Well, it certainly has been a long, long time. I apologize; I was not sure in which direction I was going to take this story or how to get there for the longest time, but now I have a vision for it. This chapter is the result. I hope you enjoy it.
For the formalities: I don't own the Teen Titans, as they belong to DC Comics, and I don't own John Smith, the character who is written in first person. He belongs to Phaethon, who has written some AWESOME stories for . If you have time, you should read those; they are truly incredible.
Also, if you haven't already, please read my two other stories, Duality and Finality. They're the prequels to this story, and help this one make more sense.
And now, for the chapter proper.
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I fumed. The Titans had beaten me, when there was no way they should have. The only reason they did was because I had made the mistake of having two enemies in the same place. I should have killed Slade while I had the chance. The scum shouldn't have been alive.
I ran back through the battle in my head. I didn't do anything wrong from a combat standpoint. Except… I abandoned my form. I started being flashy, showing off. That definitely wasn't my style. What was wrong with me?
I looked at my hands. What was going on? I mean, sure, Robin had tried to kill me, and I was still angry at him for it. And Slade was scum anyway, so nothing wrong with taking him out. But wanting to kill him? That wasn't my style. Sure, I'd left Robin alive, but I'd only done that for Raven, not for him. Not for myself or my scruples. I was changing; my inner villain was coming back, and he was beginning to take control.
So what? Who cares if you're doing what you have to do to survive?
I jumped, startled. A voice in my head? That had never happened before. I thought back. Actually, it had, once before, the very last time I'd fought Tierce. Tylan's voice had come to me in my head, asking for my help, and I'd helped. So was this Tylan in my head again?
No, Tylan has no powers anymore.
"What are you talking to me for!?" I shouted at the voice.
I'm part of you, fool. The strong part. The part that knows what it takes to live, and has no problem doing it. The part you should be listening to.
I considered that. I had long thought of myself as two different men inhabiting the same body, as far back as my first experience with the Titans all those years ago. On the one hand, there was Wraith, the superhero who did good deeds, albeit in a rather unorthodox way, and on the other was John Smith, the cranky villain who didn't give a damn. Smith was a survivor; what the voice had said clicked with what I knew of my two personas, and so I wrote it off as being the voice of my "Inner Smith" finally becoming strong enough to vocalize itself inside my head.
"So…" I said. "Tylan has no powers anymore?"
That's correct. If you'd paid attention after defeating Tierce, he said as much. Your problem is a lack of attention to detail.
It was true. I could only pay attention to the small things when I really wanted to, like when I wanted to take revenge on Slade for killing my friends.
"Of course. I'd forgotten." Like my wraith, my "inner Smith" apparently knew only those things I did, although once again it was like having another mind work with the same information. Things usually turned out better at those points. "So what does that have to do with anything?"
Well, Tylan is the only one who knows about the nature of your return, no? And is he not the only one who knows how to stop you?
"I guess."
Then he must be eliminated. Besides, he's been with Raven a lot as of late… they may be getting too close. We wouldn't want him to steal her away again, now would we?
"I don't know. I mean, Tylan may not necessarily be on my side, but he's never done me any harm. Why should I 'eliminate' him?" I asked the voice aloud.
Because he's the only thing standing between you and your goal: revenge. Revenge on Slade, revenge on Robin. And getting Raven back.
"Still…"
Fool! The more you hesitate, the more opportunity you give him to spill all your secrets and find a way to defeat you! He must be taken care of!
"Fine!" I shouted in anger. No matter what it took, I had to stop that incessant voice in my head. Even if that meant appeasing its violent demands and killing Tylan.
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Tylan finished his modifications to Cyborg's systems and closed his chest panel. Cyborg had watched, giving Tylan pointers and helping him identify confusing systems. With the two of them working together, they had finished all the upgrades to Cyborg's body within an hour, having finished the final construction on Tylan's old armor systems.
As Tylan straightened and Cyborg sat up, the alarms began to go off in the Tower. The two raced to the main room, to find the other four Titans already staring at the screen. Once again, a large blinking, stylized "S" flashed on the screen. Slade again.
"All right, Titans, let's go!" shouted Robin as he began to leave the room.
"Hey Robin?" Tylan called before the Boy Wonder could disappear. Robin whirled around. "Yeah? What is it?"
Tylan jogged over and whispered something in Robin's ear. Robin nodded in understanding. "Cyborg, you're staying here with Tylan. Don't worry, you can come next time." Robin, Raven, Beast Boy, and Starfire left the Tower at top speed.
"Aww, man!" Cyborg complained. "I'm totally at 100% right now! Why can't I go fight?"Tylan whispered in his ear as well, and he too nodded in understanding. "I see. I guess I'm still recovering from being dead. Maybe not 100% yet."
The wink that passed between the two went completely unnoticed by the intruder above.
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I grinned down from my place in the shadows near the ceiling of the Tower. I couldn't believe that the Titans had bought my distraction. I'd used my PDA to falsify a Slade attack, making the overeager Robin rush out of the Tower. I'd counted on Cyborg leaving too, but he shouldn't be a threat. After all, he himself stated that he wasn't at full capacity; I should be able to take him down without much trouble, and then kill Tylan before the other Titans figured out the truth and returned to the Tower.
