"Let's go get our girl."
CHAPTER FIFTEEN:
"Let's go get our girl."
“This life.. Is torture.” a young girl passed by a long stretch of doors leading to different rooms of the palace she resided in.
These rooms were off-limits to her, however. The king of this palace deemed her ‘undeserving’ or ‘unclean’ to even consider herself worthy of entering these high-status rooms. Rooms such as the library, the war council room, the king's quarters, the study, and the prince's room were off-limits to the likes of her. Even the maids and butlers of this castle were allowed inside, but not her.
As the girl trudged through the halls, carrying on her a heavy, frilly, violet dress that didn’t suit her at all, she was suddenly halted by a cruel voice behind her.
“Look, it’s her.”
“You mean that's the half daughter of our lord?”
“She sure is an ugly little thing, isn’t she? Letting her wear such fine clothing is wasteful.”
Jeers and snickers, whispered hatred and lies, she had heard it all before. It made her feel disgusting and just as ‘unclean’ as they all wanted her to feel. Would this torture ever end? Could she continue to live like this? What was a seven-year-old girl to do?
'I want my mommy… I want to go home.’ she covered her ears as the darkness consumed her.
But the young girl knew deep down that she could never go back home. Her mother, and all the other villagers she had lived with all her life, were dead thanks to the growing war in the neighboring kingdoms. Her only salvation was the king, her father, and he only took her in because of the fear of the kingdom learning of his adultery to his queen who had just recently passed never knowing of his second-born child. He didn’t want to sully her name or his royal stature. This girl was a threat. Yet, she wouldn’t have told if he had just asked her to. But, the king was foolish and paranoid. Only a few of his most trusted advisors and vassals knew of this treachery, and they took great pleasure in tormenting the girl for it, hoping to drive her mad and send her to take her own life so the king wouldn’t have to worry any longer, and they would be free from getting their own hands dirty.
As the half princess trembled and held back her tears, another voice broke the atmosphere. A voice that carried an air of dignity and honor.
“You there!” he spoke harshly. “Just what do you think you’re doing?” The vassals all sputtered to attention, knowing who it was immediately. They all bowed and mumbled their ‘deepest’ apologies, then scurried about to fulfill their duties for that day. The princess continued to tremble and mutter incoherently to herself before two, gentle hands softly placed themselves on her shoulders. She flinched and pulled away, falling onto her backside. “Whoa!” he exclaimed, instantly kneeling.
This shocked the blonde child as no one had ever knelt before her. Never. And no one had ever attempted to help her after a panic attack. Her tongue went numb as her heartbeat rattled her little body.
“Do not be afraid.” the boy said. He looked no older than ten years old with strawberry blond hair and piercing blue eyes. His round nose and freckles gave him such a sweet and innocent face that it slightly eased her pained heart. He held out his hand diligently, waiting for the little princess to take it.
“Why are you doing this?” she stuttered, unable to move.
He laughed as if it were obvious, “Why, because, I’m you big brother! And that's what big brothers do!” he smiled widely and that was when she remembered.
That day, many weeks passed, when she came to the king in search of her father, there was a boy there beside his throne looking quite bored, that was until she told her story to the king and the accompanying vassals. He had protested to the king after he sentenced her to such a ridiculous second-class life, but was promptly shut down by the lord.
This was the first time she had spoken to the boy, and now she knew he was the first prince of their kingdom, Marcovia. So that made him.. “You’re my brother?”
“That’s right!” he replied cheerily. “I’m sorry you and I haven't had the chance to chat before. As the next king, my days are swamped with frivolous duties and lessons. But I am here to change all that.”
“..How can I trust you? Everyone hates me.. Even my father treats me like an ant.” a tear rolled down her delicate, chubby cheek and she shielded her face, in fear of being made fun of.
“..I know. Life has treated you unfairly. But I’m going to change all that.” with understanding, he scooted to sit by her, and pulled her into his crossed lap, holding her close. “Don’t worry, Terra. I will protect you. You’ll never have to be afraid ever again. You’re big brother, Brion, will never let you down.”
…
Darkness surrounded what was left of Tara’s consciousness. She tried her best to keep her thoughts alive, not wanting to fall prey to its cold, clammy clutches. It was difficult though. She was just barely able to keep herself from falling deeper. It was like being half-awake. Dreaming, yet blank, remembering, yet dead, but the thought that she had bested Slade for now, and she had protected the man she loved, was enough to keep her at peace with her decision.
She couldn’t have possibly known that right in front of her, with a pleased smirk, was the villain himself having been somewhat successful in his quest to capture her.
“Impressive indeed,” he uttered softly stroking the surface of the crystal in front of him. His apprentice, who had almost failed in his mission to kidnap Tara, stood off to the side, nervously tapping his fist against his thigh. He jumped to attention when his master spoke. “How have the experiments with the creature’s powers come along?”
“..Strong enough to absorb any form of matter you can think of.. It’s just that..-”
“Then wake her.” the villain interrupted, turning to walk away.
“Sir! I can’t just ‘wake her’!” the apprentice protested. “The creature might not be able to handle absorbing all this crystal! It is infused with Raven’s dark magic after all! If we aren't careful--!”
“I understand the risk, I suggest you follow my orders if you also understand the risk of disobeying me.” he threateningly placed his hand over his belt where a hand held device resided. It was the same object used to subdue the creature before, sending electricity to tear apart its body from an old trick that had worked wonders in the past. Nano scopic probes littered in it's body were capable of destroying it from the inside out. A similar design to the same nanites that Slade had used on the Titans before, but perfected.. The creature standing just behind the apprentice flinched, ducking behind him in fear.
