Demonic Awakening III Master of Puppets xXxXxXxXx "You can't tell me the only thing you digest is tea," Terra said with light mirth, while an eyebrow rose to the sorceress' order of herbal tea. She had coaxed the sorceress finally in coming out with her, and though she had remained silent all the way to the small restaurant just passed Jump City's line, close to where the Titans had first found her. "Would you be surprised if I said yes?" Raven asked, while cupping her chin in her hands. A silver spoon was wrapped in her black magic, which swirled around the contents of tea and sugar. "Not at all," Terra smiled, while leaning back against the booth, her eyes shifting toward the window on her right, and the view of the dirt and mountains behind it. A forecast reflection was slightly visible through the clear glass, showing the occupants of the restaurant; from the mild manners patrons, to the truck driver sitting at the counter, the waitress taking his order, and the black and orange masked mercenary leaning against the glass on the other side of the counter. Sapphire hues quickly widened in shock, turning her head fast enough to snap it straight off to where the man would have stood. No one. Her heart raced faster than she thought possible, the amount of fear Slade had placed in her enough to send her into shock if she had actually seen him there. Slowly, her breathing calmed, focusing upon the staring sorceress, who merely blinked at her actions. "Everything alright?" Raven asked. "You look like you've just seen a ghost." "Yea," Terra replied nervously. "Hey, let's get out of here." Before the sorceress could reply, she grasped the girl's wrist tightly, pulling her up from her seat, and nearly dragging her out the front door. "I didn't finish my tea," the staggering dark magus replied halfway out the door. "And we didn't even pay!" xXxXxXxXx The amusement park was abandoned, with no lights lit but the stars in the sky, shining down upon the darkened district. Terra sat across from Raven inside the small booth of the Ferris wheel, the sorceress once again retaining her tongue since her initial dragging from the restaurant. Terra let out a light sigh, hoping this night would have been better than this. "Raven?" Terra asked, her eyes focused upon the floorboards of the lifting booth. Raven hadn't turned her vision from the side of the booth, her arm resting on the window's edge but let out a light 'hmm' to know that she was indeed listening. "Can sins be forgiven?" "Can sins be forgiven?" Raven thought deeply over the girl's question before relaying an answer. "I believe if one makes a mistake, upon realization of their mistake and in taking full responsibility of their mistake, the person is instantly forgiven." It was true. Raven truly was the wisest person she ever knew. Was it that factor that attracted the blonde to the sorceress? Or was it the fact that she loved the fact that the gothic princess would get jealous over Beast Boy's flirtatious attitude? Terra truly didn't know, but she knew she loved being around the girl, morbid as she was. Though the girl always hid her emotions and feelings from most, as well as Terra herself, she felt that she was lucky to see a side of Raven no one else was privileged to see ... sometimes ... on occasion. Like the time she had spent with her on the roof of the tower. "Is it really that easy?" Terra asked, not lifting her eyes to view the sorceress, whose attention seemed locked upon the scene outside of their small booth. Raven finally turned her gaze toward the girl, her brows pinching slightly together. "It always depends on the character," Raven said flatly. "Everyone's made mistakes. The hardest part about it, however, is admitting you've made the mistake, taking responsibility for it, and deciding what it is you're going to do about it." Terra seemed to take deep thought in the girl's wise words, a slight twitch in her expression showing she truly understood what the sorceress had to say. "Anyone can say they've made a mistake, Terra," Raven continued, while leaning in slightly. Her arms rested on her knees while her back arched forward. "But when it comes down to it, it's a matter of action, not words that will give you the forgiveness you seek." "Thanks, Raven," Terra finally replied, her eyes shifting up to the girl's dark purple eyes. Raven nodded her head, leaning back against the chair of the cart, while it continued to take them up the circular structure. "Thanks for coming out with me tonight, too." "I don't think I would have gotten sleep in either case," Raven said dryly, back into her monotone attitude. "Plus ... it wasn't all that bad." Terra knew the girl long enough to know the sounds of a compliment when it came. She quickly smiled; though finally noticed where it was Raven had been looking this entire time. Terra's eyes shifted skyward, to the crescent moon overhead, the clouds slowly moving to overtake the bright white sphere. "The moon looks beautiful tonight," Terra said lamely while kicking herself inwardly for attempting to ruin a