Part 3:

The first thing Hot Spot noticed was the sound of water. Lapping. Then the bright light, sending needles shooting through his eyes before he looked away. But then his eyes adjusted. Jinx was beside him, shielding the harsh light with her hand as they took in their new surroundings.

The lapping sound was coming from waves. They were at the beach. Sand stretched out before them, bordered by palm trees swaying in the wind. Ocean waves gently crashed on the shore. No buildings or beach toys or people...except for two dots in the distance...

"Kid!"

Jinx started running, but before she could even take three steps, a stream of sand and wind billowed towards them, and Jinx was scooped up into Kid Flash's arms. "I thought—I thought—" stuttered Jinx.

"So did I," finished Kid Flash, pecking every inch of her face...and then more than pecking…

Hot Spot looked away, trying to hide the burning in his cheeks. He couldn't blame their reunion after what happened...but still—right here?

Argent was striding towards him, a smile on her face as she took in the couple. "Even if we all are just figments of our imaginations, you don't know how happy I am to see you two."

"Same to you," Hot Spot said, but then jerked back when Argent suddenly threw her arms around him.

"Gaaah, I was worried about you two," she said, nuzzling just slightly, like Nikki would. "What Kid Flash and I saw—ugh."

Hot Spot stiffened, but then slowly relaxed, returning the hug. "Yeah, we made it out alright."

"Good." Argent pulled back. She was smiling, but her pale complexion couldn't hide the puffiness around her eyes. "So do you know that we're in a—"

"Dream world? Yeah. Jinx could detect the magic."

Argent nodded, taking it in. "Magic, huh? Well, glad I'm not the only one going crazy 'round here. Kid Flash thought something similar, but we weren't sure."

"But it still doesn't explain how we get out of here."

"Or how the person who'd set this up knows so much about us."

But just then, something changed. A tangible shift in air or gravity, like they were suddenly in a vacuum. Everyone else noticed it, too; Kid Flash and Jinx had broken their embrace, suddenly alert, while Argent looked around.

The ground trembled, and the palm trees shook from an imperceptible force. Silence...and then—a deafening roar.

A shadow fell over them as they turned and saw an enormous ocean wave.

TSUNAMI!

Deep-down, Hot Spot knew as soon as he saw it that this was an unwinnable fight. But that didn't stop the Titans from trying. They sprung to action; Kid Flash running with Jinx on his back and Argent shooting into the air. Hot Spot joined her, flying above the wave that was steadily pushing forward. Powering up as hot as possible, he shot at the tops of the waves, hoping to burn off what he could, while Argent constructed a barrier over Kid Flash and Jinx.

But the wave kept swelling, and the winds beat, ripping the trees from the sand. He could've sworn he could make out gaping, dark maws from the shadowy waves. The water sizzled, but the air was heavy with moisture, and it felt harder and harder to keep up the heat. His flames steamed some of the water, but it was too big, as big as a skyscraper.

They couldn't face this force of nature.

"RUN!" he shouted, but his cry was sucked up by the deafening sound reverberating in his eardrums.

But Argent understood the cue, flying away. Down below, Kid Flash was fleeing with Jinx. But he wasn't a blur like usual—his body was visible. The sand. It was too wet and sopping; the speedster's feet were getting sucked into the earth.

He watched the speedster trip, and Jinx tumbled to the ground. The sand quickly sucked them in. Argent flew towards Kid Flash, while Hot Spot zipped to Jinx. "Go, go!" shaped Jinx's mouth, soundless in the storm.

Don't be an idiot, thought Hot Spot, but saved his energy for pulling her out. But the sad had sunk too deep, the deafening sound growing louder. They couldn't escape. Hot Spot threw his body over Jinx's, shielding her, as Argent threw a barrier over all of them.

But he knew. None of their measly, human attempts could thwart off a Tempest.

T*T*T*T*T

Hot Spot startled awake. He jolted up, throwing off his covers.

His breathing was erratic, his heart thudding so loud, like the tsun—

His friends!

He jumped out of bed—and that's when he noticed he was soaking wet. But there wasn't a beach, nor waves; how'd—

But then he looked up. The sprinklers he'd installed over his bed were still dripping. His entire bed was soaked, and his blankets—the edges were singed. He must've powered up during his sleep.

THUD THUD THUD THUD!

