Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 6: Wasted time is a costly mistake.

Roman stumbled out of the prison, his pant- leg catching on stray rubble. Prisoners leered at him, yelling profanity and taunts. Roman ignored all this, his mind focused on one thing:

The team.

Half of them were debilitated, one had gone with a villain after only 3 days of being on the team, and the other was currently best friends with that one. Roman bit his tongue; he'd have to withhold information on Hiela for as long as possible to keep Changeling with him. There was no way that in his state he could transport all the Titans to the tower; besides he'd never had enough practice. And in their injured states… they just might not make it in one piece.

Looking up, Roman scanned the area. Already vans approached, heavy with cameramen and reporters. He twitched. Those people may have well been responsible for what happened. Jump City wasn't taking to their teenage super-heroes lightly. The dark-haired teen shook his head; he was at a loss to why they weren't.

Changeling was already flying around the area, circling around Flare, whom he had left on the ground. He cawed out to Roman as a pterodactyl, and then replied in a couple words Roman barely depicted as human, "I can't carry them all. Get Hiela and let's go!"

"Hiela will be preoccupied for a while. Let's get the others to the Tower. I'll tell you later." Roman replied ignoring Changeling's suddenly frantic flapping.

Hissing, Changeling consented and turned towards the Tower, flying high over the reporters stepping over the rubble. One of them caught Roman while he was hefting Flare up, and immediately began a babble of questions.

"So, my dark friend, how many villains did you let go by?" He smirked. Roman turned to him, glaring, his eyes filled with hatred.

"Let's get some things straight," He hissed, stepping forward while pulling Flare's arm around his shoulder. "I am not your friend. Nor did I let any get away. You released them. It's your own fault that they once again clot your streets with crime," Roman scowled, glaring into the reporter's eyes, "I would sleep with one eye open from now on."

"Is that a threat?" replied the brave, though strongly intimidated reporter. The cameraman tapped him on the shoulder, followed by pointing at the red button.

"We're live, sir," he whispered the reminder. The reporter waved his hand in ignorance.

"Not a threat," Roman said coldly, "An offer. I'm here to protect this city, remember?" With that, Roman teleported with Flare, still limp, to the Tower. Changeling was pacing through the infirmary while Tempest and Robin lay on opposite beds. Roman came in, still pulling Flare along, and stood before a bed. Pulling her into his arms, he softly deposited her on the white pillow before turning to Changeling accusingly.

"Did you stabilize them?" Roman asked. Changeling flushed, shaking his head, and immediately went to Tempest. Peeling back her bloodied bandage, he reached for another. Roman inspected him before turning to Robin.

"I can't concentrate, Roman! What happened to Hiela? Why isn't she with you? What happened with Tiempo? Was that you yelling?" Questions poured from Changeling, whose hands were shaking so badly that he couldn't wrap Tempest's wound correctly.

"Give me that." Roman hissed, pushing him aside, though not unkindly. He worked in silence then turned to Changeling. "You've got to give me your word that you'll stay calm and not run off." He said, glaring into the teen's violet eyes.

Changeling hesitated, and then nodded. "I swear it." He squawked. He squared his shoulders, bracing himself for whatever the blue-eyed teen before him had to say.

Roman shrugged, then turned back to give Tempest a painkiller, injecting the needle into her upper arm. There was a pause before he spoke again.

"Hiela left with Tiempo."

Silence followed this. Changeling then snorted, followed by a quick eruption of laughter. He slumped back against the wall, a stream of sniggers pouring from. Roman continued working with Tempest, softly taking her silver, waist-length hair from beneath her. He glanced at Changeling to see if he had composed himself.

Changeling had. He was now looking at Roman incredulously. "You're serious!" he blurted, pointing openly at Roman. Roman's brow lifted, and he nodded slightly, applying a bandage to Tempest's forehead. He shifted so that he was facing Robin, and sighed.

"I doubt she was in her right mind. Tiempo had just beaten me and was filing her with lies." He said reluctantly. Changeling continued to stare at him, open mouthed.

"But… that's nothing like her…" He whispered. Roman narrowed his eyes at him in annoyance.

"You barely knew her. How could you say something about her?" He asked, frowning.

"I don't have to know her to see her." Changeling retorted. Roman's frowned deepened, and he returned to fixing Robin up. After a moment of silence, Changeling stood up and walked to Flare, checking her pulse quickly. His focus wasn't there, Roman could tell.

