A/N: This took me a lot longer than expected! I've been working on four stories... Possibility of five... If you read The Last Days and you're great at finding clues, then you will see the names of the two other stories I've been working on. The Last Days is in the same universe as this story actually, just in the past. My writing contains clues about the furture, the past, or the present of the story. Make sure you look for them to get hints!

... I've also been spelling Cyborg like Cybrog... Heheh. Cybrog.

Chapter 7: Shadow

Gotham Airport

25-year-old Terrence McGinnis sighed as he glanced at the gate leading to his plane. Once he was inside, he would have to observe the ones around him like Bruce taught him. He scanned the aircraft before boarding of course, but not its passangers. You can never trust Gotham, especially its airport. People come and go, and they could be terrorists, criminals, or murderers. That's why Bruce always took his private jet, but Terry didn't want Jump City to know a Wayne was arriving. That would draw a lot of attention to himself. Therefore, Terry brought a chicken to hide his identity. Wait? A Chicken? Why would he need a chicken? He down't even own a chicken.

He's also wearing lead-lined sunglasses.

He expected his two other siblings to follow him, and follow him they did.

"Terry, where are you going? Who was that you were on the phone with?" His 17-year-old sister asked him with a suspicious voice.

"Cass."

"Why?" Stephanie Brown asked, dragging the word out. She was wearing slightly long denim shorts, a red flannel, sneakers, and lead-lined sunglasses.

Damian Wayne walked up to the two. "Isn't it obvious? He intends to go where Cain is." The quick-tempered 19-year-old was wearing black button-up, tan trousers, black dress shoes, and lead-lined sunglasses.

"What the heck are you wearing? We are not going to a gala." Stephanie put her hand on her hip. "Why are you always so formal? And aren't you warm? It's about 80 out today!"

Before Damian could answer, the airport gate agent asked the three for their tickets. Being prepared, the two tagalongs handed their tickets to the lady. Terry also handed his ticket over. Once out of distance from the lady, Terry spoke with an annoyed voice. "Why did you follow me?"

"Alfred saw you leaving the building with an airport ticket in your hand. By the way, that wasn't a dead giveaway."

"And you left Alfred alone?"

Stephanie snorted. "No, we called Barbara and told her that the we were all heading out somewhere and that she needs to take care of Alfred while we're gone."

"What about Gotham? Who'll handle the crime while we're gone?"

"...Barbara got that covered too."

"Alone?"

"...Superman will be there at first call."

The three Waynes used illegal names to get onto the airplane, so if they were found out, that would tarnish the family name for sure. Terry tried to predict every outcome from the situation every bat was in right now. Cassandra was in Jump City with Tim and Dick. Once he had heard from his phone call with Cass that they were in Jump City, he researched its criminals. The biggest threat he was worried about was Slade, or rather known as Deathstroke... Now, the question is...

What the hell is Deathstroke doing is Jump City?

Teen Titans

Cassandra's brown eyes fluttered open as sunlight hit her face. She turned her head to look at the clock next to the couch, it showing 5:33 AM. About thirty minutes until the Titans wake up. Terry would be arriving in three to five hours. She carefully leaned forward and grabbed her sunglasses off of the table near her and placed them back over her eyes.

The 21-year-old stood up and shook Tim's shoulder to wake him up. "Tim, c'mon, wake up. It's 5:30 in the morning. Tim, wake up."

Tim yawned as he opened his eyes and rubbed them. He stood up. "Shouldn't we wake them up?" The 16-year-old gestured to their brothers on the couch.

Cassandra waved her hand back and forth with little effort as she walked passed Tim. "Let them sleep for another ten minutes."

The younger of the two nodded and followed his sister to the kitchen where she started to prepare two cups of coffee. "I've read that caffeine isn't that good for kids and teens."

"You're 16, and one cup will not do any harm."

"I guess since–"

Cassandra placed a hand on her head. "Please, I do not need to know these things in my life."

"But what if–"

"What did I say? Also, I will never go to a caffeine lesson or ever read a book about caffeine, and do not say anything about Batman's lessons."

While Tim and Cassandra drank their coffee, they chatted about random subjects. The subject of caffeine was not included. By then, ten minutes were up and Cassandra made her way back to the couch.

She gently shook their shoulders and said in a soft voice, "Wake up."

