DISCLAIMER: I don't own Teen Titans. If I did, this would be on TV and not here.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: About Sanza/Red X: When he's wearing the mask, he's Red X. When he's not, he's Sanza. Simple as that.

SECOND AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fanfic was not written by me!! This was written by an author named 'oneortheother', who gave me his express permission (and in fact insisted!) that it be posted on this account. This is the fourth installment of the Sanza Salazar saga, following "A Tale of Two Apprentices". Read the last three fanfics in the series before you read this. Also, this fic COMPLETELY IGNORES the events of the fifth season (with the exception of "Go"). For the purposes of this fic, "Things Change" NEVER HAPPENED.

O-O-O

X had pretty good knowledge of the area adjacent to his neighborhood, and he knew all about the offices and factories nearby that were controlled by the infamous CWA Corporation. He knew that it was in his best interest that he avoid anything too close, because a nearby robbery would surely alert the police about who a prime suspect was if the robbery occurred in what many considered Jump City's most infamous thief's neighborhood. Thus, he set off to another nearby urbanized area. This one had not only a CWA bank, but based on the bank's deeply flawed design, it would certainly be easy to break into and take a bit of 'compensation'. Also, despite the fact that it was still only a short stroll away from X's home and neighborhood, it was far away enough to avoid immediate suspicion. This was the place to break into tonight.

A half hour later, after zipping down the fire escape and dashing his way down several long streets, Red X found himself face-to-face with the many high-rise towers of downtown Jump City... offices galore, holding valuable secrets and relics of corporate affluence for the infamous thief to pilfer. And the CWA bank was his main target. As he made his way there he couldn't help but wonder if he would run into the Titans, though he knew he would have to try to avoid them if he did. He didn't want to risk revealing his identity and risk getting busted and he considered calling his friend Rob later and asked him to be his alibi.

"The situation is damn perfect," thought Red X, his eyes traveling from the building to the nearby shipping garage which provided a direct subwalk to the bank on its lower level. This was clearly an attempt to enable easier access to the budding racers and mechanics that often would use those garages. "Won't even have to go in the main door. This is going to be way too easy, not that that's a bad thing."

And with that self-assurance in mind, Red X quickly dashed to the shipping garage, darting from shadow to shadow in order to avoid the glares and curious stares of many pedestrians and random lowlifes making their way to downtown Jump City's various stripclubs and illegal gambling dens. The job would certainly be much simpler and easier if X could still use his teleporter, but the personally modified Xynothium reactor now currently fueling his suit simply wasn't able to provide a pure enough product to power the device, the most energy-intensive of the suit's many, many weapons and gadgets. Still, in some way, the lack of a teleportation device made X's thievery much more challenging... and certainly much more exciting. Enjoying the thrill of the hunt, the rush of adrenaline… these were the moments ex-master thief Red X lived for.

"Might as well enjoy myself while I'm here… while I'm doing what I gotta do."

However as Red X was busy avoiding the many patrons of this shady but popular district, he was too preoccupied to notice the blaring television in the main entrance, warning people not to enter and that the bank was under siege from robbers. This ignorance would prove to be his undoing. X made it to the shipping garage without any drama, but upon the master thief's arrival, the public bank seemed to be strangely deserted, quite strange for a well-known financial facility. From there it was a short jog to the subwalk and to the CWA building's first elevator. Once inside the elevator shaft, the entire building was accessible to Red X... it was simply a matter of climbing the cable and quickly phasing an opening to the right room. Looking around to make sure there weren't any nearby cameras to capture his break-in, X knew he had to be wary of how he did this. He was going to have to try and restrain himself as best as he could, since leaving the place blasted with remnants of Xynothium might as well be signing his confession sheet. But here it seemed he had no other option…

"Now if I could just remember how to do this..." thought Red X to himself, forming an X in his left hand while using his right to steady his aim, and affixing it to the metallic roof of the elevator. Since the dissolving and de-dissolving X was one of the weapons that had been born out of the need to steal and was not all that suitable for combat, it had been rarely used during training with the Titans or combat simulations. Red X had almost forgotten how to create it. The X seemed to stutter a bit at first, almost from disuse, then it quickly expanded and dissolved, creating a hole that was just large enough for Red X to slip through. Once he'd emerged on top of the elevator, the hole sealed itself back up and created a platform from which Red X could begin his ascent of the cable. "That wasn't so bad, now it's the hard part."

