Wing: Ok heres chapa 10!
Raven: Rather surprising for you.
Wing...One of these days you...Ok it's way too quiet. Where's Red Dragon and Blackfire?
Gecko: Hospital.
Robin: Says here that they were diagnosed with...(Reading a sheet of Paper) Blackfire: Aneurism induced from sheer awesomeness... And Red Dragon: Aneurism induced from sheer awesomeness and ran over by a Warthog?
Raven:...Lots of things happened. Is that why you and Star are here?
Star: Yes, Friend Wing asked us to replace them for today...
Wing: Though it's kind of ironic though...This is the chapter where Robin falls to the dark side. (Shrugs as Robin glared at her.)
Robin: I didn't fall to the Dark side! I was just trying- (Raven slaps a red X over his mouth, effectively shutting him up)
Raven: Lets see how you like one of those slapped on your mouth. (Robin glared at her smirking self while trying to remove the X)
Wing: While Robin deals with that, Star can you do the disclaimer? I got no money but I still don't wanna get sued. (Shrugged)
Star: Um alright...Greywing44 and her Co-Author...or is it Beta? Do not own Teen Titans, nor anything referenced. Please enjoy the reading. (Bows to the audience.)
It was quiet. Too quiet. A red microchip rotated slowly in the air, floating under its own power. Then, a large figure clad in black armor with steel plating in key areas stepped forward. The figure's face was covered, the entire face black with a red-orange circle in the center whose edges touch both eyes. The steel-gloved figure reached towards the chip, only to cock an eyebrow in surprise at the sight of a spiky-haired teen hanging upside down off of who-knows-what.
"Tell Slade if he wants this, he can come get it himself!" Robin said dropping from his perch and delivering a kick that sent the thief tumbling across the darkened area. The lights coming on, the other five Titans formed up around him, as well as revealing that the chamber was stuffed with supercomputers. A laser beam then lanced down from above as a section was being cut out of the ceiling. When the portion of the ceiling fell, it then gave way to a large cloud of dust before several more figures like the first leapt in. Back flipping back to his friends away from the laser beam that cut across the floor, the new arrivals came right at them. Robin blocked and dodged several blows from his opponent, then tried a counter kick but was deflected, his opponent whipping out a brass knuckle-like blaster with a muzzle on the front edge and opened fire. Carrying himself out of danger, Robin performed a bout of acrobatic tricks before retaliating with a jumping roundhouse kick that sent his opponent into the far wall. At the same time, Starfire was avoiding the shots of the squad member who was leaping after her, only to get blasted by a starbolt and sent rolling across the floor. Another one however jumped even higher, and with his knuckle-like blaster sliced the lens of one of the overhead spotlights. When it began to fall, Robin quickly leapt through the air and moved her out of the way just in time, saving the Tamaranian from being crushed. When they landed however, three squad members were about to take aim at them, only for a computer cabinet to bulldoze them to the side.
"Amazing what you can do with computers these days," Cy said as he clapped his hands while Gecko twisted one of the thing's blasters out of it's hand and a clone round-houseing it into another of those things, Beast Boy fighting one of the would-be thieves as a chimpanzee, clawing and biting at it. Elsewhere, Raven was strafing backwards through the air and avoiding another one's laser beams, her opponent flipping around in mid-air before sending off a large blade-like blast at her. Creating a blade at the last second, the two pieces of the ground that were hit had deep holes in them. The next moment it rushed her, giving her no quarter to attack, leaving her on the defensive until it suddenly kicked her legs out from her, blaster aimed at her face point-blank before-
"Seppu!" Two Geckos shouted as they kicked as one, driving their feet into the thing's face and sending it into the wall. "Hmm well it looks like you owe me for this one friend." he returned and whirled around, one of the things trying to rush at him before two large computers slammed into the would-be assailant's sides, wide eyed before he fell on his back. "Ahhh...I retract my previous statement..?" Gecko laughed nervously, Raven smiling as Cyborg had busted out his sonic cannon and was blazing away, Starfire joining him with a fusillade of starbolts, one of their targets leaping impossibly high and avoiding the blast. The next moment he pushed off the wall and grabbed the chip in a flying grab, his steel-booted feet racing for the door. Robin quickly chucked a birdarang at it, the projectile striking the thing's hand and sending the chip flying through the air.
