-1
"I hope she's doing alright," Starfire said worriedly. She looked up and gasped, smiling for the first time in a while.
"Robin!" She cried, running forward and embracing him. He smiled, hugged her back, and the two released. His smile grew as he withdrew the key from his belt.
"Awesome. We're waiting for Sophia to get out of there with that key," Cyborg explained. Starfire was the only one to pick up on the extra concern in his voice, and therefore was the only one that had to hide a small smile.
"Yeah. She's been in there a while. I'm starting to worry a bit, honestly," Terra added. They made small talk for a few minutes, Robin describing the trials he went through, and what Atlantis looked like. Finally, they went back to their previous activity of waiting.
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"Ye who would seek the key, you will be tested. Straightforward," Sophia commented as she stepped through. As soon as she entered, a booming voice spoke.
"WHAT IS YOUR FRIEND STARFIRE'S TRUE NAME?" It spoke. She jumped at the sound, then absorbed the question. This is the test? Questions about the Titans? She chuckled slightly.
"That would be Koriand'r," She replied. On the other side of the room, Sophia noticed that one of the six bars that had been blocking the next door had lifted.
"WHAT DISEASE DID GARFIELD LOGAN USED TO POSESS?" She laughed again.
"Too easy. Sakutia," She said. Another bar lifted.
"WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THE ENTITY WHO TOOK THE TITANS AS TROPHIES?"
"He only took four, and it was Atlas," She rolled her eyes as the third bar was raised.
"WHO IS ROY HARPER?"
Sophia thought on this. The name was familiar, but she couldn't place it. She swore, unable to put a face to the name. "Do I get a hint?" She asked hopefully. No answer. She swore again. "Roy Harper….Roy…Harper….Harper…Roy Harper…" She muttered, pacing. "What happens if I answer incorrectly?" She asked.
"YOU WILL BE DESTROYED," The voice said simply.
"Well. No pressure then," Sophia said dryly, reminiscent of Raven herself. She shook her head, lost in thought.
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"Shit!" Jinx exclaimed. She had opened the door on her right, only to almost be drawn in by a tentacle from an unknown being behind the door. Instinctively, she fired luck shots at the door, causing the room behind it to collapse. Smacking her forehead, she sighed.
"You are gifted… Gifted to destroy, yeah. Don't see that helping, though," She muttered as she reached forward and opened the door across from the one she had come from.
"…Who the fuck are you?" Jinx wondered as a midget wearing Robin's uniform flew out.
"I'm Larry! I'm just here to help! Go on! Through the door!" He cried, drenching the sorceress in spit. A tic started on her forehead as she wiped herself off.
"You're joking. A midget, retarded Robin. As if he didn't have enough skill in that department already," She muttered. Then she stopped. "Wait. How did you get in here? You…you're another illusion!" She swiped at him, and unexpectedly connected.
"Okay, unfortunately for me, you are real. How'd you get in?" She wondered.
"Magic finger. I bent the rules of the trials. Let me get in with you," He said happily, flying behind her. Pursing her lips, Jinx rubbed her temples.
"So why can't you just bend the rules so that the next room has the key?" She asked. Larry shrugged.
"Something's guarding this place against my finger. Something powerful enough to stop my rule-bending power. I tried," He said. Jinx sighed, walking along the hall.
"Alright, fine. Let's see. 'Ye who would seek the key, a fight awaits.' Alright, cool. I've been itching to brawl," She said happily, pushing the door open. Looking around, she saw something unexpected.
"Huh?" She said eloquently. Before her stood the Teen Titans and Titans East, all poised to strike.
"So not fair!" She protested. And that was the last thing she said before being overtaken by the fighters. Try as she might, she couldn't ward them off. She was simply beaten. Pulverized. Finally, she was thrown against a wall, cornered, bruised and scared.
Larry began to frantically think. How could he help? He couldn't protect her, he wasn't exactly a fighter. Robin would be able to think of something… Come on! Think! Oh! The light bulb came on as he thought. His finger glowing, he disappeared.
