Bad Luck Lincoln (A Loud House x Teen Titans crossover)

A full moon shined through the silent night as all the citizens of Jump City prepared to sleep, the silent wind soar through the night as no living soul was in a place that wasn't his bed . A building with a shape of a T stood firm over a rock silently watching over the city, its lights turned off as its inhabitants prepared to enter Morpheus realm. In conclusion it was a peaceful night, one that no dared to interrupted, well almost no one.

“Jump City Police, stop running and drop the bag!” yelled a brave police man as he pursued his target.

“Shit” a small boy, no older than 13, thought as he ran from his pursuer a small mask hiding his face from the law.

The boy ran swiftly through the dark alleys of the city as his white hair shined with the light of the moon. His hopes for a quick escape were dashed as he turned right into a corner that lead to a dead  alley. He tried to turned back, but it was too late, the cop got him cornered with no way out.

“Bad luck, kid.” Said the policeman as he aimed his gun to the suspect. “Now put the bag on the floor and put your hands into the air.”

As the boy complied, the policeman slowly approached the boy never noticing a faint sound that came from above.

“You should leave while you are still able to do so..” The boy said as the policeman came closer.
“You dont scare me kid,” The policeman scoffed “All your friends ran in different directions, no one will come, you are alone.” He said not noticing that the noise grew louder.

“I mean you really need to get away from me, unless you want to have a bad time” the boy said again never taking away his sigh from the cops eyes.

“Shut up kid, you are under arrest.” Replied the lone policeman as he took out his handcuff and moved to apprehend the suspect.

The boy could only sighed as he made no move to resist. He only looked up as if waiting for a miracle. The policeman was inches away from ending this little chase and finally go home to his wife, when a loud noise disrupt his line of thoughts.

“You really should had go when you had the chance...” said the boy, his eyes glued to the moon as he refused to watch what he knew would happen. The policeman looked up and was terrified of what he saw.

Snap!

The sound of metal breaking was heard throughout the night as the old giant billboard located at the roof of the building finally collapsed under the stress of the years. It’s giant metal frame plumbed into the street below.

The brave policeman could only screamed in horror as he was crushed and impaled by the debris of the fallen billboard.

“...‘Cause bad things happens to people that are near me.” Concluded the boy as he dared to looked into the wreckage. Another life gone thanks to him, He really hate it, but if everything goes right tonight, that brave policeman would be the last soul that would suffered by his powers. All thanks to the content of the bag.

“Oh, hi guys, I really didn't see you there,” said the boy as he talked to the audience “..hehehe, Its been awhile since we last talk to each other, and a lot of things have change.” The boy said as pick up the bag, he eyed its content searching for any damage, finding none he strapped it on his back as resume his conversation.

“I know that what you have seen so far looks bad, but trust me I am doing anything I can to fix it, and after almost two years I think I finally found the way to do it” The boy said with a smile in his face.

“Hey Albino, why are you taking so much? Do you have the package?” a voice asked from his comm.
“Yes, Gizmo” Lincoln said through his comm. “I have the package, and stop calling me albino!”
“I will when you stop being one!” Gizmo yelled back “Anyway get to extraction point quickly or I will leave your butt behind! Also turn your freakish power off, I don't want my gadgets to break again”
“I told you it doesn't work that way.” Lincoln responded as he pinched his nose “Just don't be late, we don't want to make Headmaster Blood angrier by arriving late to school.”

As he turned off his comm the silent peace that he had interrupted slowly crawled back into the night. Lincoln silently sprint through the night as his mission came to an end. As he arrived to the extraction point he couldn't help but to think what did tomorrow had for him. He honestly didn't knew, but with all the mess he did tonight it wouldn't be anything  good.
He then dared to think of a time where things were different, when he and his family were just that, a family. He knew those times where gone, but as he entered the extraction ship he looked at the bag once again, inside of it lied his only hope for his family to be a family again.

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The full moon shined through the night as the silent ship flew over the skies. Inside there were only 2 boys, a small bald boy in a green jumpsuit piloting the ship and a 13 years old boy with white hair holding a bag. These two kids where none other than Gizmo and Lincoln, two students of the prestigious Hive academy for talented young people (please replace the word people with villains for a more accurate descriptions.)

“So albino, what did you had to steal?” Gizmo asked. The headmaster had announced at the beginning of the semester that he was going to assigns a task to each one of them that they had to complete in order to pass the class. It was supposed to be some kind of test to prove that they were ready for more difficult missions in the future.

“Some device from the Wayne's enterprise building at the city. They have a good security systems for their labs, but someone may had accidentally leaved his access card around and I may coincidentally found said card and use them to slip into the lab unnoticed”. Lincoln explained.

“Screw you and that dumb luck of yours! I had to use almost my entire repertoire of inventions to secure my package.” Gizmo said as he showed a small usb in his hand.

“Oh really? What did you have to steal?” Lincoln asked with genuine curiosity. He had seen how big was the number of Gizmo inventions, if he had to bring his A-game it must had been a really difficult task.

“Prepare yourself to be amazed Albino, ‘cause this thing right here,” he said pointing at the USB. “Contains all the last schematics from S.T.A.R.S labs including but not limited to: Powersuits, inhibitors collars, Laser technology, holograms and even how to create synthetic kryptonite! Do you know how much those idiots at metropolis will pay for this baby? Millions! I am going to be rich!” Gizmo laugh with a smile in his face, Lincoln didn't had the heart to tell him that the headmaster would probably take it and not give the boy anything.

“Nothing can ruin this day, not even those freakish powers of yours.” Gizmo said, immediately after that the sky turned a slight shade of grey as thunder could be heard at the distance.

“Really Albino?” Gizmo deadpanned as Lincoln defend himself.
“What? That wasn’t me, you know storm seasons started last week.” Lincoln said with a small innocent smile in his face. “And stop calling me Albino!”
“Whatever Albino, by the way you should buckle up, ‘cause we are landing in 5 minutes.”

*Scene Change*

Once they landed, it only took a couple of minutes to reach the headmaster's  office, on the way they passed many students that had faces that showed either total happiness or extreme sadness, signaling the degree of success on their mission. As they arrived they saw that they weren't alone. A skinny girl with pink hair and cat-like pupils, she was wearing a black long sleeved dress; and a huge muscled teenager eating a donut, his black sleeveless shirt did nothing to hide his big muscles. Lincoln recognized them immediately.

“Hi, Jinx, Hi mammoth” Lincoln saluted.
“Hi Lincoln”
“Hi Fluffy Bunny”

Both Jinx and Mammoth said. Gizmo laughed at the nickname while Lincoln looked annoyed. He hopped Mammoth stopped using that name after the last guy who used to tease him with it suffered an unfortunate…... “accident”.. . He still let it slide though because he knew Mammoth didn't mean anything bad with it. It was just Mammoth being Mammoth.

“So, how did you guys do?” asked Lincoln after Gizmo stopped laughing.
“Great, Headmaster Blood just finished congratulating us for our excellent display, Mammoth stole a safe filled with black-mail materials and I stole something extremely valuable material from a nearby government laboratory.” Jinx said.

“How about you Lincoln? Any problems?” She asked
“No, nobody saw me.”Lincoln lied, they were his friends but he was still uncomfortable about talking about how he accidentally killed another man with his powers.

“Next” The voice of the headmaster could be heard across the door as Lincoln entered the office.

*Scene change*

Lincoln stood in front the Headmaster's desk. Brother Blood was a tall intimidating man, the creepy office didn’t help at all.

“Lincoln Loud” Headmaster Blood said with a voice that sent shivers down Lincoln's spine. “Such a great student, I sincerely hope you succeeded at the task I assigned you.”
“Y-Yes, sir” Lincoln nervously said as he handed the bag to the Headmaster. Headmaster Blood proceeded to open it and took out a small device with the Wayne Enterprise Logo on it.
“Excellent” He said “You have done a great job my student. Dismissed”

“U-Uhm sir, about what you promise me….” Lincoln nervously said trying to not be disrespectful to the Headmaster.

“Don't worry about it child, I am a man of my word.” Headmaster Blood said “With the materials the other students gathered, my gift to you will be finish soon.”

“Thanks, sir” Lincoln's said, but he noticed the headmaster was staring at him.
“Is something wrong sir?” Lincoln asked, breaking the Headmaster out of his stupor.
“Nothing wrong, I was just thinking about how much you have changed from that lonely little boy I picked from the streets 2 years ago. I saw great potential inside of you and I am glad I wasn’t wrong. I am very proud of you.” The headmaster said with a soft smile.
“Thanks you for everything headmaster.” Lincoln said as he blushed at the headmaster’s praise.

“No problem boy. I expect great things of you, that's why you will continue working on heists for the remaining of the semester with Jinx's, Mammoth and Gizmo, they your new partners.” Said Headmaster Blood making Lincoln's eyes widen.

“B-But Headmaster, you told me that if I passed the graduation test, you wouldn’t make me d-”
“Are you disobeying me, boy?!” The Headmaster yelled as his eyes turned bright red.
Lincoln’s eyes turned red for a moment before he finally said “No sir”
“Good, now that you're already part of a team, you need a field name, you can’t exactly go around using your real name during a mission, can you?” The headmaster mockingly asked.
“No sir” Lincoln still answered almost robotically
“Umm, what to choose? Oh! I know: Omen, it fits you perfectly, after all you are practically an omen in the sky. Do you like it?” Headmaster Blood said
“Yes, sir” Lincoln answered back.
“Good, dismissed” The headmaster said as Lincoln, now known in the field as Omen, walked out of the office and into his room, ignoring Gizmo. He lied on his bed thinking about what would the future would hold for him. Sleep quickly followed.

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The sun shined through the morning as its rays peared through the windows of certain building in the shape of a T. Inside, all of the inhabitants, from the empath to the machine, were sleeping soundly. The crimes-rates of Jump city had become significantly lower the last couple weeks, giving the superpowered teeneagers a rare and so much needed free time. There were still some petty crimes that occurred around the city, but nothing too big that the cops couldn‘t handle. There was collective agreement and the team decided to take a well deserved rest and enjoy their free time while they could. Raven would read, Starfire would cook (much to the dismay of her teammates), Cyborg worked on his car, Beast Boy played video games all day long, even Robin, the work obsessed leader of the titans, had agreed to relax, but still monitored the police radio in case of an emergency.

The sound on the blaring alarm suddenly woke them up.
“Titans, briefing room, now!” Robin ordered.

The Titans quickly woke up, and got ready for a mission. In a matter of minutes all of them were in the briefing room, Robin being naturally the first. All of them were ready except…

“Sorry, for being late everybody” Beast Boy entered the briefing room, one feet still without his shoe, “Took a while to find my left shoe.” he said as he held a shoe in one of his hands.

“With the state your room is, I am surprised you haven’t drown already in your own garbage.” Raven deadpanned.
“Hey! I can keep my room clean Rae.” Beast Boy exclaimed.
“Don't call me Rae.” Raven immediately replied.

“Enough!” Robin interrupted them before they could start arguing again. “The reason I have gathered you here is because yesterday at approximately 11:00 p.m while we were sleeping Jump City was hitted by a series of coordinated heist all across the city.” Robin said as a series of images, from buildings, to devices to schematics, popped up on the screen. “So far the police have reported 24 different heist all with several degrees of success, we suspect there are more but we still need more evidence to confirm it. We have received reports  of heists that goes from Lexcorp to a S.T.A.R Labs to a government facility at the outskirts of the city. All of them hit with precise coordination and extreme efficiency, some of them took hours to realize that they were robbed. ” Robin said as more images appeared on the screen.
“So far our only suspect is the H.I.V.E academy, for they are the only ones who have the manpower to pull this kind of heist| in so little time.”

“So what was stolen?” Cyborg asked

“The stolen objects vary from new inventions and technologies to very sensitive data, but the biggest and number one priority so far is a briefcase filled with 6 bars of pure xenothium.” Robin said in a serious voice as Cyborg eye’s widened and Robin knew why, xenothium was a highly unstable element, in the wrong hands it could be used to wipe out several blocks of the city.

“Due to the huge amount of work ahead of us, we will be working with the Jump City Police Department. We will split up to check the crime scenes, I will send to each one the coordinates of where you need to go, but I want everybody to keep your Titan communicator close in case of an emergency. Got it?”

“Yes!” Everybody said.
“Good, Titans Go!” Robin said as they went to investigate the crime scenes.

*Meanwhile at the Hive Academy for talented young people (villians)*

While our young heroes were busy investigating the multiple crime scene, our young villains awoke to a very different kind of morning, the atmosphere around the academy was one of victory. The school had allowed the students to celebrate the success of their mission by  having a pizza day at the cafeteria. This of course was well received by the student body, who rushed to the cafeteria as soon as the bell rang like if their life depended on it. It kind of reminded Lincoln of home.

“Next”

The lunch lady announced as Lincoln picked up 2 slices of pepperoni pizza and left the line. He easily spotted the table were his friends where, it seemed like Jinx and Gizmo were arguing about something, and started walking towards it. As he approach he could see a huge pile of empty pizza boxes, no doubt the work of his friend Mammoth, his presence didn't go unnoticed for long as Jinx interrupted her conversation to salute him.

“Hi Omen!” Jinx said with a smile on her face as Gizmo stuck out his tongue to her “what do you got there?”
“Oh this, just some pepperoni pizza, what about you? What were you talking about?”
“Nothing, just how awesome it would be if I could do my internship with Madam Rouge after the semester is finished. I have been her greatest fan ev...”
“.....Ever since you were just a little girl at junior H.I.V.E academy” Gizmo, Mammoth and Omen finished in perfect synchronisation. Jinx had already told them that story, a lot. She only puffed her cheeks and stuck out her tongue in response.

H.I.V.E academy  was proud of not only being a villain academy for young people, but an excellent one. As such, it offered a lot of programs and internships with some of the world best super-villains for anyone who is interested, it usually wasn't mandatory but this year Headmaster Blood made it obligatory for Lincoln's class to pick one villain to work under for half a year if they wanted to study another year at the academy.

“So what about you, Omen? Who do want to call boss for 6 months?” Jinx asked
“Hehe, actually I am still not sure who I will I choose.” Omen responded as rubbed the back of his head.
“Why don't you pick that Ra’s a Ghul guy?” Gizmo asked “You already went to his “League of Shadows Summer Camp ” last year.”
“Not really what I’m looking for,” Omen responded with a shrug “Plus I only went to that summer camp so I didn't fail Stealth Tactics 101.”

RRIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNGGG!!

The sound of the bell announced the end of the lunch as all the students started heading towards their respective classes.

“Let’s go guys” said Jinx as she stood up. “We don't want to be late to “Law and How to break it” with professor White.”

With that said the rest of the gang standed up and followed her as they all laughed and talked, they decided today was the best day ever!

  *Back with the Titans*

Today was the worst day ever, Raven decided. The original 24 heists had now turned into 57 and growing as more reports arrived to the police station about more heists last night. She was heading to the Waynes Enterprise building who reported approximately  an hour ago that a breaking had occurred during the middle of the night. She was surprised however that when she arrived her leader Robin was already there, his trademark scowl was deeper than usual as he talked to policeman.

“Robin” Raven saluted him with her monotone tone.
“Raven”  he saluted back.
“Same as others?” She asked.
“Yes, but this time the culprit didn't trigger the alarm, probably used a stolen access card.” Robin deduced.
“Isn‘t the personal trained against this kind of things?” Raven asked.
“They are” Robin confirmed. “The culprit must have been a master thief to accomplish all this and still go unnoticed.”
“It would be easy, seeing that ya’ll were sleeping soundly like the good lil’ kids you are.” The policeman sneered as Raven only raised an eyebrow at his response. Robin was about to retort when a gruff voice interrupted him.

“Williams, secure the perimeter while I handle the Titans, No buts, unless you want to be stuck doing paperwork for a month!” The captain said as Officer Williams begrudgingly obeyed.

“Please forgive the rookie,” The captain apologized. “He really didn’t mean it, tensions are high because of the heists and it doesn't help that we lost one of ours thanks to all this shit.” The captain said in a sad tone.

“Was he…..” Robin was interrupted by the captain.
“Murdered? Honestly we don't have any idea of what truly happened, Officer Vasquez was sent to investigate a possible heist in progress a couple streets away  when he spotted a suspicious individual leaving the building, last thing we knew about him was that he was tailing the suspect, we found his body a couple blocks ahead, I can show you the crime scene if you want, maybe you can find something we missed.” The capitan offered. Robin nodded as the three of them started heading toward the crime scene.

“Were you able to determined the cause of death?” Robin asked.
 “Yes, that was easy,” The captain said surprising Robin. “He was crushed and impaled by the debris of a fallen billboard, you know, the Lexcorp one. Now the thing that is troubling us is that we haven't been able to figure out why did the billboard fell down. We inspected the zone and found no evidence of a struggle, scorch marks, signs of it being torn down or anything that could gives us a clue,  it seems like officer Vazquez was at the wrong place at the wrong time. The detectives ruled it out as a freak accident, but with all the mumbo jumbo that happens around we cannot be sure, what about you?, can you pick any clue of what happened here?” The captain asked as Robin stared at Raven, giving her an unspoken order.

“On it.” Raven said as she close her eyes and scanned the area with her powers. After a couple of moments she opened her eyes and addressed her team leader.
“Robin, the suspect targeted the screws of the billboard. The energy I feel is similar to the one I felt on Jinx last time we fought but it is not exactly the same, so whoever did this must have a similar set of powers that he greatly controls if he can target an object as small as the screws.” Raven finished her report as Robin turned to the captain.

“Don't worry captain, we'll find this killer, no matter where he is he will not escape justice.”

*With the killer *

“Achoo!”

With a speed that would made even the Flash jealous, the students vacated the area near Lincoln's desk as he sneezed. Lincoln looked around to see that the desks around him were empty and all the nearby students and even the teacher were backed against the walls some even used the desks as shields. Lincoln couldn't blame them though, it wasn't exactly the first time he accidentally destroy something or hurt someone with his powers while he sneezed.

“Don't worry guys! It was a false alarm.” Lincoln told his classmates as they released the breath they were all holding, even the teacher let out a sigh of relief as he continued the lesson as if nothing happened at least until a voice was heard through the communicator.

“Omen please report at the Headmaster‘s office.” A female voiced said.

“Ohhhhh, someone is in trouble!” Lincoln heard one of the clones of Billy Numerous said as some students started snickering at his misfortune.

As Lincoln simply stood up and headed towards the  headmaster's office, if a roof tile fell coincidentally over Billy‘s head then it was a complete accident, so Lincoln says.

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Lincoln stood nervously in front of the Headmaster’s office. He had a bad feeling of  about this. The door opened as he heard the headmaster said.

“Come in.”

The tone in headmaster’s voice sent shivers down Lincoln´s spine and alert him that he wasn't in a good mood. Not wanting to piss off Brother Blood more the boy reluctantly entered.

He was greeted by an stoic headmaster, but this one wasn't the usual stoic headmaster Lincoln knew. No, this level of stoicness was reserved to when the headmaster was truly pissed of. Lincoln gulped down when the headmaster’s gaze fell upon him.

“Hi Omen, please sit down.”  Headmaster Blood said with a fake smile. That smile only made the sense of dread inside of Lincoln grow. As soon as he took a sit a set of metal wristband bound him to the chair.

“So I received a call this morning, an… associate of mine was inquiring about a certain billboard he own that mysteriously felt down last night, you wouldn't happen to know what  happen to it?” His eyes narrowed. “Would you?”

“U-Umm, about that-” Lincoln wasn't able to finish as the headmaster interrupted him.

“BECAUSE THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A VERY FOOLISH MISTAKE, THAT WOULD CERTAINLY LEAD TO YOUR DOOM!” Headmaster Blood yelled as he stood up, eyes blood red, filled with fury and with a wall of fire that seemed to appeared behind him.

Lincoln had never felt more scared in his entire life. Fear and dread filled his entire body as he tried to back out, but the metal handcuff made it impossible for him to escape the wrath of the headmaster. Doing his best to control himself, he stammered.

“S-Sor-Sorry, sir.” Lincoln said, but the headmaster ignored him.

