What it Means to Lead
The number of the Raven constructs were increasing. Just from the last couple of nights, Batman could tell more and more were being created. If the Titans were to be believed—and he saw no reason not to—it was a sign of Raven's deteriorating mental status. The more she lost control of herself, the more she created these monsters.
Finding her became the next objective, following taking care of this latest brood of creatures.
The hum of the engine grew louder as Batman pushed down on the accelerator. It was just him, Huntress currently babysitting Damian at the moment. As experienced as Huntress was, she didn't have the equipment to face these monsters effectively, and Damian had already crossed him this night. With permission granted to do whatever it took to keep Damian out of the fight, he had taken off. Huntress had also mentioned wanting to make certain her student, Colin, reached the hospital safely, so that was where the two of them were going.
Hopefully there weren't any constructs between Bald Hills and Gotham Children's.
Further up the street, Batman saw a number of constructs milling about the road. Like any animal, they seemed to be exploring the world around them, clawing and biting on things they didn't recognize. That was pretty much anything, from parked cars to mailboxes.
As his car sped up, closing the distance between him and the constructs, Batman waited until the last possible moment to hit the switch for the nitro-boost. The engine roared as the dark-clad man felt himself sink into his seat. Flames were erupting out of the exhaust port on the back of the vehicle. The front of the car even began lifting up off of the road.
And then he hit the first construct. All he saw was a black blur, unable to pick out any discernible features. He definitely felt the collision as the car plowed into and then through it, not even slowing down.
He hit another and then another. It was repeated banging as he rammed through constructs. He would have kept this up if it weren't for the T-intersection he was rapidly coming to. Shutting off the nitro, he hit the brakes, the sound of rubber squealing filling his ears. He spun the wheel to the left, causing the car to begin turning in that direction. This caused the back of the car to begin fishtailing, swinging out to one side.
The moment the car entered the intersection, he was fully facing the left direction, which he quickly punched down the accelerator. Instantly, the car burst forward, racing down this new street.
The sound of gunfire reached his ears and it didn't take long for Batman to realize why. Up ahead was the GCPD, red-and-blue lights bathing the area in their flashing lights. There were a number of squad cars scattered across and up and down the street, though it was uncertain if this was intentional, or it just happened that way. One of the SWAT trucks was closer to his approaching car, rammed headfirst into a streetlight.
The cause for this scene was the hulking, dark gray construct. It was slashing at anything and everything was clawed hands, which was causing the police to keep their distance even as they unloaded every possible bullet they had. The vigilante could only see the back of it, but this provided him with an opportunity.
Again, he activated the nitrous, again his car speeding up until the hood of the vehicle began to lift up into the air. He hit the button again for a second boost, this one launching his car up into the air.
He soared through the air, heading right for the construct. Its hindlegs moved, causing him to miss them, but he hit paydirt as the grill of this car collided with the reverse joint of the front leg. It never stood a chance as the car burst right through it, severing the limp off.
There was a loud shriek from the monster, one that grew more distant as Batman put distance between it and him. Gravity set in this, his car beginning to fall back to the ground. He ended up landing on top of a squad car, one that was hopefully empty. It crumpled beneath the car, momentum pushing him down the back of the ruined police car. Finally on asphalt, he kept going, plowing through another squad car and then he had nothing but open road in front of him. Hitting the brakes, his car skidding to a stop, one assisted by him spinning the vehicle around until it was facing the construct again.
The moment he was stopped, he threw his car into park. On the passenger seat was his black sword attachment, which the vigilante snatched up and put onto his right arm. The canopy slid forward then and Batman hauled himself out, his feet landing on the ground.
Now that he was out, he got a better look at this construct. While its body was large, its head was small, a beak extending out where its mouth should be. It was a rather comical contrast if it weren't for the large claws on its hands. Well, make that just one seeing as the other was laying on the ground, slowly disintegrating. The construct was stumbling from one side of the street to the other, trying to regain its balance, letting out enraged squawks from its beak mouth.
With his left hand, Batman reached to his belt and pulled out his grapple. Taking aim, he waited for the construct to right itself before he fired it. The grapple claw soared through the air until it collided with the forehead of the monster, the cable going taut immediately. Hitting the retraction button, the vigilante shot into the air, flying over police cars and cops, who were turning their heads to watch him go into battle.
Letting go of his grapple, Batman soared towards the large construct, which focused its attention entirely onto him. His cape billowing behind him, the Dark Knight held his arms out to either side of him, his legs coiled beneath him. The Black Blade of Mordred emerged from the attachment on his arm. Drawing his right arm back so that he could point the sword tip towards his target, his left arm extending out in front of him to offer a counter-balance, the vigilante was ready to strike.
