Chapter Text
The sun was shining bright over a rocky landscape, with outcroppings on either side of a broad canyon. From the way the sun was positioned, it appeared to be just after sunrise. From down below, dust clouds had formed. But within those clouds was an enormous black scorpion.
This creature seemed to be in pursuit of something, or rather… Someone. A small, blue-eyed teenage girl with long blonde hair, wearing a cropped gray shirt with black sleeves and a black neckband. She also had a white long sleeved undershirt, with blue denim shorts, as well as brown gloves and boots.
She ran as though to beat the devil in a hundred-yard dash, hoping to lose the scorpion. There was a butterfly shaped hair clip in her hair, and she had goggles around her neck. As she ran, her pursuer seemed to close the gap and aimed for a strike. It’s tail coming down to attack her.
Though it missed, the attack threw her off, and her hair clip fell off of her head. She attempted to grab at it, but the enormous stinger struck at her again, and just narrowly missed its target. She now swerved to avoid an outcropping which was destroyed by the scorpion’s claws and vaults over a lower formation just to stay ahead.
Unfortunately, as she continued on her path, she saw that it was a dead end. The scorpion finally slowed down, as though it were closing in on the kill. She came to a halt, scared of what’s to come, but she looked up hearing the sound of a green eagle flying overhead. Once it landed, it shifted back into Beast Boy of the Teen Titans, and beside him were Starfire, Superboy, Wonder Girl, Robin, Raven, and Cyborg. All of them, ready to take down the scorpion and save the girl.
“Titans, Go!” He exclaimed.
But before any of them could make a move, they felt the ground shake before them. The girl’s eyes had shone a bright yellow, much to the surprise of the Titans.
Her mouth contorted into a cruel smile, as she lifted her hands up in the air which had also shone the same color as her eyes, and caused the ends of a natural bridge on the canyon to break apart. The bridge lifted off the ground before everyone’s very eyes. She groaned with effort, holding the large structure up, and forced it down onto the Scorpion, crushing the creature.
She then pushed her hair back from the right side where it fell after her hair clip fell. Starfire looked somewhat confused at the display.
“She was not in any danger.” She realized.
“They were leading it into a trap!”Superboy and Cyborg both exclaimed. Which caused Superboy to immediately shout “Jinx!”
“But the question is…” Beast Boy started.
“Who is she?” Robin asked, with keen interest in the person below…
Meanwhile in a dark fissure, Slade had peered from within the darkness.
“Don’t get too attached, Titans… I saw her first.” Slade said in a sinister tone before he left the scene….
Back with the girl , she brushed off some dust from her hands, and made a slight gesture. As she did, a pillar of rock rose from the ground where she was standing.
“What? Haven’t you guys seen a superhero before?” The blonde questioned as she turned to the Titans. Beast Boy blinked a few times just as she jumped off the pillar.
“Um, I’m Beast Boy and we’re the-” Just before he could introduce the team, Terra bumped his hand with her fist.
“Teen Titans! Rock on! It’s cool to finally meet you guys! I’m Terra.” She said, introducing herself. Terra looked around Beast Boy at the other Titans.
“And you’re… Cyborg, Raven, Superboy, Wonder Girl, Starfire, and…” As she gestured to the ones she named off, Terra looked at their youngest in confusion.
“I presume you’re familiar with the moniker?” Robin asked, gesturing to the R on his chest.
“I was gonna say ‘Robin?’ But I wasn’t sure, that’s all.” Terra replied. The two had shook hands, and Starfire had approached Terra.
“I’m curious, where did you come from? How did you get here? And do you wish to be our friend?” Starfire asked at a quick pace whilst leaning towards her.
“Um… Earth, I ran, and yes.” Terra answered as she nervously looked away from the Tameranean.
Superboy and Cassie glanced at each other, worried about Kori.
“Oh, my apologies. I did not mean to overwhelm you, friend.” Starfire held out her hand, and Terra shook it, accepting her apology.
“Eh, don’t worry about it.” She shrugged.
“So, what brings a Geomancer like yourself to Jump?” Robin inquired as he approached her.
“I go where the wind takes me, you know? I get to see new places, meet new people, stomp a few bad guys here and there.” She answered simply.
“Interesting…” Damian muttered, but didn’t elaborate.
“Fascinating.” Starfire commented.
“Well, all right.” Superboy added.
“Wait, hold up… You don’t have a home?” Cassie questioned out of concern for the girl.
“The Earth is my home. I’ve been crashing in a cave down by that side of the hill.” Terra pointed over to the other side of the landscape and answered.
“Unacceptable! I simply cannot permit our new friend to dwell in a cave of darkness all by herself.” Starfire cried out, appalled by her state of living.
“I have a flashlight.” Terra replied, but was then dragged by both Wonder Girl and Starfire.
“Yeah, no. You’re gonna be coming home with us.” Cassie stated.
“No really, I-I’m-'' Terra insisted.
“We’ve got plenty of room, warm beds, and a killer view!” Superboy interjected.
Terra was still somewhat uncertain about the offer that was placed in front of her, until she saw the Boy Wonder who looked to be smiling.
“And that way, you won’t need to be alone again.” Robin added.
