Teen Titans: Next Gen IC

Harvey kept his eyes on Kestrel and wasn't surprised when he saw her eying him up.

She's on to you.
No, you think? and there was me thinking that she wanted my body.

"Surprisingly, that was one of the less glaring curiosities about you which captured my attention." muttered the atlantean, bringing Harvey back to the present.

"Ro', I know you're used to living miles underwater, but now that you're up on land, you really should try to avoid letting things go over your head."

"As I believe the saying goes, you truly are your Mothers child. And I'd thank you to refrain from creating nicknames from my name."

Harvey's amazement at the small... arguement... was thankfully halted as Arsenal re-entered the room, "So, what's on the agenda for the night?"

Harvey nodded and went to speak, only to be cut off.

"I was wondering this myself. If nothing else, I'm rather interested about getting settled in or finding a chance to take in some exercise." Answered the Atlantean, obviously oblivious of what might have happened.

It was then that Kestrel spoke, and as she did, Harvey found himself looking her up and down.

“Might I suggest that we all get settled in, then take up some proper introductions? We're all supposed to be... family... here. May as well get to know each other.Anyone know how to cook? Maybe we can get a nice group dinner set up and then set about on our game plan on handling things in the city."

Hmm, if she wasn't his 'arch-nemesis', as it were, she'd be very attractive

“I can cook.” Jullian chirped. “I positively LOVE cooking.”

It was then that the building suddenly went into lockdown, windows and doors suddenly bolting shut. Harvey paused, wondering what the hell had just happened, then zoned back into the middle of the conversation.

"... part of our first day orientation?"

“If it was, then I misread the invitation.”

Then Julian seemed to take charge, “Anyone who cannot walk through walls or vibrate through particles, take hold of me.” He said. “The last thing we need is a gaping hole in the wall.”

Harvey walked to the green teenager and looked at him, 'I don't fall into the phasing catagory.'

"Our first break in, and its in our own damn house," Kestrel growled under her breath, closing her eyes for a moment before opening them slowly. Something she'd learned from Gram- it was far easier to adjust to darkness if you eased yourself into it. Of course, it also made her wish she'd been a bit more receptive of Bryce's 'care package' before she left. Knowing Gram, it was probably full of things she could have used in just such a time. But no, she'd forgotten the damn box on the loveseat in that art museum Bryce called her living room.

The green one- Julian, was it?- He was offering to round up those who needed a hand, but Kestrel was a bit more curious on who'd be trying to play around within the first ten minutes of everyone actually managing to meet up.

Her gaze fell on Joker once more. *Strike one,* she thought to herself with a slight frown, glancing around the room in the darkness. Not much to see, other than the rest of the group trying to navigate about. "Watch for the table," She called out helpfully, moving slowly back towards the door herself. "Any idea where the control room is in this place? Maybe a few of us can check in on that and see what this is all about."

Mallory, with a little Ronan

“If it was, then I misread the invitation.”

Ronan let out an amused scoffing sound as his eyes continued to survey the locked entrances and exits which surrounded them. This wasn't exactly an ideal first showing for the new team of young superheroes; what with their being locked inside of their own headquarters only minutes after everyone arrived. Not that it would take long for their escape, if he were to concentrate his increased strength and his fathers powers upon one section of the room. Wouldn't exactly make for a clean exit, and it'd likely cause more damage then it was worth, which was why it proved fortunate that Jullian decided to once again speak up when he did.

“Anyone who cannot walk through walls or vibrate through particles, take hold of me. The last thing we need is a gaping hole in the wall.”

Perking up about halfway through hearing Jullian's game plan, Mallory glanced toward his father with a smirk before quickly bolting toward his friend in the blink of an eye, "Oh! Oh! Let me try the second option! I've been practicing and nine times out of ten I'm able to control my vibrations enough where the objects I pass through don't explode."

The others comments were barely registering as he moved back to his father's side, quickly opening up the duffel bag and digging out his specially made costume. He wasn't exactly prepared for running around in the nude if his regular clothing didn't hold up to the amount of speed he'd need to tap into for this trick to work. Glancing up at Hex, he could see the concern lacing the former Titans features, but also saw that the older hero had enough trust in his abilities to let him continue on his plan. Granted, it helped that, while remaining cautious, the older male wasn't overly concerned about whichever character had decided on locking this new team in a section of their own headquarters.

Holding up the uniform and glancing around at those whom were also in the room, the speedster gave a shrug of his shoulders as he prepared to do a quick change act without the aide of a modesty curtain, "Uh, nobody look this way for a second?"

Without waiting for a response, Mallory started racing around in a small circles within one corner of the room, attempting to change out of his street clothes and into his uniform in an instant, only to trip and land on his side with the spandex pants pulled only halfway along his legs.

"....I meant to do that...." The young hero muttered as his eyes darted around at the others as he let out a groan of embarrassment, before pulling the material of his costume the rest of the way over his underwear and bare chested body in the blink of an eye.

Darting for the wall which everyone else was gathering toward, though a few feet away so as to avoid any complications, the young speedster flashed everyone a brief grin as he started the process, causing his words to come out less clearly for normal ears then he would have hoped, "I'll see everyone on the other side."

Continually increasing the speed of his body's vibrations, it didn't take long for the skilled hero to temporarily turn himself intangible and carefully pass through the layers of metal which stood in his way. If sound could travel to the other side of said wall, as soon as Mallory's entire body was on the other side, those left inside of the room would have heard a sudden burst of wind as the speedster quickly took off in search of their unwanted guest.

"Who wants to wager he causes more damage then whomever locked us in here?" The Atlantean asked as he moved next to the green shape shifter, briefly darting his eyes around at the rest of the new Titans before waiting for whatever would happen next to take place.

"I wouldn't worry too much." The former Hive student stated as he walked over to join with the younger heroes, staring at Ronan though intended his words as a general musing on the situation, "If the person out there had truly malicious intentions, they could have done worst through the system then simply locking us in here by now. Still, it would be best if we get out there quickly."

Meanwhile, Mallory faced a bit of difficulty in locating their mystery person, as he hadn't grown completely accustomed to the layout of the place in advance. Regardless, it only took a millisecond for him to backtrack his steps each time, causing the hero to knock over a few chairs, sheets of paper and other assorted items along the way. Perhaps not so bad as accidentally blowing up a wall during his molecular vibration trick, but still something which himself or somebody else would have to pick up afterward. Preferably, somebody else. Ultimately, though he covered a lot more space then should have been needed, it only took a couple of seconds for the redhead to locate the trickster behind their brief plight.

Racing past the couch in a blur of motions, Ravenor would find the remove snatched from his clutches as the young hero stood before him with the device in his hand. Raising his free hand, index finger pointing out as his mouth opened like he were intending to say something heroic, the redhead paused as he took a second for looking over the scene before him. Not exactly the scene of master criminal activity which he'd expected, as his eyes slowly darted to and fro between the male on the couch and the television set.

"Dude, you snuck in here and locked everyone into a room so you could have time to channel surf?" Mallory blurted out in an almost casual tone as he raised an eyebrow at the other male, scratching upon the side of his head in near bewilderment over the apparent set up, "Not exactly aiming for the sky with your nefarious schemes, are you?"

Despite his apparent lack of respect for Ravenor's presence, Mallory did remain on alert in case he decided on doing anything more now that he was out of the room and standing before him. There was an air of tension around the teen as he attempted to anticipate any sudden need for using his powers to avoid an attack and fire back with one of his own.

Sniffing at the air a few times, the speedster suddenly leaned in closer within a split seconds time; taking in a whiff of the other males breath before stepping back and standing straight just as fast, "Okay, so you've also raided the fridge for a bite to eat. That's a little more like it. I'll even grant you a few extra points if you didn't bother washing up beforehand."

“I don't fall into the phasing category.” Came Joker’s almost immediate response.

Soon, everyone else began to gather around him, some having difficulty getting about and around in the dark. Not him, though, he could see everything perfectly well. And of course, Alice could see, too, being a Kryptonian clone had it’s advantages.

His cat-like eyes shined brilliantly like orbs of gold caught in beams of light, and his pale green skin seemed to have a glimmer to it, so it could not have been that hard to spot him. He could not explain why this was, though, other than the fact that he was what he was, just like he could not explain the sudden draft that had occurred earlier ago after he had made his introduction.

"Watch for the table," Kestrel called out to her teammates, wanting to be as helpful as she could be in such a situation. "Any idea where the control room is in this place? Maybe a few of us can check in on that and see what this is all about."

Most of them were edgy, if not for the sake of the darkness, then more than likely of the fact of the reason of them being locked out.

Jullian watched as his friend quickly zipped right on over to him, not surprised or phased by his friend’s reaction in the least. He had known him quite long enough not to be. He did not even reel back in the slightest. And he knew it was coming. The redheaded boy radiated eagerness and anticipation, no doubt wanting to use his inherited abilities.

"Oh! Oh! Let me try the second option! I've been practicing and nine times out of ten I'm able to control my vibrations enough where the objects I pass through don't explode."

A smirk formed on the green one’s face, looking positively amused at his friend’s eagerness. He reached up and tapped him on the nose as he chuckled. “Only if you manage not to blow up the building, Mal.” He said in a teasing tone, but he was being frankly serious about it.

He watched as his friend zipped right back over to his duffle bag and dug out his costume. He respectfully turned his eyes away from his friend, not needing to be asked for privacy. A few moments later, he heard a light thumping noise. As a normal reaction, and out of concern, he looked back over to see if his friend was alright.

"....I meant to do that...."

He grinned cheekily, not being able to contain himself from commenting. “Nice knickers. Oh, I'm sorry. I meant underwear.” He quipped.

Hey, at least he did not further embarrass him by making a catcall, because he could have, all in good fun of course. He then turned his attention back away from him as his friend continued to dress, which lasted for about a few seconds before the redheaded teen rushed over to the wall just a few feet away from the rest of them.

"I'll see everyone on the other side."

Jules waved at him, wiggling his fingers in a childlike manner, grinning cheek to cheek. He observed as his friend then managed to successfully vibrate himself through the thick metal layered walls. He heard the whooshing sound of his friend making a hurry for it, sensing that he was speeding off to meet up with the one held responsible for their current situation.

"Who wants to wager he causes more damage then whomever locked us in here?"

He turned and looked at the teenager who had recently joined his side. He simply smiled softly in reply. He sensed the prince’s anxiety, not really liking even the idea of the speedster jumping the gun like that.

"I wouldn't worry too much.” Spoke up Mallory’s father as he joined them as well. “If the person out there had truly malicious intentions, they could have done worst through the system then simply locking us in here by now. Still, it would be best if we get out there quickly."

“Indeed.” Jullian agreed. He pulled his other friend over to him, keeping her close as well as a better eye on her. “Don’t get any wise ideas either, dear Alice.”

“Now, why would you think that?” She replied, grinning.

“Because I know you too well to.” He answered, knowing he could not stop her even if he wanted to. Not that he would honestly stop her in the first place, again, it was all in good fun. “…My dear friend.” He then turned his attention upon everyone else. “I must ask for everyone to remain in place. I am using teleportation instead, since there is quite a bit of you.”