Back in the kitchen, Tim snorted. "Much more gentler than waking me up." He attempted to do Cassandra's voice. "Tim, wake up, c'mon Tim! I will tell you the time because that is so important right now! Get off the couch!"

"I did not even say half of that."

Richard stirred and opened his eyes. He sat up and found his sunglasses on his face in an odd position. He was fixing them as Jason woke up. "Five more minutes..." The 15-year-old mumbled as he let his head hang.

"No Jason, the rest of the Titans will be up soon and they cannot see us like this." Cassandra dragged her younger brother off of the couch. Richard giggled a bit as Jason let himself fall, not caring where he would land. The second oldest of the Batman Family caught him before he fell onto the table.

"Okay, okay... Just get me a cup of coffee–" He grumbled out.

"Caffeine is not good for kids and teens since–"

"Tim! What did I say about caffeine lessons?"

Airplane

The three Waynes were not able to sit next to each other. Terry had a window seat, which had its advantages and disadvantages, but he was also sitting next to a man that snores very loudly. This annoyed him to no end.

Trying not to punch the guy in the gut, Terry pulled out a small device, which was used to find any mechanisms that do not follow a specific machine's design. He'd already used it on the plane, but he was bored. Really bored. He narrowed his eyes at the device.

Steph also had gotten a window seat, and was currently staring out the window. At times like these memories and past thoughts flood her mind. She thought about one question she had been asked by Jason last January, before his death.

"Would you kill to save someone who you consider family?"

She never had spoken her reply, but instead kept it to herself. What confused her was Jason's reaction. He frowned when she didn't give him her answer. What did that mean? Did he think she wouldn't kill to save that someone? That she would kill? Most likely all of the Wayne family members would kill to save that someone who is considered family to them. Perhaps even Dick...

Damian scowled as he sat back in his seat. He wasn't as lucky as Terry or Steph. He was stuck in the middle of two people that could possibly be possessed. Both were just staring at him, and he swore they never blinked yet. It's normal to stare at people, okay?

Jump City

Cyborg powered up his systems as his one eye opened. His set a scan throughout his body to see if there were any malfunctions while he was sleeping, or powered off. For a few minutes, he stayed in his spot, unmoving. It was... Not again. He mentally groaned.

The scan results popped up in his vision, telling him that there were no bugs or viruses in his system. He sighed, leaving his thoughts in the corner of his mind to forget about them. No time to think about his past now.

Standing on the ground, Cyborg begain to think again. Why were these thoughts suddenly coming back to him? He would never think about the incident that made him into what he is today. The cornered thoughts returned, and he couldn't get them out of his head. The creature... His mother... Shaking his head at the thoughts, he started to head for the main room. Again, these horrible memories of the past kept reoccuring in his mind. This time, they were accompanied by a voice.

"Do you not want revenge for your so called called father making you into this monster?"

A shadow appeared on the wall.

"Why should otheres have perfect lives while you have to deal with your physical promblems?"

Red eyes could be seen glowing in the darkness, staring straight at the 18-year-old. Cyborg tried to move, but found that he couldn't. He tried to speak, but he also found he was not able to. The shadow somehow moved closer, and the lights in the corridor dimmed. His eye widened in horror as the shadow turned into something that looked human at first glance, but Cyborg studied it longer. It, or he, had red eyes and a long face. His dark hair reached his elbows, and his clothing was all black. His skin was pale white. The figure's grin widened, and Cyborg could now see fangs dripping with blood poking out of his mouth.

"Even your made up friends pity you. Everyone does. They are disgusted by you, digusted by the fact that you are a machine with human components. Your articfial mind even fooled you, making you believe that you were once human. The memories you have? Those were just constructed by the man who built you. The one you think of as your 'father'."

He can't be right, could he? Although, there was no way to prove his words, except finding his 'father'. Was he just a machine programmed to think he was human? No, no, it was a lie. Everything he experienced wasn't created by his artifical mind. The team. BB, Rae, Rob, and Star were real, right?

A chuckle caught Cyborg's attention. "Careful there, you might blow a fuse if you keep thinking about it. You're weak, your mind is defenseless against me."

The world turned pitch black, as if the lights were all turned off at once. He couldn't hear, he couldn't speak. He attempted to move again, only to find he had no body. It's as if nothing existed.

Main Room of Tower

"Where is Cy at? We need to have our daily argument." Beast Boy muttered in annoyance. "He'll miss breakfast."

