Robin's Need (ONC Entry - Batman Beyond/Young Justice Fanfic)

Debris

Robin dodged away, hitting the ground hard, jarring his shoulder terribly. In the back of his mind, he found himself glad his hands were gloved, meaning they weren't scraped up as he hit the ground and attempted protecting himself somewhat from the fall, although they still stung slightly. His eyes closed, mentally taking the impact, then he turned his head, wanting to see what in fact attacked him.

The man with dark skin, dreadlocks, and a scar over his left eye stood there looking down at him, his knuckled pushed together. More specifically, Robin's eyes focused on the weapons in the man's hands – electrified brass knuckles. Swallowing, something told him he didn't want those gloves hitting him, but he moved to stand up, his mind wondering how he could become so oblivious to his surroundings.

The look on the man's face also spelled trouble. Narrowing his eyes, Robin knew the man quite liked the fact he'd found Batman's partner, particularly since Batman was, in fact, likely to be nearby whenever Robin was near, yet in the back of Robin's mind he found himself regretting the fact he'd not attempted acting as a partner towards the Batman from the future and instead reacted, putting his emotions in front of sensibility.

"I see I've found a little bird who needs their wings clipped."

"Well, I've heard the whole little bird thing before, but the wings being clipped – not in any recent time. Still not original."

"I don't think you have time to be mouthing off."

Robin watched the man swing down, rolling away as he did so. In the back of his mind, he knew the man was right, yet he couldn't help but be his usual self, letting out a cackling laugh while hurrying away, dodging on of the men's goons. "Yes, going out on my own was a mistake. I just need to hold out until he gets here."

Because he hoped the guy he didn't like would get here and rescue him despite the fact there was still that inkling in the back of his mind that he couldn't trust the Batman from the future. His ears picked up on the sound of the crackling brass knuckles the man wore but heard one of the men who worked for this person dodge out of the man's way. "I'm curious. Why are you doing this?"

"Oh? You can't figure that on your own?"

Robin dodged a blow definitely meant for his head, yet something told him the man was carefully gauging his movements. More debris flew around the place, his head ducking down as he rolled away quite easily.

"Plus, I don't think you have time to be asking questions?"

"Well, you did mention technology from the future. What was that about?"

"Honestly, none of your business."

Robin dodged behind another pillar, moving away when another blow came his way. "I'm just curious. I'm known for being curious."

"So I heard."

"In the future, right?" More debris flew all over the place as he dodged yet another blow.

"Again, none of your business."

"Yeah, but doesn't the fact you're going back in time an indicator that you have some kind of issue with Wayne company in the future, that this is some kind of revenge? Maybe if Wayne knew what it was."

The man let out a laugh. "Revenge? No. Wayne company under the administration of Powers – I did quite well do his dirty work. Too bad for Powers that when the new Batman came on the scene Bruce Wayne ended up going and making an appearance after so many years."

Robin swallowed, wondering if the man-made the connection.

"No. This is about me making a new life of myself, but if the Batman from my timeframe is here..." The knuckles crackled with electricity yet again to close to his head for his liking. "It's to send a message. I was the first bad guy he took down, but I think he thought he killed me."

"Aster."

"Oh, yes. You're used to a Batman who doesn't kill, so that must be unsettling for you, isn't it?"

It was definitely an unsettling thought, that the future Batman changed up the rules, not really caring if he killed someone in the pursuit of justice. The future Batman – he already struggled with trusting his new partner, yet his Batman was gone along with the era of his Batman. He wasn't sure he could keep on being Robin if things changed like this, which in itself was a scary thought, given the fact he loved being Robin.

The idea of not having a place...

He felt the electricity course through his body before hearing it, the thoughts having distracted him from what he should be doing. His stomach hurt, yet he felt the man grab onto his throat, pulling him closer so that they now looked at each other eye to eye. A bit of spittle leaked from his mouth, his entire body trembling.

"What should I do to you? Obviously, my Batman's not here, but I certainly could mess with the mind of this era's Batman, right? I heard he went nuts when something happened to the second Robin."

"Second Robin? Did Bruce give my title away? Or was I the one."

"It was Joker, but there's a reason the Joker gangs – well, Powers and I liked using them as a cover for when he needed me to kill someone. The carnage they put out – it's a wonderful mess, but should I make a mess of you?"

Robin closed his eyes, the idea of Joker getting ahold of him – while he never feared the man because his Batman was always around, there was a reason why Batman had a rule of Robin not tackling him on his own – of running and getting out of the place, getting one of the league if Batman should go down. He felt the man's hand tighten around his throat, before feeling himself pinned against the wall. His entire body tensed, waiting for another blow, for the man to choke him to death, keeping his eyes closed the entire time.

Just the one blow to the stomach hurt immensely, yet left him unable to do much – though even without the injury he suspected he wouldn't be able to do anything.