First of all I'm sorry, it's been 2 months, almost 3? Feel free to throw bricks at me. I hate to say it but this chapter is a bit, kinda short, but I have had to edit it and fix it and rewrite it god knows how many times to get the feel I wanted it to have. Soooo, it took me awhile because I was never pleased with anything I had written beforehand.

So yea, sorry. Also Asilla, next chapter is all yours, hopefully it won't take me as long as this one had... and I just wanted to get it up and out there because I know people wanted this chapter.

Anyways I want to thank everyone for reading this lil' story of mine, I want to thank all my reviewers, you guys know you are the best of the very BEST! And anyone that has taken the time to just read this thing... you are goddamn awesome as well. I honestly don't deserve this for this lil' story but thank you all so much for your kind words and support. =) You all rock!

Anyways I'm sure you want the story more than anything so I'll shut up now ON WITH THE STORY! WOOHOO!

EDIT 06/15/2023 just fixed up some typos and things

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His son...

His partner...

Robin...

Richard was holding a gun in his right hand, and two bodies lay beneath him. His expression was of heartbreak; he was quiet, perhaps a little in shock, not at all like his ward. He could feel Dick's depression start to settle into the boys bones. This was a scene he would not soon forget.

"Richard...?"

The boy looked at him as if he was an apparition. A faded memory. The spark he was familiar with, the spark that deeply resonated with the boy, was gone.

"Batman?"

"Bruce?"

His masked eyes could hide his identity, but Bruce knew the boy well enough to know he was in pain. The boy that looked up to him seemed so small and distant. In that moment, he saw the same eyes of the frightened eight year old that had just lost his parents. He was lost, afraid, and full of sorrow. But soon that sorrow changed to anger. Something had changed in him in that instant and now he was beginning to see the hints of rage that peeked out as his eyes narrowed at the man before him. This was same anger that he had to wrestle with the boy all those years ago. The same anger that wanted to kill Tony Zucco, it was now directed at him.

"Dick."

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This is what she meant. She spoke of controlling the worlds hero's, it's Justice League, all pawns to reach her own ends. Batman was truly one of the best. And here he was. Bruce was here, Bruce had come for him. And Richards heart sunk just a little.

Bruce had come too little, too late. If this had been back before the desert, before the fires... if Bruce had come to rescue him out in the middle of the Empty Quarter, or even in Jillain's cabin in France, he'd be back in Jump already. Back in the tower, with the Titans.

But fate didn't deal him that hand. Instead, now it offers him something on a different spectrum. Richard knew he wouldn't go home with Bruce tonight. But, he couldn't lie to the man that raised him, he did owe Bruce that much.

"Why are you here?"

He saw the mans face become riddled in concern.

"I came for you."

"You're too late, you know that right?"

"Dick, I can get you out of here, away from Deathstroke. "

Suddenly the building shifted, there was a slight rumble, much like the ones before, albeit a lot shorter. It gave up a wailing sound too, as if something was straining. It didn't bode well, whatever it was.

The duo felt it, and both knew that if they didn't depart soon, they would be caught up in it, whatever it was.

"We need to leave."

"Yea, but I'm not going with you."

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He heard voices, one of them was Robins... the other. He knew that voice. "The Bat." Slade frowned at the Batman's intrusion.

"We need to leave." That Bat seemed eager to depart.

"Yea, but I'm not going with you."

Slade kept to the shadows, and hid himself amongst the multiple pillars and watched as his apprentice interacted with his old mentor. He was mildly curious as to where this would lead.

"What do you mean Robin? We need to get out of here. I know what Slade has done, I'm here to get you away from Deathstroke. You can come home Dick. You don't have to be here anymore. Whatever Deathstroke is holding over your head. It doesn't matter anymore."

"And what if I didn't want to go with you? What if I told you, I didn't want to go home. Back to Gotham or back to the Titans!" Robins rage was breaking though just a tad, and Batman looked down at his son with a frown, there was disappointment in his eyes, anyone could tell, even with that cowl on.

Robins eyes darted to the fallen bodies of his former friends, before he found himself scowling at the all to familiar cowl. "I'm not going back, not after all I've been through, not after all I've found. And certainly not after all that has been sacrificed. There is a horrible truth behind everything you do Bruce. And perhaps you're actually more of a villain then you think you are. Maybe it's you that should be put behind bars."

"Richard, what the hell are you talking about... what is going on?" Batman looked to his son in curiosity and concern, he frown at Robins choice of words. "Whatever has transpired had obviously clouded your judgement. What lies have you been told, what sort of hell were you forced to partake in?"

Slade could only wonder what questions edged at the front of the Batman's mind, as he stood there in wonder. The mere thought that his ward had betrayed him, it was coming. The betrayal, the idea that Robin had back stabbed him, it wasn't quite lodged into the Bats thick skull. Yet, anyways.

