Legend of the Titans Preview

Righto, here's a bit of the first chapter. It's been a while since I wrote the Teen Titans, so I hope I got their personalities down, especially Slade. Do NOT read this if you hate grammatical errors and such. This preview is completely unedited. Also, if you have any suggestions for subplots or ideas in general, go ahead and give em to me. Also, critics: show me no mercy.

For the Titans, there was many things that could get them into action. Sometimes it seemed like monsters and supervillains spawned out of mid air. And it was always during something important, too, like a late-night video game marathon, or reruns of Robot Chicken (that sometimes crudely parodied the Titans' various exploits, much to Beast Boy's delight.) Sometimes, on a blue moon, the fight even came to them. But most of the time, an average day in their business started with a simple two words:

"OOOOOH CRAP!"

Trillions of Years Before the Events of Friendship is Magic
The Amazon Rain Forest
Earth

You thought it was going to be 'Titans, GO!' Didn't you? Nope: that's coming up.

Hovering above an ancient Mayan, pyramid, long taken over by nature's vines and tangles, was a single, almost submarine-like craft. There was a sound of air being compressed, and soon enough, the five, black, hatches situated at the top part of it flung off of it, revealing five, strange teenagers.

"I told you this was a dumb, idea, Robin!" an African-American, half-human, half-cyborg machine spat. "But noooo, you always gotta go right into the killzone, don't ya?!"

"Ugh - shut it, Cyborg!" Robin, also known as the Boy Wonder, or 'green-tight-wearing fairy' on his bad days hissed. "This isn't time for second guessing ourselves."

"Second guessing yourself, you mean!?" Cyborg groaned. "This is the fifth time I'm going to have to rebuild this baby, you know!"

"Is this really the time for arguing?" another stated, a pale, gothic looking girl hidden mostly beneath a blue cloak. "Shouldn't we uh... be 'abandoning ship'? But by all means, dying is alright, too..."

"Pffft, how are we going to die?!" the fourth spoke, a young, green, furry male of a sort, sporting a black and purple spandex. "Slade's like - down there, and we're way up here!"

Suddenly, there was a series of strange, beeping sounds, coming from the ground, causing the green elf to hop in his seat in fright. He looked over, gulping, only to see a quartet of pint-sized laser cannons aiming towards their ship.

"Yes, Slade and his vast arsenal of ranged weaponry could never get us up here," Raven snarled.

"Friends!" the fifth cried, an orange skinned girl cried, her eyes two pools of green. "I believe now is the time we participating in the reprieving of criminal elements!"

"Say wah?!" Beast Boy gasped. "Starfire, stop speaking foreignese!"

"I think she means," Robin cried. "BAIL OUT! TITANS! GO!"

There ya go.

"EEEEEP!" Starfire shrieked.

TEOW-TEOW-TEOW-TEOW-TEOW-TEOW-TEOW!.!.!.!.!

As soon as they began to move, the four turrets opened fire on the craft. First, it became swissed cheese as their laser ammunition ripped through it. That was until-

FROOOOOOOOOOOOOM!.!.!

One finally struck the fuel source, ripping apart the craft in a fiery inferno.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Cyborg cried, falling all the way to the stony top of the pyramid without any sort of safety. He landed with a tremendous THUD!, cracking the ancient stone and actually creating a crater. "Robin! I swear: if nothing comes of this, YOU'RE PAYING FOR A NEW ONE THIS TIME!"

"Sorry, Cyborg! It was a bad call," Robin grunted, sailing down next to his side, grapple-hook in hand. "But it'll be worth, it I promise you!"

"Oh you bet your skinny butt it will be worth it!" Cyborg snarked. "It'll be worth every last buck in your bat-wallet!"

"Uh, dudes!" Beast Boy cried, transforming out of falcon form at their sides. He frantically pointed at the nearby cannons that were slowly pivoting towards them. "The big 'pew pew pew' shooty laser guns are still there!"

Raven shook her head in disbelief. "Beast Boy is acting as the voice of reason? By god: I guess Slade really is going to destroy the world this time..."

"We don't have time for this!" Robin shouted. "Slade just went into the pyramid, and we needed to be in there five minutes ago!"

Starfire glanced at him curiously. "But Robin, aren't we to acquire fierce the foul mechanical monstrosities that have desecrated our beloved T-Ship?!"

Cyborg grinned at her. "This is why you should be the leader, Star! I like the way you think!"

"There are alternatives to fighting," Robin muttered. "Raven, shield us!"

"Right away, Obi-Wan," she grunted, and right as the cannons fired, a black forcefield leapt up around them. A multitude of lasers struck it, each creating a small red mark on it when it struck. They quickly moved out of their line of fire, behind two massive stone walls lining an ancient duo of doors.

"T-That... was awesome," Beast Boy said, nearly breaking into tears.

Starfire raised an eyebrow. "But this is not the first time Raven has provided us with her defensive-"

"NO, not that!" he said, looking as if he had entered nirvana. "It's that we're totally making Star Wars references now! STAR WARS REFERENCES! I- I love you guys."

