Chapter 17- Blood Red Skies
"Is he still alive?"
"He was when she brought him in here…"
"I thought you said they got there before anything bad happened."
"Well, I guess not. When they found him, he was half-alive and sinking into the ocean. The whole city's been deserted too."
"You do know when 'you know who' pulls into the docking bays he's gonna want to see him."
"Well then he'll have to wait. We haven't finished examining him yet!"
"Hey don't get snappy at me, I'm not the one who—"
"Well at least I did something before it was too late!"
"All of you stop it! Leave him be…he needs his rest now."
"Tuff kid…surprised he made it out of there alive."
"Yeah, especially after what happened to his friends…poor guy."
-br-
When Robin opened his eyes everything was a blur but his vision began to quickly focus. He found himself lying on his back starring at a ceiling; he was in a bed, but where? The lights were so bright, and they almost seemed to blind him whenever he tried looking up at them. He slowly leaned up in bed and rested his upper body on his arms behind his back. His head was killing him, and his whole body ached but he was still determined to find out where he was. He felt suddenly cold and bare when he sat up and looked down at his chest and notice he wasn't wearing a shirt. He had several suction cups connected to his chest and arms with wires that led to machines all around him, but he quickly ripped them off his body. He pulled the covers off and put his legs over the side of the bed and sat upright. He slowly pushed himself off the bed but took a moment as he stood to regain his balance for he was still very dizzy and strode softly over towards the huge window in his room. All he could see was the night sky with stars painted across the blackness of outer space, but as he drew nearer to the window his gaze fell on the huge blue sphere at the bottom of his view. It was…Earth!
"Oh," said a voice as the door hissed open behind him. "I see you're finally up."
Robin turned slowly to face the voice and was flabbergasted at who he saw. "Super…girl," he said with a voice full of uncertainty.
"Hey handsome, I brought you some food I thought you might be hungry."
"No thanks, I'm not—"before he could say more his stomach made a very loud gurgling noise.
Supergirl laughed at him and said, "Come on Robin, please. It's for your own good you've been through a lot."
Robin's head fell down towards the floor as he recapped on all the former events of his friend's deaths…of Starfire's death. He reluctantly went back over and sat on the edge of the bed then Supergirl wheeled a table in front of him and he began inhaling his food.
"So ah…how do you feel," Supergirl asked.
"I'm alright," Robin said before wiping his mouth. "Where exactly…am I?"
Supergirl smiled at him and said, "Where else do you think, you're in the Watchtower of course."
Robin paused for a moment and looked back out towards the window. "How did I get here," he asked with a mouthful of food.
"Well…technically Aquaman was the one that found and rescued you, but it I was the one who picked you up and brought you here."
"Oh," Robin said with a sad look on his face then put a fork full of string-beans in his mouth. "Thanks…"
Supergirl put her hand on his shoulder and said, "You don't have to thank me Robin, consider us even now."
Robin didn't look up at her, but he at least gave her the curtsey of a fake smile.
"Robin," Supergirl said in a sheepish voice with her hand still on his shoulder. "I know you've been through a lot today but…"she looked down at her feet for a moment then continued her question. "What happened to you back there? Where are all your friends?"
Robin's emotions began rising in his chest and he felt the urge to cry but he held it in.
"Where is he," came a demanding voice from the doorway.
Both Robin and Supergirl turned at the same time to see who had entered. Their eyes fell on the dark elusive man wearing the black mask and cape, who stood there with his chest flared and his arms at his sides. Almost as if he was a soldier standing at attention.
"BATMAN," Robin exclaimed.
The Dark Knight strode next to them on the bed and fixed his gaze on Robin then turned back to Supergirl. "Is he alright," he asked with narrowed eyes.
"Aside from a few bumps and bruises," said Supergirl, "he's okay. Tuff kid if I may say so myself."
"Could you give us a minute Kara?"
Supergirl looked at Robin for a moment, already seeing where this was going, and reluctantly said, "sure, I'll…I'll be outside if you need anything."
She left, and Batman and Robin were alone in the room now. Robin sat on the edge of the bed with his head hung low looking down at his knees while Batman stood next to him.
"Are you alright," said the caped crusader.
"I'll live," said Robin.
There was a long awkward silence between them as Batman went over and leaned against the wall. He stood there with his arms folded before finally saying, "So what happened down there?"
Robin hesitated to answer and turned his head to look out the window. "Nothing I couldn't have handled," he said.
Batman starred at him with narrowed eyes and shifted slightly in his spot. "Look, Robin, if you don't tell me what happened then we'll—"
"THEY'RE GONE, THEY'RE ALL GONE! THEY WERE ANNIHILATED AND THERE WASN'T ANYTHING I COULD DO TO SAVE THEM! Cyborg…Beast Boy…Raven……Starfire. Even all of Titans East! THEY'RE DEAD! THEY'RE ALL DEAD AND IT'S MY FAULT!" Robin got up and stood by the window, gazing down at the earth with his arms held firmly by his sides. "He took them…he took them all…"
Batman thought for a moment of what to say, and he knew how his former partner felt for he too had lost many friends in the past.
