Disclaimer: Police drag me by the ear and in front of a keyboard Ok, ok...sheesh. I don't own the Titans or Batman or any characte associated with DC. There happy now. Police nod a yes
A/N: My muse is kicking me in my derriere to write this chapter cause I'm way past the deadline. I know, I told you guys that I would warn ya but something big came up and I've been feeling a bit under the weather lately. But I'm getting better. Yet, I shall tell you know February is going to be my crazy month with a bunch of deadlines popping up everywhere. So don't be surprised if I don't update regularly. I haven't fallen off of the planet, even though it might feel like it. I'll try and sneak in some chapters if I have time but don't count on it. Thanks for reading this huge blurb. My muse is now glaring at me to write this chapter.
Ch. 15: Breather
The Batmobile skidded to a complete stop. Leaping out of the car, the Dark Knight bounded up through the small forest. He knew Robin would no longer be there, but that didn't mean the trail was cold. And he still had to save Batgirl and Two-Face. How the villain figured in all of this, he couldn't figure out yet.
Finally, bursting into the small opening, Batman glanced around the open field. The police where still tending to the pile-up a couple miles down the road, buying him some time with this new wreckage. A few feet away, he made out the over-turned bank truck, with two bodies lying on the ground. Taking a step forward, he heard a small moan to his left. Turning around, he spotted Two-Face pinned to a tree. Running over, he fought back his surprise at the amount of blood that pooled at the base of the tree. Two-Face's rich purple face was now a dull sickly shade.
"…Harvey…"
Two-Face cracked opened an eye, barely hearing Batman's whisper. "Batman…"
Wrapping an arm around the fallen villain, Batman hoisted the man up to ease the bleeding on the tree as he eyed each of the sharp daggers in the man's hands and legs. "Everything is going to be fine, Harvey."
Two-Face choked out a harsh laugh, "Yeah right Bats." Then he faded into the back, and Harvey Dent turned his eyes to the masked man, "Batman…the guy…said his name was…Reaper…"
Batman's gut twisted at the mention of Robin's new alias. Swallowing, he shifted Two-Face and began examining the other side, "I know."
Harvey smiled, "Was out…doing one more grand…theft…you know…retirement…"
Batman eyed the ground and spotted a solid log of wood lying nearby. "Hang in there, Harvey."
Easing the man down, Batman sprinted towards the log, hearing Two-Face's hissing as the daggers dug back into his veins and muscles. Dragging the log back, Batman hosted Two-Face again and pushed the log underneath the man's feet. "I can't remove any of the daggers because the bleeding will only increase. Standing on this log will help relive the pressure. You'll have to hang in there till the medics show up ok." Not hearing an answer, Batman saw the criminals eyes begin to drift. Slapping the man awake, Batman snarled, "Don't you dare go to sleep."
Two-Face regained conscious and spat at Batman's face, "Like I would give up that easily! That brat…grnh, is gonna pay!"
Batman nodded slightly, relief evident that Two-Face wouldn't give up that easily. Kneeling down, he pulled out a small blowtorch and began to cut away the protruding spikes on two of the daggers. Watching the last tiny metal piece fall to the ground, he replaced the small tool and turned to find Batgirl. As he left, Batman sighed a breath he didn't know he was holding. Just preventing more bleeding was not the only reason he had not pried out the daggers. Robin had placed the two daggers he had worked on extremely close to the man's main arteries. If he had pulled out one of those daggers, one of the two other edges on the blade would nick the artery to cause enough bleeding to kill Two-Face. The boy was precise in where the daggers landed and it made Batman's gut twist. It was the work of a killer, not a superhero that had pinned Two-Face to the tree and made him live long enough for Batman to examine him.
Finally reaching the overturn truck, Batman quickly spotted Batgirl's form. Kneeling in front of the girl, the lenses quickly assessed her body. Broken leg, left wrist snapped, cracked ribs, a concussion due to a powerful kick to the head, dark bruises everywhere, not mentioning the tiny cuts scattered across her body. Not only that, she was unmasked. Her red hair was splashed against the dark green grass; her pale feminine features a soft glow in the rising sun. The pointy-ear mask lay strewn next to her, the microphone crushed beyond repair.