However, Red X's attitude promptly changed as soon as he entered what was meant to be the main currency storage facility. Sanza had been to this bank before on a few occasions, but he mainly remembered the incredibly long lines and the hive of activity that also was occurring there. But today, the scene was different. No queues, no lines, much worse.
The scene resembled a battlefield more than a bank. The once immaculate bank complex looked like a tornado had swept through it, a deadly, bloody, bullet-ridden tornado. Everywhere, desks were overturned. The previously spotless floors so clean that a family could have eaten off them were splattered with dust and debris, some of it from the desks and walls… and bizarrely, some of it from the ceiling.

Red X could only look up in awe. The one-time most wanted thief in Jump City had more than his fair share of horrific experiences, but nothing could really prepare him for what he saw. Such casual disregard for human life, everything he looked there was blood and moaning and weeping… the masked crusader murmured, "How could on earth could this happen? What is going on here…"

As he walked across the hall, his boots walking over crunching glass and rubble, X came across a shocking and gruesome sight. Corpses, several of whom were still wearing suits and other bank uniforms, were sprawled about like sacks. Red X started to lose his cool demeanor. He had a feeling he had just gotten in way over his head. He had just came in to steal some cash, maybe leave a rude sign behind while he was here, but seeing mass homicide, being a witness to something this ghastly… X suddenly felt like throwing up, though thankfully the nausea soon subsided.

X ran to the closest corpse could find, a burly, slightly obese, security guard who seemed to have been blasted in the chest numerous times. Red X groped desperately for a pulse, more in hope than in expectation… but as soon as he lifted the deceased man's wrist, he knew it was meaningless. The man was long dead… rigor mortis had even began to set in. All these people were dead and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. Despair began to creep in, this was exactly how he had felt when he knew he had failed to stop Slade and in the end, he had always been unable to match up. It had taken the Titans, namely their courageous leader Robin to stop Slade once and all. Red X had proven to be incapable and a failure. The thief clutched his side and pounded the nearby wall with such force that part of the cement smashed off.

"Who did this?!" Red X roared, his calm and cool demeanor wilting. "Is this why I am here today, Lord? To right all this injustice? First my mother and now this…"

Then, just on cue, the villain in question dropped right on by.

"There are days it seems the universe is conspiring against you."

A common criminal wielding a handgun and a knife burst in to see a very angry Red X glaring at him. X's adrenaline was really pumping now, and he was spoiling for a fight. However, before X had even gotten a word out, the would-be bank robber dropped to his knees and begged for his life. Truly unexpected…

"I beg you Reverend … please don't kill me, please!" the robber begged Red X pathetically. It was almost ironic, from one thief to another. The begging man radiated fear, whoever this 'Reverend' was must certainly have been a fearsome figure, as the man was scared out of his wits, tossing his weapons away and not even willing to take a chance against the seemingly unarmed Red X. Red X considered trying to comfort the bestricken thief but decided that it could wait. He wanted to see what the man knew first.

"What did you do?" X asked authoritatively, hoping that he was doing a good impersonation of whoever this bank robber thought he was.

"Please Reverend, I.. I understand it was wrong! What we did was so wrong! It was all so stupid, please just let me walk out of here, please!" the fear-stricken robber begged, his head bowed, pleading, still on his knees.

"What's your name?" X asked. Hopefully, it was more of an understanding tone. He knew that he didn't actually want things to get hostile, too many had died today as it was.

"Jose Abuelo…" the man whimpered, his head still facing the floor.

Red X was about to respond when he heard gunshots and an explosion of crimson.

"Maybe he wasn't such a coward after all…" X thought. His heart hammered in his chest at what felt like 200 beats a minute as he leapt away from the man and the booming gunfire.

