Summary: Getting sent to another Gotham City is more than Robin expected. And then she meets up with a Boy Wonder! The Universe must be playing a joke on her.
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Siblings
By Syl Francis
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Earth 1
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Robin looked around long and hard. It was Gotham, but different somehow. Touching her cowl optics she zoomed in on the tallest building. There—Wayne Tower! But not the same, she realized.
Instead of the windows being lit in the traditional, green and red 40-story isosceles triangle, representing a Christmas tree, they were lit in a luminescent display of blue and white snowflakes that appeared to be continuously falling in random patterns.
Also, rather than the tower being identified as Wayne Enterprises in seasonal green and red lettering, Wayne Corp in brightly lit blue and white letters stood proudly on the tower roof.
"We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto," she murmured.
Apparently, Apokolips had found a new way to annoy the Justice Society. Darkseid's evil general Granny Goodness, whom she and Batman had been fighting, had managed to hit Robin with a weird ray gun.
During the battle against the Apokoliptic para-demons, Batman had wondered at the mysterious weapon's potential. So, now they knew. Or, at least, she knew. Batman, however, was probably still back on the rooftop of the Gotham City Museum battling Granny and her para-demons.
"Dad," she whispered, suddenly realizing what Batman was going through. He must be going insane! He probably thinks I was disintegrated or something. I've got to find a way back! She stared at the distant Wayne Tower. "Mom and Alfred will be worried sick, too."
The softest of sounds behind her alerted her with the barest of split seconds. She just managed to duck and roll in time to avoid the bolos. As she came up, she acquired and readied a batarang and threw! Only to have it deflected by a modified bird-shaped throwing star.
"You know…it's always nice when the crazies in this town decide to emulate us, but really, a girl? Can't you villains even get the gender right?"
It was only at that point that Robin acknowledged that she was in another reality. Because, seriously? A Boy Wonder? The Universe had to be playing a practical joke on her.
"Oh, please! As if any self-respecting boy would go around calling himself 'Robin'!" she sneered. "It's totally a girl's name!"
"Hey! I resent that!" the self-proclaimed Boy Wonder replied. He paused as if listening. "Yeah…it's an anomaly all right!" he said.
"I'm not an anomaly!" Robin growled, whipping out her escrima sticks.
"I wasn't talking to you," he muttered, taking his own out and assuming a defensive stance. The slightest twitch of his lips was the only warning she got—unfortunately, it was too late. Barely turning in time, she saw a sight that all her life had made her feel safe and secure, only tonight it shook her to the core. Silhouetted against the full moon, his cape spread out dramatically, the Dark Knight swooped down on her.
"Oh, crap," she whispered. Holding up her hands in the universal sign of surrender, Robin dropped the escrima sticks and assumed as non-threatening a stance as possible. Looking up wide-eyed at Batman, she smiled tremulously and said the first thing that came to mind. "Hello, Daddy."
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Earth 1
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Robin looked from the holo-keyboard he had been typing on and stared, openmouthed, at the strange girl. First, she showed up wearing a girlie version of his uniform and insulted his codename, and now? Okay, this was just too much!
"Did you just call Batman—?"
"Robin." Batman's no-nonsense tone stopped the boy from continuing. He glared at the girl before him. "The energy signature I traced here was similar to those of—"
"Apokolips," she finished for him. "Batman and I were fighting one of Darkseid's generals… when she fired a new weapon at me, and well…here I am." Smiling brightly, she held her arms out. "Surprise!"
Her words were met by identical bat-glares. She swallowed. Taking a deep breath, she reached up and removed her mask. "I'm Helena Wayne." She paused, daring to look Batman in the eyes. "I take it, I haven't been born here, yet?" When he gave no indication of answering, she turned to Robin and shook her head. "You, I can't place. As far as I know Mom and Dad never had any boys, just me, but…?" She stopped suddenly and took a longer look at him.
"Waitaminute…Daddy told me about the little boy he took in for a couple nights before—" She looked from Robin to Batman. "That's where the name Robin came from, but Zucco…the boy—Richard—went after him alone. By the time Batman arrived, it was too late. Daddy never forgave himself…"
"What? You're saying Zucco killed me?" Robin shook his head. "That's crazy! I'm standing right here!"
"Of course, he didn't kill you," Helena huffed. "I can see that! No, he killed the Richard Grayson of my universe."
Feeling suddenly cold, Robin turned, his expression stricken toward Batman. The Dark Knight placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, steadying him.
Swallowing, Robin spoke. "So, who's your mom?"
"Selina Kyle."
