Chapter 38
Trash and Treasure
"Are you sure it's supposed to be around here?" Blackfire moaned, blasting a nearby car into a million pieces. "The only thing around here is junk, and more importantly, this filthy air is messing up my perfect hair"
"Finding junk in a junkyard, is there nothing you can do?" Killer Moth laughed, poking his head out from the pile of garbage that he was rooting through.
"Listen you giant bug, mouth off to me and I'll squash you like a fly." Blackfire sneered.
"For the last damn time, I'm a MOTH, not a FLY. There's a difference."
"Either way, you're still nothing more than an insect." Moth burst out of the pile of garbage, flying up so that he was eye to eye with Blackfire.
"I swear, if you do that one more time I'll…"
"Cut that crap out you two, there's no time for your senseless bickering." The pair floated back down to the ground in front of Red X, who walked out from another section of the junkyard. "Did you find what we are looking for?"
"Sorry, boss. No luck." Moth admitted. "We haven't found anything but trash and more trash.
"It might help, if…I don't know…you actually told us what we were looking for? We've been in this disgusting place for hours." Blackfire groaned, flicking pieces of garbage from her immaculate outfit, which had already been stained at least two new colors.
"I already explained to you, once you find it, you'll know what it is." Blackfire floated off into a separate section of the junkyard, fully intent on sitting and waiting for someone else to finish the work, she was tired of getting herself dirty with the only reason being "because I said so". If it weren't for his interesting little proposal, she would have blasted the arrogant X into bits a long time ago. Killer Moth, still grateful for the breakout, dutifully went back to rooting through the piles, not that it bothered him much. It was better working with rotting material than actually rotting yourself, especially in prison. In his favor, it wasn't long until he came across something very unusual. Right away, he called X and Blackfire to inspect his discovery. It vaguely resembled a huge yellow and orange person, albeit made out of metal. Stranger still, it had a face, and actually looked like it was asleep.
"What the hell is this thing? What's it doing here?" Moth asked Red X, who quickly moved by his Moth and began tinkering with the bulky robot.
"This is the next piece of our plan, and you can call him Atlas. A few months ago, he battled the Teen Titans and lost, and what's left of him ended up buried here in this junkyard."
"And your point for all of this is?" Blackfire interrupted as she sat down on the hood of a nearby wrecked car.
"I'm going to reactivate him, and then he's going to help me."
"What if he isn't so agreeable?"
"Well, no matter what something is made out of, it can always be turned back into junk." Red X returned to tinkering with the still slumbering Atlas. Certain wires needed to be reattached, pieces needed to be put back into place, and all told, it took him a good hour before he could finally re-activate the robot. It awoke like a computer and like a human, first with the whir of an artificial brain, followed by the opening of a pair of eyes that cautiously surveyed its surroundings."
"Where is Atlas?" The construct asked, more of itself than of the other beings surrounding it. It tentatively rose from it's prison of refuse, and slowly made its way back to its feet. It towered over everything, including the three people that stood beside him.
"You are amongst allies, my metal friend." Red X said, stepping right in front of the behemoth. "You were shut down after a battle with the Teen Titans, and I am the one who re-activated you. My name is Red X."
"Atlas thanks you for your assistance. Now, if you don't mind, Atlas has to redeem himself against those blasted Titans." Atlas started to move forward, but before he could get anywhere, Red X stopped him with an open hand.
"Just listen to me for once second Atlas. You've gone against the Titans a number of times, and each time, you've been defeated."
"Atlas does not like his defeats being spoken of in this manner." Atlas growled.
"I understand, Atlas. But what is the reason why you were defeated? It is simple, because the Titans cheated."
"The Titans…cheated?"
"That's right. They had the superior numbers, and they used that against you, because they knew what would happen if they faced you one on one."
"They would be crushed under my feet." Said Atlas
"Exactly. But they won't allow that to happen, and that is why we are here to help you even those odds. With us at your side, the Titans will have no chance." The metal behemoth stood silent for a few moments, pondering the offer.
"Yes…yes…you have a point Red X. Atlas shall lend you his aid." Atlas's hand engulfed Red X's in a handshake. Red X laughed…another piece of the puzzle falls into play, just one more to go…
"Hey! Everybody come and take a look at this." Beast Boy called out from the living room in Titan Tower. Robin came forward and leaned across the back of the couch.
"What's going on?" He asked.
"It's a news report on the assault on Jump City Prison the other day. Not a single prisoner escaped, with the exception of just one, our old friend Killer Moth."
"Who would go through the trouble to break Killer Moth out of prison?" Robin asked.
"That's where it gets even stranger, they have some security footage of the person they think is responsible, and you'll never guess who it is." Robin peered at the screen, and for a second, could not believe his eyes…the footage was of poor quality, and cut off after a few seconds, but there was no denying that it was Blackfire destroying the wall and allowing Killer Moth to escape.
"Maybe you can clue me in Robin, but what does Starfire's sister have to do with Killer Moth?" Robin shrugged his shoulders. He had remembered hearing about the rogue Tamarainian's escape from the transfer convoy, but he had never expected to her from her so soon again, and especially not in a situation like this.
"I don't know…and that's part of what worries me…something must have brought those two together. I want someone monitoring the computer twenty-four seven, and from now until I say so, watches in the city are doubled. Something very bad is in the works, and I want to know what."