“Ah!” he gasped, seeing the creature toppled in terror. “Argh! Fine! Just don't hurt them!" He begged, and thankfully it worked.
"Now, wake her."
With a heavy sigh, the apprentice softly stroked the head of the creature and spoke to it. "Love, I need your help." The creature timidly casts it’s red eyes on the apprentice. There was a trembling shimmer in it's eyes as it listened to what the apprentice wanted. "I need for you to absorb this crystal. We need the girl out of there, can you do that? It's just like that time before..."
The apprentice spoke with a kind softness in the tenner of his voice. The creature stood, seemingly better now, as it went to confront where Terra remained dormant in her crystalline prison. The creature reached its long, skinny arms around the crystal's width and hugged it. There was a sudden sparkling light that shimmered over the creature's body as it absorbed the magically infused crystals into itself until it dissipated from the top, trickling down until Terra was freed.
The girl toppled into the creature's arms and was laid down on the steel floor. The apprentice rushed to the creature, checking over it diligently. The creature seemed okay, but was now sparkling in a crystal form having taken in all of the mineral. With a calm blink of its red eyes, the creature released the transformation. It started from the head until reaching its toes and melted back to its previous, white form. The apprentice was relieved but now turned his attention to the girl laying limp on the floor. He took a strange mask from his belt and placed it over her nose and mouth. Immediately the girl jumped awake. She scrambled to sit on her backside, taking in her surroundings. As the terror seeped through her eyes she tried to yank off the mask only to be stopped by a sinister voice from just beyond the veil of sight.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
"..No.." Helpless, Tara trembled as none other than Slade stepped into the light.
"That was very clever what you did with those crystals. Very clever. But did you really think you could escape from me?" He raised his hand and clenched his fist.
"H-How.. I was so sure that would work!!" Tara panicked, standing up unsteadily. "How did you get me out?!"
"He didn't, we did." Tara whirled on her feet seeing the apprentice standing directly behind her with the lanky creature. She screamed and tried to escape, but was snatched from behind by human hands. She flailed and struggled, "Let me go!! Let me go!!" Her eyes glowed yet nothing happened. She gasped. "What the??-"
"You'll find it challenging to benefit from your powers down here." Slade said grabbing her chin with his hand forcefully. "Don't forget, I trained you. I know your greatest weakness. This entire fortress is made from metal. You can't bend that to your will."
Terra’s eyes widened largely and shook with grief. He was right, she couldn't summon anything to her aid and was too terrified to try.
"Now, be a good girl and go with my new apprentice quietly." He mockingly tapped her cheek and stood straight. "Take her to her new room." He said turning away. "Oh, and, remove the mask."
"Uh?.. But.. Sir.." With an unsure shake of his voice, the apprentice stared at his master but flinched as he more sternly repeated himself.
"Remove it."
The apprentice clenched his eyes and forced the mask off her face, releasing Tara. She suddenly fell to her knees, gasping and wheezing. Panic raced through her body as she gripped her throat which was closing up fast.
"You might find it difficult to breathe, my dear. You see, sealing this fortress with metal left little room for air, but thanks to the hard work of my apprentice, these masks are able to help us breathe. But, if you behave, then I'll allow my apprentice to give that mask back to you. But first, you need to be punished, you know.. For killing me."
Unable to move her body, Tara remained on the freezing floor, gagging. There was just barely enough oxygen to keep her alive but not enough to help her move. She was like a fish out of water.
The apprentice kept his distaste for this cruelty to himself. He wouldn't risk the creature's safety again, but as she continued to struggle on the floor he kept glancing between her and Slade unsure what to do.
"Take her to her cell." Slade finally said after he had had his fill of her desperate attempts to breathe.
Without delay, the apprentice snatched Terra up in his strong arms and carried her quickly down the long, narrow corridors with creature following steadily behind. They finally reached an array of open rooms with nothing in them. Beside each of these open areas was a panel of some sort. The apprentice laid Terra down on the floor carefully, then placed the mask from before over her lower face. It made a clicking sound and she gasped as pure oxygen filled her lungs. She writhed, gasping the nutritious air until she had her fill.
He stood up suddenly and stepped away from her as if he were afraid to be near her. "I'm sorry, Tara.. Just.. Please don't anger Slade. I promise everything will be alright if you do." He said that as he walked backed away from her while she coughed and heaved. He came to the panel next to the door and pressed several buttons in quick unison. Without delay, there was a spark of purple mass that was clear to see through but buzzed with electricity. She recognized it as a forcefield. It was similar to Cyborg's.
Tara slowly sat up, careful not to upset the headache now growing in her brain. "Why… Why are you doing this?" She weakly cried. "Why ally yourself with him? You're obviously different from him. Why would you?"
"..." The apprentice smiled helplessly behind his own mask as he turned to look at the creature beside him. He then turned back to Tara and replied, "Because, he's the only chance I have to fix a mistake I made."
Tara was rendered speechless as she watched them both walk away in unison. Tara was left alone in that dark, defining room with no way to escape. The hopelessness overwhelmed her as she slumped against the wall with her knees pulled to her chest. With a stiff hitch in her breath, Tara trembled, hugging her knees, praying that somehow she would find this was all just a bad dream.
…
'What's.. What's happening?... I feel warm.. But it's so dark.. Am I dreaming?'...
