Tomorrow Robin

TIMv2

Robin frowned at his computer screen. That TIM had been programmed with a British accent was a crappy amount of information to go off of. Okay... TIM once belonged to John, a homo novis from the time of bell bottom pants. A last name would have been nice or any name but the most common name on the planet. Heck, Robin's middle name was John. ... small world.

Robin looked through everything Batman had found about the old novis type looking for clues.

Batman was leaving the research to Robin and instead focusing on understanding the jaunting control instead of just miniaturizing it. He was hoping to track the signals it used. There was slight evidence of electromagnetic field generation but how did ESP function and what did the control do to Robin, to the environment? The core of the control Batman had a highly specialized 3-d printer replicate, material by material. Parts were organic, parts were crystalline. Batman hadn't touched that stuff. The 1960's vacuum tubes, clunky push buttons and the incandescent indicator lights he'd upgraded.

Initially Wayne Corp's tech department had been urgently tasked to upgrade the "space suit" they had on loan from a mystery source. It needed to be more durable and maneuverable. Mr. Fox wanted an auto-actuated nano tech helmet with a reaction time of unbelievably fast so the astronaut's head could be kept free from obstruction but they would still be protected in case of catastrophic exposure. It had to be made 80 percent lighter, the material had to be self healing... The engineers tasked with the space suit were dubious. No one would be able to afford this bloody thing even if they did succeed in meeting all the design criteria.

Batman really wanted Robin to have a mission rated hyperspace suit. Mission rated meant no clunky helmet except when needed. The whole thing had to be light, flexible, abrasion resistant, self healing. Robin required a lot of movement and flexibility. The whole concept was unreasonable. The required tech was not decades but centuries away from development.

Thankfully for Bruce's pocket book and Wayne Corp's engineer's sanity, Hal Jordan felt he had a debt to pay. Something was coming from Oa to solve the suit problem. It was a ring that would create a bubble of temperature controlled atmosphere when exposed to a vacuum or hyperspace. It would be a while before it got to earth. Hal would have to charge it with Lantern Power. Oa was on board not because Robin had helped them but because he was considered an endangered species with higher order intelligence. He was listed by name.

"So is Superman on that list?" Robin asked Hal.

"As soon as there is evidence that a breeding pair of Kryptonians exists, he'll go on the list."

Robin looked confused at that comment. Batman added that Homo Novis and Homo Sapiens were on record as being genetically compatible.

Hal noted the rather worried look on Robin's face. "What's eating you?"

Robin who by now looked rather pale answered, "I was just... you know, zoos and breeding. I'M 13 Okay?! And ... well the preservation of a species sounds rather ominous."

"Exactly!" Batman pointed out unsympathetically.

Hal looked like he wanted to kick Batman in the shin. "That doesn't apply because he's on the Higher Order Intelligence list," corrected a rather peeved Green Lantern. "No one is going to force an intelligent being into some kind of intergalactic breeding zoo!"

Batman did not appear to have any confidence in Hal's assurances.

Robin sighed. The day someone convinced Batman not to be overprotective would be the day pigs flew.

Megan was helping keep Robin telepathically shielded until TIM was sorted out. Robin, a rather private person, was not loving the new shared room complete with bunk beds. They slept in shifts so that one of them was always actively shielding but in a way, that was creepier. Having someone hovering near while you slept was not concerting. It was dis, very dis.