"Hello, I'm Brian Peterson, with this news update. Officials are still
investigating the bizarre occurrence at the 2001 New Years Celebration,
which almost ended in disaster.
"International criminal and known psychopath, The Joker, apparently had laced Lex Tower with explosives in an grand scheme to drive the citizens insane. This plot was, however, thwarted by the efforts of the teen sensation known as Young Justice in a fiery conclusion. The final body count at the end of it all reached the double digits, including LexCorp head C.E.O. Talia Head and The Joker himself, who was found impaled upon an arrow. What is most shocking was the discovery of the body of Timothy Drake, son of wealthy industrialist Robert Drake. Officials believe that young Drake was kidnapped by The Joker, but reasons why remain sketchy at best. His funeral will be held later this week."
******************
The days never lasted long enough. Night always seemed to come too fast, too often. A lone figure galloped over the roof's edge, a silent sentinel of the night. Somewhere a crime was being committed. Somewhere an innocent was being hurt.
He saw someone close to him buried today. He saw someone he thought would be with him the long haul cut down in his prime. He tried not to think of it, to let his mind wander elsewhere, but it always came back to that same thought. To his smile. To his energy. To his optimism. No matter how bad things got, he always thought things would turn out better in the end. So much potential. So much gift.
He perched himself on top of a stone gargoyle, a mythical creature whose sole purpose was to frighten away the evil spirits. The irony was not lost.
*Goodbye, Tim,* he thought to himself, as he gazed at the moonlit sky.
He cast a line out, embracing the sea of air that cried out for his justice.
He only hoped Batman was alright.
***************
She sat there, curled up in a ball on her bed, anxiety coursing through her bloodstream. Anita Fite had always thought that super heroes were immortal, that they were above death, above such concepts as mortality. Superman died, but came back once. To a hero, death was supposed to be nothing more than a trivial obstacle to be torn through.
But Robin died. He sacrificed himself to save them, to save everyone. She wondered if, when the time came, she could make such a sacrifice. That, when the lives of everyone she knew were in jeopardy, she would make that final decision to give her life for theirs. Deep down inside she wished she could answer with a yes. Deep down inside, however, she knew better.
She heard a door close downstairs. Her hair stood on ends. She thought about Tim, about his family, about how they would never know the sacrifices he made, the challenges he had to face.
She stood up from her bed and, grabbing her costume, made her way downstairs.
"Hey dad," she said, holding her costume behind her back.
"Hey honey," he said. "How are you holding up?"
"I could be better," she said. They exchanged glances.
"What is it honey? You look like you have something on your mind."
She sighed. "Dad, I need to tell you something....."
************
Superboy hovered above the skyline of Metropolis, his arms folded, his mind deep in thought as he gazed at the construction crew repairing the damage done by their attempts to save the day. Had they saved the day, though? What had they accomplished? Rob....Tim....was dead. The tower was all but destroyed. Some people, specifically in the media and the government, were starting to point fingers in their directions.
Why couldn't life be fair? Why couldn't life be normal? Why couldn't Tim be alive? And why did it feel like he failed him?
"I figured you'd be here," a friendly voice said. Superboy looked back to see a familiar face, clad in red, blue, and gold.
"Hey Clark," Superboy said. "How was your vacation?" Despite his `boy scout' nature, Superman knew a diss when he heard one.
"Look, Kon, if I had known..."
"I understand, I'm sorry. It's just...."
"There's no need to apologize," he said. "I understand how you feel. I felt the same way when Hal died, and when Oliver died."
"But...he was my friend," Superboy said. "He was my friend, and I was there when he died. I was there when they lowered his casket. Did you know it was closed casket? They didn't want anyone to see him..."
"I know," he said, understanding. "I know."
Rage boiled inside his heart, flowing over, searing his soul. But he remained composed, strong.
"He didn't have to die. I could have saved him. If only I was more like you..."
"You did everything you could. Robin knew the risks. He did what he thought was right."
"But if he had waited, we could have blasted the ball, stopped him, we..." His grief overwhelmed him, but he remained strong, like a pillar of marble.
"Look, I know it's hard. And it's not going to get any easier." He turned his attention elsewhere, something in the distance.
"Go," Superboy said. "The city needs you."
"You going to be alright?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I just need to be by myself a little more. Y'know...to think."
"You know where to find me if you ever want to talk," he said. "Just...take care of yourself." And, in a rush of wind and motion, he was gone, leaving Superboy the way he thought he wanted to be; with his thoughts.
He sure missed Robin......
