Chapter 17

A few hours had passed since the Titans had battled their foe. And lost. They still couldn't quite believe it. After spending an hour moping and dwelling on how their fight had gone, they collectively decided it would probably be a good idea to clean up the mess that Slade had left in his wake. Not that any of their hearts were in it. Raven and Beast Boy has gone to scour the lower levels, collecting and disposing of the broken robots. Cyborg had gone to do a sweep of the tower just to make sure that there weren't any robots left kicking and waiting for them. Robin... Robin was supposed to be clearing away to mess in Ops to make it somewhat liveable. Which he was attempting to do, but he couldn't concentrate properly.

He had somehow successfully managed to move all of the broken robot parts to a pile near the door so Raven could deal with them when she got back. But now he was mostly just shuffling stuff out the way. He wasn't really making any difference in how tidy the room was. Heaving a sigh, he lazily kicked a pile of debris, hoping it would just disappear. A glint hit his eye and he instantly regretted it. Kneeling down, he wrapped his hand around the hilt of the sword that was glistening in the sunlight. Bringing it to his eye level as he stood up, he noted another one laying a few feet away. But the biggest thing he noticed was the red that stained both of them.

Blood. Her blood.

Robin examined the blade. It's silver surface. The dark, cushioned hilt. The emblem embellished in the end. Robin's face turned dark, his eyes narrowing. Slade had always been determined in everything he did. Always. But this time he was going to lengths that Robin had never seen before. It was scaring him. Not something that Robin felt at all comfortable with. Picking up the other sword, he looked them over in his hands. A vision flashed through his mind. A strong desire to plow the two blades through Slade. Just as Slade had done to Starfire. He twisted the blades around in his hands, slightly admiring how they felt. Sighing again, Robin moved to place the blades on the breakfast bar. He would have to take them to the evidence room later. After they were cleaned.

XXXXXX

Raven and Beast Boy were having better luck with their job. Beast Boy, as a gorilla, was collecting the pieces of broken metal and twisted robots before throwing them into a portal Raven had created. She was using her powers to put the walls and fixtures back together. Just as Beast Boy threw another load of scrap into the portal, he turned back into himself, wiping his forehead with his sleeve. "I think that's the last of them on this floor, Rae. Are you almost done?"

She didn't reply as she replaced a few wires that were hanging from the wall. When she was done she turned to him, closing the portal as she went. "Three down. I wonder how Cyborg is getting on. Though I doubt there would be any robots left. They all left when Slade did."

"Yeah." He sent off down the corridor, Raven a step behind him. "Still, It's better to be safe than sorry." They reached the stairwell, Beast Boy holding the door open for her. As Raven stepped by him with a small thanks, he grabbed her arm and turned her to him.

"What are you..." She was stopped when he reached his hand up towards her face. Gently he pulled at her hair. He held up a small piece of fluff, a small smile on his face. She met his small smile with one of her own. "Oh... thank you." They stared at each other for a moment. "You can... you can let go of my arm now."

"Oh. Heh. Sorry." He let go, and blushed a little. Still holding the door as Raven descended the steps to the next floor.

"Are you coming? Or are you going to stay holding the door open all day?" The small smile on her face was evident in her voice. Beast Boy laughed nervously at himself and moved his foot, letting the door shut. He hopped down a few steps until he was next to her.

"Hey Rae?" He shuffled a bit.

She turned to glance at him. "Hm?"

"Do you think Robin will be okay?"

"Robin?" She stopped and turned to him. He stopped beside her.

"Yeah. I mean I'm really worried about Star, but like you and Robin said, her best chance is with Slade and there's not a lot we can do about that right now. But Star, she's the one who always brings Robin out of his dark place. Especially when Slade is involved."

"Well yeah, but Robin was okay the last time Slade took Sarfire. He didn't fall down his usual hole."

"No, but last time we had a plan. This time, we have nothing. I don't know how he's going to cope. I don't know what I would do if it were me. I mean I know we all lost her, but Robin loves her right? So this is going to be harder on him than any of us."

Raven considered him for a moment, her head tilting in curiosity. "But isn't this similar to what happened with Terra?" She noticed him since a little. "Sorry. I didn't mean..."

"No I know. What happened with Terra really affected me. For a long time too. But then I realised, I liked Terra a lot. But I don't think I was in love with her. I didn't really know her well enough to be in love with her. Not properly anyway. But Robin... his whole world revolves around Starfire."

"Their bond is one of the strongest I've ever felt. Every emotion they feel towards each other is heightened beyond anything I know."

"What do you mean?"

"Well when you and Robin have an argument, I can feel your emotions coming off you in waves. Anger mostly, and then a hint of regret, and pride. But it's small and is gone as fast as it comes. But when Robin and Starfire argue, it's like an explosion. And it's the same with their other emotions too. Love, admiration. You get the point."

"Oh I see. Maybe they really are meant for each other."

"I've read a few books that say two souls can be preordained. Whether I believe that or not is another story. But believe me, if anyone can prove that theory right, it's Robin and Starfire. I think Robin will be okay, we just need to reunite him with her."

