"I'm sure we can talk things out like civilized people." –John Wayne
Part 8: AMP'd Up
A secret place. Four figures stood in the center of a spotlight, their forms barely visible due to the universal laws of copyright.
"Cowabun…" One began to say, but was caught off by a flash of another light.
BZRP!
When the second light had faded, there were only four tiny terrapins in the spotlight.
Professor Chang, arms dealer for the rich and villainous, was very pleased. So far, his latest invention was working perfectly.
"But, just to be sure," He told an aide, "One more test."
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In Titans Tower's training room, Robin was in the fight of his life.
His opponent swung a mighty fist, and had it connected, it would have broken a rib. But Robin duck and used his foe's momentum to judo throw her to the ground. Pantha hit the floor with a hard thud, but was quickly got up and caught Robin with a kick and put him in a Romero Special. Robin groaned as he felt the pressure.
"Do you give?" Pantha demanded.
Robin said nothing. Instead, he started to twist his arms as best he could. Pantha had him all right, but her hands were wrapped around his gloves, not his actual arms. After a little fidgeting, Robin slipped out of the gloves and used his now-free hands to deliver his counterattack; giving Pantha's thigh the world's biggest pinch.
"YOW!!" Pantha screamed, because Robin had gotten a nerve as well. The Teen Wonder took advantage of her discomfort and pulled his legs out from hers. After leaping away, Robin took a moment to work out a kink in his back. That Romero Special of hers hurt! Meanwhile, Pantha rubbed the sore spot. Once the two opponents stopped licking their wounds, they glared at each other.
They charged-
They leapt-
"Robin! Pantha!" Rob's yelled over the intercom, "We've got a problem with Wildebeest!"
-And they missed each other completely. Robin hit the punching bag with a muffled whump, while Pantha landed on a weight collection.
Peeling himself off, Robin answered, "Wh-what's the trouble, Gauntlet?"
"Um, you two had better see for yourself."
Pantha pulled herself out of the dumbbell pile and rubbed her head. "I think I know what's wrong. Come on."
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"…So, in order to raise money, I took up wrestling," Pantha told Robin as they walked down the hall, "As long I didn't use my claws, I figured it was okay."
Tim chose not to comment. Instead he asked, "Where did you get your claws?"
The tall, muscular Hispanic woman sighed. "I don't know. I can't remember anything about my life before the Wildebeest Society experimented on me. Hell, I'm not even sure if I was originally a human or a…cat."
Robin could see the forlorn look in Pantha's eyes, even from behind her mask. He patted her on the back. "Well, if I hear anything, you'll be the first to know."
Pantha smiled. "Gracias, mi amigo."
They entered the main room. So far, nothing seemed to be wrong, but Rob and Nigel were gathered around something.
"What's wrong?" Tim asked, marching over to where they were standing with Pantha.
"It's…it's awful, Robin!" Rob wailed theatrically, "Wildebeest, he's…"
"He's what?" Robin sighed. He had a feeling he knew what was wrong.
"He's a baby!"
Rob and Nigel parted, to reveal a small boy, who looked about 2-3 years of age.
Looked.
Nigel clutched his ears. "And he won't stop crying!"
The Baby was crying, but stopped when he saw Pantha. "Mama!"
Nigel looked at Pantha in surprise. "I had no idea he was yours. Who's the father?"
Pantha sighed and picked Baby up. "He's not mine, and there is no father. Baby Wildebeest is…a remnant of the Wildebeest Society's experiments."
Rob blinked. "That's Wildebeest?"
"Yes."
"But…in Legend Maker's Silent Night, he was talking! And he never turned into a baby in the show!"
There was a crash as the fourth wall broke. Baby started crying again.
"That story isn't canon, remember?" Tim reminded Rob, hoping to put an end to it. He didn't want to get into an argument over something so stupid. Especially since he didn't understand it either…
Luckily, salvation came in the form of an alert. Robin rushed over to the computer to check the details.
"It's the HIVE 5!"
Baby hopped out of Pantha's arms and transformed into Wildebeest. As the Titans ran for the exit, Scapel shook his head.
Just when I think I understand humans, this sort of thing happens…
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The HIVE 5, a group consisting of five graduates from the HIVE's youth division, the HIVE Academy for Exceptionally Young People, HAEYP. And while membership was always changing and sometimes inconsistent with the name, one thing was always regular.
These were bad kids.
Baran Flinders, the super strong muscleman, Mammoth.
Xuam Luobreg, the size-increasing rogue from Mu(1), XL Terrestial.
Billy Numerous, duplicating hillbilly gone wrong, fella.
Angela Carter, the winged Angel.
And the current…leader…Mikron O'Jeanus, the gadgeteer Gizmo.
The 5 gave their surroundings a once-over.
"Shee-yoot!" Billy whooped, "Lookit all these here stores! Jewerly, Electronics, novelty T-shirts…"
A second Billy appeared from the first. "Darn tootin'! All this reconstruct-shin's really done it for one-stop shoppin'!"
Gizmo rubbed his hands together eagerly, a nasty smile on his little face. "Let's go, HIVE 5, let's rob these snot-sucker's blind!"
As the five junior crooks began their plundering, they neglected to notice the outdoor café on the roof of said T-shirt shop. The odds of this particular place being important were a million to one.
Which is exactly why Raven, sitting a table closest to the roof's edge, looked down at the HIVE 5's shenanigans.
"Figures. I come to wait for Noel on our date, and this happens." Raven muttered.
Across from her, Bob waved a dismissive hand.
"Don't worry about it. I'll stay here and save your spot." He said as Elmo drank from his cup.
Raven gave him a cool look. "Did the thought of actually helping cross your mind?"
"No."
"Good."
As Raven flew down, Bob looked down at Elmo. "After all, her friends'll be here in about…" Bob's eyes crossed in thought. "Fifteen minutes. And hero's fighting alone get better odds." Bob uncrossed his eyes and looked at the roof across the street. "That's a weird-looking camera…"
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Prof. Chang was elated. The HIVE 5 would certainly draw out the Titans, allowing him to test his latest technological marvel. And best of, with his disguise, no one would notice him!
After all, who in their right mind would look at someone dressed in a Hawaiian shirt, Bermuda shorts, and straw hat?
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
"Wish I brought my goggles," Bob muttered to Elmo, "I can't tell if that thing he's got is a camera or a soup'd up hand-cannon."
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Mammoth exited the electronics store carrying two large speakers- one in each hand- when suddenly…
"Azarath Mentrion Zinthos!"
the speakers were enveloped in dark power and flew out of Mammoth's arms and back into thestore.
"Hey-!?" Mammoth looked into the store in confusion, and with his back turned, did not see the darkness-covered manhole hit him in the rump. "Oof! What the-!?"
Mammoth got up and looked around until he saw the source of his frustration; Raven, robed and dangerous. But she was alone.
He grinned. "Hey, guys! Look who's here for a pounding!"
The rest of the 5 quickly appeared, surrounding the Titan.
"You think you can win alone?" Angel asked.
Raven gave her a dark glare. "I'm not here to win." I just have to keep you from leaving until the others show up.
"And she's not alone!"
The Shimmer wrapped around Mammoth and flung him away. Savior strode up from behind where he was.
"Sorry I'm late," He said coolly, "There was a crowd at the florist's." He flung Raven a bouquet.
Raven caught the flowers (Tulips?) and hid them within her cloak. "And you didn't cut in line?"
"I said I was learning tact, didn't I?"
POW!
The punch the tick-beyond measure Mammoth gave Savior was softened only by thepretentious one's trying to roll with the blow, but it still sent him flying. Savior was caught and pulled back onto the ground by Raven's powers.
