers? The thought wasn't spoken but Tiger seemed to hear the uncertainty in her tone. Closing the notebook in front of him he set down his pen, finally giving her his focus.
"Rachel your only teaching 1st and 2nd years, the oldest student in your class is 16. They look up to you, it's obvious to everyone that the students love your class. Two years can make a big difference when you're young."
"You're two years older than me." She pointed out. Tiger looked put off by the observation however and squirmed in his seat.
"That's different"
"How?" She tried to keep her face blank as he searched for the answer, amused by his obvious discomfort.
"We're...colleagues." Raising an eyebrow she stared him down until he conceded. "Fine, It's weird. But it doesn't matter, I stand by what I said, they respect you. You're very talented." Rachel smirked.
"You think I'm talented?" Tiger glowered at her gloating tone.
"Shut-up." This time Rachel laughed out loud causing his glower to sour even further.
"I knew you had a soft spot for me Tony." With a huff, he turned back to the work in front of him and ignored the jab. Rachel smiled as she watched him, a strange fondness washing over her. She had only been with Spyral for a month, but something about the group made her feel...warm. Strange how a super-secret espionage agency felt more like home than the manor had after Damian's death.
She loved her siblings but her relationship with Damian had been different.
She could never figure out why it had made her uncomfortable when Bruce called her his daughter. Never understood why she didn't see the man as a Father, not as the others did. But then Damian died and Rachel felt like she had lost another parent. When she thought Bruce had died it had hurt, but she hadn't broken. Damian had always been the one to take care of her, so the permanent move to the Penthouse hadn't been strange. It had already felt like her home for years at that point. But Damian's death had fractured her, had left her feeling unbalanced. And she had been so very angry because how was this fair? Bruce didn't want to be stuck with her and she didn't want to be stuck with him. And they screamed at one another for months because neither could fill the empty hole Damian left for each other.
Bruce lost a child, Rachel lost a Dad. Bruce couldn't be her Father and Rachel didn't want him to be.
And Rachel loved him in spite of that. She loved him even when he was cruel and cold and spiteful. Loved him even when she didn't want to. Because even though he wasn't her Dad he was still her family.
And then he kicked her out, cut her off from the others, and she had never felt so adrift.
Somehow by some miracle, Spyral helped. It gave her purpose, both as an Agent and as a teacher. She never thought she'd enjoy teaching, but there was something so liberating about getting to share what you knew. She wasn't limited as she had been in Gotham, she could show off her skills without fear of a secret identity being blown. She got to be whole here. She was valued here. She had a friend here.
Tiger was constantly annoyed by her. He groaned and grimaced through most of their training sessions and always rolled his eyes at her puns. But Rachel had no doubt that he thought of her as a friend. He showed that through quiet praise and begrudging smiles. Through soft words and a willingness to be vulnerable.
She loved her siblings, and she missed them terribly. But they had to like her, Tiger didn't. That wasn't something she would take for granted.
"Rachel?" She focused her gaze back on Tiger who was looking at her in concern. "I said your name several times…Are you alright?" Giving him a reassuring smile she nodded.
"Just thinking." He scanned her face and after seeing no sign she was lying his concern faded.
"I'm impressed, I wasn't aware that American's had the ability to think." Rachel snorted.
"That's fair, good thing I'm not technically American otherwise I'd be insulted." Confusion colored his face at her words.
"You're not American?"
"Not originally at least. I lived there after my parents died but I wasn't born there. I hadn't even been to the country until I was eight. I assumed you knew that, isn't there some file dictating my life somewhere in the Spyral database?" Tiger seemed intrigued as he took in her words, he shrugged in response.
"Spyral was interested in your time with the Batman. There is mention of your parent's death but no other information." Rachel felt a little insulted that her parents hadn't been deemed important enough to be anything more than a footnote in her life. Tiger seemed to sense her irritation. "I apologize if I have offended you." Rachel didn't answer, after a moment he spoke again. "I would be honored if you shared your past with me. It would appear that I have assumed a few things about you and I would like to know where else I am wrong." His eyes were earnest and Rachel thought about the offer.
