The steel door slid open and closed as the tail end of a billowing black cape cleared its threshold. The man walked with poise and purpose, his squared shoulders almost as sharp as his intelligence. As he rounded the corner of the short hallway and entered another room, his eyes were drawn through the double paned glass to the strange alien he'd spoken with only moments ago.

"So. . ."

He snapped his eyes to the other man in the room.

"Did you get anything useful?"

He nodded and made his way to the computer mounted on the windowed wall where he began typing.

"They have no recollection of the attack."

The second man creased his brow.

"'No recollection'? They just laid siege to the watchtower for 3 days!"

The first man shook his head.

"And they were winning when they surrendered."

The second man narrowed his eyes in a glare. The thought that the greatest heroes of the watchtower almost lost to an army of mercenaries didn't sit well with him. The first man looked back over his shoulder at the second for a moment.

"Clark there's something more going on here. This is the fourth individual I've interrogated and none of them remember anything from before the surrender."

Superman took a deep breath, clearing his mind and relaxing his brow. With fingers massaging the bridge of his nose in an attempt to de-stress he proceeded.

"So. . . What do you think is going on then?"

The dark knight shook his head.

"I can't be sure, but it seems like someone was controlling them, forcing them to fight. If that's the case the question is why would they relinquish control when they were so close to victory."

In that moment a streak of red stretched into the room before ending at a thin built man in a red jumpsuit.

"Batman, sorry to interrupt but I have something you may want to see."

The caped crusader glanced at Superman for a moment before nodding at the flash and stepping away from the computer he was using. Taking the hint the flash moved to the computer and started typing furiously until an image popped up on the screen. He moved out of the way, motioning for Batman to take a look. He leaned in to study the image and his jaw dropped as he recognized what he was seeing.

"My god."

—

The sound of three metal disks scraping across the cold uneven ground echoed through the empty street gathering the attention of the armored half-demon. Two of his four red eyes cracked open, studying the three black and gold objects that had skidded to a halt just a few feet before him. He lowered his legs as he turned to face them when the disks suddenly jumped into the air. Within a split second a blue light appeared from behind them before engulfing the objects and expanding the spectacle into an explosion of blinding energy. The resulting light lingered long enough to illuminate the dust as it kicked off the street shrouding the area in gray particles.

Robin stood at the ready, his bo staff drawn and his eyes narrowed as he tried to make out any shapes beyond the hazy cloud. Cyborg stood next to him, his sonic cannon primed and prepared to follow Robin's lead. After a few moments the dust finally began to settle revealing the iron-clad soldier standing with his arms together shielding his face and body. Cyborg grit his teeth, disappointed that their surprise attack had been unsuccessful. Jesse stood up straight moving his hands to the side as he took in his new foes. His face was writ with anger and adorned with a new red gash on his left cheek only adding to the rage welling inside the young half-demon. He drew his sword without question and Robin charged, ready to exact his own fury. Two swipes parried by the swordsman before the third scraped up the blade to the hilt where they held for a moment, glaring at one another. Jesse cracked a smirk before he pivoted his wrist catching the other side of the staff with his hooked guard and ripping it out of Robin's hands to throw behind him. As he completed the motion and spun around he placed a hard kick to Robin's chest sending him flying over the waiting metal man.

Robin soared through the air crashing into the earth a few feet back and Cyborg spared no time as he took his place in the fight, charging in like a bull while wildly throwing hooks at the calculated killer. He ducked under each swing as he repositioned behind the metal man and swung his greatsword. Metal met metal but no blood was shed. Simple swipes against the cybernetic human proved useless as his attacks were stopped cold by the heavy plate comprising most of Cyborg's body.

The two traded ineffective blows as Robin returned to the fight, positioning himself behind the iron-clad brother. He leapt into the air to land a heavy metal boot on his hooded head but before he could make contact Jesse again ducked beneath one of Cyborg's swings and pushed, lining up the lumbering hulk of metal with Robin's heel as it came crashing down on his head. The impact sent Cyborg into the ground with a heavy thud. Robin gave no pause to the mistake as he used his ally as a spring board to launch him toward his adversary beginning a new assault against him. One strike after the other failed to hit its mark as the man moved with nearly equal agility. Robin wheeled forward onto his hands and sprung into hard dive kick but again the man ducked out of the way before attempting his own counter-attack, swinging his blade at the acrobat. Robin swiftly leapt over his attacker revealing an enraged Cyborg charging at him. He yelled as he threw his heavy hook but Jesse dodged to the side. The metal fist found its home in Robin's stomach, knocking the wind out of the boy wonder and causing him to stumble a few steps.

