32 Productions Presents…

A HIVE Team Story

The HIVE Team In…

"The Return"

Chapter Two

SPACE!

Krystal drummed on the control panel, her chin resting on her other hand. She had been eager to go after the Titans but…

Krystal: Are we there yet?

Mammoth: Do you SEE a planet!

Krystal: …how much longer?

Krystal was bored. Very, very, undeniably and completely bored. Unfortunately when Krystal was bored, she tried to play games with people…annoying ones.

Krystal: Hey, who wants to play I spy?

Jinx: Gizmo, cut her mike! If you have any decency in you, you'll cut the mike!

Gizmo: I didn't put anything like that in the ship!

Krystal: I spy with my little eye something that's…black.

Silence.

Jinx: Sonic, DO something!

There was no reply. Sonic had cut off all sound in his pod a while back. It was somewhere after the sixth "are we there yet" that he made everything silent. He'd just wait for his console to glow or something.

Krystal: Sonic doesn't wear black! Silly Jinx!

Blackfire: (bored) Is it space?

Krystal: Yeah! You're a mind reader, Black Jack!

Blackfire hit her head on the console in front of her. That's when she noticed their current heading.

Blackfire: Hey, you're going the wrong way, Gizmo! Tamaran isn't in this direction!

Gizmo: I'm not GOING to Tamaran! I'm following their signal!

Blackfire: But…if they're not going to Tamaran…where are they going?

Krystal: Oh my god, no!

Mammoth: What?

Krystal: He's not going to Tamaran! He's going…

HOME

The HIVE ship landed in a disaster area. Houses were on fire. Bodies were on the ground. Blood splattered about. The HIVE climbed out of the ship. Krystal sank to her knees.

Krystal: No…no, this wasn't supposed to happen. We were never supposed to come back here again!

Red X put her hand on the crying girl's shoulder.

Red X: Don't cry, Krystal…you have to be strong for those still alive.

Krystal wiped her eyes and stood up.

Krystal: You're right. I can cry later. Come on, I think I know where they're go…

Suddenly the world seemed to twist and spin. The HIVE lost their balance and fell to their knees. They felt terribly nauseated. Through the twisting and whirling haze their vision had become, they saw five figures before them. It was hard to make them out, but there was a skinny short red head with unnaturally huge eyes. They were currently glowing and it didn't take a genius to determine that it was from her that their balance problem came from. Behind her was a hulking thing that vaguely resembled a man. It seemed to be made of numerous things. Wood, metal, stone, even water, all these things were a part of it, swirling around constantly…but that could have been their eyes playing tricks. Behind that one was something that sort of resembled a woman...if you squinted. Her…his…its body was composed of floating rocks. They weren't visibly connected, yet they held in place all the same. Leaning on the one made of various minerals was a man who seemed to be made from millions and millions of little dots. Lastly was a woman who was utterly ablaze. She crackled and popped like a bonfire.

Dot Person: Told ya there would be more of them.

Gizmo: Why do they all speak English?

Everyone ignored Gizmo's very good question.

Flaming Woman: Did you really think that just because we're a small planet that we'd give in to invaders easily?

Krystal: We're NOT invaders!

The woman with the huge eyes snorted.

Huge Eyes: You come here and attack us. You light fire to our buildings and slaughter everyone, women and children included, that you see. If that's not an invader, I don't know what is. Mineral, you know what to do.

The man made of numerous things nodded and raised his hands. The ground rose up and formed a cell around the HIVE.

Huge Eyes: You'll stay in there until we find your partners.

It took a moment for them to recover from the effects of the woman's gaze. Mammoth stood up and cracked his knuckles.

Mammoth: They've got to be kidding.

Mammoth pulled his fist back and slammed it against the wall. He hissed and pulled his hand back, shaking it.

Mammoth: Wow, that's hard.

Small House

The woman woke up slowly, her head throbbing. She began to recall what had happened. Her husband and she were settling in for the night when the door burst open and several teenagers rushed in. They were subdued quickly. Something struck her in the back of her head. Strangely…she thought she had seen…

Cyborg: All rise. The trial of Shade versus his parents, the Honorable Judge Robin presiding.

