Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

A Haunting Memory Returns...

Chapter 20: Eventful Days

Levi had to say that he had some respect for the old man. Despite being a grouchy, on-edge, murderous bastard, he really was something. He was taken captive by heroes, thrown in jail, escaped from the jail, and returned to the mercenaries proposing that it was time to put down the revolt in Maine. Levi was happy for relocation, though some of the other mercenaries widely opposed it. However, money is money, so they all sucked it up. Well... not exactly all of them. There was still one rebellious-sonuva-bitch mercenary amongst them: Alexander Crick.

Crick was one sorry bastard for sure; he was lazy, arrogant, and was always looking for a way to undermine someone's reputation. He thought he was high and mighty compared to everyone else all because he had a tattoo of a fucking scorpion on his arm. Who the Hell cares? No one. But he'd brag about it everyday as if it actually mattered. Once, he even took someone's underpants to get a chance to boast before he gave it back. That was not anyone Levi wanted to be acquainted with. Unfortunately he didn't get a choice.

The day they were packing the trucks for a road trip to Maine was unusually hot for the season. The Sun was scorching bright and made every mercenary sweat at an alarmingly fast pace. They were marinating in their perspiration. It was one of those days where you would be miserable if you were wearing black. Each and every mercenary was to pile those damned boxes filled with a wide assortment of rubbish in those heavenly, air-conditioned trucks. Levi himself was making it rain from his brow when he found that stupid scorpion in his face.

"What do you think, Levi? I think it makes my arms look bigger personally." Crick said with a smirk.

"Definitely. Ten times more chubby, eh?" Levi replied.

"Coming from Mr. Two-Chins."

"Go to Hell."

"I already am in Hell. I can tell because you're here."

"Then stop being cocky and get back to work." Levi snarled as he picked up a particularly-heavy load.

Crick didn't leave. Levi was sure that the man hasn't lifted a finger in effort of helping relocate. He was probably too busy flexing his arm to see the scorpion dance. What an idiot.

"You know, if you die anytime soon, I'm taking your place." Crick said.

A malicious smile rose on his face as he flexed the arm to give the effect of the scorpion stabbing.

"In your dreams, Ally." Levi remarked.

Crick's smile faded and a frown took its place. He brought his hand down on Levi's rubbish box—which really didn't need the extra force—and left Levi cursing with a heavy, cardboard mass on his foot. Gato rushed to his aid and lifted the box, much to Levi's relief. He composed himself and glared in Crick's direction.

"One day..." Levi promised himself, seventeen days ago.

…

Jinx woke up to an obnoxious knocking. She was unsurprised to find the ever-impatient Huxley as the source. He wore his now trademark scowl as he pulled her out of her room and dragged her down the hallways without giving explanation. They finally arrived at an empty room and he threw her in.

"Hey! What's the deal?"

It wasn't but ten minutes until two other people were thrown in alongside her. Wally and Izaak winced as they got up. One last figure walked into the room before saying, "Bye Mr. Huxley!"

"God damn it Ince. Why do you get special treatment?" Izaak asked.

Ince merely shrugged. Jinx began to take observation of their surroundings. The walls were a dull white that yellowed when compared to her skin tone. The floors were in a vomit green tiles checkered alongside a slightly-brighter-than-the-walls white. The ceiling was rough, with many miniature, sharp peaks. There were four desks situated in the middle of the room. Each of them had a name tag on them. They each sat down at the different desks and looked at each other in confusion. They waited a minute. Nothing happened. Two minutes. Inaction. Three. More of the same. Jinx's head began to ache from just sitting there for no clear reason. Izaak scowled and rose from his seat.

"This is bull shi—"

Before he could finish his sentence he disappeared into thin air. Everyone's eyes widened. Jinx looked around nervously to determine the cause of his disappearance, and who was next. She then calmed down when she remembered Izaak's powers.

"Is he shitting us?" Wally asked.

"This isn't funny, Izaak." Jinx said, "Izaak...?"

She noticed a sense of silence in the room, almost as if some obnoxious loudmouth had exited vicinity. She turned to find that only her and Ince were in the room. Ince shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"Come on guys, Ince and I are getting kind of nervous now."

