Author's Notes

To JP-Rider, everything is coming into place. The final battle is now afoot and will soon occur. I promise it will be much better than the one from the end of Act 1.

To the guest reviewer, Slade and Raven are still trying to figure out their relationship, but I feel it probably won't be a romantic one, since that is likely what neither of them need right now. You'll soon find out what happen to Slade after the fight with Claw and Zatanna.

To bloodshark, you'll get a little hint to Slade and Raven's relationship at the end of the chapter.

Now, we are finally at the end of Act 2. After this, the next update will have my responses to your reviews to this chapter plus the synopsis of the final Act of the story.

Update: Remastered as of August 6, 2014.

Now, let's continue the story.


Raven enveloped herself and Slade into her soul-self and flew to Siberia, where her contact saw Claw and Zatanna.

Raven returned herself back to her human form and let Slade out before heading to meet her contact.

Raven spoke first, saying "Hello Red Star."

Red Star, in his fur hat and military uniform responded, "Greetings comrade Raven. I have spotted Claw and Zatanna. Their plane crashed and they went into the monastery."

"Tell me about the monastery."

"It has been abandoned for around a century after Lenin's revolution. It was stormed by the peasants and has remained mostly empty, only housing occasional peasants as they look for supplies in what remains. Not much remains now. Their best place to hide would be in the former garden in the heart of the monastery."

"It's kind of ironic that it all comes down to a religious location. The difference between my life and death. My salvation and my damnation."

Slade walked up to Red Star and said, "Come Raven. We have work to do. Those two will not escape. They will pay for what they have done."

Red Star said, "Greetings there, Slade."

Slade responded, "Captain Kovar."

With that, Raven began to levitate over towards the monastery, where Slade quietly followed, intending to finally take down Claw and Zatanna.

As they walked, Raven asked, "How do you know Red Star?"

Slade replied, "We're birds of a feather, Raven."


Back in Jump City, Jinx was getting ready for her final test, the real-life scenario. Cyborg came in and began to brief her on the test.

"Okay, Jinx. This is a hostage scenario. Four criminals armed with submachine guns and a dozen hostages with their hands bound and mouths gagged. To pass the test, you have to defeat all four criminals without letting any hostage get hurt."

Jinx said, "Ready to rock this."

Cyborg said, "You have five minutes before the hostages die. Begin."

Cyborg walked out of the room and Jinx soon turned around to see in the window where there were the four criminals armed with MP5K submachine guns and the twelve hostages.

The lead hostile yelled, "We will kill them. We will."

Jinx asked, "What the hell do you want?"

The lead hostile replied, "We want a limo to bring us to the airport, where you will supply us with a charter plane to Cuba. You have less than five minutes to get the goddamn limo."

Jinx began analyzing the situation. She knew if she didn't provide the limo, the hostages would wind up dead. If she got the limo, the criminals would get away and she would fail the test either way.

Jinx however began to conceive a deceptive, tricky plan. It could wind up working but she had to play every card right if every hostage were to live.

First, Jinx acquired the limo from the limo company, since the dispatch company was only two minutes away from the store, which had plenty of gold and jewels.

Jinx brought the limo to the store and yelled out, "Okay you dicks I got your goddamn limo. Get out of the store and leave the hostages."

Jinx got out of the limo and waited for the hostiles to come out. Three of them got out of the bank and climbed into the limo. The lead hostile was walking through the doorway, still aiming his MP5K at the hostages, in case Jinx pulled any funny tricks.

Jinx however began playing her cards. First, she used her hexes on the doorframe, causing it to collapse and knock out the lead robber.

Then she used her hex on the limo, causing it to break down quickly, making it unable to move. The three other hostiles tried to get out of the limo to attack Jinx, but they were trapped inside and the windows were bulletproof.

They tried pushing on the limo to break out but it ended up turning on its side, the wheels now facing Jinx.

With that, Jinx neutralized all four robbers and all twelve hostages were unharmed.

Cyborg walked up to Jinx and began clapping at her. He said, "Damn, Jinx. You impressed me. I thought at least one of the hostages would have wound up dead."

Jinx asked, "You had that little faith in me? And it was still a live exercise."

Cyborg replied, "It wasn't live. The robbers and hostages were all cops willing to play. The store was a fake. The guns were flashpaper and blanks. Did you really think we would put people's lives at stake?"

Jinx said, "I guess not. How did I do?"

Cyborg said, "You got the job done, no fatalities or injured. Minor property damage but not as bad as some of the other testers. I was amazed though that you understood the basics of police work - you couldn't act without risking their lives so you waited. Patience is the key to policework and to this test. Congratulations Jinx, I am willing to bet you will become a Titan."

Jinx said, "Do I get my communicator now?"

