I'm baaaack! Yes, this is the last real chapter... -sigh- Good, but sorta sad all the same...who knows, maybe I'm just nuts.
Estel-Elf-Lover: Thanks!
Strixvaria: LOL hey, as long as it's a good comment, it works for me!
raeandrob4eva: I know...it was just plain evil :( LOL yeah, sometimes I worry about how well I can get inside Slade's head...kind of a scary thought, really. Aw...Thanks :)
CloudsHalo: I know...it's evil, but yes I write them to keep your interest. Whoa...Thanks -blushes-. Yes, yes, here is the climax, the most important part of the story...no pressure, right? LOL! Yeah...I worry about how well I write evil-ness...kinda makes me wonder about my tendencies... Yes it probably does have to do with Trigon, unless Slade just has some kind of fascination with her powers...I wonder how Robin is going to react? LOL yeah I was probably imagining it...he just seemed extra concerned about her...who knows?
Aeris-Raven: I know...it was mean to leave you guys hanging like that. I'm sorry...I'm really glad that you like my story so much...but it's definately over. I would hate to drag it out and ruin anything it might have had. YES I will most definately do another Robin story! ROBIN ROCKS, I COULDN'T AGREE WITH YOU MORE! And you rock for agreeing that Robin rocks :) I'm just about positive that all my stories will be about Robin, whether directly or indirectly...he's my favorite character, it would be hard to write without him.
nevermoretheraven: Hmm...maybe...
Furubafun24: Yes, Slade is an idiot! Let's flush him down a toilet!
Umbro Draco: Wow, I'm really glad that you like it! And yes, I've been having fun developing their relationship. Thanks so much for reading!
Majestical: Thanks, sorry for ending it, but I will write other stories and I would be honored to continue to hear your input!
BrokenWings: Yeah, I've slowly recovered from the frustration of it all. Thanks for reading!
Deadweight3: Yeah, I've kinda run 'em through the mill, haven't I:( I'm glad you like it though :)
SOVEREIGN LORD OF CHAOS: -Blushes- Thanks :) And yes I count myself lucky for my reviewers' kindness and mercy :) Thanks for reading! I'll be sure to come check out your story!
tinkerbellx2: Eek! Three people now have told me that I write Slade very well...What does that say about me? LOL I'm just kidding, I'm glad that he is convincing. Track meet? Cool. I'm not much of an athletic person...Basically if I want excercise, I walk to my friend's house lol. I'm glad you like it :)
maroonedpirate11: LMAO! Wow...you need to detox, I think...NO, NOT THE MUFFIN! -cringes in horror- LOL thanks for reading, and sorry for keeping you waiting.
one of dusty's better friends (not...lol j/k): NO, DO NOT REVEAL MY IDENTITY! LOL yes, its a shocker, isn't it? J. K. Rowling? I think not. Yeah, when I'm rich and famous, I will remember you lol. Yes, you shall be fluffy toes. Yes, you get to read my insane mumblings first...well second. Rusty got first dibs.
ChubbyBuddy: -Blushes Furiously- Thanks, babe. LOL you had to find something, didn't you? LOL j/k, I really should be more careful about typos...LOL yes, whoever wrote that limerick is EXCEEDINGLY talented. For a second there, I thought the sniffing bit went to the drugs bit...my mistake ;P Did it really take you hours? You must really love me! I'm glad you like it, really really glad actually. Thanks for the review, chubbs!
Rinagurl13: Good for you -cheers-...if only I could do as well on my test...they did? How rude! I'm glad I could cheer you up :)
AnnFaithDarknessGoddess: Thanks, it took me a while to work out exactly what Project X was, truthfully. Well, it's not over yet...yeah, they are getting thrashed... :( Sorry, I know I surpassed my record for the most horrible cliffhanger on that last chapter. Glad you like it!
RavenHairedInsanity: Thanks -blush-...I blush alot, huh? Yeah, I am mean I know it... -Hides Face In Shame- Glad you liked it in spite of my cruelty.
