Ghosts of the Past
Alexnandru Van Gordon
Whoops…looks like I left BB dying for a little too long… (pokes limp green body on ground). No matter. I'm the author; I can go back in time so you can see what happens. Do I really kill BB or am I going to let him live? You'll have to read to find out…
CHAPTER ELEVEN: Places, everybody!
If you've ever been knocked unconscious in a car accident, then you'd know exactly how he felt. It was like waking up from a small coma which kept you out while in the operation room, a dull ache and sharps pain returning to your body as the numbing affect fell away. Your head felt like someone tried to tear it open with a chainsaw while the rest of your limbs felt as heavy as lead. It wasn't until you were sure you were awake that the pain and panic returned—the dynamic duo of torment.
'What on earth…' He heard nothing but himself and saw nothing but darkness…but, strangely, he could feel himself move with the aid of someone else. Not only that, but it felt as though there was more in his head than just his brain and himself. 'Blood…'
How dare he! Jaze understood that the man had powers of the mind and used them to eliminate his enemies, but when he snuck into another psychics mind and started messing around then it became damn right insulting and absolutely personal.
'Why you son-of-a—'
-BB-
Writhing in fear and the need for release, he tried to pull his arms away from his sides, taking in as much air as the bandage would allow—which was next to none once you took the time to realize it. And if he didn't suffocate firs then the ever-tightening wrapping would crush him instead, already his limbs and ribs cracking in angry protest. And so now, after facing death for one of the first few times in his oh-so-very-short life, he discovered his new-found fear of being either A0 Crushed to death; or B) Being buried alive. Give him a coffin and the latter of the two would come true.
Despite the pain and ever-growing sleepiness that could only mean he was nearing death, his keen senses were still with him. That was how he heard the muffled cry of agony before the wrapping loosened the tiniest bit. He paused in his struggles, half in disbelief and half in curiousity of who was helping him, and the wrapping loosened even more, now giving him more room to maneuver. And it only took him a spilt second to slip a hand toward his face and tear at the bandage with a claw.
The cool evening air strung his face like a winter's breeze, hitting his mouth first where the large slash was located. Thanking whatever God existed, he gulped down air like a thirsty man would water and began his struggles again, this time more of the wrapping tearing away. Once the upper half of his body was entirely fear, he snuck a glance at Blood…
The man in Jaze's body was down on his knees, both hands on the sides of his head on the temples. He cried out again and his reds eyes blazed in torment. "Stop it!" The man screamed. "I…you won't…Stop! I won't let you—"
Beast Boy honestly had no idea which man was doing the talking—that is, if Jaze was really awake again. He hoped to God he was. There was no way Beast Boy would attack the man again…not while there was still hope for their neutral friend…
"BEAST BOY!" The man—Jaze, he assumed—yelled. "Find Robin—stop him! Bruce isn't bad—he's…he's…"
"Good—I know!" He replied, panicking. Could he really just leave the man—he had to stay and do something. "But you—"
"Will be fine—GO!"
The green changeling didn't have to be told twice.
Spinning on his heel and hunching down forward, he morphed into a cheetah and tore down the street at break-neck speed. Why stop Robin? Did he really still believe Bruce was evil…Well, BB had been fooled for the longest of times and Slade said Robin already faced that theory. He also said that he laid out red herrings to screw the kid up…
What in the world was going on?
-Ra-
Traveling alone with Starfire could prove to be a tricky business, seeing that the girl seemed to never breath. Some of her run-on sentences were so long that Raven wondered how she could talk so fast without cramping her tongue. It was…if anything great, amazing.
"—how about there?"
"No…" Raven replied. It was just another plain building. "He lives farther out of city."
"Oh, that would seem to make sense since our tower is by the bay and looks over the city, so maybe he can look over the city and make sure everything is alright and then—"
"Look—" Sometimes she would just interrupt her to shut her up and let her go on a wild goose-chase to shut her up, but this time she was being serious. In the darkness of the night she could see Slade leaping from one high rooftop to another leveling at a similar, if not taller, height. It made her wonder how Robin ever kept up with the guy.
"He. Will. Pay. Dearly…" Starfire growled; eyes and hands glowing a fierce green. "We will finish him off ourselves before he can fulfill his plans—"
"No!" Raven reached out and caught her shoulder before she dove down to strangle the man. "First of all, he can't tell us his plans if he's dead. Second of all, his place is in jail—not the grave. Let him rot a way a couple of years before he's damned to hell, Starfire."
Her last sentence was a little out of her character but she couldn't help but feel her anger flare at the sight of the man. As much as she herself knew that the man deserved to die on the spot, only God had the right to take a life. His life was out of their hands…
Starfire, contemplating what she said, watched the man move further away, clenching and unclenching her fists like Robin sometimes did. Starfire didn't hate the man personally—she hated the man because her loved one suffered by his hands, and that was personal enough.
"Remember, Starfire, just hit him hard enough to knock him down…"
"I promise to try." And then she went after the man like a dart to its target.
