A new Sliver, Apache's decision

Apache looked around. He was standing just outside the Forest, on one of the biggest windswept hills near the city. The grassy hill was a playground for youngsters, though there were none today. Before Apache would venture to Jump he stopped to wonder. How was he going to find this mysterious Krious? The last time he met him he popped up, and as he wanted to know how to reach him, Krious responded the same. He'd pop up when I would look for him. As Apache hadn't encountered Krious for long, he didn't have a faint smell of his spiritual composition as of now. His wolf guardian wasn't able to track him, and he had no luck with his hawk either. Then it came to him...why not try by talking.

''Krious! Stasis! Where are you, I have made my decision and I have news to share.''

Logan Wolf sat down, his legs crossed, grabbing his self-crafted tomahawk, still as magically sharp as it had ever been, and examined it carefully. He placed his small satchel next to him and grabbed his pipe. He hardly ever used it, but when filled with one of his herbs, it would not intoxicate lungs nor mind, but would give him some rest and sharpen his wits. With what he had just seen and what he was about to do, this seemed a fair course of action. He took some well preserved herbs from his satchel that looked almost like brown-green grass, and stuffed his pipe. With two flints, he sparked them and sitting there, waiting for Krious to show up. He had the time. If Krious would not come, he'd finish his pipe and look for him. No smoke came from Logan's mouth, only a faint sweet smell from the pipe, like the smell of freshly mowed grassy landscapes in the morning..

In a way this was Krious's first test for their newest member, should he chose it to be so. Either his spirits were capable of tracking down the magical barrier he used to shield his home or he would come to the conclusion that he was always listening, you merely had to show an interest. The barrier around his home was specifically set up to be as non-trackable as magic can be, and thus might form some problems. Although not impossible, it would be quite hard. So it was an interest he showed and Krious would respond in kind.

"You're faster then most people are when they try to reach me."

There he was, in the middle of the hill, sipping his pipe a little as if he thought it would take him a long time to react. Or maybe he thought he wouldn't even react in the first place. In truth he wasn't really that hard to find, if you know were to look, or better yet.. how to look. His expression wasn't really what he expected though. He mentioned news, and hé didn't look like he had any good news to share.

"You look troubled, did something happen?"

Krious closed a little distance so they could speak to each other normally and without interference. He didn't bother to sit down, and once stopped merely look at the man with curiousity written all over his face.

''Likewise.'' said Apache, sitting and drawing on the more relaxing pipe. He hadn't expected Krious to turn up so soon, and was kind of glad this man hardly wasted any time. Apache looked at the City in a distance, and took a few heaves from his pipe. It wasn't an ordinary pipe, nor did it poison your body in any way, it soothed the soul with spiritual energies. The way he liked it, being a shaman. However, what he had seen earlier this day had been foreboding. He couldn't keep sitting there and enjoy the view. The fact that Krious kept standing upright did bug him a little, it was custom for his tribe to sit down as equals when possible, mostly when conveying information. This way, you had the courteous of sitting at the same height, and it would allwo you to focus more into that which was said. It also, was a sign of not overly rushing things.. He couldn't blame Krious thought, it was something he had always done, and he couldn't force Krious to do it.

Krious did seem eager to know more. A few spotty clouds made their way to the City, and Apache sighed.

''It seems this appreciative day isn't any reflection of what to come. I came to tell you my visions. I would however, also like to inform you that I accept your offer. I will join this elite group. It seems that there are new measures taken to ensure safety, such as one Tower and a second Teen Titan tower coming along as well, but I do not feel for this. I suspect the Slivers to be highly sufficient, highly adapt, highly expertised, and highly self-sufficiënt.

Apache grinned. ''In other words..yes, I have high expectations. I will fulfill my part in this as well. I will not force you to anything, but I have one question in advance, before we continue. Are you the leader of this group, say...The chief of the tribe, in a sense? ''

"Like I previously stated, we are a new team. Every member has been handpicked according to a few standards we have, so I can vouch for their abilities. You cannot have everything perfect so we'll have to make do with what we have at the moment. We're here to make a difference and on our own that can't be accomplished very easily."

Simca and him went way back, they both very quite experienced in dealing with villains. He couldn't really factor the two new bloods in just yet since they didn't get to work with them just yet. Their individual performance or extraordinary powers made them a valuable asset to the team nonetheless.

"We are all part of a greater being, all equal to each other. Right now we don't have a leader and I'd like it to be this way. We all do our part and we all get our say, we don't need someone to take up the leader roll as we have no need for one. I heard of these new Titans too, although I don't really have an idea of who they are. It might be wise to consult with them too."

Krious didn't want to be their leader in the first place. In a sense he screwed up leading the Titans North and he wasn't going to make that mistake twice. They didn't need a leader right now anyway, and if the time came that they did then appointing a leader would be a much fairer process.

"Now.. your vision?"

Apache nodded. ''Sounds promising. A pack where all wolves are alone, yet together. I have also heard of this newly formed team. Incidentally, the city is installing a second tower as well. Anyway, I digress.''

Apache took a last sip from his pipe, feeling better then he was just after the visions he had. He looked a bit less in the way of ''constant vigilance.'', while still fully aware of his surroundings.