perfectly good silent moment with her terrible communicational skills. Even still, she couldn't help but be curious of the moon dragging away her sorceress' attention. "Does it remind you of something?" "Home," Raven found her voice admitting before her brain even registered the thought. Catching herself, she decided to continue with her words rather than suddenly burry her thoughts as well as her voice when they were supposed to be enjoying themselves. "I can't remember my home too much ... but every time I see the moon, it reminds me of when I was little. I used to stare at it all the time from where I lived. No matter how much around me has changed, no matter how much I've changed, the view of the moon never does for me." Silence fell over them once again. "Raven," Terra finally spoke after another full minute of silence. "There's something I have to-" "The past is behind you," Raven quickly stated as she averted her view of the moon. Memories of her fallen home reminded her of the pained look that expressed over the blonde's features. The girl no doubt had some sort of dilemma in the past that had something to do with her uncontrollable powers. Raven had a good idea of just how heavy a burden consequence was. "The only way to live your life is to look forward. Live your life with absolutely no regrets." "No regrets," Terra repeated while her eyes remained focused forward, directly into Raven's own. Her thoughts were shredded as she became fully lost in a pool of dark lavender, her lids lowering slightly while a utopia feeling settled at the pit of her stomach. Her palms became sweaty while they gripped the seat she sat upon, her weight moving forward ever so slowly. The sorceress hadn't budged since her short speech, which was beginning to feel like eons ago. This was it. If she wanted to make a move, now was the time. She didn't know how the sorceress would react, but she herself had informed her that she should live life with absolutely no regrets. Despite all logic in her brain, Terra leaned forward, reaching her right hand out to grasp the sorceress' slim ashen tone digits. Raven's eyes followed the girl's actions, widening slightly as they moved from the girl's hands to the intense gaze that followed, her lips parting to speak but no words flowed through. "Hello, Tara," came a deep voice to Terra's left gathering the attention of both occupants of the cart. The dark silhouette moved into the cart with ease, the light shinning over a black and orange mask, with the single eye glaring toward the blonde. The two stood immediately, with Raven instinctively moving in front of Terra, throwing her arms up in defense. "Remember me?" Raven sacrificed a second to look over her shoulder to the fearful Terra, only seeing her as fearful once before. The sorceress turned back to Slade, her eyes lowering in hate, but quickly attempted to control her emotions and pivoted her boots to get a good grip on the flooring for quick action if the man lashed out at them. "I have plans for you, Tara," Slade stated firmly, shifting his one eye from Raven back to the blonde. "Did you think you and your little girlfriend could just run away?" Slade made a reach for the girl but Raven was faster with her movements, fully prepared for the mercenary's attack. Her palm rejected his touch at the wrist, and her other hand shout outward, her palm smacking into his chest with a black energy expulsion to follow. The force was enough to send the mercenary back toward the door he had jumped through, shaking the cart the three stood in. "You're not going to touch her! Az'rath, Metrion, Xinthos!" Raven cried out as her eyes flash black, extending her arm outward as a black spiral energy beam began to sprout. A claw of black energy smashed into the mercenary and completely shattered the side of the cart. Slade was strong, however, and with a quick shout his arms broke free of the prison and landed safely on the roof of the next card, standing as confident and cocky as he always did. Raven glared hatefully down to the man, not looking back to the blonde as she called back to her. "Terra! Run!" She quickly commanded while she leaped from the cart down to the roof of the next, following in the mercenary's footsteps. She noticed Slade's eyes travel back to the blonde elementalist, shouting out his own command over Raven's. "Stay where you are, child," he shouted, then returned his glare toward the sorceress. Raven looked from Slade to Terra, who stood clenched to the side of the shredded cart, with a look of pure fear toward the man. "What do you want with her?" Raven demanded to know, swinging her arm out from behind her cloak. The man regarded the sorceress with a look of surprise, his voice as calm as ever. "You mean," he started as his eyes trailed back to the blonde. "She didn't tell you? I thought you two were friends." Raven was caught off guard by Slade's words, and received the back end of his metal staff to her stomach, the force well more than enough to send her body far over the edge of the roof. Quickly gathering her