He snickered as his friend joked about the experience as he incased them all inside a enormous bubble of psychic energy. The downside of this was that he could now hear every thought process being made by each individual. He managed to tune them out, however, as he concentrated on his main objective. In an instant, he teleported them all further inside the building, right into the very room where the other two were. The bubble around them quickly dissipated in whisps of smoke, the smoke went away as quickly as it had came.

His eyes immediately landed on them, his gaze became intensive as he observed the two. He soon found his attention primarily focused on one of them, and it was not his friend, but the stranger. In an instant, he was struck with an epiphany. Did he know him from somewhere? Like déjà vu, he swore he had sensed that energy before…somewhere.

As soon as his sent hit his nostrils, that familiar callous voice snorted and then spoke up; “Well, well. Looks like the little traitor had gone off and procreated another spawn.” Depraved yet amused guffawing followed suit. She then contemptuously stated; “…A dragon half-breed.”

“Marvelous.” Spoke the other voice. “This should prove to be fascinating. Besides just dear brother standing before you, so will the other insignificant fuck-faces.” He added apathetically, though Jules knew certainly well that his dark side was more than just a bit curious. More than likely what he could possibly do to them, not the other way around.

“Vladimir.” He mentally rebuked back, trying hard not to be annoyed with his dark side’s notorious God complex. He knew that frustration, anger, or any applicability to negativity would only make him stronger. And if he managed to somehow take over, then there was no stopping him, which would then inevitably lead to Trigon’s freedom, despite the seal and barrier he created to keep her restrained.

He wondered over to his taller half-sibling and blankly stared, his eyes wide. He stood there for a good while before then decidedly circling around him, still not blinking in the slightest as he inspected him like he was the most single important, mind-boggling clue to a great crime scene. He did not mind the agitation of his brother one teeny tiny bit as he did so, nor did he mind the peculiar gawking of the others. He was literally reading him from head to toe. His nose curled when he smelled the blood, it was faint, but he could still smell it. He shook his head a bit, trying to ward off a sickening hungry feeling growing in his gut. He bit down upon his lip and he continued further with his investigation. Quickly, he had gotten everything he needed to know without getting inside of the taller one's head. The room rumbled as it shook in the process, his emotions affected by his brother's grim past. Fortunately, he only knew a sliver of it.

After a few minutes have passed, he broke his silence and said; “Do you value life?” He did not falter in his stare. Of course, he already knew the answer, he just wanted to hear it from him. His shadow seemed to dance as he waited with anticipation.

Ravenor merely raised an eyebrow when the remote disappeared, replaced by a slight gust, he was slightly confused, but he suspected it was harmless, just like his other housemate, nothing but an annoyance.

"Dude, you snuck in here and locked everyone into a room so you could have time to channel surf?"

He looked rather casually over at Mallory, only a few hints of aggravation creeping in to his gaze, god he wished that door had held for longer.

"Not exactly aiming for the sky with your nefarious schemes, are you?"

He shrugged, now more bemused than anything else at this new turn of events, he had expected a number of reactions they all might have, but this wasn’t one of them, it most definitely wasn’t one of them… he needed to watch more TV. And the new guy went and did something stupid, he had so far avoided bringing up any kind of retaliation, but moving in and smelling his breath was quite the violation of his personal space.

"Okay, so you've also raided the fridge for a bite to eat. That's a little more like it. I'll even grant you a few extra points if you didn't bother washing up beforehand."

His face quickly turned sour as his mind flooded with plans for retaliation. He stood up, looking down in to the shorter mans eyes, the cold look he was giving making a good hint of what was to come, but before he could so much as speak, he froze dead and a new group arrived in the room.

His constant watch of his latest fan was one of fear and anger, this is what he could feel earlier, the aura of the evil was so great that its sudden appearance had stunned even him with his purposefully dulled senses. As soon as that passed however, the ever present urge to kill rose up, his claw aches to spill his blood, he wanted to taste it, see if it was different.

<different to what?> he asked himself, he had never felt anything like this, anything this strong, yet it was so familiar somehow, the questions consumed him, so much he barely noticed the source of his aggravation circling him, but then something called out to him.

Brother… he had a brother… something welled up in his chest, an unfamiliar feeling, no, he had felt this before, years and years ago… what was it?

“Do you value life?”

It shattered his concentration, so he answered on reflex “yes, but some are more valuable, while others are far less.” he kept looking at him for a moment as his response was evaluated, but he decided he had something to say.

His hand shot up and grasped him by the throat, his right hand, the claws and spines protruding from the cloth covered limb resting against his skin, ready to draw blood if a fly landed on them, but there was no malice in his eyes, no intent to harm, he was just testing his new brother “I don’t know what it is” a brief tightening of his hold put a stop to all the quick rescue plans everyone had thought of, and it drew a few drops of blood, bringing that urge back to the surface yet again.

“But I know there is… something, and if it ever happens, I promise I will make it quick, a luxury I would expect if our places were reversed” he calmly pulled his hand away, struggling to ignore the blood that slowly ran down his claws, if he made a wrong move here he fully expected the rest to descend upon him and end his existence.

“I have things I need to attend to” he nodded politely to everyone, something they would likely never see him do again, then began to walk away, only slowing to make one last statement “enjoy the remote speedy” then with a wave of his hand it sparked in Mallory’s hand, becoming little more than a paperweight for all the use it did, but before even his prodigious speed had his eyes back on him, Ravenor was gone, the door to the living quarters sliding closed behind him.



Ravenor however had broken in to an almost soundless run as soon as he was out of sight, heading for his room with all speed and locking the door behind him, the beginnings of a cold sweat creeping up on him from the effort of resisting his urges, but now he was alone, he didn’t need to hide his true self, so the claws soon found their way to his mouth, slowing feeding him his brothers blood so that he may savor the taste.

Okay.... Now what was all that about? And who the hell was he? Thought Harvey as he stood slightly confused (and intrigued) as to what had just happened.

Mallory's speed had being amazing, though Harvey wasn't going to admit that he had almost flinched in the fear that something would explode. Julian's teleportation on the other hand, had being rather interesting, almost fun.

Then there was the weird dude who had locked them out and held Julian in a headlock before leaving.

Now this is where Harvey had noticed something in Julian, something the dark figure had caught onto also, though most likely by different means, but then again the chances that it would avoid the prince of the split personalities notice was a rather stupid notion.

There had being a look on Julian's face before the dark man had grabbed him. It was a look he had seen in the mirror and in his sisters face as well.

Julian wasn't the only one inhabiting his body. And going upon what the dark figure had said, the other things inhabiting him weren't nice at all.

He doubted that the others of the group had understood the meaning, and it was then that Harvey decided that he would keep what he had learnt secret, for if people were to discover this, their trust would waver and then the team wouldn't work effictively. The same went for him.

He also knew that he needed to speak to Julian, but not in front of everyone else. It gave him someone to confide into, so that if ever his own Dark Side emerged, Julian would hopefully notice straight away and could do something about it.

That is, if Julian listened.

It had being okay when he was with his sister, both of them new the signs and exactly what to do. But now that she was gone....

He shook his head, knowing that at some point he would need to talk to Julian, but for now made do with resting a hand on the green teenagers shoulder.

'Are you Okay?'

Unintelligible hoots and laughter erupted from a club door as a group of young women and men just about tumbled out in their drunken state. The sky was still dark, but the drawn neared, yet not one had seen a minute of sleep. Despite this, their energy levels were still at an all time high. The one exception was a blonde haired man in a long black coat who stepped out after them, looking rather uninterested at his friends' outbursts.

"Okay okay.. It's only 4am! Where.. to next...?" One dark haired girl in black lipstick uttered. The group began talking over each other while wandering the empty sidewalk, the streetlamps barely illuminating the area. The moon had been hidden behind the clouds for some time, so the whole city had an especially eerie feel to it, but none of them seemed to mind. The man in the long coat continued to hang back, his hands pocketed as he strolled calmly. One of the girls with fiery red highlights turned to him and latched onto his arm.

"Michael! You choose the f.." She paused mid-sentence to giggle a bit for no apparent reason. "-final destination, kay?"

"I'm done. Go without me, all right?" He muttered, retrieving his arm from the girl's grasp, stopping his movement. The girl's cheerfulness died almost immediately as she waved for the rest of the group to keep going. After drunkenly moving to a nearby wall to keep her balance, she gazed up at the man with a vexed expression.

"The fuck is with you? You've.. been a statue all night. Hell.. All week." She sighed, shaking her head. Michael glanced over to her, his sapphire eyes connecting with her own.

"Nothing. This just isn't my environment." He replied cryptically, returning his gaze elsewhere.

"What.. does that even mean? You used to love coming out with us.. Now you just stand there... You have one drink and say nothing the whole night. If there's something wrong you can tell me!" She shouted back, noticing her friends were nearly out of sight now.

"Natalie, It's.. really none of your concern."

"You never tell me anything. I don't know a single thing about you. I thought maybe you just needed some time to get used to someone, and maybe you'd open up, but you've just been more closed off than ever! I can't take it anymore! Tell me something!" She demanded, swiftly walking back up to him and shoving him in the chest, nearly causing herself to fall backwards when Michael didn't move an inch.

"Fine. I think you're pathetic. This right here..." He withdrew his hand, motioning back to the club and then toward the group ahead of them. "This isn't a life... It's.. a distraction. I thought that was all I wanted once, but..." He began harshly, but in the end his voice faded, as if he couldn't find the correct words.. or didn't wish to say them. Natalie looked expectantly offended, almost turning to tears a few moments later.

"..Fuck you, Michael. Don't act like you're fucking better than me or Janie or Vince or any of us. What do you do that makes a difference? What.. have you ever done for anyone but yourself? You have no right to act like a self-righteous prick. Maybe you can have that sort of attitude when you have some power to actually change anything..." She spoke softly, her voice cracking a bit as she began to walk slowly down the street. "Good luck finding yourself, or whatever it is you think you're going to do..."

As Natalie disappeared into the darkness, the blonde man was left alone in the dim light of the streetlamp, glancing up to the sky. What do you do that makes a difference? Echoed in his mind. Nothing. He didn't do anything. He might have been okay with that if it hadn't been for...

Michael looked down at his hands, tightening them into fists for a few moments before opening his palms. A moment later, a crackling blue energy formed in the middle of each hand. As soon as it appeared, however, he closed his fists immediately, as if he feared being seen. Natalie meant power in a rather vague sense. Money, influence, authority. That sort of power. Michael's did have power, just in a more literal sense. For all intents and purposes, he was a superhero, though without the hero part. He had these abilities for as long as he could remember. The problem was, he didn't remember much of anything. For years he attempted to live life anyways. Going out, drinking, playing in a band, doing things most young men were happy to do. However, over time, the ability for these things to distract him waned.

