It has been way too long since the last time that I worked on this story. This is my first fanfic that I started and it's already over two years old. Well, I've got it moving and I can say that we are over half way to the end! Thanks for hanging in there as I work on these!
The Midnight Empress awoke with a start. She was sprawled out, wrapped up in the sheets of her bed but the sun was shining in from the window directly on her. That only meant one thing, it was well past one in the afternoon. Since her conversation with Millennium in the early hours of the morning and the story he told, she barely had any memory of how she got back to bed.
At a glance, she could see that Jinx was gone and the sense around the castle was one of emptiness. Both Millennium and Sovereign were gone.
'What happened? Where is everyone?' the girl thought to herself as she pulled herself out of bed and quickly dressed in the blacktop and skirt that went with the high legged boots. She pulled her long violet hair back and affixed it into a pony with one of the dark purple ribbons Jinx was always leaving about.
Gliding towards the windows, she saw Boulder, Colorado was still standing silent with what was left of the population hiding away from being seen by with the roaming Kaz'kal or midnight soldiers that were guarding the ways to the fortress.
Closing her eyes, Rachel reached out trying to sense where everyone was. Her powers had grown considerably since Sovereign had touched her in the battle that freed him from his prison. Jason...Atethis...had explained to her that he had channeled his power into her in case their weapon had been successful. The Midnight Empress had some of his power in her and it made her feel weird and impossibly strong. The feeling only growing through the weeks.
Her mind touched on one, a sharp cruel feeling deeper in the dungeons. A feeling of hatred but mixed with self-loathing. Rachel's eyes popped open. Blackfire was still here and it felt that she was visiting her sister.
With a wave of her hand, the onyx portal tinged with gold opened and the sorceress glided through. For a split second of infinity, Rachel found her in the black void before exiting out in the depths of the ancient fortress. The last cries of pain reached her ears that descended into muffled whimpers as Blackfire stepped away from the crumpled form of Starfire, energized electro staff in her hand.
"My lady," Blackfire said with a hint of mockery in her voice when she saw Rachel had arrived.
"Where are the others?" Rachel growled forcing herself not to make eye contact on the curled up form on the ground. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the bleeding and bruised form of her old friend huddled on the ground a mixture of breathing and chocked weeping.
"Out having fun is my guess," Blackfire said with a shrug and turned back to her sister shoving the staff back at the exposed rib cage of the Tamaranian. Rachel's temper flared and the black onyx shadow leap out from her, wrenched the prod away before striking Blackfire with it. The shock through the dark-haired Tamaranian back. The girl jumped back up only to find it hovering inches from her throat.
"I am not in the mood for your games, bitch," The midnight Empress spat. "Answer my question."
"Jump City," Blackfire said coolly eyeing the staff in case it moved at her. "Sovereign took the army to pay a visit to the Justice League. Payback for what they did to him."
'Oh, no.' was the only thought that shot through Rachel's head. With one movement, she snapped the electro-staff causing it to shower in sparks and then wrapped herself in a cloak of magic willing herself to her old home.
Normally, such a journey through a portal would have been taxing to the point of passing out but the next thing the Midnight Empress knew was that she was standing on the island that had the giant T-shaped tower, the symbol of the Teen Titans. Around her, the entire landscape had changed.
The tower itself, had been gutted as if something had plowed through it and wrenched out its heart. The angled iron beams and burning flames were a standing testament to the destruction that it had faced. Rachel stumbled back, her breath coming in gasps as the fires that roared around her stole her breath. Gliding into the air and above the tower, Rachel surveyed Jump City or what was left of it. The fires raged from the East where the melted Titan's East tower once stood all the way to the south. It was a devastating slash of destruction engulfed with an ever consuming fire. The entire city had been destroyed.
"Thousands have lost their lives here."
Rachel's spun raising her arms, eye eyes glowing a brilliant gold ready to strike and fight. Floating in front of her was the golden helmeted hero of mystery that she had once encountered before. Doctor Fate was level with her, golden helmet aglow with his power and cape fluttering behind her.
