The Titans stood stunned as they watched the circle of lightning rain down from the sky down on their tower. What was left of the windows on the tower shattered and glass rained down on their island, the circuitry fried and sparks burst as the lightbulbs exploded. Slade looked up at the white circle of light around him that ran up to the sky. The air exploded with crackles of lightning as bolts jumped between the gems surrounding him. He could feel the power slowly descending from the heavens and entering him, it would take time but he was getting stronger. He looked over at Jump City beyond the veil of energy and smiled to himself, he was about to unleash something they had never seen before.
Robin's scowl grew. He turned to Raven, "get us there."
She looked up to the sky as her eyes turned white and black wings spread from her back before the entire raven materialised and enveloped the team. She took off, flying fast and low, the wings leaving ripples on the water as it skimmed the waves. Slade diverted his attention from the spectacle raining down to notice the Titan's approach, he could feel her power. "Isn't that interesting?" He murmured, then reached into himself and tapped into the powers he had already received. He held in his gasp of satisfaction as one unfurled within him and extending his hands, he fired a shimmer of air at Raven. It slammed into the team and Raven suddenly gasped as she felt her power disappear. Her raven disintegrated in an explosion of black shreds as suddenly the team suddenly reappeared in the air. They hit the damp sand of Titan's Island's shores and bounced to a stop.
Beast Boy groaned as he rubbed the back of his head, "Yo Raven, what gives?"
Raven was sitting up, looking at her hands. "My power" she muttered, "it's gone."
"What do you mean, gone?" Robin asked.
"I mean I can't use it" Raven told him feebly, "I can't even feel it. It's just gone."
"Looks like Slade's got some new talents" Cyborg said, looking up at the black silhouette within the column of white.
"It's not going to save him" Robin muttered, offering his hand. Raven accepted it and he pulled her up. "You can still fight and as a Titan I still expect you to."
"I'll do that gladly" Raven muttered, clenching her fist.
"There's gonna be a tonne of his robots between the ground floor and the roof" Cyborg warned.
"Good" Raven muttered, "I want a fight."
The team charged in through the door which was still lying on the ground thanks to Wildebeest and braced as an army of robots turned to look at them. "Titans!" Robin yelled, "go!"
Rune roared as the group charged, Starfire's eyes blasted green as she carved a swath through Slade's minions, matched by Cyborg opposite her as he hosed the front lines down with his sonic cannon. Rune blasted the two in front of him and grabbed another, swinging it round like a bat and clearing out three more. Rune's arm brightened as he pressed a palm into one and suddenly all the energy drained from it, leaving it to fall lifelessly. Rune took the head from another and with his brown rune activated, threw it with enough force to go straight through a series of robots. Beast Boy shifted into a rhino and ploughed into the middle, tearing and crushing with hooves and horn as he bucked and thrashed. Robin's bo staff was cleaving through robotic heads and bodies as he swung with all his might, leaving in a midst of broken parts and the crackling energy from disembodied robotic limbs. Robin ducked under laser fire and threw a series of discs, the following explosions dealing with another dozen or so. Raven was probably angriest, with her powers suppressed, there was nothing to stop her fighting with emotions as she ripped out wires and kicked in faceplates. She took off a robot's arm and used the blaster still clenched in its cold fingers to bring down five of its kin. After only a few minutes of fighting but felt like so much longer, Rune punched through the chest of the last robot and crushed whatever served as its heart. It toppled back and the only sound left was the Titans' breathing.
"There's more to go yet" Robin said, the other Titans nodded and followed his lead as they tore through the next few floors.
Cyborg was the first one to voice his doubt. "This is taking too long, and we can't keep this up with a chance against Slade."
Robin was leaning on his staff as he caught his breath, forced to accept the truth in his words. "We can't fly up, with Slade's powers the air it's too exposed. Anyone else have an idea?"
Beast Boy traded a glance with Starfire. "Do you remember that plan I joked about making if the world ever ended?" He asked. "Do you think it could work?"
"You want me to-" Starfire started before laser fire started streaking through the air; Slade's forces had decided to take the fight to them.
"FEED HIM THE BERRIES!" Beast Boy yelled as he charged with the other Titans towards the line. Starfire nodded as she threw three blasts in succession at the ceiling before punching t
rough it. She passed up three floors that way, passing innumerable amounts of Slade's minions until she got to her room and found what she was looking for.
