Just a short oneshot that popped into my head the other night.

Blood Brothers

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;

For he to-day that sheds his blood with me

Shall be my brother

William Shakespeare- Henry V


Cyborg stepped out from around the corner, his gun trained down the corridor. He remained still at the intersection for a moment, his eyes sweeping every patch of darkness for an unseen threat. Lowering his weapon, he motioned with his hand. Beast Boy emerged from behind him, bent low to the ground as he maneuvered around his friend to cover their advance. The two crept slowly through the underground maze, the barrels of their weapons tracking back and forth along the hallway before coming to an obstruction. Opening the door, Beast Boy slowly pushed his gun through the gap, using the rusty metal as a shield against any potential ambush. Nodding to Cyborg, the two passed through the doorway before slamming and locking it behind them.

"Think this is the place, Cy?" The green boy asked as he lowered his weapon and looked around. His companion's eyes swept the floor and he grinned.

"I sure do, just take a look at the goodies they left for us!" Holstering his assault rifle, he ran ahead to the ammunition stockpile and began rummaging through the available firearms. Beast Boy stood to the side, covering them as Cyborg searched for a replacement weapon.

"Aww, yea. This little baby's gonna bust some heads!" Beast Boy looked over and slapped his forehead in annoyance.

"Dude, the G18? What do you think you're going to kill using that thing?"

Cyborg looked insulted. "Come on man, this is enclosed quarters, something powerful at close range is just what we need!"

"Uhh, strong at close range, huh? Something like… oh I dunno, this maybe?" Beast Boy waved a shotgun over his head to emphasize his point.

"Yea, yea, you go ahead and see what happens. I'll be sure to come rescue your butt from anyone more than five feet in front of you."

Beast Boy rolled his eyes as he hefted an AK-47. "Look, dude I'm not trying to tease you or anything, but I just think you could do a lot better than that. Come on Victor, take the Vector if you want something that throws a ton of lead into the air," he joked, locking in a magazine.

"Ha ha ha. Like I said, worry about your own gear GARFIELD," Cyborg shot back as he braced himself against one of the walls.

Beast Boy stepped in next to him, and the smile faded from his lips. The two boys locked eyes, their expressions grim.

"You ready for this?"

Cyborg nodded. "Take out the wall bro."

Placing a charge against the stone, Beast Boy pressed himself flat against the wall, his eyes locked on Cyborg as his fingers began the countdown.

'3'

'2'

'1'

"CLEAR!"

The explosion's blast rang out through the corridors as the wall caved inwards, throwing enemy soldiers to the ground. The two stepped into the breach, gun barrels arcing upwards as they sighted in their targets. Muzzle flashes lit up the walls and gunfire added to the echoing din that filled the locker room.

Beast Boy's arms shook as the rifle bucked in his hands, rounds spraying across the room. A dry click came from the weapon as his clip ran dry, and he dropped into a crouch as he began to reload.

The clip was sliding home when a red beam crossed his vision. His eyes snapped to the left to see reinforcements taking position on the catwalks above, laser sights angling down towards them.

"Cy, we got tangos up above!" The older teen nodded and ducked into cover behind a bank of lockers. Beast Boy crouched on the opposite side of the room, exposing his back to the deploying soldiers as he looked out from his cover. Above him, the soldiers had finally moved into firing position, and their laser sights were fixed directly on Cyborg. Aiming down his scope, Beast Boy pulled the trigger.

A rapid series of deafening cracks came from the muzzle, and sparks and blood flew as the line of soldiers was riddled with bullets. Ahead of him, Cyborg lay prone on the floor, his own gun blazing. Beast Boy listened as the return fire began to taper off, before finally ending. Risking a glance behind him, he grinned at the now empty floor.

Flashing his partner a thumbs up, Cyborg leapt to his feet and advanced towards the next shower. A pair of guards stepped into view, their weapons lifting to fire. Each boy put a single round into their foreheads and casually stepped over their corpses.

A sudden barrage of gunfire greeted them as they emerged into the area, soldiers already positioned on the upper catwalks and firing into the shower. Beast Boy and Cyborg raced to the walls, dodging in and out of cover as they tried to engage the threats above them.

Throwing his assault rifle to the ground, Cyborg whipped the G18 from his belt. Sidestepping from the lockers, he swept his arm across the catwalk, sending the soldiers ducking back into cover. He leapt forward to give himself some breathing room, only to find a soldier stabbing the butt of a rifle into his face.

Cyborg's vision flashed red, and he stumbled back as the soldier swung again. Though his vision was blurred and hazy, he lashed out with a backhanded knife swing, catching the soldier in the chest and dropping him in a spray of blood. A flash of movement came from his right, and he looked up to see a wave of reinforcements spreading out from the exit. Working quickly, he yanked the pin from a frag grenade, hurling it into the group, but the enemy soldiers were already firing.

Beast Boy grimaced as his shotgun slammed back into his shoulder, the recoil overwhelming as he fired off two more rounds. The soldiers were knocked off their feet by the power of the shots, their limp bodies crashing against the wall and floor. An explosion rang out behind him, and he turned in time to see a group of men blown into the air. His eyes widened as he looked across the room. Where was Cyborg?