No answer.

"Miss. Jinx, you don't think something bad happened do you?" asked Ince.

His face was as pale as hers, absolutely drained of color. He shook with that innocent fear produced when a child was faced by a scare. Jinx immediately began to feel furious with Izaak and Wally. This was a child they were scaring. She rose up from her seat.

"You guys stop this right now! You are worrying Ince sick. Playing a prank like this on a kid is just plain sick." Jinx scolded.

As she finished the tiny hairs on the back of her neck started to rise and goosebumps erupted on her arms. There was now a deathly stillness in the room, and she knew that Ince was now also gone. Her breathing became heavy. Perhaps it was just a strengthening sense of paranoia, but was there the sound of someone else—breathing? Jinx began to shake slightly, and her heart stopped when she began to hear an organ behind the door. Such depressing music only came from a church, and she was sure as Hell there was no religion in this little Resistance. She slowly walked to the door, which had mysteriously creaked open on its own.

When she stepped out of the room, the second thing she saw was a dark-wood coffin at the very end of the church, in sight of the several rows of pews. The first was a beautiful stained-glass window, of a Middle Eastern bearded man smiling down pleasantly upon her, with light pouring through giving the man a heavenly image of glowing health and godliness. The man wore what looked to be white robes; his teeth were a shining (and not to mention unstained) white, and his hair was a luscious black, yet with the light shining through it looked to be more of a dark violet. It was absolutely breathtaking, and it didn't take long for Jinx to realize who this man was.

"Jesus Christ..." she murmured slowly in awe.

It was quite the sight to behold, or maybe it was just because she's never been to a church. When she saw the coffin however, she felt rattled. Who could have died? Who was departing under that large cross? She was so busy pondering this, that she was shaken when she heard the preacher.

"Please, take your seats."

Jinx looked around; she was the only person here. Perhaps the preacher had sight problems. He was an older looking man. His skin was wrinkled, his eyes seemed to bulge out of their sockets, and his fingers were long and bony. He even seemed to shake slightly as he raised his arms and began to preach. As Jinx sat at the farthest pew from the coffin, the preacher sauntered his way to the coffin and at his little preacher podium.

"We gather here today in the grief that this great man hath made his untimely departure. Through others' bloodstained hands, our friend now lays down before you; through others' bloodstained hands, our friend now lays at peace; and through others bloodstained hands, our friend now stands before the Lord himself: Jesus Christ!"

The preacher threw his hands in the air in a grand fashion. Despite the great effects the man was pulling off, Jinx felt very disappointed with the preacher's address. It was so vague. Who was this "friend"? Why was he her friend? After a few minutes more in, being deprived of information, Jinx rose from her seat and left the church. The preacher didn't seem to notice. As she stepped through the door, quietly closing it as to not interrupt the preacher's newly started sermon, she found herself not in the room with the desks, but in same church. Or was it?

The room was darker, both literally and in atmosphere. The pews were spread farther apart, as if everyone wanted to keep to themselves. The brilliant stained-glass window was now glowering down at her with a malicious frown. Jesus was now slandered as an intimidating, evil man. The metal cross was now a splintered wood with burn marks, and what appeared to be pieces of leather used for... restraining the arms and legs? The coffin looked the same: miserable. The most noticeable of the changes had to be in the preacher, because standing there at the podium was Dracul himself.

The dirty man didn't seem to notice Jinx, but continued with his sermon in an even grander fashion than the other preacher.

"And so Mary was virgin no more! And the result of their unholy union was the foulest man to ever walk the Earth: Jesus Christ himself! This man—this horrible blasphemer..."

Though Dracul had proven to be lowly over the past time, Jinx could never have imagined him being a satanist. This was out of place.

"...spoke out against true religion with his lies about God. But Christ was a transparent man; his true intentions were easy for any practical man to see..."

Jinx didn't notice it until now, but the light was given off completely by torch. This place seemed ancient... the pews were rotten wood and the red paint of the walls seemed to be peeling.

