Fanfiction is at it again. Imagine my surprise when I went to update a story of mine and got all this new crap. It freaked me out. Had to rearrange my bio and all that. It was just kind of annoying to do. I was hoping that I was imagining the big block of text at school, but no, it was the same at home. Eh, oh well. As you see, Robin came back to life, as expected. I wonder how many people would have been mad if I kept him dead... Might have been interesting, but no. He is the Titans leader, couldn't exactly live with myself if I kept him out. Finally back to some fighting this chapter! Hurray for pain and anguish! Yeah. Anyways, away with me and on with the next chapter.

I do not own Teen Titans.

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Chapter 9: Mind Battle

Raven's View

Raven couldn't help but notice the hate in her boyfriend's eyes as he said Sai's name. You could tell that he really regretted letting Sai get away when they first fought. She vaguely wondered what had happened during that battle. Why had it happened? There must have been a good reason behind it. She tore her attention from Taen to look at Starfire. She looked peaceful enough, but that clearly wasn't the case. Robin ran forward and grabbed her, then carried her from the room. They followed him into the living room, where he laid her down.

"How didSai know about her being asleep?" Beast Boy asked. "His powers aren't like Sinister's. He obviously doesn't have to touch us to be in our dreams. Abrasion's dream powers were simple. He can sense anyone and anything sleeping, alls he has to do is locate Starfire's mind while in his dream state to get inside of her head. If he's in her head, he can keep her there," Taen answered. Raven didn't like to hear that one bit. Slade must be planning something. Why would Sai even be waiting for one of the Titans to be asleep? It all seemed so planned out.

"We have to save her!" Robin exclaimed. He walked forward and laid on the ground next to her. "I won't let Sai get you Starfire... I love you too damn much," He whispered. Cyborg stared blankly at the others, then rushed forward and shook Robin a few times. "You're not thinking clearly man! We have some bombs to defuse!" The half human yelled. The Boy Wonder stared at Cyborg for a few moments, then stood up. "I'm sorry. I- We can't just leave her with Sai inside of her own head!" He said. Taen nodded and stepped forward.

"You're right, we can't," Taen said. "Let me go to sleep, I can save her!" Robin said. Taen shook his head quickly. "It doesn't work that way with normal powers. The reason that Sinister's dream powers were different is because he was a virus. These powers are different. Everyone has their own personal dream world, you can't just join Starfire's by going to sleep," He said. "Then how do I get in there?" Robin questioned. Taen turned around and looked at Raven. She stared at him, realizing what he wanted.

"You want me to use my powers to take Robin inside of her head?" She asked him. It was something she could do, that much as true. But it wouldn't be easy. "I know you can do it," Taen told her. She shook her head. "It's not a matter of what I can do, it's a matter of how powerful Robin's own mind is," Raven said. The Boy Wonder watched the two talking. "Take me in there," He ordered. Raven sighed, sitting down on the ground. "Fine," She said with a hint of reluctance.

"If we are going in there, you guys are going to have to go for Slade. We can't let those bombs go off," Taen said. Raven and Robin both snapped their heads over to look at Taen. He has sitting on the ground in front of Starfire, his eyes closed. He opened them quickly, then stared at her. "What are you waiting for?" He said to Robin and her. "What do you mean we?" Robin asked. Taen sighed. "It's my fault that Sai is still around, so I'm going in with you," Taen said. Robin gave him a rather greatful look. "I appreciate it," He mumbled and sat down next to Taen. Raven began to think.

This was not going to be easy. She knew all to well that Taen's mind was powerful enough to handle the strains of mind travel, but Robin... He didn't have practice in these kinds of manners, it could prove dangerous. She was going to put them both into a dream like state, and then put them into Starfire's head. Well, into her dream to be completely accurate. She had never done it, but knew what she had to do. It was only a matter of concentration.

"I'm going to begin to meditate. I need you two to join me in the chant. You're going to need to concentrate. Keep your mind clear. If all goes well, you will fall asleep. When you wake up, you'll be in Starfire's head," Raven said. Taen and Robin nodded. She glanced over at Cyborg and Beast Boy, who were talking quietly in the corner, staring at the large map. She let out a deep breath and closed her eyes. Then she began to chant quietly to herself. It was time to get things started.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos," She said slowly at first. Raven barely even heard Taen and Robin join her. She raised her voice gradually, the other to doing the same. She began to chant faster, concentrating on what she was trying to do. Raven could sense it working, could sense that Taen and Robin were becoming sleepy. She continued until she was as loud as her usual self, then suddenly stopped. She opened her eyes slowly, then stared open mouthed at her two friends.

