Regardless of Cyborg's command, Starfire still found herself restless. The storm had calmed down immensely, but that wasn't what was bothering her. Robin could be anywhere, anything could be happening to him. The others still viewed him as their fearless leader, but Starfire had seen him in ways the others hadn't. To her, he already was human, just like the civilians she strived to protect every day. He definitely could take care of himself, that much she knew, but there was a small part of her that worried about him. What if his utility belt was stolen? What if he was weak or surrounded? He was alone...well, alone with whoever kidnapped him. Some maternal instinct sparked inside of her as she reached for her communicator.
I do not know why I am doing this. Surely he won't pick up. She opened it and pressed the connecting button.
"Robin? If you can hear me, will you answer? Please Robin, I am very worried about you."
No reply.
She knew it was eminent, but she was still going to try. She went to shut the lid, when she noticed the four flashing lights on the grid. Three were in the middle of the bay, one was outside the city.
"Robin?"
She blinked a few times before she realized that's what she was seeing. Robin's communicator was still on and they could track where he was. Starfire was ecstatic. She flew into the common room with vigor.
"Friends! Forget the activity in which you are partaking!"
"What is it star?" Cyborg asked without looking up.
Raven peeked an eye out from trying to lock on to Robin's mind, the surveillance footage coming up fuzzy and unidentifiable.
"Make with the haste! I have discovered where to find Robin!"
"What? Where?" Cyborg shouted.
She showed her communicator and the flashing point on the grid.
Cyborg cracked a smile. "Whoever this guy is, he's not very smart. Someone go get Beast Boy. We have a leader to get back!"
Immediately, everyone jumped into action, not even bothering to get a vehicle. Starfire and Raven flew, while Beast Boy carried Cyborg as usual.
"According to where his communicator is located, he should be inside the 24 hour convenience store."
"Robin's been captured by a bag boy?"
"Let's just go look."
Inside the store, everything checked out normal. The cashier looked at the Titans in surprise. "Can I help you?" she asked hesitantly.
"We're looking for someone."
"Oh god, is there a criminal in here?"
"Possibly, have you seen Robin?"
"No sir. The last customer that through was hours ago. And it was just some old man."
"Do you mind if we looked around?"
"Please do."
They searched through the building, looking in the employee restrooms and back room. Beast Boy looked in the clothing rack. And Starfire peeked in the ceiling tiles.
"I don't get it; it says we're right on top of him..." Cyborg said, looking at his arm.
"Maybe we are," Raven spoke staring at his feet. The Titans collectively looked down to see Cyborg standing on a drain cover.
"Bingo." Cyborg smiled.
Undoing the screws, the team dropped down into the sewer. Star and Cyborg lit the way as the team split up; guys and girls.
"Robin!" Starfire called, desperate. The only reply was the drips from the ceiling. Suddenly, the beeping on the communicator increased.
"He should be right here!" Raven stated.
A lonely box was floating in the sour water. Raven levitated it, while Star opened it up. Her heart stopped. In the box was Robin's uniform, torn and covered with a red liquid. But folded neatly, almost with respect. His utility belt was emptied and all of his tools were destroyed. His mask laid, slashed and dripped with blood. On top of all this was a note.
He's gone and he's never coming back.
"Robin, No!" Star took the box into her hands and held it close to her heart. "He is not gone! He cannot be!"
"It's okay star, we can't know for sure. This is just his clothes. There's no telling what happened."
"I fear our friend could be..."
"What if this guy is pulling our leg?"
"I feel no hands on my ankles..." Star said, looking at her feet.
"I mean he might be tricking us. Let's get the guys and go home. Robin's tracker has a history of the places he's been. Maybe we can gather some other clues from his uniform. Either way, we aren't getting any other work done down here."
She started to leave. Star looked down at the fallen uniform in her hands and let the smallest of tears fall. She hurried after Raven.
Back at the tower, Cyborg was sampling the liquid on the clothes while Raven checked the history on Robin's communicator.
"Good news y'all, the red stuff on Robin's uniform is just dye."
"Cyborg, I believe the past tense of that word is 'dead,' and how is that good news?"
"No Starfire, dye. D-Y-E. It's artificial coloring."
"So it is not the blood of our friend?"
"The drops on his mask are, but they're just drops."
"Raven, have you found where he was?"
"No, it looks like the communicator was shut off and then turned back on. The signal switching from the tower to the sewer is the only change. I can't even tell what route they took."
