"Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate." -Thomas Jones
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Two days later, Jump City.
Cissie King-Jones, a.k.a. Arrowette, stepped off the bus and took a deep breath of Jump City's fresh air. Only to regret it because all she smelt was diesel exhaust from the bus.
After coughing her lungs out, and quickly retrieving her luggage, she made her way down the sidewalk towards her hotel room. She was thankful to be breathing cleaner air now. Jump City, boarding on the Pacific Ocean, was gifted with a nice cold breeze today, and Cissie enjoyed the cool breeze.
She caught the scent of pizza from a nice little pizza place on the corner of a fork in the road. She heard that the Teen Titans actually liked to eat there (or so it said on the tourist's map), so it didn't surprise her to see a big sign on the window that said "The Teen Titan's choice for pizza!".
She turned around and saw a glimpse of the magnificent Titans Tower past the tall buildings and skyscrapers. She planned to visit them as Arrowette and talk to them about Red X, and she wondered if bringing them some pizza would get her on their good side.
-X-
"So then I hid in the alley for a bit. After that, I made my way to my hotel room very carefully.", Red X said as he recounted the story of what happened in Star City to Katarou.
Him and Katarou were training at Katarou's place. Katarou was practicing with a bo staff ("bojutsu" in Japanese) and Red X was throwing shuriken ("shurikenjutsu" in Japanese) at a target board.
"Interesting.", Katarou replied as he continued with his forms and katas. "Yah!", he yelled as he swung his staff. "Are you worried she will follow you here to Jump City? It is known as your home after all. Yah!"
"Nah." Red X threw another shuriken at the target board. "I already got the Teen Titans on my heels, one more hero wont hurt. Besides, I'd rather her chase me then Robin anyways. Bulls eye!"
"Yah! Why's that?"
"Because she's better looking then bird-boy."
Katarou laughed. He laughed so hard he dropped his staff and forgot about doing his katas. It was a deep laugh from the belly, the kind you get at a family reunion if you like your family. It was both odd and warming to hear it come from the big guy. You could almost forget he was a criminal and mistake him for your beloved uncle.
Red X took the laugh as a compliment to his sense of humor, and threw another shuriken.
Bull's eye.
-X-
Arrowette wasn't pleased with the price of renting a boat to get to the Titan's private little island, and she wasn't thrilled with how much "The Teen Titan's favorite pizza" cost. But despite all that, she stood on the shore of the Titan's island, with three pizzas in her arms. One pizza was a vegetarian special, just for Beast Boy; and another was a carnivore's special, for Cyborg; the third was a regular cheese pizza.
She made the trek to the Titan's doorstep, and pressed what looked to her like a doorbell. A robotic camera scanned her over from head to toe, assessing that she was not a threat. Then a computer screen next to the doorbell said, "One moment please."
She looked all the way up and wondered how long it would take someone to get from the very top of the tower down to her. Well, that one moment was a long moment, and she passed the time by tapping her foot and hoping the pizzas hadn't gotten cold.
"WHO DARES TO DISTURB THE TEEN TITANS?!", I thunderous voice roared.
The large doors slowly opened and slid away, and standing before Arrowette was the hulking frame of the half-human, half-robotic, member of the Titans. He loomed over her, his mechanical eye glowing a demonic shade of red. His features were slightly hidden by the shadow he cast which spread and covered Arrowette too.
"WHO DARES..." Sniff. Sniff. "Hey! Is that pizza! Sweet!" Cyborg instantly shifted from menacing tone and image of doom and malice to a warm and inviting teddy bear.
Arrowette was left only with an odd smile and a nervous twitch. She quickly shook her head to regain her thoughts and senses. "Hi, I'm Arrowette, and-"
"Arrowette? You supposed to be some new kinda pizza delivery girl?"
"Um… No. I'm from Star City. I guess you could say I'm the resident heroine there. I came to speak to you guys, if you wouldn't mind."
"But you are going to share that pizza, right?"
"Yes…"
"Well then come on in!"
Arrowette sighed in relieve, and gladly followed Cyborg into the massive tower.
"Oh, and you might wanna check into our infirmary, dawg.", Cyborg said.
"Why?"