That part caught quite a few of the Titans off guard. With many of them having furrowed their eyebrows in response.
“Never pictured you as the caring type.” Cyborg stated.
Robin simply blushed, crossed his arms and looked away. “Tch.” Cyborg sighed at the boy wonder’s standoff-ish attitude.
“I guess I could stay for one night.” Terra said, accepting the offer. Starfire was overjoyed to hear that she’d be staying with them for the night.
“Glorious!”
“Yes!”
“Boo-Yah!” Starfire, Superboy, and Cyborg shouted with excitement.
The five of them then proceeded to lead her towards Titans Tower. Though, Beast Boy couldn’t help but feel that something was off.
“Is everything okay, Garfield?” Raven asked her boyfriend, who picked up a bit of dirt before letting it fall.
“Not sure. But something definitely reeks here. And it ain’t me.” The two of them went to meet up with the rest of the Titans. Just as they did, a portion of the ground where Beast Boy was standing on gave way, and fell into the canyon.
Inside Titans’ Tower…
Later on in the day, the group had arrived back in the Tower. They decided to showcase the common room.
“Whoa! Cool digs!” She said, awestruck by the sight of the common room. The geomancer went and looked out the window.
“And you guys weren’t kidding about the view!” She added.
Terra then flopped onto the couch before placing her feet on the coffee table.
“I can’t believe you guys actually live here!” She exclaimed in disbelief over the amazing home of the Titans.
“As far as I’m concerned, our home is your home.” Robin said, taking a seat next to her in an attempt to make her feel more welcome. Superboy and Wonder Girl had noticed this display.
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Damian is trying to flirt with her.” Superboy whispered to the Amazon.
“And failing EPICALLY at that.” Cassie whispered back
“You guys got any grub?” Terra asked in general.
Later on…
There was a huge mound of dirty dishes on the counter, as Terra continued to eat just about everything the Titans had given her. She ate as though she had never eaten before in her life. Needless to say, everyone was quite shocked at the display. Starfire, having a spark of curiosity brought forth what appears to be a Jell-O mold to Terra.
“Might you now wish to partake in my homemade Glorg?” Starfire inquired.
Everyone collectively shouted “NO!” To warn her, but it was too late. The Glorg was already eaten, and Terra did not show any signs of disgust at Starfire’s cooking.
“Tastes like sushi mixed with ice cream… Got any more?” Terra asked. Starfire was overjoyed that someone had enjoyed her homemade Tameranian dish.
“I shall go cultivate the fungus!” She exclaimed with enthusiasm.
Just as Starfire left the room, Terra then sniffed her armpits, and wasn’t too pleased with how she smelt.
“So… Where’s the tub?” Terra asked.
Damian and Superboy then went to show her the general bathroom. Once there, they left her to her own devices.
“So… What’s the deal?” Superboy asked to break the silence.
“What do you mean?” Damian responded, confused by Conner’s question. The Kryptonian rolled his eyes and gestured at the door leading to the bathroom.
“You never took interest in anyone before now. Hell, you barely come out of your room, except for mandatory training or whenever there’s trouble. So why don’t you fess up?” Superboy further asked.
Damian cocked his eyebrow in confusion. Superboy then pinched his temple.
“YOU. LIKE. HER.” He punctuated, while repeatedly gesturing to him with both hands. which caused the boy wonder to blush for the second time that day.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Robin denied, while he looked away from the half-kryptonian.
Superboy used his X-Ray vision to scan Damian’s organs and noted his increased heart rate.
“Well, scientifically speaking, your heart rate just went up, and all the blood is rushing to your face… Among other things I could be taking note of.” Superboy said in a smug manner, while also slightly glancing downward. Though, just before they could get into a further argument, Terra came out dressed in a white bathrobe with her towel wrapped around her hair.
They looked inside the bathroom and saw that it was covered in mud and dirt. Dirty footprints could be seen all over the floor, and the bathtub was filled with mud.
“Mud bath…” Superboy commented. Terra scratched her head in embarrassment.
“Sorry, guess I was due for a rinse. Mind if I use your sink?” She asked.
Both Robin and Superboy nodded, unsure of what she needed to do there but never questioned it.
“We agree not to tell Gar or Raven?” Superboy whispered.
“If they didn’t already know, we’ll have to clean it up afterwards.” Damian replied.
Cassie came up with two mops and buckets full of soap and water.
“Better get to work, boys.” She said, before going to meet up with the others near the common room.
In the common room, Terra was listening to some music on a walkman she had on her person, while washing her clothes.
“You seem a little old fashioned.” Cassie commented.
“Eh, you know. Been out there so long, that you just kinda gotta work with what you have.” Terra responded as she lowered her headphones.
Damian and Superboy had come back, though the former was more worn out than the latter, due to the obvious power difference. Terra then pinned her clothes on a makeshift clothesline. The rest of the Titans also looked on from the doorway.
“She seems pretty comfortable.” Raven commented, observing as Terra just laid on the couch so casually while Cassie went to mingle with the others.
“Wonder how long since she had a decent place to crash for the night?” Cassie asked.
“She needs more than that. She needs a home.” Damian answered.
“Then why not our home?” Beast Boy raised the question.
