Titans Reimagined #1: Starfall


Chapter 4: Titan's Dawn


Bruce Wayne scowled as he sat down behind his crime monitor with a large mug of coffee in one hand and a small plate of Alfred's famous Belgian waffles in the other.

A familiar black silhouette was waiting for him, leaning against the terminal with a smirk on her face. Barbara Gordon was clad in her bat-suit and watched him for a long moment before rolling her shoulder. "You're up late."

"Eleven is perfectly early for someone that works at night." Bruce said with a shrug before taking a bite of his waffle and tapping the monitors. "Why are you dressed already?"

"Oh, no reason in particular." Barbara said. "I thought I'd stop by and check in on you."

Bruce rolled his eyes and tapped the keys on the monitor. "So nothing big happened while I was asleep."

"Nothing in Gotham anyway." Barbara smirked. "Did you have some sort of deal with Dick? Catch the Ravager gang in a week or something?"

Bruce stopped and glared at her for a moment. "If I did?"

"I suggest you switch over to the regional news." Barbara stood and walked to the exit.

He scowled and tapped into the regional news feed. His eyes widened as the scroll at the bottom of the screen announced:

...The Ravager Gang, a group of ruthless bank robbers was captured by the NYPD this morning... Rumors persist of vigilante involvement in their capture...

"Already?" Bruce growled as he tapped the keys and quickly accessed the internet. Within minutes, he'd hunted down the police report and a security video. A growl slipped out from his throat and he pushed back from the terminal. "Alfred!"

"Master Bruce?" The cool voice of his butler said from the entrance of the bat cave. He glanced at him from over his spectacles and arched an eyebrow.

"I need to make a quick trip to New York." Bruce said. "Preferably before..."

The secure phone to the bat cave rang and Bruce froze. With a scowl, he picked up the receiver. "Hello?"

"The Ravager gang is in custody Batman, and I've got a lead on their arms supplier. I think we had a deal?" Robin's cool and collected voice came across the line.

"I just found out..." Bruce said with a scowl. "I'll start things moving, talk to Lucius..."

"Good..." Robin growled. "Just keep to the deal we made, alright?"

"I will... and Dick?" There was a long silence on the line as Bruce took a deep breath. "Good work."

"Thank you." Robin hung up and Bruce Wayne slowly dropped the phone onto the receiver.

"I take it that was Master Richard then?" Alfred said as he stepped down to the terminal and glanced at the news and security feeds. "You did not expect him to work so fast then sir?"

"No, I'm guessing he had help... but then I never told him that he couldn't get any." Bruce said before sitting back in the seat. "I promised to support his team if he got this done within a week."

"How long has it been sir?"

"Two days." Bruce grunted. He tapped a series of keys into the terminal and a holographic image of New York appeared. Buildings owned by the Wayne Enterprises were highlighted in yellow. He tapped in a series of keystrokes and leaned back.

A single building sat out in the middle of the bay north of Long Island. It looked vaguely like an apartment complex or office building but even from the wire frame the computer displayed it was clearly something more. An Olympic sized swimming pool and basketball court filled the roof and a single huge common room dominated the top three floors, up the staircases on either side, it had eight separate bedrooms with baths on each floor. In the middle was an elevator that plunged to a structure hidden beneath the basement marked as a garage and a dozen odd tunnels headed off in different directions. Other sorts of rooms filled the rest of the building. There were training rooms, computer labs, evidence storage, a med bay, and laboratories.

"Titan Tower, sir?" Alfred asked as he looked at him over his glasses.

"A project I had before the Justice League started... a headquarters for a superhero team. I mothballed it once Clark agreed to start the Justice League." Bruce glanced at the location again. "It's been years since anyone has been there. I'll talk to Lucius about getting it running again."

"It does seem ideal for the team that Master Richard has assembled," Alfred stated flatly. "You were planning on giving him the place if he succeeded?"

"Maybe Alfred, maybe it just occurred to me." Bruce smiled at the old butler. "I'll never tell."

"Very good Master Bruce, do you want me to arrange for a quick flight to New York?" Alfred asked.

"Prep the Bat." He said before standing.

"Very good Master Bruce, will you be returning for lunch or should I pack something away for you?" Alfred asked.

"Pack something just in case."


