Duel Ra's Alghul

What made Talia think that Jason was capable of defeating her dad (the literal king of assassins) if he was so easily captured? It seemed like a **** sentence. From what she told him, not many people survived the Lazarus Pit with their minds. He'd heard rumors about what became of many of the assassins that they tried to use the pit on while recovering from his resurrection. Nearly all of them succumbed to insanity and a relentless, indiscriminate lust for blood. The only way to quench it was to endlessly kill. It didn't matter who. The thought that Ra's al Ghul was apparently hundreds of years old thanks to the pit was horrifying. Jason was barely in his 20's. How was he going to fight and kill a man with lifetimes worth of combat experience?

The blood lust sounded familiar though. Was he under the influence of it when he returned to Gotham as the Red Hood? There was so much hatred in his heart. His surrogate father failed to save him. He didn't blame Bruce for that. What he held against him was the fact that when he returned to Gotham, Joker was still breathing. If Bruce was the one that the Joker had killed, Jason would have hunted the freak to the ends of the earth to avenge the only man that was ever decent to him. When he came back from the dead, he didn't seek to fight crime like Batman had taught him. He wanted to control it. He was ruthless. His hands were about as bloody as the color of his new hood. He felt invincible after he died and came back to life.

Was all of that really the pit? He went toe to toe with Batman a couple times before Bruce realized it was Jason underneath. He held his own against the Dark Knight, the man that Ra's and Deathstroke considered their combative equal. Was he really on their level just because he soaked in some magic water? Ra's seemed to think so. Otherwise, why waste time with a duel and just execute him? Why even kidnap him at all if not to lure Batman to Nanda Parbat?

"The Demon's Head will see you now," a hooded assassin with a few others behind him to Jason's cell. He unlocked the door and proceeded to undo his restraints. Jason contemplated fighting these guys off and trying to find an exit. He was pretty sure he could take the three of them but he had to remind himself that he was in the hornet's nest right then. If he took down the three of them, he'd have to fight three hundred more. Then what? Assuming he made it outside into the blistering cold in his underwear, he'd just freeze to **** long before he'd even make it down the mountain, let alone find civilization. He was truly caught in between a rock and a hard place.

"Put this on," the assassin dropped a couple of neatly folded articles of clothing into his lap. It looked like their assassin uniform but it was modified to look like his Red Hood armor with the red bat symbol on the chest and the hood/mask being colored red. Once he finished suiting up, he was escorted out of his cell.

"Try not to die, Jason! We've got a lot of catching up to do!" Harley called after him as he was led down the corridor. Jason rolled his eyes.

PREPARING TO DUEL...

Similarly to Jason's cell, the throne room was dimly lit with torches. There were numerous trophies aligning the walls from Ra's and his assassins' past victories which weren't doing wonders for his confidence. He was brought before Ra's and placed on his knees. The assassins bowed before being dismissed by their master. Talia stood by Ra's side with her arms folded.

"Ah, Jason Todd, or what is it you call yourself now?" Ra's smiled from his throne. "The Red Hood?" He chuckled heartily. "Such a fearsome title for a man that follows a coward like Bruce Wayne," he swished the wine around in his goblet before taking a sip.

"Bruce is twice the man you are! And when he finds me-"

"If he finds you, Jason. If," Ra's lost his smile. "Need I remind you that he has failed to find you in time once before? How I showed you kindness and bestowed upon you the gift of Lazarus?"

"You only brought me back to make me like you. To use me as a pawn. It didn't work with Bruce and it's going to work with me!" He spat.

"That's where you're wrong, Jason. You returned to Gotham a changed man. You chose to kill those criminals all on your own and I applaud you for it. You were faced with a difficult decision but ultimately you chose correctly. You proved to me you have it takes to truly better Gotham City. You have what your mentor lacks—the will to do what must be done to forge a better world," he stood up and paced down the steps to loom over Jason. "You're more like me than you realize, fellow son of Lazarus."

"Is that why you want to duel me? Because I survived the pit without losing my mind?"

"The Pit has made you stronger and more resilient than you ever were before, just as its gift has made me powerful as well," he folded his arms behind his back and started to pace around the room to admire his trophies. "But you see, the Lazarus Pit does not grant immortality. The human body has its limitations that even the magic of the pit can't cure. We've tried to bring back many of our fallen comrades after battle but their bodies were too damaged to recover," he ran his fingertips along the blade of one of Deathstroke's swords on display. "You died in an explosion. I was certain that you wouldn't resurrect with your mind in tact but here you are. You, my son, are the ideal candidate to become the next Demon's Head."

"Jesus, you're really one for long winded speeches aren't you?" Jason was partly glad he was taking his time to monologue. The longer he took to get to the point, the more time Bruce had to find him. "Why can't you just continue to lead them?"

"As I said, the human body has its limitations. My life has been artificially extended by the pit but even I cannot continue to resurrect my body repeatedly forever. The mantle must be passed on eventually and I would like to die knowing that my legacy will live on through a worthy successor."

"What if I do win, then? How do you know I won't just disband your clan?"

"If you're going to be unreasonable and reject the title of Demon's Head, I do have an alternative," he unsheathed his sword. "We will use the pit to transfer your mind to my daughter's body and her mind into yours. A woman is not fit to lead the League of Assassins. Men have evolved to be warriors by nature. Only a man can be the Demon's Head. She will make use of your body as my worthy successor. Her I can trust to carry on my will after I am departed."

"W-what?" Jason looked shocked. "You realize how crazy you sound, right? That's not possible!" He was flabbergasted by the concept of his body being stolen.

"You live in a world where alien men in spandex catch aircraft like softballs. You have overcome **** itself and you question the possibility of a mind transference?"

"Wait a second," it just donned on him. "What would Talia do with me once I'm in her body?"

"Hah! Whatever she pleases, really. She could execute you, she could keep you around as a pet, maybe even a bride? It would still be her body after all," Ra's laughed. "So now that all the cards are out before you, how's about you be a good sport and duel me willingly so we can avoid that outcome, shall we?"

"But if we fight and I lose, you won't have your successor."

"No, but your mind will be gone from your body making the transfer process much smoother," Ra's shrugged. "Brothers, prepare this one for battle," he gestured to his guards standing outside the throne room. They marched in and stood Jason up. They marched him down to the cavern deeper into the mountain where the Lazarus Pit was located. The open area of the cave that led to the pit was cleared of rocks and debris to make for an adequate dueling ground.

Jason was positioned in the center of the cave with Ra's across from him. "As the challenged party, you may select the dueling weapon," Ra's explained. A case of various different melee weapons was opened and presented to Jason. They didn't have any guns available so Jason was left with mostly just blades for choices. He selected the classic Japanese katana, the very same kind that Talia trained him to wield after his recovery. He preferred his pistols but sword-wise this was the next best thing.

"Ah, the katana," Ra's was presented with his own katana by one of the assassins. "An excellent choice," he unclasped his his robe exposing his chest. "As a courtesy to you, I will fight you without my armor to make things fair."

"How noble of you," Jason rolled his eyes and twirled his katana. This was it. He was faced with an impossible decision. If he refused to kill Ra's he would be surely killed on the spot by his horde of loyal assassins. What would Bruce do in this situation? He'd find a way out. He was the world's greatest detective, the Dark Knight, the Batman. In a way, maybe this was the kind of challenge that he wanted so badly? The one that would let him redeem himself in Bruce's eyes once and for all and show him that he was the best suited to become Batman after he retires.