Titans: Elemental

Chapter 9: The Sum Of His Parts

We open in a park filled with people enjoying a beautiful afternoon.

There is Frisbee-throwing, kite-flying, a young man and woman picnicking, the whole shebang.

We see Vic has bent over something, but then straightens up as he says, "mmm-mmm. Would you look at that? A little sunshine, a little breeze. Only one thing could make this day better…"

He bends down again. The thing in front of him is a barbecue grill, and he opens the lid to expose, as he puts it….

"Four and a half pounds of baby back ribs!"

He lifts the rack away on a platter. Dick is digging into a burger and Starfire is heartily sucking something down through a straw. Jack is eating a hoagie while sitting on another bench. Rose and Blackfire are tucking into their own burgers, with the latte's being filled to the brim with bacon. Vic sits down.

Vic said, "man, I love picnic food!"

He buries his face in the ribs, chomping huge mouthfuls of meat, and Dick matches that effort with the burger.

Starfire said, "agreed, Victor. This tangy yellow beverage is truly delightful."

She swigs some more of it. The two boys stop scarfing down their food to stare in surprise.

Vic said in slight confusion, "uh, Starfire?"

Dick said, a little grossed out, "that's mustard."

She hugs the container; the mustard jar, with its screw cap removed.

Starfire asked, "is there more?"

Dick and Vic cannot tear their eyes away from the scene and their food sits forgotten in their hands. A shred of meat is clearly heard falling from Vic's face in the stillness.

Jack mutters, "of all the weird things for her to drink, it had to be mustard."

Rose visibly cringed while Blackfire shrugged and took another giant bite of her burger.

BB, as a lemur, climbs around in the branches and hangs down from the lowest one by his tail; by the time he gets within reach of the grill, he is back in human form. He picks up two hot dogs.

BB said, "sweet! My tofu dogs are cooked to perfection."

Raven sits in the shade of a nearby tree.

BB said, "yo, Raven. Try one. They're loaded with soybeany goodness."

Raven said, "I respect that you don't eat meat. Please respect that I don't eat fake meat."

Jack snickers as the vegetarian Titan proceeds to wolf down both dogs at once. Vic runs past, football in hand.

Vic said, "alright, y'all. Who wants to play some fool-ball?"

Dick, BB, Blackfire and Starfire run over, clamoring to get into the game. They cut off abruptly and look in Raven's direction. She has not moved an inch.

Raven said, "I'll be referee."

They look at Jack and Rose.

Jack said, "not yet. I gotta let my stomach settle for a second."

Rose said, "same here."

The others shrug. Vic is ready to hike to Dick, and BB, Blackfire and Starfire are set to block.

Dick said, "red! Twenty-three! Hut! Hut! Hut!"

Vic hikes it back and then runs past the defensive line, and BB stands in front of Dick while Starfire and Blackfire go after the running Titan.

BB counted down, "One Gotham City…. Two Gotham City…. Three Gotham City…."

Vic said, "you can run, you can fly, but you can't catch Cy!"

Starfire flies after him now, while Blackfire tries running.

BB continued, "…. Four Gotham City…."

Starfire speeds up.

BB finished, "…. Five Gotham City!"

Dick is backing up to throw a pass. He yells in sudden fear as the ground shakes. BB is now a charging triceratops. The Titans' leader skids backward, then jumps onto the green behemoth's snout and runs straight down his back. Jumping clear of the tail, Dick fires a pass downfield. Vic, with no blockers anywhere in sight, runs after the ball. As he goes, the blue lights that shine through the transparent coverings of his cybernetic parts start to fade. The ball continues sailing through the air. The lights on Vic have come back on, but they soon fade again.

Vic exclaimed, "I got it! I got it! I-"

His face suddenly freezes, as does he. Vic might as well be a statue for his total lack of motion. Hands still outstretched, feet frozen in the middle of a running stride. The football drops into view and bounces off the side of his head, and he slowly topples forward onto the grass.

Dick asked, "Victor? Victor!"

The big teenager's mouth and normal eye close, and the red light of his eye implant winks out. Seven very worried and surprised Titans, including BB in human form, gather around him in short order.

….

Starfire asked, "Victor?"

A flicker of light.

Jack exclaimed, "Victor!"

The words "Reserve Battery Activated" appear in front of Vic's vision as the area lightens into a blank view that appears as if it could be on a badly tuned television set. The display changes to: Power Remaining 00: 30: 00. And the clock starts to count down. This is

Vic's perspective.

Raven asked, "what's wrong with him?"

BB asked, "is he gonna be okay?"

Rose asked, "Vic? You in there man?"

