Gonna be honest… this chapter turned out way different than I planned. Hope you guys like it.
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While Solor recovered quickly from his battle with Slade, Raven did not. She knew her part in the plans for the future, and she was searching high and low, in any part of any book she could find for a way to stop this day from happening. As time went on, though, more adventures ended up putting her search on hold, including an incident where Cyborg was thrown to the early history of man, and Beast Boy actually got a job to pay for a gift for Terra.
During that second incident, there was some plot that had something to do with aliens and cows... but Solor didn't really want to remember that; it was much too weird to put logic to it. In the end, though, Beast Boy did make enough money to buy a small hairclip for Terra, which she loved, showing her affection by kissing his blushing green face over and over.
The adventure today, though, involved another alien attack... one that was much more serious this time. The team was playing a game of Old Maid, and while Solor himself did not play, he was watching with quiet interest.
"So... why is it bad to be the Old Maid?" he asked calmly. Some of the rules still went over his head, but he was trying his best to learn. However, this question was quickly forgotten, as a shadow flew by the tower, causing the building to shake as a loud rumble filled the air.
"Whoa! What was that?" Cyborg asked, shocked.
"Wasn't me", Terra immediately defended; she still had a bad habit of trying to defend herself whenever there was a minor earthquake.
"Giant worms?" Beast Boy guessed. That was when a large, metallic object flew by, chased by smaller, more agile ships.
"Uh... no", Raven said in her usual monotone, before everyone got up at Robin's urging. Solor sighed.
"Just when it was becoming interesting", he said softly before flapping his wings and chasing after his friends, the cards forgotten and scattered all over the table now. Immediately they all moved up to the roof, where they could watch the sky battle easier. There were a few quick maneuvers in the air, and Solor saw the bigger ship shoot down one of the two smaller ones.
"Whoever he is, the guy's a good pilot", Cyborg commented.
"He's a great pilot", Robin corrected, staring in awe. The group watched as the alien from the larger ship, a man who looked to be made of silver, jumped off of the larger spaceship, and land on the other. With a mighty swing, the man's hands hit the hull, and suddenly the ship careened off course, heading to the city.
"He just took down that ship... with his bare hands", Solor stated, his own eyes wide.
"Come on, man, you can do it", Cyborg muttered, staring at the alien. None of them were fast enough; they wouldn't be able to stop the craft from crashing at this point. There was a collective gasp as the silver man managed to force the craft to veer a sharp right, crashing into the surrounding forest.
"Is he...?" Starfire asked, and the implication hit the rest of the team. They quickly moved, flying over to the field. Thankfully, upon their arrival, the silver man walked out of the flames, giving them a cocky grin.
"It takes more than a plasmatic implosion to take down Val Yor", the man said to them.
"That was some amazing flying", Robin told the man as he walked closer.
"Thanks", the alien said, before introducing himself. "Val Yor of Vernathia. Pleased to meet you."
"I'm Robin", their leader stated. "We're the Teen Titans. That's Raven", he said, pointing to the goth who actually waved, "Beast Boy", as the green boy gave a sheepish smile, "Terra", as the blonde gave a peace sign and her own cocky grin.
"Cyborg", the metal teen said with a smirk. "Man, you know how to make an entrance."
"All in a day's work", Val Yor responded.
"You do that every day?" Beast Boy asked, his eyes growing wide with awe.
"No, normally I fight more than just two", the man said with a smirk.
"So, today's slow, then?" Terra asked.
"Exactly", Val Yor stated, before noticing Solor. "Well, there's something I haven't seen before. What do they call you?"
"I am Solor", the draconic Titan said. However, the team noticed he was being especially reserved, despite the fact that he had been watching with excitement only a few minutes ago. They'd have to ask him about that later.
"Pleasure to meet you, Solor", Val Yor stated, offering his hand. However, the dragon did not return the gesture.
"Sorry about him", Raven stated, hoping Val Yor wouldn't pick up on the vibes. "He's not keen on strangers."
