The Titans were apprehensive as they walked down the halls of the prison. Criminals jeered, yelled and threatened them from all sides within the two story complex. The two guards accompanying them took two different approaches, the younger gulped and held his gun tighter, the elder smiled lazily before counting down beneath his breath "five…four…three…two…one"

"Enough" then the prison fell into complete silence, it wasn't a loud voice but the elder guard smirked as it echoed through the concrete . Gizmo and Mammoth huddled in the corner of their cell with fear in their eyes. The group of six continued walking until they came across the cell they were looking for.

Cell 666. The cell of the Chimera, a guard snoozed in his chair while the doors hung open. Jail break?! Where was he?! They rushed around the miniature building to see their quarry sitting at a small card table playing chess with the Warden who chuckled "And I do believed you win again…"

The Chimera nodded "…Warden, visitors" Warden Markus shot up and rushed over to the Titans.

He sheepishly scratched the back of his head "My apologies, I was just trying to play a small game to pass the time. Since he's gotten here nobody really acts up…"

Robin eyed the warden for a long moment "Is he up for it?" at the Warden's nod he cautiously walked into the cell "Gar, do you know why I'm here?"

Garfield Mark Logan, formerly Beast Boy of the Teen Titans, now feared at the Chimera propped his feet up on the table and opened up a newspaper "I'm guessing it has to do with the double homicide yesterday at 5:23:47 at the City Park, you're wanting to see if I did it. The answer is no, I was here and have 142 witnesses."

Cyborg stared at the little-former little-green changeling and whistled "How do ya get that many witnesses?"

The Chimera lifted a thin porcelain bowl like cup to his lips "at the time Gizmo and Mammoth tried to break out. I helped out the guards."

They were silent until Raven asked "What type of tea is that? I don't recognize the smell"

He handed his cup to her and she took a sip and hummed with the slight glow that coursed through her "It's called Shennong tea, it's the oldest form of tea" she handed the cup back to him and he continued to watch her. Robin started to turn away when Gar spoke again "You won't find him on your own…you'll need a hunter"

Robin turned back to him "We will take him down." he turned to the warden "make DAMN sure he's in his cage from now on" his anger was rattling him.

Warden Markus walked into his office the next day to see Robin sitting in one of the chairs "Good morning mister Robin, what can I do for you today?"

The hero seemed slightly dejected "Do you have the video surveillance for Garfield last night?"

The Warden nodded and handed him the tape "Nothing happens, after dinner he went into his cell and read for approximately five hours before requesting another book and going to sleep. That's all. Why do you want to know?"

Robin slumped into the chair and rubbed his eyes warily "last night four people were killed. Gar may have been right…" he stood up "can you take me to his cell. I need to talk to him"

Robin crossed his arms as he stared at the green man who stared back "'Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster, and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you'" he murmured before speaking to the changeling "Gar, we need your help."

The changeling walked to the glass and peered deeply into the eyes behind the mask "What have I to gain from helping you?" This new Gar had Robin stunned. This was not the kind joker that he had known. His man was emotionless to the point that Raven looked like an amateur in comparison.

Robin cleared his throat "I've been authorized to get you out of here before your 200 year sentence is up"

The changeling shot in "Full erasure? Clean records?" the boy-no, young man nodded "that's all well and good but I have one more condition…"

Robin stared suspiciously at him "What else do you want? A job?"

Gar nodded before turning around and walking to the bed that sat at the other end of the room "Yes, you can't make a living without a job…but there are some problems. Even with a full pardon the past has been done, not to mention that I have a very unique skill set." he fell silent and Robin's mind whirled with possible meanings. "I want back in."

Robin stared in shock at the serious man "I-I'll have to talk with the others about that…"

Gar nodded "I would possibly like an answer tomorrow so I can help you as soon as possible." than in a voice almost too quite to hear he continued "something tells me this will be a long fight…"

Robin sat in the living room and sighed at the three "Gar says he will help" he forestalled the cheers with an upraised hand "But he wants back into the Titans…I said I would talk to you guys about it"

At the news even Raven was shocked, they all sat in various states of concentration until Cyborg nodded "I think he should be back in, I mean what's he gonna do for a living? Somehow I don't see him typing on a computer all day…"

Starfire nodded "I also do not see Friend Garfield sitting down for a job, he is too much…himself for that to be good. I vote to allow him to join us again"

Raven looked at the leader of the group "What do you think?"

He sifted back and forth from one foot to the other "I…I think it may be a good idea, lately some of the villains have been getting better gear and it has been harder…" he shook his head "But I don't know if I can trust him after he killed so many people…" and he looked at Raven.

She sighed "I don't think we should. He killed people, we made it a rule that we shouldn't kill. After he left he didn't even try to stop crime, in fact he went the other way and committed one of the most heinous crimes I've ever heard about"

Cyborg stared at her hard for a moment "…you found out didn't you?" Raven looked down at her shoes, the metal man sighed "two years and no difference. Look Robin, whether you like it or not we need him, and he won't do it unless he's on the team. As I see it we have no choice" Robin reluctantly nodded.

For the first time in two years he was let out of his cage other than to go to the library or the work out room. He was a free man. He didn't smile though, he had done what Raven had and pushed all emotions away, he had to when he embarked on his crusade. After his first kill he dry heaved for hours until he passed out, luckily Dave had found him and sheltered him.

He slowly walked as Robin led him to the counter where in old stuff had been placed. The prison was silent as he walked by, in only two years he had made this place peaceful, as he passed Gizmo and Mammoth's cell he stopped and stared at the duo "Remember, mammoths are herbivores…" Mammoth shuddered and nodded as he continued past.

After changing out of his orange jumpsuit and into his normal clothes, military boots, black jeans, a black shirt and his leather jacket and he tossed a backpack over his shoulder. And his communicator, the little indestructible disk perched on the side of his belt as a symbol. He ran a finger along the scarred case and they made their way to the tower. Where more than anything else hope lived.

Gar stopped at the doors to the home of heroes, the Titan's home. He pressed his gloved hand to the scanner and the mechanical voice beeped "Access granted" he walked in and took the elevator to the common room. Robin had gone on ahead of him. He wanted to remember some of the things this place had to offer and he took his time. The solid doors slip open and he gripped the strap of the bag tightly as he looked out across the bay through the great windows, he could see the water lap at the rocks. The ocean, the sunlight. His lips twitched upwards as he felt a tinge of happiness.

