Somewhere in Nevada…

He was teasing him.

Ding Dong Daddy had the briefcase right there, and he was teasing him with it, holding it over the back side of his car, laughing like a maniac.

It could have been very easy to use his grapple to snatch the case, be over and done with this entire race. However, that risked damaging the case. It was built out of sturdy, durable metallic material, but the contents inside were still vulnerable. That was something to change when he got the case back.

His hand was so close in reaching it. Ignoring the heat of the desert and the rolling dust rustling into his breath, he stretched out his hand as far as he could…

"Just a little bit closer," he muttered under his breath, but then Cyborg's voice rang on the radio in his helmet.

"Yo, Robin! You've got company!"

Someone rammed the R-Cycle to the side. Another bike, sleek and black in design, sped up in front of Robin's, Ding Dong Daddy getting away. Robin took a little swerving to regain control of his own motorcycle.

"Not so fast, Robin." His assailant turned his skull masked face to him. "I'll be winning that prize today."

Robin grunted, giving the thief a displeasing look. "Red X," he growled.

From the reports Robin's been reading, Red X was taking advantage of the fact that the Titans were dealing with the Brotherhood of Evil. He was wrecking Jump City, stealing everyone blind and getting away scot-free. The streets weren't safe, the crime rates amplified by those scuffles he's been having with the H.I.V.E. Five. If Robin had his way, Wally would have been cleaning Jump up weeks ago. Unfortunately, he was still preoccupied "assisting" a certain New Zealand heroine.

Thankfully, Uncle Ethan was in Jump. Robin knew he'd do his best to keep the people safe.

But Red X was still a major problem that needed to be dealt with, preferably sooner rather than later.

The road led the three racers to ride up into a mountain range. The road was paved, but the ground was getting farther and farther away from them. The risk of losing the briefcase became more likely, so Robin chose to bide his time by dealing with X.

"So what's in the case?" the criminal called out, the two driving almost side by side.

"You'll never find out," Robin barked back.

Red X chuckled, the voice filter gargling out the noise. "We'll see about that!"

He smashed the side of his bike against the R-Cycle. Sparks flew out as the bikes collided alongside the traffic barrier. Robin gritted his teeth, trying to gain enough momentum to smash back. He could practically feel X grinning through his mask.

Facing the skull mask just exemplified how much of a mistake Red X was. He was never supposed to become such a recurring entity in Robin's life. The suit was a one-off thing or a secret weapon if his friends were ever compromised. Robin didn't need another alter ego. He needed just an incentive to fall back on if times were desperate enough. But someone just had to decide that Red X deserved his own run, his own identity to flesh out.

There was even the skull and X letter painted on the front of the black motorcycle. Where did he even get the bike?

Eventually, Robin was able to push X back. As they exited the mountains and returned to the flat, desert landscape, the two exchanged kicks and shoves as best as they could while on their bikes. Neither would be able to kick the other off balance, Robin knew, but it distracted X enough for Robin to get ahead of him, closer to Ding Dong Daddy and the briefcase.

"You didn't think I planned on making this easy for you?" Red X shouted over the roar of their rotating wheels, once again drifting toward Robin for more close quarters combat.

The Boy Wonder was getting jaded with X's interference. Robin took out one of his extendable staffs, clubbing at X. It hit against a red wrist blade, and they began to trade slashes, though the cuts on Robin's stuff were more evident than any damage Robin inflicted on X.

Ding Dong Daddy had a megaphone and seemed to like to provide commentary with it, as he called excitedly to the teens, "Cool moves! That cat's a blast!"

The momentary diversion allowed X to cut Robin's staff in half. Red X took the lead again.

"Why are you doing this?" Robin questioned his opponent. "You're only helping Ding Dong Daddy get away."

"You've got it all wrong, kid," X scoffed, once again acting like he was older than Robin. "Whatever happens in between, my endgame is only helping myself." He snapped his fingers to the car ahead of them. "That case is up for grabs, and I'm gonna grab it."