"My god," Raven said, blinking in disbelief, before glancing at Starfire. "Starfire, is it normal to be tickled by this or extremely annoyed?"

"This is why we are such a joyous team!" she beamed. "We are like true Tamaranian Warriors, appreciating the small things in the heat of even the fiercest battle!"

Cyborg actually threw a smirk at that. "We aren't too bad at all, really? And you know what, even if we go in there and Slade throws everything he has at us, even in the worst case scenerio: he'll never truly beat us."

"Then let's finally take him to where he belongs," Robin grunted, throwing a fist into his palm. One could practically see the eagerness, the obsession in his eyes: even through the mask. "This is it, Titans. We're at the final home of the enemy." He then chuckled at the door. "And I suppose we'll just have to let ourselves in, won't we?"

"Booya," Cyborg smiled, transforming both of his arms into sonic cannons. "Actually, care to do the honors, bird boy?"

"Don't mind if I do," he grinned, whipping out a small, circular device and sticking it to the door...

---

The interior of the temple was almost pitch-black. It was a lonely place: one filled with dust and horrible, ancient memories of sacrifice and despair. Yet still, there was still a hint of light: one coming from the center of the room. It came from no physical object, rather a swirling mass of energetic lights.

Standing before it was the massive room's lone occupant: a silhouette if looked at from the door...That was now... beeping?

Beep.... beep.... beep-beep-beep-beep...

"Hmph," the figure chuckled. "Always so punctual..."

BOOOOOOOOM!.!.!

With a flood of light, the door became nonexistent, blasted into a million stone pieces. Now, all that stood there were five Teen Titans, silhouettes themselves in front of a setting sun.

"Dude - what... is that?!" Beast Boy gasped, his eyes widening at the strange vortex of lights.

Robin grunted slightly. "Doesn't matter: all that matters is that Slade wants it." He then slowly began to walk forward, his team mates in tow. "Am I right, Slade?"

"Yeah, he's staring at that like it's late night HBO!" Cyborg laughed.

Raven shot him a suspicious look. "What do you watch on HBO?"

Cyborg quickly sweat-dropped. "Um... uh... sports. Lots of... sports."

Raven shot him a blank look.

"Hahaha! Oh my god, Cy," Beast Boy giggled. "You've been holding out on me, haven't you?!" He then glanced at Cyborg curiously. "But bro... I gotta ask: are you um- fully functio-"

"Titans, concentrate!" Robin growled.

A cold, deep, though somewhat amused voice responded.

"Concentrate, Robin?" Slade chuckled. "But your... 'banter', is always the best part of these little meetings... it's something I'll never miss..."

"Ugh, why is he always so subtle?" Beast Boy muttered. "And seriously, hasn't anyone but me noticed that Slade sort of sounds like Hellboy? I'm onto you Ron Perlman..."

Slade chuckled yet again, still facing the lights. "In fact: I'm beggining to see why you keep the child around."

"Shame you won't be 'enjoying' his company anymore, Slade," Robin snapped. "You're lucky that the state will have it its own way, because if it were mine: you'd be rotting in a jail cell the rest of your life." Robin began to slowly walk towards him. "And do you know what would be in it? A single television. And the only show playing would be pictures of all of those who suffer because of you!"

At that, Slade remained silent... slowly turning around to reveal his masked face.

"Robin," he said, amused as ever. "What you're suggesting sounds somewhat like psychological torture." He then chuckled. "You still haven't changed a bit, my old apprentice."

Robin's mask widened in rage. "Don't you DARE say something like that!"

"Robin," Starfire whispered. "Do not let him anger you-"

"I've never made anyone suffer! That's your job!" Robin shouted.

Slade brought a hand to his chin.

"Yet here you are: hunting me to the ends of the Earth after I helped you save it," Slade said. "I already suffered for my... 'crimes', you know. Or is the death penalty not good enough for you?"

Robin tightened his fist. "The only reason I've hunted you is because I know, deep down, people never change!"

Slade stood silent for a second, as the rest of the Titans glanced at Robin with concern.

"Dude... every time," Beast Boy whispered to Raven.

Raven nodded. "He can't even think about Slade without letting his emotions take control. I supposed people really don't change..."

Finally, Slade let out an evil, dark laugh: something he rarely ever did. "My dear boy: you have never been more right. We will always be two sides of the coin. It's almost as if we need each other."

"Alright, that just sounds messed up," Cyborg interjected. "In a really, really, creepy HBO special kind of way."

Slade cocked his head slightly. "Amusing, Cyborg, though I don't suppose you could understand the relationship between a father and his son, could you?" He gazed over the Titans. "Could any of you? Raven - born of an interdimensional demon. Beast Boy, or should I say: Logan Garfield, who's father was lost to the wild. Victor Stone - how long did it take for your father to bleed to death? Oh, and how can we forget our favorite child of the stars? Koriand'r, I believe you're called in the government files. Tell me: how quickly do the Gondorians execute their prisoners? I'm... 'out of touch' with extraterrestrial affairs." He then glanced at Robin. "And finally: Dick Grayson, student of Bruce Wayne. Tell me: did he ever give you the comfort that your own father did? Before his little... 'slip.'"

