The Living Terror
By Johannes "Damaramu" Cats
Before we begin, the Teen Titans are copyright to DC Comics/Marv Wolfman/Peter David and the Death Knight, Dreadlord, Lich, Crypt Lord, Dark Ranger and Pit Lord are all copyright to Blizzard Entertainment.
Chapter 3: Full Circle
One week has passed since Balnazzar's attack on the Titans. The Titans got back on with their lives as if nothing happened. But at the prison, the five undead warriors did not get the thought of fighting the Titans out of their minds. As the days passed, the undead warriors plotted their next move.
"We are going to attack the Titans head on. But, isn't there going to be strategy involved?" A confused Iceblade mentioned.
"One must never fight a war without the proper plan. We must teach the Titans the element of the battlefield" said the man with the trenchcoat.
"Do we just grab their attention or something? All we've been doing is just waiting for the moment to strike. And hiding in the shadows is never easy...unless you're Balnazzar" grunted Darkscythe.
"Pity. I guess I'll do it the old fashioned way" the man with the trenchcoat then contacted the Titans right from the prison.
At Titans Tower, Raven was mediating in the living room; hoping for no interruptions.
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos...Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos...Azarath, Metrion, Zintho—"Raven was startled; suddenly, the communications screen powered on and a shadowy figure was shown with four other shadowy figures behind him.
"Greetings, Titan-- ... Greetings, Raven. Per chance, could you bring the rest of the Titans in here?" spoke the man with the trenchcoat.
Raven contacted all the Titans, and in a heartbeat they all entered the living room.
"Who are you?" questioned Robin.
"There are some who call me The Veteran. And I have come with a request" as The Veteran spoke these words, the darkness of the room he was speaking in faded as the five undead warriors were revealed.
The Titans gasped as they gazed upon the enemies they once faced in the past.
"You guys are a team?!" Cyborg asked, in a loud, concerned tone.
"We are The Living Terror! And we demand all of you face us at the Pier 41 Shipyard! If you do not comply within 2 hours, we will cause mass havoc to the inhabitants of the city. Good day" as The Veteran finished his demand, the communications line closed. And the Titans were debating what they should do.
"Should we just go and face them?" Robin questioned.
"If memory serves, Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy could not defeat the members of The Living Terror known as Lord Darkscythe, Venim Iceblade and Typhis- Ahn" said a very curious Starfire.
"And all five of us could not take down that flying vampire dude. So, what chance do we have against all four of them including some guy that WE don't know how to predict!" yelled Beast Boy.
"Well, you guys didn't call for help when you fought the trio. And some of us were too scared to even fight Balnazzar. But, if we focus, we can take out this so-called "Living Terror"" boasted Robin.
"What about The Veteran?" Raven questioned.
"He's the only one that seems human out of all those undead beings. Well, we'll find out what to expect once we face them. Titans, GO!" as Robin finished his sentence, the other Teen Titans were very hesitant to leave.
"Look, Robin...I-I don't think we're ready yet" Cyborg mentioned, in a very worried tone.
"We've fought Slade and took him down when all of us were on the brink of destruction. We have overcome impossible odds. And we have all done it without fear. Now, it's either us fighting them or the city becoming destroyed. Titans....GO!" yelled Robin. The Titans were motivated by Robin's words, and followed him out of the Tower.
At the Pier 41 Shipyard, The Living Terror proceeded to wait for their foes.
"It's almost been an hour and a half, Veteran. Even the great Kel'Thuzad would get impatient after one hour" Iceblade complained.
"Have patience, Venim. They'll come soon enough. If you're so bored, freeze that repair crew" The Veteran said, with a slightly annoyed tone.
Venim Iceblade smirked(if a skeleton can actually smile/frown/smirk/any facial expression) and readied an ice blast. Before he could throw it, Cyborg's sonic cannon destroyed the blast.
"Speak of the devil!" Iceblade yelled.
"Living Terror! We have come as you requested! Now you can either go quietly or we can do this the hard way!" gloated Robin.
"I think you know the answer to this, Robin" as The Veteran finished his sentence, the Terror leaped off of the crow's nest and engaged each Titan; Beast Boy with Lord Darkscythe, Raven with Balnazzar, Starfire with Venim Iceblade, Cyborg with Typhis-Ahn and Robin with The Veteran.
Starfire and Iceblade's battle was mostly range. Starbolts and blasts of ice were flying every which way, and beams were colliding, neither fighter getting the advantage. Starfire proceeded to fly into the air to get the advantage of aerial attacks. Starfire fired starbolt after starbolt at Iceblade, not showing signs of stopping.
Iceblade tried his best to counter the barrage of starbolts by freezing most of them, but it was not enough. Some starbolts struck him, thus causing him to flee. Iceblade was being pelted with starbolts, as Starfire would not let up. Iceblade hid behind a stack of crates as he was thinking of a strategy.
"Remember the battlefield!" Iceblade heard The Veteran speak this through the telepathic link in his mind. Iceblade smirked, and came out of hiding.
Starfire threw forth a starbolt beam, but Iceblade countered it with an ice beam. As the two powers collided, Iceblade dispelled his grip on his beam and quickly dodged Starfire's beam. Iceblade then formed an ice pillar beneath himself as he rose to Star's level. Iceblade then made a very large ice bridge that extended from his pillar all the way to Star.
