Hello all! Hope you all have been well. I apologize for the late post. Blame college, life, and three friends (one German Butt, one Tea Drinking Dingus, and one Little Baka Shit) that have been making me play Borderlands 2 and Town of Salem (if you are reading this, you know who you are. Fak you XD). Also I will deviate from what happens in the show, but I will try to still follow the storyline. Anyways, here is the next chapter, hope you enjoy!
Chapter 3
Starfire noticed the look that Robin wore with a bit of concern. "Are you ok?" She asked while tugging on his cape, trying to get his attention.
Robin turned to the other Titans and got their attention, then eyed the counter where Nick was. "Wait, is that Nick? He works here?" Beastboy asked in a bit of a shocked tone.
Starfire began to fly over to Nick when Cyborg suddenly pulled her back to the group. "Star, we cannot just walk up to him and say hi. We have our identities hidden for a reason you know. If you walk up to him and say hi like you know him, he will figure it out."
"Yeah, and if he is Zig, than it could be worse for all of us." Robin spat.
Cyborg turned to Robin. "What makes you say that he is Zig?" He asked genuinely.
Robin turned to the group and sat at a table in the back away from everyone else there. "Well, the way he fought Chuck and the way Zig fought the other day were a bit similar. Their movements and patterns of dodging were in sync. Also," he turned to where Nick was standing, noticing an annoyed look on his face as he was talking to a customer. "Look at his arm, he is wearing something over his arm, exactly where Zig was wounded the other night."
The titans all turned and noticed what Robin was talking about, seeing the brace like wrapping barely showing where the short sleeves of the uniform did not cover. "It seems like it is not a coincidence, however, we cannot make assumptions." Raven spoke up. "I am going to take our order to him and see if I can find anything out." As she got up, she made sure no one was looking and changed her Raven attire to more casual clothes to pose as Rachael. She walked up to the register as the person in front of her left.
"Hello, how may I –" Nick began to recite in a dry tone but stopped when he realized Rachael was in front of her. "Rachel? What are you doing here?" He asked in bit of a surprised voice, but more tired than anything. He had visible bags under his eyes from lack of sleep and was a bit paler than normal and his hair seemed wet.
"Well, I came to order something for my other friends and I to eat. I am surprised you work here." She replied.
Nick rolled his eyes. "C'mon, I love this job and the people. The job is not a pain in my ass and the people can be so smart and kind and not demanding whatsoever." He said dripping with sarcasm. "No, they would not be stupid enough to throw a drink in my face because it was not what they ordered, even though it was." He sighed. "Fucking jackass…"
It took a bit for Raven not to let out a little laugh herself. She quickly collected herself and spoke up. "Anyways, can I get a pizza that is half plain and half pepperoni, one pizza that is half veggie and half pineapple, and one meat lover's pizza?"
Nick took down the order and scratched his arm, exposing the brace that Robin was talking about, exactly where Zig was stabbed. "Nick, may I ask, what are you wearing on your arm?" She asked, making sure to sound a bit curious.
Nick looked over to where she looked. "This, oh it's nothing special. Don't worry about it. Your total is $29.99."
Raven took out the money and handed it to Nick. He put it in the register and handed the change back to her. Before she left, she turned back around and looked to Nick. "So, if it is nothing special, why not just tell me."
Nick rubbed his other arm a shrugged. "Well, I am working," he then smirked. "Oh, I got it. I go off break in another 10 minutes. I assume the others are here, I will eat with you guys and show you then."
Raven was a tad off guard by this, not expecting him to say yes. "Uh, sure." She said monotonely, and went back to the table, the rest of the titans all looking at the girl with curious looks.
"So?" Robin asked in a quick manner. "Did he give you an answer?"
Raven sighed and looked to the boy wonder. "No, but he is coming over here in 10 minutes. We need to look like our school selves."
One by one, the Titans (minus Raven who was already changed) went to the rest room and changed their clothes to match what they would look like if they were regular students. By the time 5 minutes passed, they were all looking like regular kids, with Beastboy and Cyborg wearing their ring holograms.
Nick came over a few minutes later with their order and handed out the pizza as directed by the titans. He then ran to the back of the kitchen, grabbing some slices of his own and sat down next to Beastboy on the outside of the table after weaving past a few people that were on line waiting to give their order. "Yo, so what brings you guys here? Did not expect to see people I can tolerate today." He joked.
Robin kept his eyes planted on the guy, not letting his facial expression change. "We come here to eat. What of it?" He spat back, obviously showing his dislike for the person in question.
