38. Warehouse Fight

"So, Speedy, what's your favorite type of tofu omelet?"

Speedy looked across the Main Room to the kitchen area and politely said with a smile: "Thanks, but no thanks, Beast Boy. I don't like tofu."

"……..so…..with or without cheese?"

Speedy looked back at Robin and whispered: "How do you manage under the same roof as him?"

"You learn to love his more subtle qualities."

"What was that?"

"NOTHING."

Robin typed furiously at the keyboard to the main computer. A schematic of the City's Northeast district popped up.

"Burns Street. Industrial Complex. Between two warehouses, Unit G5 and G6. Supposedly, they're units that house auto parts for huge trucks."

"Your typical storage facility…," Speedy said.

"Right. And the location of where the would-be-assassin from yesterday acquired his sniper rifle."

"Purchased from the street, huh?"

"Precisely."

"I detect a 'but' here," Speedy smirked.

"But…," Robin said as he looked up files concerning the two warehouses. "If what the assassin confessed is true, the precise time of day he got his package coincided with a weekly checkup by the employees of the unit."

"So, unless the employees weren't present when they were supposed to be," Speedy added aloud, "Or unless they were completely blind to the exchange going on…."

"They're completely in on it," Robin said. He brought up a few profiles. "Here're the three chief workers at the Northeast Truck Parts Housing Division. Each and every one of them has a record of past involvement with burglary, theft, insurance fraud, all the gritty stuff."

"You sure it's not a coincidence?" Speedy remarked. "I mean…it is an ugly part of town."

"I'm convinced we're onto something," Robin said. "I would have passed it all off as nothing, hadn't every employee had one special thing in common."

"What's that?"

"Green eyes."

"…….um…..okay. Point being?"

"Take a look at their photos," Robin said, highlighting them.

Speedy leaned forward. "Whoah! Happy St. Patrick's Day!"

"Unnatural, wouldn't you say?"

"There a reason for it?"

"Are you familiar with an experimental new drug on the street called Dragonflare?"

Speedy thought aloud. "Narcotic…shipped in from Southeast Pacific Region….emerged into the illegal trade around three years ago. Yes, I've heard a little. What about it?"

"It has many peculiar side effects. Among the usual obligatory rape of the human body's nervous system, it's known to create an intense green hue among all of its users."

"Sounds like fun….," Speedy mused. "You think these three are distributors?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Robin smirked. "They're also clients."

"And where you have an illegal drug trade…"

"You have the case for gang persuasion. The need to defend ones goods."

"With weapons."

"With weapons….," Robin nodded.

"I'd say it's worth checking out."

"Stole the words from my mouth," Robin smirked.

"You are your mentor's apprentice," Speedy complimented. "A detectiveling to the end. I'd say the Titans are lucky to have you along for the ride."

"Luck has nothing to do with it," Robin winked. "Just smarts."

"Hey!" Beast Boy called out from the kitchen area. "If you two lovebirds are done kissing each other's asses, care to help me put out this tofu fire?!"

Robin moaned and turned around. "For crying out loud, Beast Boy, there's no threat of—HOLY CRAP! TOFU FIRE!!!"

"I TOLD YOU!!!"

The three boys rushed over the counter to put the blaze out.

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

In the laboratory, Starfire stood in front of a circle of bright blue formed on the wall from Cyborg's flashlight.

"Okay….okay….guess which animal this is!" Starfire beamed. She held her hands up in front of the light and formed a shadow puppet with her fingers. The shadow was……….hard to distinguish. "Go on!" she smiled. "Guess!!"

Raven and I sat on either side of Cyborg on the metal bed.

We stared.

"….."

"….."

"…..um…."

"A forsbarg!!!" Starfire grinned wide.

"What's a forsbarg?"

"Only the most indigenous huluquark of the upper plains of beenorak!"

"Ya know…Star…," Cyborg scratched his titanium scalp. "It's a little easier for us if you stuck to Terran lifeforms."

"Oooh! I know!" Starfire jumped, giggled, and formed a new puppet with her hands. "Guess what this creature is!!"

Again, indistinguishable.

I shrugged.

Raven droned, "A pseudopodium?"

I glanced at her strangely.

"A glarkadoog!!"

"Star!!" Cyborg barked, "I said Terran lifeforms!"

Starfire blushed and smiled, her hands behind her back as she teetered back and forth. "Does it not count that I last saw my pet glarkadoog in Beast Boy's sock drawer?"

Cyborg did a double-take.

The automatic doors opened and in walked Robin, Speedy, and Beast Boy….slightly singed.

"What were you guys doing?" Raven asked, an eyebrow raised. "Jumping through hoops of flame?"

"No…but Beast Boy will be doing so soon, no doubt," Robin muttered.

"Tofu fire," Beast Boy simpered and scratched the back of his neck. "Love hurts."

"Whatever."

"I thought it was rather adventurous, actually," Speedy said.

"Speedy, my man," Cyborg high-fived the visitor. "Did you find the couch inviting?"

"Up until some giant amoeba thing crawled over my neck in the middle of the night," the red-headed young man said.

Starfire gasped. "!!!! My glarkadoog!!"

"Anywho, I came here to mention to you all that I have a new mission plan," Robin said.

"Does it involve the safe retrieval of my pet glarkadoog?" Starfire stuttered worriedly.

"Um….full circle…sure!" Robin exclaimed. "But, up-front, it deals with what could possibly be a major break-thru in our hunting for the weapons arsenal."

I smirked.

"Do tell," Raven said.

"Robin thinks there's a gang spreading Dragonflare around here."

"Excuse you?" Beast Boy said.

"A new and rare narcotic," Robin said. "I think a couple of warehouses in the Northeast Industrial complexes may be a front for hiding a distribution of the stuff."

"Great…," Raven hummed. "More drug smugglers."

"This is more intense than those homicidal boat pilots we nabbed a few days ago," Robin said. "Dragonflare is very expensive. Reserved for the crime kingpins of the Underworld. If we strike rich with this investigation…we might end up deep in our armpits in the most notorious characters we've fought in a long time."

"That is why you are addressing everyone of us communally," Starfire remarked. "This may be a very dangerous chapter in our heroism?"

"Possibly," Robin nodded.

"Well, I'm game," Cyborg said.

"Me too," Speedy smiled.

