Teen Titans – Renegade; Prison Break – Break Out!
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Chapter 14: Shark Tank
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Dick swallowed a gulp into his lungs as the air remained thick. His lungs burned by a strange residue as he dragged his top off and shoved it over his nose. The one door it never seemed to breach; he saw a dim flicker up ahead…
The explosion behind his head had the boy bolt for the door, not caring to think and lay low. He had to get out!
Now.
" Apprentice… You're trying my patience." The man lilted, his arm clinging to an unconscious body; George was left with a nasty bump as Dick put on his best mask. Even while the air only grew even thicker, this Slade just used his ability to remain totally undetected as he searched for a body. He dropped George in a heap and started to speak in a low purr. "Now, child…you seem to be a bit spooked. I'm doing all of this for your benefit. And, after all… Waller is only interested in one thing…."
His voice wafted, as easily as the thick sooty residue in the air. Dick crawled and found that the door, Slade's lone eye couldn't reach it...if only Dick went faster. Too slow and Slade would drag him out into the open.
" Me."
The boy was about to dash and lose his face covering, when a bullet whipped by from the next door down, sending Slade to turn in just the right moment.
The help he'd needed was never far as Deadshot's uniform and face both showed how ready he was to end their rivalry. Deathstroke was about to lose his title, yet he wondered if this wasn't the same face. He looked, calmer. Very. It was maddening as Dick sprinted across, Deadshot taking that as a go ahead to place his shots in the merc all at once.
Whizzing bullets and another lazer like the bots had been; exchanged as formally as a firm handshake. Dick jutted the lock, the bolts coming undone…
He shut the thing loudly as a bullet had missed his sweaty scalp, Deadshot's masked gaze widening as Slade cocked his. "He took the bait, now… for you…"
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A set of explosions died as Dick realized that Floyd was down. They were going to lose, he –
Dick looked up at the lab and saw a large tank in the center of it, the face from the cafeteria making him sigh out.
"Kid! There is a mess goin' on outside. But don' you worry; cause this place is like the fortress a' sol –
BANG BANG!
King must have splashed his bathwater at the sound.
"Holy!"
The dented door was definitely supposed to hold, right? Dick ran behind the tank and looked for an item to chuck, while he spotted another door. The lock not yet undoing itself for this mouse in its big – house.
"Is someone chasin' you?? Did Scarecrow get in here?? Where is Harleen??"
"With Wyatt –
~BANG ! ~
The violent sounds had to be a lie, a fucking nightmare as Dick felt his heart patter on as in the interrogations room. Dick had his hands over his ears, crouched behind King's safe space and he'd ruined it…. he'd made Slade push and…
He was the one who let those people suffer, for getting stuck in a system that couldn't save him.
"No…. this can't end…. Stop…."
The fake Slade only shook his head, leaning to speak and torment the boy with his words. ~He is very close…. why not talk –
"Shut up !"
"Kid?"
~ BANG! ~
King shark had been sick of that sound so much that it had him hop out of the tank, or try to before the door had come down.
"Found a tool, handy too….so, now you're done…" Slade held onto Deadshot's arm as he was nearly out of it, the boy ducking his head as King…
He saw pure red from Slade's weapon's arm and lost control.
"I hate it when I…get teased…... slurp….so you had better….. pant ….have enough for the resta me!! Yum!!" He flung himself from the water of his tank, the gas no real reason for his madness, yet the sight of blood drove someone to drink as Slade's body was….
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"R…robot…."
The sound of a door unlatching had Floyd try to drag himself over, yet Dick was already backing into their only exit.
"St…stay away…. Go….go away!" Dick ran, his head full of whatever that had been. A ROBOT. Not the real Slade. The fake in his head started to laugh, Dick running until he spied more doors as each opened again and more and more!
He kept running, thinking it was the fear toxin, that there was not a way….
He felt grass below his shoes, his face to the evergreen and a riot of sounds or flashes of light.
Fire, as he ran to find out why the bog was about to lose another hero.
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Slade looked his wrist and grinned; Batman was confused, too tired by his exposure and Jason being in that vehicle and losing air. Waller sent her worst to fight the man, yet his robots just stalled –
"Slade??"
Dick panted and was forced to see nothing more than what he had already feared.
"Richard! You need to get b-
"Bru – Batman…. I'm not going to stay, I can't anymore."
