A/N: Oh man you guys' reviews were just awesome! It was a much-needed booster after all these tests and papers. Thanks you guys for being understanding. And I shall reward you! YAY!!!
Ch. 19 Grieving
Pavel snapped his cell-phone shut and turned to face the broad back of a man. Military cut white hair stood out against the weathered leather skin. The crisp gray military uniform jacket hid the gun holster and knife holster underneath. Coughing slightly into his hand, Pavel waited for the man to turn around and focus his laser cut green eyes on him. Surrounding the pair, a group of five men clothed in black gathered their belongings in backpacks, pulling out masks to cover their faces. The abandoned theater gave off an eerie sense of foreboding. The dusty air made the dull blood red curtain expand behind the General, as if it sought to envelope around him and suffocate him. The rustle of birds in the rafters sent shivers down Pavel's spine. Earlier that day, he saw one of the birds—as it turned out to be a hawk—swoop down and kill one of the many rats on the right side of the stage.
"Pavel. Pavel. SOLIDER!" The General's authoritive voice cut through the rampant imagination. Shaking his head, Pavel lowered his eyes as he took in the General's tense form.
"Pavel, we do not have much time. If our information is correct, the Justice League will be arriving any minute. With all this chaos going on right now and with the Titans preoccupied, we can escape with ease. Now, what is it you wish to tell me?"
Pavel tucked his hands into his jacket, his left fingers caressing the cell phone within the pocket. "I just received information, sir, regarding…Robin."
The General's face tightened even more, his shoulders moving back. It was like watching a dog being corned into a corner, its' fur on the edge, fangs exposed in a snarl. Except, the General was no dog, more like a wolf. "What about Robin?"
The League of Shadows ninja halted their work, their attention on the two men. The General's voice was sharp as steel. They all knew the subject on Robin was a sensitive one concerning their leader. The boy had turned down the General and insulted him. Not to mention, both of them wanted to the kill the other, the hunt pushing each other to the point of having no rest and always on the move. The General could not even stay long in the home country to enjoy his victory. When Mikhail had come and told him that Robin was being accused in the courtyard, the General had told the young man to keep an eye on him and quickly started to gather his things. Later, Mikhail radioed in and told him Robin had disappeared was enough to spur the General to escape the country and hide in the multitude of the League of Shadows bases. He had gone into the shadows and so it seemed did Robin. Both men waited for the other to make the first move, searching in the pitch dark the other's location. It was like watching glass crack; the multitude cracks spreading that only with the small breath of a sigh would trigger the earth shattering crash.
Pavel shifted slightly, "I got word that he is in some warehouse down on 5th street."
The General narrowed his eyes, "So close."
"Yes sir."
The men sent glances around the room, waiting for their new orders. The General had grown sick of waiting and it was apparent on his face. Standing in the middle of the group, wrinkles that were not present before tugged as his eyes. Restless nights aged the General, becoming an illness that was slowly sucking his life away. It was only recently, when he heard that Robin had arrived in Gotham that the old, stubborn spark burst into flames. The General figured that if he was going to die, he might as well go down with a fight and take that little brat with him. And so, he initiated the first attack, killing some boy that was standing near Robin. Pavel said Robin had acted distraught and irrational. Thinking the boy would go after him in a heartbeat, he was surprised that no such action had occurred. And that scared him.
"It's only two blocks away, we'll go and surprise our little lost bird." Snapping his fingers, the General motioned towards the doors, "Move out."
"Yes, sir."
The loud snap followed by footsteps awoken the birds sending them scattering into the large curtains, before finding their way through a small hole in the roof and bursting into the night sky.
The walk to the warehouse did not draw much attention to the large group. Surprisingly, the whole area was deserted. People had locked themselves into the apartments, weathering out the mass chaos in Jump City. Pavel halted and pointed to an old apartment. "In there, sir."
The General pulled out his gun and cocked it. "If he is still in there, distract him. I'll be the one to take him out. But if one of you must defend yourself, only knock him unconscious, I want to torture the boy before he dies."
