Before we get down to the beat down, thought I'd just point out that Alexandru van Gordon (To all who read this story, READ NOT AGAIN RIGHT FRIGGEN NOW), Hex Vain and GDeacur are so far the only three who have reviewed. You guys rock. –Lifts a cold one- Here's to hoping for more reviewers.
A/N: Now then, there are going to be some things in this chapter that challenges some events stated in the series. Roll with it for now, because it will… make that WILL make sense before the end. That's an Insaneiac promise! And by now, you should have realized that this story primarily revolves around Beast Boy. Why you ask? Because I believe he is the most troubled member of that team. Sure, Robin is shown as being the most troubled, but…well, I'll go off on a tangent some other time.
This also marks the longest chapter I've ever composed, so it's going to be a fun one boys and girls.
Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Titans. I only own Blink… that's it.
Blink: HEY! Be damn proud you own me even!
Insaneiac: Oh shut up.
Chapter 5: X Marks the Spot (Titans East Showdown, pt2)
Darkness is a scary word. It symbolizes many things, from evil to loneliness, and it represented the evil of the world, opposing the light. You could look into the darkness, and see your soul, your memories, your hates, or even your deepest darkest secrets, thrown out there for everyone to gawk at. And right now, Robin was surrounded by it all. He could see his parents hitting the ground, and laying there dead. He could see himself playing apprentice for Slade, stealing for the man he swore to kill. Even more so, he could see his desires, and some of them left Robin horrified.
He could see Titan Tower, standing where it always stood, lit on fire, and burning to the ground. At the top of it all, Robin stood over the bodies of his friends, all dead or dying. He could smell the smoldering metal, the burning materials, and the boiling, spilt blood of his friends. He could here them asking why, and cursing his name. And all Robin would do was laugh, and smile. Smile behind a mask that was not his, a mask that was the apotheosis of everything he hated.
It was Slade's mask, it was Slade's face and features, and it was the same darkness he had come to fear. And all the while, during the ruination and suffering, he could hear Slade and his condescending tone congratulating Robin… no… congratulating his apprentice.
'LET ME OUT OF HERE!" Robin hollered, closing his eyes tight, and fighting with his entire being to get out of the bonds. He could not. No matter how hard he tried, Robin was stuck in tight. Staring his darkness in the eye, and seeing the side of him he swore would never come out. "LET ME OUT!" Robin screamed again, this time in a panicked, a suffering tone.
"You worry to much, little bird green." Another voice said, catching Robin's attention. He knew that voice anywhere. He knew it because it reminded him of when he resorted to the darkness to expose Slade. Reminded him of the first time Slade had played Robin, and bent him to his will.
"X?"
"The one and only. And it seems to me as though you got yourself in a tight fix."
"GET ME OUT OF HERE!" Robin screamed, this time in a more commanding tone, than a panicked tone. Robin finally had a chance, and X was his way out… his ray of hope even.
"Tough chance there bub. I'm just the voice that shares your head. The other X is probably out screwing about. I'm the one that was responsible for his creation Robin."
"Impossible, you were dead to me. I didn't need you anymore. I locked you away, and then the other one stole you. I was DONE with you!"
"Robin, you were never 'Robin' when you were me. You were Red X. You were me. Now that your precious little sanity is hanging by a string, it's time I take over again. I'd prefer to keep the home I invested preciously in." Red X said, looking down at the suffering boy.
"I won't let you!" Robin defiantly replied, looking away from X. However, being an image in someone's head made it easy to keep in their view.
"Robin, I won't let you ruin my home. I am staying in that head of yours." X replied, tapping Robin's head with his left hand. "And to do that, I need only for you to get me a mask. Of any kind, a mask." Explained, pushing his middle knuckle into Robin's head.
"You're not real. You're not real. You're not real." Robin chanted aloud, trying desperately to avoid the masked face of Red X. "YOU'RE NOT REAL!"
