He could see Kal's hands itching to touch him again. They twitched at his side as his eyes roved over places he was definitely using his x-ray vision to look over. Bruce would have felt violated if he wasn't more concerned about the fact Kal was here at all.
"Kal," Bruce prompted.
"Did they do that to you?"
Bruce didn't even begin to guess at what Kal was looking at. He'd gotten so many injuries, so many bruises in the short time he'd been at the league that he could only guess at what specific wound had grabbed Kal's attention.
Nevertheless, he said "Yes," knowing that there was no denying what had happened to him. "However, that doesn't answer my question. What the hell are you doing here?"
Kal didn't answer. Instead he ran a hand through his hair until his spit curl was lost in the rest of his waves. If he was any other man, Bruce would have thought he would start pacing. He didn't. Just stood there and looked Bruce over. "I can't believe they did to you," he said eventually.
"Do what?"
Kal waved his hand, not landing on one specific example to use. "Why didn't you call for help? Why didn't you shout for me? I would have come for you."
Something wasn't adding up here. It sounded like Kal was worried about him. More, it sounded like Kal thought he was in danger. That he wasn't here of his own volition. "Aren't you mad at me?" Bruce tried.
"Mad?" Kal's brow furrowed, "Why would I- Oh, you mean about the kryptonite. Bruce, my father explained everything to me when I got home. Alfred was the one who put it there. He was worried about you. And I know that doesn't excuse how I reacted, but I just couldn't think straight that night. All I kept thinking about was when you attacked us last and my father… I should have believed you. I'm so sorry."
"Alfred?" No, that didn't make sense. Jor had confessed himself that he was the one who planted the kryptonite. Was Kal not listening? Could he listen in? Bruce couldn't remember how far away he was when that conversation took place. He supposed Jor could have waited for the moment Kal was out of range. But, if he was planning on keeping Bruce down there indefinitely then why put the blame on Alfred. Why not just say it was Bruce?
"Yeah. I couldn't believe it either until he said so himself. He'd seen the bruises I'd made. Apparently he was going to tell you in the morning that if I got a bit too rough with you to use it. I understand, I mean, I did hurt you, it's only right he wants you to be safe. I just wish that he'd at least told my father before he put you in that cell again."
Alfred had confessed himself. Why would he do that? Bruce knew the words out of his mouth were Jor's despite what Kal believed. It was obvious, the perfect way for Jor to cover his tracks. The question it posed however, was what they had on Alfred that would make the butler comply. Bruce knew Alfred wasn't opposed to quitting. In the months after Bruce's parents died he'd threatened more than once to quit. Mostly so he could become Bruce's full time carer without the employer employee barrier between them. Bruce also knew that money wasn't an indicator for him to stay. With the money Alfred got from Bruce's family it was more than enough for him to live the rest of his life extremely comfortably somewhere else.
Bruce had honestly, when he first saw the El's again, never thought Alfred would have stayed with them after he'd ran off. He supposed now, with the lengths Jor would go to keep his family's secret that maybe Alfred hadn't ever had a choice in the matter. That still didn't mean the man would confess to something he hadn't done. Alfred wasn't weak willed, he would say something if he knew it was wrong.
This wasn't right.
Kal appeared before him, crouching so they were eye level. "Bruce, I know that things were bad before I left, and I know you didn't mean them. I knew it when I was listening to you, I just couldn't get past the hurt to see it. You were scared and I wasn't there for you. But I promise, when you come home nothing's going to happen to you."
"When I come home," Bruce repeated.
"Yeah." Kal got up, searching the room. "Actually, we'd better hurry. Grab your things, we'll sort things out when you're safe." This situation was getting worse and worse. There was a reason he hated not knowing things, now being the perfect example of how little he could do without all the variables. "Bruce."
"No," he said. "I'm not going anywhere, and we're talking now. What exactly did Jor tell you happened to me?"
