Woohoo! 300+ views on the story! And 12 reviews. That's fantastic. Thanks so much for your support! I've been PMing with some people about the story, so thanks to them especially for the encouragement and great ideas. You know who you are. Another special thanks to everyone who has followed and favorited this story!
As for the story itself, it seems that I've come to the end of the line for old material. Basically, from this point out, I'll be putting out brand-new material! I still will be recycling concepts from the old story for a few more chapters, but that's a moot point.
"We can dance if we want to/ We can leave your friends behind
'Cause your friends don't dance/ and if they don't dance they're no friends of mine."
Henry groaned as the music played. Just five more minutes, please, he thought to himself, wishing that his alarm would stop. Henry rolled and shoved his face into the back of the couch he was sleeping on, trying to ignore the song emanating from his phone. Phone? Henry thought quickly, and shot straight up. He looked down on the floor, and saw his phone laying there. Underneath was a scrap of paper. Curious, Henry reached down and grabbed both items, and dismissed the Men Without Hats song [1]. With the phone no longer making noise, Henry looked over the paper. On one side was a printed note.
Henry,
Have you been training with your powers? I trust that you have.
I bring a warning: You will again encounter the threat that I have sent you here to face. Although I cannot outright tell you what to do, I suggest that the Titans must gather their allies. You are already on the way to recruiting one, but there are still more to be gained. I trust that, with perseverance, you and the Titans will be able to overcome what awaits you. If the need arises, I will contact you again.
There was no signature or name at the bottom, but one wasn't necessary. Henry knew who had given him his phone and this note: the Ellimist.
"Whatcha got there, Henry?" asked a voice from the other side of the room. Henry turned around startled, but relaxed when he saw that Cyborg was standing in the kitchenette area, along with the early risers Robin and Raven.
"Not much, just my phone," Henry said casually. "Oh, and this note that says we'll be facing a threat soon. The usual." This attracted the birds' attention.
"Bring them here, Henry. I'd like to read this note of yours," instructed Robin. Henry complied, and walked over to the three Titans. He handed the note to Robin, who read it aloud. Cyborg took a look at Henry's phone, examining it with scrutiny. Raven listened as Robin spoke. After a moment, the Boy Wonder spoke up.
"How did you get this? Who is it from?" he questioned, looking at Henry.
"I woke up with it next to me. I have to assume it's from the Ellimist, considering that I didn't bring my phone with me when I came here," explained the still-groggy Henry. Robin's brow relaxed some, but he still had questions.
"Why would we need to 'gather allies?'" asked Raven, looking at Robin.
"Yeah, and what's this about 'over coming what awaits' us?" added Cyborg.
"I don't know, and to be honest, it's too early for this kind of thing," Robin said. "I still need breakfast, and I'm sure you three do too." Cyborg grinned, and instantly donned a chef hat.
"I'm cookin'. Anyone want pancakes?" asked the cyborg.
"Anything's good if it isn't waffles," Henry commented. Instantly, a breeze blew past them, and Starfire was floating near them, looking around.
"I heard something about the waffles?" the alien asked, eyes growing large. The other four looked at each other, and laughed. Even Raven chuckled, enjoying this small moment with her teammates. And Henry, she mentally added. Starfire dropped to the ground, confused. "Please, friends, what is so funny about waffles?"
After breakfast, with Beast Boy waking up only to have a minor argument about the use of eggs in the batter, the Tower calmed. No criminal alerts had come in yet, and so Robin had decided that it was time for a training session. Not with powers, but instead, in the exercise room. Despite complaining moans from Beast Boy, all six of the teens made their way to the medium-sized room. Inside, Henry saw dumbbells, hand-held weights, horizontal bars to do pull-ups, and all sorts of exercise equipment. He swallowed hard. He hadn't been in a gym since… well, gym class. Henry thought about his school gym class. Mr. Martin, the hilarious teacher and track coach, had really pushed people during weight training, and he shuddered at the memory. Once, he had dropped a weight on his foot, and ended up with a boot for several weeks. During that time, his arm strength improved dramatically—to the point that he could do pull-ups without even thinking about it. Of course, that had all been a year and a half before, during his freshman year. Henry took a deep breath in…
…and let out a huge sigh of relief when Robin announced it was time to finish. That sigh was in unison with all the Titans, and Henry dropped down from the pull-up bar.
