TRANSITION

(As far as I can tell, the Titans are copyright themselves, and just sort of loan their images out to DC on a regular basis. I certainly didn't have anything to do with their creation. And I sure as heck don't make any money off of them.

-Concolor44)

CHAPTER 28 – Vignettes

Titans' Tower …

Robin stared hard at the man seated across from him in the smaller conference room. "You're from the NSA? What does the NSA want to interview us for …" he glanced at the man's credentials, "… Agent Maddox? We're under the jurisdiction of the Justice League."

"While that is true, Robin, certain … recent events have come to our attention. We are charged with keeping the national security intact. We simply want to know that your organization is of the same mind."

Robin considered the agent, his finger stroking along the underside of his chin in thought. "Well, never let it be said that the Teen Titans aren't team players when it comes to national security." He had to smirk a little. "Though what you could be worrying about is unclear to me. Perhaps you'd like to elaborate?"

"You are familiar with the events that occurred at Probst Prison on Tuesday?"

"Of course."

"Then what elaboration is necessary?"

"Humor me."

The agent's brows drew together. "Have it your way." He uncrossed his legs and leaned on the table, closing the distance between them somewhat. "Right now, in this city, there are two individuals whose power levels are not fully known, but are assumed to be at least on a par with Superman. One of them is a documented criminal. The other has a demonic lineage. We need to know what is being done to assure that they are being sufficiently monitored."

"… Monitored?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"We need to be sure they aren't collaborating with enemy governments."

Robin smothered a chortle as best he could, but his reaction nevertheless brought a scowl to Agent Maddox's face. "Robin, I really need for you to take this seriously."

Robin waved a hand. "Yeah, sure. Go ahead and do your interviews." He chuckled deep in his chest. "Seriously. You want us to take this seriously. Heh. Frankly, Agent Maddox, they have bigger fish to fry. They're dealing … hah, we're all dealing with an interplanetary situation on so vast a scale that we aren't even considering anything except humanity as a whole. But sure. Knock yourself out." He got to his feet and went to the door. "I'll go get Starfire for you. I know where she is, and she'll be a good one to start with."

Starfire's side of her interview …

Thank you for asking, Mr. Maddox, this day I am feeling very much improved. We have all been suffering great stress for many weeks now, but Richard and I did the mating last night for the first time in days, and I believe he is feeling much better as well … though, for some reason, he did not arise early this morning, as he usually does, for combat practice. We only mated for three or four hours, and he was quite vocal, so we may not have done it enough. Perhaps I should go make love to him again when we finish our interview.

Are you feeling well, Mr. Maddox? You seem flushed. Shall I adjust the temperature of the room? No? Very well. Dear Robin said you had questions for me.

Oh, no, I do not worry about them at all! But it is so marvelous to have our friends back! We missed Raven so much, and worried about her so badly! And Terra was so very gravely injured that we feared she would die, but now she is better than ever. And now Jinx has joined us as a friend as well and she and Raven are lovers! Is that not very exciting? I so hoped for years that Raven would meet someone who would make her feel love, and now she has! Do you have many friends, Mr. Maddox? No? That is sad, you should find some. Oh, I know! I know! You can be my friend! We can get Terra and Cyborg and go to the mall of shopping and you can pick out some new clothes!

Oh, well, then, maybe you can pick out some new suits! Robin has many suits and other types of clothing that he does not wear very much because he wears his uniform most of the time during the day because we always have to be ready to drop what we are doing with no warning at all and run into the city to fight some criminal gang or super-villain because there are many museums and banks and other sorts of financial institutions that Robin likes to call 'high value targets' because there are so many things of monetary significance in them and …

I beg your pardon? Safe? What do you mean? Is Raven safe from what?

Oh, you mean is she safe for others to be around her! I see. Well, that would depend I suppose on whom the others were. The H.I.V.E. Five were not very safe at all when they were around her. She would, as Cyborg likes to say, hand them their asses. She was very powerful, and could use her soul-self to do many, many things, and now she is ever so very much stronger than she was before she met that K'Naa person. She can …

Did Robin not tell you about K'Naa?

Well, then, I will! She is an intelligence of planetary size about thirteen thousand parsecs from here, and is very old. She used a warp field to catch Raven because she was lonely and had been trying to contact other civilizations in the galaxy for nine hundred thousand years, and she chose Raven because of her dual heritage as a human and the daughter of a demon and that meant that Raven's mind was special so that K'Naa could …

Oh, that's fine, then, if you do not need to know about that. She explained it all to us, and it was most fascinating, but if you would rather …

Why, no. Jinx is with the Titans now. She is so much more friendly than she was when she was leading the H.I.V.E. Five. But now she is no longer a villain because she is Raven's lover! Is that not exciting?

