Chapter 6
[Next day]
[Titans Tower - Solor's Universe]
Edward had a lot on his mind with the oncoming war and back home. He had arranged for his mother to be taken care of while he was gone and was hoping that her weakness was a temporary thing caused by the misfired Tear of Oblivion. From what he understood, it typically kicked someone into the future OR an alternate universe. But, never both. This time, though, Edward was pondering that she was a victim of both. If that was the case, maybe the effects could be neutralized or mitigated. He would be reporting to the Circle soon anyway and he was going to ask Sol not to say anything to the others. He wanted to surprise them.
But, his chosen duty had to come first, so, he returned to Solor's universe after reassuring his mother that the humans of his home would be happy to see her, that they had grown a bit. The Titans would protect her and would die for her, simply because she was his biological mother. That got her to relax a bit.
[Flashback - 8 hours after Edward's mother was found]
"Mother," Edward had said, "It's all right. For now, you have to trust my mate's mother. As I said, Arella is peaceful and that she is a close friend as well as my mother-in-law. You've already talked to your grandson, and, I know that there's a family level trust already there. As soon as it's feasible, I shall come get you and bring you back to Lair. But, I doubt that any of the dragons who sired me are alive or if they are, they are quite weak regardless.
"If we can defend Lair, I'll bring you home, but, to be honest, I fear that Lair will be one of the first places attacked. Darkness will want to hit the enemy base as quickly as possible and they have the advantage."
She nodded, "Darkness infected the land a long time before any of us were hatched. They'll be ready."
"So will I," Edward replied, "I need to get back as well. The Circle wants to give me a crash course, looks like. I can't afford the backlash from my weapons now."
"You sure I'll be safe here?" she asked.
"Absolutely," Edward said, "Darkness will not know that you are here if I can help it, and, I have powerful allies in this universe. The Justice League, I consider them all to be friends, so, they will be watching for anything odd around the Tower. And, your grandson inherited a lot of my abilities. Please, you'll be fine and as long as Raven or someone from our home universe can cast a Tear of Oblivion, I can be back here quickly."
"Have them teach you that spell," his mother suggested, "You have their magical abilities, I think."
"I would not be surprised," Edward replied.
But, now, back in the other Titan Tower with his wife and friends, Edward was concerned. He had lost precious hours dealing with the arrival of his mother and the Circle was about to be surprised.
He sighed, wondering why the Tear worked for him as a portal and to the time and place he needs to be, yet, tossed his mother to not just the future, but, a different universe.
Maybe I've had a innate ability to cast this spell all the time? It seems to be a lot like my teleportation ability. But, if that's the case, it helps to explain why Darkness wanted me. They would have gotten me as a hatchling to take them wherever they wanted and gotten me to destroy Lair before my moral and ethics would have formed. But, I've always had to physically carry the person or object, though. Here, the spell either pulls the victim in like a vacuum cleaner or the person can jump through it.
[Dark Lair]
While Edward was musing over the developments, Grand Darkness was also concerned because his minion should have been back from Edward's universe with a report one way or another.
"Where in Oblivion is he?" Darkness said to his daughter, "He should have been back already. Even if that hybrid is still there, would it have killed my scout?"
"I have no idea, father," Vilea said, "But, we have more pressing matters. Our spy said that those Titans have had a sudden increase in encrypted radio transmissions and if the spy was right, the dragons that those idiots in the Circle implanted among the humans are being recalled.
"The Circle would not have recalled their troops unless they knew something was up."
"It is troublesome, daughter," Grand Darkness said, "But, once Trigon is summoned onto this plain of existence, it won't matter. We still have our own dragons to even the odds, do we not? Once my grandchild is born, the Circle will rue the day they banished me from their ranks."
"I'd be concerned with that Barnes character, father," said Vilea, "if this is the same whelpling that we failed to recover 3,000 years ago, there's no telling how powerful he truly is. We must assume the worst: That he is as strong as the mortals' Superman, if not more so. He won't have any major weaknesses."
"On the contrary," Darkness said, "Even if he doesn't have a physical weakness, we might test to see if his weakness is more of an emotional one. Find out who he holds close to his heart and attack him that way."
"We need to find him first, though," Vilea said, "And, the instinct to nest is getting stronger, I will need to find a suitable spot for my brood soon."
"Wherever you nest," Grand Darkness said, "Make sure it's well hidden. The Circle will seek to destroy them to prevent Trigon's summoning. We will need to have a plan in case that happens. We will have to kidnap Raven as a precaution."
Little did Grand Darkness realize: Kidnapping Raven would trigger Edward's rage, regardless of which one was taken. In Edward's mind, they were the same woman. Also, Darkness didn't know that Edward and Rachael were mind-linked and that the native Raven was also tuned into the link. Any attempt to take either of them by force would result in one extremely angry dragon. Solor had seen that rage once on the Collector's ship and that was out of necessity, and it was replaced by a sense of sheer awe as Edward activated the Blessing of Light.
"Make plans to take her," Darkness said, "We will break her like Starborn was broken. And if our little scout isn't back in six hours, we will have to assume the worst. We can't wait around for him."
"How do we get around the hybrid?" Vilea wondered. Since the failed attempt to seize Edward as a hatchling, all the Darkness knew is that he was banished to another universe and had not heard anything until the last few months. They did have a contact in Edward's universe for a while, but, they stopped getting reports shortly after the Collector found Solor and Edward and was told by Grand Darkness to try to take them.