Michael had never really been one to believe in destiny or purpose. Fate was something people made themselves. The question was, is it right to not put his abilities to use? He had the power to save or end many lives, but neither aspect was very appealing at this point. What he knew was that he needed to figure out why. Why was he this way? Was he even human? He couldn't ever remember getting sick, or being cut, or bruised. It took him forever to get drunk or high... and he didn't need to get into the other things he could do.. but other than that, he looked human. He acted it. So why? The mystery was eating away at him. He feared going to a doctor out of what they might say. Who they might tell. But where else could he go?

He'd have to try Jump City. He had heard about how it turned nearly apocalyptic after the Titans disbanded, but it still seemed to be superpower central. If he was lucky, he could find someone there who could give him some answers...

---

Upon arriving there the next day, it had appeared his mental image hadn't really prepared him for the chaos that had been inflicted on the city. It was like something out of an 80's movie that visualized the 21st century future after World War III devastated the country. One thing was for sure, there was no doubt as to who was proclaiming themselves the leader. This Queen of Spades person seemed very adamant about perpetuating her authority over this dismal space. Michael had to wonder just why anyone would feel proud of something like that. For now, he had been standing atop a skyscraper, looking downward. The sky was darkened thanks to the endless gray clouds, but despite this, he kept his hood up and his face concealed. He couldn't risk being noticed too early, and from what he could gather from the broadcasts, using his powers from then on would be like signing a death warrant. He knew he was powerful, but he couldn't be sure that they weren't moreso.

Throughout all of this, the thing that struck him to be the most odd was the appearance of activity at the Titan's Tower. The fact that it was still there was surprising enough. He could only assume some villains or criminals had taken it over, but for some reason he was compelled to check it out anyways. After all, if anyone sane was left around, they were probably there. Without any more hesitation, the man in the long, black coat lept off the roof, sailing downward into an alley, levitating for a fraction of a second before he hit the ground in order to land noiselessly. He didn't want to risk being seen flying. Perhaps he could pass for a criminal in his current gear. Before exiting, he made sure the sword strapped to his back was mostly concealed, and he headed out toward the T shaped building in the distance...

“Yes, but some are more valuable, while others are far less.” Was his half brother’s response, but was it believable?

Jules’ eyes flashed when he caught a look of intent in his brother’s eyes, knowing very well that he would soon regret for being so forward with him, let alone allow his curiosities to get the best of him. His brother had caught him off guard, though, when he had grabbed him by his throat. The hand had sharp talons, a part of him that guaranteed more than anything else the dragon blood that flowed within his gene pool. He knew his brother was testing him, but he was tempting fate in of itself.

The room rumbled all the more, so much that the floor somehow managed to roll, causing the furniture to buck up a few inches. Some of it had toppled over, that is, before all of it began to float; the lighter the object, the higher it was lifted off the ground. The mechanicals, especially the TV, whirred, and the screens and the lights flickered. And the breakables began to crack under the pressure, just like Jules himself as the tension rose and thickened in the atmosphere in the very room itself, which now grew dim. The world outside soon synchronized, growing darker as if someone had decided to hide the sun.

“I don’t know what it is...” The half-breed spoke as he then tightened his grip around his jugular.

Jules knew he appeared melodramatic, but it was something he could not help, especially in situations like these that appeared almost life threatening. He felt his blood pulse throughout his body and a peculiar sensation like spiders crawling inside of his veins, his heart beat immediately became louder and more profound, like the beating of a bass drum. That is when it dawned on him as the stress upon his neck soon throbbed, his half brother’s claws were like knives, which had cut in just a smidge into his flesh.

Jullian tried to fight it, his madness, as hard as he could. He could not allow himself to smell his own blood, but it was a futile effort because with his senses it was inevitable. His eyes widened as old and familiar voices echoed throughout his mind, making him feel like the frightened child he once was.

“There’s the freak!”

“Yeah, let’s get him!”

“Get him!”

“Don’t let him get away! Quick, throw these rocks at him!”

“Yeah! Let’s see if the little green shit bleeds!”

The voices of his past were followed by their rascally laughter. He dared not close his eyes, less he was to revision it again, of them hounding him, hurting him, the screaming, HIS screaming, the sudden silence, and the rest grew black from there.

He could hear the faint ghostly whispers as a few drops of his blood as it seeped through his collar, voices he could only hear with his own two ears. The blood chanted a cryptic hymn as it reached his captor’s hand, gradually crawling down his fingers. The voices sounded like joyful little children, giggling innocently as if they were playing in the sunlight.

He knew that his own crimson flow was remotely innocent, being that he could definitely put it to use as a weapon or use it as anything else he desired, like for alchemy or possession. The blood had it’s own power, it’s own demons, and it did not help his enemies at all due to the fact that he was “The Wicked One”, let alone a demon and pretty much knew alchemy first hand. Growing up from a child, he used to make his mother little handmade gifts by using his abilities and had even brought a metal bird to life, flesh, bones, and everything, which was once made out of pure minerals he had scavenged up out of the earth in their enclosure. His blood continued to crawl down his brother’s arm like serpents, a bit of it seeping underneath his scales and entering into his bloodstream as it did, indubitably overlooked by his oblivious older brother. Just a drop was sufficient enough to kill a man if he wanted to, and it would lie there dormant until it was needed.

A maniacal grin appeared upon his countenance. Evil laughter shrilled inside of his head as his eyes began to glow something fierce. He could feel them, see them, his dark sides waiting in anticipation to unveil themselves. His shadow began to stretch out, it’s tentacles writhing as it searched to swallow up any drop of light that was left in the room, slowly gaining strength in becoming corporeal specter as his madness grew. His body progressively becoming much like a dark and twisted figure.

“I’ve got you!” The wicked woman in his head exclaimed with much rage and joy. However, she was not at all referring to him in the least. No, it was towards the one whom she had infected.

“But I know there is… something, and if it ever happens, I promise I will make it quick, a luxury I would expect if our places were reversed.”

Vladimir snickered inside of him. “That’s what you think, fool.”

Just then, his brother placed him down. He landed upon his feet before falling hard onto his knees, panting. He stared down at his blackened hand, finding the strength to once again ward back his darkness. He tried hard to think of positive thoughts, thinking of happy times he shared with his family and friends.

“I have things I need to attend to.” He heard his brother say as he walked away from him. “Enjoy the remote, speedy.”

“Aww, he doesn’t want to play?” Vladimir mentally jeered. “Tsk. Tsk. Now, I am disappointed. And here I was thinking I was going to get to play with our new little puppet. Or at least get to pull a few strings. ...Goddammit.”

Jules looked up and watched his brother exit through the doors, which then closed directly behind him as he left. Lightening struck right outside the building, the light flashing upon his face, quickly revealing what lied on the other side of him. The revelation went as quickly as it came, not that most would even notice.

“Pity the fool does not realize what he has done. I will so enjoy usurping him, just to watch the horror written across his face as I break him in.” Vlad muttered maliciously and then purred at the thought of it. “I can’t wait.” He wickedly crooned.

He then sensed rage coming from a certain individual, he did not have to turn and look to know who it was it was coming from. He was so wrapped up in his own inner turmoil that he did have the will to stop his now angry blonde friend from pursuing his brother. Clearly, he did not know what was worse, his dark side getting his hands on him or her…

“Wait. Wasn’t it a bit too late for that?” He thought.

But right now, he had no other choice but to contend with himself first, inauspiciously the darkness was trying to become all the more imminent.

Jullian winced, shaking his head as he tried to fight it back, his head lowered back down, his skin threatening to combust into flames as he did. His body was trembling as he kept thinking happy thoughts, pure thoughts, of laughter and of love. “Happy thoughts… Happy thoughts… Pleasant thoughts… Think of pleasantries… Ice cream. That’s a happy thought. Delicious ice cream. Oh, delicious frozen rapture brought down from heaven!” He thought as he gradually regained his composure.

Vladimir snorted. “Fuck you! You ruin all of the fun.” He growled as his power to surface weakened. Honestly, his dark side found his attempts to be quite pathetic.

The teenager let out a sigh of relief as it eventually passed, now regaining control and fully functional. The room became lighter, less dense, and his shadow, as well as himself, went back to normal. Everything that was floating immediately dropped down, some of it crashing and breaking as it did.

Now that his mind was cleared, he could perfectly well sense that all eyes were upon him. He naturally felt mortified, but he was all the more fearful of how the others may respond to him. Just then, a hand was placed upon his shoulder. He had recognized the aura beforehand, but was surprised at the friendly gesture.

“Are you okay?” Joker asked out of concern.

He looked up at the green clad teen, sensing that maybe this one somehow understood what he was dealing with. It would explain all of the mixed, chaotic emotions that had been emitting off of him. He read up on such cases before, being that he was one of them, of others who suffered the same dual or multiple personality issues. He guessed he would not be so alone here after all. …Maybe.

“I’m alright, thank you kindly.” Jullian returned with a friendly smile. "For now." He added silently.

He felt a sickening feeling inside his gut, his worry was now for the sake of his new found brother. But he had no choice but to push back that feeling as well. Mean while, the blood on his collar was sapped right back up into his body and his wounds virtually healed.

The confusing exchange taking place before her left Kestrel on edge, unsure of exactly what was happening, but fully aware of the fact it wasn't something that that should be happening.

As the rather dark figure that had attacked Jullian gave his makeshift attempt at an apology for his actions- if it could even be called an apology- Jessica wanted to go after him, find out what all this was about... Her fists clenched up angrily, infuriated now that such a thing had happened in her mother's former house of glory. This was a place of peace among its members, not such a violent outburst like that.

But Joker brought up a more valid point with his simple question to the green skinned victim of the attack.

Glancing over her shoulder, she frowned once more as Jullian acknowledged the inquiry and seemed to be regaining his own composure. "I take it you two have a past already," She asked without any true questioning tone. "Family issues?" Folding her arms, the frown that had been riding along her lips broke through, a stance similar to her mother's overtaking her. "I'm not going to have to keep you two separated, am I?" A smile peeked through then, only to quickly slip back into the somber tone.

Alice (Knave) and X’Hal (Bluefire)

“Maybe....Then again, perhaps not. But you shall never know, my beloved dear old friend."

Grinning, she stuck her tongue at her feline friend as she had little trouble spotting his embarrassment even under the wealth of dark fur. Even if she was just teasing, she did sort of wonder if perhaps he was jealous. She wouldn't change him for the world, but he was so terribly focused on behaving like such a gentleman all the time. It could be a little boring at times, which was why she probably liked to embarrass him as much as she did. Opening her mouth, she intended to prod him further with emphasizing the full experience of groping the princess, but a pout formed on her lips as she realized his attention had drifted from her.

Tilting her head to the side, she followed his gaze to notice Hex talking with his son. Somehow it had escaped her notice that he was here and now that she knew, it only really made her uncomfortable. Well, not like that was a new occurrence and Alice was pretty sure she'd always been good at covering it up. She could just never get used to the weird bittersweet ache she felt every single time she saw him. It wasn’t until she was around twelve or so that she began to piece together why thanks to an overheard conversation. Apparently Match and him had been together some time before her death. It was a major clue in her piecing together that her odd way of knowing things she shouldn’t have any right in knowing was probably thanks to some sort of memory transfer through genetics. Not that she ever brought this up with anyone, especially Hex himself. It was embarrassing enough having weird feelings that weren’t your own about a guy who was practically your father. Talking about them would just mean never showing up at their house ever again, ever.

