Dark Titans – Arc 7 – Atlantis - Act 1 - Descent

Chapter 3

Well, time to get things moving!

Hopefully people are enjoying the story so far, it's a pretty big departure from the last arc, so it's been a very different animal to write so far.

Just wanted to take this moment to thank everyone that's reading.

I don't own Ranma or Teen Titans.

Enjoy if you Will, Tolerate if you won't.

Kasumi's eyes fluttered open, though to little effect as it was every bit as pitch black as before she'd opened them. It was also cold, and damp, and she winced as she felt jagged lumps of stone jab her from numerous directions. Her head throbbed and her body ached, though she was feeling worryingly numb at the same time. She didn't have a concussion, did she?

The next thing she noticed were moans of pain that weren't her own. They were coming from all around her, which was heartening. A moment later, a high-pitched male voice gave an annoyed grunt, and a weak turquoise light sprang to life. The otherworldly light illuminated the frighteningly small space that trapped them, little more than a dozen feet in diameter and roughly spherical, settled on top of a demolished layer of rubble.

The source of the strange light was none other than a much younger, and far more disgruntled Ryouga, his hand held aloft and limned by a greenish-bluish nimbus. The young Hibiki did not look injured in any way, but his outfit was now baggy; even the elastic material of the body glove couldn't shrink enough to accommodate. His metallic gloves and boots had fallen off in the tumble, but he didn't seem to notice or care. Giving a grumble, the short martial artist looked down at his current state and mumbled, "Well… at least I know what 'Standard use' means now."

Still in too much pain to think about moving, Kasumi watched as Ryouga rose to his feet and took in his surroundings. "Anyone conscious say something."

"I'm unharmed," Aqualad stated in a firm voice.

"I'll live," Terra called from the same direction, though there was a short hiss that followed.

"I'm… here," Kasumi muttered as best as she could.

"We… are goddamned idiots," Speedy lamented from somewhere.

"Hey… that's my line," Jinx replied grumpily, "Can't believe we nearly died there."

Gingerly, Kasumi pushed herself up so she could sit on one of the larger pieces of rubble. Not moving would be preferable, but it wouldn't get any more comfortable laying on debris. All around her, people began to drag themselves up as well. Aqualad helped Terra to her feet, a few streaks of red now staining her borrowed windbreaker. Speedy struggled to pry his bow out from under a larger rock, while the young Ryouga helped Jinx to a sitting position.

"What did I say about running off half-cocked?" Jinx muttered loudly. She had a few scrapes herself and was using a damp sleeve to wipe blood out of her eye.

Kasumi shuddered, and not from the cold. The numbing chill of imminent death still clutched her heart. Did she really think that a raincoat would protect her at the bottom of the ocean? Forget drowning, the water pressure alone would have crushed her.

"I should have anticipated something like this," Speedy said, his voice heavy, "Well, being attacked, or something, anyway. We are not prepared for fighting underwater."

"What are we even doing here?" grumbled their young blonde savior. It was only thanks to her quick reflexes that they were still alive. "Even if we get to the city, we couldn't do anything down here even if we did have scuba gear. We're way too deep for that."

Aqualad shook his head, looking justifiably frustrated. "I was hoping we would be able to get to the city quickly and without incident. There, we would have been able to equip you properly." He knelt, looking exhausted now that Kasumi could study him, and was clutching a hand to his side. "On the bright side, Poseidonis is a domed city, so as long as we can make it there, you'll be fine."

Ryouga let out a long sigh. "Well, that's something, anyway. But… what the hell was that? I don't think we'll be getting anywhere as long as-" he gestured helplessly, "As long as whatever that is, is going on."

As the young Hibiki stated his concerns, Jinx was carefully dipping her hands into a shallow pool of near freezing water. Lifting it up, her hands flashed pink for a moment, only for wafts of steam to begin floating up. She held her hands towards Ryouga.

"Here, let me change you back."

The young wanderer looked at Jinx thankfully, only to shake his head. "Hold off on that for a minute. The belt is going to need a few minutes to reboot…" He looked around, clearly uncertain, "Besides, I use less air like this."

Nodding, Jinx let the heated water drop to the floor, then they all turned their attention back to Aqualad. The Atlantean, apparently finally noticing the incongruity of the young child in their midst, had to shake his head a few times before he could respond.

"I'll ask about… that later. As for your question," Aqualad's gaze drifted up towards the 'ceiling' of their small tomb. "It felt like a telepathic attack… but it was so strong."

Jinx and Ryouga shared a dubious look. "Didn't feel like any kind of telepathy we've dealt with. That was more like someone jamming a screwdriver into the ignition and twisting real hard!"

Kasumi could only nod, absently rubbing the base of her skull where the phantom pain lingered. That wasn't anything like the more insidious abilities the Headmaster had used on them.

Aqualad nodded. "It is a more primitive form of telepathy than you are likely familiar with. This focuses mainly on stimulating certain regions of the brain, such as the Thalamus, found even in less evolved life forms, to push them to perform tasks."

Kasumi frowned, as she had some idea of what he was talking about, but it certainly seemed strange. It hadn't made her want to do anything useful. Her rumination was cut off by a furious bark from Speedy.

"Wait just a damn minute," the archer nearly shouted, "Are you telling me we nearly got killed by mother-loving Fish Telepathy?"

"Fish… telepathy?" Kasumi sounded out the words but hearing them strung together didn't make any kind of sense.

Jinx let out a short bark of laughter. "It's one of the old jokes about the League. The old 'Aquaman talks to fishes' thing." Her eyes narrowed. "But I'm not a fish, and I heard whatever the hell that was."

Aqualad shrugged. "All life came from the sea, in one form or another. Even humans still share some of the basic brain structures as their aquatic ancestors." The Atlantean rubbed his chin, deep in thought. "But for the most part, they have evolved enough that humans shouldn't even be able to notice it. There must be a massive telepathic battle going on above ground, possibly hundreds of Praefecti struggling for dominance for it to have that kind of effect on us… and even then..."

