All right! Chapter seven is here! Yay for stuff!
I wrote the fight scene a bit differently in this chapter. I tried to make it more 'actionish' if you will. It seems a bit fast paced for my taste but then again fight scenes are supposed to be. I also made sure the paragraphs were smaller for easy reading. I hope you all enjoy this chapter.
Note: I do have responses for everyone who has reviewed but because my reply got rather long I placed it at the end of the chapter so that those who just want to get to the story may. Hope you enjoy the feedback and do not forget to review for more!
WARNING: This chapter contains blood, violence and very mild gore. It still should be within the limits of a PG rating but I feel it may be teetering on the line here. Let me know if this is getting a little too violent for that rating.
The Beast Within Us
Chapter 7: The Werebird
Jinx shuffled the roll of dollar bills in her hand as her tongue protruded from the corner of her mouth. Her wrists and neck were decorated in various bracelets and necklaces from the local jewelers that she and her cohorts were currently looting. She was subconsciously aware of how tacky she must have looked wearing them, but dressing herself in recently stolen apparel or accessories gave her a feeling of power. Not to mention they were much easier to carry that way. Mammoth was carrying two very large bags of money in each hand while Gizmo had a few hover bots carrying the loot into their hijacked get away truck.
"That's the last of it!" Gizmo announced as Mammoth tossed his share into the back of the vehicle. "Now lets get out of here before those crud munchers show up!" Jinx stuffed the money roll into her pocket and ran back to the truck. She just barely squeezed in next to Gizmo as Mammoth started the ignition and stomped his massive foot on the accelerator. An earsplitting screech filled the air as the truck began peeling out. With the weight of their haul in the back and the smell of burnt tire rubber thick in the air, the criminals could not help but chortle at their apparent victory.
Yet in a place like Jump City it is almost routine that a criminal's preemptive celebration is brought to a rude and abrupt halt. As was the case when a birdarang went flying through the air and struck one of the front tires. The sinister chuckles were replaced with startled gasps and yells while Mammoth struggle with the stirring wheel to keep them from crashing. As the truck spun out of control another birdarang came screeching past the windshield and struck the other front tire. The trio inside watched as the birdarang swerved back and was caught by the one that had thrown it.
Robin landed on the hood of the engine, creating a thump that rattled the thieves inside, just as the car came to a stop. In a crouched position he glared at them through the windshield and they glared back in a match to intimidate the enemy. Jinx launched the first attack. During their short lived staring match her eyes began to glow a bright pink. Robin took instant note of that, as well as the pinkish hue the glass had suddenly acquired, and jumped out of the way just as the hex split the windshield and sent a shower of glass everywhere. His steel toed boots left two rather unsightly dents as he landed on the roof of the truck and ran towards the back. Hearing his heavy footsteps over their heads, the trio piled out of the vehicle and Robin was already on the ground ready to face them. "Hey barfbrain! Where are the other pitsniffers?" Gizmo yelled upon noticing the other Titans were no where to be found. Refusing to respond, Robin pressed his lips together and fell into a fighting stance.
"Attack pattern Beta!" Jinx shouted as she and the other two agents leapt into attack. Robin held his ground as the three split apart to surround and attack him on all sides. Flickering his eyes back and forth he remained steady, waiting for the first attack. Gizmo advanced first, firing a laser from his arsenal equipped pack. Robin rolled out of the way and grabbed Jinx's ankle before she could land a kick. Grabbing her around the waist he threw her into Gizmo and backflipped away just as Mammoth crushed the ground where he had been. The attack caused a minor tremor in the ground and Robin teetered only slightly as he landed. Mammoth had not paused for a second and charged at Robin, who had already taken out his bo staff.
Robin ducked under Mammoth's incoming punch and countered with his bo staff. Landing a hit squarely on the brute's nose, he turned just in time to dodge one of Gizmo's mechanical spider legs. The child genius snarled down in annoyance, courtesy of his machinery giving him a higher vantage point, and struck again as Mammoth recovered. With a duck and twist of his body, Robin was scarcely able to dodge both simultaneous attacks. He was too preoccupied to even notice Jinx had launched another hex until in hit him in the chest.
