Chapter Six:
Broken
Halo.
Robin looked at the scene before him, taking in the scent of revenge that seemed to hang into the hair. Somehow he could sense the feeling of anger and quiet screams of help. The others all looked uneasy, and the leader asumed they felt the same. Beast Boy shivered slightly as if the feeling was sending tingles down his spine. Robin sighed before looking back at Tara and... Slade. Part of him was happy that they hadn't found what they all thought they would, another part worried about what was happening now. Why had Terra been hiding all this time? Why where these two together? Was this a trap?
The Titan switched his gaze to Slade briefly, and a small twang of pity ran out to the villian. But Robin smacked away that thought as soon as he relized what it was, reminding himself that Slade was one of their worst enemys. The way he was tangled over the corupted earth though... was a pitiful sight. Robin had never seen the man down like this, and awe built up inside him. He pulled himself together and spoke with a stern and quistioning tone.
"Terra?...Whats happened here, how did-" He was soon cut off by himself, finding himself failed of words.
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Beast Boy watched as Tara looked at each Titan with something like a innocent look. But his earlier encounted still had him toung-tied out of confusion. Now everything seemed even more jumbled together, and trying to un-tangled it made his head hurt, so he quit trying. He could sense something diffirent, the shape shifter couldn't put his finger on it. But something about the blonde girl seemed so diffirent, so wrong... so dark and cold. Again he felt himself shiver of the hallowing sensation. His lips formed a thin line through his face while his eyes stayed alart and on Tara.
Her blue eyes where large and innocent, her lips formed a small opening on her face as she continued to look at all the Titans. She stood up slowly and took a few staggered steps away from Slade, glancing down at him. Beast Boy thought he saw her shoot a demonic look towards the villian, but it was gone to fast for him to confirm it. Still, he felt a dark feeling about her.
Tara spoke with a quiet tone, as if she was intimidated by the teenagers who where giving her confused looks. "Hey guys. What took so long?" Her voice was still small, and was like she was trying to joke with them. But she was to humbled to do it right.
The Titan's gave each other more looks that almost seemed to jumbled with emotions to tell what they where asking each other. Beast Boy still kept quiet, he couldn't talk... something was wrong.
"Terra?" Starfire's timied voice piped shortly, as if she couldn't belive it.
Beast Boy's eyes loward when he saw Tara smirk, but again the look was quick and non of the other Titan's seemed to have caught it.
"Yeah... about that." Her voice hissed slightly at the end, and her eyebrows also loward, as if giving off a mocking laugh at them. "She says "hi"." The earth suddenly roared with awakening as it came up in crumbled pillars and shot towards them.
Beast Boy gave a surprsied gasp before blocking his face with his arm, but he hadn't have bothered. Raven had put up a shield, protecting the shocked Titans. Beast Boy loward his arm and looked to Tara, who stood with glowing eyes and a calm smile, as if asking for them to bring it on. He felt something jab his heart, he didn't know what- but it hurt. His chest seemed to swell and his throat clogged, making him shake slightly. He knew the feeling too well, it was a heartbreak. Terra... why.
Robin gave Tara a sorry look, before trying to shout. But the call came out cold and didn't give a ring in the air as it had always done before. "Titans... Go." His last word left as barely whisper, as they ran to fight a once friend, for the second time.
Four Titans rushed foward, but one stayed behind and watched with whide green eyes. He watched as controled earth was flung up from its resting place and at his friends, and watched as mulitple green and blue lasers where fired at the geomancer. Bird-a-rangs screamed in the air along with the starbolts and sonic cannons as they flew towards Tara, but she found a way to dodge every attack, or block it. Shadow hands tried to hold her in their grasps, but their masters where soon thrown aside by the very earth from under her. Tara only seemed to be putting in half of her normal energy into the fight. Her movments where free and fluid, giving off a dark grace as the earth danced along with her. Her bare hands fluttered from side to side as the rock and soil obeyed and knocked Starfire from the sky and into a building.
