Welcome to chapter three. To NNY273000: My intent was to show what I thought about Terra's reasoning, not to spite your review. Insults are not part of my personality. I apologize profusely for the misunderstanding. Now on to chapter three.

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Terra had not been following Robin long before he turned a corner and she lost sight of him. Taking to the skies, she spotted him in the adjacent street. Making a beeline for him, she tried to stay hidden from the speeding teen below. But not many things escaped the Boy Wonder's notice.

Robin triggered the lasers on the R-cycle, the blue bolts lancing out at the lithe blonde. She dodged these, and sped up, trying to catch up to the fleeing Titan. She didn't notice the disk he had tossed with perfect accuracy at her platform while she had been dodging his bolts. It now detonated, breaking the rock into several pieces and sending its rider crashing to the ground. She shot rocks in his direction, but he was already gone.

Slamming her fist on the ground in frustration, she stood up, looking at where Robin had last disappeared. Dusting herself off, she looked at her surroundings. When nothing identified where she was, she attempted to radio Slade.

"Master, I've lost track of Robin, can't figure out where I am. Can you read me? Master? Wintergreen?" taking the device out of her ear, she saw that it had split in half when she fell.

She was lost.

Being more cautious now that she was alone, she slowly backed away from where her prey had last vanished. Turning around, she ran, trying to get away from the Boy Wonder. She knew she was no match for him, so she wanted to put as much distance between her and him as possible. Rounding a corner, she ran into someone. Stumbling backwards, she looked at the person who blocked her way.

It was Beast Boy.

"Beast Boy?"

"Terra?"

Beast Boy looked at her in surprise, which slowly got replaced by rage. "Terra..." he growled through clenched teeth. He had lost Starfire awhile back, and had been wandering around, looking for his missing friend. His original goal got wiped clean from his mind as he focused all of his attention on Terra.

"Look, Beast Boy, I don't want to fight." She said, backing up and waving her hands in front of her in a warding off gesture.

"The time to talk was before you tried to kill us, Terra!" he shouted, becoming a tiger and leaping at her, all his fury and rage at her deception coming out in a violent outburst. Terra didn't know how to stop the infuriated shape-shifter.

"Beast Boy, please..." Terra tried to reason him, but she was knocked back by the green changeling, who took a swipe at her with his claws. He managed a hit, and Terra fell back with a yelp, feeling blood ooze out of the lacerations across her shoulder.

With a look of rage, she retaliated, sending a large section of road at him. Turning into a gorilla, he punched through the rock, seeing nothing but Terra in his maddened state.

Terra threw a barrage of her stone missiles at him, but he ran straight through them, turning into a ram in an effort to bash her. Dodging out of his way, she sent chunks of gravel at him. One hit him hard in the back, but he barely felt it as adrenaline surged through his body. Transforming into a rhino, he charged, aiming to throw her over his head. She dodged him, but that was exactly what he expected. Morphing back into a gorilla, he slammed his fist into her stomach. Terra could feel her bones vibrate as the shockwave traveled through her body.

As she lay there at his feet, trying to regain her breath, he became a donkey and kicked her into a building. She could hear three of her ribs snap under the stress the kick had put upon them. Trying to concentrate through the pain, she managed to toss small pieces of gravel at him. He simply sidestepped out of the way, slapping her in the head as a bear, but not using his claws, as he didn't want to kill the petite blonde. Even so, he accidentally raked her with them, and a trail of blood formed near her temple, but it wasn't deep enough to fall down, like her other scratch was. With Terra fully subdued, he resumed human form.

Terra looked up at him with tears of pain and rage pouring down her cheeks in rivers. "Why, Beast Boy? Why?"

"Why? You dare to ask me why?!"

He glared at her, cold fire blazing in his eyes. "You tried to kill us, Terra! You sold us out to Slade, and treated me like garbage after telling you that I loved you! And you ask me why?!"

He kneeled down close to her face. Holding her chin in his hands, he lifted it up until they where eye-to-eye. There faces where mere inches apart. "You played with me like a toy, Terra. I confessed my feelings to you, and you mocked them when you left with Slade."