*****************
Happy Harbor. This was where it all started, where it all happened. Secret floated around the corridors of their old headquarters, her smokey tendrils caressing each stone wall, her mind reaching back to that happier time in their lives. Emotions flowed through her as she tried to gain some grasp over the events of recent.
She came to the pool, where they had all been playing so long ago. It was empty now, drained of its water. Her mind reached back, grasping for happier times. The camp-out. Swimming. When Robin first took off his mask.
*You have beautiful eyes.* She had told him that day. She had waited for him to respond in kind, but no response came. Why did he always have to be polite like that?
She flew wildly about, grief controlling her every motion. She tried to close her eyes, but all she could see was his face, beaten and burned, and his eyes, his perfect, blue eyes, gazing into hers.
*You have the most beautiful eyes.* He had told her with his final breath. She began to weep uncontrollably, her wails echoing through the empty hallways. She tried to get him out of her mind, to think about something else, to go back to that happier time, before The Abyss. Before all this. But all she could see was him, his smile, his face, his eyes, those beautiful eyes.
She found herself in the old command room, the table still destroyed, the computer still trashed, the place still in shambles. She dropped to her knees, her mists billowing out as she fell to the ground. Her tears dropped like rain to the floor, absorbed by the layers of dust that had formed from their absence. She gripped her hands to her face, sobbing.
*I'll always be there for you.* His voice echoed in her mind like a song, so wonderful. What she wouldn't give to hear that song again. If only to hear it once.
She knew what she had to do. She felt herself turning inward, whirl pooling into herself, pulling herself into herself, slowly, until she disappeared in a puff.
Returning to the Abyss from whence she was spawned.
**************************
"How are you holding up Ciss?" Cassie said, entering the room of her friend. Cassie was sitting on her bed, her eyes fixated on nothing in particular.
"Fine, considering the fact that I killed somebody," she said. Cassie sat down next to her friend, attempting to comfort her.
"He deserved it," she said. "After what he did, the last thing this world needed was for him to be alive. You did what you had to do."
"No, I didn't." She reached down and picked up a stray arrow that was laying on the floor. "When I go to sleep at night, all I can see is my arrow, stuck through his back, his body sliding down its shaft, his blood seeping everywhere. And you know what's worse?" She paused a second.
"I enjoyed it."
She stood up, placing the arrow on her night stand, and began to walk out, when Cassie noticed something shiny on the table. It was a neatly wrapped gift.
"Hey, what's this?" Cassie asked, picking it up. Cissie calmly took it from her hand.
"It's the present I got for Robin, before...." They sat back down, Cassie taking the gift from her hand. She looked over at her forlorn friend, asking the question with her eyes. She nodded. Slowly she dug her finger nails into its ornate paper, slipping its ribbon off, as she unwrapped the Christmas gift meant for their leader.
The Complete Collection of Sherlock Holmes
She opened the first page. On the inside of the cover was something written in ink. Both ladies read the text to themselves.
`To Rob,
Even the World's Greatest Detective has his superior. Figured you'd want someone else to look up to.
Thanks for always understanding, when no one else would.
Cissie,
Olympic Gold Medalist'
Cissie reached her hand over and closed the book. The two friends looked at each other, tears in each others eyes, tears swelling, the sorrow of their loss too much for each one of them to bear by themselves.
So they clung to each other, bearing the burden together.
****************************
In the void of space, the intergalactic terror of Lobo rode on his hog, hopping from planet to planet in search of adventure. A lone wolf, with connections to no one. He just saw someone who wouldn't last two seconds against him blown to pieces. But it was all just another day in his life, one less person to kill. Besides, life was too short (or, in his case, too long) to worry about something small like someone dying. The universe was a big place, and somewhere, out there, someone needed fragging.
******************************
Batman gazed at the case, unsure of where things went wrong, why all his partners were cut down in such a brutal way. He looked at the costume of the first one who fell to Joker's madness. At that time he had Superman to keep him from taking justice into his own hands. He looked over to the costume that stood next to Jason's. Tim's costume. He adjusted the focus of his eyes, looking at his reflection in the glass. Had his quest been so consuming that no one could escape it? Was his goal so grand that it had to be paid for with other people's lives?
"Batman?" a voice said from behind him. He adjusted his focus to see the reflection of the person behind him.
"Get out of my cave, Bart Allen."
The Lad of Lightning stepped forward, walking up to Batman. He looked into the case, glancing back and forth at both costumes.
