Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter and please do so again. I know the date I have is most likely wrong, but I couldn't find the date of the Grayson's deaths, so please forgive that and any mistakes I may have made. I don't own DC Comics or any of their characters. Bold italics are comlink/mindlink communication and Italics are thoughts. Thanks for reading and enjoy!
Deathstroke POV
What was I thinking?! Those weapons are nothing compared to Richard and now he's with the League! I have to get him back or all I've done to have a successor will be for nothing! Slade was enraged at his own actions. He flipped over a table and bashed up the room. Computers were smashed and everything was soon in disarray. He calmed and smoothed his hair back into place. It's okay. I'll get him back.
Renegade POV
Renegade slowly opened his eyes and heard a steady beeping. The first thing he say was a swirled pattern in a white ceiling. That's not in the base anywhere… He also felt a mask on his face, but it wasn't his usual one. This one was bulky and plastic and see through. Oxygen Mask? Med. bay? What am I doing in an actual med. bay and why do I feel no pain? He lifted his arm, but was stopped by a vicious pain. Because I'm not moving. He slowly sat up and took in his unfamiliar environment. A cabinet with bottles of liquid stood on his right and on his left was a heart monitor and other machines to monitor his vitals. He was in a gown, like the ones in hospitals. He saw his clothes on top of the cabinet. He painfully got up and slowly shuffled and retrieved them. He stripped off the gown and carefully changed into his clothes, taking note of the new bandaging and stitches along with one long stitched cut on his chest. Once he was dressed, he crept toward the door and it slid open with a quiet whoosh. He crept out into white halls and stuck to what little shadows there were and walked with quiet steps out of habit. He went towards what he assumed was the main room with zeta tubes and saw a large window with a nice view of Earth. Earth looks nice. Earth looks… EARTH! I'm in space!? Why?! He heard a gasp to his left and saw Wonder Woman and Green Lantern. They were at a table with cups of coffee. They looked at him shocked and then ran towards him. He turned and started running.
"Stop, Renegade!" Wonder Woman ordered.
Renegade sprinted towards the zeta tubes and hoped he wouldn't run into another Leaguer. He was engulfed in a bright, golden light and ran out of it. Right into a ring of heroes. The sidekicks looked at him in utter shock. Batman, the Hawks, Superman, Martian Manhunter, Red Tornado, Black Canary, Green Arrow, and Captain Marvel looked like they were having a serious conversation with the sidekicks. Just my luck. Batman was the first to attack. He lunged forwards just as the zeta tube announced the arrival of the other two Leaguers. Renegade dodged and landed right in the middle of the hero ring. The heroes glared at him and a green band trapped his arms and legs then pushed him down onto the ground pinning him.
"Let. Me. Go." Renegade growled.
"No." Batman responded a little too quickly.
"You're staying with the League until we figure out what to do with you." He continued. "Superman." Batman ordered. The Man of Steel went out the room, wordlessly.
"Do you remember what happened?" Batman questioned. Renegade stayed silent, glaring that the Dark Knight from his position on the floor. Superman came back into the room with a collar and a small piece attached to it on what he assumed was the back. That looks fun.
"Green Lantern, allow access to his back." Batman said and Renegade felt a rush of air chill his spine.
"Sorry, kid, but you're dangerous." Superman apologized and went behind Renegade. Renegade looked at Artemis a silent beg to help him out of this. She looked away in guilt.
"Traitor." Renegade insulted, glaring at the blonde. A sharp pinch went to the base of his neck and a collar was clicked around his neck.
"What is this?" Renegade growled at the uncomfortable metal around his neck.
"An older model of inhibitor collars, this one send an electric shock to the spine and neck." Green Arrow replied. Great. The heroes began talking about him what to do with him.
"Belle Reve can handle him." Superman suggested.
"Belle Reve is an adult prison. he's a child no matter what he has done." Wonder Woman argued.
"He's a murderer." Green Arrow stated.
"Technically, it was against his will." Batman pointed out.
"He slaughter his last victims, they were barely recognizable!" Green Arrow argued.
Renegade was glaring at Green Arrow when he felt a soft, questioning presence at the edge of his mind. He looked at the Martians. Manhunter was speaking to Red Tornado, so he looked at the younger. She was looking directly at him. He nodded at her and her voice slipped into his head.
You weren't always like this, were you?
No, of course not. How long have I been unconscious?
Eight days, you needed immediate medical care. Surgery.
That explains the new cut. Wait, eight days… Can you tell me the date?
Um, sure. April 9. Why do you ask, Renegade?
No reason. Tomorrow's the anniversary.
Miss Martian could sense the emotion linked with the date. Intense sorrow, grief, and anger. She didn't want to know.
Renegade, Artemis wants to talk to yo-
The sentence was interrupted by Kid Flash.
