I am just going to say this now. I do not feel guilty in any way, shape, or form about this chapter. At all. And I promise, I'm not high, exhausted, or anything of the sort. I'm just making your lives miserable with this one.
Mailbox Time!
Golem XIV: You know, I never really thought of the H.I.V.E. training kicking in that way. Pun intended. I didn't leave you waiting for three weeks, but whatever you used to think about me. Throw it alllllll out the window. Cuz this chapter... man it's epic.
LostDemonessRaven: Now is the time you should say that to me. Like seriously, probably even worse than that.
bearhow: Tell your dragons to hit me with your best shot!
RPGPersona: You know what dude. You managed to guess almost everything on the dot. Almost... MUWHAHAHAHA!
Since Last Time: 4 more favs, 3 more follows (Total: 69 favs, 84 follows)
Updated: November 19, 2016 11:30 P.M.
Disclaimer: (Joker Voice) Ehhem... this lowly author does not own me, or anyone else in this story. Though I do like his way of thinking! HAHAHAHAHA!
Chapter Fourteen: The Joker's Mad Deal/Enraged Beast
The Joker continued to laugh, as Robin, Beast Boy, Starfire, Cyborg, and Bumblebee stared in shock at him.
Kid Flash and Jinx were nowhere to be seen. With him having ran her out of there because of not only the appearance of the Joker, but because she needed medical attention as well.
From their positions on the ground, Al and Frankie had confused faces. They had been told the plan had been to ambush the Titans again. And to capture some hostages to exchange for the alien in the process. Not once had Mr. J. mentioned he would be there, or that he would use the Joker gas on the hostages they were supposed to capture.
"Al, this was a part of the plan, right?" Frankie called to him across the floor.
Al shrugged, as he ever so slowly started to slip away from the shocked green boy in front of him. Frankie, who was behind the Boy Wonder and alien, also started to do the same. With his hands still iced over his belt.
The men around the Joker put their guns away. Leaving their only defense being the gas surrounding them. Behind them, in the parts where the mist hadn't thickened yet, the crowd of insane people did all sorts of things. From attacking each other, screaming and laughing insanely, flipping over tables, running into the walls, etc. They were the greatest and most disturbing noise in the silence of the food court. Besides the mad cackles of the Joker himself.
And then Robin finally recovered from his shock. "What did you do to those people!?"
The Joker cackled for a little longer before he replied. "I have… released their minds from this reality, so to say." The Joker said in a mocking tone, before he cackled again.
Robin scowled deeply. "You better give the antidote to them now, or else!" Robin shouted.
The Joker merely laughed. "Sorry kiddo, but there's no such thing as a cure to my brand of happiness." The Joker said in between laughs.
Robin fought to keep himself from running into the green fog to strangle the Joker. "You better surrender now, or else I'll make sure you pay!" He said in a rage filled tone, as he pulled several disks from his belt.
The Joker put a hand to his chin in contemplation. "Hmmm, how about… no!" He insanely chuckled at the end.
Robin's face turned red in anger. And he was just about to throw those freeze disks in his hands…
Crunch!
When a particularly loud sound caught his attention.
He looked past the Joker at the crowd, only for his heart to clench. Every one of the other Titans looked to it, and had the same look on their face as Robin.
Part of the mist had cleared for a moment, showing the sound had been of one of the crowd pounding someone into the ground with a table. He was still doing it, over and over again. With a big wide insane smile on his face. The woman on the ground also had the same smile, as the table beat and beat at her.
Splat!
Splutter!
Kacrunch!
KerSplat!
The man continued to follow the acts of his insane mind. Even though the woman beneath him was now dead, yet still smiling. Just like he was. Just like everyone around him was.
The heroes blanched at the horrendous sight, and Bumblebee turned away to hurl into a fake bush. The fog thickened around the area again, hiding it in a haze of green. Yet the sounds coming from it weren't hidden in the fog.
The Joker only continued to laugh, not even bothering to look behind himself. "Man, at least these people know how to enjoy the smiles they have! Unlike those depressing lowlifes back in Gotham! My gas never worked as well on them for some reason." The Joker said ecstatically, before he continued to laugh.
"You, you, rutha glubnorb klorbag!" Starfire shouted with such rage, that she conveniently turned to speaking Tamaranean at the end.