Cyborg was the first to notice, he welcomed the changeling with a bone crushing hug and tears. Star greeted him with what she called a 'pudding of reunion' he ate the entire thing. Without gagging. After asking if it had no meat, of course. Raven stared at him from the couch and didn't offer a greeting. Soon they sat around the common room, the four sat on the semicircular couch while he leaned on the window letting the sun heat his back in the most pleasant of ways.

Robin smirked "So what do we call you? Gar isn't a superhero name and Beast Boy doesn't really fit anymore" he said gesturing at the taller man in front of him.

Starfire touched her chin with a thin finger as she pursed her lips "What about Changeling? I have heard this name before…"

Raven simply said "Chimera" the room froze as if she had told them she was dead.

Cyborg shook his head slowly as the tension mounted "…I don't think that would be-"

"No" two voices cut him off, Robin and Gar. Robin looked at the other who motioned him first "no, it's perfect. Think about it, somebody know for vigilantly justice. Someone who, when push comes to shove, can blast past anyone else…" he had a tight grin.

Gar lifted a brow at the bird boy and sighed "Chimera is who I am, and I won't let anyone forget that. My past makes me much more…flexible than any of you. And I think being put with the Titans again may…discourage a bit of crime" he gave a smile that bared his sharp teeth.

They shuddered and agreed Chimera stretched started to move towards the hall "I'm going to clean my room…I've got to change it, several years worth of change…then I'll get to work on the case. I'll need access to everything you have"

Cyborg nodded "yeah, how bout here in an hour I get you hooked up and we can get you ready, sound good?" the morphling gave a thumbs up and walked out of the room.

Raven stared at Robin, "I still don't think this was a good idea"

Cyborg stepped into the room to find it more bare than when it had first been constructed. The walls were down to a base coat of white paint while the carpet was ripped up leaving the concrete showing. "Ummm, Chi? I'm here, you ready?"

The changeling nodded before asking "What did you call me?"

Cy grinned and this lifted a small smile from Gar "Chi- you know short for Chimera…it's a little bit of a mouthful!"

The shape shifter sighed "Yeah, but before that I need to take this stuff to goodwill or something…" the cyborg held up the keys to the car and soon all the junk was gone and in its place was something that nearly seemed foreign after having the riotous mess in the room for so long.

Robin peeked his head in "whoa, that's something new…where are you going?"

Chi spoke with a monotone "I'm going to speak to my informant. I'll be gone for awhile"

He walked around the corner and stopped. He quickly folded on himself as pain warped his perceptions and in his place sat a small bat, a Seychelles sheath-tailed bat. Humans don't know how keen the senses of animal are, and this form allowed him to do what only a handful of other species could do-read emotions, beyond what was at the front of a mind. He let the wave wash over him until he found it. He rushed out of the tower before his rage changed him into the Chimera. He would hate to kill his teammates so early after getting out.

Dave sat in his little shop with Gar. The former was sitting in the chair as David, his newly wed wife and three other each had a gun and were needling almost his entire body. Green tinted blood poured off the chair in a steady stream as thousands of punctures wept. Dave pulled away from the group for a moment "Gar…you sure you want to do this? All at once?" a nod was all he got before wiping his brow and starting again. better that these wounds weep than tears fall from my eyes

Gar had spoken with Dave for a while before the pain had begun. Dave never asked if he didn't want this mark. The twisting forms were the only thing Dave could do for his friend. As the Chimera's marks bled across green skin everyone but Dave and Gar left. The elder man stared at the tattoos as the younger slowly slid on his clothes, staining them a crimson color. Dave had to ask "I know you said these markings were for when things got bad…what happened?"

The ragged skin on his arm started to split as his remembered rage coursed through him, his nails twisted into hardened claws before he reigned in his powers. He took a long breath and began as if a robot "I changed into an animal that can sense emotion. I wanted to know how they really felt about having me back. I stumbled across something that-" he suddenly stopped as he ground his teeth and crushed the plastic peroxide cap in his hands to dust, with another breath he continued "I found something that I hate."

Dave nodded "I understand" and he really did., he understood hating something so bad that you would do anything to change it. He twisted the ring on his finger "Is this about Raven?" the changeling silently nodded and gritted his teeth "Ya' know it's a good thing your mouth is damn near indestructible or else you'd have pain like you wouldn't believe"

Gar watched Dave for a long minute "I'm already in pain, and honestly I don't think I could feel any worse. I found out that Starefire, Robin and Raven are scared of me, like I'm the plague and Raven and Robin loathe me for what I've done!" his voice was in a crescendo and his body started twisting as the Chimera started writhing for release "NOT TO MENTION BOTH RAVEN AND STARFIRE ARE IN LOVE WITH THAT ASSHOLE!"

Dave nearly dropped his cup, "What?!" it came out as a shocked gasp and Gar quickly deflated until he lay slumped in the chair as his body sunk in on itself. He was the most venerable he had been since his birth.

Gar let his head fall back onto the chair "Yeah, both of them are in love with Robin. I think he knows it too. And here I am just-" he growled and forced himself into a state of detachment.

Dave walked over and gently patted the bloody back of his friend "Alright" his voice was very calm and soothing to the younger man "Here's what you can do, you can go back to the tower or you can come with me, I've got a guest bed you can use. But first you need to focus on healing or else these are not going to heal right and that would be the worst thing you could have happen when they cover almost all your body"

Gar stood "I'll be back in a few days to check in, but for now I better get back to the tower"

As the doors opened to the common room everyone was standing there, they stared at him for a moment until he made to go to his room. Robin stepped forward "where are you going?"

Gar leashed in his rage and answered coolly "To my room"

Robin grabbed the back of his shirt as Gar hadn't taken his jacket "oh, no you don't!"

Gar whipped around so quickly that his shirt tore off and snarled "Don't you dare touch me!" the snarl made them flinch "Keep your filthy fuckin' hands off me or I'll take them off!" and he stalked off leaving the stunned other to try to figure out what was going on.

Robin peered at the shirt closely and dropped it and it hit the floor with a wet smack. Blood. Robin stared at the cloth for a long moment "were those tattoos?" Cyborg nodded slowly "Ummm, someone should go talk to him, and you guys heard him, if I touch him he will kill me"

Cyborg stepped forward "I'll do it-"

Star cut in "No, Friend Cyborg, I wish to do it. I want to understand what is wrong with Friend Bea-Chimera" she slowly walked to his door and the soundproof doors slid open.

