[ Gotham University, Gotham City ]
They landed helicopter in the open space of the campus. The police officer who had served as their temporary pilot clung to the control stick like it was his firstborn child. Judging by his face, he would have gladly lived in the cockpit forever, just to make a quick escape whenever needed. But orders were orders, and with one reluctant sigh after another, he trailed behind the group, looking back every few steps.
Thea hopped off the skateboard with Felicity in tow, landing light on her feet. She was just about to ask Catwoman where the other two teammates were hiding when a voice rang out.
"Dad, you're finally back! Are you okay?" A red-haired girl in trendy clothes threw her arms around Commissioner Gordon's neck like she hadn't seen him in years. She clung so tightly it looked like she might never let go. A slender, black-haired boy followed close behind.
"I'm fine, Barbara." The old commissioner looked uncomfortable being hugged in public. After a brief, awkward embrace, they separated as if nothing had happened.
So that was Batgirl, and the boy had to be Robin—future Nightwing. Thea stayed in the background. There was no need to step forward, no introductions required. She was just backup. This was their home turf, and she didn't plan on stealing anyone's spotlight.
There was no point lingering by the entrance, so Commissioner Gordon motioned everyone inside. The group moved quietly. Only Barbara's voice cut through the silence, asking about Batman's whereabouts and whether state support had arrived.
Halfway through her barrage of questions, Commissioner Gordon introduced Thea and Felicity. Barbara gave a nod that barely qualified as polite and went right back to questioning her father.
Gotham really was full of strange people. Why so arrogant? Sooner or later, you'll need my help. As Thea walked, she sized the girl up. All Barbara did was talk to her dad and that sidekick of hers. Not a word to the officers who'd fought and bled beside Gordon. Maybe she was smart, but emotionally? Thea doubted it.
No wonder she'd ended up paralyzed by the Joker, forced into a wheelchair for three years before she finally reflected on her mistakes. Maybe it wasn't fate—maybe it was karma in clown makeup.
From what Thea remembered, after the injury Barbara had turned to Richard Dragon for guidance. She went on to master rare martial arts style that allowed her to fight effectively while seated and still managing to dominate the battlefield. They even started calling her Oracle, merging woman and wheelchair like some noble fusion. Just imagining the scene made Thea's stomach twist. Still, she had to see it in person one day—not to mock her, of course. That would be beneath her. No, she'd come as a respectful observer. A student of legendary resilience. Yes, that sounded better.
While they were walking, Thea suddenly noticed something was off. The headcount didn't add up. Wait a minute—where was Catwoman? Glancing around, she spotted the other woman trailing behind, walking alone with a strange expression on her face. Huh. Trouble in paradise? Thea didn't need a sixth sense to know these two weren't exactly on friendly terms.
And she'd guessed right. Barbara had always been high and mighty, never hiding her disdain for Catwoman's "sneaky" ways. To her, someone like Selina was the antithesis of justice. Add to that Robin's blind loyalty to Barbara, and it wasn't hard to see why Catwoman had opted out of their little group project. Honestly, if she weren't so desperate to find Bruce, she'd have vanished already. Let Gotham fend for itself.
"Hey, got a place I can change?" Thea slowed her pace, letting Selina catch up. She spoke in a low voice, tugging at her gear. The outfit looked slick, but wearing it for too long felt like being trapped in shrink-wrap. Sometimes she envied the Flash—one flick and the costume was on or off.
"Follow me." Selina didn't hesitate. The two exchanged a brief glance with the group, and then veered off without ceremony.
"We'll meet in the conference room later…" Commissioner Gordon's voice called after them. Selina raised a hand and gave a lazy wave in reply.
...
After slipping into a set of lighter clothes, Thea shed the vigilante armor and returned to her cover as the harmless little white flower. She followed Catwoman through the dim corridors until they reached the doorway of a meeting room.
As they walked, Thea noticed the university building had turned into something closer to a makeshift hospital—or a morgue. The halls were packed with civilians sprawled out like wilted plants. Some wore business suits, others shorts and sandals, but they all shared the same hollow expression. Blood stains marked more bodies than not, and many were wrapped in bandages that looked like they hadn't been changed in days.