Robin was grinning, immensely pleased with himself as he kicked back in the seat and put his feet up on the table. A trio of large pizza boxes were scattered around the table and Beast Boy had managed to eat through half his veggie deluxe before the rest of them had arrived. Of course by then Cyborg had already eaten the whole triple meat pizza he'd ordered.

This left a pepperoni pizza and half of an all-vegetable pizza. Raven picked at a slice of vegetable pizza and made a face as Beast Boy grabbed yet another slice.

"It would be better with cheese." Raven said before brushing the crumbs from her hands and leaning back in her seat. She took a slice of the pepperoni pizza and pushed the remains of the all-vegetable pie toward Beast Boy.

"More for me then." Beast Boy said with a grin.

Robin chuckled to himself as he finished a slice of pepperoni and glanced at the TV, which was talking about the capture. The police had made a point to show the vast collection of firearms they'd found in the trailers to the news crews.

Now the screen shifted to a crowd of reporters waiting on the steps to the courthouse. "Detective Carter, any comment on rumors that this raid was made after a vigilante group called in their location?" The reporters asked a rather harried looking man as he left the courthouses.

"No comment." He said flatly, as he tightened the trench coat around his form and stalked past the cameras.

"What about rumors that the Batman sent you this tip off?" Another reporter shouted.

"No comment."

A third rather persistent reporter shouted. "Detective Carter, is it true that you've hired a team of metahumans to assist your cleanup of the city?"

Beast Boy snickered. "Did you hear that Rae? We're getting paid by the Detective."

"As if a detective made enough money to hire anyone." Raven said with a bored voice.

Robin laughed. "In New York he might get paid a fair amount."

"Not that much, the cost of livin' here is too damn high to throw money around like that." Cyborg said as he grabbed a slice of pepperoni pizza. "He probably lives in some cheap two bedroom apartment."

"Probably." Robin said and shrugged. "I called Batman, so he knows we got them..."

"Oh good, he can pay us... daddy bats has to have more money than God, just look at all those gadgets he gave Rob." Cyborg said.

"Maybe he does merchandising." Raven said. "Or party entertainment."

"The Gotham Police Department has an arrest on sight warrant for Batman and me." Robin said and shrugged. "Been that way since I donned the uniform."

"That sucks." Beast Boy said with a grumble. "Why?"

"Perhaps the police are corrupt, or maybe the politicians that control them." Raven said.

"Both probably." Robin said with a shake of his head. "Last decent District Attorney we had was Harvey Dent."

"Wait isn't Dent—" Beast Boy started.

"Two-Face? Yep, that's Dent... and you can just imagine what the rest of them must be like." Robin said with a smirk. "At least the Police Commissioner is straight. Cyborg, you've lived here a while... what do you think of the police?"

"Mixed bag I think... they try but New York is big, you know... and there are always bad eggs when an organization gets big." Cyborg shrugged. "There are gangs and all but it's the big city and we got places here that need a lot more protectin' then other cities have. There's the UN building, Wall Street, Broadway, Times Square... So yeah, they're stretched thin most of the time I think."

"Gotham's better than it was… I mean before he started, it was really corrupt... Batman told me that the police did hits for mob bosses and some of the detectives ran protection rackets." Robin took another slice of pizza. "At least here we can focus on criminals and gangs instead of worrying about the police."

"Hey dude, after this, how about a Halo party?" Cyborg said.

"Sweet!" Beast Boy said.

"Make it a big server and we'll get all my sidekick friends to join in." Robin said. "You could join us Raven."

"No thanks." She said. "I'll just read while you fight about pixels."

"Stick in the mud." Beast Boy grumbled. "Come on Rae, you might like it."

"No." Raven said.

"Aww..."

Robin shook his head. "Leave it Beast Boy, if Raven doesn't want to play, don't force the issue."

"It could be a team building exercise." Cyborg said with a smirk.

"Don't push it." Raven growled.

The three of them crowded around the X-box as Raven pulled out a fat paperback horror novel from her hoodie pocket and started to read. As Robin tapped the headset, he quickly logged into the voice chat for his friends. Immediately the speakers were filled with Wally West's, "Wazzzup!"

"Wazzzup!" Cyborg answered and grinned. "Is that you Kid Flash?"

"Yeah, it's him... Babs is doing homework." Speedy said.

"Okay, so we've got five... want to crash a server?" Robin asked.

"Sounds like fun." Kid Flash snapped.

