Hey, my favorite fellow BMWW fans! Got another update that will bring us one step closer to getting out of the Underworld (hopefully).
No Beta from Dinasis this time so all mistakes are mine. I do have one request though - help me bug Dinasis for an update on his amazing fic, Pure Beauty! Check it out if you haven't had a chance! :)
Chapter 18
Donna stared out the window of the palace, watching as the waves beat relentlessly against the rocky shore of majestic Themyscira. Her arms were pressed tightly against her body beneath her bust as if hugging herself or trying to hold herself together. While beyond elated about how her relationship with Dick had recently progressed, she couldn't be truly happy about it until everyone was safely back from the Underworld where they belonged.
She shuddered once again with the searing pain that continually lanced through her in fierce waves not unlike the ones she was watching now. She knew she had to find a way to close off her special connection to Diana as she forced back the nausea that rose in the back of her throat. She couldn't take much more of this, feeling her sister's life slowly being drained away as if she was nothing. It was driving her crazy, helpless to do anything to stop it.
And the pain…it was unending, more intense than anything that she'd ever experienced before. It brought tears to her eyes knowing that her sister was going through such unimaginable suffering and there was nothing she could do to help her.
She felt arms suddenly snake around her from behind, familiar lips finding the curve of her ear as he buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply. She sighed with unexpected contentment that she hadn't been feeling just a moment ago as her hands moved to rest against his arms that kept her trapped protectively against his muscular chest.
"No brooding," he softly chided her. "Let's leave that to the man who invented brooding. Bruce is the expert at it."
"We don't even know if Bruce is still alive, Dick," she bit out in frustration, fighting back tears. She could feel his entire body grow tense with her words making her immediately regret voicing her fears. "I'm sorry…it's just that I'm really scared that they're never going to come back to us. I guess I'm not handling any of this very well."
"Donna, how could you possibly handle all of this when you are being forced to feel everything that Diana is going through down there?" Dick pointed out to her, placing gentle kisses along her ear to her throat.
"Still I feel like I should be stronger than this, but every stab of pain…every agonizing breath she struggles to take steals something from deep inside of me," she confessed. "It…it's wearing me down…trying to break me and I know it's ten times worse for Diana."
"I'm sorry, Donna," he whispered, his breath so warm against her ear. "I can't begin to imagine how horrible it must be."
"Please, don't feel sorry for me," she insisted with a renewed sense of resolution. "It's Diana that I'm terrified for her. She's suffering indescribable pain right now and there is nothing I can do to stop it. I can only imagine what Bruce must be going through too."
Dick gently stroked her long raven hair, trying to provide her his strength, show her his love for her. "I want to tell you that everything is going to be alright, but I'm afraid I can't do that. I have no idea how this is all going to turn out, Donna. Please know, though, that no matter what happens I love you more than anything in this world."
Donna smiled softly with his confession, turning around in his arms and finding his mouth with her own. He parted his lips, allowing the kiss to deepen as he pulled her even closer to him. They kissed for several long moments, silently comforting one another before Donna finally retreated for air.
"We need to get out of here and down to the Underworld before it's too late," she told him, resting her forehead against his. "I'm going stir-crazy here, waiting and wondering what's happening to them…to my mother. We have to do something to help them."
"Do you know of any secret exits or tunnels beneath the palace that could get us out of here without being detected by the guards?"
"I think there might be a few, but it's been a long time since I last checked them out."
"Do you think you could find it now?"
"Well, I know of at least one secret exit behind mother's throne, but I'm not exactly sure where it will take us," Donna thoughtfully replied.
Dick frowned as he stared into the face of his new lover. "Didn't you ever go exploring when you were growing up here?" he asked incredulously.
"Well, some, but I didn't really have a lot of free time," Donna defended herself, somewhat embarrassed. "Between my studies and training, I didn't really have a lot of time to just go looking for secret exits that I may or may not need in the future. I grew up on a magically hidden island. It's not like we had a lot of threats to contend with."
"You're right…I'm sorry," Dick apologized. "I often forget how different your world is from mine…our childhoods."
"It's alright," she replied, leaning in and kissing him again. "Now, how do you propose we make our escape? It's not going to be easy with all of the guards constantly patrolling the palace and Artemis checking in on us every few minutes."