Darth Nat: -cringe- I wouldn't say he's exactly "insane"... Dang, now that's four people that think I'm a good Slade...er...I write a good Slade...Thanks, I'm glad I've been keeping him in character. Whoa...thanks! I admit that there is hardly any evidence supporting a Raven/Robin relationship, but I don't write it because it is possible, I write it because it's how it would be if I had it my way. Now about the next bit, if I had been sure that you were copying my story, I wouldn't have bothered reviewing and simply reported you. Honestly, copying is not something that I look for on a fanfiction site, but there were certain similarities between your first chapter and mine. I reviewed merely to question those similarities. However, I see now that I have misjudged you, and I appologize. I appreciate your review, and hope that you will keep reading!
fairlygodmother: Thanks!
Raving Lunatic: Sorry :( ARG, five people total think that I am a good Slade...I'm the good guy, I tell you! LOL j/k. I would have to disagree with you there; I am possitive that Slade is completely insane, just in an intelligent sort of way, not really because he runs around acting like a psycho, just because of what he is willing to do to get his way. No one in their right mind would do the stuff that he has. LOL I don't know how much that will help, but Robin accepts and thanks you for your concern, although he strongly dislikes being referred to as "kid".
DarkAngel2004: I'm glad that I cleared up the confusion in my story. Thanks, thanks, and you rock too:)
RavenRobin4ever: Sorry...I got the next chapter written as soon as I could.
Niki Dee: Thanks...yes I am evil, I am aware of this fact. LOL somehow I knew that you would appreciate that ending.
Dark-Angels-Tears: -blinks...lip quivers- I...I...please don't hurt me!
Crazy Girl Person: Thanks :)
Lil' Snippet: Aw...wow, is it really that good? I suppose it is, cuz you're not inclined to fibs :) Thanks, man -hugs-
Ok then, I guess we should get on with the story now...Why are you all staring at me? -whistles-...OOOOH you want me to continue the story? Ok then :)
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The robots surrounded them, an army of Slades, shooting, kicking, and punching. The Titans were fighting like mad, but regardless of their efforts, they were slowly getting pushed back.
Batman could see that they would never get to Robin in time if someone didn't manage to sneak through. Painful images flashed before his eyes...He was not going to lose him. Not today.
He fought his way over to Raven. She had been fighting fiercely, taking out almost as many robots as he did, but he could see that she was exhausted. "Raven! Get the Titans together, try to fight your way through. You have to get to Robin, do you hear me?" he yelled, smashing his fist through the "stomach" of an attacking robot.
"What about you?" she shouted back, disassembling a robot with her power.
"Forget about me! Find Robin, get him out of here, no matter what he says! GO!" He pushed her lightly towards the entrance.
Raven gave him one last glance, a strange look in her deep purple eyes. Then she started fighting her way through to her fellow Titans, shouting the plan over the roar of battle. Grouping together was difficult, but they managed it. The Teen Titans, minus one, punched, kicked, and blasted their way through Slade's army, moving as a single entity. Batman did his best to reduce the amount of obstacles in their way, fighting like one possessed. He watched them disappear into the building, bruised, battered, and exhausted. Four teenagers didn't stand much of a chance against Slade, one of the most vicious criminal masterminds he had ever had the misfortune to meet. Anger burned inside him, blocking out everything else. The coward! This fight was between him and Slade...Robin was only targeted because of the connection between them. The lowly worm had hoped to get to him through Robin, weakening his defenses and making him easier to destroy. He growled low, crushing two robots at once...They were wasting his time...He had to get to Dick... "I'd love to stay and chat," he grunted, hitting a robot with a powerful spinning kick, "but I have somewhere to be."
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Slade stood before the screens, watching the battle with a smile on his face. He was quite amazed at how well everything was going. The pieces were moving in a pre-destined path, the ending of which could only be destruction.
