A/N: If you didn't read the note at the end of the last chapter, I'll repeat it here.
The violence in this book is only going to increase, and it will be descriptive. If you're uncomfortable reading that kind of stuff, I suggest you choose another book. This is a warning. Please don't complain about violence and shit because I'm telling you now XD
Remember to vote and/or comment if you enjoy this chapter!

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Chapter Six: The Calling
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Superboy felt guilt. And he didn't feel many emotions too often.

It was obvious that Megan was a bit disappointed in him. It was also obvious that she suspected one of the reasons Robin had left was because of the way the team had treated him- especially Superboy and his harsh words from a month ago.

He couldn't blame her.

Megan sat on the green couch crying, Zatanna and Artemis soothing her; even though they were holding in tears themselves.

Kaldur sat on the opposite couch, in deep thought. He was the leader, how could he let this happen to his teammate- no- his friend? Kaldur was disappointed in himself. They were all disappointed in themselves.

Disappointment. Such a strong word. Something that each and every one of them have had to face in their lives. Now, the tables had turned.

It was almost as if they were the villains now.

Kaldur cringed and Megan sobbed harder when Roy stormed into the room, more pissed off than anyone had ever seen him. He was about to create hell on earth, and each of them knew it.

"I can't believe you." He stated firmly, his knuckles turning white.

"Roy-" Kaldur began. "No. Don't." The redhead interrupted.

"Why did Wally tell me that you all treated Robin like shit?" Roy asked angrily, his words mostly directed to Kaldur- who should've never let Robin be treated that way.

"Roy, what do you mean?" Kaldur questioned calmly, standing up quickly.

"Wally said you guys made him feel sad, maybe even depressed. Who knows?!" Roy was now shouting.

Artemis stood up. "Listen Roy, Robin is our friend too. You have no right to walk in here and blame me for things that I don't even understand. I don't know about anyone else, but I haven't once treated Robin like a lesser human being." She ranted. "I can't say the same thing for anyone else, though." She growled, glaring at Connor.

"Then you could've done something to help, Artemis." Roy spat back, and then turned back to Kaldur.

"Roy please-"

"No Kaldur! You're leader, you let this happen!" He shouted. Then he said in a whisper, "you were supposed to make sure he was okay."

Superboy was the only one that heard the last part. "That's Batman's job." He said bluntly.

"And you!" Roy yelled, pointing at Superboy. "You obviously did something to make Robin feel bad... I can see the way everyone is looking at you. Besides. The guilt is evident on your face."

Superboy looked down. If Artemis had laser vision, the clone would have two burning holes in his back.

"I'm sorry." The clone stated quietly.

"You're sorry? You're fucking sorry?! How dare you-"

"Roy! That is enough." Kaldur interjected, his eyes narrowing into a glare.

"You know what Kaldur? Fine. I'll go search for Robin while you all sit here and feel sorry for yourselves- if he isn't dead already thanks to you." Roy snapped. He gave each of them one last glance, and then stormed out of the recreational room. Megan was sobbing harder than before and Zatanna was crying too. Artemis sat quietly on the couch in her own thoughts while Kaldur got up and left.

Superboy just stood there.

---

Officers and detectives flooded the area, taking samples and trying to figure out exactly what happened.

Bruce was welcomed by Gordon, who's face showed one of pity. "Hello, Bruce. I'm sorry this happened. We will do everything we can to find Dick." He said, putting a comforting hand on Bruce's shoulder.

"Thank you. I appreciate it." Bruce replied sadly. Commissioner Gordon nodded, and led Bruce to the scene.

Dried blood covered a spot by the stream. The gray rocks were splattered with blotches of dark brown, and the green grass was a crimson. The nearby tree had a big spot of blood on the trunk, and the blood that had been dripping dried into a pattern. Bruce cringed. That was Dick's blood. He also noticed how quickly the water was rushing- if Dick was thrown in, he would've died for sure.

No. Dick couldn't be dead.

Bruce had taught him everything he needed to survive. And he knew he could do it... undoubtedly.

"Bruce, is there any reason why Dick would be out here in the first place?" Gordon questioned suspiciously.

Bruce took a deep breath. "I'm not quite sure." He lied.

The man knew exactly why Dick had left. Because of his attempt to keep him safe- when all he was doing was creating more problems.

Gordon seemed reluctant to ask at first, but asked anyways. "Did he run away?"

How could he not figure it out? Jim was a smart man.

"It appears so." Bruce said. "I don't know why he did though. We didn't get into an argument or anything." Bruce continued, lying right through his teeth.

