The Source Of All Distraction #16

The Bowery

He wasn't having a good day or a year, for that matter. Things had been going downhill for Jason Todd since his encounter with the young thief in that damned dark alley.

It's not like things were going smoothly for him before that either, what with Batman being busy tangling with League issues and that damned hussy who called herself Catwoman.

He barely got any time to interact with his father figure, leaving him both anxious to prove himself and in dire need of guidance and companionship.

He turned to the Teen Titans for these comforts, but his complicated relationship with the former Robin that with his own angst and anger issues, caused the teenage heroes to alienate him.

Batman noticed his blight and entrusted him with tracking down and investigating the Sionis crime family, another name Black Mask's gang. The caped crusader suspected they were up to something, giving the young Robin an assignment to keep himself busy and prove himself.

The assignment also served to train Jason's lacking ability as a detective.

And although Jason struggled at first, he still managed to find a lead after some effort, but all of his hard work instantly evaporated because of a single dumb decision made by a young thief.

Still, Jason couldn't bring himself to hate the young thief or be angry at him, for that matter.

The young Robin knew what it's like to have to resort to thievery to feed himself in a city like Gotham. He had experienced such hardships for himself before Bruce Wayne took him and inducted him into the crusade against Gotham's crime.

However, Jason couldn't accept the lack of reaction his father figure had displayed at his failure, even though it came as a result of circumstance, not incompetence.

It felt like Bruce was giving up on him, leaving him only more anxious to prove himself, and that's what he was trying to do right now. He managed to track down a rogue member of the Intergang into a meeting with the Black Mask gang and was keeping an eye on the place while listening to the bugs he'd planted in the restaurant earlier.

So it was reasonably understandable that Jason wanted nothing more than to beat the bastard who burst into the meeting spot and ruined everything within an inch of his life.

However, he couldn't do even that.

"Sorry, kid, but you'll have to make do with me until my student is done with his business," said a tall, well-built man with ginger, fiery beard and hair, crossing his arms, making Jason grit his teeth in frustration.

Jason didn't mince any words as he charged the man standing in his way, only for the latter effortlessly dodge his assault, picking him up and throwing him back right where he started.

"Damn it! Out of my way!" Robin exclaimed, and threw himself at the man.

...

Inside the restaurant

My eyes widened as I saw the gun pointed straight at my chest, and it didn't take me long to realize the shot would hit. I immediately activated my steel wire.

The wire shot out of my sleeve. It slightly tipped the gun upward a fraction of a second before the gangster fired, making his miss and giving me the chance to jump and dropkick the man into oblivion.

I didn't want to use my wire and would have preferred to keep it a secret for as long as possible, but I wasn't ready to get shot (probably fatally) for that conviction.

I kicked the gun away and jump-stepped back as another gangster came lunging at me with a foldable knife in his hand and a hideous sneer on his face.

I caught the gangster's hand and twisted it back, making him grunt in pain as he let go of the knife. Then I pulled him to the side and punched him in the chin, rattling his brain and knocking him out before hitting the ground.

Superhuman strength sure is handy.

The last gangster and the man hiding behind cover seemed to have realized the situation wasn't to their advantage and decided to flee. The second was even shameless enough to take a black duffle bag that likely had the money.

"BITHC! THAT'S MY MONEY!"

I exclaimed as I started running faster than I had ever run before in both my lifetimes, quickly tackling the shameless bastard. The first punch knocked him out just fine, but I gave him another one because I was pissed.

My momentary distraction made the only remaining gangster reconsider as he decided to reach for the gun I'd kicked away earlier. Luckily, I noticed him taking aim just in time to throw myself away before he fired.

I dodged the first one, but he continued to fire, and I had no cover to hide, so I gritted my teeth and charged the gangster, running in a zigzag and activating my wire as he kept firing.