"Please...you can have me, just don't hurt Ra...my friends," whispered Robin, his eyes glued to the screen.
"Begging? Have you really sunk that low, Robin?" asked Slade casually.
Robin was torn between concern for his friends and the hatred he felt burning in his chest. "Do what you want with me, just Leave Them Alone!" he spat through gritted teeth.
Slade chuckled. "I don't need permission to do what I like with you. I never have. You belong to me, Dick," he said, as though it was the simplest concept in the world.
"Don't call me that." Bruce called him Dick...His parents had called him Dick...
A sudden anger flared in Slade. With lightning speed, he leapt at Robin, kicking him in the chest and sending him flying into the wall. "When will you learn, Dick?", he asked, raising his voice to be heard over Robin's screams of pain. "I am your master. I give the orders, not you. You exist to serve me." To emphasize his point, Slade drew back his fist with every intention of hitting the boy as hard as possible. Robin braced himself...but the blow never fell.
A boulder jumped up of its own accord and threw itself at the masked Satan-worshiper, knocking half-way across the factory. "Touch him again. I dare you," Raven challenged, a quiet threat darkening her tone.
Robin's heart nearly stopped when he saw her standing in the doorway, one eye swollen shut, a long cut across her cheek, and her cloak in tatters. He tried to stand, but his limbs just wouldn't move. He ached at the thought of what he had done and what would happen to them. Knowing that she wouldn't listen to him, Robin shouted, "No! Get out of here!"
"Oh, ok. We're just going to turn around and leave you to him." Raven now understood Batman's warning; Robin was stubborn to the death. She was relieved to hear his voice all the same; even though things were far from good, she had feared much worse.
By this time, Slade had recovered from his unexpected present. "So, you've finally arrived. I expected you to finish much sooner, what with the help of your flying friend. No matter. Let us proceed." With these words, four large androids stepped from the shadows, each approaching one of the brave teenagers. Robin yelled a warning, but too late; the androids clamped his friends in their unforgiving iron grip. "No need to worry. The procedure will be painless...I think." Slade advanced on the Titans, each step deliberately slow.
Robin grabbed a Birdarang from his belt, trying to aim as the room spun and shifted. He threw it as hard as he could, praying that somehow it would find its target.
Slade smiled, turning slowly when he heard the whiz of the flying missile. It fell short and five feet off target. "Don't interrupt, Robin. I'm in the middle of something very important," he said condescendingly.
"Don't...leave them...go..." Robin gasped, trying to think through the pain.
Slade ignored him as though he was a disobediant toddler. "I don't suppose any of you have ever seen this?" he asked, turning back to the Titans and holding up Project X. Their eyes followed the device apprehensively; what new horrors did Slade have in store for them?
"Well if you're so eager to hear about it, why don't you ask Robin?" Slade said maliciously.
A weight dropped on Robin's chest at Slade's words. He couldn't really see them in the dim light of the warehouse, but he could feel their accusatory glares burning into him.
"What are you talking about?" grunted Cyborg, struggling against his robot captor.
"Why don't you tell them, Robin? They have a right to hear it from you," said Slade mockingly.
Robin's eyes were fixed on the ground. Since he wouldn't talk, Slade decided to do it for him. "Dick was kind enough to borrow this from Wayne Enterprises for me. It is, in simple terms, a brain washing device."
Beast Boy was the first to speak. "Borrowed? Dude, you've been stealing for Slade!" he yelled, glaring at Robin.
"Dick?" Raven's voice was no more than a whisper. Robin ducked his head in shame.
"What's this? He never told you his name? I thought you were his friends."
Robin couldn't bear to face them, but he could still feel Raven's eyes, silently asking why.
"No matter. I think we have wasted enough time with explanations." Slade moved towards Raven, his cold gray eye boring into her. "Let's have a look inside your mind, shall we?" He was barely a foot from her now, and try as she might to escape, the robot held her fast...
"Master!"
Slade turned slowly, utterly shocked.
