I walked to the end of the docks hanging off the edge of Jump City. I stared at the empty piece of land sitting in the middle of the lake, near the cable bridge. I took a deep breath and looked up at the night sky. The stars twinkled, giving me a tiny sense of peace.

I turned on my heel, ran down the docks, and into town. I hurried past cars and people as my feet pounded against the sidewalk. I turned into the nearest alley.

I turned the corner at the end and slammed into another person. I stumbled back.

"Gimme all your money." a low voice hissed. A thug stepped into the moonlight. I scowled.

"I don't have time for you. Get out of my way." I said.

"Don't make me repeat myself, girl." My eyes diverted to the small knife he pulled out of his pocket. "Just do what I say and no one gets hurt."

I pulled out an energy pistol, aimed, and fired. The laser hit the handle of the knife, and the thug yelped and dropped it. A trash can stood nearby. I popped off the lid and chucked it at the man like a Frisbee. The lid rammed into his stomach. The thug gritted his teeth, tossed the lid aside, and charged.

As I reached for my other pistol, a disc flew over my shoulder. I jumped back as the disc unleashed a bright, white light. The thug cried out as he covered his eyes. Another silhouette rushed past me, leaped into the air, and jump-kicked the thug in the face. The thug fell against the wall and crumpled to the ground. The silhouette stood up straight and turned to me.

Robin stared at me for a long moment, his mask narrowing from his squint. He walked over to me, stopping just a foot away, and loomed over me. I shrunk back.

"...Who are you?" Robin said.

"Ciela." I said. I stepped back to create some space and holstered my pistols. Robin continued to stare at me. "Is something wrong?"

"I... don't know. I feel like I know you from somewhere. Have we met before?"

I perked up. He recognizes me? But how?

Something green caught my upper peripheral, and I looked at the sky. A stream of green raced across the sky like a comet. I watched it disappear into the city, followed by a large, green explosion from the city's center. I darted around Robin and out the alley.

"Hey, wait!" Robin called behind me.

I hurried in the direction of the green smoke rising from the crash site. A large crater jutted out of the road, right in front of the pizza restaurant. People gathered around the crater, their curiosity getting the best of them.

Starfire stepped out of the crater, hunched over and panting. She wore the same outfit as her older sister, Blackfire- the same prison uniform. Her hands were cuffed, and her eyes glowed perpetually.

"Sluvnar ni vormat!" Starfire cried, sliding down the side of the crater. She raised her hands up, and people backed away. "Sluvnar!"

She aimed her cuffed hands at a nearby man with a camera. His shaking finger pressed the shutter button, and the flash went off. Starfire winced and shrunk away for a moment, before roaring and swinging her arms wildly. The citizens scattered in a cloud of screams. Starfire swung her arms, knocking a parked car into the air like a baseball. It crashed to the ground and caught on fire. She pounded her hands into the ground, leaving another smaller crater. She turned her head, noticing the single pillar in front of the door of the pizza restaurant that helped keep the balcony up. She sprinted over and began to beat it with her cuffed hands, screaming in Tamaranean. The balcony broke off, and those on it clung to the sides. Starfire reeled back once more time.

A birdarang cut through the air and hit the headpiece framing Starfire's face. Starfire stumbled a few feet. She turned and growled at Robin, who stood on a parked car.

"I'm going to have to ask you to stop doing that." Robin said.

Starfire lunged. Robin backflipped off the car, and Starfire crushed it in half. Starfire tossed the mangled car into the air with her foot and kicked it at Robin. Robin ducked as the car flew over his head and hit a nearby building. He glanced over his shoulder at the car. When he looked forward, he didn't have enough time to dodge Starfire's swing. The cuff hit him square in the chest, and he tumbled. Starfire lunged at him, but Robin rolled out of the way. Starfire's cuff dug into the asphalt.

"Dude, this is sick!" I jumped at the voice next to me and leaped away, getting a good look at Beast Boy, who also watched the fight. The top half of his face was covered in a mask. He grabbed my arm and looked at me with a huge grin. "That's Robin, the Boy Wonder! I can't believe I'm seeing him in the flesh, even more that I get to see him in action!"

"Um... yeah." I said.

Beast Boy paused and stood up straight. He squinted at me. "Do I know you? You look really familiar, but I don't know from where."

Him, too, huh? I thought. I get it now... sort of.

"I think Robin needs help." I said.

Beast Boy grinned. "Oh, man, I am so on it!"

