Hot sand stuck to Renegade's skin as the experiment slowly aroused from the depths of unconsciousness. His throat was dry, and the harsh sunlight burnt his skin. The boy forced back a groan as he pushed himself up to his feet. His head spun, and his last meal threatened to make a reappearance. It took all of his willpower to not fall back down and curl into a ball.
The sunlight seemed even brighter when it reflected against the desert's light colored sand. Wait, why was he in a desert? And why did his head hurt so much? These questions circulated in his head as he stumbled towards a nearby rock formation.
"Danger Detected."
On instinct, Renegade turned his head and spotted an approaching vehicle. He narrowed his eyes and used his acrobatics to get on top of nearby rocks, watching it go by. "Computer, analyze those uniforms." he said quietly.
"Analyzing..." a pause. "Uniforms belong to the Bialyan Republican Army."
Renegade blinked slowly. That couldn't be right, could it? He glanced down and finally took notice of his hologlove. Perfect. "What are Bialyans doing in uh..." the map of his location came up on screen. "Bialya?"
That was unexpected.
"Better question: what am I doing in Bialya?"
Considering that he hasn't been allowed to leave Cadmus up until now, it was more than a little surprising that he was able to come all the way out here. He frowned as he mentally did a health check on himself: a couple of bruises, dehydration, and a migraine. Not too bad, considering. Next he did a stock check. He had a completely new outfit on, with brand new weapons and gadgets too. His uniform was also made out of some sort of fabric that he couldn't identity, but his mental systems insisted that it was Kevlar. Wasn't that a hero thing?
Finally he decided to mess with his hologlove, not used to using any technology besides the chip in his mind. His eyes searched the screen, taking note that there GPS marker somewhere a few miles away. After making a mental route to that destination, his masked eyes fell onto the date at the bottom of the screen. "It's September?! What happened to March?"
Wait. It was March, right?
"Note to self- watch date more often." He muttered.
"Note recorded."
The last thing he remembered was Deathsroke giving him new escrima sticks, saying that they would do for now, since he too incompetent to use swords. Though the words stung, the gift was greatly appreciated. Exactly how long ago was that? Seven months? A year? His mind was always fuzzy a few days after he was drugged, but he never lost track of a whole six months.
Renegade stood up straighter as an idea came to mind. Deathstroke. Stupid, why didn't he think about that before? "I should've radioed him in the beginning!" He raised a hand to the ear piece in his ear when a sudden memory forced itself to the forefront of his mind.
"Maintain radio silence at all times."
Renegade froze. Was that...Batman?! Why the hell did he have a memory of him? And why was he demanding radio silence? He wasn't his boss!
But, something bugged him. A small voice in his head told him that he should trust Batman's order and keep quiet. Another part, the part that didn't want to be murdered by Deathstroke, demanded that he contacted his Master. Either die in the desert, or call the boss.
His decision was easy.
He pressed a finger against his comm and waited for Deathstoke's signal to come up on his holocomputer. However, the only destinations he was able to see were located in Gotham City and Happy Harbour. Renegade knew that Deathstroke would not be in either place, at least until his Mission began.
Whatever that was...
Renegade sighed and lowered his hand. It looked like he would have to contact his Master through other means. "Computer, send Deathstroke an SOS, and tell him the gist of my problem. Also, I need a search for the nearest Light member."
"SOS sent. Searching..." a moment of silence, then, "Member found: Queen Bee." Information on the female started to appear in the back of his head.
Satisfied with his work, Renegade jumped down from his perch. His intent was to head to where he put the GPS marker to see if there were any supplies, and then find a way to Queen Bee. Before he could set off, a fluttering object caught his eye. He scooped up the black cloth and noticed the red S shape on the front.
Superman was here too? No, Superman wore different colors. What was going on? "Computer, analyze."
"Analyzing." Seconds later, it continued, "Clothes belong to Project Kr, aka Superboy. Battle suggestions are on hand in case of danger."
Renegade narrowed his eyes and let the shirt slips past his fingers. Project Kr was loose? The Superboy project wasn't supposed to be let on missions for another year, after Cadmus had complete control over him. Was he sent here to capture Kr and bring him back to base? Well, it wouldn't hurt to double check.
As Renegade moved to continue his journey to his marker, a sudden noise caught his attention. He spun around and glanced up, narrowing his eyes at the cloud of dust rising in the sky. There must've been a fight going on... Wait, was that a tank? Ookay... He could either go see what was going on, or stick to the original plan. He decided on the latter, knowing that getting involved in another country's battles wouldn't end well. He didn't need to be injured further.
