"You know, Cinderblock, normally the bad guys break out of jail," a high pitched voice states matter-of-factly from beside me. I grin in its owners general direction, even though it's too dark for any of us to see.
"And I can think of six good reasons why you don't want to break in," a second voice counters as its owner gets ready to jump through the opening. "One!" Robin, a black haired, masked vigilante, jumps in front of Cinderblock.
Starfire, an alien girl with shining red hair, is the next to jump. "Two!" she says, landing to Robin's right.
Beast Boy's green skin is illuminated by the ceiling light, and he turns into a green tiger to jump through, hastily resuming human form on the ground. "Three!" his voice, still high pitched, calls from beside Starfire.
A cloaked half demon floats down, fists clenched. "Four!" the girl under the cloak, Raven, says, her cloak settling behind her.
Cyborg, a bulky half robot, jumps down next, as I move to where he was and get ready. "Five!" he exclaims, standing in between Raven and Robin.
I grin and jump down in between Cyborg and Robin, my hair flying above me. "Six!" I conclude, my fists socked together, knees positioned, ready to fight.
"No matter how you do the math, it all adds up to you going down." Robin stares the villain down before continuing. "So, are you going to go quietly..."
"...or is this going to get loud?" Cyborg finishes, and I watch as the villain, Cinderblock, gets angrier and angrier. He lets out a battle cry as he raises his arms and charges at us.
"Titans! Go!" Robin shouts, and we all charge at the villain at hand. Raven, Beast Boy and Starfire take to the skies, whilst Robin, Cyborg and I stay on the ground.
Robin jumps up and kicks Cinderblock in the face whilst Starfire prepares a starbolt. Her eyes glow their signature green as she extends both hands to shoot. The starbolts hit him in the back and he stumbles forward in a frenzy. Cyborg goes in with his right hand ready to punch, whilst Beast Boy runs at him in eagle form, sending him towards Raven. She lifts up part of the ground and uses it as a shield against his fall.
I run past Raven and kick Cinderblock in the chest, causing him to fall back on the ground briefly. Robin and Cyborg run side by side at him but get thrown back. Starfire aims another starbolt but misses, and Cinderblock takes the opportunity to grab her by both arms.
"I am sorry to disappoint you, but I am stronger than I look," Starfire says sweetly, her eyes turning green again. She readies herself and raises her knee to kick him in the chest. She completes the action and escapes from his grip with ease.
Beast Boy swoops in again, turning to a dinosaur once he reaches the ground. He backs up and charges, but the villain knocks him back with one punch to his head.
"Azarath, Metrion—" Raven begins, before gasping as Beast Boy's shadow falls on her, the silhouette turning into that of a human before reaching the ground.
Beast Boy gives a light chuckle. "Heh... watch out for falling dinosaurs?" Raven turns away from him and blows her hair aside pointedly, causing Beast Boy to straighten up. "I'm going to leave you alone now." He runs out of the way as Cinderblock approaches, and Robin jumps onto the concreted villain, groaning as he struggles to hold on. I take the time to run for the villain's legs.
"Thrashing only makes me hold tighter!" Robin tells the brute as he pulls back a bar to hit him with.
"Robin!" I call. "Watch out!" Robin heeds my warning and moves out of the way before Cinderblock brings down the bar.
"Now there's an idea," Cyborg comments as he mimics the action, pulling out another bar and readying himself to fight.
Once I've reached Cinderblock's legs, I dive for them. The impact causes the villain to lose his footing and fall down. "What's the matter?" I ask mockingly. "Never had your butt handed to you before?"
Cyborg charges at Cinderblock as I fall back, and he and the villain engage in a sword fight with the bars. Eventually, Cinderblock knocks Cyborg on his back and turns his attention towards Starfire and Raven. Starfire quickly uses her energy to melt the bar, and giggles at his disappointment and fury. With that, Cinderblock runs down a hallway.
"Want to give this guy the Sonic Boom?" Robin asks as he helps Cyborg up, and I cross my arms. It's a powerful move, but something about it's too childish for my liking.
Cyborg looks behind him. "I got the Sonic if you got the Boom," he says. The two boys share a grin before running in Cinderblock's direction. Beast Boy, Raven, and Starfire stop in their tracks but I follow after them, just in case one of them gets hurt.