Changeling's hands drifted from Flare's injuries and hung limply at his side. Roman sighed, shaking his head. "You've got to focus on these three, Changeling. We'll find Hiela- one way or another she's bound to show up," he said, disregarding the fact that they might be fighting her soon, "But right now, I need your mind focused on helping," he said, firmly.

Changeling took a deep breath, held it, and released it slowly. He paced for a moment, then took up beside Roman and began bandaging their leader. After an hour or so of silence, Changeling spoke up, scoffing.

"To think… I played the Gamebox with him only a few hours ago…" His face was disbelieving as he gently released Robin's battered arm. Roman frowned, his concentration set on Tempest.

"He'll be fine. He's got Tameranian endurance in him," he turned and walked to Tempest, who was stirring. She groaned, her hand rising to her chest, then her head as she opened her eyes.

"Oooh, I ache. Everywhere…" She muttered her vision hazy as she looked up at the bright white lights of the infirmary. "Here again?" She questioned softly. Roman swirled into view as she focused, then blinked again.

"Stay still," he said, pressing a hand to her forehead. Tempest leaned down again, her vision spinning.

"What happened? Is Robin okay? That jerk got me while I was trying to help Flare…" Tempest hissed, her eyes narrowing. Roman frowned, glancing back at the still unmoving Flare. Changeling momentarily looked up from disposing the last of Robin's torn costume. Ryand'r twitched, his eyes opening.

"Wha- Why do I feel so … cold?" He asked, pulling the covers tighter around him. "Sechcr! I'm not wearing anything!" He blurted, blushing furiously. He sat up, and then sank back down. "Ouch- Ah!"

Roman looked in his direction, sighed, and looked away. "That's not entirely true."

Tempest was blushing; her face turned away from the bed two spaces away from hers. Changeling took a cloth from the many cabinets in the room and offered it to Robin, looking downward at his feet.

Robin looked at him, frowning. "What is it? Do I look that bad?" He asked dejectedly. He looked down at himself, half-covered in bandages. Roman turned to him, shaking his head.

"Your mask was ripped off." He said bluntly, then moved to Flare's side. Robin exhaled sharply. He pushed Changeling's hand away, shaking his head.

"That's not important right now. I need to get in clothes and start tracking the-" he paused, looking down at himself. "I can't do anything like this...," he scowled, "Where's Hiela? She can organize a scan with Changeling." Robin announced, running his hand through his lank hair.

Changeling winced at her name.

Roman glanced up from his spot, now against the wall. "Hiela left with Tiempo. I don't think she was under the best influence, though," he added, feeling Changeling's depression wash over him. Roman suppressed a gag at the strength of the emotion.

Robin gaped at him. "Hiela? Hiela left?" He asked shock apparent in his all-too-visible eyes. The three conscious titans refused to look him in the face, their loyalty giving him privacy. "But…," Robin found himself at a loss for words, and instead, slowly slid out of the bed, the covers draped about him. Roman and Changeling stood up straight.

"You shouldn't be moving. Leave this to us," Changeling said, taking Robin's arm. Roman nodded in agreement.

"Let go of me. I need to get dressed… and think," Ryand'r spoke sharply, pausing for a moment. "Roman, can you get me to my room?" Roman nodded and he continued, "Since Tempest is awake, she can notify us-," he suddenly broke off, turning to Tempest.

"X'hal, Tempest, I forgot! Are you alright? Did the bandage-,"

Tempest spoke up before he could finish. "I'm fine, Robin. I can watch Flare," She said, her face turned from his gaze. Robin nodded, crossing his arms and bringing the sheets closer to his almost- bare body.

"Good. Changeling, I want you to go upstairs and start the computer scan. It shouldn't be too hard. Just…," Robin drifted off, pressing his knuckles to his eyes. "Ugh… click the button…," He drifted off once more, this time tipping forward precariously. Roman reached out, confused as to what to do.

"Room!" Robin blurted strictly. Roman nodded and in a flash of black, he teleported them both upstairs. Changeling glanced at Tempest, who was struggling to sit up.

"Does anybody here ever listen to Roman?" He asked, walking over and gently pulling the covers tighter around her. Tempest grimaced, then consented, allowing herself to lay down.

"I've got to watch Flare though…" She muttered. Changeling shook his head.

"She shouldn't be up for a while. Took a hit to the head," Changeling bonked his own head lightly in a joking mimic, then proceeded towards the door. "I'll be back once I'm finished." He watched Tempest nod, then left.

He broke into a run quickly afterwards.

