The giant space station was gently spinning, like a top in slow motion. The large glass windows kept the precious air inside and the cold, deadly vacuum of space outside. Unlike in the more popular science fiction shows space was actually a silent place and the only sound heard in the giant control room, with its 360 degree view, was the gentle murmur of the ventilation system, which pumped heated air into the huge room.
Batman traced his hand over the polymer based window. It was a mere 3 centimeters thick, and was all that separated him from a cold death in the merciless vacuum of space. The glass felt ice cold to his touch, even through his gloved hands.
Cold. More than once he had been accused of being cold, of being unfeeling. Not only by his teammates in the Justice League or by his paramours in his civilian role as Bruce Wayne. Those he could cope with. Regarding the Justice League, someone had to be the level headed one, and regarding the ladies, well, he knew he didn't really have time for them as there were more important things to do.
But there was one who once called him cold and unfeeling, and that opinion reverberated all the way into his soul. On the surface it didn't make sense why he valued that individual's opinion so much, but he did, and of course he knew why. They shared a common background; their parents were murdered by thugs. Bruce thought he could save the boy and mold him into someone like himself. Of course he succeeded beyond his wildest dreams and yet at the same time he failed.
Bruce remembered well the moment things snapped between them. They were following the Joker, who wound up stealing some strange radar gear which he later used to jam the city's radar system, making aerial transport dangerous if not outright impossible. But it wasn't the Joker that tore them asunder. It was a mere lackey, a guy down on his luck that the Joker hired as a look out while they stole the gear.
The lookout failed of course and the Dynamic Duo nearly captured the Joker, who only escaped when he launched a prototype missile at them. The Joker and his henchmen ditched their watch man as they escaped, and he fled in panic as Batman and Robin emerged from the building. With the Joker long gone he was their only connection to find him and they gave pursuit.
They chased the man back to his dilapidated apartment, where his young wife and son were waiting for him. It was a poor choice on his behalf as within moments of his arrival Batman burst through his door, shattering it into kindling, followed closely behind by Robin. The Dark Knight manhandled the lackey while his wife and son cowered in a corner, terrified. After a moment the young boy, who was about five years old, summoned the courage to speak up.
"Leave my daddy alone!"
Batman ignored the boy.
"Where is the Joker?" He snarled at the man, as he grabbed his coat by the lapels and slammed him into a wall.
"I don't know, I swear!"
"Don't lie to me!" Batman roared back as he slammed him into the wall a second time.
"I don't know! I don't work for him. A guy in a bar said he had a gig for me, an easy 100 bucks for an hour's work. The rent's overdue, I didn't know it was anything illegal, I swear!"
"I don't believe you!"
Robin turned to woman and her boy. Both were terrified and in tears.
"Batman." He whispered. "Not in front of his family."
The Dark Knight shook his head.
"We'll leave as soon as he tells us where to find the Joker."
"He doesn't know."
"He does. You're too soft Robin; eventually you'll see things my way."
Robin stepped away from Batman and headed to a window.
"I'm out of here!" He barked at his mentor as he jumped out the window.
That had been the last time Batman had seen Robin until he visited Titans Tower. And Robin had been wrong that night, the man did have a clue that eventually led Batman to the Joker.
Some people could be excused for thinking that Batman had a vendetta against his former protégé, but they would be wrong. The truth was that the Dark Knight was angry with himself. He blamed himself for not training Robin properly, and for not completing his training. At the time he had been too proud to go after the Boy Wonder, figuring that he would eventually return with his tail between his legs.
It was a few months later with great dismay that he learned his protégé had teamed up with four other prepubescent teens and formed a team. He secretly kept a close eye on them, especially when he found out that Deathstroke the Terminator, AKA Slade Wilson, had set up shop in Jump City and on more than one occasion had come within a bat's whisker of stepping in to help them. Slade was right when he taunted Robin about being sloppy. And of course there was the news that Robin had temporarily become Slade's apprentice.
Forgive me Dick, for I have failed you.
While their success did not go unnoticed by the Batman, neither did their sloppiness nor shortcomings. The changeling, while a former protégé of Mento of the Doom Patrol, was a scatterbrain who screwed up more often than not. The bionic lad was an emotional basket case who more often than not would be easily fooled by villains. The Tamaranian was a naïve puppy who belonged in a Japanese anime show.
And then there was the demoness.