She had talked about her family with her siblings a few times but not as much as she would have liked. Many of them hadn't had as nice of a family as she, and they took after Bruce in that they didn't feel the need to rehash the past.
Tiger waited patiently, face opened but not pressuring, and in return, Rachel smiled.
"Did you know I grew up in a circus?" Tiger looked surprised for a moment as though he wasn't sure if she was joking or not. Seeing that she was being truthful he let out a loud laugh, Rachel grinned at the response.
"I did not, but suddenly many things make sense."
And then she just talked. It was like a nozzle had been turned and all these memories and feelings were being poured out of her.
She talked about her Father, kind and tall, with dark skin and even darker hair. She told him how John Grayson always wore a tattered brown leather jacket even when it was much too hot to be sporting one. How her Father would strum some old folk song on his guitar after a show for her and her Mother, the three of them cuddled together in a small yet warm trailer which had been her home for eight years. She told him about how Damian had tracked down her family belongings after she had been with the Waynes for a year. Had brought back her Fathers jacket and guitar, and how both were gently tucked away in her room. Her Father had been a funny man with a soft face and an easy way about him.
"He's personable", is what her Mother told her once.
She told Tiger about her Mother, a very small woman with a very boisterous voice. How her soft brown hair was always tucked up in a neat bun unless they were performing. How her Mother couldn't sing like her Father but she could tell stories better than anyone at Haley's. Rachel told Tiger of how, though her Father was Romani, both she and her Mother had been born in Italy. Though Rachel's birth in the country had been coincidental. When she was young her Mother would weave stories about a goat-faced girl and a young prince who fell in love with a statue. Romani melting into Italian, the words descriptive and magical.
Then she talked about Haley's.
How the longest they ever stayed in one spot was a month. How she had learned German from the strong man and mandarin from the fire-breather. And how she learned how to curse in 19 different languages by the time she was six much to her Mothers chagrin and her Fathers delight. She talked about sitting in the big top after the show ended. Everyone gathered in a circle laughing, eating, sharing stories. How they were a family, not by blood, but because they had found one another and loved each other freely.
For the first time in a long time, Rachel spoke of her family and did not think of the gray night in Gotham nearly 10 years ago. Did not feel the sting of grief at the thought of her parent's smile, but felt warm. She felt free. She had grieved what she had lost many times, quietly and away from her family. But never had she allowed herself to celebrate what she had had.
And the whole time Tiger sat with her and smiled. He laughed and asked her questions and when she was done he spoke.
He spoke of his own childhood. Born in Afghanistan in a town called Kandahar.
"Tiger King of Kandahar is what they called me."
He spoke of worn-torn streets, of loneliness and hunger. How he spent so much of his youth so angry at the world, at the parents who left him to fend for himself in it. He spoke of his Jadda, an old woman who was not blood and could not take care of him but would always pass him food and clothes when he came by. Would tell him stories on the landing outside of her home, quiet so that her husband would not catch them. He spoke how his home was never beautiful, but at least it had been whole before the soldiers came.
He spoke of how at the age of 15 he had gone to his Jadda's home and had found it destroyed. With no sign of the woman or her husband anywhere.
He spoke of how he had gotten the name Tiger King of Kandahar from acting as a quasi Robin Hood. How his methods had been cruel and violent and had caught the attention of Checkmate. How he had been loyal to them because they had 'saved him', gave him purpose. How they had taught him how to kill with a gun instead of a knife, and how he had thought he was doing the right thing when he worked for them.
And then he spoke of Alia.
When he at first brought her up Rachel assumed she had just been his partner, but it was clear that Tiger loved her.
He spoke of how her hair was straight and brown and unextraordinary, how her eyes were gray but sharp. She was beautiful. She was intelligent and she was so incredibly and unbelievably patient. Patient with him when he was angry, because after years of being alone he didn't know how to have someone to depend on.
When he got to her death he grew quiet and Rachel grabbed his hand. He did not have to speak about that.
Giving her hand a tight squeeze the two looked at one another and Rachel was struck by how grateful she was of him. The last month had been awful, the last few months really, but finally Rachel felt like her old self again.
Felt hopeful.
The two sat there for a moment, ruminating on all that had been shared, only breaking apart when they noticed Matron walking over to them, eyebrows raised in a questioning manner.
