Chapter 6: Time Out

Slade Wilson rarely thought with his heart.

It was a lifelong habit. Emotions tended to cause more problems then they solved. They blurred and distorted your focus and your goals to the point where everything became the same. Thinking with your head produced much better results, and hence Slade had always though that way, using logic instead of intuition and feeling. And it had worked for him very well.

True, he thought with his heart every now and then. Though superior to all, he was still human. It was how he met his now ex-wife Adeline, and why he had had a son. Slade had named him Grant.

But Slade's destiny brought him apart from his family, as he continued to improve as they stayed as they were. Part of Slade was saddened by this, but the dominant part quickly rationalized it away. And so Slade had eventually left his family as he went on his way, improving his skills and reputation until he had gotten to where he was today.

But this had not come without cost.

Slade had taught Grant what he could manage, and he had promised Adeline he would not try to force Grant into the life that he had led. But as sons were wont to do, Grant wanted to follow in his father's footsteps.

So Slade, through middlemen and secrecy, aided his son's quest. But only a little. He had had to learn everything himself, and he expected Grant to do the same. Everyone had to make their own mistakes and errors, and Slade couldn't coddle his own flesh and blood and try and shield him from these inevitabilities. And if Grant overestimated himself and wound up dead…well, Slade would mourn a bit and then move on. At least Grant would die a warrior. Slade had taught him that at least.

Grant was on his way to a fair reputation himself, calling himself the Ravager. In the process, Slade had aided in his son in acquiring a gift Slade himself had: the ability to use 90% of his brain at once. The myth that humans only used 10% of their brains was a misconception: they only used 10% of their brains AT ONE TIME. Slade had, through training and other methods, increased his own abilities to 90%. With Grant, Slade saw to it that he was treated even better, as Grant was eventually able to master using 97% of his brain all at once. Surely, this would eventually lead to his son building his own legacy. Slade was proud, and turned back to his own goals, leaving his son to live his own life.

And then came the Titans.

A group from the Black Circle, a crime organization so large it was said to have interstellar contacts, had been taken apart by the just formed Teen Titans. The bosses of that group had hired the Ravager to kill the Titans in revenge. It should have been a doable mission: Grant had more experience, and the children were young and still very immature in their ways and powers. It should have been a challenging task, but one that Grant could have done.

Instead, he had lost.

The children, despite being so green they were literally tripping all over themselves, had somehow managed to defeat Grant, the Ravager. This would have been enough to stir the emotions that Slade usually kept deeply buried, but not enough.

That had come when he had visited Grant in prison, in disguise as Grant's lawyer. He had needed to see how his son was. Had Grant been angry and been plotting revenge against the Titans, Slade would have been on his way. His son would have made a mistake, and would learn from it in any way he saw fit.

But it wasn't like that.

The man Slade had seen in jail was broken. His confidence, his pride, had been smashed to dust in his defeat at the hands of the teenagers who had beaten him. True, nothing had happened to him in prison: Grant was too well trained for that. No shower rapes at the hands of skinheads for him. But the man that had once been his son didn't want revenge, or even a rematch. He just wanted to serve his time, leave, and start over in a new life far away from his old one, to get as far away from the shame he felt at his loss, a loss he was so certain he should not have suffered and yet somehow had.

The Titans hadn't just beaten his son. They'd broken him, destroyed him. And the worst part of all is that they were so immature in their view of "fighting crime" that they had no idea what they had done.

Slade would have gone over and killed the Titans then, so strong did his emotions rise up, but his logic managed to gain control again quickly. Slade had recently been hired to perform another job, and he was being paid very well to do it. Dropping it to go off half-cocked would do irreparable damage to his name and reputation, damage that could prove to be irritating in the long run. So Slade had collected himself and gone to do the job. There were some that had borne the brunt of his rage though, on that mission. Slade almost pitied them. Almost.

And by the time he had gotten back, his anger had cooled, and Slade turn to his brain again to ponder what he would do. No, no simple death would do for these children. He would do some work and give them a real masterpiece in revenge. So Slade had begun to study them.