"I'm as real as you are Robin, and if you don't do something, the only thing you're going to be is some subservient slave to an overly egotistical freak!" Red X yelled, pulling off his mask to reveal the Robin's face. "Take a look Robin. Under this mask, under this wall, I am you. Even if another is running about, pretending to be me, he isn't. I've never been just an alter ego Robin; I've been your other side. The one you hide from your friends, and deny with a passion."
"Listen closely Robin. You must get your hands on a mask. If you don't, consider yourself Slade's permanent apprentice. All he need do is break you, and you're lost!" Red X replied, slowly putting the mask in his hand on Robin's face. Robin, for all it was worth, fought tooth and nail with him, and agaisnt the bonds holding him down, but to no avail. As soon as the mask went on, the darkness enveloped him again, and he was left all alone. And with a beat of Robin's weakening heart, he could see the burning city again, and hear the sickening laughter of Slade in the background.
Or was it his own laughter. Robin couldn't tell anymore.
Titans East ------
"Listen, you can save yourself a lot of pain by just giving up." Cyborg yelled, as Blink flicked his hair in Cyborg's direction. "Or we can do this the hard way, and take you to prison kicking and screaming."
Blink sighed inwardly, not paying much attention to the banter of Cyborg. Slowly, his eyes locked with Beast Boy, and rested there for a minute. 'Dammit, he didn't bring the brews. Oh well, guess I'll have to fight without a drink.' Blink thought, before turning to Speedy, who was pulling the arrow back to its full extent. In a few seconds, all hell would break loose, and the crap would hit the fan full on. Blink knew it himself. If he wanted to stand a chance, he needed to get them in a less open place.
"Ya know mates, I don't like it here. Let's dance elsewhere." Blink taunted, before disappearing. Moments later, a massive explosion came from elsewhere within the tower. The big battle had turned into a high stakes game of Marco Polo.
"He's... PLAYING WITH US!" Beast Boy yelled, before diving into the window one floor below, and going after him. 'I'll prove I can still be trusted Raven.'
"BEAST, WAIT!" Cyborg yelled in vain, shaking his head. 'Damned fool!' Was all Cyborg could think at the time, before spinning and looking towards Aqualad. "Get Bumble Bee to safety, and start your way on the bottom floor with Raven and Speedy. Me and the twins will move up. Find Beast Boy and smack him for me." Cyborg ordered, before running off with the speedy twins.
"You heard the man… the half man… it's hunting time!" Speedy yelled, spinning an arrow in his hand, and slipping it into a bow. "And I've got my eye on the prize." Speedy finished, before noticing the fact that everyone was staring at the over active Titan.
"You…are an idiot." Aqualad insulted, giving a verbal kick to Speedy's ego. It left him leveled to be said. Aqualad smiled at the expression of Speedy's face before making his way out the door, and to the lower floors.
"He's right." Raven added, watching normally as Speedy fell backwards, having been burned twice in the last handful of seconds.
"Now that wasn't fair at all!" Speedy hollered, before following the half demon and water wonder.
Beast Boy ------
It wasn't long before Beast Boy found himself in another large room. This one, however, was filled with pillars, and on each pillar was a large round target. 'Speedy's personal training room probably' BB thought, looking around. 'The lights are out… shot out,' and it was recent too, due to the smell of freshly wasted electronics. 'Come out come out wherever you are.' Beast Boy thought to himself, slowly moving through the room, looking for Blink.
"Yah know mate, it was your turn, again, to bring the brews." A voice said, within the room. Beast Boy knew who it was, and turned to where it sounded like the voice came from. "And the problem is, I didn't have time to grab none of my own. Too bad mate."
"Come on out Blink! Just go home now, and let the Titans be."
"Now BB, you know I can't do that. Slade will have a hemorrhage. Plus, he'll probably just take it out on Robin." Blink retorted, his voice coming from another place in the room.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" BB hollered out, as Blink chuckled. "WHERE'S ROBIN?"
