This is a work of fanfiction. I do not own Teen Titans or any DC comics alluded to in this story. Kenkaku and his swords are mine, however.
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Waves of Fate
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"text": spoken English
"text": spoken Japanese (translated or flavor text)
"text": war cry, English
"text": war cry, Japanese.
text: thoughts
-text-: stressed word
text: printed or typed English
text: printed or typed Japanese
'text': sound effect
Japanese flavor text will be in a glossary at the end of the chapter.
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"JumpCity," proclaimed Kenkaku as he stopped the bike on a hill overlooking the Southern Californian coast town. "And TitanTower out in the bay."He squinted. "Uh, Raven-san?"
"What now?" 'Cough.' The half-demon was feeling perfectly miserable. Going into a meditative trance for a few days was sounding real good right about now. Her body temp was badly off and her mind was a little clouded, never a good thing. The situation with the duffle wasn't particularly pleasant. Her body was reacting to some base urges after being virtually strapped to him for close on two hours now. It wasn't as if he was in bad shape. Quite remarkable, actually, considering the lifestyle and funds he had. She thanked a nameless deity that Lust was easy to control when it came to its influence on her powers. 'Cough.'
"Exactly how are we supposed to get to Titan Tower? This bike doesn't transform into a jetski and the suspension bridge doesn't connect to the island."
"Secret tunnel."'Ha-choo!'
"Ah. And how, pray tell would one go about activating it?"
"With the communicator."'Cough.' "What else, Kenkaku-san?"
"Ah. The communicator. The -broken- communicator, Raven-san?"
"Chikushou."
"Any other way to get you there?"
"How much do you like this bike? And can you swim?"
"If it goes in the bay, you're buying me a new one. I happen to like having transportation. And yes, I can swim."
"Okay then. Get us to the bay."
---
The two metahumans threaded their way through city traffic at a moderate speed, winding their way towards the bay. "You do know that you don't need to wear the helmet, neh?"
"I'd prefer to stay anonymous if it's all the same to you." 'Ha-choo!'A sneeze splattered the inside of the visor. "Best not to let on that a Titan is sick."
"So ka."He twisted the throttle a bit and slid through an opening in the traffic, only to run into an even denser pack, moving even slower. "That makes sense."
She limply laid her helmeted head on his back. "Can you get to the bay quickly? I'm getting worse."
"Hai, hai. Shin no tensai wa nandemo konashite shimau mono sa."
"Too bad we don't have one here."
"I could have sworn I was strapped to a sick one. Shows you how much I know."
"Nani?"
"Keep your center of gravity right over the bike."
"Okay..?"
"Hajimeruzo!"
'VROOOOOOOOOM!'
He pulled the bike onto the mercifully empty sidewalk, speeding up his perceptions and self as he gunned the bike. Raven's scream stretched out and distorted before transforming to something that wasn't really describable or perhaps something that wasn't even a sound at all. Kenkaku brought the bike up to 105 mph, the old sportbike's top speed, and aimed for a concrete structure that could double as a ramp.
The ronin did make it double as a ramp, launching the bike, himself, and Raven, who was doing an impressive imitation of a corset, especially for a girl who was likely suffering from pneumonia, mild hypothermia, or both, into the air. The bike landed on both wheels, on top of an 18-wheeler with a reinforced trailer.
'WHUMP!'
'EEEEEEEEEEEEE!'
The tires painted a black diagonal line across the top as they used the trailer to cross the street, diving off the other side of the trailer, Kenkaku throwing his weight back so as to land on both wheels. They used another of the concrete structures to jump a small sidewalk café, before turning onto a handicapped ramp to go into a building. It was a very good thing that the doors were open at both ends of the building. People dove out of the way as the Japanese-made sportbike blew through the Kawasaki dealers with a cargo of two teens and a duffle.
'VRRRRRRRRRRRRRROW!'
Oooh, the new Ninja ZX-12Rs are in early, noted the male rider as they blew through at what seemed to him to be only a moderate pace. Raven was too busy screaming to note much but the fact that, thank all that was good and holy, and there wasn't much, she still had an unbreakable death grip on Kenkaku.
"So," asked an impressed customer of his salesman, "What model were -they- riding?"
The swarthy salesman shook his head, smiled, and clapped his hand on the man's shoulder. "That sir, was one of our Ninja ZX-10Rs, quite possibly our best model. Would sir like to see one?"
"Very much so."
