I do not own anything relating to the Teen Titans.
Opening the Closet Door a Crack – Chapter 11
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Walking through the old, battered wooden doors to the Gilman House, the titans stood in an extremely shabby room. The lobbies of most old hotels still showed the signs of the grandeur that was once there. This did not. It was obvious that at most a desultory attempt at cleanliness was evident, and had failed. There was dirt everywhere. No trash, just the accumulated debris of decades of disinterest. As with the rest of the town, the paint had peeled on the walls to such an extent that it no longer showed anything other than bare wood. The floor was covered by a threadbare carpet, the wood showing through many places. There was mold on the ceiling.
"Charming place," Raven said in her normal monotone. The titans began to walk towards the front desk. Actually, four titans began the 20 foot walk to the desk. One stood at the doorway, in the same stiffened position he had assumed since entering the room.
"Robin," Beast Boy whispered, "ROBIN!" he said again in a louder whisper that carried to the Boy Wonder. Robin turned around to face his teammate.
The shapeshifter was standing in a ramrod position at the door, staring past his four friends to the figure at the front desk. His lips were fixed into a snarl. Pure hatred shown in his eyes. Robin moved back towards the door, the other three following him.
"What's wrong, BB?"
Not taking his eyes off the figure behind the desk, the green teen said, "That….thing….is one of the town folk. Don't trust him, don't believe anything he says, he's…wrong, unnatural." Robin looked at his teammate curiously. This was highly unusual behavior by a teammate who was usually unusual.
"OK Beast Boy, why don't we just move over towards the desk." He put his hand on the changeling's arm and they moved back towards the desk. Within three steps, Beast Boy began growling, by five steps, you could actually see the hair on the back of his head rising into an attack position.
The titans stopped again. "Maybe you should wait outside." Robin said. After a moment of hesitation, Beast Boy nodded once and made his way towards the door. Robin, Cyborg and Starfire all turned to look at Raven.
"What?" They all continued to look expectantly at her.
"Wait a minute, why do I always have to watch him? Can't one of you do it?" All three raised their eyebrows.
"Oh all right," Raven snarled. She turned to stomp out of the lobby, "There are times I really hate that obnoxious green twerp." If she had looked behind her, she would have seen Starfire with a happy smile on her face, Cyborg with a smirk, and Robin with a very knowing smile. They turned to resume the short trek to the front desk.
Although Robin had his detective abilities, Cyborg his computer memory and Starfire her experience throughout the galaxy, the figure behind the desk was decidedly…odd.
For one thing, although the lobby was not particularly large, and therefore he could hear everything, the individual behind the desk showed no sign of interest in the interactions of the teens. He was a rather pasty grayish color. Whereas Raven was gray, but obviously in the best of health, this was a sickly gray, almost a greenish grey. His head appeared smaller than the norm, with a flattened, disappearing nose, a broad forehead, flattened, almost non-existent ears. Although comparatively thin, his neck had folds of skin that gave the impression of crevices. There was not a great deal of hair on his head. His hands were large, yet the fingers were small and curled up. His skin appeared as if he were suffering some degenerative disease. In truth, he was really a rather repulsive character.
But his eyes, his eyes were the most unnerving aspect of his appearance. They were large and bulging. Disinterested in what was occurring, he stared at the three figures before him. He never seemed to blink.
"Man, I see now what Doc Warren was talking about," thought Cyborg, "these people really do have a look about them. Creepy, to say the least."
Without any apparent qualms, Robin began speaking to the man. "Good afternoon. I'm Robin of the Teen Titans. May I ask you a few questions?"
The man continued to stare at the heroes.
"Umm, yes. Well, we're looking for Dr. Randolph Carter. We've been told he stayed here several weeks ago."
The man continued to stare at them without blinking. After a moment or so, he responded in a guttural voice, "Gone." After saying his one word, he was silent again. The quiet became pronounced.