"Mine!" Beast Boy suddenly called out after disengaging from his target, transforming into an anteater mid-run and lashed out with his tongue, grabbing it mid-leap before he slid across the ground to a wall, only for one of the commandos to stomp on his tongue and make him lose his grip on the chip. "Bluuugh. That tasted so nasty," he groaned, anime tears dripping, as the four of the six commandos, two unable to move, dropped a smoke bomb and made their escape.
"Titans! Go!" Robin shouted making their way down the only hall in the room, soon coming into another chamber like the one they were in before, only with five additional doors at 60 degree increments from the center. "Split up!" he then ordered, the group going out the remaining five tunnels, Gecko stayed with Robin as he tapped his shoulder. Making Boy Wonder spin to face him.
"Gecko!? But I said-" Robin was cut off when the Ninja pointed downwards silently. Making Robin sigh in defeat. "Fine I should've guessed you'd figure it out..." This made Gecko smile under his scarf before he drew Kawanageru, the blade becoming a blur before the ninja sheathed the katana. The grate below them falling to pieces as they landed in the tunnel below.
Robin and Gecko were right on the money in their assumption, finding the one with the chip with the others being decoys. Following him down the tunnel, the thief tried to escape to the outside by carving out a new exit at one of the tunnel's ends. There was a short confrontation with Star almost falling out of the sky and to the unforgiving ground below, but Robin and Gecko were able to save her. By both latching her and the thief with their respective grappling hooks...But this all had the unintended effect of taking them all for a ride, but luckily the thief's rocket boots sputtered out and they were able to land. As Gecko tended to Star, Robin had been able to capture the would-be thief and unmask him, only for it to be a highly advanced automaton. Behind the mask was a screen, from which Slade, the one who had seemingly hired Jinx, Mammoth, and Gizmo, was pulling the strings behind the theft. Cryptically, Slade conveyed upon Robin the importance of patience. Something he had yet to grow into after going solo...
"Ok dudes, two choices..." The changling grinned as he held something behind his back, currently BB was trying to get the group get to slack off a bit and watch some movies. The Green bean showed two movies from behind his back, one of them had ninjas, while the other involved a Godzilla-esque monster. "Whatda ya think?"
"...Gee they both sound so good." Sarcasm dripped from Raven's voice before she turned back to her book, obviously no interest whatsoever in the movies. Gecko was also uninterested, more focused on his sketch book as he worked on the details of the Cyborg he was drawing...
"Yeah, it's gonna be hard ta pick..." Cy rubbed his chin as he thought, knowing that Rae was sarcastic but he was serious. "Wanna watch em both?" This made BB's grin turn upside down.
"Also I can't help but ask this but why watch a movie about ninjas when you have a real live one in the room?" Gecko asked in a bland tone as he lowered his sketchbook. "Same with the...Alien one? I can't tell what the giant is..." This made BB faceplant, having not thought of that notion at all...
"Yeah...Wouldn't that count for movies that have cyborgs?" Cy asked while Star had left the room in an attempt to get Robin to "potato the couch" with them. "It just...seems weird." Gecko had a good point there...
"It counts, same for the movies that have mages in them." Raven sounded as she turned a page in her book, enjoying. "And if we have that Scarab guy in the room it'll count for robots."
"Aw comeon dudes your knocking out like half my line up!" BB whinnied as he stood back up. If they were really taking out movies with those specific genre, he's going to go mad! "Who cares if you have the real thing in the room when you watch a movie!?"
"We do." This answer made BB faceplant again.
"But this also begs the question..." The ninja sounded. "Who do you think those two who took care of the riot were?" They seemed to have just met, though it was hard to tell with Scarlet's lack of emotion, and Grey-Wing's layed back attitude.
