The End of the World (Part 4)
Robin was still unconscious when Wally carried him down to the medical bay. The second that he walked through the doors, Martian Manhunter started screaming. Wally nearly dropped his friend in his shock. Everyone looked over at the Martian, unsure of what had changed. The surgeon Robin kidnapped ran out of the operating room, gloved hands coated in blood. Ripping the gloves off, she began to look Martian Manhunter over. "I can't find anything physically wrong with him! Granted, I'm not exactly an expert on Martian physiology."
Green Arrow sat up with a groan. "It's Robin. Soon as he wakes up, Manhunter will be fine."
The surgeon nodded and headed back into the operating room. Wally felt sick. Batman was injured and that was probably what had Robin in such a bad shape. He had been so worried about his Uncle, that he had forgotten that Robin's father figure was also captured. And Wally couldn't imagine what had been going through his friend's head. He had already lost one father, to be put in a situation where you might lose another one would be unbearable. No wonder he had passed out. He must have exhausted himself.
Superboy crossed his arms with a frown. He had been standing over Superman protectively ever since they had entered the plane, which Wally would have found cute, if it weren't so scary. "What does Robin have to do with this?"
"Look. Batman wasn't exactly forthcoming with the kid's life story. Let's just put it this way, if half of the rumors surrounding him are true, the kid's gone through some serious trauma. I know for a fact that Bats had to teach the kid how to shield his mind before he met Manhunter for the first time."
Kaldur sighed. "I just do not understand what prompted Batman to take a child as a partner. And such a young one at that."
Green Arrow didn't answer for a moment. Wally suspected that he was trying to find the best way to explain things without spilling the League's most well kept secret. "Look. The way I understand it went down was not unlike the way this team was formed. Robin told him to get on board or get out of his way. Batman got on board to protect him."
"From who?"
It was Wonder Woman who answered this time. "From himself. Batman wanted to protect Robin from his anger and resentment. From who he would become if he didn't learn how to control it."
Wally looked down at his friend. He was far too still. He hated it. He knew very little about Robin's origin story. He might of known his best friend's secret identity, but he was unwilling to violate Robin's privacy by googling his name. The little that Robin had shared with him was extremely unpleasant. His parents were murdered in front of him. He was sent to a bad place in Gotham by CPS. Bruce Wayne had taken him in. He had set out for revenge, but Batman had stopped him. He realized that Bruce and Batman were one and the same. He saved Bruce from his parents' murderer, and chose justice over vengeance. He became Batman's partner and started the trend for young heroes.
Wally knew that there was far more to the story than that, but decided that Robin would tell him when he was ready. Wally was smart enough to realize that his friend may never be ready, but that was okay. Wally doubted that he would have the same strength and optimism that Robin possessed if he had been through the same thing.
Deciding it was best to change the subject, Wally cleared his throat. Not that anybody heard him over Martian Manhunter's screaming. "So, how are you guys feeling? I mean, I know that we have to keep my Uncle heavily sedated until someone can fix his legs, and Superman will be good as soon as the blood transfusions are done, and hopefully Batman will be okay cause Agent A honestly scares me a little—"
"Wally. Shut up."
Wally was never so thankful for Wonder Woman in his life. He tended to ramble when he was nervous, and once he started he couldn't stop. So it was probably a very good thing that Wonder Woman shut him up before he could reveal something embarrassing. Like that time that he ran to Robin's mansion, but forgot to wear pants, and Robin didn't say anything. In fact, the only reason that he found out was because Mr. Wayne came home five hours after his arrival and questioned, "Wallace, why are you standing in my house with no pants on?" Wally had never been that embarrassed in his whole life.
"Wally? Why is your face all red?"
Wally turned to face Green Arrow. "Uh. No reason. Just remembering something."
Green Arrow smirked. "Right. Maybe you should do your 'remembering' in private from now on."
And this was a close second on the embarrassment scale. Once again, it was time to change subjects. "When do you think Martian Manhunter will be okay?"
"When Robin wakes up, or when he remembers that he was saved. I'm not sure which will come first."
Wally's stomach dropped. Why did that have to sound so ominous?
