Chapter 7: Kill or be killed
"Why in such a hurry?" the changeling's voice came from behind her and panic rose inside her and with a fearful cry, she let her free foot slam right into his face and create some distance and Terra quickly scrambled to her feet and ran against the door before moving the handle down with a strong push.
Her eyes stared blankly at her hand that gripped the handle and kept pushing it down in an increasingly faster motion.
The door wouldn't budge.
It was locked!
Terra turned around suddenly. "Where's the key?"
And as an answer, she got knocked down by a bear paw, a gash engraved on her cheek. Terra struggled to get up on her healthy hand and briefly bit her lip from the pain…before suddenly something pulled her back to the floor. Something was on her leg…and it was moving upwards. Fear gripped her and she just managed to sit up before feeling scales move to her arms as well, successfully keeping them restrained and Terra felt panic rise in her as she felt the air leaving her lungs. She tried twisting to get free but it only had the effect that she dropped back down to the floor and Terra saw with horror that a large snake was coiling around her, now covering waist and thighs as well and squirming became increasingly difficult…until she couldn't move anymore.
The snake's head slithered over to her head, hovering as its eyes stared into her and the girl squeezed her eyes shut as soon as the head came into view.
"N-no…" she rasped as if that word would scare the snake away and the changeling felt elevated at hearing that pained whimper of utter horror.
She would never recover from this experience…unfortunately she still refused to use her powers. The snake coiled further and Terra uttered a pained cry as the snake felt some bone break inside her.
How many bones was he forced to break until she would accept herself?
The surrounding turned blurry and the former Titan felt her strength fading, not even having enough energy to voice her pain as she felt another of her ribs breaking from the pressure.
She wanted to vanish – to cease existing. She couldn't live in this nightmare…and soon she would leave. The large snake felt her relaxing and the changeling was…disappointed.
Was she trying to get herself killed?
It wouldn't come to that.
He had plans for her after all.
The pressure lifted from her and it took a while for her to open her eyes, blurred colors dancing in front of her. Her breathing was ragged and each time she inhaled, jolts of pain traveled to her chest.
She had definitely a broken rib.
The girl managed to tilt her head slightly, and the outline of the door on the wall gave her newfound hope.
Get up!
She was trying to encourage herself…but she felt so weak…so…sleepy…
She was tired…of running.
Her eyes closed for a moment…before she heard his voice in her head – her own voice and she whispered the words from her past.
"I-It's…never…too late…"
Her hand moved towards her neck, suddenly feeling the furry animal that had perched onto her shoulder before the bat that had been feasting on her flew out of collision course with her palm.
Terra shakily brought her hand closer after coming into contact with something wet and she saw her palm stained with her blood. And she repeated the words a bit louder now before gradually getting onto her knees. "It's…never…too late…"
The changeling raised a confused eyebrow, hearing his words coming from her mouth and slowly approached her. How right she was! It was never too late to make her realize who she was supposed to be.
Terra managed to get on shaky legs, her body still hurting from the torture she had been put under before taking a step forward, eyes fixed at the outline of her escape. "…never…too late…"
Slowly, she placed one foot over the other, hope slowly getting back to her every time she repeated those words – it was her oath.
"…never too late…It's never too late…"
She reached the door, deciding to use all strength she had left to try to break it down and she had just taken a step back for momentum when something slammed at her from behind and she hit the door before dropping to the ground, cringing as a shudder passed through her.
"I think you gotta speak up," the changeling grinned, watching as Terra struggled to get up from the floor.
"…n-never…"
Images of her apprenticeship flashed before her eyes, images as she struggled against at the suit's control over her and she thought that if she had endured the pain Slade had put under her…then she could also survive this.
"…too…"
Terra slowly got up from her kneeling position, trying to ignore the pain that gnawed at her nerves like a swarm of mice before taking another deep breath. '…late…" Having said the last word, the girl found herself standing, her shivering legs threatening to drop her at any moment.