"Have you found them?"
'Who is that?.. There's.. Voices! But they seem so far away..'
"I have searched the entire tower and have not discovered them!"
'..That sounds like Starfire?'
"Keep looking! We have to--"
"Wait! I sense something.."
'Raven..? Raven!! I'm here! I’m alive!'
"I see him! Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"
At that moment the person trapped inside a prison of crystal erupted from the earth. Beast Boy laid unconscious inside to the shock of the other Titans. With a wave of her hands, Raven was able to deconstruct the fibers of her magic residing in the rock, melting it away until Beast Boy’s limp body fell out from it. Starfire nimbly flew to catch him. They all gathered around Beast Boy desperately worried until he coughed and gasped for air.
They all retained a hopeful yet concerned look as his eyes squinted open. "Ohhh.." He groaned as his vision cleared.
"Beast Boy!" Starfire called.
Raven knelt down and scanned his body looking for any injuries however there was none. She raised her brows with bewilderment but understood fairly immediately why that was. Before she could ask what happened, Beast Boy shot erect frantically grabbing his stomach, looking quite terrified when he saw that there was nothing there except the bloody outline in the rip of his jumpsuit and bandage. His other wounds seemed to have gone as well.
Robin gripped his shoulders, forcing Beast Boy to look at him. He spoke firmly, but calm so as not to alarm him further. "Beast Boy! What happened? Where's Terra?"
"..Terra.." He repeated with all the light slipping from his eyes until none remained. "..She.." Suddenly, his eyes filled with tears, dripping down the brims of his lower lashes.
‘I hate to ask after you've already done so much..but after you save me again, will you go out with me?’
"Argh!!" He stood frantically, pulling away from Starfire and Robin as he rushed to the edge of the island. His face twisted with every negative emotion. Terror, rage, regret, and guilt all raged war with the other as he set out to find her, not giving a damn about anything else.
Only Raven was able to catch up to him as she snatched his collar and spun him into her tight embrace. She was shaking, holding back all her emotions, although it was arduous.
With sharply widened eyes, Beast Boy remained standing in the awkward way she had pulled him in, but eventually released himself and gripped onto Raven's cloak. All at once, the light returned in his orbs as he cried out. "They took her!" choking frustratedly against his own sobs he continues, "I couldn't save her! They took her and I was useless! I failed!" He screamed into the oblivion he had found himself in.
The pain raptured through the air cutting it like a knife. The two of them fell to their knees, and as the Titans watched heavily the only sound that came close to drowning out the curdling screams of their companion were the waves that crashed against the beach of the once-great Titans Tower.
When Beast Boy was finally able to stand, night had fallen. The Titans gathered in what was left of their living room with sullen, reserved faces. Starfire sat on the floor behind the couch, bunched over. Raven and Beast Boy were sitting on the only chairs left from their dining table that was also sliced into pieces as she withdrew the magical aura that he had absorbed while in the crystal. Robin was pacing bitterly back and forth with his shoulders raised and fists clenching against his green gloves making a squeaking sound against them. And Cyborg was leaning over against a far-off wall with a low frown cutting ridges in his face.
The room was deathly silent. The only noise that remained was the buzzing electrical short circuits from damaged devices and some of the remaining foot bots. Without warning, Robin growled and slammed his fist into one of these soldiers, screaming with wrath. He continued to strike it until the weak grasp of Starfire snaked its way over his arm, snapping him out of it. He jerked his eyes to meet hers and it was her expression that made the flaming rage dull. He softened slightly and kicked the robot out of spite.
"Damn!" He yelled hotly.
"We can't just sit here. We need a plan." Cyborg spat.
"Don't you think I would've told you if I had a plan by now?! We don't even know where they took her!" Robin argued, stepping toward the towering cyborg.
"Well, maybe if you had given us a better strategy, we wouldn't be in this mess!!" Cyborg leaned down offensively, screaming back at the much shorter leader.
"Shut up! I can’t concentrate." Raven snapped.
"..Fighting will not help us find our friend." Starfire meekly said as she placed hands on both Cyborg and Robin.
Robin jerked away with a sharp breath through his clenched teeth as he stomped to another side of the room. Beast Boy had barely registered this skermish as his thoughts remained elsewhere. He couldn't stop picturing her face, the hopelessness in her eyes, the weakness they both felt. It was agonizing. He felt utterly useless and infuriated. He had truly failed himself, the team, and most importantly, Terra herself.
"Beast Boy!" The sudden intrusion into his racing thoughts jumped him to reality. He turned his vacant expression to the lady next to him looking quite intensely at him. Raven sighed. "So, can you remember anything else?"
"I already told you all I know. She was fending off Slade's new apprentice and the creature right before I passed out. I don't remember how I ended up in the crystal, or why my wounds are gone."
"That was probably to do with my magic." Raven replied. "As to the crystal, it's obvious that Tara put you in there to keep you safe from getting captured also."
"...Yeah." His fist squeezed over his thigh.
"We should start searching. Raven," Robin’s commanding voice forced her attention to him, "Can you sense Tara nearby?"
"..No.. She could be unconscious. Or too far away." Admittedly, they had little to work with, if that was the case.
"So, we have no leads, no way to track Tara, and no plan." Bluntly stating the obvious, Cyborg lulled his head to the side.