Beast Boy saw Robin swing his staff towards Tara's head, a earth formed hand grabbed him around the torso and flung the teenager to the side with deadly ease. "Robin!" Beast Boy yelled when his friend hit a car hard enough to make the car wobble. He turned back to look at Tara, her twisted smile seemed so alien on her face. Beast Boy pulled himself together and looked to where innocent people laid on the ground, most where motionless in the falling sunlight. He ran over to the nearest person and checked for a pulse, trying to do his job while his friends fought. Moans of pain came from both the people that he was trying to help- and his teammates. The smell of blood was heavy to his intuned senses, it was musty and wet and left a dark and cold feel in the air.
The Titan's kept Tara busy while Beast Boy dragged people away from danger. In two diffirent areas, one for the people who where still alive- the other... for the ones who didn't make it. It was something no teenager should have to do, but he did it... maybe they could at least have a proper buriel before they where torn to pieces by the onraging fight that still crashed through the city. Beast Boy kept his eyes away from the 'other' pile, he didn't want to see them anymore, but the smell of death was still heavy around the area, and a mental picture was stuck in his mind. He turned and looked at the battle scene. Tara still was going strong on the tired Titan's, she still moved with deamonic grace. Her face was caked in wind blown dust and debri, the scraches on her hands had been broken back open so that blood trinkled down her dirty hands. He thought he saw a slash on her upper right arm, it was sharp and straight- probably from a thrown weapon. Multiple other cuts and burns where painted on her body, but she didn't slow her attacks. Bashing the Titan's without mercy every chance she had.
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Raven's head was throbbing from the amount of energy she was using, her hadns shook with numbness and she could feel her power drain. Tired pain was running up and down her body, making the empath want to fall to the ground and rest. But that was far from a option as she shot into the air to dodge another uprise of the earth. Her blue cloak was tattered and torn so that its shreded helms skirted around her legs. Blood was smeared from her cheekblone up to her temple, funny Raven didn't even remember getting that cut on her face. There was to much pain to notice it all she suposed.
"Azarath, Mentrion, ZINTHOS!" She screamed weakly and thrusted her palms forward- sending beams of dark energy towards Tara. The geomancer was thrown down to the ground with a shrill yelp of surprise. Raven loward her hands and took in a deep breath while Starfire threw a seiries of starbolts at Tara, but the blonde created a stone shield to block the green bolts, then threw the stone at Star.
"Starfire!" Raven heard Robin yell before the leader ran to help the alien who now laid on the ground moaning quietly. Tara smirked and shot earth towards them with a simple movement of her hand.
"Robin! Look out!" Raven heard herself scream, but it was too late as the earth hit the masked boy right on target and smashed him up against a building before letting him hit the ground. Hot anger flooded inside Raven, making her eyes glow with emotion. No! you have to stay calm. But the betrayel of the whole thing made her feel ready to burst. Filled with new power and energy, Raven sent another blast towards Tara before flying closer. Tara turned back to Raven as she dodged the energy, her eyebrows slanting into a deadly look.
"Stay away from them." Raven hissed coldly, but Tara only smirked.
"Who's going to make me? You?" Tara laughed as her eyes turned dim yellow. "Or Beast Boy? He's too weak in the head to lay a finger on me." She teased.
"Leave him alone!" Raven snapped, hearing the hiss in her voice. She felt herself shake from anger, it was overwhelming intense power that wanted to break lose and throw Tara with all its might. But the empath kept it under control, she was afraid not to. "You've done enough to him." But Tara seemed uneffected as her hand became engulfed in yellow power. Raven summoned up the power inside her as her own hands glowed with energy ready to do her bidding.
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Watching was as painful as if he where in the fight itself. Beast Boy slowly pulled his friends farther from danger, all three. Raven was the only one left standing besides himself. Robin had a seirous injurys on his torso and head. Blood was smeared over his face that made dirt stick to it, but he seemed alright for the moment. Starfire's skin was already restistent to scrapes and whatever, but she had been hit over the head pretty hard and was out cold. Beast Boy had looked Cyborg over quickly as well, his robotic friend just had some broken circuts luckily. Slade seemed to have dissipear, but he gave little thought to that. The shape-shifter now looked to where his darker friend was fighting.