When Zatanna told Batman about Raven's true identity he was stunned. How could Robin have someone like that on his team? Was he insane?
Bruce planted his palm on the glass, feeling it literally suck the warmth out of his hand, just as his failure with the Boy Wonder sucked the pride out of his soul.
I failed you Dick, but I'll make it right … even if you don't want me to do it.
A sliding door opened and the sound of metallic footsteps was heard across the titanium alloy floor.
"I have news Batman. Construction has begun. No one knows that we are building it."
Batman withdrew his chilled palm from the ice cold window.
"Thank you Red Tornado. Will it be completed on time?"
"It will be completed a week before the Young Justice members finalize their training.
"Thank you. If you'll excuse me, I need to return to Earth. Also, we'll need to contact the Titans and let them know that we will be taking Miss Martian's ship into our possession."
"I will take care of that." The red robot replied.
Without saying another word Batman left the room and headed for teleportation center.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Doctor Light laughed as he snapped one of his photonic whips at the car Cyborg threw at him, slicing it half. Robin frowned as he wracked his brain to find a winning tactic to defeat the "sad small man" as Raven often called him. The problem was that today the good doctor wasn't quite so small or sad. He was wearing a new and enhanced suit that seemed to have an endless source of power, judging by the never ending blasts of raw energy that he hurled their way.
Raven tried to trap him with her dark energy, but every time she tried that he would break free using an expanding sphere of light.
"Light always triumphs over darkness Raven!" He taunted her.
Meanwhile Starfire launched a barrage of Starbolts at the Pharaoh of Photons, who easily deflected them with his shield. He then struck at her with his whip, trapping her as it coiled around her waist. The princess shrieked in pain.
"Well, well, look at what I caught on my fishing line, something pretty and orange!"
Robin threw a barrage of bird-a-rangs at the villain, which he swatted away with his hand, which glowed with luminous energy.
"If you want her to live Robin, you will do as I say!"
The Boy Wonder swallowed hard. If there was one thing Batman had taught him, it was that you don't negotiate with villains. They seldom kept their word and they would always escape, often leaving a trail of tears and destruction in their wake.
"You wouldn't dare." Robin barked at him.
"Oh I think I would." The doctor replied as he cranked up the energy level in his whip.
Starfire let out a blood curdling scream as she fell to the ground.
"If I turn it up any higher it will slice right through her." The villain warned. "Not even Raven will be able to put her back together."
Cyborg aimed his sonic cannon at the villain.
"Don't do it, I'm warning you." He bellowed.
"It'll be the last thing you ever do!" Raven howled.
The villain grinned.
"Sorry Titans, I have all the cards. My first demand is a helicopter … oooof!"
The villain dropped his whip as a green blur slammed into him, or to be more precise it was a green ram that appeared out of nowhere. The villain crashed into a nearby wall as Robin ran to Starfire's side, quickly unwrapping the now deactivated photon whip from her waist.
"Star, are you OK?"
The alien girl wrapped her arms around her beau while Beast Boy, now back in his human form, handcuffed Dr. Light and removed his power couplings from his suit.
"BB's back in the house." He crowed triumphantly just as Terra arrived late at the scene.
Dr. Light craned his neck to face the changeling.
"You stupid, green freak …" He snarled at the changeling.
And found himself on the receiving end of glares from Raven and Terra.
"Don't you dare call my boyfriend a freak!" Raven snarled.
"What she said." Terra added.
Dr. Light gave the changeling an incredulous look.
"You have two girlfriends?" He asked.
"I'M HIS GIRLFIEND, YOU MORON!" Raven howled.
Dr. Light continued to stare at Beast Boy.
"You're kidding? She's your girlfriend? She's scary beyond belief!"
Beast Boy gave the doctor an indignant look.
"I like scary girls."
The conversation was cut short as several police officers took Dr. Light into custody and threw him into a paddy wagon, whisking him away to the local jail. Starfire, now standing on her own two feet, approached Beast Boy and gave him a hug.
"Thank you friend, for you have saved my life."
He pecked her on the cheek.
"It was my pleasure Star. I wish I could have seen his face when I slammed him."
"It was priceless grass stain. How did you get past his force field?" Cyborg asked.
The changeling laughed.
"I morphed into an amoeba. His shield isn't air tight, so I was able to slip past it."
"And I thought you were just a pretty face." Raven added with a smirk.