Beast Boy stood up abruptly from Raven's side. His expression was unreadable as he forcefully made his way up the stairs, stomping with each step. He pushed the busted doors open and continued on till he reached the one room he needed to see. With bold letters written over the top of the door, his eyes swelled as he read the label, then pushed himself inside the dimly lit room. He stood in the fray, glancing left, right, then straight on as he walked further inside.
The room was cold but free from the carnage in the rest of the tower. With the emergency power barely pumping enough light to illuminate the small space, he went to sit on the bed with his knees already beginning to weaken under the strain of his emotions weighing him down. He folded his hands over his face as he crouched over his knees.
"Tara.." He uttered pathetically.
As he sat there in the dark abyss of her room, he didn't dare to think what was happening to her at this very moment.
…
A spry, young girl giggled happily as she ran rampant round in circles on the playground. Carrying with her a pink, polka-dotted kite, she was having the time of her life while her big brother neglected to watch as he sat a ways away on a bench buried in papers.
The man himself looked to be in his early twenties with striking red hair that fluffed over his black glasses. His under eye bags seemed to be his only flaw as the rest of his appearance was handsome and rather perfect. He wasn't muscular by any means, but what he lacked in that he made up for with his superb intellect.
"Wilbur! Wilbur!" The little girl called several feet away, "Look how high my kite is! Look! Look!" The little girl herself was a cute girl with red hair as well. It wasn't as grand as her brother, Wilbur's, hair, however, she didn't really mind. Her electric blue eyes made more of an impression along with her glittering smile.
"Yeah, very good." He absently replied as he wrote something down in his field journal.
The girl slowly stopped running as a lonely feeling nagged at her again. Her big brother had been more and more distracted as of late and it was rather annoying to the little ten year old. As she stood there in disappointment, her kite began to falter to the earth with part of its string resting on her head.
The young sister turned her attention to the other little girls and boys running around with their siblings and parents and she felt the need to join them capture her heart. She meekly grabbed her kite and came to the bench Wilbur resided on slightly shielding her face with the brim of it. Wilbur himself continued to overlook his work until he felt a tiny nudge on his thigh.
He barely turned his honeycomb eyes to glance at the intruder only to discover his little sister with reluctant tears springing in the corners of her eyes. "What's wrong, gumdrop?" He asked, calling her by one of the many nicknames he always gave her.
"..Will you play with me?" Her voice shook slightly as she averted her eyes.
"Oh, sorry love, I really can't. I-I have this important meeting with the chairman remember? I have to fix my experiment or I can't get this job working in the laboratory. You understand, don't you? If I get this job, I'll be able to provide for the both of us." He fumbled through his research, flipping through the pages as he spoke.
The girl sighed, "But you promised to play with me."
"Evelyn love, please, I need to--" one more glance was all it took to make him dryly swallow his words. Her sad eyes followed him and it never failed to soften his heart. He groaned, removing the glasses from his nose and rubbing his face. "Don't you want to move into a nice flat and have all the toys and food you could ever want?" He asked, softly stroking her little head. "I'm doing this for both of us."
"..But I won't be able to see you very often after you get this job.." She pouted, dropping the kite to the ground. "I want to spend time with my big brother.."
"..Mmm.." He smiled, rubbing her head affectionately. "Alright, alright.." Immediately her eyes widened with elation. "But just for a little while!" Standing, the much taller man hoisted his sister into the air, and placed her on his neck, running wildly as her excited squeals and giggles filled the air…..
"...Mmm?" Slowly, the apprentice's eyes opened and he rose from his work desk with sleep still in his eyes. He removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes with a yawn. It had been a long time since he had a dream so nice.. It made his eyes shimmer in the dull light above him. He quickly sniffled and snapped back to attention. There wasn't any time to sleep, he had a job to do..
In the cell block, Tara tirelessly sawed away at the ropes binding her wrists against the metal framed wall. Her eyes were mundane as she continually raised and lowered her arms against the wall. After a few hours, she felt like giving up. She had no idea if this was even working and she still had yet to untie her feet. She lowered her head, hair brimming over her eyes before she felt something stick her from her pocket. She gasped aloud and fidgeted on her side to feel what was stabbing her. Her eyes lit up.
The crystal Raven had given her was still in her pocket. She would have screamed she was so happy. This was her chance! She quickly backed up and shut her eyes to focus on the crystal. It slowly shimmied out of her pocket and went behind her back. With a strained tilt of her head, Tara forced it to flatten until it was sharp as a knife. She began to saw away at the rope until she could hear the fibers start to tear and rip and she couldn't stop the relieved smile from tugging on her face.
That's when she heard the snap. Free at last, she bowed her head silently thanking Raven to herself before quickly sending the shard to begin to chip away at her legs. She only felt her heart drop when footsteps approached her. With more haste, the makeshift blade frantically sawed until the footsteps were right on top of her. She maneuvered the crystal behind her with her hands and kept her feet locked as if the ropes were still firmly attached. She lowered her head, making sure her hair covered her frantic expression as this person came to check on her.
It was the apprentice. He carried a small tray with assorted cups and utensils. "I figured you might be hungry." He said sympathetically. When she didn't respond he grimaced, "I promise it isn't poison, and I can feed it to you since you're tied up.. Sorry about that by the way." He typed against the keypad. An electric buzz filled the silence in the air and he stepped inside. "You won't have to worry. You'll be out soon." As he approaches, Terra kept herself as still as her adrenaline-filled body could right until he completely lowered his guard and started to kneel.
