A Merry X-Mas to all.....
"So, what is a pint sized midget like you doing with these kids?" X said smoothly as he looked down on the small puppet from his viewpoint on the Santa display.
"No one insults me!." The little toy shook his fist in anger, glaring at Red X menacingly.
"You talk big for a little toy." X yawned, casually leaning against the side of the display. He cracked his knuckles. "and I bet you're just as breakable."
"I am no mere toy….I am the puppet king, and YOU will learn to fear me." He growled, then took his puppet controller out of his toy coat. It resembled the wooden cross used to move real puppets on a string, but instead, this one had lighted dots at every end.
X got out a shuriken, this wouldn't be too hard, cut this little twerp up in half and then it would be over. Or perhaps he can gift wrap him and mail him somewhere far away. He chuckled, impressed with his own originality.
A stab of flame exploded from the darkness, taking X by Surprise. Just as he was about to jump off the display, a shell hit it, blowing Santa's sleigh and sending it crashing and burning to the floor. With X in it.
Red X gave an 'oof' as he hit the ground, lying inside the smoking sleigh. He looked up, shaking the dizziness from his eyes and saw a whole line full of Robot soldiers, each one carrying a rifle big enough to pass off for a small cannon. Each Robot was brilliantly painted with a red uniform, shining epaulettes and black furred shakoes. X smirked, remembering his own memories of playing with toy soldiers when he was small, this wouldn't be any different, except now his toys were just ten feet tall and carrying high explosives.
"I see….a little twerp with his own big toys. I'm not impressed." He stood up, brushing the dust off his uniform, as if the menacing robots in front of him didn't even exist.
"Attack! My puppets!" Puppet King waved his controller at Red X.
Twenty Robots leveled their muskets, and with mechanical precision fired at Red X. X simply teleported away with his stealth gear.
The entire room lit up in flame as each shell hit the other side of the store, throwing baby dolls, toy guns and stuffed animals into the air in a giant swab of flame. The Robots marched on, under the watchful eyes of their king.
They soon came to a stop.
Red X reappeared behind two robots in the line, and slapped a giant X on both their backs. The two giant Robots turned, dropping their muskets to grab him but X was too quick, he jumped onto one of the automaton's shoulders and landed on one of the beams on the roof.
Moments later, the two robots exploded, fried to a crisp by the Red electrical X's that were placed on their backs.
"Dude…just when I thought this Christmas couldn't get any weirder." Puppet Beast boy commented, dangling from his vantage point in the ceiling. It was the best view in the house and the titans watched with awe as X appeared everywhere, blowing up a Robot here, or cutting one off there. Red X shot a giant scarlet cross out of his palm, which cut through a Robot like a hot knife through butter. The Robot split into four separate chunks seconds later. Another Robot was stuck to the wall, unable to move, its joints jammed by the Red synothium goo.
"Boo yah! At least he's kicking their butts." Cyborg, for one, was all ready to cheer, so long as they can get their bodies back.
Red X indeed, was kicking butt. He took another X from his belt, throwing it like a Frisbee. The X sliced through the air, decapitating three Robots that were standing in line, before digging itself into the wall right besides Starfire's face. The Titan gave a great eep when the projectile narrowly missed her head.
X reappeared next to Starfire, standing on the blade that he threw at the wall. Even though he was outnumbered twenty to one, he still assumed his cocky demeanour, leaning casually against the wall with his arms crossed.
"So…..about that favour….." X gave Starfire a wink.
"Why….Why did you come back?" Starfire asked in amazement.
"Don't think of it as anything cutie, Stealing just wouldn't be fun in this town without you guys to keep things interesting." He smirked, then jumped off the wall, dodging another cannon shot that tore a smoking hole within the wall.
X teleported to the center of the room now, in front of the mountain of presents. He gave puppet king a glare and eyed his controller.
"You know? I think you're nothing without that little toy of yours." X began climbing the mountain of presents, jumping from one giant box to another on his way to the top, all the while dodging multiple shots from the remaining robots below.
The Puppet King however, watched without the slightest worry. "You do not frighten me. The Puppet King is in command here."
"Watch it shorty, unless you want to end up in the discount bin at the dollar store." X scaled the mountain now, jumping right in front of Puppet King's throne. The tiny villain just sat there, cackling as if he had nothing to worry about.
