Sick
Chapter Three – Initiation
Robin watched Raven return to her room silently and wondered why she had lied to the others. He had hurt her when he'd drunk from her, so by all rights, she should have the other Titans chasing after him with stakes and torches. While she may have fooled most of the Titans, Robin knew that Beast Boy hadn't been mislead at all. His growl had been far too quiet for anyone to hear except Robin, but he had understood the meaning. Beast Boy was mostly animal, and animals can usually sense evil. He wouldn't be able to keep his new condition from his friends for long. With a heavy heart, Robin came to realize that he would have to leave.
That night, after the others had retired to their bedrooms, Robin sat awake, staring at Jump City's skyline through the picture windows of Titan tower. If he had just been a little sharper, he wouldn't have been caught off guard in the alley, and none of this would be happening. Maybe he should have stayed home, after all, it wasn't like he worked with a group of inexperienced heroes or anything. That damn cold had been the start of it all. Well, at least he would never get sick again…or old, or have to eat, or get to see the sun; his head spun with the enormity of the change.
Before he could get another thought out, there was whisper in his mind, as if something had barely brushed against it. He immediately stood, stepping right up to the glass. It almost felt as if someone was calling his name, but he couldn't quite hear them. More like a child's singsong voice echoing in a fog. He searched the surrounding areas with his eyes, but when he saw nothing, he decided to go out. He felt inexplicably drawn to the voice. After sneaking past the other Titans, he slapped his helmet on and sped out on his Birdcycle, following the calling in his head.
After a few minutes, it felt as if he was riding in a trance. He watched himself merge onto the highway and pass cars at a normal speed, but didn't really feel like he had any control at all. Before he knew it, he was back in that same alley he'd been attacked. This time, Robin hid his bike and held a birdarang in hand as he approached the darkness. He cautiously searched the entire alley but was surprised to find nothing but that nasty dumpster and a dead end. The calling in his mind was more incessant now, and he began to search a little more thoroughly. Again coming up with the same results, he stopped, turned toward whatever was tugging on him and opened his mind.
Immediately, he could feel things he never had before. He sensed Raven reading all the way back in the tower and could suddenly tell that there were others like him, that the attacker they had been chasing the night before was probably not alone. There was a faint scraping noise, and when Robin opened his eyes, a doorway now stood open to him. Without hesitation, he walked inside, not using a light for danger of giving his position away. He followed his hearing and sense of smell, but above all, he was being led by the voice that called to his mind. It was only another moment or two before he stepped into a large underground chamber.
It was as if he had stepped into the upper half of a sphere, the ceiling rising a good thirty feet above his head. Torches burned at regular intervals along the walls, sending shadows dancing everywhere. Between the torches were tapestries that conveyed gruesome scenes of crucifixion, disembodiment and torture. The domed ceiling was covered in masterful paintings, depicting ornate skyscapes of angels fighting one another and dragons flying about. The gold and silver gilding that accented the portraits sparkled in the flickering light. The floor was just as magnificent as the ceiling, showing poses of wolves, bats, spiders and snakes enshrouded in fog.
In the center of the room stood a large stone chalice, bigger and taller than Robin himself. Small tables with knives and goblets were positioned beneath each torch and the air had a heavy, stale feel to it. Before he could turn around, the double doors he had just passed through slammed shut with a resounding echo, trapping the teenager in the room alone. The bowl on the stone chalice in front of him burst into flame, the yellow tongues of flame nearly reaching the ceiling. The intense heat caused him to shield his face and back away, moving toward the closed doors.
Robin had only one moment to consider his escape when a low sound filled the room. It was the same humming sound Tibetan monks made while they meditated. Beginning to not like the situation, Robin turned and bolted for the door, only to crash himself up against strong ironwood. Rather than try again, he walked to the nearest tapestry thinking there might be some kind of secret exit. Just before his gloved fingers reached the fabric, it moved aside on its own and a black hooded figure emerged. Robin stepped back and turned for another of the wall hangings. To his dismay, each of them had someone appearing from the shadows, slowly forming a circle, and still making that low humming sound. Before he knew it, they had him back into the center of the room, right under the burning pillar.
The sound changed suddenly into staccato hisses as a final hooded figure joined the circle, this one dressed all in red the color of blood. The others bowed down, still sounding like snakes until the leader in red clapped once. Immediately, they stood and began humming again, each reaching over to the nearest table to pick up a dagger. Robin was getting seriously creeped out now and decided that it was time to find an exit. Searching for something to use as a weapon, he found nothing, so pulled off his cape and held it above his head to catch on fire. When it had lit, he held it near him and tried to approach one of the tapestries.
