Shattered Remains
The Aftermath pt. 2
Cyborg
She's right… I am just the powerful one here… nothing more. I should leave before any confrontation occurs. Maybe I should return to the Titans East…Bumblebee might be waiting for me—but why would they be any different? All I did for them was fix up their Tower, who knows; maybe they're exactly the same.
Cyborg heard nothing. His head was spinning violently. He opened his human eye and scanned the room from his current position. Cyborg could hear the movement of other people in the room. He sat up and gave the other Titans cold looks when they made eye contact. Raven was the first the leave, no surprise there, she was always quick to get back to her dark room.
Cyborg would not waste time sitting around these people. He slowly rose to his feet and headed for the exit. When no words were heard, he was grateful that he would not have to speak to the other Titans right now, maybe ever.
Once out of the room, Cyborg began to ascend to flight of stairs, the repetition of the steps reminded him of how many times the other Titans must have lied to him. He remembered one conversation in particular, one that he had with Starfire,
"For your thoughts I will pay six grubfars."
The statement had made Cyborg chuckle inside, "If that's your way of asking how I am, then I'm alright."
She had approached him, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "I did not know you before you were Cyborg… so, to me, you are normal."
That single act of compassion made Cyborg think that everything would be all right. And it was the first time he looked at Star as more than a sister or his best friend's love interest.
But now, all that was shot. Cyborg had to move on and stop caring. It was best for him to get away from the lies anyway, right? But the pain in his heart was a constant reminder of the team and all they had been through together. From fixing the T-Car with Raven, playing video games with Beast Boy, sparring with Robin, and… Cyborg realized that he had spent so much time connecting with all of the Titans, except Starfire.
Well, it's useless to worry about it now. He thought.
Cyborg soon found himself at the top of the staircase. He tried to remember the way they had entered the building, but his memory was fogged. He continued down the hall toward its end. As Cyborg closed in on a lobby, he noticed blood on the marble tile. What the--? Cyborg followed the trail of blood and he came upon a large metal door, sucking up all of his fears, he punched the door down, preparing to attack anyone who was in the room. He found that, while there were people in the room, they were all dead.
"Oh my…" Cyborg's words trailed off. As he scanned the four dead bodies, realization hit him. That bitch…Cyborg grasped the likely possibility that the woman who attacked each of the Titans also killed these security guards; they must have gotten in her way.
Cyborg decided that he had spent enough time there, he pressed on. He made a sharp right and continued down the hall, racking his mind for any recollection of their earlier entrance. Cyborg soon found himself in the main lobby of Wayne Enterprises. Continue forward, or left? Cyborg decided to take the left. He walked down the corridor and found himself approaching a dead end. Before he turned to go back the other way, he noticed a door cracked open. Did we come through here? It made sense, and if they did not come through the door, then it had to be that woman, either way, it meant an exit.
Cyborg pushed the door open to be met with a long staircase and an extremely cold and massive room.
He pressed on down the flight of stairs. Cyborg reached the bottom and began to cross the floor to the staircase at the opposite side of the room. A heaping pile of metal on the ground caught his attention. Damn…we definitely didn't come this way. I would have remembered destroyin' a robot that big. That chick must be something else.
After inspecting the machine, Cyborg continued across the room and up the next flight of stairs.
Once he reached the top, Cyborg pushed open a door directly above the last few steps. He pulled himself up and out, into the pounding rain. Before Cyborg could take a step, he saw a dead body to his right; he gagged at the sight of the gruesome victim. He looked down the alley, four more lifeless bodies. Cyborg did not even bother with the one at the end. He stepped over another male victim. He then moved to the other two, a woman… a pregnant woman and her infant son. They both appeared dead. Cyborg could not help but notice that the woman was late into her pregnant, she looked as if she would have been going into labor any day now. Cyborg shed a tear for the two innocents.
He turned to walk away when her heard a faint cry, "Help…" Cyborg quickly turned to see the woman desperately reaching for him, "…my…baby…deliver… so I may… die."
Cyborg was speechless; he thought that this woman was dead. Now here she was, pleading that he delivers her baby. Cyborg was the bringer of her last dying wish. He hesitated at first, and then he looked into the eyes of this woman. Her eyes were filled with pain, sorrow, desperation, and fear.
As if I have a choice. I'd burn in hell if I didn't do this. "Y-yes, I will deliver your baby ma'am. But, what is your name?"
The woman's eyes filled with joy, she began to cry out of happiness, "Thank you, so much… my name… is… Tatiana. My son here, his name was Jared." Tatiana paused to catch her breath, "These men… they killed my son, and nearly killed me… but… a strange woman… a ninja… came… and she killed them all… to protect me from further torment. A true saint."
Then it hit Cyborg. The woman! Was she really evil or merely a messenger?
A scream of agony coming from the woman tore Cyborg from his thoughts. Okay, it's time to put all those hours of watching ER to work. "Alright Tatiana, you need to breathe deep breaths and try to remain as calm as possible." The woman complied.
