<sub>Previously on Titan X...

After the team defeated the Herald and made it back to HQ, they were shocked to find Doctor Strangefate. The supreme sorcerer was the bearer of bad news and informed the meta-mutant team that Dark Bird had been abducted by the Hellfire Cult. It is likely that it has something to do with the demon possessed Tri-Sentinel.

Meanwhile back on the decimated islands of Genosha and Marakoa, members of the Justice League of Avengers (JLoA!) helped with the rescue efforts. Super Soldier and Atomic Ant (Atom + Ant Man!) were at a press conference days later informing the world that the Tri-Sentinel had went into hiding after the attacks and that the JLoA was working with the allied nations of the world to locate the demonic machine.</sub>







Years ago Scott Grayson was the original Sparrow of the hero called Dark Claw, until his meta-mutant powers kicked in. After years of training with the violent vigilante as well as a chance encounter with Dr. Strangefate, Grayson went on to form the Titan X (10). Shortly after, Grayson took the name Night Vision and the team evolved over the course of roughly nine years. Members of the team would come and go, dozens of heroes it seemed like. The group even had an off-shoot, the Teen Titan X, that had several iterations as well. Now during a time of crisis, the remaining members of both groups have banded together to stop mutual enemies.





1.) No back-to-back posting.

2.) PAY ATTENTION TO DETAIL AND SET-UPS!!

3.) Make sense. If we can't make heads or tails of your posts they're likely to get skipped over.

4.) Get permission before using another player's character in your posts if it involves changing the scene or making actions. Everybody will take beatings in this game in battle however, so don't get pissed if you get punched or blasted into a wall by the bad guys! Namely me or the Co-GM controlling the badguys...

5.) Problems with the game or players should be sent directly to me or the Co-GM through PM's. I don't want a bunch of bickering in the OOC. And I don't particularly like it when some random argument costs the game players and story potential. So don't be dicks to each other, just send your concerns to us.

6.) Abandoned characters will be used as NPC's or killed off within the context of the story.

7.) “I was waiting for [insert player/character] to make a move” is not how this game is played.

8.) There is no rule #8.

9.) My word is law.

10.) Obey the law.

_{Location: Jumphaven, - New York}

Chapter One: League of Their Own

---

Most of the meta-mutants that were going to answer the call seemed to have already made it to the T Tower in Jumphaven. Night Vision was nowhere to be seen despite being the one to arrange the meeting. Kid Cannonball was trying not to make himself too comfortable. He'd only been a member of the offshoot team, the Teen Titan X, for roughly a year. He'd never met Night Vision during that entire chapter of his life, or even been this far north (on purpose) for that matter. The last few months he'd only known his grandfather Nathaniel's apartment and lab. As a rule, KC kept the whole 'being a hero lost in time' thing to himself. The only one who knew his secret was Sparrow. Sam wasn't sure if she'd be at this gathering, or ANY of the Teen Titan X team for that matter. KC was at least somewhat familiar with Ice Beast and Marauder. And Sparrow always spoke good of Orphan. Then a familiar voice rang into the lobby area of the T Tower...

"BOOYAH!" yelled the half man half alien machine Gridlock, aka Vic Stone. The young hero had been on both the Titan X team as well as the Teen squad as a mentor to the younger heroes. Years ago Vic was just your average teenager with technopathy until a freak accident caused him to be merged with an alien machine. When Night Vision was still using the Sparrow alias, he and his girlfriend Darkbird contacted Vic and several others to form the original Titan X team.

Elsewhere in the T Tower...

Night Vision was at the bedside of Darkbird. Since her demon father Trigon was brought into this dimension she has been in some type of coma. In reality she was in a telepathic war with him, as he was once again trying to use her body as a vessel. You would've thought Raven Grey was having a nightmare, but it was far worse. Scott held her hand in his own.

"Stay strong, Pretty Bird." he said quietly before getting his game face on. Night Vision could hear the team coming together with Vic getting louder by the minute. Gridlock had an auto-tuned voice and sounded exactly like you would expect him to.

Night Vision came back to the lobby area and approached Vic, who was mid-story talking about the Teen Titan X's last battle against Doctor Pyro to the rest of the group.

"...and then for some reason he thought if he could take out Sam's legs he wouldn't be able to fly." Vic continued before being approached for a handshake from his old teammate.

"I don't think Doc Pyro went to medical school." Kid Cannonball commented in his southern tone. He sounded almost like the aloof Super Soldier after he was first unfrozen. Most of the time he didn't understand references to modern day things, similarly to 'Soldier.

And that's when the T Tower was attacked. Eight feet tall and solid muscle, Mal Duncan stood to face what was left of the once great team after destroying the entrance to the lobby. The Herald of Cytorakk didn't crash through the door for nothing, but what was he here for? Who sent him?

"TO ME, TITANS!" Night Vision yelled as the group formed around him.

Gary leaned against a wall. He scanned the room, with a playful grin on his face as he observed the newcomers and old friends alike. He caught sight of Kid Cannonball looking a bit lost and decided to break the ice.

