Talon was confused.
Talon was confused by how its Masters continued to treat it kindly, even as the months passed.
Each time Talon was surprised when it would make a mess for which surely it should have been punished but instead of being punished its Masters told Talon that they would never punish it.
Despite how its Masters continued to treat it kindly, Talon was still confused. Talon was allowed things that the Court of Owls would never even think of granting to it.
Talon now had a small bedroom and thus had its own personal space, something it never had from the Court of Owls. Apparently its bedroom served not only to have its own personal space but also to perform an activity that its new Masters defined as "sleeping."
Talon would later come to understand that it consisted of closing your eyes, regulating your breathing and heartbeat (which it did not have) until you came to a state of deep ease such that you could not control yourself around it. Talon had not yet realized the usefulness of sleeping since it risked preventing you from having your senses honed to 100 percent, especially in case of attack by enemies.
Taon had tried to sleep but soon realized that it could not fall asleep and therefore that it really did not need sleep at all.
Another evidence that proved that Talon was not a human but a weapon.
When Talon reported this to its new Masters, they had exchanged a sad look and Talon did not know what it had done wrong, so it knelt respectfully and asked them for apologies, which made them more saddened and, in Wilson's case, also pissed off.
Talon was quite sure that its Master's anger was not directed at it but could not be sure.
Talon did not know for sure how long it had been with its new Masters but it knew that it really liked this new life of it with its new Masters. Even if they had started to punish Talon, it would still have been satisfied with its new life because it had new things to spend time with, such as that electronic device called "TV" that played animated images of a virtually endless variety of characters, settings and plots.
Of course, Talon saw no use for it but it noted how every time it stared at the TV it made its Masters happy.
And Talon really enjoyed making its new Masters happy.
There was one other thing that confused Talon more than any other.
That is, the fact that its new Masters, especially its main Master, had not yet begun its training. And it was obvious from their first and only fight that its Master, Wilson, was a very dangerous and lethal man who took Talon down quite easily.
Talon understood that even the other Master, Wintergreen, knew how to fight even though he was nowhere near the levels of the other Master, Wilson.
Since Talon had been with its new Masters it had not touched any weapons, excluding forks and knives that Talon used to cut and eat the food the Masters put in front of it.
One question continued to haunt Talon.
Why keep Talon, a dangerous living weapon destined to be the most dangerous weapon on Earth, if the reason was not to train and torture it?
Talon did not know the answer at all.
Talon would have liked to ask its Masters the question but never found the courage even though its other Master, Wintergreen, always told it that Talon could ask anything. Despite his assurance that they would never get angry when Talon asked a question, Talon could not find the inner strength to do so.
And that frustrated Talon to no end.
But there was another thing that frustrated Talon even more.
Namely, the moments when Talon felt its head burst and was brought back to scenarios unrelated to it.
Talon suspected that it was its memories before anything else.
Before its new Masters.
Before the Court of Owls and its previous Masters.
Its self before it became Talon.
Half a year had passed since Richard was in Slade's care.
The mercenary was happy to say that there had been improvements, such as Richard kneeling less whenever he saw him.
It was now a 70 out of 100 instead of a 100 out of 100.
It was still a good improvement.
Besides that Slade noticed how the kiddo had started talking a little more than before, even saying simple "yes" or "no" instead of nodding or shaking his head.
Another step forward.
Unfortunately, improvements are often accompanied by relapses and this case is no exception.
In the past five months, there have been other "incidents," as Wintergreen called them, in which Richard would suddenly become rigid, kneel down, and apologize in a cold, insensitive voice and golden eyes while waiting for punishment.
The most recent case involved Richard helping Wintergreen set the table and how accidentally the kiddo dropped a single plate that shattered.
Slade hated to see how the slightly happy and satisfied look in the kiddo's golden eyes had turned into one of fear before becoming blank and emotionless. The two former military men spent the next fifteen minutes explaining to Richard that he was not in trouble, that he would not suffer any punishment, that accidents happen, etc.
One thing Slade and William still had not been able to do was to get Richard to stop calling them Masters and referring to them as if they owned him.
This was one of the things Slade Wilson hated the most.
However, all their attempts were in vain and there was no way to get him to stop.
Fortunately for everyone, Slade was a patient man and William was even more so.
There was then a discovery that troubled Slade greatly.
That is, the fact that Richard had no need for sleep (and food but this was already known).
Slade was horrified by this. Even a man like him knew that some of the activities that children enjoyed most was eating and sleeping but the fact that the kiddo had no real need for either shocked him, saddened him deeply and made him very angry at the bastards who did this to a poor innocent kiddo.
To his kiddo.
Slightly improving his mood was the knowledge that Richard liked to watch TV.
Especially cartoons and even horror movies.
The super-soldier doubted that the latter was a good thing, if Wintergreen's glare when he saw Slade and Richard watch a particularly gory horror movie together was significant.
After all, there was a reason Wintergreen was the one most experienced with children.
Apart from all this, there were many moments that Slade called "episodes" for simplicity's sake: they consisted of Richard suddenly freezing in place, even while he was doing some activity, and his expression becoming blank and distant, as if he was no longer physically there with Slade and Wintergreen but was mentally catapulted far away.