The Joker still stopped laughing at that, however. As his eyes narrowed at the alien. "I might not have understood what all that meant, but I do not think that was an endearing phrase my dear." He said in a cold deadly tone to her.
Robin made as if to throw a disk from his hand. He did not take kindly to the Joker threatening his girlfriend.
Bang!
Robin looked to his now empty hand in shock, and then behind him. The freeze disks he had been holding in it were now on the ground. A nice clean hole through all of them. Robin gulped, as he realized how thankful he was that he hadn't been holding the explosive disks.
The Joker turned from glaring at Starfire, to look at Robin. His gun was still pointed at his direction, with the end slightly smoking from the bullet that he had shot. The Joker took a moment to think on it, and then laughed at what he had just done.
"Poor little birdie. Don't tell me you forgot how good of an aim I am. Hell, I shot you in the arm with my eyes closed that one time. Remember that?" The Joker laughed at what he had said. Along with a few of his men this time.
Robin briefly rubbed his upper right arm, a grimace on his face. Before he returned to glaring at the Joker. "Oh boy had that been the good old days. Where it was only me, you, and old Bats!" The Joker continued to say.
Robin smirked at his words. "You better surrender now Joker. I heard that old bats was in town, and he would just love to take your head and put it on his cave wall for all that you've done in the past." Robin said in what he hoped was a threatening tone.
The Joker only laughed at that. Confusing Robin. "Oh, you mean poor old Bats was here after all! Damn! What a party we could have had! But I doubt he's going to be around anytime soon little bird! Not after some random citizen reports how their apartment is leaking a strange green gas onto the street! And he and that girl who had her wings clipped will go there, only to find that, (ha) that, (haha) that the whole block will be filled with it after he sets foot on the groune!" The Joker cackled out evilly.
Robin and the rest of the others paled. Even Frankie and Al, who had been tiptoeing away to regroup with their boss somewhere else, stopped in shock. All their attention was now focused on the Joker. And not the sickening sounds of the crowd behind him.
"You wouldn't dare! Do you know how many citizens are on those streets!?" Bumblebee yelled in anger.
"That's low man, even for a villain!" Cyborg shouted angrily next.
"Do you two really think I would bluff where old Bats was concerned? I'd take down a whole city if it meant getting to him!" The Joker said in an enraged yet laughing tone.
The two Titans clenched their fists, but stayed back.
Mr. J. looked back to Robin. And seemed like he was finally done with talking to them. His face became serious, businesslike.
"How about this little bird, I'll arrange a deal with you and your friends here. Give me the alien girl there, and I'll let the people behind me and in the city along with old Bats and that other one carry on with their happy boring little lives. Sound fair?"
Robin was quick to answer. "HELL NO!" He growled out. He didn't care if he died or not, he wasn't going to let him get Star.
The Joker sadly shook his head at that. Not even cackling, chuckling, or laughing in any way. "Did I hear that right? The almighty Robin, savior of the world, the protector of the people, would rather have all these people back behind me die in their happiness, along with his mentor, old flame, and countless others in the city. Just for one, alien, girl?"
Robin gritted his teeth, as the other heroes moved to attack long range. He simply nodded his head, as he took his Bo Staff out. The Joker sighed sadly at that.
"Can't say I'm not surprised. Love makes us do the craziest of things now, doesn't it?" The Joker said, in an almost casual, yet cruel sort of tone.
Robin stared hard at him. While the other Titans shifted a little uneasily. Beast Boy especially. He didn't know why, but he was feeling like something very bad was about to happen.
The Joker looked up, facing one of those advertisement TV's that usually hang somewhere in the mall. Which was conveniently in view of the Titans. With his free lazy hand, he pulled out a remote from his pocket, and turned on the TV, revealing…
All the Titans gasped. While Beast Boy went stock still.
"I think a little extra persuasion is in order then." The Joker simply said.
'Raven!'
It was the view of a very small camera. Placed in the ceiling of the disguised T-Car shortly after the Titans had left it. And it was clearly showing the sitting form of a softly smiling Rachel. As she stroked the humongous bulge that was her tummy. She was almost aloof from the world around her.
The Joker suddenly laughed, and the Titans looked at him to see his head keeled back in laughter. "Oh boy was I ever so glad to learn about this from my good buddy Al! Such a lovely smile, soon to be ruined by a prevalent problem in today's society! I couldn't just pass this by!"