A smile graces Beast Boy's face, and she met it with her own. "Well then the faster we clean up, the faster we can help them." Together, they carried on down the stairs to the next floor.

XXXXXX

Cyborg sat in the dark monitor room, his face lit up by the computer screens in front of him. His right arm was looked into the system and he was typing away at the keyboard. He was mostly convinced that the tower was free of any robots. Just had a few more rooms to survey and he would be sure. He stopped typing and sat back, letting the computer do its scan. He rubbed his eye and let out a small yawn. It had been a long day, after Robin woke him at stupid o'clock in the morning with his revelation about Starfire.

Scan Completed.

He sat forward and set to the keyboard again, checking the scan for any abnormalities. "Huh." He scratched his head. This scan had found two abnormalities. On the stairwell to the roof, and moving. But they weren't robotic, they were organic. Clicking away, he checked the cameras, could be a fluke. He brought up the camera, but the stairwell was empty. Moving onto the hallway that connected to the stairwell, he found his intruders. "Oh." He unclipped himself from the computer and stood, stretching his tiredness away.

It didn't take him long to meet his intruders, being that they were in the same floor as him. "I'd say it's nice to see you, but I don't think y'all are here for tea and biscuits."

"No. We got a distress message."

"Yeah, Rob probably sent it. He's still down in Ops. Come on, I'll gather the team." Cyborg turned and led the way. Lifting his arm, he called for Raven who answered him promptly. "You nearly done Rae?"

"This is the last floor I think, but should take a while, we've got the Gymnastics room to clean up." Her face took a grim turn. More so than usual.

"Leave it for now. You and Beast Boy come to Ops, we have guests."

She threw him an inquisitive look, he raised his arm to look behind him. "Oh I see. We'll be right there."

Raven and Beast Boy got to the door just as Cyborg and his guests did. Wordlessly, the two new comers made their way through the door first. The room was still a mess. At the edge of the room, Robin was on his knees, clearing away some debris. He swore viciously as the door opened, making him jump. In his fright, he sliced his palm on the blade he was trying to retrieve from under some stuff he couldn't lift. He ignored the door, and ripped his glove off, grasping at the wound.

"Robin."

The new, deep voice made him look up. He was a little stunned to see Batman and Superman stood there. "I didn't expect you so fast."

"I think the circumstances called for it."

"Yeah well, I don't know what we can even do. If I'm honest I don't even know why I sent the message." Robin gripped his hand harder as he felt the blood starting to leak through his fingers. Raven moved over to him, taking his hand in her own, the black light of her powers relieving him of his pain.

Superman turned to Batman, who nodded at him. "Robin, we're going to help you clean up first. Why don't you go and have a chat with Bruce, and I will help the rest of your team clean up."

Robin thanked Raven and then nodded to Superman. Batman looked round and turned to Robin, his voice slightly softer. "Starfire?" Robin just shook his head, his gaze heading to the floor. A tension hit the room, and everyone felt it.

"Okay, well..." Superman broke the silence. "Cyborg, why don't you show me where I can be of help." He turned, pulling Cyborg with him. Raven followed, grabbing Beasy Boy as she went. Robin was left with Batman.

"Dick."

Robin turned to see Batman pulling his cowl down, letting Bruce take over. "What do you want me to do?"

Robin sighed and shrugged. "I don't know."

"What happened?"

"I should be mad at you, you know. This is partly your fault. At least that's what I keep telling myself." Robin moved over to the still intact sofa and slumped on it. Bruce followed, taking a seat next to him. "It's not really though. I know. You were right. I was too close to the situation. I don't agree that you and Starfire went behind my back. But I'm also aware of how Slade gets under my skin. I would have probably disagreed with the whole plan. Or ruined it in some way."

"I'm sorry."

Robin snapped his head towards Bruce in disbelief. He spluttered a little.

"I should have spoken to you. You're right, we shouldn't have lied to you, and perhaps we wouldn't be where we are now. But we can try to set things right from now. Where is Starfire?"

Robin appreciated that Bruce's apology was followed by his 'straight to the point' attitude. And really, it was what he needed right now. Plus probably the best apology he was going to get out of Bruce. His heart sunk as he realised what he was about to say. His gaze dropped into his lap. Bruce put a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Dick, it's okay. Whatever happened, we can deal with it."

" I don't know if we can. Slade took Starfire." His voice cracked as he said it. The words tasted bitter in his mouth. "We tried as hard as we could, but he's always one step ahead. We managed to delay him getting out of the tower, but by the time he managed it, it was too late for us to follow. She was dying, if we'd have fought him any longer, she would have died."

"What did he do to her?" Bruce looked a little shocked, which was unlike him.

"He said he needed her to go into a healing sleep for his plan to work. So he made her an offer she couldn't refuse. She either fought him, or he would kill us. Raven, Cyborg, and Beast Boy were out dealing with Control Freak. That's who was helping Slade. But I was here with Star. His stupid robots got the best of me. He said if she didn't fight him, I would die."

