A/N: All you Ranger's Apprentice lovers who also read my YJ stories… Prepare to fangirl. A fair warning: this chapter has a major cliffhanger. Inspired by one of the greats, the amazing John Flanagan. Anyone who can tell me which RA book the scene at the end of this chapter comes from gets one of Alfred's cookies. Because Halt and Will are the medieval Dynamic Duo. And I can't resist. Yes, I am quite aware that I'm still in the YJ fandom. I just… Stole a few gorgeously angsty lines from RA. Leave me alone, and read!

Batman got there. Of course he did. He always did. But Robin wasn't there. It was just Batman, Ra's al Ghul, and Talia al Ghul standing there, in the desert. Batman spoke first. "Where is Robin?"

"Oh, safe. For now." Ra's had the audacity to smile. Talia stayed silent, standing slightly behind and to the left of her father. The scowl on her beautiful face showed how much she disapproved of Ra's plans. Batman's focus snapped back to the Demon's Head's face when Ra's kept talking. "You could be reunited with him in minutes, Detective. All you must do is join me."

Batman let a tiny smirk ghost over his face. "So Robin's here? That's all I needed to know." With that, the Dark Knight was gone. Initiating a fight would only slow him down, and with two highly skilled opponents, one was bound to send off orders anyway.

After Batman disappeared into thin air, Ra's al Ghul sighed. "I am sorry, daughter, but you know that the Detective has given me no choice. His unwilling service would be detrimental at this point. Come, we must leave with the boy." Talia nodded curtly and silently followed her father. Bruce was her Beloved, but her loyalty to her father would surpass her love for him. Always.

-Run, Batman! Save Robin! The evil ninjas are going to steal him!-

Batman bowled over Shadows by the dozens, becoming a veritable force of nature as his protective instincts took over. He would find Robin. The Demon would pay for taking his son. He would make sure of it.

Assassins trained to be silent under any conditions screamed like little girls when the shadow of The Bat enveloped them. Batman took out more and more soldiers, running down corridors, fruitlessly searching… Searching. It was a massive compound, impossible for Batman to thoroughly search.

Too bad Batman had willpower to match the Green Lanterns.

-And… Cut to Robin's POV!-

Robin had changed into simple black tunic and pants after an hour or two. With his mask, of course. He lay on the bed, the shackle still attached, and schemed. And planned. At this point, there was a contingency for his backup plans, and a backup plan for every contingency.

Well, except this one.

Robin had been understandably surprised when Ra's, Talia, Hook, Cheshire, Sportsmaster, Black Spider, and ten assassins ran inside. They had quickly slapped handcuffs on his wrists, cut the chain attaching him to the floor, (apparently they were in too much of a hurry to unlock it.) and now he was being dragged into an express elevator.

Robin smirked at the bad guys surrounding him. "Batman came, didn't he?"

"Yes." Ra's hadn't even looked at him.

"Well, it's been nice knowing you." Robin felt the building shake. Whoa, that was a lot of C-4. Bruce was really mad. "How mad is he, exactly?"

"The Detective is quite angry." Ra's was obviously trying to keep his cool, but he looked worried. Good.

Another explosion rocked the complex. "You don't say?"

"Quiet." Talia had apparently had enough. Ra's hadn't.

"Stop, daughter. Robin is to be accorded the same respect as his mentor." That was new. Talia flushed deep red from anger, then calmed down.

"Yes, father." The rest of the ride was spent in silence. The doors opened with a ping and Robin was pulled out. Ubu was waiting with a chopper already running on the roof. Robin immediately dug his heels in, and refused to move. Unfortunately, he was simply slung over Sportsmaster's shoulder and deposited in the helicopter.

Robin's arms were dragged above his head, and locked into the electromagnetic cuffs built in. There was no lock to pick. Talia sat in the front, and Ra's in the back, beside Robin. Ra's barked orders at his followers. "Delay the Batman, then meet us in the Himalayan base! Understood?"

All of the Shadows nodded their agreement, and the chopper lifted off just as Batman came flying up the stairs. Batman plowed through all fourteen adversaries efficiently, but by the time he was free, the chopper was out of reach, even by grappling hook. Batman let out an almost inhuman growl. "I'll find you, Robin! I promise!"

Robin yelled back, suppressing tears. "Batman!"

"I'll find you, Robin!"

"Batman!" But Robin's final cry was drowned out by the noise of the helicopter blades as mentor and protege, father and son stared at each other over the distance between them.

A/N: If you've read RA, you understand. Yup, Robin just pulled a Deja Thoris. John Carter of Mars reference, for those who are nerds and read classics like me. Hold up. J'onn is a green Martian. M'gann is a white Martian… Whoa. And there's a civil war on Mars… Where's the red, black, and yellow Martians?! Okay, I'll stop. JC of Mars fans will get that. WOW, TONS OF REVIEWS!

KaliAnn: I'm pretty sure I'm the only person running for freshman secretary… lol. Thanks! I do try to hit the details. My chapters are pretty much based off of what I would be thinking in that scenario… and I'm pretty sarcastic… It's probably why Robin's so sassy. I tend to take in little details and make fun of them. Thanks for the review!

MAPLEKISS: Thank you! Yeah, I don't listen to haters. At all. Imagine what the world would be like if we all listened to our haters. No one would be satisfied, and there would be no slightly insane author's notes from CloakedWing! Inconceivable! Unacceptable! Retributionable! Yeah, I just quoted Joker! I try to make the author's notes funny… I suppose they're kinda wacky, but I'm wacky, so… that explains a lot. I hath updateth! So… I totally just put Robin in direct danger. 'Cause Batman's not on Ra's list anymore. Whee!

Hodges2: Whoa. You. Reviewed. Twice! Thanks, I try to be funny, and it's awesome to know that people appreciate it. I feel like if I make someone smile, the entire story is a success. And here is the long-awaited and super-short (wince) chapter!