Oh, yes, I suppose I did say that already. But it really is a most wonderful thing!

No, Mr. Maddox, I am not trying to do any evading of questions. But Jinx has changed, and is not …

Because Raven says she has changed, and Raven is an empath of great power. There is no way that anyone could fool her, and she has been in Jinx's mind many, many times.

Why, yes, I would trust Raven with my life. I have done so more times than I can count.

No, I do not know all the details of why the prison employees were thought to be dead. I know they are alive now because Raven healed them and kept them from dying.

Then perhaps Jinx aided her with her own power. It is quite considerable now, I understand. She learned much from K'Naa.

Yes, certainly! You may return to ask more questions whenever you desire, and I shall be most pleased to answer them for you. Perhaps when you ask Raven your questions, she can give you the full story of K'Naa and how they all made love.

No, you see, K'Naa made an avatar that was human because she needed to be able to generate her own love energy for spiritual transforma…

Ah. Very well. Thank you, then, and I trust you will have a very pleasant day! Good bye!

####

Victor Stone's side of his interview …

Yeah, man, Rob said you wanted to ask some questions. So what's up?

Jinx? Nah, Jinx is cool.

'cause I've known her for years, man. Lotta years. Well, goin' on five. When that's a quarter of your life, it seems like a lot.

Fought her, yeah. Lots of times. Worked beside her some, too.

I was on a secret mission for the Titans. Infiltrated the H.I.V.E. school. See, they started off as a mercenary training camp, but then Brother Blood moved in and did away with Madam Rouge. Killed her, I guess. And he had other ideas for how the H.I.V.E. ought to work. Trained 'em in thievery an' murder an' terrorism. Brainwashed 'em. He was a psion. Tried to brainwash me, but my circuitry wouldn't let him. He thought he had me, but he didn't. There was one hellacious motherfucker of a big fight an' it closed down the school, but Blood got away. Last I heard he scatted off to South America somewhere.

Jinx was at the school. We got … close.

Pretty close. She's … really somethin'.

None of your god – damned – business.

Fine. Ask away.

Yeah, she's with Raven now. Very happy, by all accounts.

I'm pretty sure she's bi and always has been. Why do you need to know?

No, we didn't know anything about Raven's preferences. She never had a relationship before.

Jinx loves her and she loves Jinx. What else is there to understand?

Yeah, I've seen some of what Pinky can do, and she's told us a lot more. You know she can transform elements?

True dope, man. Straight shit alchemy. Turns gravel into diamonds, an' scrap iron into gold.

No, I don't know how much she's made. Here, I think I've got one on me somewhere … yeah, here ya go. That's a pigeon's blood ruby.

I dunno, eight, maybe ten carats. Prob'ly worth around forty grand.

Yeah, she made it to show us she could, and gave it to me.

No, I don't know how she does it. I don't know how Kori throws those starbolts of hers, or how Terra makes rocks and dirt move either.

Look, man, even when she was part of the H.I.V.E. she was good people. We looked out for each other.

A spy? You gotta be shittin' me.

Man, I don't know what you been smokin', but I bet you can get a good price for it on the street. You are seriously barkin' up the wrong tree.

Suit yourself. I told you what I know. But let me just give you a little piece of advice: don't take that line of questioning with Raven.

'cause, man, you didn't see her when she thought Jinx was being held somewhere. If you like your internal organs where they are now, don't go bad-mouthin' Jinx in front of Raven.

Yeah, not if I see you first. Prick.

####

Terra's side of her interview …

Hey. Robin said you wanted to ask me some questions about Jinx.

Huh. I don't know how much help I can be. Didn't really know her. We fought several times. She's good. Throws a mean hex.

Raven? Oh, Raven's my best friend, like, ever. You know she healed me? Grew my hand back and everything. See?

A danger to who? Us? Heck, no. You have any idea how many times she's saved our lives?

Oh, he told you about the quarry? That sucked.

Yeah, I did. Heck, I thought about killing myself a lot! Got real depressed when she disappeared, like it was all my fault and my life was Officially Over. Turns out I've got chronic disthymic depression. Have had for a long time accordin' to the docs.

You ever been depressed?

No, that's not what I mean. It's like … okay, you've been beat bloody, and you're exhausted. You're hanging onto the edge of this pit by your fingernails. It's pitch black dark, blowin' cold, and raining. You're trying to keep yourself from falling into the pit, but the sides are hard and cold and slippery, and you can't get a grip, and you're sliding down the side, and there's something really awful waiting on you at the bottom of the pit, but you can't see it … and that's your life. Every hour of every day. And it will never, ever get any better.

