Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship
He was shorter than she expected. That's all Queen Mera of Atlantis could think as Damien, the Robin, son of Batman stood before her.
They were similar, both trained from birth to fight and kill. She had years on him, but he had had more ruthless training. He was used to taking a life, while she was unaccustomed to it, but not unexperienced.
This match had been started when Bruce and Arthur were talking about how he and Mera had met. It came out that she was an assassin, and Bruce sympathized, revealing his own son had a similar upbringing.
When Arthur had told her, she challenged the young Robin to a duel. Unable to refuse, the new leader of the Teen Titans traveled back to the east coast to prove his prowess.
They were now standing on the boardwalk, overlooking the ocean. Damien had claimed he could be in the water, and he would still win, but Mera decided to give the boy a chance.
They were twenty feet apart, standing back to back. Diana and Clark were being the referees on this, the two figured they were impartial enough.
The two waited for the whistle to start. Each twitching in anticipation.
The shot was fired, and Damien whirled, bat-arrange drawled as he turned and threw. Mera didn't flinch, seemingly steady as the weapons flung towards her. Water flew up in between the planks, stopping the projectiles. Simultaneously, Damien froze, seemingly unable to move.
"What's happening?" Robin demanded, frozen in place. The only thing he was still in control of was his head, which was useless for everything except making threats.
"You boasted of your abilities, but how well do you know your opponent?" Mera questioned, back still turned.
"Well enough…" Damien smirked, biting his teeth together. This released an electric shock, which broke Mera's hold on him.
Mera screamed with the released, turning just in time to block one of the young Robin's blows. Robin thrust a left roundhouse punch, only for her to grab his arm, flipping him over her shoulder. He landed and swung his legs around, knocking Mera off her feet.
She landed with her hands, going into a roll with a counter kick which connected to Damien's side. They both got up with a renewed resolution, getting ready for a second round.
"Taser suit, impressive." Mera smirked, carefully watching Robin's movements.
"Took it from Nightwing…" Damian smiled, watching her just as carefully.
Robin threw himself forward, only to run into a water construct. The construct disappeared dropping Damien to the ground, as water slide around his ankles, wrists, and into his mouth.
Mera removed the remote for the electric shock, and dismantled it. In a singular flex of her hand, she crushed the device.
Damien looked up at her in shock, a little uneased by her powers. Her hard water slid over him, encasing everything except his eyes and nose.
"Now, young one… Yield." Mera whispered, knowing she had won.
"MPH…" Damien grunted, unable to reply.
"Right..." Mera nodded, releasing his mouth.
"If our power set were the same, I would have won." Damien grunted, undignified.
"Of course." Mera smiled, knowing the loss of defeat was not something assassins take well.
"And there shall be a rematch." Damien added, as Mera let go of him.
"Naturally." Mera nodded, kneeling down so she was his height. "Course next time, don't go easy on me."
"Tt…Careful what you wish for." Damien smirked, knowing he had finally found someone who understood the honor, the courage, and the pull in between killer and Hero.
From that day forward, Mera and Damien got together often, discussing techniques and strategies. They had become an odd set of unlikely friends.