Author's Note: Well, three chapters in one day. I'm pretty proud of myself. Lol
Disclaimer: I sadly don't own them.
Chapter 3
Explanation
Beast Boy screamed bloody murder, nearly ripping his arms out of their sockets as he jolted upwards. It was the dream again. But this one was a bit different. It didn't matter, though. The pain of a needle in his arm resounded through his entire body, and his joints connecting his limbs to his body were flared with pain. He jerked at the restrains, terrified. He had to get out, he had to run. He was frightened, alone, hurting. As he jerked on the leather straps, the door to the room opened, revealing three of the remaining four Titans.
"Friend Beast Boy! Why did you scream?" Starfire cried.
Beast Boy couldn't answer…he was still struggling to be free. Though, as all mortals do, he grew tired, sinking back down to the bed. His breathing was labored, interrupted by pain and confusion. Where was he? What day was it? Who was speaking to him? Where had he just been? Questions spun through his head, none being answered.
He lay still in the bed, eyes closed, and tears streaming down his face. What was happening to him?
"Beast Boy?" Cyborg was calling to him this time. He sounded a bit scared, and a bit wary.
A soft groan was the only response he got. Not a growl, as had been common these past few…hours?...days?...whatever. His face was contorted with pain, with misery, with fear. His body shook with tremors and chills, a cold sweat breaking over his body. Was he getting sick again?
Sensitive ears picked up the footfalls of two people…Cyborg and one of the girls. He could feel the female's fingers resting on his wrist, checking his pulse. He could clearly hear the heart monitor beeping relentlessly, so why were they checking him? Did they not believe the machine? It sounded way too fast…he hoped it was wrong…but something told him it wasn't. His dream had been so real, so painful. It wouldn't surprise him if he died while dreaming.
"Cyborg, please do not give Beast Boy the sedative again. I do not think he would like that."
"I won't. He's not fighting back right now. Beast Boy…what's wrong, man?"
Beast Boy tried to answer. He got some indistinguishable sounds out, but couldn't seem to form the words. They were coming together in his head, but broke apart before he could utter them. His vision was swimming…everything blurred into one object. He could make out two faces, a dark, half-metal one and a pale one. Raven. For once, he didn't feel like snapping at her. She had been the only horse to not want to kill him. He wanted to reach up and hug her, to thank her. But the blasted straps wouldn't allow it. And neither would the pain his body was feeling.
"Come on, stay with me." Raven's hand rested on his cheek, holding his head up.
He saw her, he saw Cyborg, yet at the same time, he didn't. It felt like a dream, a relatively painless one. He was in agony, sure, but was not currently being tortured. He tried to focus, but couldn't for long. Suddenly exhausted, he lay his head against her hand and nearly fell asleep.
"Don't you pass out on me now." Raven's voice kept him awake.
He nodded slightly, the throbbing sting starting to subside. A sigh of relief escaped his lips, and he struggled to mutter an "I'm sorry."
"What, B?"
"M sor…"
"Hey, focus man." Cyborg tried to bring him around. "You're gonna be alright, I promise. Okay?"
Not caring at the moment if he would or not, the changeling nodded. His eyes opened a bit, looking first at the two carefully watching him, then to the alien girl hanging back a few feet. A few tears shimmered in her eyes, and her hands were clasped prayer-style. Wow…they were really worried about him. He knew they would be. After all, they were his best friends.
"Where's Robin?" The green teen managed to ask.
"Working." There was a heavy amount of spite in Cyborg's voice. Something was wrong.
"What's going on, dude?" Beast Boy's words were slurred together, but his question was clear enough.
"Oh nothing. Boy Wonder just decided to ditch us when we needed him and go watch TV."
"Figures." The exhausted teenager sighed.
He wanted to sleep, so badly. He knew that he would only be met with another nightmare, but he was so tired. Again, the weight of his head rested heavily against Raven's hand, and she jiggled him awake.
"What did I say?" She scolded.
"Sorry." He yawned, the movement hurting his neck.
"Where are you sore?"
"Everywhere." He answered the other boy. There was a slightly joking tone to his words.
"I'm serious."
"Me too."
"Where does it hurt the most?"