"There are at least five different ways I can take you apart." Red X said coolly as he took out his X-shaped blades on his wrist. They began spinning now, creating a sickening whirring sound that was similar to a buzz saw. "And I don't think you're going to like any of them."
"You want this?" The puppet king smirked, holding up the controller tauntingly in front of X. It didn't matter that his opponent towered over him. For the puppet king always wins….
"Get it." He chucked the controller behind the dark curtains behind his throne, and X instinctively ran to catch it.
X received a shock as a blue sonic blast ripped right through the curtains knocking X to the very edge of the display.
The puppet king gave a maniacal laugh, and before X could do anything, Robin and Beast Boy emerged, both body slamming the villain and sending him falling down several stories off the mountain into the floor.
X groaned sorely now, and he could barely move as the remaining dozen robots surrounded him, pointing their gun barrels menacingly at X, who seemed as helpless as a child on the floor. Cyborg, Beast Boy and Robin stood with their green glowing eyes behind the puppet king, who had already grabbed the controller and was holding it almost tauntingly in his hand. He watched with delight as his toy soldiers prepared to pull their triggers on the surrounded and disabled thief.
"Ah yes….bow….bow before your king, your superior." Puppet King taunted as Red X attempted to get up, and he was still struggling on all fours.
Red X looked up at that annoying little toy, feeling the sudden urge to rip that thing's mouth out.
"Any last words peon? Before I have my puppets annihilate you?"
X stood up, shaking from the pain, and he grunted, holding his shoulder which seemed like it was burning with fire. The Puppet king gave another triumphant laugh. He had won.
Then Red X grinned.
"Now that you mentioned it, yea shorty." He took out his two wrist X-blades.
"You're in my way."
Two explosions ripped puppet Kings arms off, and the villain recoiled, screaming. Not in pain, but in shock. In the midst of the battle, the puppet king had failed to take out the two explosive red X's that had been thrown into his wooden shoulders, and now, they went off.
X knelt on the ground, and the two X's whirred menacingly. The Robots pulled their triggers, but X was faster, he spun around on his knees, slicing at the legs of every Robot. The Robots began falling backwards, and their rifles clicked to fire harmlessly at the ceiling.
Red X teleported right in front of the puppet king, who was crawling towards his the edge of the platform with his one dangling arm. He was losing this battle, but there was still one way to win it.
X pulled no stops, he quickly brushed aside Beast Boy and Robin with a sticky red x, pinning both against the wall, while Cyborg was dispatched with in a similar fashion.
"You…..you will pay!" the Puppet king stood up facing Red X, and he realized that the controller was in Red X's hands.
"You wanted to play catch?" X balanced the Controller skillfully on one finger, then he threw it in the air. He gave a swift spinning kick before it hit the ground that sent it flying straight at the Puppet king like a dart.
The controller dug itself within Puppet King's chest, splintering his wooden body.
"GAH" The Puppet king stepped back from the concussion, closer to the edge.
"Catch Ya Later." X gave a salute, then threw one Red X at the puppet, which dug into his chest and sent him flying over the edge..
And into the blue cauldron of flame.
The Puppet King's body caught on fire immediately, and he screamed as he disappeared within the flames.
"No one……..….defies the…..puppet…ki…"
He was gone.
Brilliant flashes of light radiated around the room, and X watched with awe as several multi-coloured streaks of light flew out of the cauldron. The puppets dangling from the ceiling were radiating their own light, and Red X saw that they were streams of energy. Souls, all entering their proper bodies again.
"AW SWEET! My body!" Cyborg grunted, breaking free of the Synothium straps as he moved his arms and legs experimentally.
"Oh man! I'll never lose me again! Never." Beast Boy and Robin, breaking free from their own synothium goo, landed on the platform where Cy was standing. Beast Boy was hugging himself in joy.
The Titans however, had more to do.
"Raven?" Starfire ran to Raven as soon as the boys freed her. She groaned weakly, lying on the floor. Cyborg felt for a pulse, it was weak, and Raven was barely keeping her eyes open.
"So……weak." Raven said softly.
"The Puppet King must have drained most of her energy, but she'll be fine." Cyborg said reassuringly.
"Yes…but we still got a job to do." Robin turned and stared at Red X
Red X, taken aback, opened his eyes widely. "Oh you got to be joking kid. Even after all that!?"
