Author's Notes

To sm4567, for me, Gotham City would be the equivalent of New York City, Metropolis would be Chicago, Dakota City would be Pierre, South Dakota, Jump City is San Francisco, and so on. That's honestly how each city appears based on their appearances in the DCAU and that's how I interpreted it. In Batman Beyond, Neo-Gotham is the futuristic Gotham City. Kaznia has yet to be really seen in the comics, so it's safe for me to assume that it is exclusive to the DCAU. I also chose to use military time for this story, so 0034 means 12:34 AM. I'm pretty sure that you haven't figured it out because I'm still figuring it out - how can you know the end of a story that has no clear plan? Anyway, the Hyperion is the same as the one seen in Return of the Joker, with my interpretation of it being a weapons guidance system and one of its potential weapons being the laser from space. In where this story fits in to the Batman Beyond series, I'm fairly sure about that - it takes place at least in early/mid-season 3, well before the events of Return of the Joker (as well as the episode The Call). As for the distortation of Luminous, that was not intentional.

To JP-Ryder, the mysteries are going to keep unfolding for some time now.

To dragoscilvio, things are definitely going to be interesting from here on out.

Okay, realizing that the original title of "The Shot" is sort of lame, I've decided to rename the story "Fear, Hope, Loss, Love", which basically encompasses Terry's state in the story, fearing for his loved ones' safety, hoping that things will be okay, and so on. And the chapters will be named after military phonetics - the first chapter was "Alpha" so this chapter is "Bravo".

Now, let's continue the story.

April 19, 2042 0910 hours
Alleyway behind Neo-Gotham City Hall, Neo-Gotham, New York, USA

Having just been shot by an unknown assailant, Terry struck the wall and slumped down onto the ground. Groaning in extreme pain, he managed to just drag himself a few inches away, which was enough to move himself out of the assailant's line of sight.

He then went for his phone, attempting to dial for help, but every inch he moved simply caused the bleeding to increase. He would have to remain still until help arrived, if help arrived.

How could it end like this? The Batman, the feared Dark Knight of Gotham, taken down by a sniper while out of costume. Seeing the blood come out, Terry put his hand over his chest in an attempt to slow the bleeding.

As he continued to lay there, he soon saw Max running by the alleyway, searching for where Terry went (and also where Koch went). Terry cried out, "Max" before groaning in pain. That quickly got the ebony teen's attention as she ran back into the alleyway to see Terry.

"Oh my God! Terry!" Turning around towards the crowd still gathered around City Hall, she yelled, "Someone get an ambulance!" With that, the crowd soon began to pull out their cell phones, calling 911 to help Max out.

It didn't take them long to appear as an ambulance gathered Terry onto a stretcher, taking off his backpack and putting it in the ambulance alongside him. Max, however, covertly took his cell phone, knowing that if Wayne called, his secret would be exposed.

Watching the doctors begin work on Terry, they cut off his shirt to reveal a bulletproof vest. Max gave a slight smirk as she knew that the vest probably would help Terry survive his injury. Then, they removed Terry's vest to reveal his bare chest, where the center of his chest, around his heart, was pierced with the bullet.

The ambulance doors then closed as it began to drive off towards the hospital to further treat Terry's wounds. As the ambulance drove away, Max felt Terry's cell phone ring and she then answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Max, what are you doing with Terry's phone?" It was Bruce Wayne on the line, and from the sound of it, he didn't know what just happened to his "errand boy".

"Terry's been shot."

"What?"

"I don't know the details. He went off after Koch, but only moments later, he cried out in pain - when I checked to see, he was bleeding from his chest."

"Dear God. Okay, Max. Did an ambulance take him?"

"Yes. They're going to Gotham West. Should I head over there as well?"

"Where are you now?"

"Still at the alleyway behind City Hall."

"I'll pick you up. Anyway, I suggest you call Dana and tell her what happened."

"And Terry's family?"

"I'll call them and Commissioner Gordon. I'm also going to need Terry's phone to help figure out what happened."

