Disclaimer: Ah, guess what? You'll never guess! I don't own the Teen Titans!

A/N- Ok, I hope this chapter renews your interests. Please review and inform me of your opinions. Thank you for reading and reviewing, and enjoy!

He stooped in the darkness that was his only ally, his only friend. He felt its presence; he had grown so dark it was apart of him now. That was why, he surmised, this planet's weather conditions could react so violently when exposed to his power. This planet, this place; it could be corrupted, was corrupted; but only to a point. These few unique guardians whom he had spent his life studying were like blazing torches that held back the descent into chaos that would lead to eternal night. There was too much faith in them that the beings of this planet held; it was like a physical barrier that literally clashed with his invading will. There were others who stood up against the light, who fought against those guardians. But there were none like him. The prophesied chosen one, Raven, she could be like him. In many ways she already was. But, unlike him, she pained herself to resist the allure of the simpler path; she chose to uphold the light. THAT would soon change, if all went according to his plans. The first strike had commenced; it was open war now. It was dangerous to expose that much darkness to her fragilely balanced mind; he could have harmed her worse. However, she had proven herself strong, worthy of her future title. All that remained was to destroy her companions; their loss would shock her into submission. He could have attacked them already, but no- he would get to them in due time. He had been schooled in strategy well, and knew never to underestimate his opponents, and never to leap too hastily into a conflict. He remembered also, however, never to pass up an opportune ambush. He must decide then, whether to wait and observe the results of his challenge, or whether to follow up on his stunning preemptive strike. As he pondered this, his highly enhanced intellect detected a third option, a compromise. He made a mental selection, and prepared himself for the coming battle.

Raven's P.O.V.

Robin, Cyborg, and BeastBoy were also pondering a strategy. They had all unanimously decided upon what they wanted to do, but were perplexed when presented with what they had to do. They had listened to Raven's story over and over, discussing possible perpetrators and motives all afternoon. No one knew what a 'sith' was, and no one was getting any closer to a possible answer. They were stumped and emerged from their discussions with no sensible outcome. Help was out of the question; it would take days for a signal to reach Starfire. They all knew a retaliatory action was necessary and very much in want, but by now they were seriously undermanned and confounded over what to do with Raven.

"We can't just march out on patrol and leave her here to fend for herself!" Robin brought up a good point.

"I know that! But if we just lie around here waiting, how do we know he won't come back to polish up on the job even with us here!" Hmmm… also an interesting fact from Cyborg.

"Yeah, I say either way we're gonna run into this guy, and when we do, Raven can't be with us or be here. I mean there could be more than one of these dudes who has a thing for her. You never know about the crazy ones." BeastBoy started out with a legitimate concern and then crashed and burned on it with an ill-timed joke, which evoked nothing but cricket chirps and glares. Raven had taken a short nap, after which she awoke, resolute that she was fine, contrary to her former appearance. She had been viewing the non-stop chaotic brainstorm session of her teammates in silence from her position on the couch ever since she had retold the event of her frightening experience for the fifth time. She mentally evaluated each presented option and compared it with one of her own. Neither Raven nor any of the guys had gotten anywhere, when suddenly an idea formed in her head.

"Robin, I think I- Robin! Robin!" She gestured impatiently to the masked teen, who ducked out of yet another doomed round of idea swapping and quickly stepped to her side.

"Sorry, what is it, Raven?"

"I was thinking about something he said. He told me to 'search my mind's deepest and darkest corners.' She was thinking hard, trying to form a puzzle that was missing a piece. By now, Cyborg and BeastBoy had stopped mid-gesture to hear her.

"Do you have any idea what that means?" A puzzled green face looked up at her.

"No, but I think I know someone who does…" She trailed off, as she made a connection. "And I'd be safe there, leaving you three free to search…"

"Hey Rae," Cyborg spoke for the other two. "I think you lost us here."

"I could go to Azarath, and ask my mother about all this. She can probably help me. And-"

Robin finished her sentence for her, "And since nothing can follow you there, we wouldn't have to stress about keeping you safe!"

"Only one problem." Raven hesitated.

"Which is…?" BeastBoy asked.

"What about your safety? How do you know this- whatever he is- can't eliminate you as easily as he did me?" Raven look worried as another piece in her puzzle vanished.

