Jewel of Darkness

Jewel of Darkness is a Teen Titans story on Fanfiction.net by Eduard Kassel.

An Alternate Universe Fic, it diverges from canon when Raven is banished to Earth not as a teenager trained in her powers, but as a child who has only just come into her powers and has next to no control over them. Treated with disdain by humanity and forced to live on the streets, she eventually catches the interest of Slade, who takes her in and raises her as his daughter and apprentice. Years later, the newly formed Teen Titans find themselves facing the threat of the mysterious villainess known as Midnight...

Tropes used in Jewel of Darkness include:

• Achilles' Heel: Razor is very vulnerable to Cyborg's sonic attacks, due to her heightened sense of hearing.
• Affably Evil: Guerra is a pretty friendly person when he's not hired to fight you, and even then he's rather polite, complimenting people who he views as putting up a good fight.
  • Midnight, meanwhile, is debatably either this or Faux Affably Evil -- she can be cruel and vindictive, but at the same time can be quite polite and kind (and she's like this around her minions too, so it's not just an act).
• A House Divided: Midnight attempts to invoke this in the Titans near the end of the first story arc by playing on Robin's paranoia.
• All Your Base Are Belong to Us: The HIVE trio still briefly take control of Titans Tower in this universe. And in a later chapter, Midnight launches an attack on the tower as part of a three-pronged attack on the city.
  • Though we don't see it, Mad Mod somehow infiltrates the Tower in order to capture the Titans when they're off guard. Afterwards, Robin swears to upgrade the security with Batman's help.
• Alternate Continuity: Diverges from canon well in the Backstory, though so far the plot has followed a mostly similar path.
• An Arm and a Leg: One of Cyborg's arms is ripped off during the fight in Midnight's lair. Of course, he just rebuilds it by the arc epilogue, so this might be a subversion.
• Animal Motifs: Doctor Fate has a vision of the future at the beginning of the second arc, which begins with a cat and a bird fighting in the shadow of a tiger. Word of God has confirmed that they represent Terra, Midnight, and Slade, respectfully.
• Arch Enemy: Midnight has taken Slade's place in this universe as Robin's archenemy.
• A Storm Is Coming: Robin remarks something to this effect when he realizes Midnight is nearing the conclusion of her plans.
• Author Appeal: Raven is shown to admire the Japanese historical figure Hideyoshi Toyotomi. The author happens to be quite the fan of Japanese history and culture.
• Badass Abnormal: Guerra's mutation grants him strength well beyond that of a normal person, but that's all the power he has. And he puts it to good use -- at one point, he pulls an Atlas Pose while holding up the crumbling remains of a parking complex.
• Badass in Distress / Dude in Distress: At the climax of the first arc, Robin is captured by Midnight, who intends to torture him to insanity. When he gets free, despite the pain, he joins the other Titans in taking Midnight down.
• Badass Normal: Robin, of course.
  • Raven's bodyguard Donald, who appears to be completely human, but is willing and able to go toe-to-toe with Cyborg if necessary.
• Badass Spaniard: Guerra, again, of the Mexican variety.
• The Baroness: Midnight, so long as you substitute "leather" with "form fitting body armor". Hell, her Weapon of Choice even turns out to be a pair of whips!
• Batman Gambit: Midnight, after studying the Titans extensively, knows exactly how to manipulate them so she can capture Robin. Of course, this is followed by the Titans carrying out a rather literal one of these -- they figure Midnight is as afraid of Batman as every other villain, so during the fight in her lair, Beast Boy turns into a gorilla, puts on a copy cape and cowl, and attacks Midnight from the shadows with some spare batarangs Robin had. This works well enough to distract Midnight from the Titans real purpose of saving Robin.
• The Berserker: Starfire becomes one when she enters an Unstoppable Rage.
• Berserk Button: It is a very bad idea to threaten Starfire's home or friends.
  • Also, don't play mind games with Midnight. It'll end in a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown for you.
• Beware the Nice Ones: As per canon, Starfire repeatedly proves herself to not be someone you piss off.
• Big Bad Ensemble: One seems to be shaping up, as while Slade is the man behind Midnight and seems set to be The Heavy in the second arc, there's also the mysterious "Good Man" who leads the White Glove. Plus, Trigon is the Bigger Bad working to make his way down into this role.
• Blow You Away / Shock and Awe: Susano -- who claims to be descended from the storm god of the same name -- has these as his main abilities.
• Bond James Bond: Robin, as Red X, introduces himself to Midnight this way. She isn't impressed.
• Brick Joke: In one chapter, Jinx continually tries to enchant objects to provide herself with a means of flight, and after every failed attempt Beast Boy suggests she try a broom, only for her to turn it down every time (apparently, she hates cliches). At the end of the chapter, it's revealed she eventually gave up and just went with the broom, to Beast Boy's amusement.
  • This is even more of a brick joke, as in a previous chapter (the one where the T-Car is introduced), Cyborg bans her from the T-Car and tells her to go fly a broom instead.
