Chapter 11: Metal Bands

Greetings, loyal readers! Here is the warning I issued the first time around in this chapter: lots of monologue in it and Slade explains things.

Enjoy!

The Titans were awakened bright and early by the blaring of the alarm. Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire all charged into the living room.

"Tick tock, Titans. You should always be ready. When one sick bird falls to the floor, the Teen Titans will become four once more." Slade's face disappeared from the screen before any of the Titans had time to comprehend what had just happened.

"What? One, two, three, four… Umm, guys? Where's Raven?" Robin asked in a tense voice, suddenly wide-awake.

"'When one sick bird falls to the floor, the Teen Titans will become four once more,'" Cyborg said slowly as realization dawned on all of them. "Slade. Got. Raven." He turned his cybernetic eye to the other faces around him. Robin looked sick, face white. Starfire's hands were over her mouth and her eyes were wide, and though Beast Boy still looked half-asleep, the teen's hands were balled into fists at his side.

"Cy, play the transmission again. Maybe we can find another clue about his location. He might still be in the sewers," Robin said, voice strained. Cyborg nodded and replayed the tape in slow motion.

"There!" Beast Boy pointed. Cyborg paused and zoomed in on a small section of the screen.

"Let me just adjust the contrast," he mumbled, tapping a few keys as he clicked on the picture.

"Jump City Sewage System: Madison St," Starfire read aloud. "That is to the north, yes?"

"You can see the shadow of a ladder on this side here, so he must be near a manhole cover. Cyborg, can you zoom back out and up the contrast even more?" Robin asked, studying the screen. "I think I see something."

Cyborg turned back to the computer and zoomed out, increasing the contrast and watching for something to appear.

"There!" Robin exclaimed.

"I see nothing," Starfire said as she squinted at the pixels.

"There's a door," Robin said as he pointed to an almost invisible handhold in the wall. He traced his finger along a thin line around it, and the others finally noticed what Robin's sharp detective eye had spotted: it looked like a small door.

"Of course he has a secret lair," Beast Boy said.

"What are we waiting for? Titans, move!" Robin said, starting for the garage.

"Let's fly, Robin," Cyborg said.

"Fly? But all the other cars-"

"Our vehicles have custom motors. Slade can probably recognize them by now," Cyborg noted. Robin thought for a second and nodded.

"You're right. We need stealth for the first part of this mission. Let's go. We don't know how long we have," Robin said in a solemn voice. He felt his throat constrict, but swallowed the rush of emotions that kept threatening to spill over. He had to be the strong leader, not the erratic, guilt-stricken boyfriend. It was the only way to get Raven back.

…

Raven slowly opened her heavy eyelids.

"My head," she groaned. She moved her hand to rub the bump, but cold metal bit into her thin wrist instead. Looking up, she saw her hands clamped to the wall under a set of iron bands. Raven closed her eyes and chanted under her breath.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos..." She winced as a sharp pain shot down her arms and through the rest of her body.

"Ah, ah," Slade tutted from beyond the light of the bare bulb above her. "No powers. It's only fair to warn you that every time you try, a jolt of electricity will go through your wrists and down to the rest of you. It gets stronger every time, so don't try again, lest you be burned to a crisp." Slade stepped out of the shadows.

"Why? Why me?" Raven said angrily, pulling herself up straight to relieve some of the pressure on her pained shoulders.

"Let's not get testy. Wouldn't want your powers acting up now, would we?" Slade said cooly. Raven took a deep breath and let her expression go blank. Slade didn't know about the latest 'development' in her powers, yet. Good. Slade took her silence as a sign of compliance and continued.

"Now, I've been watching you, all of you. You Titans may be quite pesky, but it is good entertainment to watch you in action. I was wrong to try and go after Robin. He did have the added value of potential for apprenticeship, but really I just wanted to destroy all of you. I imagined the loss of your leader would send your little team reeling, but I made a slight miscalculation."

Raven kept her face set in a steady glare. She ignored the pain in her legs and arms and wondered if reaching out to the others mentally would activate the electric shocks. Slade continued.

"You were that miscalculation, dear Raven. The Titans can go on without Robin if they have to. I kept watching after his return. Cyborg and Starfire are strong, but easily taken out. The same goes for Beast Boy. When Terra attacked, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Robin all went flying off into various buildings. It was too easy. Starfire, though not hurt, was hit many times and could not keep the attacks off. But you could." Slade paused, regarding the girl on the ground with leering eyes. She glared and pressed herself closer to the wall behind her.

"Yes, the quiet one. Quick to protect yourself, agile, good reflexes. Almost like Robin, but better. You and Robin were the only ones to stay up for more than a minute when Terra attempted to eliminate you. After Robin went down, he couldn't come back up. But you almost beat Terra. Quite impressive, really. Your powers are unique. You are vital to your team's protection. Your shields are oftentimes the only thing between the Titans and utter destruction." Slade stopped his pacing and turned towards her, hands folded behind his back.

"So you want to kill me," Raven deadpanned. "Then what? You think the team will just fall apart? We adapt. We train. We are not broken that easily." Raven said the last part with gritted teeth. If she could keep Slade talking, and it was not that hard to do, then maybe the others could find her. They already knew about the sewers, right?