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Argent sighed. "Wally West, get your super-speed ass down here! It's your turn to do dishes, and I know you know it," She yelled. Upstairs, Kid Flash grinned. He knew it, alright. But tormenting Argent by waiting till the last second to do everything was so much fun, considering that he actually could do everything at the last second.
"I'll get them in a bit!" He called back down. He grinned again as he heard Argent growl.
"You don't want me to come up there," The goth warned him.
Kid Flash just rolled his eyes. She never carried out her threats, in part because she was unable to actually catch the slacker long enough to do such.
"Ah, give him a break. He'll get 'em done. Always does. Don't get your skirt in a twist," Herald commented as he entered the kitchen, eyeing the refrigerator.
"You I can catch," She told the dimension-manipulator dangerously. He just shrugged and began to shuffle through the leftovers of the previous night.
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"Yaaah!" Kid Flash yelped in shock as a portal appeared over his bed. Out of it burst a tiny replica of Robin, one of his index fingers glowing.
"Kid Flash, right? Jinx is in trouble! C'mon!" He said, motioning to the portal. Wally raised an eyebrow.
"Who the hell are you, and what do you mean by 'danger?'" He asked.
"She's getting beaten up by a bunch of illusions. It's a long story. I'm Larry, Robin from a different dimension. Come on!" He cried again, tugging on Wally's arm.
"Oooookay. Stranger things have happened, I guess," The speedster said. Shrugging, he dove into the portal, Larry hot on his heels.
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"Roy…Harper…Good Azar!" Sophia muttered. She went through all of the real names of the Titans. Richard Grayson, Garfield Logan, Rachel Roth, Koriand'r, and Victor Stone… Oh, Tara Markov, too… But Roy Harper? Ugh…Robin would know this…Robin…Robin… OH! She grinned as she pictured Robin's face, the mask standing out. Then Robin's face faded out, fading into…
"Roy Harper is know to both the Teen Titans and Titans East as Speedy the archer," She finally cried proudly. Another bar lifted.
"WHERE IS TARA MARKOV ORIGINALLY FROM?"
Sophia smiled. Thank Azar she was in Nevermore so long, She thought. "The land of Markovia," She stated. Another bar lifted. One more! She said to herself triumphantly.
"IS YOUR SISTER SAMANTHA DEAD?" The voice boomed. Sophia stood, shocked.
"Er….."
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"Let's ride!" Sam kicked the horse, riding forward to the volcano. She had already been attacked by two different armies of Bloods and demons, and dispatched them with ease. "You wait here!" Sam told Bravery as they came to a halt at the foot of the stone stairs Terra had created.
Sam had no need for those, of course. Or at least, that's what she thought until she remembered about not having her powers. Rolling her eyes, she quickly scaled the volcano, leaping down onto the narrow ledge and running as fast as her legs could carry her.
Her eyes shone as she saw her friends in the distance. She grinned as she noticed the open door, increasing her speed further.
"Hi and bye!" She yelled as she ran past, leaving all of the others goggling
"Was that…?" Terra trailed off.
"Couldn't have been. She died, girl," Cyborg shook his head.
"Who the hell else wears that shade of green and goes running head-first into a place that she doesn't know the first thing about?" Carrie responded rhetorically.
"Dude, it just ain't possible! She fried in lava!" Cyborg said bluntly, causing an uneasy silence from all except Carrie.
"You also said that about Slade. And we're dealing with some serious weirdness here. Maybe she managed to survive somehow. I just know that whoever that was looked, sounded and acted a hell of a lot like Sam," She said with a shrug. Cyborg just frowned.
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Sam rushed through the first three rooms, skidding to a halt in front of the fourth. "Ye who holds the key, you shall be tested," She read. Shrugging, she flung the door open.
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"She's…." Sophia was interrupted by the door behind her opening with a sudden force. Spinning around, Sophia's eyes widened and her mouth hung open.
"What is this, some sort of trick to get me to say the wrong answer? You think you can make me say no by creating an illusion of her? She has to be a fa-" Sam cut across her.
"Not the time, Sophie. I'm not dead, She said. And, unwittingly, she had answered the final question. The final bar raised, unlocking the door.
