Gil stared out the window with wide eyes, watching the snow fall. "So pretty…" he murmured. Jason walked over to Gil and put a hat on him.
"You better not get frostbite."
"Frostbite?" Gil asked, frowning - while he knew technically what it was,it was quite different from knowing and experiencing it. "That's where you get really cold, right?"
Bart glances over.
"Not exactly… It's this condition where the tissue below your skin freezes. It is not a good thing to happen so it's best to take precaution and keep warm when in the cold. You will need more than that snow cap."
Jason puts his jacket on the kid.
"There."
"Uhhhhh….. Okay?"
The jacket was… more than a little big on Gil.
Gil moved his arms out - the jacket completely enveloped his arms, leaving lots of extra cloth. Then he looked to Jason. "What about you though?" the boy asked. "You can't get frostbite either!"
"Um, I'll be fine. You are the one that I'm worried about. You have never seen snow, nor been somewhere cold and you are about to experience that."
Gil looked at Jason suspiciously - but he had to admit, the older man wasn't wrong. "Just don't get frostbite though," Gil warned. "Okay?"
"Ten seconds ago, you didn't know what that was. You should just…. worry about yourself."
"Just because I didn't know what it was doesn't mean it doesn't matter," Gil protested. It was like poverty - he could barely understand poverty, but that didn't mean it didn't have an important impact on people. "And don't worry, I won't get frostbite, so you shouldn't either."
Jason didn't want to tell the kid that when he was with the League of Assassins, one of the training sites was atop a snowy mountain and they trained there for hours in thin clothing. It was their custom to take challenges there as well. Challenges that led to one side dying.
"I think I will be fine. We should be landing soon, though."
Jason's answer satisfied Gil (mostly), and he contented himself with watching the snow. Already, he was feeling cold - which was fine, just different from what he was used to. In fact, it just continued to excite him.
The Bioship landed and Gil felt as if he were vibrating with anticipation - there were many things he wanted to do. Build snow forts, snowball fights….Ritsuka Fujimaru had told him a lot about activities to do in the snow, and so had the rest of the team. Not to mention, activities to do after being outside, like drinking hot chocolate and warming up by a fire….
Bart rushed over to Gil.
"Come on, kid! Let's go have some fun! What do you want to do first?"
He quickly thought of what he wanted to do and named the first thing that came to mind. "A snowball fight!"
Bart suddenly had this look in his eyes.
"I was hoping you would say that."
Bart rushed out of the Bioship to start making snowballs. The rest of the team realized exactly what he was planning.
"Maybe he'll slip on a patch of ice?"
"That would be best wishes, Gar. You know that he most likely won't."
Gil looked at them, confused. "What is he doing?"
"Uhhh, he's a speedster…. he tends to use that speed when playing these sorts of games, like dodgeball. We are all about to be hit with a hundred snowballs in a second."
Cassie explained to Gil. Jaime nodded.
"The only way to get a small upperhand is when he trips or something."
"Then it's easy to beat him!" Gil claimed confidently. "We just need to get him to trip."
Jason narrows his eyes. If the kid got hurt, he was going to hurt the speedster. Gar tilted his head.
"It's actually pretty hard to do that, but I guess we can try."
Gil nodded. "Okay!"
He looked back to Bart, whose pile of snowballs was ever growing. Then Gil dashed forward, straight towards Bart. After all, staying still was just asking to get caught, and Gil wasn't planning on going down without a fight!
Bart looked over at the sound of the snow crunching beneath someone's feet to see the kid. For him, time slowed down and he started to throw snowballs at Gil.
That's when Gil let himself, instead of continuing to run, threw himself to the ground and slid to Bart - then entangling himself in the speedster's legs, causing Bart to fall to the ground with him in the snow (Gil suspected he had gone easy on him, but didn't mind).
Gil sat up laughing. He felt cold, but as he had thought, snow so far was fun.
"Hey now, that was uncalled for, what if I fell on top of you?"
Bart stated but was smiling all the same.
"It would've been worth it," Gil grinned, then scooped up a handful of snow. Quickly shaping it into a ball, he threw it at the speedster. The snowball hit him right in the face. The rest of the team started to laugh.
"Dude, that was hilarious, great job."
Garfield called out to the child. Jason looked rather pleased.
Gil smiled, then an idea struck him. He turned to Bart. "I already got you - you want to help me get everyone else?"
"Sure thing, little king. got a plan?"
"Nope," Gil said. Sometimes, a plan was needed. Sometimes, a plan wasn't needed. "Let's get them!"
Thus began a barrage of snowballs, an all out 'war' between the young heroes. He was able to hit people, and was hit himself - it was incredibly splendid. Enkidu would've loved the snow, Gil thought as he laughed. The people of Uruk would've loved the snow, too.
The younger heroes were all laughing and having fun in the snow. They needed this, a chance to just be kids, nothing more. Here there was no stress of secret identities being found out. No worry about missions. Just the younger members of the team having fun. Like Gil, Jason wasn't subjected to fun when he was with the League of Assassins, so he decided to take place near the Bioship and just lean against it and watch them. He kept having this suspicion that something was going to happen, but he chose to ignore it. He looked at Gil and saw him with a big smile across his face. He did not dare want to taint that smile.
He thought about everything that happened in the past few days. Images flashed in his mind of every mission and person he attacked in the past few days. He was a naturally violent person, perfect for an assassin. He shed the blood of a person that was supposed to be his family. He impaled the person he owed his life to. In front of the kid too. How can that kid even think about trusting him, let alone want to be five feet near him. He quickly shut his eyes trying to clear his mind, not that it hadn't happened once before, but he was struggling with this new feeling of guilt. He felt someone touch him.
"Jay?"
Jason reacted on instinct and he grabbed the arm of the other and twisted it and pinned the person to the bioship. His eyes widened when he realized that the person he attacked was Tim. He quickly let go. He stepped back and his mind fed him thoughts of what if that was the kid? What if he didn't realize that this was an ally sooner? What if he killed his….
