"What?" Artemis exclaimed, looking down with Wally. There was no denying it. Those once bright blue eyes, now exhausted. That normally lithe body, now battered and bruised. The boy that had been filled with hope before, now beaten past the point of no return. Wally couldn't believe it. Dick had been here the whole time.
"How is that possible? The arena only takes criminals." M'gann whispered.
"It's not an arena anymore. It's a fighting ring. Dick never would've come here willingly."
"We need to tell the League."
"Forget the League! We need to get Dick out, now."
"I understand your urgency, but The League must be informed we found Dick."
"What are they talking about?" Bart asked. The younger group was sitting a few rows behind the older members, and the noise from the arena was drowning them out.
"Something about the League. I don't think the human is supposed to be here!" Robin shouted over the noise.
"I thought they only took criminals!"
"That's what they're supposed to do! A bounty hunter may have slipped in, though. Sold creatures they came across. The human must be one."
Aqualad and Wally slipped away, using the crowd as a distraction. "What's the plan?"
"Call the League, then talk to Tokainn. He may not know Dick isn't a criminal."
"We need to hurry. Dick wasn't looking too good."
"I saw. Hopefully they're able to answer." Aqualad pulled out a small hologram, tapping on the Watchtower's number.
"This is Captain Atom."
"We have a problem, Captain. Nightwing is a captive of the Nodesh Arena. We were about to talk to Tokainn. He may be able to help."
Captain Atom nodded. "Hurry. I'll inform Batman." The call disconnected, and the duo started towards Tokainn's office.
"I hope we're not too late."
"We won't be. Dick knows we're here. He'll be okay for a little bit longer." "And if he isn't?" "He has to be." Neither spoke anymore. They knew Dick would make it. As Wally said, he has to.
"Tokainn, we need to talk." Aqualad almost growled as he opened the door.
"Kaldur, Wally! It's nice to see you again. What brings you here?"
"Mission from the League. That's not important, though. Do you know who the human is?"
Tokainn looked confused. "I believe he is a criminal? The warden of the Phantom Zone offered him to me. Why?"
"That's no criminal. That human is Nightwing."
Tokainn turned pink. He was a Lodred, an alien that changed colors depending on its mood. He was eight feet tall and slim, almost worryingly so. "I had no idea."
"We need to get him out. Where is he?"
"All gladiators go to the trainer after they're done. He'll be there."
"Show us."
Tokainn led the heroes down a path of hallways, each delving deeper underground. Torches lit their paths, providing just enough light to see.
"You brat! You were supposed to give them a show! Instead, you filled the arena with smoke, and they couldn't see a damn thing!" A loud voice boomed through the door. Kaldur kicked it down to see the trainer, holding Dick against the wall by his throat. The acrobat had blood trickling from his nose, and he was weakly clawing at the trainer's hand.
Red filled Wally's vision. Kaldur pulled out a water-bearer and wrapped it around the trainer, pulling him away from the weak hero. Wally ran over to Dick, pulling him in his lap. Dick was gasping, laying limply in Wally's lap. "Dickie. Come on, baby, wake up. It's okay now. I've got you. We're going home, Dickie. You don't have to be here anymore." Wally begged softly, desperately wishing for those blue eyes to open again.
Wally pressed his lips to Dick's forehead, brushing the hair from his face. This was his Dickie. Beaten down and broken like a toy, used by the trainer as a form of entertainment. Who knew what had happened in the time he was gone? How badly had he been hurt? How many times had he been pushed past his limits? How long had it been since Dick had a taste of love?
"...Wally?" A weak voice croaked.
"It's me, darling. I'm here."
"Promise?"
"Promise. I'm going to take you home. I'm going to make sure this doesn't happen again. I swear it, Dickie."
"B?"
"Earth. Waiting for you."
"Tim?"
"Here. The League sent us here to watch fighting styles. We're going to get you out of here."
"When can we leave?"
"Soon as M'gann gets the ship ready."
"M' tired."
"Hey, stay awake. You're hurt bad." Dick closed his eyes anyway. It hurt so much.
These past two months had been hell for Dick. Day after day he fought, battling so many species his head spun. He'd been ripped and sewn back together, had clawed his way to the top because his survival depended on it. The more you lost, the closer you were to going to a prison. If he lost too much, he'd be sent to the Phantom Zone. He knew what that place did, so he fought. Kept telling himself that one day he'd be out of there, that one day he'd go home.
Dick woke up in his room on Earth, machines of all sorts hooked up to him. The sun was shining through his window, warming his skin and lighting up the room. He could hear quite talking outside the door, although he couldn't make anything out. He could hear the birds, though. They sang outside of his room, chirping to each other happily. Dick smiled, sitting up and looking outside. Those were the trees at Wayne Manor. He could see the city in the distance, rising up as if to welcome him back. The harbor glittered in the sun, like all the cards Emmy used to make back at the circus. It was good to be home.
The door to his room opened, revealing a tired speedster. "Hi." Dick rasped, smiling as Wally ran over and pulled him into a hug.
"You're awake!"
"Woke up a minute ago. How long have I been gone?"
"Too damn long."
Dick chuckled, letting Wally press a kiss to his forehead again. "Well, I'm here now. I don't plan on disappearing like that again."
"Good. By the way, Tokainn has offered you a free seat if you ever want to watch."
"I think I'll pass on that. I've had enough of alien fighting for a while."