''Well, let's say I met this pyromaniac that's treathening Jump city. Better said, I met his spiritual energy. Hard to miss actually. You seem quite knowledgeable, so I'll spare you the lecture on unraveling meanings to moments of clairvoyance. Ask if there's anything vague. Seeing what I saw, I have to say this energy that I experienced was not, and I mean seriously not human. While he always seemed as what we call an Infinimagus, a magician with seemingly limitless energy, he has grown even further. But no human could take that much. Well, they'd go mad probably or have a great sense of control, but even this exceeds that. By far in both the need for destructional and viciousness..''

Apache looked to his left, probably at one of both of his spirit guardians. He looked back as Krious, and the seriousness was almost dripping off his face. Apache noticed Krious was the same now, for which he was glad.

''This Emblem you knew, he's dead. Where normal Infinimagus could only cast a few high power spells and could only cast low ones infinitely, Emblem's powers have outgrown the borders of human capability, and not just a little. It seems very possible something has taken his powers. It was not uncommon for Infinimagi to pass their magical power over to others, sometimes even random people. they'd send all their energy off into the sky just before dying, and it would land somewhere. In any case, the Emblem you knew has deceased and his energy is all you are facing. This corrupt evergy is not only a vast amount to worry over, it's also shown me images that believe me to think this Armegeddon he's planning is coming soon. And while I was drifting back to safety, I saw not one Emblem...but 4 or 5, the one we see now, and the rest silhouttes, shadows standing next to him.''

Apache stopped, taking a deep breath and looking back at Krious, while taking a sharp arrow out of his quiver and examining it.

''If it is any solace, the Emblem you knew, his soul is not enslaved by any kind of magic or demon. The Emblem that might have been friendly has probably died before turning evil. This could all well be a veil of some demon to foul his name and reputation. It's their cup of tea for sure. So...what do you think?''

The thought of having to face 5 Emblems at a time didn't really make him feel well at all. He knew the news wouldn't be good but come on.. 5 Emblems? What if they all held the same power that he wields now, it would be hard to stop them even with the entire superhero scene in town backing them up.

"I don't care what happened to him and wether or not this is his own doing or that of some evil being. If he was possessed he was too weak to resist, if this is himself then he was unable to keep the darkest parts of his mind in check. If he died before all this, then he can consider himself lucky since he doesn't have to face me afterwards. I only need to know how to face him, or them as you just stated. If this is indeed true then we'll be needing some more friends in order to even the odds. Let's give it a rest for now, we can worry about this later."

They would probably have limited time to work with. Nonetheless it was better to evaluate their assets right now then worry about dealing with things still in the future. He was better at improvising anyway. Apache now had joined their team, and maybe it was time to show him the ropes a bit.

"How about we depart on a little vigilante? I'm fit for fighting again and there still seem to be small disruptions around town. Or we could go to them new Titan teams and check them out. You call."

He had a vague idea about one of the teams, or at least a member of it. Wasn't really vague either, she more or less confirmed his thought. Still, introductions would do well, and they might appreciate this information just as much.

''Well, even if I find it useful to see each other's display of abilities beyond theory, this new team intrigues me. We should do well to check them out, and four eyes and four ears are probably better then two of each.''

Apache stood up, packed his pipe in his small satchel and grabbed an arrow with quite a jagged edge, a rope attached to it. Before he shot it however, a thought occured to him.

''Are we going to confront them head on to see what they can do? Are we going to talk to them, or watch them from the shadows? Your choice really, I'll adapt to any of the before mentioned possibilities.''

"We don't want to act suspicious do we? They have a right to know what you just told me and they could prove to be quite useful allies."

Everyone knew the location of the tower, but only few people could get in there uninvited. Krious was one of them, if the tower still followed the same structural design their own tower had and the security was of comparable to the latest standards. The tricky part was predicting how the team would react. If she was there things would probably be alright, but what if it didn't... Still, they could have a little fun while checking out the team at the same time.

"I can get us in the tower unnoticed. How about we give them a little scare to go with it? It would serve as a nice wake-up call for the story we bring with us."

Get in, make the alarm go off and watch their reaction. Maybe he'd dip the entire room in darkness, or maybe Apache had a little trick up his sleave. Either way, they would discuss it while making their way over.

A playful grin appeared on Apache's face. Under the guise of alarming the still sleeping bears, he and Krious would get them to their feet. He sticked out his hand as sign to want to shake Krious' hand.

''Sounds good. I take it you know that Tower better then me. I'd be able to get on the roof, but improvisation would be all that's left by then. Never been there, never thought I would soo soon. Let's go, fellow tribesman...I mean..partner''

Apache kept smiling. This was it. Sealing the deal, and awakening others with it. Although, he didn't know if Krious could take him with himself on this shadowy way of transport just by hand, or some other rite of passage or payment of any kind was needed. For once, both Hawk and Wolf seemed to be watching Apache's hand with interest, waiting for what was to happen next.

Krious returned the handshake with a smile whilst charging up his energy for a teleport with a passenger. He didn't know how the spirits would react, but he presumed them to be bound to his team mate.

"Relax, this won't hurt one bit."

He didn't let go of his hand once he was done shaking it. Instead the two of them were engulfed in dark smog in a mere second, before disappearing from the world.

Continued here