“SORRY YOU WILL BE,  AFTER I AM DONE WITH YOU!” Lincoln could only close his eyes as he prepared to suffer the wrath the headmaster, when the sound of laughter was heard through the office.

Lincoln slowly opened his eyes, to his surprise he saw the headmaster back on his chair, a small grin adorned his face.

“HaHaHa, you should have seen your face.” The headmaster said as he whipped away a fake tear from his eyes. “Sorry about all this Omen, but I need you to be truly scared to test if it worked out.”

“U-Umm if what worked out, sir?” Lincoln asked fearfully, he didn't want to make the headmaster angry again.

“Really Omen? Haven't you noticed that this room seems a little bit intact after I put the fear of god into a teenager with emotional triggered powers such as yourself?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.

This seemed to snap Lincoln out of his stupor, he looked around to see that the headmaster was telling the truth. The room was just as it was before he entered, but that shouldn't be possible, the last time Gizmo scared him he accidently brought down a wall with his powers. And that scare wasn't even a fourth of what he just suffered.  As if he could read Lincoln’s mind, Headmaster Blood pressed a button on his desk and immediately the left wristband opened freeing Lincoln's hand, The right one on the other hand unattached itself from the chair before bounding firmly unto Lincoln’s wrist. Two green lights appeared around the metal bracelet, as Lincoln could only stare at it dumbly.

“Is this...” Lincoln couldn't believe it.
“Yes, young one, this is my gift to you,” The headmaster said. “Well at least it is prototype of my gift, it is still missing some key functions, but it will be good enough for you next assignment.”

“Next assignment?” Lincoln asked with wide eyes, but the  headmaster chose to ignore him. Instead he looked at the door and said.

“Enter”

As on cue, the door open and Jinx, Gizmo, and Mammoth all walked into the office. All of them sporting a nervous look on their faces. They all stood straight in front of the headmaster’s desk, Lincoln decided to join them before the Headmaster started talking.

“Younglings, I’ve called you here today, because you four showed the best performance during the graduation test last night, and as such I see fit that you four should be the first ones of your class to have a proper assignment.” All four pair of eyes widened, three of excitement and one of uncertainty.

“You see, I am interested in a certain object of great value that have been deposited on vault 117 of the Jump City Federal Bank, your task is simple you will break into the bank and recover the package, I am clear?” The headmaster said eyes glowing red.

“Yes, sir” Four voices said in unison as their eyes glowed red for a moment.
“Good, now you have two days to perform the heist, use your time wisely and prepare properly.” The headmaster said as the four teenagers prepared to leave.

“Oh, and kids” The voice of the headmaster stop them in their tracks, “Don't disappoint me.”

The four of them walked out of the headmaster and headed to the library, Jinx nervously paced around the whole way while biting her thumbnails.

“Could you relax?! You’re making everyone nervous.” Gizmo finally snapped.
“Relax, Relax!? How can I relax!? How can you relax!? We have two days to plan and perform a break in into one of the city’s most secure buildings.! We need to hurry!”

Omen remained silent as Jinx ordered Mammoth and Gizmo around. Suddenly a smile slowly grew on his face.

“Guys,” He said, a full grin now formed on his face. “I think I have a plan.”
*With the Titans*

Robin sat silently in front of the Titan’s computer. Days had passed since the city was hit by the heists and they were still no closer to catch the H.I.V.E students responsible for it. Most of them were clever enough to perfectly erase their tracks.
On the other hand, the investigation of Officer Vasquez murder still led to nothing, no evidence could be recovered from the crime scene and the autopsy only confirmed that he was crushed and impaled to death by the debris of the of the billboard. So far, the only lead to the case is Jinx, who had a similar power to the murderer. That's why he had spent the past two days in front of his computer searching for all of Jinx known associates. But even with all information he had, there were still no clue of the suspect identity. He needed more information, but how?

Robin’s eyes widened as an idea formed in his mind. A small grin grew on his face. He was so focused that he almost missed the sound of the alarm blasting through the building. Almost.

*At the Jump City Federal Bank*

Lincoln a.k.a. Omen stood alone in front of vault 117 of the Jump City Federal Bank. One of Gizmo new trinket was attached to the vault, quickly opening it without damaging it. He was surprised by how Gizmo managed to build such an impressive invention in so little time. It took some time to open the enormous safe lock, but he wasn't in a hurry. Gizmo had hacked the security system of the bank and all the guards were all stuck in the bathroom for at least a few hours. Lincoln almost felt sorry for them, but hey, they were just the unlucky ones to pick the only box from the store filled with spoiled donuts, that would  teach them to eat while on the job.

He looked at the metal bracelet bound to his wrist. He still couldn’t control what would exactly happen, but the bracelet help him control when will it happen. No more accidental misery for those around him, and that was a win in Lincoln’s book.

A small beep signaled Omen that the vault was open. He removed the device from the vault and proceeded to carefully open it. Inside lay a small amulet that fitted the description Headmaster blood gave them. He extracted the amulet before carefully replacing it with a fake one Jinx managed to get from one of her contacts.

*RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING*

The sound of the alarm was heard through the bank as Omen closed the vault. Omen simply smirked as the alarm rang, just as he had planned.

The alarm came from the other side of the building, where Jinx, Mammoth, and Gizmo were stealing solid bars of pure gold. Knowing that the alarm would attract the Titans, Omen gave the amulet to one of Gizmo drones for safe-keeping. As the drone went back to the ship, Omen went instead back to his teammates.
As he approached the room, the sound of shattering glass told him that the titans had taken the bait. Once he arrived he saw his teammates battle the Titans a floor beneath him. He silently gave Jinx the signal that he was ready for extraction. A simple nod from her part told him to start the final step of his plan.

He took a small breath, as he flared his powers. The roof directly above the Titans suddenly collapsed almost crushing them. Raven’s eyes widened as she felt the mysterious energy from before.

“Robin, he’s here.” Omen heard Raven say. He could see Robin's eyes widened  before  starting to look for him. Not wanting to make the leader of the Titans wait any longer, Omen jumped from the balcony he was in, and landed right besides Jinx. The sudden arrival of the unknown boy startled the Titans.

“So did you finally decided to join the party, Omen? Don't worry you didn't missed much” Jinx teased him while taunting the Titans..
“The only party you guys will be joining will be in jail! Titans Go!” Robin barked back.

This was Omen’s queue to flare his power once more. Starfire was ready launch her signature energy bolt, when a sudden sneeze made her miss her target. Unfortunately or fortunately depending of the point of view she managed to hit something, that something was Robin’s utility belt, more precisely the pouch where he kept his smoke bombs.

Smoke filled the room as the Titans lost sight of their opponents. Once the smoke cleared they were alone, the H.I.V.E crew long gone along with several bars of gold.

“Oh man! I can't believe they escaped.” Beast Boy said.
“Don't worry,” Robin said, a smirk in his face as he hold a small tracking device in his hand. “I think we will see them again very soon.”

*At the H.I.V.E academy some time later*

Lincoln sat on his room studying, a week had passed since the successful heist. To say that the headmaster was satisfied was an understatement. Not only did they managed to steal the amulet without anyone noticing. But the also they managed to steal a huge amount of gold from the bank while humiliating the Titans a little bit. The headmaster decided to keep the most of the gold for the school, but allowed to keep half a bar to each one of them. He also took back Lincoln’s bracelete to do some updates to it.

*Knock Knock*

The sound of someone knocking at his door, brought Lincoln out of his musing. Well that’s a first, who could be at this hours of the night?  Most students tend to avoid him and his room thanks to his powers, so unless it was a for an official reason, few people dared  to approach his dwellings.

He opened a the door and saw a big african american teenager standing on the other side of it. Lincoln had never seen him before, he was wearing a black t-shirt along with a metal head bang and a metal bracelet on each wrist. A small bag was behind him.

“Umm hello, are you Omen?” The teenager asked, he definitely was new to the school.
“Yes, why?” Lincoln asked, he didn't like where this was going.
“My name is Stone, and according to the headmaster I am your new roommate.”

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It had been days since Cyborg now known as Stone manage to successfully infiltrate the H.I.V.E academy. So far so good, he had already started gathering useful information about  Brother Blood’s little “Class Project” and no one, not even the headmaster suspected of his true identity. The only problem so far was his roommate Omen.

“...An individual with a pinpoint control of his powers, he displays marksman levels of accuracy during his different missions. Creative and sadist, may also show psychopathic tendencies... ”. Those were the words Robin used to describe Omen in his criminal profile he gave Cyborg at the start of his mission. The problem was that none of those words could be used to describe the young boy Cyborg met. Kind, helpful and friendly were the words that appeared in Cyborg’s head instead when he thought of his ashen haired roommate. The kid had been nothing but considerate to him, showing him the way around the school, introducing him to staff and students. Honestly, for Cyborg it was easy to forget that the kid was a villain-in-training. The only sign that something was off about him was the way other students seemed weary, or even fearful, of his presence.

Cyborg’s musings were cut short when he bumped into another student. Do to the height difference the other boy fell to the ground.

“Hey watch out where you walk, newbie!” Cyborg heard the voice of the red clad teenager  yelling at him.
“Yeah, who do you think you are?!” An identical copy of the teenager said behind him.
“Don't you know who we are?!” Another copy appeared out of nowhere.  The kid was Billy Numerous according to Cyborg’s database. Great, he had to pissed off the only student with a personal army.
“Lets teach this punk a lesson!” said another clone with a terrible Dirty Harry voice.

The clones surrounded Cyborg as he turned into his “Stone mode”, as he liked to call it. Just as the fight was about to start. A voice gathered the attention of all the participants.

“Billy, could you please stop messing with my roommate?”

It was Omen, and by the look on his face he wasn't amused. Most of the Billy’s clones suddenly disappeared as the original gained a look of fear on his face.

“H-Hey Omen,” The red clad boy stuttered. “I didn't see you there.” The white haired boy simply raised an eyebrow making Billy even more nervous. He quickly turned to Cyborg and vigorously shook his hand.

“Sorry about all that,” The original said and ran away. A clone shook his hand again.
“I didn't knew you where his roommate!, it was a pleasure knowing you!” The second one said and ran away as a third and final clone shook his hand once again.
“Hope you don't suffer too much, bye!” The last one said before finally running away like the others.
“Thanks, wait what?!” Cyborg said as he heard what the last clone said, he turned to Omen who simply shrugged at Billy’s behavior.

 As the two boys walked towards their next class, an awkward silence fell between them. Cyborg couldn't handle it anymore and asked the question that was stuck in his mind.

“Hey Omen, sorry but I have to ask: Why did that guy was so afraid of you?”

Cyborg could notice how Omen’s body tensed out as soon as he asked the question. The boy finally let out a sigh before answering him:

“Well, I might as well tell you know, you would have found anyways. It isn't exactly a secret around here that I don't have a very good control of my powers. ”
“Your powers?” Cyborg asked, this didn't matched at all with Robin’s report.
“Yeah, I’m bad luck or at the very least I cause it.” Omen replied.
“Bad Luck? Like Jinx?”
“More or less, Jinx have a greater control over her powers than me, she can actually choose where her powers are headed. Me? Think of mine as a Bad luck field, bad things happen around me, the stronger the feeling, the worst things get.”
“Basically when you get mad bad things happens?” “Emotionally triggered powers, just like Raven” Cyborg though.
“I wish it would only happen when I am mad, any emotion can trigger my powers if it is strong enough. One time I was so happy that I passed one of professor’s White test that I accidentally caused one of Billy Numerous clones to spontaneously combust.”
“Yikes!” Cyborg replied with wide eyes.
“Yeah, Jinx and the headmaster are helping me learn to control them, but most students still tend to avoid me. Hard to make a friend when they are all afraid of being near you.”
“I am not afraid.” Cyborg said making Omen look at him with surprise. “You have been nothing but helpful and nice to me ever since I arrived to this place, and sure you may have some trouble controlling your powers, but who cares? That’s the reason we came to this school, plus you are actually doing something about it, and that’s a good thing in my book. So what do you say friends?” Cyborg said while extending his hand towards Omen.

Omen stared at it for a moment before he shook his hand.

“Friends” Omen said with an honest smile in his face.

The moment of friendship ended when a familiar voice spoke to them.

“Hi Stone, hi Omen.” It was Jinx accompanied by Gizmo and Mammoth. “Omen, professor White wants to talk you in his classroom now. ” Jinx said with a sweet smile. Too sweet in Cyborgs opinion.
“Umm, okay? See you later Stone.” Omen said as he walked away from the group.

As soon as he was out of sight, the sweet smile of Jinx turned into a malevolent one. Cyborg noticed that they had surrounded him. She looked at Cyborg as the trio’s eyes gained an evil glee. Two robotic arms appeared out of Gizmo’s backpack. One of them holding a pink dress and the other one a monocycle.

“As for you, dear Stone.” Jinx said in a very sweet sickening voice. “We have yet to talk to you about your initiation...”

Cyborg could only gulp.

*Meanwhile at Professor’s White classroom*

Lincoln walked through the door leading into professor’s White classroom. He asked himself why  the teacher of “Law and how to bend it and break it” would want to talk to him. Professor White had a  bit of a bad reputation, even among the villain community. Don't get him wrong, he wasn't scared of his teacher but he was still cautious around him. Every student in the academy had heard at least once, the story of the Great White Shark. Lincoln still remembered back when he and his sisters followed the case  on T.V.  when he was younger. About how the crooked financier Warren White gained the title of Great White Shark by ruthlessly embezzling millions from his company pension fund, robbing thousands of their employees of their life saving. He managed to avoid prison by transferring the case to Gotham City and pledging insanity. A smart move in Lincoln's opinion, but it backfired when the judge decided to sentence him to Arkham Asylum for an indefinite amount of time.

He remerged a couple years later as  completely different man, if you could still call him a man. The other inmates at Arkham must have heard of his deeds and weren't amused if the scars in his body proved something. His skin had turned pale white. His nose, lips and ears along with some his fingers were missing. His teeths had become as sharp as his namesake and a set of gills were carved on his neck. But even with his deformities he still managed to became one of Gotham’s most powerful crime boss forming many alliances with the likes of The Penguin and Black Mask among others.

“Take a sit Omen,” The voice of Warren White was heard through the classroom. “ I have something I need to talk with you.”

Omen sat in front of the professor’s desk before The Great White Shark finally started speaking.

“Omen,” Professor White started. “I have call you here for a simple reason. You see, you are the best student in my class. You are one of the few who see the importance of it and get the true purpose out of it and I think I have an idea of the reason why. Omen, I know what you are, or at least what you aren't.” Professor White said. “You my boy, are not a freak.”

This took Lincoln by surprise, freak was one the word most people used to describe him. Hell, even some of his sister called him that during his last days in the Loud house.

“But sir,  my power…” Lincoln said but was interrupted by his teacher.
“Listen boy, your powers do not make you a freak and neither does your appearance.” He said the last part almost as if he was talking about himself. “What makes you a freak is what is inside  here.” He said as he tapped the side of his head. “Or the lack of it, in some cases.”

“You see, we are not only talking about the students here. No, we are talking about the staff, the headmaster, most of the so called villains out there and even some heroes. All freaks. They, in some way or another, want the world to bow to them and kiss their feets. They want it all and they want it now, they take but they do not give. They are greedy but not ambitious.They fight over the small fishes  so they don’t  see the shark coming, and on top of that, they do not know the rules of the game and they refuse to learn them. They think they are above of them, but that’s okay because it give guys like us, those who actually know the rules, the advantage over them.”

“Guys like us?” asked Lincoln.

“ You’re a smart boy Omen,” Professor White said. “Don't think that I didn't  see what you did when you first arrived here. I liked the way how those who used to tormented you are now either you friends or suffered some little accidents. Yes, you made quite a show with those, not enough to cause permanent damage but just enough to send a pretty clear message: Do not mess with me.”

Lincoln winced when he remembered the incident, back when he didn't knew the extent of his powers. Some cheap excuse of a bully managed to pissed him off enough to trigger them. After that Mammoth was the only one who dared (and that Lincoln allowed) to call him Fluffy Bunny.

“You have talent my boy, and I refused to let it  go to waste.” A grin appeared on The Great White Shark face, showing all of his sharp teeth. “That's why I’ve talked to an associate of mine about your internship. Congratulations boy, you got it. I have already talked with the headmaster, once this semester is finished you will go to Gotham to work for him. This is his card.” The professor gave Lincoln a small card. His eyes widened when he saw the symbol printed on top of it. “That would be all for now, you can go back to class.”

*Back with the others*

If you would ask any student of the H.I.V.E academy their opinion about the new student Stone most of them would answer that he is a tough one. His almost perfect scores in Combat Class and the fact that he pulverized one of the cafeteria’s table over an argument on his first day helped to build his reputation as a badass.

That reputation was shattered on a cold Monday morning when almost all of the students watched as the mighty Stone was forced to carry around Jinx books while wearing a pink dress. Ah! the H.I.V.E academy glorious initiation, a ritual specifically design to make new students, such as Stone, get off of their high horses and teach them the cruel reality of the world. Or at least that is the excuse the headmaster gives to allow the kids to bully the new guy for a while.

“How long ‘till I can take this thing off?” Stone whined as Jinx putted her books inside her locker.
“Until I say so, now stop talking and pass me my Biology book” Cyborg begrudgingly obeyed, he had never felt more humiliated on his life. Fortunately a new voice, one that he could recognized joined the conversation.

“Initiation? Already?” Omen asked to which Jinx simply nodded. “Don't worry Stone, everybody here had to experience this, it’s a good sign that yours started so quickly. Trust me, it will be over in a couple of days.”

“Really? The same thing happened to you?” Cyborg had a feeling that that couldn't have end well for anybody involved. His suspicions were prove correctly when the the entire hall turned quiet. All the students stop moving and turned a pale white. Even Jinx seemed paralyzed at the thought of that terrible cold Monday morning two years ago.

“Yes, but mine ended a little bit different...” Omen started

*Flashback*

The entire school was on fire. Dozens of ambulance were parked outside as the firefighters tried to put out the fire. Headmaster Blood was covered from head to toe in bandages giving him the appearance of a mummy as he was taken into an ambulance. Mammoth was laying on the floor unconscious while Gizmo was near a bush emptying his stomach. Jinx was sitting in a corner hugging her knees, she rocketed back and forward while she muttered the same words over and over again. “The horror, the horror, the horror….”

“Honestly, this turned better than I expected.” Said a relatively unharmed Omen.

*Flashback ends*

“The horrors...” Jinx said as she snapped out of that terrible memory.
“Wow.” Was Cyborg’s only response.
“Yeah, they started tuning the initiation down after that.” Lincoln said as he finished putting his stuff in his locker just in time for the Lunch bell to ring.

Cyborg managed to take a small sneak peak inside of Omen’s locker. Nothing out of the ordinary, but he made a note to himself to ask him later why did he  have a white card with a small penguin drawn over it.

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Cyborg stood alone in an empty classroom. Privacy was a commodity hard to get  on the H.I.V.E academy,  except when you are someone who can access  the school buildings construction plans and everybody’s schedule like himself, he knew could find some sweet spot where he could get some minutes for himself. Well, actually not for himself. Checking that the room was empty one last time Cyborg brought up his left arm. The camouflage on his arm faded away to reveal his robotic nature. A small screen turned to life showing the unamused face of his leader.

“Cyborg.” Robin said in his usual monotone voice, but Cyborg wasn't fooled, Robin was angry and he didn't exactly blame him for that.

“Hi Robin…. How is BB?” Cyborg asked nervously, the last fight between the Titans and the H.I.V.E students hadn’t ended well for neither team. The Titans had won but most them were injured pretty badly, Beast boy took the worst of all thanks to Omen.

“He is fine, already recovered. What I want to know is why haven't  you turned in your report about the latest H.I.V.E mission yet.” Robin said this time Cyborg could heard a little bit of anger in his voice.

“I had to cut off all communications for a couple of days, tensions are high over here because you guys foiled the last mission. I don't want them to start getting suspicious about me for (doing) a rookie mistake.”

Robin nodded, understanding the logic behind his reasoning. When undercover it was important to avoid any mistakes that may compromise one’s cover.