"...exception of a handful of followers, nobody believed Christ's evil words, knowing that he was signing them a warrant to the realm of Satan! And because of this, Christ was taken to the cross; the punishment for the crime of blasphemy? Death!"

Despite the fact that Jinx never paid too much attention to religion, she was sure that this was not how the story went. Jesus was supposed to be kind and compassionate. The way Dracul made it seem, Jesus was a con, and the way Dracul referred to him by his last name, Jesus seemed to be scum. The scary fact was that Jinx found Dracul's tale believable.

"...so Christ was burnt to the bone upon the cross as an example to all those willing to venture into the same deeds..."

Burnt? Jesus wasn't burnt, was he?

"Many backed down, but Christ's closest lieutenant and closest friend, to the point that he and Christ were regarded as brothers, refused to allow this. He was a weak boy turned foul man by his 'brother's' death. And so he goes under the wing of the same man who killed his 'brother' for revenge. And so now, he hunts down those responsible for Christ's death, and those who gave up their faith to the unholy man."

Dracul's sermon seemed to end, and Jinx was glad of it. What she heard was sick, and it left a nasty taste in her mouth. When Dracul looked as if he were to start rambling again she sent a hex flying towards him and knocked him away from his podium and crashing straight into a wall. Jinx sprinted at him, jumping over the coffin and podium and landing a kick to his stomach. He crashed down revealing his indent in the wall. He rose and grabbed a knife from the inside of his coat. He slashed at her several times but to no avail. Jinx was simply too fast. She made him eat an unhealthy dose of platform boot and watched him go down again. As she was taking the knife out of his left hand, he pulled her down trying to keep possession of his weapon. They struggled for a little bit, and she ended up on top of him. She heard an unearthly growl from under that mask that struck enough fear into her to make her let go of the knife as Dracul was giving one last, strong tug with the blade pointing towards him.

Jinx rose up from his lifeless body, horrified. She stepped away from his body, past the podium, and right into the coffin which she nearly fell over. She turned to see that the lid was partially open. She stood there for what seemed to be hours, looking back from the coffin to Dracul to the welcoming door. This was her chance to get out of this awful place, but this was also her chance to see who was being set to rest. At last her curiosity got the better of her, and she pushed the lid further to see an Italian Doctor mask, with its eyes glowing. A hand shot up quick as lighting and grabbed the collar of her dress and pulled her down into the coffin. All she could see were those glowing red eyes as the lid began to close over her. And then Dracul's very-much-alivevoice said, "Silly girl, the game was rigged before it began."

…

When she woke up she severely wanted to scream, but her sense got the better of her. However, she had no problem with high-tailing it out of the room until she saw one familiar person. She didn't even bother changing clothes or fixing her hair, which was now down and untamed. As soon as she opened the door she found herself looking at Wally, who seemed to be just upon the brink of knocking. When she saw him, Jinx felt the tears threatening to fall again, and for all it was worth, she didn't care. She buried her head into Wally's chest and showered him. He reacted by wrapping his arms around her reassuringly.

"I don't want to go back." she croaked into his shirt.

"You don't have to." he said.

Jinx was sure he didn't understand what she meant, but she was glad to hear it. It was an ironic setup, as of now she was in one of the safest feeling places, but at the same time, she was in one of the most risky. But when you're seeking comfort you tend to overlook that stuff. Much like how she overlooked the quickening in Wally's heartbeat, a sign of... excitement?

…

It was Izaak's idea to investigate the string of robberies plaguing Compromise City. Jinx didn't see the point; this place was in chaos, of course people would be pulling petty thefts. But Izaak insisted

saying that these crimes were "organized". Jinx's suspicions went immediately to the Hive Five. If Dracul was here, why wouldn't they be too? So she gave in and followed him around the urban area of

the city.

"So what'd they rob? A Quick Trip?" Wally asked?

"I don't think they sell tacquitos at banks." Izaak responded.

"You guys have banks running? During a revolt?" Jinx asked skeptically.

Why not?" Ince said, "People need their money. Leading a revolt takes money. Everything revolves around money these days."

