DISCLAIMER: Don't own the Titans…wish I did!

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Chapter 10

Connections (Part 2)

Robin was not in a very good shape. His uniform had been shredded in some parts and his cape had some holes on it. He also had some scratches and bruises and he was holding his left shoulder with his right hand. He appeared as he had fought a very long and exhausting battle, and that he was clearly unnumbered. Raven, BB and Cyborg were standing in the middle of the room. Red X was on the back of the living room next to Starfire.

-"Why? What? Who? When? How?"-BB mumbled while pointing at Red X and at Robin

-"Why are there two Robins?"-Starfire asked

-"What do you mean two Robins? He's not Robin! He's Red X!"-Cyborg said

-"But he looks like Robin!"-Starfire said

-"I do look like him because, technically, I am Robin. I am Robin's clone"-Red X said

-"My clone. He has been taking my place whenever I am not around"-Robin said

-"Yes. Slade made me. But he enhanced me. He made better, better than what you would ever be, Robin. I am stronger, faster and smarter"-Red X said

-"But, how did Slade made a clone of Robin? When did he get his DNA?"-Raven asked

-"I told you I am smarter! You Titans didn't even notice when the HIVE borrowed some of Robin's DNA. And neither did you notice when I was around you, pretending to be your Robin"-Red X said.

-"What do you mean? When did the HIVE stole Robin's DNA?"-BB asked

-"It was when Gizmo shocked us with that ray. Jinx first made us bleed and then Gizmo absorbed my DNA. But they covered it up by attacking the three of us"-Robin said

-"How do you know?"-BB asked

-"I just beat it out of the HIVE. Remember that Slade's henchmen appeared? Well, it was all a trap to separate us and when I was by myself the HIVE and the henchmen attacked me. Meanwhile Robin…Red X, would come here and convince all of you to join Slade."-Robin said

-"Did you really believe we would join Slade?"-Raven asked

-"I would had convinced you, if he hadn't shown up and ruin it!"-Red X answered

-"So, when were you here?"-BB asked

-"Many times…my friend. I talked to Raven. I made her see how much she repressed her powers and how bad it was for her. Isn't right, Raven? Didn't you free your emotions, your deep emotions because I helped you out?"-Red X asked.

-"I…you…"-Raven could not answered.

She knew Red X allegations were true. He did help her out to see that emotions were not as bad as she thought they were.

-"And how about you BB? Didn't I help you become normal? Didn't you want to surprise…someone? Didn't I build that machine so you could be normal?"-Red X asked

BB also had nothing to say.

-"You, Cyborg. We made that cannon of yours as best as it could be! You said you were grateful? Didn't you?"-Red X asked

Cyborg looked at his cannon and stared at the floor.

-"And you, Star. Didn't I make you feel happy? I did not hurt you like Robin did with his obsessions! I put you in first place. I DO love you and I am NOT afraid or ashamed to say it"-Red X said

Starfire looked at Robin who was hurt by everything Red X had said and how his friends could not contradict him, not even Starfire.

-"Yes, Robin. You thought you knew the Titans. Did you ever take the time to actually know them outside battle? Did you see them as people or just as members of your team?"-Red X asked

Not even Robin could answer. He was so concentrated in his mission to catch Slade that he had lied, hurt and ignored his friends. Yet, they would always forgive him and give him another chance. He had hurt them so much. He had hurt Starfire SO much.

-"Cat got your tongue?"-Red X asked

-"Do you have any idea of how Starfire felt when you left her here? I am sure you don't! But I took her with me so she would not feel guilty of something she didn't do. Did you think they organized the picnic for BB's birthday…NO, I DID!!!…Come on! You all are special and more powerful than that human (pointing at Robin). Why do you follow his orders? He is inferior compared to you! And he doesn't care about you…I did! And I was sent to kill you all! But I told Slade you could make great addition to the evil side. And I meant it!"-Red X said

-"He's right. We would make a great addition to the evil side"-Raven said

-"He's right, alright. I don't take time to actually now you guys. And I call myself your friend"-Robin said

-"He has a point there. He did help us improve"-Cyborg said

-"And you did treat me better than Robin has ever treated me since I know him"-Starfire said

That actually hurt Robin. Hurt him as hell because it was true. All those times she had tried to take him out of his obsession, or when she tried to cheer him up and he had ignored her. All those times he had yelled at her, and closed his door on her face and she always came back. He did not deserve her.

