Hi again! I felt bad about not updating sooner so I'm going to update 3 more chapters. I also have exciting news. Another reviewer who I have been keeping in contact with has asked me to write a story from his idea. I can't believe it! It is a Teen Titans idea with Raven and Beast Boy for the pairing. I feel so honored that lunar silver would consider me to write it for him. I hope I do a good job and don't disappoint him. Wish me luck! And enjoy!
Chapter 17: Surrender
Police sirens blared down the street while people watched with concern. This is the sixth robbery this week and the worst part; it was the third robbery in broad daylight. How much longer would Jump City have to deal with crazy criminals disrupting their everyday life? Robin and his friends had been enjoying the respite from crime-fighting. Starfire and Blackfire were closer than ever. Terra and Blackfire had enrolled in a local boarding school.
Cyborg and Bumblebee kept in close contact with each other. The strangest couple of all was Raven and Beast Boy. They still argued and she never laughed at his jokes, but they would smile more and hold hands. It baffled everyone else to no end. When Star asked about it they said, "We are getting to know each other better now so there's no need to argue so much, it's too troublesome."
Today they were on the trail of Mad Mod, Cinderblock, Mumbo Jumbo and the Hive Five. These guys were acting weird. There was no point in wondering how they got out of jail so quick. All that mattered was throwing them back in without hurting anyone. Needless to say this fight was exhausting. Robin and Cyborg were shocked at how well the villains were covering each other's backs- had they formed some kind of alliance without anyone noticing it?
Officer Ramon came with his sister Rachel to collect the dumbfounded and beaten criminals Beast Boy's communicator began to ring. Everyone else was puzzled. The Teen Titans and Titan's East should have been the only ones able to contact each other unless it was a curious hacker. The voice on the other end stopped the green tofu-lover in his tracks. A plea for help in the jungles far away from the city and it was a voice he never thought he would hear again.
"Robin I request your permission to leave for South America, sir!" Beast Boy had not spoken like that since the first day he met the Titans. To be honest it scared them. Why would he all of a sudden start speaking like this and who was on the other line? Robin scratched the back of his head and said, "Beast Boy since when do you call me sir? We're your friends B.B. there's no need to be so formal."
"Yes Beast Boy why are you speaking in such a formal way. Have we offended you in some manner if so then please allow us to apologize."
"Starfire it is not your fault. You guys didn't do anything wrong but I have to go somewhere. Old friends need my help right now. I need to go back to Titan's tower, so I can figure out where they are."
"Well B.B. if your friends are in trouble do you mind if we tag along? I'm sure we can help in some way, right Robin, Star; Raven?" Cyborg honked the horn of the T-car but Beast Boy had already flown away. He gave a short screech to Terra and Blackfire who had been walking to the nearest café for lunch as he soared towards home.
"Can someone tell us what is going on?" Blackfire asked while licking a brownie fudge ice-cream cone. Terra smiled around her spoon as she dug into a strawberry parfait and said, "Whatever is going on I'm sure you'll be ok. You're the Teen Titans. Nothing can break you guys up."
No one would know how true or untrue Terra's words were until much later. However for the next six hours the atmosphere in the T-sub was so bad you could slice it with a Spork. Raven tried to talk to her comedic team mate but he acted with such formality and seriousness; she almost wished she knew how tell jokes just to get him to laugh. Robin thought it would be better to take the T-sub and swim to South America or wherever they had to go. Cyborg managed to pinpoint the distress call's signal and confirmed it was coming from Brazil. Even Star's normal chirpy and upbeat mood could not brighten his spirits.
The person who was waiting for them in a tangled clearing would haunt B.B. in his nightmares. "Metal-Man, are you okay?" Beast Boy yelled running up to an orange-coated rusty man. Cyborg started to scan him to check for serious internal injuries or mechanical failure. He discovered the problem. It was an outdated battery but the other injuries showed signs of a grueling fight. Once he was operational again Beast Boy began asking about some others and how he got into this mess.
