Teen Titans

Apart they're just sidekicks and illigitimate children; Together they're the TEEN TITANS! Proteges of the Justice League, whippersnappers to the JSA, and all around annoyances to the Outsiders!

Previously, Inertia set forth a plan to destroy the Titans by unleashing their deadliest enemies on them, after having captured Impulse and imprisoning him. Now seperated, the Titans fight for their lives against the current threat...

Cody Driscoll, aka Risk, lay unconscious in the grass on the UCLA campus as a powerful sedative ran through his body. Deathstroke the Terminator stood over him, his boot firmly lodged on Risk's chest.

"Hello, Robin," Deathstroke told him as he held his sword at his side. "You do know who I am, right?"

"Deathstroke," Robin said as he pulled out his bo staff. "We've never had a reason to fight before, so why are you here? It's Nightwing that you have a beef with."

"True," Deathstroke replied as the two circled each other. "But I am also a bounty hunter. And I've been hired to bring you in, boy wonder."

Robin twirled his bo staff as he looked at the Deathstroke, whose gaze was focused solely on him.

"Who hired you?" Robin asked as he held up his staff, ready to defend himself. "Ra's Al Ghul? Two Face? The Penguin? The student loan people?"

Deathstroke laughed as he watched Robin carefully. He held his sword in his hand as the light bounced off of the metal. "You'll find out soon enough. For now, I just want to see how well trained you are compared to the original Robin. Or even if you've raised the bar since the Robin before you. Or would that be the crowbar?"

Deathstroke jumped into the air, holding his sword over Robin as he came flying down. Robin blocked with his bo staff and did a sweeping kick, knocking Deathstroke off balance, but he quickly flipped and got to his feet instantly. Underneath his mask, the bounty hunter smiled at Robin. This was going to be the challenge he'd been longing for since the last time he fought Nightwing.

Mammoth stood over the small crater where he'd landed on Superboy. He started laughing as a rumbling was heard, just as Superboy punched through the ground under him, sending the large man sent to take him down flying high into the air.

The teen of steel kept punching upward at the hairy man beast, knocking him higher into the air. Mammoth finally managed to turn and kick Superboy in the upper body, sending him back down toward the Earth, where he landed on the hood of a car, smashing it with his body. A car alarm started screeching as he looked up and saw Mammoth coming back down towards him feet first.

Superboy quickly rolled off the hood and picked the wrecked car up and swung it, knocking Mammoth down the street before he could land, where he crashed through a light pole, toppling it to land in the middle of the street.

Mammoth stood up just in time to see Superboy's fist plow into his jaw...

Gizmo was holding Cameron's head under the water of the fountain, laughing as the hero struggled to break free of his grip. There was no one around with powers to draw from, meaning he was about as powerful as a normal teenage boy.

"What's the matter?" Gizmo asked with a grin. "No powers to help you fight?"

Gizmo raised Cam's head out of the water as he tried to catch his breath. He quickly smashed his head into the man who was trying to kill him, knocking him back into the water. Cam stood up, his clothes drenched as he jumped on top of Gizmo while trying to get his breath back.

Damage continued to rub his eyes, trying to get his vision back as a blast of light knocked him off balance, and back into a tree. He rubbed his eyes again, as he thought he saw a dozen Dr. Light's headed toward him.

"They're just illusions," Damage told himself as one punched his stomach and another kicked him in the leg. "Okay, maybe not."

Damage struggled to punch back, but his fist flew through the head of the clone and out the other side. "What the-"

The clone laughed as he kneed Damage in the groin as the rest of the clones dog piled him. The real Dr. Light laughed as a rumbling came from the pile. An explosion incinerated the clones as Damage stood up, his shirt half torn from his body as he breathed heavily.

"Come on," Damage told him. "What else you got?"

Dr. Light smiled as he used the full force of his powers to fire at the Titan.

Wonder Girl fell back onto the pavement as Jinx stomped down at her. Wonder Girl quickly rolled out of the way and recovered quickly as Jinx started laughing.

"Don't tell me little ol' Wonder Girl's afraid of a challenge," Jinx teased

"Actually," Wonder Girl said as she titled her head to crack her neck, before doing the same to her knuckles. "I've been looking for someone to let loose on. Let's go, sister."

Before Jinx could do anything, Wonder Girl flew toward her at a blinding speed.

Inertia watched his view screen as Titans fought against his hired helpers. Bart Allen continued to float helplessly in the glass tube behind him, his eyes closed, not knowing anything about what was happening outside.

"Too bad you're not awake to see this," Inertia said as he turned to look at his cousin. "I want you to see me ruin your life the way you ruined mine."

Inertia put his hand and the tank and looked at his identical twin cousin.

"I was created solely for the purpose of destroying you," Inertia told him, knowing Bart couldn't hear his words. "I wasn't allowed to pick my own destiny, or make my own choices. It was always about you, and destroying your damned legacy. I spent years learning, planning, thinking of ways to destroy you long before we even came to face to face. My hatred for you goes far beyond what they put into me. No, I don't just hate you because that's what I was made for. I hate you because once you're dead, I have no reason or purpose unless I take over your life."