"Who Robin," Batman asked with serious intent. "Who took them? You have to tell me if you want us to help."
Robin paused for a moment then angrily slammed his fist against the window. "Deathstroke..."
Batman knew he had heard that name before, but he wasn't sure, so he put those thoughts off to the side instead of thinking about it anymore. He leaned off the wall and began making his way towards the door as he said, "Alright then. I'll consult the rest of the league and we'll head to Jump City and take him out before he does anymore damage."
"Not without me you're not," Robin demanded.
Batman stopped and turned to face him. "Yes, we are. You've been through enough with this Deathstroke. It's the League's turn to step in."
"NO BRUCE," Robin yelled at him. "I was the one who came across him first! I know more about him then anyone else does! If anyone's going to take him down, it's going to be me!'
Batman grew very aggravated with the Boy Wonder, but he still kept his patience. "Right now you're not in any position to be doing anything," he said. "You need to stay here, and rest!"
"No! He took my friends away from me, and I won't let him take anyone else!"
Batman had seen cases where people snap under extreme pressure and stress, but this teenage boy who talked of stopping an elusive villain when he wasn't in any condition to do anything; he had just lost it.
"Robin listen to yourself," Batman argued. "You aren't thinking clearly, you've had a bad fall. Get back in bed and get some rest!"
"NO! I CAN'T! I WON'T!" Robin grabbed his shirt and cape off the chair next to him and headed towards the door as he put it on. "I HAVE TO STOP HIM BEFORE ANYONE ELSE GETS HURT! I'M GOING TO TAKE HIM DOWN! I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN—"
This had gone on long enough. Before he could go any further, Batman grabbed Robin by the wrist and slammed him against the wall with his arm above his head.
"DICK, STOP IT," he yelled in his face. "Getting yourself killed over this isn't going to bring them back! So you couldn't handle Deathstroke! So you couldn't take him out, that doesn't matter now! What matters is that you're safe and that you stay alive to fight another day! Everyone in this station has been down the same road you have, including me, and we've all learned from it! This is out of your power now, so let the Justice League take care of this!"
"HE'S MY RESPONSIBILITY!"
"AND YOU'RE MINE!"
Robin was speechless. He didn't know what to say.
"I think you should let him go actually," a voice behind them said.
The two quarreling heroes stopped and turned to face their new guest.
"After all, who better to stop Deathstroke than someone who knows the most about him?"
Robin had never seen him before, he had only heard stories about this man and from the way he looked it wasn't hard to tell who he was. His voice dictated authority, leadership, and respect from those whom he spoke to, yet it also projected humility, friendship, honesty, and trust. He was six feet of pure muscle, with shoulders as wide as a bus, a face as strong as a mountain, and had his chest flared out to show his true strength and power. From the way he strode in with his hands behind his back and his long red cape draping behind him, he somehow had a certain majesty over all the other super-heroes in the Watchtower. Robin had never met him before in his life, and already, he had an undeniable respect for him; he would gladly risk his life fighting along side him. Undoubtedly, this man was the leader of the Justice League.
"Sorry if I'm interrupting anything," said Superman. "But I couldn't help but overhear your conversation in the cafeteria." (which was on the other side of the space station!)
"We were just talking Clark," said Batman. "Everything's fine."
Superman came next to them and looked down at Robin who was scanning him from head to toe, until he came to his eyes. Standing there, next to Superman, Robin felt intimidated by him yet somehow he gave him a sense of security being in his presence. This man was of great power, and, of great mercy.
"So you're the one we found floating around in the ocean huh," asked Superman with a smile. "Heck of a time for a late night swim, don't you think?"
Had that question or phrase come from anyone else, they would have indubitably had a face full of Robin's fist, but Robin actually found the slightest bit of humor to it and cracked the faintest smile in world history.
"You must be Robin," said Superman holding his hand out to shake his. "I'm Superman."
"It's good to finally meet you," Robin said as he took Superman's iron-grip of a hand shake. "I've heard a lot about you."
"Likewise…Boy Wonder," he said.
"Clark can I see you outside for a moment please," Batman finally interjected.
The two let go of each other and looked at Batman, who gazed at them with an annoyed and impatient look on his face.
Superman looked back down at Robin and said, "Well it was nice meeting you Robin. Perhaps we could get together sometime and arrange more permanent living arrangements for you with the League."
"Uh…sure thing," said Robin. "It was nice meeting you Superman."
"Nice meeting you too, and please, call me Clark."
With that both Batman and Superman strode out the room and through the doorway.
"You can go back in now if you'd like Kara," said Superman as they passed Supergirl leaning against the wall in the hallway. "We're going to need a minute."
Supergirl look at them both then without saying a word, rejoined Robin back in the room. Batman and Superman watched her leave but when the door closed behind her, the Dark Knight immediately shot the man of steel a deathly gaze.