"I find it fascinating that someone who's part machine is able to eat food at all. Does the food get digested?" Redbird wondered.

"Please, do not start experimenting right in front of us." Red Hood said, shaking his head as he ate his toast.

Loud footsteps alerted them all, making their gazes land on the door as it opened to reveal Cyborg. His head was down, hiding his eyes.

Beast Boy jumped up and ran to his friend. "Finally! Dude, training's in fifteen minutes!" Cyborg stared down at the green boy, no emotion showing in his eye. "Uh, Cy? You alright?"

"Unreal."

This made the changeling confused. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Imaginary. Almost like phantasmagoria, excpet my mind is artifical."

Blackbat, Redbird, Red Hood, and Robin stood up, clear shock could be seen in their faces.

"I am just a machine." Cyborg grinned and aimed his already powered up Sonic Cannon at his best friend. It was then that he noticed Cyborg's shadow was not the shape of the 18-year-old, but someone else's shadow. It had two glowing red dots where the eyes would be if it were a real person...

Beast Boy flew back with a cry. He hit the wall, creating a small dent in it. He slid to the ground, groaning as he looked up at his best friend. "C-Cy?" The green boy froze as he saw his face. Red eyes stared back at him, shining with complete hatred. A wide grin was planted on his face.

Everything after that moment happened fastly. Blackbat charged forward, throwing the knife she kept hidden at the machine's leg. It implanted itself directly in the joint section, cutting the metal. Cyborg growled as he held his leg, and started to charge up his Sonic Cannon again, but Blackbat as already beside him. She took out a bat-a-rang and rammed it into the cannon, disabling it.

She flipped away before Cyborg can snatch her with his other hand. "Yay, two times in a row. Damn villains." Red Hood muttered next to her.

"Did you follow Sompel or Adam here to Jump City? And what ever happened to being in Arkham?" Robin shouted, signaling to his team to keep quiet and stay out of the way. He stepped back, realizing that his siblings do not want him involved in this fight because of what happened last time. He shivered at the experience. It was horrible to be trapped in that dark abyss...

"I followed both of them here, and I escaped a long time ago, during the holidays."

How come I was never told? Robin glanced at Blackbat, Redbird, and Red Hood. Did they know he escaped? He remembers something about Cass suddenly leaving the house, and coming back with information. He only knows that she shared the information with Bruce, but, why didn't she share this info with him? Didn't they trust each other?

"Nick, stop this." Blackbat growled, pulling out a syringe, similar to the one she had used on Starfire. This one was made for Cyborg, made to send a virus, turned into a liquid, straight to his brain's sensory system, and in another way, it'll also stop his movements. In simpler terms, he'll be forcefully shut down.

The reply to her demand was a laugh, not Cyborg's laugh, but Nicholaus Mack's laugh. He was a vampire, a dangerous yet easy to defeat one. He was Adam's older brother. Robert Sompel turned him into a blood-sucking freak. Usually, he would be in a cell and would rarely be out, but the only times he would creep out of the darkness would be to help Sompel, cure his boredom, or send a warning to the bats. Nick was that bad guy that was did good by choice, like Jason, but he can be easily defeated.

"I've had my fun, but now let's get serious." Cyborg's shadow returned to it's usual shape and size. A dark image appeared on the wall, and the only features you were able to see were red eyes.

Cyborg groaned and took in the world around him. The darkness had just disappeared, and the lights in his eye were flicked back on. The sudden burst of colors and lights made him clench his eye shut. Slowly opening it, even though the world was a bit blurry from his left eye's point of view, he saw his friends. "Wh-Wha... What happened?" He asked, looking around the room. His gaze landed on the shadow he had seen in the hallway. "Y-You!"

"Cyborg, relax he will not hurt you." Blackbat kept her eyes on Nick, or rather Nick's shadow form. She placed the syringe in her hidden utility belt before anyone could question her about it. "The warning?"

"This is only the calm before the storm." He sounded like he was whispering. "What you have just experienced, with Sompel and me, is nothing compared to what hell awaits all of you, or perhaps just one of you."

With that, the shadow gained a grin, which showed the wall where the mouth would've been. The red eyes dimmed, and the shadow disappeared, leaving the Titans and bats with multiple questions to his message...

"What the fuck is that supposed mean?" Jason gestured wildly.