"Tonight," Dick readily decided. "We can use the cover of darkness to make our escape. Besides, I don't think Artemis will be checking up on us after catching me in your bed yesterday morning. She pretty much avoided your bedroom this morning until we came out."
Donna gave him a look of surprise, a blush creeping across her cheeks. "You don't think she knows what we've been doing, do you?"
Dick smirked with her innocence, his arms drawing her even closer to him until they shared the same breath again. "Donna, I would be shocked if half of Themyscira doesn't know about us by now."
"What?" she gasped in shock.
Dick chuckled with the adorable expression that lit her face. "You aren't exactly quiet when we make love or when you come," he informed her, kissing her on the nose.
Donna's eyes immediately narrowed, irritation flashing through her blue orbs. "Are you complaining, Mister Grayson? Because if you are, I'm than happy to send you back to your own bedroom."
"Hell, no," he adamantly declared with a goofy grin, his voice growing low and husky with desire. "I love to hear you scream my name in the heat of passion. In fact, I wouldn't mind hearing it again right now."
"Focus, Dick," she scolded him as she swatted his shoulder playfully, the glint in her eyes betraying her tone. "We need to concentrate on getting Bruce, Donna, and my mother out of the Underworld."
"You do realize that by going against your mother's orders, you risk being banished like Diana once was," Dick reminded her.
As worried as he was about Bruce and Diana, he was also concerned about the consequences of disobeying the Queen of the Amazons. They had let him live so far, but he wasn't counting on that lasting for too much longer especially if word of their recent union seeped out.
He couldn't help but notice how the Amazon guards were glaring at him more or how they seemed to be gripping their weapons a little more tightly around him. The tension in the palace had definitely risen. It was as if they were fighting the urge to impale him or cut off his hated male organs.
Donna lifted her chin defiantly, her eyes hardening with determination. "I don't care what she does to me," she maintained. "As long as she is alive to do it, I can live with whatever punishment she comes up with. Besides, I have you now to help me deal with it."
"No matter what happens, I'm here for you, Donna," he told her, hugging her tightly not wanting to let her go anytime soon. "We'll get through this together…I promise."
"I know," she admitted, drawing a ragged breath as she buried her face in the crook of his neck. She could feel Artemis's hard gaze boring into them, but she ignored it. This felt too right…too amazing for it to be wrong. She felt complete for once in her life. "I love you, Dick. I don't know what I'd do if it was you down there in trouble right now, fighting against Hera knows what."
"Well, hopefully, we can get all of this resolved soon," he replied in an attempt to reassure her. "The wedding is just three days away now. You know the whole world will be watching to see if reformed playboy Bruce Wayne will go through with the wedding to Wonder Woman. Little do they know if they don't show up for the wedding, it's because the father of the bride hates the groom."
"That's why we need to get them out of there as soon as possible. They deserve to be happy together after everything they've been through," she murmured, pulling back to finally acknowledge the Amazon standing several feet away silently watching them. "Any word yet from my mother, Artemis?"
"No, nothing yet," Artemis evenly responded despite the disapproving scowl that spoke far more than words could at that moment. "I must say that I'm quite surprised that you two haven't tried to escape the palace yet."
Donna suddenly grew rigid with Artemis's comment, averting her eyes as she disentangled herself from Dick's embrace. "Why wouldn't I obey my mother's command?"
Artemis laughed with Donna's response, her scowl momentarily disappearing with the amusement that unexpectedly replaced it. "We are talking about you, Donna. You do remember the time that your mother ordered you to abstain from spear training for a couple of days until your injuries were healed? That turned out to be a rather humiliating experience for you, didn't it?"
"Injuries?" Dick exclaimed as he cast a glance at his lover, hoping for more information.
"Artemis…" Donna ground out with welling awkwardness as she avoided making eye contact with Nightwing.
"Or how about the time your mother told you not to…"
"Okay, that will be enough," Donna growled.
Dick chuckled as he watched Donna turning five shades of red right before his eyes. "No, please, Artemis," he interjected with great interest as he folded his arms against his chest. "Please, do go on and elaborate. I'd love to hear stories about Donna growing up on Themyscira and the trouble she got herself into."
"Dick!" Donna exclaimed, smacking his shoulder. "No, he would not."