"I appreciate your concern about the boy Clark," Batman lied. "But I don't need you filling his head with anymore ideas of him going off on a wild choose chase to stop this Deathstroke character."
"Maybe I was telling him something he needed to hear," Superman shot back. "After all, it is his villain, his responsibility, isn't it?"
"He couldn't handle it, and it may have very well led to the death of his friends and the fall of the Titans. He wasn't old or mature enough to take on the responsibility of leading a team, and I'm partly to blame for letting him do it."
Superman put his hands behind his back again and thus continued their argument. "Bruce all I'm trying to say is that I'm worried you're taking away something very important to him. This is something he needs to do on his own."
"NO," Batman said with assertiveness. "I'm not letting him get himself killed over a personal vendetta with whoever Deathstroke is."
"Who says this is a vendetta, maybe he's just out to serve justice," Superman commented.
Batman's eyes grew narrow and he gazed at him for a moment before finally saying, "Robin's not out to server justice; he's out to serve his own revenge."
Superman didn't say anything; instead he continued listening and starred at him with intuitive eyes.
"I'm his guardian, and I know what's best for him. He's staying, and that's final." Batman turned and started down the hall away from Superman.
Before he could leave, Superman called back to him, "Ya know this is no different than you and the Joker, Bruce."
Batman came to an immediate halt, almost as if he had been shot or frozen in time. He stood there for a brief moment before swiftly turning around, his cape twirling behind him, and shot the man of steel a look of anger, hate, and confusion.
"What did you just say," said the Dark Knight in an edgy voice.
Superman didn't flinch, he held his ground even though he realized he had hit a nerve and was beginning to regret doing so, but he had to make a point. "Your blood feud with the Joker," he said. "It's no different than what the boy's going through with Deathstroke right now. What was the real reason you dawned the mask and cape? Was it to serve justice, or your own vengeance for him murdering your parents?"
Superman saw the Dark Knight's face grow redder, and redder, and redder as he spoke, and began getting worried and almost...scared of Batman as he tightened his fists and starred him down with his deep vengeful eyes.
"Robin's doing the same thing you did, and it's something he himself needs to do. Think about it Bruce. Didn't it bring you some form of inner peace when you brought down the Joker? How would you have felt if someone else settled your score?
Some of the rage built up inside Batman had settled, but he was still very furious with Superman for bringing up his choosing to become Batman and his reasons for it. It was mostly a denial issue for him.
"You have a point about Robin's vendetta with Deathstroke Clark," Batman finally said in a cool calm voice. He strode towards Superman and stopped just in front of him, their eyes leveled with each other. "BUT DON'T YOU EVER LECTURE ME ABOUT THE DEATH OF MY PARENTS OR MY CHOICES IN BECOMING BATMAN! DO YOU HEAR ME," he said with a voice crackling with rage, "EVER!"
Batman turned away from Superman and tramped down the hallway and out of sight. Superman stood there with his hands still behind his back and watched as he left, then went back into the room where Robin and Supergirl were. When the man of steel entered, the two conversing in the room immediately looked up at him; they could both tell their little "chat" hadn't gone well.
"Um…I take it you two are finished then," Supergirl said.
"Pretty much," said Superman with somewhat of a disgusted look on his face.
"Where's Batman," Robin asked.
"He had something important to take care of…"
"I see…"Robin looked back at Supergirl who caught his gaze as well. "So…how did you guys know I was in trouble," Robin asked looking back up at Superman.
"Ya mean how we found you? Oh, one of our satellites picked up a sudden heat bloom coming from your city," Superman explained as he pulled up a chair next to Robin and Supergirl. "When J'onn was alerted to this, he found it was actually a massive explosion that came from the bridge somewhere in your city. We tried to contact you and your team to see what had happened, but we got not response. As a matter a fact…we couldn't even get a signal through."
Robin shifted in his seat to listen more closely to Superman as he continued.
"So once we realized we couldn't get through to you, we called up our 'old pal' Aquaman and asked if he could check it out."
"Yeah, after you agreed we'd give him a herd of cattle," Supergirl interjected. "Atlantians apparently have a thing for them. They consider beef a 'delicacy.'"
"Yeah so," Superman continued. "After we got him to finally agree to go check things out in your city, he said he'd seen your tower exploding and you jumping off it and into the ocean."
"And once he got to you," Supergirl interrupted. "You were already passed out, so he grabbed you and brought you to an underwater cave. And then once he got a hold of J'onn and told us what he found, I went down there and picked you up; and now you're here, where you're safe and sound."
Although Robin was comforted knowing that he was in the protection of the Justice League, he didn't, however, feel safe though for some reason. He felt more like he was being belittled, even by people as friendly as Superman and Supergirl; since he was around so many adults.
"Oh…I see," Robin said again.
"So," Superman said. "Why don't you tell us your end of the story?"
