The impact of the drone against the shield sent shockwaves rippling through the room. Sparks flew as the armored shell skidded across the floor, groaning under the interdimensional energy. The portal behind it flickered, its energy surging wildly before stabilizing once more.
Everyone tensed, eyes locked on the machine as it twitched, limbs jerking in erratic motions. The Trial robot, Bruce's probe, had made it back. But something was wrong.
"Malfunction," Skylar muttered, her fingers crackling with electricity as she prepared to strike it down if necessary.
Damian stepped forward, his stance guarded. "Stand back. We don't know what it—"
But before he could finish, Elissa was already moving.
Her sharp eyes had caught something the others hadn't. A faint, erratic glow pulsed from the center of the drone's chest. The power core was on the verge of collapse. The energy readings were unstable, fluctuating wildly between containment and overload. If it exploded inside the manor, the results could be catastrophic.
Without hesitation, Elissa pushed forward.
And shattered the shield.
The entire room gasped as Skylar's supposedly impenetrable energy barrier cracked like glass before completely dissolving around her. For the first time in a long time, Skylar looked... startled.
"What the hell?" Kara whispered, watching as the young girl darted toward the fallen drone.
"Don't!" Thomas and Martha were about to rush in.
"Don't worry, she can handle it," Diana said as she watched her daughter go toward the robot. She knew an explosion of that level wouldn't even scratch her, but well, as a mother, she clenched her lasso. If things go wrong, she'd use it to pull her back.
Pamela's heart clenched, her instincts screaming for her to pull Elissa back, to keep her safe. But she saw the determination in the girl's eyes... the fire of someone who refused to let this moment slip away.
The others remained frozen in shock, but not Elissa.
She dropped to her knees beside the bot, already scanning its systems with her enhanced vision. She had never met her father, only heard the stories about him. The genius warrior. The man who had saved the world more times than she could count.
And now, this was her only link to him.
No way was she going to let it slip through her fingers.
Her hands moved faster than most seasoned engineers. The knowledge she had gathered from JARVIS's teachings and her father's old notes flooded her mind as she worked, dismantling the outer casing of the core with a delicate touch.
"Power readings are critical," she muttered under her breath, rerouting the energy pathways. "Failsafes are completely fried… Damn it, Dad, what were you thinking sending this thing through a storm like that? You should have added another triple layer of energy shield with dual power core."
Talia, watching from the sidelines, arched a brow. "She sounds just like him."
Elissa tuned everyone out, hyper-focused. Wires sparked and the metal frame groaned, but she didn't flinch. With a flick of her wrist, she bypassed a damaged conduit, redirecting power flow just before a red warning light could turn into a detonation sequence.
The drone let out a low, mechanical whine… and then powered down. The pulsing glow in its chest stabilized, shifting from a dangerous red to a steady blue.
Elissa let out a deep breath, wiping the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand.
"Done."
A heavy silence hung over the room before Damian finally broke it.
"You just hacked and defused an unstable, interdimensional AI drone," he stated flatly. "In under a minute."
Elissa smirked. "Yeah, it was easy."
Before anyone could respond, the drone let out a mechanical click, and its mainframe rebooted. A soft hum filled the air as a holographic projection flickered to life above it.
Static buzzed for a moment before a grainy image finally took form.
And there he was.
Bruce Wayne.
For a moment, the room was dead silent.
Bruce from the other side looked around the room and sighed in relief. Everyone was alright. Then he spoke, "Yo! How are you guys? I'm sorry about the mess."
The others were too stunned to speak.
But then, one person finally snapped out of her stupor.
Talia rushed over, grabbed the robot's arms, and yelled, "Don't you dare 'Yo' us! What were you thinking?!"
"Hey, it's good to see you too." Bruce chuckled, scratching his head sheepishly. "You look feisty as always. And I am sorry. There was no other way. Oh, Harley and Selina are doing fine." He said quickly before Talia could throw another tantrum.
Martha and Thomas were in tears. They were so relieved that Bruce was alive and well that they didn't know what else to do but cry.
Talia stared at the image of the man she loved and sighed, her shoulders drooping as all the tension drained from her body. "You're alive," she said softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "That's all that matters."
"Bruce," Diana stepped forward.
"Diana," Bruce looked at her with a warm smile.
They didn't need any words to converse with each other, just their gazes and expressions. It was like telepathy, like the two were communicating on an entirely different level. Both could tell how much they missed each other.
Bruce then looked at Pamela. "You look tired. Don't push yourself too much, Pam." She just gave him a nod, lost for words. He then looked at the girl and boy, both around 9 or 10 years old, standing next to her and asked, "Are they...?"
Talia stood behind Damian and Elissa, her hands on their shoulders. "Yes," she replied, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "They are."
Bruce smiled. He could feel a lump in his throat, but he swallowed it down. He felt a sharp pain in his heart. He never got the chance to see them grow up and that fact made him incredibly sad. But he quickly pushed those thoughts aside and smiled warmly at the children. He felt Sue's hand on his shoulder from behind.
He knew what he had to do.
"C'mon, introduce yourself," Talia pushed Elissa and Damian forward with a gentle nudge.
Elissa cleared her throat and straightened her back. "I'm Elissa," she said with a smile, her voice strong and confident. "It's nice to finally meet you, dad."
Damian followed suit, puffing up his chest and raising his chin proudly. "I'm Damian," he said, his voice a touch softer than his sister's. He didn't know what to say.
Bruce's eyes softened. He couldn't help but chuckle.
"Look at you two all grown up," he said with a wide smile. "My God, you're so big!"
A moment of silence hung in the air before...
"Ho... How old are you two?" He asked.
"We're 10 years old."
"10 years?! I... I see..."
Suddenly the robot began to crackle again as a suction force from the portal began to pull it away.
"It looks like the portal is destabilizing. Listen to me, you need to create another interdimensional gate here on this side. It will stabilize the portal and we should be able to communicate with each other... Probably even travel between worlds if we are lucky. You got that? I know you can do it. Elissa, Damian... I love you both so much. Take care of each other. Take care of your family. And I'm sorry. I wasn't there for you two. And the next time we meet... Too much time may have already passed. I'm sorry... Mom, Dad... Everyone... I... We miss you so much."
He gave Sophia and Aquawoman a quick nod.
And then the robot flew through the portal. A small data drive ejected from its body and flew right into Elissa's hands.
"Wait, Dad!" The siblings tried to stop the robot from leaving but it was too late.
"Built the gate! I believe in you two." The portal closed.
"Dad! Damn it!" Damian punched the ground in frustration.
Elissa felt her knees buckle and she sank to the floor. Her hands were trembling, the data drive still clutched tightly in her grasp.
"We... We finally met him. And he's gone," she whispered, tears streaming down her face.
Kara finally sighed in relief. Bruce was alive and doing well. She felt as if someone just lifted a huge boulder from her shoulders.
---
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