“Yeah! I mean, she’d make a great addition to our team, and it’d be pretty sick to have a geomancer on board!” Superboy said while he snapped his fingers in realization. Gar couldn’t help but notice that Raven was not too enthused about the idea.
“Okay, but first we should see what she can do. We’ll host a little obstacle course practice tomorrow morning.” Beast Boy announced to the team.
At that announcement, everyone seemed excited. Though Terra with one eye open was not enthused by the idea. In fact, she seemed a little frightened.
Later that night , just about everybody was in their respective bedrooms. Damian had come by, wearing his casual attire; A black long-sleeved shirt and dark blue denim pants. He carried around a blanket, thinking Terra would need one for the night.
“Excuse me, Terra? I believe you could use a… Blanket?” Damian noticed she seemed to vanish, but one look out the window told him another story. She was outside, using her powers to skip rocks across the water’s surface.
She had a very distant look on her face, as though some part of her has been down this road before. Not sure how the others would react to her powers.
“I thought I was the only one up late in the tower.” Terra turned to see Damian stood over her. “The others were thinking about having you on our team, and I for one have to agree with that decision.” He added.
Though, Terra wasn’t exactly paying attention to Damian’s words, but rather his eyes. He came off as someone who was very serious, despite the time she saw him blush. But, she saw that his eyes had betrayed his demeanor. They were… Soft.
“What?” Damian asked, and Terra turned away from him, blushing.
“Nothing! Nothing at all.” Terra sputtered.
She then skipped another rock across the shore. Damian picked up one to try his hand. But when he threw it, it simply sunk into the water.
“Try adding a bit more spin to it.” Terra suggested as she handed him another rock.
Damian then visualized throwing a birdarang, and threw the rock. Once it landed on the surface of the water, it skipped across the surface.
“Nice one, little birdie.” she complimented.
Damian took a seat on the rock next to Terra, proud of his efforts.
“I’m a quick study.” He replied. They continued to stare out into the ocean, and by extension, the city for a little while.
“So, what made you wanna come out here and say hi?” Terra asked.
“It’s just as I said, We were thinking about having you on the team.” Damian answered. Terra slapped herself on the head, not having paid any attention to what Damian was saying before.
“Sorry about that. It’s just… You don’t seem like the type who’d go out of his way just to be nice to someone like me. But, looking at your eyes tells me another story.” She apologized. Damian furrowed his eyebrows out of curiosity, wondering where she’d get that idea. “Oh, I heard your talk with Superboy.” Terra quickly answered.
“Conner, I swear I’m gonna impale you with a kryptonite dagger.” Damian muttered, clutching his hand into a fist in a somewhat comical manner.
Terra giggled a little at that display, which confused the boy wonder.
“You say the strangest things, you know? Plus, you’re not actually gonna do that. You guys are friends, right?” She questioned. Damian became flustered just from her asking that.
“N-n-no. He’s just… He’s just irritating. That’s all.” He sputtered.
“Like… An older brother?” Terra surmised as she placed her hand under her chin. Damian was a little surprised that she could come to that conclusion.
“You know, back where I came from, I always thought that family was something that hindered you. Something you needed to let go to become stronger.” Damian responded.
Now it was Terra’s turn to be confused, as the boy wonder spoke about his story.
“But, once I met Nightwing, and the other Titans… I feel like family has a whole new meaning to me. Something that strengthens you, when you believe that you’re all alone in this world. And, as much as some of them irritate me, especially Conner… I… Can’t see myself without them. Not after all the time we spent together.” He explained. She was surprised to see that she had more in common with this boy than she thought.
“I’ll be honest, I can’t stay another day here.” Damian was surprised to hear her say something like that.
“Why not?” He questioned.
“Oh, you know, places to be, people to meet-” Terra nervously answered, but was cut off upon her feeling Damian’s hand on her shoulder.
“I can tell you want to stay here. Besides, we have just about everything you could ever need here, and then some. So, could you… Please?” Damian asked. Terra was surprised to hear him ask politely.
“I guess I could stay one more night.” She responded.
“I’m glad to hear it. The others would like to see what you could do out there on the field.” He said while sporting a confident smirk. Just then, Terra’s eyes blazed yellow, and her hair blew straight up as a familiar light shone over her.
The rock underneath Damian floated upwards, causing the boy wonder to tumble into the water below. The rock itself was dumped into the water nearby him, soaking him further.
“Great. Now I’m going to need a change of clothes after this.” He said, noting how his shirt now clung onto him and Terra panicked.
“Sorry! I’m sorry! I’m so stupid! Don’t tell! Please don’t tell!” She said, flustered over her spontaneous usage of her power.
“Terra, it’s fine. You can’t fully control your powers. I get it.” He responded with understanding. Terra looked up at him with pleading eyes
“Please promise you won’t tell?” She begged.
“Terra. Trust me, it’s fine. One of the Outsiders had to deal with a geomancer himself. He was just like you with your powers. Plus, on top of that, two of our teammates have to control their emotional spectrum just to use their powers. So even if they did find out, they’d understand…” Damian responded as he held onto her shoulders with a gentle grip.
