Chapter One: These Are His Reasons
Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans, nor do I claim rights to any of the affiliated characters.
Warnings/Notes: A re-write of my story "Lessons in Life," since the previous story lacked the direction I intended. Please note that I am not familiar with DC comics…as in any of them. Therefore, background included in the comics will not co-exist with the background of the characters provided (created) in this story.
It was not a matter of prejudice; it was a matter of principle.
From their first encounter it had been about more than a victory. He was an old man, had been an old man more years than even he had intended, and he was tired of gathering material things, leaching the frivolous power of wealth.
He had tried several avenues, in several countries, hoping to solicit the company and perspective of young minds he could one day call his, but for one reason or another always came up empty. Stretching the bounds of his own mortality had left him with a humbling ache for something more than his material and political existence, but had also burdened him with the fiercely meticulous nature of a perfectionist. He had investments, from which he acquired fortune, from which he acquired prowess, from which he acquired a striking amount of power.
(Because the greatest victories are not ones of physicality at all.)
Before his move to Jump City he had fostered several children. The part of him molded by his military service and business ventures wanted someone with drive, ambition, and goals. The part of him that yearned for a sense of belonging and fulfillment sought a child who would still make him feel needed. He was a walking contradiction wrongly pegged as a man searching to pass down his legacy, rather than a bachelor looking to create a legacy.
And then it happened. Frustrated with his many failed attempts at finding what modern society had made to look so simple, he relocated to California. Somewhere amidst the sense of anger and entitlement stirred by culture shock, he found himself smack in the middle of the fray that was Jump City.
Within weeks he knew their names and faces…within months, their ages, family history, and address. Not one to be denied what he wanted, and unable to successfully and discreetly foster them by conventional means, he set out to subdue them.
As each attempt dealt him failure, he battled with the mounting obsessiveness settling in his gut. Their faces showed up in the news, and as time wore on there was no question These were his children, and he would do whatever was necessary, legal or otherwise, to see that they knew it.
It was January. Asphalt shone silver against a cadence of winter rain. The snow from previous days was doing its best to melt, with little success, leaving puddles of blackened slush in its aftermath. Streets were adorned with thin, sleek sheets of ice that few were bold enough to brave in their fancy cars- or with their many children.
Christmas had passed, and New Years, leaving Jump City a shadow of its former self. Most families were tucked away in warm homes, with crime non-existent to what it had been weeks before. The Titans had begun to relax as well, to give themselves some downtime after the plethora of Christmas chaos.
"You're gonna pay for that ya' little grass stain!" Cyborg snarled, furiously pounding his controller.
"Only if you can catch me!" Beast Boy taunted as he dodged his friend's oncoming car.
Raven rolled her eyes from her spot on the couch, turning the page of her novel and re-focusing her attention to the story at hand. Starfire had made herself at home in the kitchen not far behind her friends, and was concocting something that smelled of peppermint and pipe tobacco.
Over the yelling of the competitive boys in front of her, Raven picked up on the hiss of water boiling over onto the stovetop, and took it as her cue to bury herself further into her book. She hoped then, that Starfire would not disturb her to ask if she would like some of the mysterious Tameranian cuisine. Robin, who was currently still showering in an attempt to recover from the latest stankball showdown, would more than likely be exempt as well.
"Friends!" The redhead exclaimed, twirling about gaily, "I wish you to try the Tameranian delicacy of Gorb-shnock!" She continued, lurching her pot of triumph toward the assembly in the living room. She was met, at first, with silence. "I shall tempt you by adding the Cheese Whiz, yes?"
"Not now Star!" Cyborg called back to her as he passed BB around a sharp turn, shooting into the lead.
"Ahh MAN!" The changeling shouted, standing to full height and tapping at his controller in a sudden fit of anxiety, "I was trying to make a record!" He whined as his friend finished in first place.
"Too bad, so sad!" His opponent cried, throwing a fist into the air to celebrate his victory.
"Don't tell me Cyborg stomped you again?" Robin questioned from his perch at the bottom of the stairs, tossing his wet towel into a basket of dirty laundry.
Beast Boy whimpered, bitterly turning off the TV. "He cheated!" The smaller boy exclaimed in an attempt to nurse his pride.
"I did not." Cyborg replied, dismissing the notion.
"Friends!" Starfire piped up again, hopefully this time. "Gorb-shnock?"
The four Titans in question looked hesitantly from their friend, to the oozing purple liquid in her hands, and groaned. "Maybe we should order pizza?" Robin offered with a small smile, "We can get whatever you want." He hoped the bribe was enough to spare her feelings.
The alien paused in thought for a moment before agreeing, "Gorb-shnock is most delightful when cold." She concurred, attempting to find room for it in the fridge.
"What're we gonna do?" Beast Boy whispered pleadingly.
Robin shrugged his shoulders while Raven shut her book. "It can't be that bad." Cyborg offered, but the others shot him a look that said otherwise.
"Maybe Cyborg can throw it out like he did my Tofurky!" Beast Boy hissed in a tone that was no longer a whisper.
"What?" Starfire called, pausing for a moment to address him.
"Nothing!" The four replied in unison.
The fifth Titan stared for a moment before smiling and turning back to the task at hand. Noxious smells overwhelmed her and she coughed briefly, ignoring them. This was not uncommon for their fridge after all. She winced as she shoved something particularly slimy aside and gasped once she had cleared enough space. But as she did so her vision began to cloud. She coughed a bit more violently now, abandoning the dish to rub at her eyes. It was to no avail. She fell limply to the floor, the purple stew spilling out around her. Before the other titans could reach her they too fell victim to the awful smell. The tower spun around them as they lay in their final few moments of consciousness, dizzy and disoriented. By the time they realized what was happening it was too late to avoid capture: and they fell helplessly into sleep.