Artemis couldn't help the slight smirk that tugged at the corners of her lips. Even though she didn't fully agree with it, she grudgingly had to admit that Donna and Dick were sort of cute together in a way. She internally growled to herself. Had she really just thought that?
"Well, just make sure you stay put here in the palace," Artemis reminded them, making sure both met her glare. "I don't want to have to lock you two up in the dungeons. You two would probably just end up desecrating it too."
Donna looked up sharply with that last part that had been mumbled under the Amazon's breath. "What did you just say?" she demanded to know, her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
Artemis smiled knowingly. "Nothing…nothing at all," she innocently claimed. "Let me know if you two need anything. I'll be back in a little bit so try to keep your tongue out of his mouth while I'm gone."
She huffed in annoyance as she watched Artemis make a hasty retreat before Donna could form any semblance of a retort. "I can't believe she just said that!"
Dick chuckled softly as he pulled his lover back into his arms. "Donna, she's only teasing you."
"Dick, Artemis doesn't tease," she flatly stated as she scowled at the spot where the Amazon had just been standing. "She only grunts and growls and snarls."
"She seems rather nice I think," he supposed, shrugging a shoulder as he looked back at the doors Artemis had just passed through. "Now that we're alone again, we can look for the exit behind the throne so we know where we're going tonight."
"We'll have to look as inconspicuous as possible," Donna reminded him, allowing her gaze to finally fall to her mother's throne. She only hoped it led to where they needed to go, where they needed to be to find the ones they loved most.
XXX
Diana's eyes fluttered open as a low groan slipped past her lips, her vision slowly coming into focus. She titled her head slightly as her eyes narrowed, stunned to find herself staring up at the sun shining high above her in a cloudless blue sky. She felt a cool gentle breeze brush across her skin, so unlike the gritty heat of the Underworld that she'd felt for the last several days.
Moving her arms, she found nothing but soft blades of grass blanketing the ground beneath her, the stench of the Underworld replaced with clean fresh air. Confusion instantly crept over her as she slow sat up, groaning again as she appraised her surroundings.
She was furious with herself for having fallen asleep when she needed to find Bruce and yet bewildered by where she found herself now. This didn't look anything like the Underworld or the Fields of Punishment. Had she died and been taken to the Fields of Elysium?
The thought only made her nausea grow, a cold sweat washing through her. She was still experiencing far too much pain to be dead, her injuries screaming at her and reminding her that she was very much alive…or at least she thought was. Glancing down at herself, she found herself still covered in dirt and grime, blood as well as cuts and bruises too numerous to even begin to count.
She quickly began to look around, stunned to find Wayne Manor standing so proudly in the distance like a beacon welcoming her home. She struggled to get up onto unsteady legs, her hand moving to her forehead as a fresh wave of dizziness swept over her, causing her stomach to churn and twist sharply in response.
She paused for a moment to gather herself, taking several deep breaths as she attempted to push the pain to the farthest recesses of her mind. She wouldn't allow her own afflictions get in the way of saving Bruce. Getting him safely out of here and back to Gotham was what mattered most.
She missed him so desperately it stole her breath away at times if she allowed herself to dwell on it for any length of time. She missed seeing the way that he always looked at her with such love and adoration in his eyes, the desire that simmered there for her alone. Even now, it made her insides tremble with a fierce desire of her own just thinking about it.
Diana slowly began to make her way towards the house, her brow knitting when her attention was suddenly captured by the soft strains of violin music playing in the distance. Looking to her right, she discovered a wedding taking place on the luxurious grounds of the manor, making her wonder who was getting married.
Friends dressed in their very best sat in white chairs lined neatly in rows, their attention focused solely on the couple standing up front before a minister. Exquisite flowers in varying shades of pale pink adorned everything in sight including a large arch that the couple stood beneath as they held hands.
Diana found herself being drawn towards the wedding as her heart began to race, her legs moving of their own volition as she stared at the scene playing out before her. She could practically feel the tremendous sense of love that permeated the air around her, everything about it suddenly so very familiar to her.
This was her wedding to Bruce.
Without a second thought, she quickened her pace as her confusion continued to build, unsure why this was happening now. Was this a vision of what was to come if she and Bruce survived the Underworld? Their reward for overcoming Hades' plans to destroy them?
