Bringing My Children Home
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Disclaimer: I am only borrowing the Bat family to practice my art.
Oh, boy. I hope this meets everyone's expectations.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Bruce
They had made it to the top of the cliff above the Demon's Seat.
There was plenty of curiosity about what the fortress looked like, but no one dared look and risk the discovery of their presence. In the dark, Talia was struggling to find the entrance. As they got closer to their goal, the jitters had begun. Stephanie and Dick could not hold still, unless they were focused on looking for patrols and look outs. When they reached the location, Jason's hands began flexing, flipping his Phoenix flash bangs over and over. By the time Talia stumbled onto the specific rock she was looking for, even Cass was pacing.
"Bruce, promise me to save Damian," Talia demanded.
"I promise," Bruce replied.
She pushed on the pillar that marked the location, and a hole opened next to it.
"Jason," Bruce said.
"No," Jason said, pulling a pill bottle from his pocket. "I'm taking a booster now. It's Tim, Bruce. Ra's might be trying to do it to Tim."
"Alright. Talia, lead the way. I'm first, then Phoenix, Spoiler, Batgirl. Nightwing, the rear."
Jason and Stephanie were not blind to the reasons for their locations. If being near the pit sparked a flashback or made the pit blood still in Jason react, Bruce wanted to be able to stop Phoenix before he harmed himself or someone else. Even after six months of training, Stephanie was still the weakest link. Bruce would not force her to remain behind, but with Cass behind her, she would be safe. Dick, he trusted to protect their backs.
All their lenses had a night vision mode, so they had no need for light as they began climbing down the ladder into the cavern path.
Bruce was proud to realize he did not fear any of them would derail the plan. Tim and Damian were the youngest. No matter how close the age gap between Cass, Stephanie, and Tim was, Tim had held that youngest place in the family, until Damian's arrival. That extra protectiveness for the younger members of a family was filling them all.
It was only five minutes at most before they could see the lights, that spoke of their destination, and hear voices. It felt like days. There was always the chance that he was too late again. With the knowledge of what Jason still had to battle, the notion that Tim could face that too, was nerve-wracking.
"-see if you have more will than the pit."
That was Ra's. Bruce dropped a little spybot, syncing the video to his lenses. It rolled to the edge of the entrance. This Lazarus Pit was deep in the sandstone mountain, behind the fortress. If Bruce remembered right, it was behind the Demon's Hall. The door was right behind his throne.
"No."
That was Tim. Ra's was standing with his back to the Pit, and the entrance to the secret passage. Tim and Damian both stood a few feet in front of Ra's. They were close together, and Tim was resting his hand on Damian's shoulder.
"You do not understand, Timothy. Not all my Hands are allowed to enter the Pit, but you have the will and wit to gain that honor. I am offering you longevity, immortality. Just a taste of this, and you will understand."
"I saw what it did to Jason. I will not willingly go in there."
"Had Jason stayed with me, he would have been permitted to feed his hunger and bathe again."
"Have you ever studied the waters?" Tim was openly incredulous. "Did you make this sacred, so it would be a mystical fountain of youth? I thought you were supposed to be intelligent."
"Some mysteries are better left alone," Ra's replied. "I own all the Lazarus Pits across the world."
"You are a fool not to have studied it."
"Join me, and you can have that honor."
Tim's hand tightened on Damian's shoulder, begging for silence. Damian kept still and his face blank.
"What makes you think I haven't studied it already? I got Jason home. It's possible I may know more of its secrets than you."
Ra's went completely still. Tim had surprised him.
"What are you talking about?"
"You know the Pit. It's part of why you are so single minded. It plays on your mind, raising your fears, your desires to delusions. Jason was put into the pit, after being betrayed to the Joker, he was almost dead. I've tracked your history as far back as I can. It can sometimes take you years to become visible after deadly injuries. Do you think Jason gained his sanity back before you would?"
"Enough. Your skills lie in your lies. Perhaps, you know somethings about the Pit from Todd, but not enough."
A signal from Ra's and the silent ninjas at guard around the room moved. They closed around the boys, pulling them apart.
"Tim…" Damian cried.
"I promise, Damian," Tim smiled as four men took hold of his arms and pulled him forward. "Even if I go in, Bruce will be here. They will have the antidote."