Terra, shocked to hear about another geomancer like her, only muttered a single word. “Brion…”
“As for keeping this promise, yes. I promise I won’t say a word. Cross my heart, hope to die.” Damian declared. He then made a cross gesture over his heart. Terra was thankful that Damian was being considerate of her situation, and then hugged him.
“Thank you, um…” Terra was unsure what she should call him.
“You can call me Damian when we’re home. Out on the field, it’s Robin.” He clarified.
“Okay, thank you, Damian.” She thanked, then noticed that her shirt was wet from hugging him.
“I’ll grab you a towel. In the meantime, I’ll take you to the guest room.” The boy wonder said. He then held her hand as he escorted her to a guest room.
The pair arrived at a basic, but serviceable room with a single queen-sized bed, a book shelf, nightstand and alarm clock on the right side, with a window to the left showing the view of the ocean and Jump City.
“This is our guest room. I apologize for the lack of decorations, but this was made in case we had anyone temporarily staying with us. If you wish to stay as a permanent member, I’ll talk to Cyborg about making you a permanent room.” Damian explained, and Terra simply flopped onto the bed. He tucked her into the sheets, and turned the lights off before exiting…
Once Damian entered his room, he went about removing his casual attire and placed them in his hamper. The boy then ran a hot bath in the tub and waited a few minutes before he sat in the tub, soothed by the warm water. He looked up at the ceiling before he felt his chest and his racing heart.
“ Why? I’ve only just met her. And yet… After one day… I can’t help but feel so… Strange… ” He thought to himself before he splashed water onto his face.
After he finished bathing, he dried off and changed into his sleep attire, before he flopped right onto his bed. The boy continued to stare at the ceiling, deep in thought, before sleep had finally claimed him.
The Next Morning…
Damian had woken up dressed in a black tank top and a pair of matching baggy sweatpants. He gave a loud yawn just as he heard knocking from his door. Once he opened the door, he was greeted by the resident Kryptonian.
“What do you want, Kent?” Damian asked.
“Okay, Mr. Tucks guests in bed at night. I knew you had it bad, but I didn’t think it was THAT bad.” Conner answered. Damian was flustered over the fact that someone had seen him do that.
“Look, the guest room is the only one NOT lined in lead. So yeah, I can see straight through that.” Conner added.
“It’s none of your concern!” Damian replied while giving a pout, which caused Conner to sigh.
“It’s okay if you like someone. I’m only teasing you, that’s all.” The half-kryptonian said.
“It’s not that. It’s just… There’s something about her. I just can’t place it, but she needs to know…” Damian replied, while he slowly turned back to him.
“And what does she need to know, huh?” Conner teased as he got the boy wonder in a headlock. Damian tried struggling, but it was useless against a kryptonian.
“C’mon! You can’t just admit it, huh?” He asked while giving Damian a noogie.
“Kent I swear to god I’m gonna-” Damian uttered while still being held.
“You’ll what? You don’t have any kryptonite on you, and trust me, I know.” Conner smugly replied.
“Hey guys…” Both Conner and Damian glanced at the source of the voice and saw Terra in the hallway, who happened to have been watching their little display. Conner dropped Damian, who rubbed his head.
“Sup, Terra? Just wanted to check up on little Damian here.” Conner greeted. The boy wonder got up off the floor and brushed hypothetical dust off his shirt.
“I’m fine. I’ll be out in a few minutes.” He then retreated back into his room. Both Terra and Conner turned to one another afterwards.
“Huh, guess I was right about you guys after all.” Terra commented.
“Right about what?” Terra glanced at Damian’s room, then back to Conner.
“You guys are like brothers.” She replied.
“Yeah, something like that. He’s only been here for a few months, and he’s STILL getting used to how things are around here.” Conner explained. Terra was a little surprised to hear that he hadn’t been here for so long, yet…
“He said something about you guys being like family to him?” She questioned.
“Yeah, it took a little persuasion to force THAT little confession out of him. But hey, he’s our little robin.” Conner answered. Terra chuckled a little from that answer.
“Okay, answer me this, who’s Nightwing?” She inquired.
“Oh, he’s one of the founders of the Teen Titans. He’s probably been one of the best dads I ever had… Aside from my real one… And my other one… No wait, the other one is kind of a dick.” Conner quickly answered. Terra raised an eyebrow, and Conner raised a hand to stop her from asking.
“It’s complicated. Trust me.” He stated. Damian had finally gotten out of the room dressed in his uniform.
“Are we ready to go?” He asked.
“I’ve BEEN ready.” Conner replied, and the three headed down the corridor ready to meet up with everyone else…
Outside…
Cyborg was the first out to test the new obstacle course he had built. He was running at top speed, he then dodged the steel columns with fists mounted on top before jumping clear. Beast Boy and Raven were manning the console controlling the equipment.
He tapped a few keys on the console, which prompted laser cannons to appear out of the ground and start blasting at Cyborg. He was able to dodge those with relative ease. Next came a set of three gateways, each with a panel mounted on top. They were programmed to descend like guillotines. Cyborg was able to run past the first two, but had to catch the last one before it could crush him.
He strained mightily to keep the last one up, and pushed it up onto its track before clearing it. The panel then crashed down just as Cyborg regained his momentum. Beast Boy types in a series of commands on the console, which prompts a set of launchers underneath some rocks to jut out.