"You look like you're about to pass out."
-X-
Red X didn't like this… thing he was about to steal. All he knew was that Rupert Thorne had developed a taste in modern art, and would like this particular thing. Red X didn't even know how to describe it, aside from a collection of scrap metal wielded together and then given a tacky paint job from the 60's. It was supposed to represent the circle of life. Go figure. Either way, someone somewhere decided it was art, and thusly worth five hundred thousand dollars. And that was good enough in Red X's eyes.
Granted, he didn't need that money; he just sold that Japanese ink painting to Katarou. But if it were money this thief was after, he wouldn't be where he was today.
It was thrill he was after. And if some superheroes or police wanted to duke it out to stop him… All the more thrill.
It was after closing time, the guards were all safe in dreamland, and with the laser trip-wires, motion sensors, and cameras all deactivated from the security room itself, he was free to take his marry time. Red X would have looted this whole museum of modern art, but he didn't like most modern art and he didn't know of anyone else who would buy it from him.
The thing he was stealing rested on a pedestal, a glass dome had been secured on top of it for the night. X had cut a hole into the inside of the pedestal, and had just finished disabling the alarms and pressure sensors protecting the thing.
With that done, Red X stood up and removed the glass dome so carefully. A wave of relief washed over him when no alarm triggered. He bent over and set the glass dome on the ground, but something caught his attention from the corner of his eye. As soon as he bent down a red laser dot appeared on the opposite wall, and it soon descended towards X and disappeared.
Thinking quickly, and hoping it wasn't what he thought it was, he quickly darted his head to the right and saw the laser dot appear again. Then the dot shifted right and disappeared.
That's when he figured it out.
It was the dot from a laser-sight on a gun! And it kept disappearing behind the back of his head!
Red X wasted no time and immediately bolted to his right and behind another pedestal. As he did so, shots rang and bullets chased after him, creating shatters and holes along the far wall and floor.
Red X rested his back against the pedestal he hid behind and tried to calm his breath. Okay, so it's safe to say that somebody's trying to kill me! Red X pulled some smoke bombs from his utility belt with his left hand and some shuriken with his right hand. And my job is to make him regret it.
Red X slowly looked over the pedestal, and momentarily switched his vision to infrared. He saw another figure behind one of the other pedestals in the room with a rifle.
The figure peered behind the side of his pedestal with his rifle ready. A cloud of smoke erupted around him and three x-shaped shuriken whipped his rifle out of his hands. He instantly bolted to another pedestal for cover, but Red X left from his pedestal and sent more shuriken towards him. Most of them missed, but one nicked him in the calf muscle. The figure rolled on the ground and pulled out two handguns. He fired guns at Red X's general area.
Red X hid behind yet another pedestal, and gratefully watched as other examples of modern art were slaughtered around him. There was a break in the gunfire, and Red X assumed he was reloading or something. He pulled out an explosive x-shuriken from his belt, leapt from his hiding place, and threw it.
The figure ducked as the shuriken sailed past him, and hit a fire detector across the room. The shuriken exploded, causing sprinklers to rain down on them and protective cases telescoped around to protect the pieces of "art" in the room.
Red X suddenly appeared from wherever he was hiding, darting towards the figure with his feet sliding on the layer of water that had accumulated on the floor. He held up both palms and fired an x from each hand, which shot the two guns from the figure's hands.
The figure tried to kick Red X, and missed, and then they both backed off to get a grip on the situation. The sprinklers stopped raining. This was the first time Red X got a good look at his opponent.
Red X's opponent had a costume all his own. He wore a sleeveless trench coat on top of a blue body suit. A gold utility belt around his waste (because everyone's gotta have a utility belt) and a gold wedge added color to his wardrobe. A blue mask and a visor covered his face, and he owned a cache of guns and weapons.
"Hey there.", Red X said. "Do I know you?"
"No."
They began circling each other.
"You're Plunder, that bounty hunter from Keystone City.", Red X explained.
"So you've heard of me."
"Not much, but enough. So why are you trying to put a new whole in my head, as if I haven't already guessed?"
"Because someone paid me too, of course."
"Of course. Any chance you'd tell me who?"