She stared at the room, the once bright room was painted a dark ominous green, where there had once been bunk beds now had a king sized bed with a dark blood red set, the window was now framed by black bookshelves and covered by very dark gray curtains with a black rod even the floor wasn't spared the change, it was now a plush black carpet. At the moment those were the only things in the room save the chair that Gar sat in. he had not replaced his shirt and in the dark his eyes glowed with a feral glint "what do you want Starfire?" the door slid closed and she was alone with him as the dim light that slipped around the curtains illuminated the room only enough that she could see where things were.

She sat on the bed "Friend Chimera, why are you so angry with Robin?"

The light suddenly wasn't enough as she could feel anger roll off him like wave of liquid rage "I am angry with a lot of things, that's who I am now. It's who I've always been but none of you saw it. And if they sent you than they're worse off than I thought"

"Why do you say these things? You were never this upset before…"

He growled "Starfire, do you know what a façade is?" the Tameranaen shook her head "it's a kind of mask that covers not only the face but an entire personality. A false front if you will. Mine is broken while other cower behind what I really am, now tell me, how happy am I supposed to be?"

She moved closer to him and placed a hand on his shoulder only to leap back when it came away covered with blood "Chimera, what have you done to yourself?!"

He gave a dry mirthless laugh, "Tattoos are made by punching little holes in your skin, when you cover your body in a single day blood flows"

She sat down "tell me of these tattoos, I wish to know…"

Two hours passed and yet the others were not concerned, the princess was nearly indestructible and no sounds of a fight had been heard so they left them alone.

Starfire had spoken for the vast majority of the time "So these marking are your sadness, but then why are you sad?" she was being as gentle as she could with the subject.

"Because I am hated." he ran a finger along the blood soaked lines on his forehead "And I am hated because I hate and I hate because…" he waved a hand over his chest.

Starfire tilted her head "but you have waited this long for your markings of sadness, why did you get them now?"

He leaned back "Because I found something that I hate more than the world," at her blank stare he continued "a betrayal and a lie"

Star stared at the tear inked into his skin between his eyes, it was one of the few things that stood out against the seemingly chaotic tribal that covered his entire body, "Who has betrayed you and lied to you?" her eyes flashed green in her anger.

He stared at her and she wilted under his ever shifting shades before saying, not unkindly "I was betrayed by two people I thought I could trust and I was lied to by five" she wilted even further.

"We…we lied to you?" he blinked slowly.

"Yes, you all did." he stood up "we have a visitor" and he changed into a bat before fluttering out the window and landing behind of the newcomer.

Jinx lifted a hand to knock on the door and let it fall to her side. This wasn't going as well as she hoped. "If you want in all you have to do is knock" a voice behind her sagely spoke and she turned, a retort fast on her lips.

She tried to smile but this wasn't Beast Boy, his body held dried blood all over along with hundreds of thousands of lines. But his eyes were most different, they did not smile, they did not frown, they did not laugh, they did not change. "Ummm, hi. I was wondering if I could stay here…things were getting…weird after Kid Flash and I…umm, quit"

He opened the door and led her to the common room where all the others had gathered. After a moment of seeing their shocked faces he only said "I vote she becomes a Titan" and walked to his room.

He sat in the chair as the scabs across his body protested, his skin had to be punctured extremely deep for the ink to take and now he was feeling it. He opened the green door to his bathroom and stepped into the shower. The water washed away in brown and he hissed as the hot water and soap stung.

His mind wandered as the water washed away his blood until a knock came at the door "Chimera…can I talk to you?" Jinx. He wrapped a towel around his waist before opening the door and going back to the bathroom.

Jinx sat nervously on the chair, she didn't realize he was taking a shower until he opened the door and let her in. She had learned of his name change and what had happened and was more hopeful than ever. If someone who had done those things could do good maybe she could too. From behind the other door Gar called out "You can start now"

She swallowed, maybe this wasn't such a good idea, she let out a long held breath "Vic says that you're one of the best people he knows. Now that you're back on the team I want to know if I can do the same…"

His answer was a simple "What?"

She sighed "I want to know if I can be a good hero, I didn't really do much when I was with KF's team…"

Chimera opened the door and Jinx tried not to stare as the water traced his torso, as he pulled on his shirt he answered "If I didn't think so I wouldn't have told them I wanted you as a Titan. Simple as that. You are much more powerful than you think you are." he motioned her to follow as they walked to the training room. He set a hologram of several villains "Do it" and he started the simulations, she emerged out of breath and bruised. The other Titans had followed them out to the basement. "Again"

Cy stepped forward "Yo' Chi I don't think she can take ano-"

"Again" he said, Jinx nodded and put a hand on Cy's before walking back into the room. She limped out with dozens of small cuts and slid to the ground panting, Gar's eyes held nothing "Again."

Robin stepped forward this time "Chimera, what are you doing! We can't hurt her like this!" he nearly put a hand on Chimera's shoulder but the glare in his teammate's eye reminded him of the threat.

Chimera looked at Jinx, he knelt in front of her and took her hand "Do you want to know?" she nodded and crawled back into the room. He set the simulator much higher. They watched from the window.

Jinx leapt over the attack a holo Gizmo threw at her by leaping onto one of the metal legs and then kicking him in the face before gracefully landing on the floor only to have Mammoth throw her into the wall. Tears filled her eyes and suddenly the simulation was gone. She sighed and stood, eyes down cast "I give up, I failed" much to her surprise someone entered the room.

Chimera took off his jacket and tossed it Cy before closing the door "You'll be up against me. I want to see if you're really as good as I hope"

She wobbled into a fighting stance as he stood perfectly at ease. She waved her arms and slowly advanced, he ducked, leaned, and otherwise avoided the purple waves with ease. As he dodged her last blast she tried to land a kick but was quickly batted away by a gorilla's hand, she quickly recovered with a summersault and stared at him as he quickly shifted to his human form. They fought until she was completely exhausted. As she lay flat on her back huffing and panting at him she groaned "You win, I can't go on" his eyes softened and he slowly helped her up.

He moved her to a chair in the simulator control room "You did well, I'll continue training you if you want" she nodded before slowly falling asleep in the chair "Cy, why don't you take her to the Med Bay" Cy blushed but complied and he walked out leaving Starfire, Robin and Raven in the room with very little idea of what happened.

