Episode 16: First Trip to Tokyo

Note: I know there may not have been a Murisaki Shikibu, but let's just assume for this story that she was real. And if you're veteran readers, I did make slight modifications in "Invocation" that would make this fall more in line.

One sunny summer afternoon, the Muse's Titan communicator went off. She picked it up to see Robin's face. "Hello, Robin."

"Hey Muse. Listen, you're coming over this weekend, right?"

"Yeah, uh, the guys, Static and Gear, you know, they're both kinda busy right now. Static's planning a wedding, and Gear is working with Batman somewhere on something. I don't have a lot of details. And Mommy had to go out of town, too. Anyway, Starfire asked me if I would like to spend the weekend at the tower so that I wouldn't be lonely. Uh, I mean alone. Why, you don't mind, do you?"

"No, I don't mind, but I'm afraid there's a bit of a change in plans. We've had a situation here, and . . . well, long story short, we have to go to Japan to chase a villain."

"We're going to Japan! Oh, great! This will be–"

"Uh, Muse, sorry to disappoint you, but I wasn't expecting to take you along. I was just wondering if you would mind going to Titans East for the weekend, and maybe taking Silky with you."

"Oh Robin, please let me go with you! Titans East can look after Silky. I think Japan's going to be my home one day, and I would love to see it. I want to see for myself how the video game market is."

"Wait a minute. Keep in mind, this isn't a vacation. We got serious work here. We have to find someone named Brushogun"

"Well, I am being serious! I'm planning for my future. I gotta get a day job, you know? Something to pay the bills."

Robin raised an eyebrow. "And you think that job's in Japan?"

"Yeah. In fact, I know it is."

Robin paused. "Actually . . . come to think of it . . . I think you would be helpful if we took you. See, I was interrogating the villain we captured, Saico-Tek, in the back room. He mentioned Brushogun to me, and then he flipped into a sprinkler and just disappeared. We came up with all sorts of theories about how he could have done that, but nothing makes sense. He left behind this." Robin held up a pink ball. "Cyborg ran an analysis on it and came up with an inconclusive result. But I just thought, maybe he was a hologram, something like what's produced by your powers."

"Whoa, I didn't do it, mister."

"Well, I'm not saying that you did. But it maybe something similar to your powers. If Gear were here, he'd probably be able to explain it, but maybe if Cyborg did an analysis on your hat, we'll have a match."

"So, there's nothing specific you need for me to do. You just want me to be there so Cyborg can analyze my hat."

"Well, if we do come up on any villains, I'm sure you'll be able to help. Even if there isn't a match, I bet your powers can be a great counter to these villains' attacks."

"OK."

"I have to tell Cyborg to make an extra cabin on the T-Ship. So maybe we'll be ready to leave tomorrow morning."

"Alright, I'll get packing and come down as soon as I can." She signed off and excitedly ran around the house screaming, "I'M GOING TO JAPAN!"

She quickly got a few things together: toiletries, some emergency clothes, a notepad, a pencil, a Bible, a book on Japan myths, an English to Japanese dictionary, a word search book, some snacks, a CD player, and some CDs. Her mother was the only one who was concerned. "Are you sure you don't need a passport? Vaccinations? Japanese money?"

"I'm sure if I need any of that, the Titans will take care of it. But you're right, I do need some money." She got about $20 out of her bank.

"American money?"

"Mommy, one thousand yen is only worth about $7 in our currency. I'm sure if I gave somebody a dollar, I'd make him rich."

"I don't know if it works like that."

"I'll get it converted if I need to. You'll tape 'Monk' for me, won't you?"

"Of course, honey."

"Thank you." She gave Claire a kiss. "Bye, Mommy."

"Have fun this weekend, Precious."

"You too." She walked out of the house. "Magic!" she said, and instantly she became the Muse. She picked up her suitcase and took to the skies, but the suitcase was too heavy for her to fly high enough. It was hurting her hand, and she nearly dropped it.

"Need some help, sweety?" Claire's voice called up.

"Yeah, I think I could use some." She flew down and handed Claire her suitcase. "Thanks."

"Hey, that's what a sidekick is for." The Muse flew, and Claire followed down below in her car. Upon reaching the tower, they said goodbye again.

The next morning, the trip commenced. The Muse started working on a word search. As they cleared the continent, Starfire's voice came over her headphones. "Oh Muse, I am so joyful that you are able to come with us!"

"Yeah, I am too. I'm so excited. Just think, we're going to what's going to be my home one day."

"How do you know this is going to be your home?" Raven asked. "Have you seen the future?"

"Well, I haven't actually seen it, but I know. It's a long story."

"It's not like we're going anywhere."

"Uh, I've always wanted to live in Japan. See, it's my dream to be an RPG writer."

"What is an R . . . P . . . G?" Starfire asked.

"It's short for Role Playing Game."

"Or very wussy video games," Cyborg said.

"Hey, that's my dream you're talking about!"

"Well, it's just my opinion."

"Hey dude, I bet the Muse would make an awesome RPG," Beast Boy said. "It would have lots of magic and action and strange creatures and fighting!" Then he imitated karate-like grunts.

"I do have some ideas. I hope Japan will help me think of some more. I mean, most of the ideas that I've had lately are just superhero stuff . . . and thinking about what life is like for RB on the road, but that's kinda personal. When I try to think of a plot for a game, it just feels like a rip off of the Ultimate Dream or Castle of Hope. I guess I need my muse to strike me."

"Wait, your muse? Dude, I thought you were the Muse."

"Yeah, I just mean my spirit of imagination. It's a figure of speech. I just need inspiration."

"Oh. I get it, I think."

"Anyway, Japan is the number one supplier of video games in the world. It's the perfect place for me to pursue my dream."

"But I don't understand," Starfire said. "Do you not want to be the Muse anymore?"

"I do want to be the Muse, Starfire. I just need a day job for my secret identity. Crime fighting doesn't pay, you know."

