I want to thank everyone for taking the time to review!

To LordGodsServant, yes I was inspired by you to do the scene between Red X and Dubbilex by you. I really liked how you had your Robin interact with Dubbilex and so took my interpretation on it and integrated it into my own story. As for the relationship between Superboy and Red X, I want them to be best friends bordering on being like brothers.

Evil Soul asked me at what timeframe Teen Titans wise does this story takes place, so here's a brief outline of the history if my Teen Titans AU.

The Titans formed on May 11, 2007 during the episode "Go!". From there the episodes are canon up until the episode "Birthmark". (I've rearranged the episodes in Season 4, making it so that "Birthmark" is immediately followed by "The Prophecy", and "The End") July 12, 2009 takes place during the events of "The Prophecy", the major difference being that Raven kills herself at midnight of July 13 in an attempt to thwart Trigon's plans. It of course doesn't work. The Trigon Arc is where I make the most changes to canon, but afterwards the story goes back to following the plot of Season 5, (without Raven of course) ending somewhere in January 2010. "Trouble in Tokyo" happens in the middle of February 2010, and the first chapter of this fic takes place in the following March. Meaning the TT storyline lasted for about 2 years and nine months.

Hope that clears some things up a little more.

~Young Justice: Red X~

Chapter 9: Still Haunted

In the pits of a pocket dimension that some would identify as Hell, a demon dwelled. He had been confined to the fiery realm eons ago by monks of a high order, but it was only a temporary imprisonment, a delay to the inevitable. The demon knew this and so did the Monks of Azarath, his jailers. All-seeing and all-knowing the demon waited, but not patiently. The mortals who had promised their fealty to him in their lives suffered the brunt of his fury. He did find, however, that he could drag the souls of those sworn to him into the flaming pits of his prison. Their tortured screams helped pass the time.

Then one day, he felt magic from another world, another dimension, reaching out towards him. The practitioners invoked his name, offered sacrifices of virgins, and chanted ancient spells. It was not enough to free him, only the Gem could do that, but a part of his consciousness was bale to break free of his imprisonment and slipped into the body of a mortal who'd offered themselves freely. It was merely one confinement to another, his powers severely limited to the point where he was no longer all-knowing and all-seeing.

The cult had been devoted, pathetic puny mortals that they were, and they'd known their place. But he had no care for them or for their world, their Earth. After all, it was just one speck amongst the multiverse. And yet–

There'd been a human woman, Angela Roth. She had been… amusing. She had a temper, had talked back to him when others cowered. She tried to share her world with him, to get him to appreciate what she valued. He played along for a while, pretended that her overtures were having an effect. And the foolish mortal had fallen in love with him. He had laughed in her face when she'd admitted as such, delighting in her horror when she realized the truth. He hadn't even been all that angry when she killed his host, returning his consciousness to Hell.

When he was fully intact again, the full magnitude of his actions were revealed to him instantly, and he'd roared victoriously. His portal in the multiverse, the Gem long foretold, was his seed now residing in Angela Roth. The monks of Azarath found her soon enough, taking her to their dimension, were they would raise his daughter in another futile attempt to stop his rising. He knew it would be in vain.

In less than seventeen years, he would be freed and the End would come.

His daughter was determined to fight against her fate; Raven had the same fiery spirit her mother once possessed. It had amused him deeply. He waited and watched, and when the being called Slade fell, Trigon had reached across dimensions to talk to the soul left behind. He offered a deal, and like every foolish mortal before him, Slade accepted readily. Bearing the mark of Scorn, his warrior had delivered the message on his daughter's sixteenth birthday. Raven took her own life, but that did little to hinder his revival. His warrior retrieved the Gem, her body, his blood and power that resided in her. That was all he needed to break the seal on his cage.

As it was prophesied, the Great Demon Trigon rose once more, and multiverse fell.

His warrior was dismissed, having served his purpose, their ruse of a bargain left unfulfilled. Perhaps, out of memory for Angela and his daughter, he decided to take Earth as his throne, sending his armies out to destroy the few beings that had been able to survive his resurgence. Curiously, one Earthling survived where all others had been turned to stone. While the boy attacked him, Trigon had peered into his existence, easily finding the link the mortal had with his daughter. She'd even transferred a portion of her powers into the boy. Trigon sent his slaves to deal with the child. One mortal posed no threat.

And yet two mortal were able to defeat him.

