Renegade clutched the straps of the duffle bag that sat on his lap, staring out the window of the helicopter, watching the light reflect off the vast blue ocean below them. It has been over an hour since Renegade had left the compound and onto his next assignment.
Most people would let their minds wander and daydream away the boredom. Renegade couldn't without losing his focus.
The last time he'd lost focus, he'd nearly lost his head. His idiocy had cost him the mission. Deathstroke is not forgiving for any of his mistakes. The punishment he'd received that day was one of the worst he's ever experienced. So horrible that over a decade later, Richard still has the red, angry scars that refused to fade or change their color. A lesson that he will not soon forget.
The radio crackled over the headsets the crew wore. The pilot spoke into his headset, gaining Renegade's attention. Renegade glanced over, out the front windshield, and watched a speck in the distance grow in size. The image became clear the closer the helicopter got.
Infinity Island.
A giant structure that looked to be an ancient castle sat beside the helicopter pad. Headquarters of the League of Assassins. And his new home. Great. Note the sarcasm.
The plane shook as it descended from the sky, landing on the ground. Three men stood on the edge of the landing pad waiting. Renegade recognized two of the men immediately.
The unmistakable figure of Ra's al Ghul stood in between the two other men watching the plane with mild annoyance. To his left stood Ubu. Ra's head henchman and bodyguard.
On the other side stood a man Richard didn't recognize. He wore a red hooded sleeveless jacket that reached his knees with a katana strapped to his back. The black sleeves and pants showed from underneath the hood with armor along his forearms ending in matching red gloves. His mask was similar to Renegades.
Renegade slid open the door, grabbing his bag, exiting the helicopter. He walked up to the trio stopping a few feet away. Renegade bowed slightly in respect, greeting them.
Renegade straightened his back looking at them. Up close, he could see pale skin and dark hair like his own peeking out from below the man's hood. His attention went towards Ra's al Ghul as he stepped forward.
"Welcome to Infinity Island, Renegade. I believe you have been informed of the situation," Ra's al Ghul said. He nodded. Ra's eyebrow raised a centimeter at his silence before returning to its original position.
"During your stay, your job will be to train our next generation of assassins."
Shock and fear engulfed Renegade. How is he supposed to teach a class for the League of Assassins while investigating the attempted assassination without being assassinated himself. Renegade has seen the bodies of many elite fighters shredded after failing to meet the expectations of the League and killed by Ra's al Ghul men or Ra's al Ghul himself. This isn't a job to take lightly if you want to leave with your head attached. Renegade kept his emotions and thoughts hidden, his face stoic as he processed the news.
Ra's gestured to the man in red beside him. "This is Red Hood. He will be supervising the training sessions. There will be an evaluation at the end of each month to assess the recruit's progress. If you have questions, he will help you." Ra's turned to Red Hood.
"Red Hood, show our guest his quarters." Ra's left with Ubu in tow. Renegade watched them disappear into the building before looking at Red Hood.
"Your room is this way."
Red Hood walked away without even looking back to see if Renegade was following him. He held open the door that Ra's and Ubu had disappeared through, entering the building. Renegade close behind him, the door shutting with a thud behind them. There was no turning back now.
Renegade took in everything he saw, counting every turn, which direction they went, remembering when he saw a random vase or plant marking its location as he passed it. Creating a map inside his mind helped him learn the direction in a new place. In a place as big as this one, he was going to need all the help he could get.
The sound of fighting and the clash of metal got Renegade's attention. His eyes widened slightly at what he saw.
A boy, maybe eight or nine years old, was sparring against two fully grown assassins and was winning. Renegade watched as the assassins advanced on the kid, their swords raised in preparation to attack. The kid kicked one of the assassin's legs out from under him, blocking the attack from the other. The kid swung his sword with precision cutting the backs of one of the fighter's legs and arms. All flesh wounds and all effective in their execution. The kid is good, I'll give him that.
He watched as the kid slipped up, leaving his side open for an attack. A mistake that he wasn't the only one to catch. The second assassin moved to attack. Renegade held his breath, quietly releasing it as the kid turned, blocking the attack with his sword. The kid quickly recovered, pushing the fighter away from him.
One of the fighters paused, glancing up at where Renegade stood on one of the upper levels. Big Mistake, he thought, watching as the kid took advantage of the distraction, landing a swift kick to his opponent's chest, knocking him flat onto the ground. The kid lifted his sword, pointing it at the person's neck. He spoke in a language that Richard didn't recognize, it was probably the secret language of the assassins he'd heard about. The kid paused before looking straight at Renegade.
Time stood still as the pair stared the other down. Neither moving to look away.
"Hey." Renegade glanced away, unaware that he had stopped walking. He looked up seeing Red Hood staring at him, or what he thought the man was doing behind the mask. He had his arms crossed against his chest as he waited for Renegade to pay attention. Renegade watched his head turn to see what he had been staring at. Renegade followed his gaze.
"That's the arena. It's used mostly for sparing and combat. I'll show you where the training grounds are later. That is where you will be teaching the rookies." Renegade opened his mouth to ask him a question but quickly shut it. Deathstroke didn't like it when Richard had asked him questions about random topics, he always said that they were unnecessary and irrelevant to what Renegade should be focusing on.
Red Hood walked away with Renegade following him. He glanced back one last time, the kid watching him, before moving down the walkway.
Red Hood motioned for Renegade to enter first. Renegade walked into the room. The room was slightly different from his room at the compound. The only difference is the small window on the far wall.
"Class begins at Dawn. Dinner is in an hour." Renegade heard, turning around to find an empty doorway.
He listened to the silent footsteps leaving the hallway. Shutting the door, he checked every crevice and nook and cranny for any cameras or listening devices. He didn't find any.
He nodded to himself absentmindedly, sitting his bag down by his feet. He let his body relax a fraction, sighing in relief. He had been tense since the meeting with Deathstroke. He would be away for a while, but he was still on a mission so he couldn't fully relax.
Renegade glanced around the room unsure of what to do. Figuring out what I am supposed to teach tomorrow would help if I knew anything about teaching. Richard sat down on the small bed, wincing as it jarred his back. He sighed, tapping his fingers on the blanket that covered the bed.
Ra's al Ghul couldn't have given him an easier job to do or maybe one that didn't take up as much of his time. Unless Ra's suspects that it was one of the recruits that leaked the information, but if it is one of the recruits, then there has to be a bigger player who is giving the orders. Something this sophisticated couldn't be achieved by a low-level pawn.
Richard sat in his room listening to the chatter on the other side of the door as dinner time rolled around. He stayed seated, going over his plan in his mind. Watching the shadows pass under the door gave him time to think about a contingency plan should it fail. The nervousness of his new job left Richards's stomach queasy. Deciding to skip dinner was probably for the best.
Richard was brought out of his thoughts as one particular shadow stayed in front of his door. He waited to see what the person would do, after a moment, the shadow moved in the opposite direction the chatter was in.
He stayed in his room until the night fell, feeling exhaustion weigh him down. He straightened when he felt his assassin sense emerge. He glanced at the bottom of the door seeing no shadows or hearing any noise, he turned to the window peering out of it into the darkness that had enveloped the island. He scanned the forest for any sign of a threat and found none as the feeling felt. Whoever it was is gone now, but something was telling him he was being watched. He pulled the curtain over the window shut, not that it would do much good.
He quickly changed into a t-shirt and pants, grabbing his gun from his duffle bag just in case. He hid it under his pillow then laid down on the bed. He listened to the stillness of the surrounding world, falling asleep within minutes.
Hope everyone like the chapter. Please comment and like!!!