Metal-Man explained that they were on the trail of their biggest enemy but is unaware of the booby traps. The whole Team was separated and their leader called for him personally but you were unavailable. Beast Boy said, "I've been busy ok but I want you know I'm here now and we'll do whatever we can to help. Oh you gotta meet my friends they're the coolest! This Robin, Cyborg, Starfire and my girl…uh I mean Raven."
"Nice to meet you kids," Metal Man said. "Thanks for the recharge, Cyborg was it? Listen we need to let the rest of the Patrol know. It's good to have you back, kid we missed you."
Beast Boy smiled for the first time since he came on this trip. Raven wondered why he stuttered over her name. Was he going to say something else? It did not take long for the Titans to meet the rest of the Doom Patrol. They were shocked to discover that Beast Boy had once been a member of this team before he met his friends. Robin was reminded of a certain someone because of the leader's attitude. Raven was glad to be able to put names and faces to the blurry people she had seen in his memories.
No one was happy to figure out that some so-called Brotherhood of Evil was gathering to destroy all superheroes once and for all. The Doom Patrol's mission was to stop them and Mento expected Beast Boy to follow him. Robin told him it was ok but Robin wished he could stay with them. This whole situation was too familiar for him. Robin did not want to remember what lead up to him being in Jump City in the first place. Cyborg noticed that Raven appeared to be as upset as Robin at how Beast Boy acted when he was back with the Doom Patrol. He wore a mask and addressed almost everyone as sir or ma'am. It was so not like him, so serious, where was the happy-go-lucky, video gamer who tells jokes and enjoys life?
The Doom Patrol had to admit at the end of the day the Teen Titans are not bad heroes. The Brain and his diabolical cohort: Madam Rouge and Monsieur Mallah; could not unleash a black hole machine on the world anymore. Beast Boy was back to his old self again and to everyone's shock Elastic-girl called him "Garfield". Raven could not tease him about it. Considering the fact that she knew about the history behind his name she realized this meant a lot to him. Robin was hit with inspiration on how to deal with this threat of the Brotherhood of Evil.
"Hey what you think of a global network of Teen Titans?"
As Robin prepared for a global network for young super heroes the BHE (Brotherhood of Evil) were making their own preparations. All of the villains in Jump City with any kind of reputation jump at the chance to demolish the pint-sized heroes and heroines. Amongst all the chaos Slade avoided most of the drama. He had his own agenda that did not include partnerships with some of most idiotic criminals in the world. He kept his eye open for anything interesting but he was more concerned with the future.
Kiara and Magnet were doing well in avoiding the officers except for Ramon. If Slade didn't know better he'd have to believe that man was fixated on the idea of the Titans stealing his job. Can he blame Ramon for his possessive behavior when he felt threatened by the fact teenagers did his job better? Slade told Kiara to be cautious when dealing with that man. Unfortunate for the puppet-girl and her impish sister they would get up close and personal with Ramon all too soon.
Near the middle of the BHE's plans to eliminate all the Titans around the world one villain was about to push his luck farther than any other. Blood was back in town and he was not leaving without a fight and paying Slade back for humiliating him. Breaking into a high security facility with mind-control powers was too easy. But Blood was not looking for a challenge at least not from local law enforcement. He wanted to bring out Kiara and Slade, and the Titans all in one place. So what better place than City Hall or even better Wayne Enterprises- he knew bird boy still had a connection to Wayne's business even though he didn't know Batman's identity or Robin's civilian identity.
Needless to say things became rocky when not only did Ramon with his trusted officers come in guns smoking, but then Blood comes, Kiara was already there, and the Titans are caught in the cross-fire it can't get any worse right?
"You have defiled me for the last time!" Ramon shouted into his megaphone while his officers shot at Kiara and Blood. Kiara twirled and danced in an aerial ballerina show overhead. The Titans needed to separate Blood from Kiara. Robin asked Raven and Beast Boy to handle Kiara while he, Star, and Cyborg went after Blood. One of the shots almost hit Kiara in the heart and that was when she got nervous.
