"We have a crime-in-progress on Menville and Loren, suspect is armed and dangerous."

The crack of a grappling hook being fired resounded throughout the night as a caped figure swung silently overhead in the direction of the crime.

2 minutes later

Police sirens blared as the hunt was on for the suspect who broke into the jewelry shop on the corner of Menville and Loren.

The man in question was hugging the wall, trying to keep his breathing shallow.

Cop cars whizzed by the alley he was hiding in and he allowed himself to let out a sigh of relief.

"Y'know, you're a really heavy breather."

"Wha-? Agh!" The man's response was cut off by a steel-tipped boot kicking him down the alley.

Whipping out his gun, he took aim into the darkness. "Who's there?! I ain't playing games here."

A tap on his shoulder made him spin around only to be met with a sock to the jaw.

"Maybe you're not. But I am."

With a roar, the thief began to fire shots blindly. The shadowy figure bounced between the narrow walls and threw a projectile at him, knocking his weapon out of his hands.

Cradling his hand, he finally got a good look at his attacker.

"Oh, it's just you. A little far away from home, ain't you, Bird Boy?" He smirked.

Robin the Boy Wonder did not look as amused. "See, that right there gets on my nerves. Guys like you always assume that I'm any less dangerous than Batman."

The thug lunged only to be met with a knee to the gut followed by an elbow to the chest that knocked him down once more. Before the man could even sit up again, a fist between the eyes knocked him out cold.

"Well, you're wrong." The teen finished with conviction.

"JCPD! Hands up!"

By the time the officers had made it to where the jewel thief was, any sign of Robin was long gone.

Wayne Enterprises, Jump City Branch

Bat-Bunker

"Man, I need a bike." Robin sighed as he plopped into his desk chair. "Fun as it is doing parkour around the city, I'm gonna need my own set of wheels. The birdarangs worked well, though. And I've been mulling over this idea that maybe when combined, they could make a sword or something. Guess I'll put that on the list."

"Indeed, sir." Alfred Pennyworth answered on the other end of the video call. "It would appear you have settled into Jump City rather quickly."

Taking a glance around at his swaths of monitors and bulletins boards of research, the teen only answered, "You could say that."

"You do realize that this sabbatical is only temporary, yes? You are only 15. Dick Grayson is supposed to be on winter vacation in Switzerland for 2 weeks at most so do keep track of the time."

"I'm one week in and I already feel at home, Alfie. I'm glad you suggested this whole thing. I really did have to get away from him for a while."

Shuddering at the reminder of his charges' spats with each other, the butler agreed, "Quite so. But Batman and Robin are still a team."

"Speaking of teams, the old man's been in space with the League for a couple of days, right?"

"A fact I'm sure you're well aware of, considering you've been dipping quite a bit into your trust fund while he's been away. You know he'll have something to say about that."

"Doesn't he always?"

The Englishman hummed in agreement before quirking an eyebrow. "By the way, sir, about your hair…"

"The spiked look? I thought it worked for me. Wanted to try out something different."

"And the steel-tipped boots? The birdarangs?"

"They give me better tread and more power on my kicks. And the birdarangs are my own little touch."

"I see. And how goes the hunt for Deathstroke?"

"No leads so far, Alfred. But I know I can find him. All the evidence points to his base being somewhere in Jump. He always comes back to this area eventually."

"And even if you do manage to find him? What then? He is the greatest assassin on Earth. Perhaps you should inform Master Bruce of your plans?"

"No way, Alfred. You know he'd shut it down without even hearing me out."

"Perhaps, in this case, that would be to your benefit."

Rubbing his hands over his face, Robin sighed and answered benignly, "You're right. If I find anything, I'll tell him."

"Splendid, sir. I've received the schematics for your…"R-Cycle"? Its construction can be started tomorrow. Shall you require anything else?"

"No, I should be fine. Oh, before I forget, thanks for the bo-staff. I'm still getting the hang of it but it looks like a keeper."

"You're quite welcome, Master Dick. Goodnight."

"Night, Alfred."

