Consciousness returned slowly to the Teen Titans. But for most of them, it was hard to tell. For they had awoken into a nightmare as terrible as any they could possibly have dreamt.
Each lay in a terrible prison cell upon a slab of metal, their arms and legs spread and individually strapped down with bands of steel, as well as around their necks and hips. The restraints were not comfortable, made no effort to be comfortable, and in some cases bit deep into their skin because of how tight they were. Beyond that, they were lined up facing the other end of their cell, which was a glass wall and single door with a keycode access. From the outside only. Inside, it looked like everything was just short of airtight, and only stopping that short because they wanted their prisoners alive and breathing. They hadn't done much else, hadn't cleaned up the Titan's or patched up their wounds. Raven's forehead was still bleeding across half of her face, and to describe Cyborg as a mess would have been a compliment at this point.
And Robin… well, Robin made Cyborg look pleasant in comparison. When the four members of Tartarus had attacked, they hadn't pulled any punches, and they'd beat him damn near to death. His body was black with bruises and covered in a multitude of superficial cuts. He looked worse than the time Slade had tried to crack the city with seismic generators and they'd had a 'polite' argument about it.
Each Titan was individual chained as well, with designs specifically made to counteract their powers. Starfire's bands were a glowing crimson, simulating a red energy that sapped Tamaranian strength and vitality as easily as red sunlight would affect a Kryptonian. Raven's bonds were a glowing white made of pure magical energy that just as easily blocked her access to magic. Cyborg's were only the latest and more durable titanium steel three inches thick. And Beastboy's were a malleable and stretchable material not unlike a tight rubber band, which would've held him regardless of what form he took.
And on the other side of the glass was the fearsome visage of Deathfang, their jailer. His heavy breathing had steamed up the glass beneath his massive maw. Beside him stood Blackfire, who looked considerably shorter when standing beside the behemoth.
"How's it feel to be on the other side of the bars, Titans?" she asked playfully.
Robin made no reply, he simply glared at her. Most of the other Titans were unconscious. Except for Beastboy, but he was shivering. Not a good sign. Even in the most heated situation Beastboy was usually able to keep his cool and crack a joke or two. But now... he was scared.
That didn't make Robin feel any better either.
Blackfire smirked, keying in a code and stepping inside the prison with the prisoners as she floated over towards Starfire's shackled form, idly tilting her head. "So very sad to see you like this, sister dearest. Honestly... but I won't let you keep stealing away what's mine. I am the rightful ruler of Tamaran. It's in my blood."
Starfire, unconscious, made no response.
But Blackfire took that as a personal insult, and in seconds her visage turned from sweet and concerned to angry and vengeful, and without hesitation she slugged Starfire full in the gut, 'causing her to gasp in shock and return instantly to consciousness. But Blackfire wasn't done, and gave her another two harsh, powerful blows to follow it. Not designed to injure her, really, but hurt like hell.
"Leave her alone!" shouted Robin, squirming against his bands. But try as he might, he couldn't break free. They were specially designed, customized locks. They knew how good he was, and they'd been preparing accordingly. None of the other Titans could offer much aid at the moment either.
Blackfire paused in mid-punch, glancing over at Robin. "Why?" she hissed at him darkly.
"She hasn't done anything to you to deserve it!"
"She stole my birthright!" shouted back Blackfire, zipping over to hover right in front of Robin, her face inches from his. "All my life, I have been neglected and ignored in favor of her!" she said, pointing one long finger at her sister, who was choking for breath. "And when I finally attain rulership of Tamaran she steals that away from me!"
"Because you tried to marry her off against her will," replied Robin darkly.
"That was in Tamaran's best interests!" she roared, her eyes glowing bright lavender. But despite the certain death they promised, Robin had no fear. If anything, he would've welcomed it, so he pressed on.
"Tamaran's... or yours?" he shot back.
"Rrrrr...!"
She reared back a hand, preparing to smash his skull in...
"Kormand'r!"
She halted in mid-swing, inches away from Robin's nose, and glanced over her shoulder.
Outside the prison, the Ravager, Malchior and Brother Blood had joined them. The Ravager did not look pleased in the least. "Save your anger for more important purposes. Now get out of that cell. We want them alive for now."
