CHAPTER TWENTY
"Yo, Raven, BB, what's happenin'?"
"Dude!" Beast Boy grinned ear-to-ear when he saw a reenergized Cyborg appear through the turbolift door. He approached his big, metal buddy and tossed him the device Robin had used to drain his power cells. "Dude, recognize this?"
Cyborg scowled when he opened his fist and saw the device sitting there. "Hell yeah. So, what's the scoop? Did we get Robin back?"
"Better believe it."
He stepped up behind Raven's chair and lay a hand on her shoulder. They stared up at the viewscreen showing a map of the U.S. Plains region and the western edge of the Rocky Mountains. Somewhere just west of the city of Colorado Springs, a red blip glided across the screen.
"What's that?"
"Rancor," Raven replied, and glanced to the Green Lantern. "Superman is on route and Batman and Numara are thirty minutes behind him." Stewart seemed lost in concentration as he made some adjustments on the console before him. Raven grunted. He was ignoring the Titans. What were they doing waiting around up here? There was so much to do, and sitting on their asses in Earth's orbit wasn't getting it done.
"We should be down there," Cyborg muttered, echoing her thoughts. "They could use our help."
"Take it easy, Cyborg," Beast Boy said. "We're not exactly topnotch right now."
"Speak for yourself, BB. I had a little power outage. Nothing I can't handle."
"And my leg isn't exactly a necessity," Raven agreed.
"I know, but what good can–" The shape-shifter's eyes widened. He was staring at the viewscreen. "Woah…Dude, what just happened?"
Green Lantern rose quickly and leaned over Raven's console. He grunted in disgust and slammed his fist against the counter. His green eyes turned away from the monitor as he cursed. "Son of a bitch. We just lost Rancor."
"No…we didn't," Raven murmured. "We have his last location…" She touched a button, an intent gaze locked on the viewscreen. A red square outlined Colorado Springs on the map and expanded to fill the screen. She frowned deeply at the single red diamond that marked the last location of the tracker Batman had stashed on the telepathic maniac. She perused the readouts that poured across the screen. Her eyes widened as she realized what she was seeing. "Dammit," she muttered. She spun around to Green Lantern. "We have to get down there right now!"
"We?" Stewart asked. "Superman's already down there, Raven. He can handle it."
"No, I don't think he can. Superman doesn't have my abilities."
"What do you mean?"
"Look at this point right here," she replied. "I don't think Rancor simply vanished into thin air. More likely he was able to tap into the Void. When he entered the portal, the signal vanished from our sensors."
"How exactly was he able to do that?" Cyborg asked. "If he had that kind of power, you'd think he would have left a long time ago."
"Tapping into the Void and traveling through it are two completely different matters. I do it all the time, but the most I can do is teleport from one point to another." The girl grabbed her crutches and rose to her feet. She hobbled slowly over to the Green Lantern, a darkness in her eyes bordering on hatred. "I don't think he can travel through the Void without the same kind of tool Numara possessed."
Stewart nodded. "All right. You're the expert." He stared at the viewscreen with a deep frown on his face. "Let's just say I take you down there. What exactly will you be able to do to make our job easier?"
"I can follow him in."
Cyborg stepped up to her friend's aid. "I can keep watch up here. I work with this kind of equipment all the time, and I can keep you updated."
John nodded, and looked back to Raven. "What about your leg?"
"Entry into the Void is more of a mental process than physical. You actually lose your true physical state. The brain turns mental imagery into visual correlation. It's why Rancor has such control of the Void. His telepathic abilities allow him to mold the Void to his design. My control of the Void gives me the same abilities."
"So you're saying without the Gem of Ages…" Beast Boy started.
Cyborg grunted. "Then we're screwed."
"My leg won't be an obstacle in the Void. It all depends on my state of mind."
The Green Lantern narrowed his eyes. "All right. Then let's get our butts down there before while we still have a chance." He looked to Cyborg. "Send word to the others and let them know we're on our way."
"You got it."