Cyborg narrowed his eyes. "That was low, Slade, even from you."

"My dad loved me," Beast Boy gulped, fighting back a few tears. "What the hell do you know, huh?!"

"You will suffer for even speaking of my parents!" Starfire hissed.

Raven merely glared at him. "Speak what you want of my father, but don't bring down my friends."

"And you don't know anything about my own!" Robin hissed. "However, I'm becoming more like him every day. I'm ready to take you, this time! I don't know how you know who I really am, but it doesn't matter! Either way: we're taking you down!" His mask narrowed. "However, I'm still willing to give you one last chance to explain what you want with that... that thing behind you."

"Ah, this?" Slade chuckled, bemused, before gesturing at it. "Amazing, isn't it? Just looking at can tell you a number of thing. It looks like it shouldn't belong here... but it should at the same time? Ah - the limitations of the mind. Sometimes, it just can't... 'grasp'... the reality of something. Instead, it simply needs to substitute. It's very clearly how your mind works, Robin. You enter this place substituting the fact that I am always one step ahead of you with the false theory that your visit wasn't just random chance."

"So it's a trap," Cyborg yawned. "Big deal."

"A trap?" Slade chuckled. "Haven't I stated before how much your very existence means to me? An endless source of annoyance at times, but an endless source of amusement at others. I didn't draw you here for vengeance..."

"What the hell are you getting at, Slade?" Robin growled. "Quit beating around the bush with your stupid monologuing and just spit it out!"

"Patience, Robin," Slade said in a sing-song tone. "I am about to answer your earlier question, after all."

Robin furrowed his brow, folding his arms. "And that is..."

"While it's true I've been fascinated with this.. artifact," Slade stated. "It also seems to be fascinated with me."

"Are you saying that that thing is some sort of living rave?" Beast Boy asked.

"In a way," Slade said. "A... 'rave' that has been going on since before this universe... and before the one that came before, as you could say."

"W-What?" Robin blinked. "How is that even possible!"

"I must admit, I said the same thing," Slade mused. "Yet I suppose that it's comforting to know that even I can still be humbled by things. Whoever, or whatever created this entity knew what they were doing. They knew that all universes would someday, eventually forming new ones, some possibly much different than our own: perhaps uninhabitable to life as we know it. Yet they figured a way to work around this small issue..."

The Titans merely stood: motionless and dumbfounded.

"Can you hear them, Titans? Echoing across the time before time? This is the ultimate life-boat... and my salvation. However, I can't enter it alone."

The Titans slowly began to back away, each holding unnerved expression. "Er - no thanks, Slade," Beast Boy gagged. "But you're the last person I want to spend trapped inside some sort of cosmic escape pod thing."

"You don't understand," Slade sighed. "Though this artifact wants me..." He turned around, whispered an unknown language to the lights, and then glanced back at the Titans. Robin could practically see his wicked grin behind the mask. "...It also wants you."

At that, the device began to emit an ear splitting whirring sound... its lights twirling faster and faster...

"All aboard," Slade said.

"Oooh crap!" Beast Boy gasped, his eyes widened. "B-But I have so much to do in this universe, still! So many reruns to watch, so many girls to ask out on dates!"

"And get rejected by," Raven muttered.

"I say we give it a head start-" Cyborg grunted, aiming both of his cannons at the lights. "From our universe to the next!"

"Indeed!" Starfire shouted, her hands igniting into two green, glowing starbolts as her eyes began glowing a piercing green. "I am about to drop the large nail pounding device!"

"That would be ill-advisable," Slade said, almost in a bored tone. "Unless ripping a hole in the space-time continuum is what the cool kids do these days..."

"Who says I'm aiming for it?!" Starfire spat.

Robin narrowed his mask yet again. "Sorry, Slade, but we like it where we are! The only other 'universe' you're going to is a five by five cell!" Suddenly, he whipped out his bow-staff, extended it, and twirled it. "TITANS! GO!"

"BOOYA!"

"Yay..."

"OOOH YEAH, BABY! THE CLIMAX HAS ARRIVETHED!"

With that, the five, now including a green velociraptor, darted forward, the floor rumbling beneath them...

Slade merely stood stoically, calmly procuring his own metallic bo-staff from his iron belt. "Well then - time for one last romp around the old neighborhood..." he said darkly, extending the staff and holding it in a defensive posture.

"Titans... 'come'."

Comments

[VampDash]

You nailed their personalities perfectly my friend.

[Cog Archival]

"But Robin, aren't we to acquire fierce the foul mechanical monstrosities that have desecrated our beloved T-Ship?!"

I think you might be missing a word or two here...

"And seriously, hasn't anyone but me noticed that Slade sort of sounds like Hellboy? I'm onto you Ron Perlman..."

I LOL'd. Of course, what Slade really wants is to find his goddamn shoe.

"But you're the last person I want to spend trapped inside some sort of cosmic escape pod thing."

Again, a few words missing here. I think.
That aside, you definitely captured their personalities very well. I look forward to seeing what becomes of this, as well as what happens when Twilight and Raven meet for the first time ("Why do you have my voice?" "I don't have your voice, you stole mine!").