Bruce noted the dried blood on Robin's neck, from a cut that was no longer there.

"But Slade cheated. As they were fighting he ordered his robots to kill me. They didn't even move, but Star didn't notice. As she turned to come to me, Slade..." he clenched his fists as he continued. "Slade put a blade through her shoulder. And then another one. He thought he'd won after that. Starfire fought as hard as she could to keep herself awake. When Slade was leaving she set me free, but Slade stopped me from following until they were gone. By the time the other Titans arrived, Slade was nearly out of the Tower. Beast Boy and Raven went after them, and separated them for a while, but Slade managed to knock them out. When Cyborg and I found them, she was gone."

Bruce squeezed Robin's shoulder, his voice soft. "Why didn't you follow them?"

"After she was impaled, we spent nearly an hour trying to separate them. She had lost so much blood. The crash mats downstairs that Beast Boy had laid her on were still dripping when I got there. If we'd have followed, she would have died before Raven got the chance to go near her." Robin heaved a sigh before putting his head in his hands. He wanted desperately to cry, but knew it wouldn't solve anything. That's not what he was trained to do.

"You did the right thing, Dick. Don't doubt yourself. You're probably right that Starfire wouldn't have stood a chance. Slade wouldn't have let you near her, it would have taken too long. Clark and I are willing to help you. Whatever you need, we are here. I have the little bits of information Starfire and I managed to collect, it's not much but every small detail can be a clue. I also think we need to know more about Starfire's healing sleep. If Slade needed her to fall into one, we should probably know how it works."

Bruce stood, placing his cowl back on his face. Robin pulled his head out of his hands, as Bruce lifted a device to his face. "Diana, does the Justice League database have any information on Tamaranian physiology?"

"I'm not sure," a soft, feminine voice responded. "But I can have a look."

"Thanks, could you also ask Hal if he knows anything. Sooner rather than later."

"Sure. Is everything okay down there?"

"I'll update you later." Basically means no, and Batman signed off without so much of a goodbye before pulling his cowl back down. Robin mused a little at this.

"Do you have to wear the cowl when you speak to them? They all know who you are."

Bruce clicked his tongue in annoyance. "No, but your team know who you are, and I bet you've not taken that mask off since they found out."

Robin shrugged. "Touché."

They fell into a silence, Robin not really thinking about anything. Bruce was looking at his forlorn son, his heart secretly breaking for the poor guy. "Robin, I know you don't really want to talk about it. But you and I are both aware of where this situation is going. Slade is going to come back with Starfire at his side again, and this time he will have changed his methods. Getting her back is going to be even more difficult than it was last time. I need to know... what is her weakness?"

Robin blanched a little. He wasn't prepared for the question. "I... I..." he looked up at Bruce, his eyes slightly wide. "I don't know."

"You don't know? Robin everyone has something. Clark has Kryptonite, and his compassion. Your team has their love for their friends mainly, but I don't think that's going to help us in this situation. You and Starfire have each other, but again..." he trailed off, not wanting to upset his son more than he already knew he was. "There must be something."

"I honestly have no idea. She's allergic to metallic chromium. But that just makes her sneeze. Explosive sneezes, but I think it could only be used as a distraction method. Other than that, there's nothing I know of. I do know that when she arrived on Earth, she was wearing a pair of handcuffs that stopped her from using her starbolts, but I don't know what level of power they could withstand. If Slade makes her as powerful as she was before, I'm not convinced they would hold her."

"And we cant use a restraining collar, she can tear them off."

Robin heaved another sigh. "I don't know then. I... I didn't ever think it would be an issue. In fact, it's probably helped us on more than one occasion."

"Well, perhaps Diana or Hal will come back with something for us." Bruce turned to look round the room. "In the meantime, let's get this place sorted out." He moved away to start clearing the broken remnants of the dining table. Robin stared after him. Starfire really didn't have any known weaknesses. So what were they to do? They have to try and get her back somehow. They have to. But how? Maybe Diana or Hal did have some information that might help. If only they had a Tamaranian who could help.

"Oh!" Robin got to his feet, moving over to the console.

Bruce turned to him. "What are you doing?"

Robin didn't turn to look at him. "Put your cowl back on."

Bruce did as he was told and wandered over to see what Robin was doing. He typed a few things before stepping back. "Robin, what are you..." Bruce was cut off as a large imposing figure appears on the screen. A nasty scar gracing one eye.

"Robin! To what do I owe your call? Where is my little Bumgorf, I have missed her so!"

"Hello Galfore. I'm afraid this isn't a leisure call. We need your help."

Galfore tilted his head in confusion before taking in the mess of the room behind them. His heart clenched with worry. "Something has happened to her." It wasn't a question. Robin bowed his head a little, before swollowing a lump in his throat. He didn't really want to tell Galfore that Starfire was dying and was going to be used by a maniac as a weapon for his maniacal purposes. But he knew he had to. If anyone had any information on what could bring Starfire down. It was Galfore.