Hey all! Sorry this took so long, this has been an odd year for me. I was writing this in the middle of a move and we didn't finish moving until april this year. Plus I got a job and worked at a camp this year, which further pushed this back. Hopefully this chapter can make up for the delay.
_

The ride had been largely uneventful, as Rose and Beast Boy had gone to sleep on the way there. Once Starfire had arrived, she had explained what she could about Robins disappearance.

" He had acted strangely before he left," She had told them in the tower," Before he left, he told me he was going to be investigating a case of great importance."

" Did he tell you anything about the case he was taking?" Beast boy asked.

Starfire shook her head, "Even after our marriage, Robin kept certain things a secret." She explained," He had opened up much to me, but still he avoids talk about certain events in his life."

And thus left them, once again, back at square one. Because of the circumstances, they had to assume that Robin was fending for himself somewhere, though the location was unknown. Whatever the case was that he took, it had to be important, and thus would explain his being gone for a long period of time.

Despite this thinking, none of them could quite shake the feeling of dread for their missing friend, least of all Starfire. With no way to contact him nor find him, the sheer horror of not knowing what was happening with him scared her more than anything. She had fallen asleep, stroking the wedding band on her finger.

The wind had picked up out here, he thought as he stood on the ridge looking down at the facility. This wasn't the research facility, but the base of operation of Odin and his employer. It was set up around thirty miles due north of the research area, but was set up in such a way that it was almost impossible to spot.

From here, he could see that the building were hidden among the rocks, with the roofs camouflaged to blend in with the rocky and snowy terrain. There were few of them, which meant that a majority of the facility was in the mountain itself.

At this moment, the man noted that the mercenaries were unloading cargo from snow cats; some into the building, most into the cave. He rubbed his chin under his face mask, as his suspicions that the majority of the facility was within the cave began taking greater shape.

The figure continued watching, looking around at the mercs to judge their combat efficiency. They didn't seem professional enough to be on level with spec ops, but they definitely had what looked to be the training of regular foot troops. Some walked with limps, indicating veterans among the group. He frowned, knowing veterans would operate with greater efficiency when the shooting started.

Not that he intended on shooting, anyway. He could get his target without having to deal with the rest of these guys if he chose to. It would just take him getting very creative, and very sneaky.

Finally, after he had been observing for six hours, he crawled backwards and ducked out of complete sight. As he took his face mask off, Robin reached into his pack and pulled out a one of his army issue MRE's. The stuff didn't taste the greatest, but it provided the nutrition needed to survive in the hostile cold environment he was in.

As he ate, he couldn't help but think of his wife he had left. He wondered how she was handling his absence, or how she was doing by herself? She had always been surrounded by friends, and when not by friends then been accompanied by Robin.

He frowned, pondering if he should have even taken this assignment. The Titans would have been called in soon, and they could have handled it, and he could have stayed in retirement. His frown deepened.

If I had been more careful, I could have stopped it, He thought, as he pondered the event that changed his life over seven years ago, the event which had made him retire. As a hero, their job was to preserve the lives of those they protected, and keep them safe. But sometimes, no matter what you do, the people hurt most are those in the crossfire.

Then he steeled himself. His assignment had to be done, and now was the chance to redeem what had been lost. As he finished his meal, he resolved to do just that.

Beast Boy grumbled as he found his seat had become quite uncomfortable. When he had started dozing off, his seat felt like it had been a cloud, but now it felt like he was leaning on a rough brick wall. No matter how he shifted, he couldn't get comfortable where he was.

Grumbling once more, he cracked his eyes open," Cy, did you use bricks to cushion your se-" He stopped hid sentence, as he raised a brow and began observing his surroundings.

Unless Cyborg installed a wicked simulator, He thought, I don't think I am in the T jet anymore. He was now in what looked to be in a city square, leaning against a building on the sidewalk. As he stood up, he took a closer look at his surroundings.

" Um, okay…" He stated to himself, trying to get an idea as to where he was. Had the T jet crashed and he somehow got ejected from the aircraft? That would make sense… were it not for the absence of an ejector seat, or the fact that not even he was that heavy of a sleeper. So what did that leave him with?

" Maybe I was abducted by those gondorian dudes." He said aloud, trying to ease himself. Something told him he had pronounced the name wrong, and he also had some random urge to look for some giant tower with a glowing fire eye.

Before he took a step forward, an immense explosion took place to his left, causing him to shift into an armadillo and tuck into a ball. From there he rolled down the sidewalk below the curb and shifted back into his normal form as he peaked his head above the curb.

From his position, he could see that a plume of smoke from a building about forty meters away from him. As the dust settled, he saw that it wasn't an explosion, but a car that had flown and hit the building.

" And Cyborg says I'm a horrible driver." He said to himself. He then began to look around, seeking whatever threw the car, and saw something across the square. From here, he could make out the form of multiple police officers, all pointing their weapons at a huge creature of some sort. As he looked closer, he realized it was Cinderblock.

