The knocking echoed throughout the house, ruining the calm morning atmosphere. A groan. "I'm coming..."
The pounding persisted.
"Alright, alright. "
It didn't stop.
"I'M COMING! Jeez!" She angrily threw the covers off of herself and marched to the front door, cursing under her breath, "... stupid... ugh... good for nothin'... you'd think someone died or something-"
She smoothed out her messy hair and opened the door,"Yeah?"
A man in his late fifties stood there. His shoulders were straight and he was adorned in a black suit. "Good morning, young miss."
"Um, hey," she blinked in confusion.
"My name is Mr. Gray," he extended his hand and shook hers politely. A ghost of a smile pulled at her lips.
"A pleasure to meet you, sir. What can I do for you?"
"I'm a mortician and I'm-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" she jumped back, retreating her hand with a jerk as if she'd just been burnt, "Okay, listen, if the neighbor's dog died, I swear, I had nothin' to do with it! I didn't touch that thing and I swear that that freaking fuzz-bag had it coming. The whole neighborhood hates it and-!"
"Oh, no, no, no! I think you misunderstood," the man pulled his hands up in a calming gesture.
"... I did?" (O.o)
"Yes, quite. I was actually looking for someone's house," he slightly smiled.
Relief washed over her. "Oh, thank goodness", she sighed "I mean, I love animals, seriously, but the little bugger just annoys the hell out of me and all, so-"
He pulled out a small piece of paper out of his pocket, "Ummm, do you happen to know where a person called... Miss Fortune, lives by any chance?"
Her genius answer was, "... ha?"
"Most tragic. She has been unheard of for three months, I believe, and no one could find her or contact her in any way-"
"How horrible," she monotoned.
"- and I have been asked to inform her family-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," she waved her hand in dismissal and sighed, "Listen buddy, why don't you just leave that to me and I'll put their minds at ease..."
The man blinked, "Oh, you know the deceased one's family?"
Her eye twitched in annoyance. "Yeah, you could say that."
"Wonderful- ugh, I mean, my sincerest apologies."
"No sweat... (jerk -.-)"
"Um, may I ask how you plan to tell them the news? I'm sure it'll be quite-"
"Hey, it's no bother," she yawned.
"Oh?" he blinked again.
"Yeah, all I gotta do is walk back to the kitchen and proclaim myself dead..."
The man stood bewildered as the door closed in front of him.
I know, I know! My up-dating skills are those of a llama. And seeing how llamas don't even have hands to write, well, that in itself should say something about how horrible they are. I know I took forever to write this chapter, but I started working on a RedX/Raven one-shot and kinda got carried away with it. So after I realized how long it has been since I updated I put it on halt and started writing this. I promise you won't be disappointed with this chapter! …... I hope. ('O.O) I do have to warn you about the lack of action in it... like, there isn't any at all. XD BUT the ball gets rolling from here!
Cookies and 'Thank you's go to: superheat123, fallfromreality, Booyah, GinsengH, darkflare75, Mysterious anonymous reviewer, Lynessence, LaLaLand, animalllover, nephertiri, Ignite the Airwaves, Ijustdonthaveanaccount and Frenetique for reviewing or adding me to their faves or alerts.
Booyah: Dull moment? *tilts head to the side* What is this 'dull moment' you speak of? Hahaha, thank you my friend for such kind words. ^^ I truly appreciate them. You won't be disappointed with the story, I promise you.
Mysterious anonymous reviewer: Okay, I know who you are (-.-) and you know that I know who you are. When I read the name you used, Idk why but I felt like punching you... which I did. xD Mostly because I had the feeling you were making fun of me. Hehehehehe, yeah, sorry about that. '^-^ But then I read it and thank you. Your review was lengthy (just how I like them ;D) and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. So thank you, thank you very much. ^^
LaLaLand: It is? Ugh, I mean, of course it is! Lol, just joking around ^^ Thank you for reading my other work, I am grateful beyond belief ^_^ I hope I just haven't lost your interest with my lousy up-dating skills. xD
IMPORTANT: From now on I will only answer to anonymous reviews like this before chapters. Mostly because I already answer those of people who already have accounts and don't see a reason to type them up twice. =/
So now ladies and gentleman, things and creatures, I present to you the fifth chapter of 'The Games We Play'.