Nick turned to Robin and looked curiously at him, knowing something was up. In his years of experience, these sorts of things almost came quickly to Nick. "Uh… what crawled up his ass?" He asked, trying to act innocent but not letting up more than that.
Before Robin could reply back and it possibly lead into a fight between the two, Raven interrupted him, trying to defuse the situation that was about to unfold. "He didn't sleep well. Don't mind him. Richard is usually crabby until an hour from now."
Beastboy then noticed something the other Titans did not notice. He then poked Nick's arm. "Dude, what is this black thing?" He asked.
Nick then turned to the changeling and looked down at his arm. "Ah, I was going to show Raven this." He then, unexpectedly, took off not only the brace in question, but another one on his adjacent arm that Beastboy noticed. "These are heat braces I wear to relax my muscles after I work out. It feels pretty good."
While Starfire and Beastboy asked Nick about them, the other three titans eyed the spot on his arm. Robin wanted to break something, for there was no stab mark or anything where the brace was. There should have been some mark; he was certain Nick and Zig were the same person. He knew he was not wrong, but the evidence was showing the opposite, thus tearing the boy wonder up.
Nick finished explaining what the brace was for and put them back on, taking a bite of his meal. "So, did you guys do any of the homework for our class?" He asked, a bit of sauce on his left cheek appearing from him taking a bite of his meal.
Robin's eyes widened a bit, totally forgetting about the homework. "Um… I did not do it yet…" He hesitated with the answer. Starfire looked confused at what he was talking about. Raven then tapped Starfire to get her attention. "The assignment we were given before we left." She clarified.
Robin then sighed, realizing they should all go back and do their work so they did not get into unnecessary trouble. "We should go back and do that. Thanks for the reminder." As he said this, the group got up and began to leave. As Nick was cleaning the table, Robin then turned around and looked to him. "Quick question, you ever hear of someone called Zig?" He asked, trying to make the question seem genuine, but couldn't fully hide the malice left in his words.
Nick eyed him closely. "Who? Is he a member of the titans? I saw an article about him the other day. All I know is that there are the Titans, and that guy. But otherwise, I have not heard of him."
Robin kept his glare on Nick's eyes, his gut telling him that the guy before him definitely had more information on the vigilante than what he was showing. "You sure you are telling me the truth? They say he could be a criminal taking out the others for his gain. Harboring someone like that will end badly for you Nick."
Nick let out a chuckle and shook his head at the Boy Wonder. "You say that as if I am lying to you. Want to come over to see? I can show you I am not harboring a supposed criminal." He then went serious, his tired expression that he wore for most of their time together vanishing as the glares between the two intensified. "Another thing, you don't seem to like me too much. What gives huh? Did something crawl up your ass, or is it your time of the month?"
Robin balled his fists at the comment, but remained calm. His eyes did not leave Nick's dark brown ones. "No thanks on coming over. And I don't like you. At all. You come out of nowhere and seem very suspicious. In addition to you coming out of nowhere, so does him. It also does not help that the way he fought and the way you fought Chuck were very similar in both stance, movement, and counter attacks. I don't think there is a coincidence there, do you?"
Nick sighed at Robin's words and looked out the window, shaking his head more. "Rich, let me tell you something. I am not the only one that can use all those fighting styles. What, you want to say I am all of those people too? In addition, you want to include them as people who are Zig? Your facts are based off quick assumptions. And news flash: I have been here for a lot longer than you think. I was here before this Zig vigilante even showed his face."
Nick then put back on his work attire, as in the apron and hat. "Look, I honestly do not care if you think I am suspicious or if you like me. You keep thinking I am this vigilante and you will go nowhere. Leave it to the Titans who will figure it out themselves. Don't play hero like a spoiled child." He spat, and then left.
Robin kept his eyes on Nick until he went in the back where the other workers were. With a sigh of annoyance and a glare that could intimidate most people, the boy wonder left the pizzeria.
XXXXXXXXXX
The moon lit up the night sky like a star on the Christmas tree as it shined down on Jump City. The wind was abnormally calm as well, barely blowing the leaves of the trees in the parks. The sound of cars driving by and horns blaring filled the air as it seemed like it would be a peaceful night in the usually chaotic city. That was until an explosion echoed at the dock area, smoke and fire now lighting up the once peaceful sky, followed by panicked screams.