"Hey, Jules? Don't you think it's about time you introduced yourself to everyone else?"

“Yes, certainly, it is about time.”

Amusement plain on her features, she watched as Jullian made a grand show of transforming from cat into human before everyone. With such a flamboyant display, she couldn’t help but wonder why he was always so adamant about her behaving more properly. Ok, so her actions and his were in completely different categories. That wasn’t the point. The point was that everyone else was being suspiciously quiet. It was weird. Well, no not really. She was just probably far too used to things not resembling ‘normal’ to respond properly anymore. Though normal was a relative term. So that would make her nonchalance right and their silence just plain awkward.

"Pardon me, is there something a matter? It's because I'm green, isn't it?"

"Surprisingly, that was one of the less glaring curiosities about you which captured my attention."

X’Hal had risen some moments ago, mild irritation plain on her features. It was not that she minded being more or less ignored after the initial acknowledgment of her announcement. In fact, it was a singular experience that she had never had before and was rather enjoying in a strange way. No, her irritation was because none recognized the importance of her lowering herself before them as she had. There was no ulterior motive in her pledging to honor their places as her temporary equals. She had only been doing what she felt her father would have approved of if he had come to witness this moment. He had always spoke of his time on this planet with such a high regard that as odd as she found the practice of a superhero to be, she had gained a grudging respect for it. Now her gesture was treated as little more than empty words.

Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself, explaining in her head that she could not expect a group of aliens to recognize every significance of her culture as such. So she strove to pay more attention to the matter at hand, which seemed to be that the.. cat.. was no longer a cat at all but a man. She did have to admit, in hearing the inquiry, that the boy’s skin color had not crossed her mind either, nor had anything else about him. It was something that caused her to wonder if she was supposed to find such things odd. Her father had mentioned a woman that had been his friend many years ago that was also of the same coloring and skill. Upon seeing this, Jullian, she had only assumed him to be the prodigy of her father’s ally and little more. The fact that it seemed this quality of his may be taken offensively, genuinely surprised her. It should not have though. No matter the world, prejudice seemed to be universal and she should have not been naive enough to believe otherwise.

"Ro', I know you're used to living miles underwater, but now that you're up on land, you really should try to avoid letting things go over your head."

"As I believe the saying goes, you truly are your Mothers child. And I'd thank you to refrain from creating nicknames from my name."

Alice was glad when Arsenal came back in and broke up the tension between Mal and the prince. It wasn’t as if she wasn’t just as offended as Mal at him poking fun at their friend. Just that the fight she could see coming because Ronan couldn’t take what he dished out wouldn’t have been worth it. She knew both Mal and Jules could take care of themselves, but she hated to see them get hurt and knew that she’d step in if they did and that probably wouldn't end well since it rarely ever had before. Still everything was pretty much good again except for that clicking noise. Frowning in confusion, she walked a couple feet towards the entrance to the tower proper, trying to figure out where the sound was coming from. Then all at once the door slammed shut, along with several layers of steel beyond that.

“That little bitch!”

A hand clapped itself around her mouth almost as soon as she spoke, her cheeks tinged a faint pink with embarrassment. She’d never had parents of her own or any guardians or anything else official along those lines. A lot of people said she was lucky, but really she thought it was just lonely. Still Mal and Jules’ parents sort of felt like hers at times. At least they cared enough to fuss at her if she did something wrong when she was younger. So while cursing wasn’t really anything unusual out of her mouth. It was in front of Hex. She kept expecting a lecture that never came for her foul language. Still she meant exactly what she said. She didn’t have to have x-ray vision to know it was Ravenor who locked them out and all for what? Some stupid alone time? Well he was just going to have to get over it. It wasn’t like he couldn’t just avoid everyone else like he had been her all this time.

"I'm guessing this wasn't precisely a scheduled part of our first day orientation?"

“If it was, then I misread the invitation.”

It was odd that it had just no occurred to her that she had no idea who was in charge of their team. X’Hal was used to leading these past few years, but knew that she could and would follow commands as it was needed of her. She was not above taking direction, especially as all of her experience with this world came from her father’s tales and therefore made her more or less useless for custom tactics. Yet, it seemed that there was no clear leader and already even their base had been taken out from underneath of them. None seemed acutely distressed by this, more confused, irritated, and some even excited, but still her muscles tensed instinctively for battle.

"Oh! Oh! Let me try the second option! I've been practicing and nine times out of ten I'm able to control my vibrations enough where the objects I pass through don't explode."

“Only if you manage not to blow up the building, Mal.”

Well the look on the red-haired man's face did explain his excitement, even if she didn't understand anything he'd just said. His friend though had mentioned not blowing up the building. Was he truly foolish enough to try something when he didn't know if it could work or not and potentially endanger all of their lives?! It appeared he was as he asked everyone to avert their gaze and many complied, except for her. She was curious as to what was so great that he felt he could pass through things. What she saw made her eyes widen in amazement as he moved in a blur before his journey was brought to a screeching halt. Apparently this particular display was meant for him to disrobe and change into some more suitable outfit, which he did after a little embarrassment. Then he was moving again until he passed completely through a nearby wall and presumably into the part of the building they had been locked away from.

“Don’t get any wise ideas either, dear Alice.”

Jullian's grip on her caught her by surprise as well, she really hadn't been listening, but trying to figure out if it would be worth the damage to just pry the door open herself. Well, that was an idea she had almost immediately discarded. It may have had lots aesthetic value, but really she could probably just find another way by searching through the electrical wires. It wasn't like she didn't know how to deal with the booby traps on the hatches to them. Now he was holding her close like she was some sort of unruly child. Grinning, she gave him the most innocent of looks as he accused her of such a thing. Of course saying that just made her want to come up with all sorts of ‘wise ideas’ out of spite.

“Now, why would you think that?”

“Because I know you too well not to. My dear friend.”

Alice pursed her lips together in a small scowl before pinching his cheek. Such a cheeky look as the one he gave her was just not at all the sort of proper behavior for him. Her annoyance with it quickly faded though. His teasing was nothing new and she didn't really mind even if it sometimes came at such inopportune times. So she stuck her tongue out at him and pouted as her last act of vengeance.

“Spoil sport.”

“I must ask for everyone to remain in place. I am using teleportation instead, since there is quite a bit of you.”

Despite her annoyance with being locked out and Jules spoiling her fun, she was pretty giddy about teleporting. She’d never done it before oddly enough, despite how long they’d known each other. She was practically bouncing before she remembered she was supposed to be staying still. Grinning, she clung to Jullian instinctively, though if she bothered to think about it, that was probably really unnecessary. Which it was. They were there in an instant. She could tell because Mallory was there and if that wasn’t enough, so was Ravenor. Stepping away from the others, she opened her mouth to give him a piece of her mind, but stopped short as she noticed Jules suddenly pacing around the offending man like he was an exhibit on display. It was weird seeing him that intent on a complete stranger.

“Do you value life?”

“yes, but some are more valuable, while others are far less.”

What happened next seemed to go in slow motion as she watched in shock as Ravenor strangled one of her oldest friends, his hand changing horribly and drawing blood. Words were spoken, threats, but she couldn’t hear them. All of her attention stayed on the dark ruby that stained his claws, anger making itself known within her, fingers curling themselves into fists. He just left Jullian there, acting like his actions were nothing, as if they didn’t matter. She didn’t realize she was speaking when she did through clenched teeth, her eyes staring blindly as all she could see was the injury to her friend that she could and should have prevented.

“I’m going to kill him. He’s going to die and that’ll be it. It just will.”

Then she gave chase to the man, unthinking. Alice was a woman that was usually slow to anger. It wasn’t in her disposition and being what she was made it far too dangerous to others for her to have the luxury. Now, she didn’t bother to stop the fury that boiled in her veins as she raced down the hall, quicker than any mere human could ever hope to be, her hearing guiding her along her path to vengeance. It led her here, to a room she had been told was Revan’s before he’d disappeared before her creation. She only hesitated for a moment, reaching a hand out to rip the solid metal from its hinges. The sight that greeted her was sickening. Fingers that she clearly remembered dripping with Jullian’s blood seemed to be savored by him. Her stomach rolled uncomfortably as she came towards, grabbing him by his neck and forcing him into a nearby wall.

“Don’t you EVER fucking think of harming one of my friends again!”

She knew very well what she was capable of, what she could withstand, and she highly doubted that Ravenor would face her in a fight and come away unharmed. Images flashed in her mind, memories and nightmares detailing how easy it would be to demonstrate how deadly any one of her powers could be. Just one slip in her control was all it would take. There was a reason so many spoke of her in the League with fear still in their voices after all. It wasn’t as if she was like that. It wasn’t like she’d kill when unprovoked. She always tried to be so good when playing the hero, such a girl scout. She leaned close to him then, her voice a deathly whisper, as she delivered the plain truth, anyways.

“I don’t care how powerful you think you are. I may look harmless, but I could crush you without breaking a sweat.”

Back with the others, X'Hal was truly at a loss of what needed to be done. A challenge had been issued and yet for all the strange happenings of light dimming and objects moving of their own accord, this Jullian had not accepted. In her mind, it was clear. If a challenge is given, it must be met and a duel fought until the terms of defeat have been fulfilled. Yet, it seemed those around her were far more distressed by his welfare and it left her affronted once again with how little she knew. Such ignorance on her part was quickly becoming intolerable. A thought came to her that perhaps it would be best if she left before they could see her for the fool she was. It was not as if her father would choose to betroth her to one that would be unsuitable for her. Scowling, she pushed the thought away. To leave now would be to play the coward and she would not admit defeat, especially in the first day.

Arsenal and the Wrath of the Ghost!

Arsenal had missed a great deal of what had gone on over the past several moments, but the sight of a teammate apparently bleeding out brought an almost instant response. Her right hand went up and caressed her arrows until her fingertips felt the Braille of the right arrow. It came out of the quiver as her left hand came up near the wound. Arsenal's left hand stopped inches from the bulbous head of the arrow in her right and the arrowhead that would have exploded in a rush of a biodegradable rubbery foam.

It was meant to entrap villains but it could pass as an emergency bandage. The foam would have firmed up, more than enough to seal the wound. "Shit!" was all she had time to say.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Phantasm had been keeping a light probe on the children. She felt it! Blood and harm.

The spirit dropped through the floors unimpeded by any of the security protocols.

Telekinesis. It is the base template of many psychic manifestations. As she dropped through the floors of the building she unconsciously began slowing down molecular motion causing a rapid drop in temperature by twenty to thirty degrees causing a mist to form from the sudden drop in temperatures. Like the wake caused by the prow of a ship her kinetics were causing poltergeist phenomena floors below her, preceding her passing.

In the are of her target, the aggressor of the attack, the temperature went up by as much as fifteen degrees, causing an unnatural breeze.

As Phantasm arrived she bellowed in her unearthly voice "What goes on here?!"