"You forget I have been studying all of you. Watching. And I know more about each of you than you know," Slade said, not moving. "You are perhaps the only Titan with a strong bond to each of the others. This is not something to be taken lightly."

"I'm dying to know what you mean." Slade smirked at her sarcasm.

"Robin was never this entertaining," he mused. "Let's start with Cyborg. You are the little sister he never had. When his own sister died in the accident he felt he could have prevented, he was crushed. Then he finds the team and, more importantly, you. A way to start over, someone to look after. You were his second chance, and he is very protective of you," Slade explained, resuming his slow pacing.

"How did you—" Raven started.

"Let's just say Brother Blood was set on using Professor Change for his mutation. He offered me much on Cyborg in exchange for Chang's escape. Now, Beast Boy. Don't try to tell me you don't see him as an annoying, hyperactive brother. He and Cyborg have both been in your mind and fought your father, not to mention the bond you two share because of the Adonis incident awhile back. And Starfire? You are her best friend, and the only other girl on the team. If the Titans fell apart, she would be sent out into the real world, and she's much too naïve for that. I don't need to explain Robin now, do I?"

Raven could sense the malicious smile growing under that damned mask of his. A low growl escaped her throat.

"Don't hurt them. Or it will be your life," Raven said in a dangerously low voice.

"My life? What are you going to do, glare holes into me?" Slade asked with a light laugh. Raven snarled and a large box and metal bar suddenly flew at Slade from either side, smashing into his chest and head.

Her body convulsed and she bit a cry back as electricity pulsed down her arms again. It stopped and she was left slumped against the wall, breathing hard from the shock, which was indeed more powerful than the last. Slade brushed some splinters off his shoulder as he recovered from her attack.

"I think we're done here," Slade said. "Now, don't kill yourself while I'm gone. If the others show up, I think I'll have much more fun just disposing of all of you at once instead of watching from afar," he warned before walking off.

Raven leaned her head back against the wall, staring at the dark ceiling and trying to ignore the pain in her body. She didn't dare send out a signal.

…

"How many manholes are here, Cyborg?" Robin asked.

"City Sewage plans say 4. We can each take one," Cyborg replied as he looked at the screen on his arm.

"Find that door, Titans," Robin commanded, heading for the nearest manhole cover. The rest of the Titans fanned out and each dropped down into the sewers.

Starfire's hand lit up as she searched her wall for a handhold, but all she found were a couple of rats and spiders. "Eeee! I do not like these foul rodents!" Starfire squealed as she flew out of the hole.

Beast Boy was having no luck. He changed into a spider to get a closer look at the wall, but was almost eaten by a rat. He sighed and climbed out back onto the street to see Starfire screaming Robin's name as she zoomed out of the hole.

"STAR! Did you find it?" Beast Boy yelled excitedly, running towards her, arms flapping wildly.

"No! I saw a rat and a spider!" Starfire squeaked out.

"Oh…"

Cyborg had finished his scan of the wall and climbed out onto the street to see Beast Boy trying to calm a frazzled Starfire down. "What's wrong?" he asked, jogging up to them.

"Rats," Beast Boy said. Cyborg nodded in understanding. "You find anything?"

"Nope, and by the looks of it, neither did y'all. That means…" All three of them looked towards the hole Robin was in. "Let's go," Cyborg ordered. The three teens ran to join their leader.

…

Raven was still struggling with her bonds when Slade returned from wherever he had gone.

"Still caught, I see," he commented. Raven's vision flashed red and a barrel exploded. "Tsk, tsk. Emotions should be kept under lock and key at all times," Slade said, studying the barrel remains. He looked back to see her panting.

'Looks like anger is still an exception,' Raven thought, grimacing. She began a mental chant to calm her mind. It was definitely an easier task than before, but while her more positive emotions could definitely be felt with little consequence, she would have to be wary of the other end of the spectrum. She had gone to bed before Intelligence could get to that last night.

"And it will just keep getting stronger," Slade told her, taking her closed eyes for a look of pain rather than concentration. Truly, it was both, but she didn't dare let Slade know that.

"Let's see, the other Titans should be arriving soon. They were out patrolling the street, so really it's only a matter of time. How to kill all of you… Let's see… This is great fun; I can do five different methods on killing and torturing teenage superheroes. I should write a book, don't you think?" Slade smiled at Raven.

'Don't lose control, don't lose control…' Raven chanted her mantra in her head. Slade saw he had gotten through to her and continued.

"But I think I should keep you alive until the end, and make you witness your precious boyfriend's painful death," Slade said, leaning towards her ear. That pushed Raven over the edge.

"I swear I will kill you if you ever hurt him or any of them! I will find a way, and it will be the most painful thing you have ever endured!" Raven shouted. Black magic filled the air and multiple things flew at Slade. Raven was too enraged to notice the shocks, and when the projectiles ceased to be airborne, one final wave of electricity sent her into fits of pain.

"Goodnight, Raven." The last thing she saw before her eyes fluttered shut was a door opening in the background.