The explosion of red turned out to be blood, though the blood thankfully wasn't Red X's.
Another one of Jose's robber pals had just run in, screaming at a surprisingly high pitch for what seemed to be a burly, muscular figure. "Run man! He's here, you gotta…"

The man would never be able to finish his sentence. Red X could only watch as the robber was gunned down, two precise shots to the left side of his chest. X didn't need to be an expert to realize that he wasn't going to be getting up again as the smell of fresh blood soon filled the room, along with the smell of energy residue. What was that familiar smell? Red X was certain he remembered it from somewhere, he had never been near guns… ever since a gun had killed his father he practically had a phobia of guns.

That familiar stench was the stench of Xynothium residue.

Red X was still frozen with fear. Never in all his battles had he even seen such an inconsiderate loss of human life, he thought about tracing the cross but currently he was having trouble getting to his feet, so that would have to wait. The robber who had been begging just a moment ago looked up at the cloaked gunmen, then looked at Red X, a mixture of fear, confusion and despair painted all over his features. It would be his final expression. An instant later, Red X was promptly sprayed with the poor man's blood as two more precise shots wiped out Jose Abuelo's life. As he collapsed the ground, silent as the grave, Red X rose to face the cloaked killer. Only then did he realize why many had dropped to his knees and begged for mercy. The man was dressed almost identically as Red X. A long dark trenchcoat covered his face, under that he wore a dark shirt and pants. Most importantly, he wore a sinister mask, a mask that inspired fear in his foes. The man walked with authority, and his demeanor immediately notified that his words were worth listening to.

"How dare you mock the Lord with such senseless destruction! I should make you pay for that, tough guy!" Red X yelled, almost unaware of the words his mouth was forming.
The mysterious figure stepped forward, his silhouette flickering as a result of all the broken lights in the facility.

"Thou shalt not steal," the man said simply, those four words communicating all the motives for why he had murdered those two thieves as the cloaked stranger walked forwards.

"Thou shalt not kill," Red X responded in kind, letting the man know that his explanation surely wasn't sufficient as he walked slowly, his boots crunching on the glass as he walked to meet this intimidating villain.

Now that they were in a close proximity to each other, Red X realized exactly who he was dealing with. The pistols he had used to mow down those two thieves and presumably many of the other bank employees that he had seen as corpses were now tucked in their holsters. Clearly this fearsome figure was dismissing X as a threat. After all, to the casual observer, Red X was unarmed. Though this was a case in which X was glad his reputation hadn't preceded him, this chump clearly had no idea who he was dealing with. And X was looking forward to showing him how much a mistake that was.

O-O-O

The Teen Titans had just arrived on the scene and were currently communicating with the local police taskforce to make sure that as chaotic as the situation seemed, the solution would soon be at hand.

"What's your situation, Captain?" Robin asked.

"Well, those bank robbing bastards are holed up pretty tight in there. We've heard some gunfire and we have some confirmed casualties, but we can't just go in because they claim they've got hostages. But well, we were thinking you could…" The captain replied gruffly before he was interrupted by…

"Don't worry capt, we know the drill. The Teen Titans'll take 'em out!" Beast Boy answered enthusiastically.

"Glad to hear it. We'll cover all the exits to make sure they can't escape, but they demanded a frankly outrageous ransom and they aren't coming out to collect it till an hour from now, so I guess you guys gotta stay put till then. They're gonna be on high alert and we don't really want to risk killing those hostages," the captain responded before saluting them. "Good luck and watch out for their leader, he's some heartless bastard in a mask and trenchcoat!"

"So we wait…" Robin murmured, hoping the other two 'members' of the team would be able to make it before then. If these guys were as vicious and aggressive and the police claimed them to be, they were really going to need the help of Red X and Terra to take them down…

O-O-O

As the two cloaked criminals faced off, the tension was intense. It was not unlike a western cowboy style face off, with each of the pair just waiting to 'draw'. Let the trash talking begin.