A communal hiss rose from those gathered and the one nearest him snatched the cape from his hands faster than he could respond. A low chuckle came from the one in red as Robin was pushed so he staggered and fell backwards. As quick as lightening, the young crime fighter threw two birdarangs directly into the shadow under the red hood and crawled between the two black figures in front of the doors. He heard the sharp metal connect but was confused when that same low chuckle filled the chamber again. Rather than stop and figure it out, he scrambled for latch on the doors but was dragged bodily back into the circle. He felt someone take his utility belt off and tried to fight, but was grossly overpowered.
He was brought to face the one in red, held completely off the floor by many hands. He now understood what the daggers were for; while he was suspended, the hands moved on him constantly, cutting his clothes off, one piece after another. In no time, he was naked, and was placed on his feet in front of the leader. Rather than cower in embarrassment or try to cover himself, he stood tall and defiant, as if nothing was different. His body was firm and toned, it was obvious his time in the gym was paying off. Covering the chiseled muscles was smooth and unblemished skin, pale and firm. The room was beginning to heat up, and a fine sheet of sweat started to cover the boy wonder.
In a movement so sudden it caused him to jump, the one in red stepped close and waved one of Robin's birdarangs in his face. A man's chuckle emerged from under the crimson hood that continued as he walked a slow circle around the naked teenager. When he was directly facing Robin again, the cackle grew louder. The man yanked back his hood and Robin took a step back in horror. His eyes were shocking red, the skin on his face looked like ancient parchment and, worst of all, huge yellowed fangs protruded from his teeth, the same teeth that were clamped over the other birdarang. The piece of metal fell when the cackle grew into hysterical laughter, spraying Robin with foul spittle.
His emotional state quickly approaching terrified, Robin's glace darted around, searching for some way to escape the maniac in front of him. Everywhere, the others in black were pulling back their hoods, revealing equally hideous faces with fangs jutting below cracked lips. He recognized one of them as the black guy who attacked him the alley. As if guided by the same voice, they each picked up the goblet from the little tables and bared the daggers, again advancing on the young man. Robin flipped his wet bangs out of his eyes, the temperature was really rising because of that flaming pillar, and readied himself for hand-to-hand combat.
Before he could get even one punch to connect, the lead vampire bit the tip of his own finger and smeared the blood across Robin's forehead. Dread filled the teenager when he tried to move and found he was completely immobilized by the blood, like a weight had settled on his skeleton that he didn't have the strength to move.
Even though he couldn't move, he could still see, and what Robin watched made his stomach turn. Each vampire stepped up to the frozen crime fighter and cut into his bare forearm, allowing his blood to fill the goblet. Robin gritted his teeth against the biting blades, but made no sound, he didn't want to give them the satisfaction. Then, after the wound had healed, each passed the cup toward the one in red who promptly downed every one. By the time he was finished, he was glowing with power and the simple act of looking down at Robin caused the boy wonder to burn like he was on fire. He tried to battle the sensation, but in the end it won, forcing him to his knees with a grunt of pain. The other vampires hissed again and scrambled to pick him up, holding him parallel to the floor once more.
Robin's head was swimming with the residual pain from the leader's gaze and he knew he had lost enough blood to begin to worry. Sweat was dripping from his hair because of the heat and the monster in red was reaching for him, staring at his naked body while Robin was completely helpless to stop him. The moment struck Robin as so completely ridiculous that he started to laugh. He laughed so hard that the vampires looked at their master for guidance, no one had ever done that before. Rather than interrupt the ceremony, the leader simply placed his hand on Robin's stomach.
The laugh immediately changed to a full throated scream. Under the master's hand, runes and Celtic letters started carving themselves into Robin's fair skin, burning and bleeding as they worked their way across his stomach and chest. Only when he lifted his hand could Robin quiet enough to gasp for air. When the master touched Robin's left leg, the teenager's scream filled the room again. It felt as if these words were writing themselves onto his soul; the agony had far surpassed his considerable pain tolerance, so he could do nothing but writhe in their grasp and hope the screaming would help him cope with the pain. It completely enveloped his entire being, and the master wasn't going to stop until he'd marked his entire body.
Many miles away, in the Titan Tower, Raven screamed again, holding her head and thrashing on the floor of her bedroom. Because she had given her blood to Robin, they had become connected through a mental link. It wasn't a very powerful link, but the amount of pain Robin was experiencing was forcing itself into Raven's head because of it's sheer intensity. Beast Boy had broken down the door a few minutes ago and now Starfire and Cyborg were arguing about how best to help her. Once again, she silenced them all by responding first; Raven bolted upright and dashed out the door, leaving the others scratching their heads, scrambling to catch up. As they piled in the T car, Beast Boy asked, "Um, why are we running out in the middle of the night again?"