“How about now, are you alone?” Robin asked
“Yes, I don't have class for the rest of the day.” Cyborg replied already knowing where this was heading.
“Good, I want you tell all about what happened before, during, and after the H.I.V.E last week’s mission.”

“Well, It all started a couple days before the heist…... ” Cyborg started.

*Hive academy 2 days before the heist*

Weeks had passed since Cyborg in his Stone persona had befriended Omen. He felt a little bad for lying to him about his identity, but he tried to make it up to him by being a good friend. Omen had introduced him to his other friends: Mammoth, Jinx, and Gizmo. And while he didn't see eye to eye with the midget, he could call the other two his “friends”.

Cyborg was walking through the halls of the school, when he spotted Omen in front of his locker. It didn't take a genius to figure out that something was bothering him. The look in his face and the way he walked, it showed that he was hurting. He approached him very carefully so that he didn't startled him. He may be Omen’s friend, but that didn't mean he could be careless about his powers.

“What’s wrong, dude?” Cyborg said startling Omen, making the lamp above him explode.
“O-Oh, Hi S-Stone, didn't see you there. Everything is fine! Nothing to worry about! See?!” Said Omen too quickly for Cyborgs taste, finishing with a big fake smile. Cyborg simply raised one of his holo-eyebrows at him.
“Fine.” Said Omen, his smile dropping as he crumbled down a little. “What gave it away?” He asked.

“Apart of the whole gloom & doom thing around you? I would say that...” Said Cyborg as he point out at two clones of Billy Numerous playing catch in the middle of the hallway, one of them threw the ball too fast making it break through a nearby window, It didn't end there though.

The sound of a car swirling around followed by a loud crash was heard, “My car!” yelled the voice of Professor White as his precious car was  hit by truck whose driver was thwacked by a ball that came out of nowhere. The car then proceeded to exploded into a giant ball of  fire, leaving no remains and making Professor White go down in his knees mourning his car.

“Oh, that.” Said Omen with wide eyes, he really needed to start noticing when he loses control of his powers.

“So what got you in such mood?” asked Cyborg. Omen had made a great progress in controlling his abilities ever since he met him. He still slipped from time to time, if Professor White had a say on the matter .

Omen sighed before looking away from Cyborg. “Nothing too bad really. It just that the Jump City Music Festival is just around the corner, and I really wanted to go, but all the tickets were already sold out.”

“All this chaos thanks to a couple of tickets?” asked Cyborg suspiciously, disbelief clearly in his voice.
“.....I really like Mick Swagger?” Omen said, but it sounded more like question than an answer.
“Really? Name three songs he made.” Cyborg asked as he narrowed his eyes.

Omen opened his mouth, he was ready to answer when he was interrupted by a pair of hands that grabbed both of them. It was Jinx, she was sweating and panting indicating she had  been running for a while.

“Finally found you guys! We have a mission, no time to explain, we need to go to the library. Now! Now! Now!” Showing a level of strength that betrayed her size, Jinx somehow managed to drag away both Cyborg and his roommate as if they weighed nothing.

“Wait, wait, wait, ROOMMATE!” interrupted Robin.

*Back at the present*

“Oh yeah, did I forget to tell you about him?” Cyborg nervously said, the unamused look in Robin’s face was enough to tell Cyborg he was for one hell of an hearing when he got back to the tower, the best he could do now was some damage control.

“About that, Robin, turns out your report was totally wrong about him, he is a really cool kid, pretty nice too, anyway back to the story.” Cyborg said quickly

“Bu-” Robin said, trying to get more information, Cyborg claimed that his entire profile of Omen was wrong, he needed to know why. Was he wrong or was it Cyborg who messed up?

“Back to the story, I said!” Yelled Cyborg in a voice that left room for no arguments, Robin quickly nodded.

*Back to the past: H.I.V.E library*

“Urgh! Tell me again why are we here?” Groaned a tired Gizmo as he let his head hit the library’s table the group was sitted at. The entire gang was there, both Mammoth and surprisingly Omen were drinking two extra large cups of coffee that Jinx had bought for the meeting, she as usual was a nervous wreck, gulping downs tons of coffee as she tried the figure out the way to accomplish the task the headmaster had given to them. Cyborg just stood aside and marveled how such small individuals (Not counting Mammoth of course) could digest such inhuman amount of coffee without crashing down.

“For the last time Gizmo, we are here because the headmaster gave us a mission and like usual he decided to tell us with only two days to spare.” Said Jinx while gulping down another large cup of coffee. In front of her laid a dozen of maps, books and pictures of their target: Chris Murasaki, a rising star in the business world, was starting to get a little cocky and decided to mess with some of the big boys, among them one gentleman called Lex Luthor. Needless to say, Mr. Luthor was not amused and had asked Brother Blood to send some of his students to teach the new guy to respect their elders, as a service for his continuous support and patronage of course.

“It’s going to be hard,” Omen said as he finished his second extra large cup of coffee while Mammoth  was on his fifth. “This guy has a pretty tight security, is going to be very difficult to break in. Wait, I think I got something...”

Cyborg looked at the pictures while he listened to Omen’s plan when suddenly a light bulb seemed to appear over his head as  he was opening several files in his mind. A grin slowly started forming in his face.

“Guys,” Cyborg said “I think I just found a solution to all our problems.”

*Back at the present*

“After we ironed down the details, we headed down back to our rooms.” Cyborg said.
“But not before you alerted us of what was about to happen.” Finished Robin, if Cyborg hadn't tipped them off then the H.I.V.E students would have definitely succeeded on their mission.

“Yes, after that Headmaster Blood called us to his office for some words of “encouragement” ...”

*Flashback*

“Fail me, and I will make sure no one will find what little remains of your lifeless carcases! DID I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!” Yelled the headmaster, eyes glowing red while a wall of fire erupted behind him.

“Yes, Sir!” responded the frightened students never noticing that their eyes had turned red for a moment.

*Flashback ends*

“Nothing really important happened after that so I will skip ahead to the assault.” Said Cyborg quickly, he really didn't want to tell Robin how he spent the rest of the day in a coffee drinking competition against Mammoth and Omen. Surprisingly it was Omen the one who won that one, that boy’s got an iron bladder and that's a lot coming from someone who is half machine.

“Bu-” Robin was once again interrupted by an irate Cyborg.

“Who is the one telling the story?!” Yelled Cyborg, he really didn't want Robin to know the penalty he and Mammoth had to for losing the competition. Robin wisely shutted up before letting Cyborg continue his story.

*Back to the past: The day of the assault*

Omen, Mammoth, Jinx and Cyborg stood inside of Murasaki's penthouse wreaking chaos. The poor man was hiding inside a panic room in his room, while the H.I.V.E students continued destroying his house. The party didn't last long as the Titans arrived ready to fight the young villains.

Just as in combat class Omen stood the behind the frontlines providing support while Mammoth and Stone acted as heavy hitters. Jinx meanwhile was distracting Raven making her unable to provide support for her team. The fight wasn't going favorably for the Titans, Cyborg’s robot duplicate had fallen into Murasaki’s indoor jacuzzi, frying its circuits. A lucky shot from Jinx made Raven fall into said jacuzzi electrocuting her too. Star on the other hand had missed almost every shot she made, the few who actually hit something usually landed on her teammates. Beast Boy was busy facing Mammoth and Stone, the duo was more than enough to handle the green changeling. In short, the Titans were having a really tough fight, the only upside was when the sound of the police sirens was heard. Forcing the students to retreat.

“Everybody, time to go” said Jinx as Mammoth hit the ground with his fists causing it to turn into a hole big enough for the villains-in-training to get away. Jinx was the first one to go in, followed by Omen and Mammoth, Cyborg was just about to escape when a black wire tied itself into his feets making him fall down. He was dragged towards the remaining Titans, more specifically towards Robin who put a foot over his back, preventing him from escaping .

“Guys, what are you doing? You are going to blow my cover!” Cyborg hissed as Robin (said) whispered  something into his ear.
“Cyborg quick! Send all the info you have of Brother Blood’s plan to my communicator, make sure you look like you are resisting.” Cyborg nodded and began his act just as he was going to talk a voice was heard throughout the room.

“Get away from him!” yelled Omen, who dropped out of nowhere landing feet first on top of Starfire’s head  making sure it hitted the marble floor hard enough to crack it. Cyborg took advantage of the confusion to kick away Robin and joined Omen.

“You came back for me?”. Cyborg said surprised
“That’s what friends do.” Replied Omen with a smile.

The moment was interrupted by Beast boy who launched himself over Omen. He was about to shift when a sudden hit to his throat made him stop in his tracks. He fell limply to the ground making choking like noises. Robin went immediately to help him forgetting about the two villains. Omen took advantage of the chaos to drag Cyborg to the escape hole.

“What did you do!?” asked Cyborg worried about his best (hero) friend.
“A punch to the trachea, a little trick I learned during The League of Shadows summer camp. Nothing Boy Wonder can't fix, but it will gain us enough time to escape.” Replied Omen with a smile  on his face as the two boys disappeared into the night.

“Finally back  at the present for good.”

“... and after that we returned to the academy. Boy was the headmaster mad with us for failing our mission.” Cyborg finished his tale.

Robin remained silent, obviously thinking about what he just heard. The way Cyborg spoke about Omen suggested that they were truly friends, something that wouldn’t be possible if his earlier report about Omen was true, unless he was also a charismatic manipulator, which seemed unlikely at such a young age but not impossible, especially for someone with the profile of a psychopath.

Robin shoved that thought to the back of his mind as he remembered the second reason for calling Cyborg.

“By the way, Mr. Murasaki called a few days ago. He was so thankful for saving him from and I quote “Young vandals without the sense of shame or fashion” that he offered a to reward each one of us. The rest of us have already pick their reward, how about you?”

“I don't really need the rewa… *hm* Now that I think about it, there is something Mr. Murasaki can definitely help me with.” Cyborg said.

*A couple of days later: Jump City Music Festival*

“I can't believe you managed get the tickets!” exclaimed  a very happy Omen. He was in a civilian attire, a hoody and a jean hid away his identity as a villain. To say Omen was thankful about the tickets would be an understatement. He had hugged Cyborg and somehow managed to lift him up while thanking him all over again. He also made Seemore helmet accidentally explode with his powers.

“No problem, that’s what friends are for.” Cyborg said . They were sitted in a small hill that gave them a perfect view of the stage, not too close but neither too far away. Omen had insisted on getting there early, there were still a couple of artist left before Mick Swagger made his appearance, Cyborg passed a drink to Omen.  “But really, I am surprised the headmaster allowed us to come after we failed the mission.”
“He figured out that we would had probably sneaked out anyways, so why bother? Plus we technically didn't failed the mission.” Omen said as he checked the new upgraded bracelet the headmaster had given him so he didn't metaphorically and literally blow up thanks to his emotions. Sensing disbelief from Cyborg Omen clarified. “Gizmo managed to hack into Murasaki’s laptop and mess up with stocks from his company while we were destroying his penthouse, in a couple days Murasaki Industries will face a hostile takeover from LexCorp.”

“Well, bad luck for him then.” Cyborg quipped making Omen laugh. A sense of nostalgia hit Cyborg, it has been a long while since the last time he’s been to a concert, it sure felt like decades to him. In fact it was the first time since the accident that he felt so ….. Normal.

A teenager girl with short brown hair appeared on the stage, she was wearing a purple shirt with a white skull motive in it and a purple guitar in hand. Omen immediately stopped laughing, all his attention was focused on the mysterious girl.

“Hello Jump City! My name is Luna Loud! Now are you ready for some Rock n Roll?!” The girl asked eliciting a roar of approval from the crowd. Cyborg had to admit that the girl had talent. Omen seemed hypnotised by the girl, maybe a crush? Cyborg would have to ask him later, but for now, he wanted to enjoy the moment.

“Man, I missed this.” Cyborg couldn't help but to say out loud what he truly felt.
“Missed what?” Omen asked as Cyborg passed him another drink.
“This.” Cyborg responded. “This sense of normality. It's been years since I last felt it.” Seeing the confusion in his friend’s face Cyborg decided to take a big risk.

“I wasn't always like this, you know” Cyborg started “I used to be a normal guy, I went to highschool like any other kid, had a beautiful girlfriend and was a star football player with high chances of earning a scholarship. And while I didn't always see eye for an eye with my folks I loved them. Man, I had it all.”

“What happened?” asked Omen breaking contact for the first time with the mysterious singer.

“There was an accident at my father’s workplace, he was a scientist, and I got caught in the middle of it. Last thing I remember is that I was arguing with my dad when something behind me exploded. I almost died that night but my father managed to bring me back, but not as human. Instead he turned me into… This. He made me into a monster.” Cyborg said, anger and sadness surging along with the memories of that fateful night. Cyborg wanted to continue but the words wouldn't come out, he realized it was the first time he ever told somebody about all those feelings he had for his father back then.

Seeing his buddy in obvious distress Omen tried to comfort him, once he saw that Cyborg calmed down a little. He started speaking:

“You aren't the only one who misses that.” Omen said gathering Cyborgs attention. “You see, before all this..” said Omen waving the bracelet - bound hand. “I used to have  a normal life too, well if we are using the term normal loosely, at least.”

“I had a big family, 10 sisters to be exact, so you can imagine the amount of chaos I had to deal daily just to reach the bathroom on time. And sure everyday we had to duck, dodge, push and shove, but that was how we showed our love, it was chaotic, one boy and 10 girls but I wouldn't had traded it for the world.” said Omen with an nostalgic smile remembering those good old days. “But then my powers started showing up. The first time it happened, one of my sisters noticed and told everyone I was bad luck; one of the worst days of my life. I managed to fixed it though, even if had to wear a stupid squirrel suit for a week after that.” Said Omen chuckling at the end, but there was a hint of sadness in his voice.

“I thought everything would been alright after that, but my powers returned again... and again.” Omen voiced cracked up a little as his eyes began to water down  “And each time they came back new fights would happen, and each time I tried to fix it, things would simply t-turn worse.” Omen was now making a gigantic effort to keep the tears in his eyes, something that didn't go unnoticed to Cyborg. He took a deep breath before he continued.

“Sorry about that.” he apologised. “To make long story short I ended up living the streets for a while, bringing misery wherever I went. I had nothing, no family, no friends, it wasn't until Headmaster Blood found me that I found somewhere I belonged. A home filled with people like me, where I wouldn't be shunned for something I had no control over. But that didn't last long, it never does.” Omen muttered the last part.

“But you know what? Who needs them?” asked Omen with some new energy, he didn't wait for Cyborg answer. “I don't! Look at me, I survived this far without their help! They are loud, they are noisy, apathetic, irresponsible, ruthless, and the worst thing of all?! ” Omen was now yelling at this point. “The worst thing of all is that I… I…. I miss them so much... Every. Single. Day!”

And with that, the dam was broken, tears flow down through Omen face as he couldn't hold down his feelings any longer. The whole concert would’ve been destroyed by a series of unfortunate events if it wasn't for the improved bracelet.

Cyborg for the first time saw Omen for what he truly was, not a villain-in-training or a misguided person, but as 13 year old boy who missed his family. One that right now didn't need a hero to save his day, but a friend who could lend him a shoulder to cry  on. With that in mind Cyborg did something that he had never done before, not even to the Titans. He stood before Omen extending his hand to him.

“Hi, my name is Stone, Victor Stone but my friends call me Vic.” Omen just stared at the hand with wide eyes before he wiped away his tears.

“Hi Vic,” He said while he shook his hand. “My name is Loud, Lincoln Loud.”

Cyborg’s eyes widened when he made the connection.
“Loud? Like her?” He asked while pointing at Luna, who had just finished singing. It all made sense now. Why he was so happy when he showed him the tickets, this was never about the music, it was about seeing his family once again; even if it was from afar.

“Yeah, that’s my sister,” Said Ome- no... Lincoln. “I know it was a dumb idea to come here, but I didn't wanted to miss my big sis first concert.” He said while finishing another drink.

In an act of boldness, Lincoln decided to stand up and wave a last goodbye to his sister, It was a small sweet gesture, that’s when he noticed his sister's eyes looking straight at him. The look on her face made it obvious that she saw him.

“I think we overstayed our welcome, Vic.” said Lincoln, pulling up his orange hoodie to cover his head. Victor took a small look at the stage, where Luna was still frozen in place looking at their general direction, and connected the dots. “No problem Lincoln, let’s go back before we cause any trouble.”

That night as they both headed back to the academy, he made himself a promise, not as Cyborg or as Stone, but as Victor; that he would do anything in his power to save Lincoln and bring him back to his family.

*Minutes after the concert: Headmaster’s Office*

“So what were the results of our little test.” Headmaster Blood asked to the hooded staff member in front of him.
“Not good sir, a little more strain and the subject would had caused the xenothium in the bracelet to destabilize beyond critical point.”
“Fix that immediately” The headmaster ordered “After all we wouldn't want our backup plan to get triggered before the time is right.”

*After the concert: Royalwood*

It was a silent night in Royalwood, almost all it inhabitants were asleep. All but one girl in certain house who was about to receive some shocking news.

“Hi Luna, sorry for not being able to go to your concert… Y-you you saw him?!”

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A calm wind blew gently through the sky helping the birds fly high into the air of the city as the sun started hiding beneath the horizon, bringing a sensation of peace for to anyone who was lucky enough to see it.. To a certain white haired boy it certainly brought a feeling of peace while he laid on top of the academy roof, the secret spots he had for when he wanted to be alone.

A couple of days had passed since he and Ston- no, since he and Victor went to that concert. From hearing Victor’s past to breaking down and telling him his own, To seeing his sister once again to her seeing him back, it was without doubt one hell of a concert for Lincoln, one that he would never forget.

Ever since he finally told Vic about his past a feeling of peace had filled his body, like if a heavy burden was lifted from his shoulder. It was nice to have somebody to talk to, there were certain things that would be awkward to tell the headmaster and while Jinx and him were close enough for her to know his real name and some details of his past, the topic of his sisters was one that rarely came through in their conversations. It was a bond that he shared with few a people ever since his powers first started kicking up. In a strange way H.I.V.E academy had finally become the place he had been looking for a very long time, a home. It wasn't a normal home, but honestly he never had one nor he would ask for more. He was happy among his friends here and nothing could ever ruin it.

The sound of a door opening cut short his musing, speak of the devil and he will appear. It was Victor, dressed in his usual black T-shirt and shorts. He was wearing a smile on his face as he approached Lincoln.

“How did you find me?” Lincoln asked, not that he cared that Vic found one of his spots.
“Jinx told me I could find you here.” Said Vic while he sat down next to Lincoln, both of them watching the dusk rise as the day started becoming night.

“Hey Linc, can I ask you something?” asked Victor.
“Sure, Vic.”

“Who do you want to be after all ....this” his hands motioning over the building they were sitting on “.... is over?”

“What do you mean?” Lincoln asked

“I mean that we aren't going to be kids forever, sooner or later we will grow up, sooner or later life will knock right at our door and we will need to choose who do we want to be. So who would you be? A super villain? A madman? A killer?” Stone said, not noticing Lincoln wincing at the killer part “...who knows? Maybe one day you could be a hero.”

Lincoln remained silent. Victor’s words echoing in his head. His future was something that he hadn’t really think about in a long time. He honestly didn't know what to say. He didn't want to hurt people, at least not purposely but he couldn't be a hero. Not only his powers wouldn't aloud it, but he also felt that if he became a hero he would be betraying Jinx, Headmaster Blood and the few others that had helped him all this time.

“Lincoln... are you alright?” Victor asked worried about the silence that befell his best non-Titan friend. “You don't need to answer if it bothers you..”

“No it’s fine Vic,” answered Lincoln “The truth is that I don't really know who I want to be when I grow up. Being honest I am really not that into being a super villain and all that stuff… Please! don't tell Jinx or the headmaster I said that.” Lincoln said while Stone nodded. “Don't get me wrong, I like being here, it’s just that I don't see myself as the typical comic book supervillain hell bent on world conquest, always getting thwarted by the hero.”