Sprinting through the gunfire and smoke, Beast Boy made his way back to where Cyborg had last been seen. He fired again and again, his shells dwindling down to nothing as he carved a path through the enemy reinforcements to his friend.

Cyborg lay on his back, one arm trying to push himself off the ground as the other clutched his pistol. He chose his targets carefully, striving to ensure that each shot hit true as a dull roar began to fill his ears. A form raced through the smoke, and his gun was nearly centered on its chest before he realized that Beast Boy had come back for him.

"What are you doing man? You could've made it…" Beast Boy laughed and fired his last shell into a soldier closing in from behind.

"No way Cy! We're finishing this together, or not at all remember?" Cyborg had no chance to answer before a metal projectile thudded to the floor between them. Their eyes widened in shock, and Beast Boy fell into a crouch to sweep the grenade up in his hands. Spinning on his heel, he drew his arm back to throw, and the grenade exploded.

The boys collapsed to the ground, their vision fading to black as a voice rang out in their ears.

"Mission failed, we'll get 'em next time!"

Cyborg muttered and shook his controller in frustration. "Stupid Veteran difficulty! Why don't they just do us a favor and have us die right when the level starts up?"

Beast Boy leaned back into the couch, his lips curling up into a smile. "Told ya that G18 wasn't gonna do us any good!" Cyborg's answer was a pillow to his head.

"Man, why didn't you just keep running! You were into the last room, one flashbang to the riot shield guys and you could've been home free."

Beast Boy shook his head. "Come on Cy, remember what we decided when we started the Spec Ops? Finish the mission together! Even if we have to retry it a hundred times, we gotta stick together on these."

The metal teen sighed. "Fine, fine. I'd just rather not repeat that mess with Body Count, where we had to play that one level for nearly two hours to get it finished, you know?"

Beast Boy grinned. "I gotcha dude! So what do you want to try now? I vote for Homeland Security."

As the mission loaded, the two friends once again lost themselves in the fast paced action of video gaming, unaware of the third presence now leaning over the couch and observing them.

"Ahem."

Beast Boy screamed as a voice came from behind, and he tried to spin around, only to fall off the couch and onto his back, pointing his controller like a gun at the intruder. Cyborg nearly joined him on the floor as he doubled over laughing.

Robin lifted an eyebrow. "Nice reflexes Beast Boy, but if you don't mind, I'd like to know what you two have planned for the day."

Beast Boy pulled himself back onto the couch, shifting his attention between Robin and virtual warzone still raging on the TV screen.

"Nothing much Rob, just a little gaming session, you know? Keeping us sharp, like a different kind of training almost!"

Robin's gaze turned to Cyborg. "Is that so? And just how is this…" Cyborg's screen flashed red as an RPG shot slammed into the wall beside him. "Helping your crime-fighting skills in even the slightest way?"

"That's easy!" Beast Boy's grin reached from ear to ear. "We're building our cooperation and communication abilities. By fighting these not real people on here, we're practicing our skills at working together without risking our safety or innocent lives!" He quickly rounded a corner and opened fire on the group advancing towards Cyborg, dropping three soldiers and sending the others ducking into a building.

Robin had to admit that Beast Boy's logic was sound. While it wasn't nearly as intense or critical as one of their missions, this did seem to provide his teammates with the opportunity to improve their teamwork.

"So, has it been working?"

Beast Boy turned completely around to look Robin in the eyes. "Dude, it's working awesome! Me and Cy are the masters here, a tag-team machine that every bad guy should fear!" He turned back to Cyborg, and the two exchanged a high-five.

"Be advised, Hunter Two-One. Enemy drone has noticed you, advise seeking cover, over!"

"Ack! Run BB, run!" The two leaned close to the screen, furiously tapping buttons as they rushed to save themselves from annihilation.

A loud whooshing sound came from the speakers, and a massive explosion threw dust and smoke into the air to their right. The boys continued running, another explosion crashing down in the midst of the enemy soldiers.

"Booyah!" Cyborg yelled. "Predators for everyone!" They were almost into the building; safety from the missiles was in sight when…

The final missile plunged downwards, catching the two at the door to the restaurant. The screen instantly grayed as their characters were launched into the air, and the familiar game over screen appeared.

Robin had to hold back a laugh. "Nice hustle there guys, but in my experience you tend to have better luck if you scatter when explosives are dropping all around you."

Cyborg stuck out his tongue. "You say what you want, but we know that you're really afraid that we're just too awesome for you to handle, and that if you paired up with one of us on a mission you'd just miss out on all the glory!"

"Well, my advice would be for you guys to practice just a little bit more. Thanks for that demonstration of your skills though, I'll make sure Star or Raven is the one watching my back from now on. No offense, just seems safer that way."


Not my best work, but I wanted to try a quick story focusing on Beast Boy and Cyborg, don't see too many of those around. Hope everyone enjoyed it, read and review to let me know what you thought!

PS- I highly doubt it's a mystery to anyone, but was it pretty easy to tell what game it is they're playing?