The Sixth Titan | Teen Titans

Chapter Fifty-Seven - Snowblind

    The snow gathers on the top of my head and I sigh as I wipe it off, jumping out of the T-Ship. The other Titans—excluding Starfire and myself—have smothered themselves in several woolly layers, barely permitting themselves the privilege of breathing.

    "The signal we got musta been a distress call."

    Beast Boy's teeth clatter, blocking out Cyborg's words. "We are too late," Starfire adds.

    "Fan out. We need to find someone who can tell us what happened." I notice the Boy Wonder's slight shivers that he desperately tries to hide, but Raven's hand leads me away to search for the distress call's source before I can bring it up. Even the lavender haired girl is struggling under the intense chill.

    "It's not that cold, is it?" I question. Raven shoots me a death glare, to which I respond by adding, "Sorry I asked."

    Raven shakes her head at me before flying away, and I follow. The snowing stops and I'm left with its remnants on the top of my head, which swiftly fly away as I chase after the half-demon. She stops in front of an igloo, sharing a glance with me before calling out, "Over here!"

    I land on the ground as the other Titans arrive, unintentionally blocking the only point of entry for the others. Robin manages to squish past me and grips the side of the igloo's door with one hand as he addresses the group of people inside.

    "It's safe now. You can come out."

    "In this forsaken place, it is never safe," a voice interrupts. I step out of the entrance and lock eyes with an old man in an olive green jacket, buttoned up to the brim. He has an eyepatch over his left eye, almost hidden by his foggy breath.

    I turn back to the group in the igloo and extend my hand towards one of them, noticing how the young child flinches. "It is with us," I speak softly. "Come on." The child takes my hand and I slowly back up, leading him out. Once outside, he wraps his small hands around me and I'm too overcome with surprise and joy to be annoyed by the sharp fingernails in my side.

    "Forgive them," the old man says. "We are wary of strangers."

    "Who did this?" Robin questions.

    "I dare not speak his name. He was once one of us, but now an abomination. When he returns, it is only to cause more suffering."

    At the ominous description, my grip on the child loosens slightly, and I am therefore tackled to the ground. He laughs in the snow and I stand up, ruffling his hair and placing his hood over his head once more. He grabs my hand and drags me to an older woman, who fishes two hats out of her jacket and hands one to me insistently.

    "Take, or you catch cold."

    "Oh, I don't—" I'm cut off as she places it on my head, and I'm delighted to find that it fits just right. The other one lands in Starfire's hands and she puts it on before moving to reassure the woman.

    "We will find the one who does this. He will be stopped."

    As she says this, the ground shakes and I look up to see a red light rising over the horizon. The others' expressions indicate that this is what they fear; this is what we are here to stop.

    "He returns."

    "Not if we get to him first," Robin says, stepping forward. "Titans! Let's move!"

~~~

    After what could have easily been minutes of running and flying, I land in the comfortable seat of the T-Ship. I let out a sigh as I move to press the button to close the compartment, but Beast Boy clearing his throat causes me to look up expectantly.