Kal grumbled, his head cocking slightly until whoever he'd been keeping an ear on passed. After, he perched himself next to Bruce, his eyes still flicking to the door. "Only because I know how stubborn you can be," he huffed, his words rushed when he spoke next. "I went to space, but I don't feel comfortable leaving my family without some kind of protection so I had Bar- the Flash, look in on them. It's not the first time I've done it before you ask. Last time I had Wonder Woman do it. I would've had her do it this time as well but she was needed on the mission with us. Anyway, he comes by every few days and gives me a report, only the third report I got he said you were in the hospital. I wanted to come back Bruce, I really did, but I was needed there. By the time I got back you were gone. Father said that you hadn't eaten when you were in the cell, and you took ill when he let you out so he took you to the hospital. The Flash promised to keep watch. But, when he woke he said you'd gone and that it looked like you'd been taken because they had tried to keep quiet while removing you. Father suspected a ransom would come. I didn't want to wait so I went looking for you. I swear, I would have come for you sooner but you have no idea how quiet you are. Now can we go. I want to get you back home before they hurt you again."
He batted off Kal's hands when they reached for him. "Don't touch me."
"Bruce-" He stopped reaching, looking Bruce over. "Bruce, these people are evil. I've been watching them for days trying to find you. They're killers."
"They're honest," Bruce countered. He could barely believe the lies Jor had fed Kal. Ill, he'd been taken to the hospital because he was ill? No, he could believe it.
"Bruce, they're bad. They're strangers who've hurt you. I don't know what they've done but you have to fight it. I know you believe me."
"Of course I believe you."
Kal breathed a sigh of relief. "Then let's go."
He batted Kal off again. "Kal, I'm not going anywhere."
"Bruce-"
"For the first time in your life Kal, I want you to think for yourself," Bruce snapped, moving up the bed so Kal would have to reach for him. It was only a few feet, but it was enough of a stance to Kal that Bruce wasn't going to go quietly if he carried on like he was. "Look around you. Really look. I want you to think about what you're seeing. Use that brain of yours. Does it look like I'm here against my will?"
Kal started to speak, his mouth closing when he saw the seriousness in Bruce's eyes. He sighed, looking around like he was humouring Bruce before saying. "No. But that doesn't mean anything. These people don't need to put you in a dungeon Bruce, they don't need guards. This place is a labyrinth. You're more likely to die from starvation from trying to escape than successfully making it to the exit points. And before you say anything it makes more sense to make you comfortable and alive than to ransom off a dead body. I've seen more than one of these situations play out Bruce. Just because you're comfortable doesn't mean you're any less a prisoner."
He wanted to laugh, he could feel the hysterics building up in his gut. He wanted to scream those words right back at Kal and tell him that he was a prisoner back home. That here, he was actually free. Not only to be himself without judgement, but to move, to go places, he wasn't always in fear that at any moment he would be sent back to a cell. He should have, knowing where he was, but Ra's didn't strike him as the type to needlessly throw people in cells. If Bruce did step out of line, he was sure he would be given the chance to prove himself worthy of life or struck down where he stood.
He didn't laugh. It wasn't Kal's fault he had a skewed version of the world. Instead, he tried again. "You're still not looking properly." He arched his neck, showing off the jagged pink line that still hurt sometimes when Bruce twisted a certain way. "This is the reason I went into the hospital Kal."
Red burned across those blue eyes for a second before Kal really did touch him. Bruce let him. He let him see it, run his fingers over it again and again. "They hurt you."
He slapped Kal's fingers. "Seriously? The only conclusion you can come up with is that they hurt me? No one else?"
"Bruce-"
"No Kal. Why the hell would they jab me in the neck only to kidnap me later? No, how would they get into the manor in the first place? With two kryptonians around it should be an impossible feat."
"Not that impossible," Kal muttered. "You snuck in without us knowing. And they probably wanted to move you to an easier location to take you."
Bruce actually groaned this time, his brain hurting for Kal that he refused to see what was right in front of him. He arched his neck again. "Look, see this? See the angle? The way it went in, how deep it lodged? They didn't do this Kal. I hadn't even met them yet. I did this to myself."