Beast Boy instantly looked behind him at those words, and saw no one behind him. He turned back to the screen, to stare in horror at his pregnant, very much unprotected girlfriend. 'Kid Flash said she was safe! He promised!'
Robin looked back from the screen to the insane Joker. "You leave her out of this! That girl has done nothing to you!"
"Oh, she might have done nothing to me, but I think she is just what I need for this mad deal of mine." The Joker said in an insane voice. Before he started to laugh evilly.
"What do you want!?" Robin shouted incredulously.
"What do I want!? What do I want!?" The Joker shouted incredulously. As he paced in the green fog. "I want that alien bitch floating next to you!? I want the one person you truly love!? So I can take that damn smile of yours, and smash it into a billion trillion pieces for what you did to me all those years ago!"
Robin couldn't say anything to that, as the Joker continued. "And you will give her to me, or else not only will I let these people behind me die happy, but I'll set off a canister of my Joker gas inside your precious car! Just so you can watch your friend enjoy her short lived happiness! And if she ends up being immune to it because of her heritage, I have a nice briefcase filled with ten pounds of TNT in the back with her name alllllllll over it!"
Beast Boy let out a whimper in the background. As he stared at the screen. He was trying to think of any animal, any form that could get him to her in time. But if he were to leave, the Joker would surely notice. And any way of warning her would make the Joker kill her on the spot.
He couldn't do anything.
Robin looked close to losing it. Should he comply with the Joker, in the hope that he wouldn't go through with his threat. Should he try to reason with him, even though it wasn't likely to work. Should he stall him, in the hope that the all knowing Bruce would know what was about to go down? And would soon arrive to help save the day.
Whatever he was going to do, Starfire decided it for him. She floated forward, heading towards the Joker and his cloud of gas. Her head was down, hiding the tears falling from her eyes.
"Ahhh, so she is smarter than she looks." The Joker said in a very happy tone. Yet Robin looked at her retreating form in shock.
"Star! Wait a moment!" He shouted after her.
She didn't listen. As she stopped just on the edge of the green fog. She fell to her knees in a submissive position. "I will not let my friend and her bumgorf die because of me. It is my fault we are in this predicament in the first place, if I had just decided to listen to you Robin… you were right." She said in a small voice.
There was silence from everyone after that for a moment. "Whatever it is you want with me the Joker… do your worst." She uttered.
And then the Joker let out a grand laugh.
"Hook her up boys!" He ordered.
Three men instantly came forward. And before the others could blink, one of them had inserted a very familiar dart into Starfire's orange skin. Within ten seconds, her eyes had rolled into the back of her head. And she fell back and passed out onto the floor unconscious.
"Star!" Robin shouted in misery as he watched his love fall back to the floor.
The men roughly put a gas mask over her face, before one put her over his shoulder in a less than appropriate way. Robin was barely able to contain his rage. The men walked back to the others and the Joker in the cloud of gas, their prize now on the shoulders of the buff burly man. The Joker continued to laugh with glee the whole time.
"Oh how long I've been waiting for this day! Oh, oh, how long! It just makes me want to singgggggggggggggg!" The Joker sung out at the end.
"Fine, you have her, now fulfil your part of the bargain! Give those people behind you the antidote!" Robin ordered. His voice on the edge of cracking.
The Joker took a look behind him, and then he looked back to Robin. He was smiling widely, insanely, evilly. "Like I said before birdie, there is no cure to my brand of happiness." He sung in a sing song voice.
The Titans stared at him in horror, as he turned around with the rest of his men to walk back through the fog and the insane crowd of people. "Until the next time we meet little birdie! Hopefully by then, you will have learned how foolish it is to trust your smile with others! A smile is such a pretty little thing after all!" The Joker cackled evilly, as the green mist started to hide them from view.
This left the heroes, and Al and Frankie in their midst. Shocked at what he had just done.
Al then seemed to realize what was happening. And shouted after Mr. J's retreating form.
"What about us Mr. J! Are you just going to leave us behind to these kids!?"
The Joker's laugh was heard from the cloud of mist. "You two have outlived your use for me good buddy! But don't worry, if you somehow live, I might still pay you for your grand service! If I feel like it that is!" The Joker laughed back.