The view blacks out again and then gives way, as of an eye opening, to the seven concerned teammates. The poorly tuned, grainy quality remains for the moment.

Dick said, "shh. I think he's coming too."

Now the image jumps a bit and gradually refines itself, and the audio returns to normal.

Dick said, "Vic! Are you all right?"

Starfire and Dick help him up. His lights are back on.

Vic said, "yeah. Ngh, thanks."

Raven asked, "what happened?"

Jack stated, "you froze like a statue dude."

Vic reasoned, "something musta gone wrong with my systems."

He raises his forearm, and he brings up a display panel. It shows a nearly-drained bar graph and the, "Power Remaining", timer.

Vic groaned, "oh, man! My power cell's dying."

Starfire exclaimed, "dying?!"

Blackfire yelled, "you're dying?!"

Vic said, "it's only a battery. I'm fine. Happens every couple of years. Just a natural part of being unnatural."

Dick asked, "so what do we do?"

Vic picks up the football and hands it to Dick.

Vic said, "you keep playing. I go home and change batteries."

He starts walking away.

BB asked, "you sure you don't want help?"

Vic said, "just 'cause I can't have fun doesn't mean y'all can't."

The others give unsure looks as they watch their friend walk away.

….

We see the battery-powered Titan on the way back to home base. The temporary shutdown is now weighing heavy on his mind.

Vic sighed, "sigh, and it sure was a nice day."

A voice suddenly said, "Cyborg!"

Surprised, Vic turns around to see who has called his name. He sees a kid, perhaps ten years old, in a baseball jersey, cap, and mitt running towards him.

The Boy said, "whoa, Cyborg! It's really you! You're my favorite 'cause, look!"

He pulls off the mitt to expose a prosthetic hand.

The Boy said, "you're just like me!"

Vic said, "um…. Yeah, I…. I guess I am."

Something starts beeping; an alarm from his systems, and he looks at his forearm. Opening the display panel, he finds the words, "Titan Alert", flashing on it.

The Boy said, "cool!"

Vic said, "nice meeting you, kid, but I got butt to kick."

He runs off as the Boy again said, "cool!"

The panel now shows the power bar and timer again, now with a bit over thirteen minutes to go. Vic closes it and sprints resolutely across the park.

….

We see a nervous, gagged man whose eyebrows twitch in puzzlement. He emits muffled yells as we pull back a bit and see he is upside down. He is strapped into a straightjacket and hanging by his ankles from the ceiling of this place, a jewelry store. In the fore, loading the display cases' contents into a bag, is a magician in full formal attire: tuxedo, white gloves, long red cape, top hat, flower in lapel. Two odd features stand out; his blue skin and the black mask over his eyes. He turns from the case and bows to the captive.

This is the; "Amazing Mumbo?"

Mumbo said, "thanks so much. You've been a wonderful audience. Now watch as the Amazing Mumbo vanishes into thin air", he then produced a wand and twirled it, "Mumbo Jumbo!"

Pointing the wand at the ground, he conjures up a burst of light and smoke that fills the area. When it clears, he is gone.….

….

We see the entrance to Tito's Junkyard, where Mumbo races into it.

His legs are pistoning so fast that they look something like those of the Road Runner in top gear. Mumbo races through the piles of discarded items, then skids to a stop and snaps his fingers. A large diamond, part of his haul from the robbery, appears between them.

Mumbo said, "not bad for a matinee."

"Show's over, Mumbo!"

The villainous magician gasps and looks back over his shoulder; we see a ledge overlooking the junkyard. All the Titans minus Vic are there.

Dick said, "now hand over the jewels before the critics decide to trash your performance."

Jack said, "and trust me, their words can get pretty harsh."

Mumbo said, "now, Nightwing, I'm sure there's a peaceful solution here….", he produces a lit bomb in each hand, "… But this isn't it!"

He flings them at the group, who quickly dive for cover to avoid the explosions. Laughing, Mumbo plucks a flower from his lapel and tosses it at Dick; it goes off at his feet and just misses him. Dick lands at the edge of a trash pit, ready to go again, but Vic's hand reaches up and pulls him in before he can do anything. Vic has something strapped to his back.

Vic asked, "who said you could start the party without me?"

Dick asked, "Victor?! What about your power cell?"

Something explodes very close to them.

We see Mumbo, who now has a handful of cherry bombs and is letting them fly in all directions as he cackles. Starfire, Blackfire and Raven have taken cover behind neighboring junk piles, and they return fire; star bolts from the former and second, a few strategically levitated and aimed pieces of waste from the latter. Mumbo dodges the girls' counterattacks and then jumps very high to avoid BB's charge as a velociraptor.