"Awesome..." Beast Boy said with a smirk and bounced on the couch his controller held tightly.

They started play and after a half hour laughter and cursing filled the living room as Raven continued to read resolutely ignoring the lot of them. A low rumble echoed out the window and Robin glanced up from the game and froze.

The hovering black shape of the Bat floated outside the window. He stared at the cockpit and saw a thumb gesturing toward the roof. With a scowl, he stopped the game. "Guys..."

"What?" Cyborg asked.

"Batman is on the roof." Robin said and grabbed his cape from the back of the couch and clipped it on. "Let's go see what he wants."

"Aww shit, good luck dudes!" Kid Flash said as Robin grabbed his utility belt and wrapped it around his waist.

"Let's hope he doesn't want a rematch." Beast Boy groaned before standing and walking over to the door. "Rae, you coming?"

"I suppose." She stood from where she'd been seated behind the couch and closed her book. "Can we please avoid a confrontation?"

"That's entirely dependent on him." Robin grumbled as he headed for the door.

"Just don't antagonize him... we've got your back." Cyborg said as he checked the sonic cannon in his arm. "If it goes to hell, we'll handle it."

"Right, just... follow my lead." Robin said as he headed out the door and glanced up the stairs and started climbing. The roof access was locked with a padlock but that didn't take more than a few seconds for Robin to remove.

He stepped out onto the roof and pursed his lips as Batman stood before the hovering form of the Bat. Air blew his cape out, making it billow ominously in the light from the vehicle's spotlight.

"I hope you're here to finalize our agreement." Robin muttered as Cyborg stepped out from his shadow and lifted the charging sonic cannon toward Batman.

Beast Boy and Raven glared at the black silhouette as he pulled a set of folders from his cape and held them aloft. "I gave my word. I intend to abide by that." He tossed the folders onto the ground between them. "The dossiers of your team." He stated flatly. "Along with details on a headquarters for your team, I have some people working on making it habitable for you."

Robin stooped and picked up the folders. "You promised financial support as well?"

"And technical assistance, if you'll send our mutual supplier requisition requests I'll make sure they're filled." Batman said in his hoarse voice.

"Good." Robin said before handing the documents to Cyborg. "I'll be sure to contact you if I need anything else." He turned back toward the roof access.

"Is that it then?" Batman growled. "Not a word of thanks?"

"No." Robin growled. "You fired me!" He spun on Batman. "Do you think you deserve my thanks? My forgiveness?"

"Robin..."

"You might be the person supporting this team, but that doesn't make me your lapdog... not anymore." Robin growled. "So stop trying to patch it up between us."

"Alfred misses you." Batman said flatly.

Robin sighed. "Thank him for the cooking lessons for me." He smiled faintly for a moment before stepping toward the door. He stopped and scowled. "And thanks from the team for your help... Batman."

Then he wrenched the roof access open and stormed down the steps. The door banged shut behind him and Robin swore. A moment later it opened again and the team filed in behind him as he ran a hand through his hair and snarled. "Asshole."

"No kidding... he's creepy." Beast Boy shuddered. "Creepier then Rae."

"Great, I suppose, I have work to do then." Raven said as she floated down the steps. "Are you alright?"

"No, but I will be... he just gets under my fucking skin all the damn time!" Robin snarled again and gripped the railing hard enough it creaked. "He's always pushing..."

"Well, let's look at these files... who's the requisition guy he talked about anyway?" Cyborg asked.

Robin's lip twitched for a moment before he sighed. "I can't tell you... it could compromise Batman's identity."

"Well shit, how are we supposed to know what the guy can and can't get?" Cyborg grumbled.

Robin shrugged. "If you can think it, he can get it..."

"So if I wanted an army of mutant zombie monkeys?" Beast Boy asked.

"Okay, almost anything you can think of he can get." Robin said with a laugh. "Come on... let's get back to Cyborg's and look at this stuff."

They trudged down the stairs to Cyborg's apartment and crowded around the dining room table as Robin opened the first manila envelope. "Okay, let's see what it is that Batman found for us."

He pulled a set of blueprints out and spread them over the table. His eyes widened and Robin checked the insignia in the corner of the blueprints: Wayne Enterprises Special Projects. He took a deep breath. "Okay, this is a place that we could use as headquarters..." He glanced at the grid coordinates in the corner as Cyborg sat down.