Iceblade charged at Star with both arms extended. Star stood on the ice bridge and prepared to fight Iceblade in hand-to-hand combat.
Iceblade threw forth punches (since he has no legs), and backhand strikes. Star blocked each attack attempt and used a strong upward kick, which nailed Iceblade in the chin. Iceblade stumbled back a bit, and extended both his arms. Two ice formations appeared in Iceblade's hands, and they quickly morphed into two scythes. Iceblade got into a stance, and awaited Star's next move.
Starfire charged forth, and attempted to spin-kick Iceblade. Iceblade ducked out of the way, and slashed at Star's arm with his scythe. The scythe struck Star's right arm and it began to bleed. Before she acts again, her arm became very cold on the inside, and she held it in pain.
Taking his opportunity, Iceblade struck Star with the back-end of one of his scythes. Star got hit, and plummeted into the water. Iceblade shattered his scythes and fired a big blast of ice toward the water. Once the blast hit, the portion of the sea Starfire was in froze solid. Iceblade folded his arms and said "Pitiful". Iceblade then leaped off of his ice bridge to find anyone who needed help.
Balnazzar attempted to strike at Raven with his claws, but Raven blocked each attack attempt with small shields of her magic. Raven then struck at Balnazzar with a slash of dark magic. Balnazzar's armor got pierced and he stumbled back a bit. Raven took control of a nearby ship anchor, and slammed Balnazzar in the face with it. Balnazzar flew back and fell off the pier.
Raven looked into the water to attempt to find Balnazzar. Once Raven looked in a different direction, Balnazzar skyrocketed out of the water. Raven became startled, thus losing her concentration and got struck in the chin with a huge uppercut Balnazzar used. After Raven flipped in the air a bit, she landed on her feet and took control of a nearby giant crate. She lifted the crate and threw it at Balnazzar. Balnazzar struck the crate with his claws, and the crate shattered instantly.
Balnazzar, with his own knowledge of dark magic (different from Raven's), fired forth a blast of dark energy towards Raven. Raven formed a shield, but the blast shattered it, and collided into Raven. Raven flew back and slammed into the side of a ship, before falling face first into the pier. Balnazzar approached Raven with a little bit of caution. As he prepared to lift her, Raven struck Balnazzar in the face with a slash of her dark magic. Balnazzar stumbled back and held his face in pain.
Raven then took control of many large crates, and threw them all at Balnazzar. Each crate hit Balnazzar, since the pain distracted him. As Balnazzar struggled to get up, Raven took control of him with her telekinesis abilities. Before Raven could do anything, Balnazzar dispelled her grip and flew at her. Balnazzar collided into Raven and flew up onto the deck of a ship. Once he landed on the deck, he threw Raven off of his shoulder. Raven rolled on the ground a bit before getting back up and confronting Balnazzar.
Balnazzar pulled his arms back and charged the palms of his hands with demonic electricity. He then threw a very large wave of the electricity at Raven. Raven tried to fly out of its range, but became caught in its wave. Raven hit the ground shortly after becoming electrocuted. Balnazzar approached Raven, this time with no caution. He then grabbed the back of her neck and lifted her slightly. Balnazzar then threw Raven into the ship's sail. Raven collided into the sail, and as result, the sail ripped. Raven hit the deck, and she became tangled in the sail, struggling to find a way out. Balnazzar approached Raven and struck her with a strong punch to her head. Raven flew back a bit before hitting the stairs that lead to the upper deck. After rolling down the stairs, she did not move.
Balnazzar removed the sail that covered Raven. As he gazed at Raven, she appeared to be knocked unconscious. Balnazzar smirked and flew off of the ship.
Typhis and Cyborg exchanged a few bouts, neither getting the advantage. Cyborg struck at Typhis' lower half, but still nothing resulted. Typhis struck Cyborg with the back of his arm, which sent Cyborg tumbling around the pier. Before Cyborg could make another move, Typhis tackled Cyborg and pinned him down. Typhis extended the spikes on his arms and attempted to slash Cyborg with them. Cyborg grabbed each arm before they could hit him. Typhis then used his great strength to weaken Cyborg's grip by pushing his arms downwards. Cyborg then used his only alternative: he kicked Typhis off of him. Typhis then ran to the side of a ship and waiting for Cyborg's next move.
Cyborg then readied his sonic cannon and fired at Typhis. Typhis quickly move out of the way as the sonic cannon hit the side of the ship. The sonic cannon's impact caused a large part of the ship's hull to break off. Typhis grabbed the large part of the ship's hull, and threw it towards Cyborg. Cyborg, scrambling to think of an idea, got slammed by the large piece of the ship's hull and flew across the pier. Cyborg slammed onto the pier, with the large piece of the hull on top of him.
Typhis approached Cyborg. Cyborg still struggled greatly to get the piece of the ship's hull off of him. But, there was not enough time to prevent Typhis' next move. At that moment, Typhis slammed the pier with his claws; thus causing the part of the pier that Cyborg and the hull was on to shatter. Cyborg fell into the water; the piece of the hull making him sink even deeper into the murky depths. "Ha-ha-ha! The battlefield proves to be the true victor here!" gloated Typhis. Typhis then ran to aid any teammates.
