31. Stone Golem part 3
Under a gray, late-afternoon sky, the six Titans sped towards the downtown district of the City. Beast Boy and Starfire formed tiny, green specks in the air during their flight. I was blurring a streak over and around buildings in the East Part of Town to meet with them. Taking a direct path, Cyborg revved the T-Car at full throttle up and over a rise in asphalt, causing the vehicle to go airborne for a split second.
The T-Car came down with a THUMP and a screech of tires.
Raven gripped hard to the Jesus bar, regained her composure, and glared over at Cyborg. "Must you do that?"
Cyborg glared back at her before radioing in to Robin on the communicator. "Robin…what kind of crooks are we dealing with? The usual bank robbing bit?"
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On his R-Cycle, the Boy Wonder veered in and out of late afternoon traffic, making his way towards the scene of chaos.
"Police reports on these two people are hazy," Robin replied into the microphone devices in his helmet. "I've got names and descriptions of a run-in they had with authorities back in Metropolis months ago. Hang on a sec---"
Robin revved his engine and skirted around a semi truck and straight into a construction site. Workers scattered—shouting—as he zoomed through, around concrete pylons, and hit a ramp made out of lumber. The wheels of the R-Cycle screamed in mid air as he gradually vaulted over an aluminum fence and landed barely in front of a limousine on the street beyond before resuming normal momentum.
"……….ahem," he cleared his throat. "As I was saying, the crooks are a man and a woman, both of whom seem to be gifted with destructive powers."
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'…the woman is Rachel Mendez. Age, late twenties. Dark haired. Average height. The loudest of the two, and always equipped with huge custom made machine guns.'
"Which one of you pipsqueaks operates the vault?!" shouted the woman, a bizarre gun wrapped about her wrist and aiming at the hostages lining the floor of the bank. Her eyes were joyfully round in only the way psychotics could afford. When she smiled, her teeth glistened with a sort of metaphoric, invisible gun powder. "This isn't a game of trivia, people. Either one of you raises a hand or I start making Swiss cheese out of your skulls!"
A frail, balding man at the far side of the line raised a shaking hand.
The woman smirked and motioned at him with her gun. "Up with it, handsome. I want to make a withdrawal."
He stumbled up to her—upon which she gripped him strongly by the arm and shoved him in the direction of the vault.
"Now, lemme guess," she smirked. "This thing's got a timer on it and no matter how much you unlock it using the combination or what have you…it doesn't open until seven a.m. tomorrow or some crap."
The man stammered. "Th-That's right, ma'am. I don't know how I can help you…"
"Just enter the first combination and see where it takes us."
He nervously nodded and went about the task: not ready to risk his life stupidly.
'Her code name is Reload. There's no explanation as to how she's able to do it, but she possesses the ability to transform pure energy into metallic matter.'
Fwttt!
Reload struck a match and lit a cigarette. The waved the match till it was out and griped at the man. "Got it yet?"
"A-As much as I can, yes!"
A voice called out to her from the distance. "What's taking so long, Reload?!"
"JUST A MINUTE! Que va!!" she sighed out some smoke and glared at the locking mechanism. "So…the timer's being stubborn, si?"
The man nodded.
She smirked and pulled out her entire pack of cigarettes. "Then I suppose all we need is a key." She took her lit cigarette and shoved it into the pack. "Muy grande, of course." Slowly, the whole pack turned red with collective lighting. She palmed it and squinted her eyes. "You might want to step back…" FWOOMP!! The pack caught fire.
The man stumbled back.
Reload concentrated. The flames erupted brightly momentarily, shrunk into nothingness, and died out. Suddenly, Reload's eyes glowed a red-orange. She flicked her wrist, and a huge, black scimitar shot out…shredding the burnt cigarettes apart.
The man gasped.
She winked. "I know what you're thinking. 'Take this job and shove it!'" She promptly shoved the full length of the fresh scimitar into the locking mechanism, smashing it to pieces and grinding to death whatever sensitive mechanical devices there may had been inside.
The worker raised a shaking finger. "Watch out! The vault is strongly w-wired with—"
ZZZZZZZZTTT!!!
Electrical sparks shot out of the scimitar and up Reload's limb. She grinned euphorically, her eyes a glowing red-orange. "Ha ha ha ha!! It likes it!" She stretched out her free hand and palmed the body of the vault. There was a flash of light between her fingers, followed by cracks flowing outward in the metal surface of the vault. The sparks stopped shocking up her limbs. She brought her free hand down, revealing a fresh spike of metal driven into the vault's body.
After the punishment, the vault hissed and limped open. The old man had to hobble away before the giant door fell down with a huge THUD! off its hinges.
'She's reported to be completely unpredictable, especially as her powers continue to manifest themselves. There seems to be a constant variation between her reckless behavior and the exercise of her talents.'
