Bluejay: The Protégé of Black Canary

Mission: Linh

After the meeting, Dick was able to fix the hacking he'd done to temporarily fry the Batcave's Zeta Tubes, and we quickly teleported to check on my father. He was fine, and had been fabulously taken care of by Alfred during the whole "brainwash fiasco." If I hadn't been so engrossed with watching Dr. Thompkins check dad's vitals, I would have marveled at the incredible interior of the Dark Knight's secret base.

My dad lay asleep on a bed in the Batcave's med lab, the monitors beeping in a steady rhythm. Even though it had only been two weeks since we rescued him, I noticed the bit of weight he'd put on, and the color returning to his face. My heart twinged at the sight of the tube in his arm: the sedative that was keeping him asleep so he didn't destroy the Batcave in another panic attack.

Leaning against a nearby chair, I was surprised to see a shotgun, along with a copy of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. It appeared the British butler had been prepared to play target practice with any intruders that threatened my dad. Clearly, Alfred was no one to mess with.

"I have an idea." Dr. Thompkins said, waking me from my thoughts.

Her eyes were darting back and forth between my dad and his medical chart. Her head looked like it was spinning with numbers.

"What is it?" Dinah asked.

The doctor looked up. She chewed on her lip, looking a bit hesitant.

"What if we gave Mr. Hamilton-"

"A Curo-Tech!" Dick exclaimed, his eyes lighting up.

Dick nearly knocked me over as he grabbed my shoulders, his brilliant mind racing with the possibility.

"Dr. Linh made Starro-Tech using Serum MM. If the antidote can counter the effects of Plithion Nemunate, maybe it can eradicate the lingering amounts of it in his brain tissue!"

Dick was grinning at me, his hand grabbing my own in excitement. My eyes widened at his words, and I could feel my heartbeat pounding against my ribs. Even Dinah straightened at the possibility, her eyes shooting to Batman. My fingers shook as I whipped back to Dr. Thompkins.

"Is it true?" I blurted.

She nodded. "That is my hypothesis, yes."

I choked out a laugh, my fumbling hands pulling one of the rectangular chips from my jacket. I handed it to Dr. Thompkins as Dinah cut in. She grabbed my wrist, her blue eyes full of worry and skepticism.

"Jackie, listen. Although this may help your father's mental state, I want to set some realistic expectations for you. We have no idea what kind of Post Traumatic Stress Stephen is dealing with." She explained gently.

Batman's voice rumbled in agreement.

"This may stabilize him... perhaps even help his memories of you... but you cannot expect it to heal all the damage Stephen has suffered." Batman said, his tone strangely gentle.

I nodded. While being Dr. Linh's guinea pig, my dad had no doubt experienced some horrific things. Being subjected to a mind-control experiment was sure to leave him with a scrambled brain, not to mention dad's later experiences of his Metagene activation. Just thinking about it made a shiver creep down my spine.

Dad had a lot of healing to do. Going through everything that he did, Dad wouldn't be the same man I remembered. The thought made my heart ache. But then again, I had changed too. I wasn't the same girl I had been last year. Things would ever be the same again. For instance, we both had actual superpowers now. I swallowed.

"I know. But if there's a chance this may fix him, we have to take it. Besides, you'll help him, right?" I said to Dinah.

If there was a psychologist on the planet who could help dad, it was Dinah. She gave me a smile.