Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans.
Please read What Happened? and Coping first to understand this one better. Hope you like it!
"That was terrible," Slade said. Starfire stared at him in bewilderment. She had just defeated hundreds of Slade's robots by herself and he was saying that she fought terribly?
"Please, I do not understand. I have defeated the robots and I have come out undamaged," Starfire tilted her head slightly to the left in confusion. She looked up at Slade, waiting for him to answer her.
"You used your powers to defeat them," Slade began to explain. "Using your green, what did you call them, starbolts, and this strength and flying about, that is not a fair fight, is it?" he questioned her and she shook her head, giving the answer that she knew he wanted. "This is really hopeless," he sighed, knowing that if she started working for him, she'd give away her identity in a heartbeat.
"When I was on Tamaran, I was sent to Okaara to train. I do possess the fighting skills without my powers," Starfire explained, making him turn around to face her.
"Show me and don't hold back," he said, eager to see alien martial arts. Starfire nodded and took her position in the training simulation, showing off her Tamaranian fighting styles. Needless to say, Slade was impressed as he watched her jump, punch, kick, and dodge in her foreign way. He turned off the simulation, clapping his hands and she smiled, for she knew he approved of her now.
"I have done well?" she questioned him.
"I had no idea you had such skill. Tell me, why didn't you use those skills while you were in the Titans?" Slade questioned her.
"I had to do the holding back of my true power because we were not allowed to murder any villain, no matter what the circumstance. Since I had battled humans, I could not go too rough on them or else I would surely have killed them," Starfire explained. Slade studied her and nodded his head.
"Let me train you." Starfire didn't have to think twice. She nodded eagerly, excited to learn more of Earthly culture.
Slade was surprised that the naïve alien was excelling in her trainings. She really was a fast learner and perhaps her intelligence was hindered due to the fact she wasn't from this planet. She was strong when she didn't use her alien strength, she was agile without flight, and she was successful using swords and the like while fighting. She was very good with using swords. She slashed at the robots, making clean cuts across their throats. "I think you're almost ready for the real thing," Slade said as she panted after her long workout and training session.
"May I ask what it is that I am ready for?" she asked him.
"You're almost ready to become a promising assassin." Starfire gasped and backed away from the madman. She knew he killed others, but she didn't know that she would have to. Robin had been his apprentice and he never mentioned that killing was part of the job.
"I refuse to do the killing!" she exclaimed.
"I don't kill for sport," Slade said and stepped closer to her. "I am paid to kill. But I kill people who deserve to die."
"I do not understand," Starfire said and shook her head.
"I kill murderers, child molesters, rapists, and the like," Slade explained. Starfire cringed when she heard the word rapist. That had brought on so many awful memories that she had lived through. "When you think about it, I'm kind of a hero. And you can be a hero, Starfire. Putting people like them in jail, they don't learn anything. They get out and harm more people, right?" He had learned to talk to her on her level. She remembered how Beast Boy was the only one to really do so.
"Correct," Starfire said, following his logic.
"But if you kill them, they can't harm anyone else. And in doing so, you save lives. Maybe even hundreds, thousands. Think about it; killing terrorists that would have killed innocent children, teens, and adults alike. Killing those who abuse and torture women and children, even animals. Think about how many people you can save by taking one life," Slade said as he walked her to her room. "I want you to think about it. Tell me your decision in the morning." Starfire nodded and walked into the room Slade had given her.
Starfire sighed and shut the door, pressing her back to it, then sliding to the floor. Slade did have a point. But would she be able to kill? "Hey, cutie," Red X said. She would have jumped back when she was a Titan a few months back. But now, she didn't because she had been trained extremely well and was sometimes able to defeat Red X.
"What are you doing in my quarters?" Starfire sighed and walked over to her bed. She and Red X had become good friends, possibly more than that considering they had some pretty heated make out sessions. She sat down on it next to him.