"Big cruddy whoop!" Gizmo snarled, "You're still outnumbered!"
"No, they're not."
The HIVE 5 turned their attention away from the pair to see Robin, Starfire, Beast Boy, Cyborg, Terra, Wildebeest, Pantha, Gauntlet and Scapel.
"Unless you like 11-5 odds, I suggest you stand down." Robin told the HIVE 5.
"Well, if you slower than molasses in January!" Billy laughed mockingly, "Did y'all forget that I kin duplicate myself?" He became about twenty. "When Billy Numerous' involved, numbers mean nothin'!"
"And a zero times twenty is still zero!" Cyborg yelled, firing his sonic cannon. The blast hit the Billys, sending them flying in multiple directions.
"Titans, Go!" Robin ordered, and the Titans leapt into action. Pantha charged at Mammoth, her hand raised.
"Once more, feel my claw!" Pantha yelled, when something large and familiar slammed into her. Off to the side, other large and familiar things appeared, attacking the Titans. One of them hit Starfire with a sonic blast. Though Pantha and Wildebeest had no idea what to make of these newcomers, the Titans prime were better prepared for the sight of the HIVE 5's helpers, having seen the like of them before, particularly in Steel City.
Except those were yellow, not green.
"Like my Cybots?" Gizmo snickered at the Titans' expressions, "I figured you scum-slurping Titans would try to mob us, so I made reinforcements!"
The Titans, Cyborg in particular, glared at the five Cyborg-style green robots that lined up in front of the HIVE 5.
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On his roof, Prof. Chang was impressed with Gizmo's work. While he knew that Brother Blood had obtained the blueprints to Cyborg's robotic body, he also knew that the cult-master kept those schematics secret. Young Mikron must have done some extensive reverse-engineering to be able to replicate his own version of the 'Cy-clones'- and no doubt add his own personal features as well.
But that was the only good feeling he had about this whole wretched fight. The Titans and HIVE 5 were bouncing around too much- he could not get a bead on his targets! All he needed was one chance, just one…
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"You were right, Elmo." Bob nodded, looking through a telescope.
"Ook?"
"That's definitely a hand-cannon. I wonder what he's going to shoot with it?"
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
On the street, XL increased to three times his normal size and launched at Pantha. The two grappled at each other.
"You…cannot win through size alone!" Pantha grunted, and kicked at XL's legs. As the Muuan fell, Pantha used the momentum to swing him around and away. Meanwhile, Wildebeest plowed through a crowd of Billys.
"Tarnation! Someone put a rope on this here buckin' bronco!" One Billy yelled as he was sent flying.
Meanwhile, Starfire, Cyborg and Gauntlet were busy with the Cybots, blasting them with Starbolts, sonic blasts and Gauntlet power.
"Y'know, I'm really sick of people usin' my tech!" Cyborg growled, punching one Cybot that got too close away.
"Me too! I mean, Brother Blood already tried this!" Complained Gauntlet, "Can't anyone think of their own plan, or are all the good ideas taken?!"
"That's not what I meant!"
Off to the side, Robin traded blows with Mammoth, though it would be more accurate to say he ducked and dodged Mammoth's predictable punches while getting his own shots in.
"Oof! Hold still, you stupid bird!" Mammoth growled, getting frustrated. "I'm gonna pluck all your feathers off!"
"Like I'm gonna sit still for you to do that!" Robin retorted, giving Mammoth a kick in the face.
In another part of the street, Savior squared off against Gizmo, who was buzzing around in the sky with his hover pack. The bratty techie buzzed in and out of the Shimmer tendrils Savior sent at him.
"Nah nah! Missed me, fart-sniffer!" Gizmo laughed nastily as he dodged another strand of Shimmer.
What's wrong with me!? Savior thought, getting more and more angry, Ever since I got hit by Bob's mind static, it's been getting harder and harder to think! What did he do to me!?
Bob, of course, had done nothing- on purpose. But there was the chance that the mind static had longer lasting effects on someone with an advanced nervous system than it would on a normal person. This would not occur to anyone until much later.
In the here and now, though, all Savior could do was try to think despite the huge weight on his brain when…
BZRP!
BOOM!
…The weight vanished. However, Noel could not appreciate this, as the missile that Gizmo fired propelled him into an alleyway exactly when the light from whatever went 'bzrp' had hit.
"Ohhh… Did anyone get the number of that shuttle…?" Noel groaned, trying to get up. The missile had not hit him dead-on, but had exploded on the street before him. This is why instead of a blown open chest he was simply suffering from shellshock.
Then he saw his reflection in a broken mirror.
"WHAT THE-!?"
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"It works, it works!" Chang giggled, dancing giddily. "Now, one more test, then, to the online auction!" And the best of all, no one could see him!
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
"Damn!" Bob muttered, rubbing his eye. "I would sneeze at the last moment! I wonder what he was aiming at… Did you see what he shot?"
"Ook." Elmo didn't know either- he had sneezed as well.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Up in the air, Beast Boy and Angel were dog fighting, if such a term could be used. Angel was quite good at hand-to-hand combat, and her wings made excellent improvised weapons, being strong enough to lift her body. The fact that they could grow in size was a huge help, as well.
But Beast Boy was much more nimble, using his shape-shifting to alter his form to fit the need. Such as when he flew at Angel as a humming bird, but shifted to a gorilla to throw a primate punch. This tactic, however, had minimal success, as Angel would simply fly away in the nick of time, and the green ape, lacking wings, would fall, forcing Beast Boy to swap back to flying animal.
That's not working, Beast Boy thought, becoming a gander. I need to try something else- I know!
Beast Boy weaved in and away from Angel's wings, flying right up to her head. But instead of becoming a larger beast, he shifted into a woodpecker. He then began to peck at the side of Angel's helmet with rapid-fire precision. This proved to be a double-edged sword though. While the pecks gave Angel a headache, they also gave Beast Boy a mouth-ache.
"Gah!" Angel cried, swatting the green woodpecker away.
"Geh!" Beast Boy groaned, feeling his beak throb. Now he remembered why woodpeckers stuck to trees and not steel helmets.
BZRP!
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Terra was helping against the Cybots when, for no conscious reason, looked up, and Beast Boy fall from the space of sky he was fighting Angel in.
"Beast Boy!" She exclaimed in alarm.
Scapel, having much better hearing, was the first to register Terra's cry and looked up to see what she was seeing. And with reflexes and leaping power much better than humans, jumped up and caught the falling human.
However, when they landed, Scapel noticed that he had not caught Beast Boy at all. Instead of a green human with pointy ears and fangs, he had in his arms a Caucasian boy with blond hair, normal ears, and no fangs. But he was wearing Beast Boy's uniform, which was perplexing…
The human coughed. "Dude…what happened…?"
Scapel's ears began to twitch wildly. "Beast Boy!?"
Meanwhile, Robin landed near the entrance of an alleyway when he saw a face he hadn't seen for quite a while.
"Savior!?"
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Later, the Titans were back in the Tower. Bob and Elmo were there too, having followed them from the shopping street. After it had become apparent that something about Beast Boy and Savior changed, things had gotten a bit hectic. The HIVE 5 had escaped in the chaos, but at least the Cybots were destroyed. And, damages to the general vicinity aside, the teen villains had more or less accomplished nothing…
…Though a man running the T-shirt shop claimed some of his merchandise had been stolen.
Presently, Gar and Noel were in Scapel's examining room, while the Titans' medic checked them out. Off to the side, Robin, Raven and Cyborg were awaiting his report. And even more off to the side, Bob and Elmo played with the X-ray machine.