What else was Robin expecting from him? "The case means nothing to you. It's only valuable to me."

That was a lie. It belonged to Gotham's Boy Wonder and the leader of the Teen Titans. Why else would Ding Dong Daddy have stolen it? If the apprentice to the world's greatest detective was desperate to get the case back, there was something worthwhile to any criminal in it.

"I wouldn't be so sure," X unknowingly agreed with Robin's thoughts, nodding to the road behind them.

There was a large haze of fumes clouding the horizon. Soon, vehicles of different shapes and sizes made themselves visible. Each one was not like the other, each in different colors and equipped with unique attachments. It looked like half of the Titans' rogue gallery; Johnny Rancid, Dr. Light, Mad Mod, and more; showed up to join the race.

"I can think of quite a few people that might like to buy it off me when I win."

As if I'll let you.

Explosions caused Robin and Red X to reel back. Ding Dong Daddy chucked dozens of small black balls that combusted on impact with the ground. They veered around them, keeping to the road as their bikes weren't properly fortified to ride on dunes of sand.

Robin let X get ahead of him again. X gave him a haughty look, seeing the ball thrown his way two seconds too late.

Idiot.

In the aftermath of the ensuing smoke, the X-Cycle rolled to its side and into the sand, parts of it breaking off. Robin kept his hold on X's arm firm, allowing him to take a seat behind the Titan on his undamaged bike. X kept his face away from his rescuer, as did Robin to the scoundrel.

Red X was mad, disgruntled, Robin knew. He was being too reckless. A part of Robin felt disheartened how easily X could have been killed right then and there, all in the hopes of selling an orphan's personal possessions.

"Saving me was a mistake," X grumbled. Robin ignored him. According to the map, the finish line was coming close. He wasn't sure where the rest of the Titans were, but he did hear thunder of the cars rapidly approaching after him.

X was a quiet before shortly asking, "The briefcase really means that much to you?" The voice filter was too familiar. It sounded too much like Robin's own, a constant reminder of what could have been, with X, with Slade.

"You have no idea," Robin answered resolutely.

Something snapped, or cracked. In the corner of Robin's vision, he saw an arm flexing. "Then go get it." X hopped off the bike, and Robin watched him fizzle out of existence. He reappeared amongst the rogues. A series of crashes and explosions followed soon after.

A mistake helping fix a mistake, Robin thought fleetingly, boosting his bike to catch up with the fat man who stole his precious mementos. Oh the irony.

X

Red X dropped through the sunroof of a familiar pink limousine. He relaxed himself on the lush leather seat.

"X! What are you doing?" Kitten shrieked. Fang had a look of disbelief, hard to convey with his spider face and blank red eyes.

"Send me the repair bill," X said, allowing his wrist blades to expand and spin in two circles. He cut the vehicle into two halves, teleporting away before the wreckage fully fell through.

They were going to be pissed about this later. Kitten would especially be mad at her boyfriend since Fang was the one that told X about this whole race. Red X made a mental note to set up the double date she wanted sooner than expected.

X appeared in front of Gizmo's car, which was just a giant hamster ball inside of a giant tire. The kid inside startled backwards, his back hitting his seat.

"Whose side are you on, barf brain?!" the kid squealed, shaking a fist in anger.

"Mine!" X set an explosive letter on the glass and teleported away, off to deal with the rest of the villain fest. He could hear Gizmo screech as he coasted off-road with some debris.

The last object on the list was that weird-ass school bus with a red rocket strapped on the top. Red X has seen weirder, though, and landed on its roof without hesitation.

He placed his head over the windshield to frighten the driver. He succeeded, despite the driver not being the person he expected to be.

Starfire and Raven both shrieked at X's unexpected entrance. Raven, at the driver's seat, recovered first and planted her elbow on the dashboard. She let her cheek rest on her fist, giving the thief a sullen look.

"Need a lift?" the girl asked sardonically. X couldn't help but to snicker. A pile of D-list bad guys were unconscious at the other end of the bus.