Rune flipped one of Slade's robots around and forced it to soak up fire from others as a human shield before throwing it back into the group and knocking half a dozen or so down with it. "We can't hold out forever!"
Beast Boy heard the cry first, and the rumble of the floors. "We won't have to" he said, a small grin starting to appear on his face.
Rune was about to question his meaning when the wall exploded and a massive cream-coloured blob crashed into the room, crushing half the robots and with an enormous mouth, consumed the rest as the pieces were mashed within its teeth. Rune was bewildered until it looked around at him with a pair of shiny and enthusiastic black beady eyes. "Silkie?!" He asked.
"Silkie on zorkaberries" Beast Boy said proudly. Starfire smiled as she floated down and scratched Silkie under his roll of blubber that resembled a chin and he purred happily before biting down on one robot's upper body trying to drag itself out of the larva's mouth to safety.
"Not bad" Robin said admirably, a grin on his face. "Can he clear the rest of the way for us?"
"Does Silkie ever get tired of eating?" Beast Boy asked back jokingly in reply. Starfire hugged Silkie and whispered a few sentences before Silkie lumbered forward and through the hole in the wall he had created.
"He will provide an excellent diversion" She promised.
"Then let's get up there" Robin said, looking at each member of his team. "And finish this."
They all nodded and the team followed in Silkie's wake of wrecked minions before kicking off the rooftop access door. Slade was at the other end, directly facing them, he was floating half a dozen feet in the air. Between them stood Rose, most of her face including one of her eyes was obscured by the mask she wore but Rune recognised her instantly. She stood trained and ready, a sword in her hands that was constantly shimmering with light reflected from the column of lightning behind her. "I'm assuming that's Slade's daughter?" Beast Boy asked.
Rune just nodded as Rose's eye matched his. He charged and the group followed his lead. Rose met his charge as she swung the sword at his neck. Rune slid on his knees past her as it flew overhead and Robin landed a solid kick into her stomach, the punch Starfire hit her with knocked her to the ground. Rune didn't turn to look as he slipped past her, throwing his rings of energy at Slade. They exploded as they collided with the wall of energy.
Slade's eye narrowed. "I don't think I appreciate your powers either" he said, pointing a hand at Rune. Rune gasped as he fell to one knee, feeling his power writhe and die within him. His skin was only tattoos now, the runes just carvings on his skin, there was nothing powerful about him. He had nothing.
Slade slowly lowered to the ground, the column lost a small part of its lustre as his boots made contact with the tower's roof. It faded out into nothingness as he walked out of its borders, though the gems still stayed afloat. "I have enough power to crush you, not that it ever was challenging without it" he said in a deep voice, drenched in confidence. Rune ran for him but Slade pushed at him and Rune felt himself slow for the briefest of moments before Slade's boot rammed into his stomach and Rune felt the world whistling past his ears as he flew backwards, thrown by Slade's enhanced strength.
"Titans, split!" Robin ordered and the team moved around as Rose pursued Beast Boy with enormous arcing slashes that held back the entire team, leaving them able to escape but not able to attack. It may have seemed clumsy but Robin could tell she was buying time for Slade and doing it perfectly too, she had been dangerously well trained. Robin flicked away her sword and left her, feeling her reverse slash trim his cape a few centimetres. Cyborg took the opportunity to move past out of Rose's reach and Starfire had already flown over. Rose moved to cut them off, at the legs but Slade held out a hand to stop her.
"No" he commanded, "I will deal with these inadequacies. Those ones," he said, pointing to where Beast Boy, Raven and Rune were left, "are yours."
Rose nodded and flicked her sword around, the sound of it cutting through air raised the hairs on the back of Beast Boy's neck. Rune stood back up and joined his two friends to where they were beginning to circle Rose. Her one eye flicked back and forth between the two, Rune stood directly to her front. He watched as Rose's right foot twisted towards Beast Boy and reacted. She thrusted for his neck but Rune kicked her hands around the hilt, sending the thrust awry. Beast Boy and Raven both moved to attack but Rose twisted, swinging with an upwards cut at Raven and extending her leg to kick Beast Boy in the chest. Beast Boy went sprawling back as Raven sidestepped before throwing a straight punch. Rose moved but it connected with her shoulder, forcing her to take two steps back. Rune tried to take advantage but she raised her wrist, shooting two black blades at him. Rune dodged but the first cut a line along his ribs and the second his cheek, the first tearing a gash in his shirt. Rune gasped as he felt his blood leaking out down his skin. Rune wondered why it felt so strange when he realised that the rune that had constantly been sealing him back up was gone, he was now mortal. Rune was so lost in his dawning realisation that he didn't see Rose's kick coming until it had slammed into the side of his jaw. He stumbled back wildly until he hit the guard rail on the edge. Rune dared to look over down at the black roaring waves below, he could hear them calling him, beckoning him, the promise of that one final peace. It was so close, there would be nothing to stop him from dying, he just any other normal person.