"Dominance over what?" Terra asked, still looking shaken from her tumble.

"The sea life," Aqualad replied, still looking concerned, "While many Atlanteans have some talent for it, the Praefecti are composed of only the most powerful of telepaths, as whoever can control the marine creatures will invariably gain a massive advantage in battle."

Ryouga shrugged his narrow shoulders. "Interesting, but not useful to us. We could probably burrow to the city if we knew which way it was. It doesn't reach us this deep, at least."

Terra frowned but nodded. "It wouldn't be hard… but I completely lost track of everything. I had to drop us deep to get away from that noise, makes it hard to get a feel for anything."

"Which means that we're gonna have to go up, at least long enough to get our bearings," Speedy said what they were all, unfortunately, thinking.

"Won't do us much good if we start seizing out the second we hit water," Jinx replied with a flippant roll of her wrist.

Aqualad nodded, tapping his chin in thought. "Well, now that I know what's up there, I should be better able to prepare myself. I'm not a member of the Praefecti, but if I focused everything on it, I should be able to shield the rest of you as well." A concerned look darkened his face. "Though, that would make forming an air bubble difficult. On the other hand, if we got closer to the heart of the conflict, that might make it easier."

"Really?" asked a confused Ryouga, "Seems like that would make it worse, wouldn't it?"

"Not in this case,'' the Atlantean explained, "I'm guessing we're on the outer fringes of the battle, which puts us firmly in Trident's domain, if you will, which makes it much easier to zero in on us. If we get closer to the battle, we'll be able to blend in with all the other combatants, as well as all the creatures they are battling to control."

"Kind of using the battle like psychic chaff," Speedy supplied with a wry grin, "Slip past the front lines and get into the city so we can properly prepare ourselves."

Pressing her sleeve to her bleeding brow, Jinx gave a small hiss before speaking. "So, what's the plan, then? We still need to go up to see where to go, but if we go up, we either get mind whammied, or a severe case of drowning."

Ryouga looked over the group, a contemplative expression on his face. "Well, not exactly. We just need someone to go up and see what is going on. And if that person doesn't have to worry about drowning, then no big deal, right?"

Understanding and relief flooded over Kasumi, as all around her, people nodded in agreement. Terra rose to her feet, and gingerly stretched her arms before turning to Aqualad. "I can make a couple airlock chambers up to the surface so you can get up without flooding us, then you just have to look after yourself."

"Sounds like a good plan," Aqualad replied with a weak grin. He pulled out the replacement communicator Speedy had provided and flipped it open, only to frown as the screen displayed nothing but static. "Must be in whatever interference field is knocking out communication as well. So just give me a minute up there, then start closing the tunnel slowly so that I have time to get back down here, okay?"

Kasumi watched, impressed, as the pair sprang fearlessly into action, especially noting the proud look on young Ryouga's face as he watched his pupil. Terra simply closed her eyes and gestured to the wall, a man-sized breach forming at her whim. Within moments, Aqualad entered the opening, only for it to close behind him. They all sat in silence, not wanting to disturb Terra as she concentrated on things they couldn't see. The elder Tendo could only guess at just how the young geokinetic saw the world right now.

Finally, after a seeming eternity, but in reality, just a few minutes, a new opening formed in the wall, releasing a small torrent of water, quickly followed by Aqualad stepping back out to join them. The Atlantean wore a disturbed expression, but quickly pointed in a seemingly random direction.

"We need to go that way. It's just a few more kilometers, from what I could see." He shook his head, sending droplets of water flying. "Once we're closer, though, we'll need to go up again, to get a more exact bead on our destination. Even without the psychic static, we'll still be popping up into a warzone. I don't know what we should expect at this point."

Ryouga frowned, though his concern seemed to be focused more on Terra, than their situation in general. "Are you sure you can get us a few kilometers? You've been literally carrying us for hours. If you're tired, I can do the tunneling."

Kasumi, Terra, and Jinx all shared an uncomfortable set of glances, before Jinx cleared her throat diplomatically. "That's probably not a great idea," the cat eyed sorceress began hesitantly, grasping at the air a bit. "I mean… if you do the digging… we - uh…"

The young Hibiki stared at her, a disgruntled pout starting to form on his face as she floundered. Thinking quickly, Kasumi stepped in. "What she means is, that if you do the tunneling," she explained quickly, "We would all be too pummeled by shrapnel to do anything after a few kilometers of digging."

Terra laughed nervously. "Yeah! Besides, it's just a few klicks. That's no big deal, and I can reinforce the tunnel better with my powers than you can with the Bakusai Tenketsu. Remember, there is a lot of water overhead."

Speedy and Aqualad shared a skeptical look between them.

"What are you guys talking about?" asked the former.

"Nothing to worry about," Ryouga replied, looking mollified at their somewhat, though not completely, honest explanation. "I'll be ready as a backup, just in case, though." He then turned to Jinx. "Hey, how about that hot water?"

Smiling, Jinx nodded and began her preparations anew, even as Terra moved to where Aqualad had pointed. With smooth, controlled movements, very much like she was walking through simple kata, the blonde heroine took a heavy step forward and thrust out a fist, only for the entire chamber to tremble and the wall to crumble and retreat over thirty feet as if struck by an angry goddess.

It was amazing to watch, as all the dust and debris that burst forth instantly reversed course and was pulled down along the new shaft as well. Some of the scent of demolished stone hung in the air, but there was no fear of choking on consuming clouds of powdered stone. Terra then repeated the simple step and strike and in a matter of moments, the tunnel was quickly shooting off into the darkness.

By that time, Ryouga was back to his natural age, and began walking closely behind his apprentice, obviously inspecting her form as well as her work. Off to the side, the Atlantean and Archer could only stare at Ryouga as he moved past them.

"Can someone please explain what just happened to him?" asked the former.

Speedy could only shrug his shoulders. "I was told about it, but this is the first time I actually saw it in action."

