Titans Tomorrow #8

[Glippernip]

TITANS TOMORROW #8

And Then There Were Ten!

Written and edited by Joel A. Sawyer


“Mop Man,” Terra finally asked incredulously. She, Battalion, and Starbolt had just confronted a large, bluish-skinned metahuman that had basically slapped them back. Before the Titanic Trio could regroup, a blue-costumed individual swooped down and smote the aggressor mightily. Terra got up in the newcomer’s face, and he announced himself as Mop Man.

Battalion, who otherwise lacked the strength to even sit up, began to laugh.

“What kind of name is Mop Man,” Terra continued, looking up at the tall, muscular, masked and caped man.

“I admit, it is an unusual name,” he pronounced dramatically, “but what kind of names are Superman, The Flash, or Wonder Woman? All ridiculous to some extent, but all legendary figures of world-wide acclaim! It isn’t always the name, it is the action that matters most.”

“I thank you for the assist,” Starbolt offered, helping Battalion to a sitting position, “What brought you here at this particular moment?”

Mop Man smiled exuberantly. “I want to join The Titans,” he said.

Battalion didn’t laugh this time. “Why do we get such an honor,” Terra asked, still showing a bit of attitude, “We just banded together. How did you even know?”

“Well, I did try to find the Justice League first, but I only found Static. He suggested I look The Titans up.”

“Really,” Terra replied, thinking, I’ll need to speak with Uncle Virgil about that.

As police and emergency vehicles move in, Battalion coughed, then pointed at the nearest wreckage. “He’s gone,” Gabe croaked.

Instantly, Starbolt flew to the spot where the big blue man had landed. There was some bluish-purple ooze on the sidewalk, but no body.

Battalion activated the Palmer Effect, and his huge battlesuit vanished, allowing him to stand more easily. “If you can sense him,” he said to Mop Man, “can you track him?”

“I’m afraid not,” came the reply, “If I see my opponent, I can judge his general toughness. I cannot follow them.”

“He must move as fast and quietly as Taurus,” Starbolt stated, “Jon?”

“I’m coming, Ry, and the team is with me,” Jon Levine’s voice responded from Starbolt’s ear transmitter.

“Find a place to land and pick us up,” Starbolt said, “and call ahead to STAR Labs Manhattan. We need to be checked out, and I have a biological specimen that we need analyzed.” As he spoke, Ry removed a small plexi-glass vial from under his forearm guard and filled it with the bluish substance.

“Your outfit double as a utility belt, now,” Terra asked curiously.

“I may never be the detective he was,” Ryand’r replied, “but Dad did teach me to be prepared. I carry cream and sugar pills, too, in case someone offers coffee.”

“My hero,” Terra joked, “Are we bringing ‘Super Janitor’ over there?”

"Until we know what’s going on, we’d better keep him close.”

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[Glippernip]

STAR Labs Manhattan:

And then they were all together as STAR technicians ran a battery of tests on the threesome. Another pair performed a primary analysis of the blood that Starbolt had collected. STAR Labs, used to this kind of thing, even had a landing pad on the roof of the high-rise, with all of the top floor window creating a giant message board reading STAR LABS for Jon to aim for. STAR security escorted them to the medical wing, and Security Chief Harel, a metahuman himself with deep-blue skin, reptilian wings, and sharp claws, remained watchful as medical personnel tended to the heroes. Terra had regained her strength, but Starbolt and Battalion still reeled from the attack. While waiting, the other Titans found ways to bide their time.

Curious, Cardinal approached Chief Harel. “I didn’t realize STAR employed another ‘Winger’,” she began, “I know about Warhawk, but I don’t recognize you at all.”

“Be surprise if you did,” he rasped with an almost snake-like hiss and a thick Middle Eastern accent, “I’ve never attracted much attention to myself. My name is Israel Harel.”

Looking at the almost armor-like armbands and harness Harel wore, she asked, “Stylish design or practical application?”

He lifted his hands, showing the sharp talons on each finger. “With these, I’m always armed, and I’m difficult to really injure, but my equipment gives me some ranged capability and extra-defense. I’m chief of security here. I should be tough.”

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[Glippernip]

Princess Fern stood off to the side, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. In the middle of Manhattan, on the 14th story of a smaller skyscraper, her senses were muted and dull.

“Is something troubling you, Liana,” Taurus rumbled, trying to break the boredom.

“I’m stifled here,” she mentioned, not really looking at him, “There is a huge park nearbye, and an ocean as well, but I feel none of the life from either in this place. It is like a tomb. Even the air is artificially fresh, if you know what I mean.”

