Chapter 24
Contrary to what Robin thought, Starfire didn't seem to have any trouble falling asleep. After taking some time to check some files on his computer he also went to bed.
Robin snapped awake. He didn't know how long he had been asleep, but he was aware that there was someone leaning over him as he lay in his bed. Giving no warning, he slammed his fist into the jaw of the intruder, knocking him back several steps. Rolling off the bed and reaching under the head of the bed, he grabbed the collapsed staff he kept there. In one fluid motion he extended it and slammed the end into the side of the intruder as he straightened up. He swung the staff around and slammed it into the back of his legs sweeping them out from under him. Continuing the motion he then smacked the intruder in the jaw knocking him out cold. The sound of his daughter babbling snapped Robin's attention to where the crib sat against the wall. "Put her down," he ordered, then used his staff to vault over the bed and place himself between the second intruder and the door. Grabbing a book from his computer table, he threw it against the button by the door that triggered the intruder alert. "I don't know who you are, but you are not leaving this room with her," he said as the lights came on and the alarm sounded.
Now that he had some light he could see that the second intruder was a female, but that was about all he could tell about her. She wore a skin tight gray one-piece outfit that covered her from head to toe, and with the exception of her eyes, her face was covered with a matching fabric. As he watched the woman slid a dagger from a boot sheath and held it to Liand'r's throat. "You harm her, and I promise you, you won't leave this room alive."
No sooner had Robin said that then the dagger was enveloped in black and simply vanished from the woman's grip. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos," Raven chanted as she phased through the door. Liand'r was enveloped in her black energy and levitated over to Robin. Another wave of Raven's hand and the woman was held in place by her magic.
"Who are you, what have you done to Starfire, and why are you trying to kidnap our daughter?" Robin demanded.
Seeing Beast Boy and Cyborg enter the room through the door, the woman realized that her mission had failed as she could not defeat the entire team. Moving her hands slowly she undid whatever was keeping the cloth over her face, then pulled back her hood. "I surrender to you and your team, Highness," she said as she shook her hair free.
Robin was the first one to recover from the shock of seeing who the intruder was. "Shel'b?" he gasped, as he gently placed Liand'r back in her crib.
"Rivan, pe va. . ." Shel'b began but Robin cut her off.
"In English, Shel'b," he snapped. "I want everyone in this room to know why you betrayed us. We trusted you, called you our friend, and had you join us as a Titan."
Shel'b swallowed nervously. She glanced over at where her partner and husband, Chr's lay sprawled out on the floor. She knew the force of Robin's attacks, and knew that he would not be rising for some time. She looked back at Robin and saw the fury in his expression even with his mask hiding his eyes. She realized that by us he meant not only himself and Starfire, but the Titans as well. "Highness. . .Robin, I know how this must look to you, but I assure you. . ."
"How it looks, Warrior, is you and your partner used your position as Titans to get into the Tower to kidnap Starfire and my daughter. If this was Tamaran, your life would be forfeit for treason and for whatever it is you've done to Starfire."
"Do not worry, Robin," she assured him. "Wistona gas has no side effects, and she was given a very small dose, and should awaken shortly."
Robin acknowledged the information with a curt nod. "Then let's hear your explanation. Why were you tying to kidnap Liand'r?"
"I. . ." Shel'b began, then lowered her eyes. "I cannot tell you, Highness."
Robin glared at her for a moment, then sighed sadly. "Then you leave me no choice, Shel'b," he said, then walked over to his closet, went in then returned with his arms full. He set the items on his desk, then turned to face Shel'b.
"Robin, no! Please, I beg of you not to use that!"
"As I said, Shel'b, you leave me no choice. You have proven to me that you can't be trusted. You took an oath to both Starfire and I when you joined our personal guards. You broke both those, and the trust all of us put in you when we accepted you as Titans. Until you can regain my trust, this stays on."
Raven grunted slightly as she had to strengthen her hold on Shel'b as she struggled to move, but the sound of the control collar snapping shut signaled the redheads resistance ending.
"Cyborg, give me a hand with Chr's," Robin said, and as Cyborg held Chr's's unconscious form up, Robin placed the collar on him as well. The couple was also shackled. "Raven," he said when he stepped back from shackling Shel'b.
Raven nodded, knowing why Robin had put the control collars on the two. Now she could focus her powers on other things.
"Wait a minute," Beast Boy protested. "You can't ask her to. . ."