Signing off, the teen finally peeled off his mask to reveal the blue eyes of Dick Grayson.

Leaning back in his desk chair, he looked around his "office" of sorts. The lighting was dim but the elevated pad he was on was able to sustain a computer hub that gave him locals news and crime alerts around the clock. In the far-left corner, he had a chamber for his costume along with some workout equipment. In the center was a mini-fridge and a cabinet stocked with basic items such as flashlights, batteries, and tools for any repairs he needed to make. A few feet from that lay the cot he was currently spending a few hours a night resting on. Down the platform to his right were the steps that would've housed a set of wheels if he had any but also the exit door to the elevator that led to an alleyway on the street level. He may not have any giant dinosaurs or playing cards but all in all, it suited his needs.

It was one of Batman's many spare Batcaves he had littered around not just Gotham but the country, possibly the world. His mentor had allowed him access to this one for his little "vacation".

Long story short, Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne may have looked for all the world to be the happiest an eccentric billionaire and his "ward" could be, but the Dark Knight and his Squire had major tension brimming under the surface.

The Teen Wonder felt as of late he was being babied and coddled beyond what he could stand. Despite having been Robin since he was 10 years old, Bruce still decided to hide him in bubble wrap every time a serious threat reared its head. Sure, he'd had some rough encounters before, but he'd always pulled through, right? Maybe here and there he needed Batman to save him, but he was older now. He wasn't a prepubescent squeaky-voiced kid in pixie boots anymore. He was ready for more than what he was being given.

Naturally, when he brought this up to Bruce his opinion wasn't even acknowledged assuming he'd heard him at all. Apparently, all of his feelings were foolish when compared to the almighty Batman's judgment from atop his high horse.

In attempts to prove himself, Dick had been taking more chances and going off-script one too many times for Batman's liking. Of course, his ego wouldn't let him admit that most of Robin's gambles had paid off.

Anyway, heated conversations had started to become shouting matches and Alfred had clearly seen enough. In a shocker, the butler had raised his own voice and reprimanded both of his charges. In an attempt to mollify him, Alfred had convinced Bruce to reluctantly allow him to be on his own in a city of his choosing during winter break in order to give him a reprieve and a chance to prove his skills. Bruce being Bruce made him choose a city within the United States despite Dick Grayson apparently being in Switzerland.

So Dick had chosen to go where anybody goes when they need to get away: California. But definitely not LA. Too cliché, too crowded. But the oddly named Jump City held appeal in no small part due to rumors he'd heard about the infamous Deathstroke the Terminator frequenting the vicinity.

Knowing he had a small window of time before he'd be back under Batman's watchful eye had made Robin more driven than ever. He'd been up day and night doing his best to find the assassin and bring him to justice.

If he succeeded, he'd finally prove that he could take on a big-time threat and maybe be a solo act permanently. He was already having ideas on how to make himself stand out. Jump already was scarce on superheroes and a villain populace was slowly converging on the area. The place was ripe for him to build a reputation. The fact that it was on the other side of the country from Gotham only made it seem more enticing to him.

Rising from his chair, he walked towards the bulletin board posted over his cot. In the past week, he had collected copious notes about the goings-on of the town and its underworld. In the center of it all was Deathstroke. He had to find him. Whatever it took.

And he knew he would. After all, he was trained by the best. And determined to be even better. Nobody stood a chance against him.

Although he felt too wired to sleep, he supposed there wasn't much else he could do with all his pent-up energy that couldn't wait until morning. The city had been pretty quiet tonight.

He reached down to unclip his utility belt when he heard and felt a thunderous boom that rattled his workstation.

"Something tells me that wasn't an earthquake." He muttered to himself as he slipped his mask back on and dashed for the exit.

It looked like he was going to have something to do tonight after all.

A/N: So this is it, everybody! The Prologue is officially completed! Thanks for reading and thanks to all of you who have reviewed, followed, and favorited. It's been really encouraging. I'll be taking a month or so off to write Chapter 1 but I'm excited to really get into this story and I hope you guys will stick around.