Both of them had stopped chanting. They were sitting up, but obviously asleep. Raven got up and walked in front of them, Beast Boy and Cyborg joining her. "So I guess this means that it worked," Beast Boy said. He poked Robin in the chest. The Boy Wonder gave no reaction. Cyborg waved his hand on front of Taen's face. "Yeah. I'd say that everything went just fine," He said. Raven turned away from them to look at the big screen. They had to go and stop Slade now.

"Let's get moving. They can catch up," Raven said. Cyborg and Beast Boy nodded as they rushed towards the elevator doors. Raven cast one last glance at her three friends in the center of the room, then ran into the elevator and pressed the button to send it down. As they reached the ground, they rushed outside quickly. She began to fly. Beast Boy turned into alarge birdand took off, Cyborg with him. They flew towards the desert quickly.

"We're going to be outnumbered here, so I want everyone to stick together!" Cyborg ordered from behind Raven. 'Slade might not allow that' Raven thought to herself. They flew in silence the rest of the way, the desert in the distance. They passed the main bridge to town as they went. Raven stared down at the people, quietly wondering if they knew that they all could possibly be dead in an hour. She didn't have time to answer that. They had reached their destination, Beast Boy diving down. They settled on the floor in between two walls of rock. "Fan out and find an entrance," Raven said.

They spread out quickly, each of them looking for a way into Slade's lair. After minutes of searching, Raven thought that they might have missed something. "It's the right spot," Cyborg told them as he looked at the map on his arm. Raven sighed, leaning against the wall. "It was probably a bluff anyways," Beast Boy said. He to began to lean over, placing his hand on the wall. "Woah!" He yelled. The rock had shifted from the pressure against his hand. Looking up, Raven saw that the wall now had a hole in it. "It's hollow," She said with a smile. Cyborg raised his arm and blasted it, an entrance now made. They walked through quietly.

The area inside was lit up after a short distance. The tunnel was narrow, and they had to walk in a single file line. But it quickly opened up into a large room, with three metal doors in front of them. Raven stopped in front of the middle one. Cyborg on her left, Beast Boy on her right. "Stick together, remember," Cyborg said. Of course, no sooner than he said it, two sheets of metal came crashing down from the ceiling. Raven barely caught the shocked look on Beast Boy's face before their wall came down. "Cyborg! Beast Boy!" She yelled. Suddenly, her door opened, and she was thrown forward into another circular room.

"This is why I prefer flying," She said as she got up. Raven jumped back as she sensed something in the room. She could hear a quiet noise. Sounded like some sort of buzzing. Something landed on her face. She felt it. A drop of water. They must have been under some of it. Raven looked around the room and saw pipes. "Water pipes" She realized. Her eyes darted forward as something lit up the room slightly more. Overload stepped into view.

Raven stepped back cautiously. It was a trap after all. She raised a hand. "Time to finish you off for good," She said. Overload took a step forward, standing over her by a good few feet. She stared up at him, preparing to strike. Boom! Her eyes shot to her left, where the walls had rumbled. "Cyborg," She said quietly to herself. Then she heard another noise, this time on her right. "Beast Boy," She realized. Raven stared up at Overload, who was ready to strike. Perhaps they had bit off more than they could chew.

Robin's View

It had truly been a miraculous journey. For several minutes, it was just him and Taen. There were no lights, no sounds. It was just Robin and Taen, floating in darkness. But then they hit solid ground. Hard. Not a pleasant end to a journey that was already rather harsh. He got up wearily, and looked over at Taen. He was looking around the place, confused. "Is this Starfire's dream world?" He asked. Robin looked around as well, and saw where they were. "This is Tamaran," Robin said quietly.

It looked a lot like Robin remembered. It was a very rocky planet, and the entire area seemed to be dark. But not a black dark, more like a purple. The sky was dark as well, but in a pink color. Robin looked around for Starfire. He didn't see her anywhere, so he took of running towards the palace in the distance. Taen quickly joined his side, flying at a slower rate than usual so he could stay at Robin's running pace.

"They'll be up there!" He said and pointed to the top of the tower. "You get Starfire! I'll go after Sai!" Taen yelled. Robin nodded his head as the neared the tower. Taen placed a hand on Robin's shoulder as they stopped, and he teleported them onto a large edge high in the air. Robin was surprised to find Starfire there, lying on the ground asleep. "Star!" He yelled and rushed over to her. "Don't even think about it," A voice said from above him. Robin looked up quickly, and studied his opponent, who had to be Sai. Looked a lot like Taen. Taller, better built, shorter hair.

"Robin, right? I've seen your dreams. Full of this girl," Sai said in a disgusted tone. "I told Slade about the Tamaranian ability to bring people back. That's right Taen! I studied it too," He yelled. Taen hadn't moved, but was staring at Sai with a look of complete loathing on his face. "Master will be happy to see that he can have another apprentice around. With you on our side Robin, nothing will beat us," Sai said. Robin gave him a grin. "I'll never join you. Not even if you paid me," He said. Sai's cocky smile faded. "Fine. Then I guess we'll say goodbye to your girlfriend," Sai said.

