The Value of Heroes
Chapter 35: Justice
"All men have something to hide. The brighter the picture the darker the negative."
Rupert Thorne
-Titan's Tower-
(Main Entrance)
You know the funny thing about a laser is that it isn't really hot. But when you utilize lasers for destructive purposes a magnifier inside the said weapon will use chlorine gas and mix with hydrogen peroxide resulting in a chemical reaction that creates highly energetic oxygen molecules. Pressurized nitrogen then pushes the oxygen through a fine mist of iodine, forcing the energy behind all that to take the form of intense light.
So while that little flash isn't much to make you worry on its own, it's the force behind it that can heat up a laser's target to incredible degrees in a matter of mere seconds.
Making anything organic or combustible that comes in contact with it little more than flaming pile of char and ash.
Which was why the shot shouldn't have missed.
Slade was already in point blank range and the gun would have made perfect contact with the boy's skull even if it hadn't been in the hand's of one of the world's most feared assassins.
But it never got the chance to connect.
A black shadow seeped up from the earth the moment the shot rang out swallowing the laser as all the light in the area was masked out by the physic pull of Raven's powers. Taking the shape of her signature form the massive shape of a bird encompassed the boy as Raven protected him from any of the other shots that might follow.
None did.
Because in that same instant a tan blur flew past the two as Starfire vaulted into Slade with the intensity of a freight train. Locking the villian in a bear hug the Tamarian proceeded to slam him through the foundation of the Titan's main entrance, collapsing the large doors as if they were nothing more than a house of cards.
"You have hurt my friends!" The alien snarled as she slammed her conjoined fists across the side of Slade's face with a force that would put a sledgehammer to shame. "You have endangered innocent lives!" She added bringing her knuckles down on the crown of his head.
"And you will not touch Robin again." Starfire finished her green eyes flashing as she towered over the assassin who lay buried in the falling debris.
"Woah." Raven could help but utter as she and Beast Boy watched in awe as the Tamarian all but pummeled their foe into the steel framing.
"Dude, are you okay?" The green teenager asked quickly shaking himself out his daze as he managed to pull Robin to a standing position.
A little dumbstruck Robin was silent as his former teammates lifted him up.
Tucking under the larger boy's arm the changeling at his side tried to help Robin take some weight off his injuries, gingerly avoiding the torn flesh and scalding burns that littered the teen's skin. "Can you walk?" He asked before Robin's fist connected with the side of his face, sending him reeling into the ground.
Crashing into the dirt, Beast Boy was amazed that someone that beat up could still punch that hard.
Dredging up strength from places most normal people couldn't fathom the Titan's leader was back on his feet and standing tall as if nothing had happened.
Shaking off the splattered specs of the green boy's blood from his hand Robin glared down at his friend before his lips curled into a mocking smirk.
"I never said I needed your help." Robin stated as he watched his younger teammate struggle to pick himself up off the dirt, "And I'm not on your side, remember?"
"Hey, we just saved your butt!" Beast Boy snarled as he used the back of his hand to nurse his split lip. "How about a little gratitude?"
"Thanks." Robin said with all the sarcasm he could muster."Even I didn't think you guys were this pathetic."
"Pathetic or not did you really think we were just going to stand around and watch him kill you?" Raven retorted standing defensively in between her former leader and Beast Boy as he got back on his feet.
"I could have handled it." The black haired youth answered stubbornly, sounding so much like his old self it was painful.
Eyes narrowing the dark empath forced down the urge to upper cut the former Titan as she spat, "Look we know about the ionizers, Robin. So you might as well drop the act and tell us what you're really planning."
But he wasn't listening to them at this point.
Completely ignoring the Titans, Robin leisurely walked over to the unconscious form of Slade before lightly kicking his arm.
No response.
Bending down the boy decided to get a little closer, returning the favor Slade had dealt him earlier by lifting the assassin's head up by the scruff of his mask. Not satisfied that the skull in his hands lay limp and motionless Robin decided to sucker punch the assassin a few times.
A precautionary measure if you will, one to make sure Slade was really staying down this time.
"DUDE!" Beast Boy snarled in exasperation as he watched the Boy Wonder take out his revenge on Slade's half dead body.
Sighing Robin looked over his shoulder, throwing one more punch before he was finally satisfied.
"You'll forgive me if I say no, right?" The boy replied with playful mirth, "I'm not in the same class of bad guy this piece of trash is. And the whole cat and mouse thing just doesn't quite do it for me."
"Then you're not putting us in a great position," Raven sighed as she ensnared the boy in the same wave of energy that had saved his life moments earlier. "Because like it or not, you're talking."
