The Sixth Titan | Teen Titans

Chapter Seventeen - Only Human

This chapter took a while to edit—I was forgetting tabs, and just coming across parts that could be worded better.

Robin grunts as he whacks the dummy continuously, and I spare a second to look up at him as he does so. Starfire catches my attention as she flies past the Boy Wonder, turning around to fire starbolts at the laser-firing spheres that insist on following her.

Raven levitates in the middle of the room, her eyes firmly closed. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" she shouts, and the three pillars surrounding her turn black and rise into the air, destroying the last three probes chasing Starfire.

I turn back to the small probes on the ground around me, and close my eyes to calm myself. When I open them, water flows through my skin, and when I lift my hands, small pillars of water shoot the probes up, crushing them against the roof. I sigh as I slowly let the water recede back into my body and turn towards Cyborg.

"Just a...little more..." he grunts as more weights are added to the sled that he's holding up. Sweat pours down his face as the number on his forearm panel increases ever so slightly.

Robin stops attacking the dummy and crosses the room to where I stand. "Come on, Cyborg, push!"

"What's it...look like I'm doing?" the robotic teen slowly retorts.

Beast Boy, Starfire, and Raven join the two of us as we watch Cyborg. "Punch it, Cy! Straight through the roof!" the former shouts.

"Yes!" Starfire adds. "Inform that large mass of metal who is the boss!"

"You've got this, Cyborg!" I whoop, my fist in the air supportively.

"Uh...go, Cyborg," Raven says.

We all cheer louder as Cyborg's forearm panel ticks over to one hundred percent. He looks at it and groans, more sweat rushing down his forehead. "It's no good! Shut it down!"

"No way, Cyborg! I won't let you quit!" Robin states. "Come on, push!" I nudge Robin and give him a knowing look, one that he promptly ignores.

"I can't!" Cyborg argues.

"Yes, you can!" Robin fires back.

"No...I...CAN'T!" Cyborg's arms give way and he falls to the ground. Robin, Beast Boy and I walk up to him, Robin offering his hand to help him get back up.

Beast Boy, however, has other ideas on how to best handle the situation. "I give you a nine for the dive, but a two for the landing," he jokes.

Cyborg glares at him, then at Robin, and instead stands up by himself. "Nobody asked you," he replies, crossing the room and exiting through the door.

"Cyborg! Wait up!" I shout, running through the door before it closes. I make it through, and scan the hallways for the Titan, but to no avail. I let out a groan and run to his room, opening the door and walking through. "Cyborg! Are you okay?"

"Get off my back," he replies from down the hall without turning around, and I scoff.

"I'm not on your back."

"We're on your side, remember?" Robin's voice interrupts, and I look to my right to see him there. "I was just trying to get you to kick it up a notch."

His words trigger something, and Cyborg whips around. "I don't have another notch! I'm not like you, okay? When I say I can't, I can't!" He moves further away before stopping and letting out a sigh. "When I was an athlete, when I was human, I loved pushing my limits. Getting stronger, faster, better, just by trying harder than I ever had before. My coaches would always tell me to give a hundred and ten percent. And I always did."