Reload smiled and tossed the scimitar down. "Muy bien. Now, gonna be a good gentleman and help me load up on some money?"
"Well, I—"
She yanked him in with her to the vault.
"Aah!"
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All the Titans in their various locations of transit listened as Robin continued the mobile briefing.
"The other suspect has a subtler power. Just like Reload, his choice of weapon is ballistics, though it won't be beyond him to use his power in close-combat methods as well."
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'His name is Jean-Luc Blair. Alias, Slug. If it weren't for the bullet proof vests worn by police during his last incident, he could very well have killed each and every one of them with the shots he took. But he was merely toying with them. Slug's power goes beyond a mere itchy trigger finger…'
The lean young man walked up and down the line of hostages. He held a pistol in each hand at the end of long, slender arms. He was thin and frail looking, but with a touch of athleticism that gave him a subtly threatening posture. Rested above thin cheekbones were sleepy eyes that one couldn't tell from if he was either angry or bored.
"Don't y'all threat," he said loudly, like a preacher. "I only kill people if I'm strongly tempted by certain morons."
As if on cue, a desperate woman at the far end of the hostage line looked at the door exit to the bank, saw it clear, and made a run for it.
Slug glanced over his shoulder. He didn't miss a beat with his sleepy eyes. He stretched his arm out and—almost in reverse—aimed a gun at the fleeing citizen.
Someone screamed.
In slow motion, a field of dark-blue sparks danced around his arm out from his shoulder, shot down his forearm, gathered into the gun in his fingers, and exploded out the barrel in a cocoon formed around the bullet.
BANG!!!!!
A blue streak went past the fleer and struck the glass doors. But it didn't make just a bullet hole. Rather, the entire door itself shattered with a humongous gap of destruction. As did the next two or three doors adjacent to it. The woman shrieked and covered herself as glass and metal framework rained back down from the gigantic blast.
All from one bullet.
"We came to steal money from your vault, ma'am," Slug firmly said. "Not paint the atrium with your worthless entrails. Now I suggest you sit back down where you were told to or else I may be forced to reeducate you on the meaning of the word 'explode'."
Bug-eyed, the woman complied.
'Slug is purely sadistic in nature. More than anyone, we'll have to watch out for him. He has the power to propel and increase the centripetal force of any inanimate object he uses as a weapon. He uses it mostly with guns, turning an ordinary pistol into a veritable grenade launcher in miniature form.'
Slug watched the worker sit down and resumed his pacing. "I swear…I should be paid for this sort of thing. Not robbing for the money."
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"Titans….approach this situation with extreme caution," Robin said on the R-Cycle. "These two are not only the youngest and most deadly of the nation's powerful crooks, but they're ready and willing for a fight. Now we'll give them one, but only if it means them going to jail. They won't be afraid to end our lives, I'm sure. Remember, Titans. Teamwork! Keep focused! We'll meet on the street of the bank one block to the south!"
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Listening to the speech on my communicator, I finished my sprint. I ran up the side of a building, leapt to an adjacent rooftop, and slid down the front of another side before leaping gracefully to the floor. I stood with Myrkblade at ready, ahead of everyone else. It was only a matter of minutes before Beast Boy and Starfire joined me. Then came the R-Cycle, and finally the T-Car.
All six of us gathered and surveyed the troubled street from afar.
"I stopped momentarily to speak with the chief of police," Starfire said. "There is a barricade formed in front of the bank entrance with squad cars, paramedics, and firefighters. They are ready for any eventuality."
"Are the people inside accounted for?" Raven asked.
"He did not say," the Tamaranian replied. "However, there was a report of a gunshot that took out four of the doors in the entrance."
Beast Boy did a double take. "Don't you mean gunshotS?"
The alien shook her head. "Just one bullet."
"Maaaa-aaaan," Beast Boy exclaimed.
"Slug…," Robin nodded. "So he is there. Reload can't be far then."
Cyborg pointed. "Have a look for yourselves."
I looked, and so did the others.
At the entrance to the bank, two figures emerged with bags of money over their shoulders.
Cyborg's eyes suddenly went wide.
And they had good reasons to, as the rest of us gasped in surprise as well.
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Slug and Reload were cyborgs. Half of the woman's face—from chin to hair—was a cold plate of reflective steel. Even some of her explosively grinning teeth were blue metal. Patches of skin were replaced haphazardly with metal on her arms, wrists, and ankles.
Slug was a much more streamlined piece of work. His entire bald head was fleshly, except for where his neck was. It was like he had been fitted with a collar of titanium. Then the entirety of his arms from the shoulders down were unnaturally long, streamlined, and—of course—metallic.
Reload looked like she had gone through meatball surgery. At the same time, Slug was like a work of art.
Regardless, they were both villains. And the throng of policemen and SWAT Team members faced off at them from across the street. Guns were aimed. Tear gas grenades at ready.