Wrapping her black magic around Robin's arms and torso like a straight jacket the dark empath raised him a few feet off the air, knowing that little extra leverage would make it all the more difficult to escape her grasp. And it would be hard enough to keep him tied up for long.
But unlike the first time they had fought, Robin went down a lot easier than she expected.
In the few short seconds that he had been suspended in the air, blood was already trickling down his legs and making a unsightly puddle on the ground below him. Not to mention the burns sprouting over his limbs looked bad enough to need skin grafts.
With injuries like the ones he was sporting, it was amazing the Boy Wonder even had the strength to move.
But the look in those glowing blue eyes made it obvious there was still more than enough fight left in the boy.
"Please Robin... stop this, before it is too late." Starfire pleaded as she looked up at him.
Not answering her the boy simply gave her a warm smile, taking small pleasure in watching their misery.
"Guess you're going to have to force it out of me." He said with a light challenge.
Glaring at him Raven hoped she looked a lot more fierce than she really felt as she bore down on him. The thought of what diving into his madness could do to her own powers and emotions terrified her but Robin wasn't giving them very many options. Reaching out to touch his forehead the demon girl took a deep breath and prepared herself for the worst.
Only Joey's small hand caught hers before she could go any further.
Shaking his head the boy's eyes were ugly and filled with a darkness she had never seen in him before but every inch of his body screamed with a strange sense of forcefulness.
"I'll do it." The boy's broken voice choked as he tightened his grip on her wrist and raised her hand off of Robin.
"Are you sure, Joey?" Raven asked in surprise. Normally Jericho was so passive, so gentle he almost came off as weak and that made it all the more unnerving to see such animosity radiating from the younger Titan.
In fact he seemed almost as unstable as Robin was at this point.
Without an answer Joey pushed the pale girl's hand back and rushed Robin clutching the older boy by the tattered remains of his uniform.
"Where is my little sister?" Jericho asked the monster he had helped create. "If you've hurt her I swear I'll-"
But the threat didn't go over the way he had planned.
"HAHAHAHAHA."
Interrupting Joey's valiant speech the Boy Wonder's eerie laughter rang through out the area.
"What cheesy movie did you pick up that stupid line from?" Robin asked as he squeezed his eyes shut in pure amusement, "We both know you don't have the guts to follow through with any kind of actual threat. You're too afraid of proving Slade right."
Fury radiating through the younger boy's body Jericho didn't wait for Robin to finish. Locking eye contact with the insane youth Joey's body instantly melted away into nothingness as he was sucked into Robin's subconscious.
-Robin's Mind-
Now the recesses of the mind are a strange thing. They can be a vast labyrinth or small prison depending on the circumstances and the person.
And they say the mind has a defense mechanism when it comes to physical and emotion trauma.
It let's you forget.
"So how long have you known about me?" Joey couldn't help but ask once he and the Boy Wonder were alone together in the dark precipice, far away from where the other Titans could reach them.
"About two months after you joined the team." Robin answered as he felt his friend search the icy darkness for the evil plan the Boy Wonder was keeping just out of reach. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Joey was just stalling; trying to keep his mind occupied with stupid questions so he could look for the real information without interference.
But for now Robin didn't see the harm in playing along with the boy.
"Deathstroke the Terminator didn't always used to be so obsessed with hiding his identity. He only started with the criminal genius bit after he quit the mercenary for hire business. Once I traced him back to his former alias, I got his name along with a marriage certificate and three birth records. It wasn't hard to put the rest together after that." Came Robin's explanation. "... it sort of put a face on to why the guy was so driven to always find a apprentice. He was looking for a legacy he could leave behind because in a twisted way I think all Slade wanted was to have a son again."
Ignoring that last part, Joey closed his eyes and focused on the task at hand. He couldn't think about any of that now.
"Bravo, Robin. I guess I should have expected that from the guy who trained under the World's Greatest Detective." Joey replied bitterly. "But if you knew about me... why did you still let me become a Titan? Why didn't you tell the others about my secret?"
"It wasn't my secret to tell." The Boy Wonder said simply enough. His voice getting hard Robin added, "And you're not the only person who's spent a lifetime trying to prove they're not their father."
"For what it's worth, thank you..." Jericho whispered. "But after everything that I've done to you... you're pretty crazy to still protect me like that."
"I am crazy, that's for sure." Robin chuckled nonchalantly. "So since I'm doing you that favor and keeping certain identities a secret how about you let go of me now?"
"You know I can't do that." The smaller boy said apologetically.
Unlike most of the common criminals he had possessed in the past Robin wasn't making it easy for him despite how chatty he was being.
It was obvious the teen had practice when it came to resisting forms of psychological warfare.