The force sent Robin flying back and crashing into the wall of a nearby building. A short gasp of pain was forced from his lips upon the collision and his feet collapsed beneath him. The trio wasted no time charging at his prone figure sitting propped against the building. Looking up to see them charging, Robin quickly shot his grappling hook over his head and was pulled to safety mere seconds before what would have been a devastating tackle.
He grabbed the ledge of the roof as the hook pulled him up and he climbed over. The agents shook their heads free of the dizzying crash and looked up to see their enemy vanish from view. "Scuzz sniffing turd burgler!" Gizmo growled as he activated his mechanical wings and flew up after him. Robin had hardly taken two steps before the small criminal screeched high above him and began raining down a barrage of lasers. He was forced into a scrambled sprint causing Gizmo to let out a joyful laugh at the Titan's retreat. Deciding that he did not really like the feel of hot lasers on his heals, Robin tossed a birdarang over his shoulder.
"Ha! Ya missed you pit sniff - waaa!" he heard Gizmo shout as he launched himself into a front flip. Twisting his body midjump, Robin landed facing his opponent and caught the birdarang as it returned obediently. It was true that he had missed his target but often times villians would forget why they were called birdarangs. Upon its return it had struck Gizmo's left wing, causing the brat to retract his damaged wings and launched his mechanical spider legs. He thrust forward with the legs in an attempt to stab Robin. "Whatsa matter, bird brain?" Gizmo taunted as Robin backpedalled from his attacks. "Not so tough without your crud munchin' friends?"
"No one asked you." Robin growled as he launched his grappling hook. "Huh?" Gizmo stuttered as the hook struck one of the legs and ricocheted into another. As it quickly bounded every which way the cable intangle itself around the metal appendages as Robin rounded his enemy. Gizmo's laser gun prepared to aim at the cable but his bounded legs could not keep him on balance. He yelled and flailed his arms helplessly to keep from falling but, with one quick tug from Robin, his plummet was inevitable.
Robin kept a tight grip on the cable and continued to pull as Gizmo fell when he felt himself begin to spill. He gasped as his left foot slipped off the roof's ledge. Regaining his balance was easy but that did not stop the remaining two agents watching from the ground. Robin just hardly caught a glimpse of a pink arch soaring towards him before the cement beneath his feet crumbled to gravel. He did not descend very far before the cable in his hands snapped taut and his body jerked about.
"Ooof!" Robin's backside smacked against the brick roughly but not so much as to cause injury, for which he was thankful. As he dangled halfway down the building he felt his eyes grow large when Mammoth picked up a car from the other side of the street and gingerly carried it back. Knowing well what was coming, he frantically banged his fist against a window just to his left. "If there is anyone in there, get out now!" he screamed, hoping any occupants had heard him or had mind enough to leave long before that. He pressed his feet against the wall as Mammoth reared back and launched himself into an upward leapt, arching his body much like one preforming a swan dive would.
The car was sent airborne, hurtling for a head-on collision with the Boy Wonder. Robin reached out and grasped the engine hood, pushing himself over and grabbing for the car roof. He pulled himself up and out of danger, kicking himself off the tail lights, as the vehicle sped for the immobile building behind him. The explosion from the car propelled him forward, disrupting his acrobatic attempts to land on his feet and sending him spiraling towards earth. He landed on the ground with a sickening thud but managed to flip himself on his feet mid-skid. Robin quickly fell back into a fighting stance but could hold it for no more than a second. He shook his head as a wave of dizziness hit him, courtesy of the blood loss in the first battle of that day, and willed his feet to stop wobbling. Just as Robin managed to stop the world from spinning Gizmo tackled him, propelled by a rocket pack.