"I hate to break this up but we have another mission, and before you left I wanted you to meet the other task force members." Rachel and Tiger stood from their seats and followed Matron out of the lounge they had been sitting in. The quiet moment broken but not forgotten.
When they arrived at the room Rachel had dubbed 'The Spyral Sanctum' not as good as 'The Batcave' but she was working on it , they saw two other Agents waiting at one of the work tables. One was a short blonde woman in her mid-30's, she was wearing the same uniform Rachel had on and her hands were fidgeting in her lap. The other was a man, he was covered head to toe in what looked like a costume inspired by crusaders. But instead of white his cape was red and had a hood attached to it which sat on his head. A metal mask covered his face,
"Agent 37, this is Poppy Ashemoore and George Cross. They are the other two members on the Paragon task force." Cross held out his hand and smiling Rachel took it. Poppy waved from where she was sitting.
"Nice to meet you, my name is Rachel Grayson or Agent 37. Do you guys have super-secret spy names too or are me and Tiger just special?" Tiger groaned slightly at the remark but Cross gave a hearty laugh.
"She's fun, we need someone like you to balance Agent 1's grumbling." The British accent both surprised and delighted Rachel and she chuckled in response. "I go by Agent 24 Love, or The Hood, whichever you'd fancy." Rachel raised an eyebrow.
"The Hood? I know a Red Hood, though I must say his costume is not nearly as cool as yours." Turning Rachel looked at Poppy who was staring at the two with a smirk. "What about you? Please tell me you don't go by 'The Bat' I don't know if I could handle that level of crossover." The woman shook her head in amusement.
"Unfortunately I don't have a… how did you put it? Super-secret spy name? If your itching for a title however you can call me Dr. Ashmoore."
"Dr. Ashmoore isn't a field agent, she works as a medical Doctor." Matron piped up behind Rachel. Cross moved away from Rachel and draped his arm around the Doctor's shoulder.
"And a bloody good one at that." Poppy didn't say anything but seemed pleased by the praise, she leaned deeper into his embrace. Ahhh a couple, how very Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
"Agent 24 however is a field agent." Matron continued, ignoring the interruption. "He's in charge of deterring the Garden Leaders while you and Agent 1 go after Paragon parts."
"Leaders?" Rachel asked, unaware of the term. Matron pressed a button on the side of the work table and a hologram of the Batman look-alike Tiger had fought appeared. Cross pulled himself away from Poppy and spoke to Rachel.
"God's Garden is run by the Gardner, clearly she doesn't share our affinity for cool spy names," He nodded at Rachel who suppressed a grin. "The Gardener runs and watches over the sanction but she never leaves. The Garden is constantly at threat of theft due to the artifacts they hold and her leaving would give thieves an advantage."
"So she sends out the 'Leaders' to do her dirty work." Rachel couldn't see his face, but she could sense Cross giving her an appraising look.
"Right you are. There are three leaders, or rather there were three. Ladytron, Doctor Leviticus, and your friend Midnighter here. From what we gathered Ladytron is the member who stole the Paragon parts and sold them." Cross flicked his hand and the image changed to show a half woman half cyborg, she wore a leather jacket and had a short blue mohawk. "As you can imagine Gardner was none too pleased so she sent the other two leaders to do damage control. Leviticus is to dispose of Ladytron." The image changed again and a shrewd looking woman appeared. Her hair was black and pulled into a tight bun, giving her the appearance of her skin being pulled back, causing her sharp cheekbones to cut in a striking manner.
Strangely, she almost looked like an owl.
"There are three leaders. Leviticus is going after Ladytron which means Midnighter is trying to get the parts before we do right?" Rachel asked, piecing it together. Matron nodded.
"Exactly. Agent 24 has been tasked with handling Midnighter and leading him astray if possible. But he gave him the slip the night you went after Dubov." Cross nodded.
"He realized I wasn't after the parts and left before I could stop him. The good news is, the Gardner and her Leaders don't know who Ladytron sold the parts to, but we do." At this, he turned to Poppy who finally stood from where she was sitting.