Al and Frankie blanched at that. The heroes left in the room turned toward the two former henchmen. Murder written in their eyes. And the Joker made his getaway in the thick fog. His smile wider than it had been in months, years even.
The two gulped. Frankie might not have been able to throw still because of the ice. And Masterblaster Al's cannon was fried till further notice. But they could still fight their way out of this, right?
As the Joker left the building via a secret way, he thumbed the remote in his hand. One last thought entering his insane filled mind before he disappeared. 'Better deal with that demonic girl anyways. Teenage pregnancy is such a big problem in our country these days. And a demon baby might not have the best of smiles.'
To Rachel
Rachel was still sitting in her seat. Looking exactly as she had before when the camera first saw her. Although she was now grimacing slightly as another strong kick connected to her hand on her stomach.
"What is it child? You've been kicking me almost nonstop since we got in this car." Raven murmured to her tummy.
She got an even stronger kick this time. And Rachel sighed as she rubbed her head. "Don't worry, I'm sure that daddy is safe. He wouldn't be as reckless as he was before." Raven tried.
Yet her baby still continued to kick at her. Causing Rachel no small amount of pain. And Rachel's half smile half grimace turned into a full on glare at her stomach.
"Azar help me, I don't know what you're trying to tell me. But if you don't stop-"
Suddenly…
KABOOM!
Back to our Titans
A loud explosion suddenly made everyone in the room turn towards the large TV. The reactions from what they saw varied.
Robin's heart stopped in his chest.
Cyborg's jaw dropped to the ground.
Bumblebee was as stiff as a board.
Frankie was wide eyed.
Al was at a loss for words.
And Beast Boy… as he saw the flaming ruins of the T-Car… the flames of his future burn to ash in the flames…
'MMMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!'
A savage growl suddenly sounded in the room. Shocking the other Titans out of their reverie. They all looked from the TV to the source of said growl.
Beast Boy was curled over on the ground. His hands clenched over his thickening head of hair. His fangs elongated past his mouth, as his body grew in size.
Frankie and Al took a step back. Their eyes widening with fear as the green one underwent a slow and abrupt change in front of them.
Beast Boy's face became more wolf like. With every lean part of his body covering itself in a thick green pelt and strong muscle. A very noticeable hump formed on his back made from pure muscle. And foot long claws came out of what had been his hands and claws. Beast Boy got onto all fours, as his body continued to grow.
"Al, we can still get out of this mess, right?" Frankie said in fear to his shocked partner.
Beast Boy reached ten feet. His mind slowly started to shut down, while a more primal vengeance filled the void. And it was out for blood. The head of the great beast reared back.
"AWHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
"Al…"
Beast Boy was no more. In his place was that of the biggest, dangerous, and scariest monster to ever walk the universe. Large, green, and sprouting a thick mane of hair behind his head. With his transformation done, the Beast looked back down, with two pairs of red eyes on his face. Instead of its common two white pupil eyes. They were completely filled with bloodlust and rage.
"Al…" Frankie said again.
The Beast inhaled through his mouth. He smelled his pack right in front of them. All smelt of anger, shock, and sadness. Just like himself. That was good. They were all equal in their grief. He would spare them.
On the left, there was a strange foul smelling green fog on its left. In it, he could see the two legs running around in a frenzy, there minds long gone. Some were lying on the ground, the smell of death and blood heavy on them. They were not the target.
In the midst of the fog, there was a stranger scent. Like madness incarnate. The Beast's eyes narrowed, that was it's target. But the fog was in the way. It had no way to get to the Mad One who killed his mate and cub…
But wait, the two in front of it, they also had traces of the Mad One's scent on them. Maybe they knew where the Mad One's den was. Yet they had also been responsible for his mate's death. And they had once tried to kill him before too. These two insignificant weaklings had torn him away from his mate and unborn cub. And now they were both dead. Burning in the man fire outside this large den for two legs.
"Al…"
Raven and his unborn daughter were dead… her beautiful violet eyes and that of his cub would never be seen again. Because of these two. The Beast's eyes narrowed on them, as a snarl escaped his lips.
"Al…"
Frankie looked to his left. And saw Al taking off out of the food court and into the mall. His eyes comically widened. "Al! Wait for me!" Frankie yelled in fear as he ran after him. His hands still stuck to his belt.