Kal looked at the wound again, Bruce beginning to worry when he didn't blink once. Slowly, his head started shaking. "No. No. You didn't do that to yourself. They just made you think you did. It's what they do."
"I did this!" Bruce insisted. "I did it. Not them. Not anyone else. Me. I took a shard and drove it into my neck knowing full well I could have killed myself."
"What. No… why?"
"Because you'd locked me up!" He took a breath, knowing now wasn't the time to shout. "You left me in there with your father. Do you know what he did to me? Of course you don't because you don't believe me. You never wanted to see your father as the bad guy."
"You were ill. Father took you to the hospital to get better," Kal said, his eyes never leaving Bruce's neck.
"I stuck a shard into my neck," Bruce repeated. "I did it, knowing I could have died because I didn't want to be your family's prisoner anymore."
"He let you out," Kal was just repeating words now. Phrases he must have heard a thousand times when he'd asked his parents again and again just what had happened to Bruce.
"He kept me in there the whole time you were away. He admitted to me that the kryptonite was his own doing."
"Alfred-"
"Why would Alfred give me kryptonite Kal. Think about it. He knew that was what got me in trouble in the first place. He never would have chanced me being locked up again. Besides, he cares for you. He wouldn't have given me something to make you suffer."
"He admitted to it." Hollow words, that was all they were now.
"Did he? Or were those your father's words coming out of his mouth. Are you telling me that you know for a fact Alfred was the one who planted it? Face it, you haven't got a clue what happened while you were away."
Kal sprang up backing away like Bruce was a piece of kryptonite himself. "So what? My father planted it. You tried to kill yourself. I'm just supposed to believe this is the truth?"
"It is the truth."
"Or their version of it," Kal rounded. Bruce wanted to scream. They were going around in circles. He could see it, Kal still listening out for anyone walking past. "I can smell the chemicals on you Bruce. They're faint, but this whole place stinks of it. They've been drugging you. Do you even know yourself what happened or are you just repeating what they tell you to say?"
He was done with this. "Believe what you like. Please leave."
He was hauled into Kal's arms almost as soon as he was done speaking. He was aware enough to twist out of Kal's hold, the only reason he knew he was able to because Kal hadn't been expecting the move. That didn't stop him from trying again, so Bruce did the only thing he could do and screamed for help.
"Intruder!"
Bruce honestly didn't know how they got into the room. He had a feeling they may have been there for longer than a few minutes, sneaking in while the two of them were otherwise occupied. But they were there, and before Bruce had finished screeching they had Kal restrained. Really restrained.
Ra's must have done some kind of research, or made some connections. Or, as Bruce would later wonder, he may have just heard someone say that Superman was sneaking around, since Kal was in his superhero gear. Regardless, he knew Kal was in the League and had Kryptonite waiting at the ready.
Bruce felt another scream trap itself in his throat as he watched they lead Kal off. Last time he'd seen Kal like that he'd been trapped in a cell. Before that he'd been trapped in a cell too. His blood started pounding in his ears, his limbs seizing as he waited for Jor to come get him.
But he wasn't coming. Jor was all the way back in Gotham. Just because Kal was here didn't mean Jor was. So Bruce slowly started to calm down, at least enough that he could follow the assassins as they took Kal down to a cell that looked like it had been carved specifically for him.
There were bolts on the wall laced in glowing green, the manacles Kal was tied to not giving him enough room to get the strength back to break free from the kryptonite's range. It was devoid of light, no windows or doors save for the one they entered through. There would be no way for Kal to gain access from even a glimpse of the sun.
It was scary how good it was to keep Kal contained.
Bruce stayed long enough to watch them chain Kal up, before orders were sent from high up that no one was to have contact with the prisoner.