You're right. It is horrible. Why do you think depressed people kill themselves? When death is preferable to an existence like that …

Yeah, it's bein' treated. I take Cymbalta and Welbutrin and Abilify.

I dunno. That's what the docs prescribed, and it works. I feel great now, most of the time, and never as bad as I used to feel.

Could Jinx be a spy? That's a funny question. Heh. She'd probably get a kick out of it, the action and stuff, I mean, and getting to play tricks on the bad guys. Yeah, I think she'd make a cool spy. Why'd'ya ask, you want her to come work for you?

Oh! Aw, heck, no! She'd never work for the Reds.

No, it's not that, I just think she's too much of a free spirit. That whole closed-society-government-controlled-everything shtick just ain't her. I'm sure she'd be happy to fight 'em, if you wanted her to.

Well, you're welcome to your opinions. I think that's crazy talk, though. You need to ask her yourself. Then you'll see.

Okay. See ya.

####

Jinx's side of her interview …

Hey. What's doin'?

Yeah, sure. Fire away.

Okay. Well, that's kinda complicated.

Ha! You wanna know what truly sucks major wang? Do you? Well, I'll tell you: getting a conscience. If you didn't have one to begin with, or if the one you had was under-nourished and anemic, like mine, and then all of a sudden you get bothered by crap you did that never really bothered you before, it can totally blow your sleep patterns to hell and gone.

I'm serious.

See, here's the thing. Word got around town pretty damn quick about what went down at the prison, and best I can tell it might have gotten blown a teensy bit out of proportion.

Well, okay, there was that two-minute video piece Channel 3 did on me when I was putting the prison back together.

Oh, you saw that? That why you're here?

Heh. I'll have to admit, they made me look pretty freakin' impressive. But still.

So, anyway, some of the shit we've been discussing with the Titans – who really ain't that bad once you get to know 'em, specially Starfire, she's all hyped up to take me shopping and do my hair – set my gears to humming and dredged up all kinds of stuff that I did … you know, back when.

Yeah, villainy stuff. An' it's hell to live with, eatin' at you 24/7, always there in the background like a sore tooth. So I showed up down at the precinct station in my old stomping grounds yesterday morning, and it kinda created a stir. Couple of 'em went to draw down on me, an' some of the others got 'em to stop.

'cause they knew it wouldn't do any good, that's why. I'm kinda-sorta bullet-proof now.

Oh, I don't know about invulnerable. I'm not in Superman's league, if that's what you mean. Just … really tough. Here, feel my hand.

Yeah, I've heard that a few times. Let's just say I'm not scared of Starfire's hugs anymore.

Right, the precinct house. See, I've picked up a good bit of Rae's empathic stuff over the last few months, so I could tell they were all scared shitless. Heh, not that it would take a mind reader to know that; the smell of fear was just about overpowering.

Nah, they were cool. Eventually. I put my hands up, said, "I come in peace. Don't want trouble, just wanna talk to the Captain," and waited while they calmed down and got sorta-kinda organized. Couple minutes later I was in with Captain Butler, and we had us a little chat.

No, I wanted my rap sheet, see, because I … okay, you remember that conscience thing I told you about? Yeah, well, I knew I'd stolen a lot of stuff. Money and artsy-fartsy crap, shit like that. And I figured, you know, after what Rae told me about how my gang coulda been mercs instead of thieves, all that loot was … well … pretty pointless. So I figured I ought to pay it all back, but I couldn't remember who all I'd robbed. That's why I needed my rap sheet.

No, it went great. Sort of. I explained that to the Captain, and he looked at me like I'd grown another head. I could tell he wanted to ask me something real bad, and told him just to spit it out. So he finally asks if I'm thinking about paying reparations.

Well, yeah. That's kinda the point, you know?

Oh, sure. He wants to know where I'm gonna get the money to do that, since my gang stole, like a million dollars (not that we managed to keep much of it) and did millions more in damage that would …

Not a problem. The damage I can fix myself, if they haven't already. I looked around his office, and spotted a little jar full of sand. Turns out his grandkid made it for him. S'posed to be a picture, a landscape made from how the sand was laid in, but little kids don't know how to carry something without shaking it so the picture wasn't so much. I asked if he'd mind if I used it for a demonstration an' he said 'No' so I flicked it over to me with little touch of hex energy, an' he just about wet his pants.