• The Brute: Guerra is more intelligent than most, but he's still the heavy muscle hired to do Midnight's grunt work.
  • It also helps that he's even taller than Cyborg and built like a redwood tree.
  • Don't forget Mammoth, and arguably Susano, to an extent.
• But for Me It Was Tuesday: Inverted. Midnight remembers killing Cyborg's father, describing it as the only life she regrets taking, and a key moment in her life.
• Canon Foreigner: Every time someone from the DCAU shows up, seeing as Teen Titans was never officially (or unofficially, for that matter) a part of the DCAU. Also, all the Original Characters, technically.
• Cassandra Truth: A flashback shows that Amanda Waller was highly distrustful of Stephen Wilson (Slade's public persona), but her superiors wouldn't let her investigate him, because they viewed his business as a more trustful ally then the Justice League.
• Chekhov's Gunman: A very mild example -- during Guerra's raid on the prison to free Plasmus, it's offhandedly mentioned that he freed Mumbo as well as part of the riot. A few chapters later, Mumbo shows up and releases the Eldritch Abomination that causes trouble for the rest of the chapter.
• The Chessmaster: The leader of the White Glove conspiracy is a literal one, as we at one point see him playing with Vandal Savage, who reminds him to be careful, because people aren't as predictable as a chess game.
  • Meanwhile, in a flashback of Beast Boy's, it's shown that Mento has a great distaste for people like this.
• Cold-Blooded Torture: Midnight captures Robin and sticks him in a "pain matrix" in order to psychologically break him beyond even Batman's ability to heal him.
• Collapsing Lair: After Midnight is defeated at the end of the first story arc, Slade rescues her and triggers the lair's Self-Destruct Mechanism to cover their escape. Beast Boy lampshades it as it happens.
  • This gets a Call Back in the first chapter of the second arc, when the mine they're fighting in starts to collapse from Terra's power overload, and Beast Boy complains about them not having even beaten her yet (of course, Midnight's quick to point out that it's not her doing).
• Combined Energy Attack: The Titans finish Midnight off in their climatic fight by hitting her with a combination of all their ranged attacks (Beast Boy complains about not being in on it).
• Commuting on a Bus: Guerra has a tendency to come and go from the story whenever it's relevant. Justified by being a mercenary, and therefore is only around when he's paid to be.
• The Conspiracy: The White Glove group that Jinx is working for, who have also managed to infiltrate the Justice League.
  • This group is so far-reaching that its leader can walk in and out of the Watchtower whenever he wants.
  • In the same chapter Jinx's conspiracy plot is introduced, we also get Beast Boy who might-or-might-not-have received a coded message in his mail. After decodeing the letter, he eats it, so it is not entirely clear.
• Cool Shades: Jinx wears a pair to hide the fact that she only has one eye.
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: Slade, to an extent. His public identity is head of one of America's chief weapons manufacturers, which -- according to Robin -- Batman suspects of selling to any faction or tyrant for the right price. Considering what we know of Slade, this trope is the least of what he's capable of.
  • And since Raven is appointed head of the Jump City branch of the company (and seems to be running it just the way Slade would), this trope applies to her too.
• Crazy Prepared: After the Red X incident, Cyborg calls Robin out on having a way to take down each of the Titans, comparing it to how Batman supposedly has ways to take down every known hero.
• Curb Stomp Battle: Midnight vs the Titans, every time they fight, is always in her favor, including the climatic one in her lair, until Starfire's Berserk Button is pushed, at which point Midnight ends up on the receiving end.
• Daddy's Little Villain: Raven's attitude towards Slade.
• Dark and Troubled Past: We get a glimpse of Jinx's in the "Fear" chapter; apparently, she fell in with a gang that tried to sell her talents to some villain group, and when it failed the gang leader cut her eye out for messing up his reputation.
• Dark Fic: Not quite yet, but well on its way to becoming one.
• Day in the Life: There's a brief chapter that shows each of the Titans (and Raven) in their day-to-day lives.
• Didn't See That Coming / Spanner in the Works: Midnight did not see Ai's betrayal coming, and it leads to the failure of her plans.
• The Dragon: Raven/Midnight to Slade.
  • And Guerra, being a mercenary, is an on-and-off Dragon for Midnight.
  • She arguably has a straighter Dragon in her robot double, Ai.
• Driven to Suicide: It's implied in her nightmare, and confirmed later on, that Jinx attempted to kill herself when she lost her eye, only for someone to talk her down and give her a new lease on life.
• Eldritch Abomination: The creature from the "Fear" chapter; it's a tentacled monstrosity from another dimension with too many eyes and mouths all over its body.
• Epic Fail: Guerra says this word for word after Cyborg and Robin mess up their "Sonic Boom" attack on him.