"Sorry…..I-"
"No, it's my fault, I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
"I shouldn't have attacked you, regardless."
Tim wanted to try and reconnect with Jason but Jason didn't want to hurt him, and that is exactly what he did. He put his hands in his pocket and walked away from the young kid. Tim frowned and let out a sigh.
Unbeknownst to the two bat brothers, Gil had discretely watched their interaction. Something would have to be done about that tension, he thought. He wanted them both to be happy, after all.
Jason kept walking further and further from the team and the biosphip. Even if it wasn't going to be for that long, he had to get away from people. He also still felt a little off. Something, or someone, was watching them. An assassin's senses were sharp, and he trusted his instincts (most of the time, anyway). When he was out of the clearing and into the snow-covered forest, he gingerly stopped. He took a small blade that was in his pocket and threw it up toward the top of the trees. When he found his blade reflected back to him and landed with the handle up, his suspicions were right.
"Carmilla, did you come here because Ra's sent you? Did you come here to kill me and get the boy? Or did Ra's send you to kill both of us?"
The assassin materialized across from him, within the woods. She held a staff with ease, and looked at him distastefully. "My master has given me the orders to eliminate you. How unfortunate that you are a man - this would be way more enjoyable if you were a woman. If only one of the others had been sent, but.." the woman smirked. "I must prove myself to my master~"
The woman swiped a hand at him, her nails longer - and sharper - than any average human. He thought he had been able to block it, but her claw-like-nails tore through the skin on his arm. He did not hiss in pain, though it did hurt. Instead, he advanced.
Sword out, he slashed at her, but she blocked with her staff. However, he managed to push her back slightly, and she growled at him. Raising her staff towards the sky, a dark energy emanated off of it - his instincts told him to move, so he sprinted to the side, practically diving away. Just in time too - some sort of beam was fired at the spot he had just been at from the sky. It had totally decimated any life in that radius.
Despite her mask, he felt she was glaring haughtily at him. "Stay still and die already, I have things to do."
He didn't deign that with an answer. All he knew was that he had to hold her here, because surely killing him wasn't the only order she'd been given. He threw himself at her again, and she parried his blade.
Swiping her staff through the air again, the air rippled, a wave of red energy surging towards him, tearing up the ground.
He managed to dodge it - mostly - but it did graze his side just slightly. But he didn't focus on that. If anything, he would destroy this assassin.
Bart sped over to the golden haired child. He couldn't be certain, but he thought he saw the kid's face change a little bit.
"Hey, kid, you okay?"
Gil was looking over at Tim, but then blinked at Bart. "Me? Oh, I'm good," the boy laughed a bit. "One sec, I'm going to go see if Tim wants to play with us."
Without waiting for an answer from the speedster, Gil jogged over to Tim - he had seen what had happened with Jason, and he had finally decided to talk to Tim. He'd put off this talk long enough, but not anymore. "Tim! Are you okay!"
"Huh? Uh, yeah, I'm fine. So, how are you enjoying this little trip?"
Gil crossed his arms. "I'm enjoying it, but what about you?"
"Of course I'm enjoying it. Why wouldn't I be?"
Tim obviously wasn't going to come out and say anything, so Gil decided to start instead. "You know, Jason cares about you. You know that, right?"
"Huh? Uhhh, what brought this up?"
Tim was taken back by the child's statement. He was not expecting him to say that. Was he being that obvious?
Gil carried on as if Tim hadn't spoken. "He's still trying to settle in though, so it may take him some time to become the brother you used to know. And don't worry - you will become brothers again. I could never take that place, especially since I'll be back to my older self soon. Once that happens, he'll probably feel out of place, so it'll be up to you to take care of him, since you're brothers. Okay? You understand, right?"
"I….. look, Gil, Jason is different, and I have to accept that. He has taken a liking to you. It's probably because you were there for him and not me. I can only imagine what Dick will feel when he finds out. Dick knew him longer than I ever did. I didn't get to know him as well. In the short time I did know him, he was a great hero, a great big brother. He was the one that taught me to hold my ground. He….. he will do whatever it takes to protect the people he cares about because he doesn't want to lose anymore people… which means he will protect you….. even if it kills him… again." Tim spoke in a monotone voice. A trick he learned from his adopted father when he didn't want to show he was upset.
"I won't let that happen," Gil said stubbornly. "And you know, you are one of those people too. The memories you shared are there. Buried, but there. So I know he cares about you. And we can both protect him and help him."
Tim eyed the small kid before giving his head a nod. Maybe the kid spoke some truth. At the moment, however, it was not the case.
"For now, I'll…. I'll let you be the one he cares about, but I will work with you to help him."
Gil gave him a disapproving look - he may be a child, but he wouldn't let Tim just...push himself away. "That's not what I-"
That's when he felt it. The presence of another servant.
A huge explosion rang out in the woods nearby, and Gil frowned. He couldn't fight a servant, not in the state he was in. With his Gates of Babylon, he would've stood a chance (and won, probably), but since they were locked up he was just a kid. A kid with more strength and speed than that of an average child, but still.
The rest of the team had stopped playing around in the snow and looked towards the explosion.
Gil bit his lip - it was a given that servants were almost always stronger than humans. So the question was to let the team risk themselves against the servant, or retreat? He was just about to suggest going back to the ship when he froze, eyes narrowing back on the woods.
"Jason," he said. "Jason's in there."
He couldn't just leave him behind. It looked like they would have to risk themselves against this servant whether he liked it or not.
Calling out to the team, he told them of his limited knowledge. "It's a servant!" he said. "A servant is out there, fighting Jason!"
The team stopped whatever thing they were doing and looked at the small child. Jaime already has a small run-in with a spirit. He knew that the way that Gil was shouting, this was serious.
"What can we do against this spirit, hermano?"
Gil shook his head, at a loss. In all likelihood it was the same spirit that he had seen at the base for the League of Assassins, which meant they were - probably - dealing with an assassin.
