Okay so here's where the T rating really comes in. Warning: some pretty intense/gory-ish scene(s) ahead.

Ah, also review. Please. I'm glad that you all have gotten so deep into this story. Don't worry, everything will get better soon. And I promise it won't be TOO soon because honestly . . . a good story takes time. I don't want this story to be to short.

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Chapter VII — Garfield L.

His life had never been so confusing, and his mind had never been so messed up. He didn't know if he was mad anymore. But at the same time, he was still furious beyond anything he thought possible.

Standing on that rooftop, he had only half-listened to the words that were coming out of this new villain's mouth. The rest of his attention was focused on keeping his eyes off of her. When the drones came in to distract Raven, Richard and himself, he welcomed the distraction.

Then Tantalus had taken her. And something deep inside himself snapped. He was still angry, he was still hurt, and he was still without a reasonable doubt not ready to forgive her, but he couldn't and absolutely wouldn't let Raven be taken from her friends be a man who killed because he lacked emotions.

The rest of the world blurred behind his senses and he sprinted towards the edge of the building. Halfway there, he leaped in the air and transformed into a triceratops, the point of his horn barely missing the edge of the bubble.

Garfield Mark Logan, beat the bubble!

He gritted his teeth and transformed into an eagle. Speeding towards the air speeder, he felt the energy of Raven's power on the tip of his beak, causing the feathers at the base of it stand up. He made eye contact with Raven through the energy then —

Then he was caught in a net. He tried flapping his wings harder, but managed to get more tangled. In fear of breaking a wing, or in this case also an arm, Garfield transformed back into himself and watched hopelessly as the speeder whizzed away and as he began to fall.

He looked up and saw Raven's eyes meet his and he forgot about his pain for a second. He forgot about the hurt that had plagued him for the entire day and looked into her eyes. And he knew what she wanted him to do. Then something flashed across her face and before he could identify it, the speeder was gone, and he was about to hit the ground.

Garfield gave a shout and closed his eyes as he braced himself for the impact against the ground. The impact never came. He felt a jerk and opened one eye. His face was a foot off the ground.

Garfield twisted and found that Richard had hooked him with a grappling hook and let out a sigh of relief.

"Hey! Richard! I know you have great connections with the Batman, but frankly, hanging upside down is not a favorite position for me." There wasn't an answer and Garfield gave a huff before he turned into a small mouse and crawled through the net and fell that one foot distance.

Garfield heard himself squeak as he hit the ground and shook his head. He turned into a cat and slinked his way around the building and through a window. Once inside he turned back into himself and rolled his head around.

"Gosh, that fall."

He made his way towards the door and suddenly stopped. Everything was catching up with him, back in full swing.

Raven. Mark. Secrets. Hurt. Pain. A bond of trust. Broken.

No. Just . . . cut. Not broken. If he thought like that, then he wouldn't be able to make himself care.

He thought about the long years that she had lied in his face, deceived him at every turn, turned down his every advance once he had broken up with . . . he didn't allow himself to think about his past girlfriend. Not now.

Garfield pushed the whirlwind of emotions back for the millionth time and ran towards the rooftop. In the heroes hall, he almost plowed directly over the man he was looking for. "Rick!"

Richard looked at him with panic in his eyes, and Garfield knew that everything that had happened to them had happened completely and absolutely unexpectedly.

"Quick. We need to track him."

Garfield didn't question him and quickly followed Richard towards his room. When he entered he was quickly hit with the smell of Kori's perfume. Garfield opened his mouth to comment, but decided against it.

Richard went to his computer sitting on the desk and with a few clicks had a map up with a blinking red dot traveling across the city.

"You put a tracking device on his speeder," Garfield said quietly in admiration.

"Yes, I did. However, I have no idea whether or not Tantalus knows of it. I mean, he knew my secret identity, yours, he knew the Batman knew about him, and he knew where we were hiding the people of the city. This guy has connections everywhere, and an incredible mind . . . I don't know if it's a trap or not."

Garfield made a point of ignoring Richard's warnings. "We need to follow it."

"We don't know if we'd be running into another trap or not."

"No! We need to go now!"

The room fell silent, and Garfield found that his shoulders were heaving with whatever effort he was using in suppressing his emotions. He didn't give Raven enough credit for doing this for years.

"Garfield. You're investing too much of yourself into this. I care for Raven too, but if we don't approach this rationally then we could put her in more danger than there's already."