Jack freezes the ground around Mumbo, making him slip and fall for a moment before jumping out of the way when Rose strikes with her new fighting staff. This was what she used against living opponents. The sword was for robots or monsters.

Dick said, "go home. Get fixed. We can handle this without you."

Vic said, "I won't let you guys fight alone."

Dick said, "and I won't let you put yourself in danger."

Vic said, "I got it covered."

He turns around, showing the thing on his back to be four car batteries wired together.

Vic said, "external battery pack", he brings out his sonic cannon, "Titans! Go!"

One giant leap carries him out of the pit.

Mumbo said, slightly confused, "huh?"

He has the hat in hand and is about to pull something out of it. A blast from the cannon hurls him to the other end of the junkyard; he groans as a tin can bounces off his head and the hat rolls to a stop nearby. Putting it on and standing up, he tugs at his shirt sleeve and starts to pull a long rope of knotted-together handkerchiefs from it.

Mumbo said, "nothing up my sleeve….", getting to the end, he whips the rope forth, "… And, presto!"

Vic is dashing in, but the silks wrap themselves tightly around his body to immobilize him.

Vic yelled, "no!"

He is spilled to the ground in an instant. A sound from nearby draws Mumbo's attention elsewhere. We see Dick, angling himself for a flying kick. Mumbo stands near one end of a pipe that juts from the trash piles.

Mumbo said, "need a hand?"

He reaches into the pipe, and his hand comes out the other end; an impossibly long reach for any mere mortal-and grabs Dick's cape.

The young man flails his arms and legs, trying hopelessly to escape. Mumbo's other hand shoots out from several other pipes and gives him a high-speed beating.

Raven chanted, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

She heaves a few large appliances at the prestidigitator, who has stopped thrashing Dick. He just stands there and dispels her magic with a gesture; the junk remains suspended in midair for a moment and becomes a shower of rose petals at another wave of the hand.

Mumbo said, "you think that's good? Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat! Hocus-pocus!"

He sweeps his hat off, and out comes a wave of stuffed rabbits that covers Raven from head to toe. Mumbo puts the hat back on and adjusts his gloves.

Jack starts throwing huge balls of dirt at Mumbo, but the magician easily dodges them and exclaims, "wanna see my escape act? Alakazam!"

Jack is suddenly wrapped in a straitjacket. As Mumbo fires a bolt of magic at him, Blackfire flies in and carries Jack away to get him outta the jacket.

Rose tries sneaking behind Mumbo, but he turns to her and says, "watch me make you disappear! Shazam!"

He launched Rose into a box that shakes when it closes, and when it opens, she's gone!

Rose pops out of a dumpster a block away from the junkyard and dashes back towards the place, yelling, "I think Shazam is gonna sue!"

Now BB, as a bighorn sheep, thunders straight at Mumbo.

Mumbo produces and spreads a deck of cards, "pick a card, every card!"

Half the deck is now in each hand, and he throws the paste boards straight ahead at the superhero. When they reach him, they have grown to many times normal size, large enough to sweep him off his feet.

Mumbo said, "for my next trick, I'll require a lovely assistant."

He whips a cane out of his cape on the end of this line and promptly reaches into the air with its hooked end. We see Starfire in flight as she is caught around the waist and yanked down with a cry of surprise. A few wooden slats assemble themselves into a floating box that encloses her entire body except for head and feet, which protrude from the ends. The next thing to be brought out of the mad magician's cape is a long handsaw, which he brandishes over her.

Obviously, he is about to attempt the old sawing-a-woman-in-half trick as he said, "it's only fair to warn you…. I have no idea what I'm doing."

Vic shoots across and nails him with a huge flying tackle, and the two slide among the trash heaps, throwing up thick clouds of dust. They clear to leave the four-hundred-pound Titan pinning the villain to the ground.

Mumbo said, "I hate fighting dirty. Shall we clean you up?"

A jet of water squirts from the flower in his lapel, hitting Vic with the force of a fire hose and throwing him over the garbage mountains.

He lands in a nearby dump truck. The water has shorted out his jury-rigged power supply and knocked it off his back. A red light starts to flash on his forearm, counting down from five seconds. He tries to climb out, but the timer reaches zero, and his systems shut down as they did earlier. Frozen in place, he offers no resistance as the dump truck's hydraulics kick into gear. The load of garbage is dumped out the back, taking Vic and the car batteries with it, and falls into a Dumpster whose floor has rusted away. Beneath it is the entrance to an underground cavern; the refuse tumbles away in the blackness.

Dick runs to the truck and yells, "Cyborg? Cyborg!"

The truck suddenly kicks into gear; Mumbo is at the wheel.

Mumbo said, "exit stage left."

He floors the accelerator and peels out. The other Titans gather behind Dick.

