At long last, I have time to update! Combination of school work and other distractions've kept me from working on this for a while, took me almost the whole month to get this together, and I'm enjoying some Angry Orchard and pizza as I put the final touches on this. Anyway, hope y'all are happy with this chap, I'll try to update more often!
And a late disclaimer, I own precisely two things; Jack and Shit. Also my own imagination. Update, 5/14/2106: Swept for spelling errors and grammar. Enjoy!
Chapter 2
That could have gone better. Beast Boy sighed as he made his way down the hall slowly, head hung low and his eyes on his feet. The briefing with Robin about the names Terra'd heard had gone about as well as they'd expected. None of the names were familiar to him, save for Lester Buchinsky, who turned out was another of those costumed crooks, going under the name Electrocutioner. One of his old baddies from Gotham, a mercenary type that got most of his work from heists, hits and the odd bout in the Meta Brawl arena. None of them had taken it as a good sign. It meant that Slade probably wasn't going to be using local muscle any more, not that they were all that surprised considering how much of a joke those HIVE guys were getting to be. He dreaded finding out who else Slade was bringing in if he was willing to hire people from all the way in Gotham City.
"I'll try calling the Justice League. Maybe they can put some more...names to these names." Robin had said before he dismissed them. Cyborg had gone up to his room to do some research of his own, Raven to do some meditating, Starfire...to do Starefire-y things. Terra'd gone back to her room, where he was going. There were some things that needed to be said.
He knew that he wasn't always good with words, wasn't all that bright, but he tried. He tried every day to do his best for Jump City, for the world, for his friends. Now for Terra too, especially here. Right now he was going to do his best to be the greatest...he really, really hoped...boyfriend ever. He took a deep breath as he stopped in front of Terra's room, hesitating before he knocked twice on the door. There was a pause, and then he heard her voice clear as day.
"Come on in." Her voice was friendly, sounding a whole lot better than last night when she'd come to him. He took another breath before he opened the door, doing his best to look confident. Terra was on her bed, CNN on in the background. They were still going on about Vandal Savage's trial after his attempted coup in Kasnia, which most of the interviewees were assuming would end in nothing short of a life sentence (For all the good that did in this crazy world.). She smiled at him warmly, then patted a spot on the bed beside her. Beast Boy blushed a dark green shade as he sat down, aware of how close she was to him. He stuttered as he spoke, but he managed to get the words out.
"I'm glad you stuck with us, Terra. I know...Slade probably fed you some really, really good lies, but it wouldn't have been worth it." He put his hand over hers for emphasis, squeezing it gently as he offered a warm smile. She smiled back, and squeezed his hand tightly. "I promise, Terra, I'll make sure you know this was the right choice."
"I already know it is, BB. You're the best friend I've ever had. You and all the Titans." Another squeeze of his hand, and the blonde leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder, turning his cheeks an even darker shade. "I can't believe I even considered what he said. Everything he promised...it was so obvious he was just using me, but...I was just so desperate. So...so damn stupid." He felt her shudder against him, and he felt a new wave of hate for that one-eyed bastard flow through him. He calmed himself when he looked down at Terra. He hesitated for a moment, but eventual leaned down to kiss the top of her head. She seemed to like it, if the nuzzle against his neck was any indication. That helped to alleviate some of the uncertainty in his gut.
"...Garfield." He said it quickly, blushing as dark as he could as he looked Terra in the eye. She blinked, looking right back at him. "My name's Garfield."
She stared at him for a moment, then, softly at first, she let out a giggle. It was the happiest sound he'd heard out for her since her confession, and it made him smile to hear it. They stared at eachother for a long moment, eyes locked as Beast Boy began to wrap his arms around Terra. When she spoke again, it was soft, but warm and sweet as honey, making his heart skip a beat.
"I think I'm in love with you, Garfield."
Then the geomancer closed the distance between their lips, and Beast Boy became the happiest teenager in the world.
TTTTT
They were an impressive bunch, Slade had to admit, as he looked over the conference table and the gathered men seated on both sides of the California Redwood. Six of them in total, all in their costumes, and all looking as intimidating and professional as they did in the newspaper clippings and CNN, Al-Jazeera and Fox newsreels. The armed men he'd posted at the door and at each corner of the room, all dressed in cheap suits and sporting MP5s or Ithaca 37s, were more for show than anything else at this moment. More men flown in from Gotham to replace the incompetent drones he usually employed.
"Atomic Skull,"
"Electrocutioner,"
"Parasite,"
"Captain Cold,"
"Shade,"
"..and Sportsmaster."
He droned off the names of all the men, each nodding toward him as he spoke. All flown in from out of state that night, all costing a million and a half, but all so very worth it for the plans he had waiting. The Titans would never know what hit them, even the little traitor. She, he decided, he would finish himself. No...too easy. He'd take the changeling first. Make her watch while he did his bloody work.
Then he'd deliver the traitor's reward.
"Each of you is among the best in your field. All accomplished in tending to the superpowered flies in the ointment of men such as myself. Mr. Luthor himself recommended you personally, Mr. Martin and Mr. Jones." He nodded to Parasite and Atomic Skull. Both looked pleased to hear it, while he noted Sportsmaster rolling his eyes. "I've spent a great deal of money bringing you all here to Jump City."
"Yeah, we know. What's the initial bill? Nine million for jus' us showin' up for the first job?" Electrocutioner. Less tactful than others he'd met, but with the skill to make his involvement worthwhile. Slade turned to the black-and-red-clad mercenary, his good eye narrowed slightly.