"Oh come now BB. You didn't come here to play twenty questions mate. You came here to rumba. You came here to prove to your other lady friend that you are still one of the Titans. Or maybe…just maybe, you're here because you need to prove it to yourself." Blink replied, striking Beast Boy aback.
"STOP! Stop pretending like you know everything about me! What makes you think you know anything about me?"
"Because Beast, I've been in that exact spot. And guess what happened! I got chased from another town. I don't think you ever felt it, but being chased from town by an angry group of heroes is about as painful as it can get!" Blink yelled, his voice coming from a different part of the room. "At least Slade, instead of telling me why I was a freak, gave me a chance."
"Blink, Slade is a scumbag. He uses people like you, like Terra, for his own good. He doesn't give a half-damn about you or what you can do. You're only good to him until he is done with you." Beast hollered back, looking to his side. He needed to find him, and quick. "He did the same to Terra, and look what happened to her. She's now a statue. A dead…lifeless statue!"
"Beast Boy…" Blink started, his voice coming again from a different spot. "…what if I could tell you how to change Terra back? And what if you had to kill people, to steal for another, to follow the will of a masked egomaniac to do so? Would you? For the woman you love, would you?"
"THAT'S COMPLETELY DIFFERENT." Beast Boy yelled, furious that his mind was being dug into. He didn't tell him things to get played with. Beast boy growled, charging finally towards where he heard Blink. He had enough of the head games. Now it was time for some beat downs.
"Beast, it is almost exactly the same. I want a place where I belong. Slade is offering that to me. All I have to do is what he asks, and then I get my little chunk of paradise, mate." Blink replied again, before dodging a kick from BB. Obviously, he had found him. "So then, how's this… If you win the fight, I give you the one thing you've wanted since Terra's Death."
BB stopped in his tracks, his eyes widening. "No way, don't even JOKE LIKE THAT!" Beast Boy screamed, aiming another roundhouse at Blink, but missing narrowly. 'He's playing with your head. FOCUS'
"No BB. I swear to anything holy out there that if you win, I work like hell to find a way to revive your lady friend… on my honor as an Ausi, mate." Blink responded, delivering a kick of his own, in an attempt to keep BB on his toes. "Common Beast Boy, it's one of the things you've always wanted anyways. All you have to do mate is win the match."
Beast Boy thought deeply, before he threw another punch, nearly connecting with Blink, but missing still. "And if you win? Then what?"
A smile came across Blink's face. "Then you front the beers for the rest of our meetings." Blink responded, laughing out loud. "So, what do you say BB? Care to rumba?"
"LET'S." Beast Boy yelled, as he delivered a fine placed roundhouse into Blink's left side. The battle was on.
Cyborg ------
"Raven! WE HAVE PROBLEMS!" Cyborg screamed into the communicator, as he stared directly into the computer core. The section was loaded to the max with charges. Cyborg, who was feeling good originally, was now refocusing his efforts. "THE CORE IS RIGGED WITH BOMBS!"
A crackle came from the communicator, and Raven soon responded, although her signal was blurry. "Here too Cyborg. The base of the Tower is loaded with charges. They're sensitive too. Any ideas?"
"Aside from getting the hell out of this ticking time bomb, nothing much." Cyborg replied, as the Mas y Menos both gave up on the one bomb they were trying to disarm. A few sentences in Spanish later and Cyborg was back on the communicator. "Mas and Menos here say the bombs are remote. We need to find Blink, and stop him quickly!"
"On it, Raven out."
Beast Boy ------
Beast Boy had been in good figure for most of the start, taking Blink blow for blow, who also seemed to not be utilizing his powers much. Maybe he wanted a fair fight. 'Maybe he's just toying with me' Beast Boy thought, momentarily distracting himself, and taking a side kick to the jaw. The blow sent him hurtling into a pillar, and resulted in a disturbing crack echoing in the hall.
