CHAPTER 77

"Time is of the essence. Let's leave right away," Wonder Girl suggested, "If those demons are really after that girl, her situation must be dangerous."

The young heroes nodded in agreement, preparing to depart immediately to the scene.

"But before that, you must come with me to see something," Starfire stopped everyone abruptly.

"Now? Are you sure, Starfire? Is there anything more important than those demons right now?" Yuri asked, glancing at his ready for battle teammates before looking back at Starfire.

"Come with me," Starfire replied without giving a clear answer. She wore an unusually serious expression, a demeanor Yuri hadn't seen from Starfire before.

"I know what she wants to show you," Beast Boy's voice suddenly turned solemn, "It's the memories and legacy of the Titans."

With that, he followed Starfire down the stairs, leaving the others puzzled, but they followed behind with curiosity.

Soon, they arrived in the basement, but Starfire and Beast Boy's steps didn't stop. They approached a wall in the corner.

Beast Boy casually tapped the wall, and it opened up, revealing a passage wide enough for two people to walk side by side.

As they entered the passage, Yuri and the others were immediately drawn to the environment inside. Inside, there were over a dozen statues on both sides, exquisitely crafted, almost lifelike.

At the end of the passage, there was a statue of a young woman in a black skintight uniform with star-like patterns spread across the black fabric.

"That's..." Superboy was moved.

"Donna Troy," Robin lowered his head, his face as gloomy as if it could drip water.

"This is a memorial hall, and each statue represents a Titan who fell in battle," Starfire walked to the end and turned to face everyone, her expression filled with sorrow.

"This person looks a bit like Hawk," Bart said, looking at a statue on the left.

"That's Golden Eagle, a fan of Hawk, and he had his neck twisted while fighting an enemy of the Titans," Beast Boy explained beside him.

"Next to Golden Eagle is Dove. She was killed when a truck hit her while protecting a child," Beast Boy continued.

"And there's Aqua Girl, who drowned in poisonous water during a crisis that threatened the entire world," Starfire added.

She and Beast Boy then went on to introduce each fallen Titan to everyone.

Yuri listened attentively. He might not have the same deep reverence for these heroic young deaths, but respect was certainly due.

After all, Yuri was nowhere near ready to sacrifice himself to protect others. However, that didn't prevent him from respecting those who were willing to do so.

"Who's the guy with the golden sideburns?" suddenly, Superboy looked at a statue and asked.

"That's Jericho—Joseph Wilson. He was the son of Deathstroke the Terminator," Beast Boy replied.

Beast Boy's words were astonishing.

"Deathstroke?! The one known as the most dangerous mercenary in the world?" Tim couldn't help exclaiming, "I saw information about him in Batman's confidential files. He has always been a lone operator. I had no idea he had a family."

"Isn't he a bad guy? Wally told me that Deathstroke used to be against the Titans, so how did his son end up becoming a hero?" Bart asked curiously.

"While Jericho is the son of Deathstroke, he is a good person. He has a kind heart and a cheerful personality, completely different from his father. At that time, he was a good friend to all of us," Starfire reminisced.

"Later, Jericho was controlled by some evil force, which allowed him to transfer his soul through eye contact, plunging him into extreme madness. Then... Jericho's father impaled his heart with a sword."

"Jericho killed his own son?" Everyone was shocked.

Beast Boy and Starfire nodded simultaneously.

"Before undertaking a dangerous mission, you must understand how serious it is to be a Titan. Many people have sacrificed their lives for it. In the near future, maybe I will become one of these statues, or maybe it will be one of you," Starfire said in conclusion. "That's why I wanted you to come down here and see all this."

"After going through what happened to Donna, do you think I wouldn't understand?" Wonder Girl asked in response, her gaze determined as she looked at everyone. "We fight to protect others, to save lives, and to help people. Even if we die in battle, it is worth it!"

"Isn't it?" she added.

Yuri wanted to say, "It's not." but the atmosphere here didn't allow him to voice his thoughts.

'But come to think of it, that guy named Jericho, with the ability to transfer souls through eye contact, is it that easy for a guy with such power to die that easily?...' Yuri silently thought to himself, but quickly shook his head in his mind.

'What am I thinking? They even made memorial statues, and it's been so many years. There's no way this Jericho guy could still be alive.'

"Starfire, can we go now?" Superboy asked.

"Needless to say," Starfire replied with a slight smile.

—-—

After a while, the Teen Titans arrived at the location where Raven had fought the demons of Trigon.

"There are no traces left, except for these fragments of clothing," Tim said as he took the lead to investigate the scene, and the others followed suit.

In the end, apart from the red clothing fragments on the ground, no other clues were found.

"These look like robes, maybe we can piece them together... Bart!" Yuri rubbed his chin and then called out to Bart.

"Got it!"

Bart instantly appeared in front of the pile of fragments and swiftly separated and pieced them together.

In the blink of an eye, Bart stopped and stepped back two steps.

Three robes appeared on the ground. Although there were some missing parts, it was generally confirmed to be a specialized garment of some unknown cult.

Because none of the known religions in the world had robes of this style, and from the color and patterns, it didn't seem like a legitimate religion yet or something.

"Wait, looking at this style, it seems to be the same as the clothes worn by the mysterious girl in the video, just a different color," Tim keenly noticed the style of the robes.

"Interesting," Yuri's eyes had a playful look, "The video taken by the witness showed no sign of cultists, only three demons, and coincidentally, here we have three robes of a cult torn into pieces."

"You mean..." Tim's eyes lit up, and he turned his head to look at Yuri.

"Exactly like what you're thinking," Yuri confirmed Tim's guess.

°°°

A/N: The stones been really goin low now, I'm sad. So give me stones to cheer me up.

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