Robin looked down at his knees, and with a sigh, began the grueling process of telling him and Supergirl everything that had been happening up until he had to destroyed Titans Tower and wound up here. As Superman listen to the teenage boy, he had already started regretting everything he had said to Batman about how Robin should go off by himself and take down this Deathstroke guy. Supergirl was beginning to feel the same way, and she felt that maybe it would be best if the League were somehow involved with this, but she didn't express that to Robin.
"Well then," Superman finally said. "I can see you've got a lot on your plate here…are you sure you don't want the League's help Robin? We could easily put together a team for you and—"
"No," Robin interrupted. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I want to do this alone." He turned away from the two Krytoneons and gazed towards the window at earth. "And I don't want anyone else getting hurt because of me…he's my responsibility."
Superman paused for a moment before saying, "I understand." He looked around the room then back at Robin. "Well, I'm going to go report to the rest of the League about this now, so if you'd like to come with me I could introduce you to the others."
"Uh…sure, I guess," Robin said and the three left the room and headed to the bridge of the watchtower.
br-
"So who was that kid Supergirl brought in earlier," asked the Green Lantern standing next to J'onn at the computer.
"I wouldn't know," Manhunter replied in his usual monotone voice.
"Supposedly he's Bruce's old side-kick," said Wonder Woman.
"Wooooooowwwoooooooohhhhh," cried The Flash as he leaned too far back in his chair and fell to the floor with a loud CRASH! "Wait a minute, you mean Robin!"
"That sounds about right," Wonder Woman said.
"Where is he! Is he alright!"
"He's right here, and he's fine," said Superman as he, Supergirl, and the Boy Wonder entered the bridge.
"So he's the one we all heard took that huge leap of faith huh," the Green Lantern said with a grin on his face. "Keep pullin' stunts like that kid and you'll be ready Marine Corp in no time."
"Uh, yeah sure I guess," Robin said with a fake smile.
He hadn't even been in there a minute, and already he wanted to get out. He felt extremely uncomfortable around all these adults who looked down on him as the Green Lantern so put it, as a "kid." He wanted to see Bruce, he wanted to talk to him; at least HE would show just a little more respect for him and he had something he wanted to say.
"Well, everyone," Superman said. "If you haven't met him already, this is Robin. Robin, this is Green Lantern—"
"Please, call me John," he interrupted.
"You've already met Flash, and that's Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter, but everyone calls him J'onn."
"Greetings," said J'onn as he turned in his chair to face Robin.
"So you're the one we've all heard so much about from Bruce," Wonder Woman said when she came up to Robin and shook his hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person."
"It's nice to meet you too Wonder Woman," Robin said as they shook hands.
"Please, call me Diana."
"Hey Robin," The Flash leaned over and whispered to him. "You might want to be careful with that one, she can be a real stiff as—"
"Oh shut it Wally," Wonder Woman snapped at him then slugged him in the arm.
"OW! Ya see what I mean!"
"Oh uh, I'll be sure of that," Robin said. "Listen uh does anyone know where—"
"Well now that we've all introduced ourselves," Superman said unaware that he had interrupted Robin. "We have some important issues we need to discuss."
Robin looked up at the huge man towering next to him then back down towards the floor. He gazed around the room for a brief moment at everyone then inconspicuously inched his way slowly back behind Superman and Supergirl.
"The boy's run into some trouble back in his home town, and I wanted to get everyone's opinion about it. Maybe it would be best if—"Superman looked down at his side only to see that the young man standing next to him was no longer there. He turned around sharply to see if he was behind him, but wasn't. Superman faced the others again with a bewildered look on his face and said, "Where'd he go?"
The Flash chuckled and said, "Looks like Boy Wonder takes after his old man," as he leaned back in his chair again.
Wonder Woman shot him a lame stare then casually nudged his shoulder and made him fall back, hitting the floor with another loud CRASH!
br-
Batman stood there in front of the huge window in the monitoring room in one of the massive arms of the space station over looking the entire world. It was dark and secluded, and the only light cast inside it came from the earth.
"Batman," a voice came behind him.
He did not turn to greet him for he already knew who it was.
"Bruce?" He said again as he came to his side. Robin looked up at him and waited for a response. "Batman, look," he said. "I…I'm sorry for—"
"Don't be," said Batman in his deep casual vague tone without looking at Robin. "Like I said before, I've been down that road, and maybe it's something you need to do as well."
Robin turned away from him and leaned against the window sill and gazed down at the earth, noting how ironic it was that such a beautiful looking planet was full of so much turmoil, corruption, and apathy. "Then you understand why I must—"
"What I understand is that I'm letting you go out on a wild goose chase that could inevitably end your life," Batman said.
Robin's eyes widened and he looked up at Batman as though he were insane. He couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth, was that…concern he detected in his voice? Was he ACTUALLY expressing some sort of emotion for him? A man who had closed himself off to everything and everyone with a cast iron door over his heart? Robin was amazed at this as he listened to what Batman had to say.