"Dude… what time is it?" asked Beast Boy, breathing hard.
"It's eleven forty-five," Cyborg answered. Henry perked up. He needed to get to the park in forty-five minutes! As Robin complimented everyone on their hard work, Henry beckoned for Cyborg to come over to him. The mechanical man walked over, a towel on his shoulder. "What do you need?" Henry looked around, waiting for the others to leave.
"Listen, Cyborg, I need a favor today," Henry said. "Can you take me somewhere?"
"I don't see why not. Where are you going?" asked Cyborg.
"I'm meeting someone at the park at twelve thirty, and it's very important that I meet her," Henry explained. Cyborg's real eye narrowed. "Trust me, it is. It has to do with that note I got this morning." Cyborg thought over Henry's request.
"I'll take you, but you're gonna have to explain more on the way there. You've been here less than three days, so excuse me if I find it suspicious that you're meeting anybody," Cyborg said bluntly. "It's nothing personal, but you understand me, right?" Henry nodded. "Good. Now, take this, and let's get you in something not soaked in sweat," he said, offering Henry the towel. The boy took it and wiped off his face, and the two left the room. Henry followed Cyborg to his room, passing the time with useless filler conversation. When they got to Cyborg's room, they stopped. "Stay here, I'll be right back." When Cyborg returned, he was holding multiple shirts, shorts, pairs of underwear, and socks. Henry stared at the clothing.
"Why—How… You know, I'm not gonna ask," Henry said, shaking his head. The clothing was covered in Teen Titans-themed designs, with one shirts featuring Cyborg holding out one hand with a thumbs up.
"It's merchandise. The city provides a lot for us, but we don't get everything for free. So, we agree to let someone slap our faces onto shirts, cups, and whatever else, and we get a cut of the profits, along with a couple samples of the wares in case we need them. I almost threw these out last month, too," Cyborg explained. Henry just shook his head slowly.
"Let me guess, you guys to advertisements, too?" he asked in jest, but the look on Cyborg's face told him otherwise. "Seriously?" Cyborg grinned back.
"Nah, I'm just kidding. We're not complete sellouts. Anyway, take some of these, and wear 'em for now. We'll get you something better later, but for now, these will have to do." Henry groaned as he took the pile of clothing with him into the bathroom.
"Hmmm…." Henry pondered as he looked at the various items of clothing. He noted that only the original five Teen Titans were on anything, and decided that he'd represent each of them with a different article of clothing. The Cyborg T-shirt, the Beast Boy pants, a sock each for Starfire and Raven, and… well, the underwear had Robin's "R" symbol. That counted, right? Luckily, the T-shirt was black, and the pants were an imitation of Beast Boy's uniform (but not spandex, thankfully!), so Henry felt that he wouldn't look too weird. He stepped out of the bathroom and handed what was left back to Cyborg, who was holding back a laugh.
"Nice. You look like one of those super-fans." Henry glared at Cyborg.
"Shut it, Tin Can," Henry mumbled, but Cyborg kept grinning.
"Oh, I'm calling you Fanboy from now on. C'mon, let's go, Fanboy," teasesd Cyborg, and the two went back downstairs, the whole time Cyborg hassling Henry about his outfit. As they stepped out of the elevator, Beast Boy noticed Henry's new clothing.
"Dude, nice pants!" the changeling called out. This, in turn, caused the other Titans to look over at what Henry was wearing. In a moment, Henry was surrounded by the Titans.
"I am on your sock!"
"So am I, Starfire. Woop-ee."
"Uh, where am I?" The last question was from Robin. The room fell silent, and Henry looked straight into his eyes. He put a hand on the leader's shoulder, and simply shook his head.
"Robin, ask yourself this: Do you really want to know the answer to that question?" Henry asked. Robin's eyes (rather, the mask over his eyes) grew wide.
"Umm… Tell me: is it my face, or my R?" Robin asked, suddenly realizing what Henry meant.
"There's a kind that has your face?" countered Henry.
"Let's stop talking about this, for everyone's sake," Robin suggested, and everyone readily agreed. The teen heroes then went off to continue doing what they were doing beforehand. At around 12:15, Cyborg stood up.
"Hey, Henry. Time to go." Henry stood up as well.
"Sorry Beast Boy, gotta go," he apologized.
"Dude, where are you going?" asked Beast Boy. Henry struggled to think of an excuse.