"For accepting that you're a Titan – yes," the shape-shifter muttered, his eyes wandering over her fragile body before resting on her determined expression as he took a step towards her.
Terra let out a weak cry of anger, lashing out with her fist but the changeling blocked her attack before it reached his face.
"For trying to think you can keep denying this? No," he muttered coldly and morphed into a panther. Before Terra could evade, the green cat had engraved a gash on her side, causing her to roll against the wall next to the door.
Terra gripped her bleeding side and gradually got up again, the sounds of approaching footsteps giving her the energy needed to do this. And when she faced the source of the footsteps, a gasp escaped her as she saw the image of an orange and black mask.
"Hello, Terra…"
His voice was coming from her ears directly but when she felt the gloved hand grab her throat, Salde's face vanished to be replaced by her former friend's.
"Let…me…go…" Terra muttered through clenched teeth as one of her hands wrapped around his arm to get him off…but the pain cruising through her was not making it easy.
"And just let you slip through my fingers?" he mused, letting his hand close around her throat a little tighter and a smirk pulled on his lips, feeling her shiver. He thought he wouldn't have to damage her beyond this point but she seemed sturdier than he thought at first.
And it amused him.
"I like to see you struggle."
Terra stared at him in a look between disgust and disbelief.
This was definitely not Beast Boy!
"You're…c-crazy," she spat out and he laughed like she just told him a joke and Terra's anger in her expression faded when she felt his thumb run over the red gash on her face, causing her flinch at the burning sensation.
His expression seemed to soften as he smiled at her and the blonde-haired girl felt her heart beat in her throat, as he smeared the blood of her gash a bit more.
Terra shut her eyes as her hand on her side clutched the wound tighter. She had to stop the bleeding somehow!
"I never denied being crazy about you..."
She had to stop him somehow!
The blonde-haired girl tried to get her powers to work – only her powers could save her now. But why wouldn't they work? Come on!
That's it…concentrate!
If she managed to activate her powers now…then there was no turning back.
His grip suddenly loosened on the girl and the Titan noticed that it wasn't him doing that. "What?"
With a shaking hand, Beast Boy let go of the girl and he clenched his teeth angrily. "Get out of my head," he growled and Terra opened her eyes, seeing him trying to get control of his shivering hand.
"No, Terra!"
His weaker self was back! He couldn't let that happen again.
"Don't do it! It's a trap!" the voice in his head shouted and the green changeling managed to fist his hand and morphed into the Beast, using his primal instincts to suppress his other self.
Unfortunately, for a moment he lost control over his more ferocious transformation and the Beast raised his dangerous claws at Terra.
The claws dropped…and the girl let out a ferocious howl of her own as her eyes and hands shone golden, before knocking the Beast back with a large piece from the floor.
Her powers were back!
The large rock changed shape to turn into a spear before zooming towards the large beast. But it evaded by becoming a crow and the spear lodged itself into the wall, a large crack forming.
More cracks appeared under Terra's feet, spreading across the walls and ceiling, running over each of her names like her powers were trying to break, to destroy her identity.
The crow had vanished as the ground in the hall began crumbling, pieces of it floating in the air as if gravity itself had been wiped from existence.
"Can you deny who you are now?" Beast Boy called over the rumbling of the hall and Terra's expression filled with shock.
"No! That's not me!" she shouted in sudden realization, trying to stop her powers…but the cracks kept running over the white chalk that spelled out her name over and over again.
"Don't lose control! Don't lose control!"
Her words were getting increasingly panicking and her hands grabbed her head. "Please don't lose control…" she begged, once again turning into the lost child she had been in the past.
The changeling couldn't tear his eyes away from her and he didn't even hear his own frantic scream of her name that resonated in his head – he had waited so long for him to see her like this – to see her at the brink of hopelessness – on the edge of giving in to her past.
The past that was destined to keep Terra chained to him…and for his other half to vanish forever.
All that he needed now was to give her that final push into her dark abyss.