Dust swirled around them in hazy golden colors, making lose clouthing and hair spin with the violent earth. Raven's tattered cloak was in a sad state as it flapped in the wind, there was a few steams of blood running from her arms and and her nose. Tara had sevral more slashes over her body, one on her waist that dripped dirty crimson. Beast Boy felt his entire body tense while he watched, knowing he had to do more to help. It wasn't untill a cheap shot to the back sent Raven hurdling to the rough ground did he rush forward.
Quickly he morpted into a panther and tackled Tara down to the ground while Raven moaned quietly. Tara gave a surprised cry as she was tackled by the heavy cat.
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Tara bit back a moan of pain as she opened her eyes and looked up at the snarling cat that held her pinned. Her mouth gaped open for a second as she staired at him, but soon then her eyes returned to a blinding color as a large piece of earth knocked him away and threw him hard against the ground. The blonde stood up as if she had only tripped and looked over as Beast Boy resumed human form, but he was knocked out. Slowly, her head turned to focus on Raven, who was still laying on the ground.
"Funny." Tara strided over, swinging herself back and forth while ignoring the pain that her slashes sent through her. "We used to look up to you." She stoped just infront of Raven, looking down at her with crule eyes. "You always had control of your powers, everyone respected you- you always knew what was going on." Her words ended in a murderus hiss as she bent down and laid her arms on her bent knees. Raven slowly lifted her head up to look at Tara.
The empath staired into the girls eyes, and became overwhelmed with a new sensation of being comming from them. She didn't sense Terra in there... she sensed something else- someone else almost. But the feeling was so confused and blocked that she didn't know what it really was she was sensing.
"You look surprised." Tara laughed. "I've known Terra longer then you have. Who do you think kept her company in the desterts? Who protected her? Who was always there for her? So many people rejected her and wanted to hurt her- she needed someone to count on." Again her eyebrows slited into a sharp look. "And since no one else will, I'm protecting her again- from you."
Raven could sense a split meaning in that last word, but she had no time to think about it before the earth tossed her aside again. Tara walked closer to her, yellow power vibrating around her body, making her hair float around her head like a broken halo. Her eyes glowed with rage and memory. Everytime she got close, Raven was thrown further and further untill the empath was against a building. Raven's entire body shook with searing pain, and she swore just about every part of her body had some kind of slash or scrape on it now.
Tara walked closer, ready to finesh Raven off before going for the others. She stuided Raven, who had her head down, too tired to even open her eyes before the earth bashed into her head. Tara grined with pleasure as she looked at the beaten Titan, if the Titans where gone- the best of the best right here at her feet- who would stop her? Who could fight the earth itself? Who had the power to resist her own? No one. Without the Titans- she was free to do what she wanted, her only enemy was herself. The world had betrayed her in bitterness, she should do the same to them. Why should she show mercy to those who refused to show it to her? She shouldn't.
A large bolder rose up behind them hauntingly, ready to destory the dark Titan at its masters will. Tara smiled with cold confindence. "See you later." She swished aside and sent the boulder forward with entense speed and power.
I'm so evil that I love leaving things off on these cliffys. Did I make the Titan's seem too weak in this chapter? I didn't want to, but I think I might of... I wanted to keep them strong- but I wanted to show how much stronger Tara is. Hmm, I dunno, its up to the readers to decide becuase I don't feel like putting that much brain power into it, MUAHA!
Prieview of the Next Chapter:
Chapter Seven:
Realization
The sun seemed to streak red as it went further into the lake. Somehow he could still smell the musty stench of blood, and the haunting feeling of death. The air became cold quickly, making Beast Boy wrap his arms around himself. This had been 'their' spot, where he had talked to Terra. By the lake... on the rocks... it should have been beautiful, but insted it just stung with bittersweet memory. If what the Titan's had found out was true, then this would always be a lonley spot- haunted by memorys of laughter, and filled with pain. Beast Boy slowly started to relize, no matter how much he longed for it, the past was just that, the past. Still, hope was buried inside of him, keeping him warm and letting him pray, that the plan everyone was talking about- could be avoided.
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