"Grid coordinates are for an island in the bay north-east of Manhattan." Cyborg said after a moment. "Look at this place... that's what, sixteen stories?"

"Not counting the garage." Robin said staring at the massive structure. It was more than he imagined for a headquarters... hell. It was the size of two or three Wayne Manors and only looked a bit smaller then the Justice League's Hall of Justice in Metropolis. Robin bit his lip and leaned back in the chair. "This place is huge."

"Training rooms, evidence storage, is that a meditation chamber?" Raven's finger traced the design and she arched an eyebrow. "Sixteen separate bedrooms at the top floors."

"Maybe he thinks the team will grow." Beast Boy said.

Robin shrugged. "It's possible. What do you think of that common room up top?"

"Sounds like a great place for a party." Cyborg said and snickered.

"Party!" Beast Boy jumped up and down in his seat. "Party central dude!"

"You would think of a party, wouldn't you?" Raven said and shook her head.

Robin chuckled quietly before growing sober. "It won't be all fun and games. I noticed the main computer terminal and crime scanner displays are in the common room."

"So we can use it for briefings... and the kitchen is right there so... it'd be perfect for meals and that sort of thing. It is a common room, a place to socialize." Cyborg smirked slightly. "Raven wouldn't be caught dead there."

"You never know, I may just sit quietly in the corner." She muttered.

"This is awesome. You think he's trying to make up for beating us up last time?" Beast Boy asked.

"No, he's Batman..." Robin said with a harrumph. "There'll be some other reason for this place's existence... mutual interests or some other gambit." He gritted his teeth. "Maybe he wants a team to keep the Justice League in check."

"Us, check them?" Cyborg laughed. "No way would we beat them in a straight up fight. They got Supes and Batman... not to mention everybody else in their ranks."

"Maybe he wants you to train the next generation?" Raven suggested.

Robin shrugged. "Doesn't matter... it'll be a while before the Tower's ready."

"So, what are we calling ourselves? The New York Guard? Beast Boy's Banditos? Robin's Ruffians?" Beast Boy grinned. "I could keep going..."

"Just stop..." Robin said and sat back. "Robin's Ruffians? Really?"

"It's better than the Bat Clan." Cyborg said. "What's the name of this tower?"

"Titan Tower." Robin said and slowly his eyes widened. "Titans... How about that?"

"Titans? I could go with that." Raven said.

"Really? The Titans?" Beast Boy bounced in his chair. "That's a boring name..."

"Better than Doom Patrol." Cyborg said flatly and Beast Boy fumed. "I like it."

"Sorry Beast Boy, but I think you're outvoted." Robin said with a smirk.

"Aww man!" He grumbled.

"So, what's in the other manila envelopes?" Raven asked.

Robin pulled open the next envelope and tossed it aside. "Dossiers on you guys..."

A black shield of energy snapped between Beast Boy as he made a grab for it. Raven glared at him. "Some of that is private."

"Sure..." He sank back and sighed.

Robin opened the next enveloped and a set of four com-links fell out onto the table. He smirked. "Com-links..."

Cyborg pulled out a manual from the envelope and studied it carefully. "Says here they're encrypted... there's three channels... the team channel, a Justice League channel, and a Batclan channel."

"Sweet!" Beast Boy said before grabbing one. "No more using cell phones!"

Robin chuckled as he took his and Raven quietly examined hers. Cyborg pulled out a port from his cybernetic arm and plugged the device into his systems then stored it away. He tapped his arm a moment later and smirked. "Team channel test..."

All three other com-links blinked green and rang with a simple tone. Robin activated his. "Robin here."

"I read you." Beast Boy said, his voice coming out of the com-links in stereo."

Raven smirked slightly. "I thought one Beast Boy was bad enough."

"They work." Robin said before snapping his shut. "Maybe I could order a few more for Speedy, KF, and Oracle."

"We could just send them the frequency and encryption... they've got com-links of their own, right?" Cyborg said.

Robin blinked then nodded. "Good point." He spun the com-link in his hand then glanced at the last envelope, inside was just financial data and information. He tucked that away, none of the others needed to see it just yet. "So, should we get back to the game?"

"Sure..." Beast Boy said with a grin.


Her body thrummed with pain as it was bathed in the bright blue-white light of her star, the giver of nourishment, comfort, and freedom had been twisted into a device of torment by those unfeeling creatures that stared at her during the experiment.