###
Dick didn't like it here. The boys here were mean and called him weird things. He didn't know what they were saying to him, and they didn't like that. It wasn't Dick's fault that he didn't speak much English! He spoke so many other languages. If they talked to him in one of those, he would understand them!
He didn't feel safe. He wanted his parents. He wanted Pop Haley. He wanted that guy in the expensive suit who had hugged him so tight. He wanted that feeling where nothing else mattered but that hug. Like the world didn't exist. He liked the way that man had smelled. He liked how the man didn't care that Dick had ruined his nice suit, and how the man had given him his expensive jacket. The mean lady had taken it away from him and called him a thief. Dick wasn't a thief. The nice man knew that. He wished that the nice man had been in charge of him instead of the mean lady. Maybe then, he wouldn't be hiding under a table, hoping that the boys would leave him alone. He was a good boy. He didn't belong here.
Dick didn't like the food here. It looked like baby food and it tasted gross. He wanted to go back to the circus. He didn't need to speak English there. The language felt odd on his tongue, and he kept messing up. The other boys didn't like that. They hit him when he made a mistake. Dick only talked when he had to.
Dick had been at the awful place for over two weeks now, and he had given up on ever leaving. He had more bruises than he could ever remember having before, and he was pretty sure that one of his ribs was broken. The adults here didn't care. They said he deserved it for keeping them up at night. Dick didn't mean to, the nightmares were constant though. He had given up sleeping a few nights ago.
Dick could count all of his ribs now. He had always been small for his age, but he was an athlete. He was one of the best in the world. Nobody would guess that if they saw him now. He knew that he had lost a lot of weight between not sleeping and not eating. Dick hoped that maybe someone would take him to a hospital and he could tell the doctors that there had been a mistake. That he wasn't supposed to be with Gotham's most violent and dangerous children. That he was supposed to be with the circus! But that didn't happen. Instead, an adult came into his cell and forced a tube down his throat. Said that if he wouldn't eat than they would make him. The adult also said that the tube would be good practice for learning to suppress his gag reflex. Dick didn't know what that meant, but he said it in the same tone that one of the clown's used when they were talking about his Mama. It scared him. His wings were broken and he could no longer soar like he used to. He realized that he was going to die.
It was half a week later when there was a loud commotion. Dick was so sick he could barely make it out of his bed when his cell door was ripped open. Dick blinked feebly and saw the face of the nice man. He looked so angry, but when he saw that Dick recognized him, he cupped his hand gently against Dick's face and told him, "Don't worry. I'm getting you out of here. You won't have to spend another moment in this hellhole. Don't repeat that."
The man gestured for Dick to stand, but he could barely sit up. The man crouched down, and gathered Dick into his arms, picking him up easily. It felt just as safe and good as Dick remembered, and for the first time, Dick was able to relax. He was safe now. The man would take care of him. He could sleep.
After that, everything became blurry. He remembered being in an office with a man they called 'The Warden' and the nice man yelled and gestured at a bunch of men wearing fancy suits, said that it was child abuse and that the police commissioner had been informed and that his lawyers would take care of the paperwork. Dick realized that the nice man was fighting for him, and that was the moment that the man became his new hero.
Later, Dick was sitting in a carseat in a limo, wrapped in a really soft blanket. His hero sat across from him and introduced himself as Bruce Wayne. Dick tried to tell him that he didn't speak much English and that he hoped that that was okay. Mr. Wayne told him that he spoke a lot of languages, and that they would figure out which one worked best until Dick could learn English. He said that Dick would never go back to the bad place. That he could live with him and his butler, Alfred, as long as he wanted to. Dick told him that that would be forever. Mr. Wayne laughed, and said that that sounded perfect. Something in Dick settled, and he knew that Mr. Wayne would always be there.
A few weeks later Dick found out that Bruce, don't call me Mr. Wayne, was actually Batman. Dick helped Batman take down Tony Zucco, the man responsible for his parents' murder. With the arrest of Tony Zucco, came the birth of Robin, and Dick felt himself become more and more whole again. For the first time since he watched them fall, he was happy. And he knew, that he would continue to be happy. Because of Bruce. Because of Batman. Because he was Robin. And he was able to fly once more.
