(Danny's POV)
A few days had passed since the incident with the Titans and I hadn't been able to get them out of my mind. I wondered how they did it. No one ever accused them of ulterior motives, no one tried to blame them, or accused them of destroying the city. What was it that made what they did so different from what I had done? Was there something against me or had I just gone about it the wrong way?
I was lost in my thoughts and hadn't really been paying attention. Surprised, I found myself in the middle of a park. Glancing around nervously I found the only other people were an elderly couple strolling along and two kids tossing a football.
Come on Fenton! You can handle this. You've been in tougher situations and saved the day a thousand times. A little stroll near humans isn't going to be the end. Agh! I did it again! Darn it!
People, not humans. It's very important that I get this.
Right now I see everyone as human. Humans are cold, heartless monsters, like the ones who ...hurt me. Humans attack what they don't understand. They cause destruction, inflict pain, and encourage scars. Humans are all the same. People are different. Not just from humans, but from each other. People have families and homes. People can be caring, they can be kind, they can learn, and give chances.
I know this. Or at least I think I do. Yet every time I meet one or come in contact with one, all I see is the human, and it terrifies me. I use to be a hero, a protector, a defender. I use to fight and win. Now if I just try to have a conversation with someone I fall to pieces. My mind goes blank with fear, my heart races, and every fiber of my body screams at me to run. I hate how what they did to me affected me so much. I hate how- "AHHH!"
A scream pierced my thoughts. I hesitated for just a split second. Should I do something? No one would do anything to me… right? What if they find me again? What if I get caught? What if- I stopped myself. None of that mattered now. What mattered was that maybe, someone needed me. With that in mind I took off toward the sound.
One moment Claire was sitting peacefully at a picnic table with her friends. The next she was hanging upside down in mid air. She twisted to find that she was in the grasp of a giant robot. It shot at the table she had just been sitting at, effectively causing her friends to scatter. It continued down the park as if it were just out on an afternoon walk. Immediately, Claire found the grip around her torso not so gentle and the swaying motion that accompanied the robot's walk began to make her nauseous.
"Hey! What are you doing! Put me down! Who do you think you are?! " Claire continued screeching, but the robot took no notice.
"Help! Someone help me! Oh where are the Titans when you need them?"
A green blast suddenly came out of nowhere and shot into the metal hand. "Finally!" Claire cheered. All at once the robot was bombarded by green blasts. One shot through it's chest, another blasted it's head off completely, and finally one shot through the robot's hand, releasing Claire from it's grip. The ground rushed up to meet Claire, she squeezed her eyes shut and threw her arms over her head.
Instead of colliding with the awaiting concrete something wrapped around her and her descent seemed to pause for a moment before she completed her landing with whatever was around her cushioning the blow.
"AGHH! " a cry of pain came from underneath her. Slowly she opened her eyes and found that she was lying on top of a scrawny, raven haired kid, who was currently gasping for breath.
"Oh my goodness! Are you alright?" she asked as she scrambled off of him. In response the boy gave a shudder and spat blood onto the pavement.
"I'll- I'll be f-fine. Are you al-alright?" he asked her. When he looked up at her she noticed just how striking blue his eyes were.
" A little bruised but fine thanks to you. Can you get up alright?" she asked, gently offering her hand. He flinched away from her and shakily stood up on his own.
"Thank you for saving me!" Claire said tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, a small blush gracing her face.
"N-no problem, don't mention it. "
What's your-"
"LOOK OUT!" Suddenly, he lunged at her and knocked her to the ground as a blast came whizzing past. A second robot emerged and began blasting them.
"Come on!" He yelled and pulled Claire to her feet.
(Danny's POV)
What's with all the freaking robots in this city?! I pulled the blonde behind me, trying to ignore the pain in my side. Come on! I have to get this girl somewhere safe. Where the heck is that coming from? Blasts were going off with the consistency of a firing machine gun.
Concentrating for a moment, I attempted to summon my ghost half. A dim light encircled my waist but was immediately snuffed out. Darn it! I was too weak! I put a hand to my side, underneath my hoodie, and pulled it away to discover that it was damp with blood. Oh come on! Just once could I have a good day!? My sight was now spotted with patches of black. I glanced back to see how the Titans were doing.
(Robin's POV)
"Now Robin?" Cyborg asked.
"Not yet!"
This robot was not unlike the other one we had faced. Luckily, we had been prepared this time, Cyborg had created a device that, if placed in the right spot, would work to shut the robot down. With the rest of the my team distracting it, Raven was able to sneak onto the robot's shoulder. Working quickly, she placed the device onto the robot's neck.
"Alright Cyborg!" I called out as I threw some of my ice pellets at it's feet.