“Then why don't you leave?” asked Victor. This question made Lincoln visibly tense.
“... And go where...?” Lincoln uttered his response with a thousand-yard stare at the sunset.
“Don’t really know for sure, but how about an institution or a Hero organization maybe?” Victor suggested, subtly trying to get the idea into his friend’s head.
What!? Like the Titans? No way! they sooner would lock me up and send me to God knows where rather than to help me.” Lincoln responded, anguish clear in his voice.
“Where did you heard that?” Victor asked with wide eyes, he knew that those on the other side of the law didn't had the best image of the Titans but to lock him up? That was stretching the line past the limit.
“Headmaster Blood” Lincoln said as if it was the the only possible answer in the world.
“Of course he would say that.” Thought Stone.

“Then how about your sisters? Don't you want to see your family again?”

“Of course I want to see them again!” Yelled Lincoln as he stood up with clawed hands almost clutching his face. “Do you think I like being away from home,? Not being there when they need me! I hate it! It’s just…. I don't know, it’s just too dangerous for them to be near me. My powers are too unstable for me to be close to them. I can easily hurt them or even kill them if I am not careful. I mean for God’s sake I can't even talk about them without the help of this thing!” He motioned furiously toward the bracelet on his wrist who was beeping loudly indicating that the wristlet was currently preventing any kind of disasters that Lincoln’s powers could cause.

“Calm down Linc, I was only saying.” Victor said lifting his arms in mock surrender. He was trying his best to calm down Lincoln, the topic of his sisters was still  a very delicate subject for him to talk about. “Didn't you say that Jinx and the headmaster were helping you with that?”

“Yeah, but so far the only thing they made that can help me is this.” He said showing the bracelet. “And it isn't even complete yet, the headmaster still need to check it every couple days unless we want it to go haywire.”

A small beep from Lincoln’s Hive communicator interrupted his rant. His eyes widened when he saw who had messaged him.

“I need to go Vic, the headmaster wants me in his office as soon as possible. I don't want to him to get mad at me for being late.” said the ashen haired boy leaving his friend to his own thoughts.

*With the Titans*

Robin sat in front of Cyborg’s computer. As usual, he check it up once a week to see if Cyborg had updated his assessment of the Hive academy while undercover. Despite his lack of recent updates Cyborg had managed to pass enough information for Robin to start putting some pieces together. He knew Brother Blood was up building something, what exactly he didn't know yet, but it was something that required not only a huge amount of money, if the gold stolen from the bank said something, and taking into account the amount of the tech labs that had been robbed recently, whatever Brother Blood was building must require a lot of specialised technology.

Cyborg had also updated many of his profiles of the H.I.V.E students. Strengths, weakness, identities. All that data was stored in the Titans Mainframe safe from anyone who may  try to steal it. Curiously enough, there was one profile Cyborg had never bother to updated. It was the one of his roommate, Omen. The few times that Cyborg had mentioned him he gave not important data concerning the report. He would need to ask him about that next time he communicates.

Alert! Alert! Alert!

The blaring alarm sound as red warning messages covered the screen. Robin wasn't a tech genius as Cyborg was, but he still knew enough to know that someone was trying to enter the Titan’s system. Not wasting anytime he started typing the keyboard trying to kick out the intruder.

*With Cyborg*

Cyborg was happy, ever since that day at the concert he had started devising a plan to get Lincoln out of the H.I.V.E academy and this life of crime. Today’s conversation proved that Lincoln didn't want to be villain and that the only thing that was binding him here was the inhibitor bracelet, plus if Cyborg knew Brother Blood as much as he did, the headmaster probably rigged the bracelet to  fail every couple days so that Lincoln couldn't leave on his own.

Now, it would take some time but Cyborg was sure that he could definitely build a proper inhibitor that could actually work all the time, still it wouldn’t hurt to take a look at the original bracelet to figure some stuff out. With that out of the way, the hard part was what to do with him after.

It was clear that Lincoln mistrusted the Titans, not that he blamed him considering Robin’s not so high opinion of him, so it would be a little hard to convince Lincoln to go with him when the time comes, he also would probably need to convince Jinx too, taking into account how close those two were. And after that he will still need to figure out a place for them to stay while he organizes a meeting with his family once he created a proper inhibitor, one that would allow Lincoln to be back with his family again without causing any more accidents.

“Stone, just the person I was looking for.” Cyborg heard a sweet voice say. It was Jinx, she was on the other side of the hallway blocking the way. Her bright pink eyes staring at the very depths of his soul.

The door behind Cyborg suddenly closed shut, no doubt Gizmo’s work, leaving him trapped with Jinx who was now blocking his only exit. With a sweet sickening smile she slowly walked towards Cyborg, an ominus aura filled the room with each step the pink haired witch took.

“Say, you and Omen have been spending a lot of time together lately, haven't you?” asked Jinx in the sweetest tone.
“Ummm yeah?” Cyborg answered nervously, not really liking where this was going.
“So you would say you two are close right?” She asked once again in that terrifying sweet voice.
“Yeah, me and Linc-, Omen I mean, are close” Cyborg cursed himself for nearly slipping up.

“Aha! So he did tell you his name, welcome to the club I guess.” she said while she standed on the tip of her feets so that she could pat Cyborg’s shoulders. He would had seen it as a sweet gesture if not by the fact that moments later the slight pat turned into a firm iron grip, one that not even him could escape.

“I assume that Lincoln told you about his sisters,” Jinx said as Cyborg nodded “and what they did to him.” He nodded again. “Good, because I need you to understand this...”

Somehow, with what Cyborg could only call superhuman strength Jinx managed to bring him to his knees, his eyes were brought down to her level as the sweet tone of her voice now turned ice cold.

“Lincoln is very dear to me and he has already been hurt enough, so I swear to God that if he gets  harmed because of whatever thing you’re planning... ” Cyborgs eyes widened, had his cover been blown? “Oh don't make that face, did you honestly think I was stupid enough not to notice you sneaking out every now and again?” She said while raising an eyebrow as Cyborg flushed. “Don't answer that, honestly I don't care what you’re planning, this is a villain academy after all and everyone here has their own agenda, unfortunately for you it turns out I am a bit of a superstitious girl, it comes with having bad luck powers and all that, so if some unlucky accident should befall Lincoln... if he should be shot by a police officer, or if he should get hurt or killed by those stupid Titans, or even if he's struck by a bolt of lightning and I find out that you had the smallest thing to do with it or that you were even in the same continent, I don't care who you think you are I. WILL. END. YOU!” A wall of fire erupted behind her (Seriously when did the headmaster teached her how to do that?) as she capitalized each of the final words by jabbing her fingers into his chest.

Cyborg could only nod in despair to the terrifying image in front of him. The diabolic Jinx disappeared as soon as it appeared as Jinx returned to her usual persona.

“Good boy.” Jinx said while playfully pinching his cheek. “Now go back to class before you’re tardy.”

With that she turned around and left, leaving behind a very terrified cyborg who was asking himself if it was possible for someone to wet his pants when he had a literal iron bladder such as himself.

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15 minutes...

15 minutes to plan and prepare.

“That’s gotta be a new record” thought Lincoln as he sat alone in a plane heading toward his objective. Mission unspoken destination unknown. Enter quickly, grab the device that is hidden somewhere in the building, get out.

Yeash, what could go wrong?

Stealth was optional and collateral damage acceptable, were the instructions of the headmaster. Why did he needed the device? He didn't bothered to tell, only that as usual failure will not be tolerated. Lincoln didn't even have time to tell his friends where he was going, not that he knew that much. It wasn't unusual for the headmaster to withhold information during a mission briefing, but Lincoln had never gone this unprepared to the field. Something felt wrong about this mission and he didn't like it, not one bit. The last time he felt something similar, his school bus was hit twice in the same day, one by a drunk driver and the other by a truck before falling to a nearby lake, fortunately no one was injured, but he did get a pretty bad cold the next day which kept him from going to school for a week. Ah, good times indeed.

Beep, Beep, Beep.

Lincoln heard the sound of the alarm as the red light in front of him turned green. The hatch on the back of the unmanned plane opened to reveal the bright lights of the city below. He took a deep breath before standing and heading toward the door. If everything went alright he would be back at the academy before midnight, if he was lucky enough no one would get hurt, at least not by him.

“ ...Maybe if I’m lucky enough? Heh ...a boy can dream.” Lincoln thought as he looked down at the city. He could see the huge building that he assumed was his target. He felt the wind all over his face as he closed his eyes before taking a long final breath.

With nothing else in mind, he jumped.

*H.I.V.E Academy*

Cyborg wasn't scared of Jinx. He really wasn't. The fact that he was staying in the laundry room when he was supposed to be in class with her was merely a coincidence, one that neither Beast Boy nor Omen must find out at any cost.

Still, he had a couple of hours to kill until it was safe for him to move to another room. Better use that time wisely, some of his profiles were in need of an update. With nothing else to do he opened the files in his head, skimming through some of them, adding some stuff, correcting others.

“Jinx’s profile is up to date, Seemore added a couple of new visions modes to his helmet, Mammoth is surprisingly lactose intolerant, give him an atomic diarrhea (Note: still doesn't stop him from eating all the ice cream from the cafeteria.)”

He eventually arrived to one profile that was set aside from the rest, it was Lincoln’s. Unlike the others, his was completely blank, no name, no age, nothing useful could be found in the file except for a few notes about his powers. Cyborg was tempted to write everything he knew about his ashen haired friend, but not only did he felt that doing so would be betraying Lincoln’s trust, but he also knew that it wouldn't do any good, not to him nor to Lincoln’s. He needed to be extremely careful on how he handled this for it to not backfire later on. This was such time, not knowing what to do Cyborg decided to hop into the next file.

He was surprised when a rough schematic appeared in his vision instead of the next student profile.

The words “Inhibitor V.2” popped in his screen. Below there were some rough drawings of what it looked like a collar.  He hit a roadblock in its design, he originally wanted his creation to be based on the collars used in Belle Reve, but he couldn't access those schematics from his current location. His only option was to attempt to hack the Hive academy mainframe to take a small peek at the schematics of Lincoln’s current inhibitor, maybe then he could reverse engineer a functional prototype. He took a look at the clock hanging on the wall: 5:30 p.m. He had an hour to hack into the H.I.V.E academy mainframe, he bet himself he could do it in 40.

*30 minutes later, some levels below the Hive Academy*

Beep!

“Sir,” a hooded staff member cladded in robes called, he was only one of many working at the underground room. A giant screen rested in front of everyone showing a city map with a bright dot beeping in and out. “The computer just alert us that somebody is trying to access one your top encrypted archives.”

“Which one?” asked Brother Blood sitted in what could only be described as a throne. It was quite menacing and it glowed whenever someone was unfortunate enough for him to bring the wall of fire beneath it.

“The one labeled as: PROJECT MAYHEM V.4.5, sir.” the hooded technician said while avoiding the headmaster’s gaze, not willing to possibly anger his master. He was surprised when instead of anger, a small grin formed on his face.

“Good,” Brother Blood said in an ominous tone. “Please tell me what is the status of my little student? Are we ready to initiate stage two of the plan?”

“The subject is heading towards the target. He should make contact at any minute” replied another technician.

“Good, let's see if Omen can pass this little test I have set for him.”

* With Lincoln*

Entering was easy, an open hatch on the roof gave him access to the building. The guards? Not too many. Jook N’ Box and Laze the DJ, two of the biggest hits in the music industry, where in town and decided for the first time ever to work with each other to throw the biggest, wildest and chaotic rave Jump City have ever seen. That was two days ago and the party was still going live and hard for anyone to join. Most of the guards were either drinking and partying or were police officers on duty, working as support from the city hall to prevent the city being destroyed by a massive horde of drunk partying people. The cameras? Well that would have been a problem, if it weren't for a little favor that Gizmo owe him a while ago. But for it to properly work he would first need it to be placed in the security room, which was where he was currently heading.

Empty halls filled his sight, not a single soul around him except the occasional night guard complaining how they rather be partying than being here. Lincoln easily managed to sneak by them but he wondered what was so great about that party, I mean it was like any other party, right? He had never go to a rave before but it sounded awesome by the way those guys talked about it. Maybe he would ask Jinx or Victor about it.

Reaching the end of the hallway he found a half open door, the words ”Security room - authorized personnel Only” written on it. He quietly approach the door when a quiet almost unnoticeable noise stopped him on his track.

*Sob* *Sob*

It was a small sob, he carefully opened the door when the smell of booze hit his nostril. A quick look into the room revealed the source of the noise. Inside lied a guard who had his head buried in his arm as he lay rest on his desk. Empty bottles rolled on the dirty floor as well as a variety of half finished bags and boxes of fast food. An occasional sob escape his lips as Lincoln could see a picture of a women held loosely in his hand. He was totally dead to his surroundings and Lincoln honestly hope his powers weren't the cause of this man’s misery but not wanting to waste more time he put the small black box in a corner, far away from the sobbin guard sight, the multiples screen streaming the camera’s feed started blinking, one after another all of their content being replaced by a loop.

With that out of the way his path was clear, but no matter how easy it looked Lincoln couldn't shove the feeling that something bad was going to happen.

*With Cyborg*

He was in.

It took a little longer than he expected, but Cyborg had found what he was looking for.

It took 39 minutes 19 seconds for him to enter the headmaster’s archive and an additional 10 to find the right file. It wasn't his fault though, there wasn't anything in the headmaster's computer labeled as inhibitor or something similar. He was about to give up when he noticed that a file named: “PROJECT MAYHEM V.4.5” had been accessed multiple time by the headmaster. Feeling a little bit curious he tried to open it only to find that it was encrypted.

“So much security for a single file?” hummed Cyborg as he started decrypting it. “What are you hiding, headmaster?”

Once he opened it his screen was flooded by hundreds of images and panels that popped in and out of Cyborg’s vision. They were going too fast for Cyborg to read them all but he noticed that all of them had something in common: Lincoln or at least his inhibitor.

“...The subject metahuman abilities are mostly suppressed by....” one of the documents said.
“... A diluted version of the Super Toxin 451-B develop by Dr. Jonathan Crane is injected into the subject bloodstream...” That name sounded familiar to Cyborg, but it was what he read next to made his heart skip a beat.
“In the case of dissidence among the subjects the xenothium core can be overloaded to neutralise the subject...”

Xenothium?.... The headmaster used freaking Xenothium to power up the inhibitor?!
Why?! He could think of at least five other materials that could be used instead of one of the most unstable elements on earth!
The xenothium alone could blown an entire block, couple ìt with all the other things that were inside the inhibitor and it was basically… It was basically… a… bomb.

The color drained from Cyborg’s face as his brain made an horrible realization.

The headmaster had  strapped a bomb into Lincoln.

A bomb powerful enough to turn a skyscraper into a crater deep enough to fit the entire Titan Tower inside.

A bomb that the headmaster could trigger at anytime he wanted. This couldn't get any worse.

Beep!

Oh, it just did.

The word “Activating” was mockingly blinking in and out from his screen, like if it was daring him to something about it. Maybe he would.

Not caring if it could blow his cover Cyborg started typing in his keyboard trying to stop whatever the headmaster was planing.

He couldn’t… no.. He wouldn't let the headmaster kill Lincoln, not if he could do anything about it.


*With the Headmaster a couple minutes earlier*

“Sir, we‘re ready to initiate stage two” a technician informed the headmaster who only smiled.

“Excellent. Do it!” Ordered the headmaster as the technician obeyed.


*With Lincoln*

It was almost over. All Lincoln had to do was to walk a couple of steps across the room, take the device and leave. It sounded so easy, but why was Lincoln feeling as if something horrible was waiting for him once he touched the device?

He shoved  those thoughts to the back of his mind and slowly started to walk toward the device. He carefully extended his arm to take it and was a breath away of picking it up.

Beep! Beep! *Zap*

Lincoln collapsed on the floor as electricity coursed through his body. He was dazed and confuzed.

*Zap*

He tried to stand up only to be shocked again, this time harder.

*Zap* *Zap*

He can only scream as the electricity painfully shocked every muscle and organ of his body.

*Zap*

He felt all his joints bend painfully, his heart beating so fast.

*Zap*

Nails digging deeply into his palms, It was getting hard to breath.

*Zap*

His jaw locked so hard, feeling of teeth about to shatter, vision slowly turning black.

*Zap*

HELP!

*Zap* *Zap* *Zap*

He couldn't hold it any longer.

*Zap*

He needed to get out.

*Zap*

To get out now!


*With the headmaster*

“What is going on?!” yelled the now furious headmaster as a wall of fire erupted behind his red glowing throne. One minute everything was fine, Omen was just about to pick up the device, next thing he knew the boy was in the floor thrashing around in obvious pain.

“Sir! It seems like the bracelet is  delivering high doses of electricity to the subject!” said a hooded staff member.

“Why is it doing that?!” yelled the headmaster as the wall of fire grew even higher.

“Umm sir,somebody just hacked into the files, the countermeasures we designed may have compromised the integrity of the device! ” Yelled a technician in panic.

“That brat!” thought the headmaster in anger before he composed himself. “Can it be stop?” he asked.

“No sir, once the toxin entered the subject’s bloodstream the inhibitors function is locked out just as it was designed to do!” responded the technician.

“Sir, this is bad! We made calculations of the scenario in which the subject’s powers were used under the influence of the toxin but we never took into account a factor such as this! The shocks plus the toxin can affect the subject's powers in ways we can't expect to comprehend. It’s extremely dangerous, sir! It’s…..”

“...An excellent opportunity to observe.” The headmaster  interrupted the panicking scientist. “Continue with the test and amp the voltage if you can.” ordered the headmaster.

“But sir!” objected the scientist.

“Do it!” yelled Brother Blood making the scientist obey.


*Back with Lincoln*

The building was shaking as Lincoln ran through the halls. Walls were crumbling down, windows were shattering and he could hear the screams of the guards as they become victims of multiple unfortunate events. Lincoln had lost control of his powers. He knew it but didn't care. All that it mattered was that he needed to get out no matter what.

*Zap* Boom!

Another wave of electricity hitted him, this time harder than before  making him writhe in agony. A loud boom was heard from the security room, a severed hand flew over and landed on Lincoln’s feet causing him to crawl back in panic as the severed limb bleed all over his shoes. He felt his stomach turning as whatever he had eaten for lunch tried to climb through his throat.

Scenes like this were plaguing Lincoln’s vision for the past few minutes as he tried to escape this hellish facility. He needed a way out, his eyes widened.

The roof! Yes, there he could call the plane to pick him up.

“Stop, you freak!” yelled a guard as he took aim at Lincoln’s face with his gun.

Lincoln didn't stop. He kept running toward the guard, who was blocking his only way out. The guard yelled once more before taking aim at Lincoln with his gun.

 Lincoln didn't listen, he kept running forward. He closed his eyes and prayed for the best.

Crack!

He fell hitting something with his body that made him bounce back to the floor. He tried to stand up, letting out a sigh of relieve when he saw he wasn't  hurt.

He looked up only to see a cracked window behind were the guard was supposed to be. Lincoln wasn't a genius like his sister, but he knew what just happened.

“..Maybe he is still alive?” Lincoln said to himself, it wasn't that high after all, right?

Honk! Hooonk!

Crash!

Once again, karma did everything possible to prove Lincoln wrong. This time in the form of truck.

It didn't matter, in a few minutes he would finally be out of there. Back in the academy, back with his friends. The mental picture of Jinx, Victor and the rest of the gang was enough to calm him down a little.

*Zap* *Zap* *Zap* *Zaaaaap*

The electricity ripping apart his body forced him to the ground once more. It was an excruciating pain that stopped him from doing anything that wasn't screaming through gritted teeth.

He looked up once more in pain. He could see it through the window, flying in the skies above was the unmanned plane that was supposed to take him back to the school. The plane receiving his signal started approaching the building.

“Everything is going to be alright, everything is going to be alright” he repeated to himself.

*Zap*
PAIN
He was force to open his bloodshot eyes once more only to see the plane…. heading his way? (He couldn't breath.)

*Zap*
PAIN
Why wasn't the plane heading to the roof? (He felt them watching,)

*Zap*
PAIN
Why wasn't it slowing down? (A million eyes. Their eyes. Judging him…)

*Zap*
PAIN
Oh, sh- (Condemning him!)