"Please, Red X, you should know I couldn't tell you that." Plunder reached behind his back and pulled out a hunting knife. "Nothing personal, just business."
"Isn't it always?"
Plunder sprinted forward and stabbed with the knife, but Red X jumped back and dodged it. Plunder continued to slash and strike with his knife as Red X dodged and attempted to intercept.
Plunder stabbed with the knife, but Red X dodged it and grabbed Plunder's wrist with his left hand. Red X pulled him closer by the wrist and punched his face good and hard with his right fist.
Plunder dropped the knife and backed off just in time to be tied up by one of Red X's giant ensnaring x. Before Plunder could plan his next move, Red X sent one of his strongest sidekicks into his gut, throwing him off his feet and across the room.
As Plunder tried keep his head together, Red X walked up, grabbed him, and threw up against the wall. "Who hired you?!", the thief demanded.
"Not talking!"
Red and blue lights shined through the window. Police.
"Apparently our little tussle has aroused suspicion.", Plunder said.
"You mean all your gun fire.", Red X said. "You better tell me now, or I'll let them come."
"And arrest us both?", Plunder said, not backing down or loosing confidence.
"I'm not the one who's tied up. I can still get away. And don't think you'll be safe in jail."
"What makes you think I'll let them take me that far?"
Red X knew he had a good point, and the number of sirens and lights outside was only growing.
"What are you going to do now, thief?"
Red X began looking around the room, searching for an idea or an answer, thinking of a way out.
"Well?", Plunder taunted.
Red X punched him, and then pulled him tighter. "Listen up, you're about to witness my one good deed for the year."
Five minuets later.
The police entered the room in a swarm of professionalism, but Plunder was already subdued and Red X was gone.
Plunder was unconscious and plastered to the wall by some sort of red goo and a note was attached to his chest. Soon the police chief and his assistant came to investigate, and the police chief took the note down and read it aloud.
"Dear police, happy thanksgiving. Here's your turkey. Love, Red X.", the police chief said. He had a large build due to too many long nights depending on coffee and doughnuts to keep him awake.
"Red X?!", the assistant said. He was a lanky young man, well dressed, and trying his best to rise through the ranks of Jump City's Police Deportment.
"Yeah… That's odd."
"Yes, it is, sir. Why would a thief bring us this guy?"
"Well, yeah, but I meant how Red X called him our thanksgiving turkey."
"Sir?"
"It's June."
"Yes, sir."
-X-
"Red X… Was a mistake.", Robin said, as he had said to each one of his friends before. Only now he said it to Arrowette, who was at the other end of the conference table.
She had come to talk about Red X, the thief who took ten vials of zynothium from her city. She had asked the Teen Titans for cooperation and any useful info. She also told them a brief summery of what happened in Star City. The mention of the thief's name seemed to bring a sour note to Robin's face.
Something on Cyborg's wrist beeped, and then he informed everyone in the room that an alarm at the Jump City Museum of Modern Art had gone off. Starfire volunteered to investigate. Robin said it was just as well; he wanted to speak to Arrowette alone.
So then the rest of the team left, and even though Robin knew they all had their ears pressed against the door, he told Arrowette that the gentlemen thief she'd met was a mistake.
"What?", she asked.
Robin took a deep breath. "I created the identity of Red X, and the suit, as an alias so I could get closer to a criminal named Slade. Ever hear of him?"
"Who hasn't? I've even heard of him all the way over in Star City.", Arrowette said.
"Yeah, well, my plan didn't work. I almost lost my life, and my friends. I'm a lucky person. A few months ago, I saw someone running around in that suit, calling himself Red X. I hadn't even known someone broke into the tower and took it. Who knows just how long he had been using that suit before we found him?"
Arrowette stared into her cup of coffee, thinking about Robin's words.
"He's my responsibility. My fault. My problem to correct.", he said.
"But you've got a lot on your plate already.", she argued. "Couldn't hurt to let me help."
"I appreciate the offer, and I understand where you're coming from. Really, I do. But Red X was my mistake."
"If it's any consolation, he's not that bad a guy. He sorta saved my life, back in Star City. Adonis got me in a bad spot, and he was gonna rip a new hole in my neck. Red X saved my life and helped bring down Adonis."
