Gar woke up and rolled over to check his alarm clock. It flashed a bright green 4:30 back at him and he groaned. Getting up, he stretched his back out cracking it a few times, then perched himself on the side of the bed. He was tired but excitement was filling him. This would be the first mission he'd be on with his new team. Sure it wasn't as exciting as being on the front lines, but he'd be seeing an old friend.

Putting on his clothes, he strolled out of his bedroom and headed to the Main Room to cook a quick breakfast. The entire walk to the kitchen he held a smile on his face. He couldn't wait for the trip to Budapest. It had been months since he'd seen Jericho or Kole and Gnarrk. Once he reached the kitchen, he settled on some eggs, ham, and some toast. Grabbing some water, he made his way to the table and began to eat.

As he was halfway through with breakfast, he heard the doors open to reveal Slade entering the Main Room. He looked like he had been awake for a good hour or so, showing no signs of being tired. Making eye contact with Gar, he walked over to greet him.

"Morning Gar, get enough rest?"

He nodded his head and grabbed his glass of water.

"Yep, those beds are way more comfy than the ones the Titans have."

He heard Slade chuckle and smirked to himself before taking a drink of his water. Slade walked over to the computer and began typing on it before a map appeared on it.

"Alright, where do you think Jericho is at?"

Gar walked over, toast in hand, and began to look at the map. After a brief look, he pointed to the country he last remembered him being.

"Hungary. He was outside of Budapest last time I saw him. Just look for a big hill and blonde hair and we should find him."

Slade nodded his head before pressing a few buttons on the computer.

"I'll send the map of Budapest to the ship we'll be taking. If the information you've given me is correct, we should find him."

Gar walked over to the table to put his dishes in the sink and grab some water for their trip. Once everything was settled, they made their way to the roof. As they stepped foot out onto it, Gar turned to Slade.

"So how are we getting there?"

Pressing a few buttons on his wrist, Slade made a motion towards a hole forming in the roof. Gar watched as a sleek and speedy looking ship rose out of the hole. Staring at it for a second, he finally shook his head with a chuckle.

"Geez, this place is full of surprises. Should've known better."

Slade laughed and made his way over to the young green man.

"You're still new here Gar. It took Rachel and Shae a week to remember where the gym was."

Gar laughed as the two made their way into the ship. To say it was mind blowing was an understatement. The outside of it was made of a reflective metal composite material, making it more aerodynamic than Cyborg's creation. On the inside, screens were all around. It had everything from temperature readings, to sensors letting the ship know what was around it. It even had thermal cameras to look for anything that would be hiding from the naked eye.

"This ship is sick. Way better than anything I've ever been on."

Slade was over at the controls putting in their destination while Gar was in his state of euphoria. Turning to face the boy, he spoke.

"As I said before, the government has offered us a hefty sum of money to spend on materials."

Gar came over to where Slade was and took a seat next to him. He watched as Slade made the final adjustments for their flight before he was asked a question.

"You ever flown a ship before?"

Receiving a nod, Slade continued on.

"Well then, I'll show you how to fly this one."

After a tutorial of the controls, Gar was given the go ahead to take control of the ship. He found it was easy surprisingly, given that the ship looked so advanced. He wondered how Slade was so easily able to have faith in him to make sure they'd be getting to Budapest safely.

As they continued on their flight, Gar asked a question he had been meaning to ask for some time.

"So what's the plan for this secondary team?"

Slade turned to him, taking his eyes off the map for a second.

"Want to elaborate on that?"

Playfully rolling his eyes, Gar continued with his question.

"I mean, I know it's for backup in case we're busy on another mission, but who's going to be on it? Have you had any other people in mind besides Joey?"

Leaning back in his chair, Slade gave a nod.

"I've pulled files on some heroes that are either solo, or on teams that are being used in the wrong way. Instead of allowing their powers to develop, they're being stunted and aren't reaching their potential."

Gar gave a moment of thought before speaking again.

"So in a situation like mine?"

Slade nodded his head. He looked down at the map and saw they had 40 minutes still until they reached their destination.

"You're situation was different though."

Surprised and shaking his head comically, Gar turned to him.

"What do you mean?"

Slade chuckled before leaning back again and placing his chin in his hand.

"You show all the signs of leadership, but fell back on being the comic relief. You hold the entire animal kingdom and even the magical and folklore in your hands, yet you only use basic animals. How often have you tried to use a prehistoric animal form?"

Gar sat there, racking his head for any possible memory he could think of. Finding none, he turned his attention back to Slade to give him an answer.

"Never, if I'm being honest."

Slade gave a nod.

"Exactly. You have all the potential in the world, yet you never were able to reach it."

Turning to Gar, he waved his hand outward.

"You can be more powerful than the Titans, the Justice League, and the Doom Patrol combined. Yet, you always held back. Whether you were told to or just did it subconsciously, I'm not sure why, but you were stunting your growth."