"Sovereign came to exact revenge for the Justice's Leagues attack on him. You can see the cataclysm of their fight." he continued turned to face the burning city.
"Did...did anyone make it out?" she asked.
"Some but the fury of a god is not easily avoided," he continued with arms cross, seemingly focused on something in the distance. "They have gone to regroup as they sense the last stand is coming."
"What do you mean?" Rachel asked frowning.
"You must have sensed it. Sovereign's power is returning to him. He will soon have enough strength to rend this reality apart and move on to the next." Doctor Fate said turning to her. "Hope to stop him has become increasingly unlikely. The Observers have left this reality and the Lords of Order have summoned me to return to their realm. We do not see a future where this reality will survive in any meaningful way."
"So you're quitting?"
"Isn't that what you wanted?" he asked turning to her. "Is this not what you wanted? There will be peace. Peace among the bones, peace among those who will bend their knee, and where the shackles of the Midnight Empress. You are now their god, the power of life and death at a snap of your fingers."
Something inside of Rachel's revolted at the thought but memories flooded to her. Of the actions, she had committed. She had done whatever she wanted in the pursuit of her peace. That was anything from leveling streets to snatching people she found amusing. How many times over the months she had found a new person of interest. A young man for Jinx to satiate her own lusts, soldiers to be pitted against each other for Rachel's own amusement. It felt like such a haze but it came into strong contrast at the burning city in front of her.
"Oh, Azar," Rachel gasped as a single tear escaped her eye.
"Your god has no interest in you now, Midnight Empress," Doctor Fate said as he began to float upwards toward a rift in the sky.
"I didn't want this," she called after him in a desperate plea.
"Action speak louder than words," he said as the rift took him.
Time was lost as Rachel floated among the burning and smoldering ruins of the city that used to be her home. She had no idea how long she was there except that when she portaled back to Boulder and the Fortress of Silence waiting. She found herself in the cold, dungeon, the starting point of her journey. There was no light, no heat. Nothing bit the starlight filtering through the high slits that made for windows and the biting cold of the night.
Rachel just stood there, vacantly staring at the stone wall in front of her oblivious of anything around her. She looked at her hands and the invisible blood that was on it. It was the sound of shivering that brought her back to reality. Looking around and realizing where she was, her eyes fell to the curled-up form in the corner of the cell shivering hard in the cold. Even in the starlight, Rachel could see the darkened bruises covering the woman's body and the burns that blistered the once vibrant, orange skin.
The emotions in Rachel's heart burst as she waved her hand throwing the door open with magic and falling to her knees in front of the Tamaranian.
"Oh, Starfire!" Rachel sobbed scooping up her friend into her arms, tears flowing from her cheeks.
The two sobbed, their quiet cries filling the dungeon as they clutched at each other. Rachel did not know how long they held each other but after a while she pulled away and wiped her tear-stained eyes.
"Let me...let me see if I can heal you," Rachel said putting her hand on Starfire's forehead. "It's been so long."
And it was, the soul magic was intertwined with the power of Sovereign and for a second, Rachel felt nauseous as she pulled at it but the healing flow soon left her hand and into her friend. The bruises faded and soon a healthy-looking Starfire sat smiling in front of her, still covered with dirt and wearing tattered clothes.
"I am so happy to see you, friend Raven," she beamed. "I have not given up on the you."
"You should have," Raven said with the tears threatening to return. "I've done so many horrible things."
"Yes," Starfire said with a soft pat on her cheek. "But you are making a different choice now? Do you now renounce the Sovereign and is ilk or do you heal me so you may torture me yourself?"
Raven balked at that and quickly shook her head. "Torture you? I couldn't."
"It is alright if you wish to take your anger out on me or indulge in one of your vices," Starfire said earnestly. "That is why I do not resist my sister. If you and she are here hurting me, then you are not out there hurting the people that I have sworn to protect."