The silver man only laughed. "Well, I'm sure I'll win him over, yet." Then the man noticed Starfire, and his smirk vanished.
"Val Yor, I welcome you to Earth!" Starfire said with a cheerful smile, missing the fact that he didn't look happy to see her.
"I see you have a Tamaranean", Val Yor said to Robin, ignoring her greeting. Solor's eyes narrowed at that.
"Yeah, Starfire's part of the team", Robin stated.
"So, who were those guys?" Cyborg asked.
"They weren't guys at all", Val Yor responded, his smirk returning.
The conversation continued at the Tower, where Val Yor shared a few images and videos. The images on screen were disturbing; they looked like biological beings encased in a crude, mechanical hull. Massive gauntlets covered their massive hands, with black, straight claws jutting out. They all had a red pattern where their faces should be, replacing expression with unblinking red lights.
"The Locrix are vicious fighting machines", Val Yor stated.
"Machines?" Robin asked.
"And I had a difficult time understanding devices in this world..." Solor grumbled.
"What do they want?" Terra prodded.
"What they want is total galactic annihilation", Val Yor continued. "The Locrix think they are superior to organics, and they are determined to wipe us out." At that statement, more images appeared on screen, showing frightened aliens either fleeing or charging into battle with the machines... and losing badly.
"But you have defeated them, yes?" Starfire asked hopefully.
"Those two were just scouts", he stated. "There's a lot more where they came from."
"It sounds like you have a lot of experience with them", Cyborg mentioned.
"I've been fighting the krixies for as long as I can remember", Val Yor said, and Solor got a vibe of him rubbing his own ego. "They tried to take over Vernathia, but I wasn't about to let that happen." At his words, again, a new image popped up, this time showing Val Yor being victorious against this new threat.
"So, how do we stop them from taking over Earth?" Robin asked.
"I'm on a mission to hit them where they live: Sentien, the mother planet. And I've got a class five Quantum Eradicator. Once I plug it into their core, it'll shut them down forever."
"We'd like to help", Robin stated, while Solor glared at his leader.
"I could use all the help I can get, but I must warn you it will be dangerous", Val Yor told them. "The Krixies are tough; they won't back down without a fight."
"Neither will we", Solor finally said, standing up. "We will aid you to the best of our ability, Val Yor."
That got a smile out of the silver man.
XxXxXxX
On the ship, Robin was placed in charge of navigation, Cyborg got to take the steering, and Beast Boy and Raven manned the blasters. Terra, unfortunately, wasn't able to come along.
"I can only move rocks and dirt", she stated. "I won't be much help in a metal box. Just take a lot of pictures for me."
Val Yor turned to Solor next. "You said you're not good with technology, so how about, if there's a problem, you and I will take out any invaders on the ship."
"Very well", Solor said to him, before turning to Starfire. "Kreinyol, shall we take a walk?"
"Kreinyol?" Val Yor asked, raising an eyebrow. "That's what you call her?"
Solor turned to the man, glaring a bit. "Indeed. It is simply the words 'Sun' and 'Fire' in my native tongue. I gave her this name a while ago."
"Alright", Val Yor said with his hands up, "I didn't mean to insult you."
At that very moment, there was an explosion on the ship, and a map popped up on screen, a certain area flashing.
"The Locrix?" Robin asked.
"They're after the eradicator", Val Yor confirmed. He turned to Raven, Robin, and Solor. "You three, come with me."
The fact that the Vernathian seemed to be ignoring Starfire altogether, angered Solor, but he did nothing about it. Instead, he focused on the threat at hand. As they fought against the machines, he used his claws to easily rip the metal apart. Using his fire would be a bad idea; if he accidentally hit the eradicator, that could possibly take the ship out by mistake.
Unfortunately for Starfire, she thought of that a tiny bit too late. Using her starbolts in battle caused a Locrix drone to accidentally hit the bomb. It let out a few warning beeps before chirping, showing it was still inactive.
"What are you trying to do?!" Val Yor roared. "Blow up the ship?!"
