Robin gripped the edge of the kitchen counter, his breathing short and uneven. He kept his head down, the few pieces of his jet-black mohawk just barely brushing his eye lashes. The sudden beeping of the coffee machine startled the villain, making him tense. He tried to shake it off as he reached for the pot and poured the bitter liquid into his mug, but his pale hands shook as he brought the steaming cup to his lips.

Today was supposed to be a good day. He had the perfect heist planned for this afternoon. A fresh load of military weapons was being moved from Jump City to a military base up in Oregon. They only need to commandeer one truck load in order to have enough weapons to sell on the black market to set them up for life. And boy did they need a win right now.

The Tyrants have had a year of constant failures. They'd make off with a few bucks every now and then, but nothing to brag about by any means. Every time the martial artist leads his team in a major raid or heist, the infuriating Brotherhood of Justice would stop them in their tracks. This wasn't always the case. The Teen Tyrants were once the most feared group of villains in, arguably, the world. They used to rule Jump City. The citizens use to cower in their wake. Now? They were a laughing stock. A fact Robin only wished he could forget.

It was during his time as leader that the Tyrants began to hit their unlucky streak. Though he loathed losing, he would never regret the actions he made leading up to the change of leadership. Well, maybe he'd change some of the details, but ultimately, he was glad that demon was out of their lives.

But even that plan has failed.

The sound of the common room doors filled the room. A tired Tempest followed by a grumpy Arsenal sauntered on in. Tempest raised the hook of his left hand over his mouth in a yawn. Neither looked very pleased to have their slumber interrupted by their frantic leader. Both young men went straight for the couch that sat in the left side of the room, in front of the giant television screen. Arsenal plopped down on the end of the couch and leaned his head against the arm, his long red hair falling in his face. To his right, Tempest allowed his lean body to be swallowed up by the plush, back cushion.

Robin eyed the pair cautiously while sipping his bitter black coffee. He heard the doors swoosh open again, and his eyes traveled over to a floating Blackfire. Her long black hair was combed nicely, but she still wore one of his t-shirts and a pair of plain black underwear. This told him she only fixed her hair before joining them. He tried to make eye contact with her, but she purposely avoided his gaze. He knew she wasn't thrilled by the news of their old teammate and greatest enemy being on the loose, but what he couldn't decide was why she was taking out her anger on him. Oh well, he could handle the cold shoulder.

Setting down his mug, still dressed in boxers and a wife-beater, he approached his awaiting team. It was Tempest who spoke up first.

"So, she's really coming here?"

Robin nodded his head grimly. "We all know where her priorities lie. In fact, I think we can all count ourselves lucky she didn't pay us a visit last night."

"Probably shagging it up with her boy-toy first." Muttered Arsenal. The arrow-master looked half asleep. Over to his right, Tempest, the banished prince of Atlantis, gave a nod of approval, while and farther down on the other end was Blackfire. Her long mid-night hair facing them as she kept her gaze fixed on the glass walls that outlined the common room.

"Well we know she's the one that broke that mutt out, so it's not a wild guess." Tempest agreed.

Their team leader, Robin, lifted his hand to silence them. "It doesn't matter what she's doing now. All we can do is assume she's out for revenge after what we did."

"You mean, what we had to do." Arsenal corrected. "She's the one that was going to betray us. She's just pissed we beat her to it." The ginger smirked at his own words. Clearly, still impressed with himself after the events of last year.

"Whatever," Robin rolled his eyes. "Point is, she's coming back and I think our best option is to hide out with our new friends over in Steel City."

Immediately there were shouts of protest coming from the group.

"We can't run!" Arsenal bellowed, clenching his fists.

"We whooped her ass once, what makes you think we can't do it again?" Tempest reasoned.

"We were lucky last time. I know she won't make the same mistake twice, which means a fight a death sentence." Robin argued, his temper rising.

"No." All the boys looked over to Blackfire in surprise. She was looking pointedly at Robin, her fiery-violet gaze hard and emotional. "Running won't save us, Robin. She'll still be out there, and she's not going to rest until our heads are mounted on her wall. Particularly yours."