“I believe I do,” he grunted with a heavy sigh, lowering himself to speak with her face to face. “My senses of smell and hearing are very acute. Most would say there is little sound or scent here, but they would be wrong. I hear the hum of fifty or sixty devices currently running, and I smell the chemicals that are meant to ‘freshen’ the air. I would prefer a strong, unpleasant, but natural odor to this supposedly ‘clean’ atmosphere.”

“You do understand,” Liana smiled, adding, “I hope we will be friends for a long time.”

The minotaur’s brow raised in surprise, but he said nothing more.

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[Glippernip]

Fusion, her armor turned off to reveal a loose tank top, shorts, and adjusters (shoes that adjusted themselves for traction, support for different activities, and heat). Mop Man, noticing her state of dress, seemed a bit unnerved. Running her hands through her pink hair, Alexandra Light approached the muscular hero.

“I hear you made a very dramatic entrance today,” she said in a friendly manner, a wide smile on her face.

“I suppose so,” he said, not much of his previous bravado evident, “It was not impressive when the miscreant walked away, though.”

“Don’t beat yourself up,” she said, leaning against him, “There will be plenty of criminals who will want to do that. We all make mistakes. How many battles have you fought?”

“Well, one, actually.”

“See,” Alexandra affirmed, leaning forward and giving Mop Man full view of her cleavage, “You’ll learn!”

“Yes, well (Ahem),” Mop Man stammered, looking out through the window at the city, “All in a days work!”

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[Glippernip]

Alex laughed mischievously as Charlie Walker, now wearing a full body silvery-blue jumpsuit when not electrified, watched from across the room.

I don’t know why I’m here, he thought to himself, I don’t really know any of these people. Suddenly, I’m here in New York trusting them with my well-being and my parents haven’t a clue where I am.

But you couldn’t have broken Phobos’ spell on Opal without them, his more practical side replied, Even with Terra, Taurus, and Fern, Phobos had us dead. And Phobos could come back.

If he does, I’m facing him head on. I’ll stick with The Titans at least until then. And maybe I’ll meet Static along the way. With that thought, Charlie smiled.

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[Glippernip]

“It’s a strange form of radiation I’ve never seen before,” Dr. Foster Machado told them, “We are cross referencing the data with our alien energy files, but this might be something new.”

“So what does it mean,” Gabe Lyons asked, still irritated at his current condition.

“The energy seems to drain off with time, though we have no way of anticipating long term effects. As it stands now, Terra registers only trace amounts, and you and Starbolt should recover your full strength within a day, unless Starbolt’s physiology is effected adversely,” Dr. Machado explained.

It wasn’t much later when Jon Levine, who stayed with the plane (his new ‘toy’), contacted his sister Carrie. “He’s back,” Jon said, “Now he’s headed straight up Beacon Street in Boston. The police think our big blue bad guy is heading for the Capitol Building.”

“You’ll have to take over,” Starbolt told Terra.

“Me?”

“Yeah, you,” Battalion answered, “Neither Ry or myself are ready to fight. You’ve always been good at tactics. Do what you know.”

Terra nodded, resolving herself. “Jon, how fast can we be there?”

“I’ll get us there in fifteen minutes if you guys get to the plane quickly.”

Terra turned to her other team mates. “Time for round 2,” she said confidently.

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[Glippernip]

His name is Rob Avram, he was angry, and he knew exactly where his target sat. He moved slowly, often stopping to flail out and randomly destroy something as he passed. He didn’t care. He kind of wanted someone to step up. He beat those punks quickly enough. He wouldn’t mind a challenge.

When he saw the same jet fly low over the city, he grunted an obscenity. He would have to spank a little harder this time.


“I can land in the large park ahead of him,” Jon said. He sat in the pilot’s seat staring at the console. Jon could access computer systems with his mind, and this high-tech airplane was almost completely automated.

Only sixteen, Terra thought, This is scary being responsible for them.

As the aircraft landed, about ½ mile away from their adversary, Terra opened the hatch. “Here is the plan...”

“I’ll handle him,” Mop Man shouted, launching himself into the air, his mop held out in front of him like the Hammer of Thor, his dark blue cape flowing behind him.

“Slag! I’ll back him up,” Cardinal stated, jumping to the ground and spreading her red wings.

“You’ll do no such thing,” Terra ordered, her slight European accent more apparent when she raised her voice, “We’re a team, and we need to function as one. If that fool wants to be part of this group, he’ll learn about teamwork one way or another!”

There was an awkward moment, then Fusion saluted and said, “Aye-aye, Cap’n!”