The Beast roared his anger, hatred, and grief into the air. As his claws dug into the ground and propelled him forward. Behind him, he heard his pack running after him, telling to stop, but they didn't matter for now. The ones who helped the Mad One were getting away. That could never be allowed.
The chase was on.
Al and Frankie both rounded a corner in the deserted mall. Their eyes both wide with fear as they ran.
Behind them, the mad Beast burst from the corridor on all fours and chased after its prey. It was snarling with each stride it took towards the two. Al took a look back at the Beast. His eyes wide with fear.
'Where's a freaking cigar when you need one!'
The Beast was almost on them, his claws out to rip the two two legs to shreds. When they suddenly parted.
Wham!
And the Beast ran headfirst into a column he hadn't looked up to see..
Under any other circumstance, the two might have found this funny. But this wasn't like any other circumstance, as the two ran up a stairwell to another floor of the mall, their hearts beating madly in their chests.
The Beast shook its head to clear it, and then howled again as it took off in pursuit of its fleeing prey. It would be damned if it let a simple man mountain get in the way of him and his prey again.
Back at the corner, Cyborg, Robin, and Bumblebee appeared running around the corner. "B, wait a moment!" Cyborg yelled after him.
"This is bad. This is very, very bad." Robin said in a tight voice to himself. He was forcing his grief back for now. He had to stop his friend before he did something he'd regret.
Bumblebee only winced to herself. As the running made the wound in her wing sting. She could only hope that Beast Boy didn't do something that he'd regret.
Al and Frankie disappeared into a store. Closing the doors behind them as they separated into different parts of it.
Back at the entrance, the Beast plowed the doors over. His eyes narrowed at all the loud poppers, animal skins, and the variety of metal and plastic man made contraptions around him. He breathed in the scent of the store, locating his prey.
The two cowards had separated, one to the left, and the other to the right. The Beast plowed its way to the right of the store. Since that side smelt more strongly of that fear.
Frankie was behind a counter, beating his ice covered hands against an object. It looked like an ice chipper. Yet it was hard to do it since he was A. under a desk and B. was having to move his hips to beat the ice chipper against the ice. Not how he wanted to spend his time making a getaway.
Chips of the ice covered the floor, yet his hands still weren't free yet. And based on the large thumps he heard approaching, he knew he had probably five seconds to free his hands. Or else he was going to be majorly screwed over this time.
Thump! Crash!
Thump! Crash!
Thump! Crash!
Thump! Crash!
Thump! Crash!
…
The noise stopped behind his hiding spot. And Frankie's eyes widened as he stopped what he had been doing. One hand was free, but the other was still attached to his belt. Which still had the knives frozen on it. He was almost utterly defenseless in other words.
Surely the Beast hadn't found him. All he was hearing was heavy breathing behind the counter after all.
Swipe! Swipe!
Two sets of claws went through the counter on both sides of Frankie. Making it fall in three different directions. The left section fell to the left. The right section fell to the right. And the one that had been covering Frankie fell backwards. He looked up into the bright red eyes of the Beast.
'... … F***.'
The Beast narrowed its eyes at his prey. And brought his claws up to swipe down again.
Boom!
The Beast reared forward. As it suddenly felt pain pierce it's back. It roared in pain as it felt his healing factor push what felt like many small metallic balls back out of the hump of muscle on its back.
It turned around in the hunting store then, to see Al carrying a 20 gauge. He cocked it again, as he held a smoking cigar in his mouth.
'If you're going to commit suicide. Might as well do it while you're smoking the best.' He thought as he fired again.
Boom!
The Beast roared in pain as Al shot his second shell into the great beast's face. Piercing it's cheeks, eyes, nose, and neck. Yet it's healing factor made it only a few seconds distraction. Al cocked his shotgun again and fired another round.
Boom!
Frankie ran out from behind the Beast, now that his partner was distracting it. But then he saw something on the ground that made him smile. He got on his hand and knees and started to work on getting what he saw to open with one hand. If this idea worked...
Al cocked his shotgun and prepared to fire again.
The Beast suddenly swiped forward, his claws digging right through the loud popper. The shotgun fell into five different pieces at Al's feet. And Al looked up at the now smirking form of the four red eyed Beast in front of him. The wounds he had inflicted were already healing..
The cigar fell from Al's mouth. As a wet spot appeared in his pants.