An enforcer squabbled through an amplifier: "You are surrounded! Put down your weapons, place your hands behind your head, and turn your backs to us! Now!"Slug's voice was humored, despite his deadpan expression: "My, they're rather quick to skip to the last step."
"I hate formalities," Reload smirked. "Take this,"she handed her bag of money over to Slug, who took it in the same wrist he was holding his own.
"Halt what you're doing this instant!!"
"Halt this, fodder!!" Reload shouted and flicked her wrists. The custom machine guns swiveled into place as she stretched her hands out, winked, and unloaded a steady stream of bullets from invisible clips.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!!!!!
Reload's caliber was relatively weak in and of itself. What mattered in the long run was that she had four barrels per machine gun to unleash the bullets. And also, the bullets kept coming—endlessly—from an unseen source. To say the least, the squad cars lost their paint jobs.
PING!! PING!! CLANG!!! WHANG!!!
Police officers couldn't get a defensive shot out. They all ran for cover, shouting. Bullets streamed everywhere. Shattering glass. Denting aluminum. Kicking up asphalt. Showering sparks down from lampposts and signs. Bulletholes formed everywhere, like it was raining microcosmic meteors.
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!" Reload shouted amidst her joyous chaos. "Que pena para si! Ha ha ha ha ha!!"
As a last resort, the enforcement fled awkwardly to the far side of a large fire truck. As they sought shelter, Reload unleashed an unrealistically lengthy stream of bullets a the vehicle, gradually eating its way through the hulking truck's body. Officers shouted for backup. A trio of squad cars screeched up—sirens blazing—from the flank.
Slug saw it. "Cute," he uttered. He reached down to his holster just as a fresh batch of officers poured out of the vehicles and focused on the two. The villain spun the pistol a dozen times in his robotic hand before gracefully aiming it straight at one of the cars and pulling the trigger.
Blue energy streaked through his limb and exploded out the barrel.
BANG!!!
A single bullet soared through the air, past the officers, and ate directly into the middle squad car's fuel tank.
BOOOM!!!!
Officers yelled as they flew back from the blast and landed roughly on the street.
Slug spun his pistol, aimed, and shot.
BANG!!!
BOOOM!!!
Another squad car went up in flames. In the distance, a dozen or so parked cars' alarms went off throughout the City.
Slug spun the pistol for a third time.
Cops were already running.
"Smartest thing I've seen all day," he smirked and took aim. BANG!!
Fire plumed up into the air.
Those officers who were thrown back from the previous blasts scampered or hobbled over to join the others cowering behind the bullet-ridden fire truck.
"Signing their own funeral," Slug smirked. He spun his pistol about left…right…and gracefully aimed at the firetruck.
SWISH-SWISH-SWISH-SWISH-SWISH-CLANK!!!
A birdarang sailed down and knocked the pistol out from the villain's grasp.
"Augh! What?!" He looked up.
Reload relented momentarily on her punishment and glanced over as well.
Robin landed gracefully on the ground. He reached up a hand and grabbed his returning projectile. "You shouldn't play with those…," he said, glaring.
Starfire landed by his side, so did a green falcon that turned into Beast Boy. Finally, Raven levitated overhead while Cyborg jumped into place and I blurred to a stop along the side.
Slug smiled. "Finally…," he said and swiftly dropped the money beside him, taking a step or two closer.
Robin saw that. He lifted an eyebrow.
"This will be a most heated duel…," Slug cracked his metal neck and loosely dangled his titanium arms as if getting ready for a mile long sprint. "And don't be so smug about that gun, my dear fellow. There're plenty where that came from." He blindly opened a palm towards Reload.
The woman smirked, brought her hands together, and parted her fingers---revealing a freshly crafted pistol with clip which she tossed into Slug's grasp.
Slug gripped it, spun it while pulling a second from his holster, and shook both guns into position—effectively cocking them. "Shall we make this a bloody day? Or a happy bloody day?"
"Always the latter for me," Reload chuckled.
"What are you two really here for?" Robin asked.
"Do we not speak for ourselves, chico?" Reload grinned wide, glistening. Her bulging eyes fluctuated as she cocked a half-metal head to the side. "I swear…you all die so young."
"You don't know what you're up against," Cyborg frowned. "I'd stop being so smug if I were you."
"Why the animosity, brother?" Slug shrugged his metal arms and smirked. "Can't we do this with less talk and more shooting?"
Cyborg made a face. "'Brother?!'" He growled. "Listen, Ben Kingsley, we might both be half metal…but I know a rust bucket when I see it."
"And it's time we kicked you real good! Yeah!! Ha ha!" Beast Boy jumped.
We all sweatdropped.
"What?! Everyone else was getting poetic!"