"Raven's brains must be rubbing off on the green bean."
"Well done Beast Boy. Our work here is done, let's go home."
Cyborg, Robin and a still shaken Starfire got into the T-Car and headed back to the Tower. Raven spread her arms and a black disk appeared on the ground.
"Hop on." She invited him.
"So it is a taxi." He replied as they took off.
"Must you always remind me of every cruel thing I've ever done to you?"
"Nah." He replied. "Only the really big ones."
Raven cringed, remembering the time when Saiko-Tek attacked the Tower. The ink based villain stunned Beast Boy with one of his exploding shuriken. Fortunately for Beast Boy he landed on Raven's flying disk. Unfortunately she kicked him off her flying circle, mocking him saying: 'does this look like a taxi?'.
"I'm sorry." She replied sotto voce. "I'm sorry I did all those nasty things to you."
He gave her one of his signature grins.
"It's OK, don't worry about it."
Raven felt very small standing next to him. The changeling never, not once, reciprocated any of her cruel acts. She had often been the target of his pranks, but they were never mean spirited.
"I'm also sorry about what I said the other day. I should give you more credit."
He gave her a puzzled look. She sighed in reply.
"Remember? Don't get your hopes up buster, it isn't gonna happen! "
He chuckled lightly.
"Oh that. You know that I … well … I don't expect … I mean … I do respect you."
"I know." She replied contritely as she reached for her belt. She extracted her promise ring from one of the compartments and slipped it in her finger (Robin had a 'no jewelry in battle" rule).
"Do you ever think about it though?" She asked.
The changeling hemmed and hawed before replying.
"Is there an answer that won't get me into trouble?"
This time it was Raven's turn to smile.
"I suppose not, and you don't have to answer. You are a man after all. And I am, in your own words 'scary'"
Beast Boy blushed, but his attention quickly changed to something else.
"Whoa! Check it out Rae!" He piped up animatedly as he gestured towards a formerly unoccupied hillside. "Someone's building something really big over there!"
The sorceress looked in the direction he was pointing and confirmed his observation.
"That is new, that hill was untouched just a month ago." She replied.
"I thought that hill was going to be part of a park."
"That was my understanding as well." She replied as she changed the direction of their flight towards the hill. As they approached the suspicious hill they both saw that the construction site was heavily guarded by well armed security guards. "Let's go get a closer look."
The changeling enthusiastically agreed with his sweetheart and Raven flew in, hiding between the trees to keep from being noticed.
"This is as close as we can get without being seen." She informed him.
"Not me." He replied as he morphed into a green falcon and took off.
"Gar! Wait!" She called out futilely as he was long gone.
The changeling casually flew around the construction site, taking in every sight with his super sharp avian eyes. At first, other than being heavily guarded nothing seemed to be unusual about the site. There were diggers all over the place and concrete was being poured left and right around the steel skeleton that was growing out of the ground like a mushroom.
He was intrigued by a large tunnel that led into the ground. It was more heavily guarded than Fort Knox and he wouldn't be able to slip past them in his current form. His curiosity got the best of him and he began to debate what sort of insect could most easily slip past the guards unseen. He wondered who might be building this apparent fortress. Slade crossed his mind first, but he quickly discarded that option as it wasn't the one eyed villain's style to build his lairs in broad daylight.
He was feeling very curious and decided that a plain old housefly would be the best choice to sneak in to take a quick peek at the innards of the long tunnel.
As he prepared to make a dive towards the cave he saw someone emerge from the tunnel. He squawked his surprise and aborted his plan to explore the cavern and instead returned to Raven, who was still hiding between the trees.
"Are you insane?" She hissed at him. "Do you want to get shot again? The place is crawling with armed guards."
He grinned at her.
"You're cute when you worry about me, Raven."
The sorceress's eyes glowed a dangerous looking obsidian black. He decided to switch gears.
"You're not gonna believe who I saw come out of that tunnel."
"Who?" She replied with a hint of impatience.
"It was Captain Marvel."
Raven looked shocked at first.
"Told ya you wouldn't believe me."
"Let's go. We need to tell the others about this." She whispered to him.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I know, the YJ's didn't get any screen time today. They're still busy training, but they're almost done and will be coming back to Jump City next chapter. I wonder if they'll invite the Titans over for dinner?
Oh, and I almost forgot!
