Author's Notes: I'm back, and hopefully with another great chapter for your reading pleasure.
E-W – It's good to hear from you again, and with such a resounding review :) I am truly joyful you still approve of my story.
avp5 – Wait no longer, for here it is, hope you enjoy.
Rise of the Dragon – Falling Inside the Black
"What have I done?" The green changeling thought from within his mindscape forest watching the scenes of reality unfold before him displayed through a window in space. The blood on his claws fresh and warm as he watched Levous, a friend, plummet towards the ground with a hole in his chest. A wound that Beast boy himself had inflicted, well that wasn't entirely accurate, it was the unknown entity that had promised him the power to protect Raven, the girl he loved more than anything else in the world, now controlled him, and it had been the one to stab the ivory haired Sorcerer with his claws. "No, this is my fault." Beast boy thought, "I was blinded by my want to protect Raven, to not lose her… not like…"
"Beast boy! What are you doing!" Raven demanded, tears streaming down her face as she struggled to free herself from the emerald creature holding her. She knew it was Beast boy, though his appearance had changed, he still resembled the Beast to know that much, and though she wondered why he had changed, finding out why he had attack Levous took precedence.
"How did it come to this?" He thought, not sure how he could explain this, even if he could try. His thoughts carried him to the night before.
It was well after midnight and Beast boy, who normally would have been sound asleep, instead sat in his bed, back to the walk as he rested his head on one knee. Raven and Levous were still at the movies, Cyborg and Jinx were spying on them, and Robin and Starfire were off doing who knows what. He was all alone, the only one in the Tower, and he could smell the hollow scents left drifting through the air, feel the motionlessness of everything around him, not a vibration around to indicated a living being present.
Here, not even the comfort of his room seemed to put him at ease, all he could think about was how Raven, his second true love, was off in the arms of Levous, the upstart. He had been here for less than eight months and yet in that time he had grown closer to Raven than any of the other Titan's had in the few years they've known each other. He couldn't help but feel disappointed in himself however, Raven had always been the most mature of the team, and he by contrast the least, and not just because of age. His light hearted pranks and attempts to make her laugh always seemed to annoy her, but he thought she was the one who needed to laugh the most.
"I'm such an idiot."
He began to recall all the things he and Raven have been through since their founding of the Titans back went Starfire first arrived on the planet trying to escape her Gordanain captors. Memories of being in Raven's mind and meeting the different sides of her emotion and helping her tame her rage flood his mind, and a wearily, hollow grin appeared on his face, then being the first time he hear Raven, or at least her happiness, admit the she thought he was funny. He began to unconsciously rub his arm as the warmth of the memory faded.
"I should have kept her closer."
Closer… A phantom warmth wrapped around his neck, and pressed against his chest, reminding him of the time she willingly and abruptly hugged him after Malchior had deceived her. He rubbed his chest as the sensation faded, sending a chill to run deep through his body, as he pulled his knees to his chest, in an attempt to warm up.
"Will I ever feel her warmth again?"
The conversation they had after the 'Beast' incident played in the furthest recesses of his mind, how she had never doubted him or though he was dangerous, despite his hostile attitude during that time.
"She always believed in me."
Thoughts of all the various times Raven had used her healing magic to help him recover from an injury flashed by in his mind, like a slide show, every time it was freely given, never once did he have to ask her to.
"She was always there, no matter how much I annoyed her."
All the adventures, trials and ordeal they faced, all the villains they defeated, arguments they have, every memory he could possibly recall filled his thoughts, the countless moments.
"How long did it take to make all of these memories? All this time and I did nothing…"
Then, images of Raven with Levous began to appear in place of his fond memories, and Beast boy could see the two of them walking away from him, hand-in-hand.
"No, don't go!"
He had been so blinded by jealousy that now he had hurt Raven in a way that he may never forgive himself for.
"Why… How could I let myself be so stupid?" He thought bitterly to himself.
"He is not worthy of such a fair maiden." The Draconic Beast holding Raven said, replying to her earlier question.
"Release me at once." The sorceress demanded, reaching out for Levous as he still fell towards the ground. "Levous!"
"Even so… I still want her to stay with me." The changeling thought, clutching his heart. A quake shook his private jungle, as the ground he stood on split apart, revealing an abyss of infinite sable shadows and he fell helplessly down into.