"Yo, Rockhead!" Cyborg calls, effectively catching the villain's attention. Cyborg and Robin cross over, running up the walls and onto the roof, defying gravity. They miscalculate their footsteps, and I have to dodge them as their feet interlock and they both fall to the ground. I hear Starfire's scream as Cyborg's sonic cannon blasts her and Beast Boy and the sound of Robin's explosive, which lands at Raven's feet and explodes beneath her.
Cinderblock stops and looks at me disapprovingly, before smashing into the prison doors. "Oh no, you don't!" I yell, before running at him and kicking him in the back. This only gives him more momentum and I look behind me. The two boys sit on the ground in defeat, the other three next to them. Criminals run past me without a second thought, but I have to trust that the other Titans will send them back where they belong.
I run at Cinderblock and push him back, jumping on him to hold him down more. "Guess the math serves," I comment, when Robin's battle cries fill the air and I instantly know that I have to turn back and assist. Before I leave, I notice a hole in the ground, and look up to see the room empty. Whoever was in this prison room, Cinderblock got them out in the split second that I looked away. I notice the number 385901 printed on the door and make a note to look it up in the system when we get back.
I dash to the courtyard and spot two prisoners making a break for it. "Let's go, let's go!" one of the prisoners shouts.
"I think we're going to make it!" the other calls encouragingly, and the first one nods.
"Yeah!" he says, and they run faster.
I spot Raven using her magic to bolt the gates shut with parts of the flooring. "Think again," Raven voices, and they run straight into me, their eyes widening rapidly.
"Need a hand?" I ask, and summon the wind to shove them inside. I grin at Raven as we head back inside toward the others.
"Jailbreak?" Beast Boy asks rhetorically. "I don't see any jailbreak." He smiles at his efforts, but Robin shakes his head.
"None of us would have seen one if Cyborg hadn't messed up!" The leader states, turning away from the brute and crossing his arms defiantly.
"Me? I messed up nothing! You got in my way!" Cyborg yells back, crossing his arms as well.
"You were too far forward, and Cinderblock got away because of it!"
"You saying this is my fault?" What had started as an argument has now turned into a screaming match. I notice the other three Titans cowering in fear, but I barely raise an eyebrow at the quarrel.
"Want me to say it again?" Robin growls, his voice resigned to a lower tone. It's more effective than Cyborg's yelling, and they both eye each other suspiciously.
Stafire moves in between them, closing the gap. "Stop!" she exclaims, her voice almost trembling. "No more mean talking!"
"Yeah," Beast Boy adds, and I catch Raven's eye roll. What she's thinking is right, of course. Beast Boy will only make things worse. "If you two are going to fight, we need time to sell tickets."
He laughs and looks at me for approval, but I simply growl at him. "Stop. Now," I command, before turning to Robin and Cyborg. "You too. Not the time, nor the place."
"Cinderblock escaped. No amount of yelling will change that," Raven says as she takes her hood off. "So stop acting like idiots, and let's go home."
We all nod in agreement, but Robin and Cyborg don't seem to listen. They look at each other one last time before stomping off and snorting at each other.
"Loser," Robin comments, and I smack my forehead audibly.
"Jerk," Cyborg retorts, and they both turn around at once.
"What did you say?" they simultaneously yell.
"Do you have a problem, Tin Man?" Robin spits out the question like old gum.
"Yeah! It's four feet tall and smells like cheap hair gel!" I cringe at this insult. For sure, it'll rub Robin the wrong way. Just as I suspected, it does, and he lets out a louder growl.
"Well, you're an oversized klutz and your feet smell like motor oil!"
"You're bossy, you're rude, you got no taste in music!"
"I don't even know why you're on this team!" I open my mouth to stop Robin, to get him to take it back, but Raven throws her arm in front of me and shoots me a warning look.
Cyborg's fists clench. "That makes two of us! I QUIT!" he roars, storming off and leaving the rest of us in a state of immense confusion.
~~~
Robin sits in his room, and I can hear his angered punches and short yells from my own. They swipe through the air at first, but then they start hitting what must be a punching bag. I move to the door and from the sharpness in his tone and his words, I can tell he's mad at both himself and Cyborg for letting the team down.
When I knock on the door, I hear him quickly mutter something under his breath in an effort to compose himself. He looks worn out, his hair only just done. "You okay?" I ask.
"I'm fine," he responds, without falter.
"You don't look fine," I note, and Robin's ears twitch at my words. "Come on. You need to take your mind off things." I point behind me to the lounge room, but Robin doesn't spare a glance in the direction before dismissively waving his hand.
