Wowzers...sorry it took so long to update, but, well, you were warned. Just be happy it wasn't any longer, because with me, you guys are lucky I didn't wait another month to update...
Disclaimer: Obviously
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A Time Again
Chapter Nine: Quite a Predicament
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The sun set in the west, sending its final warm rays creeping through curtains and blinds on the windows of the people of the world. Its last touch on the world called for the day to end, but that it would return soon to light up the sky.
But the sunset didn't touch everyone.
A small soft ray leaked in through a crack on the boarded up windows. It did not fall on anything or anybody, but left its warm mark on the floor.
Raven stirred.
The room she laid in was dark except the little ray of sunshine. Groaning, she rolled over, noting sourly that her hands were bound behind her back. Her head ached terribly and as she winced, Raven could feel the dried blood from the gash on her forehead crackle.
Where was she? Raven didn't know. Her surroundings continued to be cloaked in shadow as the sundipped closer to the horizon. With help from the stream of light, all Raven could discern was that the windows were boarded up and everything was extremely dusty.
The events leading up to her arrival at this old abandoned building were still fuzzy, but quickly clearing up. She had gone back to her apartment and then—
"Good morning Raven."
Slade.
She could barely see the outline of his figure as the light glinted off the hard silver of his armor. He reached above his head and pulled a string, turning on a light. Raven closed her eyes against the change in lighting, frowning when she received purple spots in her vision. She blinked away the spots and glared up at him.
"What do you want this time?" Raven spat, struggling slightly against her bindings. "Because whatever it is, you should know by now you aren't going to get it. Let's count up the failures, Slade. You've managed to loose two apprentices, you got burned to death another time and then you were nearly blown up. One would think you'd have learned something by now."
Slade chuckled softly.
"And I have Raven, rest assured I have. By each failure I have learned something new. But tell me Raven, what have you learned? Each time you and your lost comrades have tried to stop me, what have you learned?"
Raven said nothing, only stared at the floor. She'd let him gloat his new knowledge, whatever it may be, let him monologue his accomplishments, but he wouldn't be conscious long enough to continue talking of them.
Raven fingered the ropes binding her hands. Slade had gotten messy, and had once again greatly underestimated her. She focused her power on loosening the bindings when white-hot pain exploded in her head. The onslaught was so sudden that Raven loosed a short cry of pain.
Slade laughed quietly again as red stars danced in front of Raven's eyes. Her head throbbed painfully and a cold sheet of fear washed over her.
"Ah, yes." Slade commented rather cheerfully, "I see you learn quickly." He stared down at her, commanding her attention, but Raven didn't meet his eye. "I learned this little trick from your father. It was a...backup plan if you didn't cooperate."
Raven tried again, unwilling to believe he could have caught her so easily. She bit her lip in agony as the searing pain returned; but she did not cry out this time. But it was no use; she would destroy her mind before she could ever get loose. The metallic taste of blood reached her tongue where it had leaked out of the bite marks in her lips, and a little trickled down her chin.
Slade smiled behind his mask, savoring her pain and the power he now had over her. He turned off the light and turned away, heading for the door.
"Now you've learned something." He added quietly, opening the door and closing it behind him.
Raven silently let out a string of vulgar Tamaranian curses that would make Starfire proud. She couldn't use her powers, couldn't contact Richard, and had no clue what Slade was up to. Which was never a good thing.
But she did know where she was, and the thought that Slade now occupied the place horrified her.
When Slade had lit up the room, the light barely spread to the walls, but it was enough. Then, she hadn't been sure. There could be tons of rooms that looked like that one in the city, if she still was in the city.
But then he had opened the door and nearly everything had been nicely illuminated.
She had seen broken glass cases on block columns lining the walls. The cases that had been in the center of the room were either destroyed or removed.
She was in the safe room where all recovered items of villains had been stored.
In Titan's Tower.
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Nightwing jumped from rooftop to rooftop, the cool night wind blowing against his face and lifting his hair in front of his vision. He paid no notice to anything around him save for where he would jump next.
Almost there.
He could see the revolving red and blue lights from police cars flickering against the bricked walls of nearby buildings. The air was filled with shouts, either of distress, curiosity or demanding order.
When he finally reached the abandoned building closest to the warehouse nearly complete and utter chaos met his penetrating gaze. Yellow tape hung semi-tight between buildings and waved and snapped from the wind. Groups of curious onlookers gathered behind the boundary lines and whispered amongst themselves at what could be going on.
His attention was directed above when a helicopter, undoubtedly a news helicopter, flew over head, creating even more wind and noise than was needed. Several armored trucks labeled 'Bomb Squad' were packed into the rundown parking lot of the warehouse and four S.W.A.T. trucks lined the edges of the asphalt. A S.W.A.T team, heavily armed with automatic rifles and at least one shot gun each, guarded a blockade where approaching emergency vehicles had to check in to enter the area.
Amongst the chaos riddled groups of emergency technicians and police force, fire engines randomly littered the premises along with at least two ambulances.