"…And, as best as I can tell," Scapel said, checking a sample of Gar's blood. "There's nothing strange about either of you. You're both 100% human."
"But that's what's strange," Cyborg commented, "Neither of them are human. Not completely. BB's genes were always bouncing around, what with the shape-shifting. And Noel…"
The Titans looked at the other Titan beside Gar. Instead of the spikey-white haired teen with the mean glare and the meaner scowl, they saw a more…normal young man, a bit older than Robin, with his red hair tied in a short ponytail. The accident that mutated his nerves into the Shimmer had also transformed his body, one that he stayed in as much as possible. But now that was impossible.
He was Noel Collins, before becoming Savior.
Before Shimmer.
Nigel nodded. "I know, Noel's DNA was much different from a normal human's, but now it's back to the way it should be. For both of them."
Robin looked at the transformed Titans. "Do any of know what happened?"
"Dude, I don't know!" Gar cried, "All I know is, one minute I'm fighting Angel, next I'm taking the fast trip down!"
Robin shook his head. It was obvious Gar wouldn't be any help. This whole situation was clearly getting to him, and Tim knew why. Garfield Logan had been quite young when his parent's improvised cure for Sakutia gave him his powers, and thus had grown used to the idea of always having them. The concept of not being able to turn into a bird to fly up and reach that top shelf was probably a bit jarring.
So, Robin decided to take a chance with Noel. "What about you, Noel?"
Noel shook his head. "No, I don't…wait. Before Gizmo's missile blew me into that alley, I got hit by something. Some kind of light."
Robin, Cyborg, and Raven raised an eyebrow, while Scapel's ears twitched. There was something different about Noel's voice…where his vocal chords affected by said missile?
In the meantime, it was clear that neither Noel or Gar would be able to provided much help for the mystery.
On that thought, an idea occurred to Raven. "Bob," She asked, turning to Magician, looking at his hand through the X-ray. "Did you see anything?"
"Sorry, kid," Bob replied, "I wasn't paying too much attention to your little scrap. My focus was occupied by some weirdo with a gun."
"What?"
Bob became aware that he had the Titans' full attention. "Uh, yeah. Some Chinese guy in a bad suit was messing around with this…cannon-thing on the roof across from the café."
"What did he look like?" Robin asked quickly. If it was who he thought it was…
"Eh, gimme a minute, I'll show you." Bob pulled his hand out from the X-ray and gave a nearby computer screen a tap. The screen filled with static for a minute, before becoming clear enough to show a picture of a man very familiar to the Titans…
"Professor Chang." Raven noted.
"Aww, man! I knew it!" Cyborg groaned, "One of his crazy ray guns again!"
"Did you see where he got to?" Robin asked Bob. It was a long shot, but maybe…
"See who?" Bob asked, confused.
Everyone facefaulted.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
"All right, Titans, listen up!" Robin said in the main room. The entire group, along with Pantha and Baby, turned to him.
"I'm going to go track down Prof. Chang's hideout," Robin explained, "While I'm gone, Cyborg and Raven are in charge. Can you handle that?" He asked the aforementioned Titans.
" There's nothing we can't handle." Cyborg assured the Teen Wonder.
Robin nodded. "Good. Be ready for action if there's trouble. I'm sure someone will try something once word gets out we're down two members. Yes, Noel?"
"What if someone tries something here?" Noel asked, "If a villain with a grudge attacks while the rest of the team is out dealing with an alert, Gar and I will be unprotected."
"You won't be unprotected," Robin told Noel, "I'm assigning three members to stay here and act as bodyguards- Gauntlet, Pantha, and Wildebeest."
"What? Why?" Rob asked, sounding pained.
"Pantha and Wildebeest are more familiar with the Tower than they are with the city, and Gauntlet, this is your punishment for the backwash incident." Robin said sternly.
"Sounds fine to me." Noel shrugged.
Everyone stared.
"What?" Noel asked, feeling uncomfortable.
"You…you're okay with it?" Terra asked, amazed.
"Why not?" Noel replied, "Robin has a point. It'd be more effective for Pantha and Wildebeest to remain here, and Gauntlet does need to be punished for the backwash incident."
"Let me get this straight…" Rob said slowly, "We've been condemned to spend the day within the same building together…and you're not pissing, moaning, or just plain demanding to the gods what you did to deserve this?"
Noel sighed. While it the whole situation was a bit of a pain, it wasn't that bad, was it? "No."
Silence.
"Oh my god, Noel's been replaced with a pod person! Get him!"
Chaos ensued, and would have gone on for a several minutes until a deep, yet light, voice bellowed, "SILENCE!"
The Titans ceased their silliness- Pantha, Gauntlet, Wildebeest trying to get at Noel, Robin, Cyborg and Terra trying to defend, with Scapel and Raven watching- and stared at Bob.
Bob took that as an invitation to speak. "Raven, I have job for you to perform as my student."
"What? Now?" Raven couldn't believe it. With everything that's happened, Bob wanted to give her another problem?
Bob snapped his fingers and Elmo hopped off his shoulder and onto Raven's.
"I'm going to Lewis-Carrol Croquet Tournament, and I need you to watch Elmo while I'm gone," Bob explained, "It'll only be a few hours. I should be back before sunset. If not, I'll call."
"Bob, this is ridiculous." Raven said.
"Oh, no it's not," Bob assured her, "I'm sure I can think up an even more demeaning chore for you, apprentice."
"Why can't you bring Elmo with you?" Raven asked.
"He's a bit skittish around flamingos since the last tourney." Bob replied.
Everyone sweatdropped. Flamingos?
Raven tried one last tactic. "Bob, with all that's going on, do you really think I can handle monkey-sitting as well?"
"Of course I do," Bob chuckled, "Well, see ya!"
Bob vanished, but not in a puff of smoke. Instead, bits and pieces of his body faded from sight, leaving only an enigmatic grin floating in the air. Then, that vanished as well.
"I don't know whether to be annoyed that he's doing this," Raven commented dryly, "Or flattered that he thinks I can handle it."
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Back in Chang's lair, screens showed footage of Beast Boy and Savior's transformations.
"…As you can see, my new Anti Mutation Pulse Ray works perfectly," Chang finished, to an audience of supervillains (rich supervillains) watching and listening over an arsenal of communication devices. "Since over 75% of the world's heroes gain their powers from one freak mutation or another, I'm certain you are all eager to obtain an AMP Ray for yourselves. We shall start the bidding for the first Ray gun at…"
As Chang continued his pitch, he didn't notice that two villains had signed off.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Back at Titans Tower, the Titans were busy doing…stuff. Robert had wandered off, to call Yohko presumably, while Baby was in Starfire's room playing with Kory. Nigel and Vic were playing Megamonkeys 5 on the Gamestation, while Pantha watched, and Tara and Raven were busy trying to talk their respective boyfriends through this turn of events.
"So, how do you feel?" Raven asked Noel.
"I'm…not sure," Noel admitted after taking a deep breath, "I mean, I'm worried what will happen now that I'm human, completely human, but on the other hand I feel…"
"What do you feel?"
"…clean. And I don't know why."
Raven had an idea. But she didn't know how to say it. Off to the side, Tara tried to light up Gar, who seemed far more crestfallen about the loss of powers than Noel was.
"…Y'know, you look pretty cute as a blond," Tara noted, smiling. "I bet I'm gonna have to beat the other girls off with a stick."
Gar's mope did not lessen. "What am I gonna do, Tara? Being a superhero's all I'm good at! And only 'cause of the shapeshifting! What am I gonna do?"