Gar sat there stunned with his hands on the steering controls. Slade was right, partially or completely. He never bothered to use any other forms than the ones he most commonly used as a Titan. Maybe there was something to this whole powerful thing Slade had been talking about.

Seeing that Gar was now thinking about it, Slade continued on.

"I want you to train to reach your full potential. This isn't about me trying to form you into my personal puppet Gar. This is to benefit you and your progress as a hero. I know in the past I've looked for apprentices to train and become like me, but it's the past for a reason. I've closed that chapter and started a new one. This is your chance to do that as well."

Gar looked at him to see if he was lying and could find nothing to show he was. Even his animal senses couldn't pick up anything. What Slade was saying was true. The more Gar thought about it, he realized how couldn't it be. For Slade to go to a government that was surrounded by countries wrecked with terrorism and war and offer to put together a team to eliminate that threat isn't just for deception. And to put a team together that cares about each other's well being more than anything was something you don't find. He couldn't get that with the Doom Patrol or the Titans, and he was sure Jaime and Cass could echo that statement too.

Gar gave Slade a nod, acknowledging his statement. Turning back to the controls, all was quiet for a good 10 minutes. Finally, Gar broke it.

"I have to admit, I underestimated you Slade."

Seeing Slade turn to him out of the corner of his eye, Gar elaborated.

"I thought what you were doing was all for personal gain. Take away a member from a team you had been fighting with for so long and make them weak, then come back and wipe them out. But after thinking about it and making the connections, and seeing it with my own eyes, I can tell that I was wrong. I apologize about that."

Slade chuckled and gave his shoulder a pat.

"I know that it all seemed to good to be true Gar, but I'm glad to see you've come to realize the truth. I know that we had our differences before, but we can fix that. And the only personal gain I'm getting out of this is getting my family back where it should be."

Gar turned to Slade and gave him a nod. He had to admit, it was admirable at how much this guy had changed. From being an enemy to becoming a friend and mentor, it was remarkable at how much everything had changed.

The silence came back over them until they reached their destination. They landed the ship and made their way out onto the luscious hillside that greeted them. The sun had just rose and the sky was beautiful above them. Admiring it for a second, Gar began to think about Rose and his friends back at the tower and wonder what they were doing.


Rose had woken up at 6:30 that morning. She went to the kitchen to cook her breakfast when she noticed that a plate and a glass were sitting in the sink. She took it as a sign that Gar and her father had already left for their secret mission. She began to cook as the door opened and revealed Rachel. Giving each other a smile, she went back to cooking as Rachel made her way to the kitchen to talk with Rose.

"I take it Slade dragged Gar out of the bed and left already?"

Rose nodded her head as she grabbed two plates and began putting breakfast on both of them.

"Yeah, I'm sure they left before anyone was up to make sure they wouldn't be pestered with questions."

Bringing the plates over to Rachel, she placed one in front of her friend, before giving herself the other plate. As the two ate, the two talked about small things before the conversation turned towards the green boy.

"So after all that happened last night, what are your thoughts on Gar?"

Rose calmly took a bite of her toast, before answering her.

"It's amazing to me and how he's been through all that he has, and yet he can be so jovial. If I had been through it, I don't think I could manage holding on to that baggage the rest of my life."

Rachel nodded her head in agreement and gave her two cents.

"Yeah, to say he's been through hell would be an understatement."

As Rose drank her glass of water, Rachel mentioned something that caught her attention.

"Do you think he's afraid of needles because of how he got his powers?"

Rose raised an eyebrow and looked at her confused.

"What do you mean?"

Rachel scraped together the last bit of her eggs before speaking.

"That reaction during his exam still is on my mind. Either he had a flashback to when he got his powers, or there's something else that he left out and didn't tell us."

Rose sat in thought as Rachel finished off her eggs. What she was saying made sense. It could be as simple as what Rachel implied before, but she also wondered if the latter statement could be true. Maybe there was something else that Gar had left out before and didn't want to remember it, or it had slipped his mind.

"I don't know. I don't want to ask because that could cause a bad reaction and could look like we're prying. Plus, if something else had happened, I really wouldn't want him to relive it. If something had happened and he left it out, it probably dwarfs whatever he had gone through that he had mentioned."

Rachel sat there for a second to contemplate her words. If something else had happened with his past, Rose was probably right. From what she heard from her friend last night, she didn't wish anymore harm on the boy, whether it be physical or mental.

"I hope it was just some sort of PTSD from how he got his powers. If he were to have gone through something else, I could only imagine how horrible it was."


Slade and Gar had reached a hill that had finally looked familiar to the latter. He could even get a trace of Jericho's scent, which could only mean that things were getting promising.

"He should be this way. I can get a small size of his scent so the farther we go, the more I should be able to get."