"Me three!" Beast Boy hopped. He smirked at Raven, "Third is the one with the hairy chest."

Raven glared at him. She then looked at Robin. "You have a plan?"

"In the next few hours, there'll be a window of opportunity for us to catch the three workers of the warehouse at the location in question. I suggest we all go there, do a little reconnaissance, and then spring upon them all as one unit to overwhelm whatever organization may be functioning there illegally."

"Will Speedy be coming along for the ride?" Beast Boy asked.

"You can count on it!" Speedy crossed his arms and smiled. "In fact…I was thinking of returning the favor for my stay here by providing the ride."

"Oh really?" Cyborg smiled.

"Curious….," Starfire remarked.

Robin looked at Speedy as Speedy smirked and motioned with his head. "Follow me, kids."

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

Outside the Tower, the seven of us huddled by a sleek speedboat moored at the docks just beyond the bluffs of the island.

Cyborg whistled. "Niiiiiiiiice. Sweet little thing. Ain't it, Noir?"

I nodded dazedly.

Smooth titanium finish. Dual motors. Mysterious compartments for special, super-hero gadgetry (hehehe). A design of red on black on brown. But mainly, lots and lots of red.

"Put her together myself," Speedy winked.

"No way."

"Yeah way. Took forever. A superhero needs hobbies…believe it or not."

"I believe it," Beast Boy said.

"Nobody asked you," Raven remarked.

"But I was just—"

"Can it fit all of us?" Robin asked.

"It depends…," Speedy smiled and leaned against its hull. "Do you all care to fit in?"

"Oh, we do! We do!" Starfire beamed.

I smiled.

"I think we got us all a ride," Cyborg remarked. "If it's okay with the driver, that is."

Speedy winked under his eyemask. "Let's make it a date!"

"Teen Titans!" Robin smiled and gestured out towards the Bay. "Go!!"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

Trailing a plume of water and spray, Speedy's watercraft zoomed across the Bay, hading towards the docksides of the Northeast Industrial Complex. A mid afternoon sun shined down from above us.

The controls were enclosed under a metal roof. Speedy stared out at the length of the bay through sleek windshields as he sped the boat along. The whole of us Titans wobbled and shook with each crest of wave we hit.

"Killer!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "The Green Arrow must give you some wicked allowance to afford this thing."

Speedy smirked back over his shoulder. "I often wonder how Robin saved up for his R-Cycle."

"Checks and balances," Robin mumbled.

Beast Boy glared, "That's your answer to everything."

Cyborg leaned back. "Aw man…this is the best!! Too bad you can't take the top off this thing! We could be getting some nice sun!"

"Actually, the roof does retract," Speedy says.

"It does?"

The agile archer nodded. "Yeah…but we need the cabin enclosed if we're gonna approach the scene of focus as safely as possible."

"Really now…"

"I'll explain later."

Cyborg looked over at Raven. The dark girl huddled in the corner under her robe. "What's the matter, Ray? You seem…….scared."

"I am NOT scared!" Raven said. She urped, and then confessed in a hushed tone: "I don't like boat rides…."

I winced and tried looking out ahead through the windshield as we proceeded speedily along our course (no pun intended).

We skimmed around the first of the metal tankers docked at the shipyards.

"Hey, I remember this place!" Cyborg pointed as we passed by. "Control Freak's 'station', remember?"

"That is not a recollection I hold dear," Starfire frowned, folding her arms.

"Come on, Star!" Robin smiled. "I made it out safely!"

"Hmph!!"

Robin blinked. "So did you….," he added meekly.

"I've seen enough of the shipyards to make a sailor bored," Beast Boy said. "Please tell me we get to fight in one of the warehouses, please!"

"It's been a while since we had a decent warehouse battle," Cyborg said. "Hasn't it?"

"Let's see….power plant…tanker….prison…..yup, been a long time since we've done a warehouse brawl. We've done just about everything else under the sun, though."

"I once fought along Green Arrow in a trainyard," Speedy said.

"Oooh! Noir and I did that!" Starfire beamed.

I nodded.

"But with an exploding blimp overhead?" Speedy smirked.

"Dude!"

"Kickass!"

"Got photos?"

"Maybe after the mission."

"You know where I want to fight for once….," Robin said.

Most everyone looked at him.

He smirked, "A cemetery!"

"Yeah!"

"All right!"

"That'd rule!"

"Stop trying to cheer me up…..," Raven moaned sickly.

"I know it's not my place to ask but…," Beast Boy sweatdropped, regarding the green-Raven. "Are we there yet?"

"Brace yourselves, everyone," Speedy said, raising a second hand to the controls. "About to initiate Cloaking."

"Cloaking??" Beast Boy made a face.

"Your boat has cloaking technology?!" Robin gasped.

"Yup," Speedy smiled proudly. "State of the art."

"Dude! That's sick!" Cyborg exclaimed.

Raven groaned.

"And….now!"

Speedy pulled a lever and pressed a button.

The metal hull of the boat flashed momentarily, then darkened, then faded towards the color of the Bay's water.

"Crystallized polymers in the metal react to sunlight differently at a specific computer command. I simply programmed into the boat the average hue and texture appearance of the Bay Water, and the hull attempts to emulate it. We're not invisible per se, but from a distance we're hard to spot."

"Oooooooooh," Starfire beamed.

"Awesome….," Cyborg practically drooled.

"Now for cruise mode," Speedy slowed the craft down.

"Whatever makes the waves disappear," Raven grunted from under her hood.

The boat coasted towards the docks slowly…making little noise.

"How far away are the warehouses from the water?" Speedy asked.

"Only two blocks," Robin said. "Half a minute by foot."

"So we can't just jump out and jump inside…," Speedy said. "Are we on time?"

"Yup….whoever's working there should be there now," Robin said. "I suggest reconnaissance."

"And how're we supposed to do that?"

Robin swiveled around. "Noir?"

I saluted, smiled, and stood up.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Speedy chuckled. "A long-haired dude with a sword?! The only was someone that tall and conspicuous can get in is if he can turn invisible!!"

"Got that covered," Robin said.

As if on cue, I channeled smoke energy outward from my body and blended into the shadows of the vehicle.

"……..," Speedy stared. "Well…then….if he can do that outside as well as he can do inside, fine by me."

"Noir…go check the warehouses out," Robin said. "Keep in radio contact. Describe through morse code what you see and I'll decide if we should go in or not."