"I don't know dog, maybe they just stumbled on it?" Cy shrugged, he was kind of interested in Grey-Wing's techno powers...and what she looked like. He was very interested on that last one mostly...
"That sounds plausible, they could just be free spirits with powers, wanting to use them for good where ever they can." Raven agreed, she could understand that, what with her background... "But I think that was more Grey-Wing's reason then Scarab's, what with her attitude and all. Scarab's will be harder to discern, with him being a robot, so he might not have one..."
"I believe the Scarlet Scarab's motives fall onto his creator to decide," Beast Boy said cryptically.
"Things are going to get even more complicated..." Gecko sighed as he turned back to his sketch book, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up in the worst way. His Sensei always taught him to listen to his gut, and his gut was telling him that something bad was going to happen...
The following evening, back in the chamber from before which had yet to be repaired, two of Jump's armored SWAT troopers stood guard around the recovered microchip, placed back in the suspension field. Things had been calm for most of the day since the Teen Titans returned, but that silence was broken when an alarm went off. Running to the next chamber out to investigate, the doors were suddenly shut behind them, leaving the microchip unguarded. It was at this time then that a new figure materialized; He was garbed in a skin-tight black outfit with a large red X emblazoned over his heart, the lower end of the upward stroke extended across his chest. He wore a long black cape over his shoulders, had a grey belt and gloves all of which were marked with red X's, and a black mask covering his head with a white skull-like plate on the top, a red X on the forehead with the upstroke extended across his right eye. Plucking the chip from the field, the now-thief then whirled around to face the two guards as they had blown the door off its hinges.
"He's got the chip!" one of them shouted, the two opening fire only for the figure to leap straight up and disappear in a blur of movement. "Where'd he go?"
It was around the same time that the theft had occurred, that the others had arrived at the tech district of Jump, in response to the alarm that had gone off and the call sent. Robin had found a lead to Slade on the far side of town, leaving the other five to deal with the potential threat. When the connection was cut off, a skylight suddenly opened, and the same thief from before leapt out.
"You working for Slade, tough guy?" Cyborg asked, decking out his sonic cannon.
"Red X works alone," the figure said in a heavily distorted voice, obviously to conceal his identity. Holding out his palm that had his namesake on it, he then fired a red X through the air, which Cy intercepted with his cannon while the others scattered. As the cyborg continued to fire, Red X dodged with practiced agility before launching himself high into the air and launching more Xs out of both palms, sending the cyborg running for cover. Touching down, the thief was then charged by a green lion, responding by launching a scarlet cross through the air that became liquefied mid-flight and stuck the green feline's face like a glob of mud. Being brought back to the roof with a heavy splat, he tried to change back to a human, gorilla, hawk, and elephant, only for the glue to persist, clearly designed to stretch and contain the strength of whatever the changeling could transform into. When Star and Raven rushed at him, Red X nimbly avoided the green shots and the black hand that emerged from the ground, hurling two red Xs at the girls. The first tied Starfire up like a giant rubber band and dropped her to the roof, while the second had caught Raven across the mouth in the middle of her chant's second word, toppling over after she tried to tear it away. The next moment Cy rushed at him from behind, only for the thief to sidestep easily.
"Huh?" was his intelligent response as the thief dodged his attack before he felt something slapped onto his back. "What?" he cried as the panel on his back opened up, the thief's grey-gloved hands tinkering with his circuits causing Cy to flail about wildly. "Hey! Yo, who told you how to shut me down?" he asked before he was pushed lightly to the ground, landing in a heap. The thief was about to bug out by running to the next roof before a foot slammed into the back of his head, sending him rolling before he faced the black-haired ninja who cracked his knuckles.