Hot Spot balled his fists, trying to power up, but the water—

"Isaiah!"

Before the door could fully slide open, Argent had squeezed her way in, gasping when she saw him. She tackled him, throwing her arms around his neck. He immediately hugged her back. Warmth. He could feel her body heat, smell the tropical-scented shampoo of her hair.

This wasn't a dream. This was real.

He didn't realize how many details he'd missed in the dream until now.

"I'm fine," he muttered into her hair, his arms still holding her tight. "I'm fine."

"That was—I was so scared."

So was I. "It's okay. We're both here."

Argent nodded. Too soon, she stepped back, sucking in a deep breath. Her eyes were even puffier than in the dream, but she was surprised when she looked at him.

"Isaiah…"

"What?"

She gently reached out to his face, her expression contorted. That's when he noticed a stickiness. When she pulled back her hand, her fingers were covered in spider webs.

Hot Spot recoiled. "That was on my face?!" He quickly rubbed his face on his sleeve.

Argent nodded. "It was on mine, too."

She fisted her hand, her expression resolute. Not just that—fierce. He could see the anger shimmering underneath her determination. "I'll keep it for evidence. Come on. We need to check on the others."

They had barely opened the door when a blur charged towards them. "Hot Head!" Hot Spot was almost knocked back again when one gangly arm came over him and the other over Argent. "Everyone's safe." The relief was palpable in the speedster's voice.

"Except…" Kid Flash pulled back, looking at Hot Spot with a raised eyebrow. "Why're you dripping wet?"

Argent managed a choked-up laugh. "I was going to ask that, too."

Hot Spot flushed. He hoped his skin was dark enough to hide it. "I must've powered up in my sleep. The sprinklers went off."

He glanced at Jinx, who was standing just a little ways off. "You okay?"

Jinx met his eyes. "Yeah. You?"

"Could be better."

Jinx cracked a smirk. But his eyes caught on her hands. The inside of her wrist was red; inflamed, as if it was scratched. Jinx noticed him looking, and pulled down her sleeves.

Hot Spot held her gaze for a moment. "I'm glad you're okay."

Jinx nodded, looking away, but before she could say anything, Argent had thrown herself at her. "Ugh, you're safe! Never, ever turn into a creepy monster, okay?"

Jinx lifted an eyebrow, but allowed herself to be squeezed by the other girl. "I'll try my best."

Hot Spot looked back at his teammates. "We're all okay. But we need to figure out what happened."

Kid Flash nodded. "Argent and I will sweep the base. You and Jinx check the security feeds, okay?"

"Agreed. Titans, go."

Part 4:

Epilogue:

The security feeds turned up nothing. Hours later, and the trail—if there ever was one—was as cold as a crypt.

They each stated they had the same type of spider web on their face when they woke up, but no matter how many times they swept the Tower, they could find no spider besides the usual household ones. They also confirmed each other's nightmares. They remembered the same events and each other from the dreams, with astounding accuracy that there could be no mistake: they'd all been in the same nightmare.

But the only signs that anything happened at all were the spider webs over their faces, their shared horror over what happened, and their reactions while they were asleep (Hot Spot wasn't the only one who had reacted in his sleep; Argent had bruises from kicking herself; Kid Flash's sheets were worn through from running in his bed; and while Jinx wouldn't say how she reacted, Hot Spot remembered those scratches on her wrists).

That night, and for more than any of them would've been willing to admit, they slept communenly in the Main Ops room, transforming their huge couch into a makeshift bed, supplemented with a pillowfort in front of it. They each took shifts keeping watch at night, and Jinx taught them what she could about how to safeguard their dreams with magic and charms. Some happiness came from all of it: Argent made deluxe hot chocolate for everyone, Kid Flash put on cute animal documentaries that everyone watched (even Hot Spot), and Jinx made them all dreamcatchers (which Hot Spot was skeptical about, but he wasn't in any position to talk, either). Hot Spot called his little sister and Argent her parents, just to hear their voices.

But even during the better moments, they still had no answers to what had caused their horrifying nightmares. Despite the guard duty and the company, the unspoken apprehension lingered among them of never having a truly safe night's sleep again.

See my "Tales of the Titans: A Collection" series for a deleted scene from this episode! :D Thanks for sticking with me through this long chapter, haha!