"Well we still have to go over your test results, so you're not there yet. You get your communicator when you officially become a Titan."


Claw and Zatanna were currently sitting in the garden of the monastery, fighting off the cold. Claw brought remains of trees into the room plus coal and other flammable objects to fuel a fire to keep them warm, but it wasn't big enough to attract attention.

Zatanna asked, "How long are we going to be here?"

Claw replied, "When the weather dies down we can move. Try to get to western Russia. There we can continue the move. Hopefully we last that long."

Suddenly, the fire died. Zatanna was surprised, it wasn't her magic doing it, nor was there any wind that could put out the fire, plus there was still enough material in the fire to continue it.

Then the torches on the walls in the garden room lit up, not with purely orange fire flames, but with red, slightly black flames. Claw and Zatanna knew who was doing this.

With that, Raven and Slade emerged from the shadows, now looking at Claw and Zatanna. Raven's hands were glowing with red-black energy while Slade pulled out an 18th century calvalry sword. Zatanna began to charge up her magic while Claw pulled out the Sword of the Crucible.

Raven started things out with "Claw, Zatanna, you two are under arrest by order of the Justice League for homicide, theft, and other assorted charges. Come with us and you will not be harmed."

Claw's reply was, "How about this? Leave us alone and we won't kill you. But we know that won't happen. I can't wait till I have your blood."

With that, Claw swung his sword at Slade while Zatanna began using her magic against Raven. Raven's soul-self blocked Zatanna's magic as Slade and Claw went blow for blow.

Raven used her abilities to grab some of the fuel from the fire to throw at Zatanna. However, Zatanna dodged each one before using her own powers to push them towards Raven.

Raven's powers then proceeded to destroy the flying objects before they could impact and then Raven sent more of her red-black energy towards Zatanna, who managed to avoid it with grace and precision.

Claw used an overhand thrust in an attempt to slice Slade's head in two, but Slade blocked it and then took a swing at Claw's abdomen, which Claw backed away from.

Claw swung his sword back at Slade who blocked every blow like a professional. Claw sliced Slade's leg with his sword, now resorting to deceptive, under-handed practices.

Slade backed away and Claw could only watch as Slade's leg injury healed with remarkable ease. Slade's reply was, "You really thought I would go down that easily. I'm disappointed, Robin."

Claw was infuriated and began to swing back at Slade, yelling "I am Claw. I am not Robin!" Slade dodged Claw's swings and delivered some of his own which Claw barely was able to block.

Claw backed away from Slade, giving himself enough time to pull out a derringer he hid in his glove. Slade charged at Claw but Claw shot him in the chest with the derringer.

Slade fell to the floor, trying to remove the .41 caliber bullet in his abdomen. With Slade occupied, Claw was now free to go after Raven.

Claw signaled Zatanna and she gracefully stepped aside, leaving the fight between the two ex-Titans.

Claw swung away at Raven, who dodged each blow of the sword. As Raven was half-demon, the fighting inhibitor the sword had was ultimately useless in the fight against her.

Raven began dispatching red-black energy towards Claw, trying to knock the sword out of his hands. Claw, however, was able to both dodge the attacks and even cut some of them down.

Claw was able to approach Raven and soon sliced off her right arm, shocking Raven so. Then came her left arm that fell right down onto the floor. In one fell swoop, both of her legs were cut off, sending Raven crashing to the floor.

Claw raised the sword as he delivered the decapitating blow, severing Raven's head from her body.

Claw walked away from Raven, ready to finish off Slade.

Before he could, he began to hear a chuckle, one that Claw knew had to be Raven's.

Raven said, "Did you really think that a mere sword could kill me?"

Claw said, "This is the fucking Sword of the Crucible. Designed against demons."

Raven then added, "You're right about that. However, it was not designed against hybrids. While a human and a demon suffer the fatal effects, I on the other hand, don't."

Claw was shocked as Raven's limbs flew back onto her body and reattached, leaving no trace that they were cut off at all, not even blood or torn fabric.

Raven's head popped back on as the sword line faded away, ready to take down Claw.

Slade was able to remove the bullet from his abdomen and the surrounding area was able to heal almost instantly. Slade got up and wound up facing Zatanna.

Slade said, "Zatanna. At last we fight. You may have won Botswana, but you had the League's help. Now, it's just you and me." Slade picked up his sword and prepared himself for Zatanna.

Zatanna's response was, "Go to hell, Slade."

Slade chuckled, saying, "Already been there. Not dying to go back anytime soon."

Zatanna began throwing her magic at Slade, trying to kill him with all of her might. Slade however managed to dodge her attacks and used his sword to force her to fall back.