As Renegade trudged through the sand, he quickly decided that he hated deserts. It was much too hot, his throat burned, and his stomach growled unhappily. He refused to give up though. Deathstroke would be furious if he was unable to do something so simple as walking.
As the sun set, he stopped in his tracks abruptly, staring at the sky. Wow, he forgot what a sunset looked like. It was so pretty, with its shades of red, orange, and pink. The last time he saw a sunset, he was still mourning his parents... He shook his head to get rid of those thoughts; he had to keep moving.
Minutes turned into hours, and the ball of light eventually disappeared over the horizon, drowning the desert in shadows. Renegade wasn't too affected by it- he spent most of his time in darkness anyways. It was, however, making him feel sleepier. He pushed on, seeing as his marker wasn't too far away. As if to prove his point, his hologlove made a faint beeping noise, informing him that he was a few meters away from his destination.
"I wish I remembered why I put this here." He muttered to himself as he climbed up another hill. At the top he finally saw what he was looking for. An unidentified metal object sat in the middle of the sand. "Maybe that's why."
Renegade ducked behind a small dune, watching the object closely. There was no one else in the vicinity- no guards, no enemies, no scientists. To be able to walk right up to the object and get what he needed would be easy.
A little too easy.
Smirking at the cliche, he sprung forward and landed in front of the object. If there was a trap, he might as well get it over with. As soon as his feet hit the ground, a squad of men emerged from the sand and pointed guns at him. Renegade automatically shifted into a fighting stance, eyes narrowed dangerously. If they wanted to mess with an assassin, so be it.
"Her Majesty wants him alive!" A soldier shouted to the others in Bialyan. Renegade's chip automatically translated it for him, thankfully. His foreign language skills weren't on par with his Master just yet. But wait, Queen Bee knew he was here? In that case, why did she assume that he wouldn't go willingly? The only explanation he could think of was that Deathstroke and her were on opposing sides at the moment.
Did that mean that his amnesia came from an injury in battle? His heart sank. The battle he saw earlier could have been between Deathstroke's assassins and Bee's men. Was Deathstroke okay? If his Master fell in battle because he wasn't there for assistance...
Renegade saw red.
As the men swarmed towards him, he let a smoke bomb fall from his hand. Immediately, his infrared vision activated and allowed him to see his enemies clearly. He launched himself at the closest man and threw him backwards with a powerful kick. The sound of bones snapping sounded wonderful to his ears, and he relished in it as he moved on to his next target.
Two men were backing away, getting dangerously close to the edge of the smoke cloud. Renegade was not having any of that, throwing a bolas at their legs and successfully bringing them down. He had no idea where he got the bolas from but since he had six months missing from his memory, he didn't question it.
There were still tons of men to take down. Renegade growled lowly and used the back of the nearest soldier as a springboard to launch himself at another, knocking both of them to the ground. One of them tried to get up but Renegade knocked him back by throwing a shruiken into his shoulder. The man cried out and fell back down, blood pouring from the wound. The boy simply rose a brow at the display of weakness. Pathetic.
"Enough!" A soldier cried. "Open fire!"
Renegade jumped backwards to avoid the onslaught of bullets, flipping backwards and pulling out a couple of shruikens. It was then that he noticed that the design of them were very similar to those of Batman's batarangs. Hold the phone, why did he have red batarangs?
All of a sudden, a black streak raced through, disarming the men with unbelievable speed. "I'll hold that! Thank you!" The streak then skidded to a stop, revealing a redhead boy with a black uniform, a Flash symbol on his chest.
"Recognized: Wally West, aka Kid Flash."
Renegade slowly lowered his shruiken, furrowing his brow. How did he know Kid Flash's name? The Light wasn't interested in the heroes's civilian identities. The only way he could have this information is if he obtained it himself.
But when? And why?
Renegade tensed in preparation for an attack, but it surprisingly never came. Kid Flash continued to take the soldiers down, not even sparing him a glance. Suddenly, a few of the men started to float into the air, and were forcefully thrown into each other. Renegade glanced to the side and saw a flying green skinned girl. A Martian? What?
"Recognized: M'gann M'orzz aka Miss Martian." A series of information was listed under her profile, making Renegade's headache grow worse.