Dick yelled, "Titans! He's got Victor!"

They spread out to start a search.

….

We see inside the cavern. The missing Titan lies immobile among the rest of the trash; around him in the gloom, several round red eyes light up. He is dragged slowly toward them, after which they wink out.

….

The first thing Vic hears is a computer saying, "Online. Charging."

Vic is suddenly hit with a bright light. He shields his eyes with his weary groans. His systems are working again.

A male voice begins to speak; very level, measured, almost monotonic.

"You are operational."

The speaker moves into view and looks down at Vic. It is a tall android figure swathed in a long robe; all we can see for the moment is the head, which sports a flat, angular face marked by two glowing blue slits for eyes. Instead of hair, circuit pathways cover the scalp.

He says, "that is good."

Lying on a large table, Vic has several wires plugged into his chest.

Vic asked, "what's going-?"

The man said, "rest, friend. Your new power cell is not fully charged."

The Titan reaches overhead and pulls down one of the lights to aim it across the chamber. He sees a motley group of robots in another area; their eyes glow red, marking them as the ones that towed him in here.

Vic asked, "who are you?"

The light pans across many others on elevated benches.

The man said, "I am called Fixit."

Vic said, "whoa."

Fixit said, "you were broken. I have brought you here to be repaired."

On the end of this, the light reaches the ceiling and tilts down to illuminate Fixit. He crosses the chamber.

Vic asked, "where's, 'here?'"

.…

A plume of smoke wafts in the air, the source being the dump truck Vic landed in, which has crashed into a building. The other seven Titans have caught up to it. Mumbo is nowhere in sight.

Starfire said, "Victor is not inside!"

Rose asked, "then where could he be?"

Dick said, "his locator signal is being jammed. This doesn't make sense…. Why would Mumbo want to kidnap Vic?"

Jack said, "Victor isn't obviously the perfect choice for a magician's assistant."

BB said, "guys!"

BB finds the illusionist's discarded top hat on the ground.

BB picks up Mumbo's top hat, "over here! I found something!"

He peeks in as Dick tried to say, "I wouldn't-"

Suddenly, a huge flock of doves flies out of the hat. When they have gone, the Titans are covered with feathers, BB most of all.

Raven said, "way to go."

Blackfire said, "obvious sarcasm is obvious."

Rose chuckles, despite the feathers.

….

Vic looks at his forearm. He opens the display panel and finds the power bar completely lit and the message, "Full Power 100%."

Fixit said, "charging is complete. The new power cell is functioning properly."

Vic is unplugged and sitting up. A couple of hovering robots complete a repair scan and float away.

Vic said, "yeah. I'm feeling better. Lots better."

Fixit said, "of course you are. I am Fixit."

Fixit walks away.

Mechanical junk of all types tumbles into the chamber from an overhead chute. Fixit goes over to the pile.

Fixit said, "things come to me broken. I make repairs", he picks up two small parts, "let me see", they float out of his hands; he studies them, "yes…. Yes…. Hmm…. Pity", he picks up another one, "interesting. The damage is too extensive", it floats; he takes up a fourth, "perhaps if we can find another processor."

During this, Vic gets off the table and watches Fixit for a moment.

Finally, he waves and starts to leave as he says, "well, thanks…. For everything."

Several of the red-eyed robots turn suddenly in his direction. The components Fixit had suspended in midair hit the ground, and he advanced across the chamber with a new note of urgency in his voice.

Fixit said, "you cannot leave."

Vic, at the exit, stops and turns back.

Vic asked, "I can't?"

Fixit said, "you are not repaired, not fully."

Vic asked, "I'm not?"

Fixit said, "my examination revealed many flaws, serious flaws."

Vic asked, "serious? How serious? What's wrong with me?"

Fixit said, "there is no cause for alarm. More repairs are needed. More repairs will be made."

Vic asked, "but, I feel fine…. Are you sure I'm-?"

Fixit said, "quite. Will you remain? It is for the best."

Vic said, "well, yeah, I guess", he works his forearm controls, "let me just tell my friends where I am."

With his back turned to Fixit, he does not notice that the android's eyes have gone red. What he does notice is that when the display panel for his built-in communicator opens, it shows a badly garbled signal; jammed by the proprietor of the place.

Vic said, "whoa! Something really is wrong with me."

He shuts it off as Fixit's eyes go blue again.

Fixit gestures to the table, "rest now. You may contact your friends later", Vic climbs up, "I am sure they are not too concerned."

As Vic is lying down, he mutters, "maybe they should be…."

….

