Warning: This chapter could be a bit gruesome if you have a queasy stomach.
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans. All characters go to their respectful owners. I only own this story.
Transformations
"It's time you learned how to kill."
Robin doesn't bat an eye. "Whom am I going to kill?"
Slade glances over him. "No one yet, but I think it's high time you learn the basics."
During the course of the next week, Robin spends much of his time with Slade, being taught the finer parts of human anatomy. Slade lectures him on the most efficient ways to silence someone and how to ensure that little to no mess remains after the fact. Normally Robin would be sickened at how fragile the human life is, and how easily it can be taken away, but he's too fascinated with the knowledge of how simple it is to suffocate someone with something as simple as a bit of string and a spoon.
Finally, the discussions turn into debates about the best way to make your enemy talk. At first, Robin is curious as to how Slade is so familiar with the different techniques of torture, but then he recognizes a reoccurring theme: all of his ideas have been used in wars. Robin almost laughs at the though. It seems only fitting that the man who is lecturing him on how to commit hideous crimes was once part of the army and serving his country.
Eventually, when Slade deems Robin ready, he declares that he would like Robin to join him on one of his personal missions. Robin has always wondered what it was that Slade did when he would disappear at night and come back strangely pleased with himself the next morning. He supposes this explanation is fitting for Slade's character.
Before they leave, Slade explains that their mission is to get information and get out. Robin doesn't ask how he intends to gain his information.
After a few hours of tracking, they manage to hunt down the target and subdue him. They carry him to an abandoned building away from any area of civilization and tie him up securely so he won't escape while they interrogate him.
When the man finally regains consciousness, Slade steps in front of him and asks him for the information he requires, delivering a well-placed punch when the man refuses. After several minutes of this, the man is coughing up blood, and Slade switches tactics.
"Get the pliers," he says to Robin.
Robin swallows nervously as he realizes what Slade plans to do. But he doesn't object as he reaches for the toolbox. If Robin has learned anything under his apprenticeship with Slade it's that you never speak out against him in public. Nothing matters more to Slade than his reputation.
Robin locates the desired tool and holds it out for Slade, but Slade doesn't make any move towards them, and Robin realizes why Slade has brought him on this mission: he intends to have Robin torture the man as well.
His stomach drops as he looks down at the pliers, but he represses his feelings and advances towards the man. Robin can see the fear and uncertainty in the man's eyes as clear as day. He has no idea what Robin plans to do with the pliers, and Robin almost wishes he never has to find out. But Slade is watching, and before Robin can convince himself to turn back, he places the pliers into the man's mouth and pulls.
The screams that fill the air leave Robin's ear's ringing, and when he looks down he almost vomits at the sight of the bloody tooth he now has gripped with the pliers. The smell of blood is overpowering and Robin has to take a step back to catch his breath. He barely hears Slade repeating his question again over the sound of his own thoughts.
Batman wouldn't approve of this.
But Batman isn't here, Robin thinks back. He works for Slade now, and Slade lives by a different set of rules than the great Batman.
Out of the corner of his eye, Robin sees Slade motion him over to pull another tooth, and Robin steps forward. The screams aren't as piercing this time around and Robin ignores the bile that rises in his throat as he examines the tooth. By now the man is almost covered in as much sweat as he is blood, but he still refuses to reveal his secrets. Fighting for a hopeless cause, Robin thinks.
The hours blur together as the torture continues. Robin slowly learns to repress the queasiness he feels at the sight of blood and finds himself analyzing what techniques cause the man the most pain.
Finally, after hours, the man finally reveals what Slade wishes to know and Slade relieves him of his suffering by shooting him through the head. Robin finds himself admiring the pattern the blood makes on the wall.
When they return, it is almost dark outside and Slade instructs Robin to retire for the evening. But Robin spends most of the night staring at the ceiling and listening to the ringing in his ears that still hasn't gone away.
Eventually, he decides to get some fresh air when remembering the smell of blood becomes too much. It's cold outside, but it allows Robin to clear his head. He thinks about the Titans and what they would do if they knew he had helped Slade capture and murder someone. He remembers Raven and how the two of them would sit atop the Tower and just talk. He remembers that Raven once told him of her father, a beast feared by everyone in the galaxy, and he smiles as he recalls what she said after revealing one of her deepest secrets:
"I'm never going to let him beat me."
Robin realizes that Raven is right. He may not be able to do anything about this situation, but he can make the best of it. Even if that means letting go of what he's grown up believing and accepting Slade's way of thinking.
The sunrise transforms the black sky to a blood red, and Robin finds himself perfectly okay with the fact that he's comparing something so beautiful and pure to something so tainted. He wonders when he began tolerating and even embracing such criminal behaviors. But then he realizes that he doesn't really care.