"Try me teme." Gecko said rushing at Red X, who blocked the first punch with his forearm and countered with another of his own, only for the ninja to tilt his head to the side before he delivered a palm strike to his gut and sent him back. When the two began fighting in a heated martial arts battle exchanging kicks, punches, and counters, Red X's eyes widened at how equal the two were, but that was to be expected since Gecko has probably trained for years in the art of ninjutsu, zanjutsu...Well you get the point, Gecko's a living weapon and Red X was realizing that now as he dodged a punch. Red X knew he had to finish this quickly...So he got inside Gecko's guard, grabbing his left arm and twisting it over his torso and to his back, slapping one of his red x's on the hand to keep it in that uncomfortable position. "Nani!?" Red X took advantage of his confusion as he did the same to the ninja's other hand, making him into a human straight jacket. "I'm not-" Red X finished up by slapping red x's on Gecko's feet, binding him to the roof.
"Gah what is this!?" The ninja shouted as he tried to move, but with his hands and feet immobilized he was pretty much done. Red X then ran off using the rooftops. "Hey wait! GRRR!" Gecko tried to pick his feet up only for him to fall over backwards. "Gah!"
-KSHHHHHHH-
"Rumor has it, you're interested in this," Red X said into the monitor, holding up the stolen microchip, currently situated in a dark room and conversing with none other than Slade.
"I'm interested in many things, Mr..."
"X. Red X."
"Hmmm. Catchy. So, are you proposing a sale or a gift?"
"A partnership," the thief answered. "I give you the chip, you cut me in on your plans."
"Partnership. My, my, aren't we ambitious," Slade stated with a hint of amusement. "But, an alliance cannot be forged from one small chip. If you're going to win my trust, I'll require more from you."
"Just tell me what you want," the thief stated plainly.
The next morning, the group had returned to the command center to regroup and exchange info. Beast Boy had been freed of the red slime gluing him to the roof, but still had some of it in his hair, Raven with the red X slapped over her mouth, and Gecko still having his red x's making him a human straight jacket. Which at the moment he was acting like a crazy man to get rid of them, he was an artist he needed his hands damn it! And it was sooo uncomfortable...
"I had no idea Red X would pose such a threat," Robin said addressing the other Titans, Starfire at the moment clipping red gunk out of BB's hair. "I should've been there," he said with a sigh.
"You bet you should've been there. Look at what the guy did to my 'do! I'm looking at two months of bad hair days!" BB cried out motioning to his gunkified hair. Raven simply glared at him from behind her gag the best she could, the changeling and Tamaranian smiling cautiously. "I don't know Raven. That's a good look for you," he chuckled, the mage's glare and throbbing vein speaking volumes as to how pissed she was at the moment.
"Hold still," Cy suddenly said pulling the thing away from Raven's mouth in one swift jerk, BB and Star bracing for the inevitable. With a vivid red imprint left on her face, the mage held her lips pressed together as two ghostly images of her appeared to either side and screamed through gritted teeth.
"... Ow," Raven said plainly as the imprint receded, knowing if she'd let her emotions out she may've vaporized Beast Boy. Then again... "Even if you had been there, it would've have made any difference."
"Dude knew exactly how to bring each of us down. I guarantee he had a gadget with your name on it," Cyborg then stated holding onto the red X for later analysis. Hopefully for a solvent to dissolve the stuff in later confrontations.
"Agreed. You need not feel guilt. We are undamaged," Starfire said happily.
"Hel-lo?" Beast Boy asked indicating his mangled hair, and Gecko making an ahem noise, also indicating his straight jacketness...
"Mostly undamaged," Starfire returned sheepishly as the ninja growled like an animal, thrashing around before BB gained a mischievous idea...The green bean then stuck his foot out and the ninja toppled over with a thud, and BB laughed before he got slapped on the back of his head.
"Dude what was that for!?" BB asked a scowling Raven who was regretting even touching BB's head as the red goop stuck to her fingers.
"Because. Cy get those things off him." Raven ordered as she whipped the red goop on BB's shirt, ignoring his protests.
