Thank you so much to all those who have been reading this story. I have had a lot of fun writing it. I am sad to say that it is coming to a close soon, so I thank you all. Hell, maybe I'll write another one after this. Just a reminder, that I don't own anything. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy the next chapter.
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Chapter 10: Until the End of the World
"Robin…come in Robin…" said the voice over the tower's intercom.
It was the morning after, and Robin, Cyborg, and Starfire had gathered in the common room to nervously wait for this call. "Go ahead, Batman," said Robin.
"I checked up on that sorcerer of yours. I've been getting reports from the Justice League about someone of a similar appearance showing up, but these cases are all over the world. We've had people report in from Russia, China, Brazil, Berlin, London, Krakow, Istanbul, Sydney. I would have reported to you sooner, but I believe I met your friend a couple nights ago in Gotham. Goes by the name of Leon, correct?"
Robin gulped. This was what he had feared. "Yes, that's right."
"He appears to be striking in one of two ways. He targets areas where natural destruction can occur on a large scale, creating typhoons, hurricanes, rockslides, forest fires, just trying to cause more damage. By itself, these disasters are dangerous, but ultimately unable to affect the larger ecosystem. However, the number of these events, coupled with the frequency, could have disastrous consequences if they are not stopped."
"He has also been targeting major cities at random, seeking to cause as much destruction as possible. He has come face to face with a few of the League's own, but they have been no match for him single-handedly."
"Tell me about it," Robin quipped.
"This isn't good, Robin. This madman continues to randomly appear across the world, and there's no telling where he'll strike next. We can't be everywhere at once. The League has been talking, and is setting up a contact system, so that when he strikes, we all know."
Robin sighed. "And I guess you'll want us to contact you if anything happens here."
"You're catching on, Robin," said the voice over the intercom. "The League also told me that you are, as of now, officially off of this case."
"WHAT!!!" screamed Cyborg in the background.
"This is a dangerous sorcerer. We have no idea what he will do next, and the League cannot have a bunch of young kids running around trying to stop this guy. If you see him, you are supposed to contact me, and then let the League handle him."
Robin spat back. "You don't really think you can make us do this, do you?"
"I don't care what you do, Robin, remember? You are the head of your own team now. Do as you like. I am only telling you what the League has told me to tell you. But if he appears, you contact me immediately, understand?"
"Yes, Batman," Robin smirked. "You know, I think you're getting soft in your old age."
"Batman out." The intercom died. Robin laughed.
"Are we going to contact the Batman if Leon appears again?" Starfire asked.
"Yeah, I guess we'll have to," said Robin. "Old guy might have a heart attack if we don't. And we will probably need the help."
"Oh great," exclaimed Cyborg. "Don't tell me you're actually going to let the League handle this one? We've gotta make that man pay for what he did to my BABY!"
"Cyborg, who said we weren't going to fight?" Robin asked. Cyborg stuttered for a bit, clearly lost thinking about what happened to the T-car. "Um…uh…but wait a minute…you said…"
"I SAID I'll contact Batman if we spot him," Robin said. "But if the League thinks we're going to just sit back and let them handle it, they're wrong. In the meantime, we need to set up a network of our own. Let's start tracing radio and TV stations, and look out for any abnormal reports. If Leon's going to strike, we're going to need to be fast to catch him."
Cyborg nodded, glad that they were going to be in on the chase. "I'll start monitoring the radio frequencies using the tower's antenna. If I hear anything, I'll pump it through the sound system." And with that he ran off to get to work.
"Um…Star," Robin began. "Would you want to help me look for information, as well?"
Starfire looked elated. "YES! I would love to help, Robin!" And Robin smiled back as they made their way to his room to start searching for more signals.
It was almost as if they had forgotten about Beast Boy and Raven.
Raven certainly hadn't forgotten. She had cried throughout the night, only calming down after she realized that her crying had caused everything in her room to start spinning in a cyclone that her powers created. She barely got any sleep, and she still could not focus at all. All she could do was lay on her bed and stare at the ceiling.
I broke his heart.
He gave it to me. He's always given it to me, and I always turned it away. He always looked out for me, took a chance, but I always turned him down, and he seemed to be alright. But last night, he gave his heart to me. No strings attached. He said that he wanted ME. That he didn't care about the bad in me, he wanted ME.
And I broke his heart. And now its too late. Now he'll never want me back.
She closed her eyes and tried to focus.
Ok, Raven. This hurts now...a lot. But you'll get over it. Your emotions are not something that should be toyed with. It can be very dangerous. It's better that you hurt him now. Now he can get over it, and move on, and things can go back to the way they were. He can be the annoying, green shape shifter, and I can be the dark, cold, emotionless Goth. And everything will be just fine. Beast Boy is just...Beast Boy is...Beast Boy is...