"Grand Darkness," another minion said after emerging from another Tear and averted his gaze accordingly, "The dragons hiding with the human filth are withdrawing."
"I am aware of that," Darkness said, "Unless you have some additional information that I can use…"
The scout gulped and said, "I intercepted one of the communications from the Circle, Milord Darkness." He held out a sheet of paper and handed it to Vilea, as he knew handing something to Grand Darkness would likely result in a thrashing.
Vilea read it and snarled, "They know!"
Her father took the paper from her and read it.
"Greetings," the paper read in the native language, "By order of the Circle, you are hereby ordered to withdraw to Lair with all due speed. The Circle has determined that we must prepare for hostilities with all haste. The time has come for us to set aside long standing issues with the mortal world and ally ourselves with them against the forces of Darkness. It is imperative that you make your farewells to your assignments and relationships for the foreseeable future. All solders will be gathering in the center of Lair in one week's time to meet with the Commanding General, Kiinnum. This includes you.
Signed,
Feylfil, the Light of the Circle."
Darkness dismissed the minion and after the smaller dragon had left, Grand Darkness roared a string of ancient profanities.
"We have lost the element of surprise!" he snarled, ""Born Unique', huh? That means the hybrid has to be here somewhere. If he's as strong as I think he is, he will have every Oblivion-Damned Dragon in Lair at his side.
"It also means that Starborn has recovered already! He convinced someone to get to the Circle and got them to prepare. I thought you said he was BROKEN!"
Vilea cringed, "He was broken, Father. I raped him so many times and he was drugged so heavily that he shouldn't have been able to even escape. Someone helped him to recover!"
"And how would that have happened?" Grand Darkness snarled, "He only escaped due to that Light power he's got. He should have been unable to warn anyone, and, you telling him has undone our plans. We must summon Trigon quickly, and before they have a chance to shore up Lair, we shall strike. Summon our troops. And get the Gem. In case the Twilight whelp isn't hatched in time, we shall need her after all.
"Also, make plans to destroy that Titans Tower. That seems to be a base of operations for the mortals. I want it flattened. And if you can kill those Titans, all the better."
Needless to say, Grand Darkness was not pleased.
[Titans Tower - Solor's Universe]
Edward was working through the speech he would want Solor to give to the assembled superheroes and re-writing sections that he didn't like too much when there was a knock on his door.
"Come!" he said.
The door opened to reveal Sol there.
Edward stood up and shook his friend's hand.
"Please," he said, "Pull up a chair."
Sol did that and sat down with a sigh.
"When can you return to Lair?" Sol asked, "We need to start getting you in the loop on planning, Kiinnum. The Circle has met again and after that little display, it was obvious that the solders will follow you. You've been commissioned as the Commander-in-Chief of our forces, if you will accept it. You'll have full reign on who you have for your support team and the Circle will fully support you."
"I would be honored to accept, Grand Light," Edward honored his friend by averting his gaze.
He continued, "I can return for a short time today, Sol, now that I know where Lair is, I can teleport there directly. But, I need to devote some time to this speech for the superheroes on the human side if we are going to convince them to help in this fight. And, telling them that there's an entire race of Dragons will not be all that easy. I have no idea how they will respond, and, later revealing to the general population will probably panic some folks, but, it needs to be done.
"Also, there's something else: Apparently the Traitor sent a scout to my universe. He won't be coming back."
"Oh?" Sol said, "Interesting. I thought that the Titans did not kill."
"They didn't," Edward said, "He was intercepted on arrival not by my Titans. It was my mother…"
"Wait a second," Sol interrupted, "Are you certain?"
"Absolutely certain," Edward said with a grin, "Koriand'r called me and told me that they found a very distraught female dragon asking for her whelp taken because it belonged to no clan and was special, it only took Nightwing a moment to put the clues together. Needless to say, I had Raven open a Tear.
"As Grand Life predicted, she's pretty weak by your standards and I am hopeful that is was due to her being transported into the future and my home universe. She was also very frightened of staying with the Titans. From what Beast Boy said, she thought that they were going to slay her at first.
"The Dragon she killed was as black as Raven's powers, Sol. Nothing but pure evil."
"She shouldn't have been able to kill a much younger Dragon," Sol said.
"It looked like she used the last of her Light weapon to blast a hole through the other dragon's chest. Terra and I buried the corpse," Edward replied, "When this is over, I want to bring her home in case it's her time."
"Is she still angry at us?" Sol asked.
"I think she is to some degree," Edward said, "But, she is starting to understand why you did what you had to do. I think the last memory she had before meeting me was right after you banished me for my own safety. I can tell how she loves me and she'll forgive you at some point, seeing how I've developed. She's even accepted that I am a father and adores my son already. Let me worry about getting her to forgive the Circle, though. Who knows? Maybe she'll come to forgive our mortal neighbors before the First claims her."
"The others will be pleased to hear this, Kiinnum," Sol said.
"If it's all right, though," Edward asked, "I would like to tell them. It'll be a little bit of good news, especially for Life."
Sol smiled, "That's fine with me. Tell me, how is Solor doing?"