Saliva sprayed from his mouth at the force behind Gizmo's body slam. Robin's body was as limp as a rag doll as he went flying back only to be caught from behind by Mammoth. With his arms hooked under the smaller teen's armpits Mammoth lifted Robin off the ground. Robin took in several gulps of air to recover from having the wind knocked out of him and squirmed feebly in his enemy's grasp. "Let me go!" he hissed as the remaining agents joined Mammoth. The other teens smirked and Robin felt a rage burn in his skull at his own defeat as well as his enemy's taunts. "Poor little bird. So helpless without his buddies." He heard Mammoth say as he crushed his arms slightly. "Shut up!" Robin snapped, struggling in response to the grip. "Why so sensitive?" Jinx asked as her cohorts cackled. "Are you embarrassed that you can't do anything without them or did they finally just get sick of you?"
Robin said nothing and continued to struggle. Mammoth tightened his grip and Robin grimaced as the pressure cut into his wound. Perhaps going into battle alone and wounded was not such a great idea after all. He could feel himself loosing strength and stopped moving for a moment in hopes of regaining his energy. "Decided to give up, Bird brain?" Mammoth smirked as he felt him cease his struggling.
"You wish . . ." he hissed in response.
Robin leaned his head forward and snapped it back, pegging Mammoth in the face with a reverse head butt. His nose already tender from the previous hit with the bo staff, Mammoth dropped Robin and covered his face with his hands. Jinx and Gizmo were quick to action. Robin crumpled to the ground but was swift to evade the oncoming attacks, leaving Mammoth to be pegged with a discharge of hexes and lasers. Getting to his feet he rushed back towards the agents.
Ceasing her attack, Jinx stopped and turned just in time to receive a kick to the face. As she stumbled back Robin swayed a bit on his feet as the world spun once more. He shook it off just in time to block a punch from Jinx but not the body slam delivered by Mammoth. Robin was sent flying once more and he felt anger and frustration bubble inside as he skidded to a stop on the concrete. Lying face down, he pushed himself up with his arms and gasped loudly as the pressure placed on his wound caused a sharp jolt of pain. "Aw, Birdie's got a boo boo!" Jinx cooed sinisterly as she noticed the bloody bandage on his arm. She shot a hex at his arm, causing him to collapse and grab at the bleeding area.
With his entire right arm pulsating in pain, Robin struggled to push himself up. Using his knees he was only able to push his lower half up, which unfortunately left his gut open for a scoop kick by Jinx. The force of the kick flipped him onto his back and Mammoth's large foot quickly stomped down on his chest. An involuntary cry of pain was ripped from his throat and incited a round of laughter from all sides of him. Robin glared at the three criminals staring down at him. He felt an ominous fire burn within him in response to the cocky smirks.
"Give up now?" Mammoth said grinding his foot down on the teen's chest. "Never." Robin growled back. He tried to reach for his belt but Jinx stepped on his wrist. Placing her hands on her hips she grinned down at him. He felt his anger rise at his defeat and his enemies gloats. He struggled to move his wrist from under her shoe but she brought her foot down harder. "While it is adorable watching you struggle like a newborn kitten you really should learn to quit while your ahead - or alive in this case."
"Shut up!" he shouted only to receive the same choir of laughter in response. Robin felt his forehead and temples burst with a red hot feeling, as if he were running a high fever. His chest struggled to push up against Mammoth's foot as his breathing became short and frantic. This only prompted more teasing from the Hive agents as it appeared the mighty Titans leader was having a nervous breakdown from his defeat. "Embarrassed that we kicked you stinking tail, clutch-head?" Gizmo taunted, an evil grin spreading over his face as Robin continued to twitch.
Robin squeezed his eyes tightly shut and began tossing his head back and forth in a desperate attempt to throw their words away. Sweat slid down his face as his temperature peaked with this still growing rage. His surroundings swirled into a red tinted montage of his enemies insults and beatings upon him. He could scarcely hear them over the harsh beating of his heart, but most of them cut through, causing his entire form to shake uncontrollably. "Sh . .shut up!" he hissed passed his clenched teeth, feeling spit coat over his lips as if he were foaming at the mouth.
