a.n. gracefulraven- Thank you very much. :) And... writer's block... tough. Sometimes just forgetting about the story completely for a little while, then going back to it later helps. It also heard that it helps by reworking the scene in question... dunno if you needed help unblocking or not, but if you did, hope this helps. LoL. Kendra Chetnova- ooh, harsh. (X: I resent that!) ...j/k But yes, X is a biiiig meddler in my story. :3 kidsnextdoor112- Might not get 100 reviews by this chapter... 7 days isn't that long of a time to wait, is it? faLLen-dreamz- Hehe, well, that's the kind of reaction X got for being so cocky. LoL. And yes, ma'am, I'm updating. :) raven717- Yes, you technically are the 100th.. by cheating! LoL. But okay, sneak peek goes to you. hehe. Lai-Ku- Hey, that sounds Chinese. (I am fascinated with oriental stuff... it's ridiculous) Anyway, are you another one who read all the chapters all at once? Wow... all you people with longer attention spans than me. LoL. Very glad you liked it, and I hope I keep your interest in the chapters to come. :) ShadowDevil- Yes, I should've added a few more rules and requirements to that. hehe. I'll make sure to do differently on for the 200th marker. :) Yes, Raven is slowly (very slowly) turning evil... it just wouldn't seem like a believable conversion unless she went kicking and screaming. So the evilness takes its time. LoL. Btw, if there would've been no spamming, you would've been the 100th. VampireSelene- Something for 101st? Um... -looks around the room- How about a little... Gizmo plushie? j/k Thanks for the review. :) Tritium- Yay, another new victim...reviewer. :3 (same thing, really. XD;;)Thank you very much...and actually, Raven asks Slade if he's starting to turn nice...next chapter. I don't want him to turn good, but if he does appear to be taking more after Raven, it won't be for long. Don't worry, he should stay bad for the rest of the story. Bwaha. psychicflower- Hey,I was wondering when you'd reply. Your b-day sounded fun, that's cool. hehe. Dude, I would so mark "Talk like a pirate" on my calendar if I knew when it was. XD; And yes, I like those sci-fi shows. Really, the Stargates are the only good shows on sci fi channel. / Would you meet Paul McGillian (if you didn't give his show name, I wouldn't have known who you were talking about, LoL) at a convention or something? Wow, that's cool. Have fun with that. :) Thanks for the review! lolopixie- Hehe, misunderstandings are fun. X3; And X left so quickly 'cause he's kinda afraid of Raven's powers... just about everyone is afraid of Raven was she's emotional or angry or something... Fun. Thanks for replying and I'm really glad you like the story so much. :3 Yay. hehe. SabrinaRocks- Thank you. :3 Isn't there such a thing as National Hug a tree day? I thought I heard that somewhere... or maybe people were just making fun of environmentalists. I dunno. / LoL
Chapter 14
Once X was gone, Raven waved her hand to the side and the window was closed.
With a sigh, the girl slumped onto her bed. She wanted to sleep, but she wasn't tired. She wanted to meditate, but she knew all she would see would be memories of her friends. Raven laid back on her bed, her hands over her eyes and her elbows in the air. She was completely miserable and had no idea how to fix it.
Suddenly an alarm sounded while lights began flashing red. Raven grabbed a cape from her closet and ran out the door; she felt too drained to use her powers.
The girl reached the living room in time to see a map and a couple of pictures appear on the large screen. Slade was already there, watching the bottom right-hand corner where a live video was playing. It showed three familiar kids robbing a music and game store, sending all the customers fleeing. Gizmo, wearing his four giant spider legs, was scooping all the video games he could into a bag, Jinx was slowly flipping through a rack of CDs, and Mammoth was emptying the cash register, after having chased off the cashier.
The map showed that they were in the heart of downtown. Raven stood next to Slade.
"Am I going this time?" she asked, trying her best to hide her weariness.
