AuDC Productions Showcase: Beast Boy

Untamable

In the beginning there was happiness. That was how he began every life lesson that he ever learned in his short seventeen years of living. In the beginning there was peace and happiness. There was one husband, one wife, and their only child; him. He loved his parents and they loved him. There was no death defying performance that went wrong. There was no demonic promise that was to be made. And there surely were no intergalactic battles being solved by selling him to the winning planet. But there was a scientific experience that saved his life. Maybe it was because of that that he and Victor got along so well? Garfield Logan surely thought so.

Treading through the thick brushes of the region known as Lamumba, the Titan formerly known as Beast Boy thought about his time with his first real group of friends, the Teen Titans. He was the youngest, a year younger than Dick was, and did not necessarily understand a lot about the different lifestyles. His only communication with any of his age before then was with his mask on while on duty with the Doom Patrol. Never had he had the courage to talk to people without his mask on until then. And never had he been so grateful for doing so.

Dick was, and probably will always be, Garfield's role model. Seriously. The guy was the only one of them who willingly left a loving home- freaking Wayne Manor- to prove a point. And he did. Dick proved that he could survive without being Batman's sidekick. He inspired others such as Speedy and Aqualad (Garth) to do the same. What little knew about Dick was that he was quite the guidance counselor as well. Or he was whenever he wasn't bent out of shape over finding Slade or catching Red X. Dick was able to pinpoint certain problems and more times than Garfield could count guide the person through said problem step-by-step. This was great when a group of five teens decide to move in together and without knowing one another. This was bad when trying to hide the fact that a certain geokinetic girl couldn't control her powers. But Dick was a great leader and Garfield wanted nothing more than to be that leader someday.

Next was Koriand'r, commonly known as Starfire. After she mellowed down a bit (Tamaraneans were warrior species after all) she became the nicest of them all. It was easier talking to her about this or that or asking her for a favor than it was the others. Plus Garfield found it more than hilarious when the alien princess could not grasp common phrases such as "the early bird gets the worm" or "what's up?" Unbeknownst to the rest of the team, it was a mistake on Kori's part that gave Garfield his first live view of breasts before. He would rather die than tell Dick of the incident of when he had to explain to her about the rules of a swimming pool. Of course, this was back when she had first arrived there and everyone had their share of teaching her certain things about Earth, Beast Boy being the one to teach her about "fun". Well, what he thought was fun. So he had snuck her into a closed pool where he proceeded to strip into his trunks and she had simply removed all clothes. Maybe it was his fault seeing as he told her to put her "bathing suit on" and to Kori, a bathing suit was what you bathed in, not what you swam in. Either way, he would take that moment to the grave with him and he was sure that Kori, now conscious of her earlier mistake, was embarrassed about it as well. She was still the warrior princess that she was when they first met but she was now the friendliest person he knew. She had become the older sister that he always wanted and he treasured her company always.

Victor Stone was another member of the original team. He was who Garfield related to the most as they normally drew in questionable stares whenever they went out in public. It was hardest for them to blend in with the outside world because of their appearances. People judged. People snickered. It was the same thing for months until the Teen Titans became a household name. Now it was flattering to see kids dress up as him for Halloween even though he wanted to tell the world that did have a tail. In fact, it was Victor who helped him cut his tail the last time and it was rather painless considering that the laser shot through in a second. Cyborg always commented that having a tail would be pretty cool but Garfield never listened. It was the only thing that Victor said that Garfield never took into consideration. He was green. He had green skin and green eyes and green hair. Did he really want to have something else for them to talk about? Besides, he could be any animal that had a tail if he wanted a tail that badly. Back to Victor, the oldest of the team. They had a brotherly relationship with Beast Boy more times than often begging Victor for something to do. Video games were always more fun (he had to remember that "funner" wasn't a word) and getting pizza was always a journey to tell. Inside of the Tower, they were nearly inseparable sans the time that they were angry at each other. They invented games and conquered the online world. If Kori was Garfield's big sister, than Victor was the older brother who gave advice and always let his kid brother (Garfield in this case) tag along. Always.