"My shoulders, especially my left one. And where my legs were…" Don't say ripped out. He silently reminded himself. "My hips."
"Alright, let me look at your left shoulder first." Beast Boy could feel his sleeve being cut off at the neck.
As Cyborg removed the spandex sleeve, he was met with a horrendous scar and a red, bruised area where a needle had entered the boy's body. But, it wasn't from the sedative. He had put that in on the boy's right arm. Just to make sure, the half-robot removed the other sleeve. Lo and behold, two small holes rested on the boy's arm, a few inches from the shoulder.
"Where did you get this?" Cyborg gently poked the bruise, causing Beast Boy to wince. "Sorry."
"'Ts'kay." The boy mumbled. "Isn't that where you shot me?"
"No, I gave you the sedatives on your right arm. And I was careful enough not to give you a bruise. But this bruise was caused by a shot."
"My dream." The green one muttered.
The three others in the room exchanged glances, then looked back to him for more of an explanation.
His cheeks flushed at the embarrassment, then he cleared his throat. "This morning…or…when did we have the 'physicals'?" Cyborg and Raven flinched at the harsh word.
"Yesterday." Cyborg replied.
"Alright. Yesterday, I woke up, and my arm was sore. I didn't think anything of it…thought it was cause of my dream." Beast Boy's words were growing stronger, less weak. "Guess not, huh?" He smiled a bit, liking the feeling of not being angry.
"Apparently not. I don't have a camera set up in the bedrooms, but I will look at the one outside your window, and the perimeter ones. To check and see if anyone broke in. The perimeter alarm has been on the fritz, so it's possible someone did." There was shame in Cyborg's voice. The metal man knew he should have fixed the alarm, but he hadn't gotten around to it. And now, it might have cost his friend's life.
He left, his heavy footsteps echoing down the hall to the surveillance room. Starfire, who had remained quiet, finally spoke up.
"Friend Beast Boy, are you no longer angry at us?" She asked tentatively.
"No. I'm sorry I was before. I couldn't help it." He sighed. He had a feeling he knew exactly who broke into his room.
"I didn't know if you wanted me to heal the scars on your hand so…" Raven was hesitant, as well. "…I didn't. Do you want me to?"
Beast Boy shook his head. He felt as if those scars, though no one should have ever seen them, defined him. They reminded of his past mistakes, and of his past in general. Erasing those was like erasing part of his life, part of the pain he had for so long suffered. He couldn't let go of the twisted mutations, not yet.
"How did you get them?" Starfire asked, whispering. She didn't want him to snap at her again for asking him to explain.
Beast Boy inhaled harshly, his exhale shaky. "When I was seven my parents…died." He would leave out the detail that he was sure it was his fault…for now. "My guardian, Nicholas Galtry, had been embezzling money from my parent's bank account for awhile, and when he heard they were dead and I was in his care, and that if I died he would get my inheritance, he decided to kill me. After all, I was now officially his child, and if he made it look like an accident, mourn for a couple weeks, no one would know the difference. And so, he attempted to murder me. But before he could, a scientist named Samuel Register, got a hold of me. He performed experiments on me, trying to find out my pain tolerance, how I changed, anything that could have been affected by the disease. He…"
"Friend, of what disease do you speak of?" Starfire cut him off.
Beast Boy looked at her, sorrow and fear filling his eyes. "Sakutia." He whispered.
He remained quiet for a moment, gathering his thoughts. He had started to cry, if only slightly. His past hurt, and he didn't like talking about it. He took another distressed breath, and continued.
"He kept me in his possession for almost two years. I'm surprised he didn't kill me with everything he did to me…including this." His hands raised, showing them the scarred, twisted backs of them.
Starfire let out a small gasp, holding his hands. A soft tear landed in the center of his right hand. "I am sorry my friend." She whispered.
"Is that what your nightmares have been about?" Raven asked.
"Partially. I just can't shake the feeling that Galtry is coming back for me." He admitted.
Before other questions could be asked, Cyborg reappeared. He looked guilty, ashamed, and upset. And Beast Boy had a feeling he knew exactly why.
"What did you find?" He asked.
"Someone broke into your room." He muttered. "I don't know what he gave you, but I need to test your blood to make sure it's gone."
