Our Time in Reverse- What it Takes –

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Chapter 25: Red Eyed Reflections

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Cy blinked open a cybernetic eye to the biggest maze of a minotaur he'd ever spied with his life infrared seeking eye.

"Whoa, dude…. where did we –

The gate behind them with a swirl of color, gnarled with branches like fingers, out of the depths of the dark walked their Gothic ally. "Caught you both, now let's go –

"HOLD UP." Bb pointed at the empath, who for the record, didn't look at all as he'd recalled beneath her hooded features. "You. Are wearing red. Raven never wears anything but that ugly blue!"

The faker looked at its cloak and shook off the critical words of its target. "Must have happened when I went through the portal. Sorry." She waved her arm and Raven stood before them. Or so, they'd be led to believe. (Recall, Trigon is like a devil so tricking them is his basic M.O.)

"Rave, Bb wouldn't stop messing with your stuff. I'm really sorry about –

"It's fine." She had them drop the apologize. "I needed to come here anyway."

"Where, the heck is here? Feels like we woke up on another planet." Bb squinted out into the distance to see big hunks of space rock and earth floating in the direction of germs in a closed space

"In a way, you did. I can take you to the real exit. That one won't work anymore." She motioned her eyes to the branch laden one that was starting to disintegrate.

"oh, ok….show us the way if you know it –

"Like that? Come on, Rave. What is this place and why are you not saying anything!" Bb exclaimed. "I saw ten reasons why we can't stay and you said we gotta go deeper into this wonderful place?? You are either trying to scare us on purpose or –

"The door. Isn't here." She pointed. "It's there. Past those gates. This place is special. It keeps all if me, together."

She drifted along as she levitated, something Raven did when she was not being bothered by anyone. Cy wondered about how she could be so calm right now. It irked him, yet Bb and Racen dragged him to walk along the path of floating rocks and dark swirls. Red in the air made him wonder what time of night this was or was not. Bb bounded along as an alpaca while Raven didn't answer any more questions during their trek. The real Raven had a temper, was nervous when startled at the wrong times and yet brilliant. This Raven, was too calm. Far too much, as he kept walking. Bb right ahead while the next gate twisted along onto view. Upside down.

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Starfire finally came out of her room, yet every time she tried to think of visiting Robin, she instead looked to the unit – she finally had the courage to press a button to call Cyborg for advice.

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~ Hello? Cyborg? Come in! This is Starfire. – I must ask of your assistance….vow…door……wo –

The reception was breaking up as under her cloak, the fake Raven moved a wrist to lose the signal and that extra way into recognizing their trick. "Starfire can get through! I can fix it –

"We can't stop. The next gate. We're almost there."

"Star needs us. I can't trust a magical road ta nowhere to-

"You will, I mean, you must. If we can't get back to our world, then none of us will ever get to leave if you can't listen."

"Bossy…tell us what this place is already!" Bb yelled, Raven's eyes glowing in four red dots before she blinked them shut and centered her attention on corralling her way out through the maze. Raven's monk family had done enough to trap him inside it, yet Raven was here and she'd be the one yo want her friends safe and sound someplace else. He was using them as his life line. Nothing more.

"My mind." She told them, or rather, she didn't have to. From the other side where they were headed, another gate opened. This Raven had Green as her color, while that too happened to be a concern to Cy. Her hands on her hips, one hand lifted to point at the imposter as it growled back.

"And that isn't me."

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Robin rose to hold onto his side, his ribs were still a mess. The more than banged up side he'd gotten used to was already just a faint bruise. He went to turn on a light and saw that it was midday already. How long had he been asleep healing? Slade had not called, right? Robin checked to see just one message in the firm of a text.

~ You need to see Starfire and comfort her. Don't delay. ~

Was all it said. Robin frowned and looked at the exot, his room and the tower beyond it, he'd been in trouble but not to this degree. Starfire was, upset. Slade was trying to make sure they got closer to her as way to ruin the princess and defeat the enemy when the time came. She wasn't weak. Kind, but her power was untapped. Slade might get to harness it one day yo fuel his plans, yet for now…

Robin had to be, a good friend. He scowled and gripped his hair frustrated, not knowing how to be there for someone his own age. Bb had been easy because he was like a kid brother. Then, what was Starfire? A potential-

He ran out the door and let himself only fall by the time he came to the main room. She stood there, holding her eyes to the glass window overlooking the bay, while in her hands the comm unit had a screen full if a dull snowy static. "Cyborg did not answer." She swallowed and did not turn to gace the boy wonder. "Star, what happened while I was-

"You should not know, I have…been the not most to trust. Not. Nice." She put her head down as it dropped to the screen in her palm. "The man we must search for. He is also, not nice."

Robin's eyes centered on his unit, then he gawked at the red head. "Star. You shouldn't have –

"He contacted you as you slept. I only answered, pretending to be you to learn more of his intentions…but he, was not one to listen. Robin?"

