Disclaimer: Not mine.
Chapter Synopsis: A new Titan joins, but her identity is secret! And more questions about just what Deathstroke is planning as he contacts Raven with tempting news about her past.
CHAPTER 3: The Man Who Sold the World
We passed along the stand, he spoke of was and when
Although I wasn't there, he said I was his friend
Which came as some surprise, I spoke into his eyes
I thought you died alone, a long long time ago
"Dude, I was in the bathroom. How was I supposed to know that by some strange coincidence you guys would be abducted by a bunch of teenage super villains." Beast Boy groaned, "It's bad enough you still call me 'Beast Boy' now that I'm almost thirty."
The new Titans Tower was being constructed in Nova City now, and the Titans had in the meantime decided to stay in a hotel courtesy of Beast Boy, who was looking none-too-pleased that his paycheck was being used for this.
The Teens had taken the boys' room for use for what they dubbed "Rapid Naturalization" for the two out of touch Titans, and the adults were currently arguing. "Didn't wanna say anything while the kids were listening, but –" Cyborg cut himself off to let the objects he held give the full effect.
HIVE Communicators.
"They were from the HIVE," Starfire murmured. "All of them."
Raven expounded, in the same breathless murmur, "And there were three of them."
"Déjà vu," Beast Boy muttered. "But what does it really mean?"
"I don't have any idea," Cyborg said, "And I don't really wanna find out. So Slade's really back, is he?"
"Seems so," Raven answered. She looked upset, "And if that's the case, we'll all have to keep a close eye on Robin. Or else we could have another bloody repeat of the last incident."
The others seemed to agree, but still, that feeling of doubt wafted through the air. Something just didn't settle well with any of them, especially about this whole incident. "Robin," Starfire said, "He died because we, for one brief moment, did not see what was really happening."
"We're not to blame, Star. Especially not you," Cyborg answered.
"Yeah," Beast Boy answered, "Don't you remember how he kept pushing us away? And then that whole Red X fiasco."
"We should have seen it. We should have stopped it," Starfire repeated.
"No one could have," Raven said. "He was too good at hiding himself from us. I wouldn't be surprised if he would have taken that road all on his own if he had stayed alive."
"No!" Starfire adamantly refused. "He was a good person!"
"We all change."
"You are wrong, Raven. You have not changed. You have not changed at all."
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"So, uh, who's that?" Superboy asked, pointing at a picture in one of Wonder Girl's magazines. She looked over it, but before she could answer, Kid Flash had zoomed by.
"Leonardo DiCaprio."
"How do you know that--?" Wonder Girl asked, bemused.
"Leonardo DiCaprio was the sixty-eighth president of the USA," he gave a salute that would put Beast Boy to shame. "And then we got invaded by Canada."
"And we stop listening to you here," Robin answered. "You're not fooling anyone. You never read a history book in your life. You just cried during Titanic."
"Lies! Lies and slander! And libel. Libel's a crime, right?'
"Yeah, but I think it has to be written – oh, never mind, you're just going to say something if I try and explain."
"You're so purty," Kid Flash said, he was all over the room, "What does this button do? Ooh TV, is there anything on? Nopenopenopenopenopenopenopenope."
"Hey, turn it back! That looked good!"
"Superboy?"
"What, Wonder Girl?"
"What show are you watching?"
"Wendy the Werewolf Hunter."
Robin couldn't hold it in any longer, he just began to laugh and laugh and laugh. The others just turned to glare at him. Superboy even muttered something about meaningful subtext. Robin didn't even hear him.
"The nerve of that guy!" Wonder Girl said in a huff.
"I'm sorry, it's just, hee, he's already adapting faster than you can control, WG," Robin said. "And it just burns you up. I know what you've been planning by showing him those girly magazines. After all, I was –"
"You were trained by the world's greatest detective," they all chorused in a tired sing-song voice, "We know!"
"Just checking," Robin said.
"He really is a smarmy ass," Kid Flash said.
"I know," Superboy whispered back at him.
Wonder Girl just sighed. The others looked at her, and she just lay down in the bed. "Not quite what you imagined, huh?"
"My Mom would kill me if she knew about this."
"You know," Superboy said, "We don't really know much about how we all got our start in the job."
"You're a clone, she's blessed by the gods, and… uh…" Robin just stalled at Kid Flash. "What is your story anyway, besides coming from the future?"
"Um," Kid Flash scuffed his feet against the ground, looking nervous, "Promise you won't laugh?"
"What's to laugh about? She used to wear a wig," Robin answered, pointing at Wonder Girl.
"To protect my secret identity!" she countered.
"It's not that secret," Robin retorted.
"Oh yeah, Timothy? Remember how I found out about your ID? That wasn't very responsible of you."
"I still haven't forgiven you for looking in my wallet."
"I was looking for some change to get on the subway!"
"Something tells me I don't wanna know how those two met," Superboy said. "Okay, Kid, how'd you get started."
