Eyes turned upwards, and a small body fell from the seat in shock at the shrill scream of the alarm. Her eyes didn't connect to the screen like the others, a flashing warning of red and yellow, across the wide screen, alerting them to a criminal. Her fingers shook like an earthquake resided beneath her, whilst only annoyed glances passed across the band of heroes.
In one quick move, whilst sending a victorious wink to a passing Raven, the small changeling ripped his clothes from his body, revealing the black and purple jump suit beneath it. Then, green circles rounded into plates as he took in the sight of the terrified, short-haired brunette, fingers clawing into the floor at the shriek of the alarm.
"We've got trouble, titans, g –"
"Esp!" the green-haired boy dropped to his knees beside her, feeling a significant crack in his chest as she crawled back from him, her eyes unseeing. She lived in a memory and they were right back at the start. Her jaw hung open, mouth moving around unspoken words and he could vaguely hear Cyborg trying to bring to girl back into reality. Twisting his body, Beastboy gave Robin a firm look. "We can't leave her here, dude."
With a curl of a scowl, Robin raked a hand through the gelled back locks against his head. The alarm had been silenced, but the heavy whimpers that escaped the terrified girl were enough to fill the silenced room. With a tap to the changeling's shoulder, Robin nods at him. "You stay here with her, then. It's too dangerous for her to be out in the field like that."
A disappointed look curls across his features, mouth falling open. "But –"
"It is best for her," a soft hand falls on his shoulder, wide green eyes that could match his own stare with bright kindness, and as the girl in front of them curls further into her body, like a turtle into its shell, a soft sigh escapes her. "You are best with her – for her." So he relents, and they thunder out the doors as he whispers soothing words to the terrified girl.
It's in a matter of minutes that the smell of rubber against asphalt hits the air, and the sleek R-Cycle falls from the mouth of the garage, the T-Car not far behind, licking at its heels. The city buildings fall past in a haze of greys and crumbled brick. A trail of destruction follows them as they search; their eyes widen at the sight.
Suddenly, a sharp yell from the R-Cycle alerts three pairs of eyes to the bike, suddenly swept into the air and absent of a driver. High above the ground, flailing in surprise, is Robin and his bike, held precariously in a bubble, flickering with silver. Eyes grew wide at the sight as he threw out his arms to steady himself against the bubble walls, brows furrowed tightly downwards. His mouth snapped open and closed around deafened words, and as Starfire's energy lifted to her waiting fingers, Cyborg and Raven sought out who had trapped their leader.
Down the cracked and splintered concrete, as if someone has ripped the earth apart, wrenching piece by broken piece from the ground, a boy stands. His feet skim the ground as he hovers, and his eyes flicker like silver coins, and a barely noticeable tattoo curls beneath his eye. His hair is matted with sweat, silver curls that tickle the shells of his ears, but it doesn't seem to stop him in his conquest. Dark skin seems to rip, and blood beads to the top of the open cuts, as the strain of his powers takes its toll on his body. A silver jumpsuit adorns his body, feet bare of shoes, with a black band around his forehead, and he smiles when their angered gaze lands on him as his hands close, and Robin's fingers curl around his throat.
Starfire's anger bursts inside her chest like a fire, but useless shot after useless shot is sent to the impenetrable bubble of transparent steel, and electric green eyes turn on the smirking boy, whose steel eyes seem unseeing.
Cyborg falls forwards, a roar falling through crooked teeth, his legs propelling him forwards as the oxygen was ripped from Robin's lungs. But suddenly, as Cyborg's arm lifts upwards, Robin is dropped ceremoniously to shaking knees, and his lungs swallow oxygen greedily. Starfire is at his side, questions filling the air around them. Hovering just above, Raven is shaking with anger, trying to reign in her emotions, but sudden shock takes over her features.
The boy swings his arms in one quick movement, crossing them in an 'X' shape in front of him, and as Cyborg throws his fist towards him, it pauses in mid-air. His entire body is frozen in place, and his eyes dart around in bewilderment. No-one notices the twitch of a smirk that touches the boy's features.
"Now that I have your attention, kids," he speaks in a low, accented voice, and throws his arms open wide. Cyborg can only blink before a wave of energy sends him flying back, thrown into Starfire, and lands heavily on the pavement, a cloud of stone ricocheting up behind him as he skids down the broken and rutted concrete. At the other end, the boy sighs, throwing a hand through his thick mane of silver hair. "Let's put the class in motion, shall we?"
Robin only stutters out a weak, 'titans go!' before a sickening crack splits the air like a bullet through the wind, and wide eyes turn towards the boy. Raven's fingers burn, Starfire's eyes turn a sickly green in response to the sight.