• Even Evil Has Standards: When Slade first comes across the young Raven, she's about to be raped by a homeless drunk, and Slade decides to kill him, as even he finds that disgusting. Not that it matters, since Raven's powers instinctively protect her and kill the man, but it's the thought that counts.
• Evil Counterpart: Midnight is this to both Robin (apprentice to a Badass Normal) and Jinx (Dark Magical Girl)
  • Midnight's counterpart status to Robin is strengthened when she brings up their parallels (male/female, light/dark, human/Metahuman)
    • And her counterpart status to Jinx is increased when she also loses an eye.
• Evil Gloating: Midnight's quite fond of it.
• Eye Scream: Jinx only has one eye, for some reason, the other being covered by an adhesive patch.
  • And Razor, Raven's "pet" Metahuman, has no eyes at all (they're sealed over by the same metal covering the rest of her body).
  • Assuming that Jinx's dream in the Your Worst Nightmare chapter is based on her actual life, her eye was cut out by a gang leader in fury after he failed to sell her to a villain organization.
  • Raven's left eye is destroyed by the Titans' finishing blow and is apparently so badly damage that even if it regenerates, it'll be useless.
  • Ai's eyes explode in demonic energy when Slade runs her through with his sword.
• Fantastic Racism: There's a lot of hate directed towards Metahumans and other nonhumans; in particular, there's the Human Defense League, which practically worships the supposedly-dead Lex Luthor and casually murders both Metas and the regular humans who support them.
  • According to one of the World Building chapters, the levels of racism-inspired violence is leading the United States to the brink of anarchy.
  • It goes both ways, as one chapter shows that there are Meta-supremacist groups that are willing to stoop to the HDL's level to "protect" Metas from Normals.
• Faux Affably Evil: Mad Mod, oh so much.
• Foreshadowing: Jinx meantions in an early episode that it's a bad idea to mix technology and magic...
• For Want of a Nail / In Spite of a Nail: Raven's presence on the other side of the law, and acting as the Titans' main antagonist in Slade's place, causes some major differences to the plot, but so far things seem to be progressing about the same as in canon.
• Friendly Enemy: Averted. Raven and Cyborg get along fairly well in civilian life, but he has no idea that she's Midnight, and she's just taking advantage of the friendship to try and get inside information on the Titans.
  • By the conclusion of the first arc, though, she's decided that she's enjoyed his company enough that she might spare his life.
• Flying Broomstick: Jinx eventually settles on one of these as her method of transport, after enchanting literally everything else and having it blow up her face.
• Gadgeteer Genius: Cyborg, naturally. And Midnight, of the Evil Genius variety.
• Green-Eyed Monster: This is setting up to be a major source of conflict between Mindnight and Terra.
• Go-Karting with Bowser: Raven and Cyborg's car races; of course, as Friendly Enemy above shows, only one side is aware of it.
• Government Conspiracy: Mad Mod was originally the head of the British Institute for the Prevention of Metahuman Crisis, a secret agency dedicated to "rehabilitating" Meta- and Super-criminals in order to prevent them from threatening British society. Then his peers found out he was planning on doing the same to key members of the government in order to take over the country, forcing him to go on the run.
• Hannibal Lecture: Midnight gives a brief one to Robin that basically boils down to how classic-style heroes are really just doing good deeds for their own self-fulfillment, and how Robin is a failure for trying to be like them and not like Batman.
• Heel Face Turn: Jinx had one at some point prior to the series, allowing her to take Raven's place as the fifth Titan.
• Heroic BSOD: Cyborg completely freezes up when he realizes that Midnight is the same girl who killed his father when they were both children.
• Info Dump: Goes hand in hand with the World Building chapters.
• I Know You Know I Know: Raven uses this as part of the Paranoia Gambit mentioned below -- she knows he won't believe her, but she also knows that he'll know that she knows that, and will therefore think she's invoking Cassandra Truth to cover her trail.
  • Cyborg also brings this trope up when the Titans are considering walking into what appears to be a trap; Beast Boy doesn't seem to quite get it.
• I Lied: After Midnight's defeat, Slade tricks Ai into thinking he'll let her serve him, then runs her through; this is his response to her final protest.
• It's Personal: Surprisingly averted between Cyborg and Midnight; he refuses to get his feelings over her killing his father involved in their fight, and is mad at Robin for making things personal.
  • Interestingly, Midnight is the one who insists on making her rivalry with Robin personal, since she views them as Not So Different, and wants to prove she's better than him.
• Just Between You and Me: Midnight explains to Robin exactly what she's been planning throughout the first story arc, but she makes sure he's completely at her mercy when she does so.
• Karma Houdini: Unlike canon, Mad Mod isn't captured by the Titans when they escape his "school", instead escaping and promising to return.
• Lampshade Hanging: Jinx gets what may be one of the funniest examples of lampshade hanging ever when, after a string of failed attempts to find of method of flight, she utters this gem:

"How hard can it be to defy the laws of physics? Everybody does it."

• • While explaining to Ai how she intends to turn the Titans against each other, Midnight points out how heroes normally use the same tactic against villains.
  • Beast Boy lampshades the Collapsing Lair trope when Midnight's lair begins to self-destruct:

"And there's the post big fight self destruct."

• • Same chapter, Robin explains why he thinks Midnight survived:

"No body, no death, in our line of work."

• • When Terra expresses surprise that Jump City has a diamond mine, Cyborg states that the city has a lot of stuff, and that he sometimes still gets surprised. This most likely is in reference to the fact that the city's layout on the show often seemed to change depending on the needs of each episode.
• Lethal Chef: Starfire, as per canon. But so is Jinx, as shown in the Day in the Life chapter. Incidentally, they're also the only ones who enjoy each other's cooking.
• Literally Shattered Lives: A variant occurs when Slade kills Ai for her betrayal; after he stabs her with Excalibur, its holy power exorcises Trigon's essence, which causes Ai to blow apart, leaving only her head.
• Lzherusskie: In-universe: part of Raven's public identity is that she's an orphan from "one of the former communist states" that Slade adopted.
• Magic Versus Science: Cyborg and Jinx have a very strong rivalry based on this. For example, he views science as being more reliable, while she views magic as more useful.
• The Man Behind the Man: Slade is this to Midnight during the first arc -- the Titans don't even realize Midnight is working for someone else until their last confrontation and then briefly meet him when she's defeated.
• Masked Luchador: Guerra used to be one, still dresses as one, and seems to still have a luchador's code of honor.
• Mega Corp: The ARES Group, Slade's weapons manufacturer company, that he and Raven run under their public identities.
• The Messiah: Superman's status as the world's savior has apparently reached the point where people are actually building religions around him.
• Mid-Season Upgrade: At the beginning of the second arc, Midnight gets a new set of armor made from Ai's remains, which seem naturally capable of reflecting Jinx's hex magic.
  • After their encounter with Mad Mod, Jinx decides to upgrade her magic skills, as she's starting to see herself as The Load. This apparently includes a new costume.
• Mind Rape: How Mad Mod's "reeducation" skills are presented in-universe, especially when he's probing Jinx's mind for information on the White Glove.
• The Mole: Jinx is spying on the Titans for someone, though at this point it's not clear who (except the group is called "the White Glove"). And she's showing signs of Becoming the Mask.
  • Later, she meets with another Mole, this one having infiltrated the Justice League.
• Mood Whiplash: The chapter entitled "Fear" at first looks like a Breather Episode, with a very humorous series of attempts by Jinx to provide herself with a means of flight. Then an Eldritch Abomination shows up and traps the Titans in their worst nightmares, some of which (particularly Jinx's) are quite dark. Then there's a confrontation with Midnight that ends on an ominous note... and then the above-mentioned Brick Joke kicks in, ending the chapter on a more lighthearted note.
• Mook Promotion: Ai started out as one of Midnight's robot duplicates, but developed sentience and was promoted to somewhere between Mook Lieutenant and The Dragon.
• My Greatest Failure: Apparently, the Martian Manhunter feels this way towards Razor; no details have been given yet, but it seems he was involved in whatever incident reduced her to a mindless beast.
  • Robin still blames himself for what happened to Annie (the Clayface-created girl from Batman: The Animated Series), and he's dedicated himself to making sure something like that never happens again.
• My Name Is Inigo Montoya: Cyborg introduces himself this way to Midnight just before the climatic fight in her lair, using his real name.
• Mythology Gag: When the Titans first meet Guerra, he and Beast Boy get into an argument over the necessity of needing a secret identity when you don't look human. During this argument, Cyborg brings up how Beast Boy wore a mask when he first met the Titans, as shown in the canonical show's origin episode.
  • In the "Fear" chapter, after Mumbo gets knocked aside by the Eldritch Abomination he summoned, he grouses that the next assistant that he gets will be a rabbit. In one episode of canon, he changed Raven into a rabbit and forced her to be his assistant.
    • In the same chapter, the thing that Beast Boy is changed into in his nightmare is clearly based on the Beast he was changed into in the episode "The Beast Within".