And two tears fell down her cheeks.
Beast Boy is...the one that I love...and I let him go...
Raven didn't notice, but even after all of the emotions that she had gone through over the past few days, nothing in her room got damaged this time.
Beast Boy was asleep, but only for an hour at a time. His night had been like this the entire time. He would be able to sleep, but then he would dream about her, about her running away from him, or turning him down, and he would wake up in a cold sweat, clinging to the bedsheets.
"Ugh…" he groaned sleepily. I'm such an idiot.
He held his head in his hands, unable to get over the events of the previous night.
I should have known that she wouldn't want to be with me. I mean, this is Raven. She can't stand my jokes, my attempts to make her laugh. She can't stand ME! And I wanted to be with her? How could I have been so stupid to think that she'd want anything like that. Jeez...all that work and it was wasted.
He sat up and tried to calm himself down.
I've just got to let this go. Pretty soon, she'll be back to criticizing everything I do, and we'll all be back fighting criminals, and everything will be back to normal, and I'll be able to forget that I...
He gulped as he tried to lie to himself, but it was to no avail.
...that I love her...
And in frustration he threw his pillow against the wall.
But even that isn't good enough, I guess. Nothing I do is ever good enough for anyone! Not for my parents, not for the Doom Patrol, not for the team, not for Terra, not for Raven! I'm never going to be good enough...never...
And he wearily tried to fall back to sleep.
KNOCK, KNOCK.
"Mhmmmmhhhmmmm!!!" replied Beast Boy, his head buried firmly in his pillow.
"BB? It's Cyborg. Can I come in?" the voice from beyond the door called.
The last thing Beast Boy wanted right now was to be bothered. But I guess I can't just hide out in here forever, can I? And he walked over to the door and opened it up for Cyborg.
"Hey man," he began. "How are ya feeling, BB?"
"Wonderful," quipped Beast Boy, annoyance and lack of sleep present in his voice.
"Listen, I just wanted to let you in on what's going on," Cyborg continued, ignoring the sarcasm. "We're monitoring TV and radio broadcasts trying to find any sign of this Leon guy. As soon as we find him, Robin's going to contact Batman,"
"Fun," interjected Beast Boy.
Cyborg continued on. "And then we're going to go after him."
"Ok," said Beast Boy.
"So," began Cyborg. "I was just letting you know…if you don't want to come along then you don't have to…"
"Why wouldn't I come along?" quipped Beast Boy. "I can still fight, Cyborg. I'm still a part of this team damn it! And if we've got a job to do, then I'm going to do it!"
"Ok, I was just making sure," said Cyborg defensively. Beast Boy realized his mistake. "Look Cy…"
But Cyborg put up his hand and shook his head. "No, it's ok. You don't need to apologize. You've got enough on your plate right now. I know you didn't mean it."
Beast Boy nodded his head.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Cyborg asked.
Beast Boy shook his head. "Not really…"
Cyborg nodded. "Ok then," and he turned to leave. "But you know we're always here for you if you need us. Just come find one of us, ok BB?"
Beast Boy nodded, and Cyborg walked down the hall. When the door to Beast Boy's room closed, he stood against it and slowly sunk down to the floor. What am I going to do now? he asked himself as he held his head in his hands.
Cyborg continued to walk down the hall. "Well, the hard part's over," he said. "Now comes the harder part," as he approached Raven's room.
KNOCK
"Hey Raven? It's Cyborg. Can I come in?" he asked. He heard a faint reply behind the door.
"No."
"Oh," he began, dismayed already. "Um…well, ok. Look, um…Robin just wanted me to say that we're trying to find this Leon guy…and um…if we find him…we're going to go after him…so if you want to…I guess…we'll let everyone know when we find him and…we'll go after him."
Silence from behind the door.
"Ok, then," said Cyborg as he turned around and walked the other way. Jeez, that could have gone better.
Raven laid on her bed still, tired, drained, and now annoyed. Great. First I break Beast Boy's heart after fighting for the longest time. I'm sure Robin's freaking out wondering if the team is going to even stay together after all of this crap. Now we're on a wild goose chase for some crazy sorcerer. Things can't get any better... She sat in silence for a long time after Cyborg's announcement.
"How'd it go?" asked Robin, as Cyborg came into the leader's room.
"Well, I actually saw BB, so that was about as positive as it got," he said. "Raven did at least say something, so she's here, and alive, which I guess is good news. BB's pretty beaten up over the whole thing, and Raven doesn't seem like she even wants to deal with anyone."