Garfield took a step forward to contradict his friend but paused. Then with a frustrated grunt, exited the room and headed back to the roof of the building. The roof was gone, and the top was covered in residue from the chaos that had occurred just half an hour ago.

He sat down, not quite sure what to think now.

He was still mad at Raven, and if he thought about it enough, he knew that for the rest of his life this would leave a mark on him. He also knew that for the rest of his life he couldn't afford to be so angry at her. It did nothing but hurt more if he chose to stay angry at someone he . . .

He what? How did he know that what he felt was genuine? Garfield placed his head in his hands. His last relationship he had thought was . . . something that he would never feel again. The time before that — Terra — he had assumed that she was his forever girl. But now it felt as if for sure this was it. Nothing had made his insides burn this much. Had made him crave something he didn't have as much. And yet . . .

Something inside of him doubted a little bit. Terra had been amazing, then there was . . . her . . . and that had been even more indescribable. Then . . . Raven. Her very name and face in his head sent a pleasant chill down his spine.

He couldn't think about this now. He just . . . couldn't. Garfield looked around a little to make sure that no one was in sight. Then he transformed into a peregrine falcon and shot off in the direction Tantalus and Raven had disappeared. His sharp eyesight gave him a good view of everything around him.

Garfield told himself to heed Richard's advice and not act too rashly because he could end up making many things worse. Also he was perfectly aware of how smart Tantalus was — how many resources the man seemed to have.

Garfield flapped his wings in three more powerful strokes and glided smoothly in the sky, his head looking down and straight in front of him, ready to see something that would shine like a beacon, telling him exactly where Tantalus had gone.

Garfield saw some men walking back in forth in front of a building on the outskirts of the city and he circled the building once or twice before he realized that these men were armed. And dressed in black armor.

This is it.

Garfield began to dive, but caught himself and instead flew a few blocks away before transforming back into himself. This was too easy. Tantalus was expecting someone to have followed him.

Garfield thought long and hard before he came up with a plan that was bound to get him into humongous trouble from . . . well a lot of people he knew.

Garfield transformed back into the falcon and glided down to the street. A foot off the ground he turned into a cheetah, the feeling of the looseness in his spine gave him an increased confidence and he flicked his tail in anticipation.

Garfield walked another block, getting used to his body before he turned to the right onto another street, the building guarded at the end. His increased sight pointed out security cameras in the general vicinity of the building. He spotted tiny little turrets attached to the cameras and realized he was smart in approaching the building like this.

The men kept pacing back and forth in front of the door.

Garfield narrowed his eyes. He knew there was an underground section of this building. Somewhere Tantalus kept his prisoners . . .

Garfield gave a growl before he sprinted towards the door. The men didn't take long to notice the enormous green cheetah sprinting towards them. Both positioned their guns and began to fire. Garfield laughed inside his head when he realized he was going to fast for them to aim and shoot at him.

The cameras spotted him and a red light on them began to flash repeatedly as alarms rang and the turrets began firing. He gave a sharp growl before he dove on top of the nearest man and rolled. When he stood up again, he was himself again and he held the man's gun.

He quickly shot the other man in the shoulder so that the man fell, too injured to fight again, but most certainly not dead. Garfield knew he was above the killing Tantalus so nonchalantly took part in.

Garfield opened the doors and quickly turned into a mouse. The men aligned in the hall all began to fire at the green man who first opened the doors, but were confused when he seemed to disappear.

Then they spotted the mouse scampering halfway across the room.

Garfield's sensitive hearing almost exploded when he heard the gunshots all firing at once, the bullets making the floor around him explode. His tiny heart was racing and he decided he needed to change forms before he ended up having a heart attack of his ears imploded.

Garfield turned around in the form of a tyrannosaurus rex and roared in such a way that he knew the building vibrated.

Good. Let him know I'm here. Let her know I'm here.

The men's bullets pierced his skin, but they felt no more than scratches due to his hide, his size, his fury, and his drive.

Garfield turned around and threw a few men across the room with his tail and he began to march towards the elevator. He hit one of the little triangles with his snout.

Very conspicuous, Gar. T-Rex. Elevator. Roaring.

Garfield smirked and turned back into himself as the elevator dinged and the doors opened. Garfield gave a mock salute to the men who were left and then ducked with a quick "Whoa!" as they began to fire.

He punched the basement button and the doors closed not a moment too soon. The doors dented inwards as the men began to pound at the door with the butt of their guns. Garfield pinned himself to the opposite wall, his heart pounding, and his body filled with adrenaline.