And he had seen Robin, and all the pieces had fallen into place.

These teenagers, led by Robin, had destroyed his son. So Slade would destroy them by remaking his son through Robin. So Slade had put his pieces into place and begun.

And found, to his surprise, that he too was frustrated by failure. Every plan he put into motion, the Titans somehow found a loophole or a back door or were struck by a stroke of incredible luck. Even when Slade had gotten involved himself, the children had foiled him. When he had sent Killjoy after them, an assassin so good at his job that even THE BAT didn't know if he was real or a myth, they had all somehow survived. And while the Titans had dealt with the rash of lunatics that had popped up, Slade had built his Chromoton Destablizer that would finally set things right…and then that wild card, the pretentiously named Savior, had popped in and ruined everything again, tossing Slade into time's maelstrom, a vortex that Slade knew he might never escape.

But through all that, an opportunity beyond anything Slade expected had shown itself.

All this could be avoided if his son had just beaten those children, as he should have. But it was clear that the Titans lack of experience was balanced by a Midas touch of some kind, as if they were being guided by an omniscient and benevolent hand that led them to victory EVERY DAMN TIME, no matter how great the odds against them were.

Well, THIS TIME would be different. The teenagers had barely pulled together to receive the miracle they had been handed to beat his son. Slade would snuff out that miracle before it occurred by joining the battle. Against a group that had never met Slade, that had never even heard of the name he usually worked under, Slade would aid his son and destroy them.

And then, even as he ran on, putting more distance between himself and his Titans, even if the rest of his life was an endless series of timelines, his fate decided by his body breaking down or being killed in one of those infinite possibilities, Slade would have least set things right.

THIS time, the Titans would fall.

"Man, I figured he could run, but geez!" Cyborg said as Slade picked up his pace even more.

"He really has wings on his feet." Robin said, knowing full well why. As much as he hated Slade, he knew what drove him: the pure spirit of a father, something even Slade's evil could not swallow.

It aggravated Robin deeper then he expected. Slade should have been pure evil to him, always, not displaying an intention that was almost…honorable.

Almost. For to carry out this intention, Slade was fully ready to kill a slightly younger set of thems.

And Robin wouldn't allow that.

Not this time.

Not in ANY time.

Grant Wilson had never seen his father in costume, but there was something to be said about subconscious influences in the way he was garbed.

Grant Wilson, the Ravager, wore an outfit that was light blue for his head, shoulders, and left arm and dark blue for his torso and right arm. His pants were also light blue, and mostly covered by thigh-high boots that were orange. Grant's belt, a glove on his left hand, and a firing device of some kind of his right hand were also orange. A dark-colored sheath was strapped around his chest, and unlike Slade's mask, Grant's was open at the mouth, exposing part of his face.

A part that had two trickles of blood running from it, one from his hidden nose and another from the left corner of his mouth.

The blood had been drawn at the hands of Robin, who looked pretty much the same as he flew away, courtesy of a pistoning blow from the Ravager. His intent had been accomplished though: the sword that the Ravager used, the one that the sheath was intended for, had been removed from his hands. Now another one of the teenagers, the robot, was charging in for an attack.

Grant didn't know what was happening. When he had lured the Titans to this skyscraper and attacked, he had expected to win with ease. Half the moves that he used that had FAILED had aided him in some way, as the teenagers clearly had no idea how to work together. The orange-skinned one and the green one who turned into animals kept crashing into each other, and Robin and the robot kid couldn't seem to decide who was leading and who was following. The last one kept getting her attacks interrupted by her graceless and confused teammates. It should have been a cinch.

But it hadn't gone that way. Normally he would have killed at least three of the targets and would be mopping up the rest. Instead, the tide had turned, and Grant found himself on the defensive as the Titans blitzed him, the robot being his attacker at the moment.