"Sure," X answered, teleporting inside and rematerializing in the middle of vehicle. "I'm not here to fight," X said, placing his hands up to placate a battle-ready Starfire, green eyes glowing in the air-conditioned quarters.

"Your bike's wrecked," Raven said as the bus passed the pieces of what used to be the X-Cycle.

"I noticed. I'm out of the race, but that doesn't mean I can't cut my losses and save what I can." The thief nodded back to the batch of villains, each dressed in a conspicuous costume. "Just here to loot what the D-listers have, not to get into a brawl with you ladies. No harm, no foul."

"You are a villainous criminal!" Starfire objected. "You should not –"

"Steal from other 'villainous criminals'?" X finished, slowly backing away towards the bodies. "The only reason I'm still here is 'cause your precious Robbie pulled me out of that crash with my bike. I took out the rest of the baddies in the race for him. Let me get some compensation, and then we'll be square."

Starfire was ready to attack, but Raven stopped her. "Let him go, Starfire. We're not here for him, anyway." The brooding girl didn't bother to glance at him.

Slowly, the green energy dissipated. The alien Titan was still giving X a dirty look, but X was unbothered and turned to salvage what he could.

"Red X," Starfire pronounced slowly, "why are you a thief when you are as capable as a hero?"

X didn't look up as he picked up a sciencey-looking rifle. It wasn't Red X's first appeal to reform, of course. "There's better pay, for one thing," X replied.

"You have allied with us before."

"And during those times, I had something to gain." A finger tapped the crimson X on the mask. "I'm a thief sweetheart, through and through. If you're thinking of turning me to the light side, you'll be disappointed."

A pause. "The… light side?"

X ignored the question. "Speaking of which, when are you kiddies going to head back home? Jump just isn't the same without you." He caught a pair of dark purple eyes staring at him through the rear-view mirror.

"We don't have time for petty thieves like you," Raven said flatly. "We're fighting war criminals and terrorists, at the moment."

Red X whistled mockingly. "Really? Pretty ambitious for a couple of cosplay wannabes."

"Yes, a bunch of cosplay wannabes who beat Slade, the entirety of the H.I.V.E. Academy, and the devil incarnate itself. We are way out of our league dealing with bitter old men and women out to take over the world."

Filching some cash off the bodies along with a neat-looking knife, X shrugged. "Fair enough. Just don't get too carried away. Let us petty thieves run wild, who knows, maybe we'll be tomorrow's war criminals and terrorists." If it could have been seen, he would have winked. As it was, he pressed a button on his belt. "Been a pleasure, ladies. Tell Robin we're even, for now." And he teleported away.

X

A Few Days Later...

H.I.V.E. Tower…

Let no man, woman, or child anywhere in the world accuse Billy Numerous of being only and simply a blind, illiterate hillbilly. Lord knows how many people have made that claim, but at the end of the day, it was Billy who was still standing… the Teen Titans, the occasional police officer, and a particular thief notwithstanding.

Sure, Billy could come across as an idiot. Was that so wrong? He could literally be in a million places at once. With that kind of omnipresence, Billy's power rivaled that of the aforementioned Lord himself! Why shouldn't Billy be so smug?

But yes, being Numerous on his own isn't enough. Smugness becomes arrogance, arrogance leads to mistakes, yadda yadda yadda; all those things they teach you at the H.I.V.E. Academy. That was why Billy joined up with the school, so he could learn a better way to enjoy a life of superpowered crime.

Yet here they were, the H.I.V.E. Five, Academy graduates, scrounging for the scraps, just to survive.

"Hey Billy," See-More greeted as he walked down the hallway. Two water bottles were in his hands. "Whatcha doing out here? I thought you were back in the infirm –"

"Do you know what Boss Lady's doing right now, See-More?" Billy interrupted, not looking up from where he leaned against the wall. "She's tearing up all the punching bags and sparing dummies in the gym. For how long? Since morning." The sun was starting to set though the window across from the teens.