Diana nearly faltered in her steps, mesmerized by the man that came into view as she drew near. Bruce looked so handsome in his black tux, his groomsmen lined up to the side observing the ceremony. A broad smile adorned Bruce's face, his blue eyes sparkling with such love that it caused her breath to catch in her throat. He looked so happy…so at peace.
She always felt such love whenever he looked at her. She'd attracted plenty of male attention since she had first arrived in Man's World, but no one ever looked at her the way that Bruce always did. The admiration and respect…the intensity of his love as well as the desire for her that shined through always caused her heart to skip a beat.
She finally forced herself to tear her eyes away from him, turning her attention to the bride. The smile that had touched her lips at the sight of her wedding dress instantly turned into a frown as she noticed the bride was quite a bit shorter than her…her hair brown not black like her own.
Her heart began to hammer in her chest as panic gripped her. As if in a trance, she moved closer still, desperate to see who Bruce was actually marrying. She came to a stop next to Clark as Bruce began to recite his vows.
"I, Bruce, take you Talia…to be my wife…"
"No…no, this…this isn't right," Diana whispered, her hand flying up to cover her mouth in an effort to stifle the sob that stuck in her throat.
"Diana?" Clark whispered, his hand coming to rest on her shoulder.
"Bruce?" she cried as shock suddenly became anguish.
Everyone turned to look at Diana including Bruce, a puzzled look on his face. "Diana?"
"What are you doing?" she demanded to know.
"I'm trying to get married here," he replied, glancing from Diana to Clark and back again, confusion veiling his face.
"Diana, what's the matter?" Clark asked her, squeezing her shoulder.
"But you…you're supposed to marry me," she softly said, tears beginning to slowly slip down her cheeks flushed with fever as she stared into the intense blue eyes that she had come to love so very much.
"Diana, you know I'm in love with Talia," Bruce reminded her.
"Send her away, beloved," Talia ordered him a cold sneer. "She's ruining our special day."
"Diana, what's wrong?" Bruce questioned her with obvious concern, ignoring Talia as he tried to get to the bottom of this tearful outburst by the Amazon in the middle of his wedding. "What makes you think that you and I were getting married today?"
"Beloved, please," Talia begged him, roughly grabbing hold of Bruce's arm and attempting to turn him back towards her. "She means nothing to you. You love me. I left my father for you. You know we're destined to be together forever."
"Selina, please wait," Bruce snapped, his attention solely on the distraught Amazon before him.
"Selina?" Diana repeated with a scowl, her anger swelling. Looking past Bruce to the bride standing behind him, she was shocked to find Selina Kyle standing there in her wedding dress. "You're marrying her? How could you do this to me? How could you marry Catwoman?"
"Diana, you need to calm down," Bruce evenly stated, taking hold of her upper arms as he tried to get her attention back on him. "Something must have happened to you. You knew I was marrying Selina today. You've known for months."
Selina flashed her a cocky smirk as her hand wrapped possessively around Bruce's arm. "Come on, Bruce," Selina practically purred. "Let's move on with the ceremony so we can start our honeymoon. I'm itching to get my claws into you."
"Selina," Bruce hissed, turning and leveling her with a bat glare. "There's obviously something very wrong with Diana."
"Yes, there is," Selina bit out, glaring hotly at the Amazon. "She's interrupting our wedding. It's obvious that she wants you for herself, but I'm not giving you up. I'll fight her for you if I have to."
Diana stared at Bruce, panic thrumming through her. She could hardly breathe, her mind reeling with what was happening. None of this made any sense. First, he was marrying Talia and now Selina. This wasn't right. He was supposed to be marrying her. She suddenly grabbed her head, her fingers pressing into her skull in a futile effort to dull the pain, but it only seemed to be getting worse.
"Come on, Di," Clark gently murmured in her ear. "You're making a scene and ruining Bruce's special day."
"This was supposed to be my wedding," she angrily cried, tears streaming down her face. "You were supposed to love me…to marry me, Bruce!"
Bruce stared at her, obviously bewildered by her claim. "Diana, I…I don't know what you're talking about. I'm in love with Selina…and she's pregnant."