emotions, her powers forced her afloat, and quickly hurled herself skyward, a few yards out of Slade's reach. "Az'rath, Metrion, Xinthos!" Raven chanted out while her eyes grew black once again. The support beams that held the cart Slade stood upon became engulfed in Raven's magic and suddenly imploded. Metal shards erupted and the cart suddenly teetered outward with a loud cry of metal grinding against metal. Slade leaped from the cart to the roof of the one Terra stood upon, and Raven quickly flew up higher, just as the cart below it crashed to the ground. With a twirl of his staff, Slade reached behind his belt and threw his arm outward, with a wire shooting out to the flying sorceress, wrapping around her neck before she could even process a thought. With a rough tug, he brought the girl down to his level, crashing down onto the roof of the cart, shaking it even more so. Slade ran forward, winding his leg back and throwing a devastating kick to the girl's midsection while she was down. Raven was fast enough to raise her arms, catching most of the blow to her forearms. The force was enough to send her upward again, and her arms were thrown to her side, her magic instantly catching her into flight once again. Slade glared at the girl while she levitated above him, lowering his stance while he prepared for another attack. Terra's head was peeked over the window, looking up to view the sorceress. Raven took a moment to glance down at the girl and was suddenly tackled by Slade, who had leaped from his crouched stance. While they fell, Slade moved apart and extended his legs to the girl's midsection, sending her falling at a faster rate while he pushed off the girl and back-flipped onto a metal girder that held the structure together. "You think you know her," Slade called out to the sorceress as she began to drag herself up from the dirt pile she had landed in. Raven defiantly stared down the mercenary, forcing herself to a stand and quickly taking flight, the two weaving from rooftop to rooftop, along the sign and all throughout the Big Wheel. "You know nothing!" Another near miss as Raven's extended arm nearly decked off Slade's head, the black-attired man having leaped off the rooftop of another cart, landing safely onto the next rising one. Raven quickly followed suit, her speed nearly doubling in an instant. The small girl wound up her long well toned leg and swung at his head. Slade crouched under the kick and quickly brought his arm up to block the back end of her other leg, the girl's body twisting in mid air to deliver a spinning back kick. The mercenary grasped the girl's ankle and turned his body, slamming her back first onto the floor, leaving an indent where she landed. He pinned the girl with a foot on her chest, pressing all his weight down while he leaned over, glaring an equal expression of hate. "She never even liked you," his voice called out low enough for the sorceress to hear. Raven's eyes flared black, while she gripped the man's boot, struggling against his weight. With a mighty cry, a black aura exploded around her, completely shredding the cart they stood upon to pieces and sending the mercenary flying outward. Catching his balance in mid flight, he arched his form about and redirected himself to land on the moving metal girder of the wheel. Raven's form levitated while pieces of the cart fell to the ground, breathing heavily while she attempted to regain some energy. "Raven, come on!" Raven turned to view the blonde much higher up than herself, standing on a piece of uplifted Earth, her hand extended in her direction. Her expression revealed just how much of a strain the night had turned out for her, and Raven simply glared back to the man that had ruined their perfect night. "Not so fast!" Slade screamed as he threw his arm out with another wire shooting toward the sorceress. This one wrapped around her ankle and instantly tightened. With a quick maneuver, Slade jumped back, using the edge of the girder to his advantage. His weight pulled the sorceress to where he once stood, smashing her stomach into the metal support beam. Using the same momentum, Slade swung himself right back to where he was, grabbing a handful of dark violet strands and pulling her up. Blood dripped from her lips while her eyes became glazed over. He threw the girl to a side support beam and quickly followed up with a thrust punch to her chest, knocking the wind from her lungs. Slade brought both hands up to crush the girl's skull in, his fingers interlocking together as they rose far above his head. A baseball sized rock suddenly smashed into the side of his head, nearly knocking him right off the support beam. Another rock attempted to take his head off, which he easily swatted to pieces, turning to face the blonde haired elementalist staring intently at him. "Raven! Fly!" Terra quickly shouted while her eyes flashed yellow. Partially out of it, the sorceress flung her body to the right, gathering her magic and forcing herself to take flight. Slade swung his head to his target then daringly back to the