Jinx was surprised to hear such a mature observation out of such a young child. It was painful to see. Someone having to act like an adult during their childhood was tragic. She was instantly reminded of them being orphaned at a young age, of her being orphaned at a young age.

"Why were you guys orphaned?" she asked the two brothers.

Ince shrugged, but Izaak looked like the question was a blow to the stomach. Naturally; Ince didn't know his parents, Izaak did. Color drained from his face and croaked the reply of, "The usual."

When they arrived at the bank Jinx saw that there was a large whole in the outer wall of the bank. She looked through it to see that the hole-in-the-wall trend continued through several other walls. She turned the other way to find a toppled brick building. She motioned for the others to follow her before they investigated the bank itself.

"Help me remove some of the rubble." she said.

Izaak and Wally began chucking bricks in the other direction. After about fifteen of them the two looked miserable. Ince walked to the rubble and placed his hand on it. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and within a few seconds there was mud at their feet. Under all of it Jinx made out a giant cylinder-like shape. She approached it and wiped some of the mud away to find a keypad with several numbers missing. A safe door?

"Help me flip it." she said, receiving a groan from Wally and Izaak.

Despite their combined strength it was still very heavy. How this thing managed to gather enough momentum to fly through all those walls was a mystery.

"What are you hoping to find?" hissed Izaak.

There was a loud exhale from the three when the wall door toppled over on its other side. The two boys panted as Jinx examined the now exposed back of the safe door. There was an etched-in circle with the circumference of the top of a soda can. There was a char mark within the circle. Jinx looked back to the several holes made through the bank. Perhaps it was time for her to take a closer look.

"Let's go check out the bank."

Ince eagerly followed while Wally and Izaak followed at a snail's pace. The bank itself showed very little signs of struggle. The only things that indicated that a robbery occurred at all were the several holes in the walls, the missing safe door, and the money itself.

"This couldn't have been the Hive Five." Jinx mused, "It's too organized."

"Who?" Izaak asked.

"Just a group of villains we think are involved with Dracul." Jinx answered a little too quickly.

"How could a group with such a stupid name be involved with the Conspirator?"

Jinx scowled, but Wally came to save her.

"They're nothing more than a distraction to keep us off track." he said.

"I see. Well, I see what you mean, Jinx. Whoever stole the money was in the safe before the robbery occurred." Izaak said.

"So they blasted the safe door and pay day." Wally added.

"Yeah, but there's one thing I don't get." Jinx said.

"What's that?"

"There wouldn't be enough oxygen for anyone to stay in there for an extended amount of time, which our man had to have done." Jinx continued.

"Maybe he had an oxygen tank with him." Ince suggested.

It made sense. But there were still more questions. How did the guy get inside in the first place? If he had, why didn't he just take the money at the time instead of biding his time inside? How did he manage to blast the door like that? This last one was bugging her, there was no way that there were explosives; they would have blasted the perp and the money. Jinx couldn't shake the feeling that they weren't the only meta-humans in the city.

"Let's head back, guys." Jinx said.

"We really didn't do much." Izaak pointed out.

"What's there to do? Our criminal isn't here."

"Then we head back, and we wait." Wally said.

"But—"

"We wait." Wally growled.

Izaak frowned as he looked at Jinx and Wally. Ince began to look at them weird too. Finally, Izaak raised his hands in defeat with a shrug. Jinx looked back at Wally, and gave him a smile. He returned a nervous one, quite contradictory to his demeanor beforehand. Was he... warming up to her?

…

After a long day of doing chores for Huxley, Jinx was both welcoming and dreading the thought of sleep. After the dream last night, she wasn't sure she wanted to rest. But her body had its limits, and she'd lose consciousness eventually. On the other hand, she still had enough energy to read the other book Dracul had given to her.

"The Demon of Poveglia," Jinx read, "How dramatic."

She opened the book to find that there was not an author. She frowned. If there was no named author, how could she be sure that any of what she was about to read was true?