"Star…" Raven muttered under her breath, but she followed in pursuit. There was going to be hell to pay when this was all over…
-S-
He was beginning to wonder when they'd take the bait. He purposely jumped roof just so they would notice him, and what do they do—hover in midair a little bit behind and above him to whisper about their plan of action. Did they honestly believe he didn't notice them? They should have shown him some credit…
The alien girl was the first to attack, a speed-demon soaring toward him with the flames of hell blazing in her hands. Through the corner of his eye he could see her nearing, raising his hand to his belt before she could react. Then, spinning on his heel, rammed his bo-staff side-ways hard enough to smash her pretty little skull had she been human. IT might have broken it severely, but he had no doubt she wouldn't back down so easy in the beginning. She would at least attempt to hit him once before the night was through.
Raven followed too close behind Starfire and suffered the second twirl of Slade's staff after he hit her companion. It too caught her in the face and she spun around in mid-air to take the hit. Both girls, although disorientated, backed up higher into the sky.
"That was…most painful…" The alien girl whimpered, both hands rising to her aching head.
"Really?" Slade mocked. "I would have never known…"
The girl released a deep growl before glowing once more, throwing beck her hands and then thrusting them forward to pelt him with an array of starbolts. Still fazed from his last attack, her bolts were easy enough to dodge, whacking one back at her with her staff. It caught her square in the jaw and sent her reeling back higher into the air.
"Azarath metrion zin—"
"Ah yes, the one member of the team who is forever relying on cheep magic tricks and incantations." He laughed, interrupting her. Her eyes glowed fiercely and she opened her mouth to start her mantra again. "Whatever would you do without your tongue?"
He reached to his belt once more.
"Azarath metrion zin—ACK!"
She waved her hand in front of her face, choking on the smoke from the small pellet he chucked at her face. Bending his knees, he took a strong leap into the air and bent his arms over his head, bo-staff clutched tightly in both hands. As the smoke disappeared, Raven opened her eyes—face meeting with the end of his bo-staff. A sickening staff broke the silence in the air and she fell toward the street a hundred feet below, Slade following.
"Perhaps you should have learned more than one way to fight." He called down to her unconscious body, falling with her until her reached for the grappling hook at his belt. Twisting in the air, he released his bo-staff and placed both hands on the grappling hook as it shot toward the nearest building. Bracing his legs, he hit the brick wall promptly and turned to look over his shoulder at the fallen witch. As he expected, the alien girl caught her before she reached the speeding cars, lifting her up to the safety of a nearby roof. He could tell she wanted more than anything to follow him further but he only wanted to anger her further, build up her hate so that there next encounter would be more interesting.
Climbing up the grappling hook, he was met with Robin on the roof.
"Why did you do that?"
Slade noted the hated in his voice and smiled behind his mask. Standing and retuning the grappling hook to his belt, he spun around to gaze at the nearby rooftop. You could barely see the Titans and Starfire was too busy checking over her friend to notice them, but Slade knew that if Robin called to them, he'd be heard.
"Heroes and heroines are fair play, remember?" Slade stated coolly. "As long as I hurt no civilians while hunting down your old mentor, I can fight anyone who attacks me—and you clearly saw who attacked who first."
Robin knew the truth and clenched his fists tightly, unclenching them only to repeat. "How hard did you hit her?" He finally asked. Although he was no longer with the team, the care and concern was still with his old companions. That was something Slade had to look into getting rid of.
"Only hard enough to put her out of the game." He replied truthfully. "Her powers enable her to heal rapidly. I have no doubt we'll be seeing more of her soon."
Robin hesitated, eyes on the back of the alien girl. "Let's go…I don't have much time."
"Time is only worth the price you give it. The Batman isn't leaving Gotham."
"And neither are the people who could get hurt by him." Robin added angrily. "Now, are you going to show me where he is or are you going drag this out even further?"
"Patience, Robin…he will come to you…"
-B-
Freeing himself didn't take as long as he anticipated. The man mind-controlling Jaze didn't know how to tie knots too well and Bruce found himself up on his feet in no time. Running back down to the cave, he took what weapons he would need to fight and capture Slade and anything else he might need in case he ran into anyone who believed him to be evil. There was no doubt the imposter had said something to Robin and the green changeling Beast Boy. They were all gone…and to where?
He strode up to the main computer just as he did up his belt, tracking the small locator he put into Robin's "R" emblem over his heart. Whether or not Robin knew Bruce put it there before he left Gotham the first time, he had no idea, but perhaps Robin would have the common sense to keep it on. He could be rash at times, but Robin was a natural genius.
"Come on, Richard…where are you…" He waited patiently—and then a small red dot appeared on the screen. It was faint from being so far away, but it was off in a lesser part of town that was mainly abandoned or occupied by the homeless. Why the boy was going there was beyond his understanding, but at least he'd be able to find him…
-A-
HA! So there! Shara Shima has no choice now but to update If At First You Don't Succeed. I kept my promise and now she has to keep her. That's right—I finally found one of the last chapter and I'm back on track with my Not Again Series. Now, who is going to win…Robin…or Bruce…?
Until Again,
Alexnandru Van Gordon