"I'm assuming you found out about the whole assassin thing, and how he wants you to be one, right?" She nodded. "You should do it," he encouraged. "It's really not as bad as it seems when you do it right. If you slice the head off at a certain angle, no blood gets on you and you get out clean."
"You mean you have killed?" Starfire gasped, her emerald eyes going wide.
"I have," Red X admitted. "But only the really evil people. I usually take care of the people who really hurt kids. Slade will let you choose the people you go after. It makes his job easier, actually, and I'm paid well for it. The thing is, it makes more sense to stop someone from torturing the innocent than letting them back out to do it all over again. There are areas of gray, and this is one of them." Starfire nodded in understanding. She thought about it, and remembered her own torturers. She remembered how much pain they had given her and how she even wished death on them. She wanted them dead (although it would be impossible to find them out in space). She thought of the innocent girls being raped that made the stories on television and how much they must have been hurting, and just wondering whether or not they'd come back.
"Excuse me," Starfire said and rushed out of her room. Red X smiled, knowing that she was going to agree with it. She rushed into Slade's office, completely forgetting to knock. He glared at her, but his visible eye softened when she looked afraid of him, and he didn't need her to fear him. Enough people already did. And he didn't need to impose fear on her because that would make her lack in the trusting area and she'd rebel. He knew what to do to manipulate people, and for some reason, he had a soft spot for the gorgeous alien.
"What is it?" he asked her.
"I will assist you in the killing of the people of evil."
"Good. Very good. But you aren't ready yet. Almost, though."
"I thought I had completed my training?" Starfire questioned him.
"You have, but it's the way you speak."
"Is there something wrong with the way I speak?"
"It's too proper. If the Titans or anyone heard you speak, they would know it was you. You need to learn modern, every day English. I have made a workbook for you. This will enhance your understanding of the English language. Also, you are required to learn other languages." Starfire accepted the workbook from him.
"I thank you, but learning other languages will not be a problem. Tamaranians learn other languages through lip contact."
"Meaning, you can just kiss someone when you get to a foreign country. This is good. It can go with your whole appeal."
"My appeal?"
"You will learn about it later. For now, work on those and if you need help, Red X will be here. I'm going off to Maine in the morning, so I won't see you two for a day or so. And no parties." Starfire nodded. "Now, when I get back, I expect to hear you using contractions."
By the time Slade returned, Starfire had finished the whole workbook with the help of Red X. She learned how to properly phrase things, as well as using contractions to make two words sound like one such as it's for it is and so on. Slade had been impressed with her. She was a faster learner than he would have ever thought. Perhaps he had been targeting the wrong person for an apprentice. He was glad that she had come to him instead of him pursuing her. This made things easier for him. What he loved best about this was he felt as if he was a father again with the two teens. He would never admit it, but he had formed a bond with the two instantly. He could tell that they wanted to be here.
When he returned, he began to show Starfire videos of people dying. At first, she was afraid and covered her eyes from the intense gore and she plugged her ears from the screams. She would then start crying. Slade had to take a different approach. He'd have to ease into it slowly so it wasn't as much of a shock to her. He started telling her about the person's history, saying that the person was a child molester, or even a pedophile who had been to jail numerous times and never changed. She wouldn't react to the deaths this way. He was surprised at the anger she had towards the people he had explained were rapists.
After about two weeks, Starfire was able to watch people die and not have any feelings towards it, other than some anger. Slade had pretty much desensitized her and no matter how gory the death, no matter how much the person screamed, Starfire literally had no reaction. She sat there, her eyes wide, as if she was mesmerized by it, as if she was watching a movie. Slade smiled beneath his mask. She was ready.
Starfire followed him into his office. She sat across from him as he began discussing her disguise. "Tell me something I don't know about you," Slade said and took out a pencil and some paper.
"On my planet, I'm part of the royal family. I was the Grand Ruler for a little bit, but then I handed the crown over to my K'Norfka."
"So I'm talking to a princess, or ex queen, am I?" Slade asked her as he wrote it down.
"It's called an empress on my planet," Starfire corrected him.