"What I said was wrong. What you're going through is something you need to do on your own. When I was once in a situation where the odds were against me, I was alone and had lost all hope, the only way I triumphed over it was by fighting my way out and never giving up. That's something you yourself will have to learn from your own trials and tribulations, it's not something I can just pass down to you…"
Robin looked at the floor unable to speak. Batman was one of the coldest men he had ever met, and although he had never been one to share his emotions, in some inconspicuous way he always showed how much he cared for him and understood how he felt. He always understood how he felt, since the very beginning, even when his parents died.
"But Dick," Batman interrupted his train of thought. "As was I, you will be met with a decision when you confront Deathstroke and I want you to remember something." Batman completely turned his entire figure around to face Robin and looked straight into his eyes as he said, "It's always easier to take life…than it is to give life…"
The room fell silent and Batman starred down at Robin with the same look of serious intent while he looked down at his own feet again. He didn't quite understand what his words meant about a decision and taking and giving life, but he didn't want his mentor to see that.
"I understand Bruce," he said with as he looked up at Batman.
"Just remember everything I've taught you Dick," Batman said as he put his hand on his shoulder. "I know you'll make the right decision…"
Robin couldn't help it, but he blushed and the smile on his face grew bigger as he tried to look away. "Thanks," he said.
Out of the corner of their eyes, they noticed a rather bright flash coming from outside. The master and the apprentice both turned their heads simultaneously to see what it was, and at nearly the same time again both wore a look of absolute shock on their faces.
One of the orbiting satellites around the Watchtower was nearly blown in half and was already beginning to drift off course. It looked as though there were hundreds of tiny flickering candles around the charred edges of the blast radius as the crippled station moped its' way closer and closer towards earth. Suddenly, the room was filled with red flashing lights and the screeching of an alarm.
"Red Alert," said the familiar voice of J'onn over the intercom. "All hands battle stations, immediately."
Batman and Robin looked at each other for less than a second then dashed out the doorway and headed for the bridge.
br-
"Report," Batman shouted when they entered the bridge.
"Satellite 1 has been hit," J'onn said as he began typing in commands at the computer. "She's loosing altitude and drifting off course."
"Was there anyone on that station," Green Lantern asked frantically.
"Unknown, but we have two unaccounted for…Green Arrow and Black Canary."
"Have you tried hailing them," asked Batman.
"Not yet," said J'onn. He pressed a button on the keyboard and began speaking, "Come in, this is Watchtower can anyone hear me? Watchtower to Station 1, this is Watchtower is anyone there?"
"J'onn is that you," said a loud voice as a picture of a blonde haired man wearing a mask came into focus. "This is Green Arrow!"
"Green Arrow what's your status," asked J'onn.
"Beats the heck out of me, what just hit us!"
"We don't know that yet, are you hurt? Is Black Canary with you?"
"Yeah she's alright and she's with me."
J'onn looked up from the screen at the drifting space station through the window. "You're loosing too much altitude you're going to have to abandon ship."
"Oh
no really ya think," Green Arrow shouted sarcastically.
"We're
already on our way to the escape pods. We'll need someone to come
pick us up as soon as you can get us."
"We're dispatching a Javelin now, it's on its' way."
"Thanks, Green Arrow out," he said and then his face disappeared from the screen.
DURT, DURT, DURT, DURT, DURT, Superman turned swiftly to the monitor next to him at the sound of the loud warning signals and the blinking red light. Next to him, he saw what looked like a red triangle headed for the Watchtower on the screen.
"J'ONN," he yelled.
The green shape-shifting alien turned and saw what was coming their way. "INCOMING," he yelled into the microphone. "ALL HANDS BRACE FOR IMPACT!"
Everyone on the bridge grabbed hold of whatever they could find around them and steadied themselves for the explosion then suddenly,
PPPPKKKKOOOOMMMM!
The entire station shook with tremendous force, sending Robin flying into a control panel and throwing everyone else around like limp rag-dolls. Wires and hoses fell from the ceiling; keyboards and computer consoles sparked and burst into flames while monitors exploded and sent shards of razor-sharp glass soaring at whomever was around. The rumbling stopped and all that could be heard now was the sound of the alarm and the steam venting from one of the hoses hanging from the ceiling.
"Damage Report," Superman ordered as he stumbled to his feet.
J'onn pushed himself off the keyboard he had landed on and began typing in commands. "We've got fires on decks one through four, nine, eleven, and twenty-one through twenty seven," he shouted over the loud noises around him. "Structural integrity is holding, but we're venting atmosphere!"
"See if you can get our shields up," Superman said supporting his head with his hand. "We can't take another hit from that thing."
J'onn hastily typed away on the keyboard until the screen displayed the word "malfunction." "It's not responding," he said. "Main power is offline!"
"Then switch to auxiliary and tap in the reserves!"
"I can't, something's draining all our energy!"
"An EMP Ray," Batman said as he came next to J'onn and Superman. "It's something my company has tried developing for quite some time. But it seems someone has already perfected it. Where did it originate from?
J'onn typed on the keyboard and the screen in front of him showed a satellite image of a city. "There," he said pointing to it.
Everyone around him closed in to see where it was.
