Teen Titans © DC Comics

Brothers

"Four people gone," Cyborg murmured as the Titans collected themselves in Titans South's living room. "Two honoraries and two members of Titans South captured by Deathstroke. Question is, why?" He continued tapping on a monitor that enveloped the wall before bringing up an entire list of Teen Titans from around the world. Pressing on Wildfire, Jinx, Kid Flash, and Hot Spot's, they dulled to a gray color, signifying their capture.

"What do they have in common?" Raven stated, stepping forth. "That's the question that needs to be asked."

Lightning crossed his arms furiously as Thunder continued to gaze sadly at his friends' gray faces. The yellow elemental turned to Robin with a pensive expression, saying, "As I have previously told you, the 'Deathstroke' is after Kole and I as well. He mentioned this during our battle."

"Since he's after you, then he might go after Thunder," Robin agreed, nodding as the blue elemental stiffened a tad, "but I don't understand why though."

Kole bit her lower lip, looking to the ground. She recollected on what Deathstroke informed during their fight, trying to remember any sort of clue to relate back to the situation. He mentioned something about an employer, someone who clearly had a grudge against the Titans. It was someone who hated them, but for what purpose? Kole bit on her thumb, glancing over to Wildfire's cheerful face before her eyes widened.

"It can't be…" she murmured, knees shaking.

"Kole? What is the matter?" Starfire asked as Lightning's head snapped over to her.

"I-I think I might've figured it out. While we're different, and we all don't get together as much, the six of us that Deathstroke has confirmed to be targeting, me, Zap, Hot Spot, Wildfire, Kid Flash, and Jinx were all in the same place together with Risk, Fringe, Thunder, and Argent." Kole raised her head, balling her hands and uttered, "We were all on the H'san Natall world together."

"Are…are you saying that King Ch'ah is at fault here?" Argent stammered in worry.

Thunder covered his mouth, eyes wide in shock as he reflected upon General Thunder. He was an absolute monster back then, almost murdering Lightning without a shred of mercy. Bloodlust and power was all he cared for, thrilling on conquest and destruction for sick kicks. Thunder bit his lower lip, tensing considerably as he noticed Argent did as well. Like himself, Argent suffered as Major General Argent, his second-in-command and nearly slayed him and Lightning. Thankfully, Lightning returned both to their senses with Thunder's help on Argent's part. Slowly, he placed his hand on her rigid shoulder, earning a small grin as thanks.

"Kole, that is a good suggestion," Robin admitted, lowering his stance as he glanced over to Titans South. "The ones you mentioned are probably going to be assaulted, and our prime suspect for Deathstroke's employer…"

"…would be that king dude," Beast Boy finished, leaning eagerly forward from the couch.

"Unfortunately," Thunder started, rising his voice timidly, "I do not think he would have the strength to come after us."

"And why is that?" Raven questioned, glancing over to him.

"When my brother and I left him last, he was weak and unconscious. There is no chance that he should have raised back to power. His army deserted him, and one would believe that he has no wealth to pay for a mercenary to attack us."

"Thunder, that is true, but have you ever thought that he came back to attain his thrown?" Robin suggested.

Thunder hesitated, warily acknowledging Robin's inquiry. "W-well, I did not take that into account. He might have…"

"Feh! Ch'ah is too much of a coward to dare show his face!" Lightning barked heatedly. "His army abandoned him in the midst of battle! There is no reason why a groveling fool should reclaim his former glory."

"Lightning's right. We saw his army drop their weapons and step aside for us to finish him off. I even cut his arm off. Isn't that considered a sign of weakness for a king?" Kole added.

There was a long pause from the core Titans. Five sets of curious, stunned eyes landed on the youngest Titan girl in the room. Kole felt her cheeks flush lightly at the sudden attention, shrugging slowly and shifted her gaze uneasily to the floor. For the others, hearing such a claim from Kole, one of the nicest and sweetest girls on the roster, was like a slap in the face. Beast Boy quietly commented that he would never think about messing with her again.

"But why would Slade lower himself to working for anyone?" Robin murmured, gripping his chin in contemplation. "I've never even heard of Deathstroke before. There was nothing about him in the news, internet, or any reliable source that Slade was ever a mercenary."

