Chapter 2

In their time away from home, Jump City had certainly changed; the Titans noted that most of the restaurants and stores in a certain mall in the eastern district were boarded up. Because the last image on the computer had shown the monster sprinting near a coffeehouse in this shopping center, the Titans were attempting to find it among all the food markets. While locating the coffee joint was one thing, searching for the white monster, nonetheless, was proving to be a different matter entirely.

"What's the big deal? Why do we keep getting snubbed?" Beast Boy asked. "Just come out already!" he demanded of the creature, waving his arms around as if that would catch its attention.

"It's not going to listen to you like a pet dog," Raven said sarcastically, as they continued peering into each of the businesses. "If so, you could simply order it to go home, A.K.A. leave Earth and never return."

As if on cue, however, a huge brown monster abruptly emerged through the wooden wall between two adjoining stores still in business, causing employees and customers alike to begin screaming and shrieking as they fled.

Undaunted by the chaos unfolding, Robin immediately began whacking the creature with his staff and then started hurling ammunition discs, creating large holes on its wooden body as it plummeted into a brick fireplace display in the adjacent shop.

Starfire got in on the act and shot starbolts at the creature, causing part of its arm to splinter apart. However, her glory didn't last long, because as the brown beast rose, it began to heal its crippled limb, by not only reabsorbing the wooden fragments but by also incorporating the bricks into its makeup.

"That ain't fair! How're we ever gonna win when it can morph like that?" Cyborg complained as he half-heartedly fired at the creature several times. As if the blows could feel his discouragement, no damage appeared on the monster's body other than a couple small chunks of rubble having pitifully chipped off.

Beast Boy, fluttering above as a hummingbird, now tried his hand at afflicting harm and dropped down as a rhinoceros onto it, finally causing it to collapse onto the floor. But this didn't seem to render anything more than momentarily dizzying it. So Beast Boy, now posing as a Tyrannosaurus-rex, chomped down on its wobbling head while ferociously shaking the monster from side to side. In retaliation, the creature reached up, attempting to open his dinosaur jaws; but Beast Boy kept his mouth in a vice-like grip, his teeth grinding away on the thing's brick head. The duo of Starfire and Cyborg, feeling strength in numbers, joined in by shooting innumerable rounds at it.

Finally giving up on being released by prying open Beast Boy's jaws, the creature struck its foe with a seemingly casual fling of its arm, knocking him sideways. "It's a good thing I don't eat meat," Beast Boy joked weakly as he changed back into his human form, "since I hardly have any teeth left to chew with!"

If she weren't so critical about Beast Boy's humor, Raven might have wanted to chuckle at his remark. But Raven being Raven, she promptly got down to business. Taking control of one of the store's long steel rods used for reaching merchandise placed high up, Raven doggedly slammed the heavy metal pole down over the beast, raining blow after blow upon it until the creature fell once more.

Seemingly vulnerable, the monster dashed away in an attempt to escape the team's wrath by ducking out the door and scampering into a public restroom. The five superheroes, determined to achieve victory, raced after it; but upon arriving at the bathroom, the team was sorely disappointed when they noted nothing unusual inside. All the stalls appeared empty; but out of nowhere, the giant creature materialized from one of the black stall doors and swiftly dunked its foot in the toilet, its black form becoming transparent.

"Now wha' do we do?" Beast Boy groaned in disgust.

Robin, noting that one of the overhead ceiling lights looked as if it were being submerged in water, immediately pointed and ordered, "Starfire, shoot your starbolts; they'll act like electricity! Cyborg, do the same with your sonic cannon!"

In retaliation for revealing its whereabouts, the monster shot a deluge of water at Robin to temporarily silence him. But, the command had already been issued and the team was well underway of fulfilling his directives. In order for Cyborg and Starfire's assault to be successful, the rest of the team attempted to distract it. Enveloping the entire sink, Raven ripped it off the wall and flung it at the creature. As a wolf, Beast Boy endeavored to slice it with his claws, while Robin promptly rose and threw birdarangs its way. Unfortunately, every maneuver the other three Titans tried seemed to pass straight through its liquid form without wounding it. The good news, however, was that Cyborg and Starfire's offensive strike seemed to be having the desired effect on the monster's liquid form, because their high-voltage blasts were magnified due to the fact that water is a fantastic conduit for electricity.

Despite the drenching blasts of intense waterfalls being shot at the Titans, the creature appeared to succumb to their offensive, eventually plunging into the toilet bowl.

"Are we victorious?" Starfire asked hopefully.

Abruptly and unbeknownst to the team, the creature rose, its arms reaching up high. It was when sparks began to fly that the Titans realized that the creature had wisened up and commenced in securing its own source of electricity from the ceiling light. Sadly, it had outsmarted the team by learning from its mistake in real time; instead of allowing itself to be electrocuted, it had dawned on the creature to stop being the conductor and harness the nearest supply to fight fire with fire.

In a last-ditch effort, Beast Boy morphed into a gorilla and ripped an enormous chunk out of the floor. He threw it at the monster, which knocked it to the ground. Beast Boy's strike was in vain, however, as the creature ascended once again, but this time formed of concrete.

What material works against stone like electricity with water? Is there one? thought Robin. We need time to form a better game plan, but in the meantime... "Titans, retreat!" Robin commanded as he threw flash bombs and smoke pellets up, temporarily blinding their opponent as they dolefully fled back to Titans Tower to regroup.


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