"It doesn't?"

"No. Even Batman has a day job, right Robin?"

Robin was studying a map, and her question caught him off guard. "Huh? Oh. Yeah, he does do some stuff. I shouldn't say too much about that."

"Of course. Say, what do you all plan to do when you aren't teens anymore, besides hero stuff?"

"Well, back in the day, I wanted to be a professional football player," Cyborg said. "But I guess I can't be that now. I guess I'd make a good engineer."

"I was thinking about being a vet and an animal conservationist," Beast Boy said. "I think I could still do that. Who's better to take care of animals than someone who's a bit of an animal himself?"

"My plans were to help out on Earth for a time, before my destiny was fulfilled," Raven answered. "Now that it didn't turn out the way I thought it would, I haven't really made any plans. I thought about going back to Azerath and following in my mother's footsteps, but I don't want to leave Earth."

"My plans are as hazy as a Zopian moon as well," Starfire said. "I was to be second in line to the throne at Tamaran, but I gave that up when I chose to live on Earth. I will find something, I'm sure."

"How about you, Robin?" the Muse asked.

"I am a hero, nothing more," he replied.

"But what about a job?"

"I'll think about that when the time comes. I'm not very worried, though."

The Muse guessed he wasn't. Robin's probably expecting an inheritance from Mr. Wayne anyway.

They didn't do much talking after that. They paused once at a rest stop. Aqualad spotted the T-Ship and sent a greeting. Beast Boy did some horsing around taking pictures of everyone. The Muse just worked on her word search, listened to music, and munched on something when she got hungry. Before long, they were there. They got off in the countryside just in front of the city.

"Told you it was a left at Hawaii," Cyborg joked.

"Wow, it's big," the Muse said. "I mean, I've heard it was big before, but I had no idea it was this big."

"And it's beautiful!" Starfire said.

"Yeah, it's like the biggest Christmas tree ever.

"It may look nice, but don't forget, something's rotten down there," Robin said.

Suddenly, Beast Boy jumped out to the T-Ship in a bright pink shirt, shorts, and sunglasses. "Helloooooooo Japan!" he cried. "When do we get to see the Great Wall?"

"You mean The Great Wall of . . . China?" the Muse asked.

"Oh, yeah."

"I know that's an important site and all, but even if that was in Tokyo, I don't know if we'd ever have time to see it. There are like a million places in that city worth seeing. Sony, Nintendo, Kaiba Corp., not to mention all the superheroes here, like the Sailor Scouts and the Cardcaptors."

"Nah, that's small potatoes. What we really need to see is the world famous number one greatest most awesome Japanese comic book company, Wakamono Shukan!" He pointed to a huge building almost right in front of them.

"Uh-huh. Impressive."

"Well, come on!" Beast Boy began dragging everyone toward the building. "We gotta take the tour. We can't be on vacation and miss–"

"We're not on vacation!" Robin yelled. "Both of you need to remember we're heroes, not tourists. Saving Tokyo is going to have to come before sightseeing, even if it is planning for your future. We have to find Brushogun and bring him to justice. Since we are guests, we must be on our best behavior."

Beast Boy shrugged. "We're not going to get in trouble."

The rest of the Titans were already heading toward the city. "By the way, Beast Boy, for future reference, Japanese comics are called 'manga.'"

"Yeah, I knew that."

"Actually, manga is graphic novels," Raven added.

"Close enough, right?" the Muse said.

They made it into the city. The bright lights looked even brighter close up, and the Muse felt like the city swallowed her whole.

"Toky-whoa!" Beast Boy gasped.

"Now I know how Dorothy felt," the Muse whispered. "Goodbye Kansas."

"What?" Starfire said.

"Oh, it's a movie reference. You need to see 'The Wizard of Oz' sometime."

"Where do we go now?" Raven asked.

Robin held up a guide to Japan. "The roughest part of town is the Shinjoukou district. We'll start there."

"And which way do we go?" Cyborg asked.

"I don't know," Robin said. "I can't read Japanese, so the signs aren't helping."

"No problem. We'll just ask for directions," Beast Boy said. He pulled a guy over and asked the way, but he spoke in Japanese. Beast Boy smiled and nodded as if he knew what the man was talking about, but once he got away he said, "I had no idea what he just told me."

"Maybe next time you should find someone who can speak English," Raven said.

"Great suggestion. You pick them out for me."

"Hang on, I came prepared," the Muse said. She pulled out her English to Japanese dictionary. "Yikes!" she cried when she opened it. "It's not transliterated! Hang on, there's gotta be a pronunciation guide. Here it is. I'll handle this." She pulled a boy aside. "Excuse me, young man. Um . . ." But from there she stuttered syllables and flipped through pages so that it took her about five minutes to say that one question. The boy just shook his head and said something. Even though the Muse wasn't exactly sure what, she thought it was something along the lines of him not understanding. She sighed. "Maybe I'll say it right the second time."

"Perhaps I can be of assistance," Starfire offered as she walked between the Muse and the boy. Then, quite unexpectedly, Starfire gave the boy a long kiss on the lips. All the Titans looked at her in shock. Robin head looked like it was about to explode. Then she let go and asked the boy a question in fluent Japanese. He pointed out the way. She bowed and said, "Domo arrigato." The boy sighed and went on his way.

"Starfire," Robin asked, "why did you just kiss that guy?"

"Oh. Tamaranians are able to learn any language instantaneously through lip contact."

"Wow," the Muse said. "That sounds . . . convenient."

They followed Starfire in the way the boy pointed, but suddenly crowds of people ran by them screaming. "They said a monster is coming!" Starfire said.

Around the corner, a huge dragon monster stomped in, breaking through the power lines. "Whoa, all those cheesy Japanese action movies are true!" Beast Boy said in awe.

"Titans, go!" Robin ordered. Everybody attacked the monster. Cyborg made a huge hole through the monster's middle, but it regenerated in a flash of colors.