"I know," See-More nodded. "That's why I'm bringing her some water, and –"

"Forget about your damn romance for a second." Billy popped off the wall and blocked See-More's path. "That's all you've been doing all week, trying to drop Jinx's cherry. Know what Mammoth's been doing? Binge watching a sitcom marathon. Gizmo when he got back from that race? Drinking all the soda while he's surfing them Internets. And Kyd Wykkyd? What else? Brooding, but he's looking through his and Angel's old photo album."

Ignoring the vague blush on his face, See-More shook his head and crossed his arms. Billy was never usually this hostile, but See-More wouldn't be intimidated. "Is there somewhere you're going with this, Billy?"

"Partner," Billy snarled, "what our little ol' team is doing right now is kicking back and giving up. Everyone's saying game over, we've lost, and that it just ain't worth it to get back out there again and take over the world."

"Giving up?" See-More's frown deepened. "What are you talking about? Red X did kick our asses, but we're just licking our wounds. Next time, we're going to find a way to –"

"To what? Beat X? And then what?" Billy forcefully swiped a water bottle off of See-More's hand, flinging it against the window to bust open the cap and spread water across the hall. "Why does he still matter?" Billy said angrily. "We joined up with Jinx because she said, in her words, that we were going to become big. We were going to become big, rich, powerful, and the whole cahoot, but we're still tripping over our own feet trying to get this guy."

"He's humiliated us," See-More pointed out, standing tall to rival Billy's stance. "We're just trying to pay him back."

"Wounded pride and all," Billy relented, "but if there's one thing my ma and pa taught me that I know is true, is that a little humility gives you perspective. From my eyes, See-More, we're still fightin' and losin' against X because Boss Lady can't take a joke."

See-More took a step forward, oversized eye glaring at his supposed friend. "What did you say? You're saying it's Jinx's fault that –"

"That we're still 'licking our wounds' like a pack of rats? Yeah! All she's been caring about is getting revenge and gettin' an ego boost. I know you've seen her, See-More. She literally gets off of sadism and abuse, and when she isn't gettin' enough of it, she gets obsessive and ignores everything damn else thing around her." Billy waved his hand around, unintentionally motioning to the puddle beside them. "You're trying to get into her pants, but she's supposed to be our leader, and she hasn't even looked us in the eye the entire week. Gave no orders, no info, no plans, no nothing."

Billy held up a hand, stopping See-More from opening his mouth. "Defend your dream girlfriend all you want, but you're a smart guy, See. You know I'm right."

No matter how much See-More wanted to counter Billy's assertions, he reluctantly had to concede. See-More could see more than just what he could with his namesake. Despite his admiration for Jinx, See-More knew she had her faults, obvious or otherwise.

"That doesn't make Jinx any less our friend," See-More finally said.

"… Maybe. Just remember that Jinx promised to lead all of us a shot at bigtime, and I haven't seen any darn thing that's any close to a life like that."

Billy walked pass See-More and down the hall, letting one-eye think things over.

The H.I.V.E. Five was a fun little hobby, but if all they were gonna do was go at it with Red X, Billy Numerous was better off on his own, lIke always.

X

Elsewhere...

Three months of work down the fucking drain.

Red X was going to have to tap deep into his cash reserves if he wanted to fix up his bike. Thank god the software was still salvageable. Everything else, though, was in dire need of repair and replacement.

After X had commandeered that farmer's pickup truck from the race track, he drove the stolen vehicle with his bike's remains in the back to the nearest motel to spend the night. X used the truck to tow the broken bike parts all the way back to Jump. Spike's garage was a no-go, not with those damn, dirty cops out and about. So, X decided to pay a visit to another less-than-respectable mechanic in town.

But X had to remove the X on the X-Cycle and dress into his civvies before approaching their shop. There were only a handful of people X trusted to know the face behind the mask, and the mechanic Red X had to visit could only be trusted as much as you pay him.

