Ugh I've been waiting for this chapter for so long! I apologize for not having a longer action sequence and if it may seem I'm leaving stuff out, but everything will be wrapped up neatly in the last chapters.

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on with the show.

Chapter 9: Time to face your fears

Megan leapt for the nearest thing she could use as a weapon, in this case it was a fallen IV stand and began swinging at the apparition that appeared above them. The aluminum pole passed straight through the ethereal matter like it was nothing, but quickly got it's attention. It may have been an otherworldly matter, but when it back handed her out of it's way, it definitely felt solid. Megan crashed against the glass wall, allowing the Azarathian entity to move all of it's attention back onto Raven and Trigon grandchild.

"Now, Lord Trigon shall have a child that is one hundred percent obedient." Once again it spoke in a dark Azarathian language that only Raven could understand. But she'd freeze hell herself before she'd let anything associated with Trigon take her or her mates cub. This time when the contraction hit, she felt it at it's deepest level and expelled a shriek so powerful that it shook the glass box and the entity to it's very core. It quivered under the unnatural power before vanishing into the thin air of which it came from.

At least for now.

On the bright side, the cuffs that held her down had broken finally giving her more freedom to move. Raven disconnected herself from the machines which had long since shut off and pulled herself up from the bed and slowly, painfully, made her way over to the unconscious Megan. Her hands not once leaving her stomach.

"Megan," she called, but she was unresponsive. Raven dug deep frantically searching for her powers, and her inner demon, but everything was surrounding her womb attempting to keep her baby safe and though she was grateful it also left her vulnerable.

She shook Megan in an attempt to gain some response from her just as another contraction began to overwhelm her. She screamed, and awful sound that quickly brought Megan back to the world of the living.

"Raven what are you doing?!"

She had fallen onto her back and was breathing heavily. "I . . . need . . . " She froze in horror when the black mass returned.

"I am through with these games." It hissed. The mass slowly took shape into a more humanoid appearing being dressed in a long blood red robe with the hood drawn over it's face only showing four red eyes. The sleeves of the robe completely covered it's claws and how did she know it had claws? They were fully extended as it reached for her womb.

But though Raven may have been helpless, her child certainly wasn't. As soon as it's talons were inches away from her stomach, a light of pure white pushed the creature back causing it to curse in it's language, but hadn't detoured it for long. But on it's next strike, a wall of white energy appeared in front of them keeping the creature from it's prize.

"Your child can't hold this barrier forever." it snarled as it continued to slash at their protection.

"Gar," Raven breathed in pain, "Where are you?"


Garfield coughed to get the air back into his lungs after having it knocked out again for the eighth time. Just like when he faced his uncle in this suit before, it was geared specifically towards his animal shape shifting abilities and he had a response for each one.

He got to his hands and knees just in time to see Galtry looming over him.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, I expected more from you Craig. But then again, you always have been a miserable failure haven't you?"

Garfield charged as a lion, but once again was beaten back. "I've been watching you for some time boy, and all of it has been one crap fest after another. You failed the blonde Earth mover, failed your parents, failed your team over and over again, and yet you just keep fighting."

Garfield found himself on his hands and knees again, taking more kicks to the gut. "All I want to know is why? Why bother? Why not just crawl into a hole and give up like the pathetic coward that you are?"

Garfield slowly got to his shaky feet, this time Galtry allowing him. "You really wanna know why I don't just fall to pieces and die after everything I've been through, what men like you have put me through," he glared with pure hatred at his uncle, "I coulda been just like you. A bully who steals, and picks on those weaker and for what? Money? Power? See I got lucky. I found a new family. I found parents that loved me and a sister and brothers. But it gets better than that. I found a woman who, like me, was told every day of her life that she was nothing, nothing more than a freak. But she treated me like I coulda been more then just a shape shifting mess. She taught me to be a good friend, a hero, and a husband, just by thinking I was a kinda funny." With Garfield onto his feet he approached his uncle with a newfound strength. "Raven, my wife, shes the reason I keep going. She saved my life. She . . She saved me from myself."

Galtry, tired of listening to the boy, threw a punch only for his fist to be caught in the iron grip of his nephew. "I'm not some scared little kid anymore Nick and you won't Bully me anymore. And the name isn't Craig. It's Garfield, I'm Beast b- I'm Changeling.". With a strength he was unaware he had, he threw Galtry like he was a doll wrapped in tinfoil. With the knowledge that he wasn't going to be bullied any further, it was time to finish this.

Galtry got to his feet, his armored hands already pulsing with xenothium power to strike him down, but instead froze in horror.

Garfield had bent over in an unnatural position, his body stretching, snapping and ripping in god awful contortions as he grew in size and rage. Galtry stepped back, remembering this beast from his research into his nephew, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't excited to experience its wrath to its fullest.