Slade, his warrior, had been more knowledgably than he'd realized. Somehow the man had obtained a Ring of Azarath, forged by the very monks who had imprisoned him. It hid the mortal from his gaze and he'd used this blindness to his advantage, regaining his mortality. Together, the boy and his warrior launched a surprise attack on him, which he'd treated with little concern. He'd failed to notice how his daughter, who couldn't die completely for she was a part of him, had awakened somewhat through the connection she had with the boy. A swell of power had enveloped the child, taking on the form of a white bird that had enough strength to do the impossible. And he was banished back to Hell once more.

So in the end, he had been defeated. But not destroyed.

He was the Demon Trigon and his resurrection had been foretold in more dimensions than just the one his daughter had been born into. His revival would come about again; the Prophecy would come true in the next dimension he was summoned into. However, as there could only be one Trigon, there too could be only one portal. It had taken time to revive her, but now the Gem was ready to be his portal in the next world once again.

While using his powers to rebuild Raven, Trigon had kept an eye on the boy who had formed a bond with his daughter. She had intertwined her very soul with the boy and in turn connected the mortal to him, though Trigon learned he could not actively affect the child at the moment. His prison prevented him from affecting the dimensions in that way. Still, that did not mean that the link between him in the boy had stopped existing, it was just weak at the moment.

Ironically it was thanks to this child, who'd taken part in his downfall, who provided the next realm of his reemergence. Normally he would have had to spend centuries in order to breach the barriers of a dimension, but due to his link to the boy, Trigon now had a connection to this new Earth. Now was the time for his daughter to fulfill her purpose once again.

In one year, he would rule on high once more and the boy would be the first to suffer his revenge.

~Young Justice: Red X~

|OLD HAUNT
|2010 July 10, 01:33 PDT

Robin tried to compose himself before he turned his attention to the main computer that was housed in the Tower's living room. His hands shook from nerves and he hid them by crossing his arms over his chest, his cape draped around him protectively. Even after being away from his mentor for six months, after everything that happened, Batman still held so much power over him.

Robin had returned to the Titans only a few hours ago after his two-week entrapment blackmailed into Slade's service. Two torturously long weeks that would forever be the worst time of his life and it wasn't because of the reasons his friends thought. In truth, his stay hadn't been all that physically harmful. The rigorous training had been tough, but it was no worse than when he'd first started out with Batman. There had been occasions when Slade would hit him, a backhand for when he'd mouthed off, or worse when he'd made an attempt to grab the trigger.

Slade taught him more than just his fighting style; robotics was also a part of his training. While Robin was certain he'd never be able to build robots at the same level as Slade, he was able to repair and disable them without much trouble. Weapons training had also been focused on. Slade had taught him how to use his staff more effectively as well as how to use a sword and a gun. Robin repressed a shiver as he thought about how impressed Slade had been when it came to that particular weapon. It seemed he just had a natural talent for firearms. And that was definitely something the fourteen-year-old would take to his grave.

Robin could only imagine how furious and disappointed Batman would be if he ever learned about that particular skill. While Robin himself disliked guns, Batman absolutely loathed them.

No, he could handle the training, the beatings. It was how Slade attacked him mentally that had been nothing short of exhausting and overwhelming. Most of the time he'd had to deal with the smug, aloof mastermind that Robin had come to know over their previous confrontations, the one who could so easily get under his skin. Then there were the rare moments where Robin had been acquainted with a Slade who complimented him and made remarks about how proud he was, going so far as to actually call the young hero "his boy".

Slade acted almost fatherly in those moments.

Bruce had only acted that way a few times in the past, Batman even less. Yet in the two weeks Robin had been with Slade, the man had showered him with more praise than his guardian of five years had. Bleak as this was, Robin couldn't deny the earnest feeling that had gathered in his stomach whenever Slade complimented him. He'd pushed it aside, convincing himself that everyone enjoyed being praised, his reactions were perfectly natural. He was not attention starved.

Finally, Robin had caught glimpses of the explosively furious temper that Slade kept reigned in till the end of his… apprenticeship. The Boy Wonder was no stranger to rage. He had experienced it and been at its' receiving end ever since he became a hero. Batman's anger was silent and seething, he didn't shout or lash out, but instead kept it all bottled up until he fought with a criminal. The Joker was unexpected and deadly, one minute he'd be all smiles and then his dagger would be slicing into your face before you could even guess at what set him off.

His own reaction while enraged was destructive, bordering to the point of physical, as well as frightening, or so his friends told him. Robin didn't that his reactions were so similar to Slade's. When they were angry, they lashed out at their possessions or at the person who was causing their ire. They became too caught up in the moment, to immersed in their rage, unable to think of anything else until they exhausted their rage. As much as Robin hated to admit it, they could be very fearsome in those heated moments.