"But I do, Beast Boy, I do!"

"And you showed them by betraying us and trying to kill me?"

"I had to, Slade told me to."

"And apparently your feelings for me were strong enough that you would rather obey him than let me live."

"I thought that..."

"You thought that I would forgive you on the spot? That we would kiss and make up and go home happy, and forget all that you had done? It doesn't work that way, Terra. You can't play around with people like that and expect to be able to get them back whenever you want."

"I... I..."

"Didn't want to? You looked happy enough to leave with Slade. You're sorry? I don't know if I can forgive you, Terra. What you've done is enough to make even Starfire doubt that there's any good left in you. Tell me Terra, how can I trust you if none of the others do?"

"Um... well... I..."

But Terra couldn't think of anything. She looked at the ground, as though the answer was right there. But there was no answer. Beast Boy was right. She was evil. How could she think that he would want her back? She bowed her head, her emotions going from rage to pain and sorrow in an instant. She laid her head down on the cold ground, her tears staining the sidewalk as she thought about her life if she hadn't gone with Slade. She would be with Beast Boy, watching a movie as they cuddled on the couch. Not here, her body and spirit broken, having him force her to see the truth.

She closed her eyes, wanted to disappear, to not exist, so she wouldn't have to listen to Beast Boy anymore.

She felt him lift up her head again.

"Look at me, Terra."

She kept her eyes shut.

"Look at me!!!"

His shout startled her, and she obeyed, her blue eyes staring into his green ones, ones that used to radiate love and care for her. But now where as hard as the stones she had power over.

"You've done horrible things, Terra. Whether you do something about it or not is up to you."

He gingerly laid her head back down. He took hold of her hand, and gently squeezed it.

"No one is pure evil, not even Slade. I know there is some good in you left, Terra. I hope you can find a way to bring it out." He said, quoting his leader without realizing it.

He stood up, and turned to leave. "Beast Boy..." she reached out toward him, like she could pull him back to her, make everything right again. "Beast Boy..."

When she realized he wasn't coming back, she let her arm drop to the ground. She couldn't believe this was happening. Beast Boy was right, and it was killing her to admit it. She clenched her fist. She couldn't get out of the thornbushes she had thrown herself into when she sided with Slade. But he still believed in her...

He was still within earshot. She used the last of her strength to tell him what she had been waiting to say ever since she had joined up with Slade.

"I love you."

Beast Boy heard her, and stopped walking. Bowing his head, he closed his eyes and smiled. He looked back at her, a half grin on his face. He gave a small salute, so as to show her that he had heard. Turning back, he continued to walk toward the horizon, where Slade's winter had condemned the city to permanent darkness, with only a full moon providing light to see with.

Terra watched him go. Tears continued to fall down her face. Her mind told her that all was lost. She had lost Beast Boy, the Titans didn't want her back, and now she couldn't get back to Slade, the only one who might take her in. There was only one course of action, her mind told her. Only one choice...

She stood up, her chest heaving, her ribs sending agony up and down her body with every breath. Only one way to end the pain...

She hobbled off in the opposite direction Beast Boy had taken. She continued to cry, the knowledge of what had to be done weighing down on her conscience.

Terra kept heading in the direction she had chosen. What she intended to do didn't cross anyone's mind, as she almost dragged her beaten body down the street, the only comforting thought she had was that it would all be over soon.

()()()

Starfire had been wandering alone for some time now. Looking for Beast Boy, she fell into another building. Not seeing him, she shuffled back out, slowly accepting the fact that she was dying. Leaning against the building, she tried to catch her breath, which came in deep pants as she used the wall for support. She laid her head on the wall, trying in vain to find the strength to move.

She didn't notice the Elite that was spying on her, relaying her position to other androids in the area. They silently stayed out of view, watching the Tamaranian resume her search for her missing friend.

They stalked her like jungle cats, their steady approach going unnoticed by the alien girl.