The leader of the group let his masked gaze fall to the floor. His hands twitching with fear again. Only Blackfire seemed to notice.

"Your fear is blinding you from the reality of the situation. Raven will never stop – "

"Don't say her name!" Robin snapped, his lips turned back in a snarl and fists clenched. The other two boys sitting nearby jumped at the sudden outburst, worried that he was going to lash out at his "current" girlfriend. The alien narrowed her eyes at her boyfriend, but continued on.

"She will never stop, not until we're all dead or slaves. The only way to beat her," The female warrior looked around the room, meeting each male's eyes. "is to destroy her."

"Destroy her?" Arsenal laughed. "You can't kill her!"

"And why not?" Blackfire glared at her arrogant teammate.

He shrunk under her temper, "Because she's…. well she…um…Garth help me out." He nudged Tempest in the side.

"Oh um…" Garth tried to help, but was just as lost as his friend.

"Exactly." Blackfire said while crossing her arms over her chest. "We killed those demons in her army last year. Why not use the same method to kill her?"

"It won't work." Robin spoke again.

"And what makes you so sure?" Blackfire hissed, her patience running thin.

"Because, she's Raven! Nothing is ever that easy when she's involved."

Blackfire narrowed her eyes, her tongue dripping with venom, "That's not what I heard."

The two villains shared a hard stare, as something unspoken passed between them.

"We are leaving. Tonight." Robin ordered through his teeth and stormed out of the common room, leaving the others to their grievances.


The wind blew gently through the nearby trees, causing the old oak leaves to rustle and shake. As the wind blew, it traveled out to the clearing and carefully waved the heavy red cloak that hung from the thin body of a woman, who hovered several inches above the ground. Her eyes were closed and her face was covered by hood of her cloak. Peaking from her hood's shadow were the silky pink strands of her bangs. Her dove-gray skin glowing in the morning sunlight. She sucked in a deep breath, before slowing exhaling through her dainty nose.

She remained in a lotus position as the bushes to her left began to stir and the lean body of a panther passed through the undergrowth, the throat of a white-tail deer in tucked firmly in its jaws. It dragged the carcass over to the floating woman at the center of the clearing, and laid the mutilated body down in front of her. The panther released its grip on the deer and with a half-step back, crouched down beside the body. The panther's limbs began to shift and mutate, until the body of a young man took its place. He sat down like a dog and looked up expectantly.

She took one last breath, before her body gently descended to the ground, landing on her feet, The bottom of her cloak bellowing out from behind her. Her eyes opened, revealing a matching pair of crimson orbs That regarded the carcass laying at her feet with mild interest, before turning her attention to the animal-man staring at her.

"Good catch, my pet." She praised, before turning to walk back towards their cave, her hips swaying with each step. He would have enjoyed the view better if it weren't for that damned cloak. Heh shifted again, this time into a lion, and dragged the deer by its throat into the cave. He dragged it past the threshold, then looked to his mate for instructions as too where to put his prize. He was surprised when his gaze was met with an annoyed scowl from his mate.

"Don't bring it in here! Take it back outside and skin it!" She ordered while pointing toward the opening of their shelter. The beast growled in frustration, but did as he was told. Once he was an appropriate distance away from the rock structure, he began using his teeth and claws to tear off the flesh, nibbling at some of the stray straps of meat, being sure to leave the rear half untouched. Hot blood oozed out of the carcass, staining the green grass red as the red sticky substance dripped from the lion's teeth and muzzle. Birds began to gather around his kill, to which he quickly shooed them off with a swipe of his large paws. Once he was satisfied with his work, he dragged the freshly skinned body back to the cave. As he brought the deer inside, he felt the warmth of a newly started fire kiss his emerald fur, letting him know where to leave their meal for the evening. He dropped the carcass beside the flames, then approached his mate who was sitting on her make-shift bed, using her magic to write on the stone walls. The lion nudged his head against her hip, purring in an attempt to obtain her attention.

"Just a moment, Garfield." She brushed him off as she continued her scribbling.