Slade's temper had surprised him, but he was well trained and had instinctively countered the violent reaction. Ignoring his panic, on the other hand, was difficult. Robin felt his chest tightening as he remembered just how terrified, how caught off guard he'd been when Slade had lashed out at him. The man's infuriated yell was still ringing in his ears.

But as haunting as his stay with Slade had been, Robin was determined to not let it affect him. He wouldn't share his experience with the other Titans; they wouldn't be able to help him anyways. The psychological issues were beyond their abilities to understand in order offer any type of solace. Knowing that they still trusted him enough to be their leader was comfort enough.

At the moment though, Robin would have to put those problems on hold. Batman had left him a message. –We need to talk. It was all that the coded email had said, but those four words left Robin's stomach clenched with fear. There had always been something about Batman that made the teen anxious. It wasn't a fear of being physically hurt by Batman, but a fear of disappointing his mentor and guardian.

Sometimes when he failed, the Dark Knight would simply chew him out with harsh words that cut him deeply. Other times, if Robin had screwed up in a fight, Batman would have him practice his moves for hours until he either collapsed from exhaustion or when Alfred would finally step in. Then there were the worst moments, where Batman wouldn't say anything to him. The air around them would be saturated with his displeasure and he wouldn't speak to Robin until he was forgiven. Sometimes the silence between them lasted for days.

It was those encounters that Robin hated and dreaded the most. It was like he could physically feel Batman's disapproval, draining the teenager of every emotion except for shame. It hurt. And every time it happened, Robin's insecurities came to the surface. A thought would plague him throughout Batman's silence, one he'd never had the nerve to ask out loud.

'Are you going to get rid of me now?'

It was a question he'd had ever since he'd donned his mask and cape, a question that a scared eight-year-old boy had been too afraid to ask. A question that a prideful teenager refused to even think about at the moment.

Robin was brought out of his thoughts as the large screen in front of him flashed white for a second before he found himself staring into the cowl of Gotham's Dark Knight. Robin had to force himself not to gulp reflexively like he'd done in the past whenever he was faced with the Batman's glare.

His throat and mouth suddenly became unbearably dry and he could feel sweat starting to build on the back of his neck. He held Batman's gaze for a good minute before his eyes drifted to the floor. He'd never been able to hold Batman's stare. His mentor had taught him at an early age to always keep eye contact during a conversation. It showed that you had a strong disposition towards others and Batman could not afford for Robin to look weak. So he'd been taught how to stare down his opponents. Robin could glare down almost every person he'd come up against, with the exception of three people.

One person was of course Batman, he'd told his mentor that it was out of respect, but that had been a lie. He always felt uneasy whenever he had to hold Batman's gaze and would always look away before the detective part of the man could see his uneasiness.

Another person Robin could never glare down was the Joker. To this very day that clown's wild and piercing eyes could still send a shiver down the Boy Wonder's spine. It stemmed from when he'd been ten years old and had been fighting the Joker solo. The beating that had followed had taught Robin a very valuable lesson.

Finally, there was Slade. Once he'd found himself trapped as the man's apprentice, the Boy Wonder could no longer stare down the older man. Slade's one brown, almost black eye, pierced him deeper than any bullet or blade ever had. Even now the man held a power over him that was almost as strong as Batman's hold. The only difference was that Batman instilled submission where Slade bred contempt.

"Explain. Now." The caped crusader growled and Robin almost flinched at the fury seeping through his mentor's words. Taking a breath, he did exactly as he was ordered. He told the man about Slade, his time as Red X, the nanoscopic probes, about his forced apprenticeship, and finally the ultimatum that he'd made hours earlier. Batman's glare neither lessened nor increased, but that did little to ease Robin's worries. He'd made a lot of mistakes, Red X being a major one. He'd also misread his enemy's true intentions and had failed to protect his team.

Fear began to swell up in Robin's chest as the silence continued undisturbed and he resisted the urge to fidget. After a few more tense minutes he saw Batman slowly shake his head as he let out a soft, heavy sigh. The young hero's stomach clenched at the painfully familiar gesture. Robin slowly brought his eyes back up to meet Batman's and he couldn't resist flinching this time.

Disappointment, it was so easy to see it on his mentor's face, even with half of it hidden beneath his cowl. The dissatisfied look soon melted away into a cold glare and then the screen went dark. Robin stared at the blank screen for several hours until Starfire interrupted his daze, happily asking if he would join her and the others for breakfast.

He didn't.