Bart simply floated in the tube, lost in his own dreams.

"When you're dead, I'll have nothing left but what remains of your former life," Inertia told him. "That's why I'm going to take my time killing you. The longer you live, the longer I have a purpose."

Downtown Los Angeles

In a cramped apartment, a small capuchin monkey was eating a peanut as a young man was working on a device on a tripod in the middle of the living room. The monkey shrieked as sparks flew out of the machine.

"Quiet, Gleek, I'm trying to get this machine working," Zan said as he looked toward the divider between the living room and kitchen, where the monkey was sitting. The monkey tossed the peanut at a lamp, knocking it down, barely missing Zan's head.

"You're dead, chimp," Zan said as the monkey started screaming, just as the door opened.

A young woman who looked just like Zan, walked in, removing the purple knit cap from her head, revealing her long black hair and pointed ears. She was carrying a bag of groceries.

"I'm starving," Zan said as Jayna reached into the bag and tossed him a jar of peanut butter. He removed his glove and formed an ice spoon with one of his fingers as he started eating, while keeping an eye on Gleek.

"How's the device coming?" Jayna asked as she stocked the cabinets with several jars of peanut butter, honey, and Red Bull.

"Great, but we're still missing some key components," Zan replied with a mouthful of peanut butter.

"Just get the device as close to completion as you can and we'll make a supply run together this evening," Jayna replied as she stroked Gleek's back.

"I hate that damn monkey," Zan said as Gleek hissed at him.

"This monkey is the only being on this planet that I care for," Jayna replied as she kissed Gleek's head. When she wasn't looking, the monkey made a throat slashing gesture at Zan, whose jaw just dropped. "Now, hurry up, I want to get off of this planet as soon as possible."

Deathstroke's sword came down as Robin blocked it with his bo staff. He pushed against the bounty hunter's 6'5" frame, the two circling, trying to gain the upper hand against the other.

"You're better than I give you credit for," Deathstroke said as he pushed Robin back against a tree and swung his sword. The boy wonder ducked as the sword sliced through the wood like it were cutting paper. Robin leaped over Deathstroke's head, landing behind him, doing a quick kick, knocking him off guard.

"You'll have to hit harder than that," the bounty hunter said as reached into his belt and pulled out some smoke pellets. "Let's see how handle flying blind, bird boy."

Deathstroke threw the pellets to the ground, creating a large smoky screen around the two. Robin held his bo staff close and listened around him for his opponent.

Superboy's fists continued to slam into Mammoth's monstrous form, knocking him back inch by inch as the villain laughed.

"Do you really think you can hurt me?" Mammoth asked as he absorbed the hero's punches like they were nothing.

"I don't have to hurt you," Superboy replied as he pushed Mammoth farther back, not realizing as Mammoth attached a metal disk to his sleeve. "I just have to get you into position..."

Superboy got Mammoth right underneath a cement mixer and focused his tactile telekinisis to dump the fast drying mixture over his opponent. He took a deep breath and used a burst of super breath to dry it even faster until only a cement block remained.

Wonder Girl punched at Jinx, who jumped and flipped out of the way while laughing. She stomped her foot on the ground, sending a shockwave through the Earth, knocking Wonder Girl off balance. Jinx laughed as she flipped forward, kicking Wonder Girl back.

"She's limited by her contact to the ground," Wonder Girl realized as she noticed that Jinx's powers were elemental. "So I just have to get her off the ground."

Wonder Girl flew toward Jinx at full speed, picking her up off the ground just as Jinx attached a metal disc to her pant leg. Wonder Girl flew toward a lamp post and wrapped it around Jinx, keeping her trapped high above the ground.

"That should hold you," Wonder Girl said as she floated in front of the villainess.

"I don't need powers to stomp your midget ass!" Cameron shouted as he pile-drived Gizmo into the water. "All I need is my WWE knowledge and the fact I find physical violence against little people disturbingly funny! Can you smell what the Omni's cooking, motherfucker!"

As Cameron continued to beat up the evil midget, Gizmo attached a small metal disc to Cameron's pant leg.

Damage was still slightly blinded by Dr. Light's attacks and was stumbling around.

"Fool, no one defeats Dr. Light!" the villain shouted as he held out his wrist laser and shot a metal disc onto the half of Damage's shirt that wasn't torn off.

"Except the Justice League," Damage reminded him as he stumbled.

"Well, yes, but-"

"And the Teen Titans," Damage added, rubbing his eyes.

"Well-"

"And anything with a shadow," Damage continued.

"Now wait a minute-"

Damage could see clearly enough now and, realizing that he had the man distracted enough to strike, he started lifting a small tree out of the ground to use it as a bat.

"I've beaten plenty of heroes," Dr. Light said, trying to remember. "Well, I almost beat Sue Dib-"

"Lights out," Damage said as he swung at Light, knocking him halfway across campus.

"My team is getting their asses handed to them," Inertia said to himself as he watched the screen from his futuristic lair. "All's going according to plan."

