Sanctuary of the Dawn
A dying hero of sacrifice gets a reward of a lifetime, when he reaches his journey's end.
There were only a few things in this world that could comfort Bruce: first, the shadows of the night of which he allowed to conceal himself away from the moral failures that pulsed through his body, and second, the warmth of crimson lips pressing against his own desires of a beating heart.
He was always able to challenge the impossible of his limitations, push himself to levels that no other man could comprehend or desire to endure. He was always prepared to survive another hour of tortures to his mind, as he faced the demons of Gotham's nightmares. He could take the infliction of throbbing wounds, suffering of a poisoned minds and wrath of mortal chance. He was still always mindful of his surroundings, always prepared to fight another battle and always feeling his soul drifting further as he kept falling into the abyss.
He was trying to find an escape in his dark world he had subjected himself to be a part of-to have a chance of freedom beyond the barricades of order and chaos. He traveled the world seeking a way out of his endless torture of being consumed by anger, sorrow and uncertainly. He was offered a path to purge the fear that devoured his mortality. He accepted the path of shadow, became the greatest student of a man who believe that true justice can never be blocked by misguided souls.
With those teachings and endless hours of training, he returned to his city, embraced his fear and molded his anger, sorrow and heart into a symbol. An elusive protector of the night, that stood in the middle of the people of Gotham and the threatening schemes of evil. He was granted power, and used that power to restore the foundations of justice that were hidden by the decaying lies and unlawful promises of corruption.
He lost the power for the city, when an uncompromising stranger entered the streets, making everything he fought night after night burn in the flames of the devil's destruction. He battled wits with an agent of chaos that craved for his own personal Hell stained bloodshed of good people. Bruce allowed his limits to be pushed further than what he could have controlled, he failed to save his dearest friend who knew the truth of his crusade and failed to save a hero that wore no mask, only a face that became a glimmer of hope for Gotham's faith to be restored.
He made the choice that no else could make. The right choice of allowing a lie to serve as a purpose for hope to reign. He took the fall so that evil could not win. He allowed his symbol to fade into a falsehood, because he was never a hero not like Dent. He was a man who was condemned, hunted and a Dark K that waited in the shadows until the dawn came.
Eight years he waited, for a chance to redeem himself to the people Gotham. Two people bought his life back, a young detective that shared the same pain as he did and a beautiful woman who made him feel the night once more, only to get betrayal by her selfish heart and have both of his body and spirit broken by a masked demon that was molded by the darkness.
He was thrown into a pit, where men would grasp and suffer at the rays of light streaming down on their frail bodies. It was a life changing experience, he learned how to save Gotham and how to regain his soul back. He climbed many times and fell until he reached the point of giving into his fate of dying alone while his city falls into a cloud of ash.
With the words of an old man's story, he conquered his fear of dying and climbed the walls once more until fear found him again. He breathed in all his failures and dreams and in those moments he took the leap of faith and became free. When he returned to Gotham, he knew that there was only one way to save his city; he had to become a sacrifice to the dawn.
He was prepared to finish his journey's end, but then something changes his mind completely. A kiss from a woman who he put his trust into only to have his heart shattered by her cold betrayal. A woman that shared the night, wore masks and carried her strength through her beauty and guarded obscurity of emotions. A woman that he chose in that moment of happiness to spend the rest of his life with, as she gave him some of hers.
He always wondered what his life could have been like if he crossed paths with her at the beginning of his journey. Would they still wear the masks that concealed what they wanted each other to see? Would they desire to be close to each other? Would they give the fire? Ultimately would they get lost into a haze of happiness?
Bruce feels his hazel-green eyes slowly dimming as he felt the crashing waters of the Gotham bay rush over his battered body, he drifts further away, and his heart beat is slowing as shafts of sunlight rose over his drenched armor. He knows time is betraying him; he flicks his eyes and released a shaky exhale. He lifts a gloved hand slowly into the air as the voices of his parents whisper approaching words of welcoming him into a warm embrace.
A tear slips from his eye, he feels their love sheltering over him as he prepares to give his journey's end, a familiar voice calls out his name... A voice of a dream that he wishes to be real. He parts his lips and settles a teary gaze of a woman, she is dressed in skin-tight leather and racing towards him.
"Selina," he says with a slur in his fading voice. She crashes to her knees, all emotions are pouring out of her dark brown eyes, her hands grasp the sides of the cowl and she lifts it off his face. She stared into his teary hazel eyes. Bruce places a shaky hand on her cheek.
Selina overlapped his hand with her gloved hand, trying to be strong for him. "Bruce," she says with a sob, and feels his hand slip off her flesh. "You're going to live..." she bites out, tugging at his plated shoulder. "You hear me Wayne... you're going to live."
Bruce releases a soft exhale, as his skin becomes cold. "I wish," he coughs out a gush of water. " We could have shared a lifetime." He closes his eyes and his hand falls on the frozen sand and she narrows her blurry, dark coffee eyes as unwanted tears stream down her cheeks landing on his lips.