Letting out a weary sigh, Kasumi moved to join them.

"It might be best if you let me explain the intricacies of a Jusenkyo curse."

At least this would give her something to do to pass the time as they walked the last leg of the trip.

Terra sucked in a breath before dropping her foot heavily and thrusting out with her fist. The earth retreated before her… but only twenty feet; the stubborn resistance grew with each step, but she wasn't out of gas yet. This method was slower than when she and Raven had tunneled under the tower, back when she'd… been working for Slade… but it felt far more efficient. They'd only had to dig six hundred meters back then; if she'd tried to bull ahead like they had then, she'd probably have collapsed a kilometer back.

Unfortunately, there was a wide gulf between 'some effort' and 'no effort'. She blinked rapidly; a fat bead of sweat rolled into her eye as she struggled to keep her breathing steady.

Her next step was foiled as, out of nowhere, she was suddenly blinded. She sputtered in confusion as something soft and fluffy rubbed across her brow and then down her face. She had just enough time to recognize the washcloth as it was pulled away, before a large hand clapped down on her shoulder and a water bottle was thrust before her.

"Here, drink this. You're working up a real sweat."

Terra felt her cheeks start to burn as her mentor hovered over her, doting away like someone's mom. Glancing over her shoulder she noticed the rest of their group forty feet back; Speedy and Kasumi were holding up some glow-sticks for light. To a one, they were all grinning and chuckling as they watched the pair of them. The heat of her face doubled in an instant, and she slapped ineffectually at Ryouga's chest and arms, pushing him away.

"Ryouga," hissed under her breath, "You're embarrassing me in front of Aqualad!"

Instantly, a deadly gleam entered her mentor's eyes, and he glanced back at the crowd behind them. Kasumi was holding a hand over her chest, and Jinx blew him a kiss, even as Speedy and Aqualad chatted between themselves. His eyes narrowed as they zeroed in on the dreamy Atlantean.

"What about Aqualad?" he asked, his voice low and gravelly.

Her face felt like it was about to burst into flames. Grabbing the bottle forcefully, she gave him another straight arm to the chest, pushing him back a few more inches. "Nothing! Don't worry about it - shut up!"

The fanged martial artist glared at Aqualad for another moment, before letting out a tired sigh and turning his attention back her way. Apparently, finally, noticing her embarrassment, he took another step back and dropped his hands to his hips. "I just want to make sure you aren't overexerting yourself. You've been digging for miles now. Even I'd be exhausted after tunneling this far non-stop."

She nodded, taking a few deep breaths; now that she'd paused, she felt her limbs start to stiffen and ache. "I know," she muttered between gasps for air, "But we don't have time to take it easy. People are counting on us, right?"

An odd look crossed Ryouga's face, right before a wide grin settled in its place. Nodding, he took another step back. "That's my girl. Still, let me know if you want a break, I might not be as tidy as you but we gotta be getting close by now. So, you shouldn't have to worry about me getting us lost."

Instantly, Terra averted her gaze, and dug her toe into the stone floor. "I… don't know what you're talking about…"

Chuckling, a knowing look on his face, Ryouga turned back to their spectators.

"Hey, Aqualad, do you think we're close enough to take a look yet?"

The Atlantean looked about for a moment, before coming forward to join them. "We have covered a lot of ground. Alright, let's take a quick peek and see where we are."

Waving his arms, he gestured for the rest of the team to join them. "Same deal as back on shore, everyone. I'll form the bubble here, then Terra will move us up."

It didn't take long for everyone to get into position, and for Terra to lift a small, circular platform hovering a few feet above the ground for them to stand on. Aqualad then started with his grandiose arm waving once more. There was no shortage of water in the sodden tunnel, and soon enough he had the water spinning and rising around them until it formed a full sphere of swirling liquid. A moment after that, the water suddenly stopped, locking in place, and making it look like they were in a glass bubble.

Absently, Ryouga tapped a knuckle to the inner surface, an interested look on his face. Terra was curious herself, though it did make sense now that she thought of when their powers had started to fail. They just hadn't been able to see it in all the water before.

"What exactly are you doing here," Ryouga asked, a touch of excitement in his voice.

The Atlantean grinned, gesturing around them. "Just locked the water into a lattice. Think of it like room temperature ice. It makes it easier for long duration travel, as the bubble becomes self-reinforcing under the immense pressures this deep." The black-eyed hero nodded in Terra's direction. "I'm not like our pint-sized powerhouse, here. If I just tried to brute force the water away from us the entire way, I would have passed out hours ago."

Terra's face screwed up, not sure if she was being praised or teased by that 'pintsize' comment. She didn't have time to ask, though, before Ryouga cut back in. "That's impressive. Would you be able to show me how it works?"

Aqualad looked back at him oddly. "You can manipulate water?"

Her master shook his head, his shoulders shaking with amusement. "Not so much, no. Just… something I worked on in my youth… you might say."

Before anyone could ask about that, Speedy stepped in, waving a hand impatiently. "Okay, enough with the bromance. Let's head up already." The archer then gestured Terra's way. "If we can make the rest of the trip across the surface, that'll save us a lot of time and effort; just make sure you don't flood the tunnel here, we might need it for a hasty exit."

She let out a small, annoyed huff at the obvious suggestion before looking up at the ceiling. Holding her left hand low, she turned her palm up, and started to lift it slowly. Moving lazily, the section of floor directly beneath the bubble began to drift upwards, carrying the sphere with it. With her right arm held above her head, she slowly twisted her hand, only for a wide hole to spiral open, more than wide enough for the orb to slide through.

Once they were high enough, she closed off the passage below them, even as she lifted them closer to the surface. It didn't take long for that annoying tingle at the base of her skull to make itself known. She could almost taste it; her molars felt like they were tingling. Thankfully, this time it was fainter, almost muted. Looking to her side she saw Aqualad, his eyes squeezed shut and a look of fierce concentration on his face. The sensation was a distraction but not nearly the deadly intrusion it was the last time.

