Collateral
A Raven and Red X Fan-Fiction

"Collateral."

The word rung like the toll of a funeral bell in the empty warehouse. Robin held out his arm, signaling his team mates to stop their advance, his eyes glued to the darkness at the top of a stack of crates. A pale, limp arm hung down and caught the weary lights from above. Robin felt his stomach twist like a wounded animal at the sight. Everything in him wanted to race up to the top and save Raven, but if he took another step, who knew what would happen to her?

"We don't negotiate with villains." The movement behind Robin reassured him that the other Titans felt the same brutal unease.

"Pity." Red X stood up and bundled the small woman into his arms. Her cloak slid off her legs, revealing the beating she had taken during the fight. Robin cringed at the sight of black and red marring her pale skin. "I thought she would be worth something to you, but if you don't want her, I'll be more than happy to keep her for myself."

"Wait!" Robin reached out to the darkness.

The air stilled and Red X turned back to the team. Although his face was hidden behind the caricature of a skull, there was the distinct impression of a smile peeling across his lips. He chuckled as his head turned to face Robin. "Ah, change your mind, Bird Boy? Is she worth something to you?"

"More than something. She's an invaluable member of the Titan team, of our family." Robin whispered, his hands trembling under the weight of his emotions. He was torn between his duty to the city and his duty to the rag-tag family of the Titans. If he gave Red X what he wanted he would betraying the city. But if he didn't… Robin trembled as Raven's limp arm fell out of her cloak. "What do you want from us?"

"What do you think?" He didn't wait for an answer. "I want the rest of the suit. I only managed to take half of what you developed. It's almost useless without the rest of it. Boring and unexciting. It's a simple and perfectly attainable request."

"It is not." Robin felt his hands clench at his sides, feeling his heart sink at the reality of the situation. "I destroyed it. I wanted to make sure you never got your hands on it."

"Well then, that is a problem. I imagine you'll just have to recreate it for me." Red X pulled the cloak tightly around Raven's listless form. Something in the gentle, careful way he did it set Robin's teeth on edge. "You have three weeks to get me what I want. If I don't get the rest of the suit by then, I'm afraid I get to keep your little pet bird."

"Raven is not a trinket to be stolen!" Starfire called out, her voice soothing the red lining creeping into Robin's vision. He glanced back at her, surprised at the strength of the glow from her eyes. "You must give her back!"

"You'll get her back when I get the suit. That's how negotiations work. When I get what I want Raven will return to you, unharmed and perfectly protected." Red X effortlessly jumped onto the window sill. He tossed Raven's broken communicator on the floor. "Don't try to find me or you won't get Raven back at all. I'll contact you in two weeks to see how things are going. Until then I get to keep your dark bird." He jumped and was gone.

"Damnit!" Robin kicked over a barrel, happy with the ribbons of pain shooting through his leg. It felt good to feel something in the face of nothing. What could he have done? What could he have said to get Raven back? Red X had come out of no where and taken her as his hostage. There was nothing any of the Titans could do, but watch in horror as her broken body was stolen from them. "He can't do this!"

"Dude. He just did."

"Don't even start, Beast Boy." Robin whirled around and glared his team mate into silence. "We've got to find a way to get her back. We cannot let him have the rest of the suit, and we can't let him keep Raven."

"We really don't have a whole lot of options at this point, Robin." Cyborg sighed and shook his head in defeat. "Either we do what he asks and get Raven back safe and sound. Or we ignore his demands and God knows what happens to her. I'm not willing to let that rest on my conscience."

"I know…" Robin pressed his forehead against a steel I-beam, hoping the coolness of the metal would help clear his head. How could this have happened? Raven… He picked his head up and looked at Cyborg, eyes listless. "Do you remember where we stored the hard copy?"

)O( )O( )O(

Red X wasn't sure what made him choose Raven. Hell, he'd been looking for anyone to take as a hostage. Cyborg would have done just as well, even if he was harder to catch. But Raven had basically fallen into his lap. He stood in the shadows and watched her skillful fighting. She dodged and ducked and threw punches and magic with the best of them. But, she still took a few good hits before the other Titans had a chance to arrive. Broken and battered, Raven fell to the floor in a heap of blue.

For a shadow of a moment she looked haunting and beautiful. Her pale skin shimmered like virgin moonlight against the dark violet of her hair. She looked like Ophelia drifting on the waves of despair. Something in his world shifted and rearranged until his vision tunneled and all Red X saw for that fleeting second was Raven. She didn't deserve this; she shouldn't have to fight.

He didn't start the stupid fight. He didn't care one way or the other about what was in the warehouse, but he had followed Cinderblock in. He knew the Titans weren't far behind. They would have left the tower at the first sign of disturbance. Red X knew his chance would come up soon. He needed the rest of the suit. Well… that wasn't the truth. He didn't need it, he wanted it. He wanted the thrill of owning something so incredibly powerful. He wanted the ability to know that he could have whatever he wanted whenever he wanted it. The suit gave him that.

Raven let out a small sigh of pain, and he stared down at her, lying on his bed. The scene was awkward, unusual. He'd been alone for so many years that he'd nearly forgotten how to interact with people, let alone women. But something in his soul told him to protect her. To keep her. He wanted her, but he wasn't sure why. He didn't know her, understand her, trust her. Hell, he didn't even know her real name. Some sane part of his brain told him he shouldn't care, but another part of him, perhaps even his heart, wanted to know everything about her.

And the sanity of his brain was slowly succumbing to the insanity in his heart.

)O( )O( )O(

So, I promised. I decided to write a piece with Red X as an original character. I'm not quite sure where this piece will flow, but I'm excited by it. I hope you are too. Thanks for your enthusiasm, and leave a review if you have a chance. With love always!

Xaph.