Bruce went with the others to the main chamber. For once, everyone was assembled, lining up in circle after circle before Ra's. He didn't keep them long. All he had to say was that business went about as normal. Superman was a prisoner just like any of the others they had kept, and, therefore, they weren't to spare him any exceptions because of his superhero status.
He lasted until the end of the next day.
After Bruce finished wiping the last of the mountain cat guts from his hands, and after he'd sent Jason back to his room on a full stomach he defied Ra's wishes and went down to the lower cells.
It was more than just guilt that made him go down there. All day he couldn't concentrate without thinking of Kal below his feet. He couldn't help wondering if this was what Kal felt when he'd been in the manor, Bruce just metres below him and helpless to do anything but know he was near.
It was Kal's own fault, he'd told himself at first. Kal's fault he had come here. His fault that he hadn't been keeping a better ear on the people in the mountain. But it was Bruce that was the reason he was here at all.
Still, that didn't mean Ra's hadn't anticipated Kal's arrival. The kryptonite in the cells and the carefulness this whole operation had been delivered proved that the League had either ran into Kal before or they were prepared to run into him at some point. Nothing to do with Bruce.
But the guilt ate and ate at him until he actually acknowledged that he had some part to play in Kal's capture.
After that, it was the all encompassing fear that stole over him which made him go down to Kal. It wouldn't be long before Jor was here, following after his son.
He would have been expecting Kal home soon. Either, with Bruce, and waiting to contain him again as soon as they returned- Bruce had good reason to believe it would be for his own benefit that Jor would argue Bruce needed to be exiled again. He was unstable after all. Or, Jor would be wondering why Kal was taking so long trying to persuade someone who doesn't want to go home.
He would probably arrive in the spirit of helping, telling Kal he was here to bring Bruce home, that Kal had done a good job of finding Bruce where he had failed. Bruce thought either one of two things would have happened in that case.
Jor would get rid of Bruce on the spot, claiming he was finally too far gone to reach. Or he would wait, and pounce in a way that would make it seem like an accident.
Bruce knew his life was over in any of these scenarios. Where Kal had the humanity to spare a life, Jor had been forced to play nice too long. He wouldn't hesitate over taking a life. The only reason he had done so before now was because of Kal.
This place, these people, what Bruce had done, he'd effectively given himself a death sentence.
Or, he had.
None of those things could come to pass now. Kal was no longer in Bruce's room, he was tied up and awaiting judgement from Ra's. This was both good and bad depending on what angle it played out.
Bruce drew up to Kal's cell, lifting himself on his toes to peek through the high iron bars. The door was unlocked, the whole league knew it was. Why bother locking a door, when, if Kal got out of his restraints he would be able to simply walk through it unharmed? Right now, the door was merely a symbol of imprisonment, and a sign for the league to keep out unless they had permission.
Bruce could just make out Kal's head. It was slumped on his chest, his arms limply by his side as the green kryptonite glowed and glowed around him. He was awake from the looks of things, his breath coming in rapid pants and face too close to his chest to be reminiscent of sleep.
If Jor found Kal like this he would be beyond murderous. Ra's would have no league in seconds, Jor either tearing this place and its people apart to get to Kal, or just obliterating it all with one look from his heat vision.
That's if he came in knowing where his son was. Ra's had at least some smarts to keep Kal locked deep within the mountain. While Jor would be able to see or hear his son, unless he wanted to chance kryptonite exposure himself he would be forced to navigate the halls when he came in. If there was one thing super hearing hated it was an echo system. It turned out it wasn't that easy to figure out where the first voice was coming from. Not when hundreds of others were drowning it out. Then there was Bruce. When he'd been a child he'd discovered even more ways to throw the El's off his scent.
He'd studied for hours when he was younger to learn how to throw his voice. He'd went to see Arnold Wesker's show at least fifty times to try and discover the art of giving something else a voice. He wasn't as good as he had wanted to be, but the talent he'd had as a child was enough to ward off the El's if he was tricked into answering them.
