Anything, Anytime, Anywhere For You
by
Brandon Troy Rice (aka) Golden-Sama
Chapter Fifty
"I'll Do Anything, Anytime, Anywhere For You"
A/N: I said I'd work on the final chapter for a month . . . it's been two . . . but . . . sniff ... sniff ... sniff ... sob
My friends, we have reached the end of the line. The grande finale. The last chapter. The big finish. It's taken one year and two months exactly, but now it's time to finish it. There will be more Titans Goodness coming from me in the future, but for now I'm going to focus on my new Fullmetal Alchemist story, The Immortal Alchemist, as well as a EdxWinry one-shot (that may become more if people review) which will be appearing on and very soon. :3 If you're an FMA fan, be it manga, anime or video games -- I would ask that you read it. You may like it. Also, Sonic and 24 fics coming soon. I'm also thinking of a comical Naruto love triangle involving love potions and much confusion. Also, if you want to chat with me on any given day, go to my profile and join the Sonic Rapid Board -- there's a link in my profile and I'm on almost every day.
This, the finale, I dedicate to gladdecease who was the first person to guess 24. :D Twenty-Four... man I love that show. And it's been SO good this year. Anyway, please enjoy the super long, super dramatic grand finale. I love you all, each and everyone one of you.
Paula and Caitilyn -- I hope to keep in touch with you two even after the story is over. My email is -- and that goes for anyone who read this story too!
Sorry it took so long to write, but... it was hard to end it.
Well, can't put this off any longer.
The Finale Begins in 3...
2...
1...
NOW.
The Titans knew that Robin was a prisoner of their worst enemy ever, and they had to find him. Starfire was a wreck, but the other titans attempted to calm her down, with little success. It wasn't until they were on their way back to the ground floor that they realized something disturbing.
"Where's Aqualad?" Bumblebee asked. They had found Hot Spot downstairs, now free of the mind control but still very weak from when they beat the hell out of him. However, their aquatic friend was nowhere to be found.
"I'm sure he can handle himself." Cyborg tried to reassure her, but it didn't stick, especially when they reached the front door and this was proved wrong. On the other side of the door was Aqualad, unconcious and lying on the ground of the parking lot. Next to him was Monseuir Mallah, who had apparently recovered from his previous defeat and had a blaster gun aimed at Aqualad's unconcious body.
"Well, Teen Titans, we meet again." Mallah growled, glaring at them with his gigantic eyes. "This time for the last time. I plan to kill you all -- it will be my greatest pleasure."
"You're not going to kill anyone, ya big ape." Beast Boy bravely roared to his old enemy from the Doom Patrol days of old. He transformed into a gorilla, just as big as Mallah, and ran at him. However, Mallah jumped backwards, away from Aqualad. He was standing beside a car that had a cover over it -- however, as Mallah threw the cover off, Beast Boy realized it was not a car.
It was a large gatling gun, which Mallah climbed on and aimed at the group. He began firing bullets at them, faster than the Titans could see them all -- but Terra erected a wall of dirt and solid stone in front of them which blocked most bullets, and Raven used her demonic energies to enforce the wall from behind, keeping it together even as bullet after bullet smashed into it. Mallah could not see Raven's powers until he had shot the wall so much most of the stone and dirt was gone. When he realized his mistake, he roared in anger and got off his gigantic mounted machinegun.
"You will all die for what you have done on this day!" Mallah was growling like an angry dog, and he reached for his blaster again. Beast Boy jumped forward, still a gorilla and a green version of Mallah. Beast Boy grabbed Mallah's arms and held them behind his back as he ran behind Mallah. He looked at the group; and Starfire got an idea. She powered up her full force of her starbolts and blasted Mallah -- causing him to fall on his knees.
"We do not have time to fight this monkey." Starfire said to the others. "Bumblebee, please take your team back to Steel City. We have to go find Slade and save Robin."
It was evident to anyone who could see her large green eyes full of sadness and worry that she had done nothing but think about Robin since his capture.
Bumblebee turned to Cyborg.
"You take care Sparky." She said at once.
"Yeah, you too." He nodded; and then all at once she grabbed him around the shoulders and her tongue went into his mouth, causing Cyborg's robot eye to begin to flash rapidly. The Titans East members headed back towards Steel City, waving to their friends: it was a goodbye, but only for a little while.
Jinx approached the group. "Hot Spot, Kid Flash and I are going to check on the Doom Patrol, and the Justice League and all the others. So... bye then." She turned and climbed into Kid Flash's arms, and he was gone in a flash, carrying her. They were so far away so quickly, that none of the Titans heard her slap him for running his hand over her butt cheek once more. Hot Spot followed the group as well -- though not as fast.
That only left Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy, Cyborg, Terra, Robin II and Red X. The group looked at one another, and wordlessly they began the long journey to find the Pendant of Schiezka -- the only way they would have any chance at all to defeat Slade during the final battle. That meant they needed to dig up Brother Blood's body.
"What are you planning?"
Robin, maskless, was hanging from the wall in the main room of Titan's Tower. Slade, who was also unmasked, sat on the couch and sipped his tea. He looked at Robin and then he smiled. The sight of seeing such an evil man smiling was enough to freeze Robin's insides and make him feel as if he was stuck naked in a snowstorm.
"They won't find the Pendant in Time. You will die, and then they will as well." Slade informed Robin, with a wonderfully delightful evil smirk. Slade sipped his tea once again and ignored Robin for a moment.
"You won't get away with this, you know." Robin growled.
"Yes I will." Slade replied, full of arrogance and confidence which mixed into a new emotion that was somewhere inbetween both of them.
Robin struggled on the wall. His nose had dried blood under it, and the 'R' on his shirt was ripped off and lay on the table -- just a pile of ashes. Robin was still, aside from some blood and his trademark symbol destroyed, in fine shape. That did not matter to him, though, as he had a back-up plan. If only he could get free from this wall.
"Tell me, Richard, why do you think our paths have intertwined so much?" Slade asked, using Robin's birth name to address him this time. The boy wonder narrowed his eyes, and refused to answer the tyrant Slade. He did not want to give his enemy the satisfaction of the truth.