More poisonous laughter filled the air at his vicious plea. Robin's eyes snapped open and his body took in several large gasps. He could see his tormenters above him and feel boiling sweat coat his forehead with his increasing fever-like ailment. Jinx, Mammoth, Gizmo, the buildings and the sky; everything he saw were varying shades of red as if the world had turned monochromatic. The images were morphing before him, taking on the appearance of prolonged blood dripping, and a ripple ran across his eyes with each heartbeat. And still the taunting voices continued.
"Poor little bird. So helpless without his buddies."
"Not so tough without your crud munchin' friends?"
"Why so sensitive?"
"Robin. Is that the best you can do?"
"I said . . . SHUT UUUUP!"
-----
One . .
Two . .
Three . .
Almost there.
A tiny green amoeba slowly inched through the ever so small vents of the tube's circulating air filter. It had taken Beast Boy a while to find it, what with it being hidden in the upper part of the tube and cast by the shadows of the ceiling, but he knew there had to be something of that nature around. His nose had picked up on the almost constant supply of fresh air and the Titans knew better than to lock one of their own in an air tight cage with no air supply. And so Beast Boy found himself carefully inching along and hoping to eventually find an exit.
Despite the futility of it all Beast Boy's craving for freedom would not allow him to relax his escape efforts. He had attempted to smash through the door again as a gorilla with the same results as before and after nearly crushing his internal organs when morphing to a T-rex (which he had to abort mid-shift to keep from dying) he decided that bigger was not necessarily better. As several small insects he had examined every nook and cranny of the tube to no avail. It literally was air tight, he had realized, thus leading him to his current escape attempt.
It seemed too perfect. Just shrink down to a microscopic size and squeeze through the air vents, right? Wrong. Beast Boy was currently on his third attempt with this plan. The first try he had been too overwhelmed to take the air current into consideration. He had been floating along as fast as he could, certain he would soon be free, when a sudden gust from within the machine blew him right back out into the tube. Believing that he had selected the wrong vent, he tried another that appeared to be sucking in the used air. This time he was able to glide along with the current what with it going the 'right way' this time. Imagine his surprise when another abrupt gust filled the vent and sent him spiraling back towards the beginning again.
This time he was taking things nice and slow. He grasped the edges of the vent as best as possible and slowly dragged his single-celled self along. He would not be taken by surprise this time, no siree. And the sooner I get outta here and save Robin's sorry butt, the sooner I can show him just how wrong he is. Beast Boy thought almost bitterly. I'll show him I'm just as much a hero as he is! I'm not just some stupid little kid needing to be locked up. And when the others find out about this, they'll . . . huh? No! Not again!
Beast Boy flattened himself against the bottom of the vent as a strong wind rushed over him. His eyes shut tightly and his cilia latched onto the vent as best they could. For a while it appeared that he would be able to withstand the fierce wind that longed to push him back. It was taking every bit of effort on his part but he was hanging on. Unfortunately for the poor amoeba, the wind had an endless supply of strength behind it while his was wearing thin.
Beast Boy felt himself begin to slide against the vent as the air slowly worked to loosen his grip. He clawed at the vent in an attempt to strengthen his grip but it was too late. The lower half of his body was already in mid air as his blob like arms held on for as long as they could before his strength had finally given out. There was little he could do as his tiny form was sent spinning back out of the air filter and was left to flutter about in the containment tube.
As the air gently carried him close enough to the bottom he transformed back to his human form and landed with an ungraceful flop. Drained of his energy from his relentless escape efforts and transformations, Beast Boy scooted himself against the wall and rested. He should have known, after all; if Cyborg builds it nobody breaks it. The man-machine must have also taken Beast Boy's amoeba form into consideration, what with him having him inside his body and all, and had some sort of fail safe feature that would sense a little green microbe attempting to squeeze through the vents.
