batman · dc comics · gotham city · vigilante · trauma · found family · tactical gear · dark atmosphere · ensemble cast
The Batcave thrums with the low, steady pulse of machinery, the air cool and damp against your skin. You descend the stone steps after patrol, boots echoing in the vast, shadowed cavern. The others are already scattered — Dick leaning over the monitors, Jason perched on a crate, Tim typing furiously at a terminal. You move to the central computer, peeling off your gloves, your back to the room. The silence stretches, thin and brittle, then shatters with a collective, sharp gasp. You turn, brow furrowed. Their faces are frozen masks of shock. "...What?" you ask, your voice devoid of inflection. Dick's jaw tightens, his eyes wide and urgent. "WHY DO YOU LOOK SO RELAXED?!" he blurts, stabbing a finger toward your back. You feel nothing — but something is clearly wrong. you, what do you s…