"Umm, well, first off, I was born with my grandfather's super-speed already built in. He's, uh, from this time, actually. Though Dad and Mom are from the future, too. They were born waaaaay long in the future time."
"Who's your grandfather?" Superboy asked. The two were still fighting about something behind them (Superboy made out "And then you kissed me!" "Me? It was your idea!") so Kid Flash just looked from side and side and whispered.
"Barry Allen. The Original Flash. Don't tell."
"Promise not to, little buddy," Superboy said. He rolled his eyes at the revelation that this pint-sized Flash was related to the Flash. Not that he knew there was more than one. "Okay, so this super-speed thing is natural."
"Yes'n'no. Anyway, I was born without the ability to, y'know, stop. Anything. Not even my mouth. Imagine that, I was talking all three years of my life I think my mom told me that I was precocious but then again by the time I was one I was like five and so on and so forth."
"Hold up!" Superboy said loudly enough to wake up the other two from their argument, "You're three?"
"Three, fifteen, what's the difference, right?"
"What? He's three?" Wonder Girl said, jumping over, "Then how does he know so much useless minutia?"
"VR Simulations! Whee!" Kid Flash announced.
"And suddenly the root of all his problems become very apparent," Robin said. "When you were raised inside a video game, you must lose grasp on the reality of your problems."
"Yeah, well, I like it," Kid Flash countered. "My real name's Bart."
"Well, you guys can call me Cassie," Cassie sat down and thought, "How to explain my story."
"How about you just tell them how you impressed Zeus."
"You don't believe me, do you?" she asked Robin.
"As far as I remember, Zeus was a nut-job with a lightning cannon."
"The real Zeus, not Maxie Zeus!" Wonder Girl berated. She cleared her throat, "Anyway, I made friends with Princess Diana of Themiscyra. She was so pleased by my natural genius –"
"You only say that since you made it into a bunch of College Courses during Senior year," Robin retorted.
"So what?" Cassie asked, and continued without missing a beat, "I managed to help her defeat her foes many a time, but there's only so much you can do without super powers… and if your name isn't Robin."
"Thank you," Robin said, contentedly.
"So, I kinda borrowed –"
"—stole –"
"—shut up, I borrowed these mystical artifacts and, uh, well, saved Wonder Woman's life. Zeus was so impressed that he granted me innate super powers and the amazing ability to exaggerate the truth and to get on Robin's bad side!"
"True," Robin said.
"Can't question that," Superboy agreed. He looked at the others, and shrugged. "I don't know much more about my story than you already know." This brought the mood down somewhat. "Sorry, it's okay. That's over and done with, yeah? And besides, TV."
"All hail the television set!" Kid Flash said, sitting in front of it, "Come, oh mighty god! The Sacrifice? My brain!"
"Hey, move out of the way, pipsqueak, I can't see!"
"Hey, Superboy?" Wonder Girl began, sitting beside him, "What are we going to call you, y'know, outside of work and stuff?"
"I dunno," Superboy muttered, "They used to just call me S1 all the time. Cadmus wasn't exactly a family friendly affair, I don't know if you're getting that vibe yet?"
"What do you want to be called?"
"I," Superboy hesitated, "I've never been asked that before. That's about the weirdest question anyone's ever asked."
"Not so much as "does this make me look fat?" did, eh, Cass?" Tim retorted.
"I guess I'll think about it. Maybe," he said. "But, what I'd really like to be called?"
Everyone leaned in.
"Superman."
"Someday," Tim said.
Superboy didn't respond.
"What did I say?" Tim asked to Kid Flash, who was now suddenly by his side. "Ack! Bart, when did, oh, right."
"I think you said that he'd someday be Superman. Which I don't think can happen," Kid Flash said, "A lot of clones are made with a genetic structure that doesn't age. At least, where I come from. He'll be that age forever."
"Forever?" Wonder Girl said. "Is that so, Superboy?"
"I guess so," Superboy said. "I repeat, they didn't exactly read me bed-time stories when I was being cultivated or anything. Wow, I sound so unnatural."
"A lost boy," Robin said, "Just like in Peter Pan."
"Peter Pan," Superboy whispered. "Peter. I'd like to be called Peter for now. Until something better comes along."
"I'm sorry," Robin said, "I didn't know."
"It's okay!" Superboy said, a cocky grin in place, "While you guys grow old, I'll be still as young and strong as I am today!" The others looked at him as if they didn't believe it.
"Okay, Pete!" Kid Flash said, "Pleased to meetcha again for the first time!" He shook the now-dubbed Peter's hand emphatically and then dashed over to Robin, "What about you, what's the big story behind the mask. Hey, that sounds like something that they'd have on VH100. Behind the Mask, the True Robin Story."
"Hate to say it, but Batman being my mentor's about as much as you're getting. I can't say anything more."
"What? Really. And I told you my real name."
"And Cassie told you mine," Tim said, "Against my wishes mind you. And I don't appreciate that, Wonder Girl. I don't at all."
