Okay everyone, just want to take some time and wish you all an early MERRY CHRISTMAS! Keep an eye out for my Christmas story this Christmas Eve featuring everyone's favorite shape-shifter and animal lover, Garfield Logan as he tells the story of 'The Night Before Christmas' YJ style.
jwill21 - Going back to my last story, Metallo was created in a Lazarus Pit. The pool was infused with Kryptnite, granting him the ability to bond with the element and go through a 'Terminator-like' operation. Advanced robotics and weaponry has him moving much faster than a normal human and because he is bonded with Kryptonite and uses it as a power-source, he is able to overcharge himself into being incredibly fast. His speed though does not match Superman's but he makes up for that with his other abilities.
Ben A - I actually have never seen Public Enemies. I've only seen JL: War, Son of Batman, Doomsday, Wonder Woman (Which would make a great live action intro movie for her with a few tweaks), and All Star Superman, which should get a sequel to have him come back. And remember, the early Atlanteans worshipped Dagon, who they thought was Dagon at least, but was actually Trigon all along.
Black Voctor Cachat - Of course there will be parts of what the Black Ops team think of the new Titan team and it first pops up here. As for M'gann sharing her memories of past missions with the new team, yes, she does do that and it will be touched on later on. And go on with any questions you have, I welcome them.
Noctis11 - Lol, never thought of a team-up of Arthur and Carter. But there's three kids including Iris. That would be funny for a stand alone story though, 'Triple Trouble.'
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1.
Gotham City
July 9
21:14 UTC
Arriving at an alleyway, a squad car with its red and blue lights cutting through the darkness screeched to a stop as two officers came hurrying out. Taking out their flashlights, they strained to see through the rain the city had come under not to long ago. Trash skittered across the soaked street and a few rats climbed out of trash cans as they searched for a meal with the cops passing them by.
Searching the area, both officers moved their lights across the glistening concrete and stone walls of two close together apartment buildings. The faint sound of the dispatch could be heard over their radios, a sound they lowered with the turn of a knob from their belt mounted receivers. Continuing into the alley, both officers came across a group of homeless people trying to sleep trough the night under cardboard boxes or inside large metal trash bins.
"Ignore 'em," one of the officers said. "Dispatch said we're here looking for a B and E, not bums."
"Yeah. But I don't think they said anything about that up there."
Looking at where his parter was aiming his light, the first officer spotted what looked to be the silhouette of a woman walking along the fire escape of one of the apartment buildings.
"Looks like Catwoman's up to her usual tricks again," the first officer said.
"But why here? I thought she would be in the more ritzy part of Gotham," the second officer told him.
"Eh, you know dames." Drawing his weapon, he motioned for his partner to follow him. "Come on, she went inside. Let's see if we can apprehend her and see what she's after."
Drawing his revolver as well, the second officer followed his partner and stood on the other side of the back door leading into an apartment at the end of the ally. Both timed their entry so as to make sure all was clear for them to enter the building without making to much noise. They failed as the door they kicked in fell off its hinges and clattered on the concrete floor, startling several pigeons looking to get out of the rain.
"Smooth," one of the cops said.
"Shut up," replied the other. "Let's just see what we can find.
Seeing as they were inside a kitchen, the two guessed they were in a hotel, not an apartment like the other buildings around them. The call they had received was of a break in so it only made since they would be looking for a homeless person looking to get out of the rain, not a cat burglar, especially in this part of the city known as Crime Alley.
Moving from the kitchen, the two entered a large dining area. Dust covered tables, fallen tapestries, and smashed furniture lay scattered on the floor. The sound of a stray dog was heard retreating from the area along with the rain and thunder from outside. Lightning illuminated the large room every so often through windows surprisingly still intact.
"You sure Catwoman would be in here?"
"Maybe it's a hideout for her. You know, like an abandoned amusement park was Joker's hideout. These freaks always go for the abandoned places."
As they approached the slightly opened double doors of the dining hall, a loud boom of thunder echoed around them with lightning turning everything a bright white. For the split second the room was lit, a white and black form moved behind them on the ceiling.
"Rragh, jammed." Trying to get the doors open, the first officer felt something heavy on the other side with the hinges refusing to move. When it did, he felt where it hit something solid. "Can you see what's blocking it?"
"Uh, hold on." Moving closer to the three inch wide gap between the doors, the second Officer used his light to look into a large foyer with a hallway at the end. "I see it. Looks like a dresser or table. Hold on."
Bracing his shoulder against the door, the second officer nodded to his partner to signal his readiness. As one, they shoved the door hard, creating a loud crack from the rusting hinges coming loose with the object on the other side scraping along the floor. Gathering their strength again, the two were just about to push the door the rest of the way open when one of them was pulled back so fast, the other did not know he was gone.
"Almost there. One more good push and we-WHUAAGH!"
Crashing onto the damaged floor, the second police officer landed beside his partner, gun sliding across the floor and coming to a stop under the high heel of a bone-like skinned woman.
"Well now," she said in an Irish accent. "The boys in blue. A welcome change from the usual criminals breaking in here."
"Quite the welcome change." Emerging from the shadows as another bolt of lighting flashed, a tall man wearing a red cloak stepped into view. Taking his hood off, he reveled his face to the downed police officers.
His overall appearance was vampire-like with wrinkled pale skin, pointed ears, and blood red eyes. Pure white hair flowed down to the middle of his back as he pulled it from his hood. "Blood of the righteous is far better than the blood of the wicked.
