Extreme Titans

[King Ruler]

Extreme Titans
# 1
“From Boyz II Titans”

Miner Otto Von Furth sat there in the deep, dark cave, not knowing how much time he had left. He could feel the cave sucking the oxygen out of him. He would’ve been out of oxygen by now, lying on the ground dead, just like his companions.

But it wasn’t the lack of oxygen that did them away. No. It was survival of the fittest. Otto was desperate. He wanted a few more extra moments of life, so he had to do what he had to do, even if it meant grabbing a large rock and bashing their heads open until they bled a lake.

He would live to regret this decision, if he even lived past this experience. He doesn’t know how long it has been since he’s been down there, but he knows it’s been a while. They bodies were already beginning to rot. There wasn’t much for him to eat, save for the dead bodies lying next to him.

No, he thought. I’ve already become a murderer…but I will not become a monster!

He sat there and stared at the bodies and noticed the smell they omitted. It was then that he realized why the bodies were decomposing so quickly. And why he was still alive. He’d figured he would’ve been dead by now, but somehow he managed to keep kicking for a little while longer. Maybe God was on his side, he thought. That or he was just one lucky son of a gun.

What’s keeping me alive? I know I should be grateful for the extra time of life I have left, but I can’t help but wonder why I’m still here…

He sat there, wondering whether or not coming down here with the crew to mine radium for LexCorp was worth it. Was all the money he was being paid worth it? Of course, his answer became clear.

I don’t know what’s keeping me going, but whatever it is I pray that it keeps doing that…
****


TAP TAP!

“GAH!” exclaimed a young with shining black hair. His eyes widened as he stared at his surroundings.

“Richard!”

He saw a classroom full of people, all of them wearing the standard Cronus Towers uniform. He looked in front of him and saw his teacher Mrs. King staring at him.

“Richard!”

TAP TAP TAP!

He wanted to go back to sleep, but the minute he saw Mrs. King’s ruler in her hand, he knew that she would continue to rap it on the table, keeping him up.

“I’m awake, Mrs. King,” 16 year old Richard Grayson replied. “Please—just stop hitting the desk…”

“I will the minute you stop napping in my class, young man!”

TAP TAP TAP!

“But I’m not sleeping anymore. Please just stop hitting the desk…”

“Why should I?” she said with an evil grin. “Because I’m disturbing your naptime? Well you were disturbing my class with your constant snoring…”

“What?” Richard said with a raised eyebrow. “I wasn’t even snor…”

TAP TAP TAP!

“Okay I’m sorry!”

“Have you learned your lesson?”

“Oh, Lordy Lord I’ll never sleep again as long as I live!” Richard said, rolling his eyes.

Mrs. King narrowed her eyes at Richard and then turned around, walking back to the chalkboard to finish writing her equation down. Richard’s eyes scolded her back as she went on with her lecture, which just came into his ears as “womp womp womp wooooomp” and so forth.

****
“Mrs. King is the freakin’ devil incarnate, I swear to God!” Richard said, walking down the slightly crowded hallways of Cronus Towers boarding school. Next to him stood his friend Victor Stone, star running back for the Cronus Rams. The two have become really good friends since they met each other about a month ago when Richard first arrived at the Tower (as it was sometimes referred to as).

“She’s not that bad,” Vic calmly said as he walked by, waving at some of his other friends and girls that happened to smile at him. “You just gotta do what she asks and pay attention in class…”

“What do you mean? How could anyone NOT pay attention with her smacking that ruler around? You know, I think she might’ve grazed my cheek a little. How much you think I can get if I sued her?”

“You’ve gotta be kidding me, Dick,” Vic said. “You’re the adopted child of Bruce Wayne! Bruce freakin’ Wayne and you want more money?”

“Hey, Vic!” called out a couple members of the football team as they walked by.

“Yeah, don’t start that ‘Dick’ thing up again,” Richard replied, annoyed. “Do you know how long it took my butler to stop calling me that? I hate Dick…”

“I would hope you do, Rich,” joked Vic.

“Screw you.” As Richard continued to walk on, a girl walked past him with long flowing black hair. She had nice smooth skin and looks that would make models look like Medusa. She waved at him and smiled.

“Hey, Richie!” she said and kept walking. He smiled back and then kept walking, leaving her behind.

