Set after 'the beast within' set before 'birthmark'
A teen titans beastboy and raven fanfic, i do not own any right.
What if after being exposed to chemicals, beastboys abilities worsen, hiding this from his teammates until it was too late.
Jump city, the setting sun slowly drawing a blanket of darkness over the city, lights flickering on to illuminate the streets and buildings. The sound of the cars as they drive through the street, the sound of the amusement park and the bustling noise of the people as they went about their routines all too familiar. In an abandoned district, these sounds were not present, the buildings old, worn down, the windows boarded, paint and structures alike requiring just a strong enough breeze to cause the buildings to fall, leaflets visibly on lamp and sign posts, warning people to stay out of the buildings, announcing the plans of rebuilding from scratch and the sudden sound of explosions.
Cinderblock was running down the street, the sound of his heavy feet echoing through the empty buildings, grunting as green bolts of energy repeatedly struck around and against his back, starfire flying in the air, teeth clenched, eyes glowing, yelling with every throw of energy. Attempting to turn left, cinderblock was cut off as a dozen of starfires energy bolts pelted the ground, though he was unaware, she was leading him. Turning right and still heading along the street, abandoned cars on the roadsides but in his path struck aside, after several more turns his feet pushed down, grinding to a halt, feet partly dug into the concrete beneath. Before him stood the remaining four titans, a smirk on all but ravens face with starfire slowly lowering herself to the ground besides robin. "Looks like you took a wrong turn, Titans go!" He yelled out.
Cinerblock grumbled loudly, rising his arms to cover his face as starfire once again begun pelting his form with her energy bolts but as they stopped he reacted just in time, even for someone his size as beastboy in rhino form was a mere three meters away. Bringing his arms down, beastboys head colliding and pushing against the open palms intended on stopping him, beastboys charge did not halt however as cinderblocks feet dragged through the top layer of concrete beneath his feet and then dug down hard. His arms shot forward, allowing the slowed-down beastboys head to strike against his body, large concrete arms wrapped around the rhinos throat and with correct placing of his feet, swung the green creature back towards the group.
As the rest of the group attacked Cinderblock, beastboy hit the concrete hard, his large form skidding along the surface only stopped with the collision against another abandoned car. Head slowly lifting, looking towards the battle, cyborg was attacking with his sonic cannon, robin running passed him, Bo staff drawn and extended, readying to strike. Starfires attacks ceased as robin jumped towards cinderblock, attempting to raise his arms in defense, a black aura however grasping his arms and with the familiar chant of 'Azerath, metrion, Zynthos!' The large villain was pulled down to his knees, the ground cracking, raising his head just as Robin began striking repeatedly.
Beastboy attempted to stand up but his form would not move, holding back a groan of pain and attempted to change out of his Rhino form, his body began to blurr,change, when pain shot throughout his form and the transformation reverted into the rhino. Breathing heavily, raising himself slowly onto his feet, Beastboy attempted again, the same pain as before shot through him and even through the agony, his form blurred, bones, muscles and flesh snapping, shifting and reverting until he was in his human form. Sweat dripping from his brow, a look of terror on his green face, mouth gasping for breath as his whole body ached, on its hands and knees 'Not now, not now, not now," He whispered pleadingly beneath each heavy breath.
A month earlier...
"So...He was the one who hurt you right? Not me?" Beastboy said, his voice almost a whimper, sitting on the rocky shore of titan tower.
"He broke into the tower to attack you, and ended up attacking me too." Raven replied, grasping her still healing shoulder.
"Uuuuuurgh, i can't believe i ate meat. I acted like a jerk, I'm sorry." Beastboy turned his head slowly towards but then away from raven standing behind him.
"You weren't yourself." She again said calmly, trying to reassure the green titan.
"Cyborg says the Chemicals at the lab messed with my DNA..."
Over the last month, Jump city had been fairly safe, but as always villains tried to have their way and the Titans prevented them, though each fight seemed to be the same as usual, no one seemed to notice that beastboy was changing forms less and less often. Ever since that event, it was becoming harder for him to change his form back to his human self, the pain from shape-shifting that had become second nature to him was greater than normal, he was certain raven could sense his distress from some of her expressions and unusual amount of asking if 'he was alright', considering he had only heard her say this perhaps a half dozen times, at least three in the last month.
At the conclusion of each fight, Beastboy acted his usual self, the only change they noticed was that he seemed a little more tired than usual but knowing beastboy, they were not surprised. He hid his pain and distress, behind the facade of pranks, humorless jokes and bouncing around. The thought of telling them had crept into his mind but knowing the others, they would make him stay at the tower, pity him in some way, in fights he was already all but useless, having to hold back in his animal forms, not bringing out their true potential in fear, not for himself but for the sake of the people around him. So what would happen to him if he ended up not being to change at all? He would be an useless and probably soon after ex-titan.