"Over already? Damn mate, thought you had more in you than that." Blink mocked, as BB, without being seen, turned into a snake, and snuck behind Blink. Another change later, and the unknowing blink took the back hand of a gorilla across the side of the head, and dived head first a pillar near him. "Oh it is personal now!" Blink yelled, standing up, and blinking in front of Beast Boy.
Beast shrunk into a mouse to avoid the first two punches, then changed into a donkey to deliver his own counter, a spinning donkey kick to the stomach. It connected, and Blink went down to a knee. Beast Boy quickly changed into his normal self, and delivered a stunning uppercut to the bent over Blink, following it up with an elbow, and a spinning right backhand.
The elbow hit home, the backhand was blocked, and turned into a shoulder flip, smashing BB into the ground hard. Before Beast could respond, Blink delivering a knee drop to Beast's chest, and heard the successful screech of pain from Beast Boy. Beast Boy, in turn, was pinned to the ground by Blink.
"Common BB! I thought you had some style mate?" Blink taunted, aiming two fingers at Beast Boy's head. "This will only hurt for a second, mate." Blink continued, before Beast Boy turned into a bug, crawling away. Blink stopped to look momentarily, and in turn, took a mean kick to the jaw when Beast Boy turned back to normal. Blink hit a pillar, and slowly looked up, to see a charging rhino drive him through the pillar, and into the next one.
"And you get too cocky, mate." Beast Boy taunted, pulling away from the pillar, and turning into a donkey.
"Not again." Blink moaned, as he was donkey kicked in the gut. "You fight dirty… BB." Blink said, before blinking above Beast Boy, and elbowing the donkey in the head. The force drove him into the ground, and brought Beast Boy back to his normal self. "But problem for you is, so do I." Blink yelled, firing a blast at Beast Boy.
BB rolled out of the way, and watched it explode into a nearby wall. Hearing footsteps coming from behind him, Beast Boy turned into a gorilla, and swiped the area in front of him, cringing as Blink flipped over his arm. Blink, using all his momentum, dropkicked Beast Boy, and sent him flying towards the wall. Beast, thinking quick, grabbed Blink's leg, and dragged him with him, as he smashed through the wall, and out to the open air.
"Time for a fall Beast Boy!" Blink yelled, as Beast Boy transformed back to normal. Beast Boy just gave a dumb smile, and delivered a hard right hand to Blink's face, before turning into a bird, and flying to the top of the tower. It was a blatant, come and chase me if you can, and Blink never turned down a challenge.
"This ain't over BB. You will be fronting for beer mate!" Blink hollered, disappearing from his fall.
Slade's Lair ------
Slade was watching the screen closely, enjoying the entire ordeal that Blink was putting the Titans through. He was mildly perturbed that Blink had managed to turn off the video and audio links to him when the changeling had entered the room, but none the less, he was expecting good things. If anything, his "apprentice" was serving his purpose, providing Slade with the time and peace he needed to finally get his true apprentice. Even if he was a little broken, he would still be Robin. Just Robin with no one, and no where else to go to.
He would be his, and only his. A prize that he could never lose. And aside from that, watching his nemesis rive in agony brought a certain joy to his own heart. The knowledge that Robin would soon be his forever made him even happier. And the aspect of screwing over the impudent and foolish false apprentice made him smile. Beneath the sinister mask, Slade smiled.
"It is only a matter of time now before Robin snaps, and I can start molding him in my manor. A painful irony, but one none the less. How fitting it is that Robin becomes my apprentice, the same way I had become my old masters apprentice." Slade mused in his solitude, his thoughts stretching, but never allowed to run wild. He merely turned his attention back to the matter at hand.