"Rune!"
Raven's cry snapped him back into the moment as he looked away to see Rose coming down on him, her sword held over her head. Rune jumped out of the way as she came down, her sword carving through the rail like scissors through paper. Rune twisted away again as she followed up with more cuts and thrusts, her low sweep taking out an entire section of the rail. Rune jumped back out of the blade's reach as he heard the section of railing crash against the side of tower on its tumble down. Rune picked himself up off the ground as Beast Boy and Raven stood at his side. Rose let loose a savage grin as she bore down on them again, leading with her blade.
Robin turned his attention from the other three Titans before receiving a blow to the gut. Slade's next blow to his temple was thwarted as Starfire hurled a star bolt, making him jump clear. Cyborg pursued with a hammer blow, striking Slade's blocking arms with such strength it jarred his arm even with his enhanced strength. The notion of pain made Slade snarl as he picked up Cyborg and threw him back down into the ground before kicking him along the ground. Cyborg groaned as he pulled off the dented armour plate from around his ribs before getting back up and charging. Robin charged at his side. One glance was all the pair needed to understand each other as they weaved in and out of each other before diving. Robin threw his explosives which were swallowed up in Cyborg's sonic blast. Slade threw his hands over his eyes as the sonic boom whited out everything in front of him. Slade opened his eye to see Robin leaping at him with a flying kick but Slade grabbed his ankle and swung him round before throwing him into Starfire, knocking them both to the ground. Cyborg hesitated as he looked to see if they were okay and Slade reacted. Moving as quick as the lightning that had been striking the gems, Slade kicked Cyborg onto his back then as Cyborg aimed with his cannon, Slade stomped down on his leg, fracturing the metal and reinforced plastic casing. Cyborg cried out as Slade twisted his foot and the leg shifted before Slade yanked back and ripped Cyborg's leg off at the knee. Cyborg yelled out in pain as he aimed with the cannon and fired. Slade watched as the beam missed by at least two feet and connect with one of the gems still hovering silently in the air, waiting patiently for Slade to return within its borders. The gem glowed brightly as Cyborg emptied everything he had into it, determined to destroy the source of Slade's power but as he stopped, the gem released a shockwave that threw back the Titans, passing by Slade who was left untouched. Slade smiled, the gems knew their master.
The other three Titans looked up as the white shockwave flew towards them and tossed them back. Rose twisted her blade and thrust it into the ground, holding onto it for support as it pushed at her but the strength of the blade remained firm. Rune and Raven picked themselves up, without their powers, the fight was taking a greater toll on their endurance than both of them would have liked. They heard a cry as Beast Boy was locked in a fist fight with Rose, having attacked before she could pull her sword free. They watched as Rose flowed around Beast Boy's swinging limbs like rippling water, weaving free of his attacks of tooth and claw. She then punched him in the face and as he reverted back to a dazed human, grabbed his arm and threw him in air, out towards the harbour. Raven reached with her hand instinctively but remembered her powers were gone, she couldn't catch him as he hurtled past the reach of the safety rail. He was going to fall, and in the state Rose had punched him in he wouldn't regain his senses before he hit the ground. She tried again to contact her powers but she could feel them just held beyond her reach, she couldn't save him. Rune dived out for Beast Boy's white gloved hand as it disappeared over the edge and yelled as his palm closed around it, yanking on his shoulder muscle. Rune yelled as all of Beast Boy's weight yanked down on his arm but with a groan that escalated towards a yell, he pulled the Titan back up over the edge, sucking in deep breaths as he rolled onto his back. He pulled Beast Boy back to his feet.
"You saved me" Beast Boy said, half amazed, half exhausted.
