The view showed the T-Tower. The sky up above was now filled with dark clouds. It was still night.
The view changed.
"Ohhh..." Adam groaned. An ice pack was against his head. The scene showed Raven floating above the bed behind him.
"Just keep that there for another ten minutes. You should be fine after that man." Cyborg said to him.
Adam rolled his eyes. "Yes, mom." He said sarcastically.
Cyborg chuckled. "Be glad that after slamming into a chimney and having me run into you, the worst thing you got was a headache." Cyborg snarkily replied.
"This world makes no fetching sense," Adam muttered to himself.
"What was that?" Cyborg asked.
"I said I'm just happy that your fat bulk didn't turn me into a pancake," Adam replied sarcastically.
Cyborg laughed. "Whatever, tell me when you're capable of benching more than a ton then get back to me."
"Maybe I'll get some cybernetic implants so I can do just that!" Adam responded.
"Not worth it. Trust me on that." Cyborg replied humorously, though with a tone of seriousness in his voice.
"Yeah… whatever you say, man." Adam crossed his arms and sat back on the cot again.
The view showed Raven's body lowered back down onto the hospital bed. After a couple more seconds, she opened her violet eyes.
A green hand squeezed hers. "Welcome back to the land of the living," Beast Boy said next to her.
Raven rolled her eyes and tried to sit up. She fell tiredly back onto her pillow though. "Whoa, Rae. You used a lot of energy there to heal your arm." Cyborg said as he hurried over to her.
"What… happened?" Raven slowly asked.
Adam chuckled to himself. "What happened? We got fetching owned by whoever that was." Adam said. Then he groaned at his headache again.
"None of our attacks landed. Not even one." Beast Boy said.
"And some of us ended up hitting each other… again, sorry about that, man," Cyborg said to Adam.
"I'll get over it eventually. We're not having another repeat of the Mad Mod incident." Adam waved the man off.
"Yeah, well, whoever that was, she did a number on all of us… especially Robin." Cyborg said.
"I don't see him here… or Starfire for that matter." Raven looked around.
"I bandaged him up, but he left the room immediately after. No idea where Starfire is now." Cyborg answered.
"Still, who the heck was that though? I mean, she looked like she was dressed up like Slade… but I'm pretty sure Slade was a dude last I checked!" Beast Boy said.
"I think the man's also old, like, way older than us," Cyborg added. "She looked like a teenager at best."
"I agree. That definitely wasn't Slade." Raven said.
"Who the fetch was it then?" Adam asked curiously.
"You know, that's something we'd all like to know right now," Cyborg replied seriously, as he looked out the Infirmary window at the night sky…
The view faded into a dark-looking office room. The only lights that were on were in the middle of the room. Illuminating Robin in the center of three different boards.
His gashes were all bandaged up. The tears were still there in his uniform though.
A certain eeriness filled the air. Robin moved from board to board, to board.
The view showed the board behind on his left. There were pictures of Slade Wilson on it. From the very first encounter with him to the taking down of Trigon the Terrible. With other pictures from airports, passersby on the sidewalk, and other things. Red lines moved from picture to picture.
The view then showed the board behind him on his right. It was also dedicated to Slade. On it were all the things he had tried to do. All the plans that the Titans knew of. Along with some of the theories for what he might try to do next. Red lines moved between these ones too.
Then the view showed the board in front of him. On the top was a picture of the long white-haired girl in the lookalike Slade mask.
The view showed a flashback of her in the trophy room.
"I saw that attack coming a mile away, Robin."
The view showed the present again. Robin showed another part of the board.
It was a series of brief flashbacks, mixed with the board as it was shown.
What she had stolen.
... she reached out and picked up the cube with her free hand.
It showed her abilities.
Robin tried his luck next. And he threw the two disks from his hands through the air.
Boom!
The figure rolled to the right of the explosion.
Boom!
The figure jumped over the next explosion and continued to run.
The weapons she had used.
Slash! "Augh!"
The view showed Raven fall away. She gripped a long gash along her right arm. The dark portal closed behind her.
How she had fought.
Robin found himself going from the offensive to the defensive within seconds. As the figure effectively cut his offensive short and got past his guard.
Slash!
Robin found himself going from the offensive to the defensive within seconds. The figure not only effectively cut his offensive short, but got past his guard.
Then, at last, it showed the whole board. In the middle of it all was one, significant, red, question mark with all the lines from all the pictures leading into it.
"Who are you?!" Robin yelled angrily.
The figure locked eyes with him. They were familiar and cold.
"Daddy's little girl." She answered.
Pow!
Thmmm.
The view went back to normal. Robin quickly turned around with three disks in his hands. He was breathing in and out heavily.
SStarfire walked into the scene calmly. "Robin."