"Humph, you're the one who's always being a big jerk. We're not going to go tell anyone who your real name is, now, are we, guys?"
"I don't know anyone besides the Titans," Superboy confirmed.
"I'm not going to tell unless it does come up in a conversation and no one would believe me anyway but hey who know I guess you can say I have a loose tongue but can you believe that me with a loose tongue? I don't get these people at all!"
"Okay," Wonder Girl said, "Maybe I wasn't thinking –"
"That's right," Robin said, "You weren't." He opened the door. "I'm going for some air. Don't bother saying anything, Cass, I'm not listening right now." Cassandra closed her mouth and looked a bit ashamed at her actions.
As he slammed the door on his way out, only Kid Flash was left talking, and even he was a bit muted. "Well, that coulda gone better."
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Raven heard the door slam and looked up from the door she had sat down against, tearing her eyes away from her knees. "Oh, Robin. Hello." She looked sad and unsure of herself for the first time Robin had ever seen. The usually confident lady had become a child again. Her eyes were red from crying. The hall was a shambles from it.
"Raven?"
"Yes?" she said, standing up. She straightened her cloak, and brought it around her to hide her frumpy professor suit. "Is something the matter, Robin?"
"You look –"
"Never you mind," she said, quickly. "It's nothing for you to be concerned about."
"I'm not sure it is, but I'd still like to help," Robin said. "Come on. Let's go get you a coffee. You look like you could use some cheering up."
"Yes, yes I think I'd like that," she said. She tried to regain her composure. "You're a true gentleman."
"Thanks," he said, smiling wryly. "You're the first one who's ever thought so."
"I won't be the last," she said. "Now, about that coffee. It's only gentlemanly for the man to lead the woman by the arm."
"Okay, but if Cassie says I'm trying to seduce her teacher, I'm not taking the blame." Robin gave her a roguish smirk and offered his arm without hesitation. She took it, happily, and before he could speak, they were taken up within a black shadow and suddenly flew through the astral plane – he supposed with so many stars that was the only name for it – and landed in the middle of downtown Metropolis.
Inside a nice coffee shop that he didn't recognize.
"If it ain't the super lady, your regular, Professor?" the man running the store asked. She nodded, "And for the pint-sized masked feller?"
"Uh, just an espresso."
"Stunts your growth," the man said.
"I'm not afraid," Robin retaliated.
"Tough guy, eh, I like 'im already. 'e your kid, Professor?" he asked.
"No, Jerry. He's my little date," she joked, taking a sweeping motion to her seat. She pulled herself up to her full height for just a moment as she sat, stretching out her bones and relaxing in the comfy seat. "Sit down, Robin."
"You come here often?"
"It's my favorite coffee shop." She nodded affirmatively as Jerry brought their drinks. "I rarely bring any dates here."
"Few and far between, or just not the one?"
She smirked, "Few and far between. You know well my handicap. I can't let anyone feel for me, or vice versa. And it's all the worse knowing they don't feel the same, really, no matter what they feel."
"Empathy has that effect," Robin said, understanding. "Trust me, I know how it is to be on the outside. I don't think even the Bat likes me. I'm Robin 2, not the original, definitely not good enough to even dare compare myself to him, but I wear the costume because, because it isn't right that no one's wearing it."
"And that alienates you from your friends?"
"That's, er, that's another matter entirely," he said. "I can't reveal my identity in case they go blab it and then everyone knows who Batman is." He looked more angry at that, "And while everyone else was telling each other their stories, I couldn't."
"So, you feel alienated because you can't be Tim Drake around them?"
He quickly shushed her, "I can't go around saying that that's my name."
"Mm, so, Mr. Robin 2, you're feeling a degree of alienation because you can't be so open around the others. I understand better than you think."
"You might," Robin said, "You're pretty publicly announced the fact you were teenagers a few years back."
"And now I'm an old maid, what's your point? It has been a while, but sometimes the alienation doesn't go away. And the time I reached out, I hurt them more than I ever did without."
"What?"
"I fear I'm the one who killed Dick Grayson. I killed him with kindness."
Robin looked at her for a minute, analyzing the sincerity of her words. He then burst into laughter and buried his head on the table. Espresso splashed around as he did so. She did not appear too pleased with the response.
Over his head she caught a flash of pink hair tied into two tight buns, resembling almost cat-like appendages on the top of the woman's hair. She tilted her head to the side. "That's the funniest thing I've ever heard," Robin said, attempting to discourage her by looking up. But Raven stared intensely.
"Jinx? But the HIVE… " she rose from her seat. Her eyes shot a message to Robin, and he responded, slowly at first, but followed her lead, remaining calm as he rose. The woman walked towards the door slowly, intently. Raven followed close behind.
"What exactly are we doing?" Robin whispered.
"Shadowing someone."
"She wants us to follow, is that really such a good idea?" Robin asked. Raven cast a glance at him. "Batman was teaching me about this. There are times people want you to follow them. To lead you into their trap."
"You assume that Jinx can set up a trap that we haven't seen before."