There was only one man still standing, but was taken down by the streak of an arrow. As soon as it came into contact with the soldier it transformed into a line of rope and wrapped itself around his legs. Renegade blinked slowly. That was just like the weapon he used earlier...
He turned to see where the arrow came from and was surprised to see Artemis Crock in a Green Arrow type of uniform.
This had to be a hallucination.
He then realized that all three teens were staring at him and held his shruiken tighter. There was a possibility that the three of them took out those soldiers in order to get him alone, to take him out. Well, he wasn't going down without a fight.
"What do you want?" He asked, though his voice was hoarse from lack of use. Water sounded fantastic right about now.
Focus...
"We're here to help." The Martian girl said softly.
Renegade snorted. "Right."
Kid Flash frowned. "Memory loss, right?"
Eyes narrowed into a fierce glare. "What's it to you?" He spat, raising his weapon. "I would thank you for taking those men out, but I seriously doubt that you did that out of compassion towards me. So, I'll ask again: what do you want?"
The Martian girl desperately shook her head. "Please, don't fight. I know what's going on. We're a team!" She cried excitedly. "We work for the Justice League, us and Superboy!"
Renegade laughed. "You have to be kidding me. You're saying that a kid raised by assassins and a clone created to destroy Superman are part of some superhero squad? Yeah, that seems likely."
"You have to believe me!" Miss Martian looked like she would cry. "I can restore your memories, help you remember."
Renegade took a step backwards. He wasn't about to let some stranger go into his head and search through his thoughts. His mind went back to his memory of Batman and he hesitated. The only reason he would talk to him at all is if he was working with him. Did he have undercover assignment in the Justice League? It made sense...
He turned away from them. "Computer, have there been any lies detected?"
KF blinked. "Who are you-"
"No lies have been detected."
"-talking to?"
"Hm." He turned back around and held his blade up threateningly. "I will take your word, for now. If you attempt to take advantage of my trust at any time, I will not hesitate to kill you. Understand?"
The other three stiffened. Miss Martian seemed to have second doubts about his involvement with their so called team, but nodded anyway. "Understood." She then rose her hands to her temples and her eyes glowed white.
The four of them were suddenly standing on a small platform, broken fragments of memories floating around them. Renegade looked around in shock, recognizing himself in a few of the memories. In some of them, he saw his old uniform, but others had the newer version. He saw himself laughing, elbowing Kid Flash in one image. In another, he had sunglasses instead of a mask.
His breath caught in his throat. Why wasn't he wearing a mask?
"I have brought you into my mind to share what I've remembered so far." Renegade repressed the urge to jump when a light appeared before them. "But I need your help." The orb of light disappeared, replaced by the form of Miss Martian. "Together our broken memories can form a whole...if you open your minds to mine."
"You want to go through our private thoughts?!" Artemis said angrily. Renegade hummed in agreement with her hesitation. He was starting to have second thoughts about this.
"I have no wish to intrude, but-"
Kid Flash interrupted with, "You need to get into our heads to find out what happened, got it. My brain's all yours. Try not to let its brilliance overwhelm you."
Renegade snorted at that. "Or underwhelm."
That made another memory surface.
A red haired girl grinned at him "Have you tried overwhelmed?" She asked him. "There's underwhelmed too."
In present time, Renegade blinked. "Hey, why isn't anyone just whelmed?"
Three pairs of eyes blinked at him in confusion. Renegade looked away, also confused. Where did that come from? Who was that girl? When did he start telling other people about his word play? That was his personal game.
Artemis frowned, looking conflicted. Kid Flash smiled at her reassuringly and took her hand, squeezing it. The archer looked at him for a moment, seemingly searching for an answer to her unspoken question. A second later, she relaxed ever so slightly. "Last six months only, and only what you need."
M'gann nodded in acceptance and stretched her hands out. In reaction to this, faint images of larger ghostly hands appeared and fell onto each of their heads. Renegade stiffened, ready to feel pain, when-
Batman looked at each teen before speaking, "The Watchtower detected an immense power surge in the Bialyan desert. Spectral-analysis revealed it to be non-terrestrial in origin. Find out what happened at that sight, what landed there. Bialya is a rouge state, ruled by Queen Bee, and not a member of the League's U.N. charter. All communications are subject to interception. Maintain radio silence at all times."
