Titans West

Gar Logan, in the shape of a flea, hopped into the main room of the damaged HIVE lair. He saw his entire team, strapped to a golden device that he himself had been attached to when Deathstroke and Terra had captured the New Teen Titans. He looked to the side and saw Tara, covered in an earthen cage. Before the team stood an earthen statue of Terra. And then the statue moved.

Gar was jolted back into human form as the statue smiled. Small clumps of dirt fell from its mouth as the smile grew wider. “Hiya, Logan,” the statue sneered in Tara Markov’s voice. “Looks like the gang’s all here. Let’s start the party.”

“Tara?” he gasped. “How?”

Terra smiled. “You got that right!” Her hands began to glow as earth rose. “I’m the one and only!” Gar changed into a rabbit, which barely jumped out of the way as a boulder flew past. “Come on, Logan!” Terra yelled. “Make it easy on yourself!” Terra quickly created a storm of earth that she fired at Gar.

Gar changed back to his human form, with his hand over his eyes to protect them. He felt the earth tearing his uniform and cutting him as he quickly studied a control panel. “I don’t do anything the easy way!” he yelled as he stabbed a button. Terra’s eyes widened as she saw the power-draining device shutting down.

“Oh, yeah, baby!” Risk yelled as he easily shattered his restraints. “Let’s rock!”

“Let’s,” Terra replied as she sped one small pebble toward Risk.

The pebble slammed into Risk’s restraint collar, which began flashing lights and emitting a warning sound. Cody Driscoll screamed as his muscles painfully shut down and he fell to the ground.

“Risk!” Bumblebee yelled as she helped Mal down. Her hand flew to her computer bracelet and she began rapidly entering a code. Mal, meanwhile, ran into the halls of the base, searching for an armory.

Karen hurried to Risk’s side. With the completion of the code, the lights on his collar winked out. “Come on, Cody!’ Karen urgently said. “We need you!”

“More than you think!” Terra yelled. Karen looked up to see a boulder flying toward them. She closed her eyes, knowing that her suit wouldn’t protect her from the impact.

Gar and Bette hurried to where the human Tara was encased. Using a small tube of acid from Flamebird’s utility belt, they cut the unconscious girl free. “We’ve got to get her out of here!” Gar yelled. Together, they got Tara to her feet and helped her into a small room.

Bette looked out the door. “It doesn’t look good in there,” she said. “I think Risk and Karen are already down. And I don’t know how much Mal will be able to do on his own.”

Gar nodded. “Get in there and see if you can help them rally. I’m going to try and get Tara on her feet. Maybe she can stop this.”

“Right,” Bette said. “Good luck.” She hurried out, closing and locking the door behind her.

“Come on, Tara,” Gar whispered. “You’ve got to wake up.”

Just then, Tara’s eyes fluttered open. “Gar?” she whispered.

Changeling smiled. “Yeah. Are you okay?”

“I think so,” Tara started. Her eyes widened as she realized something. “Gar, my powers are gone! I don’t know how, but that other Terra stole them!”

Karen opened her eyes as she felt small pebbles bouncing off her mask and costume. A scowling Red Star stood above them. “Are you all right?” he asked.

“Yes, thanks to you,” Karen replied. “I’ve got to get Cody going again.”

“Do what you can,” Leonid said. “I’ll try to keep her distracted.”

“Got it.” Karen bent over Risk and kept trying to rouse him.

Red Star ignited and charged Terra as Flamebird came back into the room.

Terra grinned. “Come on, pallie,” she said.

Red Star ran toward Terra as Golden Eagle swooped down at her as well. Through his visor, Jason saw a glow surrounding Terra.

“Red Star, look out!” he yelled. “She’s-“

Red Star took one more step without noticing that the ground around his feet was bubbling. A geyser of mud exploded upward and threw Red Star through the dome of the room.

Golden Eagle didn’t hesitate. He pulled open a small container on his belt and dropped a metallic marble, which Terra caught easily.

“A toy?” she asked. “Really. I would’ve thought you could do better.” Terra recoiled as the modified ‘Screamer’ started blasting at high frequencies *.

(*Black Canary has used Screamers ever since losing her Canary cry. Golden Eagle found one and enhanced it up for his own use. – db)

As Terra staggered back, Golden Eagle attacked her with the claws he wore on his gauntlets. All he could slice away was dirt. As he drew his arm back to slash again, Terra’s hand grabbed it.

“Get outta my face,” she said, propelling Eagle into one of the walls of the room. Jason’s head cracked the wall and he slumped to the ground nearly unconscious.

Gar helped Tara sit up. “Your powers aren’t working?” he asked.

“No,” she replied. “It’s more than that. Usually I can feel the earth. That feeling’s gone now. I’m completely cut off.”

“How could this happen?” Gar asked.

