AN: Second last chapter! I'm already in the process of writing the last one, so I may upload it today. But don't hold your breath, I can be very lazy...Anyway, Enjoy!
10
Raven wandered the void, feeling shaken up. She couldn't hear the voices that had once been in her head, and this scared her even more. She kept thinking of her death, wondering if it had been as gruesome as Beast Boy's. She closed her eyes and stood still, willing herself to keep calm. Once she reopened her eyes, she began to wonder why she'd left the group in the first place. Of course, the eerie feeling of being around dead people unnerved her, but at least the dark figure that had accompanied them knew why they were there. Now, she was alone again, stuck in a null.
The empath closed her eyes once again and sat down, deciding that meditation might be a better thing to do. Though it was quiet, Limbo wasn't a peaceful place, and the unbalanced feeling constantly broke Raven's concentration. She sighed, trying her hardest to focus. A few moments passed before something started to happen.
The ground on which she rested started to soften. This caused the empath to open her eyes once again and look down. She saw the ground break and crack, revealing a black void underneath her legs. Raven quickly stood up, stepping away from the rapidly forming hole. It widened and widened, clawing in the direction of the empath's feet. Raven tried to fly, but soon found that she couldn't. It dawned on her that the reason her powers weren't destroying anything in void was because they didn't work in the void, not because there was nothing to destroy.
The empath started to run away from the hole, fear growing in her gut. When she took her last step, she felt nothing under her feet. She leaned forward, trying to clutch the ground below, but noticing that the edge of the hole receded away from her fingers. Raven screamed, watching the white light of the void shrink as she fell into the dark.
A small noise was heard in the tower, and neither Silkie nor Cyborg caused it. Both had been napping in the hybrid's room, the picture of fatigue, grief and boredom. When the noise sounded, Cyborg sat up in surprise, pausing to hear if the noise would sound again. A different noise came from the halls outside the half-human's door, this time it resembled a voice. Cyborg stood from the desk on which he'd fallen asleep, taking Silkie in his arms and walking over to the door.
When the cyborg and worm were in the dimly-lit hall, a long scream echoed from the other end, causing Cyborg to jump in fright. He clutched Silkie, trying to settle himself down. He took careful steps in the direction of the scream, wanting to find out who would be screaming in the tower in the first place.
His walk led him to a familiar door, and the metal Titan felt even more grief sweep over him. He took a careful step closer in the same direction and then froze as he saw something float up from the hole beneath it and vanish.
Silkie twisted and turned underneath the half-human's metal arm, signalling that it wanted to be fed, but Cyborg simply ignored it, waiting to see if the glow would return. A few silent moments passed before the metal Titan saw somebody step into view, not stopping to look in his direction. The glow moved as though it were shivering before stepping over the hole. First it sank a little, then it sank further, and then it fell through, letting out that same scream until a sickening thud was heard on the floor below.
Cyborg carefully walked over to the hole and glanced down, seeing glowing liquid splattered all over the weight room. The metal Titan leaned away so quickly that Silkie was nearly thrown away. Cyborg was just about to look over again when the glow swept back up to meet him.
There, he met the eyes of a very live-looking Raven as she disappeared and reappeared down the hall. She walked down the hall with disappointment in her eyes. She stopped short of the hole and slowly tilted her head up to see Cyborg.
"R…Rae?" Cyborg said. Raven grimaced before letting out another long scream and disappearing once again. The half-robot blinked a few times, wondering what he'd just seen.
"Don't worry about me, Cyborg. I'm not dead yet," Cyborg heard the last words the dark Titan had ever said to him before dying before hearing the voice laugh throughout the halls. It echoed off the walls like an intercom, sending waves of fear down Cyborg's back. Silkie crawled up and sat on top of the metal Titan's head, shivering in fear as well.
Cyborg backed up, not thinking complete thoughts. On his backward trek, he bumped into a solid object. He quickly spun to reveal a fairly healthy looking Beast Boy smiling up at him.
"Hey, Cy," the green Titan greeted. "What's up?" he rocked back and forth on his heels, waiting happily for the metal Titan to answer.
"B-B-Be…B-Be…" Cyborg shook as he stepped away from the teen.
"Aw, Cy, what's wrong?" Beast Boy mock-frowned, "Something on your mind?" The green teen grinned and tilted his head, allowing blood to pour out of his left ear. "There's nothing on my mind." Cyborg let out a scream before turning and running away from the ghost.
"Don't you remember, Cy?" Beast Boy's voice echoed off the walls as Cyborg ran. "You always told me I didn't have a brain!" Cyborg kept running before turning yet another corner and seeing an empty hall in his view. He looked down to see Silkie gone. The metal Titan looked down and around before calling the worm's name, worriedly trying to find his only friend.
"Friend, are you looking for this?" Cyborg turned to see Starfire petting the silk worm. Silkie gurgled in satisfaction as it nuzzled the Tamaranian ghost. Starfire giggled. Cyborg gasped, unsure of whether to step away or try to rescue the mutant slug.
The metal Titan took one step closer and Starfire's head shot up to meet his eyes. She smiled and held Silkie out for him to retrieve. Cyborg quickly snatched the worm from the dead alien's grasp and stepped away. Starfire laughed again, shaking her head at her live friend's behaviour.
"Cyborg, why are you so afraid? Am I not your friend?" she asked, stepping closer. The dead Tamaranian grinned, letting red foam escape her lips and drip. She held her arms out as if to ask for a hug. Cyborg shook his head, holding Silkie even closer and stepping away.
