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“Wake up!” He could hear the faint noise ring throughout his head, her desperate voice running through his ears like music in an empty room. His chest gaining pressure with every gasp of air he attempted to take in. He could feel his consciousness slipping, the breath draining from his strained lungs, his eyes struggling as they fought to open. His body lay limp and heavy as he tried to stay awake, he felt the dark slip and his lungs empty. “Help!” She screamed in a rough broken voice to the clear air, thinking no one would come. Blood on her hands and a body in her arms, alone, watching the life drain from her best friend’s eyes while blood trailed down her stained clothes. Her body frozen, refusing to listen to the part of her mind screaming at her, unable to move besides holding him closer with tears falling from her eyes.
“Somebody help him!” She cried out, not knowing whether or not the strained words truly left her lips, she brought her hand up to his face to push the hair from his eyes. He looked…content, he looked more at peace than anyone had ever seen him appear, and it terrified her. “I can’t lose someone else Tim, I can’t watch you die.” She choked out the shattering words, her voice quiet, wavering, and torn to pieces. She wrapped her hand around his and let out a painful whisper “I can’t let you go like this.” It would be the only time she allowed herself to weep without remorse. Her eyes overflowing with tears, her heart beating faster and faster, realizing she’d have to watch another die in her arms. That she could do nothing to save the bleeding man in her arms, that she would no longer have a family without him.
4 hours earlier. “Red Robin?” They heard over the small comm links in their ears. “In position.” Tim spoke, making sure to watch over their target from the roof, a pair of goggles over his eyes to keep watch from afar. “Black Bat?” Dick asked over the comms, Cass gave a small nod to Tim, who was kneeling on one leg beside her. “Here with me.” Tim responded, acknowledging that she’d rather not talk unless needed to. “Alright, everyone knows their part? We’re here to observe only, do not engage.” Dick reminded them in a harsh tone. Tim began to respond before Jason interjected with “Yeah, yeah, golden boy, we know.” Dick sighed at him lightly before continuing “Our target is incredibly dangerous, if you encounter them or any of their goons, get out as fast as possible. And do NOT go looking for trouble…Jason.” Tim muted his link knowing they’d argue for quite a bit, Cass did the same momentarily.
“They just never stop arguing huh?” Tim nodded towards Cass who giggled and signed towards him “Brotherly love?” She gave him a sheepish grin as he laughed out “Yeah I’ll see, annoying is what they are.” They stared at each other for a moment before breaking out in laughter. “Don’t tell Jay and Dick I said that though!” Tim exclaimed towards his older sister, who laughed and shook her head mischievously. He waved a finger at her before she turned her comms on to hear a vile scream. It had come from Barbara, who was currently in the cave, feeding them intel and important information as needed. Tim immediately switched his comm link back on to hear the concerning conversation.
“Oracle? Oracle, report back. What is your status?” Could be heard from Dick’s worrying voice, there was no response in return. “Red Robin, Black Bat, I need you two to go back and find out what’s going on. If anything happens you are to report back do you understand?” Cass and Tim quickly responded, “Yes sir.” Before turning and running towards the cave. “Let’s hope she’s alright.” Tim let out a worried whisper, Cass nodded and leapt down with Tim, both beginning a sprint towards the entrance to the cave.
“Oracle? Oracle!!” Tim shouted as they entered, Tim holding his bo staff, Cass holding up her arms defensively. They both rushed over to Barbara’s chair only to be face to face with one of their own target’s best fighters. She happened to be their right hand and extraordinary at hand to hand combat, before Tim and Cassandra could move towards her three men appeared, all holding a separate form of sidearm. Cass looked towards Tim, nodding quickly towards the girl who was currently holding Barbara with a tight grip in ropes. Tim started to duck and run towards one of the men, disarming him without a moment’s hesitation before knocking him unconscious. Cass ran up and jumped towards the woman, kicking her away from Barbara, who was now unconscious.
The woman wiped a small smudge of blood from her lip before swinging at Cass, throwing a false punch at her face before swinging at her stomach, Cass pulled back wincing before sliding to her side and punching her in the face. Tim was currently dodging one of the other men, hitting his gun away with his staff before swinging his leg against his, causing him to fall over and smash his head against the hardened floors but not before he hit Tim in the side of the head. It broke his comm link and he tore it out of his ear, throwing it to the ground so the shards of metal wouldn’t cut him. Tim dodged a shot from the last man, kicking his gun over an edge and knocking him out with the bo staff quickly, he turned to help Cass. She was currently fighting the woman, a small bit of blood coming from her nose where she had been punched and her broken link on the floor, Cass swept to the side and aimed a well-timed kick straight to the woman’s temple knocking her out cold.
Tim and Cass crowded Barbara who had remained unconscious and appeared to have been drugged. Tim started to untie her before hearing a loud shot and feeling a tearing pain rip through his side. Everything turned fuzzy, he heard Cass scream through the white noise, running over to throw the man who picked up one of the guns. His face was covered in blood in mere seconds when she was done with him, before rushing over to help Tim. She placed a hand lightly over the wound before looking up to see Tim’s eyes slowly start to fall, he was about to pass out from blood loss and part of her had no idea what to do besides freeze. She watched his eyelids shut, blood running down his uniform, draining onto their skin.