---
When the bike came to a sliding halt, Kenkaku was sure Raven had caused slight damage to his internal organs, as tight as she was holding onto him. And she wasn't letting go. The boy tried to pry her arms off, but the half-demon wasn't budging.
"Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos," repeated the girl in a small voice, over and over.
"We've stopped," Kenkaku informed her with a wince, "The death grip is no longer necessary."
"Azarath, Metri…What?"
"We've stopped, Raven-san," he reiterated, "and as nice as it generally is to be hugged by a cute girl, you're bruising my spleen. Please stop." He winced again, loosening the strap across his chest.
"Oh! Gomen." Raven removed her arms and leaned back, freed of the duffel's embrace. "Wait a second! Apologize to you? What the hell was that? I said get us here faster, not nearly kill us!" A number of streetlights blew out in a flash of obsidian energy.
"Well, what did you want me to do?" asked the brown-haired teen as he rooted through his duffel. "You can't tell me we didn't get here faster. And I was watching that all in slow motion. I can speed up my actions, reflexes, and perceptions. We weren't really in that much danger. Besides," He smirked. "I seem to have scared the cough away." He pulled out Muramasa and put it in place on his right hip.
'Cough.'
"Okay, maybe not the last one." He pulled Kanesada out of the duffle and put it in place on his left hip. He put down the kickstand on the bike and got off, stretching. "But the others are true." He walked towards the bay.
"What are you doing?"
"Take a break before crossing the bay. The ride might have been fun, but I'm not going to deny that it can be draining."
Raven shot the helmet at him with her telekinesis. "I'm ready to go now."
He spun around, drawing Kanesada in a flash of light and slashing the helmet in one smooth motion.
'SHING!'
Two splashes in the bay marked where the helmet's halves landed. His gaze flicked to the side and a look of horror crossed his face as he sheathed Kanesada and ran at her and the bike. "You said you were ready to go now?"
"Hai. Why?"
He jumped on the bike and sped up his reflexes, but not his perceptions or body. He had to be able to communicate with Raven on this endeavor. "Just hold on!" He started the bike and popped a wheelie, applying as much power as he did. When the front wheel came down, they shot off, just ahead of the pulse cannon fire of a hijacked hovertank.
'VRRRRRRRRROW!'
'Neow, Neow, Neow, Neow, Neow!'
Had they still been there and miraculously avoided the low-powered but numerous energy bolts, they would have seen the T-car pursuing the hovertank, photon cannon blazing.
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'VRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRREM!'
"You do realize that you're bruising my spleen again!?" shouted Kenkaku to the wind.
"Does it really matter much in this situation?" yelled Raven in his ear.
"Good point! Bruise away!" Kenkaku had an idea. Yeah, that just might work. "Raven-san! Wrap your legs around me!"
"Nanda!? Hentai!"
"I'm looking for control of both of our weights! Do it!"
"Temee…ii ka."She wrapped her slender legs around his waist and moved her arms up to his chest. As an afterthought, she squeezed hard. The male metahuman didn't even notice, throwing both their weights to the side and taking a corner at way too high of a speed and angle for a person outside of an asylum. A plasma cannon blast tore up the street behind them in a monumental blast.
'VRRRROW!'
'THU-KOOM!'
"KUSO!" cursed Kenkaku as he saw the crater in the mirrors. "That bakayarou decided he wants us!" The hovertank slid around the corner and only dipped a bit as it went over the crater. The two pulse cannons flanking the main plasma cannon flashed and whined, spitting destruction at the two metahumans on the sportsbike.
'Neow, Neow, Neow!'
Kenkaku sideslipped and the energy bolts tore up the road alongside them. He spotted a side street and turned hard left into it. The tank made to follow as the T-car zipped around the corner in pursuit, avoiding the plasma-created pothole but going up on two wheels.
'EEEEEEEE!'
Cyborg cursed as the hovertank entered the side street, denying him a shot with his photon cannon. "Robin! Where are you?"
"Coming up on the side street in the opposite direction from you, same road," came Robin's voice from the com panel of the T-car. "How much damage have you been able to do to him?"
"None! I haven't landed a single shot!" Cyborg turned the corner and triggered the photon cannon, missing the tail end of the stolen piece of military hardware, instead demolishing a storefront. "Damn him!" He kicked in the turbos and shot down the street, cornering a near-insane speed as he moved onto another main road in pursuit of the tank. "Where are Beast Boy, Raven, and Starfire?"
'VROOOM!'
"Beast Boy and Starfire are still pursuing the attack plane. Raven well…you know."