young blonde just as her arms rose together. "Terra! No!" Slade's order threw a bit of fear into her, but she didn't falter in the least as the supports began to buckle. In an instant the Earth beneath the large structure shook and down it came, lifting first then completely falling apart, with Slade falling into the large dust cloud that followed. Raven's magic had only taken her so far before she levitated herself to the ground, holding her chest as her lungs forced up a portion of blood. She covered her mouth as she continued to cough, the dust simply irritating her lungs further. A slim arm wrapped around her midsection while her own was thrown over the blonde's neck, Terra quickly rushing the two away from the catastrophe. Terra dragged Raven passed the bumper cars, and a house of mirrors. A quick glance to her left revealed a nice hiding spot and the blonde continued to drag the staggering sorceress alongside her toward the building on her left. Darkness greeted them, along with mirrors in every direction. Her own panting echoed through the endless hallway, and Terra scurried through the maze of mirrors, glancing every now and then to the dazed Raven. "We need to call for backup," Raven finally spoke, forcing herself to a stand and relieving her weight from Terra's shoulder. She reached behind her cloak, finding no communicator. "Damn, must have dropped it during the fight. Quick, give me your communicator." "I ... I don't have it," Terra stammered out. Raven let out a mild curse while slamming her closed fist into a mirror, forcing a spider web effect. "Damn it," she shouted afterward, finally noticing how fatigued she was. Raven attempted to calm herself within seconds, and then turned her vision to Terra. "We have to get back to the tower and-" "Raven, I'm not going back," Terra suddenly butted in while her vision fell. A patch of blonde fell from her right ear where her butterfly-clip once held, covering that side of her face. "I can't." "What?" Raven blinked twice, giving her a look as if she hadn't heard the girl right. "Why can't you?" "Because she's not your friend," echoed Slade's voice, forcing Raven to turn instantly toward a mirrored image of the mercenary. All around her, Raven found the overconfident fa‡ade of Slade, which simply fueled her anger further. The sorceress pushed forward cautiously, examining every image of the man, looking for the reflection's source. "She's my apprentice." Footsteps sounded all around her, forcing Raven to turn about, finding nothing but reflection upon reflection. "Terra?" The blonde was nowhere to be seen. "Terra!" "The girl you knew was merely an illusion," the voice echoed once again. The young girl's attention was brought to the several reflections of the mercenary, who stood as firm as he had when he first appeared, forcing a growl to escape Raven's throat. "In reality, she's been working for me." "That's a lie!" Raven growled, her fist smashing into a mirror and shattering it completely with one single punch. The image fell, though the man still remained all around her. Raven growled, cocking back her fist once again. "I found her," he continued, with another smash echoing throughout the hallway. "I trained her to control her impressive powers." Smash. More glass pieces fell to the floor, cracking underneath Raven's azure leather boots. "And then I sent her to destroy your little T," followed by another smash. "From the inside out." Another image shattered. Realization soon hit Raven as she slowly backed away. Broken glass, and a horrible stench of karma surrounded her with nearly all the mirrors shattered. "N-no!" Raven stuttered out, fear quickly filling her. "Terra would never-" From behind the sorceress, one mirror remained intact, with a clear view of the reflective image of Slade, who lowered his view to the girl. "Tonight her orders were to turn off the security system in the tower," he quickly interrupted the girl in mid sentence, with Raven turning to face the image before her. "But I guess she took pity on you. Perhaps she wanted to keep you as a pet." Raven's eyes lowered to the ground, her entire body trembling uncontrollably. Was this the truth? No ... it couldn't be. Lies ... nothing but lies! "However, despite this minor error in judgment, she was kind enough to deactivate the security at Titans Tower," Slade continued as Raven's eyes widened in horror. "Liar!" Raven screamed at the image, which shattered under her powers, forcing shards of glass to rain all over her body. She ignored them, furiously turning about for the psychotic son of a- "Raven," came the blonde's voice finally, calming the girl slightly as she turned to find the source. "It's the truth." Raven turned, finding the source of the voice at the single unbroken mirror, which lifted to find the mercenary and said blonde, standing with her hair covering her eyes. Raven looked in disbelief, her whole face faltering and completely shattering her well-known stoic fa‡ade. "Terra ... why?" Raven gaped, still unable to comprehend just what it was that was happening