Her eyes widened as she got a better look at her surroundings. Her husband was tied up next to her, confused as she was, no doubt. On her right was a girl made of stone. She had a tie made of stone around her neck and a stone brief case in front of her. Across the room was another table. Leaning against it, a wide grin on her face was a pale skin girl with a crimson cloak…and not much else. Next to her…was that bastard monster of a son of hers! She should have known he was responsible for this! All this extra furniture, including the jury box and the judge's…podium…thing was also made of stone. A girl in Tamaranian style clothes sat at a typewriter. In the jury box was a bored looking green teen, his feet propped on the box. Next to the judge was a large robot.

Cyborg: I said, ALL RISE DAMMIT!

Changeling shot up in his chair. The others did the same. Terra forced the two next to her to stand. Robin nodded, his fingers folded in front of him.

Robin: Be seated.

Everyone sat back down. He picked up the gavel (made of stone) and slammed it down.

Robin: I call this court to order.

Terra leaned over to the tied up couple, winking.

Terra: Don't you worry. I haven't lost a case yet.

She frowned and rubbed her chin.

Terra: Of course I've never HAD a case before…but still, that's technically true.

Did you ever get that sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach?

"Jail Cell"

At the same time the HIVE were still trying to get out of the cell. Jinx tried hexing the walls, but they just reformed after falling apart. Blackfire's strength and starbolts were as useless as Mammoth was. Gizmo had nothing to work with really so he couldn't help. Red X had the same problem, there being no actual lock on the cell and all. Hell, there wasn't even a door really. Krystal sat on the floor, her legs tucked under her chin. Gizmo turned to her.

Gizmo: Would you get off your ass and help?

Krystal: …it's hopeless. There is no way out of here. I can't even escape with my powers. The cell will just reform around us when we teleport out.

Nobody had ever seen Krystal like this before. Out of all of them, she was always the most optimistic. Always grinning, always trying to cheer people up…and now she was just staring at the wall.

Jinx: There has to be a way out.

Krystal: No there doesn't! There isn't ALWAYS a way out, Jinx! Sometimes things go wrong and you CAN'T fix them! The Titans…Doctor Steiner…me…you can't fix everything when it goes wrong…

Krystal resumed staring at the wall. Blackfire sighed.

Blackfire: Sorry about this, babe.

Before Krystal could ask what she meant, Blackfire slapped her.

Blackfire: Maybe there IS no way out. But that doesn't mean we should sit here and wait. People's lives are at stake, not just ours! Now think! How does the cell keep reforming around us!

Krystal stared at her for a moment, rubbing her cheek.

Krystal: …Mineral keeps it together with his power.

Krystal's eyes widened.

Krystal: …he's outside. He has to be. Mineral can't control his power from a great distance. Vertigo, Speck, Bomb Blast, and Chunks won't be around either. If they were, we'd already be dead.

Sonic grinned.

Sonic: This will take a minute or two…but I think I've got this.

Trial

Robin: Prosecution may begin opening statement.

Raven stood up, her grin fading. She put on a serious face, though inside she was delighted at what they were doing.

Raven: What is a monster? A horrible drooling beast? Or is it a state of mind that makes a monster? With this in mind, how does a monster come to be? Are they born? Occasionally, yes. But more often then not, a monster is made. Like a shapeless hunk of marble, the monster must be carved by the hands of others…by its environment. Today, I shall prove without a shadow of a doubt that THOSE TWO…!

Raven pointed a finger at the defense table. Terra ducked under the table so not to be pointed at. Raven's mouth was set in a fierce sneer.

Raven: …created the being you see before you!

Raven pointed at Shade.

Raven: You will see that they, with no regard for his life or welfare, raised him to become the mute, flesh hungry, brutal, and merciless killer that he is today!

Raven sat back down and rubbed Shade's head gently. He hadn't taken his eyes off his parents since the mock trial began. Raven could sense his fear and loathing.

Robin: Defense?

Terra looked up from her magazine, startled.

Terra: Huh? Oh, right, right.

Terra stood up and cleared her throat. Then she cleared it again, coughing.

Terra: …wow, I've got nothing. Er…well…whatever the prosecution said, but all opposite like.

It was suddenly apparent to the parents that this was not a fair trial.

