Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans.

A/N:

Well, jeez, guys, I hope this is as good as Northern Star was. XD Sometimes I feel as though I won't be able to pull something like that off again LOL. But I'm gonna try!

Updating schedule: I'm gonna to try to get back into the once-a-week groove. I would say Fridays again, but let me get through a week of school (starts at the end of August for me) first to see if that would work. Argh, I don't want the schoolwork but dangit I'm ready to move back to school.


Chapter 2: It Begins

-SW-

This was my city.

There is something thrilling about taking over a city. Of course, the city wasn't mine quite yet, but it would be soon. This was my city in the fact that I had total control of the criminal underground. I stood in front of the television screens with my hands behind my back, silently watching the security cameras I placed all around the sleeping city.

The gears clicked incessantly around me. While the noise could drive some people to madness (the HIVE Headmistress didn't quite like my choice in décor) I found the noise soothing. It was better than listening to the bad memories that threatened to play restlessly in my head.

I looked up when my Sladebots entered the room. I gestured mutely to the other side of the room, not even bothering to watch my Sladebots dump Robin unceremoniously onto the ground. For the time being, I was going to ignore him. Until he woke up I had no interest in dealing with him. I would use the time that I had to put my plans into action.

William Wintergreen, an old British butler and a good friend of mine, walked into the room. He was a former soldier getting along in years, but ever since I saved him from the Vietnam prison camps he's been by my side ever since. He glanced down at Robin and then back to me.

"So you were correct, then, Sir."

"I usually am."

"If you truly intend to take him on as your student, then I suggest that you treat him with a bit more dignity," Wintergreen said. "Don't restrain him. It'll make him nervous."

Yes, I could have had the Sladebots dump him somewhere softer, but he would be fine. He's handled much worse than this. Besides, there were certain lessons that I wanted to pound into his head before I do anything else.

"I need him to listen to me, Will," I replied. "I don't like it either, but he won't listen unless he has no other choice. Once he understands the ground rules then I'll let him go."

Wintergreen raised his eyebrows but said nothing. It didn't take a genius to tell that he disagreed with me. While I understood that he didn't actually care for the boy yet I knew that he was merely offering advice to help me achieve my goal. It was good advice. But once the boy started treating me with respect then I would treat him with respect. Simple as that.

"I'm not going to torture the boy," I said. I didn't know if I felt affronted or not at Wintergreen's silence. "Relax."

He continued to stare at me with that expression of slight disapproval. But, like always, I ignored it. Wintergreen knew all about my profession. He knew that I did worse than torture people on a daily basis. I kill for money. After all, I am a professional assassin. It's part of the job description. Will, however, was a different matter. After being a prisoner-of-war in Vietnam…I understood why he didn't like this arrangement.

"I am still of the opinion that you should have chosen a willing apprentice," he said coolly. "This boy will bring you trouble, I guarantee it. His disappearance will not go unnoticed for long. Eventually the Titans and the Justice League will come after you."

"If the Titans or the Justice League make any move to find him then we'll move. I won't let him leave until I can trust him to run errands."

Under my supervision, of course, I thought dryly. While I wished that I could trust him now I knew that it wouldn't be possible. I couldn't trust and I knew that he couldn't trust me either. Yet.

"I'm just saying that if it comes to a standoff, will you be able to handle the wrath of the entire Justice League by yourself?"

"Is that even a question?" I snapped back. "I've already taken precautionary measures against the kid's guardian and the Justice League. The Titans won't be a problem."

Almost at once I felt sorry for snapping at him, but I didn't apologize. On his part, Wintergreen accepted the verbal abuse without comment. If that had been Adeline I had yelled at, I might have gotten a punch to the face.

Or another bullet to the eye.

"I was merely being curious, Sir."

Without another word to me he continued to clean the room, rubbing the dust from the computer screens with perhaps a tad more aggression than he normally employed. I looked away. Will and I would always have our disagreements, but he always sided with me. But no matter…I had other things to worry about now.

When I first realized that he was Red X I felt a tad bit annoyed. At first I thought of Red X as nothing but a common thief. A wild card who would do anything for the now, and a cleverly dangerous one at that. He put most of the HIVE graduates to shame. While I didn't feel threatened I knew that, if Red X had been a genuine thief, I would eventually have to take him down.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I discovered that Robin was the one hiding under the mask. He made several mistakes that allowed me to deduce that it was him. His tenacity, however, impressed me. I would have never expected the Dark Knight's protégée to go to such lengths to bring me to justice.

I smirked to myself.

I half-expected his friends to barge in on us like the nosy little brats that they are, but they hadn't shown up. Robin must have hidden his footprints well to make sure that they wouldn't follow him. If they had shown up then I would have waited to meet Robin some other time. I was a patient man. I could wait. If I had been forced to wait then I could have observed Robin for a little longer. Make sure that I made the right choice…

No, I thought, I made the right choice. I can't second guess myself.