Raven pulled her friend fiercely to her and hugged her tight. "I'm not going to hurt you, Star. I can't. I can't lose any more people. I've already lost so much. My family, you, Beast Boy."
"Beast Boy lives Raven," Starfire said gently. "The wound was not fatal."
"What?" The dark sorceress said aghast. "He...he's okay?"
"Yes. He is still healing the last time that I saw him but he helps with the fight by healing those around him. He wears your cape as a symbol to you in hopes you'll see it and come home."
The tears threatened to escape again but it was the sound behind her that made her realize she wasn't alone.
"Well, well," Blackfire's voice cooed from the dark. "I see someone is getting lovey-dovey with my toy."
Rage filled Raven's heart and she leap up, her eyes burning with hatred.
"Toy? You forget, Blackfire. You're my toy." The Midnight Empress shrieked. She lunged forward catching Blackfire by the throat. The girl struggled in her grasp and eyes went wide when Raven fastened the other hand around the metal of the Archon ring and ripped it out of the base of her neck. The warm sticky coating of blood satisfyingly pouring over Raven's hand.
She dropped Blackfire to the ground as she stared back wide-eyed but silent. Her body spasmed as the blood flood out of her and pooled around her on the floor. Raven felt a satisfaction fill her and the power of Sovereign amplify in the light of the destruction. It felt like vindication to make this bitch suffer as much as she made Starfire suffer.
"No!" Starfire shrieked rushing over to her sister and scooping her into her lap. Blackfire's mouth moved as if she was trying to talk but her orange skin had grown pale as over half of her lifeblood had spilled out over the stone floor and Starfire's lap.
"Raven, please! Heal her."
"What?" Raven said surprised. "After everything she has done to you, done to the rest of the world?"
"If you deserve a chance at redemption, shouldn't she?" Starfire begged. "For everything she has done, she is still my sister."
Raven looked down at the now pale form where only a minor leg twitch showed she was still alive but in a few seconds, that would not be the case. Gritting her teeth, Raven dropped to her knee and cast forth the healing power of her soul magic along with the tendrils of golden light amplifying its effect. The energy swirled through every pour of the dying Tamaranian and through her nose. A gasp escaped her as the eyes began to blink quickly. A cry of agony escaped her before the wound in her neck had been healed. Within a few minutes, Blackfire sat panting for breath in her sister's arm, covered with her blood.
"Oh, Blackfire!" Starfire said hugging her sister. "You are okay."
"You...you saved me?" Blackfire said blinking trying to comprehend what her sister had done.
"Yes, of course. You are my sister."
"But….but I hated you. I tortured you...I...I violated you."
"Yes," Starfire said, her smile beaming down at her. "but I still love you. Yes, you will have to pay for your crimes if we live through this but I will always love you."
Starfire helped the girl up and Raven staggered back trying to comprehend everything around her. She had done it. Turned on Sovereign. She had killed one of the Archon Knights and now helped a prisoner and a member of Iris free. The monster in her wanted to strike both of them down for such weakness but she banished the thought. That monster did not control her anymore.
"You two much go," Raven warned. "Jinx and Sovereign will sense the power change and it's not going to be long before. They know what I have done."
"What about you?" Starfire asked holding her weak sister close.
"I'll buy you some time but…but I'm going to take the ring off," Rachel said touching the simple archon ring around her forehead. The thing that started the nightmare.
"He'll kill you," Blackfire warned.
"Do I deserve less?"
"Well, you did make me go down on you in front of everyone. So you still owe me for that?" Blackfire snarked and a blush crossed both Starfire and Raven's face.
"Yeah...let's not talk about that."
"You must not sacrifice yourself," Starfire warned as Rachel created a portal. "Sovereign is still going to come for us. You are the best chance we have at defeating him. You must come to us."
"I'll find you if I can get out," Raven said but looked up the stairs. She sensed Millennium's mind pulsing and searching. "I'll try but I can't make any promises."
Starfire gave her one more hug before throwing herself and her sister through the portal. It snapped shut and she turned to the steps. She had a bug to deal with.