Author's Note: Welcome, friends and neighbors, to 'The Call: Part 2,' the second piece of 'The Call' saga. If you haven't by now, I highly recommend reading 'The Call: Part 1.' Otherwise, you're gonna get lost, and these are some dark woods to be stuck in. For those still here from 'The Call: Part 1,' welcome back. I hope you enjoy how the story continues.
For those that haven't read it, here's the link to 'The Call: Part 1.' .net/s/5989568/1/The_Call_Part_1
As I said before, all locations, characters, and back-stories relating to Teen Titans are the property of Warner Bros. Entertainment, DC Comics, etc.
Cthulhu, the Great Old Ones, the Elder Gods, and all other some such were created by H.P. Lovecraft in the seminal tale 'The Call of Cthulhu' originally published in 1928.
I own neither.
/
Chapter 1
'Roof-Top Rumble'
/
"They worshipped, so they said, the Great Old Ones who lived ages before there were any men, and who came to the young world out of the sky. Those Old Ones were gone now, inside the earth and under the sea; but their dead bodies had told their secrets in dreams to the first men, who formed a cult which had never died...hidden in distant wastes and dark places all over the world until the time when the great priest Cthulhu, from his dark house in the mighty city of R'lyeh under the waters, should rise and bring the earth again beneath his sway. Some day he would call, when the stars were ready, and the secret cult would always be waiting to liberate him..."
-Inspector John Raymond Legrasse, on his interview with Old Castro, a Cthulhu Cultist.
/
"Now, Robin. KILL… YOUR …FRIENDS!" Blood cried in triumph.
At Blood's command, the former leader of the Teen Titans launched himself into the air, somersaulting his body into a kick.
Terra and Star dove sideways in opposite directions, narrowly dodging the steel-tips of Robin's boots. He landed, and his gaze settled on Star. His eyes narrowed as he started to turn towards her. Quick as a flash, Terra spun and drove an elbow towards his ribs.
The Boy Wonder anticipated her attack and deftly caught her elbow in an iron clasp. Terra barely had time to brace herself before she was flipped onto her back.
Calling on training that she hadn't used in years, she instantly kipped up and dodged his follow-up punch. She swung her leg beneath his own, intending to trip him, but her eyes widened as his legs locked on hers, trapping her. Her vision became a field of stars as his punch connected with her face, knocking her to her back once again.
Star, still in shock, placed a restraining hand on his shoulder, holding back a follow-up punch. "Dick… please. Do not do this."
His head turned, revealing his red-tinted eyes.
Blood was in full control.
He released his grip on Terra's leg and swung a high kick at Star's face. She pulled back, and he launched a volley of furious blows. Star dodged them each perfectly, the shocked look never leaving her face.
Terra quickly got to her feet, coughing. 'Damn you, T…' She thought. Her memories of her combat training were still as fresh as ever, but T had neglected any kind of physical training in the three years she'd had control of Terra's body.
Incredible but true, the mind was willing, but the body was not.
She saw Star catch Robin's next punch… and simply let him go to try again. "STAR! HE'S UNDER BLOOD'S CONTROL! YOU HAVE TO FIGHT BACK!" She yelled.
If Star had heard or understood her, she gave no sign. She merely continued to dodge and parry Robin's attacks.
Cursing under her breath, Terra held out her hand and began to summon a boulder to help her join the fight… and then she saw Blood.
He was standing off to the side, that sick, sadistic smile still on his face; the same smile he'd worn as he had tried to strangle her.
It was probably the same smile from when he'd butchered Titans East and tried to kill Gar.
Gar…
She forgot about Star and Robin. Blood had to pay.
She sprinted at him. He was so engrossed in the lover's quarrel that he didn't see her until she was right on top of him. She felt a small touch of pride as his smile vanished. She tackled him full on, spearing him off his feet. They rolled along the tower's roof, both trying to gain the upper hand.
Blood stopped them, his body hovering over hers. "So, I see your powers are back. My Master will be quite pleased with this little development."
She bared her teeth at him. "How about this little development?" With that, she brought her knee straight into his groin. His eyes bugged out, and she rolled them… right over the roof's edge.
'Okay. I definitly could've thought this one out better…' She thought as gravity exerted it's pull on her.
/
Star watched Terra and Blood topple over the roof's edge. "TERRA!" She cried. Her attention left Robin for the briefest second… which was all he needed.
His foot connected solidly with her face, rippling flesh with the force the metal exerted upon her. For a moment, she was airborne.
The next second, he was on her.
Before she could topple to the ground or regain her wits, he launched a multi-fisted strike into her mid-section, not slowing down the rapid fire punches until he saw her cough blood. He swung next with his full torso, this time connecting the back of his fist with the un-kicked side of her face. She slammed into the wall of a nearby maintenance shed, cracking the thick concrete.