The plan was actually going better than he thought. But he knew that Tantalus was aware of the fact that he would have eventually come. However, there was a chance he didn't know he would show up so soon.

The doors opened and the room that was shown was dark. A lit hallway branched off of the room. Garfield carefully walked across the room, glancing down at the desks scattered around it.

He arrived at the hallway and found only three doors along the right side of the wall. The left wall was covered with paintings. Garfield chose the door labelled "Guests". This man had a sick sense of humor.

Garfield opened it up and was greeted with a hall filled with sub offices in the side, giant clean windows revealing everything inside them. Many of the rooms had tables with people on them — what used to be people. Either they were dead or . . . changed. Garfield saw a man with purple skin and claws unconscious in one room. He saw a part cat creature in another room and then a dog with human eyes . . . Garfield decided he was done looking.

Another door branched off labeled 'Offices.' On the opposite wall was a wall labeled 'Waiting'. Garfield entered to the 'Waiting' room and saw another long hallway of cells almost like a prison. Each cell was separated from the next ones by concrete walls; iron bars kept the prisoners from escaping into the narrow walkway Garfield was on.

Many of the prisoners were asleep . . . or drugged which was Garfield's guess. At the end of the hall was an iron door which Garfield found unlocked. Inside, he found the room divided into two enormous cells. In between them was a five foot wide walkway. Against the far wall was a desk with papers and a computer. No one sat behind it.

The cell on his right was empty. The floor wooden, the bars a stronger metal than iron or steel. The walls were most definitely titanium or some sort of impossibly sturdy metal.

The cell on his left had an occupant slumped in the far corner curled up in a ball and completely unconscious. Her hair covered her face and her cloak had been thrown carelessly on top of her as if it had been stripped off of her, inspected, then tossed back on top of her like a blanket.

"Raven . . ."

Then Garfield was aware of a presence from behind him and before he could react, something made a sharp contact with the back of his head and inky blackness followed.

He woke up with his face against the wall. Raven's voice floated towards him and he quickly rolled around and saw her angrily talking to the man he assumed sat at that desk all day.

"— talk to me himself," she was saying, her arms crossed and her stance clearly telling anyone looking that she wasn't taking a 'no' for an answer.

"The Master is busy always. You need to accept that if you're going to stay here," the man growled.

Raven suddenly reached out and scratched him across the face with her fingernails. Garfield determined by the man's hiss and the way he brought his hand to his face that Raven had drawn blood.

Raven smiled coldly at the man. "And I'm never going to do anything you say. There's something to remember me by."

Garfield felt immense pride swell inside of him then he tilted his head in thought. Why didn't she just use her powers? Something was wrong . . .

The man was cursing like there was no tomorrow then glared at Raven. "I'll get you for that you little —"

"Gar!" Raven's angry shout made both Garfield and the man jump in shock at the sudden volume from the normally neutral demoness. Garfield noticed her chakra stone stood out more than normal on her forehead and he realized how pale she had gotten at seeing him.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Hey. Raven."

The guard took that moment to pull out a taser and sent more than a few volts of electricity through the empath's body. Raven collapsed to the floor of her cell with her jaw and hands clenched.

"Freak." The man's obvious scorn made Raven flinch and Garfield knew that he had struck a nerve. Raven had always had trouble fitting in. Even in the world of superheroes.

Garfield stood up and tried to transform into a bear so he could roar in the man's face, but nothing happened. He looked at his hands in brief shock. The man saw Garfield's surprise. He smirked.

"'Master's given you his special serum. He hasn't found a way to make it permanent, but I'm pretty sure once you've been here a while and that stuff has been floating in your system for a few weeks, something is bound to happen."

Garfield gave a deep growl towards the man and felt a sharp victory in his stomach as the man took a step back.

Raven had risen shakily to her feet and was glaring at Garfield in a way that made him avoid her gaze hurriedly.

The guard brought out his taser but then his phone on his desk rang. The man growled in frustration and went to his phone and answered it; the entire time he kept his eyes on Garfield.

"Yeah? Well you can tell him — huh? Again? Urg. I'll be right there." He hung up the phone and headed out the door. He stopped right in front of Garfield and looked up at him since he was on a raised platform. "I'll be back, and when I am, you'll welcome what Tantalus has coming for you."

The door slammed behind him.

Garfield guiltily looked up at Raven and flinched when she spoke.

"How's Mark?" Her cold tone struck him just as much as if she had yelled at him.