And even if that mental strength hadn't saved him from Slade's weapon, Robin was locking his mind up tighter than a cell block.
"You can't? Or won't?" The black haired boy wanted to clarify after a moment of silence.
Letting out a sigh Jericho telepathically responded, "If I told you both, would you believe me?"
"Probably not." The insane boy answered. "I have a feeling some of this is payback for your little sister."
"I am sorry Robin... but it is both." Joey replied.
"It's kind of hard for you to lie to me when you're inside my head, Joey." Robin chuckled. "I can tell how angry you are. And not without good reason. But you'll be happy to know I never asked the kid to do any of this, she volunteered all on her own. So you can chalk it up to bad upbringing."
"Or bad taste in first crushes." Joey shot back in annoyance before he corrected his friend, "I'm really not mad at you though, Robin. Even if I wanted to be... I'm the one that did this to you. I have no one to blame but myself. Which is exactly why I'm going to stop you."
"Pretty ambitious, Joe." The Boy Wonder applauded, "Considering the time crunch you're looking at. I think you guys may have forgotten that I still have three laser cannons programmed to blast open the tower's central foundation in less than two minutes. So you might have me right where you want me, but in five minutes it still won't make any of you any less dead."
… … … …
-Titan's Tower-
"Jo-Jo?" Beast Boy asked as he noticed a slight twitch in Robin's hand. "You in there?" Gently thumping the black haired boy's skull he murmured, "HELLOOOO. You're kinda scaring us here."
Black pitch washing out the normal scelera of a human eye, Robin's unholy blue pupils morphed and shifted until they turned into Joey's green. Weakly raising his head Joey bit back the pain that came with Robin's burns and secretly wondered how the Titan's leader had acted so nonchalantly about being as injured as he was.
"This was a lot harder than I thought it would be," Joey whimpered through Robin's mouth as he shakily took control of his motor skills, "But I think I've found the locations of the other targets." Forcing a temporary strangle hold on Robin's mind Jericho turned to his team-mates and exclaimed, "I can't stay in here for much longer but I'm pretty sure Robin's not targeting Gotham, Jump City or Metropolis. From what I can piece out from his memories he's going to hit the two largest criminal holding facilities on the continent."
"Meaning what exactly?" Beast Boy asked.
Fear welling in the boy's throat Jericho stammered, "It means Robin's real targets are Arkham Asylum and Belle Reve Sanitarium."
"Belle Reve?" Starfire repeated not at all familiar with the term.
"It's a medical compound where more than half of the Justice League's villains wind up." Raven answered for her. "Think of it as a mad house for people with superpowers. And it's filled to the brim with some of the most dangerous people on the planet."
Swallowing the lump in his throat Beast Boy immediately chimed in, "No joke! Every super hero in the business has at least one or two arch-nemeses locked away in Belle Reve! And I don't think any of us need to get started on the wackos they have up in Arkham." Putting a hand on his head in exasperation the boy murmured, "So that means Robin's not really trying to destroy half the coastline. He's getting rid of every costumed bad guy in a 3000 mile radius!"
"Then we may also assume that he is saving the last missile for Slade." Starfire finished quietly.
"Yeah," Jericho agreed. "Robin planned this whole attack on Titan's Tower to make sure he had Slade right where he wanted him when the bombs went off. By injecting us with the temporary antidote he was giving us just enough time to get off the island before we were overwhelmed with nanobots ourselves. According to what I've seen in Robin's head the stuff in that shot isn't perfect, and it will only protect us from the disease for a certain amount of time."
"So..." Beast Boy drawled, "It didn't matter if he had to tear this place to the ground, Robin was going to make sure Slade never bothered anyone ever again. Even if it meant smashing our home apart to do it."
Moving to towards Robin's possessed body Starfire forced back the urge to grab him by the shoulders and shake him until he relinquished a confession. "But why?" She asked, "He told Slade that he was going to get rid of all of humanity. I do not understand the need for such lies."
"It doesn't matter why, we still have to stop him." Raven retorted, "Even if they are criminals we have no right to make choices over who gets to live and who gets to die. We need to get Batman on the communicator, with Kid Flash out of commission and Cyborg still in the tower there's no way we can stop all three missiles at once. This isn't how justice is supposed to work."
"That's the point, Raven." Robin's voice said from next to her. Looking back at the boy those soulless blue eyes had retaken their rightful place in the Boy Wonder's face. "Justice is a crock. That's why I'm getting rid of it."
Jericho's astral body all but erupted out of the older Titan an instant later; as even Joey didn't dare hold on to him for a second longer. Covered in sweat and panting as he reemerged onto the physical plane the blond physic was exhausted as it took every ounce of stamina he had just to crawl to a sitting position.
