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Dick had been beaten up multiple times in his life. In juvie after his parents died, before Bruce had taken him in. At school and as Robin. He was used to it, or at least, as used to it as one could be. After you had healed from the pain and injuries, your body tended to forget about the pain you were in, especially given how much time had passed in between the injuries. It was quite clear as soon as Slade started beating him up that he knew how to cause as much pain as possible without causing any permanent damage.
That somewhat confused him. He knew what Slade wanted from him, and that if he seriously injures him, he could risk killing him. At the very least, it would take a long time to for him to recover. It made Dick wonder if he was on a timetable of some kind. Maybe he actually needed help with one of his 'contracts' and there was a deadline.
He wondered how much more damage Slade could do before he actually started breaking bones. He was sure it would only take one more punch or kick and his ribs would break. Of course, they could already be fractured at this point. With the way his head was pounding, he knew that he had a concussion, which wasn't surprising. Along with the kicks and punches to his torso, Slade punched him in the face numerous times. And because Slade had handcuffed and duct taped his hands and bound his legs with duct tape as well, Dick couldn't fight back.
"I must say, I'm impressed at how well you are handling this. Most boys your age would be crying and screaming by now." Slade commented, causing Dick to open his eyes, as much as he could anyways since his left one was swelling up a lot. He probably wouldn't be able to open it at all tomorrow.
"I'm not most boys, and I've been through way worse. Trust me." Dick responded with a grin, knowing from the taste in his mouth that there was blood on his teeth.
"I don't doubt that. You do, after all, fight against crazy villains such as the Joker and Scarecrow. You know, to fight them at your age, you might just be as crazy as those psychos are." Slade remarked, crossing his arms as a thoughtful expression came upon his face.
"Maybe, but not as crazy as you for thinking that I'm going to join you." Dick shot back, still grinning widely.
"You sure love to talk, don't you?" Slade noted, his expression turning to one of annoyance.
"Yes, yes I do." Dick confirmed smugly. "If you really want me to be your 'apprentice', you're going to have to deal with it."
"Or I can just do this." Slade argued as he walked over to the side of the room where there was a table with several tools that Dick had been avoiding looking at. The assassin grabbed something, then turned back to his prisoner.
Dick inwardly groaned when he saw the duct tape in Slade's hand. He knew where this was going. Again, being gagged wasn't something new to him due to the multiple times he had been kidnapped, but he hated it. One of the few things that made being abducted less boring was his ability to annoy, insult and tease his captors. Without that, he always felt like he was going to die just from boredom. However, knowing there wasn't anything he could do about, Dick didn't struggle as Slade ripped off a piece of the tape and stuck across his mouth with both hands.
"There we go." Slade said with a smile, patting both of Dick's cheeks condescendingly. "Though I suppose, I can't keep you gagged constantly. I could always damage your vocal cords or cut out your tongue. Or I could just beat it out of you until you learn."
Dick couldn't help but flinch at 'damage vocal cords' or 'cut out tongue'. Previous captors had threatened to do that before but he had a feeling that Slade actually would follow through on that. Thankfully though, Slade just went back to punching and kicking any part of Dick's body that he could. Dick never thought he'd be grateful for that.
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Dick wasn't exactly sure when he passed out. He didn't even realize he had until a bunch of freezing cold water dumped on him. Instinctively, he jerked back and opened his eyes. Blinking away the water on his eyelids, he saw Slade holding a wooden bucket, leaning over him. He didn't try to fight the groan that was barely audible through the gag still stuck to his mouth. Slade was smirking. That wasn't a good sign.
"Good, you're awake." Slade said as he placed the bucket down off to the side. Turning back to Dick, he ripped the tape off Dick's mouth and asked, "How are you feeling?"
"Well, I was feeling a bit thirsty, so thanks for the bucket." Dick replied back, licking the water off his lips. It was barely anything, but it was better than nothing. He hadn't had anything to eat or drink since he got here and now that he was thinking about it, he was starting to feel his stomach complain at how empty it was. It made him wonder just how much time had passed since Slade captured him. Did the Team even know he was missing? Did Bruce know?
"Still quippy I see." Slade muttered, sounding annoyed and disappointed, but not surprised.
"Gonna have to do better than that, not that you'll much time." Dick told him with a grin.
Slade looked at him with amused curiousity and said, "Oh, I won't?"
"No, because soon, my team, and probably Batman, will show up and kick your a**." Dick replied confidently. Slade frowned slightly before slapping him hard across his face.
"Language boy." The criminal chastised, then waited for the boy to look back over at him before he added, "And for your information, they won't be showing up. I have hidden us away quite well."
"Or so you think." Dick responded with a smirk, knowing the several trackers that Bruce had put on his suit.
"That's enough of that." Slade said with a shake of his head, pulling out the roll of duct tape again, placing a new piece over Dick's mouth again. "We'll have to try something else."
Before Dick could react or start to think of what Slade might do, he felt a hard pinch at his neck. He looked down, just in time to see Slade pull a now empty needle away. He tried to struggle, to get away even though it was too late, but he couldn't. His muscles went limp. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move.