"I . . . I'm sure he's fine. I just —"

"You know his safety should be your main concern!" Raven's eyes looked at him in anger, fear, and . . . something was hidden deep in her eyes. That same something she had flashed at him when she was taken away. Garfield couldn't identify it. Not yet.

"I know I just . . . GAAAGGHH!" he roared in frustration. "None of this was supposed to happen! All I could think about was getting you back and now you're bringing something up I was trying not to be angry with you about?!"

Raven crossed her arms and glared at him, hurt flashing across her eyes as well as that guilt she had shown him the night everything had come into the open.

"Trying not to be angry? Who was avoiding me all day? Who refused to say a word to me other than to push me further into my guilt? Who refused to acknowledge the responsibility I kept from you for your own safety? Who chose to abandon their son for someone who's smart enough to escape on their own?"

Garfield flinched at her emphasis on the word 'son'. He hadn't thought much about Mark since he had learned about Raven't lies. Raven's scolding finally brought to light something he hadn't dwelled on with much depth. He had a son. Someone who would adore him. Love him. Someone who needed him. Someone he could love. Someone he could adore. Someone Raven cared for more than her own life.

He put hand on his face. "I'm so, so sorry Raven." His voice came out muffled. "I'm just really confused right now. With everything. With . . . life."

Raven uncrossed her arms and gripped the bars in front of her and pressed her forehead against them. Garfield did the same.

"You have every right," she whispered so softly he almost missed it. His sharp ears caught it and he remembered the night before they had infiltrated the underground base of Tantalus' when she had said the same thing.

"Raven . . ." he began.

"No. I should be the one to apologize for . . . for more than I can apologize for. I just . . ."

Garfield studied her face as she stared hard at the floor beneath her. He felt himself relax as he studied her. She was so familiar to him. So . . . natural.

"I just," Raven paused, "couldn't . . . I couldn't face everyone and everything. Everything I was feeling, seeing, dealing with."

Garfield didn't say anything. Raven slowly looked up at him. "I'm so, so, so sorry, Gar. For everything."

The sincerity in her apology made Garfield freeze as his emerald eyes looked into her dark, now openly expressive eyes. She was searching his eyes for his acceptance. For his forgiveness. And it made him stop and think. Did he forgive her?

He knew he couldn't afford to stay mad at her forever, but he also knew he still needed time. Garfield slowly nodded. "I know you are. But that doesn't mean that I have everything decided."

Raven nodded and looked away. She drew a deep breath and let it out. "You came really quickly."

Garfield gave a small smile. "Yeah . . . Richard didn't know I left. Hope he doesn't panic."

Raven gave a small snort. "Richard? Calm?"

They both shared a small smile at the mention of Richard's normal attitude.

Garfield felt a little more relaxed in the calmer atmosphere between them. The tension, though it was only there for a day, had been hard to maintain and hard to move through.

Garfield looked up at Raven's face and saw that she had been studying him with a small smile that seemed like she wasn't aware that she was sporting.

And he realized with a shock as his eyes met hers again that he wanted nothing more than to be right next to her so that he could tilt her chin up so that he could look closely into her eyes and plant his mouth on hers.

Raven flushed and looked down at her feet in uncharacteristic shyness and he felt his face grow warm as he remembered that she was an empath — she could feel his emotions. The rush of desirable passion that had flown through him must have been strong enough for her to sense.

He opened his mouth to say something before the door opened and in marched Tantalus escorted by two enormous gruff looking men and a man who looked like a doctor and carried a briefcase.

"Hello Ms. Roth. Mr. Logan. How are we feeling today?" Tantalus asked nonchalantly.

Garfield gritted his teeth. "Tantalus."

The man looked up with raised eyebrows. "Yes. That's me. How are you Mr. Logan? Are your powers still nonexistent?" A wolfish gleam appeared in his eyes. "Oh, you'll both love what I have in store for you today."

The two muscly men opened Raven's cell and entered it. Each on grabbed an arm and forced her onto her knees. Raven didn't say a word but the defiance in her eyes as she was forced down made Tantalus grin.

"You hurt a hair on her head and I swear —"

"It won't be her head I'll be hurting, Mr. Logan. In fact, if anything I'll be hurting you more than her when I'm finished with her. Oh, I've seen the way you two act around each other." Tantalus raised an eyebrow at Garfield's obvious confusion. "Oh, come on. You cannot expect not to be able to see what is so obviously there to the rest of the world."