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Another rumble, it was less violent then the last, but the moan from the structure definitely wasn't good.

"We can talk about this later, we need to go. Now."

"I'm not going with you. Goddammit Bruce, get that through your head."

"Richard."

Robin narrowed his eyes and gripped the gun in his hand. He gritted his teach and pointed it at Batman.

"Dick?" Bruce had frowned at his wards actions. His gaze hardened a little. This was something Deathstroke had obviously done to his son. Dick wasn't a killer. This wasn't him. "Put the gun down, Dick."

"NO!"

"Dick..."

"If this is what it takes to get you to back away, then so be it. I'm not going home with you. I'm staying here. This world has torn me apart, but I'm just a small piece of it now. I can't go back. My friends are dead, and I avenged them as much as I could. She killed them! But I couldn't kill her..." Robin was out of breath, he was nearly yelling at Bruce. He was taking deep breaths, but continued regardless. "It wasn't enough... but I realized that no matter how many of their filthy lives I took, it could never add up to them."

"Richard, what did you do?"

"I killed them Bruce." his free hand directed the Bats gaze to the scene behind him. "Because she killed them." Robin looked down to the sight of Sariel and Gus.

"Killed who Dick?"

"Fuck! Look around you Bruce!"

Batman had noticed the bodies before, but he didn't think... Richard wouldn't have, couldn't have done this. There was a lot of men, dead. Throats slit, cracked necks, gunshot wounds to the head and chest. "No..." was the only thing that parted the mans lips as he surveyed the scene before him. "Why...?"

"They were trying to kill me, this isn't Gotham or Jump. If I didn't kill them, I'd be dead. And I needed to stay alive, because they couldn't. One of us had to live Bruce!"

His gun was still aimed at Caped Crusader. He wasn't going to budge. "I'm not going back with you Bruce, I obviously can't. After all that I have done. They won't except me anyways. I'm just another monster to you now."

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Slade grinned of the current events. The boy had made his stand. He had killed many in the process, and how ironic that the Batman, of all people, would show up at exactly the right time. It couldn't have happened at a better point in Robins journey. One might even think he had planned it this way, but it seems fate dealt him the right cards for once, and just by chance things had seemed to turn in his favor.

If anything, now seemed like the perfect time to make a grand entrance so that he and his apprentice could leave together, and possibly make the Bat hate him for all eternity. And that was something he would revel in for many years to come.

"Apprentice." he spoke out to Robin, and the boy just stood there with his gun drawn on the Batman. Slade smirked beneath his mask as he walked out to stand by Robin, his hands clasped behind his back, the ever intimidating stance that had frightened so many in the past.

His singular eye never moved from the contact he made with the Bat as he stepped out of the shadows.

"Deathstroke."

"Batman."

"What the hell have you done with him?" the anger was evident in his tone. Of course the Bat would put all the blame on his shoulders. And while he might take a fair amount of that blame. Robin himself did a lot of that change within him on his own. But in reality, there wasn't much to change. Robin only needed a push in the right direction, and here they were.

Slade cocked his head to the side just slightly. "Nothing really. Robin has come a long way on his own. He's become quite something hasn't he? Quite possibly a threat, wouldn't you say? Unfortunately, we do not have time for idle chatter."

As if on Que the building groaned again, and the floor shifted beneath them.

"This building is going to come crashing down into itself, like something below it is sending out some sort of vibrating waves to collapse it. I believe she meant to bury us amongst the rubble. Even if we get out, it's a good way to hide any evidence of their involvement until it can be taken care of at a later date." Robins glared never shifted, his aim steady, and Slade only nodded at his comment.

"Then I suppose we should leave. Before we get caught up in it." Slade suggested, his words were meant for his apprentice. Although he knew the Bat could hear them perfectly well. "I've had Will send out a helicopter. Asif is waiting outside."

'Does he know... about Gus and Sariel."

"I didn't know until now." Slade frowned as his eye caught the sight of Jillain's granddaughter laying in a pool of her own blood, along with her friend. This was not something he would enjoy in telling his old friend. "We can tell him later."

Robin sighed. "We need to leave."

"Agreed."

"Richard, don't do this."

Robin frowned. "Are you so afraid Bruce, that I have betrayed you? Is the idea of me not going home with you finally sinking in?" For the first time ever, Bruce was at a loss for words. Richard... had become an enemy.

"I'm leaving. This is goodbye"

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Yea... enough Drama llama for you all? Feel that angst, that drama! ooOOoo it burns yer soul!

Ok I'll stop... Anyways PLS PLS leave me a review! I have cake and cookies and pop tarts... Thank you guys all so much again for being patient with me... I know I suck at updating.

Take care guys! Be good! Stay Awesome!

-Fangy