And then there was Raven. She was complicated. They were complicated. Did he love her? Yes. Was it different for his love for Kori or Victor? He didn't know. Then again, how could he? The two did not talk much for several of reasons. Tara was always reason number one, Jake being a close second. Yet, despite not talking to her, he found that he thought about her the most. During their small reunion in Tokyo they walked around together. It was kind of awesome. By awesome, he meant a combination of peaceful, romantic, and soothing without sounding like a complete sap. It was known throughout the Tower- more like the entirety of the Titans- that Raven only revealed her name to people that she trusts. Dick learned her name within the first three weeks. Garfield wouldn't know until the week of her birthday. The first time that they kissed, it was after he had called her by her real name after a "not-date" date. And despite everyone's jokes about him going into heat (which he most certainly did not do), he had never even seen Raven naked, let alone had sex with her. They were both afraid about the emotion love for different reasons and had to take it slow. Very slow. The last time they had kissed, it was different. Raven had asked him if he was using her to replace Tara and he had partially lied and said no. He had asked her if she actually had sex with Red X and she had avoided the question altogether. Now he was not trying to use her to replace Tara. It just happened. Did Raven expect him to just move on from Tara? Did he really want to know if Raven did in fact like, love, or lust for Jake? They were complicated.

He paused and sniffed. There was a tiger nearby. Male, most likely an escapee from a reserve or something. He waited for a while and searched to see if he could find the beast before it found him. After a minute of searching he continues his hike to his destination while thinking of his last talk with Raven.

Jake and Tara were what kept them separated. Two of Slade's apprentices were what kept two heroes apart. Garfield hated to think that Raven went to Red X to get even with the green-skinned boy. It wouldn't be fair really. He knew Tara. He loved Tara. Raven didn't know Red X (well she didn't before they met Tara) and should remember that he was still Red X. Now, Beast Boy wasn't jealous, more like worried. There was really no way that one could fully trust a child of Slade, regardless of the limited good things he has done.

A twig cracked under his foot and Beast Boy paused. Checking his surroundings again, he continued his journey.

He loved- loves- Raven dearly but he sincerely questioned her choice in flings. If Jake was just a fling and nothing more. Were there more? Was there more to him? Garfield would probably never get the courage to ask her. As seen from the Titans last talk about Red X, it was safe to say that he was better left six feet under and not randomly appearing in conversations lest someone ended up like the table Kori broke in half with a single blow.

Finally Beast Boy saw his destination. The former place was once his parents' workplace and his home. The building was the once the home of the Logans' but it also dubbed as a laboratory and research facility. They owned a variety of animals ranging from horses and buffalo to leopards and rhinoceroses. But that was long ago. Those animals had probably escaped or died one. No one had been at the home in such a long time that he was pretty sure that it was one or the other.

Ringing the doorbell, he realized that someone had to be here. The mystery person had apparently made themselves at home as he could smell something cooking behind the door.

"Hello? Anyone here?" Garfield questions as he rings the doorbell two more times. "I got your message."

The door soon swung open to reveal a dark-haired middle aged man.

"Uh… Hi." Unsurprisingly that was how Beast Boy greeted the stranger living in his parents' former home.

"Garfield! Come in, come in," There were two occasions when someone just whisked Beast Boy inside of a place he was cautious about entering and both of those occurrences included a giddy Starfire and an unwilling Beast Boy. "You've grown so much! The last time I saw you, you were about knee high!"

"Am I supposed to know you…?" Garfield was questioning himself more than the man with the grin in front of him.

"Oh! Of course! How could you remember?" The man sat down in an armchair and pointed to a couch where Garfield sat. "Do you remember the number of colleagues your parents had working on the reservation?" Garfield frowned in thought before shaking his head for no. "Well how could you?! You were only, what? Four, five maybe?"

"I only remember one and that was the weird lady with the hairy mole on her lip." The memory returned to the teen's mind as soon as he said it and he shivered. "Mole…"

"Well, I was one of those that you don't remember. Dr. Samuel Register at your service. A biogeneticist, like your father."

Garfield groans. "Dude, science is really not my strongest subject."

"Oh trust me, you can understand it if you put your mind to it. You were born with the genes of two of the greatest scientists in the world! And as a child you were enthralled by the mysteries of the world. Mysteries that can only be explained through science." Dr. Register says before leaning back in his chair. "Your mother once thought of you as the child that would soon discover the missing link."

Garfield's eyes slowly went to the floor, partially out of shame. He hadn't thought about his parents- his real parents- in such a long time because it hurts too much. Dick was able to speak about his parents. Kori could do it as well. And Raven's and Victor's parents were still alive. He supposed this feeling came with the unknowing of just how they died. All he got from local police and detectives were, "the boat exploded."

"I presume you're wondering why I called you down here, right?" Dr. Register's voice gained Garfield's attention and the teen nods. "How would you like to be cured?"

"C-Cured?" Beast Boy stuttered in disbelief. "Like fixed? Normal?"