I nodded.

Speedy opened the exit automatically.

"Good luck."

"Be careful!" Starfire added.

I swiftly jumped out and was on my way.

"I could be in his place, ya know!" Beast Boy frowned and folded his arms. "A green seagull could get the job done just as well!"

"………no it couldn't," Robin said.

Speedy chuckled.

"………………….a green seal?"

Raven threw up.

"Aw! Jeez!!"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

I ran across the docks and to the first structure.

I stopped and gained composure.

As much as I could move through the day-time in stealth, it took intense concentration. I could remain invisible at night much easier. In both cases, however, it oftentimes sapped me of my other abilities.

So, to conserve strength and stealth, I ran-not blurred--at a human speed across an alleyway and towards one of the warehouses in question. A pickup truck suddenly throttled past me on the road. I remained still, pressed against the wall. Though I was invisible, I still risked detection if I moved too much.

When the coast was clear, I sneaked my way across the path and towards the structure of the building itself. There was a van and two cars parked outside. Ironically, the pickup truck was coming to a stop at the structure too, and two figures came out. They headed towards the main door.

I glanced up, and saw a ladder leading towards a scaffold that served as a second story fire exit.

I quickly climbed up it.

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

"Aw man!" Speedy pulled at his thin red hair. "The upholstery!"

"I know….it's all spinning," Raven moaned.

Cyborg scratched the human half of his skull and stared at the seat. "Well….just a little Goo Gone will do the trick."

There was a beeping on Robin's communicator. He opened it up with a Star Trek sound. "Gotcha Noir. What do you see?"

There was a set of morse code instructions. Robin listened. Then he looked at everyone. "There's some sort of meeting taking place. Noir's gonna let us listen in."

"By all means….," Starfire said.

The communicator crackled. Slowly, the volume rose and a couple of strange voices materialized into the cabin of Speedy's boat.

"...doesn't come cheap. You should have figured that out before coming here."

"We obviously didn't come to collect some today. We're gonna need more than a stupid pickup truck for that job."

"Tell us something we don't know."

"Rumor has it you sell more than the Dragonflare here. Rumor has it y'all have some nifty toys up your sleeves."

"Maybe we do, maybe we don't. Who do you work for?"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

I perched on a railing on the second floor of the warehouse. While blending in with the shadows, I aimed the communicator down at the first floor where three employees and the two visitors were standing and talking amidst a bunch of wooden crates and mysteriously shrouded cargo.

"What difference does it make? We can't measure up to your boss."

"It makes a lot of difference to him. Already, one of our clients turned out to be a total nutjob. He was caught and done in by the Titans, and our product went along with him."

"Sounds like security here is at a sudden minimum. What? Is Dagger losing his bank cards or something?"

I made a face.

'Dagger'???

"Don't mention his name out loud!"

"So what?! We all know he exists! Anyone with a brain and a backbone in these streets knows he exists! Now, the cops don't know he exists. But they could, ya know, if Dagger doesn't take advantage of good offers when they're shoved into his face!"

"Is that a threat, bub?"

"Merely a proposition. Five hundred grand for five arms. The long range stuff."

"And the Dragonflare?"

"You can keep that crap. Lord knows by the sights of your peepers that you all seem to enjoy your own stock."

"You're walking a thin wire, my friend."

"Friend?? Ha! Look how benevolent these hypocrites are as soon as you shove them up against a wall, Barney!"

"Heheh…pathetic."

"Don't be so quick to insult Dagger's flock. You might insult the shepherd."

"Look…have we got a deal or not?"

"Five hundred grand isn't enough."

"What?!?! Keep joking, pal, you might just twist the wrong funny bone!"

"Let's just say we need some….insurance."

"You want a background check? I assure you, neither Barney or I have touched that green crap you guys keep hogging."

"I'm trying to be serious here…."

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

"Who's Dagger???" Speedy remarked.

"I don't know…," Robin said. "But there's one way to find out." He signaled to me through the communicator and then spoke to the others. "We're going in! There're five in the warehouse! Packages and crates lining the inside! No telling what's in them. So be careful! It could be evidence!"

"Okay!" Starfire nodded.

"Righto," Beast Boy hopped.

"Let's get this party started!" Cyborg cocked a laser rifle-arm.

Raven clutched her stomach. "Um……'woo hoo'."

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

I pocketed the communicator away and whipped out Myrkblade. I poised in a ready-to-pounce position from where I sat on the shadowed railing up top.

"So it's settled then?" said one of the workers. "Seven hundred and fifty grand??"

"That's the highest we'll go. Five sniper rifles can't be that much worth it."

"They are if they can fire from a mile and a half away with heat-seeking bullets."

"…….hmmm…..I rather like the sound of that."

SMASH!!!!!

A hole shattered high above in the warehouse as Cyborg dropped down and Starfire flew after.

Cyborg thunderously between the three workers and the two visitors. His titanium fists clenching.

The crooks drew back, but just then the door busted open as a green rhino charged in and Speedy dashed I after.

Finally, Raven and Robin emerged from a wall through black energy.

I leapt down and completed the encircling of the crooks.

"You're surrounded!" Robin pointed with a shout. "Get down and put your hands up!!"

Speedy drew an arrow with his bow.

Starfire's hands glowed green.

Cyborg aimed a laser rifle.

Raven's eyes glowed as she lifted two threatening crates.

Beast Boy morphed into a green tiger.

I held Myrkblade out, warbling.

Robin smirked.

Textbook………

One of the workers—panicking—looked back and forth with his unnaturally green eyes before jumping over to a computer panel and slamming his fist onto a red button.

"NO!!" cried out another worker. "NOT YET!! DAGGER SAID WE COULDN'T ACTIVATE THEM UNLESS THEY WERE SOLD!!!"

"Activate what?!?!" Speedy glared.

SMASH!!! SMASH!!!! CRASH!!!

All seven of us looked over as three wooden crates exploded into splinters and three—count 'em—three metal, robot skeletons appeared. Looking like monstrosities straight out of 'The Terminator', they shook to life, glared at us with glowing eyes, and charged at full-sprint…..smashing through crates and packages.

WHAM!!!

Beast Boy turned back into an elf and gulped. "Well….that was certainly unexpected."

SMACK!!! SLAM!!

