A month passed. The fortress courtyard was alive with the g of swords, the grunts of soldiers, and the rhythmic hum of discipliraining.

  The air was thick with sweat and tension as the League’s warriors hoheir skills uhe watchful eyes of their anders. But Jason Todd was absent from the crowd this m.

  Instead, he was with Ra’s al Ghul in a secluded chamber, its walls lined with a ons and scrolls depig the League’s philosophy.

  The room was dimly lit, the only illumination ing from a single skylight that bathed the ter of the room in ahereal glow. Jason stood in its ter, his shirt discarded, his chest heaving as fresh cuts oozed blood. Ra’s loomed over him, his sword poised at Jason’s throat.

  “That is enough for today,” Ra’s said, his voice calm but authoritative.

  Jason grinned despite the pain, spitting out blood as he struggled to rise. “Not do, old man,” he rasped, his tone defiant. His body ached, every muscle screaming for rest, but the adrenaline c through him drowned out the pain.

  Ra’s arched an eyebrow, intrigued by the boy’s resilience. “As I said, enough,” he repeated, sheathing his sword with a decisive click.

  Jason scowled but relutly sank back to the floor, his chest rising and falling as he caught his breath.

  Despite his disappoi, a small part of him was relieved. The releraining was exhirating, but it pushed him to his limits—and sometimes beyond them.

  “You tio show improvement,” Ra’s remarked, pag slowly around Jason. “Your movements groer with each session.”

  Jason wiped blood from his lip, smirking. “Yeah, it gets easier after a few fights. But here’s the kicker—how e I pull off moves I don’t even remember learning?”

  Ra’s stopped, his pierg gaze meeting Jason’s. “The mind may fet,” he said, “but the body remembers.”

  Jason’s eyes flicked toward the courtyard, where soldiers sparred with meical precision. “Weird. It’s like instinct takes over sometimes,” he muttered. “Almost like I’m watg someone else fight through me.”

  Ra’s nodded, pleased by the observation. “Your subsind is blending what it onew with what I am teag you now.”

  Jason tilted his head, sidering this. Deep down, fragments of his past him—blurry images of a shadowy figure, a sinister ugh, and a crowbar fshing in the dark. But he kept those memories to himself.

  “What if I never get my memories back?” he asked, his voice quiet but steady.

  Ra’s paused, his expression unreadable. “Should that happen, you will still have a home here. You are one of us now, Jason—a warrior, a member of the League.”

  Jason gnced down at his bloodied hands, uainty flickering in his eyes. He didn’t fully trust Ra’s—not yet. But the man’s words pnted a seed of belonging, a dangerous fort that Jason couldn’t ignore.

  “Thanks, I guess,” he muttered, pushing himself to his feet with a wince.

  Ra’s allowed himself a faint smile. “Rest now. Tomorrow, we take your training to the field, we are going to work on your stealth.”

  As Jasohe chamber, the fai hint of a smirk tugged at Ra’s lips. The boy was strong, ing, and driven by a fire that could either destroy him—or make him invincible. Either way, Ra’s inteo wield that fire for his own ends.

  ****

  [Jason Todd’s POV]

  Jason found himself tied to a chair and uo move. The vivid image of a in a purple suit appeared in front of him as a maniacal ughter with a strong hint of lunacy filled the air.

  The was about to strike him across the face when he suddenly jolted from his sleep, covered i and panting as he began to gasp for air.

  “It was only a nightmare.” He muttered, still struggling to breath. ‘But why a of all things, and why this overwhelming feeling of both fear and something I only describe as pure hatred.’ He thought.

  After a short while, his breath became calm and steady. He then id ba bed, staring at the ceiling in hopes of at least getting some rest that night.

  He o be well rested for his raining to en a couple hours. He shut his eyes and tried to cate sleep but unfortunately for him, he was wide awake and still tormented by the recurring images of the mad .

  The League of Assassins’ fortress was quiet in the early hours, the halls bathed in the dim glow of torches.

  Jason stood at the edge of the main training hall, his muscles tense as he listeo Ra’s al Ghul’s steady voice. The man had an unnerving ability to and silehout raising his tone, and Jason couldn’t help but focus entirely on him.

  “You’ve proven yourself capable in direbat,” Ra’s began, pag slowly. His silhouette moved like a phantom against the flickering torchlight.

  “But brute strength and skill with a bde will only take you so far. True power lies in the ability to move uo infiltrate the very heart of your enemy’s sanctum without leaving a trace.”

  Jason straightened, his sharp eyes narrowing.

  “Stealth, boy,” Ra’s tinued, his tone like a bde slig through the air.

  “Stealth?” Jason asked with fusion in his tone. “I know nothing about that, you haven’t taught me anything about that.”

  “Stealth is an art whies to most naturally, but they also undergo training to perfect this art. Tonight, we will see if you have the potential to grasp it.”

  Jason ched his fists, nodding silently.

  “If you feel backed against a wall or e against an obstacle you ’t seem to get by, then think on your feet and take the best course of a yuts tell you to.”

  Again, he gave no response, just a nod. He didn’t need words to prove himself, his as would speak louder. And hopefully he doesn’t screw up a beaten like a literal thief by those guys.