"My soldiers are already en route," replied the man quickly. "However I just might drop by and take care of them myself. It'll give me something to do before lunch. Besides, my soldiers probably won't stand a chance against them."
Raven watched Jinx with a cold stare. For the longest time the dark girl had wanted to fight her one-on-one and send her flying into the lake. Or a swamp. Whatever would make that pink-haired witch-wannabe scream the loudest. The only time the Hive had been in the tower, Jinx had dyed one of Raven's cloaks bright pink. She deserved whatever Raven could throw at her.
"Even if I can't fight, can I come anyway?"
Slade looked from the screen to the dark girl. She had the unmistakable look of revenge in her eyes. The man tilted his head slightly.
"All right. But you are to do nothing unless I tell you differently. Understand?"
"Sure," Raven replied absently, still glaring at the live video.
"Raven," said Slade in a condescending tone, staring down at her critically. The dark girl gave a small huff, looking up at him and shrugging a shoulder.
"Yes."
The man led the way out of the room and down a corridor, heading for the garage.
"I brought my own mode of transportation," he informed her briskly. Reaching into one of the many pouches on his belt, he withdrew a small device and handed it to Raven.
"I don't need a hearing aid, thanks," the girl said monotonely, staring at the little thing.
"It's a communicator that fits into your ear. Wear it at all times while we're out," ordered Slade, sounding short-tempered. Raven figured it wise not to say anything more about it, so she silently put it in her ear.
When they reached the garage, the dark girl found it cluttered with crates for Slade's inventions. Next to the R-cycle, there was a larger, more wicked looking motorcycle. Slade mounted it and started the engine. Not feeling like using her powers to fly still, Raven hopped on Robin's bike, putting his helmet on.
It didn't take them long to reach the robbers, for the closer to the store they traveled, the less crowded the streets became. When they stopped near the shop, they found all three Hive students on the street fighting the robot soldiers. Only a handful of guards remained undestroyed.
"Not bad," Raven heard the man mutter. He took his time getting off the motorcycle and arming himself with his staff. The dark girl merely removed the helmet and hung it on a handle in front of her, waiting and watching from her seat on the R-cycle.
The immediate area was hazy from all the destroyed robots and there was an unfriendly smell of burnt rubber and singed electrical equipment in the air. Sounds of sparking circuits came from all over, as well as a new explosion. Gizmo had just beaten another droid.
"Whose robots are these?" Jinx spoke up to her friends.
"Who cares?" retorted Gizmo, steering the walking legs back to her in front of the store. "They're easy to beat. Now let's get outta here before those crud-munching Titans show up."
"I'm sorry to disappoint you," Slade's voice came from behind a broken guard that was smoking profusely, "but you won't be seeing them around these parts anymore." The Hive kids exchanged curious glances.
"Who's there?" demanded Mammoth, clutching his bag of money even tighter.
"No Titans? That's the best news we've had in awhile," said Jinx coolly, resting her hands on her hips. She had the glint of vague recognition in her eyes, as if she couldn't quite place that voice.
"I shouldn't think so," Slade continued. Raven recognized that tone in his voice; he was playing with the Hive.
"Because this is my territory now," the man said, "and you're not welcome."
"Oh yeah?" shouted Gizmo, looking wildly around for the source of the voice. "Come out and fight, you brain-farting, snot-drippin' big-chicken-Titan-wannaaAAA!" The sound of breaking equipment followed. Raven squinted to see through haze better. Slade had vaulted over a pile of droids, landed on Gizmo's high-tech backpack, and broken it beneath his weight when he forced it to the ground. Its little owner, who was whining and shouting out all the mean names he could come up with, was picked up by two of the remaining, intact robots. Without his inventions, Gizmo was powerless.
The remaining teammates were close enough to clearly see the man now. Jinx's eyes widened.
"Slade! Long time no see. Heard you almost got rid of Titans before, so what are you talking about now?" The pink haired girl sounded as if she were talking to an old friend.