*Zap*

Lincoln's eyes widened when he finally realised that the plane wasn't heading toward the roof like he ordered, instead it was heading full speed to his position. He tried to run away but it was too late.

He felt the building shake as the plane crash down, taking down support beams and walls alike, before being knocked out by the blast of the plane exploding inside the building. The last thing Lincoln saw before blacking out was fire, a fire that consumed everything around him.

The only thing that the inhabitants of Jump City saw was a bright flash in the dark and then a rain of fire that could be seen from twenty blocks away….

*With Cyborg*

He felt the ground shake followed by the blaring of the alarm. “That can’t be good,” Cyborg thought exiting the laundry room where he was hiding, not knowing what to expect.

He saw students running around and the staff ordering them to calm down. The lights had turned red signaling an emergency.  He followed the rest of the students toward the underground gym that also acted as a bunker according to the protocol.

“Stone!” he heard a familiar voice call him among the crowd. It was Jinx who was covered in sweat, she was out of breath. Panic was clear in her face “Have you seen Omen?!” she asked frantically.

“No, what’s happening?!” Cyborg asked as the ground shook once again. He didn't like the look of anger and fear that appeared on Jinx face.

“It’s the Titans!” she said with no hidden rage. “We are under attack!”

The wall besides him was blown away, sending  him along with a couple of students flying backwards. The dust settled down revealing five familiar figures.

“Titans Go!”

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This is Gotham’s Breaking News Report.


We just got in reports that there was an explosion at the WTC building in Jump City. More information with our reporter Mary Thompkins , who was there during the events. Mary please tell us what’s happened so far.


Gotham News!


Thanks you Tom. What started as one of the greatest party in recent years turned into tragedy when just a couple minutes ago during the third day of The Jook N Box & Laaze The DJ Ludicrous Rave hosted by Wayne’s Entertainment Inc. the building started shaking after what multiple witness describe as an unidentified aircraft crashed against the building just a couple of floors below the roof where the party was located. Words alone can't describe what just happened Tom, the entire building shook as part of the roof collapsed, even now that we stand outside the building we can appreciate the damage caused by the plane. It’s a terrifying sight, a huge part of the rooftop is simply gone!
Thankfully most of the guest managed to evacuate the party unharmed but Laaze the DJ suffered serious injuries when his leg was crushed by a falling debris. Jook N Box on the other hand was promptly evacuated from the event by his security team but not before giving these reporter a message for the responsable of this act, he said and I quote: “I will stab you”. That’s all for know Tom, I will be back with more information as soon as possible. The only thing this reporter have to ask is: Is this an accident or was it a deliberate act? And if soo who is the  mastermind behind this nefarious act?


0o0


*Zap*


A bolt of electricity brought him back to life. He screamed and trashed as his muscle painfully contracted against his will. His throat was sore and dry, he could barely hear himself over the loud ring like noise pounding inside his head. He felt the cold wind hitting his face, he opened his eyes saw the light of the stars shining through the night. Wait stars? That wasn't right. How could they be stars if he was... inside of a.. Building…


His eyes widened, he took a look around his surrounding. It was gone, the device, windows, walls, roof, guards, everything! It was simply gone. All that was left was a huge hole in the room he was in, if you could even call what was left a “room”. He started to hyperventilate. He lost control again, all of what happened was because of him, he could hear them screaming, crying for help., asking f-


*Zap*


Another shock brought him to his senses, this one wasn't as strong as the last one. He raised his hand in curiosity. His inhibitor was still attached to his right hand, it was little busted, some wires were hanging loose and the normally green light was now yellow. Honestly the only thing he wanted to do right now was to rip that thing off his wrist but he would probably lose his arm first in the process.


He tried to stand up, his leg was buried under some debris, he had to dig it out before limped toward the wall or more accurately where the wall used to be. He felt something wet falling down his cheek. He wiped it out with his hand only to find it covered in something red. Blood, probably his  He could see the entire city from up there. Once you passed the carnage and destruction bellow, it was honestly a beautiful sight.


*Boom!*


A beautiful sight that was ruined by another explosion, this time outside the city. He squint his eyes trying to locate the source of the explosion. He was probably facing east judging by all the landmarks he could recognize, but the only thing outside of city in that was in that direction was the …. Academy.


“Oh no…” Lincoln said, his face was slowly turning white, probably due the blood loss, but also because he could see pillar of smoke rising from the academy's general location. He turned back looking for his communicator. He couldn't feel it in his pocket, so that meant that it must had fallen during the blast, hopefully it was still intact.


He finally found it. It was a couple of paces away from where he woke up. The screen was  cracked and sparks were flying around the device but it still somehow work. He had a new message.


*Bzzt* Red Ale- *Bzzt* Academy und- *Bzzt* Ttack! *Bzzt* Emergency Proto- *Bzzt* 9 activated *Bzzt*


He heard enough, he hold tightly the comm in his hand. Someone out there was attacking his home right now, his friends, his family. He didn't stop squeezing until what was left of his barely functioning comm was crushed, rendering it unrecognizable and untraceable. He was going to stop them. But first he needed to figure out a way to get down.


0o0


“This was bad. Very bad.” though Cyborg as Jinx helped him stand up. Seemore was laying next to him, his helmet was smashed showing part of his bloody face but thankfully he was still breathing. Fortunately Gizmo was distracting the Titans with his holograms which allowed him to carry the unconscious Seemore to out of the danger zone.


Why were they here in the first place? He hadn request evacuation and he was so close to find what the headmaster was planning.  Running wasn't an option, the doors were sealed tight, he tried to force them open to no avail.


“The doors are sealed!” Cyborg said through his comm. “Can’t open it, can somebody help me, Seemore hit his head pretty bad during the explosion, he’s alive, but he needs a medic quick!”


“No can do, doofus” answer the voice of Gizmo. “The system is designed to completely lock down any area of the academy in case it’s invaded so the rest of the facilities aren't compromised. If you want the doors to open then get over here and help us kick these dorks asses back to their stupid tower!”


Cyborg didn't like it but he would need to fight his way out of this one to maintain his cover. He slowly creeped around the hall toward the battlefield and saw that Mammoth had already joined the fight, the big guy was holding up against his robot duplicate but was being worn down by the combined attacks of Beast Boy and Starfire. Jinx on the other hand, seeing no way out, had quickly started shooting at Raven preventing her from supporting her team. Cyborg then changed into his “Stone mode” and lept into the fray.


Now usually when facing multiple opponents the Titans would use the classic “Divide & Conquer” technique, but ever since he went undercover they had to switch up to a pretty standard combat formation in order to protect his robot duplicate from any kind of damage that could blow his cover. This change of tactics had given the Hive 5, who Cyborg suspected were handpicked by the headmaster due to their abilities being perfect counters against the Titans, the  best odds in the field. Add Lincoln’s “Bad Luck Aura” into the mix, a perfect disruptor that could easily turns the tide of any fight, and no wonder the Titans never won a fight against the students since he joined the academy.


With a swift strike he knocked out Star, who was distracted by Gizmo’s holograms, sending her down and leaving the path clear for his true target, the one with the answers.


With a quick leap he got in the right position before catching Robin out of guard by grabbing one of his legs. A quick pull and Robin was thrown to to the other side of the room, far away from the other students and any other prying ears.


“Cyborg! Take it easy, you don't have to act anymore!” Robin hissed as he dodged a punch from Stone/Cyborg.


“Take it easy?! You guys are gonna blow my cover!” Responded Cyborg as he catch a flying kick, then punished Robin by smashing him into the floor… hard.


“Your cover  has already been compromised!” Robin grunted as the floor cracked on impact. “Someone hacked into the system, they made a copy of all the mission files including yours!”


“But that’s impos-” Cyborg was interrupted when he felt a strong blow on the back before he was sent flying through a wall.


He grudgingly managed to stand up and was ready to go back when his path was blocked by his duplicate. Whose eyes were now color red.


Great, the hit he just gave to Robin must had being hard enough to trigger the robot’s “Teammate in Danger” protocol, he had honestly forgotten he had installed that in the first place.


“Target acquired” said the mechanical voice of the “Cybot” as it launched itself toward its creator. Cyborg didn't gave it a chance to retaliate and with a single punch that sent his creation flying back through the wall and quickly gave chase toward the hole he just made.


Back in the gym things weren't looking good for the Titans. With Star out of combat, Mammoth had gained the upper hand against Beast boy after he was accidentally hit by one of Raven’s blast that was aimed at one of Gizmo’s hologram. Speaking of Raven, she was unlucky enough of being in Cybot trajectory and was now acting as his cushion, Cyborg could see the annoyed look she was giving him from beneath Cybot’s metal body.“Ouch!...” He was definitely in trouble once this assignment was over.


He could hear someone pounding on the other side of the blast doors, probably some  glory seeking students trying to get them open in order to help in the battle against the Titans. He couldn't focused on that too much due to being busy dodging a surprisingly sneak attack from Cybot.


He noticed that something was off about his duplicate, sparks were flying all over his fist, as it started to glow hot red. “Shit!” Cyborg thought. The bot’s core must had overloaded during the fight. As if dodging a rampant robot duplicate was hard enough, now each punch it throws was electrified, man he really couldn't catch a break!


Well two could play that game, he rerouted all his backup energy into his fist and positioned himself in front of the bot catching his attention, both of them locked eyes before charging. They let out a scream of rage as they both got closer to their targets. Both fists clashing against each other.


The shock-wave was strong enough to stop all fighters on their track.


A cloud of smoke and dust invaded the room, Gizmo was sent flying out of control but was barely caught by Mammoth in time. Jinx ducked just in time as a piece of debris lodged itself in the wall behind her.


It was mechanical arm, or more accurately a disembodied mechanical arm.


The dust settled down revealing a still standing Cyborg with a damaged but still attached fist raised in victory, under him was what remained of Cybot, its body severed in half by the force of the blast, one of his arms was missing and his face was smashed opened allowing everyone to see its mechanical interior. Such was the commotion that nobody noticed a blast door opening.


The room went silent, no one dared to make a sound. Many inside couldn't even believe what they were seeing.


Then the sound of silence was shattered by a quiet murmur that went unnoticed by most of the fighters, too all but one.


“Vic-Victor?” said a voice that Cyborg could recognize anywhere. He turned towards the now open door and saw Lincoln. Most of his white hair was now a light shade of red as small streams of red liquid travelling down his dirty face. He showed many signs of being near an explosion but what caught his attention was the look of unbelief in his face.


He lifted up his hand towards him, but Lincoln flinched back. The look turned into one of realization, followed by one of horror. Cyborg’s eyes widened when he finally figure out why everyone had stopped fighting.


It was his holo-ring, that last electrified punch had fried its circuits making it useless. In hindsight, maybe it wasn't the best idea to locate his concealment device on the fists he use to punch people faces. He was now in his true form for everyone to see.


Cyborg tried to say something, but Lincoln started to hyperventilate, his bracelet started to fizzle and sparks started blowing from it. The light turned from an opaque yellow to a bright red.


*Bzzzts*


*Bzzzts!*


*Crack!*


The inhibitor suddenly cracked open from Lincoln’s arm and hit the floor with a resounding *Thump*. It continued fizzling and sparking as it melted the floor around it.


“Lincoln, this isn't  what it loo-” Cyborg was interrupted by a pop up message that appeared in his vision


Error!


Followed by another, and another and another. Dozens of messages invaded his screen.


Error!


Error!


Error!


Error!


Critical Failure!


*BANG!*


Time seemed to freeze. He felt an extreme pain inside his head, as if his brain was hit by an electric sledge hammer. He managed to give one step forward before finally fall over to the floor. He saw the look of horror in Lincoln's face. Then everything turned black.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
*Beep*
*Beep*
*Beep*

The sound of the heart monitor kept her awake. It had been days since the true identity of Stone had been revealed and Lincoln still hadn't woke up. Word had spread around about the deception and nobody was happy about it. Even worse, people knew it was Lincoln the one who took Cyborg out and opinions were divided on the subject. If some people were afraid of him before now they were terrified but on the other hand there were those who saw that act as something to be proud of. More than once she had heard some students call him the “Titan-Slayer” while talking down the hall. Jinx always took the job to shuted them up, she knew he would hate the nickname.

*Beep*
*Beep*
*Beep*

Lincoln started thrashing around, like if he was having nightmare but that was normal these past couple of days. She heard the lightbulb outside the room break. Ever since he was put into coma his powers had been out of control. Some people inside the campus were calling it “ Omen’s curse”. The doctors said it was caused by a toxin or something else they found in his bloodstream, she had forgotten the specificities of it. All she really knew was that Lincoln’s powers had gone haywire in the worst possible way. The entire city was now  inside a Bad Luck field as Gizmo so eloquently coined it, people all around were unknowingly having a bad day thanks to Lincoln. Fortunately the farther away they were from Lincoln the lesser the effect of his power, so they will probably only be a little late to work or will stub their toes against the wall a couple of times. Of course that didn't help those who were close to him such as the students that remained in what was left of the academy. So far 3 classrooms had catched fire, Mr. White had accidentally ran over two staff members with his car, Gizmo had been locked in the freezer for 3 hours, her own hair had turned blue after an unfortunately dye incident and Mammoth somehow managed to clog the entire sewage system after drinking spoiled milk. If he wasn't in a coma Jinxx would have put the fear of God into him for messing with her hair. She hold Lincoln hand tightly as Lincoln slowly calmed down. She gave him a timid smile as she played with his hair. Poor Lincoln, first his family and now this. He simply can't catch a break. She swore that if she ever saw Sto- no, if she ever saw Cyborg again she was going to give him the beating of his robotic lifetime.... Well that is if she ever saw him again.

She hated to admit it but a small part of her was worried about him. It wasn't exactly a pretty sight seeing half of someone’s head blow up, even if it was the mechanical part or that it belonged to a traitor.

*Boop*

The sound of her Hive-Com cut her out of her musings. It was an email from Gizmo. It said: “READ THIS. NOW” bellow there were some files attached. She clicked on them. Her eyes widened.

0o0

On the other side of the city inside the iconic T shape building, a single room was lighted in the dark. Robin as usual was sitting in front of the Titan’s computer sorting through the files he managed to salvaged from the botched extraction mission. He finally found the file of the one responsible of Cyborg’s condition, his fist clenched, a single word appeared on the screen: “Omen”. No name, no age, no pictures, only a single word in the entire file, some kind blueprint was supposed to be attached to it but it was lost to the damage Cyborg sustained. He shuddered, Robin had to confess that he was still horrified at the memory of the last mission. Seeing his friend’s head literally explode in front of him wasn't an image he could ever forget, and the way he fell… It brought back terrible memories he would rather keep buried. Thankfully he and the team managed to get Cyborg out of there before the academy roof collapse over them. Ever since Cyborg’s body had being connected in his room trying to repair itself the best it could but it wasn't enough. He had already intervened 3 times in order to stabilise his vitals. He barely made it the last time.

He took one last look to the screen. That single word kept mocking him. That night he swore that no matter where that bastard was, he was going to bring him down.

0o0

It was dark. He kept running, but no matter how fast he ran down the dark alley he never seemed to move further out the ghastly street. The walls were covered in eyes, dead eyes. The cold wind whispered horrible words into his ears.

He kept running.

Finally he stumble into the end of the path. A single wall blocked his way. Eleven pairs of eyes covered the wall. They were from different shapes and sizes, from two eyeballs big enough for a grown adult to a small pair that could could only belong to a baby. Eleven pair of dead eyes, all the same color.

He couldn't keep it anymore, he fell to his knees.

Tears ran through his cheeks.

He knew those eyes,

They were the same as his.

He screamed.

0o0

“Aaaaaaaaagh!”

Lincoln’s eyes opened. He trashed up ignoring the pain that coursed through his body. He looked around, the eyes were gone. The bright light hurt his eyes. He tried to catch his breath, it was only a dream, they were still alive and safe.

He felt something tackling his body. It was Jinx.

“Stupid! Stupid! Stupid Idiot!” Jinx yelled at him while punching his chest. They barely hurt, she didn't mean to harm to him. “From all the stupid and reckless things you’ve ever done, getting a building blown up over you certainly takes the cake! What were you thinking?!”

At this point Jinx was reminding him of Lori whenever she was chastising any of her younger siblings, he shuddered, no one wanted to be in that place. Jinx raised her hand once more and Lincoln closed his eyes. The blow never came, instead he felt a pair of warm arms wrapping around him and something wet over his shoulder.

*Sniff, Sniff* “You idiot! Never worry me like that again.” Begged Jix as she continue to cry on his shoulder.

Lincoln didn't say anything, he simply returned the hug and let her cry. They both remained in silence for a while. Only their heartbeat could be heard. Sadly they couldn't stay like that forever.

“The academy!” Lincoln yelled as the memories hit him like a freight train. “What happened?! I remember fire and explosions. Is everyone okay? Did you get hurt?”
“Lincoln, calm down. I’m fine, see?” She answered as she broke the hug. “The academy… it was attacked by the Titans.”

His heart skipped a beat. He heard the distinctive sound of Professor White’s car crashing against something.

“God, if you have some score to settle with me, then say it to my face! Leave my car out of it!” Yelled an enraged Professor White. It seems like he finally lost it.

“Lincoln!” chastised Jinx as she pinched his cheeks. It was a small trick she learned in order to calm him down whenever he was having a panic attack. “Owie, Owie, Stohps, pleashe” begged Lincoln as he calmed down. It worked every time.

Jinx let both of his cheeks go and he started to rub them, her face suddenly became serious as she reached the one topic she wanted to avoid.

“Lincoln...I don't know how to tell you this but Ston-”
“What about him?! Was he hurt! Was-” She pinched his cheeks again.
“Ow”
“Lincoln” Her voice was cold. “Stone betray us.” She said it fast and clear

The room went dead quiet, Lincoln's eyes widened, his brain tried to process the information. Stone.. Betray us? That couldn't be right, maybe he heard wrong?

“Wh-What did you say?” Lincoln Stammered out .

“THAT HE BETRAY US GODDAMMIT!” jinx exploded. “He was a fucking rat sent to spy on us! he lied to us! not one word he said was true! even his fucking name was a lie!”

Lincoln heart skipped another beat. Something happened but he wasn't paying attention. Instead his mind returned back to the night he was put into coma. He remembered the lab, the explosion, having to crawl out of the debris, the “ambulance” the headmaster had sent him (How did he know he needed it?), arriving at the academy, opening the door, seeing Stone transforming into…

“...Cyborg?” He whispered.
“So you Do remember.” Jinx lamented.
“H-He...”
“He never cared about us.” Jinx finished. “Gizmo dug around his files and found this...” She shoved a tablet into his arms. The screen lighted up showing Jinx’s file, 6 pages worth of information, he couldn't believe it, he moved to next one: Mammoth 3 pages, Gizmo 4 pages. He finally reached his own entry. 1 page, there was only one thing in the file. A blueprint of a collar, like the ones he was taught they used on metahumans in Belle Reve and other prisons.

“This m-must be a mistake.” Pleaded Lincoln “Maybe h-”

 “LOOK AT THIS!! Don't you dare turn your face! LOOK. AT. IT. He’s not your friend! He was never your friend!” Jinx yelled Red in the face looking at Lincoln who could only watch the screen with watered eyes “n-no… no” He said with a trembling voice. “YES! Since day one he’s been planning this, plotting to take US, YOUR FRIENDS, OUT… and to take you in… with a collar… like a rabid Dog… to throw in bottomless pit where we *sniff* w-would never see you again” Jinx said, the last part almost in whisper, her tone full of vile and sadness.

The windows of behind him shattered. It wasn't the evidence in front of him but the sorrowful voice of Jinx that finally broke him.

Jinx looked surprised by the windows. She turned back to Lincoln but he was still frozen, tears ran down his cheeks, he was having trouble breathing.

*Sight* “Lincoln I know this is extremely hard to belief after all you two did everything together but he wasn't your friend, he never was. We are.” With that she stood up, gave him a small kiss in the forehead and left the room but to Lincoln it had not effect. Her words were stuck in her mind.