"You can teach an old dog new tricks?"
"And she is an old dog," Raven countered. "I'm thinking of a specific kind."
"That's not very nice," Robin said.
"You be quiet and stand back," Raven said, "Let an old girl show you what she can do." The dark aura blew forth like a dome of air, stretching forward to hold everything in place.
"Yes, that is pretty impressive."
Jinx stood frozen in place, the dark aura wrapped around her. Raven dissolved into the ground, and as a shadow, appeared in front of her, examining the cocky smirk that was left on her face.
She slowly let the aura fall away from her face.
"Raven," she said.
"Jinx," was the retort.
"We have missed you." She struggled to move free, "That's a new trick. Seems you can teach an old dog."
"Funny," Robin muttered, "She said just the opposite." He was cut off by a harsh glance from Raven, "Okay, being quiet now."
"Jinx, what are you doing here? When did the HIVE return? What are you planning?"
"The HIVE returns? It never left, Ray, never left at all. We've been laying low, planning our big debut and that time is soon. Mr. Deathstroke has promised us that."
"Slade. Where is he?" Raven demanded. "Well? What's so funny?" Jinx laughed uproariously at this.
"Why don't you ask him yourself?"
She turned to look behind her, and saw looming behind Robin a skeletal mask and a monstrous shadow. "Slade…!" Robin whirred about and was backhanded for his effort. "What are you doing here?"
"Raven, my old friend," Deathstroke said, "We have so much to catch up on, don't we."
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Cassie finally had worked up the strength and resolve to open the door and peek out into the hall. "Robin?" She crept out, and looked around for a good few minutes before concluding that he must not have returned from his walk.
And that scared her since he was an impatient little twit and a walk was torture to him. Hopefully they all had cooler heads now, and once she found him they could resolve this difference.
What she had not expected to find was an entourage of police, led by a rather stout man with a shady look in his eye. He had noticed her, and with a critical eye, regarded her. "Excuse me, miss," said one of the detectives at front. Young and unsure of himself, that's what came to mind almost immediately. "Could you please tell us where a Mr. Victor Stone is staying?"
"Uh, hi!" Cassie was a bit off-guard.
"Hi. So, do you know?"
"Yes, uh, oh! Yes, he's right down the hall, the room on the right."
"Thank you miss," the chief said, gruffly. "Come on, Mark. Let's get this over with." They knocked on the door and were quickly administered. Briefly forgetting her search, Cassie leaned her ear against the door and tried to gather what was going on.
"I asked for countermeasures, not meta-human trouble magnets!" she could hear the one that she identified as the chief earlier.
"Sir, calm down," the young detective said, he said something quietly she couldn't make out but for the whispers. He was answered by Cyborg's booming voice.
"Look, chief, I am the countermeasure. I built half those machines myself for community service. Now if you don't mind, we're going to talk about the living arrangements?"
"You can't do this!"
"I can, and I've got the Mayor's approval on this one, so don't you be trying to circumvent me. Okay?" The cheeky finish made Cassie giggle in delight. She turned and saw Bart staring her down. She almost screamed.
"Whatcha doin'?" he asked, innocently. She motioned for him to be quiet, then pointed at the door. They both leaned against the door.
"You're maniacs, that's what you are. I am the law around here."
"So the law is short, stout, and looks like he drank a six pack of beer for breakfast?" Beast Boy asked.
She could hear Starfire clear her throat, to drown out Cyborg's chuckling. She could swear she heard a high-five too. Strangely, Starfire spoke more politely than the rest, but she could still hear there was definitely some anger. "Mr. Irons, I assure you, we are not here to disrupt your police force. However, we will be able to handle scenarios that you cannot hope to handle."
"I don't think so. If Jump just sent us those countermeasures like we asked, we wouldn't be having these problems."
"Oh no?" Cyborg asked. There was a very vicious sound as he cut himself off. "Never mind."
"What… are you doing?" Peter asked, rather confused by the situation.
"Shh!" both Cassie and Bart said, pulling the super clone over, and indicating to listen to the door.
"Detective Roarke will be keeping you under his watchful eye during this hearing. Do you understand?"
"Sorry, sirs."
"Quiet, Roarke, you're already on my list. I'll make sure you can't build an anthill on Nova City land by the time I'm through." There was the sound of footsteps. The Titans all scrambled to their feet, trying to look inconspicuous as Irons opened the door. They whistled innocently – a tune they all joined in at points, much to the angered Police Chief's further chagrin – until he and his entourage had passed, and then resumed a relaxed position.
"So, how much of that did you hear?" the one named Roarke asked.
"Uhh," Bart waited five seconds before saying "Abouthalfofit?"
"Right," Roarke laughed, "Don't worry too much kids. There's not much you're not going to hear soon enough."
"Is he saying we can't set up here?" Cassie asked, innocently.
"He wants to, but the Mayor already beat him to the punch. He's appealing to the courts to revoke the permit."
"How can he do that?" Superboy asked.