"What are you saying, Robin?" Raven asked coldly.
"I'm getting rid of justice." Robin repeated, "Just not in the way you might think. You see I've come to realize lately that evil only exists because people let it. How's that old saying go? 'The evil that men do lives on, though the good is oft interred with their bones.'" Dead, vacant eyes staring at his friends the boy reasoned, "I don't understand the rules anymore... all those reasons we spent fighting for this cause... I've tried so hard to remember the 'why' but I just can't. But I do remember the pain that went with all that. I remember spending half my life watching psychopaths like the Joker kill hundreds maybe even thousands of people. I've watched mothers bury children, families torn apart by the everyday antics of deranged psychotics. And every time people like that are brought to 'justice' I've watched them stand before a grand jury and the only thing the system ever does is slap them with some bogus insanity plea and cart them away to places like Arkham for 'rehabilitation'. Until the next time they break out and go on more killing rampages, so they can leave more broken lives in the dirt. That's what justice really is, guys. It's a vicious cycle of cops and robbers that never solves anything. Because the system that all these heroes buy into... doesn't work."
Letting out a weak laugh the Boy Wonder fought with the humor of the situation, "Don't you see? I finally get it now. I finally see how selfish Batman's oath not to kill really is. If he had just buried scum like the Joker from the start, all those murders might have been prevented. So what if he ends up corrupting his own morality! Isn't just one human life worth more to this world than the ego of a superhero?"
In between bouts of laughter, Robin lowered his head and just like that the joke was over. His voice as frigid as his eyes Robin muttered, "And that's why that kind of hypocrisy doesn't save anyone. Heroes who won't stop evil at it's source are just posers wearing kevlar. So I'm going to do what the Justice League and Batman were too cowardly to do from the start. And if it means I can end all this here and now, than I'd rather wind up being a villain. I'll kill thousands and still wind up doing what they never could: I'll save the world. Even if I go down as just another criminal, at least what I stand for is something more than a lie."
Meanwhile...
-Jump City-
(Airspace)
"Titan's Island. How far is it from the factory you mentioned earlier, Quinn?" Batman asked as they began to approach the southern coastline.
"About twenty miles that way," The harlequin said pointing out the window. "Why?"
"Because this is where we're parting ways." The Caped Crusader replied as he set the Batwing on auto-pilot and began to secure the metal fastenings of his jet pack onto his shoulders.
"What do you mean this is where we 'part ways'?" Harley exclaimed nearly barreling out of her seat when she realized he was leaving.
"You two find the super computer," Batman ordered, "I'm going after Slade and Robin. I've set the coordinates to land just off site of the slums you mentioned earlier." Turning to Kid Flash with a pencil thin smile the Dark Knight asked, "Think you can get back on the ground safely?"
"I'm sorry...?" Kid Flash stammered as the sudden realization of what Batman was asking him finally kicked in, "I'm not sure if the hospital drugs are making me hallucinate or if I really did die in that accident back there. D... did you just say I could fly the Batwing?"
Moving to the control panel to lift release the sliding panel on the roof's top the Dark Knight made his exit. Turning back to the boy right as he took to the night sky Batman stated, "Radio me when you make contact with the mainframe. I've set all the system's long range kilohertz to the Titan's communicator frequency. And once you disable the system, get out. There's no doubt that Slade and Joker installed security measures that will try to prevent you from leaving."
"Y-you, you're kidding right?" The girl in the passenger's seat all but cried out as the Grim Avenger made his descent into the black darkness, "I can't even set the timer on my VCR, how the heck am I supposed to hack into that super doohickey?"
"Relax, candy legs." Kid Flash grinned as he climbed into the driver's seat, "I've got a enough science no how for the both of us. And if there's anyone who can bust into Robin's passwords other than the Big B over there, well you're looking at the guy."
"Oy vey," Harley sighed clawing at her face, "I can't believe Bat's is trusting the fate of world to a half naked cripple who can't even brake right. And people say Mistah J's crazy..."
"Hey!" Wally snapped, "I heard that." Pointing a finger at the clown he had no tolerance for her sass, "But I am not letting you ruin this for me, do you hear me missy?"
Coddling the steering wheel as though it were a beautiful woman Kid Flash had stars in his eyes as he took over the controls, "This is one of the single greatest moments of my life. I always promised myself that if this day ever came that I wouldn't cry." Burying his head in his elbow he choked, "So I'm not gonna to cry..."
"Yeesh, kid." The hench-wench at his side muttered, "I gotta tell ya with you in charge a one way ticket back to Arkham's sure starting to look good right about now."
To be continued...