Sprinting into the living room, he leapt over the plush sofa and swerved into the computer seat to the right of the living room. He glared down at the keys, then up at the screen, totally lost as to what to do. Frowning, he reached for the mouse and clicked on the link to files on the Titans themselves. Frowning, Changeling followed a myriad of links until he found 'location'. Grinning, he followed that link to transmitters, then found a map.

With a squeal of joy, he leapt up, madly clicking the print button. The map held the Titans locations, transmitters not only in their communicators but on their belts, and in Tempest's case, her earrings. Changeling didn't question how the transmitters had been placed; he was just thankful they had been. Instead he rushed out of the room-

Right into Roman and Robin.

The three boys, in a tangle, feel to the floor, both Changeling and Roman trying to break Robin's fall. Ignorant to his injuries, their leader stood up, tearing the pages from beneath Changeling. The map on the wrinkled paper had ten dots in the tower; two different types of transmitters. One transmitter, a blue snowflake, was blinking at the city prison. Another one, a darker blue snowflake, was near the outskirts of downtown.

Robin inspected each closely before pivoting on one foot to face his comrades, sitting up on the floor, Roman glaring at Changeling, who was too excited to care.

"I found her!" Changeling quickly informed Robin, bouncing to his feet. He pointed at the paper. "We need to go there now, she could be in danger," He said, eager as a puppy.

Robin looked at him, mask replaced, in shock. "Are you insane? I can barely move my arms. This will have to wait until Flare wakes up, at the least. She can help you and Roman locate her. Me and Tempest can't leave the Tower in our conditions unless we want to get killed."

Changeling frowned, a wrinkle appearing as he drew his brow together. "So… we're not going after her?" Roman crossed his arms, blowing his hair from his eyes with a resigned puff.

"Not anytime soon." He answered for Robin, who was shrugging reassuringly. Changeling gaped at the two, disbelieving.

"We're going to leave her with Tiempo? A bad guy? Does bad idea ring any bells?" Changeling cried, his voice rising to a yell. Roman shook his head in aggravation.

"Have you even stopped to look at the others? Robin's wearing pajamas, for Azar's sake. Flare's been knocked out, Tempest has a gash from her shoulder to her foot, me and you are exhausted. There's nothing we can do except wait."

Changeling took a moment to glance at Robin's loose T-shirt and sweatpants, frowning. "I'm not tired. Time isn't something we've got- Tiempo's in control of it! I'll go after her!"

"Not alone you won't. That's an order." Robin snapped, leaning against the wall for support. With Roman and Robin glaring at him, Changeling's defiance soon swindled into nothing but stubbornness. "Get some rest. We'll talk about this later," Robin continued, his mask veiling his closing eyes. "I'll be at my room if you need me."

The two teens watched him go, sluggishly turn a corner, and then reared on each other.

"We have to go get her! We're both capable of doing it!"
"Robin told us to get some rest! Frankly, I could use some. There's no point in going to get her if she left of her own free will!" Roman replied hastily, his hand rising to massage his brow.

Changeling's eyes narrowed. "If you wont' help me I'll just go alone!"

Roman opened one eye lazily. "Is that so? I dare you to take a step out of the Tower." Roman said, clasping Changeling's shoulder harshly.

The green teen felt a tremor run through him, and gasped slightly. "What did you do!" He snarled, baring fangs that weren't human. Roman pushed him away lightly.

"Stay in the Tower. Don't find out." He replied icily, leaving Changeling in the empty hallway. He hissed a strangled, animal-instigated cry that was all he could reply.

"Smug, quiet, stupid, bossy…" Changeling twitched as he made his way to his room, clutching his belt tightly for lack of anything better to do with his nervous hands. Changeling threw himself onto his bed and thought. There had to be a way to get to Hiela… and a way to make sure the others weren't left in danger…

T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T

"Tiempo, open the door." Hiela repeated the statement, her voice monotonous, for what seemed like the billionth time. The same, stoic reply drifted to her from behind the locked door.

"No."

Hiela drummed her fingers on the floor, brushing her hair back. She had two hours. Two meager hours to think of a way out of this mess before he'd make her break them into the Tower.

She repeated her question.

"No, shut up!" He finally lost his temper, and sent a barrage of curses at her. "You wanted to come here!" he cursed, "You asked for it, and agreed to it! Now shut up about it, because these are the consequences!"

Hiela clamped her mouth shut, blushing. The accusations were one hundred percent true. She brought this mess upon herself, now she had to dig herself out-

Alone.