"A cyborg's job is never done," Cyborg sighed as he grabbed one of the x's on one end and ripped it off...along with part of the wraps on Gecko's hand and part of his shirt. "Uhh sorry G...do you-"
"Get the other one off please." Gecko said in a relieved tone as he flexed his arm, it making popping noises. If he had mobility he could live with his shirt being ruined...Cy shrugged and complied, making Gecko's shirt have two gaping holes in it and his arm wrapping's being gone. But the ninja didn't even give a damn as he rolled his shoulders, sighing as the blood pumped normally again.
"Oh here, allow me to, kiss it and make it feel better, as I believe I have heard it been used, to relieve you of lingering pain," Starfire said suddenly putting her hands on Raven's shoulders before pressing-
"NO!" Both Gecko and Robin yelled out as they put their hands on the girls mouths just in time, Robin's on Stars and Gecko's on Raven's. "THAT'S NOT IT AT ALL!"
"Mmmph?" Star sounded with confusion, tilting her head as all the males in the room blushed at what almost happened.
"It ahh Gecko why don't you explain!?" Robin said to the ninja as he took his hands off Star's mouth, the Ninja doing the same with a bushing Raven.
"Um it ahhh..." The ninja stuttered before grabbing his sketch book, bolting the heck outta there. "Igottagodosomething!"
"Hmmm that aside, we are all eager to learn what you have discovered about Slade," Star then stated, putting her confusion aside.
"Nothing... Lead was a dead end... I should get back to work," Robin said, face reminiscent to a tomato as he bolted, clearly he was very embarrassed by something. Nudge nudge wink wink.
As Gecko found a spare black hoodie to wear till he got a new shirt, the four Titans were suddenly called into the command center, only for no one to be there.
"Robin?" Starfire asked looking around. "Robin?"
"You mean Captain Research?" Beast Boy quipped dryly, his hair more-or-less back to normal. "Ah, he's probably filling out note cards at the public library," he said yawning expansively.
"I was," Robin said from the speakers, scaring the living daylights out of the changeling. "But then I spotted Red X pulling a robbery in the tech sector. Get here as fast as you can!" he said cutting off the transmission.'
"You got it, dude. We'll be there any..." was as far as Beast Boy got before nodding off, Cy grabbing a fistful of his clothing before yanking him away with a scream.
"There!" Cy said, he and the others downtown, as he pointed to Robin, who at the moment had dropped down from another building in pursuit of Red X. A few dozen yards, and the black-clad thief had thrown a red net at him, ensnaring the former sidekick and sent him rolling across the pavement to where he started. "Robin!"
"I'm fine! Get X! Go!" he shouted. While to Gecko it sounded rehearsed-like some of those plays he watched as a child-he had to get that teme for putting his arms in that position. Running down the street towards a subway entrance, Red X dropped down the escalator in a single bound, the others following him.
"I've adjusted my ocular implant to scan at multiple sub-harmonics in the EM spectrum," Cy explained as he began looking around, his red eye gleaming.
"Kay... Do you come with subtitles?" Beast Boy asked, Gecko equally confused but he actually had a good reason for it...
"It means I can see him even when he's cloaked." Cy elaborated before he was suddenly decked out of nowhere and sent several yards back. "There you are, you smug little teme!" Gecko growled as he helped Cy up, who at the moment needed to clear his head from the hit he just took, X suddenly flying towards his back and slapping another red X there, only for Cy to maintain full control of his body.
"You gonna have to learn some new tricks, dog," Cy said as he fisted X's costume and threw him down the platform to the others, the would-be hacker landing in a crouch.
"Surrender! We do not wish to fight you!" Star shouted.
"Sorry. I'm not through with you yet," Red X said as he leapt high and threw another red X at her, one of Raven's barriers rising at the last second to stop it. Cy quickly tried to land a few punches, only to hit air before Star plowed into him, trying to low-altitude bulldoze the black-clad thief. BB and Rae quickly rushed him, X getting the better of both even when the prior turned into a bear, though the latter was sent into some crates. BB quickly caught Red X in the side as a bighorn sheep and resumed human form, only for Red X to catch hold of a pillar and swing around it, launching himself feet-first at Beast Boy who ducked, only to catch a punch to the jaw and was sent flying onto the tracks. Sitting up dazedly, the green teen snapped back fully when the glare of headlights fell across him as the train whistled down the tracks, just staring like a deer in the headlights about to snuff it on the grill of a pickup. The next moment Red X hurtled across the tracks and pulled the screaming boy to safety, both hitting the platform an instant before they would've been turned into railroad pizza.
