Chapter Five: Take Five
"Come in," Dr. Hook said in response to whoever was knocking on the ward door.
"Robin!" Starfire squealed happily, running past the doctor and immediately catching Robin in a tight hug as he was getting down from the hospital bed.
"Hey Starfire," Robin replied, returning the embrace.
"Oh, Robin, I missed you so much," Starfire told him.
"You're welcome," Hook replied wryly, seeing the exchange. "Be careful, Starfire, don't hug him too hard- he's broken enough bones as it is."
"Don't worry, doctor, I'm okay," Robin said.
"And getting better by the minute, I'll bet," the doctor said, consulting the chart he was holding. "You know, Robin, maybe your friend Raven should consider a career in medicine; we could really use that magic of hers." Turning back to Robin, he continued, "Alright, Robin, remember; although we're discharging you now, you're not in perfect shape. Get some rest, okay?"
"Sure."
"Starfire, you make sure he does that. Make sure he doesn't overdo anything."
"I will do that, doctor," Starfire exclaimed. "I will make sure that Robin never gets hurt again!"
"Okay, maybe not that much," Doctor Hook said.
(scene change)
In his office, Henry Jones Jr. shook his head as he wrote out the damage claims and inspected the estimates the contractors gave for repairing the museum, his migraine acting up again. Thank God for insurance. Even though the exhibits were thankfully spared, the damage to the museum's floor and basement, not to mention the increased hazard pay he was sure he'd end up paying to the few employees willing to stay, meant that for he and the museum would soon experience the 'cashless economy'.
"And I had to go drink from that Grail,' he mused to himself.
The beeping of his cell phone interrupted his musings. "Sir?" one of the aforementioned employees said, in a tone that asked 'You've got a bad day, and I don't want to make it worse, but…'
"Yes?" Henry asked.
"Seems that something was stolen, sir. Er, it seems like someone messed up the logistics, and the 'Sunken City' stuff was put in- in 'that' basement," she said, clearly still uncomfortable with her experience
Great. Just what he needed. "Alright, alright, I'll go talk to the police and the Titans about it." Looking around to make sure nobody was listening in, he whispered, "Anything… special about what was lost?" he whispered, not even willing to say the word out loud.
"I'll need to do some research first, sir, but I don't think it was," she said.
"What?" Henry asked, surprised. "What was it?"
"From my count, it looks like some kind of sundial."
"A sundial? What would a terrorist want with a sundial?"
"It's not a sundial, sir; I only said it looks like one. As I said sir, I'll have to do some research first."
"You do that."
Ending the call, he sighed. Metahuman terrorists (there was still some confusion on this count) had broken into his museum and stolen something.
"I've got a bad feeling about this," he said to himself. He typed into his computer and called up the data on the stolen artifact. He peered at the picture.
His knowledge of ancient languages had been rusty to begin with, and with an artifact as ancient and as… 'esoteric' as this one, he was even worse. But he could try.
"R-" he began, then peered at it closer, trying to decipher the only word etched on the metallic circle. It took some work, but he finally had it.
"R'lyeh," he read.
(scene change)
Legion slunk back to the ruined warehouse he was using as a temporary hideout. Despite the reconstruction efforts going on through the district, the area was still mostly ruined buildings and rubble, and naturally, a place with that many potential hiding places had the much city's criminal element as well as homeless swarming over it like the vermin they were, or at least that's the way Legion would have described it.
Not that he minded it much though.
Still in his vagrant disguise, he walked through the throng of homeless people he had taken to hiding among, his trophy under his arm. Despite his apparent victory however, his prize took second place in his mind compared to his humiliation. The Titans should have been destroyed by now; yet today he found himself 'winning' only through a lucky escape past the throng around the museum.
His luck; not his skill. And of all the creatures in the multiverse, demons knew best of all that you can never rely on luck. Sooner or later, you were going to fall, and Legion knew it.
There is weakness in all things, Legion knew. Even him, and it pained him to admit it. At first he refused to believe that a group of adolescent teenagers could best Trigon's finest; the idea had seemed inconceivable. And yet, today those selfsame teenagers defeated him a second time. Once was humiliating enough, but twice…
He shook the treacherous thought from his head. He was the greatest of Trigon's servants, and he was going to carry out his master's will, and if his suspicions proved true- well then, he had a chance to redeem himself, if not in his eyes, then in his Master's.
