A young Robin aka Tim Drake is kidnapped by the Red Hood aka Jason Todd and the Outlaws. While being held captive, Tim tries to understand the reasoning behind Jason's actions. The answer may surprise you. Illustrations by the author included.
Sitting on the sofa in the living room of the hotel we were currently residing in was getting really old. I was growing more than a little impatient while waiting for Jason, Roy and Kory to return from a mission again. This was the third mission they had gone on this week and it was only Thursday. We were in the lovely city of Big Spring, Texas. The hotel we were staying in was nicer than you'd think. There's a pool, a huge television with satellite channels, but no Jason. There I was, sitting on the counter, waiting for their safe return with nothing but a a bowl of cereal and cup of coffee to distract me.
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He tells me all the time to not worry and to just "chill out." I was not the type to just sit back and relax when Jason doesn't tell me any details pertaining to their mission or anything. I'm just supposed to assume that the trio will be okay and come back safe and sound? I wasn't sure how much longer I could stand that. I was beginning to reach my breaking point, and Jason was beginning to realize that. I wasn't allowed to go along with them even though, everyone knew that I would be a great addition to the team. I swear, Jason was one of the most hard headed people that I had ever known. All I knew about their mission tonight was that it involved a Mexican gang. I predicted that someone called in a hit for the leader. If I'm right about the identity of the leader, then Jason would gladly exterminate him based on how he operates. The leader in question is one who recruits children after beheading their parents in front of them, and to top it off, he also runs a sex slave industry. I've learned all of this through watching the news lately in this area. His name, Crain Lobos. My guess was that Jason and the others were hired to shut him down. I still do not think that the man deserves to die. I just do not can not see how taking the life of another is justified. Jason believes the exact opposite. However, he's died before. Doesn't that make him a bit biased? Anyway, I'm not saying that Lobos does not deserve to die for his horrific actions. I just don't think we, fellow human beings, should be able to make that choice and carry it out. I know it sounds complicated. Sometimes, I try to put myself in another's position. If this man painfully murdered someone extremely close to me, (mother, sibling, Jason, etc.) Would I change my mind? Would I not hesitate to kill him, or would I make sure he was put under the worst jail I could find? I don't know. After the whole Castillo situation, where I acted out of impulse from a strong desire to save Jason and killed Castillo, I just don't know precisely where I stand anymore. I do know one thing that Jason is right about. This world is not all black and white. The grey areas far outweigh the black and white areas. Batman would never kill, even if it meant losing another Robin. Sometimes I wonder if Bruce knows about the grey? If he could somehow go back in time a kill the man who murdered his parents before they were murdered, would he? I don't think he would, but I don't know for sure. In any case, I do not agree with the carefree approach Jason uses when it comes to killing his enemies. I know for a fact that it doesn't make him feel any less empty. I have found that Roy, Kory, and I do. I wish that could be enough for him. I let out a dramatic sigh when finally, I hear familiar voices from behind the door. It was Jason and Roy. It sounded as if they were bickering