Kormand'r of Tamaran, known among Earthlings and throughout the galaxy as the notorious Blackfire, growled at her employer but reluctantly powered down. However, upon spotting her sister finally conscious and able to watch and listen to all that was going on, Blackfire decided one last little blow wouldn't hurt. However, instead of floating back over to Starfire, she grabbed Robin's short black hair and yanked his head forward so she could kiss him full and hard on the lips. She made it brief, he almost tried to bite her, but she moved quickly out of the way, laughing gleefully as she floated out of the cell. Robin instantly spat into a corner of the prison as if he'd tasted something foul, biting back a curse.
On the other side of the cell, Starfire was horrified by her sister's actions.
"Deathfang," ordered the Ravager. "Keep an eye on our guests here. The rest of you with me, we have a meeting."
Deathfang growled at the Ravager's back as she and her cohorts departed down the corridor, but reluctantly grabbed a pack of his dark green anti-serum and injected it into his body, allowing himself to revert into the smaller, thinner form of Adonis. This done, he grabbed up a coat to keep himself decent and sat down in a chair opposite the Titan's cell and began to read a magazine, paying only cursory attention to them.
"Uhm... any ideas?" asked Beastboy quietly.
Starfire strained against her bonds, testing them... but it was in vain. She couldn't break free. None of them could. Raven's powers were all but gone and diminished to a fraction of her strength without Anger and her chakram. Cyborg's powercell was low. And Robin...
"Yo Robin, any ideas?" asked Cyborg, testing his own bonds. So far, no luck. With low power his strength was that of an average human. Maybe a bit higher than average, considering how big he was, but he couldn't hope to muster enough strength to bend steel in his current state. Besides, he was torn up pretty bad. None of the Titans could look at him below his neck, they didn't want to see how badly his armor plate had been torn up, how his circuits hung loose like organs and entrails, and he was damn lucky he couldn't feel any real pain, just a nagging discomfort. His left leg's support circuit had been severed. Even if he could get loose he wouldn't be able to stumble very far.
Robin made no reply.
"Robin?" pressed Cyborg. "Come on man I know you, you figured a way out of here yet?"
"No," replied Robin darkly.
"Uh... don't you mean not yet?" asked Raven.
"No... I mean not going to," he replied, lowering his head, resting his chin against the neck-brace, and closing his eyes.
"Robin what're you talking about! Come on man we gotta get out of here!" said Beastboy, re-doubling his efforts to squirm loose of his restraints. With no luck. And he dare not try shapeshifting in his current predicament.
Robin made no reply.
"ROBIN!"
A harsh banging on the glass drew the four remaining Titan's as Adonis pounded on the cell wall with his fist. "Keep it down in there!" he shouted angrily.
"Or what?" spat back Beastboy.
Adonis frowned darkly, the lines around his eyes more evident to just how tired he was, and he reached down as if to key in the code and allow him access to the cell. Instead, he slapped another key sitting beside the console, and Beastboy suddenly got electrocuted by a burst of energy that frizzled his hair and filled the entire cell with the scent of burnt flesh. Thankfully, the voltage had been low.
"Had to ask, didn't you?" jibbed Raven sarcastically.
Adonis smirked. "I got four more buttons beside that one," he said, his hand still on the panel. "Anyone else care to mouth off?" Unsurprisingly, all the other Titans kept their mouths shut. "Good. Now I'm going to go read. Keep... it... down."
The Titans waited a long while until Adonis had gone back to his reading again before they dare talk to one another, and now they were very careful to keep their voices low. Robin hadn't reacted during the whole exchange. He might have been asleep. But he wasn't. But he wasn't being any use now.
"What now?" asked Cyborg quietly.
"There must be some way to escape this cell," said Raven, her voice equally low, her eyes narrow in concentration.
"No... there isn't," came Robin's voice. "Tartarus knows us. They know our weaknesses inside and out better than we do. They'll never give us a chance to escape. There's nothing we can do."
"Rrrr... there has to be something!" said Cyborg, his voice rising to a normal speaking level in his anger. He again strained against his bonds. And again was met by failure.
"Yes, there must be some way out of this unpleasant place," said Starfire. "We will free ourselves and..."
"... and then what?" asked Robin darkly. "Beat Tartarus, save the day, live happily ever after?" He did not raise his head, and thus could not see Starfire's expression. It looked... broken. "We've lost. Don't you get it yet? We can't win."
