Don't Fear the Reaper

2) And So It Begins

Dick stood before his family, both real and honorary, and felt his chest tighten as he let out a sigh.

"We've exhausted all leads. Every single one of the trails we had have lead to dead ends. We don't even know if he's still alive-"

"My father is alive," Damian said, eyes burning with a stubborn belief that he was right. "We simply need to try harder."

Tim had a look of exhaustion as he slumped in his seat. "Damian, we have tried everything. Every contact, every safe house, everything. We'll keep trying, but... but it might be that we haven't found him because there's nothing left to find."

Damian glared at Tim. "Don't say that. There is still more-"

Dick cut him off. "No. There's nothing left-"

"Yes there is," Jason said, speaking up for the first time since they had all gathered together. He didn't meet anyone's eyes. "There's someone we can call."

Damian's eyes found Jason's and a dark look crossed over his face. "Todd, do you seriously believe-"

Jason didn't let him finish, pushing himself off the wall and moving to stand next to Dick in front of the others. "Yes. He'll be able to tell us if the old man's still kicking."

Dick eyed Jason and Damian wearily. "What do you two know? Who is this guy?"

Damian and Jason seemed to have a silent conversation before Damian stood from his seat. "You might have heard of him before: Reaper."

Tim chocked on his sip of coffee, the liquid dripping out of his nose slightly as he coughed. "The assassin?"

"Tt- he is not an assassin," Damian said, his defenses coming up.

Jason shrugged. "Well, he's not not  an assassin, but that's an over simplification."

Steph sat forward in her seat. "Who are we talking about?"

Tim, after wiping his face, moved to the batcomputer and pulled up the file. "Reaper. He's an assassin in the League of Assassins. Moves like a ghost. No one has ever seen him in action. One moment the target is alive, the next they are dead on the ground. There's not even time to attempt medical intervention. They're just dead on the ground."

Jason stared up at the blurry photo attached to the file. It showed a cloaked individual, mask pulled up to right below their eyes, as they walked away from a body on the ground. The only part of their face visible was the section around their eyes, revealing pale, olive toned skin, and eyes that seemed almost bored.

"He doesn't work for the League of Assassins," Jason said quietly, an unreadable expression on his face.

Dick ran a hand through his hair, fighting internally with what to do. On the one hand, they said he could tell them if Bruce was alive. That could give them a new lead, or if not, at least give them closure. However, neither one had ever mentioned knowing Reaper. They had been chasing the assassin for years, but both had always been silence about the topic.

"How do you know him— and how can you be sure he won't betray us or take one of us out. We all have some sort of bounty on our heads on the black market." Dick didn't like the idea of bringing him in.

Kate nodded. "We can't trust that he won't seize the opportunity and take us out. Bruce wouldn't want us risking-"

"Well Bruce isn't here, is he?" Jason said, eyes glaring at the two of them. "And he won't care about a bounty. He isn't the type."

"'Isn't the type'?" Barbra said with a raised eyebrow. "I think anyone working for the League of Assassins-"

"He doesn't work for the League," Damian said, voice sharp. "And I would trust him with my life."