Beast Boy drew a deep breath. "I'm coming."
Raven looked to him. "Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure."
"I don't think that's such a good idea…" John began.
"Dude, that guy violated my mind and body. It was no different then being raped. I deserve to be there until the end." He drew a deep breath, glancing to Raven, whose steadfast demeanor gave him hope. "I deserve a chance to prove myself."
"You don't have to prove anything to us, BB."
"No, I meant I deserve a chance to prove myself to myself." Raven arched an eyebrow. Cyborg gave him a confused look. "Please, don't make me explain it," Beast Boy pleaded. "It's just something I've gotta do."
Raven smiled and set a hand on his shoulder. "All right. Let's go."
John Stewart gave the three teens a look and scratched his head, wondering when he had lost control of the situation. Cyborg grinned, giving Green Lantern a shrug as Raven and Beast Boy walked away.
"What can I say?" the cybernetic superhero said. "We're stubborn."
"So I've noticed," Stewart grunted, and followed after the others.
* * *
At the same moment in time, a pair of red boots connected with the Colorado soil and approached a swirling sphere of black and gray energy. A city could be seen far to the west—Colorado Springs, probably—but luckily enough, there was no indication of anyone nearby that might be placed in immediate danger. Still, there was no reason to take chances. Determined to find Rancor, the Man of Steel reached out and placed the palms of his hands against the strange energy.
His eyes widened. Ice cold. A flash of power pulsed through him, and he thought he might be sick. Convulsing, the Kryptonian fell back away from the ball and dropped to his knees. He gasped for breath and then lifted his hand; the thing had been so cold they had become blue. Shocked, he slowly turned to glare at the ball of energy. It felt, oddly enough, as though he had been in the presence of a lump of Kryptonite. While not nearly as bad—he had actually come into physical contact with this new force—it still troubled him. This stuff had actually briefly turned his blood to ice, and that couldn't be a good thing. He took a few deep breaths as his strength returned to him and rose to his feet. He squeezed his hands into fists several times to get the blood flowing again.
Rancor must be in there. It was too convenient for such a strange anomaly to pop out of nowhere along the same path the beast had taken to evade the Justice League. A thought came to him. He couldn't touch the thing with his bare hands; what about his heat vision? The temperature of the thing was well below freezing. He could see that the ground around it had already started to freeze.
He narrowed his eyes a little and fed heat vision into the giant sphere.
The red beam simply disappeared at the very point where it connected with the energy. He quit after several moments, when nothing happened, and decided to try something else.
He tried his X-ray vision. As before, nothing of significance came of it, though he was convinced that there would be no way for him to penetrate it.
Overhead, the jet came into view. It circled high above him and the sphere of energy and then came down, landing in field about an eighth of a mile southwest. Superman stayed where he was and waited.
* * *
The Flash fixed a new neural inhibitor over his crimson dome as Starfire, Hawkgirl, and J'Onn watched on. He was miffed at the way he had been treated, but he decided to keep his mouth shut in the presence of the alien child, despite the fact that she had probably heard some of the things he was thinking a million times over in her lifespan. He despised being used as anyone's personal plaything, though he was pretty certain Rancor had known exactly what he was doing.
Grumbling obscenities under his breath, the crimson-clad hero stormed over to J'Onn. "All right, where is he? I'm going to put my foot so far up his ass–"
The Martian held up a hand. "Calm down, Flash. Superman is on his trail. I'm not sure what he did, but at least it freed you and the woman from his hold."
"Do you remember what happened?" Hawkgirl asked.
Flash frowned and rubbed his soar neck. He couldn't for the life of him remember what made him so stiff, so he shook his head. No sense trying to answer her question if he couldn't think of one. He popped his knuckles, an angry glare in his eyes. He wanted to ring some necks and twist some heads, but nothing came to mind. He just grunted and stepped over to the edge of the building.
"You were really going to fight me, weren't you?"
"We didn't have much of a choice," J'Onn said. "It would be too dangerous to let a telepath control the mind of a being like yourself."
