The Worthy and the Unworthy

'Alright, Rose.' Esau took a deep breath to centre himself as Rose came charging towards him once more. 'If this is what you want, I won't hold back.' Out of the corner of his eyes, he spared a glance to Slade, his body tensing in anger. 'Then I'm coming for you.'

Again Rose came at him with a vicious and near overwhelming flurry of punches and kicks, yet much like before Esau carefully and meticulously avoided each one, parrying those he could not. Unlike before, Rose was not overextending herself and instead using snapping punches and kicks that allowed her to instantly bring them back to her body and defend should Esau perform a counter, having learned her lesson.

He never did perform a counter though and instead focused on just defending against her attack, resolutely ignoring her cries for him to, "Fight back!"

Again, much like before, Rose sacrificed defence for offence, her frustration getting the best of her.

It was just the first punch and she overextended it, adding more momentum and movement in order to build up more power. Yet, this was exactly what Esau had been waiting for and with his forearm, hit her wrist and knocked her punch to one side. There was a brief moment upon which their eyes met, hers widening in shock as she looked into his calm cerulean gaze.

Rose, in that singular moment, realised that she had been played, that Esau had been waiting for this exact moment.

But she had no more time to think about it as pain invaded her mind as she cried out, Esau's left fist slamming into her side with enough force that a couple of her ribs cracked.

This time, however, Esau didn't stop.

A quick jab, cross, hook combo had Rose stumbling back with a bust lip and bloody nose.

When she attempted to throw a blind jab in order to keep him at bay, Esau just slapped it to one side, thrusting out his leg in a front kick that threw Rose back a few feet. Landing on the ground with a roll, Rose barely had time to get to her feet before Esau was upon her once more. A flurry of punches and kicks came at her faster and harder than she could deal with in her dazed state and while she managed to block a majority of his punches, a few slipped through and others broke her guard completely leaving her open to a kick that she could do nothing to stop.

It was a miracle she remained on her feet and while her mind did start to recover, it was not enough.

Seeing a jab coming at her, she also picked up on the shifting of his hips and she realised he was winding up for a cross to come after it. 'This is my chance!' All it would take was this one chance and she could tip the favour of this battle in her favour.

However, what she didn't realise was that it was a feint.

His jab struck her guard lightly, only a tap and while her eyes focused entirely on his right hand, ready to enact a counter in order to take control of the fight, she didn't realise he had wanted her to do just that. It had been a feint, a diversion, a cover-up that allowed his left leg to lash out and strike the inside of her knees, buckling them.

Unsure of what just happened, Rose could do nothing as he gripped her shoulders and drove his knee into her stomach and then followed up with a punch that knocked her to the ground.

Groaning, Rose attempted to get to her feet only for Esau to place one knee on her stomach and slam a punch into her face. "Stay down, Rose." He warned, applying more pressure to his knee as Rose in her semi-conscious state tried to push him off her, but it was easy for him to keep her in place.

Hearing Slade clapping, Esau turned to see the man walking towards him with a sword in hand. "Well done, Esau. Your skills have improved massively and your brutality almost makes up for how pathetic your showing was yesterday and at the start of this fight. Almost, but not quite, you still have one final task to complete."

Reacting quickly, Esau caught the blade by the handle as Slade threw it at him.

Knowing exactly what Slade wanted, Esau rose to his feet and looked at the blade and then at Rose who was still not fully conscious.

Taking a deep breath, Esau flipped the blade into a reverse grip and drove it down straight into the ground beside Rose's head. Stepping off her, Esau turned to face Slade with a determined glare and frown.

"I won't do it, I won't kill her."

Slade raised one brow in questioning. "Oh, why not exactly? She certainly seemed to have no problem attempting to kill you, it would only be fair for you to return the favour and then finish it."

Esau took one glance at Rose and then once again looked Slade dead in the eye. "Because Rose despite her flaws is a good person that you have manipulated and abused. You said that you know me, then you should know that I won't ever kill someone I care about."

This made Slade chuckle as he shook his head in amusement. "You truly are naïve," Slade responded. "You may act like you're different to Batman and other heroes like him, but you're not at all. One day you'll realise that and it will come to be your very downfall. You care too much and it's a weakness that your enemies will exploit to get to you."

"If that is the case, then I'll kill them all." Esau snarled angrily as his glare deepened and Slade just looked at Esau curiously.

In all of his time with Esau, both training and studying him from afar, Slade knew that he despised killing and only did so as a last resort. But there was something different, something in his tone and the way he looked that told Slade he would set the world aflame if someone he cared for died and he would do so with a smile on his face.

It was intriguing and he almost wanted to see just how Esau would react if that was the case.

Sadly, now was not the time. "So be it," Slade replied simply as if disappointed, but with what he had just seen, Slade was anything but disappointed. Though Esau had failed in eliminating his bonds with people, he would not be the first mercenary to do so and while it would be a weakness that his enemies could exploit, it could prove to be an excellent motivator as it had during the course of his training. He was almost tempted to just accept Esau as his apprentice based on that simple act even if he didn't kill Rose. 'Sadly, I still have a contract to complete and your time has run short.'

Moving forward, Slade noticed how Esau shifted his footing in order to best get ahold of the sword sticking out of the ground. 'You are good, Esau.' As he got within range, Esau reacted quickly, pulling the blade and swinging it up. Yet in one, flawless motion, Slade disarmed Esau and spun round, the blade piercing straight through Esau's chest. 'But I never taught you everything.'