"Heh." With a smirk, Terra leaped up and snapped the half-cut rope around her legs clean off, much to the shock of the apprentice. He was completely helpless as she sweaped his half-bent legs right from under him and then punched him square in the nose. He writhed with pain, cradling the oozing, burning wound as Tara made a satisfied smirk. "Sooner than you think." She heavily breathed, shaking her now bruised knuckles.
Without further delay, Tara made a beeline for the open cell and peaked around. There were no foot bots that she could see so she hurriedly ran down the stretching corridors. With the shard at her side, Terra kept her eyes out for traps, soldiers, the creature, or Slade. If she could find the exit, she could book it back to the tower. Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest with the possibility.
Meanwhile, the creature was patiently sitting down the hall hooked up to some wires and other strange devices while in it’s chains. Slade was the reason the apprentice had to keep it locked up, but the apprentice was always kind so it allowed him to do so. However, when the creature heard the faint shriek of the apprentice, it’s eyes widened. It silently fidgeted with extreme worry, then pulled at the chains frantically. The metal tugged and clambered until the creature pulled itself free from the wall. It fell on it’s face, then scrambled to run to the sound of its only friend in need. The chains rattled as it ran until coming to the cell block and discovering the apprentice laying on the floor hissing in pain.
A red liquid dripped profusely through his fingertips and that alone made the creature sick. It unsurely moved its arms, kneeling before the apprentice. The apprentice shakily stood up and leaned on the creature for support. "Ahh!" He yelled in frustration. "Damn it!! I need you to get her!" He frantically ordered as the pain still made it difficult to see straight. The creature's eyes narrowed as it's chest burned in hatred. It wanted nothing more than to kill that strange girl they captured for hurting it’s friend, but just before the creature could move, the apprentice snatched it’s arm, knowing the dangerous glint in its eyes. It snapped its eyes back to the apprentice. "Alive.." He added, sternly
The creature blinked it's mechanical-looking eyes until they were focused back to normal, tilting it’s head. After a moment it nodded and began to run on all fours in pursuit. Wilbur watched and grunted with pain as he fumbled on his belt to pull a device out. He pushed the button on the top and a blaring alarm echoed in the massive structure to release the foot soldiers.
Terra came to a crossroad with four halls. She breathed heavily having run all this way. She had no idea where she was going, but she was determined to make it out alive. With the shard of crystal zipping around her torso Tara faltered on which path to take.
That's when strange tapping noises, like hands and feet galloping on the steel floor, began to fill the otherwise silent space. She gasped and decided to just continue on to the left of her. This hall was dark without an ounce of light in sight. She was frightened, only having the golden glow of the shard as her only torch.
Metallic hands seized her ankles making the young heroine fall over with a tight breath. She had felt these hands before. A Slade bot had found her. Unable to see clearly, Tara sent the shard to maneuver around the robot that had captured her, stabbing it’s head, then zipping out the other side. It twitched until it’s grip released her and she scrambled to her feet. Propelling her legs faster than she had ever ran before the shard continuously protected her as those foot/hand steps continued to grow louder.
She found herself zipping through halls, ducking corners, encountering and avoiding more soldiers, and nearly escaping with her body intact. Her moves were finally coming back to her. Like riding a bike, she had never truly forgotten the lessons she learned from Slade when it came to his martial arts style of fighting. She had her own “Terra-fied” style that worked well for her until she finally came to the end of her winded chase. By this point, she had found herself in a long, narrow, twisting hall that seemed to be on an incline and rather never-ending. That was until she just about ran into a massive, metal later formation. With a great stride, Terra climbed like a pro until reaching the top. The submarine-like door rat the exit was covered with several locking mechanisms on it, presumingly to keep her locked in, but Tara had news for that asshat.
Tara was barely able to catch her breath while she waved her arm, forcing the loyal crystal the cut rivets in the locks until she detached them with her elbow, striking over and over until the locks fell to the floor, clattering harshly below. With a bottomless breath, Terra pried open the door and was greeted by the aroma of must and even more darkness.
She could make out the faint sound of dripping and with her powers felt the overwhelming presence of earth. This was it! She had finally escaped.. But.. where was she? With the damp, chilly, and rather stale air, it felt like she was in a cavern of some kind.
Terra pulled herself out of the hole and slipped her legs to hang off the side of the ledge from the lair entrance. As she took her first step onto the earth she felt a flash barrage of images envelop her psyche.
‘It’s never too late..’
‘I’m sorry, Beast Boy, for everything I’ve done.’
‘This place is going down, we gotta go!’
‘I have to stay.. I’m the only one that can stop it.. You were the best friend I ever had.’
“Ah!” she fell to her knees, her body collapsing from the pounding in her head.
Was this .. her cave? The one she petrified herself in to save the city? Her final resting place?
When she could finally open her eyes, she faintly saw the hole she had climbed out of was the pedestal she had resided upon in her statue form. That son of a bitch had been hiding out in her ‘grave’ for who knows how long. It wasn’t outlandish considering this place used to be his lair to begin with, but that only sent the blonde fuming. She wanted nothing more than to send him plummeting into another pit of molten lava, but that would sadly have to wait. Standing up rather shakily, Terra pushed through the pounding in her skull to escape this prison of obsidian.
Sadly, that wasn’t meant to be, for just as the Titan-to-be took one step a voice chilled her to the bone. “I must admit, I wasn’t expecting you to make it out of there, but I had a sneaking suspicion that by some miracle you would be able to accomplish it. After all..you were my disciple..”