In less than a minute, she felt the surface approach, the earth above their heads growing softer and looser, while at the same time heavier with water and more difficult to move. The saturated mass finally gave way, and they were released from the Earth's grasp at last.

The moment they breached the surface, Terra felt her breath taken away. Not from primitive telepathy, but by awe inspiring beauty. She had been expecting to return to the same eerie darkness which blanketed the sea floor…

The ocean was alive with color; beautiful, warm bioluminescence lighting up the world. Above them, dozens of grand vessels of alien design and grace drifted lazily through the water, each shimmering and undulating like living things. In the distance, a massive wall rose from the ocean floor, stretching out of sight in both directions. The wall towered easily over one hundred meters, its entire surface glowing with mesmerizing internal light, before giving way to a glimmering translucent dome that stretched on beyond perception. Countless figures - thousands humanoid, and many thousands more not - zigged and zagged through the water in a graceful ballet, even as thousands of bursts of light zipped back and forth. Atop the wall, dozens of mammoth weapon emplacements thundered constantly, firing brilliant bolts of energy into the swirling swarm of combatants.

It was a visual feast beyond anything Terra could have attempted to describe. The sheer beauty of it all belied the horror of what she was seeing. The aerial ballet was a deadly struggle for survival, each of those countless twinkles of light likely signaled someone's demise. Countless corpses littered the ground around them: sharks, whales and other unidentifiable marine life were interspersed with the bodies of people that looked every bit as human as Terra herself. And it was impossible to miss the numerous corpses of green, scaly creatures that were humanoid in shape, but completely inhuman in appearance.

Her companions' awe and horror matched her own. They didn't have long to process their emotions, as the familiar tingle at the base of their skulls suddenly intensified. Aqualad let out a pained hiss, clenching his fists and staring defiantly into the indiscernible morass of the war waging directly above him. A moment later, his face went gaunt with disbelief.

"We - we need to leave… now!"

Focusing through the mounting pressure in her skull, Terra gestured furiously towards the city. It was so close now, just within her grasp! The earthen platform surged forward, battling against the fierce resistance of the ocean water, but they began to pick up speed.

"What's going on?" Speedy asked, concern clear in his voice, even as he stared in disbelief at the sheer scale of the battle.

"It's - it's not hundreds of telepaths battling the Praefecti-" Aqualad clutched his hands to his skull, and clenched his eyes closed as he focused. "It's just one. And he sees us!"

Terra wasn't sure how, but she knew he was right. She could feel it in her teeth - like chewing aluminum - a jarring sensation that something vast and terrible and just out of sight… was laughing at her.

"Shit! He's not the only one! Book it!" Jinx's cry drew her attention, and the taller woman gestured frantically into the chaos, singling out what, at this distance, almost looked like a tiny streamer of detritus splitting off from the main mass. It became apparent far too soon, that the 'tiny streamer' was a swarming mass of creatures, and they were all much faster than their unwieldy orb.

"Terra, get ready to take us back under!" Speedy barked, "We can't fight them through the bubble, so if they catch up, we're as good as dead!"

It was getting hard to focus; each breath came in a frantic gasp. Her head was aching as someone tried to jam unseen fingers in the back of her skull, her lungs burned after long hours without rest, and her legs were losing the battle to keep her standing. Pushing their transport through the water was harder now; she was forcing it to speeds she hadn't dared before. She tried to focus ahead of her, on the barren silt of the ocean floor; she needed to make a tunnel - large - and fast…

Reaching out, she tried to find a point to latch on that was far enough ahead-

An explosion rocked their bubble! One side of the sphere began to spider web with cracks as they were sent careening to the side. A moment later, another pinkish-white bolt of light whipped past them, slamming into the ocean floor, and blasting up a plume of sand and shrapnel. The debris slammed into several of the lead Tridents that were catching up to them, even as the superheated explosion of energy boiled others alive.

"Crap!" Speedy swore as further bombardment from the Atlantean wall guns rained down around them. "Are they shooting at them, or us?"

Still clutching his skull, Aqualad, let out a pained grunt. "I've tied into the Praefecti' telepathic gestalt. It's helping somewhat, and I managed to let them know we're allies. The gunners are trying to help us."

"But those guys are riding our ass," Jinx blurted in frustration, "Hard to help us without nearly killing us."

Terra spared a moment to glance over her shoulder. Another lance of light shot past them, nearly blinding her as it exploded in the midst of the Trident swarm. The bombardment was slowing them, but now they were spreading out, like a living net of darkness that was slowly moving to envelop them. She squeezed her eyes shut and the entire platform shuddered as a sliver of doubt ran through her.

It was too much! Moving them and trying to dig and being chased and blasted and having her head screwed with! Her legs started to tremble as Kasumi let out a startled shriek just a second before a shudder ran through the whole bubble. Terra risked another look, one of the smaller creatures had caught them somehow, and was clinging to the surface of the bubble, its jagged claws finding purchase in the spreading cracks. Small rivulets of water began running down the interior as the creature howled and flailed.

The creature slammed its face against the bubble and opened its jaws wide to reveal dozens of needle-like teeth. It hissed loudly between unhinged laughter, it's jaundiced, bloodshot eye scanning the interior of the bubble.

Instantly, the monster's crazed laughter died, the feral Trident focusing its full, manic attention on Aqualad.

"Gaoler!"

The mad creature suddenly began shaking with a frenzied rage, howling the word 'Gaoler' as it smashed itself against the bubble. Terra shrieked and spun, striving to push them faster. Spots danced across her vision and her legs buckled as she desperately tried to find another point to start a tunnel-

Something unyielding and warm was at her back, and without thinking Terra fell into the unexpected support. A pair of lips were at her ear, a familiar voice whispering.

"I've got you, Terra. Don't worry about anything else. Just focus on what's beneath your feet."

A flick of her eye caught the familiar face of her mentor at her back. The look on his face was fierce, insistent, but focused and determined.