"Same power as Saico-Tek!" Cyborg said.

"It must also be from Brushogun," Robin observed

"So this is where you need me," asked the Muse.

"Use your powers to see if you can make it disappear. Otherwise, try to get a sample from it, like a scale or something."

So the Muse did. She tried to imagine him gone, but it didn't work. She created bright bursts of light, and it helped distract the monster from destroying more buildings, but nothing more. She used a lot of her normal techniques of creating illusions, but they weren't helping either. She even tried containing him in a bubble, but he got free. "Oh, I wish Ragnarok were here. I've become so used to working with him!" The only sample they managed to get was a big green splotch of mucus on Beast Boy's pink shirt, but he threw it away.

Just when things were getting too out of hand, police vehicles surrounded the monster. One man in a brown trench coat came out and ordered, "Troopers, charge!" Hundreds of policemen came out and shot the monster with laser guns. They set up some kind of electronic devices around the monster. The stranger activated it with something, the Muse wasn't sure if it was a sword or a golf club, and it created a containment field of light around the monster.

"Wow, that just seemed so easy," the Muse thought. "Why wasn't he here earlier?"

The man turned to the heroes and bowed. "You are the Teen Titans. Welcome to Japan. I am Commander Uehara Daizo of the Tokyo Troopers."

The other Titans returned his bow. The Muse was still marveling at the containment field to notice. Cyborg whispered "psst!" at her. "Oh, I'm sorry," the Muse said quickly as she bowed as well.

"Thank you very much for your help, Commander," Robin said.

"Commander?" the man laughed. "You may call me Daizo. We are all friends. Come with me. I will honor you with a tour of our headquarters and our home." He led them to the Tokyo Troopers headquarters and bragged about how he kept his soldiers in good fighting condition daily. "My highly advanced command center has reduced crime in Tokyo by 200. Not bad, hmm?"

Most of the Titans approached the high-tech command center in amazement. Only the Muse looked at it from the outside. She couldn't believe what she just heard. She looked down at the floor and sighed.

"What is wrong, my young friend?" Daizo asked as he gently put his hand on her shoulder.

"Well, I was hoping to move to Tokyo in a few years. Does this mean . . . I won't be welcomed?"

Daizo laughed heartily. "Of course, child! You will always be welcomed to Tokyo as an honored guest. You just won't necessarily be needed. You can give your powers a rest and rely on us to keep Tokyo safe."

The Muse nodded and tried to smile, but that didn't really help cheer her up. In fact, it only made her feel worse.

"Daizo, with your permission, I would like to use this technology to help us complete our mission."

"You are welcomed, my friend," Daizo answered graciously. "And what is your mission?"

"We are tracking a criminal who calls himself Brushogun."

Daizo laughed again. "Forgive me, but you are ignorant of our culture. Brushogun is merely a myth. I fear you have come a long way for nothing. We have everything under control down here."

"Then why did you wait so long to get that monster under control?" the Muse blurted out.

"I was curious to see what you can do. I acknowledge that we offer great apologies to Tokyo for not being efficient enough this time, but when we saw that you needed our help, we came as quickly as we could."

"But Saico-Tek said–" Robin started.

"I'm sorry, I do not know who that is," Daizo said quickly. Suddenly, the mayor arrived, thanked Daizo for taking care of things, and gave him a medal. Daizo turned to the Titans and said, "Enjoy your stay in Tokyo, but remember here you are merely tourists. Leave the law enforcement to us."

They went outside. Everybody was down in the dumps, but the Muse felt pretty depressed. "Tokyo doesn't need a girl with big wings and superpowers. There's nothing for her to do." She sighed. "So much for my dream."

"Why are you giving up so quickly?" Starfire asked.

"Starfire, how would you feel if you were told that you can stay on Earth as long as you never flew again? If I can't be a superhero here, what's the point?" She sighed again. "Maybe I could pursue my dream in Las Vegas, though I don't really want to go there."

"Why not?" Cyborg asked.

"It's not called Sin City for nothing!" she yelled.

Robin meanwhile was muttering about feeling like an idiot for being led on a wild goose chase. Suddenly, Beast Boy jumped up. "Hey dudes, I know where we need to go!" He led them to . . . the comic book factory.

"I thought you were leading us on a clue about Brushogun!" Robin said angrily.

"Hello? Daizo said he's not real, so while we're here, we might as well take the tour." He ran enthusiastically to the factory and hit the door.

"The sign says 'Closed,' " Starfire told him.

"Oh, it's not fair!" Beast Boy yelled.

"Let's just go home," Robin muttered.

"Are you crazy?" Cyborg yelled. "We're in Tokyo, man! We got to do some sightseeing!"

"What's the point?" the Muse groaned.

"Snap out of it, girl!" Cyborg yelled at her. "Even if you aren't going to live here, you can't miss out on your one chance to see one the most famous cities on Earth!"

"Yeah!" Beast Boy said. "Besides, that's what vacations are for."

"Whatever," Raven and the Muse said at the same time. The Muse took off. She flew above the town for a little while, just thinking. Then she remembered that there was still business to be done. She landed on the street next to Cyborg, who seemed engrossed in a Japan guide. "Hey Cyborg, I remember that there was something Robin wanted us to do." She took off her Magic Hat and handed it to him. "He wanted you to scan this and see if it matched your findings on that pink device that other villain left. It may give us some more answers."

"Mmm-hmm," Cyborg replied, not turning around.

"Cyborg? Are you listening to me?"

He looked up in front of him. "Boo-yah!" he cried. "That's the only Japanese I need to know!" He pointed to a sign and read, "All you can eat!" He started running to the building where that sign stood. Then he turned around. "Muse, you wanna come with? Nothing cheers you up like a bit of wasabi."

"Thanks, but no thanks," she replied. She never was really fond of Chinese food, and something told her that she wouldn't like Japanese food much either, especially sushi. "But what about this?" She held out the Magic Hat again.