"Got it."

When Bruce hung up, Max pocketed Terry's phone before pulling out her own. Man, this was going to be very awkward. Inputting the speed-dial for Dana's phone, Max called Dana to tell her the bad news.

After several moments, Dana answered, "Max, what's up?"

"Listen Dana. Terry isn't going to be able to make it to your date tonight."

"Why?"

"He's been hospitalized, and he isn't looking too good."

"What? What happened? Which hospital?"

"Gotham West. I just wanted to let you know that." Max decided not to fill in Dana about the rest of the situation - saying Terry was shot was definitely a bad idea at the moment. The less Dana knew, the better.

Hanging up the phone, Max waited for Bruce to arrive and pick her up.

April 19, 2042 1029 hours
Gotham West Hospital, Neo-Gotham, New York, USA

At Gotham West Hospital, Terry lay unconscious on the operating table, already going under surgery for the chest wound inflicted. Dana, Matt, and Mary were in the waiting room, looking at the door, anxiously awaiting the doctors to tell them that the surgery went fine (or any news at all), which probably wouldn't be for a couple of hours at least - it was going to be a while before they knew anything certain.

Outside of the room, though, was Max, alone and observing Terry's family and girlfriend. Max blamed herself for what had happened to Terry - she should have caught up with him - maybe if that had happened, Terry wouldn't have been shot and nobody would be in this predicament. Slung over her shoulder was Terry's backpack with the Batman suit, having slipped it away from the ambulance after it arrived, once Bruce had dropped her off there.

Out of the blue, she heard an unexpected voice telling her, "You know blaming yourself is counterproductive."

Walking up behind her was an older woman, likely in her late 50's, with white hair and glasses, wearing a coat over her simple outfit. Max asked the woman, "Commissioner Gordon? What are you doing here?"

"What do you think? Checking in on Terry. He got hit real bad, didn't he?"

"He did. Why are you wondering in particular?" At this point, though, Max had no clue about Commissioner Gordon's connection with the Batman.

"You're a smart girl, Maxine. I'm sure you can figure it out."

Suddenly, it dawned on Maxine about just how the commissioner was connected to Terry. "You were Batgirl back in the day to Bruce Wayne's Batman. How long have you known?"

"Ever since I knew Batman returned, I knew that Bruce had to be involved, but I also knew that he couldn't be the Bat anymore. So, I looked for recent hires of his, and there was only one result."

"Now it's making sense why he didn't stay in his civilian guise when you thought he killed Mad Stan. You'd be able to find him easily. So, how do you know about me and all of this?"

"I keep my tabs on Bruce to make sure he isn't over his head, and in that, I've also spent a fair deal of time watching Terry, so by now I know your place in all of this. Now it makes sense why he went to you and not Dana when he was framed - I wouldn't have known that you knew his secret."

"Any news on who attacked Terry?"

"Unless Koch had a teleporter, there was no way he could have made the shot. Bruce has Terry's cell and is trying to figure out what happened, though that may take a while, despite all of his skill."

Once the conversation had finished, Commissioner Gordon had left, leaving before Max could even realize it. She noted to herself, "Guess it runs in the family."

April 19, 2042 1218 hours
Gotham West Hospital, Neo-Gotham, New York, USA

Terry had recently gotten out of surgery and was now in bed, still under the sedative. Dana, Matt, and Mary were already inside of Terry's hospital room, though Max remained outside. She could only hope that things got resolved and soon.

Feeling hungry, Max began to head towards the cafeteria to get herself some lunch. As she walked away from Terry's room, she heard a voice talking to her, "Where are you going, Max?"

Max turned around to see Bruce Wayne with a cane, looking right at her from outside of Terry's hospital room. Max remarked, "How do you do that?"

"Never mind. I think you should come here." Max followed Bruce's request and walked up towards the millionaire and Terry's boss.

"What's going on? Do you know who shot Terry?"

