Chapter 13
The next day was Robin spent in a bit of a haze. His mind going over his dream and what it meant. Three times he found himself outside of Starfire's room, willing himself to go look under her bed for the devices Slade had said resided there. Three times he convinced himself that it was just a dream and it didn't mean anything. He had also found that he had to stop himself from checking the security footage. After all, who is he going to trust, his girlfriend and teammate, or his worst enemy in a dream? The answer seemed pretty clear, but still Robin had his doubts.
When it came to going to bed that night, he was apprehensive and didn't really want to. But at the same time he was trying to convince himself that Slade couldn't possibly have access to his dreams. In the end, his fatigue won, and he crawled in beside Starfire who was already sleeping soundly. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before Robin found himself in the inky black again.
"Not again!" He twisted round, but was met with just darkness.
"Yes Robin, I did warn you." Slade stepped out of the shadows, his stance as strong as ever.
"Why?"
"I am merely trying to reveal the truth to you Robin."
"For what gain? What could you possibly get out of doing this?"
"My reasons are my own. But I see I have yet to convince you."
"If everything you told me was true, then tell me, why on Earth would Starfire help free you? Even if she is working with Batman to bring you down, you were already captured!"
Slade actually laughed, and it was a sickening sound. "Oh, Robin. Stop trying to convince yourself it's not true. Just because you don't want to believe it. Starfire didn't mean to help me. It was an accident. One I counted on. She was so convinced that it was me who had scared her that morning that she didn't think it could possibly be me in that prison cell. I had my associate keep an eye on her to see what she was doing. Starfire and Batman had planned to break into the facility to see if it was really me, or just a robot. Starfire would stay safe behind a computer screen, and Batman would do the heavy lifting. I needed their knowledge to get past security so my associate could shut it down. She played right into my hands."
Robin could only stare at the madman in front of him. It all made sense now. Why Starfire had been. Near Bruce's office when he got there. Why she had attacked him when he came round the corner. She was probably shaken at what had happened, knowing it was her fault, and didn't think about who it could be. "Alright Slade, you've got my attention. But answer me this. If everything you're saying is true, how the hell did you manage to get into my dreams like this?"
"That scratch on your neck, my dear boy." A monitor flickered into life, and showed the fight between the Titans and the two Slade Bots a few days ago. Robin winced as he watched one of them scratch his neck, cutting through his cape. "That was their mission that day. The technology I used to brainwash Starfire isn't strong enough for my plans, but it's strong enough to alter your mind enough to let me control your dreams. Those cuts were used to inject my probes into you. After all, how else would I get you to stop and listen to me?"
"You do realise when I wake up, I'm going to check all of this."
"I don't doubt it Robin. I have no further use for your dreams now. My work here is done." Slade turned to walk away.
"Wait! Before you go, tell me one last thing. All of this over the past year, you could quite easily just destroy us if you wanted. All the technology you have, you could just kill us. Why do this? Why go after Starfire to bring us down?"
"Oh Robin. I can't defeat the Titans all at once. Don't you see? The best way to take down a hero, is to break them. What's the point in a victory if the ones trying to stop you aren't there to see it? With Starfire under my control I can take the city, and rip your team apart. And after I win, I'd still have a weapon on my side. I will take her Robin. And there's nothing you can do to stop me."
Robin woke with a gasp, less violently than the night before. He twisted to see Starfire still sleeping beside him. Gently, he pulled himself from the bed, careful not to wake Starfire. He crouched down next to her bed, and lifted the covers so he could see underneath. In the darkness he could just make out a white plastic bag, with a tug, he pulled it from under her bed, and gathered it so as not to rustle the bag. Silently, he crept from the room and down the hall.
Reaching Cyborg's room, he opened the door and walked in. "Cy... Cy!"
Cyborg woke with a start. "Rob? It's like 3am. What are you doing?"
"I know, I'm sorry. But I need your help." Robin helped Cyborg unhook himself from his charging station. They walked to ops together, Robin clutching the plastic bag tightly.
"Alright Rob, what's going on?" When they reached ops, Robin set the bag on the table and moved over to the computer.
"I know this sounds crazy, but the last two nights I've had Slade in my dreams. Telling me that Starfire has been working with Batman to try and bring him down. He showed me all this different footage of Starfire from camera feeds. In town, in the Tower, Gotham, even the Bat Cave. Some showing her using holo-tech. Some showing her using computers to hack. Some showing her meeting with Batman. The first night I put it down to just a bad dream. But tonight it happened again, except Slade told me that those scratches on my neck were used to inject probes into me so he could get into my dreams."