"Yeah, yeah. I guess you're right." Flash grunted. "Where are the others?"
"Somewhere in Colorado," the Martian replied.
The girl in Robin's arms turned her head slightly to face them. "Colorado Springs. Rancor was going to a location near Colorado Springs. He said something about a…break of some kind."
Robin considered her words with a frown. "Why Colorado?"
"I don't know."
"Perhaps he has located a break in the barrier of the Void," J'Onn said. "Seems to be a reasonable explanation. He cannot leave without a powercrystal or the Gem of Ages, and the best opportunity for him to find one would be within the Void itself."
"I didn't think the Void could merge with a dimension," Robin said.
J'Onn peered to him and nodded. "True, but in order for any type of traveling to be done between the dimensions, there must be a doorway leading through the barrier."
The Flash frowned. "So, what's the plan?"
"We take a trip," J'Onn said. "Colorado Springs."
* * *
Numara sat cross-legged, the Silverwing unsheathed and laying across the dirt before him. His eyes were closed and his long hair rippled gently in the breeze of the early evening. For the first time since his arrival on Earth, he felt peace in his heart. Rancor was nearby, though not in a position where he could be dangerous. At least, not at the moment. He had explained upon his arrival that the telepath had slipped into a doorway between Earth's dimension and the Void, a tear between worlds, so to speak. They weren't uncommon in a world where trans dimensional travel had occurred. It just so happened that Rancor had located one with ease.
That he had managed to slip inside was a concern, though he was apparently stuck there for the time being. No doubt he was waiting for a powercrystal to come by so that he could take it from some unsuspecting Keeper. That might be an unlikely scenario, but not impossible. Especially with all the activity going into and fleeing this dimension in the recent days following Numara's exile from Nassera.
He meditated for quite some time, trying to slip into the Void, but without the Gem of Ages, such a journey was hopeless. The jewel had been his key, his opportunity. Without it, he would have never had to face Rancor, would never have put the lives of his sister and Otho in danger. He let himself be soothed by the fact that had he never received it, he would still be floating within the Void.
At least here, he had made new friends. Here, he had a second chance.
He never knew how long he had sat there, but in time the world around him simply faded away. Arms outstretched, guiding his mind forward, he sought whatever guide had led him beyond the truth of reality and left him drifting within darkness. He was suddenly cold; his whole body ached from the sudden chill.
His outstretched arms suddenly found what they were seeking. Something took hold of him, something warm. His heart fluttered briefly, and then began to pound. His entire, stiff body grew numb to the pain. His breathing quickened. Eyes wide, he searched the space before him for the sudden power that had taken hold.
A pair of illuminated eyes, blindingly white, appeared in his vision. He soon made out the dark outline of a figure seated before him, arms outstretched and hands clasping his own. A guide, he realized, into the Void…
He found himself in a realm of shadows, where darkness seemed to swirl around him. Someone was with him, reluctant to meet his gaze. She no longer knelt beside him; now, they both stood, inches apart. His hands rose to slide back the hood of her cloak. He gazed at her with concern.
"Raven?"
Slowly, she lifted her head. Her eyes, no longer illuminated, shimmered with tears of sorrow. His heart ached for her; that she would make such a sacrifice for him was unbearable. He was no more than a lowly criminal, tried, convicted, and sentenced, and yet she was the one who suffered his indignity.
"Raven, what the hell are you doing here?"
"You cannot do this alone. Without me, you would never have gotten this far."
"Dammit, we can't do this. I can't allow you to suffer for my sins."
Raven forced a little smile and put a hand to his lips, shushing him silently.
He took her hand and removed it from his lips. "Please, leave me here."
She simply shook her head and took his hand.
"Raven…"
"I'm with you to the end, like it or not," she whispered.
By the stern sound of her voice, he knew there would be no convincing her otherwise. He lowered his head and sighed.
"Heads up, Numara," she whispered. He peered up and met her gaze once more, and she smiled. "So much better."
She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his.