"Why are you wearing that cross? Isn't taking the name of a member of our religious order not insulting enough?" Red X demanded, who from this close up, was able to notice the talisman that clung to the mysterious man's neck.

"I wear the cross for the same reason you would. I've heard all about you, Red X," the masked and hooded man responded. He leaned forward, the fearsome shape of his mask and the way the shadows contorted over him and his guise starting to intimidate the savvy thief ever so slightly.

Red X began to sweat under his mask, he hadn't been in a real battle for ages and despite his training with the Titans and the True Master, he had the feeling he was seriously outgunned. As he stared back into the cold mask that was his foe, he wondered about what the hell his opponent meant when he said that. However, he didn't have the patience or the attitude to inquire about that right now. This cold villain was really making Red X hot under his helmet, and not just because of the ventilation system that was now spewing warm soot and dust into the room instead of refrigerating the room at a reasonable temperature. Red X wasn't a talker. After all, actions spoke louder than words. And Red X was going make this religious poser pay for his sins. Red X quickly charged up a pair of explosive Xs and launched them at his cloaked opponent, who had foolishly put away his weapon when he saw Red X was seemingly unarmed, and X was going to make him pay for underestimating him. As the explosive Xs threw up dust and debris, X was glad to see that his foe had been unable to escape the explosions' blast radius and while still on his feet, looked a bit disoriented. That might have been all the advantage X would need, as he launched several shurikens at his shaken-up opponent, immediately taking initiative and taking the fight to him. He was far too occupied with the duel to notice the hum of the security camera right behind him…

However, the mysterious figure had been able to recover quickly from the disorienting and painful explosions and managed to find the legs to dodge the shurikens while quickly sidestepping X's quick physical blows. X's superior martial arts abilities were giving him the upper hand, and for a second he was enjoying himself, all that training seemed to have paid off and his confidence was quickly returning.

It would be no trouble to wrap this guy up, thought the thief as he landed a quick stinging fist to the cloaked killer's chest.

However just as Red X was planning his celebration party, he felt a hammering drop-kick to his ankle snap him out of his battle-euphoria through a shot of pain. As X tried to angrily retaliate by planting an electrifying X on him and enjoy watching this self-proclaimed holy man roll about in pain, the maverick retaliated. Red X saw him respond with blistering reflexes as he used both his hands to pin the forearm of the hand which contained the circuit-shortening X, and repeatedly kneed X's stomach hard. The tensing pain made the surprised thief feel like his opponent was stomping on his stomach, and just when he felt like his dinner was threatening to come out, he decided he had enough, no more fun and games. He charged up some Xynothium for a devastating energy attack that would leave the killer flailing with pain.

However, just as X was about the unload all that energy, his opponent once again responded with incredible reflexes, kneeing X one last time and using the momentum and his hands to toss him back, this was enough to throw off X's aim as the electric blast harmlessly dissipated into the ground.

"Damn… does this guy have eyes in the back of his head?" X thought, tasting blood in his mouth as he prepare do charge at Reverend again..

The killer charged again and X met his attack head-on. As they locked fists with each other, both refusing to give way, the cloaked figure smiled jovially, though it was invisible under his mask. "Nice moves kid, I'm impressed."

"I'm not much impressed by your skills, scum." X gritted his teeth, refusing to give way in this tug-of-war.

To a bystander watching the duel, the resemblance the two fighters had was truly eerie, considering the cloaks shrouded their respective masks in shadows. To one of the combatants it might have looked like they were pushing off from a mirror, since they seemed almost identical, a mirror copy even. Truly an uncanny resemblance…

Just as Red X seemed to be gaining the upper hand, he saw an opening and took it. Easing up the pressure on his right hand he elevated with right foot to thump the figure soundly in the face with his right foot. To Red X's dismay, his opponent was able to respond, countering the attack perfectly. The maverick kicked out with his left foot, right over Red X's already twisted ankle causing X's ascension to plummet. As the thief tried to salvage the attack and lash out with his still airborne right foot, he was dismayed to see that his opponent had his left forearm bent back to easily absorb the blow. While Red X's blow relatively harmlessly bounced off his flesh, the counterattacking killer used his other hand and the left shoulder which had just absorbed the previous blow in a pushing lunge that was forceful enough to knock X flying backwards. Thankfully, X managed to sidestep past the blow. He ducked under the arm giving himself a chance to recuperate. However, the killer was determined not to give him that chance, leaping off the left foot that was still crunching Red X's ankle and causing the thief to let out an audible groan. He used a ferocious backhand swing to strike at Red X, but X's training saved him, as despite the agonizing pain in his ankle he managed to lean back, just out of the killer's strike radius.