Starfire finally took notice of the robots approach. Looking behind her, she saw nothing. Dismissing it as nerves, she again began to walk down the seemingly deserted street of Jump City.

It came from the left.

Lasers sliced through the air, many missing, but some hitting the straggling girl. Knocked back by the impact, she crashed into a building. A rock hit her arm, and the lack of nutrients had made it brittle like glass. It shattered, but her nutrient deprived brain only felt it as a slow throb. Lying on the floor of the building, she formed a starbolt in her uninjured hand. Sending it toward one of the Elites, it merely swatted it away as though it where a fly, sending another beam at the vulnerable teen. Even though their lasers where set on low power, it hit her with what felt like the force of twenty. She vaguely noticed that they had her hemmed in from all sides. The smell of ozone burned her nostrils, and she heard the squeal of the robots charging their beams to deadly levels. Starfire laid her head down. She no longer had the will to fight. She waited for the inevitable blast that would take her life. She heard their cannons fire, and waited for them to hit her.

They never did. She wondered why she was still alive. After waiting a few seconds, she opened her eyes and looked for the reason that the robots could have missed their target. It turned out to be they weren't aiming at her.

They were aiming at Robin.

Bulling through them like a warm knife through butter, he shouted out a battle cry that made what was left of Star's blood freeze. He gave no quarter, swinging his staff to and fro as he lay waste to the seemingly endless armies of Slade's war machines.

Throwing on into two others, he barreled madly into the next group like a maelstrom of death. Many fell before the furious assault from the Boy Wonder, many more falling to his special disks.

One unlucky android got thrown right into the blast from an Elite. Ignoring its fallen comrade, the Elite powered up its cannon again. It never got to fire it, as Robin threw a shuriken that cut through its motherboard with ease.

Moving an Elite in his way to block a shot, he watched with horror as it hit the unstable core. With mere seconds before detonation, he scooped up Starfire in his arms. Running to the R-cycle as though the Devil himself were after him, he placed her in front of him as he sat down, so that when he grabbed the handlebars, she was safely tucked in the space between him and the front of the bike. Hitting full throttle, he did a wheelie to build up speed. The front wheel came down, and Robin and his charge tore down the street Starfire had been traveling before. He could see the building explode in the side-view mirror. He was stunned by what he saw. The explosion had hit an ammo dump near the building, and had ignited the gunpowder. It would soon reach the bullets, and then everything nearby was going to get pummeled with lead.

Even going top speed, he realized they weren't going to make it. But then a plan formed in his head. Pulling out one of his grappling hooks, he fired it at a light pole that seemed to be there for his purpose. Using the momentum from the bike, he wrapped his arm around Starfire's waist, and kicked the side of the bike with all his might. He swung around the light pole, letting go at just the right moment to sail to the top of a building. Landing on his feet, he threw them both to the ground, protecting her from the path of the bullets with his body.

The fire hit the bullets, and they all went off, flying in random directions as the fire swept over them. Robin could hear the whiz of the projectiles as they zoomed past him like angry hornets. One scraped his shoulder, but he didn't move, for fear another would hit the girl below him.

Finally, the hail of bullets stopped. Lifting his head slowly, he cautiously looked around him. After waiting a few more seconds, he decided it was safe, and stood up to look at the destruction the explosion had caused. The fire continued to rage on, Seeming to take a life of its own as it devoured the inside of the building like a child eats sweets. He stood in awe of how close they had come to death. Remembering Starfire, he looked back at the still form of the alien girl. He walked over to her to closer examine the extent of the damage. There were burn marks in several places where the lasers had hit her. She looked malnourished, and there were three lacerations on her stomach.

He scooped her up again and looked all around him. He needed to find something to feed her, or she would surely pass away soon.

Very soon.

Hopping down from the two-story building, he headed toward the R-cycle, which was remarkably undamaged. Again placing her in front of him, the rode off into the night, the cold fires of vengeance blazing in his eyes.

()()()

Cyborg and Raven had walked in a big circle, ending up back at the store where they had started from.

"Aw come on," Cyborg complained loudly, "How many times have we been here?"