I switched the video cameras. The screens flickered from footage of the city to live footage of Titans Tower. The teens were sitting in their living room, apparently unaware that their leader was missing. I quickly scanned their faces. The changeling was playing a video game with the cyborg. The quiet empath was ignoring them and reading a book. However, the normally bubbly alien girl was sitting quietly on the couch. I studied her face for a moment before rewinding the video footage.

I switched to Robin's workroom. I watched the alien girl step into the room, calling out Robin's name. She knocked over the small hologram, accidentally causing it to play. I paused the video and sighed.

She knows, I thought. I made a mental note to check in on her more often. Even though that alien girl held a ditzy air I knew that she was dangerous. Tamaraneans were a warrior race. This Starfire could cause some real damage if she put her mind to it. But she didn't know that Robin would be working for me yet. So long as I kept out of the spotlight for a while they wouldn't suspect that I was behind his disappearance. Although it wouldn't hurt to send out a false lead to suggest that his disappearance was caused by another villain.

But the Titans knew that he was trailing me, I thought, I would be the first suspect on their list.

Honestly, though, I didn't expect to find Robin trailing me so closely. And even when he was deliberately breaking into tech companies he didn't bother to fake them. If I knew that it was him from the beginning I would have expected him to tell the companies in advance. But he didn't. Was that because he didn't feel the need to? That everything and everyone would be complacent and go according to plan?

This had been the last test. Yes, he had several faults that needed to be fixed, but that wasn't anything that training couldn't handle. In fact, I expected him to make mistakes. He may have more experience than most his age, however he was still young. While I could gloat over the fact that I won I knew that a victory over a teenager was hardly cause for celebration.

"Have the Titans realized that he is missing yet?" Wintergreen asked.

"No," I replied. "They think he is still researching me. Well, in a way he is now…"

Neither of us laughed. I didn't quite mean that as a joke. I wasn't much of a jokester anyway, not like the boy was in his early days. I supposed that is one of the few differences between us: his smart-aleck nature. From what I could tell, he had put away that side of him when he moved to Jump City. Perhaps I could coax it back out again.

Then again, I could be assuming too much. I knew a lot about the boy, but I didn't know him well as a person. There was only so much that I could glean from our previous conversations. There is a lot more to a man when he is broken down. There was no doubt in my mind that I would have to break Robin mentally down. Once I assessed all of his weaknesses and hit his self-esteem hard in the gut then I could develop the right techniques for changing the way he thought about the world. A paradigm shift for him, so to speak.

Instead of chiding me for my decision Wintergreen began to bustle around the room, dusting off the computers to make sure that the Haunt was suitable for our new guest. Despite the fact that I knew he would feel…what was the term Wintergreen used…nervous…there were other things I could do to make him feel more at ease.

I ran through several options in my head as I worked out a plan to turn him. I wasn't going to wait until he agreed with me to train him, though. I was going to have to gradually ease him into a routine; trick him into training with me willingly. Yes, it wasn't ideal, but it would do. I thought back to the few conversations we had when he masqueraded as Red X.

A costumed figure that I had never seen before popped on screen. Hmm…perhaps I would deign to grant him an audience. I was immediately struck by the young man's cocky attitude.

"Rumor has it you're interested in this." The thief held up a green computer chip.

Ah. Something about this thief seemed…off. I studied him through the webcam. I would play along for a bit and see what the kid wanted.

"I'm interested in many things, Mr…?"

"X. Red X."

"Hmm. Catchy. So are you proposing a sale…or a gift?"

"A partnership. I will give you the chip and you cut me in on your plans."

At once I understood what was bothering me: this was not a true thief. It was Robin. All at once the gears began to click in my mind. All at once I could not believe that Robin, the Batman's protégée, had done this. Another part of me grudgingly admired him for his brilliance. I have always admired Batman for his skills alone. Even without superpowers he was a formidable opponent. His protégée was just the same.

Although I knew that I would have eventually figured out that it was him Robin had given himself away with the word "partnership." However, for a brief moment I considered the possibility. While I had been throwing clues for him to unravel for a while this single act had cemented Robin's future. He proved to me that he could be as ruthless as he needed to be to achieve his goals. This was the one.

"A partnership. My, my, we are ambitious." I narrowed my eye. "But an alliance cannot be forged on one small chip. If you're going to win my trust, I'll require more."

"Just tell me what you want."

I smiled underneath my mask. For some time I had been searching for an apprentice…someone to follow in my footsteps. I hadn't even considered a Titan before…much less Robin, the Boy Wonder. But I had to admit that out of all five, Robin was the most dangerous. His willingness to do whatever it took to take me down impressed me.

"There's one more thing I require," I said, "there is a third chip. Security might be upped since you stole the last two, so if you think you can handle it…"

"Of course I can!" 'Red X' snapped.

Hmm. The boy had a bit of a short fuse, didn't he? Good. It would be easy to mess him up, then. Of course, for me it was easy to trip any kid up, but Robin was a clever boy. He would catch on quickly.

I told him what I needed. Although I knew that he was secretly seething underneath the mask I could tell that he was listening intently. Even now he was listening to me, showing me some respect, even if he grudgingly gave it. He was alert and paid attention to detail. No doubt that flying rodent taught him that. No matter. Batman gave him the basics. I would build upon them.

