I do NOT own Teen Titans
Time: Immediately following the last chapter.
The Morning Continues,... Practice,... The Answer,... Gaining the Shape,... The Battle,...
"What was that animal?" Raven immediately asked, once they'd emerged from the mirror and were back in her room. She reached out and held him still. Focusing, she worked on healing his broken rib and bruised shoulder.
"Animal?" The shape shifter feigned innocence. He rubbed his shoulder. "Thanks." He added, beaming a smile at her.
"Don't pretend you don't know which one I'm talking about." She stated impassively, finding herself staring over his shoulder instead of meeting his eyes. They were way too close to his lips, and she found herself looking at them, recalling that ... experiment. That's what I will call it. She decided. An experiment. Nothing more, nothing less. She gulped, recalling what the experiment had been. "Well?" She asked, blushing with her facade of emotionlessness severely cracked.
Beast Boy sighed. "It's a Sarcosuchus." He replied. "A dinosaur that, like most dinosaurs, died off a long time ago. I only got the shape recently. It's basically just a giant crocodile."
"Why don't you use it? You could beat Cyborg easily with that." The violet-haired girl's gaze finally met his eyes. Her cheeks were still bright red.
"If I need to I will, but I would rather not for now. And I would prefer you not mention it to anyone." His voice held a begging tone that he hated. In his mind he saw visions of Jinx sending curse after curse at him. He shuddered.
Raven frowned. "Why?"
"It's a secret." He insisted.
"You used it there." The violet-haired girl pointed out.
"I know, and it was stupid of me. I didn't need the shape to beat her, though it made it a lot easier."
"I guess you can beat Rage after all." She admitted, backing off. "Sorry for doubting you."
"I admit I would've too in your place. No hard feelings over that." He smiled. "And if I need to I will use that form, I just don't want to reveal it yet."
"Okay." She replied apathetically, as if it didn't matter. He smiled at the response, and her stomach got all fluttery. She knew her face was a bright red. Desperately, she searched for something to say, and realized she'd somehow forgotten it would soon be the end of the world. "I need to talk to the team about Trigon." She said impassively.
"Yeah. They're probably finished breakfast by now." He replied, smile fading. "Should just call a general meeting."
She nodded, heart still racing.
To their surprise, Robin took the news in stride. He didn't get the usual wild look in his eyes at Slade's name, nor did he obsessively dwell on the villain. Instead he simply said they would get in one last practice session, and then work on fortifications. He insisted it would take that long for him to plan the defenses, so they might as well spar in the meantime.
On the obstacle course Beast Boy naturally paired with Cyborg. To his surprise Raven walked over.
"Spar with me?" She asked, wanting to see how well he did against her rather than one of the emoticlones.
"Hrm." He looked at her, wondering if he could get her to repeat the bet. Somehow he doubted it.
"No." She replied blankly, seeing the look.
The shape shifter sighed, trying to think of a way to convince her.
"No." She insisted, blushing. She took a quick glance at Cyborg, and saw him staring at her with obvious curiosity. She turned and walked away, cheeks red.
The shape shifter tried to wipe the smile off his face.
"What was that about?" Cyborg asked
"Hrm. Ready?" Beast Boy asked, ignoring the question, a slight smile on his face.
"Yeah." The cybernetic teen replied with a shrug, still looking puzzled.
Beast Boy shifted into a cheetah, and rested his paw against a five pound stone. Twisting around, he awkwardly sent it flying. While he couldn't put his whole body into it like a human could, the large cat was much faster and stronger. It hurled towards his foe at a hundred and twenty miles per hour, covering the distance in around one sixth of a second; it shattered against his opponent's titanium skin. He'd worked the move so it took him a step closer to the cybernetic teen.
Another stone hurled forth, and his foe tried to avoid it. With the Maximum-7 chip working, he did so with ease. But in the process his couldn't aim his cannon. Hit or missed, it worked as the shape shifter had hoped. A hit would throw the teen's aim off with the force of the impact; a miss meant he didn't have time to aim. Each new stone closed the distance, giving his foe less time to react. In the meantime, the process of throwing the stones had him whirling around in painful looking contortions that would have made him a difficult target even to an undistracted Cyborg.
Twelve feet from his target, he leapt, and immediately transformed into a Python. Before his foe could hope to react, he was wrapped around him. Turning into a Torkop, he aimed three of his tentacles at the boy's head. The match was over.
