The team works well with Gray who has been fitting right back in with the team. But still, something isn't right. That's according to Wally.
Bruce is relaxing at the manor. He hears a bang at the door. When he goes to answer it, it's Wally West. "Not for a minute do I believe that is Dick. Gray is not him, it can't be. I was there! Dick died! He was killed! Yet you are letting this stranger into the cave and run missions!"
"Wallace, I would expect you to be glad for Dick being back. He is you're-"
"My best friend had my mind erased 3 years ago under the order of the Light. I don't think so. That recreation you still have the guts to call your son planned two captures and escapes perfectly under the order of the Court. He distorted the team with games and set up multiple playgrounds to distract us from whatever the light was doing. He was letting them use him to manipulate us! He may or may not be the murderer, but he sure as hell is not my best friend or your son! Do you really think he's on our side?"
"I think he always has-"
"Then tell me why he'd do the things he's done?"
"To protect who he loves."
"Dick was all about that, but this isn't Dick we are talking about. It's Gray. Open you're eyes. That Talon isn't Richard John Grayson, he isn't your ward, he isn't my best friend. Richard was shot down in the field. He died a hero. He was secretive but those games of his... They aren't his." And Wally speeds away from the manor.
At home, Wally can't stop thinking about Dick... He friend, the last time he saw the 15 year old...
"Is the plan clear." Said Kaldur.
"Crystal." Robin responds with a smirk. In the past two years, his voice had gotten deeper, not too much. He's grown maybe an inch or two. He's still always technically been the more mentally mature one of the group, no matter how much he'd never show or admit it. He's seen more.
Robin and Kid Flash split from the team. They patrol their side, Kaldur is near by. "So how are you and Barbara?" Wally ask.
"I ain't no say and tell!"
"Oh come on!"
"Well she digs the fact... No I'm not telling you."
"What? Digs what?"
"Big secret stunt being pulled." Robin pulls something out of his belt and tosses it to Wally.
"What?"
"Only watch it of you really feel the need to. Like... Really really feel the need to."
"Why? What is it?"
"My first job." He says walking with his arms out at the edge of the cliff. The mission is in the mountains. Quite interesting.
"Dude..."
"Seriously, I think I'll never get to live it down if you watch for fun."
"Right."
"Robin, Kid!" Kaldur yells to get their attention. "Did you hear a voice?" Robin takes a few steps forward.
"I've heard you and Robin and nothing in my head. No."
"I guess I was-" before Robin can finish, Kaldur and Wally both see the bullet. It was silent, but it hits Robin in the chest, making him take a step back for useless balance. Another one hits right below his neck.
"Robin..."
"Robin!" Wally yells. Robin falls back, off the cliff. Wally doesn't watch the fall. It's to steep to run and try to catch Robin. Besides, he saw where the bullet hit. Tears run down both teen's cheeks as they realize that Robin was gone right then and there. The bullet hit the heart directly. The second hit below the neck.
Both Wally and Kaldur are frozen in time. Wally finally peeks over to see where the body landed, Kaldur can't do it. Wally is up though and he runs with his speed to the the flat area where Robin was laying. His eyes were open, there was blood, lots of blood from the wounds, his head and other areas from the fall. Blood tickled down his nose and mouth. He was glaring at nothing. "R-Robin." He gasps. "Dick... Y-you can't- you can't go!" Wally's face is full of grief and millions of different kinds of sadness. He takes off Robin's mask to see the pearly blue eyes glaring at nothing. Wally lets out another sob. "Please no..." He cries. "Please don't be real..."
*Kid Flash and Robin, we need you here! What are you doing?! Why did Kaldur drop the link?* Garfield yells through the link.
*wait... Robin isn't up either.* M'gann says.
*Kid Flash, Robin! Not the time to fool around and play-*
*Stop! STOP! Damnit! Hero down! Robin... H-he's...* he can't seem to finish.