"So," he continued, "with everyone in such a great mood, it seems like a good time for a good old fashioned sorcerer round up. How's it coming along?"
"Not well at all," said Starfire sadly. "We have looked at all kinds of data, but we are unable to find any reports that would be belonging to the Leon."
"We'll just have to keep on searching," said Robin. "I just wish there was something we could do for Beast Boy and Raven. But I don't like the idea of going into this fight down two team members. We will really need their help for this fight, but it doesn't even look like they're going to talk to anyone, much less leave their rooms, much less fight! ARGH!" he said in frustration, throwing a folder across the room.
"It just figures that all this shit has to happen at the same time!"
"Robin!" said Starfire, as she placed her hands on his shoulders. "We cannot help what has happened to Beast Boy and Raven. They are our friends! They are your friends!"
"I know Star," Robin said. "I know they're my friends. But so are you guys. And if this guy attacks, I don't know if just the three of us will be enough to handle it. It's not a matter of us not being strong enough, but Leon is incredibly powerful. We got beaten twice when we had the team together. We could get killed with only three of us. We need to have the team together, or else…"
"No, Robin!" exclaimed Cyborg, fearing his leader's answer.
Robin continued. "Or else we'll have to let the Justice League handle this…"
Cyborg sighed. "They'll fight Robin. I know BB and Raven, and they're heroes through and through. They won't leave us out to dry."
Robin looked up at Cyborg and smiled. "I hope so Cyborg."
"Um, Robin," began Starfire, as both boys turned to face her. "I believe that we might have found the Leon," and she pointed to one of the computer screens. They watched the live news report.
"As you can see, powerful cyclones are just tearing through the forest. There is nothing stopping these storms, they are just cutting through the trees. I've been hearing reports that people have seen what appears to be a man FLYING amidst the storms, but we cannot confirm reports of that at this time."
Cyborg checked the location and the coordinates. "It's close," he said. "Really close. Robin, what do you want to do?"
Robin looked grimly at the screen. "Let's get the team together."
KNOCK.
"MmmhmmmHmmmm!"
"Beast Boy! It's Robin! Open up!"
Slowly Beast Boy stumbled out of bed. Still unable to rest well, he found his way to the door and opened it up.
"What's happening?" he asked Robin, when he noticed Starfire and Cyborg standing behind their leader. "Oh…I take it you found where Leon is at?"
"I'm afraid so," said Robin. "Listen Beast Boy, I'm not going to pressure you into anything, ok?"
"You won't have to," said Beast Boy, who started to search his room for his shoes. "Let's go."
"Are you sure, Beast Boy?" asked Starfire.
"Yeah," he said. "I'm sure."
Robin nodded, and the team started heading down the hall.
"Is Raven coming?" Beast Boy asked.
"We're going to find out," said Cyborg. Beast Boy nodded.
KNOCK.
"Raven?" asked Robin. "Are you there?"
He didn't hear any response, but decided to press on anyway.
"Look Raven. We've found out where Leon is at, and we want to go after him, but we don't want to go without your help."
Still nothing.
"It's up to you Raven. I'm not going to force you into anything, and no one is looking to judge you for anything. But I'm not about to risk everyone else's lives if we aren't all together. We're a team Raven, but even more then that we're a team of friends. Either we all live together, or we all die together. So it's up to you. What do you want to do?"
There was still silence behind the door. Robin sighed, and turned to look at the rest of the team. But then they heard the door open.
There stood Raven. A bit disheveled, but otherwise appearing to be her usual self.
"Alright," said Robin. "Let's go Titans." And they started off towards the elevator.
However, when Raven saw Beast Boy, their eyes met for a second, pain clearly evident in both pairs of eyes. Beast Boy then turned away quickly from Raven. It's too late, she thought, and she continued to the elevator. Robin wanted to say something to try and inspire his team, but he knew he couldn't do it. They were together, but they were hurting. And silently, the leader hoped, and nearly prayed, for the first time in a long while…
That today they wouldn't have to die together.
Starfire and Raven took to the skies, where they'd be able to have the greatest vantage point. Robin took to the R-cycle, and Cyborg drove the T-car, with Beast Boy in shotgun. Neither Raven nor Beast Boy said anything to Starfire or Cyborg respectively during the trip. Thankfully, it didn't take long until they were out of the city. Soon after, Starfire caught a glimpse of the oncoming storms.
"Robin," she said over the intercom. "I believe I see the Leon and his cyclones!"
"Good eyes, Star," Robin said. "Titans, get ready for this. Leon is going down!"