Behind the throngs of people were parked at the most three news reported vans, all with various reporters standing along side them and doing their job.
Good, Nightwing thought as he edged closer to the side of the building, this will pose a good enough distraction.
No one would even notice him.
Without a backward glance Nightwing jumped gracefully and silently down the rusty fire escape and surveyed his route.
He approached the warehouse from the side, down an alley, where he would be least likely to be noticed. There was no fire escape, and every window was either barred or paned with heavy thick glass. As far as he could tell, every known entrance into the warehouse was being watched by police force or S.W.A.T. This made his entrance a little more challenging, but not even near impossible.
Climbing back up the fire escape until he was positioned on the roof again, Nightwing took four long strides backwards and ran for the edge. His leap was clean and silent and unnoticed by all. He lightly touched down onto the warehouse roof and dove into a roll to slow his momentum.
Lingering in the crouching position, Nightwing edged across the roof, wary of the occasionally passing helicopter in case someone might see him and take it the very wrong way.
Now he knew that somewhere there was either a skylight with only slightly strengthened glass, not the wavy thick stuff lining the windows, or a hatch that would lead into the darkened interiors below. Just which one he would find, he didn't know. And he hoped it was the hatch because if it was glass he'd have to break it and risk drawing uncomfortable attention upon himself.
And of course, there was glass.
Silently cursing, Nightwing looked around him for a big heavy object and found a rusty old piped lying next to a big pile of long rusty pipes.
He peered into the darkness below, trying to discern if the drop was large or small. A faint light shone to the right, illuminating teetering piles of crates, some empty, some full. The drop was manageable.
Grimacing, he struck the glass heavily twice and it shattered noisily and dropped to the dusty floor with a violent crash. Hopefully, no one had heard the racket and Nightwing relied on the clamor from the crowd below to drown out the sound.
Suddenly remembering why he was here and who had brought him here, Nightwing jumped into the opening his heart beating with fury and anxiety.
The glass crunched beneath his boots as he landed and turned around, trying to see into the shadows.
"Hello Robin." A cheerful, but empty, voice said from the shadows.
Nightwing slowly turned around, his anger lingering close, far too close to the surface. Slade stepped forward, seeming to materialize right out of the shadows.
"Ah, I suppose I should call you Nightwing now."
His tone. Nightwing clenched his fists tightly his arms almost shaking with the effort it took to keep from lunging at Slade. Beating Slade to death would not tell him where Raven was. He might have done something to her that he couldn't reverse, that only Slade could reverse. No, for now, control your anger.
"Where is she?" Nightwing spat hating himself for having to actually ask the question, knowing that Slade wouldn't tell him even if it was in his dying breath. Slade enjoyed this power, this hold he had gained over Nightwing and he knew it was killing him.
"I believe where she is is hardly significant compared to how she is." Slade said, emphasizing the hidden meaning with all the silent evil that lurked within him. Nightwing's heart skipped a beat and his clenched fists loosened at those words. Those words. They could mean everything or nothing at all.
"If you lay one hand on her so help me-" He started, having an increasing difficulty to keep himself from lunging at the lunatic.
"An empty threat and you know it. She's no good to me dead. Incapacitated however..." Slade waved his hand in the air, signaling the unspoken threat.
Nightwing was cornered into defeat and both of them knew it. He had to back down. Slade could hurt Raven and he could never live with himself if that happened. But what scared him the most was how Slade was able to subdue her.
"What do you want?" Nightwing asked through gritted teeth.
beep
Slade stopped from answering at the small sound.
"Ah, we have visitors."
Nightwing swung around to look at the padlocked door. He could vaguely hear sounds of muffled talking and shuffling around on the other side.
"Until next time, Nightwing." Slade added quietly, almost at a whisper.
When Nightwing turned back around, he was gone.
He swore silently, berating himself for letting Slade get away again. But there was no time to go after him.
There was a bomb somewhere in this building and the police on their way in.
It wouldn't look so good if they found a mysterious masked man standing in the middle of everything.
Time to go.
Quickly, Nightwing scaled a pile of dangerously teetering crates and jumped, grabbing a chain before he plummeted to the floor.
They were in.
As fast as he could manage, he dragged himself back through the broken skylight as shouts rang out behind him.
He was seen.
Nightwing ran, no longer caring if the news helicopter saw him or if the people on the ground did.
He ran and jumped, completing the same pattern he had on his way over. People saw him, but he ran on. Some thought he was just a shadow, other a criminal, most never noticed.
He didn't stop until he reached his apartment.
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Teehee. Sorry for lack of depth and action, but hey, what can you do? Actually, little, I do all the plot writing. But honestly, I'm uber sorry you had to wait so long to get this chapter. That's why it may not be the best, since I wanted to get it to you guys as fast as possible. Though it was still incredibly slow. o.o' That and I was a little review-starved. teh. Anyhoo, prepare for the nearly-drawing end. I'd say maybe three more chapters, give or take one. And I still haven't typed anything up in regards to the sequel, but my ideas are just dropping out of my head. It's insane. :D Anyhoo, later!