Jinx awoke an hour later and was surprised to see Chimera gently bandaging her hands he gave her a sad smile "I'm sorry I was so rough, but I needed to see how powerful you are at this point"

She nervously tugged on her shirt with her free hand "What do you mean 'at this point'?"

He smeared some ointment on a burn on her forearm "Your power is ridiculous, you pretty much change the flow of the universe" she stared at him in blatant disbelief "You can change anything, where a pin falls, if a nail can hold half a gram less than it should, if a star should fall ten degrees in another direction. You can change that"

She sighed as the cool paste took the fire from the wound "Can I ask you something?" he nodded while wrapping a length of cloth on the burn "What happened?"

He put the tube back in the first-aid kit and pulled out a bottle of peroxide "What happened when?"

She wondered if this was a good idea "after you left the team…"

He didn't say anything for awhile, he finished treating her and put all the medicines away before sitting on the other bed "alright, if that's what you want we can talk. First let's get one thing straight, I didn't leave I got kicked off. I wandered around for a while, I didn't know what to do with myself. I thought about suicide" she gasped quietly, he wasn't the type of guy who even looked at suicide "I thought maybe if I got out of town things would go better. So I walked to Gotham"

She cut in quietly "Walked?"

He nodded "Cheaper than a plane ticket, train and not to mention I don't have a license. It wasn't bad only a month's walk." he started tapping his now tattooed knuckles "have you heard A Lanternman's Tale?" she shook her head and he handed her a battered book

"A Lanternman wait's a Lanternman's call

For Lanternman's dark is darkness for all

Without Lanternman's light the children did bawl

For Lanternman's darkness did everywhere fall.

And Lanternmen greeted them at Lanternman's Hall

With Lanternmen tall and Lanternmen Small

Where Lanternman die and Lanternmen crawl

And Lanternmem shelter with lanternman walls.

And Lanternmen fell and Lanternmen fade

With Lanternmen's wall and Lanternmen's glade

For Lanternmen's life did Lanternmen laid

And Lanternmen's wish did Lanternmen made.

With Lanternmen gone and Lanternmen dead

The Lanternmen's soul to darkness was led

Lanternmen begged and Lanternmen pled

But Lanternmen's soul filled with Lanternman's dread,

And Lanternmen fell where Lanternmen bled."

As he finished reciting she looked at the book, without any wording on the front she opened it to find what he had said in faint perfect handwriting. "it's been called the saddest story. It's about the Lanternmen, a group of people who lit the way to keep others safe. One by one they died until only one remained. He wandered the Earth searching for his kinsmen until he found each of their bones. One hundred and eight men for one hundred and eight bones. He journeyed to the Underworld to beg for the souls. He was told to forever light the Entrance to the afterlife, a cave so wide and deep that the sun could never fully brighten it. He gathered each of the Lanternmen's lights and set them in the cave. He picked up his own light to hold it to the world and has never let it fall. all that remains is a skeleton holding his one hundred and nine lanterns for the souls of the lost."

Jinx looked at him before staring at her feet "That's a terribly sad poem, but I don't see how it explains what happened"

Chimera stood up and walked to the sink and dabbed a few bleeding spots with the washrag "Once you do something you have to stay the course. The Lanternman waits for all eternity so he can be with the others. I couldn't stop once the deed was started. I got to Gotham and found nothing there for me. I stayed only because I wouldn't have to see her…"

Jinx looked at her friend "Her?" she felt her concern for the changeling grow.

"Her. I fell in love with a woman who I knew would never return the feeling. She lived in Jump but I always ended up seeing her. I tried to move on but I really couldn't. then one day I passed in front of a tattoo parlor, I didn't realize what was happening until somebody threw me in an ally, it was a robber. He rushed at me with a knife and I threw him over my head and behind me. He landed on a pile of shingles from a building they were remodeling. The nails killed him. For a long time I sat there in a mix of sorrow and guilt. At some point I remember crying and throwing up. Next thing I know I was in the tattoo parlor that was across the street. It was a man named Dave, he explained to me quite a bit. My parents were some of the best geneticists in the world, they took me to places like the Amazon, Mexico, but in Africa I got a disease. Nobody had survived before but my parents managed to make a 'antidote' the side affects made me what I am."

He sighed "After that we met with something worse than death. We were on a research boat when a cartel saw us. They managed to leap on and they slit my dad's throat. They raped my mom until they put two bullets in her. They did worse to me" Jinx stared with eyes wide in horror "After that I somehow managed to crawl my way to a village. Then the Doom patrol got me. But Dave was part of this cartel. He had been chasing me for years trying to find me to give himself…I don't know, some sort of absolution. But he took care of me until I could talk. He told me that the cartel was in Gotham. I started hunting. The ones I killed hadn't changed, all but Dave, they were still doing what they did in Africa and I killed them all. Then I turned myself in."

Jinx saw tears running down his face "W-why are you telling me?"

He gave her the best smile he could. It was pathetic, small and sadder than any frown he could have given. "Because you haven't lied to me, all the others have. And you asked. Sorry for rambling" he stood up and walked out.

Jinx looked to the dark corner "Raven, you can come out now…I take it he was talking about you?" the dark psychic nodded and the two of them walked to the common room just in time to hear Robin try to scold Chimera.

"You went too far, what if she got hurt!"

Chimera stared at Robin until the masked one started to get fidgety "Look, her power essentially fucks the universe, she has more potential than any of us. I can't train her without putting her in danger. Do you know what I did to train?" Robin shuddered and shook his head "Consider yourself lucky, if you had to go through what I did you probably wouldn't have your sanity." he walked off to his room leaving the other five in the Commons with their thoughts.

Raven stared at the wall with a sense of unholy knowing. She walked down the hall to his door before knocking. The door slid only a fraction of an inch until she could only see one eye gazing down at her indifferently "What do you want?"

She gazed back at it "Open up, I need to talk to you"

The door slid open and she took a seat in the chair while he leaned against the bookshelves that lined his wall two tall ones and two shorter ones between that sat just under the window. "Okay, you're here, talk" his voice wasn't rude but it didn't want her dancing around the point either.

She watched him cross his arms "You told Star you were lied to and betrayed. I want to know what happened."

His eyes still held no emotion "Why?"