They fired a series of disc-like projectiles at Cyborg, who used precision shots of his Sonic cannon to take out a few before jumping over the rest. The other Titans watching were cheering for Cyborg’s run of the course, sans Damian who simply looked disinterested. Cyborg looked at the panel on his forearm, with a time that read “2:17”
“Boo-yah! New course record!” Cyborg shouted in joy.
“Well yeah, you’re the first one to do the course.” Raven retorted. That got a chuckle out of the changeling and Superboy.
“Okay, Terra! Ready to show us what you got?” Beast Boy shouted, and Terra gave a nervous sigh.
“I just hope you’re ready to see it.” She muttered. Damian approached her and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
“It’s alright, you can do it. No matter what happens, they’ll understand.” He whispered to her, before she put her goggles on. Superboy seemed a little confused about what Damian was talking about, but shrugged it off. The console then displayed a timer that counted down from 11.
“Countdown initiated! Good luck, Terra!” Beast Boy announced.
“Come on Terra!”
“You go, girl!”
“Onward to victory!” Wonder Girl, Cyborg, and Starfire all cheered respectively, hoping to encourage her.
“Don’t lose control, don’t lose control, don’t.” Terra muttered quietly to herself, knowing that Conner has super hearing.
Once the timer got to zero, she used her powers to raise herself with a pillar just as the laser cannons fired at her. They aimed for where she was as the pillar rose, and as the last one hit, a dust cloud kicked up from the top of the structure, but then Terra appeared, riding on the uppermost fragment.
She then threw a bigger fragment at the cannons, crushing them. The resulting dust cloud threw her off a slight bit. She then panicked when she saw the steel columns jutting out of the ground.
She narrowly avoided all but one, which when she collided with it, the rock was destroyed. The geomancer then used her powers to summon another rock from the ground to ride upon. She sighed in relief, before realizing that she was about to crash into another rock formation on the plain. She pulled the rock upwards and steered herself away.
“Whoo-hoo!”
“Glorious” Cyborg and Starfire cheered respectively.
“Yeah! You da man, Terra! I mean the Wo… Man?” Superboy said, trying to give some encouragement.
“You need to work on that.” Wonder Girl retorted.
Terra was spinning around on the rock, barely able to control it, and just when she got to the gateways, she summoned a snake of stone which broke through each gateway panel as she ran across it.
“We’re going to need a new obstacle course.” Raven snarked.
“Ditto.” Beast Boy said, nodding in agreement. He typed in another command on the console. Terra flung herself free from the stone snake and was about to fall into the pit that opened in the earth.
“Waaaah!” The geomancer screamed while she tried to bring one rock towards herself, but she couldn't get a good grip on it. She repeated the action, but after she got onto it, she started to slip off of it.
“That’s it!” Superboy exclaimed as though to try rescuing her.
“No, wait.” Damian said, as he halted Superboy’s actions.
As Terra slipped off, two more smaller rocks she summoned came to her, and she was able to use those to rise back up. With a more confident smile, she drops them into the pit after clearing it, and landed on another rock she summoned.
Beast Boy was typing in more commands on the console, as Raven watched with intrigue. The other Titans, sans Damian cheered her on as she was on the home stretch. The launchers from earlier jutted out to fire more disc-projectiles. Terra shielded herself with the rock she was riding on, before summoning several rocks to take out the remainder of the projectiles flying at her, along with the launchers.
She landed on the ground, where the momentum caused her to slide along the ground, before coming to a halt, she looked very unsteady in her stance, before she straightened out to a gymnast pose after a routine. The others, who were in awe, broke into wild cheering, while Damian gave a confident smirk.
“You rock!” Superboy exclaimed before giving her a high five.
“Magnificent success!” Starfire cheered, which caused Terra to blush a little. Cyborg looked at the time on his forearm panel which read “1:56”.
“Looks like we have a new course record.” Raven snarked.
“I must’ve softened it up for her.” Cyborg responded with embarrassment.
“Well, Damian? Any thoughts?” Wonder Girl asked, to which Damian looked at the pleading eyes of the geomancer who had garnered his interest.
“Your dismount could use work, but otherwise, you impressed me for a rookie.” Damian answered. But then Terra gave Damian a hug, which was unexpected to him.
“You told me I could do it, and you were right.” Damian’s whole face immediately turned a bright shade of red, before turning away from her.
“Well, I just figured that… You needed some positive reinforcement, that’s all.” Damian said, trying to hide his face from her eyes. Terra was confused by his change in demeanor, but got a chuckle from that. Beast Boy and Raven came to greet Terra.
“Great job, Terra! A little rough around the edges, but hey! You’ve got some real talent there.” Beast Boy said, praising her ability to navigate the course.
“You think?” Terra asked, excited to hear her potential recruitment.
“With a little extra training, and some elbow grease you could-” Just before he could finish what he was saying, his phone got a notification, linked to the Titans’ mainframe. The rest of the Titans also checked their respective phones to see the “T” that makes up their logo.
“Okay, what are you guys looking at?” Terra asked, confused as to what’s happening.