She wraps her arms around him, falls against his chest and presses a kiss on his cold lips. "No... Bruce," she feels her body trembling as sting throb rips through her heart. "Come back to me," she chants out, feeling a faint pulse. "Dammit Bruce comes back... please."
He keeps on hearing her voice as a gentle light beckons him to enter the sanctuary.
"Come back to me, Bruce."
Sanctuary of the Dawn
Part 2
"Come back to me, Bruce."
He heard her voice as if the tone was a soft beckon guiding him back home, he stood in the fresh rays of sunlight dress in a black overcoat as he walked down the stone steps of the crisp gardens of Wayne Manor feeling the warm breeze rush over his youthful features. His hazel eyes refreshed with determination as he hit the bottom step and listened to a familiar voice call out to him.
"Bruce, come and find me." Seven- year- old Rachel Dawes called out, giggling near the estates greenhouse, her freckles gleamed in the sunlight as she smiled brightly at him. She was dressed in a white lace shirt with a pair of jeans covered in grass stains and her dark brown hair was braided with lush roses tucked into the thick strands as she searched for him. "Where are you, Bruce Wayne."
He raced toward his childhood friend, until his feet halted in front of the entrance of the vine covered greenhouse. He stood motionless, allowing the warmth of the sun to enter his aching bones as he heard Rachel's laugh echo in his ears. He felt the tears stream over his chiseled cheeks.
She turned around and smiled back at him, "Bruce, where have you been?" she asked in a sweet little voice. "I was waiting a long time for you."
"I'm sorry, Rachel," he replied, inching closer to her, his hands tucked into his overcoat's pockets. "There was something that I had to finish before I could find you." He clenched his eyes shut, trying to stop the flow of tears from pouring out of his eyes.
"I thought you forgot about me, Bruce." Rachel said, crossing her tiny arms over her chest. " You promised me that would always come for me."
He nodded. "I know. I never broke that promise, Rachel." He stepped forward. "I've missed you so much."
She laughed. "Silly boy, I've only been gone for a few minutes."
"It felt longer than that," he narrowed his teary hazel eyes, and felt his fingers latch on to a something in his pocket. Arching an eyebrow, he pulled out the string of his mother's pearls with a small note attached it that read : Finder's Keepers. He felt his lips curve into a smile, he slowly turned his gaze to the out at the horizon and released a faint sigh as a surreal peace beamed over his refined features and the felt the ache of his heart easing into something that he couldn't explain but only feel in those moments.
He walked closer to Rachel, knelt down and placed his hand gently on her cheek. Happiness washed over him with a single smile crossed over his lips as he caressed her cheek with a soft kiss and whispered, "I shall be you always, Rachel." He pulled away and looked deeply into his eyes of his cherished friend and felt the burden on his shoulders lift as she returned him with a sweet little smile. "I won't forget about you." He embraced his arms around and rose from the ground and moved to the doorway.
"Bruce," she said with a steady gaze. "Where are you going?"
A small smile formed on his lips as he lifted his hand, looked at the peals resting in his palm. His dark hazel seemingly morphed into the pure richness of a lighter shade of green, as they started to build with moisture and he felt a swell of emotion take hold of him. "Home." he replied with a simple nod of his head and walked into the shafts of light as he clutched the pearls in his hand and walked toward the direction of the back roads of his family estate. He kept his eyes focused on the road, and lost his footing, making him fall to the ground.
He landed flat on his chest, a familiar presence brushed over him as he slowly lifted his gaze and saw a hand reaching down to him.
"Bruce," he heard the voice of his father say his name. He blinked his eyes and looked into the proud blue eyes of Thomas Wayne staring down at him with unconditional. "Why do we fall?"
Bruce reached over to grasp his father's hand, "So we can learn to pick ourselves back up," he answered, taking his father's warm hand and feeling strength enter back inside his body. He lifted himself off the ground and looked tenderly into his father's wise eyes. He swallowed a constricting lump in the back of his throat and felt breathless as Thomas as just there smiling at him.
"I just wanted to tell you how proud I am to call you my son." Thomas said with crisp words. "You've grown up to be a quite a man, Bruce."
Bruce narrowed his eyes to the ground, "I never meant for this to happen to you." He said trying to ease the tear from his eyes. "It was my fault... if I hadn't gotten scared... you would still be alive." Thomas lifted up his son's chin with a gentle touch.
"But I am alive, Bruce." He said, looking into Bruce's watery eyes as he placed his hand over his son's heart. "I live in you. There's where I will always be, son."
Bruce nodded, "It's just that I've missed you," he crashed into his father's body and embraced his arms around him. "I missed you so much."
Thomas hugged his son tightly and whispered, " I'm always here, Bruce. No matter how many battles you win or lose I will always be here to help life you back up."
The silent knell of a church bell chimed into the air, Bruce turned his sight to the direction of the narrow road. He released a shaky breath, "I don't know what path to choose now... I've served my purpose. I saved Gotham what else is there for me when I return?"