"Don't see the earth, feel it."

Terra allowed herself a brief smile. It felt like she was resting against the base of a mountain. It didn't matter if her legs wouldn't hold her, he had strength to spare. It didn't matter if she was scared, he had courage for both of them. It didn't matter if there were monsters, he wouldn't let them touch her. All she needed to worry about was getting them where they needed to go.

Her eyes slid closed, and she let everyone else fall away. Light gave way to darkness, the shouts of her companions faded to distant static. Even the uncomfortable wriggling at the back of her mind grew still and she focused her entire being onto the soles of her feet.

She could feel the dull thrumming through her shoes and felt the essence of the stone beneath her feet. Terra could feel the countless lines of power that spread throughout the entire platform, and then the tethers that flowed through the waters, binding them to the ocean floor. Her mind struggled to translate the sensations into something comprehensible, just as Ryouga had taught her, and a golden glow began to suffuse the darkness.

The world revealed itself to her, at once more and less than if she had opened her eyes. She could see before her, as well as behind, and below. The faint shimmer of the platform, the thin, root-like streamers of power that tied them to the ground even as they sped several feet above the surface, and then the brilliant glow of the earth itself. Conversely, she couldn't see the water, or the bubble, or even her companions…

Except for the faintly glimmering silhouette of the martial artist holding her, a strange, tinged golden color running through his veins. He was the only other person that existed in this strange new world, and that knowledge filled her with strength.

Seemingly literally. Even as she focused everything she was on moving them forward, the exhaustion that had leached all the way into her bones seemed to evaporate. Each breath came more steadily than the last, her head stopped swimming and even the lines of gold became more vibrant and easily discerned. She took a deep, revitalizing breath, then nodded to herself, feeling a long absent confidence crackling to life within her.

The speed of the platform increased, the roots of golden power rising from the surface to their hovering platform pulling them along ever more frantically. She could make it to the city!

"You need to take us under, now," a voice whispered urgently in her ear, "They're nearly on us."

She wanted to argue, she could do it… but she'd never heard Ryouga sound like that before. Nodding, she reached out ahead of her, through the lines of power that ran beneath the earth. To make a tunnel like they needed, and at the speeds they were moving, she needed to find a point of weakness to attack. It only took her a moment to find one, the search coming like second nature.

Just like Ryouga had taught her.

Terra held her hands out before her, close together, and focused her entire will onto that one, infinitesimal point within the earth. With an inarticulate yell, she drove her power into the ground. It began as a surge of golden light at her feet, which burrowed into the countless ley lines that crisscrossed the platform; like lightning, the swell of power dove down the roots of power and sank into the ocean floor. Their transport might as well have been standing still as the golden resonance of her power careened ahead of them, before spiraling in on the chosen point.

Running on instinct, she pulled her hands apart, and heeding her request, the shimmering strands of light pulled back, twisting elegantly to form an empty tunnel of darkness that dove down beneath the surface. With the slightest thought, the platform arrowed into the tunnel, already filled with seawater.

It-it felt so right, more so than it had ever felt before! The tunnel was so large, and it opened so easily! Not even Raven and herself together would have been able to match this feat! Still holding one hand forward, she turned to the side and swung one arm behind her as well. She clenched her rear facing hand, and the tunnel began to collapse in behind them, taking scarcely any effort at all.

Was this the results of Ryouga's training? Forcing her to unlearn everything she had ever known, only to help her rebuild it all from the ground up, but through different eyes. She had never sensed the Earth so keenly, so clearly. Seeing right down to its primal essence. A smile grew on her lips; Raven couldn't have taught her this. Heck, even two months ago, Ryouga wouldn't have been able to.

It was a humbling thought, realizing that she was using the very same technique that Ryouga had created specifically to save her life. She would show him how well she had learned his lessons. She would make him proud!

With her forward facing hand, she twisted fiercely, and the tunnel began to tear open faster, even as she tore open trenches behind them to swallow the water before the tunnel collapsed. The geokinetic felt tireless, invincible, all exhaustion from the past day now completely gone-

At her back, Ryouga let out a strangled gasp!

Not needing to, she twisted her head to 'look' at her master, eyes still closed. What was… wait - the golden glow in Ryouga's body was faint, barely visible. Before she could begin to puzzle it out, another surge of power flowed through her feet and into the burrowing tunnel before them. At the same instant, Ryouga's aura flared slightly, then dimmed even further, some of that same glow being drawn down with her own.

Her gasp matched his, and her eyes snapped open in shock, disrupting her concentration completely. An instant later, the tunnel stopped growing, and the platform slammed hard into the ground, skidding wetly for a dozen yards before their bubbled transport crashed headlong into the newly formed wall. The water bubble shattered at the impact, and a tidal wave of mud was driven up the concave section of wall and washed over them, painting everything a brackish black color.

For a moment, everything was still, the only sounds were the splattering of fat droplets of mud impacting the sludge covered ground. The catatonic peace was broken by a furious howl as an inhuman shape leapt up from the mud, all fangs, and claws-

The twang of a bowstring followed by flashes of golden and pink light returned the makeshift cavern back to the eerie silence once the body hit the ground. It all happened so fast that Terra hadn't even seen what happened, but it wasn't important anyway. She spun on Ryouga… who was suspiciously clean, a few random spots of sodden filth rolling down his shoulders like he was a non-stick pan. Small flares of bluish light flared beneath each wet glob, fascinating Terra as she watched them drop to the floor.

"Whew, that was intense," Ryouga spoke suddenly, shocking her from her daze. The martial artist then rose back to his full height and started stretching out his limbs. "I feel exhausted! That was way too much tension!"

There were a few tense and awkward laughs as everyone else was forced to spend a few moments spitting and wiping mud from their faces as best they could. The pristine Hibiki received more than a few jealous glares as he watched in amusement. Did - Did he even realize what had happened? What Terra had nearly done to him, unintentional as it might have been? Guilt started to clutch at her heart-

Only for her to shake her head. Of course he knew what was going on. If she noticed it, of course he would have. He just wasn't making a big deal of it; no one else would understand, after all. Smiling the tiniest bit, she nodded to herself, content with her conclusion. No doubt he would bring it up later once he figured out what kind of lesson to take from it.