We see the other seven Titans racing through the streets, then to a building front that has been garishly decorated with rainbow-colored clouds and stars. No points for guessing who did this bit of graffiti. They see a parked bus, which disappears in a puff of smoke, then it materializes a block or so down the road. A mailbox jumps into view under its own power, spits out a live rabbit, and bounces away a bit before doing this again. They see a young woman as she floats out from around this corner; ten feet or so off the ground, horizontal, headfirst, with three large hoops encircling her body. The old, "levitating woman", trick. A new twist on it, thanks to Mumbo.

BB said, "I'll say this much for Mumbo; he's an easy act to follow."

Jack said, "and an irritating one at that."

Starfire said, "oh, I would commit myself to a life of muck-shoveling in the filth mines of Cornex if Victor could only be returned safely."

Blackfire said, "that goes for me too, Starfire."

Raven said, "he was malfunctioning. He shouldn't have been helping."

Dick said, "I tried to stop him, but he's Victor."

Rose asked, "so, incredibly stubborn?"

Dick nodded as the group heard the distant cry of, "Mumbo-Jumbo!"

The sound of a spell being cast is heard, and all seven Titans run toward it. An ATM at a street corner is spewing a mountain of cash onto the sidewalk. As the heroes run up, they are two other machines exhibiting the same problem. Mumbo is at the last one, hammering away at its keypad. He laughs, then cocks an eyebrow at the new arrival and sweeps his hat off; a replacement for the one he lost.

Mumbo said, "sorry, folks."

He holds the hat upright, open end down; all the money is promptly sucked up into it as if it were a vacuum cleaner, after which he puts it back on.

Mumbo said, "no time for autographs."

He runs off very quickly.

Dick yelled, "Titans! Get him!"

Jack said, "don't have to tell me twice!"

We see inside an alley. The magician runs along its course as Raven flies after him.

Mumbo said, "open says me!"

At the dead end, responding to his command, the bricks disappear, several at a time, to make an opening big enough for him to pass through. They pop back into place just in time to stop Raven from following.

As Mumbo is still running along, Jack jumps down after him. He starts shooting icicles from his hand, but Mumbo dodges them like a cartoon character as he exclaims, "Wazaam!"

Suddenly, Jack finds himself inside of a cannon that shoots him into the air, yelling, "CRAAAAAAAP!"

A loud growling causes Mumbo to hit the brakes and yell in fear, BB as a large bull steps into view. He snorts angrily and charges, Mumbo pulls his cape off and holds it in front of him. The garment is jerked away to reveal that a brick wall has suddenly appeared behind it. BB rams this head on, and he then falls to the ground, lying dazed next to its remains. Mumbo steps out from behind the masonry, his cape back on, and turns his hat into a sombrero with a flick of the wrist.

Mumbo said, "Olé!"

He turns the headgear back to normal and runs off down the alley. However, he is not alone for long.

Rose jumps in front of him and twirls her staff and says, "you ain't going anywhere."

Mumbo grins and shouts, "wizards only, fool!"

Rose runs at him, but runs face first into a glass wall. She looks around and sees she is surrounded by glass walls and a ceiling as Mumbo runs past her. Rose starts hitting the glass as hard as she can.

Starfire and Blackfire fly over the roof of an adjacent building and throw star bolts at him as they take over the pursuit. Their shots pepper the ground on either side of Mumbo. Mumbo conjures a bouquet in one hand.

Mumbo said, "flowers for the ladies."

He tosses the bunch up over his shoulder and they explode in the sisters' faces.

A few more steps bring him to another dead end, where Dick drops into view to square off. His handy-dandy fighting staff is out and fully extended for a twirl in no time flat.

Mumbo said, "Abracadabra!"

A flash of light, and the metal shaft has turned into a cobra. Dick yells in surprise and drops the venomous creature. Mumbo laughs as he runs up a flight of stairs to make his escape. All seven Titans charge after him.

….

Vic looks at his full power gauge.

Vic said, "I don't get it. All my sensors say I'm fine."

He lowers his arm as Fixit approaches.

Fixit said, "your sensors are incomplete. Mine are more precise."

Vic said, "guess I'm just….", he lies on the table; fully wired up, "… Getting kinda nervous. How long am I gonna be down here, anyway?"

A gathering of robots are on the chamber floor. A small droid floats past them.

Fixit said, "repairs could take some time. Besides, why would you want to leave?"

The droid reaches him; he grasps it, "look around you."

A cable extends itself down from the ceiling, plugs into a port on Fixit's forehead, and begins to glow red.

Fixit said, "look at yourself", another droid floated over, "you belong with us."

Vic said, "no, I don't. I mean, you've got a nice place here and you've been really cool to me, but…. I couldn't live down here. I don't know how you can."

Fixit asked, "what do you mean? The power supply is adequate. Replacement parts are easy to find."