"Indeed," Slug half bowed. "There is nothing more romantic than a gunfight……save for….of course…a deep, gashing, bullet wound in everyone one of your sorry skulls." And he took aim.
"Titans! MOVE!" Robin shouted and leapt---
--…just in time.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Giant gaping holes formed in the building behind us as Slug let loose his arsenal.
Beast Boy and Robin flipped out of danger.
Cyborg and I ducked behind a burning squad car.
Starfire and Raven took to the skies.
"Surround them!" Robin shouted from where he perched atop a lamppost. "Attack from all sides! Don't let them—"
His command was cut short when Reload took aim and fired endlessly at….everything.
RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!!!
Glass from a store front shattered over Beast Boy, who panickedly turned into a armadillo to avoid any major cuts.
Robin jumped off the lamppost as it became riddled with holes and fell down from its own weight.
Starfire shrieked as she soared a serpentine motion in the air, avoiding streaks of white hot bullets barely here and there.
Raven took a much more stationary position and deflected the many projectiles with black obsidian.
Cyborg and I cowered behind the squad car. We looked over at Robin. The Boy Wonder drew fire from the psychotic woman and gestured to us.
Cyborg nodded, motioned to me, and we were both up on our feet and charging.
"Why, hello there," said Slug in our faces. Gun raised.
Cyborg gasped.
I summoned forth murk, grabbed my comrade's shoulders, and blurred us back.
BANG!!!
In slow motion, the blue-charged bullet burned a path through the air above our noses. Our eyes crossed in watching the close projectile fly over us—a blue comet tail of energy warbling behind it.
Time resumed to normal as we fell to the asphalt. A mail truck behind us took the brunt of the hyperbullet and blew up in a ball of flames.
Slug laughed, spun his pistol, and took aim.
Cyborg shot jet boosts out of his feet and I blurred away.
BANG!!
A deep crater formed in the street, revealing the white sand beneath the asphalt.
I tumbled to my feet, gripped Myrkblade, and charged at Slug.
He saw me, spun his pistol, and fired.
BANG!!
In slow motion, I saw the hyperbullet coming at me. I jumped a half foot off the ground, spun in my momentum, and dodged the bullet barely under my armpit before landing on my feet again, completing my charge, and swinging a fully charged sword up at Slug.
SWOOOSH!!!
The right hand pistol literally exploded in his grasp from my impact.
Slug stepped back, wincing slightly, and swiftly spun his left pistol out and against my forehead.
I gasped. It was a cold sensation.
"RAAAUGH!!!" Cyborg's fist flew down and struck Slug's titanium arm towards the ground.
"AHH!" he teetered to the side and pulled the trigger.
BANG!!!!!
Asphalt exploded a foot before me, throwing me back from the energy blast.
I landed on the street with a THUMP! I sat up, wincing, rubbing my head. A string of hard impacts flew towards me. I looked over and realized that Reload was aiming her endless punishment at my figure. I spun my whole body—myrkblade charged—and vaulted directly upwards, spiraling.
Reload laughed her head off and aimed at my airborne figure.
As I came down from my leap, I saw a wall of lead coming at me in slow motion. I gritted my teeth, whipped Myrkblade out in front of me, and spun it like a highly-coordinating fan—deflecting every bullet I could and dashing my neck side to side to dodge the ones I couldn't.
CL-CL-CL-CL-CL-CL-CL-CLANK!!!!
I landed on the ground and a jolt of impact ran up my spine and interrupted my ministrations with Myrkblade.
One too many of Reload's many-many bullets streaked past my defense and straight between my eyes.
I winced.
FLASH!!
A wall of black covered my nose and deflected the bullets at last second.
With a breath, I dashed to the side as Raven came down—eyes glowing—and tossed a wall of onyx energy straight at Reload's figure.
The evil woman gritted her teeth. Her eyes glowed a contrasting red-orange as she increased her stream of bullets.
And so the two ladies struggled. Raven's shield versus Reload's river of heated lead.
The dark titan gritted her teeth. She slowly…slowly…extended her shield closer.
Robin, Beast Boy, and I tried distracting Reload. But she sacrificed one of her hands aiming at Raven's shield by pointing it at us and warding off our attack with her endless bullets. Beast Boy and I jumped to safety. Robin took the high ground and flung a birdarang at her, only to have it shattered to pieces in mid air by her ballistic punishment.
In dividing Reload's attention, we managed to give Raven the edge she needed. She growled and shot her shield further towards Reload, slowly beginning to pin the woman down from the ricocheting action of her own weaponry.
Just then, Starfire soared down to provide air support. She yelled and flung starbolt after starbolt at Reload.
"Yeah! Go Starfire!" Beast Boy shouted.
Robin looked at the scene. He gasped. "Starfire! No!"
Everyone was confused. Especially the Tamaranian girl. But it was too late. She had flung her green energy at Reload.