Robin looked grim. "We don't have much of a choice. He obviously wants you, and we have to try and find out why, all of us. Maybe we can talk to him."

Cyborg grinned viciously. "Or maybe we can kick his but."

"It is the best idea so far, and I don' know how much time we have." Robin mused.

"Alright then," Raven reluctantly agreed, "I'll go make the preparations." She stood up and stretched. "The ritual shouldn't take too long, just so that-" Abruptly the overhead lights cut out, the power shut off, the backup generator died, and thunder rolled across the sky in the distance. Raven froze, and a chill crawled up her spine. "No!" she whispered, as an icy grip settled on her heart. "He's here…"

Change P.O.V.

Robin was the first to move, he took the initiative well. From what Raven told him, they didn't have long. "Cyborg, BeastBoy, lock us in, watch our backs! Raven!" He looked; saw her pale face, shaking hands. "No, Raven! Fight it! Come on, we have to get you out of here!" He seized her hand, as Cyborg accessed the Tower defense grid, and activated the lockdown sequence, via his right arm. Beastboy turned into a little green bat and sat on the floor, cocked an ear.

"Good thinking BeastBoy, tell us if you hear anything. Cyborg, I'll take her back to her room, make sure she completes the ceremony. You two stay here, guard the hallway." He looked darkly at the determined, seven foot tall, heavily armed, and super strong teen that stood before him. "And if he gets in here make him seriously regret it!"

Cyborg grinned, gritting his teeth, as his arm transformed into his favorite weapon, and it began to glow blue. "That I can do!" He hissed. Robin knew he could count on them as he took off down the hallway, half carrying a stunned Raven down it till he arrived at her door. They stepped inside, and he laid her gently on the floor, and knelt beside her.

"Ok, Raven, tell me what you need!" He leaned over her, gently shook her.

"Raven, we really need to get you out of here, now we need you to do this!"

With effort and help Raven elevated herself to a sitting position. She was doing better; she didn't look near as bad as the first time. She was still breathing hard, but she obviously was back in control. She gestured to a cabinet at the far end of the room.

"Get the vials out of that cupboard, all of them, and I'll show you what to do." She rasped. Robin went over to them, and they began the ceremony.

Change P.O.V.

Against the night that encased the odd-looking landmark out on the island, against the shadows stood a greater darkness, perched and patiently waiting, watching, calmly observing the spectacle within. He had watched for hours, as the four hopelessly confused beings held a gathering mere meters from his position. He could decipher from their motions and movements, expressions and reactions practically everything that was said. They knew nothing of him, his purpose, his goals, or his motives. His enemies were so comfortable in their lives that they never expected this. They were in the dark, completely senseless, unaware, vulnerable, and weak. He had performed reconnaissance on his adversaries, and now he could strike when they were at their worst, and he at his best. His selection of his third option was about to pay off. He reached into his mind and withdrew the dam that had back the torrent of his power. He loosened the dark energy that waited within his core; a dark furnace of raw power that he had spent years taming until his heart had been taught to obey his mind. He shook loose its bonds now, and felt it embrace him, felt it flow into and back out of him, felt it tear into the skies above and strike hard against the barrier that lay there. There the two sides churned together; striking like flint against steel, until electricity lashed the heavens and fell to earth, and the winds began to twirl his cloak. His mind cleared to the task at hand. He had been detected; two of his targets had quickly left his field of view, leaving two behind; two that were alert and ready. No matter, so was he. He spun from his post out into the flickering night, fell, then felt the dark lift him up into a graceful arc and down into a glide. The warrior descended from the skies, cloak spread like billowing wings, and with a flick of the hand, sent forth an invisible wave effortlessly shattering the transparent view port. He leaped through its absence, and into battle.

Change P.O.V.

Cyborg looked over at his companion, who had currently assumed the form of a green bloodhound, sniffing at the air and cocking his head, listening for any unwelcome sounds.

"You pick up any thing, B.B.?" Cyborg was tense, uneasy. He hated waiting for stuff to happen, he preferred to just jump right in there and go.

His neighbor moved and became human again. "I can't smell anything, and there's too much noise from the storm to make anything out."

"Guess we just wait here then, and- wait! What was that?" Cyborg straightened his arm-cannon, pointed it, and began slowly walking towards the window.

