Two Months Later, at Night
The girl sat at the edge of the bed.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCKYFaU6TO4
Only a small lamp was on in the room, casting a soft, warm light.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvhRpBPAizV
She held the boy’s hand, gently applying ointment to his sore muscles,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1qlIKtaIWS
careful to avoid the bandage wrapped around his palm.
Jason didn’t speak.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMzvegqLtwY
He lowered his head, letting her tend to him.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpmpIK6lrJv
But his eyes kept sneaking glances at her face.
That face, usually framed with a quiet smile,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzpYbbV5sZw
was now furrowed with worry—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSkRxH25wTE
as if she were hurting in his place.
He was the one who had gone to Batman.
When Bruce began arranging ability tests for Nana,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAWGXU1VKLI
Jason knocked on the heavy, solemn door of the Batcave—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhqVFwpDW5
for the first time, on his own.
He stood before Bruce and said,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWpo1bkZYr
voice steady and sincere:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9Ak9cSQFQ
“I want to train. I want to be stronger. I want to… protect her.”
Batman didn’t respond right away.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxa9lYT7ZB3
He just stared at the boy in silence for a long time.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡafWuylkfke
Then, finally—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGV6WwnNhhv
he nodded.
From that day forward,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzBrDrsPgUj
Jason began his training.
Real training.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjmrusOi7zE
Not games.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcF1wAQLUpo
Not gym class.
Batman’s standard—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJdG17MMnIh
harsher even than what he gave to Robin.
Jason collapsed into bed every night,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCUSiCX8P8X
waking up sore and bruised.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjhLksCnDk6
His hands grew calloused,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQkZsCoGa8
his steps grew heavy.
But when he heard Nana’s voice at night,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGL8CUutYTT
softly calling his name,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ32w9vtS1x6
while she gently rubbed ointment on his arms and said,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfYH76xWJRZ
“It doesn’t hurt anymore.”
He smiled—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHMLDpPfYWX
the kind that bloomed from deep inside the chest.
For pain like this,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT5Z6mq91mE
it was worth it.
Inside the Batcave
Dick flipped through the pages of Nana’s test results.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzFg9FzqgIe
Each page deepened the crease between his brows.
He murmured under his breath:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqq1KZeLiEw
“This kid’s power… it’s no joke.”
So far, Batman had categorized her abilities into two main types:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7FOSZM8xaI
Command and Healing.
And “Command” branched further—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeuMGwt1WcN
into Action and Object subtypes.
Even in the earliest tests,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqoznD4gMrI
those two alone had stunned the whole team.
The first time she was tested,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJagMMMLDoR
Nana spoke in a voice barely louder than a whisper:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLoIWXl1a4k
“Stand up.”
The next second—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpPZ4igj5xp
everyone in the room—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIiQANLwIEg
Dick, Alfred, Jason, even Batman himself—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNynri4eUPq
stood up.
Not out of comprehension,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTRuPWiKjm8
but reaction.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8JkCjOKkbI
As if the words bypassed their brains and went straight to the nerves.
The second test was even more shocking.
Nana stared at the emblem on Batman’s chest and said:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQ6Et4A8my
“Give me the Bat symbol.”
Batman didn’t move.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeXY2BIXKVh
But the emblem on his suit vanished—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0IZNG4ikc
and with a soft clink, fell to the floor at Nana’s feet.
The room fell dead silent.
Batman immediately began further testing—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzh66Q4R11n
on range, volume, and correlation with her throat pain index.
Then it happened—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgSyfBlBLlO
the one test Dick personally stopped.
That day, Bruce calmly instructed:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQpKPvCCbcv
“Say something that would make the mouse’s eyes appear in front of you.”
Nana froze.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeCa5bAgcPK
Her whole body trembled.
She slowly turned toward the white lab mouse on the table.
Her lips trembled.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdk9un2Hkc
Her voice was a breeze through dry leaves:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmqDhG7yCmF
“…Eyes… come…”
In the next instant—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOeeMwtA5Ya
two small, blood-threaded eyeballs dropped to the floor.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb164oW08HL
The mouse twitched twice, then lay still.
Nana clutched her throat,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYqjVpUcQh1
eyes shut tight, tears streaming down.
Dick rushed forward, grabbing her by the shoulders:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc1OiuPcfu3
“Nana, that’s enough. Stop. Don’t say another word.”
Then he turned toward the eyes on the ground,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM1NK1ud2VJ
his gaze sharp as ice.
He clenched his fists.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYSIE2Ub3l1
A dark weight churned in his chest.
This wasn’t just a girl with a strange ability.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYKe2PkQO5f
This…75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZs6Owf412A
this could unbalance the entire city.
There was also healing.
That same voice—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmg9PKWwPUi
which could command, demand, and destroy—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Wj2YDIq4w
also possessed the power to restore.
It became the only reassuring factor75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZm0t5Ew49p
amid her terrifying potential.
One year later,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh4cDUsVRbs
Wayne Manor had quietly changed in many ways.
Bruce, with his meticulous—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwEROnDlR5
some would say obsessive—testing,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI4w6wF0oxA
had established a vital rule:
“No command sentences.”
Batman instructed Nana firmly:75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbOkxm9hpAe
stick to objective statements and questions.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbEqYvNYzHS
Commands—even as simple as “sit down” or “pick up the gun”—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM3QAlzcBTz
could lead to irreversible consequences.
Nana accepted this.
She began learning how to speak.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgnx00B9I0
Slowly.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuvUFpaugpy
Her voice was hoarse—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3miMOJGDuN
but it was hers.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡplpSNoKqzf
Chosen by her own will.
And in all her spoken words,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4tjNLuULM1
the one name she said most often75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tgZswM5Mn
remained the same:
“Jason.”
One night,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNtUF5HgLj
Alfred woke her from a deep sleep.
Before she could fully react,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyDDAuwsLdw
she saw the old butler’s anxious face.
“Master Bruce is injured. It’s… it’s very serious. I know he may not approve of this, but—”
He didn’t finish the sentence.
Nana was already on her feet,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXgQyLGUBnB
following him down to the Batcave.
That night,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEGMzTq9md3
she sat beside Bruce’s bed,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9uDynnPqi
his arm covered in blood.
Her hands trembled as they gripped his arm.75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnzNquUbp7
She closed her eyes—75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ14ZHs623HP
and with a voice barely louder than the grave,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCNUkxdS3Lb
she whispered again and again,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrumWZj9njD
like casting a spell:
“Heal… quickly… please… recover…”
From a distance,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCX2xMtqUbN
Jason stood watching her.
And in his heart,75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ywqd7BAPJ
something shifted.
75Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cvZA9Hoj0
and then Add to home screen.