Slade watches Robin open the box and freeze at the sight of the mask. Slade's eye narrows and he leans towards the screen. This test will determine just how close Robin has gotten to him, and how far he's gotten in his apprenticeship. Will he comply and wear the mask, or will he openly reject it? Slade will make no effort to encourage him towards it, he will just watch and see.
He watches Robin put the box down... slowly... and sit at his desk, elbows on the table, his fingers knitted together for his chin to rest on. Good. He did not openly reject it.
Slade can tell Robin is conflicted now: his friends no longer trust him, he betrayed his own mentor, and now his new master has offered a truce. With or without Slade's help, Robin is severing all of his ties and will eventually be left with only Slade. He's most likely already realized this.
Robin stays in that position a long time, thinking. Slade smirks, because he knows Robin does this to keep Slade out. He cannot track the mind, after all. He moves on to read some of the files on the Batman's flash drive. One of them is labelled "Superman". He opens it and finds several more files, the most interesting one reads "To do".
Inside that file is a list of all the kryptonite of Gotham city and its surrounding cities, which Batman planned on acquiring one way or another to keep from getting stolen. One catches his eye. He turns on a com labelled 'rat' and says: "Tell the H.I.V.E five to rob Jump city's biggest bank tomorrow night, try around 10 pm."
A gargling voice replies "I'll make it a top priority, sir."
He sits back, content. This would make an excellent test for Robin. He'll send him out tomorrow night.
YOU ARE READING
The Apprentice
FanfictionWhat if Robin stays Slade's apprentice? What if the Titans don't find the nano-bugs? Robin is alone. No one can save him from the situation he's in. It's up to him to somehow make contact with the Titans, or better still... Batman.