That was the problem with masks. You can't be the exact same person when you put one on. Another character has to take over your body, and you have to play the role to a complete tee. The point of the darn thing was to hide the face underneath. And unless you know by heart who the person behind the mask is and who the person the mask is, the mask becomes meaningless.

Red X was a smug bastard who steals shiny toys and pebbles. His civilian persona was also pretty smug, but his number one priority was keeping his head down. Luckily, juggling between those masks was easy because they weren't so different.

It did get hard, though, sometimes.

For example, Red X really owed Sammy and Cash, the guys who had the "bright" idea of stealing the T-Car a year or two back, some payback for the botched job last year. X spent nearly an entire month on the run when he took the blame. However, civilian Red X really wanted his new bike spruced up, and Cash was the only one who he could go to.

The pair of car hijackers were the best in the business, second only to Spike and X.

To be honest, X would have shipped Sammy off to social services and Cash and his "too-cool-for-school" act into juvenile hall. Damn shame the Titans let the two keep their shop open. Sure, willing and reliable informants can be hard to come by, but that didn't make the pair any less annoying.

But the second X swerved the truck around the corner, he knew something was off.

Sammy and Cash had set up their business in the slums of Jump. While most were under the misconception that this part of town was the abandoned warehouse district, the fact was that not a lot of people went out on the streets in this neighborhood. It had less to do with the occasional gangs that popped up every now and then; it had more to do with the general mentality that folks could get away with crime around these particular parts, outright publically or otherwise.

But there was more activity in the streets than usual. More people tend to roam the streets in the daylight, but the passerby seemed to be collectively running toward something. Probably another crime scene being scoped by the cops, or some homeless troop putting up another show to make some cash. X didn't pay much attention to them, at least until he turned a corner to the gas station where Sammy and Cash had their private shop set up.

Police had the place surrounded like fleas leeching off a dog. Yellow tape and barricades were set up practically all around the gas station. A crowd of civilians was brewing, some cops trying to veer traffic away from the debacle. X rolled up his window to block all the yelling and honking. As he drove pass the station, however, he narrowed his eyes at what he saw.

The new blood in town, Yin and Bennet, walked right out of the station's garage. They were flanked by two police officers, but all four of them encircled two kids in handcuffs. Cash, the brat just starting middle school, and Sammy, the Grease wannabe, were in friggin' handcuffs and being escorted into a cop car.

Yin and Bennet were going to be at odds with the Titans when the kids finally come back home, no doubt about it. The Titans always had a soft spot for anyone under the age of eighteen. That was partly why they let Sammy and Cash do their own thing for the most part, as long as the brats didn't do anything "too" illegal. The new cops obviously didn't have the same sentiment.

Red X discreetly made his way out of the area. Maybe some appropriate jail time would teach Sammy and Cash not to be so careless when dealing with the criminal underworld. Since Cash was unavailable to repair the X-Cycle, X opted to hide the bike in one of the abandoned warehouses and get it fixed at a later date.

Red X didn't have to get involved in any of that goodie-goodie tussle, the argument on ethics and morality the capes and cops seem to have almost every other year. No, there'd be no easy pickings for X during a mess like that. Both heroes and cops would just team up to take a thieving Red X down to kiss and make up.

Well, maybe X wouldn't have to teach the H.I.V.E. Five from right and wrong anymore. At this rate, they'd be jailed soon enough with such proactive coppers taking the charge.

In the coming days, Red X would probably do best to hang up the mask for a while. He's already had his fun with Miss Fortune and her band of misfits, after all, and it'd be neat to see if X's teachings have helped them better prepare for the real world. Yin and Bennet would certainly be willing test proctors, whether they know it or not.

Red X was a thief, and he was also a troll and a deceiver.

His other mask, the civilian one with the clean crime record and the cute girlfriend, didn't have to lie like it was second nature or teach some brats important life lessons. He had to hide things, sure, but he got to live the closest thing to a "normal" life.

He didn't say anything out loud to anyone, but X was wondering which mask was more fun to wear and which mask was worth it.