Stone... was never his friend?

(His heart was beating so loud)

Stone? His roommate?

(He couldn't breath)

The one who helped him see his sister again after all those years, even if it was from afar?

(He could feel his powers losing control)

The one whom he told everything about him?!

This had to be dream

(Yes! A terrible nightmare.)

So he did what he usually did in dreams.

He let it all out and screamed.

0o0

“And done!” exclaimed proudly Beast boy. Ever since he found out that Cyborg was going undercover for a long time he had started to think on the perfect homecoming gift for Cyborg and what better gift than to take care of his precious T-car.
True, it wasn’t easy for him to look after the car with the same determination Cyborg had for his “baby”, but Beast boy honestly thought he did a good job. He cleaned the windows, changed the oil, waxed the car and bought two spare tires just in case. He even took the car for some sweet joyrides, but it was only to maintain Cyborg’s cover….Scout’s honor.
Anyway, ever since the retrieval mission everyone’s mood was in an all time low so it was the perfect time for him to reveal his little gift to the others or it would be if Cyborg was awake. Still Robin said he would wake up anytime soon, so he had time to give the car some final touches.

“You did a great job BB.” Beast boy said to himself. “I can’t wait to see the look on Cyborg’s face, nothing can go wrong!” As in on queue, small cracks started to appear on the roof right above the car, right before the roof collapse in itself crushing down everything below it including the T-car.

“Oh maaan!” Beast Boy cursed, Cyborg was going to kill him.

0o0

The cafeteria of the H.I.V.E academy had definitely seen better days. Granted, the other sections of the academy weren’t exactly better shape but there was something about the cafeteria that dragged everyone’s mood down, maybe it was the fact that it was the place where most of the students hanged around before things went south or maybe it was the fact that half of the roof collapsed during the battle against the Titans or maybe it was that one table that Stone broke on his first day and was never repaired due to lack of budget and was now a constant reminder about his betrayal. Yeah probably the last one.

Jokes aside, it was a miracle that the Academy was still standing let alone still functioning. Headmaster Blood alongside many high ranking staff members had disappeared after the attack, leaving a logistical nightmare for the remaining staff. Most of the building was damaged during the battle but the “Omen’s Curse” had also taken its toll in the infrastructure. Cracks on the wall and the roof had become a common sight in the halls of the academy. Many students had already been relocated from what was left of the H.I.V.E academy to a secure location away from the city.

“So I heard the Albino woke up, how did he take the news?” asked Gizmo as he saw Jinx approaching the table. She said nothing instead she quietly sat besides him and let her head hit the table with a *Thump*.

“That bad?” inquired Gizmo. As if to prove her point, without raising her head Jinx took out a coin from her pocket.

“Heads or Tails?” she asked.
“Tails.” Choose Gizmo.

Jinx let the coin fly. Unfortunately she threw it a little harder than she intended to. The coin landed inside Seemore’s mouth who started choking, some students try to help him but unfortunately for him Mammoth was the first one to reach him. Applying the limited knowledge he was taught in case he ever saw someone choking Mammoth wrapped his arms around the poor Seemore and pulled as hard as he could, and again unfortunately for Seemore, that was very hard.

*Crack!*

Gizmo winced as he heard the sound of Seemore’s ribs cracking by the immense pressure Mammoth applied.

“Oh booger...” Murmured Gizmo as he watched how the staff took Seemore away. It seems like The Curse claimed another victim. “I see he didn't took it well.”

“That would be an understatement… Argh! Why can’t he see that traitorous worm for what he really is!” She yelled as she threw Gizmo food into the air.

“I always knew something was wrong with that doofus...” mumbled Gizmo as he mourned over his lost food. “But as much as I hate to admit, he did a pretty good job spying on us.” He said as he took out a tablet to check out the files he had intercepted. “Identities, strengths, weaknesses, I mean he even included that Mammoth was lactose intolerant for God’s sake... He thought of everything,  this has the hands of Snot Wonder all over it.”

“Why do you say that?”
“Just think about it. I have heard rumors that The Bat keeps files on how to take down everyone, meta or not. Even his allies aren't safe from him. Did you expect anything different from his sidekick?” Argued Gizmo.

“Shit!”Jinx eyes widened. “And he sent that dirty little rat to do his dirty work, now Robin has the knowledge of all our weaknesses, this is terrible! Can't you do something!? Like, I don't know, hack into their computers and erase the files?”

“That is easier said than done Jinx. The Titan’s computer has one of the best securities I’ve ever seen, designed by Tin-man himself. The only way I could possibly erase the files is if I do it directly from the Titan’s Computer.” Gizmo finished only to see a grin on Jinx’s face.

“No,No,No… No… No way.”

Her smile widened.

“You're crazy. We would need an army to storm the tower and even then they could have mov-” Jinx covered his mouth with her hand. She was now grinning from ear to ear.

“Gizmo, bring me everyone.” “What do you mean ‘everyone’.” “EVERYONE!!” With that Jinx stood up and left the cafeteria leaving a baffled Gizmo behind.

“Oh, booger.”

0o0

Lincoln was sleeping when he heard someone knocking on the door, more accurately he was trying to sleep when he heard the knocking on his door. The nightmares hadn’t let him rest. The knocking continued but he didn't answer it.

“Hey Albino!” Said a voice that belonged to Gizmo. “I know you’re there so open up!”

He said nothing in hopes that he would leave him be. He wasn't in the mood for a talk.

“Fine stay there brooding and junk ,” Gizmo continue. “ I just want you to know that Jinx had this crazy ass plan that may get her jailed or worse, killed. She is gathering everyone at the auditorium, you should go too.”

He didn't respond.

“Look, we both know how stubborn she can be… What I’m trying to say is that she is also hurting, pretty bad actually, maybe even worse than you. But you know her, you know how well she can hide it. She is going to need our help, especially yours.” With that Lincoln felt Gizmo walk away. Leaving him alone with his thoughts.

0o0

“Is that it? Are these all the people you could find?” inquired Jinx as she eyed the people sitting in the now roof-free auditorium. Not even a full room, her hopes were starting to diminish.

“Well, they are all who are left. The Albino still refuses to leave his room and I can't find Bumblebee anywhere. Most of the students have already been relocated or plain drop out of the face of the earth. Honestly you should be thankful you reached the double digits!” grumbled Gizmo from behind.

The students were starting to get reckless. Murmurs erupted from all sides of the room as no one knew why they were summoned. A cold wind blew as dark clouds covered the sky above them.

“Great! Things couldn't get worse…Oh shi-” Thought Jinx as she realized she just jinxed herself.

·*Kra-Kra-Boom!*

A thunder landed right next to her making her stumble back a few steps. It was obvious that things weren’t going to work. Fearing getting caught under the rain Jinx was about to call off the meeting when something unexpected happened.

The door opened and  from it entered a small boy wearing an orange hoodie. Jinx’s eyes widened. It was Lincoln. He silently walked to that one chair at the end of the room while trying his best to go unnoticed. Once in his chair he tried to make himself as small as possible but no before locking eyes with her and giving her one small but reassuring honest smile. It was all Jinx needed to gain her strength back. The wind flew again taking the clouds away. Now was the perfect time.

*Ehem* Jinx cleared her throat trying to gather the attention of the crowd. It didn't work.
“WILL YOU GUYS PLEASE SHUT UP!” Jinx yelled. Complete silence. “Thank you... Now I gathered you all here because we need to discuss a very important thing you all know about.”

All the students started looking at each other, they knew what or more specifically who she was talking about but none dared to say a thing. That particular topic had become a taboo inside the academy. Mostly because people were still upset by the betrayal by one of their classmate but also for fear that they may cause an outburst from Jinx or worst, Omen. She noticed how Lincoln buried himself deeper into his chair.

“As you probably know by now our ‘classmate’ Stone” She pronounced those words with clear disgust. An image of Stone appeared on the giant screen behind her. “Was actually no other that one of our archnemesis Cyborg, member of The Teen Titans.” The image changed to one of Cyborg burping, the words “Stupid Idiot” were written in red above him and both of his eyes had crosses above them. “What you don't know is why he was sent here in the first place.”  Jinx spated. She gave the signal to Gizmo as he started to type some keys in his keyboard.

“I had Gizmo dug around Stone files and campus activities and he found this” Just as ordered the screen behind her lighted up showing dozens of pictures. “This are detailed files on each and everyone of us. Yeah , it seems our dear Cyborg was sent here in order to spy on us. Ever since the first day he did nothing but to observe and report. Gizmo found evidence that he hacked the school system in order to access our records. I want you to think every single moment you shared with him; every single last of them. Everything you told them will surely be on your file. Each document contains not only your identity, but also your family, likes, dislikes, strengths, weakness and” The screen changes, the collar from Omen’s file appeared. “How to take us down, permanently in some cases” She finished as she stared at Lincoln. She knew she was being harsh, but she had to make him understand who was the enemy here. The room went completely silent as the crowd processed the information.

“I know we are all used to being beaten by the Titans and backstabbed by each other, but this time is different, they crossed the line and I want to settle the score.” If the room was quiet before now Jinx could hear her own heartbeat. “Look, The Titans came here, they walked among us, pretended to be us and then they harmed us,  they wrecked our school and they destroyed our home. I say it’s time we return the favor... So who is with me?”

The room was silent, no one dared to move. Jinx closed her eyes. This was a failure...

“I am” she heard a voice said. She open her eyes and saw Lincoln standing up. All the eyes on the room were on him.

“Jinx is right! They crossed the line” Lincoln said. “They will pay.”

“If the Titan-Slayer” Jinx saw Lincoln flinch at the nickname. “Is going, then I’m also going” said Private Hive as he  stood up.

“No way I will let you guys hog the spotlight” said Gizmo
“You can count me in” said Billy Numerous. “And us” repeated his clones
“Kyd and I are also in.” Said Angel as Kyd Wykkyd nodded. Soon everyone in the room was standing. Jinx was grinning. She clapped her hands together.

“Excellent!” she exclaimed. “It’s settled, tomorrow will be the day the Titans finally fall!” The entire room cheered. She look directly at Lincoln’s eyes. “And I think I know how are we going to do it….”

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

...Error...

LOAD BIOS
MEMORY SET
SYSTEM STATUS

: Error
: Critical Damage Registered
: Vitals Compromised

EMERGENCY PROTOCOLS
: conditions met
: Execute Emergency Protocols
: Shutting down non essentials
: Prioritising repairs
: Execute All Repair subroutines

...3...2...1

: Repairs Progress 00.1%
: Activating External Data feed

*Bzzshh*
“Fu-*bzzz* The building is collapsing! Raven get us the *bzzz*-uck out here!” Robin’s voice could be heard as the building started shaking. “Star carry Cyborg, we need to get out of here right now!”

“Azarath Metrion Zinthos”  A black light surrounded the camera as everything turned dark.
*beep*
: Feed Error

: Repairs Progress 5.13%

*Bzzshh*
“You can leave him there, Star” The feed resumed this time inside the Titans Tower, showing  both Starfire and Robin alone in his room.

“Leader Robin, do you think Friend Cyborg will be alright?” The camera shook as Star gently connected Cyborg in his charging station.

“I don't know Star. I never seen this kind of injuries before, it’s like his entire electrical system was fried from within. Thanks God that his self repair system wasn't affected. The only thing we can do now is to wait... ” Starfire was visibly shaken.

“Don't worry Star, we will catch the bastard who did this to him.” Robin said as he hugged Star, who returned the hug as tears came out of her eyes.
*beep*
: Feed Error

: Repairs Progress 17.75%

*Bzzshh*
“Hey Cy,” The voice of Beast Boy could be heard. *Tap, Tap, Tap* “Are you there” He said as he tapped the camera lense. “Don't tell the others, but I’m planning a big surprise for you and the rest of the gang when you wake up Buddy. I don't know how long can I keep it secret so please wake up soon. ”
*beep*
: Feed Error

: Repairs in Progress 34.96%

*Bzzshh*
“I should had pulled him out”. The feed revealed Robin, Raven and Starfire inside Cyborg’s room. Beast Boy was right besides him sleeping.

“There was no way anyone could have know what would happen, not even you.” Raven responded to him.

“But I should have known! He should have known!” Robin accused. “I have seen Omen’s kind before back in Gotham, I knew he was dangerous and that we couldn't let our guards down around him. Cyborg got emotionally compromised and blew his cover, but I was the one who sent him there. It’s my fault he’s lik-*bzzz...* ”
*beep*
: Feed Error

: Repairs in Progress 54.31%

*Bzzshh*
*Snore* “I will never surrender the Tofu,... You evil hunter….  You don't even belong to this universe!” grumble a sleepy Beast Boy as continued to sleep right besides him. The door opened revealing Starfire carrying a dish of Tamaranean cuisine, she stopped for a second to witness the scene. Giggling to herself, she set the food down (which immediately absconded from the plate) and went out. She quickly returned with two blankets and carefully covered Beast boy with one without waking him before doing the same with Cyborg.
*bleep*
: Blankie Detected
: Execute Sleepy time subroutine
: Feed Suspended

: Repairs in Progress 66.56%

*Bzzshh*
“Why are you defending him!” The voice of Robin activated the feed. This time he was alone with Raven in Cyborg’s room

“I’m not.” deadpanned Raven. “I just said that you are allowing your emotions and prejudices to cloud your judgment. ”

“Prejudice?!” Robin snapped. “He blew up Cyborg’s head!”

“...And we don't know why he did it or even if it was intentional.” Raven countered. “I’ve been stuck the past three days watching all interactions we gathered about Omen just as you asked me and I haven’t seen a single thing so far that suggest that he would intentionally harm Cyborg the way he did.”

“He is a criminal by trade Raven. Of course he did it intentionally!” Robin retorted

“Robin, we can’t classify everything in black or white.” The tone of Raven’s voice sounded a little more reprehensible than usual. “We must give him the benefit of the doubt.”

“So should we also give the benefit of the doubt any other villain like Slade or Trigon?!” Robin yelled. Before he could even muttered another word the lights shattered.
*bleep*
: Minor Damage Registered
: Optics Affected
: Feed Paused

: Repairs in Progress 79.17%

*bleep*
: Error
: CAM 01 No signal
: Switch Input

*Bzzshh*
The feed resumed revealing Beast Boy and Starfire inside of Cyborg’s room. Suddenly the lightbulb shattered.

“It seems like leader Robin and Friend Raven are having another argument.” Starfire said as she continued watching over Cyborg.

“Yeah, they’ve being doing that a lot recently...” dejectedly murmured Beast Boy as he was sitting besides his comatose buddy.

“I wish they would stop fighting over that stupid Glorbag!” Starfire huffed.

“I don't know Star, the way Cyborg talked about him the few times we were allowed to chat he didn't sound too…. Glorbaggy? I mean Cy was talking about taking him to eat pizza after all this was done, I wondered if he would have liked veggie pizzas?” Beast Boy pondered.

“I don't understand friend Beast Boy. Leader Robin said that Omen was a Bad man.” Starfire queried “

“Well, Robin has been wrong before...”  Beast Boy stated.

“That is the truth.” Starfire responded and looked at Cyborg clenching her hands. “But you did see the same events that I did see yes? When Omen saw through friend Cyborg disguise, he did not hesitate nor uttered a single word before inflicting terrible harm upon our dear teammate.”

“That doesn’t mean he did it deliberately Star!” Added Best Boy locking eyes with her.  “Omen’s powers are kind of bogus and besides everything happened so fast, Cy reveal should have been a really low blow for him” At this point Beast boy was expended and took a sit while resting his gaze on the floor.

“Deception, yes.” Starfire assented. “Betrayal, treason, It hurts much and it hurts deep. Especially when it comes from those wearing the facade of friendship... or family,” with that said she hovered to the entrance, “Have the good night friend Beast Boy and friend Cyborg.” The alien girl said before crossing the threshold, leaving the green boy alone with his thoughts.

*beep*
: Optics Maintenance concluded
: Execute Calibration
: Feed Paused

: Repairs Progress 88.91%

*Bzzshh*
*Psst* ”Cy?” Beast Boy whispered. “I know it’s pretty late but I have something to tell you.” Beast Boy’s eyes and nose were red as if he had been crying. “You know the surprise I was talking about? Well… something happened to it…. You may also want to start looking for new pieces for the T-mobile.” Beast boy suddenly backed away as if expecting for Cyborg to suddenly come to life and hit him for damaging his “Baby”, but nothing happened. He remained quiet for a second before finally speaking again. “Cy... the truth is that we need you. Things are turning really bad in the Tower. Robin and Raven can't have a conversation that doesn't end screaming at each other. Star isn't her bubbly self anymore. And I can't… I can't do anything to help. So please Cy wake up.” At this point Beast Boy couldn't hold back the tears anymore. “ Please Cy, I will do anything! I will stop making shitty jokes, I will never touch the T-mobile again, I’ll even e-eat me-me m-meat… Please Cy wake up. I don't know how much the team is gonna hold...”
*beep*
: Backup Feed Data
: Feed Suspended

: Repairs Progress 99.99%

*Bzzshh*
Beast Boy was sleeping over Cyborg while Starfire was watching them from the door.

“Friend Beast Boy!” Star said, shaking Beast boy to wake him up. “Look! Something is happening!”

As soon as she said those words, Beast Boy escaped from her grip and focused on Cyborg. His face extremely close to eye lense.

“Cy are you there?!” *Tap, Tap* Beast Boy asked while tapping the side of his friend head. “Star, call the others! Cyborg is waking up!”

: Repairs completed
: Reboot

LOAD BIOS
MEMORY SET
SYSTEM STATUS

: Ok
: Starting System

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Everything was dark. He could barely feel anything except cold. Where was?.... Who was he?

“Star, call the others! Cyborg is waking up!”

Cyborg? Was that his name?

“Come on Cy wake up! Don't leave me hanging!”

He recognised that voice, that was ….. Beast Boy? Yeah, Beast Boy! His best friend! They both were part of the same team, the Teen...Titanium? No, it was something similar… Titans! The Teen Titans!

Memories soon started to rushed his head. Bits of his old life started playing on his head. It was quite relaxing until he reached the memories of the accident. He could feel his entire body being consumed by the explosion. He remembered the feeling of horror when he woke up and saw that more than half of his body was now machinery. The invasion, meeting Starfire and the others, founding the Titans. It was all coming back slowly piece by piece.

The last thing he could remembering was his team leader briefing him about a mission. He needed to go undercover, but he couldn't remember where.

LOAD BIOS
MEMORY SET COMPROMISED
SYSTEM STATUS

ACCEPTABLE

: Starting Systems
0o0

“Beast Boy, get off of him!” snapped Raven. She was a little crankier than usual due to the fact that  her meditation had been rudely interrupted by Starfire loudly knocking on her door too informed her that Cyborg was finally waking up.

“Don't worry Raven, I’m sure he ca- Woah!” Beast Boy was sent to the ground as Cyborg mechanically rose from his bed. A blank look adorned his face as is robotic eye was glowing bright red.  The Titans were tensed as they felt their teammate’s robotic eye systematically scanned them. Finally they let a sigh of relief as Cyborg’s blank face was replaced by one of confusion.

“Guys? What happened? Why are you guys looking me like that? Ar-” Cyborg was interrupted as both Beast Boy and Starfire launched themselves over him almost knocking him down. Robin and Raven watched from afar as the alien princess gave her teammate a bone crushing hug while green changeling has turned himself into a puppy who playfully bark along Cyborg’s feet. They both hid a small laugh that threatened to escape their lips, a feeling of peace echoed around the tower, one that felt like it had been missing for years. But all good things must come to an end as Robin cleared his throat to gather attention.

“Okay Team we can do the welcome party later I need to speak with Cyborg… alone” emphasised Robin.

“Can it be wait a moment Rob? I wanna check some stuff around the tower first.” pleaded Cyborg as the rest of The Titans returned to their rooms.

“Fine, Oh! Cyborg...” Robin said catching Cyborg’s attention just as he was about to leave.
“Welcome back.” He said before leaving and just like that after many months it seemed like peace had returned among the Titans…

“WHAT HAPPENED TO MY CAR!”

