Disclaimer: Unless I can acquire a million dollars, I am sad to report that I own nothing but the story line.

Sorry it took so long.

Chapter 12

This wasn't going well. At all.

Raven ducked once more, trying to get around to Starfire, who was standing in the middle of the battle, shooting starbolts as fast as she could despite having sustained several bruises. One of the Tamaranean's eyes was forming a large purple spot and at this point her entire being was practically covered with the giveaway red sparks that meant she had been hit with the xinothium.

Raven's first instinct was to scream out in anger and attack, but that had proven to be useless, for she had only caused injury to herself and, while she was able to take out many of the reinforcements in this manner, it would prove to overall be fruitless. Her best bet would simply be to reach her friend and phase them both out of danger, but that was much easier said than done. She wished that the boys could help her, but they were all a bit useless at the moment.

Even as she thought this, though, she realized that they weren't entirely useless. As she clenched her fists, she remembered seeing many of X's gadgets laying around the battle scene. Perhaps she could use them to her advantage. "Azarath, Metrion, ZINTHOS!" she shouted as her eyes and hands glowed with her mysterious aura as she concentrated. The object embedded themselves into the back of Doctor Light, causing electric sparks to shoot up his spine.

Pushing through the piles of unconscious henchmen, Raven struggled to reach Starfire even as the Tamaranean began to slip into unconsciousness. As she approached, a hit from behind sent her to her knees and she rolled aside to avoid another blow as she turned to face her opponent. Having lost sight of Starfire, she bore her teeth in annoyance as she blasted the guy off of her.

Shaking her head, she struggled to retain her own sanity and consciousness as Doctor Light approached her. Rising to look him in the eyes, she glared at him, struggling to keep her anger from getting to her. She still hadn't quite vanquished the anger in her own mind, and thus she still had to worry about ripping something to shreds when she was enraged.

"You cannot possibly defeat Doctor Light!" he laughed, though his readouts told that he was down to only half of his original power.

She rolled her eyes. Obviously he could not come up with more original taunts, for he had used that particular one several times at this point, despite its annoying repititive nature. "Mmm hmm, that's why we've done it three times before," she replied with a witty smirk as she looked around wildly for her teammate, but in the smoke and rubble she could discern nothing.

"Well...you...you got lucky!" he spluttered, his confidence level dropping for a moment.

Hiding her obvious disdain for the pathetic man, she created a sheild around herself for a moment so that she could find Starfire with her mind uninterupted by any more distractions. She could feel the Tamaranean's mind slipping into unconsciousness and though she willed her friend not to let go, her spirit had been broken and the connection severed as Doctor Light broke through.

This time when she felt rage coarsing through her veins, she did nothing to hold back, rather letting the emotion consume her despite her misgivings. As if in a different world, she watched herself engulfing Doctor Light in her own dark energy and she heard his screams of terror in the back of her mind, though it didn't register to her, almost as if someone else was in control of her thoughts and deeds.

Black energy was everywhere, clouding her vision, as she was faintly aware of the coarsing pain that resulted from her attack. No doubt all she was doing at this point was to strengthen her emotions with the xinothium that she was exposing herself to. At this point, though, she was hardly aware of the pain nor were any logical thoughts going through her head as she attacked with everything she had.

"Raven?" came a voice from behind her. She whirled. Robin! Immediately, her eyes returned to normal and the dark energy ceased to eminate from her being, uncovering Doctor Light, who was crying pitifully beneath her as she turned to the Boy Wonder.

"Robin?" she replied with a questioning glance. Leaning against a wall and breathing heavily, he didn't look like the hero she loved, but she couldn't help but stop for him.

"What are you doing?" he asked, his voice chastising as he eyed her, her body dancing with red sparks as her mind was made faintly aware of the grueling pain.

"He hurt Starfire!" she spluttered, for that was indeed the reason for her loss of control. Immediately, though, she wished that she hadn't said this, for it caused Robin's eyebrows to shoot up and she could sense the concern running through his veins from a mile away, only resulting in her own jealousy.