"I shall be more careful next time", Starfire stated apologetically.
"There won't be a next time", the man stated, growling at her. He then took back to the fight, finishing off the last of the invading force. Finally, the last Locrix fell, and it seemed like Val Yor was back to normal. "Good work, team", he said. "Now, head back to the bridge. We need to be ready in case the krixies are foolish enough to launch another attack."
As the three left, he knew Robin and Raven had moved out of earshot, but he could still hear Starfire approach their host. "I wish to apologize", she said. "I did not mean to endanger the ship; I only wished to help."
Val Yor's voice was cold as it echoed in Solor's ears. "I don't need any help from some stupid Troq."
The gasp that Starfire let out told Solor enough, as he abruptly turned around, snarling as he walked back in. "What... did you just say?" he asked, growling.
"She heard me", Val Yor said. "She's a troq - a tamaranean."
Solor turned to Starfire, seeing the crestfallen expression on her face. That was enough to anger him further. "I know not what this word means, Val Yor. But her reaction is the same when one of my own people is called Nivahriin. It is high insult to her, as Nivahriin is to my own people." Solor glared at Val Yor, getting very close and showing off his sharp teeth. "You will refrain from calling her this again... or I shall convince Robin to no longer aid you."
Starfire, however, placed a hand on Solor's shoulder. "Shulkiin, nii los yuvon. Zu'u los yuvon."
Solor's eyebrow raised, as he stared at her incredulously. "Vahzah? Rok ahraan hi."
"I am certain", Starfire told him, her eyes lowering to the ground. "The mission must continue; the Locrix are a large threat to not only our home, but the rest of the galaxy. Do not speak to Robin about this."
Solor let out a growl, but consented, backing down. "Very well." However, he did not speak to Val Yor with the same adoration that the others had.
When the ship met with the Locrix mine field, Solor was immediately against Val Yor's idea of letting Starfire move some out of the way. "Cyborg is a skilled pilot; he can steer the ship while you move the mines out of the way", Solor stated angrily.
"As much as I agree with you, Scales", Val Yor refuted, "I can't afford any chances; if this ship so much as gets too close to one of those mines, everything goes to hell. Besides... her people can withstand the hostile conditions of space. I can't."
Starfire let out a soft sigh. "I shall do this, then; the sooner this threat is neutralized, the sooner we can return to the mission."
Solor leaned back in his seat, snarling a bit.
[You okay?] he heard in his head. He quickly looked to Raven, the only one who could be doing this right now. [I set up a link once I saw you staring at Val Yor with hate. What's going on?]
[This name that he made for her... "Troq"... it is an insult], Solor told her privately. [I know not what it means, but it is clearly an insult to not only Starfire, but all Tamaranean's in general. Her reaction was similar to when a dragon is called Nivahriin - disloyal.]
[... then we'll have to ask her what it means after she gets back], Raven told him, but Solor could feel her anger. [He won't get away with this.]
[I was planning to break his arm after this mission was over], he mused.
[With how strong he is, that might be tough. Want a helping hand?]
[No, but I appreciate the offer.]
[So... this has nothing to do with your old feelings for Starfire?]
[Nothing], Solor stated in his mind. [The day she gave in to her pheromone-induced lust and attempted to take me for her own... my emotions for her died. She is still my friend, though; I would act the same if Val Yor insulted any of you.]
There was a flash of emotion on Raven's end, but it was squashed way too quickly for him to identify what it was. [Alright then... we'll let Starfire decide whether or not we should tell Robin and the boys.]
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The truth was eventually revealed as the mission continued. Shortly after it was all said and done, with Starfire saving Val Yor from dying with the Locrix, she told the team what troq meant. This alien word meant "nothing"; whenever Val Yor called her this, he was saying she was worthless. She then told her friends that many other planets saw the inhabitants of Tameran as inferior, and that was the name they were called as a result.
Needless to say, Val Yor had overstayed his welcome, despite his lackluster attempts to apologize.