"Yes, well, I've gotten rid of them again. And this time it's permanent," Slade boasted. Raven shifted uneasily on the bike. She always felt slightly uncomfortable when the man talked about her friends like that. However, this time it didn't bother her as much.
Mammoth and Jinx looked at each other again.
"But enough talk. You're still trespassing and I still want you to leave," Slade said. Mammoth hugged his bag of stolen money again.
"You can't make us give it back!" he shouted. Slade gave an amused sound that resembled a laugh.
"I wouldn't care if you had robbed the city bank. I just want you out of my city."
"What ape-brained clod died and made you king of the slappin' city?" yelled Gizmo, outraged. Slade swung his staff around and hit the boy in the gut. Gizmo wheezed and fought against his captors to clutch his stomach.
Immediately Jinx jumped back, sending bright rays toward the man. He stepped out of their way and right into Mammoth's path, who was charging right toward the man. Just as the Hiveling reached him, Slade jumped over him too and kicked him in the back upon landing. Mammoth stumbled, then fell flat on his face. Just as Slade turned, Jinx shot pink beams his way. The man didn't duck fast enough; the first beam grazed his shoulder, slashing off all the armor and material to his skin, while the other beam snapped Slade's staff in two.
At that, Raven jumped up; she had just been waiting for an opportunity to fight Jinx. As if sensing her reaction, Slade said over the communicator, "Don't move! Stay where you are!"
The dark girl paused, considering. She figured he had a plan, and even though she wanted to bash Jinx's face in, she wouldn't want to get on Slade's bad side for disobeying him. So Raven sat back down to watch the fight through the clearing haze. The dark girl had to admit- it was rather entertaining.
Gizmo was kicking frantically in vain to get away from his two robotic captors, while calling them names at the top of his lungs. His teammates were too busy to help him. Mammoth had picked himself up off the ground and, while Slade was distracted inspecting his wound, had wrapped his arms around the man's shoulders. Standing at full height, the Hive student made sure Slade's feet wouldn't even touch the ground. The man struggled to free his arms from Mammoth's tight lock.
"That's perfect. Hold him still," Jinx said, a pink energy ball growing between her outstretched hands. Quickly Slade drove his elbow into his captor's gut, breaking his grip. Just as Jinx sent a glowing attack at them, Slade grabbed one of Mammoth's arms and threw him forward, right into the pink energy ball. Mammoth gave a cry, then collapsed, the front of his suit smoking. Jinx looked from her unconscious teammate to Gizmo and finally to Slade.
"Not bad. But this isn't the last you've seen of the Hive. We'll be back." Immediately she aimed for the two guards holding Gizmo.
"Oh, but who said this fight was over?" Slade said as Jinx shot one guard. As she attacked the second robot with a pink beam, the man called, "Raven!"
Gizmo gave a laugh that sounded something between gloating and triumphant. Right when he fell back to the sidewalk, a large, black bubble surrounded him.
"Hey!" the boy shouted indignantly, pounding on the encasing. "No fair! Lemme out! Lemme out, you-" and he proceeded with a long string of names.
"I thought you said the Titans were gone!" exclaimed Jinx, glaring suspiciously at Slade. The man shrugged, although his wounded shoulder didn't rise as high as the other one.
"Would she still be considered a Titan if she worked for me?"
Raven rose out of the pavement directly behind Jinx. The dark girl's eyes were a bright white, and with a flick of her hand, Jinx's wrists were locked together with shadow cords. First Raven sent her flying into a pile of broken robots, then bouncing hard against the cement. Only when the dark girl sent Jinx through the music store's large front window did Slade stop her.
"You want to scare her, not kill her," he said reprimandingly.
Just then Mammoth stirred. Before he could push himself up, the Gizmo bubble rammed into his back, knocking him down again.
"You can't make us give all the loot back, you-"
"I already said you could take it," Slade interrupted almost boredly, picking up the bag of video games Gizmo had dropped and tossing it at the bubble. It hit the dark barrier and bounced off.