"Let the fun and games begin
She is vain and broken in
Skin is cold and white
Such a lovely lonely night"
BreakingBenjamin"Breakdown"
Chapter 5: Won´t you play with me?
Something was ringing. That he was sure of.
. . .
No, it wasn't really ringing. More like... what was the word again?
. . .
It was like... like when you dive into water and go deeper than you should've, so your ears kinda clog up.
. . .
That long note that never wanders off its monotony.
. . .
That ceaseless irritating buzzing that becomes hurtful at some point.
. . .
Buzzing! Yes! That´s what it was!
. . .
...Buzzing...
. . .
… and it was annoying the hell out of him.
The next thing he took notice of was how cold it was. His cheek kissed the chilling flat surface, his aching chest following its suit as well. His eyes refused to open. The darkness behind them was comforting for his throbbing skull.
"It's been quite some time, hasn't it?"
Time.
He was wasting it, an inner paranoia warned him. On what? He didn't know. He couldn't remember. It was all too foggy. But it was there, obvious and irritating like a ticking clock on a sleepless night-
-red lights flashing. Colors blurring. Wind. Cold. Noise. Noise. So much noise-
. . .
'What just happened?'
A silent groan escaped him once he tried to lift his head. It seemed to weight a ton and the unexpected increase in that nagging buzzing didn't help.
One hand on one side, second on the other. Push. Dizzy, dizzy. More buzzing. (It hurts). He fell down.
"Oh, come now, Robin."
(Arms? Knees? Spine?)
A moan.
(Right ankle? Elbow? Rib cage?)
'No time. Get up.'
Silence. More dark. Left- Right- Follow the path. A figure looking down. Jump- Move-!
Do something-!
His whole body refused to cooperate. Weary and beat-up muscles tempted his mind to stay in its lethargy state.
Moving hurt too damn much.
'Concentrate.'
Once more. Arms pushing, muscles screaming, he pulled up his knees till he was on all fours and shaking off the last drops of unconsciousness. Finally rid of the buzzing in his ears, he took a breath of satisfaction at the small victory over his own body. The boy steadied himself on his shaky legs after almost another collision to the ground. And just as he straightened himself up he noticed the heavy drapes of darkness all around him.
An eye following his movements.
Duck-
Punch-
Evade-
Swing-
Kick-
Air whizzing past him.
Falling. Falling.
The eye watching... just watching him.
He froze.
"I would have expected a much warmer welcome from an old acquaintance."
. . .
…. Fuck.
His arms snapped up into a fighting stance. His heart was beating franticly against his ribs. Adrenaline (or was it fear?) rushed through his veins. The alarm bells in his head deafened him as he spun round and round, desperately searching the darkness to find... nothing.
. . .
He stopped.
Nothing?
The boy's eyebrows knitted into a frown as silence and darkness snickered back at him.
No, there couldn't be nothing.
There was always a catch. Always a lead. A hint. There would always be something that was supposed to lead him to his abductor. That's how he always did it. Leave the mouse to find his own way to the cat, and the cat will patiently wait for it's playmate to appear, simply because it has no other choice. It has no other way to go. And Slade always found a sadistic pleasure in setting up that scenario.
The sick bastard.
So the question was: what was it that he wanted him to find?
He let his arms drop to the side, but kept his guard up as he scanned the inky blackness once more.
'Too dark,' masked eyes narrowed. He reached for a compartment on his utility belt only to touch his own waist. A scowl immediately twisted his lips.
"Shit."
No utility belt, meaning no emergency light. Meaning he's stuck here (wherever here was?) in total darkness, with no gadgets, no team and at the mercy of-
Something shifted.
. . .
His eyes narrowed.
. . .
Someone was here.
Robin slowed down his breathing tempo. His hands were detached from his side, tingling with anxiety.
Slower...
His eyes fell closed, as they were of no use to him in this dark.
Slower...
'Concentrate... Listen...'
Slower...
'Follow your instinct...'
A hand on his shoulder-
Eyes snapped open-
He spun around-
BAM!
"AH!"
The assailant stumbled back. "OUCH OUCH OUCH OUCH-"
The masked boy was oblivious to the pained cries of his attacker and just leaped at him. His outstretched fist connected with the assailant's chest (he thought?), stealing his breath. He launched his other hand, which was sloppily side-stepped with a girlish 'eeek!' ('probably female', he thought) and he thrust out his leg, tripping the person in the process who fell backwards with a blunt 'thud'.