Star gasped as he followed the impact with a knee to her gut that knocked the air from her lungs. Before she could even think of recovering, his hand was closed around her throat in a grip like steel. She grabbed at him, but his other hand deftly grabbed both hands and pinned them to the wall above her. Her body began to scream for air, not letting her concentrate nearly enough to gather her energy.
"Dick… Dick… please…" She choked on the words. Even as blackness came for her, she couldn't believe that all this was happening. 'It's all a dream.' She thought desperately. Dick wouldn't do this. And there was no way that Titans East had been butchered like that, especially by such an enemy as Brother Blood. 'That's right, it's all a dream. Soon, I'll wake up and everything will be alright…'
As he felt her body starting to go slack, a smile tugged at Robin's lips.
Star watched it grow until it was fully realized. The sight of it was enough to forcefully pull her back into the land of the living.
It was Blood's smile.
Righteous anger flooded through her like hot water, setting her organs on fire. Her skin began to draw in available oxygen, a Tameranian adaptation for space travel. Her mind began to clear…
This simply was not going to happen.
This wasn't the same young hero who had swept her off her feet, who had shown her what it meant to share your heart with someone.
This was the young man who had taken her heart and stepped on it, the same man who hadn't talked to her in three years. The same man who had punched her in the face for standing by her friend.
What on Earth was she so afraid of? If Blood had selected Robin for a pawn believing that Star would not be able to attack… well, he was certainly in for a surprise.
"D…D…" She tried to force out.
Robin leaned forward until their noses were touching. "Last words?"
Robin's voice, but Blood's words.
Her eyes flashed open, revealing the glowing green that had been growing there. "Don't blink."
Her eye-beams flashed out and struck him full on in his corneas. His vision became one pulsing screen of emerald light. He cried out in and fell to the ground holding his pain filled eyes. He looked up just as her boot connected with his chin, sending him flying backwards. He hit, hard, five feet away and quickly jumped to his feet. One hand rubbed his eyes clear while the other inspected his jaw. It wasn't broken, but it hurt like hell. His vision cleared as he looked at her.
She stood now, her eyes and hands blazing with her star energy. Her face was set in resolute seriousness. Her body was tensed, ready to spring at his first movement. She wasn't in shock anymore, that was for damn sure.
"You bitch, you could've burned my eyes out." The tone was vindictive, not at all the Dick she knew.
"And yet I didn't, because I know you're still in there somewhere, Dick." She allowed herself a small smile. "But as long as you're like this, we might as well use our time wisely. After all, I've been looking to beat some sense into you for years."
/
Terra and Blood fell from the roof, plummeting like two stones toward the ground below. Blood grasped at her, but she pushed him away and sorted out the situation.
This was going to end one of two ways. One, they were falling towards the ocean in which case she was screwed.
The other option was that they were falling to the training grounds, in which Blood would be the screwed party.
She looked down and smiled. The good, solid ground was rushing to meet them.
She used the G-forces to rotate herself backwards and reared back her legs. With a savage cry she let go with a huge double piston kick that sent Blood flying away. From the looks of his face, he was still in pain from her little knee attack.
She hoped he felt it all the way down.
Her mission for the moment accomplished, she quickly focused on the ground beneath her. Her eyes lit bright yellow as a swirling tornado of dirt and stone rose up to catch her in their comforting breeze. Her body slowed to a halt just as she reached the bottom. Her eyes faded and the tornado dissipated. She tensed as her body landed on the ground proper, ready for Blood's counter-attack.
Nothing.
Her eyes flicked across the scene, looking for the deranged psychic. He was nowhere to be found.
"Damn. Must've kicked him harder than I thought." She mused as she relaxed a bit.
A branch broke to her left and she spun, ready to fight.
Nothing. Nothing at all.
She took a deep breath. 'Whoa, getting my powers back has really made me jumpy.' She started towards the source of the sound and pulled apart the bushes there.
Blood's cloth robes sat in a neat pile. They didn't appear to be any worse for the wear, and there wasn't a drop of blood on them. Or on the surrounding leaves.
"The hell is going on here?" She said to no one.
For the briefest instant, she could feel something crawling on her leg. Absent-mindedly, she swatted at it.
Crippling pain swept through her entire body and made her gasp. The pain faded in only a second, but it was quickly followed by a horrible numbness. She collapsed, still breathing, but unable to move.
She detected movement on the ground and watched as a large, flesh colored spider crawled away from the direction of her legs. It was a grotesque, hairless thing that was at least the size of a dinner-plate.
'Or my face.' She thought, trying to shudder. But, of course, she couldn't even do that.
As though reading her mind, the spider headed towards her face and came eye to eye with her.
Both of it's staring eyes were blood red. It's mandibles, the horribly large fangs retracting, curved upward in a very un-spider-like smile.
Brother Blood.
The arachnid scuttled away from her and into Blood's waiting robes. There was a momentary metamorphosis and suddenly Blood himself was standing above her. "You know, I wasn't absolutely sure that would work." He said, that sick smile back on his face.
'My God,' she thought. 'He took Gar's power.'