Dropping her hands on her knees, she leaned forward and took a deep breath. Almost instantly, the nearly forgotten exhaustion was reacquainting itself with a vengeance. Ryouga must have known what he was doing; would she have been able to do all of that without his help? She sincerely doubted it. Her smile grew incrementally, that was why he was the master, after all.

She struggled to straighten her back, suddenly feeling ancient, like she was thirty or something. Now, how far along had they got? Had they managed to get under the city? Terra looked up at the ceiling, even as she ran a hand through her long hair, trying vainly to scrub a few more clumps of filth out.

"What the hell was that?"

The sudden question shocked Terra from her thoughts, and she found herself staring at a furious redhead. She stumbled back a step. "I - what?"

Speedy matched her step, swinging out his arm and slinging some mud. "Why did you try to make a run for it? That was completely reckless! You should have just taken us under immediately!"

Terra felt like she was collapsing in on herself, the archer looming over her as he glared down on her. "I - I didn't think-"

"No, you didn't think! And you nearly got us all killed!"

She struggled to find the words to respond… only to freeze as a palpable aura of menace clamped down on her heart. Her eyes slid off the leering face of Speedy and for just a second, she saw a towering monolith of simmering darkness standing right behind the archer. Speedy seemed to notice on some instinctual level as well, pausing mid lecture, slowly spinning around. A second later, the mirage gave way to reveal the figure of Ryouga, a rictus of fury on his face.

Before Speedy could even take a breath, an inhumanly powerful arm shot out and clamped onto his shoulder, lifting the senior hero two feet off the ground in an instant. Ryouga leaned forward, a bass growl rattling in his throat.

"Say that again," it was worrying that Ryouga wasn't shouting, "Say one more word."

For just a moment, Terra wondered if Ryouga was about to fold the archer in half-

"Ryouga! Put him down!"

Everyone spun at the insistent shout to stare in surprise at Jinx; the slim sorceress was slathered in dark mud, but she was still easily recognized. She took a determined step forward and dropped a hand on Ryouga's shoulder. "Put. Him. Down."

The tension in the air rose to unbearable levels for a moment… until the martial artist finally let out an explosive sigh and nodded obediently. Turning back to Speedy, Ryouga slowly lowered the archer to the ground only to pull him within a hair's width, their noses nearly brushing.

"Terra is the only reason that you're alive. Remember that."

Terra appreciated the sentiment, but she found herself wondering if her master had meant that literally, as in she had saved them, or more figuratively, in that Ryouga would have felt bad getting Speedy's blood all over her. Deciding to give him the benefit of the doubt, she settled on the former, even as Ryouga brusquely released the archer, sending him sprawling several feet in the mud.

Before anything else could happen, Kasumi quickly stepped to center stage. Having removed her oversized raincoat and hat, the Tendo woman was surprisingly clean as well. She held up her hands in a placating gesture. "Please, let's just calm down. We are all frustrated and scared and lashing out. We are so close to our goal. We can't let a few setbacks tear us apart."

A tired sigh drew attention to the Atlantean among them. "Besides, it's my fault. I was the one that panicked and told Terra to make a run for it."

"And I didn't help anything," Jinx admitted ruefully. She nodded weakly to Terra. "I shouldn't have freaked out and told you to book it. If we hadn't messed up, you wouldn't have had to go all out like that. ...Forgive me?"

Despite herself, Terra found herself smiling, a small ember of warmth melting the ice in her chest. She nodded back to the cat eyed woman. "It's okay. We made it out, after all, right?"

Gradually, every set of eyes drifted until they landed on Speedy. Still rubbing his shoulder gingerly, the crimson archer let out a weary breath. "I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have blown up at you like that. I let my temper get the better of me. We need to pull together as a team, now more than ever." He offered her a crooked grin. "Besides, that was a pretty impressive save you pulled off."

Smiling shyly, she gestured to Ryouga. "Well, I only pulled it off thanks to Ryouga."

The fanged martial artist puffed his chest out proudly. "I didn't do a thing, that was all you, Terra."

Rolling her eyes, Jinx threw her hands up. "Alright, alright, enough with the love in. Does anyone know if we managed to get under the city, yet? I don't wanna do any more of that."

Everyone looked around a bit cluelessly, until Aqualad spoke up. "We were pretty close before we went under… I think I might have an idea. You guys take a break for a bit, let me try something."

Terra shrugged at the non-answer but decided not to press the issue. Gesturing to the ground, she raised up several small stone stools from the mud and sat herself down on one of them. Kasumi eagerly sat as well, and then started to inspect the flat box she had brought along; oddly, it seemed to be holding up quite well considering everything that had happened. Speedy elected to lean against the wall and start fiddling with his communicator. Jinx, however, drew Ryouga towards the back of the cavern by his elbow.

Even as Terra waved a hand over her arm, the damp mud peeling off and forming a small sphere in the air, she couldn't help but glance at the huddled duo looking so conspiratory.

"What the hell was that?" whispered the slime coated woman.

"What was what?" Ryouga replied, matching her tone, but looking confused as to the why.

Terra really didn't want to eavesdrop, but the cave wasn't that big to begin with. Out of the corner of her eye, she noted Jinx gesture subtly towards Speedy.

"You know what I mean! I haven't seen you act like that since the Headmaster rewired your brain."

Now, what did she mean by that?

"Hey, you heard what he said! You think I'm gonna let him attack Terra like that?"

The young heroine tried to hide her grin as she focused on cleaning her legs next.

"Did it occur to you that she didn't need your help?"

Terra paused at that, as did Ryouga.

"What, I shouldn't defend my student?"

