Thresholding by CidGregor
Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.
This story is dedicated to Post, for all that he has contributed to its existence. (FCKING ROYAL!)
Chapter 10
SMACK!
Captain Tromand'r made the first strike with a cross punch, which smacked into Starfire's waiting palm. She wrapped her fingers around the fist and pushed back against it, holding the swing at bay. His other fist shot forward, faster this time, but Starfire's reflexes were up to task; her other palm came up and caught the second swung as well, matching the force he swung with to keep the fist in place.
Starfire made the next move, releasing the pressure she'd put on Tromand'r's fists. Suddenly off-balance, Tromand'r fell forward as Starfire rolled her body backward to the floor, kicked her feet up into Tromand'r's stomach, and launched him clear over her body, all in one fluid motion. It was a trick Robin had taught her once upon a time, she remembered with a pang of mixed sadness and anger.
The move would have sent a normal opponent crashing to the ground, but Tromand'r righted himself in midair and hovered in place, one eyebrow raised.
"Interesting choice of attack, Princess. Have you been fighting the flightless for so long that you've forgotten what fighting another Tamaranian was like?"
Starfire said nothing.
"I see," Tormand'r said. "Nevertheless, I am impressed. I may respect the authority of the Royal Family, but royalty is notorious for neglecting their warrior sides when surrounded by their luxuries. I am glad to see you are an exception."
"There is far more where that came from," Starfire assured him.
"I would expect nothing less."
In the blink of an eye he shot forward, faster than Starfire expected. She just barely managed to guard herself before a flurry of blows rained down on her. She held her guard for a few moments, but one blow slipped through, and Starfire was knocked backward, a dull red mark on her left flank.
Tromand'r leapt after her, swinging for her head, but Starfire recovered quicker than he anticipated. She twisted sideways to dodge the fist and at the same time wrapped her whole arm around his forearm until it was locked in under her armpit. Tromand'r swung his remaining fist, but Starfire dodged again and repeated the motion, so that both his arms were locked in under hers. Tromand'r tried to jerk his arms free, but too late. Starfire pushed upward with her feet, dug one heel into Tromand'r's chest, pushed off, and shot her other leg straight up. Tromand'r's head snapped backward as her foot connected with his face, the boot heel cutting into the scarred skin on his cheek and drawing fresh blood from the old wound.
Starfire flipped over in midair and landed gracefully, staring down the stumbling Tromand'r. She saw him twist his neck back and forth, and shuddered slightly when the bones cracked and popped as he did so. He brought a hand up and wiped away the trickle of blood that now ran down his cheek and dripped onto his shoulder.
"You have incredible spirit, Koriand'r…" the war hero murmured. "It practically radiates from you…strengthening not only yourself, but those close to you as well. You would make a fine warrior in the Tamaranian military with such a quality…if only you would not submit yourself to the sub-par leadership of that self-proclaimed 'Boy Wonder.'"
"Robin's poor choices today are not indicative of the norm, Captain," Starfire said back. "I have told you once before, and I shall say it again: Robin is a brilliant leader, one whom I would follow into any danger without hesitation. I trust him with my life."
"Then you are a fool," Tromand'r said, abruptly cold and harsh. "Your life has far too much worth to be trusted in the hands of such incompetence."
Starfire's eyes flared an angry green. "You will cease your insults of Robin this instant! He is-"
Starfire's guard faltered for a few precious seconds – more than enough for Tromand'r. He shot forward like a bullet and body-slammed her, all the way across the room until he plowed her into the wall. When he pulled back, Starfire fell to the ground on her hands and knees, breathing in sharp gasps. The bridge crew watched in silent awe, but no one moved to help her; the battle was between them and them alone. Outside help was strictly forbidden.
Tromand'r stood directly over her, shaking his head. "Not only have you subjected yourself to incompetent leadership, you have allowed your infatuation with this Robin to become your weakness. If you can be made to lower your guard merely through insulting him, I shudder to think what you could be made to do if his life were to be threatened."
WHAM!
Tromand'r swung his foot upward with incredible force directly into Starfire's stomach. Far beyond merely knocking the breath out of her, she was launched upward into Tromand'r's waiting arm, which caught her around the waist in midair and hurled her across the room. She hit the hard metal floor with a dull thud and rolled across the deck into a control console.
"You have begun to share his weakness, Princess. Your feelings for him have affected your ability to fight, and have given me an advantage that I should never have been allowed to possess."
Starfire dragged herself to her feet, clutching her stomach, but she stared defiantly at Tromand'r. "You are wrong. Caring for others is not a weakness, Captain. It does not diminish me to have feelings for someone. When I fight to protect those I care for, it strengthens me."
Tromand'r snorted. "Please. Do not bother spewing that sentimental rubbish at me. Your feelings are your weakness. You must learn to overcome them if you ever expect to be truly strong!"
