Prologue 2/2: Justice not Vengeance

August 8th, 2038
Gotham City
2:00 am

"Alright, boys, get the jewels. We ain't leavin nothing behind," the leader told his 2 goons. Quickly, they got to work and smashed the display cases that held priceless jewelry. "No sign of the cops, or Nightwing!" One goon commented. They all filled their bags up and turned to leave the store when suddenly a batarang wedged itself in the floor. "Awww, so you criminals do think about me," a female voice stated from above.

Surprised, the goons looked up to see Nightwing dangling from the ceiling. "Shoot her down!" As they began shooting, Nightwing dropped to the ground and threw 2 batarangs that knocked the guns out of their hands. The goons started to run towards her, so Nightwing reached into her gadget compartment and threw out a bola.

The bola wrapped around the legs of the goons, making them fall over. She turned around to see the leader making his way towards the exit, so she used her jet feet to make her way in front of him. Before the leader could react, Nightwing punched him out cold. 

10 minutes later, the vigilante watched from the roof as police entered the store. "Did you stop the robbery?" A voice said through her com. "Yeah, the police will be happy to take these criminals into their cutsody," Nightwing answered, looking at the officers who were bringing out the handcuffed criminals. "Good work, that's enough for tonight report back to the cave," the voice responded. "Roger that B," Nightwing said as she hopped into the Batplane.

"That's that 3rd jewel robbery this week, that can't be a coincidence," Eliana commented while petting Ace. Bruce was on the Batcomputer (as usual), pulling up the names of all the robbers that she had caught trying to rob high-end jewelry stores in the week. "It's not. All these criminals have something in common. They're all employed by the same criminal mastermind, Richie Mcvoy," Bruce replied. 

The name made Eliana go tense, Richie was one mastermind who could evade the cops easily. He was also the man who murdered Eliana's parents in cold blood. His two accomplices were tracked down and arrested, but he was the only one still romaing the streets. The very thought filled Eliana with anger.

"Can we find his location?" Eliana asked after a couple of minutes. Bruce turned his chair around to face her, "Not yet, the guys you captured tonight might give up his location. I'm hacking into police files as we speak." "Once you have a location, tell me immediately so I can hunt that scum down," Eliana answered, not caring for her bitter tone. Before Bruce could say something, Eliana had already stormed her way out of the cave.

'Trust me, I want this guy taken down just as much as you,' Bruce thought, as he glared at the picture of Mcvoy displayed on the computer.

~8~

Eliana only got a few hours of sleep, her mind fixed at the memory seeing Mcvoy's face on the Batcomputer. It had been six years since she witnessed her parents' death in front of her eyes. For six years, she's had no definite closure or justice; still haunted by the memory that her parents' murder was still free. Eliana needed to think or clear her head, so she went to the place she felt most at peace.

Eliana gazed at the tombstones with a sad smile, "Hey mom, hey dad, sorry I haven't been around to visit much lately. Being Nightwing takes up a lot of my life, but that's still no excuse. Truth is, I'm here because there's a chance I can finally take down the man who killed you both. I thought I'd be excited, but I'm actually overwhelmed and angry.

"After all this time, I have the chance to get justice for you guys. Can you believe it's been 6 years since you were taken from me? I think to myself at times what I'd do when I face the man responsible. Bruce has told me, "Justice not Vengeance," but I don't think I can follow that rule for this." 

Minutes later, Eliana heard footsteps approaching her from behind. "Your parents would be proud of you, never forget that," Bruce said, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder. "I know it never gets easier, but once Mcvoy is brought to justice, you can rest knowing you have full closure. You know Ace could use a walk, why don't you take him out and walk the streets of Gotham," he suggested. "Thank you for everything, Bruce. I couldn't have gotten through the last few years without you," Eliana said, giving the old man a kiss on the cheek.

~8~

Gotham during the daytime was very busy. There was more traffic 90% of the day and crowded sidewalks 50% of the day. 'Good thing Ace is such an obidient dog. Otherwise, I'd probably be chasing after him while apologizing to the people he would bump into.' Eliana thought with a relieved expression. 'I still can't believe Bruce sold his company to someone like Derek Powers, the guy's just like every other crook in this city.' Eliana rolled her eyes as she passed by the huge WaynePowers skyscrapper.

She then saw Hamilton Hill High School. 'I wonder what it would be like to be an average teenage girl in high school?' Eliana pondered. It wasn't that Eliana couldn't go to school, Bruce had always given her opportunities. But after her parents died, Eliana just couldn't see herself going back to school and socializing with all the other kids. So she took online schooling and focussed on training.

Now, that didn't mean she didn't know how to socialize with people. She's not Bruce, she just preferred to keep to herself. Still, the odd thought or two about going to a real school and making friends came to her occasionally.

With one last glance at the school, Eliana made her way back to Wayne Manor.

~8~

By nightfall, Eliana was down in the Batcave as Bruce had managed to trace a call from one of the captured goons to figure out Mcvoy's location. "Mcvoy's hideout is the abandon Trister Brewery. I already put the coordinates in the Batplane, but be careful. Security will be high," Bruce informed.

"That won't be a problem," Eliana said, walking in front of her father's suit display. "This has been a long time coming," she mumbled darkly. As she was making her way to the plane, Bruce called out to her, "When you find him, promise me you won't kill him."

