Cindy flapped harder and harder, trying to gain speed. The smoke plume continued to rise ahead of her and she was picking up speed, not that she could really tell. While she was airborne it wasn't lost on her that she had no clue about the art of flying. She was hundreds of feet above the ground and was struggling to stay level as she had to contend with sudden wind gusts, down drafts and eddies in the air.
Her perseverance paid off, as she had finally reached the point of conflict. It felt as if an eternity had passed though in reality she made very good time. As she looked down she saw all five Titans fighting countless Sladebots, and contrary to the news reports no one appeared to be injured, but they looked tired.
She remembered when Slade's and Terra's army invaded the city, after the Titans had mysteriously vanished and left the city unprotected. Her parents quickly packed some suitcases, threw them into their SUV and got out of Jump as quickly as they could. They drove down to Los Angeles, which was on high alert and had its own superheroes on patrol, should Slade try to invade the City of Angels.
This looked worse than the previous time, which she watched safely on TV from the home of some friends who lived near Disneyland. They didn't return to Jump until three months later.
Cindy circled around above, unnoticed by both Slade and the Titans. But she could see that thousands of Sladebots were closing in on her friends. And that's when it happened. It was as if a spark flashed inside her, igniting a bomb inside her.
They weren't just her friends. Gar wasn't merely her cousin, nor Raven simply her future sister in law. She understood what they were at the most primordial level, though she didn't comprehend what was beginning to happen to her. All she could see was that her pack was in danger and felt a primordial, instinctive rage fire through her. Next thing she knew her wings were gone and she was falling from the sky.
-(-)-
Cyborg fired both of his sonic cannons, sweeping Sladebots away with their mighty torrents of sound. Starfire fired star bolts incessantly, like a machine gun. Robin took down robot after robot with his bo staff, while Raven and Beast Boy worked together, he in Triceratops form while she rode on his back, shielding his vulnerable flanks with her dark energy while he used his deadly horns to impale robots. The Titans were fighting like a well oiled machine. But it wasn't good enough.
"There's too many of them!" Cyborg shouted. "We gotta retreat and regroup!"
"We're surrounded. And I can't teleport us out. Slade's using some kind of dampening field. My portals keep collapsing!"
Slade's army was closing in on them, and the Boy Wonder knew they couldn't win. "Star, Raven! Fly away! Save yourselves!" Robin shouted.
"If you think that we will do the abandoning of you here, you do not know what friend Raven and I are made of!" The princess thundered.
Robin was about to order the girls to save themselves when a loud crash thundered nearby. All eyes were turned to the source of the sound. Dust was in the air and they couldn't see well. Suddenly a familiar roar was heard and a green leviathan jumped before them.
"About time you became the Beast, green bean. Now we can open a can of whoop ass on these robots."
The changeling suddenly appeared next to Raven. "Uh, dudes, that isn't me."
The Beast like creature leaped over them and began to shred Sladebots like they were made of tissue paper.
"Whoever it is, it appears to be on our side." Robin shouted. "Titans, Go!"
Gar and Raven exchanged a quick glance.
"That's gotta be Cindy."
Raven nodded. "Let's help her."
With their new ally the tide of the battle quickly changed. Cindy's Beast tore through them with a rhythm that was both savage and precise. A few minutes later the surviving robots turned tail and ran away, scattering off in all directions. Slade was nowhere to be found, as always.
Gar ran to the Beast, with Raven close behind her. The leviathan looked exhausted and began to morph back into Cindy. Gar caught her as she fell forward and he blushed, as his cousin was naked as the day she was born. In a swift move Raven removed her cape and wrapped it around the unconscious green girl.
"What is she doing here!? I told her to stay at the school and wait for us!" Robin shouted.
"Dude, she saved our sorry butts! She's one of us." Gar protested.
"She isn't a Titan! She hasn't been trained."
"Since when does the Beast need training?" Raven asked.
Robin appeared to relax, before he saw the police approach. He tensed up again,
"Raven, can you get her back to the Tower?"
The sorceress nodded. "I can. The dampening field is gone."
"Get her to the infirmary."
Raven raised her arms. Beast Boy was carrying Cindy bridal style and a black hemisphere enveloped them, and they were gone.