Vic said, "I need more than that! What about sunlight? What about fresh air? What about food?"

Fixit said, "I do not require these things", the cable disconnects, "and when repairs are complete…. Neither will you."

Vic gets himself vertical and unplugs the lines hooked into his body.

Vic said, "you know what? I'm feeling all right now. So thanks anyway, but I'm just gonna go."

He walks away. Fixit turns from his work and puts even more urgency and command into his voice than when Vic first tried to clear out.

Fixit said, "stay."

His eyes go red. Vic suddenly finds a number of spectator robots blocking his path. He takes a step back and is surprised by a few small ones that jump onto his shoulders and chest and grip firmly.

Vic asked in shock, "Yo, what are you-?"

A flexible arm reaches into view and grabs his wrist.

Vic exclaimed, "hey!"

The robot reaches out with its other arm.

Vic yelled, "let me go!"

The second arm clamps onto his other wrist. He struggles against the contraptions' hold on him, but cannot break free. Several other members of Fixit's legions extend cattle prods from their upper surfaces and electrify them. The current races along the two extended arms toward the captive, and as he starts to scream, Fixit's emotionless gaze looks back to the table. It tilts until it is nearly vertical, and Vic is carried into view and placed on it. He has been securely bound.

Fixit said, "repairs are not yet complete."

The table swivels a bit to give the Titan a direct view of a large closed door.

Fixit said, "your biological components are imperfect and must be replaced."

The door hisses open, releasing a cloud of vapor. Behind it is only blackness, but after a second or two this yields to show, hanging on a support framework, an array of secondhand robotic parts; enough to replace every remaining natural portion of Vic's body. The face is missing its left eye, since he already has an implant on that side. A small gasp is heard from the intended recipient of this overhaul.

Vic looks horrified as he says, "no…."

….

All Victor sees is darkness before he hears a computer say, "Biological components removed. Repairs complete."

Fixit said, "awaken, friend. Awaken and see your new face."

Vic wakes up and looks in a mirror to see every last scrap of organic tissue has been switched out for the artificial parts that had hung on the rack. He rubs a hand down the side of his face, then raises it in a fist with a growl of rage. The mirror smashes, and Vic is sucked into a dark abyss below him!

Vic exclaimed, "NOOOOOOOOO!"

….

Vic wakes up on Fixit's examining table; back to normal, wired up, and now held to the table with thick steel bands. He yells in pure fear as his eyes snap open; the previous scene was a nightmare.

Fixit said, "do not be afraid. You were dreaming. Sleep will not be necessary once repairs are complete."

Vic yelled, "what if I don't want to be repaired? What if I like myself this way?"

Fixit goes to the rack of parts.

Fixit said, "such thoughts come from your imperfect biological components."

He raises a hand; a tool floats into it, and he does a bit of welding on the face.

Fixit said, "they will be replaced momentarily."

Vic growled, "not if I can help it."

….

Mumbo leaps into view and bounds from building to building.

Blackfire and Starfire fly after him, then Raven. BB brings up the rear as a kangaroo. Rose dashes across the rooftops. Jack uses his powers to create a small tornado around his legs that allows him to fly after Mumbo. The crazed magician makes one impossible jump after another as the Titans struggle to keep up.

Dick gets into the action, hoofing it along the rooftops of higher buildings. After a few more blocks, Mumbo stops dead and whirls to face them, bringing his wand to the ready.

Mumbo said, "Abracadabra!"

He waves the wand and the others scatter to avoid the hexes.

Mumbo said, "Alakazam! Hocus-pocus!"

He laughs madly, the top of his head almost flapping clear off his neck!

Mumbo said, "you'll never stop the Amazing Mumbo! Never! Ne-"

Suddenly, Dick flies in and grabs the wand! Mumbo is caught completely off guard.

Mumbo said in shock, "huh?"

Dick, holding aloft the wand he swiped; he breaks it in half. Mumbo screams as bags of money, all the loot from his crime spree, go flying out of his pockets. He then cries a waterfall of tears while his top hat shrinks and disappears; finally, he collapses and turns into an ordinary-looking old fellow, on his knees among the vast amounts of cash. Blackfire, Starfire, Raven, Jack, Rose and BB touch down behind him, and Dick's shadow falls across him from the front. He is dragged up by his shirt front.

Jack said, "you give magic users a bad name."

Dick growled out, "no more tricks! Where. Is. Cyborg?"

Mumbo asked, "how should I know?"

Dick growled, "where is he?!"

Raven growled, "you took him from the junkyard!"

Rose yelled, "in that truck you crashed!"

Starfire asked, "what have you done with him?"

