Chapter 4: Promise of a New Day

Hours after she was rescued from Brother Blood's forest hideout, Torque was still fast asleep, but the guys were wide awake. They had crept over to the bassinet that contained Torque's newborn baby and they were admiring him in jewel-eyed wonder. They knew without asking what had happened that Torque had been raped, but this wasn't making any difference to the Titans. One look in the baby's shiny blue eyes and the guys were hooked.

Speedy was the only Titan not currently observing the infant. He was standing over Torque's bed and watching for any sign of recovery. Gently, he slid his hand into hers and to his surprise, her grip tightened. A faint orange glow emanated from her hand, and Speedy grinned. Torque was using her powers to squeeze his hand because she herself was still too weak.

"Torque? Can you hear me?" Speedy asked softly. Torque shifted her weight and blinked her eyes open. When her eyes met Speedy's, Speedy's heart skipped a beat. She was awake!

"Where…?" Torque began.

"You're safe, Torque. You're home," Speedy replied.

"My baby…" Torque continued, her voice still hoarse from screaming. Speedy stood back so that she could see the others standing around the crib that held the infant. Speedy went over and gently picked up the baby, finally breaking the other Titans out of their trance. Speedy laid the baby in Torque's arms and Torque let tears of relief slip down her cheeks.

"I thought I was going to die…" Torque murmured. The guys did their best to comfort her. They knew the feeling from the other side of the situation. They thought she was already dead.

"We're glad you're going to be all right, Torque," Robin said softly.

"Yeah."

"Welcome home, girl."

"Well done, Torque."

"Thanks, guys," Torque replied, her voice gaining some strength.

"What's the baby's name?" asked Beast Boy. It was something they had all been wondering.

"His name is Aidan Alexander. He's only two weeks old. I thought for sure that he was a goner when I passed out," Torque replied. She proceeded to tell them just some of what had happened over the past months. She told them about being held by the Master of Games. She told them about the inhibitors that cut off their powers, about the abuse, and about how Brother Blood had taken the children from them, only to have the Master of Games suddenly storm the hideout and try to rescue the children.

"What do you mean he 'tried' to rescue them?" Beast Boy asked. Torque sobbed as she recalled to them the story of how the kids almost escaped. Beast Boy had to sit down. Robin nearly threw up. Brother Blood had shot the children.

Just then, the alarm rang out, and Speedy and Robin looked at Torque.

"I'll be fine. Go," Torque ordered. Hesitating only another second, the boys made a run for it. Torque swallowed her tears and took a few deep breaths. She knew that Aidan wouldn't take her milk if she was upset.

After she fed Aidan, Torque worked her way out of bed and took the baby with her back to her room. An hour later, she had showered, dressed and spent a little time stretching to get her muscles back in working condition. Then she looked at the clock. It was still very early in the morning. She wondered what sort of crime had called the guys away, but she had every idea how she could thank them for what they had done.

When the guys returned to Titans Tower, there was a strange smell in the air. When they arrived in the living area, they discovered the source of the enticing scent: Torque was in the kitchen.

"Um…hi Torque…feeling better?" Robin asked. Torque looked up from the stove, her eyes looking brighter than they remembered before.

"When you guys left, I realized that you hadn't eaten breakfast so I thought rather than lying around, I'd get cleaned up and make breakfast," Torque replied. Seconds later, all six of the boys were lined up beside her with plates in their hands and grins on their faces. Torque smiled broadly as each one kissed her cheek or hugged her as they dished up their breakfast and beetled to the table. Speedy, the last in line, set his plate on the counter and took Torque in his arms, kissing her firmly on the mouth. With this done, Speedy whispered in her ear, "I've been waiting over a year to do that." If Aidan had not cried seconds later, Torque might have still been standing stock still in the kitchen, absorbing what had just happened. By the time Torque sat down to eat with them, the bright scarlet blush that had spread up her cheeks was fading.

The alarm rang out again about an hour and a half later, and the boys once again took to the streets, almost hesitating to leave Torque behind.

"I'm not going anywhere," she told them again. "Go. Get the job done. Kick his ass for me, too." Speedy and Robin both grinned, and Beast Boy nodded. With this, they were gone.

The guys had not been gone more than ten minutes when Torque heard someone fiddling with the voice-activated keyless entry pad at the front door. Going downstairs to see what it was, Torque listened for the voice of the person trying to access the tower. Had the guys forgotten their passwords? That didn't seem possible. Creeping up on the door, Torque listened, her hands glowing bright orange. The computer didn't seem to recognize the voice but Torque did.

"Olivia Arella Logan!" the voice cried out again. Once again, the computer denied the person access. Torque bypassed the lock and seconds later, she was staring eye to eye with Raven and Beast Boy's little girl.