The scene shifted, and the teens were suddenly moving through the desert. Superboy had a heavy metal object being carried on his back, while Kid Flash stood to the side, scarfing down one of his snacks. "All clear," Renegade informed them. Wait, no...That name didn't sound right.
Renegade followed Artemis to the edge of a decent sized dune, and they both looked down at the tent set up below. A couple of guards stood at the entrance, ready to take down any intruders. Renegade was confident that they wouldn't be a problem. Nothing could go wrong on this mission...
"The Bialyans control the site." Artemis whispered.
"Set up here." An unknown voice instructed. Superboy obeyed, putting the device onto the sand in front of him.
Renegade hopped over to the controls and started to type away at the keyboard, a cheerful grin on his face. "We'll be up and running in no time." He told his teammates.
Kid Flash's face lit up as he read the screen. "Jackpot! The sight's lousy with Zeta Beam radiation!"
Rene- Robin narrowed his eyes. "Detecting non-terrestrial elements from the tent.
"I can check it out in camouflage mode!" M'gann suggested.
The mystery voice spoke again, "Good idea. Go."
Superboy turned towards her. "Be careful."
"And maintain telepathic contact." The deep voice ordered.
"I will, Aqualad."
In present time, everyone's eyes snapped open. "Aqualad!" They all said simultaneously.
Robin glanced down to where he held his birdarang and dropped it as if it burned him. He didn't even realize that he had the ability to murder, but to threaten his own friend- that was unthinkable. Just the thought of it made him sick.
"Where is he?" Artemis asked quickly. "What happened next?"
Miss Martian looked clueless. "I don't know. That's the last thing I- we remember."
Both Artemis and Kid Flash looked down to their connecting hands and pulled away, faces turning bright red. The speedster turned away from the blonde, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. Robin rose a brow at this. Interesting...
"We landed twenty-four hours ago. If Kaldur's been wandering the desert for that long, well that's not good for a guy with gills." Kid Flash frowned in concern.
"Hm." Robin pulled out his holo screen and started to type instructions away at a brilliant speed. Soon, the tracking device he gave the Atlantian gave him coordinates. "Ah, he's close." He frowned. "But he's not moving..."
They had to find him, fast.
xXx
When they found Aqualad, he was feverish and speaking in an unfamiliar language that even Robin's databases couldn't translate. He must've been speaking his native tongue, a language that wasn't often taught to surface dwellers.
"I can't restore his memories in this condition." Miss M said, brow furrowed in concern.
"He needs immediate rehydration." Robin declared. "Call the bioship."
"It's out of range." She glanced at KF. "But you can get him there fast."
"He's too heavy, and I'm too low on fuel." He smiled weakly and gestured to Artemis. "Right now, I couldn't even carry her."
The archer ignored the comment. "Why not just levitate him back?" She asked Miss M.
"I can't, I have to find Superboy. Six months ago, he didn't even exist. He has no memories, just animal impulse. I'm the only one who can help him."
"Superboy's indestructible. It's Aqualad that needs your help." Kid argued.
The Martian suddenly clutched her head, gasping. "No! Superboy's in pain!" She cried, levitating off of the ground and flying towards wherever she felt it.
"M'gann wait!" Artemis shouted.
Robin panicked a little. "We still don't know who erased our memories! It could happen again!" He really didn't want amnesia for a third time.
The Martian ignored their pleas, flying away.
"Great." Kid Flash mumbled. He looked away from the sky and down towards the unconscious Aqualad. "So, who's carrying him?"
xXx
Robin walked ahead of his teammates, staring at his hologlove map intently. Behind him, Artemis and Kid Flash dragged Aqualad with them using a stretcher they created with limited supplies. Together, they trudged through the sand in silence, until the sound of a car engine caught Robin's attention. "Quick, over there," he whispered, pointing to a nearby boulder. The other two immediately obeyed and carried their fallen leader to the indicated hiding place.
Aqualad started to speak in his native tongue again, and Artemis quietly shushed him. Robin slowly stood, took a quick peek at the surrounding soldiers, then ducked again, frustrated. "We can't risk a fire fight with Aqualad KOed like this."
Kid Flash rubbed the back of his head. "It's not just him. I'm way out of juice." Robin gave his friend a worried look at this statement. How long could a speedster last without food again?
Artemis nodded. "I'm almost out of arrows." She added.
Robin glanced down at his belt, noticing that he only had a couple of birdarangs (he was proud of himself for coming up with that name), some smoke-based explosives, and his grappling hook. Not exactly what one would bring to a fire fight, but it would do.