around her. "Because you could never give her what she needs," Slade laughed. Raven's eyes flared black and she leaped for the man, growling loudly. Slade's eyes glared and his hands reached out faster, reaching out to grasp her throat in mid flight. He then hurled her back, passed several shattered mirrors and into a darkened portion of the hallway, coming to a stop at another mirror she hadn't taken her anger out on, sending a web of cracks upward when she landed. Half lidded eyes looked up to the man as he stepped forward, a snarl escaping her throat as she launched forward once again in a burst of black energy. A beam of red energy suddenly smashed into her chest, knocking her straight through the glass this time and beyond eye's reach. Slade gripped the plasma gun in his hand, aiming it to where the girl landed, continuing to move forward. Terra let out a gasp as she watched the sorceress continue to take a beating, finally deciding to act when Slade readied himself to take aim on the girl again, moving to where she had landed and charged up the plasma gun for a point blank shot. "No!" Terra quickly shouted, moving up in an attempt to block the man's shot. "I won't let you hurt my friend!" "Dear child," Slade stated firmly, a smirk evident behind the mask. "You don't have any friends." Slade pushed the girl out of the way, forcing his gun through the shattered glass, with a single dangling piece falling to the ground. The inner parts of the hallway showed no signs of the sorceress, confusing the mercenary as he pulled back and searched about. A black shadow suddenly flung over the mercenary's back, forcing him to turn around. Dark crimson hues glared more evilly than Slade had ever seen upon the sorceress, filled with hate and rage. The girl's form lifted from the shadows with her cloak stretching far beyond its normal length. The plasma gun was suddenly engulfed in a black mist and shattered in his grasp, the girl's face hidden within the lifted hood. Her cloak stretched further, completely taking in the mercenary. Raven then fell forward, vanishing within the shadows of her own magic, consuming both herself and Slade in a pool of black liquid. In a splash, Terra was left completely alone. With her actions finally catching up to her, Terra did the one thing she was used to. She ran; ran as fast as she could. Through the maze of mirrors, she sprinted with her hair trailing behind her. Confused and completely lost, she fell to her knees, sobbing while her head was held in her hands and tears streamed down her cheeks. "Raven," she gaped in between her gasps for air. "Please, Raven, I'm sorry. He just wanted me to turn of the security system so he could delete some files. I didn't know he was planning to do this ... I didn't mean for any of this to happen, I'm sorry." "Then why did you let it?" Raven's harsh tone came up from behind the blonde, her eyes having returned to their normal dark violet hue. "I ... I don't know," Terra admitted honestly. She finally stood, slipping a few strands of blonde behind her right ear. "Slade ... he helped me, saved me from myself. He said I owed him, but-" "So it was all a game?" Raven spat out in distaste with her fingers clenching tightly into two balled up fists. "You were just pretending?" "No!" Terra quickly defended. "He was the only one who wanted to truly help me. He helped me gain full control over my powers, and he can help you too." "I can't believe what I'm hearing," Raven shouted as she threw her arms up into the air. Terra had no control of her powers, and Raven far surpassed any lesson she could receive from that ... that ... she couldn't even come up with a word, she was so furious. "Raven, please," Terra begged, attempting to reach out to the sorceress with tears now streaming down her cheeks. Raven sidestepped the girl's touch, while she pulled her hood up over her head to shadow her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Raven ... I truly am, and I know it's wrong of me to ask for your forgiveness, but you told me earlier tonight that sins could be forgiven. Please ... I don't want to lose you as a friend." "Slade was right," Raven said coldly as she finally considered the girl with a severe glare. "You don't have any friends." Like a two-by-four smacking her upside the head, Terra's eyes widened while her entire body froze. Her heart suddenly shattered, crumbling into dust. The sorceress turned her back to the girl, allowing the shadows to swallow her up. "Raven, please, no!" The sorceress was already gone. Terra's hand was still stretched outward for a few moments, before Slade's shadow emerged from behind the girl's back. "Raven..." Terra's words were never heard, nor was her sentence completed as she continued to stare in the direction of where she last saw her, hoping to all the gods of heaven that she would return, forgive her, take her in her arms and tell her that everything would be alright. "Apprentice," the mercenary's cold voice called out to the girl. Terra's back straightened while her hair fell over the right side