Again

Alexnandru Van Gordon

Hello, people, and boy am I in pain. I have a chest cold but it feels like I'm being crushed and my knee is killing me. I've been asleep for quite a while, so if my updates are slightly late, you at least now know why. Oh well, without further ado—the story!

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing besides the plot and my character, Jaze.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Plans

He could barely move by time he woke, but at least he wasn't in the main room anymore where Slade had beaten him to unconsciousness. His left wrist was killing him from when he did a backward hand spring and was brutally grounded when Slade kicked his arm out from under him. That led to landing awkwardly on his wrist and when he stood he couldn't block his left side with that hand. It only got worse from then on out and all he could do was try to stay up while Slade lectured him.

"The world is an unfair place, Robin. You can either stand beside me and become the best or fall like the others. Do you want to be dead, or do you want to be great?"

If he answered in truth that would only led to a worse beating, but if he remained quiet it would turn out the same. Giving Slade the answer he wanted was far from what Robin did so…

"I'd rather die."

A sharp kick to the ribs and he went flying. Slade kicking Robin must have been like a pro soccer player kicking a soccer ball. Robin's impact with the wall was an agonizing one and the fall to the ground was just about as worse, something that almost knocked him out. He slowly began to black out and that was when Slade lifted him up and took him somewhere…which ended up being the lab.

Doctor J. Manning, a young man who had been fresh out of university when he came across Slade. He wasn't the only one to either—a few other, older scientists were taken by Slade and locked away to work on a machine which enhanced the powers of the human mind. John Manning had been the first test subject and it worked—to a degree. He was…slightly insane, but the chip Slade had implanted on the back of his head kept him under complete control by the tyrant. So far, John stuck to his own inventions and fixing up any human being that got banged up, usually Robin or prisoners Slade still needed alive. Letting him work on the bigger projects could lead to trouble on Slade's behalf.

"And so—he lives!"

Robin had to smile, happy to hear the doctor rather than Slade. He was laying back-down on an operation table. His left wrist was wrapped up and so was his chest, his shirt half to his suit lying on a chair beside him. John stood over him to block the bright light blinding him, a grin noticeable on his face along with a tinge of mischief in his eyes. Something was up—something was always up with the doctor.

"Hello, kiddo. I was worried I'd have to call the Morgue up on you for this one. You were bleeding all over on the left side of your chest when Slade brought you in. You're lucky he didn't throw you down."

Actually, he would have much preferred that. Maybe he would have died then…

"Am I going to live?"

"Yep."

A groan.

"Oh—I know you, kid." John said with a sarcastic roll of his eyes. He was in his speech mood again—and usually what he said gave Robin new hope each time. "You remain undaunted by this perilous—and not so perilous—struggle through captivity toward a dwindling light. You are in no danger for you life, seeing that Slade wants you alive, but your soul would beg to differ—along with your sanity, mind you. You can breath, you can move, you can think—but what good is any of that if you can't speak. I know you want to defy Slade—just speak out already!"

"I did…" He muttered, sitting up with a hard time. "This is how I ended up."

Slade wasn't going to let him go—he didn't want, or have a reason, to let Robin free. All he saw was someone he could manipulate and use to his advantage—that was the way Slade was with everyone. He didn't really care, and all he wanted was control. If there was anything Robin hated more than calling Slade "sir" or "master"—it was "father". And Slade was sometimes so cruel as to keep beating him in one of their arguments until Robin apologized to him using that title. It was a bitter word on his tongue and he hated it—hated it with everything he had.

"I didn't hear you, Robin…"

"I'm sorry…father…"

He shivered now from the memory and John knew exactly what he was thinking—he could read minds. It was annoying, but this way they could talk and conspire against Slade without the man hearing them. They'd both get it good if Slade ever found out what they were up to…

'How is it?' Robin asked in a thought and John turned away to make it look like he was working on something.

'Almost finished.'

