Necromancer | Daughter of Batman

Chapter XVIII

Kimberly Maeve Wayne (AGE 16) CURRENT AGE

(photo generated through AI, information entered by ME)

Kimberly Maeve Wayne (AGE 9)

(photo generated through AI, information entered by ME)

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Bruce quietly buzzed at the engine of the Batmobile. He spotted Damian coming down the stairs out of the corner of his eye and turned back toward his work. They'd had multiple arguments since tracking down the Dollmaker. After rescuing the suffering children in cages, Batman found the man responsible lying dead in the snow. He assumed Damian murdered the man, despite Bruce's countless lessons on the "no kill" code. He sighed heavily as Damian scrolled through the Dollmaker case on the computer. After some time, the boy shut down the computer and spun the chair in Bruce's direction. "If it had been me, or Kimberly dying in one of those cages..." He narrowed his eyes toward his father. "Would you have killed him then?"

"You're forgetting, that was Kimberly. Under your grandfather's entrapment no less." Bruce stood up and reached for his Batman gear.

Damian scoffed. "Where is Kimberly, anyway? She should have been back by now."

"She's safe, I'm sure." Bruce attached his belt and adjusted his gauntlets.

"Oh, my God, it's Todd." Damian shot up and pointed toward the monitor displaying the surveillance cameras. Connor held a bloodied Kimberly's hand as Dick carried a limp Jason toward the underground entrance to the cave.

Bruce slammed his hood onto his dressing table and stormed toward the entrance. "Goddammit." He approached Connor rapidly, taking Kim from him. "What the hell happened?"

"Bruce, I can explain." Dick adjusted his grip on the unconscious Jason. He shrunk into himself as Bruce checked the pulse of the boy.

"He's stable. Get him in the holding cell." Bruce directed Dick toward a glass container. "I'll get Alfred to look at him."

"Kimberly." Bruce eyed his daughter out of the corner of his own. He grimaced as she flinched in response, knowing she'd disappointed her father. "What did you do?" He turned toward Kimberly and grasped her arms. He scanned her up and down, finding she wasn't harmed. "What happened?" He stared into her eyes. They were glazed over, and she stared into space. Bruce pursed his lips, knowing this was her doing, and she'd nearly killed the boy. "Connor. Take her upstairs and report back to me immediately." He guided Kim by the small of her back toward the elevator. "Get cleaned up. I'll deal with you later."

•••

"Get in the shower." Connor held onto Kim's frail arm tightly, holding her weight up as she trudged forward. Soon enough, she fell backwards into the cabinet and drew her knees into her chest. She covered her mouth with a shaky hand and shook her head. "Kimmy, please." He looked down at the numerous scars on her arms and grimaced. "You're bleeding."

She sighed heavily and ripped a towel down from the sink. She stood up and removed her shirt, leaving her only in a sports bra. She turned around and peered at her back in the mirror. Her wounds bled, and her skin was far paler than Connor remembered. She wiped at her back with trembling hands. Eventually, she tossed the towel down and leaned forcefully on the sink. Connor watched sorrowfully as she frowned at her ghastly, scarred skin. He couldn't imagine how she'd felt coming face to face with the man responsible for each and every one of her scars. Her body had drastically changed, due to the serum. The scars she suffered would not heal fully. Anytime she used her power, or was under any stress, she would bleed. No one could explain why, not even Damian himself. Her skin was always cold to the touch, and as a result, she was always in search of warmth. Only in her transformed state did she feel normal, but Connor knew full well she couldn't stand it. It broke his heart to see her hardly eating, or sleeping. Lately, it was nearly impossible to get her to crack so much as a smile. Slowly, he opened her bathroom wardrobe and handed her a bikini bottom. "Get in the shower. I'll help you." She shook her head. "Kimmy. Please." Slowly, she took the bikini bottom from his hand. He turned around, listening to her remove her clothing and cover herself. The large, rainfall shower switched on. The shower had enough space to squeeze in nearly 10 people. It was more than enough room to help her at a distance. Kim faced away from Connor, exposing her back to him. He approached her slowly, standing only in his sweatpants. He took a nearby washcloth and cleaned the blood from her back gently. She hissed in pain and closed her eyes. "Sorry..." He whispered. The bathroom door swung open, startling Kimberly. She turned toward her father and covered her breasts, her eyes wide.