Yeah, like this.

God, man, settle down. You're as bad as him.

So I told him to chill. I've gone straight, using my awesome powers for all the good and right and proper shit now, and blah-blah-blah. Don't think he really bought it. Anyhow, I opened the jar and stuck my finger into the sand and concentrated, and there was a good, big flash of pink, and about five seconds later I handed him a sapphire as big as the end of his pinky.

Ha! Yeah, you could say that. He couldn't think of anything to say right off, so I told him it was real, it was permanent, and he could probably sell it for around thirty grand. Told him I could do that whenever I wanted to, and that if my former victims would rather have gold or platinum or rhodium, that wasn't a problem either. I just needed the full list.

Got that right. It was a hell of a list. We'd been busy. I didn't remember even half of the places on the list, and I thought, oh, well. Gonna be a busy few days for Jinxy-cat this week, looks like.

Of course I'm serious about the gems. Here, lemme see your pen.

Great day, man, you're as nervous as a turkey at Thanksgiving. It's just a little flash of light. Chill. And, here, take your pen back.

Of course it's heavier. It's platinum now.

You're welcome.

Yeah, I started on the list yesterday. Knocked out eight of 'em, and five more this morning. I just dropped by here for some lunch, and Robbie said you were here and I ought to come see you.

Well … that's an interesting question. We really don't know, exactly, where we'll go. Back to visit K'Naa, for sure, and likely real soon.

Yeah, she got it right, thirteen thousand parsecs.

I guess that'd be, oh, somewhere around forty thousand light years. Nearly halfway across the galaxy.

I dunno. You talkin' about takin' the trip in a conventional ship? Ion drive and shit? I'd give it sixty, maybe seventy thousand years; long enough that your dinner would get cold. That's why all the space-faring races use FTL.

They don't let you guys out much, do they? Means 'faster than light'.

Well, excuuuuse me! You're the one what brought it up. I'm just sayin' how they do it.

We teleported. Used a warp field.

Yes, like the starships use. Only we can make it up in our heads, so to speak. K'Naa showed us how.

She's a really old being that is the only life form on her planet. Got a mind like you wouldn't believe, gotta be a hundred billion times as complex as ours. She covers the day-side of the planet.

Dangerous? K'Naa? Heh. Only to ignorance.

Yeah, we do want to go back. The only reason we returned to Earth was to tell everybody about her. Truth to tell, I'm a lot more comfortable on K'Naa than I am on Earth right now.

Well for one thing we didn't have to wear any clothes. Didn't have any to wear.

Yeah, you like my ensemble? It's hex energy, solidified.

'cause it fits, and it don't chafe like spandex.

Okay, let me cut to the chase. I'm not working for any foreign governments. I don't have any reason to. They don't have anything I need, and I don't feel like putting my friends – or the rest of my country – in danger. In fact, if it came down to it, I'd stop any other nation that tried to kick our shit.

Yeah, I could. Just trust me on this.

Hey, you want her side of the story, ask Raven. I'm not her mouthpiece.

Great. Well, I gotta go. Freedom Bank down on Franklin Street is next on my list, and I understand they've had problems with a leaky roof ever since we tried to rob 'em last year.

Yeah, you tell her that. Toodles.

####

somewhat later …

Raven frowned at the Titans' leader. "Who is this guy again?"

"He's an agent with the NSA. He's here to find out if you and Jinx are 'safe' to have around."

"… Safe."

"Don't shoot the messenger. I told him he was full of crap, but I guess he's got a job to do, and he's a conscientious little bureaucrat. He wants to ask you some questions."

"And he's already interviewed the others?"

"Yep. I think Jinx scared him, but she wasn't trying to. He's just … he seems nervous around metas."

"Then they should have sent someone else."

"Maybe they didn't have anyone else."

She mulled it over and shrugged. "Yeah, okay. But you come, too."

"You need me there? What for?"

"To warn him off of topics that will get him killed, and to calm me down if he won't be warned off."

"Right. Good idea."

They were shortly seated in the conference room. Raven felt around the edges of Mr. Maddox's mind and determined that, sure enough, he was exceedingly nervous in her presence. She stared at him calmly for several long moments while he fidgeted, and finally said, "You requested the interview, Mr. Maddox. I am here. Ask your questions."

"Thank you, ah, Raven. We are, ah, primarily interested in your, ah, intentions as pertains to national security."

"I have no interest in that."

"You don't care if your country is threatened by a hostile neighbor?"

"There are vastly larger concerns that occupy my attention at present, Mr. Maddox. The petty squabbling of self-important political creatures is of complete disinterest to me."