"Olivia!" Torque cried, dropping to her knees. Olivia just barely made it inside the tower doors before she fainted. Torque quickly gathered the baby from Olivia's arms before she hit the floor, and then gathered all three of the kids into her arms and rushed them upstairs to the medical bay. Half an hour later, Torque had all three kids on IV's that rushed desperately needed nourishment to their little bodies. Torque couldn't believe what she was seeing. She had been there when Brother Blood shot the kids. How did they escape?

Torque swept her hand over Olivia's forehead and brushed her hair out of her eyes. All three of them were pale, but the color was beginning to return a little at a time. Being November, there was also a chill in the air, and none of them had been properly dressed for the weather. Torque heaped blankets onto the beds and this helped even more. Olivia opened her eyes and looked up at Torque.

"Auntie…?" she murmured.

"I'm here, Livie. You were so brave, baby, how did you do it?" Torque asked, tears gathering in her eyes.

"Played dead. Daddy said that's how he and mommy fell in love. She played dead…" Olivia mumbled. Torque laughed a bit. She would have to ask Beast Boy to tell her that story.

"You go back to sleep now, pumpkin. Daddy's going to want to snuggle with you when he gets home," Torque said. Olivia turned her head and looked around.

"Where's Jason?"

"He's right here next to you, honey," Torque replied. "And Emily is on the other side. She's right there." Satisfied, Olivia yawned, nodded and fell easily back to sleep. Torque stood up and went over to the infant bassinet that stood on the other side of Olivia's bed. Inside was one month old Emily Marie, Beast Boy and Raven's newest family member. Now that there were fluids and nourishment back in her system, baby Emily was thriving. Her color had returned, and she grunted softly in her sleep. She was dreaming, and Torque decided to leave her that way. Torque went to the opposite side and checked on Jason. Of the three, Jason was the one that seemed to be taking the longest to recover. He had not awakened yet, but his vital signs were strong. Torque had no doubt that his father's stubborn survival instinct had been passed on from father to son.

When the guys arrived home, they found Torque standing in the living area with Aidan on her shoulder. She was humming softly and making small, rocking, almost dancing steps around the room. When she noticed them, Torque stopped, gently placed Aidan in the cradle, and then told the guys to sit down.

As soon as she told them that the rest of the kids were really alive, she almost had to fight Robin and Beast Boy to keep them from running upstairs to the medical bay. She convinced them to calm themselves, but she knew that the rage of a lonesome father was not something to be trifled with. She made both Robin and Beast Boy take deep breaths and calm down before they proceeded inside.

Beast Boy spotted Olivia and then looked over at the bassinet. Was that who he thought it was?

"Go on, BB. That's your baby girl over there. Raven named her Emily; Emily Marie," Torque murmured. Beast Boy lightly stroked Emily's cheek and started to cry.

"I missed it again….I wasn't there when she had the baby….I…I promised her I was going to be there for this one…" Beast Boy wept.

"We can't control when bad things happen, Beast Boy," Torque said. "We all told each other that all the time. You would have been so proud of Raven. She didn't even cry out. The next morning, the guards didn't even know anything was out of the ordinary except that we told them that Raven was too weak to work for a couple days. Luckily for us, Brother Blood didn't ask questions."

"Can I hold her?" Beast Boy asked. Torque squeezed his shoulder.

"Not yet. Tomorrow she should be well enough for us to take out the IV, but for tonight, she's going to have to sleep here," Torque replied. Beast Boy swallowed hard and nodded. Then he looked at Olivia. In the two hours that she had been home, Olivia's color had returned, and Torque looked at Beast Boy's pleading eyes. She couldn't find it in her heart to deny him both of his daughters. Olivia awoke when Torque removed the IV and the first thing she saw was her father.

"Daddy!"

"Olivia!" Beast Boy cried. Torque just barely got a bandage on Olivia's hand before she flung her arms around Beast Boy's neck. Beast Boy covered her little head in kisses and held her tight as Olivia cried.

Robin was sitting with Jason, holding his hand and waiting for him to wake up. Torque checked his vitals again and then smiled.

"Your son sleeps harder than his mother does. You could light a firecracker by Starfire's head and she'd sleep through it," Torque commented. With this, she gently shook Jason's shoulder. With this, the little one awakened and started to cry for his mother.

"Where's my mother?" whimpered Jason.

"I'd like to know that too, son," Robin said, startling him. Jason turned his head and finally met eyes with his father. Torque took out the IV and Robin pulled his son into his arms and held him. Torque knew that that by that night, she would be removing little Emily's IV also. Nothing was going to come between Robin and Beast Boy and their kids anymore.

Torque was right. That night, as she walked with Cyborg to help secure the Tower, she noticed that Robin took Jason with him and Beast Boy had taken the girls, and both fathers fell contentedly asleep that night with their children in their arms, more grateful for them than they had ever been before.