There is weakness in all things. And now he believed that he had found the Titans'. And he would use it to destroy them, destroy them utterly.
He wouldn't believe otherwise.
"No," he hissed to himself angrily. "Thisss isss their weaknesss. Thisss isss their weaknesss!" he repeated.
He looked behind him, towards the slowly darkening evening sky, and continued quietly, "It hasss to be," and was unaware of the desperation in his voice.
(scene change)
"Okay Cy, What is it?" Beast Boy asked, as he and Cyborg were heading back to the Tower in the T-Car.
"I said something?" Cyborg asked.
"You're going to," Beast Boy replied, sure that whatever Cyborg was going to say, he wasn't going to like it.
And he was right.
"It's about Blackfire-" Cyborg began.
"Oh, now I get it," Beast Boy said, looking out the window. "You're on her side too now."
"Well, she is a Titan," Cyborg said, trying to reason with Beast Boy.
"Not from where I'm sitting."
"What is wrong with you, man? She saved your life, remember? She saved all our lives!"
"Look, Cyborg, I don't want to argue, okay?"
"Too late, BB. Come on, Beast Boy, couldn't you at least try to get along with her?" Cyborg asked.
""What, so now it's my fault she's such a-"
"Beast Boy," Cyborg warned.
"Well, she is!"
"Look, Beast Boy, even if she is, Blackfire's on our side, remember?"
"No she's not!" Beast Boy insisted. "She's like, her own side, and there's our side, and we're side by side, and, um… I think that's it. Come on Cy, you know what I'm talking about!"
"Oh, I do, Beast Boy, I do," Cyborg said.
Beast Boy's ears pricked up more than usual at Cyborg's remark. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It's not Blackfire that's the problem with you-"
"Don't go there-"
"-it's Raven, isn't it?"
Beast Boy glared at Cyborg for a few uncomfortable seconds, then sat down in his seat. He didn't know what made him feel worse: the fact that Cyborg was actually taking Blackfire's side, or that he was
(scene change)
"Riiight," Blackfire said to Raven as they landed on the front steps of Titans Tower. "I'm sorry, Raven, I must have been hit on the head really hard back there, because the way I remember it, Beast Boy started it! I'm just the one who's going to finish it, that's all."
Raven stopped at the main doors for a moment, and sighed. "Maybe it was a mistake," she whispered.
"Mistake?" Blackfire asked. There was something in Raven's voice…
"Yes, Blackfire, a mistake," Raven said. "We're a mistake."
"Raven-" Blackfire began, before her mouth dried up with shock- no, not shock. Terror.
Not waiting for Blackfire to continue, Raven pressed, "Yes, Blackfire, he started it. So what? Does it mean you have to keep it going?"
"Come on, Raven," Blackfire said, trying to rally herself. "It's funny…right?"
"No, Blackfire, it's not funny," Raven said. "Can't you see that you're hurting him, Blackfire? Can't you see you're hurting me!
"…I'm sorry, Raven," Blackfire said, in a subdued tone.
"It isn't a contest, Blackfire. Yes, Beast Boy doesn't like you," Raven continued, "but it's not as if you're trying to make it better. I'm tired of you two trying to hurt each all the time." She gave Blackfire a look that seemed to bore into her. "Do you remember how it felt to be alone, Blackfire?" Raven asked conversationally.
"What, are you saying I don't know how it's like to be alone?" Blackfire asked, incredulity creeping into her fear. ""Look-"
"So was I," Raven interrupted, in the same calm tone. "Then I met the Titans, and while I don't feel about him the way he wants me to, Beast Boy was, and still is very important to me, and I know you can see that." She turned away from Blackfire, her voice subtly breaking as she continued, "That's why it hurts so much when you two argue. I hoped that you were better than that. Maybe… maybe I was wrong." She sighed. "I need to be alone for a while, Blackfire. I need to think about us," Raven said, going inside the Tower.
Standing outside, her feet seemingly welded to the concrete steps as she tried not to cry, Blackfire felt cold.
So very cold.