"Yeah, yeah, we'll take care of that after I've had a quick bite." He disappeared into the restaurant. The Muse put back on her hat and whispered the charm again. From what she heard from the other Titans, Cyborg could eat tons of food for days if he wanted to.

She saw a video arcade across the street. She went inside to see what was popular. Everybody was paying attention to Starfire, who had a virtual reality helmet on her head and a guitar in her hands. She was playing some coordination-heavy dancing game that was all the rage, and she was doing quite well. She took off the helmet and cheered when she saw the score. Then she spotted the Muse in the crowd. "Oh Muse, you must play this game!" she said happily. "I do not know if it is an RPG, but it is great fun. I felt like I was in a room full of dancing colors and music and it was wondrous!"

"Uh, thanks Starfire, but I'm not really good at games like this. Too much coordination."

"Oh. Well, can you show me a game that you like? An RPG, perhaps?"

"I don't know if there would be one here. Oh, here's a pretty good game. This tiny alien rolls up a lot of junk to make new planets." She pulled out a quarter of her pocket, but it wouldn't fit in the slot. "I guess American money won't work here."

"Hey Starfire," Robin called.

"Coming Robin," she answered. She went over to him, and he said something quietly to her. She giggled. She waved to the Muse, and they walked off. The Muse just watched them and then turned back to the screen, watching the demo of the tiny alien scurry across the streets of Tokyo.

Suddenly, her communicator beeped. She opened it and saw Raven's face. "Muse, you got to come down here. There's something you need to see."

"I'm on my way." She traced Raven's coordinates and flew toward there. It turned out, though, that Raven was in the air, waving for the Muse. "What is it?"

"Come and see." She flew down, and the Muse joined her. She hadn't seen Raven in a mood like this before. They landed in a country area. The Muse gave a small gasp when they got off. They stood in front of an impressive shrine, and outside there was a beautiful bronze statue of a woman with long hair, her dreamy eyes looking to the heavens. "You know who that is, don't you?" Raven asked.

"Yeah, I've seen her face in a social studies book. That's Murisaki Shikibu! She's credited with writing the world's first novel, 'The Tale of Genji.' Oh, where is Beast Boy with his camera when you need him? I thought her shrine is up in Kyoto."

"It is. I guess a local artist just crafted this sculpture in her memorial. You know, in her time, women did not have a lot of rights. I'm sure people told her all the time that there were things she couldn't do because of who she was."

"Well yeah, but her father went against tradition and got her a male education. She learned to read and write poetry."

"That's true, but she still must have face must opposition. And yet, her spirit was bursting with dreams. She didn't listen to what others said, and she shared her dreams with everyone. And because of that, she changed literature forever."

"Yeah, she did."

"Now, who says you can't do the same? Don't be discouraged by what that commander said. Dreams are worth too much to be thrown away."

"You're right. You're right. I can still have a future here in Japan. Maybe I can convince the Tokyo Troopers to use me. Hey, maybe I could join the Tokyo Troopers. I'm sure Commander Daizo would be happy to have me."

"Perhaps. We shouldn't look too far ahead. Just don't give up on yourself because of one little setback. I was just hoping this would strike your muse a little bit."

"Well, yeah, I guess it does a little bit."

Raven gave a small smile. Then, she put her hood up and floated away.

"Hey, where are you going?"

"I'm looking for something I can read."

"Sounds good. Can I come with?"

"I suppose." They went back to the city and approached a newsstand. "I know English, German, Romanian, ancient Sumerian, and Sanskrit," Raven told the man behind the desk who was eating noodles. "Do you have anything I can read?" He reached under the counter and gave her a stick of gum. She read the label, which was in English. "Super Twinkle Donkey Gum." The Muse laughed. The newsstand man winked at Raven. Raven growled and put the gum in her mouth.

"Is it good?" the Muse said, still laughing.

"Taste like green apple," Raven answered.

"Well, ok. Oh hey look! A Sudoku puzzle book!" The Muse picked up a book with the familiar number grid on the front.

"You sure that'll be of any use?"

"Raven, numbers are the universal language. I think I'll get two. Ragnarok likes these." She picked up a couple off the stand and handed a dollar to the man.

"That's an American dollar."

"I know. It should be more than enough." The man just looked at it for a while, then he went back eating his noodles. So they went on. "Hey, you want to find a place where we can work on one? I find that Sudokus are more fun and faster to do if you do them with a friend."

"No thanks. I need to find a book about Brushogun, find out what exactly his myth is about."

"Oh wait! I got a book of Japanese myths from a yard sale! I only flipped through it, but I never saw anything about Brushogun. I think I left it in the T-Ship. You think it will be helpful if I go get it?"

"I think it probably would."

"Alright, I'll go and meet you again." She started flying toward where they parked. On the way, she passed Beast Boy who seemed to be running for his life. "Beast Boy, what's up?"

"Can't talk now. Chasing 'otaku' girl," he huffed.

"Otaku?"

"It's what she called me. It means cute."

"Well, I thought the Japanese word for 'cute' is 'kawaii.'"

"I don't know. I'm sure 'otaku' is still a complement." He stopped. The brunette girl in front of them turned around, gave Beast Boy a wink, and ran into a building. Beast Boy followed, and just to see what would happen, she went in after him. Beast Boy walked onto a stage. Suddenly, a spot fell on him, and a crowd was chanting, "Go! Go! Go!" Beast Boy was handed a microphone, and music came out of nowhere. Beast Boy frantically switched the lyrics until they were English. They were very badly translated. The Muse recognized the tune; it was the beeping noise her communicator made, but the lyrics were absolutely ridiculous. Once he was done, he was tackled by fan girls. "I love this town!" he said deliriously.