of her face, covering her sadden sapphire eyes. "Come." Emotions swirled around the blonde. Anger, hate, distrust, sadness, and several others she couldn't even find a name for. The man had played her like a fool. He had explained to her to stop burning bridges, but he had just burnt her last one. Her head lowered even farther while her brows lowered, her sad expression changing to that of rage. "You ... you lied to me," Terra's voice was quiet, as she shrugged the man's hand from her shoulder, feeling as if it had burned through her skin. "You lied!" Before Slade had anytime to bring up any sort of remark, Terra's aura exploded around her and forced the rock beneath the marble flooring to lift, quickly smashing through the ceiling of the maze. A look of pure rage expressed upon her features and her hands made a closing motion, slapping them together as the entire building collapsed upon itself. Terra wanted to fall to her knees and cry. She wanted to give up on everything, and explain to Raven that it was all a mistake, that she was terribly sorry for what she had done. But there was no turning back now. In order for her to repent for her sins, she would have to finish exactly what she started, and when the man was spotted several hundred yards away, toward the entrance of the park, she knew what it was she needed to end ... Slade's life. xXxXxXxXx "Raven, where are you? Answer me!" Robin yelled into his communicator while hunched down behind a piece of rubble within the main room of Titans Tower. Lasers were shooting out in all directions while Cyborg and Starfire attempted to fend off the army of Slade's robots who had somehow infiltrated the Tower after the alarm had been set. A green mouse suddenly snuck in underneath the doorway that Cyborg and Starfire attempted to keep shut, which continued to bend inward from the android army's attack. "She's not responding." "And Terra's not in her room," Beast Boy quickly shouted while reverting back to his human form. Robin cocked a brow while his vision turned to the breaking door. "Somebody want to explain how two hundred armed robots got past my security?" Cyborg demanded to know while his arm transformed into a sonic cannon. He grasped it with his left hand and shifted his weight while he aimed it toward the door that seemed ready to break. The door was smashed open with several bots pouring out. Cyborg unleashed a devastating blast, which Starfire combined with a beam of green energy from her palms, completely disintegrating them before they stepped foot in the room. The Tamaranian let out a cry and soured through the doorway, with the sound of her starbolts tearing through more armed bots. Cyborg retracted his arm as it reverted back, quickly rushing over to the console next to the door and ripping of its side paneling. After pulling out a few wires, he attempted to reactivate the security system. Further tampering resulted in an electric shock, and a yelp of pain from the half metal Titan. "Can't even access the computer! We're locked out!" "They are too numerous to fight!" Starfire shouted from beyond the room, while letting out another shout and a barrage of starbolts to follow. Beast Boy clamped his hair, nearly pulling a good chunk out, quickly turning to his leader for support. Robin's brows were forced downward as he stood up from his crouched stance, replacing the communicator to his utility belt. "What shall we do?" "Fight anyway," Robin quickly shouted, pointing into the direction of the hallway. "Titans! Go!" The team rushed into the hallway with Robin leading them. With a quick leap, Robin caught one robot with a flying sidekick, while decapitating another with a quick throw of a birdarang. This bought him only a moment as a third aimed to punch at his head. Without even looking, Robin quickly ducked under the strike and came back with a devastating uppercut that lifted the soldier clear off its feet. A brutal kick was then delivered that sent it clear across the room. "Coming through!" Robin dove out of the way as a sprinting rhinoceros trampled through the hallway, carrying the half metal Titan who had warned the boy wonder. A beam of energy tore through one bot while Beast Boy's horn tore through another. A plasma gun quickly put a stop to the changeling's path, catching two shots to the large animal's leg. The creature toppled to the floor forcing Cyborg to roll forward, with an army of androids quickly surrounding him. Hoping to his feet, Cyborg slammed his fist into the face of one while spinning quickly and smashing his fist through another. Several more attempted to jump onto his back, but a quick shifting octopus wrapped its tentacles around the three of them, yanking them off and hurling them to the other side of the hallway. One was suddenly torn in half by a green glowing fist of a furiously enraged Tamaranian redhead, who screamed as her fists collided with another, wrapping her solar energy around her fists and smashing droid after droid. Her fiercely glowing jaded eyes blinked back to normal as they traveled further down