Reload lifted her one free hand and absorbed the starbolts. She sneered forth a chuckle, her eyes glowing more, and the bullets intensified.
Raven gasped as she was shoved back—her heels sliding deep into the asphalt.
The shield was pushed back and back and back by stronger and stronger bullets until it started to warble and buckle from the pressure.
Raven squinted her glowing eyes shut. She looked like she was going through a migraine. She would falter any second, and when she did--
I gasped and was about to blur to the rescue when one of Slug's bullets stuck a wall above and behind me, showering me with concrete debris. I fell hard to the ground, pinned. Slug was struggling with Cyborg, and one of his bullets happened to unleash near me.
I watched Raven helplessly. Soon, her shield broke. The bullets ate through.
I winced.
A green pterodactyl flew in at the last second, grabbed Raven, and carried her off as the asphalt licked up beneath them from Reload's punishment.
I breathed easier and tried to get out from my imprisonment.
"I do not understand!" Starfire's voice exclaimed from the side. "Did I….help her?"
"Reload absorbs energy to produce her bullets!" Robin said. "The more you attack her with starbolts, the more she'll be fed! Help Cyborg out with Slug! I'll try to take care of Reload!"
"Okay!" Starfire flew to Cyborg's side.
Robin dashed over and kicked Reload's legs out from under her. He then flipped away from the daring act just as the villainess started firing madly at his figure.
I struggled to get out from my holding. Suddenly, the pieces of concrete were lifted off of me by green, furried hands. I gasped with the sudden room in my lungs and looked up at Beast Boy in gorilla mode.
He shapeshifted to normal and helped me up with a hand. "You allright?"
I winced, but nodded.
"We've got to help Robin! He's giving us the distraction we need!" Beast Boy spun around. "Raven? How're you doing?"
She clutched her aching head in two hands. "Um….g-give me a second…"
"Looks like it's just you and me, newby," the changeling smirked and pointed towards Reload. "Charge!!"
As he switched into a green rhino and charged, I whipped up Myrkblade, gritted my teeth, and blurred over.
We both reached Reload at about the same time. She was firing at Robin and her back was to us.
WHAM!!!
The rhino's horn smacked into a metallic plate in her back.
SLASH!!!!
I swung Myrbkalde down, severing one of her wrist guns into pieces.
She spun from the impact and landed on the ground. She immediately screamed and unleashed a steady stream of bullets at us.
Beast Boy leapt into a snake—sailed over the bullet stream—and landed on my shoulder as a parrot. The bullets came at me. I ran a building side to my right, flipped off, and landed behind Reload with a hand outstretched. Beast Boy slithered down my arm as a mongoose and bit onto Reload's shoulder.
"AAAUGH!" she struggled.
I brought Myrkblade down and severed the last of her wrist guns.
SMASH!!
"Goob job, Titans!" Robin smiled from atop a burnt squad car. He jumped high up, spun, and flew down in a kick.
Reload tossed the green mongoose off, spun up, tripped me, and stood just in time to take the brunt of Robin's kick.
WHUMP!!
She slid back on two firm feet.
Robin charged. He pulled out his staff in mid sprint.
Reload's eyes glowed. So did her hands. She produced a metal baseball bat and raised it just in time to deflect Robin's attack.
"Nice….stick," she smirked, then swung high with a growl.
Robin ducked and jumped back.
I got up, charged Myrkblade, and joined the fray.
Robin and I faced off with Reload. We paced ourselves…then dove in.
Reload shrieked with vigor and blocked our dual attacks.
Robin flipped over to her backside and struck low.
She blocked blindly in reverse and brought her back bat in time to deflect my own blow.
She spun around, swinging the bat at full length.
Robin and I leapt back.
She lunged at me.
I blurred to the side and stabbed at her metal skull.
CLANK!!
She winced and uppercutted me with the bat.
WHAM!!
I flew back, flipped, and landed with my feet against the wall. I sailed at her just as she was parrying Robin's attack.
"!!!!!" I swung a fully charged myrkblade at her.
She was thrown back a few feet. When she landed she produced three serrated discs in her free hand and flung them at us.
I deflected one of them and ducked the other two.
Robin wasn't so lucky, the discs pinned him to a nearby wall by his cape.
He struggled to get free as I once again charged Reload and brought my sword down.
CLANK!!!
She blocked and leaned forward till our noses were nearly touching. "Ooooh, me gusta un swordsman!" Her free hand produced a black scimitar.
I raised an eyebrow.
SWOOOSH!!
I duckd the fresh weapon and sidestepped the baseball bat.
Reload came at me, spinning like a metallic cyclone with both the blunt and the serrated weapon kissing the air and looking for a limb or head to lop off.
I stepped back, parried, blocked, sidestepped, and evaded her every attack.
For one dizzying second, she left open a vulnerable spot.