A groan could be heard and a bit shifting (probably leaning on his elbows) as Robin took an obvious step closer to gain his enemy's attention. He could almost see the person's head snapping up with a panicked expression.
"Okay, okay, I give! I give!"
. . .
Wait-
He stopped.
That voice-?
"... Beastboy?"
. . .
"Robin...?"
Well... crap.
It was mocking her, she decided.
A single thin streak of neon white that wiggled under, what she presumed was, a door. It was taunting her.
('Take a step.')
She gazed down at it. Her eyes narrowed slightly, converting her once blank face into a calculating one.
She woke up in a tenebrous room. Yes, it, in fact, was a room, with one bed (she had woken up in) and a bedside table (she had bumped into) near it. Other than that, she came in contact with no other furniture. The first (and the only) thing she saw when she stood up was that little white line on the floor which set of a flow of memories.
The ground that screamed in agony as the truck gridded against it, leaving black hot smudges on it that looked strangely like blood. Then the pain, God, the pain, followed by the hazy dream-like state as she wobbled to the truck, opening the double doors and looking up at a black mask with an orange spot in its middle. The shock, the beam that blew her away, the black-dotted sky that grew darker and darker until there was nothing left.
And so Raven just stood there. Her eyes were glued to that single illuminated border, running different scenarios in her head. Following all the possible strings of logic related to this situation, because this wasn't right. It just wasn't.
He deliberately separated her from the Titans. Correction. He deliberately separated the Titans from her. He specifically wanted her to follow his little decoy. But what for? Slade had no business with her. Their little saga was concluded once she became the portal and he was forced to travel down the pits of hell for his scorched flesh and brittle mortality. She was of no use to him in any way now.
But then again, her current predicament said otherwise.
Her eyes snapped up to the flat surface in front of her.
('Cross it,' it breathed in her ear, 'You know you will.')
Anger crawled up her skin.
Where were the Titans? Slade got them before her, that was a fact. Was he gonna blackmail her with their lives? Or vice versa. Blackmail them with hers?
She almost scowled then.
He was most certainly nefarious enough for that. He did it before and he certainly wouldn't think twice about doing it again.
Again, why?
Robin has always been on the receiving end of that man's focused attention, why change it to her now? He knew he couldn't corrupt her in any way, oh he knew. A barbaric and bloodthirsty bashing across an eerie chamber that was later her grave, got that point across quite nicely. So apprenticeship was out of the question.
('There's no other way to go.')
Her nerves jittered. She suppressed a growl as the little white outline mocked her repeatedly.
'WHAT do you WANT?'
. . .
Silence. Hushed laughter all around her.
('Only one way to find out,' it snickered.)
Her eyes burst in a spiteful resolve-
Cold fingers curled around the smooth surface-
She flung the door open-
White blinded her-
And the barrier was crossed.
An endless template of white circles of light that fell from the above to the floor stretched far along her left and right. Shades of gray melted into darkness along the walls and corners. The algid air left a chilling sensation along her airways.
A path to a morgue. That's what these hallways reminded her of. Empty corridors void of life, of sound and color. Simply dead, just like where they led her to. A society of corpses. Her boldness wavered for a moment with uncertainty. Raven slightly shook her head to will away the pictures her mind conjured up. She took a slow breath and reached for her com-
She froze.
. . .
'What-?'
As if on cue her mind backtracked to the fight. The scene played out in flashes in her head. Her staring bemused at the hole in the wall. The communicator slipping out of her frozen hands and left forgotten in a pile of rubble. And her running, running away from it.
Raven would have scowled at her own idiocy for dropping her communicator if she wasn't stupefied by another frightening fact in the next second.
A shackle was enclosed around her wrist.
Cautiously, she raised her right hand and inspected it. It was two inches long, thick and a bit heavy. Its design was simple. The surface was a dark gray color and it was unbelievably smooth. She couldn't find an outline of the lock till her fingers accidentally brushed against it. The feeling was so faint under her fingers, almost nonexistent, that it took her a while to actually realize she found it. And beside it, imprinted in the material of the shackle, was a tiny red light-bulb.
Her eye narrowed.
This was no common technology equipment. No, it was too well-crafted. She could tell. All those hours spent with Cyborg in the garage weren't spent uselessly. This... thing, was specially designed.
