Saying goodbye to the circus troupe was painful, especially since Dick's oblivious parents were present during the farewell party held last night. He had barely spoken a few words to the couple during his stay, and now he was leaving them altogether, possibly for good. He and Damian were aiming to return to their own world, a place where the only person remotely close to a parent figure was the unemotional Bruce Wayne.

Maybe it was for the best that he left, Dick thought to himself as he carried his and Damian's luggage to the stationed taxi car outside. They weren't really his parents, his had perished many years ago and there was nothing he could ever do to change that. If he felt guilty for seemingly replacing them with Bruce, then he would feel a totally new level of guilt if he had stayed in this universe. He had to let his old life go, and that meant his dead parents as well.

"We need to talk."

Dick nearly jumped; he had been so absorbed in his own thoughts that he didn't notice his 'brother', Robin, approach him. "I'm on a tight schedule..." Dick muttered, but set a bag of worn out clothes down at his feet. The worst thing about this new universe was his siblings- Dick never knew how to act around them. Mari seemed to like him just fine, he might even say that she adored him, but Robin seemed to always be planning his murder from afar. Dick didn't know what he did wrong, but he never brought it up. If Robin wanted to tell him what was going on, then he would. He didn't want to press him for answers and make the kid hate him even more.

"I just need to check something.. Here, I'll just take these-" As Dick opened his mouth to ask what he wanted, Robin swiped the sunglasses off of his face. Immediately, the two boys stiffened, for completely different reasons. "I knew you looked familiar!"

Dick's eyes widened, and he hurriedly took his shades back and shoved them onto his face. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he said quickly, looking around to make sure that no one saw his face.

"You can't fool me, Richard," Robin said coldly, crossing his arms. "What the hell are you doing back here?! I thought we had a deal!"

"...I seriously have no idea what you're talking about, Robin." Dick paused. "Wait. There is another me?!"

"Another you?" A growl. "I'm not going to fall for another one of your tricks! Not this time!"

"It's not a trick!" Dick exclaimed, the gears in his head whirling. "I'm guessing that you know the me from this universe, but I'm from a different one! I'm just trying to find a way back home."

Before Robin could explode at him, Dick launched into a full explanation, even going as far as telling him about his own universe to ensure that he was believed. By the end of the long story, Robin's face relaxed ever so slightly, a sign that he was no longer hostile. "Wow... Another universe. One where Dick isn't a dick..." he snorted at his own joke, and shook his head. "You've been entirely too nice to be Richard, so I guess I have no choice but to believe you. But you need to stay away from my parents. If they ever found out who you were, we would have a big problem."

Dick frowned at his statement, trying to piece together the mystery surrounding his alternate self. It seemed as though the Dick Grayson from this universe was a sore subject, but why? "What happened to me in this universe? You said that you made a deal with him, which means that he's still alive, right?"

"Yeah, he's around." Robin's eyes flashed with an emotion that Dick couldn't pinpoint. "But that's not a good thing, per say."

What was that supposed to mean? He was about to ask this out loud when a familiar voice shouted at him, "Father, I will leave without you if you do not appear within the next minute!" Damian announced, glaring at him from the taxi.

Dick looked over his shoulder. "Hang on, I'll be right there!" But when he turned back, Robin was gone. "I guess that runs in the family," he mused, though he was slightly put off. He was so close to finding out what happened to himself in this universe...

"Father!"

But that was something to dwell on another time. "Is it bad that I love hearing him call me that?" Dick asked himself before replying, "On my way!" He shouted.

With one last glance towards the circus tent, Dick turned on his heel and stalked towards the awaiting car.

xXx

Hours later, Nightwing found himself sticking to the shadows with a more familiar Robin at his side, both of them eyeing the warehouse they were sent to bust into. "We're in position," he whispered into his new communicator, not bothering to hide his distaste for the 'S' insignia printed on its shell. Ignoring those feelings for now, he activated his holo glove and rapidly typed in a series of commands. "Bypassing security now."