"He did what?" Robin asked, his voice suddenly more firm as he straightened up. "Where is she?"

She shrugged. "I couldn't find her," she replied.

Robin's heart lept into his throat, which was actually quite painful for him to have to deal with at the moment, for he was still recovering from his recent dose of xinothium. "What?" he mouthed, trying to catch his breath both due to the surprise and the fact that all these emotions were starting to effect his physical well-being.

Tears sprung to Raven's eyes, for she feared that in his time alone, Robin had decided that his feelings were for the Tamaranean princess, not the poor dark girl with the powers that could destroy him. "I'm sorry, Robin. I'm trying, but it's hard to find her in all the commotion of thoughts, and she's not exactly sticking out in all this dust and rubble," she said, her voice almost pleading. Faintly, she was aware that she was now on her knees, the searing pain in her abdomen having seized her body now.

Pushing off from the wall, he limped around the piles of rocks and unconscious henchmen, surveying the girls' work as he did so. Often he found that he forgot what a powerful warrior Starfire could be, what with her heritage and all. Something purple caught his eye, and he headed in that direction. Unfortunately, while he and Raven had been talking, they had neglected to notice Doctor Light.

The villain jumped out in front of the Boy Wonder, his eyes wide with near-insanity as he wielded a xinothium-fueled weapon. With little strength and no gadgets, Robin had no time to react as the weapon collided with his stomach, seding him gasping to his knees. As he placed his hands in front of him to hold himself up, he could feel the faint vibrations of footsteps on the ground. How many reinforcements did this guy have?

Doctor Light grinned down at the two gasping Titans as they felt the full effects of his xinothium. Maybe his suit had been defeated, but Chang had taught him how to use the chemicals to his own advantage, and he was about to unleash that knowledge on them. His first order of business would be to put the three of them back in their place. He raised his arm, preparing to strike, when a sudden green blast knocked it out of his hand.

From her place in the rubble, Starfire's quiet, weakened voice spoke up. "You shall not harm him." With her legs trapped beneath a boulder and various wounds dotting her figure, she looked anything but intimidating. Before she passed out again, she gave Robin a huge smile, which he returned, however similar to a grimace it may have seemed.

Raven watched this transpire through blurry, teared eyes, as confusing thoughts reigned supreme in her mind. Perhaps this was Robin's decision, to love Starfire instead of her. After all, the alien princess was much better for him. She was beautiful and elegant and a brilliant warrior, whereas she had brought and end to the world and almost to her friends. Perhaps they were not meant to be.

But then why had he expressed such feelings for her if he did not really mean it? And then there was the matter of Beast Boy... She shook her head as her thoughts became more blurred. Trying to stay awake, she continued to think about him. He had been so concerned about her and who she liked, did that mean that he felt that way about her as well? Everything was becoming a tangled web of feelings, and she wished that she had never become a part of it.

She shook herself back to reality when Robin started shouted to her. His words were labored, and she saw through her tears that he was struggling to return to his feet as Doctor Light groped around for another weapon. "Get us out of here, Rae!" he was yelling.

Concentrating with all her energy, she succeeded in producing enough energy to transport three people, but she could only maintain it for so long, and the two of them were way over there... "You have to come over here!" she said through gritted teeth. "I don't have enough energy to fly over there and still maintain a big enough portal!"

He considered his decision for a moment even as Doctor Light found another such weapon. With only a moment's hesitation, he lept forward, his breathing ragged as he rushed over to where Starfire was. Mustering all the strength that he could, he lifted the rock a few inches off the ground, enough so that he could free Starfire's legs.

"What are you doing?" she screeched as she saw Doctor Light approaching from behind while Robin payed little attention.

"We have to save her. I'm not going to let anybody get injected with that...stuff!" he shouted back even as a blast of xinothium left one of his boots badly torn. Lifting Starfire's arms onto his shoulders, he dragged her around the rubble, ducking behind rocks and such as he did so.