This was worse than she thought. Usually the idea of being a chick magnet did wonders for Gar's spirit, much to her annoyance.
"Well…" She said as she wracked her brains for an idea, "I guess you can go back to school."
"School."
"You know, pick up where you left off." Tara continued helpfully.
"…Tara, I was six when I went green."
They both thought about it.
(SCHOOLTIME FANTASY)
"Mr. Logan," Mrs. Wormwood said sternly, "Would you mind telling the class where you've been this past ten-plus years?"
Gar Logan, oldest student in the first grade, fidgeted in his undersized desk.
"Fighting for truth, justice, and pizza, ma'am." He said in a tiny voice.
The other kids giggled.
(END FANTASY)
"Uh…no, not going back to school." Gar decided, going back into a full mope.
Tara frowned. She needed to distract him from this problem, and now.
"Who are you?"
Both blondes jumped and whirled around. Black Odd stood behind them, apparently years of lurking around Twilight Town had given him the world's quietest footsteps.
The silent walker looked at Gar for a few seconds before looking at Tara. "Tara, who is he?"
"Blacky, this is Gar, only…not so green." Tara answered.
Black Odd stared at Gar again. The ex-shapeshifter began to fidget under those twin moons called eyes. Didn't he ever blink…?
"Garfield, why aren't you green?" Black Odd asked.
"Mm, this is what I looked like before getting my powers," Gar explained awkwardly, "See, when I was little, I got…sick," How could you explain the intricacies of the disease and the side-effect of the so-called cure? "And the medicine I took gave turned me green and…other stuff." He finished lamely. There was something about Black Odd's stare that could derail a good story.
The staring one did not answer. Tara and Gar could visualize the gears turning as he digested the info.
"I thought medicine kept people from turning green." Black Odd said at last.
And, with the force of a dam breaking, Gar and Tara cracked up.
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"So, because I gotta stay here and play babysitter, I can't meet you at the arcade," Rob said over the phone, "Robin says it's my punishment for the backwash incident…yeah, another one." Rob then brightened up. "Hey! Why don't you come here? I'll just rig the Tower's security so the doors open right up for you!" A pause. "Great, see ya!"
Rob hung up, grinning.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
In another part of the Tower, Black Odd played tic-tac-toe against Wildebeest.
"Pantha told me you and her don't know where you came from." Black Odd stated.
Wildebeest nodded.
Black Odd was silent. Then he said, "I don't know where I came from either."
Wildebeest reached over and patted Black Odd on the shoulder. He was nothing if not sympathetic to the woes of others.
Then the alarm rang.
The Titans, both active and de-powered, huddled around the computer read-out.
"It's the HIVE 5," Cyborg said, "Looks like they're attacking the Waynetech building this time."
Cyborg stood up and pointed dramatically. "Teen Titans, go!"
There was a pause.
"Cyborg, the Waynetech installation is in the other direction." Starfire noted.
Cyborg groaned and reversed his stance. "Titans, go that way!"
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Robin stood on the roof of the building opposite of the rooftop café Bob had mentioned. Chang always changed hideouts after each caper he got involved in, and was smart enough not to leave clues of where he went after leaving one. If he was going to find Chang, the place of his last sighting was the best place to start.
But, at a first glance, it looked like Chang had been just as careful about leaving traces as he did when changing labs.
At a first glance.
Robin called upon every ounce of brainpower he had developed under Batman's tutelage and on his own, and began his search.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
In Titans Tower, Gar had gotten over his depression by playing Hyper Bash Siblings with Pantha, Black Odd and Wildebeest were playing checkers, and Noel was taking a quick trip to his room for a good book…until he realized that his books were all on war strategy, and he had read them before. With that in mind, he changed his direction to Raven's room. He knew Raven's choice in literature was a bit…deep, even for him, but for some reason he didn't feel like he had to relearn Sin Tzu's methods. He also knew that Bob, untrustworthy weirdo that he was, had loaned a book to Raven that she described as 'different', and that he was to never read under any circumstances. This was because tomes like the Methodiaslotuq contained things man were not meant to know, and only girls could even look at the cover without having their eyeballs turn into mold. A fact Noel knew nothing about.
Noel was saved from this fate by chance; the chances of him meeting a skipping Robert Candid down the hall were a million to one.
"You seem pretty happy for a guy who was complaining about being on baby-sitting duty." Noel remarked, his eyebrow raised.
"Well," Rob began, subconsciously noting the softer tone in Noel's voice, "I was planning to go to the prison with Yohko and make fun of the convicts, but since I'm stuck here, I had a better idea. I'm gonna give Yohko the grand tour of this place!" Rob grinned. "She's always wanted to see a superhero's base."
Noel blinked. "So, you invited your girlfriend over?"
"What girlfriend?" Rob asked, genuinely confused.
Noel stared. A part of him wondered why Robert Candid, a Titan who bemoaned a lack of love life more than anyone, could not fully grasp the concept of a childhood friend evolving into a romantic interest, while another groaned and muttered, "Right, that kind of relationship."
And so, Noel said, "Never mind. Just don't show her anything private."
Now Rob was even more confused. "You're not going to go on a rant about security issues, and the usual paranoia crap? You usually do, right about now."
"Why?" Noel sighed, "It's not like anyone listens to me anymore. Bob, Elmo, that thing Terra brought in…it feels like nobody takes my opinions seriously."
Rob shrugged. "Lately, most of your so-called opinions are born out of vindictive paranoia and general lack of faith in humanity. But they're your opinions, and you're welcome to 'em."
There was a low rumble, which they both took to be the opening of the Tower's big fancy doors.
"That must be Yohko. Gotta go!" Rob yelled, running off. After a minute, he run back in and gave Noel a pamphlet. "Oh, and you should read this, in case your powers don't return."
Rob ran out again, leaving Noel with the pamphlet, What To Do When You're Not A Superhero.
Is it stupidity that causes him to make these, genius…or both? Noel thought, reading Section 1: The Mental Phases of Loss.
The sound of some crashing, drawing Noel's attention away from the result of Rob's genre-savvy sillyness. Then his communicator rang. Noel answered it. It was set on the public setting…
"It's not Yohko!" Rob's voice rang out, before the transmission was cut off.
"That can't be good…" Noel muttered. He began to run towards the entrance when the doors at the end of the hall were smashed open…just as Noel was about to open them. The end result was that Noel was knocked back several yards before rolling to a halt at Pantha and Wildebeest's feet. Out of the corner of his eye, he could just dizzily see Gar peeking out from behind a corner.
"What is it?" Pantha asked, helping Noel up.
"I don't…no." Noel trailed off when he saw the pair walking in. He wished he couldn't, but he did.
Madam Rouge of the Brotherhood of Evil.
Jack Djinn, the strangling murderer, Asphyxiation.(Property of Legend Maker)
"You…you're alive?" Noel stammered, horrified. It couldn't be...
(This bit was conceived by Legend Maker)
During the Brotherhood of Evil's assault on teenage heroes worldwide, Savior had been among those captured and frozen before the counterattack. His Shimmer had allowed him to the discussion among the villains what they wanted to do with their captives, and by the time Mas and Menos unfreezed the Titans, he was angry. So angry that when he the first thing he did was set the Brotherhood's base to self-destruct, unaware that the Titans had decided 'what was good for the goose was good for the gander' and had frozen the most of the bad guys who had not already escaped. This meant that because of the base's destruction, the Titans could not bring as many villains with them to arrest. Among those who had been left frozen in the collapsing base was the core Brotherhood…and Jack.
Even though the entire Titans group had been angry at Savior, wanted him kicked off the team, arrested…Savior refused to admit that he was wrong.
Until now.