She hesitated "I…I want to fix it, I know you don't want to see me-"

He cut her off with a slashing motion "Enough" that one word chilled her to the bone with it's emptiness "You want nothing to do with this topic, that I assure you"

Her voice was sharp "How can I fix it if I don't know?"

He grinned, no, bared his teeth would have been more appropriate "You. Won't."

She hissed back "Don't be a coward!"

His eyes had held no emotion. Now he was angry "Coward? How am I the coward here? I confessed what I felt even though you lied and said you loved no one, let me tell you a secret, I know you love Robin. I don't care. Everyone that was on the team at the time lied to me. But you and Robin betrayed me. You can't fix it because you don't want to." he growled and she stood up abruptly before storming out.

Jinx watched Raven stomp to her room followed by a trail of words no sane person would have said. She hopped off the couch and waited for the curses to die down before knocking "Raven, it's Jinx, I know you're upset but I want to help…" Jinx really was a nice girl.

Raven allowed the door to slide open and the other metahuman slowly walked in. Raven stared at the wall with disgust written on her features "What do you want Jinx?"

The girl stared at her darker counterpart for a moment "I want to help"

The other's monotone was broken with rage "Help with what?"

Jinx walked over to the bed where Raven sat and rubbed small soothing circles on her back, "I want to help you with Chimera. Maybe I can see something since I'm not directly involved. I just want to help."

Raven sighed "Alright, It's a bit of a story so might as well settle in…"

Jinx listened to Raven tell the story until the sun dipped behind the city, she told of how she found out about Gar's love and why he never said anything and her lie that he saw through. She told the enchantress of her feelings about the entire thing.

Jinx looked thoughtful " So you're in love with Robin?" Raven nodded but something else played along her face "But you don't see Chimera as just another friend now do you?" Raven didn't say anything and Jinx continued " Well, as I see it there's only one thing to do"

Raven looked at the pinkette with some trepidation "And what would that be?"

The other shook her head "I'll get it set up for you, don't worry." and walked out of the room.

The sorceress felt a shudder go through her as all her emotions yelled as one "MAYDAY GET THE HELL OUT OF THERE!" only Rage said something else and it was simply "I've got a bad feeling about this…"

Jinx watched as Chimera continued to work on the computer, the moon had fallen and the sun not yet risen. He hadn't slept, he spent the hours staring at every bit of information that the Titans had collected over the Chimera copy-cat killer. She had woken up on accident, she wanted some water and had stepped out to grab a glass when the light stopped her. She crawled back to her bed and thought about what she could do to help. She genuinely liked the green man and the dark woman, and the part of her that cooed squealed how cute they would be together. She shrugged and curled into a ball as she dreamt about a certain cyborg.

It was past noon when the group stood around him as he swiveled the computer chair to face them, bags stood out prominently against his green skin "There isn't one killer. There are two"

Robin stared at the two nearly identical pictures on the screens "How can you tell?"

Chimera turned around and zoomed in on the wounds themselves "This one was made by a modified bear trap, they heated the metal and pressed the jaws together forming a deeper bite, this one was made by a creature that bears a striking resemblance to the chimera almost as if a cousin. And I know who that one is."

Raven scowled "Adonis"

The jade man nodded before turning back to the screen "This one is different. The entire scene is set up as if I did it myself…" the others shuddered at the lack of importance as he tapped his chin "These cases can wait, they might have started in an attempt to get me out of prison…they slowed down after I got out but Adonis seemed to go into overdrive. The last two days since I've been out he's killed fourteen."

Robin punched his open palm "Alright, we'll go out tonight and see if we can't find him and take him down! Be ready at 11, he seems to hunt late at night."

They other nodded before walking away leaving Cyborg and Gar at the computer terminal, as the latter started to shut down the machine Cyborg asked a question lightly "So what happened to the Beast? I haven't heard you talk about it for a while now…"

Chimera lifted one eyebrow "What do ya' mean, you saw it last time we fought…" as his friend shook his head he explained "The Chimera is the Beast." and the changeling gave a dry smile.

Cy nodded before speaking again hesitantly "…Star told us we lied to you…what did I lie about?" Gar stared at his friend who had desperation laced in his voice and pain in his eyes "I really want to fix it. I want to be your friend again…"

Chi slowly stood up before gripping the metal man on the shoulder "You lied about how you felt about me back on the team. You were scared and angry, why didn't you say so?" Cy shook his head and the jade morphling waited before continuing "By just saying you want to fix it you have. You were the only one who wanted me to stay on the team that night" Cyborg flinched but stared in shock as Gar gave a bright smile "Honestly? You've always been my friend, from the first day we met to right now. My only true friend" Gar patted his friend's shoulder before walking out of the room to get some sleep for the long night he knew was coming.

Jinx stared at a picture from years before, Robin stood in the center with Raven and Starfire floating in the top corners while Gar and Cy sat beside the leader. She stared at Gar's eyes. Something wasn't right, they didn't give the same feel as Cyborg's or Starfire's. she moved to a picture of Chimera. One where he didn't have any emotion on his face as he stared somewhat sadly at the camera, he had the same eyes. They had always been sad.

Cyborg opened the door "You called, Jinx?"

She handed him the two pictures "there's one thing the same in both these pictures, can you see it?"

He stared at the two for a while "Chimera's eyes. Their the same in both pictures…but why do you have me staring at another guys eyes?" he sounded a bit down trodden.

The pink haired girl giggled and smiled "How did your talk with Chimera go?"

Cy gave a small smile "It went better than I thought it would, I can't win against him" she laughed and rubbed her nose against the metal man's who blushed and smiled back.

Raven sat in Nevermore watching Knowledge and Happy argue with Intelligence, Rage and Affection. This odd sight was triggered by one simple question "How do I deal with Chimera?" the other emotions had their own input but really didn't want to be beaten by the top five in this argument.

In a cosmic sense of Irony (Who was in a shade of peach under the tree with a large smirk) Knowledge and Intelligence were being held back by Happy and Affection respectively while Rage stood in between with her red cloak billowing "STOP NOW!" the sudden stillness in her mind caused Raven to reel back. Rage hissed out "All of you are acting like the emotions of a three year old Tameranean!" the others ducked their heads, chastised. She put her hand on her hips "Now, get your asses in GEAR!" the others bolted to the circle of rocks and Raven stood in the middle. This was something they did only when Raven asked a question that could change her entire emotional world.