“Hey there, KC!” He called out, while giving his fellow hero a pat on the pat on the back. “Welcome to the T Tower.”

Just then, a loud “BOOYAH!” echoed through the lobby, making Gary chuckle. Gridlock always knew how to make an entrance. He then joined the group that was forming around him.

In the middle of Vic’s story, their leader Night Vision came out and joined him. Gary knew he was just with Darkbird, and her condition weighed heavily on him. Before he could greet his leader, and try to cheer him up, the T Tower shook violently.

The entrance was destroyed, and standing there was the giant frane of the Hearld of Cytorakk. Why was he here, Gary had no idea. But now there was going to be a battle. Gary looked at his leader. “Ok dude, do you really need to shout that every time? We’re already here.” He said with a wink and a grin.

After making the joke, he transformed into an ice gorilla, and he charged at Mal Duncan. Alright, big guy, let’s see how you handle this! he thought, as he let out a roar, and swung an icy fist at the Herald with all his might.

Laura watched Night Vision as he grappled away into the night. He had just finished handing Wild Thing over to the authorities, while she perched on a nearby building under cover of darkness. She was never that good at working closely with the cops, doing things by the book wasn't her way. Despite Dark Claw's best efforts to teach her about justice and restraint, Laura’s instincts always leaned more towards a ruthless efficiency that often blurred the line between hero and vigilante.

She turned and walked away into the night. Laura reflected on her strained relationship with Night Vision. Even though they shared a bond through Dark Claw, their methods clashed too often. Every encounter while hunting the same villain usually ended in heated arguments or brief skirmishes. Dark Claw had tried to bridge the gap between them, but Laura was stubborn.

However, tonight was different. She'd been hot on the tail of Wild Thing for days now, tracking her spree of chaos through New Gotham City silently and closely. Unbeknownst to her though, Wild Thing hadn't been as reckless as normal, and this spree was an elaborate trap to take Laura out of the picture once and for all. She had been careless, too excited at the chance to capture Wild Thing once and for all to notice the obvious clues being accidentally left. Luckily for her, Night Vision wasn't so careless.

He'd happened to have been in the area, and caught on quickly to what was going on. Showing up just in the nick of time as Laura sprung the trap to get her out of the sticky situation. As much as she hated taking orders, especially from him, she couldn't deny his instruction during the ensuing chaos saved her from a few bruises and broken bones. Of course, as if it was his catchphrase, he pestered her to join Titan X once again. She never understood his insistence to get her to join. She told him to fuck off as she did every time.

The more she thought about it though the more appealing it became. She might have been hot-headed, but she wasn't stupid, and it's not like Dark Claw was someone who only ever worked alone. There would definitely come a point where the threat she was facing was too much even for her, maybe getting a few trusted contacts wasn't the worst thing in the world. She sighed, swallowing her pride as she tapped the communicator in her ear and cycled it to Night Vision's frequency.
"I'm in, but don't think this is a permanent thing. You bozos embarass me and I'll be back in NGC before you can blink."

---

A few new recruits were joining the team today, and by god they needed them. Laura thought back to when she first joined Titan X. She was like chalk and cheese with the roster for a while, finding it hard to take orders and co-ordinate missions with the other members, truly embodying her chosen psuedonym 'Orphan' as she went astray trying to take the villains down on her own. For the first year, her involvement was sporadic at best. She would disappear for weeks, only to reappear just in time to assist on a mission and return to Titan Tower.

Gradually, Laura found her place within the team. She grew accustomed to working alongside others and even developed a protective streak towards her teammates, albeit expressed through sarcastic jabs more often than compliments. Over the year and a half since she joined, the team had seen many members come and go. Some left by choice, others due to disagreements, and a few, tragically, because of death.

Laura pulled on a white tank top and black jeans, preferring comfort over her full costume while inside the tower. The sleek black leather jacket and combat boots could wait until she was on duty.

Downstairs, she joined the gathering team in the lobby. She leaned against a wall with her arms folded, watching as Kid Cannonball tried to make himself comfortable in the unfamiliar surroundings. Gary moved over to welcome the new member of the team. If anyone could make him feel at home, it was him. The atmosphere was buzzing with anticipation, punctuated by Gridlock’s booming "BOOYAH!" echoing through the space. Vic Stone’s entrance never failed to amuse her. Her eyes drifted over to him as he began retelling a story she must have heard at least 3 or 4 times. For once, the story had an exciting ending though as the Herald of Cytorrak burst through the wall. Shock, anger, then a mischevious grin all shot across her face in an instant.

Snikt

The claws in her right hand slid out with that familiar sound as Night Vision shouted his call to arms. She saw Gary transform and begin to charge at the towering villain. Now this was more her style: slice first, ask questions later.

"Mind if I hitch a ride big guy?"

She crouched down and then quickly leapt with superhuman agility, landing on the back of the giant gorilla and holding on with her free hand. Timing her swipe of claws with the strike Gary was throwing, she aimed to hit Mal Duncan from the opposite side, their coordinated attack intended to disorient and overpower the Herald of Cytorakk.

