Ruthless

By Bonekhan123

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What will Starfire do when the man she loves is killed?

Starfire paced around in her room, lost in a maze of perpetual thoughts and plots that were even more enigmatic with each passing second.

Everything in her room was shattered, or crushed, or obliterated by a star bolt: a product of a relentless rage when her closest friend was killed.

She always thought of Robin as her best and dearest friend; a strong-willed person who was relentless at everything her ever did. A perfectionist if you will. She always knew that him, all the Titans, were in peril everyday, in danger at every second.

But she always thought Robin was almost unkillable; never did she think that the qualities that she did so admire would eventually lead to his downfall.

Robin started staying day's in his room, lost in his pursuit of Slade. It was like that; Slade would always mock him, always test him. She never guessed it was part of a larger-scale plan.

He missed meals, falling asleep in a mess of papers on his desk, only stopping when there was an alert and the people of Jump City was in danger. She remembered looking at him one night.

His face looked horrid, plain and simple. If she remembered more, she didn't want to.

She remembered confronting him about his obsession…

"Robin," Starfire called through the door.

"What?" a voice called from in the room. It wasn't Robin's; Robin's voice was strong and lively, vivid and clear. This voice sounded dead to the world, almost raspy.

"I… would like to talk to you," she said, her voice almost trembling. Why was she so nervous?

There was no response, but she heard the door click and open. Robin glared at her.

"Well?" he asked angrily. Starfire shrank back and she saw his eyes soften ever-so-slightly.

"Robin, won't you come out of your room to engage in Earthly activities? I would much rather enjoying my time with you than being alone…" she said, slightly suggestively.

"I… I'm sorry Star, it's just… I think I may have made a breakthrough and… I have to finish it," he said.

"Oh…o-okay then," she walked out of the room. She had been rejected, as far as Robin was concerned, she didn't even exist.

It had been hard. She always thought, tomorrow will be better; she always was optimistic. Someday, things would grow back to normal, like they always have.

But it didn't. It grew worse. Much worse.

She remembered before that. It had been great, everything had. She had had Robin…

"Oh Robin…" she giggled as Robin embraced her, kissing the hallow in her neck.

He eventually moved down to her breasts, in which her bra had already been removed. He cupped it lightly, then started sucking on her nipple.

It was such a good feeling, whenever he did that.

But things grew different. He had started retreating to his room. Whenever she passed him, he wouldn't even glance at her.

But she always was an optimist. It will end soon, she had thought. But it gotten worse. It had all gotten worse, when that damned Slade was in the way.

Starfire loved Robin so much. Maybe he didn't love her. Instead of spending time with her, he would be in his room, engrossed in his work. He spent more time trying to beat this Slade person than on loving her.

That had hurt.

But still, she had loved him. As long as he was there, she would look at the bright side of things. But it got out of hand.

She wanted so desperately for him to love her, sometimes she would go into his room late at night and start to kiss him in his sleep for no reason whatsoever.

But one night he hadn't been there. She scoured the house, woken the others to know if they had seen him; no one knew where he had been. That was probably logical, considering he hadn't made contact with any of them for little more than three weeks now.

So Starfire took to the streets, looking for him. But he was hard to find; after all, he was Batman's protégé. She had taken on every low-life in the city in search of him.

Sometimes it had gotten out of hand…

"Where is Robin?" she yelled as she walked into a small shelter in the slums. Several small tables dotted the floor, a counter at the back of the building with several glasses behind it.

A pool-table was at her right, several gruff-looking men playing at it. Several more sat, enjoying a mug of alcohol at the table.

They all looked at her, then one smiled, "What's a lady like you doing here?" he asked smugly, walking towards her.

The others seemed to know what the man was doing, and they smiled too. In response she yelled again, "Where is Robin?"

"Who is he you pet?"

"My…Pet…" Starfire's eyes grew green, her hands forming a small green glow. They looked at her with disbelief. It was an insult.

They disbursed. She fired a star bolt at one, knocking him to the ground. She threw the pool table at more of them. She punched one, kicked another.

She grabbed the one who spoken to her earlier by the throat and whispered, "Robin is NOT my pet!"

He gasped. Her hands tightened, and before she realized what was happening she heard a sickening crack. Blood leaked down her hands, making a soft plop on the hardwood floor below.