"Um, we're grabbing lunch. Want us to get something for you while we're out?" the dimensionally-dislocated teen asked.
"Well, if you're offering…" started Beast Boy. "Grab a couple packs of tofu dogs if you could. And more buns, too."
"Sure thing. Anyone else need anything while we're gone?" Henry asked aloud, walking towards Cyborg.
"I would like more mustard, please!" Starfire called out.
"Hair gel—Cyborg knows what kind," Robin added. He looked at Cyborg, questioningly. The robotic teen mouthed back to him I'll message you later. Robin nodded, indicating that he understood. Without any further delays, Henry and Cyborg took the elevator, this time to the garage. When the doors opened, Henry was blown away. There, in front of him, was the one and only T-Car. It shone in the light of the garage, its white and blue design somehow even cooler in person than it had in the show. Henry walked over to it slowly, as if intimidated. Cyborg grinned as Henry reached a hand out tentatively to touch it.
"That's my baby. Isn't she a beauty?" he asked proudly. Henry didn't answer—and that was all Cyborg needed to hear. It wasn't often that someone actually respected the T-Car, and he was going to relish this opportunity to brag about. "I built her from scratch. She's powered by a one hundred thousand horsepower plasma turbine engine [2], and has all sorts of awesome upgrades, one of which I'm about to show you. Get in." Henry quickly walked to the passenger side, and pulled open the door. Henry looked over the inside of the T-Car, and found that it was… surprisingly plain. There wasn't anything fancy that he hadn't seen before. As Cyborg got in the T-Car, he pressed a button on the steering wheel, and the wall in front of them began to rise, revealing the sparkling blue that was Dockett Bay. Beyond that, the buildings that made up the Jump City skyline towered, dwarfed only by relative size of Titans Tower itself. Cyborg strapped in his seatbelt, and suggested that Henry do the same. Meanwhile, Cyborg activated a switch that opened a small port under his feet, and motioned for Henry to look. "By putting my feet here," Cyborg explained as two straps tightened themselves around the bionic teen, "I can directly connect with the interface of the car. Basically, I am the car right now."
"…whoa…" was all Henry could manage. By now, the wall in front of them had been moved completely, and Cyborg positioned the car to be in line with the path that lead up to the garage. Just towards the end of the island, something moved. What was it?
"Hold on to something, and try not to throw up in my baby," Cyborg instructed.
"What?" Henry asked, but was immediately thrown back into his seat as the T-Car suddenly accelerated towards the bay. Henry felt immense pressure on the front of his body, and promptly let out a scream that Cyborg wished he would have recorded. For "research" purposes, of course. "CYBORG WHAT THE HELL WE'RE GONNA GO INTO THE WATER AHH!" The Cyborg merely relaxed as the T-Car continued to speed towards the water. If Henry's eyes had been open, he would have noticed that the thing moving on the end of the island was actually a ramp that had expanded out, and that it was also directly in their path. As it was, Henry's eyes were shut, and his mouth open, still screaming. "CYBORG WE'RE GONNA DIE!" Henry yelled. The T-Car shuddered as it passed over the ramp, and Henry felt as though the world was ending. As the T-Car began soaring over the water, Cyborg pressed a button on a control panel, and the vehicles' wheels began to rotate 90 degrees. When Henry realized that he wasn't dead or in the water, he dared to open his eyes, the pressure no longer so forceful. Looking out his window, he saw that they were "driving" over the water. Cyborg noticed this, and took a moment to brag.
"Hover jets in the wheels [3]," Cyborg said simply. "Designed, built, and installed single-handedly by yours truly." Henry looked back at Cyborg.
"Umm… Cool," was how Henry responded. All he knew was that Cyborg was getting a smack upside his head as soon as they got to the park.
"So, Henry," Cyborg continued, changing the subject. "I need to ask you something, and I need you to be straight with me: who are you going to meet with?" As Cyborg asked, the T-Car began to slow, and the beach which has once been a dot in the distance was now growing larger rather quickly. Cyborg casually touched his arm, appearing to run a diagnostic on the car's performance. In reality, he began recording his conversation with Henry.
"Well, uh, I can't tell you right now. You'd never believe me, and if you did, I don't know how you'd react," Henry answered, seemingly cryptic.