Outside "Jail Cell"

Mineral's head began to feel strange. Almost like the time he had hit on Vertigo when they first met. Of course, she was no where to be seen. What was going on? Before he could further question it, he passed out. The cell collapsed and the HIVE was free. Sonic grinned at Jinx.

Sonic: And you thought all I was good for was easy sex.

Jinx blushed and punched his arm.

Jinx: No jokes right now. We've got to get…

The dizziness returned with a vengeance. Vertigo was back with the others.

Bomb Blast: Looks like we came back just in time.

Vertigo: We couldn't find your allies, so we came back to interrogate you.

Blackfire: They're not our allies! We came to stop them!

Speck: Is that so? Then why do you look just like one of them?

Krystal: They're not going to listen, Blackfire. They've always been so damn stubborn…close them.

Her friends covered their eyes and Krystal released a blinding flash. Vertigo cried out. The dizziness quickly left.

Speck: That's it! Get them!

Jinx: Krystal, go! Find your parents, quickly! The rest of you, together!

Trial

Shade's mother was forcibly put on the stand. Cyborg put his cannon in her face.

Cyborg: Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth or so help me I'll blow your head off?

What else could she do but agree? Raven floated in front of her and sighed.

Raven: For the benefit of the court, please state your name.

Everyone leaned forward (not Shade or his father). What kind of weird sounding name did Shade's mother have? Was it a huge row of constantans? How many hyphens did it have?

Mother: Meredith.

Raven stared at her for a second then turned to Shade. He nodded. Raven pinched the bridge of her nose.

Raven: Alright…Meredith…IF that is your real name…how do you know plaintiff?

Meredith: I gave birth to it.

Raven remained visibly calm, but inside she was seething. How dare she refer to him as an "it"!

Raven: "It", Meredith? How is the plaintiff an "it"? Shade is clearly an intelligent, thinking being.

Meredith: It's not intelligence that dictates whether a being is a someone or a something.

Raven nodded.

Raven: Oh, I agree. But that still doesn't answer my question, does it? Why is he an "it" in your eyes?

Meredith glared at Shade. He shrank down in his chair. He knew that this was a bad idea, but he went along with it anyway. Sometimes he really regretted his inability to refuse Raven.

Meredith: Just look at it. Unkempt…savage…on its third birthday, the lights went out all over. There was almost a failure of the atmospheric generators. We would have all died.

The Titans were well aware of that fact and had already taken certain steps involving it. Raven sighed.

Raven: And because of a few uncontrollable incidents, you treat him like he was less then garbage?

Meredith: There was control! Its control!

Raven: Toddlers don't have control. You control them. You shaped his fate. Tell me, what did you do with him?

Meredith sighed.

Meredith: I chained it to a tree and left it there to starve. It never would. It found its own food using its dark powers…

Raven: Is that all you did?

Meredith: No. Whenever it used its dark power on us, I taught it a lesson.

Raven: How? Somehow I doubt you used a textbook.

Meredith: No. I used a metal rod.

Raven was tempted to throttle the bitch, but instead turned to Terra.

Raven: Your witness.

Terra sighed and put her magazine down. She stood up and walked over to the witness stand.

Terra: Do you like pie?

Meredith: Er…what sort of pie?

Terra sighed and turned to Robin.

Terra: Permission to treat the witness as hostile?

Robin was busy talking to Starfire. Starfire was idly hitting the "T" key over and over as she twirled her hair around her finger, smiling coyly.

Robin: (distracted) Yeah. Knock yourself out.

Terra: I'll ask the questions here, you disgusting pile of filth! Now ANSWER ME! DO YOU LIKE PIE!

Meredith: Yes! I like pie!

Terra spun around and slammed both hands on the edge of the jury box, startling Changeling.

Terra: Ah ha! She LIKES…pie. No further questions, your honor.

Robin sighed. He had to get back to work now. Starfire winked at him before he turned away.

Robin: Prosecution, call your next witness.

Raven turned to Shade and whispered into his ear, a surprised look on her face. She grinned suddenly.

Raven: The prosecution would like to call…Krystal to the stands. Come out and play nice or we'll activate the device we placed on the atmospheric generators.

Krystal appeared in a flash. She had been using her powers to bend the light around her. The plan was to untie her parents and blind the Titans as they made a daring escape. Raven motioned toward the witness stand, grinning.