To put it simply when the kiddo was recalling some moment from his past life before he was transformed into Talon.
Or at least that was what the two men hoped was happening. They could not be sure but it was their best theory and what they hoped for.
Each time such episodes generally lasted only a few minutes and always ended with the kiddo falling unconscious on the floor, much to the displeasure and slight concern of the two former military men.
Slade imagined that it was very painful for the mind of a kiddo traumatized for the rest of his life and turned into a meta-human zombie killer to bring back memories related to his past life.
Yes, a rather insensitive way of putting it but it was acknowledged that Deathstroke and feelings did not get along at all.
Regardless, Slade had just finished training in his secret room, knowing that Richard was safe with Wintergreen somewhere doing who knows what. As the mercenary exited the secret room, closing it behind him, he thought idly about how his friend was growing more and more attached to the kiddo.
Slade could not blame his friend too much.
And the reason was not because even Deathstroke the Terminator was growing fond of the kiddo, okay?
Moving on, the mercenary started to head for the bathroom for a quick shower and in the process almost crashed with William who had suddenly appeared from another hallway. The mercenary merely grunted as a greeting but stopped when he saw the frustrated look on his friend's face.
"Another episode?"
"Another episode."
Slade grunted again. "Let us hope that they are related to the kiddo's past, otherwise it will be very difficult for him to get his life back."
Wintergreen emitted a murmur of acknowledgement and Slade, knowing that William would be watching the kiddo closely for the entire episode, decided to move on.
He needed that shower.
Slade began to worry seriously.
Not that he would ever admit it out loud, of course.
After all, he had a fucking reputation to maintain. And worry was a feeling he did not often experience.
And he definitely wouldn't worry about a murderous metahuman zombie kiddo who kicked him in the balls and nearly took out his other eye who only lived with him for half a year.
Absolutely not.
Every time the kiddo fell unconscious due to these episodes, with Slade carrying him to his room, it always took a half hour, maximum an hour or so, before Richard woke up.
More than three hours had passed and Richard still hadn't woken up.
"Pacing back and forth certainly won't help Richard wake up sooner."
Slade stopped and glared at his friend who raised an eyebrow impassively. The super soldier sighed and dropped heavily onto the couch. "It's just strange that the kiddo hasn't woken up yet!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air in frustration.
"Careful Slade, I dare think you're getting attached to Richard!" William teased him with a knowing smirk.
"Oh fuck you!" Slade rotated his one eye before crossing his arms. "But seriously, it's strange that the kiddo hasn't recovered yet."
"True." agreed Randolph with a weary sigh. "Maybe this time the memories were more intense than usual...?" he suggested but it came out more as a question than a statement.
Slade merely grunted in response. "Maybe."
After that the two sank into a tense silence, both worried about the kiddo. They remained silent for another seventeen minutes before Slade's super-hearing barely picked up an almost imperceptible noise. The mercenary turned sharply in the direction of Richard's bedroom, with Wintergreen following his gaze, and seconds later both could see the figure of the little acrobat and they relaxed noticeably.
"Good to see you're still alive, Richard." Slade joked.
It was true that the kiddo preferred to be called Talon because of the fucking brainwashing, but it was also true that the two ex-military men often had to refer to him also as Richard in an effort to help bring back his memory.
The kiddo remained silent, his golden eyes shining briefly in unknown emotion. Finally, after a long wait he said:
"Dick."
The two men frowned and Slade ignored Wintergreen's is-your-fault-and-your-curses look. "What?"
"My name ... is Dick." murmured the kiddo softly, his eyes wandering nervously from side to side without ever directly meeting the gazes of the two adults. "It's short for Richard... and what everyone called me."
An incredulous and shocked silence filled the room, with hope growing fast in Slade's chest.
Is he perhaps...?
"Do you... remember everything?" Slade asked carefully.
Finally Richard, Dick, met his gaze and nodded slowly, biting his lower lip. "All no but I remember the most important things."
It seemed as if Slade wanted to ask more questions but Wintergreen beat him to it. "This is no time for questioning, Slade." he scolded him and then nodded to the acrobat. "You can see from a mile away that Ric-Dick is tired and exhausted."
Slade watched the kiddo and although it was impossible to see anything different in Dick's physical appearance (after all, he was still a Talon), his golden eyes betrayed him.
"I know we have to have a very important talk, but can we have it tomorrow?" asked Dick and it was clear as day his tone of voice filled with fatigue, shock and who knows what else.
Slade couldn't blame him.
He could not at all imagine how it felt to remember in a relatively short span of time the tragedy of the death of your parents, all the torture of the Court of Owls and being turned into a murderous meta-human zombie weapon in the service of it as an empty shell and their property.
The super soldier nodded. "All right." he said simply and meant it really.
The most important thing was the fact that the kiddo remembered.
And if as soon as the kiddo and Wintergreen walked away a lonely tear of pure happiness ran down the face of Deathstroke The Terminator, well...
Only he was aware of it.