Grant lifted his right arm, aiming his gauntlet and firing twin metal discs with enough for to go through 2 inches of steel. But the robot showed a sudden influx of speed and somehow dodged the attack, and before Grant could be prepare a follow up, the robot was right in his face.

Cyborg's left fist slammed into the side of The Ravager's head, causing his brain to rattle around in his skull like a can of mixed nuts. Stars and bright flashes of light exploded in Grant's vision as he lurched, his perception suddenly altered to the position of a drunk.

And leaving him no defense to Cyborg's follow-up attack, as his sonic cannon armed and he thrust it against Grant's chest.

Victor Stone, at this point, hadn't been in his new state as a cyborg long, and had been a "hero" for even less time. Had the Victor WE know done this attack, he would have known enough about the subtleties of pitch, tone, and impact needed to deliver a proper blow without accidentally striking a fatal one.

But THIS Cyborg didn't have that experience. And combined with the pain he was feeling from the Ravager's previous attacks, he wasn't going to discover it here, and cut loose with a full power sonic blast at point blank range right into Grant's chest.

It didn't kill Grant, but only because he had the best in modern body armours. But it didn't stop him from flying backwards like a bullet, his body crashing through the wall behind him and the wall behind THAT.

Grant came crashing out in a display room of some kind, the area filled with stacked cans, bottles, and other things (perhaps the company whose building we are in made drinks). Amazingly, as Grant hit the ground and half-rolled, half-skipped to the opposite wall, where he finally stopped, he didn't hit any of the displays.

Though it didn't really matter. The blows from Cyborg had royally messed Grant up, and he coughed up some blood as he tried to find his bearings.

The way it originally went, it had ended here. The Titans had headed through the wall holes, and Robin had tied Grant up with a Bird-Something and delivered him to the authorities. And that had been that.

Not this time.

We will note that at the moment, it is very early in the morning (indeed, it is amazing all the Titans are up this early! Whoda thunk it?), to the point that the sun is only beginning to peer above the horizon. We will also note that the room that the Titans of this time are stepping into has no windows, unlike the previous one and the one where the Ravager had ended up in.

Hence, when twin whirling discs flew into the room and smashed the lights, the Titans were plunged into total darkness. The only light was the very faint one that was leaking through the two wall holes, and normally this would allow the Titans to see once their eyes adjusted to the dark.

They never got the chance. Even Robin, who could fit infra-red pieces to his mask in the matter of a few seconds if he needed.

But he never got those seconds.

Slade leapt into the room and attacked at a speed that surprised even him. Even Robin had no idea what had hit him: one second it was light, the next it was dark, and then before Robin could even note it was dark, he felt a terrible impact at the side of his neck and his world was consumed in a greater darkness.

Slade didn't stop, didn't speak, barely even breathed. No sooner was Robin falling then Slade turned and tossed a razor disc with an expert eye. It struck Cyborg in the chest and sliced through, severing his main power line and putting his systems off-line (Slade was very thorough in his observations). No sooner was he falling then Slade flipped over and nailed Raven in the chest with a leaping thrust kick, perfectly hitting her solar plexus and sending such a shockwave through her nervous system through the clustered nerves there that she passed out. Beast Boy, had just met Starfire and was spending as much time close to her as he could so he could oogle her learned that that could have consequences as Slade flipped over again, grabbed him up, grabbed Starfire's hair, and slammed their skulls together so quick they barely had time to understand what had happened. The last two Titans collapsed at his feet.

The whole attack had taken less then five seconds.

Slade took a breath, and then headed for his son. He had already put this group of Titans aside: it would take them at least half an hour to wake up (Cyborg's repair systems would take him at least as much time to re-route such a sudden and drastic bit of damage). He needed to see how his son was, and then, he would deal with HIS Titans. And he would hold nothing back. To save his son, Slade didn't care if he had to kill BOTH sets.

"Grant." He said, nearly down to his child, struck by how similar their costumes were, He never knew how much of an influence he had had on his child. "Grant?"