Cyborg felt like slapping himself, but now was not the time. "Oh yeah. Right." He looked ahead at the hovertank. "Uh, Robin?"
"Yes? I'm coming up behind you."
"The hovertank is chasing someone."
"WHAT!?"
Cyborg zoomed his crimson cybernetic eye in as much as he could. "It's two people on a sportsbike. Damn," he remarked as Kenkaku dropped speed and sideslipped again to avoid another burst of pulse cannon fire. "Whoever it is, they're good. And you speed up…now. Or not." Cyborg watched in bewilderment as the bike tilted to the left and pulled a hard left turn with the throttle applied fully at the apex of the turn. "Damn, another side street."
"I see it," said Robin as he passed Cyborg on the R-cycle. "He might be good, but I don't think he knows the city streets. He doesn't seem to be really going anywhere."
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'THU-KOOM!'
"Chikushou!" yelled Kenkaku as another plasma cannon blast ripped up the street, showering them with burning bits of pavement. "That was way too close!"
"What now, Kenkaku-san? We can't run forever, and my powers can't stop the tank!"
"Kono ore ni ittai nan no you!?" yelled the long-haired teen at the tank driver. "You think I don't know that? I'm open to suggestions on what to do!"
"We could just give up and die!"
"Kotowaru!"He dodged another pulse cannon volley.
"Ii ka…we could make a frontal assault!"
"That's mil-spec hardware on our tail! That's the same suggestion as the first! Kotowaru! Kotowaru!" He twisted the throttle for all he was worth, squeezing every last iota of power out of his aging sportbike's engine. Glancing in his mirror, he saw a priming charge grow in the main cannon. "Why won't you let me be!?"
'PSHOW!'
'VRRROW!'
'THU-KOOM!'
Another hard right dodged a cannon blast, and put him on a one-way street, heading the wrong way. "BAKA!" yelled Raven as Kenkaku dodged traffic and energy fire alike. "Dame da! Dame DA!"
'VRRRRRREM!'
'PSHOW!'
'THU-KOOM!'
A plasma cannon blast blew up a parked tanker truck in front of them. Rather fortunately, it had been filled with milk instead of something more volatile, such as natural gas, much like the tanker further down the street that was ripped open by pulse bolts.
'Neow, Neow, Neow!'
'KRA-THOOM!'
The two teens' eyes went wide as a mushroom cloud of fire erupted, coating the street in flames. Kenkaku reflexively turned left down a side street, which was more of an alleyway. It was blocked by a number of crates. "Shimatta!"
"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" A wave of obsidian energy blasted the crates to splinters.
"You can be pretty useful!" Kenkaku turned right and sped down the mostly deserted street.
"Looks like we lost him!"
"Yeah."Kenkaku let off on the throttle and Raven relaxed her grip, going back to a normal riding position. "How many criminal groups steal a hovertank?"
"It's a pretty extensive list in this city." 'Cough.' Raven looked around. "Oh no."Her legs went around the other metahuman's waist again.
"Nani?"
"HOVERTANK!"
"Good reason to go!" Kenkaku punched it, just ahead of yet another plasma cannon blast.
'THU-KOOM!'
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"Okay," said Robin as he watched the sportbike get away from the stolen hovertank, "Lack of knowledge of this city's streets notwithstanding, it seems the bikers got away. I'm going to try to get onto that tank."
"Hold up man, I've got a shot."
'TSSSSSOW!'
A streak of energy flew past Robin and impacted on the hovertank. The tank slewed and the driver used it to turn down another street just before the fire created by the LNG tanker.
"What are we going to do about that fire?"
"Beast Boy and I have down taken the plane of assault. Shall we assist you?"
Robin's mind sped faster than his cycle. How to deal with everything? He spotted a water tank on a building above the conflagration. "That's it! Beast Boy, you put out the fire in town. There's a large water tank above the site. Starfire, you help us with the hovertank!" Robin turned the corner in pursuit of the tank. He saw the cannon fire again, just barely missing the two unknowns on the bike.
"Coming!"
"Aw man, why do I have to put out the fire?"
"Shut up and do it!" Robin sped up and clicked in autopilot as he came up behind the tank on a straightaway. He took careful aim and fired a grappling hook, which caught on what looked like a six-tube missile box on the opposite side of the rear from where Cyborg had hit the tank.
'Clank!'