Suddenly the light shut off and bathed she gasped in shock. The complete darkness that remained afterward made her shiver in shock at the sudden end of the torment.

She has far exceeded even our most generous estimates for her capacity. The mind of one of the white skinned creatures spoke and she growled under her breath. She could feel the energy flowing through her, scorching her insides as it thrummed through her body. She gasped for energy as the slight burning smell from her very flesh filled the room.

Indeed, her ability to discharge the energy has been far greater than anticipated. Another of the hateful minds answered and she slowly turned her head to the source of the noise, her eyes watering and useless in even the mild darkness of the laboratory. Perhaps we can utilize her in other ways… her capacity does open up other vectors for our research.

True… A holographic display fluttered to life in the dim light and Starfire squinted at the only visible object in her sight before growling at the two silhouettes standing before it. The Citadel has again requested our return of her…

The primitives do not matter. She is of far more value than a mere prize and object for their consumption. Starfire glanced between them unable to figure which of the two were speaking at a time before clutching her manacled and sealed fist. Their commissioning of a Gordanian vessel to retrieve her is only an incidental problem to us. No Vegan ship would dare to challenge us.

True, for they are primitives.

Indeed. One of the figures tapped the display for a moment. The ability to gather such energy and discharge it as a weapon would be of use to us… further improving our species. We must see if the ability may be made cross species transferable.

She swallowed.

We have a number of cloning cylinders and mental transference systems aboard so that the clone would hold the subject's mind. One of the Psions waved a hand and an image appeared over the display of a bipedal species of mammal that she could not recognize.

You are considering possible genetic templates upon which to base our experiment?

Yes, most species of the Vegan system are not suitable… we must choose another.

Alpha Centauri is too heavily guarded to be a viable source for subjects or genetic material. The most weakly defended system would be Sol. One of the aliens huffed at that statement as another species appeared on the display. The people of the third world in the system would be ideal, we have used them before.

What of the Green Lanterns?

One of the Psions rolled his head back in one of the disturbing and silent laughs of the species. The Green Lanterns? They are a joke.

Yes, we have the intellect and technology to render them useless if need be. It would violate the treaty, but we have done so before. She stared at the figures and closed her eyes wincing against the burning sensation that filled her body from the energy.

I have programed in the route to the ship's computer along and programmed the cloning cylinder. One of the Psions stated before the display winked out. We shall arrive in three days.

Will she last that long? Their dependence on that world's sun is a concern… The other psion asked.

As charged as she is… so long as she does not discharge she will survive the trip. The psion shrugged. Otherwise… she will be starved for energy on our arrival.

Secure her. Let us insure she does not discharge then.

She snarled under her breath into the darkness and flinched as a light blazed on directly overhead. Her skin looked scorched and blackened and she swallowed before clenching her fists in the manacles.

The white face of a Psion leaned over her, its expressionless black eyes flicked over her for a moment before nodding. She stared up at it, her body feeling the energy chorus through her and suddenly a thought struck her…

If the energy could be unleashed through her hands… was there another means by which it could be let loose. Focusing inward she drew the energy up to her head and felt her eyes begin to burn. The Psion's eyes widened comically before a scorching beam of green energy lanced through his brain, turning the top of his head into ash.

Blinded by the flash from her own eyes she ground her teeth together and tried to remember where the binds were, she glared in the direction and let a blast of energy out that burned through a metal latch that had held her arms in place.

Emergency! All hands to laboratory A!

She snarled and tore the shackles from the latches. Half-way free she let a lance of energy vaporize the shackles on her legs and she rolled off the cot, ignoring the burning she felt on her legs from the superheated metal.

Then she froze. Her senses tensed and readied. Her ears twitched at the faintest sound. Then she heard the Psion's feet padding across the plating and roared in rage. She charged swung her arms, still bounded together.

The manacles connected with something soft and a scream echoed in her mind before a thump from the Psion's body striking the wall echoed in the room. Then there was a beep and she felt the ship shudder under her feet.

What's going on? She thought to herself and tried to see again, blinking away tears for a moment and stared at the holographic display that flickered to life before her.

