The Sixth Titan | Teen Titans

Chapter Five - The Sum of His Parts

I don't know the first thing about American football, so this first bit might be a little rough. Had to do some research on what different moves were called, but hey, you learn something everyday.

Shouts of happiness and joy fill my ears as kids run past us around the park. The wind rustles through the trees and I resist the urge to move it.

"Mmm-mmm," Cyborg comments. "Would you look at that. A little sunshine, a little breeze. Only one thing could make this day better." He opens the barbecue lid to reveal a perfectly cooked rack of meat. "Four and a half pounds of baby back ribs." He takes it out of the barbecue and walks over to us, sitting at the end of the picnic table. "Man, I love picnic food!"

"Agreed, Cyborg," Starfire chirps. "This tangy yellow beverage is truly delightful." Cyborg, Robin and I stare at her.

"Uh, Starfire?" Cyborg asks.

"That's mustard," Robin points out.

"You're... not supposed to drink that," I say. "It's a condiment."

Starfire looks at the three of us, unfazed by our words. "Is there more?"

"I mean, I guess there is, if you want it," I say. "But like I said... it's not normally for drinking."

Starfire shrugs before continuing to drink the mustard. "Do any of you want some?" She asks, still beaming. I look at the two boys, who politely say no, and I do the same before turning to look at Beast Boy and Raven.

"Sweet!" Beast Boy calls, hanging from a tree branch. "My tofu dogs are cooked to perfection." He looks up and spots the cloaked demon, sitting under an adjacent tree. "Yo, Raven. Try one. They're loaded with soybeany goodness," he advertises, waving them around pointedly.

"I respect that you don't eat meat. Please respect that I don't eat fake meat," Raven replies, her eyes narrowing ever so slightly. Beast Boy shrugs and shoves them both into his mouth.

My attention is brought back to the Titans seated around the table when Cyborg stands up and runs over to some empty space near us. "All right, y'all. Who wants to play some fool-ball?"

We all cheer and get up to play, then turn back to look at Raven, almost begging her to join in. "I'll be referee," she eventually says, possibly to get us off her back.

"Red! Twenty-three! Hut! Hut! Hut!" Robin calls as Cyborg snaps the ball back to him and runs upfield, Starfire and myself close behind. Before I go, I mouth to Robin, 'you're going down,' and he smirks and shakes his head.

"One Gotham City... two Gotham city... three Gotham City..." I hear Beast Boy mumble to himself, the volume growing fainter and fainter as Cyborg puts more distance between himself and Robin.

"You can run, you can fly, but you can't catch Cy!" The half robot exclaims without slowing down or looking back at his pursuers.

"... four Gotham City... five Gotham City!" Beast Boy finishes as he turns into a triceratops and charges at Robin, who lets out a shout before jumping on top of the shapeshifter and throwing it from that vantage point.

Cyborg looks up and extends his hands. "I got it! I got it! I—" his robotic features drain themselves of colour and Cyborg freezes up, his body falling over.

"Cyborg?" Robin calls, his voice full of worry. "Cyborg!"

"Cyborg? Cyborg!" Starfire says as we lean over him.

"What's wrong with him?" Raven asks, concern tainting her otherwise even voice.

Beast Boy's eyes widen. "Is he gonna be okay?"