"Catwoman?" Robin asked with a laugh. "No way!"
"After Richard Grayson's murder, Dad went sorta berserk. There was no almost stopping him when he caught up to Zucco. Only Mom…she managed to talk him down, kept him from killing Zucco." Helena stopped pensively. "I wasn't born yet, of course. Everything I'm telling you, I've heard all my life from my mom and Alfred. Dad doesn't like to talk about it." She gazed intently into the Boy Wonder's eyes.
"Even though Richard was supposed to stay at the manor for only a few days, Dad had already filed the paperwork to adopt him. I guess I've always thought of him as a kind of older brother in a way. And Dad…well, he's always felt that he failed to protect him. When I finally convinced Mom and Dad to let me train and become a member of the team, I took the name Robin to honor him. Dad said that he'd overheard some of the other circus performers call Richard that on the night his parents were killed. He never told me why, and I never had the heart to ask."
"It's 'cause I was born on the first day of spring—" Robin began.
"Robin," Batman's voice rasped a warning.
"She knows, B…at least, she knows most of it." He looked up his mentor and adoptive father. "She may as well know the rest." After a long moment, Batman finally nodded his permission. "Like I said…Mom called me Robin because I was born on the first day of spring, and because Dad always said that I was born to fly on account of I was a Grayson."
Helena nodded. "Thank you. I promise to always live up to their memories."
Robin reached up and removed his own mask. Two pairs of almost identical blue eyes stared back at each other. "I wouldn't expect any less from daughter of Bruce Wayne."
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Earth 2
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"Robin!" Batman cried out in warning. He saw Granny Goodness aim and fire her weapon at his junior partner, but his warning came too late. He stood momentarily paralyzed, staring at the spot where his daughter had just been standing.
"Batman! Behind you!" The warning came in the nick of time. Catwoman struck out with her whip, catching the weapon with the end of her cat-o' nine-tails. Yanking with all her strength, she pulled the weapon from the evil Granny's hands.
Meantime, Batman had thrown three batarangs in rapid succession. One struck the demonic Granny on the temple; the second struck the hand that had been holding the weapon at the same time that Catwoman pulled it out of her hands; the third hit and imbedded itself onto the wall behind Granny, a red blinking light signaling a silent warning.
Despite the coordinated attack against her, Granny Goodness stood back with a self-satisfied smirk on her face. "You mere mortals would dare faceoff against a god? Darkseid toys with you for the moment. Whether you get your precious little darling back or not is inconsequential—for it is written that this reality and all who reside in it will cease to exist when the Dread Lord wills it so!"
The next instant, Batman and Catwoman leapt off the museum rooftop, just as the explosive batarang went off. It was not enough to kill the Apokoliptic general, but it was enough to slow her down. The Bat and the Cat jumped into the Batmobile and took off.
Catwoman held the offending weapon in her hands all the way back to the Cave. Whatever else this thing was, it was the only means they had at the moment to determine what exactly that witch had done with their little girl.
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Earth 1
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Less than an hour later, Batman and the two Robins were aboard the Watchtower, running calculations on the satellite computer. Red Tornado was jacked into the satellite mainframe and helping with the research.
Dr. Fate hovered above the computer console in the monitor room, observing the situation. He had assessed the energy readings that Batman provided and determined that no magic had been used to send the girl across the multiverse. Having given his report, he was now sitting cross-legged in midair, apparently in deep meditation. As usual, he was keeping his own counsel.
Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman were each standing at an adjacent computer station, murmuring quietly to each other, while the Flash worked at speeds that were too fast for anyone else to follow. In all, everyone was engaged in finding a way to send one lost little girl back home.
"So…what are you saying?" Green Arrow sounded confused. "That she's our Robin from another universe?" His question was met with a resounding slap to the back of his head. "Hey! Ouch!"
"Don't be an idiot!" Black Canary said. "She's a Robin, but she's not our Robin as a girl. Do we have to draw you a picture or something?"
"No…but if you want to demonstrate, Pretty Bird," GA said with a leer, "I'm all for hands on teaching methods!"
"I'll show you hands on," BC growled. Standing up, she advanced on her on-again/off-again boyfriend in a threatening manner that would do the Bats proud.
Helena giggled. "Uncle Ollie and Aunt Dinah act just like this back home."
"Really?" GA asked, genuinely interested. The next moment, his eyes widened. "Hey…I'm not a woman or anything like that am I?"
"That does it!" BC declared before Helena could answer. "Our quarters, Ollie! Now!" Without another word, she about faced and headed out. The two Robins snickered behind their gloves at the two adults' antics.