"Let me do it! I'll do it for you!" Robin was struggling to keep the panic out of his voice.
"Why the sudden change of heart?", asked Slade suspiciously, completely oblivious to what was occuring behind him.
From the moment Robin had spoken, Raven knew what he was doing. The second Slade turned his back, she used her power to seemingly melt into her robot captor. She reappeared in the shadows behind her fellow titans, awaiting Robin's signal.
"I've realized how wrong I was. You've been right all along." Robin was fighting for breath, daunted at all the ways his plan could backfire...but this was the only way to save them. He had to, he knew he had to...but all the same, there were so many feelings unshared, so many words unspoken. Thinking of her, he almost lost his nerve. They could have been so happy together, a whole lifetime spent with eachother stretching out into the infinite spaces of time...now there was no time at all. Why hadn't he told her while he still had the chance? Her image burst clearly before his eyes, burning into him, making him ache with longing. He would carry her with him into the empty spaces of death...this thought provided some small comfort. Robin managed to smile bravely, despite the agony of loss in his heart. He was the one losing, not they...not her. They would go on with their lives, existing just as they had while he was laughing and fighting there with them. "She won't miss me." The thought brought an icy wave crashing through him. "How can you miss someone you never knew?"
Slade listened, motionless, as Robin continued to ramble on with his plastic flattery. He could tell by the way Robin was tensed and the slightly higher pitch to his voice that he was planning something. Slade smiled, eager to see his weak attempts to win, and his miserable defeat. The boy could not possibly pose a threat now, and his friends were secured. He could afford to have some fun. "I stand corrected, Dick. You are not as stupid as I thought. Perhaps, one day, your worhless, pathetic-"
Robin's hand, which had been inching towards his belt, grabbed the cold, metal object...such a small device to contain such massive destruction...
His entire life had been building up to this moment, this decision...This was his chance to redeem himself, to make it up to them...He was doing this for her. "Raven, NOW!" he yelled, throwing the bomb before he could lose his nerve. It spiraled through space and time, agonizingly slowly, as though to make him suffer as long as possible...There, the shield was up, they were safe. Robin smiled slightly, his last thoughts of his teammates, his friends...they would never know how much he cared about each of them...
Robin curled in on himself, even though he knew there was no chance of survival. There was no way out this time, there was no back up plan, no one was coming... "Raven...I'm sorry..."
He would never know if she heard him...
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Raven hunched down in the shadows, hardly daring to breathe lest she be detected. She was trusting in Robin's ability to pull an extremely dangerous but amazingly possible plan out of thin air, and hopefully save them from defeat or worse. This was the first time since entering the warehouse that she had been able to get a good look at him...what she saw made her stomach heave. How was he managing to stay conscious? His voice was shaking with barely suppressed fear, though she knew it was not himself he was worrying about.
Raven's fists clenched at the sound of Slade's icy voice. She was restraining herself with all her might, barely stopping her power from lashing out at the miserable excuse for a human being standing so smugly before her. "No!" she told herself. "Wait for his signal...you could get him killed if you don't maintain control!"
"Raven, NOW!", he yelled, throwing the bomb into the air. She knew what that command meant; how many times had he made them practice it? Robin threw the bomb, the Titans grouped together, and Raven produced a protective energy shield to save them from the explosion. They all could have done it in their sleep.
Raven stared through the black sheild, watching the bomb spiral through the air...Something was wrong...What was missing? Her mind froze over as her eyes came to rest on the thing that she had forgotten. "Robin!", she screamed, ready to disable the shield and run to him...This wasn't going to happen! He was right there in front of her! All she had to do was reach out and grab him, pull him to her, make everything all right...
Tears streamed unchecked from her amethyst eyes. The shield remained intact, the bomb continued its fateful journey through the stale, musty air of the warehouse, giving no thought to the lives it was tearing asunder with every inch of space it covered, with every second that ticked by... He had given the order, he knew she wouldn't be able to save him and the team, he had sacrificed his own life for theirs, for hers... "Damn it, Robin!" Raven choked on the words, sobbing and shaking, looking at the boy she loved for the last time...