"It doesn't change the fact that you are a thief, and my responsibility." Robin said, seriously as he went into a combat stance. Cyborg and Beast Boy were ready, and while Starfire tended to Raven they prepared themselves. Cyborg was charging his cannon while Beast Boy transformed into a triceratops.
X gave a casual shrug. "If you are so confident, then go ahead kid, but you don't have a chance. Not…without this."
It was no Robin's turn to open his eyes in shock and he stared at his waistline, where his equipment belt used to be.
"He …. took my belt?" Robin said dumbfoundedly.
"Call it……sweet payback." X gave a mocking wink. "Now we're even. And don't think I'll give it back to you anytime soon. "
Robin scoffed, and rushed X anyway, up until Starfire screamed.
"STOP!" She implored the two, and the two combatants stopped in their tracks.
Starfire was elated that they had listened, but there was something wrong. They were not looking at her.
The Tamaranian was about to ask what was the cause of this but she got her answer. The ground began rumbling now, and the blue fire within the cauldron shot up into the ceiling more violently than ever. A monstrous figure appeared out of the cauldron, a gigantic entity that was wrapped in blue flame. It had no form, but it was huge, almost filling the giant hallway up to the roof as it stretched out of the cauldron. Two white eyes appeared in the flames, and soon a demonic voice began filling the mall.
"NO ONE DEFIES THE PUPPET KING." The flames roared, and soon toys began flying towards the entity, covering it. All of the redcoated Robots, the dolls, the santa displays, even the mountain of presents. Every toy in the store was sucked into the flame, creating a rough shape of a body. A body made entirely out of presents. It was a sick mess as the villain now took the form of a giant monster, each part of him composed of thousands of toys. Beast Boy watched with disgust as the reindeer and the sleigh of the santa display twisted and contorted to fit within the arms, and saw that every doll in the monster was alive and moving. The presents wrapped everything together and the puppet king was an unusual mishmash of colour, toys and blue flame.
The humanoid shape kicked the cauldron now, and it towered over the titans.
"THE PUPPET KING IS IN COMMAND" he roared, and Robin watched as the Puppet king's former body was absorbed into the monster, its deranged head sticking out from the giant monster's eye.
"Well now….." Red X stared blankly at the giant monster, as if in awe of the shorty's sudden growth spurt. Suddenly, without even looking at Robin or speaking a word, he tossed the belt back to Robin.
The boy wonder caught the belt in amazement, but barely had time to utter a word for the giant creature had slammed its arm on the floor, trying to crush the heroes.
Red X vanished, while beast boy, cyborg and Robin jumped out of the way. The giant hand smashed the floor, creating a huge torrent of dust and smoke. Beast Boy watched with interest at the moving dolls and toys that made up the huge arm and all the dolls eyes freaked him out, each one staring at him with their smiling faces.
"Chew on this!" Cyborg jumped on the arm, rushing the puppet king's head with his sonic cannon. But the arm beneath his feet melted, and Cyborg watched in horror as dozens of little dolls grabbed his legs, pulling him under what seemed to be a sea of toys.
"Cyborg!" Robin shouted, and watched as the mechanical titan disappeared within the Puppet King.
"Hang on buddy!" Beast Boy transformed into a T-rex, and charged the monster. The Puppet king pulled his arm back, and then shot it forward. Sending a screaming cyborg straight into Beast Boy's face. Knocking him back into the wall.
Robin and Red X both ducked for cover as the giant monster began shooting toys at them.
Both threw explosive discs at the monster's arm, eventually knocking it off. It dissolved into a stream of toys but the puppet king assimilated them again into his body.
"Got any bright ideas kid?" Red X asked as he saw the monster reassemble itself.
"Not at the moment." Robin was holding two explosive discs in his hand, trying to get his aim towards the monster's eye, where the puppet king's toy body was.
"Always up to me isn't it?" Red X smirked, then vanished, reappearing above the monster.
"Hope you're hungry." Red X smirked as the monster opened its 'mouth' to roar. He shot a barrage of explosive red X's into the head, each blast distorted the head even more, eventually sending his entire body flattening on the ground like a blob of toys.
"Time to wrap this up." He fired a gigantic X of Synothium goo, tying the monster down on the ground.