It appeared Robin had won this round, but Beast Boy was far too exhausted to even get angry. He would get back at him, sooner or later, and when he did Robin would be sorry. "No, can't think like that." Beast Boy murmured to himself. "That's what got me in this mess in the first place." Even as he felt every bit justified in wanting to pound Robin into the ground he was not so stupid to not realize that would get him no where. He had to prove Robin wrong, show him that he could handle the monster within him, and to do that he would have to control his anger. It would take a lot of effort but once he did it, he would rub it in his leader's face and take every opportunity to shame him. "That'd show the jerk." he muttered again almost indifferently. "I'll show him up so badly he'll be begging for my forgiveness."
A smirk appeared lazily on the shape-shifter's lips and in its place just below his tired eyes it appeared almost sinister. "I bet right now he's getting his butt kicked and wishing he hadn't left me in here."
-----
Robin groaned and slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he registered was the feel of warm concrete pressed against his right cheek and the taste of blood in his mouth. As another soft moan escaped him he felt it drizzle from his lips and down his chin. He found this a bit odd as, for all the pain he was in, his lips did not feel busted nor did a single tooth appear to be missing. As he began to take in his surroundings, he noticed that the HIVE agents were no where nearby. In their place he felt the presence of several people crowded around him.
Pushing himself up he heard a gentle collective gasp and the crowd began to back up away from him. He heard the approaching siren of an ambulance and a news chopper overhead. Now on his feet, Robin shook his head and the crowd backed away moreso. He glanced around, confused at their nervous expressions and wiped the blood away from his mouth. His eyes widened a bit when he felt more of the warm liquid smear on his face and as he pulled his hand away to look at it he gasped. His entire hand was splashed with blood and the fingertips of his gloves had been torn apart. He looked at his left hand and this glove was in the same condition as his right. Blood trickled from his palm and down his arm in tiny rivers but he did not feel a single cut or scratch anywhere on his hand.
"What happened?" he whispered, his words barely audible to himself. Glancing forward he noticed a medical crew piling out of the ambulance that had just arrived on the scene. A doctor was already on sight as the crew joined her in tending to what he guessed to be two or three injured people, though it was hard to tell through the crowd. Spectators that where not cautiously observing him had their backs pointed his way, watching the doctors work. Fearing that civilians had been injured during his confrontation with the agents, he jogged forward to get a closer look and perhaps be of assistance. While Robin was not a certified doctor by any means, he was very competent in terms of first aid. If there was anything he could do to help he felt obliged to do so. As he ran the crowd parted for him in an eager and nervous nature that reminded him of the flocks of birds he would run through on his occasional morning jogs through the park. While that behavior was perfectly normal for wild birds it was perplexing coming from average city people. Time enough to worry about that later.
As the crowd pushed themselves aside for him, Robin slowed his pace to a mild trot. Once he had gotten closer he could make out the gentle moans of pain coming from the victims. "Excuse me?" he called out gently not wishing to startle the doctors. They appeared to be oblivious to his presence, continuing to work at a fast and professional pace. He took a cautious step forward, taking care to not interfere with their work, and leaned forward to get a look.
Upon seeing the victims, whom he had been suspecting were innocent bystanders, another gasp escaped him. Mammoth let out a strained groan as a towel was pressed against the blood gushing from his thigh. Red quickly stretched out over the towel as a tight belt was pulled around his leg to slow the massive blood loss. As he gritted his teeth to the pain, Mammoth winced when his contorted expression aggravated the dark bruises splashed about his face. There was a thin curtain of blood running down the left side of his head from what appeared to be a cut on his forehead. For the moment that injury had remained untouched what with his leg wound holding a mortal threat against the genetic giant.
Robin felt a smaller fluttering in his gut at the sight, but before he could begin to ponder at Mammoth's wounded body a sound had drawn his attention elsewhere. It was a loud hiss from Jinx in response to cotton being pressed against the bloody scratches on her face. Her eyes twitched uneasily at each dab and the smell of alcohol was easy to detect from the gauze. As painful as having one's scratches disinfected could be, Robin could tell she was far too disoriented from pain for that to be her only injury. Taking a glance at the paramedic tending her foot he could see what had been causing her discomfort. Her ankle was swollen to twice its normal size and her platform boots were shredded with blood oozing between the tears.