Mumbo exclaimed, "nothing! Honest! When you broke the wand, you broke all my spells. Even if I had done something, it'd be over now. Poof! He'd be standing right here."

Dick drops him.

BB said, "if Cyborg's not with him, then he's still back at-"

They all exclaim, "the junkyard!"

Mumbo asked, "so, do I still have to go to jail?"

He gets a very nasty look from the seven Titans and his face falls. A big drop of sweat slides down his temple.

Mumbo said flatly, "I thought so…."

….

We see Vic, now straining against the steel bands that hold him to the table. Fixit continues his repairs on the new parts. He stops after a moment.

Fixit said, "I am ready. We will begin now."

Vic growled, "perfect timing."

A mighty surge of muscle power breaks him loose. Unplugging himself, he slides off the table and makes a run for it. Fixit's eyes go red as he beams a command, the doors close in response. Vic gasps an instant before it seals itself.

Vic growled, "I didn't want to have to do this, but…."

He reconfigures his arm into cannon mode and prepares to fire, but the weapon merely fizzles out with a wisp of smoke.

Vic said in confusion, "huh?"

Fixit's eyes are blue again as he advances toward Vic and says, "your defensive systems have been disabled for the procedure. They will be reactivated when repairs are complete."

Snarling, Vic runs at him, but a red-eye flash sends several metal tentacles snaking down from the ceiling. They ensnare him just before he can tackle Fixit; he hauls fiercely at them and is able to reach one hand forward. Vic manages to grab the fabric of Fixit's robe and pulls it away. There is a jumble of internal organs heavily interwoven with cables and switches, even a small, fully jointed robotic arm. Fixit, then, is not a true android, but rather a mix of mechanical and organic parts just like the Titan he is trying to "repair."

Vic sucks in a long, shocked gasp, but Fixit shows no trace of anger at having had his innards exposed to full view.

Fixit says as he closes his robe, "the biological malfunctions are growing worse. We must begin at once."

….

We go back to the floor of the underground cavern; a circle of it is illuminated by the sunlight spilling in from above. The car batteries Vic had wired up to power himself lie in a jumble here. Dick drops into view and looks them over carefully; the other six Titans are gathered at the edge of the hole that leads in.

Jack asked, "what do you see?"

Dick said, "his battery pack. He must have fallen down here."

The others jump down.

Dick said, "Star, Blackfire. Can you give us some light?"

One of Starfire's hands begins to glow, as does one of Blackfire's, and they hold them up to substitute for torches. They advance into the gloom, continuously calling out for their teammate.

….

Vic has again been secured to the table, and Fixit has bent to his work. Sparks fly from the welding in progress, to the sound of weak moaning. Vic's hand twitches convulsively, Fixit's expressionless face is lit up by the sparks' glare.

….

The other seven teammates advance into view, but stop at the sound of machinery moving. Dick gasps in surprise.

One after another of Fixit's robots appear, blocking the forward path and cutting off retreat. BB cranes his neck for a look at the biggest of the lot.

BB said, "wow…. Heh. Uh, any of you guys seen a dude about this tall with one red eye and titanium body armor?"

Jack said, "looks like you guys, but less…. Emotionless?"

The robots' only response is to step forward in readiness for battle.

Dick backs up a step of his own.

Dick said, "Titans! Go!"

Starfire stays put while the other three spread out. She throws a string of starbolts at the robot advancing toward her and blows it apart with the last one. Blackfire does the same with another robot that dashes at her.

Dick punches another to send sparks flying, then smashes it to junk with a high kick.

A third is forcing BB back into the inky shadows, so that his eyes are all that can be seen of him. We hear a low growl from that corner, and the lights come up to show that he has transformed into a huge gorilla and caught the mechanical aggressor in a crushing grip. He tears it apart and sets out to find others. Rose grabs her sword and begins using it to slash the robots away, her hard strikes breaking them into pieces! Raven raises her arm to cast a spell as the lights go out entirely on her. Two black slashes of energy cross the biggest robot of the lot, with two glowing incisions crossing its upper body. The thing shorts out, slides apart along the fault lines Raven has opened, and explodes. Jack starts shooting icicles at some robots, stabbing into them and shorting them out as he turns and shoots flames at another large robot, melting it down into scrap.

….

Fixit continues his work on Vic, his tools floating to him. A piece of Vic's armor plating clatters to the floor.

Now Fixit takes the robotic face off the rack. The madly struggling Titan stops as the shadow of his single-minded repairman falls over him.

Fixit said, "do not resist. It is for the best."

He lowers the face towards Vic.

Vic begged, "no, it isn't! If you take out my biological components, you take out the best part of me! The part that makes me who I am!"

