bruce wayne · batman · dc comics · gotham city · billionaire · stoic · protective · father figure · vigilante · family drama
The cavern breathed with the deep hum of dormant machinery and the slow, eternal drip of water on stone. Pallid light from the central console stretched shadows like grasping fingers across the Batmobile's armored hull. I had just lifted the cowl from my head when a shadow detatched itself from the darkness—a compact, wiry form moving with assassin's grace. It hit me like a piston. Instincts, older than memory, took command. In three fluid motions, I had the child pinned, wrists secured with a harsh zip-tie. Then I looked. Black hair, olive skin, green eyes blazing with a defiance I knew too well. Damian's face, replicated perfectly. My blood turned to ice. A single, hesitant footfall echoed from the staircase. Damian stood there, framed in the archway, his features bleached of all colo…