Jar of Hearts Ch. 1
Author's Note and Disclaimer- I do not have any idea or conception of who Red X is supposed to be in the TV show, and I don't care if he's Jason Todd or whoever. X is just X from what we can deduct from the Titans' animated TV show. I do not own nor intend to profit from this story or the Teen Titans. DC Comics owns the Titans.
This story is and will be heavily influenced and inspired by Christina Perri's song, "Jar of Hearts". I absolutely love this song and it is SO BEAUTIFUL. I do not own the song or Titans in any way.
Red X ran off on foot, after his last encounter with the Titans had his motorcycle blown up and destroyed. He needed a new bike, and was out of cash. So he decided to hit the local bank. With ease, he robbed the bank clean of its money and escaped clear. Rounding a corner with two large black bags full of cash, he heard the all too familiar police sirens whiz past him, clearly headed in the wrong direction.
"You guys make this way too easy," X laughed.
With his newly acquired money, he bought parts to create his bike and assembled it with little effort.
"Life is good, but boring," he sighed, looking at his finished motorcycle. "There has to be something else I can do to make life much more interesting," he pondered.
He hopped onto his motorcycle and drove off to a block away from the city's most popular jewelry store. He left his bike in a small alley and busted through the store, taking as he pleased, the customers and employees frightened to death.
"A bank not good enough for you, X?" Robin's voice asked from behind.
"Oh look, you guys finally found me again. It's really been too long. You should update your tracking devices." Red X leapt out the cracked window and jumped up on the roof, a bag full of precious jewels in his right hand.
"Star! Beast Boy! Raven! Follow him! Cy, make sure everyone's okay in here," Robin commanded before leaping up onto the roof.
"Is everyone okay in here? X didn't hurt anyone?" Cyborg asked loudly but gently inside the store. Seeing a multitude of shaking heads, Cyborg joined the rest of the Titans on the roof.
Once there, he saw that the other four Titans had him surrounded on the rooftop.
"Pitiful, X. Look where you are now. A thief surrounded by the Titans with a small bag of jewels. Yawn," commented Robin.
"Shut up, idiot. I don't need your sass."
Beast Boy started laughing. "Even without it, looks like you're pretty low! On a roof! That's pretty bad," he joked.
"You're a sad man, aren't you…" was Raven's indifferent comment.
"Shut up, all of you!" X jumped up and escaped the surrounding Titans, his feet hitting the sidewalk hard, and started running toward his bike. "Stupid…haughty…idiot Titans…" he mumbled as he ran.
"Titans go! After him!"
Red X rounded a corner and started accelerating to dangerous speeds, but the Titans were right behind him.
"Haha, let's try this baby out!" In his new motorcycle, he had installed a mechanism that would allow him and his motorcycle to teleport as he did. He flipped a switch on and pushed the center button on his belt. He turned around and waved, "Catch you later!" before teleporting.
"I am sick and tired of this."
Red X slammed his clenched fist into the side of his apartment wall.
"Seems like I am an insignificant thief not worthy of the Titans' time. Whatever. I'll show them soon enough."
He set out to the night street to refill his suit of Xenothium, the unstable energy that powered the suit. Hopping from building top to top silently, he made his way to the outskirts of the city, a remote island. He was headed toward Dr. Chang, a mad scientist who always had a full supply of the power.
He landed on the domed roof with a final leap and a small grunt.
"Here we go."
He wasn't afraid or even nervous. He had robbed so many people and businesses before that one more wouldn't make the slightest difference. He put a melting x that expanded and glowed a fiery red on the roof, allowing his entrance. He dropped straight down and landed without a sound. He spotted the Xenothium ore in the corner of the spacious room. He looked around briefly and sped over. While running, just a few feet away from the ore, his cape was yanked back with a strong force. He fell onto the ground with a grunt.
"Excuse me, pretty boy, what are you doing, trying to steal my Xenothium? You know boys your age shouldn't be playing with such dangerous substances." Dr. Chang had found him.
"Let go of me! Or I'll hurt you. Bad."
"I'm not afraid of you, boy. You should be afraid of me." Chang took out a laser gun and aimed it at X, ready to shoot.
Thinking quickly, X shot a large adhesive x that slammed the doctor against a crate several feet away. Red X dashed out the rooftop, leaving the precious ore behind, and disappeared into the night.
"That was stupid. Why did that just happen? That didn't just happen…"
X checked his belt to see his power level was dwindling to a very low level, only good enough for a few more days of active use.
"Shit. This will not do at all."
Over the next few days, the villain scoured the city, but could not find any other viable sources of the Xenothium, leaving him with a powerless suit.
"I hate to do this, but I need to leave X behind now…I have to be…me," Red X admitted quietly to himself.
He returned to his apartment and threw down his matching gloves on his bed. Then off came his boots, his cape, and finally, his mask. His black bangs fell over his eyes.
"I am once again…James Zoraia."
A/N -Just got this idea a few days ago, but it was amidst Finals Week, so I couldn't think or develop it, and of course couldn't write. But finals are now over, and I am free to write! And since you're free to read, you're free to review too! Please do ^_^