"Good," Deathstroke said in his earpiece. "Renegade and I are now in position as well. Give us the word."

Nightwing glanced down at Robin, who nodded firmly. "I'm ready to go home," he murmured, bringing out a birdarang. "So let's kick these wannabe Talons where it hurts, and return to where we belong."

Nightwing grinned. He enjoyed it when Damian didn't bother with being proper. "Right. Let's show everyone how the real Justice League handles things." He deactivated his glove and brought his hand back up to his earpiece. "Security has been successfully hacked."

"I just received word from L. It seems we might have encountered a snag in our scheme." It was Wally on the other line, this time. He was monitoring their progress from inside of a temporary base of operations, and was their eyes and ears when they didn't have time to scope out the scene themselves. He was also the messenger of L, the mysterious one-lettered leader of the Resistance. "We were promised inexperienced Talons; a simple inconvenience. Well, it looks like our information was wrong. Inside, you'll be facing the Court's top Talon, along with some of the lackeys we had already been expecting. It might be wise to retreat, but since it's Deathstroke leading this mission, I kinda doubt that's going to happen."

"Renegade and I have dealt with this one before. The two aliens may retreat if they wish, but I will not cower away."

Aliens? Nightwing bristled; okay, so they were from a different universe, but that didn't necessarily make them aliens... Did it? "Robin and I will remain in the field as well." He narrowed his eyes. "Someone has to keep an eye on the assassin."

There was a short chuckle from Deathstroke's side. "Ex-assassin, my stubborn ally. If you continue to be blinded by your hate for my alternate self, I must insist that you remain behind. Your emotions will only get in our way."

"We will be able to contain our disgust, for now," Robin hissed, joining in on the conversation. "Now if we're done with this pointless bickering, are we finally going to fight our actual enemy?"

"The kid's right," Wally chimed in. "We're on a tight schedule. If the Court reboots their security before we're done they'll call in back up, and you four will be captured and will likely experience the sensation of being decapitated. As fun as that sounds, I wouldn't recommend it." There was a clicking noise in the background. "Okay, I'm looking at the security footage now. The boss man seems to be speaking with someone, using some sort of communication device."

"Of course the Court would break their own laws," Robin muttered.

Wally snorted. "Well joke's on them, because we can use that to our advantage. That Talon, Chicken, as I like to call him, is in a separate room. The other six are patrolling in the main chamber, just wandering around. There are two stationed in front of the storage room, which happens to be our destination. If you can silently take down each of the lackeys and get the equipment without alerting Chicken, then hallelujah, you've got yourselves a one way ticket back to your fairytale universe."

"Understood," Deathstroke said firmly.

"Yeah, we got it, KF."

"... If that stands for what I think it stands for, I'll give you a bloody nose."

Nightwing smiled and removed his hand from the device. "Alright little D, let's go. We're going to take them out, Gotham style."

Robin smirked, and brought his hood over his head. "They won't know what hit them," he said confidently, hugging the wall while he moved towards the nearest window. Nightwing kept a careful watch on their surrounding while the younger hero climbed into the building, and after a few seconds, Nightwing joined him.

Robin pulled him to the side the moment he entered, and Nightwing held his breath as a Talon walked past their hiding spot behind a gun rack. Robin nudged his side, and Nightwing nodded his head in compliance with the silent question. Robin smirked and in a blur of colors, he came up behind the retreating Talon and jumped up to cover his mouth and nose. Nightwing joined him just in time to catch the man as he fell unconscious, and the two heroes dragged the body behind the rack for safe keeping.

One down, five more to go.

The remaining Talons fell in similar ways, either by the heroes' hands, or the ex-assassins'. It only took a few minutes for them to knock out every single soldier, though the two standing in front of the storage room were slightly difficult. That was, until Renegade threw a canister of knockout gas in front of them.