Gabe, Ryand’r, and I discussed tactics earlier,” Terra started.

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[Glippernip]

Mop Man came straight at him. The blue man saw him just before the oversized mop head smashed into his chest. Avram smashed through the brick front of a three story building, landing neatly in a small clothing store. Mop Man pursued, saying, “You won’t slip away this time.”

“Who said I want to,” the larger man grunted, flexing his arms toward his opponent. The same physical force Avram had used on The Titans slammed against Mop Man, pressing against his skin and snapping his cape around as if by a strong wind. The blast wave stole Mop Man’s forward propulsion, and he shot backward out of the shop and across the street, into another vendor. An older woman within screamed and fled as the hero crashed into her place of business. Avram tore his way out of the clothing store, ripping the brick wall to chunks and collapsing the front of the structure as he stomped into the street. Mop Man untied himself from his own cape and attacked again.

Avram crouched down and flexed again. It felt to him like willing all of his muscles to tighten, then releasing the tension, and this time, he aimed the force right at Mop Man. Mop Man jumped thirty feet into the air and over the blast wave, which then CRASHED into the buildings lining the street, shattering glass and plasma ad screens, cracking wood, snapping an aluminum flagpole, and turning one hover car into a piece of modern art. Ignoring the destruction, Mop Man landed lightly next to Avram and backhanded him, a blow so hard that Mop Man could feel Avram’s teeth through the flesh of his opponents cheek. Moppy stepped back and swung his mop like Mighty Casey at the bat, but Avram blocked it. Avram felt the shockwave of the blow in every part of his body, and though his left arm would hurt for two weeks after, and though he strained the muscles in his legs to stay in place, with a groan through gritted teeth he stopped the mop cold with an arm. Avram grinned, spat a mouthful of bluish-purple blood into Mop Man’s face, then cut Mop Man across the chest with two pencil thin yellow beams that fired from Avram’s eyes.

“NNGGH!" Mop Man exhaled, glancing at the inch deep lacerations. He pushed Avram away, swung his mop around his head, and slammed it down on the street between them with a huge CRUUNNCH! Beacon Street acquired a brand new pot hole, enormous at about two foot across and ten inches deep. A spider-web of cracks radiated out for nearly twenty foot radius, dirty water bubbling up from a broken sewer pipe. The shockwave knocked Avram off his feet, but the big blue man quickly stood, his anger etched into his smallest movement. Mop Man thrust the head of his mop against Avram’s chest, and acidic liquid oozed down the criminal’s front, tiny needles of discomfort stabbing into him.

“That really stings,” Avram spat, grimacing against the pain. Then he grabbed the mop and pulled. Thinking he meant to pull the weapon out of his hands, Mop Man tightened his grip, but Avram used the mop to bring them together. Two huge hands grasped Mop Man’s head, and Avram drove his forehead into his enemies face twice. As red blood dripped down Mop Man’s face, Avram’s hands began to glow a dirty yellow light, similar in color to his eyebeams moments before. Avram smashed his victim’s body through a lighting pole and into a vintage parked pick-up truck.

“I’m going to cook you, now,” Avram said.

“Filth,” Mop Man shouted, poking Avram’s left eye with the stick end of his mop.

“YAAAHH,” Avram screamed, letting go. Mop Man stumbled a bit, then faced his opponent. He was beginning to feel the weakness that the Titans had experienced before. Still, he stood tall.

“I’ve watched filth like you all of my life,” Mop Man said, wiping blood from his eyes and trying to ignore the dull pain from his head and the growing weakness in his legs, “Always picking on the little guy, throwing your weight around, terrorizing those who can’t fight back. Now I can fight back for all of them!”

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[Glippernip]

“He certainly is tough,” Taurus stated as The Titans watched from down the street.

“Which one,” Kilowatt asked.

“Cardinal, grab our janitorial friend and get him out of the way,” Terra told them, “Stick with the plan, and Titans...Together!”

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[Glippernip]

Avram and Mop Man stepped toward each other, Mop Man with a stony, resolved expression and Avram grinning with anticipation of ending this match, when Cardinal dove in and ripped the blue man with a vocal blast of white sound. Avram's skin rippled with the onslaught, but he still stood his ground. “I’m sure that would hurt like hell...to someone else,” he offered.

“Release me,” Mop Man told Cardinal as she carried him away, “I appreciate...”

“If you ever want to be a Titan, or a member of any other team, you will follow our instructions. You’re hurt. Right now, we’ll call on you if we need you.” She landed on a roof three blocks closer to the State Building and activated her com unit. “I felt that strange energy about 25 foot distance from our boy, Terra,” she said, then looked at Mop Man. “Watch closely,” she commanded.