Risk started coming around as Deathstroke kicked him in the face to knock him out again as he circled Robin, while the smoke screen swirled around them.

"You know, I was given a small metal disc to place on you," Deathstroke said as his voice echoed around Robin, who stood vigilantly, ready to strike. "The same one being placed on all of your friends at the moment. It carries a powerful enough charge to knock out a dozen Supermen."

"What's your point?" Robin asked as a shattered metal disc landed at the toe of his boot.

"I don't need it to defeat you," Deathstroke said as he flew out of the smoke towards Robin, who blocked his sword with staff. Robin held tight as he pressed his boot against Deathstroke's chest and fell backward, flipping the bounty hunter back into the smoke.

"It's such a shame," Deathstroke's voice continued as Robin took a deep breath. "In another ten years your skills would have surpassed those of your mentors. In twenty years you might have been as good as me."

"Again, what's your point?" Robin asked as he circled around, looking for any sign of Deathstroke to strike, getting only laughter in return.

Superboy tossed Mammoth onto the pile with Jinx, Gizmo and Dr. Light. Damage carried Offspring in his arms, having knocked himself out walking into a tree.

"Let's get someone from S.T.A.R. Labs to take these freaks in until the authorities find a zoo cage strong enough," Superboy said as looked down at the villains.

Damage laid Offpsring on a park bench and ran a hand through his hair. "This doesn't make sense. Why are these guys after us?"

"Because we're Titans," Wonder Girl told him. "They obviously hate anyone who carries that title."

Cameron shook the water off of him like a wet dog as the others started yelling at him, unaware that Gizmo had opened his eyes and pulled a remote from his backpack.

"Sayonara, suckers," Gizmo shouted as he pushed the button, activating the discs attached to the heroes, sending a large charge of energy to knock them all unconscious.

The villains started picking up the Titans as a portal to Inertia's lair opened.

"What about that one?" Jinx asked as she looked at Offspring laying on the park bench.

"Leave him," Mammoth told her. "We're only getting paid to bring these four in. If Inertia wants him, let him pay us double for the extra work."

"Who are you working for?" Robin asked as he saw a shadow move in the smoke.

"You'll find out when I take you in," Deathstroke told him.

"How much are you being paid?" Robin asked as he held out his bo staff. "Is it really worth the fight?"

"Oh, yes," Deathstroke told him as he snuck up behind Robin. "For what I'm being paid, I'd walk barefoot into hell and spit in the devil's face while smiling all the way."

Robin turned just as Deathstroke punched him in the gut, then uppercut him in the jaw, sending Robin flying to the ground, landing the boy on his knees. Robin felt blood trickling from his mouth as he looked up just in time to see Deathstroke's boot come down on his face.

"The time for games has ended," were the last word's Robin heard before the darkness came...

Blurriness. That's what Robin saw as he opened his eyes and saw nothing but darkness, save for a single light right above him. He was strung up to the wall with his hands over his head by a chain. His cape, gloves, boots and utility belt had all been removed, as well as the comlink piece in his ear connecting him to Oracle. His mask remained in place as he groaned in pain.

"You'll forgive me for removing all your accessories," a voice said in the darkness, "but I know how well the Batman's circle is at hiding escape devices on their bodies."

"Who-?" was all Robin could manage to say as Inertia stepped into the light, his hands behind his back. "Inertia."

"The one and only," Inertia laughed. "Well, once the guy I was cloned from is out of the picture. I left your mask as a courtesy. You have to die with some dignity, after all."

"Why are you doing this?" Robin weakly asked as Inertia laughed.

"I am VERY glad you asked. You see, unlike those twits you hang out with, including my dumbass cousin and the inbred Kryptonian clone, you're the most intelligent and skilled. Only you could appreciate my plans." Inertia told him, keeping his hands well hidden. "You see, for some reason, Bart loves all of you. You, Superboy, that delicious specimen Wonder Girl, you're his family. So what happens if his family dies a slow and painful death in front of him?"

"You're sick," Robin told him bluntly.

"No, I'm practical," Inertia told him as he smiled at Robin. "So I hired a bunch of nitwits to wear down and take your friends out. I knew they wouldn't stand a chance, so I had a device made to take your friends down a few notches so I could trap them."

"Deathstroke's not a nitwit," Robin said as he raised his head. "And he doesn't come cheap. Even someone like you couldn't hire someone like him for a job like this. You're just a kid like us. He probably doesn't have an ounce of respect for you."

"Very good, Robin," Inertia said as he paced around in the darkness. "You see, you are the smartest one of the group. How would I- a scientific genius with barely enough funds to hire a group of morons to do my dirty work- manage to get one of the world's most feared and respected bounty hunters to work for me? There's only one answer for that-"

Inertia held out his hands, revealing a two foot cylinder filled with a grey and white mist. Robin looked closer and thought he saw a human looking face briefly, then realized that he'd seen the same face in the Titan's computer files Nightwing had given him. Inertia smiled as he knew Robin had just recognized the face of Joey Wilson, once known as the hero Jericho.

"- I'm holding his kid hostage,"

To Be Continued...

Previous Issue | Next Issue