"So, I'm taking you to meet some mysterious chick who I don't know who it is, and I'd probably freak out if I saw. Am I right about this?" Cyborg asked.
"Correct, although I can tell you this: it's related to the note I found this morning." This caught Cyborg off guard.
"How so?"
"Well, it said something about gathering allies. Hopefully, this is one of them." Henry's answer still didn't explain anything, and Cyborg continued to fish for more info.
"Let me get this straight. You, someone who didn't exist until three days ago and knows hardly anything about anyone or anywhere in Jump City, have already potentially made connections who can help us with this upcoming threat. Is that what you're telling me?" asked the cyborg, his voice laced with a hint of sarcasm.
"Look, Cyborg you have to trust me on this one. If anything happens, you know Robin and the others will take me down," Henry replied, turning to face away from Cyborg. The conversation ended there, a strange silence filling the car. By this point, the T-Car had transitioned back to the land, and was driving normally amongst the normal cars in traffic. Stopping at a red light, Cyborg sent the recording to Robin, who received it moments later. By the time Henry and Cyborg reached the park, Robin had responded.
Back in Titans Tower, Robin sat in his room, listening to the sound coming from his communicator. Robin thought for a moment, then closed his eyes. He imagined Raven, focused on talking to her, and thought hard. Raven. Meet me in my room. Mission. After that, he held a hand to his head, as a pain surged in his skull. Ever since Raven had entered his mind, the two had shared a tight bond—and it extended to more than friendship. Robin had also formed a weak mental link with Raven, and although it was very difficult, and mostly painful, the masked teen could occasionally send short messages to Raven telepathically. He only ever used such a means of communication whenever silence was important, or if there was no other way to talk. However, Robin ignored the hammering as Raven stepped out of a dark portal that appeared on his wall.
"What's so important that you needed to pain yourself to talk to me?" asked Raven, stepping towards Robin. She placed a hand on his skull, chanted her incantation softly, and the hammering stopped.
"Thank you, Raven. Now, I need you to listen to this," Robin explained, and played the recording that Cyborg had sent him. Raven listened intensely, and when Robin closed his communicator, pulled up her hood. "I need you to head out to the park, and—"
"Spy?" Raven interrupted, crossing her arms.
"It's not spying, it's… keeping tabs on things, that's all. I need someone to be there in case this 'ally' ends up being a threat," Robin counted. Raven began to protest, but Robin held up his hand. "No arguing. I need you to do this, Raven, and you're the only one here who can get their and back without being noticed. Besides, Beast Boy and Starfire have already taken a liking to Henry, and I don't need them accidentally interfering."
"You don't trust them?" Raven asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Of course I do, I just need stealth on this. Please, don't argue with me on this one," Robin said, standing up.
"Fine." With that, Raven disappeared.
Henry and Cyborg stepped out of the T-Car, and proceeded to walk to the pond. In the distance, sitting on a bench near the statue, was a blonde girl facing away from them. Cyborg zoomed in using his robotic eye, but couldn't detect anything that would give the girl's identity away.
"There she is," Henry whispered as they grew closer. "Promise me that you won't freak out or anything." This is it, Henry thought, his heart racing. After what seemed like ages, he was within earshot of the girl. "Hey, Tara, I'm here," he called out. Meanwhile, Cyborg began a visual recording of the situation, and prepared to send a live feed to Robin.
"About time, too," the girl replied, standing up to face Henry. "I've been here for ten minutes, and if you hadn't shown up in another five, I would have—" she continued, but stopped when she saw Cyborg. The half-machine teen froze in his tracks as well, and stopped the recording. His mind seemed to freeze as well, unable to register the fact that Terra was in front of him. It took five seconds before anyone could react.
"Cy?" asked Terra, in complete shock.
"Terra?" Cyborg asked, dumbfounded. After another moment of silence, Cyborg ran at Terra, and pulled her into a bear hug. "It's so good to see you again!" he exclaimed.
"It's good to see you too, but you're crushing me!" Terra coughed out, and was immediately set down.
"I'm sorry, I'm just… I can't believe you're alive!" Cyborg looked at Terra in disbelief. It wasn't possible… so how was it that she was there, standing in front of him? He knew that he didn't need an analysis to check whether or not it was her. In his heart, Cyborg knew it was her.
"Beats bein' a statue," Terra quipped, her own heart pounding. "Henry, you didn't say Cyborg would be here." At this, Henry rubbed his arm.