'Why,' she thought dryly, 'so much trouble for little 'ole me? I'm blushing.'
She wrinkled her nose. 'How the hell didn't I notice it before?'. A few seconds later she decided not to ponder about it, as she had bigger things to worry about.
Letting her hand drop to the side, Raven glanced between the two seemingly identical corridors. A short debate commenced.
Left or right?
The answer was a simple one.
'Does it matter?'
No. No, it didn't.
Their encounter was inevitable. Whether she took left or right, somehow, she would see him. Somehow she would come to him. And he?
He would be waiting.
She took the left one.
"DUDE!", the green boy jumped to his feet, "What the hell is wrong with you?"
Robin's hands snapped up into a peaceful gesture, "Shit! Sorry, I didn't know it was you! I swear I wouldn't have-"
"-beaten the crap out of me? Gee, thanks, oh fearless leader."
The guilt melted away in a millisecond and Robin growled, "You sneaked up on me..."
A hiss escaped the younger boy as he touched the sore skin just bellow his eye, "And you gave me a black eye."
"Then we're even." He dropped his hands to the side, "Have you seen the others?"
"Dude, I haven't seen anything in this dark," the changeling dusted himself off, "I was just playing possum till I heard something. Then I decided to check it out since the sense I picked up was familiar."
"You couldn't tell it was me?" Robin raised an eyebrow. Not that the other teen could see.
"Attempt at murder was definitely not my first clue," he muttered under his chin..
The silence that followed pointed out that he was obviously heard and probably glared at.
Beastboy sighed. "My senses are not that heightened when I'm in not in a particular animal form. Like this they're pretty good at noticing things, but not that good at distinguishing* them," he shrugged.
"Hmmm," the other boy stared into the darkness. His whole being whispered to him that something was off.
"Ohhh? Is that so Robin?"
A crate falling.
Slade dodging to the side.
Pain-
It struck him like a lighting, splitting his head in two and making him slightly bend over. His skull was painfully pulsing. He grabbed the side of his forehead and hissed through gridded teeth in pain.
"Hey? You okay?"
A gloved hand was resting on his shoulder.
"Yeah," he swallowed his saliva and slowly opened his screwed shut eyes. "I'm fine."
"You sure?" Beastboy's eyebrows slightly dropped in worry.
'No,' but he ignored the pain and forced himself to stand up straight.
"Yeah," he took a deep breath and stepped away from him, "I'm sure."
The changeling didn't believe him. He wasn't as stupid as most people thought he was. Beastboy knew certain people hated showing weakness. Robin was certainly one of them. He was stubborn as hell and pushing the issue further would have only angered him. So he left it alone. Because he was his friend... and because he didn't know anything he could say that would change its outcome. Yeah. That was the only thing he could do. Just leave it alone.
"... Okay," uncertainty colored his voice. Robin took it with a small nod, still starring off into the darkness.
"Can you sense the others?"
An unsettling silence between the two. A sigh. "Yeah, I think so."
The soles of her footwear softly tapped along the dark corridor. After an extended period of time of just walking, Raven noticed that the lights further along her path were off. She stopped in her tracks.
A light breeze embraced her from the murky darkness.
She was getting closer.
Uneasiness wove itself in her chest. She resisted the urge to fist the material of her cloak as an act of reassurance.
Each step she took she felt like she was being observed by him.
She could swear he was there in the dark, right in front of her now, just watching her with that cold hypnotic eye; that each movement, each breath she made, would reveal a part of her soul and inner thoughts that he hadn't known of earlier. And he'd see it. He'd understand it. He'd exploit it. And she wouldn't know how to counter.
She clenched her fists and glared at the shadows. Even if he was watching her, she would not allow him the pleasure of seeing her fidget over nothing.
She was not afraid. But just in case he was there...
Purple irises faded away behind a wall of white-
The red dot on the shackle glowered in a angry red-
Electricity crackled in the air-
Raven toppled over, screeching in pain.
Her right hand vibrated in murderous pain that spread out through her whole body. It teared under her skin like seething termites that were uncontrollably chewing, cutting and eating her flesh from the inside. And they wouldn't stop, God, they WOULDN'T STOP! She lost control of her body. Her legs started jerking and kicking air on impulse. Her other hand grabbed the shackle in a painful attempt to yank it off. Yet she let go of it as soon as the merciless force bit her palm.