Receiving a nod, the two carried on for awhile longer. They finally got to a point where they saw a blonde haired person who resembled a boy, playing on a guitar with his back facing them. Slade turned his head to Gar to see a smile on his face and an excited gleam in his eye.

"Is that Joey?"

Turning to Slade and giving him a smirk, he gave his answer.

"There's only one person with that blonde of hair I know of that plays a guitar."

Gar took off as Slade followed at a more controlled pace. As excited he was to see his youngest son, he wasn't sure of the reaction he'd receive from him.

Gar got about 30 yards from the boy before he yelled out to him.

"Hey Blondie!"

He saw him turn around and the boy's face broke out into a smile. That confirmed it was Jericho and as he reached him, they exchanged a hug, with Gar lifting him off the ground. Setting him back down after a second, Gar ruffled his hair.

"How you been man?"

Jericho began signing quickly. If it weren't for Gar's enhanced senses, he wouldn't have been able to understand it.

"Gar, it's been forever! What are you doing here? How have you been? Where are the others?"

Gar chuckled before waving his hand in a calming manner.

"It's complicated. As for the others, I came with someone else."

Jericho looked at him confused for a second before a voice spoke out.

"Hello Joseph."

Jericho turned to see Slade standing to the right of Gar. His eyes widened before he looked back to Gar. Seeing his friends smile begin to fall a little, he began to frantically look back and forth between his dad and his friend.

Seeing at how Jericho was confused and thoughts were racing in his head, Gar decided to help him out.

"Your dad here means no harm buddy. I promise you nothing is going to happen. Where's Gnarrk and Kole?"

As if on cue, the two popped out of the ground, with Kole jumping off of the behemoth's back to greet her green friend.

"Gar! It's so good to see you!"

She jumped on him, giving him a hug rivaling Starfire's. He returned it before letting her go and turning to Gnarrk.

"Hey Gnarrk, how you been?"

The giant shook the dirt off of him before lifting the boy up in another hug.

"Gnarrk!"

Gar gave the giant a pat on the back.

"Good to see you too"

He chuckled as he was put back on the ground. Just as the other two were about to ask him questions, more like grunting for Gnarrk, they laid eyes on the person next to him. Immediately, they were put on edge.

"What's Slade doing here?"

Kole became armed with her crystals and Gnarrk got into a stance that looked like he was about to rip someone apart. Seeing the animosity everyone was displaying towards Slade, Gar figured it would be a good time to step in.

"Everybody calm down!"

The three heroes looked at him as if he were crazy while Slade stood there with his arms behind his back.

"I know it looks bad but hear us out. There's something we have to discuss with you."

Kole and Gnarrk hesitantly backed down while Jericho still held a look of animosity towards his father. Seeing at how the boy was still on the edge of causing harm, Gar spoke to him.

"Joey!"

Turning his head, the blonde boy turned towards his friend.

"Easy. If you'll let me, I'll explain everything."

After one last look towards his father, Joey eased into a relaxed stance once again. Seeing he had the attention of all three heroes, Gar began to speak.

"I know it looks bad that I brought one of our former enemies here but there's a reason behind it. And for the reason why the other Titans aren't here, there's a reason for that as well."

The three looked at him, as if letting him know to elaborate on his statement. Taking a breath, he began his speech.

"I decided to leave the Titans. Robin, Raven, Cyborg, and I had a falling out. Slade here offered me a place of refuge and after talking it over with your sister Joey, I decided to accept."

Kole and Gnarrk looked dumbfounded while Joey seemed like the only thing he caught was the part about his sister.

"You know my sister?"

Nodding his head, he spoke to his friend.

"I do. As a matter of fact, I'm actually dating her."

Joey was thrown for a loop at that. Truth be told, he missed his sister. He hadn't seen her in a long time and often wondered what she was up to.

"How is she?"

Gar chuckled.

"She's doing great. She's the one who convinced me to join her and your dad."

Joey shook his head in disbelief. The last time he heard from her, she hated their father. To hear that they teamed up was mind blowing.

Seeing that he was catching his attention, Gar decided to throw in the part about Grant.

"Your brother is also on the team. Nice guy surprisingly, considering I'm dating his sister."

Now Joey was going on a roller coaster. Both his brother and sister joined their father. They all detested him for their own reasons. To hear that they decided to join him and Gar as well, it sounded ridiculous.

"Grant and Rose are with my father too?"

Gar gave him a nod.

"Yep. I know it's hard to believe, but it's true."

This time it was Kole who asked a question.

"What happened with your old team?"

Gar sighed and looked down for a second. He didn't know if he should tell her the whole story going back months, or if he should give her the main reason. Deciding to give some incidents leading up to the main reason, he spoke.