"Dude! Did you just save me?" Beast Boy asked, Red X kicking him without a moment's notice a moment later and dashing to the exit only to stop when an irate ninja barred his path, a fist smacking into the side of his face.
"Oi, you and I aren't done yet!" A ninja doesn't take defeat laying down it seems as he rushed the thief, exploding into a flurry of punches that Red X had trouble keeping up with. Then Gecko made a clone with a flick of a handsign, the two ninja's charged their hands with green KI and palm thrusted the Thief's gut, sending him into a stone pillar. But Gecko wasn't done yet as he threw one of his special Kuni above Red X's head, the thief's eyes widening behind his mask before the explosion happened. The next moment another red X went for his eyes from behind the smoke, but the teen raised his hand and blocked it, the thief running at him and palming him in the mouth, effectively gagging the ninja as the other escaped. Gecko now knew how Raven felt as he tried to get the thing off, only that it was harder then it looked...
"Uhh you need help with that dude?" Cy asked, the look the Ninja gave him was all the answer he needed before the cyborg grabbed it and yanked it off. Gecko finding his eyes watering at the pain as he tried not to scream out, thinking every mantra his sensei ever taught him as he held his mouth and slumped over. Now screaming through gritted teeth as tears escaping his eyes and flowing down his cheeks. Dear Kami this stings! How in all of creation did Raven ignore it!?
"There there..." Raven sighed as she pat his shoulder, only for him to continue crying and screaming softly. Geez. Why do I keep ending up in these situations? she asked herself as she threw her hood back and placed her hands on the black-haired one's cheeks bringing his face towards hers before she placed a light kiss on one corner of the X mark that was near the corner of his mouth. "There, better?" she asked, throwing her hood back over her head to hide the blush at what she just did.
"Ha-hai...Thank you friend." Gecko admitted as he breathed heavily, he rubbed the last of the tears from his eyes. "Sorry I held you up."
"Hey, I'm in no rush to get one of those things slapped on my face," she stated as the two got up and ran out of the subway, the two following after the others. When they got back up to the street however, Red X had already escaped. In Gecko's gut he knew that Red X, his presence felt so familar...and his fighting style as well...
-KSHHHHHHH-
"Impressive, Red X. I tapped into the security cameras to catch the performance. You treated the Titans to quite the show, though you could've handled that explosion better," Slade said from the other end of the monitor a half-hour later, gesturing to Red X's suit which had some scorch marks across it, the namesake persisting.
"While I'm glad you enjoyed it, I had the entirety of the situation under control," Red X countered, having not expected the EXPLOADING KUNI! And he now knew what Gecko's victims felt like after those KI packed hits...Ugh his ribs were never going to lose those bruises...
"Is the audition over?" he asked holding up a blue microchip to accompany the red one he'd stolen prior, showing two in a set.
"Patience. Trust is easy to destroy, but it takes time to build," Slade said as his image shrunk toward the upper right corner of the screen, a green microchip on a white field appearing on-screen. "One last test. Prove yourself and we'll meet to discuss your future."
"Good," Red X said as the image disintegrated into static. "It's about time we meet face to face," Robin said removing the mask, chest aching a bit and thankful the explosion hadn't been full-powered. I guess I should be thankful Gecko's using the Kuni I gave him, and he'd notice if they went missing. Best leave it alone..., He thought, shedding the costume and stashing it until later, as to hide the evidence.
Getting back to the Tower after Red X ran off, the group was now trying to discern where he'd strike next. They'd already determined where he'd been, but after inputting the criteria for other high-end technologies departments, they ended up coming up with 23 potential theft sights. Not the best way to try and stop his next run.