He got a little closer before jumping off his bike and retracting the grappling hook, pulling himself towards the tank
As he flew at the tank, he pulled out his retractable bo staff, holding it out in front of him, still collapsed. As he ended his flight, he extended it, the ends locking on the pylon for one of the two main drive engines and the missile box pylon.
'Thunk!'
He pulled himself onto the tank and checked out the damage from Cyborg's attack. "Looks like you got the mortar launcher and caught a little bit of the shielding for the engine on that side, Cy. Star! Where are you?"
"Coming Robin! I am over the city now!"
A hatch opened in the tank and a man with a pair of knives jumped out, knives spinning in flashes of steel, ready to spill blood. "Uh, I might need help soon Star." Of all the days to run out of Birdarangs and discs, groaned the Boy Wonder mentally.
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"Okay, he's insane!" said Kenkaku as he looked in the mirrors.
"Nani?"
"The guy back there is attacking the tank with nothing but a bo!"
"Robin-san!"
"Your boyfriend!?"
She squeezed tighter for a second. "Not the time or place for jokes! He's the leader of the Titans!"
"Ow. Nice to know that they're trying to save us! And is there ever a time or place for jokes with you!?"
"Iya!"
"Thought so! It'd be nice to be able to hook up with them I guess, but the tank driver isn't going to let that…whoa!"
"What now?"
'Neow, Neow, Neow, Neow!'
Kenkaku dodged yet another volley of pulse cannon fire. "A guy just jumped out of the tank! Knife fighter!"
Raven grimaced. "Nothing we can do for him! Besides, Robin-san is a consummate martial artist! And where do you get off on calling him crazy!? You carry a sword!"
"Hey, my sword has a sharp edge!"
"Touché," she admitted, but it was lost in the wind.
"Besides, no matter how lame it sounds, it's a magic sword!"
"I've heard stranger!" A plasma blast tore up the street pretty far behind them. "Are we still idealess on how to get away!?"
"Eh…not quite! You said you can levitate! Can you levitate this bike?"
"Hai! Naze!?"
"Just be ready to when I call for it! Which way to the bridge!"
"I'll direct you!"
"Tame!"
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'SSSS!'
Robin ducked a flat swing of the knife fighter's right-hand weapon and thrust his bo at the man's stomach. The left knife picked off the strike and deflected it so that it missed the man to the side.
'CLANK!'
Robin's eyemask went large as the man trapped the bo against his side and twisted, throwing Robin into the missile box.
'WHUMP!'
I wonder why they haven't used these on the bike? wondered Robin, dazedly before rolling out of the way of a double-knife stab at his chest. He recovered the bo and shook his head, blocking another stab by rotating the staff, bashing the blade towards the tank's armored deck.
'CLANK!'
The Boy Wonder smirked, then opened his mouth in a scream of pain as the other knife traced a line of white-hot pain across his shoulder. "AHHHG!"
'SSSHICK!'
The knife-fighter went in for the kill.
"Robin!"
'ZAK!'
'BAM!'
A starbolt blew the man flying off the tank. Robin looked up to see Starfire flying above the tank. The missile box tilted up. That's why! They're only for surface to air! "Star! Look out! SAM!"
'PSSSHOOM!'
A pair of missiles shot into the air at the Tamaranian girl who dove and threw starbolts.
'ZAK, ZAK, ZAK, ZAK!'
'BUH-BOOM!'
She caught one of them in a flurry of her starbolts and the other one lost lock. Robin jammed his bo into some exposed circuitry in the launcher's pylon and twisted, disabling the anti-air weapon. Hey, he noticed, we're actually going somewhere now. Looks like the bridge. He looked over the tank. No other weak points, as the man had closed the hatch after he had gotten out. Robin pulled out a remote control and called the R-cycle as he retracted his staff and put it away. As soon as it came close enough, he jumped on and took over control.
'VROOOOOM!'
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"Straight ahead to the bridge!"
"Yosh! Get ready to levitate us!" Kenkaku looked ahead. The bridge was right ahead.
"Dozou! Please tell me we aren't going on the support cables!"
"Fine! I won't tell you!"
"You are insane!"
"We're about to die Raven-san! Might as well live it up a bit!" They shot up the cable.
---
"Someone has watched way too many movies," said Cyborg as he trailed behind in the T-car, angling for a shot. He got it, kicking in the turbos and triggering the cannon.
'TSSSOW!'
The cannon blast caught the engines dead on, secondary explosions grounding the craft, but not before a few things happened.