Beast Boy proved to give Darkscythe a hard time. Before Darkscythe could attack him with his blade, Beast Boy would morph into a different animal and counter Darkscythe.
Darkscythe sheathed his blade and faced BB in hand-to-hand combat. As Darkscythe tried a dual kick combination, BB morphed into an anaconda and wrapped himself around Darkscythe's body area.
As BB constricted even tighter, Darkscythe's armor began to crack. Having trouble breathing, Darkscythe pulled his arms free and clutched BB's snake body. BB had no choice but to let go, as Darkscythe's grip burned BB's scales like acid. BB reverted to human form and tried to cool off his back by rubbing it repeatedly.
Darkscythe grabbed BB by the neck and threw him across the pier, since BB was too busy cooling himself off. As BB slammed and tumbled across the pier, he crashed into a pile of boxes. Thinking quickly, BB piled the boxes onto himself and waited for Darkscythe to approach.
Darkscythe unsheathed his blade and charged at the pile of the boxes. As he got close, BB morphed into a triceratops and scattered the boxes everywhere. Darkscythe was very surprised at what just happened, and dropped his blade. Darkscythe rushed to get his blade, unaware that the triceratops BB was charging him.
Darkscythe picked his blade up, but by then, BB was too close. BB gored Darkscythe with his horns, and flung him into the air. Darkscythe flipped through the air many time before crashing into the side of a ship. His impact was so great it caused a large dent in the ship's hull. Darkscythe then fell twenty feet before falling face first into the pier. He struggled to get up and managed to get onto one knee. As Darkscythe breathed heavily, BB charged him again.
Darkscythe saw the raging triceratops and as BB got close, he grabbed the two top horns and struggled to halt BB's advance. Darkscythe looked behind him to see the side of a ship. He smirked and threw BB into the side of the ship head first. BB's horns went right through the ship's hull and he became stuck. BB greatly struggled to break free, and was hoping Darkscythe didn't have a trick up his sleeve.
Darkscythe pulled his sword out and it began to burn with a strong death element. BB pulled himself free and turned around. Darkscythe swung his blade around his head and yelled "Death Coil!!!" before slashing his sword downwards. After this action, the death element blazing in Darkscythe's sword formed itself into a flaming skull and launched itself at BB. The coil of death collided into BB, and as a result, he reverted to human form. Shortly after the coil of death his BB, he fell onto his knees, feeling extremely weak.
Darkscythe approached the weakened BB and smashed the hilt of his sword onto the top of BB's head. Afterwards, BB fell onto the ground, unconscious. Darkscythe laughed evilly at the downed BB and fled to other teammates.
The Veteran and Robin did not engage each other yet. Instead, they paced their fighting ground and stared each other down.
"Why are you doing this?" questioned Robin.
"Why would I not? You Titans needed more competition, and that is why myself and my undead allies have come" spoke The Veteran
"You're here for "competition"? But other villains do give us a good fight here and there" said Robin in a hopeful tone.
"But it's not enough to make it the best fight you've ever had. Control Freak, The Hive, Trident, Mumbo, Warp and even the mighty Trigon have not been enough to stop you! Someway, somehow...they all are taken down" said a very serious Veteran.
"You have it wrong. People like Slade give us great amounts of competition!" shouted Robin.
"Silence! I have heard all I need. Now prepare yourself!" as The Veteran finished his sentence, he unsheathed his sword: a five and a half foot beast with a scythe-like curve at the end of it. The sword had a skull medallion at the edge of the hilt. Robin pulled out his extending staff and used a little "bring it" taunt to anger The Veteran.
The Veteran ran towards Robin and slashed his sword at Robin's staff. The sword crashed into the staff and the both warriors started a deadlock. Robin used all his strength to push The Veteran back, but it was to no avail, The Veteran pushed Robin back. As Robin stumbled around a bit, The Veteran quickly grabbed Robin by the scruff of his uniform and lifted him up. Afterwards, The Veteran slightly tossed Robin in the air, and in a spilt second, The Veteran leaped into the air, twisted around, and slashed Robin with his blade. Robin flew threw the air before crashing into a nearby crate. Robin shook his head, and got back up. About 15 feet away was The Veteran, just standing in one place...waiting for Robin's next move.
Robin charged at The Veteran and attempted a punch. The Veteran saw this coming, and dodged the attack. Robin turned around and used a backhand strike. The Veteran quickly dodged this attack as well. Robin was getting angry, and repeatedly tried to punch The Veteran. The Veteran moved away from each punch that Robin threw at him. Robin then tried a leaping, spinning kick, but The Veteran grabbed his leg. Robin tried to break free, but could not. The Veteran looked behind him to see a fishing boat. At that moment, The Veteran swung Robin down like a rag-doll onto the fishing ship below. Robin slammed into the fishing boat and went right through it. The Veteran formed a smug smirk on his face, and waited for Robin to arise from the depths of the water.