Cyborg shook his head to try and get his mind around what Robin was saying. "Alright... so Slade's managed to control your dreams to tell you that Starfire has been working with Batman.. why?"
"I don't know, he just he wanted me to know the truth."
"Right... Rob, you know how this sounds?"
"I know. I'm not sure I believe it myself. But I have to find out."
"So how do you suppose we find out whether or not you were just dreaming?" Cyborg stifled a yawn, but he was prepared to help. Robin wouldn't come to him unless he absolutely needed it.
"Slade told me a few things that he wouldn't know unless he really did have access to the cameras. So, if what's in that bag is what Slade says it is, then we'll check the cameras. If the cameras show us what Slade showed me, then we'll check for the probes. Though I'm inclined to believe him just by what's supposed to be in that bag."
Cyborg reached over and pulled the back towards him. Robin watched as he reached in and pulled out two devices. A tablet, and a communicator. Both in black. Even though Robin already knew what would be in there, he still hoped it wouldn't be true. So the discovery still hurt. "What are these?" Cyborg turned the communicator over in his hand.
"That's how Batman and Starfire have been contacting each other." Robin turned to the computer and brought up the security footage on the big screen. He brought up the night Starfire had found the microchip in the metal ball. They both watched in silence. Three camera feeds were present. One of Robin's room. One of the hallway. One of ops. Robin watched in silent dismay as the footage Slade had shown him replayed across the three cameras.
"What? So Star knew how to crack that encryption the entire time?" Cyborg scratched his head in confusion.
"Yeah, I woke the next morning and found her here saying that she had found the computer beeping at her. Turns out she cracked it and set it up to look like the programme had done it."
"But why? Why not just tell us she could do it?"
"Because then she'd be asked how she knew to use computers in this way. She'd have to admit to working with Batman."
"Alright so she's been working with Batman, but what use is encryption codes and hacking data to her? I mean really?"
"That's where it gets worse Cy. The day that Slade escaped, it was Starfire's fault."
Cyborg turned to look at him in shock. "What?! But why? Surely Starfire would never-"
"She didn't mean to. Starfire and Batman had planned to get Batman into the facility so they could check that it was definitely Slade in there. But Slade anticipated her move and used Starfire to hack into security so that whoever it is he's got working for him, could shut it down."
"So the consultation, was that a lie?"
"No, I don't think so. I think they had the meeting, but I don't think it took half as long as they made out. Which means she lied to all of us." Robin could feel himself getting angrier as he spoke. How could she do this to them? To him?
"Why? Are we not good enough to protect her?" Cyborg genuinely looked put out, the thought of his friend not trusting him pulling on his heart strings.
"I don't know. That's what we need to ask her. But first, let's see if we can't find some probes. Slade might have been telling the truth, but I don't want his technology in me."
"We should probably tell Raven and Beast Boy."
"Yeah that's what I thought. But I didn't want to involve them until we were sure. You set that machine up, and I'll go wake them."
TTTTTTTT
Starfire woke the next morning to find her bed empty beside her. It wasn't unusual for her to find Robin gone in the mornings if he woke before her. So, blissfully unaware of what had occurred during the night, she dressed and ventured to find her friends. No doubt they would be having breakfast. Perhaps Raven was reading a book, and Beast Boy would be playing video games as usual. Unfortunately, her idea of the blissful morning she wanted wasn't meant to be, and she walked into ops to find Beast Boy and Raven sat at the table looking grim. Cyborg sat at the computer with a very hard expression on his face. And Robin nowhere to be found.
"Friends? What has happened?"
"That's kinda what we want you to tell us Starfire."
With a startled gasp she turned to find Robin blocking the door. His arms crossed, his face bleak. She noted that his hair was dishevelled, and she could see the dark circles under his eyes peaking out from his mask.
"Robin? Please what is wrong?" She stepped towards him but he put his hand up, signalling her to stop.
"I suggest you go and sit down. We need to talk."
Panic was starting to set in, but due to the command in his voice, she did as she was told and joined Raven and Beast Boy at the table. Robin walked over, but didn't take a seat, opting to stand instead. She glanced around but none of her friends would meet her gaze. Wordlessly, Robin placed a test tube on the table, blood clearly visible.
"That there, in that tube, are thousands of Slade's nanoscopic probes. Taken out of my blood this morning. He used them to access my dreams. In these dreams he told me everything, with the video evidence to prove it. So don't even think about lying to me. Because I already know the truth."
"Lie to you? Robin I do not understand."