They repeated it five times. The shape shifter won all five of the matches.
"I definitely need a new strategy." The cybernetic teen admitted. "Guess I've gotten too use to it being like shooting fish in a barrel." He grinned.
"My poor spine." Groaned Beast Boy, who was stretching, and trying to work out the kinks.
"You know, there's a new game out." Cyborg hesitantly spoke.
The shape shifter looked up at him, recalling it'd been a long long time since the two of them had played video games. "What is it?" He asked.
"It's a new version of Dungeon and Dragons. The graphic are out of this world."
Beast Boy's eyes slowly blinked. "Stupid stupid stupid stupid..." He muttered to himself, furious at not thinking of the obvious before.
"Hrm." Cyborg slowly backed off.
"How about we play sometime?" The shape shifter suggested. "Just thought of something. Gotta go." He shifted into his cheetah form, and raced off. In seconds he was inside the tower, sitting down at the main computer system. Ask anyone if unicorns are real, and what answer will you get? He silently asked himself. No, of course. Ask anyone if dragons exist, and what answer will you get? He frowned, punching at the keys. No, of course. He answered his own question. Only dragons do exist. No clue if unicorns do, but there's definitely one dragon around. Not all creature are real. Then what was Malchior? He tapped at more keys. Dragons aren't real? There's no record of them outside of mythology. No fossils of them have ever been dug up, and if they'd existed there would've been. They would've been a dominant predator. That returned him to Malchior, he was a creature that couldn't be real.
He sat back, still thinking. He wasn't sure if that was the answer to the riddle, but it was the only thing he could think of.
The Titans tried to keep track of the villains they knew about, and Malchior, being a dragon, was pretty easy to track. He was in Spark City, just a few hundred miles away. The screen in front of the Titan even gave his general location in that city. The shape shifter left the tower, and took to the air. Looking back, he thought of the coming battle, but according to the visions that wouldn't be until it started to get dark. He had plenty of time, and they didn't need his help with the fortifications. Actually, given his ineptitude with mechanical stuff, it would be better if he wasn't there. He turned towards his goal, and set a reasonable pace. Dropping from exhaustion halfway there just wouldn't do.
Three hours later, only slightly winded, Beast Boy circled above the park that occupied the central section of Spark City. Shifting form, he peered down with the eyes of a Golden Eagle. The dragon was a large creature, and would be the only thing of its size in the park; it would be easy to spot. He was proven right when a blast of fire streaked up from the ground. With the tip of his left wing slightly singed, he aimed for location it'd come from.
"What's the little doggy doing here?" The ancient dragon spoke.
So large. Gulped Beast Boy. "Why do people always call me little doggy?" He asked. "It's not the only animal I can change into."
"Hrm. Would you mind changing into one now? I'm in the mood for a taste of roasted dog." Came the thunderous reply.
"I prefer not to." The shape shifter answered. Just how am I going to fight that? He wondered. It was obviously too late to just try to sneak up on it.
"I guess I'll just have to settle for roasted boy then."
Another blast of fire came at him, forcing him to change into a cheetah and run. Trying to get close as an amoeba, the shape shifter noted, was out since the threat of being roasted made it suicidal. He waited for the next attack, wondering what to do. It came, a continuous stream of fire that seemed to never stop. He ran, and dodged, twisting and turning. Still it singed his fur and left burns. He struggled to his feet. He'd been here for ten seconds, and already he was badly hurt. Not good. He solemnly told himself.
"Amusing." The dragon roared. A thunderous laugh rumbled from its massive throat, and echoed throughout the park.
He stared up at the forty-foot creature. The only animal form he had to match that size was the giant crocodile, but it would be vastly outmatched. The dragon had teeth and claws, along with a tail and the ability to breathe fire. The only thing switching to that form would do would be to make sure that Malchior didn't go hungry for the next few days. Assuming he liked crocodile meat that is.
"Did you come here just to die?" The vast creature asked, peering down at its prey.
"That wasn't my plan. Though it seems like I should've worked on it a bit more." The shape shifter admitted, frantically trying to come up with a strategy. More fire came at him, and he ran once more. The cheetah was out. He was tired, and that form didn't have much endurance. He became a greyhound and raced through the trees, which caught fire and exploded around him. When the onslaught stopped, he rested, panting. He'd taken more burns, and had been hit by several tree fragment. Hopeless? He wondered.