If yu want to read a really good Nightwing story I recommend "The Crime of Passion" by Sir Alwick. Its in the Teen Titans section nd I higly recommend all of his work, he is a very talented writer!
And now, mail bag time!
nequam-tenshi - "Batman is just going to dig himself a bigger hole with the Titans.
No girl for YJ-Robin?"
I've been wondering that myself, I guess he has Babs! And when is the next YJ episode? It's getting close to two months now!
KinKitsune01 - "I really love this story so far; it's the first YJ fanfiction I've read and it's awesomely awesome! I used to love the Teen Titans cartoon when it was airing, so it brung back happy fuzzy memories. I never really liked the TT-Robin much as he's way to serious, but eh... I hope there'll be some more TT-Robin and YJ-Robin interactio somewhere in this story.
Great work so far and please, please keep it up! :)"
Thanks. Like I said, the YJs will be coming back into town. The only question is: will they be friends or rivals?
AllYourWafflesBelongToMe - "Although I'm not too fond of Terra, I do pity her sometimes - especially in the last part of the chapter. I have a feeling that Terra's gonna come out as a hero in this story. I'm getting worried about what Slade(curse that pedophile!) will do to Beast Boy. The Justice League's plan for the YJ is really getting in my nerves. Jump City? What are they thinking? _ Anyway, you did an exceptional job in this chapter!"
Thanks!
I wonder if the show's producers expected Terra to be so reviled by the fans. I just hope that KF and Artemis aren't the YJ version of BB and Terra.
titanfan45 - "Flash and Kid Flash were great. Batman calling the Guardians Jerk was priceless, Of course he's right. How could the Young Justice team's situation be trivial? Big Shots, go figure. Slade proved once again that he's not to be trusted."
Sometimes the most innocuous scenes are best ones.
LordGodsServant - "The League seem more and more like villains each chapter. Seriously! They can't seem to get over the fact that there is an organization that doesn't work under them. Batman seems to not realize that the best course of action would be to simply apologize for whatever caused Robin to go solo. Even if that didn't bring the Titans back it would lift alot of pressure and tension of League/Titans relationships.
Terra's situation steadily worsens. She doesn't seem to have learned from her first runaround with Slade that trying to get the Titan's approval while working for their worst enemy doesn't work. The best thing for her to do right now is to confess to the Titans, if Slade found a way to revive her then I'm certain Raven could too.
The League are acting really childish in this situation, they are like the eldest child of the family who can't tolerate a game played any way but his/her way and his/her way alone.
I wonder if the Titans and the League are going to come to blows eventually. The heavy hitters (Red Star and Superman for example) battles would be tremendous.
Terra finally got the sample, but made the mistake of actually thinking Slade would hold to his word when it took away a valuable resource, her.
YJ Kid Flash gets sage advice to act like himself. His relationship with Artemis seems almost remniscent of Beast Boy and Raven. Superboy and Ms. Martian is Robin and Starfire of course.
Sorry if I have rambled, it's just that your story is so good and I love expressing my thoughts on it."
I hope to have clarified why BMan is so obsessed with the Titans. I'm still not sure what final role Terra will play in this story.
yob3 - "Thanks for the heads up. A few questions, if I may:
1. Will Terra ever realise Slade will never free her?
2. Why do you call BB/Rae the CCC? I mean, what does it mean?
And finally, Batman is not dysfunctional. He has like twenty different girls chasing after him. And (all alternate realities taken into account) he has like 3-4 biological kids! (Full list is Helena Wayne, Terry McGuiness, and Daimian Wayne/al Ghul)"
1) I think she already is
2) Its a gag name for them I came up with the the TT section
3) "And finally, Batman is not dysfunctional." - I'm afraid I disagree. Dick Grayson has plenty of choice words about this former mentor in Batman the Animated Series. But being dysfunctional is what makes him an effective Batman.
Kitty723 - "Yah more batman! Awesome, can't wait 4 more "
You got your wish. Batsy does seem to have a big problem with Raven. Maybe she reminds him too much of himself.
Illsome Child - "Yay, I loved how you made Terra seem more human in this chapter and gave the readers like myself a chance to actually sympathize with her. Most authors just make her out to seem like a real bitch for no reason. _
While I am more of a BBRae fan, I do hope that Terra finds happiness in the end.
Excellent chapter, keep it up."
I've always agreed with BB that Terra isn't evil, just really messed up.