"Cassie, you and the girls stay back, okay?" he asked her. If it were the same spirit….he didn't want to think about the implications about that, but he had to. "This spirit is stronger against girls, so stay here. The rest of us stand a better chance…don't try and kill her, we just have to get Jason and run. Okay?"
Cassie recalled the spirit that she had encountered at the League of Assassins' base and knew of her and what she would do. She quickly nodded her head and helped the others stay back.
"Okay! So who are we up against and how do we defend long enough to stop this spirit?"
Bart quickly asked.
"I think her name is Carmilla, and she's an assassin," Gil said hurriedly. "I don't know much about her, but she's empowered by the blood of women, and can heal using it. Casters generally do more damage against Assassins, but I don't think I'll be much help like this...the best we can do is just grab Jason and run."
"Sorry, Hermano, with our luck, we will end up fighting her. Scarab agrees with me."
"If that happens…" Gil trailed off. "Just hit her with everything you've got. But only as a last option! Now come on, we have to get Jason before she kills him!"
Luckily, there were still explosions going off, so that at least meant Jason was still alive.
"Okay, that was close…."
Bart sounded a little nervous.
Gil gritted his teeth, and started forward. He was a kid, and couldn't fight, but the least he could do was drag Jason out of the fight. If only his gate weren't locked! He thought over possible strategies. Gil considered having Bart whisk Jason away, but that probably wouldn't end well. However, if Gil himself told Jason to leave, and perhaps along with Tim's help, they could get Jason to retreat. Then Bart could carry him away from the servant - servants were normally fast, but no one was quite as fast as a speedster.
Inhaling, he yelled Jason's name as loud as he could. "Retreat! Jason, go back to the ship!"
He hoped the other man heard him.
Unfortunately, Jason did hear. This caused the assassin to look away from his opponent and look toward Gil.
"Kid?"
The Assassin took that moment to strike, a blast of energy searing across the earth, slamming into Jason. Gil could only stare in horror as Jason was thrown back into the snow, which was slowly turning red.
"Ja…..Jason!" Gil yelled, his heart hammering in his chest (yet at the same time, everything felt so incredibly still).
Carmilla stalked forward, a smirk upon her lips. "Here I thought you were supposed to be a warrior. Now, be a good dog and die."
"No!" If only he could just do something, anything-
Tim held Gil back. As much as he wanted to, he knew that Jason would not approve of the small child running out to him. Jason couldn't be dead, not again.
Jason's hearing was not all there. All he could hear was ringing. He wasn't dead, not yet, and he refused to die this way. His whole body felt sore, but he used whatever remaining energy, as well as used the tree for support to hoist himself up.
Gil could only watch - would he have to watch Jason die? Would this too be his fault? He was a king, he'd been in command of a kingdom before, yet he wasn't even strong enough to fight one servant, when before he could've taken on thousands of them. Why wasn't anyone helping? Couldn't they do something?
Time seemed to freeze, and his saving grace appeared in a blur of blue. A man stood between Jason and the Assassin, smirking casually at her. "Not so fast - I don't know if you've heard, but hounds don't die so easily."
Gil's eyes narrowed in confusion. "....Lancer?"
"That's me," the man confirmed, his red spear - the Gae Bulg - as proof. "Merlin said you guys were in trouble, so my master sent me ahead to deal with it for you. You really ought to thank her later."
Meanwhile, Carmilla frowned - these people were supposed to be defenseless. Just a bunch of children! So why in the world did such an untrained hound appear? Nevertheless, he wouldn't stop her from having her fun.
"If you won't move aside, then I will simply kill you too!" she said gleefully, and started forwards. However, something made her stop - the command seals.
Retreat for now.
"But I -" she began to protest, but her master repeated the orders.
Retreat.
"Fine," she spat and glared at the heroes as if they personally offended her. "Next time, I will slaughter you all and bathe in your blood. Look forward to it."
Thus, she returned to her master's side, leaving the heroes alone. The lancer shrugged. "I guess her master called her back - kind of cowardly, but what can you do." The lancer turned to the heroes. "You kids alright?"
"Jason," Gil answered. "He's hurt, I…."
The lancer looked at Jason, who, despite having sat up, did not look very good. Cu made a face. "That sure doesn't look pretty…" Cu knelt next to Jason, frowning in concentration. "I know a little bit of magic to ease the pain, but you're definitely going to need stitches." To the other heroes, he asked: "We got gauze anywhere? Alcohol?"
"We may have some on the bioship. We can take him there."
Tim told the spirit.
Cu pursed his lips. "I don't think we should move him, he was hit pretty hard by that attack. I'm no doctor but I can deal with this - a warrior has to know how to patch up their own wounds if they need to."
"We can bring the bioship here."
"Then do it," Cu snapped. "Hurry now, he needs more help than my magic can provide."
Jaime used his coms to contact Cassie and to bring the bioship to his location.
"Cassie will be here in just a minute. Does he have that long?"
Cu nodded, hands positioned above the wound. Transparent runes hovered above it as well - he was no Caster (at the moment, at least) but he still knew some magic from when he trained with Scathatch. "He can hold out for that long, at least."
"I'm…. I'm fine."
Jason forced out. He didn't want to worry them too much.
"People as wounded as you are really shouldn't talk, you know," Cu advised. "Just some advice."
Meanwhile, Gil still stood ways away. He felt he couldn't move, couldn't take a step forward. What was wrong with him? He wasn't scared of gore or wounds or any of that. But…
He couldn't go over there. What if Jason blamed him? Gil was no use to anyone, and kept getting people hurt, both as an adult and as a child. Why had the grail summoned him? To inflict such pain upon heroes, instead of nurturing them as a king ought to?
"Is….. is the kid okay… Carmilla….. she was told….. to bring him back…..to Ra's…."
"Yeah, the kid Goldie is fine. You should be more worried about yourself instead."
Gil hesitantly came forward. "Jason, I'm so sorry…"
"Don't be….. better me than you….. these aren't…. even the worst…. injuries… I have gotten… remember…. I used to… used to be dead. I will….. Recover…."