"Well, I needed a ride, and I figured you didn't want to see Robin on your first day seeing everyone," Henry admitted.
"Terra, how did you survive? You were solid stone! Nothing Raven or I did worked!" Cyborg asked, breathing heavy.
"Honestly? I don't know," the blonde replied. "All I remember is stopping the volcano, then being surrounded… and then I woke up. I didn't know where I was, or even who I was at first. I was still wearing that awful suit HE forced on me," she continued, shaking from the memory. "Turns out the suit had begun physically attaching itself to me. I had to rip it out in order to remove it. I left the cave, bleeding and half naked, and passed out near the street. I guess somebody found me, because I woke up in the hospital with all sorts of doctors hovering over me."
"Terra, oh my goodness…" was all Cyborg could offer, and Henry simply remained mute.
"Nobody knew who I was, so when I was okay enough to be released, they took me to some foster home, and that's where I've been for the last few months." The three stayed silent, Terra's story sinking in. Henry realized that for the other two, this was an intense moment. They hadn't seen each other for over a year and a half, and the Titans all thought her to be dead.
"So, Terra…" Cyborg began, breaking the silence. "What are you doing now?"
"I'm living as normal a life as I can. Well, I was until Henry showed up out of the blue," Terra answered, eyeing Henry. "Hey, that reminds me! I want answers about how you knew about me. Now," demanded the geomancer. Henry shrugged.
"Well, it's probably the craziest thing you've ever heard," Henry said casually.
"Try me," challenged the girl, and Henry proceeded to explain how he had managed to find his way into Jump City. The longer Henry talked, the larger Terra's eyes grew, and the farther her jaw dropped.
"…and so I woke up in the infirmary, and that's that," Henry concluded, although he felt odd. It was although he had just summarized about five chapters worth of exposition, yet it had passed by faster than one would skip over a line break.
"That is the craziest thing I've ever heard!" Terra exclaimed. The girl was simply amazed. Cyborg had agreed several times with Henry over the events, and if Cyborg said it was true, then it must have been true. "I… I can't take this. This… this is nuts! Alternate universes, a TV show… what even is this 'Ellimist' you mentioned?" Henry shook his head.
"None of us know. All I do know is that he is powerful enough to rip me from my world and literally drop me into yours, and at the same time give me powers." Henry paused, and Cyborg noticed a look of indecision on his face. "But that's not what is important right now. What is important is you. Cyborg, I don't know about you, but I feel that Terra deserves to be back on the team."
"What!?" Terra and Cyborg replied in unison.
"Henry, this isn't the time or place to discuss this, least of all without Robin," Cyborg stated clearly.
"Then let's go talk to him about it right now. Terra, let's go," Henry said, turning to walk back to the T-Car.
"No." Henry stopped, and turned around. He hadn't expected Terra to argue this point.
"No? Why?" asked the confused boy. He was only trying to help! Why wouldn't she let him?
"Because maybe I shouldn't be back on the team. Did you ever think of that? Henry, I died, and got a second chance at life. As much as I want to come back, I can't! I ruined everything before. I betrayed them, and almost got them killed. I almost destroyed the entire city!" Terra's voice strained, and her eyes began to get wet. "I did terrible things. I served a dark master, and I regret it all. All of it. Everything would have been better if they had never met me." Terra was now almost in tears, but Henry wasn't taking 'no' for an answer.
"Terra, they have forgiven you. All of them, even Raven. And they were all upset over your death," Henry professed. "And of all of them, do you know who missed you the most? Beast Boy." Henry looked Terra in her eyes and held her gaze. "He always went down to see you. Every week, more than once, made an effort to go down and visit you. And if he couldn't do that, he went into your room. I know this because he talked to me about it. He has been more distraught over your death than you think. Even now it weighs on him. Don't you think he'd be overjoyed to have you back?" Henry was now pleading to Terra, and had moved close to her. "Please, Terra. The Titans need you. There's danger coming, and we're going to need all the help we can get." Terra merely stood silently. Cyborg, taking in everything, began his own speech.
