Chapter 66: Back To Earth

(General P.O.V)

Dick Grayson controlled his breathing as he spread out his hands, which were tightly holding two gymnastics rings hanging from a bar. He coiled his lower body closer to his torso and swung, adding momentum the more times he did it before letting go, his body spun and twisted through the air before he landed on the mat gracefully, the Grayson way. He felt a brief surge of pride at completing the move, just like his dad had taught me, before the feeling was replaced by the pain of loss.

He shook his head to get rid of the thoughts and made to go back to his exercise routine before his Holographic computer beeped. Dick frowned and went towards the table. He clasped the device onto his wrist before turning it on and instantly taking a deep breath. The tracking chip he had discreetly placed in the small bag containing the diamonds that they'd found in Aden's position, was active again.

What made Robin frown was just how close it was. It was atop the building that had the bat signal, the roof of the headquarters of Gotham City Police Department. Which meant, Aden knew he had placed a tracking device on him and wanted to talk to him. Seems like Dick would finally get the answers he was looking for. It was really fortunate that Batman was with the League trying to find whereabouts on Maelstrom and Red Tornado, so no one would interrupt Robin.

It was time for his patrol anyway.

(Aden's P.O.V)

Gotham. Man, this place is dreary. My impression of the city under the vigilant purview of The Dark Knight was not a good one. The Supervillains, Batman's Rogue Gallery in other words, was just one part of what was wrong with this place. Smog from the nearby industries that covered the light of stars from shining through, old buildings that looked as if soot was painted on the walls and the nervous and suspicious vibe that clung to everyone in a miasma that screamed hostility just added to the overall grim picture. And the gangs. Can't forget those lowlifes.

There was no doubt about it. This fucking place was cursed. And I hated every minute I was forced to be there. At least I knew where I would start my mission. Gah, that makes me sound like a fanatic psycho. But really, Batman was trying to treat a disease by easing the symptoms instead of finding a permanent cure. He was only delaying the inevitable, a bitter and resentful end when he looked back at his superhero career and saw that he'd made practically no difference.

That was the flip side to his tenacious stubbornness. Batman was a man who had an almost unshakeable will. Even when abandoned by everyone else, his dedication to the 'mission.' was frankly awe-inspiring. His refusal to kill because he feared compromising his 'ideals' and 'principles' was the trade off. It was therefore frankly funny, how he more than often compromised those ideals by using his enemies way of doing things to take them down.

If you ask me…it was arrogance and pride. The way he was afraid of going off the deep end because he was terrified he wouldn't stop, showed how much confidence he had in himself that none of the others not even Supes or Wonder Woman would stop him. Then again knowing the former… maybe he was right. Superman was a big Softie after all. Cough injustice cough.

I turned my attention from my musings when someone used a zip line and landed before me. The familiar form of Boy Wonder appeared. We stared at each other in silence before I cocked my head to the side in a small smile.
"You know, I've always wondered something. Why is it that Batman's costume is all grey and black, perfect for blending into the surroundings while your costume has never screamed…stealth. It's almost as if he wants you to look like a walking target."
I asked.

Boy Wonder's eyes narrowed beneath his mask.
"You don't know what you're talking about. And I'm not here for idle chit chat."
He crossed his hands, trying and miserably failing to look intimidating. Maybe if it was the Dick from five years from now, I would be suitably afraid but as he currently was? I swallowed a snicker. It was really hard to do so.

"Then what are you here for?"
I wondered out loud.
"Answers." He replied without pause and then went on to say,
"But I could ask you the same. You clearly knew I had put a tracker on you, so why show up here of all places, when you definitely know the League is after you. That I would be after you. Doesn't seem too smart of you."

I barked out a laugh at his words.
"Ironic, Robin. Seeing as you came to apprehend me yourself. Are you sure you have the skill to take me in? Did you forget what happened last time? The smart thing to do would have been to bring the team along." I stepped up closer to him while still smiling.
"Wouldn't have made a difference either way but the effort would have been appreciated. Showing up to face me alone seems brash…like something Kid would do. How is he by the way, still limping from when I crushed his balls?"

My tone was full of mockery as I addressed him. Robin took a step back while settling into a ready stance. He looked unsure and confused.
"You don't even sound remorseful. How can you be so nonchalant about this Aden. You fucking betrayed us all man!"
He finally raised his voice, losing control over his emotions. Betrayed them? Did he forget who started it in the first place?.
"Trust me, I am very Chalant about this. I am sooo Chalant about the fact that you decided to take it upon yourselves to invade my privacy. So kettle say hi to pot."