"Your move kid." Red X shouted, and Robin nodded.
He took out his bo staff, twirled it skillfully and climbed the Puppet King's monster body to reach his eye. As he ran, toys jumped out from the body, trying to grab him and pull him under all that mess.
Robin skillfully dodged it all. Jumping on doll's heads and avoiding the hundreds of arms that sprouted from the body, he eventually reached the top and saw the Puppet King's original doll, glowing fiercely with blue flame. This must be the center of the monster….
"Look out!"
A giant tentacle made out of toys emerged behind Robin, grabbing him from behind.
Red X dove down from the roof, but was eventually caught by another one of Puppet King's gigantic arms.
"All those who oppose me will be destroyed " The Puppet king's voice was unnaturally deep and menacing. A third arm sprouted from the sea of toys, this one made up of parts from all the Robots they had destroyed. The "fingers" of the arm were really the rifles that each soldier carried and now the Puppet king pointed them all at the two adversaries.
It looked like it was over.
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"How did he get so strong?" Starfire, still fighting off several huge toy arms, fired wildly, trying to protect Raven, who still lay weakly on the ground.
"He absorbed my magic…" Raven replied weakly.
"Well? What must we do?" Starfire asked, then saw that robin and Red X were now in the puppet King's grasps.
"ROBIN!" She shouted.
"Don't worry Starfire." Raven replied…."It'll be alright…."
She took one deep breath. Her strength was nearly sapped, so she had to put all her strength, all her concentration into this one attack. Her eyes glowed in white energy, while her body became shrouded in black.
"Azerath…..Metrion….ZINTHOS!"
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The last words echoed throughout the chamber, allowing even Robin and Red X to hear.
The Puppet King's arm was shrouded in black, and it was shaking, as if it was trying to move, but was unable to. Then the arm began falling apart, the black magic tearing each piece out with fine precision.
The arms holding Robin and Red X dissolved as well, and it was their chance.
"We got no time to waste!" They both ran, but a toy had grabbed Robin's foot, tripping him in the process.
The bo staff flew wildly in the air, before being caught by Red X. He watched as the hundreds of tiny doll arms began dragging Robin down into the sea of toys.
Red X ignored that, and instead looked at the cackling puppet, which glowed in bright blue aura in the head of the monster. X took the bo staff in one hand and aimed it like a javelin.
"Play time's over."
X sent the bo staff flying straight at the Puppet King's doll. The metal made a sickening cracking sound as it went straight through the Puppet King's wooden forhead, shattering it into a million pieces.
"Nooooooooo" The Puppet King roared, the blob of toys contorted and convulsed as the magic left it, all of it returning back to its rightful owner. Raven began feeling the power flow back to her now, and the Titans watched in awe as the gigantic monster dissolved into a mountain of toys. The pile twitched as the monster went through its deaththroes.
The Five titans gathered around the shattered pieces of the Puppet king, which did not move and did not talk.
The Puppet King was defeated. For good.
"I dunno about you guys…but I want to go home." Cyborg said tiredly, and he was met with a wave of consenting groans.
"It's been, a long night. Come! Let us all return and so that we may celebrate the day of boxing!"
"Home sounds good." Raven gave a slight smile.
"Something bothering you dude?" Beast Boy said to Robin.
"look." Robin pointed to a spot on the floor. Every toy and present was piled into the center of the room, where the Puppet King was defeated, but there, out in the open, were a pile of presents, seemingly untouched.
"Our gifts!" Starfire was elated, and the five titans rushed to see if it really was theirs. However, although they were happy, something wasn't right.
There were only three presents.
"Ok, it seems that this is for Beast Boy. Raven here's yours. And this is mine." Cyborg sorted through the presents with rapid efficiency.
"But where are ours?" Starfire asked with concern. Then her face saddened as it became painfully obvious that neither her nor robin's presents were there.
"Another question you can ask is….Where is X?" Robin said in an angered voice, not because of the presents, but also because he had so easily forgotten about the villain. The store was quiet, too quiet, and the titans now realized that the villain had gone.
"He should be long gone by now. Don't worry man, let it go. The guy saved us. No need to be so upset by it. We can always buy more presents." Cyborg gave a consoling hand on the shoulder.
Robin, half tempted to track down X even through Christmas eve, nodded condescendingly.
"Alright Titans. Let's go home."