Right up until the construct opened its beak much larger than he thought it could. This, in turn, revealed a row of sharp teeth on both upper and lower parts of the mandible and jaw. It then lunged at him, its timing impeccable as Batman flew right into its gaping mouth.
The beak snapped shut the moment he was inside, bathing him in darkness. There were a few beams of light that entered from imperfections caused by teeth inside of a beak. Shooting his legs to either side of him, the vigilante's feet slapped down on what was best described as the gumline of the back teeth. These weren't anything like molars considering their sharp pointedness. This put the dark-clad man at the back of the mouth though, just before the sudden turn into the throat.
Undeterred by this situation, Batman thrust his sword forward, stabbing it right into the back of the mouth. A pained, deafening shriek rang out, hot air blowing in the vigilante's face. The construct mouth opened wide, allowing more light in even its head swung back and forth, trying to dislodge him from its oral cavity.
Pulling his sword back, he then crossed his right arm over his body, swinging the blade downward. The black sword sliced right through a sharp tooth and sank through the gumline. Batman continued moving his arm, crossing it from his left to his right, the sword cutting through the black magic that made up its jaw.
And then the jaw suddenly dropped downwards, having been severed completely from its head. This caused Batman to start falling as well, the sight of the back of the throat changing to that of the monster's chest. Immediately, he thrust his sword into the chest, his left hand grabbing onto the wrist of his right. The blade left a long gash as it cut through the monster, right until the vigilante landed on his feet on the ground.
Immediately, the construct began stumbling backwards, making odd squawking sounds that it could manage with only the top part of its mouth. Its back legs stepped on another construct, crushing it instantly. The gashes in its body were steadily growing wider as the magic that comprised it was undone.
That's when Batman heard…cheering? Turning his head, he saw several officers shouting, thrusting fists up into the air in celebration. He could see some mouths moving up and down, whatever those men and women were saying getting drowned out.
Then, out from between two cars came two men he immediately recognized. Still wearing his damn-near trademark trench coat was Gordon, Bullock at his side. Both men held handguns, the latter staring at the slowly disintegrating construct, the former with his attention on him.
Batman just stared at the white-haired man. Gordon looked different, some good, some bad. He didn't look nearly as stressed as he usually did, but his body seemed thinner. However, there was a spark of life in his eyes that hadn't been there the last time the two had been in each other's company.
"Jim," the Dark Knight greeted then.
"Batman," Gordon returned. "I see you're still in shape."
"I could say the same for you."
Gordon snorted. "Not nearly as well as you. I'm guessing you know what these monsters are."
"I do."
"Then let me not keep you from getting rid of these things. I got a scared daughter I need to get to."
The whip-like tail smashed into the street, leaving behind a long trench that stretched up and down the boulevard. This time, it was lucky that no one was crushed under it, but luck had a nasty habit of running out.
This huge construct was still going on the rampage, and some of their best efforts to slow it down were just that, efforts. Some of them felt like they were wasted ones. For example, Kid Flash went scavenging for anything to maybe tie up the legs, or the front ones at least. That meant a lot of power cables were detached and borrowed, leaving several buildings without power.
A yellow blur circled around the two forelegs, wrapping cable after cable around them, but before anything could come from it, one foot would raise up and so many cables were broken as a result.
From above, Starfire pelted the back, but to no avail. It didn't matter if it was Starbolts or even one heavy-handed punch. Well, the punch caused a tremor to run throughout the body, but other than that, nothing else. Being pulled along was Wonder Girl, her grip on her lasso never wavering. No matter how hard she tightened it, the magical rope seemed not to slow this beast down.
It was blazing red at this point, and the behemoth did not seem to like it, but at the same time was going along with it. You could see what looked like thin tendrils of smoke wafting away from where the magical item made contact with the construct's hide, but other than that, no signs of it doing anything significant.
Last he saw, Cyborg had hung back. Maybe he had something planned, maybe he was coming up with something new to try, but hopefully he'd be doing whatever it was soon. Beast Boy was trailing behind, his shifting really taking a toll on him. Never saw the shapeshifter exhaust himself before, but the constant large forms he was taking seemed to be pushing him to his limits.
Red Robin was trying to keep it all organized as much as he could, but there was only so much that could be done. For one, he himself was sorely limited by what his gear would be able to do. Delaying this construct was the best he was able to do, and those delays were barely noticeable, seconds at best. Trying to point out a new spot to attack and searching for any possible weakness, whether it was in plain sight or a momentary thing tended to give him something to do.