Autopilot engaged… FTL activated. ETA to Sol system…

Her gaze flicked across the various pieces of data on the Sol System and the plotted course as panic filled her. Then she saw the details of the star. Her eyes went wide and her body shuddered in horror. No… not a G-type star… It does not produce enough… not enough.

Another display flickered to life and she gaped as a series of genetic modifications and other figures scrolled through it, then she swallowed. There might be a way…

The doors to lab opened and she spun just as four larger Psions stormed inside armed with laser rifles. Fighting back a wave of despair and felt the energy burn in her eyes and swept a blue-white eye-beam over them, burning them down in an instant.

"X'hal! I shall not let this be the end of me!" She yelled as more security officers began to clatter into the room. "If you do not wish to be destroyed, you shall stand aside!"

They didn't.


Robin chuckled to himself as he watched Beast Boy and Cyborg playing on the X-box. At the rate they were going, he guessed that soon they'd wear out the thing from their constant gaming.

"So..." Raven's voice seemed to vibrate in the air as she spoke. "Have you looked through those dossiers yet?"

"Some of them." Robin allowed as he turned to the figure clad in her hoodie. She floated in the air, legs crossed underneath her, and she seemed to be in a meditative position. "Are you worried about your file?"

"Perhaps... you do know of my ancestry." Raven said.

Robin nodded. "You've never struck me as evil Raven. Quiet, stoic, and sarcastic, to be sure but never... evil."

"I see..." Raven glanced at him and sighed. "I was cast out of my home by those that were afraid of my... demonic inheritance you could say."

"Even if I was a firm believer in the idea of genetics controlling a person's nature... you're half human." Robin said. "And in my experience, genetics has almost no bearing on the nature of a person."

"So... even with my ancestry, you'll be judging me by my actions, I gather?" Raven said.

"Yes."

"And if I have an urge to smack Beast Boy around for being an annoying sort?"

Robin laughed. "You'll just be proving to me that, you're human."

A slight smirk played across her face and she nodded to him. "Good, so we understand each other."

"Yes, and knowing is half the battle." Robin joked quietly before leaning back on the couch. His phone rang and Robin's smiled faded for a moment before he whipped it out and put it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Dick!" The familiar female voice of Barbara Gordon came through the line and Robin's grin returned. "I take it you talked to old bats?"

"Yeah, he flew by a couple hours ago... we've got comlinks now Babs, so I'll send you the encrypt and channel information. I know you'll be wanting to listen in on us." Robin grinned.

"Of course, you know old bats is probably listening in on those channels too." Babs answered.

"Of course he is." Robin agreed. "How is Gotham?"

"Pretty boring actually, none of the big trouble-makers are up and about at the moment. I wonder, you mind me swinging down if nothing pops up?" Barbara asked.

"Swing by? Sure you can Babs." Dick said. "I guess stopping muggings is peanuts considering the sort of trouble you usually get around there."

"It is... how's your case going?" Babs asked.

"The smuggler thing? Nowhere at the moment. All we've got is the name 'Mod' and a very vague 'he sounded kind of posh' description from Beast Boy." Robin said.

"Really, 'he sounded kind of posh' is what BB said?" Babs snorted with suppressed laughter. "Yeah, you're not getting very far on that, are you? I'll do some searching."

"Thanks Babs."


Mad Mod or Neil Richards as those who worked for him knew him sat at the end of the runway, twirling his cane idly as he watched the fashion models saunter down the runway and pose. All around him the click and whir of cameras filled the air as picture after picture was taken of his newest line of clothes.

His mind however was on the elimination of the Ravager gang. They'd made him more money in the trade of arms and munitions than any other smuggling he'd done into New York. Still, there were others and now that his appetite was whetted by the Ravager's trade, the weapons market.

"Well... I'll just have to see about finding more buyers and expand my market line a bit more." He mused to himself as he slapped his cane into his hand and grinned. "Earning a bit more quid is always a goal worth pursuing."


The scream of the Psion echoed in her mind as it's body crumpled against the solid plating of the wall. It slid to the ground leaving behind a bloody streak. She gasped for air as the silence of the ship slowly grew in her mind.

I warned them. She thought to herself. They wouldn't leave me alone... and so they died.

She closed her eyes and slowly sat down. Her exhaustion slowly overrode everything as she stared down at the manacles and restraints. Then she slumped forward and the darkness overwhelmed her.

She didn't see the ETA to Sol slowly beginning to tick away the time until her arrival.