Disclaimer: This fanfiction is based in the era of the Roman Empire to give you all some context. Some practices from this empire may be present in this story. I created a new Empire for this story. The Gotham Empire, totally original right? Wrong! I can't claim DC Universe, or the Known World like many have done before *cough* Alexander the Great *cough* Napoleon *cough* Your face :B
Rated T: Blood
o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
The Changing of a Heart
By: Fanficer21
Chapter 11
o0o
Previously
When Robin saw Rekoj coming his way he didn't know what to do. He had to get out of here, and fast.
o0o
Bruce's eyes narrowed when he saw the young boy's reaction. A look of terror covered his visage as he shook in place. He looked around the arena frantically, hoping to find a route of escape, before walking backwards as the man approached. The boy was about to run when the man suddenly lunged at him grabbing the boy by his hair and yanking him backwards into his chest, making the boy released a yelp. It appeared that the man was whispering something to the boy, making the child tremble with fear. Suddenly, Bruce's date dragged him out the door before he could protest, grumbling about the stupid match. He was still in a daze by the boy's terrified expression.
o0o
"Why didn't you kill him!" Rekoj seethed, looking down at the fearful boy. "This was my chance to get rich! Now look what you've done you little *censorship alert*. I guess now it's time for some fun!" He produced a wicked smile that made Robin tremble, terrified. Suddenly he was pushed downward, before a sharp knee flew into his stomach causing Robin's breath to leave him with a loud gasp. Then a fist punched him in the jaw making him fly backwards to the ground, disoriented. Rekoj stomped his foot on Robin's chest, on top of the burn scar, eliciting another scream from the boy causing Rekoj to burst out laughing. Robin's cracked ribs broke at the sudden pressure making the boy gasp sharply before letting out deep cry. Trying to curl in on himself, but was stopped when the man straddled him again and punched him in the face over and over until his nose and mouth were bleeding, before wrapping his hands tightly around Robin's neck making the boy gasp and claw at his hands with wide eyes.
Just as the boy's eyes were beginning to close and his hands became sluggish, Rekoj released his hold. He laughed at the boy's heaving breaths, trying to bring precious air back into his lungs as his arms laid limply on the ground beside him, eyes still closed.
Then, while smiling creepily, Rekoj pulled a dagger from inside his toga. He buried the blade beneath the boy's tunic, before jerking upwards causing the fabric to once again tear down the middle. Rekoj push the tip of the blade against the now exposed and still tender burn scar, making Robin clench his teeth as he tried to keep from screaming. Tears fell down his temples, making Rekoj laugh again.
"You're so adorable when your in pain..." Rekoj whispered before Robin felt a cold surface touch the center of his collarbone. With a sharp jerk, a sudden pain traveled diagonally down his chest and across the scar. More tears escaped Robin's eyes as he squeezed them shut and bit his bottom lip.
When Rekoj was done, he licked the blood from the blade with a smile. He placed the point of the blade above Robin's right hip. "You really should have just killed him. But, oh well!" With a hard push, the blade buried itself into the boy's flesh making Robin's eyes burst open as he let out a heart wrenching cry. The metal did not pierce any vital organs, but it still hurt like *censorship alert*. The now sobbing boy laid limply on the ground. He was in too much pain to even move, even when Rekoj caressed his cheek with his cold, large hand. Just as Rekoj pulled the dagger out, a sudden punch caught him off guard, knocking him the ground. A pair of strong fists repeatedly hit him in the face, accompanied with a growl.
"Y-You're too l-late..." Rekoj smiled through bloody teeth, before a final punch knocked him out.
o0o
After Bruce was pulled from the building by his date, his thoughts stayed on the boy he'd seen for the third time. He had to go back for him!
Stopping dead in his tracks, caused his date to stop whatever crazy story she was going on about. "What is it pookie?" She asked confusedly.
"I'm going back." Bruce said, turning around towards the direction of the abandoned building. He didn't realize they'd already reached the market. "W-What! Back? What for?" She was puzzled, until something clicked. "You mean that little boy? Forget about him, he's just a slave. And he ruined a totally awesome match too." She exclaimed with a crazy laugh, causing Bruce to tense up.