"I believe it is because we cannot exists without one another." Slade informed Robin. "You beat me. Terra beat me. I was beaten on Tamaran, and afterwards . . . and yet, here I am once again, and even stronger. It is because we are two halves of the same coin, Richard Grayson. You the light side, and I the darkness. You the sun, and I the shadow. Without Ying and Yang together, there is nothing."
"Spare me your philosophical garbage Slade." Robin spat, angry at having to be a prisoner in his own building and listen to this nonsense from the worst enemy he had ever had.
"No . . . not garbage. Just as Batman cannot be without the Joker. Just as Superman cannot be without Luthor. Just as day cannot be without night, or happiness without sadness -- ultimately we are the same eternal conflict. Robin and Slade. Neither of those names can survive past today. I plan for us both to go to the grave this time, Richard." Slade said, in a truly madman like way; and Robin realized he was serious.
"You would kill us both, just to end our rivalry? Have you gone mad, Slade?" Robin asked as he struggled uselessly against his bonds. Slade looked up at Robin, and from behind the eye-patch on his face, a light began to glow. The eye-patch burnt off in a flare of fire, and where there had once been an empty eye socket, now only a red light was shining furiously. His other eye too became a pure red light, and Slade hissed in a voice that shook the ground like thunder.
"Foolish boy! You do not realize the POWER coursing through this body, do you? When Trigon and Slade were one and the same, Slade learned of the Ultimate Power. He sought it out, as a way of getting the revenge that was denied to him! Finally he found that power -- MY power -- in Paris. Now Slade had accepted me into his body in order to get the revenge he so desperately seeks against you. You who ruined all of his plans. You who made sure that Slade Wilson would never become what he should have been! He gladly gave his body, mind and soul to ME so that he would become part of the most ancient and powerful creature in existance!"
Robin did not know how to respond, so he did not. However, he realized as soon as the voice spoke, that Slade was dead. The man standing in front of him may have Slade's body, and his hatred for the Teen Titans and their leader in particular -- but the creature inhabiting Slade's mind was not the same man. This was something far eviler, and far more terrifiying. Robin narrowed his eyes.
"What are you?" Robin asked.
"What am I? Are all humans this rude? I am not a 'what', I am a 'who'." It appeared that whoever was inside Slade enjoyed toying with Robin. The boy wonder growled.
"Fine, who are you?" Robin asked.
"I am the Eternal Spirit of Conflict and War that has raged across this land since the dawn of Mankind. I am the hatred that is forged between your species as your lives move on. I am Jealousy. I am Hate. I am Misunderstanding. I am Destruction, and Death, and Decay. I am the being who was born from the fires of one thousand wars, and the entity who came forth from the flames of life that are extinguished every day that Mankind rules this world. I have no name, and I am beyond humanity. I rise up only when one whose hands have been soiled with blood for many years agrees to sell the last shred of his humanity for the chance to spill more blood!" Slade was roaring these words; or at least the being inside Slade yelled them.
"So... you're some freaky demon who likes death. Jeez, and here I thought you were going to be tough to beat." The arrogant Robin smiled; Slade's fist met his mouth a minute later, and Robin felt a tooth knocked out of his head.
"You insolent bastard of a human. You, and all your kind, shall be slaughtered in a sea of fire so that I may bathe in your blood and be reborn."
"Yeah, yeah, heard it all before." Robin was no longer impressed. "As soon as my friends get here, you're going to die, just like all the other 'super powerful' beings who have tried this kind of thing. Honestly, I don't see why you demons keep trying it." The Boy Wonder grinned once again. Slade narrowed his glowing red eyes.
"IF your friends live long enough to arrive here, I shall happily tear Starfire's head from her shoulders and drown you in her blood." The being inside Slade seemed to know everything Slade knew -- so he knew exactly how and where to push Robin's buttons.
Robin's struggles against his bonds became more violent, and he used every last ounce of force he had to try to break himself free of the living room wall. It was unsuccessful, and all he managed to do was hurt his shoulder as he struggled. Still, would not allow this awful creature inside his arch-enemy's body to insult the woman he had pledged his eternal love to.
"Go to hell!" Robin shouted lamely.
"My dear boy, when I am finished with your world, you will beg me to send you to hell, so you can escape the pain." Slade -- or at least the beast said. Slade turned around and looked out the window with his red eyes glowing wide.
"This will all be over very soon. I promise you. This world will be consumed with fire and smoke, and your human race shall be reduced to ruble and ash!"
The Maskless Dick Grayson looked out the window, wondering if his friends had any idea how they could defeat this horrible evil inside the mercenary madman who tried to kill him so many times.
The plan was simple.
They would dig up Brother Blood's body and take it to the Lazarus Pit -- the same ancient pit that was used by one of Batman's enemies to keep himself immortal. However, the pit as it's namesake suggests, could also revive the dead. This meant they could return Blood to life and then interrogate him for the Pendant of Scheizka, which according to Raven (who was the expert on this sort of thing) could cancel out Slade's newfound powers. It was their one and only chance to defeat Slade.
The only problem with this plan, aside from reviving a dangerous criminal like Brother Blood, was that in order to use the pit, they needed Blood's body, and unfortunately it was burried in a cavern by the beach. That actually was not so bad, but Blood had cursed his tomb as the ancient egyptian kings often did. Meaning if they invaded his tomb, who knows what types of strange evil creatures would be waiting for them.
Now the Titans were outside the old cavern by the beach, the HIVE symbol on the door. Robin II was looking at it, and then turned to the other heroes.
"Anyone know how to get inside?" Tim asked.
"Yeah." Cyborg grinned, being an expert on Brother Blood, and he aimed his gun-arm at the screen and fired a sonic shot into the rock wall -- blowing it open and effectivly making a doorway for them to walk through. Shrugging, the titans went inside since there was no point in being subtle when the enemy was dead.
As they entered the tomb of their fallen foe, Starfire held up her right hand and made a green glow around her fist so it would illuminate the tomb. It was higher-tech than the tombs of egypt, but it was still made in traditional style.
"So... whose carrying the body?" Beast Boy asked, really hoping the answer wouldn't be him.
Raven stopped walking, and everyone passed her by. However, when they realized she wasn't following them, they stopped and turned around back to her. Looking back they could not realize why she had stopped.