"Dammit Cyborg, check your aim!"

Robin barked. Cyborg growled back in response.

"Take your own advice you spiked haired asshole!"

Robin glared back at an enraged Cyborg, a strange overwhelming feeling of resentment coursing through his veins and causing his blood to boil. After a moment the towering metal man began to charge at him. Cyborg swung violently, his technique long forgotten in his hate-fueled fury. Robin dodged expertly, his own rage building as he leapt a few steps back. Robin's glare deepened as he drew yet another bo staff from the pocket of his jacket. Robin was all but ready to begin his own assault when a sound pierced his mind.

'Richard!'

Robin's eyes went wide and he winced at the sudden pain racking his head. He placed a hand against his right temple as if attempting to steady his mind but found it continued to swirl madly. As Cyborg charged he managed to regain some semblance of awareness just in time to dodge again, moving a few paces further to give him more time to assess what was going on.

'Richard! Snap out of it!'

The voice echoed through his mind a second time and after a moment he recognized the even yet tender voice he'd grown so attached to.

'Raven?'

He thought to himself, running a shaking hand through his jet black hair.

'Jesse's manipulating you. He's trying to turn you against each other.'

Robin blinked and looked at his cybernetic ally with new eyes, reopened and now understanding what was taking place. Cyborg continued to glare at him like a mindless dog as he prepared his next strafing run.

'I can't help Cyborg, you need to. . . .'

Robin leapt again as Cyborg sprinted beneath him, a failed attempt to tackle. Robin thought a moment on Raven's interrupted thought before acting on it.

"Cyborg, snap out of it! He's messing with your head!"

Cyborg growled with even more rage as he turned back to Robin. A primal yell erupted from him as he charged again toward the boy wonder. Robin stood his ground this time holding his staff horizontally as Cyborg clashed into it, taking hold of the ends with his own hands. The two stood at an impasse as robin shouted again.

"I'm not the enemy! Remember who we're fighting for! Think about Raven!"

Those words seemed to stir something in him as he winced, his strength drawn for a second. Robin used the moment to his advantage to push Cyborg back a few steps. As he stumbled he clutched his head between his hands, shaking as he fell to one knee. Robin had hit the right nerve, but his small victory was short lived as he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. In the flash of a second Robin stood between Jesse and Cyborg, his staff vertically deflecting Jesses attempted stab at Cyborg. Using the momentum of the sideways block the young half-demon swung his blade around before it halted again on Robin's staff as they clashed for strength. Robin shoved him back a few steps as they broke and Robin looked back at Cyborg, who was now panting from the immense mental fortitude it took to right himself. He heard him mutter a quiet 'Thanks' under his breath before Robin returned to the task at hand.

Robin began striking at his opponent, each jab and swipe being met with the harsh clang of metal. Robin pushed him back with each attack until he finally attempted another counter. He spun with the momentum of his block before attempting to swipe at Robin's chest. As his cold steel came close Robin ducked down below the swing. Behind him, Jesse caught sight of Cyborg standing with his cannon ready to fire.

"Booyah."

He had no time to defend and the sonic blast rang out as it hit him square in the face knocking him off his feet. Robin was quick to reach the side of their downed opponent before placing one final strike against the man with the end of his staff, knocking him out entirely. Robin sighed heavily as Cyborg stepped up beside him, his eyes fixated on their now unconscious foe.

After a few seconds movement on the horizon caught the attention of the young titans. The black curtain that surrounded the city began to lift up in one corner, slowly tearing its way skyward. Genuine smiles lit upon their features as they stared in anticipation. As more and more of the field slipped away only darkness seemed to persist beyond the veil. Cyborg knit his brow in confusion as he lifted his arm, tapping the interface to display a clock.

'9:43 a.m.'

He looked back up to the horizon, even further confused and concerned. He studied the edge of the city, trying to make out anything beyond the shadows but found it empty. The mountains that once bordered the city were nowhere to be found. He followed the tear upward as his breathing became slightly more erratic, telling his worried state.

"Cyborg what is it?"

He shook his head.

"There's no mountains. There's no stars. . . ."

He froze as his eyes lit upon a piece of rock floating in the middle of the sky. Atop it was black dying tree rooted in place, a few ominous dark birds nesting on its branches. That's when it all clicked. He shook his head again.

"I don't think we're on Earth anymore."