Starfire joined Beast Boy in the questioning, "And your screaming, and holding of your head…that is better now as well?"
Raven faced a dilemma, she did not want to expose Robin's secret, but she did need to explain what was going on to her comrades. She leaned forward to give directions to Cyborg and then calmed herself. "Robin and I…share a bond. I can feel what he's feeling and he can tell what I'm feeling, I think." Starfire looked devastated, but Beast Boy never took his eyes from those of the sorceress. Even though they were speeding down the street, she had their rapt attention. "All that back in the tower? It was coming from him, he's in mortal danger. If we don't find him soon, we may not find him ever."
"I hear ya, girl, I know where we're goin'. Isn't that the place Robin got beat around last night?" Cyborg let the question hang in the car as he squealed around a corner.
With that, Raven realized they might be facing much more than they bargained for. After the way Robin had fed on her, she figured he'd come straight home, escaping the Initiation Ceremony. From all her readings, there was nothing good about that ritual. Through mind control and physical torture, the new vampire is bonded to the one who made him, a single mark painfully burned into the back of the initiate's neck. She had also passed over mention of a different ceremony for the Chosen One but paid it no heed, that prophecy had passed long ago. Usually, the new vampire is drained of so much blood that he will immediately kill the first to find him for food. This really didn't look good.
Everything was still and quiet when the T car pulled into the deserted alley. Without a word, Cyborg smashed his fist through the false wall, following Robin's tracking signal. As they passed into the lightless tunnel, Raven placed her hand on Starfire's shoulder, preventing her from illuminating the area with a star bolt. Beast Boy transformed into a Great Dane, sniffing along in the dark. When he caught the scent of an enormous quantity of blood, his ears perked and he took off running toward the source.
The other Titans found him growling at the set of double doors, ears laid back, fur bristling and teeth bared. Taking a deep breath, Raven pushed the doors open and immediately fell as she slipped in something. When she looked down at what she landed in, her hands were covered in blood, just like the floor all around her. Starfire pulled Raven to her feet as they stared in shock at the scene before them. Blood had pooled on the floor, it covered the walls and had splattered against the ceiling. A large, stone chalice in the middle of the room still had the red liquid dripping from it and metal goblets that had been filled with blood were scattered on the floor.
In the middle of it all, crumpled at base of the chalice, was a broken and battered Robin, without a stitch of clothing. He was covered in blood and had bruises and cuts all over his body. His naked skin was marked by strange letters and shapes, obviously formed by magic, and Raven could see the ownership mark standing alone on the back of his neck. The blood in his hair was still wet, but Robin lay perfectly still, eyes closed and brow furrowed, as if in pain. Starfire screeched and ran to him, kneeling at his side, wanting to touch him but knowing she shouldn't. Raven joined her and threw blue her cloak over his nudity.
While Beast Boy had stopped growling, his hackles were still raised, and he sniffed around for what might be causing his uneasiness. Cyborg looked downright queasy, his normally dark skin was a couple shades paler and apparently he was doing his best to hold it down. Raven closed her eyes and levitated crossed-legged while she felt for Robin's presence. At first, she was a little worried that there was only nothingness, but then a small seed of fear, confusion, anger, hunger, rage and sadness planted itself in her mind.
Although Robin's body was not moving, his mind was racing. He was still in shock from the amount of pain he had just gone through, figuring that if he had still been alive, he surely would have died from that. He knew he had to feed, there was almost no blood left in his veins, it was all over the room instead,but he didn't have the strength to go seek prey. When Starfire knelt next to him, he was overcome with a hunger so powerful that it dwarfed the one from the night before. He couldn't move much, so he expended his remaining energy opening his eyes. He looked at the living being closest to him and felt the bloodlust begin to take over.
Starfire saw Robin open his eyes and look at her, but she barely had a moment to admire their pale blue color before he looked from her face to her right hip. His eyes turned to a sickening color of red as he sensed where her heart was, he needed her blood and it apparently didn't matter that she was an alien. Beast Boy only had the chance to bark once before Robin lunged at the frightened redhead. Transforming into wolf, Beast Boy knocked Starfire to the side and yelped as Robin's fangs sank into his shoulder. The green lupine growled and threw Robin off, but that little bit of blood had been enough to pull the boy wonder from death's door.
Robin stood and smiled viciously as he licked Beast Boy's blood from his lips. He threw back his head and laughed when Cyborg turned to upchuck and glared at Starfire, enjoying her cowering under his gaze. With a grunt of effort, Robin's bones began to pop as he changed his shape; he dropped to all fours and gritted his teeth through the transformation. In a matter of seconds, he had become a wolf just as fierce as Beast Boy, but black and covered in blood. Robin snarled at him and rushed for the throat the same time Beast Boy moved in.
The fight was on.