Robin seemed somewhat shocked by the news at first, but his shock died away soon. "I'm not entirely surprised. He saved my life once too, along with the lives of the rest of the titans and the entire city."
"What?", Arrowette asked sharply.
Then Robin recounted the events at Chang's Observatory.
After hearing of Red X's act of heroism, she sat pondering for a long time, holding her cup of coffee. Robin sat across from her, ever patient for a reply. Perhaps he was thinking of what she'd say next, or maybe pondering a deeper level of Red X's character.
In a mix of sorrow, confusion, and hope, Arrowette spoke. "So maybe he's not such a bad guy."
Robin nodded in solemn. "I admit, he could be worse. A lot worse."
"So then he's not much of a priority for you guys?"
"Well… We do have other problems."
"So why not let me chase 'em down?", she said.
Robin said nothing as the thought.
"Look, I respect that he's your chase. I do. I know what it's like to need to prove something to someone. But he stole form my city too."
Robin was silent.
"So what if I chase him for a bit? Does it really matter who brings him down?"
"He can be dangerous."
"Be he won't kill. We both know that. He saved both our lives, remember?"
"Do you think that gets him a free ride?", Robin said, eyes narrowing.
Arrowette couldn't believe what she was doing. She was arguing with Robin, the Boy Wonder, the leader of the Teen Titans, and the adopted son of the scariest man alive.
But she wasn't about to back down now. Superhero's aren't doormats, and she wanted to be a superhero her whole life, she'd worked too hard. Her aim was so accurate, that by the time she was three years old she could throw three darts at a dartboard and hit the bull's eye. Of course, half of that was the result of her obsessed mother, but that was another story.
"I think it means we shouldn't throw stones at him just yet. We owe him our lives after all.", she said.
"So does that one or two good deeds make him a hero?", Robin spat back.
"Maybe, maybe not. But prisoners, murderers, and felons in the Justice System get time taken off their sentence for less then what he's done. A lot less."
Robin's eye's widened a tad in realization. Then he regained his composer and rested his chin on his gloved hand in thought.
Arrowette waited for what seemed like hours. When he was done Robin finally spoke.
"Deal."
-X-
It was raining all over Jump City that night.
Red X opened his bedroom window, crawled in, retracted his grapnel and line, then closed and locked the window. Beads of water slid down his body and black cape and dropped to the floor. Red X just stood there for a moment in his bedroom, facing the doorway, his back to the locked window.
Water crept down his mask as he intensely stared into his own thoughts. He didn't even care that he was creating a puddle of water at his feet on the floor.
He looked over to his pet rock in its cage. "Tonight, someone tried to put a nice new hole in my head. How was your night?", Red X asked the rock.
The rock said nothing.
Red X bowed his head in solemn. "Someone wants me dead… Who could hate me that much? I mean, I know I don't have too many real friends… Okay, so I have no friends."
The rock was quiet.
Red X perked his head up again. "Oh yeah, there's you. Least I have you."
The rock said nothing.
"His name was Plunder. He's a bounty hunter from Keystone City, and tonight he tried to ambushed me and put me in the obituaries."
The rock spoke volume with its silence.
"Hey, wait a minute… Why a bounty hunter? If someone wanted me dead, why not send an assassin? Someone like David Cain or Deadshot? Unless… Whoever hired Plunder wanted him to capture me, not kill me. Of course, that doesn't explain why he was trying to pump me full of lead. Wait!"
Red X searched his person all over, and found a rubber bullet lodged in the Kevlar lining of his cape.
"He didn't know that the suit's bulletproof! He wasn't trying to kill me!"
The rock was stunned silent.
"And that would explain…" Red X set the rubber bullet on his dresser and removed a wallet from his utility belt.
"I found this wallet on Plunder before I left him for the cops. He bought an airline ticket, under the name Marv Wolfman, for a flight back to Keystone City three days from now. But he only bought one seat! That means he wasn't planning on taking me anywhere."
The rock said nothing.
"And that means whoever hired him to hunt me down must be here in Jump City!"
Red X realized something.
"And it means I need physiological help because I'm talking to a freaking rock!"
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Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I'll keep updating this as often as I can.