Staring up at Deathstroke's bare face, Dick watched helplessly as Slade pulled something from his belt, two somethings, and stuck them into Dick's ears. Instantly, Dick's world fell completely silent. He couldn't even hear his own breathing. He tried to bend his head to his shoulder in an attempt to rub the earplugs away, but he couldn't move. Whatever it was that Slade injected had completely paralyzed him, and worse. He was starting to lose feeling in his body. He hadn't even felt Slade put the plugs into his ears. He then saw Slade pulled out a strip of cloth and started wrapping it around Dick's eyes, plunging his world into darkness.
Dick's heart immediately started pounding in his chest as he started to panic. He had never been depraved of all of his senses like this. Sure, there were times he had been blindfolded, gagged and deafened with something but very rarely would all three happen at the same time. And during those times, he still had his sense of touch. With that, he could usually figure out where he was and how many people were around him. He had trained for that. This though, he couldn't even feel the ground under him. Slade could be doing who knows what to him and he wouldn't even know. It filled his brain with multiple terrifying scenarios of what could be happening to him.
Wait, he couldn't feel the ground. Focusing on that, he realized it kind of felt like floating. Almost like flying. He knew that feeling. He loved that feeling. It was what he felt whenever he went flying with Superman. He could work with that.
Doing his best to take deep, calming breaths, he filled his mind with memories of the nights when Clark would take him flying. It had been a while since that had happened, with Dick getting older and more independent and Clark getting busier with mentoring Conner, but he could never forget that feeling. Maybe after he was rescued, he could talk Clark into taking him for a flight.
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Slade couldn't deny that he was impressed with the young boy as he sat down a few feet away from him. He knew that taking away all of the boy's senses would cause him to panic, and it did for the first few minutes, but then he suddenly started to relax. Slade had done this before to other targets and captives throughout his career, and they usually panic up until they either passed out or until the drug wore off and Slade took the blindfold and earplugs out. But the kid actually consciously managed to calm himself down. Batman had trained him well.
It made Slade want the boy has his apprentice all the more. Yet at the same time, made him wonder if it could be done. He had hoped that he could quickly and easily turn the boy to his side but it was clear that this was going to take a lot of work. However, he had no doubt it would be worth it. He just had to break him a bit, then build him back up. Hopefully without destroying what made him so special.
After an hour had passed, Slade noticed his hostage start to twitch uncomfortably. The drug was wearing off. It wasn't a pleasant experience as the human body would now be extremely sensitive after hearing, feeling and seeing nothing for so long. Slade waited another minute before he walked over and knelt down beside him. Taking care to be gentle so not overwhelm him, he reached out and pulled the earplugs he had stuffed into the boy's ears out. The boy's twitching however seemed to intensify.
"Calm down, calm down." Slade whispered as he took off the blindfold off Robin's face, allowing him to see his captor.
As he pulled off the duct tape from Dick's mouth, Dick mumbled, "Don't touch me."
"Alright." Slade agreed, pulling his hands away from his prisoner, who continued to shake as his senses came back.
Dick didn't really expect Slade to respect his wishes, but he was grateful that he did. His body was twitching and he felt itchy all over. It was like there was an army of tiny ants crawling over him. He hated it. But, as much as it sucked, he had still been through way worse.
"You're going to have to do better than that." Dick told the assassin once he felt more in control of himself.
"I can see that." Slade admitted, a thoughtful frown on his face. However, he quickly shook his head, reached for Dick's ankles and said, "For now though, come with me."
"Where are we going?" Dick wondered as Slade yanked off the duct tape off of his ankles then grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet.
"I thought you could use a break." Slade said as practically dragged him out of the large room towards a hallway. Dick somewhat tried to break free but Slade was too strong and his body was too weak. Not to mention, his hands were still bound behind his back.
When they got to the middle of the hall, Dick saw a door with a large padlock keeping it shut and locked. Slade pulled out a key, unlocked it and opened it, then pulled Dick inside. "This will be your room."
Dick took a quick glance around his apparent cell. In the opposite right corner of the room was a toilet somewhat blocked by a wall that probably only reached Dick's waist and in the left corner was an extremely thin mattress on the floor. His bed most likely. What really got his attention though was the chain bolted to where the wall and floor met near the end of the mattress. On the other end of the chain, was a single, thick manacle.
Slade suddenly yanked him forward hard and let go of his arm, then shut the door. Dick quickly lost his balance and fell. He groaned and tried to get back up but then felt a hand clamp down on his right leg and pulled him further into the room. Tilting his head to the side, he saw Slade grab the chain and drag it over him.
"Is that necessary?" Dick asked as he pushed himself up into a sitting position while Slade locked the manacle around his right ankle.
"Until you prove otherwise, yes." Slade responded, standing upright then walked over to stand behind Dick. Taking the restraints off of Dick's hands, he added, "Now don't get any funny ideas. I'll be watching."
Once his hands were free, Dick brought hands out in front of him and started rubbing his wrists. By the time he looked back over at Slade, he was standing in the open doorway, staring back at him. When their eyes met, Slade said, "If I were you, I'd get some sleep. You're going to need it for what I have planned for you tomorrow, Richard."
Dick's mouth fell open while Slade slammed the door shut and locked it. Slade knew his secret identity. Slade knew his secret identity! He must've taken his mask off when he was unconscious and figured it out. This was bad. This was very, very bad.