-"And I stopped your sister from hurting you. As I would stop anyone from hurting you, Star"-Red X said while looking at Robin

-"You threw that blast that beat her up?"-BB asked

-"Yes, that was me!"-Red X said

-"But why did you do all of these to help us?"-Raven asked

-"I already told you. I though you would make a great addition to the team!"-Red X answered

-"That means that ya also see us as members of your team. And, by the way, Robin cares about us…in his own freaky kind of way"-Cyborg said

-"What? You are not really saying this! I give you a chance to continue living and you decline it?"-Red X asked

-"Robin is kind of crazy, but I would not change anything about him"-Raven said

-"Yeah! Dude has it bad for defeating crime…but he is an awesome video game player"-BB said winking

-"And he loves my inventions! And nobody is perfect"-Cyborg said

-"And he takes time of his to explain the wonders of Earth, like friendship. And yes, he may act strange sometimes…but that is what makes him special"-Starfire said

Robin smiled when he heard Starfire said that. They all stared at Robin who was feeling better now. They were truly his friends. At that moment he promised himself that he would not lock himself again in his room to find Slade. He would not yell at them anymore. He would put them first…Starfire will be first. His friends should come first.

-"I cannot believe this! How can you pick him over me! I'm better! I helped you!"-Red X said

-"We can always improve, Red X"-Cyborg said

-"Red X, perhaps you are not truly evil. Maybe you should join us. You do act like Robin and you have proven to be a good friend to us"-Starfire said

-"What?"-Red X asked

-"What are you saying, Star? He let me fight all of the enemies by myself! He saw me that I was alone and he gave the order to destroy me!"-Robin said

-"Is that true, Red X?"-Starfire asked

-"Yes, he doesn't deserve you! I can take care of you, and would do anything in my power to protect you and make you happy, Star. Please…just consider it"-Red X said

Red X grabbed Starfire's hand and kissed it, like he had done that night in the swings.

-"You remember this, right?"-Red X asked

Starfire did remember it. She had thought that Robin had come back for her. She thought that he really cared but he had not come back. The Robin that went inside her room was Red X. The Robin that took her to the park and made her feel special had been Red X. Her Robin, the one she loved had left her and had not come back until late night.

-"How did you know Robin had left?"-Starfire asked

-"I was always checking on you, all of you. I knew Robin would feel upset of getting defeated by the HIVE and that since you didn't want him to be locked in his room he would get out of the Tower to let his anger out"-Red X answered

-"Then, Who was the Robin that found me in the kitchen and checked what I was drinking?"-Starfire asked

-"That was me"-Robin said

-"But you said you wanted to get some air before you came back to the Tower"-Starfire said

-"And I did. I never said I was outside the door"-Robin said

-"So, you were the one that went to the roof and talked to me?"-Raven asked

-"Yes, I knew Robin was inside his room and I knew you were at the roof and had problems, it was the perfect timing to get to know you"-Red X answered

-"Then who was the one who saw Starfire's score?"-BB asked

-"Me"-Robin answered

-"Dude! This is getting so confusing!"-BB said

-"BB, it's not that confusing, everytime you got helped by Robin, you actually got helped by me, dressed as Robin"-Red X said

Red X grabbed Starfire by the waist and pulled her towards him. Robin saw this and knew what was coming and did not like it. He slowly moved his arm to reach his utility belt to get a birdarang. He was not allowing Red X to kiss her, he would not take advantage of Starfire's or anyone's confusion. As Robin had imagined, Red X's face got closer to Starfire's who did not pulled back. For a moment, Starfire doubted she wanted to decline the opportunity to kiss him. Was he not Robin? He looked like him, he talked like him but he treated her better than Robin did. Robin saw Starfire's puzzled face and decided that if she did not do anything to stop him, he would not stop him either. Robin felt his soul crush and he regretted every single word that he had said to her that hurt her. Red X understood that Starfire was not going to stop him from kissing her and smiled, not an evil smile but a smile of relief and love. He really did love her. Red X slowly got closer to Starfire's face; every second that passed only made the moment when their lips would touch even closer and closer. Their lips were a few inches from finally touching when something unexpected happened.