Now the Birds were involved. The massive construct's rampage had it literally running into one of Gotham's longest running vigilante teams, so their ranks got bolstered as a result. Predictably, Katana seemed to have the best results, her sword slicing into the carapace and joints, though even then the best the damage could be described as was minimal. Black Canary—hold on, cover his ears—had to rely on that loud siren of an attack she had. Did this thing have ears? Maybe, maybe not, but it was weathering that Canary Cry. Manhunter rounded the Birds off, firing energy blast after energy blast from her staff.
This mammoth was still going strong and with no signs of truly slowing down.
They were starting to arrive in the more heavily trafficked area of the city. This meant civilians in cars who saw death approaching and had to abandon them to save themselves. Large, two-toed feet crushed anything they landed on, and if not crushed they scattered. One vehicle belonged to the GCPD, and that one screeched to a halt at an intersection. No sooner had it done so, a foot slammed down on the hood of the car, decimated it and the engine within. The officers inside were mere inches away being under that and one minute away from reconsidering their careers.
Red Robin noticed the Birds break off, pulling back to regroup and consider their options. The teen vigilante took this chance to meet up, share notes, and maybe coordinate their efforts. Gliding his way over to them, a bright flash behind him gave away Cyborg's current location. His energy blast had come from behind and tried to go to a possible weak spot, that was hidden away by the whip-like tail.
Nothing came from that, he mused as he landed close to where the Birds had gathered. Three heads turned to him, regarding his presence. He took the scrutiny, knew that they hadn't expected to see but more than likely suspected he was nearby since his teammates were in plain sight.
"Red Robin, what the hell is this thing?" Black Canary greeted him, gesturing to the massive construct. Straight to business, no pleasantries, understandable.
"Long story short, it's not real." Dammit, really needed to work on that delivery. He could already tell both Black Canary and Manhunter were able to jump down his throat. "Not living. Yes, it affects the real world, but there is nothing living about it. No blood, no organs, no anything. You can go all out on it, no holding back."
Surprisingly enough, it was Katanna who spoke first. "There is a mystical quality to these beasts. Do you know where the source is?"
How'd she figure that out?
"It's demonic in nature. I know who's creating it, I just don't know where she's being held. That's why we're here, and right now, this construct has to be taken care of first," the masked teen answered.
"Well that figures," Black Canary remarked. Her eyes narrowed. "Is there someone missing?"
Let it not be said that any of these women were not sharp. "Yeah, Raven's the source. She's somewhere in Gotham, and we need to find her. Until then, we're trying to see about attacking this thing from the inside out, provided we can stop it in its tracks first."
As if to underscore that, another construct happened to get in the way of the behemoth and was summarily crushed. As the massive foot lifted up, he could see the crushed construct disintegrating.
"Right, then," the blonde-haired vigilante in black leather said. "Katanna, see if you can't find something, I don't know, a tendon to slice. Unless that thing can heal itself, that ought to make walking difficult."
"I have an idea," Manhunter said. "I'm going to get in position. Do what you guys can."
The vigilante in red took off, darting further down the street. That left Black Canary and Katana…hmm, where was Huntress? Last he heard, the Birds of Prey were a quartet. Then again she had been known to be at Batman's side before… It didn't matter.
That became doubly true as the pavement beneath their feet began to tremble. The gigantic construct was closing in.
No more time for chatter. Without another word, the three remaining vigilantes split, going their separate ways, but each heading for the construct. One of the massive forelegs gave a swipe, missing Kid Flash easily, but clearing any and all obstacles in front of it as a result. Cars were shoved off the street, onto sidewalks, and then into the fronts of various buildings. Streetlights fell over, damaging anything they landed on. A fire hydrant became a casualty, water gushing out from where it once stood.
The head whipped about, pulling Wonder Girl with it. Seemingly tired of trying to rodeo, the armored teen sharply flew downwards, striking a fist into the back of the skull-like head. A breathless hiss escaped from the open maw, then the head jerked backwards. The armor-wearing blonde was knocked upwards, but yanking on her lasso had her reversing her trajectory and going back down for another hit.
Behind the monster, Beast Boy seemed to have recovered enough energy to try the Tyrannosaurus once more. With mighty jaws, he struggled with the whip-like tail, holding it in place while Cyborg got into position.