the hallway, where three bots suddenly vacated a darkened room, with more coming down from the corner. She let out a gasp, and then glared the five bots down as they rushed toward her direction. "That is friend Raven's bedroom!" She screamed out, bursting toward them. A quick spin and her boots completely shattered the skull of one, leaping from one to the other and resulting in the same head-exploding effect. She landed in a crouched position after all five bots exploded, standing upright and turning to five more that rounded the corner at the end of the hall. Her feet parted as she summoned two large glowing spheres in her hand, grasping them as the bright green light lit up the hallway. "No one is permitted where Raven slumbers!" She clasped her hands together, raising them above her head. With a war cry she smashed her closed fists down to the red carpet, completely destroying the floor. An earthquake-like effect traveled all the way down the hallway, first lifting the bots where they stood then lowering them to the floor below. The entire Tower shook from the Tamaranian's power, with her attack doing more harm than good. The floor beneath Cyborg suddenly shook, with a barrage of bots tumbling to the floor below. The half metal Titan followed the same fate, with floor rubble to break his fall. Being the first to stand, Cyborg finally noticed just how outnumbered his team was, viewing the entire hallway of the floor below completely packed with Slade's robots. He let out a gasp before a large metal beam suddenly struck his head and knocked him right into a wall, nearly straight through it. He regained his composure enough to duck under a punch and delivers one to the android's midsection. He lifted the robot up and threw him in the opposite direction, knocking over three more. One after another the robots leaped onto Cyborg's back while one grappled him into a headlock. Cyborg slammed his back into the wall knocking two off while he reached behind him and ripped the third off, spinning around and launching him into a group of robots. "Don't know how you guys got in," he grunted as he dodged a punch. "But I know how you're getting out!" With his right fist cocked back, he let out a yell and crashed through one robot's solar plexus. The robot dropped to the floor in an explosion of sparks. Another leaped onto Cyborg's back once again but is suddenly lifted from the half metal Titan and thrown clear across the room. A large green furred ape roared loudly and pounded two bots with one blow, and wound up his hand for a second strike. The large beast grabbed another and hurled him up through the hole in the floor, only to collide with another that was thrown back by the powerful redhead. Starfire then punched straight through another bot and continued to follow through with her strike, which collided with two more before her fist swung to the right, forcing a total of three robots through the wall with one single strike. Fists and starbolts suddenly flew out in every direction before several reinforcements dropped from out of nowhere, completely overtaking the girl before she had time to think. The Tamaranian Princess was dropped as several more attempted to crush her against the floor. Struggling with all her might did no good, as the dog pile continued to grow. Her teeth clenched tightly while her eyes sparked a bright green hue with the intensity of the light growing with each passing second. A beam of green light shot through one bot, then another arose. Several more were forced out until a green explosion lit up the hallway, forcing the rest of the bots to smash into the ceiling, and walls, taking out the rest of the group within the hallway. When the glare of light subsided, a furious Starfire breathed heavily with her eyes still glowing a deep forest green hue. Exhaustion suddenly fell over her fa‡ade before her levitated stance left, dropping her form to the ground and passing out from the Herculean exertion. The hallway lights began to flicker, with a small group of survivors gathered around a particular item. One bot clamped a small device to the wall while another began operating a control panel that had been set to the side. A disk suddenly whistled by them and smashed directly into the device, detonated it and threw the robots backward. Robin stood at the end of the hallway with his metal staff in one hand while one of the bots fell at his feet. Another rushed toward him but a simple extend of his staff knocked him back with ease. Another moved in, but a simple twirl of his arms brought the back end of his pole to the cranium of his would-be attacker. The boy wonder leaped up to the ceiling and forcefully brought his weapon of choice down, crashing through the skull of a third. Several more came into view, which brought the Titan's leader to a low growl. With a cry of his own, he swung his staff and charged the four remaining robot androids. Beams of plasma attempted to shoot him dead in his tracks, but the martial artist was quick, weaving to the left and dodging to the right, shredding