"I think you already that answer, Bruce." Thomas replied, looking down at Martha Wayne's pearls resting in his son's hand."You know peals represent something far greater than the value. They represent elegance, beauty, and purity. The woman you give them to will become all those things when you look into her eyes and realize how much you love her... even through you're too stubborn to admit it at first." He placed his hand firmly on Bruce's shoulder. "Every knight deserves a lady that will be his sword and shield against the storms we face. I found mine. And you go back to yours, son."
Bruce nodded and pulled away from his father, and gave Thomas Wayne when last smile before he raced to the road as glimmers of light formed him a path...he was going back home.
"Please handsome," Selina whispered gently, bring her lips closer to his still lips. "Don't leave me." Tears were landing on his frozen cheeks. "I need you, Bruce." She felt her heart breaking into jagged pieces, cutting her inside and out as she kept her dark teary eyes focus on his masked face. She gingerly placed both hands on the sides of the cowl and slowly kissed his thin upper pale lip, bringing her warmth back into his body. Dread prickled every fiber in her as she lowered the sounds of waves crash against the shore. She kissed him once more, sucking air back into his lungs.
"You don't get to die," she stormed, feeling her mask slipping off her face. She rammed her fists into his armored chest, forcefully trying to ignite a pulse back into his veins. She cupped her hand underneath his exposed jaw and stared lovingly into his closed eyes. "Don't become one of those lifeless suckers. Fight it Wayne!" She raged against his chalked colored skin.
After a few minutes of trying to restore life back into him, she started walking away to find nearby medical attention, not releasing his eyes were starting fluttering behind the graphite slits of the cowl, he parted his lips and released heavy gulps of air as darted open his gaze fully open. Slowly he lifted his hand off the frozen sand and reached out for her as he coughed out a few gushes of water and gently lifted himself off the shore, onto his knees as he gather his strength and rose on his wobbly legs. And then he regained his balance and started walking toward her, removing the pearls from a compartment of his belt. His tattered boots staggered over the rocks, long cape draped on the snow covered sand as he grabbed hold of a support beam, and flattened his back against the wooded pole, catching a breath before he continued moving forward to her.
"I'll always come back to you, Selina Kyle." he wheezed a breathless voice. She turned on her heel and stared at him with a bewildered gaze as all her emotions poured out through her tears. She removed her mask, tossing it to the ground, making the lenses of her goggles shatter from the impact, she raced toward him until her body collided with his, almost making lose his footing, instead he enclosed his arm around her waist and held her close against his heart.
"Bruce," she gasped, trying to gather air in her lungs. She placed both gloved hands on the sides of his cowl, and eased it off his handsome face. She threw it into the water behind them, as she absorbed every detail of his face, his enriched hazel eyes shining brightly, and the flush of color forming in his jagged cheeks as he lifted her into the air and twirled her into a loving embrace as snow descended over their bodies. "You came back," she sobbed, he looked up her with crisp eyes, wiping the tears from her eyes with his gloved finger.
"You lit the way for me, Selina." he confessed, and then he pressed a soft and nourishing kiss over her lips as he held her into a strong embrace and deepen further into a passionate kiss as they felt their hearts mend with each caress of their soft touch of genuine love.
Selina threaded her fingers through his drenched locks of dark hair as she kissed him with everything she had, as they sealed their devotion with a promise beating against their hearts.
He pulled away and grinned, brushing the hair off her forehead. "Is that offer of leaving Gotham with you... still open?" He lifted up the pearl necklace close to her dark eyes.
"I don't know," she smirked, placing her hand on his cheek, as her legs straddled over his waist, he supported her lower back with his hand pushing her over his shoulders. "That was a one time offer."
"How about this time I make the offer?" he asked, bring his soft lips over her once again. "Will you come with me, Selina Kyle? We can go anywhere you want. Do anything."
"Anything?" she repeated, offering him a wicked gaze with her eyes, her hand sliding down his embossed bat insignia and patted gently the center, causing his own hazel eyes to shine brighter. " That's a pretty big offer, handsome. You trust me with directions?"
He responded, placing the string of his mother's pearls around her neck, clasping it into place as he said, "I trust you, Selina Kyle." He covered her mouth with his savory lips as he led them into a long and deep kiss.
They survived the fury the storm. They knew it wasn't going to be easy. There was always be unpredictable tempests coming their way, but they would face them together, and they were prepared to batten the hatches of their sanctuary.
Bruce looked steadily into her eyes, and saw his whole world trapped in the depth of her melting pools of coffee, he smiled, feeling the wounds of his heart heal each time he stared into his future. Once in this life he forgot about his past and became a little more optimistic of what awaited from him and Selina beyond the shores of Gotham.
He gave her one last caress on her lips, before he took her hand and they both disappeared into the gentle snowfall. Holding her hand with an affectionate squeeze, he knew they were making it out of their battles just fine because she was his sword, shield and heart.
Selina Kyle was the greatest reward for a hero to receive in the rays of the rising dawn.
The End.