"Can't have anyone dying just yet" Rune said then flinched as his back stiffened. He looked down to see about an entire foot of metal jutting out from the middle of his chest, the silver steel stained red with blood. Across the rooftop, Ravager stared with sick fascination, her thrown sword had hit her mark perfectly. Rune looked back up to Beast Boy, his face and body was covered in blood splatter as he blinked a couple times in shock. Rune looked at him and was suddenly gripped with a fear. He heard Raven's scream, a piercing cry of anguish, loss, fear and rage. The whole world felt numb, then cold, almost as if the steel had been made of ice. It spread through his body and his muscles began to go limp, refusing to obey him. Rune coughed, feeling blood make his mouth warm and slippery, a line trickled out of the corner of his lip as his body began to fold in on itself and he crumbled to the ground. Raven was beside him in a flash, the look of horror on Beast Boy's face shifted to rage as he screamed and took off after Ravager. Rune lay on his side, as she cupped his face. "Please don't go" she begged him, "stay with me."
Rune tried to reply but suddenly Raven's gaze was torn away as Ravager bore down on her. Raven was forced to scramble away as Ravager's daggers cut through the air around her. Ravager stepped over Rune's body and gripped the handle of the sword buried in his back. Rune gasped as he felt it yanked out of him, and blood rush out quicker. Rune lay still, powerless to do anything except watch the red pool grow larger and larger in every direction. He could hear the sounds of battle around him, Rose screamed and Raven cried out in reply. No, Rune told his failing body. I can't die, not now, I'm still needed here.
Why shouldn't we leave? His body asked in response, our time is done, our power is gone, we have nothing left to offer.
But I can't go Rune's thoughts insisted, I can't leave my friends to die, I can't leave Raven to die.
Why not? His body questioned, why can't we leave her?
Rune's reply was simple, and obvious. He'd known it all along. Because I love her he thought and then the tingle on his flesh returned. A rune had lit up. The feeling was unfamiliar to Rune, he'd never felt this rune, it had just awakened, and it had been love that had done it, his last rune had been woken by love. The rune passed energy through his body, and one by one, the other runes began to light up. Rune convulsed, it wasn't only waking the other runes back up, it was giving them a power he'd never felt before, it was giving them something to fight for. His healing rune on his wrist lit up and Rune gasped as a breath of air rushed back into his lungs. He felt the blood return to him, his energy bubbling and boiling within it. Rune felt his fists clench and press against the ground as he stood back up, lifting his head up last, every rune along his body was alight. Robin and Slade and everyone else stopped fighting to stare as Rune looked at them all, his eyes ablaze with a hundred colours from all the power coursing through him. Ravager screeched and dived at him, determined to permanently put him down but Rune simply grabbed the blade, wrapping his fingers around it. Ravager was helpless as Rune squeezed and the blade shattered like glass in his hand, the pieces ringing as they bounced on the ground. She looked at him a shocked expression as he drove a punch into her stomach, catching her in a moment of weakness and driving the air out of her. She tried to tackle Rune but he dodged out of the way and sent her sprawling on the ground. She looked up furiously as Rune converged on her, intent on ending this battle once and for all. She rolled backwards and dived over the rail, grabbing it and she swung over and dropped through a shattered window on the top floor, one level below the roof. Raven and Beast Boy moved to pursue her but Rune stopped them "No!" He growled, making them pause. "Stop Slade, she's mine." Raven gave him a questioning look but he met her cooly with his own and she understood. She motioned Beast Boy over and he joined her as they rushed over to join Robin and Starfire who were torn between fighting Slade and protecting Cyborg. Rune jumped after Rose and just saw the flash of steel with enough time to roll as Rose swung with her sai. Rune came up behind her as she twisted and swiped, chasing with her daggers. Rune flipped backwards she unloaded a salvo of blades, he was reading her moves before she'd even made them. She knew it as well as her attacks became more and more frantic, her desperation starting to override her training. Rune stepped back nimbly out of reach and then as he ducked under her high kick that followed her low one, his foot swung around and connected squarely with her head, tearing off her mask. It clattered to the ground and Rose paused, her face lit up by the dim dark blue emergency lights. "Rose…" Rune started, his jaw hanging slightly ajar by the grisly sight, her right eye socket stitched with a few tears of blood reddening the socket. The sight tore at Rune, even in his power-induced focus. His face slackened and slowly reformed into a mixture of sadness and horror at what she had done, he immediately knew it had been her.
Rose growled at him as he didn't attack, she desperate to fight, desperate for blood, it was all she longed for.