His attention was snapped back to the current fight at the sound of a loud yell and grunt, Ravens body had struck against one of the abandoned buildings with the rests of the Titans still fighting cinderblock, none but him seemed to notice, see and hear, the wall raven was now laying before was cracking. Attempting to move, beastboy hissed under his breath, his left leg, something was wrong, it felt, broken, fighting through the pain, beastboy brought himself to his feet and begun running with a partial limp towards raven.
Jumping slightly forward, his form blurred, the result was not a wolf, cheetah or any kind of animal but beastboy again hitting the ground, yelling through clenched teeth from the pain coursing through his body. 'She is still so far away' he yelled at himself in anger and brought himself up, more pain made its presence aware as besides his leg, his shoulder felt dislocated, hardly able to move it. Pushing through the pain, attempting to get to her as the wall behind her was cracking more and more. "Come on!" He yelled out and jumped to change, but the result was the same, clutching at his sides, his ribs having not formed correctly, protruding from his skin, blood seeping into the uniform.
Raven slowly stirred, propping herself slowly onto her elbows, hands rubbing at her stomach which cinderblock had struck, not noticing her own peril. The wall looming over Raven as it's tilting continued and its descent unpreventable as Raven turned her head, gasping with wide eyes. "No!" He yelled out, his eyes shutting tightly...
The sound of his heartbeat echoed in the background, minutes seeming to pass inbetween the two beats of his heart. Beastboy was standing at the mouth of a tunnel, the sound of the jungle and the life within it audible behind him and while only darkness greeted him, he entered. The sound of the jungle drowned out, repeated beats, minutes apart, the sound of his heart, his eyes catlike, seeing in the darkness as he would in the light and then he halted.
At the end of the tunnel was a large metal door, last time he was here the door was solid, nothing wrong with it, now, outward dents visible along the height of the door, something had been striking it from the other side. Worse, there was ahole, the size of his own fist maybe but a hole still, through it he could feel it staring at him, a growl rumbling from the other side of the door. He never wanted to come here but his powers were failing him, his teammate and concidered friend, raven, in danger, he could not think of any of his forms which would get to her in time and be able to get her out of the way, even if he could, would he be able to change in his condition? This seemed to be his only choice.
The door slowly slid open with a loud strained creak, out of the darkness behind it stood the beast, growling, its pure white eyes glaring at boy before it. It wanted, should, have attacked but the way the boy was staring at it made it curious, both stood a mere meter apart, staring into one anothers eyes. "In my state now...and in the seeming future, i can't protect her, the one you...we...have..., its up to you." Beastboy spoke confidently, a twinge of regret in his voice. The beast simply staring at him, a smirk crossing its lips, the kind of smirk one friend gave the other when aggreeing to help as best he could, silence fell and blood splattered the cave floor.
Its eyes shot open, blank, no iris, nothing but white, its body suddenly grew, widening, lengthening in a blurr of green, no longer the broken body but that of the mighty creature known only as the beast was brought forth and as Raven lifted her hands in a vain attempt to protect herself from the wall, she was pushed aside.
Cinderblock finally fell to his stomach after being struck with several of Robins explosive disks, Robin smirking with victory, Cyborg shouting out his usual victory cry of 'buu-yeah!' when they turned to see where their friends were. Raven was laying on the floor, lifting her upper body, hand pressing to the ground for support. Staring with wide eyes at the pile or rubble, two meters away from her, where the wall of a two store building had come down.
Trying to crawl her way towards it, taken aback by the events, mind yet to catch up with her body, the others only having brief confusion on their faces before noticing a large green arm sticking out from the rubble. "Beastboy!" Robin yelled, with a gasp from Starfire and a shout from Cyborg. 'BB!' The three titans made their way to the rubble, throwing pieces aside, but as they uncovered their fellow Titan, something crept over their faces, was it fear? Concern? Disbelief?
"I believed that Friend Beastboy changed back when unconscious, no?" Star asked quietly, No one could answer, before them lay not the unconscious beastboy, but the unconscious beast.
Hey everyone, thanks for reading,
Anyway, this is the first of possibly many chapters in the first of three stories i have planned on writing. Your reviews of course, good or bad, will be a incentice for me to write the second chapter, i accept flaming, criticism, sarcastic comments, the lot. Please review and thanks again for reading!