"Still beating himself up," Edward replied honestly, "The damage was extensive and, between us, I have major concerns. I know he's on the fence about combat, especially now. He knows his lack of willpower is responsible for this. I do not blame him, though. How can I? I think that Vilea would have merely drugged him from the beginning, but, she was vicious about rubbing it in his face after they did the act. She could have killed him outright, Sol, but, she didn't. She wanted to hurt him in every way possible.
"But my long term feeling? He's young and will bounce back, given time and the right motivation. And, I feel that he will earn his rightful position back as your heir. His pride was shattered by the ordeal, and, to be honest, I think that if he fight for someone other than himself. If he fights for his people, his girlfriend, and his mortal family, it will allow him to fully heal. He's slowly learning what your dearest mate could not teach him and what he refused to see in his anger and grief over losing her and the brood. He's learning what I learned at a relatively young age: When one must fight, one needs to fight for a cause that is greater than yourself. Even in ancient Greece, with my honor sisters Xena and Gabrielle, I wasn't fighting for just myself. I fought alongside them for the greater good of mankind. When Gabrielle was attacked by slave traders, they were sent to the First for judgment. I wasn't about to put my friend's freedom in jeopardy. She was pregnant with twins. She left one with the Amazon nation. The baby boy was left with me and my Callisto. The rest, you somewhat know. He was killed in a storm and his death killed Callisto inside. She had lost too much and her mind snapped.
"Starborn did agree to come back to Lair, though. I will bring him, however, and guarantee his behavior if need be."
"I'd keep him away from Grand Death," Sol recommended, "He's still fuming at this whole thing. And, I am sorry for your loss, even though it's thousands of years late."
Edward looked at the Grand Light and smiled sadly, "Coming from a being as old as we are, I truly appreciate your sentiment. It was one of the few big failures and I paid a huge price over the centuries.
"I suggest Grand Death deal with it," Edward said coldly, "I'm not wanting to disrespect anyone in the Circle, Sol. I think you know that, however, Grand Death needs to at least tolerate that Starborn is coming back and I want him to be at my side representing the Light Dragons. Golmul can represent the Earth Dragons as part of my inner circle. He said that he's one of the strongest in his Clan, if not all the clans. I certainly can respect that. 'Stone Strong' seems fitting for him. I'll need names of other strong dragons from the other clans as well. Preferably if they have leadership qualities already and have the respect of the other solders, as I might not have the time needed to vet them normally. If the solders respect them, I may have to run with that. I'm also thinking that there will be two fronts. The main one against Trigon, and a second one focused on the defense of Lair.
"Also, I have an idea to help rebuild his confidence. Tomorrow, the superheroes of this world will gather here at Titan Tower and I'm writing a short speech for Solor to deliver that will help, I hope. If he can convince the superheroes to join with us in an alliance, all the better."
"May I see it?" Solor asked.
"Sure," Edward said and turned the screen towards Sol.
"You're more tech savvy than I am," Sol said.
Edward nodded and put the document to the top and said, "Use the down arrow button to move down line by line or the page down button to move down a page of text."
Edward tapped the CTRL-S shortcut to save the document, just in case.
Sol read through the document and nodded, "This looks OK, but, I have a few suggestions as well."
Edward pulled the keyboard over and said, "Lay them on me." Thus the two dragons started bonding over a speech for Solor to deliver the next day.
Later on Sol said, "I'm sorry for harping on this issue, but, we need you back at Lair for a while. We need to start your treatment and training to use your weapons."
"What does this treatment entail?" Edward asked.
"Well, what we were going to do was a procedure to make your body immune to your weapons. Normally, we do not have any backlash from using our flame or other weapons, yet, for some reason, you have backlash," Sol replied, "How bad is it, though?"
"It depends on how much power I put into the weapon," Edward said, "My Ice Breath, for example, if I unleash it at full power freezes my lower jaw. My flame causes bad burns, and lightning can also do that, but, it's not as bad as the lightning is my range weapon. What you folks saw was my full power lightning. That's when the electricity actually arcs between my ridges."
"It's also wasting that power," Sol noted, "We can teach you not to waste that excess power in your lightning attack. But, I have another question: When we saw you as a hatchling and your first attack, your ridges didn't light up, what happened to cause that?"
"Easy explanation: I was exposed to radiation when I lived in ancient Greece. Some travelers came into the village where I lived at the time and were quite ill. I was able to use my healing powers to save their lives. When questioned, they had some radioactive ores that were warm to the touch. When I picked them up, I absorbed the radiation without realizing what happened. It wasn't long after that I discovered that my ridges would light up. At first, it wasn't something I could control, but, since then, I can determine if they light up or not.
"When I demoed that for Solor and Starfire, Solor wasn't happy. I tried to hit her with a small ice attack. She dodged it and Solor objected. When I lit the ridges up without an actual attack, they were ready to dodge it."
Sol laughed seeing that in his mind. It was a warm laugh, much like Solor's.
"So, you've learned over time how to control your weapons from a non-lethal to a very deadly power," Sol noted, "Impressive. How often do you have to go to your full strength?"
"Not often," Edward replied, "I use the force needed to cope with the threat. Like an unarmed punk trying to mug me or one of my friends might only eat a punch that knocks them cold. Someone with a tank trying to take me down, might end up seeing his weapon iced over. When I fight something bigger, say Trigon, the only option I have is deadly force.
"When Solor bit my wing joint, he was lucky Rachael was there to calm me. When my anger is fully triggered, whatever causes me to lose it is lucky to be alive. Solor would have been beaten worse than Grand Death's beatdown, and, knowing now what I do about him and his blood family, you would have had every right to return that 'favor'."