"No, thanks," he says in a no nonsense tone. "I'm fine." He throws emphasis on the last word to prove his point, and I look him up and down for any signs, to prove the opposite.
"Whatever you say," I glance at him one last time before turning towards where everyone else is. I pull my book out from under my arm and sit on the couch to read.
Starfire flies around the kitchen, concocting some Tameranean dish. Raven stands at the control panel, pressing buttons here and there. I move over to her and cross my arms. She simply looks at me before turning her attention back to the control panel.
"385901," I say, causing her to scowl. "Enter that into the computers."
"What?" She asks, and I roll my eyes.
"385901. Enter it in." I say, and she turns to face me.
"Why would I do that?" She asks sceptically.
I step forward and type it in. Multiple files on a criminal called Plasmas show up. "That's the criminal that Cinderblock broke free," I say. "That's why he went into the prison in the first place."
Raven's scowl only deepens, and she lets out an exasperated huff. "Thanks," she says, her tone monotonous. "I'll look into it." I shrug and walk away from her, settling on the couch with my book.
Beast Boy paces from the door to the couch, trying Cyborg's number over and over again. I can sense that it's getting on Raven's nerves as much as it is getting on mine, but Starfire doesn't seem to mind.
"This is Cyborg," The phone recites, yet again, as it goes to Cyborg's voicemail. "I'm either in the gym, playing GameStation, or kicking bad guy butt. Leave a message." The beep sounds, and Beast Boy begins to speak, his voice filling the void of silence that rocks the room.
"Hello? Cy? Pick up!" Beast Boy says, still pacing. "Come on, Cy, pick up! I know you're there. The phone's built in your arm!" Eventually, Beast Boy hangs up, and I get the feeling that that's the last voicemail for a while.
"Beast Boy, just give up already," I say. "He's probably silenced it by now."
"Taste," Starfire commands as she shoves a spoon full of what looks like alien porridge into Beast Boy's mouth. He grimaces at the taste and spits it out, rubbing it off his tongue.
"What is that?" Beast Boy asks once it's all out of his mouth. "Cream of toenails?"
This doesn't seem to bother Starfire, who only smiles at the green boy. "Pudding of Sadness," she responds. "It is what the people of my planet eat when bad things happen." She puts a spoonful in her mouth and struggles to swallow, shuddering at the taste. I can't help but snort at her.
Starfire soon flies over to Raven, and I can hear them speaking.
"Try," she says to the cloaked girl. "The displeasing taste will ease your troubled mind."
Raven gives a silent scoff. "My mind is never troubled. People come, people go. It's pointless to be upset about Cyborg." Behind her, the screens crack and her hair flies around her in a mane like formation. Starfire stares at the damage, but Raven either doesn't know of it or thinks nothing of it. "What?"
I turn around to look at Robin. He's staring out the window, and doesn't seem to think anything of the commotion behind him. I leave my book on the couch and move next to him.
"Rough day, huh?" I ask, but I only get a glance in response from the boy. "Don't worry," I say, my voice full of determination. "We'll find Cinderblock. He'll get what's coming to him."
"It's not that," Robin says, but he doesn't elaborate. I nod. He doesn't have to, because he's thinking about what's on all of our minds.
"He'll come back," I say matter-of-factly. "He's quit before. He always comes back."
Robin nods, opens his mouth, then closes it again. "Yeah," he eventually manages, but I can tell by the crease line in his forehead that he's not entirely convinced.
Starfire flies over to us, pudding in hand. "Here Robin," she begins. "You must need this most of all since... well..." she stops mid sentence and I pull on her shoulder discreetly.
"Star..." I warn, eyeing Robin closely.
"I'm fine," he says, before scoffing. "Who knows? Maybe we're better off without him." He turns and walks away, leaving Starfire and I by ourselves.
"Pudding of Sadness?" She offers, but I put my hand up.
"Sorry, Star," I say. "I don't need it."
"Okay," she mumbles, flying away. I frown. What Raven said earlier, she was right, even if she didn't mean what she said. People come, people go. It's pointless to be upset about Cyborg. I walk back from the window and go to my room, but on the way I hear Robin again. I look through the gym door to see him panting, his hands rested on his knees. He looks around at all the equipment before turning around. I duck out of the way and make a beeline for my room.