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Robin woke up with a start. He was in the medical bay. Why was he in the medical bay? Superboy was the first one to notice that he was awake. "Robin's up."
Robin didn't like the looks that he was receiving. There was too much pity in them. He was not someone to be pitied. He was a survivor.
When Martian Manhunter let out a groan, Robin knew what had happened. He took a deep breath, and raised his chin. "I'm going to go to the cockpit. It will probably do J'onn some good to be away from me for a bit. I'm sorry for the inconvenience."
Robin stalked to the cockpit without so much as glancing at anyone else. Licking his lips, he entered the cockpit, unsurprised that Wally was there keeping Artemis company. "Move it West. Artemis, you can go take a break. And if one of you could ask the good doctor for an update on Batman's condition, it would be much appreciated."
Robin didn't like the look that they shared, but decided to pick his battles. Taking a breath, Robin activated his comm. "Robin to bunker. M'gann, you there?"
"Robin! You're okay! Superboy said that you collapsed and that you were making Uncle J'onn sick, but that Green Arrow said it wasn't your fault. He also said that everybody was being really cryptic."
Robin closed his eyes. He never thought that he would accuse Superboy of all people of being a blabbermouth. "Yeah. Something like that. Can you give me an update on Catwoman?"
"Oh! She's fine. She's helping evacuate people against Agent A's recommendation. Apparently, it was just a scratch, but it was bleeding a lot, so it looked worse than it was."
Robin sighed. Something inside his chest gave a little, and he found that he could suddenly breathe just a little bit easier. "Can I speak with Agent A please? On a private channel?"
"Oh! Of course! Let me just set that up here."
A few seconds went by before he heard the voice that he was dying to here. Well, one of the voices anyways. "Master Robin. I heard that you were not well, how are you feeling?"
"I'll be better as soon as I get an update on B. We have a surgeon working on him, but I haven't heard anything yet, which is not helping my nerves."
"Do take care of yourself Master Robin."
"I will. I am. I just...it was too much with my history. I really need to talk to B, but I can't. And the world is ending, so I don't feel like I have any right to complain."
"Master Robin, you have done so much for the world. If you need something, the world has little right to complain about it. Perhaps, it would do you some good to take a vacation."
"I was thinking about that. Think B would agree to go to his private island with no tech? I need to decompress."
"I think that Master Batman would do anything that you asked of him, even if it were to mean retiring the cowl completely."
"No. I don't want that. I just want the world to not be ending for a few weeks. And I want to be selfish and have B all to myself. And I want him to make good on his promise that I can live with him forever, meaning he has to be alive forever too, cause I can't live without him!"
"Oh Master Robin. I have no doubt that he returns these sentiments, even if he were to never say them aloud."
Robin closed his eyes and felt one stray tear run down his face. "I know. He shows me through his actions everyday. I just...I just need him to show me one more day Agent A. I need one more day."
"We always do, Master Robin. We always do."
Taking a deep breath, Robin squared his shoulders. Lifting his chin, he prepared himself. It was time to face reality, even if he wasn't ready. "We'll be arriving at the Bat Bunker in T minus thirty minutes. We need it to be cleared minus M'gann, Leslie, and you. As far as I know, Flash still needs both of his legs reset and Superman is still receiving blood transfusions. I do not know the medical needs of Batman as of this moment."
Behind him, Artemis cleared her throat. "Batman is out of surgery and in stable condition."
Robin felt like he could breathe again. "You hear that Agent A?"
"Yes Master Robin. I am clearing out the last of our patients now. The Bat Bunker is ready for your arrival."
"Thank you. Robin out."
Robin turned off his comm and watched as Artemis settled into the copilot seat once again. He knew that she was going to ask hm, it was only a matter of time. He waited, muscles tense, and jaw locked. "So. Why does he call you 'Master Robin'?"
Robin blinked and watched her out of corner of his eye. That was not the question that he was expecting. Not at all. "Uh. It's a really long story that I don't really understand. Batman says that it's because he's British. And proper. Or is it he's proper because he's British? Either way, apparently it has something to do with etiquette."
"Ah. That's why you don't know. We all know that the Boy Wonder has zero manners."
