A few days later
Garfield sat on his bed thinking about what he should do. Yesterday was the day that rent was due, and the Logan family was quite simply unable to pay up. Garfield wasn't quite sure what he was expecting, yet there were many things that had changed that night over forty years ago.
It was fortunate that Cyborg lived in a 'Three strikes and you're out' ideology, which was significantly better than his predecessor, Cheetah. However, Garfield was worried about what the punishment for 'strike 1' would be. Perhaps they would cut off the water and power? No. Steal the most valuable object in the house? Possibly. Or maybe just the old fashion beat up to 'send a message'. Garfield sighed. 'Whatever shit that Vic's kids or grandkids throws at me. I hope that I will be ready'
He walked out of his room and out into the porch, as if expecting to see the Cyborg gang waiting on the porch like one of those door to door religious people, and yet he saw nothing. Just the views of the mountains, forest, river and farm. He looked to his left and saw James holding a rifle. Garfield looked at the rifle in utter disgust and disapproval.
James looked up to see his father "Morning Pa. Waiting for the Cyborg gang" he said in a matter – of – fact tone.
"Put the gun away boy" Garfield said, sounding like a military general and an 'old wise mentor' and the same time. Gar wanted to establish his authority, yet he wanted to tell his son that having a gun out when the Cyborg gang is coming to beat someone up would not end particularly well.
"It's okay Pa." James said, adjusting his overalls. "Nobody will see it. I will just keep it close in case those goons give us trouble"
Garfield scowled, at his son looking at him with a 'Do as I say' look. "and the only way that that will happen is if they see the gun!" He said furiously. "Now put it away right now, or else they will vaporise us all!"
James stood up so quickly and violently that his overalls looked as if they threatened to rip "I was trying to help for ****s sake!" he said in an angry voice "I just want to do something about it!"
"Watch your language boy!" Garfield said almost reaching his boiling point "You stop that cursing you hear me!? And boy you are too young! If you do 'do something about it' your goanna get yourself killed!"
"…Fine!" James said throwing the gun over his shoulder "anyway we ain't got any bullets!"
"I know" Garfield said "and do be careful on how you move about in those overalls. Clothes ain't cheap, and I am not sure if you want to take up nudism"
"Whatever." James said.
"Gar?" A voice cried. Garfield looked out to see Lina out on the front lawn looking up at the sky. "The Cyborg gang is here"
A dark shadow appeared from the sky and a large flying car that looked to be from the Doom Patrol appeared. Gar looked at the car in dismay, as he saw that it had been vandalised heavily with crude slogans. Dust came flying around their landing site as three figures came stepping out of the vehicle. There was a large thin man that looked like if Cyborg and Raven, had a baby, which wasn't possible as nobody has heard from Raven for a very long time. The man had dark clothes, a large leather belt and he had large black metal arms and legs with goodness knows how many weapons on them. The worst part of him was the face. He had a mouth with lips that looked like a balloon that was about to burst, razer sharp teeth that were all made of an ugly metal, a nose that would have made Penguin's nose look like an atom, his left eye was the size of a dinner plate that was obviously fake with all the whirring sounds it made like a fly, while his right eye was the size of a pea. Worst of all he had no ears, where, in its place were two stubs which looked like it was made recently, but the attachments that can be seen, if you were to look at a certain angle told another story.
Next to him was a large man who had muscles the size of basketballs, he would have looked attractive, appearing in sports magazines, had it not been for the entire metal body that made up most of his chest and legs that looked extremely ugly looking, he was wearing nothing but a vest and jeans that looked like they could have used all the material in the world to produce.
Next to this man was a woman. She would have been pretty with her perfect eyes, hair, nose and teeth had it not been for her extremely distorted looks that wasn't helped by her cyborg anatomy. She had a head that was both too small and too large at the same time and it wasn't helped by a large metal dome that made up half of her skull. Her arms were too long, the flesh side being at a reasonable length, but her cyborg part made her look like she can extend her arm across the entire planet, and her hands were too big for her body. Her legs were the same story, with her feet being too small even for a baby, but Garfield knew that one kick from her can tear through metal. While she may not look the strongest, she does look the smartest and in command.