"Robin, what have you-" Hearing a siren approaching, he quickly scooped up Batgirl and halted in his tracks. For the first time, he took in the six bodies lying on the ground. Instinct ordered Batman to draw Batgirl's battered body closer to his, as if waiting for the murderer to jump out of the shadows and finish off his kill. The cop cars and ambulance screeched to a halt above the Dark Knight. Sprinting into the woods, he signaled to the Batmobile to fire up and send a code back to the cave to tell Alfred that medical assistance was needed.
-Jump City-
Robin stared hard at the computer screen, watching for anything suspicious. When the Titans suddenly appeared, he knew right away something had happened. The Titans were lost as him and all they knew was to keep an eye out and make sure he didn't leave their sight. Taking a deep breath, the robot stretched his back. It had been eerily calm when the Titans had left to go with Batman somewhere in Europe.
"Almost like the calm before the storm…"
Suddenly the lights flashed neon red. The screen popped up a window showing Mad Mob with Kitten and Killer Moth destroying most of downtown Jump City. Another window soon popped up and showed that Jump's prison swarming with inmates breaking free. Throughout the city itself, traffic lights were going haywire, TV broadcasts where flickering in and out and computers were crashing.
"Virus."
Cyborg and the other Titans ran into the main chamber.
Beastboy eyed the chaos, his mouth dropping, "Whoa!"
Robin felt his senses flare to life. This was his chance. Shoving all the recent problems and emotional distress to the side, he forced a stern expression and faced the group, "Alright, Titans, the battle has begun. This might be what Batman wanted us to prepare for. Cyborg try to fix the electronic glitches in order to stop the virus that is infecting the city. Starfire and Beastboy catch Killer Moth, Kitten and Mad Mob. Raven, you come with me and we'll stop any more prisoners from escaping."
The Titans just eyed Robin with surprise. The robot frowned, "What?"
"Nothing, you…" Cyborg just shook his head and gave his biggest grin, "Yes sir."
A true smile lightened Robin's features, "Alright, Titans go!"
-----
A family van came to a stop outside a small gas station located just past the city limits of Jump City. A balding man swallowed and pushed his thick-framed glasses up his nose. Across from him, his aging but pretty, petite wife reached out and grabbed her husband's hand. Behind them, sat two young children, their eyes wide with confusion and fear. The small, average family was on their way to Gotham, to finally rest at home after a long five-day road trip down the coast.
Sadly, the father never expected to slam on his brakes when a young man stepped out onto the intersection from out of nowhere. Without warning, the man jumped into the car and ordered the man to drive onto the other side of the interstate and head back to Jump City. The man couldn't resist, not with the boy probably pointing a gun at his head and his children in the car. Not mention that "I'll kill you if you make one wrong move" aura surrounding the stranger.
His jaw shaking, the man unlocked the door, "We're here."
Cold, blue eyes tilted up and stared at him through the rear view mirror. "You did good." Turning, the man ruffled on of the children's red hair, "You should be proud of your dad, kid. He's a brave man and knows where his priorities are."
With that, he slide out of the car and ran into an ally, disappearing from sight, leaving behind a family reaching for each other, crying out their fears.
Reaper made his way through the tiny ally, his mind playing his options. He would have to act fast with Batman now hot on his trail. He didn't know what came over him when he had heard Batman asking for Batgirl. All he knew was that this sudden urge to talk to his once mentor and father overrode all his senses. The conversation was still fresh in his mind, the sound of desperation of Batman so profound even though it was hard to pick out. All types of emotions that he knew would come did tenfold. Rage, sorrow, guilt, joy, hope…Yet the mission was first, the emotions dying quickly. Besides, Batman was too late, as always.
"Well, you got his attention, that's what you always wanted, now deal with the consequences," whispered the familiar dark conscience.
Nodding to himself, Reaper skidded to a halt when a loud commotion reached his ears. Peeking out into the street, he watched as cars were honking at each other and people in buildings yelling at computers.
The villain laughed, "Durin sure does know how to provide distractions."