"What was what?" BeastBoy demanded.

Cyborg walked right up to the window, peering through it suspiciously. "Thought I saw something, like a shadow. Never mind, it's probably noth-" At that point the entire window exploded inwards, towards both of them. Cyborg was hurled clean off his feet and through the air like a rag doll, where he collided with a stunned BeastBoy, who caught a glimpse of glass and black cloth before he was knocked off his feet. The two of them rolled off of each other and into unsightly heaps on the floor. They both sprang back to their feet to witness the being that knelt before them in the emptiness of the shattered window frame. The figure was shrouded in a swirling cloak, blacker than anything either of them had ever seen. It was tall, about six feet, and moved with grace and inhuman smoothness. It arose, and with an elegant twist removed and discarded its wing like covering to the floor, revealing a shell of black armor, almost medieval, but subtly twisted and suitably modern in a fascinating way. The armor it wore was spiked at the shoulders, and appeared very durable, and yet lightweight and manageable; with intricate interwoven plates flawlessly fused into a full body covering. The only feature that surpassed the armor was the eyes of its owner. Infinitely deep pools of frozen radiant blue, no pupils, just a pair of icy corneas, which scrutinized them with expressionless care.

Cyborg recovered first. "Who are you, why are you here, and what do you want?" He growled at the intruder. Whoever this guy was, his introduction didn't intimidate the Titan's tallest member. He had seen, fought, and defeated guys like this all the time; this was going to be no different.

The intruder spoke, with a dark and yet pleasant tone. "My business here is none of your concern, all you need trouble yourself with now is your survival."

BeastBoy, being the rash individual he was, decided to cut short any annoying formalities and to initiate a fight. He snarled at the opposing figure. "Worry about yourself loser, cause you're going down!" Before Cyborg could prevent him, his partner had morphed into a tiger and charged the black knight.

To Cyborg, it looked like this. The black clad intruder calmly stretched forth an outspread gauntlet covered hand, made a fist, pulled that fist back like he was preparing to swing a punch, and suddenly BeastBoy's leap accelerated midair and he was thrown past his target and out the window, where he fortunately changed into a hawk and circled back around. By now, Cyborg found himself firing a sonic blast at the dark character while charging by his teammate's example. The target raised another hand to meet the blue beam, which was reflected back to its source on contact. The blue and white armored Titan was struck hard by his own energy, and sent spinning off to slam into a wall, where he fell to the floor, followed by a large portion of the shattered support he just hit. He lay there, momentarily stunned.

BeastBoy was furious and confused. He had been effortlessly tossed out a window, and his friend had just as easily been taken down. The green teen tried a different approach, this time changing from a bird to an enraged gorilla in midair, and fell, hands swinging, double fisted together, poised to pulverize the infuriating attacker. But, once again, his blow never landed. With a gesture similar to the one first used, the adversary sent BeastBoy careening straight down through the floor, and then back up through it, and into the ceiling. Finally, his body trailing debris, BeastBoy was ripped free of the ceiling, hurled once again out the window, far out across the sky, and then down onto the hard surface of the water, where he sank limply into the cold murky depths.

With a roar, Cyborg literally exploded out of the pile he had been buried in, flew across the room, and began swinging, catching his opponent off guard and almost managing to hit him. But, none of Cyborg's rage-powered offensive strikes actually landed. The intruder regained his footing and easily dodged and spun out of the path of every last attack, as the cybernetic assailant's fists struck and destroyed walls, large sections of the floor, overhead fixtures, and anything else that stood in his way. It seemed his target was gaining more and more distance between them when suddenly the shadow leapt up and floated backwards in a well-calculated arc across the room, and then shot back across the distance like a blazing black comet, his fist shining with blue electricity. Before Cyborg could even move, it hit him in an explosion of sparks, smoke, shards of blue and white metal, and eerie blue light. Cyborg felt himself lifted up, as pieces of his shattered chest danced in the air before him, heard himself scream, felt himself flying through a window, saw sparkling pieces of glass, and staring down at him, as he fell, he saw those merciless cold eyes of ice admiring their work. Darkness and silence consumed his world before he struck the ground. Like a broken and discarded toy, Cyborg flopped into the waters and sank like a stone, as spears of lightning crossed the sky, and thunder rolled in answer.