Red X's head shot up, his heart racing uncontrollably. He looked around in confusion, his surroundings doing very little to calm him, before his foggy mind cleared. He shifted in the large chair he'd fallen asleep in as he took off both the masks hiding his face. While his Robin costume had been carefully stored away in a secured vault in Blüdhaven, he'd been unable to part with his old domino mask. It stayed with him, steadfastly kept underneath his Red X mask.

Minding the skin friendly adhesive glue used to keep his domino mask in place, X rubbed a hand over his tired eyes. He'd returned from a long night of crime fighting in Jump City, though the crooks had been the more common kind, consisting of robber and petty thugs. There seemed to be no sign of Mumbo, the H.I.V.E, or any other villains the Teen Titans used to fight. It was a good thing to be sure, but the tattered caped teenager couldn't stop himself from searching for any sign of Control Freak running amuck in an arcade or Mad Mod trying to turn everyone British again.

'Just three more days.' X thought tiredly, exhausted both physically and mentally. He blamed his nightmare on the approaching date. He was just grateful that he hadn't dreamt about what had happened a year ago on July 13. It was the anniversary of her death after all. He shook his head roughly, letting his eyes roam over his base in hopes of distracting his mind. It would, but not in a healthy way. Then again, nothing about this place was healthy.

He was currently residing in his most recently obtained property, the one that had been Slade's Old Haunt back in his own world. He was actively torturing himself, Red X knew that. He should have had this building torn down, instead he'd restored it to match his memories. The area where Slade's chair, his throne, had once been, was substituted with a similar chair, though it wasn't nearly as intimidating or imposing. In that seat he could control almost everything in his base due to the control system he'd installed into the armrests.

The technology was outfitted with the same holographic computer system Robin had used while in Cadmus, though his displays were red instead of blue. The hologram system was foreign and very advance. Cyborg would've killed to have had such high-tech equipment in the Tower. Red X had even managed to hook up the system into his suit as well, allowing him to have a portable holographic computer at his disposal. It was connected to his central computer mainframe and not for the first time he was grateful for all of his past lessons on technology. Still, even with his aptitude, X knew he wasn't as skilled as Robin when it came to cyber warfare. His system wasn't perfect, Cyborg would've likely found several holes in his programs, but it would work for now.

The overhanging catwalks that went throughout the Old Haunt were still there, though the rusted beams and rickety grates had been replaced with newer, stronger metals. The catwalks proved to be the perfect training area to practice his acrobatics in, as well as improve his fighting capabilities when in an enclosed area. Slade had of course mentioned this fact during his apprenticeship, but X hadn't been there long enough to test that theory.

The broken cogs and gears scattered throughout the building had been replaced or repaired. The slow churning, ticking, and whirling, was more oddly comforting than distracting. Despite how much he hated the memories this place invoked, it was at least familiar. X practiced his aerial maneuvers and katas on the moving gears, training his ability to pay attention to his surroundings while fighting.

The wall that had once displayed images of the nanoscopic probes that'd infected the Teen Titans, now displayed up-to-date information on various subjects, such as what the sidekicks were doing. Or what any of the major criminals may be up to at the moment and how the League was handling Cadmus.

Surprisingly, the League was not shutting down Cadmus, though Batman was running a thorough investigation of the place. The Genomorphs would continue to live there in secret, under the watch of the Guardian, until Batman found more information. Red X was paying especially close attention to that subject. Cadmus had created new life forms with incredible abilities, along with successfully cloning Superman. Whoever was behind it all, and X was sure that it was one of the big time villains, they'd been preparing an army.

On another screen, the latest footage of a robbery that he'd stopped hours ago was on an endless loop, mutely playing out before rewinding itself. X found himself studying his own moves, looking for any weaknesses that needed correcting; much like Slade had done two years ago. It was somewhat comfortable to once again stop crime in the city that had been his home for the last three years, but the nightmares and memories the city brought about left behind very poignant feelings. He thought about his dream, a memory that he would've gladly forgotten.

That confrontation with Batman had been the last time he'd ever spoken with his mentor.

The teen sighed before he reapplied both masks. There was no point in thinking about the past, he was here in this new world and unable to fix things now. A small part of him knew he was just making weak excuses.

He'd had two years to call up his mentor, to try and patch things up, but he'd never been able to work up the courage to do so. Instead, he'd left it to Cyborg to break the news to Batman about his "demise", who would probably think him dead like the others. He imagined Batman sitting alone in the Cave, staring hard at the display case that he knew held one of his old uniforms. His mentor would seep deeper in his solitude and grimness as Alfred silently stood by and watched the man slowly deteriorate into a shell of the person he used to be.