"Robin!" Starfire cried when said ex-sidekick walked across the room, a box in his arms. "Wonderful! Our efforts to locate the Red X will benefit greatly from your help."
"It'll have to wait. I'm close to a breakthrough with Slade," Robin said as he continued to the door, Star gasping at the news.
"More wonderful! Perhaps we could be of assistance to... you..." she said hanging her head dejectedly as the Boy Wonder left.
"Let him go. Not like he's been much help lately anyway," Beast Boy stated. "If Robin wasn't always A.W.O.L., X would be K.O.'d by now."
"Y'all think maybe Robin's losing his grip?" Cy asked.
"Hmm I don't think that's the case..." Gecko mused as he fiddled with the hoodie he was wearing, feeling weird with it on. "Maybe..."
"What?" Raven asked, knowing that the ninja had something.
"Well maybe Robin is Red X?" he proposed.
"No! You are wrong! I'll prove Robin is not the Red X!" Star said running out the room.
"...Was I perhaps...going too far?" the ninja asked as he scratched his head. "It is only my gut feeling, but my Sensei always told me to listen to it..."
"Hard to tell. She looks up to him, and you tried to sow doubts into her mind," Raven stated. But Warrior instincts were hardly ever wrong in these kinds of cases...
"... I guess you're right. I should've chosen my words more carefully," Gecko stated. "Still, if Robin is Red X..." he trailed off. "Then he does not trust us as he should." The team looked down at that, really hoping that Gecko was wrong in his assumption...
"Who's Slade?... You almost got hurt. Next time it could be worse... Nothing. Lead was a dead end... I'm close to a breakthrough... Sure you guys can handle this without me?"
These were the words that echoed through Star's mind as she entered the Boy Wonder's room, stopping at his desk and picking up the item one from the end; the blasted birdarang from the sewer chase.
"Robin, where have you gone?" she asked before there was a flash, the Tamaranian girl dropping the weapon in her grasp and causing the small metal globe to roll off the desk and bounce across the floor. A moment later a beam of light shot straight up before splitting down the middle and folding towards the floor, a holographic image of Robin underneath Red X's net appearing.
"I'm fine! Get X! Go!"
"Huh? Robin?"
"I'm fine! Get X! Go!" Robin shouted, Star reaching out to him only for her hand to pass through his face. "I'm fine! Get X! Go!"
"If you were not really there, then where were- *gasp*" Starfire suddenly gasped. "Gecko was right! Robin is Red X!" she cried before running back to the group.
Elsewhere, a green microchip spun around in a suspension field, Red X then plucking the item away before a spotlight shone down, a man stepping into the light. He wore the same thing as the Sladebots from before, but his mask was red-orange on the left side and black on the right, the latter side not having an eyehole.
"Excellent work," Slade spoke stepping into the light. "Honestly, I couldn't have done any better myself."
"So then, do we have a deal?" Red X asked.
"Indeed. You and I are so very much alike. It seems only natural that we should be partners?"
"What are they for?" Red X said holding up the three collected microchips. "I need to know what we're planning... partner."
"Patience. You can't expect me to trust you with such sensitive information right away... Can you, Robin?" Slade asked, Red X's eyes popping at the realization that his cover had been blown. The next moment a small net swept the three components from his hand and carried them to Slade, who caught it with practiced ease as a light suddenly came on. The darkened chamber was revealed to be oblong with several HIVE Drones –the white black-trimmed robots from the HAYEP reel- standing along the walls, the balcony packed full of Sladebots, the mechanical enforcers slowly closing in. As Robin got ready to throw down, the entire room shook from the force of an explosion, the ceiling being blown out with five figures leaping down into the room.
"Titans! Go!" Cy shouted, Beast Boy, Raven, and Gecko rushing forward. As Red X sprinted across the room, an green octopus suddenly yanked one of the robots out of the way, Raven levitating a second and knocking it away, Gecko cutting another into pieces with Kawanageru.
Gotcha!" Cy said grabbing Red X's cape and stopping his advance.
"Let me go! Stop him!" he shouted struggling pointing to Slade.
