Chapter Three: Junction

As my consciousness returned the next morning, I could feel the warm sunlight streaming into my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to believe that I was still at Titans Tower. I wanted to return to Gaia, visit everyone at Balamb Garden, and…Squall. He was waiting for me, I assumed.

"Rinny…wake up…time for practice!" I jolted awake as Cyborg screeched into my ear. The Titans hadn't mentioned that my training would be this early. At that point, I realized that early was an understatement. It was 6:30 AM and they wanted me to fight? Not even Squall was that tough on his trainees.

"Not up yet?" Cyborg laughed. Suddenly, I felt a metal arm on my waist, throwing me over his shoulder. I decided not to protest, since I could never make him budge anyway. Eventually, he stopped and jerked his arm forward. I was tossed into the frigid waters of a pool, sinking fast. I ripped off my duster, since it was weighing me down, and struggled for the surface. I was a good swimmer, having practiced with Zone and Watts in Timber during my Forest Owl days. However, all the clothing and equipment I wore weighed me down.

As I was wrestling with my heavy equipment pack, I felt someone grab my hand. My rescuer and I kicked toward the surface, but the person stopped just before reaching it. I finally opened my eyes to see Robin gesturing toward me, mouthing something that looked like "Blizzard". I understood, forming the spell and planting a newly created snowball in his hand. I made one for myself and we broke the surface, hitting Cyborg square in the chest with our creations.

"Uh, Rin?" Cyborg looked a little nervous. "You can come out now." He leaned toward the somewhat murky water (it being a very dark blue) and called to the girl again. "Rino-ow!" He fell backwards, glancing at the snowballs that hit his chest. "Snowballs…what the…ROBIN!" He whirled around, pointing an accusing finger at us. Robin and I emerged from the water, laughing.

"Good one!" Beast Boy cheered, clutching a container of fresh tofu.

Raven and Starfire nodded from behind him. Apparently, the pool was a popular hangout in the morning. Raven approached the frigid waters, her hands glowing black. My duster and equipment pack flew into my arms instantly.

"Thanks, Raven." I smiled at her, and she nodded. Starfire giggled as she helped Cyborg brush the snowballs off his chest.

"Awake yet?" Cyborg asked me, grinning despite his humiliation.

"Yeah, no thanks to you!" I smacked his arm playfully.

"Okay then, now that everyone is up and running, it's training time!" The other Titans groaned at Robin's happy tone. He had miraculously changed into his uniform in a matter of seconds. I cast a weak Aero spell, drying myself off with the power of the winds, and then followed the others into the training room.

I gazed around, fascinated by the equipment. There was an observatory deck above the grounds. Various robots, lasers, pits, and obstacles waited for Titans to smash past them. I snapped out of my amazement when Raven declared:

"Newbies first." She grinned at me, wondering what kind of terror I would endure, being inexperienced and all. Beast Boy nodded, drooling slightly at the sight of Raven. I sighed, readying my pinwheel. They flew up to the observatory deck, where the others were waiting.

"Ready?" Cyborg called.

"Set!" I answered back, uneasiness creeping into my shout.

"GO!" The Titans cheered as I jumped out of a laser beam's path. I started running, and a pack of robot warriors raced toward me. I readied a Tornado spell, blasting them out of my way with the forces of wind. However, one braved the tornado and lunged at me, slicing my leg. I fired the Pinwheel at him, and it sliced the robot enough to disable him. Unfortunately, his buddies were recovering and coming back.

"BLIND!" I yelled, casting a cloud of darkness over their eyes. It seemed to work for a minute, and they stumbled about. Unfortunately, they were equipped with sound sensors and fired at the sound of my voice. I was hit in the leg, and I crumpled to the floor.

They were advancing on me, and I had no time to worry about healing myself. "Firaga! Thundaga! Blizzaga! Waterga! Tornado! Quake! Flare! Holy!" The robots were attacked with every elemental spell I knew, but Mother Nature's forces, not even the holy light, could save me. I closed my eyes, waiting for the end, when I felt power surge through my veins. My body was being pushed to its limits, and the situation called for a Limit Break.

The white wings sewn onto the back of my duster sprouted into real wings, lifting me off the ground. My magic was scrambled in my head, its power surging past my normal limitations. I hovered above the troops, tapping into my power.

A series of meteors, large and small, came hurtling from nowhere. Robots were crushed into pieces one by one, and the power kept flowing. I flew past other laser beams and some axes, frying them with a supercharged Flare. I weaved around boulders, cutting through with a superpowered Waterga. Spell after spell was fired, and the obstacles were cleared out of my way.

Once it was over, the lights dimmed and then returned to full brightness. I sank to the ground, wings fading into my back once more. The Titans rushed to my side instantly. Starfire offered me a healing potion from my pack, which I accepted gratefully. Beast Boy chattered unintelligibly, making wild gestures in my direction. Cyborg rushed to the computer, assessing the damage to the training mechanisms and working on repairs. Raven helped Cyborg, lifting various instruments back into place.

Robin led me upstairs into a small room and handed me a written test, which quizzed me on what I would do in certain situations involving crimefighting, first aid, and crowd control. I breezed through it, thanks in part to what I learned from Squall after he took the SeeD written tests. He marked it a half hour later, satisfied with my grade.

"Um…the training exam, the written test, all the whispering, what does it mean?" I asked him.

"You'll hear from us in a few hours. Just relax for now, okay?" He smiled and waved me into the main room, where I flipped through the television channels. I found the local food channel and was copying down another interesting recipe when Starfire burst into the room, grinning.

"Friend Rinoa, you must come with me now!" She tugged me into her bedroom and handed me a slip of paper. "Memorize this!" She grinned at me again, and I stared at the paper blankly. It read:

I, Rinoa Heartilly, solemnly swear to uphold peace and order in Jump City. I will defend citizens in the name of truth and justice, defending the honor of heroes and humans around the globe. I am willing to dedicate my life to the struggle against injustice as a Teen Titan.

I glanced up at Starfire's delighted expression. "Wait, so…the battle, the training, the written test, the secret whispering…all that was about me becoming a Titan?"

"Yes, friend Rinoa, we have decided to initiate you into our team. This is the pledge you will recite in front of the city.

"The city? We're going to City Hall?"

"No, you will recite the pledge on top of the tower, facing our city."

"That's a relief."

"Now come! We must go there now!"

The paper fluttered to the ground as Starfire and I raced to the tower's roof.