With all the grownup heroes busy, Dick led his "sister" to the Great Room and its impressive viewing window. Helena gasped in appreciation.
"Wow…this is beautiful!" she spoke in a low, awed whisper. "The Justice Society doesn't have anything like this. Their HQ is—."
"Wait! Don't tell me," Dick said. "It's inside a mountain, carved out of a dormant volcano in Happy Harbor, right?"
Helena laughed. "Don't be silly—a dormant volcano! Who ever heard of such a silly idea? No…the Justice Society HQ is located in the Morningside neighborhood of NYC—Wesley Dodds' old estate."
"Wesley Dodds?"
"You know…the Sandman."
Dick shook his head. "Sorry…I never heard that name before." Dick did not add that their Sandman was a child psychologist who had helped him following his parents' deaths. Years earlier, he had even helped Bruce after his own parents' murders.
"Oh…I guess there would be differences between our two universes. I mean, besides just—" She gestured vaguely between them.
"Well…let's see what else isn't the same," Dick offered. "My best friend is Kid Flash." He looked questioningly at her.
Helena shook her head. "Sorry…no Kid Flash. My best friend is Kara."
Dick shook his head. "Kara?"
"Yeah, Kara Zor-L…Superman's cousin from Krypton."
"Superman has a cousin?"
"Yeah…and she's really cool. And smart! Uncle Clark and Aunt Lois adopted her, so they can raise her like a daughter. It's funny 'cause she was born before Uncle Clark, but because her spacecraft didn't follow the same route as his, he got here first. By the time her ship landed, Uncle Clark was already a grown man, but she was still a little girl—around nine or ten—because of suspended animation." Helena shrugged.
"Uncle Clark couldn't let her go to an orphanage, and he was afraid that they wouldn't let him adopt her because he was single—even if they were cousins. So…" She grinned and clapped her hands excitedly. "He finally proposed to Lois! Kara and I got to be bridesmaids."
"They probably couldn't run the risk of a blood test, either," Dick opined, not impressed with idea of being part of a wedding party.
Helena nodded. "Yeah…Daddy took care of the all the necessary paperwork. As far as the world was concerned, Clark Kent's second cousin twice removed on his mother's side, died and left a nine-year-old daughter behind, naming him as sole guardian. Anyway…officially, she's Kara Martha Kent now—my best friend. Oh! And she's also Power Girl!"
"We don't have a Power Girl here, and even if we did, I don't think Clark would marry Lois Lane, either."
"Why not?" Helena asked. "Daddy says that Uncle Clark's been in love with her, for like forever!"
Dick gestured toward Superman and Wonder Woman, who were working at their stations, their heads nearly touching. At that moment, the Amazon princess happened to catch Superman's eye and gave him a warm smile. Superman blushed, of course.
"Because with someone like her looking at him like that…I don't think some lady reporter with a knack for falling off buildings just to get his attention is gonna be able to keep his attention—at least, not for long."
"You're kidding! Uncle Clark and Aunt Diana have a thing?"
Dick shrugged. "Well…I've only heard rumors." He didn't mention the surveillance video that Batman had taken of the Kryptonian and Amazon. Dick thought it smacked too much of stalking, but he trusted his mentor to know what he was doing.
"Wow…I would never have seen that coming. Poor Aunt Lois."
A warning klaxon went off at the same time that power readings went off the scale. Dr. Fate came out of whatever trance he had been in, and the rest of the JL members present took up defensive positions.
"It's an energy reading similar to the one I spotted earlier!" Batman yelled.
An energy portal began to take shape and form in the middle of the monitor room. Dr. Fate positioned himself before the portal and spoke. "It is time."
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Earth 2
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Batman and Catwoman stepped from the JS transportation portal and hurried to the main conference room in Dodds' Mansion. When they arrived, several of the founders were already present.
Superman looked at his friend, a worried expression on his face. "Bruce, what is it? What's the emergency?"
"It's Helena!" Catwoman spoke before Batman could reply. "We were attacked by Granny Goodness and her para-demons. In the course of the battle, she shot Robin with this thing!" She held up the weapon. "And…our little girl is just…gone!"
Wonder Woman came up to her and took her in her arms. "Oh, Selina…I'm so sorry! I don't know what to say."
Batman stepped forward. "No…you don't understand. She's not dead…At least, we don't think so. Something that Granny said—that even if we 'get our precious little darling back'—it won't make any difference. Something about this reality ceasing to exist sometime in the future." He shook his head. "It doesn't matter right now. What does matter is getting our daughter back. I think that when Granny fired this thing at Robin, the weapon opened up some type of inter-dimensional portal that sent her to an alternate universe."