Coughing up blood, Esau looked at the blade piercing his chest and then up at Slade in shock. "W-what?" He questioned unbelievingly just how quickly he had been dealt with and that's when Esau felt something pierce his neck. But he couldn't even lift his arms to take the object out of his neck, both limbs feeling like they were made of lead.

"Goodnight, Esau," Slade said as Esau felt his eyes become heavy and after a few moments of teetering on his feet before finally collapsing to the ground as he fell into a drug-induced sleep.

The last thing he could see was Wintergreen moving to stand beside Slade with a gun in one hand.

-X-

Thursday 3rd December 2009, 08:00.

Florida,

Location Unknown.

Pulling out the blade from Esau's unconscious body, Slade tossed it to the ground and turned to Wintergreen. "Prepare him for transport." He ordered and Wintergreen nodded his head, hooking his arms underneath Esau and dragging him inside.

At the same time, Slade looked down at his daughter who seemed to have finally recovered, her eyes following Esau's unconscious body in a mixture of sadness, guilt and confusion. Then her eyes turned to him, but quickly lowered as she realised that while she was alive, she had lost and she knew what that meant.

"As for you." Slade crouched down and gripping her cheeks in one hand, lifted her head so that he could look her in the eye. "You're of no use to me." Pushing her face away, Slade rose up and went to walk away, not even bothering to kill her, a fact that pained her more than anything.

"Wait!" Slade took a moment to consider whether he actually should listen to her request, but upon hearing the sound of metal scrapping against the floor did Slade decide to turn around. What he saw was Rose holding the blade tightly in both hands as she looked up at him with a look of desperation on her face.

Looking down at the sword, making a show of it, he then looked at her. "Are you going to use that to kill me?" He questioned, amused by the thought that she even believed she could. "Do you think you can?"

"No." She bowed her head, pushing herself onto her knees. "Please, give me another chance."

"Men and women have begged me not to kill them and I still did, begging won't work." Slade blindly replied and Rose flinched.

"I know." She responded and then looked at him with determination in her eyes.

Then, in a manoeuvre that surprised even him, stabbed herself in her left eye, growling in pain as she did so.

Harshly pulling the blade out, blood splattering across the ground, Rose clutched the wound tightly as blood seeped from between her fingers, the bloody blade clattering against the ground. "Give me another chance." She bit out between gritted teeth as she tried her best to ignore the pain.

After a few moments of silence, Slade began to chuckle though he quickly calmed himself down. "Very well, clean yourself up and get ready, I have a mission for you and if you fail this Rose, there will not be a third." He threatened and Rose just nodded her head stiffly.

-X-

Thursday 3rd December 2009, 17:00.

Washington D.C,

Cadmus Research Facility.

As the pod was wheeled into the room, Dr Mark Desmond looked upon the young man trapped inside, unconscious and vulnerable, the open wound on his chest still exposed. Yet his vitals were steady with no risk to his health or life in sight, the only thing stopping his body from healing being the icy temperatures within the pod.

"Move him to floor thirty-four," Desmond told the orderlies, looking towards the hero, Guardian who stood watching over them, a small creature upon his shoulder. A G-Gnome whose horns glowed red, causing the tensing hero to relax and go still, the look in his eyes changing as he seemed to dismiss the boy when he had initially been intensely focused. It was taking more and more work to keep him in check nowadays, heroes, even the unpowered ones were incredibly difficult to control.

That was when a strange portal opened to the side, Desmond and the others looking to see two figures coming out. Both were dressed the same in black cloaks that wrapped around their bodies leaving nothing exposed beside the combat boots and cargo pants they wore. The hoods they wore, shrouded their face in unnatural darkness, leaving no discernible feature to be found, a discerning sight, especially when they could not hear their approach.

If it was not for watching them approach, it would be impossible to tell they were there.

As they moved toward him, Desmond watched as another figure rose up from the shadows to join their approach, a fascinating individual made of what seemed to be entirely shadows. "Are you the Apostles?" Desmond asked, unable to tear his gaze from the mass of shadows that existed in the form of a small person, wondering what the extent of his abilities could be.

"We are." The lead, heavy-set figure replied, the second figure being taller but much slimmer in size. "This is him?" He murmured quietly, coming to a stop before the container, and looking over the unconscious form of Esau. At that moment, with the figure's back turned to him, Desmond noticed the roman numeral for five emblazoned upon his back.

"This is who Deathstroke provided us," Desmond answered.

"It's him." The second figure with the roman numeral for eleven on his back answered.

"He failed the test," Ignotus said. "He held back in his fight against Batgirl and Robin. Though he managed to show skill surpassing them both, he never once showed the willingness to deal a decisive blow."

"Disappointing." The Fifth Apostle sighed, shaking his head. "It is hard to believe they are of the same lineage." He then turned to Desmond, reaching into his cloak and pulling out a USB stick. "On this is a detailed list of the procedures he must undergo in order for him to survive the process. Do not deviate from them. We do not care if you do your own experimentation afterwards, but nothing must be done until after the instructions have been followed."

Desmond dismissively took the USB, scoffing lightly. "If you know how to do this, why not do it yourself?" He muttered, frustrated at being treated like an amateur.

"We do not have the resources nor the time to complete such a procedure, especially not when the moment it is begun it must be seen through to the end without pause." The Fifth Apostle answered, indicating to the shadowed figure at his side. "Ignotus shall oversee your actions, reporting everything back to us. Should deviation occur, we shall know. Do not fail us."

With those final words, the Fifth and Eleventh Apostles walked back down the corridor, another portal opening before them that they disappeared through. Ignotus meanwhile melted away into the ground leaving Desmond clenching the USB stick with a glare fixated upon where the portal closed up.