As Robin arose from the water...but, The Veteran quickly leaped in after him. Robin gasped, and tried to swim away. But, The Veteran quickly landed on top of Robin and the two submerged into the murky depths. The two warriors were exchanging bouts inside the water. Robin punched The Veteran a few times, thus causing The Veteran to flip away from him. The Veteran then swam towards Robin and kicked him in the side. Afterwards, The Veteran punched Robin in the chest. Despite the pressure of the water, The Veteran was able to fight like he could on the surface. After The Veteran punched Robin in the chest, he punched Robin in the side of his face a few times before using an uppercut that sent Robin flying out of the water. Robin flew out of the water and landed on the edge of the pier shortly thereafter. The water began to bubble quite largely, and The Veteran leaped out of the water. The Veteran landed behind Robin and folded his arms before saying "Come now, Robin. Your abilities should be more than this". After saying this, Robin got back up and awaited The Veteran's next move.
The Veteran then yelled out a "Grrraaah!" as he began to float in the air. Robin saw this and wondered: "Huh? Maybe there's more to this guy then just a sword and fighting ability". The Veteran formed a sphere of dark energy in his hand and threw it at Robin. Robin dodged the orb, but when it hit the pier, a shockwave of the dark energy sent Robin tumbling off of the pier and back into the water. The Veteran laughed a bit, and decided to wait for Robin, rather then engage him again. Robin shot his grappling hook up, and it landed on the crow's nest of a nearby ship. Robin then shot up out of the water. The Veteran quickly sliced the rope of Robin's grappling hook in two, and Robin fell back into the water. Suddenly, a steel chain shot out of one of The Veteran's trenchcoat sleeves. The chain submerged into the water, and wrapped around Robin. The Veteran threw Robin out of the water and onto the pier with the chain. Robin slammed into the pier, and The Veteran's chain quickly went back into his sleeve. "Show me your true strength!" yelled The Veteran.
The Veteran ran towards Robin and tried to punch him. But, Robin dodged his attacks. The Veteran tried a roundhouse kick, but Robin ducked. "That's the spirit!" shouted The Veteran. Robin tried a straight punch, but The Veteran grabbed his arm and headbutted Robin. Robin stumbled back a bit before having his back against the side of a ship. The Veteran rushed towards Robin with his arm extended. Robin quickly dodged, and The Veteran punched the hull of the ship. A loud "bang" was heard, and Robin was amazed at what he just saw: The Veteran's fist was lodged into the ship's hull. After a few seconds, The Veteran pulled his fist out of the ship and flung his hand in a "pain-releasing" manner, the bones in his fingers cracking in the process. The Veteran then said "It's time I end this!" and in the blink of an eye, he appeared at Robin's left side and used a very strong punch to Robin's kidney area. Robin fell to a knee and held his left side in great pain.
Robin, struggling to speak said: "How...a-a-re you s-so...fast?!".
The Veteran, who was shortly joined by the four other undead warriors, turned his back to Robin and said: "Your prattle bores me. If you ever want our terror to stop, become stronger. Because this was below me" as The Veteran finished his sentence, the undead warriors walked away from the shipyard.
Robin struggled to get up, and got up, but walked on a limp to find the other Titans. Cyborg arose from the water shortly after Robin started his search.
Cyborg breathed heavily before saying "They knew...[breath] what to...[breath] do against us!".
Robin walked a bit before seeing a part of the water frozen. Robin, assuming the worst, threw a handful of explosive discs at the ice. After the discs hit, the ice shattered into pieces. Starfire flew out of the water after the ice shattered. She then fell onto the pier, in a near- unconscious state.
Robin and Cyborg ran to Starfire to see if she was okay. Starfire replied: "I...am fine. I am just a little...cold...[shivers]".
Beast Boy carried an unconscious Raven towards the other Titans. "Whatever hit her must have been harder than whatever I got hit with...ow!" Beast Boy held the bump on his head, and set Raven down on the pier.
Robin then said: "Cyborg said that the warriors knew how to use this area as an advantage of their fight. He's right about that. Those "Living Terror" members knew how to use the fighting area to their advantage. I think we need to practice more if we ever fight them again" spoke Robin.
Raven got up slowly and said: "They knew more than just the battlefield. Some of them knew exactly how we fight. And made us pay for any mistake we made."
Starfire, joining the conversation said: "Those dead beings are all very powerful too. I fought the skeleton; Iceblade...and his ice magic is almost too much for anyone to handle. We need to have a plan if we are to fight them again".
Robin then said "Yes. We'll think this all out. Now, let's get back to the Tower. We need to re—ow!...we need to rest" as Robin finished his sentence, the Titans all limped back to the tower.
At the prison, The Veteran was standing near a window. After a second, he yelled and slammed his fist into a nearby table, breaking it in half.
"What is wrong, Veteran?" asked Typhis-Ahn.
"Grr...I seriously expected more out of the Titans. Perhaps they weren't at their best. Bah! It does not matter in the long run. If they keep up their fighting at that feeble amount, we won't have to worry about any interference with our takeover". As The Veteran spoke these words, he walked up to the rooftop of the prison.
The Veteran stared into the city. "Humph...look at it out there. The citizens live their carefree lives because they know the Teen Titans are always there to help them. That will all change with time" spoke The Veteran.
The Veteran then raised his sword into the sky and yelled out: "Hear me, Titans! With time you shall know what we will LET TERROR REIGN!!!" these words echoed throughout the city. And left a cold shiver running down the spines of the Titans.