"No worries, mate," Jack chuckled sadistically, "We ain't mad at what ya did in Paris."
"You're not?" Pantha asked, holding Noel steady. He was shaking something awful.
"Of course not," Rouge shrugged, her accent noticeable but unwritten. "After all, if you hadn't destroyed our base, we'd be frozen- in jail."
"But the chances of anyone surviving were a million to one!" Noel cried out in spite of himself.
"That's how everyone survived," Madam Rouge said, smiling cruelly. "You have our thanks, Savior."
"Everyone…?" Noel repeated, horrified. If even half of what Rouge said was true, then supervillains uncaptured at the Brotherhood's base were running loose…
And it was all his fault.
"If you're not here for that," Pantha said, pushing Noel back and stepping forward, "Then why are you here?"
"We heard that he and another were feeling under the weather," Rouge replied, "And even an idiot would not ignore such a perfect opportunity- Beast Boy."
There was a shriek and the pitter-patter of the all-American chicken making a getaway from the corner. Madam Rouge snickered maliciously and gave chase by stretching and curving her body around Pantha and Wildebeest. Wildebeest growled and charged after Rouge, the floor shaking with each stomp.
"Go get her, Baby," Pantha said softly, worried. Wildebeest lost to Rouge once- would he be victorious this time?
A chocking noise pulled her attention back towards the front. To her shock, Noel- by his neck- was being held up at least four feet in the air by- and she had to rub her eyes in the traditional manner- two tendrils of some black material coming out of the stumps where Jack Djinn's hands used to be. She had never known what happened to his hands, but judging from the expression of vengeful glee on the psychopath's face, she now had a pretty good idea.
Collins, is there anyone you haven't PO'd? Pantha thought, and took a grappler's stance. Then, in one smooth motion, she swung up her hands in a chop, cutting through the Grimmer (The name of Jack's energy thread). Both Jack and Noel fell to the floor- Noel gasping as he tried to pull the Grimmer-noose off his neck, and Jack screaming as unfamiliar pain surged through his body on its merry way to his brain. The Australian bellowed a variety of curses that, combined with his accent, were both illegible and unprintable.
"How," gasped Noel as Pantha tore off his noose, "Did you do that? I could never…"
"My claws…" explained Pantha, holding up a hand toward his face. It was glowing ever –so-slightly. "…can cut through anything."
"Goddamn *#&%#!"
Pantha and Noel looked at Asphyxiation, who had gotten over the pain.
"I normally go for the little birdies," Jack hissed, forming a Grimmer-mace in one hand and a Grimmer-scissors in the other. "But I think I can stretch it for an ostrich like you!!"
"Go," Pantha told Noel, "I'll hold him off."
Noel didn't like leaving Pantha alone with someone so dangerous, but he knew if he stayed he would only get in the way. He took off.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Down in the main entrance, Rob lay against the wall, his body covered with signs that someone had tried to kill him. And 'someone' would have succeeded if it wasn't for him activating his Gauntlet in time to block the most fatal blows.
"Ohhh, my head…" Rob groaned, getting up. "What happened…?" The last thing he remembered were seeing a pair of zombies…
The crashes and screams echoing from elsewhere in the tower lifted the haze and snapped him to the crisis at hand.
"Oh crap! Villains in the tower!" Gauntlet yelled, and charged off.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Meanwhile, Gar was not having a good day. Despite the lead he had on the exotic assassin, Madam Rouge caught up with the de-greened Titan, and was now taking her sweet time in destroying him. With him in one hand, Rouge swung him around like weight on a flail, banging him against the wall. This had the double-effect of churning his stomach and leaving his body bloody and bruised.
"Oh, come now," Rouge said unsympathetically, holding Gar up to her face from upside down. (He was upside –down when she held him up to her, I mean) "Don't tell me that is all you can take as a powerless human. Or are you that pathetic?"
For an answer, Gar took a swing at her. While the punch connected, Rouge's elastic body absorbed most of the boy.
"You are that pathetic." Rouge decided, and flung Gar down, where he bounced down the hall a bit.
"This has been fun, but now I think we should end this- for good," Rouge remarked, and pulled out a dagger. It was dripping with something that went hiss as it hit the ground. "I couldn't find any samples of Sakutia, but this scorpion venom should do the trick."
Before Rouge could act on her intended murder, something rammed into her from behind. The dagger went flying from her hand and into a conveniently uncovered vent.
"Wildebeest!" Gar cried at the appearance of his savior. (No, not that one! This one is MUCH nicer!)
"You again…" Rouge sneered, getting back up. "I suppose you forgot what happened last time!"
Rouge flung an elongated punch at Wildebeest, sending him back a step. But before she could retract her arm in time, Wildebeest grabbed it, and tossed her overhead. Rouge easily adjusted herself in mid-air and landed on her feet.
"Go!" Wildebeest ordered, and as Gar fled, he cracked his knuckles. No, he had not forgotten.
That's why he would not lose.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Pantha vs Asphyxiation
Djinn used the Grimmer as a base to launch a flying kick at Pantha, but the heroine caught him by the feet. No worries for Jack, though, with the Grimmer still in the floor, he flipped himself over to slam Patha behind him.
"Gotcha now, big bird!" Jack crowed, sending a Grimmer-blade at Pantha. Luckily, Pantha was able to get her bearings in time to slash at the Grimmer again, sending jolts of pain directly into Jack's screwed-up head. With his attention occupied by the horrible sensation doing the tango on his brain, Pantha rushed up and delivered a mighty punch directly in his face. Unlike Madam Rouge, Djinn had no elasticity to absorb the blow with, and was sent flying.
"#&%(#!" Jack screamed, "This ain't fair! Birdies aren't supposed to be this hard to kill!"
"As you said before, senor," Pantha retorted mockingly, flexing her claws. "I am an ostrich."
While this wasn't the most snappy taunt in the Never Ending Battle Between Good and Evil, it had the effect Pantha wanted, which was to throw Jack's earlier words back at him, and get him good and riled up.
"Shut up!" Bellowed Jack. This whole wretched business was becoming too much of a pain for him. When he had heard that Savior, who had 'stolen his talent' (See Legend Maker's Black and White), was de-powered, he assumed his revenge would be simple- go in, kill the brat, and laugh afterwards at the bar. And while he expected one or two Titans to get in the way, he assumed that they would be easy to handle. But he had never expected to meet anyone who could cut through his talent before! That just wasn't fair!
Growling, Jack saw inspiration from above. Sending his Grimmer into the ceiling, he brought it down on top of Pantha!
"Ack!" Pantha exclaimed as the tile, plaster and metal rained on her. From under her inopportune burial she heard some muffled, gleefully sadistic laughter- Jack's- and realized that she was in more trouble than she thought. With razor-sharp reflexes befitting a cat, she acted.
Jack, meanwhile, jabbed the pile with multiple Grimmer-spears- then stopped. He couldn't hear any sign of a cat yowling. With a confused grunt, he shoveled the debris away. Under it he realized why he could not hear Pantha's expected cries of pain- she wasn't there. Instead, there was a hole in the floor, big enough for a person to fit through.
"Ah, crikey." Jack grumbled, a bit disappointed. Ah well. It didn't matter. Now to find Savior…
"Who are you?"
Jack jolted as he saw the…thing, like a shadow walking upright with twin-moon eyes appearing out of nowhere. His nerves already shot due to the repeated slashing of his Grimmer, Jack speared the newcomer several times, knocking it over. With his heart pounding from the encounter, Jack took off in search of Savior.
Minutes after Jack left, Black Odd sat up, and rubbed where Jack had stabbed him. There were no wounds.