Zatanna picked up a Russian sword off of a fallen statue near the garden and used it against Slade, trying to get him but Slade proved crafty.

Raven quickly gained the upper hand in the fight, as with Claw distracted as to the Sword's inability to kill Raven, she was able to force the sword out of his hands and away from him.

Red-black energy surrounded Claw and then smashed him into a wall of the monastery. Claw got out of the energy and soon pulled out a Mauser C96, taking aim at Raven's chest.

Before he could fire, the gun was zapped to bits by Raven's energy.

Claw picked up a rock and threw it towards Raven. However, Raven's energy surrounded the rock and then struck Claw back.

Raven's energy surrounded Claw once again and pushed him onto the wall, making it impossible for him to escape.

Raven said, "You are not getting away. You will pay for what you did."

Claw's cold sardonic reply was, "After you, bitch!"

Claw pulled out a grenade, attempting to pull the pin. Raven knew that this was no ordinary grenade, it was a hellfire grenade, one which he had acquired from Chang, which could destroy her soul-self if detonated next to it, and thereby herself in the process.

Before Claw's finger could pull the grenade pin, Raven twisted Claw, breaking his neck apart. Raven, slightly pained by what she did, dissapated her soul-self as Claw fell to the floor, dead as a doornail.

Richard Grayson, Robin, the former Boy Wonder, was no longer alive.

Slade and Zatanna continued their fight, with neither gaining a particular advantage - Zatanna's magic matching Slade's experience. However, Raven soon came into the fight, making it a losing fight for Zatanna.

Zatanna prepared to cast one last spell, trying to kill Raven, "Eid!"

However, before she could finish the spell, Slade hit Zatanna in the head, with the sorceress too distracted to notice. Zatanna fell to the ground, unconscious.

All Raven could say was, "It's over. Joseph, Rose, Grant are all avenged."

Slade added, "And Doctor Delgrado and Professor Chang."

Raven added, "You're right about that."

Raven grabbed a temporary power suppressor she kept on her belt and put it on Zatanna's wrist, nulling her powers before taking her up to the Watchtower.


At the Watchtower, Zatanna was brought to the Council room, where the Justice League was prepared to decide Zatanna's fate. Batman informed Raven that Zatanna's crimes could result in the death penalty, which would be to thrown out in space until their head exploded from the lack of oxygen.

Raven was in the Watchtower while the Titans, plus Slade and Jinx watched from the main ops room in Titans Tower.

Zatanna was chained to the ground, unable to move or fight the League.

The Martian Manhunter spoke. "Zatanna Zatara, for crimes committed against the Justice League and the Earth as a whole, we find you guilty on all charges. Your sentence is a lifetime prison sentence on Cryo-1."

The Titans knew what Cryo-1 was, it was an orbiting satellite that contained some of the world's worst prisoners, where they were frozen for all eternity. The only other prisoner onboard the satellite was the immortal criminal mastermind Vandal Savage, which had been holding him for the past several years on weapons trafficking charges - the prison was built specifically for powerful inmates like him.

Zatanna shrieked, "No! You can't do this to me. I'm a hero. And her, that bitch brainwashed all of you. She's fucking clouding your judgment! She's the bad guy, not me! Lock her away. Better yet kill her! Don't do this to me."

The Atom said, "You misled us for so long Zatanna, you tried to kill an innocent girl, one tainted by the parentage she never wanted, and now you must face the consequences. I was hoping it would never come to this, but it has. Goodbye Zatanna."

Two guards posted on the station grabbed Zatanna and proceeded to drag her to the lower entrance, where the Cryo-1 satellite was waiting to pick her up and carry her for all eternity.

Raven then said, "The world is now a better place now that she is gone. Now we have another concern. How to cover up Richard's death and disappearance. If they find out he was Claw, then Batman's identity would be exposed to the world, and we can't reveal that Claw was Robin."

The Flash said, "Don't worry, Raven. I have the perfect idea for a cover-up."


The Titans were watching the news, plus Raven, Jinx, Kid Flash, and Slade. This particular newscast would have details on what happened to Zatanna Zatara and Richard Grayson, how the League and Raven posted it.

The newscaster, Alexa Murray began to speak on the television.

"Good evening. Alexa Murray, reporting from Washington DC. Zatanna Zatara, the famed illusionist and member of the Justice League, has been confirmed to be in League custody after a stand-off with former Teen Titan Raven and another classified League agent. Zatara, guilty of murdering Grant Wilson, trying to kill four other people, serving as an accessory to murder, and treason, has been sentenced to life in prison on the Cryo-1 satellite. Her accomplice, Claw, was confirmed to have been completely vaporized in the standoff. Claw was behind the murder of at least a dozen people including Professor Hao Chang and Doctor Thom Delgrado as well as two children of businessman Slade Wilson, and Grant's siblings: Rose and Joseph Wilson. In other news, the ward of Bruce Wayne, Richard Grayson, was found dead early this morning in Jump City after a tragic motorcycle accident. Grayson was thrown into a tree and broke his neck. Funeral arrangements are being made by Mr. Wayne."

