I used to fit inside the echo Of a symbol in the night Little bird beneath the wingspan Learning how to fight Boots didn’t even touch the ground Cape too long to wear Trying to be brave enough To breathe Gotham air They called me “Wonder,” called me “Boy” Like I was just a spark But I was stitching up my grief In alleys after dark You trained me to be bulletproof To never let it show But pain don’t disappear Just ‘cause you refuse to let it grow I memorized your silence Like it held the final word You said the mission mattered more Than anything I’d heard But I was still that kid From a high-wire in the rain Trying not to slip again On trauma and on pain You built me into strategy You carved me into steel But somewhere in the shaping You forgot that I could feel I wasn’t just a weapon Wasn’t just your second name I wasn’t built to live and die Inside another’s frame Where is the line between Honor and control? When does loyalty Start swallowing your soul? If I am your reflection Why don’t I recognize The hero in the mirror Looking back through tired eyes? I fought beside a legend But I started feeling small A shadow in the skyline Not a silhouette at all You said, “Stay in formation.” I heard, “Stay in your place.” But birds were never meant To only orbit space So I broke away — not broken Just refusing to be bound I didn’t leave the mission I just changed the battleground Took the lessons, took the bruises Took the code you live by But I won’t disappear Just to keep your myth alive There is justice for the fallen I still believe that’s true But justice doesn’t mean I have to disappear for you I carry every lesson Every scar beneath my skin But I am not your sidekick I am standing on my own wind Call me reckless, call it pride Call it teenage rage But even Titans have to Step outside the cage I learned to lead with laughter Learned to fight with grace Learned a hero doesn’t Have to hide his human face I forgive you for the distance For the cold you thought was care For the nights I needed guidance And just found empty air You made me strong — that’s truth But strength can also sting I was Robin in your shadow Now I rise — I’m Nightwing Not the boy who needed saving Not the echo of your name Not the acrobat of vengeance Swinging blind through flame I am light across the skyline Blue against the black I don’t need to walk behind you I’m not looking back There is justice for the fallen And I carry it with grace Not in anger — but in hope That brighter things have place You taught me how to fight But I learned how to lead You were vengeance in the night I became the thing they need From circus wire to city fire From orphan into king From Robin in the darkness Now I spread my wings Name is Nightwing — And I’m more than where I’ve been.