"He's got his reasons," Roarke said with a shrug. "I don't pretend to understand the boss, just do my job. So, you kids like sushi?"
"Superboydoes!" Bart said, happily. "C'monmanyouloveitdon'tyoulet'sgogetsomemaybeyoucanimpress," he took a deep breath, "Wondergirlenoughthatshe'lltakeyouhomewithherwhateverthatmeansImeanIdon't knowdoyou?"
"He talks a lot, I take it?" Roarke asked. Cassie noticed he was a handsome man, with dark, clean cut hair, a little wavy around front, but in a flattering manner. He had a nice smile and blue eyes that sparkled with a mischievous light. What she had once thought had been uncertainty had suddenly been replaced with a suave cock-sure manner that reminded her vaguely of Tim's, but only much more refined.
"Yeah," she said, suddenly lost in just discovering the soft-spoken detective. "Why are you still here, the rest of your group's gone on ahead without you."
"I've been assigned to keep an eye on you," he said with a smile. It was more of a smirk, perhaps a grin, but Cassie couldn't really be sure. She just knew it wasn't a smile for comforting, but one for exciting the molecules fast enough to make them melt. "So, kids, how about that sushi?"
"Sounds great."
"Let me just tell the grown-ups where we are." He ducked into the door, and ducked back out, "On second thought, I'll call them if something comes up."
"Hooray! Adult Supervision required!" Bart answered, dashing in front, "C'mon, I know the way! Hurryhurryhurry!" He pulled along Superboy, who looked a bit out of synch with everything, and vanished down the hallway.
"Hold up there, kiddo," Roarke yelled. "Coming, Wonder Girl?"
"Where have I seen you before?" she asked, quietly.
"I've got a common face," Roarke joked. "Come on." Wonder Girl paused, before following the two. Bart had pressed the elevator buttons twenty times by the time they found them.
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Robin came to a few minutes later, the Drones and Jinx still hovering around him. And yet, seemingly, they hadn't touched him besides moving him. Someone was also poking him, and it was beginning to get more annoying.
"Do you mind?" he muttered, anxiously.
"Yes," the male voice said; his face turning into a sick grin. His white skin and black markings gave a sinister impression. He was leaning on a sword, massive and menacing, that he apparently kept by his side at all times.
The Headmistress's eyes never left this boy.
"Whoa, fall into a vat of strange chemicals lately?" Robin muttered, rubbing his head. "What's going on?"
"Harm, your assignment awaits you. Deathstroke ordered that the boy is to not be touched." Harm, the white-faced teenager, frowned. "No questioning those orders." He stood up and pushed by one of the drones, decapitating it with the force.
"Where's Raven?"
"Deathstroke is speaking with her in private, boy," Jinx said angrily. She used a haughty expression and turned away.
"So, why are you jealous?" Robin asked with a cocky smirk. She rounded on him dangerously. "Hey, I'm just calling them like I see them."
"I'm beginning to see why he has such an interest in you," Jinx muttered, returning to her own composure. "You really do have the potential."
"Thanks for the hospitality, I'm sure you give the best to all your captives, but I've really got to go help Raven." Jinx chuckled, her mouth hidden behind her hand. "What's so funny."
"Fine. If you can find them, go ahead. But I think you should be more concerned with getting home."
"I need my ride," Robin said, in all seriousness. "Unless you're offering transport." He raised his brow, and let the smirk do the talking. Jinx offered him back further giggling, before stepping aside.
"Go on. Let's see just how good you really are."
She gave him a rather disconcerting smile as he passed her by. He then, with a movement from his grappling hook, fired himself up onto the rooftops.
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"What do you want, Slade?"
"Raven, Raven, Raven," Deathstroke said, waving his finger threateningly. "Let's sit down, and discuss this like the old friends that we are." He offered her a seat, she refused it coolly. "You must really calm down."
"What is this all about?"
"What do you think?" he said, sitting down himself. He exuded a majesty as he sat, legs crushing the ground with their might. "I wanted to talk. We have been out of touch Raven. All of us have been."
"No matter what you're planning, what evil, we will thwart it."
"Throwing around your college level vocabulary, my dear? How has the magic industry been treating poor, naïve Starfire? And Cyborg, that poor sap, how is he managing to fit in?"
"So, you have been keeping tabs on us."
"Good, you can follow a conversation still." Raven watched his eye follow her, and her spine began to shiver. She reached for the seat, which was nice and comfortable – no expense had been spared – and steadied herself. "Sit down. It won't hurt you. I don't suppose you'd recall back when. All those traps. You should know by now how to circumvent them."
She, against her better judgment, began to take a seat.
"I thought you died a long, long time ago," she said.
"Oh no, not me. I never lost control," Deathstroke whipered. "I wanted to talk to you about something that I think you'd find most interesting. There is a division among one of my multitudes of organizations –"
"Cadmus."