"Excellent work," Wally told them as Nightwing picked the room's lock. "If I were there, I might have offered some high-fives. But, as it is, I'm not the field kind of guy." Nightwing resisted the urge to snort. "Okay, inside there is a large crate labeled: Extraterrestrial Weaponry. It is extremely fragile, and if you drop it, losing your head will seem pretty mild compared to the death you'll experience."

The door swung open, and the group was met with a small room filled with boxes. In the corner, like KF had said, was the crate they were looking for. "Allow me," Deathstroke said, kneeling down to pick it up.

"No, allow me," an unfamiliar voice said from behind them.

Robin suddenly cried out in pain, and before Nightwing knew it, the boy was on his knees, pulling a dagger out of his shoulder. "No!" Nightwing exclaimed, eyes widening. He moved towards his injured comrade, but he was pushed out of the way by Renegade, which saved him from experiencing a knife being embedded in his neck.

"Talon..." Deathstroke murmured. "The Talon."

"Oh, I earned a 'The'? I'm honored that you hold me in such high respect, Slade." There was a lifeless chuckle.

Nightwing spun around to finally face this enemy. The man was around his height, had a similar build, but every other feature was hidden by his uniform. "So you're the famous Talon we've heard about," Robin said, shakily getting back up to his feet. Nightwing felt his worry intensify as he studied his little brother. He was pale, already had a line of sweat going down his face, and his wound...

"Yep," the Talon popped the 'p' sound, and Nightwing could hear his smug grin. "Famous, and I get a The? Wow, I'm moving far in my career." He reached behind his back and pulled a sword out. "Well, I didn't get this far from my good looks alone. Prepare to meet your end, intruders."

Deathstroke growled. "Do you actually know how to use that sword, boy?" He snarled, drawing his own.

There was another laugh. "Again with the theatrics, old man? You should've stayed at home with your little traitor." He tilted his head. "After all, it was only because of your sidekick that you got away last time..."

Deathstroke narrowed his eyes before launching himself forward, crashing into Talon and pushing him out of the room. Renegade immediately brought his hand up to his comm, speaking calmly, "We are locked in battle with the problematic Talon. Requesting backup, now." He paused as if listening to someone, but Nightwing couldn't hear Wally in his own comm. Odd. "No, that is not possible at this time, the device is at too much risk... Yes, the two aliens are here."

Nightwing froze, staring at Renegade long and hard. Did he hear that right? His voice... now that he thought about it, it sounded so familiar. And, who was he talking to? It obviously wasn't Wally, since he already knew that he and Damian were involved in the raid. But if not him, then who?

Dick studied Deathstroke's partner for a moment longer, before one crucial detail finally caught his eye. Renegade wasn't wearing any shoes.

Dark skin... familiar voice... no shoes... good with a sword...

"Kaldur," he breathed, taking a step backwards. Normally, seeing a familiar face would bring him joy during these dark times, but this Kaldur was not his ally. He wasn't even Deathstroke's ally!

Ironically, he should have seen this coming; the presence of a Renegade always meant that someone would be betrayed.

"You must have encountered your universe's version of myself," Rene- Kaldur said quietly, carefully drawing one of his swords and falling into a fighting stance. "And just like yours, you must have deduced that I am also a member of the Justice League."

"How could you, Kal?" Dick hissed, masked eyes searching his friend's face for any sign of remorse. He found none. "The League executes their criminals, something that you and I both vowed against. That's not justice, it's cold blooded vengeance!"

"I am not the man you know, Grayson. Unlike my counterpart, I am not the fool who believes in pitiful moral codes."

Nightwing wasn't sure who moved first, but all too soon he had found himself blocking blows from the other man, and using any opening he could find to retaliate. Kaldur quickly gained the upper hand, but what he didn't know was that Dick knew his fighting style like the back of his hand.

"Yield!" The Atlantian shouted, aiming for the hero's ribcage. As the sword came around to his side, Nightwing sprang into the air and came down just in time to land on the blade. Kaldur's masked eyes widened fractionally in surprise, and Dick smirked as he back flipped off, swinging his feet into Renegade's jaw as he did so, successfully knocking him onto his back. Kaldur seemed to have lost his grip on his weapon during his fall, for it sat a few inches to its wielder's left.

