Necromancer | Daughter of Batman

Chapter XXXII

A week passed, and Bruce was fully recovered within a few days. Kim carefully placed a plate of scrambled eggs before her father. While Alfred prepared for the upcoming summit, she opted to make the recovering Bruce breakfast. "So... You're not mad?" She raised a brow, leaning over the kitchen island to look into his eyes.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Kimmy?" Bruce set his fork down. "You did what you needed to do."

"I killed people." She pursed her lips.

"What happened that night was an exception. Those people were the very same ones responsible for your capture. You were well within your rights to do what you did."

Kim shook her head softly and stood up straight. "Well, I'm gonna go get ready for the summit. Black tie, or cocktail?" A glass of water levitated toward her.

"Black tie." He scoffed. "And stop using your powers in the house. If you break something, you're going to be the one cleaning it."

"I'd use magic for that, too." She winked and headed happily toward her bedroom.

She opened Damian's bedroom door without knocking, and slammed it behind her. She found Dick and Damian reading over the details of the summit as she sat down on her little brother's bed. "Something's wrong."

Damian, shocked that she'd even confide in the boy she loathed, leaned back. "What are you talking about?"

"We don't know what he went through, Kimmy." Dick shrugged. "He's probably just feeling off. God knows you're still in recovery after what happened to you."

"He was gone for a week. I was gone for a month, that doesn't even compare!" She panted. "And... there was no damage to his body. Like at all. Something isn't right."

"Shouldn't you be getting ready?" Damian adjusted his dress shoes. "We have to go in less than an hour."

Kim pursed her lips and sighed heavily. "You guys are no help." She slammed Damian's door behind her, returning to her own bedroom to get dressed for the summit.

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Artemis landed atop the roof, where Dick, Connor, and Damian awaited her. "Thanks for coming. I found something you're not gonna like."

The boys stood at attention as their spy approached. They'd asked Artemis to look into the League of Assassins resurfacing, while they focused on Bruce's recovery. Because of his lack of action into the people who kidnapped him, they suspected Bruce had some sort of involvement. They opted to act discreetly while the man remained distracted. "Show us." Damian urged. 

"I found a drive. A few minutes later, my mom tried to kill me." Artemis shook her head. "I knocked her out, but when she came to, she didn't even remember doing it. Like... She was programmed. Whoever did it must have known I had that drive." 

Dick looked up as if a lightbulb went off over his head. "Like they knew about the vault at Wayne Enterprises. Talia and her Assassins attacked it. Damian and I didn't make it before they took all the servers Lucius had." He scoffed. "Bruce told them."

"No." Damian crossed his arms and shook his head. "Not my father. He doesn't break, he never has." 

"Talia had him in there for weeks and he suddenly snaps out of it just because we show up?" Connor shrugged. 

Damian threw his hands in the air. "No, you're wrong. He's fine."

Dick grasped Damian's shirt. "No, he's not. He's not fine. She got to him."

Connor stepped over to the edge of the roof. "She's not finished, is she? She's just getting started."

"Well, hang on, I was getting to that." Artemis handed Dick an iPad. "Found this on the hard drive. There are vice-presidents on this list, military and corporate leaders, the vice-chancellor of Germany."

"So, why would Talia have this?" Dick pinched the bridge of his nose. 

"What if Talia got to the men and women on that list, brainwashed them?" Artemis widened her eyes. "Then that would place the League of Shadows' influence in every country. She'd control the world."

"HA!" Connor jeered, turning back toward the group. "My God, kid, your mom's got game."

Damian scoffed and smirked. "And all the leaders she would need are at the summit... along with Bruce Wayne." His face dropped with realization. "Kim is at that summit. She's powerless against him, and the League."