"Henry's right, Terra. Grass Stain has been off ever since we lost you. It really did hit him the hardest. I've since accepted your death, but knowing that you're alive? How could I stand to let my little sister settle for normal, knowing that you can do so much more?" Now Terra looked at Cyborg, and even with a missing eye, Cyborg managed to look sad. "It might take some time to get used to having you around again, but damn if I won't try to have you back with us. And it ain't just BB who missed you. Starfire was a wreck for the next month. I had trouble powering down at night. Even our resident birds were off for a few weeks. Your death affected all of us, and I, at least, would love to have you back." Terra couldn't take any more, and began to actively cry. Cyborg stepped in, and Henry backed off. "Don't you cry on me, little lady. I am glad that we met you, Terra, for better or worse. And I know that most of us feel the same way. Just because you haven't forgiven yourself doesn't mean we haven't. Believe me when I say that we would all be honored to have you back."
Raven watched on at the scene unfolding from halfway across the park. From this distance, she could feel the intense emotions given off from Terra and Cyborg. The two were both emanating sadness and rejoice, which was to be expected. Henry, however, was giving off something else, and this troubled Raven. Why was he so concerned about getting Terra—who was still alive, a fact that Raven had trouble swallowing at first—back on the team? Why had he brought her back? Surely he had no stake in her future… so why? The pride coming from him was almost overpowering. For whatever reason, reuniting Terra with Cyborg was important to Henry, and Raven couldn't make out why. She had, of course, heard every word of the conversation—Robin had some "not spy" gadgets he had lent to Raven. The one in use involved headphones and a handheld radar gun-like device. Hidden in the shadows of some bushes, Raven went unnoticed by most everyone in the park. Only a single creature, tall and dark, hid amongst the shadows as well, its long legs blending in with row of hedges that ran through the park. It watched as Raven spied, and in a matter of moments, sauntered off silently, its prey never knowing that it had been stalked.
Raven continued to watch, but all of a sudden, her signal stopped. The voices stopped, and she took off the equipment to examine it. Maybe something had broken? No, that wasn't it. Raven looked over the spying tools for several moments before realizing that something else was afoot. The large emotional output from Henry, Cyborg, and Terra was gone. In fact, all emotions from people in the park were blank. Raven stood up, calling out. Nobody responded. Shortly, she realized that nobody was moving. It was if time had frozen itself…
EXCELLENT DEDUCTION, RAVEN, a voice boomed. It was calm, and seemed peaceful.
"Who's there?" Raven asked, arming herself with two orbs of black energy.
CALM YOURSELF, CHILD, FOR I AM THE ELLIMIST, the voice continued. I DON'T HAVE MUCH TIME, SO LISTEN AND DO NOT INTERRUPT. IT IS IMPERATIVE TO THE FUTURE OF YOUR WORLD THAT YOU DO NOT INTERFERE WITH HENRY'S PLANS CONCERNING TERRA. WHATEVER LIE YOU TELL TO ROBIN, HE WILL BELIEVE. Raven stood speechless. The Ellimist? The same one that had—THE ONE AND THE SAME. I MUST GO NOW. DO NOT SPEAK A WORD OF THIS TO ANYONE. NOT YET, ANYWAY. FAIRWELL, RAVEN. And as if nothing had happened, the world picked off where it left off. Raven stood confused for several moments, contemplating what had just happened. Deciding that it was in her best interest to head back to her room to see if she could learn anything about this "Ellimist," Raven opened a portal on the ground, and disappeared into it.
In the end, after wiping away tears and confirming friendships, Cyborg had agreed to bring up Terra with Robin during the week. Terra had given her personal cell number to Cyborg, who had configured her phone to be able to receive transmission from a T-Communicator. After one last round of hugging, Terra walked away, standing taller than normal. Henry and Cyborg watched as she did, and smiled.
"Thank you, Henry," Cyborg said once she was out of sight. "I can't believe she's alive."
"Neither can I," agreed the shorter teen. "So, do you think Bird Brain will let her join." Cyborg's face fell as he replied.
"I don't know, Fanboy. I don't know… C'mon, let's go get what we said we would get," said the cyborg, smiling again, walking to the T-Car.
"Crap, I would have forgotten. I'm glad we keep you around, Cy."