"It might take some time before it takes effect!" he shouted back as he pressed a button on his arm.
Suddenly the robot got more aggressive. It's eyes turned a deeper shade of red, and in one swift moment it slapped Raven, Starfire, and Beastboy out of the air, freed it's leg from the ice, and blasted Cyborg off his feet. In the next moment it had taken a hold of me and threw me into the air.
"Ahhh!" I skidded into the ground getting a mouth full of dirt.
"Are you alright?" A girl with long blonde hair asked as she rushed towards me, a scrawny black haired kid, panting behind her. The girl yanked me to my feet as the boy hung behind.
"You two have to get out of here!" I shouted at them. I spun around to see blasts coming toward us. I grabbed the girl and used my body to shield her, but the blasts didn't hit us.
Confused, I shot my head up to find the boy standing over the girl and I. Breathing heavily, he had his hands in the air and his shoulders were shaking. Surrounding the three of us was a glowing green sphere. The robot came closer and closer, all while continuing to fire at us. Each one of the blasts hit the shield, but it didn't break through. When it reached us it stopped firing, raised it hands into the air and brought them down forcefully on the shield.
"UGH!" the boy shouted, sounding pained. I quickly helped the girl to her feet.
"Are you alright?" I asked him over the pounding.
"C-c-can't k-keep this up!" he gasped out.
"Alright, when I say, drop the shield and jump back, got it?"
He nodded miserably. I waited for the perfect moment, just after the last blow and before the robot had raised its arms all the way.
"Now!"
The shield disappeared and the kid threw himself out of the way, the robots hands buried themselves in the dirt and at the moment, I threw my ice caps at it, effectively freezing the robot's hands to the ground. Starfire then flew up and began firing her starbolts at it's head. Raven attacked with her magic, while Beastboy, as a pterodactyl, dropped Cyborg to the ground beside me and flew off to join the battle.
"Well?" I asked Cyborg as he typed something into his arm.
"Okay! That should do it! In three, two-"
The robot's eyes went dark and it slowly sank to the ground. I turned to the two teens.
"Are you guys alright?"
The girl nodded, wide eyed, while the boy didn't respond, he looked pale and was staring absently at the ground.
"Hey man, are you alright?" Cyborg asked, placing his hand on the kid's shoulder. Startled, his head snapped up and he stumbled backwards, eyes wide with the look of a cornered animal.
"We are victorious!" Starfire announced coming over with Beastboy and Raven in tow. Her declaration scared the kid, he spun around beginning to tremble.
"You don't look so good," Raven told him.
"Hey! It's you! Guys! This is the guy I was talking about!" Beastboy declared excitedly. "Why did you run off before?"
(Danny's POV)
Where did all these humans come from? Why were they talking to me? What did they want? They had surrounded me and were standing there, looking at me. I couldn't disappear with them all staring at me! I don't think I had enough energy to run away either. My heart was pounding as though it was trying to escape out of my chest, my breathing was increasing, and panic was the only thing my brain could register.
What do I do?! I should make up some excuse. I should try to slip away. I should handle this with some amount of grace and tact.
"I-I- I p-p-please. I'm -could you?" Terror tripped up my words as they spilled from my mouth. My knees felt weak. I sealed my trembling lips. Oh yeah Fenton, very tactful, oozing grace.
"Please friend, do not-" the orange girl started as she reached for me. Violently, I jumped away as I saw her and threw my hands over my head. Dimly, I heard a shocked gasp.
"Dude! You're hurt!"
I barely registered the words though the fog of fear, but something else did. Behind them the robot's eyes were blinking. I knew what that meant. Instantly, I threw up my hands, an action that was not well received by my side, and created a shield around the group of people. A split second later a blast shook the park. I was able to hold my shield for the first blast, but not the second. Fortunately, the girl in the blue cloak had created a shield to replace mine.
I dropped to my knees, I felt like I had been using my ghostly wail to sing one of Ember's songs. I felt more than just exhausted. I heard words and saw blurry outlines right before the darkness overtook me.
(Beastboy's POV)
One moment the dude was having a freak out and the next he had thrown up his hands, green light had poured out of them, creating a dome, and an explosion had rocked the earth. Everybody turned toward the blast, his shield blinked out and he fell. I caught him before he hit the ground. I could see that there was blood on his hands but I couldn't see where it was coming from.
"Who is he?" Robin asked the blonde girl standing with us.
"I don't know, I didn't even have time to ask his name."
Robin continued questioning the girl, while Cyborg examined the kid solemnly and Starfire hovered anxiously. Raven knelt down and placed her hands gently on him and coated him in magic.
"Is he okay?" I asked at seeing the worry on her face.
"This isn't good. We need to get him to the tower, NOW."