-(-)-
Cindy was sleeping in Beast Boy's med station. Raven had changed her into a hospital gown and was wearing her cape again.
Cyborg hovered over the unconscious girl, reading outputs from screens and jotting down notes as he waited for the results of a blood analysis.
"Looks like she got more than she bargained for from me." Gar whispered.
Robin was lurking in the shadows in the infirmary. He cleared his throat and stepped into the light.
"The question is, can she control it?"
"Dude, I still can't control him."
Cindy groaned.
"She's waking up." Raven deadpanned. "She's going to be disoriented. Gar, you need to be at her side."
The green Titan nodded his agreement and took his place next to her bed. He took her hand and held it as she woke up. Cindy blinked several times as she continued to groan.
"Where am I?"
"We're in the Tower. Everyone's safe." Gar replied in a soothing tone. "What's the last thing you remember?"
She delicately sat up in her bed and looked at her friends.
"I was a bird, a falcon; I think. I was flying overhead and saw that you guys were in trouble … so many of those Sladebots."
"You can say that again." He smiled as he squeezed her hand. "So what happened next?"
"I'm not sure … I just felt I had to protect you, all of you."
"And then?"
"Nothing … just claws and teeth … Gar, what happened to me?"
He caressed her cheek. "You became the Beast."
"The Beast? I've never heard of that before."
"As you have just learned, there's plenty the TV tabloids don't know about us, though I'm afraid you made the news again. Everyone thinks you're a Titan now." Raven told her.
"I don't understand. What is the Beast?"
"We aren't sure. We think it's a composite of all the animal forms. It rarely appears." Raven added. "Not even Gar is sure of what he is."
"In the past, it would only appear when Raven was in the danger, and then only in the most extreme cases." Cyborg added.
"So, I have no control over it? I can just turn into this Mr. Hyde like monster at any time with no warning?"
Raven crossed her arms. "Let's get one thing straight, the Beast isn't a monster. Is it primal? Yes, it is; but that doesn't make it a monster. The Beast isn't evil, and believe me, Cindy; I know what evil is."
Cindy looked at her cousin. "Gar, how do I control the Beast?"
He shrugged. "I've only transformed into him three times, and it's been years since the last time … I guess I don't have an answer for you, except to say that Raven's right, it isn't a monster. But I feel him inside me, all the time. But … he seems … OK with being there."
"I once told Gar that knowing when to let him out is what makes him a man. The same applies to you, knowing when to let her out, that makes you a woman."
Cindy had the classical "deer in the headlights" look.
"What I'm saying Cindy is that you will eventually impose your mastery over the Beast … you'll just have to be patient."
"What about Slade? What happened?"
"You single handedly thrashed his robots and sent him packing." Robin answered. "Cindy, I think it's time you considered going through formal training."
"So I am a Teen Titan?"
"Not yet … maybe you never will be. But once you learn to control your powers, then you can choose your path. I'll have to warn you, the training is hard and there's no guarantee you'll join the team. And you can't count on the Beast bailing you out. We really could have used him today, but Beast Boy was unable to summon him. He's tried several times this year alone, and couldn't summon him." Robin continued to explain.
"I don't understand. What does that mean?"
"It means that you will have to be patient. Cyborg, is she ready to be discharged from the infirmary?" Raven asked.
The tin man looked at readouts. "Yeah, she's fine. She can leave at anytime."
"Good. Cindy, I would like you to stay with me tonight. I will teach you the basics of meditation."
-(-)-
The door to Raven's room swished open. The sorceress glided in, before stopping and looking over her shoulder.
"Please, come in,"
Cindy tiptoed into Raven's dark abode. She had never seen a room quite like this one. It was dark. It was full of strange and creepy artifacts. Starfire's room was so cheery and pink that it gave her a headache; but Raven's room … it felt like she was entering a movie set for a horror movie. Did Gar really spend time in here making out with Raven? He must really love her, though the reason why suddenly escaped her.
"Cindy, are you alright?"
The green girl snapped out of her funk.
"Sorry … yeah … I'm OK. It's just been a weird day, or should I say another weird day."
