114 Chapter 114: Innocent Until Proven Prisoner
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"Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says different is selling something."
—The Dread Pirate Roberts/Westley, (The Princess Bride)
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<(Bruce Wayne POV)>
"Sorry, but I can't answer that question," I denied. "Your daughter is among the most beautiful women I have ever seen, just like you my Queen, and if you expect any man not to feel even the tiniest bit of desire and affection after laying their eyes on you two, then you must have never met a true man at all," I answered with a straight righteous face.
"That means you did have bad thoughts about my daughter, didn't you?" Hippolyta correctly deduced while raising one of her eyebrows.
"Bad thoughts? BAD THOUGHTS? What the hell do you take me for, a fucking animal? I am a well-respected philanthropist in my homeland, Your Highness. I try to help people as much as I can. I am neither a rapist nor a bad person. I only ever came to this island because I was lost at sea, otherwise, I wouldn't even have tried it, no matter how beautiful all of you are. Also, I consider myself a true man, someone who takes it as his responsibility to protect women and their honor... as long as that woman herself is worth protecting that is. Also, I am sure you understand that the very fact that I can say these words while still being bound by this lasso is proof that I am purely speaking the truth." I defended myself in a single breath, the self-righteous tone still not leaving my voice.
"..." After listening to my words, all the Amazons present there suddenly went silent as they looked at each other's faces in confusion. They knew that it was true. Nobody could lie with the lasso around their bodies. So, all the things the man had said were most probably true even though they didn't really want to believe it. In fact, some of the Amazon guards standing there while listening to the conversation had even begun to sympathize with Bruce, seeing him as a "gentleman" who truly didn't have any intention to cause them any harm.
To them, the man was definitely innocent and there was no way that the Queen would be able to punish him without seeming like an absolute villain. Some of them were almost wishing in their hearts that someone as innocent and honest as Bruce shouldn't be harshly punished for seemingly no reason at all.
Diana on the other hand barely had any visible emotions on her face at all. Nobody knew what she was thinking exactly but one thing was clear. Whatever her thoughts were, she was trying her best to hide them from her mother for some reason.
"You have a way with words, don't you?" Hippolyta snorted with an amused laugh. "But you are right. The lasso can never be wrong. You really are innocent, at least when it comes to any crime against our country and the people living in it... Fine then, I Queen Hippolyta of Themyscira hereby declare that Bruce Wayne is innocent of all the charges declared against him." She announced.
"Thank you, oh beautiful Queen..." I began in an attempt to try to flatter her, but my words were quickly interrupted.
"Take him to the prison." She ordered her guards.
"Wait, what? But didn't you just declare me innocent a few seconds ago?" I asked confused, wondering whether the Queen suffered from some short-term memory loss condition.
"I indeed have deemed you not guilty of the charges placed against you, traveler... But that doesn't mean you are free to go. As a man, you are not supposed to set foot on this island, nor are you allowed to know its location. You cannot be permitted to leave this island just like that. Because if you leave, then there is always a chance that you will reveal the location and secrets of this place to others. Once the selfish men in the men's world know about our exact location, it will undoubtedly affect not only my daughter but also all the Amazons as well. That is the reason why you will have to remain in prison until we figure out what to do with you." Hippolyta reasoned, her words making sound sense.
"Wait, what if I swear on this magic lasso? Will you let me leave then?"
"The lasso is a divine item, one that can cause many miracles. Legend has it that not only can it bind gods and goddesses but also force them to realize the truth as well as speak it. But despite how strong the lasso is, it's not all-powerful. There are things that it can and cannot do... like for example, it can't force people to keep their promises." Hippolyta revealed.
"Of course, there are other ways to force you to remain silent even after you return to the men's world, but they need time to be prepared. Till then, you will have to remain here. I would have given you a normal place to stay but the rules say that a man cannot stay on this island or near any women on this island even as a guest. The only exception to this rule, however, is if you stay as a prisoner in which case you will have to remain in the prison." The Queen explained with a not-so-sorry look on her face.
'Why does it seem like she is enjoying this?' I wondered as I tried to decide if I should battle it out right now to make her realize that I was not as weak as she thought.
Even with Diana revealing the fact that I possessed abilities, Hippolyta still didn't seem very interested in them for some reason. She was underestimating me and rightfully so too, since she had probably encountered countless beings in her life with powers and strength much above mine. Hell, she had even met and fought literal gods according to the movies. Compared to their powers, mine didn't sound that amazing even if it included healing back to full health from a piece of burnt bacon. But again, no Batman was ever known because of his powers and abilities, so I didn't take it to heart.