"Sensei I think the cops are serious," Kiara muttered into her headset. Her voice trembled for a moment before she continued. "I think they are shooting to kill." Slade was distressed by this information he never would have believed that the officers would start shooting to kill. Neither Kiara nor Magnet could have pushed them that far into a corner. He was also concerned about Blood's presence on his apprentice. Under normal circumstances Kiara would have been long gone but Blood showing up threw Kiara and Magnet off their game and Slade could feel it: all they wanted was to go home.
A welcome distraction came for her to see Raven and Beast Boy ready to take her to jail. She still had no intention of going but she could drown out her worries by playing with two of her favorite Titan puppets. Beast Boy tried to knock her out of the sky by falling on top of her as a kangaroo. She danced out of the way and knocked him through a window. Raven tried to grab her. She twisted to the left flipping backwards. She used handstands to dodge. Beast Boy came out as a horse and charged her from behind, but her connection to auras gave her a heads-up.
"This is worse than trying to fight that guy who can multiply himself," Beast Boy grunted as he was flipped on his back by her ball and chain. Raven had a gut feeling to not grab that thing with her powers so she opted for hand-to-hand. Kiara was surprised how well Raven fought without her powers which made her like her even more.
Meanwhile the boys and Star were having trouble with Blood. Every time one would get close to subdue him; his eyes would glow and they would be forced to rethink their strategy. Robin had his staff out. He began to thrust, parry, and weave around Blood. He hoped to push Blood towards Cyborg. Cyborg could knock him out with his sonic cannon. Star also tried to get his attention by flashing her star bolts to confuse him. Blood saw that coming and dodged them. He placed himself in between the Titans and the cops to force them into a stalemate. Kiara came dancing over to avoid Raven and B.B. doubling teaming her. She really wished she had a partner.
"Any last words you low-life," Ramon growled pointing his gun at Kiara. B.B. gasps and dove in front of her. Raven and Star follow without another word.
"What are you children doing? I can have you three arrested for interfering in an official police business. Is that what you want to go to jail and why for a criminal or will you all admit that you don't care about law and order in this city? That you are all just a bunch of super-powered kids that have no business doing the work of real police officers."
"You have no right to use justice to justify murder!" Raven yelled. "Dude we want to put them in jail not the morgue. You were about to kill her!" Beast Boy said as he phased into a wolf. Starfire stared at Cyborg and Robin who were standing next to her. "I do not believe this is the justice you are striving for. Please allow us to deal with the Kiara and the Blood. No one should be hurt for this, nothing was stolen and no one was hurt."
Ramon ordered the officers to open fire. Kiara and Raven blocked the bullets with their auras. Magnet wanted to zap the insulting cops with lightning but Kiara said no. Kiara wondered how long they could hold up this shield. Blood threw what looked like a smoke bomb. A cloud of red smoke covered the field. The officers stop firing and wait for the smoke to clear. Kiara was gone and Ramon guessed she ran inside to steal something. He was about to follow when more sirens blared behind him. It is the Chief of Police and his sister Rachel in the front seat.
Ramon would have to wait to apprehend the criminals in the making. It appears his fears were confirmed when Kiara sprinted past the group trying to trip someone up. The runner fell down and she held him down with her metal chain. Starfire flew over to help when she gasped. The rest of the Titans raced over to find Kiara's satchel in Robin's hands. Robin had a disappointed look on his face and at first they thought he was fooling around. Robin's next words throw that idea out the window.
"You know if I didn't know any better I would think you were some kind of hero in disguise. I mean really Kiara how could you not know I was waiting for you. I knew where you were going to go, don't think I haven't done this before. You are such a buzz kill."