They kept chomping, clawing, piercing her flesh and muscles, gnawing, cleaving, pulling- STOP! STOP! STOP! STOP! GOD! STOP!
. . .
And then it stopped.
Numbness hit her. It prickled the sore skin of her hand with full force. It felt as if she had just pulled her hand out of a blazing fire. Beads of sweat glistered on her still pain-twisted face. Her breathing came in severe irregular gasps, like she had forgotten how to breathe.
Her nails scratched the solid ground as she fought for control over her body. Her muscles just felt so heavy, as if she was nothing more than a hunk of meat.
Her whole body shook as she leaned on her untrustworthy arms. A hiss escaped her.
'Damn him.'
Saliva gathered under her tongue. Her eyes flickered with crimson.
'Damn. HIM!'
Red dotted her vision. Her teeth grid together and her fingernails dug themselves into the ground. Dark sparks crackled under her palms.
The red dot flickered again and Raven screamed as electricity washed over her once more.
As soon as the wave came, it ended. Raven remained on all fours and her breathing was labored.
'Breathe...' she ordered herself to comply. 'Calm down and breathe... Breathe... Azarath, Metrion, Zinthose...'
The prolonged time she wasted on regaining her breath seemed irrelevant. Almost non existent to her as she pulled herself up to stand straight and once more glare at the darkness facing her.
That thing was preventing her from using her powers.
'That son of a-'
She cut herself off with a quick jerk of her head.
Anger was pointless, the Titans needed her now. She couldn't afford to lose to that red-hooded sicko hiding in the back of her mind. Not now when the situation had just gotten worse. Dread tugged at her chest, and with a deep breath, she covered it up with false bravery.
She continued her path. Raven was not afraid.
She was snuggled in a cocoon of slumber. It was wrapped around her like a silky sheet. Gentle and warm. So welcoming and accepting. Light as a feather and pleasant as the song her K'norfka used to sing to her.
It was... nice. To be in such a blissful state of unawareness was nice.
And it was ripped away when a hand touched her shoulder.
Mechanical claws reaching for her. Grabbing, yet missing.
She's scared.
They're lunging for her, so she fights. They're closer to catching her. They want to hurt her. He wants to hurt them.
She's so scared.
She has to fight!
Green eyes flew open with a startled gasp. She abruptly sat up and started to pull away from the unknown person. Her once peaceful heart painfully raced in a irregular tempo. She could feel the hand reaching for her and once more as it took a hold of her shoulder. Her mouth parted. A scream was building up in her chest when-
"Hey, hey, Star, it's okay! It's me."
She stopped struggling. The scream died away in her throat. The pressure in her chest seemed to slowly evaporate and leave more room in there for air.
"It's okay," he repeated running his hand up and down her arm in a soothing motion, "It's me."
"Robin?" a sigh of relief escaped her,"You startled me." She looked up and could imagine him warmly smiling at her.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you," he took her hand and helped her up. "Are you hurt?"
Starfire shook her head. "No. I am not."
She absentmindedly rubbed the sore spot on the back of her neck while she looked around the dark room. "W-What has transpired?"
. . .
"Slade."
One word, said with so much hostility and loathing, with such justified resentment, was enough to make her flinch. She understood.
Starfire had always thrived to understand humans and their way of life. They were just so complex. They never felt just one thing. They didn't concentrate and try to pin down one emotion. They mixed them. They stirred them together in a cauldron that is the heart and then lost themselves in trying to figure out what they have just made. A new flavor.
And she was in awe. There were just so many. So many she never even tried or knew of. And she wanted to. Once she tried one, she knew right away that just one wouldn't be enough. She 'felt alive', as humans put it (though she still couldn't understand why). It all just felt so different from her home planet.
Time, dates, events, memories and emotions, all of them mixed into an unknown potion.
Compassion. Bliss. Sympathy. Passion. Enthrallment.
Or in some cases... poison.
Spite. Frustration. Bitterness. Jealousy. Rage.
She had a sip of all of them. And then carefully considered which to discard and which to embrace.
But that name... That name was poison itself.
It burned in her mouth so she would remember it well. It painfully tightened her throat so that she couldn't relive any other flavor. It rotted her heart and boiled her blood till she would be driven to madness.
And one day... She feared it just might succeed.
