Luthor's Assassin

The Return

Dick felt... warm. Warm and safe. It was nice, and for a long moment, Dick battled against the forces trying to return him to consciousness. He didn't want to leave his little bubble of peace... but before long, he couldn't keep himself asleep any longer. But he still refused to open his eyes, instead scrunching them up tighter in a futile effort to maintain the tranquillity of the moment. It had been a long time since he'd felt any sort of peace like this... especially with Slade constantly watching-

It all came crashing back to him a moment later- the team, Slade, the brainwashing, Dr. Fate... It had really happened.

For a brief second, panic overwhelmed him, and his muscles tensed. The urge to sit up and look around became more powerful as the seconds ticked by, but Dick kept his eyes firmly closed and his body frozen in place. He wasn't entirely sure where he was, or if he was being watched. After what seemed like forever, Dick's pounding heart slowed, and he let his muscles unclench... slightly.

Dick struggled to keep his emotions in check as he continued to keep his eyes firmly closed. He couldn't believe it- Slade and Luthor had poisoned his mind again. Even after being with the team the first time, and becoming Robin, they had still found a way to corrupt him and turn him into a ruthless killer... Luthor's assassin.

He sucked in a small, shaky breath as the guilt and helplessness began to overwhelm him.

As he wrestled with his emotions, he became aware of a slight shift in the air near him- how near exactly, he couldn't quite tell (he still refused to open his eyes). Slowly, he opened his eyes in acknowledgement of the presence, despite his reluctance. There was a split second of panic as he stared at the ceiling above him, and he bolted up into a sitting position- which was a mistake, because the second he moved his head a massive wave of excruciating pain vibrated through his skull. Dick groaned and clutched at his head, because wow, his headaches had never been this bad before.

"Are you alright, Dick?" a deep, slightly cautious voice asked, and it was so unlike Slade's voice that Dick managed to shove his pain aside, whipping around to stare at...

Whoa.

Okay, that had been a mistake. Dick's head throbbed at the sudden movement, and the world spun briefly before his eyes.

"Dick? How are you feeling?"

Dick blinked as his sense of balance slowly returned to him. He turned towards the speaker, who was, as he had suspected, standing near the bed he was lying on. Batman was in his uniform, standing close by and staring at him. A second glance around the room showed that he was in the medical bay of Mt. Justice.

"I'm..." he started to say, and then paused. He had been about to say, "I'm fine", but that wasn't true at all.

He wasn't alright in the slightest.

His silence seemed to be enough of an answer for the dark knight, because Batman moved closer and laid a hand on his shoulder- an action that Dick actually found incredibly comforting. He leaned into the touch slightly, struggling to find words that would properly fit his emotions.

It was wildly difficult.

"Lousy," he finally said hoarsely. "I... I feel like a pawn on a chessboard." He was amazed at how calm his own voice sounded. Batman didn't say anything, and Dick took that as his cue to continue. "Like... everyone's been using me my entire life. It-" his voice stuttered and his words stuck in his throat momentarily before he was able to continue. "I-it's not fair. Why did this have to happen?"

Dick's voice had dropped down to a whisper, and his voice was raw and emotional- he wanted to curse himself for showing so much feeling, but he couldn't find himself to care. It was just too much. Too much to handle, too much to cope with, and Dick was absolutely done with being that impassive, ruthless face that Slade had expected to be.