By Johannes "Damaramu" Cats
Before we begin, the Teen Titans are copyright to DC Comics/Marv Wolfman/Peter David and the Death Knight, Dreadlord, Lich, Crypt Lord, Dark Ranger and Pit Lord are all copyright to Blizzard Entertainment.
Chapter 3: Full Circle
One week has passed since Balnazzar's attack on the Titans. The Titans got back on with their lives as if nothing happened. But at the prison, the five undead warriors did not get the thought of fighting the Titans out of their minds. As the days passed, the undead warriors plotted their next move.
"We are going to attack the Titans head on. But, isn't there going to be strategy involved?" A confused Iceblade mentioned.
"One must never fight a war without the proper plan. We must teach the Titans the element of the battlefield" said the man with the trenchcoat.
"Do we just grab their attention or something? All we've been doing is just waiting for the moment to strike. And hiding in the shadows is never easy...unless you're Balnazzar" grunted Darkscythe.
"Pity. I guess I'll do it the old fashioned way" the man with the trenchcoat then contacted the Titans right from the prison.
At Titans Tower, Raven was mediating in the living room; hoping for no interruptions.
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos...Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos...Azarath, Metrion, Zintho—"Raven was startled; suddenly, the communications screen powered on and a shadowy figure was shown with four other shadowy figures behind him.
"Greetings, Titan-- ... Greetings, Raven. Per chance, could you bring the rest of the Titans in here?" spoke the man with the trenchcoat.
Raven contacted all the Titans, and in a heartbeat they all entered the living room.
"Who are you?" questioned Robin.
"There are some who call me The Veteran. And I have come with a request" as The Veteran spoke these words, the darkness of the room he was speaking in faded as the five undead warriors were revealed.
The Titans gasped as they gazed upon the enemies they once faced in the past.
"You guys are a team?!" Cyborg asked, in a loud, concerned tone.
"We are The Living Terror! And we demand all of you face us at the Pier 41 Shipyard! If you do not comply within 2 hours, we will cause mass havoc to the inhabitants of the city. Good day" as The Veteran finished his demand, the communications line closed. And the Titans were debating what they should do.
"Should we just go and face them?" Robin questioned.
"If memory serves, Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy could not defeat the members of The Living Terror known as Lord Darkscythe, Venim Iceblade and Typhis- Ahn" said a very curious Starfire.
"And all five of us could not take down that flying vampire dude. So, what chance do we have against all four of them including some guy that WE don't know how to predict!" yelled Beast Boy.
"Well, you guys didn't call for help when you fought the trio. And some of us were too scared to even fight Balnazzar. But, if we focus, we can take out this so-called "Living Terror"" boasted Robin.
"What about The Veteran?" Raven questioned.
"He's the only one that seems human out of all those undead beings. Well, we'll find out what to expect once we face them. Titans, GO!" as Robin finished his sentence, the other Teen Titans were very hesitant to leave.
"Look, Robin...I-I don't think we're ready yet" Cyborg mentioned, in a very worried tone.
"We've fought Slade and took him down when all of us were on the brink of destruction. We have overcome impossible odds. And we have all done it without fear. Now, it's either us fighting them or the city becoming destroyed. Titans....GO!" yelled Robin. The Titans were motivated by Robin's words, and followed him out of the Tower.
At the Pier 41 Shipyard, The Living Terror proceeded to wait for their foes.
"It's almost been an hour and a half, Veteran. Even the great Kel'Thuzad would get impatient after one hour" Iceblade complained.
"Have patience, Venim. They'll come soon enough. If you're so bored, freeze that repair crew" The Veteran said, with a slightly annoyed tone.
Venim Iceblade smirked(if a skeleton can actually smile/frown/smirk/any facial expression) and readied an ice blast. Before he could throw it, Cyborg's sonic cannon destroyed the blast.
"Speak of the devil!" Iceblade yelled.
"Living Terror! We have come as you requested! Now you can either go quietly or we can do this the hard way!" gloated Robin.
"I think you know the answer to this, Robin" as The Veteran finished his sentence, the Terror leaped off of the crow's nest and engaged each Titan; Beast Boy with Lord Darkscythe, Raven with Balnazzar, Starfire with Venim Iceblade, Cyborg with Typhis-Ahn and Robin with The Veteran.
Starfire and Iceblade's battle was mostly range. Starbolts and blasts of ice were flying every which way, and beams were colliding, neither fighter getting the advantage. Starfire proceeded to fly into the air to get the advantage of aerial attacks. Starfire fired starbolt after starbolt at Iceblade, not showing signs of stopping.
Iceblade tried his best to counter the barrage of starbolts by freezing most of them, but it was not enough. Some starbolts struck him, thus causing him to flee. Iceblade was being pelted with starbolts, as Starfire would not let up. Iceblade hid behind a stack of crates as he was thinking of a strategy.
"Remember the battlefield!" Iceblade heard The Veteran speak this through the telepathic link in his mind. Iceblade smirked, and came out of hiding.
Starfire threw forth a starbolt beam, but Iceblade countered it with an ice beam. As the two powers collided, Iceblade dispelled his grip on his beam and quickly dodged Starfire's beam. Iceblade then formed an ice pillar beneath himself as he rose to Star's level. Iceblade then made a very large ice bridge that extended from his pillar all the way to Star.
