Nora was dreaming.
It had been so long since she last dreamed of the past—so long, in fact, that she’d wondered if she’d gone numb.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEEjioYHNEg
Had she become so cold that even her subconscious had stopped reminding her of what once was?64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡadEEN3eX27
All those memories, all those past lives, seemed to have been swallowed whole by time, leaving nothing behind.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkDZ3TQJHiL
She had tried to recall, but couldn't even grasp a single image.
But this time, the dream came in perfect clarity.
She was driving again.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHDeyC0hwv
The engine purred beneath her, the road stretched endlessly ahead—no destination, no end in sight.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoqbCq7cq7B
There was nothing visible beyond the horizon.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTlI34znJCq
Only a gut instinct urging her: keep driving, don’t stop.
“You have to make it safely,”64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrqBzEsWtiF
That sentence echoed in her mind over and over.
Her hands trembled constantly, but she didn’t feel pain.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdfyGiuIHtf
Not because she was numb—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyYQmCRCB0
But because she hadn’t felt pain in so long, her body had learned to suppress it, to function as a machine made for movement alone.
She blinked several times.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWFEY0gLdUD
Her vision blurred, like fog clouding the windshield, but she knew—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz5dlVUI7Jp
She still couldn’t stop.
She turned her head.
In the passenger seat, a group of small children sat quietly.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0XOYF2Ha5
They were silent, like blades of grass waiting for dawn.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3crARJgSkc
Their faces felt familiar, but indistinct.
“Yes… the children…” she struggled to think.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgVFrLdlCeS
“My mission is to transport the children… a whole van of children.”
The thought surfaced from the deepest part of her mind.
She tried to grip the wheel tighter.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrhGQG6dN9H
The steering wheel pressed into her palms so hard they felt like splitting open.
She didn’t know where the van was heading.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncBSA6Y0UD
But she knew one thing—
Almost there.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfjG2Pmc0qQ
Almost there.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhhRL7ZLpvi
She told herself, like soothing a frightened child.
Then, she clenched her teeth.
And in the next moment—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntNLMESAkv
She realized her canines…64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFlLlfXYtV
Were growing longer.
The air in the dream turned cold.
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64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK6L1zysHNe
Three days later.
Tim sat in the Batcave, surrounded by rows of surveillance monitors.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0lg1Mth72Z
Voices buzzed through his headset as the patrol team reported in from all over the city.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBeQDqkmdc9
Calmly, he toggled between camera feeds, issuing instructions through the comms, helping coordinate tonight’s patrol routes.
He flagged anomalies in each zone, then reassigned coverage areas to different team members.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxoKt0gUtCm
His tone was steady, mechanical, precise.
“East docks are unusually quiet. Nightwing, swing by for a check.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS5tBGjDJON
Red Hood, your area’s clear. Move north.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS0AKmlyQNP
Batman, repeating the update: patrol the route from City Hall to the hospital again. That zone was compromised two nights ago.”
Batman’s voice came through on the other end—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLd367soK3v
Harsh. Cold.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PgfV367zv
Like the silent storm that followed a crisis.
Tim knew Bruce was angry.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWUOxWlTCgw
Correction: the entire Wayne family was furious.
Nightwing was so mad he nearly stormed back to Gotham to physically confront someone.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡspjWp4w12o
Jason had already destroyed three motorcycle helmets during his patrols.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZc7BuD5ga
Bruce said nothing—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAOSbE1xCt9
Which was worse.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9wMnKUOqMw
He’d started a full internal audit of every education facility in Gotham,64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZIR6df0TZ
and if he uncovered the origin of the culprits, it was likely the entire criminal syndicate would disappear overnight.
As for Tim—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3qyKUWorHJ
All he could do was stay calm and maintain command.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQtYWFKjUJN
It felt like the only thing left within his control.
He remembered that day—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpd9dLqXH9m
When Nora said she’d been shot, her voice so casual it sounded like a joke.
Then he got into the driver’s seat.
