CHAPTER TWO - THE MEETING

The rooftop wind whipped at Taylor’s jacket, the hum of her swarm a low murmur in her mind. Batman stood across from her like a statue carved from shadow, unmoving, his cape hanging still despite the wind. She hadn’t realized anyone could be that quiet, that composed.

Watch him, she told herself. Read him. Her swarm tried again, sweeping across the rooftop, searching for any detail. She didn’t find a trace of him—no flesh, no exposed skin, no vibrations to give him away. His suit sealed him off. Insects couldn’t penetrate it. That unsettled her more than she cared to admit.

She broke the silence first.

“What do you want?” She kept her posture relaxed, even as tension coiled in her gut. A fight with him wasn’t something she wanted, but she had to act like she was ready for it.

“I want to know what you’re doing in Gotham,” Batman said, his voice deep and deliberate, as if each word had been chosen carefully. “You haven't been here for a while and yet, you’ve already drawn attention.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow, though she doubted he could see it under her hood. “From you, or from someone else?”

“Both,” he replied.

Of course. Gotham was a city of predators. Whatever she did, even something small, was bound to set something off. Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not looking for trouble.”

“That doesn’t mean you won’t find it.”

Her jaw tightened. He wasn’t wrong. Gotham had a way of pulling people into its chaos. The same instinct that had driven her to act tonight—that reflex to step in and stop something terrible—had always drawn trouble to her like a magnet. It had been the same in Brockton Bay, and the same on Gold Morning.

She crossed her arms, stepping closer to the edge of the roof, her eyes on the city below. “I’m just… helping where I can.”

Batman didn’t reply immediately, and that silence was far heavier than words. She could feel his eyes on her, dissecting her, like he was looking for the gaps in her armor.

“You used your power tonight,” he finally said.

Taylor turned back toward him, frowning. “You have a problem with that?”

“That depends. People here don’t always know the difference between a vigilante and a villain.”

The words hit her like a gut punch, though she didn’t show it. She’d been both, hadn’t she? Villain. Hero. Monster. She couldn’t argue with him. After everything she’d done as Khepri, she wasn’t even sure where she stood anymore.

Taylor’s fingers twitched, the hum of her swarm rising and falling, matching her pulse. “I don’t hurt people unless they deserve it.”

“That’s what they all say.”

Her swarm flared outward, surging around them in a barely perceptible cloud. Not an attack—she wasn’t that reckless—but enough to remind him that she wasn’t powerless. Enough to remind herself too.

“What do you want me to say?” she shot back. “That I’ll stop? That I’ll let people get hurt because I’m afraid of scaring you?”

His head tilted slightly, and for a moment she thought she saw something shift in his posture, like he was reconsidering her. When he spoke, his voice had softened just a fraction.

“You don’t trust yourself.”

The words froze her. “What?”

“I’ve seen it before. People with power who are afraid of what they’ll do with it.”

Her fists clenched, and the swarm pulsed angrily in response. “You don’t know me.”

“No,” Batman said, his voice calm. “But I’ve seen enough to know you aren’t like the others.”

Taylor blinked, surprised. That wasn’t what she’d expected him to say. She didn’t know how to respond, so she fell back into silence, letting the wind and the city fill the space between them.

After a moment, Batman spoke again, his tone businesslike.

“You’re in over your head. You don’t know this city, or the people in it. If you’re going to stay, you need to be careful.”

“I don’t need your help,” Taylor said reflexively.

“Maybe not. But you’ll need to decide what you’re trying to be here. This city doesn’t tolerate mistakes.”

The words lingered, heavy and pointed. Taylor felt like he was giving her a choice, or maybe a warning. She wasn’t sure which.

Batman turned, his cape flaring as he stepped back into the shadows. “Stay out of my way, and I’ll stay out of yours.”

“Wait,” Taylor called after him, surprising herself.

He paused, his silhouette sharp against the night sky.

“If I am in over my head,” she said, carefully, “then why don’t you stop me now?”

The shadow of his cowl obscured his expression, but she thought she saw the faintest curve of a smile.

“I’m watching you.”

And then he was gone. Taylor’s swarm fanned out instinctively, but there was nothing to find—no footprints, no trace of movement. Just an empty rooftop and the steady hum of the city below.

Taylor let out a slow breath. She hated how he’d read her so easily, like she was some open book he could dissect at a glance. Maybe he was right. Maybe she didn’t trust herself. Maybe she was afraid of becoming something worse, something she couldn’t take back.

But she couldn’t just stand by and let things happen. That wasn’t who she was. Not in Brockton Bay. Not now.

Her swarm swept across the city again, searching. She could feel Gotham’s heartbeat—the crime, the desperation, the dark corners where no one dared look. And just like before, something small and broken deep inside her refused to let it go.

She turned, climbing back down the fire escape. The city wasn’t going to save itself, and neither was she.