"I stand corrected," he said. Starfire had never seen him so, she didn't know what to call it. Comfortable? No, that wasn't right. Happy? Maybe happy. She couldn't place it. "I can work with this. I think sex appeal will help with everything, since you're going to have to kiss people to learn languages." Slade jotted down some things. "We're going to have to hide your eyes," he said to her.
"How come?" Slade was glad he never had to hear her use the phrase 'I do not understand' anymore.
"Because they have no whites in them. They're just green."
"Okay," Starfire said.
"I'll have your new costume in a few days." With that said, she exited his room.
That night, she couldn't help but think of Beast Boy. Would he have been proud of her for leaving the Titans? Or would he be disappointed in her? She didn't know, and she probably never would know. The thing was, Red X and Slade were actually treating her much better than Robin, Cyborg, and Raven treated her. Robin acted as if she was stupid half the time and never bothered to even offer to help her understand their culture. She always had to ask. Cyborg was all right, but the way he made Beast Boy feel was unforgiveable. And Raven, she would always ignore her and never want to do anything with her unless they meditated together. They had gone to the mall before, but all Raven did was complain. She only wanted to do what she wanted, not what Starfire wanted. The funny thing was, Slade and Red X noticed her drug addiction right away and helped her. The other three never noticed.
A few days went by, and Red X knocked on her door. "Come in!" she called from her bed. She was laying on her stomach and looking at a picture of her, Beast Boy, and the rest of the Titans, back in the good old days. However, as she studied Beast Boy's picture and noticed a look of sadness in his eyes that she had noticed when it was too late.
"You did the right thing, leaving them I mean," Red X said. He sat beside her, putting the box on her dresser.
"I know," Starfire said. "But would Beast Boy be proud of my choices? Or would he hate them and hate me in return?"
"I think he'd be happy that you left those three. I can't speak for him, but I think your friend would have been proud of you no matter what."
"Thank you," Starfire sighed. "What's in the box?"
"Oh, yeah, your new costume's done. Slade wants you to try it on and show it to him."
"Okay," she said and took the box. She went into the bathroom connected to her room to change. When she stepped out, she looked at herself behind the full length mirror. She had to admit that she did like it. It consisted of low rise black spandex pants. Her top was black and just covered the belly button. The top was somewhat longer in the front, back, and on the sides, making triangles of this white fabric show, preventing her stomach from even being shown. Her gloves were silver and went up her arm elegantly. Her shoes were the same color as her gloves. They were feminine boots lacking a heel so that it was easier for her to run. They went up to her mid calf and her pants were tucked into them. She saw on the sides of her pants had a swirling, beautiful design on them. It looked as if the design was cut into them, but a layer of white fabric covered her leg from showing.
She had a cape. It was all black, but it had silver lining. It had a hood that she put on that stayed perfectly in place by a tiara that was sewn on. It had a dark red gem in the center of it. "You look amazing," Red X smiled at her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "The only problem is, your eyes aren't showing."
"Slade said that they'd give me away."
"He's probably right," Red X agreed. She couldn't even see her eyes. It was just blackness. However, she could see perfectly from behind the fabric. She wondered how this was possible, but she wouldn't ask. She didn't really care, anyway. "Come on, let's go show Slade." He took her hand and she let him lead her.
"Perfect," Slade said as he admired his handiwork. He wouldn't tell them that he personally made it. An assassin with mad sewing skills wasn't something to be proud of. "You like it?"
"Yes, I do."
"I love it," Red X said, but was slapped in the face by Slade because he knew what the teenager was probably thinking.
"There's more to your disguise," Slade said and began putting white face paint on the half of her face that was exposed. He then put on a dark red lipstick that reminded her of blood. He then put a belt around her waist, it was silver, and it had two spots for swords that he put in there.
"Do I have a name?" Starfire asked him. She'd rather have him come up with it because she didn't care what it was.
"The world will know you as Empress of Death." The funny thing was, she liked it.