"Correct. Considering the nature of the operation, there was no room to spare on expenditures. You all are here for one single purpose." At that, the mastermind leaned forward in his chair, bringing his full frame into the light. "The destruction of the Teen Titans, and the securing of the West Coast."
That earned a collective mutter from the gathered supers. Parasite was obviously intrigued, but the more conservative of the bunch, Sportsmaster and Electrocutioner especially, seemed hesitant. Shade was the first to speak.
"So its another frigging world-domination/revenge scheme. I've been there before, Slade. What makes you think you'll do any better than Luthor?" Slade had expected this sort of skepticism, it was why he'd chosen these men for this operation. He had no use for blind idiots anymore. "And even if pull a fast one on the Titans, beat those kids stupid and knock them out of the game forever, what's going to stop the League from coming in and saving the day as usual? Hell, they got Batman's old sidekick calling the shots with those kids. You think he's gonna just stand around and let us beat on him?"
"The Justice League will not be a concern. As I speak, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Flash, and the Martian Manhunter are deployed in another sector of the galaxy. Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are still occupied with the remnants of the civil war in Kasnia. They will not be in any position to assist the Titans for some time. And when this operation is complete...neither will they be able to rescue the West Cost without endangering the entire population."
Most of them seemed placated, though obviously Shade was still looking a bit hesitant. Understandable, given his history.
"In addition to a hefty deposit into an account of your choosing, you will all be granted comfortable positions of power upon completion of your contracts. Do I still have your interest, gentlemen?"
There was a long pause. Then, from the far left side of the table, Parasite spoke, a grin on his purple face.
"I'm in, long as I get a shot at Supes after. Sure you can arrange that." One by one, the other men added their agreement to Slade's offer. He smiled under his mask.
This was the start on his road to victory, and the fulfillment of all his dreams.
TTTTT
"I can't freakin' believe it!" Gizmo shouted as loudly as he possibly could, hurling something that looked like a miniature car engine at Kid Wykkyd's head. The dark-clothed teen ducked just in time, and the engine dug a rather large hole in the drywall instead. See-More was still trying placate the little turd, as he had been for the last fifteen minutes. It was putting Mammoth on his last straw, and the thought of the burger waiting for him in the fridge was the only thing keeping him from breaking the midget's neck in two right then and there.
"A year of paying dues to that one-eyed prick and what does he do!? He cuts us loose, just like that! Says we ain't good enough for him anymore!"
Things had been going...poorly for the HIVE Five (Four now, who was he kidding), lately. There was the obvious slight from Slade that Gizmo was screaming about, as well as the fact they hadn't had a decent-paying score in months. Hell, they were down to sticking up yayo deals just to pay the landlord. Billy'd gotten pinched last week, too, and it didn't look like there'd be any getting him out if the rumors about him being transferred to Blackgate were true. Worst of all, Jynx was gone. She'd seen how far south they were going, and she'd quit while she still had some dignity. Last he heard she'd moved East, maybe even as far as Central City to find better work. The giant was convinced now she had the right idea. If they didn't get a decent score in soon, he'd quit and go find her, see if she needed some muscle.
"Well screw him! We don't need him for work!" Another tirade from Gizmo.
"Dude, we get it! You're angry, we all are! But you're jus' making the stress worse! We can't focus on a heist if we're all ready to have a stroke over this!" See-More was a nice guy, really, but he had no idea how to deal with Gizmo. There was no reasoning with him when he got like that. Not that Mammoth was in much mood to try and reason with the bald brat anyway. He shook his head in disgust as he opened up the fridge, feeling his mouth begin to water as he eyed the double-cheeseburger. A quick-reheat, and he'd be able to forget his troubles for a couple of minutes...
The door to their hideout opened, and something rolled into the room. Small, tubular, silver. The others were too engrossed in their argument to notice it roll along toward their feet, stopping a yard away from them. But Mammoth saw it, and he felt a surge of adrenaline course through him.
"FLASHBANG!"
Too late.
No matter how many times he'd been through it in training, how tightly he shut his eyes or cupped his hands over his ears, it still caused him agony and spots to appear before him. Still, he fared better than the others. They were all down, covering their eyes and screaming in pain, if his blurred vision and half-deafness were to be believed. He turned to the door in time to see the armed men storm in, rifles raised. The first salvo hit Kid Wykkyd square in the chest, sending him into a stuttering dance before he fell to the ground. He didn't move again. Mammoth didn't see any more as he felt a terribly sharp pain rip into his guts, followed by a thunderous boom.
The giant fell to the ground, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the linoleum. He was on his knees when he heard the footsteps, his hearing coming back in time to hear the screams and gunfire. He looked up into the face a balding, silver-haired middle-aged man in a black duster coat, an enormous rifle in his hand. Elephant gun. That was how they'd take him down with all his herculean strength and endurance. Professionals.
"Sorry, kid. Ain't nothin' personal. Boss decided you're a liability after that sour note ya left on. Can't leave nothin' to chance, eh?" He barely heard the thick Gotham accent, his vision starting to fill with blood as he gurgled on the mouthful of coppery liquid.
Ten seconds later, Mammoth and the HIVE Five were history.
Whew. Finally. Feeling a certain, very intense satisfaction at having gotten this done at last. Or it could just be the three ciders, but I'm like 80% sure. Again, SOOOOO sorry for the incredibly long wait I put you guys through on this. I swear I'll update quicker from now on. Anyway, tell me what you guys thing, and as always, stay cool, folks.