" Must've made a break from prison." The Changeling stated, changing into a cheetah to run down the stone giant.

Before he could get there, however, a bright yellow bolt dashed from behind him and struck the giant square on the chest. As Beast Boy slid to a halt, he looked up and behind him to see Starfire flying in at high speeds, continuously throwing star bolts in the giants' direction. Some of the star bolts ricocheted, creating a crater where they landed, one of which landed straight in front of Beast Boy.

He then began to hear a roar of some kind, and looked to his rear to see the T-car coming straight at him at top speed. He let out a scream, as he had no time to dodge or transform. However, the car went straight at him, and then… phased right through him.

The changeling blinked, his head beginning to piece what was happening together. So, I'm at this place again, He thought, taking a step towards the action. He let out a sharp yelp, as he realized there was no ground where he had stepped. He then plummeted face first into the crater that starfire had created with her star bolts.

" Oh, come on!" He whined as he shakily got back on his feet." A freakin' car runs straight through me but ground still hurts me?" Groaning, he turned into a hawk and took off into the air, finding a perch to observe the battle.

This whole thing seemed familiar in a way, as if he had seen it all before. There was an incident back around seven years ago that involved Cinderblock making a jail break, and the Titans had been called in to stop him. Pretty standard, really, when you considered the crime in Jump City.

" The past reveals the present." That voice sounded again, that motherly tone he had remembered the last time he was here, wherever here was.

Jumping in surprise, he quickly scanned around him, trying to find the source of the voice, but seeing no one." Who are you?" He called. "Why am I here?"

" The past reveals the present." The voice replied again.

Beast Boy grabbed his head, shaking it," Why the riddles? Why am I here?" He yelled, trying to put things together in his mind. Was he back in time? But from what he heard from starfire during her travel in the future, everyone saw her and talked to her. So why was he invisible?

Then he heard the voice again." To remember that which was lost."

Before he could ask, there was a series of explosions, and as he looked back... and his eyes widened in horror.

" Booyah!" The cybernetic yelled as he delivered a sonic blast to the stone giants chest. Cinderblock reacted by grabbing at the place he had been hit, only to be hit again in the face by a wave of black energy.

" Beast boy!" Robin shouted, bird-a-rang the changeling looked at him in response." Get this around his legs!" He then threw the bird-a-rang, a small wire still flying behind it, which was attached to Robins belt.

Transforming into a dog, he leapt up into the air grabbed the bird-a-rang, then morphed into a cheetah as he ran up to the giant, circling his legs as instructed. Once he was done, the changeling let go of the bird-a-rang and bolted back to their leader.

As Starfire continued throwing her star bolts, Raven began to chant. " Azareth, Metrion, Zinthos!" As she said the words, a small car became encased in a black aura levitated off the ground before being hurled at the giant, knocking him backwards. As he stumbled back, he started tripping over the cables tangled around his feet.

" Ravager!" Robin called," Hit him now!"

Without a warning, a gray and black clad Rose ran up from behind them, making her way towards the giant Once she was close enough, she leapt into the air, drew her swords and slammed into Cinderblock with all her might. There was a loud groan, and before they knew it, a resounding crash sent dust flying into the air.

Before the dust settled. the Titans began walking in, at the ready in case cinderblock was still in the fight. As they moved closer, they saw the distinct outline of Rose ahead, standing over her vanquished foe. She threw a grin their direction as she smugly strode off the giant, sheathing her swords." Did I hit him hard enough?"

No sooner had she said that, there was a blur of motion. Her smug grin was replaced by a look of breathless shock as a massive stone hand smashed into her side. She flew over thirty feet before hitting the ground, which she then began bouncing off of like a skipping stone.

Before the Titans could properly react, the giants hand slammed into the ground in front of them, shaking all but starfire off their feet. Painful groans filled the air, as Robin began to sit up and rub his head. He looked around and saw that Rose was un conscious, and the others were incompacitated, leaving only starfire to fight cinderblock.

As Robin looked up, still dazed, he saw starfire becoming angry. Her attacks against the giant were becoming more and more aggressive, and the his attempts to shield himself were failing. He was being pushed farther and farther back.

As Robin looked behind cinderblock, his eyes widened in horror. "Starfire stop!" He yelled, but in her rage she could not hear what he said.

The giant stumbled back another step.

" Starfire cease fire!"

She lobbed another bolt, this one charged to be more powerful than the usual ones.

" No!"

The bolt hit the giant dead on, sending him off his feet. Before she could realize it, the giant flew into a diner. Windows shattered, debries and glass flew everywhere. She stared at the giant, smiling in satisfaction that he was down. But as soon as the smile was there, it vanished, as her keen eyes saw something amongst the debris that made her heart sink. As she rushed in, her fears were only confirmed.

Amongst the debris, a small hand protruded out from the rubble.