Tara shook her head. “I don’t have any idea. I just found out something was going on when I woke up in the middle of the night and saw that...that thing standing over me. It trapped me in that cage and that’s where I’ve been ever since.” Tara stopped and looked up into Gar’s face, then grabbed onto him. “I don’t know what to do,” she whispered as tears started flowing down her face. “All I know is that I’ve never been this scared. Or helpless.”

Gar glared at the door and idly began stroking her hair. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll think of something.”

Mal grinned as he found a fully charged HIVE laser rifle. He kicked it up to its highest setting and ran back to the assembly room. “Over here!” he yelled as he saw Terra start approaching Risk and Karen. When Terra turned to look at him, he fired a full power burst at her. The laser burned a hole completely through Terra’s torso. Terra just looked at it.

Mal glanced down again as the rifle started beeping. “Oh, great,” he muttered. “These batteries really suck!” The beam flickered and then cut out.

As Mal fought with the energy pack, trying to get the rifle working again, Terra smiled and her torso recreated itself out of more soil. “Not bad,” Terra said. “Now it’s my turn.” A large rock flew through the air at her command and smacked into Mal’s temple. An unconscious and bleeding Mal fell to the ground.

“Now where was I?” Terra asked as she returned her attention to Karen and Risk. Bumblebee stood and began firing her stinger beams as Terra. The girl simply smiled.

“Is that all you’ve got?” she asked. “No wonder the old Titans never could stay together.” A wave of her hand, and Karen was struck by another flying rock, leaving her slumped on the floor.

“Now, let’s see who this is,” Terra said as she knelt over Risk. “Mmm. I like.” Terra drew an earthen finger down the exposed area of Risk’s chest. “Strong and cute.” Terra pulled him up and passionately kissed him.

Risk suddenly regained his faculties with a mouth of mud. With a yell, Risk slammed his fists through Terra’s body, breaking it apart. She fell away as Risk spit the mud out of his mouth. “I’m gonna teach you a real lesson you’ll never forget now, Sicko!” Risk yelled. He let out a war cry as he charged.

Suddenly Terra’s body reformed and she raised a hand. Risk barely had time to close his eyes as a mudstorm enveloped him and instantly hardened, leaving only a small hole for him to breathe.

“Too bad, cutie,” Terra said, shrugging. She turned. “Now where did Blondie go?”

Flamebird quickly threw her throwing disk, which grotesquely embedded itself in Terra’s head. She charged, readying to fire her electrified line. At Terra’s command, a huge fist formed out of earth and grabbed Bette. Terra calmly walked over to the captive Bette as she yanked the disk out of her head.

Gar looked around the room that he and Tara were in. A smashed computer console and some dead laser rifles were all he could see. Finally he hit upon an idea. He closed his eyes and started concentrating.

Terra stood right in front of the captive Flamebird. “You know, I think I may let you live a little while. You can watch me kill that worm Logan.” Terra walked to a console and flicked a switch. Throughout the base, the intercom system beeped to life.

Gar fought to keep his concentration as Terra’s voice began ringing throughout the complex. “I know you can hear me, Logan. That’s okay. Don’t show yourself. I’d rather have to hunt you down, anyway.

“I think you deserve some answers. I mean, you’re never gonna get to tell anybody, so I may as well clue you in on how I’m here. Thank my idiot brother, Brion*.”

(* AKA Geo-Force from the Outsiders – db)

“At my funeral, Brion had remembered an old Markovian tradition. He put a handful of dirt from Markovia in the coffin with me. I guess he hoped that he’d get his sister back. After all, he was killed once and the dirt brought him back*.”

(* This happened in Batman and the Outsiders #1 – db again)

“Turns out that the idiot didn’t put enough dirt in there! But what he did put in kept me from dying. I drank the power out of that dirt until I was ready to reclaim my body. And you know what happened? The damn Time Trapper! He stole my body before I could take it back and created that wimp that’s hiding with you!

“That was my body! I knew I couldn’t do much yet, so I laid low and used the earth of the graveyard to get my power back to where it should be. Then that little wimp took a box of dirt into her closet so she could ‘practice’ using her powers. Too bad she didn’t know that she’d given me my way in.

“I’ll bet I really got your tech guy worked up. All those alarms going off... It was me! I was learning how to use this body so I could take out your little band of goody-goodies and take back my body!

“You want to know a secret, Logan? I’m not stopping here. After you’re all dead, I’m going after the others. West, Rust-Bucket, Balloon Bod, Troy, even Dickie-poo! All but the witch. I’m going to let her watch while I off the rest of you, then I’ll see how slow I can take her out. Then I think I’ll head after Slade and drop him, too*. Hmm. Maybe I can have some fun with this blond hunk, though.”

(*West = Wally West, the Flash; Rust-Bucket = Cyborg; Balloon Bod = Starfire; Troy = Donna Troy, Troia (formerly Wonder Girl); Dickie-Poo = Dick Grayson, Nightwing; Slade = Slade Wilson, the Terminator – db)

“You like that idea, Logan? Cause here’s an idea I like. I’m comin’ after you, and I’m going to let little Miss Blondie here watch while I kill you and take my body back!”