Frowning, she crossed her legs. The small room was more a water closet than anything else. She felt around for anything and found a metal pipe. Trying once again to tug at it, she failed, and let her arms fall limp at her side.
"Changeling, I'm so sorry…" She whispered to herself. She pressed her palms to her eyes, then continued repeating the names of the Titans. "I won't let him get to you guys…" She swore, and crawled to her knees.

Looking around at the pipes, she searched for a source of water. Ice was useless here; Tiempo left the heater at a moderately hot temperature. Anything she crafted from ice melted, and became a puddle of useless water. She sighed, continuing a stream from her palms until she heard Tiempo scowling. The water was drained out the crack at the bottom of the door, so the blond villain was aware of her persistence.

"That's it. Screw the cover of darkness, we're leaving now." Tiempo roughly pulled open the door and yanked Hiela up. Covering her face with a warm towel, he caused her senses to become slothful. As she struggled to remove the towel, he managed to tie her wrists with another warm strip of cloth, and then proceeded to drag her through the doorway.

Hiela, strangely, didn't react.

'The sooner I get to the Tower, the more reinforcements I get. I just won't let him past the door.' She repeated the thought to herself. Hopefully this idea would work.

Hopefully, hope would be enough.

T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T

A dragging impression was the first thing Flare felt. 'Wha-,' she felt Roman's presence, a persistent nagging pulling at her consciousness.

"Will you get up already?" his voice suddenly filled her senses, worry under-toning the annoyance in his voice. Flare shook her head wearily, and felt a searing pain rip through her skull.

Suddenly she remembered.

The thief, desperate to get away, had bashed the side of her head with the side of his empty gun. Knocking her into kingdom come, he managed to get away, and give her a nasty headache.

"I'll get him back," She murmured, her lips moving. The titans in the room gave a sigh of relief upon hearing her. Tempest's voice became apparent, and slowly, Flare regained consciousness.

"…- all thinking you wouldn't wake up," Tempest shivered, the thought of death frightening her, "Roman was concentrating so hard… and you were just… lying there…" Tempest refused to go on; instead, she pursed her lips. Flare's eyes remained close, but she grunted in response.

Roman eased back in his chair. "I hate healing." He muttered, clenching and unclenching his fist. Flare struggled to rise up onto her elbow, then winced, feeling the right of her face burn with pain. Roman leaned forward, one hand raised to help.

"No, you've done enough," She said, eye twitching. Finally, she closed her right eye, a grimace visible through her gaze. Roman raised his hand, placed it behind her neck, and turned her face towards him.

"I hate healing, but it doesn't mean I won't do it," He said, cutting her off before she could repeat her previous rejection. She tried to lean back, but only managed to get Roman to his feet. Placing his other hand on her bruise, Roman sat on her bed and concentrated once more, ignoring pangs of pain that sparked from his chest.

Surged with power from Roman, Flare straightened up, then roughly pushed his hands away from her, blushing slightly. "I'm not invalid, Roman. My body can heal itself." She snapped. Roman scowled, his mental link with her opening.

'I'm trying to help you.'

"Flare, he's only trying to help. You should let him; he's good at it. Look, he made that cut nothin' but a scratch," Tempest suddenly interrupted them, causing the two to break their glare. The silver-haired teen squirmed under their gaze until Flare let out a sigh and leaned back into the firm cot.

"Fine." She muttered, turning to face Roman. He glared down at her through his dark bangs.

"And why should I?" his brisk retort was interrupted by Robin's voice.

"Because I said so. Is Tempest okay?"

Roman shrunk into his seat, bangs now veiling his face. Tempest sat up, pulling her feet over the side of the bed.

"Perfectly fine and ready to go," she said, pointing down at the off-white line down the back of her arm. "Roman said that should go away too, so it doesn't bother me. What should I start with?"

Robin paused, glancing at the overly-hyper teen. "You're… sure you're okay?" He asked, facing her. Tempest blushed, her smile dwindling.

"I've been stuck here twice already. I'm not going to let this City step all over me." She hissed, clenching her fist and holding it up. Robin's mask widened at the edges, surprised by the sudden attitude change.

"For one, you could help Changeling out. I don't know what he's up to, but whatever it is, keep it and him safe." He said, smiling at her returning energetic state. Jumping out of the bed, she walked over to Robin.

"You really should keep the pajama outfit. It's better than those Christmas-colors." She whispered, nodding solemnly. Robin looked down, surprised, then met Tempest's gaze.

"I can't battle in this." He said simply, shrugging.

"You shouldn't have to battle wearing an old style," She said, smiling. Leaving Robin to ponder this, she left the room, and bounded up the hallways in search of her fellow green-comrade.