Happiness started "I don't think we need to treat him any differently, he still confuses me" she scratched her head and motioned to the next rock.

All but Rage, Timid, Knowledge and Intelligence said the same thing.

Knowledge scowled "We need to treat him the same way we have, we have no need to change simply because he told us he holds affections for us."

Intelligence growled in retort "We need to treat him better. He told us his soul and showed us his memories" Nevermore darkened for a moment as the scene burned their minds "We have lied to him. Not to mention that we were the only one he did not attack when he transformed two years ago."

Rage sighed, she hated it when other emotions stole her thunder "I say we do something none of you thought of" they waited with bated breath before Rage continued "Don't piss him off! He didn't kill us because he was in love with us. And none of you jackasses can tell if he still is in love with us. For once I have to agree with smartass over here" she pointed to Intelligence "not because we don't know how we feel but because I want to live thank you very much" she spat.

Timid gathered herself and stood as everyone looked at her, her gray cloak twisted and brightened until it his a near white and she shouted out "I LOVE HIM!" and she warped away as quickly as she could leaving the others in shock.

A knock pulled her out of her thoughts and back into her room, Robin spoke through the door "Raven you ready for patrol?"

She stepped out and soon they moved around in the shadows of Jump City.

Two weeks later an alarm went off, a vault that held a museum exhibit was broken into and the Titans rushed to the scene to find Gizmo and Mammoth standing out on the street. They stared at Jinx who stared back until Chimera stepped forward "I believe I told you that if I saw you again there would be consequences"

The fifteen year old screamed "You can't stop us you stupid cock-suckers!" and powered up his wings which were promptly shot down by Cyborg's cannon.

Chimera shrugged "You've gotten more vulgar since you got out" and the others walked forward a few steps leaving him at the back.

A whistled sounded and his ear flicked and the others turned as they heard a slikch. They turned to see Chimera with arms outstretched to block the path of seven knives, the blades had pierced his arms, two in each while three were embedded in his back. He pulled them out before turning and grimacing slightly "Hello Adonis, I've been looking for you" his voice started to get an earthier tone as he growled "you conniving, sadistic, egotistical sonofabit-" and a loud mechanical roar tore through the night and through his chest with a beam of bright white light that echoed across the city.

He staggered around to see Dr. Light with a burnt out light cannon in his hands. Chimera growled and coughed up blood even as his torso was soaked with the crimson life. The blackened bone hissed as drops of blood fell against the superheated shards, most of his organs, clearly visible against the burnt green skin stopped functioning as his lungs and heart visibly rushed trying to compensate for the trauma. He staggered forward and coughed up more blood as his body went into overdrive trying to keep him alive. Every breath was a hissing cough as his body started to give up. Everyone there watched in morbid fascination as he took a trembling step. His body could barely support itself as he made his way over to Light. Frozen in place they leapt into action as the bleeding morphling smashed his fist weakly into Light. The Titans rushed over to see their friend fall. in the middle of his torso was a gaping hole. At the edges his heart and lungs could be seen. Or rather what remained of them, his spine was the only thing in the area that survived the blast, yet not even that was intact, in places the bone was gone leaving the dangling red string like nerves and where it did survive it was blackened and melted, the liquid bone fell onto the street and solidified into solid white globs.

He let out a rough growl "Ge…Get…Away" and his limbs started to tremble as his skin started to rip and his body twisted. Jinx and Raven pulled the others away, with their links to the magic of the world they could feel a primal shift. His body was taking in huge amounts of pure energy and twisting his body. His lower body flipped so that his knees were on the ground as he still laid on his back. Ice built up around him as blood that he shouldn't have had soaked his back making a lake. His teeth cracked as they grew and his head jerked around it was facing the ground. With a harsh howl the ground around him turned thick and viscous like mud. Everyone rushed away as the swamp like road stretched out. They looked up to see the true Chimera. Every time they had believed they had seen it's true form could not prepare them for this.

In the back of his mind Gar realized that this same street was where they had left him. Where Beast Boy had died. Then the world turned to white darkness.

What stood in front of them was something out of a nightmare. The gray fur was matted and covered with mud and blood as it hid the bones that could be numbered under the armored skin. The creature was mortally thin, as if one moment could kill it if it wasn't eating. Each claw was a tool of terror and destruction, the dark yellow color spoke of time covered in gore and as each jagged edge cut into the hardened street below like a hot knife through snow the once hard material shifted into mud. It's long bony tail stood high above the tops of the buildings of downtown Jump. But it's head was the most terrifying. The creatures face was scarred from thousands of weapons, it's ears had holes where they had been pierced by terrifyingly powerful weapons. The left was missing a large chunk from the side and a spear was impaled on it and a hammer dangled off the end, almost as if a trophy. It's face was marred by thousands of slashes that centered between it's gigantic eyes, redder than blood and filled with a hatred and rage that made the piece of Raven's father that still lived in her fail. It's teeth were too many and too large to fit in it's mouth, leaving them sticking out and forming a trap of rust colored death. It took two steps forward and where it touched the ground the earth was covered in blood ice.

It stared at the nine before letting out a howl that twisted and tainted the air and caused the moon to shudder in fear. As it moved forward and warped the very fabric of the world it took in huge quantities of magic and Raven and Jinx pulled the Titans and the two former H.I.V.E. member with them. Adonis and Light stood on the other side of The Chimera. A fluttering ribbon fell towards the Titans, Raven picked up the silver length and Jinx gasped "that looks like…Gleipnir"

Raven stared at her "And you would know that how?

Jinx pointed to the ribbon "use your senses" Raven's magic wrapped around it and she dropped it immediately.

Raven picked it up and folded it into her pocket "I-If that's true than that means that he's…"

Jinx realized it at the same time "O-Odin's bane…" and the both blanched as a being beyond Trigon finished physically manifesting on their planet. And there was nothing they could do about it.

Fenris snarled at the nine before glaring at the two who had hurt him. With a voice of ice and rot it opened it's teeth "Jeg vil drepe deg" with a swipe of ragged death Dr. Light flew into the air with legs ripped from his body. With a dull crunch his pain was over. Adonis stared in shock as Fenris stared at him with an unholy grin as tooth ground against tooth in a demonic symphony. "Jeg elendige kopier" Adonis shifted into his beast form trying to run. Until his legs iced over. The blood ice was met with more blood as the giant wolf shrunk down to the size of the Beast before slowly devouring Adonis alive. The others stood in shock as Adonis' screams slowly fell to whimpers before being silenced forever behind teeth the size of nuclear missiles. Fenris let out a howl that shattered glass before turning his hateful gaze on the seven who stood in front of him.