Beast Boy sprinted towards Starfire, who lunged at Robin. He transformed into a ram and barreled into Starfire. Beast Boy transformed back into his human self and saluted.

"Ex-Doom Patrol member, Beast Boy, at your service!" Beast Boy said. "I'd just like to say that it's an honor to fight alongside you, sir!"

"Don't call me 'sir'." Robin said.

Starfire found an empty bus nearby and raised it above her head. Beast Boy yelped as he and Robin leaped away. Starfire threw the bus.

Cyborg, shrouded in a hoodie and sweatpants, stepped in the bus's path. He grabbed the bus and tossed it off to the side.

"Yo! Quit messin' with my town!" Cyborg cried.

"She started it." Beast Boy said, pointing an accusing finger at Starfire.

With a growl, Starfire slammed her cuffed hands into the road. I crouched low to the ground to keep my balance as the area shook. The tops of the cuffs broke off, freeing her hands. Starfire raised her hands, unleashing a barrage of starbolts at the three boys. They separated and dodged the starbolts. Many of them flew off, hitting buildings, cars, and billboards, creating an even bigger mess. Starfire collapsed to her knees and panted. People began to surface again, observing the giant disaster around them. The three boys hid behind the bus Starfire threw before, collecting themselves before they charged again.

A large, astral raven emerged from the ground, separating them from Starfire. Raven teleported behind the boys.

Wait a minute. I thought. If they all recognize me...

I glanced at the others, who were still distracted from Raven's magical appearance, took a deep breath, and ran over to Starfire.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" I heard Robin call. Starfire, oblivious to me approaching, leaped back on her feet and aimed her clenched fists at the others, ready to shower them with more star energy.

"Koriand'r!" I cried.

Starfire froze, her fists glowing green. She craned her head and looked at me. There was a long pause of silence as we stared at each other. Slowly, the light consuming her hands and eyes flickered off, and she lowered her arms. A stoic expression covered her face. She trudged over and leaned uncomfortably close in my face.

"I'll let you go, okay?" I said, placing a hand on the cuffs around her wrists. I slowly pulled out a pistol; Starfire remained calm. "Hold still."

I aimed the pistol at the link connecting the two cuffs and fired. The laser broke the link, and the cuffs fell of Starfire's hands. She rubbed her wrists. She opened her mouth to speak, but she stopped before the words came out. She turned on her heel and marched towards the small trickle of people.

"Where are you...?" I called.

Scanning the crowds, Starfire headed straight for a teenage boy watching the commotion with his friends. Before he could back away, Starfire grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and kissed him.

My eyes grew wide, and my mouth slowly fell open. My pistol slipped out of my hand and clattered to the ground. Wait... No... You're supposed to...

I turned my head to the others, specifically Robin. They all watched Starfire with surprise.

Starfire pulled away and shoved the teenager. He stumbled into his friends, gaping at Starfire as she walked back to me.

"You will tell the others to leave me alone. I wish not to resort to destruction." Starfire said, unfazed by my baffled expression. She turned and lifted off into the air.

I stared at the empty sky.

"Nice work. I never imagined you as an alien wrangler." Beast Boy said. I blinked multiple times as I returned to the present. Slowly, I picked up my pistol, holstered it, and turned to the others.

"Are you working with that girl?" Robin said.

"Um... I..." I said. How am I supposed to answer a question like that? I cleared my throat. "Yes, I know her, but she didn't do this out of spite."

"I find that hard to believe." Cyborg said, glancing back at the flaming vehicles behind us. "What other reason could she have to come here and trash this place?"

The air rumbled. A giant shadow consumed us. We looked up and saw a giant, orange spaceship fly slowly above the city.

"Them." I said.

The spaceship dropped a smaller ship onto the tiny island in the middle of the lake. It broadcasted a hologram of a large, green alien.

"People of Earth, we come to your planet hunting an escaped prisoner..." the alien said.

While the others listened to the holographic message. I slowly backed away. Once I was at a comfortable distance, I turned around to run.

"You're going after her?" Raven said, who suddenly appeared before me. I gasped and stumbled back.

"I am." I said.

"Do not interfere, and we will leave your city with only minimal damage." the alien continued. "But, if you do interfere, your destruction will be absolute."

"You're still sure after hearing that?" Raven said.

"I'm more sure because I heard that. Excuse me." I said, running around Raven and down the street.