Then there were the stones. Rocks like these, like the ones in the caves back at the manor, seemed to absorb sound. Heartbeats were trickier to detect, breathing near impossible if he stayed close to the ground or walls. It was why Kal had a hard time finding him. It would also be a reason Jor just wouldn't burst in here.
Kal jerked his head, his whole body twisting in one solid move as he tried to jerk away from the wall. He ended up on the floor, his face burrowing down and arms bent at an angle that would soon grow painful.
Bruce watched him squirm for a bit, before his body got the best of him and he found himself opening the door. He was going to catch hell for this.
He leaned down to try help Kal up. Only, it turned out he wasn't as drained as he appeared. As soon as Bruce made contact Kal was flinging his fist back and hitting Bruce with enough strength to send him flying half way across the room. Bruce rolled with it, landing on his butt before he could make it further and hit the wall.
"You have to stop hitting me," Bruce hissed, hauling himself up.
Kal's head whipped, his eyes widening in fear before a laugh broke out of his chest. "Of course, of course they sent you." He rolled onto his back, one of his arms getting more twisted as he did so. Kal breathed deeply for a few seconds before lifting himself up to ask, "Are you alright?"
Bruce didn't deem that with an answer. Both because the bruise blossoming on his cheek was somewhat of an answer, and the fact that Kal still thought Bruce was being held against his will here. He could read it in his eyes, the way he was checking Bruce for any wounds not made by himself. He probably thought Bruce was here to try and spring him, or worse, try and use a friendly face to gather information. Kal didn't seem too disheartened to see him however, so Bruce wasn't inclined to run back to the rest of the league right away. Truthfully, Kal didn't seem all that bothered at all. Apart from the kryptonite being a problem, he wasn't at all worried that he was locked in here. He didn't panic, or beg, or any of the usual signs that would show the beginnings of fear.
"Has anyone came to see you?" he asked. This was a safer route, one that wouldn't lead to outright arguing any time soon.
Kal shook his head. "No one but you. I think they're trying to isolate me. Scare me a bit before they try anything."
Not likely. In any other situation that would be true. But Kal was here because he was a trespasser, not because he had any information.
"Does your father know you're here?" Bruce heard himself say before he could go down another safe route.
Strangely, Kal didn't answer right away. Ice cold fear struck down the back of Bruce's neck. What if Jor was already here? But, eventually, Kal shook his head. "He was busy back home. I was going to tell him when I brought you back."
"Busy?" What could possibly be more pressing than Bruce?
Not that he thought the world revolved around him, but Bruce thought because of the effort Jor had went to keep Bruce contained he would be a bit obsessed with getting him back under control now he was out.
"It's not important," Kal brushed off. "What is important is getting you out of here." He shuffled closer slightly, whispering like the league had things like cameras on its walls. "I think if you found something with a firm base you could pry off the bolts."
"No."
Kal huffed, his brow furrowing slightly, but looking like he didn't want to look annoyed at Bruce. He was trying to play nice, still believing Bruce had been brainwashed. "Bruce, if I get out of here, I can help you."
"No."
He resembled Jor more and more as he started to get frustrated. They had the same furious tick in their jaw, like they were trying to swallow something that tasted foul. "Bruce, these people are going to hurt you. They kidnapped you."
"How much?" Bruce asked.
"What?"
He was curious now, more curious than guilty as he sat not far from where Kal was tied up. "How much did they ransom me for?"
The furrow deepened disappearing for only a moment before it was back full force. "Does it matter?"
"You don't know, do you?"
"I told you, I left before the ransom came," Kal said.
Bruce narrowed his eyes. "No, you said you started searching before the ransom came. You must have went home to check in every now and then."
Kal shrugged as best he could with his arms twisted. "Maybe. But, father didn't mention a ransom."
Bruce nodded, thinking that if he had made the kidnapping rumour up he would have at least made it believable. At least a fake ransom note would have been better than nothing. He could see Kal starting to question it too, before he shook it off, insisting that it had been a kidnapping. "Flash saw what they did, he swore they got past him somehow."