“Trouble. That’s what’s going on. Let’s head back, everybody!” Beast Boy answered. They then followed his lead back into the tower. Once they gathered in the common room, the monitor came on and immediately notified them of the imminent threat.
“Slade… He’s back.” The Changeling said, anger evident in his voice.
“Who?” Terra asked Damian.
“Slade Wilson, aka Deathstroke the Terminator. He’s a skilled mercenary we’ve had to deal with for a long time.” Robin answered.
“In layman’s terms, he’s a bad guy. WAY bad.” Superboy chimed in. Beast Boy typed in some keys on the computer to zero in on his location.
“Got a fix on his location! Titans, move out!” He shouted, and they followed his lead. Damian was hesitant to leave, seeing Terra unsure of what she should do.
“Aren’t you coming?” The Boy Wonder asked.
“You sure?” Terra responded. Damian nodded with a confident smile, and Terra followed close behind.
In an Underground Mining Excavation…
A group of miners were moving around diamonds with their equipment, but they were suddenly interrupted when a laser blast impacted a cart hauling the diamonds. The workers turned to see a group of Slade Bots targeting them. They opened fire on the workers.
“Protect the diamonds!” One of them clamored.
“You kiddin’ me? Forget the diamonds, we gotta get out of here!” Another shouted in response.
They all evacuated from the site, allowing the robots to take over. But just before they could attempt to settle, a green-clubbed tail struck one, sending it flying. They looked over and saw the Ankylosaurus shifting back into Beast Boy, accompanied by the other Titans.
“ You mind tellin’ your boss that we’d like a word? ” Beast Boy asked mockingly, to which the bots open fired at the Titans.
“Titans! Go!” Beast Boy shouted before turning into a bird to avoid taking shots.
Everyone split off to take on a group, and Terra put on her goggles before rising up with a rock she summoned.
“You boys ready to rock?” She asked, daring them to come at her. Two had jumped to grapple with her, but Robin had joined in to cut the two down. “Thanks!” Terra said, giving Robin a thumbs up.
“Stay focused!” He uttered before more blasters fired on them. Terra threw rocks at the ones priming to take her down, but Robin was met with a whole squadron. He took a fighting stance, holding his sword in both hands.
The squadron at first attempted charging him one at a time, which didn’t work out after three went down from quick swings. They then ganged up on Robin, who with a mighty effort threw off all of them. One attempted to blindside him, but Terra was quick to throw a boulder at it.
“See? Now we’re even.” Terra said, but Damian threw a birdarang at one that approached her.
“Okay, now you’ve got one over me.” She said before the two continued their fights. Several bots were firing at Wonder Girl, who simply deflected each blast using her bracelets. She flew towards one, giving it an iron claw, before pulling out her lasso and restraining another. She spun that one at several bots, before it finally fell apart from the force.
Superboy meanwhile, looked around him at the Slade bots. He smirked, before tucking his hands behind his back. The group fired more lasers at him, which he shrugged off.
“Guys. We need to have a serious talk.” He said before taking a deep breath, and freezing his group with his frost breath. “Good talk.” Conner added.
Starfire was assisting Raven with the ones she had to contend with, but she was then grappled by a group. “Star! Help’s on the way!” Superboy shouted, but was interrupted by a group blasting him nearby a crane holding an overhaul of girders.
Superboy used his heat vision to cut the cable holding the girders, which dropped onto the bots. He then saw that Cyborg had already rescued Starfire using his Sonic cannon to blast away the bots.
“Aw… No fair.” Superboy muttered, but then saw a bot driving a giant drill going at full speed towards the Kryptonian. He had little to no time to react, so he grabbed the drill around the tip. But, the tip of course was trying to go through his face. He was holding off the drill with his feet planted firmly into the ground. “This drill, ain’t gonna be the one that pierces the heavens!!” He shouted as he held the drill in the air, then suplexed it into the ground.
He brushed off some dust from his hands, but once the resulting dust cloud settled, he saw that more slade bots were trying to target him. But, before he could react to the oncoming blasts, Wonder Girl stepped in to deflect them with her bracelets.
“Shall we dance?” Cassie asked, and Conner gave her a smirk as the two charged in to take on the machines. Cyborg had grabbed two bots by their heads, and smashed them together, and launched a missile at one that targeted Starfire.
“Raven, look out!” Beast Boy shouted, and the Empath had gotten out of the way, before their leader jumped in to transform into a Stegosaurus. He swiped his spiked tail at the surrounding robots.
Terra and Robin were backed into a corner by a group of bots. The Boy Wonder deflected some shots using his sword, while Terra launched more rocks. However, one threw an explosive near the two, and while Robin had gotten out of the way, Terra tried erecting a rock barrier, which fell apart from the explosive. The shock had caused her powers to go haywire.
“Can’t control!” She shouted, as the lens in her goggles shattered. The mine entrance the two titans were standing in with the bots started to collapse around them. Robin looked up to see rocks were about to come down on him, and Terra looked on in fear. “DAMIAN!!” She shouted, concerned that she had lost the one person she trusted the most.
But, before Terra could mourn for the supposed loss of the boy wonder, she saw that a few bots were still active. One even being just the top half. Terra then summoned pillars to crush all the bots chasing her. She immediately ran away from the scene, and slumped on a wall, before she started sobbing. Beast Boy and co. had defeated the rest of the Slade bots, and went to check on Terra and Damian.