"Silence woman!" The green winged beast commanded, striking Raven roughly in the abdomen, knocking the wind out of her as she passed out.
Beast boy could hear the events unfolding still, as he plummeted into the darkest corners of his mind, and he knew what his body had just done. He knew that things, no matter how the events played out, could no longer simply be fixed and forgotten, that everything was going to change.
"RAVEN!" He cried out in vain, his voice couldn't reach past the edge of the pit he was now freefalling in, let alone reach her. So his voice echoed through the endless sea of darkness as he fell further and further.
This wasn't how it was supposed to be. Raven had been his pillar of strength for so long, even if he didn't realize it right away. Through all the times he had to control the Beast, and summoning the strength to fight the Brotherhood, thoughts of Raven had been the thing that forced him to rise to the occasion. He bet everything just for the power to protect the girl he so loved, and yet it wasn't co-operation that voice was offering, Beast boy was left with nothing as he was lost in an abyss of his screams and yells of torment. If only he could have just been happy for her, if only he had been satisfied with the happiness she had found and not been so selfish.
Then, a voice pierced the darkness, and spoke to Beast boy, a voice he never thought he'd be so grateful to hear. "You can still redeem yourself."
"Starfire!" Robin cried having been released from his magical binds after the insane villainous magician was defeated. The Titan's watched stunned as Beast boy, transformed into a winged, scaled beast swooped down and attack Levous, who was now falling to his supposed death.
The Tamaranean wasted no time, bolting from the window's edge and diving to catch the wounded Sorcerer.
Beast boy waited long enough to smile satisfied with his work, and flew off at great speeds towards the city.
As Starfire closed in on Levous, a massive, green beast appeared beneath him, allowing the ivory haired hero to land on its large back.
"Return to me my friend now please." Starfire asked, floating a few dozen feet above the emerald creature.
Assured of his safety, the dragon hovered in place, looking up to Starfire as if to suggest she should now take him, a gesture she did not misunderstand, flying down quickly to recover her friend.
Down below, there was a massive empty crater of where the fallen form of Malchior once laid, having slipped off in the confusion.
Before Starfire could return to the others, having carefully picked up the boy who now had an empty hole in his chest, the large dragon on which she stood disappeared in a strong gust of wind, and Aero appeared lying on Levous' stomach, curled up in a ball exhausted.
It was cold when consciousness slowly returned to Raven's mind and dark, too dark to be daytime. She slowly opened her eyes, but to only be welcomed to pitch darkness her eyes could adjust too. "Okay, I'm in a cave." She determined with a sarcastic tone, as if the rocky surface below her couldn't have told her. Still it didn't answer why she was so cold. She reached back to pull her hood up over her and try to conserve heat when she realized, she wasn't wearing her cloak… in fact, when she wrapped her arms around herself to stay off the shivers radiating cold, her hands touched flesh not her leotard. "Where are my clothes?" She thought, wrapping her arms around her to cover her exposed flesh, but in this dark it was a moot point. The frigid stone surface her sat on felt as if it were sucking the heat from her, and she began rubbing her arms feverishly to try and generate some heat. "What I would give for that spell Levous used yester…" She trailed off as the image of Lev's dying face, falling hundreds of feet towards the unforgiving ground below. "Levous!" She said, but the words were unable to escape her lips as she realized there was some sort of adhesive substance covering her mouth.
"I see that you are awake, fair maiden." Beast boy's voice cut through the darkness, but there was something different about it, a low growling undertone. "I was beginning to worry, if you'd sleep for another day."
"Beast boy?" She asked, though the words were muffled in her throat, unable to escape her mouth.
"Your name is Raven, correct? You are quite the beauty." He said, almost lewdly and she covered her exposed skin again, even though it was pitch dark, there are animals that may be able to see. "Do not fear, fair Raven, I shall not harm you."
"Then release me!" She tried to shout as she stood up. She tried to distance herself from this Beast boy doppelganger, but the uneven terrain and biting cold on her feet slowed her pace, but after only a few feet, she felt her leg pull, and she felt the same substance that had covered her mouth also connected some sort of tether to her leg... If only she could speak, she could teleport away.