"They were just becoming hateful to me. I wasn't good enough, I didn't train enough, I was too carefree. I heard anything and everything. So I decided to stop slacking off and train more and change up everything, basically becoming the complete opposite of what I used to be."

Glancing up to her, he continued on.

"On a mission against the HIVE, I beat Gizmo to a pulp, after he decided to mouth off. When they found the two of us, Robin put his foot in his mouth and called me an animal."

Hearing that got a reaction out of all of them. Kole gasped, Joey raised his eyebrows, and Gnarrk roared. They tried to see if he was lying but they could tell he was being honest.

"After that, I phoned Rose and her and the rest of the team helped me pack up and teleport to where I am now."

He turned to Slade, pointing his thumb towards him.

"Slade here is trying to put together a second team to help us out in case we're caught up."

This time Joey decided to cut in.

"What is your team doing?"

Slade spoke up on that.

"We have been tasked with keeping the Middle East and Africa safe from terrorist attacks. We will be hunting down any terror groups and bringing them to justice."

Kole's eyes widened at that.

"Wow, that seems tough. How many people are on your team?"

Gar turned to her.

"There's 8 of us on the main team. We even have Jaime and Cassandra as well, so there will be some familiar faces if you join us."

That caught their attention.

"You want us to join you?"

Gar nodded his head and sighed.

"Yeah, that's why we're here. Slade asked if I knew where you guys could be at. I figured you wouldn't have left here so I brought him out here so you guys wouldn't be caught off guard if I brought you back to our tower."

The three turned to Slade. It was true, they wouldn't have liked it if Gar hadn't told them about Slade being involved in this. They admired that he was willing to be upfront about it, but with the history they were hesitant.

"How do we know we can trust him?"

To ease the tension, Gar decided for a joke.

"Well I am dating his daughter so.."

This got a chuckle from the group and Gar eased into a smile. Seeing that the joke got his intended reaction gave him the confidence that he could get them to join them. Once everyone had gotten calmed down, he continued on.

"In all seriousness though, your dad has changed Joey. Think about it for a second, why would your dad offer to help out almost the entire other half of the world if he was still a bad guy?"

Seeing that Joey was beginning to ponder his words, he continued on.

"And Rose and Grant joined him. If they thought your dad was up to something, do you think they would have done so?"

He could see his words were getting the intended affect he was looking for. He turned to Slade, hoping he would catch on to his look. He was hoping that Slade would let Joey and his friends know that it wasn't a game and was all serious. Slade caught the look and delivered for Gar.

"I know what I've done in the past was wrong Joey. I regret it to this day. All I'm asking is for a chance to make it up to you and to show you I'm a better father than what I used to be. If you can, please join us and give me the opportunity."

Kole and Gnarrk looked at Joey as he was in thought. Gar was right and made sense. Rose and Grant wouldn't have joined him unless it were all true. And maybe, just maybe, his father had turned the page and become a good guy.

Lifting his head up, he looked to his friend then to his father. After another brief moment of thought he gave a nod. Smiling, Gar walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Awesome. Let's get you back so you can see your sister and brother. They've been dying to know how you've been."

Nodding his head, he began to walk with Gar and Slade back to the ship. After about 5 steps though, he turned back to Kole and Gnarrk and saw their saddened faces. He didn't want to leave them, especially since Kole was his girlfriend. Tugging on Gar's sleeve, they screeched to a halt.

"What about Kole and Gnarrk?"

The two turned their heads towards the remaining two that were standing where they had been before. Smiling Gar called over to them.

"The invitation wasn't just for Joey guys. You're coming with us two."

Their faces instantly broke out into a smile as the jogged over to catch up to the group. They continued on back to the ship, with Kole riding on Gnarrk's shoulders, Joey and Gar carrying on in a conversation that became more and more animated by the minute, and Slade at the front secretly smiling in delight that he had gotten his family back.

They got to the ship and the three newcomers immediately went slack jawed. This ship took a dump on the Titan's ship. Even Gar was still amazed at the sight of it.

"Wow! Where'd you get that ship from?"

Pressing a button to open up the landing for them to enter the ship, Slade turned his head to answer.

"We're stationed in Dubai. The amount of money they have over there will amaze you."

They boarded the ship and all got comfortable. Gar took his position as the pilot and he and Slade began prepping it for takeoff.

"I didn't know you knew how to fly Gar. When did you learn that?"

Still reaching up to set the correct flight setup, he turned to answer her.

"This ship is surprisingly simple to operate. Even Gnarrk over there could do it."

He received a 'Gnarrk' that he took as a playful retort and chuckled. The ship lifted up and they began their flight back to the tower, with three excited new members, and one especially excited to see his family.


He guys, sorry for the long wait. Just got back from a trip with the family. Needed a day to recuperate and get some of the juices flowing again. I appreciate all of you for sticking around and I promise to have the next chapter up as soon as I can.

Thanks again!