Tara froze, her face falling in fright. She knew she was dead in the water. All her terror, her trauma, forced her body to shiver and she drew a complete blank. He had total control over her. There was nothing she could do…
‘It’s never too late..’
But that was all the more reason to fight.
Oh, Terra knew she didn’t stand a chance. She knew Slade would eventually win, as he always did, however, he would have a fight he won't soon forget.. A fight that would ultimately distract him from her true plan.
Terra breathed, first through her nose, then out her lips like a calming wave. She tightened her fingers into fists, twisting her nails into her palms. The dank air started to wave as a strange aura was building steadily. She felt the vibrations within the earth as Slade began to move to a lower fighting stance through the earth as her hair began to glide upwards and her eyes flickered in and out of the glow of her power.
“I was your disciple, so you know what you’re getting yourself into!” she screamed out, propelling the stalactites to rip from the ground and aim at the villain. With a snap of her wrist, the formations sharpened to a point. Tara wasn’t taking any chances as she intended to kill him once and for all, but Slade had other plans.
He quite effectively flipped over the stalactites and rolled back to his feet, galloping to where the girl stood. Tara felt something different in her ability. Something was building, something that wasn’t her own. This foreign entity felt as though it were familiar in a sense as it embraced and enveloped her body like it was a warm layer of blanket covering her powers, amplifying it tenfold. Whatever this new energy was, Tara used it to her full advantage, pulling down the cave’s top over Slade as he rushed to grab her. He only missed barely, growling and grunting as he dodged as if things were beginning to become worrisome for him.
Keeping on the assault, Tara's body lifted into the air. With a shriek, she fell back to the ground on her knees, and like a tidal wave, folded the earth until the gradually bigger end slapped Slade off his feet and into the air to free fall, but Terra wasn’t done yet. She swung half around with her eye’s glow barely keeping track of the intensity of her speed as a shower of boulders collided with the villain, forcing him to plummet to the earth.
Convinced he was trapped, or smushed, under her rubble, Tara slowly came back to the ground now littered and wasted by her destruction. As she stepped forward, it took every ounce in her body not to collapse from the overuse of her geoforce. Just as she came to overlook her handy work, a tight fist erupted from the debris and clenched around her petite neck. With rubble dripping off his body, Slade pulled himself from the ashes and hoisted Tara in the air with ease. She struggled, tears springing in her eyes from the gagging. She attempted to pry his tightly wrung fist from her but there was no escaping his wrath.
With tremendous strength, Slade veered down, slamming her against the very boulder she used to crush him. Immediately her body went limp and her mind dark. With rage blinding him, Slade continued to strike her until the mask around her face snapped and shattered. He would have killed Tara if long arms hadn’t pried him off her. In his rage, he almost took his frustrations out on this third party, but a stifled shout echoed like thunder on a bleeding summer’s day, halted him.
“STOP!!” It was the apprentice just barely able to climb out from the strong hold. With an outstretched hand and his nose filled with tissue, he frantically scuttled to pull the creature away and stand in front of it protectively. “You need BOTH of them ALIVE!” he shouted, “Otherwise our plan won't. work.”
Unsteadily, Slade’s erratic breathing came back to normal and he closed his exposed eye with a calmer, more steady breath. Without fixing any part of his damaged suit, he glided to the apprentice, stepping just beside him. “..Tend to her wounds,” he ordered, clearly still pissed, he flicked a shard of rock from his shoulder pad, then continued on down the hatch.
As soon as the latch sealed, Wilbur dashed to the girl’s side, turning her over on her back and removing the shattered mask, tossing it away. He leaned over, listening for her breathing. It was shallow, but he could make it out. Just to be sure, he pulled out his kuragasiama blade and positioned it beneath her nostrils. The blade fogged with her breath and he heaved a relieved sigh. They weren’t out of the woods yet, however. As he pulled out his medical cleaners and disinfectants from his many belt pouches, Wilbur worked tirelessly until he made sure the bleeding stopped and her breath returned to normal. He finished wrapping her head in some gauze and picked her up in his arms carefully. Slipping her onto his back he gestured for the creature to follow as they returned the girl back to the dungeons below..
Unbeknownst to them, Terra had already won. Now fluttering just beyond the entrance to the cave, the slowly dying crystal that had come to her rescue was going to be the object that saved her as it’s butterfly form dimly made its journey through the woods and across the bay to reach the Tower of the Titans.
…
‘Tara… Tara...!’ Raven carefully stepped in this vast, empty void of darkness. As she went along, her bare, marble feet clicked against the shallow water that covered the strange floor. If one were to look down, they would only see the darkness or their reflection in the water. If one were to peer into their surroundings, they might go mad with the very concept there was nothing. It was a void deprived of light, yet there was still some source from somewhere in the vast space. Any signs of life were nonexistent except for the Titan slowly making her way through.
This was the mind space that Raven was able to roam. Only one with special mental porous could accomplish this feat and Raven had been meditating for all of her life just so she could enter this very plain of nonexistence. It was a calming space to stay for a few moments, where one could gather their thoughts and be free from life for even a second, but Raven wasn’t interested in that aspect of it. Raven was searching for someone. With her own magic, Raven could manipulate this dimension to find people. If they were under a great amount of stress, or in a deep, meditative state, or even if they were on the brink of death, Raven would be able to find them, if she knew who she was searching for.
But Raven knew the girl she was searching for all too well. How could she ever forget those gorgeous, sea-blue eyes of hers? How could she not remember her brilliant smile, her laugh, her entire essence? Raven knew her like the back of her hand.