The Muse then picked up the microphone. "Well, that song was . . . new." She was trying very hard to suppress her wish to say out loud that it was the worst song she had ever heard. "Hey, do you have any songs by Blue Man Group? How about 'Up to the Roof'? That's a good song. Or maybe 'I Feel Love'?" The girls were all screaming. Even with the microphone, they couldn't hear her. "Hey, please yell if you are paying attention!" They were still screaming, and since they were already screaming she thought it probably didn't count. "OK, let me just ask you something. If I sing a song, will you sing along?" Nobody even looked in here direction, and she added softly, "Or will I just be singing right here by myself?" She sighed, dropped the microphone, and walked out.

She went down the street and checked if Cyborg was ready, but he was still stuffing his face. "The sign says, 'All you can eat,' and I can eat more!" she heard him tell a chef.

"Well, it's probably still gonna be a while." Then she remembered her errand and flew back to the T-Ship. She picked up the myth book and a pencil. As she was flying back to the place where Raven was, she saw a huge, impressive structure. "Tokyo Tower! I can't leave here without seeing that." She thought about sitting up there near the top and starting a Sudoku. Then she spotted some other people there. "Hey, that's Robin and Starfire." She flew down about to join them, and then she saw the two of them drawing closer together. They kept getting closer and closer, and then their faces drew close together. Suddenly, the Muse's heart lurched. She couldn't look at them, and she flew far away. She sat on top of a tall apartment complex and tried to work on a Sudoku, but her heart was too hurt. She started crying a little bit.

She stayed up there for about half an hour. Then Starfire joined her. "Why Muse," she said, "what are you doing up here all by yourself?"

The Muse looked up from her puzzle book. "Where's your boyfriend?" she said in a grumble.

"Which friend who is a boy do you mean, Robin, Beast Boy, or Cyborg?"

"I don't know, whoever you were smooching with at the tower?"

"Oh, you saw?"

"I saw everything."

Starfire sat next to the Muse and bowed her head. "Robin has gone to look for Brushogun." She looked at the Muse's face. "Muse, what is wrong? Have you been crying?"

"I am lonely, Starfire."

"'Lone-lee?' Forgive me, I do not know this word. We do not have it on Tamaran."

"It's a sad, empty feeling in my heart. It's the worst feeling in the world. It's the emotion you get when you feel like . . . you don't have any friends."

"Oh, Muse! How can you say such a thing? You have many friends all around you!"

"I know, I know. I can't explain it. I've counted my blessings. I've got great friends, a loving mother, God's grace, a little money, good health, a TV, video games, a computer, tons of books, and a job that I love. But I still feel like something's missing, and I don't know what it is. Don't get me wrong. I'm happy for you and Robin. I think you're a good match for each other. But something about seeing you up there just hurt me for some reason. It made me lonely."

"Perhaps you feel so because you are without the one person you like more than anyone else in the world. You miss the Ragnarok."

"Well, yeah I do, but I don't think . . ."

Starfire sighed. "If that is the case, I suppose I feel the lone-lee too. I did not make lip contact with Robin again. He told me he was a hero, nothing more, and he didn't have time . . ."

"But we are something more! We're people, just like everybody else! We have needs and feelings. If we are the heroes, who will be the heroes for us?"

"What you say is true. I know Robin knows this is as well, and I will make him realize it."

The Muse stood up and looked at the city. "I was just thinking, maybe it's not a good idea for me to come back here to live."

"Why not? Are you still worried of what Daizo said?"

"No, Raven helped me with that. But I'm just not sure that I'll ever feel at home here. If I stay here, I'll be far away from all my friends, and there's no telling if I'll ever see them again."

"You'll make new friends! That's what I did here. I do not feel the lone-lee although I am far from my home."

"But everybody here has more or less ignoring me. All the Titans split up to do their own thing. When I tried to join Beast Boy at the karaoke thing, nobody even noticed that I was there."

"I am sure it will be easier when you learn the language. Just smile, and you'll find people to talk to who likes the same things as you."

"Easier said than done, at least for us humans. By the way, Starfire, I was wondering. If a kiss on the lips is all it takes for your race to learn a language, why do you have so much trouble with English, and why does it sound so blended with Tamaranian?"

"Yes, I have wondered that as well. My sister Blackfire seems to speak better English than I. Sometimes I wonder if I did not make lip contact long enough and lost some of the language. Or maybe there are just words in English and Tamaranian that do not translate. But I think the greatest reason is that I do not want to let go of my home and my culture. Perhaps in the deepest part of my heart, Tamaran is still my home, and it always will be. And I do get the sick for the home feeling sometimes, but I am mostly glad of that. As long as I love Tamaran, I never truly leave home, for I will always carry Tamaran, my knorfka, and all of my loved ones in my heart. You see?"

The Muse nodded. "I think so."

Starfire reached out her hand. "Come. Why don't we help Robin together? Then we won't feel the lone-lee anymore."

"OK." They flew down together, but they immediately both gasped in horror. A mug shot of Robin appeared on every video billboard. "What's this about?"

The story was that Robin was fighting a villain he identified as Saico-Tek, and Robin murdered him in front of a crowd of onlookers. Commander Daizo found him there next to the body with pink blood all over his gloves. The mayor posted an edict for the Titans to turn themselves in or leave Tokyo at once. Starfire immediately called all the other Titans on her communicator. They agreed to meet at a set point of coordinates to figure out a plan.

"Alright, I'll go that way, you go this way," the Muse told Starfire. "That way if we're being pursued, the villain won't know who to follow."

"Very well. Hurry, Muse!" Starfire took off and flew over the countryside. Meanwhile, the Muse flew low over the city.

Suddenly, she stopped because something caught her eye that confused her. "Murisaki Shikibo's statue? In the middle of the street? How many of these were made?" Then, the statue frowned and stood. She drew a sword and jumped off her pedestal. "Uh oh. The pen may be mightier than the sword, but I bet that sword is still pretty darn mighty!" She kept trying to avoid the attacks, but the statue was very agile. The Muse's attacks seemed to merely bounce off the surface. "Hey, help? Someone? Anybody?" Then, when she was quite unprepared, the statue struck her side. The Muse screamed, fell down, and passed out.