I dove in to strike, but she tripped me.
I went tumbling along the ground and stopped dead with my back against a fire hydrant.
I saw stars through my shades.
"Watch where you put your head! You don't know where that thing's been! Ah ha ha ha ha!!"
I glared at her.
The gloves are off.
I shot forth smoke, teleported to my feet, and slashed off one end of the fire hydrant.
SWOOOOOOSHHHH!!!!!
A steady stream of stinky water sailed right into Reload's chest.
"OOF!! She fell back and tumbled up against a bus stop.
I jumped high into the air, back flipped, and landed with murking feet onto the horizontal stream of shooting water. I literally ran the length of fire hydrant spray like a transparent platform and held Myrkblade out on a cutting arc.
Reload's eyes bulged more—if that was even possible—and she lifted both weapons at the last second.
CLANG!!!
No sooner had my strike impacted, I shot smoke beneath her legs and teleported on the otherside, swinging.
CL-CLANK!!
My sword struck the metal half of her head, sending her spinning.
I leapt and teleported directly in front of her—striking down in mid air.
SLASH!!!
I deflected the baseball bat out of her hand. I landed and kicked it up into her chest.
WHUMP!!
She doubled over, breathing for air just seconds before I struck her up the nose with the hilt of my sword, spun around, and karate kicked her square in the forehead.
She literally flipped three hundred and sixty degrees before landing against a taxi cab—forming a huge dent.
"….Ow." She uttered.
I rushed at her, silently screaming.
She lifted her scimitar.
I charged Destruction to its fullest in my downwards strike.
CRRRRRRUNNNCH!!!
My sword literally ripped down the length of her blade, sending metal shards shooting off everywhere. When the blade reached her hilt, the hilt exploded—sending her cybernetic wrists back behind her neck and sailing deep through the aluminum body of the cab.
SMASH!!
I stood over her, panting, and holding the edge of my wooden sword to her chest.
But….she smirked. "Thanks for the juice, Casanova." Her limbs started sparkling and her eyes glowed.
To my horror, I realized I had launched her hands into the battery compartment of the cab. I tried to strike down and stop her…but she brought her legs up and kicked me square in the abdomen and forcing me back.
When she had sucked the necessary amount of energy she needed, she yanked her hands out from inside the car, produced a shotgun out of thin air, and pumped it.
I gulped.
"Better start running, senor." She took aim and fired.
BLAM!!!!
I was dragged out of the way by Triceratops horn impaled through the back of my shirt.
Beast Boy shoved me safely behind another car. Robin was dangling by his cape from another horn.
Beast Boy changed back to elf form and dropped the both of us. "Sheesh…am I saving everybody today?!"
BLAM!!!
Shotgun pellets slammed into the vehicle we were hiding behind.
"Go for cover!" Robin shouted. "Now! Divide her fire!"
I saluted and did so, blurring about to distract the ever-responsive trigger finger of Reload. During the ordeal, I looked out through the corner of my black eyes to catch sight of Cyborg's and Starfire's progress.
The struggling match had turned into a relatively risky, close-combat dual. Slug still had one pistol left, and was busy firing shots at point blanc at Cyborg as the android circled him. Cyborg would dodge at the last second, causing the hyperbullets to streak past him and explode a huge chunk of building face.
Starfire flew above the scuffle, launching Starbolt after Starbolt at the back of Slug's neck, distracting him. She didn't want to charge to large of a blast, though, for fear of hurting Cyborg in the process.
"You are quite…fast moving….for a hulking piece of scrap metal," Slug smirked.
Cyborg's human half sweated as he geared into another fighting position. "You're neither human nor machine. You're an animal."
"Then take this as a compliment from my pack," Slug spun the pistol…---
Cyborg got ready to dodge.
---…and aimed it at Starfire.
"STAR!!"
The alien gasped.
BANG!!!!
The girl twirled in mid-air, barely dodging the blast. But it did managed to singe a good portion of her hair and send her reeling. She landed hard on the asphalt…right beside Slug's feet.
"Heh heh heh," Slug spun the gun and aimed it squarely at her forehead. "Should have stayed in your damn UFO."
Cyborg ran up and kicked the gun out of Slug's grasp. He yelled and shoved another heavy fist deep into the villain's stomach. He finished it with a roundhouse kick against his side.
"OOF!!" Slade tumbled onto the only piece of sidewalk not shattered by bullets.
Cyborg stood over him, fists clenched. 'Nobody…shoots…at my friends…"
"How chivalric…," Slug stood up, gripped a stop side beside him, and yanked it out of the concrete. "You must be a hit with the ladies. Women these days do so prefer machines over men."
"Quit yakking and start giving up," Cyborg stepped forward.
Slug held the stop side up like a staff. "I rather looked forward to this, actually."
"You think that puny thing's gonna stop me?"