Grant's vision was still swimming, and to build on the metaphor, the voice he was hearing sounded like it was coming from underwater. Cyborg really had hit him hard: in fact, his armored mask had cracked and was nearly finished the process of falling apart.

"Who…?"

"Grant. It's me." Slade said, and the familiar tone finally pierced Grant's rattled brain.

"Father…?"

"Yes Grant. It's your father." Slade said, as he reached under his chin and pressed a switch. With a small hiss of steam, the front of his mask came off.

The man underneath had a full head of white hair and a small neatly trimmed beard, slightly larger then a goatee. His right eye was gone, no patch covering the sewn together skin that once held the optic orb. And as the Ravager's mask fully disintegrated, you could see the features on his face mirrored on those of Slade's.

"Dad…what…?"

"Don't worry Grant. I know. Don't feel any shame. Those children are more then just young metahumans. They have a certain something you never could have seen. You made a mistake, as we all do. Don't let it trouble you. For these Titans are enough of a threat to challenge even me."

"But…I…" Grant murmured.

"Do not talk. I'll handle this. Trust me, it is for the best. It is nothing against you. It is THEM who must be punished…" Slade said, as his tone became a hiss. Had Grant been in a better state of mind, he might have boggled at the unusual tone that had entered his father's voice, a tone that was always calm and even.

It was hate.

"Slade."

Slade didn't even turn around, as he was still checking Grant's injuries. He already knew who was behind him,

The Teen Titans. The Lost Titans. HIS Titans. They had come in, checked their past comrades, and then moved on to confront him. For no other reason then their immature belief that stopping him was the right thing to do.

They thought that this belief was righteous and lent them power.

Stupid, childish FOOLS…

How could he ever thought he could have remade his son through Robin? In his own way, he had been a fool.

But no more.

He would show them power.

"Slade." Robin repeated, his staff extended and at the ready, his allies prepared around him.

"Do not call me by that name any more Robin. You no longer have the right." Slade said as he got up. Robin arched his eyebrow, his anger fading slightly as confusion over Slade's tone replaced it.

"I thought you could be something for me Robin. That was why I gave you that name. But now I see, oh so clearly…" Slade said as he turned around, as the Titans finally saw his face, if only for a brief time. "That I was wrong. You are not worthy to be my apprentice. You are merely my enemy. And you will call me by the name that my many foes had on their lips as I buried them…"

Slade snapped his mask back on.

"DEATHSTROKE, THE TERMINATOR!"

And the man known as Slade and now as Deathstroke leapt at the Titans, his speed surprising even Robin, as they scattered to…

But their carefully constructed plan may as well have been spur of the moment, as Deathstroke abruptly switched direction and leapt to the side. Before Starfire knew what was happening he had ahold of her ankle.

And then all she knew was pain as Slade yanked her down, grabbing her arm and then slamming her sternum down across his knee as hard as he could. The pain exploded through Starfire, leaving her body limp, even as the impact threw her back up, as Deathstroke moved to the side, ever so slightly, and spun, slamming Starfire with a vicious roundhouse kick that sent her flying across the room and smashing through the windows, which shattered into a thousand shards of crystal as she fell out.

"WHY YOU…!" Cyborg yelled as he armed his chest missile launchers. A poor move, as Deathstroke spun, flipped, and aimed in mid air and upside down as a small ray popped up on his forearm and fired. Robin recognized it as the version of the heat ray he had stolen for Deathstroke as the beam flew forward and struck Cyborg in the chest. The missiles prematurely detonated in their launchers, blowing Cyborg back through a display of cans that collapsed on him, scattering all over the floor.

"Azarath Metrion…" Raven began, lifting up more cans from another display, but Deathstroke beat her to the proverbial punch, as he turned and hurled twin discs in a quick one-two motion. One disc knocked one of the heavy cans askew from Raven's grip, and then the second struck it at a precise ankle and knocked it aside, right into Raven's face. The impact knocked the girl back with a slight cry as she crashed through another exhibit.