"Soon, Blink will bring me the book. By then, I'll have my true apprentice, and I can rid myself of this pathetic city. With Robin by my side, I can start him down the road he was meant to go, and slowly take this planet by force." Slade continued, standing up and walking towards his machine. "That is, if a planet still remains by the time I'm finished." Slade ended, laughing as he looked over his machine.
A giant, sonic disrupter, capable of causing a never ending earthquake. All he needed was for a proper amount of pressure to activate it, and then he would win. He would win, and everyone else, including his former master, would lose.
It would be the ultimate conquest and revenge.
Raven ------
"Cyborg, we have some good news." Raven commented, as she turned to the back to Speedy. "We found where Beast Boy was…"
"Good, now where is the moron!" Cyborg yelled over the communicator, loud enough for even Aqualad to cringe.
"Well, Speedy suspects he either plummeted to his demise, or flew to the top of the tower. Since Beast Boy isn't the type of idiot who'd kill himself, I suspect the latter." Raven replied dryly, but with a certain sense of alertness in her voice. 'Of course, this might not even be happening if Beast Boy didn't take what I said to heart…'
"Good enough for me. Me and the twins will go topside. Get up here as fast as you can. We are probably going to have to save Beast Boy's butt again." Cyborg complained, before shutting off his communicator. A long, aggravated sigh escaped Raven's mouth, before turning towards the now arguing Speedy and Aqualad.
"We're heading to the top of the tower, let's go." Raven said while walking off, leaving behind the two ignored her. A few seconds later, Raven came back, angry. "NOW!" Raven yelled, Speedy and Aqualad dropping the argument and following after her. She didn't have time to baby-sit, and they didn't have time to mess around like fools. One of her only confidents was in trouble, and she'd be damned if she would let him get hurt.
Rooftop ------
"Remind me to teach you how to fight, outback style one day." Blink taunted, kicking Beast Boy in the ribs. Beast Boy, for everything it was worth, put up a hell of a fight, but was now lying on his stomach, his left eye swollen horribly, and blood coming out from his mouth. Slowly, Beast Boy pushed himself to his feet, and stood up. 'No way am I letting myself get beaten again. This time, I prove to the rest of the team that I can hold my own!'
Beast Boy wiped the blood from his mouth, and got back in his fighting stance. It was about then that he noticed the blood coming from Blink's nose. It was flowing pretty well, which told him that at least some measure of damage had been inflicted. Either that or it was a real lucky shot. Either way, at least this hadn't been totally one sided.
"Hey Blink, you're bleeding." Beast Boy taunted, as Blink wiped a hand across his face, and saw his blood. Blink looked down at the blood, before closing his eyes, and looking at Beast Boy. And precisely at that time, a sonic blast slammed into a wall of blinked energy, and the audible sound of charging people...
"TITAN'S GO!" Cyborg yelled, charging the two standing in the center of the Tower. However, for what it was worth, not one Titan could get close to the center, where both Beast Boy and Blink stood.
"Go home Robocop. This is between me and Beast Boy here!" Blink yelled. "As long as I say it's so, this force field stays up, and not one of you wanksters can get in here." Cyborg, not taking Blink seriously, fired more shots at the field. "And by the way, Mr. Roboto, all you are doing it giving me more power. So… Domi arigato." Blink taunted again, turning to Beast Boy. From his armored hands, energy crackled, and a grin came across Blink's face.
"Winner takes all." Blink mused, looking towards his drinking mate and opponent.
"Bring it on Blink." Beast Boy coughed out, his body showing fatigue and pain, but his eyes burning with energy, determination, and a motive like none other.
A/N: Yes, I know what you're thinking. "AGAIN! DAMN YOU TO HELL INSANEIAC!" Well if you must know, this isn't totally about my hatred of Titans East (just kidding.) although this may be annoying the hell out of you, I don't disappoint. The next chapter will leave you reeling back in total surprise. What will I do? What will he do? Wait and see.
Blink: You better. I remember the last time you…
Insaneiac: Now just shut your pretty little infidel mouth!