G R A N T "R E A C T O R" S U M M E R S

---

They were told that they would be receiving new members. He had been to quite a few of these at this point; something like a small welcoming party to get them adjusted to the new environment. Or, well, that was the goal anyway. After the whole welcoming thing, it was a coin flip whether they would mesh well with the group but they had worked it out sooner or later thanks to Night Vision's guidance.

He woke up early in the morning to get some form of training in— collecting and releasing the energy to keep it stabilized. There weren't any missions as far as he knew so he had to keep it at a more stable level. Once he was finished with his morning routine, he donned a more casual fit and grabbed his bomber jacket as he descended to the lobby to join the others.

Unfortunately, he was a bit late as Vic had already arrived with the others. Grant waved at them as he entered with their cyborg already starting out his story about the fight with Doctor Pyro. Well, it looked like Vic and Gary had that whole welcoming committee covered so he banked towards the kitchen to grab something to munch on while they were idling.

In the middle of opening the refrigerator came their unexpected guess.

Night Vision had called them to arms as the Herald of Cytorakk burst through their door like it was nothing. Which was fair for him, Grant supposed, as he quickly shut the door to join the others in the lobby once again. Gary and Laura had already started their assault on the Herald, going up close and personal with him immediately. The device on his belt glowed as he harnessed what energy he could and aimed a plasma shot straight at the Herald once his teammates gave him a window of opportunity to hit a clean shot.

Anna-Marie was standing in the hallway leading to the main meeting room of the T Tower, where people were gathering. It would probably be okay once she could muster the courage to socialise. But the moment she'd walked in as a new member of Titan X, she could see the journey on the older member's faces. A puzzled look as they recognised her but weren't sure where from. The widening of their eyes when she realised, and the awkwardness in their manner afterwards. She'd been enemies to several of these Heroes. She'd even tried to kill one or two of them and almost succeeded. How was she supposed to make friends like this?

She missed the Brotherhood a little bit. She had gotten out and no longer agreed with what they were doing. Terrorism, crime and hurting innocents was not the answer. But she had been home there, surrounded by friends and people she'd mutually trust with her life and her theirs. She wanted that here too. She just needed to rip the bandage off and get the painful part out the way. But it was hard. Nobody likes being side-eyed.

She eventually amassed enough willpower to enter the room and sit down on one of the chairs as Gridlock was telling a story. Night Vision walked in, but she couldn't catch his eye. Hewas the one who'd given her a chance and invited her here. She'd hope that once he was free, she could approach him and have him help her break the ice. Surely people would trust her with Night Vision's seal of approval.

Before she got such a chance, the Herald of Cytorakk busted through the door. Marauder's body was moving before her brain had time to ask questions. The Brotherhood's base was frequently being raided by police and the government so you always had to be ready to defend it at a moment's notice. Her tactical intellect was telling her that from her prior experience, Titan X attacked from the front. Therefore, Marauder swiftly moved along the edges of the room to slip in behind the Herald. She slipped off one of her gloves and grabbed at the exposed flesh of his arm while the others attacked him from the front. He was a big target with a lot of muscle to hide behind, so she was relatively safe from friendly fire here as long as she crouched.

S P E L L B I N D E R

---

What. A. Month. That was approximately how long it had been since Zack first made it to New Gotham City. And no sooner had he found the Teen Titan X, he got called here to a whole other city to join Titan X. From what he understood, Titan X was apparently the “main” team while the Teen Titan X had been some kind of… offshoot, he supposed? This was like trying out for a minor league baseball team only to be immediately signed on by the Dodgers or the Red Sox. So uh… no pressure, right?

Unfortunately that was exactly what the magician was feeling right now. Some of these people had been working together for some time already. They’d clearly begun to form their friendships and rapport with one another. Could jokingly slag one another off without any worries that any feelings would be legitimately hurt. And then… There was Zack. Standing there in the corner of the lobby with his hands jammed into the pockets of his gray hoodie with a big backpack slung over his back because he’d literally just moved into town and hadn’t even had time to unpack or anything yet. And it definitely didn’t help that he clearly looked like the youngest person in the room. So basically it was all the pressure of starting a new job and being the new kid in school all rolled up into one! Yay!

He was initially startled by the big machine guy’s entrance. Who in the world would go out of their way to make such a loud entrance? Oh… right… A magician like him would, wouldn’t he? But that was all stage and theater! He’d never do something like that in casual conversation. He’d never have the guts to do anything that flashy unless he was suited up and wearing his mask. Was it weird that he would feel so… naked without it?

Thinking back on it… Why wasn’t Spiderboy here? Pete had been the one to point him in this team’s direction initially, but for some reason declined to ever join it himself? Seemed a little hypocritical, now that Zack thought about it. Or maybe it was Dr. Strangefate’s idea? During lessons he did occasionally insist that Zack pursue some kind of social life rather than dedicate all his time to learning and practice. Maybe he’d been the one to put Spiderboy up to sending Zack here? Well either way, Zack was here now and if the choice was between Jumphaven and going back to his family drama, well… he was choosing Jumphaven every single time.