"I will show you just how strong my feelings can be!" Starfire shouted. Her eyes flared, her fists clenched, and she shot toward Tromand'r. The war hero flew straight up, but he could not go very far before he felt the ship's bulkhead inches above him. Starfire trailed after him, swinging for his face. Tromand'r made to block, but at the last possible second he twisted away and dodged the blow instead. Starfire's fist swung right past him and slammed into the bulkhead with a loud thud, but her swing didn't make a dent in the tough Tamaranian metal. It did, however, send a shooting pain through her arm upon impact, and at the very moment she winced in pain and her eyes closed, Tromand'r struck again. His fist flew into her unguarded midsection, and once again her breath forcibly left her in a gasp of near-agony. Tromand'r's strength was incredible…greater than even her own sister had possessed with the Jewel of Charta.
The blow knocked Starfire back down to the floor of the bridge, where she landed on her hands and knees, struggling to get the breath back in her body. Tromand'r landed a few feet away, watching her.
"Surrender, Koriand'r…you have no chance of besting me. You never did."
Starfire got to her feet once more, and gave Tromand'r the most defiant glare she could muster. "'Surrender' is unbecoming of a warrior."
Tromand'r half-smiled. "Quite true…but then, you are not the warrior you think you are. You have a long way to go before you can be as great a warrior as I am."
"If your idea of 'warrior' is to shun your friends and loved ones in the name of strength, I have no desire whatsoever to become anything like you!"
"Then you will fail, in the end, Princess. Sooner or later, your feelings will be the end of you…or worse, they will be the end of your friends."
Starfire didn't relent. "You sound so sure of yourself."
Tromand'r's face softened for the briefest of moments. "…I speak from experience."
And before Starfire could react, his face was set back into its hard mask, and the two clashed once more.
"Titans! Titans, do you read me?"
Static crackled from the communicator, but nothing else. Frustrated beyond his limit, Robin pounded a fist on the control panel, but all he succeeded at was bruising his knuckles, which only annoyed him further. He absently rubbed the new sore spot on the back of his hand, his mind in utter turmoil.
Things were seriously wrong now. Even he couldn't ignore it any more. He was mad at Starfire, she was upset at him, and the rest of the team seemed to be siding against him. Starfire was disobeying his orders as leader, and heck if he could figure out why, but everything he did all of a sudden Starfire seemed to find offensive. Raven was right. Why hadn't he dealt with this sooner? Why had he allowed it to spiral out of control like this?
Because I've been so angry I could hardly see straight… Robin assumed. But why? Why am I so mad at Starfire? Because she's disobeying my orders? Because she's going off to fight Tromand'r on her own? Because…because why?
'I think your problem is obvious,' a familiar, nasty corner of his thoughts surged forward. 'You still can't get over what Starfire told you about what that kiss, can you? You can't stand it that your treasured memories of those moments you shared mean nothing to her, and it's making you resent her.'
Robin pounded a fist against his temple. I do not resent Starfire! She's my best friend!
'Is that why you can't do anything but yell at her all of a sudden?'
"Shut up…" Robin muttered to himself.
"Skknntt…Robin? Robin, can you hear me, man? How's it going up there?"
Robin jerked back to reality at the speed of light. "Cyborg!" he shouted into the microphone. "You've got to get everyone up here and fast as you can! Things have taken a serious turn for the worst!"
"Don't tell me Tromand'r convinced the commander…?" Cyborg trailed off in disbelief.
"Worse. Tromand'r IS the commander. And right now Starfire's the only thing standing between him and his desire to squash Graham under his heel. She's challenged him to a battle of honor or something like that…"
"Like the one she faced Blackfire in back on Tamaran?"
"Something similar, at least. If she wins, she stops Tromand'r's attack…but…" he trailed off momentarily. Then, "Please tell me you guys are on your way!"
"Already here, Robin," came Raven's voice. A split second later the orange hull of what remained of the T-Ship hovered into view just outside the docking bay. The moment it was safely docked, the teens piled out of the ship in front of Robin.
"We have to get to the bridge!" Robin told them. "Titans, Go!"
WHAM!
Whu-WHUMP!
POW!
Blow after blow rained down on Starfire, the fists and feet coming at her so quickly it was like Tromand'r had a dozen of each. Starfire could barely manage to block half of them; the rest drove themselves into her now-bruised flesh all over her body. Not an inch of visible skin was untouched by sore red spots or dark bruises. A cut in the corner of her lip left a trail of dried, caked blood down the side of her face. Every muscle in her body ached of exhaustion. But she refused to give up.
She swung a fist wildly, hoping to catch him off-guard somehow with the erratic blow, but he caught her fist and pushed it upward; her midsection exposed, Tromand'r brought up one heavy boot and shot his leg out until it struck right between her breasts. The blow threw her backward into a control panel, where a cluster of levers jammed themselves agonizingly into the small of her back.
She slid off the control panel and down to the floor, shaking with pain and exhaustion. She was hardly able to move. She was coughing up blood. She could barely even keep her eyes open anymore. By some random chance she caught sight of some of the bridge crew itching to come to her assistance. One, in fact, had to be restrained by his fellow crewmen from trying to come to her assistance, even if it meant her disqualification. But no one came within ten feet of either warrior.
A new pain suddenly wracked Starfire's body as she felt Tromand'r grab a fistful of her ruby-red hair and pull her up by it so she dangled like a rag-doll in his grip.