….or not.

0o0

“Now Cyborg before we start I need you to tell me how much do you remember in the first place.” Robin informed Cyborg. It had taken the whole team to prevent him from murdering Beast Boy after finding out his beloved T-car buried under some debris. Once he had calm down he was escorted by Robin to small private room where the could talk.

“The last thing I remembered clearly was you briefing me about some kind of mission after we failed to stop the H.I.V.E students from robbing the bank. After that is just bits and pieces.” Robin seemed to frown at this before he wrote some quick notes.

“Memory loss” He said without being surprised. “Not completely unexpected considering how much trauma your head suffered…. Cyborg do you recognise any of these people?” Robin asked as he brought up a couple of pictures.

“That’s Jinx” answered Cyborg as Robin pull out another picture
“Gizmo”
“Mammoth”

Robin showed him one last picture, this one he did not recognized. It showed what he could guess was a kid no older than 13, the upper part of his head was covered by an orange hoodie. His head throb a little as he tried to remember where had he saw that bucked teeth boy before… Wait bucked teeth? How did he knew that.

Robin must had seen the pain in his face as he quickly answered. “That’s Omen, H.I.V.E latest and most dangerous recruit. He was also yo-”

“My name is Stone, and according to the headmaster I am your new roommate.”

Cyborg’s head started to spin as he heard echoes from a past conversation.

“He was my roommate?” Cyborg mumble out incredulously.

“So you do remember?” Robin queried.

“Just a little of our first meeting, he and I were frie-”

“He was not your friend!” Busted out Robin. “Sorry about that, but I need you to understand clearly who your real allies are here. You blew your cover because you got emotionally compromised by Omen. He played you.”

“Are you sure about that?” asked Cyborg unconvinced. “Because I think I’m starting to remember things quite differently”

“Yes, he is psychopath, a manipulator and a murde- ”

“You are letting your prejudices get out of hand again” interrupted Raven surprising the two of them.

“Raven!” yelled the two teens in surprised. “How did get here?”
“I can teleport to any place I want in the Tower.” She deadpanned. “Also you left the door unlocked” She turned to Cyborg

“Cyborg, as much as Robin wants this to be true I must disagree with him. At his request I have spent the last three days reviewing all the surveillance we had on him and I can safely conclude that he isn't as evil as Robin want him to be.” Raven concluded.

“Why are you still defending him?” Robin snapped

“Three. Whole. Days.” Robin yelped as Raven turned her glare into him. “And taking into account the fact that he decided to face the 5 of us in order to rescue you when he taught you where captured I can say he has earned himself the benefit of the doubt. Anyway I suggest for you to wait until more of your memories come back before making a judgment. ” Robin gave her a final glare which she ignored before leaving the room.

An awkward silence filled the room only to be shattered when the Titans Tower started to trembled followed by the sudden sound of the alarm. Robin and Cyborg went out of the room immediately not knowing that this was only the first move in the game of chess he and Omen had just begun.

0o0

(Flashback)

“Okay guys listen carefully because I won't repeat the plan twice” Lincoln said. Jinx had given him the floor in order to explain the plan to take out the Titans. “Operation Titanomachy consist in 3 parts that must be executed almost simultaneously in order for it to succeed.” With a few taps on the keyboard dozens of images were projected for everybody to see. “In the surface it may look like the usual Divide and Conquer tactic we usually use but I’ve made some ‘readjustments’ for it to work on this scale ”

(Present)
“Oh my God” Muttered Robin from the top of the tower as he watched the ablaze horizon that was Jump city. “Cyborg! Report!”

“We got multiple reports of H.I.V.E students attacking different parts of the city.” responded Cyborg as he kept intercepting emergency calls and police dispatches.

“How many?!” Barked out Robin
“About a dozen suspect per incident, but the report state that more than half of the perps look identical.“ Cyborg explained.

“Billy Numerous!” Robin growled. “ How bad is it?”
“Very bad, the zoo is under attack and so is the mall. Many buildings were set up in fire with civilians trapped inside of them, to make things worse some people are taking advantage of the chaos Hive have provide them and started revolting and vandalizing the city. Robin, we need to do something! ”

“And we will.” Robin answered slowly. “But this kind of chaos…. I have seen it before and I know how to fight it.” He turned around to face his teammates. “Hive is trying to divide us and if we are going to face them, then we must do it the right way. Cyborg get me a direct line to the city hall, I have some calls to make...”

(Flashback)
“See-More, Private H.I.V.E., Billy Numerous, I.N.S.T.I.G.A.T.O.R., Wrestling Star, XL Terrestrial you will all be in charge of Phase 1: Distraction.” Explained Lincoln. “I need you guys to attack here, here and here.” He pointed at 5 different places all across the city. “You job is to buy as much time as you can for the guys (Erhem!)... and girls in Phase 2. ”

“Dibs on the mall!” exclaimed Billy Numerous as he gave one of his clones a high five.

(Present)

“...We're going till the world stops turning, While we burn it to the ground tonight!” Sang loudly and off key Billy Numerous as he and his clones raided the mall. Everything that wasn't bolted to the ground was fair game, and for those that were he brought a couple of wrenches in order to take care of that.

The best part of it? He wasn't alone and he wasn't even talking about his clones. Hundred of people had joined him in his stealing spree in the mall. It was wonderful what normal people would do when the cops weren't watching.

His clones had just finished looting a nearby store when he heard the sound of glass shattering above him. Smirking he took out his Hive-com.

“This is Sexy Copy Machine to Overdrive, they took the bait. Do you copy? Over”

(Flashback)
“Umm Sir?” asked Private Hive in his usual military tone. “I don't want to question you, but wouldn't the Titans notice we are just a distraction?”

“You don't have to worry about that Private,” Lincoln retorted. “In fact, we are counting in it. Do you guys remember what we learned in the counter-vigilantism seminar we had a couple weeks ago?” He inquired.

“Not to give long over dramatic monologues?”
“Don't reveal your evil plan to the heros no matter how helpless They seem?”
“Hire stupid henchman so you appear better in comparison?”
“No capes?”

“That…. And that heroes always prioritize civilians safety over catching the villain. That's why I choose the five zones in Jump City with the highest civilian traffic as our targets.” Lincoln smirked as Jinx eyes widened.

“So even if they noticed the distraction they would still be forced to face them! Excellent thinking Lincoln!” Jinx Exclaimed.

(Present)

“Roger that, Billy. Who took it? Also never call yourself that again… ever!  Over” asked Jinx as she waited with the rest of the students inside the ship Gizmo had named Overdrive. It was currently cloaked above a Wayne's Enterprise building.

“Space Hottie, I will take care of her. Over” responded Billy.

“Anyone else?” She asked through the radio.

“This is Private Hive reporting Ma’am. Mammoth and I are engaging the shapeshifter at zoo. Over. ”

“Seemore here alongside Billy’s squad #10. The buildings are still burning, no sight of the Tit- HOLY CRAP! Omen! Goth girl just teleported 4 firefighter’s trucks to my location! More are coming!”

“Hey Omen! Space hottie brought backup! The freaking S.W.A.T is here gassing the place!”

“Private Hive request for backup, sir! The Titans are here I repeat the Titans are here!”

“Negative” responded Lincoln who was sitting right besides her. “ Seemore, Billy, get the hell out of there and regroup with I.N.S.T.I.G.A.T.O.R and Wrestling star down in the docks. Private, you and Mammoth let the clones earn as much time the as possible. Free as many animals as you can without getting caught before leaving. That will buy you some time”

“Lincoln, what happened?” Jinx inquired him.

“The Titans,” He answered “they are working together with the City Hall in order to negate our number superiority. The police, the firefighters, certified first responder, even animal control are probably now under the coordination of The Titans... Well play Robin, well play.”

“Well play?!” Jinx yelled “How can you say that! What are we going to do?!”

“Relax Jinx, if there is one thing that I’ve learned after living in a house with ten sisters is that no plan ever survive the first encounter. And while is true that we can't outnumber the entire city, that doesn't mean we can't get a little backup of our own.”

“Gizmo! Can your backpack carry us both to our next target?” Lincoln asked.
“Yeah” answered Gizmo from the cockpit.

“Excellent, Jinx now is your chance to enter the lab, the Titans should be too busy to come here immediately, but still be carefull” Lincoln explained to her. “Once you secure the device, arm it up and wait for signal after that pilot the Overdrive to our secondary target, okay?”

“No problem Lincoln ”Jinx said giving Lincoln one last hug before she and her squad dropped out from the plane into the lab’s roof. She was a little scared but she trusted Lincoln’s plan.

(Flashback)
Once we have confirmed that the Titans took the bait, we will start Phase two: Deception. Jinx, Angel & Kyd Wykkyd, I need you guys to steal this little project Wayne Enterprise is keeping in one of their labs inside the city. It is on a low security level and with all the ruckus the others will be making you should be able to get in and out without the Titans noticing it. Once you get the device go back to the ship to start Phase 3. Any question?” Lincoln asked

“Yeah,” answered Angel. “What exactly are we stealing?”

(Present)

“...A microwave?” asked again Robin to make sure he had heard right. Just a couple minutes ago he had managed to drive off two H.I.V.E students  that were terrorizing some citizens near the park when Cyborg called him in order to tell him that he got a report indicating that Jinx, Angel & Kid Wykkyd had been spotted stealing prototype microwave from the home division of Wayne’s Enterprise. “Are you sure?”

“A 100%, Robin” Cyborg answered from the other side of the line. “It doesn't make any sense, I have analysed the schematics a dozen times and I can't find anything unusual. It’s a pretty good design but it isn't anything out of this world, it’s just a regular microwave, even if they somehow modify it, it would still need a ridiculous amount of energy for it to even be considered dangerous.”

Robin rubbed his fingers against his forehead. Nothing of this made any sense, then his eyes widened.

“A huge amount of energy?” he asked again. “Yeah, but I doubt that Hive have anything that could power it. I mean it’s not like they have a case fil-....... Oh shit!”

Oh shit indeed.

(Flashback)

“The microwave alone is harmless” Explained Lincoln after seeing the look of disbelief on his classmates. “There is nothing especial about it other than the fact that it is being developed by Wayne’s Enterprises. But once you put it together with this… .” Lincoln opened up a briefcase were what was left of his inhibitor bracelet rested. It was a melted a little but what caught the attention of the students was the signature red glow that emanated from the device. “... that harmless microwave will turned into a bomb big enough to level an entire skyscraper” He finished with a grin. “And I know exactly where to put it.”

(Present)

“Robin, I managed to track the radiation levels of the xenothium, it seems like H.I.V.E is moving it at high velocity, probably a plane or something like that.” Cyborg informed him.

“Location?” asked Robin
“ Working on it, but it seems they are heading towards….. Oh oh”

*With Jinx*

“Jinx now!” signaled Lincoln through his communicator. Jinx opened the suitcase and extracted two xenothium bars from it. She quickly inserted them inside the Wayne’s prototype, a red glow started to overtake the device. She quickly went back to the pilot seat and set course towards her new target: Jump City Federal Prison for Metahumans

*Back with Robin*

“Attention to all Titans! Disengage all current targets right now, they’re a distraction! Hive has come in possession of a xenothium powered bomb they are planning to use it to blow a hole in the walls of Jump City Maximum Security Prison. If they do, they will release hundreds of the most dangerous criminals into the city. We must not allow for it to happen! Titans Go!”

“Wow I can't believe those idiots fell for it, guess I owe you 5 bucks.” Gizmo exclaimed and whistled as he was sitting right next to Lincoln, thanks god he had tap the Titans communication during their last fight, it made things a lot easier for them.

“Told you it would work.” Lincoln Answered as he got his gear ready. “I think they would need at least 15 minutes to find where did we stash the bomb. Even then, they would still be halfway across the city, giving us another 25 minutes minimum, is that enough for you?”

“40 minutes to hack into one of the most secure systems in the world? Don't insult me! I can do in 30 with a hand behind my back!” Gizmo answered.

“Perfect! Hey Gizmo, does the tide seem very low to you for being full moon?” puzzled Lincoln upon seeing how the water had retreated from the cost.

“It seem fine to me Albino. Now can we move on?” Gizmo snapped

“Fine, lead the way” Lincoln said as he and Gizmo prepared to stormed the iconic T shaped building.

(Flashback)

“While the xenothium is very good source of energy for the bomb it’s also easy to track, that's why we are going to keep it in motion aboard on the Overdrive and lead the Titans in a wild goose chase. As soon as we get confirmation that the Titans are following our bird then Gizmo and I will initiate Phase 3: Infiltration. We are going to access a terminal from within the tower and plant the virus Gizmo crafted for this special occasion that’s going to wipe clean everything in the Titan’s Computer including any kind of files they have on us. If everything goes according to the plan then by tomorrow night the Titans will be destroy both physically and spiritually. Any questions? None? Great! Then Operation Titanomachy is a go!”  Concluded Lincoln as the rest of the students started chanting

“No more Titans! No more Titans! No more Titans!”


0o0

“Hello Omen...” A voice caught Lincoln by surprise. He inwardly cursed himself as he forced himself to turn around. In front of him was standing the last person he wanted to see: Victor, his left arm was transformed into a cannon pointing at him. He wasn't supposed to be here.

From the corner of his eye he managed to spot Gizmo, who was still out of Victor’s sight. He stealthily message him to go ahead without him before he finally responded to his former roommate. He put his hoodie down revealing his white hair.

 “Hello Cyborg” Lincoln answered him calmly, his face a mask of indifference. “ I didn't expect you to be here.”

“Oh please, you may had fooled Robin but I was your roommate and most importantly your friend no matter what others say.” Lincoln flinched those words, but he did his best to cover it. “But still I gotta said nice plan you did. You knew Robin would figured out the distraction so you gave him another thing for him to chase while you pursued your true objective…. But the prison? Really? It doesn't fit well to your style.”

“Yeah, I had to borrow that idea from that one guy from Gotham, but I’m sure he won't mind.” Lincoln answered. “But I want to know how did you figured it out? I thought I did a pretty good job covering my tracks.”

“You did.” Cyborg said while still pointing his cannon at him. “The truth is that I’m having trouble recalling a lot of things that happen while I was at H.I.V.E, but don't worry they are coming back , albeit slowly. For example I remembered I was your roommate, I also remembered that Mammoth is lactose intolerant and what happened after he used our bathroom because he clogged his, and I also remember that I helped you made that plan for Professor White's Final Project.”

“Help?” Lincoln snorted. “You and Mammoth spent the whole day fighting over who could eat more cheeseburgers while Jinx and I did all the work. That's why he clogged our toilet!” He finished with a small laugh. “Now can I ask you the real question? If you figured it all, why aren't the rest of the Titans here?”

“Because I wanted to speak with you… ” Cyborg said while depowering his arm cannon. “And to be honest Robin doesn't seem to have a very good opinion on you, so I needed to do this alone.”

“What makes you think I care about what you do ?” Lincoln snapped back .
“Because Raven told me how you came back for me when you thought the Titans had capture me. The fact that you choose to fight 5 opponents to rescue tells me you care at least a little. So would you hear me out, please?”

Lincoln didn't answer instead he let out a  sigh. “You really don't remember, Victor?” He didn't need to raise his head to noticed the look of shock Victor had after saying his name. “Fine, what do you want?”

“I want this to end.” Cyborg Explained. “And I know you want it too. So if you stop all this, right here right now, then I can talk to Robin, put in a good word and find you help, no one else needs to be hurt.”

“Oh please” He retorted. “Let say I stand down, then what? Boy Wonder will bust down the door with the rest of his merry men, beat me up and send me to a remote prison like a chained dog? I’ve seen the collar you designed Victor. It’s not gonna to happen.”

“No! No! I would never allow that happen! Seriously who told you that?” Victor quickly countered. “I know the collar may look bad but it was a stand in design while we figured better way to help yo-”

“Help?” Lincoln snorted incredulously. “Victor, there is no helping for things like me! Wherever we go we always end up bringing pain and misery to everyone around us, it doesn't matter if we want it or not! As soon as people see what we truly are, they come to us like a mob waving their torches and pitchforks or worse they come to us with smiles and promises of a better life but those are all lies! They lie because they don't see as equals, they see us as something below them, as freaks of nature that must be stomp out. Controlled in order for them to feel secure with their miserable existence!  Look at Killer Croc, he was born looking like a monster, he was treated like a monster and in the end he became a monster and where is he now? Locked up in a cell of one of the most secure prisons in the world with a kill switch on his head! I mean how long ‘till that happen to me? Think about it Victor, I can literally make a planes fall from the sky if I wake up on the wrong side of the bed or cause an earthquake if someone spills coffee over my shirt. What do you think they’ll do to me?! Lock me up? Dissect me? I don't want any of that! All I’ve ever wanted was a normal life!” Lincoln finished yelling, his face was red as tears threatened to come out of his eyes. An grim silence fell over the room.

“You know” Lincoln murmured. “ You may not remember, but you once asked me back in the academy how did I ended up there, what roads put me on the path of being a thief, why I didn't became a hero. You were pretty vocal about the last one, should have known. But Victor, I’m bad luck, good was never option for me, so tell me how can I choose when the only options I have are to become a madman or to become some government pet?”

“But those aren't your only options!” Victor retorted. “You have a third choice, you can choose to be better. Look at Superman or Martian Manhunter, people didn't like them first, some fear them and even tried to lock them up, but they rise up to the occasion. They become a symbol of hope. You say you wanted a normal life, I can give you that but only if you let me help you. Don't you want to see your family again?”

“OF COURSE  I WANT TO SEE MY FAMILY AGAIN!” Yelled Lincoln finally breaking the dam that contained his feelings. “For God’s sake! Do you think I can endure being away from them?! Not being able to get close to someone because you know that all it takes is one bad day for you to hurt them! I hate it... I hate it all so much... ”. Lincoln replied barely swallowing the lump in his throat.

“This…” He said looking into his open palms before clutching them, “this unbearable joke… this damn ‘powers’ of mine, because of me, m-mom…” *sniff* *hem* “My mother she, ended up in a wheelchair...” Tears were rolling down Lincoln’s eyes as windows and light bulbs shattered around him. “Th-That’s why I left. I may have broken their hearts but I won't break their bodies, not again.”

Lincoln didn't knew why he had confessed that, he hadn't even told Jinx about the true reason he left his house. What he didn’t expected was a pair of metallic arms wrapped around him. They were cold but it didn't bother him, he just continue to cry on his metallic shoulder. *Sniff* “It’s not fair… I don't want this.” He sniffled. “I tried my best to be a good son, a good brother, to always do the right thing. Why did this have to happen to me?”

“I hate what I am so much!”

Victor stared at the young boy in his arms as he continue to cry on his shoulder. His plan had worked perfectly. Ever since he woke up he had been experiencing random flashbacks of his time in the academy, especially about this white haired boy. He wanted to know more but unfortunately Omen seemed to be a sore topic for his teammates. Hence why he had planned this secret meeting in order to meet with the kid. He was surprised when Omen addressed him by his real name, guess they had a closer relationship that he expected. Now was a crucial moment, if he could play his cards right maybe he could convince Omen not only to stop the chaos that Hive was unleashing through the city but to leave the life of crime for good. He finally broke the hug.

“Listen, there’s nothing wrong with you, you’re not a bad person! I may not remember all but I remember enough to know that you aren't villain, you never were meant to it. There’s good heart inside you, if there wasn't then you wouldn't  have come back for me or have this conversation. I can help you reunite with your family and life but you need to trust me Omen. I know it may seem hard after all that’s happened  bu-”

“Lincoln” the white haired boy interrupted him. He must had seen the confusion on his face before he clarified, “you used to know me by my name, Lincoln L-”

*Swish*

A metallic red object landed between them. Cyborg recognised it immediately.

*Beep*
*Beep*

“God dammit Robin...” Victor thought.

*BOOM!*

Lincoln was sent to the other side of the room by the explosion. Soon Victor was surrounded by the rest of the Titans.

“FREEZE Omen! You’re under arrest” Robin yelled. “Thanks for buying us time Cy.” Victor’s eyes widened. He tried to signal Lincoln he didn't knew what Robin was talking about, but the damage was already done. In the confusion Lincoln managed to raise up his hoodie covering his hair and eyes but Victor saw shock and anger in his face, just for a moment before a mask of tranquillity fell over his face.