"Better luck next time," X muttered, as he prepared to counterattack...

But this warrior wasn't going to require a next time. While his backhand fist blow was still sweeping, he flexed his thumb, triggering a weapon within his glove. A fine finger knife stirred, large enough to kill but small enough to be concealed along the long diameter of the glove. It was the weapon of an elite assassin. The serrated edges of the blade, similar to that of the teeth of a great white shark, the edges of the blade were intricately designed to most efficiently slice through flesh and bone and these weapons did their job well. The simple weapon that this mysterious man bore, an assassin's tool, used eons ago, yet still existing today in a more perfected form was absolutely deadly in its simplicity. The simple mechanism that worked the fine finger knife was, quick, silent and efficient, much like a trained killer. The blade flew out, did its job then retracted. Used by generations of assassins, dating all the way back to the First Crusade, it was simply operated on the principle of surprise, using the element of surprise to stun the enemy and land the first blow. Focusing on the concept explored by an ancient warrior of legend…

"The first blow is the most important. It often negates the need for a second."
-Peacekeeper Agrus Kos.

This was a concept the man swinging the lethal blade was well aware of, he was hoping the sudden attack would leave his foe disoriented in a weakened state and easy to finish off.

"No need for a second blow," the killer smiled, flexing his wrist which was poised to send the hidden blade searing across his victim's neck as he lunged forward. He gritted his teeth, a small smile on his lips, not visible under his sinister mask.

The slender, slightly curved silver blade quickly flew out of its concealment, increasing the killer's lethal swing radius. X was fast, but not quite fast enough as the blade nicked the edge of his shoulder, the serrated edges of the blade slicing straight through the durable material of the suit and breaking the skin. X was surprised and stunned by the blood flow.

"What could possibly have…"

He barely noticed the glint within the glove that was quickly retracting itself and disappearing as quickly as it had come. As the killer drew his other gloved fist back to prepare for a subsequent attack, he couldn't help but be a little surprised and impressed himself. His masked foe had shown uncanny reflexes and speed, managing to avoid much of the razor-sharp blade. He felt lucky he had still managed to jab his foe in the shoulder blade, he had been aiming for his foe's neck after all. While it was far from a crippling blow, it seemed to have distracted his opponent momentarily, meaning he had achieved his purpose. First blood had been drawn.

Now just to finish the job.

And as quickly as it had come, the finger knife was gone. In its place, a quick fist that was currently en route to X's face. Red X was sent reeling backwards, his head throbbing painfully from that brutal right hook as subsequent blow brought the surprised thief painfully to the ground.

"Good game kid, but game over," the killer murmured cryptically as he pointed at Red X with his right hand and drew his Xynothium powered pistol with his left hand.

But X had been in more gruesome situations before and he sure wasn't losing to this cretin, as Red X blinked away the grueling pain and responded instinctively, creating a metallic X with one hand to block off the imminent bullet storm he was about to face and an explosive X in the other hand, aimed at the ceiling to give him a bit of breathing room.

And again, both sides exchanged blows. Just as the Xynothium tipped bullets clanged noisily against the metal that was nearly penetrating X's shield, the explosive X brought down half the ceiling. If not for a last-minute leap, X's opponent would surely have been buried under a mountain of rubble.

X made his escape, firing his makeshift shield like a battering ram at his foe, who hadn't been expecting it and was hammered across the room by the weapon. The thief jogged away, still clutching his bloody shoulder wound and limping slightly due to his hurt ankle. As he walked across the first hallways, he accidentally bumped across a wall while he tried to find the exit. As he stepped out, however, he was greeted by very loud blaring police horns demanding he give himself up.