the distance between himself and the remaining survivors. With a quick leap, he side kicked one in the side of the head and used the bot to jump to the side, kneeing another with the same leg. Twirling his body in mid air still, his weapon came across at an amazing speed, enough to make a whistling sound, and completely decapitated another. Crouching down to land, he continuously back-flipped out of the reach of the last one, who pulled out a plasma gun to finish the Titan off. The leader simply smirked, while waving his index finger to the robot. A tilt of his head showed the robots confusion, until he noticed the red flashing light at his feet. Its eyes widened a medium sized explosion completely over took its body. When the smoke cleared there was nothing but rubble left. xXxXxXxXx "Well," Cyborg finally said as the last of Slade's robot army was thrown into the center pile of metal body parts. "Looks like we won." The entire place had been uplifted, with the ceilings and floors filled with holes. A large section of the main room gave a good sunroof to the gym below, with hanging limbs from Slade's androids hanging limply from the edges. Small sparks were erupting from severed wires while Cyborg began to fiddle with a side panel on his robotic arm. "Then why does it not feel like a victory?" Starfire asked sadly, as she levitated to the floor uneasily, grasping one arm and rubbing it slightly. Robin sighed as his view shifted to the floor, rubbing the back of his neck where the butt end of a plasma gun had struck. "I've regained access to the computer," Cyborg spoke out after a few moments. "Security codes and encryption strings have all been reset." "Yea, and all of Slade's surveillance stuff's gone," Beast Boy added in, while Starfire nodded along. "Yes, all of his technology has been located and destroyed," she added in, though couldn't shake the dark cloud that loomed overhead. "I know it. I knew it!" A shout sounded from the shattered window of the main room. Raven flew in, touching her boots to the stained remains of the carpet, fury evident in her face. "Raven!" Robin gasped. The sorceress appeared more broken and beat rest of his team. "What happened?" "Slade," she spat out while she surveyed the damage. "Where's Terra?" Beast Boy suddenly asked. The very mention of the traitor's name only fueled her rage further. "That ... that," she growled as her eyes traveled over what was once her home. "That traitorous bitch is Slade's new apprentice!" "What?" The entire team gasped in shock. Robin stepped forward, attempting to aid the sorceress who seemed to be limping on her right leg. Beast Boy reached her first however, and completely bombarded the girl with questions. "New apprentice? That's ridiculous!" The changeling shouted, quickly moving himself in front of the witch. "There's just no way! There's gotta be a -" "Believe it!" Raven snapped back, forcing her way passed the green skinned Titan with a shove of her shoulder. "She's the one that deactivated the security system." "She's right," Cyborg quickly chimed in, viewing the remains of the security video that showed the blonde doing just as Raven had said. "But why?" "Because she was working for Slade the entire time!" Raven continued to rant. "We should have never trusted her!" "But we did," Robin attempted to calm the girl, feeling as if she had attempted to carry the burden alone. The boy wonder had rarely seen the girl raise her voice, and felt her attitude could only worsen the situation. "We all did." "But why?" Starfire was completely lost, unable to comprehend the cause of the girl's actions. "Were we not good friends?" "We were never friends to begin with," Raven replied to the princess, her tone growing cold as her eyes lowered. "She played us. She played us all for fools." Starfire's jaded eyes shifted to the sorceress whose hood prevented the sight of her lilac hues. Her fa‡ade softened as she attempted to reach out to the girl. "Raven," Starfire started, though the sorceress turned away from the girl's touch. "I have to go meditate," she quickly informed them as her levitated form floated away from the group. "My wounds are still fresh." Starfire retracted her hand and clasped it with the other, then rested them against her chest while her vision dropped to the damaged flooring. A shadow picked up around the sorceress and in an instant she was swallowed up by her own magic. Robin knew the girl was injured, but felt that there was more behind her words than she led on. He made a glance toward Cyborg who merely shook his head to his leader. The half metal Titan then searched around, noticing they were now two members short. "Where's Beast Boy?" Surrounded by the darkness of Terra's trashed and demolished room, a green melancholy dog sat on the bed with his head hung low and large eyes sadden to the fullest. The animal let out a whine as it suited itself in a more comfortable position, viewing what was once his best friend's room. "He just needs a little time." End Part III
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