"If Starborn had deserved it, Edward," Sol said, "I would do nothing. He is an adult now, and he needs to face the consequences of his actions. A lesson, I fear, he is learning the hard way."
"I'm just happy," Edward said, "that he is actually learning. I took him under my wing to mentor him while he was visiting. He was afraid that I'd be, well, like you and I'm not. I'm more laid back usually, and I treated him kindly, but, fair. Something that I know he appreciated.
"But, that's the peacetime Edward he got to know. When I'm in a war mode and have troops under my command, I'm a hard nosed son of a bitch. I keep it as business, not personal as much as possible. But, woe to the solder who thinks it wise to call me a breed traitor because of my wife being human. I'll teach him a lesson that he will not forget. And, that's assuming that Rachael doesn't hear it. When she allows her rage to run free, I would feel sorry for that person. One time, a small time villain named Dr. Light managed to really anger her. She sucked him into her robe and when Robin got her to snap out of it, the man was badly frightened to the point the Teen Titans had to put him in the mental hospital for a short time. Since then, he's been deathly scared of a repeat performance."
"There's no need to worry on that front," Sol said, "The troops will know that comments directed towards Raven will not be tolerated by you and certainly not by the Circle. They are your troops, Kiinnum. As a result, however you seek to impose discipline is your discretion, just don't kill them yourself." Sol added the last part as a small joke, though. He did not want to see any dragon solders killed, but, as Grand Life admitted, it would happen anyway.
Edward knew that as well, but, the alternative was worse: A dead planet and the universe falling to Trigon.
He was also worried about something else. This was very likely the same Trigon that was believed to be dead in Edward's universe. He had done some research in his universe after Trigon's failed re-invasion and discovered that it would take a lot to kill such a demon and that he was practically immortal. Trigon may have decided that Edward's universe was too well guarded and moved to a universe more "Ripe" for the taking. Edward wouldn't know until he was summoned and how he was summoned. And the how had Edward concerned.
"Sol," he said, "I'm embarrassed to ask this, but, how long does it take for an egg to hatch?"
Sol frowned at that. "For a normal dragon, it would take up to one month for the eggs to develop inside of the mother. However, it could take up to two for a hybrid, as your mother said that she had the need to nest, but spent an entire month waiting before she laid your egg. We may have about one month left before the first of the eggs will be hatched. If Solor was forced to mate with her every day, then she will lay up to seven eggs.
"Your mother only laid the one, since you were an even hybrid from six or seven different fathers. My mate with Starborn, he was the only one laid. The brood we lost was five eggs, as you know, one hatched, but, died minutes later. The others..."
Sol actually looked grieved then.
"I'm sorry," Edward said sincerely, putting his hand on Sol's shoulder, "for the pain of a lost brood, Sol. I can understand Starborn's reaction totally. He so wanted to be a big brother. I'm sorry that he allowed his anger to tear your family apart. Yet, I am grateful that he has realized, like you have, that it's more important to forgive. I would hope that the others in the Circle would be as forgiving."
"What about Darkness, though?" Sol challenged, "Surely you do not believe that the Traitor should be forgiven?"
"Forgiveness has limits," Edward replied, "They tried to kidnap me as a hatchling. His daughter defiled Starborn and tore him apart inside. They drugged your son, Sol. They destroyed him and if you had not called for Rachael and myself, the damage might have been permanent. But, he knew that I could help. Before he escaped, he was calling for me in his mind. So, no...No forgiveness for them. I consider Starborn to be family, and because you are his father, that makes you part of my family as well. I cannot merely overlook such an affront. Not something this serious. They insulted not just your family honor, Grand Light. They insulted mine as well. And a Dragon's Honor demands cleansing and restoration, does it not?
"Vilea, I may forgive if we somehow flip her. Grand Darkness...not gonna happen. Even my forgiveness has limits, brother. The bastard tried to seize me as a helpless whelp. I cannot overlook that, even if I cannot remember it."
Sol was surprised. Edward had spent his entire life in another universe, yet, he understood a lot about his own kind. It got him to thinking that maybe Edward would be a better Heir to the Light than his own son. He also knew, though, that Edward would probably not want to stay. Edward has his duties in his own universe to his son and his extended family of Titans there, as well as to his Raven.
Edward and Sol worked on the speech for a while longer, Edward doing the typing, though.
Eventually, though, Edward said, "Enough typing for now. I think this is where it ought to be. Do you think Solor can handle this?"
"I think so," Sol said, "But, only Solor can know for sure, though."
"One way to find out," Edward said, pulling the borrowed communicator.
"Edward calling Solor," he said.
"Who calls Solor?" was the reply.
"It's Edward and your father, my brother," Edward said, "Could you come to the guest quarters where Rachael and I are at? There's something that I need to ask you."
"On my way," Solor said and disconnected.
Solor arrived a few moments later and Edward welcomed him into the room.
"I'd like you to read this," Edward said, handing him the fresh off the printer pages.
"What is this?" Solor asked.
"A speech that you're going to deliver tomorrow," Edward said, "You and your father know more about the Darkness and Rachael and I know more about Trigon. Your job is to sell the superheroes. Robin or I'll introduce you and help handle Trigon related questions. You and Sol, if willing, can handle the deeper history.