The five awoke to a fog pressing at the corners of their world, and when they tried to stretch the sleep from their bones, found themselves restrained. Robin was the first to open his eyes, bile creeping into his throat at the familiarity of his surroundings. "Titans!" He called out, stopping himself before the word "go" could pass his lips.
"You gotta be kidding me!" Cyborg grunted as he fought against his restraints. "This guy again!"
"Now, now my duckies," the villain in question chirped, appearing haphazardly, "We must not forget to mind our betters." He chided, wagging a disapproving finger at them.
"What'd you want this time, to make us all old?" Griped the half-metal man.
Mod slid the end of his cane under the boy's chin, nearly gagging him, "Are you hard of hearing?" He spat, instantly irritated. "You lot are here to learn, and its learning you shall do." He continued in an all-too-knowing tone.
"You're wrong, we've defeated you twice and when we get out of here we'll take you down!" Robin challenged.
The redhead paced the floor with his cane now at his side, "And that, my dear, is where you're wrong." He corrected, "This time you won't be leaving, I'll be sure of that."
"What do you want?" Raven edgily inquired.
Mod quickly turned his attention to the brunette, tapping the end of his cane roughly against her cheek, "All in good time love." He replied, taunting and slow. There was a long moment of silence as he raised his weapon into the air, allowing it to linger there for a moment before spinning it thrice and placing it back on the ground. "All in good time." He chuckled a bit as he turned his back to them.
"You children have run rough shot far too long." He began, turning again to face them.
"Maybe you should practice what you preach and learn to be a normal, law-abiding citizen!" Robin snapped, jerking his chair in an attempt to break his bindings.
"A law-abiding citizen, you say. Good lord boy, do you really have no idea who you're fighting or what you're fighting for when you attack people?"
"Protection!" Countered the younger, "From creeps like you."
"Child, I've lived long enough on this earth to warrant your respect, and one way or another I will have it. Among other things I am a twenty year navy veteran, I've worked harder for half of what I have than you will hope to in your entire life. It's about time you children learn a thing or two about how the real world works."
He knelt, smiling smugly down at the masked boy before pressing a button on the jeweled end of his cane, standing to full height in front of a projector that had descended from the ceiling. He clicked through slides of totaled cars, broken roads, and demolished town houses. Eventually continuing through bridges left in ruins, the subsequent traffic jams…petty villains temporarily subdued, and those of real threat walking freely about the streets, avoiding capture.
"For years you've let yourselves be played as fools by the government, by the people, and by the very villains you've put away." He straightened himself now; his aching knees no longer able to support his full weight. "You are pawns."
"You are wrong!" Starfire cried in outrage, "These are lies!"
"Believe what you want love." He replied calmly, narrowing his eyes to look at her, "But you've been used as free labor, by both the police force, and the criminals. Break-ins are a lot easier to accomplish when sensors and security cameras were destroyed in a previous power struggle. Police won't waste resources on a job someone else is willing to do. And as for the people you think you're saving…take a good, long look at them. Sure, they're safe with you lot around to put the bad guys away for 'em, but they lock their doors when you come running, if they could they'd shun you too, because who's to say when their home's the next to get caught in the cross-fire."
"Is there a point in all this?" Raven boldly questioned, locking eyes with the villain in front of her.
"Point?" He repeated, pinching her cheek roughly, "You are typical teenagers: young, bitter, and unable to see that there are people who care enough to want more than this for you." He provided, "You've wasted most of your lives taking care of others, and it's high time someone looked into taking care of you."
"Thanks." The empath replied coolly, "But I already have a father."
"Yeah!" Beast Boy exclaimed, "And we're no model citizens in Brit-world!" He continued, wriggling in search of an escape.
"Straighten up lad!" The elder ordered so sternly that Starfire jumped in her seat and Beast Boy immediately froze. "By the time I'm done with you, you'll have learned a thing or to about how to live." He paused here to give the youngest of the titans a sharp smack aside the head, "The right way." He added as the changeling moaned in protest. "You'll find something here that no one else can give you, if it kills me, I'll make sure of it." He continued, tapping his cane against the floor and sending them all through it.
The space that materialized was vast, white beds lined stark, white walls in a room with only one window and one door. "What is this?" Robin demanded as the five were released, and the exits sealed tightly.
"This," Mod began, gesturing to the area around him, "is your bedroom."
The teens exchanged a look of disgust before drawing nearer to one another. "Titans, GO!" Robin yelled, and on cue the five launched at their captor, who only smiled.
Cyborg was the first to stop himself: something was wrong, he felt lighter, weaker. Slowly he glanced down, grasping at the absence of metal. He curled both his hands into fists, feeling the warmth of skin against skin. "H…How?" He sputtered in disbelief.
The indignant, now less-than-super heroes received no answer. Mod sat down in the center of the room, and waited for them to quiet down.
"Jolly good!" He cooed to the silence, "We can finally begin…"
From their first encounter it had been about more than a victory.
Being old had its advantages, the biggest: experience enough to know that people with agendas carried guns – if they were ruthless – knives. People who worked in a team, unable to function properly as single units, and unwilling to kill under any circumstances, carried nothing more than secrets.
As any parent would, he intended to control them to keep them safe, and to teach them boundaries. But he also intended to establish a sense of trust, because, like it or not, they were his and their secrets were his.
Every. Single. One.