"Dr. Cyborg, about to give his first prostate exam, booyah!" the cybernetic teen roared as he fired as powerful of a blast as he was capable of. It…got a very interesting reaction, one that had the behemoth jerking wildly, legs kicking out in every direction and head throwing itself all about. The tail managed to escape the green shapeshifter's toothy grip, and before any dental appointments needed to be planned, Beast Boy gave up the large form rather than being hit by the tail.
If one paid attention, you could hear distantly, "Dude, you suck at being a doctor!"
As he glided about, Red Robin swooped to a leg that was steadying. So far, all he had been doing was directing and trying to keep the team organized. He was past ready to try and do some damage himself. Gliding to one of the hind legs, he angled his flight path towards where the foot and leg connected. Some might call it an ankle, but his aim was for the rear of the limb, where on any other creature a tendon could be found.
Closer and closer he went, until his angle was just right enough to get the edge of his hardened cape, sharp as a blade it could be, to slice into the very small yet stretched location. It seemed his cape was sharp enough to cut through that shell that covered the construct's body, but then he was snapped back, his cape caught into the large limb.
Damn, it didn't look like that did anything. His body swung and he threw his legs out so that they planted against the leg. Cutting off the current, his cape went limp and gravity began to assert itself on him. Quickly, a birdarang with an explosive embedded in it was cleaved into the portion of the leg in which his cape had cut through, and then he began to fall.
That fall was stopped as a certain speedster swept him up and placed him behind the other hindleg. As nausea and disorientation tried to claim him, his birdarang detonated, though no apparent damage was made.
It got a little worse when he had to clap his hands over his ears, Black Canary unleashing another Canary Cry, and was it him or was that a particularly loud one?
"Does she always know how to do that?" Kid Flash shouted. At least, that's what it sounded like.
"Yeah!" he called back, hoping that he had given a good enough answer.
"What?!" If only it could have been heard.
Almost overhead, a grapple claw flew by, its cable becoming taut with Katana soon enough zipping by, her sword striking against the construct's underbelly. Her sword appeared to be doing some damage wherever it struck, but whatever wounds that were being made looked good but had the same effect as a superficial one.
Towards the front, Starfire was attempting to unleash another assault of Starbolts, trying to get as many into the open maw that was the mouth. Attempt was the keyword as the creature was not cooperating, lashing out with huge feet, forelegs kicking outwards. It made the Tamaranean going on the evasive, trying not to get hit.
Okay, this was getting old. Really old. How much more did they need to go to take it down for good?
Directly ahead, standing in the middle of the street, Manhunter had her staff up and its end aimed straight for the construct. That end was lit up brightly, brighter than Red Robin could ever recall. She held the staff steady, staying still even as the huge construct continued to advance, feet causing tremors to ripple through asphalt.
The staff-wielding vigilante gave no warning, no call to get out of the way. Having a gut feeling, Red Robin yanked Kid Flash back with him, putting some space between the two of them and the monster. The light from the staff drew the attention of those in the air, Starfire and Wonder Girl angling away. There was no need for Black Canary or Katana to get a warning; they seemed to know what was up.
"What's that?" Beast Boy asked from his position behind the monster, green eyes narrowed.
Cyborg's human eye widened, and he quickly snatched the shapeshifter, dragging both of them out of the way while swearing, "Oh shit!"
It happened so fast. From the glowing end of Manhunter's staff, a large beam of energy, one larger than any she had fired before, burned through the air and right down the construct's ever-opened mouth. For a few seconds, that was all that happened, but then the rear of the construct began to glow. It started off dully, then grew in intensity, reddening and reddening until the beam tore through streaking down the street without pause.
The monstrous body began to sag, and the second Manhunter cut off the beam, you could hear charred chokes coming from it. Powerful legs lost their strength, the body itself collapsed onto the broken road, and finally it went still.
Silence fell over everything, with the sole exception of sirens in the distance.
Drifting downwards, Wonder Girl arrived at Manhunter's side, and she voiced the one question that Red Robin figured everyone had right now.
"What the hell is that thing?"
Powering down the staff, Manhunter balanced the weapon onto a shoulder and quipped, "Some of the best the D.E.O. has to offer. One hundred percent science developed to handle some of the galaxy's worst. Inhibitors disabled, max power. Boom. Done."
Red Robin found his eyes narrowing. D.E.O.? Now that was an agency you didn't hear about often. Sounded like Manhunter had some kind of involvement with them, perhaps years ago. There was something to be said about her using a weapon designed for overkill against the hapless criminals of Gotham.
So much he didn't know of a fellow colleague—
The silence was broken quickly, smaller constructs arriving on the scene and they looked eager for a fight. The night wasn't over yet, but at least he might be able to do something about these ones.