He left without another word.
Seconds later, he heard KF complain about his disappearing acts. A smile came to his face but he didn't quite laugh. That would come later. Robin moved a few meters away from the armed squad and planted a couple of explosives in the sand. These were a very special kind of explosives. These had recordings of his laughter installed into them. It was after the fight with the Joker and Penguin that he realized just how much he freaked people out with his cackle.
Well if you're going to do something, you might as well go all out.
He returned to the boulder just in time to hear snippets of Artemis and Wally's latest argument. He rolled his eyes. "Sheesh, get a room."
KF spun around. "Dude! Where were you?"
Robin couldn't help but grin. "Breaking radio silence."
Seconds later, the metallic sound of his recorded laughter began to play. Just as expected, the soldiers automatically went straight to the source of the noise. Unfortunately for them, the explosives had motion sensors.
Luckily, they were only harmed by smoke.
"That's our cue. Move!" The three of them, plus Aqualad, took off, finding a different route to the bioship. They had to hurry. Aqualad was dehydrated, KF was starving, Robin had the biggest migraine in the world, and Artemis was almost useless without her arrows. They had to restock, tend to their wounds, eat and drink, and wait for M'gann. It was going to be a long night...
An arrow suddenly plunged into the ground in front of Robin's feet.
The boy stopped midstep and stared at the projectile. The design of the arrow was somewhat familiar, but it obviously didn't belong to either of the Arrows, or Artemis. Robin knelt down next to it and rubbed the dirt surrounding it, looking at his glove afterwards. There were no traces of poison on the tip of it, so a failed assassin attempt seemed unlikely. A slip of rolled up paper caught Robin's attention at last and he carefully removed it. There was nothing special about the paper itself, but maybe the message inside would shed some light onto things.
Robin stood up and unrolled the paper.
"Hey Rob?" Kid Flash suddenly appeared at his side. "We found the bioship. Artemis is bringing Aqualad inside but we were worried when we noticed that you disappeared. Again." He finally noticed the paper. "What's that?"
"Dunno." Robin smirked. "But whoever sent this to me must be unfamiliar with texting. I mean come on, air mail? That's so last year."
Kid Flash smiled, uncertain. "Right. Well, uh, hurry up and read your air mail. Artie is probably worried sick."
Robin's smirk widened. "Artie, huh? That's cute, but I think you should work harder on the pet names. Mine are ten times better."
The elder boy turned red. "Shut it." He scowled. "And what do you know about pet names?"
Robin snickered and finally looked down at the message. "Dear Appren-" his voice caught in his throat as his brain registered the word. Apprentice.
Shit. He sent an SOS to Deathstroke.
As the boy stared at the letter numbly, his friend became agitated with the silence. "Rob?" The speedster frowned in concern, poking Robin's shoulder gently. "Everything okay?"
"Not exactly..." The younger boy muttered, shoving the paper towards the speedster.
Wally straightened the paper and began to read it. As his eyes moved, his eyebrows came together, and his lips formed into a thin line. Fury was written all over his face, and the way his fist crumpled the paper emphasized how angry he was. "Bioship. Now."
He grabbed Robin by the shoulder and started to steer him towards the ship. The younger boy, usually against being manhandled in that fashion, walked with him silently. Breathing became more difficult with each step he took.
The only thing he could think was: 'He's here.'
xXx
Batman stared at the holographic screen in front of him. Three Arkham breakouts occurred in the same month, each one releasing more criminals than the last. There was something big going on in the criminal world, something that was too important for them to stay held up for long periods of time. Batman was going to figure this out before any thirteen year olds would be allowed on patrol, that was for sure.
Someone cleared their throat behind him. "What?" He asked in a grunt, not looking away from the Arkham information. The Joker and Harley Quinn were involved in two of the three breakouts. Hm.
"The Team is on their way back." Superman's voice informed him.
"And?" Even though the Team took longer to finish their task than expected, the League found no reason to start worrying just yet. There are unforeseen factors in every Mission, after all. The Justice League and the group of young heroes decided to agree that the League would only intervene if A) The Team calls for help, B) A week goes by without any word, or C) Robin uses Batman's distress signal. Since none of the three occurred, being treated like a distressed parent was slightly irritating.
"Well, uh." Superman sounded hesitant. He always hated to be the bearer of bad news. But wait, if Superman was coming to him with bad news regarding the Team...