"Yes!" Was all he said, taking a few steps forward. "B-But you can't! We still have a date, remember!" She ran to him and clung onto his arm. He tried to pry her off as he took a few more steps forward. "Get off me!"
"NO!" She screamed like a kid, making a scene in the market. Bruce ignored the looks he got from passersby, as he chugged forward. "I-If you
leave...I-I'll never speak to you again! She whined until Bruce suddenly stopped. She released her grip and waited for his response.
"Goodbye then!" He stated calmly before taking off in the direction he needed to go. The cries of his ex-date disappeared as he ran. The look
of absolute terror on the boy's face was all that he saw, driving him to run faster.
o0o
By the time he reached the abandoned building about 5 minutes had already passed. Entering the building, Bruce was met with silence, he was the only one in there. Until he heard a heart wrenching scream. Running in the direction of said scream, he entered the room with the arena. No body was insight, until he heard crying and laughing from below. Running to the edge and looking into the arena, Bruce's blood boiled. There below in the farthest corner of the arena sat a man in a toga, laughing. Beneath him were small legs, laying limply on the dirt.
Without a thought, Bruce jumped over the edge and landed gracefully on his hands and feet, before charging the man. As soon as he reached
the two, he swung his fist, knocking the man off the boy. Bruce then straddled the man and punched him repeatedly with both fists, making the man's face bloody.
"Y-You're too l-late!" The man beneath him smiled, showing his bloody teeth. Growling, Bruce delivered one final blow, knocking the man out.
His attention was then grabbed by small gasps of breath. He whipped around to see the small boy he'd been looking for. Fumbling as he got up, he quickly made his way over. He was shocked at the sight before him. The boy's hair was a mess. His face scrunched up in pain with a bloody nose and lip. Dried, blood trailed down his chin. Tears ran down his temples. His tunic was torn open down to his mid-stomach. His arms laid limp on both sides, his hands on either side of his neck. Blood was seeping from a large cut across his chest, the blood covered something else, but he couldn't tell what. But the worst was a puncture wound to his lower right abdomen, staining the tunic red with blood that poured from the wound and formed a puddle beneath him.
"*Censorship alert*" Bruce mumbled to himself before taking action. He ran to the man and ripped off his white toga wrap, leaving the man in a white tunic. Rushing back to the boy and gently grabbing his waist, lifted the boy's body enough to wrap the cloth around him, getting his hands bloody in the process. The small body flinched slightly at the contact, but Bruce pushed it aside as he put pressure on the wound with a balled up portion of the cloth before he continued to wrap the cloth around the boy's waist, bloody, bloody hand prints staining the cloth. The process caused the boy to whimper slightly. 'He's losing consciousness!' Bruce yelled to himself.
"Come on kid! Stay with me!" He patted the boy's cheek roughly. Blue eyes opened slightly, looking at the man. Bruce's breath hitched, 'Robin's egg blue eyes'. That's what Wally said was the defining feature of his friend.
"It's okay Robin. You're safe now!" Bruce said quietly, making Robin's eyes widen ever so slightly. "how..." the boy whispered, on the verge of falling asleep. "Wally told me. That boy, doesn't know when to shut up." Bruce laughed lightly, trying to keep Robin awake. The boy only smiled at his comment, before his eyes started to shut.
"No, Robin! You need to stay awake! Come on! Stay with me! don't fall asleep!" Bruce ordered gently while continuing to wrap the boy's chest with the rest of the cloth. "T-Tell...Wally... I s-said..." Robin couldn't finish his sentence as darkness overtook him, leaving a shocked Bruce.
"*Censorship alert*" The man growled, before lifting the boy into his arms. He was surprised by how light he was. Robin's arms and legs, as well as his head, hung in Bruce's hold as he carried the boy bridal style. They swung side to side when he ran towards the caged door that Robin's opponent, the black haired boy came from. Opening the doors, he jogged through the tunneled hallway before reaching another door. With a grumble, he opened it. How long would it take to get out, he needed to get Robin home, now!
However, when he went into the room, he saw the boy from earlier sitting in a cage, much too small for him. There were others in cages as well, a few stuck out to Bruce. A young women with slightly dark skin and long blonde hair. A young man with dark skin and white hair. And another young woman with with pale skin and red hair. The young man with dark skin and white hair stood up and looked at Bruce and the boy in his arms with a sympathetic look, before speaking in a deep, calm voice.