When she opened her eyes, the first thing the Muse saw was a black staring into her face. She raised her arm to shoo it away, but her arm hurt too much. She groaned and put it down. "Oh, I think she's awake!" the cat suddenly said as it hopped off.

"Huh?" the Muse said.

"Well, it's about time!" a female voice said. The Muse turned her head and saw three pairs of socked feet heading toward her. The people then knelt down to her level. "How you holding up, hon?"

The Muse looked closer at her. "You're Sailor Moon!"

"That's riiiiiight!" she answered.

"I guess she's coming around pretty good," another girl said.

The Muse thought that must be another sailor scout, but when she looked at her it took her a little while to recognize her. "Sakura, the Cardcaptor?"

"Yep."

The other visitor leaned over her, and she recognized him by his puzzle. "Yugi Moto!"

He extended his hand to her and said in a deep voice, "It is an honor to meet you."

"Um, same here. I had no idea you guys could really speak English."

"Oh, I activated the Language Card," Sakura explained. "It's translating for us."

"Oh, I see. So, what are you doing together?"

"We are the Underground Tokyo Troopers Resistance Movement," the black cat, who must have been Luna, replied.

"But you're the heroes of Japan. Why aren't you out there?"

"Hello!" a voice said. The little Keroberyls flew in front of her face. "'Underground' means we're in hiding!"

"Wait, you're fighting the good guys?"

"Trust us, the Tokyo Troopers are not the good guys," Sakura answered.

"They put us out of a job," Sailor Moon added. "Commander Daizo acted like he was happy for us and he was proud for the work we did as heroes, but then he was all about taking over the show. He pretty much made it illegal for us doing what he said was his job."

"We tried to explain that we were just trying to help," Sakura said.

"We tried to tell them that we were the only ones who were destined to restore the cosmic balance, but he would not listen," Yugi explained.

"What did he do?" the Muse asked.

"Let's just say that your friend Robin isn't the first hero Daizo arrested."

Yugi and Sakura both looked at Sailor Moon who groaned and threw down her fists. "I was just doing my job, using all my powers to defeat this blue guy, and instead of becoming moon dust, he exploded. And Commander Dumbo took me prison, and I was so humiliated! And this blue stuff still won't come out!" For the first time, the Muse spotted numerous blue splotches on Sailor Moon's uniform. "I've bleached it and everything. It's worse than permanent ink!"

"Ink? You think maybe that's what it is?"

"No, I was just comparing–"

She sat up a little and looked at it closer. "That's cyan. When we were fighting Godzilla, or whatever that was, Cyborg shot him with a sonic cannon, and the hole flashed yellow, magenta, cyan, and then his normal color. Those are the ink colors they put in printers. I know because a message comes up whenever I try to print something that says those inks are running low. I think that's ink."

"Well, if that's true, then what Lei was saying is right," Sakura spoke up.

"Oh no, don't say it," Sailor Moon said.

"These new criminals who just now appeared are–"

"I'm serious! Don't say it!"

"They're from Brushogun?" Yugi said.

Sailor Moon groaned loudly and hid her face.

"So Brushogun is real?" the Muse asked.

"Oh yeah, he's real alright," Sailor Moon said. "He's almost impossible to beat!"

"We've all been up against him," Sakura said. "He's very powerful. Then some time ago, he just disappeared. We thought somebody vanquished him at last. That's about when Commander Daizo took over."

"But who is Brushogun?" the Muse asked.

"Sailor Mercury did some research on him," Yugi said. "He's ancient, been around for centuries."

"So he's immortal?"

"We're not sure," Kero said. "He sounds like he's one of those villains that is around for a while, then he's vanquished, and then he's revived years later."

"According to legend, he was an artist who just yearned to make his creations real," Sakura said. "So he turned to black magic to achieve his dream. It worked, but like a lot of dark magic spells, it came with a curse. It turned him into a blob of living ink and gave him the power to create alive drawings at will."

"The poor dear," Luna said. "He never really had a bad heart. The evil of the spell has a grip on him that he can't control."

"Well, is there anything we can do?" the Muse asked.

"Sailor Mars and Lei were both searching for a spell," Sailor Moon answered, "but then Brushogun vanished and Commander Dizto took over, and they left!"

"You mean, they're gone?"

"Out of the country," Yugi answered. "Several Japanese heroes left the country when Daizo became too powerful. Some even left the universe."

"We're just a few of those who decided to stay behind," Sakura said.

"So that we could take Commander Dorko down!" Sailor Moon yelled.

"Actually, it's because we still have a destiny to fulfil here," Yugi said.

"Yeah, but while we're here . . ."

The Muse sat up higher. "Can you guys tell me something?"

"Yeah?" Sakura answered.

"What is it?" Yugi asked.

"I've been thinking about living in Tokyo in a few years. You guys stayed, even with Daizo oppressing you. Do you think it's worth it for me to come back?"

"No. There's no place for a superhero down here," Sailor Moon answered.

"But I really want to be an RPG writer. It's my dream."

"Then I'm afraid you'll have to make a choice," Yugi told her. "If you want to pursue your dream, this is the place to do it. But if you want to stay a hero, you probably should go home."

"But . . . home will always be in my heart."

"Try telling that to the Tokyo Troopers," Kero scoffed.

The Muse sighed. "Then maybe I should just head back. Where are the rest of the Titans?"

"Oh, we took care of them," Luna explained. "They were each attacked, but we rescued them and sent them to a safe haven. We just kept you because you were so injured."

"What about Robin?"

"Didn't you hear?" Sailor Moon answered. "He escaped!"

"He did?"

"Yeah, his armored car just blew up in the middle of the highway. The Tokyo Troopers almost caught him again in a disguise, but Starfire rescued him and took him to the safe point."