"This can't end well..."

The flight part of X's 'fight or flight' mentality began taking hold as he looked right and left. Two options to which path to take, two totally different results.

"Eenie meenie miney moe…"

O-O-O

Back inside the bank, the mysterious figure stood up, rubbing his aching chest where X's makeshift ram had impacted him. He was mentally berating himself himself for not being able to avoid it, and had just recovered from the shock of nearly being buried alive.

"Well first things first, survival. Let's get out of here."

Seeing as how the ingenious young thief that had somehow escaped from him had managed to get in, the killer figured he must have had a suitable exit plan as well. He scanned the adjacent hallway left and right for where he could have escaped to. On the right he noticed a faded blood smear, a fact he found quite bizarre.

"Didn't I nick him on the left shoulder? I'll take that as God's sign, avoid the blood-stained path…"

This mysterious man was far from the average villainous individual. He mentally chanted a soft prayer for those departed that day in this building, then he stopped momentarily and gazed upwards dreamily, as if silently calling out to the Lord almighty himself. With that, the maverick swiveled on the ball of his foot and walked across to the left side of the hallway. After just a few steps he soon he saw his welcoming committee… and they were far from the average heroes.

The Titans had quickly made their way into the bank with absolutely no resistance, having they did see a disturbingly large amount of corpses as well as casualties. After helping the injured, they sought out the find the one responsible, and they were soon about to. The killer spun about and came face to face with the Teen Titans. Despite the horrible lighting in the area, it was impossible to miss them.

As Robin let out a 'Hey you, stop!', the figure knew that perhaps he should have gone the other way.

"After all, one should embrace's one's destiny, not walk away from it…"

As he ran, not away from the Titans due to fear, but back to the blood smear that he had just passed, the one he knew deep down God had meant for him to find… he knew it meant something. It had to mean something, it just had to.

"There are things that cannot be understood through science and logic and reasoning, there is always a role for faith and prayer. There has to be a reason, there has to be a reason for it all. Because I know if there isn't a reason, if there isn't one, if there is no greater purpose in the world. It's not a world I want to live in."

The cloaked man wouldn't consider himself an extremist or a fanatic, but the truth was that he was a man who would gladly die for his cause… was that his purpose?

Was his purpose, his destiny, his fate to be willing to make what he thought were the tough decisions for the greater good?

Did that make him a hero?

He was a killer of killers, one who purged the infidels, but by breaking the law.

Did that make him a villain?

What was his destiny?

Whatever this man's, this Reverend's future was, the Titans who were due to meet him in moments would have a hand in it.

Particularly if he were to spend time behind bars or not.

O-O-O

As soon as Robin saw someone who matched the specifications of the leader of the one who had killed all those people at the bank, he was especially eager to bring him to justice. He shuddered to think about all the people here who had families and children… As Robin sprinted, gaining ground… as he pulled out a freezing gadget from his utility belt ready to stop the bastard who had done all this, he saw the thief use a large sweeping motion with his hands on his trenchcoat, getting rid of some of the dust on it.
"What a pansy, can't have a little dust on your coat? You're going to have all the time to clean it when you're in jail…"

However, Reverend wasn't the kind of guy to be vain enough to waste precious time cleaning his jacket, especially not a time like this. It had instead been a very clever move. In a single flourish he had accessed the micro-explosives he had in his pockets and scattered a good dozen of them around, while disugisng the gesture to it looked like a casual sweep of his jacket. They each had about two second delay before they exploded, so Reverend couldn't resist giving the Titans a mocking little salute before the explosions rocked the foundation.

Robin was just about to release his ice-capsule and was preparing to bring the criminal to a shuddering, freezing halt, when he saw the explosion that knocked him clean of his feet. The red explosion, the residue, where had he noticed it before? And that smell, that eerie smell. The smell of Xynothium…

Then it all made perfect sense.