About six." Raven replied blankly, staring at the ruined building.

"I was being sarcastic. How's the little fuzzball doin'?"

Raven looked at the cat that was walking between them, rubbing against their legs and purring loudly. She reached down to pet him.

"Looks fine to me."

Cyborg grinned, then snapped his head up, arming his cannon for action.

"What is it?" Raven asked urgently, standing up and mentally preparing herself for combat.

"Looks like it's.. it's.." His sentence died down as he squinted at the thing running towards them. Seeing who it was, he immediately disarmed his cannon, shouting with joy as he ran out to meet them. He called over his shoulder, "It's BB!"

She too ran to meet up with the green changeling, Socks trailing behind, wondering what all the commotion was about. Slowing to a stop, Raven watched as the two heroes greeted each other in their typical fashion, Cyborg giving the hapless Beast Boy a noogie.

"Man, we've been looking all over for you guys! Where's Robin and Starfire?"

Beast Boy became serious. "I lost Starfire awhile back. Haven't seen Robin since we got smashed by Slade. Y'all had any luck?"

"Nah, we're the only two we've seen, apart from you. Anything happen as of late?"

Beast Boy was about to respond, but he felt something rub his shin. Looking down, he saw the cat Cyborg and Raven had unofficially adopted. He sat down, playing with the tabby, giggling with merriment as the feline licked his face. "Where'd you guys get this little fella?"

"Found him awhile back. I named him Socks." Cyborg said proudly.

"Good one." Said Beast Boy, looking at the paws that had given the friendly animal his name. Lying down in Beast Boy's lap, he fell asleep, head resting on Beast Boy's thigh, purring like an engine.

Suddenly, they heard a loud bang. Looking towards the source, they watched in amazement as fire spewed up like the finger from Zeus himself. Recovering quickly from the beauty and grace of the flames, they ran toward the distant fire, Beast Boy carrying Socks in his arms as he ran with the others to find out exactly what had happened.

Little did they know it was the same explosion that Robin had escaped from not too long ago.

()()()

The above-mentioned Titan was at that moment speeding towards the market they were leaving. He narrowly dodged a chunk of road as he rounded a corner, speeding toward the small store, hoping that at least for Starfire's sake, there was food there.

Seeing a hole in the road, he knew he couldn't get back out if he fell in. Then he saw a car that was close to falling into the chasm. Aiming for the car, a desperate idea formed in his head. Using the car as a ramp, he vaulted over the space, hearing the car crash on the rough bottom of the pit.

Landing on the other side, he resumed his journey to the store.

"Hang on, Star." he whispered in her ear. Soon coming within sight of the place. He leaned forward, trying to get extra speed. Slamming on the brakes, he stopped in front of the small shop.

Kicking the door open, he carried his dying friend inside. It looked as though someone had already been there. He saw two empty cans of instant soup on the floor, and a stove in the far corner. Setting his burden on the ground, he grabbed a bottle of water from a stand rack. Dashing back to his friend, he crouched on one knee next to her, almost tearing off the top of the bottle in his haste to unscrew the cap. Propping her against his raised leg, he poured a small trickle of the life giving liquid down her throat. Holding her head back, she reflexively swallowed the fluid, which washed into her stomach like an angel, sending the stuff rushing through her system.

Giving her another sip, he again tilted her head back. He continued this process for what felt like days, hoping it wasn't too late to save his friend. Checking the pulse in her neck, he noticed it was very low, her breaths getting shallower with each passing second.

With grim determination, he poured another sip of water into her mouth. He wouldn't let his friend die. Staring death in the eye had given him an appreciation for life, and seeing it taken from his best friend was more than he could bear.

Starfire shivered, chill bumps appearing on her arms. Robin saw this as a good sign, as it meant she was alive. Checking her pulse again, he noted that it had increased in strength and number of beats. He let a tiny bit of water hit her head, and she at last groaned as she woke up from her state in-between unconsciousness and death.

Opening her eyes slowly, her vision still fuzzy, she recognized the outline of the face in front of her. "Robin?" she said hoarsely, straining to see if it really was him.