Out of the burning building came a man in a big red suit with what seemed to be a safe on his back. He wore a near bored smirk on his face as he walked out to the open with the people working on the docks running like gazelle running from a predator. The guy polished off his insignia that was on his chest: an A in a circle. "Hm, for something that is supposed to be important, the guards here are pathetic and weak.
Adonis turned towards the town and was going to leave the wretched place to burn to the ground when he felt something hit his back. He turned to the assailant with an agitated expression. Before he could let out a word, a barrage of green and black attacks rained down on him like meteors.
"Out of all the trash to appear, I did not expect you to show up." Robin barked at the criminal, gadgets in hand as the rest of the titans landed next to their leader, all wearing serious faces and ready for a sudden attack from their opponent.
Adonis merely laughed at the heroes. "Well, you seem to underestimate me. I was able to escape the prison and get my suit back. Turns out they were studying it and gave it a few upgrades as well. With me like this, you all are like bugs under my boot!" He then suddenly appeared before Cyborg and landed a hard right hook to his jaw, sending him into one of the trailers that was nearby.
Beast boy took this opportunity to transform into an anaconda and wrap himself around Adonis, trying to restrain the villain. Raven and Starfire then charged, their hands powered by their respective powers. Robin also charged from behind him, taking out his bo staff from his gadget belt and jumping into the air, preparing to swing down on his head.
"Really Titans, you think this will work?" Adonis spoke dryly, as if this whole fight was a waste of time. In an instant, a shield appeared around him and blocked the three titans's attacks, shoving them away into various objects that were around them. He then grabbed Beastboy and sent an electric current into his body, making the changeling let go. Adonis then threw the green titan straight into the charging robotic teen that was making his way to him.
Before the villain could have a moment to relax, Starfire and Robin jumped at him, swinging fists and staff at the criminal in an attempt to hit him. However, all their attacks were in vain as Adonis merely ducked and moved out of the way of the attacks. He grabbed Robin's staff and Starfire's wrist, slamming them into each other and tossing them to the side like common trash.
"Azarath metrion zinthos!" Raven let out as the trailers near her became coated in black and flew at Adonis. Before they could get close to the villain, a few rockets flew out of his suit, flying at the objects coming at him and blowing them up to nothingness. He then propelled forward and punched Raven in the gut and kicked her into the ground, creating a decent size craeter in the ground.
"Raven!" Beastboy yelled, charging at Adonis in his gorilla form. He was able to land a few punches in on the red suit villain, only to get hit back himself and beaten bloody. The changeling changed back to normal and fell to the ground.
Robin threw a few of his ice disks at Adonis, freezing his legs to the ground. He jumped on his shoulder and swung down on him, only to see that his staff was grabbed by his opponent. "Not a bad idea to try to freeze me in place Robin. As expected, you had a good idea. However," as he said this, he freed his leg from the icy prison as if his leg was being held by a little kid. "That will not work either." He then threw the titan into some pipes that were tied together. When the Boy Wonder hit them, they came undone and fell onto the leader.
Cyborg and Starfire took this change to try to also go for a surprise attack, Cyborg firing his sonic cannon and Starfire sending another barrage of star bolts. Adonis chuckled again at the seemingly futile attempts to damage him as he put his shield back up once again, negating any attacks that the titans could do at the moment. "You're all trying different tactics to beat me, and yet they all crumble like a decaying monument." He then charged at the two standing titans, downing them each with a solid punch to their midsections.
After he laid waste to the heroes, Adonis picked up his stolen cargo and chuckled to himself. "You titans all have no chance in beating me as you are. Just give up and stay down. You are all just shit stains compared to my new suit. There is no point in getti-"
Before he could finish, he felt a sudden hard fist crash into his face, sending him into the water nearby. The titans all slowly got up and tried to see who it was that hit their target. The dust where Adonis was standing cleared, revealing Zig standing there. His fists were balled as his composure was unreadable. Adonis jumped out of the water and glared hard at the attacker. "So, seems like the titans got a new recruit. What, the five of you are all weak and needed another member?"
The guy merely shrugged. "I am not in league with them. I kinda do my own thing. I am not too fond of teams anyway, or dick bags that think that, with a child's toy, they are hot shit." He replied, his black hair that hung out of his mask blowing gently in the wind.
Adonis merely kept his glare. "So, you think that my creation is merely just a child's play thing? Hmph. If that is the case, how about I show you WHY you are dead wrong!" He yelled. Jets that were located under his feet propelled him at Zig as he balled his fists, unleashing what seemed to be an endless barrage of punches.