"Solor, I have faith in you. If Sol doesn't mind, I know he also has faith in his own flesh and blood. Your mother had that same faith in you and I know you would do her proud."
Solor looked at the pages, and sighed. He figured something like this would happen. And despite how he felt, he knew it would take a lot of courage for him to go through with it. "Very well. I shall read it, and prepare for tomorrow."
"You are not going to practice it for us?" Sol asked, surprised.
"No", said Solor. "I need my privacy for now, Father. If you do not mind..." He bowed his head, and turned around, exiting the room as quickly as he came.
"You're certain this is a good idea?" asked Sol. "Normally, he would be willing to ask for assistance when it comes to speeches. He's not the most... eloquent talker in the world."
"I'm positive", Edward replied. "We'll just have to wait and see tomorrow."
XxXxX
It took a good few hours, but soon everyone that the Titans had called had arrived. The Doom Patrol, Justice League, and the allies the Titans had made over the years arrived en mass, practically flooding the gates. And even other heroes from other countries arrived, such as Pantha, Kole and Gnarrk, Red Star, and many of the allies that they would make in the future agreed to show up, although some were late (who knew cavemen were afraid of planes?).
Sol was looking at the very crowded Ops center, and whistled. "Impressive", said the old dragon. He turned to Rachael. "I assume some of these are allies you made in your universe?"
"Yeah", she replied, pointing to the future Titans. "A lot of them are allies that we make during a war that my Titans has already gone through. Don't tell any of them, though; it's going to take a very surprising turn of events and while it would be nice to see how it goes, with you guys here, even I don't know how it will turn out."
"I understand", said Sol. "Certain events may or may not take place, and with our history turning out different than yours, you have no idea whether or not our universe will go down the same path."
"Exactly," Edward said, stepping alongside them, "Then again, just with Solor being a founding member of the team swerved history a bit. I know the Teen titans here have had a lot of the same missions, but, with different endings. In our universe, Kitten is still a thorn in our sides. Here, your son flipped her to our side." He pointed to a blonde woman who had also arrived, "in fact, it looks like she got the word as well. If you'll excuse me...curiosity abounds."
Edward walked over to Kitten and said, "Excuse me? You are Kitten, correct?"
She looked at Edward and said, "I am. Who are you?"
"My name is Edward," he replied with a warm smile, "It is an honor to meet you. I have heard a lot about you, young woman. I just came over to wish you good luck and that you made the right decision on your date with Solor."
Kitten looked stunned, "How do you know of me?"
"I know this will be hard for you to believe," Edward replied, "But, I am not native to this universe, but, an alternate universe where your counterpart actually went on that prom date with Robin. It did not turn out that well for her. She ended up in a prison cell. You, however, I can see have made that honest break and joined the good guys side. Stay on the path you have chosen for yourself. Believe me, you will never regret it. Find one of these super heroes to be your mentor, if you would like. I can see that you are a likable person, Kitten. One that I would be honored to consider a friend here."
Kitten saw that Edward was sincere in his words and encouragement. She smiled back and said, "Thank you. I will do my best."
Beast Boy was having fun, talking to his old teammates. Mento, meanwhile, was picking up on the despair of someone's thoughts, and soon began looking around the room, trying to figure out who was projecting such depressing thoughts. Eventually, he broke off from the rest of the Doom Patrol, and soon found Solor in the hall, looking over the speech.
"You alright, kid?" he asked, surprising the dragon. Solor looked up at the man, then back down.
"I am... not." He sighed. "I do not wish to share the information now, as I will have to tell everyone at once."
"You don't have to say anything", said the leader of the Doom Patrol. "You feel like no matter how many times you hear it, you don't deserve to be forgiven." Solor was surprised he knew, but nodded. "Look, I'm not going to pry. No matter what you've done, though... I'm sure that if you said you are sorry, and your friends forgave you, then you do deserve it." He turned away. "By the way, I think everyone's beginning to wonder why they're here. You might want to get that speech underway."
Solor gulped a bit, and nodded, beginning to head to the front of the Ops center. Soon, he could feel the eyes beginning to fall upon him, and after a few moments, the room went silent. He looked at all of the heroes, from Superman of the Justice League, to Kole and Gnarrk, and finally, his eyes landed on his girlfriend, Starfire.
He knew that their relationship was being strained because of this. During the last few missions, Starfire had barely been able to fly, and her Starbolts were much weaker than they used to be. He looked at her, and only saw the failure that he only had himself to blame on.
And yet, he thought to himself, she still does not blame me. She does not hate me, even though every fiber of my body says I do not deserve such forgiveness. He looked down at the speech, and opened his mouth to talk, but could not say the first words on the page. Why?! Why does no one hate me for what I have done?!
... perhaps... I do not deserve hate?
At those words, a spark glimmered in his eye. For the first time in a long time, he felt something other than self loathing.
My friends forgave me. Even when they know that it is because of me that our world is in danger, they do not hate me. My father does not call me a traitor because I was tricked by a darkness dragon. The Circle is calling me back because they require my help, even when it is my doing that this happened.
No... not mine. Hers.
It's not my fault. It's that Dark Dragoness'. She was at fault.
Finally, he realized that everyone was still staring at him. However, he did the one thing no one expected.
He threw the speech into the air, letting the paper fly around him. "I am not one for speeches", he said, smirking. "Thank you, my friend, but I do not need your words this time."