Robin smiled at her. "Hey, Star." He said soothingly. Starfire knew it was him, and leaned against him, tears beginning to fall down her face. He held her close, rocking her back and forth as she cried softly, her worry and sadness flowing out of her like the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. "Robin..."

"It's okay, Star. Everything's going to be okay."

He wrapped his trench coat around the redhead, trying to keep the cold away from her. She couldn't afford to get sick in her current condition. He heard movement ahead of him, and looked up. A lone android stood there, staring at the two with heartless eyes. A blaster was in its hand, but it didn't use it. It was badly damaged. There were several places where the alloy had been torn off, and it was missing an arm.

Robin held Starfire closer to him, protecting her should the thing decide to attack. His eyes narrowed as he stared into the optical sensors of the machine. After another moment of silence, the mechanical fighter walked off, only to collapse after a few steps as the damage to the inside took its toll on the robot. Robin stared at the lifeless form of the android. That had been to close for comfort. If it had used that blaster...

He laid Star on the ground, setting his coat over her so she wouldn't get cold. With her in place, he went outside, and stared wide eyed at the devastation around him. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed it earlier. There were what seemed to him like dozens upon dozens of destroyed androids around him. One had been crushed into a ball, another had had a piece of window stabbed in the head. Robin backed into the store slowly, should whatever it was that did this not like him or the girl inside.

He walked back over to Starfire. She was sleeping, but she was shivering, her jaws pressed tightly together. She was still crying. Pulling up a chair, Robin sat down next to her, keeping a watchful eye out for any more robots.

After waiting half an hour, he was suddenly hit with a wave of sleepiness. Yawning into his hand, he laid back in the chair, propping his feet on the counter. He leaned his head forward, and as drowsiness started to close his eyes, his final thought was that he was going to fulfill the promise he had made. His friend had been hurt. And someone was going to pay dearly.

He closed his eyes, knowing in his heart that Slade was the one he was after.

()()()

The three other Titans, unaware of the disaster that Robin had averted, they tried to determine the reason why the building had gone up in flames. Cyborg found an arm of an Elite that was covered in ash, but still discernable. A quick examination revealed several bullet holes in the metal. Cyborg wondered who would tangle with an Elite, but he soon noticed expended shells, as well as the debris from some machine. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the parts belonged to Slade's androids. But the bullets didn't fit in. What could use this many bullets on an army of robots and get away clean, leaving no trace that it had been there at all?

He then noticed a wooden crate that had burned up, only a crackling skeleton of its former self. But Cyborg could read on the side that the fire hadn't devoured yet said AMMO.

It all came together in his mind. An explosion had caused the fire. The bang they'd heard was the flames hitting the gunpowder in the bullets.

Raven came running up to him, worry written on her face.

"Have you seen Beast Boy?"

"No, why?"

"He said something about Terra, then ran off."

"Huh? Where'd he go?"

"That way." She said, pointing down the street. Cyborg stared at where she was pointing, then turned back to Raven.

"Whatever he is, I'm sure he knows what he's doing. Come on, let's go find the others."

Raven nodded, and followed the mechanical man in front of her. A fair distance from the flames, Socks came bounding toward her. Leaping into her arms, she caught him expertly, cradling him in her arms as she scratched behind his ears.

The two Titans left in the opposite direction of Beast Boy, searching for the other two Titans, who at that moment were sleeping soundly, unaware of Beast Boy's mad dash to the coastline, knowing Terra's life was at stake.

He became a cheetah, dashing through the city to where he knew Terra was in trouble. Adding on an extra burst of speed, he hoped to God that he wasn't too late to save the blonde, not from an outside attacker, but from herself.

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And that wraps up chapter three. I won't reveal what's going on between Terra and Beast Boy, but I will tell you that the next chapter is titled "Til death do us part". It felt awkward, writing Terra's final line to Beast Boy. But since I couldn't think of anything better, I decided to stick with it. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it, and stay tuned for the next chapter.