"We're not done yet!" he shouted. "Take them down hard and fast!"
This was really becoming a pain in the ass.
The precinct had been up in arms from the beginning, right after the AMBER Alert went out. With the prime suspects being the League of Smiles, it was being taken dead serious, which meant staying back a little longer. While feeling restless, Barbara had played along while thinking of every method she could use to try and track down the poor child. All of those ways were of the Oracle variety and nothing that Barbara Gordon, forensics technician, could provide.
Then the invitation had arrived. She was sure that Batman was on the case now. If anyone had the best chance at rescuing the child, it was the Dark Knight himself. After spotting Commissioner Sawyer leaving a certain stairwell, she figured that transaction was complete, which meant now would be a good time to call it a night.
It wasn't to be because soon enough, reports of monsters began flooding the emergency lines. Call after call after call with no end in sight. Officers were being sent out to deal with it, but then the emergency arrived on their doorstep and the wheelchair-bound woman found herself trapped in the precinct.
She needed to be at her desk. She needed to be helping the Network navigate and put down this invasion from another world. She needed to find out what Red Robin's progress was and how much damn longer it was going to take. It was getting worse by the night out there. Something was going to give.
It sounded like it would be her sanity right now.
Once more, she reflected on how much her job right now was cutting into her responsibilities as Oracle. Much of it involved keeping both alter egos separate, and the access to the department's case files was invaluable. The downsides, such as having citywide crises pop up were now making themselves known, interfering with her abilities.
How much longer until the Network began demanding to know where she was, what was keeping her from doing her job, and why all the silence? It was a moment she was beginning to dread because it was only a matter of time until it happened. Something was going to give, of that she was certain.
As the rapid pops of gunfire and detonations of explosives outside told the story of what the fighting out there looked like, Barbara needed to know what exactly was happening. Being locked up in the armory with a bunch of staff and other technicians was not helpful with that either.
Some of them looked like they were at their breaking points. One was starting to cry. Another was in the early stages of hyperventilation. With all of these walls between them and the outside world, the uncertainty was sure to be driving some of them mad.
The stress was a little distracting. Maybe a little too distracting. It covered up when the fighting ended. It allowed for her father to show up out of the blue and check her over.
"You're not hurt, are you?" Dad asked for perhaps the nth time, though it was probably closer to three. She could see the sweat stains in his shirt; the old man more than likely had gotten involved with the fighting. Figures. "Everybody else alright?" he called out to the rest of the staff.
There was a lot of murmuring now, many people standing up and antsy to get out of there. She understood the feeling all too well. Except…now she had a new problem. Dad was going to take her home, no real problem with that, but he was going to be finding every reason under the sun to stick around.
Barbara understood he was trying to protect her, to make sure she was safe, and it was incredibly sweet of him. However, it meant another interference with her Oracle responsibilities. No time to get caught up, analyze data, and guide the city's vigilantes to where they could do the most good. Her all-seeing digital eyes would be blinded.
A hand on her shoulder brought her to the present moment, and she found her father looking down at her in concern. "Is something wrong?" he asked.
There was a downside with having a double life. It made wanting to tell the truth torturous. But she had gone this long with her dad, one of the greatest men she had ever known, still in the dark.
"I want to be able to help, but I feel so powerless." Okay, well, maybe a half-truth, or just part of the whole. Her hands were gripping the fabric of her pants, her legs unfeeling as always. Another reminder of helplessness. "I'm stuck in here when I want to be out there. I'm sick of being left behind."
In response, Dad's hand gripped her shoulder a little tighter. "I know. Sometimes a desk is a bigger prison than an actual prison, doesn't matter what the rank is." For a second, her father's age reflected on his face before smoothing out. "Wish I could tell you something, make it easier to bear, but after all these years I'm still trying to find it. If you do, please let me know."
It felt like being trapped. He really understood, didn't he?
As much as she would have preferred a brave front, her next question may possibly undermine it. "When will it be safe out there to leave?"
The older Gordon gave her a wry smile. "When the last one's taken care of. We're in good hands, certain people taking charge of the situation and all. I don't think we'll have to wait long for the all clear."
He sounded so confident, but Barbara would take it. In the meantime, she was going to have to figure out a way to resolve the problem with being kept away from the one desk she wanted to be behind. Somehow, someway, Oracle would need to leave her apartment and embed herself right here in the GCPD.
Oracle could not afford to be blinded any longer.
It was a long night, the Teen Titans were exhausted, but it was ending. The last of the constructs were dissolving, Gotham was settling down, and it would be quiet for the rest of the night.