Tara looked up with wide eyes as the intercom clicked off. “Gar, what are you doing?”

Gar smiled. “Concentrating.”

“On what? She’s going to kill us and you’re in a trance?”

“Don’t worry. Let’s go see her in that main hall.”

“Are you crazy?”

“Nope,” Gar replied as he started smelling the familiar smoke.

Terra looked up as Gar and Tara walked in. She grinned like an animal smelling blood.

“Well, well, well,” she said. “You came. Thanks for making it easy on me!”

“Wait,” Gar said, holding up a hand. “You know, I heard you talking about what you are now. You’re just a soul using Tara’s powers to make yourself a body. “ Gar smiled. “Turns out I was able to contact the Titan whose always known the most about souls.”

Terra screeched as Raven stepped out into the room.

“Tara Markov, we thought your evil destroyed years ago,” Raven said in her low, trembly voice. “Now I see that I was mistaken. You will be contained this time.”

“Never!” Terra screamed as she fired a lava flow toward Raven. Gar changed into a large bird and pulled Tara out of danger. The lava flowed toward Raven, split into two, and then reformed behind her.

“You cannot harm me,” Raven said. “Now you must be contained.” Gar watched as Raven’s body transformed into her soul self and engulfed Terra. Gar landed and let Tara down, then changed into an elephant and started using his trunk to free Flamebird. Bette stumbled to the ground as Gar heard Raven calling his name.

“Garfield!” Raven cried in a pained voice. “I cannot hold her! She is too powerful!” Gar’s eyes widened as he saw the soul-self stretching as Terra fought to escape.

“What do we do?” Gar asked, returning to human form.

“The girl,” Raven said. “Body and soul must become one once more. It is the only way to contain her.”

“What?” Tara asked. “Are you crazy? I don’t want that thing in my head!”

Raven’s voice grew more pained as cracks began to appear in her soul-self. “Then she is unstoppable and we will die.”

Gar turned to Tara, who was transfixed by the sight of Terra’s face, screaming curses, stretching from the soul-self. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” he said. “There’s always another way.”

“No,” Tara replied, her eyes still locked with Terra’s. “There isn’t another way. This is how it’s always been supposed to be. Raven’s right.”

Without saying another word, Tara jumped into the soul-self.

Gar covered his eyes as the soul-self started glowing more brightly. Squinting, he could almost make out one of the Terras disappearing. He finally turned into a rhino and charged the pillar containing Risk. His horn easily punched through the mud and freed him. Gar turned into an ape, threw Risk over his shoulder, and started running out of the room. Karen and Mal were in front of him. Bette already had Jason safely out.

“What’s going on in there?” Bette asked as she dabbed a wet cloth on Jason’s forehead, where a large bruise had already formed.

“Tara’s taking care of our problem,” Gar replied as he laid Risk down on the ground. “I’m going back in there. They may need me.” Before anyone could say anything, Gar ran back into the room in his human form.

Gar looked and saw the last of the light disappearing. The soul-self took flight and reformed on the ground as Raven. Terra fell to the ground. “Tara?” Gar asked as he ran forward.

“Wow,” Tara said. “I never want to go through that again.”

“Are you okay?” Gar asked.

Tara nodded. “Yeah. I don’t even feel her.”

“And you will not,” Raven said. “She has been completely submerged in your mind. There is no way that she can break free again.”

Tara smiled. “I can’t believe it. I finally know who I am.” She hugged Gar, but broke free at a rumble.

“What’s that?” Tara asked.

“The building has been seriously damaged,” Raven replied. “It is beginning to collapse. I will take you all to safety in my soul-self.”

“Great,” Gar said. “Come on!”

Outside, the golden building collapsed into dust.

An hour later, a very cold Red Star looked up. Above him was hovering the T-jet, which was lowering the rope ladder. With a smile, Leonid grabbed the bottom rung and pulled himself up.

“Did we stop her?” he asked as soon as the hatch closed.

“We stopped her,” Gar replied. “It’s over, thanks to Raven.”

“Yes, but I must leave now,” Raven said. “I sense that my path lies elsewhere.” After the team finished their goodbyes, Raven smiled and vanished in a cloud of smoke.

At the front of the jet, Gar checked his console. “If I remember correctly, we’ve got quite a mess to clean up in our HQ. Let’s go home.”

The silver jet turned and streaked westward with the dying sunlight shining off its skin, heading back to LA. Heading home.

The End...

Next Issue: Next time will present the first Titans West Annual – Private Lives! Thrill to Gar and Tara’s first date! Chill as Bette meets an old friend for the first time! Also, Jason starts “Talking With Charley!” Red Star and Risk talk about Dad! Also, it’s Mal and Karen’s anniversary! Be here for the first-ever TW annual!
(Oh yeah, did I mention that the Brotherhood returns, too?) See you then!

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