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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7mMrXnXOGe
Had she become so cold that even her subconscious had stopped reminding her of what once was?143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW2cYTdcTo1
All those memories, all those past lives, seemed to have been swallowed whole by time, leaving nothing behind.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfCtoDQsgZa
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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡycZMCdp8Xw
The engine purred beneath her, the road stretched endlessly ahead—no destination, no end in sight.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxpw4a7Hnjo
There was nothing visible beyond the horizon.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCt9zbnfQG
Only a gut instinct urging her: keep driving, don’t stop.
“You have to make it safely,”143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdTFfewdqNH
That sentence echoed in her mind over and over.
Her hands trembled constantly, but she didn’t feel pain.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RbGcfky6C
Not because she was numb—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmhr7Bx7J2C
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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt9W6UnitYk
Her vision blurred, like fog clouding the windshield, but she knew—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfgFkyQuD2m
She still couldn’t stop.
She turned her head.
In the passenger seat, a group of small children sat quietly.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡma6JVEr73o
They were silent, like blades of grass waiting for dawn.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhi4ay79DfW
Their faces felt familiar, but indistinct.
“Yes… the children…” she struggled to think.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgIIuBOO1G5
“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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEZ668lClCZ
The steering wheel pressed into her palms so hard they felt like splitting open.
She didn’t know where the van was heading.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvljb05QYGr
But she knew one thing—
Almost there.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdO2lFbSDP6
Almost there.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr26YcBsQP8
She told herself, like soothing a frightened child.
Then, she clenched her teeth.
And in the next moment—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6p09a6mytv
She realized her canines…143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm9zafxk3iB
Were growing longer.
The air in the dream turned cold.
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143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡORZ3Bj48ox
Three days later.
Tim sat in the Batcave, surrounded by rows of surveillance monitors.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6RG9AKGb9N
Voices buzzed through his headset as the patrol team reported in from all over the city.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLvn5Iu7Pt7
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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbClCQ8KTdL
His tone was steady, mechanical, precise.
“East docks are unusually quiet. Nightwing, swing by for a check.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ch2TkESLT
Red Hood, your area’s clear. Move north.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtol9otM3ko
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—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTCpmnDKi9o
Harsh. Cold.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv3wWaw7Zal
Like the silent storm that followed a crisis.
Tim knew Bruce was angry.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7v0L0Taktv
Correction: the entire Wayne family was furious.
Nightwing was so mad he nearly stormed back to Gotham to physically confront someone.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnlbJuPbER2
Jason had already destroyed three motorcycle helmets during his patrols.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnmP3vlDgO
Bruce said nothing—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZnOloMHBC8
Which was worse.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9ZRnbMqzA
He’d started a full internal audit of every education facility in Gotham,143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyspwLf31GQ
and if he uncovered the origin of the culprits, it was likely the entire criminal syndicate would disappear overnight.
As for Tim—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOyZraRsUMo
All he could do was stay calm and maintain command.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5lmytd4i4P
It felt like the only thing left within his control.
He remembered that day—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUwymZ8w80T
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—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkYcLjL1QIJ
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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG1MHanAA1W
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,143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlSfUCyHLLO
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—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUSxfac4Wlp
Her body visibly trembling from pain, but her face still smiling, comforting those frightened little souls.
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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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoAw7xAvnc2
Once they reached city limits, the logistics would kick into place—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKtUoBZdWg
Precise. Coordinated. Mechanical.
And indeed, it unfolded exactly as he planned:
Media outlets had already been contacted.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAzRDiQloN3
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—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDVvCJR7fAb
Surveillance data was backed up and sent to the police.
The hospital had opened emergency lanes in advance.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWk1Ic2R4O
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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3FPONX8gy5
To support that claim, Tim had Robin rush to the scene—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRpkPMmnkUF
And they did, in fact, find unconscious criminals and leftover evidence.
He played the part flawlessly.
Outside the police station, parents had already gathered.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDmtqfIA2yF
When they saw their children return safe, the cries that erupted were like a tsunami.
Kids threw themselves at their parents, sobbing uncontrollably.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO63E1PlteR
One louder than the next—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ0Y96lG4P4
Even Tim nearly lost control of his own emotions.
Thankfully, he had already arranged human barricades and visual shields.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSGLBJgJxY
Not a single child’s crying face was caught by media cameras.
As for Finn’s parents—Jason and Lyla—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQneb6ub9U8
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,143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8yjEhnrZG
he leapt forward like a tiny animal finally dropping its defenses,143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Ajx649QP2
and clung to Bruce’s neck with everything he had.
For once, Bruce was at a loss for words.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvSwjDO8Snh
All he could say was: “It’s okay. Grandpa’s here.”
The two teachers were transported safely to the hospital.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvSN1EKC9Jp
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,143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhxkcPA9Jwe
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.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcxmS8uAPE8
The doctor described it as a “small-scale explosion” inside her body.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHMOVUiDffM
Bleeding was severe and difficult to control.
The initial surgery couldn’t fix everything.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMpUOXGnJV
They had to stabilize her first, then proceed in phases.
The operation stretched across three days.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNTtq8Lf6h
Two surgical teams rotated.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgLKjUMsUjc
Experts from general surgery, trauma, neurology, and orthopedics were brought in.
And now—143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEJFkPkBj8h
Tim sat on a bench outside the police station.
He closed his tablet.
Tilted his head back.
And stared at the gray, heavy sky.143Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYEY5d15wz3
Speechless for a very, very long time.
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and then Add to home screen.