CHAPTER
1
It was a pretty typical Thursday for the Teen Titans. Four of them were lounging in their living room at the top of Titans Tower, their team headquarters. Raven was rereading her favorite Pretty, Pretty Pegasus storybook for the fifteenth time. Beast Boy was counting his toes. Cyborg was polishing his metallic chest plate to keep it nice and shiny. And Starfire was cuddling with Silkie, her beloved mutant moth larva.
Suddenly, Robin jumped into the room, startling his teammates. He looked around dramatically.
“Titans! Can you feel it?!” he called out.
Cyborg cautiously took two steps away from Robin.
“No,” Cyborg said nervously. “And I don’t think I want to.”
Robin ignored that comment and said, “Well, I can. Something in the air is telling me today is SPECIAL!”
Beast Boy looked up from his toe-counting and asked, “Special how, yo?”
“Special as in something is going to happen that will take twice as long and twice as many pages for us to resolve as it usually does!” Robin said.
Starfire looked impressed. “The increased amount of time and pages sounds the amazing!” she said.
“That’s right, Star,” agreed Robin. “Because ever so often an event occurs that’s special—a special event, if you will—that propels us into an epic adventure!”
Raven glanced up from her book and said in a bored voice, “I’m kinda busy. When does this go down?”
“Any second now,” Robin promised. “Just wait for it!”
Seconds passed. Then minutes. As Robin patiently waited, the other Titans shrugged and went back to their tasks.
An hour later, the air conditioner in the corner of the living room gave out a sputtering cough and shut down.
“That’s it!” Robin cried out. “Did you hear that? The air conditioning broke down! Talk about special!”
“But did we not already experience the breaking of the conditioner of the air long ago?” asked Starfire.
“And that was not special at all,” said Raven. “In fact, it was a little boring.”
“I’m telling you, this… is… special!” Robin insisted. “From this broken air conditioner, we will set forth on our most exciting adventure to date! An extra-long story perhaps divided into two distinct parts! We’re talking two separate but linked adventures here, Titans. Who knows… perhaps forty pages for each adventure!”
Beast Boy wiped some sweat off his forehead and sank deeper into the couch. “I’m feelin’ pretty hot, yo,” he complained.
Robin nodded eagerly and said, “Feeling hot, excellent. Okay! Let’s see where our journey continues on our special two-part adventure!”
The Titans journeyed to the outdoor swimming pool at the base of Titans Tower. Robin, Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy had all changed into their swimsuits. They were now floating happily in the pool, splashing in the cool water. Cyborg was standing at the edge of the pool, smiling excitedly at his teammates.
“This does not feel like the special event yet,” said Starfire.
“Are you sure?” Robin asked. “Pools can be pretty special!”
“You want something special?” called out Cyborg as he jumped through the air, about to execute a perfect cannonball dive into the pool. “Caaanooonbaaall!!!!” he cried out.
Unfortunately, Cyborg’s heavy metal body sent him plummeting through the water. He crashed into the concrete floor of the pool and knocked a giant hole in the bottom. The Titans watched with dismay as the water instantly drained from the pool.
“Great job,” Raven said sarcastically.
“You ruined the pool, Cyborg!” Robin said, before pausing to add, “Wait, this could be special… maybe.”
Beast Boy climbed out of the pool and started to walk away.
“Bros, I’m still crazy hot,” he said. “I’ve got to cool off, and I know a special place to do it.”
“Did he say special?” Robin asked with excitement.