Nightwing snatched it up before Kaldur could so much as twitch, and the hero pointed it at his enemy's chest. "Give it up, Kal. It doesn't have to be like this."

Renegade simply glared up at him. "I will not surrender. You will have to end my life, or I will end yours."

"Actually, that honor is mine." Dick spun around to face the owner of the voice, and cried out in pain as a small dagger was shoved into his right shoulder. "Nightwing, is it?" The Talon suddenly dropped to the floor, and balanced on his hands as he kicked Dick's feet out from under him. "I've heard so many things about you..."

Nightwing grit his teeth as he flipped himself over and jumped back up to his feet. "Well, I think I can say I'm a lot more handsome in person," he joked, though his voice held a pained tone. "Stronger, too."

The Talon tilted his head. "Ah, there are those childish antics I've been warned about." He pulled out another dagger, and threw it in the air absent mindedly. "It's been a while since I've met someone who appreciates the art of a good joke." He then caught it by it's hilt perfectly, and pretended to examine it before thrusting it towards Dick's stomach. Nightwing jumped back just as the tip of the blade ripped through his uniform.

"You remind me of a clown that I left back at home." Dick twisted out of the way of another jab, grabbing his wrist and pulling his arm back at an awkward angle. Before he could break it, the Talon surprised him by pulling him forward into yet another blade. Their close proximity made it impossible to dodge, and Nightwing soon had several inches of a knife being shoved into his stomach.

Needless to say, Dick lost his grip on the arm he wanted to break.

"We're more alike than you would think." Talon bent backwards into a handstand, kicking the underside of Nightwing's chin as he brought his feet back to the ground. Dick stumbled backwards from the blow; he didn't expect to be hit by one of his own moves. Just who was this guy? "The difference between you and I? One, I don't wear tights." In a blur of black, he sped forward and slammed a fist into his opponent's chest with all of his might. The force of impact finally knocked the hero off of his feet, and he landed not too far away from Renegade. "Two, I never wasted precious training time by training with Deathstroke or Batman. You, however, seemed to have blended their moves together and called it your own style. Not only is that pretty lame, but your lack of originality makes you weak."

Dick used his elbows to lift his torso off of the ground, wincing as he upset his wounded stomach. How did Talon know that he worked with both Batman and Deathstroke? That should have been impossible; there were only a handful of people who knew about that in his universe. Someone from here should have been clueless to his origins.

"Grayson..."

Dick finally remembered Damian, and he looked over to where he last left the kid. Immediately, his stomach dropped. Robin was huddled against the farthest wall, clutching his wounded shoulder as he tried to control his shivering. His face was slightly green, as if he were ill, and that same color tinted the edges around his wound. That blade had been laced with poison.

"Dami!" Dick brought his hands to the ground in order to push himself back up, but he was forced to stop by Talon, who pushed him back onto his back with one of his feet. Nightwing felt panic blossom in his chest; he had to help Damian! He would die if he didn't get the right treatment.

"That's another reason why I'm better than you, Grayson." The way his surname was spat brought shivers down Dick's spine. "We do not share the weakness of caring for others. I have learned many years ago that caring brings you no where."

"What a cliche thing to say." Nightwing wrapped his hands around Talon's ankle, and used all of his strength to try and push him off.

"Perhaps..." Talon added pressure on Nightwing's chest, causing the other man to squeeze his eyes shut. "But I'm just looking out for you. Those who I used to care about only left me in the dust. My family, my friends, they abandoned me without a second thought." He slowly removed his foot, and stood off to the side. Dick groaned and gingerly brought his hand up to where Talon's foot had just occupied. Oh yeah, that definitely left a bruise.

"That's no excuse to do what you have been doing." He sat up once more, eyeing the man warily. "It's not right to make everyone else pay for what has been done to you."

