73 CHAPTER 72
[Bruce Wayne's POV]
Something quite unexpected had taken place last night, while on patrol last night an explosion piqued my radar and it came from an abandoned warehouse not too far away from my location so I went to investigate it and find out what the cause of it was.
Maybe there was another scuffle between some no-gooders again, after all it was Gotham and almost nothing came as a surprise to me anymore. Or so I thought.
When I arrived at a safe distance from the location, I used a pair of binoculars I had brought out from my utility belt to scout the surroundings before proceeding. The only person that came out of the warehouse that instant was none other than the kid who had beaten Jason to a pulp, Tom.
He had a smirk on his face, kinda like he was either satisfied with something or something had gone the way he wanted. It was a surprise to me so I went ahead to investigate what had happened inside the warehouse and yet again I was greeted by another surprising sight.
The image of a blood covered Deathstroke who sat on the floor while leaning against a wall was actually unexpected. 'What was Deathstroke doing with Tom at that abandoned warehouse and was Tom so strong that he came out unscathed from a battle with Deathstroke and even left him at death's doors?' The question that scavenged through my mind, I wanted answers and I wanted them asap.
Looking around I noticed the interior of the warehouse had been trashed up, revealing the heat of the battle. It was so intense that it looked like Deathstroke might not be able to get up for a while but his bleeding had stopped and was healing already, so I decided to approach him myself and get some answers out of him.
I approached him carefully because it would be stupid to underestimate one such as Deathstroke. He might have healed up completely and was just recuperating till it was time for him to leave.
"Hello Batman, or should I say Bruce Wayne." I thought I had concealed my presence really well but that's Deathstroke for you, his instincts are sharpened and refined so well that he's way above an average human.
"Did that Tom kid do this to you?" I asked as I retained my stance in the shadows.
"And why would I ever need to answer your questions?"
"That's because this is my city and when something like this happens, I need to know and prepare for people who might be potential threats to this city."
"Well the kid and I had a little bit of a falling out but as far as potential threat goes, he's way above that. If he ever wanted to." He said to me with his ever confident tone as he stood on his feet, his wounds seemed to have healed up completely.
*What do you mean by that?" I asked as I kept a reasonable distance between us.
"He's a kid who just wants to enjoy the good things life has to offer and lead a normal life, without getting into any kind of trouble but I poked him too hard and this was what I got. Probably because I underestimated him." The way Deathstroke admitted to being defeated by that kid almost sounded like he was impressed with him.
"I see… And why were you interested in him?" I asked.
"That's enough Batman. I'm not in any way obligated to answer any of your questions so if you'd excuse me, I'll be on my way." He stood up and started packing his things, he might not have told me much but at least he told me enough.
I grabbed my grapple gun and shot it at a wall near a window up top, I glided off and vanished into the night. I need to know what was so special about Tom that Deathstroke approached him and how he was able to win him in a fight, something that would take me quite an effort to accomplish.
I went back to the Batcave to continue my research on Tom, on getting there, I was greeted by the presence of both Jason and Barbara who seemed to have just returned from patrol.
"Where were you Bruce, you ghosted and didn't answer to our coms." Jason asked, curiosity crystal clear in his voice and his expression showed that he wanted an answer.
Barbara remained silent but from her body language, it was clear she wanted the same and Jason had said all she wanted.
There was an explosion around the parts I was patrolling, I went over to investigate and I met Deathstroke there.
"Deathstroke?" They blurted out together.
"Yes, Deathstroke." I walked over to the main computer and took a seat in my chair as I immediately got to work, while those two kids bombarded me with a barrage of questions.
"What was he doing there?" Asked Jason. "And who was he fighting? You mentioned there was an explosion earlier." Barbara followed up with Jason's question.
"Don't worry about it, I'll tell you if you need to know." I tried to kill the conversation, I didn't see any need for me to tell them about my conversation with Deathstroke and or Tom's involvement. But I might have to warn them about Tom. I immediately had an idea, he was around their age, a little bit older but they could befriend him and investigate him up close.
Barbara there's something I need you to do, and it's an undercover mission.
"Really, what's the mission about?" She asked with a sparkle in her eyes, it seemed like she had waited for some excitement for far too long and now she was finally getting some.
"Just her? Why can't I go on the mission?" Asked Jason.
"That's because I need her to make contact with Tom Hendricks and befriend him and gain his trust, while she discreetly investigates him. And considering your history with him, he might figure out you are Robin way quicker than you might think."
"Tom?" Jason blurted, Barbara stood there giving me a confused look.
"For some reason Deathstroke was interested in him and…" I hesitated to tell them but I thought it best for them to know the level of danger they might be dealing with.
"But…?" Jason stretched out as he gave me an inquisitive look.
"When I got there, Deathstroke seemed to be in bad shape and it took a while for him to heal up, even with his speed healing." Their expression changed, I knew what they might be wondering so I just came out with it.
"And it was Tom who put him in that condition."
Jason stood frozen to the spot with his eyes wide open. He had come to a realization that Tom was way above his league, while Barbara just seemed shocked by the information.
"Don't worry, according to Deathstroke Tom is harmless unless he's poked too hard and forced to retaliate." I tried to calm their nerves as Barbara turned to look at Jason. He had been the one to poke at Tom twice and it was evident that Tom let him off the hook way too easy.
"Anyway, it's not a difficult mission. All you have to do is befriend him and gain his trust while you investigate him, then await for further instructions."
"That seems easy enough." She gave a sarcastic remark as she averted her gaze.
"It actually is, I would have gone to pay him a visit myself as Batman but I have to leave on League business." I ended the conversation as I left the Batcave and proceeded to get some rest before leaving. Barbara seemed to be okay with the mission but was just a little bit nervous, while Jason was still over thinking things and I'm sure he was playing multiple scenarios in his head from his encounters with Tom.
…
It was two days after the incident and Tom was having a relaxing evening preparing for his meeting with Deathstroke when his burner phone rang. On a normal day he would wait for the caller to speak up first before responding, but the timing was too convenient and he knew it had to be Slade.
"Hello."
"You asked me to call this line once I was all healed up and ready to meet with him." Slade said without exchanging pleasantries or beating around the bush, he went straight to business, and that was the kind of people I like doing business with.
"Wow, that was quick. But it's fine, I'll let him know and inform you when he chooses to meet with you." It was kind of weird referring to myself as a third person, it might be an early case of multiple personality disorder but I don't mind. It was kind of fun, but I would meet him as both of my personas present at the same time was something I needed to figure out.
"Understood." Deathstroke responded, making clear he had nothing more to say.
"Alright, I'll be in touch." I closed the conversation as I ended the call.
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