I came back to reality.

Robin lay curled on the floor with his hands tied behind his back. He wouldn't remain out for long. I had to do it so that he wouldn't cause too much trouble trying to escape. I also didn't want him to try to call the other Titans or see the way to the Haunt. That's why I destroyed his communicator. The less contact he had with his friends the better. Although it would be amusing to see them fight one another, I had no leverage to use against him.

Yes, I had planned to blackmail him, but this way would be better. If I proceeded with the blackmail then it would do nothing but allow him to funnel all his anger towards me. It would give him another, much stronger reason to hate me. Instead, I would redirect his anger at me towards his friends and his mentor. Once those doubts were planted firmly in his head then I would allow him to meet with the Titans again. There were things I could say and doubt to cement those doubts firmly in his mind. He would come naturally to my side rather than be forced to my side.

"Sir," Wintergreen said in the silence, "He's bleeding."

I glanced quickly over my shoulder to see Wintergreen examining a gash on Robin's forehead. The Sladebots had been pretty rough with him. However, I didn't want him hurt too badly. A beaten-up apprentice wasn't going to learn anything. Well, he would get a few bruises now and then, but that's all part of the learning process.

"Leave it," I said. "You can take care of that later."

"Are you sure?" Wintergreen looked down at him. "Patching him up might put him in a better mood."

I entertained the thought briefly, but then shook my head. "No. If it's not life-threatening then leave him alone."

Oh, once the kid woke up we would definitely discuss his future. He had been naïve to trust me to keep my word. I would have to fix that. However, when I said that it was only natural that we should be partners I meant it. I am a man of my word. To truly be partners would require more than just computer chips on his part. In a way, he had sealed his own fate by agreeing to steal the chips for me: he proved that he was capable of bringing out the dark side of himself.

I began to examine his belt, which one of the Sladebots had taken away from him. For someone as young as he is to make something like this is admirable, but I began to shake my head when I opened the power core.

"Xinothium…" I said to myself.

Just as I had suspected. The kid had been dumb enough to power his suit with Xinothium. If he hadn't used it then it might have taken me a little longer to guess that he was Red X. Surely he realized how dangerous Xinothium was…

Yes, he's perfectly aware of how dangerous it is, I thought. But he still did it.

I smiled again. It was fascinating watching Robin do this to himself. Whether he knew it or not he was a thrill-seeker. Even when he knew that something was dangerous or stupid he still did it. That wasn't a desirable trait. True, I was once reckless, but I knew better now. If this mistake to masquerade as Red X didn't quell his recklessness then I would have to beat it out of him. I will have to teach him how to use his recklessness to his advantage, rather than let himself make stupid decisions because of it.

I heard him move. I looked down at him again. Despite the blindfold around his eyes I could see his brow furrowing. He would come back to consciousness in a few moments. He stirred slightly against his restraints.

"Will," I said in a low voice, "once I'm done talking to him take him to his room. You can also patch up that gash too."

And any other injuries that may come up in our little "talk."

Wintergreen nodded. Robin probably wouldn't be too pleased to see me in this manner, but now that he was here I had to make the best of this. One wrong move and everything would fall apart. I had to make him see things my way. He didn't know it yet, but I already made my decision to choose him as an apprentice. Call me stupid for choosing him, but it was clear to me that he was the best choice.

For a moment I wondered whether or not it would be wise to tell him outright that he was going to be my student. Lying there unconscious on the floor, he looked so weak…so vulnerable…but I knew that he was far from that. Wintergreen was right: he was dangerous not just for his potential to beat me but for his connection to the cape community. I quickly assessed the situation.

For me to be successful, I would have to take Robin away from his friends. I would have to convince him that my way was the best way. It didn't matter if I already knew what was best for him. To be able to manipulate him correctly I would have to think like him; maybe even anticipate his thoughts and feelings. If I were in his position I would feel very much like a prisoner. I suspected that is what he how be feeling like for some time. It cannot be helped. So long as he has that attitude I might have no choice but to treat him like one until I can trust him.

No, I thought, I shouldn't tell him right away. Let him think I'm the villain. Use his new persona against him.

I concluded that telling him that he was my apprentice right away might make him hate me even more. But soon I would turn that hatred against me into hatred against those he believed to be friends. The boy was awake now. He doubled over and began to cough, unaware that I was in the room with him. I uncrossed my arms. First impressions were important, and one could only plan a conversation so far ahead.

Well, there was no turning back from this now.


A/N: Even though this is all in first person, rest assured that we will see the Titans! As some seasoned readers know, I'm pretty strict with my POV structure, so I'm not deviating from these two POVs.

In retrospect, I feel as though this chapter is better written than the last one. I wanted to write this in first-person because I really have to work at the different voices of these two characters. It's a challenge.

Review! Tell me if I'm repetitive.

P.S: I should have asked this a long time ago, but it would be helpful if some of you could help me describe my writing style. LOL, I couldn't explain to my prof how I write, so I thought you guys could describe it better than me!