"Ladytron got cocky and had an auction a few months ago after she had stolen them. My previous employer T.H.E.Y sent me to identify the buyers." She stopped for a moment as though considering if she should say what she was about to. "I was… fired after I purchased the Paragon Stomache for myself" Fired, i.e. tried to kill her, Rachel thought before the rest of Poppy's sentence caught up to her.
"Wait you purchased the stomach?" Poppy shuffled, uncomfortable with the question.
"When I learned the scope of the Stomach's ability I had reservations about giving it to T.H.E.Y, but after I had gotten it I did not have the equipment to preserve the organ...so I implanted it in myself." Cross moved over to her and gripped her hand, Matron picked up where she left off.
"The implant is embedded with the Flash's DNA, it gave her his speed powers but also accelerated her aging. By the time we got to her, she was close to 80. Luckily we were able to extract the implants and regress her back to her appropriate age. She decided to join Spyral and gave us the information we needed to find the other buyers." Matron tapped the table and brought up a new image.
It was a man in his late 40's, he was wearing a long trench coat and held two revolvers in his hands. His auburn hair came to below his shoulder and his mutton chops melted into his hairline. The most striking thing about him however were the empty sockets where his eyes should be. Poppy came closer to the table.
"Christophe Tanner a.k.a Old Gun, he's a blind assassin. He didn't buy any implants but he did steal them from Barton Tare who purchased them." Rachel peered at the image, confusion flooding her.
"I've never heard of a blind assassin." The image changed to show a close up of his revolvers.
"Would you believe it if I told you he could see using his guns?" Rachel looked up at Poppy in surprise a smile stretching onto her face.
"I don't know if that's the coolest thing I've ever heard or the stupidest."
"Focus Agent 37." Tiger spoke behind her, and turning around she stuck her tongue out at him before looking back at Poppy. The Doctor was watching them in amusement. Matron however stepped forward making her attention turn to her.
"Old Gun stole the Paragon eyes, they grant enhanced vision and hold the DNA of Aquaman. Luckily he hasn't had surgery to implant them but it's only a matter of time." Switching the image, a hologram of a young boy appeared on the screen. He had to be seven or eight but the similarities between him and his Father were uncanny. "Old Gun has one soft spot and that's his son." Rachel took a step back from the group, her eyes narrowing at the implication.
"You want to kidnap a child?" Cross held up his hands in a nonthreatening manner.
"We're not going to harm the kid, the plan is to pick him up from school to lure Old Gun out. As soon as we receive the implants we'll take him home." Rachel was still suspicious.
"And if you don't receive them?" Matron spoke up from beside her.
"Rachel, this is not a hostage situation. The plan isn't to negotiate with Old Gun it's to jump him. If whatever reason we fail then we will still bring the child home. We need you to stay with him while Agent 1 and 24 fight Old Gun. Keep him safe and away from the fighting. It's the only way to lure him out, and the only chance we have to get the eyes before he implants them." The other three were staring at Rachel, waiting for her response but not judging her hesitancy. The kids not going to be hurt, just think of it as a babysitting gig .
With a deep breath, she nodded her head.
"Fine, when do we leave?"
************************************************************************
Actually getting the kid was easy. Like, scarily easy. So easy that Rachel contemplated giving the kid a lecture on stranger danger before she returned him home. Maybe It was the fact that no one expected a young woman dressed in a sundress to be a threat. Maybe it was the fact that the kid hadn't disagreed when she told his teacher that his Mom had sent her to pick him up. But regardless thirty minutes after she arrived at the elementary school in a beat-up minivan Matron had found for her, she and Chris Jr. were sitting in an abandoned daycare Spyral had commandeered. Agent 1 and 24 remained in the lobby waiting for Old Gun, and the kid was oblivious to the men much to Rachels relief.
She was really trying not to think about the fact that she just kidnapped a kid.
They just finished working on his homework and Rachel was looking around desperately trying to think of a way to entertain him. Despite Matron thinking she was the best for the job, she had her reservations. She had always been the youngest, the only time she had interacted with kids was when they had been her own age.
"Do you want to play ISpy?"
"No."
"Do you want to do a puzzle?"
"No."
"We could maybe draw for a bit?"