They then stopped their vehicles, and the Titans started to make their way towards the sorcerer. Leon caught sight of them, and dissipated his storms.
"Well, Titans! We meet yet again," he sneered. "I am so sorry for leaving you so soon at our last encounter after…dropping in on you like that. I can guarantee that this time, there will be no such early departures!"
"Except for you, that is!" yelled Robin. "Titans, GO!"
Immediately, Starfire and Raven took off to the skies. Starfire started circling the sorcerer from the air like a vulture over its prey, and she began to hurl starbolts his way. The sorcerer was able to nimbly dodge the blasts; however, he was soon met by another threat: massive red oaks.
SMACK! went the tree into Leon. For Raven had used her powers to begin to hurl trees from the ground straight at the sorcerer. "Infernal caster!" yelled Leon, as a tree skimmed by his hair. He then proceeded to grab the next tree that came close to him and set it ablaze. "Let's see how you like it!" he yelled as he hurled the tree at Raven.
Luckily for her, Cyborg was able to blast it before it made contact with her. "Don't worry, Raven, I've got your back," he called out. She nodded her acknowledgement and gratitude, as they both turned their attention back towards the battle.
Beast Boy, meanwhile, had turned into a rhino, and rammed into the sorcerer when he tried to hit Raven with the tree, sending him flying. He continued charging after, with Robin in close pursuit. Leon was able to blast the rhino away; however, he was not so easily able to avoid Robin's freeze grenades, which pinned him to the ground.
"ARGH! What kind of sorcery is this?!?!" he yelled. But Robin had other ideas. "Cyborg, Starfire, NOW!"
At that, Cyborg shot his sonic cannon and Starfire aimed her eyebeams at the sorcerer, causing a massive explosion when the two connected. When the smoke cleared, Leon hesitantly stood up.
"Ugh! You Titans are drawing on my last nerve! You think you are strong! HA! You have no idea what strong really is!" The team noticed that the sky began to crackle with electrical energy. "I will show you just how grave a mistake you have made today! THIS DAY WILL BE YOUR LAST!!!" And with that he opened his mouth and let loose a torrent of electrical energy that sent Cyborg flying back. He crashed into a rock and didn't get up. The electricity had short circuited his systems, knocking him out.
"CYBORG!" yelled Robin, who now flew into battle with the sorcerer at full speed. Robin let loose a fury of his best punches and kicks that he could deliver, but it was in desperation. Robin just wanted to hit Leon, but Leon was able to avoid or block everything that Robin sent his way. "Insolate little fool," he remarked as he blasted Robin away.
"NO!!! ROBIN!!!" yelled Starfire, as now she and Raven began pelting the sorcerer with their energy attacks. Leon wasn't as able to dodge these as easily as he did earlier, but after firing off a round of starbolts, Starfire noticed that he suddenly was gone. She heard a sound behind her, and then suddenly she felt two very powerful arms trying to crush her in a bear hold grip.
"Come now, my dear," Leon taunted her. "Do you really believe that you have the strength to compete with me?" However, this only made Starfire angrier, and she soon burst out of his grasp and delivered a powerful blow to his head, which sent him flying to the ground. "Ugh…" he groaned as he picked himself up from the ground. He looked to the sky to find his foe, but then found her attending to Robin. Grinning to himself, the sorcerer started to gather up his energy to deliver a finishing blow to the happy couple. "You are indeed powerful, alien, but you are also foolish. Prepare to die!"
"NO YOU DON'T!" he heard a voice yell from above him, and soon the sorcerer was blasted by a ball of dark energy. He looked up to see Raven floating over him. "You have breathed your last!" he yelled, but then noticed that something was running towards him at breakneck speed. He looked to his right and saw that Beast Boy had changed into a charging elephant. However, Leon was ready for his aggressor, and used his magic to enhance his strength enough to grab Beast Boy and throw him to the ground.
"Beast Boy!" Raven yelled, but as soon as she turned her head away from Leon she heard a sound behind her. BAM! Leon's blow sent her racing towards the ground. She wearily looked up to see him preparing the blast he had intended for Robin and Starfire. "Do not worry my dear. For now, your suffering will END!" And with that, he sent a wave of energy at her.
Raven frantically tried to regain composure to begin chanting. "Azerath…Azerath…Met…"
There was a huge explosion, as the target of the blast went flying and landing far away. However, that target had changed.
"SHAPESHIFTER!!!" yelled the enraged Leon.
Raven gasped. Beast...Boy...