"I'm sorry about this Batman," another voice said. Walking out from the shadows was Impulse's mentor, Max Mercury. "He insisted on coming."
"Then he can insist on leaving," Batman said. "I'm not in the mood." "Mr. Batman," Impulse said politely. "Robin...Tim...was my friend. He...he was the only one that put up with me, understood me. And well..." he paused, thinking of the right thing to say. "And I want to make him proud of me. I want to be better. I...I want you to train me."
Batman kept his gaze forward, not bothering to look at the two of them face to face. He thought about Tim, coming up to him and Dick, just waltzing into their world, asking them to train him. And where had that gotten him?
"Never again," he said, walking past the two speedsters, leaving them in the darkness of the cave.
Impulse gazed into the case, at Tim's costume. Max came up behind him, putting his arms on his shoulders.
"I just want to make you proud Rob," he said. He turned to Max, who took him in his arms, hugging him tightly. "Just want to make him proud."
"I know Bart. I know."
********************
Snowflakes fluttered gently to the ground, covering the grass in a soft white blanket. The young girl, hair black as charcoal, walked through the fields of snow, her footsteps muffled by the frozen cushions. The cold January nipped at her face, turning her cherub cheeks a rosy red. She held in her hand a dozen red roses, which she cradled delicately in her arms.
She approached a solemn grave, gently dropping to one knee, and set the flowers down at its base. A teardrop froze to her face, which she whipped away with a gloved hand. Looking down, she read what was engraved on its face.
`Timothy Alvin Drake Taken before his time.'
Her father stood behind her, his cape billowing in the bitter winds. The snow began to fall faster, as the two payed their respects to the dead.
"It's time to go Traya," Red Tornado said. Traya looked back at her father, snowflakes falling around her as she stood up. She kissed her fingertips, and touched the top of the gravestone.
"Goodbye Robin," she said. With that, the pair walked away, leaving Robin to rest in peace.
******************
Where am I? What is this place? It's so warm, so beautiful. What's that? A light, so white. Must go to it.
Wait, I hear something. Secret? What are you doing here? You're not dead. Oh, wait, I guess you are. Sorry. Steph? Is that you? Mom? Jason? What a beautiful light. So white. But what about Young Justice? What about Bruce? What about....?
The light. So wonderful, so warm. I've never seen anything like it. It's so peaceful here. So relaxing.
Finally. Peace.....
The End
"International criminal and known psychopath, The Joker, apparently had laced Lex Tower with explosives in an grand scheme to drive the citizens insane. This plot was, however, thwarted by the efforts of the teen sensation known as Young Justice in a fiery conclusion. The final body count at the end of it all reached the double digits, including LexCorp head C.E.O. Talia Head and The Joker himself, who was found impaled upon an arrow. What is most shocking was the discovery of the body of Timothy Drake, son of wealthy industrialist Robert Drake. Officials believe that young Drake was kidnapped by The Joker, but reasons why remain sketchy at best. His funeral will be held later this week."
******************
The days never lasted long enough. Night always seemed to come too fast, too often. A lone figure galloped over the roof's edge, a silent sentinel of the night. Somewhere a crime was being committed. Somewhere an innocent was being hurt.
He saw someone close to him buried today. He saw someone he thought would be with him the long haul cut down in his prime. He tried not to think of it, to let his mind wander elsewhere, but it always came back to that same thought. To his smile. To his energy. To his optimism. No matter how bad things got, he always thought things would turn out better in the end. So much potential. So much gift.
He perched himself on top of a stone gargoyle, a mythical creature whose sole purpose was to frighten away the evil spirits. The irony was not lost.
*Goodbye, Tim,* he thought to himself, as he gazed at the moonlit sky.
He cast a line out, embracing the sea of air that cried out for his justice.
He only hoped Batman was alright.
***************
She sat there, curled up in a ball on her bed, anxiety coursing through her bloodstream. Anita Fite had always thought that super heroes were immortal, that they were above death, above such concepts as mortality. Superman died, but came back once. To a hero, death was supposed to be nothing more than a trivial obstacle to be torn through.
But Robin died. He sacrificed himself to save them, to save everyone. She wondered if, when the time came, she could make such a sacrifice. That, when the lives of everyone she knew were in jeopardy, she would make that final decision to give her life for theirs. Deep down inside she wished she could answer with a yes. Deep down inside, however, she knew better.
She heard a door close downstairs. Her hair stood on ends. She thought about Tim, about his family, about how they would never know the sacrifices he made, the challenges he had to face.