Raven nodded her head. "Actually, considering all you've been through, you're doing quite well. Still, it is obvious that you could still use some help."
Cindy saw a very macabre looking mirror on Raven's desk. She leaned over to get a better look at it.
"You don't want to touch that."
Cindy recoiled, with a scared look on her face. Raven grabbed her mirror and quickly stowed it away in a drawer.
"Forgive me, I should have put that away earlier. Contrary to what Gar might have told you, my room isn't full of deadly booby traps. You are quite safe in here."
"You asked me to spend the night with you."
"I did. In addition to teaching you some meditation techniques which you will find very helpful for controlling your powers, including the Beast, I thought ..."
The gray girl fell silent.
"Yes?"
"I thought it would be good to get to know each other better."
Cindy smiled. "Yeah, I'd like that too."
Raven had a small couch in her room. She sat down on it and gestured for Cindy to join her.
"As I've already told you, Gar and I are considering formalizing our relationship sometime next year."
"Yeah, I remember that."
"Right, anyway, once we do, well, you and I, we'll be family. While I might not exteriorize it, this is a big deal for me, as I have no living relatives, a least none that are human. I've always considered the Titans to be my surrogate family, but now, I'm actually going to have one, are you're going to be part of it."
Cindy beamed. "If anyone had told me two months ago that I'd be sitting in your room, talking about all this ..."
Raven raised her hand, silencing the still blond girl (whose roots were already turning green).
"Before you get too excited, I need to ask you something."
"Yeah, sure, ask me anything."
"You're Gar's only living relative … are you OK with him marrying someone like me?"
"I … uh … don't understand. Why would I not be OK?"
"I am half demon."
"So? You're a great person, Raven. Why should it matter that your father was a demon?"
Raven bowed her head. "I struggle with the darkness that dwells within me."
Cindy placed her hand on Raven's shoulder.
"We all struggle with the darkness inside of us."
"It's different. Human evil doesn't even come close."
"Hello? Jack the Ripper, Attila the Hun, Hitler, Pol Pot … need I go on?"
"I see you stayed awake during your history classes; but you don't understand. Cindy … have you heard of Trigon the Terrible?"
"Who hasn't? You saved the world from him."
"I also brought him into the world. Cindy … he's my father."
Cindy became slack jawed. "No. Freaking. Way."
"It's true … so, are you still willing to welcome me into your family?"
Cindy wrapped her arms around the gray girl.
"Of course I am. I couldn't think of anyone better for Gar."
Raven hugged her back, and a tear dripped down her cheek.
"Thank you." She whispered.
The continued to hug, until Cindy broke the silence.
"So how about those meditation lessons?"
-(-)-
Over in Robin's room …
The circus brat was busy smooching his princess girlfriend, but she could sense that something was off.
"Richard, what is bothering you?"
Robin felt a pang of guilt go though him. She would only call him by that name when she was concerned for him.
"I'm worried about Cindy. I don't think she's cut out to be a Titan, but she also can't leave. I'm not even sure she even wants to be a Titan."
"Why can she not stay with us?"
"Star, she needs to live a normal life."
She caressed his face. "I do not believe that is the possible anymore for her."
"That's what I'm saying, Star. She's caught between a rock and a hard place."
Starfire gave him a quizzical look. "You are saying that she is the trapped?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying. If she leaves, you know that Slade will have his eye on her. She can't leave, but what will she do if she stays? Be our housekeeper?"
"She did kick the butt today, and as you said earlier, she will have to commence the training so she can learn to control her powers. Maybe she will become a Titan?"
"She doesn't follow orders."
"Because she is not yet a Titan and has not been trained."
"And probably will never be one. Star, I'm worried she's going to get cabin fever and do something dumb and get herself into big trouble."
"I have the idea. We have not had an all Titans party for the longest of times. Let us host one so she can meet more friends."
Robin grinned. "Star, that's a great idea!"
She grabbed him, picked him up bridal style, tossed him onto the bed and jumped on him.
"I am not just the pretty face." She purred at him. "And now would be the good time to show me that you know that." She added as she peeled his mask off.
"Yes, ma'am!" He agreed.
And he did a great job of showing her exactly how he felt.