"What?" Diana slowly shook her head in disbelief, taking several steps back away from him. It felt as if he had just reached inside her chest and ripped out her heart, leaving behind an empty shell. Everything that she had ever known dissolved into a hazy fog of uncertainty and doubt, fears that she hadn't even realized that she carried within her a sudden reality, taking on life right before her eyes. "No…no, this can't be real…this isn't real…this isn't real."
"Congratulate us," Selina grinned at her, her hand falling to the small swell of her abdomen. "We're having twins."
Diana immediately turned away to kneel in the grass, vomiting as she wept. Her head spun violently as she struggled to pull herself together. She could feel Bruce's hand on her back, the reality of his warm touch against her skin only fueling her despair. It was that very touch that she come to crave, longed for.
His baritone voice was filled with concern, asking if she was alright as he tenderly pulled her hair back away from her face. She finally managed to stand up on shaky legs, fighting the overwhelming feeling like she was going to pass out. She didn't know what was real anymore, what had become of her life. Had she dreamed everything that she thought she'd had with Bruce?
"Diana, sit down here," Bruce gently said as he guided her to a nearby chair. He kneeled before her, worry etched in his handsome face as he cupped her cheek. "What happened to you? You're burning up with fever; you're covered in cuts and bruises."
"I…I don't know anymore," she whispered, leaning forward and holding her head in her hands. "This can't be happening. I thought…I thought you loved me, Bruce. You…you were supposed to love me…not all of those other women in your past."
"Here…have her drink this."
"Thank you, Andrea," Bruce said, handing the glass of water to Diana. "Drink this, Princess."
Diana's head shot up to find Bruce's first love, Andrea Beaumont, standing right behind him, her hand resting on Bruce's shoulder. "Hera!" she murmured, unable to stop from trembling all over or the fresh flood of tears that continual streamed down her cheeks and dripped from her chin. "Bruce, don't you love me? Why…why couldn't you love me more?"
Bruce stared at her, taken aback by her question. "Diana, we're…teammates…best friends. I do love you, but not in that way. I'm in love with Andrea."
"Please…no," she whispered as she gazed at him through a wash of heartbroken tears. "Bruce, I…I love you with all my heart. I gave it to you…gave myself to you. You are the first and only man I have ever loved…ever been with. Didn't that mean anything to you?"
"Diana," he softly said with a sigh, shaking his head in shock at what she had just told him. "I…I don't know what to say."
"Say that you love me…tell me that none of this is real," she begged him, her hand moving to rest against his handsome face. "I…I gave everything to you – my heart, my soul…my body. I gave up my Amazonian beliefs, turned my back on my heritage. I gave you that I am…and now you want another? How could you betray me like that?"
"We were never together, Princess," he tried to tell her, his fingers threading through her hair in an effort to calm her down. "You and I have been nothing more than best friends for years. We had talked about dating a long time ago, but both agreed not to go down that path."
"I didn't dream this, Bruce!" she screamed, feeling as though she was losing her mind. "I know what lives in my heart for you. I have never felt this way about another person in my entire life. It's you, Bruce…it's always been you…always will be."
"Why don't we get you transported up to the Watchtower and have J'onn take a look at you, Princess?" Bruce calmly suggested as he stood to his feet and offered her his hand. "Something obviously happened to you to cause you to believe all of this. We need to take you up there to see what's wrong."
Diana angrily leapt to her feet, her blue flashing like twin infernos of boiling emotion on the verge of exploding. "There is nothing wrong with me! There's something wrong with you, Bruce! Why can't you just admit you love me?"
"I wish that I could say that I did, but I don't feel that way, Diana," he sadly told her. "I'm sorry, Princess, but whatever you think we had together was not real. Maybe someone put a spell on you, planted those memories in your mind in order to make you believe that you and I were meant to be together. You are my friend and I care about you, but not in the way that you want me to."
Squeezing her eyes closed, Diana buried her fingers in her hair, clutching the strands tightly and twisting them almost painfully. "This isn't real…this isn't real…this isn't real," she chanted over and over again, her words punctuated with gasping sobs of desperation and heartbreak. She'd never felt so broken in her whole life than she did in this moment. "Bruce…he…he loves me…only me. No one else but me…"
Melinoë stood before the Amazon lying unconscious on the ground, a wicked smile on her face. "You will not escape what I have planned for you, Princess Diana of the Amazons. The others may not have been able to break your body, but I will break your mind…your spirit."