Tylan turned to leave the room, heading into the back. The perfect opportunity to take out Cyborg. I dropped silently from the ceiling when his back was turned, and as he whirled around I kicked his feet out from under him. I leered down at him before picking him up by the throat and heaving him into the far wall.
He emerged from the dust cloud, yelling and firing his sonic cannon at me. I knew Illusions were useless against the mechanical man, so I relied on my enhanced speed and reflexes to dodge the blasts. As he came at me, I spun under his outstretched arms and slapped a device Red X had given me long ago onto Cyborg's back. The device, made of xenothium, shut down Cyborg's body, leaving him standing motionless in the middle of the room.
I couldn't resist taunting him a little. I strolled nonchalantly around to his front, and leaned in to his face. "I knew I'd beat you eventually, Iron Man," I cackled. "You always thought your robotic brain would make me useless against you. I never thought you'd come back, but now that you're here, I just want you to know that I'm the new big boy around here."
My world exploded in pain as I flew across the room. Stars flashed before my eyes as I hauled myself to my feet. Cyborg was still frozen in place. What had hit me? Then, in disbelief, I saw a sight that I had certainly not expected to see.
There, standing in his former armored glory, stood Tylan, his fist clenched. "Think again, Smith," he declared. "Your antics stop here."
Cyborg burst into song and dance. "Stop… in the name of loooooove! Before you breeeaaak my heeeaarrt…" After receiving a pointed glare from the other two, he quickly quieted down. "Oh. Never mind." His arm transformed into a sonic cannon and aimed at Smith's head. "You're done, Smith. We're taking you in for good."
"Never!" I hissed. I lashed out at Cyborg, taking him down in a quick three-punch chain. Before I could react, another incredibly powerful blow caught me in the back of the head and I reeled forward, wishing I had accepted Tylan's offer of a helmet. I turned around only to meet another blow, to the chin this time, which sent me flying up into the air before smashing into the ground with a sickening crash.
Cyborg was the one to pick me up this time, and he tossed me up before striking me with a barrage of punches that sent me sailing across the room toward Tylan, whose following kick nearly knocked me unconscious
That's it. This has to stop.
As I slowly climbed to my feet, my fists clenched and I gritted my teeth. I attempted to conjure a fireball, but my Pyrokinesis skills had never been very good, so the only thing that happened was a large flash of flame that scorched my hand. My two opponents hooted with laughter. My anger flared, and I readied myself to charge them. When I finally did, however, I noticed my lack of speed immediately. My suit had failed me, finally, and I now knew I stood no chance.
Tylan stopped my advance with one hand and caught me around the throat. He lifted me into the air, his fingers tightening around my windpipe until I could barely breathe, let alone summon any kind of magic. As I gasped and choked, I found myself wondering How? How can he do this? He has no powers? I managed to choke out the one word, "hghk… how?"
Tylan's helmet parted in the front, revealing his face. He sneered at me, his usually cheerful face now twisted with spite and vengeful glee. I was surprised; this was very uncharacteristic of him. "I assume you mean this…" he gestured to his armor. "… well, I'd like you to believe that I have my powers back, but the simple truth is I used my most powerful weapon of all: my mind. You see, being an inventor and engineer has its advantages, and the fact that I constructed your new GRAVE and SHROUD only enhanced my understanding of your weaknesses. You're arrogant, and the addition of the new suit made you think you were invincible. But while you were strong, even muscle wires are no match for the sheer power of hydraulics." He squeezed my throat a little tighter to emphasize his point, causing me to gasp and splutter. He continued. "And while you might have beaten me with sheer speed, the fact that I knew you were coming allowed me to get the drop on you instead of the other way around." He paused. "The fact of the matter is, I've outwitted, overpowered, and outfoxed you. If it weren't for the fact that I lost my powers, I'd be vastly superior to you in every way. And yet, she chose you." His voice became a hiss here, and his grip tightened all the more. "I don't know why, but what I do know is that I am now faced with an incredibly difficult choice." The next thing I knew, I was being smashed into a wall, though the grip around my throat did not relax. "You see, on the one hand, if you continue to resist, I will have no choice but to kill you. And while that would make Raven very sad, it would also eliminate you from this rather awkward circumstance that exists between the three of us. And on the other hand, I could let you live, and hope that Raven sees the incredible error of her ways." He lifted me up and looked me in the eye. "Your fate is in your hands."
His fingers continued to constrict, and my vision started to black out around the edges. Tunnel vision; a symptom of hypoxia or suffocation. I knew I was going to die if somebody didn't intervene, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cyborg, his lights dark and his body unmoving. I knew he was not going to help me. My desperation finally triggered my last resort; the power I had not wanted to use, but was now forced to: my Domination. Before I completely blacked out, my mind splintered into two pieces; one in my head, and one in Tylan's. I then turned my attention to Tylan, and forced him into a coma before collapsing back into my own mind.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?" came a familiar voice from behind, and I knew I was in deep trouble.
Raven, eyes flaring white, was standing in front of the other three Titans, and she did NOT look happy.
"This," I muttered, "could be very bad."
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There it is, the next chapter of Eventuality! I hope you liked it, and even if you didn't, a review would be greatly appreciated. Also, I'd like to thank the two people who actually read this story, Phaethon and criesblood. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't be writing still, so many, many thanks to both of them.