A growl sounded next to Deathstroke as he turned, as Beast Boy swiped at him as a bear. But Deathstroke ducked under the blow and drove his fist into Beast Boy's side, into a soft spot between the great amounts of muscle a bear had. Beast Boy gasped, and that gave Deathstroke another opening as he aimed a precise hand chop into the folds of Beast Boy's neck. The bear stumbled, and Deathstroke leapt up, grabbing hold of the fur and pulling himself up, and slammed his fists on each side of Beast Boy's head. The pain disoriented Beast Boy, and he started to fall, as Deathstroke shifted his position and thrust his legs down, slamming Beast Boy's head between the floor and his armored boots. Beast Boy became human again, groaned, and passed out, as Deathstroke flipped off his body and found himself face to face with Robin.

Robin was astounded: Slade had attacked at such speed that even he hadn't had time to react to anything. And he knew why.

He wasn't fighting a warrior, or a mercenary, or a madman, or a combat genius, though Slade was all of those things and more.

He was fighting a father.

And the two stood, looking at each other like Wild West gunmen, waiting to see who would blink first.

In the end it was Robin, as he yelled and leapt at Slade, swinging his staff.

Poor choice.

Deathstroke blocked the blow with his forearm as if Robin was attacking him with a feather duster and fired back with a pistoning hook into Robin's side, driving the wind out of him and making him double up on instinct. Deathstroke made him pay for it, grabbing Robin's hair and slamming his knee into Robin's face. Blood sprayed as Robin fell back, but he quickly recollected himself and turned the blow into his own attack as he slammed his heels under Deathstroke's chin. With a small snapping noise, Deathstroke's mask broke off again, exposing his old face. Strangely, the look he wore seemed almost…noble.

Robin was back on his feet and slashing the staff out, but Deathstroke leapt over it, swinging his leg out in his own slashing air roundhouse. But Robin had done the move on purpose, as he darted in, hooked his arm and shoulder under Deathstroke's leg in mid-air, and twisted/yanked Deathstroke forward…

But Deathstroke's body control was even greater then Robin expected, as he didn't fly forward but instead twisted down at the exact last second he could, even as his legs twisted and grabbed Robin around the neck. With a sudden scream of shock, the thrower became the throwee as Slade hurled Robin forward with his legs, sending Robin crashing through yet another display and then face first into the wall. Robin crumbled to the ground, tried to get up immediately…and then collapsed to his hands and knees, breathing hard as he tried to collect his senses.

"Won't lose…to you…Slade…" Robin gasped, and then started getting up.

Deathstroke snapped out his arm, hurling a final disc.

Robin dodged to the side.

The disc missed Robin, bit it bounced off a display of cans behind him, and as that display collapsed, it careened off another wall. As Robin picked up his fallen staff and charged again with a scream, the disc hit the ceiling.

Deathstroke stood there, his arms held calmly behind his back, as the disc ricocheted off another wall from the ceiling.

Robin raised his staff…

And the disc slammed into the back of his head.

Robin's body actually stopped, and then took another two more steps before it caught up with the brain and pitched forward. As reality blurred and faded before Robin, his last thought was a question: where was the ozone scent…?

As Robin fell at his feet, the disc that had knocked him out bounced off another wall and headed towards Slade. With a snapped out arm, he caught it.

And Starfire flew in from behind him, screaming her rage, her hands glowing bright green…

And Slade snapped his fist up as she flew right into his backhand. She rocked from the blow, and then fell down next to her young love.

"You already had, Robin."

Deathstroke, or Slade, in a way now, calmly put the disc away. All the Titans were down and out, and the only sound were slight rumbling-esque noises as cans and bottles rolled on the floor. Slade felt satisfied. He would check up on Grant, and then he would…

"Father…?"

Slade turned to see his son getting up, still very groggy from the blow. A slight smile, an expression that was very rare for Slade, came to his face. He had won.

"What…is…" Grant said, stumbling forward.

And he stepped on the can.