"No, thank you." Rachel suppressed a sigh, it seemed like everything she suggested was doomed to be struck down. She was just about to suggest they read when she noticed a Superman patch on his bookbag.
"Do you like Superman?" Finally, that got some reaction from the kid and eyes wide he nodded hurriedly.
"He's my favorite superhero." Rachel smiled at that, a rush of fondness breezing over her at the thought of Clark.
"Yeah, he's pretty cool… You know... I've met him." If possible the kid's eyes grew wider. Jackpot. For the next 45 minutes, Rachel told him all about her run-ins with the Boy in Blue. Censoring the story so that she fit the role of civilian as opposed to hero. And the whole time the kid kept a running list of questions which Rachel tried her best to answer.
"Is it true he has a flying dog? Have you ever been to his secret lair? Can he really shoot lasers out of his eyes?"
She was just about to answer whether or not he was as tall as he looked when a loud gunshot came from the other room. Chris Jr.'s look of glee quickly morphed into one of terror and a small whimper came out of his mouth. Pulling him into her, she wrapped her arms around him in a hug, and lifting him she moved to the corner of the room. Sitting down and curling her body around him.
"It's okay I got you." More gunshots came followed by yelling. Rachel couldn't recognize the voice so she assumed it was Old Gun. The kid began shaking in her arms and she tightened her hold. "Hey, hey, hey Chris it's okay. I've got you, your alright." The door to the room burst open and Rachel quickly cut off her words. The corner she was hiding in was to the right of the entrance and an old bookshelf blocked her from view. Holding her breath she waited for a moment, for movement, for yelling, anything. A gunshot filled the air and a bullet came whizzing through two books leaning against one another, hitting Rachel in her lower back.
Instantly it was like she was on fire. A shocked gasp came out of her mouth and Chris screamed at the sound of the gun. She had been shot once before in the shoulder but this was different. The fire raged up and down her back causing her to hunch over. But the movement only made it hurt more. Pushing aside the pain she pulled herself away from the kid to make sure the bullet hadn't gone through and hit him as well. He was crying but he looked unharmed. Loud footfalls filled the air and looking up Rachel saw Old Gun standing in front of her, revolver pointing directly at her face.
"Give me my son." Without a response, the kid was ripped from her grasp and he hauled the child up onto his hip. Chris was now vocally sobbing. "If my son weren't here I'd put a bullet straight through your skull." The man turned away and Rachel slumped to the side of the wall, panting from the exertion of holding herself up. She could feel her blood soaking through the sundress she was wearing and lifting a hand she tried to put pressure on the wound.
Her vision went white from the touch, the pain unbearable. And she held her breath for a moment. It felt like she was on fire like her body was burning from the inside out. She heard a clamor come from the doorway but it wasn't until she felt cool hands on her face did she notice Tiger looking down at her in concern. Agent 24 nowhere to be seen. Swallowing the saliva in her mouth she gave him a small grin.
"Two deaths in the span of a month, that must be a record. Most people only get one." Tiger did not laugh, instead, he turned her over and put pressure on her wound. Rachel let out a hiss in discomfort and the edges of her vision became static.
"You're not going to die." He sounded so forceful that she didn't quite know how to respond to the statement.
"K..." He continued putting pressure on her back and Rachel felt herself grow more lightheaded. When she spoke her voice was lighter than it had been before. "So what's the plan?"
"Agent 24 has called Spyral, they're sending a plan and should arrive shortly. He's keeping an eye out for Old Gun while we wait." Rachel tried to nod but her head was too heavy to move. Blood loss really goes fast huh?
"The implants-"
"We got them. 24 was securing them when Old Gun stunned me for a moment. That's how he was able to come back here… I apologize that I allowed him to get past me to you." Rachel rolled her eyes but because she was turned away from him Tiger didn't see. Her body was still leaning against the wall and she closed her eyes for a moment just to rest.
"Not..your fault. Don't..apologize." With one hand pressed to her back, Rachel felt Tiger lift his other and brush her hair away from her face.
"It's okay Rachel, I've got you."