What Adonis did not expect was that Zig was able to keep up with each one of his attacks, blocking them all with a single hand as if he was playing patty cake. Zig caught one of the punches and pulled him closer to the vigilante, allowing him an opportunity to kick the red suit in the stomach and knee him in the bridge of his nose.
Adonis shoved the attacker away and rubbed his now bleeding nose. "You bastard, you're going to pay for that." He growled as he thought out his next attack. "This guy is definitely not like the others. His strength and speed are higher than theirs. On top of that, it seems as this guy is more combat experienced. I will have to end this quick."
Zig ran a hand through his hair and laughed, quite amused by Adonis. "Well then, I would like to see how you're going to make me pay. Considering the capabilities of that suit of yours, I know you don't have a chance in hell." He then smirked. "And ending it quickly is not going to be any help either."
Adonis's face went from rage to surprise at his words. "You… did you read my thoughts?!" He yelled, now charging in blindly at the vigilante, putting up his shield in the process.
Zig laughed as the villain appeared before him, swaying to the right and then left as he purposely narrowly avoided the attacks. "I would not say read your mind. I am not that special. But the look on your face plus the way you were holding yourself up seemed as though you realized you will have to end it in one attack. There is an issue with this thinking though."
As soon as that sentence was finished, Zig somehow vanished behind Adonis and punched hard enough to shatter the shield that surrounded the villain. He then crouched down and delivered a spinning kick to his legs, kicking so hard that the legs were cleanly ripped off. Zig then grabbed Adonis's suit's arms and ripped them off as well, leaving the suit completely useless. "I can tell you're not big enough for the suit, so taking out the limbs means that you're useless. It is over." He spoke calmly.
Adonis sat there with his suit being limbless starring at the ground, feeling the weight of defeat crash down on him like a falling boulder. The area got silent enough for the crashing of the waves to now be audible. Adonis began to shake, but not out of fear. "You… you bastard! I have not lost yet!"
Before anyone of the titans could even blink, a knife shot out at Zig, flying directly at his head. Though, the sound of the knife slicing through Zig never came, for he easily caught the knife in between his index and middle finger. Adonis starred in shock at the blinding speed Zig displayed. "Y... you… but how?! How is that poss-"
Adonis's words got cut off as Zig delivered a quick chop to the back of his neck, making him lose consciousness. Zig sighed and leaned back on a pole that was nearby. "Well, that was anit-climatic. I thought he would be fun." He replied, taking out a cigarette and lighting it.
By this time, the Titans all got up and were able to recuperate a bit. Robin was once again glaring daggers at their savior. "While I appreciate the help, NICK, we did not need it at all. And now you will be coming with us." He spoke in a menacing tone. The rest of the titans all looked to the figure to see what reaction he would give.
Zig looked to the boy wonder and tilted his head in confusion. "Uh… who the hell is that?'
Robin felt his face get hot with his words. "THAT GUY I-"
"No, that is not my real name." He replied, cutting off the Titans leader. He then went over to Adonis and picked up the guy that was in the suit, tossing him over to where the Titans were. Raven used her magic to catch the villain, but when she turned back to Zig, she and the other titans realized he vanished into thin air.
Robin seethed in annoyance and punched a nearby dumpster. "Damnit, we let him escape AGAIN!" He yelled, proceeding to punch the dumpster more until it became dented from the blows.
XXXXXXXXXX
The screen that had the fight between the Titans, Zig, and Adonis turned off as a figure sat in the chair. "So, the trial run is done. The suit was pretty well done, with a few glitches to fix and tweaks to be made. It was quite convenient he escaped, he made the perfect guinea pig." He chuckled.
The door behind him opened as a guy in a white suit came in. "Brother Blood, the suits are done and the modifications shall be made once we analyze the data from the footage."
Brother Blood nodded and turned back to the screen, that was now playing footage of the fight over again. He paused it when it showed Zig entering the fight. "This new fighter… he seems interesting. He is definitely not human, but what is he…"
He then turned to the guy and spoke. "You, I want you to also rewatch the footage and analyze this Zig person. He is definitely an interesting person. I may want to try to recruit this enitity. He would make a good addition to the Church of Blood." He spoke, with venomus intent in his words. "In a few days, we begin the next steps in the plan."
Well, I hope you all like this chapter. I tried to be more descriptive and stuff because I felt that my stories lacked that sometimes. Leave a like and follow if you like what I am doing so far.