"Crud muffin . . ." Gizmo's feeble mutter drew Robin's attention to the tiny terror. His face was also speckled with an assortment to red and purple from various cuts and bruises but his left arm appeared to have taken the bulk of the damage. Blood ran down his limp arm like lava spurting from the mouth of a volcano, the volcano being a decently sized open wound on his shoulder. It nearly coated his entire left arm in red, which appeared to have been dislocated from his shoulder. It was as if some animal had come along and mauled the criminals.
"Who could've done this?" Robin whispered ever so softly. There was a mixture of horror and relief in his voice, both brought on my the atrocity of the wounds and comfort that this fate had not befallen the innocent. Taking out his communicator, Robin pulled up a map of the city sweeping it for any unusual signals or energy. The HIVE emblem had disappeared with the agents' defeat, leaving only Beast Boy's locater signal which was still stationary within the tower's infirmary. Robin had doubted that Beast Boy would have escaped in the first place. He scanned the map with more scrutiny a second time thinking that an Honorary Titan may have visited the vicinity. But once again only he and Beast Boy's locaters were visible, which worried Robin somewhat when Cyborg's signal did not appear from Fixit's junkyard lair. He must've taken it offline for maintenance.
"Robin . . ." He whipped around at the sound of Craig Hank's, the chief of JC police, voice. Being startled out of his pondering and slight concern for the whereabouts of his robotic friend, he must have acquired a rather severe looking expression for the well built but regretfully short man stumbled when the Titan had so abruptly glanced his way. He already had his mouth open to speak, though now he appeared to have been startled as well and forgotten his words. "What happened?" Robin demanded before Hank could get a word in, but only succeeded in causing the normally firm and forward man to take a timid step back. Robin suppressed a growl of frustration. Whatever had happened, it was all too apparent that everyone was too shaken up to be of assistance.
Leaving the cops to clean up as they usually do, Robin turned tail and started back in the direction of the tower. He had thought for a moment that Hank made an attempt to call him back but pressed onward. If such a bold man as the chief of police could hardly muster the will to call him it was doubtful he would be able to explain what had happened. The crowd, while still thick with the curious, had began to disperse as the retreating ambulance sirens filled the air. There would not be too much more excitement occurring now that the criminals had been whisked away and it appeared that the city favored hero was not injured. The civilians that did stay remained huddled together, shuffling away nervously while he passed. It was almost as if they were afraid he would attack them.
What in the world could've caused this? He wondered as he mounted his R-cycle. Why are they so afraid?
-----
Robin drummed his fingers on the computer console as the video was nearly downloaded. He had accessed the footage from the security cameras courtesy of the data network the police had available to the Titans. He was not certain how much the cameras would have been able to capture but most stores holding valuables had several at different angles. If one camera had not a clear shot of the battle another was certain to have.
The video had completed its download just as Robin redipped his wash cloth into a bowl of hot water. The water swirled with a dark shade of red as he rung it out and pressed it against his reopened wound. Darn you, Jinx. He thought with a hiss as the cloth stung his arm a bit. Mercifully the bleeding had gone down quite a bit but the room would still take him for an occasional sickening spin. He was thankful that, for the moment, the dizzy spells had appeared to have tired themselves with taunting him and left him to his work.
He pressed play on the player interface and leaned back, should the room suddenly twist around him. Four different screens bleeped to life, each from a different angle, and all providing a good view of the battle. He cautiously leaned forward as the footage began to play. The fight was just as he recalled it, so he paid little attention and scanned the area for any signs of animal-like heroes.
Even with his attention diverted, it was impossible to completely block out the battle as it unfolded. The tape had reached the part when Mammoth had him held under the arms and he gave him a reverse headbutt. Robin was barely able to conceal a smirk despite the circumstances. The next scene left that task impossible as it was rather satisfying to see Mammoth being blasted by his own teammates by mistake.