"So if a foreign national approached you and offered you something of value for your services, you wouldn't be interested? At all?"

"Something of value? Such as?"

"I don't know. What is of value to you, personally?"

She cracked a smile for the first time in the interview. She did have an image to maintain after all. "I value the friendship of the Titans. I value my relationship with Jinx. I value K'Naa and all she has to offer humanity. Apart from that … my needs are minimal."

"Are you saying you have no need for money? For power?"

"Power? What do you know of power?"

Robin spoke up, "Mr. Maddox, I think she's been completely honest with you. Maybe we should consider the interview over."

A gentle hand on his arm pulled Robin's attention around to the empath. She gave her head one small shake and said, "We need to clear the air on this issue."

"That's up to you. If you're cool with it, so am I."

Turning her attention back to Agent Maddox, she said, "Jinx demonstrated her mastery over the elements, did she not?"

"… She … turned my pen into platinum."

"Indeed. She was the one who came up with that transformation magic. She taught it to me, but it seems my abilities lie in another direction."

He blinked at her in confusion.

"Let me demonstrate." And suddenly the three of them, along with the conference table and the chairs they sat in, were on the beach in front of the Tower. Agent Maddox jerked violently. Raven said, "My apologies. I should have mentioned we'd be teleporting." He stared at her in fear.

She used a couple of tendrils of soul-self to scoop up a quantity of sand and deposit it on the table. Then she concentrated on the pile, covering it in a misty layer of black. About ten seconds later, the mist vanished, and sitting before them was a perfectly roasted duck, a bowl of poached pears, a crisp salad, some hot buns, and a plate of steamed vegetables; a carafe of wine stood in the center. She looked the NSA man in the eye and asked, "Hungry?"

He stared at the food, then at her, then he swallowed and said, "Not really."

"That's a pity. This is all quite good."

"You know, Raven," remarked Robin, "I never had any lunch myself."

"Help yourself." And the two of them dished up portions of the excellent meal for themselves.

Mr. Maddox, after a minute or so, took one of the buns and munched it. His eyes widened, and the bread quickly disappeared.

Between bites, Raven told him, "You see, Mr. Maddox, when I told you that my needs were minimal, I meant it. Power? What sort of power could anyone offer me that would top what I have now? Money? You've seen what Jinx can do. What do we need with money when she can mint any sort of element or compound to order? We don't need anything else that we don't already have."

He digested that. Then he asked, "All right, given that I accept all this on its face, what do you want?"

"Is that really the government's business?"

"Miss, ah, Raven, please understand. Any ruling body, whether it be a hereditary king or a democratically-elected conglomerate like we have, carries a bit of paranoia inside. Governments are temporary. We all know that. The NSA likes the nation the way it is, and wants to keep it that way as long as we can. Surely you can appreciate that."

"Certainly." She leaned back in her chair, holding her plate while she negotiated a pear into sections. "And I have no issue with telling you. I just want you to know that I'm doing it because I want to … because I think it's polite."

"Granted."

"Jinx is currently busy rectifying certain details of her checkered past. As soon as she is finished, we will be preparing to return to K'Naa. I anticipate that we will depart in eight to ten days."

Robin sat forward, his mouth open. "You never said anything about that!"

"Jinx and I talked it over last night."

"But why? You've been gone for six months!"

"Because of Gar."

"… Oh." He seemed to slump in on himself a bit. "Oh. I get it."

Mr. Maddox asked (timidly), "Gar? Who is that?"

"Garfield Logan. Beast Boy. One of the Titans."

His eyes narrowed in thought for a moment, then widened when the memory caught up to him. "He's the one who went insane!"

"Yes."

"But … how is he connected?"

"We tried, the same day we woke up, to cure his insanity. Key word there is 'tried'. We failed. Badly."

"… I still don't understand."

"We will be taking him with us when we return to K'Naa."

"Oh. … Really?" The news didn't do anything for his comprehension. "What for?"

"We can't seem to fix his mind. But we both feel that K'Naa may have a good chance of doing just that. So he's coming along."

"Ah. Well, then, I think our business here is concluded."

The waves of relief coming off him pulled a smile across Raven's face. She said, "That works for me." Then she and Robin vanished.

Agent Maddox looked around for a few seconds and then huffed in frustration. Then his briefcase appeared on the table in front of him. He opened it, checked the contents, and rose to walk back to his car. But then he stopped, looked at the table, and pulled off a drumstick from the duck. As soon as he did, the table and chairs also vanished. He hurried back to the parking area, gnawing on the duck.