The New Teen Titans Part II: The Curse of al Ghul

Chapter 10: Piggie, Piggie

What was he thinking?

He was raised to survive even the most impossible situations, yet here he was- unarmed, disoriented, and barely able to stand. A cold chill ran up Damian's spine from the icy floor beneath his feet, reminding him of just how exposed he was. Ahead of him was Pyg with a disturbing grin on his face. The sick bastard was enjoying this, of course he was. Meanwhile, Damian's head was pounding. He had to blink a few times to stop seeing everything in double, but that damn gas coming from the vents was not helping.

Never go to battle without doing your research - Grayson would say when Damian took the Robin mantle.

Yeah, well, not only did Damian fail to do proper research before coming to the hospital, but he also acted impulsively by going after Pyg without any gear. Now he was stuck, again, and completely vulnerable. He pressed his hand tightly over his mouth and nose to block the toxic air, but the damage was already done. The heavy clang of the metal door shutting behind him was what made him freeze. Emiko. He'd left her in the operating room, forced to fight against all those Dollotrons by herself.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

"There's nowhere to hide now, Little Bird... Wheek!" Pyg's high-pitched voice echoed through the hallway.

Mind racing, Damian spun towards the door and lunged for the handle. He yanked on it, but it wouldn't budge. Locked. Panic tightened in his chest just as he felt a greasy arm lock around his neck, squeezing his airways with suffocating force.

"Got you," Pyg whispered in his ear.

Damian gasped involuntarily, pulling a lungful of that toxic air deep into his body. The room spun wildly as the gas flooded his lungs, but his mind screamed at him to keep fighting. He thrashed and kicked in a useless attempt to break free, but his limbs grew heavier by the second. The gas was working its way through his system once more, and his body was soon going to collapse.

"Shhh, it's okay. Pyg is here to save you now..."

No—no, he had to keep fighting. He couldn't be stuck with this monster. But his body betrayed him and he couldn't even get out of a pathetic arm lock. He'd feel ashamed if he weren't so tired. What he would give to close his eyes and fully rest...

Damian's consciousness started slipping away when out of nowhere, a flare arrow came flying right above his head. It missed its target, which made the older man laugh.

"You missed! Looks like you children have a lot of fixing to do!"

As he mocked, the arrow flared to life, blinding him with a searing burst of light. Pyg shrieked, stumbling back, his grip on Damian loosening just enough for him to pull free and fall forward. Damian barely registered his girlfriend beside him moments later, her arm around his shoulders as she lifted him up. Her other hand pressed a gas mask over his face.

"Stay with me, Robin... Please."

Robin nodded, holding on to her voice. She took his hand and rushed him to the operating room, the only place in the hospital with no gas clouding the air. Somehow his girlfriend managed to stun most of the Dollotrons in the room, which was impressive, but Valentin was not done with them. No, far from that. His precious little ego was hurt.

"You little... Pyg will teach you!" Valentin snarled, lunging a bone drill at Emiko's face.

Unfazed, Red Arrow dodged and swung her bow at Valentin, making him drop his bone drill. The blow made him lose his balance and stagger back, giving her the opening she needed to jump at him and reach for his shirt pocket. He tried to get her off of him, but Red Arrow fought harder and pulled out a crumpled, stained piece of paper just as Damian had predicted. She ran to her boyfriend's side so they could quickly scan the list together.