Dashing forward, the man grabbed one of the officers and had his eyes glow a bright red. Letting out a scream of death, the officer felt his life being drained out of him as his body went stiff. A red mist flowed from his eyes and mouth into the cloaked man, terrifying the other cop who could only stare in horror.
With the last of the red mist flowing into the cloaked man, the officer fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. His body was completely drained of not only blood, but all fluids, leaving him a shriveled husk of a human being.
Snapping out of his fear, the second officer grabbed his spare revolver from an ankle holster and opened fire on the cloaked individual who was licking his lips as if he just partook in a meal. Bullets bounced off him with the sound of metal pinging meaning he wore armor underneath his cloak.
"Fool," the vampiric man said, "you cannot harm what cannot be harmed. You cannot harm the left hand of Trigon!"
Grabbing the second officer, the cloaked man drained him just like the first and let his lifeless body fall to the floor. Wiping his mouth clean, another bolt of lightning lit up the interior of the building as the woman came up to him.
"Brother Blood," Silver Banshee said as she let him finish cleaning up, "I wish you would have waited for me to bring them to you."
Licking the last of the red mist residue from his hands, the cloaked man known as Brother Blood turned to face his subordinate. His face was no longer cracked and old looking but was quite young looking, almost as if he were a young twenty something.
"You worry too much, Banshee. Those...thugs as they are known, do not fill me like the righteous. These two will suffice but put their bodies with the rest. I still need to rest and find the last sacrifices."
With that, Brother Blood replaced his hood over his head and walked back into the shadows. A bright golden light covered him and a split second later, he vanished into the darkness, leaving Silver Banshee behind to dispose of the deceased police officers.
Across Gotham:
With the sound of rope tightening, Robin finished up suspending a would-be purse snatcher from a fire escape between two buildings. This made the third one since beginning their own investigation into the Riddler's murder that had been caught. Besides a couple of homeless men, no one had offered anything of use when it came to who was responsible for the criminal genius's demise.
"Anything from this goon?" Static asked once Robin hopped back onto the roof.
"Nothing. Guy's from the upper east side. Recognized him from a few security videos Batman had." Scratching the side of his head, the third one to call himself the Boy Wonder let out a sigh. "Someone has to know something. We just have to find the right person."
"You do know what city we're in, right? And you do know they won't give up any information easily." Crossing his arms, the blue and black clad teen known as Static waited for an answer. "Look, man, I want to get back at Eddie's killers and think we have a good lead with Riddler's death, but unless you're part Martian or a psychic, we are on the bottom rung of the ladder of luck."
"Hey, Kid just rounded up a few guys who said they might have seen something over in Crime Alley." Swooping to a stop, Blue Beetle hovered above the two as Vibe's voice came over his earpiece. "Vibe also says he's got two ways to make them talk, but you or Bart won't like one of them."
"What ways are those?" Robin asked.
"Either he uses his sound vibrations to give them splitting headaches, or gives them some of Bart's food."
It did not take the three young heroes long to make the trip to where Kid Flash and Vibe were located with the few men they held for questioning. Thanks to Static's control over electricity, he was not only able to have Robin fly on the electrical disk he road, but also made sure not to cause him any discomforts. Black Lightning had taught him well and he was a fast learner.
"Hey, have you heard about Starfire?" Static asked as he, Robin, and Blue Beetle flew through the night sky over Gotham. "She might go over to the Titan team."
"Thought she hadn't decided yet," Blue Beetle said over their com link as he flew along side them.
"I overheard her and Supergirl talking when they got back from Brazil. Supergirl said something about joining the League with Superman then Star said maybe siding with the Titans. So unfair."
"How is it unfair?" Robin asked.
"League gets another super Kryptonian and the Titans get another super powered alien. We get squat."
"Dude," Blue Beetle said, "Reach tech supersuit wearer dating an Amazon demigod, right here."
"I mean raw power. Don't get me wrong, I like being on the black ops team, but we should really look into getting some more heavy hitters. You're the equivalent of Green Lantern junior, WG's our version of Superboy, Rob's our tactician, we really need a magic user and infiltrator."
"I get your point," Robin told him. "But Bumble Bee's good at getting in and out better than Beast Boy since she's more experienced and not green. Mal's great at computer hacking and maintaining our gear. Babs is great as mission overseer. And then there's Aqualad who, well let's face it, should be in the League with his leadership skills and combat experience. We're actually more rounded then the Titans if you think about it."
"Still, it feels like we're the proving ground sometimes. Like the minors in baseball. We get called up to either team or,"
"Stop right there, Virg. We are the ones who stay in the shadows. We are the ones who do the work when the others have to be in the spotlight as a distraction. If anything, the Titans are the proving ground because they have yet to go on a real mission Batman assigns. They're still in training while we're the big leagues. Besides, we outrank them other than Superboy and Mrs. Martian, or if any of us are under Titan jurisdiction."
"Meaning?" Blue Beetle asked.
"Meaning, if they need our help, we listen to them. But if we call any of them, they need to listen to us. Sort of a superhero checks and balances sort of thing we got going. Other than that, we're our own groups."
"You know," Static commented, "should Aqualad retire or join the League, you should be the next leader."
Letting out a laugh, Robin patted Static's shoulder. "As long as we don't decide with something as lame as an election or the like, fine by me."