There was a reason why Grant had not hit any displays when he had made his original trip into the room: he wasn't meant to. But Slade, his father, had changed all that, his battle against the Titans leaving the room in ruins. That, combined with Grant's off state, had produced the can that had been knocked from its display, a display which some unknown Titan had knocked down via Slade's attack, a can that had rolled over to him, the can that Grant had now stepped on, the can that slid from under Grant's foot as the already stunned and dizzy assassin lost his balance.

And stumbled…

Slade's eyes went as wide as saucers.

"No."

Another thing about the room had changed in the battle: Slade had defenstrated it when he had dealt with Starfire. There was nothing standing between Grant and open air as he slipped on the can and stumbled towards the opening on the floor. And even he, with his highly enhanced senses, could not stop his loping stagger towards.

"NO!" Slade screamed, as he ran towards Grant, as his son reached the edge. His panic and fear propelled him at an even greater speed that he had used to outrun the Titans, his despair magnified tenfold as he dashed at his son, reaching out as his son began to fall back.

For a moment, their fingers brushed.

And then Grant fell, vanishing from his father's vision as he plummeted. For all he had put into it, Slade had not been able to move fast enough to stop what he had changed.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Slade screamed, as he watched gravity seize his son and pull him down to the breast of its cruel mistress.

The worst thing was the look on Grant's face. It wasn't of fear, or of confusion. It wasn't of rage, or hate. What his face bore, as he fell, was a look of utter…grief.

It spoke volumes without a word.

And then he was gone. He didn't even scream.

"No…" Slade said, falling to his knees, his arm dangling helplessly over the edge. "Grant…what have I done…Grant…"

Change one thing, change everything.

The Titans found Slade down on the ground a few minutes afterward. Slade's inability to fly or to grapple down the building had forced him to take the stairs. It had been Cyborg who had had enough sense left in him to see what had happened, he who had woken up fully first and revived the Titans. Since three of them could fly, the Titans arrived almost as soon as Slade had reached the broken body and cradled it in his arms.

"Grant…oh Grant…" Slade said, his face lowered against Grant's chest, searching for a heartbeat he knew would not be there. "I'm sorry…forgive me…Grant…"

The cracked, weeping tone of Slade's voice was as surreal a thing the Titans had ever heard. Cyborg took a step forward, and found the last arm he had been expecting stopping him: Robin. He shook his head, his face solemn.

Starfire looked about ready to cry herself, the anger she felt at a foe replaced by the sorrow she felt for his loss. Beast Boy looked a bit sniffly himself, and Raven shared the solemn look Robin had.

Slade may have been their enemy, perhaps he could even be called a hated enemy. But none of the Titans could attack him now. For they understood his grief all too well. It was grief even Slade deserved: a man who had seen his child die before his eyes. A child who was not meant to die…

Until he changed it…

And so the Titans stood silently around the weeping Slade, wondering if anything would ever be right again, and then reality shimmered slightly around them, and suddenly the cracked pavement and the building that had stood behind them were gone, replaced with the cold, dark floor and walls of a warehouse.

"Guys?"

The Titans blinked, snapping out of their observation and realizing where they were. The realization fully hit home when Robin turned his head and saw the shattered remains of the Chromonton Destablizer as it fell apart completely.

They were home.

"Oh guys. Thank god." Said the voice, and then Savior was there, the Savior, the Noel they knew, looking at Robin and co. Robin blinked, and then he smiled.

"Savior." He replied, catching himself at the last second from speaking Noel's name.

In the shadows at the edge of the warehouse, a dark figure looked over the teenagers that had appeared from the shifting plasmic mass he and Savior had worked so hard to free them from, his expert's eyes scanning for any injuries. He found no serious ones, and looking at his ward, he allowed himself a slight smile of relief and then disappeared back into the darkness. His task was done here, he had to return to his city.

"Savior! Oh it is so good to see you!" Starfire said, grabbing Noel and crushing him in a hug. By now, Noel had learned enough to hold his breath beforehand, and hence didn't have to struggle out Starfire's tight grip in order to breathe.