The lion shifted back to its human form and peered up at the markings curiously. "Whatcha doing?" He asked her.

"Planning." She stated simply, never looking from her work.

Garfield scoffed. "Didn't you have all year for that?"

Her crimson eyes turned to flames as she turned slowly to her arrogant pet. His ears laid back and he whimpered pathetically under her stare. "I cannot write out my plans on the walls of a cell!" She hissed, her anger flaring and the fire in the room growing at her outburst. He flinched away in fear and submission. Satisfied, the demoness turned back to her work, and the fire returned to its normal height, allowing the room to cool. Garfield watched the back of her head warily.

"I had schemed and plotted every day, chained in that putrid cage, waiting for just the right moment to enacted my escape," she spat, "Now that I am free, I must go over my plans, and check one last time for any errors." She explained in an even voice, as the rock began to carve itself once more.

The changeling tilted his head. "Errors?"

She nodded. "I may seem perfect at times, but even demons make mistakes. This plan must not fail, not again. This time, they will be dead and no one will get in my way. I will not make the same mistake twice."

Garfield nodded his head in understanding. "Would you like some food? If you don't eat now, it will begin to rot." He offered as he gestured towards the deer meat.

She sighed, but she did not object. Instead, she moved in her spot on her "bed," so that she was facing the fire, her legs dangling over the edge. "Very well. Bring it to me." She commanded. Garfield scurried on all fours, over to the carcass, being sure to notice how the fire gleamed against her smooth marble carved legs, and shifted into a wolf. The wolf lowered its snout and wrapped its jaws over the front leg of the deer and with a few twists and pulls, the leg tore away from the rest of the body. The wolf carried the leg over to his mate, who casually accepted the meat. She whispered her mantra, "Azarath, Mentrion, Zinthos," then the leg, enchased in magic, hovered over to the flame and began twirling over the open fire like a rotisserie. The wolf snorted at her strange attraction, but now satisfied that his mate would be fed, went back to the deer and began tearing into the left-over flesh.

"Enjoy your free time now, my love." The voice of his mate made him lift his head and cast his green gaze upon her. "Tomorrow, we must move on to our next location."

Garfield swallowed the bite of muscle he held in his mouth, then blinked in her direction. "Where to?" He questioned through their telepathic bond.

"There is someone I need to meet. An ancient creature, known as a dragon knight." She explained as she watched her deer leg roast.

"A dragon knight?"

"Yes. They are mostly extinct, but there are rumors of one remaining. Hidden away in his homeland. The Kingdom of Kuarlong."

"Why go there?"

"The knight has something. A broken blade forged with angel blood. It is the only weapon that can kill any creature born of hellfire, including the king of Hell himself."

The canine snarled. "Landon."

She scowled at the name, but her frown quickly turned to an evil smirk. "That's correct, my love. Get the blade, kill the Tyrants, kill the king."

"Kill the Tyrants! Kill the king! Kill the Tyrants! Kill the king!" The wolf chanted as he stood up and barked his excitement.

"That's right, my pet, celebrate! For soon, I will rule over Hell and I will become the most powerful demon in all of existence!"

The flame of the fire jumped at her sudden boast of emotion, burning the meat that hung over it. The rocks surrounding them shook with the ground and a few stumbled down to the sandy floor. As quickly as it happened, the phenomenon came to an end as she recomposed herself. She flickered her finger, and the leg magically moved to her side. A small flame danced on the leg. She glanced at the leg, making an o shape, and easily blew out the flame. She then used her magic to move the leg closer to her mouth, taking small bites of the now well-down deer meat.


Author's Notes: Yay! Chapter two! Another shout out to my best bud bearhow, for not only being my beta reader for this story, but also for the magnificent cover photo of Red Raven, the star of our story! To Vin, the guest who reviewed, I want you to know that the Injustice League are not currently planned to make an appearance in this story. The background to this story will be revealed as the story progresses. A big thank you to all who reviewed so far! Keep up the great work! I love the positive feedback this is receiving so far!

Disclaimer: Landon and the dragon knights are owned by bearhow.