"...Rae? What are you looking at?" Beast Boy asked.
"The coffin." Raven replied. Robin II looked at what she was looking at -- which was a wall. He blinked and looked at the Titans, scratching his head. He was too poliet to say it -- but Red X wasn't.
"Is she crazy or just stupid?"
"Dude, she could so kill you just by looking at you." Beast Boy warned.
Raven ignored them both, touched the wall with her hand, and it disappeared. Behind the wall was a hidden coffin, causing everyone to gasp. They all soon joined by Raven's side, next to the coffin of the fallen supervillain.
"That was . . . easy." Robin II pointed out.
Suddenly the coffin popped open and the corpse of Brother Blood stood up and grabbed Raven by the throat, squeezing as tight as he could to cut off her oxygen supply. In less than a second Starfire blasted his arm with his starbolt, sending the entire crypt into darkness for a split second as she ignited her fist again. Brother Blood jumped from his coffin and landed on Starfire, knocking her to the ground with a slam. Starfire's head bounced on the stone floor.
A split second later, Blood was on his back, his own head bouncing. Beast Boy had tackled him off Starfire, in the form of a great green lion. Beast Boy roared at him, and pressed his claws on Blood's chest, digging his nails in.
"Where's the pendant?" Raven asked as she healed Starfire's bleeding head.
"Tell us or we shall break your hogarth!" Starfire shouted as she growled in pain. She didn't actually explain what a 'hogarth' was, but the odds were it would hurt if a super strong alien decided to break it.
"Pendant?" Blood raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," Raven narrowed her eyes into thin slits. "The Pendant of Sheizka. Where is it?"
"Ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho... why do you seek that? I haven't hurt anyone." Blood grinned -- since he was a corpse, his teeth were rotted and his breath was so horrible that it could choke a maggot.
"What do you mean?" Red X asked, suspiciously looking with his eye raised.
"That Pendant is all that keeps my corpse moving." Brother Blood informed the Titans, grinning from behind his corpse teeth, with his fleshy, undead tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth. Starfire felt sick seeing the undead monster who had already been beaten by the Titans on one occasions. Now that his living body was here, in front of them, in this dark and dengy crypt -- it was like a nightmare.
Brother Blood stood up out of the coffin, grinning at the Titans all around him. The Pendant was hardly visable underneath of his cloak, but the outline was there. It was a silver medallion with a big brown garnet jewel in the center. It was also what the Titans desperatly needed to finally end their big adventure -- their biggest adventure.
Brother Blood then began to laugh. It was a hallowed and empty sound, the sound of pure evil coursing out of his throat as noise vibrated off his deceased vocal cords. The Titans looked at the creature that had once been a man, and watched as he began to walk forward.
"What will you do?" Blood asked them. "How will you stop me? The only way to end my immortality is to destroy the very pendant you seek! The irony would KILL ME if I wasn't already dead."
Blood's grin was sadistic and twisted. It was that of a truly sick, truly horrible man. Blood's eyes narrowed and he grinned in that twisted way of his, and then he began to speak in a low, horrible voice. Chills went through their bodies, turning their skin cold and making their blood run frosty.
"You will never have this pendant... because I will smash it right now and send your hopes to hell with my soul!" Blood screamed, and he tore the pendant off his neck and held it above his head. Beast Boy jumped at him, in the form of a cheeta, but Blood blocked him with his dead arm. Beast Boy managed to break the corpse arm off, but Blood held the pendant in his opposite hand.
Then; Cyborg blasted him.
A pulse of sonic energy flashed into Blood's chest, causing his body to vibrate so violently that his rotten flesh crumbled into dust, and he fell and became nothing more than just a pile of ash and dust. Raven walked over and picked up the Pendant of Sheizka -- she then walked over to Starfire and placed the pendant around her neck. Starfire blinked twice, her large green eyes full of confusion.
"You should take that, Starfire." Raven told her. "It's your man whose life is on the line."
Starfire nodded silently to her friend, and she accepted the Pendant of Sheizka. She placed it around her neck, and she hoped and prayed that that pendant would be all it would take to defeat Slade. She knew better than that, but she was afraid. After all, this was the end of their adventure -- at least she hoped it was. With Trigon, the Brotherhood of Evil and Lex Luthor all defeated, Slade was the last hurdle. If they won now, it would end it all. She just feared that someone would die in the big fight.
'Slade', or the being who had once been Slade, was looking out of the window of the Titan's Tower. Robin was tied to the wall behind him, and 'Slade' turned around to look at him. Robin spit at 'Slade' and tried, yet again, to break free of his bonds. 'Slade' was unconcerned with Robin escaping, since he could not even if he tried.
"You are wasting your time and your strength, young warrior. Save it for when you need it at a later time." 'Slade' informed Robin.
"I thought you were going to kill me." Robin replied, unafraid and in all honesty bored of being tied to a wall and held hostage. 'Slade' laughed.
"No. I will not kill you, yet. I want to wait for your friends. They will bring me something very important." 'Slade' told Robin matter-of-factly. Now Robin was curious, and he raised a maskless eyebrow and looked at 'Slade'. What could this monster inside Slade's body be talking about? Robin had no idea, but he was determined to find out.
It seemed 'Slade' knew what Robin was thinking, and he continued speaking and answered any questions Robin had before the Titans' leader could ask them. "They are bringing the Pendant of Sheiska, which is said to contain my only weakness. It is true; that pendant has the key to my defeat. If I can obtain that pendant, then I can remain in the world of humans for the rest of eternity. All I have to do is keep that Pendant safe and I will reign for all time."
Robin understood. He had dealt with Trigon enough times to figure out what 'Slade' meant. This Pendant seemed to be his only weakness -- and if 'Slade' had it, then they couldn't use it against him. The fact that 'Slade' had said he wanted to keep it safe meant all Robin had to do was free himself from his bindings by the time the others got here, then he could break the Pendant and maybe they could put an end to this once and for all.
"What makes you think they'd even listen to you? Do you honestly believe they'd let YOU be all-powerful? They'll destroy it the second they get it." Robin told 'Slade', unafraid of him and hoping to turn the tables a bit.
It did not work.