"Uh, would you know where he's gone? Did he leave a forwarding address?" the Boy Wonder continued to pursue the conversation. The longer he looked at the man behind the desk, the more uncomfortable he felt. There was an almost visceral distaste rising in him regarding the man. Looking at Cyborg, he could see the bionic teen fidgeting uncomfortably as he observed the clerk.
After another moment, the man replied in a croak, "No." Silence fell again. The atmosphere between the titans and the desk clerk became oppressive. He continued to stare unblinking at the teens. Robin tried again.
"In that case, would it be possible to look at the room Dr. Carter stayed in? To see if he left anything?"
Again a long, unblinking pause, "Cleaned." The silence dropped down again on the conversation, the weight of which was almost enough to collapse what was left of the building. The three titans looked at one another. This wasn't an interrogation, it was speaking to a brick wall. How could you get information from someone who spoke one word at a time? And said nothing.
Cyborg tried this time, "In that case, would you have any rooms that we could stay in?"
"No."
The obvious falsehood was not surprising. In fact, if he had said yes, the three would have probably dropped in a faint. As it was, the oppressiveness of the building, the strangeness of the clerk was such that the Titans would have probably stayed anywhere else in the world rather than in the Gilman House.
Robin gave it one last try. "We'd like to look around the town, you know, sightsee. Would you have any maps of the town or suggestions where we could go?"
Unblinking, the man stared with his bulging eyes at the boy wonder. As the moments accumulated, even Robin began to stir uncomfortably beneath that strange gaze. Then the man turned his head sideways and in the same emotionless croaking voice said, "Out." Having said this final word, the man simply stared at the titans with his large, protruding, bulbous eyes.
The three heroes shifted uncomfortably, looking at each other. The longer they were in the presence of this odd silent man, the more oppressive the atmosphere became. Finally, at a loss for what to ask or what to do, Robin turned away and walked towards the lobby door. The other two turned and followed him. As he reached the door, the boy detective turned once more to the clerk and observed him. He had not moved, not an inch, not even straightened his head. He continued to stare at the teens as they looked at him from the door.
And still, he didn't blink.
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As Raven stomped out the lobby door onto the expansive, if decrepit, porch of the Gilman House, she met with a sight that stunned her into immobility.
Beast Boy was sitting cross legged on the ground in front of the hotel, unmoving, eyes closed, breathing deeply.
After a moment, the grey sorceress found her voice, "What are you doing?"
"Meditating."
The answer stunned her again into silence. Gathering her thoughts, she asked the first question that came to her mind.
"Why?"
"Well, it works to calm you down when you're upset, so I'd thought I'd try it."
"Why don't you do what you normally do? What DO you normally do?"
Beast Boy opened his eyes and looked at his teammate, a sad sigh escaped his lips. "Normally, I change into a bird and fly. Usually a falcon or hawk, the speed, the freedom in the air relaxes me. Nothing can fly like them. Even eagles, they don't have the same mobility. But a hawk…." His voice trailed away.
"So why don't you morph?"
"I can't."
At this, Raven became alarmed. Was something wrong with the shapeshifter? Had his powers abandoned him in this desolate town? "Why can't you change? Has something affected your powers?"
Beast Boy looked at Raven, he gave a small smile at the concern in her voice. "No, nothing like what you think. Most animals have a far more enhanced sense of smell. Mine is better than the average human and the scent of this town is horrible. If I were to change into an animal, I might run wild, probably out of town to get away from the stench. I don't want to abandon you to whatever is here."
Raven sat down on the ground next to the changeling. "What DO you smell?"
He closed his eyes again and breathed deeply. "Fish, and something unnatural, that guy inside reeks of it and he's only one of the people here. And there's something else underneath it all….something….." He inhaled again and concentrated.
Suddenly, he stood up at full attention, all senses alert. "BLOOD! It's blood I smell. Human, old, but an underlying scent." He looked around completely focused, "It seems to be coming from the ocean."
Raven rose to stand next to her friend. "How old?"