There was a large hole in the side of the video game store. I climbed through, careful not to touch the seared edges. I heard the crinkling of wrappers and the smack of hungry lips. I walked to the food shelves and stood behind Starfire as she stuffed her face with snacks.

"Koriand'r?" I said.

Starfire stopped. She wiped her mouth and turned to face me.

"Why have you pursued me?" Starfire said.

"Those aliens, the Gordanians, are here. They're looking for you." I said.

Starfire looked to the ground. "How do you know my name?" She looked at me again. "Your face is a familiar one to me, but I cannot recall where I have seen it before. Never have I set foot in this planet, so how can I recognize you?"

"You're not the only one. My name is Ciela." I said. "It might sound strange, but we're friends."

Starfire knit her eyebrows, as if trying to decide whether my words were truth or not. "Friends..."

I nodded. "Don't worry. I won't let them take you. You're more than just a servant."

Starfire stared at me, perplexed. My face fell, and I rubbed the back of my neck.

"Um... So, why did you kiss that guy back there?" I said.

"On my planet, my people and I are capable of learning foreign languages through lip contact." Starfire said.

"I know that, but... why that stranger specifically? Wasn't there... someone else you had in mind?"

Starfire squinted. "No. I had become too preoccupied with hearing you call my name to have any sort of preference."

"...Right..."

Outside the building, a rock bounced across the sidewalk, betraying whoever approached. We saw the thin beam of a flashlight. Starfire grabbed me and jumped behind the counter.

"They have found me so soon?" Starfire whispered.

"Would Gordanians make such a quiet entrance?" I said.

"My analyzer say she's in here." Cyborg said.

"That and this giant hole in the wall." Beast Boy said. "Hellooo!"

Starfire looked to me. I took her arm and pulled her to her feet. The flashlight shined in our eyes. I winced and shielded my eyes from the harsh light before it got turned off.

"You've caused a lot of trouble for everyone." Robin said, folding his arms.

Starfire scowled. "I would not need to come here were it not for the Gordanians."

"You mean those lizard dudes? What did you do to become their prisoner?" Cyborg said.

"They were carrying me to the Citadel to live out my days as a servant. I am not a prisoner, I am a prize."

The wall exploded, and the impact sent us to the ground. Another gaping hole formed in the wall, and a group of Gordanians stood on the other side.

"Seize her!" their leader, Trogaar, cried. The others swarmed in.

We looked at each other and nodded. We jumped to our feet and charged. I transformed my pistols into gauntlets and thrust my hands out, shooting two large lasers that hit a few of the Gordanians. One thrust the tip of its spear at me. I twisted out of the way and karate-chopped the spear in half. I grabbed the top half and swung it into the Gordanian's cheek. He stumbled and swung the stubby remainder he had, but I blocked.

I heard a bleat and charging footsteps. I jumped back as Beast Boy, as a ram, barreled into the Gordanian, throwing him into some that Raven fought. She raised her arms, and the ground underneath the pile of Gordanians glowed with astral magic. The ground shot up and encased them in a cement cage. Raven thrust out her hand, and the cage flew into the wall, crashing through the concrete and shattering on the road outside.

The Gordanians retreated. We stepped out of the mangled video game store and watched them fly back to their ship.

"That's right, you better run!" Beast Boy cried.

"Aw, man, my suit..." Cyborg said, picking off the scraps of fabric from his hoodie.

"Are you kidding me? You look way cooler now."

"Like I'm going to take fashion advice from a kid in a goofy mask."

"Goofy? I thought my mask was cool..."

"It's not." Raven said.

"But-" Beast Boy sighed and pulled off the mask.

"This is not a time to celebrate." Starfire said. "Because you have interfered, Trogaar will surely strike harder."

"Fools! You earth scum were warned. Now, you must pay the price." Trogaar said via hologram. "Say goodbye to your city."

The hologram disappeared, and the large spaceship swooped in and hung above the city. It floated vertically, displaying the giant laser on the bottom. It began to charge.

"Great. What else can happen from today?" Cyborg said.

"All the fault is yours!" Starfire snapped at Robin. "If you were not insistent on assisting me, you would have not doomed your city!"

"Excuse me?! I was trying to be nice! What's so wrong about that?!" Robin said.

"Well, technically, Ciela was the one who first went after you-" Raven said. She stopped mid-sentence and turned to me. "That's weird... I already know your name without you telling me..."

"Wait a minute!" Cyborg cried, whirling around to face me. "What are you doing fighting with my cybernetics?!"