"Yes, I did." He chuckled, reading her mind. "And that spider-form I just used to poison you is a very rare breed I used to teach to my students. It's venom starts with incredible pain, then paralysis, and finally unconciousness. The spider, much like myself, enjoys live prey."
As he stooped towards her, Terra's last thought was that even with her powers back, she'd been absolutely useless.
She just hoped Star was faring better.
/
Star was having the best therapy anyone could ask for.
'And to think how much Gar's cost the city.' She thought as her fist connected with Dick's face, sending him flying another few feet. Since over-coming her original feelings, Dick hadn't stood a chance. Even as tough as he was, he was still just a human going up against an alien super-heroine.
It was hardly even fair at this point.
Still, after every solid blow she landed, she made it a point to check his eyes and see if he was still under Blood's control. She was also doing her best to hold back her full strength. So far, the only noticeable injuries Dick had were a broken nose and a bloody lip.
It was still strange, though. She and Dick had sparred before, in happier times, and he had always been able to keep up. It seemed that Blood wasn't sure how to open Dick's full potential.
Or maybe Dick still had some control.
'But Dick hates me.' She thought. 'Why would he hold back?'
Her train of thought was de-railed as he managed to stick a solid blow to her forehead, brushing her antennae. The sensitive organ sent a shock through her not unlike a cat's whisker being pulled by a toddler, causing her anger flared once again. She caught his next kick and held tight to his foot. She rose into the air and began to spin. Around and around she went, holding tight to his boot. She watched as the G-forces began to pull on his face and his arms were flailing and straining away from his body. When she felt he'd had enough, she let him fly.
He hit the surface and slid across the roof, coming to a stop several feet away. After a few moments, he stood on shaking legs, struck a fighting pose, then fell to his knees and vomited.
"Feeling like yourself yet?" She asked in a mocking tone.
He looked up, wiping his mouth. His eyes were still glowing red.
"Damn." Star hissed, uncharacteristically using an Earthling curse word. She made a fist and charged it with enough star energy to knock him unconscious. It was time to end this.
But Dick wasn't moving to attack. He was standing still, his head tilted slightly to the side, as though he were listening to someone whisper into his ear. He nodded. "Yes, my Master." He intoned emotionlessly. He reached into his utility belt and pulled out a bird-a-rang.
Star watched in horror as he brought the razor-sharp blade to his throat.
"Cthulhu lives." He said, and made to cut his throat open.
Star crossed the distance between them in the blink of an eye. Just as the razor cut the skin, she caught his hand, forcefully pulling in the opposite direction. A single drop of blood slid down his neck. They strained against each other, neither one giving an inch. Somehow, he was able to resist her grip even more so than usual.
"Let... me... die. It is the will of Brother Blood and Dread Lord Cthulhu." He said through gritted teeth.
"It is not my will." She growled back.
"Why are you doing this? I hurt you. I hurt you badly. You should be glad to see me die."
"Robin… you…. You hit me…"
"Stay away from me…"
She shook her head and stared into his eyes. Along with those last words, there seemed to be a flicker of something behind the red. "If you died, Dick, I… I don't know what I'd do."
They remained locked in their stale-mate, one trying to unwillingly commit suicide, and the other trying to stop him, though she didn't know why.
Minutes passed, or perhaps hours. Neither gave an iota to the other.
And then a hand appeared on Dick's head.
"What…" He started, then he screamed as a wave of dark energy flowed through him, sending his body into spasms. The bird-a-rang fell to the ground with a CLINK and remained stuck in the concrete. Dick himself fell to his knees, revealing the hooded empath behind him.
"That should take care of that." Raven noted, removing her hand from his scalp. The energy faded and Dick fell fully to the ground, evidently unconscious.
"What happened?" Star asked, stooping down and stroking the hair from his eyes.
"Blood can release his mind control whenever he wants. It looks like he wanted to send a message through Robin instead of letting him go. He'll be fine once he wakes up."
Relieved, but still confused about her feelings, Star nodded.
Raven knelt next to her. "Come on, let's get him downstairs."
Star had just lifted Dick onto her shoulders when a very pale green dove fluttered from the hole in the roof and hit the ground.
Raven cursed. "I told Slade to keep him down there…"
The bird had already morphed into a very pale-looking Gar. He sat up and looked around groggily, then focused on the two girls. "Now, I lost a lot of blood and my vision's not too great right now, but I see a red-head and a black-haired girl, but no blondes. Guys, where's Terra?"
Raven and Star shared the same shocked look before scanning the roof-top. "Where is Terra? And where is Blood?" Raven asked.
The answer hit Star like a ton of bricks. In the midst of battle, she had completely forgotten. Her eyes drifted to the roof's edge, and Gar and Raven's followed.
"No…" Gar whispered.
/
Author's Note: Uh-Oh, I wonder what'll happen next. Oh wait, I already know. Hee Hee…
Until next chapter, remember; a little review never hurt anybody.