"He doesn't have to Garfield," Raven said softly. "Something has convinced Shel'b to threaten Liand'r. Even if I wasn't her Godmother, I wouldn't let that go uninvestigated." she turned back to look at Shel'b. "Tell me, Commander, how difficult are you going to make this for me, or yourself?"
"Robin, please. Chr's and I accepting this mission was in your and Princess Liand'r's best interest. There are other warriors who would not have hesitated at using their blade on her. Neither of us would have."
"Why, Shel'b? What would have convinced you to betray us like this?"
"I cannot answer, Highness."
Robin gave Raven a curt nod, and Raven's eyes ignited with her magic. The dark sorceress wasn't thrilled at what she was about to do, but knew the necessity of it. She held her hand out toward Shel'b and she heard Beast Boy's gasp as a shadowy raven's claw rose from the floor and engulfed Shel'b's head from the front.
"Raven, no. . .please. . .I"
'Don't resist me, Shel'b,' Raven's voice said inside her mind. 'You know I do not wish to hurt you, but you also know I must have the information I'm here to find.' "She's resisting, Robin. How far do I take this?"
Robin's thoughts went to Starfire laying unconscious on their bed and his daughter in her crib. "That's up to you, Raven. Just remember, when its discovered that these two have failed, if we don't find who sent them, they'll send someone else."
Raven nodded then focused her concentration again. 'How would this person feel about your turning against Starfire and Robin?' she mentally asked.
Raven felt Shel'b's mental flinch as the image of a Tamaranean woman's face filled her mental vision. 'Sara'h, no! I have solid reason's for doing this.'
'Reason's that make it alright for you to turn against your Empress, and her husband by trying to abduct their daughter?' Raven pressed.
"Saaarrraaa'hhhh!" Shel'b wailed as she sank to her knees, her tears dripping from her chin. With the exception of Raven, the others jumped at the unexpected cry. "Dearest sister, I do not wish to disgrace myself in your eyes." She looked over at Robin. "Chr's and I learned that there was a group of very high ranking people that have decided that the current rule is a disgrace to all of Tamaran. A common child, not of noble blood ruling with a halfbreed princess to rule after. Liand'r was to be taken, I do not know what their plans were for her after that, but I assure you they would not have harmed her. There are others, besides Chr's and myself that would have insured that."
"And what of Nie'l?"
Robin whirled at the sound of Starfire's voice as she sat up in their bed.
"They have him as well. It was part of the plan. With myself on guard when Nie'l was taken it would strengthen your trust in us, making this part of the plan easier. Chr's and I were to secure Liand'r and bring her to a rendezvous point not far from here. At that place you called a rock quarry."
Robin looked over at Raven.
"She's telling the truth, Robin," she said, and he saw her narrow her eyes at Shel'b for a moment. "And I believe that she can be trusted to help us with this."
"Shalay'fa, are you certain?" Starfire gasped. "I do not doubt your powers, but with what they have just done, I can not bring myself to trust them," Starfire said. "I am astounded that you can."
"I understand your doubts, Starfire, but Shel'b believes that she was acting in Liand'r's best interest by accepting the mission to take her. They had no intention of turning her over to them."
"There is a child that did not survive her Omshe," Shel'b said softly. "Her parents are among the ones who know of this conspiracy, and believe it should fail. We were to present that child's body at the rendezvous and claim that we had to kill Liand'r to secure our escape. Unfortunately, you turned in your sleep, Robin, and Chr's went over to ensure you were still sleeping."
"Release them," Starfire said softly. "Raven's trust in them is sufficient for me."
Robin nodded, and removed both the shackles and collars. "Okay, here's what we're going to do."
The Titans crouched behind a small pile of rocks and watched as Shel'b and Chr's approached the ship.
"Dude, I hope you know what you're doing," Beast Boy whispered. "If Terra had done what they did, even I wouldn't be trusting her."
'I hope so too,' The Boy Wonder thought to himself as he gave Raven a look. "Let's just say that I trust Raven."
"And we are all here to ensure our daughter does not sustain injury," Starfire said not taking her eyes off the small bundle in Shel'b's arms.
Unobtrusively, Robin reached over and gave his wife's hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. Even without their crystals he could sense her nervous tension. He knew that she had been on Earth long enough to have said 'get hurt' instead of 'sustain injury', and that her concern over their daughter had caused her relapse to the more formal mode of speaking. "And remember, we're not alone," he reminded her.
"Look sharp people, it's happening," Superman's voice whispered into Robin's ear.
"At least it is just a class one diplomatic shuttle," Starfire said softly. "Not a larger one."
