YJ: Finding Robin: Chapter 5
When Batman arrived in Metropolis it was a scene of chaos. There was police everywhere, the building has been evacuated. Batman by passed the front of the building and just entered through the broken window. First thing he saw was Robin crouched next to unconscious Superboy clearly upset. Miss Martian was lent up against a wall on the only bit of clear floor nearby. Artemis stood away from the rest; she looked like she was in shock. Superman was there watching over the kids and Green Lantern was taking care of the assault team.
"Do you have any idea what you did?" Batman said crossing the room before Superman could stop him. He picked up the terrified blond girl by her jacket collar. "You almost go them all killed and Robin captured." Batman's voice shook with anger. This girl had betrayed them, and put the team, put Robin, his son, in danger. "How could you?" The fear left Artemis's face replaced with guilt and remorse, but that did nothing to quell Batman's anger. Suddenly a pair of small hands wrapped around his large arm.
"Stop. She had no choice." At Robin's voice Batman let go of Artemis. The girl collapsed unceremoniously on to the ground. Batman turned to look at the boy. Robin was shaking but he seemed quite lucid. "They have something important of hers." Everyone looked at Robin in surprise. "They have her mother."
"You knew…" Artemis gasped, "Then you must have known that they won't release her till you are captured!" Artemis said accusingly. "Why did you let them attack us if you knew yet you didn't let them take you?"
"They will not release her…" Robin said brokenly. "Should have gone with them… but could not… can't go back there…" Robin murmured guiltily. "Don't want to end like them. Bodies, no minds." Robin looked horrified at the bodies of the men they had fought earlier. "Sorry… so sorry…"
"You should have come to me." Batman said glaring at Artemis pulling Robin into his arms defensively trying to calm the boy down. "We could have saved your mother. They would not have released your mother even if they captured Robin. What you did is unforgiveable. Don't you try to put this on him."
"It's late, we should get these kids somewhere where they can get some rest." Superman said putting a hand on Batman's shoulder. Batman wanted to yell at Artemis some more but Robin was more important right now. "You girls head back to Mount Justice." The girls didn't argue, Batman turned to Superman. "Take him to the cave, we will meet you there."
As Bruce placed Robin into the Batplane he could tell that the boy was upset and agitated.
"We are going back to the cave. Superman is taking Superboy there first to get treated. You will see him soon." Bruce said in a low voice trying to sound reassuring.
"...I am bad... Just like them..." Robin murmured weakly head lent back against the seat. "I killed those men... They were just copies... But they each had a soul... silenced." Bruce didn't know what to say to comfort the boy, he just sped off towards the cave as fast as he could. "Guns are bad... Bullet in the brainpan... Squish." A haunted smile appeared on Robin's face, his eyes unfocused. "Dead. Just like that. Flame of life snuffed out. Had no choice..." Robin's smile warped into a look on anguish. "Always have a choice! ... But they were hurting Miss M... Superboy... not where they were supposed to be." Tears fell, breathing ragged Robin began to rock in his seat. "Killing is bad! ...had to shoot them... Can't go back there... had to kill Dr. Carpenter… Trade broken Robin for precious mother... Most logical choice... No one dies… Can't do it... Too weak..." Bruce has heard enough. He leant over and pulled the small boy into his lap and held him tight. In the back of his mind was glad he included the auto pilot feature.
"It was a tough decision, but you made the right choice." Bruce said rubbing gentle circles on the boy's back. Bruce knew exactly where the boy got this complex to be so hard on himself and Bruce inwardly regret being so strict with Robin as he held the broken down boy in his arms. "You made the right choice."
When Conner regained consciousness he bolted up memories of what the attack still fresh on his mind. Conner winced at the pain shooting up his back.
"It's okay. You are safe." Superman's voice brought Conner back to reality, he examined the unfamiliar surroundings. "You are in the infirmary in the Batcave." Conner felt a small pair of hands wrapped around his hand, he looked down and smiled slightly in relief to see Robin curled up asleep holding his hand.
"You saved us." Conner said looking at Superman, who looked back uncomfortably.
"No, I got there too late." Superman replied looking down at Robin. "He saved you all."
"Robin?" Conner asked surprised.
"Yeah." Superman nodded. "You should rest, you kids had a long night, and you are still healing." Conner lay back feeling the soreness on his back.
"What was that?" Conner asked remembering how he had sustaining the injury.