And then the Tower was attacked. Night Vision gave the call to arms, and everyone leaped into action. Everyone, that is, except for Zack. At least at first. After a moment’s hesitation he snapped out of it and clapped his hands together as he began to chant. ”Emitwohs... S'ti!” He spun around with a dramatic flair as his clothes transmogrified into his suit and he transformed into Spellbinder.

But after that he, well, hesitated again. If he’d been on his own he could have jumped into some kind of strategy involving some big conjuration or something. But for the moment he was a bit afraid of getting in someone else’s way and stepping on their toes. But if nothing else he could spin this as him simply observing and waiting for an opening if anyone asked him. But it didn’t hurt to start prepping a spell. He clapped his gloved hands together and began to focus and channel his arcane energy. If he did spot an opening, he’d suddenly chant out ”Evoba morf htaed!” and conjure a heavy shipping container above the Herald of Cyotakk’s head so that gravity could do the rest and drop it on top of him.

_{Location: Jumphaven, New York}

Chapter One: League of Their Own

---

Ice Beast transformed into a snow covered gorilla and charged at the Herald. Orphan X leapt on his back last minute for a tag-teamed assault on the brute. After the Herald backhanded the little 'Claw off of the Ice Beast, Reactor took his shot and hit the behemoth directly. However, the monster of a man didn't budge even an inch. He was unstoppable. Night Vision blasted the giant enemy while backflipping and dodging a punching strike that saw the Herald smash through some nearby furniture. Marauder used her speed and reflexes to get behind the Herald and removed a glove to attempt to drain his life force and siphon some of his power. She didn't expect the guy's power to repel her away like some kind of magnet.

"We have to remove his helmet to disrupt his personal force field or there's no use... Spellbinder, you have anything that can protect the Tower, maybe shield it from Herald's attacks?" Grayson asked the rookie hero, "We don't need the building coming down around us because of structural damage..."

Kid Cannonball fired through the tight space and blasted out of the large opening Herald had created holding the villain. He was heavy to be sure, but in the air it made less of a difference to Sam. KC dropped the blue clad villain down in a rundown middle school's football field roughly two blocks from the T Tower. The crater Mal Duncan made was ONLY the size of a small car. The Marv Claremont Middle School had shut down years earlier after an attack from the winged Scare Crow, AKA Adrian Crane (Scarecrow + Vulture!). After thinking back on their encounter with the fear spreading supervillain of days gone by, Night Vision and the group closed the gap between the rest of the team and the juggernaut before them.

"Ya got LUCKY, Runt!" Herald screamed at Kid Cannonball as he picked himself up out of the crater.

"You ain't as tough as you think you are, big guy." KC replied as the others came in from different sides of the football field. The grass was high, the bleachers rusted and half busted. But the Herald was surrounded.

"What do you want now, Duncan? Who put you up to this?!" Night Vision asked, ready to attack.

"Where's your little girlfriend, Grayson?" Herald asked, taunting at the team's leader.

"You want Raven, you've gotta go through ME!" Night Vision screamed blasting the brute as the others charged for another team assault.

The Herald ripped up a piece of the concrete track circling the football field and threw it at the first Titan he laid eyes on.

G R A N T "R E A C T O R" S U M M E R S

---

The Herald barely balked at their combined attacks. As their leader said, they needed to remove the helmet to really do some damage. How they were going to do that remained to be a mystery. As if responding to Grayson's worries about the tower collapsing, Kid Cannonball took the Herald of Cytorakk out of the tower and to some completely other place.

Reactor let out a sigh as he moved forward to the hole. The drop wasn't going to injure him too badly and each impact would let him accumulate more energy to use for this fight. He dropped down and felt the force travel up his legs and disperse throughout his body. Something that should have shattered his legs only proved to make him stronger. With that, he sped off towards where Kid Cannonball had brought their villain of the day.

He let out a huff of breath as he arrived alongside the others. The Herald mentioned Raven all of a sudden, to aggravate or because she was the actual goal of this whole breaking and entering?

Reactor wasn't able to think about it further as the Herald threw a large chunk of concrete straight at him. He raised both of his arms in a vain attempt to protect himself but he was brought off his feet and slammed into a nearby building. He let out a groan as he peeled himself off the wall and onto his feet. The device on his costume was glowing brightly. Good. Now powered up properly, Reactor put some energy into his legs and leaped straight into the Herald, fancying himself like a bullet as he tried to use the momentum to grab onto the Herald by his thick helmet and try to get it off.

Laura growled as the herald smacked her and Ice Beast back. She backflipped off of her comerade as he tumbled backwards, no way was she getting caught underneath all that weight. She watched as Kid Cannonball charged the monstrosity of a man and carried him far away from destroying their home. A smile crept up on her lips as she wiped a small fleck of blood from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand. The kid was showing promise already, they needed people with guts in this group, and he just showed he had them in spades.