Dr. Register laughs. "Yes. Normal." The man's laughter dies but his smile is still present. "Your parents and I were working on a serum that would remove the Sakutia from your system." Seeing the confused look on the hero's face, Dr. Register expands. "The monkey that bit you had a rare disease, Sakutia. While it gives one the ability to become any animal they desire, it ultimately turns you, well, green. The virus itself is able to kill a human in a few days but-"

"A few days?! I've been living with this for years!" Beast Boy interrupts.

"Yes, I know," Dr. Register calmly replies. "In their search for a cure, your parents inadvertently altered your DNA so that the virus was no longer lethal to you. In other terms, they made you closer to the only creature known to survive with the virus, the green Gabon talapoin that bit you."

"Oh…" Garfield said stretching out his word as if he came to an epiphany. Dr. Register raised a brow with anxiety. He knew that a son of two geniuses couldn't be that far from intelligent, right? "That's why they named him Gabby."

Samuel sat there stunned as Garfield nods his head as if he was proud to discover such an easy finding.

"So," Beast Boy continued. "They altered my DNA so that I wouldn't die but I kept all the other side effects such as changing and being green." Beast Boy paused. "And I guess me growing up with whatever they did has something to do with my ability to control the animal inside of me…?"

"Exactly," Dr. Register said with a sigh. For a second, he thought he was dealing with an idiot. "That is exactly right. People who have come in contact with the disease tend to grow feral, primitive even. Their minds become so wrapped up in just one transformation that they usually never turn back until the disease takes its course."

"So out of curiosity, would my blood be able to stop them from dying?" Now Dr. Register's smile returned.

"Theoretically, yes, but my job isn't to find a way to stop it. It's to cure it." The man said. "And after many years of research, I think I found what your parents were looking for all along."

"A way to fix me…" The words left Garfield's mouth before he could stop them, his eyes staring at his green hands. "I can be normal again…"

"Yes, you can. But I must warn you. It will take some time for you to adjust to normality." Beast Boy was hardly paying attention to the man. "You won't be able to just turn into an eagle and fly off whenever you feel like it. You'll have to get used to doing things like normal guys. This would include chasing the girls off of you."

Now Garfield's mind was swimming. He had witnessed Dick Grayson go to the mall and be swarmed with girls of all ages trying to talk to him. He imagined if he was in the same position. Having two attractive girls like Kitty and Kori fight over him seemed pretty awesome as well.

"How does it work?" Garfield asked, staring Dr. Register directly in the eye.

"As simple as a little shot and that's it. I will say that it seems to be irreversible. Once you are cured, you will never be Beast Boy again."

The words sunk into the green-skinned teen's mind. He could be normal for once in his life in exchange for never being a hero again. He could be able to walk into a mall and never have to worry about whispers behind him but he would never be able to shape-shift into any animal to stop a crime. He could finally be Garfield Logan again at the expense of destroying Beast Boy.

"Never?" Beast Boy asked quietly.

Dr. Register shook his head. "Will theoretically, no. Not ever."

Garfield thought about it once more. Maybe would like him better if he wasn't green? Kermit the Frog said it best: It's not easy being green.

"Let's do it."

Dr. Register sighs. "Now Garfield, remember. If you go through with this, you may never be Beast Boy again. Are you sure you're ready to give up this life?"

"I have a chance to be normal. I don't have to be an animal. I can be human." The teen spoke. "Besides, my parents were developing of a way to fix this, right? This will be like their gift to me."

"I suppose you're right." Dr. Register said before sitting up. "Well then… Shall we?"

"Now? I mean. Yeah, sure, let's do it."

"Garfield you know that we don't-"

"I can be normal." Garfield said. "All my life I've been this, or at least most of it. I just want to know how it feels to be a normal teenager."

"But you'll never be Beast Boy again. Is that something you're alright with?" Dr. Register asked.

"…" Garfield sat quietly for a moment before nodding his head. "Let's do it."

With nothing else said, Dr. Register stood up and Beast Boy followed suit. There were several of things that went through Garfield's head at the moment but the one thing that stuck out was that he was going to be human. Like normal human. He no longer had to crack jokes about his appearance because it would be normal. No more "green bean" jokes or "walking booger" snide comments. He would be just Garfield Logan.

"How is it?" Beast Boy snaps out of his thoughts and looks at the scientist.

"How is what?" The teen responds.

"Transforming." Dr. Register expounds. "I've always thought that the process of going from human to beast could be quite painful."

The shape-shifter scratches the back of his neck.

"Well, uh, it doesn't hurt exactly," Beast Boy responds. "It kind of feels weird. Like hitting your funny bone all over and then it's alright."