"Very, nothing recent that I can tell. I'm just getting the faintest trace, so I can't really get a good idea."
She lowered her head and thought, "There's a spell I can try. It will let me focus on the source of the blood, what happened. If it's something dangerous, maybe I can get a better feel for it." She got back down on the ground and, assuming her normal lotus position, began to chant, first her mantra, then the spell. The words made no sense to the green teen. He continued to watch the violet haired girl as she explored the mysteries of this strange town. As was typical, her body slowly began to rise above the ground as she gathered her powers.
All at once, she fell to the ground, her eyes wide open in horror, "MONSTROUS!" She began to shake. Beast Boy immediate went to her side and wrapped his arms around her. The shaking continued.
"Raven, what happened? What is it?"
"Human sacrifice. Dozens, Hundreds. The very rocks of Devil's Reef cry out from the spilling of blood. It's old, decades old, most of it. But," she paused, "some seems more recent."
Feeling rather sick, Beast Boy asked, "How recent?"
Thinking back to the revelations from her spell, she replied, "nothing sooner than a few years ago. There's so much blood infused in the reef that I can't really tell. Oh Azar!" With that, Raven pulled her hood over her head and began to chant her mantra again. This time to calm her emotions. As she meditated, Beast Boy kept guard.
The three remaining titans exited the hotel. Standing on the porch, they looked at the pair.
"Correct me if I'm wrong," started Cyborg, "but didn't Raven go out to watch him, not the other way round?" The other two nodded.
"Beast Boy," inquired Robin, "what's going on?"
The shapeshifter began his explanation. "Well, I finally figured out one of the scents underneath the fish smell it was human blood old blood then Raven went trancelike to see if she could figure out more and found out that these dudes did human sacrifice years and years ago although it seems like some of it was more recent than that then she had to meditate cause the spell upset her and then you came out." This was said without taking a breath.
The three titans stared at the changeling as their brains processed this stream of consciousness explanation. As each one caught up, the same phrase stuck in the minds of each, although both Robin and Cyborg both looked pale at the thought, it was Starfire who asked the question.
"Friend Beast Boy, what do you mean by human sacrifice? Are not most humans willing to sacrifice themselves at need if the cause is noble?"
"Ummm, Star, that's not exactly what human sacrifice means," he replied.
"I am sorry, I do not understand. Then what do you mean by human sacrifice?"
The three boys looked uncomfortable at this dark aspect of man's behavior. Raven continued to mediate, oblivious to the conversation. Cyborg tried to explain.
"Star, human sacrifice is when other people sacrifice humans."
"You mean when warriors are sent into battle expecting to die. That is only done out of necessity to gain an advantage for some other strategic goal. This is expected in war."
The titans began to look even more upset. This time, it was Robin who tried to explain.
"No Star, this is when religious leaders capture innocent people and kill them for their gods."
Starfire looked confused at the concept, "But, X'hal only asks that we are willing to sacrifice ourselves, not the innocent. In all of civilized space, no god requires the captured innocent. Even the Psions," she said the name with distaste, "do not kill in the name of their god, only in the name of science and experimentation. What kind of god requires the innocent….." She stopped speaking and her eyes grew wide.
"The Outer Gods, Great Cthulu." She whispered, "YOUHUMANS WORSHIP THE OUTER GODS!" The warrior from the stars raised her arms and gathered her starbolt energies around her. "YOU SHOULD NOT BE EVACUATED! YOU SHOULD BE EXTERMINATED! I BELIEVED YOU WERE KIND AND COMPASSIONATE!"
"STAR, STAR!" screamed Robin, "This is only a very small part of mankind. Almost all other people worship kind, loving and just gods. We find this just as abhorrent as you. The government attacked and killed these people almost a hundred years ago because of this very thing." Robin was thinking fast and putting the pieces together. "No civilized human accepts this. We find this the most horrible of actions."
Starfire lowered her arms. The starbolt energies began to dissipate. "Is this true?" she asked. She sounded very uncertain.