She dropped him with disgust. She walked out of the bar with not even a thought of the person she had just slaughtered.

She shuddered at that memory, but… That's what Robin would have wanted right?

To fight for good no matter what right? After all, she was trying to save him, right?

She was ruthless for a good reason, right?

But she never found Robin. He was missing for a week---almost an eternity for her--- and she didn't know what to do. She resorted to cutting herself.

It seemed like the only way to ease the pain…

Starfire gripped the knife heavily, holding up her bare wrists, frowning with distasted as she sat on her bright pink bed.

She dove the knife in her flesh, slashing in every direction, a sudden fascination with the blood took hold of her.

She watched the way it curved down her arms, watching it gracefully take flight, exploding in a soft plop as it hit the bed.

Starfire watched the way the blood moved through her arm, continually pumping out of her arm, making a river of crimson.

She held up her other wrist and slashed that one too. She slashed at her chest, her legs, everywhere she could think of. Pain washed through her body, as it grew increasingly numb.

Her whole bed turned a brilliant red as the streams of blood continued to soak into the sheets of her bed.

She slowly laid herself down in the pool of blood, letting the mixture of numbing pain put her into a rough sleep.

She looked at her wrists now, looked at the scars that seem to dot every inch of arm, leg, and torso, and thought of resorting to that now.

She thought of how desperate she was to be eased, and started to weep.

Still, even in that period, she had searched for him. Eventually she had also found him…

The Titans had looked everywhere. They had searched every building, every home, every street, every place you could possibly fit a human being.

Starfire was beginning to think they did not take this seriously enough; they didn't even care!

But she did. She would search until she found him...

She had found him outside of Jump City. It was called the Badlands; nobody went there. It was, quite simply, abandoned. It was often the basis of many dares, though most people didn't dare go there.

It was the basis of many criminal establishments. It was also where Slade's hideout was located.

The moment she had found the hideout, she didn't even call the others; she charged directly in.

Slade's robot were vicious to say the least, but she destroyed them like they were nothing more than tissue paper.

Through a maze of subterranean tunnels and caverns, she finally found her way to Slade; Robin's screams of agony had lead her there.

He was torturing Robin.

Robin was chained to a wall, shackles at his wrists and ankles. That wasn't the worst part.

Blood.

Blood was everywhere. On the walls, covering the floor, everywhere the red liquid was there. It was Robin's blood.

Cuts and scars had dotted his body. Slashes covered him head to toe; the result was a bloody mass of person she dared to even call Robin.

She knew right then that she would make Slade pay.

Starfire tackled him, crushing him to wall splattered with her lover's blood.

She punched him in the chest. Her eyes grew green and they ripped through Slade's torso.

She punched him in the mask, crushing his face completely. He was dead but Star wanted to make him suffer even more.

By the time she was done, his body was unrecognizable.

But it was too late; Robin was dead.

She had killed Slade; she had avenged Robin.

But Robin was still dead. She couldn't forgive herself.

If only I would have found Slade sooner, maybe that would've never happened, she constantly thought to herself. Maybe if I was there, he would still be here.

So she shut herself off from the others.

She was doing almost the exact same thing Robin had did; only she wasn't working, she was torturing herself.

She would instruct herself to go days without food, as a penance of some sort.

Starfire would constantly cut herself; in her mind, her blood was the price for Robin's.

She was more isolated than Raven. She would only come out to fight villains, than shut herself back in her room.

And when the villain got away, she would make sure her torture would be extra painful.

She remembered the others trying to help. Beast Boy would often try and talk to her, try to get her to go to the movies, or play a game.

But she deserved no such kindness, so she never did.

Eventually the daily task of telling the others she would not participate in the activities was no more, and they left her alone.

She remembered how everyone did not seem sad enough at he funeral, like Robin was some sort of expendable person…

They lowered the casket down to the ground.

Starfire wept; it was the first time she had done so openly. She looked at the others and was furious.

Beast Boy and Cyborg weren't even grieving for Robin. Raven, the one that had no emotions was at least tilting her head down!

She had consulted Raven about how she grieved when the others didn't:

"Grieving will do you no good, Star," she had said. "Unless you want to become some lifeless person, you must get over him now. That's what I'm doing; letting out the grieving now so that I won't have to later."

Needless to say, she never got over Robin.

She never would.

-Bonekhan123