Raven's heart sank. Maybe Robin really had fallen for Starfire. With these emotions filling her heart, she hardly noticed Doctor Light headed her way, nor did she notice that her portal was starting to shrink.

"Raven!" Robin shouted, his eyes wide with fear, something she had not seen from him in some time. Just what had happened to him recently that would force such a change?

Realizing how her emotions were effecting their situation, she tried to get a hold of herself. Absorbing her own energy, she decided to use her own body as a portal instead, stretching her energy over the two other Titans just before Doctor Light reached her. Dissolving into the ground, it was becoming increasingly hard to maintain all three of them at once. Finally reaching the other side, she let them fall, feeling herself drop to the ground as well.

He watched as Raven fell. Great, now he had to get both girls to safety. Grabbing both by their collars, he carefully steered them underneath the hole he had created in his previous cell. "BEAST BOY!" he shouted, draining himself of much needed energy.

In a flash, the green changeling morphed before him. He had been waiting on the wall as a fly. "Dude, I'm here! Where'd you go anyway? I went to come get you and you weren't there!"

Robin gave the boy a hard look, then motioned to the two girls. "Let's just say that I'm glad I DID go back," he said simply, gesturing to the two girls on the ground.

Beast Boy's eye widened and his mouth formed a small 'o' shape. Raven... What had happened to them that would have left the girls in this condition? "Dude, what did Doctor Light do?"

Robin shook his head. "I don't know. I didn't make it until the end of the fight, but Raven kind of depleted herself of her own energy when she was fighting, and Starfire was way outnumbered to begin with. I don't know all the details, just that you need to take them up first," he said briskly.

Nodding numbly, Beast Boy morphed into his pteradactl form and hooked his claws around Raven's shoulder. Gently lifting the unconscious girl into the air, he made sure not to let her head droop to either side as he lifted her to safety. Setting her down on the ground, he returned and did the same for Starfire.

When he returned, he was greeted to a terrifying sight. Several henchmen had entered the scene, with Doctor Light standing in the center of them. Robin was on the floor, in the crouching position, his hands on the stone floor and his breathing ragged as red sparks jumped across his chest, telling the changeling all that he needed to know.

With a cry, Beast Boy started forward, morphing into a gorilla and taking down a few henchmen before Doctor Light blasted him with something and he found himself on the ground, gasping for breath. Once, he could handle, but after having just recovered, his body wasn't exactly welcoming more attacks. With a pained snarl, he transformed into a wolf and prepared to pounce, but he was hit once more. Returning to his human form, he lay on the ground, breathing heavily.

"I told you that you could not hope to win!" Doctor Light laughed.

"Just stop talking. You're an embarassment to most villains," Robin grunted, a sly smiled coming to his face even as he struggled to remain conscious.

"Be quiet! You two cannot escape, and soon the other unconscious Titans will be in my grasp too!" Doctor Light laughed evily.

"Don't touch them!" Beast Boy shouted, jumping forward with all of his strength, transforming into the green beast that he had once become when his own primal side had consumed him. It was now starting to take control once more as he defended his friends, and he took down several men before he was hit once more with a beam. This time the light and xintohium formed a cage around him, boxing him in most painfully.

"Back in your cage!" Doctor Light ordered, smiling horribly.

"Yo!" Doctor Light suddenly found himself staring into the barrel of a glowing red cannon. Red?

"You are no threat to me! I have a new suit!" Doctor Light laughed maniacally.

"Yeah? Well, say hello to my latest improvement!" Cyborg smirked, patting his arm. "Polarized matrices of high energy electrons, huh Robin?"

Robin grinned despite his condition, for he knew what that meant. Red X had obviously shared their findings. "I can't imagine where you got the idea," he said, half-laughing, though mostly sarcastic.

With that, Cyborg fired the cannon, sending Doctor Light flying backwards. As he brushed himself off, he looked right up into very angry eyes as yet another sonic blast hit him full on, sending him to his knees.

"Booyah," Cyborg smiled, helping Robin to his feet even as the group rose up once more and Doctor Light glared at the two standing heros. Well, one standing and one limping hero.