“Ugh, I hate ‘Richie’ just as much…”

“Kory Anders, one of the best looking girls in this school just said hi to you and all you can think about is what she called you? Why don’t you just go talk to the girl, ‘cause if you won’t I…”

“…won’t! Remember you still go with Sarah and I like her, so don’t screw that one up, you dog...”

“Gotta keep back ups in case something goes wrong,” he joked. “But she’s sexy as hell! Why don’t you try and talk to her? Oh that’s right, I forget: the life you live is too dangerous—wooooh!”

“That’s right, Vic,” Richard joked back. “My ‘extra curricular’ activities need my attention 24/7 and I just don’t have any room to fit a girl in there right now. It’s just too much of a risk to have loved ones…”

“And did you realize this before or after Norman Osborn killed Gwen Stacy, Spider-Man?”

“Before.” The two shared a laugh at their joke as they paused.

“Well I’m out, man,” Vic said as he turned around and walked off. “Just remember: with great power comes many masked psychos threatening to kill your girl…”

Richard smiled at his friend as he walked off to his class. He turned around and began to think about how he’d spend his evening…

****
Almost a day has gone by, he estimates. Maybe longer, he doesn’t know. But it makes him feel better to think about something other than him dying underground. He had finished counting nearly all the pebbles and stones lying around him. He counted the cracks in the walls around him. He counted down the hours and the minutes. He counted whatever he could.

He was still alive, to his surprise. Still he wondered why. But he tried not to question the gift he was being given and decided to start counting the hairs on the back off his hand. He lifted his arm, preparing to count, but froze at the sight of his skin. Underground was near dark, and his eyesight wasn’t getting any better, so he doesn’t really remember the last time he got a good look at himself.

His hand looked pale and swollen. He looked at his skin and noticed the large boils growing on them and how pasty he had become.

What’s happening to me? What am I becoming?

He quickly rushed to his feet, only to feel his body weighed back down to the ground. He doesn’t remember the last time he had been on his feet, but even still, he should be able to stand on his own two feet. He tried again, falling against the dirt wall.

He was becoming dazed and confused. He didn’t know if he should just go back to sleep and hope to wake up from this nightmare, or to do something else.

“GOD PLEASE! SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!!” he cried to heavens, hoping someone would answer his plea. Afterwards, he just gave in and passed out.

****
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ! went the roaring snore of Richard’s roommate. Normally it would bother Richard, but tonight it didn’t seeing as how he wasn’t even asleep in the first place. He stood beside his bed mattress and lifted it up, revealing a colorful costume neatly folded underneath.

One of the only things I have left of you all…

He quickly grabbed the outfit and began to undress out of his night clothes.

…Bruce…I know I screwed up…I know I screwed up pretty bad…

He slipped on a slim, green jumpsuit and put on a red vest.

I know you told me over and over again that the “superhero” life wasn’t the life I should choose, no matter how much I wanted revenge, or to prevent this from happening to anyone else…

He strapped a pair of goggles to his eyes and wrapped his hooded black cape around his neck. He raised the cloth around his neck to cover his mouth as he put the hood over his head.

I used to think the same, Bruce. There’s no way I’m cut out for this stuff, going around and saving lives the way you do…but then again…

He looked in the mirror at his outfit and remembered he forgot his belt. He quickly grabbed it and strapped it on.

…It doesn’t hurt to try…I mean, why let all that hard training go to waste, huh Bruce?

And with swift movement, he vanished through the quickly opened window, which seemed to have closed behind him all by itself. He stood on the sill of the window, staring down below. He took one quick leap into the air, performing multiple summersaults in the air, his cape flowing in the night breeze.

I feel like I’m back at the circus. The love of the crowd and my family, the only thing relieving me of gravity…But as much as I want to fly again as I used to, I have to remember…

He landed on the ground with one foot planted and the other in the air.

…The Laws of Physics are there for a reason, and last time I checked I’m not Superman…

 

[King Ruler]

****
“….Wha?” Otto slowly opened his eyes. He couldn’t see much, but from what he could make out he could see that he was standing in large round room. He looked below him and saw that his feet were bound to the floor by large shackle like bonds. The same applied to his arms. He could not move. “What happened to me?”

“Hello, Misteeeerrr—Otto Von Furth,” spoke a strange voice over a loud intercom.

“…Huh?” Otto was surrounded by a large white wall that had no corners and wrapped around him. Above him was a large, round glass window looking down on him. He could see something like a large machine was behind it, but he wasn’t too sure what he saw.