‘Tara!’ she continued to call, yet she was unable to locate her.
Raven had been searching for much longer than she was supposed to be in this other dimension. The longer you were in this strange place, the more likely you would become lost in it, but Raven couldn't allow herself to stop. She had to find Terra. No matter what. Time was running out, and they had no idea if she was even alive.
That was when she spotted something glowing. It piqued her curiosity as the light flitted in a dim, purplish-yellow aura.
The light was getting closer but also fading quickly. She trotted to it before it finally fell into her palms weakly. Barely able to catch it, she slid on the slick floor and fell on her knees. Regaining her composure, Raven peered into her palms. A slowly dying butterfly was inside, made entirely out of familiar-looking crystal.
It was pulsating with her magic and the purple glow was shimmering in and out of focus. She touched it’s jagged wings curiously and that's when she was thrusted into a series of flash images that bombarded her psyche. Images of the apprentice, crystal encasing her body and face, Slade, the creature, a battle to the death, and then Slade choking her. She gasped out and dropped the butterfly. Panting, Raven heaved and coughed, feeling as though she would vomit until she gathered herself.
"..." That was when she started putting together these snippets. These were memories.. Terra's memories. "Uh! My magic!" She quickly gathered the butterfly with a wide grin. "She petrified herself in the crystal too! That means she absorbed my magic, I can track her!!" The empty void began to shake and the water rippled as she excitedly pulled her hands to her chest releasing her meditation.
When she opened her eyes, she was laying on the couch in the real world again. Immediately she sat up with a startled gasp. "I can track her!!" She yelled which was quite unusual for her. Starfire had been with her watching over her friend while her body was somewhat defenseless and the outburst had startled her.
At the same moment, a green falcon flapped it’s mighty wings lowly over the trees. With it's perfect vision, it scoured the earth for any sign of the girl he had been searching for. With heavy eyes, he veered to the side, catching the updraft in the wind before swirling to a landing in a tree within the forest. Once his talons touched the branch, the falcon morphed into it’s human form.
Beast Boy stood on the branch with one hand clenched around the trunk. Sullen, his worried eyes focused from this bird's eye view until landing on something rather peculiar. "What the…?" Curious, he morphed into a flying squirrel, gliding down to the ground floor right beside this strange, glowing object that was struggling to move.
When he landed on his feet, Beast Boy trotted to barely catch the object. "A butterfly?" It was indeed a butterfly. But it wasn't what he expected. When he touched it’s wing, it was hard as a rock. But not a rock, it was, "Crystal!" He gasped. "Isn't this the same crystal that I got petrified in? That means.." His eyes sparkled as hope glimmered into the color of his iris, "Terra… She's alive!" Abruptly, the boy jumped into the air and transformed into a falcon once again with the butterfly captured tightly in his claws as he booked it for the tower.
"Guys!! Guys!!" Rushing through the halls with the butterfly in his grasp, Beast Boy belted for all to hear him. "You're never going to believe what I-!" He was interrupted by Raven's shout.
"I can track her!" She said rather suddenly.
Robin and Cyborg Pushed by Beast Boy almost flipping the butterfly from his hand. He fumbled to catch it before joining the others in the living room. "What’s this about tracking?" He asked.
"The reason why you can't sniff her out was because she had petrified herself as she did you." Raven quickly relayed, moving vividly with her hands, the green changeling had never seen her so expressive. "She must have thought they wouldn't be able to use her if she encased herself, but they took her anyway."
"Raven, slow down." Robin interrupted placing his hand on her shoulder. "Take a breath. How did you even find this out?"
"I had a vision. I saw a butterfly, but it was made from the same crystal that I gave her and that she trapped Beast Boy inside of. It gave me her last memories before the magic faded."
"Magic?" Cyborg perked a brow.
"My magic, " Raven clarified. "I infused the crystals with magic to help me meditate, remember? When Beast Boy was petrified, he absorbed my magic from within and it healed his wounds, but I had no idea Tara had petrified herself as well. That means she has my magic inside her too."
"Which means you can locate her!" Starfire caught on and for the first time since arriving back at the tower, she flew in elation.
"Correct." Raven nodded with a grin. "It might take a while though.. I don't have the butterfly. If I did, it could act like a sort of compass.." The air in the room quieted for a moment before the smaller member of the team carefully glanced down at his palm then walked over to Raven who was deep in thought.
"Was this what you needed?" He asked, presenting the now lifeless butterfly.
The entire team gasped aloud as hope-filled their hearts. Raven softly took the butterfly from him and smiled in relief. With a soft ruffle of his hair, she nodded to him, "Let's go get our girl."
Grinning widely, Beast Boy nodded with his fist raised, "Hell yeah!"
...
A child with flowing blonde hair dripping just over her shoulder blades softly tugged at the ripped dress as she traversed to her room in the top corner of the castle. Out of reach and out of sight from all, she continued up the narrow, rickety stairs, and wiped tears and snot from her face with the sleeve of her dress. A hiccup escaped her as she tripped on the stairs falling on her chest. The panic turned into anger, then to sadness as she stayed there on those stairs sobbing her big, blue eyes out.
"Terra?" She heard a gentle voice call out to her in the darkness. This voice echoed softly as it's owner quickly traveled up the stairs, creaking under his weight. "Terra?"
Unable to bring herself to move, Terra only continued to sob on the staircase with her hair sticking to her reddened cheeks. Before she knew it, her little body had been scooped up into another's arms, cradling her.