-"Red X, I am grateful for what you have done for us. But you are still evil and that would not change, you were created to serve Slade and tried to kill Robin. For that, I cannot forgive you. You tried to kill my best friend. No matter how similar you and Robin are, Robin would always be the one I lo…care about the most"-Starfire said while retreating from Red X's arms.

-"Ok, Star. I understand now"-Red X said

-"You do? Marvelous!"-Starfire said

-"Yes, I understand that the only way have you with me forever is to take you with me"-Red X said

-"WHAT?"-Robin yelled

-"I am afraid you have not understood, Red X…what I meant was that…"-Starfire said

-"I do understand…and I am willing to make sacrifices…"-Red X said

The Titans looked at each other and tried to understand what Red X was talking about. Was he going to kill himself and Starfire? Was he going to kill them all? What was he going to do? They did not have to wait long to find out. Red X threw some laser discs to them and grabbed Starfire.

-"I am taking you with me!"-Red X yelled

-"No, please. I do not wish to fight you"-Starfire said

-"You are not taking her away!"-Robin yelled

Robin jumped from the door to where Red X and Starfire were. He quickly used his Bo staff to hit Red X on his arm and Red X let Starfire loose. Starfire started to fly away from them as fast as she could. When the smoke disappeared, Robin and Red X were fighting with all their strength (well, at least Robin). Robin was trying to hurt Red X but Red X had no problem dodging Robin's attacks.

-"I told you I was faster"-Red X said

-"How fast are you when you are dealing with all us?"-Raven asked

-"Titans…GO!"-Cyborg yelled

The Titans approached Red X as fast as they were able to. Raven used her magic and threw the couches at him but he used his powers to make them explode before they even got near him. The explosions made Raven flew back and BB ran to catch her before she hit herself on the floor. Cyborg pointed his cannon at Red X and doubted to attack him.

-'How can I attack him? He helped me out'-Cyborg thought

Cyborg was following Red X's movements while he fought Robin.

-'I have to do it; he is not Robin. He just wants to use us to help Slade'-Cyborg thought

Without even questioning his final thought, Cyborg aimed at Red X and shot his cannon. Red X moved and made Robin fall and stay where the cannon would make impact. If it were not for Starfire that flew to save him, Robin would have been severely hurt. The ray of the cannon kept his course and made holes on the wall of the living room and kept going until all the walls that got in its way were destroyed. BB changed into a rat to not be seen by Red X when he approached him to attack him. When BB was close enough to Red X, he morphed into a velociraptor and started attacking Red X. Red X moved behind BB and grabbed his tail and twirl around to gain speed and threw poor BB to the shelves that had his CDs on. BB immediately transformed into a human and stood up.

-"Man, I'm getting so tired of people using me as a Frisbee"-BB said

-"Good one!"-Red X said

Raven again used her powers to attack Red X, now she also used them to protect herself from any trick that Red X might try to use on her. She got a hold of him and was trying her best to not let him go. Red X looked at Raven and grinned.

-"See? Told you if you let your emotions go you would become stronger"-Red X said

Red X comment distracted raven and Red X used this opportunity to free himself. Raven did not like this and tried to tie him again using the curtains but Red X destroyed them with his powers. Starfire began shooting starbolts at Red X who did not even move. He just covered his face and did not do anything to fight her back. Starfire then started throwing more and more starbolts non-stop but she was not aiming at Red X. She threw them at him with no intention of hurting him either.

-"I know you can't hurt me either…we are bonded"-Red X said

Robin also had noticed that Starfire was not trying at all to hurt Red X.