Spotting a tiny post office down the road, Reaper allowed himself a smirk underneath his mask. Adrenaline was pumping in his veins, a roar over the echo of his conversation with Batman. Spotting his chance, he ran out and jumped upon onto the hoods of the jammed cars. People snarled threats up at him, but him merely ignored them, landing on the other side in a dead run. He almost reached the office when he heard the cry of a hawk. Darting into the shadows of a dumpster, he glared upwards. A familiar green hawk flew over the traffic, a red-hair girl, her eyes glowing following behind. The two Titans flew onward, their concentration on capturing the three criminals.
Reaper just crouched in the shadows. He knew the cost was clear. The Titans had a one-track mind. And it seemed—counting the seconds after Starfire and Beastboy flew by—that the rest of the Titans were else where in the city. Reaper knew he should get up and mail off the pouch he had stolen, but something stopped him now. Pulling out the object in question, he stared down at the seal, a gloved finger running smoothly over it…a cold glint entering his eyes. Fifteen minutes later, he walked up to the small post office as a regular Joe, slides the pouch in a yellow envelope and mailed it off Lex Corps.
----
Arriving at the jail, Raven puffed out a burst of air, enough to ruffle her dark purple hood, and began her way into the prison. Behind her, Robin turned off his motorcycle and ran up to join her, his bow staff fully extended.
"Azerath Mentron Zinthos." Raven lifted her arms, her eyes glowing white. A group of prisoners spotted her and sprinted back into the prison. It was nice when the bad guys decided to play along for a change. Closing all the escapes with bended metal, she saw in the corner of her eyes, the fake Robin flipping in between the villains, his bowstaff spinning widely while driving them back into prison.
When the last man flew hard into the back wall, the others groaning in pain, Robin slammed the door shut. Raven summoned a metal bar and the dark magic weaved the bar through the handles, sealing the men inside.
Sighing, the dark haired woman turned to her companion. "Where to know?"
Robin wiped his forehead, the bowstaff collapsing on itself, "Find the prisoners that are now running around in the city. We'll need to split up if we want to catch all of them."
Raven frowned, "But Batman said we're not suppose to split up, especially with you."
"I know," snapped Robin. Frustration flashed on his face before sliding back into neutral. Masked eyes gazed downwards, "Sorry, Raven. I didn't mean to snap at you…it's just that…"
Floating forward, Raven landed lightly and placed a hand of the robot's shoulder. "I know." Glancing down at the ground, the sorceress continued, her eyes shimmering in with a hint of emotion. "If it wasn't for me not noticing that the bond was missing and everything exploding out of proportion, then you wouldn't…"
"Feel so helpless, useless…not human…"
"I wasn't going to say that."
"But you were thinking it."
Raven bit back a groan and slide her hand off his shoulder, "I'm not good with speaking or dealing with my emotions yet. But, I am sorry. It's not your fault, none of this is. And if anything else, I'm glad that you are here in our most dire situation. I'm glad to see that you've gotten your spunk back." With that, she offered the raven-haired robot a smile.
Robin gazed upwards and raised an eyebrow, smirking back, "Don't smile…it's kinda creepy."
Raven almost raised her arm to slap the boy but just held it back. Robin grinned even wider. "Thanks Rae."
"You're welcome."
Eyeing his cycle, Robin continued, "Then you know why I want to go my own way."
"To prove yourself."
"Yes."
"Just…be careful…"
Robin flashed another smirk at her, "Careful is my middle name."
With that said, he ran towards the cycle and in the next couple of seconds roared back into the city. Raven floated upwards and watched him disappear before heading back in the city in another direction.
Robin veered through the traffic, not looking for any escaped convicts but instead making his way back to Titans Tower. Something was bothering him. His gut was singing out a tune that made his body sit on the edge of explosion. The whole ordeal was off. It wasn't just a virus; it was a cover-up. His head ached and a sharp, crisp S flared to life before him.
The image faded back into nothingness, leaving the robot to grit his teeth and speed up. He now knew who was behind in this, why he felt the familiar feeling of dread.
"Slade."
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And I shall leave you at that. What was Reaper doing in the spare time? What will robot Robin do at the Tower? Just wait and see, but I will let you know this. The next chapter is the one I've been itching to write. What does this all mean, you ask. It means that I'll be writing when I should be doing more important things. Hahaha. Well, it's getting late. Later!