Iceblade charged at Star with both arms extended. Star stood on the ice bridge and prepared to fight Iceblade in hand-to-hand combat.
Iceblade threw forth punches (since he has no legs), and backhand strikes. Star blocked each attack attempt and used a strong upward kick, which nailed Iceblade in the chin. Iceblade stumbled back a bit, and extended both his arms. Two ice formations appeared in Iceblade's hands, and they quickly morphed into two scythes. Iceblade got into a stance, and awaited Star's next move.
Starfire charged forth, and attempted to spin-kick Iceblade. Iceblade ducked out of the way, and slashed at Star's arm with his scythe. The scythe struck Star's right arm and it began to bleed. Before she acts again, her arm became very cold on the inside, and she held it in pain.
Taking his opportunity, Iceblade struck Star with the back-end of one of his scythes. Star got hit, and plummeted into the water. Iceblade shattered his scythes and fired a big blast of ice toward the water. Once the blast hit, the portion of the sea Starfire was in froze solid. Iceblade folded his arms and said "Pitiful". Iceblade then leaped off of his ice bridge to find anyone who needed help.
Balnazzar attempted to strike at Raven with his claws, but Raven blocked each attack attempt with small shields of her magic. Raven then struck at Balnazzar with a slash of dark magic. Balnazzar's armor got pierced and he stumbled back a bit. Raven took control of a nearby ship anchor, and slammed Balnazzar in the face with it. Balnazzar flew back and fell off the pier.
Raven looked into the water to attempt to find Balnazzar. Once Raven looked in a different direction, Balnazzar skyrocketed out of the water. Raven became startled, thus losing her concentration and got struck in the chin with a huge uppercut Balnazzar used. After Raven flipped in the air a bit, she landed on her feet and took control of a nearby giant crate. She lifted the crate and threw it at Balnazzar. Balnazzar struck the crate with his claws, and the crate shattered instantly.
Balnazzar, with his own knowledge of dark magic (different from Raven's), fired forth a blast of dark energy towards Raven. Raven formed a shield, but the blast shattered it, and collided into Raven. Raven flew back and slammed into the side of a ship, before falling face first into the pier. Balnazzar approached Raven with a little bit of caution. As he prepared to lift her, Raven struck Balnazzar in the face with a slash of her dark magic. Balnazzar stumbled back and held his face in pain.
Raven then took control of many large crates, and threw them all at Balnazzar. Each crate hit Balnazzar, since the pain distracted him. As Balnazzar struggled to get up, Raven took control of him with her telekinesis abilities. Before Raven could do anything, Balnazzar dispelled her grip and flew at her. Balnazzar collided into Raven and flew up onto the deck of a ship. Once he landed on the deck, he threw Raven off of his shoulder. Raven rolled on the ground a bit before getting back up and confronting Balnazzar.
Balnazzar pulled his arms back and charged the palms of his hands with demonic electricity. He then threw a very large wave of the electricity at Raven. Raven tried to fly out of its range, but became caught in its wave. Raven hit the ground shortly after becoming electrocuted. Balnazzar approached Raven, this time with no caution. He then grabbed the back of her neck and lifted her slightly. Balnazzar then threw Raven into the ship's sail. Raven collided into the sail, and as result, the sail ripped. Raven hit the deck, and she became tangled in the sail, struggling to find a way out. Balnazzar approached Raven and struck her with a strong punch to her head. Raven flew back a bit before hitting the stairs that lead to the upper deck. After rolling down the stairs, she did not move.
Balnazzar removed the sail that covered Raven. As he gazed at Raven, she appeared to be knocked unconscious. Balnazzar smirked and flew off of the ship.
Typhis and Cyborg exchanged a few bouts, neither getting the advantage. Cyborg struck at Typhis' lower half, but still nothing resulted. Typhis struck Cyborg with the back of his arm, which sent Cyborg tumbling around the pier. Before Cyborg could make another move, Typhis tackled Cyborg and pinned him down. Typhis extended the spikes on his arms and attempted to slash Cyborg with them. Cyborg grabbed each arm before they could hit him. Typhis then used his great strength to weaken Cyborg's grip by pushing his arms downwards. Cyborg then used his only alternative: he kicked Typhis off of him. Typhis then ran to the side of a ship and waiting for Cyborg's next move.
Cyborg then readied his sonic cannon and fired at Typhis. Typhis quickly move out of the way as the sonic cannon hit the side of the ship. The sonic cannon's impact caused a large part of the ship's hull to break off. Typhis grabbed the large part of the ship's hull, and threw it towards Cyborg. Cyborg, scrambling to think of an idea, got slammed by the large piece of the ship's hull and flew across the pier. Cyborg slammed onto the pier, with the large piece of the hull on top of him.
Typhis approached Cyborg. Cyborg still struggled greatly to get the piece of the ship's hull off of him. But, there was not enough time to prevent Typhis' next move. At that moment, Typhis slammed the pier with his claws; thus causing the part of the pier that Cyborg and the hull was on to shatter. Cyborg fell into the water; the piece of the hull making him sink even deeper into the murky depths. "Ha-ha-ha! The battlefield proves to be the true victor here!" gloated Typhis. Typhis then ran to aid any teammates.