-"If we want to defeat him we need to attack all at once. Ready?"-Robin asked

-"Ready"-The Titans answered

-"GO!"-Robin ordered

The other Titans ran to where Red X was and all attacked at once. Robin was throwing his birdarangs and laser discs. Cyborg was using his cannon. Raven was using her magic to keep the others from getting hurt by Red X's attacks and BB turned into a bull and was trying to push him to the wall. Finally, they all managed to corner him and they thought they had him immobilized. At that moment, Red X yelled and his energy was let loose, making all the Titans fly in the different directions. Cyborg crushed some walls and ended up in Raven's room. BB ended up in the elevator of the main entrance. Raven had been able to use her magic and did not hit anything but had stopped near the big screen TV that got blown anyway when Raven used her magic to protect herself. Robin crashed into the windows and almost fell if it was not for Starfire that again saved him at the last minute and brought him back inside the Tower.

-"I did not wish to fight you but you have let me no choice"-Starfire said

Starfire let Robin go and flew to Red X. Instead of using her starbolts he fought against him with kicks and punches. Red X did not know it but Starfire was almost as fast as he was. Red X never attacked her; he just evaded the attacks and started walking backwards towards the hall that led to the other rooms. The Titans got back on the feet and started to follow them, and while walking Red X evaded Starfire's hits and also had a chance to hurt the other Titans and destroy some parts of the Tower as well. They all stopped at the evidence room.

-"Stop running! You can't escape now!"-Robin said

-"On the contrary, Robin. You can't escape now!"-Red X said

Starfire was flying above Red X and was breathing hard. She had been kicking and punching him with all her strength and he had not even broken a sweat.

-"Starfire, regroup!"-Robin said

Starfire was about to fly to where the Titans were and at moment Red X got a weapon out. Robin slowly turned to see what Red X had in his hands but by the time he reacted it was too late. He shot something at somebody. Robin turned back to see who had been hurt. He was ok, Cyborg was ok, BB was ok and Raven was fine too. That was when it hit him…Starfire was shot.

-'He said he would never hurt her and he did?'-Robin thought

The Titans turned to see Starfire who was falling in between them. Neither one of them was close enough to run to her and catch her. Yes, they were far if they ran, but they were not as far if they flew. To their surprise Red X started to fly. He flew towards Starfire and caught her on his arms. The Titans had their mouths wide opened and could not believe what Red X had just done. He had shot Starfire and now he was flying!

-"What the…? Is he flying?"-Cyborg asked

-"Dude! He is a Robin!"-BB joked

-"Not a good time!"-Raven said

-"Why can he…"-Robin asked

-"Surprised? I told you Slade had enhanced me…flying is one of the gifts he gave me…I never thought I would be grateful of such gift"-Red X said

-"Ya killed Star!"-Cyborg said

-"I didn't kill her, I just sedated her. But you will not have the same luck"-Red X said

-"What do you mean?"-BB asked

-"Oh! I forgot to tell you! Remember when you all went to park? I came by and left some presents around the Tower"-Red X answered

-"What presents is he talking about?"-Raven asked

Red X got a black remote out of his pocket. He grinned and grabbed Starfire closer to him so she would not fall. The Titans looked at him not knowing what to expect and then it happened. Red X pressed the red button and seconds later they started to hear some sounds. The Tower shacked with every sound they heard until they realized what was happening.

-"Are those bombs?"-Robin asked

-"Yes, I left bombs all around the Tower. I must leave now; the Tower doesn't stand a chance"-Red X said

Faster that the Titans could react, Red X made his way out of the tower by blasting the ceiling and making sure the Titans could not get away on time. He flew outside the Tower and stopped a few feet from the Tower, farther enough to not get hurt and closer enough to see it fall to the ground.

-"Titans…we need to get out…NOW!"-Robin said

And this was the last order heard at Titans Tower before it exploded and collapsed.

-"Too bad you are not awake to see the fireworks you like so much, Star"-Red X said

He stood on the other side of the lake to watch how the once standing Titans Tower was reduced to nothing but a sad memory.

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NOTE: Liked it?? Hope You did! This is my first fic and I am trying my best…Still have 5 chapters to go…stay tuned!!!