“Mister Von Furth?” went the voice this time. It was a woman’s voice. He couldn’t tell where it was coming form, but it was loud and hurting his ears. “I apologize if I’m a bit loud but…”

“Who are YOU!? Where am I?” he exclaimed, becoming worried.

“Allow me to answer,” this time a man spoke. “I am simply known as ‘the Master’…”

“And I am known as ‘the Mistress’. As for where you are, this is the H.I.V.E…you’re new home.”

“The…H.I.V.E?” Otto spoke, feeling a bit weaker. “What is this…”

“No more questions, Otto,” spoke the Master. “My team of scientists had found you buried alive underground with a rare source of radium coursing through your body…which is what kept you alive longer than a normal man would have survived.”

“But why am I HERE?”

“Because,” spoke the Mistress, “our organization is currently looking for ‘recruits’, if you will, and you look like the perfect man for the job…”

“But…I’m too weak…I already have a job; a life, and a family I need to get back to…I’m too weak and frail to help you with whatever is you need…”

“Oh, that can be arranged.” The Mistress paused for a second. “You may have noticed that you are getting more nauseous and dizzy by the minute…you may have felt your insides moving and shifting…and you may have noticed that circular glass staring down at you.”

“What is it?”

“THAT, Mr. Von Furth,” spoke the Master, “will make you what we want…”

“But I’m too weak…”

“As a man, yes, but WE can make you much more than THAT. As we speak, you are being bombarded by radiation not of this world, and slowly it is morphing you.”

“Slowly? How much time do I have left—before I—‘change’?”

“Well, you were brought to us exactly 1 hour ago, so this would leave you with exactly—10 seconds left.”

Otto felt dizzy as he dropped to his knees. He could feel his bones turning and his skin bubbling. His pupils were shrinking and his hair began to fall out. His feet were expanding and his clothes were growing smaller. In another room the Master and Mistress were watching all of this take place on their computer screen monitors, reading his stats and reports.

“GGGRRRAAAAAAAGHH! THE PAIN!” screamed Otto as she began to violently shake free from his shackles. “GGGRRRRAAAAAAAAAAGH!”

“He’s breaking free,” the Mistress spoke, looking a bit worried.

“I’m well aware of that. But there isn’t much he could possibly…”

SMASH! Otto broke free and leaped into the air, crashing through the glass that was pumping him with radiation. He violently tried to destroy it, but was violently shocked by the machine, his body absorbing more rays.

“…That can’t be good. He might not survive that…”

“I am well aware of that. But if he dies, then I guess that just let’s us know that radium and radiation created from the DNA of an extraterrestrial do NOT mix well…”

CRASH! The machine dropped down to the ground, destroyed, and Otto was gone. He had leaped through the ceiling. The Master and Mistress could hear the sounds of him smashing through the ceiling and breaking through equipment as he tried to escape the H.I.V.E. facility.

“…He’s gone,” the Mistress spoke.

“…Nuts…”

****
“…You’re really kickin’ me in the nuts, Hank!” growled a big, large man with a pony-tail. He wore a black jacket with biker jeans and gloves. Behind him stood 3 smaller men, all armed with pistols at their sides. They stood and watched as the man had another man pressed up against the wall.

“…But, the cops,” cried the man known as Hank. “Their dirty, man! They’re dirty badges, man! And they took my green! THEY got the green!”

“I know that, Hank, and it’s a real kick in the nuts,” he growled as he leaned in closer. “And you know that whenever I get kicked in the nuts, Dowd gets shot in them!”

“Believe me, man, I do NOT wanna piss off the Triple D, but you gotta believe me! The cops got me, searched me, and took the green!” Hank began to get teary eyed. “They let me off easy, but they said that if I didn’t come back next week with some more, then I’m…”

“You lyin’ dog you I know what really happened!” barked the man. “I had Clyde and Dwight over him find you and follow you for a while when we noticed you ain’t showed up with the money!”

“Oh yeah, we followed you alright, Hank,” laughed Clyde. “You lyin’ worm! Ain’t no feds rough you for the green! You smoked it yourself!”

“No!” cried Hank. “I swear I didn…”

“You little SNAKE! I guess you can’t go a day without a fix, huh, you little stoner!?”

