Chapter IV: Robin's Hideout
Terra and Robin made their way across the city as the sun began to sink towards the horizon. Terra kept her concentration levitating the large rock they had hopped on outside the Tower. Robin sat perched along the edge calmly looking over the ground below him.
"Put us down by that building," Robin said in a loud unconcerned voice.
Terra looked up and thought she spotted the building Robin was talking about. She was slightly annoyed with him. He hadn't really said a word to her other than telling her what to do. No questions on strategy or what she thought they should do. Terra knew she was the newest member of the team and she didn't really expect to be asked her opinions but she was getting highly agitated with Robin's haughty attitude.
"No Terra, the building on the right," Robin corrected her.
Terra spied another building and guided them towards it.
"Your other right," Robin said again as he looked at her with a slight smirk.
"Sorry," Terra said softly to him. She turned them towards a large warehouse building. "This one?" she asked in slight frustration.
"That's it. Set us down by the back side," Robin said as he pushed himself up to his feet.
Terra gently guided their rock to the place Robin told her to go. He jumped off just as she was about to land them gently on the ground.
"Come on let's go," Robin called back to her. He quickly ran towards a large graffiti covered dock door.
"What's the fricken hurry," Terra said to herself. She reluctantly followed their self appointed leader. Beast Boy was right; Robin had an annoying habit of assuming everyone would follow him. Terra caught up to him as he fumbled for something in his utility belt. She watched as he pulled out what looked like an over-sized key. Robin slid this into a slot then sighed in disappointment.
"Powers out again," he said dully then fumbled for something else. Robin pulled out what looked like an oversized battery. He ran a couple of wires to the key panel. A small green light came on and the door began to slowly roll up. It stopped a couple of feet off the ground. Robin quickly removed the wires and pulled out the key.
"Come on, we've got to crawl under the door." Terra watched as Robin scurried towards the opening then rolled into the darkness.
Terra took deep breath then followed after her team mate. She stood up in the dark space. The door suddenly slid shut plunging her into darkness.
"Robin?" she called out. A bright light suddenly flashed in her eyes.
"Right here," Robin's voice called out.
"I figured that," Terra said in disgust as she raised her hand to shield her eyes from the annoying light. "Can you please shine that light someplace else?" A funny thought immediately passed through her mind.
"Sorry," Robin's voice echoed in the dark space. "Can you come over here and hold this for a second."
Terra walked over and took the flash light from him. Robin quickly took the key out of the slot and removed the battery wires. He turned and smiled to her.
"I'm sorry the power's out," he explained. "The transients must have been in here again."
"What do you mean?" Terra asked as she passed the light back to him.
"Someone must have come in here and stripped the electric wires out again," Robin explained as he began walking through the derelict space.
"Couldn't they kill themselves doing that?" she asked as she followed Robin. The room had a musty oily smell to it. Robin's light only illuminated a small portion of the immense room reflecting off several large pools of water.
"Yea," Robin replied. "The price of copper has gone up. I guess if you're strung out on drugs you'll do anything to get your next fix." Robin paused for a moment then continued on as he walked towards the other end of the building. "Watch out for the pools of water. Don't step in them; some of them are twenty feet deep."
Terra looked at the water with a sudden foreboding. "Is this place yours?"
"Not really," Robin continued as he came to a large metallic door. He pulled out the battery, strung the wires to another panel on the wall. There was a click and a slight groan of a motor. The door slowly swiveled to the side exposing a pitch-black room. "This used to be a government research lab. This room is lead shielded; they used to do research on radioactive materials. The door weighs ten tons but is balanced so that a four horse-powered motor can open it. Cool, huh?" Terra could see Robin smile in the darkness.
"What's in here?" Terra asked as she and Robin entered the room.
"Give me a second and I'll show you," Robin said as he put down the light and walked over to one side of the room. She watched as he bent over something, flicked a couple of switches and pulled back quickly. A generator sputtered to life. Robin stood up and hit a couple of more switches and light suddenly flooded the room. Terra looked over what appeared to be some type of lab with several computer consuls. She looked over at Robin who smiled with pride. "Welcome to RL2."
"RL2?" Terra asked cautiously.
"Yea," Robin said as he walked over and took a seat at one of the terminals. He reached down and flicked on a power strip allowing the computer to come to life. "Robin's lair two," he explained as he leaned back in his chair and watched his system boot up.
"Robin's lair two?" Terra asked in disbelief. He had never mentioned to these bases to the other Titans. "You mean you have more than one?"
"Maybe," Robin responded as he began to work the keyboard.
Terra snarled to herself in disgust. "Why haven't you told the others?"
"They never asked," he replied. "I was working this city before I joined the Titans. Where was I supposed to live and work?"
Terra thought over Robin's explanation for a moment. "All right, I can see your point, but why haven't you told the others?"
Robin paused for a moment then swiveled his chair to face his partner. "I don't know. I guess it just wasn't important."
"You mean the others weren't important enough to tell," Terra countered. She understood keeping secrets but this one only made her angry.
