I was so unmotivated to write this chapter, it's literally a massive cat and mouse! I hope the quality doesn't deter too much and the next episode will be better, I promise. :)
I run next to Robin as he and I barrel through different cut outs. I fly into the air as Robin goes to kick the next one to me, but let out a warning when I notice Beast Boy standing in front of the target. Quickly, I lift Beast Boy into the air and once Robin lands the kick, let gravity pull him down with a thud.
"Hey, Ember and Robin," the shapeshifter says as Robin helps him up. "Need a workout buddy?"
Robin and I exchange looks. "Sorry, Beast Boy. But this is more of a duo thing." He looks at said male and raises an eyebrow at his state. "You okay?"
Beast Boy turns away. "Awesome," he mutters as he slinks off towards the Tower.
"Something's up," I note, turning to the masked leader next to me. "Do you know what?"
Robin shrugs. "Not a clue."
"Let's get back to training," I say, turning to the next cut out and jumping towards it. I turn around and kick it to Robin, who smacks it to the ground. Just then, our communicators beep and without a word, I lift him up to the roof and we climb down the stairs. Cyborg's already at the screen, and soon, Starfire and Raven join us.
"Trouble!" Robin informs them, and Starfire frowns.
"Where is Beast Boy?"
"No time to find out," he replies quickly. "Titans! Go!"
~~~
Robin feels the singed ground as we all search for clues. Raven walks back and looks at us. "Word is, it was some kind of flying saucer," she explains.
"Whatever it was, my sensors can't track it," Cyborg tells us. "Didn't leave any kind of trail."
"But it did leave this." Robin stands up and looks at us. "Something got zapped. Question is, what?"
I pick up what appears to be a Titans communicator. "Maybe it's a matter of who," I say vaguely, and Starfire gasps.
"Beast Boy!"
Cyborg takes it from my hand and smells it. He repulses at the scent and holds it away from him. "It's BB's, all right. Smells like tofu."
Starfire takes it from him next and looks at it in disdain. "Oh, I fear our friend has gotten the zap," she cries as she cradles the device.
Suddenly, a green dog comes out of nowhere and tackles Raven to the ground. "He looks fine to me," Raven comments as we all run to her aide.
"Beast Boy! You are unharmed!" Starfire exclaims as he picks him up.
"Where have you been?" Cyborg asks sceptically.
"Did you get a look at the UFO?" Robin adds, but the dog just jumps on Raven again, this time starting to lick her.
"Ugh! Don't make me send you to another dimension," she threatens, and when he still doesn't stop, she pushes him off herself.
"All right, Beast Boy, quit fooling around. We've got work to do," Robin says to the shapeshifter, his voice suggesting impatience. "Beast Boy!"
Beast Boy simply chases his tail, and we take a step closer. "Friend!" Starfire calls. "Why will you not resume human form and speak to us?"
"Maybe he can't," Cyborg offers. "Maybe something's wrong with him." Cyborg opens up his scanner to check his biometrics, but it comes as a negative. "That's strange." Beast Boy runs to a car and disappears into the street. "Yep. Definitely something wrong with him."
I glance at Cyborg's scanner, and a frown tugs on my lips. "By the looks of things, it might not even be Beast Boy."
Regardless, we chase him through the alley, only to find no sign of the green dog. "Where did he go?" Robin asks as we quickly come to a halt.
"And what did he do to that car?" Raven says, pointing to a red car with a man sat crying beside it. I scoff and quickly hide it when I feel several glares on me.
"My bumper!" the sobbing man cries. People are gathered around him, and I'm about to walk up when Robin's voice stops me.
"Split up and search," he orders. "Start with Beast Boy's usual hangouts and fan out from there."
We all do as he says, running in five different directions. I soon find myself at the door of a video game store, and slowly open the door. The store consists of almost exclusively teenage boys, and they look at me inquisitively. I ignore the lot of them and make my way to the register.