But somehow... Somehow she would always cleans herself of it. Not completely. No, never completely. It would always linger there upon seeing her friends exposed to such a toxin and her being condemned to just watch them helplessly as they struggle against it. As they fight it only to poison themselves even more.
She just felt so darn helpless.
She didn't know how to show them. She didn't know how to make them understand. Sometimes she wondered if they were even capable of understanding it. That maybe they just couldn't. But she hoped they would. And that was enough for her to fight off his poison once more.
There were so many flavors out there, and whether they'd be good or bad, she'd taste them. His was not the dominant one. She wouldn't let it be.
She clenched her fist. "Our friends, are they-"
"They're here," Robin cut her off. His voice was even and controlled. She knew right away what was happening behind the wall of apathy. "Beatstboy's looking for them as we-"
"AH!"
CLANG!
Thud!
. . .
A groan. "Found Cyborg," a muffled shout could be heard from the green boy who was sprawled across a pair of metallic legs, with his rear up in the air.
Beastboy pulled himself up and found the metallic man's shoulder. He gave him a small shake.
"Cy. Hey, Cy. Wake up."
Two pairs of feet stopped behind him.
"Is he okay?"
"I don't know," he rubbed the back of his head. "He seems to be off-line."
"Think we can turn him back on?" Robin took a step pass him and crouched at the metal man's side.
Beastboy stepped back to make more room. "Dude, I don't know. I'm not a tech-wiz."
Robin gave Cyborg a small shake before turning his head where he presumed Starfire was standing. "Star, can you give me some light over here?"
"Oh!" she slightly jumped, "Yes, of course."
She took a step closer and spread her palm to make a starbolt.
A garish red eye flared in the darkness.
She cried out in pain. Static crinkled in the air.
"Star!" both teens ran to her side as she fell to her knees.
She hissed in pain when the pain begun to slowly subside. Needles prickled her palm as she held her hurtful hand.
"Star, you okay?"
A light sigh left her lips. "I-I think so..."
"What happened?" Robin frowned.
"I-... I do not know. I was just-" she outstretched her palm again to try once more. Again the dot flickered. She bent over holding her hand and cried out again.
She panted heavily as the pain stopped.
A gloved hand gently took hers. It slowly moved around her palm to her wrist. A tint of pink crept up her cheeks. His fingers stopped upon a material that replaced her gauntlet. His frown deepened and he cursed. "Damn!"
"What is it?" Beastboy stepped closer.
"This thing on her hand is preventing her from using her starbolts."
Starfire slowly pulled back her hand and touched the outline of the material she hadn't noticed earlier. A small confused frown formed on her face.
The cogwheels in Robin's head spun round and round. Just what on Earth was going on here? They weren't supposed to be here. Slade wanted him. So why were they here and rendered useless more or less?
A light, nauseating feeling spread through his stomach.
This was bad. This was very bad. What was that psychopath playing at now?
Uncomfortable silence wrapped around all of them and Robin could once more hear the buzzing in his ears. His chin dipped in determination. Robin spun on the heels of his footwear and marched back to Cyborg. "Come on. We gotta get Cyborg back on-line."
'We have to be prepared for anything Slade has up his sleeve.'
Her footwear clicked against the ground. Their dying echo reiterated in the darkness.
Nothing.
Still nothing. No lights, no sounds, no robots, no Titans and no Slade.
A nagging feeling poked her in the back of her head, telling her that there must be another passageway. Raven dismissed it though. She surely wouldn't have missed it.
Her steps gradually slowed down. And then she stopped.
. . .
'Dear Azar...'
What if she actually did miss it? W-What if there was another passageway hidden somewhere in the shadows and she had missed it? Just walked past it and-
Click-clack!
Suddenly she was blinded. The fluorescent light from above burned her eyes so she shielded them.
"How thoughtful of you to join me, Raven..." his voice rang around her. So controlled, so unmistakably smooth. The darkness around her was not so empty anymore. She was trapped in a white circle, exposed and prominent to his eye.
'Never mind...' Raven silently growled and lowered her hands. Her eyes narrowed in pure detest. "Slade."
Bzzzz...
. . .
Bzzzz...
"Move a little closer," he instructed. The little green firefly complied.
Starfire chewed on her lip as she intensely watched how Robin handled the wires in an open compartment of their friend's back.
Bzzzz...
Bzzzz...
"Is... Is something as it should not be?" she dared to ask.
Bzzzz...