"What did you do to yourself?" Rune asked sadly, "why?"
"The Ravager would do anything for her her father" Rose hissed, the knuckles around her sai turning white.
Rune looked at the mask on the ground. "The Ravager?" He repeated. "You're Rose Wilson, the girl from the streets of Gotham, the gem amongst a rough family," he swallowed, "the love of Finn Tylers' life."
"Both of them are dead!" She screamed at him, "this is what we are now!"
"It doesn't have to be!" Rune pleaded in return. "Rose, what we've done isn't who we are. It's what we choose to do."
Rose began to shake, her one eye clouding with doubt. Rune thought he had gotten through to her before she screamed again. "No! I am the Ravager and you will die!" She threw both her sai at him but Rune twisted in between them and tried to grab her. Rose jumped back, somersaulting away from him. She landed at the edge of the broken window but disappeared with a scream as the weakened floor gave way.
"Rose!" Rune yelled running to her. He looked over and saw her hanging by one hand off a steel bar exposed by the broken floor.
She looked at him and her eye narrowed in anger. "You cost me everything" she said, "now it's time to give it all up." She let go of the bar but Rune reached and snatched her by the wrist, holding her steady.
"Not yet" he told her, "this is not our time to die."
She writhed in rage and beat at his hand with her free one but it was of no use, Rune held firm. "Let me fall!" She screamed.
Rune flashed back to the moment when he was cradling Rose's body all those years ago. When the paramedics and told him what he had already assumed, that she was dead, they took her away from him. He remembered staying on the ground, the last thing for them to part was their hands as he dropped it from hers. It all came rushing back in this moment. "No!" He yelled, "I won't let you go! Not again!"
She looked at him with a simple hatred, she hated him for denying her a good end. "Then you leave me no choice" she said, pulling the pistol from her thigh, cocking and pointing it.
"ROSE!" Rune screamed as she pulled the trigger and her temple exploded as she committed suicide. Her suit arm that Rune was holding was splattered with blood and brains. Blood ran down Rose's face as it hung limply, her hand went limp in Rune's grip. Rune felt his eyes heating up with tears as he screamed in frustration and grief. Rose was silent as blood ran down her body, dripping off her chin, it almost was black in the darkness. He remembered that last moment they had when she was lost, it further blinded him with tears as he lifted her up inside and laid her body down. He stroked her hair away from the bloody wound, he could see the traces of the girl he had loved, even if she couldn't have. Rune closed her eye and wished a silent prayer before a rumble from above made his head snap up, the other Titans were still fighting hard. Rune got up, all his hope for this fight was gone. He looked around before leaving Rose, her body lifeless in the cold darkness. There was only one thing left to end this fight.
Slade yelled as he beat down on Robin, leaving the teenager winded as he jumped between Starfire's blasts and Cyborg's sonic cannon fire to hit the Tamaranean and threw her back down to the tower with a crash. With the power he wielded, nothing could stop him. Slade charged at Beast Boy, grabbing him as a lion and slamming down on top of Cyborg where he already lay, incapacitating them both. He turned to catch Raven's fist as she struggled to land a hit on him. "Don't make me laugh" he said, lifting her up by her wrist and drawing back a fist to punch her with.
"Slade!" Rune shouted from the door of the tower. He was limping slightly as he crossed the distance between them, in his hand was Rose's mask, the mask of Ravager. "Enough."
Slade looked at the mask, then back at Rune. "Where is she?" He asked slowly, careful to pronounce every word right. When Rune shook his head, he dropped Raven and flew at Rune. "WHERE IS SHE!?" Slade roared. Rune didn't resist as Slade grabbed him by the collar. "WHAT DID YOU TO HER!?" He yelled, smashing his mask into Rune's face with a headbutt and throwing him down to the ground.
Rune looked back up at Slade, his nose bleeding and a busted lip. "You think I would've killed her?" He asked. "I loved her."
"SHE WAS MY DAUGHTER!" Slade shouted, kneeling down to punch Rune. Rune fell onto his back as Slade grabbed him, near frothing with rage. Rune realised this was how he had been when he had expended all his rage onto that man in the alleyway that night. Slade punched him again and again. Rune felt the cold surface of Slade's fist being hammered into his face again and the taste of blood filling his mouth. The next cut busted a bruise on his face into trickling blood. Rune felt himself slip further away with every punch, as if each blow pushed him deeper underwater, further away from the air, drowning under the pain, his vision was fading, the circle of darkness around his vision encroached further with every hit, it was almost extinguished. The next after that produced a loud crack as his eye socket fractured. Slade had descended into nothing but rage as his fists rose and flew back down, the sound of Slade's fist meeting flesh almost echoed around them.