  ****

  The first part of the lesson was grueling. Ra’s led Jason to a secluded part of the fortress—a maze-like area designed specifically for stealth training.

  The space was dimly lit, the air damp with the st of moss and old stohe walls were lined with narrow ledges and hidden alcoves, while the floor was covered in uiles that creaked if too much weight lied.

  “You are to retrieve an item from the vault at the ter of this maze,” Ra’s instructed, gesturing to a map he had id out before them. “There will be guards patrolling. They will not go easy on you.” His green eyes glinted. “If they catch you, they are instructed to treat you as an intruder.”

  Jason smirked, the er of his mouth curling into a cocky grin. “So what’s the challenge, old man? Avoid them, grab the thing, a out?”

  Ra’s stared at him, unamused. “The challenge, boy, is not to let your arroga you killed. Now, go.”

  Jason’s grin faded as he stepped into the maze, the heavy door shutting behind him with a resounding g.

  The silence pressive. Jason crouched low, his footsteps feather-light as he moved through the winding corridors.

  Every sound, every creak of the floor or drip of water, seemed amplified iillness. His senses were on high alert, his breathing slow and measured as he sed the area for movement.

  Ra’s had been right: there were guards. They moved in pairs, their footsteps eg faintly. Jason pressed himself into the shadows, his bck tunic blending seamlessly with the darkness.

  “Focus,” he muttered under his breath. “You’ve douff like this before.”

  Had he? The thought g him, a flicker of frustration bubbling up. His memory was still a fragmented puzzle, with pieces that didn’t quite fit together.

  He knew he had skills—muscle memory that kicked in when he fought or moved—but the in of those skills was a mystery.

  The Lazarus Pit had stolen so much from him, leaving behind a votile mix e and fusion. He ched his fists, f the anger down. Now wasn’t the time to lose trol.

  After navigating several corridors, Jason reached a narrow passageway illuminated by a siorch. A pair of guards stood at the far end, their swlinting in the light. Jason crouched low, calg his move.

  Equipped with certain tools Ra’s viewed as ies for the job, he reached into the pouch at his belt, pulling out a small smoke pellet.

  With a flick of his wrist, he sent it rolling across the floor. The pellet exploded into a cloud of thick, choking smoke, and the guards coughed, momentarily blinded.

  Jason moved swiftly, his steps silent as a whisper. He slipped past them, his heart pounding as he reached the corridor. He didn’t look back.

  The vault was ahead. Jason could see the heavy iron door, fnked by twuards. But this time, there was no cover, no dark areas to hide in, no ers to slip around.

  He crouched behind a stone pilr, his mind rag. How was he going to get past them?

  The bloodlust stirred, a dark voi the back of his mind. ‘Take them out. They’re in your way. Just a quick strike, silent and .’

  Jason ched his jaw, gripping the pilr so hard his knuckles turned white. “No,” he muttered, shaking his head. “Not like that.”

  But the urge was overwhelming. The Lazarus Pit had left him with a hunger for violence, a hat cwed at him in moments like this. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

  “Focus,” he whispered. “You’re not a killer.”

  The tension in his chest eased as he formuted a pn. He reached into his pouch again, pulling out a vial of sleeping pift from Talia.

  With careful precision, he uncorked the vial and blew the powder toward the guards. The fine dust spread quickly, carried by an almost imperceptible draft. Within moments, the guards swayed, their movements sluggish before they crumpled to the ground.

  Jason moved swiftly, his heart hammering as he reached the vault door. He examihe lock—a plex meism with multiple tumblers.

  “Of course it’s not simple,” he muttered, pulling out the lock-pig tools as his mind fshes to when Ra’s had included them in his pouch.

  “I don’t have the fai idea on how to pick a lock.” He had protested, but was shut down with a single reply from Ra’s.

  “Figure it out.”

  “Like hell am I supposed to figure this out?” He muttered, drawn back to his current situation as he began stig a tool into the look.

  The process ainstaking, every click of the tumblers eg in the silent corridor. Sweat dripped down his forehead as he worked, his hands steady despite the pressure. Finally, with a soft click, the lock gave way.

  The door creaked open, revealing a small, ornate chest on a pedestal. Jason stepped inside, his eyes sing the room for traps. Satisfied it was safe, he lifted the chest and ope, revealing the scroll Ra’s had sent him to retrieve.

  The journey back was just as tense. Jasoraced his steps, careful to avoid the guards who were still patrolling. By the time he reached the entrance, his body was ag, his leg muscles screaming for rest from croug all night long.

  Ra’s was waiting for him, his expression unreadable. He held out a hand, and Jasohe scroll into his palm.

  “You succeeded,” Ra’s said, his toral. “But you were sloppy.”

  Jason scowled. “Sloppy? I got the job done, didn’t I?”

  Ra’s raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “You relied too heavily on tools and tricks. A true master of stealth bees the shadow itself, needing nothing but their own skill.”

  Jason bit back a retort, his frustration simmering. “I’ll do better ime.”

  “You will,” Ra’s said, his tone leaving no room fument. “For now, rest. Tomorroill refine your teique.”

  Jason urning to leave. As he walked away, the bloodlust stirred again, whispering dark promises in the back of his mind. He ched his fists, determio keep it at bay.

  ‘Oep at a time.’ He thought. Oep at a time.