Beside the boy, a building spits dust and bricks as its body is wrenched from the ground. Blood drips from his nose as he tries to control the mass of moving brick and metal. The building, vacant of humans, slowly rises into the sky, until it has hovered to sit above the boy's wide-open palms, which face upwards towards the building. Lungs collapse and hearts stutter in shock at the sight as suddenly, his palms fly towards them, and the building follows.
Raven is quick to jump upwards into the air, screaming her enchantment as the boulder of rock and bent metal comes soaring towards them. "Azarath metrion zinthos!"
Her hands flicker with her black aura, but as her powers fight the boy's to control the building, it is too quick for her to grasp a hold on it, and it flies even faster towards her. With a gasp, she shuts her eyes shut, awaiting the burst of pain to fall across her body. But instead, she hears a sharp grunt and only dares to open her eyes, to find Cyborg in front of her, thick metal digits clutching the building. He strains against the weight, but drives it away, flinging the building to the ground as if it's merely a doll in his hands.
When he turns to Raven, she gives a nod, a simple way of her saying a thank you to her metal friend, and he returns the gesture. Looking back, his mouth tilts into a snarl as his eyes slide across the slumped figure of the teenage boy. The gears in his arms shift and clank until a whirring gun of blue energy is fitted where his hand just was. "Hey! If you're gonna crush someone with a building, crush me!"
But the boy isn't listening, as his hand slides across the ground beneath him, and he's suddenly spiralling into the air, feet planted firmly on a manhole cover as it propels him high into the atmosphere, narrowly ducking past a flattened disc of Starfire's star bolts. He laughs, as if the weariness has not left him dry of any nectar of strength, and throws his hands out again towards the red-haired girl with electric green eyes.
She gives a shriek as spheres of minuscule searing-hot metal are thrown at her body, causing her to throw her hands up in defense as pain bloomed across her skin. She hardly noticed how Robin's eyes shot up towards her and his lip curled in anger.
As Starfire drops to avoid the oncoming hail of metal, a shape drives past her and further into the sky. She grinned as Robin, clinging to Cyborg's arm, dropped onto the metal disc beneath the boy's feet as Cyborg passed him, to divert his attention from Raven, his nimble fingertips already spinning the metal Bo staff in hand. But with on flick of the boy's wrist, the staff crumpled in Robin's hands, into a pathetic ball of elongated metal.
Sighing, Robin tossed the useless weapon into the oblivion below them, a picture of rooftops and skyscrapers, and threw his fists up as the boy charged at him. A fist swung towards him, narrowly missing his face as he ducked to the side, and he threw a leg into the others stomach, knocking him on his back. The boy grunted, silver eyes glaring up at him in malice, but Robin didn't smirk as his hand curled into the silver jumpsuit, and pulled the boy into him. "Who are you?"
With a chuckle, the boy, now recognizable to see he's of Indian descent, curls his fingers over Robin's. "Names Illusion," he mutters, and he wrenches Robin's fingers open, and swings his legs around in a circle, knocking the hero onto his own back, and he stands, picking a few strands of black hair from his clothes, "boy wonder."
But suddenly, Robin's feet are planted into his chest, and the boy is falling from his own aerial device with a scream. He's quick to recover, and he's soon perched on a curved, burnt piece of broken metal, most likely from the roof of a car. He glowers at Robin, who seems to be frozen in a fighting stance, ready for anything.
As Illusion throws his hands up and the titans await his attack, he pauses. His head angles towards something, and there, they can see the faint outline of an earpiece, embedded into his ear. He smiles and tilts his head, and Robin feels his breath catch in his throat. A very familiar 'S' curves around the exterior of the earpiece.
"You know," drawls Illusion, crossing his arms across his chest, no longer fighting. The four titans surround him, weapons drawn and annoyance clear on their features. But he only stares at Robin, who falters at the sight of the earpiece. "I thought Slade's apprentice would put up more of a fight."
Robin feels a growl rise up from his throat, feels worried eyes on his skin that seem to burn him from the inside out. But he only curls his fists tighter. "He would've, if Slade had an apprentice. What do you want Illusion?"
Illusion smirks, with all the confidence of a boy that knows nothing of struggle, as he swipes the dust and remnants of their battle from his clothes. "Only wish to send a message to someone dear to me," he answers, and he is suddenly steadily rising, the metal flattening into a disc beneath him. He sends the boy wonder a wink. "Tell my sister I said hi," he calls out as he lowers his hand to the metal and he soars away, into the blanket of clouds above.