With that, Cyborg turned off the television, saying "Okay, so it looks like you covered all the bases - Zatanna, Richard, Claw. Nobody's going to question."

Jinx said, "And with that, the Big Bat is safe from the people wanting his identity. It's a shame. I really do miss Bird Boy."

Raven added, "We all do. We miss who he was before all of this happened. Before Trigon's evil corrupted him and turned him evil."

Kid Flash then said, "Cy, aren't you forgetting something? About a lovely girl's Titan score?"

Cyborg then said, "Oh yeah. Jinx, you passed the test. You are officially a Teen Titan."

Cyborg then gave Jinx her official Titans communicator, which Jinx opened for the first time and was amazed by it.

Jinx said, "Thanks Cyborg. For everything. And now I've got my official partner, isn't that right, Kid?"

Kid Flash said, "Yeah it is. Come on girl, let's do that date right."

Jinx grabbed Kid Flash's hand and the two sped off towards Jump City.


The next day, the Titans, plus Raven and Slade, flew to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for the funerals of Grant, Rose, and Joseph. There was quite an attendance, including all of Rose's HIVE class and several monks that befriended Joseph, such as Chu-Hui.

Slade began the funeral with his eulogy for his children. "Thank you for allowing me to be here today. I was raised to believe that the father was supposed to die before the son. Today I know that is wrong. Within a day, all three of my children were savagely taken from me. Grant, I wish I had gotten to know better, I always ignored him and we hadn't spoken in years when he died. Rose, we were so much alike in life. I would have wanted to name you my successor, but that wasn't going to happen. Joseph, my actions cost him his vocal chords and so much more. If I could do it all over, I'd change everything. But the past can't be changed, as long as I live, I have to live with the guilt of losing my children." Raven sensed Slade was beginning to cry at the end of his eulogy.

Slade sat down and several others gave their eulogies for one or more of the Wilsons, including Starfire, Beast Boy, and Cyborg. Then it was Raven's turn to deliver her eulogy.

Raven quietly said, "I got to know all three of Slade's children, and their deaths was all my fault. Grant was used to try to kill me. Rose was hunted down for my location, and Joseph was executed out of spite. Grant was cocky, always wanting to prove himself better than Robin when he became Red-X. As much pain as he caused us, he did help us stop several of the worst criminals in the city. For that, I am grateful. Rose was calm and smart, managing to keep her head in the game. She proved herself a worthy opponent, managing to remain honest despite her upbringing. And Joseph...the one I knew the best, Joseph was robbed of his speech and communicated only with sign language. He always had a message for peace, one I was taught to try to prevent my dark side from being unleashed. Slade had high hopes for Jericho, perhaps he would have become a Titan as his father wanted, but that will never happen."

Raven stepped down from the podium as the three Wilsons were buried in the family plot, next to Adeline Kane, their mother, who died two years earlier of a massive lung tumor.


After the funeral, the Titans came up to Slade. Beast Boy asked, "So what are you going to do now? After you leave, you will be fair game for us."

Slade said, "Indeed I will. That's why I am leaving the country for the time being. I need to recompose myself. Raven, would you care to join me?"

Raven was stunned - her former enemy was now offering his living arrangements to her!? Well, Slade had freed her from Robin's prison and helped her defeat Claw and Zatanna, and she gave him back his flesh and blood and avenge his family.

Raven walked up to Slade and grabbed his hand. The two were engulfed in Raven's soul-self and flew off.

At Slade's base in Perth, Raven moved her things into one of the bedrooms Slade had built for guests.

Raven was impressed by the scale and scope of the building, noticing it was very well-built and had almost everything one could want or expect. It was like a dream house.

Slade walked into the base, having been doing some unloading into the anarments and asked, "How do you like the place?"

Raven, stunned, said "Slade, this place is beautiful."

Slade said, "I knew you would like it."

With that, Slade took off his mask and showed his face to Raven for the first time, revealing his well-cared white hair, black eyepatch, and goatee.

Raven said, "You are a very handsome man, Slade. Why hide it behind a mask?"

Slade replied, "Everyone wants me."

Raven's reply was, "And more person wants you."

Raven and Slade then walked up to each other and grasped each other in the other's arms before beginning a long kiss on the lips. It was Raven's first kiss, first loving kiss. She truly felt like she was wanted, and Slade felt that he had somebody to love again.


And so marks the end of Act Two.