Beast Boy and Cyborg were punched back by metal fists.

"Titans! Go!" Robin shouted. He dove at the first robot he could, kicking it I the side of the head. The android lumbered brainlessly and countered with a flying kick. The Boy Wonder was hit hard and sent flying back into me. "OOF!!"

Speedy squinted through his eyemask and unleashed a barrage of arrows at the automatons. The projectiles whistled through the air before contacting the metal skeletons hard and exploding upon contact.

The robots merely marched through the flames and started charging at him.

Speedy rolled to the side as Starfire floated up to plate and unleashed a heavy starbolt. "HAAA!!"

A wave of green enveloped two of the robots, stalling them and causing their limbs to spark.

At precisely that same time, Cyborg and Beast Boy got back to their feet. Cyborg let out a shout and ran at one of the sparking robots, fist first.

WHAM!!!!

The robot flew back on its metal pelvis while Beast Boy turned into a triceratops and slammed the other sparking android into a wall, sending splinters and shards of metal flying.

Robin and I disentangled ourselves. Amidst the storm of flying arrows, starbolts, and black energy, he pointed over towards the five fleshy crooks. "They're getting away!"

Without so much as a hand sign, I blurred through the chaos, leapt off a crate, and sailed down onto one of the two visitors who was pulling out a pistol.

SNAP!!!!

Myrkblade sailed through the barrel of the gun. I grunted, spun, and high-kicked the man in the sternum. Throwing him hard into a wall of the warehouse and knocking him out cold.

There was a pumping sound from behind me.

I turned around and my black eyes widened under my shades as I looked down the barrel of a shotgun.

"Go spoil your own fun," the second visitor smirked.

Swish-swish-swish-swish-SWISH-SWISH-SWISH-CLANK!!

A birdarang flew in and sliced the shotgun in half. Lead pellets fell to the floor as the crook stumbled back with a cry.

Robin sailed directly in with a flying kick. "HIYAAAAA!!"

SMACK!!

The crook hit the floor hard.

Robin landed and gave me a thumb's up.

I smiled and saluted him back.

In the meantime, Starfire and Cyborg circled one of the metal androids. Starfire let out a cry and shot a starbolt straight at the ground. A crater formed at the android's feet, tripping it forward so that it fell into Cyborg's embrace.

"Let's test your performance rating!" Cyborg winked. He let out a huge cry, twisted his torso and upper arms, and mightily body-slammed the creature hard into the ground.

WHAM!!!!

"From one buckethead to another…," Cyborg dusted his hands off. "You're pretty weak."

The grounded robot shook its head. It reached a hand into a nearby wooden crate. SMASH!! It pulled it out—holding a high-tech magnum.

"…..," Cyborg sweatdropped. "Now that's not playing fair!"

BLAM!!!

Cyborg dodged in time and scampered helplessly across the warehouse.

The robot got to its knees and aimed again.

BLAM!!!

Its second bullet was deflected just milliseconds before it could strike Cyborg's back by a starbolt. Starfire flew into view, gritted her teeth, and practically blinded the gun-toting automaton with a flurry of green energy.

In the meantime, a green dinosaur was having a wrestling match with another robot. A match that it eventually lost. The robot threw up its arms with immense strength and the dinosaur was tossed halfway across the warehouse and into an exploding pile of crates.

Beast Boy materialized in elf form, his eyes spinning. "Ughhhhh," he stood up, shook his head, and examined the dozen sniper rifles spilled out around him. "Hmmm….treasure trove, much?" He looked up. He shrieked and jumped out of the way as a fist-throwing robot flew down at him.

Suddenly, the robot froze in mid air as a sphere of black energy encased it.

"Save it for the Olympics…," Raven droned. Floating in mid air, she held the robot up with one hand and looked aside with glowing eyes. She saw the three workers fleeing desperately towards the exit. "You're. Not. Leaving!!" She waved her free hand.

"WHOAH!!!" the trio were thrown back by an obsidian wall and tossed into a set of lockers which the dark girl promptly closed tightly over them. Their fists could be heard pounding against the aluminum as they whined and demanded to be let out.

Raven stared. She jerked with a cry. She looked over and saw the robot punching its way out from the onyx shell.

She tried concentrating her powers at the last second, but the stream of energy was broken by a metal fist. The robot jumped down to the ground and charged her.

Raven hovered backwards and waved an arm, forming a shield.

FLASH!!!

The robot punched through and got closer.

She waved another arm and shielded.

FLASH!!!

The robot inched its way closer with a second fist.

Raven grit her teeth—eyes glowing—and held both palms out in front of her.

The robot sailed with both fists at once.

CLASH!!!!

Sparks of black energy danced between the girl's telekinesis and the android's invading fists. The two struggled violently for a second or two before Raven let out a cry and forced her arms apart. She succeeded in encasing the robot's two wrists in black energy and stretching its limbs out like it was being crucified. For a moment there, its chest twitched in intense vulnerability.

That's when Robin swung down via grappling hook cord and kicked the metal man mightily in the chest.

SMACK!!

Raven let go of her powers as Robin sent the robot teetering back. The Boy Wonder swiftly landed, jumped back up, and landed hard on the robot's shoulders—grounding it. He came around with his staff and duked it out with the robot mano y mano while Raven stood on the sidelings delivering backup—regaining her core energy.

In the meantime, Speedy has his hands full of the third robot. He jumped dodged each raging fist of the automaton, which missed and smashed a wall of the warehouse or a crate or a piece of the floor. Between every leap and landing, Speedy swiftly drew an arrow out, took aim, and fired at an exposed part of the robot's body.

He managed to slow the android down, but couldn't seem to damage it permanently. Speedy was merely holding it at bay, and he knew it. But for what reason?

The robot bore down at him past a few crates.

Speedy spun an arrow in his hand, his bow ready.

The robot raised two fists and brought them down.

SMASH!!

A crater in the ground formed.

Speedy was jumping backwards. He then ran indirectly towards the robot, dashed up a wall, jump-flipped off the side, and launched an arrow while upside down at the robot's chest.

PTWIFFT-BOOOM!!!

The arrow head exploded. The robot's torso sparked.

There was a rush of wind.

Speedy landed and looked behind as I ran up, Myrkblade raised, and slashed downward at the same chest that Speedy struck. A gash was formed in the robot's metal skin. Wires and android guts showed underneath.