The men nodded and shifted into fighting mode. They had heard about the Boy Wonder. He was good fighter, being Batman's prodigy. But now that he had some time under Deathstroke, the kid would be a formidable opponent. Cracking the door open slowly, the men sneaked into the apartment. Breaking off into pairs, they searched the building, but there was nothing. Taking in deep breaths, the General tightened his fist around the handle of the gun. Turning, his eyes narrowed in the dark area that encompassed the basement. Walking carefully on the wooden stairs, the General reached the bottom. A small flickering light came from one of the rooms on the side, the door slightly open. Tilting his head, he caught the faint outline of a young man tied up in a chair, bright clothes smothered. A wicked smile twisted his features into a sick joy as he picked up his pace. Kicking the door open fully, he aimed and three rounds of bullets into the chest. Lowering his gun, the General heard his men cluster behind him.
"You did it, sir, you killed Robin," whispered one of the men. But the General didn't hear him.
The smile and joy was now replaced with confusion and anxiety. The body was Robin, but not his Robin, not the one that haunted his dreams. The boy looked too young, his face did not hold any of the wrinkles or the familiar empty look from before. The skin on his arms and elsewhere on his body were not scarred or held a weathered look. Stepping forward, the General holstered his gun and touched the chest, where a sticky substance was pouring out. Rubbing the liquid on his hands, he felt it to be too thick to be human blood.
"This isn't Robin."
"It looks like him, sir. The outfit, hairstyle and all."
The general lifted his hand and felt the boy's neck. "The body's cold…has been for awhile." Staring down, he took in the boy's dull eyes. Even in death, this boy still exalted innocence. "This isn't him…he wouldn't just sit in a chair…wouldn't allow to get himself killed by someone else…this is a trick…yeah a trick…a trap…wouldn't be below him…"
One of his men stepped forward, "I think you're in shock sir. There is only one Robin, sir."
"DON'T MOCK ME! IT. IS. NOT. HIM!" snapped the General, his face red with rage and embarrassments, "PAVEL!"
The men shrunk back in fear but the man in question did not come forth. Seething green eyes swept the five men, but Pavel was not among them. "WHERE IS HE?"
The man who had spoke before, backed up against the wall, "I don't know sir, he was behind us when we went down here."
The General pulled out his gun and shot the man in the heart. Not regarding the body as it fell to the floor, blood smearing on the wall behind him, the General faced the remaining four men, "FIND HIM AND—"
Just then a green bolt of energy blasted in his hand, jerking the gun out of his hand and melting him. Grabbing his burnt hand, he hissed, "Titans."
The four men turned and regarded a furious redhead floating in the air, her hand extended in front of her, powering up another blast. Below her, a cybernetic boy powered up a massive canon on his arm. A small green, pointed ear boy morphed into magnificent tiger, while a gothic girl chanted something, her eyes seeping black electricity.
The General knew then what had happened. It was a trap. He had been framed. And if he knew better, Pavel was in it. Smirking, he straightened his back and cracked his neck. "Touché Robin," laughed the General mentally. "Men, get them."
The four ninjas pulled out their swords, bow-staffs and kunai blades and lunged at the Titans. Cyborg took no chances and blasted one of the ninjas straight in the chest, sending him flying over the mechanic Robin's body and into the cement wall. Raven ripped the door off its' hinges and bent it to wrap around two another ninjas who was about to throw kunai at Starfire. The alien herself blasted bolts one after another at a ninja, who was trying to find a good position to attack. But her blasts kept him at his feet. When the ninja felt certain that she wouldn't continue her attack except at the floor, he tilted himself to the side, into an offensive position. That was when green bolts slammed into his leg and upper arm, before a green beam nailed him in the chest. The burnt of the blast swept him off his feet and crashed into the floor.
All the while, Beastboy leapt threw openings and lunged himself at the General. The man raised his other arm and protected his face from the fangs that wanted to rip his face off. Blood began to trickle down his arm but it was nothing compared to the claws that dug into his sides and upper thighs. He hollowed in pain when Beastboy morphed into an anaconda. Slithering himself over the man's left leg, Beastboy tightened himself and jerked sideways, breaking the leg. Another hollow ripped forth from the man's throat. Changing back into his original form, Beastboy panted and wiped the sweat from his forehead. The other Titans joined him in the small room.
Flashing one of his grins to Cyborg, Beastboy gave thumbs up, "New record baby! Took out five men in less than ten minutes. Boom baby. We rock." Falling into the moonwalk, Beastboy sauntered across the room, "Go Beastboy, it's your birthday, Go Beastboy, it's your birthday."
"Beastboy."
Cyborg's voice held no joy of victory. Stopping, the changeling watched his friend handcuff each man, shoulders' sunken in. Green eyes widened as he watched Starfire and Raven float over to the robot's body. A tan hand closed those blue eyes that once held life.