"No. That's not why I'm here. There's something much darker going on." Bruce opened the door to Terry's room and walked in, followed not that long after by Max, who then closed the door.

Mary McGinnis asked, "Mr. Wayne? Are you here to check on Terry?"

Bruce answered, "Partially, but there's something else." Bruce then locked the door to Terry's room before pressing a button hidden on the side of his cane. He continued, "There. Nobody outside of this room will be able to observe or hear our conversation."

Dana inquired, "Max, do you know what's going on here?"

Max shrugged, "Maybe, but based on what he's doing, I'm not entirely sure about it."

Bruce explained, "Before I explain everything, there's something I need to tell you. Max, would you open up the backpack?"

Max complied, slipping off the backpack on her shoulder before opening it up, pulling out the Batsuit from inside. Immediately, the three inside were all shocked by that. Matt simply commented, "Cool! My brother is Batman!"

Dana, startled by the revelation, asked, "You're telling me that Terry was the Batman? Max, did you know about this?"

Max's reply was a simple, "Yes. I knew Terry was Batman, though not exactly by choice. I found it out on my own."

Mary asked, "Why does that explain so much about Terry's recent activities? And why he confessed to being him before 'Sneak Peek'? Being Batman, working for you, he's been living a double life! And you condoned this!?"

Bruce responded, "That's why I hired him. I hired him to be the Batman. I couldn't do it anymore and the city needed one now more than ever."

"So why are you telling us this now?"

"Because Terry was shot." Pulling out Terry's cell phone, Bruce played the last call Terry received. "Goodbye, Batman." Hearing a gunshot go off, everyone now knew the circumstances behind Terry's shooting. Dana tearfully realized, "Terry was the target the whole time. Then, how did they know he was Batman?"

"That part I still don't know. There aren't a lot of people that knew Terry's secret. The call came from a burn phone bought six weeks ago but never used previously. Whoever is behind this is very smart and dangerous. Terry was wearing a bulletproof vest, which is likely why he survived."

"Where did the bullet hit my son?"

"It hit him less than one millimeter above his heart. Judging by the weather and the echolocation, I would wager that the sniper was aiming for Terry's head, but failed to account for every condition."

"What now, Mr. Wayne? Do you think they will come for Terry?"

"The news is keeping hush on the incident, not revealing whether or not Terry made it, just in case the assassin tries again, though I think we need to take him out of here. It's a public place, even with cops around here. In addition, if they're going after Terry, then all of you are potential targets for the attempted assassin to use against Terry."

"Wayne Manor, then?"

"Maybe. Before coming here, I secured the Batcave to restrict access to unwanted guests. They wouldn't be able to get in and plan an ambush or snoop for information. However, it doesn't have enough supplies to hold out indefinitely, especially the medical supplies and food. I may have an alternative, but it'll take a little time to set up."

"Where is it?"

"I'll send the coordinates to Commissioner Gordon; she'll escort you there."

"How does she...? She's Batgirl, of course." It turns out once you knew one link in the chain, you could figure out the rest, especially for Dana and Mary.

After that, Bruce unlocked the door before pushing the button on his cane, thereby restoring the eyes and ears into Terry's room.

April 19, 2042 1827 hours
Gotham West Hospital, Neo-Gotham, New York, USA

Terry was still out of it, unconscious following his surgery to remove the bullet lodged in his chest. It would definitely take him some time to recover, meaning he wouldn't be up to snuff if he decided to keep performing his duties as Batman.

As it was, he was still going to be unconscious for the next couple of hours. In Terry's hospital room were Terry's immediate family - his mother Mary and brother Matt, as well as his girlfriend Dana and confidant Max. Outside, Commissioner Gordon was organizing security to ensure nobody would attempt to attack Terry while he remained out of it, unable to fight back.

Bruce was out making sure his "alternative" was set and most likely secure before he had them go there in order to protect them. Then, how long would they have to spend in hiding? They all had lives they needed to be a part of, but would that be worth more than their own survival? And that of Terry? How long would they have to spend at the hospital?