"Ha ha ha ha ha . . . YOU are how I know they will not harm the Pendant. If they do, I will rip your spine from out of your back and watch your squirm in agony; and your precious bride Starfire knows it." 'Slade' informed Robin, being a bit graphic for Robin's taste.
"You won't get away with this; not any of it." Robin spoke the cliche line of all heroes.
"I already have." 'Slade' replied; Robin had heard that reply before, but for the first time he was afraid it might be true.
The Titans arrived at the edge of Jump City, and they saw that nothing had changed. The sky was crisp and blue, the waters the exact same. Soft waves pelted the beach and the wind blew gently around the great city, but still, even with everything looking as peaceful as every, there was still something different about it.
"I don't like this." Terra said as she walked down the street next to the other Titans. "Something just seems off."
She was right. Out of nowhere a red streak of light rippled across the sky, and suddenly the people all around them vanished and the entire city because deserted. The houses, buildings, shops, malls . . . it was all empty and abandoned. The wind was blowing harder, and now it was much colder than it had been before. The sky was as black as night, perhaps covered by clouds or maybe it had just turned that way. The bay around the T shaped tower was the color of blood . . . infact, judging from the smell of death that had suddenly appeared; it was blood.
"Reminds me of dad's place." Raven's sarcasm was never dulled, even by this bleak surrounding.
"Do you think Robin is alright?" Starfire asked, her green eyes filled with tears.
"Oh he's fine." A voice called out from the east. Starfire growled the moment the sound of it reached her ears and she spun to the direction of the voice, her hands blazing with green lights and a fury in her eyes.
"Relax little sister," Blackfire said as she floated down towards the ground. "I don't want to fight you. I came to help."
Starfire obviously did not buy that assumption; nor did anyone else, since they were all in battle stances . . . aside from Red X, who looked as if he could care less. He wasn't a good guy anyway.
"Look, after that whole thing on Tamaran, I was rescued by a real nice guy. I mean it, he and his buddy are superheroes in some city far away called 'Teh'. A total bonehead loser who's all about saving the day . . . a lot like you guys, actually . . . but he was kinda cute; and long story short, I'm out of the evil business for now. So I came to make amendes and help you." Blackfire explained a strange story that only a bare few would understand. Raven raised an eyebrow.
"Let her help." Raven said. Starfire spun around to her friend as if she had lost her mind.
"Raven! She is lying to us in order to trick us!" Starfire replied.
"Doesn't matter; we need the help. Besides, not even Blackfire is dumb enough to want this to happen. If 'He' is unleashed . . . it won't just be earth that goes to hell." Raven answered, and at this point everyone in the group turned to her. She sighed.
"Alright, I didn't want to tell you this, but I know exactly what we're up against. That Pendant Slade wanted is the one thing said to be a weakness to the most powerful demon ever spawned in the universe." Raven enlightened them; with some very disturbing news.
"How do you know? I mean, I'm sure you're the demon expert what being half and all, but how do you know about this thing?" Terra asked, placing a gloved hand on her hip.
". . . the demon's name is Thanatodin. "Thanatos" and "Odin" are both from old myths; both of them are supreme masters of death. Well, Thanatodin is the real thing. He was sealed away centuries ago because his evil is too powerful to desribe. The only reminant of him left in our world was his great-grandson . . . Trigon the Terrible." Raven finished the sentence as if there was a bad taste in her mouth. Beast Boy's mouth dropped.
"So... not only is your father a scary evil demon, but his great-grandfather is the scariest, evilest demon of all time?" Beast Boy asked to make sure he understood this right.
"Pretty much." Raven replied.
"Dude, your family tree bites." Beast Boy sighed and leaned against his raven-haired lover of the same name. She sighed and nodded in confirmation.
"Look; Thanatodin's power is sealed inside this Pendant -- that's why he's inside Slade. Slade's the perfect vessel since he's also had Trigon's soul inside him before. Still . . . if we can stop him before he can regain his real body, then it should put an end to all of this." Raven told the group.
"'Before he can regain his real body', eh?" Cyborg said, picking up on Raven's subtle hint. "And what happens if he gets it back?"
Raven did not answer right away. Instead she looked down at the ground; which was not a comforting sign. Then back up at Cyborg. "If he gets his body and powers back . . . we all die."
"Yeah, but we can beat him even if he does, right? Like we always do the impossible!" Terra said cheerfully.
"No . . . if he has his true power back he can cause our flesh to melt, our bones to catch on fire, and our souls to explode all at once just by thinking about it." Raven informed her; whiping the cheer out of Terra's face and causing her to sweatdrop.
"Oh," Terra said simply, then she looked down at her shoes awkwardly. "So . . . we can't lose. Okay! That's simple enough!"
"Not really," Raven said, bearing more bad news. "Thanatodin is inside Slade. That means we have to fight a Slade stronger than any we've ever fought before, and we have to kill him on the first try."
". . . Rae, I love you, but stop talking now." Beast Boy sighed.
"Seriously." Blackfire seconded. Raven shrugged. Then she looked up at the T shaped Tower where Robin and Thanatodin waited for their arrival.
"So let me try to understand . . . if he gets that pendant we have, he'll become unbeatable?" Terra asked, pushing a strand of blonde hair back behind her ear. Beast Boy gulped and Cyborg looked uneasy.
"That's the idea." Raven said, looking at the tower with a scared look in her eyes.
Suddenly the sky blazed with red light and a ring of flames erupted from the Titan's Tower. Out of that ring of flame that floated in the sky, several small, black horned horrible monsters crashed onto the ground. They had six razor sharp nails on each hand -- one of each of their five fingers and a sixth growing out of their knuckle. They growled and roared and slime dripped out of their mouths, which had three rows of teeth on the top and bottom; and two large bug-like pincers on the sides.
". . . Ewww." Terra shuddered.
"Those are . . . not even I'm sure what those are, let's just destroy them." Raven told them, and her eyes flashed with light and she blasted one of the creatures; it was torn in half, but the two broken halves became two new creatures. Raven sweatdropped.
"You guys go ahead," Red X said, looking at the monsters. "The other Robin, Blackfire and I can handle these things. You guys are the real Titans, so do your thing."