The Beast made to grab Al from off the ground.
Snap!
When it suddenly felt something snap onto it's back leg.
The Beast roared in agony as several different metal spikes pierced his flesh and tore his muscles in his left leg apart. And then stuck together to keep the metal contraption both in his leg, and affected the area from healing itself. Frankie smirked to himself as he saw the bear trap he had quickly set do its job.
"C'mon Al! If those 20 gauge rounds couldn't stop him, then I doubt my idea will hurt for very long!" Frankie yelled as he started to run out of the store. Al quickly followed.
Back in the store, the Beast suddenly tore it's teeth into its own leg. Biting right through the metal spikes holding the damn pain causer in place along with a few of his muscles. The metal contraption fell to the floor, covered in his blood. But it took only seconds for the gruesome wound to completely heal over.
"So Al, what took you so long back there!?" Frankie shouted to his partner.
"Damn idiots kept the ammo, the guns, and the cigars separate." Al shouted to him as they continued to run.
"Seriously! You valued my life over a damn cigar!?" Frankie shouted incredulously at him.
"Calm your man mammaries dude, I wouldn't just risk your life for one…" He suddenly pulled two packs of twelve from his jacket to show as they ran. "See! I got you a whole box to share too!" Al said with a small laugh before he put them back.
Frankie shook his head. "You ****ing bastard!"
They heard a loud savage roar sound behind them. And the green Beast burst out of the store. His back, leg, and face fully healed. Murder was in his blood red eyes.
"I was thinking that would hold him for a little while longer." Frankie said as they turned a corner.
"You think?" Al said sarcastically.
The two continued to run. With Frankie using the ice chipper he had also picked up from off the ground before to free his other hand of the ice.
On the other side of the charging Beast, the Titans were panting as they got to the top of the stairs. "Damn it, how can those three run so fast!" Cyborg groaned to himself as they saw their green friend taking off in pursuit again.
"I don't know. Maybe anger, fear, and adrenaline are apart of it maybe." Bumblebee panted sarcastically from the side. Cyborg didn't even have the energy to snap back at her.
In front of them, Robin felt his communicator beep, and he opened it to see Kid Flash. "Hey, I got Jinxy to an ambulance. And I found the weird device that was jamming our communicators. What happened while I was… where's Beast Boy and Starfire?" He suddenly asked as he saw they weren't in view.
Then the image was split, revealing the image of a dark cowled person in the middle of a green mist on what looked like a city block. "Dick, why the hell didn't you answer!? Do you have any idea what the Joker has done out in the city! The whole freaking city center is being quarantined as we speak!" Batman shouted through a miniature gas mask he was wearing.
A savage roar sounded in the distance. Making the two faces on the communicator slightly confused. "Let me get back to you two later." Robin said in a grim voice. As he closed his communicator, cutting off the cries of the two people on it, before he tore off down the hall again.
Bumblebee groaned as she took off running after him. She was really wishing she was able to fly now. And hadn't gotten one of her wings hurt in the fight earlier.
Cyborg, he groaned even louder. 'Can't they just stay still long enough for us to catch up to them!? I mean seriously! I'm going to have a metallic hernia at this rate!' He thought as he took off after his friends.
The two partners in crime tore their way through the mall. Going through store after store to try and lose the Beast hell bent on pursuing them. Frankie had both his hands free by this point, while his belt was still covered in ice. He had to abandon the ice chipper when the Beast had gotten a little too close for comfort at one point.
The duo ended up doing all sorts of crazy things to try and escape the Beast.
They ended up posing as mannequins in woman dresses in a Macy's at one point. How that ended up fooling the Beast they would never know. All they knew was that they had managed it, and the Beast hadn't been so happy about being tricked by such a simple move.
At another spot, they had dove behind a counter and dressed up as a pair of cotton candy vendors. They had ultimately confused the enraged Beast when they offered him a free sample of pink cotton candy. Only to then grab him and put his head in the machine that made it while he was confused. The two had torn themselves out of the clothes cartoon style as they continued to run.
The Beast had been even more enraged to find his pelt had pink fluff all over it after that.
They even hid in an arcade at one point. And had used two of the large game machines to block the entrance after the Beast had ran in. Allowing them to escape with the Beast pinned behind a good ton of gaming. Which hadn't lasted long. Who knew PacMan wouldn't be animal proof?