"Quite. Cadmus's DEO branch has found a girl who, well, I think it best you see for yourself." He rose from his seat and to a compartment in the wall. It was the first time since she had been brought here that she cared to examine her surroundings. The cold, metallic feel suited the cold tone of his voice, but there was, just like his eyes, a glimmer of warmth.
It was a portrait of a man, white haired, who had lost his eye in some struggle, but it managed to only make him more distinguished. It hung over a small desk that seemed overrun with bits and pieces of various projects that had not been completed.
It was the only show of a man in the entire room.
The portrait's eye followed her gaze. Slade returned then, sitting across from her as he once did, but now he had pulled his throne closer to her. He took her hand, trying to open the palm so she might see what he had wished to show her.
She pulled away violently, trying to stop the visions in her head as the senses of this man overwhelmed her. The overcast dread that permeated her brain had broken free into unbridled terror. She was face to face with a demon of a man, who just smiled under that mask at her obvious discomfort.
"You're laughing at me," she said.
"Of course. I've been wanting to see if your powers were still in their prime." She looked at him again. There had been one sensation that she remembered most of all from that brief moment.
That touch had carried with it both the weight of being betrayed and being the betrayer. She forced back the tears.
"You've mastered much control."
"You knew."
"I knew what you'd feel, yes. I had every intent in forcing you to experience that. And now, this girl."
He opened her palm again, more violently and reserved this time. There was only a brief, faint heartbeat that repeated itself through her head as the strange capsule was placed in her hand.
She cast the thought from her head, not acknowledging it. Yet, still, persistent as breathing, it kept repeating itself. She pulled the capsule away and stared into the void of sepia smoke.
"What is this?" she breathed.
"Don't you feel that evil energy?" he asked, "Doesn't it call out to you? To open it up, to stare into its void."
"This is a human soul?"
"It was, once," he answered her.
"I," she paused, "I see." She felt herself compelled to open the capsule, and let loose the demonic force she felt beneath. Something baser called to her – something she once thought he had defeated.
"Go on."
She twisted it, seemingly soothed by his comforting tone.
"Open it."
She felt the capsule unlock, and the force at which it opened set even the unflappable Terminator back. The energy in the room was incredible, a typhoon of hatred and death, and at the center of it was undying sadness and loneliness.
Raven clung fiercely to this source in the sepia mist. It almost felt real.
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"Your theory of a quantum flux capacity amuses me," Roarke laughed, "I think I saw it in a movie once."
"A movie that was right!" Bart elaborated, before chowing down on another plate of the raw fish. Superboy poked his, curiously, unsure if his first impression had been accurate with the green stuff all over it. Cassie laughed at it, and he looked a bit bashful at the experienced girl.
"Superboy," Roarke said. "Where do you come from? Krypton?"
"Krypton?" Superboy asked. He paused. "I know of Krypton."
"But you're not from there. What is your story. Where did you get your powers?" Roarke asked. Peter didn't respond. "You don't know?"
"I don't think we should discuss it," Wonder Girl added. "Especially not in public."
"Fair enough," Roarke said. "I'd be interested." He leaned against the table. Just as he settled himself, the table was cut in half, a flash of light being the only indication that a sword had traversed the air to that point. Roarke was caught off-guard, and landed flat on his back, as the table hit him in the chin and knocked him backwards.
"What was that?" Cassie cried.
"That was me," said a dark, looming figure in black. "They call me Harm. I've been sent to dispose with the unknown elements." He chuckled, "That would be you."
"Oh, a wise-guy, eh?" Bart said, angrily, "I know how to deal with this kind. Lemme show you how it's done!" He dashed forward, invisible movements to the human eye, and yet still he was heft up by his leg by the imposing Harm.
"Not too shabby, for a little kid." He slammed Kid Flash onto his back and turned back with his sword, striking Superboy on the neck. It stopped moving barely centimeters before touching the skin. "I thought you were Superman's clone," he muttered, trying to pull the sword back. It would not budge.
Superboy clobbered Harm. His blow knocking Harm back a good distance, his sword flying up into the air. As it whirled about the air, a gold lasso wrangled it in, pulling it away from Harm's waiting hand.
"That's no fair!" Harm announced. He brought his hand down to the ground. "Now you've left me defenseless! Where's the honor in that?" Wonder Girl looked at the sword, then back at Harm.
"You think that's honorable?"
"Oh," Harm seemed to have a thought, which obviously, to Cassie anyhow, was a purposeful ruse. "Just remembered."
The ground shook, and the restaurant began to crumble, as a rift in the earth was formed under his palm. Cassie could barely leap out of the way. Despite expecting some trick, she was still caught off guard by the sheer power.
"Sorry. I'll give you more warning next time. Now, where's the clone." He was struck straight on the chin by a powerful hook. Then a second. The combination repeated itself, and Harm was thrown against the ground, looking battered and bruised for all of a second.
He leapt to his feet and returned the favor, fists striking the super powered teenaged clone with enough force to shatter stone. He was dazed, but not out. He just shook it off and countered. The two made their reversals, fists and legs striking with enough force to break a man, yet neither flinching.