"It was a Kryptonite laced blade you were stabbed with." Superman explained. "The strike force knew that you would be there with Robin they came prepared. I guess they weren't prepared for Robin's reaction when they hurt you. He seems to be quite attached to you. He wouldn't leave your side the whole time."
"How did they find us?" Conner asked moving his arm out of Robin's grasp and put it around Robin. The boy curled instinctively closer into Conner's side.
"Artemis betrayed your location to the enemy," Batman said bluntly as he entered the infirmary. "I did not send her. She was working for Cadmus. They are holding her mother hostage." Batman explained quickly seeing the angry glint in Conner's eyes.
"What are we going to do now?" Conner asked. "How can we keep him safe?"
"The two of you are in the Batcave. You are safe for now. We will talk about the plans in the morning." Batman said with one last look at Robin. He had wanted to take the sleeping boy back to his own room but seeing Robin sleeping so peacefully snuggled up next to Conner Batman decided he would leave Robin in the clone's hands for now. Superman followed Batman out of the infirmary turning off the lights.
"Rest well."
"Master Bruce." Alfred said as Bruce stepped out of the entrance to the Batcave. The old man didn't have to say anything for Bruce to know what this was about. There was nothing that goes on in the Wayne manor, Batcave included, that Alfred did not know about.
"I don't know if this is a good idea." Bruce sighed noticing the tray of Alfred's famous cookies and hot cocoa in a thermos. "I don't know how he is going to react to you. He is not accepting his own name right now, just Robin... I think he is subconsciously still trying to protect his identity."
"I understand." Alfred said picking up the tray. "He is sleeping right now. I will deliver the tray and leave." Bruce has never heard the pleading tone Alfred's words carried right now. The poor old man had been worried sick since the day Robin was captured, and although Bruce had diligently updated Alfred with Robin's condition it was not enough. Alfred has always been the one to take care of Richard when the boy was injured or sick, but this time for safety Bruce had kept the broken boy out of Alfred's reach, now that the boy was spending the night in the cave there was no stopping Alfred from seeing the boy he loved like a grandson.
"Be careful." With Bruce's blessing Alfred disappeared behind the clock.
Alfred nodded briefly at Clark as he walked past him into the infirmary. Alfred felt his heart break all over again as he saw Richard. The boy was so small curled up next to the Superman clone. Alfred could tell that the boy has lost weight and the dark circles beneath the boy's closed eyes only made his pale face paler. Alfred turned away to put the tray down on the bedside table taking a moment to collect himself. Alfred wanted to scoop the boy out of bed, bring him upstairs, tuck him in and demand that Bruce left the boy in his care. But Alfred didn't, if there was one thing Alfred knew how to do it was to let go. Alfred reached out and brushed a stray lock of hair from Richard's face, and with one last longing look at the boy Alfred turned and left.
When Conner woke again he saw that Robin was already awake sitting up on the bed staring at something. Conner sat up slowly testing his back, the pain was gone; he was healed. Conner followed Robin's gaze to a tray sitting on a table by the bed, there were cookies and a thermos on the tray with two mugs.
"Did you want some?" Conner asked since Robin was staring so intently at the tray. The boy looked up for a brief moment, nodded and then turned back to staring at the tray. Conner got out of the bed and opened the thermos. The scent of cocoa engulfed his senses. Conner poured them each a mug, the liquid was still giving off some steam. Robin took the mug and a cookie from Conner as the older boy held it out to him. Conner sat down on the bed and ate his own cookie and sipped the chocolate drink. They were more delicious than anything else he has ever tasted and it warmed up his body in an instant when he didn't even know he was cold. Out of the corner of his eyes he noticed tears rolling down Robin's face as he nibbled on the cookie.
"What's wrong?" Conner asked concerned.
"The cookie is good." Robin said with a small smile. More tears fell.
"Then why are you crying?" Conner asked brow furrowed. His question seemed to have taken the younger boy by surprise Robin reached up and touched the wetness on his cheek.
"I am not sure…" Robin whispered savouring the flavours in his mouth. "so familiar… but missing… miss him… so much…" Conner leaned over, put his arms around the tiny boy and held him tight in hopes of providing comfort. Robin leant his head against Conner's cheek. "It's time…. It's time to go back… can't go back… but maybe… if you were with me… Come with me?"
"Where?" Conner asked not that it mattered, he would follow the boy to hell and back if he had to.
"To find Robin."