That was enough for Bruce. He signaled his family.
Dick or Stephanie would have emerged with a quip on a normal day, but the silent rush was as surprising. The nearest ninjas were taken out before they knew what was happening. Ra's lunged forward, grabbing Tim by the neck before turning around to seize Damian. As the rest of his family spread around the room to take down the ninjas, Bruce closed the distance to Ra's. Talia followed Bruce.
"That was certainly quicker than I expected," Ra's said, his scarred, strong hands holding each boy's neck. Tim was relaxed, his hands crossed in front of his torso. Damian was trying to keep relaxed as well, glancing at Tim with awe out of the corner of his eye. "If only you were young enough to put in the Pit, Detective. You are too set in your ways to succumb to its allure. Timothy is a good second choice."
"Let them go, Ra's," Bruce answered. Tim was doing something with his right hand, but since it was hidden under his left elbow, Batman could not be sure what it was.
Several ninjas came to Ra's back, while Bruce's family regrouped behind him. They were too close to the pit. Ra's could push one or both in, and Bruce did not think he was close enough to catch them. Batman stepped forward.
"Stop, Bruce," Ra's ordered, leaning Tim forward.
"You aren't going to do that. You've lost, Ra's. Let them go."
"I don't need both. I would prefer Timothy, but Damian would be a good back up to him. We do not need to battle this out. Choose one to go with you. The other will stay here and serve me. Which do you want? Damian? Or Timothy?"
Tim stopped his secret movements, looking at Bruce with a sudden fear. On the other side, Damian stiffened, and dread closed the boy's eyes. Ra's knew enough of the tension between them to throw this out there. Around Bruce his other children flinched, looking nervously between the boys. Just a few months ago there would have been clear cut lines between them of which boy was in more need. Time had begun to erase that. Even Jason looked at Tim and Damian with the same dread.
"Neither of them belong to you. Even if I were to choose, the one who remained with you would not willingly serve you. Leave my sons alone, Ra's," Bruce said.
"How do you think Timothy will survive in the Pit? The neglected, abused, orphaned child who had to fight for his place at your side. He may come out sane, but will he come out loyal? What about Damian? He must be so confused, discovering the differences between our families. He must dread giving you up, must be so jealous that we both prefer Timothy. What will the pit bring up in them?"
"B," Dick said in a soft voice. Asking what they should do. Asking Bruce to save them both.
Damian opened his eyes, his shoulders settling as he looked at his family opposite him. His eyes swept over each of them, memorizing them, refusing to give them up. Then he looked straight into Bruce's face.
"Father, choose Drake. You need him more than me."
"Not letting go, Dami," Stephanie whispered. "Not letting either of you go."
The offered sacrifice stunned Bruce. He was both proud of Damian for making the offer, and horrified that Damian believed they could be weighed against each other. The boy gave a little smile as his eyes skittered to Tim, who was still slightly bent forward.
"I think Tim needs Father more, too."
"You can't measure one person's need against another in a situation like this," Tim replied, his face blank. "A choice shouldn't be made."
"No surrender, Timothy? That will serve you well in the League," Ra's smiled.
"Grandfather, will you let Timothy go if I swear my loyalty?" Damian asked. "What will you take to give Tim back?"
Ra's glanced at his grandson with surprise. "You truly have become a Bat, grandson. I expected such an offer from Ti-argh."
Tim moved. He twisted against the grip on his neck, turning towards Ra's as he threw a strike into the Demon's Heads throat. It caught Ra's by surprise, though it was not enough to take the man down. He let Tim go to reach for his throat. Tim flung himself at Damian, but Ra's reacted quicker, letting Damian go, using his fist to slug Tim hard across the face. The younger boy dropped to the ground to get out of the way as the Bats leapt across the space.
They came to a sudden halt as Tim righted himself and held up a hand. Ra's had stumbled back after punching Tim and he looked sick to his stomach.
"What did you do?" Ra's demanded, before he was doubled over, vomiting. Damian scrambled out of the way, racing towards Nightwing. The ninjas stood in silence, waiting for a signal from their Master. Bruce reached a hand to rest on Tim's shoulder, as Dick wrapped his arms around Damian.