A chock shuddered through Starfire's mouth. Walking up to her, Beastboy laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. Starfire buried her face in her hands tears streaming down her face. "He did nothing wrong. He just wanted to right the world." Another sob broke through, "Who would want to kill such a kind soul?"
"I don't know Star. But that guy..." Starfire looked up and stared at Beastboy, whose tone had taken on a venomous edge, his locked down at the bleeding form of the General. The last time she heard such a tone was when Slade had used Terra.
Cyborg joined the others, "He's gonna pay."
The General chuckled and eyed each Titan, "I wouldn't hope too much, Titans."
"Why do you say that," hissed Raven. The room shuddered slightly as the demoness tried to control her emotions, "We heard the gunfire, saw the blood on your hands."
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you…" a cold glee entered his eyes. Starfire gasped. For a split second, she had thought she had seen Slade before her. Straightening his back, the General grinned, "No, I won't tell you. He would want me to tell you. But I won't. I'll let you figure it out yourself."
Cyborg grabbed the man by the cuff of his shirt, "Shut up. You're going to jail, Mister."
"For the death of Robin."
"No…for your connections to the League of Shadows," with that, Cyborg dragged and dumped the body out in the main area. Turning, he went back to his friends and in a whispered voice, held Starfire's shoulders, "Star. We have to leave now. The police are going to come any moment."
"But what about the body? We cannot just leave it here! We must bury it!"
"We can't Star."
"Why not!"
Cyborg saw the hysteria building up in Starfire. Eying Raven, he sighed with relief as she took over the conversation.
"Starfire, people would think it strange if we got a permit and a tombstone with Robin's name on it. Remember what we said after we received that tip-off, that we cannot charge the man for anything he has done because our secret would be lost. People would start asking where the real Robin is and if Slade got win of it, he'll take Robin somewhere and we'll never find him again." Reaching out she gripped Starfire's hand. Starfire's eyes widened at the unusual display from Raven. Having her friend's attention, Raven continued, "We have to get rid of the body, of all the evidence that another Robin had existed."
"But doesn't he deserve much more?"
Beastboy nodded, "He does Star, but our memories and grief will have to do for now. From our time with him, I think he would want us do anything to get our Robin back. He was that…self-sacrificing."
Starfire took in a shuddering breath and nodded reluctantly, "Very well then."
Cyborg squeezed her shoulder before letting go. "Ok, guys…Beastboy take Starfire outside. Raven, you levitate the criminals outside as well. I'll…"
"We understand Cyborg," finished Raven. With that the three Titans followed Cyborg's' orders and left the building.
A few moments later, the group was standing out in the street, the building ablaze in a roaring fire. The General and the ninjas were tied to a lamppost, the high screaming sirens of police cars blaring louder and louder as they made their way to 5th street. Starfire was sobbing, kneeling on the cement, hunched over in pain. Beastboy was trying to wipe the few tears that snuck past his eyes, but his shivering body betrayed the grief that racked his body. Cyborg held his head high, but his lip quivered, eyes wishing to shed tears. Lastly, Raven stood facing the street, feeling the warmth scorch her pale arm, her eyes looked dead to the world, but if one looked closely they could see all the spoken emotions that wished to erupt free.
The Titans had lost one of their own. Even though, the robot was not the original Robin, he still managed to worm his way into their hearts. He smiled, joked, scorned and pondered. He fought with such intensity, a deep loyalty and love towards the innocent citizens of Jump City and justice. He wasn't human physically, but his emotions and soul constituted him human. Faced with such a tasking of replacing Robin, the robot had pushed himself harder and harder each day to fulfill the role. He had passed with flying colors and so much more. And while they mourned the robot, the Titans couldn't help but picture their own Robin somewhere tied up in a similar chair, getting tortured by Slade—who would undoubtly know of his destroyed robot and take his frustration out on their leader.
Cyborg heard the cars screech around the corner. Taking a deep breath, the older boy spoke in a weary tone, "You guys go home…I'll take care of the police."
The other Titans floated into the air and drifted back to the Tower. The Teen Titans were beginning to strain. The death of the robot had finally snipped away one of the many strands that held the group together. Now all that was needed was a hand to begin to unravel the tapestry…to bring the Titans crashing into their graves once and for all.
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A/N: Weeeee, I did it. Yay. Ok well you know the drill. Read and review. Later!