When something big happens, all the criminal elements would hunker down and wait it out. It was a lesson Red Robin had learned over the years, first here in his hometown and finding the same in Jump City. This meant that the Titans could slip back to the T-car and figure out what the next move would be.
They stood in a circle, the car flanking them. Red Robin glanced at each one, starting from his left and circling right. Beast Boy, Cyborg, Wonder Girl, Starfire, and Kid Flash, each one of them with their eyes on him. He took it in stride since this was a common enough sight.
"We did good out there, but we need to step it up," he said. "I don't know about you, but the constructs were bigger tonight. Stronger. Could take more damage. It's getting worse. I don't think I have to tell you all that we're running out of time. Either it's taken out of our hands or Raven crosses a point of no return."
"What would that look like?" Kid Flash asked, his curiosity causing the interruption.
Red Robin shrugged his shoulders. "Hell if I know, but I don't want to find out. I don't think Gotham would want to either. For Raven's sake, for the city's, we need something and we need it now." Turning to Cyborg, "Anything new?"
Cyborg had been tinkering with his lower left arm for some time, especially after the last of the constructs were taken down. Even now, much of his attention was on it, and from his human eye, he watched the teen vigilante.
"I might," the cybernetic teen answered. "Trying to get a hold of Raven's frequency, if you can call it that, and without her directly helping has been a bitch. But, with how many of those things were out tonight, that gave me a ton of data to work with. I'm closing in on the frequency, and since there were so many trick or treating tonight, I was able to pick up a flow. Remember, they're made of Raven's powers, right? She's the source and they come from her, so when they start breaking apart, that power has to return to her. Yeah, when they start crumbling, it's like Raven's powers soak into the air, gets very thin, but there was enough that it couldn't hide the return."
If there was at least one good thing that came from this, they were making some kind of headway. Please let there be more good news.
"I've been able to eliminate a good chunk of Gotham," Cyborg continued, his human eye flickering back to his arm. "Right now, it's all heading in a northwest direction. The Southside, the East, even the harbor we can leave alone. It also cuts down on that list we got from the Bat sorority."
Northwest, huh? Red Robin found himself frowning. Real quick, he needed to confirm something. "Is Sacred Heart still a possible?"
He hadn't forgotten about the hospital they were going to check out prior to the arrival of tonight's constructs. The chaos that followed made it easy to put it to a side. It still needed to be investigated, provided that it was still in the area that Cyborg hadn't eliminated yet.
The rest of the Titans watched the cyborg eagerly, Cyborg's human face starting to frown in concentration as he did a quick check. The grimace the frown morphed into foreshadowed the answer he gave. "Naw. It's nowhere near. I just eliminated a few more city blocks. It's in the clear."
So it would have been a dead end. Damn it. What else could there be in the northwest? Sure, there were parts of North Gotham that could be suspect. There had to be a possible in the west too, right?
"So we are not investigating the complex?" Starfire asked.
Red Robin shook his head. "Cyborg's getting no reading from that place. Someone might be there, but they aren't our concern anymore. It was one thing when we had nothing else to go on. Now we do. Depending on how much more data Cyborg has to go through, we may have to wait until he can pinpoint some place specific."
"So we're just gonna wait?" Beast Boy asked. "That's boring. Cyborg's gonna be busy, but what else are the rest of us going to do?"
Red Robin found his eyes flickering towards Wonder Girl. Yeah, the armor-wearing blonde didn't look happy at the prospect of sitting around and waiting, but right now she wasn't voicing it. She wanted out of here, he truly did understand that. There was a part of him that also wanted to leave. It was nice to see his old stomping grounds, but this wasn't the best of circumstances and there was some missing company.
It was moments like these he found himself wanting the presence of Nightwing. The old partner-in-crime always seemed to have this calming presence to him. The older vigilante took on the responsibilities of leading a group, counseling through the arguments for better or worse, and problem-solving when things got hairy. He could really use some one on one time with him, doing some sound boarding.
But Nightwing wasn't here and wouldn't be. The team now looked to him for all of that, and he had to be the one to step up here. Straightening his shoulders, his attention returned to the titanium Titan.
"How long until you can get us something?" the masked teen asked.
"Two, three hours?" Cyborg guessed. "I've been running this program all night. I might have some of the best hardware on the planet, but even it needs time to analyze foreign data it does not know how to read one hundred percent and make something out of it. Sun will be up when I have something definitive."
That answer was double-edged. The good part was that headway was being made. The bad was that they would have to stick around until then just to get the kind of information they needed so that it could be acted on.