"Hello..." I trail off as I look at the employee's name badge. "...Brad."
"How-how can I...help you today?" the man stutters, possibly because he's never seen a female in the store.
I roll my eyes. "I'm looking for Beast Boy. I'm pretty sure he's a regular here."
Brad laughs heavily, then stops when he catches the look on my face. "Oh, yes. Beast Boy. I'm sorry, but I haven't seen him today."
I nod my thanks and turn my head to leave. Once I'm by the door, I open my communicator. "No sign of him here," I tell the others, and Starfire flicks onto the screen.
"I cannot find him here either." She takes a closer look at me. "Uh...who are they?"
I turn around, and several boys scatter. I glare at each and every one of them before briskly walking out of the door. "Teenage boys. They're looking at me like I'm the newest video game."
I hear a growl from someone through the communicator, but their image doesn't show and so I'm left wondering who it is. "Beast Boy's here." Raven interrupts, but the communicator quickly flicks off as she gets sent to the ground. I check the half-demon's coordinates before racing in her direction.
When I get there, the shapeshifter is on top of her, still in dog form, and licking her. When he sees me, he scatters down an alleyway and I bump into Robin and Cyborg in an effort to chase after him. "Careful, everybody," Robin reminds us. "We don't want to hurt him."
Raven's eyes form slits behind her hood. "Speak for yourself."
Starfire pinches her nose. "Ugh! What is that smell?"
"Dog-Boy here confused me with a fire hydrant," Cyborg spits and I push the breeze in between Cyborg and the rest of us to rid the smell. The green dog pops out of a rubbish can and stares at us.
"Speak of the devil," I mutter, loud enough for the other Titans to hear.
"Easy, Beast Boy," Robin says reassuringly as we all hold out our hands.
"We just want to help." Cyborg leads the way, and the dog burps out the car's bumper.
"Ewww!" We all screech, and the dog's tongue extends to great lengths to lick Raven. It morphs through slits in the ground but I catch it with the air before it can.
"Ummm...okay," Cyborg comments.
"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that isn't Beast Boy." Raven crosses her arms.
"And if that's not Beast Boy..." Robin begins
"...Then where could he be?" Starfire finishes, and I look around.
"Do I lower him?" I ask, and Raven nods. Slowly, I lower the dog, and the instant it's on the ground, it flees. I groan and hit my forehead with my palm.
~~~
"Remind me again why we're chasing this thing?" Cyborg asks as the green dog falls out of his grip and dashes off. I grit my teeth as my hand slides across the greasy wall underneath the city.
"The creature is not of this Earth," Starfire points out.
"And neither is the UFO," Raven says, and I look at the girl pointedly.
"Or any UFO, for that matter."
"The alien ship must have come here looking for the green dog..." Robin says.
Starfire looks around warily. "...And captured our green friend instead."
"So, if we ever want to find Beast Boy..." Raven states.
"...We have to catch that dog," Robin concludes. "We need a plan."
"Or maybe we just need some bait," Cyborg says thoughtfully, and we all turn to look at Raven in agreeance.
"What?" she asks sceptically, before it dawns on her what we're asking her to do. I growl at nothing in particular as I lift us all out of the sewer water and into the street.
~~~
We watch the dog from afar as he senses Raven's presence. The cloaked girl sighs and holds out her hands. "Here, doggie..." she mumbles, looking away. "Here, doggie, doggie..."
As predicted, the dog runs to her but right before he jumps on her, Starfire places a glass ball in front of him. He barrels into it and the wind closes it, the Boy Wonder locking him in. We all step towards the constantly morphing creature and surround it. "Sorry, Fido. When Cyborg builds it, nobody breaks it."
"So, now that we've got him..." Raven asks.
"...We just have to figure out how he can lead us to the spaceship," Robin states. "I can run a chemical analysis on his fur, see where he's been."
"I can do a molecular scan," Cyborg offers. "Maybe he and the ship have the same isotopic signature."