She stood up from her bed and, grabbing her costume, made her way downstairs.
"Hey dad," she said, holding her costume behind her back.
"Hey honey," he said. "How are you holding up?"
"I could be better," she said. They exchanged glances.
"What is it honey? You look like you have something on your mind."
She sighed. "Dad, I need to tell you something....."
************
Superboy hovered above the skyline of Metropolis, his arms folded, his mind deep in thought as he gazed at the construction crew repairing the damage done by their attempts to save the day. Had they saved the day, though? What had they accomplished? Rob....Tim....was dead. The tower was all but destroyed. Some people, specifically in the media and the government, were starting to point fingers in their directions.
Why couldn't life be fair? Why couldn't life be normal? Why couldn't Tim be alive? And why did it feel like he failed him?
"I figured you'd be here," a friendly voice said. Superboy looked back to see a familiar face, clad in red, blue, and gold.
"Hey Clark," Superboy said. "How was your vacation?" Despite his `boy scout' nature, Superman knew a diss when he heard one.
"Look, Kon, if I had known..."
"I understand, I'm sorry. It's just...."
"There's no need to apologize," he said. "I understand how you feel. I felt the same way when Hal died, and when Oliver died."
"But...he was my friend," Superboy said. "He was my friend, and I was there when he died. I was there when they lowered his casket. Did you know it was closed casket? They didn't want anyone to see him..."
"I know," he said, understanding. "I know."
Rage boiled inside his heart, flowing over, searing his soul. But he remained composed, strong.
"He didn't have to die. I could have saved him. If only I was more like you..."
"You did everything you could. Robin knew the risks. He did what he thought was right."
"But if he had waited, we could have blasted the ball, stopped him, we..." His grief overwhelmed him, but he remained strong, like a pillar of marble.
"Look, I know it's hard. And it's not going to get any easier." He turned his attention elsewhere, something in the distance.
"Go," Superboy said. "The city needs you."
"You going to be alright?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I just need to be by myself a little more. Y'know...to think."
"You know where to find me if you ever want to talk," he said. "Just...take care of yourself." And, in a rush of wind and motion, he was gone, leaving Superboy the way he thought he wanted to be; with his thoughts.
He sure missed Robin......
*****************
Happy Harbor. This was where it all started, where it all happened. Secret floated around the corridors of their old headquarters, her smokey tendrils caressing each stone wall, her mind reaching back to that happier time in their lives. Emotions flowed through her as she tried to gain some grasp over the events of recent.
She came to the pool, where they had all been playing so long ago. It was empty now, drained of its water. Her mind reached back, grasping for happier times. The camp-out. Swimming. When Robin first took off his mask.
*You have beautiful eyes.* She had told him that day. She had waited for him to respond in kind, but no response came. Why did he always have to be polite like that?
She flew wildly about, grief controlling her every motion. She tried to close her eyes, but all she could see was his face, beaten and burned, and his eyes, his perfect, blue eyes, gazing into hers.
*You have the most beautiful eyes.* He had told her with his final breath. She began to weep uncontrollably, her wails echoing through the empty hallways. She tried to get him out of her mind, to think about something else, to go back to that happier time, before The Abyss. Before all this. But all she could see was him, his smile, his face, his eyes, those beautiful eyes.
She found herself in the old command room, the table still destroyed, the computer still trashed, the place still in shambles. She dropped to her knees, her mists billowing out as she fell to the ground. Her tears dropped like rain to the floor, absorbed by the layers of dust that had formed from their absence. She gripped her hands to her face, sobbing.
*I'll always be there for you.* His voice echoed in her mind like a song, so wonderful. What she wouldn't give to hear that song again. If only to hear it once.
She knew what she had to do. She felt herself turning inward, whirl pooling into herself, pulling herself into herself, slowly, until she disappeared in a puff.
Returning to the Abyss from whence she was spawned.
**************************
"How are you holding up Ciss?" Cassie said, entering the room of her friend. Cassie was sitting on her bed, her eyes fixated on nothing in particular.
"Fine, considering the fact that I killed somebody," she said. Cassie sat down next to her friend, attempting to comfort her.
"He deserved it," she said. "After what he did, the last thing this world needed was for him to be alive. You did what you had to do."
"No, I didn't." She reached down and picked up a stray arrow that was laying on the floor. "When I go to sleep at night, all I can see is my arrow, stuck through his back, his body sliding down its shaft, his blood seeping everywhere. And you know what's worse?" She paused a second.
"I enjoyed it."