"Hrumph. You didn't give up even when I collapsed a lung and ripped one of your arms off." A dark voice echoed angrily in his mind.
So she is able to speak to me somehow. He mused, staring warily up at the dragon, who was grinning down at him. His breath under control again, he prepared to dodge should he need to.
"Why are you here? You must've known you would die?"
Each word was like an explosion that pounded into his skull. It spoke of infinite power, and absolute assurance. Not real. The shape shifter realized. He wasn't that loud when we fought him at the tower. Telepathy. The answer came to him. Either way it didn't matter. He was still going to end up as a dragon snack. He blinked, and slowly grinned.
His thoughts were interrupted as the dragon, playing, sent more fire at him. He raced through more foliage, hoping for a chance to put his plan in action. He needed to get close, and be still in one piece. A fiery wind beat down upon him. To track him, Malchior had taken to the air. He ran, and eventually the fiery onslaught ceased. He fell to the ground, covered in burns.
"Little doggy finished playing?" The voice rumbled.
He struggled to his feet just in time, as the place he'd been lying in was hit by a blast of the dragon's breath. The shape shifter struggled to stay upright, but fell back down.
"Guess so." The dragon mused in its booming voice. It stepped over its fallen play toy and grinned. Reaching down, he pinned the Titan with one of its hands. "I'll just cook you a bit more before I have my midday snack." It mused, and licking its lips, the immense creature lowered its head.
Beast Boy let his hand rest briefly on the dragon's. It was all he needed. The transformation came instantaneously. One second he was the broken form of a human boy, the next he was a twelve-foot dragon that was exhaling its fiery breath up at its foe. Not caring to match the larger dragon blow for blow, he stuck carefully, aiming for the eyes. When the outpouring of fire stopped, he saw the attack had worked; his opponent could no longer see.
Malchior, stunned, tried to leap back. The shape shifter was faster. He became the giant forty-foot crocodile, and lunged with the speed its species was known for. His teeth caught the evil dragon's wing, and he bite down, crushing it. He let go, and swung with his tail. It sent his foe flying. Moving, he attached once again, badly hurting the other wing. Despite the shape shifter's vicious attacks, the blind dragon struck back, raining fire across his already scorched flesh.
Beast Boy moved away from his foe. He had what he'd come for, and there was no time to finish the fight; to defeat Malchior, and call someone to drag the villain off to prison. He had to get back to the tower. Shifting into the form of a White-throated Needletail, he tried to take to the air. It was a miserable attempt; birds needed feathers to fly, and his had been all burned off, along with a good chunk of skin. He collapsed back to the ground. Not good. He told himself. By his estimate it must be near twelve noon.
His body automatically transformed to a simpler shape, and he didn't try to stop it. He needed to think, and could do that just as well as a worm as he could as a human. In the meantime some of the damage would heal. Feeling disgust, he allowed the invertebrate to feast on the dirt around it, needing the energy to mend some of the damage. All the while he was aware of the time passing; the danger Raven and his friends were in. Then there was Malchior who, with his arcane knowledge, would swiftly heal his own wounds. He couldn't afford to stick around for long.
An hour later he squirmed out of the dirt, and took the form of a greyhound. He moved through the park at a moderate pace, unable to push himself any faster. The idea of flying in the form of a dragon came to him, but he doubted he had the stamina. Knowing the general layout of the city from the map that had shown Malchior's location, he found a bus terminal. People steered clear of the badly burnt dog that trudged through the city. He figured a few would've called an animal shelter, but he didn't stick around to find out for sure. Seeing the next bus wouldn't depart for another hour he returned to the form of a worm, trying to heal more of the damage. He ate more dirt.
"Has anyone seen Beast Boy?" Robin asked.
"Not since practice this morning." Cyborg answered, not looking up from the device he was working on. "He just jumped up and rushed off. Was weird."
"Haven't seen him since then either." Raven intoned, forcing herself to concentrate. She was building a wall, using her dark magic to lift massive blocks of stone.
"Hrm." Robin sighed. "How much time you figure we have left?"
Raven looked at the sky, comparing it to her visions. "Not much." The violet-haired girl replied. The sky looked pretty much the same as it had in her visions. If this was the night, the attack could come at any second. Briefly she recalled Beast Boy wasn't in some of the premonitions. Maybe he'll survive this. She mused, wondering where he was. Knowing only something serious could've keep him away, a worried frown tugged at her lips. She pushed the thought one side, and lifted another block of stone. A voice disrupted her concentration, and it slipped to the ground.