*clap*

The sound reverberated through the empty street cutting through the thick air like a well sharpened blade.

*clap*

Another booming sound finally drew the attention of the titans as they turned about to find the eldest brother slow clapping as he stepped towards them, stopping a few feet away.

"Bravo. I'm surprised it took you so long."

Robin grit his teeth immediately, the vivid picture of Jacob standing with his hand clenched tight, the foul sound of Raven's bones buckling under his power. He attempted to lunge at the demon but Cyborg barely caught him, holding him back. Jacob chuckled running a cold chill down his spine as he watched.

"For a 'White Knight' you sure do have a short temper. It's too bad you can't use that anger to protect daddy's little betrayer."

As he finished a sudden rush of movement caught his attention. A dark object flew through the air and dropped to the ground just outside of the parking garage. As robin strained his eyes to see what had happened a figure crept into view, bearing the black armor of the brothers. It was then robin started to notice the dark object was moving and attempting to stand. His heart seized within his chest as the pale face of his closest friend came became clear. From such a distance he could see very little of the emotion on her face but through the bond he felt the faintest tugs of absolute fear. He watched, immobilized, as she finally scrambled to her feet before Jared grabbed her by the hair and started pushing her toward the group. She stumbled across the asphalt, her legs wobbling and one arm wrapped around her ribs while the other tried to alleviate the pain on her scalp though to no avail. It was obvious not only by the weakened state of their bond but by the way she seemed to move that she'd taken a beating, her power well onto working its magic in mending whatever wounds she'd accumulated.

As they finally reached them, stopping a few paces behind Jacob, Jared shoved raven into the ground where she collapsed and grunted in pain. Robin winced at the sight and finally felt his muscles contract as he tried to press forward but the steady hand of cyborg kept him still. He grit his teeth at the brothers, rage continuing to build within him. Jacob just smirked and chuckled again.

"While watching you struggle to delay the inevitable has been fun, it's time we move on to the final act."

Jacob glanced behind the two remaining titans when robin recognized footsteps from behind him. He turned just in time for Jesse to step between them, knocking shoulders as he moved to stand beside his brothers. Robin continued to glare daggers at the men but Jacob seemed to relish the anger. Jacob nodded to Jared who quickly gripped raven by her hair, yanking her head up. The eldest brother then returned his gaze to the titans leader.

"Do try to be careful. Father would hate for his trophies to be broken."

As soon as he finished speaking the ground beneath them opened up in a dark portal. They began to fall into the ground and Robin ignored his cryptic words to sprint towards them. It was no use as they phased beneath the asphalt before he could reach them, falling on his knees and punching at the ground with his rage. He sat there a moment, seething with a flurry of thoughts ranging from self-blame and sorrow to blind hatred for the half-demon brothers. It wasn't until he felt a tap on his shoulder that he returned to reality. He looked up into the concerned face of Cyborg who's eyes were fixed on the horizon. Robin trailed his gaze to a sea of red eyes, glowing with demonic power. In the thick of their fighting they'd failed to realize the mind-controlled citizens of jump city had begun to converge around them.

"We got trouble man."

Cyborg readied his sonic cannon as robin stood up beside him. He glanced around at the zombified pedestrians.

"We need to get Raven back."

Cyborg cast a sideways glance at him, some mixture of confusion and panic induced anger thick on his features.

"Man, we don't even know where they took her!"

Robin closed his eyes and the sight of his nightmares flashed in his mind. The brimstone cathedral, so vivid in his mind. It sat amidst the ruin of the end of the world along the long path to the harbor of souls where his dearest friend had been hidden away. His eyes snapped open.

"I know where to go."

He said as quickly as the words came to his mind. Cyborg looked at him again but saw a look of realization on his face.

"Alright then, lead the way."

Robin nodded before pulling a staff out and sprinting off in the direction of the old public library.

—-

He knelt on the precipice of the large chasm. The wind picking up his long black cloak as he surveyed the haunting scene. He was looking for anything, a sign of what had happened. Had the city been blown up during the skirmish on the watchtower? No. The cut lines that marked the hole where a city had been lacked the mar of a bomb and there was no debris in the heart of the gorge. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted something. A streak of yellow light. He stood up following the persisting trail before shouting.

"Kid!"

The single word brought the movement to a halt. A young man stood afar from him, a terror in his eyes as he gazed back at the dark knight. Another moment and he stood before the Gotham legend.

"Mr. Batman. What are you doing here?"

He silenced the young man with his hand.

"Tell me everything."