Cyborg moved to kneel over the body of this strong woman. Luckily, she was already wearing a skirt, so Cyborg would not have to hassle with the awkwardness of taking off her pants. However, there was still the matter of the undergarments. Cyborg quickly reached up the woman's skirt to slide her panties down. A deep red blush spread across Cyborg's face in embarrassment, but he thought better to ignore it.
"Okay Tatiana, I need you to raise your legs in the air, but keep them bent." Again, she listened. Cyborg tried to maintain his cool. To remain calm and professional, and he actually did an exceptional job. Cyborg took his position between the raised legs of this woman, "Alright, the baby is crowning. I'm going to need you to push as hard as you can."
This was the last stretch, Tatiana grunted, trying to force the life out of her. Ironically, that's exactly what happened. Tatiana gave one final push and the baby came out and into Cyborg's arms. He checked the baby for reproductive organs. A girl. He then held the baby upside down; amniotic fluid fell from the baby's mouth. Cries quickly followed.
"Tatiana, it's a beautiful baby girl." Cyborg moved to give Tatiana the chance to hold her newborn baby, but when Cyborg went to give her to Tatiana, he realized that she was no longer breathing. Cyborg desperately checked her pulse. Nothing. He knew Tatiana was dead, and he had known that she would die, but Cyborg hoped that she would have at least had the chance to hold her baby.
Cyborg began to sob; this depressing event brought his emotional status down with the pouring rain. He quickly remembered the young child in his arms, without thinking, Cyborg took it upon himself to serve as the child's parental figure. All of his stress about the team had been dissolved just as the rain dissolves the soil; this new baby took all of his attention and energy now.
Cyborg stood and hurried to the front of Wayne Enterprises to find the T-Car parked out front. Doing his best to shield the child, Cyborg went into the trunk of his car and pulled out three towels. After closing the trunk, Cyborg jogged to the driver side of his car, keeping the towels and the baby dry. Once he shut the door, Cyborg wrapped the baby safely in the towels to keep her warm. He then started the car and drove off into the city.
As he drove through the empty Gotham streets, Cyborg noticed in the distance that Jump City was quickly coming into view. He would have to find a twenty-four hour store to find clothes and food for the baby. Food! Cyborg began to panic, knowing that newborn babies need to be breast fed in order to gain vital nutrients and stay healthy, Cyborg wondered what would happen to this newly born girl. After making a right on a busy street, Cyborg's car screeched to a halt. Ternion stood in front of Cyborg. Of all the nights…
I thought we got rid of this damned trio a long time ago! Cyborg remembered back to their battles with Slade and Terra. The genetically combined Overload, Plasmus, and Cinderblock proved to be a troublesome foe, and now Cyborg was to fight this menace alone and with a newborn baby in his car.
Cyborg hid the baby in the backseat of the T-Car, "Stay quiet, I'll be right back." Cyborg got out of the car and approached Ternion. "I thought we got rid of you, you huge piece of shit! Well, you picked the wrong night to mess with Cyborg!"
Cyborg began charging his sonic cannon; he aimed at the beast towering before him. He let the cannon blast a hole right through the monster, but Plasmus' ooze covered the hole. Ternion decided to counter with another attack. A chunk of Cinderblock was covered in Plasmus. To top it off, Overload gave it an electrical charge. Ternion raised the electrified orb in the air, Cyborg made sure to move a safe distance away from the car, so that the baby wouldn't be harmed.
Ternion let out a roar, and sent the orb flying. The orb skidded over the ground, collecting concrete. Cyborg knew there was no way he could get out of the way in time, he braced for impact, wondering if he would survive the blow. When the impact did come, it shocked Cyborg… because it came from his side. Cyborg opened his eyes to find himself in the air; he looked at the force holding him up. It was Starfire, a grave expression spread across her face.
"Star! You saved me!"
"Do not waste time thanking me. Let us defeat the Ternion." Star had obviously been affected by the mental manipulation of the woman, but Cyborg had bigger things to worry about right now… bigger, uglier, things.
Cyborg watched as Starfire flew at Ternion, launching star bolts and eye beams at the giant. Cyborg soon joined in as well, blasting his sonic cannon around Ternion.
For a while they fought. Once Ternion grew sick of them, he swatted Starfire at a parked car. Cyborg was overcome with fear for his teammate, "Starfire!" Cyborg darted for her; he dove over the hood of the car. His arms were outstretched, Starfire landed hard in his grasp, the two of them rolled with an impact.
Cyborg and Starfire sat up in their places, "You… saved me…"
Cyborg smirked at Starfire, "Don't mention it." They kept their gazes locked on one another for a moment. A roar from Ternion tore them from each other to him, "Let's show this thing who's really in charge! How 'bout the ol' Solar Cannon?"