The robot defensively shoved me away.

I flipped and landed gracefully besides Speedy as we both squared off at the creature.

I looked at him.

He looked at me.

I smiled.

He smiled.

I gripped the hilt of my sword as he drew another arrow.

The golem came charging in at us.

"HA!!" Speedy took aim from long range as I rushed in with my blade. The arrow flew overhead. The robot deflected it with an arm. Thus, for a split second, the metal creature was open to me when I leapt in and stabbed at its legs. Sparks flew. The robot flew a fist down at me. I teleported to the side. Speedy struck an arrow across its skull. The robot shook and plowed towards Speedy with its arms out. I let out a silent scream and spun around with Myrkblade warbling in a spiral. With my added force, the right arm of the robot was severed completely. I ended my spin and stabbed high. I stuck the tip of Myrkblade in between the joints of the robot's skeletal neck. I grunted and pulled at my hilt. My sword acted as a lever and tilted the chin of the overwhelmed android up; exposing its neckpieces.

Speedy grined.

Target…lock…

The archer took aim with a red-tipped arrow and let it loose.

PFTWIFFT!!!!

The projectile lodged into the android's neck. It glowed and hissed.

I jerked Myrkblade out and dove out of the way with Speedy.

BOOOM!!!!

The head of the robot was gone, and soon its entire body leaned over and crashed to the ground.

In the meantime, Cyborg's and Starfire's robot continued aiming and firing with the magnum. BLAM!! BLAM!! BLAM!!

Cyborg dove to the ground, grunted, and fired with his laser rifle.

The android was shoved back. It blocked with both the bare wrist and the trigger finger held up.

That was all Starfire needed. She soared down with both hands glowing together-palm to palm. She let out a warcry and flung a starbolt straight into the android's face.

BLAST!!!

Its red eyes shattered. Its head spun.

Starfire landed on the other side, twisted around, and shot a blast at point blanc into the robot's pelvis.

FLASH!!

Half of the metal structure melted away from the intensity. As it stumbled to its knees, the android aimed the magnum straight at Starfire. The Tamaranian girl effortlessly glided down, around, and up against the shoulder. She gripped the arm and—with a cry—slammed a green-glowing hand down onto the elbow.

BLAM!!!

The robot was forced to fire, and the bullet sailed consequently across the warehouse and into the torso of the android counterpart that Raven and Robin were tackling; assisting them greatly.

"HAAAAAA-AAAAA!!!" Starfire shouted and let loose a starbolt straight in the robot's skull. Electrical circuitry flew. The robot sparked, dropped the magnum, and fell to the ground twitching just in time for Beast Boy to jump, morph into a gorilla, and land on the metal body—smashing it to pieces.

CRASH!!!

"Boo-ya!!" Cyborg chanted on his feet.

Starfire smiled and hovered in the air with her hands on her hips. "However spontaneous, I do believe I washed its chronomete---" Suddenly, inexplicably, the alien girl twitched. Her right eye bulged and her left eye thinned as her face formed a twisted expression. Then she let out a sigh as her optics rolled back and she slumped cold to the floor.

Cyborg's jaw dropped.

Beast Boy returned to elf form and gasped.

Speedy and I looked over, shocked.

"STARFIRE!!" Robin exclaimed. He growled at the robot, held it at bay with a rod, and produced an explosive birdarang. He swiftly shoved the blinking projectile into the android's ribs and leapt away.

BOOOM!!!

A fireball lit up behind the Boy Wonder as he flipped over, landed, and ran swiftly towards Starfire's figure.

Raven floated over, a deadpan expression on her face.

The battle was over and everything was silent as Robin knelt and cradled the unconscious Tamaranian in his lap. "Starfire!! Starfire!!" he looked up at Beast Boy and Cyborg. "Who got her?!"

"No one!!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "The only other fighter was clear across the warehouse and in yours and Raven's hands when she just collapsed!"

"Cyborg?" Raven spoke. "Got a reading?"

Cyborg opened a panel in his arm and scanned the girl. "Give me a sec."

"Hurry!" Robin exclaimed.

"What happened?" Speedy asked as we both walked over.

"Don't know…," Beast Boy said. "But it's not good."

"Do Titans have the habit of just falling down on the spot?" Speedy asked. One of the two visiting crooks stirred and rubbed his head. The red-headed archer kicked him back to unconsciousness without looking.

"Something's wrong here…," Robin said. "This was not part of the plan!"

I nodded as if to say 'No duh!'

"I'm getting a reading…," Cyborg said.

"What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know," he looked at his arm's screen. "I'm very much tempted to say she's in a coma. But too much of her vital signs are way active for that to be true. If I didn't know better, I'd say she was sleeping."

"Sleeping?" Raven raised an eyebrow.

"Tamaranians aren't narcoleptic…," Speedy said. A pause. "Are they?"

"Heck if I know," Beast Boy muttered with a shrug.

"Well, we have to find out," Robin gritted his teeth. "And quick. Speedy! I need your boat. We have to get her back to the Tower!"

"No problem," he nodded. "Carry her inside. I'll have us there in a jiffy!"

There was a creaking sound.

"Say, what was that?" Beast Boy hissed.

Raven pointed, "Look!"

The lockers that housed the three workers had been kicked open from the inside. A door to the warehouse hung open to the bright, outside world.

"Rrrrrgh!!" Cyborg shook. "Crap! They're getting away! And they're the only ones who have answers over all this chaos!" He ran after them but Robin motioned with a shout:

"No! Cyborg, come with us."

"But they're getting away!"

"Beast Boy can go aver them. I need you. Starfire needs you. Please…come with us back to the Tower!"

Cyborg looked at Starfire's limp figure in Robin's arms. He sighed. "Allright, man. B.B. Go fetch!"

"Aye, sir!" Beast Boy turned into a green cheetah and rushed out the door in pursuit.

"Noir…Raven…stay here until the cops come. Help them out in their investigation. I want as much evidence analyzed about this place and those screwy robots as possible. God, I hate it when fate works against us!"

"Save the poetry for later," Speedy said. "Let's go!"

"We'll hold the fort here…," Raven said. "Make sure Starfire's okay."

"Will do. Move!"

The three guys carried Starfire off.

I watched, biting my lip. I looked over at Raven's face as if somehow that would bring solace to me.

