Chapter Seven
"The fires will rage, and worlds will burn!" It was him, his voice,his thunderous command. Surrounded by fire and stone, the demon Trigon towered above her. She knew what he was, the conqueror of one million worlds, the one true king of Hell, and a force beyond anything Earth had ever faced. To Raven, however,she had only one word for him. Father.
"You will be the vessel of my return. I shall quell this world of it's feeble warriors, and you will once again be mine to command!" He clenched his fist around the armrests of his goliath-like throne of dark stone.
"I won't let you father!" Her indigo cape fluttered behind her, as she released a small wave of force from her body. She had to fight him, even if she knew what it would mean.
"You will kneel! Or-" he lifted a titanic fist over her, his four slit eyes narrowing even further. "-You will be destroyed!" His fist drove down, and try as she might to move, her legs were paralyzed. The blow came crashing down and-
Raven jolted herself awake, sweat beating down her forehead. It was just a dream, she reminded herself. Just a dream. What hurt even worse was the knowledge that one day it wouldn't be. Trigon's return was inevitable.
"Oh good, you're awake." Leaning his back on the her door Damian Wayne twitched a half amused smile. He was, as usual, in his full Robin uniform, mask attached to the bridge of his nose almost like it was a permanent fixture. His eyes had always been obscured by the white lenses of the domino mask for as long as she'd known him.
"What are you doing in my room?! Were you watching me sleep!" She almost pushed herself out of bed, but realized she wasn't nearly clothed enough for that. With a snort of indignation, she willed her lavender uniform around herself, wrapping around her skin with an elegant flourish. She pulled her hood over her face, trying to cover her displeasure.
"Why are you here, Damian?" He took a step toward her, trying to act like he wasn't a 13 year old kid wearing red, green, and yellow. Robin gave a menacing glare.
"Because I have reason to believe my father is missing. And you're going to help me find him." Raven was still recovering from her dream, she must have misheard him.
"Wait, what makes you think I can help?"
"Simple. You're a supernatural conduit. A mystic with a pool of limitless potential, thanks to your own father. You're going to use that power, use it to return my father, the World's greatest hero back to this realm, and you're going to do it now."
"Hold on, just...You're telling me that your father is in another dimension? How is that possible?"
"I don't know if it is, but it's the only logical conclusion. His body has been absent from Earth, there is no evidence of a final battle or last stand as he would have wished, and none of his adversaries have taken the credit. That along with what I witnessed at the Cave."
"What did you see?"
"It was the butler. He was…" Damian stifled some sort of reaction, only to jump back to his usual angry self. "The old man was weeping." Raven put a hand over her mouth.
"That's...I'm sorry, Damian. I-"
"He's a fool, Raven. From a former international operative like him, I expected vengeance, not wallowing ."
"Damian, I don't think your father is-"
"He's alive, Raven. He's not on this world which obviously means that he is on another one. I spoke with Starfire, and she told me that the League doesn't not just fly out into space. There are protocols, preparations to be made, so they couldn't have just flown off. They weren't abducted either, an alien teleportation device would have sent some sort transceiver, of which I've found none; and after hacking ARGUS, STAR labs, and Lexcorp I realize that neither has anyone else. That could only mean one thing. Dimensional shifts. A Demon, or Spirit of some kind. That has to be it, all other possibilities are too outrageous or come up short of the truth."
"Robin, he's not-"
"He IS, Raven. My Father is alive, and he is lost somewhere in your plane of existence."
"I'm not of Hell. I've given up that life."
"No, but it was your origin. Your place of birth. You need to take me there, to have me pull my father out of the very jaws of Hell if need be." Damian sniffed, as his face began to shows signs emotions other than anger. He was...Sad.
"He's not dead okay! He's not. He-" Raven pulled him into a hug, letting the Boy Wonder sob into her shoulder.
"Shh, it's okay. It's okay."
"Why?!" He choked out harshly. "Why would he leave me?"
"I don't think he meant to." She closed her eyes, trying not to burst into tears herself. "I think he always loved you. He...I think he always wanted the best for you, for you to be what he couldn't."
"Oh yeah," Damian croaked. "And what's that?" He wiped the snot from his nose with his sleeve, lightly pushing her aside.
"A light. I think he always wanted the world for you, whether he told you or not...I think your father wanted you to do more good than he could. Or at least for you to make your own decisions." Robin stood up from the bed, trying to turn himself away from her.
"Then you clearly didn't know him." Raven took Damian's hand, and for a split second the two locked eyes. It was an unspoken understanding they had. They were both caged by their fathers, trying to be free from their pre-arranged destinies. Now Damian had the freedom to choose, be a hero like his father, or a monster like his grandfather, the cult leader Ras Al Ghul. Both equally influential men, but opposites in their view of the world.
"I think I knew The Batman though. You did too. Now you have to decide if you want to live up to that legacy, or make a new one for yourself." Damian's face tensed, as he grit his teeth in turmoil. His fists began to shake until he fell to his knees.
Damian let out an outcry of intense pain, as if his heart had literally been pierced. It was hard to see him like this, like some sort of wounded animal raving mad. He snarled, then took in a sharp breath, falling to all fours. He huffed his breaths, his hair falling over his face as he stared down at her floor.
Slowly, almost delicately she crouched beside him. Her arm made it's way over his shoulder, her cape dawning over him like a thin shield. Closing her eyes, she tapped at his mind, not digging, just brushing it with her telepathic abilities. With the faintest of efforts, she was trying to dig past the rage in his heart. The pain. The guilt. Eventually, while Damian was focused on his deep breaths, Raven got his to the source of his pain, to deal with it at it's core.
"Tell me truthfully, Damian, what's wrong? It isn't that you can't solve this case, or you don't know the man you want to be when you grow up. What is it?"
"I MISS HIM!" His body tensed one final time. "I MISS MY FATHER!" Raven cradled her friend as he wept in front of her. No one had ever trusted her with such intimacy, such vulnerability. It was so strange, helping people without fighting a criminal. She knew there was something else she had to do to make it really count.
"Damian. I'll do it."
"What?"
"I'll go to Trigon's domain. I'll find your father if he's there." She pulled him into a hug, and for the first time in a long time she let herself cry, now with him. Unlike Damian, however, it wasn't out of sorrow of losing someone, or joy that there was still hope. No, she cried out of the carnal fear that tore her up inside. She knew that there was no way her father would let her escape his domain, if he had the choice. Assuming Batman was in Hell, Raven would have to defeat her father to get him back.
"Thank you, Raven," Damian said honorably. "You are a true friend. I'm glad you are a member of the Teen Titans. I'm...I'm glad you're here." He tried hold her close again, probably still just for comfort, but she couldn't risk it. She closed herself off, leaving him sitting on the edge of her bed with arms half outstretched.
"You should get some sleep," she vocalized as monotone as she could, wiping her tears away. "It's nearly morning. We can talk more about this later." He left without another word, but before he did their eyes locked one more time. In that moment, her feelings betrayed her, and she could feel Damian discover the sacrifice she was willing to make for him. He gave a small nod of respect and leapt out her window into the night.
Raven let her head fall back on her pillow, afraid to fall asleep. Every night she dreamed of Trigon, and sooner than she thought possible, those nightmares were about to become reality. "I hope I know what I'm doing," she comforted herself. Raven tried her best to fall asleep, but her fear kept her awake until morning broke. Leaning passively on her window sill, she watched the sun rise. It was rising on a world where boys were forced to become men overnight, and little girls had to fight demons. Was there really anyone left to save them, or was it finally that inevitable day. The day when they would all have to learn how to save themselves.