"I guess that's where I need to go, then." She got up.

"Oh darling, are you sure you're well enough?" Luna asked.

"Healed or not, I gotta go. You guys wanna come with? If we do find Brushogun, I bet we could use your powers. Beast Boy would just freak out to see y'all. See, ever since we came here, he's been talking about going to that big manga factory on the edge of town."

"You mean Wakamono Shukan?" Sakura asked. "That would be a waste of time."

"Yeah, I know. When we went down there, it was closed."

"It's not just closed. It's shut down," Sailor Moon said. "We know because they used to do our mangas, but they haven't done any business with us in months. All because of the decline of heroism since you-know-who came along."

"Really?" The Muse thought. "A comic book maker shuts down because . . . that's the best place to get ink! I know where Brushogun is! Come on, let's go tell the Titans!" It didn't take them long to find the Titans because all the Tokyo troopers and about half of Tokyo's population were chasing the heroes. "Guys! I know where Brushogun is!"

"Who are they?" Robin asked pointing behind her.

"Oh, these are Sailor Moon, Sakura, and Yugi. You don't mind if they come along, do you?"

Beast Boy gave a delirious groan, put his hand over his heart, and passed out.

"I told you he wasn't going to take this well," the Muse muttered back at the others. "Come on, Beast Boy, get up. We're going to that comic book factory you wanted to go to."

Raven slapped his face, and Beast Boy perked up. "We're going to Wakamono Shukan? All of us?"

"Sure. You don't expect us to miss out, do you?" Sailor Moon answered.

"That's where Brushogun is?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure of it. See, Brushogun is–"

"We know," Raven answered. "I found the book on him."

"Well, let's not waste any time. Let's go where the ink runs free!"

So they made a beeline to the comic book factory. Robin used an explosive device to get in. The placed seemed completely empty at first, but then they heard a low groan. The heroes slowly approached a door on the other side of the room, then they broke the door down. "Freeze!" Robin ordered, but there was no on there either. They found an elaborate chair surrounded by monitors, but nobody wasn't sitting in it. "Brushogun isn't here."

There was a loud groan. A printing press near the monitored chair opened, and sitting in it was an old man. "I am," he replied feebly.

"You're Brushogun?" the Muse asked.

"Yes," he replied. "It is good to meet you at last."

"So, you're not the one behind all this, are you?" Robin asked. "You're–"

"His prisoner. He trapped me here in this cursed printing press that uses my powers against my will. My creations do his bidding."

"Luna was right. You're not bad," Sailor Moon said. "Then why all this time did you–?"

"Doing evil, serving the darkness that has ensnared me, was the only thing keeping me alive. I've let it master me for too long. Please, children, accept my most humble apologies."

"But why did you send Saico-Tek to destroy our home?" Cyborg asked.

"It was the only way I could call for help. I know the natives here wouldn't be happy with me, so I sent Saico-Tek as a messenger. If he attacked you, it would give you reason to come here and find me."

"Then why did you send Saico-Tek again?" Robin asked.

"Saico-Tek was printed twice. I sent the first, but he sent the second, as a trap."

"But if you are merely the brush, who tells you what to paint?" Raven asked.

"That would be me," a voice coming from the chair answered. "I must say, Titans, you are most formidable adversaries. Others have fled before me, but you have been quite persistent. Once I erase you, perhaps I will print copies of you to serve me, hm?"

Sakura gasped.

"Show yourself, coward!" Starfire ordered.

"There's only one person who would gain from creating criminals and driving real heroes away–the hero who captures them! Isn't that right, Commander?"

The chair turned toward them, and Commander Daizo was indeed sitting there. "Very good my friend, but you haven't caught me. I've caught you."

"You dog!" Sailor Moon gasped. Daizo snapped his finger, and the group of heroes were suddenly surrounded by Tokyo Troopers.

"Wait a minute," Beast Boy said. "If the good guy was really a bad guy, then that means . . . all right! We're the good guys again!"

"It confirms what we believed all along," Yugi said. "You, Daizo, are a dishonorable fraud. You used Brushogun's powers to make you look like something you're not!"

"And whenever we got too close to truth, you scared us off and made us appear to be the villains!" Sakura added.

"That's a nice story, children, but I doubt anyone will believe it–once you're all behind bars," Daizo replied. "Troopers, charge!"

"Titans, go!" Robin ordered. All the heroes fought the oncoming troopers with their powers.

"This is for locking me up!" Sailor Moon said as she took off her crown. "Moon Tiara Magic!" she yelled as she threw it at her attackers.

"Celtic Guardian, attack!" Yugi ordered as Duel Monsters' character came to life.

"Windy Card, release!" Sakura cried, and a spirit appeared beating all the Trooper back with a strong wind.

During his battle, Robin knocked the helmet off a trooper. The trooper immediately turned to a pool of ink. "Titans, the troopers aren't real!" Robin announced.

"That means we don't have to hold back!" Cyborg realized.

"It almost means there's more where that came from!" Daizo reminded them. He pushed a button. Brushogun screamed as ink came out of his hands and streaked a piece of paper. The ink leapt off the paper and became several dangerous creatures.

"If we keep fighting them, it won't do any good," the Muse thought. "Daizo will just force Brushogun to make more. So I've got to free the source." She flew up to the printing press.

Brushogun looked up at her with hope. "Murasaki!"

"No," the Muse said shaking her head.

"Oh, I loved her! I loved her! I created her likeness so we wouldn't be lonely. I see the same artistic spark in your eyes."

"You said 'artistic?'"

"Yes. You are a creative soul, just as I am."

"Well, I think your creativity never runs dry, does it?"

"No, but look at what it cost me."

"How do I get you free? Do I just take these things on your back?" She pulled one off. Brushogun screamed. "Oh no! Did that hurt?"

"When you take off a chain you've been wearing a long time, it does hurt, but it also feels so good."