"Yeah, besides, I don't like the idea of fighting the strongest demon ever to exists." Blackfire said honestly.
So while the three stayed behind to battle the beasts, the five Titans headed towards their tower, and the final battle. Red X shot his X-blades at the beasts, Blackfire threw blackbolts at the monsters, and Robin threw a bat-a-rang at them. They were slashed up and blown up -- but they countined to regrow and multiply.
"This could get ugly," Red X sighed. "Maybe I should have stayed home."
"Amen." Blackfire added, throwing a blackbolt at one of the beasts and knocking it's head off.
----
Thanatodin looked at Robin with a sinister stare in his eyes. Slade's missing eye had been rebuilt with a eye made of pure flame, and now Robin was eye to eye with the horrible beast. Thanatodin looked out of the window and watched as Starfire, Terra, Beast Boy, Cyborg and Raven moved towards the house.
"They bring the Pendant to me. So long as that Pendant remains safe, once I have it I will be invincible." Thanatodin grinned from inside Slade's body. Robin did not listen to this crazy monster. He was busy, using a hidden knife inside his glove to cut away at the chains that held him in place. He had been doing it every chance he had. The problem was, it was just a small knife -- a knife he had installed in his glove so he could escape from ropes when he did not have his belt (such as this instance). Yet these were chains, and it would take him a long time to cut through them. He did not have a long time.
Thanatodin then walked away from Robin and the window, he stepped down the steps and walked by the big couch. He was standing in front of the door, waiting for the other Titans to arrive. As soon as they did, he planned to strike them down without hesitation or mercy. They would die once -- then he would use the pendant to restore himself. After that he planned to revive them and kill them again, and again, and again until he grew tired of it. Each time becoming more vicious and ruthless.
The elevator dinged to life -- and Thanatodin blasted the door before it even opened with a flare so hot it melted right through and turned the entire elevator and part of the elevator shaft into molten metal.
"Hmm?" Thanatodin sensed no death. That didn't make sense . . . then a blast -- Raven's energy hit him in the chest and knocked him backwards right into the couch with such force the couch tipped over and wound up on top of Slade's body, his legs sticking out beneath it.
Raven and the others appeared at the elevator entrance; she had used her powers to protect them with Cyborg generated a cloaking field to keep them hidden from Thanatodin's eyes.
"Robin!" Starfire flew across the room towards him, Pendant of Schiezka around her neck; he held up his chained hands and she knew what to do. With two green starbolts she destroyed the chains around his wrists and ankles and Robin was freed.
"Starfire, throw me that Pendant!" Robin yelled; he knew what he had to do. If he destroyed that Pendant, Thanatodin was beaten. Starfire obeyed and threw it to Robin. The Titan Leader threw it onto the ground, grabbed his utility belt from the desk nearby and whipped out a bird-a-rang. He stabbed the pendant and broke it, and Raven screamed.
"No! Wait!"
There was a flash of light and the ground began to rumble . . .
As the Titans broke in, Red X, Blackfire and Robin II were busy with the demons outside. Blackfire smashed one with a punch that glowed with a blackbolt, but despite the demon's face exploding, it regrew in a few seconds and the beast slashed at her stomach, ripping her shirt and armor and leaving three long red slashes in her skin.
"Ouch! Drek ku kuvvor!" She screamed in Tamaranian, what the actual translation is was something very rude. Red X threw a razor-sharp X-shaped blade at one of the beasts and severed it's legs. The legs grew a new body and the body grew new legs, and Red X cursed in good old fashioned English. Robin II threw a bomb at one of the monsters; the monster caught it in it's teeth and was blown into several small pieces. Robin II looked triumphic at first . . . then each tiny piece grew a new body, and Tim Drake sweatdropped.
"This isn't good. I don't think we can beat these things." Robin II stated the obvious.
"Gee, you really think so?" Red X was sarcastic, but his line was lame. Perhaps it was the three demons trying to tear his legs off that had him preoccupied and unable to come up with a original comeback.
Then; a flash of light exploded from the tower and the ground began to shake. The demons all screeched and turned into dust, and the skies cleared up back into blue with the proper white clouds. The water of the bay became water, instead of blood, and the three outside looked on as if victory was finally accomplished.
"That was a lot easier than I expected..." Robin II admitted.
Then the rumbling in the ground became worse; and a crack formed deep in the depths of the bay. It could not be seen from the land, but a light flashed from out of it and that was seen by all three of them. Blackfire swore in Tamaranian and Red X took a defensive stance. Suddenly, out of the water, a horrific beast appeared.
All three of them gasped.
"Damn it!" Raven punched the wall; anger like they had never seen was coursing through her. Robin did not know why -- the sky had just turned blue again and the blood had turned back into water. It appeared that it was over; Slade was defeated and so was the demon inside of him. "Robin, you IDIOT! That Pendant had his powers sealed in it! By breaking it you just made him invincible!"
Robin realized, with horror, that Thanatodin had lied to him. Tricked him on purpose.
Then something came up from the bay, and the Titans inside the tower gasped.
It had large legs and from the waist down it was covered in bushy black fur. The legs, all the way down to the ankles, were as furry as a dog. The feet were smooth and had purplish skin, with gigantic nails on the toe that were razor sharp and dangerous. It's chest was also bare and purplish leather, however the arms were furry again. It's claws were long and red. On it's elbows and shoulders were long blade-like spikes that extended out several yards away from it's body -- crimson in color. It had two mouths full of sharp red teeth and large yellow tongues. One mouth was where a mouth should be; the other was on it's forehead. Inbetween it had snake-like slits for a nose and six eyes; three on either side of the nose slits. The beast had long black hair falling down it's head, and a crown of horns on it's head -- six in total. Bat wings, red and black in color and leather-like in texture grew from it's back, and fur covered them as well on the back.
" . . . That has got to be the second ugliest thing I've ever seen." Beast Boy muttered. No one had time to ask what the first was, because Thanatodin turned to the tower and flapped it's massive wings three times. In just threw flaps it created enough wind to uproot and overturn trees, and to create a large wave in the bay that splashed against the tower and shattered the windows on the lower floors.
"Titans, G--"
"Forget it." Raven sunk down to her knees. "Invincible, remember? We can't beat it."