************************************************************************
The next thing she knew she was blinking her eyes opened and took in the view of the Spyral Med Bay. Her whole body felt numb, but there was a strange warm pressure on her lower back. An IV stuck out of the top of her right hand and she could feel a nasal canal sitting on top of her face. There was a small light on, and even though there were no windows she had a feeling it was nighttime.
And she was completely alone.
Suddenly her mind flashed back to the moment just over a month ago when she was waking up in the Batcave, and she felt her whole body tense when the door opened. Not even relaxing when she realized it was Poppy coming into the room. The woman smiled at her when she noticed she was awake but Rachel could not return the gesture.
"Agent 1, it's good to see you awake. Your probably a little confused but you should know that you're going to be fine. You were out for a few days to recover but the bullet missed your vital organs and we were able to get it out without any issues. You'll be off duty for a few weeks, but outside of that there shouldn't be any long-term effects." She paused as though expecting Rachel to say something but Rachel just stared at her, body tense. With a small smile, Poppy continued. "It can be quite shocking to be shot, but I promise you'll be alright. You just missed Tiger, he's been in here for days. Matron finally ordered Agent 24 to give him a sedative so that he could get some rest." Poppy let out a small chuckle at that but still, Rachel said nothing.
A month ago when she had woken up from being kidnapped Bruce had beat her into complacency. And here a near-stranger was showing more kindness than her supposed family had.
Rachel felt her eyes well up with tears and looking away from Poppy she tilted her head up, willing them to recede. Vaguely she could hear Poppy say something but she did not respond. Swiping a hand at her face when a tear fell down her cheek. After a moment she could hear someone new step into the room and look at her.
"Oh Rachel…" Looking over she saw Matron staring at her, a look of pity on her face. The older woman moved forward and sat on the edge of her bed. Matron lifted her hand up pausing when Rachel flinched at the movement. Stilling for a moment, she slowly brought her hand down to rest it on top of Rachel's own. "Your safe here. I can't promise you that you'll never get hurt but I can promise we will never hurt you."
And for some reason, Rachel believed her.
************************************************************************
Two weeks, it had taken two weeks for Father to finally leave the Manor long enough for them to check the footage. Damian was a patient man, he knew how to bide his time to achieve what he wanted. But with each passing moment, he felt himself coil tighter and tighter in irritation. Rachel had been dead for over a month and if he had it his way she wouldn't stay that way for long.
At some point, Stephanie had blabbed their plan to Tim and so when Bruce finally left the Manor to make an appearance at Wayne Industries the 24-year-old joined the three in the cave. At first, Damian had been annoyed by the addition but after Cassandra pointed out Tim was the best with computers he acquiesced. Especially after they realized the recording wasn't with the rest of the cowl footage.
That in itself wasn't that surprising. His Father had most likely wanted to save it somewhere else since it documented such a devastating event. No, the strange thing was that when Tim finally found it, the video was in an encrypted file titled 'Birdwatcher'.
"Birdwatcher? Can you open it?" Stephanie asked, leaning over the back of Tim's chair to peer at the screen. Tim raised an eyebrow at her.
"Do you really think B has the computer skills to hide anything from me?" He had a point, his Father's skills were more...analog than the others. He had most likely trusted that the others would respect his wishes and not dig into that night. Tim opened the folder fairly quickly and there were several files in it. The first two files were videos, one timestamped the night Rachel had died, the other the day of her funeral. The other four files were MP3's, there was one recording each week for the last four weeks. "What is all this?" Tim murmured in confusion.
"It does not matter, we're here for the video we can look at the other files afterward." The others turned to Damian. Various degrees of hesitancy marring their faces. Cassandra spoke up from his side.
"It is not too late Brother, we do not have to watch-"
"I need to see it." Damian sharply cut her off, his words firm. I wasn't even there. I wasn't there when she died. I owe it to her to watch this. Cassandra still looked hesitant and Damian felt himself soften. "You do not have to stay. But she was my partner, she was my...I was supposed to protect her and I failed. And I just need to know." Was she in pain, was she tortured beforehand? Was there anything that could have been done differently to save her? Would it have mattered if I was alive?
