Brothers To The Bitter End

36

A few hours earlier

"Aw, Dick, quit your worrying." Jason complained from the back seat. "Nothing bad is going to happen."

"I know." Dick was speeding down the road. Ok, he was going one mile an hour over the speed limit. "But I think I need to be there anyway."

"Fine by me!" Wally whooped. "Road trip with the fam!"

Jason glowered at Wally from his position lounging in the backseat. "Why aren't you running or riding one of the motorcycles with Roy and Artemis?"

Wally grinned and flipped on the radio. "Because it's way more fun in here!"

Jason sighed as Dick actually stopped at a stop sign. "This is going to be a long trip."
********
"Move over!" Jason hissed as the five of them hid on the Titans roof.

"Chill, Jason, the red head is just going over basic rules with them right now." Dick peered through his binoculars at the people down on the ground. "Hey, Bruce got a new suit! Looks great on him! Did he gain weight?"

Jason groaned. "Ugh this is going to take forever." He stared into the forest beyond the lawn and frowned. "Hey, Dick, look into the forest. Is there something there?"

Dick moved the binoculars where he could see the forest. "Yeah there . . . oh no. It's Slade."

Jason's eyes widened, and even Artemis, Wally, and Roy looked suitably startled. "This is not going to end well," Jason whispered.

"Agreed." Dick sighed as he stood. He and the others were already in their suits, so at least there wasn't that to worry about. "Listen guys, this isn't going to go down well, but I have a plan and to make this work we must stick to the plan. Got it?" The team nodded. "Great, then here's the plan."
******
Jason's eyes burned from the tears streaming down his face. Dick's plan hadn't included him taking a bullet for the Demon. "Please, Dick, you have to live."

Damian was sobbing openly as Dick's eyes closed. Jason closed his eyes too, tears spilling out around his mask (he had opted to not wear his hood today) but a sudden breeze caused him to snap his eyes back open. He saw Wally standing there, tears threatening to pour out of his eyes too.

"Give him to me." Wally held out his hands for Dick.

"What?" Damian asked, a little muffled around his tears.

"I think I can make it to the hospital before he bleeds out."

That was all Jason needed to hear. A moment later he had placed Dick's limp body in the speedster's arms. Wally immediately took off, speeding down the road towards the hospital. Just seconds after he disappeared, Roy and Artemis on their motorcycles sped towards Jason and Damian.

"Hop on!" Roy hollered. Jason and Damian didn't hesitate, launching themselves onto the bikes, Jason behind Roy and Damian behind Artemis.

Jason only had a moment to take in the stunned faces of the League and the Titans before the were racing away after Wally.
*******
Wally had never been particularly religious, but he prayed the entire way to the hospital. Luckily, the nearby hospital was renowned for being one of the best in the country.

"Please help!" Wally shouted as he sped into the ER. "My friend's been shot!"

In a contrary manner to how they usually worked, the ER workers immediately rushed over and began prepping Dick for surgery. A receptionist pulled Wally aside to work on paperwork. Just as Wally had settled himself to the arduous process of filling out paperwork, Damian, Jason, Roy, and Artemis hurried in.