CHAPTER 13

SOMEWHERE OVER THE SEA OF JAPAN, HALF AN HOUR EARLIER

"I'm going in for a landing now, Alfred," Batman radioed from the Batwing. "Do you have the current contact from Leslie?"

"Yes Sir, I do," Alfred replied. "A grocer named Hana Kim, she lives on the Street of Lotuses in the capital city. According to Leslie, she has some American medical training and has seen well over a hundred young people out of the country...I...sincerely hope that the young master has no need of her services."

"You and me both, Alfred," Batman said grimly. "The sun has just set here, so I should have the benefit of stealth. I'll update you when I've got him. Wish me luck."

"And my prayers as well, Sir," Alfred said and signed off.

The Batwing had been fitted with low-noise jet engines but Batman didn't take any chances. Within a quarter mile of his landing site, he hit a switch and the Batwing went dead silent; the alien anti-grav engines had been worth the money and negotiation it took to install them. His lip curled. He supposed that this was the League's contribution to this mission. He lightly set the Batwing down in the palace gardens, hidden by the trees but close to the house and was out of the craft immediately.

The house was well lit, well-guarded, but that didn't matter to Batman. His hands in fists, he moved in to find his boy.

Minutes later, an increasingly enraged Batman had disposed of the kitchen staff and most of the first floor guards. The last pair had given him the intel he needed.

"The boy?" the first one had said with a sneer on his face. "He's on his honeymoon right now. You don't want to disturb him!"

Batman had grabbed the man by his throat, lifting him several feet in the air. The man gargled while the Bat put his face very close and asked in a threatening whisper. "Where is he?" He gave the man just enough air to answer.

"In...in the president's bedroom...down the hall...double...d-doors at the end," the servant gasped when Batman dropped him and ran.

He heard increasing sounds of a struggle before he got to the big double doors. Then he heard Robin's voice, shouting "Leave me alone! Get AWAY from me!" and his vision went red. With a growl, he tried to batter the doors open, but they were locked. Forcing himself to icy concentration, he cut the door locks off the doors with his mini-laser and forced the doors apart with a solid kick.

What he saw haunted his nightmares for years to come. Robin, in costume, lay sprawled on a huge four poster bed, struggling drunkenly while a grinning Singh Manh Lee tried to hold him down.

Words and coherent thought left the Bat. With a roar, he charged in to protect his child against this leering slug.

PRESIDENTIAL PALACE, RHEELASIA

BEDROOM OF THE PRESIDENT

Robin knew he was in big trouble. He held on to the rags of consciousness and determined to fight back. Lee bent over him, trying to undo the ties that held his tunic together. Robin clumsily drew his feet together and kicked at the man. Lee sidestepped it easily. "You want to play? How delightful!" The man leaned in again, grabbing at the boy.

"Leave me alone!" Robin shouted and tried to move away from the hands clutching at him. "Get AWAY from me!" He climbed awkwardly up the bed. Lee grabbed at his cape and began pulling him inexorably back while Robin kicked and fought.

He heard a loud, crashing sound as the doors to the room burst open. Suddenly Lee was pulled violently away from him and tossed to the other side of the room. He saw a flash of black and heard a low, animal roar that didn't seem to come from a human throat. A tall black shadow stood over Lee, hammering blow after blow onto his pasty body. Lee tried to get away, but the black shadow was relentless.

Robin clambered to the edge of the bed and fell to the floor, reeling. He let out a long, relieved breath. Batman. Batman was here. Batman had found him somehow. He grabbed the bedpost to pull himself up, watching Batman pound Singh Manh Lee into a pulp. To Robin's surprise, no guards came running into the room. Of course, Batman must have dealt with them on the way in.

Still hanging onto the bedpost, Robin dimly noted that Lee had stopped moving or trying to fight back. He couldn't tell whether the man was even still breathing. "B..Batman..." he croaked out, then tried again. "Batman? Batman!"

Batman turned and looked at him, his face a mix of vulnerability and rage. "Robin?"

"Batman, don' kill him," Robin said. "I don' care whether he lives or dies," he garbled. "But you will, so jus'...don'." He gave Batman a crooked smile and lost his balance, sliding down the bedpost to the heaving floor.

Batman suddenly realized that Lee was down and not resisting anymore. He bent down and checked for a pulse and sighed. "He's not dead, but he'll wish he was for a long time." He came over and crouched before Robin, his eyes fearfully running over the boy's body. "Dick...are you all right? Did he...?" He said softly, reached out a hand and stopped, not knowing if the boy could bear to be touched.

Robin shook his head and slurred, "No, 'm okay. He din't hurt me.. but 'm really grateful f'r y'r timing." He tugged at one of silk gloves. "Hope you brought me a spare un'form!" He tried unsuccessfully to get up, then grabbed Batman's still outstretched hand and let him haul him upright.

"I'm grateful for my timing, too," Batman breathed and gathered Robin into a hug. Robin, startled but pleased, hugged him back, burrowing into the safety of his kevlar-clad chest. Batman briefly rested his chin on the boy's head and closed his eyes. Safe. He was safe now. Robin wobbled a bit and Batman's arm steadied him. "Come on, we need to get out of here." He supported the boy as they left the room.

"Down the hall, here," Batman said. "I came in through the kitchens."

Robin saw various servants, piled unconscious on the floor. "You tranked 'em?" He managed to slur out as he staggered against Batman.

"Tranked and tied," Batman said with a grin. "But it won't be long before the rest of the household notices." He gave Robin a look. The boy was still painfully unsteady on his feet. "It'll be faster if I carry you..."

Robin sighed and nodded his 'yes'. He hated it when he couldn't pull his own weight, but right now he was dizzy and his vision wasn't very good. "'kay," he muttered. Batman pulled in him into a fireman's carry and sprinted through the gardens toward the Batplane.

Before they had gone halfway, they heard the sound of shouting and then an alarm went off. Breathing heavily but by no means at his limit, Batman put on a burst of speed. Just as they got to the clearing where the Batplane was parked, they both got a quick glimpse of an armored vehicle manned by four soldiers. Then there was a sharp burst of light and the plane exploded.

Batman threw Robin down into the bushes and covered him with body and cape as the remaining pieces of the Batplane rained down on top of them. Before the rain of debris even stopped falling, Batman was on the move again. He grabbed Robin's arm and pulled him upright. "We've got to get out of here," he said roughly.

Robin nodded and began to move toward the wall surrounding the palace compound. Scaling it shouldn't be too hard. He noticed that Batman's hand on his shoulder lay heavier than usual; he must be pretty worried. They got to the wall. Twenty feet, Robin estimated. Piece of cake. He looked back at Batman and his eyebrow went up when he saw the blood trickling down Batman's leg.

"You got hit w' shrapnel," Robin said. "C'n you climb?" He clung to the wall for stability.

"You can," Batman said. "If I lift you. Don't worry about me. I'll get over."

Doubtfully, Robin let Batman give him a leg up and hoist him over the wall. From the top, Robin could see that the palace was alight and dozens of armed men were headed their way. He reached down a hand. "Come on, Batman. I'll help you over."

Batman just nodded and tossed him a grapple and a rope. Robin tied it off at the top of the wall and helped Batman climb the distance. Amid gunfire, they each rappelled to the bottom on the other side and found a hiding place in the underbrush.

"What now?" Robin asked his mentor. Batman rubbed his leg and replied, "We find a way to get out of the country."