The ribbon in Raven's hand wrenched itself free before wrapping around Fenris' muzzle and tightening as the beast thrashed more and more. Soon blood ran off as he tried to snarl and his own teeth pierced the room of his mouth and the bottom of his jaw. Jinx's eyes glowed a park pink before she turned to Raven "BLOCK HIM!" as the other looked at her lost she explained as quickly as she could "He's drawing in energy to sustain his transformation, cutting off the supply should force him back!"

With an orb of black energy around the huge beast he slowly started to crack and break back into a human shape. Every wound he had ever taken opened and blood once again pooled below him. Soon he was in a coma-like state with a body wrapped in bandages. The monstrous hole in his chest still sat agape as Cyborg anchored a clear glass dome over it before hooking it up to the Tower's power supply "We've got to keep the area clean but he's regenerating everything, heart, lungs, nerves…everything that got damaged ever is being replaced. The only thing we can do is wait for him to wake up and get better…"

With Gizmo and Mammoth back in jail the Titans had met in Med Bay to talk about this newest discovery. Robin stared at the Chimera "alright, does anyone know what happened?"

Raven shook her head "I didn't expect an Old God to come out. Even how he got it, is controlling it or that it's even here is a mystery."

Starfire leaned over "Friends, please explain this 'Old God' to me, I am unfamiliar with it"

Robin nodded as Cy said "Yeah, what do you mean by 'Old God' is it some type of demon?"

Jinx shook her head "Old Gods are exactly what they sound like, Gods that people worshiped, think Zeus, Aries and those type of things. He became Fenris, a wolf god out of Norse myth. It's a creature that killed Odin, the king of the gods…"

While the others spoke she walked over to the nearly dead man and does something she thought she should have done a long time ago.

As she fell into his mind she murmured "I should have done this when he got here, not waited two weeks…" a normal mind is just a library with one care taker. Her mind was structured differently because of her heritage and her powers. His was very different than either.

His mind-scape was an enormous field with an everlasting sunset painting the clouds blood red, a truly huge bonsai shaded the four figures beneath it. As she landed two of the four sat up, the first was Fenris and the other was the Beast. One of the figures she couldn't see spoke in a calm level voice "Forgive their manners, Fenris and Instinct are only following their natures. Much like your emotions follow theirs"

Fenris looked almost like a different wolf, almost, his fur was cleaned and his teeth and claws were perfect and polished. His scars and eyes remained and he growled lightly as the Beast, now renamed Instinct sniffed around her. She walked closer to the tree and saw one of the other two now. It was Gar, well it was like Gar, around his mouth sat tattoos, around the right side of his mouth it was a smile then it switched to a gaping sad mouth. His clothes were all colors and he gave a tight smile "Hi, my name's Emotion…" then he stormed away and the person on the other side of the tree sighed and sat up.

"Pardon his manners, at the present you are a mystery to us and we do not know if we are willing to…ignore this fact" he scoffed lightly before he walked out of the shadow "Where are my manners, my name is Restraint" he held out a hand "How do you do?" he stepped out and she looked at him with mild shock, he was dressed in the red robes much like those of a Tibetan monk. His face held no emotions as he lead her slowly down the gentle hill that the tree topped "a thousand pardons but that place is meant only for us four. However I can greet you properly in my home."

Raven walked behind him in stunned silence until they entered his home, a small home with four rooms, two bed rooms, a kitchen living area and a bathroom, all of which were modest to say the least. "Y-you said you were…Restraint?" he nodded as he poured two cups of tea into bowls identical to the one Chimera had in his cell "What are you restraining?"

He led her to a set of cushions "I restrain everything, emotion, instinct and the other things, in essence I restrain Garfield." he took a sip of his tea and sighed. "Then my I ask why you are here Miss Raven?"

She took a sip and copied his appreciative sigh "I came to see what happed, how he managed to change into…the him from last night"

Restraint gave a small smile "You are worried, no?"

She murmured "Yes"

With a wave of his hand the old kettle floated over and he poured her another bowl "And why are you worried, Garfield is alive and recovering, Fenris is back here peacefully residing, Unless you are worried about Garfield's mental state I can see no reason why you are upset"

Raven stared at Restraint for a moment "You're Chimera…well, him now…"

The emotionless emotion slowly set his bowl down "we are much like you but we are also very different, you see you separated your emotions to separate your powers. Garfield separated us out of a need to detach himself to do what must be done."

She gave a half-hearted glare "You mean kill those people"

He nodded "Indeed, but he did so differently than you. Your emotions hold your power while Garfield's are based on himself as a whole. He tore his emotions away, you yourself have only placed barriers between you and your emotions. As you are well aware instincts balance emotions, the lower thoughts balance the higher and thus Instinct was separated as well. That left only Fenris who could not be allowed to roam free. Thus I was created to hold them all back. In a sense I am the head of this small family and thus the one closest to Garfield's center and the most expressed"

Raven took another sip of her tea and finally came to a basic question "When did all of this happen?" she waved a hand to the room.

The control leaned back in his chair and pulled a bare foot onto his knee "You must forgive me, since we were separated when Garfield was mature we suffered from disorientation and the period of our 'birth' is hazy" he tapped his lip for a moment "We were conceived when Garfield was removed from the team. We were given awareness when he arrived in Gotham. Except for Fenris, he has been alive much longer, but as an independent spirit rather than a part of us"

She stared at Restraint "So can I speak with the others?"

Restraint closed his eyes "You could indeed, for I would not stop you, but I do suggest very strongly that you keep your distance. They are in the middle of a 'spar'"

She asked cautiously "why should I keep my distance?"

He tapped himself lightly on the chest "It is a spar without restraint…"

She stood "Can you take me?"

He gave the small smile again "Of course" and he lead her onward. Past the hill with the tree they came to a desert, stones and sand covered the landscape until a large circle of rocks indicated the arena. Emotion, Instinct and Fenris tore at each other with claws and tooth and fist and nail until the once golden sand was painted dark red. As they charged each other they had bloodthirsty grins. Instinct pulled on Fenris' tail and Emotion, who was the human-like Chimera form that he had shown in Gotham, thrust his claws into Instinct's back while Fenris latched onto Emotion's leg.