This full-frontal attack wasn't working. If the guy could take a direct hit from Reactor and not flinch then they'd definitely have to take Night= Vision's advice and get that dumb helmet off his head. It was time for some shadowplay, back to her roots.

She followed Grant out of the hole, leaping from it onto the top of a nearby street light and making jump after jump onto higher ground as she made her way to the school. She prowled in the shadows on the roof overlooking the football field, drawing claws out on one of her hands as she overlooked the situation. She needed the right moment to pounce, too soon and he'd see her coming, too late and her friends could get hurt.

Her eyes drew over to Grant once more as he shot himself like a missile at the herald. She was glad she hadn't pounced too soon, she didn't fancy going for a ride on the Reactor Rollercoaster if he managed to lift that hulking brute off the ground.

Marauder had never fought the Herald before. It was concerning that no matter how much she tried, she couldn't make skin to skin contact. Their leader spoke up. Apparently they had to remove his helmet before she'd be able to touch him. Right after this, Kid Cannonball managed to tackle the Herald out of the tower and into the field of a derelict school. Anna-Marie approved of this move. A larger space without the restrictions of collateral meant that there was no longer any need to play it subtle or safe. She discarded the glove of her right hand and genty slapped the exposed skin of Garfield's arm as she passed him.

"Tagging in," she quipped as she transformed into an eagle made of ice and flew out the open hole, towards the battleground. The power that she had copied woldn't be as strong or as versatile as Garfield's own given the briefness of the contact, but her own powers should make up the difference. She was lucky that she already knew what this ability did and had seen it in action. Intuiting a power she'd absorbed was a lot harder when she had to figure out what to even do with it. Over the years, she'd copied a lot of powers. The skill to adapt quickly was one that she naturally picked up, trusting her body. With every power was paired just enough muscle memory and instict to be able to figure things out if you trusted the process. The control of ice would have needed a lot more practice to be able to rely on, but as a bird, she should be able to at least get the helmet off.

The ice eagle swooped down from the back while the Herald was focused on charging him from the front. Her talons were poised to attempt to gain purchase on the helmet. Surely one of them would be able to suceed.

Gary roared in frustration as the Herald smacked both him and Laura back like it was nothing. He tumbled backwards, and he quickly reverted to his human form to regain his footing. “This is… not working…” He sighed. Straight up trying to punch him didn’t work, and now they had to think of a new strategy.

He watched as Kid Cannonball took the Herald out of the T Tower, a small smile forming on his face. “That kid’s got guts.” He muttered to himself. Night Vision said they had to get the Hearld’s helmet off. Then he felt a cold sensation, as Marauder touched his arm and copied his powers. “Good luck!” he gave her a thumbs up, watching her transform into an ice eagle and take to the sky.

He quickly transformed into an ice wolf, and followed Marauder’s lead, darting through the shadows around the football field. While the Herald was focused on the others, Gary opened his mouth, and shot out a stream of ice to create an icy patch beneath the brute’s feet, hoping to destabilize him. Then, Gary prepared to leap at the Herald’s legs to further unbalance him. Timing his move perfectly, he lunged, transforming mid-air into an ice tiger, aiming to knock the Herald off balance, and distract him enough so Maurauder can get the helmet off.

S P E L L B I N D E R

---

Things went chaotic pretty quick. Between one Titan or another launching some kind of attack, Spellbinder was having a hard time finding an opening to drop a big item onto the Herald like he was planning. All of this essentially culminated in Kid Cannonball eventually managing to knock the invader back outside where he came in from. And while Spellbinder initially thought that was finally the opening he was looking for, the voice of one of the leaders effectively told him to stand down.

Well, not in those words exactly. What Night Vision was actually asking for was for Spellbinder to find some way to keep the Tower from collapsing on itself. To which he just looked around and drew a blank in his head at first. How was he supposed to do that? Magical protection wasn’t exactly in his repertoire. Maybe Dr. Strangefate wasn’t behind him being sent here. He’d have surely told them what his magic entailed, right? But all that aside, Night Vision was asking him to do something that Spellbinder didn’t know how to do.

Come on, come on… think! Spellbinder squeezed his eyes shut and desperately tried to think of something, anything he could do to follow those orders. He had been channeling for a bit now, so that energy could be put toward something, but… what? Protect the tower with what, an extra layer of walls? Actually…

”Nekorb saw tahw, elohw ekam!” He suddenly shouted out as he took a knee and slammed his magically charged hands onto the damaged floor. His golden orange arcane energy spread across the floor around, transmuting cracked and broken tiles of floor back into their original forms. The energy even reached the walls and repaired some of their lower sections, though that reach didn’t go far enough to repair the upper sections. Spellbinder would have to channel another spell or get some kind of outside help. He couldn’t exactly keep up with undoing the structure damage on his own.

“Glad to see ya stick around, Magic Man! Let me see if I can help with some of the areas your magic isn’t reaching…” Gridlock chimed in morphing what looked like his human hand with his alien tech and connecting to what seemed like the foundations of the Tower and its operating systems.