Edward smiled. It seemed Solor was on the path to recovering after all.
"My name is Filkiin", he began. "In your words, it means Starborn. However, I chose the name Solor when I came to the mortal world. Now, before anyone asks, no I am not human, or alien. I am native to this world." He began to pace. "Tell me... what is the most well known creature from your fairy tales? What creature is known for flying high and casting shadows on the ground the size of large buildings? What can breathe fire, and has scales as strong as diamonds?" As he spoke, his wings began to grow on his back, his scales began to show, and smoke began to billow out of his nostrils. "And... what in the world made you think that dragons could not possibly be real when Dinosaurs walked this earth millions of years ago?
"Dragons are real, heroes of the mortal world. We have been around since the beginning of time. And believe me, not all of them are power hungry, greedy monsters that want nothing more than to eat everything in sight. Many of us just wanted to live in peace. However... I tell you that there are the power hungry, the greedy, the pure evil monsters that haunt your dreams. This is known as the Darkness. And it is this Darkness that threatens not just your world, but mine as well. A few weeks ago... I was a prisoner of the Darkness. I was lucky to escape with my life... if not my sanity." He sighed, deciding to come clean. "Before I escaped, I was tricked. I was fooled by a Dark Dragoness that goes by the name of Vilea. And she raped me. Several times a day for a week straight." He saw all of the shocked looks, and held up his hands. "Believe me... it was not pleasant at all. Not only was I raped... I was mocked. Tortured. And driven completely mad by her. It was because of this madness, however, that she revealed her plans to me."
"The Darkness is planning on summoning a demon. A very old, very powerful demon that goes by the name of Trigon the Terrible. He has conquered thousands of worlds in different dimensions and universes. And he has his eyes on ours next. Originally, his plan was to use his own daughter, Raven, as the portal to this world. But Darkness has another plan, that they are going to set into motion within the next month. Instead of Raven... they will use the child of Vilea. They will use my spawn to summon him.
"I am not asking for forgiveness. I am not asking you to understand. I am not asking you to feel sorry for me. Instead... I am asking you to fight alongside me. I may not deserve it... but my people are getting ready for this fight. And as much as I hate to say it... I do not think we will win without your help.
"I will not be the one leading you, as I am needed elsewhere. I am only here to ask one thing of you. Speak to Rachael, if you wish to join the war. Just know that once you do... it may be the last battle you will fight. I am asking you to fight a war that we could very well lose. But I only ask because of the small chance that we can win. I only ask because if we do nothing... then Trigon has already won."
Edward was stunned. Solor had spoken quite well, he was open with what happened to him, and he blew the lid off of dragons walking the world. But, there was a bunch of grumbling among the assembled heroes as well and Edward decided to step in.
"Hey, Everyone," he said, "Excuse me. I need to interject a bit here.
"First, thank you, Solor for your words. I can see that you are feeling a lot better.
"Second, my name is Edward Barnes and I, too, am a Dragon in disguise and I have walked the Earth for 3,000 years. In my universe, I am a member of the Titans, the more adult counterparts of the Teen Titans you see here. You see, this Vilea Solor mentioned possessed Raven and opened a portal between universes and attempted to banish Solor there forever. After an initial skirmish, Solor realized that he was no longer here, in this universe. I befriended Solor and gradually trust was developed. Eventually, Raven, with the help of Solor's father, was able to recreate the spell that opened the portal and Solor, along with his girlfriend, Starfire of the Planet Tamaran, returned home.
"Folks, Trigon invaded my world, petrifying everyone and everything. The sky was turned blood-red, the oceans became lava and the only ones who were barely able to stop Trigon were the Teen Titans. They did not have help except one of their arch enemies sided with the Teen Titans and was a huge help in the fight.
"After I joined the Titans, Raven and I fell in love and became engaged. During that time, we discovered that Trigon was about to make another attempt and kidnapped me. To make a long story short, though. I eventually escaped and captured Trigon's sons. I fought through his fire solders and eventually broke loose. Trigon attempted to stop me and we battled to the death. Trigon discovered what I was capable of and was supposedly killed.
"The fiend had another plan, though, and tried to corrupt my Raven. The Titans and myself went into her mind. A piece of Trigon had implanted itself in there and we battled again. When Raven tried to capture me in her soul-self powers, I thought that I had lost her, triggering a rage that my universes' Titans know to back away from. Trigon discovered as I tore out his throat that coming back was a bad idea. Raven came back to herself and was able to get me to calm down.
"I recently went to speak to Solor's ruling government, a group of Dragons known as the Circle, and convinced them of the dire threat we all face. And make no mistake, friends, this will make every single war that humanity has fought look like a playful slap fight. If Trigon is not stopped, and humanity falls, he will attack Tamaran, he will attack Gordania, he will attack the home of the Green Lantern Corp and every place in the universe.
"As Solor said, my wife, Rachael will be heading up the human resistance. She's already been through this, and I know that all of you started as a single superhero trying to make a difference. Like Batman in Gotham City, Superman in Metropolis, and others. Some formed teams, like the Doom Patrol or the Justice League or your hosts, the Teen Titans all under one person's banner. I ask that for here, for now, that you follow Rachael's banner. I have the utmost faith in her. She has been cleansed of Trigon's evil influence, so, there is no concern in my mind about that."
"Are you proposing an alliance?" Superman asked.