Ravenor was just licking up the last specs of blood when one of the more prominent annoyances broke in to his room, ripping it from its frame, he simply looked on in annoyance, he was expecting something to happen because of what he did.

“Don’t you EVER fucking think of harming one of my friends again!”

He didn’t respond, he just kept watching her with the same look, like she was a child throwing a tantrum, and he had taken one of her toys, even when she came right up to him and leaned in he didn’t flinch or move.

“I don’t care how powerful you think you are. I may look harmless, but I could crush you without breaking a sweat.”

Threats were waited on him, in his lifetime he had been threatened with torturous punishments most couldn’t imagine, and more often than not they were followed up on, simply saying that she could kill him was like saying that the sun would rise in the morning. Sadly though, before he could say anything, before he could explain himself, he was interrupted… again… he realy wasn’t enjoying that.

"What goes on here?!"

He hadn’t realized the change in temperature, having a half dragon physiology did that, not that he actually knew he could do that, but Phantasms voice was quite loud when she wanted it to be “I thought you knew everything that happened in this tower” he said, trying to stay civil, even though he was quickly beginning to anger. “I had a discussion with my brother, then someone broke in to my room” he glared at Alice for a moment “simple really, now unless you have any questions, please kindly leave”

Harvey nodded, and rose, accepting his new friends answer, and understanding that his talk with Julian would have to wait. For now everything and everyone seemed to be in chaos.

Someone needed to take charge.

By which he didn't necessarily mean himself. The main experience he had in leading was when he'd lead his sister and the goons that followed them on a job.

But for now, he'd have to do. He didn't want to, but everybody else seemed to be more bothered with what had just happened.

'Hey.' No one heard him or chose not to, so as he stood there he Imagined that this was a job and that this was his crew.

'HEY!' He yelled, before returning his voice to its normal levels, 'Calm down people, five minutes into this and we're already either making fun of each other or beating each other up.'

'Now, we know that Julian is fine, and anything else can be sorted out by them both LATER. For now though, Lets just settle with Unlocking this place Okay. Then after we've done that, perhaps we can get settled in, then have some sort of meeting or discussion and work out how we're going to work together as a team, because thats what we're all here for. Or I am at least.'

He decided to throw it all to the wind, and tell them the truth about him.

But what about Kestrel? The voice was ignored.

'And do you know what the worst part of all this is?' He was still addressing all of them, 'I'm the Joker. I'm the son of Scarecrone, 2-face, Catman and Harlequin. Yes, I'm the bastard offspring of the Batwomans greatest foes. And three weeks ago, I was one of her foes as well. But I've decided to change, for reasons i'd rather not disclose. Now it was reccomended that I come here, and I have, to do good, and uphold justice, and not stand around watching you all fight, or boss each other around, or show off. And you know what the worst part of this is? That it was an ex-villain who had to tell you this. At the rate you're all bloody going, we won't have to do anything to save the bloody city, cos all the villains will have died of age by the time we get out there.'

He stopped, then realising that he had being ranting heavily, quickly muttered 'sorry', then quickly went and made to exit the room.

He knew exactly what had happened there. The viscous bastard that he tried to constantly suppress had partially surfaced, and had changed his attempt to get things rolling again into the twisted rant it had become.

And now in the back of his mind, he knew he wouldn't blame them if they kicked him out. And in that instant, his emotions changed again, and he lent against the wall and sat down on the floor.

He couldn't trust himself anymore, so how could they? This had always being easier when Jenny had being around, she had acted like a buffer that kept him sane. But since she had gone... no make that, taken away from him, that buffer wasn't there to help him any more.

One would be hard pressed to describe such a city. Michael tried to keep his eyes forward at all times in order not to antagonize anyone nearby. To say some of the people he saw were 'strange' would be an understatement. Even if he didn't look like much of a hero, he didn't really have the most convincing villain disguise either despite being cloaked in black and shrouded in his hood. As long as he didn't stick out too much, things would probably be fine. It wasn't until he heard a high pitched scream down a nearby alley that he paused, glancing down the foreboding crevice.

The darkness shrouded the figures, but it seemed as if a man of strange proportions was advancing upon a woman. After everything he had seen, it was a shock that there was anyone left around to terrorize. Perhaps that was exactly it, and this was just one of those setups to lure out any remaining do-gooders in order to eliminate them. Whatever it was, he couldn't risk doing anything. He hadn't tried to be a hero with his abilities yet, starting now seemed like a poor choice. As he continued forward, the cries weakened progressively until they ceased altogether. Whatever it was, it was done now. He wouldn't be plagued about whether or not he could have saved someone at the likely cost of his own life, because there was just too much horror in the world already. Power had to be used wisely. It may be cold, but feeling it necessary to save anyone at anytime was precisely why heroes would get their weaknesses exploited and eventually killed off. No, the new line of power wielders had to work carefully. Plan wisely and take out evil in a way that benefited the majority. This simply wasn't a world where you were praised for going around rescuing kittens from trees anymore.

As he neared the tower, he began to notice the lack of access via a bridge over the water. Sighing softly, it made him realize his trek through the city had been worthless as he'd have to fly across anyways, something he was hoping to avoid in order to keep a low profile. Nonetheless, there seemed to be little choice. After a short flight over the water which he tried to make as covert as possible, Michael had finally reached the tower, gazing upon it from the base in relative confusion. From an architectural standpoint, it didn't really make a lot of sense, but he had a feeling he'd be throwing sense out the window a lot from then on. The blonde man then glanced around a bit and noticed what looked like an intercom system. He took a few steps to approach it until he stopped himself, gazing at the button a bit unsure of himself. What the hell am I doing? Honestly.. Even if there are 'good guys' in there, what can they tell me? Why should they even believe I'm not an enemy? This is ridiculous. Another case of not thinking anything through on my part...

With that thought, he turned from the door, making his way back to the edge of the island and staring out across the water while his long, dark coat wavered slightly in the breeze. It may have been ridiculous, but was there any point turning back now? Perhaps he'd never figure out just who or what he was, but because that was a possibility, did that really mean it wasn't worth trying? If he couldn't get answers here, then where?

Mallory was caught off guard by the taller male's sudden act of aggression against Jullian, and it was as much due to this surprise then threats of harm to his friend which kept the speedster from reacting. His mouth hung open while gazing through the goggles on his mask, their exchange having registered but coming across as little more then background noise while he watched his friend being threatened. By the time Ravenor had released his grip around the changelings neck, Stat's surprise was slowly starting to subside, until it was steadily replaced with a growing anger which he attempted to fight back. This became even harder to do once his friends assailant smugly addressed him about the remote which was tightly gripping within his clenched fist.

“enjoy the remote speedy”

The sparks which emitted out of the device were enough to startle Mallory, but they quickly became an afterthought as his attention returned to Jullian and the others. If he'd bothered to think about how the rest would react, he would have seen Alice's sudden departure, her parting words making it clear whom she was intending to check up on. Not that he took her words completely to heart, unless Ravenor did anything else to further anger the kryptonian. Glancing over at his father, he could tell that while the former Titan was concerned over the girls words, there wasn't any immediate fear to blood being splattered across the Tower walls. Which was perhaps a greater benefit of the doubt then many others of the older males generation would grant the girl.

"Mallory?" Hex whispered as he placed a hand upon his sons shoulder, watching as the young speedster adverted his gaze elsewhere, trying to avoid letting others glimpse into the anger which remained in his eyes underneath the mask.

When Jullian started reacting to his life being threatened, the lights around them starting to shift in an unnatural manner, Ronan started to take a couple of steps back as his fathers advice about hellbeasts and their like suddenly came to mind. It came as a great relief when the green skinned teen finally seemed to control whatever unnatural temperament was brewing deep inside. At the same time, it left the young Prince feeling rather uneasy about being near the supposed hero, even as he confirmed his well being to their teammate which was choosing the baffling (least going by what he knew of the surface worlds villains) title of The Joker as his codename. Then others started checking in on the teen, with a few comments being made by those in attendance, which one in particular catching his attention.

"I'm not going to have to keep you two separated, am I?"

Without really thinking of how rude his comments would be, especially so closely following the teens assault, Ronan suddenly interjected his own comment as he continued leaning against the nearest wall, "Somebody better, because I didn't exactly agree on coming up here to play mediator for some family squabble which has little place in a supposed team of heroes."

Before anyone else could get in a response, they were interrupted by the Joker, who decided to put in his own thoughts on this oddball team of heroes and its initial problems. The young man also decided on sharing bits of information about his ancestry, which at least helped in explaining to the Atlantean why he picked such an unexpected title for his superhero moniker. Though there was a lot of truth in his words, the events of the past several minutes had left the young Prince with little patience, resulting in a somewhat flippant attribute of is personality making itself known for the time being.

"Yes, and my father nearly killed off the original Titans after betraying their secrets to one of the greatest villains of their time. Stop bragging." The Atlantean responded in his brief attempt at sarcasm, which was a bit more blunt then necessary, as should be expected when your primary source of inspiration is the teachings of Terran Markov, "But he does have a point. Frankly, I don't care about whatever past dealings our parents had with each other. Either positive or negative, they hold little barring for how I view anyone here, and I couldn't care less on what they make you think of myself. All I care about is making it through this experience without getting killed by anyone on or off the team."

Shrugging his shoulders as he stood straight and started walking closer to the others, temporarily ignoring the unsettling feelings he faced when watching Jullian's previous freak out, he summarized, "So we truly do need to work on getting unified and organized. At least enough so I can make it back home with all of my body parts attached in a years time."

Letting out a sigh as he mused over the young Prince truly being his fathers son, the former villain glanced to his side, then around the rest of their immediate area as he spoke, "Has anyone seen Mal?"

Skimming around the room with a cursory glance, Ronan let out a scoffing sound as he pointed out in a rather dry tone of voice, "Not exactly able to keep a leash on him, huh?"

"You have no idea." Hex responded without taking the Atlanteans attitude into consideration, rubbing at the temples of his head as he started making wild guesses at just what his son was doing at this time.

“simple really, now unless you have any questions, please kindly leave”

Without warning, a blunt object came crashing into the wall right behind Ravenor, shattering upon contact after missing his head by little more then several inches. Of course, the rather explosive effect was aided by a small sampling of kinetic energy which was channeled through the remote. Enough so it would easily leave a hole in the wall and singe the area immediately around it, but not cause any serious damage to a human should he accidentally strike Ravenor. Though the man obviously wasn't any regular type of creature, so the temptation for a direct hit proved far more tempting then Stat cared to admit.

"You forgot your remote." The redhead stated with a hint of sarcasm, though his present demeanor as he stood by the doorway was anything but humorous, "I'm assuming Alice already went over what will happen if you threaten Jules again, so allow me this quick opportunity to point out the obvious: It goes double for me, asshole!"

Glaring across the room at Ravenor, Mallory was surprisingly oblivious of Phantasm's presence during his initial arrival on the scene. In fact, he might not have noticed Alice so quickly if he weren't already expecting to see her here upon his arrival, nor if she weren't directly in the way of his view of Jullian's bastard of a brother. Still, he gradually noticed the obvious changes which came with her presence, and it didn't take long before even his anger clouded mind caught onto the fact that the specter was currently amongst them.