"You've said that before," Robin said, looking back at her. "When we first formed the Titans, and you and I spoke on the roof. You told me you had run from an invincible enemy. Well we beat Trigon -- on more than on occasion, and we'll beat this too."
"You can't compare Trigon to Thanatodin! That's like saying 'if we can beat a shrimp we can beat a shark'!" Raven replied, but Beast Boy put a hand on her shoulder.
"I said on Tamaran that I wouldn't let Trigon hurt you; well I won't let anyone hurt you. Or any of our friends. Trust Robin, he's right, we can win." Beast Boy said reassuringly, looking at her with a warm smile.
"I'm all for fluffy romance," Terra said, looking at the lovebirds. "But shouldn't it wait till we beat the two-hundred-foot-tall monster?"
Thanatodin wasn't waiting, apparently. He swiped with one of his long arms and ripped the Titan's Tower in half. The upper part of the 'T', where all the Titans were, fell into the bay. The group screamed as they splashed down into the water and the windows exploded. Beast Boy became a dolphin and stuck his head in Raven's stomach, pushing her towards the surface. Cyborg activated a propeller in either of his feet and headed towards the surface. Starfire grabbed Robin in one arm and Terra in the others and flew up.
On the shore, Red X, Blackfire and Robin II stared up at the monster. Thanatodin was stronger than they had believed.
Thanatodin's upper and lower mouths opened and from the top a green liquid was spit out. It struck the remains of the tower and melted it as quickly as a hot oven can turn a stick of butter into a liquid. The Island the tower was on as well caught on fire and began to sink into the depths.
"FOOLISH HUMANS! I AM NO LONGER BOUND BY YOUR MORTAL COILS! YOUR ENTIRE WORLD WILL FALL TO ME AND YOUR SPECIES SHALL BECOME MY PERSONAL SLAVES... UNTIL I GET HUNGRY!"
Once on the shore, the Titans decided to hit it with all they had.
"Titans, Go!" Robin yelled.
Starfire and Blackfire flew up and threw their respective namesake bolts at it's head; aiming specifically for the six eyes. Cyborg shot a sonic cannon from each arm at it's lower mouth. Beast Boy turned into a T-Rex and sunk his teeth into it's right leg, trying to rip the flesh beneath the fur. Robin hurled several explosive bird-a-rangs at it's opposite leg, hoping to trip it up. Terra caused a earthquake under the water beneath the beast; hoping that that would help Robin and Beast Boy's assault on it's legs. Robin II helped the original Robin by throwing his own explosive bird-a-rangs, and Red X launched x-shaped bombs too. Raven concentrated all of her energies into one ball of light in her hands and hurled it at her great-grandfather's upper mouth.
Thanatodin began to make a strange noise and his body began to shake.
"It's working!" Robin yelled. "Keep going!"
"WORKING? THIS IS THE SOUND OF MY LAUGHTER YOU STUPID MORTAL! YOUR ATTACKS ARE TICKLING ME, AND IF YOU ARE FINISHED AMUSING ME I WILL CRUSH YOU NOW!" Thanatodin roared so loudly the sound wave from his voice shattered the glass of buildings in the city.
Thanatodin roared and stomped his right foot. The shockwave it sent off was so powerful it knocked the Titans down; except for Starfire, Blackfire and Raven who had all been flying. To take them out, Thanatodin flapped his wings and made the wind to sever for them to fly in. The three girls all hit the ground and landed in a pile. Raven looked up at the monster and shook her head.
"I told you he was invincible." She sighed.
"Rae, we'll beat him, and if you doubt that you doubt me." Beast Boy told her as he climbed up to his feet and ran to her side.
"I don't doubt you, or any of us . . . but I know there's only one way to beat him." Raven's voice dropped to a whisper, she was so quiet that in the havoc of the moment she could hardly be heard.
"How?" Robin II, Tim Drake, asked.
"The last time he was sealed away . . . it was because someone sacrificed themself. One of us would have to give up our life." Raven said, looking at the group.
"That really isn't so bad." Terra, who had knowledge of sacrificing oneself, replied.
"No . . . because to sacrifice yourself to beat him, you won't die. Infact, you'll live forever . . . alone." Raven sighed. "One of us has to contain him within our body, and then be sealed in a alternate dimension for all time so he can never return. As long as he's inside you, you won't grow old or die . . . but it means being locked away in another world till the end of existance." Raven informed them of the grim details.
" . . . Wow. That sucks." Blackfire said bluntly. Just as Starfire was going to say something to her sister, she realized Robin was not around. She looked all around the group, and then she began to panic.
"Robin? Where did he go?" Starfire was worried. Her husband was missing. Robin had vanished . . . for a moment she got a horrible thought. What if Thanatodin had blasted him? What if Robin was . . .
"No one is sacrificing themself this time." Robin's voice suddenly spoke, and all the Titans turned to see him. Robin was no longer Robin. None of them recognized the new, blue and black outfit he wore -- none except Starfire. She gasped; he looked the same as he had when she traveled through time, but he was shorter and so was his hair.
"I was saving this for a rainy day, but I guess if the world's ending I may as well go ahead and break it out now." Nightwing said, grinning.
However, before Nightwing had a chance to show off his new toys, Thanatodin roared and from his bottom mouth a ball of fire was spit up. It flew at the group and Raven had to use her mental powers to erect a shield around them. Even at her full strength, the blast of flame was only contained by a slight bit. Raven struck back by throwing a ball of energy, which turned into a raven-shaped spear. The wings and beak were razor sharp and it had enough energy in it to act like a small atomic bomb. The spear of light struck Thanatodin in the face and sliced it's skin and exploded. The blast covered Thanatodin's head in a mushroom cloud of black and silver light.
When the light cleared, Thanatodin was fine. His sliced face had healed and both of his mouths were grinning broadly.
"YOUR POWER IS NOTHING COMPARED TO MINE. OBSERVE!" Thantodin clapped his hands together and then created his own energy blast. He threw it at the beach where the Titans sat, and the entire beach was destroyed; leaving only a deep hole in the ground. Water filled it from the bay, and it seemed Thanatodin had killed the Titans.