"He's gonna be fine, Star," he said without looking at her and continued working. It did nothing to lessen her concern.
Silence followed. A few moments later he seemed to notice her uneasiness.
"The mechanism I removed from his back was just a simple discharger," he explained, still not looking at her, "It short-circuited the conductors to his energy core-"
Bzzzz...
"-so all I gotta do is-"
Bzzzz...
"-rewire them again and he should be back on."
"Oh..." she blinked.
He sensed the confusion radiating from her. "Think of it like a restart button- Beastboy stop fidgeting!"
The little firefly seemed to take offense and buzzed around his face in fast aggressive moves before moving back to his previous position. Robin's eyebrows slightly furrowed and without a comment he went back to the task at hand.
Bzzzz...
Shiny blue sparks danced in front of his eyes. They were hurtful to look at, their flickering was stinging his already painful head.
Slade had said something. He knows he did. But he... he just couldn't remember. And it was driving him crazy.
He was watching him from above in the ware-house. ("It's been quite some time, hasn't it?")
The mocking and taunting was there. ("Oh, come now, Robin. I would have expected a much warmer welcome from an old acquaintance.")
The inclination of his head followed. ("Ohhh? Is that so Robin?")
And then- No, wait. No, he had said something before that.
Robin rubbed his pulsing forehead with the heel of his palm. 'Ugh! What did he say?'
"Robin?" a gentle touch on his shoulder shook him out of his thoughts. He looked up and the red-head alien. "Are you alright?"
He blinked. "Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine, Star," with a light shake of his head he turned back to rebooting Cyborg. She pulled back, her concern not reaching him as he once more closed himself off from them., rendering his face expressionless.
A sigh escaped her and again silence fell over them.
Bzzz...
Bzzz...
A sudden 'clank' followed by a mechanical purr made them all lean back. A light blue color began to shimmer inside the globes that were Cyborg's shoulders and then-
"HOLY-!" the mechanical man jerked up to his feet.
"Ah!" Beastboy reverted back to his original form and jumped back in surprise along with Starfire and Robin. Before any of them could figure out what was happening, the trio found themselves face to face with the sonic-canon and a furious red mechanical eye.
"WHO YOU TRYIN' TO SNEak up- on..."
"Oh..."
Starfire and Beastboy stood petrified behind an equally startled Robin.
"Um... h-hey?" the green Titans slowly popped up from behind their leader.
. . .
"Oh, dang!" Cyborg pulled back wide-eyed. His arm returned to its less dangerous state. "Sorry, guys! I didn't mean to scare you like that!"
Beastboy coughed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "W-Who? Us? Scared? Hahaha, good one..."
"Friend, you are undamaged?" Starfire stepped closer to him.
"Yeah. I'm fine. But-" Cyborg flexed his neck before stretching his back, "-man, what was that?"
"You got KO-ed with this dude," Beastboy bent and picked up the discharger Robin took off and handed it to his metal friend. Cyborg stared blankly at the round metal mechanism. He blinked once. Then twice.
The single dark eye narrowed. "Oh, no he didn't-"
"He did," Robin added.
"Aww man!" the large teen grabbed the side of his head. Robin tuned out then.
His eyes slowly roamed the now dimly lit room (courtesy of Cyborg).
What was he missing? He-
Slade slowly tilted his head to the side.
… He-
A chuckle.
… He- God, what did he say?
He had to remember. He just had too.
"Quite admirable Robin…"
Robin's eyes went pass the barely visible corners of the room. He didn't detect anything along the walls. No outlines, no nothing. His gaze paused on his friends who were discussing something before continuing along the room.
"… but it's not always about you."
Gloved fingers painfully clenched into a fist.
'Then who is it about?' he felt like screaming. 'Who the hell are you exactly targeting you sick-'
. . .
No air.
He couldn't move.
There was ice in his veins.
"-Rob?"
Cold.
He was lost in the dark.
"Just looking..."
"Yo, Robin?"
J-Just so cold.
"... for my favorite-"
"Friend?"
Please, no...
"-little. Bird."
"Hey, what's wrong?" the whole group stepped closer to him. His back was turned to them.
No response.
"Um, dude-"
A breathless murmur. The words barely audible, yet sharp enough to cut their chests and steal their breaths away.
. . .
"Where's Raven?"
Clank!
"Where are they?" purple eyes roamed left and right, searching the darkness for him.