Eliana hesitated before jumping in the plane, "You know I can't promise that."

~8~

In Mcvoy's office at Trister Brewery, Mcvoy was busy making a new plan to hit another high-end jewelry store. He was frustrated and angry that more of his men failed him and were taken down by Nightwing. Mcvoy hated the vigilante with a passion. All of his plans had been ruined by a brat wearing a costume.

"I want you and 2 other imbeciles to rob the Beaumont jewelry store tomorrow night. And if you fail me, not even prison will protect you from the consequences. UNDERSTAND!" Mcvoy slammed a fist on his desk. "Ye-yes, sir." The henchman trembled before scurrying out. Mcvoy simply rolled his eyes, 'I'm surrounded by idiots.'

Suddenly, all the lights went out, and everything went silent. The only thing Mcvoy heard and saw was the rain and lighting flashes coming from outside. A sharp voice called out to him, disrupting the eerie silence, "You really are nothing but a greedy scum."

Mcvoy jumped and looked to see Nightwing standing in front of an open window, the lightning flashing to form her silhouette. Swallowing his shock, Mcvoy smiled and stood up from his seat, "Ahh Nightwing how nice of you to visit me, to what do I owe the pleasure." Nightwing stood unmoved, "I don't think you'll consider this reunion a pleasure once I'm through with you."

Slowly, Mcvoy went to hit his help button on his desk, but Nightwing saw this and called out, "Oh, I wouldn't bother calling in your men, I already dealt with them. It's just you and me now." Mcvoy reached for the gun strapped under his desk, "I would love to chat, but I have an empire to run."

He aimed at her, but before he could pull the trigger, Nightwing threw a smoked bomb. The entire room filled up with smoke fast, Mcvoy walked around the room with his gun still in hand. He fired shots randomly through the smoke, making Nightwing back handspring out of the way.

"I gotta ask. You said this was a reunion. But I don't recall ever meeting you. And you seemed to be very on edge for just robberies. There's something else... isn't there? Tell me, what did I do to you?" Mcvoy called out to her.

He was instantly answered with a spinning roundhouse kick to the face, resulting in him dropping his gun. Before he could even process things and giant bola wrapped around his body, making him fall to the ground. "You killed my parents," Nightwing growled as she walked out of the shadows.

Picking up his body, she made her way to the opened window and raised him outside. "What-what are you doing? You're a hero. Heroes don't kill. Why are you doing this?" Mcvoy screamed in fear. "Revenge," Nightwing said, menacingly making Mcvoy look at her in fear. Something snapped in Eliana, she thought back to what the words Bruce had told her long ago.

An eleven year old stood in front of her parents' graves. It was the first anniversary of her parents' death. She had just gotten word that 2 of the robbers who were involved in her parents' death were caught and arrested. But what made her angry was that the man who pulled the trigger, Richie Mcvoy, was still at large. "They will always be with you Eliana never forget that," a voice pulled her out of her thoughts. "I wanna find Mcvoy and kill him....he deserves it," Eliana said bitterly.

The man was not surprised by her words. He knew what it felt like to want revenge. He turned the girl to face him, "Listen to me, Eliana, your parents would never want you to live with revenge in your heart. Revenge is like poison; it can consume you and transform you into something heinous before you know it. Remember this, Eliana, justice, not vengeance."~

~Justice, not Vengeance~

Eliana quickly snapped back to reality, "Justice not vengeance, I won't kill you, I won't be a murderer like you. You deserve to rot in jail and be punished rightfully for your crimes." She pulled him back in the room and dropped him to the ground with his shaken gaze still resting upon her stern one. "For as long as I live, I will keep protecting this city from people like you," Nightwing spoke with authority. She turned on her com, "Call GCPD, tell them Richie Mcvoy has been taken down."

~8~

Bruce immediately rushed to Eliana and hugged her as soon as she got out of the Batplane. Eliana didn't hesitate to hug him back. "When you left and turned off your com, I got worried. What happened?" Bruce questioned.

Eliana tried to fight back tears, something Bruce noticed, and it made his expression turn somber. "I took down Mcvoy easily, but after he was down, all I saw was red. Bruce.....I almost killed him because all I wanted at that moment was revenge. Revenge for killing my parents," Eliana croaked out, not caring about the tears now flowing down her face.

Bruce could tell there was more to the story and he was right when she began to go on, "Then I remembered how you told me once 'Justice not Vengeance', and how revenge could change a person. I realized that if I killed him.....I would be just like him, and I never want to be someone like him." Bruce wiped away the tears on her face, "You'll never become someone like him. You have your fathers heart. I'm so proud of you, Eliana."

"I love you Bruce, you've been like a second father to me," Eliana smiled. "I love you too, Eliana, you are the daughter I never got to have, and you gave me something I never thought I could gain again......love." Bruce returned the smile and kissed her forehead

~8~

Eliana gazed at the city in front of her eyes with determination, the city she swore she would protect until her dying breath. As the sun rose to symbolize a new day, she felt at peace knowing that she could finally move on and let go of all the vengeance her heart carried for 6 years. Eliana now fully understood what it felt like to be a hero.

The lesson of justice instead of vengeance will be carried on with the rest of her vigilante life, and it was a lesson she would one day pass on.

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