"We'll stay." Damian looked over to Timothy who was staring at him with an intensity he had not seen in a while. The man had seemed wilted the last few weeks but a familiar gleam shone in his eyes now. "If you need to see this then we can't stop you, but we can keep you company." A swell of gratitude filled Damian at his Brothers words and he felt his throat constrict at the sudden surge of emotion. Without waiting for a response Timothy turned back to the computer and after hesitating for a moment selected the first video.
And with bated breath, they waited.
The first thing they saw was a dark gray door, a loud banging noise filled the room as Batman tried to get through.
"Move." Came an unfamiliar female voice and without responding Batman moved out of the way. After a moment of tinkering the door swung up. His Father to rush into the room, giving Damian his first glimpse of Rachel. Damian took in a sharp breath at the sight of his sister and he could hear the others do so as well.
Rachel was hanging in the middle of the room, inside what looked like a metal cocoon. She was shirtless giving Damian a good look at the metal device that was embedding itself through her sports bra into her chest. When Batman entered she looked up in concern, which gave Damian a good few of all the bruises and cuts that littered her face. Her black hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail and blood dripped from her cut lip down to her chin. A loud clanging filled the room signifying the door shut behind them.
"Congratulations. You've found Robin."
"What is Lex Luther doing there?" Stephanie asked but no one answered her, eyes glued to the screen. As Batman rushed over to Rachel Damian felt his stomach drop at the realization that the metal device in her chest was a bomb.
"Batman you have to leave, it's a trap."
Rachel's voice was soft but firm. Raspy from either disuse or dehydration, or both. And with a start, Damian realized that this was the first time he had heard her voice in months. Looking at his sister Damian couldn't help but be struck by the changes he noticed. She looks older. How is that possible? I've only been gone for a few months?
"Bruce you need to leave please, there's a bomb."
He had only been dead for 3 months at that point, had only been gone for a quarter of a year but the changes to his sister were clear. The last remnants of baby fat had melted from her face leaving a lean jaw in its place. Her cheeks were sharper then he remembered, indicating she had lost a little weight in his absence. She never did want to eat when she was stressed. Though her hair was pulled back he could tell it was shorter. Most likely falling to her shoulders now as opposed to her elbows which had been the length she had preferred to keep it at.
"I'm going to disarm it and get you out of here, Rachel."
"You don't understand-"
"The Countdown is monitoring her heart Batman. The detonator is hooked in it."
"Batman the bomb… it only disarms if my heart stops."
And that's when Damian realized the real reason she looked older to him. The main catalyst for change.
She's given up.
Rachel Grayson was an optimist, infuriatingly so. She truly believed in the good of people. Truly believed that things would work out in the end. Despite all the horrors she had seen, the hurt she experienced, she always had hope. When Damian first met her he had hated it. Had chalked it up to her being young and naive. He knew the world, knew it was an awful place full of cruel people. But Rachel had remained steadfast in her belief and eventually he had found himself clinging onto her hope. Now though, there was no light in her eyes. And she looked like a stranger.
He felt a hand wrap around his forearm and pulling his gaze from the screen he looked at Cassandra who was still watching the scene unfold.
"After you died it went out… the light. It was like… she was lost. No hope. For weeks she just stayed in bed, didn't leave, everyone was worried but also grieving. Didn't know how to help. When she finally got up she was different-"
"She was angry," Tim said quietly his own gaze turned to the pair. "Furious. She didn't see the point anymore. Didn't understand why she should fight for others when her family kept dying. She still went out but she became so violent, even Jason was worried. And Bruce...he didn't know how to deal with it." A loud bang filled the screen and Damian snapped his focus back just in time to see Batman blasted out of the way.
"I'm making an executive decision Batman, I'm saving our lives...by ending her's."
Damian watched as Luther shoved a pill in her mouth and covered her face with his hand, smothering her with it. Watched as his sister struggled in Luther's grasp, body bucking wildly to get free. Watched as her eyelids grew heavy and her body slowed until it finally stopped. Watched as Luther stepped back, a blank look on his face.
A loud beeping filled the cave and the machine holding Rachel opened, causing her body to drop to the floor with a quiet thud. Batman ran to her picking her up and cradling her to him. Her head dangling and her face completely slack.