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The grinding of his teeth reached me. The fact that he had the nerve to get mad at me despite what they themselves had done was annoying. That's when I realized he wasn't here to make amends or ask me to come back to the team. Boy Wonder was here to punish me. To let out steam while simultaneously taking me down to soothe his wounded pride.

I closed my eyes and sighed. I really have lost them…I don't think any of us can come back from this. I had harboured a smidgen of hope that we could work through our differences, no matter how unlikely they seemed. The truth is, I had been lonely before joining the team and although fitting in had been a challenge, I had still looked at them as comrades.

I had exercised patience and understanding. I had even bowed down my head during the Red Arrow situation, taking the high road and trying to be mature. But that relationship…that relationship that had forced me to compromise so much of myself had been toxic. To hell with making amends.

My statement calling Dick out on his betrayal bullshit seemed to have thrown him off even more. So I capitalized on that, pettily.
"What's wrong…Dick, you don't look too traught or whelmed or aster. You can't take it, can you. The fact that you stand there judging me of my actions that were a result of you own move against me."
Boy Wonder instantly stiffened in shock. He tried to hide it but the smile on my face, showed him just how confident I was about knowing who he really was.
"How…how do you know that name? How do you know my secret identity!"
He reached a hand into his utility belt and palmed his birdarangs threateningly.

I raised an eyebrow.
"You think the glasses you wear can hide your identity if someone actually wanted to find it out?"
My words set him off. Two birdarangs shot out of his hands and stopped in mid air, their momentum instantly bled out of them by my air bending. Yes, yes I know I said I wouldn't use it but you have to understand…he had arrived. The person I was actually here for. My control extended and a bubble of air appeared around Robin's head, suffocating him.

He tried his best to escape my hold, looking at me, eyes full of rage and fear, before he slumped in the air, unconscious. That would give me a few minutes to talk to 'him.'

The darkness on the wall shifted and The Dark Knight appeared, looking serious just like he always was. I whistled.
"Wow, Batman, that was cold of you. You just stood there and watched me suffocate your protege."
The Dark Knight gave the impression of narrowing his eyes. It didn't take an empath like Raven for me to know that Batman was ticked off by my words.
"I knew you wouldn't have hurt him. That's not you."
He responded confidently.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence on my character Batsy, but despite that what if I would have?" I shot back.
The glare intensified and an aura of violence started emanating from him.

"You would hunt me down to the ends of the earth, capture me and throw me to Belle Reve, where I would escape and we would begin our very own dance."
I concluded for him, based on his sudden mood change. I shook my head and chuckled.
"You know in some iterations, you lose a side kick to the Joker. Still might in this one, I don't really know and you still do nothing. No matter how angry you get, how your horror at your own role in ensuring the Joker mass murdering ways have finally affected you personally, you still hold yourself back. Choosing to save your soul instead of the countless lives that have met their ends in his hands."

Batman gave no indication that my words affected him.
"That was not included in the information docket you handed over."
I shrugged at him.
"Gee, I wonder why. Maybe I didn't trust you enough to share everything. Knowing that at the first chance you got, my life or anyone else's wouldn't matter in your efforts to carry out the 'mission.' That's your calling card Bruce. And call me selfish but I wouldn't trust sensitive info to a man like that. Your misguided altruism is the true cause of all this…" I spread out my hand to show Gotham.

"You're killing Gotham through inaction Bruce."
I sighed, hoping he would listen. I almost slapped myself at that unreasonable thought. That would never happen. Ever. If the people closest to him couldn't make him change his stand, what made me think I could.

Batman let the casual use of his true identity wash over him. He probably had countermeasures to me trying to out him publicly.
"I am not here to have a discussion about whether my ways are right or wrong Maelstrom. You don't get that right. Doesn't matter if you've seen this planet in the pages of a comic book or a screen. This is reality and you better start realizing that your actions have consequences. No matter what you think you know, it doesn't place you above everyone else."

I was tongue-tied for a split second. That was the longest I had ever heard him speak. Without giving me a chance to respond, Batman walked up to me and used his height difference to stare down at me.
"What I want to know, is what happened? Attacking the team was not part of the plan."

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