"Why did he do that?" Black Odd asked Silkie. Silkie gurgled in response.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Meanwhile, Noel was encountering some difficulty. After fleeing the Pantha-Asphyxiation match, he tried to hail the other Titans on his communicator, only to find that the batteries had run out. He then remembered that he kept some spares in his room, as well as a few spare weapons- including a taser. He would especially need that against Jack's whose Grimmer could conduct electricity. However, this path was set with an obstacle of his own design. In his paranoia and distrust, Noel had locked his room with a TITANTIUM lock, and the only way to open it was with a key, password, handprint and voiceprint. While the first two were easy enough to deal with, he found that the last were only passable as Savior.
HANDPRINT NOT A MATCH. The computerized lock told Noel.
"What!? Are you kidding me!?" Noel exclaimed in shock. He realized that because he had spent so much time in his Savior-mode (He could switch between the two), he had never programmed the lock to accept his human form. Who knew that the two forms had separate hand prints?
"Errgh…" Noel moaned, half growling half groaning.
VOICEPRINT NOT A MATCH.
"Do I sound that different as Savior?" Noel asked sardonically.
YES, YOU DO.
Noel slammed his fist against the wall in sad frustration. I've got to get to Ops and call the others!
Noel heard some crashing, which he took to be his cue to leave. A few minutes later, Gauntlet charged down the hall.
"I thought I heard something!" the goofball cried out, his mind in that rare state of seriousness. And with that, he rushed off- in the opposite direction Noel went.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
In the main room, Elmo was making gamer history. With his prehensile toes, the monkey was operating both player 1 and player 2 by using the second controller with his feet.
However, this new form of double-play was interrupted by the arrival of Gar.
"Ook?" Elmo asked, pausing the game.
"Elmo! The Tower…! Bad guys…! Attack…!" was Gar could say as he tried to talk and gasp for breath. He really wished he hadn't left his communicator in the fridge.
After taking a minute to get his wits back, Gar ran over to the computer. He had to contact the other Titans!
However, before he could push the 'call' button, the knife fell from an overhead vent and landed on the keyboard. The venom seeped into the circuitry, shorting the system out.
"NOOO!" Gar wailed in despair. Then a thought occurred to him. "How did that happen, anyway? The knife went down a vent two floors below."
"Ook." Elmo shrugged.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Yohko entered Titans Tower with some trepidation- the big doors had been torn off, and there was a familiar imprint of a body in a wall. Not to mention some shredded crates.
I wonder if they're under attack, Yohko thought, That happens to superheroes, sometimes.
As Yohko navigated the halls, she cautiously called out, "Hello? Rob-Kun?" No answer, but she could distinctly hear crashes somewhere within the Tower.
Then Pantha fell down from the ceiling.
"KYAAA!" Yohko shrieked. After getting over shock, she asked, "Are you all right?"
Pantha grunted, and stood up. She rubbed her head.
"I'm fine…just had a bad fall." The cat-woman replied. Another crash caught her attention. "Gotta go!"
Pantha took off, with Yohko running after her.
"Matte! What's going on?!" Yohko hollered.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Jack was not having fun. While Madam Rouge had the excuse of being preoccupied by Wildebeest, Jack no explanation for being unable to kill Savior beyond "I got lost in the Tower."
He always assumed that Titans Tower's floor plan had been a basic one, but from all the twists and turns he spent the last five minutes taking, he wondered if the architect had one too many while drawing up the schematics.
What he didn't know was that while Titans Tower did at one point have a normal layout, the constant rushes of magic, caused by Raven's powers going amuck, Mother Mae-Eye invasion, Trigon's coming, and the Lord of the Night's ceremony among others, the space within Titans Tower had twisted, bent, and warped to the point that any map of the current floor plan would make M.C Escher need a go lie-down.
One might think it strange, but anyone familiar with the houses and homes of the magical would just shrug and break out the headache medicine.
Jack, of course, was not familiar with the houses and homes of the magic, and had no headache medicine, so there was nothing that could dissuade his aggravation- until he found a door marked 'RAVEN'.
"Huh?" Jack mused, and poked his head in through the miraculously unlocked. In the room he could see dark masks, statues of little birds, a tiki idol…there was definitely an gothic-occult theme here.
Jack had never graduated at the top of his class, but he was smart enough to realize that this must be Raven's room. And so, with sick laugh, he scurried into the closet. To hell with this crazy chase, he would let Savior come to him!
"You'll be sorry…" The tiki whispered.
A minute passed.
"JOIN US." A dark voice growled from within the closet.
"AAAUUUUGGHH!!" Jack screamed, and fled from the room with such speed that he knocked the door of its hinges.
"THEY NEVER WANT TO JOIN." The gargoyle painting sighed.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
In the main room, Gar was royally freaking out. Due to the unannounced arrival of Rouge's poisoned knife and its impact on the keyboard, the Titans main computer was out of commission. "What am I gonna do, Elmo!" Gar shrieked. "How're we gonna call the other Titans?! Madam Rouge and Jack could be up here any minute!"
Elmo raised an eyebrow. What was all this 'we' stuff? He didn't have a pair of villains out to get him. Still, Gar's frantic babbling was getting on his nerves, and more importantly, distracting him from getting the high score. So, he did what any intelligent simian would do and pointed out the obvious: the phone that was obviously sitting on the kitchen counter, that is.
"Dude, that's brilliant!" Gar cried, relieved. He would just call Cy on his public line!
However, before he could get within five steps, a stretched-out arm snatched the phone.
"Oh, did you think you could call for help?" Madam Rouge asked sarcastically, "I'm sorry, but you're call has been disconnected. You'll have to try again," Rouge smiled venomously, "That is, if you can."
Gar gulped. "Um, weren't you fighting Wildebeest?"
Rouge shrugged. "He could not defeat me before- what made you think he could now?"
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
"Wildebeest!" Pantha cried in alarm.
"What happened?" Yohko asked, worried.
Wildebeest could not answer either query, as his head was stuck in the wall. It was a very demeaning situation.
The two girls quickly pulled the animalistic Titan out from his precarious predicament. As Wildebeest shook bits of plaster, Pantha asked, "What happened to Madam Rouge? Where's Beast Boy?!"
Wildebeest pointed. Getting up, he ran off, Pantha close behind.
"This place isn't safe!" the catwoman yelled to Yohko, "Get out of here!"
Yohko frowned. As much as she wished, she wasn't just some J-pop girl. She was a student- by birthright, if anything else- of Kami No Bacchi, the Punishment of the Gods. And shewasn't leaving.
"Not without Rob-kun." She said firmly, and ran off in a different direction.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Jack Djinn had run a collective two miles before calming down. At the moment, his brain, twisted though it is, was busy telling the rest of his body that the little encounter with the gargoyle painting in Raven's closet didn't happen. He just got bored with waiting for Savior and went back to look for him, that's all.
Yeah, that was it.
Just as Jack's heart rate slowed to a reasonable level, he resumed his sick smile.
Then a piece of the wall fell on him.
CRASH!
"Doors take too long!" Gauntlet announced, not noticing Jack under the rubble as he ran off, on his hectic search for action. Minutes later, Jack emerged.
"I hate this place!" He screamed at the world in generally, and ran after Gauntlet. He would have caught up with him too, except he ran into a familiar face.
"Hello." Black Odd greeted cautiously. He remembered that Jack was the one who attacked him.
Jack blanched at the sight of the creature. "Didn't I kill you earlier!?" He screamed, now hysterical.
"No." Black Odd replied. After all, if Jack had killed him, he would be dead. And if he was dead, he wouldn't be able to walk and talk. And since he could move about, he wasn't dead. Which meant that Jack didn't kill him.