"That's small?" Cyborg whispered incredulously. "That thing is twice the size of the T-ship at least."
"And mean lookin'," Beast Boy added.
Robin had to admit that the green skinned Titan was right. The craft was not wedge shaped like the ROHA'N and other warships of the Tamaranean fleet but was much more streamlined. Starfire had explained that their warships were not designed to enter a planet's atmosphere, but these shuttles were. She also conceded that their appearance served to intimidate other races as well.
They all fell silent and Robin's attention focused on where Chr's and Shel'b stood, as a ramp lowered giving the appearance of a shark opening its mouth. Chr's and Shel'b took a step toward the ramp, but stopped and looked behind them.
"X'Hal, no!" Starfire gasped as Blackfire arrived, slung over the shoulder of a large warrior. "Why does this extend to her?"
'Well that rules her out as being the one behind this,' Robin thought to himself.
"You have done well," a voice said from inside the ship. "Kor'mel does not suspect?"
"No he does not," the warrior carrying Blackfire replied as he set her down in a chair that had been pushed out of the ship.
"What of the Empress and her husband?"
"They know, but have been told that if they interfere they will ensure that their daughter will lose her life," Chr's replied.
"That will be the case in any event, once we are out of this system."
"I thought you would say that," Shel'b said. "I will not allow harm to come to this child!" she shouted, then threw Liand'r into the air.
"Liand'r, menia neru ne shama!" Starfire called, then sighed as her daughter's trajectory changed from simple free fall to controlled flight.
"Titans, go!" Robin shouted the second Liand'r was in Starfire's arms. Not waiting to see what actions the others were taking, he vaulted over the rock he was behind, and drew his staff as he ran up to the ship.
"I'll take her, Starfire. I know those are your people out there and you should be in the fight."
Starfire turned at the soft voice and saw a blond haired young woman with piercing blue eyes. "I know to trust you, because you wear the insignia of the Kryptonian house of El, and therefore must be Superman's cousin that I have heard of."
"You can call me Kara," she said as she held her arms our for Starfire to hand Liand'r to her. "I promise you that no harm will come to her, and only you or Robin will take her from me."
Starfire looked down at her daughter as she snuggled in her arms, then back up at Supergirl, making no move to hand Liand'r to the blond. "It is not that I do not trust you, Kara," she said softly.
"Hey, I understand," Kara said. "You just had two people that you trust a lot more than me try to take her from you." She gave Starfire a friendly smile. "But I'll be staying with you. I gave Robin my word that I'd protect your daughter, and I don't intend to break that." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Now that I think about it, I got the impression that he knew that I'd be actually protecting the two of you."
As the Titans broke cover, a red and gold blur weaved itself around the warriors that were on the ramp and the ground. There was a series of surprised shouts as those warriors found themselves bereft of their swords and daggers. There were three noticeable exceptions. Chr's, Shel'b and Kim'r quickly drew their swords and subdued the warriors that were nearest to Blackfire.
Seeing that the fight was over, Starfire moved to Robin's side. "What did you do to her?" Starfire demanded of the warriors that had brought Blackfire to the rendezvous.
"I do not recognize you as a ruler of Tamaran and will not answer," one of them replied, the other remaining silent.
"Then you leave me no choice," J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter said as he stepped in front of him. His eyes glowed for a moment. "Try not to think of what you did to Blackfire," he said softly, and the glow in his eyes flared. "It is something called wistona gas," he said, turning to Starfire. "According to his mind it is harmless, and temporary."
"That is correct," Starfire said, relaxing somewhat. She whirled to look up into the shuttle when someone shouted.
"The Emperor! Something is very wrong!"
Robin, Starfire, and Superman quickly entered the shuttle and found Kir'a kneeling beside the chair that Nie'l's unconscious form was tied to.
"What are you doing here?" Starfire asked Kir'a.
"As I told you before, my Lady; nothing will keep me from finding and helping Nie'l," she explained. "We need a healer, quickly."
"I am a healer," a woman announced as she walked over, her medical scanner already out. At Starfire's nod she moved beside Nie'l and took some readings. "X'Hal, no. This was not supposed to happen," she gasped seeing the data. "A simple herbal combination was used to keep him unconscious," she explained. "It is only now that I detect that he is allergic to one or more of them. He is slipping into shock from the reaction."
"I need two Shinrah Crystals, quickly!" Starfire snapped. She was slightly surprised to see Shel'b and Chr's remove theirs without hesitation. She watched Chr's put his on Nie'l. "I will take the other."
"No, Starfire, that won't help," Raven said.