The face is set in place as Fixit says, "your memories, your, 'self', will be preserved. I will download them into your new brain."

The port on his forehead opens to allow a cable to extend outward. It plugs itself into Vic's new face, right between the eyes.

Vic begged, "no…. You can't do this, please! You don't understand! NOOOOOOOOO!"

Fixit is copying memories to his own system.

He sees what Vic did earlier….

….

The park…. Vic, Dick, Starfire at the picnic table…. Starfire hugging the mustard jar…. Vic and Dick staring at her in disbelief…. Gathering for the football game…. Raven asking what happened to him when he conked out…. The start of the game's first play…. Dick backing up for a pass…. BB counting down to tackle…. the ball sailing through the air… Vic going long for the catch…. The other Titans, waiting to see if he will come around from the shutdown…. Starfire and Dick helping him up…. The boy with the artificial hand running up to say hello…. The catcher's mitt being removed to expose the prosthesis….

….

…. Fixit cries out and stumbles away from Vic, the connecting cable retreating into his forehead. He crashes to the ground.

….

In the outer portion of the cavern, the shots Starfire and Blackfire are holding in check light up the area again. They, Raven, Jack, Rose and BB, have found themselves staring at a great many robots who have been knocked out by their combined efforts. Dick, who is trying to catch his breath, starts in surprise at the sound of machinery.

Another squadron is struggling to move forward. The units totter toward them and then go dead-incapacitated by the shock to Fixit's system.

Dick said in confusion, "huh?"

….

The face that was to have replaced Vic's drops next to the table, whose steel restraints have all been broken, and Vic climbs off and kneels groaning next to it. Dick reaches into view and puts a hand on his shoulder.

Dick said, "Victor! Are you okay?"

Vic said, "yeah."

They straighten up. The other Titans are in the chamber as well.

Fixit said in awe, "so…. Beautiful."

Fixit is kneeling by the rack of parts.

Fixit said in awe, "I had forgotten how beautiful. The world….", Vic walks up to him as he continues, "…. Through your eyes."

Vic said, "through human eyes. The same kind you have."

Fixit said to himself, "perhaps I am the one in need of repairs…."

Vic said, "and maybe I'm the guy who can help repair you."

He holds out a hand, and the fellow mechanical half-breed smiles and takes hold, allowing himself to be helped to his feet.

….

We see the park later that day. Once again, people are enjoying the fine weather in their own way. We see the Titans, save Vic, gathered around a picnic basket set out on a blanket.

The cybernetic member of the team walks into view, carrying the football, but is stopped by a familiar voice.

The boy said, "Cyborg! Hey, Cyborg!"

The boy runs up, with his mitten gone and prosthesis fully exposed, and he has a friend with him.

The boy said, "see? It's Cyborg. He's just like me!"

The other boy said, "whoa, cool!"

Vic said, "I am just like you. But it's not your arm that makes us the same", he points at the first boy's heart, "it's the stuff connected to it."

Both boys beam at this.

Vic said, "now, go deep!"

They do so, laughing, and he lets the football fly.

As this happens, Jack and Rose are watching this.

Rose asked, "you think that Fixit guy will be alright?"

Jack said, "Vic has the best minds at Star labs working with him, in order to help him regain his humanity."

Rose nodded, and the two of them went back to eating at the picnic.

As Vic watched the kids play with the football, he heard, "um, excuse me?"

Vic turned and felt his face grow warm. Standing there was a blonde girl the same age as him in a cute orange sweater and blue eyes, smiling at him.

She said, "you're Cyborg, right?"

Vic said, "er, yeah. Or, Victor Stone, since that's my name."

The girl said, "right, sorry. I only knew your hero-name."

Vic said, "it's alright. What can I do for you, Miss…?"

The girl said, "oh, Sarah. Sarah Simms. I work as a teacher for kids dealing with disabilities. Namely, kids who need prosthetics. Many of them with ones like yours. I was wondering if you could speak to my class next month? I felt like you might be able to inspire the kids there."

Vic smiled, "I'd be happy to."

Sarah exclaimed, "great!"

Sarah handed him a slip of paper with her schedule at the school on it.

Sarah said, "my contact information is at the bottom. Call when you're free on one of these days."

Vic said, "got it."

Sarah said, "great! I'll see you then."

Sarah walked away as Vic gave a sheepish smile.

….

Reviews:

Canadude2029: yeah, this chapter is quite intriguing. Especially with how dark it gets.

Bailey Radcliff: well, I'm glad you enjoyed these chapters. But you probably don't wanna use any copyrighted song lyrics in the story unless it's on something like AO3.

pokemonking0924: thanks!

SuperSentai199: yep. I'm happy she joined as well.

….