Kenkaku jumped the sportsbike off the bridge towards Titan Tower and Raven provided levitation. The tank gunner saw his prey getting away and triggered the plasma cannon, then the pulse cannons. Starfire hit the plasma cannon bolt with a starbolt, blowing it apart in midair not twenty feet from the back of the bike. The shockwave knocked Raven out and flung both metahumans off the bike, just before the pulse cannon fire finally caught the sportsbike, turning it into a short-lived fireball. The tank died at this point. Kenkaku grabbed Raven's unconscious form with one hand, now moving and seeing in an accelerated mode. The shock of grabbing her sent him back towards the bridge where he grabbed a vertical support wire as he went, swinging around it to slow himself down, his motorcycle gloves wearing away. Cyborg jumped out of the T-car and ran to catch the two while Robin went to secure the tank. Cyborg caught Kenkaku's forearm and Kenkaku got a grip on Raven's shirt collar. Kenkaku sighed as he hung between the two of them, glad for it to be over, forgetting one important thing.
The shirt he was holding Raven up with was one of his old threadbare ones.
'Rrrip!'
Raven fell, leaving Kenkaku hanging onto the piece of cloth that had been the shirt. "KUSO! RAVEN-SAN!" He looked up at Cyborg "DROP ME, YOU FOOL!"
The honorific kept Cyborg from recognizing Raven's name. "Don't worry man, we'll get your girlfriend out of the water." He started to hoist Kenkaku up.
"BAKA!"
'SHING!'
Kanesada separated Cyborg's forearm from his hand. "WHAT THE HELL!?"
"KIAI!"A splash marked where Kenkaku had entered the water, with Kanesada already sheathed. Cyborg looked down, but even with his cybernetic eye, he could see nothing but the cold black waters of the bay.
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Japanese Flavor Text:
Chikushou: "Damn." See previous chapter for more info.
Neh: "Right?"
So ka: "I see."
Hai: "Yes."
Shin no tensai wa nandemo konashite shimau mono sa: "A true genius can do anything."
Nani: "What?"
Hajimeruzo: "We begin/Begin."
-San: Honorific. See first chapter for explanation.
Gomen: "Pardon/Sorry."
Nanda: "What the hell?"
Hentai: "Pervert." (as noun)/"Perverted." (as adjective)
Temee: "Fucker/Why you…"
Ii ka: "Fine then."
Kuso: "Shit."
Bakayarou: "Stupid bastard."
Kono ore ni ittai nan no you: "What the hell do you want with me?"
Kotowaru: "I refuse." When you say this you -mean- no!
Baka: "Idiot/Stupid/Moron."
Dame da: "Bad." Like saying bad dog to someone while whacking them across the nose with newspaper.
Shimatta: "Damn it."
Nani: "What?"
Iya: "No." Stronger than iie.
Hai: "Yes."
Naze: "Why?"
Tame: "Good."
Yosh: "Very good."
Dozou: "Please."
Kiai: General Japanese battle cry, in kiaijutsu, supposed to carry the force of one's fighting spirit to do something.
Japanese Martial Arts:
Kenjutsu: "Art of the sword." Perhaps the most famous form of Japanese martial arts, its successor is Kendo, "Way of the sword". The art of fighting with a sword, generally a katana.
Iaijutsu: "Art of the sword-draw." A subset of kenjutsu concerned with attacking and drawing the sword in one movement. Replaced by Iaido, "Way of the sword-draw."
Kiaijutsu: "Art of the kiai." A lost art that consisted of projecting one's warrior spirit on the enemy, ally, or environment. Masters of kiaijutsu were said to be able to freeze enemies by looking at them, kill or drive them back with a shout, or heal a mortally wounded comrade with the same voice that could be a lethal weapon. Not much is known about this obscure art, but it is obvious that it was a very powerful and versatile art. No equivalent is known of today.
-jutsu vs. -do: After the Meiji restoration, all jutsu were officially replaced with do in the names of martial arts, as the art was for war while the way was for peace. This switch of policy from perfection of warriorship to inner perfection was not particularly well received by the majority of the samurai. Some rebelled, some went along, and some kept to the ideals of the –jutsu in secret. It seems obvious that Kenkaku's teacher was part of a line that did the latter.
Warning: Many modern money-grubbers will say that they teach a -jutsu rather than a -do, to attract thrill-seekers, saying that they teach it for use in actual combat, especially in kendo/jutsu. They will often wow you with useless Japanese terminology to look 'authentic'. Do not fall for this trick.
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A/N: Well, here's the almost completely untouched second chapter.