She looked back deadpan at me. "I cannot give you assurance, Noir. For, like Robin, I have no clue what's happening to Starfire."

I nodded. That made the both of us…

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

The three green-eyed workers of the warehouse ran down the street, panting. They stopped at a corner of two major streets in the industrial district to catch their breaths.

"Everything's blown to crap…," one of them heaved…then glared. "And it's all thanks to YOU!!"

"What?! For crying out loud, it was the Titans!! I had no choice but to seek the Sentries on them!"

"Those were the most expensive pieces of hardware we got!!" the other one shouted. "And now they're smashed to jigsaws!"

"Hey! As much as I care, we don't exist! Let's get out of this town and pretend like nothing happened! Dagger won't know! Anderson's old friends won't know! We'll be old news!"

As if on cue, a black van drove up skidded to a stop, and opened its sliding side door. A couple of shaded men jumped out, grabbed the leader of the three workers, and hoisted him—struggling and shouting—into the vehicle. No sooner had that happen, the black van drove off in a hurry.

The other two workers stared….their green eyes twitching.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Yeah…we're dead if we stand here any longer."

"Let's move!"

And they were about to do so when a green cheetah leapt in from the street and pounced one of them to the asphalt.

"OOF!"

The animal spun around.

The second man gasped.

The green changeling pounced towards him, morphed into a kangaroo, and kicked him across the street and into the side of a dumpster.

CLANG!!!

"Ughhhh…"

Both fell unconscious.

Beast Boy landed in a crouching position. He morphed into elf form and looked down the street towards where the van last drove off. He then glanced a the two men and sighed:

"Two peas in a pod….."

He then proceeded to handcuff them.

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

A half hour later, Starfire lay on a medical table in Cyborg's lab. She was dressed in a hospital gown, and numerous instruments and wires were attached to her.

"Kinda…..overdoing it, ya think?" Speedy remarked.

Robin, who was kneeling by her bed, glared up at the archer. "I'm not taking any chances."

"Okay! Allright! It's cool…man. Seriously!"

Robin looked across the lab. "Any further results, Cyborg?"

"It's not sleep….," Cyborg said. "There's no REM cycle to her neurological activity. And yet, it's not a coma either. It's almost like she's awake….only paralyzed. Her electromagnetic signals aren't responding to anything we say or do, so I'm at a loss to say whether or not she's cognitive of what's happened or is happening. I wish I could tell you more….just….I don't know Tamaranian physiology enough. Show me a cyborg Tamaranian, and I might be able to help you."

Robin glared at the floor. "Then we're gonna have to find a better source."

Cyborg frowned. "Hey man! What's wrong with what I have to—"

"Nothing…," Robin said, standing up. "In fact, you pointed me in the right direction."

"What are you proposing?" Speedy asked.

"Come on," Robin motioned as he headed for the door. "It's time we take something out of mothballs." He paused. He turned around slowly and looked at Starfire's silent figure.

"Something wrong, Robin?"

He took a deep breath. "Yeah." And he headed out the door.

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

"Whoah…you guys store a lot of stuff here…," Speedy remarked as they traversed a dark corridor in the cellar.

"It's easy to get lost," Cyborg nodded. He provided a flashlight out from his very shoulder that lit the dusty path before them. "Happened to Noir once. And I can't blame him. I have no clue what my old man was thinking when he built the cavernous innards of this Tower."

"There!" Robin—the point man—gestured. He ran over to a crevice (like a 'garage') in the corridor. There a hulking object lay silent under a dusty shroud. He pulled the tarp off in one swift jerk.

Dust flew.

Speedy and Cyborg coughed. They squinted through the 'mist'.

"Whoah….what's that thing?" Speedy remarked. "It sure ain't human."

"That's because it isn't," Robin motioned to a giant metal pod that he stood beside. "It's Tamaranian."

"That's the thing Star landed here in!" Cyborg remarked.

"Yup…and I bet there's some sort of alien transceiver inside."

"Gonna dial a collect-call?" Cyborg smirked.

"Let's just hope Starfire's people have a health hotline," Robin said. "It's a wild guess…but I don't know what alternatives we have."

"Gotta give your all for a teammate, right?" Speedy remarked.

Robin glanced at him.

"Right?"

Robin slowly nodded. "'Teammate'….right….."

Cyborg stared.

Robin turned and opened the hatch with a grunt.

The thing hissed as it lifted from its hinges.

Robin waved the dust off and walked into the cockpit. He looked around inside the cramped space, found a button, and pressed it.

The pod lit up in brilliant, unearthly colors.

Speedy whistled. "Close encounters of the rainbow kind!"

"Not in the mood," Robin muttered. "Now…let's see what these buttons do…"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

At the crime scene, a brigade of policemen and detectives had arrived. Many of the guns and equipment (and Dragonflare stashes, to say the least) were carted off and measured as evidence.

As the sun set, I knelt beside the ruins of one of the androids that were spread out on the concrete. I took off my glasses and stared at its contents with black eyes. I then looked up at Raven.

"…..," she looked at me. "You know what I'm thinking?"

I nodded slowly.

"Looks like Simon Stone's work…."

I stood up and put the glasses back on with a sigh.

"And to think the whole Stone-Anderson situation was complete…"

I shook my head and gestured to her.

She couldn't 'read' me, but she got the idea. "Or this is the start of a whole new situation…."

I nodded.

Beast Boy walked up. "I've got good news. Remember the two crooks I caught?"

"Hard not to."

"Well, they've been taken in for questioning. It's a safe bet those junkies will give up sooner than most criminals. And if the cops can't get to them, I'm sure it'll be out task to try squeezing some truth out of them or something."

"Oh joy…"

"The bad news is…," Beast Boy moaned, "…there's no sign of the third suspect OR the black van that took off madly with him!"

"This is all starting to get really fishy…," Raven said. "There's something deep at play here. Something dark. I can feel it."

I gestured as if I had a 'knife' in my hand.

"'Dagger'," Raven nodded. "That name must mean something."

"Oh great! A new crime lord! That's just what we need!" Beast Boy moaned. "Who's next? Lesbian Luthor?!"

"There're plenty of fish in the sea…," Raven said. "Though I suppose we should be thankful. We may be close to catching this one."

"Any word from Robin and the gang about Starfire?" Beast Boy meekly asked.