Dr. Register raised his brows. "Even with gills or tails?" Beast Boy nods a bit. "Fascinating. You have to forgive me but just the mere thought of growing a tail…" Dr. Register paused and shutters. "I just figured it would be painful for some reason."

"It does take some getting used to."

The talk about transforming was making the teen start to have doubts. Being Beast Boy was literally all he knew. The only time he attempted to get a normal job turned out to be Mega Meaty Meat and well… Let's just say that's going to be the only time Garfield works at a fast-food restaurant ever again.

"Down here," Dr. Register speaks as he leads Beast Boy down some steps. "Watch your step. A lot of your parents' co-workers have injured themselves on these things."

"Really?" Dr. Register nods.

"Oh yes. It was once rumored that the Logans' ranch was more dangerous than the animals that they kept." The man joked with a grin. "Though we both know that's because your parents were master beast tamers. There wasn't an animal alive that your mother couldn't coax."

There was another moment of silence. Once more, Garfield felt guilty for not ever mentioning such to his friends and former teammates. Only Tara knew about how gentle his real mother was while everyone else got stories from his time with the Doom Patrol. He took nothing away from Rita- she was a great foster mother- but his real mother was better. Not better at being a mother, just better at being his mother. Marie Logan knew him better than he knew himself and probably still did today beyond the grave.

"Whoa…" Beast Boy lets out as he eyes the large laboratory beneath the house.

"It's been years since you've been down here." Dr. Register says. "I've tried to keep the lab running with updated tools and software without erasing your parents' touch on it." The man walks to a table filled with beakers and tools that Beast Boy did not know. "When we're finished, would you like to see that animals that we still have one the reservoir?"

"Sure! I mean, that'll be great!" Beast Boy tried and failed to maintain his excitement. Being with the Titans allowed him to travel but never enjoy himself fully. Now he could go back to what he considered his old playground and play with the first friends he ever had, his parents' "pets".

"Just lie down over there." Garfield's eyes go over to a hospital bed with the side rails raised. Shrugging he walks over to it and immediately hops onto it, the bed rolling a few inches into a table.

"Oops…"

"Please be careful." Dr. Register says with a sigh. "Things down here are extremely sensitive."

"Yeah, sure," Garfield responds as he looks around. "So… What's with the giant cages?"

"Breeding program with ligers." Dr. Register answers while searching for a needle. "So far, we're unsuccessful, but a breakthrough happened last night when one of my co-workers found a chromosomal-"

"A what?" Beast Boy interrupts.

"Never mind."

The teen lets it go and continues looking around the area. Computers and chemicals were on most of the tables, several different versions of animal feed on others. And then… Meat. Canned ground meat. Beef and gazelle were what he could see, though he was sure there was some pork there somewhere.

"Do you mind waiting for a few minutes? I need my assistants." Dr. Register questions.

Beast Boy grins. "Doc, I've been waiting for twelve years to be normal again. I can wait a few more minutes."

Dr. Register nods before exiting up the stairs again. This gave Beast Boy a better chance to look round.

The laboratory was huge, bigger than the ranch house above it probably. There were doors that led to other rooms to the north of the building and an aquarium that lined that wall. From his viewpoint he could see that there were six different work areas in this room and debated the number of areas behind the door near the aquarium. It was probably countless of them. Frowning, he remembered that there was an exit down here somewhere that led into the back. He searched around as he tried to dig into twelve years of memory in his mind.

"Here we are," Beast Boy turns to see Dr. Register with two other people in lab coats. One was a male approximately the same age as Dr. Register while the other was a younger woman. "Garfield I'd like you to meet Dr. Stephen Shin, a biologist who was once strictly a marine biologist." Beast Boy sees the aged oriental man give him a courteous bow before looking at the woman. "And this is Dr. Penelope Young, a psychiatrist who does a lot of study on how certain chemicals have effects on the human mind."

"Uh… Okay…?" Beast Boy was unsure why a psychiatrist was there, let alone trying to see how this medicine was going to affect him.

"I'm here to see if the removal of the Sakutia will play a major part of your psyche. We have no sure way of knowing if the cure will remove your animal instincts. It could even drive you mad."

The teen's eyes grow wide and he looks at Dr. Register.

"There is a small chance of that happening. A very small one." Dr. Register explains. "Your only concern should be if you really want to go through with this. If you really don't want to be Beast Boy anymore but continue your life as just Garfield Logan."

"I'm sure. I just don't want this to mess up my brain. I still use it." Beast Boy said.

Dr. Register grins. "You don't have to worry. Everything will go smoothly. You have my word. Now, lie back."