'How much longer?'

'…Well…I already tested it.'

'And?'

'I need to work out a few more bugs, but give me a day or two and then I'll let you try it. Just wait until Slade gets a load out of this.'

'Not this Slade—the other one—the one that cause all this trouble…'

Quite simply, Robin was going back in time to stop Slade and Wintergreen from capturing his younger self. He was going to find Batman and that boy, tell them everything he knew, and then let it all fall into place…What worried him was the fact that he didn't know what would happen if he changed time. For the most part, he knew the slightest detail could change everything, but even John was with him in this. If Robin stopped himself from being captured, chances are Slade would be in prison while John went on with his life too.

He wanted to save his parents…but something told him not to.

"I think I'm going to go now." He sighed as he jumped down from the table gently and made his way around the machinery toward the door. "Goodnight, Dr. Manning."

"Goodnight, Robin."

It reminded him of when his parents put him to the circus. But that was the past—a past of the circus and happier times…a past he would give almost anything to have returned to him…

-S-

Something was up…He hated the feeling when he knew something was wrong but not quite what…

He stopped the video tape and rewound it for a short while, replaying it once Robin sat up. There was a long pause between his son and the doctor—something that happened one each footage of tape he recorded from them. They were talking through thoughts thanks to John's powers, but even Slade failed to discover a way to sneak into the doctor's mind and find out what.

They were planning against him—that much was for sure. But how were they going to do it?

Robin got up and left the room, heading down at a slow pace toward his room. John continued to work on a laser gun of sorts, nothing else interesting happening. Slade would have to look at all the doctor had in his lab if he wanted to find out what was going on…and he would stop whatever they were up to…

Slade watched his apprentice on the screen as he reached his room and walked inside tiredly. Lying down, he fell asleep quickly and would probably stay that way until the morning. Beating him was one of the few ways to get him to sleep. On other nights he would visit the doctor against Slade's orders or pace around his room.

"Perhaps I will talk to him tomorrow for you, sir." Wintergreen suggested from behind him. Robin, although he hated Wintergreen to a degree as well, was more willing to talk to the man than he was to Slade. "I doubt he is up for a chat with you after your most recent…argument."

"Good…And tell him he better be careful with what he does…"

Slade turned around sharply and headed toward a table in the far corner of the room. On it was an array of his own inventions, usually weapons of sorts that preformed better than many the army supplied to its soldiers. On it, however, was something either than a weapon. It, like the invention that gave John his powers, dealt with the mind.

But this one erased memories.

Or…was going to when Slade was finished with it. Just a day or so more and then he could use it on Robin…

Just a while longer and then the rest of Robin would be under his thumb. He never actually expected such a small child to put up a fight this long, but, then again, Robin was an amazing child. That was why he was with Slade…

And that was why he was going to stay with him.

"He will try to escape when he finds out." Wintergreen said aloud, practically reading Slade's mind. He agreed with his intentions, but he worried too much. "You know he'll do anything that he can to escape."

"And he will fail like he always has. Besides…" He turned around and eyed the screen showing his apprentice one last time before it shut off to give him some privacy. "Nobody knows about this besides the two of us. He won't know until it's being done to him."

Wintergreen answered with silence and that meant he was at rest with the answer. As long as Robin didn't know…Unless…unless he was already planning a second escape…

This was too awkward for Slade's liking, and that was why he was going to bring it to an abrupt halt…

Now.

-A-

Alex: ACK! Shortness! I'm back to my bad habit! Someone hit me!

Smack!

Alex: Ow…what was that for?

Victor: You asked me to do it.

Alex: And what are you doing here? I thought you had to baby-sit your younger brother?

Victor: I brought him here because he and your little sister wanted to play games on the TV.

Alex: Jeez—I feel like I live with the Braidy Bunch…or whatever their called…

Victor: Guess so…

Until Again,

Alexnandru Van Gordon

And,

Victor Van Heiring