"Hey! Where you guys having a conversation?!" He exclaimed and looked between the two.
"Yeap." Renegade grinned, despite his real emotions.
"Why were y-" Kid Flash was interrupted by Flash.
"Renegade, we are going to give you two options." Flash began.
"Join the team, but the collar remains on." Black Canary kindly suggested.
" Or get transferred to Belle Reve." batman said, coldly. He doesn't like that idea.
Renegade sighed.
"Can you give me until the eleventh? I've got a lot on my mind and I don't think I'm able to make a smart decision right now." Renegade asked, it sounded more like a plea.
The league was a little surprise at the plea sounding question. Canary was the one to answer.
"Of course, for now you can stay here at the cave with Miss Martian and Superboy." Black Canary responded softly, sensing something was wrong with the boy's mental state. Green Arrow was about to protest, but was silenced by a fierce glare from Canary.
"...Thanks…What time is it?" Renegade asked, already distant. Batman glanced at the bottom of the computer screen he was working on.
"7:48 P.M." Batman replied roughly and went back to clicking away at the keyboard. He seemed frustrated.
"Something wrong, Batman?" Superman questioned. Renegade didn't hear the answer and felt the soft presence at the edge of his mind, again. He nodded, although he was staring at the wall, behind Red Tornado.
I hope you like various kinds of pancakes! I make those for breakfast every morning. A feminine voice cheered.
Yeah. He responded.
Renegade and the martian were snapped out of their conversation when Canary began speaking to Renegade.
"We have an extra room we would like you to stay in, for now." She kindly said. Why is she so nice? Renegade stayed silent and followed Canary when she began walking. Superman and Green Arrow followed behind them.
"Tch, I'm not stupid enough to try to escape, idiots." Renegade snarled.
"Better safe than sorry." Green Arrow replied.
They walked down a main corridor and stopped at the last door on the right. The door slid open and Canary stepped aside.
"Here we are. The door will be looked and the vent are melted closed." Canary smiled. Renegade sighed and stepped into the blank room. The door shut behind him. In the middle of the room was a bed with black covers and a red pillow. The top half of the walls were grey and the bottom half were black. A sleek black dresser was pressed against the wall and a mirror sat on top of it. A door stood the right of the bed. He opened the door and stepped into a bathroom with checkered tile floor and black walls with a white tile shower. The sink was white with a black counter and mirror in front of it that could open. Hygiene supplies lined the the shelves on the inside of the mirror. A closet full of towels and sheets for the bed. Renegade walked back out and stared at the bed. He laid down and closed his eyes. Breathing to calm himself. In and out. It's fine. Control your emotions. Just because this it the first time you'll be allowed to grieve doesn't mean you let it all out. Go to sleep. You need to get out of here and back to Slade. Renegade opened his eyes at his own thought. Slade… This could be my way out. With that thought in mind, Renegade fell asleep.
Mom! Dad! No! Richard screamed.
Richard! his parents screamed as they fell and crashed on the ground. The crowd was rushing out of the tent while Richard was racing down from the high platform. He ran to his fallen parents and knelt down beside their bloody, broken bodies.
Wake Up! he urged, shaking their bodies. They weren't moving.
"Don't leave me alone!" Richard yelled and shot awake, gasping. Tears were running down his face and he laid back down, curling up in a ball and crying.
A knock came at the door, waking Richard from dreamless sleep. He went and opened it, Aqualad stood there, taking in his features.
"Um, Batman wants you out of your room…" Aqualad informed.
"Okay." Renegade said, absently, allowing himself to be numb on the date of his parents deaths. He numbly followed Aqualad into a sort of living room with a large television. Superboy was sitting on a grey couch, watching static. Artemis and Kid Flash were arguing over something, but Renegade didn't take care to listen to the, most likely, pointless arguement. Miss Martian was cooking in the kitchen.
"I know it's already lunch time, but would you like some chocolate chip pancakes? They're cold, but I can heat them up." Miss Martian offered sweetly.
"No thanks, Miss Martian." He responded distantly.
"Um, Megan's fine…" The green girl replied, noticing his off behavior. She looked at Aqualad and he looked at her. Kid Flash and Artemis quieted down a bit and Superboy looked at then out of the corner of his eye. Probably having a conversation about me telepathically.
Batman walked into the room and looked at Renegade and then at Aqualad. They contacted Bats? Oh well. Renegade walked towards a chair beside the couch on the left of Superboy. He plopped down and immediately regretted it when he felt pain wash through him. He relaxed and looked at the static on the television.
"Hey, Renegade... Are you alright?" Artemis questioned, breaking the silence.
"Just fine." Renegade said coldly, glaring at the blonde he used to think of as a sister. He looked away from her.