I'm nearing my door when I realise I forgot my book. When I enter the living room, it's even more tense than before, if that was possible. Robin and Beast Boy stand in the kitchen, doing the dishes, Raven's still at the computers, and Starfire's still floating around, eating her Pudding of Sadness. I grimace as Robin sits himself down next to me and turns on the GameStation. Not a good idea.
I continue to read my book but Robin's commentary makes it hard to focus. "Come on, come on... I'm not scared to take... no! Yeah! Got it! Just one more, and... yes!" The game's celebration music plays to fill the silence. "New high score!" I look up just as Robin's name, highlighted in green, knocks out Cyborg's, highlighted in red. Robin's smile pulls back into a frown at the sight of Cyborg's name and he gets up to leave. I turn back to my book without much of a second thought, but just as I'm finishing the chapter, the alarm sounds.
"Who is it?" I ask, just as Robin comes running back into the room.
"Cinderblock strikes again?" he asks quickly, and Beast Boy is the one to respond.
"You wish."
~~~
The factory's lights are dim, and flicker on and off. We easily find the villain next to a conveyor belt, drinking the chemicals that come his way. He gulps down two barrels worth and picks up a third, but Starfire shoots the bottom, causing the remainder of it to leak out. He peers through it like a telescope, his gaze fixing on us.
"Chemicals, really?" I ask, looking Plasmas up and down.
"That stuff can't be good for you," Robin states, and we all ready ourselves to fight. He tosses the barrel away and burps, causing Beast Boy to smile.
"Nice one!" he calls, before catching the look on my face and getting ready to fight as well. Plasmas first shoots at Robin, who dodges all of it before jumping away.
"Star!" he yells. "Let him have it!"
She obliges, shooting a starbolt right through him and leaving a gap in the middle. She gasps in horror. "Did I let him have too much?"
Plasmas barely looks at the gap before breathing in air, which makes the hole grow smaller by the second before disappearing completely.
"I'm thinking not enough," Beast Boy remarks. Plasmas extends his arm towards Starfire but Raven pushes her out of the way just in time.
"Maybe he just needs to chill," Robin says before throwing some freeze disks where the villain's arm is. Plasmas looks at his arm before throwing it onto a pipe in the roof, causing it to shatter into tiny fragments on the floor. I run over to the shards of ice before throwing them, one by one at him like throwing knives, but they do nothing except pass right through the villain's body.
Beast Boy changes into a pterodactyl and flies over. Starfire flings starbolts at him, and Plasmas's attention focuses on her. The green pterodactyl speeds up and continuously kicks Plasmas on the arm, before he retaliates by chasing after Starfire, who runs away and shoots more starbolts at his arm.
"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" Raven yells, and eight barrels rise under her influence. She directs them towards Plasmas and they sink in his body before he fires them back out at her.
Robin runs at him, plunging himself on Plasmas's body and punching him. His first punch hits, but he struggles to get his hand out. "Come on!" He yells the words like a child in a schoolyard. "Let me go, you giant zit!" Plasmas looks down, unamused, before throwing Robin away. He lands on Beast Boy and covers him in Plasmas's goo.
"Robin!" Starfire and I call in unison. We both run over to him.
"Are you—" I begin, but Robin cuts me off effectively.
"I'm okay..." he reassures us. "...sort of." He spits out a bit of the goo and looks at Beast Boy, who's eyes are watering from the presumably horrible taste.
"And I thought Star's pudding tasted bad!" Beast Boy exclaims.
Plasmas starts to howl again, and shoots more goo at Starfire, Raven and I. I fumble around before coming back up to the surface, Starfire doing the same."I feel like the underside of a Zornian muck beetle," she claims. Raven arrives at the surface and we exchange looks.
"Tell me about it," she replies. I watch as Starfire begins to open her mouth to tell Raven about it when Beast Boy lets out a yelp.
"Dude, I am not on the menu!" Beast Boy shouts as Plasmas pursues him.
"None of us are!" I exclaim, still flicking off excess bits of goo. "We need to end this. Now."
Robin hurls a birdarang at Plasmas's leg. "Maybe the best way to take you down..." he begins, running around Plasmas, "...is to tie you up!"
Beast Boy, in rhinoceros form, runs at Plasmas and knocks him over. Starfire and Raven bend metal bars over him and I crouch on one, looking down at our opponent.
"Maybe you're not so tough after all," I say.
"We did it!" Starfire exclaims.
"Nice work, team," Robin says, clasping his hands together.
"Yeah, didn't think we'd pull it off without—" Beast Boy begins, but he's interrupted by Raven's sharp elbow in the side. He rubs the back of his neck and laughs nervously.
