The Next Nightwing

Chapter Three

'Don't be angry at him Terry.'

'How can he just sit back and do nothing?'

'He's been through a lot, I'm sure he has good reasons.' The teens walked down the empty back streets of Gotham. The night was relatively calm and still, it was sometimes hard to believe this was the crime capital of the United States.

'What about your Dad, couldn't he help?' Terry knew he was starting to sound desperate, but he knew something had to be done. Amber just shook her head at him.

'Whoever my father was, he's not that person anymore. He changed a lot after my mother died.'

Terry looked at her sadly. 'I'm sorry, I didn't know.'

'It's ok, it was a long time ago but you can believe me when I say I know how you are feeling. I know what it's like to want answers and to feel so helpless.' They once again walked in silence until a car came towards them through the darkness. Terry grabbed Amber, pulling her to the side as the car narrowly avoided hitting them. It came to a stop just before them; it was a fancy car, obviously owned by someone with a lot of money. The teens began to back away but were blocked by a large man with a scar on one side of his face.

'Hello Terrance, Miss Grayson. Ever had a ride in a limo?' Derek Powers rolled down the window and grinned at them like a Cheshire cat.

'My dad always told me to never accept rides from strangers.' said Amber, defiance weaved into her voice.

'Whose a stranger, your Grandfather and I have been co-workers for years. Besides...' Powers looked towards Terry, 'your dad's not around anymore.'

'I think we'll pass.' said Terry. But the large man behind them had other ideas. He grabbed Terry and began searching through his jacket while the teen called out for help.

'That won't do you any good Terry, now why don't you make this easier on yourself and give me back my disc.' Powers' forehead furrowed in frustration when Terry played innocent. 'You know what I'm talking about.' With a glance at the monster behind them, the grip on Terry's arms became painfully tight, to the point Terry bit his lip in pain.

'Alright.' Amber came between them, she didn't have to be able to see Powers to be able to glare at him. 'I'll give it to you...if he lets go.' Again there was an exchange of glances and the big man released Terry. As Power's reached his hand for the disc Amber threw it in the air, distracting them enough for Terry to kick out against his captor. Grabbing Amber's, hand, Terry pulled her after him as he ran. One of Powers' men began shooting at them. They were coming close to the edge of the street, beyond that was a drop into the next. Terry slowed down to avoid the edge but Amber pulled him on; together they leapt off the edge, catching onto a street lamp and landing in a crouch. There was silence from above, no one was following them. 'Now what, without evidence how can we go to Auntie Barbara?'

Terry had been mulling an idea over in his mind for some time, it was only now that it was becoming more than just an idea. 'I have a plan...but you're not going to like it.'

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Bruce stared at the fire in the hearth. It had been several hours since he had sent Amber and Terry of to meet with Commissioner Gordon. The old Batgirl would have immediately seen Dick's daughter and would have made quick work of the evidence that she had brought to her. Yet Amber had still not returned to the manor. Of course, it may have been the case that she and Terry were out. They were young; young people did not like to be cooped up in an old house with an old man, playing the piano as Amber had been for the past few weeks. Bruce did not begrudge her the chance to go out and be young for a change. He had, after all, already checked Terry McGinness's background history. But something was not sitting right with Bruce, after all his years as Batman he had developed a sixth sense for trouble and right now these senses were buzzing. Then from the front of the house he could hear Ace barking. Ace was a very well trained guard dog if he was barking that meant there was something amiss outside. Taking up his walking stick, Bruce walked to the window and looking down towards the entrance. Ace was at the gate, barking up at the house. Bruce snarled as he realised the dog was tied to the metal bars. Opening a window he released an old Batarang that he kept on his person. The sharp metal sliced through the rope, releasing the Great Dane. The dog ran towards the house and Bruce let him in through the front door, following him towards the clock. Ace hurried down the steps into the cave, his nose low to the floor, sniffing out something or someone. He snarled, baring his teeth and barking in a low gruff tone at the glass cabinet. Bruce turned on the light from within it, another snarl emanating from his throat. The Bat suit and one of the plain black prototypes were missing.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

'This is a bad idea.' said Terry, pulling on the Batman cowl.

'This was your idea.' Amber was covered head to toe in black, the suit had been a prototype for the Bat suit, it was monocrome with no logos and the mask was plain with no sharp bat like ears. She was fiddling with a small dial control that was on the side of her cowl. She had set something off as she had put the suit on and now there was a low buzzing in her ear.

'I didn't originally plan for you to come along.'

'Hey, I am the granddaughter of Batman, there is no way you were going to leave me behind.' She kept fiddling until finally, the buzzing stopped. Suddenly she could hear everything clearer than she had ever heard anything in her life. The suit had enhanced her hearing.

'But there is a little fact of...i don't know, you're blind!'

'I don't think that will be too much of a problem.'

'Care to explain?'

Amber turned in a circle, the vibrations of the city were bouncing off everything around her, her advanced hearing was allowing her to deduce where everything was. She would never be able to read a book, but for all intense and purposes, she could see the city. She explained this to Terry and the young man chuckled.

'What?'

'It's just ironic.'

'What is?'

'You see like a bat.'

Amber punched him in the arm causing him to chuckle harder. 'Come on, let's go.'

To say their first flight with the suits was jumpy was the understatement of the year. When they finally navigated their way to the building they intended to land on, Terry lost his footing, rolling on impact and almost falling off the roof. Amber landed with slightly more grace but still stumbled. Together they scaled down the wall, finally reaching Powers' office. Once outside, Amber set her hearing to the test, listening intently to the conversation behind the glass.

Terry watched through the window as Powers conversed with an older man, short and slightly fat with a deeply wrinkled face. They were watching a slide show, showing images of plants being turned to dust by some sort of gas. Then the slides became that of a cow suffering the same fate. Judging from Terry's groan, Amber was quite glad she could not see what was on the screen. But Powers was talking about Germ Warfare, he was trying to sell it to whoever the man in the chair was. Suddenly the conversation turned to human test subjects.

'They're talking about testing something on humans.' Amber whispered.

'I know' said Terry, 'and it's not pretty. Whoever that guy is, if he gets his hands on what Powers is selling, it's going to mean a whole lot of trouble.'

Amber went still as she listened again. 'They're sending out a shipment tonight. We have to stop it. Wait.' as she listened harder, Terry saw the big guy with the scarred face who had attacked him and Amber earlier that evening.

'What are they saying?'

Amber was silent.

'Amber, what are they saying?'

'That man...the one who was with Power's earlier...he killed your father.'