    • Beast Boy also compares said Eldritch Abomination to the monster from the fictional movie "Wicked Scary", which featured in the canonical episode "Fear Itself".
  • In the chapter where Guerra first shows up, Midnight realizes that she was better off hiring him than Cinderblock; this is a reference to how Guerra is fulfilling Cinderblock's role on the show.
  • At one point, Beast Boy suggests they all dress up in Robin's costume. The B-plot in one episode was the Titans dressing up as Robin while he was away training.
  • And in a myth gag for the greater DCU, Midnight's ultimate plan is codenamed Operation "Blackfire" -- not after Starfire's sister, but Deacon Joseph Blackfire, the one-time Big Bad of a Batman miniseries from the late 80s.
  • The breifcase Robin shows Jinx is likely the same McGuffin fought over in the TV episode Revved Up.
  • Robin is surprised at how fast Starfire befriends Terra, remembering that it took a lot longer for her to warm up to the other Titans. This implies that the team met in a similar fashion as in the canonical origin episode.
• Never Found the Body: When Midnight's body isn't recovered from her destroyed lair, Robin brings up how this trope works in their line of work. Of course, he knows she's not dead, since he and the others watched Slade carry her off.
• Never My Fault: At first, Robin blames Midnight for him having to stoop so low during the Red X incident. However, he eventually admits that it was his own fault.
• NGO Superpower: As Slade points out, the Justice League is one -- if any other private organization (or government for that matter) put a BFG in orbit, they'd be subject to immediate sanction by the U.N., but not the League.
• No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Midnight delivers one to Jinx during the fight in her lair, including breaking her jaw. And then she ends up on the receiving end of one from Unstoppable Rage-mode Starfire.
• Noodle Incident: During Jinx's repeated attempts at enchanting a means of flight, she tries a toboggan. We then cut to her, Beast Boy and Starfire running from an enchanted bed; she and Beast Boy argue over whose fault it is, and Beast Boy says that at least it didn't explode like the toboggan did.
  • Something happened between Jinx and Beast Boy that he refers to only as "the plushie incident".
  • For a more serious example, there's Razor's mysterious past -- all we know for certain is that the Brain apparently experimented on her, and that the Martian Manhunter's attempts to help her is somehow connected to her lack of sentience.
• Won't Work On Me: Raven's shadow magic neutralizes Jinx's hex magic, while the metal composing Razor's body deflects it (though the former only works if she focuses it).
  • These two also both get an example during the lair fight; Starfire head butts Razor only for it to do more damage to her than Razor, while Midnight effortlessly blocks a strike from Beast Boy (in the form of a grizzly bear) with one arm.
  • Guerra has a tendency to No Sell attacks, due to his body mass and super strength.
  • The new armor Midnight gets at the beginning of the second arc is capable of neutralizing Jinx's hex attacks without her channeling her own magic into it.
• Not So Different: Played with. Midnight says she and Robin are similar in that they're both apprentices to "great men", but then says they're different because while Robin rebelled against some of Batman's darker teachings, Midnight embraced Slade's fully.
  • Robin realizes that despite his attempts to be different from Batman's stricter method of heroism, he's really still very much like him.
• Oh Crap: Robin's literal reaction when he realizes Midnight's returned at the beginning of the second arc.
• One-Man Army: Guerra, Susano, Mammoth, Starfire, and arguably Midnight and the other Titans.
• OOC Is Serious Business: At the end of the first story arc, Beast Boy, of all people, rallies the Titans together to save Robin from Midnight on their own, without having to ask the Justice League for help. Afterwards, he wonders if he can still get away with being the Comic Relief after the display of seriousness.
  • There's also Starfire when she gets mad (especially during the big fight in Midnight's lair) -- when this normally happy-go-lucky girl gets pissed at you, run.
• Operation Blank: Midnight's final plan for the first story arc (to capture Robin and torture him into insanity) is codenamed Operation Blackfire (see Mythology Gag above).
• Original Characters: Razor (Raven's "pet" Metahuman), Guerra (a Meta mercenary working for Midnight), Susano (a top student at the HIVE).
  • There's also Ai, Midnight's robot duplicate and assistant.
• Paranoia Gambit: Midnight suggests to Robin that one of his teammates is a traitor, in order to mess with his head. One of the Titans is a spy, but she doesn't know that.