That did leave Beast Boy's point. Would the team have to idle until Cyborg was able to make something out of that collected data? If so, then what would they do? Rest was an option, but it was plain to see that everyone here was restless. One thing was for sure, there wasn't going to be another sightseeing tour around the city. Not this time.
A decision needed to be made, and Red Robin carefully weighed all the options, looking over his team once more, starting from left to right. His eyes moved over all of them, starting with Beast Boy to his left, then Cyborg, Batman, Wonder Girl, Starfire—wait a minute.
Red Robin felt a little proud of himself that he didn't jump or startle or give a girlish squeak. That was the only positive he would be able to find in this moment of time.
That the other Titans were in tune with his body language was another positive, and when they began following his gaze, the reactions were predictable. Standing in between Cyborg and Wonder Girl, Batman himself stood as if he had always been there, waiting silently, those terrifying white eyes on the teen vigilante and him alone.
As if to confirm that indeed the final nail was being hammered in, Batman spoke the four most fear-inducing words imaginable.
"We need to talk."
It wasn't all that hard to find the Teen Titans. They had commandeered one of the levels of a parking garage, which was where their vehicle was kept. Cyborg had built it at the Titan Tower, and the schematics Batman had seen of it had been quite impressive.
He would have preferred less weapons, but who was he to object?
Still, it wasn't the Titans' mode of transportation that allowed him to track them to this location. It was the tracking device he had in Red Robin's armor. He had given the young man upgrades during Bane's siege, and that was when the tracking device had been installed. Clearly, Red Robin hadn't found it yet.
That allowed him to find them quite easily. They were gathered in a circle, clearly doing a debriefing. The vigilante silently walked up to them and stood just behind Wonder Girl and Cyborg and waited. Red Robin had been looking at each of his team members, going from right to left, and then back. It was then that the young man froze, staring right at the Dark Knight.
His sudden silence alerted the other Titans that something was up, and so they all looked. Cyborg let out a sharp shriek, one that was joined by Beast Boy and Kid Flash. A look of terror was on Wonder Girl's face, her tan skin paling. Starfire had wide eyes before she too let out a cry of surprise. It was almost as if she was only joining in on the screaming because the others were doing it.
"We need to talk," Batman said the moment the shrieks stopped.
"How does he do that?!" Kid Flash exploded. "I mean, how? Why? What? Can someone explain this to me?"
"I'm having a heart attack," Cyborg joined in, one hand pressed against his chest, breathing heavily. "How the hell am I having a heart attack?"
"Dude, Batman caused a cybernetic heart to have a heart attack," Beast Boy chimed in. "That's equal parts terrifying, insane, and bad ass!"
The Dark Knight just gave the three a look, one as stoic as granite. Then he turned his attention back to Red Robin. "I want to know everything you have on finding Raven."
To the former Gotham resident's credit, he actually recovered quickly. "We were just discussing that. Cyborg has been able to eliminate most of Gotham as a possible location. Everything seems to be pointing to the Northwest part of the city, maybe even just outside of it."
A small frown formed on the vigilante's face. The Northwest? There wasn't much there that would be considered a good hiding place, not for the sort of thing that was going on. There was development going on in that part of the city, but none of the known construction sites were viable locations if you were trying to hide a rather powerful meta.
"What else do you need to further narrow down the location?" he then asked.
"Honestly, I can only gather useful data whenever those constructs appear," Cyborg answered him. "I might—"
"Unacceptable."
His lone word cut the teenage cyborg off, causing his human eye to widen. "Those constructs are becoming more dangerous, in number, size, and destructive capabilities. Your teammate needs to be found now."
"We apologize for the limitedness of our success, Man of Bats," Starfire apologized. "We were hoping to have made more progress than we have accomplished, but the difficulty has proven more difficult than anticipated."
Batman glanced at the Tamaranean, giving her only a nod of acknowledgement. Then he returned his attention to Cyborg. "I want you to send me everything you have. I'll see if I can't make any headway with my resources."
"Alright," the teen uneasily agreed.
Seeing as nothing more needed to be said, Batman then turned and began walking away. His intent was to leave, but that was being ignored if the sound of footsteps following was any indication.
"Batman, wait."
Coming to a stop, the vigilante turned his head and found Red Robin standing there, a determined look on his face. "This is our case," he declared.
The dark-clad man turned completely to face the younger vigilante. He didn't say anything, allowing the Titans' leader to continue.
"Raven is our teammate, our friend. You can't take this from us. This is our mess and we have to be the ones to clean it up."