"Wait a minute," Robin said with a horrified look on his face. "That's Jump City…that's…my city!"
Everyone including the Martian Manhunter turned and gazed at Robin in bewilderment, when suddenly:
DURT, DURT, DURT, DURT, DURT, DURT— The screen in front of J'onn changed and displayed the same red triangle coming at the Watchtower as before on radar.
"WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ONE," he shouted. "ALL HANDS BRACE FOR—"but before he could finish the entire Station was rattled with another loud:
PPPPKKKKOOOOMMMM!
Everyone was tossed around the bridge again, and after more violent rumbles and explosions, everything stopped; the lights went out, the fires went out, the alarm went off, and the entire room went dark. Robin fell unconscious for a second, but when he awoke, he could see his breath in front of him and found himself floating in mid-air. The artificial gravity had been knocked off-line, and the entire station was dead.
"Is everyone alright," he heard Batman say.
"I'm still here," Robin said.
"Actually, I'm feeling…kinda faint," said The Flash. "I think I need some mouth to mouth!"
"That's old Flash," said Green Lantern. "Come up with something better."
"Well I'm happy to see you're alive too sweat heart." The Flash looked over at Wonder Woman who was rubbing the side of her head. "Good morning honey!"
"SHUT UP WALLY," she shouted. "THIS IS NO TIME FOR YOUR STUPID JOKES! CAN'T YOU SEE WE'RE IN TROUBLE HERE?"
"QUIET ALL OF YOU," Batman yelled. "Where's Robin?"
Using the railing to propel himself, Robin floated his way down corridor after corridor until he finally reached an intersection marked "Docking Bay," and headed down it. He pried open a door with his bare hands and found himself in a hallway with windows that led to the hanger full of Javelins (the jets the Justice League uses). He pushed himself through the doorway and drifted gracefully through until he came to the hanger controls and braced himself against it. He pressed a few buttons on the dark lifeless control panel but got no response. He slammed his fist on it, then pushed his feet against a wall and shot himself through another door towards one of the docked Javelins. He found a button on the bottom of the ship, and with the push of it, a hatch door hissed open and granted him access. He pulled himself in and made his way past a few rows of seats until he came to the captain's chair. The control set-up wasn't too much different from that of the T-ship, and with a click of a few switches and buttons, the Javelin's engines began to come alive. The controls lit up in front of him and lights came on inside the ship. He buckled his seat belt and prepared himself for take off; but there was just one problem. The hanger doors couldn't be opened since there was no longer power running through the station, so he would have to make a door himself instead. He grasped the joystick in front of him and found a trigger underneath his index finger. Robin leaned back in his chair, bracing himself for the sudden jolt he'd feel after blasting the door open and pulled the trigger…but nothing happened. He pulled it again, and still, nothing happened. He looked around him and noticed a panel of red buttons marked "fire control," and switched them on. The trigger under his index finger glowed red now, and he assumed he was able to fire. For no particular reason, Robin looked to his right out the window and saw Batman watching him through one that overlooked the entire hanger. They starred at each other for a moment, and then Batman gave him a casual wave goodbye with a rather serious look on his face. Robin did the same, and then braced himself against his chair again, and pulled the trigger.
BOOM!
A laser beam shot out from beneath the ship and blew the hanger door open in front of him. He placed his hand firmly over the throttle next to him and yanked it back. He was shot forward like a bullet from a gun and out the hanger door into the cold, black, iciness of outer space. He sighed and set a new course for Jump City, this was it. He was going to end this once and for all.
Once the Javelin broke through the earth's atmosphere and came through a cloud cluster, he was greeted by the gloomy site of his fallen city. There it was, Titans Tower, or at least what was left of it, nestled on its' little tiny island in the middle of the ocean. Considering how big of an explosion it set off, Robin was amazed that the entire frame of the tower was still standing. Maybe if any good came of this, he could rebuild everything and start over from scratch. Form a new team, a new tower. He could see it already…The New Teen Titans. Robin slowed the Javelin down and dropped the landing gear. The ship began to rumble slightly as he circled around Titans Tower once and set it down next to the edge of the island.
He opened the hatch and stepped out onto hard ground. He gazed up at the tower and noticed that he could see his room, or really, what was left of his room. He sighed, then made his way towards the entrance and kicked the doors down with all his might. He strode through what used to be the lower level where there once was a room full of chairs and a carpet that led to the elevator, but now it was nothing but ash, ruble, and debris. He came to the elevator door and pressed the button, even though in the back of his head he knew it wouldn't work, but to his surprise, the doors struggled open revealing a cockeyed lift that had a huge hole in the bottom. He scooted along the edges of the lift, careful to avoid the huge gap in the floor and press the button for the top level. Sparks shot out of the control panel and then suddenly the doors slammed shut. He nearly lost his footing and fell down the hole when the elevator suddenly shook and sluggishly made its' way up higher and higher through the tower. The elevator stopped at the top floor, but the doors did not open. Robin groaned with anger then scooted around the edges of the hole and came in front of the door. He dug his fingers into the cracks and pried it open with his bare hands, and walked angrily into the room disregarding the message that was being displayed for him on the T.V. screen.