It was like Damian's world was muffled, like he had been placed underwater and could no longer hear properly. He felt a heat underneath his collar that was rising up his neck and a nauseous pit drop into his stomach. Knees buckling he grabbed onto Timothy's chair for support, bowing his head and squeezing his eyes shut.
What the fuck was he supposed to do now? What was next? How does he fix this?
How to explain how grief feels like? It's like the strings to your body have been cut and you want to collapse to the floor. Want to curl in on yourself and clutch at your chest because you can feel your body breaking apart. And perhaps if you curl in tighter you can keep the pieces together. Grief is like a meltdown. As you sob you feel as though you're vomiting out the despair but there's too much to get out. You start dry heaving because there is nothing inside of you, even though you feel everything inside of you. It's a loud keening that you want to stop but you can't. And you'd give anything, anything to just be numb for a moment. Because this, this is just too much. And you can't breathe.
They say that death is for the living and Damian couldn't help but feel like that was true. When he died he felt nothing. But watching her die he feels everything.
"Damian. DAMIAN." Lifting his head his gaze meets Tims who is looking at him in surprise. As though he can't believe that Damian is capable of caring so much. He pulls himself together quickly though and continues. "You need to see this." With trepidation, Damian looks to the screen taking in the new view.
Batman is kneeling over Rachel a syringe in his hand. With a forceful plunge down he stabs it into her chest and releases the contents.
And then they wait.
And then Rachel gasps.
"What the fuck?" Stephanie's words, though not eloquent, summarizes his thoughts. They watch as Batman picks up the now breathing Rachel, watch as he moves out the room and runs into Owlman. Watch as his Father takes a different syringe from the villain and goes to the Batmobile. And watch as he injects Rachel with the mysterious 'sedative' and gets into the car. "Rachel's alive? Why would Bruce lie?" No one has an answer for that and frankly, Damian's still recovering from the whiplash of seeing his sister murdered and then resurrected. A calculating look however appeared on Tim's face.
"The other video." Turning back to the computer Timothy typed furiously bringing up the page with the other files. Hesitancy gone, he swiftly selected the second video that was dated on Rachel's funeral. This one showed the security cameras of the cave. The main room with the computer, the hanger, and the medbay where Rachel was getting up from her cot. She's really alive.
Rachel made her way over to the Batcomputer and began to read something that was on the screen. Whatever was on there seemed to anger her, because when Bruce showed up behind her she growled at him with a level of venom that Damian had never heard come from her.
"What the hell is this Bruce?"
"We had your funeral today."
"I'm alive."
"Are you?
" Yes. "
"Then prove it."
Then Damian watched furiously as his Father attacked her, forcing her to go on a secret mission. When the video ended the cave was silent. Anger radiating off of each of his siblings.
"I'm going to kill him." Surprisingly it was Tim who said it. Standing from his chair and moving to go out of the cave. That seemed to pull Damian out of his own swell of fury, for he moved in front of his brother to stop him.
"Calm down Drake." Timothy glared up at Damian and moved to go around him, Damian however sidestepped him blocking him once more.
"Get out of my way Wayne."
"No." Tim growled and pushed him slightly to make him move, but Damian stood his ground.
"Move Damian."
"No." Tim pushed him again, furious at his refusal, Cass and Stephanie moved quickly over to the two but Damian did not waiver.
"How are you so calm! How are you not mad about this. Damian, we just saw Bruce fucking hit Rachel. He's been lying to us for weeks. He told us she was dead and while we weren't looking he sent her on a suicide mission! He's supposed to protect her. He's supposed to love us. Or at least fucking care about us." Damian waited for Timothy to finish before speaking, his own quiet voice a grand contrast to the yelling that had just occurred.
" Of course I'm mad, but you're the smart one Drake, think. If what we say is true then Rachel is out there working undercover for a dangerous espionage agency. We need to get her out as soon as possible. After that, we can deal with Bruce ." The use of his Father's first name seemed to shock some of the anger out of Tim. Damian had never called him anything but 'Father', but at the moment he wanted nothing to do with the man. Eventually, Tim nodded in agreement.
"Fine. What's our first move?" Damian took a deep breath and crossed his arms in front of his chest.
"We need to tell the others."