He lied, he lied to me. He promised and he lied! He lied he lied he lied.

The bitter thought was chanted in time to Terra's breathing and steady jog. Once again, the slender blonde had conveyed her insecurities to someone she assumed she could trust, and then was betrayed by them. He lied to me, just like Slade told me he would. Slade was right, he was actually right... A few tears managed to fall from her wide eyes as Terra continued running aimlessly through the empty desert with no final destination in mind. Far from Beast Boy and the Titans; that was all that mattered to her.

She was ashamed that she had allowed herself to become so distressed at the mention of her powers, and that she had made the error of revealing her secret to Beast Boy in the first place. Stupid, I'm just so stupid, she thought miserably.

Terra whimpered pitifully as she reflected on why she had originally gone to Jump City- she had felt a need to seek out the Teen Titans. What outcome had she expected to result from befriending them? Presently, Terra couldn't provide an adequate answer to ease her restlessness, but subconsciously she simply had wished to conceal her dark past. She had held onto the childish notion that if she did noble deeds like them, that it would erase the harm that had been caused by her powers. And most importantly, when she was with them, it felt like she had complete control.

Why can't things ever go right? She hadn't necessarily felt that the Titans were going to refuse to associate with her once her secret was discovered (like other "friends" had done). That was a possibility, but Terra was fairly certain that they wouldn't do that. Instead, she figured they would attempt to assist her, humor her, and then eventually grow tired of her. She figured that they would come to a conclusion that she was a broken weapon, the same as the majority of people she had come across on her journey had.

Dust clouds rose up, making her eyes water more than they already were. The whirl of dirt caused her to cough and she came to a stop. Immediately, she crumpled to the ground to in exhaustion. As she sat there, she pushed her grimy hair aside and grumbled about her missing hairclip. Despite it being a dark night, she almost instantly recognized the surrounding cliffs as ones that were near the cave she had stayed in the night before.

Her muscles ached greatly from fleeing the Tower and from the earlier battle with Slade. The fatigued girl wanted nothing more than to sleep, and was even tempted to do so right there on the ground. Knowing that the cave was a safer shelter, Terra sniffed back her snot and dragged herself a half mile to the cave's entrance.

She was completely alone now, confined in a musty cave with only her fading flashlight illuminating the walls. Terra slumped to the floor in a huddle on the familiar floor and fully released the tears that she had tried in vain to keep from falling. She had worked herself into a frenzy; what was she going to do now, where could she possibly go to next?

The prospect of remaining a slave to her unpredictable abilities as well as continuing to be the cause of deadly "natural disasters" made her weep. Like Slade said, Terra truly had meant to help people, but it was her powers that always ended up controlling her, and causing destruction.

When Terra had cried all of her tears out, she signed in pity at her misfortune. No one could ever help her, she decided. No one. She would have to proceed with her nomadic lifestyle, to ensure that no one would trace the earthquakes back to her. She felt numb, feeling almost at ease as she accepted this fate. Her mind had become hazy as the weariness began to take its full effect on her. She curled up in a ball, and arranged her head on the hard stone in the most comfortable position possible. Her wet eyes suddenly heavier than ever, Terra began to drift off.

She was abruptly woken from her sleep when a sudden noise outside the cave alerted her. Yet as she peered into the darkness, there seemed to be nothing there, but clouds and faint stars. Perhaps she had imagined it, the perplexed girl wondered as she sat up and squeezed her knees close to her.

"Hello, Terra." She jumped as a figure came appeared, illuminated by the moon that revealed itself from the clouds. She gasped in astonishment- how had this man found her? Somehow Terra knew that he was smirking under his mask and, for some reason, her fear of him had weakened slightly. Terra supposed that some of the shock factor at just how… creepy he was had worn off after meeting him earlier. "Considering that you're sleeping in a cave, I can assume that the green Titan did in fact break his promise?" he asked with a hint of smugness in his voice.

"What's it to you?" Terra snapped, as she rose to her feet. She didn't want to discuss this with him. Not now. She didn't want him to be here; she just wanted to sleep away her troubles and forget all that had occurred. He placed a gloved hand on her shoulder in an effort to give the illusion of sympathy, but she yanked away.

"S-seriously... what do you even want?", she demanded, her voice cracking as she tried to suppress her tears. Her distress caused the walls of the cave to shake slightly, and some pebbles ascended a few inches above the ground. Why can't I figure out how to control it, why can't I get this right?

"Now, child... We don't want your 'home' to crumble, do we?" Slade said, as he inched even closer to her, uncomfortably invading her personal space. "That would be a shame… I can't imagine that you'd want to have another death on your hands," he mused, cruel as ever. The small rocks crashed to ground. Against her will, Terra began whimpering again. In response, the older man bent forward, slowly lifting her head up with one hand and wiped away a tear that was sliding down her cheek.

"My dear, I can assist you, if that's what you desire," he began, reminding her of the offer he had made. "I can help you solve this little problem of yours; ease the worries that constantly plague you. Complete control over your powers- that is what I can give you." Slade paused for a moment to let that sink in. "You certainly have the potential, you simply require someone to guide you along the way." He stopped again, and carelessly spun a lock of stringy golden hair around his finger for a few moments before continuing. "I can teach you Terra. Teach you things that no one else possibly could."

Terra nibbled on her bottom lip as she considered this. Why did Slade want to become her mentor? Hadn't the Teen Titans warned her of his treacherous ways? Perhaps they had been mistaken; maybe he wasn't as dreadful or evil as everyone had thought. After all, the masked man had sought her out in the desert despite her declining his proposition earlier. It wasn't as if she could trust the Titans anymore. Slade had been correct in predicting Beast Boy's actions, and now it seemed as if he genuinely wanted to help her. The scrawny girl hesitated, briefly remembering the previous teachers that had given up on her, because they had no idea how to approach her abilities. Somehow, Slade seemed to know what he was doing.

After pondering all this, the choice was clear: she would allow herself to be taken under Slade's wing for a brief period of time, at least until she was educated on how to work her powers. There was no harm in that she decided, none at all.

She drew in a sharp breath and opened her mouth to speak. "I… I'll accept your help," Terra declared with an air of false confidence. She quickly glanced down to stare at her boots, not wanting to meet his gaze as he leered at her with his intimidating eye. "Please…." she added. Terra wasn't sure how he was going to reply; she almost expected him to retract the offer.

"Yes," the man said after a long moment. "You will become my apprentice and learn all that is required to transform you into the diamond that you truly are," Slade told her, alluding to their earlier encounter in the mine. Relief flooded through her and Terra relaxed as she realized that if he really could help her, she would be free from the curse of her powers. No more hurting anyone, she thought. No more guilt.

As Terra looked up, she realized that Slade had walked out and was already a considerable distance away. "Wait!" she cried as she rushed out of the cave.

"Are you coming?" he asked, turning to face her. He was forcing her to finalize her decision.

Terra nodded eagerly, and raced after the man like a loyal puppy. Blindly she followed him, unknowing to the fact that she had just sold her soul.