"We'll do our best. Until then, don't stress yourself out."

Bruce was now alone, watching as the detectives investigated the area blocked by the yellow 'crime scene' tape posted around the trees.

He decided he would wait until dark, and then return as Batman so he could do things on his own. He wished all the officers would just disappear so he could do what he needed to do, but Bruce understood that they were here to do their job.

So, he left.

---
An Unknown Location
A few hours later
---

Dick held in a scream as the blade cut through his skin once again, the blood running down his body.

He still couldn't see a damn thing. He had also lost track of time. Besides, he was distracted by Mystery-Guy who was pretty much torturing him.

Pretty much? Okay. He was torturing him.

The blade finally left his skin and he let out a breath.

"You may not like this now, but I'm sure you'll thank me later." Mystery said reassuringly, still camouflaged in the darkness.

"Seriously? You're doing this for no reason!" Dick snapped. This guy was torturing him, and he was supposed to thank him?!

Mystery scoffed. "Of course I have a reason. You may not know it yet, but you'll find out soon enough." He laughed, and then continued. "I'm not like any of those other amateurs- such as Joker."

'Joker? An AMATEUR? What?!' Dick thought to himself.

"I'm not like him- I'm not beating you senseless with a crowbar with no purpose. I'm doing this because you are worth so much more."

"What?"

Mystery sighed. "You have potential. Potential to work for me."

"Listen buddy, it's been a wonderful interview, but you may need to hire someone else... besides- slicing your employees like they're a bunch of onions waiting to be cooked is unrealistic." Dick snapped irritably.

"Need I remind you of your attitude again?"

"Sure." Dick replied nonchalantly.

Mystery growled impatiently, picking up the blade once more. "If you would just cooperate you wouldn't have to be. So why don't you just listen?"

"Because I'm never doing anything that you want, asshole."

"Trust me. You will..."

The blade was brought to his bare chest again, slicing through an already open wound. He let out a small cry of pain.

"Not so tough now, are we?" Mystery teased.

"Shut u-"

Before Dick could finish, Mystery punched him in the face, knocking his head back.

"You'll make a great protege... until then, you'll make a great punching bag." Mystery said, punching him once more.

It didn't help that his arms were aching miserably from being held up so long, and it also didn't help that he had a bunch of cuts on his upper body that felt like they were burning.

It also didn't help that his headache was now back.

Well, the headache never really left. It just got worse.

Mystery punched his injured ribs, and it took every bit of Dick's strength not to scream.

Mystery paused for a moment, as if he was thinking. He then sent one last punch to Dick's chin, hitting his jaw back. He instantly went unconscious and Mystery sighed. He knew it would take awhile- Dick was stubborn. However he knew it was possible, and all he had to do was make his offer seem more appealing. Not that he was really giving the boy a choice. Either way, he'd be doing what he wanted.

He left, leaving the dark room and closing the door (and locking it) behind him. Mystery was not going to take any chances.

As he got in the car he revved up the engine, strapping in his seatbelt.

Yes, he was an evil man. But that didn't mean he shouldn't use basic safety. Besides- if he dies in a car crash, he can't scheme... he'll just be rotting ten feet underground.

Anyways... Mystery drove to the nearest city. It was sunset, so luckily it was a bit darker outside. If it was light and someone saw him, the cops would be all over him. It was best if they didn't know he even existed. They thought Dick was dead, and if they realized that he'd been kidnapped they would search for him, and they could possibly succeed. Mystery knew he was a very smart man, but so were the cops- even if they were useless as fuck.

Mystery parked his truck near an empty lot, being careful to stay out of sight. The sun was now barely visible from the horizon, and the sky was an assortment of pinks, oranges, and yellows.

He walked down an alleyway in his civilian clothing, hiding a few knives and weapons in his trench coat. Mystery pulled his hat down a bit to cover his face better, and the darkness also helped.

Grinning, he watched as a woman and man holding hands turned the corner to his direction in the alleyway. They looked happy together. How cute.

As they walked near him they looked in his direction with faces of distrust, and they inched a bit to the opposite direction not wanting to be rude to the man.

Mystery approached the young couple and they both stopped in their tracks. "May I help you, sir?" The woman asked, her voice shaking a bit. The man had a serious look on his face. "Yes, can we help you?" He asked as well, putting a protective arm around the woman's waist.

"As a matter of fact, you can." Mystery replied, smirking.