…
Robin relaxed and put the three disks back into his utility belt. "Sorry. I… didn't know it was you Star." Robin apologized.
"It is fine. I know you to be on the edge whenever Slade is the involved." Starfire walked over to him and softly hugged him to herself. He reciprocated with his arms around her.
...
"Did you do the figuring out of the confusing yet?" She asked after a moment.
"No, I haven't done the figuring out of the confusing yet," Robin replied with a chuckle. "I don't think I have enough information here to do the figuring it out right now."
Starfire surprised him by grabbing his shoulders then. She pushed him back to arm's length and looked him in the eyes. "And are you really doing the okay, boyfriend Richard?" She asked him seriously.
From Robin's viewpoint, it was as if the Tamaranean girl was peering into his very soul.
…
Robin looked like he was going to say something. And then he turned his head to the side.
"No, I'm not okay Kori.
"I honestly have no idea what to do. That girl, whoever she was, completely outclassed us in every way imaginable.
"I didn't even have a chance against her. She'd beaten me the moment I made the first move."
Starfire nodded her head. "You will bounce back from this. I know you will."
"But how? I don't even know where to start…" Robin gripped his girlfriend tightly. The view showed him trying to not shake from the genuine fear he was feeling. "I… I'm really scared about this. She broke into our home so easily. She could have killed any of you in your sleep. If… if I hadn't been in the security room and noticed her intrusion…"
"Relax… it is the ok," Starfire said assuredly.
"We are fine. You need not obsess over this."
"I... I'm sorry..."
"There is no need to apologize. I am here for you."
The two stayed hugging, with Robin trembling in his girlfriend's arms.
…
After a moment though, she pulled back to look at his face again. "Now, I do believe the good night's rest is in order," Starfire said firmly.
"Wh-What?! But, but Kori-" Robin tried to complain.
She turned around, keeping a grip on one of Robin's shoulders. She dragged him along with her.
"Silence. You will not do the speaking or the researching or the brooding of this until tomorrow boyfriend Richard." Starfire said firmly. "Your worry is appreciated. But doing the beating of yourself with this all night will not help you do the thinking or the beating of our enemy."
"And besides, I know how much you shall do the worrying of us for this. So tonight, I will have you sleep in my bed with me, so you shall not do the worrying of me."
Robin's eyes boggled in their sockets.
H-He was going to sleep in the same bed as Starfire?!
But wait, there was still the problem he had to focus on!
"I have to figure it out or else it'll bug me all night!" Robin grabbed the edges of the doorframe. His arms then lengthened and became anime as they stretched to try and pull him back inside.
Robin groaned as his body was stretched out, until...
Plunk! Thmmm.
Robin disappeared from the doorway, and the door slid shut on his office…
The last of the light fell on the picture of the white-haired girl before being enveloped in darkness.
The view moved to the inside of a dark building.
Boom!
A large figure flew through a wall and landed in the middle of the floor. He quickly got back up on his feet, and he moved his head from side to side. An orange and steel mask covered his face.
Slash!
Slade fell back onto one of his knees. He held a hand to the gash that had appeared under his right side.
"What's the matter, father? Is your old age finally catching up to you?" A voice asked.
"Why are you doing this, my daughter?" Slade asked in his normal, baritone voice. His eye narrowed under his mask. "I did not tell you to attack the Teen Titans yet."
The view showed the other figure appearing in front of Slade. Her eyes glinted evilly behind her cloth mask. "What's the problem? Don't tell me you're still planning for how you'll take them on next."
Slade's eye narrowed at her. "Why?"
"Because I'm tired of you holding me back, that's why." She said.
Pow! Boom!
Her boot connected with Slade's head, and Slade flew back into the air. He slammed into a wall again and fell to the ground unconscious.
The figure walked up to his prone body.
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have only one loose end to tie up. And then the future I have foreseen will be certain.
"I do hope you look forward to it, father." She said maliciously. "I shall finally accomplish what you have been unable to do for years."
The figure turned around and ran out of the room.
The view faded to black…
The view showed the T-Tower. The light of morning was appearing in the sky. The bay all around glittered a bright blue hue…
The scene changed.
"Huhhhhhhhhh!"
Cyborg yawned as he appeared at the end of the hallway. He stretched his arms above him, and then behind him.
"Man, what I'd give to have a good night's sleep that isn't interrupted by villains every night." He said groggily to himself. He continued to walk down the hallway.
The view showed the word RAVEN on a sliding door in the hallway. Cyborg appeared again and started to walk in front of the door.
Thmmm. "Huhhhhhhhh!"
The door slid open. Cyborg turned his head. "Morning, Rav-"
His eyes widened drastically.
Beast Boy was standing in the doorway. With Raven's room in plain sight behind him. He had his arms stretched up above his head, and his mouth wide open for the mother of all yawns.
