A Renegade Knight

CHAPTER II

Pulling his leather jacket closer against the cold, the vigilant known as Red Hood once again glanced through his mask and down the scope of his rifle. He had received a tip that one of Gotham's more prominent drug lords was going to be meeting with his leading dealers in the alleyway some ten storeys below the roof where the former hero was now perched. The guy was a real piece of work, one the Batman had been trying to convict for many weeks. Red Hood couldn't wait to hear what the Bat would say when he discovered his former partner got there first. Speaking of which...

Under the hood, Jason Todd smiled. Although he had been keeping off the radar (He really didn't want to return to his cell at Arkham), he had made the effort to hear all that had been happening with his former family. Dick Grayson had been stripped of the cowl and run off back to his beloved hell hole Bludhaven, leaving the rest of the family to declare war against each other. It was amusing to listen as the family collapsed without the perfect son.

In fact, things had gotten so bad, even the Commissioner had been heard talking about it. The underground was ripe with rumours. It was the word on the street that the little pain in the ass that was the new Robin was refusing to work with the old Batman.

Jason didn't doubt that. Bruce's non-existent parenting skills were not enough to handle wannabe hero Tim Drake, let alone a ninja assassin with the social skills of a brick. The Al Ghul kid was not one to handle taking orders and Bruce didn't have the temperament to deal with a kid who talked back. The Dynamic Duo was failing.

It probably didn't help that Red Robin was still hanging around. Jason had to admit, he was surprised Bruce hadn't kicked Tim out yet. After all, it was his habit after taking a new Robin, to get rid of the old one, at least for a while. It had happened to Dick when he had been fired and kicked out of the city. It had happened to Jason when he had been murdered. Even the female Robin had fallen into that trap. Hell, it was practically part of the job description. Once you finish with the short pants, you either die or disappear. But Tim was clearly fighting back, refusing to leave and making the transition between the old and new bird almost impossible. That had to be why the third Robin was Jason's favourite to mess with. The kid's mind-set didn't allow for failure.

Shifting the gun to one shoulder, Jason stretched his back and glanced at his watch. The group was late. Jason hated when people were late.

There was a shift in the air. Jason may not have thought much of his time with Batman, but he was trained enough to recognise when he was being watched. Lowering the barrel of the gun, Jason turned his head enough to see with his peripheral vision.

A figure was just visible, crouching in the shadows on the corner edge of the roof. Running the image through his mind, he tried to identify the figure. Considering how quiet and observant the figure was, it probably wasn't one of Gotham's villains. The shadow was shorter then Batman and lacked the female anatomy of Huntress, Batwoman any of the Birds of Prey or the newest Batgirl. He too lacked the cape that would have suggested one of the Robins. In fact, the only hero who he could be was Nightwing.

With a small laugh, Jason rose to his feet and turned to the figure.

"Here to stop me Wings?" he asked.

The figure cocked his head. White lenses with a hint of red seemed to watch the Red Hood. Under his helmet, Jason hesitated. Nightwing wasn't one for the silent treatment. Even as Batman, the guy was hard to shut up. Something was very wrong.