Ignoring her statement for the moment, Robin continued towards Roman, who was sitting cross-legged on the seat beside Flare's bed. Flare's pose was similar, arms crossed as she lay down. The bruise across her temple, mottled yellow-purple only a while ago, had reduced to a small patch of black and blue around her cheek bone.

Sighing, the leader settled in between the two. "Should I even ask what's wrong with you two? Flare, he was just trying to heal you, and Roman, Flare was just being… well, herself-," Roman interrupted, sending out a stream of accusations about Flare, most of them relating to her stubbornness. His opinion was silent though, a whisper lost in the wind, so Robin continued, "You two are going to have to learn to get along even if it kills you. Roman, finish healing her and meet Tempest… wherever she is and get her and Changeling to the living room. I'll arrange a search. We –you guys- can find Hiela and see what her intentions are."

After a pause, Flare spoke up, "You aren't coming?"

Robin shook his head, crossing his glove-less arms. "There's no point in fighting when I'm… in this condition." He said, glaring down at the ground. Flare glanced at him before maintaining her stoic manner.

"So get Roman to heal you."

"He tried. It's something about my genetics that won't allow anything but normal healing," Robin replied, sighing heavily. Roman glanced up, uncrossing his arms.

"I… It's not like it's your fault," Roman said reluctantly, unaccustomed to giving out reassurances. It seemed, as of late, that he'd been forced to do it a lot.

As of late was only three days.

Robin frowned, turned and pointed at Flare. "Well what're you waitin' for? Heal her already," He said, taking Flare's wrist and pulling her up into a seated position. She yelped, her hand rising to her head.

"Oh, oh, oh!" She bit her lip, eye twitching, and refrained from cursing. Her narrowed eyes turned to Robin, and like a madwoman, she clenched her fist, "You did that on purpose," She accused, reaching out to grab his shirt by the neck and strangle the leader.

Roman took this moment to reach out, clasp her face in both his hands, and finish the healing in a matter of seconds. Flare pressed her hands to her face between Romans', and gasped. Sucking in another curse, she opened her eyes and felt the side of her face, pushing Roman's hands away. He stood up, rubbed his hands on his pants, and turned.

"Wait, both of you," Robin said, blushing furiously, when Flare jumped off her bed to follow Roman. The two teens turned to face Robin, who shuffled his feet. "You know what Tempest said earlier about… the Robin costume…-,"

He was cut off as Flare scoffed. "Sorry to break it to you, but it was entirely true. You look like a stoplight. Besides, you shouldn't be walking around in your dad's clothes. It's not his team anymore. It's yours," With that, she turned, side-stepped Roman, and left the room, rubbing her head.

Robin glanced at Roman, who shrugged. "Appearances aren't important when fighting unless you need stealth," was all he said before leaving. Robin frowned. After a moment, he slowly followed the others.

Finding all the titans situated at the living room, Robin sighed in relief. Tension was obvious near Roman and Changeling, who were both glaring at each other.

Without a doubt, the others knew Roman would win this glare-off.

Flare sat at a computer, her elbows lightly placed before the keyboard. One hand was still at the side of her face, another was tapping the screen. Robin was close to snapping at her for it until he saw the computer was operating before her touch. Tempest was standing beside her, one gloved hand on her hip, another twirling at her waist-length hair. Occasionally, she tapped the screen too, battering Flare's hand away. More then once, she reeled away as Flare's hand burst into flames, annoyance visible on her frowning face.

Robin walked up to them, peeking over Flare's shoulder. A map was on the screen, a blue snowflake flashing occasionally. "Is Hiela's position secured?" He asked, leaning farther over Flare. She shook her head, tapping another quadrant on the screen to zoom in as the snowflake changed positions.

"No. She's moving. Probably in a vehicle. Her speed is too fast to be on foot. The computer predicts her coming to the cove our garage comes out of, primarily, directly to the Tower secondary, and to Jump Studios as its alternate course. Tempest thinks she's going straight to the Tower. I doubt it. It's too obvious."

Robin nodded, his hand rising to his chin. He closed a fist, pressing it to his lips in thought. "Changeling, Roman, come here," He paused as the two shuffled over, Changeling finally breaking the glare with a bored-looking Roman, "Both of you were listening… good. This is what we will do. Roman, you are situated at the evidence room. Regardless as to what happens, don't loose the ekar'dan staff," the Titans' faces contorted, confused at Robin's choice of words. By his expression, it wasn't a good one, yet he continued, unfazed, "Flare is going to stand guard at the hallway; Tempest is blocking the staircase leading to the hallway. Changeling, you're staying in the elevator, and leaving that post means preparing yourself for a course worthy of a Tameranean Olympic," He ignored Changeling's cat-like hiss, "I'll be in the garage. Unless Hiela comes with Tiempo, I don't want Flare or Tempest to leave their posts. Roman, your staying situated like Changeling."