Slug smirked. Blue energy ran up his smooth metal limbs and traveled across the length of the stop sign. He took a breath and whacked the charged bludgeon across Cyborg's torso like a giant mallet.
WHAM!!!
The android flew back and formed a crater in a building side. "UNGH!!" He slumped down to the ground, heaving.
Slug walked over, palming the stop sign and smiling. "Reckless kid. Obey traffic signs." He lifted the stop sign, charged it up, and struck Cyborg across the face.
WHANG!!!
The metal Titan went tumbling. He gasped for breath.
"I was told you were going to defeat us in one fatal swoop..," Slug muttered an clanked one end of the sign down like a staff as he leered over Cyborg. "Tell me…what are you holding back?"
The android sputtered, wiped his chin, and glared up. "My foot up your ass. RAAAUGH!!!" He ran forward like a bear and completely tackled Slug. Gripping onto his shoulders, he flung the metaphysical villain towards a semi truck.
SMASH!!!
Slug flew completely through the hulking trailer, totally dropping the stop sign. He shook his bald head and looked up just in time to see Cyborg—with a scream—dive through the fresh hole in the truck and sail down at him, fist first.
WHAM!!!
A huge crater formed behind Slug's head in the side walk.
Cyborg began pummeling him senseless. When he was twice as red hot, he stood up, gripped the villain, and flung him into a storefront with a growl.
SMASH!!
Slug sailed back through the glass, but he gripped to the metal framework and brought his legs up in time to shove Cyborg back. He then jumped to his feet, leaned forward, and struck Cyborg's cheek with a blue-charged fist.
SMACK!!!
He then punched Cyborg deep in the stomach with another charged arm.
WHUMP!!
And brought both wrists up—joined together—in a massive uppercut that sent Cyborg slamming so hard into the side of the semi truck—the entire vehicle fell sideways.
Cyborg winced. His titanium body literally had scratches from the heavy impacts.
Slug slowly cracked his neck and flexed his streamline, glowing arms. "Looks like someone's needing an overhaul. How about I overhaul you to Hell?"
"That all….you got?" Cyborg wheezed.
"Kid….you tempt me so," Slug charged his fists, stepped up, and was about to bring them sailing down and crunching through Cyborg's shoulder when a huge wall of obsidian shoved him aside and into a brickface, crumbling it.
Cyborg looked up.
Raven floated over. Her eyes glowed. "I took some advil," she said monotonously and proceeded to lift the entire trailer of the semi truck up and flung it at Slug with dark energy.
The villain got to his feet, but it was too late.
SLAM!!!!
He was flung across the street---along with shards of the projectile trailer.
He tumbled on the ground and got on his knees. He gritted his teeth at Raven's floating figure and was about to charge her when a starbolt struck the back of his head and sent him slamming face-first into the asphalt.
Starfire flew behind him, hands glowing. "My hair is smelly now, thanks to you!!"
Slug winced and groaned as Cyborg stepped up to him with the two femmes floating besides. The android folded his arms and grinned. "Looks like someone's needing some more friends…"
Slug glared. Suddenly, a shotgun slid along the ground and stopped against him.
The three Titans gasped.
Slug gripped the weapon and grinned over at Reload.
"Mata para mi," she winked and produced two pistols to combat the other Titans.
Slug grinned.
"Uh oh….," Cyborg gulped.
He spun the shotgun.
"Move…."
He pumped it.
"MOVE!!" Cyborg shouted and gripped the nearest girl he could.
…and fired.
BLAM!!!!!
Cyborg and Starfire dove as one out of the way. Raven sent herself spiraling with a cocoon of protective dark energy around her.
A literal wave of shotgun pellet and blue energy flew down the entirety of the street and exploded an entire building front. The asphalt caught fire from the friction of Slug's concentrated power.
He spun the shotgun again…
Cyborg got up. Starfire flew into the air and gasped.
…he pumped it…
The alien grabbed Cyborg's shoulders and hoisted him out of harm's way.
…and fired.
BLAM!!!!
This blast came uncomfortably close to Robin, Beast Boy, and I.
We dove out of the combined bulletfire of Reload and the wave of Slug's destruction. Two squad cars shattered to oblivion from the combined chaos. Thunder echoed in our ears.
"Hey Romeo!!" Slug spun the shotgun and called forth to Cyborg in Starfire's grasp. "Let's play spin the bottle!" He pumped it, aimed high, and smirked: "KISS THIS!!"
BLAM!!!
A wave of bulletfire and blue energy sailed up.
Starfire strained to carry the two out of harm's way swiftly enough. She barely skirted out of range of the blast. The wave struck a nearby streetlamp, which shattered explosively enough to catch the Tamaranian off balance. She and Cyborg let out a cry and sailed down to the earth.
WHAM!!
CLANG!!
"UGH!!" Cyborg grunted.