The first chapter introduced the protagonist, a teenager named Alfonso. Apparently, he had been accepted to a renowned, prestigious school. His family having been poor farmers, seized this chance for a better future, without considering Alfonso's views on the topic. Having been forced off to Venice, where he was to take a boat to Poveglia, Alfonso had no knowledge of the area he was in, or any friends. Alfonso was a strong boy and knew how to take care of himself. And more importantly, he had a likeable personality, leading to several girls having feelings for him. All in all, the hero type.

It was nothing to interesting yet. She skipped to the second chapter, in which Alfonso had finally arrived to the school, on the island Poveglia, where he was greeted by a group of students surrounding two bodies bloodied and sliced up. Everyone was freaking out, and several people were on the ground unconscious and others crying. Two men came and tried to get order. Alfonso was about to turn around and leave when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to find an elderly woman looking back at him.

"You are the new arrival, yes?" she asked.

"Yes." he answered.

She asked him to follow him, which he did. Along the way, the conversation went like this:

"What was going on back there?" Alfonso asked.

"It's... been a problem. Not too long ago we've begun to find mutilated bodies."

"This doesn't bother you?"

"Of course it does, but no one can seem to figure it out."

"Is it safe here?"

The woman paused for a moment, before responding, "As much as I hate to admit it, no. Just without our mystery killer, tensions are running high. It won't be long before false accusations go about, and people start to kill each other."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to put my faith in the headmaster. If anyone can keep the peace, it will be him."

"Who is this headmaster?" Alfonso asked.

"A man named Damyan Nikolovich."

"The Damyan Nikolovich? You mean that he actually takes the time to teach us?"

"Yes, in fact, he was the one who founded the school."

Damyan Nikolovich was the time's equivalent of Stephen Hawking. He was a polyglot, or was able to speak multiple languages. He was unbelievably brilliant, and became famous for his massive intelligence. He was well-respected, and loved.

"He is a brilliant man, and massively compassionate. He asked to meet you." the woman said to Alfonso.

"Eh? Where is he?"

"At the mines."

"Mines?"

"Yes, he's excavating several different artifacts and minerals. I hope you don't mind getting dirty."

Jinx skipped to the third chapter, in which Alfonso and the woman arrived to the mines, where Damyan was busy with a pickaxe. Damyan himself resembled a kind but easily-distracted-by-his-work old man. The funny thing was, he was apparently only in his forties—not that old.

"Aye! I've struck the elements. Haha!" Damyan had said as Alfonso entered the mines.

The conversation went something along the lines of:

"Excuse me sir."

"Eh? What was that?"

"Me sir." Alfonso said.

"Aye! You're the new arrival! Splendid! Splendid! I love how the youth wish to learn! It's simply incredible! When I was a boy, no one cared! But here I go rambling off. I am Dr. Damyan Nikolovich."

The book went into greater detail about how the two became friends, but Jinx wasn't interested. She'd much rather hear more about the murders than the "great Damyan Nikolovich". She threw the book down and sighed. This was like Harry Potter all over again. She didn't feel like reading anymore, but she definitely didn't want to go to sleep. She needed to pass the time.

She spent the next hour drawing in her sketchbook when she heard a knock at the door. She set the drawing down, and opened the door to find Wally there. He gave her a nervous smile, and she invited him in. She was happy for the company, especially if it meant that Wally was starting to warm up. Jinx sat down on her bed and he leaned against the wall opposite to her. He stared at the floor.

"Jinx..."

She smiled at him.

"Yes...?"

He shook his head in shame, and couldn't seem to bring his gaze to hers.

"He keeps saying..."

Her smile was replaced by a frown. She knew what he meant by that.

"He wants you... dead..."

His voice was almost a whisper now.

"And I was... going to do it..."

She could hear him giving quiet sobs. He took a minute to compose himself before continuing.

"But... I realized something... I don't want to do it..."

She stood up and he said, "But I might not have a choice..."

He walked closer to her and finally managed to look her in the eyes. She was afraid of what she'd see in those eyes, but, she saw something that she wasn't sure she'd see again. It was... his eyes... not Wally of the Midas Gang, but Wally, the Kid Flash.

"Jinx..."

"Yes...?"

"I..."

But she stopped him, and she smiled.

"This is our moment Wally, don't louse it up by talking so much."

End of Chapter...