Before either could run away, Mystery put the woman into a chokehold, and she struggled helplessly. The man stopped and turned slowly. "Please. Don't hurt her. I'm begging you." He said his voice quivering. "That's my wife." He continued, on the brink of tears.

Mystery shoved a syringe into her neck and her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she went limp in his arms. Her husband began to panic as Mystery dropped her to the ground, and he threw a sloppy punch. Mystery grabbed his fist and twisted his arm back, and then grabbed another syringe. The man's pleas were finally silenced as he went unconscious.

---

Dick didn't know how long he had been unconscious but all he knew is that Mystery was no longer in the room. It was as if his presence was just... not there.

He didn't care about not taking chances right now. He was gonna take any chance he could get to leave this hellhole.

Dick's head was throbbing, and he could feel the blood running out of his nose. The cuts still burned like hell, and his ribs were in unbearable pain. He tried to move his wrist around in the cuffs securing them, but only cried in pain when he moved the injured one. The metal was starting to tear at his skin and it was extremely painful. Dick's arms also felt like they were about to fall right out of their sockets from being held up so long.

He tried to lift up his knees to his chest, but failed. His legs fell to the ground once more and his bare feet brushed the cold ground.

Dick tried to bring his legs up once again, almost succeeding. His legs only dropped to the floor again. He was never wearing jeans again...

He sighed. This was hopeless. He could try to swing on the chains holding him up, but his upper body didn't have the strength for that right now.

His eyes widened when he heard the sound of a door opening a couple meters in front of him, maybe six or seven. Someone walked in (who he assumed was Mystery; who else would it be?) dragging something behind him. Dick could hear a scraping and shuffling sound against the concrete floor.

Mystery turned on a dim light hanging from the ceiling nearby, nearly blinding Dick. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he looked around.

The room was a decent size, with stone gray walls and a dirty concrete floor. There was a long metal table nearby with bloody knives.

Dick knew where that blood came from.

Mystery's face was covered once again, his body covered with armor and weaponry.

What surprised Dick the most was that he was dragging along two young adults behind him. A woman, and a man. Their wrists were bound behind their backs and their mouths were gagged. Dick didn't want to know where this was going. At all.

"You'll be needing a little bit of light to do this." Mystery said, and Dick raised an eyebrow.

Mystery propped both of the civilians up, smacking both of them awake- it definitely did the job. They both awoke, looking around frantically and struggling against their bounds. Mystery simply used his boot to shove them both on the ground when they tried to wiggle away.

"What is this?" Dick questioned, panic rising. When Mystery pulled out a pistol, Dick's stomach knotted.

'Please don't kill them. Please don't kill them. Please don't kill them.' He thought to himself.

"Don't worry, Dickie. I won't kill them." Mystery said, as if he had read the boy's mind. Dick scowled at the dumb nickname.

The two people seemed to calm down a bit at that, but their worry increased when they saw the beaten and bloody boy before them. Would they turn out like him?

"You better not." Dick snapped back, struggling against the chain.

"Calm down, boy. I'll let you down." Mystery then pulled the chains down, and Dick fell into he cold concrete. As he sat up, he winced, moving his arms around a bit. Unfortunately, they were still cuffed.

Mystery chained both of the civilians to the ground, making sure they were trapped securely. As he did so, Dick tried to stand but so far he was not getting any progress. He hit his chained hands against the floor in frustration, only to cry out in pain when his injured wrist hit awkwardly.

There were creases in Mystery's mask, which meant he was probably smirking. Dick glared.

Mystery handed Dick the gun. "Shoot one, and the other lives."

"No!" Dick shouted. He was not killing an innocent civilian!

"Do it, or I'll kill them both. You have twenty seconds."

"Twenty." Mystery counted down, throwing Dick the gun. He caught it, his heart racing. What was he supposed to do?!

"No... no I can't."

"Nineteen."

"Please. Stop."

"Eighteen."

"Don't make me do this. Please don't."

"Seventeen."

"No no no no..."

"Sixteen."

"No. No. Stop counting!"

"Fifteen."

"I won't do it!"

"Fourteen."

"I can't do it. Please no."

"Thirteen."

"No."

"Twelve."

"No."

"Eleven."

"Please."

"Ten."

"No stop. I won't."

"Nine."

"You can't make me!"

"Eight."

"I WON'T DO IT, DAMMIT!"

"Seven."

"FUCK YOU!"

"Six."

"YOU'RE A MONSTER!"

"Five."

"No."

"Four."

"No."

"Three."

"I can't."

"Two."

"Fuck. You."

"One."

BANG.

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To be continued... find out who pulled the trigger in the next chapter.