Inside the meeting room, Catwoman handled the formalities. She was the only one who straddled both camps with ease, so the introductions fell to her.
"This is Thea Queen, codename Red Arrow. And this is Felicity Smoak—our computer expert."
"These two are my teammates, Batgirl Barbara Gordon and Robin—Dick Grayson."
Now that the official intros were out of the way, Barbara could no longer pretend Thea was invisible. She offered a few lazy phrases—"I've heard so much about you," and "How are your father and mother?"—as if she were reading lines off a teleprompter. Thea held back a smirk. Her so-called father had been swallowed by the sea long ago. If Barbara was trying to be polite, she really needed better intel. Either she didn't care or didn't know. Probably both.
After that flimsy exchange, the conference room fell into a quiet standoff.
No one spoke. Not even Barbara, who had just moments ago been full of pointless chatter. The silence thickened like fog, and the others exchanged glances that carried weight Thea wasn't yet privy to.
The tension made no sense. If this group had some secret telepathy network like Professor X's X-Men, maybe it would've been understandable—but if they did, Bane would be dead already, and no one would be hiding in this grim university bunker.
Thea gave Felicity a calm look and shook her head slightly. The message was clear: let's just sit back and observe.
Barbara suddenly found her courage and said passionately, "I saw the helicopter you brought. That's great! We should fly it straight to Bane's base and raid him. As long as we defeat Bane, we can save Gotham!"
She had hesitated at first, her voice a bit unsure. But with each word, she grew more confident—like Bane was a ripe watermelon lying helplessly on the pavement, just waiting for her to split him open with a kitchen knife.
Thea couldn't quite figure out what this girl was thinking. She said nothing about the helicopter actually belonging to her, and simply rested her chin on her palm, curious to see what other bold strategies Batgirl might offer.
"What's wrong?" Barbara's voice faltered when she realized the room had gone silent again. No applause, no nods of agreement.
"Okay, good idea," Robin chimed in after an awkward pause. Of course, he was in love with her. That kind of loyalty didn't care whether the plan made any sense at all.
Catwoman gave no reaction either way, keeping her arms crossed in quiet detachment. Commissioner Gordon looked... tired. Really tired. He was used to letting Batman handle strategy, the real thinking work, while the rest carried out the orders. But with Batman missing—possibly trapped or dead—there was a gaping void no one in the room knew how to fill.
He looked like he wanted to speak up and take charge, but he knew from experience that it wouldn't matter. No one truly listened to him. Not even his own daughter, who was more mule than woman when she wanted to be. His authority in this team had always been half-ceremonial at best.
Just as he was about to force out a reluctant agreement, Thea finally saw it for what it was—why this team looked so capable on paper but floundered in practice. They were too used to letting someone else think. Batman carried the brains of the group, and the rest relied on him like a crutch. Now, without him, they thought swinging a few fists and shouting slogans would win them a war.
Everyone gathered in that cramped room was just an ordinary person—no metahumans, no psychics, not even someone with military-grade enhancements. And yet they were seriously talking about going after Bane? Did they even grasp what kind of monster they were up against? Charging in blind like this was practically volunteering for a memorial service. Clearly, none of them had ever looked up how to spell the word "death."
Thea realized she had no choice but to step in. If she left the decisions to this team, they'd be marching straight into the jaws of disaster. Sure, if things went wrong, she could escape—Bane didn't have wings, last she checked—but Felicity wouldn't be so lucky. She could barely manage a few pull-ups on her best day. Bringing her here had been a terrible lapse in judgment.
She clapped twice, sharp and deliberate, breaking the lull that had fallen over the room.
"What a great idea!" Thea's tone was bright as she gave Barbara a big, fake thumbs-up.
"You thought of that brilliant plan while cuddling a gorilla and eating cookies, didn't you?" she added, eyes narrowing as she locked her gaze on Barbara's face, her expression all too serious.
To Be Continued...
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