Robin scowled at his accuser and folded his arms across his chest. Terra responded with an equally serious glare and put her hands on her hips as an awkward silence passed between them.
"I told you didn't I?" Robin finally spoke up breaking the silence.
"Only when you had to," Terra seethed. "If you had your way I wouldn't even be with the Titans." A surge of remorse coursed through Terra. She hadn't meant to say that.
Robin's eyes lit up in astonishment. He didn't expect this attack on him.
"I'm sorry Robin," Terra quickly said before Robin could reply. "I didn't mean to say that." She looked down ashamed that she had lost her temper.
"Who told you that?" Robin asked firmly.
"No one really," Terra said in a soft voice. "I kind of figured it out on my own. Beast Boy said the vote was close, but he didn't say who voted for or against me. I figured Beast Boy and Raven said yes, and you know Starfire can't say no to anyone. So that left you and Cyborg in the other camp."
Robin leaned back in his chair as he considered what Terra had said. He was kind of surprised that she had figured it out on her own. "You're right," he finally acknowledged. "But that's past history; you're part of the team now. I won't treat you any different than the others."
Terra looked back into Robin's eyes. "That's the problem. You're always so condescending."
"What do you mean?" Robin countered.
"Like this competition," Terra continued. "Telling the others you were only interested in kicking our butts and not asking me whether I wanted to be the assassin or the defender."
"I had my reasons," Robin said coldly.
Terra waited for a second hoping Robin would elaborate. Nothing followed. "See this is what I mean. Would you mind letting me know why?"
Robin sighed. Why did everyone always question his decisions? This was one of the reasons why he preferred to work alone; just another habit he had picked up from his benefactor. "Well, let's see. You've only been here a couple of months. How familiar are you with the city?" Terra shrugged her shoulders. "Right. I know this city as well as anyone. Figured I would have an easier time hiding from the others; you'd be lost inside ten minutes."
Terra continued to glare at him; he was right of course and that's why it was absolutely annoying. "Ok, you're right. But next time please ask."
"It would be easier if you just did what I said," Robin replied.
Terra growled in frustration. "What is it with you?"
"Look, I don't have any super powers to fall back on. All I've got is what's going on upstairs," Robin tapped his head to emphasize his point.
"That big head of yours is what gets you in trouble," Terra quickly countered. "Not everything is a competition you know. It gets annoying after awhile."
Robin looked down in frustration. He always felt at a disadvantage with the rest of the Titans. They each had their own powers while he had to rely on gadgets and his mind. It took all his resources to keep up with them. "You're beginning to make me wish I had twisted Starfire's arm to keep you out," he said in a low voice.
Terra looked down in disgust. "Look, I'm sorry I blew up at you." She looked into Robin's glaring eyes. They softened after a few silent seconds.
"It's ok," Robin finally replied. "It takes awhile to build teamwork. I guess Cyborg was right; we needed to mix the teams up a bit."
"Well, you could have acted a little more disappointed that Starfire wasn't on your team," Terra said as she tried to gauge Robin's response.
"She's a big girl," Robin replied in an unconcerned voice as he turned and began typing on the keyboard again. "Besides her and Cyborg get along great; their team will be hard to beat."
Terra scowled behind Robin's back. "You say that like it's no big deal. Do you have any idea how much Starfire cares for you? "
Robin stopped typing and swiveled back to face Terra. "I've been told that she likes me a lot." He was a bit annoyed with Terra prying into his private life.
"No Robin," Terra mildly corrected him, "she thinks the world of you."
Robin looked down unable to keep eye contact with Terra. He knew Starfire cared deeply for him. There was always that doubt that he would never be able to match her devotion. Was he being fair to her?
"I think we're getting off on the wrong foot", Terra said in a low voice. "I'm sorry."
Robin remained quiet for a moment. Terra was convinced she would never gain his trust. "That's ok," Robin finally replied. "I guess I can be a bit cold sometimes." Robin looked down at the floor and folded his arms across his chest again.
Terra sighed for a moment. She had to learn to control her temper and to work with the other Titans if she ever expected to gain their trust. She strolled over to Robin's chair, knelt down and lightly swiveled it so he was facing her.
"You're not cold," Terra said to him in a voice just above a whisper. "Somewhere buried in that tough exterior is a person who cares deeply for his friends."
Robin looked up into Terra's deep blue eyes as stands of her hair fell across her face. A brief smile passed between them.
"Look," Terra continued. "I don't expect you to trust me at the moment; I know I've done a lot of things in the past that would make you wary of me. But I'm willing to try and earn your trust. It's definitely something I want." Terra paused briefly before she continued. "You have something special in Starfire. I know you know that. Just tell her how you feel once in awhile; she's not a mind reader you know."
Robin nodded in acknowledgement.
"Ok," Terra continued. "What did you want to show me?"
Robin swiveled his chair back to the consul. "Here some maps of the city," Robin began. "I wanted to help you lay out the best search pattern to find the others. There's a lot of ground to cover, but I think we can work out a good plan." Robin glanced over his shoulder at Terra as the screen began to roll through several maps of the city.