In a hidden part of Jump City, three green, slimy creatures were working on a mechanical suit. The suit in question belonged to Adonis, and it was currently being upgraded beyond that villain's wildest dreams. Weapons systems were being installed—the filthy Titans would never see it coming! Not that Raven is filthy… thought Adonis. He had watched in amazement at how the slimy workers had disassembled his suit, cleaned it, and were improving it. At the same time, similar work was being done on Control Freak's remote control and Gizmo's backback. The three villains were initially against the idea of any "crud-monkey" (as Gizmo so eloquently put it) touching their items. However, Lord Gemlon has assured them that the improvements would allow them to defeat the Teen Tians once and for all.
Adonis walked over to Gemlon, who was overseeing his minions to ensure their success. The man looked at Adonis with empty eyes, something that hadn't ceased to weird him out since he was
"employed" by the strange villain. The green hood on the back seemed to be controlling Gemlon, but as it was, the face in front of it smiled.
"Adonis, I trust that you are pleased with the job my workers have done?" asked Gemlon, her voice grating.
"Of course, Master. I came to ask about something else," Adonis replied, somewhat nervous. "After we defeat the Titans, we still get to do what we want with them, right?" Control Freak and Gizmo, caught up in some conversation about both detesting Twisted Wheels 2, had walked in from the main room in Gemlon's lair. They joined Adonis and Gemlon, who was now grinning evilly.
"Of course, my friends. Your hard work will not go unrewarded." Control Freak was giddy.
"Oh, maybe now Starfire will realize that I'm so much better for her than that traffic light Robin!" mused the redhead, prompting the other three to ignore him.
"Hacking Cyborg will be the best thing to happen to me since the HIVE Five broke down!" Gizmo cheered in his nasally voice. Adonis towered over the tiny villain, and scoffed.
"And I will still have Raven, correct?" asked the un-armored villain. Gemlon placed a hand on Adonis' shoulder.
"Once I am done with the Gem of Trigon, you may do with her as you wish. As for the other two Titans, I feel as though I may need a few test subjects, and they would make fine specimens, would you agree, gentlemen?" Gemlon laughed at his own words, and the other three laughed unwillingly.
"Yes, Master," they agreed in unison.
"Now, I will suggest that you prepare yourselves. We have work to do today, and I will not tolerate failure. Now go, I have other matters to deal with." Control Freak, Gizmo, and Adonis were dismissed, and left. Gemlon turned to face the being that had silently crept in, and spoke.
"Lord Gemlon, you are correct. The Gem is as clueless as you would have thought," said the creature addressed as Drode. Gemlon brought his hands together.
"Excellent. Soon we will be one step closer to summoning your master, and I will be ruler of this pathetic world. Perhaps I'll come up with something to do to them, instead of killing them all. Maybe I'll force their children to fight each other to the death, until one remains. Yes, and all people shall watch it! [4]" Gemlon rattled off, considering other ideas."
"Yes, Master," the Drode mocked under his breath. His master would soon be here, and perhaps he would allow Drode the pleasure of being the one to kill Gemlon. That, however, would have to wait, as Gemlon called for him to do some tedious task. Soon, thought the Drode. Soon..
[1] "Safety Dance" is the song that was playing. I'd recommend a listen if you get the time.
[2] This fact is taken directly from the Teen Titans wikia page (a very good friend to me while I write this story!) so if you don't believe it, sorry. It's canon, and so help me I will use it.
[3] Also from the Wikia page. I wouldn't make this stuff up, although it does raise the question of how the Titans drove the T-Car in town if they live on a freaking island.
[4] If you didn't know this was a Hunger Games reference, shame on you, unless you've never seen/read them.
And that's this chapter! It's a little shorter than I would have liked, but to be honest, I'm surprised I can get it out today. I did a lot of labor in the sun and heat, and I actually took a nap, which I normally don't do. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Special shout-out to reviewer Holly Sophia, who is the author of a great little story called "Shelter." It's description is: "When Beast Boy rescues a man with a link to an old friend, the world he thought he knew suddenly changes." It's only three chapters long right now, but it's is very good, and deserves a lot more love than what it's currently receiving. So go on over and read it, because you deserve a good story, and a good story deserves you, readers.
Thanks to raven 2012 for all the ideas they have provided to me via PM. Some suggestions will be directly going into the story, and I am thankful for the help. Remember, if you have any questions, comments, concerns, suggestions, or anything to say, PM me or leave a review. Constructive criticism is always welcome, as long as you're not rude about it. Thank you so much for your time, and I will see you sometime soon! Bye everyone, and I hope you have/had a fan-freaking-tastic day!
—Cortexin
