Too Little, Too Late (Short Story)

Too Little, Too Late Part IV

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"It is not flesh and blood,

But the heart which makes us fathers and sons."

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Johann Friedrich Von Schiller

~Two Years Later~

Cowering in the corner of the alley, the blonde woman sobbed uncontrollably as the mobsters closed in. Her mascara smeared against her tear stained cheeks as she tried furiously to rub the tears away. It was in vain, however, as a new wave smashed into her when one of the men before her smiled wickedly, pulling out a pistol. 
    She pleaded for her life, giving them her purse and all of the valuables on her person. All the mobsters did was laugh and continue to close the space around the terrified young woman.
    By this point, the woman could only hope that some miracle would appear and scold herself for her idiotic decision to walk home from the diner. Especially at night, in the most crime ridden city the world had ever seen.
    Everything had been set up as a recipe for disaster.
    The gangster holding the gun clicked the safety off, and the woman chocked back a miserable sob as the other three men laughed at her pitiful state. The supposed leader let his hand rest on the trigger, enjoying the moment of the woman's agony with a twisted smirk.
    Then, just as he was about to pull the trigger, a flying projectile hit his hand, effectively knocking the gun away. The gangsters stopped laughing in shock, and warily looked around to see where it came from. The woman could only hold her breath as her death had been postponed for a short moment. 
    "Guys..." one of the men trailed off, pointing at the alley wall as his face paled. They all turned, and the woman could only laugh in relief as the gangsters all paled.
    Embedded into the brick wall was a symbol civilians, heroes, and villains alike all knew too well. The men gulped as they slowly backed away from the terrified woman. They didn't get far, however, as a small shape landed behind them with a barely audible thud.
    The thugs whipped around, fearing for their lives, but were puzzled by the sight they saw.
    Expecting the infamous Batman, they were shocked to find the small, slim figure of a child, that couldn't be older than thirteen, crouched in front of them.
    He was dressed in an almost all red uniform, with black gloves, boots, and a bright, canary yellow utility belt. His cape was black on the outside and the same canary yellow as his utiltiy belt on the inside. Adorning his face was a narrowed domino mask that complemented the scowl on his features, with his raven black hair ruffled slightly. Supposedly from jumping off of the roof.
    After realizing that who faced them was just a kid, and not the Dark Knight, the mobsters returned to their smug, confident attitude. 
    "Yo, kid, don't try an' play hero. It'll just gonna getcha' hurt. Run home to mommy and daddy, now." the one who previously held the gun announced, stepping closer to the boy, who in turn stood up and took a couple paces back himself. 
    But not because he was afraid. He knew that a couple of lowlife's like these couldn't beat him. No, he just wanted distance so his attack would be more affective.
    With a smirk, he dropped into an offensive fighting stance. 
    "Sorry to go against your wishes, but I can't go home with that woman still in danger."
    The men just laughed at this. The blonde, who was still huddled in the corner, gave the child a quick look that screamed 'are-you-flipping-crazy!?'. Once the four men were then reduced to chuckles, before the one who held the gun-the leader-gave him a dark look.
    "Well boys, looks like we hav'a do-gooder here. What do ya' say we knock him down a few notches?"
    The leader made a move to attack, but the boy was quick to advance. Before the man could even comprehend, a fist was heading for his jaw, making impact. The leader stumbled back, holding his jaw and his eyes scrunched up in pain. Shortly after, he felt his legs getting kicked out from under him. His world faded to black as he crashed to the ground, the child figure standing over him.  
    The kid glanced down at the unconcious gangster before bringing his attention to the three others.
    They looked on in shock, unable to do anything as they stared at the boy who had just taken down the most experienced and well built member of their small mob. With a gulp, the smallest one of the group snapped out of his stupor and looked hastily between his compatrates and the child.
   And with one resolute nod, seemingly to himself, he ran to a branching off alley to escape. This caused the others to awakened from their hypnotized state as well, and they hurriedly followed the other man out of the alley, away from the child.
    With a smirk of satisfaction, the boy quickly restrained the leader and called the police, before returning his attention to the terrified woman in the corner. He walked up hesitantly, and once close enough, put a gentle hand on her upper arm. She flinched, but didn't shake him off as she looked on with a hopeful expression.
    "Are you okay?" he asked her, and after a moment, she nodded furiously.
    "Thank you, thank you so much!" she whispered in a quiet, shaky voice. The boy just gave her a small smile.
    "Just part of my job. Now, I trust you'll get home safely?" he asked, and after another flurry of nods, he started to lead the woman out of the alley. She was hysterically sobbing while muttering 'thank you's', and the boy looked back at her with a raised eyebrow.
    He briefly wondered if the woman was falling into insanity.
    Once at the edge of the alleyway that opened up to the sidewalk, the boy let go and turned around. But before he could make his way back to the rooftops, and not to mention his mentor, a hand grasped his wrist.
    "Wait! I don't know your name..." the woman trailed. The boy looked back at her, and gave her a heart-warming smile.
    "Name's Robin. And spread the word that I'm back in business, will you?" Robin asked, and with slightly widened eyes, she nodded slowly, releasing her grip on his wrist.
    With one final wave the boy made his way back into the darkness. Once far enough away, Robin grappled onto the rooftops, running along as he went to rendezvous with Batman to hang up his cape for the night.