In fact, I was actually quite happy that I was being underestimated since that offered me the very much coveted element of surprise.
'But still, I won't be able to make it out of this island with just that. I need more time and information.' I thought before deciding not to reveal all my cards at once. Instead, I chose to wait and see how the situation turned out. After all, I didn't even have any of my weapons and tools with me. I could probably take on a dozen or two Amazons but according to my estimates from what I had seen on my way here, there were thousands of them living on the island, all trained to fight with their lives on the line.
However, the biggest reason of them all was that I had no idea how powerful Wonder Woman of this world truly was. I had heard that in some universes, she could almost go toe to toe with Superman. If this Wonder Woman was nearly as strong as those versions of hers, then my chances of winning without any... Sigh prep time, yes, I finally said it, was very slim.
'Plus, I refuse to believe that one demigod champion would be all the queendom of Amazons would have as a final defense against supernatural threats.' So, the best plan was to patiently wait till I either got an opportunity to escape or till my nanites completed repairing themselves.
"Don't worry. Even though you will be treated as a prisoner, you will not be tortured by any Amazon." She promised after seeing my stoic expression, mistaking it for fear.
'Tortured by women, huh? Well, I guess, that's a win for me. After all, I don't have that kink... However, I am still curious, do Amazon interrogators wear dominatrix suits when they do their jobs?' I curiously muttered in my mind.
"Diana, take him to the royal prison. You will be in charge of him for the time he is here." Hippolyta ordered while giving Diana a small nod.
The princess also nodded back at her mother with a small... thankful smile as she gestured for me to follow her. "As for the others, return back to your respective duties." were the last words I heard from Queen Hippolyta before the two of us were out of the range of her voice.
"Seems my mother was quite in a good mood today. See, I told you that I would be able to handle it. Now, at least, you won't be killed anymore." Diana remarked while releasing a tired sigh.
"That was her in a good mood?" I exclaimed with a doubtful expression on my face. "Also, I thought I was the one who handled everything, princess." I snorted.
"You have no idea how fierce and brutal my mother can be. I once heard that she tore a man who had been lost at sea and came to our island into two because she didn't like the way he looked at her. If I hadn't spoken on your behalf, then she could have done the same thing to you. I admit, you do have a way with your words. But the only reason you were able to survive today wasn't because of your silver tongue but because of Mother's surprisingly good mood and me defending your innocence." Diana answered as she led me to a shabbier and darker section of the palace.
"Huh, your mother sounds strong," I muttered, trying to continue the conversation to get some more information about her mother.
"Yeah, she's formidable. Physically, she surpasses even me. I've never bested her in direct combat. Also, she possesses considerable magical prowess, though she rarely uses them in battle," Diana disclosed inadvertently without even hesitating.
'She's too trusting,' I mused silently.
"Diana..., are you really trying to save me because you are curious about my powers?"
"..." She didn't answer my question as she continued to walk ahead of me with one end of the lasso wrapped around me in her hands. Evidently, my question had somehow unsettled her, as she refrained from speaking to me for the remainder of our journey.
It was only upon arriving at a dim underground chamber crafted from metal and stone, that Diana finally spoke. "We've arrived. This shall be your confinement until Mother determines a method for you to return to where you come from, without jeopardizing our own home. Rest assured, I shall do everything I can to make sure that you can return to your home, no matter the obstacles... In any case, make yourself comfortable; I will bring you some clothes later." She stated, her gaze lingering momentarily on my dick. She seemed like she wanted to ask something.
"Anything you find interesting?" I asked with a teasing voice.
"Yes, that... thing between your legs, do all men have that? Isn't it uncomfortable? Also, how do you fight with that thing dangling there?" Diana asked a flurry of questions, her curiosity brimming out of her words as she pointed at my cock.
"Yes, all men do have that. But the one I have is one of the biggest and mightiest. In fact, I am what most would call extremely well-endowed and genetically gifted." I shamelessly boasted. "As for fighting, we wear a special type of clothing down there to make sure that we can fight without being distracted by its... dangling," I answered. "Also, normally, it's not that uncomfortable. However, it does get a little uneasy in the morning or when we suddenly see an extremely beautiful woman all of a sudden, like you." I said as I pointed at my semi-hard cock. For some reason, I felt like I was acting in a cheap porno.
"I see... I guess men's lives aren't that easy." Diana murmured to herself.
"... Oh, you have no idea."
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