"He was asleep and I didn't take the monitors off until I got to the door. Anyone with sense would know they would start beeping the moment they were disconnected. Escaping wasn't hard Kal, even if he was a speedster, there are ways of hiding in a hospital that would make him overlook me."
"He-"
"Snores," Bruce finished before Kal could start with reasons for why Bruce could have been fed this information. "I didn't even know it was the Flash at first, he was in his civilian gear. The only way I found out was because he twitches sometimes at superspeed in his sleep. If the league had broken in they wouldn't have bothered with that minute detail. I noticed it because he was a barrier between myself and freedom. You spend time with him Kal, you know I'm telling the truth."
Kal slumped at the information, his head hitting the ground with a worrying thump. He sat there for a few minutes, taking in everything Bruce had said. He still didn't want to believe it, but for cooperation's sake he was willing to consider it as he turned to face Bruce again. "They're murderers."
"I know."
"Why would you come to them?"
"I didn't mean to at first. I just wanted to be away from the manor. But, when circumstances provide you with the means to better yourself, you would be a fool not to take it."
A hysteric laugh bubbled out of Kal's mouth. "So, you're training to be an assassin. You going to kill me Bruce?"
He hesitated before answering, "No. I don't want you dead Kal." He didn't know before now that he wouldn't kill Kal. It had always niggled at the back of his mind. Where would Kal fall into all this should he try and stop Bruce? Would Bruce have the strength to kill Kal even? Turns out, no, he didn't. "But if you get in my way I will contain you. I'm getting stronger, and I don't mean physically. If you hinder my plans I will find a way to strip you of your powers and lock you up until I've finished."
Silence reigned between them as Kal read the sincerity in Bruce's words. "You know, I always found it was a failing in the villain when they revealed their plans prematurely."
"I've not revealed anything," Bruce pointed out. "I've told you nothing because I have nothing and you know that. That surprise hiding behind humour is not because you think I'm a threat. You still think they've kidnapped me, that they're telling me to reveal all of this to you. You'll come to know better."
Bruce picked himself up, coming closer so he could help Kal sit up. Kal's strength was fading the longer he was exposed, the grip he had on Bruce no tighter than that of any other man his build. It was easy to cast off, and to resist the other grabs to keep Bruce near.
"Whatever's keeping Jor in Gotham must be important," Bruce tried again. Something more was at work here. It was telling from the way Kal actively avoided his eyes when the topic was brought up. Yet, despite all this he didn't look too bothered by his continuous stay in here.
When Bruce got no reply, he walked out of Kal's cell. One good thing came of his visit there, Bruce knowing that, for the time being, Jor wouldn't be bursting down their door.
Training was easier to concentrate on. Bruce didn't get hit nearly as much as he did the day before. Jason was in a better mood because of it, the boy cheering Bruce on when he managed to land his first real hit on their instructor. Of course, the man beat up Bruce twice as hard because of this, but Bruce counted that as a victory too. If they were going harder on him it just meant that he was improving.
Three days they trained like usual. No one, save Jason who was as curious as anything about Superman being kept captive below them, talked about Kal. There were no mentions of a hearing, or someone bringing him food. There was nothing.
Then, on the fourth day, they were called into the main chamber. They all assembled in their practiced circles, Bruce learning the more they did this that people were lined up in order of rank and seniority. It was basically like being at a dojo.
Bruce, therefore, was near the back, with Jason last simply because Bruce exceeded him in age. He had a decent view from where he was stood. It was near the exit to the main body of the mountain, and since everyone stood far enough from each other to accommodate weapons and a respectful stance, there was enough room for him to have a clear shot at where Ra's stood in the middle of them all.
He wasn't dressed the same as them today. Instead, he had armour on that looked to be at least three hundred years old. There were battle scars and missing chinks all over, telling of stories that Bruce had to wonder about. Yet it was pristine in its wear. Armour truly fit for a king, and serving one just as well as it should.