Tantalus sighed. "Oh well. You see, I needed your team's blood so that I could build something I've never built before. I also needed you and Ms. Roth in person because both of your DNA possess something exquisite that I've never seen before.

"However, to see the true extent of your capabilities, I'm afraid I will have to test some . . . variables to make sure they aren't ones I need to worry about."

The doctor pulled out a long shot filled with purple liquid. He injected it into Raven's trapezius.

Raven's cry of obvious pain made Garfield shout in protest, but Tantalus merely tsked and shook his head. "That was the painkiller. What follows will be much worse. But if you cooperate, I'll make it fast. Fair warning, most don't live through the first day. However, I believe in her."

Tantalus nodded towards the doctor, and the small wiry man pulled out what looked like a scalpel. Garfield felt his throat go dry. However, no matter what he did, he couldn't force himself to look away.

Raven looked up at him, pleading at him, but Garfield stood there hopeless.

One of the large men extended her right arm with the inside of her forearm facing up towards the ceiling. Garfield saw her veins become more defined as she tried to fight against the impossible strength holding her in a position against her will.

When she gets her powers back, they'll regret the day they were born.

Raven's eyes clenched tight, some tears escaping when the doctor cut into her forearm. Garfield roared in the place of Raven's silent screaming. Blood hit the floor of her cell, but none of the men around her seemed to care.

"Hmm . . . her healing powers will come in handy," Tantalus muttered to himself.

Garfield felt tears on his cheeks as he continued to scream. Raven's arm was indeed seeming to heal itself as the doctor continued to search for . . . something.

The doctor soon found whatever it was and nodded. He took a step back and looked at Tantalus. "She has the artery you spoke of."

"I knew it was more than just a theory," Tantalus muttered aloud. "The next test will tell us more about her heritage. I need to know more about that impressive power her father possesses . . ."

"Stop! I'll do anything just stop!" Garfield heard himself yell hoarsely. He hadn't taken his eyes off of Raven who looked unconscious, her head hanging forwards loosely. The pain had been too much.

"Now, Mr. Logan, I may just take you up on that offer." He looked closely at Raven's face. "Mr. Ka, would you be willing to lift her head up a little . . ."

The man who held Raven's left side took her hair and pulled back so that Raven was looking somewhat up. Tantalus studied her face.

"Doctor, what's that on her forehead?"

The doctor brushed a finger lightly against her chakra stone. "I believe it's a chakra stone."

"Hmm . . . eventually I may need to look into that further. I wonder . . ."

Garfield began to panic and he tried once more to turn into an animal. Any animal. Something was blocking his abilities and Garfield mentally roared at the wall. He beat it and kicked it until it cracked, and that was all he needed. Garfield turned into a bear and roared. He pushed against the bars with all his strength but nothing happened.

Tantalus looked at Garfield in admiration. "I knew he'd be able to fight the serum. Hmm . . . a double dosage next time. Oh, Mr. Logan. Those bars are built to hold you. You will not escape."

Garfield turned back into himself and glared at Tantalus. "When I get out . . ." he let that unfinished threat hang in the air but Tantalus waved a hand dismissively.

"Didn't anyone tell you? No one gets out. At least, not the way they were before."

Garfield's blood turned cold at the man's uncaring eyes and realized the man had been right when he had given him and his friend's his backstory. He really felt . . . nothing.

"Not yet," he managed to say in a low voice.

Tantalus nodded his head towards Garfield. "Doctor."

Something shot at Garfield and all he saw was a red feathered dart sticking out from his chest before he collapsed on the floor of his cell.

I'll get us out, Raven. I promise . . .

Then he greeted unconsciousness like an old friend and his world went black.


Alternate POV

In his dream he was flying. It was a miraculous feeling, free and open. Then suddenly an arm reached out and grabbed him. Stuffed him in a cell.

It was stuffy. Uncomfortable. He looked across the room. Another cell?

"Uncle Gar?" he asked aloud. The familiar figure smiled at him in a way that made him feel warm inside.

Then men entered. He recognized the man in the special suit. He had hurt his mom.

Mark clenched his fists. He then felt himself be forced onto his knees and his arm was forced upwards. The bad smelling man approached him with a sharp thing and he closed his eyes, his screams echoing deep inside himself . . .

Then, in a building many miles away in a room empty but with the lingering scent of a familiar empath on the sheets of the lonely bed against the wall, Mark Roth opened his eyes and the building began to shake.


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