However, in reality Raven had teleported them to the opposite shore. Thanatodin apparently knew it, because in a flash he spun around and fired lasers from out of his six eyes at the group. Each laser hit the ground and created a small hole that went several miles deep.
"Are you sure there is no other way?" Nightwing asked Raven.
"We can try something else, but how long do you think we'll last against that?" Raven replied.
"I'll do it." Beast Boy said, looking at his dark-haired lover. Raven glared at him with dark eyes as if he was insane.
"Don't you even think about it." Raven hissed.
"I'd do anything, anytime, anywhere, for you." Beast Boy said quietly, looking at Raven with loving eyes. Despite the signifigance of his statement, Raven rejected the offer.
"I won't let you throw your existance away!" Raven snapped.
"If someone doesn't, we're all dead. I don't mind. Really, I'll--"
"No." Raven said, and her word was final. Her eyes seemed to fill with the emotions she usual supressed inside of her, and Beast Boy saw something in her eye that was as rare as Doctor Light coming up with a good plan. It was a tear. "You can't say you love me and then abandon me like everyone else. I lost my mother, I won't lose you. I couldn't survive it."
In the middle of a touching moment between two young lovers, a weak human voice spoke, and the group looked out at the sandy shores, where a tattered and broken man lay, hardly clinging to life. "I'll do it." Slade said.
"You're still alive? Damn, man, what does it take?" Cyborg growled.
"Raven is wrong . . . there is another way to beat him . . . a way to beat him for good . . ." Slade mumbled, so weak he couldn't speak long sentences without pausing for a gasp of air. "When inside someone's body, he is mortal. If you bind him back to my body and then kill me . . . he'd die, and so would I. Two birds with one stone, Robin."
"That might actually work." Raven confirmed.
"Sounds good to me." Robin replied.
A blast of energy behind them ended the conversation. Thanatodin was coming at them, shooting eye lasers, spitting acid and breathing fire all at once. Raven quickly shouted to the group.
"We have to find a way to damage his body enough that he'll go inside Slade!" She yelled. "If we can do signifigant damage to him, he'll enter Slade's body to steal Slade's health and recharge. We only have one shot; when he's inside Slade, we kill them both!"
"How do we damage him that much?" Terra shouted, freaked out. "We hit him with everything we have and he hasn't even taken a scratch!"
The group continued to dodge the blasts and flames from Thanatodin as he roared and shot his attacks. Suddenly, Beast Boy remembered something. Once, while living with Mento, he had almost got into the swimming pool during an thunder storm. Mento had informed him that doing that could electrocute him -- and then Beast Boy realized Thanatodin was standing in the middle of a deep bay.
"Dudes! I have a plan!" Beast Boy yelled to his friends as he narrowly avoided a spout of acid that melted a rock beside him.
"... Well, we are desperate!" Cyborg replied, trying to lighten the mood. It didn't work.
"No! Seriously! If we can electrify the bay it might hurt him!" Beast Boy grinned, jumping around like the others were. Nightwing looked at the gigantic bay, and then at the gigantic Thanatodin.
"We'd need some serious voltage to do that!" Nightwing replied as he avoided a fireball.
"My recharger!" Cyborg yelled. "We drop a wire from that into the bay and BOOM! One big ugly bucket of fried demon!"
"Your recharger was in the tower; it melted." Raven reminded her metal friend.
"I have a back-up one, in the woods over there!" Cyborg pointed at the woods about half a mile away. "We push that bad boy in the water . . ."
"Move out!" Nightwing shouted to the others. The group ran down -- Terra lagged behind because she caused a boulder to fly at Thanatodin. However, the demon lord blasted it with his flame breath and melted the rock in mid-air. Terra followed the group in defeat since she had no easy way to beat the monster.
As they ran down towards through the woods, Starfire (who was flying, not running) spotted a metallic shed in the distance. She called over her shoulder to her sister. "We have to push it in the water!"
"Duh!" Blackfire replied.
As the two Tamaranians flew as fast as they could towards the steel shed; as they neared it they realized this may be their only chance to defeat Thanatodin. If they did not succeed, it would mean death for all of them and all of Earth. As they neared the steel shed, Thanatodin spit more of the acid from his top mouth and turned the shed into a pile of molten liquid right in front of them.
The Titans stopped. Never before had an enemy thwarted them so many times.
"DON'T YOU SEE? YOU'RE PITIFUL ATTEMPTS TO STOP ME ARE USELESS! SO MUCH SO THAT I WILL END THIS PATHETIC PLAN AT THIS MOMENT!" Thanatodin turned his head and launched another shot of acid -- this time at the injured Slade. Slade had no chance to move, for he could not move at all, and his flesh and bones were burnt away along with a sizeable portion of the earth beneath him.
"Damn," Nightwing cursed. "Now what?"
"NOW NOTHING! THE ONLY POWER IN THIS WORLD THAT CAN STOP ME IS ME! NOW I WILL DEMONSTRATE MY TRUE POWER!" Thanatodin raised both of his hands and a ball of light began to form above his head. It was gigantic within seconds. A blast so strong that it could destroy all of North America; and it was growing by the second.
Then, a smile crossed Raven's face. A devious idea had struck her. "He said it himself... the only thing that can stop him is him. That energy ball above him . . . that's his power, isn't it?"
"You mean . . . Rae, you're not just pretty you're a genius! We make him drop that on his head and he's dead!" Beast Boy grinned. "Let's finish this guy for good!"
"How?" Starfire asked. "He has no weakness that I can see."
"He's a he right? They all have one weakness." Terra had a sly smirk on her lips and she slammed her hands into the ground. Yellow light flashed beneath Thanatodin and a spike of solid stone shot up from beneath Thanatodin and impaled him. As Terra had said 'he is a he'.
Thanatodin stumbled a bit and his arms shook like jelly. Thanatodin looked as if he was in intensive pain -- but that did not phaze him enough. He did not drop the ball, despite the stumble. He held strong and the ball continued to get bigger and glow brighter.
"I really thought that would work . . ." Terra mumbled.
"It did; watch!" Raven transformed herself into a gigantic bird made of black energy -- she launched at the monsterous Thanatodin and light blazed all around her. She struck the beast right in the throat and through both of his mouths he roared. His knees buckled and he fell onto them; however he still held the ball. His arms shook as if the bones had been replaced with jello, but Thanatodin was determined to destroy the earth and everyone on it. Raven returned to the ground, fell into Beast Boy's arms and looked like she was beaten with a metal pipe.