Elsewhere in the Tower, Raven Grey was straining in her self induced telepathic coma. As if the struggle to keep her demon father at bay wasn’t enough, now another telepathic intruder made himself known. He was the leader of the Hellfire Cult, and the employer of the Herald. Sebastian Frost, aka the Blood Diamond, was now on the same astral plane as Dark Bird and her four-eyed father.

Back in the lobby, Spellbinder was already channeling energy for his next spell. But even if he could use it to repair the spots that his first spell missed, the help from Gridlock was still very much appreciated nonetheless. That at least meant they had a better shot of keeping up with repairing whatever damage was done to the tower while the other Titans were still trying to quell the threat of the Herald outside. He did start to think of one other idea, but he had to make sure it was even possible before he could implement anything.

”Night Vision said that guy’s helmet is the source of his force fields, right?” he suddenly asked of Gridlock, ”Does it repel magic too? I can maybe try to transmute it or just summon the helmet to my hands if that’s what’ll create an opening to finish him off.”

_{Location: Jumphaven, New York}

Chapter One: League of Their Own

---

Night Vision wasn't sure what was going to work. He'd faced the Herald plenty of times but he usually had a tighter knit team... and a telepath. Reactor fired at the brute with his arms forward in an attempt to rip the helmet off but lost his momentum the second he hit his adversary. Marauder and Ice Beast's attempt immediately after caught the juggernaut like man off his guard. Slipping on ice and avoiding an ice tiger and bird proved rather difficult. It could have been Reactor's actions, perhaps even a move made from Spellbinder, but in the end it was the borrowed ice talons of Anna-Marie that finally gripped the head piece and tore it from the brute's suit. A somewhat familiar scent was in the air, and it was anybody's guess as to how well Orphan X's senses were compared to Dark Claw's.

Even with Marauder's enhanced strength, there was only so much she could postpone the laws of physics. She was an eagle carrying a very heavy helmet, or rather, was being dragged down by it. Still, the helmet was now off, and with it, presumably that annoying force field.



Kid Cannonball created a sonic boom when breaking the sound barrier to fly by and crack the exposed jaw of Herald. Several of the remaining windows in the nearby school were shattered. Night Vision blasted the behemoth with his optic blasts, Reactor blasted him from a closer distance.

"Without Dark Bird we have to knock him out!" Grayson yelled at whoever could even hear him after the sonic boom.

Marauder shifted back into her usual height at the same time she released the helmet that had to have weighed over a hundred pounds. She would have called it her usual form but her usual form was not blue. She guided her fall from the sky to land right onto the Herald's shoulders before wrapping both arms around his head. Her bare fingers dug into his temple and she braced herself holding on until he passed out. She could feel just how much more life energy he seemed to have than the average person, so she was less worried about going too far and more worried about getting caught before she went far enough.

Back at the T Tower...

It seemed as if the structure was mostly back to normal. Only the lobby entrance took any real damage, and despite what Grayson thought the foundation of the structure was in no need of repairs. Gridlock and Spellbinder had heard the 'boom' seconds earlier.

"Maybe we should go check on Raven. Night Vision mentioned she had..." Vic started to say something before the power went out.

Spellbinder channeled some glowing energy into his hand to serve as a makeshift flashlight, "I'm... guessing that's not supposed to happen?" he asked rhetorically.

Suddenly there were dozens of duplicates of Billy Infinity (Billy Numerous + Multiple Man) attacking both of the young heroes, and when it looked like Gridlock was going to make a play... Gizmo Toad leapt into action stabbing some device into his alien tech side temporarily knocking Vic unconscious.

The door of Raven Grey opened. She was still fighting a telepathic war with her demonic father when Sebastian Frost, the Blood Diamond, walked into her personal quarters with a grin on his red crystal like face.

"Heeeeere here, Pretty Bird. Are you ready to face your destiny?" he asked with a whisper down by the ear of Dark Bird.

Minutes later the rest of the Titan X team had made it back to the T Tower with a helmetless Herald knocked out. The lights in the Tower were still out, and Scott Grayson knew something was wrong. That's when Doctor Strangefate came bearing bad news floating down from the sky after a flash of light.

"I'm sorry, Scott. I didn't make it in time. My step brother there was just a distraction. The Hellfire Cult has Raven." Strangefate stated to the onlooking team, as Gridlock and Spellbinder began to get their wits about them inside the entrance to the T Tower.

_{Location: Jumphaven, New York}

Chapter Two: Disaster & the Danger Room

---

Night Vision did what he could to not drive himself crazy. The woman he loved had been abducted by a cult. If he wasn't out on patrol trying to find a lead he was in the Danger Room beating up on holo-droids. He was barely sleeping and would only fall asleep out of exhaustion most of the time. He'd even been in contact with his old mentor, Dark Claw, and that's when you knew it was serious. Grayson was asleep on the couch in the living room type of area in the top of the T Tower. The tv was on and playing the news. It was talking about the usual stuff; the Tri-Sentinel's possible whereabouts, the relief efforts in Genosha and Marakoa, as well as some celebrity that was rescued by Spider-Boy in NYC.