Things were quite ugly at the moment, and things weren't going to get any better in the conceivable future. Right now, Bruce was having them stay at the hospital as long as they could because the equipment there could better monitor Terry's condition than the equipment Bruce had, especially considering Terry's unconscious state. Once Terry awoke, the medical equipment Bruce had on hand would work, but there was no guarantee as to when he would wake up, especially considering the assassin may strike again.

As things continued to remain quiet at the hospital, Mary and Max were browsing the Net through the secure hospital wireless service to see just what the news had reported on Terry, to see just how much the assassin could know. Of course, the assassin would almost certainly know more than the press. The big question, now, was just who the assassin was.

Matt was looking out the window, watching to see just who was coming to the hospital. Thus far, most of the cars he's seen were ambulances and the rest were visitors, none of whom were there to threaten Terry...yet.

Dana, meanwhile, was sitting at Terry's bedside, fondling her boyfriend's left hand with her two slim hands, her right hand slinked around the back of his hand while the front was laying on his arm.

"Terry, this past year or so, it's been insanely tough on the two of us, especially on our relationship. I thought you were losing interest in me at times, my faith in our love broken, but it didn't fall, amazingly enough. When your father was killed, you started to change, especially when you became Batman. You had to put others ahead of me, and for that I understand, even if it didn't make any sense to me at the time. Never forget Terry, I love you."

Bringing his hand up to her lips, Dana lightly kissed it before returning it to its place on his bed. She had inwardly hoped that the gesture would be enough to wake him up - it always worked in the romances she watched. Alas, reality was different than fiction, but this was most definitely as strange as fiction - a world with vigilantes, sewer dwelling pack rats, metahumans, and aliens. And this was Gotham, the scream was practically their town anthem!

Slouching back into her chair, Dana could only hope that Terry woke up soon from his unconscious state. It seemed likely that in his weakened state, he would definitely be off-duty as Batman for some time, meaning she would have some much-needed catch-up time with Terry, but another part of her thought that it wasn't that good for the rest of Neo-Gotham. The city needed its Batman, and that was something Dana could never deny.

Then, Matt yelled, "I think we've got company."

Mary asked her youngest son, "Are you sure, Matt?"

Matt nodded yes as he pointed out a black car that had just drove up to the front of the hospital, where four goons were currently running out of it with submachine guns. Mary thought, 'Crap! They're here to kill Terry! Where is Commissioner Go...'

Mary's thought was interrupted by the arrival of Commissioner Gordon, who noted, "We need to move Terry now. Four men are on their way, all armed."

Max asked, "How long?"

"Six minutes, give or take. Bruce should be almost ready for visitors once we head out. Let's go."

Fortunately for them, Terry's bed was already on wheels, allowing for much easier mobility. Commissioner Gordon and Mary grabbed the bed and began to push it out of the room, followed by Max, Dana, and Matt. Max had the monitor, which enabled them to monitor Terry's vital signs while Matt carried the defibrillator and Dana kept hold of Terry's breathing mask, making sure that he was still breathing despite being moved, and also that he was asleep. They didn't want him to wake up at that particular moment, or things would be a bit more difficult in getting out of the hospital.

As they reached the elevator, about to press the down button, they then heard an explosion followed by the sprinklers starting to activate. Gordon realized, "The elevators are down. To the right staircase. We need to hurry!"

Immediately, the five moved towards the closest staircase in order to get out of the hospital. As they kept moving, Commissioner Gordon radioed in, "Cardin, Russo, are you there?"

One of the officers responded, "It's Cardin. They got Russo. I'm pinned down by automatic fire. I need some back-up over here!"

"How many are you facing?"

"Two gunmen. Haven't been able to get a hit..." The sudden clattering of gunfire meant that Cardin had just been killed. Dana asked, "Then where are the others?"

Then, Terry's cell phone began to ring and Max answered it. "Max, what's going on?"

"The hospital is under attack. Armed goons are here to kill Terry."