Roman turned to Robin with shadowed eyes. "It's a given that Tiempo's going to be with her, Robin. If she had been coming of her own will she would have notified us," he remarked, his face expressing exasperation.

Robin twitched. "It's always a possibility that she was kidnapped-"

"I was there, Robin. She went with him. Freely." Roman interrupted.

"You were unconscious," Changeling hissed.

"How the hell would I tell you she left with him in the first place if I hadn't been conscious?"

"Zip it, all of you. Robin, your plan is fine other than the fact that we can't have our weakest teammate fighting, possibly, both intruders. Switch places with me or Tempest, but putting you at front line is idiotic." Flare said, turning in the revolving seat. Tempest nodding, her silver gaze setting on Robin. He frowned, glancing from Tempest to Flare.

"Fine. Flare, you stay at the garage. Tempest, guard the hallway, I've got the staircase," Robin reluctantly changed the plan, turning towards the door.

Changeling frowned, crossing his arms. "You shouldn't be fighting at all," he said under his breath. Robin turned back, mask narrowed.

"This is a serious situation. I'm going to fight. Get in your positions in two minutes," With that, he turned, leaving to his room to prepare.

As Ryand'r left the hallway, he never regretted more that he had only inherited Tameranian looks.

(A/n, he has to work for his tameranian strength. B)

Roman was the first one who moved after Robin left. Gently rolling Flare's chair, with her still seated in it, aside, he started tapping at the computer. "Estimated arrival is in eight minutes. We have two minutes to get ready. I'm going to say something Robin didn't- do not hurt Hiela," Roman's comment surprised everyone, especially Changeling.

"Wh… what do you mean?" Changeling asked cautiously.

"I mean what I said. Don't hurt her. Tie her up, don't listen to her, don't speak to her, don't reason with her, and don't hurt her. Just get her out of the way," Roman responded monotonously. The titans glanced at themselves until Tempest spoke up.

"And if she attacks?"

Roman looked at her, exasperated. "Then you take her down."

Flare stood up; pushing the seat in. "I don't particularly see why we're taking commands from you, but since they make sense, I'll do it. We'd better get moving." She said. Tempest and Changeling nodded in agreement to the latter part of her sentence, biting their lips to hold back smirks at Roman's annoyance. They both headed to the elevator. Tempest would ride it up, then leave Changeling as she entered the hallway to the evidence room.

"Splitting up is a stupid idea," Changeling scowled. Tempest glanced at him as the doors closed, shutting off Flare and Roman; Flare headed down the stairs, Roman still standing behind the computer.

"I think it's a good idea. This way, you won't get distracted, and the staff is always protected," Tempest replied matter-of-factly as she tapped the button for the 9th floor. Changeling clamped his mouth shut, crossed his arms, and leaned on the corner of elevator, waiting for Tempest to leave.

When the doors dinged open, Tempest stepped out, and Changeling quickly pressed the door close button. She glanced back and saw Changeling glaring out at her from the closing doors, and frowned.

"Yep. Definitely a good idea."

Flare walked towards the staircase. She didn't bother waiting for the elevator; Changeling wasn't someone she wanted to listen to right now. And besides, Roman was the last person she'd want to be stuck with in a room alone, regardless of its size.

"Flare, wait a second." Flare heard Roman's voice, heavy with a mixture of annoyance and fatigue. She reached for the door, planning on ignoring him, but stopped. Sighing, she turned around, finding herself face to face with him.

"Oh," she whispered in surprise.

They stayed still for a moment until Roman sighed, turning around. "Forget it," he muttered. Flare took a deep breath, looking away. Rolling her eyes, she turned back to Roman, who was headed towards the elevator.

"I'm sorry, alright? I shouldn't have snapped at you, I was mad about earlier. Happy now?" She said in a single breath, and turned to the door. Roman glanced behind him, but she had left, the door swinging behind her.

Roman shrugged, thinking, "Not what I was going to say, but okay," With that he teleported himself up to the evidence room.