"NO!!! BEAST BOY!!!" Robin yelled, as he and Starfire began to try and fight against Leon again. Starfire flew faster than she ever had before, and delivered a punishing blow to the sorcerer, sending him cascading back down to earth. Robin then unleashed a series of attacks with his staff. However, Leon was quick to counter these attacks, and grabbed Robin's staff and flung him into the air, knocking Starfire back to the ground. He quickly prepared another might blast. "Two Titans down, only three left to go!!!"
However, his blast never got off, for Leon suddenly found himself encased in black energy. He then was thrown hundreds of feet into the air, and then thrown back down to the ground. When he finally stood up, he turned around and saw Raven.
Only, she had changed. Her cloak, which before had been a dark violet, was now shimmering white, and she was glowing. "YOU WILL NOT HARM ANYONE ELSE, EVER AGAIN!" she yelled, her voice now bellowing and powerful. Leon laughed. "You may sound intimidating, but you do not scare me, caster!" he yelled. He then sent a blast of energy her way. Only this time, Raven countered with her own.
"AZERATH, METRION, ZINTHOS!!!" she bellowed, as a massive blast of dark energy erupted from her hand, eclipsing Leon's blast and soon Leon himself. When the energy had subsided, Leon tried to stand.
"Wha…who are you??? How can you do this?!?!?!"
Raven walked slowly towards him. "I AM THE ONE WHOM YOU SHOULD MOST FEAR! I AM THE ONE WHO WILL STOP YOUR REIGN! YOU WILL NOT HARM ANOTHER LIVING BEING EVER AGAIN!!!" Her very words seemed to stop the sorcerer in his tracks. But he then suddenly became enraged.
"YOU? You think that you can stop ME?!?! I AM THE DESTROYER OF WORLDS!!! I AM THE MOST HOLY PROPHET!!! I HAVE COME TO BRING ORDER TO THIS UNIVERSE AND NOTHING WILL STOP ME FROM ACCOMPLISHING MY SACRED TASK!!! NOW DIE!!!" And with that, the sorcerer rushed to the shining Raven in a rage.
Unfortunately for the sorcerer, this is what Raven was planning on.
"AZERATH, METRION, ZINTHOS!" chanted Raven, and from her hands opened up a portal which began to suck in the sorcerer.
"No…no…NO!!! YOU CANNOT DEFEAT ME!!! YOU…CANNOT…DEFEAT...ME!!!!!!!" Leon was sucked into the portal, which Raven promptly sealed. She then fell to the ground, tired, and her white aura left her. However, her cloak remained white.
"Ugh," said Starfire, who was trying to recover from the ground. "Robin…Robin!" she yelled. "She has done it! We have defeated the Leon! He is gone!!!" she cheered.
Robin looked up. "We did it…we did it!!!" They made their way over to Raven.
"Oh Raven!" exclaimed Starfire. "You were most magnificent! You defeated the evil Leon and saved all of us!" But Starfire did not find any look of jubilee on Raven's face. Raven only looked up at her, and then turned her head.
"Beast Boy," she said, and then took off in full flight towards him.
Starfire, in her joy, had forgotten about Beast Boy and Cyborg. "Oh no! Robin!"
"I know Star," he said. "Come on, let's go find Cyborg. Batman will be here any minute and he can help us out."
Robin and Starfire made their way over to Cyborg, who was knocked unconscious. Robin found that his systems would need to be rebooted, but he would ultimately be fine.
The same, sadly, could not be said for Beast Boy.
When Robin and Starfire made their way over to him, they found Raven crying, holding his head in her hands.
"No…no…Beast Boy, wake up! Please…you have to wake up!" she cried.
Robin saw the Batplane coming into view, and looked down at his fallen friend. Beast Boy had taken the brunt of this blast. Half of his chest was burned, and he was bleeding profusely from his chest and his head. Worse still, he barely seemed to have any sign of a pulse or any breathing.
"Wake up, Beast Boy! Please…" Raven continued to cry.
"Robin…" said Batman, who just arrived on the scene. "What happened here?" he asked.
Robin did not take his eyes off of his friend. "Leon is gone," he said. "But Beast Boy got hurt really badly. He needs help."
Batman took a look at the green titan, and nodded. "I agree. We need to get him out of here." And he bent down to take Beast Boy away.
"NO!" yelled Raven, holding onto Beast Boy desperately. "You can't take him! I won't let you!"
"Young lady," said Batman impatiently, "if I don't take your friend he will DIE. Now let go." But Raven would still not release her grasp. It was only when Starfire put her hand on Raven's shoulder, that she relented, and let Batman carry Beast Boy away. Starfire then pulled her into a hug while Raven cried on her shoulder.
"Please, Beast Boy! Please…you have to be ok…please wake up!"