Gil frowned, feeling both guilty and angry. "Just because you had worse doesn't make this okay! Just…...be okay, please…."
Jason reached out and took Gil's small hand.
"I'll be fine….."
"Good," Gil murmured, then took a breath. "Because I won't allow you to die, okay? I won't accept any less than a full recovery."
Even though Jason was telling the truth about him suffering worse injuries, he only referred to his death. True, he doesn't know the cause -Kaldur and the others told him he would have to remember on his own- he knows that he wasn't okay. He was a fighter, a warrior, an assassin… and at one time a hero. He lied about being fine. He didn't want to worry the kid. He could tell that something was wrong…. he was having trouble seeing.
Tim started to shake a little. He could tell something was wrong. He looked over at Jaime. His beetle powers could help read vitals of others, or at least their physiology.
"Blue?"
Jaime went over to Tim and whispered as to not let the small child hear.
"His vitals are dropping…. fast, whatever she did to him, may not end well…. hopefully… whatever Cu can do, will help him at least… not die….."
Tim nodded.
To Jason, this wasn't terrible for him - he did remember something…. he knew he didn't like being alone and at the same time felt the need to be alone. He remembered being on the streets as a kid by himself, before he found a home-where was that again?- he remembered being alone during his last moments before….. he was killed. He pulled Gil closer to him and held him close. He didn't want to be alone during this, so he pulled the closest person to him with no hesitation.
"Don't….. leave…."
He asked the boy as he took shallow and deep breaths. Maybe it was the snow finally getting to him, but he was starting to feel cold and the young child was warm.
"I won't," Gil promised, thoughts flashing to a time he had experienced, yet hadn't at the same time. The death of his best friend. "I won't."
Jason let exhaustion take over, the tiredness he was feeling won in its fight. He let himself be swallowed into the darkness of sleep.
His grip on Gil loosened. Tim started to step toward his brother only to stop and look up. He spotted the Bioship. Tim looked over at the Lancer class spirit. Would he be able to help? He couldn't lose his brother again.
"Sheesh kid, don't just give up. You'll disappoint your siblings," Cu said, pouring more of his magic into Jason. He had never really specialized in magic, and he may be part of the Lancer class at the moment, but he knew a few tricks. Hopefully they would work - though he wasn't counting on his luck for that, his luck was notoriously awful.
"Hey, little amigo…. maybe you should step back so he can help him."
Jaime was worried about the kid getting scarred by this, as well as the fact that he didn't know how well a twelve-year-old could handle blood.
"No," Gil said softly. "I'll stay."
Was it not his job, as one who was to become king, to be witness to such things? It was also the job of a king to respect the wishes of his subjects, so….he had to stay. He had to.
Ra's al Ghul was walking down the halls of his home in Nanda Parbat. He had taken his assassin's back to the impenetrable fortress. He came here because he had required the use of the Lazarus Pit after one of his own assassin's betrayed him. Instead of facing punishment from him, the assassin ran away like a coward. He would not let this betrayal go unpunished. He had called upon his assassin spirit to go after Jason and to retrieve the king that left with him. He knew Jason had a soft spot for children. It was a part of him. A part that made him weak. When he sent his spirit after the two, he gave her orders to kill the assassin that betrayed him and to retrieve the king-turned-child for Vandal.
He could hear his spirit talk to him as she attacked Jason. Things were going well for the spirit, but then more help, as well as another spirit joined the fight. This was getting annoying. Vandal was there by Ra's side, monitoring what was happening. He didn't want to lose such a powerful soldier. Her time to die for Vandal was not yet to come.
"Ra's, call back your spirit."
"What? She can take them."
"Call her back, the time to fight has come and gone. You taught that boy too well that he was keeping a fight with her. She found herself in the presence of a spirit as well. A Lancer class, but nevertheless, a spirit that can, with the other heroes, prove to be fatal. Call her back."
Ra's sighed, Vandal's goal was to get Gilgamesh and who knew how long he would be in the form of a child. He still thought that the opportunity to capture the boy alive was now, but he respected the wishes of the man.
"Retreat for now."
He voiced a strict command to use one of the seals. His spirit began to protest the order she had retrieved.
"But I-"
Ra's would not have it.
"Retreat."
He repeated the command and his spirit obeyed. He headed over to Vandal who was staring out and looking over Ra's assassins who were all in the middle of training.
"Vandal…. explain yourself. Why would you make me call back the spirit if she could have gotten Gilgamesh and brought him back here? She would have done well."
The man didn't turn to look at the demon's head, nor did he give a direct response. Instead, he simply asked a question.
"What makes a king weak?"
Ra's narrowed his eyes. What was the man getting at?
Vandal continued.
"What makes a king weak is what they feel toward the people they rule. A king that feels pity and love is a weak king. A king that is willing to do whatever is a strong king. Gilgamesh is a weak king. Take away his toys and he is a man with a title. Take someone he cares about and he becomes our puppet."
"What are you getting at?"
"We do not need your spirit to retrieve the weak king, for he will walk straight to us when he finds out that we have his one and only friend."
Grayson and Kingu found themselves in Star City. Why would Jade come here? It wasn't until they passed by Will's house. Grayson looked into the house through the window and he saw Will taking care of his daughter, Lian. Now it made since that Jade would come here. Her daughter and her lover was here. If he and Kingu wait here long enough, Jade will come back. She can deny it all she wants, but she loves Lian and Will with all her heart. Kingu probably knew that she was here, watching her family from afar.
"Hey, Kingu, how long do you think we have to wait before she shows up? Can you sense that sort of thing?"
Knowing Jade, she would come in the cover of night, and it was (in Star City) close to nightfall. He noticed that Kingu kept to themself and doesn't talk much. He didn't want to force anything out because that is not a good way to build trust. This mission they requested was a surprise.
"I can not tell that sort of thing," Kingu began. "But I don't believe we shall have to wait long."
"Alright… so….. in your life, did you have any regrets?"