“Wake up!” He could hear the faint noise ring throughout his head, her desperate voice running through his ears like music in an empty room. His chest gaining pressure with every gasp of air he attempted to take in. He could feel his consciousness slipping, the breath draining from his strained lungs, his eyes struggling as they fought to open. His body lay limp and heavy as he tried to stay awake, he felt the dark slip and his lungs empty. “Help!” She screamed in a rough broken voice to the clear air, thinking no one would come. Blood on her hands and a body in her arms, alone, watching the life drain from her best friend’s eyes while blood trailed down her stained clothes. Her body frozen, refusing to listen to the part of her mind screaming at her, unable to move besides holding him closer with tears falling from her eyes.
“Somebody help him!” She cried out, not knowing whether or not the strained words truly left her lips, she brought her hand up to his face to push the hair from his eyes. He looked…content, he looked more at peace than anyone had ever seen him appear, and it terrified her. “I can’t lose someone else Tim, I can’t watch you die.” She choked out the shattering words, her voice quiet, wavering, and torn to pieces. She wrapped her hand around his and let out a painful whisper “I can’t let you go like this.” It would be the only time she allowed herself to weep without remorse. Her eyes overflowing with tears, her heart beating faster and faster, realizing she’d have to watch another die in her arms. That she could do nothing to save the bleeding man in her arms, that she would no longer have a family without him.
She could no longer focus on the passed-out redhead beside her or the dark-haired boy in her arms, her mind went numb and barren. Her eyes filled with painful memories of everybody she’d ever watched fall. Every death, every injury, and every moment she had with him. She held him close, letting out torn screams that would never be heard, thinking upon every time he had saved her life. Her brother, her family, her best friend. He was her hero, and she had to sit and watch the life drain from his eyes like the blood running from his torn flesh.
“Cass! Come look at this, these books are so old and worn, I want to read through all of them!” He gave her a bright grin as she smiled back, it was nice to see him get out of his shell a bit, even if it was only around her. “Okay, we can start here then.” She smiled while signing at the lanky boy in front of her.
“Tim, Tim you have wake up for me, need open eyes, please.” She let her words out painfully, whispers so quiet some of her words never had a chance of escaping her dry throat. The only reason she needs to stay afloat was the body of blood and tears she was seemingly drowning in, his eyes shut and his hand relaxing. She kept him in a tight grip with a horrified look of her face. Small gasps of air finding their way from her body, time seemed to come to a stop. She heard a call from behind her but was unable to make out the sounds from her own tragic memories replaying through her head like echoes in a pitch-black cave. “Cass! Tim!” Dick screamed while rushing over, Jason following and helping pry the boy’s body from her arms while she stared at the wall, her mind pulling her in the vast sea of scorned memories. Jason tried to tend to Tim’s wounds as Dick attempted to pull her out of her own head.
But she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t stand to watch her only family leave, not like this, not now.
It had been hours of waiting for the news, Jason pacing and Dick trying to calm everyone down, Barbara lying in a hospital bed recovering slowly as the drug flushed from her system. Bart and Conner anxiously waiting with his family. Conner refusing to look anywhere but the dirtied floor. Cassandra simply sat, a black stare on her face, the sight of her first kill flashing before her eyes like a black and white film. The fear on his face as she did only what she had been told, the fear that was missing from her brother as he bled in her arms. He had accepted the end of the cycle for what it was, she sat in wait, waiting for her hero to wake up and tell her everything would be okay.
But alas, not every story has a happy ending, not every movie has a blissful message, not every life ends in compromise.
Because on October 27th the life of her closest family was taken, the same day it was given, Tim Drake was swept into the ocean of ash as silent as he came. It had been too soon, his family washing the planet with tears and pain as they know his last few minutes were spent on his 18th birthday. He had finally made it, and as quick as it came, the light flickered out.
“Hey there, what’s a cool bean like you doing in a sucky place like this?” He gave her a grin and held out his hand, offering her help. She shook her head violently, she couldn’t hurt someone else no matter what. She couldn’t take the chance. His expression softened and he moved lower to the ground she was sitting on, glass on her feet, blood running down her arms and face, dirt in her hair and staining her clothes. “Do you want me to show you somewhere you’ll never hurt or be hurt by him again?” He offered his hand again, and this time she took it.
She stood still, the only thing moving in that moment was the wind across her seemingly abandoned body, and the tears making their way down her face. Her every thought abandoned as she read the words on her younger brother’s grave. “Tim Drake. Loving brother. Amazing son. Hero to many. He will be missed.” She stared upon the clichéd words with regret, knowing exactly what word described him best, but knowing nobody had the heart to write it there. She took a soft breath, a light smile, and set the worn book in her hands over the grave. Across the leather cover had the inscription “Tim Drake.” Below it on his old notebook now belonging to his sister was one word, faded but present, dipped with simple black ink and his perfectly messy handwriting. “Survivor”