Jinx leaned in, her face just inches from Ryouga. There was fire in both of their eyes, and Terra wasn't sure if they were about to start shouting, or kissing. She honestly wasn't sure which would be worse right now.

"Your student is the strongest person here! She needs to be able to stand up to assholes herself!"

Terra felt her jaw fall open at her words and could only stare. Until, abruptly, Jinx and Ryouga turned her way, instantly she swung her gaze back to her feet and started pulling the mud away from her body fervently. It took all her willpower to keep her eyes on the floor until she felt the errant gazes slide off her. She let out a weak sigh of relief before glancing at the duo out of the corner of her eye.

They were huddled more closely now, and speaking even more quietly, so unfortunately, she couldn't make anything else out. She was tempted to try to get closer, her curiosity soaring as the pair started smiling, then laughing quietly… But was ultimately foiled as Jinx stood back up and suddenly walked over to join her.

"So, you got a built-in dry cleaning feature, do ya?" The slim sorceress held up her arms still dripping mud and spun around playfully. "Help a sister out? Pretty please?"

Terra feigned considering the idea for a long moment, prompting an overblown pout to start forming on Jinx's exotic face, before finally breaking down into helpless giggles and nodding. "Sure, no problem. Wouldn't want my co-master to look like a mess, right?"

A broad smile pasted itself on the cat-eyed woman's face and she turned to look over her shoulder teasingly. "Co-Master! I like the sound of that!"

"I didn't agree to that!"

The young geokinetic could only laugh as she began to pull the drying mud from the material covering Jinx's mid-riff, even as Ryouga and Jinx began to banter playfully between themselves. All the while, Kasumi watched, smiling fondly as clutching the box in her lap.

"Alright, everyone, good news!"

Aqualad's loud announcement startled everyone, and they all turned to regard the dreamy Atlantean. Smiling dashingly, the black-eyed hero gestured up to the ceiling. "I created a few water 'probes' to move up towards the surface. It doesn't provide a lot of information, but it did let me sense a few things. Notably, there are a lot of very regular structures buried in the ground above us, likely water pipes and power lines. Also, there is an impermeable surface up top. I'm about ninety percent certain we're under the city at this point."

Terra added her own 'whoop' to the tired cheers that sounded around her. Pushing off the wall, Speedy stepped to the center of the platform and looked up.

"Alright, time to meet our new friends."

Light!

Actual, proper light, not just the fuzzy bioluminescence they'd caught a glimpse of before everything had gone to hell! Aqualad let out a massive sigh of relief as the concrete sidewalk gave way and a gust of fresh, clean air rushed to meet them. A moment later, their platform leveled off with the ground, and the Atlantean's long journey was finally complete.

The city of Poseidonis. His home.

He had started to doubt he would ever see it again after the past few hours. But everything was as he had left it. The familiar Atlantean architecture surrounded them, buildings of ancient vaguely Greek style interspersed with fantastically futuristic aesthetics punctuated by graceful curving spires that reached towards the faintly shimmering dome so far above them. Despite the black sky of ocean overhead, the interior of the dome was lit as brightly as the surface world.

This last fact made it extremely easy to notice the sizable contingent of guards that were currently surrounding them, weapons leveled in their direction. Just like the city itself, the guard's uniforms were a patchwork of ancient design and cutting-edge tech; half Roman Legion, half Power Armored trooper, and toting the standard water-fueled plasma rifles. Aqualad smiled and shook his head; he supposed that just popping up through the ground wasn't the ideal way to get into the city. No doubt the customs agents at the border walls would have some harsh words for him later.

Before his friends even had a chance to nervously raise their hands over their heads, an Atlantean woman bearing the insignia of a Centurion on her armor let out a bark of laughter and gestured for the gathered soldiers to lower their weapons.

"Now look at this. The King's young protege popping up from the ground like a common Tube Worm."

Aqualad dipped his head and felt his cheeks burn as several the warriors laughed in amusement at the jab. He nodded back to the senior officer.

"Greetings, Centurion. I have returned from my mission to seek aid." He gestured quickly to his companions. "We need to speak with King Orin straight away."

The Centurion looked over his odd assortment of friends, a less than impressed look on her face. "And all you have to show for it is a gaggle of surface-dwellers? The prince is going to be ecstatic."

A bark of laughter was his response to that. "I serve the King, not his brother." He looked around quickly, trying to get his bearings. Unfortunately, Poseidonis was a big city, and he hardly knew every single street and alley like a surface street vigilante. "So, would you be able to direct us to the palace, so that I can make my report?"

He matched gazes with the proud woman for a moment, before she finally relented and gave a sharp nod. She gestured to two soldiers at her side, then off to the north-east. "Escort Aqualad to the palace. Make certain that his friends don't wander off. Wouldn't do for them to be confused for invaders at a time like this."

The last bit was said with a nasty grin. Looking put-upon, the pair of soldiers shouldered their Hydro-Rifles and obediently started marching down the road. Aqualad offered the Centurion an only semi-mocking salute before turning to follow them. His new friends followed soon after, looks of concern easily evident on their faces.

Once there was some distance between them and the gathering of soldiers, Speedy leaned towards him, speaking in a low tone for their small group. "Not the friendliest bunch, are they?"

"Yes, well, not many Atlanteans have a very high opinion of the surface," Aqualad admitted. "We don't exactly have a stable relationship with your world."

Jinx let out an un-ladylike snort. "Well, maybe if you guys stopped threatening the world all the time, we might be able to get along."

He half spun on the pink-haired woman, pointing a finger. "Maybe if you people stopped treating our world like a toilet-"

"Oh, please, you guys live in the ocean; you breathe fish crap on the daily," Jinx replied cattily, "What could we possibly do that's grosser than that?"

Why that- He lifted his finger higher, preparing a list of travesties the surface was responsible for-

"Please, is this really the time to be talking… politics?" Kasumi intervened, though it sounded like she wasn't sure about that last word. The Atlantean considered her words, before sighing in defeat and nodding. His only consolation was that Jinx looked equally chastised and offered him a conciliatory nod.