*Elaborate his injuries. I can bring him to the-*
*HE'S DEAD!* Wally yells in link. *He was shot twice and went down... He was killed by the shots. He fell from the cliff... I'm next to him.* Wally sounds panicked and hurt. *Theres so much blood...* he cries on link. *I can't carry the body up. The side is to steep. I'll have trouble even on my own. You guys need me right now, we will come back for him.* Everything is silent on link. "I'll be right back... It's what you'd do, you'd fight till the end no matter what." Wally meets the team. Most is down. He finishes it off. Once done, they all stand still. Conner puts his arm around M'gann as she sobs. Garfield is crying. Zatanna is on her knees with Artemis next to her, also with tears streaming. Kaldur is on his own. Garth has his arm around Tula. Wally and Rocket are also by themselves.
"Someone come with me to bring the bio ship down to grab him... We'll lay him in the infirmary."
"Don't forget to shut his eyes, it's respectful." Wally mumbles.
Garth decided to go. He's only known Robin a year. When Garth gets to the spot under where Kaldur had the bio, he see the body. Blood is everywhere. He reaches down to pick up the body but discovers it's a hologram. Garth gasps and looks around. A drop of blood is seen. *Someone took him...*
That's the last clear thing Wally remembers. He remembers when he was with Robin's body, he held his hand, it wasn't a hologram. The other stuff was a distraction so the courts can take his body.
"Dick, what are you doing here? Batman is hunting you basically. Your going to far."
"Batman didn't show any of you the notes."
"What notes?"
"Hmm..."
"Dick, we are friends. You can't be doing this alone."
"We aren't friends, Wally. I lied to you. I'm not doing this for the advantage of the team or league. I never was. But it doesn't matter to you. Not anymore. Batman can't know. Not yet anyways. Non of you can until everything is ready. You'll remember what the rest of the team remembers. But you won't know who Is behind my mask. You'll remember Robin being dead like he's meant to be."
"What are you talking about?"
Psimon walks out of the shadows. Gray isn't seen. But Wally feels punches up his back. "Dick!" Wally says as he falls to the ground, unable to move. His hair is grabbed and he is facing Gray who removes the mask. "Why? Why betray your family?"
"My family is dead."
"Batman trained you. We were all your friends."
"You don't know as much as you think you know about me. I'm a Talon. Always meant to be."
"Your just another villain. Or worse... An assassin."
"And what are you going to do about it? Lecture me? You won't remember."
"Whatever it is planned by the Light and Court... You won't get away with it. In the end your the next criminal we lock up because you chose to be."
"That's cute." Dick drops Wally's head down. "Do it."
"Your parents would be disappointed. You know that! Robin was meant to be the honored memory but you betrayed that!"
"You know nothing."
"You know I'm right."
"I'm whelmed... But your wrong."
"Do you think he's already told?" Asks Psimon.
"No. He wouldn't do that."
"And if I did?"
"But you didn't, did you."
"Dick, please. You have another chance! I may not know what your motives are but they aren't good."
"Psimon, I said do it."
"Very well." Psimon sighs and pulls his hood down. Wally feels the intrusion but is soon out cold.
When he wakes up, he doesn't remember anything about Dick being Gray.
Something M'gann did brought back the memory. He knew then that it wasn't really Dick.
Wally lays in bed thinking about it all. But he can't sleep, finally, he gets up and walks to the dresser. A lot of Artemis' jewelry is still out, but on his sit he has a box. Under the box he grabs the key. Inside is the flash drive that Dick gave him mere seconds before he was shot. On the lid is a note quoting what Robin had told him. "Only watch it if you really feel the need to." Four years later and he hasn't touched it. Wally grabs the small device and the grabs his laptop. He goes to the living room and lays on the couch, opening his lap top, he sticks the device in the USB port and clicks on the pop up for it.
A video begins. The after credits to Tinker Bell. Wally becomes curious but watches until the end. ((I'm sorry but when I was on elementary school, I loved Jesse McCartney and now my favorite show had him voice my favorite character so... Yeah!)) A song starts playing with a music video staring the characters.
*I am not a child now.
I can take care of myself.
I must'nt let them down now.
I must'nt let them see me cry...
'Cause I'm fine... I'm fine...*
Tears stream down Wally's face as he listens. He lets out a sob. He sets those few minutes on repeat and falls asleep on the couch.
((Dramatic repeat))
"Big secret stunt being pulled." Robin pulls something out of his belt and tosses it to Wally.
"What?"
"Only watch it of you really feel the need to. Like... Really really feel the need to."