• Pet the Dog: Before deciding to take her on as an apprentice, Slade takes Raven in because she reminds him of his daughter.
  • There's also the nearly-literal example of Raven's relationship with her pet Metahuman Razor.
• Physical God: Susano, who claims to be descended from the actual Japanese storm god.
• Platonic Life Partners: Jinx and Beast Boy (thought there are plenty of Ship Tease moments between the two).
• Psycho for Hire: Averted with Guerra; he enjoys a good fight, but is really Only in It For the Money.
• Public Domain Artifact: It's strongly implied that Slade's sword is actually Excalibur.
• Punch Clock Villain: Guerra only fights the Titans because Midnight pays him to. As soon as their contract expires, he loses all interest in them (except Cyborg)
• Punny Name: Ai, which is obviously AI pronounced as a single word.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Cyborg and Jinx each give one to Robin after the Red X incident, though Jinx's is a bit more poignant, as she's calling Robin for his hypocrisy -- he doesn't trust Jinx because she isn't completely forthcoming with her past, and then he goes and lies to and uses the Titans.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: As per canon, Raven's eyes turn red whenever her demon side takes over. Likewise with Ai.
  • Starfire's eyes (and starbolts) turn red when she enters an Unstoppable Rage.
• Religious and Mythological Theme Naming: The American government has a secret program codenamed "Project Prometheus", whose goal is (like CADMUS before it) to level the playing ground between the government and the Justice League (and any other similarly powerful threats).
• Revenge Before Reason: Subverted, for the time being -- as of the beginning of the second arc, Midnight wants revenge on the Titans (especially Starfire) for her defeat at the end of the first arc, but is trying to be smart about it.
• Ridiculously Human Robot: Ai is such a perfect duplicate of Midnight that she not only gains sentience, but also has her own demon half, though Raven doesn't know about that. However, it's implied Raven used magic to create her, so that might explain it.
• The Rival: Slade takes an interest in Terra not just because of her power, but because he wants to give Raven a rival, so that she'll push herself harder. Wintergreen is quick to point out what a bad idea this is.
• Robot Me: Like Slade, Midnight creates duplicates of herself, including one that develops self-awareness (that would be Ai).
• Sanity Slippage: Midnight starts to suffer from a mild case of this at the climax of the first arc, due to a combination of stress, nightmare/vision-induced insomnia, and Ai's prodding.
• Sarcastic Clapping: After Cyborg gives Midnight a brief "The Reason You Suck" Speech just prior to the big fight, she replies with a slow, mocking clap and a promise to put his heartfelt speech on the Internet in memoriam. The mock clapping Slade gives the Titans when they beat her puts her clapping to shame.
  • Mad Mod does this as well in his "We Will Meet Again" message to Robin.
• Self-Made Orphan: It seems Terra accidentally killed her family when her powers emerged, in response to her stepfather's abuse.
• She Is Not My Girlfriend: Beast Boy's reaction when Robotman refers to Jinx as his girlfriend.
• Shout-Out: In one chapter, while drowning his sorrows (during his Ten-Minute Retirement) at a rib joint, Cyborg asks -- in a very Jack Sparrow manner -- "why are the ribs always gone?"
  • At one point, the Titans attend a costume party (for League members and affiliates) dressed as the gang from Scooby Doo.
  • During a flashback to one of Raven and Slade's training scenes, he teaches her to read body language so as to never be deceived by your opponent. The whole thing is very similar to a scene between Arya and Syrio in Game of Thrones^[1].
  • See My Name Is Inigo Montoya above. All Cyborg was missing from that was "Hello" and "Prepare to Die" (and Midnight lampshaded it asking if that's what he was going to say next).
    • During the following fight, when Starfire becomes The Berserker, Midnight compares her to the Hulk.
  • When the T-Car is stolen in its premiere chapter, Beast Boy asks Cyborg "Dude, where's your car?"
  • During one of the World Building chapters, we see the President talking with his advisors. One of the things they discuss is the case of a Metahuman girl with spider-like abilities, who is the daughter of a Congressman. The Congressman's name? Parker.
  • There are several references to Grant Morrison's run on Batman.
  • The title of the chapter where Mad Mod first appears contains a reference to A Clockwork Orange, which was the Star-Making Role for Mod's voice actor Malcolm McDowell.
• Skeletons in the Coat Closet: Following Ai's betrayal, and subsequent execution by a vengeful Slade, Midnight takes to wearing her remnants as armor.

