Chapter Nine: Fire To Kill

Slade began to move himself toward Marissina, knowing that the easiest way to distract the Titans was to kill one of the people they believed to have the blueprints. Not as if she'll be that big of a loss anyway, he added to himself. I prefer the more hateful ones anyway. "Prove your worth to me," he whispered to her as he moved closer to her. "Get them."

Raven's eyes were continuing to bore into Slade, watching his every move with fire in them. "Tell me now how to repair, or we'll attack you. You can't keep hiding your information from us forever. You'll give in sooner or later, like it or not."

Slade clucked his tounge in exagerated, faked sympathy. "Do you, my dear girl, really believe that you, that any of you, can defeat me? You'll find again, as in the past, that you cannot. Besides, Raven, I see that you're in no conditon to fight. Those nasty emotions of yours are getting out of hand- Are you perhaps angry at me?"

"I am not angry," she hissed from between her teeth. "You're just replusive." Her face was set in a tight, hard line under her hood, and Robin could sense the determination flowing from her: A determination to not only beat Slade but to not lose her control now, to avoid giving Slade any of the sick satisfaction he was searching for.

Marissina laughed at Raven, making the girl's face grow even tighter. Control, Raven thought. I need to have control, or I'm going to lose... "Silly girl. You cannot defeat Slade. He knows everything about you, including just how to make you angry. You're destined to lose, and the sooner you understand that the better. You'd best give u... Aurgh!"

As the knife struck her chest, Marissina let out a long, loud cry and then slumped forward. Slade seemed to have no regreat as he pulled the knife from her back and let it fall from his hand again, this time in her chest.

"Why?" She asked him, her eyes wild with fear and hatred. "Why?"

"You know too much to stay alive, dear. And yet, you served your purpose as a pet. Congradulations on that much." He nudged her away from himself with the toe of one boot, and then turned back to the Titans. The figure on the floor looked shocked: When had she become someone to be discarded like old trash?

"If it's a fight you desire, little girl, then let us fight," Slade said, addressing Raven. The words 'little girl' must have struck a nerve, because something within her back tensed and she moved forward, as if to say there was no way she was backing off, not now, not with Slade mocking her like this.

"Fine. Let's go, Slade." She watched as the knife fell from his hands to the floor, and instead his bow staff came out from across his back and rested loosely, almost lazily, in his left hand. Her eyes darted around the room, looking at the objects scattered around the room, wondering if any of them would prove useful in combat with the hateful figure before her.

Robin finally managed to open his mouth and fight down the sickness coming up in his mouth. "You're too sick for words, Slade! Team, get him!" Robin yelled, staring to move in on Slade.

A black burst of energy came up like a shield so that Robin could see but not touch the battle. This is personal, he suddenly heard from Raven, although her mouth was not moving. The words practically vibrated with all of her determination and the pain she was taking to keep it there. If I fall, then you can take him down. She glanced at Slade, moving and dodging the attack at her legs. This is something I have to do alone.

Robin nodded mutely. "Fight hard for us, Raven..." He muttered, and the shield went down, something that seemed to relieve it's owner of a bit of stress, for she began to move more freely. Starfire and Beast Boy failed to say anything, but they tried to look more sympatetic than doubtful as they stood beside the Boy Wonder and watched Raven fight. "Be ready," he comanded, and both of them nodded.

As Raven landed with her head against the wall, Slade took the chance to walk over and tap a few keys on a keyboard. There on the screen was the very prize Raven had been searching for...

"His blueprints," she breathed as she stood, her eyes to the screen. "He can be repaired with these?"

"Just enter my service," he said. "That's all it would take, and then you'd all be on the same team... And you'd be together again. Consider that. Consider the facts. Consider the love you think you have for him."

Raven ground her teeth, face taunt and eyes full of fire, trying to remind herself to fight, to remind herself that his was no time to give in. You've come this far, but even with Cyborg himself... He'd never forgive me if I turned us both over to the dark side. Evil... Cannot be my calling. "Get out of my head! Stop trying to trick me!"

"Fiesty," Slade simply chuckled, and the fight between them resumed, Raven ducking her head away from him and striking him in the stomach with one of the machines, which sparked as it sent him flying into the oppisite wall. "But you won't defeat me, Raven."

Marissina pulled herself along on her hands and stomach, the wounds causing her to hang between life and death. Her hand touched Robin's boot and she collapsed, her eyes now faded, but her thin voice pleading. This death cannot be in vain... I have to tell him... Have to give him the plans... Have to help them save their friends... I deserve more than this.

"Robin... Your friend... His blueprints... Are in my back pocket... Please... Take them... Save him... Save the girl... He loves her... They love each other... This... isn't right..."

"You would have killed me five minutes ago," Robin hissed between his teeth. "Why should I trust you now?" He watched Slade taking on Raven, destroying her to the emotional weakness she was feeling, throwing her aside as if she were nothing and gritted his teeth.

"No one... should die in... vain..." She gasp out, as her eyes started to close. He sighed, knowing he had no choice as he heard the crash of Raven's body against one of the crates in the corner. Reaching down for the black cloak she wore, he found them.

"Take them... And let no more deaths... Be in vain." And with that, her breath ceased, and Starfire buried her head in Robin's shoulder. Gently, looking the papers over, he stroked her hair, reassuring himself more than her as he held her. "Titans, we've got to help Raven!"

Another forcefield, however, came up in front of them, transparnt and yet just as unbreakable as the first one. This is between me and Slade. I don't want any of you to get hurt because of this. Moving herself away from the crate, she hit Slade in the stomach and set him flying backward so that he hit into the wall.

"Good move, Raven," Slade said with a smirk, rolling out from under her and trying to get behind her for a hit with his bow staff. However, she stopped him with her right hand and struck him with her foot, kicking him in the face. "Very good," he added with a grunt.

"You hurt my friends!" A kick to the stomach. "You don't seem to realize how sick you are, and I wont' stop until you've told me or died."

He smacked the wall again, hard, and a bout of dizziness swam over his eyes. "Are you really intending to kill me?" He asked in a mocking voice, almost unable to move.

Another blow to the head was the answer he recived.

"Dude, Raven's going to kill him!" Beast Boy cried out in shock.

"Friend Raven... Would not really do such a thing, would she, friend Robin?" Starfire pressed her head again into his shoulder. He just held onto her: Any answer he could think of was none too reassuring.

No death should ever be in vain. The last words of the now-dead villan at his feet rang in his head. Noticing that Raven had dropped her shield, he ran toward them, toward the heart of the fighting, realizing that just as no death should be in vain, no KILLING should be in vain.

"Raven, you have to stop!" He cried out. "Please dont' do this to yourself!" That was when his eyes met with hers, and even under the hood, he could see the fire in her eyes.

The fire to kill. "She wouldn't..."

Would she?

Raventhedarkgoddess: I personally think this update is kind of rushed, but reviews appricated all the same. I'll try to wrap it up soon, and not keep you waiting too long for updates.