Flare jogged down the stairs, muttering to herself along the way. "So don't hurt her, but don't let her pass. Knock her out without injuring her. Tie her up so she won't get away. Wow, this is getting easer with each passing-," Fare reached the bottom of the steps, "Step…,"

She paused, biting her lip. "And of course, fire has to deal with ice. Whoever said fight fire with fire is an idiot." She muttered, glancing up. The beginning of the tunnel was filled with hanging ice crystals. They were scattered, as if there had been a fight earlier. Flare gulped before stepping forward, relying on words Robin had given to her.

'You must be somewhat resilient. You survived the water didn't you?'

She squared her shoulders and continued walking, her senses alert. The ice slowly dripped around her, and then she caught it, farther into the Chunnel.

The sound of ice crashing against the walls, cries from a girl being hit, grunts from a guy. Flare narrowed her eyes and ran forward, almost slipping on the ice before reaching the fight.

Hiela was hiding behind a wall of ice on Flare's side of the Chunnel. Tiempo was behind it, panting, leaning over. Flare hesitated before lifting her hands to Hiela's back.

"Put your hands where I can see them!" She commanded shakily. Hiela turned around suddenly, spreading her arms wide.

"Flare! You've found me! You won't believe how-," Hiela was cut off when Flare lit her hands, fire and heat causing Hiela to shuffle backwards. Flare awkwardly stepped back, as if she didn't want to cause pain but wasn't going to be caught off guard.

"F…Flare, it's me… I stopped Tiempo from coming. I made a mistake, I'm sorry," Hiela said, backing into the wall of ice she was maintaining. Flare shook her head, shrugging.
"You made the mistake, not me. I'm just trying to keep another one from happening. Put your hands in front of you and … uh, well keep the ice wall up. Please." She added, flushing slightly. Hiela sighed, consenting. Glancing behind her, she noticed that Tiempo had vanished. She pivoted on her foot.

Flare had taken this as an attack and ducked, squeezing one eye shut as she aimlessly blasted fire. "No, Flare!" Hiela squealed, ducking the flames. The ice melted into a wave of water, one Flare quickly evaporated. Hiela rose to her feet, searching for any sign of Tiempo.

A flash of white costume was all she saw, being washed away by the water Flare had missed, water that had been all the ice behind them. Hiela started running towards Tiempo, but was intercepted by Flare.

"Flare, now isn't the time! Tiempo is- What're you doing!" Hiela gasped running back a few feet. Flare created a wall, a solid, rock wall, by bringing up and locking into place lava. As it cooled off, Flare turned around.

"Sorry about this, Hiela. I have my orders." With that, she ran off in Tiempo's direction, sprinting at her limit to reach up with the white blur that he was in the distance. Flare caught up with him, but Hiela couldn't see what was happening- or who had the upper hand.

"Oh, Flare, this is so ridiculous." She scowled softly, shaking her head as she piled ice onto the opposite side of the wall. When it was cold enough, Hiela tried manipulating the ice into water, to wash it all away, but her thoughts were too focused on anger. She couldn't make anything good come to mind. She bit back a sob and rested her palms on the solid sheet of ice.

"Come on. Come on! Melt!" Her anger turned into frustration, yet she couldn't get the ice to melt. "No... He'll kill them all," Hiela whispered, her fists clenching. "I won't let that happen," She stood straighter, "Get a hold of yourself. You can't loose another family, no matter how new… or deranged," Hiela firmly told herself, pressing her palms to the ice.

"Now, melt!" Hiela commanded. The ice shattered into miniscule cracks, splitting, then becoming a drenching, cold wave of freezing water, filled with frozen lava from Flare's wall.

Hiela didn't take pride in her accomplishment. This was another mistake to her- if Flare was still down there, fighting Tiempo, she'd probably just caused her failure. Sure enough, she heard a yelp, followed by Tiempo's increasingly annoying laugh.

As Hiela broke out of the Chunnel at a trot, and saw Flare standing on top of the black T-car. She was shivering madly, but her fists held weakly flickering flames. Her drenched hair was plastered to her face as rivulets of water streamed down her cheeks. Hiela bit her lip, brushing her white hair from her stress-ridden eyes.

"Flare, I'm sorry! Don't worry, I'll stop Tiempo. You need to trust me!" Hiela called out to her, sloshing over in the ankle-height water. Flare shivered, and directed her fists in Hiela's direction.

"G-g-get down!" She blurted, blasting a river of flame in her direction. Hiela leaped forward, falling to her knees, the fire barely singeing her hair. Hiela's face dunked into the icy water, and she crawled forward, her head rising slightly.