“Robin! Didn't expected you back home so soon.” He said with fake cheerfulness. “Shouldn't you and your friends be outside helping the citizens of Jump City? I heard things are quite roused out there.”

“Yes they are” Robin retorted with a smirk. “But you could say that reinforcements came with the tide” Robin pointed at the huge T.V screen behind him. The screen  showed a teenager in blue using the seawater to put off the fires near the docks, then it changed to two young kids fighting against Billy’s clones at great speed, and it changed again and again and again, each image showing the same result.

“Do you like them?” asked Robin “Those are just a few of the honorary Titans I’ve called as back up. You may recognise some such as Aqualad, Arsenal, Mas y Menos and....”

“Bumblebee” finished Lincoln with a frown. “Should have known you would have sent more than one rat. Clever bird, but are you clever enough for what comes next?”

“What happen next is that you will going to jail, you murderer!” Robin scolded him “You will never see the light of day again!”

At this point Victor really wanted to facepalm really hard. Every single thing that came out of Robin’s mouth was making things worse.

“...So much for option 3? Eh Victor?” Before the Titans could react to the name Lincoln yelled. “Gizmo now!”

Almost as if he appeared out of thin air, Gizmo landed right besides him. Six metallic spider legs held him above ground as he ready himself for combat.

“Eeh, dude?” chimed in Beast Boy “I don't want to rain on your parade, but we got you guys outnumbered. Fighting us wouldn’t be a good choice.”

“Huh, you’re way smarter than you appear Beast Boy.” Lincoln praised.

“Thanks, Hey!” Beast boy yelled as he finally catched on.

“But I have to clarify one thing…. Who said anything about fighting? Gizmo and I will simply walk out of this place.” Lincoln explained with a hint of smugness in his voice.

All the titans, including Victor, looked at him like he had lost his mind.

“And how… are you so sure of that?” Robin growled squinting his eyes at the offending party.  “Oh Robin, you know that when playing chess you always need to be 3 moves ahead. Gizmo, did you do it?”
 “Of course I did! Who do you take me for? The green idiot over there?” Gizmo bantered. “Again, Hey!” pouted Beast Boy but was ignored.

“Do what?!” Robin barked .

Instead of answering, Lincoln simply gave him a devious smile, one that he learned from the best , Lola Loud. “Let just say I had Gizmo rigging a little surprise to go off in the middle of city in case  you guys arrived early.”

“And if you don't mind spoilers in case you were wondering, the surprise is filling a zeppelin set to freefall from a cloud bank to the center of downtown. Is a little ‘Something’ I made with the help of my associates at the academy.” Explained Lincoln in the most nonchalant manner, looking at Robin straight to the face.

“Give you a hint: It’s color rhymes with custard… Get it?” grinned Lincoln as he did his best Luan impression.

“You wouldn't...” Robin hissed visibly shaken.

“What can I say? Chaos is wonderful, wonderful thing!” Lincoln chuckled.
“Robin wait! Something isn't right” Raven said trying to get her teammates attention.

“So you want to play the ransom game *huh*... But If you are so smart then tell me.” Robin said with a smirk. “What exactly is stopping me from sending half of the Titans to stop your ‘Surprise’, while I stay behind and arrest you?”

“Stop it?” asked Lincoln as he tilted his head slightly. “Robin, I'm not a comic book villain. Do you honestly think I'd explain my ‘master plan’ if there was the slightest chance of you guys affecting the outcome? I did it five minutes ago.”

As if to prove his point Gizmo turned on a monitor, Cyborg felt his blood run cold at what he saw, he was sure the others were feeling the same. A news channel was showing a terrifying image. the entire  city being covered by a giant ball of gas, yellow gas. Underneath it the words “City in panic” and “Terrorist Attack?” could be read in the screen.

“YOU MADMAN!!!” yelled Robin as he tried to launch himself over Lincoln but was stopped by Cyborg.

“Robin stop! He is bluffing I can feel it”
“Am I? That’s pretty bold for you to say Cyborg.” remarked Lincoln, his smile never wavering.

“Think about it, where would they get that kind of gas?”
“Oh, you know I know a few guys.” Lincoln Interrupted with a teasing tone.

“Robin, lis-”
“Tic Toc, Tic Toc, Tic Toc” Lincoln teased. Robin was about to explode. “Time is running out, well not for us, but them ‘on the other side’… Get it?” Lincoln asked shaking his head.

Robin finally had enough and escaped from Cyborg’s grip. He rushed towards Lincoln and grabbed him by the shirt. He lifted him in the air yet that teasing smile never left Lincoln’s face.

“Come on, Robin. The truth is that we could spend the whole day arguing about semantics but that won't do any good to the city would it?” Lincoln said as Robin did his best not to strangle him. “You are a smart boy Robin, I bet you have already thought of at least 5 different ways to disperse the gas, but each of them requires all the help you can get to avoid casualties, am I right?” Robin growled as his grip tightened.

“I will take that as a yes. And in reality you only have two options: either you take your Titans plus anyone you can reach to save the city or you could stay behind and fight us. Just food for thought, you know, for the way I see things from ‘up here’… Get it?”

Robin could only glare at him, his jaw muscles now tense enough that any observer would believe he was trying to shatter his own molars.

“Oh, but you can take me in if you want, I don’t mind.” Lincoln declared extending his hands to Robin, “Gizmo on the other hand may have a few objections,” on cue, Gizmo flared all his arsenal including a sizable amount of drones positioned on all over the room. “Also, I must point out that a few of my accomplices are already on their way… and the fact that I could be lying about me not resisting arrest.” Concluded Lincoln, his buck toothed smile widening ever so slightly as a couple of screens cracked.

“Clock’s still ticking boy wonder, If you keep people waiting any longer you’re gonna bore them to ‘death’... Get it?”

At this point Robin’s breathing was hard and uneven, his mask of stern stoicism nothing but a fleeting memory.

“Robin listen to me. I need you to trust me.” Cyborg pleaded  from behind him. “I have been living with him for more than a month. He is not the mass murderer you belief he is. He’s playing on your para-”

“TITANS!” Robin roared, letting go of Lincoln. “We are going to save Jump city from this madman, tell the others we will meet half a klick west from ground zero.”

“Robin, I think it would be smart to lis-” Raven Tried to say before she was interrupted.

“Titans Go!” Robin growled as he advanced toward the door. “That’s an order.”

One by one the Titans followed their leader until only Cyborg was left in the rooms with the two villains.  He didn't said a thing instead he let a sad smile show in his face, one that soon Lincoln returned.

“CYBORG!”

Resigned on following the clouded judgment of his infuriated team leader, Cyborg went through the door, leaving the tower at the hands of Hive students. The silence was suddenly shattered by Gizmo’s laughter.

“We did it! I can’t believe we did it!” Gizmo barked with glee. “Man I will never doubt any of you plans again!”
“Yeah we did it” answered Lincoln once the reality of the situation finally hit him. “Quick! Signal the others, we need to do this as fast as we can!”

It didn't take long for the Overdrive to be spotted over the Titan’s Tower. Once it landed it’s back door opened revealing Jinx alongside the rest of the Hive students. She quickly leapt from the plane towards Lincoln.

“Lincoln!” the girl yelled as she hugged him. “I was so worried! When I saw that the Titans were heading for the Tower I feared the worse. Did something happen? What happened to your face? Were you crying? It was Cyborg right! Oh when I see that bastard again I w-”

“Jinx, we are fine!” Lincoln reassured her in hopes of stopping the onslaught of questions. He deeply appreciated the fact that she really worried about him, but sometimes she acted way too much like his sisters when he got hurt. “ Do you still have the bomb?”

“Yeah, its lock and load.”
“Excellent, let's set it up and get out of here. Now is the time to finish this war once and for all...”

0o0

It was a frightening sight to see. The city was chaos, every street they passed was filled with people screaming. Mothers carrying their childrens away from the gas, people using their shirts to cover their faces as they ran. Officers with gas mask doing their best to evacuate the remaining civilians out of the blast zone.

The Titans did their best to help the civilians get out, they were all wearing special gas masks that Cyborg designed a while ago.

But what truly frightened Cyborg the most, was the fact that the deeper they went into the city the more silent it became. Screams and sirens slowly faded into background the closer they were to the impact zone. Finally the silence became absolute, not a single soul remained apart from them. Hope was dwindling and…. Was that a dog?

*Woof, Woof* A dog happily barked while approaching the party.

Cyborg stared at the pup like it was one of life's greatest mysteries. Neither (they) of the titans saw his hand slowly approaching his face.

With one swift move he tored off his gas mask and took a deep breath. The others tried to stop him in the after-shock but it was too late.

“Dude! Are you crazy!” Beast Boy yelled. “The gas-”
“...is harmless” finished Cyborg in a cold tone as he continued to breath normally.

Seeing that his friend wasn't dying a horrible and agonizing death Beast Boy tentatively took his mask off.

*Sniff, Sniff* “Guys, he’s right.” Beast Boy exclaimed. “It actually smells sugary like cake?” “Custard” Cyborg assured. One by one the rest of Titans took off their masks until only Robin remained.

“Cyborg” deadpanned Raven in her usual tone. “What does this mean?”

He remained silent unnerving his teammates. “It means...” The titan finally said. “That we missed our chance.”

*BOOM!*

As soon the words left his mouth a deafening  sound erupted behind them rattling the windows of nearby buildings. The gas was dispersed by a sudden rush of air revealing, to the horror of the Titans, the still exploding form of their beloved Tower. The Titans watched helplessly how their home trickle down piece by piece to the  ocean that surround it.

Unseen drones hidden by the gas until that moment, started flying through the roof tops and played a loud orchestral composition. “Is that... Tchaikovsky’s...?” Raven inquired timidly as the young heroes could do nothing else, but to contemplate the ‘spectacle’ performed in front of them.

0o0

Meanwhile on the other side of town the atmosphere  was very different as the Overdrive landed in the academy’s hangar. Shouts of joy and cheers could be heard as the returning students flocked the still roofless cafeteria. Soon an improvised party was made as the students laugh, dance and ate to the rhythm of the music of Jook N Box, Gizmo had rigged to the speakers. Some students even managed to make some bonfires out of essays that were supposed to be turned in before the Titans attacked. Overall everyone was in a very good mood, well everyone except one particular student.

Lincoln sat alone on a table, absently watching the others students have fun. His mind kept playing back the last conversation he had with Victor. Was the titan really telling the truth or was just buying time for the others to arrive? In all honesty Lincoln knew deep down that a part of him wanted to belief every single word and why not? He would be lying to himself if he said that he didn't root for Ace Savvy every time he read one of his comics or that he didn't wear his Ace Savvy costume for the last halloween he spend back home and acted like him the whole night to boot.

But a much bigger part of him clung Jinx’s words. The ones she said upon learning about his powers: “We are bad luck, we can't be good. That’s why we must stick together no matter what.” Truth to be told the idea of being one of the good guys was something Lincoln had to throw away early during his time on the streets. That idea was further discarded when Headmaster Blood found and enrolled him in The H.I.V.E Academy, an institute for villains-in-training. Now Victor had brought back all those questions he thought buried long ago and he honestly didn't knew what to do.

He suddenly felt someone pinching his cheek. He gave out a small yelp causing a lightbulb to shatterer but nobody noticed. He turned around only to find Jinx giving him an inquisitive look.

“What was that for?!” Lincoln asked rubbing his cheek.
“You were brooding.” Jinx replied ignoring his complaints. “So what were you thinking about?” Her eyes widened. “Was it Cyborg? It was him wasn't it?” She emphasize each question by pinching his cheeks.
“Owie! Stopht!” Lincoln pleaded while his cheeks continue to be pinched. “Why doh you alwaysh pinsche my cheeks!”
“Upps! Sorry I got carried away.” Jinx apologised releasing his cheeks. “It’s just that your cheeks are so… pinchable.” She wanted to continue questioning him when two voices interrupted her.

“Fluffy Bunny.” Mammoth saluted in his usual way.
“What’s up Zeus?! Enjoying your moment of glory? ” Gizmo said patting Lincoln’s back.

“Zeus?” asked Lincoln with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah you know, Zeus. As in the god of lighting and destroyer of Titans, ring any bell?”
“As long as you stop calling me Albino.” Lincoln chuckled
“Not so fast Albino!” Gizmo interjected. “He had white hair too! That means he was also an albino. Plus if I remember correctly, you did smite some of Billy’s clones last time you passed Prof. White test!” He finished as all those in the table shared a laugh. “So what were you guys talking about?”

“Oh nothing important.” Jinx said  once again pinching Lincoln cheek. “Just asking broody over here what’s in his mind. Seriously if you don't stop brooding then you will end up like a certain bat-vigilante.”

“I was thinking about the future” confessed Lincoln as he rubbed his red cheeks earning looks of curiosity from his friends. “I mean, we just defeated the Titans... now what?”

“...Now what?!” repeated Jinx in disbelief. “Lincoln! Do you have any idea what beating the Titans means?! We just did what many other could only dream about! It will do wonders to our resumes.” Her eyes widened. “My resume! I still haven't update it! Oh Madam Rouge will be ecstatic when she learns that her intern was a fundamental part in bringing the Titans down!”

The others could only sweat-drop as Jinx continued her rant about how awesome would be working for Madame Rouge. Eventually it was Lincoln’s turn to burst her out of her bubble.

“Eh, Jinx what I meant was that what will happen ‘right now’? I mean, yes we just defeated the Titans, but the academy it’s also in ruins and it will take at least months before it’s even in minimal conditions to get back to classes.” Lincoln explained. “Also we just blew the Titans Tower! A lot of people are not going to be happy with us. What if the Justice League decides to get into Jump City? Where will we go?”

The three students looked at each other with serious faces before Gizmo responded. “You’re right it would be troublesome if the League came to the city. Good thing we will be far away by the time they get here.” He saw the puzzled look on Lincoln's face. “Oh right you were still in coma when the teachers announced it... ”

“Turns out that because of the damage the school sustained during the invasion the remaining teachers decided that the internships would start earlier.” Jinx took the lead of the conversation. “So in less than a week everyone should be with their respectives mentors. Isn't that great!” She finished with stars in her eyes.

“So Zeus, tell us who is the poor bastard that will be stuck with you for the next six months?” Gizmo asked  with glee.
“Professor White arranged for one of his old associates back in Gotham to take care of me.” Lincoln replied as he rubbed the back of his head.

“Gotham? Booooring.” Gizmo whined. “That city is filled only by nut-jobs! You should have applied for Metropolis like me! You know, Wayne Enterprises actually offered me a scholarship but screw those guys! I’m going to work for LexCorp. Do you know what kind of tech they test on those labs!? I can't wait to get my hands in all that equipment! The beauties I could create….”

Lincoln watched as Gizmo started drooling and joined Jinx in her mentor-inspired hysteria.
“Eh…. What about you Mammoth? Where are you going?” He asked.

 “Ivy Town” Mammoth answered in his usual tone before he chugged down another bottle of yogurt in one go. Lincoln made a mental note to avoid any bathroom near the academy for at least a couple days. “You sure about that big guy? ‘Cause the only Ivy Town I know is that university city and I love ya big oaf but you don't seem like the egg-head type.” Gizmo said quizzically.

“Yep” Mammoth plainly responded.

“You’re too good to be lugging crap around for some nerd. I’m sure we can get one of the teachers to find you a better internship.” Jynx assured with concern.

“No need” the hulking youth flatly answered.

“You seem determined on going, any reason in particular?” Asked Lincoln trying to squeeze out some more details out of the guy, “Dr. Zuel” was his only response.
“Wait, you mean Doris Zuel…?” Gizmo queried slitting his eyes. “Holy cow! That's Giganta!” Yelled Jinx almost jumping on her seat, “you gonna work for ‘The’ Giganta, that’s awesome!”

“Hey congrats big guy, what are you going to do for her?” Lincoln asked with a smile placing a hand on his buddy’s shoulder,  “She asked for someone that can cover her before she grows and can push her out of harm's way in case she’s out” Mammoth explained eloquently to everyone's surprise.

A sly smile slowly formed on Lincoln’s face “Seems you got all figured out, but those assignments seem kind of generic, did you ‘specifically’ asked to be her intern?”

“...I like tall women” Mammoth deadpanned causing Gizmo to spit out his drink. Laughter was heard among the youngsters that were honestly truly happy to be in each other company, even if just for a little bit longer.

“So that means this will be the last time we will see each other for long time, doesn't it?” murmured Lincoln but it was loud enough for everyone to hear it.

“Well yeah, but that doesn't mean we will not be able to reach each other!” Jinx suddenly said. “I want you to report at least twice a month. If you don't I will personally go to Gotham and kick your sorry behind into oblivion! Do I make myself clear!” As if to emphasise her point a wall of fire erupted right behind Jinx while she was jabbing her finger on his chest multiples times.

“Yes ma’am!” quickly answered Lincoln with a his best military salute before he broke out laughing. As the laughter died off, the four started talking about their internships, where they would be and how to keep in contact with each other. Finally Jinx decided to stand.

“Hey guys, how about we stop talking about the future and have some fun together while we still can?” She said as she joined the rest of the students at the improvised dancing floor. The three of them look at each other before following her. They spent the rest of the night dancing, singing and having fun under the moonlight. Not once did they stop to worry about the future yet to come. Not even one of them knew about the dark times that were to come.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Epilogue

*Two weeks after the Titan’s Tower was destroyed*

Lincoln sat nervously in the couch as he stared at the unusual decorations that surrounded him. He had never being in a nightclub before be he was certain that most of them didn't had a giant pool filled with penguins in the center of it. It seemed a little weird for him but he had to admit that with the ship themed dance floor, ice sculptures, and arctic motive the club really make live to the “Ice Lounge” name. He subconsciously started to tap the small white bracelet that was attached to his left wrist.

The bracelet was a small parting gift from Gizmo. It was designed to help him control his powers without the risk of exploding thanks to his now xenothium-free powercell.  It also had engrave a little white bunny in the front, no doubt it was Jinx’s idea.

“Mr. Omen” a sultry voice snatched his attention. He turned around just in time to see a gorgeous red haired lady calling his name. She was wearing a tight leotard and a black bowler hat with some fishnet stocking.

“Y-You can call m-me, Lincoln” He stammered

“Very well, Mr. Lincoln” She giggled melodically. ”You arrived earlier than we expected but Mr. Cobblepot is now available for you to see him. Please follow me”

Lincoln nodded numbly before instinctively following the red haired lady across the room. They stopped right in front of the back room's giant door. “This is Mr. Cobblepot office, he is waiting inside.” With that, the mysterious lady turned around and disappeared among the dancing crowd.

Lincoln took a deep breath, he was remembering every single life event that lead him to this point. His powering emerging after the squirrel suit incident, his family slowly falling apart emotionally and physically, running away and living on the streets, his time in the H.I.V.E academy, meeting Victor. He honestly was tempted to simply run away back to Jump city and ask Victor for help but he knew that bridge was burned alongside the Titans tower. If only Lincoln knew that the months that will follow would be known as ones of the most violent and chaotic in Gotham’s history, maybe he would had reconsidered, instead he knocked on the door and sealed the fate of the entire city.

“Enter” an elegant and refined voice could be heard from the other side of the door. Not wanting to delayed his mentor any more Lincoln opened the door. It was time to meet his new boss.

Many miles away the last bus of the day arrived at Jump City. As the passengers started to get off, one in particular standed out from the rest. She was teenage girl who’s only luggage was a duffle bag carrying some food and spare clothing. Her brown hair tied in a ponytail as she weared a simple jacket over her red and white t-shirt with a giant red number one plastered on the center.

“So this is where you are hiding lil’ bro?” She said mostly to herself. She took a second to admire the desolated aura that surrounded the city, her lil’ goth sister would love this place. “Hope you’re ready Lincoln” She murmured as two long sleeved thick chromed gloves could be seen covering her arms. “ Because your big sister is taking you home, whether you like it or not!” She finished cracking her knuckles.