He pulled his leg back, then brought it forward with a kick. Robin stared in horror as she was sent flying off the edge. "Ah!" Taen let out a cry of fury as he charged at Sai. Robin quickly turned and ran to the edge, diving over the side. He caught up with the falling Starfire quickly, grabbing onto her as he turned around. He fired off a grappling hook into the air. "C'mon, c'mon!" He pleaded as the hook quickly shot for the edge. "Yes!" He yelled as it caught the stone. He looked down as they stopped, seeing that they were a few feet from the ground. He let out a sigh of relief and set Starfire down, then hopped to the ground as well.

Robin grabbed onto her shoulders and began to shake her lightly. "Starfire! Wake up!" He yelled. He started to shake her roughly. It was no use though. She wasn't moving, wasn't even making a sound. Robin looked up at the sound of an explosion. Debris was flying in his and Starfire's direction from above. He grabbed onto her and dove to the side, rocks crushing the space that they had just occupied. Taen and Sai were really going at it hard.

"Starfire, you need to get up. We need to get out of here. If we don't Slade will destroy the city. We'll lose, he'll win! Wake up!" Robin yelled. He shook her once again, but it just wasnt having an effect. 'There has to be some way!' He thought to himself. Robin was beginning to panic. If he couldn't wake Starfire up inside of her own head, how was he supposed to get her out of there? He let out a disgruntled noise as he dropped Starfire. Bang! Robin looked up to the sound of another explosion. Something was happening.

Taen's last shot had missed. The battle was going much better then the previous time. Neither warrior had actually landed a hit, and their energy blasts weren't on target. "Been training, Taen?" Sai asked as he threw punch. Taen ducked low. "You know it," He said as he flipped back, kicking up wards. Sai teleported back into the palace, and Taen followed him inside quickly. He looked around for Sai, who had disappeared.

"You can't hide forever," Taen said. "I know!" Sai yelled, jumping down from above and kicking. Taen got hit in the face, and was smashed through the tower wall. He could feel himself falling down, barely managing to slow himself down and flip himself right side up before he landed. Sai was already on the ground, and he was laughing. "Looks like I landed the first shot," Sai said. He took a few steps forward and took out his sais. "Again," He said. Taen took out his sword, and then rushed ahead to fight.

He lunged, sword first, and Sai jumped into the air to avoid it. He kicked Taen in the face, and sent him stumbling back. Sai flew off, spinning his arms around him. Taen blocked one sai with his sword, and grabbed onto Sai's arm to stop the other. He kicked Sai in the chest quickly, then shot a blow for the head with his fist. Sai dodged it with ease, then sliced the air with his sai. Taen jumped back, clenching his fore arm. A long cut ran the length of it. Sai laughed again. "You're going down Taen," He said as he went forward for the kill.

Taen backed away slowly, looking scared. He jumped into the air and came back down, his sword aiming for Sai's head. Sai jumped out of the way, and Taen had to roll away from his blast. Taen fired a blast of his own, and Sai bent back to dodge it. Taen jumped back into the air and smashed down on top of Sai, sending them both crashing through a thin layer of rock. He jumped back out and landed on the ground, panting heavily. "Come on Sai, bring it..." He peered over the edge of the hole. Sai was no where in sight.

"Surprise!" Sai reached through the ground and grabbed onto Taen's ankles, then pulled him to the ground. Sai teleported above him, and came smashing down on his chest. Taen's sword went flying out of his hand. Sai put his weapons away as he pinned Taen's arms to his side. "I'm going to enjoy watching you die," He said as he placed his hands around Taen's throat.

Robin was watching the battle in disbelief. For a few moments, he had forgotten about Starfire. Taen was losing, there was no doubt about it. He had to help him, or this was going to be worse than ever. Robin put Starfire down onto the ground gently and took a step forward. He turned back towards her for a moment. "I'll be back," Robin told her as he left to help out Taen.

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I know, it took me forever to update. And I know, there wasn't very much fighting in this chapter. But I promise you, next chapter will be action packed. I'm in a better mood as of late. Damn-my-name-was-taken, Tawreh,and especially StarfireRobinFan101 have helped me out a lot. I'm back to writing from now on, and hopefully I'll never take a week off from it again. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, review if you wish to. Actually, just review, I need them.

Next Chapter: Battles continue all over the place as Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven take on Slade's usual cronies, while Taen continues his battle with Sai. Will Robin be able to free Starfire from her mind though?

"Live your life for those that you love"

-SinFire