Raven slowly shook her head.

Beast Boy sighed. "Bummer…"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

"This is Earth. The Teen Tower. Is anyone there?"

Pause.

"Are there any Tamaranian relay stations out there? This is Earth. Robin of the Teen Titans! Can someone respond?"

"Ya know…," Speedy scratched his head. "There's gotta be a more….official way to contact an alien species."

"I know it looks like Robin's just fishing for intergalactic compliments…," Cyborg stated, "…but Starfire specifically told us that she had a satellite that responded directly to the signals of her space pod's receiver. If what she told us is accurate, we should be getting a reply now from some piece of Tamaranian communication."

"How come the government doesn't tell us about all this alien stuff?" Speedy remarked. "Superman. Supergirl. Starfire….you think it'd become regulatory now. I mean….DUH! Aliens exist! Go climb a tree, you frickin' amish!"

"Shhh!!!" Robin exclaimed. "I think I'm making contact!!"

Cyborg and Speedy leaned in towards the doorway of the pod as static built up on Robin's receiving end and a mysterious, dark voice came to life.

"Zzzz…..tkkkks….adfjfhhhurjarb? Hujugarb? Urublorkin gasset-laysie?"

Robin blinked. "Um….could you repeat that?"

Static. Then--

"Tkkkk—Oh! Glorious! English speaking Terrans! This shall be a most intriguing challenge indeed!"

Cyborg smirked. "Sounds like Star's ilk, alright."

"H-Hello out there!" Robin stuttered. "With whom am I speaking?"

"Why…the C.S.A.I.T.!"

"The who?"

"The Collective Satellite Artificial Intelligence of Tamaran!"

"You mean….you're a machine?"

"Affirmative. A most marvelous invention too, made to emulate the emotions and feelings of biological, sentient organisms of all galactic walks of life as well as provide a vessel of communication from parsec to parsec---"

"Yeah yeah….look. We need help. Our…..Our cl-close friend is Tamaranian, and something's happened to her. And we can't figure out what. We think it might be indigenous of her people!"

"Are we talking of an ailment, a behavior, an accident, an evolution, or an abduction?" the voice asked.

"Ummmm," Robin blinked under his eyemask and looked back at the others.

Cyborg and Speedy scratched their heads.

"We'll take 'ailment' for four hundred, please," Speedy said.

"An ailment!" Robin spoke into the machine. "It's like a coma. We don't know what it is! Starfire just fell down and went unconscious and—"

"Starfire??" the computer voice warbled. "Do you mean Koriand'r?"

"…..," Robin blushed. "Er….I guess so. Yeah."

" Koriand'r??" Cyborg remarked.

"Kinky…," Speedy smirked.

Cyborg elbowed him.

"Ow!!"

"One moment, please…," the computer voice cheerfully said. "Processing!"

"I don't have a moment!" Robin growled.

"Dude…just let the computer do its work," Speedy said.

" Koriand'r….," Cyborg scratched his chin.

"Processing………," the computer repeated.

Robin sighed and leaned a chin on his elbow.

Then….

"Probable solution acquired. Likelihood of accuracy, 99.69 percent."

"Great!" Cyborg said. "Let us here it!"

"Hormonal suspension. Prevalent in the ages of adolescent boy and girl Tamaranians. At sporadic moments in their teenage lives, Tamaranians undergo comatose states of hibernation. The bouts of sleep are spontaneous, natural, and a healthy component of gradual, post-adolescent transformation."

"But…I-I thought Starfire had already gone through her transformation!" Cyborg muttered.

"Transfor-who?" Speedy blinked under his mask.

"Alien puberty," Robin explained. "A few months ago, Starfire started undergoing dramatic, physical changes. The whole ordeal ended up with her hatching out of a…er…cocoon and developing the ability to shoot starbolt beams out of her eyes."

"She's been practicing it on and off since her transformation was complete," Cyborg added. "Or at least when we thought it was complete."

"Huh….," Speedy remarked. "And here I was thinking up Autobots and Decepticons."

"As long as the state of comatose hibernation is uninterrupted…," the computer voice said through the communicator, "…the Tamaranian will eventually wake up and resume normal biological functions. Such an unpredictable step in Tamaranian evolution forced the parental guardians of the offspring to keep the brood within their 'nest'—as you would—for a period of time much longer than other, celestial, bipedal, sentient species. Thus Tamaranian culture today is one shaped heavily around family, friendship, and trust."

"Well, that explains a lot," Cyborg smirked.

"How long do these comatose episodes last?" Robin asked.

"On average, as little as two days to as long as three weeks."

"Oye….," Cyborg moaned. "Could have picked a better time, Star."

"However, with modern Tamaranian medicine, the hibernation process is commonly limited to a few hours thanks to chemical intervention. The process—often utilized by common, household Tamaranian physicians—has been performed constantly over the last five centuries and is part of the traditional treatment of such states of puberty…"

"Oh, I see," Cyborg nodded. "Like a pill."

Robin muted the transmission and looked over at the other two. "As much as I want Starfire to catch up on her beauty rest, I think it would be appropriate for us to rouse her as soon as possible. She'd appreciate it if we let her keep on track with the rest of us. And, quite frankly, we need her help in this situation with the weapons arsenal and this 'Dagger' character."

"Or maybe you just want her safe and sound…on her feet," Speedy smirked.

"So what if I do?"

Speedy shrugged.

Robin cleared his throat. He spun around and resumed communication with the artificial intelligence. "How can we go about acquiring the assistance of a Tamaranian doctor to….er….traditionally wake Starfire up?"

"Processing……"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

Groggily, the leader of the warehouse workers opened his green eyes. Rich carpet was passing under his feet. He realized he was being carried through the halls of a lush building.

Not just any building. The building.

"No…N-No!!" He struggled and grunted, but the henchmen dragging him only tightened their grip. They said nothing.

They approached a pair of silver double doors. Two heavy bodyguards opened it up.

The man was practically shoved in and in front of a huge, oak desk overlooking a slate of clear glass. The rooftops of the City stretched below the window.

The sounds of machine guns cocking lit both of the man's ears.

He gulped and looked at the back of the large office chair.

A man's hand stuck out over the armrest, twirling a silver-plated dagger between his fingers like a jacob's ladder.