…
It was too perfect.
Click!
A bright flash covered Beast Boy, startling him to alertness. "Wait, what?" He said in surprise.
The view showed a now snickering Cyborg. He was holding up a camera. He pulled the picture out of the front of it seconds after it had developed.
"Yo, now this is what I call thick, juicy, blackmail!" Cyborg said excitedly. Nothing looked as good though as the timestamp in the corner, proving he'd taken this in the morning, right as his best friend was walking out of his girlfriend's room.
Beast Boy immediately put his hands up in front of him. "Wait, dude! It's not what it looks like! I only took Rae back to her room last night because she was so tired, and I fell asleep on the floor because of like how tired I was! And I swear that's all that happened!" Beast Boy said hurriedly.
Cyborg giggled to himself like a little schoolgirl. "Oh, this is totally going to be payback for when you tricked me with those vegan patties! See ya later, grassstain!" Cyborg said happily, as he turned to run down the hallway.
…
Raven was shown blocking the way.
She had her hand up in front of her. "Give it." She said plainly.
Cyborg took a step back in surprise. "C'mon Rae! It's not like I'm going to suggest to the public that anything went down in your room or anything!" Cyborg tried to protest in an immature tone.
Raven's eyebrow arched up. "What are you talking about?"
"..."
Cyborg stared at her confusedly. Raven rolled her eyes.
"Maybe you'll want to take another look at that picture before you show it to the public," Raven said dryly. "I'd very much appreciate not being the cause of many children's nightmares... again."
Cyborg still looked confused, but he looked down at the picture anyway and…
…
His face blanched. And his whole body turned white.
The picture didn't show Beast Boy exiting her room at all. Instead, it showed a dark, fiery red pit. A demonic Rage was waving in the picture, next to a pile of blue and white robotic parts.
It looked to be about the number of parts needed to put a Cyborg together…
KSCHHHHHHHHH!
Cyborg rapidly shredded the picture into many pieces. The flakes fell all over the floor before him.
His color scheme then went back to normal as he sheepishly grinned and shrugged. "You know what, I think this was all just a big misunderstanding on my part.
"I didn't see anything at all! No sirree, I have no memory of this in my databanks as I speak…"
…
A large anime sweat drop slowly appeared on his forehead.
Raven nodded her head, and a small smirk appeared on her face. "Good. I'm glad we were able to settle this peacefully."
She calmly turned around and floated down the hallway.
Beast Boy also turned around and walked down the opposite hallway. He looked incredibly relieved.
…
When the two had disappeared, Cyborg shuddered to himself. "Yeah. I'm going to try and erase this from my memory banks later."
He looked down again. The shredded remains of the picture were laying on the floor. But it was almost like he could still see Rage waving up at him, next to a pile of...
He shuddered again. "Man, this is not fair at all."
"Mmmm..."
The view showed Adam at the Common Room table. He was chewing on a rather tasty-looking piece of bacon.
"Whoever thought of making bacon was a genius," Adam said in delight.
He took another bite, and a choir of angels appeared in the background to sing the praises of bacon.
It was truly divine.
...
Thmmm.
The doors slid open. The choir of angels disappeared as Adam opened his eyes.
A still rather pale-looking Cyborg walked into the room.
Adam raised his head and looked up at him. "Hey, Chrome Dome, what's up?" Adam asked curiously.
Cyborg shook a little bit. "I want to keep all my pieces together. I want to keep all my pieces together." He said timidly.
…
Adam shrugged and went back to eating his bacon. "Must have been a bad dream." He said before he took a massive bite from a strip and began to chew.
"Mmmmm..." The background choir of angels appeared to sing once again.
…
The view showed Cyborg walking to the kitchen. He made to grab a box of cereal on top of the fridge. Then he looked back at Adam and watched him munch on his bacon for a moment.
A different thought process finally entered his mind…
At last, Cyborg opened the freezer. He took out a frozen slab of bacon and started cooking it on the stovetop.
Thmmm.
The door slid open again. A bright-looking Starfire and Robin entered the room. "Oh, it is the beautiful day again boyfriend Robin!" Starfire said cheerfully.
Robin had a smile on his face. Even as he looked down at the files he was holding in his hands. "It's always beautiful with you around." He replied cheesily.
Starfire giggled to herself at the line she loved.
"And… thank you for helping me feel better last night." He admitted.
Starfire kissed him on the cheek. "You are always the welcome in my room, boyfriend Robin." She winked at him happily.
Robin blushed but smiled in response as he held her hand in his.
"Ugh, get a room you two." Raven appeared from one of the side hallways. She had a large book in her hands.
Cyborg opened his mouth to retort. However, in his view, he saw Rage cackling evilly on the couch, holding a power drill in her claws... and immediately he turned around and buried himself in his cooking.