"That's exactly what I'm proposing," Edward replied, "We have to work together, Dragons and humans alike. It'll be a first for this world, but, I've always allied myself with the humans of my world. It's been of a mutual benefit."
Batman piped up, "OK, you claim to be a Dragon. Prove it."
Edward smirked, "Sure, not a problem." The next thing that the assembled superheroes saw was Edward going to his mini-Dragon form, scaring poor Gnarrk in the process.
"Kole," Edward asked, shocking the pink-haired teenager, "Please reassure Gnarrk that I mean no harm."
"How do you know me?" she asked.
"In my universe, we're good friends," Edward replied. Kole smiled at that one.
"But, to continue on," Edward said, "This is just one of the sizes I use. If I used my full size, the folks across the Bay would panic. I'm 150 meters long, nose to tail."
That bit of info got the attention of the superheroes in a hurry. Needless to say, they realized that they had an ally that was huge.
"However," Edward said, "I have also discovered that while I am massive by your standards, one of the Earth Dragons I had the honor of meeting makes me look puny. He was so large that he could only hide in a dormant volcano and when he stood up to join in declaring War, the volcano crumbled. So, I'm certainly not the largest of my kind."
"If you don't mind a personal question," Green Lantern asked, "Just how powerful are you? What kind of weapons do you have?"
"Good question," Edward replied, "Strength wise, more than enough to take down a Tamaranian. Probably closer to Superman, I think, but, I've never tested that with my universe's counterpart.
"I have three breath weapons: Fire, Ice and Lightning as well as able to fire starbolts when needed."
"Impressive," Green Lantern said, voicing the thoughts of many of the folks there.
"Why should we join this alliance?" Speedy asked.
"Because unlike in my universe," Edward replied, "Trigon may have the Dark Dragons as his allies and we need to counter that threat. In my universe, the Teen Titans only had one temporary ally and that was Slade. Here, we have a chance to meet this threat head on with a show of force ready for action. Everyone will benefit if we can stop Trigon from taking over, dragons and humans alike. The dragons were not easy to convince, but, they agreed that it was time to come out of hiding."
"How long have dragons been around, again?" Wonder Woman asked.
"Millions of years," Solor replied, "When the First created this world, the elements were all battling for supremacy until the First calmed them and established a balance. The Dragons were created to maintain that balance. As a result, there are several different clans: Light, Dark, Fire, Water, Earth, Life and Death. It's the Dark Ones who sparked an uprising in the time of the Dinosaurs, and they were banished as a result."
"So," Wonder Woman asked, "Just how long do Dragons live?"
"Typical dragons live to be around 2,000 years or so," Solor explained, "However, those in the Circle are immortal, well, that is until they name an heir and voluntarily pass their title and power on. Then, they also pass on. That's totally voluntary. The leader of the Dark Dragons, Vilea's father, led the Dark Uprising and that makes him millions of years old."
Sol, for his part, had remained silent, but, deep down, he knew that Solor had not only turned the corner in his recovery, he was proving that he was, indeed worthy of being restored as an heir. Sol also saw how Edward and Solor would be a great team.
"How long do we have to prepare?" Hawkgirl asked.
"Good question," Edward replied, "I would estimate 45 to 60 days, based on how Solor was attacked a week and a half ago. Seeing how Solor's children will be hybrid dragons complicates matters greatly. They will be Twilight dragons, half Light dragon, half Dark dragon, so, it might take extra time to lay the eggs."
"And how many will there be?" Hawkgirl asked.
"Anywhere from one to seven," Solor replied, "We will have to find her nest and, destroy them all."
That got the group in an uproar.
"Friends!" Edward called out over the din, "I share your sentiments, but, we have to find these eggs and destroy them. There is no choice in the matter. If they hatch, it only takes one for Darkness to use as a portal for Trigon. If we deny the Darkness dragons the use of these eggs, it will delay Trigon's entry for a few years and that gives us all much needed time to plan and prepare. Even Solor agrees that these must be destroyed and they would be his whelps. Would you rather have two months at most to prepare or a couple of years before the Gem ... Raven ... is used to destroy the world? Trigon's arrival will happen regardless."
The superheroes were stunned. Edward had managed to shock a group of people who were hard to shock. There were a few exceptions, of course, but, the younger folks were surprised and they turn to look at Raven as if to say, "You're kidding, right?"
"Raven did not choose who her father is," Solor said, "There's no sense in pinning blame for this on her or anyone. If we can stop Trigon from arriving now, we can prepare."
"What are we waiting for?" Superman said, "I've talked to the members of the League and we're in."
Mento said, "Count the Doom Patrol in as well." That got a smile out of Beast Boy.
"My universes' Titans are in," Edward said, "No need to even ask them. They were ready when I returned a couple days ago.
"For those superheroes who are independent: We need all the help you can provide. This fight will be a hard one."
Jericho raised a hand.
"Go ahead, Jericho," Edward said, "I know sign language, so, it's OK."
"I'm in," he signed, "I don't have much to offer as opposed to some of the people here, but, I can't sit back and do nothing."
Edward translated for the folks who couldn't read sign language and replied, "You have a unique gift that will come in handy, though. You see, everyone, Jericho is probably the only one here who can possess someone and take over their bodies. The Jericho of my universe once possessed me with my permission and enjoy the feeling of being a dragon."
Kole said, "I'm in as well."