Before he could explain this, Jack loped his head off with the Grimmer.
"Well, I did now!" Jack screamed, and ran off. After he left, something strange happened. Black Odd's head, which rolled away, disintegrated. Black Odd then sat up and rubbed his head.
"Ow." He said to Silkie, who crawled up beside him.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Up in the main room, Madam Rouge was about to finish Gar off when salvation came in the form of a monkey's magic. While Rouge's attention was diverted to holding the poisoned knife over Gar's neck, Elmo traced some runes into the floor with his spit.
"Any last words?" Rouge asked sadistically as Gar struggled to get free- the villain had her right arm wrapped around his body. In her left hand was the knife.
Gar's response was decidedly unbecoming for a young hero.
"Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Rouge asked, raising an eyebrow. She stretched her left hand up so that the knife's handle was touching the ceiling. Just before she could bring it down though, a fireball struck her in the back. In her pain, she loosened her grip on Gar, who took that moment to pull himself out of danger. He made a dive for the phone, but the knife fell onto the phone, damaging it.
"Ahh! No!" Gar cried in alarm, "What am I, cursed!?"
"Ook!"
Gar took that for, 'What are you, stupid? Run, you fool!' grabbed Elmo and cut out. Running down the hall, he heard the faint sounds of Madam Rouge getting ready to continue the chase. Thinking quickly, he dove into a nearby closet.
"Okay, I've got to think…" Gar panted, clutching Elmo to his tummy. "Madam Rouge is out there, I don't have my communicator, phone and computer's offline, so I can't call the others-" Gar suddenly saw a bright spot in this horrible mess. "Dude, that's it! When Cyborg's wrist-thingy picks up that the Tower's computer is out, he'll send someone back! All I have to do is hold out till then!"
"Ook." This was monkey for, 'If you can last that long, now stop squeezing.'
There was a knock on the door. Both apes froze.
"I know you are in there," Rouge's seductively sinister voice wafted in through the keyhole, "Come out and face me."
Gar and Elmo exchanged looks. Elmo's said, "Any bright ideas, blondie?" while Gar's said, "Oh no! Now what do I do!?"
Then Gar noticed, on the floor, a bucket of paint. Green paint.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Rouge tapped her foot impatiently. While she was certainly strong enough to rip the closet door off its hinges on her own, she waited for the sole purpose of intimidating Beast Boy. There was a dark charm to forcing the little brat out through fear. And more importantly, she waited because allowing him to come out freely would be an act of surrender- his admission of defeat, and willingness to accept his fate.
She heard something that sounded like soft splash.
"You took too long, Rouge!" Beast Boy yelled from within the closet, "My powers are back now, so catch me if you can!"
The door cracked open, and a green blur- that Rouge could just barely make out as a monkey- zipped out and away. She raised an eyebrow at the green footprints it left behind. Then, she ripped the closet door open and looked down at the terrified blond.
"Next time, you might want to let the paint dry out first." She told him.
Gar gulped. "Oops." He said in a tiny voice.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Prof. Chang was very happy. So far, the bids for his AMP Ray had reached up to 5.4 million dollars.
And they were still going! Everyone wanted his Ray! Not just to use against heroes, but against rival villains as well. Competition was tough in the world of villainy. And there was no such thing as 'honor among thieves' regardless of what a few romantics thought. It was every man for himself.
"?" Chang jabbered excitedly, proving that an auctioneer should not have a Chinese accent. "?"
"Chang," One villain interrupted, "If you don't stop that, we will hunt you down and have you shot."
Spoilsport. "Oh, all right," Chang sighed, "In any case, do we have any other bids?"
Before any of the villains could respond, the connection broke.
"No!" Chang cried, and began to pound at his computer console. "Nonono! Not now! What happened!"
Chang quickly inspected the computer's wires, checking all the connections. So far, nothing seemed unhooked…
Then he saw the power cord…unplugged.
"All right," Chang grumbled angrily, "Who is the doofus that tripped over the power cord?"
"I did."
Chang froze. He knew that voice…
Turning around confirmed his fears. Robin.
"I'm interested in a de-powering ray," Robin said firmly, "I get discounts for being a frequent customer, right?"
Chang gulped.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Yohko, unstopped and unguided, ran throughout the halls of Titans Tower, tirelessly and carelessly looking for her true lo- I mean, her best friend in the whole wide world.
"Rob-kun! Where are you?" She called out, cutting around a corner. "Can you hear me?" What's with this building? It feels so much bigger on the inside than it did on the outside!
From the shadows, Jack Djinn felt his eyes tear up in happiness, though his machismo stopped him from actually crying. At last! A normal girl! A sweet little birdy he could kill with ease! After fighting that ostrich and seeing that gargoyle- not to mention that thing that wouldn't die- A quick murder would be just the thing to release some of the stress he had developed while in the Tower.
"Hey there, little birdy…" He said cruelly, preparing a Grimmer-noose.
Yohko turned around, saw Jack's grinning form come out from the dark, and did as expected.
"Kyaaaa! Hentai!" She shrieked, and swung her arm.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Outside Titans Tower, a passing fishing boat saw the Tower shake for brief, but all-encompassing moment. The fishermen went back to their lines, chalking it up to just another Titan thing.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
In Cyborg's workshop, Noel finally allowed himself a moment's pause. After what felt like hours of running around the Tower, (Was it him, or was this place getting bigger than it should be?) he could finally get a hold of something to fight with. The armory was off-limits, due to the same security problems he had with his room, but here he could find something useful. A wrench or welding torch in the right hands could be pretty good in a fight. While he was hoping for something he could use to call for help, like a spare communicator or one that was being worked on, he wasn't going to be picky at this point. Especially with all of the shaking and screaming felt around the Tower…
CRASH!
Noel jumped and whirled around. To his shock, he found Jack Djinn's prone form lying in the rubble from what used to be a portion of the wall. This shock was such that even though his mind was screaming at him, he did not pick up the very large wrench and brain Jack with it. Instead, he just stood there, staring at the murderous Australian as the psychopath wobbly stood up.
"…Damn it… Not fair… Little birdies shouldn't fight back…" Jack groaned, steadying himself with a Grimmer-crutch.
Then their eyes met.
In an instant, Jack had Noel suspended several feet in the air, held up by an Grimmer-spear. The spear, by a million to one chance, missed Noel's actual body and was simply holding the de-powered youth up by his shirt.
"…Eerrrgghhh…" Noel groaned, clutching his side.
…Though it wasn't a clean miss. It wasn't a deep cut, but it hurt nonetheless.
Jack was elated. After so much crazyness, he would finally do what he came for; the murder of Savior. Then he would get as far away from this looney bin and back to relative sanity of Arkham. After a moment's thought, he formed a Grimmer-sword with his other hand and took aim.
"Say good-bye, faker…" Jack hissed venomously. But before he could put his vile intent into action, a voice rang out.
"Not so fast!"
Jack and Noel looked to the door…as Gauntlet came crashing in through the other wall.
"No-" Noel held his breath. "-you can't kill him now, not when he's acting nice for a change!" Gauntlet declared.
"Yeah?" Jack asked sarcastically, giving Rob the Evil Eye. "And how're you gonna stop me?"
Gauntlet grinned. "With…this!"
Gauntlet held out a sweater. And not just any sweater. Noel recognized it from one Christmas, as a gift for Beast Boy, from Elasti-Girl of the Doom Patrol. She had knitted it herself, undoubtedly as a form of motherly love. Beast Boy was touched- until he tried it on. He had only worm it long enough to take a picture to send back, and then threw it into his closet, never to be seen again. He had claimed it was too itchy, among other assumed faults.