Robin wanted to point out that he had more manners than she did, but decided not to comment. She had been polite enough to drop the question, and would probably not take too kindly to Robin teasing her. Not that Robin could blame her. He would hardly want to be teased by the youngest and most enigmatic member of the team either.
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Despite the war raging on outside, their arrival into Gotham and subsequently the Bat Bunker happened without much fanfare. Much to Wonder Woman's displeasure. Apparently, she wanted revenge for getting the drop on her and then tying her up like a Thanksgiving turkey with her own lasso. Robin could see the reasoning behind that.
He would probably want the same thing if their roles were reversed. But as it was, Robin couldn't help but feel annoyed at the Amazon's ignoral of Batman's condition and their general predicament. They couldn't afford to attack all willy nilly. They needed to do a coordinated strike, when everyone was well enough to participate. Well, almost everyone. Robin didn't think that Batman or either of the Martians would be able to participate.
Robin was hardly surprised when Agent A and Leslie rushed onto the plane before they could disembark. Agent A immediately went to Flash and rebroke his wrongly healed legs. Robin cringed at the sound. Agent A then proceeded to look over a stirring Superman. Robin felt relieved as Superman blinked, their heavy hitter was on his way to recovery, which meant that all was not completely lost.
His thoughts of hope and rainbows and unicorns were interrupted by Leslie pulling Batman's gurney out of the operating room. Reality seemed to set in, and the weight almost crushed him. How were they supposed to win against these guys? The best heroes in the world had to be rescued. What were their chances of fighting and winning?
Robin's disparaging thoughts were interrupted by Wally literally crashing into him. "Agent A fixed my Uncle's legs, and he says that my Uncle will wake up soon! Isn't that great? I'm so happy right now!" Wally zoomed past him and further into the Bunker before Robin could think to say anything. It was great. For Wally. But all he wanted was for Batman to wake up.
Robin once again found himself squaring his shoulders. "All abled personnel should take half an hour to change, get checked out by Agent A, Leslie, or Doctor Marino, eat, and drink. At the end of this time period we will start engaging in planning. Any and all intel will be presented then."
Superman stumbled over to him. Superboy was awkwardly hovering behind him, like he wanted to help the man walk but wasn't sure how it would be received. "Robin. Batman was able to take one of them out, but I'm not sure how. Before I passed out, I heard him murmuring about effervescence. I'm not sure whether or not that helps."
Robin eyes widened and he turned to the Batcomputer murmuring to himself. Pulling up chemical blueprints, his eyes saw something that Superman could not see, despite the many types of vision that he had. "Wonder Woman! You wanted revenge? I need you to capture one and bring it back. One, and only one! Got it?"
Robin barely noticed as the woman nodded and shot out of the Bunker, he was too busy murmuring to himself, as he paced the Bunker. Finally, he ran to the mini fridge and pulled out a soda. Shaking it, he placed it on the desk and resumed his pacing. Both members of the Justice League, and the Young Justice team looked at each other confused. It was official. Robin had finally lost it.
Artemis tentatively approached the young genius. "Robin? Mind explaining what's going through that big brain of yours?"
When she received no verbal response, Wally zipped over to the soda and picked it up. Robin immediately turned to him and narrowed his eyes. "Put. That. Down. Now."
Wally backed up with his hands raised in surrender. "Hey man, calm down. Can you explain what going through your head please, because you are honestly freaking me out."
Robin gestured vaguely at the Batcomputer. "You guys were attacked on SSD. Batman was talking about effervescence. It all makes sense now!"
Wonder Woman returned with one of the aliens tied up in her lasso. Robin grabbed his soda and walked over to them. Opening the soda as far away from him as possible, he watched as it exploded all over the alien. Immediately, the alien started to bubble and fizzle before literally melting.
Robin did a little dance. "Yes! Score one for SSD and for Batman's genius!"
It was Superman who brought Robin out of his thoughts and back to the rest of them. "Chum, what does that mean? We can't follow your thoughts."
Robin froze, and the occupants of the room could literally feel the temperature drop. "What did you just call me?"
"I've heard Batman call you that. I just assumed that it was a nickname."
"It's a personal name. I don't think you want me calling you what your mommy calls you in front of everyone here, do you?"
Superman held up his hands. "Sorry. I didn't know."