"Stone" Garfield said as if greeting someone he heavily dislikes, but doesn't want to be rude to.
"Zeast Zoy" The woman said. She sounded as if her tongue was stuck to her teeth, which made what ever she said sound incredibly distorted.
"Garfield's fine" Garfield said in a voice of loathing respect.
"Oh, excuse me. We keep forgetting that you don't like people calling you by your old name anymore." The woman said in mock sympathy. "Oh wait, that's right. Beast Boy died the nigh the Bad guys beat your asses. How forgetful of me."
The two men surrounded Garfield like body guards, however Garfield knew all too well that they have no intention in protecting him from anything. "well now we will cut to the chase here Garfield. Because we know that you ain't got this mouths rent, which is why me brothers are here today, too. You me Otis and Charlie?"
"Once or twice" Garfield said looking at the two menacing cyborgs with complete indifference.
"Well. You being such a Bad – ass all those years ago, they were worried that this might turn nasty. Of course, I tried to explain that you were a pacifist now. But you know what brothers are like."
"Are you ready to take your punishment, Runt? Or do we got to platen your crappy little farm?" The giant Cyborg said sounding like an extremely inbred hillbilly, which in a fact, he is.
The goth cyborg shouted into Garfield's ear. "Are you deaf old man!? Are yeah ready to take your beating?"
Garfield said nothing. No words came out of his mouth. He stood as still as a statue. His face giving nothing away.
The giant cyborg stood int front of Garfield, placing a giant finger the size of a water pipe on his chest "The punk tryin' ta piss us off?"
Garfield scowled. In his minds eye he saw himself turn into a giant sabretooth tiger, disembowelling the two men in a matter of seconds. He can practically see the blood and guts flying and how they landed in the ground, imagining the screams of Linda and the kids, imagining how the two cyborgs screamed as he ripped apart the metal, he imagined all the sparks and him dodging whatever weapon they fire at him as he pounces for the kill.
Garfield pulled himself back into reality and muttered in a soft tone. "Yes sir. I'm ready ta take my beating."
"Good!" the giant cyborg cried and before Garfield had time to even blink he saw the hand of one of the cyborgs turn into a giant hammer as it came crashing down on his face. Blood came flying everywhere. He can feel every bone in his body crack and shatter.
More pain and blood came. The cyborg gang seemed determined to annihilate his entire body to see how far they can beat down the shapeshifter without killing him. As this happened the woman spoke.
"Oh Beast Boy. How the hell did they mess yea up so bad when you wouldn't even defend yourself?"
As the beating continued the goth Cyborg cried "C'mon, Punk! Yea used to be one of the Titans! One of the most dangerous people alive! And we're just a bunch of Hillbillies!"
The beating went on for a couple more moments. Garfield was used to the pain. Then right when he thought that they were going to spend the night, they stopped.
"Double next month. Or else everybody dies!"
And with that they climbed into the flying car and vanished in a matter of seconds.
Linda came running fast towards the bloody pulp that used to be her husband. He was grevisouly wounded and yet it looked like he was slowly healing, and yet at the same time, de ageing? Parts of him looked like if he was aging down to around 13, while the other parts that were left mildly untouched by the beating remained looking old.
Sure, she knew that Garfield's powers extended beyond shapeshifting, but this was something else. That didn't matter, she and James examined the body and helped carry it towards the house.
Meanwhile, Garfield was in his own mind, trying not to think of anything. Trying not to think of the pain weather physical or mental. All he can see was a glowing green phoenix, with emerald green fire flying around him. He can smell the mystical, hypnotising smell of the phoenix flames, feeling it healing him, feeling its smoothing voice like a mother comforting her child. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by an inky blackness, as he fell into the abyss of sleep.