Beast Boy had been strapped down to a hospital bed numerous times in his life, but this time he actually felt as if it would be the last. This would be the last time that he had to be strapped down like some insane person or rabid animal. The next time he would go to the doctor's office, he would be able to just sit and get normal check-up like everyone else.

"Okay," Dr. Register said as he rolled up Beast Boy's right sleeve. "This is the part where you close your eyes and think of something peaceful."

And so Garfield did. He thought of Tara and himself sitting in front of Titan's Tower, skipping rocks. There was no Deathstroke. There were no missions. And there surely wasn't a thief having an affair with Raven. It was just Garfield Logan and Tara Markov skipping rocks.

His thoughts expanded further than that. He thought about enjoying the day with the rest the team. Have Robin actually walk around without his face covered by something. He would be alright with Starfire in her normal revealing attires while Raven went more conservative. Victor would be grilling something while Karen (Bumblebee) argued if he was doing it right or not. And Garth would simply state how he wouldn't eat any fish of any kind as it could be one of his friends.

Yeah, that would be a great day.

The sting came quickly and Garfield hissed in pain. Soon there was a numbing feeling. It reminded him of the last time Cyborg cut his tail. A swift sting and then nothing. He felt his stomach rumble and his head began to ache. There was a scream before all was silent and his world grew darker.

"Sleep tight, Beast Boy." The words sounded so sinister yet so familiar. It wouldn't matter now as his eyes refused to open and his mind slowly shut down.

Heavy eyelids cracked open. His vision was greatly blurred. His head was swarming with random thoughts, memories, and trying to figure out what the heck just happened.

He closed his eyes and inhaled. Nothing but a sterile smell. That was wrong. Normally he could sniff and tell if there was someone nearby by sent alone. He even predicted Kori's strange alien menstrual cycles by her scent. So how could he not…

His eyes shot open and he sat up.

"It worked?" Garfield questioned aloud before looking at his hands. "Not green… Not green! Hey Doc it worked!" It was then that Beast Boy realized that he was locked in a cage. He looked around. "Uh, hello? Doc? Anyone?"

Garfield slowly rose to his feet and moved to the barred cage walls. Wrapping his hands around them, he searched the laboratory for any signs of life outside of his own. He then saw Dr. Shin nearing him.

"Hey! Dr. Shin! Why…" Garfield paused when he saw the elder holding his chest, a large bloodstain in his clothes. "Dr. Shin?!"

The man collapsed, but not before Jericho leapt out of his body. Garfield could only stare at his silent blond teammate. The mute had certainly grown since his team with the Teen Titans, now sporting a black armor-like top and pants to match. Despite his top being sleeveless, Garfield could not help but think that Jericho had been roaming around in Deathstroke's closet. Though he seriously doubted it. Jericho was a pacifist and would never confront Deathstroke no matter what.

"Step back." Garfield's eyes widened as far as they ever had.

"Dude! Since when could you talk?!" The cold glare that Jericho gave him told him that now was not the time.

Garfield stepped away from the cage door and watched Jericho uncharacteristically reveal a handgun. With two solid fires, the lock was shattered and the door swung open.

"What the hell is going on?!" Garfield questioned. "Why were you inside of Dr. Shin? Where is Dr. Register? And when could you talk?!"

"A year ago," Jericho begins while putting his gun away. "My former caretaker came to me and took me to a group of doctors who fixed my damaged vocal chords."

"What happened here?" Garfield interrupts.

"Dr. Register has been working on a formula for quite some time. It was to give him shape-shifting abilities like you. However when he completed the formula again, I was to steal it and return it to my boss." Garfield frowns. "I'm a spy Beast Boy. I have been for most of my life."

"You're a what?! Why didn't you tell any of-"

"I was mute, remember?" The blond's words crushes Garfield's question and the spy continues. "I was never ordered to spy on the Titans, if that's what you're worried about. My target was the missing Tara Markov."

Garfield growls. "And what did you want with her?"

"To help me find my father. But that's another story." replied Jericho. "After I stole Register's first serum, I had a feeling that he would make another one, but better. Yet the only way he could do so was with the origin of the serum…"

Jericho's words trail off and Garfield soon points at himself.

"Me?" Jericho nods. "That bastard!"

"He needed your DNA to complete it. And now he has." Jericho thumbs over at Dr. Shin's dead body. "Register transformed into a bear and took a swipe at him. I managed to jump out in time, but I couldn't keep Shin alive no matter how hard I tried." Jericho pauses and sighs. "Maybe I am just like him…"

"Just like who?" It seemed that Jericho had gone into some deep thought. "Jericho!"

"Right," The spy said. "I have to go after him. Tara can wait."