Slug planted a foot down beside his head.
Cyborg's human eye widened as he looked up.
Slug rested the gun over his shoulder. "Pathetic," he smirked, then aimed it down. He pumped it. "Some demonstration this was."
Cyborg gritted his teeth. Behind his back, his arm switched into a laser rifle. "You like guns, hotshot? Well get a load of THIS!! HAAA!!!"
He fired a steady stream of blue energy straight into Slug's heart.
ZAAAP!!!
The blast sent the villain flying back a mere four feet. But what surprised Cyborg—the other titans too—was the sparks of electrical chaos that shorted through Slug's chest from the mere impact of the android Titans' blast.
"Uggggggggh!!!" Slug shook, his bald head reeling. He dropped the shotgun and gripped his chest.
Everyone froze.
Including Reload. She look wide-eyed at the event.
Cyborg looked at his laser rifle, unbelieving. He glanced at Reload. Then at Robin. Then at Reload again. He aimed his laser rifle.
"Cyborg!" Robin stretched a hand out. "Wait---"
ZAAAAAP!!!!
The blast flew hard into Reload's side, flinging her against a wall.
To everyone's surprise—except Cyborg's—she didn't absorb the energy. Rather, she shorted out in a similar manner as Slug and winced from the ordeal. As if overwhelmed by Cyborg's sole laser.
The android stood up, his arm smoking. He looked at the others, shrugged, and aimed at the villains. "Show's over! Give up or you'll taste more of this!"
Slug stumbled to his feet, wincing. "Another time, fellow." He motioned to Reload. "Another time."
Reload weekly slid a pistol to his feet.
Slug kicked it up with his foot, spun the gun, and aimed it at the fire truck.
The Titans suddenly remembered the officers, paramedics, and citizens hiding behind the vehicle for cover. And in that one fraction of a second, many things happened. Beast Boy charged in the form of a T-Rex, grabbed two officers by the back of their shirts, and carried them off. Starfire dove in and hoisted another three in her strong, Tamaranian grasp. I blurred through, snatched two people, and emerged on the other side. Finally, Raven floated over and formed a shield of black energy between the fire truck and the leftover officers while Robin swung over by a grappling cord and tossed down extinguisher discs at the soon to explode vehicle.
And—indeed—Slug pulled the trigger.
BLAM!!!
The firetruck served its name. A plume of heat rose into the air, formed a cloud of smoke, and dissipated quickly thanks to Raven and Robin's efforts.
The officers were saved. Similarly, everyone inside the bank was unharmed.
But, as the Titans regrouped and cast their eyes upon the scene…the two half-human villains were gone. Left in their wake was a ruined scene of burnt squad car shells, shattered asphalt, broken glass, bullet shells, bullet shells, bullet shells, and bullet shells.
"Um….," Beast Boy glanced around. "That's coming out of your pay, Raven."
"Bite me."
"Ew."
I sheathed myrkblade and walked over—with Robin—towards Cyborg.
The android finally retracted his laser rifle into hand form and flexed his fingers. "Heh…," he said under his breath. "I guess I don't even know my own strength."
"That was far too easy…," Robin said. "No offence to you or anything, Cyborg, but it's unnatural how well your rifle stacked up against them. After all the effort both you and the rest of us put in trying to defeat them."
"Yeah…and just what's up with that?" Cyborg exclaimed. "All it took was one blast each. It was like….they were made to be defeated by my blast."
I looked at Robin.
"And they did seem to taunt you the most out of all of us."
"Well, maybe that 'Slug' guy."
"And the money…," Robin said, looking over and gesturing to it. It was still there. "As soon as they saw us, they dropped it like it wasn't important. They were only waiting for us."
I pointed at Cyborg.
He nodded. "Or just me."
"It doesn't add up," Robin shook his head.
"Yeah!" Beast Boy stepped up with the others. "What was the point?"
"A test, perhaps?" Raven suggested.
We all looked at her.
She shrugged. "It sure felt like a test to me. They were just about as unprepared for us as we were for them."
"But whatever could they be testing us for?" Starfire held her hands together and exclaimed.
I looked at Cyborg.
He looked back, sighed, and said: "I dunno. If by chance they were after me…then perhaps inside of me is where the answer lies."
"It's a good thing your uncle's here," Beast Boy said. "Something tells me we could really use his help in figuring all this stuff out!"
"Yeah…," Cyborg said, staring at his hand. "We could….use his help…"
-T-T-T-T-T-T-
Inside the Tower…inside the Main Room…Simon Stone sat, watching the News Unfolding on the main screen. Footage of the recent battle and the wreckage leftover filled the monitor.
Slowly, the old man leaned forward and let out a sigh. "Victor…," he mumbled quietly as the composite sketches of Slug and Reload appeared before him. Reflecting against his eyes."What are we getting into….?"