There would be no change otherwise. Batman would not weep for him, but push onwards to continue to defend Gotham. The world would never realize that Batman was no longer the man he'd once been.

Red X pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind as he got up from his chair and began to stretch. Parts of those assumptions were just wishful thinking, he hoped that Batman would miss him, but he also didn't want his mentor to give up like that. Batman had to be strong, for himself and for Gotham. There was no doubt in Robin's mind that his supposed death wouldn't even slow the caped crusader down. Bruce Wayne on the other hand, was a very different story. He would have to come up with a lie for how his ward, Dick Grayson, had suddenly died.

Maybe Brue Wayne would grieve for the loss of his ward.

Jumping up into the hanging walkways, X launched himself onto the parallel catwalk as he performed a spin kick. He jumped back, imaging that he was dodging a right jab to his ribs. He dropped down into a crouch and lashed out with his right leg, tripping his fictional opponent. The specter flipped backwards to avoid the sweep kick and X rolled off the catwalk, clinging to it from underneath, and disappearing from his opponent's sight.

Silently, he snuck forwards until he was underneath his enemy and launched himself upwards, aiming a haymaker at the illusion's chin. The phantom image of hitting his opponent brought a smirk to his face and Red X lowered himself into a ready stance, waiting for his attacker to straighten himself out.

"Really Robin, is that the best you can do?" The delusion taunted in a hauntingly familiar voice as it stepped towards him. He tensed as the hazy image took form, empty space solidifying into a body, and X cursed himself. He'd let his condition become too strained. He was hallucinating again. It was a leftover side effect from the reagent, from the dust, he'd been poisoned with. Whenever he became overstressed, he began to see the man again. It wasn't the same, this hallucination couldn't induce the same amount of paranoia, the adrenaline, or screwed with his cognitive thought. It was little more than a mirage. "I'm disappointed."

"Slade." He couldn't help but hiss as he brought out his staff, angry at himself, at the delusion. In a way, the episodes improved his fighting skills. He certainly gave his all whenever that black and orange mask was in his sights. But this wasn't right, wasn't healthy. He was ashamed of the hallucinations, they were a weakness. He'd never even told the Teen Titans about them. They stood in an all too familiar standoff, Slade with his hands behind his back, X scowling as he tried to calm himself down. Slade wasn't real. He needed to remember that.

"Something seems to be distracting you Robin, what is it? Worried about the other Titans? I wonder how they're fairing without their leader." Slade mocked in that knowing tone of his. "Or maybe it's just this place, hmmm? It does bring back such fond memories."

The tattered caped hero spun with his staff secured behind his back, launching himself at the man. Logically, he knew it was pointless, but his temper was quickly getting the better of him. The man, hallucination, back-flipped onto another catwalk, his eye curving in a way that X had always imagined as the villain's way of smirking. He used the railing to push himself into the air. Unleashing all of his strength, X slammed his staff downwards at Slade, slicing through the illusion and making it disperse. He panted heavily for a few more minutes as he stared at the new dent in the metal grate, then he straightened and retracted his staff.

For a brief second, he felt the phantom feeling of someone hovering just by his ear.

"I like what you've done with the place… Apprentice."

~Young Justice: Red X~

TRIGON BITCHES! Oh yeah, he's totally coming back. The Trigon Arc and the Apprentice Arc are definitely my favorites from Teen Titans. I'm even toying with the idea of writing two spin-off stories following my take on what Robin went through. This mainly would be because my reimagining of the Trigon Arc is long and very dark. It's not something I feel I can rightly do justice by going over it in flashbacks. And as for the Apprentice Arc… I've just always wanted to do one. It would be a short story compared to this one.

As you could probably tell by this point, Raven's not gone. In fact, she'll be very involved with this story, although, as I revealed above, a rehashing of the Trigon Arc won't happen for a year from now. So after the events of Season 1. I've also wanted Red X to have a flashback of Batman for a while now. So, I'm glad I got to do that.

Besides what I said overhead, "Haunted" definitely has to be my favorite Teen Titans episode. The physiological and physical trauma Robin goes through in that episode is just… perfect. I was always a little bummed that those events were never really talked about again. I mean, yes, Robin and Raven got closer after that, but still. This is my take on that. The reagent, dust, whatever, has long-lasting effects. When Robin gets too stressed or strained mentally, he hallucinates Slade. As of right now, it's a permanent condition. Be prepared to see bouts of this in the future.

–Hexalys