"Yeah, Cy, where are you going?" he heard Beast Boy ask, turning to meet the bloody changeling. Both ghosts stepped closer to the metal Titan, making his fear rise. Silkie whined as it saw the gory heroes approach them. Cyborg stepped back and was leaning on the wall behind him, the space between him and the ghosts quickly closing.
The half-robot squeezed his eyes shut, took one breath, and sprinted in Beast Boy's direction. He let out a cry of determination as he ran right through the ghost, the dead changeling looking down in shock. Starfire looked at the speeding cyborg as he darted down the hall and turned right. She bared her teeth before floating up and flying, letting Beast Boy follow suit in a ghostly animal form.
Cyborg ran until he thought he and Silkie were safe. He slowed down and started walking, still holding his worm friend closely to his metal body. He was about to turn around when he saw a flash spark from an open door. He walked softly and slowly over to the doorway and stood by the wall, readying himself to turn around and look at what was happening in the room. He gave Silkie a little squeeze and then turned, jumping into the room and opening his closed human eye.
In the room was nothing strange; nothing looked out of place. Well, other than the sad-looking Robin sitting at a sparking computer, his fingers typing away. The monitor was off and broken, and various keys on the keyboard were missing, but this didn't concern the masked ghost. Every few minutes, electricity would shoot out of the keyboard and aim at him, but seeing as he was already dead; it would pass through and hit his chair instead. Other than the frizzy hair, charred hand and paranormal glow, Robin looked okay. Cyborg even doubted he knew that he was there.
Then, Robin's burnt hand hit a button on the keyboard and was electrocuted. The electricity flowed through him as though he were alive again, surrounding his heart and shaking it to death. When the sparks were finished with the ghost, Robin's ghost slumped forward, allowing him to rest his dead head on the computer desk. A few seconds of silence passed before the ghost spoke up.
"You did this to me, Cyborg," Robin said quietly. "You did this to all of us." Suddenly, the half-robot was once again surrounded by the rest of his dead friends, all of them oozing and grimacing in anger.
"No," Cyborg said, shaking his head. "I didn't do it! I swear I didn't do it!" Silkie twisted and turned, trying to get out of the tightening clutch of the metal Titan. Cyborg closed his human eye, baring his teeth as he struggled to maintain his sanity.
"I didn't do it! I didn't do it!" he yelled. His dead friends continued to chant the opposite to him. Cyborg felt himself beginning to go insane. He opened his eyes wide and screamed, watching his ghostly teammates approach him before being surrounded in dark shadows and sinking through the floor.
Space gently lowered the half-robot in the dark void, feeling herself grow impossibly more worried than before. She didn't know what Death could have in store for the poor cyborg, but she did as she was told and trusted that it would be alright in the end. The dark figure watched the hybrid as it continued to drift unconsciously, wondering how someone like him could live. Most of his components were artificial and this confused Space. She marvelled as she watched the metal and flesh work together to keep Cyborg alive, feeling dumbfounded. She wanted to go over and touch the being, but resisted.
Shortly, Death arrived, approaching the little shadow and half-robot with a determined demeanour.
Is he well, dear partner? The hulking being asked. Space nodded.
He is still experiencing shock from his friends' last visit, the little spirit sighed, looking at her dripping feet. Death looked down in dismay as well.
Time sure has had a good laugh, hasn't he? He has succeeded though; he has managed to ruin the plan. Now, the deaths of these beings are meaningless, the big shadow crossed his arms again and felt himself grow angry and disappointed. He walked over to Cyborg and looked down without eyes, waiting for him to wake up.
After what seemed like hours, Cyborg finally regained consciousness, staring up at the darkness. He gasped when the memory of what had happened hit him, sitting up and looking at his hands. They were visible, even in the complete darkness of the void. He looked around to find two cloaked beings looking over him, their presence making him shiver.
Cyborg stood up, holding his shaking hands out in front of him in defense. He realized that Silkie still clung to him right arm and he clutched it, trying to make its fear go away despite the fact that his was still strong.
"Do not be afraid, dear cyborg," Death told him. "We are not here to harm you." Cyborg looked up at the shadow, shocked to see something taller than he.
"H-How can I know that for sure?" he asked, still holding onto Silkie.
"Please. We are here to help your friends," Space stepped closer to him. Cyborg whipped his head to the right to look at the small dark figure that approached him. He narrowed his eyes at the being.
"How do you know about my friends?" he asked suspiciously. Space looked from Death to Cyborg before looking down at the void.
"Because, dear cyborg, we caused them to die," she said in shame. Cyborg looked at the little shadow in shock, wondering how someone so small could kill his friends. He remembered how they'd all died, doubting that any being could've caused it. He'd even seen Robin die right before his eyes. They couldn't have done it.
"Dear cyborg, you need not comprehend," Space said.
"B-But, you…killed them," Cyborg felt the sad feeling in his gut grow, causing his knees to buckle.
"And now we must cause them to live," Death said as well. He stepped closer to the half-robot. "Dear cyborg, we need your help."
"What? M-Me? Why me? What can I do?" Cyborg asked, his eyes wide. Death rested a hand on his shoulder, causing him to black out.
"Do not worry. You shall see." Cyborg fell again and drifted back into unconsciousness.
Time stood in the light void of Limbo, feeling unsure. The fact that Raven had managed to return to the living world, and drag everyone else with her, made the dark being frustrated. He knew that the only way he would be able to do away with the emotions once and for all would be to return the heroes back to life.
There have been a few instances where Time had required to unwrite himself, but they have changed the future in a dramatic way and to make this decision would be to make a certain path worth the negative consequences that would soon follow. Time sighed before disappearing to go to the world of the living to retrieve his ghosts.