Unconscious and trapped in the vision inside of her mind, Diana lay face down on the ground, her fingernails repeatedly clawing at the rock and dirt beneath her. "It's not real…" she softly cried over and over again to herself. "Bruce…please…I love you…"
"Now, off to find the Batman and finish this once and for all," Melinoë said before disappearing from sight.
XXX
Bruce felt as though he was quickly reaching the end of his rapidly thinning rope the longer he went without finding Diana. He was furious with the situation that Hades' interference had created for them, beside himself with fear of losing Diana.
He couldn't go through it again. He wouldn't survive it – not when it came to her. He'd already been dealt a life-altering blow when his parents had been taken away from him, destroying him and changing him forever. He couldn't bear the thought of having to experience that crippling pain of loss that felt like a gaping hole had been carved right into his chest.
Not again. Not now. Not her.
He felt his body beginning to wear down, threatening to betray him despite his heart's refusal to give up on her. The wound in his shoulder throbbed mercilessly, his broken ribs making it more than difficult to move or draw a deep breath. He refused to give in to the pain and exhaustion, not until Diana was safe. Only then would he allow his body to give out on him.
He winced as a sharp stabbing pain pierced his side again, causing him to stumble. It also created fleeting concern regarding the extent of his internal injuries that he'd sustained. He drew a shallow breath, attempting to force the pain to the back of his mind. He needed to keep going for her. He would not fail her.
He began to cough, causing him to press his arm firmly against his side and wincing in response. He spit out bright red blood, pausing to take a drink of warm water to clean out his mouth. He knew this wasn't a good sign, but he couldn't afford to stop now, not when he was on the verge of losing the most amazing thing that had ever happened to him in nearly thirty years.
He lifted his gauntleted hand to his commlink, trying it again for the hundredth time without any success. Hades was making damn sure that he couldn't communicate with her, but he had other ways around it. He quickly accessed the antenna in his cowl that was linked to the Justice League communicators, one that he had also designed especially for Diana when he had started dating her.
He had tried it before when he had been stuck down in the Pits of Tartarus, but he had been unable to pick up her signal. Now that he was in the Underworld and closer to her, he hoped it might work, helping him to locate her faster.
His heart nearly stopped beating altogether as he picked up her signal, sudden hope taking his next breath. It was very weak, but at least he had a general idea which direction he needed to go in. Even though he'd been able to pick up her signal, it didn't mean that his princess was still alive. The momentarily hope that he had flickered inside of him suddenly extinguished with the painful thought.
He tried to remind himself that he would know in his heart if Diana was truly gone forever. He had never felt something so strong, so all-consuming for anyone until her. He didn't always know how to handle it at times, never fully understanding it…even questioning it sometimes. It both terrified and thrilled him to no end, igniting a fierce fire in his soul and at the same time giving fuel to his demons that still continually threatened to overtake him.
Being with him…choosing to love him had ultimately brought her here and now it was going to cost her his life. He couldn't live with that, without her.
The bond they shared was far too powerful, too unbreakable. They'd already been through far too much together, coming out the other side stronger than ever before and now would be no different. He refused to believe anything other than finding her alive.
He quickened his pace as he moved in the direction of her commlink, his fatigued mind already racing through various things that he could try to purge her blood of the poison. Unfortunately, what he probably needed to save her life wasn't with him here in the Underworld.
He would need to get Diana out of here and back to the Manor as soon as possible. If he had more time, he could analyze her blood; discover what he needed to create an antidote to counteract the deadly toxin that was taking her away from him.
All he had on him were antidotes specially designed for Scarecrow's fear toxin and Joker's venom. He was certain neither of those would do anything to neutralize the powerful Hydra's poison. It made his stomach churn, helplessness seizing hold of him once more.
He was failing her.
She was going to die and there was nothing he could do to stop it from happening.
An overwhelming sense of exhaustion washed over him, causing his legs to suddenly buckle. He grimaced as pain lanced through him as he hit the ground hard, knocking the air from his lungs. He struggled as unconsciousness began to drag him away, forcing him to fight it with everything he had.
He quickly realized that something was deadly wrong just as everything went black; Diana's name the last thing murmured on his lips.
"You're on my turf now, Dark Knight," Melinoë said with a dark grin as she came to stand over him. "Let the games begin."