"Hey, has anyone else noticed," Ryouga suddenly cut in. He rubbed the back of his head for a moment. "I'm not feeling that weird telepathy stuff at all now."

Everyone else spent a few moments looking around, before nodding themselves. Speedy then pulled out his communicator and flipped it open as well. "This thing's not completely scrambled in here, either. Can't get the satellite, obviously, but I'm getting the signal of everyone in here."

Aqualad considered the situation as they followed the guards at a distance. "Well, I suppose that makes sense. The dome is enchanted with powerful defensive magics. It is likely blocking whatever is going on outside."

Terra raised her hand, shaking it excitedly, drawing a smile from the seaborn hero. "Why does this city have a dome? If you all breathe water anyway, what's with all the air?"

"That is actually a fascinating story, dating back to the very origins of Atlantis-"

Almost immediately, a gloved hand interposed itself between them, quickly followed by the archer it was attached to. "You can do story time later. We need actionable info before we get tossed into the lion's den, here. Fill us in on all the other people that are likely to give us a hard time once we get to the Palace."

Terra shot an irate glare at the back of Speedy's head, but Aqualad could hardly fault his logic. Just to his rear, Kasumi nodded, looking a bit concerned. "I hate to mention it, but those people did not exactly seem respectful… to you."

That interruption seemed to be on topic enough for Speedy, as he tapped his chin in thought. "That is a good point. I thought everyone loved Aquaman down here, you'd think they'd love you, too."

The Atlantean hero let out another tired sigh. "Sadly, things are rarely so simple when politics are involved. Many Atlanteans support King Orin completely… but that does not mean that they approve of their Monarch dressing up in tights and repeatedly going to the surface to act as a mere soldier while fighting for Surface Dweller causes."

"Hmm, when you put it like that, it kinda makes sense," Ryouga agreed with a shrug of his shoulders. "It'd be weird, like the emperor running off to enlist in the Chinese army. Feels a bit like a conflict of interest or… or something."

"Never really thought of it that way," Speedy admitted. "Guess I always figured that Justice League problems tended to be problems for the whole world, but you don't see any other world leaders volunteering to join the League."

Well, at least they could see the logic of it. "That is part of the reason why King Orin is grooming me as his successor," Aqualad explained morosely, "I believe the end goal is for me to inherit his mantle, eventually, and free him to rule full time."

"Doesn't exactly sound glamorous when you say it like that," Jinx stated, a thoughtful look on her face. "Though, must be great PR on the surface side of things, having an Atlantean represent and help out."

He nodded with a wan grin. "As I said, nothing is simple when politics is involved."

"Speaking of which," he quickly followed up, hoping to cut off any other painful derails, "Let me tell you about some of the people we are likely to be dealing with in the palace…"

With that, he quickly dove into a lengthy diatribe of King Orin and his court. It easily ate up the time as they travelled through the city. It only took a short time before they reached a main thoroughfare and he recognized where they were. Unsurprisingly, they were on the very outskirts of the city, close to the wall, which also explained the rapid deployment of soldiers to their entry point. Of course, that meant they had a long walk to the heart of the city.

The guards looked longingly at the massive aqueduct that ran down the center of the street, providing transit through the city for swimmers, but was also one of thousands of such conduits that circulated water to every corner of the city. When water was used for drinking, cooking, cleaning, transportation, defense, and power, a steady supply was crucial to maintain. Rather, they remained on the sidewalk to accommodate his friends. As such, it was impossible to miss the eerie silence that pervaded the city. Little more than the sound of rushing water could be heard and the wide gulf between buildings was nearly empty as far as the eye could see.

"Where is everyone? I only see soldiers," Kasumi muttered, apprehension clear in her voice.

"Most of the people have likely evacuated to the shelters by now," Aqualad replied, "I doubt they've had time to evacuate all of the boroughs outside the city proper, though." The evacuations had only just begun when he'd left, and there were so many people to get to safety. He prayed those on the outskirts were safe. The six boroughs had their own domes, but they were all pale facsimiles of the ancient dome that covered Poseidonis itself

He did his best to ignore those thoughts as they made their way to the palace. When they finally arrived, he was somewhat gratified at the impressed gasps of his companions. Much like the city itself, the Palace was a testament to ancient tradition and progressive futurism. It was also a fortress unassailable to most armies on the planet.

With very little fanfare, palace guards taking over to free up the deployed soldiers, they were led into, and through the palace. He had a good idea where they were being taken.

To the War Room.

The guards lead them to a massive set of double doors. An elaborate fresco was painted across the edifice, depicting an ancient battle some thousands of years past. On one door, a twisted army of nightmare creatures over which hung what looked to be a massive pyre of midnight black flame. On the other door, were the shining armies led by King Atlan, golden trident held high above his head. Sprawling across both doors, distant in the background, yet still looming over the entire battle, was a mammoth coiled serpent of unbelievable size. The fresco was so ancient that even he didn't know the details, and he was an avid student of antiquities. The ancient doors were flanked with equally elaborate scanners, and he could sense the wards put in place by the palace sorcerers.

Taking a deep breath to steel himself, Aqualad strode forward and pushed the doors open. As he expected, the room was filled with familiar faces. Over a dozen Atlanteans stood around the imposing central table; a massive three-dimensional model made of water hung in the air above the console, shifting and moving in real-time to represent the battle outside the walls.

In an instant, his gaze settled on the most prominent person in the chamber. Standing, one hand planted on the edge of the console and studying something near the base of the living map, was his liege.

King Orin.

At the sound of the doors opening, his king looked up, revealing his troubled face nestled within a golden beard. The moment his pale blue eyes locked on Aqualad, though, a smile brightened his countenance. Standing tall, his monarch held out his hands… well, one hand, and one deadly Atlantean Harpoon grafted to his wrist.

"Garth, my boy! You have returned, and just in time..."

"We were just getting ready for a fight!"