Starfire merely nodded, still lost in Cyborg's arms. The Solar Cannon was a combined attack Cyborg and Starfire created long ago. The solar power of her star bolts combined with the power of his sonic cannon created great force.
Cyborg and Starfire stood out in the middle of the battle zone; each of them had their weapons charged.
Cyborg started a countdown, "Three…"
"…Two…" Starfire continued.
"…One!" they each yelled at the same time. In a flash, Cyborg's sonic cannon and Starfire's star bolts launched at Ternion. Together, they formed a series of white flashes, which sent the beast into oblivion. It was over.
"Way to go Star." Cyborg said to her.
Starfire did not respond.
"Star? You okay?"
Starfire looked to her cybernetic teammate with glassy eyes, "Cyborg, would you ever… abandon me because I do not fully understand earth's customs?"
"Star, you know me better than that. I promise. Besides, you're actually smarted than a lot of people I know."
Starfire's eyed filled with joy, she leapt at Cyborg with a loving hug, "I am so glad that I can trust you, friend Cyborg."
Cyborg caught sight of the T-Car, "Star, there's uh… something I need to show you."
Starfire nodded and followed Cyborg to the T-Car. Cyborg got into the driver's seat, signaling for Starfire to come around to the passenger seat. Starfire walked around and got in on the passenger side, "What is it Cyborg?"
Cyborg reached to the back seat a picked up the bundle of towels, he checked the baby before handing her to Starfire.
Starfire gasped, "Cyborg! You are, the baby mama?"
Cyborg jumped, "No! After I left Wayne Enterprises, I found myself in an alley. I found a pregnant woman on the verge of death, she had been beaten and her infant son was already killed. Her last dying wish was for me to deliver her baby. I couldn't just leave her, so I delivered her. But the woman died in labor. She didn't even have the chance to see her newborn."
"Cyborg, you truly have the, compassion, but are you to care for this child on your own?"
Cyborg looked to his red-headed teammate, "Well, I could use some help." He smiled at the fair-skinned girl.
"Oh, I would love to care for a child so cute!" Starfire began to cuddle the child as Cyborg started up the car and drove off. "So I will be her mother, and you the father?"
The robotic teen beamed, he could not explain it, but Starfire's question made him glow, "Yeah, that's exactly right."
Starfire too realized something hidden in her previous statement, "So, does that make us…?"
"Let's discuss that later."
As they drove through Jump City, Starfire talked with the child, "Oh, you are cuter than a Yipper of Goro! And we get home, I have a little playmate for you! His name is Silkie!"
As Starfire continued to make the baby giggle, Cyborg listened in awe. The beautiful alien to his right holding the baby he had saved. He hoped that they could one day become a real family.
A tear formed in Cyborg's biological eye. He had always loved children, but, due to the accident, he never thought he would be able to have a child, not to mention, he never dreamed he would find love, but now here they both were. All that Cyborg wanted sat happily in the passenger seat of his car. But, would Starfire return his feelings? Or would she leave him and the baby for Robin?
Cyborg would wait; he would allow himself to form a bond with Starfire, through the child.
"Hey Star?"
The Tameranian was pulled from her laughing and tickling with the baby, "Yes Cyborg?"
"We'll probably need to keep this whole thing from the Titans. A baby wouldn't exactly go over well with Robin or Raven, and Lord knows what Beast Boy would try to teach her."
Starfire giggled at Cyborg's comment about Beast Boy. And the short laugh seemed to occur in slow motion, "Of course." Cyborg had always loved to see Starfire's beautiful smile and serene giggle. More importantly, he loved being the reason she smiled or laughed.
Cyborg felt attached the girl. These sudden feelings confused and excited Cyborg, he had a warm sensation in his chest when she was around him, and he felt that when she was around, he could—a piercing cry interrupted his train of thought.
"It appears that the baby is hungry." Starfire said.
"Should we go to the twenty-four hour market?" Cyborg asked, preparing to turn around.
"No, I have some Zorka berries for her." Starfire began to hush the baby, laying her over her shoulder and patting her back, soothing the child. Soon the baby fell fast asleep, but soon she would wake once more, crying for food.
Titans Tower soon came into view. They rode up on the shore. Cyborg pressed a few buttons on the dashboard, and a metal platform broke through the shoreline, allowing the T-Car passage across the thrashing waters.
Soon the two Titans found themselves pulling into the garage of Titans Tower. They simply sat in the car for a moment.
Cyborg looked to Starfire, who returned his gaze with her own.
Cyborg thought to plant a kiss on Starfire's lips, but he thought better of it. He claimed that he should not rush into things, but deep down, he was so very nervous. The thought of rejection from the girl was heart crushing.
"So, what is our daughter's name going to be?" Starfire asked, blushing red.
Our daughter. Cyborg loved how that sounded, especially when Star said it. The cluelessness of the alien was truly endearing.
"Her name will be… Tatiana."