"Wait!" Garfield says while stopping Jericho's departure. "I want to help."

Jericho shakes his head. "I'm sorry Beast Boy. Without your powers you could get killed and I do think of you as a friend. I can't let that happen."

"If I'm such a friend," Garfield mutters. "How come I'm just hearing about you being a spy?"

"Because spies normally don't give out that information to just anyone." Jericho answers before eying Garfield squarely. "My name is Grant Joseph Worth. My mother was Lillian Worth, a spy who went undercover as a prostitute in Cambodia. There she met my father who was sent to rescue her… Slade Wilson."

"No way…" Garfield barely chokes out.

"I was raised in England for most of my life, spending some time in America and Canada. I was watched by William Wintergreen, a friend of my father's. He and my mother trained me to become a spy." Grant speaks. "Sometime around five, my uncle came searching for my father. The attack rendered me mute and killed my mom."

There was a moment of silence. Garfield thought about how crazy his life would have been if one of his uncles killed his parents. It was almost shocking that Jericho appeared to hold no malice towards his uncle and instead spoke with the same level of calmness that he had from the beginning.

"Wintergreen then upped my training but we lost contact with my father." Jericho continues. "I escaped from Wintergreen's soldiers one night and used my powers to get to New York where I knew Dad was. However, by the time I got there, he had already left. It was then that I first saw my older brother Jake and his mother Adeline. I envied him."

"Why?"

"Because he had a father." Now there was malice shown. Not a lot, but clearly heard. "I left and continued my search until Wintergreen found me. I went back to training before he allowed me to venture around as I pleased. I began helping people secretly while doing small favors for Wintergreen and Amanda." Jericho looks up at the ceiling. "Then I met you. From there, you should know."

Garfield frowns. "So these 'favors' were what exactly?"

"Spying. Gaining information and relaying it back to Amanda and Wintergreen." Jericho answered. "I did get to see Ravager in action one night." The teen snorts. "So violent. It was almost as if she literally had no care at all about who crossed her path. I was too afraid to even tell her who I was…"

"That must be hard…" voices Garfield.

"I was there at their funeral, both of them. I thought that I could be better than them because I was still alive but my dad has yet to find me like he has them. Maybe it's because they were his favorites and I was just some bastard made from an affair?"

"Don't think like that," Garfield said. "Everything happens for a reason. Besides, you don't need Slade! You're Jericho! You're one of the coolest spies that I know!" Garfield's upbeat mood slowly transformed into a deep thought. "Come to think of it, you're the only spy I know."

"Excluding Tara, right?" The response gave Grant a second warning growl. "Sorry."

"So which way did Register leave?" Jericho pointed to the stairs. "We should go!"

"Like I said, you have to stay here." Jericho replies as he backs to the stairs. "Call for back-up or the police. I'm going to stop Register and continue on with my mission."

Before Garfield could speak, Jericho ran for the steps. The former shape-shifter looked around while thinking of his current predicament. He was currently stuck in his parents' former laboratory as an average seventeen-year-old boy with no idea about the threat outside. Worse, he just realized that someone who he shared his secrets to (due to the fact that Jericho couldn't tell anyone) was the talking son of his biggest foe.

That was a scary thought.

Ravager, Red X, and Jericho were siblings via Deathstroke the Terminator. An assassin, a spy, and a thief were all related somehow and they have each had their dealings with the Teen Titans. Jericho, of course, was an honorary member who helped the Titans, Ravager was an assassin who blamed the Titans for her last failure, and Red X was the thief who would either remove the Titans out of his way of a score or safe them from their ultimate deaths. Separately, it took the original five Titans to stop Ravager in Gotham, Red X had defeated the larger team with preset traps, and Jericho had enough information to take them all down if he needed to. Together, who knew what they could do. These were Slade's kids after all.

And that was a scary thought.

Shaking his head of those thoughts, Garfield soon went over to the work area he had seen Dr. Register at earlier. He looked around the area until he found a vial that was labeled "Logan, Gar" on it.

"If it helped him gain his powers," Garfield said holding the vial. "Maybe it can help me regain mine."

However that was easier said than done as Garfield had no idea just how to inject himself with the stuff. From what Victor and Dick always said, doctors take a lot of time setting up precaution when giving daily shots. They had to do things like sterilization and making sure that the right dose were applied. Garfield knew how to do neither of those two things. Still, he had to do something. More importantly, he had to become Beast Boy again somehow.

Somehow…

Grant rolled out of the way of the large purple gorilla that had attempted to smash his body into the ground with its massive fists. The teen was quickly running through plans and ideas on how to defeat the now self-proclaimed Zookeeper. He didn't want to fall victim to the man like the two tigers that lied skewered within the reservoir.