"Star," interrupted Beast Boy, "I don't even think these…things…are human. They don't smell fully human. They're unnatural. Please, don't judge the rest of us by these monstrosities."
The princess calmed down, "Very well, let us continue to explore this matter. But Robin," at this she turned to the Boy Wonder, "with each passing day I am regretting more and more my decision to not contact the Grand Council regarding the fate of this planet. With each revelation regarding this search, it seems that Great Cthulu is closer and closer than you have said. Time is running out." With that, Starfire turned towards Raven and nudged her, "Raven, it is time to go."
The mistress of magic came out of her trance with a start, "Starfire, where are we going?" At that, all of the teens turned to Robin.
"Since the Gilman House was a bust, let's see if we can track down the Esoteric Order of Dagon."
"Any idea where to look?" queried Cyborg.
"Well, we could split up and search the town."
In one voice, the four titans shouted "NO!"
Hunching his shoulders and replying in a small voice, Robin answered, "It was just an idea."
"A bad one. There is NO way I'm going off by myself in this town. It is WAY too creepy." Cyborg responded.
"So which way do we go?" asked Raven.
Beast Boy moved towards the town square. "Eeny, meeny, miney, MOE!" He pointed towards a street. "That way." The five titans, not having any better ideas, began to move towards a street that bore the name New Church Green. Walking slowly down toward the large street, the silence enveloped the heroes as they made their way to their destination.
Mankind does not appreciate silence. For the most part, they seek to fill the silence with noise. If you observe the young of the species, they are always making noise and, during those brief periods of quiet, grow nervous. Since mankind is a young species, it also behaves in this manner. This is why they fill their atmosphere with sounds, entertainment, distractions. Music, talk, anything to avoid the silence that exists or might exist. Even the titans behave this way. The most obvious example is Beast Boy. As with the rest of nature, during peaceful times, there is noise, breathing, singing, the regular signs of activity. It's a sign that life is good, safe. When Beast Boy is quiet, the other titans become nervous, waiting for the hyperactive teen to pull one of his notorious pranks. Without realizing it, the titans understood what all nature knew and mankind refused to acknowledge.
Silence was a warning.
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Hopefully, the counter was out again as the story went several days without a hit. Still, I'm happy at the general response to my little tale. By the way, I figured out why I was getting no notices from FanFiction. Somehow, all of my alert settings were turned off. I didn't touch them, but something turned them off. Oh well. My thanks to my readers.
And of course, My thanks to my reviewers and friends (they are the same).
Downward Spiral 1 – Always remember about Starfire (actually it's good advice regardless), other races taboos and habits are not ours. I will be exploring Tamaranean ideas intermittedly throughout the story.
TheForceIsStrongWithThisOne – Hey, I'm still a faithful follower. I'm REALLY waiting for Joker's Shadow to continue and enjoying your new story. Meanwhile, regarding Beast Boy and evil. It's not that BB can smell evil. He can smell what isn't natural. Is that evil? In this case, you can see from this chapter some of the history of Innsmouth. I would say yes, the town is evil.
Novus Ordo Seclorum – Personally, I LOVED embarrassing the hell out of the two titans. As for Innsmouth, there are many secrets here still to be revealed. The titans have only scratched the surface of this disturbing town.
Crimson Black – Innsmouth was the creation of HP Lovecraft. Everything I mention in the story is based on something he has written. I would never stoop to taking credit. Gilman House, Innsmouth, the description of the residents, Devil's Reef and New Church Green (and the Esoteric Order of Dagon) are all from Lovecraft's work. They are also all entirely fictitious. Hopefully, the description of ONE of the residents of the town peeks your curiosity regarding the rest of this town.
SoulSeekerthe13th – Nice ideas. I have a few others. Wait 'til you get to the Esoteric Order of Dagon.
A short chapter, but, time is short for me as well. I spent all evening on much of this chapter and it's still short. Oh well, until next time, good night my friends, sleep well.