Chapter 11: Appropriation
"Is this real?" Cyborg wondered aloud, reeling in his hand, and with it the ejected leg. "It definitely feels like metal."
"No clue." Raven reached for it, and something happened: it started to melt.
"Woah!" Cyborg dropped it like it was poisonous, and it became solid again. They both stared at it for a second. Then it moved, and they both jumped. The whole thing squirmed, then separated into several pieces. Each piece morphed into a cockroach and scurried away, around the corner. Raven reached out and grabbed one, and it screeched horribly as it turned to liquid. She felt a surge of bitterness as the energy seeped into her hand, and it was gone. Ugh. What was that?
"After them!" Cyborg shouted and charged, and she followed. It wasn't long before they caught up to the intruder, whose leg had almost regenerated. A stream of bugs was reaching him and adding their mass back into his growing leg.
"Never actually done that before," he said to nobody in particular.
"All right, you...thing," Cyborg started the interrogation. "Tell us what you know."
"Yeah, that's how it always works, isn't it? You catch me and I spill my guts. Unless I don't talk, in which case you give up and hand me over to the police, who I escape from the next day." The fake Cyborg smirked. "Did I miss anything?"
They both thought for a minute. Then Raven stepped forward. "If you're all tied up, I'll have to carry you to the police station."
His smugness went away just as quickly as it had come, turning instead to panic. "Dang it. Guess I forgot about that part."
"Guess ya did, you little punk!" Cyborg came back into the conversation. He didn't move closer, though.
"What's the deal with you anyway?" Raven prodded. "What is it about me that weakens you?"
"Isn't it obvious? I'm allergic to demon spawn you monster." He said it so calmly, you wouldn't know how much it meant. Raven turned away.
"Steady," Cyborg put a hand on her shoulder, "Don't want to hurt him too much." A soft glow told him she had more than two eyes right now. Their captive frowned.
"I guess this is what Slade wanted me to learn, coming here. Who knew that was his reason for wanting it."
Raven managed to suppress her anger and oblige him. "What does Slade want?"
"Just a demon-suppressing artifact, that's all. Actually it used to be his, but he didn't think you'd just give it back if he asked for it."
Cyborg smiled. "For someone who's not talking, you've already told us who you're working for and what you're after. Anything else you feel like sharing?"
"Yeah, actually. I can phase through walls, just like Raven can!"
Raven dove forward and grabbed the fake Cyborg's arm. It broke off in her hand: inside it was hollow. She swung her hand through him, crumbling the shell. Every shard she touched flowed into her hand, bringing with it a sense of bitterness.
It was only as an afterthought that Robin went back to collect the pieces of the ring of Azar. He'd asked Raven for help, and she was able to sense their location fairly well. There were many pieces, but they accounted for all of them. Robin had left them on display in his trophy room. They weren't there now.
Slade probably wasn't counting on his prize being in a dozen pieces. He's not going to be happy about this.
Red X emerged from the room and came mask to mask with Robin. With a yell, the teen titan leaped at him with a kick. It connected harshly, but X went into a roll and came up swinging. They separated after a few seconds, both panting.
"I'm sorry Robin, it looks like I'll be making some more holes in your tower before this is all over."
"What did you take?" Robin demanded.
"No use hiding it. I was sent for the ring of Azar. Looks like you didn't take very good care of it."
"The ring Slade gave us? What does he want with it?"
They exchanged a handful of blows, working their way down the hall.
"I gotta tell you, this isn't the best deal I've ever gotten on a job."
"Any deal that goes against the Teen Titans is harder than it's worth."
"It's not my problem if you mess up Slade's plans. And this time, they're big."
"This time they might be big, but they've always been evil. And so far I've put an end to every single one of them."
Another flurry of blows and X was ready to make his escape.
"Actually, he seems to think you'd agree with this one. Said you were bored lately."
With that, he blew a hole in the wall and was outside the tower.
"SOMEBODY BRING HIM DOWN!!!" Robin roared into the communicator.