"No! Release him!" Star said flying down into the roof, only minutes behind the others. "He is-"
"-me!" Robin said pulling off the Red X mask.
"...I hoped I was wrong..." Gecko sighed in sadness while the others gasped in shock.
"Slade's getting away! Come on!" Robin shouted as he ran off after losing half his cape, leaping over two robots flaking the door before running through. The others tried to back him up, only for the swarm of robots to bar their way.
"Well Gecko looks like you were right about this." Raven stated. "Gecko?" she asked looking around for him.
"Hey Beastboy! I hope you didn't mind that I borrowed something out of your manga!" Gecko said getting the changeling's attention as he held Kawanageru to the sky, the wind suddenly picking up around him as the red dragon appeared on Kawanageru's blade. "More..." It grew even brighter as the blade's outline gained a green hue. "More..." the green hue turned to an out right glow as Gecko's eyes glowed green. "NOW! Gestuga TENSHO!" Gecko roared as he drew back his arm and brought it down, a green wave of KI exploded forwards. Creating a scar in the ground as many robots were disintigrated in the energy, the robots in the outskirts of the wave weren't spared either as they found half of themselves missing.
Dude! That was totally WICKED! Do it again! Do it again! Do it again!" Beast Boy cried in excitement, only to cry out in shock when Gecko fell to his knees, four Sladebots leaping at him before Cy blasted two out of the air, and Raven knocked the remaining two into one another before tossing them aside.
"Too... much... energy..." he panted out as he fell back into a sitting position. "Don't worry... I can still fight," he said piriming many throwing stars in his hands and began firing wildly. "I need to reload, Raven please cover me!" he called out to the grey-skinned mage.
"Got it!" Raven answered as the two now stood back to back, the mage bringing up energy barriers and throwing whatever she could at the enemies, even one another, while Gecko palmed more throwing stars. They'd finish things up here, then get back to Robin.
"You want to yell at me too?" Robin asked as Starfire came into his room, the boy currently staring at the Slade robot's mask that was now hanging on the wall. The chase after Slade was short after leaving the oblong chamber, stopping at a set of girders set above a Chinese restaurant for future construction. The fighting was fierce, but at the end of it, the Slade he fought was nothing more than another robot, its words revealing that his own lack of patience was what truly gave him away. Had he been a little bit moreso, maybe he would've succeeded. The group had gotten the chips back and handed them off to the tech divisions after the battle, but of course this didn't save Robin from everyone's yelling when he got home. "And I don't blame them," he sighed turning around. But that disappointed stare that Gecko gave him hurt most of all, he didn't even have to say anything...And that made him feel all the worse...
"I do not wish to yell, merely to understand. Robin, why did you not tell us the truth?" Star asked.
"I needed to fool Slade. If you guys knew it was me under that mask, you would've held back," Robin answered. "Doesn't matter anyway. Slade figured it out, and I still haven't figured out anything about him."
"That is not true. Whoever Slade is, you and he are similar. Slade did not trust you... and you did not trust us," she said as he left the room, giving Robin a reproachful look before leaving, Robin alone with the mask and thinking how long it would take to regain the other's trust.
Wing:Ok it wasn't fluff but it was still a moment! Happy!?
Raven: Geeze we get it...but did you have to include that Bleach attack?
Gecko:...Can I do it again?
Star: And I? I think I can implament it with my starbolts...
Wing: Magority vote, you lose Raven. (As the mage facepalmed Robin pointed at the X that was still on his face) Nahh that look suits you, unlike Raven, her imput is needed.
Raven:...Thanks? (Robin screamed from behind the x on his mouth, waving his arms in a frantic manner.) Fine fine, Star?
Star: Ok. (Yanks it off with twice the ammount of strength needed, Robin is scilent for a moment before-)
Robin:AHHHHHHH! FU*#$ (Rest of words bleeped out for safety reasons)
Star: What does that mean? (Throws away the X)
Wing:... Ahh you'll get it later, anyway Review. Your opinions are always wanted.