Robin felt a small burn of embarrassment as he swayed from dizziness and thus allowing the terrible trio to overtake him. In spite of the shame he felt towards his own weakness, he leaned forward in order to better scrutinize the situation. It was nearing the part where he had blacked out and there was still no sign of any other combatants. "Shut up!" he heard himself say from the screen. The taunts from the Hive members were silent but he could see their mouths move as the spoke. "I said . . . SHUT UUUUP!"
As his screech died down Jinx's howl of pain filled the air. Robin took a closer look and noticed his fingers digging into the ankle that pinned his wrist. She attempted to yank her foot away, releasing Robin's wrist in the process. Without a moment of hesitation he slashed his hand into Mammoth's thigh. Mammoth let out a titanic roar and let up on the foot upon his chest. Robin wondered for a moment why his finger tips would cause the such pain.
"Wait a second." he mumbled as he typed something into the computer. The video paused and Robin marqued the area he wished to view. A few more clicks on the mouse and the piece zoomed in. As the computer worked to reduce the pixalated image Robin let out a gasp. Though the image was not perfect it was quite apparent what had been potruding from his finger tips. "But that impossible!"
Robin glanced at his hands and began piecing everything together. The claws were gone but the slashed ends of his gloves finger tips left tell tale evidence. With a sick feeling overcoming him, Robin looked back at the screen as his taped self continued to maul Mammoth and sunk his fangs into Gizmo's shoulder when the boy jumped into the fray. "F. . . fangs?" he murmured as he zoomed in on the two protruding canines from his on screen counterpart. Lifting his fingers to his lips he felt no fangs but that did explain the metallic taste in his mouth.
Dread overcame him as he watched his digital counterpart maul the agents with animalistic ferocity. "This can't be right! I couldn't have. . ." his voice trailed off as he slowly began to recount his memories before everything slipped away. The last thing he clearly remembered was Jinx pinning his wrist down. The events afterward were fuzzy and distorted. He only really recalled shouting at them to shut up and being very, very angry. Angry enough " . . . to kill."
Robin looked back at the video to see himself pass out head first into the concrete, leaving his opponents sprawled out and bleeding on the street. Even though the battle had ended a wave of screams and terror erupted from the streets. Those that had been present to watch the fight in its entirety where stunned silent and pale as ghost to the horror they had witnessed. Those emerging from safety to view the aftermath were left in panic at the sight of four bloody bodies scattered across the street. The cries, though piercing, had become deaf to his ears as he could only stare at his immobile form soaking with the blood of his enemies. "I . . . I've become a monster!"
---To Be Continued---
Reviewer response time:
Sarah Shima - I'm glad that you liked the different perspectives in the previous chapter. I believe that this chapter will be the last 'predictable' one. You will see what I mean when you finish this chapter. So if you were looking forward to seeing how the plot unravels now I suspect this chapter will leave an even stronger yearning. Thanks for your feedback. I appreciate it.
Anon - No, I cannot do a chapter like that as it would destroy the purpose of the story. This is a Robin/Beast Boy bonding adventure and any interference with the other Titans would take away from that. I am a bit ashamed that I used the cliche 'two Titans are left alone in the tower' story line but I have always had the fun idea of those two being alone for a whole week. It's an idea that just would not leave me alone so I had to heed its unruly call.
Shadow Avenger - No, not dead. Not yet anyway and I have no plans of dying anytime soon. An almost flawless chapter you say? I am glad to hear that. No matter how many times I re-read the chapter before submitting it there are always a few grammatical errors that sneak in. Cursed things. Pete the Repeat Parrot was a great toy. I liked to click his beak when recording so that in the playback it sounded like a horse galloping.
Papersak - Oh great, now that you've hugged Beast Boy to death I can't continue the story - coz he's dead. Good thing I've got a Phoenix Down. It is a rather hurtful thing to feel that you are not trusted. I'm sure Beast Boy appreciates the hug but next time try not to crush his internal organs. And now you hate Robin again? Curses! I was soo close to getting you to like him with the other chapter. Mark my words, I'll get you to like him by the end of this story. (shakes fist) You hear me!