Grayson didn't know why he asked that question first, but he felt as if this object, this key they were after, that was their friend's in their life, was something that tied him to some connection. His first thought was regret.
Kingu smiled softly. "I do have one, but hopefully my friend will be able to forgive me for it."
"I see…. I'm sure he will…. you think retrieving this key for him will help him forgive you?"
"No," Kingu shook their head. "Though it will help him, and that is what matters. I left him alone, so there will be no easy forgiveness for that."
Grayson dipped his head.
"I get what you mean…. even though I wasn't there during…. this accident…. I still left my family behind… to get out of my father's shadow….. I left and my brother died…. My brother… if he were here… he would never forgive me."
Kingu looked at him. "I doubt that. Humans are very complex, and I have seen it is in their nature to forgive those they care for."
"You have one regret….. I have many… I…. when I sleep I see what my actions caused…. I see all of my friends dying for the decisions I made…. It's why I couldn't have you come here alone….. I don't want another member of my team… to die."
Grayson told the spirit. He never talked about it before and he felt…. relieved that he did. The night terrors and nightmares were the reason he refused to rest except for the bare minimum.
"Is death worse for those who die, or those you leave behind?" Kingu mused. "Nevertheless, you don't need to worry about one such as myself. I am merely a tool to be used, and I shall perform to the best of my ability."
"Kingu… you are not just a tool. You are a living being. You have emotions and memories and feelings….. you should not think of yourself as just a tool."
Kingu just smiled serenely at Grayson. "Thank you for trying to convince me otherwise, but it is alright. I was created to be a tool, so a tool I am - though a tool for humanity, rather than the gods."
"Tell me… is that a life you wanna live? Being used by people?"
"I find no issue with that," Kingu said. "It is something I am willing to do."
"Don't you want to do more? Doesn't this life make you….. lonely?"
"No," Kingu said. "I've already been given more than I had expected. To walk among humanity has been a great gift, and having met friends and comrades...that is something I treasure."
Grayson smiled.
"That I can agree. I treasure my friends, the family I have created for myself more than anything. Just like each of them, I am willing to risk everything, even my own life for them."
"That is admirable," Kingu said, thinking back to when they had been alive. Back to when they lay dying, their friend crying over them. "Just make sure to value your own life as well, for your family's sake."
"You call yourself a tool, and speak of only being used…. do you value your life?"
"I can not deny that I would like to live," Kingu said. "But I do value my life - I have someone to live for. If I died again before we could even meet, he would surely be angry."
"I see…. talking like this…. it's nice. Thank you."
Kingu simply smiled. "You're welcome. I'm glad you spoke to me of this."
For someone such as Grayson, Kingu figured, it must be easier to talk to some stranger from a distant time period than someone of the present era. Regardless, Kingu was glad to help.
Grayson was going to say more when he heard a sound. He quickly shut his mouth as he looked over at the house. Just as he predicted, Jade was there watching from the shadows. Finding her proved to me the easier part, the hard part was to convince her to help.
"Hey Kingu, you got a plan or were you going to make this up on the spot?... Kingu?"
He turned to find the spirit not by his side anymore. He suddenly knew how it felt for the others when he disappeared from them.
Kingu appeared next to Jade using their inhuman speed. "You must be Jade - or should I call you Cheshire?"
Jade turns around.
"Who are you… how do you know my name?"
Jade didn't like it when people she didn't know knew who she was. She kept to herself and tried to keep a low profile.
"I was told you could get me into the League of Assassin's base," Kingu said lowly.
"Hmmmm, I may or may not be able to do just that. Tell me why I should."
Jade put her hands behind her back to retrieve her blades from her back pocket.
"Your daughter," Kingu said simply - Merlin had told them of the woman's weakness, that of which being her child. Kingu didn't like bringing an innocent baby into this, but they wouldn't harm the child, that was certain.
"You dare threaten my daughter?!"
She directed her blade at the spirit.
Kingu spoke calmly. "I am not the threat towards your daughter. There are others far suited to the task than I. Vandal Savage, for one."
She stared at the spirit.
"I'm listening. Go on."
"He has obtained an item which could shift the course of the world," Kingu told her honestly. "You have this comfortable balance between the heroes and villains because they are more or less equal - this item will shift that balance, and your stability will be lost. Eventually, Vandal will destroy this world, creating earth into a living underworld. Your daughter, being as young as she is, would likely perish."
"And why should I believe you?"
"Because you would do anything for your family, Jade."
Grayson walked out of the shadows into the light. He held his hands up to show he meant no harm. She knew Grayson, or Nightwing as he was now. He may be on opposite sides, but he never lied - at least, not always. She lowered her weapons.
"Hmmmm, I think I can help. But it won't be that easy. Are you willing to go that far?"
Kingu nodded without hesitation. "Of course."
"Either you are more of an idiot than I thought, or you have nothing to lose and are willing to risk it all. I can respect that."
Jade put her blades back before glancing at her daughter. She saw that Will was holding her and she was asleep in his arms.
"Let's go…. before I change my mind."
Kingu smiled, happy. "Alright!"
Jade led the two to a helicopter that was just outside the city-and Grayson swore Jade stole it- and had them get in. Grayson looked at Kingu.
"Are you going to be okay flying in a helicopter? I don't think you have before….."
"I have actually flown before," Kingu said. "So you need not worry."
"Oh, okay. Well, as long as you are okay. Cheshire? Is everything good to go?"
"Of course it is. We better leave now. The sooner I get you there the sooner I don't have to deal with the two of you."
Though Kingu had already flown before - Gil had liked to show off, especially when everyone else didn't have what he did - they were still very fascinated by it as they took off.
"So," they said, looking down at the land they flew over. Truly, it was breathtaking (and heartening) to see how much nature remained when looked over upon from a bird's eye. "What do you know of the servants Vandal has?"
Really, the information Merlin provided was a huge help. Kingu just wanted to know what Jade would say when asked for information.
"Vandal's servants? I am pretty sure I was only taking you there. Nothing more."