"Well, he is!" Lightning snapped, narrowing his pale eyes onto Robin's hidden ones. "He is coming for us, and what we should be doing is warning the others! Not discussing why he has returned to being a hired hound!"

Robin glared furiously at the yellow elemental, ready to bark back when someone's communicator began beeping. He twisted his head to gaze at Argent, and Titans South's mildly surprised leader quickly opened it. "Who is it?"

"Wildfire!" Argent gushed, bringing delighted expressions to the room. "Oh, gosh, we thought you were gone!"

Starfire quickly pushed herself behind Argent, gripping her friend's shoulders and inched herself in over her. "Oh, yes, truly! I was utterly distraught, brother!"

Wildfire said nothing, but stared, his face covering nearly the entire screen. He smirked casually, snickering for a moment and replied, "Don't worry about me. I'm totally fine, everyone. I got away."

"What about the others?" Argent wondered as everyone crowded around her communicator to catch a glimpse of Wildfire.

"Oh, uh…" Wildfire's face furrowed in a mix of aggravation and sadness, appearing contorted in his emotions. "…sorry, but I couldn't get them in time."

Thunder sighed lightly, offering a gentle grin. "But at least you are safe. Where are you?"

"I'm coming over right now. I'll tell you everything I know, okay? Signing off!" he chirped and hung up.

Kole tugged at Lightning's arm, exchanging a look of reflective trouble that her boyfriend wore as well. The way Wildfire spoke disparaged them, bringing a sense of concern. He didn't even acknowledge the two of them, and they were his best friends. At one point in his life, Wildfire was in love with Kole, but seeing as she was happy with Lightning, he treated her as a sister. They expected Wildfire to at least say a greeting to them, but what also discouraged their faith in Wildfire's supposed 'escape' was that little, cruel smirk. He would cheerfully grinned or awkwardly smile or give a tiny smirk when teasing Lightning, but that particular face dug at them like he was possessed by a demon.

"I do not think we should trust Wildfire's current manner," Lightning stated quietly.

Starfire jerked her head over to him, gasping loudly. "Are you saying that my brother is evil?"

"No, not evil, Starfire!" Kole quickly interjected. "It's just…he's been caught by Deathstroke, and we don't know what happened to him. For all we know, Wildfire could be-"

"Is there something you want, my former love? Say it to my face, Kole!"

Before Kole could even blink, a bright emerald beam impaled her. She shrieked, shooting forward and bashed into Cyborg, sending them both sprawling on the floor. Everyone turned to the broken window, finding Wildfire in that deplorable, H'san Natall armor with a hideous jeer on his maw. Starfire gaped at her younger sibling, horrified at what had become of him before hesitantly approaching him.

"Wildfire, what has become of you? Why are you-?"

"Oh, sister, you fool! I only used a different speech pattern to get you off my back. My answers had to be short, quick-!"

Before Wildfire could finish, Lightning tackled him to the ground and relentlessly strangled him. He gurgled on choked breath, but his emerald eyes shone darkly as his own hands caught Lightning's wrists. Using his superior, alien strength, he effortlessly heaved Lightning into the air and shot him into the ceiling using his own starbolts. Lightning remained embedded in the ceiling and groaned, rubbing his head as Wildfire darted up after him. Gasping in realization, he struggled to remove himself, but his legs were ensnared by crackling wiring.

Thankfully, Thunder summoned his cloud, and Robin leaped onto it, darting out to the blue elemental's shock. Robin immediately slashed his steel rod at Wildfire's arm, slapping one day, making him cry out in pain. Hovering in front of Lightning, he offered his hand and smiled reassuringly.

"Sorry for being a jerk to you. You all right?" he asked, much to Lightning's bewilderment.

For a few moments, Lightning lost his voice, but he quickly cleared his throat and nodded. With Robin's help, he landed onto his brother's cloud as Thunder gestured, making the cloud return to him as Wildfire shot another beam. Lightning glanced over to Robin, muttering, "It is all right. Thank you."

"That armor," Thunder stated after a moment, watching Beast Boy lunge in as a tiger and impale the younger boy to the ground. "That armor…it cannot be, but it is. Kole was right."

"What are you talking about?" Robin demanded quickly as Wildfire heaved Beast Boy over his head and chucked him at Raven.