"Terra?? What happened to you? You're all beaten up and your beautiful dress is ripped to shreds!" It was her half-brother, Brion. He retrieved a handkerchief from his breast pocket and diligently wiped away her tears and snot as she struggled to push him away.
"No! Don't touch me!" She cried out in a whale. It startled the older as he froze, "I'm dirty! I'll get you in trouble if you keep hanging around me! You should just let me die!" Screaming spastically, poor Terra started hyperventilating.
"I would never let you die!" immediately he protested, "You're my little sister, I could never ignore you!" He finished wiping her tears and smoothly stroked her back. "Who did this to you?.."
Terra's body trembled in his grasp as she gripped tightly on his orange jacket. She refused to say, but Brion had a sinking feeling that he knew who it was.
"..Father found out about us meeting together, didn't he?" He felt her twitch and that was all the answer he needed. "..I'm sorry, Terra. I've been a terrible big brother for you.. I let you get hurt and I wasn't there to save you." Terra sobbed harder into his shoulder. "Terra, listen to me… I'm going to be king one day," his voice sounded far off as he thought about the future, "When I do, I will see to it that the kingdom knows what my father did and I will make sure you are treated like the princess you are. At the moment, you must forgive my weakness. I am not strong enough to face our father yet, but there will come a day when I will be. And I will fight to fix this injustice. I promise."
"..I'm weak too.." He heard her say through her tears, "I let you see me cry."
Brion smiled and hugged her tightly as he leaned against the wall, "My sister is not weak." He said, "My sister is brave, beautiful, smart, and kind. Father refuses to see you as his blood, but I will not. We will both get stronger. We will both rule the kingdom. We will both rise like a butterfly."
"A.. Butterfly?" Curious, Terra pulled away and gazed into his crystalline eyes.
Brion nodded, "Yes. A butterfly is an earthling creature that comes in many different shapes and sizes and flies high in the clouds with patterned wings. In legends, they say that fairies paint their wings so no two are alike. "
"Whoa.."
Brion noticed she had stopped crying so continued to talk, "There are lots of creatures like that on earth. I shall teach you." He picked her up and proceeded to walk up the stairs, "And I'll teach you lots of other things too."
"Hehe! Thank you, brother!" Terra giggled, hugging his neck as he escorted her back to her room on a royal piggyback ride.
…
When Tara peeled her eyes open she felt a strange sensation fill her gut. Had she been dreaming? It was a nice dream.. Definitely. She couldn't quite recall it, however. She could barely hold open her eyes as she lazily glanced around in the blurred area. She felt heavier than lead as her body refused to move. She couldn't even speak as her eyes fell back once again, giving way to the darkness.
'Maybe I will go back to dreaming then..'
Wilbur had been keeping track of Tara's vitals ever since she attempted to escape. It was miraculous she was even alive, however, he supposed that had something to do with the magic coursing through her body. He had noticed that her wounds had even begun to heal themselves at an astonishing rate.
"The preparations are almost complete." He spoke to the man standing over Terra.
"Is the machine functioning as predicted?" Slade replied, not bothering to lift his head.
"Yes, sir. By all calculations, it will be able to do as you intended."
"Excellent. I must congratulate you, doctor. You've proven yourself as my apprentice." A menacing hand slithered over Wilbur's shoulder causing an unwanted shiver.
"..Per our agreement, this is only a temporary venture.." His eyes slowly glanced to his shoulder as he reminded the much taller man of that fact
"..Correct. That was what we agreed upon." He stepped back and the apprentice felt as though he could breathe again. "You built a machine that could take Terra's magnificent powers and place them into me, and if the experiment succeeds then you could use its technology for your own .. personal needs." Slade went back to standing over Terra like a tiger stalking its prey. A hefty shadow cast over his duel-covered mask as he squinted the only eye he had. "And finally I'll be rid of her, once and for all."
"..." Wilbur froze for a moment. Cautiously, he put his words together carefully, "..By 'get rid of'.. You mean her powers, correct?" The silence could've chilled even the evilest of a person as Slade turned to glance over his shoulder.
"Surely you must have realized by now." He said matter of factly.
"..I-I."
"Ever since her betrayal to me that ended up being my demise– before my resurrection– I've wanted nothing more than to see her death by my own hands."
"B-But, you said--!"
"When her powers are removed from her body, do you realize what will happen to her?"
"..." No, in fact, Wilbur hadn't even thought of it.
"There is still much I haven't told you about her yet. Terra's powers are artificial. She was neither born nor cursed with it, it was given to her from her homeworld." Dumbfounded, Wilbur only listened with widened eyes, "It has merged with her body to the point that being separated from it would mean certain doom. But you needn't worry about that. For your .. Special problem, only the parasite will die, not what's inside it."
"..But Terra dies."
"That is correct." Condescendingly, Slade softly tapped his cheek. "Our agreement still stands, however.. If you succeed in this endeavor, then I will remove the nanites from your little friend and you can save the one you love.. I'm giving you two hours, doctor. The machine will be up and running by then, or there will be more than one casualty today." With that daunting note left to rot in the air, the apprentice felt his body slump in his chair as dread seeped through his eyes. This was more than he had signed up for. As a doctor, he still had some moral compass left. Even if his dignity was hanging on a thread.
He turned to the creature sitting in it's cage not too far away from his desk and an overwhelming sadness swelled his heart. He curtly turned away unable to bear it. "I can not sacrifice one life for another.. I can't.."
Even for my own flesh and blood.