As he drove, he glanced sideways—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNQGKyztRsK
Nora was crouched near the door, wrapping one of his emergency tourniquets tightly around her waist.
The wound was on her side, just above the hip.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeSGdHJgnlq
Not fatal, but it had to hurt.
Tim noticed: there wasn’t as much blood as he’d feared. That gave him a sliver of relief.
But before he could ask anything,64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4ihX4AMth
Nora had already walked to the back of the van, smiling as she asked the kids:
“Want to play a car-counting game?”
She said if they saw more than twenty cars go by, that meant they were almost home.
Tim nearly turned to stare at her.
But the kids believed her.
He thought: Finn only just learned to count to ten...
As he drove, he watched her from the mirror—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN1aoFOQ4gJ
Her body visibly trembling from pain, but her face still smiling, comforting those frightened little souls.
64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6aXOnSm41x
64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwMijRqLOo
Tim managed to drive the van full of shaken children back into the city, straight to Gotham Central Police Station.
He had rehearsed it all in his head.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSgQDPzqYC4
Once they reached city limits, the logistics would kick into place—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkmHg9ILFH2
Precise. Coordinated. Mechanical.
And indeed, it unfolded exactly as he planned:
Media outlets had already been contacted.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8pAVm347i3
Press conference times, speaker order, and statements were all pre-arranged.
The kindergarten had dispatched staff to receive the children, calm parents, and liaise with officials.
Batcave support was at full throttle—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhJMpTojA5t
Surveillance data was backed up and sent to the police.
The hospital had opened emergency lanes in advance.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbJeQCg8WyR
The two teachers were immediately transferred upon arrival.
Everything unfolded according to Tim’s “perfect exit strategy.”
He personally announced that the main suspect and accomplices had been captured in the outskirts.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu65YxcoVVp
To support that claim, Tim had Robin rush to the scene—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiV00P1uITZ
And they did, in fact, find unconscious criminals and leftover evidence.
He played the part flawlessly.
Outside the police station, parents had already gathered.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7OKjEjgXkv
When they saw their children return safe, the cries that erupted were like a tsunami.
Kids threw themselves at their parents, sobbing uncontrollably.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsobCeubWwg
One louder than the next—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt4SaDUOpqb
Even Tim nearly lost control of his own emotions.
Thankfully, he had already arranged human barricades and visual shields.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWZgmou6kYK
Not a single child’s crying face was caught by media cameras.
As for Finn’s parents—Jason and Lyla—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyAHep21RSr
They were abroad and couldn’t return for at least two more days.
So Bruce came himself to pick up Finn.
The moment those tear-filled blue eyes spotted his grandfather,64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEMktrJ65C
he leapt forward like a tiny animal finally dropping its defenses,64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAsDaSnN4G
and clung to Bruce’s neck with everything he had.
For once, Bruce was at a loss for words.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6dJnuwY7iY
All he could say was: “It’s okay. Grandpa’s here.”
The two teachers were transported safely to the hospital.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTLOPFOFE8B
Initial checks showed one had simply passed out from shock and would be fine after rest.
But just as Tim was still deep in post-crisis coordination at the station,64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnPcbhTHWa0
a call came through the hospital’s secure line—
Nora’s injury was far worse than they had initially thought.
The bullet had entered through her side, struck bone, then ricocheted, causing extensive internal damage.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWav1Ty9erc
The doctor described it as a “small-scale explosion” inside her body.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi7pb41O4nq
Bleeding was severe and difficult to control.
The initial surgery couldn’t fix everything.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTeE3DuZvOU
They had to stabilize her first, then proceed in phases.
The operation stretched across three days.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpSnB6VbIAo
Two surgical teams rotated.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuIi8W7qptC
Experts from general surgery, trauma, neurology, and orthopedics were brought in.
And now—64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpyhU2TEQ6T
Tim sat on a bench outside the police station.
He closed his tablet.
Tilted his head back.
And stared at the gray, heavy sky.64Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrVJu65HIkF
Speechless for a very, very long time.
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and then Add to home screen.