Author Note: Sorry for leaving you guys hanging. So here is the next installment.
It smelled like sulfur.
There were a million things that Robin expected when he walked into the living room. Out of those million things, none of them were as hard to swallow, or as heart wrenching as the scene before him. Maybe it was the scorched walls, soot falling from the cracks. The faint smell of sulfur mixed with ash loomed the air, that settle deep into the pits of his stomach. Maybe it was the furniture carelessly flung and smashed to pieces, after he tried to so hard to make this place feel like a home.
No, none of those things scared him.
What scared him was what or the whom, who was clearly missing from this disaster.
The pale violet eyes and dark purple hair.
Robin swallowed taking one look over to his team's blank faces.
"Where is Raven?" Cyborg whispered pushing Robin out of the way.
The push was not gentle, far from it. Robin budged, his body unable to move on his will. He watched as Cyborg screamed Raven's name, with no answer in return. Robin just watched as Cyborg quickly settled to the middle of the room, picking up rubble. Watched as Cyborg on his hands and knees pulled pieces of their home just to catch a glimpse of those pale violet eyes.
Robin felt envious.
God, Robin wanted to move, his brain screaming to help. Yet he couldn't all his muscle were tense, too numb to budge no matter how loud his mind screamed. Yet, Cyborg was able to do what he clearly couldn't.
Act.
No one else moved for that matter.
They watched, the sound of settling wood filling the silence as Cyborg sorted through rubble. What felt like hours, were just minutes, the search quickly becoming fruitless. It was quickly becoming evident that the resident Dark Mistress was not under the rubble. Air became heavy, the silence too much to bare.
Cyborg gave Robin a side glance before pulling a bookcase from the rubble and slamming it against the wall.
Robin heart dropped to his stomach.
"Rae!" Cyborg screamed, digging on his hands and knees. The sharp rubble and splinters digging into the last remains of his human skin. "Raven!" he yelled, his voice becoming hoarse.
Cyborg hangs banged against the floor, before flipping the couch over.
"Come on girl, say something!" Cyborg yelled, hoping his voice would reach her.
How could have this been possible?, Robin thought.
Robin took one step back, rubbing his hands together. What was once fear, soon turned to guilt. The unsettling feelings in his stomach was eating him away, second by second urging him to move. Urging him to do something, anything. He was the leader, he should be taking lead, but, gosh, he couldn't move. Not when all of this was clearly his fault.
Cyborg took one look at Robin before locking eyes with Starfire.
"Star check Raven's room!" Cyborg screamed.
Cyborg's voice rattled the alien from her senses. She only stared for a moment, green eyes illuminated and wide, before her body took charge. Her body zooming towards Raven's room.
Robin bit his lip, eyes glued to the rubble. He was careful, he upped the security since Red-X. Taking Zatanna's warning that Raven had many enemies, too many who wanted the empath shouldn't have happened again. Raven had to be-
"Friend Raven isn't in her room." Starfire said, raising her shoulders, eyes flickering green. "She isn't in any of the rooms."
Robin pushed passed Cyborg, pulling debri after debri. She had to be here, she had to be here. Karma was always cruel to him, all his good deeds never enough for her. No, it was all his bad deeds she came running to.
Is Karma that cruel to answer twice for one mistake?
Finding his life some sick poetry, answering to every failed promise, every mishap and every misspoken word. Yet did Karma have to take her? The one thing that kept-
No, he couldn't fail Raven now, not again when they were so close to figuring out a cure.
Heart banging against his eardrums, he called out to her through their link. No matter how loud he thought, and he begged her to talk, there was nothing on the other side. The silence scared him.
"Rae!" Robin screamed, his muscle aching, his voice hoarse.
This wasn't suppose to happen again. She was suppose to be safer in the Tower. Robin pulled the broken coffee table over, splinters digging into his skin. He stared at the cleared floor, and his face paled. Raven wasn't under the rubble.
Raven wasn't anywhere.
How could this happen he had been so careful.
"Hey Rob, her caregiver isn't in the tower either." Beast Boy yelled his voice slightly choked up.
"No" Robin whispered, staring at the empty floor.
Yes Karma was a cruel.
It was his own foolish mistake, letting 'Mr. Tim' into his home. Why didn't he do a background check? He should have had that person's name, his history down to conception. He shouldn't have exhausted all his resources before letting this guy into the tower. Yet, he didn't do none of that. It was a matter of fact that he handed Raven off to her kidnapper.
Robin grabbed a piece of plywood and threw it to the opposite wall. Why was he so stupid? Why was he so obsessive and single minded? All he could think was fixing one mistake, just to let another slither right past him. Opening the door for a snake, whose name he didn't even remember, with a face he never even saw.
Robin turned to Cyborg, watching as a mix of anger, regret and sadness flashed through the older Titan's face.
Cyborg open his mouth,choice words ready to slip out of his mouth. He stopped, aptly closing it before turning to his leader. Cyborg lifted his chin, he stared down at Robin, every breath fueling the fire in his chest.