"Robin you okay," Cyborg asked afraid of the answer. "No I'm not ok Cyborg old pal. How about you get me out of these chains? Then we can take down the little wanna-be for stealing." Raven stared at Robin for the longest time something did not feel right. Robin smirked and Raven wanted to shout for everyone to move but it came too late.
Blood rushed out of the shadows to deliver swift kicks and punches to Kiara before untying Robin. And then he asked Robin to take care of the others. At first Star believed he would never entertain such a notion. He pulled out his staff with a visible smirk. Star and the rest of his friends were not so sure anymore.
Robin taunted the Titans, like he did as Red X, but with Robin's occasional bursts of humor made it sting all the more. Even Kiara attempted to knock Robin out but he seemed to anticipate all their moves. Cyborg and Beast Boy wondered if they were seeing the original Red X all over again. None of them ever wanted to go through that trauma again.
"Come on guys, I'm not even breaking a sweat. Where's the fun the challenge the thrill? I'm getting bored now fight me!" Robin charged Starfire. For a moment she thought he would hit the side of her head but he stopped mid swing. Robin swerved to avoid a sonic blast from Cyborg. Starfire was stunned. As soon as Robin would get close to a near fatal or serious blow he would swerve at the last second. Raven wanted to hold him down and stared into his eyes. Maybe then she could understand his sudden mood swing.
When the Titans thought this night could not get any worse a rough voice spoke out of the darkness. The Titans were getting weary and Robin kept attacking. Slade stepped out of the shadows.
"Blood you have a lot of nerve to do this. You dare try to get my apprentice arrested and nearly killed? You will pay for this." Kiara's face lit up at the sound but then darkened as she realizes that Blood was not fighting as much. She stared at Blood for a few precious seconds and then everything clicked. Kiara raced pass her Sensei desperate to tell the Titans what was going on.
"You know you guys are so uptight. You are way too rigid. We're teens are we not? We should be enjoying ourselves not working ourselves into the ground for adults. I'm not saying we don't work and just lounge all day but come on don't you want to kick back and enjoy being a kid for once in your life?"
Raven was about to question him when Kiara answered, "Oh really and how do we know you're not speaking about yourself Robin?" Robin gave a loud sarcastic laugh. It chilled his friends' to their bones.
"So you believe you figured me all out. That you know every nook and cranny of me and my mind? Let me tell you something you don't know the half of it!" Robin charged Kiara with his staff in a wild manner. Kiara wanted to dodge, but the horrid memory of Blood's attack froze her in her tracks. Beast Boy leapt in front of her again and asked, "You know what's happened to him? Then tell us already I'm getting tired of him taunting us!"
Raven and Kiara spoke, "Blood is controlling him." The Titans gasped and Blood laughed.
"Well you snooze you lose Slade! Now I have the strongest Titan at my command and I will enjoy every second of it. Thanks for the lovely gift I'll take extra care of him." Slade hated that Blood would stoop that low to get back at him. As if using Kiara was not enough he had to go after Robin. Slade decided to beat the heck out of Blood on principal. However as he fought he did get Blood to reveal why he was doing all of this. Blood asked Slade why he didn't use mind control earlier it made things so much easier.
Slade responded with it was too easy. He would rather have his apprentice come to him willing rather than force him. Blood should know mind control was too easy to break. The only reason he had a hold on Robin now was because he took him by surprise. For the moment Blood brought out Robin's darker side. With the right words and motivation Robin could break free. Slade let this last comment hang in the air which gave the girls a bright if crazy idea.
Star suggested they go along with this game. She admitted her surprise that the darker side of her best friend was more of a jokester than Robin. She also sensed some deep rooted turmoil that this game was covering up. Raven said she could try a mind transfer but it would be harder considering Robin was not in control of himself. Kiara proposed that they try the mind transfer and go along with the game-idea but change the rules. Beast Boy asked if she meant to make Robin believe in Slade Kiara was stunned.