He finally turned around. "What happened to Robin?" He demanded. Several scenarios played in his mind. Was he injured? Unconscious? Kidnapped? Was he even alive?
"He's fine." Superman said quickly. "Well, physically anyways. I mean, I'm sure he has some scrapes and bruises but-"
"Spit it out Clark." He snapped, patience wearing thin.
The meta rubbed the back of his neck. "Right, sorry. Well something happened to Robin before they left Bialya. They didn't give me specifics, but it sounds like he's in hysterics. Kid Flash barely got him into the bioship before he had a panic attack, he refused to eat or drink, won't sleep, and won't talk. The kid's as paranoid as you right now Batman." He frowned. "I thought I'd let you know since you're his guardian. If anyone can get him to relax, I'm betting it's you."
"I'll handle it." Batman nodded shortly, ignoring his protective instincts. "I'll have Alfred get things ready in the Cave. You can go."
"Okay." Superman gave him a pointed look as he left. "You're welcome, by the way."
The Zeta Tube announced his departure.
Batman brought a hand to his earpiece. "Alfred."
"Master Bruce?"
"I just caught word that Robin is in a panicked state- not eating, drinking, talking, or sleeping. Clark said that he had a panic attack. Can you arrange everything so that I can handle it as soon as we get there?"
"Of course." Alfred sounded concerned. "Should I keep sedatives on hand?"
"Yes. I hope that we won't need them, but you never know."
"Right you are, sir. Do you require anything else?"
"No. Thanks Alfred." He hung up.
Just as the Mountain announced the arrival of the bioship.
Batman immediately got rid of the holographic screen and briskly walked towards the loading bay. When he arrived, it was to see Superboy and Artemis assisting Kaldur with walking. The Atlantian frowned when he saw him. "We apologize for our extended mission. We did not mean to take so long, but we were met with certain complications."
Batman glanced behind them. "We'll talk later. Where's Robin?"
Artemis spoke, "In the bioship. Something is wrong, he won't respond to us. M'gann and Wally are trying to get him to leave but he seems scared."
Batman narrowed his eyes and nodded slightly before walking away from them. He ducked his head as he entered the ship from below, barely paying attention to the surrounding alien technology.
"Come on, Rob." He heard Kid Flash say. "He's not here. We're at the Mountain, you'll be fine."
Batman's eyes landed on his protege. The boy was sitting in one of the ship's chairs, knees drawn to his chest. On one side of him was Wally, who had a hand on his shoulder and was apparently trying to convince him to leave. On the other side was M'gann, who only stood there, completely clueless with what to do.
"Leave." Batman ordered as he came toward them "I have this."
"Okay." The Martian girl smiled at Robin sympathetically before flying out.
Wally, however, stayed. "I'm not leaving until I know he's okay." He argued, crossing his arms over his chest.
On a normal day, Batman would have stuck a batarang down the kid's throat for the attitude, but he was too worried to care at that point. Ignoring the speedster, Batman knelt down next to his partner and put both hands on his shoulders. "Hey, chum" he said softly. "It's time to go."
Robin tightened his grip on his knees.
Batman frowned and slowly peeled off the boy's mask. Blue eyes were casted downwards, there but not totally seeing. "Dick," Batman tried again, pulling his cowl off, "you can't stay in here forever. You need food, and water."
Dick's eyes focused on his guardian. "Bruce?"
Bruce nodded. "Yeah, it's me. Let's get you out of here, okay?"
The boy looked out the window. "He was there."
"Who was?" No answer. "Dick?"
Wally shook his head, speaking up, "He won't say who. I already asked. Here, this might ease your confusion a little." He handed him something.
It was a crumpled up paper.
Bruce carefully unfolded it and smoothed the wrinkles away, eyes narrowed in concentration. "Where did you get this?"
"Someone shot it at him. It doesn't matter, just read it."
He scowled at the lack of respect, but complied, skimming over the ink.
'Dear Apprentice,' he read. 'I received your SOS, and was surprised when you requested my assistance. I was even more surprised to learn that you have lost your memory, but I gather that you've overcome your problems on your own. I am rather pleased that you were able to handle yourself without my interference, but I am disappointed on your skills as an assassin. This is the second time I have been able to sneak up on you without notice. If I were anyone else, you would be dead. If I am able to follow you a third time, I will not hesitate to take you home.
Your Master,
Deathstroke.
P.S. I'm always watching'