"But, that's fantastic!" Black Canary said. "Is travel between universes even possible?"
"More than possible," Batman growled. "It's also extremely dangerous…for should a person from one universe travel to another universe where he or she already exists, their very presence will destabilize that reality's very existence."
He turned to the others, his voice a low-pitched, dangerous rasp. "If Helena Wayne already exists in the universe to which our daughter has been sent, then—"
Dr. Fate stepped forth. "There is yet time, Bruce Wayne. The multiverse has not been negatively affected by this transfer, which means that—"
"—That there is no Helena Wayne where she's been sent," Catwoman finished. "Bruce, if there's no Helena there, then that universe's Batman may not believe her when she arrives!"
Batman took his wife into his arms and held her gently. "We will get her back, Selina…I promise you."
Dr. Fate assumed a meditative pose, sitting cross-legged in midair, and waited…
With the combined scientific and arcane knowledge of the members of the Justice Society, the weapon was analyzed in record time. As the members planned the best method of retrieval, Dr. Fate came out of his trance and spoke, "It is time."
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Earth 1
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The next instant, a black figure came tumbling out of the opening. He rolled and came up, one hand hidden within the folds of his black cape and behind his back.
Looking around, he caught a glimpse of his doppelganger. When he spoke, he addressed Batman, his tone harsh and demanding. "Where's Robin?"
"Daddy!" Helena threw herself into her father's arms. "How did you—?"
"There's no time!" Batman rasped impatiently. "We must get back now before the portal closes!"
"But I haven't said goodbye to Robin—I mean, Richard!"
"What?" Batman looked to where she was pointing. He whispered, "Richard?"
He watched as that universe's Batman walked up to the boy, and standing next to him, placed an arm around his shoulders. He removed his cowl and gazed into his counterpart's eyes. The boy also removed his mask. Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson looked solemnly at the Dynamic Duo from beyond the multiverse.
"He wouldn't want you blame yourself," Dick said quietly. "You brought Zucco to justice, and you've kept Robin's legacy alive. That's what matters."
"The portal between the universes is collapsing," Dr. Fate intoned. He held out his hands and a powerful force field enveloped the portal. "We can hold it for you, but you have only seconds. You must go now."
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Earth 2
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In another, far more distant universe, another Dr. Fate echoed his words…
"The portal between the universes is collapsing." Dr. Fate held out his hands and a powerful force field enveloped the portal. "We can hold it for them, but they have only seconds. They must return now."
Catwoman gasped in dread, while Superman placed a comforting arm around her shoulders.
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Earth 1
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"Richard," Batman gazed longingly at his lost boy. He felt an insistent tug at his elbow.
"Daddy…we have to go! Mom and Alfred need us!"
At his daughter's insistent voice, Batman finally snapped out of it. Nodding, he urged Robin through the portal first. Taking one last long look at Richard, his lips twitched upwardly in a partial smile. He had been granted a peek—however brief—of what might have been.
"Now!" Dr. Fate shouted in two universes. The warning ringing in his ears, Batman hurriedly dove through the portal at the last possible instant, as it shut behind him. "It is finished. The portal between the universes has been closed." Dr. Fate stood for a moment in silent meditation, and then spoke again. "If the forces of the Dread Lord are not stopped, then the multiverse will again suffer from disruption and chaos. All that is will cease to exist, as we know it. I must go to prepare…"
Their voices still echoing in dire warning, the twin Lords of Order winked out from their respective universes...
"So…what do you think that was all about?" the Flash asked no one in particular.
"Darkseid," Batman answered, pulling his cowl back on. "This was just a little taste of what's to come, I'm afraid."
Slowly putting his mask back on, Robin looked up at his mentor. "May we go home now? It's Christmas Eve."
Looking down at his young partner, the Dark Knight's square jaw softened minutely. "I think we've done all we can for now, partner. Let's go home."
"So…you and Catwoman, huh?"
"Did I hear that you were getting coal for Christmas this year?"
Robin's answering giggle could still be heard long after the zeta-beam vanished from sight.
End of Part 1
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Author's Note: Having a little fun with the multiverse—an idea from 52!World's Finest, but not 52!Dick Grayson, because...well, Nightwing #0 was just so wrong. Oh, and this hasn't been beta'd…so, sorry! (Continue on to Part 2 - Epilogue)
Disclaimer: All characters belong to DC, Time Warner, and CN; this is an original story that doesn't intend to infringe on their copyright. Feedback is welcome.
Copyright: December 2012 – Merry Christmas!