A moment of silence filled the cell as each Titan let Robin's words sink in.
"Wow..." said Raven, after a moment or two. "And I thought I was depressing."
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"Deathfang is a fool."
The Ravager smirked, idly lifting her legs up to rest atop of the table as she leaned back in her chair. "Of course he is, Blackfire. But he is one that can be useful, if his leash is kept tight."
"I agreed with the warrior maiden," added Malchior. "I say we eliminate him and be done with Deathfang. We have no further need of him. The Titans are ours."
"Oh by all means," said Ravager, waving her hand.
This raised some eyebrows. "You're not gonna stop us?" asked Blackfire, curiosity stretched over her features.
"Of course not," said the Ravager. "Please, go right ahead and kill Deathfang if he bothers you. This meeting is over anyway."
Blackfire didn't need any further encouragement. Malchior either, it seemed, and they made their way to the sliding doors as the Ravager and the others stood. The doors had just begun to hiss open as the Ravager's voice called out after them.
"However... you two would be doing him a favor by killing him now, you know," she stated.
This got their interest.
"What do you mean?" they asked, nearly simultaneously.
"Deathfang is already dying."
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Five years ago, Deathfang (back then just Adonis) had broken into a animal research laboratory with his new metal armor, hoping to make a name for himself as the villain who'd defeated the Titans. And, naturally, they hadn't been able to help sticking their noses in too far. Adonis had given them a run for their money, his armors design making him impervious to the majority of their attacks. But Beastboy had found a way to break past Adonis's designs and knocked them both into a wave of chemical sludge that had instantly changed both of them. Changed them into... monsters. But even his newfound power as the werebeast Adonis had not been enough for him to best the Titans, and he'd met defeat once more. The Titans had hauled him off to jail and purged his system of the toxins, same as they'd done to Beastboy.
But Adonis had tasted true power that day, and was loathe to let it go so easily.
That was when the Ravager had come for him.
She and Chang had concocted the serum that now adorned his belt and permitted for a transformation into his larger-than-life form as a purple werebeast, and now no longer was he Adonis, but Deathfang. A truly feared and hated monster who had, at long last, defeated his enemies.
Unfortunately, there was one element on which the Ravager had purposefully left Deathfang unaware of.
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"... he is dying," she said again, after finishing her tale (primarily for Malchior's benefit, since Blackfire already knew bits and pieces of the story). "The serum is like a drug, and he cannot help but want more and more of it as time goes on. He also cannot feel how the drug is destroying him from the inside out. Surely you've noticed before he's becoming weaker and weaker in human form? He cannot notice, because he no longer cares about his human form. He says it is weakness, and I for one am inclined to let him indulge this foolish fantasy."
"Just how long... does the poor beast have?" asked Malchior, though the tone of his voice suggested he was almost gleeful, instead of sympathetic.
"A month, perhaps two," replied the Ravager. "The serum is required in stronger and stronger doses to last for a reasonable amount of time. Sooner or later, he will overdose... and Deathfang will be no concern for us."
"Now then," said the Ravager, bringing things back to the proper conversation. "Malchior, you know your part to play?"
"I will research the spell immediately," he replied, departing with a whirl of his cloak.
"Good. Report to me when you are finished," called out the Ravager as the doors hissed shut, leaving her alone with Brother Blood and Blackfire, who exchanged smirks.
"He too is expendable, you realize... after the spell is finished," said Blood without preamble.
"Of course," replied the Ravager. "So much easier to split the world in three than into four."
"Keep your world," said Blackfire. "I want no part of this backwater planet. I only want Tamaran. Once we're done here, we can head to my home world."
Brother Blood and the Ravager exchanged a very brief glance, careful not to let Blackfire notice it.
"Of course," said Blood at once. "Tamaran is next. And with our newly raised armies, your people will be subjugated with little effort, Princess."
"Empress," Blackfire replied haughtily, though it was more to herself than Blood. "I will be Empress of the Tamaranian Empire once more. Grand Ruler. Even Galifore will have to recognize my claims now. None can stand against me with the sort of power I wield."
"And with Tartarus at your side, your victory is assured," added the Ravager's sibilant voice. "Simply do not forget about us when you rule over Vega."
"Earth will be spared. As if I give a damn about this world," she said, making her way to the exit of the room. "I am going to do some tanning."