"This host of mine…" The voice said, standing right behind her as she felt a pair of strong scaled arms warp around her. "He desires you, but still I had to await your awakening." He whispered, embracing her closely and licking her cheek. "A desire I now share, and one I shall be denied no longer."
"Stop it!" Raven cried out, struggling to escape the embrace of the bold creature, but it was in vain for he was too strong. She could feel his two large hands caressing her skin, one resting on her stomach, and the other on her knee, slowly moving up. "Levous." She pleaded for the handsome, ivory haired Titan to come to her rescue. Suddenly, a soft, grey glow filled the space with illumination, confusing both Raven and her captor.
"What is this?" The creature asked, looking at Raven's hand where a strange rune was glowing.
"A mere cantrip." A familiar voice said, echoing off the walls of the enclosed cave, but Raven knew it was emanating from next to her. The scaled creature suddenly released his hold on her, and she could feel it go flying back involuntarily. "A cantrip, but in a world devoid of Mana, it is easily tracked."
Tears immediately swelled up inside Raven, and she wasn't sure which she was more grateful more, the rescue or the fact that Levous was alive. Either way, she flung her arms around him, she exclamations of happiness to see him lost to her muffled mouth and cries.
"Here, let me get tha-" He began, pulling away from her slightly and extending a hand to her mouth before unintentionally seeing the violet haired beauty's naked form.
Embarrassed, Raven released Levous from her embrace, covering herself with her arms as she turned away. The sound of clothe unraveling filled the awkward silence when the Sorcerer's clothes landed next to her in a pile.
"You just have to think about what you want them to be… then snap your fingers." He said, looking away, but even in the darkness Raven could see the red in his cheeks.
"How did you survive?" The Draconic Beast's voice asked, as he picked himself up off the ground, have been hit away from Raven for all she could tell. A large, dark, squishy mass was tossed from the shadows, and it landed with a sickening splash at Levous' feet. "I took your heart!"
Raven quickly looked at her hero in question, even though his eyes were averted, she could still see a dark spot near the middle of his chest with a faint blue light pulsing from it. She also realized he no longer had his scaled wings or claws.
"It's just a flesh wound." He replied confidently, as if losing a heart is the same as a paper cut, reaching down towards Raven's leashed leg; since he wasn't looking his hand first her thigh and he cautiously ran his hand down her leg. Raven could feel her skin tingle as he touch the strange adhesive, and in an instant it released its hold on her. "You probably want to get dressed, right?"
She nodded in reply and grabbed his hand, as she could see him debating whether or not to chance guiding his hand up her exposed flesh to her face. Again, her skin tinged and the substance unbound itself from her mouth.
"Keep your filthy hand off of her! She is mine!" The green creature declared, lunging from the shadows to Levous' left, it's claws out ready to dig into his flesh. "This time I'll take your head!"
A shimmer of light past down Lev's arm as he raised his left hand to met the beast blood thirsty claw. I one fluent motion he caught the index and middle fingers of each the offending hand, halting the attack in mid air was the ground he stood on concaved under him a few inches as the power of the attack was absorbed.
Both Raven and the Draconic Beast's eyes widened in shock at the display of finesse and power as Levous flicked his wrist downward, ripping the beast from the air and to the ground caught in the Sorcerers grip. "You won't get any more lucky shots." He said, thrusting his arm forward, throwing the creature back a couple feet.
"I won't need any!" The creature growled, crouching low and digging his claws into the ground. Suddenly, four deep long gashes appeared on its back, and it fell to the stone howling in pain.
"What did you do?" Raven asked, still clutching Levous' clothes looking to the wounded form on the ground.
"Not me," Lev replied with a smirk, "Beast boy."
Author's Notes: I have a confession to make. This chapter was intended to be a songfic for 'Falling Inside the Black' by Skillet, but as luck would have it, the song was too short and repetitive at the end, so I added some more. I hope that, despite my experiment, this chapter still meets with everyone's approval. After writing the last chapter Falling inside the Black played on my iTunes, and I thought it was a perfect song to show how Beast boy was handling things. Anyways, thank you to all who have made it this far into the story, your support is greatly appreciated, and I hope to carry you through to a great end… sometime in the future (not sure how many more chapters that'll be lol).
See you next time.
… Creepy, I'm just about to post this and the song is on again o.O