Metal Soul (Saturn, open)

Kristen told Toji off before even Kano could. The ninja smiled. This blue haired demon was astonishingly easy to put into a blind rage, and when he got angry he didn't think.

He listened to Kristen's concerns, all while being just an inch or two away from death. He made no efforts to escape Toji's hold. Instead, he decided to remain helpless. "You are not mistaken, half-angel. We are working together. Jazz used to work with us, too, until he went soft. And you are right, you have no way to trust that Kicker will be okay until after he is returned to you. For that reason, Toji here will keep his weapon ready to kill me at a moment's notice until the trade is complete. You have the advantage, being in possession of both me and Hauges. As self-proclaimed superheroes, I expect you to act with honor during this transaction. And you can trust us to act, if nothing else, out of fear of having both Hauges and myself killed. Do I have your word, half-angel? Your word as a Teen Titan, that you will give me the chip when Kicker walks in this room, unharmed?"

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The Nation of California, the League of Shadows, the HIVE, the Enforcers, the mob, they were all united under one man: Tiberius. Together, they had the same goals, and they would achieve those goals by any means, using every resource available to them.

It wasn't every day you had an unconscious superhero as a resource. Ai looked at the man who had saved her life just a short time ago. There were so many options. Placing a bomb or a capsule of poison in his brain, brainwashing him, even cloning him. They were all possibilities, but they were all expensive and time-intensive. They were very short on time, and even their budget was not unlimited. Ai slapped her face lightly to get her blood flowing.

The restraints, while extremely durable, were not guaranteed to hold Kicker for long. They would have to take care of business while he was still asleep.

"Bring in Whisper."

A man in a colorful outfit entered the room, wearing a top hat and sporting a cane. "Oh, a fresh new mind to mold. What shall I do to him?"

Ai narrowed her eyes at Whisper. The man was a criminal, and was only allowed out of the meta-human prison on rare occasions to perform favors for HIVE in return for some perks. "You are not to harm him. Stick to the script."

Whisper held up his hands, defensively. "Fine, fine. I'll just do the do." He leaned in close to Kicker's ear. "Hello, Kicker. It's me, your best friend, Mister Whisper. I have a favor to ask of you." Whisper was a hypnotist, of sorts. He spoke to his victims in their sleep, giving them commands. Once the victim awoke, they would do whatever he had said. Was it possible to disobey? Of course, if one had the willpower of a champion. "I want you to go to the Jump City Hospital. They should be expecting you. If the Titans do not give Master Kano the computer chip he wants, then I want you...to kill all the Teen Titans. Just a little favor. I know I can count on you." With a nod to Ai, the hypnotist was escorted back to prison.

"Wake him."

Ai watched as the gas stopped being fed to Kicker, and a different gas replaced it, one that would bring him out of this deep sleep. She removed his restraints. They wouldn't need those anymore. Whether Kristen agreed to Kano's trade or not, Kicker would be going to the hospital, and the League of Shadows would get the chip back.

As he came to, Ai pointed to the door. "You're free to go. Your friends are waiting for you at the Emergency Room."

Only one thought was running through Tojis head at this point.Porectyourpackprotectyourpackprotectyourpack....However, Kristen's voice got through, and the halfling looks away in shame. Despite being free of Corgi, it appeared that to the halfling at this moment that he was still a weapon..."....Sorry, sister....You're right. This...is too far." He puts away his knif, placing his hand at the small of the ninjas back." Alright....look, this may not do lasting damage, but it will stop you from moving for awhile....So, I don't think you'll want to be moving till kicker gets here and he's safe.And as far as the deal....I'll follow my sisters lead." However, the halfling didn't think it wise tto give up the chip. If h felt the need, he'll steal it...."

Kane mumbled Here kitty kitty in his sleep as Whisper approached him, speaking into his ear and giving him orders, Kane sleep talked nonsensical things while he was being given orders, things like how he hoped he'd kept his unicorn's pen locked. He received the order that he was to go over to the hospital and if the Titans didn't give over the computer chip, he was to kill them and take it. Yeah, Kane could do that, if it was his best friend Mr Whisper asking him a favour, he would gladly do it.

Kane woke up a few minutes later, he groggily got up and noticed the woman, he glared at her, but didn't do anything despite the fact that usually he'd want to I gotta go to the hospital. With that, he ran out the building and jumped into the air, kicking off against the air in the fashion he was famous for and making his way to the hospital faster than a speeding... slow car? He'd have to come up with something cooler.

He arrived at the hospital at the speed off... a vehicle going at 100 miles per hour? No, that wouldn't work. He knew which room to go to, so he ran up and walked in, making sure his footfalls were loud enough for attention to go to him Hey Angel face, hey senpai, hey... blue hair he was really off today I'm safe, so you can just hand over the chip

Kristen watched the situation progress. Kristen managed to calm Toji down a bit, and Kano confirmed her suspicions. Then Kicker walked through the door, presenting himself as safe, but Kristen felt something was off about him. He wasn't acting like himself. No signs of demonic possession or anything, but maybe hypnosis or mental suggestion? Kristen had an idea.