She stood up, placing the arrow on her night stand, and began to walk out, when Cassie noticed something shiny on the table. It was a neatly wrapped gift.
"Hey, what's this?" Cassie asked, picking it up. Cissie calmly took it from her hand.
"It's the present I got for Robin, before...." They sat back down, Cassie taking the gift from her hand. She looked over at her forlorn friend, asking the question with her eyes. She nodded. Slowly she dug her finger nails into its ornate paper, slipping its ribbon off, as she unwrapped the Christmas gift meant for their leader.
The Complete Collection of Sherlock Holmes
She opened the first page. On the inside of the cover was something written in ink. Both ladies read the text to themselves.
`To Rob,
Even the World's Greatest Detective has his superior. Figured you'd want someone else to look up to.
Thanks for always understanding, when no one else would.
Cissie,
Olympic Gold Medalist'
Cissie reached her hand over and closed the book. The two friends looked at each other, tears in each others eyes, tears swelling, the sorrow of their loss too much for each one of them to bear by themselves.
So they clung to each other, bearing the burden together.
****************************
In the void of space, the intergalactic terror of Lobo rode on his hog, hopping from planet to planet in search of adventure. A lone wolf, with connections to no one. He just saw someone who wouldn't last two seconds against him blown to pieces. But it was all just another day in his life, one less person to kill. Besides, life was too short (or, in his case, too long) to worry about something small like someone dying. The universe was a big place, and somewhere, out there, someone needed fragging.
******************************
Batman gazed at the case, unsure of where things went wrong, why all his partners were cut down in such a brutal way. He looked at the costume of the first one who fell to Joker's madness. At that time he had Superman to keep him from taking justice into his own hands. He looked over to the costume that stood next to Jason's. Tim's costume. He adjusted the focus of his eyes, looking at his reflection in the glass. Had his quest been so consuming that no one could escape it? Was his goal so grand that it had to be paid for with other people's lives?
"Batman?" a voice said from behind him. He adjusted his focus to see the reflection of the person behind him.
"Get out of my cave, Bart Allen."
The Lad of Lightning stepped forward, walking up to Batman. He looked into the case, glancing back and forth at both costumes.
"I'm sorry about this Batman," another voice said. Walking out from the shadows was Impulse's mentor, Max Mercury. "He insisted on coming."
"Then he can insist on leaving," Batman said. "I'm not in the mood." "Mr. Batman," Impulse said politely. "Robin...Tim...was my friend. He...he was the only one that put up with me, understood me. And well..." he paused, thinking of the right thing to say. "And I want to make him proud of me. I want to be better. I...I want you to train me."
Batman kept his gaze forward, not bothering to look at the two of them face to face. He thought about Tim, coming up to him and Dick, just waltzing into their world, asking them to train him. And where had that gotten him?
"Never again," he said, walking past the two speedsters, leaving them in the darkness of the cave.
Impulse gazed into the case, at Tim's costume. Max came up behind him, putting his arms on his shoulders.
"I just want to make you proud Rob," he said. He turned to Max, who took him in his arms, hugging him tightly. "Just want to make him proud."
"I know Bart. I know."
********************
Snowflakes fluttered gently to the ground, covering the grass in a soft white blanket. The young girl, hair black as charcoal, walked through the fields of snow, her footsteps muffled by the frozen cushions. The cold January nipped at her face, turning her cherub cheeks a rosy red. She held in her hand a dozen red roses, which she cradled delicately in her arms.
She approached a solemn grave, gently dropping to one knee, and set the flowers down at its base. A teardrop froze to her face, which she whipped away with a gloved hand. Looking down, she read what was engraved on its face.
`Timothy Alvin Drake Taken before his time.'
Her father stood behind her, his cape billowing in the bitter winds. The snow began to fall faster, as the two payed their respects to the dead.
"It's time to go Traya," Red Tornado said. Traya looked back at her father, snowflakes falling around her as she stood up. She kissed her fingertips, and touched the top of the gravestone.
"Goodbye Robin," she said. With that, the pair walked away, leaving Robin to rest in peace.
******************
Where am I? What is this place? It's so warm, so beautiful. What's that? A light, so white. Must go to it.
Wait, I hear something. Secret? What are you doing here? You're not dead. Oh, wait, I guess you are. Sorry. Steph? Is that you? Mom? Jason? What a beautiful light. So white. But what about Young Justice? What about Bruce? What about....?
The light. So wonderful, so warm. I've never seen anything like it. It's so peaceful here. So relaxing.
Finally. Peace.....
The End