Beast Boy proved to give Darkscythe a hard time. Before Darkscythe could attack him with his blade, Beast Boy would morph into a different animal and counter Darkscythe.
Darkscythe sheathed his blade and faced BB in hand-to-hand combat. As Darkscythe tried a dual kick combination, BB morphed into an anaconda and wrapped himself around Darkscythe's body area.
As BB constricted even tighter, Darkscythe's armor began to crack. Having trouble breathing, Darkscythe pulled his arms free and clutched BB's snake body. BB had no choice but to let go, as Darkscythe's grip burned BB's scales like acid. BB reverted to human form and tried to cool off his back by rubbing it repeatedly.
Darkscythe grabbed BB by the neck and threw him across the pier, since BB was too busy cooling himself off. As BB slammed and tumbled across the pier, he crashed into a pile of boxes. Thinking quickly, BB piled the boxes onto himself and waited for Darkscythe to approach.
Darkscythe unsheathed his blade and charged at the pile of the boxes. As he got close, BB morphed into a triceratops and scattered the boxes everywhere. Darkscythe was very surprised at what just happened, and dropped his blade. Darkscythe rushed to get his blade, unaware that the triceratops BB was charging him.
Darkscythe picked his blade up, but by then, BB was too close. BB gored Darkscythe with his horns, and flung him into the air. Darkscythe flipped through the air many time before crashing into the side of a ship. His impact was so great it caused a large dent in the ship's hull. Darkscythe then fell twenty feet before falling face first into the pier. He struggled to get up and managed to get onto one knee. As Darkscythe breathed heavily, BB charged him again.
Darkscythe saw the raging triceratops and as BB got close, he grabbed the two top horns and struggled to halt BB's advance. Darkscythe looked behind him to see the side of a ship. He smirked and threw BB into the side of the ship head first. BB's horns went right through the ship's hull and he became stuck. BB greatly struggled to break free, and was hoping Darkscythe didn't have a trick up his sleeve.
Darkscythe pulled his sword out and it began to burn with a strong death element. BB pulled himself free and turned around. Darkscythe swung his blade around his head and yelled "Death Coil!!!" before slashing his sword downwards. After this action, the death element blazing in Darkscythe's sword formed itself into a flaming skull and launched itself at BB. The coil of death collided into BB, and as a result, he reverted to human form. Shortly after the coil of death his BB, he fell onto his knees, feeling extremely weak.
Darkscythe approached the weakened BB and smashed the hilt of his sword onto the top of BB's head. Afterwards, BB fell onto the ground, unconscious. Darkscythe laughed evilly at the downed BB and fled to other teammates.
The Veteran and Robin did not engage each other yet. Instead, they paced their fighting ground and stared each other down.
"Why are you doing this?" questioned Robin.
"Why would I not? You Titans needed more competition, and that is why myself and my undead allies have come" spoke The Veteran
"You're here for "competition"? But other villains do give us a good fight here and there" said Robin in a hopeful tone.
"But it's not enough to make it the best fight you've ever had. Control Freak, The Hive, Trident, Mumbo, Warp and even the mighty Trigon have not been enough to stop you! Someway, somehow...they all are taken down" said a very serious Veteran.
"You have it wrong. People like Slade give us great amounts of competition!" shouted Robin.
"Silence! I have heard all I need. Now prepare yourself!" as The Veteran finished his sentence, he unsheathed his sword: a five and a half foot beast with a scythe-like curve at the end of it. The sword had a skull medallion at the edge of the hilt. Robin pulled out his extending staff and used a little "bring it" taunt to anger The Veteran.
The Veteran ran towards Robin and slashed his sword at Robin's staff. The sword crashed into the staff and the both warriors started a deadlock. Robin used all his strength to push The Veteran back, but it was to no avail, The Veteran pushed Robin back. As Robin stumbled around a bit, The Veteran quickly grabbed Robin by the scruff of his uniform and lifted him up. Afterwards, The Veteran slightly tossed Robin in the air, and in a spilt second, The Veteran leaped into the air, twisted around, and slashed Robin with his blade. Robin flew threw the air before crashing into a nearby crate. Robin shook his head, and got back up. About 15 feet away was The Veteran, just standing in one place...waiting for Robin's next move.
Robin charged at The Veteran and attempted a punch. The Veteran saw this coming, and dodged the attack. Robin turned around and used a backhand strike. The Veteran quickly dodged this attack as well. Robin was getting angry, and repeatedly tried to punch The Veteran. The Veteran moved away from each punch that Robin threw at him. Robin then tried a leaping, spinning kick, but The Veteran grabbed his leg. Robin tried to break free, but could not. The Veteran looked behind him to see a fishing boat. At that moment, The Veteran swung Robin down like a rag-doll onto the fishing ship below. Robin slammed into the fishing boat and went right through it. The Veteran formed a smug smirk on his face, and waited for Robin to arise from the depths of the water.