Tanning of course meaning that Blackfire would be sleeping, lying on a bed designed not unlike a tanning booth, only that it bombarded her body continually with yellow sunlight, specifically designed to enhance and empower her while she slept.
"Pleasant dreams," called out Brother Blood over his shoulder at her.
Again, the doors hissed shut.
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This was the inner core of Tartarus. Brother Blood and the Ravager. They were it's true leaders. They promised something of a democracy among their three other members but in truth they were the ones in charge. They were the ones with the power. The Ravager's influence and financial power had enabled Tartarus to begin, and Brother Blood's hypnotism and technological prowess had given them quite the edge. His custom-designed Titan prison was testimony to this. And it was still only the beginning for Tartarus.
Their plans had not yet been completed. Taking over Jump City had been only the beginning.
What was their goal? What were they ultimately after?
The only thing that mattered.
Everything.
"Did you happen to put 'gullible' down onto our Tartarus resumes?" asked Blood with a smirk, leaning against the back of his chair as the Ravager slid back into her own, plopping her legs up on the table.
"Of course not," she replied. "That is the nature of villains... they always expect back-stabbing. The difficult is pinpointing when and whom. Which is why I divulged that information to Blackfire and Malchior. We wouldn't want them taking out our pawn too soon. He can still be useful to us."
"And them?"
"As soon as the spell is completed Malchior's use to us becomes... very limited. And he cannot be controlled either, with that attitude of his and his single-minded quest to return to his natural form. Thus, only one viable option. Can I trust you to carry it out?"
"Of course. A sorcerer may be powerful but that doesn't give him eyes in the back of his head," he replied, holding up a detonator in his hand, flipping open the top to reveal the covered button beneath. What it did was easy to deduce, as he flipped back the lid to cover it and not set it off by accident. It would leave quite a mess behind after all.
"Or his stomach," added the Ravager with a smirk. Blood had slipped it into Malchior's food.
"And what of Blackfire?"
"More difficult to say," she replied. "She will, of course, be devastated by the news we intercepted from the Watchtower. And you and I both know full well how the Tamaranian temper is. Better we keep her in the dark for the time being."
Brother Blood nodded.
"Still, once she has settled down, Earth might be all she has left. We can offer her a third... that is hardly unreasonable, isn't it?"
"Not unreasonable at all. We will have to see. What if she does become a threat?"
"Then she will die," replied the Ravager darkly. "I will see to that myself. But enough plotting for now... I feel like celebrating. The Titans are beaten, the city is ours!"
"Your father could not have done better himself," intoned Brother Blood respectfully.
The Ravager felt a thrill run through her at the compliment. She hoped her father could see how successful her exploits had been. All that she'd done in his name. All she'd done to avenge his death.
Father, she thought, her eyes moist with unshed tears. Angrily she blinked them away. I hope I've made you proud.
The Ravager turned her seat around, facing the monitor, partially to watch and partially to hide her tears from Brother Blood. He couldn't know, couldn't see her show any sign of weakness. As she'd said, their whole organization was backstabbing, only a matter of when and whom. She did not intend to make herself vulnerable like this.
Little did she know Blood was intent on betraying the Ravager as well. After a certain point, of course. But it was he who had suggested they keep the Titans alive so they could suffer, and she who had agreed in order to torment Robin. But he had in truth suggested it so that he could keep Raven alive. She was the key. The key to the ultimate purpose of the Blood legacy. So it was foretold. That Raven would open the portal, and Trigon would purify the world, cleanse it of all but the Blood followers. And it would be made into a paradise unrivalled.
Until then, of course, Raven had to be kept alive, and Blood had to work with Tartarus.
"Let's see how the world's finest are doing?" she asked playfully, unaware of his inner musings.
Her finger tapped a key, and the image of the captured Titans vanished from the screen, replaced seconds later by a view of the darkshield border. Communication through the shield was just short of impossible for those who did not know the correct frequency to use, and only the members of Tartarus knew that. Thus, her spy cameras could still provide information, and the Ravager could reach her contacts in other cities and countries around the world, but none of the Jump City officials could reach the US Government or the Justice League, nor could anyone on the outside contact the citizens of Jump City and let them know they were still doing their utmost to rescue them.
And failing, of course.