Once the mission was over and everyone started to separate, Robin overheard Solor let out a snort of anger as Val Yor flew off. "Good riddance", he said, before walking inside. "To hear that someone hates Kreinyol for being tamaranean…" Robin's ear perked up, realizing that this was the first time he had used that name since his birthday almost half a year ago. He looked after the dragon, his thoughts racing in his head.
"What's up?" Cyborg asked.
"Solor was the first of us to know that Val Yor was insulting Starfire, right?" he asked.
"Um… yeah, Star said that Solor overheard when the dude called her a troq the first time", Cyborg stated. "He was not happy, just hearing how she reacted to that word."
Robin's lips twitched into a frown. "Why did he have such a hard reaction? He hasn't rushed to her aid like that since his birthday."
Now that Robin mentioned it, Cyborg had noticed a change in behavior since Solor was forced to knock out his best friend to keep her from doing something she would regret. "Maybe it has something to do with his feelings for her?"
"His what now?"
The metal teen had to bite back a smirk, seeing how rapidly the leader had snapped his head once that sentence was out. "Come on, dude, you can't deny that they were really close for a while", he pointed out. "Solor and Starfire were almost inseparable until his birthday. They were into each other, that much was obvious."
Robin immediately turned, starting to follow the dragon, while Cyborg realized what the leader was planning on doing, following after him. "And just where are you going?"
"I'm going to tell Solor to forget about dating; Beast Boy and Terra is one thing, but I can't risk having him becoming a loose canon on a mission", Robin stated.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Cyborg stated, trying to change the Boy Wonder's mind. "He's left the group before because of hasty decisions made by both of us."
"I'll take that chance", Robin said. "If he tries to leave, I'll talk him down."
"Dude, you're not exactly tactful when it comes to Solor", the taller boy pointed out. "I'm pretty sure if you try to ban him from dating Starfire, he'll try to kill you."
"I'm not banning him from dating Starfire", Robin said, though he was a bit alarmed that Cyborg caught onto that quickly.
"I do not wish to date Kreinyol", came Solor's voice, and the two jumped, seeing that the dragon had stopped and turned around, facing the two of them. "Why would you assume that?"
Robin was too surprised to say anything at that moment, but Cyborg recovered quickly. "Well, she told us that you were really angry when you heard Val Yor call her a troq. You wanted to hurt him for hurting her."
Solor was quiet for a moment, glancing at the two of them. Finally, he let out a sigh. "Cyborg, might I ask you a personal question?"
"Sure", Cyborg said with a shrug.
"How would you react if someone called you a nigger?"
The word was so sudden, Cyborg's eyes widened to an unimagined degree. Robin's own eyes also grew large, his jaw hanging as he stared at the dragon. Before either of them could say any coherent response, Solor turned to Robin. "I suppose it would be a similar reaction if Beast Boy were to be called 'faggot', or Raven a 'bitch'. There are many words that are insults to some people and do nothing to others. There will always be words used to discriminate, to spread hatred and fear. Troq is such a word for Starfire. I knew not what it meant… but I hated it because my friend, my family, was insulted and forced to feel less because it was directed at her. If it were any other word, any other Titan… my reaction would be the same."
The two glanced at each other, then back at the dragon. "Then... what's a word that would insult you?"
"Nivahriin", Solor immediately said. "Calling a dragon 'disloyal' to a cause is high insult." He then shook his head. "But I am curious why you two thought I had feelings for Kreinyol."
"Well, you two were really close before your birthday rolled around", Robin commented.
"That's because we were. But I have decided that Kreinyol and I are not meant for each other." The bronze dragon gave Robin a smug grin. "She is all yours, fearless leader."
Cyborg started cracking up, while Robin turned a bright red, trying to deny the insinuation.
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Zero-tailed jinchuuriki - Don't worry, the main story arc isn't over yet. I really look forward to when I can post another original chapter; I really excel at those.
Wolff Howl - Thanks for enjoying the story! I'll have another chapter posted soon!