"Fair enough," Kingu said - really, they hadn't expected much from the woman.
"Don't take it the wrong way, we were lucky she agreed to this much."
"I know," Kingu said, staring down at the earth again. "I just figured asking wouldn't hurt."
"Yeah, that's true."
He looked out in the direction that Kingu was staring.
"It's nice….. flying…."
"It is," Kingu agreed. "My friend used to take me out flying sometimes. It always amazes me, to see the world from this view."
"Yeah, it's always different when one is flying. And I can guarantee you will fly with us many times." Grayson spoke. He enjoyed flying, it was relieving to him.
Kingu smiled. "I will look forward to it, then."
"Well little birdies, we will be landing now. Getting ready to land."
Cheshire told the two. Grayson looked at Kingu.
"You ready for this?"
Kingu smiled - it wasn't necessarily their usual serene smile. Kingu was ready to take back their friend's key, and maybe even engage in battle with those that had taken their friend hostage. "Of course."
Cheshire landed the helicopter a little while from Nanda Parbat.
"This is as far as I take you. Go ahead and try to navigate the catacombs. Chances are you will die there before you find what you are looking for?"
Cheshire crossed her arms and just stared at the two. Grayson glanced at Jade, wondering how much they could truly trust her.
"I guess we'll get going now. Come on, Kingu."
Kingu nodded. "Right." Then they turned to Jade. "Thank you for taking us here."
"You better not have just used my daughter to get me to do what you wanted. If I find out, you will regret it."
"I wouldn't expect anything less," Kingu answered her. Then they turned to Grayson. "Do you have any idea where Vandal might store important items?"
"This is Ra's al Ghul's place. Vandal…. we don't know where he normally resides, but we can have a pretty good idea that if this item is as important as you say, he won't be too far from it. According to Tim, Vandal was last seen with Ra's and that Ra's needed to use the Lazarus Pit. So… that's why we're here."
"So we will have to confront Vandal directly," Kingu mused. "I can't say I'm let down by that fact."
"No, I think we just need to be unseen until we find what you are looking for. Vandal… he isn't one to mess with."
Kingu didn't let their disappointment be seen. "Alright. Then where do we head first?"
"Well, the only way to get into this fortress is through the catacombs that reside underneath. I do have a map of the place so we won't get completely lost, but it won't be easy. Not like anything ever was easy."
"That is true," Kingu said, reflecting to when they had lived. Certainly, nothing had been easy, but it had been fun nonetheless.
Grayson gave a smile.
"Alright, let's go and hope luck is on our side."
Kingu followed Grayson into the catacombs. While most people would've been uneasy in such a place, Kingu did not mind it. In fact, they felt rather at ease. Kingu supposed that being underground didn't bother them much - perhaps it was because they had been made of clay.
The two of them proceeded to walk down the dark halls of the catacombs, following a holographic map that Grayson had. They both decided to walk in silence as to listen for anything out of the ordinary. Suddenly Grayson stopped walking and he stopped and looked at a door.
"This ….. can't be right …"
Grayson looked at Kingu.
"This door shouldn't be here."
"Really?" Kingu asked. "Then I wonder what it is doing here…"
"Hmmm, wonder if this is where your friend's key is….. or this could be a trap."
"I suppose there's really only one way to find out," Kingu said. If it was a trap, then their enemy knew they were there already, and not looking into the door wouldn't change anything. On the other hand, if it wasn't a trap, the door - or what lay beyond it - could help them.
Kingu opened the door.
The door led to another hallway.
"I guess…. the question now is if we continue this way … or not."
"We'll get nowhere standing around," Kingu proposed. "I would continue on, trap or no trap. But you know our enemy best, so I shall leave the decision up to you."
"We move forward."
"Right," Kingu said, already moving. It simply made sense for them to go first - servants were always the first to engage the danger, as that was their purpose.
Grayson reached out and put his hand on the shoulder of the spirit.
"Hey….. be careful. No unnecessary risk."
"Of course - anything unnecessary wouldn't be very efficient."
"You'd be surprised…... did you hear something?"
Kingu stopped. Something was wrong…. "A servant is nearby. Be on guard."
"A servant… like that assassin that was with Ra's?"
Kingu shook their head. This aura was..different. "Whoever this is, they know we are here, and are issuing a challenge to us. Shall we accept this invitation?"
"Do we have a choice? If they know we are here, they won't let us go easily."
The two walked into a different room, and Kingu blinked - there was so much gold, all the gold fashioned into the shape of a key - his friend's key, to be precise. Besides the obvious attempt to confuse them, a woman stood in the middle of the room, holding on to a sword, which rested on the ground. She wore a black dress, and had a visor on her face. However, Kingu did not need to see her face to discern her identity.
"Excalibur," Kingu murmured. Immediately, they were supplied information on the sword, and its owner. "Ah, so you must be the King of Knights."
In response the woman lifted her blade, the tip of it pointing right at them - it was a challenge if Kingu ever saw one. She said nothing.
Kingu was just about to step forward and accept the challenge when Grayson stopped them.
"I take it you were the spirit that Kingu sensed earlier? Are you a servant of Vandal Savage?"
The woman hefted her blade up in a ready position. "I am a servant - now, away with you, or I shall crush you," she said coldly.
"Unfortunately, that is not an option I can take."
Grayson had his escrima sticks at the ready, already knowing that he was going to have to fight. He eyed Kingu, knowing that the spirit will use this to find what they came here for.
Kingu frowned - it should be them fighting the king, not Grayson. Humans, however interesting, could not hope to stand against such raw power. But...Kingu couldn't find the right key while fighting Saber either. So, they had no choice but to leave the king to Grayson.
"Don't get close to her," Kingu told Grayson quietly, as a word of advice. "Don't try and beat her, just dodge and stall. If you don't do that, it is almost certain you will perish."
Then Kingu was off, speeding past the servant, quickly scanning each key for imperfections. Kingu was certain they would be able to tell which was the real key, as they had seen it back when it was originally made. It almost made Kingu sigh. How thoughtless their friend had been, tossing such an item out.