"When I grew up on the streets…," spoke an emotionless voice behind the chair, "…I learned what true respect was. I learned the pain of making errors. I learned that consequence was a thing to be feared…and thus a thing to be honored. Years and years I toiled and sweat to come to where I am now. The blood and bones of those I struggled with now lie behind me. I can still smell their gaping wounds in my sleep as they drown in the quagmire of the decrepit streets of postindustrial waste."

The chair swiveled around. A surprisingly young man of moderate build and height stared stoically at the warehouse worker behind dark brown eyes and under short black hair. He wore business casual. He twirled the dagger.

"After all the trouble I went through…to reach this height…and then hire a suburbs-born prince like you into my flock…why is it that you have not learned that same respect and—in turn—failed to pay it to me?"

"I-It's not my fault, s-sir," the man stuttered. "The clients we tried to get for you…they were either complete psychopaths or complete hogs! I would have run them off…but the Titans came!"

"And what did you do when the Titans came?" the man stared with cold, unfeeling eyes.

"They….th-they….I…"

"What. Did. You. Do. When. The. Titans. Came?"

The silver dagger twirled to a stop. Its cold, serrated point glistened in the red sunlight and made a prism on the worker's forehead.

The man sweated. "….I….I let loose the sentries."

"You let loose the sentries…."

"B-But I would have fallen into the hands of authorities had I done anything less, sir!!"

"You would have fallen into the hands of authorities either way…," the cold man said.

THWACK!!

He stabbed the knife into the tabletop and leaned forward with his unblinking eyes. "Because I hired an incompetent drug addict to handle the latest and most important supply of illegal arms my organization had the blessing to put its hands to. Because I let a fool try to organize the only piece of evidence linking me to our most important business partrner."

"But….but….but…."

The man stared.

The worker gulped.

The man looked up at his bodyguards. "Take him out of here. Drive him to the river. Kill him."

"NO!!!" the man struggled as the armed bodyguards grabbed his shoulders. "Please!! G-Give me another chance, Dagger! I swear! I-I'll make you happy!"

The man finally stood up, yanked his knife out of the desktop, and pointed it at the worker across the room. "You will either drown in the river or you will be stabbed to death in this very room. Make your choice. Now."

The man was shocked silent. He whimpered.

Dagger looked at his bodyguards…and nodded.

They carried the sobbing man away.

The doors were closed.

'Dagger' was alone.

He slumped down into his chair, still unblinking, and twirled his knife some more.

"You have too many junkies working for you, Dagger," came an eerie voice from the shadows. "It is most embarrassing."

Finally…the dark-haired man blinked. He sighed exasperatingly without so much as turning his head. "Come out of the shadows, Slade. Your hide-and-seek games do not work on me."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that…," said the masked villain as he emerged from the corner of the office room. He was flanked by two of his typical android guards. "If the Titans can sneak up on your staff…then so surely can I."

"The drug trafficking was a bad idea from the start…," Dagger mumbled. "From this day forward, Dragonflare belongs back in the hands of the Malaysians."

"What makes you so sure it isn't already too late for that?" Slade said slowly, staring at the man with his mask's one emblazoned eye. "Already the Titans and the police have in their hands the greatest chunk yet of the late Anderson's arsenal. The option of replicating the technology is growing increasingly hazier. While you sit in your chair and play with your knives, opportunity is slipping through our fingers."

"Unless….," Dagger said and swiveled over to face Slade. "…this is all somehow falling into your 'grand plan'….as things always seem to do."

"Perceptive….," Slade ever so slightly nodded with his hands behind his back. "That is why I trust you, Dagger. You know enough about me to be an enemy. And for that same reason, you are dangerously my ally."

"Tell me, Slade," Dagger leaned forward. "What truly inspired you to begin this partnership."

"Simple…," Slade spoke. "I need strings to pull at the Titans…and I'm running out of loose ends to taunt them with." He suddenly retracted his rod, spun the bludgeon beside him, and lopped off the head of one of his bodyguards.

CRACK!!!

BZZZZTT!!!

The head of the android flew and fell with a KERPLUNK on Dagger's desk, where it sparked, smoked, and went silent. Dagger stared at it, unphased.

"Simon Stone is no more…," Slade said. "As a result…my henchmen are no more. Unless of course, I acquire a replacement."

"You were wanting to replicate the sentries in the warehouse…," Dagger said.

"Elite….strong….four times as powerful as any one of my 'henchmen'…," Slade said. "They were Stone's latest model. And improvement vastly greater than the original. Thanks to Anderson's and Luthor's agreement, Stone was planning on processing a horde of them for my approval. But such an operation was cut short."

"Westhaven….," Dagger remarked.

"And then Anderson's unfortunate demise…," Slade added. "For once, I have a shortcoming in my supplies. Thus I must move onto bigger and better things."

"Such as…"

"The eradication of the Teen Titans."

"Tell me something less redundant," Dagger retorted.

"Oh, it is the most intriguing of schemes," Slade said. "But it is not like me to give away that which will work perfectly. We must hold true to the faith that the Titans will survive the next few days in time for me to exact my ideas."

"I'm afraid I don't quite get you."

Slade paced over to the window and gestured, "Out from the East, there comes a shadow. It shall consume the lives and symbols of justice in this city…one…by….one. All out of the motive of pure hate and vengeance." He looked over at Dagger through his mask. "The Titans are at the end of that list. It will be an exciting play to watch. Maybe it will even bring a smile to your stone face, Dagger."

"I don't smile when I'm amused," said the dark-haired man. "People die."

"Then you shall be very amused….," Slade nodded. "Very amused indeed…"

-T-T-T-T-T-T-

Minutes after returning to the Tower, I walked down to my room and put Myrkblade up on the hilt. I stretched and sighed.

I was thinking of Starfire.

I walked into the bathroom and froze.

On the mirror—lit by the lantern on the wall—was a pale white sheet of paper taped to the glass.

I picked it off and held it to my eyes with my shades off.

I squinted and read the letter:

Dear Noir,

Things are about to get very, very bloody.

Sincerely,

-the Messenger.

My heart froze. I took a deep breath and nearly jumped when there was a pounding at the door.

I half-blurred to it and opened it.

Cyborg stuck his head in. "Noir! Trouble! We gotta move!"

I mouthed: 'Starfire'?

Cyborg shook his head. "No. She's okay, just sleeping. It's the City Court House. There's been a murder."