I froze and glanced at the gauntlets wrapped around my hands.

"I... I can explain." I mumbled.

"Are we just going to ignore the fact that the entire city is about to be vaporized by a bunch of angry geckos?!" Beast Boy cried.

"Beast Boy's right. If we're going to stop those aliens, we need to put aside our differences and work together." Robin said. "We need to find a way onto that ship."

"I can help." Raven said. "Are you ready?"

We nodded. Raven raised her hand as it glowed with astral magic. The magic wrapped around us, and we teleported from the city to the Gordanian spaceship. When the magic faded, Beast Boy shivered.

"We've got to get to the firing control room, quickly." Robin said.

"It's that door over there." I said, pointing to the door at the end of the hallway. Everyone looked at me. I turned away. "Don't ask."

We hurried to the door, which was sealed shut. We heard Trogaar's raspy voice on the other side.

"Stand back." Robin said, placing a disc on the door. We distanced ourselves from the door. The disc exploded, and the door blew open. We hurried inside.

While the smoke cleared and the Gordanians broke out of their daze, we attacked. Starfire showered the aliens with starbolts. A few aimed their spears at her and fired back. Starfire brought her hands together and created a shield of star energy. She charged forward and rammed the shield into them. Beast Boy, as a kangaroo, pounded his feet into a few of the Gordanians before Trogaar got a hit on him. Raven teleported in front of Trogaar and blocked its strikes with a shield of magic. The last strike broke through the shield, and Raven fell to the ground.

I sprinted in front of Raven and slapped my hand against Trogaar's chest. I fired a laser out the palm of my hand, launching him back and sending him into a few of his comrades.

"You guys okay?" I said, turning to the others.

"Just peachy." Beast Boy winced as Raven helped him stand. "But, uh, I can't say the same about the others."

We turned and saw Starfire, Robin, and Cyborg surrounded by Gordanians. The air turned staticky.

"Get away from my friends!" Raven cried. "Azarath, metrion, zinthos!"

Raven's magic exploded, destroying the control panels. The ship fell out of the sky and crashed into the lake below. The impact sent all of us to the ground. Most of the Gordanians were knocked unconscious. Trogaar, however, stood back on his feet. He turned and glared at the three of us. With a growl, he stomped over to us and extracted his claws, making them bigger and longer.

A blast of blue energy flashed and hit him in the back. Trogaar cried out and collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Cyborg stood behind him, the barrel of his newly made sonic cannon smoking.

"Booyah." Cyborg said with a smile.


"Now that's a great view." Cyborg said as we stood on the tiny island in the middle of the lake. The sun peeked its head from the horizon. "You could build a house on this spot just to watch that."

"Not to mention being able to chill at the beach all day. Imagine the awesome tan you'd get!" Beast Boy said. Raven cracked a small smile.

"Pardon me," We turned to face Starfire, dressed in her regular uniform, "I wish you thank you for the kindness you have all shown me. Were it not for you, I would be spending the rest of my life as a caterer."

"We're glad we were able to help." Robin said.

"If it is not too much to ask... I wish for permission to stay here on Earth."

"We haven't even gotten your name yet."

"In your language, it would be Starfire."

"Well, Starfire, you don't need permission- you're already welcome here. But if you're asking for our friendship, you've got it."

Starfire clasped her hands together in front of her heart. "Yes, friends. That is what we all are now!"

"I guess that doesn't sound so bad." Raven said.

"Just in case we ever need to contact each other, Cyborg and I made these." Robin pulled out four communicators.

"I made them out of my circuitry, so you know they're the best." Cyborg said.

I watched Raven, Beast Boy, and Starfire grab one. Slowly, my eyes widened as I stared at Starfire. Starfire looked up at me and knitted her eyebrows.

"Is there something troubling you?" she said.

"I..." My breathing picked up as I shifted my gaze between everyone. Robin held the last communicator in his hand- the one meant for me. "I need to go. I'm sorry."

I turned on my heel and sprinted away, around the tiny island and to the opposite side. I knelt at the shore, placing my hands on the ground, and panted. I heard the shouts of the others as they searched for me.

As my vision faded to black, I pictured rampaging Starfire from the night before. I reimagined me running to her, calling her by her real name.

"I had become too preoccupied with hearing you call my name to have any sort of preference."

What have I done? My hands trembled as I pictured Starfire kissing the teenage civilian and just now, when she and Robin exchanged friendly smiles upon Starfire receiving her communicator.