"You need to get out of the hospital now. Right now I have two gunmen heading up the north staircase, right now on the second level. Two more are coming up the south staircase."

Gordon radioed in, "Shut down the north and south staircases."

"That isn't going to work, Barbara. They've got to the security room, meaning they control the doors. Fortunately, they haven't yet gotten to the security cameras."

"Don't let them get eyes on us."

"I'll try. Get to the east staircase now and take it all the way down."

"All available units, secure the east staircase immediately."

The group then double-timed it to the east staircase, hoping to get there before the hitmen reached their floor, which would happen in about two and a half minutes.

As they reached the staircase, Max went under Terry's hospital bed and pressed some buttons. Within seconds, the wheels folded up into the bed and in their place were light streams of blue flame.

Matt whined, "So we didn't have to roll Terry? We could have just activated the hyper-jets on the bed."

Max replied, "They won't last for too long. And besides, they're designed for getting these things down stairs. Don't believe everything television claims."

Mary took the front of Terry's bed while Gordon held the back and Dana kept the breathing mask on Terry's face, the three of them moving slowly to make sure that they didn't lose grip of the bed and cause it to crash.

As they moved the bed, they heard what sounded like another explosion up above. The thugs had reached the floor Terry was on. Their staircase wasn't going to be secure for long, meaning they had to move it.

Gordon requested, "Max, you need to take my spot. They're coming."

Max complied, placing the monitor on Terry's bed as she took hold of the bed, moving it along with Mary. Commissioner Gordon took out her sidearm and looked upstairs to see if anyone was coming down towards them.

Keeping her sidearm pointed up the staircase, Commissioner Gordon followed the group as they moved Terry down towards the garage. When they reached the second floor, Gordon could hear footsteps coming well above them. "They'll be down here soon."

The four civilians moved faster with Terry's bed as Gordon took aim towards the top of the staircase, also trying to keep herself out of any potential line-of-sights the thugs had, which would easily reveal their current location.

Then, she heard the unmistakable sound of a grappling gun being fired - she knew that better than most people given her time as Batgirl, meaning that someone would be rappelling down towards them, so she kept her gun trained on the space in between the stairs, where the thug would come towards them. As the thug came down towards her, Gordon opened fire, but was unable to hit the thug before he landed and knocked the gun out of her hand, causing it to spiral down the staircase.

The thug went in for a punch, but Gordon dodged it and returned with a punch of her own, sending him tumbling backwards into the stairs. Moving away from the thug, Gordon picked up her sidearm and yelled, "They're here! Get there now!"

Immediately, the four picked up the pace even faster, passing past the first floor and heading closer towards the garage. Gordon soon followed them only to face gunfire that soon blocked her path. Eyeing the thug firing on her from above, Gordon returned fire, forcing him to back off for the moment, allowing her to move and get down towards the first floor.

The thug fired again on her, the bullets just barely missing her feet and forcing her back against the door to the first floor. Before she could respond with gunfire of her own, the first thug she took down quickly made his way towards her. Commissioner Gordon fired her weapon at the thug, causing him to slump down and crash into the wall. He should be out of the fight, though the Commissioner didn't kill him.

The benefits of future firearms - able to alternate between lethal and non-lethal rounds. Well, at least for the police's weapons.

Moving down towards the group, Gordon was then attacked by another one of the assassins. This one punched her in the back of the head, causing her to stumble and drop her sidearm. Falling down onto the ground, Gordon struggled to get up as the thug grabbed her weapon, aiming it at her.

She quickly kicked the thug in between his legs, causing him to keel over and allowing her to make her getaway, taking her sidearm and finally reaching the garage, where the others had already arrived and were acquiring a vehicle.

Heading towards them, Gordon was halted upon realizing the thugs had arrived at the garage, but as they arrived, the officers that were securing the staircase opened fire on the thugs, forcing them to back off and buying the group a little more time.

With Terry loaded into the vehicle (a black van), Matt, Dana, and Max joined him in the back of the vehicle while Mary got into the shotgun position. Commissioner Gordon hopped into the driver's seat, put the keys in the ignition, and the car took off out of the hospital.