"Rune!" Raven screamed, her hand outstretched, but no powers came. Her hand wouldn't even spark. She heard Rune groan in pain as he was hit again and a boiling torrent of red flooded her mind, completely shattering the last barrier between her and her power. Raven's eyes split into four and glowed red, she rose off the ground with tentacles of shadow spawning from the darkness of her cloak. She had one single boiling purpose that drove her forward. Kill Slade, I want him dead. Now. In the most painful way possible. She reached out and a tentacle drove forward, catching Slade under the ribs and slamming him down into the ground, shaking the building to its foundations. Slade grunted as Raven's next strike rammed him straight through it. Two tentacles reached in and dragged him out, his arms held out in the same fashion he had displayed her so many nights ago when Rune had saved her. There would be no one to save Slade though. She would grant him death, but first she would make him beg for it. She would finish this as it had nearly started. She hit him twice across the face while her restraints around his arms constricted like serpentine coils and began to pull. Slade took a sharp breath as he was powerless, Raven struck his torso twice just to make sure he was struggling to breathe as she kept the strength slowly lifting on his arms before two more reached up to apply the same pressure to his legs, pulling his body in every direction. She could almost feel his shudders as his tendons began to tear and bones dislocate, it only excited her further and her powers only pulled harder. Slade's body rippled as the tension built up and his muscles began to be torn apart, then he lifted his head back and made a sound none of the Teen Titans had ever heard him make before. He screamed. He screamed in such a guttural way from the pain as Raven twisted and pulled at him that eventually Beast Boy wrenched Raven out of the sky as a gorilla. "Raven, stop!" He cried, changing back.
"Never" Raven hissed, her voice alive and delighted at the reaction she had elicited from him, feeding her frenzy.
"Raven, you'll kill him!" Beast Boy yelled.
Yes Hatred thought. Kill him. Make him scream. Tear him limb from limb. Take your time. Exact revenge. You want this, remember what he did to Rune, what he did to you, he deserves this…
"No" came a different voice. Hatred looked to see Rune struggling to stand, raising himself to one knee. "No" he repeated to Hatred, he was bleeding from a collection of bruises and cuts to his face, one of his eyes was completely ringed red and his voice was soft, loud as the broken ribs around his lungs would allow. "This isn't you Raven. This is Hate, this is Fear, this is Rage. You are not your emotions, your emotions are you. Show them who is in control, remember the girl who saved me, who gave me a home. The girl who I knew was worth dying for even when I had known her scarcely a week. Remember her, because I do. Every day, every damn morning when I wake up and every damn night before I go to sleep. Don't let that sack of shit Slade take away your humanity, it's the part of you I treasure most."
Raven wavered slightly, then lowered to the ground, dropping Slade back to the ground again, her coils of shadow dissipating into shreds of darkness. Beast Boy held her for a moment to make sure she was steady, then looked back at Rune. He nodded, keeping still, wincing occasionally from the pain. Raven looked out at the gems and crushed the first two. She looked around and saw the last in Rune's hands, sparks jumping between the gem and his hand. He nodded at her and she extended a hand, crushing the last and releasing the power the trio had guarded for millennia. The Titans watched as the power receded slowly back from the crushed gems and Slade into the sky like wisps of ghostly steam. She walked over to Rune and he managed to sit up. She looked at him with tired eyes and he nodded, it was over. Raven wrapped her arms around him in a gentle embrace that was careful not to put pressure on any of his injuries, though that looked to be more than half his body. Robin pulled himself up, then did the same to Starfire, returning her embrace as she buried herself in his chest. He looked at Slade, slightly removed, who was still hunched over. Moves and countermoves, Slade's words echoed in his head. Robin looked at Slade with contempt, "Checkmate", he whispered. Slade didn't notice as he stayed where he was. With a ginger movement, he reached over and dragged Ravager's mask across the ground to him, lifting it to his face limply in his fingers to see the image he had created. Then, so quietly that if one of Rune's powers hadn't still been active the Titan would have missed it in his embrace with Raven, he cried.