"We finished just in time," Robin says to us. "Cinderblock's been spotted downtown. Come on!" We all start to the door, but are stopped by the gurgling sound of Plasmas.
"Huh?" Beast Boy turns around curiously. Plasmas changes his shape and slides out from his restraints. "Uh..." Beast Boy stammers. "Heads up." We run though the door and close it. Robin leans against it, holding it, and we all do the same.
"We need a plan," Robin states. I grit my teeth as a dark tentacle slips in, and Starfire lets out a scream. "Titans! Separate!"
We each run down one of the pathways, and the room is once again filled with grunts, explosions, and screams. I run though the second one along, and spot Robin and Raven next to me. I summon the wind and fly up against the roof to hide myself. I fly to my left and set to helping Robin.
He runs down, kicking down the door and jumping down onto a conveyor belt. "Robin!" I call, and he turns around to face no one. I lower myself and watch his shock turn to realisation.
"Ember!" he calls back. I jump onto the conveyor belt just in time to see Plasmas do the same.
Robin gets out his staff and whacks the villain continuously until he catches the staff and rips it in two. Robin extends his staff again but it gets thrown away. I stand up on the conveyor belt and become visible again.
"Hey!" I call, my hands burning with the flames. "Eat goo!" Robin grins, but quickly ducks as I raise my hands and the fire melts away the villain, but he reappears in no time. I look at Robin, who's eyes widen as he turns around to face the chemicals behind him. He kicks Plasmas and they both fall to the ground to wrestle. I'm about to interfere again when I feel a tap on my shoulder.
"How's it going?" an all too familiar voice whispers in my ear teasingly, and I jump in surprise.
"Cyborg?"
"Yep," the voice says, and even though I can't see him, I just know that he's getting a good kick out of this one. "Stay here. I'm going to help Robin."
I spot Robin about to fall into a pool of chemicals, and Cyborg rushes over to grab him. I fumble with the switch and turn off the belt so that they both don't fall in.
"I still got the Sonic if you still got the Boom," I hear Cyborg say to the black haired boy, bringing a smile to my face. Robin smiles too as he looks up at the half robot and nods.
They both run out to different sides, turning around so they face the same direction. "Teen Titans! Go!" they shout as they each run up a wall, same as in the prison. This time, their feet don't interlock, and Cyborg shoots his sonic cannon just as Robin throws an explosive. It proves to be Plasmas's demise, and he's reduced to a scrawny little man, sleeping in his gooey remains.
"Wow," Cyborg remarks. "Didn't expect Plasmas to be... well..."
"That," I finish.
"We got the job done, that's all that matters," Robin says as he looks up at Cyborg with a sly smile.
Soon enough, the police arrive and put him back in a tube to go back to the prison. I can't help but wondering what became of Cinderblock, but I'm sure he was stopped. I overhear Cyborg and Robin's conversation and smile at their reconciliation.
"Look, uh..." Robin begins, but trails off. "...sorry about..."
"Yeah." Cyborg cuts him off with a word and a smile.
"So... are we cool?"
"Frosty," Cyborg says, and they do a little fist bump.
"You made up." Starfire claps in an expression of happiness. "Glorious! I wish to initiate a group hug."
"Pass," Raven says.
"Not going to happen," I add.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, warm fuzzies all around, but we still got to stop Cinderblock!" Beast Boy exclaims, and I give a light chuckle at his uncharacteristic seriousness.
"No we don't," Cyborg says, and I raise an eyebrow just as I work out what he means. "Thought I'd bring a present, 'case you were still mad."
Cinderblock is lifted up, and I look around. Everyone's smiling, except for Cinderblock, of course. He mutters nonsense at us whilst we stare up at him. I give a little wave and smile, which only causes him to growl even more.
"Thanks. But there is one thing that's still bothering me," Robin says, causing Beast Boy, Raven and Starfire to gasp. I hit my forehead with my arm, rolling my eyes. "Breaking into jail, using Plasmas to distract us, the whole plan seems to be a little too smart for Cinderblock."
"I've been thinking the same thing," Cyborg responds. I think we all have. Cinderblock's not that bright of a villain. Beast Boy and Starfire both sigh in relief.
"Someone must have been pulling the strings. But who?"
"Well, whoever they are, they're no match for the Teen Titans."
"I heard that!" Robin exclaims, and we begin to make our way back to the tower.