"Very well, Kano. I'm a Nephilim of my word." she tossed the chip to Kano before giving Toji a subliminal look, hoping he'd take it as a confirmation to do whatever he was planning to do.

'As long as the action is completed without interruption, as long as whatever I'm doing doesn't appear to be connected to any other party, it should override the bounds of whatever proverbial thumb Kicker is under.' she thought, hoping this would work out.

Kano caught the chip. "You've made the right choice, half-angel. Half-demon, it would be best to follow her lead. You have not been defeated today, you have purchased the safety of your comrade. That is nothing to be ashamed of."

Kano headed for the door, assuming he wasn't stopped by Toji. "Oh, and Toji Okami, the next time we meet, let us finish our duel. I look forward to seeing which of us is stronger."

While Kano spoke, Jazz was deep in thought. He was exhausted. He'd been shot at and stabbed to safeguard that chip, and now it was in the enemy's hands again. They had to be stopped, but the strain was getting to be too much. He didn't know how much longer he could fight them. Should they fight Kano here? They had the advantage, 3-to-1. Even if Kristen was as honorable as they came, surely she recognized that stopping Kano was more important.

But the HIVE, the mob, and the League of Shadows were relentless. They would get what they wanted, given enough time. Had he been a fool to attempt this from the start?

No, he wouldn't give up. Jazz slammed his fist on the bed. "Kano! If we stop the Russians, will you still use your weapon?"

Kano smirked. "Why not?" Unless anyone tried to stop him, Kano would leave the room.

"Fine," Jazz said. He looked to the three Titans. "The Russians are going to nuke Jump City. The mob is going to turn themselves into robots and then release a poisonous gas that will kill everyone else alive on earth. The war is going to be decided by which side carries out their plan first. But we are going to stop them both. To do this, we're going to need all the firepower we can get, so we need to stick together. If only there was some way we could instantly get to Russia and back."

Shivering Jemmy walked past the door, carrying an ice cream cone.

Jazz dropped his jaw. "Quick! Someone grab her. We need her ability to teleport. The rest of you, if there's anything you need to do, do it now. We're going to end this fight."

Toji nods." You're right, Kano....there is no shame in making sure you're Comrade is safe..." He let's the ninja let out his last line, then blurs in front of him, his hands crackling with electricity." However, if you don't hand over that chip, I'm going to drag you outside and /show/ you what I can do.And please, don't get mad. You see, I'm not exactly like Big Sis, here. I only swoar one oath...protect humanity. So, I'm not above tricking jerks like you, especially if you attempt to coerce us with one of my packmates." He looks up as Jazz indicates the girl." Oh....Hey, kid, can you come in here?!" Toji looks at Kano, holding out his hand." Now, where were we..oh yah...Give."

Kane watched as the transaction was made, Master Kano was given the computer chip, his orders had specifically been to make sure the computer chip was given to Kano, now that it had been given over, he no longer had any obligation to act if any treachery was performed. Technically, his order had been fulfilled, so he was no longer under hypnosis. Kristen most certainly had made a smart move.

When Toji blurred in front of Kano, Kane made no effort to try and stop him, and instead walked up behind Kano and cracked his knuckles You better do what he says, this isn't looking good for you he was ready to rumble, but he wasn't really happy with fighting an injured man, but he supposed that whether he was injured or not, he would definitely be injured after the fight, should one pop up.

Kristen sighed as the situation went down the way she had hoped. Toji would soon reclaim the chip and Kicker was freed from his mind-controlled state. Jemmy had reappeared and Kano was surrounded. As Jazz had said, now would be the time to get to Russia as quick as possible and resolve this problem at last.

She called to Jemmy for a moment. "Chaos kid! We need your help over here!"

Something Jazz said about the mob solely being turned into robots struck a nerve in Kristen, though. "The mob exclusively? Is that exactly what you meant?" she glared at Kano, spiritual pressure releasing but, as always, remained calm. "What were you planning to do with the patients you just saved then? Would you carry out the promise of immortality you just promised them, allowing them to live in robotic shells of their own? Or will you leave them trapped within that chip?"

At first Kano chuckled. Even after everything, Toji was challenging him for the chip. He would be sorely disappointed once Kicker betrayed the Titans. But it didn't happen. In fact, Kicker was soon standing against Kano as well. What? How could this be? The realization dawned on him as Kristen sighed in relief. In giving Kano the chip, Kristen had broken the hypnosis on Kicker, leaving the Titans free to betray Kano, worry-free.

Kano sighed. There was no way even he could fight 3 Titans at once. "I suppose this is the end of it, then." He handed the chip over to Toji. "You have beaten me, Teen Titans. Looks like we all die together in a few days."