"I plead with you, Princess. Surrender," he murmured, a note of compassion reaching his voice for the first time.
"I…will not…give you…the satisfaction…" she choked out, trying not to scream.
"Make no mistake, Koriand'r, there is no satisfaction to be had here. I take no pleasure in any of this foolish battle you struck with me. I urge you to surrender for your own good. You are suffering, Princess…I promise it will end, if only you would submit."
Starfire let out a shuddering breath. "I…would…die…before…I would surrender."
Tromand'r closed his eyes, and heaved a sad, heavy sigh. "So be it."
The fist that clutched Starfire's hair snapped sharply downward, and at the same time the opposite knee flew upward…and with incredible opposing force, the knee slammed straight into her face.
And at that very moment, the bridge doors slid open, revealing a certain fivesome of teenagers that stared in absolute horror.
Tromand'r released her ruby locks on impact, and Starfire bounced away, blood spurting from a fresh rupture in her nose. Her body flailed in the air momentarily before she collapsed once more against the deck, facedown and unmoving as her own blood slowly pooled around her head.
"STARFIRE!.!.!.!.!" Robin bellowed, rushing forward in a panic. He slipped and fell halfway there on a small puddle of red, and slid the rest of the way across the bridge to where Starfire lay. He propped himself up on his knees and turned her over on her back, cradling her head under one arm. Blood continued to spill from her broken nose, trickling down over Robin's arms. Her eyes were blank, unseeing.
The sight left Robin utterly terrified. He turned to the others. "RAVEN, HELP HER!.!.!"
Raven rushed forward, her face more pale than usual, and concentrated on her magic.
"A-Azarath, Me-Metri-"
Instead of the healing white mist Raven was intending, black lightning crackled from her fingertips, smacking her in the face once before snaking into the air above her.
"WHAT'S WRONG?.!" Robin demanded.
Raven's breath caught in her throat. "My powers…I can't….I can't manage them like this…sweet Azar, Starfire…"
Robin clutched Raven's shoulders, the bloodstains on his gloves streaking her cloak. "You have to calm down and focus, Raven! Whatever it takes, deep breaths, chanting, I don't care, just get your powers under control and HELP HER!"
Raven's hands clenched into fists, released, and clenched again. Her breath, short and rapid a moment ago, slowed as she inhaled deeper and forced her heart to stop pounding in her chest. She closed her eyes and murmured her magic words under her breath, until the black lightning settled, and when she placed her hands over Starfire's body, the dull white aura of healing spread from her fingertips. It washed over Starfire's head, closed up the wound in her nose to stop her from losing too much blood; then it flowed down over the rest of her, so that the worst of her wounds faded slightly. The rest of the Titans slowly gathered around her; Beast Boy and Terra were both white-faced and shaking; Cyborg just looked grim and was shaking his head.
"The challenge is over. I have won."
Robin's head snapped around to gaze in fury at Tromand'r. "How could you do this to her?.! She's your Princess, god dammit!"
"She knew the risks when she issued the challenge," Tromand'r waved off the comment. He turned toward the captain's chair. "As agreed on by Koriand'r herself, the attack will proceed as planned."
Before he moved two feet, however, Robin dropped down in front of him, staff out and ready. "Like hell it will," he snarled.
Tromand'r abruptly grew furious. "I have bested your friend in honorable combat, according to Tamaranian tradition! She herself agreed that upon my victory, I could give orders as I see fit! You dare to defy the rules of a duel of honor?.!"
"I'm not bound by the rules of your twisted duels!" Robin snapped back. "I don't give a damn about your traditions OR your honor! You are NOT starting a war on MY planet, and you sure as hell aren't walking away clean after what you did to Starfire!"
Tromand'r sneered. "So, you would fight me too?"
"To the death, if I have to," Robin answered.
Tromand'r's eyes flared blue, ready to blast Robin with a flurry of star-bolts…
WREE! WREE! WREE! WREE! WREE!Immediately Tromand'r spun away and glanced at the displays. "Status report!" he snapped at the crew.
The bridge crew, jerked out of their awe at the battle and returned quickly to their posts, trying to figure out what the problem was.
Robin, if it was possible, tensed even more than he already had. "What's happening?.!"
"It's the proximity alert," Tromand'r murmured, the feud quite forgotten. "Something's coming. Something hostile…"
Robin almost groaned out loud. General Graham couldn't be at it again, could he?
But as Tromand'r eyed his displays and the readouts spilled forth, the look on his face told Robin it was much worse than General Graham.
"Impossible…they can't have come so quickly…"
"Who?.! Who's come?.!" Robin demanded.
He glanced at the displays. The language he could not understand, but the images were crystal clear; it was a spacecraft. It looked nothing like The Squir'l or the Isom'r, though; instead of ruby red with thin spires all across it, this craft was a dark brown hue, fat and rounded, with great green bulbs that Robin guessed must have been windows. The craft was small – no bigger than the Squir'l – but Tromand'r stared at it like it was an army. And then Robin realized with a jolt what that ship must have been.
"They're here…"
The Gordanians had reached Earth.
Author's note: Sorry for the delay on this chap. School takes priority, sadly.
-Cid