"Perhaps you could use your powers to communicate with the creature," Starfire suggests, looking at Raven.
"I'm still getting his drool off my face," Raven retorts quickly. "I don't want him anywhere near my brain."
"Uh, pardon me..." a voice says, and we all look down to the only thing it could be—the dog. "But I believe we might be able to help one another."
"Okay... am I the only one who heard that?" Robin asks as our eyes and mouths widen and we stare in shock.
"Most definitely not," I answer. "How is this happening?"
"You talk?" Cyborg shouts. "Dogs don't talk!"
"Perhaps not on your planet, my dear fellow," the dog explains. "Now, if you'll agree to release me, I would be happy to help you locate my odious former master. After I escaped his ship, he pursued me here and mistakenly captured another green dog, your Beast Boy, I presume."
"That would be correct," I say monotonously, my arms crossed. I take a second to glare at the creature, and I make sure he sees it.
"And you didn't tell us this earlier because..." Raven drawls on.
"I was having too much fun," the dog cheekily snaps and I throw a rock at it to scare it back in retaliation. I crouch down and smile at the creature, making sure not to aggravate him too much.
"Sorry. I was having too much fun."
~~~
Starfire pushes the UFO down towards the ground as I flush it with water and wind, the combined strength effectively taking it to the ground. It stays there for a few moments, then, with the help of built in rockets, boosts back up. Raven and Robin wrap each of the wings, Raven's in her magic and Robin's in a rope connected to a tree, which he and Cyborg tug on.
"Hang on, Beast Boy! We're going to get you out!" Robin calls.
Raven closes her eyes and focuses herself. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" she says, the door to the ship prying open under her influence. Robin steps forward but is thrusted back by a concreted creature.
"No!" It says as we gather in front of it. "New dog belongs to Soto! You go now!"
"I'm thinking you're the one who's gotta go," Robin says, and Soto jumps into the air, aiming to land on us. "Titans! Move!"
We almost don't move in time, but I pull us out of the way at the expense of my head hitting a tree. I look up to find a branch directly above me, and am suddenly glad I'm not taller. I look up to see Soto running at Robin through the pile of dust that's formed, the latter flying back to avoid each hit.
"Soto smash!" Soto shouts, doing exactly what he says. Robin throws several balls at Soto, and they blind him and myself with their light. He stumbles back as Robin runs to the ship, Starfire and Cyborg making sure Soto doesn't sneak up on him and attack. Starfire's starbolts and Cyborg's Sonic Cannon don't do much, and Soto pulls up a rock to block their blasts. The three look up to see Soto running at them and he sends them flying like bowling pins.
Raven runs up to the entrance of the ship but Soto reaches her before she can get in. "My dog!" he shouts, and she steps back. She pulls a tree from the ground and swings it at him, but he catches it and swings at her. Cyborg pulls her down to the ground in the nick of time, and they both duck the hit.
"Why didn't you just hand him a laser cannon?" Cyborg asks as they run back, and I take Soto's distraction to sneak into the ship.
"Beast Boy?" I call out in a hushed whisper. I look around at the empty ship until my eyes lock with Beast Boy's green ones in the middle of the room. "Beast Boy!"
I run over, just as his smile lifts. "Ember! You made it!"
My eyes venture down to his neck, where an electrical collar sits. Just as memories resurface, I shake them away and focus on the matter at hand. "What's this?"
"Shock collar," Beast Boy responds, his voice turning into a whine. "Can you get it off now?"
I chalk it up to impatience and fatigue, and my finger begins to light up with fire, but I will it away and summon water instead. "Can't you just morph out of it?" I ask, looking at the shapeshifter.
He shakes his head. "You don't think I've tried? It grows bigger and smaller whenever I do it." His excessive hand gestures almost make me chuckle.
"Okay..." I say. "Can you become an elephant, please?"
