Alas, My Brother
Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven traveled through the dense forest inside the crater. The mist never left their sight, and they couldn't really see more than a few yards ahead. "This doesn't make anything sense," Cy said, "We should be seeing some kind of man-made structure or something."
"Maybe they're underground?" Beast Boy proposed. Raven and Cyborg looked at each other. Why didn't they think of that earlier?
The metal man sighed, "Still, there has to be some type of opening or a secret wall or-"
"Massive hole with a ramp going into the earth?" Raven asked. Right in front of them was said hole. The opening plunged deep into the darkness, and the ramp winding down was wide enough for a truck to go through.
"Well, that'll do it," Garfield said. "Maybe if we... follow..." Suddenly, Beast Boy's eyes shot open as the mist slightly cleared where he could see the eastern side of the crater's wall. He balled his fists up, gritting his dentures. "Darn it! I completely forgot!"
"What's wrong?" Raven asked.
"Do you hear it?" Nothing but the birds fluttering in the air. "I just remembered something. Isn't Starfire allergic to uranium?" Beast Boy asked.
Raven rolled her eyes. "She's allergic to chromium."
"Which is a casing used on some nuclear reactors," Cyborg said thoughtfully. He suddenly widened his eyes. "So if the Alpha terrorists are using the uranium and the chromium, Starfire should be sneezing her head off now." They looked past the trees and towards the edge. Silence. Not even the birds and crickets made noise now. The mist rolled back over the trees and blocked their view as the orange hue of the setting sun grew darker.
"We can't do anything about it right now," Raven sighed, "The best thing we can do is find the terrorists' hideout and search from there. Maybe we can find out where they are."
Beast Boy and Cyborg nodded, and they crept down the dark spiraling hole. The sun slowly slipped out of their sight, and Cyborg's small shoulder light guided the way, Beast Boy in front with Raven behind him. The green teen glared down the silent hole that echoed with each dreaded footstep they took. "You're afraid. Why?" Raven asked.
"I don't... if Robin and Starfire are in trouble because I decided to trust-"
"We all would have done the same, BB," Cyborg interrupted. "Don't punish yourself too bad, okay?" Raven nodded in agreement. Beast Boy sighed as they kept traveling down the hole, feeling the air cool with each complete circle round.
"You know, you're not a freak."
"Hm?"
"I said you're not a freak," Raven repeated. "Just because you look different doesn't mean that you're an abomination to society." Beast Boy blinked in confusion. "So you having an extra head from radiation won't make you more of a freak."
"Oh? OOOOHHH! HAhaha, Raven, you're not feeling sorry for me, are you?" Garfield laughed, "I'm fine with it."
"I'm not," Raven said firmly. "You're not a freak, no matter what anyone says." She continued walking down as Beast Boy and Cyborg looked at each other and shrugged. Suddenly, as the light of the sun completely vanished from above, Beast Boy spotted something reflective high above them. He dismissed it, but it happened again and again, every few moments they went spiraling down.
"Cyborg, flash your light up for a moment." When he did, the team saw large floodlights dotting the hole. "That's what I was seeing."
"They use the floodlights when the sun is down," Raven said.
"And the trees and the mist give them the best cover," Cyborg added.
"Oh... well there's that. I was just wondering what kind of lightning bug would be down here. Turns out I was wrong," Beast Boy chuckled. Raven rolled her eyes.
"It still doesn't explain how they haven't gotten caught by any airplane," Cyborg said. "With floodlight, you should still be able to see-" Just then, the lights turned on. A heavy red hue showed all around.
"That answer your question?" Raven asked.
"We're sitting ducks up here! Someone will spot us!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "Come on!" The team ran down the spiraling ramp to the bottom where they hid behind a truck pressed against the wall. A row of trucks lined the walls of the semi-lunar tunnel. "I don't hear anything. Cyborg?"
"My sensors aren't picking up anyone."
"Let's get moving."
"Wait," Raven said. "Something's not right." Beast Boy gritted his teeth and sighed.
"She's right. This looks like a trap out of Zombie Planet 10. No way there wouldn't be any guards by now."
"Leave it to Beast Boy to make a strategy out of a bad movie," Cyborg remarked.
"Things are just different, okay?" Garfield quietly hissed, "Especially with Toros involved. I have to start thinking...now... or he'll know my next move! Now, how do we spring the trap without getting it sprung on us?"