Behind her, Tiempo dodged the weak river of fire, kicking up water to extinguish it. The flames grabbed a hold of his costume, though, so he was knocked into the water with Hiela. Sputtering, Tiempo patted at the fire at his leg, and rolled in the water. Plumes of smoke rose from his legs as the flames died, causing him to go into a fit of coughing.

Hiela jumped to her feet, waving away the acrid smoke, and headed towards the car. Flare had jumped down, or fallen, and was now struggling to rise. As Hiela approached, Flare positioned herself again, only to moan in pain as smoke instead of fire streaked from her hands. She leaned against the car, slowly lifting her soaked pants from the water.

"Hiela… behind you, pay attention," She pointed, sliding away. Hiela's eyes widened in surprise; Flare was warning her!

"Does this mean that-," She began to ask if she was back on the team, but remembered the warning, and swooped down to her knees.

Not a moment too soon. Tiempo's fist rammed through the space above her, and without anything to stop him, he toppled forward, tripping over Hiela. He scowled in aggravation, and crawled away, towards the door. Flare looked up, staggered a few feet in his direction, and fell to her knees, shivering.

"Hold on!" Hiela cried, clasping her hands together. She spread them apart in a fast, sharp motion, and the water parted, splashing on opposite walls. Flare remained still, her body moving only with shivers.

Hiela proceeded towards her, but Flare leaned forward, pressing her head to the floor. "Go after him… I'll be fine," she gasped, wrapping her arms around her stomach.

Hiela nodded, and turned to go, glancing back only once. Flare had reached around to the back of her belt and was pulling out her communicator. Probably warning the others about the change in plan... Whatever it was wouldn't matter at the moment. As long as Tiempo was after the staff and in their home, nothing mattered.

Hiela ran into the hallway, and continued past, ignoring the elevator and proceeding up the winding stairs. By the looks of it, Tiempo had decided to take the elevator, as it was supposedly on the 4th floor.

Hiela tried to remember the layout of the tower. Her memory wasn't ever good, whether it was for short or long term items. Yet she remembered the evidence room was… on the… well, she would find something indicating it. Hopefully…

Shaking that from her thoughts, she focused on continuing up the hundreds of steps she was to climb. Sighing, she lifted her heavy, tired legs again, falling into a rhythm that became so automatic she didn't even realize she had been moving.

Hiela was panting, resting when Robin dropped in on her, dressed in green sweat pants and a tank top, his utility belt slung haphazardly on his hips. Bandages were visible on his bare arms, and his mask was snugly in place. "Robin!" She panted, stopping. As she did, her strength left her, and she fell to her knees.

The pressure of meeting her leader face to face after leaving with a villain got to her, and she let out a sob. "I'm sorry, Robin. I am so sorry. You don't know how hard this is for me-," She was cut off when she heard Robin pull something from his belt. She looked up, and saw a grappling hook, fully extended, being wrapped around her.

"Regardless of how you feel, I can't let the others be jeopardized by your potential danger," Robin replied, almost automatically. Hiela stuttered, then quickly calmed.

"I deserve this. And again, I'm sorry," She whispered, leaning forward so that her blue-highlighted hair hid her face. Robin ran a hand through his hair, a nervous habit he had become accustomed to a long time ago.

"What happened to Flare?" He asked, ignoring her pleas for forgiveness. Hiela paled, leaning farther forward. Robin bent his knees so that he was level with Hiela and placed his hand under her chin, and angled her face so she was facing him.

"I need you to respond to me. Now isn't the time. What happened to her?" He asked softly, taking his hand away. Hiela frowned, flipping her hair back with a slight tilt of her neck.

"She's in the garage. An accident happened. I didn't mean to-," Robin coughed, interrupting her again, "Oh, right. Well, she was stable when I left her. And Tiempo has taken the elevators to the evidence room. He knows his staff is there. I had to tell him… It was-," Robin cut her off again, shaking his head, "Oh, sorry. He wants the staff to control your births, and change them so they never happened. He can do it, too. It's terrible." She said, her voice declining to a whisper.

Robin blinked behind his mask, disbelief spreading over his mind, numbing him. "Well, in that case, we can't just sit here. I mean, you're going to have to stay, the other Titans wouldn't trust you at the moment… except for… I mean, just stay here." He said, and then turned to go.
Hiela looked up at him, shaking her head. "Do I have a choice?" She sighed, "I'm not going to sit back and watch things happen anymore." She whispered, crafting a knife-like projection of ice in her hands. She watched Robin climb up a flight of steps and turn into a doorway. Her hand slid upward, the bindings slowly being cut.

"It's my fight now."