"Why? What is it?"
"My first job." He says walking with his arms out at the edge of the cliff. The mission is in the mountains. Quite interesting.
"Dude..."
"Seriously, I think I'll never get to live it down if you watch for fun."
"Right."
"Robin, Kid!" Kaldur yells to get their attention. "Did you hear a voice?" Robin takes a few steps forward.
"I've heard you and Robin and nothing in my head. No."
"I guess I was-" before Robin can finish, Kaldur and Wally both see the bullet. It was silent, but it hits Robin in the chest, making him take a step back for useless balance. Another one hits right below his neck.
"Robin..."
"Robin!" Wally yells. Robin falls back, off the cliff. Wally doesn't watch the fall. It's to steep to run and try to catch Robin. Besides, he saw where the bullet hit. Tears run down both teen's cheeks as they realize that Robin was gone right then and there. The bullet hit the heart directly. The second hit below the neck.
Both Wally and Kaldur are frozen in time. Wally finally peeks over to see where the body landed, Kaldur can't do it. Wally is up though and he runs with his speed to the the flat area where Robin was laying. His eyes were open, there was blood, lots of blood from the wounds, his head and other areas from the fall. Blood tickled down his nose and mouth. He was glaring at nothing. "R-Robin." He gasps. "Dick... Y-you can't- you can't go!" Wally's face is full of grief and millions of different kinds of sadness. He takes off Robin's mask to see the pearly blue eyes glaring at nothing. Wally lets out another sob. "Please no..." He cries. "Please don't be real..."
Wally wakes up in the morning, the song is still repeating. He turns it off and pulls his hands through his hair.
At the manor, Bruce is thinking long and hard about what Wally said. It doesn't make sense though. If it's now Dick, that who is it? Who can get on the soft side of Batman? How would such a good imposter be possible?
Bruce goes to the Bat-cave. On the computer, he does what he's never had the guts to do. There were cameras on that mission. His guess were they were put out, considering they took the so said body. But he only used that lame excuse because he didn't want to see it. He has gotten so angry, his heart was filled with so much grief and vengeance. But now it's all been questioned. He knows if he watches this and confirms the death, it may just be true that he's been fooled by Gray. But he doesn't want to... He doesn't want another person gone in his life.
Bruce finds some footage that was caught. He finds a few images of Robin and Kid Flash. He clicks on one with the last image of Robin.
Kid Flash and Robin were talking about Barbara. Dick tosses something to Wally, a flash drive. Bruce pauses and scrolls in on it. A music note is on the cover. It's one of the three songs Dick did for a few movies. Bruce zooms out and continues. Kaldur gets the attention of both teens. Wally explains that he's heard nothing. The Robin opens his mouth up to speak but only gets a few words out before he is shot in the heart. Less than two seconds later, he is shot again below the neck. Tears run down Bruce's cheeks as he watches. ((Done repeating the event, just making sure y'all are reading and to point out something for the next chapter. Point made, almost! Sorry for a few corrupted twists though I made last minute.))
Bruce is glad Alfred and Tim are both gone. It's been colder lately. Ever since yesterday when Wally confronted Bruce. Wherever he goes, it feels ten degrees colder in the manor. Probably an illusion by his own mind at the thought. But seeing the video... Everything falls into place.
Bruce walks back up to the manor. As he walks past the library to go upstairs to Dick's old room, he hears something. Peeking into the library, he finds a book on the floor. He was in here earlier, the book wasn't there. On the ground near the book is a book mark. Bruce picks up the thin golden book mark. It was Dick's small with a flap, detailed designs to form a bird in the middle and on the back it reads something in Romany from his mother. It was given to him apparently for his 9th birthday. It used to be his mother's before she got it engraved and gave it to him. Bruce had been looking for that book mark since Dick passed. Next Bruce picks up the book. This was also on of Dick's books, all in Romany. Bruce can't read Romany or speak it. He only knows four languages. Dick knew ten.
But that's not the point.
What was the book doing on the ground? How did it get there? Bruce is home alone. So he thinks.
Then, the room drops down to 32 degrees and a chill runs down Bruce's back as he begins to try and make logical sense of the situation. Bruce isn't really alone.