"It used to be a backstabbing friend of mine. I think it's put to better use here," Midnight remarked, extinguishing the aura and stepping back to turn and face both Titans.
"You mean it used to belong to a friend of yours?" Jinx asked.
"No," Midnight shook her head, smiling.

• The Starscream: Ai, as it turns out, is working for Trigon, and has been plotting behind Midnight's back for awhile. This finally culminates in her leading the Titans to her lair, and cutting off any chance of backup.
• Stealth Pun: Beast Boy turns into a bat just before dressing up as Batman to trick Midnight.
• Storming the Castle: The Titans attacking Midnight's lair at the end of the Jump City Arc.
• Superman Stays Out of Gotham: This trope is deliberately invoked by the Titans, who absolutely refuse to ever call the Justice League for help, as they figure doing so would mean they can't take care of themselves and need the big time heroes to take care of them. The only times they consider asking for help is when the HIVE trio seemingly kill Robin and take control of the Tower, and when Midnight kidnaps Robin. The first time, Robin comes back and regroups them, and the second time, Beast Boy rallies them together (see OOC Is Serious Business above).
  • After the latter example, Robotman calls Beast Boy out on this being a stupid attitude to have for a superhero.
• Super-Powered Evil Side: Well, more like Superpowered Eviler Side. It seems that without having been trained to control her emotions, Raven has less control over her demon half, and it occasionally manages to take over, if only for a few moments at a time.
• Sword of Damocles: The original story is used in one of Slade's lessons to Raven.
• Teen Genius: Raven's public identity is viewed as one -- and she is, to the point that she builds a robot (in her own image, no less) that develops from A.I. to an actual living being.
• Those Two Guys: Jinx and Beast Boy pretty much serve this purpose for the team, as he seems to spend more time with her than with Cyborg, and they tend to be the odd ones out during the more serious moments. That being said, being core members of the team does mean they get more focus than most TTGs.
• Time Skip: The story starts out when Raven is a little girl. After Slade adopts her, it skips ahead several years to when she's a teenager (essentially, the "present" of the show).
  • There's a small skip of a few months between the first and second arcs, meant to simulate the break between seasons.
• The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Midnight actually tells the Titans to their faces that she won't allow anyone to destroy them unless it's by her design.
  • Subverted by Slade when Mad Mod captures the Titans; he doesn't seem overly concerned, and states that it doesn't affect his plans either way.
• Torpedo Tits: Ai has a pair of guns hidden under her breastplate; the first time she uses them, she cracks a dirty joke about it.
• Traumatic Haircut: Jinx's "hair horns" get cut off during the fight in Midnight's lair.
• Ultimate Universe: In addition to being set in an alternate TT universe that is shoehorned into a Darker and Edgier DCAU, it also appears to be taking elements from the comic 'verse (such as certain references to Slade's past and Black Adam's rule over Khandaq).
  • Whereas the canon Robin is heavily implied to be Dick Grayson, this one is specifically shown to be Tim Drake. This seems to be so the author could give him a specific reason for leaving Gotham behind (see My Greatest Failure).
• Undying Loyalty: Wintergreen, Slade's manservant, has a brief Day in The Limelight chapter where it's made clear that his loyalty will always remain with his master, and that this now also extends to Raven by proxy.
• Unspoken Plan Guarantee: The Titans' above-mentioned Batman Gambit; Jinx suggests to the others that she has a plan, just as the scene ends. Naturally, things work out for them.
• Villain Exit Stage Left: Slade grabbing Midnight and ferreting her to safety after her defeat at the end of the first arc.
  • Mad Mod escaping capture when the Titans break free of his "school".
• Villains Out Shopping: Apparently, when Raven isn't busy running ARES or plotting against the Titans, she enjoys car racing.
• Villain Protagonist: Raven/Midnight, to the point that she's serving as the Titans' first Big Bad -- hell, she's even taking Slade's place as Robin's obsession.
• Visionary Villain: Unlike canon, where his motives were never made entirely clear, this story makes Slade into one. As he lectures to Raven at one point, he firmly believes that mounting tensions between the Justice League, the villain organizations, and the governments of the world are going to lead to a war that will devastate the world, and that the only true victors will be those who have managed to gather enough influence to stay independent of the power struggle.
• Villain Cred: Midnight's whole motivation in the first arc for destroying the Titans is to prove herself as a true villain, and establish a reputation for herself.
• Villain with Good Publicity: Slade and Raven's public identities are as the head and heir of a respectable business (or at least, one that can't be proven as doing anything illegal).
• We Will Meet Again: Slade subtly promises this to the Titans on behalf of himself and Midnight at the end of the Jump City Arc.
  • When Mad Mod escapes from the Titans in his first appearance, he leaves behind a message for Robin, mocking him and promising to return.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Jinx actually says this word-for-word -- twice -- in the "Fear" chapter. First, in Beast Boy's nightmare, to Dream!Mento, who was about to kill Beast Boy. Then, to Robin after he wakes from his nightmare and nearly strangles her.
  • And then of course there's everyone's reactions to the whole Red X situation.
• Whip It Good: Midnight Dual Wields a pair of metal whips that she channels her power through. They're alluded to a couple of times during the story, but are only actually used during the fight in her lair until Jinx blows them up.
  • Beast Boy actually lampshades what an unusual weapon choice this is.

