The Teen Titans had dealt with dangerous people before.

Mercenaries.

Assassins.

People who hurt others because they were paid to.

Because they believed in something.

Because they had reasons.

Even Deathstroke had reasons.

Cold ones.

Complicated ones.

Terrible ones.

But reasons.

The girl standing across from them?

That was the problem.

Because she looked calm.

Too calm.

Hands folded behind her back. Expression relaxed. Like this was a conversation instead of a standoff.

Robin stepped forward first.

His eyes narrowed immediately.

“She fights like Slade.”

Nobody argued.

He was right.

Same patience.

Same precision.

Same terrifying ability to stay three moves ahead.

Only—

There was something missing.

Or maybe added.

Because where Slade fought like a soldier?

She fought like someone enjoying the game too much.

That realization hit the room all at once.

Raven felt it first.

The emotional undertone.

Not rage.

Not revenge.

Not desperation.

Excitement.

Beside her, Beast Boy stopped joking entirely.

Cyborg straightened.

Even Starfire looked uneasy.

Robin didn’t move.

“Slade trained you?”

A pause.

No answer.

The silence somehow made it worse.

Robin’s expression hardened.

Because if this was another apprentice—

Another version of that story—

They knew how it ended.

Then she smiled.

Small.

Calm.

Wrong.

And for the first time in a long time—

Robin thought this might be someone even Slade would have looked at twice.