"It is the same armor worn by the H'san Natall. Once, Thunder was forced to don one when he…" Thunder trailed off, clenching his fist and looked away in shame.

"Brother…" Lightning cooed softly, but was not able to finish his thought when Starfire shot out in front of him.

"Ryand'r, please! We are your friends! I am your sister! You do not wish to harm us!" she pleaded.

"Oh, dear, stupid sister, you always was the fool of the family. No wonder Komand'r thought you were an idiot," Wildfire sneered, charging up his hands. "Besides, if you had control of the throne, well, thankfully you gave it up to that old man."

"How dare you speak so terribly of our g'norfka!" Starfire barked. Taking a calming breath, she tried one last time with empowered, glowing hands. "I do not wish to fight you, brother. I know you are being used by the H'san Natall. You must break free of their control!"

"What control? I am doing this of my own, free will."

At Starfire's gaping expression, Wildfire slammed his fist into two of her nine stomachs. Starfire gagged, voice gone entirely as he snatched her luxurious, auburn-red hair. With the fury of a raging tornado, Wildfire spun her rapidly in the air before slamming her against the wall. Like a rag doll, she flopped the ground motionlessly with eyes closed and a small gape for her mouth.

"Starfire!" Robin cried, rushing over to her.

Argent glanced over her shoulder, finding Cyborg treating an unconscious Kole while Raven helped Beast Boy recover. Stepping forward to Wildfire, she used her plasma to form a signature move: plasma hands. She gripped Wildfire tightly in her grasp, restraining him. Hearing him grunt and groan in aggravation brought an ill sense of satisfaction as it appeared she succeeded where others failed in keeping him down.

"You-you think you got me, Major General?" he sneered, stunning her. "Do you really think you and your precious blue boy can run forever from what you do were going to do?"

"Shut up, you little freak!" she roared back, squeezing tighter.

Clenching one eye shut, Wildfire grit his teeth, sneering, "H-heh, overwhelmed b-by your emotions? N-no wonder you were a h-horrible leader, b-but I do e-envy your own…" His smirk widened deviously, bringing Argent's breaking point closer. "…insanity, Major General Argent."

Argent was ready to snap him like a twig, anger consuming her. She closed her grip even more, bringing a garbled cry rupturing from the back of the alien boy's throat. His body felt tighter, bones nearly snapping, but cracked audibly as the pressure dug into him. For a moment, she thought she was going to break him, shred him in half until as Wildfire felt tears of agony spark at his eyes. Argent bared her teeth, snarling at him as an evil grin plastered itself onto her face.

Kill him!

"Die, you little-!"

"Toni, stop!"

She gasped, jolted as Thunder snatched her shoulders and ripped her back. Her plasma hands vanquished, and Wildfire slammed into the ground, moaning pitifully before flopping over. He no longer moved, and Cyborg checked his pulse, stating he was all right, but unconscious. Argent panted heavily, head hanging morbidly as she slowly came to terms with what she had nearly done.

"You…you were going to kill him," Beast Boy slowly stated, leaning on Raven for support.

"I-I didn't…I just…Someone said to…" Argent briskly turned, storming off into the hallway and disappeared with the doors shutting behind her.

Holding Kole in his arms, Lightning gazed over to his brother, mentally asking, What was that about? When Thunder did not reply, he softly added, Gan?

I am sorry, Tavis, but…but something is not right here. Toni would not do something like that. It was as if she were…possessed, Thunder admitted, turning to Lightning with a saddened gaze.

Raven placed her hand on Kole's head, hand glowing and sighed. Retracting her hand, she stated, "I've taken away her pain. She'll wake up in a minute or two."

Lightning thanked her, placing Kole onto the couch and sat next to her. "So…what next?"

"Lightning, can you get Risk and Fringe alerted again? Since they're targeted, we can't take any chances," Cyborg requested as Lightning nodded and took out his communicator. "For Wildfire, we better see what the heck happened to him. The kid looks, well, he looks evil."

"My brother is not evil!" Starfire proclaimed vehemently, sitting up against the wall. Using it as a support, she rubbed her bruised forehead, snapping, "Never say such cruel words about him again! Wildfire's mind is being controlled, and we know of how much of a kind and gracious person he is!"