Krystal: …please let it go. Wasn't killing all those people en…

Raven: SIT IN THE TRIGON DAMNED CHAIR!

Krystal sighed but did as she was told. She couldn't risk her parents getting killed. Cyborg swore her in with another death threat and Raven approached the bench.

Raven: Krystal, state your occupation please.

Krystal: I work over the internet when I have the time. I sell T-shirts for several websites. Would you like one? I can get you a disc…

Raven folded her arms tapped her fingers on her them, not looking amused. Krystal frowned.

Krystal: Oh…you mean THAT job. I'm a member of HIVE, which serves to protect those who can't protect themselves.

Raven: When did you decide such an undertaking was for you?

Krystal: I'm afraid I don't understand the question.

Raven: I'll rephrase. At what point in your life did you decide that you should "protect those who can't protect themselves"?

Krystal tapped her chin in thought.

Krystal: Hmm…let me see. I was pretty young at the time…I guess it was when I began to realize just how much more powerful I was then the average shmoe.

Raven smiled. Suddenly Krystal saw what she was going for.

Krystal: Wait, I meant to say…

Raven: And yet…my client can't speak…why is that?

Krystal: You bitch…

Raven bit back the urge to laugh and turned to Robin.

Raven: Hostile?

Robin: (distracted again) Uh huh. Sure.

Raven: Isn't it true that you were, in fact, present the day my client was assaulted by a group of his so-called peers!

Krystal bit her lip.

Krystal: (weakly) Yes.

Raven: Isn't it true that you stood idly by while they beat on him without mercy!

Krystal began to sniffle. She didn't want to think about it.

Krystal: Yes…

Raven: And what about when they tied that cord around his neck, Krystal? Where was your "heroic" attitude then! Where was the need to "protect those who can't protect themselves" as his vocal cords were constricted and twisted around until he can't even grunt without feeling a twinge of pain?

Krystal: …I…I saved him from choking.

Raven leaned forward.

Raven: And we're all very proud of you for that…but that's not what I asked, is it?

Krystal: I was scared…

Raven: Scared? Scared of what? A few nicks and cuts? Bruises? They would never have done anything like that to you, would they!

Krystal: They beat me up too!

Raven: You can still speak!

Terra: Objection!

Everybody looked surprised at Terra. Robin waited for a second. Nothing else came out of the petrified geomancer's mouth.

Robin: …on what grounds?

Terra: Huh?

Robin: On what grounds do you call your objection?

Terra: I need grounds? Crap, I knew I should have watched more court dramas before I came here.

Sweatdrops all around.

Robin: …overruled.

Terra: No, wait I remember! She's badgering the witness!

Robin: …er…

Robin thought about it for a second. Technically…

Robin: …huh…sustained.

Raven: (muttering) Trigon damn it. (normal) Do you regret what you've done…or rather what you failed to do?

Krystal wiped her eyes.

Krystal: Everyday.

Raven: Yet you continued to hound my client, chasing him from planet to planet. It was only thanks to the Titans that Shade has a more permanent home. Is that how you show your regret?

Krystal: You don't know the real Shade! I knew him when he was a sweet caring little boy! He doesn't smile like he did back then…

Raven: Nobody does. That's what growing up does to you. You chase a fantasy.

Krystal: ...no better then loving one.

Raven turned and grabbed Krystal by her shirt.

Raven: Be quiet! Words can't describe the intensity of which I despise you!

Raven sighed and let her go. She smoothed her cloak out.

Raven: No further questions.

Raven sat down and Terra stood up.

Terra: …Krystal…do you see this thing here?

Terra pointed to a spot on Changeling's face. He rolled his eyes.

Changeling: (muttering) Here we go again…

Krystal: Yeah…so?

Terra: Is that a zit or an insect bite?

Krystal: Uh…does it itch?

Changeling: …sometimes.

Krystal: Oh he's full of it. It's totally a zit.

Terra: Ah ha! It's…a zit. No further questions.

Terra sat back down. Krystal looked up at Robin, confused.

Krystal: Now what?

Robin: Hop behind the jury box. No funny stuff.

Krystal sighed and did as she was told.

END PART TWO