Cyborg said the whole thing is insane and what would we do if none of this worked? No one had an answer but they all agreed time was running out. Cyborg and Beast Boy volunteered to keep Robin distracted to let the girls jump in his head. Beast Boy told his friends to be careful. Raven held Starfire and Kiara's hands and chants "Azarath Mentrion Zinthos". The girls hovered in the air for a moment before touching Robin in these projections of their spirits.
For a moment they wonder if nothing happened. They speed through Robin's memories from his childhood in the circus, to his short school-life, to the accident that killed his parents and his adoption by Bruce Wayne. Robin's memories locked for a long time but eventually they showed more familiar scenes. Raven worried that they would get trapped in Robin's conflicting emotions of whom and what he was. Starfire began to cry as Robin questioned how much he could he trust his friends, his despair at being Slade's apprentice, his thrills of stealing, the undercurrent of betrayal by Batman- the feeling that he never appreciated him or respected him, and his joy of being with his friends again.
As much as the girls want to revel in his happier moments they were being pulled into his darker thoughts. Even still they were under a heavy lock and key. Magnet shudders from Robin's unconscious hostility at keeping out what he felt were intruders. They find Robin and Red X arguing back and forth as Blood's infamous red chains turned bright white and began to choke both of them. Just when it looks like both of them had given up they saw the girls. Robin smiled at them but then looks shocked that they were even here. X looked relieved to see them as if they were a parting wish before he lost all of his free will.
Raven, Star, and Kiara had an idea of what would free him. Thoughts of Beast Boy, Cyborg, Terra, and Blackfire fade in and out. However the only ones who stay solid were the girls standing here. Knowing they had no time to beat-around-the-bush. "Robin, Red X if you do not want to be Blood's little play solider then you have to break free. We know how you can do that."
The boys give into the pressure of fighting off Blood's powers. Despite their stubbornness and sense of duty- all they could feel was defeat. For once they were in complete agreement. "What do we have to do Star, Raven, and yes Kiara. How do we get out?"
Raven and Starfire broke the ice, so to speak. "You need to hold onto something stronger than Blood's powers. It has to be stronger than your friends, your loyalty to Batman, your commitment to the city and as a hero or your free-willing spirit as X. In a way this will combine of all of this and at the same time disassemble it. Do you see where we are going with this?" Robin and Red X shook their heads too exhausted and confused to speak.
"Let X out. You have to let him out and release your feelings about Slade. Robin remember when you were X, when you had those thrills, when you told him you would anything he said embrace that part of you. If you don't then you'll be Blood's plaything forever. Besides I think we all agree if you're with Slade we have a chance of seeing you, speak to you in riddles while you are out, but please choose now- we don't have time" Kiara continued.
Robin resents the idea of giving himself over to Slade for any reason. Unfortunate but Star, Raven and even Kiara had a point. Robin's thoughts by himself would not get him out of here. Listening to X who felt that Slade was a great Teacher, to think how much he could learn from him was the key to getting out. Raven began to fade away and then Kiara who shuddered as X blew a kiss to her.
Star kissed him saying, "It may take a while but I am certain you will come back to us Robin. So for now we shall play by these rules. We will never give up on you." Robin and X linger on Star's kiss and Raven's words. They have to admit Kiara looked so alone.
Would it hurt to have Kiara and Magnet as partners? They reminded them of his friends in so many ways. It would be like someone wrapped them up into two people instead of 4. Red X asked if Robin could surrender to Slade because these chains were not getting shorter. Robin responded with, "Thank you Terra. I know just what to say."
Raven, Kiara, and Star returned to their bodies only to collapse. Cyborg and Beast Boy were also on the ground. Robin had hurt them a lot. Even Slade was backed against the wall. Blood was about to order Robin to attack when Robin stops. Blood became nervous seeing the rest of the Titans get up and ready to attack again. Slade did not look so beaten down as he had a moment ago.
"What are you waiting for? Attack him Robin," Blood shouted pushing his powers on his mind. With the final push Robin snapped. He forgot about his identity crisis, he forgot about being a hero, he forgot about his friends, even Batman and his morals. All he wanted was Blood out of his head. There was one way to do this.