"Good to see you too Star. All you all right?"

"I think so." Robin said.

"Ok here." Cyborg said.

"And here." Beast Boy added.

Raven said nothing, she just walked over to Noel. Noel looked at her half in relief and half analytically as he himself checked for injuries.

Robin, by now, had turned around to look at Slade again, and the other Titans followed his gaze.

All except Raven, who leapt into Noel's arms the second none of the other Titans were looking and pressed her lips to his with a passion and fury that Starfire would have been impressed by. Savior, for his part, was too stunned to reply, even after she broke it.

"What was that for?" he finally asked.

"Just for you being you." Raven replied, and something in her tone made Noel understand.

So they joined the Titans as they looked at Slade. He was still on the ground, but Grant was gone. He had faded away with the timeline, but he may as well have still been there as Slade remained hunched over, his face now buried in his hands, very slight sounds that may or may not have been actual crying escaping him. Once again, Noel was utterly stunned at this change, the icy-hearted Slade he had been told off having been replaced with this…human.

"When you got caught in the device, I got on the horn to Batman. He came over and he and Oracle, with some aid from me, managed to build a device that was able to stabilize the chronological field you were trapped in. He appears to have left, guess he took the device with him…" Noel said as he looked at Slade. "What happened?" he finally asked Robin, in a quiet tone.

"He tried to change things for the better. He found that change is not something to trifle with, and he was punished for it. Dearly." Robin replied.

"I see." Noel said. "Well then, I guess we should…"

"No." Robin said. "Leave him."

This time, Noel was not alone in his expression of disbelief. All the other Titans shared it.

"What? Fearless…" Cyborg protested.

"I don't give many orders guys. But this is one. Leave him. What he saw is punishment enough for now."

"And if he returns and causes more trouble?" Savior asked.

"Then I will deal with it. I will deal with the punishment then. But now…just leave him. He's broken. There's nothing we could do anyway."

"Are you sure?" Raven asked.

"Yes." Robin replied. "Let's go home."

And the Titans turned and left Slade, who seemed to have been oblivious to the whole conversation, heading back to the T-Tower, THEIR T-Tower, a place that all of them would look upon with new comfort.

"Robin leaving his mortal enemy when he could have easily taken him to jail." Savior thought out loud as the Titans faded into the shadows. "I didn't think it was possible."

"Anything's possible." Robin replied. "Just give it some time."

And then Slade was alone.

He stirred, as his calm front struggled to return. But this return was destined to be a failure as another storm was whipping up, about to erupt, as he realized what had happened.

His plan had failed in ways he couldn't even have conceived. Not only had he failed to set the 'proper' timeline, a plan that seemed like it was conceived an eternity ago, but he hadn't been able to save his son. And he had done even worse then before. Grant was alive in this time, sitting in jail with his pride shattered, but he was alive. But in another timeline, Slade had killed his own child, as surely as if he had delivered the death blow himself.

The storm raged, as a name came to his lips. The name of the one whom had caused all this. Who had ruined everything, and forced him to witness things no father, or man, should have to see. The wild card that had come up out of nowhere and destroyed it all with one errant attack.

A name the Titans who be surprised and shocked if he knew, but Slade was, above many other things, not an idiot. He had contacts AND a brain, and it hadn't been hard to put together the pieces to bring him the name. They called him Savior, but he was also…

"Collins…" Slade hissed.

Slade Wilson rarely thought with his heart. But as he reared back, as the storm exploded through his being, he both thought and spoke with it, as he let loose a noise of grief, rage, and above all else, a vow against the child who had done this.

Slade had a new quest.

And he would not fail, as he screamed to the empty warehouse, to the heavens and the hells, so loud it almost seemed to penetrate across reality and sweep across all the realms the Titans had seen and all the infinite possibilities they had not.

And in each of them, someone shuddered.

"ANOTHER TIME, COLLINS! ANOTHER TIME!"

The End

This Time…