The whole room was silent. Not even breathing could be picked up from the beings in front of him. Bruce felt loud just being in the same room as them, and did his best to try and blend in.
There were two gaps in either corners of the room. At first glance, they could just be ways for Ra's to make a quick exit since both were near an archway. But Bruce noted the precise space between each assassin on either side. It was enough for one person between them, which meant that two of them were missing from the room.
Sure enough, after they had been stood there for a good five minutes, the sound of dragging could be heard from one of the arches. The two missing assassins appeared, Kal dragged in glowing green cuffs between them. He was set, surprisingly, gentle on the ground before they left, regardless, the support they gave Kal gone, he crashed to the rough stone like they had just flung him.
"Trespasser." The word rang out across the room, an accusation and a chance for Kal to deny it all in that one word.
"Kidnapper," Kal spat back.
"For a man who spends his days saving the world you know very little about it," Ra's said.
"I know enough. I know you took Bruce. I had a right to come get him back."
An unspoken gesture had the assassins in front of Bruce parting, the signal clear for him to move forward. He took his place next to Ra's, wondering if he was being disrespectful by not meeting his eyes but figuring he would be forgiven. The bigger enemy here was Kal after all.
"Is what he speaks true?"
"No," Bruce said. Kal huffed against the floor, his tone still suggesting he didn't believe it. "I came of my own free will to seek your guidance. I am grateful to you for all you have done."
Ra's nodded, Bruce heading back to his spot next to Jason. "My people do not kidnap. If we have a disagreement we settle it honourably. What you are suggesting goes against the League and my own moral code." He knelt before Kal, "It is not I who have committed any wrong doing here." Ra's stood up again, addressing the rest of the room. "The punishment for trespassing is death. How your death will come about can be of one of two ways. You can appeal, and be warned when I tell you your appeal will be fair in all ways. Or you can accept your guilt and the sword that will carry your freedom to the next world."
For someone facing death Kal was tremendously composed. He picked himself up, head held as high as it could get and spat near Ra's feet. "I choose neither. I'm not guilty, and you're not going to do anything to me."
Something about his words sent Ra's stepping back, his head whipping as if searching for something. "Intruders," He snapped, the league coming to life and disappearing before he'd finished.
Bruce and Jason were the only two who remained, not quick enough or in the know what to do when someone broke in. Or even why they were breaking in. Ra's had no mind for them, turning to Kal, and drawing his sword to hold it poised over Kal's shoulder. "You had better hope your friends are smart enough to turn around and leave."
Kal just smiled.
"Go back to your rooms, both of you. I will send someone to fetch you when the intruders have been dealt with," Ra's ordered.
Bruce did, hurrying Jason along.
Ra's had said friends. Jor was here. He was here in the League. As soon as he got Kal back he would be coming for Bruce.
They turned onto the hallway that split into Bruce and Jason's rooms. This would be the first place they would look, Bruce thought, and continued walking the hall as another plan came to mind. He wouldn't be taken, not again. He wasn't going back to that place until he had the means to eradicate Jor once and for all.
He wasn't even close right now.
Surprisingly, Jason was still following behind, skipping a few steps if Bruce pulled too far in front of him. "Ra's said to wait in our rooms."
"They'll find us there."
Jason didn't argue as they took a set of stairs into the lower halls.
Bruce remembered the way he'd taken four days ago, the right here and the left just up ahead. The door was already open when he slipped into Kal's previous cell.
Jor wouldn't come here. There was still kryptonite in the walls. Not to mention Jor was higher up in the mountain. His first priority would be getting Kal back to full strength. That meant taking him out and away from the kryptonite until his powers returned. Hopefully, the threat of more exposure would keep Jor from coming in here.
He repeated that again and again just as something green embedded in his neck.
The last thing he remembered before his mind went hazy was seeing Oliver Queen's face. He was around ten and crouched over Bruce because he'd stupidly dared Bruce to climb one of the trees in the gardens.
But that was years ago.