He was telling the truth though. He wasn't afraid anymore.


The Azarathian entity continued pounding against the barrier, now seeing the progress of it's labors. On the other side, and exhausted, sweating, and now bleeding Raven sat on the ground with her midwife beside her.

"Raven you can't keep this up." She begged.

Raven, paler then normal, responded, "It's . . . not. . . me."

The demon howled in agony and it's attacks suddenly stopped. Both women glanced at the creature, but their attention was on the black and blue blur that was mercilessly beating it to a pulp. With one final push, Nightwing kicked the Azarathian demon back into the pointed tip of the demon killing blade in Drakes clenched fist, turning it into ash.

Nightwing didn't waste a second getting to Ravens side, but his eyes widened in horror seeing you he blood begin to pool by her groin. Megan was trying to monitor her when he grabbed her shoulder.

"What can I do?"

Megan, whose eyes were just as wide with fright, responded, "My son. He's trapped here somewhere."

Nightwing glanced at Drake, but he was already gone. "What about Raven?"

"Ever deliver a baby before?"


Pathetic.

Absolutely Pathetic.

With a roar the beast backhanded the metal man like he was nothing, but using the rockets on his boots, he blasted against him, throwing his fists into its ribs. He dug the claws from his back paws into the ground, but Galtry continued to push against the Mountain of fur and muscle. Galtry beat against the beasts sternum with a xenothium charged fist, successfully snapping ribs and puncturing organs. The beast punctured the back of his armor and threw him aside, already the sounds of the beasts injuries knitting themselves together echoed through the warehouse.

Salivating with rage and hunger, the beast charged at Galtry who had now rocketed into the air away from its talons. Galtry dove Into a dive like a torpedo towards the beast, but was caught easily and thrown into the ground. He began ripping pieces of Galtry's armor off in shreds, but a glowing orb in the center of his armor blasted the emerald monstrosity right off of him, burning its chest in a burning mess.

Galtry got to his feet, the only thing keeping him upright was the armor that had encased him. "Okay . . . I may have bitten off more then I can chew . . " The Beast tossed aside some of the crates it had crashed into. "How about I let you win this one –" before another word could be uttered the beast charged again wrapping his arms around Galtry's armored waist and took him to the ground.

He punched.

He slashed.

He ripped.

Until every piece of metal was torn from his uncles mangled body.

His rage diminishing, Garfield slowly allowed the beast to retreat to the far corners of his mind to resume it's hibernation, all the while he stood triumphantly over the man in the wrecked and destroyed suit of armor. With nails still as sharp as swords he clawed away at his helmet.

"You've lost again Galtry, and this time I'm going to . " he stopped speaking when he saw something seemed to be wrong with Galtry. His eyes were dull and unblinking. They stared aimlessly into the heavens, unmoving and expressionless. For one horrifying moment, he thought he had killed his uncle. Two fingers against his jugular revealed a pulse, but there were no signs of life in his features. "Dude, did I . . scare him to death?" But he's still alive?

"Gar!" He spun ready to rip at whomever had come, but it was only Drake, a young boy whimpering in his arms.

Garfield glanced at them both before he realized that their was no other sounds in the warehouse.

None.

"RAVEN!"

He bolted past Drake and the boy whom he assumed with Megan's kidnapped son, and ran for the glass box were she was kept, all the while he preyed that they were both still alive.

He was inches from the glass container, Drake and the boy right behind them, when a light, brighter then the sun at noon, accompanied by an ear shattering ringing, filled the warehouse. The two men dropped to their knees in pain as Drake attempted to shield the child, and their ears just as the windows shattered and shower them with glass and debris. But as soon as the event had begun it was over, plunging them into complete silence once again.

Garfield pulled himself up. His animal instincts shouting at him to run to his mate and cub, and painfully, he obeyed. He stumbled towards the box, his emerald eyes zeroed in on the violet haired woman on the ground. He pushed by Everyone present, not that he was sure who was around, he only saw his pale, exhausted, flat bellied wife.

"Raven," He caressed her face, giving a few light taps as he did so. "Raven . . I'm sorry I left you . . Please say something. . "

Her eyes slowly fluttered open, relief washing over him when he instantly recognized the beautiful colored amethyst eyes he knew and loved. A small smile tugged at her lips. "Hey Gar."

Okay she was fine. "Raven where – "

"Right here." Nightwing and ripped a large potion of Raven's cloak and was now holding something wrapped tightly in the folds and swiftly handed it to them. "Congratulations."

Raven weakly took the bundle into her arms and pulled back a fold. "Meet the one who saved my life." Garfield felt the oxygen leave his body in pure joy. There in the folds of his wife's cloak was a small pale baby with dark violet hair and the most adorable pointed ears. "Gar. Would you Like to hold your son?"