"Hello Robin," the screen read almost as if it were waiting there for him when he arrived.
Robin set his eyes on it and made his way through what used to be their living-room. The kitchen was completely destroyed, their table and chairs were charred and all a burn and the sofa was nearly blown in half. There were a few fires that almost seemed to dance inside the room like children, but he carelessly walked through them and around the couch to face the T.V. He looked up at the message written before him and snarled. He took his gaze off of it and searched for the controller to give Deathstroke a piece of his mind, when suddenly another message was displayed.
"Don't bother looking for it," it read. "I can see and hear you just fine."
Robin looked down at the burned carpet and put his hand into a fist. "You took them from me," he said rage building up inside of him. "You took the lives of all my friends…and made me watch." His lips began to quiver and he clenched his fist tighter and tighter, the rage almost about to consume him. "Then you took the lives of all those innocent people on the bridge, and in the city," with that last phrase, he couldn't hold it in any longer. "WHO ARE YOU, YOU PSYCHOPATH! AND WHAT DO YOU WANT!"
The screen was blank for a moment until it finally read, "How can you say something as invidious as that Robin? I'm hurt…really."
"I'M SICK OF YOUR GAMES DEATHSTROKE," Robin shouted. "NOW TELL ME WHO YOU ARE!"
"But Robin," Deathstroke wrote. "I just want to talk you. It's been so long since we last have. What did you think of my little science experiment? Did you like how everyone's brains were completely erased like hard-drives in a computer after they were introduced to my new virus?"
Robin didn't answer, he only stared the computer screen down.
"Or how bout the bridge that was quite the fireworks display wasn't it? I most certainly enjoyed seeing all those screaming people when the bombs went off. Didn't you? Oh, and by the way. I hope I didn't give your friends upstairs too much of a scare, did they like my EMP gun? It's quite powerful, don't you think?"
"I think you were dropped on the head too many times as a kid Deathstroke," Robin said with a voice crackling with rage.
There was a very long pause from Deathstroke as he took in Robin's hateful words.
"Do you know what I enjoyed seeing the most out of this whole ordeal Robin," he finally wrote. "It was when I got to see the look on your face, when I made you watch every, single, one, of your friends, being BLOWN away!"
Robin grit his teeth and nearly burned a whole in the screen with his deathly gaze as he read the depraved message from Deathstroke.
"Alright Deathstroke," he said. "No more games. Let's settle this once and for all. You…and me…"
There was no response from him for a long while, until finally the screen read, "I have kept you in the dark for a long time as to who I am, haven't I Robin?"
He didn't answer.
"What do you say we meet, face…to face? A final show down, what do you say?"
"You already know the answer to that…"
"Well then in that case." No new message had been displayed for a while, until finally, "The steel factory on the outskirts of town. Midnight, tonight, don't be late or you'll be in for a VERY big surprise."
"I'll be there."
The screen went blank and Robin turned to look out the window as he heard a crack of thunder. Storm clouds were rolling in now and they draped over the city like death lingering in the atmosphere. The dieing sun set over the horizons of the ocean creating an array of crimsons at the base of the clouds and over the sea. The blood red skies, as he so thought of it, were a tribute to his fallen comrades. Tonight, he would come face to face with his foe. Tonight, he would shed the blood of his adversary.
A/N:
Sorry uh…I'll admit first hand I kinda did…actually get a little carried away with the ending. Well, I'm not really going to say much because well, I'm tired and I want to go to bed. Since I forgot to mention this earlier, Robin was unconscious for like a day, so it's not like he got up in the Watchtower and was there for a couple minutes and then came back down to earth. He was up there for a day. So now that that's said, I'm gonna ask for the last time EVER who you all think Deathstroke is, and I'm going to give you a list of names. THE RIGHT ANSWER IS IN THERE, SO TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK! Do you think it's:
Slade
Wintergreen
Killer Moth
Brother Blood
The Ravager (Slade's son)
Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
Batman
Muppet Babies
Professor Chang
Robin's evil twin sent back from another dimension
Okay so now you have the list, so who's it gonna be! Hehehehehehe, I love tormenting you! For my final note, the thing that has kept you up at night, the event to end all events that you've so desperately wanted to arrive since you started reading this fic, the highly anticipated chapter that I'm EXTREMELY excited to share with you, the unveiling of Deathstroke! Here's a little preview for ya:
He took them from me...
They're all dead…
It's only me and him now,
And I've got nothing, left, to loose.
Next Chapter: The Face of My Foe
Snowfeather- I'm glad you think my story rocks so much. Were you surprised to find out it was actually Aquaman? I figured that whole dramatic thing at the very end would pull you into the next chapter. Hope you're excited to find out who Deathstroke is, and they will be more flash backs in the next chapter. Thanks for the review.