Everyone looked at the pink haired teenager and wondered what she brought to the table.
She answered their question by transforming to her crystal form.
"Kole is currently in an indestructible crystal form," Edward explained, "One of her unique abilities in this form is to focus energy attacks, like Starfire's starbolts, my lightning, and probably Solor's light attack. You guys do NOT want to be on the wrong end of his laser, trust me."
Kole reverted back to normal and smiled, "You certainly know what I'm capable of."
"You're a very unique young woman, Kole," Edward replied, "I am sorry that people used your powers for their personal gain in this world. I am grateful that you're willing to set that aside."
"All this chit-chat can wait," Batman growled, "What are we supposed to expect when Trigon arrives, assuming that no one stops these eggs from hatching?"
Rachael stepped forward and said, "It will not be pretty. If Trigon is summoned successfully, the sky will turn into a deep red mess with clouds spiraling out from where Trigon is, the oceans will turn to lava, all living things will be turned to stone. That's not the worst of it, though. Trigon eats souls, storing them until such time as he needs them to grow his power. This will be needed right away because he will be weakened when he gets here. The greatest threat here is if he eats dragon souls. If he captures someone like Edward or Solor's father, he will be almost unstoppable. This is why we must prevent his arrival or failing that, keep him weakened. When we stopped him in my universe, he was still weakened."
"The other part is that Trigon is practically immortal," Raven said, "Sadly, even Edward couldn't truly keep Trigon down. He would merely find another universe to invade. And, he would be summoned to the closest one with the right conditions: A portal that is half good, half evil. This means that, yes, Solor's spawn would fit that bill as easily as I would or even my counterpart could still fit the bill."
"Actually, Raven," Edward said, "Trigon can't use Rachael, she's been cleansed."
"How will the civilians react to seeing Dragons?" Aqualad asked.
"That's a good question," Edward replied, "It depends on how we're introduced. If they see the friendlier Dragons first, like Solor and myself, it may make life easier. If they see Dark Dragons first, all bets are off as the civilians will likely panic and call in the military to defend themselves."
"The civilians will probably see fighting anyway," Solor said, "This many superheroes in one place would get their attention. And I think your media would also be very curious as to why there was an emergency meeting."
"How do we keep any dragon fights out of the cities?" one superhero asked.
"By any means necessary," Edward said, "I am also concerned about that as well. Not all dragons will be so kind as to not have a throwdown in the middle of Jump City, or Metropolis, or some other major city where I would be content to keep the fighting to the deserts of this world or some other isolated area.
"And, no, there would be little in the way of being able to warn the population to hunker down or evacuate, either."
[Cave of Darkness]
As the superheroes were meeting, Grand Darkness had been informed of the sudden gathering and it didn't take him long to realize that his element of surprise was gone.
However, he did see it as an opportunity.
"We may not be able to start summoning Trigon yet", he growled, "but we can be rid of those pesky mortals that dare to challenge my might!" He roared loudly, gaining the attention of everyone in the Grand Darkness' lair. "My children! The time to hide is over! War has been declared upon us!" He smirked. "I am sending you all to the mortal civilization of Jump City. There, you fill find a large tower shaped like a T. Destroy it, and kill everyone inside! For the Darkness shall extinguish the Light!"
Many young, strong dragons roared in response the phrase that Solor heard almost a year ago, "Darkness extinguish Light!" and began casting their spells. Dozens of Tears began to appear, unknowing of what kind of force they'd see on the other side.
The Darkness invasion had begun.
[Titans Tower]
As Edward, Rachael and the other heroes began to speak to the other heroes, Solor was looking out of the window, towards the sea. He was still recovering from what he had gone through, he knew that much. But he couldn't just sit there and mope anymore. He needed to fight this.
That was when he noticed the first Tear of Oblivion open out in the sea.
Immediately, he sat up, alarmed. Was someone trying to contact them from Lair? He looked back at his father, who also noticed the Tear and looked just as alarmed as he did. It didn't take much for him to figure out, and he snarled, his eyes beginning to glow green. Without a word, he ran to the roof as fast as he could, needing the space to grow and reveal his true form. Like it or not, the Darkness was here.
He arrived at the roof, and rapidly began to grow to his full size, just as the first Darkness Dragon began to enter the area. He roared, gaining the attention of everyone who had not noticed the Tears as he began to bellow.
"Dark Traitors! You first imprison me and think you can break me without repercussions?! Then you have the gall to attack MY home?!" He let out a roar again. "To arms, heroes! The Darkness is attacking! We must keep them from reaching the city!" As he finished his call to arms, he charged his Light weapon, using it to push one rather large dragon back into the Tear, more than likely severely injuring it.
Edward saw the Tears forming and the assembled heroes saw him also race to the Rooftop.
"Sol!" He said, "Get reinforcements...NOW! As many as want to fight!"
Sol opened his own Tear and jumped through. It closed right away.
"You sons of bitches want a fight," Edward snarled, "You got one!" He morphed to his Dragon form and after clearing the roof, let off a roar that echoed across the Bay and enlarged to his full size.
[Ravens, keep in contact with me, call out patterns and strays. Rachael, open a mental link with the Martian Manhunter,] he ordered.
Edward would have to ignore the backlash from his breath weapons and lit up his spinal ridges a brilliant white. Power started arcing through them as he prepared to fire...
This was going to be one hell of a battle.