"But we already have our rooms?" Starfire responded confusedly. She looked to Robin for clarification.
"Later… let's have breakfast first," Robin suggested.
"Ok, but I will want the explanation of what friend Raven was referring to by us 'getting the room'," Starfire replied.
"Mmph!" Adam and Cyborg both slapped their hands over their mouths in the background. It looked like both were trying hard not to burst out in laughter at the morbid look that appeared on Robin's face.
"So, our brave and fearless leader, would you care to do the honors, or shall you require one of us to lend our assistance in the grand scheme of helping Starfire understand our world's terminology," Adam spoke in a dignified tone. He was also dressed in a white toga for some reason.
"I daresay, it would be an honor if one as lowly as myself," Cyborg, also standing in a white toga, appeared beside Adam in the view, speaking in a dignified voice. "Could be allowed to explain what 'getting a room' means to our glorious alien sis."
…
Robin's flat face glared at them as he raised a hand in front of him. The view couldn't see the hand signal he was giving them.
"Bwuhahahahaha!" The two Titans began rolling around on the ground in response. Their togas disappeared while Starfire stared at them in confusion.
She then shrugged, going to the cupboard to grab herself something to eat.
The view focused back on Raven. She was now sitting on the couch with her book in her hands. She wordlessly read without commenting on the noise behind her.
"Meow!"
A green cat came running out of the other hallway into view. It ran up next to Raven and rubbed itself along one of her legs.
It purred loudly, almost as if it was seeking attention from the pale girl.
Raven's only reaction was to bend over and briefly pet it behind one of its pointy ears. The cat purred and leaned into her touch.
"Go bother someone else please," Raven said blandly.
The cat looked in surprise into her eyes, almost as if it was saying 'are you kidding me, less talking, more petting!'
But then it got smart and decided to let Raven continue reading.
The cat ran away to the kitchen, and then it morphed into Beast Boy. He almost jumped in surprise at seeing Cyborg. "Oh, hey Cy." Beast Boy said sheepishly.
Cyborg stopped laughing and looked at his friend in surprise. Then he looked back down at his bacon nervously. "H-Hey B… how's it hanging?..." Cyborg said hesitantly.
Beast Boy looked hesitant at first. Then his eyes finally caught sight of what was on the stove.
"Ew, gross! Why are you making that nasty stuff again?!" Beast Boy asked in disgust.
Cyborg looked surprised at first, but after remembering he was cooking himself breakfast, he started to smirk. "Because I'm trying to make more of your kind go extinct grassbrain!" Cyborg said in a more normal, and jovial tone.
"If you'd just eat tofu, you wouldn't have to eat so many dead animals!" Beast Boy said exasperatedly.
"Maybe all I like to eat is dead animals! Huh, ever thought of that grassbrain!?" Cyborg said angrily.
"Why you piece of a dishwasher!" Beast Boy said angrily.
"Better than a son of an ape!" Cyborg replied snarkily.
The two got in each other's faces.
"Bolts for brains!"
"Lawnmower!"
"Metal butt!"
"Grass feeder!"
"Rust Bucket!"
"Tree hugger!"
The two continued to yell insults at each other. All the while the view showed an anime fire appear on the stove behind them.
And there went another batch of perfectly good bacon.
The view showed Adam, Robin, and Starfire in the background. The three of them had anime tears form on their foreheads.
"I'll go and get the fire extinguisher..." Robin said.
"I'll do the separation of our friends..." Starfire said.
"And there goes another perfectly good pig..." Adam sighed as he worked on finishing his own bacon. "Why does this keep on happening?"
Things looked good in the Common Room…
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The Klaxons on the walls blared at that moment. All the Titans looked up from their various activities. Robin had just put the fire out on the stove.
"Aw… Not another alert..." Cyborg groaned.
"It's not like you were going to eat your breakfast anyway." Adam countered.
The Titans moved to the screen. The view showed as they approached something odd…
"That's no alert," Raven said.
Robin almost lost it when he saw the person trying to contact them. "Why is he trying to contact us!?" He said angrily.
The other Titans looked at each other. They looked unsure about it. The console continued to beep at them.
"Let's just figure out what the dude wants and get on with our lives." Beast Boy said.
Robin's fists tightened at his sides. Then he took a deep breath, released it, and pressed the button on the console.
The screen up above turned static for a moment, and then Slade Wilson was shown. He had a crack running along his mask, and he was gripping his side with one arm.
"Greetings Titans… Long time no see." Slade said in his plain, baritone voice.
"What do you want Slade!?" Robin immediately asked.
Slade chuckled, catching the heroes off guard. "I want what we both want… to take down my daughter," Slade replied.
…
The Titans all looked at him with shocked faces…
The scene faded to black…