"I could watch this all day," Bart commented.
"We've got to help him," Wonder Girl said. "He's getting tired, and that guy just isn't stopping!"
"I got it!" Kid Flash said. He sped over to Harm, and, dropping out of the speed force, he slammed his foot against Harm's shin. Superboy's fist collided with Harm's chin, sending him flying to the ground.
"That wasn't very nice." Harm leapt back to his feet and swept the ground, kicking up dust with enough speed to push the Titans back.
"Where's Robin when you need him?" Cassie asked no one in particular.
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Robin found exactly what he was looking for. It was floating above the building, casting a shadow on the planet below. "Not very subtle are you?"
The ship was smaller than the Cadmus Lab they had battled earlier, but Robin surmised it was little more than a transport. But still, he didn't let his guard down as he prepared to board the vessel.
But just as he leapt into the air, the ship began to shake and a black typhoon broke the machine. It broke in half and then again, down the front, shattering glass and metal with the ease one would take with thin ice.
And then he saw Raven, hanging in the air, her darkness surrounding her like a cloak. "Raven!" Robin called. She turned, seeing him, and suddenly, like a flash, darting at him. Her cloak moved first, striking him in the face, and then he fault her dark aura overtake him, throwing him to the ground below.
The last thing he saw was sepia smoke clouding his vision and the light faded.
Raven's darkness had overcome him. She could be heard, inside his head, without true sound but the mere perception of it, and in a mighty roar denounced him. BETRAYER. He struggled against the restraints. Taints of sepia peeked through, like the clouds after the crumbling of a city under the siege of bombs.
He could hear, actually hear, a girl's voice reassuring him in a caring tone. But he couldn't make out the actual words.
"Raven! What are you doing?"
Again, the sound said, REVENGE.
"Fine," Robin answered. "Just don't hurt anyone else." He stood defenseless. And just as Raven appeared, her shadows giving way to her rage filled eyes, another form emerged and yelled, "Stop!"
She stood there, glowing with sepia tones, with curly, short blonde hair and a button nose. The elder Titan stopped, as if recognizing something was amiss, and drew back her shadows. "Rage," she murmured, "Begone!"
With a howl, the darkness returned to her. She pulled her hood over her face and drew herself upright.
"Robin, are you all right?"
"Okay, you scared me there for a minute. First you were acting nuts, and then I think, possibly, I saw a ghost."
"Hi!" the ghost chirped.
Robin corrected himself, "I did, I did saw a ghost."
"Are you all right? That was a big fall!" she said, examining him. She giggled, and Robin, too stunned to do anything, just stared at her. "I'm sorry. Am I doing something wrong?" Raven looked at her.
"Are you all right?" she asked, quietly. The girl nodded.
"I could ask you the same?" she cautioned. Raven shrugged, and then looked over Robin's injuries. "Is he all right?"
"Just got slapped across the face pretty good," Robin said. "Your cloak's good, Raven. You should use that move more often." He rubbed his cheek. "Still stings."
"Robin, this is no time to joke around."
"You're right, I guess," he said. Tim adjusted his mask. "That hurt though."
"I'm sorry. For now, we should leave everything about this our secret." Raven glanced from side to side, "There are things I don't even want to contemplate at work here."
"So, where does the ghost girl fit into this."
"Hi again!" the ghost said, cheerfully.
"Slade… no, Deathstroke had her, Cadmus had discovered her and he had given her to me because somehow he knew, and I don't know how, that it had something to do with me."
"Okay," Tim said, testily, "What's that?"
"She was born by my Father's damage to the dimension. In other words, her existence is almost entirely my fault."
"It is?" the ghost girl asked.
"Other than that, I don't know anything."
"That's okay. I'm glad you found me," she said. "I remember anger and hatred at, at something I don't remember. And then nothing until you found me in it. I'm not angry at you for anything."
"She's a nice one, can we keep her?" Robin smiled.
"Robin," she muttered.
"Oh, I would love to! But, I, I don't think I can."
"What's your name, uh. I mean, we can't just keep calling you "Ghost Girl" or "Smokey", fearing copyright infringement if we even thought of calling you "Casper"."
"Uh," she hesitated.
"You do have a name, right?"
"I don't remember," she whispered.
"What?" Tim asked.
"I don't remember anything. Not even my own name." She seem for the first time terrified by this lack of memory. The girl's lips moved into a pout.
"If you don't remember, we'll give you a new name. For the time being, until you do remember. Right, Raven?"
"Whatever," the professor responded.
The girl tentatively smiled. "My name's Tim Drake. I'm pleased to meet you." He smiled, "But it's our little secret, okay?"
"Secret," she murmured, testing the sound. "I like that."
"It's not what I had in mind," Tim admitted, "But all right. Secret it is." She giggled happily. "Where did Slade go?"
"I, I don't know," she answered. "We should return. The others may be worrying about us." She grew more withdrawn as she pulled her cloak around her.