Restraint sat facing away from the group "If you wish to speak it will have to wait. Shall we sit and speak until they are through?"

She slowly sat facing the trio in silence. Emotion broke away first and walked towards Restraint, blatantly ignoring her, "Yo, boss! When's our boy here gonna' wake up?"

Restraint looked up above him to the hovering face "He should be waking up soon. Do not worry, he shall be as he was"

Emotion grimaced "Why'd you have to bring her?"

The other blinked "Does she not have a large investment in you?" the other nodded while Raven sat silently "Then I only wish you to talk. As much as I like existence I would much rather be where we were before"

Emotion had a far away look on his face before he stomped over "Follow me" he hissed before skipping away. Raven turned to Restraint who nodded and she followed.

His home was much like Restraint's only painted in a multitude of spiraling colors and pictures, some were happy, others sad, some filled with love others dark enough to scare her. He went to a fridge and pulled out a beer and a soda "Which one do you want?" his voice reminded her of Brave.

"Soda, I'm not even legal…and neither are you"

Emotion turned flirty before grinning at her. "Babe, in here we can do things that are illegal on every planet" his voice made her flush and look down at the floor. He sighed as he watched her stare at the tile "I'm…unstable. I'm every emotion at once, I'm happy, sad, angry, rude…don't worry about offending me"

Raven stared for a moment "You're…at once?"

He leaned back smoothly against the fridge "Yup! That's why I'm switching between so many extremes." he took a deep drink of the chilled beer "So, is there any emotion you'd feel more comfortable talking to?"

She sat in one of the two recliners "Happy? No, he'd be too hyper and I wouldn't get anything out of him…" after going on like that for quite some time she finally came to Timid "No, he'd just apologizes and be of no help"

Emotions held up a finger "Not so fast, Timid might be the best option, here he wouldn't be quite as scared" and several orbs of different colors flew into another room leaving Emotion dressed in all gray and shy eyes. He sputtered out "S-so w-what did you want to talk about?"

She didn't roll her eyes, this Timid was much braver than her own, maybe the place really did help. "Restraint said I was a mystery, what did he mean?"

Timid seemed to perk up since they weren't talking about him "W-well, you've been mean to us…but at times you can be nice…we really don't like that you love Robin…y-you're just too unknown for us…" he twiddled his thumbs as she let out a breath.

Raven asked a question that her own Rage and Timid were wondering , along with all the others"…Does Gar-do you still love me?"

Timid shrugged "I-I don't know" he whimpered "please don't hate me…"

The dark lady sighed "Then can I talk to Love?"

"H-he won't be of much help" came the reply.

"And why's that?" she countered with raised brow.

"B-Because he l-loves everything…"Timid's pale skin held a blush at the thought of love. She sighed, he really was timid personified.

"Then who should I ask?" he shrugged helplessly and cowered behind the beer can still in his hand. "Call out …Knowledge" one of the orbs from the other room rushed into the gray clad man and a silvery ball of energy bolted to the other room as the Chimera in front of her was now clad in yellow. She stared at him for a moment, were his eyes always that shifting green? Clearing her throat she coughed "You heard the question?"

The yellow man nodded before leaning back in the chair and touching the beer can which changed into a champagne flute and he took a sip before sighing "It's not a simple question, unlike every other person on this planet" a thin gray remote magically appeared in his hand and he pressed a few buttons and Black Sabbath's self titled song started playing softly

What is this that stands before me?

Figure in black which points at me

He smiled and hummed along with a few chords while Raven pondered the question the line gave, what really stood before her? Knowledge started again "As I said, we are different than all other people. We did love you once, but being snubbed and lied to as we were was…unpleasant. I do not know if we are in love with you now. There are two people who serve as indicators for that. One is Rage and the other is Fenris."

The dark psychic started at the words "Then…could I talk to Rage?"

This time the orb was, predictably, red and the same change happened, only this time the flute turned into a bottle of vodka and the music turned into Every Rope a Noose by The Black Dahlia Murder. He took a deep swig and snarled "What do you want?" she realized that it was an act. Rage was beyond tired, the tired anger she could deal with.

"I have some questions…" he rolled his eyes "First I want to know if you love me"

He snarled softly "Don't open this can of worms, woman, I doubt you know half of what you're getting into"

She put a hand on his arm "Then enlighten me"

The red emotions rubbed his eyes lightly "We don't love like normal people, that's part of the problem…if you want more, talk to the wolf…it's his fault anyways"

She gulped "C-could you please take me?" he rolled his eyes and with a flash of light all the orbs rushed into the room.

He smiled and skipped a few feet and turned with a scowl before brightly saying "Follow me, you back-stabbing bitch!" and walking away leaving her stunned and a little annoyed.

Fenris was under the tree and he silently led her away and out of Emotions hair. They stopped at a magnificent cave, it reminded her of a book. She tapped her chin lightly until the wolf snapped her out of her thoughts with a quite but heavy "Yes?"

"Oh, nothing, it reminds me of something out of a book…but I can't remember which one"

"A Lanterman's Tale, the entrance to the Afterlife…Garfield got his inspiration from this place"

She snorted "What? Are you saying that Garfield wrote that?" he nodded and she ended with a simple "oh".

She watched as he let out a small bark and Instinct walked out on all fours, he gave a rough approximation of a smile and wandered off. Fenris led her in to a cave with a large comfortable rug covering every inch and a large book shelf.

The wolf lead her to a corner and from the darkness pulled a chair. Once she was comfortable he sat down on the carpet "So what did you want to speak to me about?" she hadn't realized it but he had a faint accent.

She repeated her question "Is Garfield in love with me…and honestly I don't know why I'm asking you"

He gave a rough approximation of a smile "I suppose you spoke to Rage?"

She nodded "But he didn't answer or even explain why I needed to ask him"

The wolf lowered his eyes "This is my…fault. You see, Garfield's emotions were separated because when he decided to kill those people he couldn't take the pain…because I am bound to him. I'm a personification of rage, even more so than your emotion. When he took me in it bound my emotions to his, and they went haywire, his happy would out laugh Happy, his shyness could out run Timid and his anger could scare your father out of life itself. It was bad, but as such we share emotions only I can truly feel them. That would be why you needed to talk to me."

She leaned on the arm for a moment "And my first question?"

Fenris growled at his feet "Yes, damnably so"