O-O-O

Reverend knew he had to keep on moving. He had ended up right back where he started as he ran past the blood-smeared wall agaub. Thinking he might even encounter that reckless Red X, he moved past that corridor, but after hearing sirens and realizing that the other path was completely blocked off by the police, he went off in a completely different direction.

He was a man with a heart full of faith, faith that he was doing the right thing.

Red X was breathing heavily as he looked around desperately for an exit, but it seemed just about everywhere was blocked off. How he wished he could use his teleporter now…

He doubled back, seeing nothing but corpses, fires and rubble. There was nothing that could help him, and based on how loud all the sirens were, the cops must have the whole building surrounded. He sprinted as quickly as his aching ankle allowed him, turning a corner before then bumped headfirst into someone he wasn't very happy to see again.

It was Reverend.

He had bumped into Reverend, the mysterious figure from earlier, who ran off after that without saying a word.

"What?!" thought the surprised thief, raising his palm towards his fleeing foe. He flirted with the idea of shooting Reverend in the back with an exploding X, but seeing as how he was running out of time he eventually decided against it. "You better hope you never meet me again, psycho…"

But soon, Red X would realize why that mystifying murderer had fled so quickly. The Titans had arrived, and upon hearing Robin's angry battle cry, X knew Reverend must have attacked them. Based on how they looked so similar, X wouldn't have been surprised if Robin assumed it was X who attacked them. X didn't want to feel the sting of their words when they realized he had gone back to his old criminal ways, even though this was now ordinary heist or robbery, especially since they knew where he lived! He could just imagine how crestfallen Starfire would be… And Terra…

He pushed all thoughts like that clear out of his mind as he desperately looked for an exit.

"First things first… get out of here ASAP…"

Because regardless of all that had happened, one thing was certain. Red X had to get out of there, pronto.

He could go and follow Reverend back to that dead end, but he wasn't going to take the chance that the mysterious killer wouldn't try slicing him open while he was there… the guy was insane, after all. Or X could take his chance with the cops outside.

X chose the latter.

He had barely gotten outside and took a breath of fresh air when concentrated gunfire hammered his already weary body. He was just about to be able to escape their grasp, just one more leap past the guards… that's when Starfire's energy bolts slammed into his body, propelling him back.

"Damn…! All that for nothing," thought the weary crusader, as he scrambled to his feet and tried to look for an opening, but it appeared there wasn't going to be another chance. As soon after X had painfully gotten to his feet, his wounded and fatigued body screaming at him, the rest of the Titans arrived, adding more insult to injury.

"We thought you had changed, Sanza…" spoke Starfire quietly, a sad look in her eyes.

Starfire's words stung, and X knew that this was his once chance to redeem himself before things spiraled out of control.

"Hey, wait! No! I can prove to you it wasn't me! I'll show you the guy who did do all that crazy, messed-up stuff! He's stuck back there! It's a dead end! Raven, just go there and search for him, I'll prove it! Use your powers, you can sense there's another guy…!"

Back in the rubble, hiding and holding his breath behind the body of a knocked out CWA security guard, Reverend was praying, hoping that the obscene amount he had paid for the telepathic-nullifying mask and armor had paid off. Raven's psychic waves washed over the area, but the cloaked killer was totally invisible to her.

"There's no new presence down there…" Raven responded, her head bowed. "As much as I had hoped there was…"

"And my sensors are just picking up civilians that have been accounted for. Five life forms, just like the robbers claimed. Those are the hostages the bank robbers mentioned," Cyborg said, as he looked up from his robotic scanner.

"Who are you trying to fool, X? You're going to jail!" Robin answered angrily as he pulled Red X's arm back into a painful lock. "I don't care what you did before, you're under arrest now!

"IT WASN'T ME!" Red X shouted to the heavens, though it seemed God was unavailable tonight as the heavens seem to offer no reply.

But as Reverend stealthily made his way out of the facility, removing his mask and weapons and stashing them in his backpack before mingling with the other civilians, perhaps only God could answer this question.

Why?

---

How will this situation be resolved? And who is this new mysterious character Reverend? Stay tuned for chapter 4, coming soon!