“Terra! Robin!” Beast Boy shouted, as he moved some rocks out of the way. Even transforming into a sasquatch to move large rocks. But, suddenly, a hole opened in the ground revealing Superboy and Robin.
“Hey guys! Robin’s still alive!” Superboy shouted, and the Titans all breathed a collective sigh of relief.
“Where’s Terra?” Damian asked, more concerned for his teammate’s life than his own. Raven levitated off the ground, and tried reaching out with her mind.
“She’s past the entrance. But, I’m sensing immense sadness from her.” Raven explained.
“I need your help saving her.” Damian said to Conner. The Boy of Steel interlocked his fingers and cracked his knuckles.
“Leave the digging to me, Boy Wonder.” Superboy proudly responded. He then spun around at a fast pace, and burrowed into the ground. Robin followed him, while the rest of the Titans tried searching for a path to her via the other entryways.
Back with Terra…
Terra was curled up against a corner of the mine. Sobbing over what she may have done to Damian.
“Why can’t I do this…?” She muttered to herself, before taking a look at her hands. “Every time I think I have this, someone I care about dies… I never should’ve come along with this mission. But… He trusted me. And I trusted him…”
She was about to continue crying, until she heard someone running in the cave. “Is that Slade?” She asked herself before giving chase. Once she caught up to the runner, she saw that it was Slade. She made a gesture with her hands to cause a wall of rock to appear in front of Slade, trapping him.
“Looks like I got you.” She said, with a bit of confidence. However, Slade had leapt over her, flipping along the way. He then tripped her with a sweep kick, before throwing a bomb onto the ceiling behind him.
“Actually Terra… I’ve got you.” He said, just as the bomb exploded behind him. Trapping both combatants in the same area. The lights had gone out briefly before coming back up one at a time when Slade approached her.
“Now, tell me something, were you aware that you walked into a trap? Cause that was your first mistake.” Slade asked, curious about the terrified geomancer. “Your second mistake was going into a fight without knowing your environment.” He then pulled out his metallic staff, prepared to face her.
“Now, you of all people should know better than this. But, at the very least now we get to know one another…” He said, poised to strike her.
She immediately threw a rock at him to try getting him away. She then summoned more stones to throw at him, which he countered by spinning his staff.
“Hmm, I see we have much to talk about.” The Terminator said, more intrigued by his opponent.
“Mind if I talk with my hands?” Terra quipped before she threw more fragments and made two stone snakes from both ends attack Slade. But, he narrowly avoided her kneeling in a crouched position next to her.
“Good, Terra. But not good enough.” He then swept her again using the staff. He follows up with a jab that Terra sidestepped away from. Slade went to strike with an overhead swing, but she somersaulted out of the way.
Before she could do anything, he brought the staff down to cut her off from her next move. And just before he could get in another strike, she huddled down on the floor, and a large rock spawned in between them. Slade had gotten a fair distance away, not sure what her next move was.
Terra peered from behind the rock to see Slade slowly approaching her, and used this opportunity to fire the rock she used as a shield at Slade. He planted the end of his staff into the ground, and swung himself along its length to vault over the rock.
Unfortunately, the staff was broken from the impact made from colliding with the rock. He landed on the floor with the broken portion of his staff, and said “Impressive Terra, unless of course… You were aiming for me.” He then dropped his staff and pulled his two swords.
She backed up and launched several medium sized rocks at Slade, who using some impressive sword play, sliced through each of the rocks as he approached her. She then fired a large boulder at Slade, who sheathed one of his blades before punching the boulder into small pieces. Terra was now even more frightened by her opponent.
“Back off! I’m with the Titans! They’ll be coming to-” Terra shouted.
"You don’t belong with the Titans.” Slade interjected.
“You don’t know anything about me!” She lashed out. Suddenly, Slade had produced the hair clip she lost battling the scorpion.
“On the contrary, Tara… I know everything about you.” Terra’s eyes widened at the sight of the hair clip, and Slade somehow knew who she truly was. “Tara Markov… Born to the Markovian royalty, banished from her kingdom, just because she happened to gain superpowers. And what exactly did you end up doing with those powers you might ask?”
“Stop…” Terra pleaded, but The Terminator continued
“Earthquakes, Avalanches, Mudslides. Everywhere you go, you try to do good. And everywhere, you fail. So, everyone turns against you.”
Slade then turned away from her, but when he did, the hair clip was no longer in his hand. Terra looked at her hair, and saw that her clip was back. “You lack control, Terra. And when you lose control, you are more dangerous than anything I’ve ever seen.” She looks up at him curiously, wondering what’s his point.
“But, it doesn’t have to be this way. I can help you, child.”
“You can?” Terra asked, puzzled by Slade’s words. Slade had then picked up a seemingly random stone on the ground.
“Right now, you are… Rough, around the edges.” He said, while gripping the stone. “You need more than obstacle courses to overcome your problem.” He continued viciously gripping the stone until it began to crumble. “You need a teacher. A mentor, come with me, Terra. And I can teach you to shine…” Just as he finished, Terra looked at the stone and saw a diamond.