"Yes you did. You of all people in this room know, so don't lie. As for what happened, you said Batman was talking about effervescence. That's basically the escape of gas from a liquid and the fizzing that happens as a result. You guys were taken on SSD, or Secret Soda Day. It's the one day a month that Batman brings a soda home unbeknown to Agent A."
"I can assure you Master Robin, that Batman is far less sneaky than he believes. I've known about your 'Secret Soda Day' since the very first one."
Green Arrow looked at Robin like he was crazy. Maybe he was. "So let me get this straight. Batman discovered their one weakness by accidently pouring a soda on one of them?"
"Batman does nothing by accident, but yes."
Kaldur was the one to break the awed silence. "I wish not to be the bearer of bad news, but how does this information help us? What is our plan?"
Everybody looked at Robin. Sheesh. Now he knew how Batman felt. No wonder the man was perpetually grumpy when he was with the League. They were helpless on their own. That's not to say that he had the magic solution either. "I don't really know. I think for now, the best course of action would be for the Supers and Flashes to gather as much soda as possible and bring it here. Everyone else should help protect the city and evacuate the citizens. The Martians should stay here." Seeing the stare that Martian Manhunter was giving him, Robin raised an eyebrow. "You couldn't protect yourself from my mind, do you really think that you will be able to protect yourself from all of theirs?" Seeing that Manhunter agreed with him, Robin turned to face everyone else once again. "Everyone get a comm unit and an emergency zeta bracelet before you leave. The bracelet will bring you and anyone or anything your touching here. Comm will connect you to Miss Martian, who will connect you to whoever you need. Stay alive and stay traught. The battle is coming to an end, and if we fight smart, we will be victorious!"
A battle cry went up around the Bunker and Robin watched as his friends, his family, ran to join the battle. Once again turning his comm on, Robin took a deep breath. "This is Robin. The Justice League has returned, and have joined the fight on the streets of Gotham. Sirens, Bane, Clayface, Deadshot, Killer Croc, Commissioner, help has arrived. Thank you for your service and for your aid in this dire time. If you can, please continue to help. We are working on figuring out a more permanent solution, but for now, we need all the help we can get. Continue to fight, and please stay alive."
Robin ended the transmission with a sigh. Gathering what was left of his energy, Robin dragged his feet over to the medical bay. Batman was lying there, too still and pale for Robin to pretend that he was simply sleeping. Sitting down in the chair, Robin gathered one of his mentor's large hands in both of his. Holding it against his cheek, Robin allowed himself a few moments of weakness. He would be strong, after this. He would figure out a plan, after this. He would be a leader, after this. He'd be the hero they all needed, after this.
A small movement caught Robin's attention. Batman's index finger was tapping a pattern on his cheek. Robin held still and attempted to pay attention. Three short taps. Three long taps. One long and two short taps. Morse Code! ... - -.. .- / -... - - -...
S-O-D-A B-O-M-B. Soda Bomb? Soda Bomb! If they made an explosive filled with soda high above the city, it would turn the city into a sticky and alien free mess! The trick would be to make it a high powered explosive without it generating enough heat to evaporate the soda!
Squeezing Batman's hand gently, Robin leaned over and kissed his forehead gently. "You are such a genius! You better get well quick, or I'm gonna take Agent A on a beach vacation without you!"
Running out of the med bay, Robin activated his comm. "Robin to heroes. I have a plan! Does anyone happen to be an expert on explosives?"
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A/N: Okay, so two more chapters I think. How did you like this chapter? Is it weird to say what my favorite part was? I don't care...my favorite part was the Robin flashback. There was something about it when I was editing that made me just want to pat myself on the back. I just like the feeling, though I'm not sure it really went with the rest of the chapter. Not that I really care at this point. ;P
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Next Chapter:
Soda Bombs and how to build them, Batfam moments, save the world!, Gotham Sirens, Jim Gordon, and much more!
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If you didn't know, I'm no expert on a lot of things, namely the field of medicine, aliens, and effervescence.
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Please Review! I will never be that person that says 'I won't update until I get _ reviews' but they are certainly appreciated, and I tend to be more inspired to spend my night typing when I get a lot of verification that people enjoy what I am putting on the internet.