Fusion, full in her orange and yellow ‘armor’, sprinted in, vaulting a parked Chevy Wright, the first model of hover car built. The blue man fired his beams at her, making a strange sound like the ‘thrum’ you get when you hit a thick wire with a stick or pipe. She ducked and let the beams strike the curve of her shoulder, her light screen deflecting the bolts into the sky, the beams almost taking out a remote news hover-camera. Princess Fern and Taurus moved in as Fusion ran out of reach.

“The beams were ineffective, but I felt the weakness you described,” Fusion told her team through their network.

“Me, too,” Liana added, “I won’t be able to get close for melee, and all I feel around here is potted plants. If he reaches the park, I’ll be ready.”

“I feel something weird,” Taurus added, “but not weakness. Not yet.”

“Good,” Terra stated as she watched from a short distance away, ready to jump in if needed. “Take the point on this, Taurus. Fusion and Kilowatt, support him at range.”

“Gladly,” Taurus growled, ready for some real action.

“On it,” Kilowatt added.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Fusion chuckled. Terra rolled her eyes.

*********************

[Glippernip]

For the first minute or so, the others simply watched Taurus in action. The minotaur hadn’t really had a chance to cut loose since meeting the others. They all quickly realized that he really knew how to fight. The blue man grinned and punched the taller beast-man, but Taurus redirected the blow, unbalancing his opponent, then elbowed Avram in the back, forcing the blue man to eat tarmac. Avram stood and charged forward, so Taurus neatly flipped him up and over like a wrestler. Avram charged again, his head down, and Taurus roundhouse punched him square in the scalp, stepping aside so that the again unbalanced Avram stumbled and tasted asphalt again. The other Titans noticed how controlled Taurus was, not allowing the amount of damage to occur that Mop Man had inadvertently caused shortly before.

“Victims crumple under my power,” Avram barked, lifting the chevy hovercar over his head. With a twisting shriek of metal, the car separated into two pieces with Taurus standing between them.

“You do not impress me,” Taurus bellowed, "You will not reach the Capitol building!"

Avram sneered, "You think I'm heading for the Capitol?"

His hand suddenly glowing yellow, Avram grabbed Taurus by the wrist. The rancid smell of burning hair wafted in the breeze as stinging pain rippled through Taurus’ extremity. The brute yanked his arm out of Avram’s grip, but the crafty criminal placed his other glowing hand on the minotaur’s knee with a loud sizzle, causing Taurus to stumble.

“Hey, Skittles,” Fusion shouted, “Taste the rainbow!” Hearing her words, Taurus averted his eyes as Avram glanced Fusion’s way. He saw the flash of Fusion’s bright multi-colored spectrum which shot bolts of white hot pain into his eyes and blurred his vision, liquid welling up in his eyes.

“Taurus,” Kilowatt said through his comrade’s ear piece, “Move him ten feet Northwest, and I’ll try to put him down.”

The bull-man’s reaction was instant. He crashed his head down on Avram’s (much like the criminal had done to Mop Man previously) and pushed the man to the spot Kilowatt indicated, almost dead center between four lighting poles. The airborne Kilowatt zoomed in to hover over the miscreant. Electricity suddenly exploded from the four lighting poles and arced to Charlie, who completed the circuit by dropping down on Avram with a ‘ZZZ-BOOOM!’

“Shazam,” Terra smirked.

Avram screamed at the onslaught as sparks caressed his convulsing muscles. He tried to flex, to create another blast wave, but his nervous system suddenly wouldn’t work like it should. Avram dropped to his knees, then fell on his face, twitching and not at all feeling the hot roadway against his cheek.

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[Glippernip]

Thirty minutes later, authorities were beginning the clean up and incarceration of the big blue man and the Titans prepared to pick up their missing members.

“About you joining the Titans...” Terra began.

“I would like to cancel my request at this time,” Mop Man interrupted suddenly, a somber expression on his face, “I realize after today that I don’t really know what I am capable of. I was all ready for a fight, to prove myself to the world that I could be the next Superman. I caused a lot of damage out there.

“If you don’t mind, I’ll ride with you to STAR Labs. Before we left there earlier, one scientist suggested testing my abilities. I think I want to do that, stay with STAR Manhattan until I understand more. I may someday join your team, but I don’t think I’m ready. My enthusiasm does not make up for my ignorance.”

“And that’s the first step to being a real hero,” Terra told him.

And, just a few blocks further down Beacon Street at the outskirts of Downtown Boston, stood this city's office building of Derek Powers.

The End