Sophia stared. "No" had been the right answer. Which meant… The girl ran forward, standing directly in front of Sam.
"Is it really…you?" She asked, looking Sam up and down for any telltale sign, anything strange.
"In the quasi-mortal flesh," Sam replied with a smile. Sophia's eyes shone with tears, and the former emotion flung herself forward, face buried in her "sister's" shoulder.
"I am so sorry…," Sophia managed out, images of Sam falling, herself chasing the fated girl and failing to save her.
Sam let her go for a minute or so before taking Sophia by the shoulders and putting some space between the two. Wiping her eyes, Sophia took a couple deep breaths, looking Sam over and noting the wardrobe change.
"What…why do you have chain mail on?"" Sophia inquired after regaining her composure.
"Long story, I'll tell you in a bit. We need to get ahold of that key. One more trial left, girlfriend. Let's take it down and get the hell out of this volcano," The somewhat-mortal girl suggested. Sophia smiled and nodded, and together they rushed through the door.
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Aqualad cocked his fist, preparing to finish Jinx. The sorceress struggled in Bumblebee's grip, but she was getting nowhere. She closed her eyes and waited for the end.
Unseen to her, a vortex had appeared in the room. Out of it flew Larry and tumbled Kid Flash. Quickly seeing what was about to happen, Wally raced forward just as the Key-Aqualad swung.
When the blow didn't come, Jinx opened her eyes. Aqualad's fist had been caught by a very familiar red glove. That same red glove whirled Aqualad around, knocking the Key-Titan into Jinx's captor, knocking Jinx to the ground in the process.
Looking up, Jinx found the cocky grin and extended hand she had expected. Taking his hand, she picked herself up and turned to look at the remaining challengers. Turning to Wally, she shook her head.
"You never cease to amaze me. I don't know how you got in here, or even how you knew I was here. Together?" She said. Kid Flash nodded. With that, he sped off, laying the law down on anyone in sight while Jinx used her aerobatic training to elegantly dodge the various attack thrown at her and throw a few blasts here and there.
A minute later, the Key-Titans were history and the next door opened. Jinx looked at Wally. "How?" She asked. The boy jerked his thumb at Larry, who was currently performing an airborne victory dance.
"He came busting into my room through a vortex, telling me you're in danger. I was already getting yelled at by Argent, so I saw no reason not to follow the little guy," He said. Jinx nodded and turned to Larry.
"Well, I still don't know what the heck you are, but thanks for the save, Larry," Jinx told the Robin-like midget.
"Yay! I did something right for once!" He cried, spit flying again. Sighing, the pair pushed through the next door.
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"Ye who would seek the key, don't fall," Sam read. "Great," She added as they entered the room.
"Holy shit." Sam stated plainly. Spikes filled the ground and ceiling, while razor blades decorated the walls. This continued down a long, straight passage, at the other end of which lay the key.
"I'll go. I can fly," Sophia said, but Sam shook her head.
"I get the feeling your powers won't work here. They wouldn't make it that east. The Horsemen, I mean. However… Hm. Allow me," She said. And, placing all of her faith in her own abilities, she leapt into the air. Sophia gasped as Sam fell towards the spikes.
Sam smiled. Drawing her sword, she thrust it down, wedging it between the spikes. Using momentum, she pushed off, making sure to take the weapon back with her. Next, she stabbed the sword into the right wall, jumping off of the blade and again grabbing it as she flew again. Then, stabbing the sword into the ceiling, she swung off the handle, and finally threw her shield down to serve as a platform for her to land on. One more jump off the shield put her on safe ground.
The instant she landed, the spikes and blades receded, leaving Sam's accessories laying on the ground. The girl grabbed the key and walked calmly back across, retrieving her arms as she went. "Ready?" She asked Sophia, who was currently gawking at her.
"How the… How did you do that?!" Sophia cried incredulously. Sam shrugged.
"Eh. When you're an emotion that fights a lot, you tend to get good with stuff like that, y'know? Anyway, let's go." And with that, the emerald set into the key shone, and the pair were warped to the front door.
"So, to Mount Everest?" Sam suggested calmly to everyone as she and Sophia emerged.