"Anybody wanna try me on Street Kombat IX?" asked Gridlock looking at the other tv and the game system attached to it.

"I'm good, man. I think since Scott's passed out I might give the holo-droids a play through." Kid Cannonball replied while stretching and making his way to the elevator to go to the right floor for the Danger Room [it's actually colosseum sized and underground!].

Gridlock walked over to the other side of the living room or den or whatever it was and turned the video game on. He waited for somebody to join him but couldn't help hearing about the relief efforts in Genosha and Marakoa. He wondered if any of the team's friends or family were on the islands. Vic also thought about other heroes who might rejoin the squad during this time of meta-mutant crisis.

Down in the lower levels of the T Tower, Sam finally made it to the entrance of the Danger Room. He walked past the teleportation technology that was on loan from Grayson's connections in the JLoA and straight into the control room. After hitting a few buttons and selecting some enemies he pulled his goggles down and got ready for action. His yellow and red jacket were back upstairs in his quarters, but he had a white tanktop on with his suit's pants as well as his gloves. After stepping into the Danger room the holo-droids began taking shape into civilians and the surroundings shifted into a standard big-city block. The villains that took shape were a pair of familiar faces... Billy Infinity and the Scare-Crow!

Sam blasted through the air taking down as many duplicates of Billy Infinity as he could while chasing after the aerial adversary with wings and a scythe. If nobody else was going to tag along in the Danger Room, Kid Cannonball might just lose the match. After grounding the master of fear, KC went in close for a few strikes before the Danger Room mimicked the fear inducing powers of Scare-Crow. A gang of Billy Infinity's had caught up with the flying duo and now it appeared as if a bird like beast combined with a cornfield scarecrow had an army of humanoid meta-mutant monsters. Sam was completely tripping balls. He had never faced the Scare-Crow, he'd just heard somebody mention fighting him at the old school they'd just fought the Herald at and Sam figured he'd give it a shot since it was another flyer.

Despite having captured the Herald, Anna-Marie didn't feel good. It was a diversion and they'd taken one of their own. Being a Hero brought with it a sense of responsibility and caution. If anybody had kidnapped a Brotherhood member, there would have been blood on the streets as they tore the city apart getting them back. It was a purer form of loyalty, though she could no longer ignore or justify the collateral damage. She didn't know what to do with all of this anger. Lacking any other outlet for her restlessness and frustration, she headed to the Danger Room.

It was already being used, and Anna-Marie could see on the monitors that Sam was struggling against Billy Infinity and Scare-Crow. Of course, he culd lose this fight and learn a lesson, but The whole point of this group, of any group, was that they were stronger together than individually, and had each other's backs. Anna-Marie pressed a few buttons, adding herself to the simulation, and stepped into the danger room. The fear-inducing of Scare-Crow hadn't yet adjusted to her own fears so she began methodically dispatching the Meta-Mutants and clearing a path towards Sam. She hadn't even copied his powers yet but her own innate powerset and training was more than enough to handle the crowd.

Kid Cannonball was swinging wildly, not knowing who or what he was attacking. The number of Billy Infinities was too many to count, and the hallucinations manufactured by the Danger Room were practically the real deal. The Scare-Crow flew back and forth slashing at Sam with his scythe. It appeared as if the blade was on fire and the tech based criminal was more of a bird-like beast man than spindly nerd, at least in the eyes of the hallucinating hero.

Marauder, in stark contrast, was dispatching clone after clone with brutal efficiency, no longer holding back in the Danger Room. She was skilled at martial arts but said martial arts were designed for assassination and bloodsports and she usually only utilized them to give herself an opportunity to make skin contact. In here, though, the brutal, ugly side of her fighting style was given time to shine and she was quickly making a path to where Sam was. Marauder was too afraid of herself to be afraid of big monsters or flaming scythes, so there was no hesitation in her movements as she grew closer.

"Who else is in here, ANYBODY?!? I don't know what this guy's doing to me and I don't know what's real..." Kid Cannonball screamed out over the mass of monstrous Billy Infinities while trying to dodge the Scare-Crow.

Marauder finally reached Sam, and with her still-gloved hand, grabbed his shoulder firmly. "This is the Danger Room. Absolutely none of this is real," she barked at him, before slipping off her glove and tapping his bare neck. Now with the combination of Sam's copied powers and her own strength, focus and training, she took off and made a beeline towards Scare-Crow, reaching Mach 2 from a standing start and planting a kick firmly in the figure's abdomen.

Gary stood in the living room area of the T Tower, Everything was tense and serious since Raven’s abduction. Night Vision was barely holding it together, and everyone else wasn’t doing much better. Gary himself was doing what he could to keep spirits up, cracking jokes and trying his best to cheer people up when he could. It seemeed like more it was annoying people than helping them.

When Gridlock called out for a game of Street Kombat IX, Gary smiled from ear to ear. He thought about checking on Sam in the Danger Room, but honestly, after what happened during their last battle, unwinding with a video game was just what he needed.