The rumble seemed to come from a hundred throats of stone, and echoed over the whole island. It spoke the prophecy.
"The Gem was born of evil's fire,
The Gem shall be his portal,
He comes to claim, he comes to sire,
The end of all things mortal!"
The violet-haired girl shuddered upon hearing those words. "Guess time is up." She intone apathetically. It was as in her visions. Slade led an army of two hundred golems that seemed to burn with fire. Each stood around six foot tall, with black showing through their aura of flames. She guessed that meant the magical creatures were formed from some sort of black stone.
"Slade." Robin yelled. "You're working for Trigon again."
"Not my choice Robin." The psychotic villain moved his mask aside for a second, showing that nothing but bones lay beneath. "It seems he didn't take too kindly to my deciding to take back what was rightfully mine."
They all stared at the gruesome display.
"I have no choice. Either I obey him, or I face a fate much worse than death." Slade spoke again. "Surrender the Gem, and then flee this world is my suggestion."
"That will never happen." Their leader replied.
"Then you'll be turned to stone when he opens the portal."
"How can he do that?" Raven demanded. "The time is past. His chance is gone."
"I wish that were so. But he's not a fool. The alignment of stars needed for the ceremony is not an uncommon one. Should he fail now, there will always be other chances. And should you die before that, he can always sire another Gem."
She gulped, and stepped back. Her birthday had only marked the time when she would possess the power needed to create the portal. It'd had nothing to do with the alignment of the stars. The danger she posed to the whole universe would never end. And even if she died, another would take her place.
"He'll never get his hands on Raven." Robin spoke with confidence. "He'll never escape his prison."
"How I wish that were so. But you forget, he's immortal, and will exist long after you're dust. Or stone. As the case may be." Slade pointed, and the army marched forward.
Her powers had allowed her to create a massive barricade of stone, but the golems pressed forward and it bulged inward. She lifted her hands, and coated the wall with her dark powers, hoping to make it last longer.
The battle began. Starfire took to the air, and cast down starbolt after starbolt. Robin stood fearlessly on the wall, and tossed exploding disc after exploding disc. Cyborg had made a variety of devices, and those he tossed at the burning army. The results were anticlimactic. The golems seemed to be resistant to starbolts. One or two fell, but only after Starfire had rained a massive number of the energy bolts at them. The exploding discs did nothing, not even slowing them down. Cyborg's array of devices were the most interesting, but just as ineffective.
Several tanks of liquid nitrogen exploded amongst the army. The suddenly cold air slowed them, but only for a second. That'd been one of their hopes. That the cold would cancel the fire, and destroy the golems en mass. It was obviously a failure.
Massive pumps drew water from the ocean, and a cloud of steam roiled up above the magical creatures as it poured on them. Through the fog of steam little could be seen, but when it died down the array of fiery soldiers remained before them. It wasn't used again since it blocked their vision, including Starfire's, who was the only one to have killed a single golem yet.
Dividing her attention, Raven tried to cast a spell while still reinforcing the wall. "Gelidas Aqualonia Ego Duco Te Sufflabo." She chanted, and the icy cold of the northern winds lashed down at the fiery army. For a second the flames diminished, and then rose back to their full power as the spell ended.
"Gelides Aqua De Aquilonis Oceanus Te Ego Conurio." The violet-haired girl chanted, and the skies poured forth the icy cold waters of the northern oceans. Steam rose from the army once more; when it cleared, they still stood.
Focusing, she lifted another block of stone, and slammed it down on one of the golems. When she lifted it, the blazing creature stood back up. The violet-haired girl frowned, feeling the pressure against the wall. Reach down with her dark magic, she grabbed two of them, and toss them aside. Briefly it lessened the strain of holding the fortifications, though the thrown soldiers stood back up unharmed. For lack of anything better to do, she repeated the process.
Cyborg fired his cannon time and time again. The ground beneath the golems was tore up, but they still struggled onward, seemingly immune to the ferocious blasts of the weapon.
Robin tried electric discs, and even discs with knockout gas. Nothing was effective.
Starfire's starbolts did take a toll on the golems, but it still took her a full minute of concentrated fire to stop each one.