Hank tried to say something, but he knew it was no point. He was caught in the act. There was no way to change what he had done, and now he was going to pay for it. He was going to die a drug pushing worm in an alley…not if Richard had anything to say about it…

I should just let this rat get what he deserves…After all, he’s not the innocent one here. No one is…

“Pistol, Rob,” said the large man as he held back his hand, awaiting cold steel to be placed in his palm. “We’ll show you what happens when…”

“NO MIKEY DON’T!” cried Hank. “I’M SORRY I’M SORRY I SWEAR I’M…”

“SHUT IT!” he shouted as he cocked the pistol. Hank’s eyes began to leak water as he could see his life flash before his eyes.

…No…what kind of person would I be if I were to let this person die, innocent or not…killing is killing and that’s not gonna fly while I’m around…

Richard dug into his belt’s compartments, removing three metal razors blades, all in the shape of a bat.

Batarangs…courtesy of the Batman.

With one flick of his wrist, two of the batarangs went hurtling towards Mikey’s gun wielding hand, stabbing the back of his hand.

“AAAAAHHH!” he wailed as he released the gun form his hand. He let go of Hank and backed up, staring at the two strange objects lodged into the back of his hand. “AAAAAHHH!”

“Holy $%&#, Mikey!” cried Dwight as he backed up. “I’ve seen those things before—in Gotham! The—The Batman—he’s here!”

“Where’s my gun!” cried Mikey as he pulled one batarang out, feeling the ground for his gun.

“I heard this guy can take out dozens of men, Mikey,” Clyde said as he pulled out his gun, looking around.

“We don’t stand a chance!”

“I’d like to see him take on a bullet!” Mikey whirled around, waving his gun around. “WHERE ARE YOU!?”

“OVER THERE!” Rob pointed to the very end of the alley at a slightly colorful shadow waiting for them. He wasted no time and began firing bullets. The shadow was gone.

Damnit…one grazed me. This wouldn’t have happened with Bruce…

“Where’d he go?”

“LOOK OUT!” More bullets were fired at another colorful shadow.

Bruce would’ve had these guys taken care of in no time, but I guess I would too if my entire wardrobe consisted of black.

BLAM BLAM BLAM!

“I think I got him!”

He would hide in the shadows and pounce without a moment’s hesitation, and he would never bee seen. I know trying to hide from guys with firearms in the dark with such bright colors on might seem a bit insane…

BLAM BLAM BLAM!

…But I’m using it to my advantage; drawing out their fire.

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!

They’re throwing bullets away as if they’ve got an endless supply…

BLAM! BLAM! CLICK!

…But they don’t…

“Not good,” cried Clyde. “We’re out!”

And I’m in!

And in the blink of an eye, he leaped form the shadows with his foot leading the way towards Rob’s jaw. CRACK! Rob falls on the ground. Richard quickly uses his last batarang on Clyde’s neck, bringing him to the ground in his own pool of blood.

“RRRRAAAAAAAAAHHH I’LL KILL YOU TWO!” roared Mikey as Hank and Dwight ran away. He turned towards his attacker, who had a gun pointed in his face.

Richard grinned as he tilted it away from Mikey’s face and pulled the trigger, releasing the grapple hook from the gun. It ricocheted off the brick wall and back across to the other wall, going around and around until it wrapped around Mikey’s neck. Richard threw the gun through a ladder and pulled it down, raising Mikey up into the air.

“GGAAAAKK!” went the thug as he went upward. Richard tightened his grip and let go, dropping him to the ground, unconscious. Richard looked down on the ground at the bleeding Clyde.

I’ll have to call 911 for this one before he bleeds to death…and as for Hank and Dwight, oh they won’t get away from—the Robin!

And with that, Richard leaped up and vanished into the night, following the criminals.

****
Richard silently slipped through his dorm window, removing his cape. The lights were still off, and his roommate was still snoring.

“…Jeez, Grant,” Richard said as she walked over to his closet. He opened it up and stepped inside, walking back out with his night outfit back on and his hero costume off. He folded it neatly and stuffed it under his bed. As he did so, he thought about tonight’s events and his training with Gotham’s Dark Knight.

He had flashbacks to when he would leap rooftop to rooftop, trailing behind the Batman. He would be buildings ahead of him, and Richard would also get tired, which always seemed to annoy Bruce. Richard had agreed to follow and listen to Bruce every step of the way if he were to undergo his “baptism by fire”, as he called it.