"Starfire, we know that," Robin replied sympathetically, "but Wildfire just attacked us. We need to find out how he's being used."

"I'm betting Deathstroke did something like what he did to you and Terra," Beast Boy offered, frowning darkly at the memories.

"No…" Thunder mused, walking over and grasped Wildfire's arm. He gazed at the white armor, allowing it to lodge inside his memory and pulled forth his own tainted armor. "Deathstroke does not have this armor. Only the H'san Natall do. He is just the hired hand to a much greater foe."

"Raven, Cyborg, analyze Wildfire to find out what happened to him mentally," Robin ordered, and the two nodded and went down to Titans South's medical wing with Beast Boy and Starfire in tow, concerned for Wildfire. His gaze fell on a suddenly downtrodden Thunder, making the Boy Wonder intrigued and grasped his arm. "If you're ready to, what can you tell me about this…alien mind control?"

Thunder sighed, looking down as Lightning cocked his head and continued to wait for the other two to pick up. Crossing his arms tentatively, he said, "As Thunder recalls from Prysm, Ch'ah uses a thin, black guard that goes around one's neck." Thunder pointed to his as an example. "At first, it teaches you obedience to Ch'ah. Secondly, once the first stage has been completed, 'it turns your mind' is what she stated to me. From what I personally experienced, I…I lost my memories of my brother and everyone of this world, making me believe that I truly was Ch'ah's general."

Robin nodded, absorbing the information with his thumb and forefinger on his chin. "I see, but how can we break it?"

Thunder pointed to a small, golden chain around his wrist with a diminutive locket. "It takes time and one or more reminders from one's past to break free. If Lightning had not reminded me of our bond, I would probably still be on that world and serving him."

Lightning could not help himself when he grinned at Thunder's kind words. His eyes briefly flickered up, feeling Kole gently stir on his lap. What resided on their matching lockets was a photograph of each other from when they were eight with a simple saying scribbled inside: live for him. It was an eternal memento of their loving, brotherly bond, and how they would always stay true to each other. Of course, there were occasional fights, but those were purely misunderstandings or one was being controlled by an evil king. However, Thunder and Lightning dearly loved each other, knowing that, in the end, they would always be unified.

Kole groaned, eyes weakly blinking open. Sitting up, she felt a stinging pain in her back as Lightning suddenly snatched her head and forced her to lie back down onto his lap. At first, her face was as bright as her hair, dumbfounded at Lightning's sudden action. She attempted to speak, but her mind suddenly reverted to Wildfire's icy cold, cruel voice and asked what had happened.

"Wildfire struck you from behind, crystal witch," Lightning explained much to her horror. "Do not despair. We have restrained him, and he is being seen upon."

"W-what do you mean?" she weakly crooned.

Lightning grinned, knowing she was unused to being physically harmed. Her crystal was unbreakable in her full-body form, but since she had not used it, she was feeling pain for the first time. "The other Titans are attempting to cure him. Oh, blast it! Why in the clouds will they not answer Lightning?"

"You can't get Risk or Fringe?" Robin demanded, pulling out his own communicator and tried the same. However, his luck was just as bad as Lightning's. "This day just can't get any worse, and it's not even eight in the morning yet."

"Uh, this may be a bad time to say something, but I'm hungry," Kole admitted.

"As am I," Lightning added, pulling Kole to her feet. "Since you are all doing something productive, crystal witch and I shall get breakfast for ourselves. Do you want anything?"

Robin politely declined along with Thunder, but the former suddenly gasped. "Wait, you two stay here! Remember what happened with Kid Flash and Jinx?"

"Don't remind us," Kole bitterly remarked.

"It is in the morning, bird boy! Why would Deathstroke strike us?" Lightning groaned.

"What Robin is trying to say, brother, is that he merely does not want us harmed in any manner such as Wildfire or our other friends," Thunder explained gently, hoping not to aggravate the situation. "Now, Thunder wishes to be excused to check on Argent."

"Oh, yeah, go ahead. You don't need my permission," Robin replied, smiling slightly.