April 19, 2042 1957 hours
Batcave Safe House, Neo-Gotham, New York, USA

Bruce had set up the alternate Batcave on the other side of the city, far away from Wayne Manor as to reduce suspicions in the event his identity was exposed. It too was underground and guarded with multiple security systems, as well as stocked with enough supplies to withstand a prolonged siege (for at least six other people). Among its features were three untraceable phones, living quarters, and a second Bat-Computer.

Once Barbara, Dana, Max, and Terry's mother and brother arrived, Bruce had gotten Terry and set up his bed with the monitor attached so he could keep an eye on his vitals.

Mary asked Bruce, "So what now?"

Bruce answered, "With the attack on the hospital, I think this is probably the safest place for you. This location is owned by a shell corporation I created for purchasing my equipment and gear as Batman, so nobody will be able to positively identify this place as belonging to me. Nobody will know you're here."

"How long are we going to have to stay?"

"I don't know at the moment. I do have enough supplies to last us about three months, but based on the circumstances, I'm not sure it'd be wise to restock once we run out."

Barbara then came into the room explaining, "I just got off the phone with my men at the hospital. I lost six officers to those thugs. And four of them had families that I have to explain to them were murdered. Right now, I hope that saving Terry was worth it."

Noticing Barbara's expressions, Bruce asked, "Is there anything else?"

"Hotab Koch is dead. They found him near the abandoned sewer system. From what my officers are telling me, he's been dead for less than six hours. Bullet to the head."

"So Koch was just a pawn. This was never about Sutterfeld, it was about Terry. Whoever found out Terry's identity arranged for Koch to come here, plot an assassination attempt on Sutterfeld, and send Terry right into the path of the bullet. I'm still working on most of the details, primarily with the location of the shot and the weapon. Barbara, I'm going to need the preliminary police report on the murder of Koch."

"It'll be ready by tomorrow morning, Bruce. Right now, I have to make sure that my husband isn't in harm's way by my association with you and Terry. Is there anyone else that you think may be in danger?"

"I'd ask Dana or Max. They know Terry's social circle a lot better than I do."

Barbara Gordon then walked away to speak to Max and Dana about Terry's other friends to see just who else may need protection. Of course, Max and Dana were the closest two to him, meaning they would be the best targets, but anyone who did enough research could find other ways to get to the current Batman.

With that, Bruce and Mary were once again left alone to talk, and talk they indeed needed to do considering just how much she had found out in the past twelve hours.

"Are you really going to go after the men responsible for hurting my son? And without any real police help?"

"Yup."

"And I take it you're going to shoehorn Terry into this as well. Before you do, let me get something out of my mind. What the hell is wrong with you? Enlisting a sixteen year old boy to do your dirty work? To risk his life and limb? All for a paycheck?"

"It's more than that, Mrs. McGinnis. Terry knew the risks. Actually, he stole the Batsuit from me and I was going to shut him down. However, he was able to persuade me otherwise. Look at the state of Gotham. It needed a Batman more than ever at the time that I could no longer do it without straining my heart. And he's been able to handle himself just fine in the field. For Terry, it's more than just money, he feels as if it's some sort of redemption for the crimes he committed back a few years earlier. If you want Terry to give up being Batman, I can understand you, but I suggest you speak to Terry first about the issue."

As Bruce walked away from Mary, she asked, "Is there anybody else that could take Terry's place?"

"Nobody that I can think of and I can't wear the suit without straining my heart. And I fear that the man who had Terry shot knew that. This may have been more than just killing Terry...this may have been an attempt to destroy Batman."

With that shocking thought, Mary was soon left thinking about if she would force Terry to quit being Batman as Bruce further walked away, intending to work on finding any more information about the people that have tried to kill Terry today.

Okay, this is going to be a bit smaller than some of my other stories - I'm guessing maybe 12-13 chapters. And we've still got a long way to go.