He's a child again

Chapter ten

Dick moved away from the door as the footsteps got closer and went to be beside Damian. He looked at him with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. It was a smile Damian recognised as his "we're so fucked" smile. It hadn't changed one bit and that hurt in some way. How many times had he smiled like that? "Any ideas?" he asked, clearly begging for some semblance of a plan. The older thought through their options. Depending on how many people were out there, they could try to rush them and escape. He still remembered the lay out of this place and could get them to an exit route but from there they'd be on their own. He didn't know how he was going to travel back to Gotham with a child and no money in clothes that were suited for lounging and not a hike. If they stayed here though, they'd be at the mercy of Talia and Slade. He didn't like their odds with that plan. It was better to escape and try to find refuge than remain in the hands of their captures where they'd be subjected to who knows what. 

"When they come in, we rush them. You follow me the whole way through. You don't stop, you don't slow down, you don't do anything other than follow me and run," Damian ordered. "Do what I say and we'll get out of this mess." 

There was a click and they both prepared to sprint their way to freedom. The door opened and four men walked in wielding weapons and handcuffs but those weren't going to get in the way of the young pair. As they got closer, Damian shouted, "Now!" Catching them off guard, Damian ran and slid in between their legs. He tripped them up as he did in an attempt to buy them some time. Whilst he did this, Dick ran and used the wall to spring himself over the heads of the two that remained on their feet. He looked around and found Damian to his right. He ran over to him and the pair began their escape with two of the four hot on their heels. They ran down a long corridor, looking for anything to delay the men but finding nothing of use. This place was built to avoid such things in the one-off case someone escaped. Finally, they reached a set of stairs that would take them to the ground level where they'd be able to run across the courtyard and steal some sort of vehicle. It depended on which base they were at and it wasn't helping that nearly all the bases were built the exact same. They wouldn't know the best route until they got outside. Damian took a tight hold of Dick's hand as they ran up the steps, making sure he wasn't left behind. He knew he was squeezing too tight but he'd rather break the boy's hand than lose him. They got to the top, Dick scrambling and tripping over the last few steps but remaining on his feet, then looked for the next doorway whilst praying for it to be the way out. Dick spotted the light streaming in further down the hallway and pulled the older towards it. His chest was heaving, his breath leaving before he could ever really catch it, but he kept pushing through the pain. Damian caught up with him after the initial shock of being dragged unexpectedly and lead him closer to the light. The light was coming from outside, giving them a monetary moment of relief. That relief was crushed by the men chasing after them. They ran through the doorway into a massive courtyard. It was cold outside and the winds were biting their skin. They were in one of the mountain bases. A long drive to the nearest village but that was better than nothing. Damian whipped his head around, trying to get an idea of which way was the exit but in his brief confusion he'd not seen the man that would stand between them and freedom. He went running left but a man jumped down in front of him. A man he knew well. They shared the same face after all. 

He took a step back, letting go of Dick's hand in the process. His clone reeled back and punched him so hard he was knocked off his feet. Dick attempted to go to his aid but the two men had finally caught up. In what felt like a space of a few seconds, arms had wrapped around Dick's and he was restrained. He struggled and wiggled as he attempted to get out of their grip but it wasn't going to be easy. Whilst he struggled, Damian was dodging punch after punch from his clone. "Damian!" the young acrobat shrieked as he watched the older receive another punch. He needed his help but he was struggling against two men who were nearly triple his size. He was only small. Only small. Lightbulb moment. He stopped struggling for a moment, feigning defeat, and hung his head to really sell it. The men let him down so his feet were touching the ground but there was one weakness all men had that they really should've thought about before letting him down. Suddenly, he kicked his foot back hitting the man on his right in the crown jewels. The shock made the man loosen his grip which was enough for Dick to slide his slender arm out of his hand. He stamped on the other's foot and again managed to get out of his grip. He waited for them to make an attempt to grab him again but when they lunged forwards he moved out of the way so their heads crashed into each other. Taking advantage of their confusion and minor head injury, Dick ran behind them and pushed them to the floor. He took off his shirt, ignoring the freezing winds, and tied their feet together tightly. Who would've thought knot-making would come in handy? Now free, he ran to help Damian but felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck. Damian looked over to see how he was doing but paled when the boy reached the spot that hurt. He pulled out what looked like a dart as he began to sway from side to side. "Damian?" he slurred, his eyelids drooping. The older didn't even know what to say. What was he supposed to say? He wouldn't get enough time to think as Dick's legs wobbled. His eyes closed and he crumpled to the ground. 

"Grayson!"

"Don't worry, it's only a little something to keep him out of trouble. We've got a long trip ahead of us and we want a safe journey," Slade announced, stepping out from the shadows with his dart gun in hand. Damian's clone grabbed hold of the ex-assassin who was still reeling from seeing his brother collapse so limply and kept him from attacking Slade. The mercenary strolled over to Dick, pushing him onto his side with his steel-capped boot. He looked over to the men that were going to get it once Talia heard of the incident then back to the unconscious boy. "Not bad kid," he mumbled. He knelt down and put on a pair of handcuffs just in case Dick woke up earlier than expected. 

"Keep your filthy hands off him!" Damian barked.

"Or what? Your 2.0 is holding you back." He picked up the acrobat by the back of his shirt and threw him over his shoulder. "I would love to stay and gloat but training starts early. Say thanks to your mother for me. Oh and a fuck you to your dad."

"You bastard!"

"Technically you'd be the bastard. Chao!" Damian watched helplessly as his brother was snatched away from him. He just hoped their separation wasn't for long.