Raven lifted her hand up from underneath the table, and placed the white plastic bag down fo Starfire to see. "We know what this is Starfire." Raven shot her an accusing glare and Starfire shrunk away from it, her heart beat increasing.
"Please, friends. You do not know-"
Cyborg interrupted her, his fingers hovering over the keyboard ready to show her what the others had already seen. "Trust me Star. We know." He pressed play, and Starfire watched in awe as multiple camera feeds popped up, showing what she had been up to over the last few weeks. Starfire could do nothing but watch, when all she wanted to do was run.
"I had a little look through your belt too, once I'd found out this was all true." She turned back to Robin who was holding a pair of glasses in his hands. As she looked at him, he threw them onto the table, shattering one of the glass lenses. "Wayne tech." He spat the words out.
"Robin please! Friends you must understand."
"Understand?" Beast Boy spoke his gaze turning to her. His voice broken. "Star, we've done nothing but try to help and protect you, and you repay us by going out by yourself, using a disguise that we wouldn't recognise. What if you got into trouble? What if Slade found out it was you and captured you? Did you even think about us while you were doing this?"
Starfire reached out to comfort him, but he shrugged her off. "Beast Boy..."
"No Star! This isn't okay! You don't do things like this! Friends don't lie!" Beast Boy's outburst had shocked everyone, but then he'd had one friend betray him before. Another was too much to handle.
"Starfire," Robin's voice demanded that she look at him. "I'm going to ask you one question, and I want the truth. That day you went for the consultation, you helped set Slade free, didn't you?"
"I did not mean to!" The words burst from her mouth, willing him to understand. Her hands shook and her voice broke. Tears threatening to spill over.
"Why on earth did you start working with Bruce?! Are we not good enough to protect you? Not good enough to help you?"
"No Robin! That is not it at all. Bruce offered me a chance to learn new skills, so I may be able to help you on missions if I could not rejoin you on the field."
"That's crap and you know it. Slade might not have access to the sound in our security but we do. I watched the footage from the night after you did the energy release. I listened to the conversation you had with Bruce. You specifically said you can't trust me with whatever it was you were doing. So what was it? Do not lie to me again!"
Starfire sighed in defeat. "I... I enlisted the help of Batman so that we may bring Slade down once and for all. We were both aware that it would only be a matter of time before he was free, and I could not bear it. We had planned to take down Slade's operation before he managed to be free. If we could find where he was storing all of his things, we could destroy it, and stop him before he began. Truthfully, it has been more difficult than we envisioned, and we have not uncovered anything. Even over the past few days, we have been unable to discover who Slade has working for him."
"And you felt it necessary to go behind our backs because?"
"Robin... you would not have allowed it."
"Of course I wouldn't have! Starfire, are you serious right now? Slade kidnapped you, used you, controlled you, and almost killed you. Yet you feel it's okay to go swanning about with Batman, sneaking out of the Tower, and manipulating us to try and take him down! We're a team Starfire. We should trust each other. You should have come to us, not go running off to him!"
Starfire glanced round at her friends who all wore the same grim expression. They were going to let Robin take the lead on this. He needed to let it out, and maybe he could get through to her. "Robin please,"
"After everything he has done, you're playing into his hands. When I posed as Red X to try and take down Slade, you came to me that night and berated me with all your talk of trust. If I was so much like Slade because I didn't trust you, what makes you believe you're any different when you didn't trust us?!" Robin was seeing red, and the words just flew out of his mouth. Starfire let her tears spill over as the realisation of what he was saying hit her. Cyborg moved out of his chair and over to Robin, gently pulling on his shoulder.
"Okay man, wrap it up. Before you say something you regret."
"Starfire, you're no better than him for what you've done. Trust is a vital part of friendship and I had to learn that the hard way. I thought you would learn that too. Maybe we do need help to deal with Slade, but we decide that as a team. Because there's more than one persons opinion that matters here. Slade admitted to me that he can't take us down as a team. He needs to rip us apart to be able to conquer us, and yet here you are, doing half the work for him!"
Raven had joined Robin and Cyborg, her hand clutching Robin's tightly, a black glow between where they connected. "Robin, you need to calm down." She was trying to ease his anger, to sooth his pain. Beast Boy slinked out of his chair, sadness etched across his face as he grabbed Raven's other hand. Starfire turned to look at her friends, united in their grief of what she had done, tears running down her face.
"I have just one more burning question for you Starfire. At any point throughout all this, looking back at what Slade has done to us in the past to try and destroy us, did you ever stop to think whether or not we'd be able to forgive you for it?"