Getting to his feet, Jericho watched as his opponent reverted to his human form, Zookeeper's eyes on the ground and avoiding Jericho's at all costs.

"One of Wintergreen's soldiers, no doubt." Zookeeper spat. "I bet Waller thought I was a red flag and sent you here." Jericho shakes his head, Zookeeper hardly seeing the act. "No? Then what has the government poking its head in my business again?"

Jericho remains silent, a habit from battling while mute. He could better read his opponents this way. That, plus he did not want to reveal to Zookeeper that he was right. Wintergreen had sent him here to stop whatever it was Dr. Register was doing. More importantly, he was there to make sure that Dr. Register never took any formula that could resemble the newly improved Sakutia disease, or as Jericho knows it, the Mystique formula. Amanda Waller would not like that.

"With these abilities," Zookeeper said. "I can finally finish all these years of research! The missing link between man and beast…"

Jericho stood quietly before the two heard galloping. Zookeeper turned in time to see a green ram knocking him away from Jericho.

"Beast Boy?" Jericho asked as the shape-shifter reverted to his human form, now sporting a tail. "How? The cure was irreversible."

"You?!" Zookeeper growls.

Beast Boy grins. "I may not be one for science, but even I figured out how to reverse the cure."

Jericho nods his head though he was questioning just how Beast Boy did it. Beast Boy was not the smartest Titan, and even if he were the antidote to Dr. Register's cure would take weeks- months even- to make. How did he do it so fast?

"No matter," Zookeeper says while rising. "I will tame you like the other beasts that stood before me!"

Beast Boy smirks. "I'd like to see you try."

Zookeeper growls before transforming into a large Eastern lowland gorilla. Beast Boy sees this and transforms into a green version of the purple gorilla charging for him. The two beasts lock hands in a struggle for supreme power and dominance. Soon Beast Boy begins to get the advantage and Zookeeper was forced to back away. The green shape-shifted follows, only to have Zookeeper transform into a smaller spider monkey and scurry up a nearby tree.

Jericho takes that moment to hide while Beast Boy gives chase as a green squirrel. He just needed three seconds of direct eye contact with Zookeeper and this would all be over.

The two shape-shifters continued further into the Lamumbian research center also known as the Logan Ranch. While Dr. Register had mapped this entire area out tens of thousands of times before, Garfield was going on instinct and memory. The two went from tree limb to tree limb, both transforming into gibbons as they did so.

Zookeeper came to an opening first, transforming into a golden eagle. The aged man descends for the grasslands below him due to his lack of flying experience before steadying and soaring off. He was unprepared for the quicker green peregrine falcon to swoop down and send them both spiraling towards the ground.

The two crashed into the grassy ground, rolling away from one another. Both now in their human forms and injured from the drop, but neither ready to call it quits.

Zookeeper, filled with anger, transforms into a large purple tiger and pounces for Beast Boy. Beast Boy attempts to counter by becoming a lion, only to be knocked onto his back by the power of his opponent. A loud roar of agony escapes Beast Boy when the tiger's teeth lodge into his neck. Thinking quickly, Beast Boy transforms into a kangaroo, kicking the tiger away with him.

Beast Boy transforms into himself, holding his bleeding neck before feeling a large hand gripping his leg. Eyes widening in fear, the teen sees and feels the large ape sling him towards the forested area that the two had just left. At the last moment he becomes a giant tortoise and retreats into his shell, taking the impact of the tree that he knew was unavoidable.

"Give it up," Zookeeper said as he stood victorious, a small line of blood coming from his mouth. "I am superior! I have cataloged species on this planet that you have only dreamed of! There is nothing you can transform that I can't counter!"

Beast Boy became himself, lying on his stomach on the ground.

"You haven't won yet." The teen declares.

"You're right Garfield. This is just check." Zookeeper said. "This is checkmate!"

Beast Boy watches the purple man transform into a creature he had never even heard of. It appeared to be a large lion- larger than any lion Beast Boy has ever seen- with the large curved horns of a ram coming from its mane. The front legs of the beast appeared to be from a lion with large hawk-like claws for its front feet. The back of the creature was morphed somewhat of a bison with hooves kicking up grass and dirt behind it. Its tail swung behind it wildly before curling above the beast to reveal a snake's head at the tip.

"Okay," Beast Boy said as he stood up. "I've never even dreamt of something like that." The large purple beast seemed to mock him with a chuckling roar. "But living with this disease is more than taming animals and transforming into them… It's about taming the beast inside!"