"Uh, I can fix that?" Mallory stated as he gestured toward the hole in the wall, speaking in a manner as if he were a new employee which was caught by his supervisor, though his present aggression toward Ravenor himself hadn't shown signs of subsiding so quickly.

Jullian continued to smile as he watched Joker rise up, removing his hand from his shoulder as he did. He could see that the Joker was a good guy at heart, but like himself, he had a dark side, too. Things like this were not easily overlooked, not for him at least. The Joker had the signs painted all over in his aura, many hues glowed in diverse patterns and shapes, a few clouds symbolized his inner troubles, and most importantly, his aura had split right down in the middle and was broken up into different pieces. He could not see his own aura too well, being that he was not fond of looking into ordinary mirrors, but he did believe that his aura did not look any much better than his, if not worse.

He could sense the tension in the group rise up again, tension that neither of the team members needed. He also could sense pain, pain that he had sensed earlier while he had teleported them all here, but had not pointed it out, that is until he had heard the carrier exclaim. He quickly looked over at Arsenal with a look of concern, reeling to go over and question her to see if she was okay.

…But then something else caught his attention. He sensed that energy again, an energy that could only belong to an apparition, only this one was more powerful. There was only one answer, The Phantom of the Tower. He could sense it very well, in fact, very well indeed. And she was without a doubt pissed.

He then found his attention change, yet, once again as he took notice of Kestrel’s presence, feeling her eyes upon him, her attention solely on him for the moment. He could sense the anger rolling off of her, no doubt displeased with what had occurred not too longer after they arrived here in the room.

She then spoke somberly; "I take it you two have a past already." It was a rhetorical question. "Family issues?" She crossed her arms. "I'm not going to have to keep you two separated, am I?"

Jules blinked up at her for a moment, wondering if she was actually being serious or not. Heck, it seemed like both! He had the urge to burst into a fit of giggles, but did not want to seem so boorish to inappropriately allow himself to do so. He closed his eyes, smiling as he placed one of his gloved hands over his mouth, a chuckle escaped nonetheless.

"Somebody better,” Ronan interjected, Jullian‘s eyes shifted over towards his direction. “Because I didn't exactly agree on coming up here to play mediator for some family squabble which has little place in a supposed team of heroes."

All of a sudden, the temperature took a plunge as a sudden wave of paranormal energy spilled throughout the Tower. He low and beheld the sight as everything supernaturally froze around them, finding himself oddly stricken with awe. He blamed himself for considering winters to be so striking, especially when you contemplate on how each individual snowflake was diverse from one to the next. This, however, he believed to be picturesque. Was he odd for thinking so? Yes, yes, he was. Strangely enough, though, he was not afraid in the least.

He found his mind wandering, though. Wandering, as in his mind tracing down the spirit herself. He managed to find her with Alice and his brother. He sighed inwardly. Well, at least someone had finally put an end to the fighting, that is before it actually really ever managed to begin. He wondered how long the two had not been getting along, since it was quite obvious that his brother had been living here just as long or even longer than she had.

“Hey.” He heard a voice speak up, causing him to blink.

He immediately sensed irritation building up. His eyes shifted and directly landed back onto the Joker.

“HEY!” The ex-villain yelled.

Jullian leaned back, his back arched, and his head now upside-down as he gave the clown his full attention.

The Joker’s tone went back to normal as he continued to speak, fully aware that he now had everyone‘s attention. “Calm down, people. Five minutes into this and we're already either making fun of each other or beating each other up.”

“Where is the blasted buttered popcorn when you needed it?” Vladimir snickered, finding the other Titan’s reactions all too amusing.

“Shush.” Jullian mentally retorted, wanting to hear what the man had to say.

“Now, we know that Julian is fine, and anything else can be sorted out by them both LATER.” Stated the Joker.

“I’m up for that!” Vladimir agreed with the statement.

“Shoosh!” Jullian demanded him.

“For now, though,” Joker continued. “Lets just settle with unlocking this place, okay. Then after we've done that, perhaps we can get settled in, then have some sort of meeting or discussion and work out how we're going to work together as a team, because that’s what we're all here for. Or I am at least.”

“Ooh, he’s got that look.” Vladimir pointed out the obvious, singing out the last word as he did.

Even without the look, Jules could tell the man was completely frustrated. Though, being a constant people watcher, he knew body language pretty well.

“He’s going to do it!” Vlad sang once more. “And then his brain is probably going to implode!” He imitated exploding noises, making great use of the hyperbole. “And maybe if we are lucky, the others heads will explode, too, while they are at it! It will be a BLAST! An epidemic of sorts! A smorgasbord of brain meats raining all over the floor as bodies fall down in a cold and lifeless thud!”

Jullian‘s only mental response was, yet again; “Shoosh!”

“And do you know what the worst part of all this is?” The Joker said, letting them all have it. He wanted them to hear it for all it was damned worth, too.

Vladimir hummed to himself. “Here it comes.”

“I'm the Joker. I'm the son of Scarecrone, 2-face, Catman and Harlequin.” The green clad man confessed.

Jullian’s ears wiggled and managed to pop up, more so than usual, when he heard that. It made perfect sense, honestly, no wonder why he had so many different kinds of essence.

“Not bad. Not bad.” His dark side commented. “Certainly they gave the old Batsy a sure run in for the show. At least enough to drive her up the wall.” He snorted.

“Yes, I'm the bastard offspring of the Batwoman’s greatest foes.” The Joker continued, which then grew into raving rant. “And three weeks ago, I was one of her foes as well. But I've decided to change, for reasons I'd rather not disclose. Now it was recommended that I come here, and I have, to do good, and uphold justice, and not stand around watching you all fight, or boss each other around, or show off.”

Vlad feinted hurt with that last remark. “Ooh. I think he was talking about you with that last one, dear insufficient, lesser half of mine.” He mentally jabbed him, snickering. “You show off.” He laughed, his laughter both dark and maniacal.

Jules frowned a bit. “Shoosh!” He mentally chided. “Be quiet, please!” He continued to listen to the ex-villain.

“And you know what the worst part of this is? That it was an ex-villain who had to tell you this. At the rate you're all bloody going, we won't have to do anything to save the bloody city, ‘cause all the villains will have died of age by the time we get out there.” And with saying that, the Joker stopped, realizing he perhaps said too much.

“Mmm… Butter-ific!” Vlad jibed. “Finger licking good, I must say!”

“Sorry.” was the only word he could manage to utter out as he hastily headed out of the room.

Jullian frowned softly, not liking to see anyone having to go through that, even if he did decide to put himself through it. He decided now was the time to get up, so he leapt up, back flipping as he did, landing on his feet elegantly.

"Yes,” Ronan said sardonically.

Jullian turned and looked at him. He should have not been surprised, but he could not help but be astonished at the Atlantean’s behavior.

“And my father nearly killed off the original Titans after betraying their secrets to one of the greatest villains of their time. Stop bragging." His words were more candid, perhaps even cold, than the Prince had intended.

Jules was just thankful that the other teen was not here to hear it. Forcing his emotions back, Jullian managed to give him a disappointed look, the best he could. His bottom lip puckered and his eyes narrowed, a look much similar to that of a dissatisfied child.

"But he does have a point.” Ronan admitted.

Jullian’s facial expression softened, the look he once had now faded away.

“Frankly,” The Prince continued. “I don't care about whatever past dealings our parents had with each other. Either positive or negative, they hold little barring for how I view anyone here, and I couldn't care less on what they make you think of myself. All I care about is making it through this experience without getting killed by anyone on or off the team."

Jullian watched as he decided to wander on over closer to them. He somehow could sense that the blonde haired teen was still nervous, more than likely of him. Jullian tried to push back his hurt, but it showed when sudden it decided to rain outside. A side affect he always had since long before he could remember, and it happened every time he became sad.

"So we truly do need to work on getting unified and organized. At least enough so I can make it back home with all of my body parts attached in a years time."

The green skinned teen decided to smile, hoping that they could all give this whole thing another chance. “I agree with you!” He said cheerfully. “Full heartedly, I sincerely do! I know if we all work together, nothing is impossible! Even a group of hormonal, crazy, high powered super-teens such as ourselves!” He giggled, then a cheesy grin appeared upon his face. “So, what do you say we all put our differences aside and give this another shot? Who‘s with me?” He held his hand out, that is, after he punched it forward with much excitement.

That‘s when Mal‘s father spoke up; "Has anyone seen Mal?"

Jules almost fell over, anime style. He caught himself, though, reeling back a bit in a panic, teetering on the backs of his heels, leaning himself back forward to land back onto his feet, and using his power of flight for a smooth landing. Jullian looked around frantically, sad to say, it was a normal reaction from him when he is caught off guard like he was. He somehow manages to forget to use his brain sometimes.

He heard Ronan scoff, catching his attention immediately once again.

"Not exactly able to keep a leash on him, huh?" The Prince spoke wryly.

"You have no idea." Was Hex’s response, rubbing his temples from the stress of it.

“He’s probably with Alice and my half-brother! Whom I newly discovered, I might add, just awhile ago!” Jullian merrily stated while he had his finger pointing up as he did so. He then placed that raised finger of his upon his chin, closing his eyes, sensing them out, then nodded with a few “Mhmm”s as he did so. “Yes! I was right!”

His face fell all of a sudden, the realization of what trouble they could possibly be getting themselves into dawning of him. He literally looked like a dear caught in headlights, blinking a few times. “ARE THEY CRAZY?!” He exclaimed, actually sensing the action that was taking place. He tried to calm himself down, taking in a few breaths as he did.

“SOMEONE MUST STOP THEM!” He shouted out heroically as he made a dramatic pose, ignoring the stares he was receiving once again. “QUICKLY NOW, BEFORE ANYONE GETS HURT! THERE SHALL BE NO FIGHTING ON MY WATCH!” He then leaned over at Arsenal, his hand beside his mouth, speaking to her as if only she could hear. “Oh, by the way, dear. There are some medical supplies, as well as pain killers and disinfectants, in the bathrooms. I’d take better care of that wound on your hand, if I were you.”

“You embarrass me.” Vladimir stated lowly with a growl.

“Ditto.” Was Trigon’s response.

The two voices groaned.

Then suddenly, Jullian remembered something else! YES!

He stepped into a cliché superhero pose, his hands upon his hips. “But first! I have someone else to tend to! Then I shall confront them all… With love and peace!” He dramatically held his hand up again, only this time making a peace sign.

He heard their groans, but ignored them anyway.

“And I am off!” He said, continuing to speak in a heroic tone. “Up, up, AND AAAAWAAAAAAAAAAY!”

He floated a few feet, only then to land back onto the tips of his toes, which then he quickly tip toed all the way out the exit, like a ballerina. “Laa laa laaaaaaa!” He sang in a childish and humorous manner.

Once out of the room, he became serious again… Well, as serious as he can get without blowing up the whole Tower, that is. He walked down the hall until, searching for someone in particular. Once he spotted him, he quietly appeared right beside him, standing there with his back against the wall. Both of them were now facing the Tower’s windows, which thanks to Phantasm, were no longer covered in their protective shields.