Meanwhile, the enemy servant seemed content at focusing on one enemy - Grayson. The ground itself cracked, and she advanced towards Grayson. She was so fast that he had no choice but to use his escrima sticks to block the attack, and it was like a shockwave had been made at his arms. He almost gave out, but opted instead to redirect her attack and rolled to the side.
While his arms were sore - definitely not a point in his favor - at least he figured he could gauge her speed and strength better.
"Oh, so you are more of a close range fighter. I can do that as well. Tell me, can you fight just as well without your weapon?"
The woman regarded him with a freezing look - or, it would've been a freezing look if she didn't have the visor in front of her eyes. "The weak always protest the strength of those in power. Be silent, fragile man. I will annihilate you."
Grayson scoffed. "Yeah, I'm not protesting. Also, I'm not quite as 'fragile' as you think. Good luck trying to kill me though. I'll stop you before you get the chance."
Truth be told, Grayson didn't really think he could stop her on his own, but he didn't want to show weakness to this enemy.
The woman advanced once more, her sword slashing out - Grayson just barely managed to dodge it, feeling the air part as the sword slashed at him. It was only thanks to his extensive training in acrobatics that he was able to avoid that blade. He also got the distinct feeling she wasn't releasing her full power on him. The implications of that were concerning - what was the full strength of a Heroic Spirit like, anyways? Goldie didn't seem to exert any effort when he had fought Grayson before. Goldie hadn't even taken them seriously.
It was a lot to keep in mind, for sure.
As he fought Saber - she couldn't really be the chivalrous King of Knights, could she? - a dark energy began forming around her blade, and she began to move faster, her strikes becoming more and more difficult to predict and avoid.
Everything else became a blur. He moved to one side, rolled out of the way. He slid back, ducking. He moved on pure instinct - there wasn't room for anything else. But it wasn't enough.
His eyes widened as he saw Saber's blade heading straight at him, unstoppable. In the nick of time, he was able to block once more, but this strike had more power and velocity behind it - it sent him flying into the hallway, through the wall. He landed with a wheeze, unable to catch his breath.
To his horror, he could hear the tap of her armored boots coming his way. He tried to get up, but couldn't get himself to rise. Were his systems in shock? She did send him through a wall, after all.
She appeared in his line of sight, blade - the supposedly pure blade Excalibur - raised for the final strike. He thought he was done for when a chain rocketed past Saber, altering her strike so her sword hit the ground next to his head instead.
The chain reformed into Kingu, who looked serene as always. "I have what we've come for. Rest now, for I shall continue this fight for you."
The woman regarded Kingu, then nodded. A wicked grin crossed Kingu's face for a brief moment,and the two began clashing. They were both a blur - Grayson could barely make out what they were doing. Chains flew about the room, as did other random weapons, while Saber was some dark force, blocking the strikes with her inhumane speed. The scary thing was that the one who might bring down the catacombs wasn't Saber, but Kingu themself.
The amount of energy rose in the room, the catacombs practically shaking with their might. If Vandal hadn't known they were there, he definitely did now. Despite the pain, and stiffness of his muscles, he pulled himself up into a sitting position.
"Oh…. I'm gonna feel this in the morning." Grayson groaned. He figured if Kingu joined the fight, then the thing they came here for was with the spirit. This fight, if it continued, would only bring backup and Grayson didn't know how many people he could take. He also didn't know how much these walls and old caverns could take from Kingu and Saber's fighting. He called out to the spirit.
"Kingu! I think… I think we need to leave…. now…."
A chain flew through the air and transformed into Kingu, who stopped gracefully. Pausing to pick up Grayson, Kingu nodded. "That's true, Vandal has acquired more servants than just this one. Not to mention we are on his island," Kingu added as an afterthought.
Kingu started to run through the halls, fleet-footed, even with no shoes or anything. The Saber growled, and Grayson could feel an enormous amount of energy in the other servant's direction.
"It looks like she isn't quite done yet," Kingu noted. "Hold on."
A wave of energy rippled over them, and it was like everything exploded all at once, throwing both himself and Kingu forward as the catacombs finally fell apart.
Kingu did their best to shield both themself and Grayson from the dark energy and the rubble following it, using their chains to usher them forward, and more out of the blast. Unfortunately it was near impossible to completely escape, so they had been caught in it. Of course, Kingu was still conscious, but the same couldn't be said to the young Grayson beside him.
For a human against a servant, he had done well - Kingu had great respect for him and the resilience of humans. Kingu suddenly heard footsteps draw closer to them.
"It seems that our trap worked, although we didn't quite catch the one we were looking for."
A deep voice spoke.
"Saber, find the two that have infiltrated this place. Don't kill them…. yet. They can be of use to us."
"Yes, Master," came the woman's cold voice.
Kingu frowned. If they moved, they'd be seen. If they stayed, they'd be found. While Kingu could keep fighting, Grayson needed medical help. If it were just them, Kingu could escape. Alas…
"Are you Vandal Savage?" Kingu asked, standing in the rubble. A shame, really - all the dust coated their white clothing, making it seem like it was dark gray. A shame indeed.
"Yes, I am Vandal Savage."
The man, now known as Vandal, stated. He looked straight at Kingu.
"Hmmm, I know you. You were by that weakling of a king, Gilgamesh. A shame that you had to stand by his side. To think he called you a friend, only for him to leave you for death."
Kingu narrowed their eyes. "Speak not of something you know nothing about. Gil did no wrong in our friendship - it was I who died, after all. Not that I would expect such a distasteful man to understand such a thing. He is a strong king, and I will stand by him always, be it in Uruk or in this era."
"You call him a strong king but tell me, do you know that his death was a pitiful death? Not of age, nor in battle. He died because his own body gave out. You take a stand by someone who didn't even make it to see their kingdom grow. However, I can make him be more of use in this time, than he was in his own time. You will help me do as such. Does this offer interest you, Enkidu?"
