Chapter Text
"Sparrow, Phoenix, there's a disturbance at the corner of Denvors and 6th. Five people dressed in black- I'm unsure if they're armed."
"Got it, Owl," Tim replied, exchanging a look with Jason before leaping off the roof in sync.
It had been a few months since Jason had recovered, and Dick had failed to charm Jason into matching with him. Jason could never pass up the opportunity to sow chaos, and their recent stint reintroducing Jason to Gotham solidified the perception of the Bats as benevolent Demons. It didn't take much for the citizens of Gotham to reattach themselves to Jason since he barely changed his behaviors before his "Death." Jason established Crime Alley as his territory with help from Bruce and Tim.
Tim's cloak flared out behind him as he pinpointed the robbery location. The steady thwip-click of their grappling hooks hissed in his ears as Jason's jacket flapped in the wind, the two in near-perfect sync as they wove through the night.
He landed on a roof, tucking himself into a roll before bouncing back to his feet and continuing to run. Unease brewed in his chest as Tim hissed into the comms, "It's too quiet. Something is wrong."
"What do you mean?" Stephanie asked across the comms. She was patrolling Midtown Gotham with Bruce while Tim and Jason were focused on Downtown. After both groups finish, they’ll merge and sweep through Uptown before heading home. Barbara was on comms with Alfred, helping them monitor the city while Dick was off doing his own thing in Blüdhaven. He’ll join them tomorrow.
Jason hummed as they perched on top of the closed coffee shop, Tim silently landing beside him. Tim wasn't wrong- it really was too quiet. It was as if Gotham was holding her breath in anticipation, narrowed eyes watching- waiting- with bated for something the mortals could not see.
A few minutes passed, and they noticed something about the robbers was... wrong . Different .
Inhuman.
There were seven of them, and they all moved far too smoothly- not a single step was wasted as they silently wove between each other. Nothing about them was human, and Tim's instincts told him such.
Jason tapped his comms, "We're engaging."
"Understood. Be careful, Phoenix."
"Will do, O."
On Jason's cue, they dove down in sync. Tim's cloak and Jason’s fire wings flared out as they descended upon the dark-clothed people.
Tim struck first, lashing out his mist and restraining two to the ground with magic-formed chains. The moment Tim turned his back, he heard the chains snap, and he cursed.
That was not good.
"Phoenix, they broke free!" Tim barked, jumping out of one of the non-human's reach. The mist should've blinded them, but that didn't work. Jason's goggles were working overtime to mitigate the blinding effect of Tim's magic. The situation was starting to go south. Their “robbery” was clearly a front for something… But what were they after?
Jason cursed at Tim's words, the sound of metal-against-metal ringing down the alley. These people had swords.
This was not good. Not good at all.
Usually, the chains combined with the mist would be more than enough to incapacitate regular humans, which meant these robbers weren't human.
Tim ducked under a swipe of the non-human's sword and stabbed them with a silver-casted Batarang he grabbed from his utility belt.
As expected, the creature started screaming immediately, the smell of burning flesh filled the air. The illusion was broken, and the scent of blood, venom, and decay flooded Tim's nose.
From the corner of his eye, Tim saw Jason falter at the Revenant's scream and he hurled a copper ball at another Revenant’s face. It crashed into the creature, erupting into blinding light as Jason rolled away, narrowly avoiding being skewered by a sword.
"They're Revenants!" Tim shouted, relying on his instincts as the sudden light blinded him.
"Confirmed," Jason gritted out, hissing in pain as a sword grazed his arm.
Tim really had to focus on his own fights. Jason might’ve had two Revenants on him, but Tim had five, all trying to get his ass.
This was so unfair . Why were they going after him in particular? Jason should be considered the biggest threat, so why weren’t they going after him?!
"Requiring backup!" Tim yelped, flinching as a thrown knife whizzed past the side of his head, lightly nicking the side of his ear.
" Backup -" Bruce tried to say something but was cut off soon after. Their not-quite-father grunted in surprise, and the sound of metal clanging filtered through the comms.
Tim cursed again, and he could hear Jason echo the sentiment, "Starling, can you-"
" Sorry !" Stephanie shouted through the comms, "Some uglies just showed themselves -you FUCKER- so we have our hands full!"
"I've contacted Nightwing,” Barbara said, “he’s on his way. Eta five minutes."
"Well," Tim heard Jason wheeze, "a lot of things can happen in five- fuck !"
At his brother’s yelp, Tim was at Jason's side in an instant. Despite their height differences, Tim and Jason still worked wonderfully back-to-back.
Desperate times called for desperate measures, and Tim couldn't afford to trade anonymity for his brother's life. His ivory claws slid from their illusioned keep, and Tim's fangs elongated beyond a regular human's. He doubts that the Revenants didn’t know who he was, seeing as they bore Ra’s Al Ghul’s insignia, but it was the thought that counts.
With a low growl, Tim lunged forward and pinned one of the Revenants under his claws. Before Tim could check back on Jason, a sharp pain prickled in Tim's neck, and static slowly dripped down his spine. Fear latched itself onto Tim's throat. He tried to call for assistance, but his tongue and vocal cords refused to respond. Every twitch and movement felt as if he was fighting through molasses. Tim absolutely despised that he and that sensation were so intimate from the few times he’d been drugged and kidnapped by Hunters in his past.
Despite that, Tim still tried to struggle. A cry for help rested on the tip of his tongue as Tim tried desperately to get his limbs to respond even as Tim felt the world shift and his perspective warp. He needed to get back to his brother- he needed to .
"Sparrow!" Jason shouted out as he caught sight of his brother being carried off in a Revenant's arms, "Br- Batman, they have- fuck! SPARROW! "
Jason screamed, lashing out at the surrounding Revenants in a terror-filled fury. The human threw a silver Batarang that flew straight for the Revenant's head.
The last thing Tim remembered was seeing the utterly devastated look in his brother's eyes before the darkness swallowed him whole.
And then... Then there was nothing.