“Yeah, I’m in!” Gary replied. He flopped onto the couch next to Gridlock and grabbed a controller. “I’ll give you a run for your money, Vic. Hope you’re ready to lose!”

"I'm undefeated in this one online, bro. Nobody touches me with Kenny Scorpion, unless you just use Frozen Ryu and spam the ice bomb." Gridlock responded with his autotune sounding voice and getting his game face on. "I know you're more of a Switchbox guy rather than Gamestation, but they put in gross amounts of sweat and remove the blood and guts..."

Gary navigated the character selected screen, and immediately chose Frozen Ryu without hesitation. “I mean, I’m Ice Beast. How can you expect me not to use Frozen Ryu? But don’t worry, I won’t spam the Ice Bombs. Not yet anyway.” He teased, flashing a grin.

Gary chuckled as he got settled in. “Yeah yeah, everyone says that about the Switchbox. Does it really matter? It’s about the gameplay at the end of the day. Besides, we see enough blood and guts in real life.”

"If you're picking the ice guy then I'm changing it up. Blankano should do the job. What now?! You can be the ice-guy and I'll be half cyborg monster man." Vic said as he quickly slid over the selection of fighters.

Gary raised an eyebrow and smirked. “So it’s Cyborg man vs Ice Ninja? I’m down. Just don’t malfunction when you lose!” He teased, giving Vic a playful nudge with his elbow.

Laura was mentally beating herself up over the Herald fight. She didn't contribute a whole lot to toppling the big guy, her stealth based approach left too much time for her friends to get hurt when she could've been distracting the big guy in time for Marauder to get the helmet. It's not as if she couldn't recover from anything the big idiot threw her way.

No point in dwelling on it. Next time she'd be in guns blazing if she needed to. Time to move on.

She left her room and made her way to the living room. The news that Raven had been abducted was hitting the team hard. She was a valued member of the team and one Laura had leaned on when she'd first joined up. Not one to show her emotions on her sleeve, Laura kept her mouth shut as she made a coffee and sat on a chair near the couch to watch Gary and Gridlock play their game.

_{Location: Jumphaven, New York}

Chapter Two: Disaster & the Danger Room

---

Gary and Vic were on their sixth or seventh match. It was pretty even in terms of skill. Gridlock looked over as Laura took a seat near them with a cup of coffee. He wasn't sure if she was much of a Street Kombat fan. Gridlock wondered if an info dump would be completely out of line. He also wondered if he would be eviscerated by the girl with sharp metal blades that sprung out of her hands.

"Street Kombat came out in the 90's but didn't get good until Street Kombat II. It had more sequels than most games and it was a sequel itself. Street Kombat II Tournament Edition, Super Street Kombat II, Street Kombat II Turbo, and Street Kombat II Champion Edition, followed by Street Kombat Annihilation. They introduced something like fifty-eight characters..." Vic said in his auto-tuned voice towards Laura.

There was a dramatic pause.

"There's a character with blades in his arms called Barakavega..." Vic continued with a slight grin looking over at the Claw Family hero.

Below in the Danger Room...

After Marauder hit the scene it didn't take long for her and Kid Cannonball to finish the 'mission' in the Danger Room. The civilians faded out of the environment to make room for the dozens of holo-droids mimicking Billy Infinity. When the prime Billy was taken down and Scare-Crow was KO'ed by Sam in the air, the rest of the scenery began to dissipate. The neutered fear gas the Danger Room used was almost completely ventilated out. On their way towards the exit the pair of heroes were shocked to see their score was in the seventy percent range due to simulated property damage and lethal force being used on several Billy clones.

Meanwhile back upstairs in Spellbinder's personal quarters, the young magician is hanging around doing magician things when suddenly a voice could be heard. Probably more like meta-mutant telepathy, but it was actually Doctor Strangefate.

"Zack." said the voice.

"ZACK! Can... you... hear... me..?" it continued when suddenly a scrying window opened up in the room like a mobile video call without the need of a phone or tablet.

"Is now a good time?" Strangefate asked removing his helmet to show the bald middle aged man known as Charles Xavier.

Gary kept his eyes on the screen, fingers moving over the controller as he battled Gridlock for what had to be their sixth or seventh match. It was a close game, both of them trading wins and losses. He was about to land a combo when he noticed Vic glancing over at Laura, who had just taken a seat nearby with a cup of coffee.

Gridlock, started to give an impromptu history lesson on the Street Kombat franchise. Gary’s eyebrows lifted slightly, amused as Vic rattled off the series’ long list of sequels, variations, and obscure characters. He couldn’t help but chuckle as Vic’s auto-tuned voice went on, wondering how Laura would react.

Gary smirked, shaking his head slightly but keeping his focus on the match. “Vic, are you seriously comparing her to a video game character? You better be careful. She might decide to turn that coffee mug into a weapon.” he teased, trying to keep the mood light.

“Besides, we all know Barakavega wishes he was even half as badass as our Orphan X.” Gary said with a grin before quickly returned his focus to the game, mashing the right combination of buttons to pull off a combo with Frozen Ryu.