Richard sat on the ground, resting his head on the side of the bed. He remembered how he ruined everything he had going for him. Only a few more years in training and he would’ve been ready to fight side by side with Bruce as he patrolled the streets. He would’ve been ready for anything, but he messed up. He crossed boundaries and broke rules…

…And look where it got me…

Richard felt the side of his ribs where he remembered the bullet that hit him. Bruce went ballistic. He felt it was his fault for dragging a child into his life, and he wouldn’t allow it to drag any further. He had to get Richard away from it. Away from his dangerous nightlife.

So he sent me away to a boarding school in New York. Cronus Towers. He thought that would keep me safe, but he should’ve known better. I have every right to fight, just as much as he does. And I’m going to with or without him. I’ll prove to him I can do this…

 

[King Ruler]

****
There was cheering and laughter on the Cronus Towers school bus. It was filled with members of the football team as well as the cheerleading squad. They had just won their game against one of their rivals, the Eastside High Ravagers. Vic Stone, star running back, made the winning touchdown, making the team record now 4-1. Vic felt like he was on air. He was cheering with his friends, the coach was happy, and his girlfriend Sarah Simms cuddled under his arm. Things were going well that moment.

“TOWERS! TOWERS! TOWERS! TOWERS! TOWERS!” went the team as the cheered some more, jumping all around.

“Alright, alright,” went the bus driver as he looked back. “Settle down back there!” He turned back around and faced the road and continued on. Just then, out of nowhere, a large figure dropped from the sky and landed on the opposite lane. He was wearing torn and tattered clothing and his skin was pink and covered in blistering boils. It was Otto.

He landed in front of an oncoming gasoline truck, and once the driver had seen what he was close to crashing into, he quickly slammed his foot on the breaks and shifted towards the right.

“HELP—ME!” cried Otto as he stared at the truck as it came to a halt, but the sudden stop caused the gas tank to swerve over to the side and cross over into the next lane where a number of cars were headed towards.

“THE HELL!?” screamed the driver as he quickly swerved to the right, nearly avoiding the crash that would’ve cost everyone’s lives. Everyone on the bus screamed as they saw what was happening. They quickly hugged the person next to them as the bus swerved out of control, left and right until it tipped over fell on its side.

The truck driver quickly jumped out of the vehicle and ran off at the sight of the hideous creature coming towards him.

“PLEASE! SOMEBODY HELP!” Otto cried. He looked over at the tipped over bus and saw the dozens of cars coming to a stop, but this caused a pile up as the cars crashed into one another!

CRASH! SLAM! SMASH! SCCCUUURRRR!

“AAAAAAHHH HELP US!” screamed everyone on the tipped over bus. They were all turned over on top of each other, panicked out of their minds. Some were injured and some were in tears. Vic struggled to get up but couldn’t move. He managed to get a look out the window and saw a number of cars swerve out of control and crash left and right.

“HELP ME PLEASE!” Otto was in pain. More cars came his way, but they all stopped and ran off, causing more and more pile ups on the road. Cars were jumping high into the air as they rammed tin other vehicles; motorcycles were destroyed and drivers were either killed or injured.

But the worse was yet to come.

“…Vic?” Vic could hear his girlfriend calling him. “Vic?”

He looked around the crowded overturned bus and saw his girlfriend lying upside down with her arm twisted the other way.

“Vic—help…”

“Sarah!” He struggled to move, but paused once he saw out the window a car heading towards the creature causing the destruction.

Otto saw the car heading for him, and acting without thought, he quickly upper cut the front of the car in self defense, causing the vehicle to back flip numerous times into the air. Vic saw this and closed his eyes, praying to God that the car would not land where he thought it was heading.

The car horn honked endlessly as the car hurdled towards the gas tank on the back of the truck. It finally collided, bursting the tank open and releasing all of the gasoline, as well as setting it on fire in the process once the car exploded.

BBOOOM! WOOOOOOSSSH! The truck burst into flames! Fire and smoke rose into the air as it began to expand rapidly. The explosion rocked the road, causing Vic to open his eyes. He could see a tidal wave of fire flush over towards his direction, and he knew it was the end for him. He knew where this was headed. He was disappointed that this was how his life was to end. He always thought about going up in a blaze of glory, but this is not what he had in mind. Vic screamed in pain as his body was engulfed in flames.

The explosion blew in Otto’s face as he was thrown backwards into the air and dropped on the street pavement, knocked unconscious.

The entire road was covered in nothing but death, destruction and turmoil.

And the worst part was….that this was only the beginning…