"What did you do?" Ra's repeated, as he fell to his hands and knees.
"It's a purging medication, designed to counteract the Lazarus Pit. I created it to help Jason. There are some unfortunate side effects. What do you think would happen if I threw the rest of my supplies into the pit? I don't think it would destroy the pit, but it might mess it up for a little bit."
Ra's began to heave again. Tears were streaming down the ancient man's face, and sweat was already beading. Jason blinked and then laughed. "You're purging the pit blood from Ra's?"
"Where did you get that?" Dick asked in amazement. "They took everything from you."
"Not everything," Tim gave a bloody sneer. "They didn't search my armor hard enough, just like they didn't scan for trackers. They found all the ones in my armor and on my supplies, but they never scanned for more. They had no idea I had swallowed one."
Ra's was vomiting again. When he managed to stop, he glanced up from his humiliating position on his hands and knees. "How?
"I told you, you wouldn't see me coming. All you saw was the third Robin. You still look for things Dick and Jason did. I may have impressed you somehow, but you only ever saw Robin. I never show my full hand. You believed I was defenseless. I'm not. Tell your ninjas to let us go, and I won't throw these in. You will let us go, and you will let me take my parents' bodies home. I will not be your servant or ally.
"I chose Batman long before he knew about me. That is my place. That is my home."
Bruce was proud, yet disturbed by Tim's victory. It was well done, but it was not like Tim to rant when he had won. Robin was emotionally compromised. He had won against a villain that the Justice League was cautious about approaching, but Ra's had rattled him badly.
Batman tried to pull Robin back, to let him take over, but Robin shook him off.
"Do you understand?" He barked at the Demon's head.
"Yes. You may go, young Detective. You are an honorable foe," Ra's said as formally as he could, as heaves began shaking his body again.
"Damian, show Nightwing and Phoenix where my parents are. Batgirl, Spoiler, find a vehicle we can use. Bruce, what is Talia now?" Tim shot out orders and demands.
"She led us here, but I am not sure what she plans to do now."
"You won. Take Damian and make him great," Talia spat. "I will make my peace with my Father."
Bruce wondered if there was peace to be made, but Talia would never listen to anyone. It was her choice to stay with her Father, where her actions might bring down his rage. Bruce could not bring himself to suggest she leave. Her actions had been partly responsible for this mess, and she had tried to kill Tim not even a full day ago.
Tim refused to move from watching Ra's struggle with his sickness, not until Damian came back to tell them the Drakes' bodies were recovered, and they had a vehicle to leave in. Despite the observing ninjas, Bruce did not think they were in danger anymore. Tim had outwitted Ra's. Ra's had acknowledged that and was letting them go. He had addressed Tim in a specific way, raising Robin to the level of Batman in Ra's eyes. It was not the safest place to be, but Tim's refusal to be the Demon's hand would not lead to a death order now.
Ra's had led the League of Assassins for centuries. He had kept it a cohesive group that whole time. They were labeled as pirates, bandits, assassins, terrorists as the era called them, but it always existed as killers wanting to purge the earth. Occasionally, he met with an individual who had the wit to surprise him. Although they were a threat to his organization, he never put a death order on them. They were his hobby, or his practice, or a break in a long life.
Tim was now one of these.
It frightened Bruce. Tim should have been pleased, should have been upset, should have been furious, anything, but Tim was merely hidden. Ra's had struck Tim very personally. Even if Bruce's guilty first thought on knowing the Drakes were dead was that Tim would be fully his now, Bruce knew that for Tim it would be guilt, because of why they died, and shame for the relief that he would feel that they could not threaten the life he had now.
"It's over, Tim," Bruce said, gently pulling Tim away from where Talia was tending to her ill father. "Come on. Let's go home."
Thanks for reading! Use the awesome review/comment section to let me know what you think. I welcome constructive critiques, and it is so encouraging to hear that you enjoyed my story.
Ok. I feel I need to address my version of Ra's. Ra's has always struck me as a strange villain. I think he's supposed to be an environmental terrorist, but he's completely narcissistic and believes he is larger than life. He presents himself as mystical at times, and I think after centuries of life, he half believes his own mythos.