"You got my message, good." Slade shoved the bat back as he head butted the man to stay down. Waller was out of options as her hand went to the only trigger she could. Slade was prepared this time.
A bot sent a jagged S to stop her as she was also held by their arms in this hostage situation, squirming as Slade took great pleasure in seeing her so helpless.
"You should have realized this plan of yours would fail from the start." Slade smirked and held out an arm to the confused hero. "If you return now, you brother and the bat may be spared."
"What about Waller?" Dick rasped out. "You wanted to see her hurt like me, even if you can't just do it yourself."
"That wasn't really on the agenda." Slade was caught off guard as Batman launched himself at the man and had him in a place where the batarang could cut.
Dick cried out, not knowing that Bruce was infected a slight by the toxin of Scarecrow's and that Slade had played the submissive role to make his point across final. "You…. are not going to so much as know his face…your run in this industry is over, Slade…In won't have you hurt my son!!"
"Stop!!" Dick ran, his body not the thing that took the man back, his arm this close to Slade's jugular. With his mouth ajar, Dick wrenched the bat's arm back as he shoved his old mentor off of the new.
New, because no matter how good he could be, no matter how Dick had warned them all, Bruce had never made it in time. Slade was too close always, and he didn't feel safe any longer…he was, afraid for his friends and for Jay…. Waller didn't deserve to die, no one did!
"I, can't let you kill him…I'm sorry."
"Are you not well , child?" Waller shouted, the bots ripping apart her elite squad of fighters like paper.
"That man in a menace, he needs to be sent to the chair and never come back…Step away from the mercenary now, and I won't brand you a traitor of this state…."
"How about the world?" Slade's hissed words terrified Dick as he just stepped further away from his family. His fam…. they didn't have the strength and in the prison; if he truly had won his case, the Titans would be dead.
That filled his head with even more stifling dread as Dick shook his, shutting his eyes as Slade handed the boy another way to filter out the noise.
His apprentice mask… "Take it, you're obviously done with them."
"For now…" Dick gripped the material and felt his soul shatter. His masking this time was to leave the madness behind as Waller fired a shot, the bullet bounding after Slade and missing as she was forced to bring more –
That was, until a copter broke the moment up, Bruce staggering as Slade activated a new detonation.
Right as he tossed the flash bang to make their escape, Dick hurried along and eyes so dead to his mentor while the currents let the two; apprentice and mastermind escape Belle Reve, for good.
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The chaos was draining as Slade let his head fall back, his recovering protégé with his head down in the seat right across from the mercenary. "That copy of mine can be cured; we'll remove it immediately once we are safe…"
"Safe…" Dick swallowed. "Was that…. why you tried to get me out? You didn't like Waller…but, I –
"You and I kept our agreement, and I won't allow you to end it on your terms. The bat failed, so what would he have? A boy sent to Black Gate to be tried until they finally gave up on you? You've not been a villain long." Slade sighed, a more human appeal as Dick raised his masked eyes to the man. "That Bane was about to have me gang raped you mean? Or Scarecrow? Did –
"They don't like the Batman. You were a prime target all because of WHO you were." Slade lied; the boy too disillusioned to chase away the idea. "I…. I wouldn't have survived without them."
"That sharp shooter and the Aussie are fine, a bit worn…" Slade paused. "You weren't supposed to be so optimistic, I thought you had a shot at making some new friends." He teased.
Dick snorted and leaned onto his side by the window. Slade shrugged and simply waited for them to land. Wintergreen could be so anti – social at times as his gettaway driver.
A robot was well, cold. To say in the least?
Dick rested until his swollen eyes were completely shut, his breathing softened as the ride was mellow enough, as Slade knew they'd have a cool down period to talk over this lesson. That if Dick had no one, not even Slade or the bat…he would have ended up at the bottom of the food chain in no time.
"Let this be a lesson, that you'll never know a system as corruption as a high security penitentiary unless you've been inside and out of it before. Don't try that again." He grumbled in warning; arms crossed over his chest. Even as his protégé couldn't talk back... that was fine.
Slade's eye softened a bit. Dick was already huddled up into the window seat, his sleeping body not hearing yet feeling the man's looming presence as he dreamed of better days ahead. Somewhere.
There would be, as soon as a certain flying rodent came to his senses.
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Next chapter then epilogue time leap. It will also showcase Batman trying to rescue Dick and tell his son the truth that Slade won't. Find out, all to be concluded, stay tuned!