A half-dozen attacks had been launched at the darkshield, each one unable to leave so much as a dent in the shadowy surface. Nevermind that Superman was more powerful than a speeding locomotive, he slammed ineffectively against the barrier. The same with Atom Smasher, the giant, who could've peered over the dome but still couldn't leave a scratch with his fists the sizes of buildings. All the power of the Green Lantern's ring wouldn't make a dent. J'onn couldn't phase through, the shield worked at all frequencies save the one that Tartarus knew, and that was designed to keep the martian out. Nor would the Nth metal mace allow Hawkgirl to smash an opening. Batman was, predictably, trying to figure out a way to open the shield, but so far with little luck. They wouldn't have any luck burrowing underneath either. Their "dome" was in fact a sphere, and completely encompassed the city from all directions.
Batman had also been trying to contact the Titans. Again, with no luck. Not that they would have heard him even if he could get a broadcast through, given their current living conditions.
And the shield bought Tartarus much-needed time to enact the final phase of their plan here in Jump City. When they finally dropped the shield and emerged, not even the Justice League would be able to stop them. No one would be able to stop them. They would sweep across the entire planet and claim it as their own. The galaxy could wait... but perhaps that would be next.
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Author's Notes:
The idea of the glass-specially-designed-prisons primarily comes from Justice League's 'A Better World' but also draws on certain elements of the chairs seen in the beginning of 'Mad Mod.' The majority of Adonis' tale, up until he was imprisoned, comes from 'Beast Within.' The idea of a sphere-like impenetrable dome I stole from X-Men Evolution: Apocalypse's pyramid spheres. Next time: The Titans attempt a daring escape.
It has come to my attention that, indeed, a vicious error has occurred in my story. While I did mean for only five years to have passed since the Titan's humble beginnings, I have kept saying ten. Blame it on a lack of sleep and overdose of caffeine. Five years. I'll be working to fix it in previous chapters.
TDG3RD: Surprisingly I won't be quite as mean to Raven… I've had my kicks with her, I'm moving on to likelier victims. And indeed, this story is far from done.
Anwen: Being British rocks. You get the cool accent, just like me. But yeah… actually living in Britain can be bad.
Todd fan: I have not yet begun to smite!
Blackbird: Whenever Beastboy is concerned, even against his mortal enemy, I try to insert a smidgen more humor. And I love that quote. It ain't easy to write action for large groups either, and I will enjoy much more breaking them back down again, but thank you.
Seth-Turtle: Truthfully, I considered both of this first, but they sound horrible, and then I thought of the Ravager's origins, and it came to me in a flash of brilliant (or madness, pick your poison). And I'm glad you caught the subtle symbolism of the darkshield as well.
Ray1: Er, impact in that her head cracked on the pavement? 'cause she's kinda dead now… turning to stone and getting shattered kinda does that to you. No, seriously, I have one last plan for Terra, but it won't impact the story majorly.
Scathac's Warrior: You do it. Me, I'll leave fighting Tartarus to the professional young heroes.
Tigress419: Oh just you wait… I have much, much more planned. This will be, likely, my finest and final Titan story. And like 'Graduation,' I intend to leave the Titan-verse with a bang. Several, if it can be arranged.
Yomiori-Wolfdemon: No comment on the fact that all the Titans got served? How Beastboy was beaten close to death by Deathfang? Nothing? Hmmm… I must not be doing a good job. I must do better.
ViciousAssassin: Later, one on one. And believe me, I can't wait, doing big groups like this can be tough. By my observation of Titan's East, the original Brother Blood didn't alter his legs, since they look the same pre- and post-cybernetic enhancements. I am simply theorizing on why. Glad you enjoyed the violence.
Pnaixrose: So I'm told but it could be a lie. Only 117? Psch, the M rating must've scared away most of my regular crowd. I'm disappointed, truthfully.
Gray17: Thank you for pointing that out. Blame the caffeine.
Elrohirthewriter: Feather fall? More like free fall. Yeah as you can see most of the Titans, even the old one, are in bad shape. And there's more to my theory about Raven's powers, she's not quite as bad off as some may think. More explained later.
JBTheMan: I do hope you're continuing to enjoy the story, as well as my particular anti-Titan line-up. I worked hard to try and create something both believable and threatening.
WhIMsiCAl IMpULsE: Well thank you, glad to see an old fan back to enjoy my latest work.