"You," Cyborg stepped in front of Robin. "You promised this wasn't going to happen a second time."
"She was suppose to be safer-"
"With whom!" Cyborg yelled. "She is gone Robin!" Cyborg kicked the broken table, sending it flying across the room. "Gone Robin! I could have taken care of her. Then that-that, slim bag wouldn't have taken her!"
"The team-" Robin tried to explain.
Cyborg pushed Robin. "Raven is part of the team!" Cyborg screamed, grabbing Robin's shirt. He lifted his leader off from the floor, hand shaking to gain control, eyes locking onto each other. "I guess you forgot that since she lost her eyesight , huh?"
Robin didn't even struggle."Of course Raven is part of the team"
There was silence. One long winded moment as Cyborg held on tight. For that moment, he noticed just how fragile his leader for a moment his rationality faltered. It was so very evident that Robin was human. He had no superpowers, absolutely nothing to really stop Cyborg from crushing him.
No, that wasn't him.
Cyborg gave a small chuckle. No, that was very much him; however Raven wouldn't like that one bit.
"But no longer useful huh?" Cyborg asked staring into Robin's mask. He grunting before letting Robin go with a push.
"This is your fault" Cyborg whispered. "You could have saved them both but no!" Cyborg raised his hands in exasperation. "You just saved her!" Cyborg grunted, pointing one angry finger at Starfire.
Everyone stilled, eyes following the accusing finger. Starfire stepped back hands in a fist. There was fear in her eyes, guilt running it's course. Her eyes shifted to Robin, noticing his eyes remained fixed at the cleared out spot on the floor.
Cyborg sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Star" Cyborg pleaded, realizing his mistake. "I'm not-, I'm not blaming you."
Starfire weakly nodded, her eyes shifting towards Robin. It was heat of the moment of course, Cyborg didn't mean what he said. He didn't blame her, no he blamed Robin full heartedly. Yet, why wouldn't Robin look at her? Why didn't he at least try to defend her?
For a moment their eyes shifted towards each other. Yet Robin quickly looked away, his eyes again fixated on the rubble. Starfire dropped her shoulders, a tight feelings resting on her chest. Starfire grinded her teeth, realization dawning on her; Robin was indeed a coward.
Beast Boy cleared his throat, watching Starfire's dejected expression grace her face. "Look, I know we are all shocked, yet fighting isn't really an option." Beast Boy rubbed his neck, staring at the Tower ceiling; well part of the ceiling wasn't scorched to oblivion. " But we need to find Raven. That caregiver guy had to have plans and had to taking her somewhere."
"Or someone." Robin grunted, staring at the floor below him.
"We have more than a few enemies,Robin"' Cyborg said, Robin's name dripping with malice. "It could have been anyone." Cyborg complained rubbing his temples.
"Yet, they could have taken her any time during these six months." Robin sighed. "Why now?" Robin shook his head, falling to the floor and sitting in the middle of the rubble. "They could have done this anytime. Rub the fact that they one upped us." Robin clenched his fist.
Cyborg stiffened. "Unless, they needed her for something specific."
Robin looked at Cyborg. Need Raven? Who would need-
Robin growled, abruptly getting up from the floor. "Blood"
Robin looked at his team's blank faces. "Blood is-" Robin stuttered. "He is part of a cult. They-"Robin gulped. "Worship Raven's father."
He looked at their faces, panic setting in. Raven could not only be kidnapped. Raven could be-
Robin shook his head. No, she still could be very much alive. He couldn't fail her a second time.
Starfire shivered. "If they took Raven, she might be-"
"No" Robin cut her off, his tone a little too harsh. "If this world was ending, we would have known by now." Robin gave Cyborg a quick glance. "I'll call Zatanna, she had been tracking the cults steps for a while. She probably can tell us where is their main location"
Robin opened his communicator. "Get ready to head out."
All eyes rested on Robin. There was a moment of hesitation to leave him. All too familiar with Robin's patterns. Blame, hate, and obsession were emotions so well etched in him, they were cornerstones of what made Robin, well, Robin. They all looked at each other secret words spoken between them before backing away from the living room.
For once, maybe it was truly was Robin's fault.
Robin typed the Justice League frequency, directly linking himself to Zatanna's line. He felt a bump on his shoulder, Cyborg roughly passing by. Cyborg gave Robin a quick glance his eyes dark and black.
"If-' Cyborg started, the words too hard to say. "If Rae isn't, if she isn't...well, it's your head I will be after Boy Blunder." Cyborg said, turning back to the exit.
Robin clenched his communicator, his heart in his stomach as Zatanna's line rang.
Robin closed his eyes, the words resonating from his chest through their mental link. For just once, he hoped Raven was listening in.
Author Note: Tsk tsk Robin. He royally messed up. So, the next chapter is already writing. I just need to edit it and add detail. Also have to establish some bonds and break others. Haha, anyways enjoy the story!