Jullian could sense all of the worry, the pent up frustrations, the pain, and even the sudden emotion change that had occurred before he even entered the hall. He really could empathize with him somewhat. A part of him knew he probably would have done the same thing in his case, but honestly could not, even if he wanted to.

Jullian grinned down at the man, appearing a bit too friendly for most’s tastes. “Hey.” After he caught the Joker’s attention, he stared out at the window. The sky was cloudy and gray, he listened and watched as the rain pitter-pattered against the glass. “Lovely day, isn't it?”

"Great."

Kestrel rubbed her palm against her face, trying to keep her composure as best she could as the supposed team seemed to bolt off in separate directions once more. The hand paused enough to bridge two fingers atop her nose, her pinky and pointer finger resting on either side of her eyes as Joker suddenly schpieled out his take on the situation. Her teeth grit together slightly as he fully announced his lineage, only confirming to her that he was someone to keep her eyes on. The added pinpointing of the fact his parents were adamant antagonists of her grandmother wasn't lost on her, her canines driving so hard against her tongue she could taste blood.

And he was here to try and add some glowing goodness to the family name, was that it? She'd give him something real nice and shiny if he wanted it; a big ol' black eye if he brought up the bad blood between their families once more. The subject was dropped again, however, as he seemed to suddenly have a change in direction, muttering out a blurted apology and hastily darting from the room.

More comments on the situation from Princie-poo in the corner, only to end off with Jullian's overly-excited take on it all as well. "Hm." Kestrel figured it was best to stick with mom's old demeanor on it all; saying nothing said more than enough. Finally letting her hand down from the perch it had kept for a few monites now, she gave a hard sigh. "Right then. I agree with Jullian on this; let's all deal with what we need to and try to get things back off on the right foot. But, ah, before we get too far off in our own little worlds, can we at least make a promise to not try and kill each other?"

She didn't even bother to wait for an answer on that, already turning towards the doorway to go and find the control room for this place.

Joker didn't even flinch as Julian appeared next to him.

“Hey.”

Harvey simply continued staring out of the window at the rain. Or, that was how it appeared at least. In reality his mind was elsewhere.

“Lovely day, isn't it?”

Harvey blinked and came back to the present, as Julian's simple question filtered through his brain. It may have sounded like an innocent question, and may have even being intended as so by Julian, but to Harvey, it sounded like 20 questions rolled into one.

'It is indeed. It's amazing how very few people can appreciate the beautiful side of the rain.'

He paused and let the silence reign for a few seconds, knowing that this was most likely the best oppurtunity for his planned conversation with the green boy.

'I was born with them already inside me,' He started, 'I don't if it's the same for you, but I can't even look in a mirror anymore. I may have being a villian, but all the same I was the nicer... no make that the least evil of them. Everyday, it feels like they're getting stronger and I hate sleeping for the fear that they'll come out. I fear it... and I am supposed to be immune to fear. Now, I'm sure this could be the same for you to some degree, and I want you to know that if you need help or anything, or just to talk, i'm here. Hell, I even know some meditative techniques which could possibly help, but they probably won't.'

His eyes remained facing forwards, and for a second he contemplated telling him about all that had happened, but quickly thought better of it.

'We can't let the others know. Not yet. Not all of them, it wouldn't help if they had to be constantly checking on us to make sure we havent suddenly swapped sides. And I'm gonna have a tough enough time as it is now I've told them who my parents are, Hell, I could feel Kestrel wanting to murder me.'

He chuckled slightly.

'Heh, between me and the other one, its gonna be difficult enough, without them having to worry about you as well.

Finally he turned and regarded the boy for a second, before turning once more towards the rain covered landscape, and the hell that was the city they were here to save.

'God, we really do have our work cut out for us.' He joked, though even as he did, he wondered, if he'd finally managed to make his first ever friend.

Jullian watched and listened closely, his eyes never leaving the raven haired male, and his senses deafened down to everything else but him and the rain. He really did not need his awareness to see that he was anxious, and after having heard the words he had spoken he knew completely now as to why.

“Like an open book.” Vladimir remarked in a bloodcurdling tone, his words more air than vocal. If he currently had control of their body, he would have breathed out in a inveigled manner, mind you, it was his taunting nature.

Jullian understood perfectly well, in fact, he could empathize completely with him now. If anyone else wore those cursed shoes, he did. He stared back out towards the window, his expression calm.

“Having to deal with one’s darkness, especially that of your own,” He spoke softly, his voice soothing. “Is no effortless feat, in fact, meticulous. Life is no stroll in the park, or a bowl of cherries. Being despised by those around you does not make life any easier, let alone being judged simply because you are different. People, especially humans, seem to have never evolved their minds to see past beyond what lies between their very own eyes. It is a fate suffered by most who stand out amongst the compliant crowd, to be hated for they had the courage to break the conventional rules of society. That or out of some form of luck, rotten or otherwise. The world has laws they have to maintain, laws that are not at all different from chains similar to that of slavery. If one individual steps out of line, the very world they had created would very much crumble.”

The young demon looked back at his newly acquired friend with a sanguine smile. “That goes double for superheroes, and especially triple for us.” He looked back out at the rain, as if finding it to be interesting, though he was the once responsible for why it was pouring outside.

He continued; “The dominant species of this world, such selfish creatures they are, even up to the point of blindness. Too quick to judge, to jump the gun, never once looking before they leap, never once taking the time to consider when they first meet someone ‘Hey, that person may not be so bad after all.’ They do not realize the intricate balance of good and evil, the yin and it’s yang. Instead, they insist in being primitive, much like the Neanderthals that came way before them. Blinded by their ignorance and constricted by their biases. And being that this age of “the rat race”, hardly anyone tends to take time to appreciate anything. They are far too busy wanting the next best thing, indulging in hedonism, many now living in debauched lives.” He smiled sadly. “It’s…really sad.”

“Those are my answers to your latter questions, err, statements. And the first.” He took in a deep breath, putting back on his happy face. “I’ve came across so many who have taken one glance at me…before then writing me off.” He scratched his head and sweat dropped. “I can’t count the many times someone pointed a finger at me accusingly, preaching to me words of gloom and doom about a horrible future that is to come! Destiny and all of that, that it’s etched in stone, and that there is no way to go around it.” He then added drollery; “I tend to look at life as a long and winding road, hoping to find the fork in the path, and choosing the right one that won’t lead me to a DEAD END. Only I seem to keep stepping on too many boulders and tripping on them, and man do my feet hurt! And don‘t get me started on those potholes and those horribly distracting signs you can’t help but to read out loud!”

He pushed himself off the wall and walked forward, stopping when he stood before him, the smile on his face consistent. He then folded his hands behind his back, teetering on his heels and on the balls of his feet nervously as he spoke again.

“And the same does go for me.” He confessed, shifting his eyes to one side. “Well, almost. Only mine is a bit different.”

His dark personalities became deadly silent, wondering if they should prod him to be silent. But then again, let the boy ruin his life. It just meant that they would regain control of their body at a much more accelerated pace. His shadow writhed as it now eyed him, desiring to impede him for his sake, it’s tentacles curling into tight balls. The boy had deep, dark secrets, information about himself that would strike fear into the hearts of many. He had secrets he had never even told his closet of friends and here he was about to confess them to a stranger.

“I do have other personalities.” Jules said. “Only mine is of a different breed. I can’t say how, but they are, even if they are a part of me. You could say that they were fused to my soul, not just my psyche. Like you, I was born with them. However, they did not reveal themselves to me until I was a child. I can’t quite recall the first time they did, the memory is fuzzy, hazy. All I know is that nothing good came out of it, out of them.”

He walked backwards towards the window, only then to lean upon it. “I built up barriers, though. However, they can only contain them as long as I remain positive. I can’t get angry, it makes them stronger and very quickly, too. I can’t feel anything negative, though some of those emotions I can feel for a much longer period of time. But it’s all still too risky. One emotion leads to the next, you know? And negativity is like sugar to cancer, the cancer being them, it literally eats me alive. I lose myself every time it happens.”

He smiled brightly. “I do meditate! I know two major forms of meditation, the samatha meditation and the vipassanā meditation, all thanks to my Guru Anoop!” He spoke his words fondly. “He taught me most of what I know about chakras, mantras, oracles, karma, reincarnation, the nature of reality, the universe, ethics, monasticism, and basically all there is to Buddhism. Having a taste of their culture, I had grown quite fond of it and the ways of the oriental. I also learned Bushido, the code of honor carried by the samurai. Though I was told that the wise always carry a good sense of humor, which was quite fitting for me, really.”

He brought his hands forward and clapped them together, his fingers spread apart as he separated his hands from one another, still holding them up, a rather theatric display. “I traveled the world, sincerely, seeking out means and any information I could use to make life better, as well learn how to harness my powers and abilities. But namely in a desperate attempt of trying to withheld that which is my true nature.”

“But I don’t sleep much, sad to say.” He admitted. “I never dream of anything pleasant. And I don’t like mirrors, or reflections for that matter. I see things, horrible things I do not like whenever I look into them. It‘s best I keep away from them.”

“And don’t worry,” He said with a smile. “Your secret is safe with me. And don’t hesitate to confide in me.”

He turned and faced the window, looking out. “And you are right about this city. …It bares too many scars and is riddled with ghosts.”

He narrowed his eyes a bit as he spot something down below, a figure of a man staring out by the edge of the water. His senses rose up again, feeling that the man was lost and unsure. He was stricken hard by his intrigue.

“Hey, there’s a person down there!” He exclaimed in a noticeably excited tone.

He turned to the other man, then practically leapt over to him. “Let’s go see why!” He insisted, practically giddy and not really paying any mind to any protests as he then grabbed the Joker, pulling up onto his feet, only then to hastily teleport them to outside. Well, at least he was wise enough to give them a good amount of distance between them and the man.

“Hey!” He called out to catch the man’s attention.

When the man did, the green teenager waved at him, grinning from ear to ear as he then decided to run over to him. Once face to face, a moment passed as Jullian smiled shyly. He wondered if he had done the right thing, especially since being here he already was being too risky. He pushed it back, nonetheless.

“Hello.” He greeted, then tipped his top hat to him. “Top of the morning to you!” Then a question popped inside of his brain. "...Why are you out here alone standing in the rain?"

Just then the sky miraculously cleared, the sun now shining down upon them.

He laughed a bit nervously. "Well, it WAS raining."

The rain pouring down put Michael into sort of a trance as he continued to stare out towards the water and the city across it. He hated not knowing what to do. He hated not knowing what his motivation was, or what made him happy. Thoughts of destiny and purpose seemed so pointless. People had the capability to do most anything they put their mind to, which was why he felt so confused. What should he be putting his mind to? Was the fact that he had power really enough to warrant seeking out a team of unique people and assisting them on a nearly impossible quest? Maybe he just wished to feel less alone. But he enjoyed being alone, for the most part. People were awkward and bothersome. More contradicting desires, more conflicting thoughts.

