A/N: So you liked the last chapter. Good, because if you liked the last chapter, chances are you like the whole story, and if you like the whole story, chances are you'll like this chapter. Good.

Riles- I hope I've updated this quick enough so you won't have to kill your brother in anticapation.

tayk- I know that I know the drill, but do you? Upadte A Matter of Trust, soon, You're killing me here!

SilverHawk 27- Thanks!

Anntimatter Manticore- I found the link to the page with the Addventures in Oddesey episode on it. I put it on my profile.

Matched Chapter 15

Training In Darkness


Robin awoke many hours later to find himself lying down on the floor of a different place. The air was cold, but very stuffy. He was laying on a smooth cold surface, most likely concrete. Opening his eyes he couldn't see anything, it was very dark. Sniffing the air he realized his nose was stuffed up. He felt his stomach rumble with hunger, then came the pain.

He winced back tears of pain, in some parts of his body the pain was sharp, it came suddenly then left just as quickly as it had come. In other parts of him there was a more constant pain though more dull, it still HURT.

Forcing himself to sit up there came another wave of the sharp kind of pain. He lay back down, this time on his back, Feeling a bruise on the back side of his head he lay his head on his left ear. This caused pain in his neck, but Robin left himself there, seemed no matter what position he was in there was pain.

Reluctantly he forced himself to recall what had happened the last time he was awake. He remembered being very tierd, then nothing, but maybe a dream, no it had to have been real. Starfire... she hurt him. He recalled tears in her eyes, but nevertheless she had shot him.

'No!' Robin thought. Deep inside he knew it was true, but he didn't want to remember anything more. Another sharp pain. Closing his eyes, fighing back tears due to both physical and emotional pain. Robin felt his body exausted, all his strength had been zaped out of him.

Letting out a weak cry, he gave in to his weekness and dispite the pain, fell asleep.


For what seemed like days Robin drifted in and out of sleep. Why Slade allowed him to live, Robin sure didn't know. His physical wounds started to heal, but as his body demanded less sleep, he had more time to deal with his emotional pain. This was somthing Robin did not want to do.

'Starfire, why? Did she do this to me on purpose...No...but she did. Slade, he is up to...Nothing good.' This was just a sample of things racing through his head. Dreams (nightmares?) proved no more peaceful, he dreamed of pain, being squished between four walls, being burned by fire, suffering and dying.

One time when he awoke he found a Mc Happy's meal right next to him. 'So hungery,' He thought, 'It may be poisened. Doesn't matter, a guy's gotta eat...' Robin concluded, feeling his way through the fast food bag with his fingers.

He spilt half of his drink of soda, knocking it over with his arm when he found his burger, seemed the drink was next to the bag. The stickey liquid found it's way over to where Robin was sitting, coating some of the tattrered shreads of his costume with slimy sugar.

"Ack." He groaned. Now he'd be stuck with sticky clothes for however long he'd be here.

Robin ate the cheese burger, and through the grease he savored every bite. After taking a sip of the leftover pop, Robin started on the fries, eating slowly. Never before had he been so grateful for such a greasy meal. 'Never know what ya got till it's gone...' He thought.

In the hours following his meal Robin decided to walk around the room for as long as he could, if there was a door he'd try to find it.

It wasn't until he acctually stood up when he realized how much his joints hurt. Most likely because he hadn't used them for a while. "Ow!" He screeched. 'It's not a good idea to make noises every time I move.' He thought, this was much easier said than done.

Every little muscle in his body ached form in-activity, and Robin thought they had hurt when his was laying on that cold floor. Slowly staggering his way trying to go strait in one direction, insted of zigg- zagging across the room. He put his hands in front of him, as to make sure he didn't hit a wall with his head.

He had taken at least fourty steps before his hands finally hit a wall. Time to take a rest. Turning his back to the wall Robin sat, feeling very much alone.


After Robin was finished resting it had taken quite a long time to feel his way around the room. It seemed to be a huge room, and all the four walls were very cold. In one corner there was a toilet and sink, but they seemed to be the only things in the entire room. Robin imagained the ceiling was very tall, and of course, he had no hope of reaching it.

Robin took another short rest, then he wandered out to the middle of the room. Suddenly he felt dizzy and very dissoriented. With all the dark he couldn't really tell where he was.

Sitting down stoped the dizziness, then Robin had an idea. One thing he hadn't liked about his previous prison was that it was way to small to really do any type of training, this room seemed huge, and way big enough to jump around everywhere.

Springing up to his feet Robin ran, doing laps around the huge room. Counting each corner as he passed it. When he felt his body starting to tire he divided the amount of corners he had passes by four... He had completed at least 15 laps around the room.

With a sudden new confidence, Robin started running across the room, then taking a mighty leap he was up in the air for a moment, then landed with both feet. "OW!" He squeeked, you try a long jump on a concrete floor without any shoes on.

For a moment it seemed his very bones ached from the shock of the landing. Robin made a mental note to 'never do something crazy like that again.' Then he grinned, not a chance he wouldn't do somthing stupidly crazy, if he lived long enough to do so. Naw, definetly best not to think about how long he had to live.

In the hours following Robin made little jumps, here an there adding a punch or a kick, whatever sort of training he could do without hurting himself, whatever he could do to keep his mind off Starfire.

After training himself for what seemed like hours, Robin found the Mc Happy bag still laying on the ground, and he lay himself next to it, and fell asleep. That night he had a fairly pleasent dream, although it was very strange.

In his dream he was in Star Wars Episode IV. Although he looked like himself everyone called him 'Luke'. When it came time to rescue Princess Leia, he said "My name is Luke Skywalker, I've come to rescue you." Funny, but when he looked at Leia, he was sure she had green eyes and Red hair.

When he awoke he found the old Mc Happy bag was gone, and in it's place was a Taco kingdom bag, filled with food. Careful to find the drink before he spilled it he ate his meal quickly.

Having lost all sense of time Robin decided to call the time that he was awake, day, and the time he slept, night. So begain another day of training. Robin kiked, punched and jumped on the air. He was sure if anyone could see him they would be laughing. He was almost glade non of the other Titans were with him.

Robin knew he was being silly. Maybe he was going mad, but if this was madness, it was better than sitting and thinking. So on and on he kicked and punched the air. Somtimes he caught himself laughing at his own goofyness. (A/N: is that a word?)

Day after day Robin trained himself, he recived one meal a day, although how it got there he didn't know, but it didn't seem poisened, so he always ate. How many days had passed in that prison Robin didn't know. If his 'days and nights' really amounted to 24 hours, Robin wasn't sure. He grew used to the dark, and knew his way across that great room.

As he trained each day he felt himself getting back into shape, and without his friends he felt no regret for not spending time with them, and the training helped keep his mind of the fact that Starfire had tried to kill him. To keep his mind off of why Slade was keeping him alive, if he was still in one of Slade's prisons.

Then one day as Robin was punching the air, he felt a strange tingle go down his spine. Trying to ignor it Robin continued his training with a few kicks. Then he felt a draft of fresher air and Robin felt a tinge of fear. For the first time since he had been in this new prison he heard a soft sound coming from be hind him, a sound he himself had not made.

Next came the undeniably real sound of footsteps. Summoning up a great deal of courage Robin turned around. Nothing, there was no light and the footsteps had stoped. Convicing himself he had imagained it all, Robin continued punching the nothingness.

Then he heard it agian. The footsteps were coming nearer.


A/N: OoO Clifhanger, or as some would say "cliffy". Is Robin just letting his imagination get the better of him, or did he acctually hear somthing real. and that draft of fresh air... With each chapter our story draws nearer to it's conclusion...