"Al, why the hell is this starting to feel like Scooby-Doo!?" Frankie yelled as they slid down a staircase. Not even bothering to take the steps and choosing to instead slide down the side of it. When they reached the bottom, they took off running again.
Behind them, the Beast appeared at the top of the stairs. And with a mighty leap, he jumped from the top and landed with a mighty thud at the bottom. He took off running on all fours after the two two legs who had hurt him. Tricked him. And ultimately, mocked him by this point.
He still had tufts of pink on his fur.
Frankie was running full speed next to Al with both his arms pumping furiously. "I'm not sure. If it follows the guideline for it though, then I hope we get to the part where we end up losing the monster chasing us!" Al shouted back.
"Do you even know how much farther it is to our exit point!?" Frankie shouted incredulously.
Al was trying to remember it in his head. Just in case things went south, he had found another way to exit the mall from other than the main entrances. He was hoping it was small enough for them to escape without the Beast following them. They only had to get to it. He knew they were close though, as it looked like one of the main entrances to the mall was in front of them.
The Beast pounded closer and closer behind them. They weaved their way through different columns and vendor spots as to slow the pursuing Beast down some. All while the Beast closed in on them from behind...
And then Al saw it. It was a maintenance door, that led to a shaft that led to the sewers under the building. It was wide enough for them. And not for the Beast.
"There it is Frankie! There it-" Al was shouting as they reached an open part of the mall.
Thwap!
The two were suddenly swept off their feet. As the Beast in his fury grabbed the two with the blunt end of his front claws and sent them flying into a wall. He knew he had caught his prey at last.
Slam!
Frankie screamed in pain as he felt some of his knives break from the ice on his belt and dig into his legs. While Al grunted as his charge pack along with his laser cannon dug painfully into his shoulders.
The two hit the ground with a thud. And looked up at the hulking form of the Beast. Fear was in both of their eyes.
At the stairwell far back, the Titans suddenly appeared at last. And saw their friend lifting up the two figures from off the ground. His claws looking dangerously close to burying themselves into their necks as he held them by the collars of their clothes.
"No, don't do it grass stain!" Cyborg shouted at his best friend. As he tore down the stairs at breakneck speeds. Bumblebee and Robin right behind him. It seemed like he didn't care about getting a hernia at this point.
Al and Frankie were being gripped by their necks. As the Beast growled savagely at them.
"You dared to help the Mad One to kill my mate! You dared to help the Mad One to kill my unborn cub! You dared to make fun of me throughout this useless chase! To color me pink with sweets!" The Beast roared in a savage, primal voice at the pair.
The two grown men whimpered in the Beast's embrace. Over his shoulders, they could see the other Titans approaching. With Cyborg blasting most of the vendor stations and stuff out of the way with his sonic cannon to clear a path. But they were going to be too late. They were as good as dead now.
"Well, we had a good run Al." Frankie said grimly.
"Indeed we did Frankie. It looks like we didn't get to that part after all." Al said back.
Frankie closed his eyes. While Al stared into the blood red ones of the Beast. And for the first time since he first saw the Batman, he felt fear fill his soul. The Beast was so enraged, that even Al knew it won't stop with his death. Or Frankie's.
No, it would continue on. It would kill everyone outside. Going from person to person, until it finally got to the culprit. The Mad One who had killed his mate. And maybe even then, it wouldn't stop until it had bathed the whole world in red for her. Only sparing those it deemed worthy to live.
Al closed his eyes and waited, waited for the Beast to finish him off.
The Beast saw his dangling targets give up, and he let out a savage grin. For these two had finally learned their place in the natural order. They had helped to kill the one he had chosen to be his mate, and the unborn cub he would have raised with the gentlest care. Now, they were going to help in paying the price. The ultimate price for the Mad One's crime.
The Beast's head reared forward, as his friends behind him shouted for him to stop. His fangs gleamed in the light of the room, as they came to the pulse of Al's neck. His pack behind him tried in vain to tell him to stop.
But only one person could get him to stop.
Author's Notes:
And cut! That's a wrap folks! I am not feeling guilty in any way, shape, or form for what I did this chapter at all! In fact, I am as smily as a happy baby! I swear, I enjoyed writing some of these parts way too much!
Let me know what you thought!
Till Next Time
Allen