"A-Are you sure?" Miss Martian questioned. Her soft, frightened voice trembled a bit. Renegade would admit he felt a little bad.
"Yes, Miss M." He said, forcing a smile.
"We sense intense anger and sorrow coming from you." Martian Manhunter said as he walked into the room, through the wall. That's kind of creepy.
"My life hasn't been fair." He said angrily. "I have a lot to be angry over" Renegade snapped. he turned back to the static and stared, getting lost in thought. What do they know? They were never the reason their parents died. Tch, their parents are probably alive. They probably don't appreciate them. I miss them...a lot. I want them here. I want to see their smiles, hear their laugh and voice. He was overcome with intense sorrow. He let his head hang, covering his tearing eyes. It's not fair! He let himself go numb again. Life's not fair, suck it up.
"You shouldn't treat yourself like that." A voice snapped him out of his thoughts. Batman was standing before him.
"Treating myself like what?" Richard snarled. He doesn't know anything.
"Guess you didn't realize, there's a mindlink between you, the team, and the League. Anything you say to loudly, freely will be heard by us. We just heard you yell at yourself. Life's not fair, suck it up." He informed. Canary entered the tense room.
"So what?" Richard finally said after a period of silence.
"You need to let that anger go." Canary said, softly.
"You're not my mother, Harley, or Catwoman." Richard snarked. You don't know anything about me.
"Channel it into something." Canary responded. Superboy huffed. Alright, fine.
"Channel it, huh? Alright." He stood. "That's a great suggestion." The team and Canary stepped back and Superboy stood up. Batman, however, stepped forward.
"You want to fight. Understandable." Batman responded to Renegade's actions.
"I don't call it fighting. I call it violent dancing." Renegade said as he went into a fighting stance, arms raised and legs apart. Richard could've sworn he saw Batman smirk, a little tiny bit.
"Ready when you are." Batman responded. He didn't get into a stance of any kind! He's underestimating me! Richard growled and lunged forward, punching for his stomach. Batman simply put two hands on him and pushed him away. Richard stumbled backwards a bit and growled, charged forwards and kicked for the face, Batman blocked and pushed him, again. Richard was getting very frustrated by the fifth time Batman pushed him away.
"Fight! Punch! Do SOMETHING OTHER THAN BLOCK AND PUSH!" Renegade yelled.
He wanted to fight his emotions away, Batman wasn't letting that happen. The Dark Knight just looked at him with that stupid blank expression.
"You piss me off." Renegade spat.
He dashed forward and punched for Batman's face. The Caped Crusader grabbed his wrist this time and didn't let go. Richard gritted his teeth and punched at this face with his other hand. Batman caught that one too. Renegade started to struggle and thrash, trying to get his wrist free of the steel grip.
"Let go!" Renegade yelled as the thrashed.
"Stop struggling." Batman said, calmly.
"Let. Go." Renegade snarled and continued to struggle.
"Stop struggling and listen." Batman ordered. Strangely, Renegade obeyed and stilled, looking down at his feet.
"What?" He said, reluctantly.
"Just stand here." Batman told him.
"Why?" Renegade question, hating how powerless he felt right now. Just like back then.
"So you can think clearly and let it all out." Batman said. Renegade's head snapped up.
"No." He snarled and thrashed with more purpose. Batman wouldn't let go.
"Let go! Let go of me!" Renegade yelled and tried to pull his wrist towards himself. e continued to yell at the man and thrash around. He even yelled please as he started getting desperate. His thoughts catching up with him now that he was thinking about it. It's all my fault! If I had just told someone I saw Zucco messing with the wires, they would still be here! We could still fly together! Still be at Haley's Circus, performing as the Flying Grayson's! Renegade struggles stilled and his face twisted in sorrow and an effort not to cry and sink to his knees.
"It's not fair!" He said and tears started to fall from his crystal blue eyes. Batman had let his wrist go and out his hands on his shoulders. Renegade shoved him away, stared at him, and then turned and walked to his room, quickly. The door closed and Richard fell on to the bed, curling up, sobbing. Several knocks came to the door with voice attached to them. First was Canray, then Artemis, Miss M, Superboy, and lastly Batman. Batman's ask of entrance was unexpected, very unexpected and he was tempted to let Artemis in.
Then came another knock with a very different voice.
"Richard? Little Bird, please, open the door." A soft voice requested. Selina?
Richard shot out of his curled position and quickly opened the door, once it was fully opened, he flung himself onto Selina and clung to her. She kindly wrapped her arms around him and hugged back.
"It's okay to cry. J and H say hi love you by the way." She said gently.
At those words, Richard allowed himself to vent the four years worth of anger and sorrow. Selina just held him, stroked his hair, and, occasionally, whispered soothing thing to him as they stood in the middle of the hallway.