Robin and Starfire - The War Beyond Tamaran

How She Lost Them

Terra could remember now, what she loved about falling. It was because she could always catch herself whenever the ground was too far away. She found that not being able to use her powers was like a deep hole in her stomach, wanting something to fill it in with. It felt so wrong, as if a piece of herself had been stolen and she wanted it back. She didn't like not being able to determined where she wanted to land and so she hated it when Slade dropped her to the cold stone floor inside the cave. Her body rolled around on it like a sack of potatoes.

She coughed, looking up at a black robbed body in front of her. She couldn't really tell whether this person was a woman or a man, only that the robe covered the persons body until the ground; only leaving an open space where his or hers face supposed to be. There was a mask of a demon with dagger tooth and angry eyes staring down to her.

"Is this the girl Deathstroke?" She woman determined from the softness of her voice. Deathstroke had landed on the railing, squatting as if his age wouldn't affect him. She wondered, how old was Slade? Was he you in his twenties? He always had this heavy manly voice of his, once that made women drop to their knees.

"This is her Blue Spirit, but it seemed that she lost her powers for some reason. It would be a waste." He said, jumping down. He walked purposefully towards the large screen where smaller images showed his robots working under his command. She looked past him where a large machine was boiling what looked like red paint mixed with to much water.

"What are you planning this time Slade?" She demanded.

"Are you sure you don't want to take someone else, after what happened, it's hard to believe you still want to work with this one." The woman said to him as if Terra hadn't said a word. Although she was working for Deathstroke, she was surprisingly gentle as she helped her up. A woman's hand that had cared for so long that it didn't loose its touch of tenderness. Terra wondered where Blue Spirit had come from and why she was working for him. Was she forced? Was someone she loved in danger? Was she a prisoner? Terra's heart puffed in anger. How dare he?

"I said what are you planning this time Slade!?"

"Be patient dear," He said, "Oh, and it's Deathstroke, don't get me wrong but that identity is behind me now." Blue Spirit pulled her by the arm, a firm grip but not hurting. She let her guide them across the room where a large machine that looked like a closet was opened for her. A metallic chair with chains was left empty.

"What is this?" She looked up towards Blue Spirit. It was hard to guess what her expression was. Was she smiling, did she look sad, suspicious, did she looked sorry for her?

"This is a machine we build just for you dear, please, it would only bring back your powers, not hurt you or control you." She said the last bit of her words as if she was implying something to someone. From the edge of her eyes, she could see Deathstroke shrug carelessly as if responding to Blue Spirit's tone.

"But I don't want my powers! I don't want to be used by you anymore!"

There was a long silence before she spoke again, "You will not be used, you have my word."

"How can I trust you?" She demanded.

"Only time can answer your question." Blue Spirit replied. Deathstroke walked behind her, standing tall behind Blue Spirit like a tower or an old strong tree. "Dark times are coming Terra." He said. "We must leave while we can. But I'm afraid there is no place where we can run and so we must fight." Deathstroke said.

"W-what do you mean?" Terra asked. She was caught off guard, Blue Spirit took that chance to shove her in, she screamed when the door was shut in front of her face. The machine had started and she had no other choice but to sit when she felt gravity twice stronger where she stood. She cried out her pain as white light blinded her sight.

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