"Whips?! Who uses whips?!"

• Wicked Cultured: Midnight takes the time, before initiating her master plan, to toast it with her minions.
  • In a flashback, Raven is shown attending a production of "Faust" and reading "The Count of Monte Cristo" while waiting for it to start.
• World Building: Several chapters focus on what's happening outside of Jump City, giving the readers an idea of what this universe is like.
• World War III: Slade feels that the increasing tension between the world governments, the Justice League, and the various villain factions will inevitably lead to this.
• Worthy Opponent: Apparently, Guerra views Cyborg as one.
• Xanatos Speed Chess: Midnight has proven to be capable of quickly adapting to situations. When she was first setting up in Jump, she took advantage of Thunder and Lightning's presence to further test the Titans, and later -- while preparing for her master plan -- she quickly deduces Red X's true identity and turns the trap around on Robin.
  • She then ends that second situation with a classic Batman Gambit: she tells Robin that one of the Titans is a traitor, knowing that Robin will either a) waste his time and energy searching for a nonexistent spy, leaving him vulnerable to her, or b) alienate the other Titans, thus dissolving the team and removing them as a threat.
• You Killed My Father: Subverted. At first it seems like Cyborg is going to have this attitude towards Midnight, but ultimately decides it's not what his father would have wanted.
• You're Insane!: Robin says this to Midnight when she unveils the Chronoton Detonator.
• Your Worst Nightmare: In one chapter, an Eldritch Abomination traps the Titans in their worst fears: Starfire and Jinx relieve their Dark And Troubled Pasts; Cyborg is transformed into a killing machine; Beast Boy transforms into a mindless beast; and Robin's fear isn't revealed but is bad enough that when he's woken up he nearly instinctively kills Jinx.

1. ↑ and by extension, A Song of Ice and Fire