"OK, then. I'll keep at it."

Meanwhile, Robin was confronting Daizo just above them. Daizo looked down and saw what the Muse was doing. "NO!" he screamed. He jumped down into the printing press. Brushogun screamed even louder. His eyes glowed blue, and he vomited ink. The earth was shaking underneath them as pipes shot out of the ground. The Muse held tightly to Brushogun. She didn't care that he was ruining her clothes. She had to continue. A monster grew around them, entirely made of ink. It shouted with Daizo's voice, "The power is mine!"

"What do I do?" the Muse asked.

"Continue to release me. Without me, he is nothing."

So the Muse continued to pull off the pipes that connected Brushogun to Daizo, yet the monster didn't seem to get any weaker. The ink began to draw her in. They were both sinking. The monster laughed with evil glee.

"Muse!" Starfire and Raven cried at the same time. They flew toward the monster, and he caught them with tentacle-like pipes. He kept the other heroes from attacking.

The monster laughed again with triumph. Then suddenly, he stopped. "Huh?" he said. The creatures he created began to melt, and he also started dripping.

"The spell is breaking!" Raven said aloud.

"How?" Sakura asked.

The monster screamed until he became one large ocean of ink. The heroes all got up and brushed themselves off. "What happened?" Robin asked.

But soon, everyone saw. A pile of ink bubbled, and when it popped, the Muse was sitting there cradling a free Brushogun in her arms. "Thank you. You set me free," he said weakly. "Now, at last I can rest in peace."

"No, don't die!" the Muse said. "You can be good. I know you're good inside. There's gotta be a spell somewhere that will take the evil out of you."

"No, there is not. But I will live on as long as you continue to create and keep the creative spark alive in your heart. If you keep creating, you will never be alone" He slipped her hands in hers. The Muse thought she felt something cross between them, and he disappeared. A rain storm came and washed the ink away.

The Muse looked over and saw Robin talking to Starfire. "Maybe I was wrong before. Maybe a hero isn't all that I am. Maybe I could be, maybe we could be–"

"Robin?" Starfire answered. "Stop talking." Then they drew closer, and they kissed. The Muse couldn't stop herself. She looked down and sighed. Starfire noticed her and approached the girl. "Oh Muse, please do not feel lonely. All your friends are here, and someday someone will want to be more with you too."

"I hope so," she answered doubtfully.

"Yeah. You're pretty 'otaku,'" Beast Boy said.

"You think so?"

"Well, sure," he answered with a shrug.

She smiled. "Thanks, Beast Boy."

The next day, a huge festival was held in their honor. A big gathering of cheering fans filled Tokyo square as the Titans stood on a platform.

"Guess you're not a wanted man anymore," Cyborg said to Robin.

"I wouldn't say that," he replied. He and Starfire were holding hands.

Beast Boy stepped forward, and the stage was suddenly crowded with fan girls. A chef approached Cyborg and revealed a huge table full of sushi.

"Did you also make the new friends while exploring Tokyo?" Starfire asked Raven.

"No, but somehow I became a mascot for gum," Raven replied grimly.

The Muse was standing out apart from everyone, feeling left out for some reason. "Hey Muse!" a boy's voice called. She looked up and saw Yugi, Sakura, and Sailor Moon rushing up to the stage.

"We wanted to give you these for helping us get back to our jobs," Sailor Moon said.

The Muse looked at what they handed her. "Ooh, real Japanese mangas!"

"Huh?" Beast Boy said as he pulled away from the fan girls.

"These are your issues, aren't they?" The Muse opened up the covers. "And you each autographed them!"

Beast Boy groaned and fell down.

She looked over at Beast Boy. "Uh, hey, why don't you give them to him? He's more into comics than I am."

"But what can we give you?" Sakura asked.

"Well, why don't you autograph this?" The Muse pulled out the Sudoku book.

"Sudoku?" Sailor Moon said. "Sailor Mercury loves Sudoku!"

"Yeah, me too!" Yugi said.

"You do?" the Muse asked. "Then do me a favor. See if you can solve puzzle 7. I did it twice, and I'm still stumped."

The Mayor then gave each of the Titans a medal while giving a speech. As he presented the Muse with hers, he said to her privately, "And I understand that you want to come back to Tokyo to live here someday."

"Well, yes I was thinking of that, sir. I would like to come here . . . but only if I am welcomed," (she looked over at the fan girls crowding around Beast Boy) "and if I am needed" (she looked over at Tokyo's native heroes).

"Why of course, girl! Tokyo would gladly accept you with open arms and an open heart. And as long as I am mayor, I say that whenever you come to this town, you will always be a hero."

"And you think I will make new friends here?"

The Mayor laughed. "My dear, once you return, you will instantly have over twelve million friends!" The crowd cheered again. Even the fan girls cheered, and some of them chanted, "Muse! Muse! Muse!" The Muse smiled. She felt a lot better.

"So, I guess we gotta go home now, huh?" Beast Boy asked Robin.

"I am home," the Muse said.

"What!" Cyborg cried. "You're not going back?"

"What will your kenorfka think?" Starfire cried.

"Oh, I am going back there, but I feel like Tokyo can be just as much of a home as Metropolis. Tokyo is in my heart now."

"I'm sure you can get more of it into your heart," Robin said. "You still haven't gone to see the video game factories or found inspiration."

"No, I found inspiration. I realized it as we were fighting Daizo. What better characters and boss fights can be created than what I experienced as a hero? That was some of the coolest stuff. I'm sure people would love to play that."

"Still, I think we could stay for a little longer. After all, even superheroes need a vacation every now and again."

The Muse saw Beast Boy and Cyborg looking pleadingly up at her and looked at the crowd, some still chanting her name. "OK, why not?"

The Titans all cheered, and the Muse could see that the adventure was over, but the fun was just beginning.

Next Episode–Invocation: See how the Muse's life in Japan really turned out.