Robin's head swam. Slade had spoken to her. Had said something, while Robin wanted to confront him and….wjat was wrong with him?? He thought she was too soft. Too mellow to do anything, but…

His chest pounded a bit harder.

"Robin! You must know who that bad man is. The Titans…they shall stop him. You will never have to worry. We shall be your –

~ Starfire?? Starfire, come in. ~

Starfirr dripped her unit and put a hand up to her temple. "Ra…raven?? Is that the you??" She gasped with a stare from Robin in the same room. "Raven! Where are you guys?? Where is Cyborg –

~ Calm down. I'm fixing this right now. They went into my room, something got in. ~

Robin remembered that Slade had cameras everywhere.

Could it have been a bot?

"Where are you now? We'll-

~ I'll make sure they're safe. Something got out. My history is strongly connected…to the thing that intruder tried to take, so I have to fix whatever is happening. Alone. ~

"But, Raven!"

Star was cut off as the psychic connection was severed. Her friendship was still there. Though scattered particles in Kori's sweet mind, Robin ran out of the room with his unit. Back to a safe place where Slade would get to see that boy's scowl once more. Behind his back, acting as he wanted? This was dire, and hopefully more punishments were not going to conclude their relationship.

Starfire was left to pace, to think unclear as Robin got the line back open.

~ Did I not say to call only during an emergency, apprentice?~

"What did you say to Starfire."

The nerve. Slade collected his expletives and thought over the question. Quickly and rationally gifted, he cane up with whatever the boy might not wish to hear, yet worked to further along his master's plans for s solid take over.

~ Didn't you get my last message; you ate supposed to be wkth your teammate –

"She's not my –

Robin clenched his jaw and groaned. " I'm not really…are you saying I have to…since when did –

~ You should be doing what I say. Or would you rather have no no one left, dear boy? I could kill.them all in one hit and blame you for it. Dissolve our agreement and while Wayne sees you as nothing more than a –

" No! I…she's like a damned …..sir, I don't know how to BE there for her…."

Slade paused a second. ~ Nervous for your future significant other? ~ He wondered. Robin nodded, not sure if he could day how he even felt. " She's weak in….emotional strength as far as protecting herself, but she makes up for it with her real strength. Her alien energy, and I think that would…be useful to us, sir?"

Slade realized that it wasn't pity, but sympathy. Oh God. The boy wasn't sure he could kill her? Was that all?

~ Let me tell you about the Tamaranean princess and her people. Something I had forgotten during your briefing since the start of our little test. Tamaran is a warring country. It likes fighting and killing while not seeing this as a problem for most of its society. It was only until recently that killings were left to torture and those convicted by the royal family. You did get in her way before. Did she ever look at you with those eyes? Wanting you gone to settle her own feuds? ~

"No, sir." Robin swallowed, shaking his head. "She's been really kind and…I think I can gain a way to steal her energy if you want to –

~ I don't need it, not right now. But. If in the future you can convince me that she is worth keeping alive. Just her, no one else, see to it that your sources can sway me to look the other way. You'll still be seducing her eventually, boy wonder. ~ Slade almost teased as Robin blushed at the time it would take. If a year was too short to make that happen. "As long, as I will not have to hurt her."

~ You mean, as long as she never wants to finally hurt you. Right, apprentice? Tamaranean love is abstract. Polygamy and sharing is what they may do, so your task is to make her into a single- person lover. A monogamist. One that doesn't like to share. Make her as human as you can, then you'll see which way the pillar falls. ~

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Pillar, was symbolic of something, right? Robin bit his lip as he headed back to locate Star, only to see her floating off towards Raven's room.

He heard her shout as the one thing that stood between them being together, was that Raven had to keep her demons on a thicker leash.

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The dogs had four to six red eyes and black fur . They waddled like crocodiles while strange sharing of shades enriched the room's walls. A barrier. Robin had read about that while asking Racen about how magic worked. She'd even shared books about the topic when she was willing to be less a crabby elder and more of a mentor. These things could not get outside, yet Starfire had stumbled into the space. Raven was screaming through his head. He held it as the crackling of his tech made it useless to call out for help. Everything was jammed, even the bits Slade had put up. Otherwise in the hall spotted the white light from the barrier and he made sure to get nervous about the change happening. This was not expected, for a long while. He let his eyes move to the info on his screen. It looked to be that Wintergreen had located a special item for his next attack plan in Honshu Japan.

Slade sighed and swapped to a screen with Tara being conditioned and hoses keeping her pliant for now. He swapped to a screen that showed the Gotham Times.

~ Batman and Robin stop the Dastardly Villain; Scarecrow. What's Next for Gotham's Famous Dynamic Duo? ~

Slade was restless, so he had no choice but to do a bit of scouting. With a swap of his mask, he switched to civilian wear and decided San Fran had an interesting district that might be worth his while. An antique store, and something he'd had his eye on for a good while…

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Here comes a cameo….Jackie Chan Adventures!!!

Same place, same ace in the whole of Forces of Nature to come!

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