As Robin arose from the water...but, The Veteran quickly leaped in after him. Robin gasped, and tried to swim away. But, The Veteran quickly landed on top of Robin and the two submerged into the murky depths. The two warriors were exchanging bouts inside the water. Robin punched The Veteran a few times, thus causing The Veteran to flip away from him. The Veteran then swam towards Robin and kicked him in the side. Afterwards, The Veteran punched Robin in the chest. Despite the pressure of the water, The Veteran was able to fight like he could on the surface. After The Veteran punched Robin in the chest, he punched Robin in the side of his face a few times before using an uppercut that sent Robin flying out of the water. Robin flew out of the water and landed on the edge of the pier shortly thereafter. The water began to bubble quite largely, and The Veteran leaped out of the water. The Veteran landed behind Robin and folded his arms before saying "Come now, Robin. Your abilities should be more than this". After saying this, Robin got back up and awaited The Veteran's next move.
The Veteran then yelled out a "Grrraaah!" as he began to float in the air. Robin saw this and wondered: "Huh? Maybe there's more to this guy then just a sword and fighting ability". The Veteran formed a sphere of dark energy in his hand and threw it at Robin. Robin dodged the orb, but when it hit the pier, a shockwave of the dark energy sent Robin tumbling off of the pier and back into the water. The Veteran laughed a bit, and decided to wait for Robin, rather then engage him again. Robin shot his grappling hook up, and it landed on the crow's nest of a nearby ship. Robin then shot up out of the water. The Veteran quickly sliced the rope of Robin's grappling hook in two, and Robin fell back into the water. Suddenly, a steel chain shot out of one of The Veteran's trenchcoat sleeves. The chain submerged into the water, and wrapped around Robin. The Veteran threw Robin out of the water and onto the pier with the chain. Robin slammed into the pier, and The Veteran's chain quickly went back into his sleeve. "Show me your true strength!" yelled The Veteran.
The Veteran ran towards Robin and tried to punch him. But, Robin dodged his attacks. The Veteran tried a roundhouse kick, but Robin ducked. "That's the spirit!" shouted The Veteran. Robin tried a straight punch, but The Veteran grabbed his arm and headbutted Robin. Robin stumbled back a bit before having his back against the side of a ship. The Veteran rushed towards Robin with his arm extended. Robin quickly dodged, and The Veteran punched the hull of the ship. A loud "bang" was heard, and Robin was amazed at what he just saw: The Veteran's fist was lodged into the ship's hull. After a few seconds, The Veteran pulled his fist out of the ship and flung his hand in a "pain-releasing" manner, the bones in his fingers cracking in the process. The Veteran then said "It's time I end this!" and in the blink of an eye, he appeared at Robin's left side and used a very strong punch to Robin's kidney area. Robin fell to a knee and held his left side in great pain.
Robin, struggling to speak said: "How...a-a-re you s-so...fast?!".
The Veteran, who was shortly joined by the four other undead warriors, turned his back to Robin and said: "Your prattle bores me. If you ever want our terror to stop, become stronger. Because this was below me" as The Veteran finished his sentence, the undead warriors walked away from the shipyard.
Robin struggled to get up, and got up, but walked on a limp to find the other Titans. Cyborg arose from the water shortly after Robin started his search.
Cyborg breathed heavily before saying "They knew...[breath] what to...[breath] do against us!".
Robin walked a bit before seeing a part of the water frozen. Robin, assuming the worst, threw a handful of explosive discs at the ice. After the discs hit, the ice shattered into pieces. Starfire flew out of the water after the ice shattered. She then fell onto the pier, in a near- unconscious state.
Robin and Cyborg ran to Starfire to see if she was okay. Starfire replied: "I...am fine. I am just a little...cold...[shivers]".
Beast Boy carried an unconscious Raven towards the other Titans. "Whatever hit her must have been harder than whatever I got hit with...ow!" Beast Boy held the bump on his head, and set Raven down on the pier.
Robin then said: "Cyborg said that the warriors knew how to use this area as an advantage of their fight. He's right about that. Those "Living Terror" members knew how to use the fighting area to their advantage. I think we need to practice more if we ever fight them again" spoke Robin.
Raven got up slowly and said: "They knew more than just the battlefield. Some of them knew exactly how we fight. And made us pay for any mistake we made."
Starfire, joining the conversation said: "Those dead beings are all very powerful too. I fought the skeleton; Iceblade...and his ice magic is almost too much for anyone to handle. We need to have a plan if we are to fight them again".
Robin then said "Yes. We'll think this all out. Now, let's get back to the Tower. We need to re—ow!...we need to rest" as Robin finished his sentence, the Titans all limped back to the tower.
At the prison, The Veteran was standing near a window. After a second, he yelled and slammed his fist into a nearby table, breaking it in half.
"What is wrong, Veteran?" asked Typhis-Ahn.
"Grr...I seriously expected more out of the Titans. Perhaps they weren't at their best. Bah! It does not matter in the long run. If they keep up their fighting at that feeble amount, we won't have to worry about any interference with our takeover". As The Veteran spoke these words, he walked up to the rooftop of the prison.
The Veteran stared into the city. "Humph...look at it out there. The citizens live their carefree lives because they know the Teen Titans are always there to help them. That will all change with time" spoke The Veteran.
The Veteran then raised his sword into the sky and yelled out: "Hear me, Titans! With time you shall know what we will LET TERROR REIGN!!!" these words echoed throughout the city. And left a cold shiver running down the spines of the Titans.