"It was one thing when the constructs were contained. Now they're nearly city-wide and the situation doesn't look like it's improving," Batman rebuked. "You're in my city, not Jump. I have a vested interest in ending this."
"By undermining everything we've done?" Red Robin countered. "Look, I know you're one of the best; you've been doing this longer than anyone, but right now you're tearing down the confidence of my team, and I can't let you do that."
Batman glanced over the younger man's shoulder at the other Titans. They were all staring in their direction. It was a little difficult to tell if they knew what they were talking about due to the distance, not to mention the acoustics of the parking garage. Then he looked back at Red Robin. "This shouldn't be a surprise. I told you this is what I would do the first night you arrived in Gotham."
Red Robin nodded reluctantly. "But we're so close. It's…it's unfair that you're taking this from us."
"Life's unfair; you know this better than most. It's the price of leadership."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"It has to do with everything. Leadership is a responsibility that very few succeed at. It's having to make hard decisions at times that seem impossible in the moment, but they have to be made regardless. Sometimes all there are are bad choices, and you have to make the best one you can. Not just anyone can make these decisions because of the impact they make to all those around. They can make you unpopular as a result, something you should know about.
"As a leader yourself, you've no doubt experienced the pushback, the resistance, the hostility when others think you're making the wrong choice. They have that luxury of second-guessing, which is something you can't have. The moment you begin to second-guess yourself is the moment you lose. The consequences are life-altering, and they weigh on you because ultimately, you're responsible for them."
"And we're responsible for Raven, not you," Red Robin pressed.
"The moment you entered Gotham, I became responsible."
"No, it isn't."
Batman took a step closer to the boy. "Yes, it is. I became responsible the moment I put on this cowl. The moment I went head-to-head with Victor Fries. Every person, every life in this city I became responsible for, and that includes everyone that's been inspired by me. The Birds of Prey; your original Batclan; the Network, all of it. Before I started this mission, how many of you would have become what you are today? One? Two? None?
"And I've felt the consequences ever since. Take your Batclan—one is paralyzed for the rest of her life. You lost your home when Harvey Dent unmasked you. Nightwing has to live with the burden that one of his charges is dead. All of that I could have prevented had I made the decision to stop you more forcefully."
Red Robin titled his back, a gesture of defiance. "No, I don't think you could have. We would have found a way, I feel it."
"Couldn't I? All I had to do was tell your parents what you were up to and you would have been locked away in your house. The same thing I could have done to your Batgirl, and I rather doubt Commissioner Gordon would have let his daughter out on the streets. The only one that could continue is Nightwing, short of me breaking his legs. Had I done that, Gordon's daughter would still be walking; you may or may not still be living in Gotham, but you wouldn't have to stay away due to someone recognizing you and putting your family in danger. Red Hood would still be alive."
Red Robin fell silent. "You would have hated me—all of you. But you wouldn't be where you are today, for better or worse. That's the burden I have to carry. I made the choice to let you decide for yourselves, and I have to live with the fact I could have prevented it all. If you're going to continue as the leader of the Titans, that's something you're going to have to confront sooner or later. There will be a time that puts you at odds with the members of your team, and you cannot hesitate. You have to make the best decision out of a bad situation before it's made for you. In this case, it's me, and that's perhaps the best outcome for you in such a situation. The worst case is someone killing one of the Titans. That's not something you want to have to live with.
"Now, you want to find Raven. I want to find Raven. I'm on this case whether you want me to be or not. If you find Raven before I do, you better tell me. If I find her first, I'll do the same."
"And that's the way it's going to be?" the young man responded bitterly.
"That's the best deal you're going to get. Take it or leave it."
Red Robin numbly nodded. "Then…then I guess you should know something about the constructs. They're only made when Raven is afraid. That's what triggered their appearance at Titan Tower and that's what's making them in Gotham. Thought you should know."
Batman narrowed his eyes. These constructs were a result of a fear response? He had interacted with the mysterious girl and she didn't seem to be someone that gave into fear all that often. The appearance of these constructs seemed to be at nighttime, which meant the fear response was being purposefully invoked, unless Raven had a fear of the dark.
He highly doubted that possibility.
The dark-clad man found himself glancing in the approximate direction of the northwest. Though there was urban development in that direction, that wasn't the only thing out in that direction. Call it a hunch, but he felt as if a large puzzle piece had landed in his lap and he was just a step away from solving this.
"I'll be in touch," he eventually grunted out. Returning his attention back to the Titan leader, he then said, "Tell your team to get some rest. They're going to need it."