And yes, writing the story down first is very helpful. I spend so much time at work that if I just wrote at home you'd still be waiting for chapter four. Optimizing free time is good.
Doc-Trigger - As well worth the wait the previous chapter was I will try not to let you guys wait too long for future installments. I'm glad that I still have a good grip on the boys' personalities. Oh, and you're welcome for the explaination at the end. I figured someone would be confuzzled by it. Thanks for your response!
Wolffike - 1. Almost made you cry huh? Good! Cry! Cry like you've never cried before! Black anger and whitish-grey saddness. I always associated anger with a dark blood like red and sadness with a dark blue but that works as well.
2. I'm kinda hungry myself and I made another chapter.
3. Hungry for another chapter are you? I hunger for my stupid writing muse to stop being lazy!
4. Makes perfect sense to me. My fanfic is very yummy, is it not?
Hannah - Hannah is a palindrome. Referring of course to one of the better short stories they made us read in 3rd grade. So I almost made you cry too? Excellent. /Mr. Burns Once again it is good to hear that I'm really getting the emotion out there. I hope this update was not too much of a wait for you.
Mako-Magic - 1. Yes, Robin probably should have explained it to Beast Boy before he left but he was under the impression that he was too overcome with emotion to understand. He had criminals to take down and a city that needed him so he had to put his priorities first. He also figured that by the time he was finished BB would've cooled down enough to understand why he did what he did.
2. No, Robin did not always have these "powers". How did they come to be? Is it related to his mental bond with Raven? Honestly, this is one of the things that just sort of came to be while I was writing the story and I did not want to let go of - I had no prior plans for him to have this ability. I have some ideas of where I would like to go with this but as I said in the previous chapter, to discuss them would destroy the delicious surprise.
3. It is rather sucky to be told that you will not be locked up, only to get locked up anyway. Poor kid is a mess, isn't he?
4. Cool! No worries then at all.
PixieGirl13 - Okay, one thing that I would like to make clear right now. Robin is my favorite character. I know I may have let it easy to believe that I hated/did not like Robin and/or that Beast Boy was my favorite but this is not true.
Robin is indeed my favorite character on Teen Titans. I do like Beast Boy as well but he is only my third favorite, the second place spot going to Raven. So why am I making him out to be the badguy in this story? Well, I'm not. Rather, I'm not trying to anyway. I'm attempting to protray Robin as a guy that's trying to do the right thing, even if it hurts one of his closest friends.
In a very real sense, Robin is being forced to answer the one question no hero wants to be asked.
Given the choice between saving millions of lives or saving someone you really care about, who will you choose?
Robin's just a kid himself and has a lot of responsibility to shoulder. Robin's going to make mistakes and do things that seem down right cold and cruel but let's face it, no one is perfect. So that's all I'm really trying to make Robin out to look like - just a poor kid trying to do the right thing but making a lot of mistakes in the process.
But I'm not surprised that you had mistaken that I'm trying to make Robin out as the villian. I guess most people are used to seeing the main hero always know what to do and always know what to say and never mess up. I'm rather sick of seeing that, though, which is why I like Robin. He's protrayed as an actual human that is prone to making the wrong choice or coming off as a jerk, as seen in "Masks", "Apprentice", "X", "Haunted", "The Beast Within" and other such episodes. If the main hero is perfect then it is just not interesting.
Okay, I think I've rambled on about that long enough. Thank you for your review and kind words. To hear that my writing skills are 'one in a million' as you put it tells me that my efforts are well spent. I would once again like to thank everyone who reviewed as they always make my day. I hope you all enjoy the next installment!
Pasha ToH - I figure after what Robin had done in chapter 6 a lot of people would not be happy with him. Can't really blame anyone though. Thanks for your review.
To Everyone: Please let me know if I'm going a bit overboard with the violence for a PG rating. I do not plan to tone down the violence if it is a bit extreme but let me know if I should raise the rating. I think it is fine at PG but I would like to know what you think as well. Thanks for reading!