Robin fueled his resolve by glancing at his friends. He opened his eyes staring Blood down and a sudden inferno-like rainbow exploded around him. Robin had never felt so connected to Slade. He understood why he was so pissed off at Blood- he saw through Slade's eyes what happened to Kiara. Robin felt Slade's overwhelming joy and peace flood him knowing Kiara was safe.
Red X knew that he could stay like this forever drinking in his new mentor's strength and yes maybe even calling him father one day. But he'd have to try convincing Robin when their lives were not in danger. X had faith in Slade. If only he could put his friends on an island for a while, safe of course. Even X would unleash his anger if anyone hurt his friends. So he could spend quality time with his Master. That could come later when he and Robin had the chance to talk it all out.
"Blood I have one thing to say to you," Robin and Red X said in a chilled dark voice. "You can't control me anymore!"
Robin and Red X united for once bombarded Blood with a fury of attacks. Blood was overwhelmed as realization hit him: attacking Slade's apprentices was not a good idea. Slade attempted to get him to stop by being simple and asking. He realized similar to Kiara and Magnet, treating Robin like a person would get much faster results than lectures or creating mental instability. Neither Slade nor Blood could anticipate how many walls would have to be broken down in order to gain Robin's tenuous trust. The best place to start after separating him from his annoying friends would be the Dark Knight of course.
"Robin if you would be so kind as to stop. I believe Blood has suffered enough and he has learned his lesson." Slade's voice yet again suggesting there was a human man underneath all that armor and mystery. Robin turned to Slade and for a moment he thought he would attack him. Slade did not need to beat lessons into Robin he knew the basics; now it was just a point of building on those lessons. If Robin was willing to submit he would learn so many things and perhaps Wintergreen and Kiara were right, maybe he could learn from them too.
Cyborg and Beast Boy grin as Slade leaned away from Robin. They were not sure if Robin would come home with them. Starfire and Raven convinced them that if we let Robin go and pretend it was a game or a vacation it would be much easier on them later on- when they doubted if Robin was still their friend.
Slade was baffled. Robin kneeled on one knee likes a man waiting to be knighted. Robin said with deep sincerity and even respect, "Forgive me, sir for being such a little kid. I realize now that I was foolish to not accept your gracious offer in the beginning of our relationship. Blood has taught me a valuable lesson about surrender and conquering fears tonight. I would be honored to have the opportunity to train with you again if you will have me."
Slade would never let Robin how his words affected him. He had to remain in control so he asked, "Robin if I am hearing you correctly, you just said you wanted to train with me? How can I trust your words now? You'll escape the moment I let my guard down and what about your friends?"
"My friends and I have come to an understanding. I assure you I am dedicated to your teachings. Will you have me as your apprentice, my Master- my Sensei?" The Titans wanted to grab Robin, dunk him in a cold shower and make him forget the whole ordeal. They knew that would be wrong if not for Slade they would have loss Robin for good. In a small way he deserves some gratitude and respect for saving him. Perhaps that was what Robin/Red X was going for.
Slade was a cautious man but the thought of snatching Robin right now was so tempting. But he wanted Robin himself to say these things not the thief inside Robin. That Robin was the one who needed his walls reconstructed. Slade felt confident he could mold Robin but it would take a long time.
For now Slade would accept Robin's offer. He expected Robin to uphold his end of the deal. "You seem quite sincere my soon-to-be apprentice. I will not take my words back. I told you one of you Titans would come with me and I've chosen you congratulations."
"I look forward to it." In the end Red X went back to sleep inside of Robin who then collapsed due to the emotional and mental strain of the night. Kiara also fell asleep curled next to her Sensei's leg purring and chirping like a canary. Slade permitted a small chuckle to pass his lips before picking up Kiara bridle style and disappearing into the shadows. The Titans took Robin home for a well-deserved rest for all.