Thunder quickly exited, hurrying down the hall towards her room. He knocked loudly, but there was no answer. Finding her door unlocked, he opened it and crept inside, but found her nowhere in sight. Flicking on her light, he smirked in disbelief at her incredibly messy room. Collecting a few of her clothes, he hung them up and placed them into her closet, attempting not to blush when he found a few of her unmentionables. Bending down to gather a few of her lipstick containers, he find something shining underneath her bed.

Curiosity forced him to slide his hand under and grasp whatever was there. Thunder sat back against her bed, gazing in wonder at the small album. He flipped a few pages in, gasping lightly at the sight of her when she was a regular child. No silver, shimmering skin or lava, ruby eyes, but peach skin and wavy, cobalt eyes that originally had captivated him. It was the her he remembered from their first encounter at fourteen, a day before their matching birthdays. Thunder had fallen in love with Argent that fateful night, not realizing it was her when they met in the Titans due to her different skin, and Argent admitting she was a little bit 'tipsy' did not exactly endear to his better side. However, he grinned lightly at the photo and flipped a few more pages in, finding several of their H'san Natall hybrid companions, the Titans, their closer friends in South, but what surprised him the most was the picture of him in a pair of black swim trunks that showed off his many muscles with a massive, pink heart around it. Thunder blinked, a bashful blush coming to his face as he quickly closed the notebook.

She really does love me, he thought happily, chuckling a bit before his eyes darted over to her second closet at the sound of shuffling, stumbling feet. "Argent, you really need a new hiding place."

"Oh, shut up!" Argent barked, throwing the door open as Thunder laughed. "How'd you know I was in here?"

"Where else would you go?" he cheekily asked, smirking.

"…Shut up," she ordered, sitting down next to him.

"What happened back there? You…were you going to-?"

"It was so weird," she stated as Thunder held the album to his chest. "Blue boy, there was a literal voice in my head that told me to kill Wildfire. The oddest thing about it was that the voice…the voice sounded like me, but I never even thought of saying it. I mean, Wildfire's our friend. I would never-!"

"I know," Thunder softly replied, taking her hand and kissed chastely, a way of soothing her in times of stress. "You would never do something to horrid as to take someone's life."

Argent smirked, bringing her knees to her chest. "Yeah, because all those H'san Natall I killed meant nothing."

"Loren Jupiter forced that upon you. You are not to blame."

Sighing, she leaned closer to him and placed her head onto his broad, welcoming shoulder. "Thanks, blue boy. Hey…" She sat up, noticing the album that he suddenly flipped open and pointed to the picture of himself. "…uh, you found it, huh?"

Thunder's grin widened deviously, pointing at the date that labeled five months ago, two before they started dating. "I see you had a 'crush' on Thunder."

"Oh, ha ha! Very funny!" she growled as Thunder smirked. "What about you, lover boy? You've been in love with me since you were practically fifteen, so, that's two years."

"Oh, well, be quiet," Thunder grumbled and looked away as she snickered into her palm. "Why was this underneath your bed?"

"I look at it in my spare time. It's like my own scrapbook. Speaking of which…" She stood up, holding her hand out expectantly. "…hold it over."

Thunder paused, looking down to the rather well-endowed photo of himself. Taking a breath, he replied, "No."

"What?" Argent screeched, gaping.

"I believe this can be used as, well, blackmail if you ever try to do anything harmful to Thunder," he sneered, waving the album around.

"Oh, I am so going to punch you in the face," she snarled.

Thunder smirked, standing up and tapped his cheek lightly. "Do it! You will not."

Instead of using her fist, she used her massive plasma hand and pounded him into the ground. Grunting, Thunder flopped backwards and allowed the album to roll out of his hand. Argent sat on his chest, bringing an imminent blush to his face as she smirked wickedly that brought an excited sensation to his body.

"I did it, blue boy," she jeered, leaning close and kissed him softly. "What are you gonna do about?"

"Antonia Argent Louise Monetti!"

"Gan Thunder Walter Williams!"

Their heads snapped over to the opened door, gaping at the sudden arrival of their mothers. Cara Chi, Thunder's mother, had her arms crossed furiously over her chest while Alfonsa Lerado, Argent's 'mum,' appeared ready to slaughter Thunder. Both exchanged a worried look before grinning weakly to their mothers.

"Welcome back from the spa," they cheered in meek unison.

…

Thunder and Argent are screwed. Just saying. Please, review!