They thought for a moment. "I've got it!" Beast Boy almost shouted. He whispered to the others. Raven and Cyborg looked at each other with wide eyes and slightly dropped jaws.
"That's... actually a good idea," Raven said.
"Hey! Don't sound too surprised."
"It's coming from you. That's surprising enough."
"Alright, alright," Cyborg hushed them both. "Let's get going." They snuck away from the truck and slowly crept through the dim redlight tunnel. The tunnel opened up to a massive chamber, brightly illuminated with spotlights. They looked down into the chamber and saw the terrorists busily shoving huge wagons of rock onto a conveyer belt moving through a small hole in the wall. "That's how they do it. They mine the stuff here and then process it somewhere else. That way people don't find out what they're doing here. They might be hiding under some company." The metal man looked around and spotted a windowed control panel high above the chamber embedded into the rock. The team stealthily made their way up to the control center, which was empty. "Ooookay, maybe the place is automated," Cyborg said.
"Or we're just walking into a trap," Raven murmured. Slightly gulping from Raven's grim prediction, Cyborg quickly tapped away at the computers.
"Huh?"
"What is it?"
"They're not using it to power anything, but... I'm pretty sure that this is the local government's name," Cyborg said.
"Which means the local government might have something to do with this," Raven commented.
"The communication jammer is near the place they're stationed. On the north mountain of the crater. There's another facility east of here on a mountain called Broers se Berg?" The half-metal man looked at his translator. "Brothers' Mountain."
Raven pointed to another file on the screen. "There. They're holding Robin and Starfire where the jammer is. But-"
"I think you've figured out just enough," Said a voice behind them. The team spun around. The masked green jumpsuit henchmen pointed their weapons, surrounding them. Toros stepped out of the crowd along with the leader. Raven narrowed her eyes. "Don't be so upset, Raven," Toros said emotionlessly, "I had to do this. It was the only way to make sure you didn't stop us in the beginning. Trust me, I'm doing this for a reason." His tone hid something, but Raven couldn't pinpoint what it meant. Either that or she was too upset at the betrayal.
"Looks like Beast Boy was right about you," Cyborg muttered. The blonde looked around the small room.
"Where is he?!"
"Gone. We lost him in the factory when we split up," Cyborg smirked. Toros narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth.
"No, you're hiding something. Where is he? I need him for this!"
"That's quite enough, Toros," Said their leader in a low yet feminine voice. Her mask was fashioned after a lioness, and she stood a bit shorter than Cyborg. "Now, place the cuffs on them. We need to get them to the holding facility."
"Don't hurt them," Toros growled.
The leader laughed a bit. "Of course, we won't." The henchmen quickly bound Cyborg and Raven in electric handcuffs."Oh, and I wouldn't try using your spooky magic, girl. Each of your cuffs is specially made for your team. My dear boy here made sure that we accounted for that."
"Traitor," Raven grunted.
"It's for the best, guys. I promise," Toros replied. The titans were escorted out, glaring venomously at the blond shape-shifter. Toros growled and slammed his hands on the control panel. "Where are you, Beast Boy? You should've been here. You left with the others! How are you not here?!" He smashed his hand right through the metal. The leader put her gloved hand onto his shoulder.
"Calm down, Toros. You can't jeopardize our mission... or break our equipment." The leader said, looking at the broken metal. "Don't worry, my dear. You'll find him." The leader's other hand shooed a pesky fly away. The fly responded and flew far away, out of the control room, out of the tunnel, out the massive spiraling hole, and out into the cold night air, even as far as the crater's edge. The fly flew past the T-Ship, flying far to the south until it reached the Dapper Mense. The tribespeople didn't know anything until the fly transformed into a green boy. Beast Boy dropped down, glaring hard at the ground as his fists tightened. As the men and women rushed to him, salty water already streamed down his face and fed the grass with sorrow.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" His agonized scream echoed into the midnight air. "TOOOOORRRROOOOOOOSSSSSSS!" His teeth gritted until they pained him. He weakly smashed his dirted hands to his head, gripping and pulling his hair. "WHYYY! WHHHY!" The tribe only wept, though they knew not why. Knives pierced through Beast Boy's heart as he huddled on the ground. The tribe huddled and wrapped their arms around him, listening to his painful wails that jerked the stillness of the night. Pain and sorrow married that night in his mind, taking over every happy memory of his look-alike brother. The silent moon witnessed his tears as Beast Boy sobbed into the night.
Continued...