"My, my, so much time has passed and yet you hardly seem to have changed," he taunted.
Behind her.
She spun around. Nothing.
He continued, "Still holding a larger value for your friends lives then your own. How undaunted and caring of you."
Raven almost sneered then. "Very perceptive of you to notice. Now answer the question," she spat.
Left? No. Not there.
"I assure you that they are quite safe and that no harm will come to them. For now that it."
He was close.
"How considered of you," she deadpanned.
Right? No, not there either.
"What do you want from us?" Raven glared at the darkness. She could feel his scent all around her, hanging in the air like a dense fog.
"Strange," Slade innocently purred, "I was confident that the little gift I left you would make it quite evident with who I wish to discuss business with, my dear". A sigh. "Guess I was wrong."
He was mocking her. The bastard!
"Oh? And what significant business do we exactly have to discuss?" she bit out in a bitter tone.
She could practically feel his aura slithering up her body, gently wrapping around her like a snake preparing to choke its pray. She suppressed a shudder, its smooth surface brushed against her thigh.
A low chuckle. "Well now, I wouldn't call it business. Much too formal for what I had in mind."
Now it crawled around her waist and it tenderly slipped around her stomach. Her breath hitched at the thought of it suddenly tightening its grip.
"Ransom? Blackmail? Extortion?" she clenched her fists and turned around. "Take your pick. I'm sure one of them fits."
God, he was so close!
"Games."
Raven bit her lip.
It glided up her spine. Slowly. Agonizing. Marveling at the way her body tensed and felt so wonderfully breakable under its muscles.
"A contest, if you will."
She dared to draw in a shaky breath. "I see your eyesight has faltered. When have I ever seemed like a game sort of girl?"
Another chuckle. "You hold a valid point, my dear. Though..."
Little by little it went around her neck. It's grip ever so slightly tightening on her body and, and… and why was the air so damn hot? She couldn't breathe!
"I do hope you have a change of heart."
A soft 'clank'. Mechanical buzzing ringed in the background.
Raven gasped in shock. Hands of steel suddenly seized her shoulders from behind and jerked her to the side. Her hood fell back.
"The prize promises to be-"
The darkness suddenly peeled in front of her eyes. Two walls separated from each other and revealed orange colored glass. And on the other side-
Lips parted.
Her irises waned. Masked ones widened.
Shocked faces stared back at her.
"-very... heartwarming."
. . .
"So what do you say, little bird?" he purred in her ear.
A beat of her stunned heart.
"Won't you play with me?"
*I have no idea if that about Beastboy's powers is true, but it sort of made sense to me. =P
Oh. My. Friggin'. God! (collapses)
I have *pants* NEVER written anything this long in my entire life! You people better not ask me for an update till my brain regenerates. I mean, phew, holy crudge! Twenty two pages! I'm beat! XD
I hope all of you enjoyed this VERY long chapter and found it interesting to read. Now, there are a few things I'm still worried about and I was hoping you could answer them for me:
Were the characters OOC? Did I portray them and their actions correctly, cuz' I have NO IDEA. O.o'
Was it suspenseful enough?
Any major overdoing I should be worried about in my writing?
Can I have a cookie? :3
Was the format of the writing eye-catching? I tried to make it a bit interesting, dunno if I succeeded... =/
Did Slade's and Raven's dialogue sound IC?
Any particular fave lines/scenes?
You know where to click and tell me ;D
AND because all of you have been such wonderful readers and reviewers I have decided to grace you all with a little sneak-peak for the next chapter! Woohooo! =D
Just before we go there, one little request for all of you anonymous reviewers. Please stick to one name if you choose to write me a few things so I'd know who I was talking to and who wrote what. It would be highly appreciated! ^-^
Sneak-peak:
"Here are the rules," the man turned away from her and linked his hands together.
"Be careful," he breathed in her ear, "You might lose more than you can imagine."
'Get away! Get away! Get away! Get away! GET AWAY!'
"Damn it!" the edge of the boy's hand collided with the gamboge colored glass. "We have do something!"
Her limbs went cold. There was nothing. Only air tickled her sweaty palm.
Quivering lips parted-
. . .
'I'm going to die...'
"No!"
"RAVEN!"
The skin on her neck tingled with an insane urge to shudder.
"Do you understand?"
. . .
"Yes."
Chapter 6: Reversed Tag