Whiterose- Yeah sorry I kinda killed Starfire, she was good while she lasted though (shoots evil grin). Wait till you find out who Deathstroke is, then you'll really choke cause you could be right!...or you could be wrong, guess you'll have to wait and find out, hehehehehehe. Thanks for the review.
Infamous One- Wondering where you went, I though you choked on a turkey bone or something and died. Well I am glad to see though that you're up to speed with my story so far, and don't worry, you'll no longer be in the dark with Deathstroke anymore, cause his unveiling is only one short chapter away. Mmm, can you feel it yet, it's so close, yet so far, hehehehehehe.
Aries-Raven- Yeah the way Starfire died was pretty sad, but it all has to do with the ending. To be honest, it even gives ME chills just thinking about it. You mentioned AquaLAD helping him, but he's dead, and now you know it was actually AquaMAN who helped him, or did you mean that in the first place? To answer your question about the robots, No, they would've killed Robin on the spot. Deathstroke has a VERY sinister plan brewing if I may say so myself, and his intent was to dispose of all the Titans as quickly as possible.
KaliAnn- Hey I've got IM too, never on it though, but I still got it. I can see where you were reminded of the self-destruct sequence from Star Trek, but I kinda based mine off of the one from the movie "Aliens," ever see that movie? It's awesome nn. Yeah sorry I had to kill Starfire like that though, I thought it'd make it so much more dramatic though if I killed her off like that. Hehehe, thanks for the review.
Lance Arkel- Well then, now that we've established that you giggling like a school girl was more of a squeal of excite…not too sure if that's any better or not…but yeah, anyway, moving on now. I hope I built up a lot of suspense this time around for you because, well, YOU'RE GONNA GET TO FIND OUT WHO DEATHSTROKE IS! YAY! I'll be honest with you I don't exactly think I ended this chapter very well, probably because I've spent the last five days on this one and I was starting to get writers block. Anyway, I was very happy to hear the image of Robin having to watch Starfire be blown away gave you chills and I hope you made a connection to the quote, "I will annihilate them Robin, and I'll make you watch," and him actually seeing every last Titan die; especially Starfire. I could actually see Batman blowing something up as a way of turning death into a fighting chance to live, and I never really gave it any thought of Robin picking up that trait from him. The Revenge motif you mentioned, wait till the chapter after the next one, we're going to see a VERY, VERY DARK side of Robin, to give you a little sneak peak…he's going to completely loose his mind. There will be more flash backs in the next chapter, and I will certainly have it be when the Titans formed but I know it's not how they originally did though, since the T.V. show doesn't really follow the storyline of the comic. OH! And the things you mentioned about the bubbles! I'll be totally honest with you, I never thought oh it that way, but I'll tell ya what…write down your notes or something on that and I'll come back to you at the end of the story. I REALLY LIKED THAT SYMBOL and I in no way had that intention but that was VERY CLEVER if I might say so myself! NICE JOB! The bubbles, to me, were supposed to be a way of showing Robin giving up all hope; that everything had been taken away from him; the city, his friends, his home, his chance of survival, and then his breath and ultimately his life, even the sun. Like when he was reaching for it and then it set and it disappeared in the water, it was my way of portraying him being absolutely, alone, and that no one was left to save him. UNTIL AQUAMAN SHOWED UP! YAY! Well, I'll probably take a break for about a day then get started on the next chapter to unveil Deathstroke, hope to see you on the edge of your seat. Thanks for the review!
VanGordan- Yeah, I killed Starfire, I had fun doing it too…I know…I'm cruel, but I love it (shoots evil grin)! To be honest with you I REALLY BS'd the memories because I had to make them all up since the T.V. show story in no way follows the comic book story. But I put in a few things that could relate to it though, like Beast Boy working at a circus with an evil manager. That actually happened in the comics, and he actually fought with the Teen Titans before he became a member, so hopefully anyone who knows about the comics identified that. Anycrap, I know, it was sad to see the tower being blown to hll, but it all has to do with the theme or motifs or whatever you want to call it of Robin being COMPLETELY ISOLATED and totally alone. So what'd you think of the Justice League though, and finding out Deathstroke has his sights on them, literally, too? I hope the connection you thought you had with Batman didn't disappoint you when you found out he was just really in this chapter to talk down to Robin and then boost him up I guess, sorry bud. Ya know, since you've been reviewing my story since like THE VERY BEGINNING I'm most excited to see/hear your reactions on when you find out who Deathstroke is, I think you're more than likely going to slap yourself across the face and say, "I SO DID NOT SEE THAT COMING!" I'll be honest I've taken pleasure in throwing everyone, ESPECIALLY YOU, off from his true identity, but when you find out who he is, you'll probably crap your pants. As of now I will no longer be giving anymore clues on Deathstroke, maybe just to keep everyone on the edge of their seats I'll prolong the chapter process to make that final highly anticipated moment all the more worth while….hmm….maybe I will do that! Hehehehehehehehe, anyway, hope to hear your thoughts on the moment you've been so patiently waiting for, get ready for the unveiling of Deathstroke! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