None of this changed the fact that he had lost a lot of memories. His only chance was to unlock them and perhaps discover something about his past. Though honestly, even if he did, would it change anything? Of course it wouldn't. The past was the past. Maybe he was better off not knowing. Maybe he had a terrible childhood and blocked it all out. Maybe his parents or whoever didn't want him to know, and it was all some way to protect him. Perhaps Natalie had been right. He wasn't better than those people he had considered his friends. Thoughts like this made him consider flying back right now. If he was quick enough, maybe he could convince Natalie that the conversation never took place. Still, the city was so.. demonic looking. Was it really okay to just leave it like that? How long before it spread outward?

All he knew was he had to do something or else die of boredom. He didn't really like the idea of fighting, but at least it would be a better distraction than drinking. At least then he'd be helping someone. Someone had to do it, right? At that moment, the rain stopped rather abruptly and the sun began to peek through the clouds. Squinting lightly, Michael lowered his hood and glanced upward. The weather sure was strange sometimes. What was stranger was that the city still looked dark and dreary, even without the accompanying rainstorm. The next unexpected occurrence happened a second later with the sound of a voice calling out.

“Hey!”

The blonde-haired man turned quickly, his hand instinctively reaching to his back where his sword was sheathed, but he paused when he noticed who had been speaking to him. A.. young green man.. in a tophat and cape. He didn't quite know what to make of that.

“Hello, Top of the morning to you!”
"...Why are you out here alone standing in the rain?"

He certainly didn't seem villainous, but he definitely made Michael raise an eyebrow. After a few moments to get past the initial confusion, he decided that responding would be wise or else he might be taken for a potential intruder.

"I rather enjoy the rain." He stated rather simply, lowering his hand and proceeding to cross his arms instead. "I.. was actually looking for the Teen Titans. I thought this was their place, but uh.."

He paused momentarily, once again looking the approaching person over. "Maybe I took a wrong turn and ended up at a theater... in 1890..." The man who had suddenly appeared with him wasn't in a very normal looking outfit either, but at least it lacked a tophat.

Ronan supposed it was reassuring to have somebody seeing things from his point of view; even if it was the hyperactive green skinned weirdo. Of course, as far as the Atlantean Prince was concerned, calling Jullian 'weird' was a rather generous understatement. Nothing about this experience was exactly endearing itself to the young man, but greenie and his moody brother were coming off particularly bothersome. As the changeling commenced with acting up over his friends disappearance and the potential for further fighting, the blond commenced with attempting to block off his shouting with a finger in each ear. Sadly, there weren't any set of fingers in all of existence which were big enough for drowning out such an annoyance.

"What I wouldn't give for a ball gag or two." The Prince stated as he watched Jullian make off for the exit, his words not really meant for anyone specifically as he simply disliked holding back his opinions on different matters, "And perhaps one of what these people often referred to as a guillotine."

OK, so perhaps he didn't really mean that last part, though the image of Jullian and Ravenor being placed upon one was a morbidly tempting thought. Truthfully, he was strongly against execution as a means of punishment, save for cases involving those responsible for acts of severe cruelty and devastation. Based on what he'd gathered about certain types of heroes, particularly their surprising amount of mercy when it came to villains who brought about repeated acts of murder or worst against their victims, Ronan could safely assume this to be an eventual clash of philosophies which he'd need to deal with somewhere along the way.

Shaking his head, Hex started off in the direction Ravenor and Alice had left toward, figuring he'd eventually find Mallory somewhere along the way, "I'm going to try and find my son before he causes any serious property damage to the Tower. I'm not exactly thrilled with the prospect of leaving while he's this worked up."

Watching as the older hero left in search of his offspring, Ronan then diverted his attention toward Kestrel as she agreed to the sentiments shared by Jullian and made the seemingly hypothetical question about their being capable of not killing each other. At least that's how it came across for the Atlantean, as she turned and started making her way out of the room rather then waiting for a response from those few who remained in the room. At least it seemed some women on the surface world were as conflicting here as they could be back home. Granted, she was considerably less confounding for the Prince then most of the others who made up this strange team. And, if anything, he silently agreed with her parting comments.

Glancing at those few which remained in the room, the blond let out a sigh as he bit down on his pride just a bit, which seemed a little easier to do thanks to the comparatively smaller audience he was left with now, "Look, I apologize if my previous words or attitude were offensive for either of you. It's simply been a long night, far away from where I've spent most of my life and with a number of sudden changes without everyone else's drama adding onto the stress."

Shrugging his shoulders as he reached his hands for his shirt and started fidgeting with it a bit, still not having grown used to these materials or style as he continued without looking away, "Not that it's an excuse, mind you. It's only a line of reasoning for my behavior and I can't say with any certainty whether it will happen again or not. And I understand how being a supposed 'hero' means dealing with others problems on top of your own. But, in either case, I do apologize."

Much as he may be his fathers son, he was also a product of his mothers firm hand and ideals after living the life she did before finding her proper place in the world. Heck, even his father had warned him about letting his occasional stubbornness and pride get in the way of forming a needed bond with his teammates. So, while it may have been hard for Ronan to issue an apology to anyone he hadn't yet grown to respect, it wasn't exactly out of his nature. All the same, he was grateful none of his people were here to see any of what he'd just done.

Finishing up with the shirt to the point where he felt relatively comfortable, the young Prince gave another shrug as he began to excuse himself, "Well, I'm going to try searching for my bedroom. See if there's anything sent in advance which I can wear that looks less ridiculous on me then this silly get up."

Leaving the room and stepping out into the hallway, the young Atlantean started glancing back and forth as he tried to decide between the two directions he could take from where he stood. Raising an eyebrow as a puzzled expression spread across his features, the half-breed decided upon one route and promptly started making his way down it. Of course, the entire time he found himself wishing he'd paid a little more attention to the details shared by his parents on this places set up during his advance preparation.

Harvey nodded and listened intently as Julian spoke, then as Julian seemed to notice someone outside, Harvey moved to look and without warning Julian grabbed him...

and suddenly they were outside... in the sun...

“Hey!” Yelled Julian

The blonde figure turned and looked at Julian quizically.

“Hello, Top of the morning to you!”
"...Why are you out here alone standing in the rain?"

...Did Julian just say that? Oh my giddy god.

"I rather enjoy the rain."said the figure, who looked as if he was preparing for something "I.. was actually looking for the Teen Titans. I thought this was their place, but uh..Maybe I took a wrong turn and ended up at a theater... in 1890..."

Harvey nearly collapsed with laughter.

"No, no," He smiled, pretty sure that Julain was giving him somekind of 'evil' look, "Forgive my friends eccentricity and fashion sense, but you have come to the right place..."

He paused, realising that this person could esily be a villian who wanted to hurt them, and he quickly grabbed his extending staff, though he kept in small.

"And who are you? And why are you looking for the teen titans?"

The man was baffled by his appearance, Jullian knew this.

"I rather enjoy the rain." The stranger answered and then crossed his arms. "I.. was actually looking for the Teen Titans. I thought this was their place, but uh.." He paused briefly when he saw the Joker joining them. "Maybe I took a wrong turn and ended up at a theater... in 1890..."

Jullian tried to stifle his laughs, not wanting to be rude for laughing at such a comment. He was about to answer, his hand raised with his index finger pointed upward, however, he caught off by the fits of laughter coming from his new compadré. He looked over to him, coming across as a deer caught in headlights, blinking at him rather stupidly.

"No, no," Joker said after calming down, smiling. "Forgive my friend’s eccentricity and fashion sense, but you have come to the right place..."

Nervously, the green demon placed his hand behind his head and started chortling. “Yep, that’s me!”

“Yes, unfortunately.” The dark prince groaned, hating to idly watch as his other persona allowed such disrespect towards himself. “I often wonder myself why I am cursed to share a body with such an idiot as you. Your inanity is utterly excruciating.”

Jullian pouted inwardly at him, a petulant expression upon his visage. “Meanie!”

"And who are you? And why are you looking for the Teen Titans?"

His teammate’s words caught his attention, he drew his attention to his hands and saw the supposed weapons the lad was carrying. His eyes grew wide again, then immediately turned to the new comer. He smiled at him, pretending he saw nothing.

“Please, let us refrain from any violence!” He begged, waving his hands at the stranger. “We all come in peace, I’m sure!” He then kicked himself mentally; “Shadow, you idiot!”

Vladimir snorted.

But the Joker was right to ask such a thing and Jules knew it. He really could not blame or chastise him for being prepared for anything. In fact, Jules was very grateful that he stepped up like that. Even if deep down Jules was a leery individual, by nature he still tends to be rather impetuous, and no doubt his overly friendliness would bite him in the ass.

“But my friend here does have a point!” Jullian declared, he smiled at him, though he was serious. “We’re so itching to know as to why you have come here.”

Jullian stared intensively, his cape blowing in the wind.

The whole situation had become a bit stranger than Michael had expected. He knew there were people in strange outfits here, but this was beyond what he had considered. The dark haired man, after a fit of laughter, was the first to respond. He seemed to be well aware that his companion had odd attire, so Michael felt a bit less concerned for expressing his confusion in that sense. Though it came a bit later than he had predicted, the same man who had spoken up suddenly got weary of some outsider randomly showing up at his doorstep and withdrew what looked to be some sort of rod or staff. Such a reaction caused the dark coated stranger to smirk slightly. He wasn't offended, in fact quite the opposite. He might have taken more offense had they skipped the hostility and immediately offered him tea. At least this way they acknowledged that he may be dangerous.

It was short lived however, as the strange, impeccably dressed green man seemed to play down any need for violence. Michael watched him for a few moments, reading a few of his expressions, as if something entirely different was happening in his mind every so often. Still, he asked the obvious question, which, while simple, was still a confusing one to Michael.

"That's a good question..." He mused softly, almost as if he was only saying it to himself. He took this opportunity to glance up at the tower, then back to the adjacent city. His expression showed uncertainty, to be sure. Finally, he glanced back at the greeting duo and gave a shrug, causing his own long coat to waver slightly against the breeze. "The short, simple version? Assuming you are the.. 'good guys'. I noticed you have a problem..." He proceeded to uncross his arms, gesturing toward the dark city.

"I've been a bit bored, and I think I could help.." He stated rather simply. "I guess I should introduce myself. I'm Michael. By most definitions, I'm no hero. I have no costume, I have no codename, I have no real motivation to help anyone... but..

Sometimes you just get that itch to do something more. You know? So.. which one of you is in charge here?"

Ollie sat back and watched. Was this going to be the way things worked here all the time? Maybe the Outsiders were hiring?

Then she saw Kestral making sense and quitely followed the girl, not saying a word as she got side by side with her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His answer was pure dragon. It figured.

"No bleeding your sybling, understood? It brings out my bad side. Blod tends to bring my kind to a darker place than we are usually in." Phantasm said.

The apparition turned to depart but said as she went "And Alice, I would appreciate it if you fixed his door. One doesn't break in uninvited, it's rude." The head tilted in Stat's general direction "And you Stat will replace the remote you broke."