Evan Hauges spoke from the chip, replying to Kristen's accusations. "I must protest, miss. We had no intentions to leave anyone trapped. We seek to advance the human race. The mob was merely the most readily available..."

"Doesn't matter now, Evan." Kano said, interrupting. "They don't care. Anything you say will just get twisted around to look evil."

A voice crackled over Kano's radio. "Master, they've launched the nukes!"

Terror filled Kano's eyes. His hands shook as he grabbed his radio. "They what?"

"We have two hours before..."

Kano crushed his radio in his hand, roaring like an animal. He glared at the Titans. "See what you've done? You've doomed us all!"

"I'll be fine," Jemmy said, genuinely unconcerned. She took another bite of ice cream.

With another howl, Kano drew his katana. A nearby door broke free and slammed into him with unnatural force, knocking the ninja unconscious. Jemmy shrugged. She had gotten a lucky shot.

Jazz stood from his hospital bed, shaking. "Evan, bring me into the chip."

Evan sounded unconvinced. "You? You were against this from the start. You killed me to prevent me turning people into robots."

"I know. The mob never would have found you if it wasn't for me. I got you involved. I started all of this, and I'm going to end it. Make me a robot. I can use my power to get us into the computer controlling those nukes." He stumbled over to Toji and put his hand on the chip. "Do it!"

Evan hesitated. "As you wish, my friend." Jazz's body fell to the ground, lifeless.

But he wasn't dead. His voice emanated from the chip. "Woah. Yeah, this is about as weird as I thought it would be. Little teleporting girl. I can only use my power to email myself to a nearby computer. We need to get to Moscow. Can you take us there?"

Jemmy nodded and jumped at Toji, bear-hugging him. "Everybody who's going, grab on." Five seconds later, everyone touching Jemmy was teleported to Moscow, Russia.

The chip disappeared out of Toji's hand, traversing the internet before reaching its destination at the nuclear control center. The technicians started freaking out. Sparks flew. Monitors turned to static. Over the loudspeakers, strange voices could be heard.

"I always told you, Jazz, that together we could do anything."

Jazz laughed. "At least, now we can. Just the two of us against the world."

"Hey, I'm still here," the woman from the hospital said.

"This chip was not meant to hold so many souls."

"I can feel it," Jazz said. "It's almost like we're being...squished together. Into one."

The nuclear warheads changed their trajectory. They flew towards space, where they would leave earth's atmosphere and make a lazy journey towards the sun. There, they could do no harm. A strong, resonant voice echoed throughout the control facility and all of Moscow. "We are Model Eleven, and we are ending this nuclear war before it begins." The control building itself exploded, bringing a crescendo to the rising action. The dust and smoke settled, and all was silent in Moscow.

Jemmy took a bite of ice cream. "Well, that just happened."

Toji raises his fist as Kano roars, drawing his sword, but suddenly A door slams into the assassin, knocking him out.Tonight blinds as he's bearhugged by Jenny, and presumably by everyone else going."eh?" Suddenly, they're in Moscow, and a building blows up." Woah......" Then, he realizes he's in cold-weather as he staggers, the climate taking it's toll.

Well this was a wild ride. First the ninja guy surrendered, then a voice informed him over the radio that nukes had been launched by the Russians, then the ninja guy went crazy, then the little girl knocked him out with a door. Kane was about to say something, but then the injured guy asked to be put in the chip, then the chip spoke and the guy died. Kane opened his mouth to ask what the hell was going on, but then the guy spoke from the chip and told the little girl to teleport them to Moscow.

Kane blinked and placed his hand on the girl's head as if he was going to ruffle her hair, then they suddenly teleported to Moscow. Kane looked around, blinking, but then saw the nukes fly upwards into space, slowly going over to the sun. Kane was about to speak, but for the third time in the last five minutes, he was interrupted. The building exploded before he could utter any words, the sound could be heard throughout the whole city. Soon everything went silent, then Kane finally managed to speak Do you reckon they have a KFC here? I could use some chicken wings

Kristen's skeptical outlook on the motives of Hauges and Kano was protested by Hauges himself, saying that the mob was simply readily available for their project. Suddenly a voice echoed from the radio, saying the Russians had launched nukes on Jump City, and Kano became enraged. He was knocked out by Jemmy though. Jazz went into the chip, and the group was teleported to Moscow with Jemmy.

Now in chip form, Jazz was able to alter the trajectory of the nukes, sending them into the sun. After this, a huge sound of explosion echoed across the city, and Jazz, the woman from before and Hauges merged and became one. Soon it was silent, and Kane wanted some KFC.

"After all this, you want some fried chicken?" Kristen laughed. It was a long night, and the Nephilim was exhausted. None of them could return without Jemmy's help though.

"I'm in."

Jemmy teleports them all, including the freezing Toji, back to Jump City. It had been a long night for them all, and they certainly deserved a break.

OOC: I think these will be our last posts, unless anyone wants to continue on.