Linzerj - "YAY, MAH KID FLASH! *hugs KF* ...That was fangirl-ism on a massive scale. Sorry bout that. Anyway...this was great. I loved the YJ-KF/Flash interaction, and the part with the Titans and Slade and Terra was awesome, too. I really can't wait to see what happens next...!
...*stabs Slade some more*"
I actually like Slade a lot. Probably more to do with Ron Pearlman's interpretation of Slade (I thought Smallville's Slade sucked)
almostinsane - "Great story! As always, your writing is wonderful. I don't like Batman's attitude though... He and Robin simply need to sort out their issues. I think YJ!Batman should set him straight. Thanks for writing this. God bless!"
At some point they need to have a heart to heart. At this point I don't know if it will actually happen.
David-El - "Great job so far, and THANK YOU for answering a question I'd had for a while: why was Terra working for Slade again. However, the answer just raised another question: HOW THE HELL IS SLADE ABLE TO REVERSE IT? And just out of curiousity, why did you use Hal when YJ is one of only two times that he's played a continuos part of a series? Also, why isn't at least Ganthet willing to help with the JL's problem? "
For those not very familiar with the Teen Titans, in the 3 part Episode "The End" Slade procures an Azarathian magic ring that affords protection from Trigon. I took that concept and gave Slade more rings, one which he uses to conditionally free Terra from her stony predicament.
Gingerstorm101 - "i know, but still...
*switches the pairings; locks slade and raven in a room and locks terra and beast boy in a room. then kills terra a beast boy just for the heck of it
ok, great chapter... somewhat. hate the terra slade pairings. it just makes me gag! and i was just reading slade/raven pairings right before this...
UPDATE SOON PLZ!"
I've always thought Raven and Slade make the creepiest pairing possible.
nova bomb - "great story. I like how you are handling the league and especally the bat. personally i am suprised that he did not try to shut down the titans yet. also I think the titans would be intesting to find the way back for yj. someting on the line of meeting yj league and asking if there missing a robin , kid flash, aqualad, and the rest."
I think Batsy has a love/hate relationship with the Titans.
KaliAnn - "At least Kid Flash can admit his counterpart one up him in the romance department, but Flash isn't the best guy to give advice on romance. What was wonderful was the friendship being shown by the Titans and how villigiant they were with Terra even though she managed to slip in and get that sample. Slade is a terror and I wonder what he's planning, but my blood boiled when I heard what Batman planned to do! He's doing this to make a point and doesn't care who he hurts! I really hope you write the Titans and Young Justice working together to save the day and then going home. Oh and someone kick Batman's butt for being a jerk."
Well, like Flash said, Jinx isn't exactly a great catch. And we got a glimpse into Batman's head today.
WiseGirl-AC - "Oooh! Lovin the new chapter! Just a quick thought, have you ever thought about the YJ justice league and the TT(?) justice league meeting later on? But, of course, that could only ever possibly happen if they ever find a way back. Oh, another quick question, will you bring any of your own OC's in? Like, just for a random chapter or somethin... By the way, LOVE how this is all coming together, slowly, but surely! 4 and a half out of 5, not a 5/5 cause I still wanna see where the heck you take this! Lolz!"
Do you mean Lisa Ashmore? LOL!
Master Doc - "I like the Flash and Kid Flash conversation :)
Btw what about Cyborg and Bumblebee from Titans East? There's literally thousands of fics where Cyborg is the only one getting no love when he and Bumblebee had that thing for each other"
It's hard to write for Cyborg. In the show they briefly paired him up with Jinx, and later with Sarasim. While I have paired him up with Bumblebee in other stories (I even once paired him with Blackfire!), I see them more as friendly rivals than lovers. I'm afraid he's doomed to be a bachelor.
Hairul The Nightrage Beast - "Well Terra's in dire straits, but probably Raven can undo the curse, though she'll have to do intensive research on countering the curse, well Terra's gonna betray Slade I guess."
I guess it depends if Terra can come clean with the Titans. Her past track record isn't very good in that matter.
SuperninjaX - "Umm...the "references" in this chapter were too weird for me, it killed the chapter for me...sorry but other than that great work!"
Well, it is a crossover. If you aren't familiar with the Titans it will be that way at times I'm afraid (and like I've said before, their characters are far more developed at this point than the YJs). But the YJs will be back in action next chapter, after their graduation ceremony! (Batman must be so proud)