Team Titans/Mission Impossible--5

"It's quiet....too quiet," Changeling whispered theatrically.

Terra rolled her eyes. "Ha ha, green-cheese."

"No, but seriously," he said. "It is."

Terra nodded. "I know, and I don't like it any more than you do."

"Let me scout ahead," said Dagon.

"Go, but be discreet," Terra said.

He smiled, showing fangs. "You know me."

"Yeah, I do. It's a mission, not a smorgasbord."

Dagon feigned a hurt expression, then turned to mist and moved on.

"He still gives me the creeps," said Changeling.

"What, more than me?" Terra raised an eyebrow at him.

He made a face at her. "Yeah, actually. How did a bloodsucker ever join the good guys?"

"You know his story," Redwing said patiently. "In our timeline, the scientists of Lord Chaos turned him into a vampire, and--"

"Yeah yeah yeah, it was a war and he could feed on the enemy without regret, blah blah. It's different here." Changeling made agitated motions with his hands.

"How well we know that," Killowat murmured.

"The world we were trying to preserve by preventing Chaos' creation," Terra reminded them. "Hush now, children."

Changeling stared at her. "You know, on top of a million other weird things, it's really strange seeing you as a responsible leader."

She ignored the implied insult and favored him with a toothy grin. "Beleive it or not, I agree. I don't wanna do this. I can't wait for Mirage to have her freakin kid and get back to work."

Dagon came back. "There are only a handful of patrols," he reported. "And several voices arguing in the room where the...element....must be. There's this orange glow from in there....it didn't remind me of sunlight or anything, but it did make me....uncomfortable."

"The whole thing is weird," said Changeling musingly. "It's not a typical Intergang operation at all."

"You think this group went rogue?" Terra whispered back.

He shrugged. "I dunno. Something's not right, for sure. Maybe we should get moving."

"Yeah, you're right."

They encountered two more patrols, which they defeated easily. They aproached the central chamber. Dagon had been right; the orange light fairly pulsed beneath the doorframe.

"I've got a baaad feeling about this," Changeling intoned.

"Someone needs to take your tape collection away," Terra shot back.

"....our clients will arrive soon," a stern, nasal voice said behind the door. "If the metahumans get this far, they will take care of them."

Clients? Terra and Changeling exchanged a glance. That didn't sound good.

"What if our leaders realize what we're planning?" A deeper voice answered the first.

"They won't, until it is too late." the nasal voice said.

"After you," Changeling murmured.

"No no, after you," Terra replied.

"Oh no, I insist, after you," he returned.

Redwing ignored both of them and kicked the door down.

"It's quiet....too quiet," Changeling whispered theatrically.

Child actors are always like that. Can't be helped.

Changeling stared at her. "You know, on top of a million other weird things, it's really strange seeing you as a responsible leader."

Yeah, I don't see it, either. Dick I can see. Or Kory. Or Victor. Or even a grown-up Gar. But her? Mmmm... no, not really.

He shrugged. "I dunno. Something's not right, for sure. Maybe we should get moving."

Superman busy? He's always good to bring along when you're having problems with Intergang.

Redwing ignored both of them and kicked the door down.

Wouldn't this be one of those situations where'd it'd be better for Gar to (literally) be a fly on the wall?

Well she actually was second in command of this little crew, and that left her de facto in charge when Mirage got pregnant. That was how it went in the comics, too.

The thing to remember is that Terra II is not a vicious little psycho-in-waiting like Terra I was. Their personalities are superficially similar, but Terra II--whatever her origins--was actually a good person.

Jeff Jensen, the only writer besides Wolfman to handle her with any significance--and the only one to handle this phase of her career besides Wolfman at all--wrote her as the cool voice of reason of the team, and also was leading her in the direction of her becoming an Earth Elemental.

Shes mostly acting so snarky because of Gar, who while still spooked of her, understands it's part of their banter.

BTW thanks for staying with this.