But, why the hell does he think it'll help!? Noel thought desperately.
Grinning wildly, Gauntlet formed a yellow slingshot and loaded the balled-up sweater.
"Take this!" Gauntlet yelled, and fired his projectile. It sailed magnificently through the air…until Jack slashed it with his Grimmer.
Then…
"AAAAAUUUUUGGGHHHH!!!" Jack screamed, falling to the ground and convulsing wildly.
"Hey, it worked!" Gauntlet laughed, catching Noel with his artifact.
Noel, however, had no immediate comment. He just stared at Jack until he remembered what else was wrong with the sweater- it had a static cling like no other.
"You beat Jack Djinn with static electricity." Noel said, more to himself than Rob.
Rob gave him a 'Nice-Guy Pose'(Property: Kishimoto) "That's right!"
…And after all the trouble I go through nailing him with the subway's rails, Noel thought, There's something unfair about that.
But he wasn't going to argue. Not this time. Logic was taking a holiday this afternoon, it seemed.
TT-TT-TT-TT-TT-TT
Meanwhile, the end was also approaching for Gar- Madam Rouge was holding him high in the air. She planned on slamming him into the ground so fast and hard that the impact would kill the ex-shapeshifter instantly, leaving him in a bloody, broken heap.
"You put up a commendable resistance," Rouge congratulated as Gar struggled, "But all for naught. Now I end this!"
"Why don't I end it!?"
That was all the warning Rouge got before Pantha delivered a powerful uppercut, knocking her back into the main room. Now free from Rouge's grip, Gar fell- into Wildebeest's arms.
"Dude…" Gar groaned, "What kept you?"
Wildebeest snorted. Not his fault this Tower had so many blasted halls.
In front of the TV, Rouge righted herself.
"You stupid brat!" She snarled at the charging Pantha, "Do you really think you can win against me!?"
"I'll take that chance." Pantha replied, preparing her claws.
"You won't have to."
Rouge gasped and whirled around, just in time to see Raven appear from a dark portal on the TV screen.
"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"
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After Raven disposed of Madam Rouge, she went to collect Jack and explained why she came back to the Tower, despite no one sending out a distress call.
(As it turned out, Gauntlet was unable to as his communicator had been broken by Rouge and Jack's forced entry.)
Just as the rest of the Titans were on the verge of busting the HIVE 5, Cyborg detected an anomaly with the main room's computer, caused by the poison from the knife. When no one answered his hails, he sent Raven over to investigate. She had arrived just in time.
Not too long after that, Robin returned, with Prof. Chang's AMP Ray. He learned that while there was no way to reverse the de-mutations, the ray would wear off after a while. So, for a few minutes, it seemed like a happy ending…
Then Bob returned, having come in 3rd at the tournament. He was most displeased with the realization that his monkey had been painted green. Punishment was dealt.
"But it was Beast Boy who did it!" Raven groaned, scrubbing Elmo in a tub of soapy water.
"But I put you in charge of monkey handling," Bob said firmly, pouring himself a cup of tea. "You should not neglect your duties, apprentice."
Raven would have retorted, but a screech distracted her.
"If you wouldn't stop fidgeting, Elmo," She growled, "I wouldn't have gotten soap in your eye."
A few minutes passed as Bob looked up at the sky. All three of them were on Titans Tower's roof.
"So," Bob said at last, "That twisty woman said that all the baddies you couldn't capture escaped?"
"That's right," Raven nodded, "I wonder if…" She trailed off, frowning.
"Somethin' on your mind?" Bob asked, raising an eyebrow.
"When we were fighting against the Brotherhood of Evil in Paris," Raven said, looking at Bob. "Certain foes we've faced before…the Master of Games, Malchior, Mother Mae-Eye… they were there."
"That's interesting," Bob remarked, "I understood that those three were sealed away."
"That's what worries me," Raven explained, "For those three to appear, the Brain must have had some magical help… I wonder if that same help allowed the Brotherhood to escape… What I sensed felt…" Now she was talking to herself. "So…familiar."
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In an underground bunker, a gorilla played chess against a brain in a jar.
Monsieur Mallah, genetically advanced ape, moved his queen forward. "It is a pity about Madam Rouge. Should we go bail her out?"
The Brain, an evil mind who was nothing but, said in his synthesized voice, "…NO. WHEN WE REQUIRE HER SERVICES AGAIN, WE WILL COLLECT HER. IN THE MEANTIME, WE MUST REMAIN OUT OF SIGHT. PAWN TO QUEEN."
Mallah moved the pieces as instructed, then turned to the cloaked figure sitting in a chair against the south wall of the room.
"Is there anything we can provide you with?" He asked, "Is your payment satisfactory?"
The cloaked one, clad in a bloody red, shook his head, as best Mallah could tell. These ultra-mysterious types were hard to figure out.
"No," the hooded one replied, in a voice that seemed both masculine and feminine. "Your group has done more than enough for me. If there is anything else I can do…"
"THAT WILL NOT BE NESSESARY," the Brain replied, "WE WILL NO LONGER BE NEEDING YOUR HELP AT THIS TIME. IF THE DAY COMES WHEN WE DO, YOU WILL BE CONTACTED."
"In that case…" the hooded one stood up and sank into the shadows. "Farewell."
Mallah stared at the space where the hooded one used to be. "What a strange fellow," He said at last, turning back to the board. "I still don't know what he wanted."
"HE JOINED OUR ORGANIZATION AS A SECRET PARTNER," the Brain explained, "SO THAT HE COULD DISCOVER WHICH WAS STRONGER, GOOD OR EVIL."
Mallah rubbed his chin. "And what was his conclusion?"
"STALEMATE."
"What?"
"HE TOLD ME THAT NEITHER FORCE COULD ACCHIEVE DOMINANCE OVER THE OTHER," Brain said, "THAT WAS HIS FINDINGS."
Mallah moved a rook. "How kind of him, when you take into account our defeat…"
"PUT THAT OUT OF YOUR MIND, MALLAH. I AM NO LONGER INTERESTED IN GOOD VERSUS EVIL. IT IS TIME WE FOCUSED ON OUR PERSONAL PROBLEMS."
Mallah gasped. "You mean…?"
"YES. I THINK IT IS TIME I TOOK INTEREST IN MY REJUVINATION. LET US SEE WHAT ADVANCES HAVE BEEN MADE IN THE FIELD OF CLONING…"
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A/N: Another one down. I wrote this chapter to explain why villains believe to have 'died' in Legend Maker's canon.
In other news, a reviewer questioned me on casting Tim Drake as Robin when it should be Dick Grayson. Well…go talk to Legend Maker. That's who made the decision, most likely aligning the show Teen Titans with the rest of the DCAU. Sorry, it's out of my hands.
Pantha's origins are congruent with the comics, though there are some changes. There, the Wildebeest Society was being controlled by Jericho, who had gone insane. Because that hasn't happened yet in show or Legendsverse, they're just another underground force. Oh, and Wildebeest's 'Baby' form first appeared in Teen Titans Go! #16, so it is canon.
The painting that scared Jack Djinn appeared in Legend Maker's fic, Adeste Fideles, go read it!
Angel's name was thought up by Chaltab in the fic Maternal Instincts. Go read it, please!
Mu is the a lost continent, believed to have existed in the Pacific Ocean. Here, it is an underwater civilization like similar to Atlantis. I figured it would be funny if XL, who can survive underwater, would be like an anti-Aqualad in that regard. As far as I know, no one else came up with the name for XL.
See you next time, please review!