"I can take you both!" Doctor Light shouted, charging up once more.

Cyborg glanced at his instruments as he wiped sweat off of his forehead. "This isn't exactly the most stable thing to use, man. Why'd you decide to make your gadgets out of it?"

Robin smirked. "Because it isn't exactly the most stable thing to use."

Cyborg rolled his eyes. "Well, we've got to take him down fast, because I don't think my instruments can take the stress."

Nodding in agreement, Robin reached to take out a birdarang, then realized that he no longer had his utility belt with him. "Shoot," he muttered, taking a fighting stance.

Doctor Light smirked. "You think you can defeat me?"

Beast Boy rolled his eyes. "Dude, you've been using that line for forever! Think of something new for once!" he shouted through the glowing yellow and red bars surrounding him.

Growling under his breath, Doctor Light forced the bars to draw nearer to the green boy's skin, creating several small scorch marks in the material on his uniform. Yelping in pain, the changeling wisely kept his mouth shut throughout the duration of the following battle.

"Robin, do you have any way to get up there?" Cyborg asked, pointing upwards.

"Unless you can find a way to make me fly, I don't think we're going anywhere soon," Robin replied with a grimace as he once again pushed the blackness out of the corners of his mind.

Cyborg grinned as an idea came to mind. "It might hurt, but I have a way to make you fly," he said with a grin in his eyes.

Robin saw that look and backed away a bit. "You wouldn't-"

"Watch me," Cyborg grinned, hoisting the Boy Wonder up and throwing him like a torpedo into the air, seding him up onto the ground above.

"He did," Beast Boy grinned when Robin's annoyed face peeked back over the edge.

"Since you're up there, you wouldn't mind getting some of those X gadgets, would you?" Cyborg asked, his tone obviously teasing and proud of himself.

Robin rolled his eyes, though they couldn't see that he had done so because of his mask, then replied, "Yeah, let me see what I can do."

"Awesome," Cyborg replied, charging up his cannon for another attack and returning to battle.

Up above the ground, Robin groped around for a moment. The impact had stunned him for a moment, though obviously his vision had no effect on whether or not he could speak. Shaking his head to clear his sight, he finally saw the three figures slumped on the ground, spread-eagled at strange angles. Pulling himself in that direction, he knew exactly where to go for the discs he needed. After all, he had designed the suit in the first place! He didn't even disturb Red X when he stealthily opened the small pocket and, ahem, borrowed the gadgets that he needed, though there were only two left.

"Yo Robin! Are you coming back or are you too busy up there with your girlfriend?" He felt his cheeks flush, because at this point, the comment could have gone both ways.

"Well let's throw you straight up and see how well your vision fares, kay?" Robin replied in annoyance, strangely defesnvie against his feelings, though he was unsure why he did so. After all, he had professed them to be his friends, so why could he not trust them with his feelings? Yet he could never come out and say it, and for this reason he was experiencing the problems he was.

He also grabbed a grappling hook from X's belt and fired it into the wall, lowering himself to the floor and throwing several small explosives to blind Doctor Light, then throwing the remaining crippling gadgets into the smoke screen, calling, "We're getting out of here. Now. I don't care if we let him get away. We're getting out."

Beast Boy knew the cause of the distress in the Boy Wonder's voice, and he shouted back. "As soon as you get me out, I'm gone!"

Blowing out his breath in frustration, Robin replied, "Don't you think I thought of that?" With that, he brought five small explosives out of his pockets, grinning, and threw them into the cage.

Jumping back in surprise, Beast Boy let out a small yelp as they each detonated, trying to avoid them. "Dude, warn me first!" he shot at Robin even as the bars around him disappeared.

The smoke was beginning to thin, and Robin motioned them up the rope. "Come on, we need to get moving!"

They obeyed, and not a moment to soon, for even as Beast Boy disappeared from view, Doctor Light stepped into the open. A loud thump resonated through the cell as a huge rock was placed over the opening. The Titans were safe, for now.