"Sure thing!" Soon, a green elephant towers over me and I fly up to its massive neck in order to get to work. I pull a small rock in through the entrance and hack at the collar, denting it enough to reach the wires.
"Ready?" I ask Beast Boy cautiously, and he nods eagerly. "Okay. This is going to hurt." I flush the inside of the wires with water and Beast Boy lets out a yelp before turning into an eel to absorb the electricity. I look away and run out without another word. Starfire and Cyborg are in a heap, and Robin looks to Raven.
"We've hit him with everything and it's still not enough!" he exclaims. "We need more. We need—"
He's interrupted by the sound of an elephant, and he looks up to see Beast Boy and I. My arms are crossed, and I grin victoriously. "I think we'll take your pet," I comment, and Beast Boy charges at Soto, while I use the earth to lock his feet in place. Once Beast Boy's knocked Soto across the floor, he turns back into human form.
"You rang?" He walks over to Soto and stands in front of him.
"Bad dog! Soto will punish!" Soto presses his button repeatedly, but nothing happens. I fly the collar from inside the ship into my hands and twirl it around.
"Looking for this?" I ask the concreted beast before whacking him with it. Beast Boy changes into a dinosaur and roars in Soto's face before sending him flying with his tail. While he's in the air, Beast Boy changes into a kangaroo and kicks him. I motion for the others to come over and they oblige, grins across their faces.
Cyborg punches him in different directions and Raven and Starfire combine their powers to blast him. The green and black beam of light causes Soto to fall to the ground, and a crater forms upon impact. He starts whimpering, about to cry, and I eye Beast Boy. Soon, a collar's on him, and I look up to see the alien, green dog on the other side of the crater.
"Sit. Stay," he commands in a superior tone.
Soto smiles and jumps out of the crater in a hurry, rushing to the creature. "Doggie! You came back!"
"On the contrary," the dog explains, turning his head in defiance. "I am only here to retrieve my squeaky toys. I refuse to be your pet any longer."
Soto gasps, and my eyes narrow as I watch the peculiar exchange unfold. "Okay! Soto will be the doggie now, and you will be the master!" Soto rolls around the ground and jumps, licking the dog.
"What? Oh, my. That tickles."
"Just when I thought it couldn't get any stranger," I comment slowly.
"Okay... weird," Beast Boy adds.
"Better him than me," Raven counters, her eyes as wide as the rest of ours.
"Come along, Soto," the dog commands. "Time to go home." Soto makes dog sounds and runs to the spaceship. The dog almost unnoticeably nods at us before the door shuts and we take off. Once the UFO's gone, we all crowd the green Titan.
"All right, Beast Boy!"
"Welcome back."
"Gimme some love, dog."
Starfire hugs Beast Boy, grinning from ear to ear. "Ah! I am elated to see you! We have all missed you so."
"You guys... really missed me?" Beast Boy questions, and I smile.
"Of course we did! Why wouldn't we?"
"Who else is gonna help me wax the T-Car?" Cyborg asks, miming the action.
"And spar with Ember and I in the gym?" Robin throws some punches in the air, just as Cyborg did with the T-Car.
"And eat nauseating amounts of tofu while Raven and I watch?" Starfire adds. Raven looks at her, clearly not fond of the idea.
"Uh, how about we all just go for pizza?"
"Sounds good to me," Cyborg exclaims, and we all walk off. I turn around, and Beast Boy's remained still.
"Come on, Beast Boy!" I shout, waving him over despite the short distance. My exclamation draws the attention of the other Titans, and they turn around too.
"Beast Boy?" Robin says. "Aren't you coming?"
"Thanks. But if it's cool with you guys, I've kinda had enough attention for one day." Beast Boy motions to the Tower before turning into a pterodactyl and flying off, and we watch him leave.
Once again, I apologise for the poor writing. I'll do better. This is just one of the few episodes that in my opinion, are worse than the others. That being said, the episode is still good. Just not the best.