"He's . . . strong." She mumbled and closed her eyes.
"Look at his arms! We need to hit his elbow joints! It's our best -- and last chance!" Nightwing told the others. Red X, Nightwing and Robin II all threw their strongest bombs. Starfire and Blackfire hurled their bolts, Cyborg fired with his cannons and Terra and Beast Boy (who was now a gorilla) threw rocks at him.
The hits all struck against Thanatodin's left elbow; he roared and his left arm gave way. With a mighty scream, the gigantic energy ball fell onto his left palm and burnt it into nothing. The ball began to fall down his arm destroying it as soon as it touched it. It burnt his chest and throat until Thanatodin was able to squeeze the ball with his right arm and throw it high up into the air. Thanatodin grabbed his stump of an arm and growled at his charred and burnt skin. He was alive, but he was injured.
"Now what?" Beast Boy asked as he turned human again.
"No clue, Raven's the expert on these things." Nightwing replied.
"Raven's unconcious." Red X pointed out.
"Hit him where he's hurt!" Blackfire shouted. "Try to hit the wounds and maybe we can rupture his body or an organ or something!"
Starfire and Blackfire flew towards the demon, throwing their blasts at the burns. They smashed into his skin and destroyed part of the burns, ripping through and drawing blood. Cyborg shot at him as well, and the others hurled their own weaponry. Still, to no avail. Though his pain was great and he was becoming weaker, Thanatodin was not weak enough to die.
"THIS DOES NOT MATTER! SOON MY BOMB SHALL FALL BACK THROUGH THE ATMOSPHERE AND DESTROY THIS ENTIRE COUNTRY!" Thanatodin roared. It was not true. It would destroy a lot more than the country -- all of North and Central America would be anihilated -- along with parts of Asia and South America as well. The blast would melt the polar ice caps and flood the rest of the world. It was doomsday.
"Garfield," Raven's weak voice called her lover by his name. Beast Boy was instantly at her side. "There is a way . . . get him in the air."
Beast Boy did not understand, but Terra had overheard and she did. She smirked and created several spikes of stone which shot out of the ground and stabbed Thanatodin in the burnt places on his chest. Thanatodin was in such pain that he used his wings to fly into the air and avoid the stones. Exactly as Terra had planned.
The bomb of energy fell down and hit Thanatodin in the back. Both of it's mouth screamed unholy, unnatural screams as the bomb was absorbed into his body and the ultimate evil was turned into nothing but dust in the wind. The Titans, injured and tired, watched as he was destroyed.
Raven smiled and shut her eyes, snuggling into Beast Boy chest. Yes, Raven was snuggling.
The perfect end to a weird day.
Six Months Later
"I, Doctor Light, shall rule this world now!"
On the top of the tallest building in Jump City, the lame Doctor Light stood with a gigantic power generator. He looked like he was ready to unleash some semi-dangerous attack on Jump City, but before just as he was about to, a voice spoke.
"Can you please lock yourself in jail?" Raven asked, though this time she wasn't being sarcastic. "We had plans tonight."
Doctor Light saw Raven, his face became pale, and he nodded. "Yeah . . . okay; I'm going to go to jail now."
A few minutes later, Raven returned to the resturant. As soon as she did, Beast Boy ran over to her and kissed her cheek. She pushed him away but smiled. Starfire and Nightwing were at a booth in the corner, both drinking from straws inside the same milkshake. Cyborg was absent, since he was in Steele City with Bumblebee. Terra was missing . . . she had recently found a boyfriend in another town and hadn't been back in about a week.
The Raven looked out the window at the city. It was rebuilding nicely. These days, the Teen Titans had very little to do in Jump City. The worst villains around were Mad Mod and the HIVE Four. Jinx had renounced her ways and was now active with Kid Flash . . . she actually joined the Justice League and was living with them as a superhero. Slade hadn't been seen since he was turned into a boiling pile of goo; though Nightwing kept watch every now and then just to make sure.
For the most part, the Teen Titans acted like regular teenagers. Beast Boy and Raven were like a . . . quasi-normal couple, and lately Beast Boy had been like a shadow to the goth girl. She knew she never should have done what she had done at the Christmas party they had thrown in December; now he was following her even more than normal like a dog who knew there was a chance of getting a treat.
Nigtwing and Starfire were not as active with crime fighting. Starfire smiled and looked into Richard Grayson's eyes. She loved him, and she was happy that he loved her too. She ran a hand over her enlarged stomache. A week after they defeated Thanatodin, Starfire had gotten a surprise -- as it turned out, their time-traveling daughter from the future was due to be born in about three months.
In the end, life became better than it had ever been before. Occasionally they would help the Justice League fight some true supervillain; and sometimes they helped Batman with the Joker, but for the most part it seemed like life was simple and easy, without fear of fighting a psycopathic killer ever other day.
Happiness was abound, and all of the Titans had found love and peace. Their enemies were gone and their issues resolved.
A year later Beast Boy and Raven would tie the knot -- and then another incident like the Christmas Party one and their own child was on the way.
Slade never did come back again; nor did Brother Blood, Trigon or any of the other super powerful evil-doers they had met.
They all lived long, happy lives. Their love made them strong, and their adventure was over. The greatest tale of the Teen Titans -- their final adventure, had come to a close.
Everything worked out in:
THE END.
---- ---- ---- ---- ----
Closing Notes: Over 10,000 words longest ever.
That's it. That's all. It's over. I know... I KNOW! I'm sad too, but one year and two months is long enough for any fanfiction to go on. I love everyone who read and I love everyone who replied even more.
I will finish my other Titans stories and start new ones. First I want to leave my mark on Fullmetal Alchemist, Sonic, Naruto, 24 and a variety of other things. Don't worry... this isn't the end. I hope you'll read my other stuff; love you folks.
Now go home! And don't forget to email me. Email in the beginning author notes and my profile.
AND FOR THE LOVE OF CHEESE, Join the Sonic Rapid Board! Talk with me ANY day ANY time!