"And you couldn't lock on to your mental link earlier?"
"No, but he could have easily been unconscious."
"What are we going to do?" Starfire shouted.
"Relax." Beast Boy patted her shoulder, "You know Robin's a fighter. He'll probably come in the door any moment." He gestured to the door for emphasis. They watched anxiously.
Nothing happened.
"Everyone, get some sleep. We'll resume in the morning."
"No, we will not! There will be no sleeping until our Robin is home where he belongs!"
"Just because you can't sleep doesn't mean we can't." Raven ordered. "If you want to stay and work, go ahead. But the rest of us are exhausted and can't think anymore. We'll continue this tomorrow." She pulled her hood up and fled to her room. Beast Boy and Cyborg following likewise.
"Oh Robin." Starfire stared at the screen, unsure of what to do, but praying that he would be alright.
Robin awoke again. Similarly to the way he did the night before. How he could sleep with that blinding light was beyond him.
"How is my little friend today?" A chilling voice said beside him. Now he remembered. The accompanying headache was a clue as well.
"...Slade."
"Who were you expecting? Shirley Temple?"
"Still not going to tell me your plan?"
"I'm afraid I'm not going to do much talking today." Out of the corner of his eye, Robin saw something shine in the light.
"What's that?" Robin whispered, unable to mask the slight fear in his voice. Slade said nothing, only touched something to his arm. It was sharp, like a blade. Slade dragged it across his skin. A tight pinching feeling burned in a line as the blade moved, the fibers of his skin slowly splitting apart, leaving a deep red trail in its wake. Robin grit his teeth to hide the pain.
"Hurts, doesn't it?"
"I'm a hero. This pain is nothing compared to what I've felt."
"And you expect me to stay behind the line of your worst? I've been watching you, and I know your pain. I've seen the most devastating things that have happened to you."
"Have you seen me cry?"
"Cry?"
"If you haven't seen me cry, you haven't seen my pain."
A chuckle escaped Slade's lips and sent a chill up his spine. The blade moved a centimeter north and made a familiar trek. Like a musician, Slade pulled the knife in a graceful dance as if playing a song of agony. On and on, cut after cut, Robin's arms slowly began to resemble candy canes. Pale white smooth skin, tainted with deep red stripes.
He stopped at Robin's shoulders. Two gloved hands landed on his shoulders softly, just gently touching the skin. Slowly, the hands trailed up and pressed harder, until he stopped on his neck. Robin felt fingerprints being engraved into his skin. Slade's thumbs pressed on his adam's apple and made it hard to breathe. He stayed like that until Robin choked.
"That'll be all." Slade lulled as he let go. Robin sucked in as much oxygen as his lungs allowed, almost making him dizzy.
"I'll leave you alone for awhile. But before I go..." he trailed off as he heaved something onto the table. "I can't let these get infected. Now can I?" Slade had a cup in his hand. "This might hurt...a lot." Then heartlessly, he dumped the contents on the open wounds. 50% alcohol content. Robin's head smacked back against the table as he winced in pain.
"Oh, I was right. Yay me." Slade patted Robin's head. "One more thing." He took a needle and tapped it lightly on the skin of Robin's neck. "Sleep tight, Richard." Then plunged the needle deep.
Before Robin had time to react, he felt his consciousness pulling back into his body. His arms grew numb. His skin tingled and felt warm. He didn't want to admit it, but whatever drug Slade had just given him, made him feel really good. The warm feeling passed and was replaced with acute senses. He felt too aware of everything around him. His mouth ran dry and it became hard to breathe. A wave of nausea came over him and he thought he was going to vomit. Finally, cloudiness took over and soon he fell into a deep sleep.
"Dude, are you alright?" He woke to the sound of his friend's voice.
"Nnnn….wha….?" was all he managed to say.
"Rest, you are badly injured." Raven's hand rested on his shoulder.
"We found you lying unconscious in an abandoned warehouse outside of town. You looked awful." Cyborg's voice rang of sympathy.
"Tell us, how do you feel now?" Starfire's shining green eyes bore into his.
"Star…I…nnngh…" He still couldn't speak.
"Star? How did you know my name?" She asked.
"'s me…Robin…." He realized they must not have recognized him without his mask.
"You must have hit your head too hard. The only Robin we knew is dead."
Robin awoke screaming. The only thing that made him stop was the heavy footsteps coming closer.
Buckle up. It's about to get worse.