Maybe it was my enhanced speed, or he was just that bad of a shot, or a mixture of both, but his shots all missed except for one that grazed me in the thigh, making me grunt as I disarmed the thug with my wire and kicked him into a nearby wall.

I let out a drawn breath as I looked around, making sure none of the gangsters was still conscious before my eyes turned to the bloodstain forming below me.

'Things just got complicated...'

I scowled as I took a piece of cloth to patch myself up and stop the bleeding. Then I started hauling the gangsters out of the restaurants, not forgetting to store the duffle bag in my inventory after looking to see if the money was there.

'Now to burn this place to the ground...' I mused as I reentered the restaurant, heading to the kitchen.

I'm not leaving any DNA for Batman or anyone else to track me down.

...

"Looks like my job here is done," Richard said as he looked over his shoulder at the restaurant, seeing the flames and finding no sight of his student.

Robin took advantage of his distraction and kicked at Richard, only for the latter to effortlessly dodge it with minimal movement. Richard moved forward, tripping Robin with his leg and pushing him face-first into the ground.

"Bastard!" Robin exclaimed through gritted teeth as he got up. However, he found no trace of Richard, causing him to start cursing up a storm.

...

'Well... that was easy, almost too easy...'

I mused, my hands tucked into my pockets as I walked back to my apartment. I kept looking over my shoulder most of the way, expecting someone to show up and summon Cthulhu right on top of my head or some other shit.

I had, of course, noticed Richard fighting Robin on top of a roof near the restaurant, and that's why I shamelessly took off without saying anything or bothering to wait for my teacher. He's a bonafide badass martial artist. He'll be fine.

But even with Robin's sudden appearance and getting shot, it felt too easy, and I couldn't help but expect something to pop up and shit all over my day any second.

Not only did I finish the primary quest objective, but I also finished a bonus one, and even my Brawling skill went up by one level.

'No use thinking about it... I'll deal with it if it comes...'

...

The Bowery

"What happened here?" Batman asked as he glided down next to Robin on a rooftop near a burning restaurant, gesturing towards the police officers and firefighters swarming the scene.

"Black Mask's people were meeting a rogue Intergang member," Robin replied, pointing towards the burning restaurant. "A new face crashed the party, beat everyone up, took the cash and the product before burning the place and disappearing," he added, turning the police officers who were cuffing and escorting the thugs into police cars.

Batman didn't say anything and merely sent his sidekick a blank stare that spoke a thousand words.

"I tried to stop him, but this other guy showed up..." Robin said with a shake of his head. "I couldn't do anything about him, the other guy..." he added, clenching his fists in frustration.

"Why didn't you call for backup?" Batman asked, crossing his arms, still showing no emotion.

"And hold you up from your important League business?" Robin replied with a glare, making a quote sign with his hands. His words had other meanings, and they both knew it, but Batman didn't take the bait.

"Even if I was preoccupied, Nightwing and Batgirl weren't," Batman asked, his tone turning slightly harsh.

"You'd like that wouldn't you?!" Robin snapped, gritting his teeth as he regarded his mentor with an angry scowl. "I don't need their help!" he added, harshly waving a hand to the side.

"This has gone long enough," Batman calmly said. "Go home, and until you fix things with Nightwing and are not go out on patrol," he instructed as he turned to leave.

"But I-" Robin objected, only for Batman to cut him off.

"Enough. Go home now," Batman said without bothering to turn around as he kept walking away.

"Don't fucking tell me what to do! You are not my father!" Robin finally couldn't take the disregard and snapped, causing Batman to pause.

The caped crusader turned to his sidekick. However, the latter was already leaving.

Batman hesitated for a few seconds but ultimately decided to give him space.

...

I paused in front of my apartment's door, taking a deep breath as I suspiciously inspected the area one last time before opening the door and walking inside.

'I just fucking knew this day wouldn't end well...'

I froze at the scene waiting for me inside as I regarded the figure sitting on my chair and eating my snacks.

"Well, well, look what the cat dragged in..."

...

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