"Raven...I'm sorry..."
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Batman was toned and trained to perfection, able to endure incredible pain, pressure, and fatigue without so much as blinking. All that aside, Slade's welcoming commity had sapped a good chunk of his energy. When all of Slade's minions were scrap metal on the ground, he ran for the entrance that the Titans had passed through what felt like hours ago. Batman knew enough about Slade to take a guess at how much could happen in that amount of time...But then again, Dick could have been dead before they even got there...Bruce tried not to let himself consider that possibility. After all, Robin was a highly skilled opponent-- Batman frowned. There was no way that Dick could fight inhis currentcondition...
Batman stood in the doorway, frozen in time as he struggled to understand what was happening. Robin was collapsed on the ground, Slade standing over him, and there were the Titans, surrounded by Raven's dark energy. A glint of metal caught his eye...and then it all fell into place.
He swore loudly, racing into the room, panic threatening to overwhelm him...In seconds Boy Wonder was off the ground and in Batman's arms...Bruce had no promise of time before detonation; every second could easily be their last...
The bomb decided that it had waited long enough, and with not so much as a warning, it exploded, sending a devestating blast through the entire building, shattering glass and snapping wooden planks. Halfway up the hallway, Batman was lifted off his feet and slammed into the door at the end of the hall with incredible force. He sank to the ground, Robin held protectively in his arms, too dazed to think or move...
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A silence more deafening than the blast before itsettled over what was left of the warehouse. Chunks of roof had caved in, letting the light of the full moon and the chill of the night air inside. Dust mites sparkled in the air, and a few flames licked at the piles of rubble.
The unnatural quiet was broken harshly by Raven's desperate cries. "Robin?"
She raced up the hallway where she had seen them disappear, hoping, praying...
"No..." Batman's dark cloak was unmistakable, but there was no movement beneath it. Raven knelt beside it, reaching out a hand...She jumped as the black lump groaned, moving slightly.
Batman slowly got to his feet, rubbing his throbbing head. "Well, that could have gone a lot better, but then again, it could have gone a lot worse, too." He groaned quietly when he caught sight of what, or rather, who he had been lying on. He knelt down and gently turned Robin over, taking his wrist, which was bent at a very odd angle, and feeling for a pulse...
He let out a gust of breath, looking up at Raven with a small smile.
"He's...he's all...?" Batman nodded.
Raven's knees gave out, and she collapsed next to him, sobbing in relief, deaf to the violent explosions caused by her wildly powerful emotions. She gently took his face in her hands, kissing his forehead as tears streamed down her face. He was alive.
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Wow...the climax...it's...written! Never thought I would actually finish a story...guess that just goes to show you should never say never. Maybe you noticed that Robin was horribly close to death? Well, that is because, until just recently, that was the plan. Evil, yes. Heartless, sure. But that was going to be the end. Thanks to a good friend of mine Robin is alive and well...er...well, he is alive, this very day, and I am much happier with the ending she helped me concoct than the one I thought up on my own. Much thanks to her.
Now, I promised you an epilogue, and an epilogue there shall be, in fact, it is partly written already! If you have any questions about the story that have yet to be answered, speak now or forever hold your peace! I will answer all questions from reviewers in the beginning of the epilogue, so ask away!
One more thing: it has come to my attention that Robin's parents were killed during a trapeze act, not a tightrope act. Please forgive me my ignorance. Also, apparently, the "paddles" used in hospitals are not designed to start a heart that has already stopped, but to stop an irregular heartbeat. The heart is then started again by using CPR I believe...once again, forgive me my ignorance. Other than that, I appologize for any errors in my writing...I really am not stupid, simply not the best typer.
Since this is not quite the ending, it is also not quite good bye, so I'll save that for the epilogue. Peace! Dusty