Zookeeper, in his chimera form, watched as the green teenager transform into the werebeast, something Dr. Register had never seen or heard of before.

The two glared at one another, neither wanting to make a mistake as their first move. The snake-tail of Zookeeper hissed while Beast Boy just growled.

And then they took off for one another.

The chimera bowed its head in an attempt to ram his opponent back into the forest. He was thoroughly shocked when Beast Boy's hands gripped his horns and began to slow the chimera's speeds down to a stop. The two were locked once more, the werebeast holding onto the chimera's horns despite the spliced creature shaking his head viciously to get free. The snake-tipped tail bit into Beast Boy's left shoulder in a vain attempt to loosen the werebeast's grip.

This proved to backfire when Beast Boy spins, taking Zookeeper off of his feet, and slings the chimera further into the grasslands of the reserve. The large chimera tumbled and rolled, trying to stop its momentum. After a moment Zookeeper was able to come to a stop but only for a large fist to bury itself into the chin of the chimera, lifting it off of its front legs with one clean uppercut. In his daze, Zookeeper was able to swipe one of his front claws across Beast Boy's face, stopping what could have been a one-sided onslaught.

Or so he thought.

Coming down on all fours, the chimera looked around trying to find where the werebeast had gone. The green blur came from the left, a blow to the face, then from the right at the same blinding speeds and another powerful blow. This continues for nearly thirty seconds, Beast Boy clawing and marring the face of his purple opponent. The teen's mind was becoming more rabid, more ferocious with each passing blow until he could feel the very thing he had tried to lock away.

The beast that harmed Raven.

With a feral roar, Beast Boy was able to completely flip Zookeeper on his back and grabbed the snake-tipped tail. Despite debating with himself to do his next action, he began to pull with all his might. Beast Boy could feel the muscles stretching within the snake and heard the popping of the vertebrae as he pulled.

With one solid tug, the tail ripped off and Zookeeper let out an agonizing howl.

Beast Boy was forced to transform back into himself, the bloodlust growing far stronger than it was the last time he used his werebeast form.

"Give… Give it up. You may know more than I do, but I've been doing this far longer than anyone else. I'm the original Beast Boy and I always will be." Garfield stated as he watched the chimera transform back into Zookeeper.

"You monster! What have you done?!" Dr. Register shouted as the pain in his backside grew more and more.

"Don't worry. It'll grow back." Beast Boy said before the sound of guns cocking could be heard. "Uh-oh."

"We have sight of the two," a TYGER guard spoke into his earpiece. "Moving in to apprehend."

Dr. Register laughed. "Even after beating me, you'll still be locked inside of a cage!"

"Dude," Beast Boy said. "I'll never be locked in a cage again!"

With that declaration the teen transforms into a large tyrannosaurus-rex, roaring loudly over the seven TYGER guards present. The men stood frozen with no sure way on how to take something down this big.

They would soon find out that they couldn't.

The house looked almost as neat and clean as it always has, two nice cars parked in the driveway. Garfield sighed as he finally made the trek up the long driveway to the home, forgoing transforming for security purposes. It was better that he did not surprise the residents of the home just or else suffer the consequences.

Ringing the doorbell, the battered teen leaned against the door. The battle with Zookeeper took more out of him mentally than anything, the TYGER guards being the ones that physically bruised him once reinforcements arrived. That plus the flight to Midway City from Lamumba was quite the flight.

The door swung open and Rita Dayton née Farr was nearly startled when Beast Boy fell towards her.

"Garfield!" she exclaims, catching the teen. "Garfield, are you alright?"

Beast Boy just embraces her.

"I'm fine Mom."

He would probably never know how his birth parents died. He would probably never understand how a bite from a green monkey and then injecting himself with an imperfect cure could give him the abilities he had. And he was probably going to hate having to cut his tail off again. However, he knew one thing for sure now. This was normal. This was his normal. And no amount of research could ever cure him of it.

It may sucked being green, but it was awesome being Beast Boy.

Author's Notes: There you have it, the Beast Boy showcase chapter with a little Jericho background. This particular one-shot takes place during the final year of Jake's disappearance, meaning two years after Shattered Personas. The next showcase will be a smaller one showing the relationship between Bane and Batman and, for the moment, the one after that will probably be based on Kaldur's rise as Manta. Or one on Deathstroke's children (Jake, Rose, and Grant). Oh well, next chapter of Arkham Rising will be out Friday (Thursday depending on my schedule) which will be titled Purge. Hope you enjoyed this and if so, leave a nice little review or PM me for any questions, thoughts, or comments that you may have. Later.