"The other one's leaving on foot," Raven came back.
"We're almost at the tower," replied Beast Boy.
"Looks like we almost caught them then." Cyborg growled "But 'almost' doesn't cut it!"
"You better realize what a step down this is for me, human. I'm not used to-" "SILENCE!"
Slade's patience had run out. It had been running down for some time now. "Let me make this very clear to you, Blackfire. You have come to me because you are incapable of getting what you want on your own! I only have one offer for someone like you, and that is to do whatever I say, when I tell you to do it, and accept whatever fringe benefits you can get your glowing hands on. My plans do not require you, so if you want to play a part you had better convince me that you are not useless! You will now hold your tongue and fly out of here, or I assure you you will never fly again."
When she was gone, he managed to calm down a bit. What have I become? Surrounded by children, all with petty goals, none with the ability to reach those goals. I am reduced to a criminal daycare service! And yet... "never make an enemy of someone who will outlive you." I find myself with the apprentice I always wanted, and more than one of them. But none of these are what I want. That's why this next step is so crucial.
His thoughts were broken when Red X and Devin entered the room. They both looked scuffed up. Devin wouldn't be able to heal himself without another pill, and Red X knew it was a decent bargaining tactic: 'look at how hard it was. Pay me more.'
"Ah, you've returned. I believe you will have yet another member in your little team soon. Please be patient though, it won't be for long. Now, do you have my ring?" He could feel the excitement soothing his aggravation.
Red X hesitated. "Yes but, it's...broken."
"Do you think I'm a fool?" Slade slammed his fist down on his 'throne.' "Do you have any idea what it would take to break that ring!?"
Red X took the pieces from his pocket and held them out.
Slade's eye widened considerably. "NO!!!"
"Slade, can I have another pill, please," Devin said with his calm, adult voice. The one that meant he wanted something very badly. Red X put out a hand in front of him. "Don't ask now." Privately he wondered if he actually cared about the child or just saw the wisdom in not angering Slade further.
"Bring the shards to me, then leave." Slade's voice was calm again. "As for Devin, just feed him plenty and he'll recover. The pills are for emergencies only."
When they had gone, Slade was alone with himself again. He poked at the broken pieces of the ring, planning the repairs. Yet another setback. I am growing impatient. But I never imagined that Trigon would actually break the ring; maybe we were in real danger after all.
...A lot has happened, but I never actually thought I would outlive him. I suppose immortality really is a chase after the wind...
Xephyr: Maybe this chapter was a bit of a letdown for the 2 readers out there. I mean, at the end of every episode either the good guys win or the story gets continued next time.
Critic: But if they all read Fanfics, they should know that none of these go that way. I do like the episode style, though. Sometimes you just need to step back from the action and say "nothing happened for about a week."
Xephyr: and we're only one or two "weeks" away from my grand entrance! Wait, does that mean I can't comment here anymore?
Critic: actually, you're like a clone. Thestory character will be slightly different, and his name might change. In any case he'll be separate from you, so you'll keep on going here.
Xephyr: I'm like an evil twin.
Critic: ooh, don't say that. I actually gave Beast Boy an evil twin when I first thought up this story. The twin was an amoeba left behind from when he multiplied in the episode Crash. He regenerated and came back to try to take Beast Boy's place. Good times... but that probably won't happen in this story. I might write it on the side.
Xephyr: is this stuff really what Fanfiction readers want to find at the end of a chapter? It sounds like you're just typing whatever pops into your head.
Critic: Oh I am Xephyr, I am.
Xephyr: the chapters are coming fast, so we'll try to keep it up. Plus the story needs to get back to what was happening in the first few chapters. No starting new story arcs without finishing the ones already going!
Critic: ...and one last thing: I've been reading manga (japanese comics) to get an idea of the plot styles. If you're interested in it, I want to suggest the best one I've found. It's called Mx0 and you can read it at Second place probably goes to "School Rumble."