There was a short, disbelieving laugh. "Of course it's right! My experience has taught me that everyone in this damned world is exactly the same, so why should I care?" He crossed his arms over his chest, studying the other. "And the funny thing is, you would have learned the same thing if your parents hadn't died."

Dick's blood ran cold. "How do you know about that?!"

The Talon snorted. "I'm surprised you didn't figure it out already. Honestly, for the sidekick of the World's Greatest Detective, you're a bit slow. Do I really have to spell it out for you?" He brought his hand up to the top of his mask, and swiftly pulled it away.

When Dick caught sight of who he had been fighting, it felt like a punch to the gut. The smirking figure standing above him... was him. Messy black hair stuck up all over the place on his head, sharp blue eyes watched his every move, even his nose was perfectly identical.

If Dick didn't know better, he would have claimed that he had only been looking at some sort of warped reflection. "You're... me?" His eyes moved around his face, hoping to spot any sign of being incorrect.

"Mm. Richard Grayson, prodigal son of the Flying Graysons, given to the Court of Owls as a gift." He rolled his eyes. "And you are also Richard Grayson, though you still prefer to go by Dick. Your parents were murdered when you were eight, and you were adopted by Bruce Wayne as his ward. At age nine, you became Robin, the first official sidekick of the Justice League, and at eighteen, you quit. In between becoming that and becoming Nightwing, you were kidnapped by-"

Dick found himself suddenly standing in front of his counterpart, holding him by the throat. "Don't," he hissed, glaring daggers at the smirking villain. "Don't talk about that."

Talon simply smiled, in effected by his rage. "Your history as Renegade is a touchy subject, isn't it? There were several instances where you learned under Deathstroke... but it was the time after adulthood that haunts you the most. I have always wondered why." Before Dick could angrily lash out, Richard grabbed him by the shoulders and headbutted him to knock him off balance. As Nightwing stumbled back, Talon jumped into the air and delivered a spin kick to the side of his face.

Dick quickly became reacquainted with the ground.

"How do you know so much about me?" He ground out, trying to ignore his pounding headache.

"Because the Court of Owls has created a device that enables us to watch over other universes. We have no interest in crossing over to one, but we keep an eye out for possible recruits that aren't in our own world." He shrugged. "I mostly watch the other versions of myself; there seems to be some consistency in what happens to them. Either we join the Court, Batman, or Deathstroke." He grinned. "Or in your case, the last two."

Dick glanced over at Damian, whose head was drooped over one of his shoulders, unconscious. Not good. They had to get out of there, fast. Wally had to have noticed that they ran into trouble; there must have been backup on the way. If Dick kept Richard talking, then there was still a chance of getting out of there alive.

"And I just so happened to be sent here?"

"I can assure you that the Joker coincidentally sent you to this universe. Like I said, we don't travel to other worlds." He shook his head at him. "And why would I have you sent here, out of all of our counterparts? I will admit that you're story in somewhat interesting, but that's it." Richard took out something that looked like a smoke pellet. Dick felt relieved; if Talon was escaping, then that meant he could finally go help Damian. "Well this has been fun, but the Justice League is a few seconds away from breaking in, and even I can't win against all of them at once."

Dick froze. How could he forget that Kaldur called in the League?!

"Au revoir," Richard brought his mask over his head and dropped his pellet.

Instead of smoke, knockout gas filled the air. Dick made the mistake of taking in a sharp breath of surprise, and so his lungs were immediately filled with gas. As the room began to blur, the sound of shouts and footsteps leading towards the room rang in his ears. The League was there, and they were all helpless. He had no idea where Deathstroke was, but Robin was unconscious, Dick was seconds away from joining him, and even if Kaldur had been awake, he would be knocked out soon as well.

"Bats, the two escaped prisoners are in here!"

Dick allowed his eyes to fall closed.

xXx

AN: Several plot twists, all wrapped up in one chapter! :D

Thanks for all of your reviews from last chapter! I'll see you all next time!