"Please sir, help us!" Bruce looked at the boy who was then followed by everyone else in the cages. He growled "I don't have time for this!" So he unlocked the dark boy's cage and told him to free the others, before running to find an exit. He heard the distant shout of thanks, before he found a door.
Opening it, he was hit the fresh air of the afternoon. His house was 20 minutes away, too long for the unconscious boy in his arms. He needed to find a faster way. While running, he scanned the area for something that could get him home faster. He ignored the looks he got from passersby, it wasn't uncommon to see blood in the streets, but it still drew attention. To his luck, he spotted a horse leashed to a post not far away. Bruce ran to the horse, without a care in the world if someone saw him or not. Untying the beast, he quickly got into the saddle without dropping Robin, a technique only he knew how to do.
Once situated atop the beast, he pressed Robin's back to his chest with one arm, and kicked the beast into action while grabbing the reins with the other. He was glad he was an expert horseman, or else it wouldn't have turned out so well. The horse charged forward, followed by the sound of someone behind him screaming "Thief!" But Bruce didn't care. He led the horse to his house in record time, occasionally glancing down at the boy. He was careful of the broken ribs sinking beneath his palm as he dug his hand beneath the cloth, feeling for the small heartbeat. He found it, and something else that didn't feel right. He'd check it out later. Right now he was just glad the boy was still alive, though his breathing was getting more labored with each passing minute. Finally reaching his house, Bruce jumped from the beast's back and ran up the stairs and through the door. The small body once again hanging limply in his arms.
"ALFRED" He bellowed as he placed the boy on a long couch in the guest's eating area. Brushing the boy's hair from his forehead, Bruce noticed that he looked so much younger than before. "Bruce, what's wron- oh my *censorship alert*" Wally ran out of the room, before his screams were heard from the hallway. "Alfred! Alfred!"
Not a minute later, Alfred came jogging into the room, he may have been old, but that didn't mean he couldn't do lots of stuff. "What is it Master Bru- Oh dear! What has happened!?" The older man exclaimed, looking at the sight of a bloody Bruce and child. Wally was at his side in an instant. He looked at the boy more closely.
"Robin!"
He ran to Bruce's side. "When? How? Where?" He demanded the man. "Later Wally! Alfred I need your help!" Bruce said to the older man while loosening the bloodied toga cloth from around Robin's chest. "Right Master Bruce! Master Wallace, will you please get my medical bag?" Wally was out the door in the blink of an eye. A few seconds later he was back with a medium black pouch in his arms. "Is he going to be okay?" Wally asked the men with pleading eyes. "Yes! Now go wait outside." Bruce ordered the boy.
"But-"
"NOW!" Bruce yelled, pointing to the door. Wally only huffed and glared at the man before sliding his feet towards the door. When he left, Bruce shared a glance with Alfred. "Will he be okay, sir?"
"I don't know Alfred." Bruce shook his head. The two men got to work on getting the toga off Robin's body. When that was removed, Bruce held another cloth firmly to the stab wound while Alfred took care of the other small ones. However, once the blood was washed from the cut on the boy's chest both men stared at the scar. It had a small puncture in it from the blade, causing Bruce to growl from deep inside his throat. His grip on the cloth tightened.
Alfred looked at the scar sadly. "The poor child! No one deserves this treatment!" He gestured to Robin's wounds. Alfred placed a powder he'd
made from various herbs to stop the bleeding enough for them to clean and stitch it up. Once that was done, Bruce lifted Robin up and sat him
forward, his head rested against his chest as it hung. The man then worked on pulling the tunic down the boy's back, but stopped at what he saw. He gasped at the sight of countless lashings covering Robin's back. They were old, the scars, a purplish red rising from his skin like
mountains on a prairie. Bruce traced a few lines with his fingers, feeling the scar tissue made him want to gag, almost. "There has to be at least 30 lashings here. Who would do this to a child!" He growled again.
"Unfortunately, there are cruel people in this world Master Bruce."
o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
Voila! How you like?
Rekoj totally deserved those punches to the face, for hurting our little Robin again.
Note: Not sure when chapter 12 will be done, because there are 3 weeks left of college and a butt load of academic papers to write. But I promise you all this, as soon as I finish it, it will be published.
