Argh, I didn't get as far as I wanted, but oh well. It felt like it needed to end where it did.
WARNING: this chapter contains graphic content and disturbing imagery
Shaking violently, I tasted the bitterness of copper on my tongue. Blood, I thought distantly, blinking dust from my eyes as I regained consciousness. Piercing pain shot through my body as I looked down in shock at a wide, wickedly bent metal bar impaling my abdomen right above my left kidney. Teeth clenching, I gasped as another tsunami of pain crashed through my body, this time from just below my right shoulder blade. Grinding my teeth, I maneuvered my arms beneath me and slowly lifted myself off the concrete, barely keeping my blood from spilling out as the frigid metal slid out with a squelching sound. As it finally came out with a pop, a gush of even colder air tore through the gap, almost making me collapse again. Shaking my head, I pushed off the ground to stand, wobbling as the world spun and dots filled my vision. Still shaking, I braved a teetering step forward, nearly falling as my side and back protested. My balance wavered; something was missing, and not just part of my side. Trying to concentrate, I furrowed my brow, commanding my wings to fold. My left wing did so with ease, but my right did nothing. Confused, I reached behind me, only to find empty air. Hearts racing, I groped around where my wing should be, stopping in horror as I felt a jagged, sickly wet stub of my wing arm with barely a thread of membrane attached.
Shock, I vaguely registered. I'm going into shock. Now I could recognize the signs: cold, clammy skin, four hearts racing, dizziness, and bluish fingernails. Breathing out, I tried to take deeper breaths so I could get more oxygen to my cells, but my body rebelled, demanding that I lie down and rest. Tossing my head again, I steeled my nerves and turned my nerve receptors to maximum, the now constant pain stabbing at my mind to keep it awake. Stumbling through the wreckage of the... warehouse? Yes, I think that's it. I sent my mind out in waves, trying to ping someone's location. I wasn't entirely sure who, but I knew I had to find the man. Suddenly, I felt him. Jason? I asked. I felt a small, weak response too soft to hear, but at least I knew where he was. I picked up my pace as much as I could, accidentally scraping my hands and left wing on jagged edges of concrete and metal bars. After a few minutes of searching, I spotted his arm poking out from a hap-hazard pile of debris. Groaning with the effort, I hefted one of the larger blocks off his chest and dropped it next to me.
His eyes fluttered half-open, and he whispered, "Ph-phoenix?"
I blinked, wondering what the- oh right, me. "Yes," I whispered back. "Just hold still. He's looking for you; just hold on until he gets here." Wait, who?
He groaned, coughing up blood as I finally noticed the extent of his injuries. Compound fractures ran the length of his body, and his skull had over a dozen fractures and breaks, causing severe hemorrhaging. "J-just, tell Bruce something. Please?" Jason pleaded, sending him into a coughing/wheezing fit.
"You can tell him yourself!" I lied, hoping he would at least try to fight. He just glared at me, fear and pain clouding his eyes. I sighed, "but yes, I will tell him."
"T-tell him," Jason took a shaky breath, blood loudly gurgling in his lungs. "Tell him that I... I..." he tried to suck in more air, but his throat had closed up and there was too much blood in his lungs. I love him, Jason pushed the thought to the front of his mind, practically screaming it to me. What little air was left wooshed out of his lungs, his spirit leaving as his wounds stopped bleeding. Moments later I heard someone scrambling over the debris, calling out our names.
"OVER HERE!" I shouted, hoping it was Batman. The noises paused, and I heard him start running towards us. A couple minutes later he was by my side, staring at Jason. Bats frantically pushed aside the debris, shoving me away in his haste. I stumbled back, my over-sensitive stub of a wing felt like it had been hit head-on by another bewilderbeast. Sucking in air through clenched teeth, I watched warily as Bats cradled Jason in his arms, stroking his hair and softly crying. Wincing, I took an excruciating, wobbling step to stand beside Bats and put a hand gently on his shoulder. "I'm sorry," I said quietly. "But there's nothing you could have done."
Tensing, Bats shuddered, turning slowly to look me in the eye. "Why, why didn't you do anything," he whispered coldly. "You can heal. I've seen it before. WHY didn't you save him!" He jumped up, still holding Jason in his arms.
"I, he was too fa-"
"ENOUGH!" Bats shouted. "No more excuses. You didn't save him. You didn't save him! I don't want to see you again." He shoved me with his shoulder, causing me to almost fall again, arms flailing and wing flaring to regain my balance. My feet slipped on the blood-slick rubble; I grabbed the slab behind me, elbows buckling as I tried to stay upright. Without my right wing, it was almost impossible to be fully balanced. Glancing back, I realized that moving was aggravating it too much to heal. Still, Bruce was too unstable to stay here. Or was he too unstable for me to leave?
Dick, Dick? are you there? I connected directly to his mind.
Are you all right? What's going on? he responded.
Not really, but I need a ride, I winced as the pain in my side and back multiplied. Now.
All right, I'm on my way, Dick withdrew from my touch slightly. Taking a deep breath, I stumbled forward, leaning to my right to offset the lost weight. I reached the street a few agonizing minutes later, closing my eyes to the sudden wash of red and blue light. Cracking them open, I quickly threw a few illusions around myself before ducking behind rubble. I tried to extend my mind to the police officers, but it stubbornly remained rooted. Thaaat was never a good sign. Sighing, I instead tapped into the police radio frequency.
Detective Gordon?
"Yessss, who is this?" static followed.
This is the Phoenix, Batman's new apprentice. He's still going through the rubble, but I need to get off the scene... discretely.
"All right, what do you need?"
A black Ford Expedition will be coming to pick me up, and I need your men to spread out so they don't see me or the driver. Oh, and the Joker's still alive but severely injured; I would suggest doing something about that. A few minutes later, I heard the police dispersing just as Dick pulled up. Glancing to double-check our security, I only sensed Gordon and Dick close enough to see me. A few stumbling steps later, Dick leaped out of the car to help me in. I carefully slid into the passenger side, lowering the back of the seat so my wing and side could breathe.
Jolting forward, Dick floored the SUV, making me grip the door pocket to stay upright. This was going to be one long night.