Artemis could hear the chatter echoing through the hallways. Conner and Robin had returned to Mount Justice the next morning. Artemis closed her bedroom door. She could not bring herself to face the team right now.
"Give me a good reason why I shouldn't kick you off the team and make you pay for what you did." Batman's voice made Artemis jump. Artemis turned around staring up in fear at the Dark Knight.
"I... I was stupid... I should have come to you when they approached me... But it's my mom we are talking about!" Artemis said defensively.
"Your actions threatened the safety of your teammates, of Robin." Artemis would be lying if she said she wasn't afraid. "If you so much as have a stray thought about betraying us again I will personally make sure you suffer." Artemis swallowed, she hadn't noticed that she was backing up until her back hit the wall. "Robin may have forgiven you but I haven't. I will be watching. One step out of place..." Batman let his words trail off leaving Artemis to formulate the consequences in her own head and swept out of the girl's room as silently as he came.
Artemis figured that Batman may be doing her a favour if he took her away. None of them trusted her in the first place; she never fit in, even though they all kept up pretence of acceptance. The looks that Wally and Kaldur gave her when she returned with Megan was not something that she could easily forget. The judgement, the distain bore into her through their gaze, and that was before they heard what had happened. Before they had found out that she had betrayed them, they already assumed.
"Artemis?" Robin's voice made the girl jump again, what was with the Bats and walking without a sound. The boy smiled so sweetly at her making her heart skip a beat as he took her hand. "It's time to go. She is waiting."
"So you are saying that we are just going to waltz into one of Cadmus's most secure secret labs and walk out with the hostage?" Wally waved his arms madly at the screen depicting their supposed 'plan' to infiltrate Cadmus and rescue Artemis' mother. "Do we even know where this place is?"
"I do." Robin replied reaching out to the map his hands spun the globe until he settled on the country he was looking for and continued to zoom in on the spot he was looking for. "Under here."
"Under New York City?" Wally gaped. "You are going to have to be more specific." Robin tapped the holo-image and it zoomed in on a large building owned by LEX Corp. "How do you know this stuff?"
"I don't know…" Robin's gaze became distant and haunted, Conner glared angrily at Wally. "Secrets… in my head."
"What information do we have about this place's security?" Kaldur asked looking at the building. "It looks like a office building it does not have the facilities to house a lab of any kind."
"No, not there…" Robin said dragging the building off the screen and began drawing something below the building. "It's underneath." Robin's finger danced across the screen as he drew out what looked like a floor plan, marking security cameras, guards and entrances. Robin would pause every now and then clutching his head in pain, but before anyone could interrupt him the boy would continue drawing. The team watched in amazement as a detailed floor plan appeared in matter of minutes on the screen of a twenty seven floor underground facility, however when Robin go to the twenty seventh floor he could not continue, both hands shot to his head and he dropped to his knees.
"Robin!" Conner cried beside Robin in an instant Batman just a few steps behind.
"Can't… a secret… need to recall, so many thoughts can't separate it… all jumbled… all wrong!" Robin pulled himself out of Conner's arms and reached to destroy the drawing but Batman's caught his wrist and pulled Robin into his arms.
"It's okay. That is good enough." Batman said holding the shaking boy still, even thought he knew it was no enough. How many more floors were there, what was on the twenty seventh floor that Robin could not recall. All of this could be a trap. Once Robin's shaking stopped Batman released him and he wondered over to Conner.
"This should be enough to get us in, and we can plan an escape route." Kaldur said looking at the drawings.
"This could all be wrong... I mean it must be hard to make sense of all the information you may have picked up in there." Wally had quickly corrected himself when he saw the broken look Robin gave him. "It could also be a trap, they could have put these plans in Robin's head on purpose." Robin turned away from Wally and buried his face in Conner's chest, the Superboy put a protective arm around him.
"Either way we are going." Conner spoke up indicating very clearly himself and Robin. Batman looked at him questioningly.
"What for?"
"To help Robin find himself again." Conner replied. "There is something he has to do there, and I am going with him." Conner fully expected Batman to shut him down, he bravely held Batman's unwavering glare. To his surprise Batman didn't raise any objections.
"I am going too." Artemis broke the silence risking the glares from the others. "My mother is there, I have to go."
"We are a team, we go together." Kaldur said looking at his teammates. Megan nodded.
"What do you say Wally?" Megan asked. Wally let out a sigh.
"When did I become the reasonable one. Oh to hell with it," Wally said shaking his head quickly. "Riskiest plan of the century here we come."