"Coming, Secret?" Tim asked, extending an arm. The girl leapt at it and nodded. The darkness swept around them and they were gone.
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"Cyborg!" Bart yelled, slamming on the door hard and fast. "Help! Help! Helphelphelphelp!"
"What is it?" Beast Boy asked, opening the door. "We're trying to organize something in here."
"There's a guy. A guy with a sword and he's attacking us and we don't know what to do help!"
"What? I couldn't understand what you were saying. I thought you said a guy with a sword was attacking you."
It was at this moment that, and Bart was beginning to get aware that this guy lived for moments where he could make a horrible pun, Harm broke in, "Sorry to cut in." There was a collective groan, "But can I have this tango?"
Bart jumped onto the sword and ran up it, kicking Harm in the face. "No!"
"Guys, big trouble!" Beast Boy called. Starfire was the first to answer the call, striking with enough speed to knock the unbalanced Harm onto his back. "Thanks Star."
"It was my pleasure," she answered.
"We've already done that!" Superboy yelled, coming in through the window, carrying Wonder Girl, "He just won't stay down."
"That's why I'm the number one student in the HIVE Academy. All self-taught, too. Let's just say I made a little deal with a little devil," Harm laughed, rising to his feet without any visible effort. "Let's do that again, please."
"Yeah, let's!" Cyborg yelled, finally joining the fray. The confinement of the Hotel hallway left Harm with little space to dodge the sonic burst. But even so, he took it clear on, severing the arm in the process.
"Man, that's not funny!" Cyborg yelled. He looked pained, despite it being just a prosthetic. "Really, not funny."
Harm just laughed, "You're all so weak! I could destroy you in an instant. Especially now that Robin and the dark one are in Deathstroke's hands." There was smoke, dark and sepia, that merged to create a smokescreen even Harm couldn't penetrate with his seemingly vast powers.
"Guess again, Chuckles!" Robin announced, striking from behind. "Wonder Girl, Super Boy, on my mark."
He struck with a volley of discs, each blowing up in front of Harm's gaze. "Now!" he called. Wonder Girl moved to lasso the psychopath, while Superboy struck hard and fast. The result was something of a snap, as Harm was brought into a wall, still tired to the unbreakable lasso.
"Impressive," Robin said. "Kid Flash! Now!"
Bart saluted and took the lasso from Wonder Girl. Dashing down the stairs, and into the street below, he began to spin around until he had enough force to send Harm flying into what could only be presumed to be a Low Earth Orbit.
"And he's outta here!" Bart announced, appearing again in the now wrecked hall. "So, what now? Where've you been? Where's Roarke? How are we going to pay for this? Cyborg, your arm, no! I'll fix it!" He did so in a matter of seconds, "There we go got a silver thumb or something, don't I? What do you think."
"I think it's on backwards," Cyborg muttered.
"Raven?" Wonder Girl asked, "You look different."
"It's nothing," Raven said, pulling her robes around her. "Nothing at all. I'll explain this matter to the hotel staff. Cyborg, come with me."
"My arm is on backwards," he said, but her glance made him realize that now wasn't the time for joking. "All right. I'm coming."
Robin watched them go, suspiciously. But, a soft presence made him forget about it, "Oh, before I forget to give her a full introduction, I'd like you all to meet someone." The other Titans looked curiously at Robin, primarily because a lot of smoke was blowing around him. He took a step aside, "Miss Secret."
Secret smiled, "It's a pleasure to meet you all. Cassandra, Bart, and Peter," she curtsied. "Tim – I mean Robin – has told me everything about you!" She giggled.
"Oh, she's real pretty, Robin," Cassie said, "Where'd you dig her up?"
"Dig is not a good word here, Cass," Robin warned. "Wait, are you jealous?"
"No, why should I be?" she countered. "I'm perfectly happy with what I've got. Much better than you."
"You're so jealous."
"I am not!"
They didn't happen to notice, among the rather confused and anxious hellos from the others, the green-eyed look that Secret shot in Cassandra's direction.
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"Sir?"
"Yes, Headmistress?" Deathstroke said, sitting comfortably inside his inner sanctum. "What is it?"
"We recovered your materials from the crash."
"Good. Was the portrait damaged?"
"No sir."
"Excellent. And the status on Cadmus's progress?"
"The field project is returning good combat data, but he's still not one-hundred percent. And furthermore, he's constructed a personality independently of Cadmus."
"That doesn't sound very good."
"No, we don't believe so." She paused, "Why Raven?"
"Why not? The girl was obviously going to cause reactions, reactions that Raven has long since forgotten. She needed a reminder. I'll leave her soul to waste."
"And that's why. And the boy?"
"He may prove an interesting wild-card in my grand scheme, wouldn't you say?"
"Yes sir."
"Are you hungry?"
"Pardon?"
"It's about time for dinner. Are you hungry?"
"I suppose I am," she whispered.
"My treat," he answered, rising from his seat. He offered his arm, which Jinx took gratefully, latching on close. She silently swore nothing would turn him away from her again.