“But… Robin… And my friends told me you’re-” Terra said, unsure of his proposition.
“You don’t really believe they’re your friends, do you, Terra?” Slade asked.
“They took me in. Gave me a home!” Terra exclaimed, shaking her head in denial of his words.
“And when they find out what’s wrong with you. They’ll reject you, just like all the rest.” He responded, grasping her shoulders firmly. Terra then recalled what might’ve happened to Robin.
“But, Robin’s the only one I told. And-” She insisted.
“Did you really think THAT was enough to kill him? Cause last I checked, even crushed corpses have the smell of blood. So, I’m fairly certain he’s still alive, and able to say something.” Deathstroke interrupted.
“But… He promised!” Terra retorted.
“Can’t keep his mouth shut forever. He’ll tell them.” Slade reasoned.
“You’re lying! He’d never!” The geomancer angrily shouted.
“Lying comes with his particular territory, my dear girl.” Deathstroke coldly replied.
Terra, with her fists clenched, summoned a torrent of dirt and rocks circling around her like a tornado.
“Shut up! Just shut up and leave me alone!” She shouted as the dirt and rocks spun around her faster. She gasped in shock, and dropped to her knees while clutching her head. “Don’t lose control… Don’t lose control!”
“Now, Terra… How could you lose something you never had?” Slade coldly remarked. The debris surrounding her then flew even faster as she screamed into the ceiling.
Back with the Titans…
Beast Boy and co. felt the area tremble around them. “We need to get out of here!” Raven shouted.
“Slade’s trying to bring the whole mine down!” Cyborg added.
“I don’t think Slade’s doing this, guys…” Beast Boy reasoned. Starfire and Wonder Girl came back from the upper caves.
“I cannot locate Terra.” Starfire reported.
“And I don’t know where our little Robin or Superboy went either.” Cassie added, and Beast Boy could only hope for all three of them to return safely.
With Terra…
Her powers were going haywire, she was even floating off the surface with the objects surrounding her.
“No one else understands you, Terra . No one else can help you. I’ll be waiting.” Slade had then left the scene leaving Terra alone. Her eyes gleamed and it seemed there would be no end to the rumbling. Superboy peered out from a hole he had dug. He found the storm and Terra in the eye.
“Oh boy…” He said. Before going back down to see Damian. “Guessing THAT’S her issue?” He asked, gesturing to the uncontrollable storm of earth in the cavern.
“Just get me in the center. I should be able to stop it!” Superboy nodded and dug to where he estimated the center was, and Damian popped out of the opening to see Terra.
“Terra! Hold on!” Damian shouted, hoping to reach her. He jumped up, and grabbed her arm. She looked over and saw Damian, alive and well. She then grabbed both of his hands, and finally calmed down.
The rumbling had stopped, and the area was safe. Damian had opted to remove his mask to greet her.
“Terra. Are you okay?” He asked, hoping that she would respond.
“Damian?” Robin nodded, and she hugged him. He allowed her to cry into his chest, whilst returning the hug. Conner was genuinely surprised by this, seeing his “Little Brother” willingly giving a hug to someone.
“So… About that whole… Freakout there. Is that what all the hubbub is all about?” Superboy cautiously asked once she was done crying. Terra looked at Damian who shook his head.
“I didn’t tell him. It’s as I said, they’ll understand.” He informed her.
It was then that the geomancer realized that… Slade was wrong. Conner and Damian were both willing to accept her for who she is.
“Let’s go home, Terra…” Damian said, while putting his mask back on and dropping back into the hole Conner made for them. Terra joined them shortly afterwards, and they rendezvoused with the rest of the team…
Back at Titans’ Tower…
Terra had decided to be upfront with the rest of the team, trying to gauge their reactions.
“You guys… I… Can’t exactly control my powers. It’s just…” Terra explained.
“It’s okay. We get it. You need some help. As I was saying, you're a little rough around the edges, and with a little training and elbow grease, you can control your powers.” Beast Boy reasoned. Terra realized that he might’ve figured it out just from the obstacle course.
“I have a bit of trouble controlling my powers. So, I might be able to help you out there.” Raven said, extending her hand to Terra. She eagerly accepted.
“Well, one thing Slade said that WAS true, was that I needed a teacher. And, I’d be honored.” Terra responded.
The group smiled and cheered as Terra accepted their invitation.
“You are gonna love it here!” Wonder Girl shouted.
“I’ll have your room ready by tomorrow morning!” Cyborg added. And just as the group was off to their own devices, Raven left something in Terra’s palm. She looked and saw a small earpiece.
“Is this…?” Terra asked, and Raven nodded.
“That’s our comm device. Welcome to the family.” Tears started falling from her eyes. But, she wiped them away.
“Thanks. Thanks so much!” Raven and Beast Boy then left the common room, leaving Damian and Terra by their lonesome.
“I told you.” Damian said, a tad smug. But, just before he could get another word in, Terra gave him a kiss on the cheek.
“Thank you, Little Birdie…” She said, before heading to the guest room. Leaving Damian blushing and feeling his cheek…
"The Earth is both one's birthplace...
And their tomb..."
-Tara Markov
Story Cover art by: https://www.deviantart.com/mcashe