The battle proceeded, and an hour passed. Behind it all Slade stood watching. He lifted his hand, and fire blasted forth, striking the barricade. It wiped aside Raven's dark magic, and pounded against the stone; it collapsed. "Trigon would be displeased if I lost too many of his warriors on this task." He simply said, implying he wouldn't care if they were all lost.
Raven closed her eyes, and just focused on maintaining a barrier where the wall had fallen. She felt the strain increase, and lost all track of everything else, including how the battle was progressing.
The soil in which the shape shifter rested was moist, implying it had rained recently. That was fortunate since it meant he could replenish the fluid he was losing. Slowly the hour passed, and the gaps in his flesh sealed enough that he was no longer in danger of dehydration. He peered out of the hole he'd made in the dirt, and saw the bus approach. Turning into a mouse, he scampered aboard, and found a safe place to return to his worm form.
More time passed, and he felt the dread inside him grow. Unable to fly, the bus was the best he could do. As it made stop after stop, slowing its process towards his destination, hours passed. To the frantic shape shifter, time seemed to slow.
"Hurry." A dark voice spoke, and he switched back to his human form. He then became a falcon, that had just enough feathers to escape through an open window. Switching to the form a dragon, he heeded the demonic warning. Painfully, his wings grabbed the air. He'd healed some, but not enough. Each beat of the enormous wings was a strain, and the agony of the effort tore at him.
Another hour had passed, and the battle was nearly over. Cyborg's cannon had overheated. Robin had run out of the useless discs. Starfire had taken a grazing blow when Slade had tossed a bolt of fire at her. The girl's arm was badly burned, and she could no longer throw starbolts. Even if she hadn't been injured, weariness would have taken its toll. For the last twenty minutes Raven had stood alone, holding the barrier and waiting for the inevitable; not flinching.
"Time is up." Slade spoke. "He grows impatient." The psychotic killer's blast of magical fire slammed against the barrier, and it cracked. Another finished it.
The violet-haired girl raised her head, and knew which vision it was. The one where she died, though Knowledge had claimed it might be otherwise. She waited for the end, throwing all her effort into creating another barrier. The incoming bolt of fiery magical energy blasted through it, aimed directly at her. Before it struck, something surrounded her. She could feel the fire on the other side as if it were alive, screaming in fury to burn through to her. It faded. Then above her something erupted in rage, and blasted forth fire of its own.
He'd seen the battle from the sky, and the violet-haired girl who'd been standing, holding the fiery army back. Before, she'd given in to her destiny; she'd surrendered to Trigon. That wasn't the person who stood below, watching as death approached her, not flinching as she poured her soul into creating a barrier to protect her friends. His wings closed around her just in time. They burned as the fire embraced them, attempting to turn them to ash. But they held. Sometimes hatred is justified. Sometime rage is right. Sometime anger is just. He spat forth fire that blazed an eye scorching white. Where it passed, the golems exploded. And when it reached Slade the psychotic monster disappeared from sight.
Whatever it was that had surrounded her vanished, along with the rage it had cast forth. Instead arms held her. She knew who it was even before she turned around.
"Too close." The shape shifter smiled wearily. "If you know any fire spells, now would be a good time to use them." His eyes lifted and looked behind her.
She turned back to face the still approaching army. "They're already on fire." She replied.
"I know. Too much." He struggled to find the right words. "Like a car engine. The fire inside burns hot and drives it. But too much heat isn't too good. Add just a little more, and they'll break."
"Oh." She replied. "That explains why Starfire's starbolts worked. Some of that energy was heat." The half demon raised her hands, her violet eyes blazing. "Telam De Inferus Aduro Ego Te Coniuro." She chanted, and fire blazed forth, creating a web between a dozen of the fiery golems. When it touched them, they exploded. She repeated the words again and again. Then she collapsed. The shape shifter collapsed beside her.
End of Chapter.
No idea if there's an actual place called Spark City. In the story it's just a name I thought of.
Malchior, the dragon Raven conjured out of a book.
Why is Beast Boy only twelve foot tall as a dragon versus Malchior's forty feet? Wouldn't want to make the shape too powerful. It does give him an awesome long range attack, but if Malchior can be beat, then so can Beast Boy. Probably more on that shape in the next chapter.
Why wouldn't Raven normally use those type of spells. Fire burns, and she wouldn't normally try to kill anyone. Her own dark magic would also probably feel more natural to her.
Many thanks to those who read and review.