"However, show your faces here again and we won't be so kind," the man added. He turned and headed back for the bikes.
"But Slade, what do we do with them?" Raven asked, pointing to the Gizmo bubble with a bewildered expression.
"I'll send some more soldiers to get rid of them," he replied with a nonchalant tone. The dark girl slowly followed, repeatedly looking back to make sure the Hive wouldn't suddenly escape. "But.. won't you send them to jail?" questioned Raven, mounting the R-cycle. Slade had already started his bike.
"What for? They're bound to get out anyway. I really don't care what happens to them, as long as it happens somewhere else." He revved the engine and took off, leaving Raven to put on her helmet and look back once more at the Hive. They didn't seem so tough now.
By the time they returned to the tower, Raven was tired yet hungry. As they walked back to the living room, she took out the small ear bud and offered it back to Slade.
"Keep it," he told her. "You'll need it later." She raised her eyebrows.
"You mean you're going to be sending me out from now on?" the dark girl said, a hint of hopefulness clinging to her words.
"We'll see. It depends how strong the enemy is. You and Jinx were pretty evenly matched. However, you never gave her a chance to attack you... or to even see you, for that matter." Raven could've sworn she heard a slight chuckle. Just then they entered the living room and the dark girl immediately floated over to the fridge.
"It probably wasn't a fair fight," she said slowly, rummaging around for something to eat. The dark girl was surprised to find it restocked with fresh, edible food, and pulled out the ingredients to make a sandwich.
"All's fair in love and war," quoted Slade. He stopped at the counter and watched her get a plate and knife from the cupboards. "You wanted revenge, so you took it." Raven stopped dead in her opening of the mayonnaise jar.
"I... I didn't, I mean..."
"You don't have to worry, my dear. Contrary to what the Titans probably told you, revenge is fine. It's better to take it out on the intended target than keep those hateful feelings bottled up. It's a powerful drive, revenge. And sometimes it truly is sweet. There's really no feeling stronger than that... except of course for-" he stopped short. Raven looked up from folding another slice of ham on the sandwich.
"What?" she prompted. The dark girl was expecting Slade to say 'hate' or something along those lines. She scraped the knife in the mayo jar, then began to apply it to a piece of bread. "What, you weren't going to say 'love,' were you?" added the girl with a light snicker. When Slade looked away, Raven's eyes bulged. She completely forgot about her lunch. "Were you?" The dark girl was taken by surprise. Slade, love... was that even possible? "You loved someone?" she asked incredulously. "Did you have a girlfriend?"
After a long pause, Slade sighed, "No... a wife."
-
X was in Cyborg's room, fiddling away at the computer. He had entered the tower once Slade and Raven left and searched for the most private computer. Finally he had found it and started accessing files. It took some cracking of the newest codes, but soon he brought up the page he had been searching for: all the Titans' allies. Or at least, the ones who had been made honorary members.
Scanning down, he noticed a few names he recognized, like Aqualad and Speedy. X hurriedly typed out a message and sent it to all Titans communicators. He didn't have to worry about Slade finding out; Raven's had already been destroyed. And Blackfire wouldn't be able to get to the other communicators the rest had- if she even knew they had been called at all.
There was nothing to do but wait for replies. Carefully, X shut down the computer and sneaked out of the room and out of the tower. The only way for the honorary members to reply was to show up, and if the Titans trusted them enough to give them communicators, then so would X. He was going to show Raven he was right about her friends, but he needed all the help he was sending out for- if not more.
--
Next Update: November 21st. Anything happening on that day? I dunno.
Heee... the Gizmo bubble. I dunno why that's so funny to me. X3;
mmkay, I had a lot of trouble uploading this thing this time... like where all the quotation marks should be, it was instead those upside-down Spanish exclamation marks. So it took a lot longer to fix it all. Is this just a glitch or a widespread problem? Plus it kept uploading in poetry format, I think, instead of story format. :( All these malfunctions are getting annoying. x.x;