Kingu - no, Enkidu. With Grayson knocked out, it was safe to refer to themselves as their true name. Enkidu, in most situations, was serene. Calm and composed. Not today, in that hour, in that minute - Enkidu had the intense desire to destroy the man who insinuated that their bond with Gil was so fragile it could be broken so easily. "Gil gave me my soul when he claimed me as his friend. Never, for any reason, would I ever betray such a bond. Do not speak of such things, else I will be forced to take retribution."
Not that it would really be forcing Enkidu - they kind of wanted to destroy the man already, he just rubbed Enkidu the wrong way.
"Do you even know what has become of your…. friend?"
"I'm sure he will tell me of all that transpired after my passing," Enkidu said clearly. "I don't need you to give an account of events as I will only accept what Gil has to say."
"So you aren't even worried that he is forgetting you? Moving on as if you never existed? The young 'heroes' of this world, of this time, they will corrupt him, you can save him. You can be with him again. I will help you."
He eyed Grayson. Saber did some damage to him, and being buried alive didn't help.
"You can also help that person you came with. You can keep talking to me and have his life slip away, or you can take up my offer, see your friend again, and save the life of a human. What do you say to my offer now?"
Enkidu decided they really, really didn't like Vandal Savage. Unfortunately, he was right about Grayson at least (though he was wrong about everything else - such attempts to shake their friendship with Gil were pitiful). As much as Enkidu wanted to pummel Vandal, they instead sighed. "My allegiance to Gil is unshakable," Enkidu began. "But if you heal this man I might amend my views of you personally. My condition is that your servants keep their distance, unless you want this base of yours destroyed."
Enkidu was definitely lying - Vandal was scum and that's all they'd ever see him as. Added to that, Enkidu knew how that man had taken Gil hostage once already - hopefully, Gil wouldn't come near the base, but they weren't naive enough to think that - Gil would seek retribution for Vandal anywhere in the world, they were willing to bet.
"Very well. Would you allow my servant to at least take the young hero and bring him where they can help him, or would you prefer to do as such?"
"I will take him," Enkidu said, carefully lifting Grayson up. They didn't trust Vandal whatsoever, so Enkidu was prepared for any trick or trap to pop up. "Just know if anything happens to this man, I will end your life," Enkidu simply said.
"I understand. Come this way. We, that is the master of the grand fortress and I, will make you feel comfortable."
Enkidu frowned - they wanted none of Vandal's 'hospitality'. They doubted it would be hospitable anyways. But, they followed nevertheless.
Vandal led Enkidu to the inner part of the fortress. He stopped and turned to the spirit.
"I will need to retrieve someone who I work with. I need to have him call his spirit back. Please wait here."
Vandal left down a hall. One would get lost easily in this fortress if they didn't know the place. It was some time before Vandal returned with Ra's al Ghul.
"You didn't tell me we have another member of the bat family here too."
"You will be in charge of healing him while I handle other matters."
Ra's narrowed his eyes.
"Hmmm, he does need help as soon as he can….. come, we can heal him in the waters of the Lazarus Pit."
Enkidu frowned. "Lazarus Pit?"
"The Lazarus Pit is a way to help him. The waters can heal any wound. Prevent someone from dying, and even bring someone back to life. It's properties will help young Nightwing."
Enkidu was suspicious - nothing that sounded that good came without its price. But Grayson did need immediate help… "Fine. But if something happens to Grayson that isn't beneficial to him…."
"More beneficial than being alive rather than dead?"
Enkidu looked at the two villains, not amused. "My point still stands."
Ra's sighed.
"The only thing that could go wrong is that it messes with his head, but that is an easy fix. I, myself have used the pit countless times, I know what must be done."
They weren't foolish enough to trust the villains, but Enkidu didn't have much of a choice in the matter - Grayson was only human, and he needed the help now. So, they merely nodded.
Ra's, knowing that the spirit would be stubborn and not leave Grayson's side, allowed him to follow him. They walked down the dimly lit hallways until they reached the heart of the fortress. If they had any chance to escape, it had long passed.
"I take it you don't want me to take hold of young Nightwing?"
Ra's asked the spirit.
"I will carry him," Enkidu said, tone leaving no argument.
"I see. Well, you can place him in the pit's waters, then, if you wish to handle your….. friend, acquaintance, whatever he is to you."
Enkidu looked at the pit distastefully. It seemed...wrong to them, somehow. But still, Enkidu gently placed Grayson in the pit.
Ra's narrowed his eyes as Grayson slipped under the water. The spirit was too focused on the young hero to lay any mind to him. The spirit was concerned about his life, which gave Ra's a thought that he wouldn't dare hurt him. Ra's stepped out of the room, and closed the door. Sealing the room as that door was the only way in, or out.
A moment passed before there was any movement from the water. Grayson suddenly leapt out of the water and attacked the first person he saw, which happened to be Enkidu.
Enkidu blocked the attack, gritting their teeth - of course, not from the effort of blocking the attack, but of their young friend's sudden madness. The villain had not lied to him - Grayson was not in control of himself, mind lost. Though Grayson did seem to be stronger than usual, it shouldn't pose too much of a problem - Enkidu would just have to be a little more careful.
Hopefully, Grayson would not be like this for long. Enkidu would do what they could to calm Grayson down and hold him off - after all, Grayson did have time to recover. At least, with the door locked….how troublesome.
A/Ns:
Sora: Cu Supremacy. (Akira here, uh, yeah, Sora actually wanted this as her Author note sooooo, yeah.)
Akira: Hey... yeah, so that happened. Uh, I gotta say this chapter was rather... dark, but it was fun to write. Uh, yes, Jason almost died(again) and yes, his brother almost died... (again) (Man, the bat bros really like to cheat death it seems. Oh well.) Yes, I traumatized a child. This chapter had a lot of things happening at different times, so if you had a few questions as to what had happened, I can explain if you need it. Feel free to ask. Anyway, Stay whelmed see you in the next chapter!
Posted: 9/25/2021