CHAPTER 6

Raven's power had torn a hole into the dimension. Light poured out of it, too bright to look at straight. The winged lion/butterfly creature ran to the hole. As the light soaked into it, it changed shape, becoming a ragged and insane-looking young man. Cenbach wouldn't have recognized Harry Lee this way, no matter how close they had been. His clothes were tattered and his broken glasses hung from one ear. There were bleeding bald patches on his scalp and half-healed scratches on his face and neck, as if he'd been trying to claw some comfort out of his own hide. He threw himself into the portal with a wild cry of joy.

Beast Boy saw it rip the poor man apart into a glowing maelstrom of brightly-colored chaos. He had taken the form of a squid again. Four of his legs were wrapped around columns and supports and the rest clung to Raven as she dragged him towards the hole with relentless strength. Holding her back was stretching his limbs out painfully and he knew it had to be hurting her too, but didn't dare let go.

The force of the portal, plus Raven's runaway magic was tearing the room apart. Things melted and twisted and smacked from one wall to another. Not even the Poltergeist movies had been this bad! Then something leaped from the portal into the room. It was a capricorn, all goat and fish, springing gracefully from the light. Once outside its own dimension though, its grace vanished. It flopped and gasped and died in twisting agonies on the roulette table. Then came a spray of what looked like birds made of glass, bursting out to shatter and die on the tiled floor. Raven still struggled, desperate to reach the portal.

"You can't go!" Beast Boy shouted over the howl of the magical storm. "They can't live in this world and you won't survive in that one!" She didn't answer. That same look of tormented need that the lion/butterfly had worn was now twisting her face. Such passionate intensity was so unlike her that Beast Boy wrapped a tentacle around her head to block it.

"I won't let you go!" he screamed. "You belong here with us!" The few dark shreds that were all that was left of Harry Lee spun out of sight and were lost. The portal slowly began to shrink, closing up on itself. Raven fought even harder to reach it before it was gone. She dragged Beast Boy forward, ignoring his pleas. Then, another arm wrapped around her waist. Beast Boy blinked in alarm at the Slade-bot that had suddenly appeared. It was bigger than the bots he remembered. One of its eyes glowed red and the other gave him a wink.

"Cyborg!" he gasped. "Help me!"

"It's why I came!" the big man said. He put his other arm around Raven and dug his heels into the floor, bracing against her. She struggled, lashing out at him. Beast Boy heard sounds of metallic strain from inside Cyborg's limbs, but he held fast. Beast Boy's own arms were throbbing, but he told himself they only had to hold her until the portal closed completely. It was growing smaller as they watched. The roar of the contained energy and howling wind began to fade enough that they could hear Raven screaming over the din.

"NONONONO!!" she screeched, thrashing in their arms, frantic to reach it. As it finally sealed itself shut, her last wail trailed off into a wordless cry of despair. She slumped to the ground unconscious, Beast Boy and Cyborg collapsing with her. Her last outburst of power shattered every window in the building, spraying the streets with broken glass.

Robin and Starfire were trying to find a way back into the casino when Cyborg appeared. He was still wearing a Slade-bot uniform, but had taken off the mask. He cradled Raven in the crook of one arm, holding her against his shoulder. His other hand was holding Beast Boy up. Robin ran to help and took Beast Boy's arm over his own shoulder to support him. Beast Boy winced as the arm was moved, feeling the strain of holding on to Raven for so long.

"I'm beat," the shapeshifter sighed. "I'm not going to be able to MOVE tomorrow..."

"But what about Raven??" cried Starfire, hovering near her pale friend.

"She may need some time..." Beast Boy said sadly.

"What happened in there?" Robin asked.

"My part went as expected," Cyborg told them. "I squeezed into a Slade-bot suit and got into the main system room. The BAX-TECH stuff was just sitting there. I didn't see the book and there was nothing else in the room so I took it back to the T-jet and came to help you guys. Got there just in time to keep these two from being sucked into a not-so black hole!"

"Will she be ok?" Robin peered closer at Raven's crumpled form.

"Will she forgive us, you mean," Beast Boy said. They all looked at him. His pointed ears drooped unhappily. "Whatever she saw in that place, she wanted more than I've ever seen her want anything. She didn't care if she hurt us or that building as long as she got to it."

"That's why Slade kept his distance," Robin said. "If he read the book and knew what was waiting... He wouldn't want anything to have that much control over him."

"And the price he spoke of?" Starfire clasped her hands together. "What if it is Raven he meant to pay it?!"

"Harry Lee went into that dimension of his own free will," said Beast Boy. "And it started to close."

"Maybe it got what it wanted," Robin said hopefully. "Maybe it will let her go."

"I just hope she can let IT go," Beast Boy sighed. All eyes turned to the sorceress again. She lay still, with anguish pulling at her face, even unconscious.