Chapter 22: Pulls of Love
The girl swallowed hard. The hand clutching the dagger wavered momentarily before grasping it harder. Her knuckles were white as she stared at the spell on page.
Shor livensin rorith tal monin kir sath. Rantilastopine mor, kishnopian trist laktile. Da onii she-aan lir tropin een. Kyr solian foth nio.
…From dawn the dove shall surely die black. Hark again, dipped in blood. Her own tears to elicit pain. To set one free… Raven's eyes darted to the dagger. Daughter of the Dawn, she was a dove turned dark; a Raven. And so was her fate. Several tears slipped down, dirtying her cheek. Raven poised the dagger above Beast Boy and began the chant.
"Shor livensin rorith tal monin kir sath. Rantilastopine mor, kishnopian trist laktile. Da onii she-aan lir tropin een. Kyr solian foth nio!" she allowed the cadence to fall from her lips in its lilting melody. Her tears seemed to burn at her skin but she paid no notice. The girl's vision blurred and she felt from her gut a frothing pain. It shot out to her limbs and her skin began to boil. Raven's hair flew wildly about her and a strange and piercingly cold wind rattled through her. On the alter, Beast Boy moaned and began to wake. Raven's eyes rolled back into her head and her body fell slack. She careened backwards, the dagger still clutched in her outstretched hand.
Raven's body was consumed in black, scarlet flames bursting from her body. Her feet left the ground and she was dragged into the air, her arms and legs falling limp. From her chest a great snapping and cracking sent waves of nauseating pain through her. Tears swarmed from the girl's eyes as glittering drops of black blood. Raven's chest split open and a great and ghostly form leapt from her body. The empath's legs snapped together with force enough to shatter her ankles as they slammed together. Raven's lips parted to scream but no sound was emitted. Scarlet blood drenched her torso, the yawning wound in her chest. Raven brought her hands together as if cradling something and flames leapt from them. The form of a glowing black heart jumped from the fire and four scarlet eyes seared across it. Trigon's bellows sounded loud and ferocious, mingling with the sound of Raven's screams as her voice returned.
Beast Boy's eyes snapped open and he saw her, hovering above him with blood running down her body and flames seeming to burst from her. Two huge wings sprouted from her back in a spray of blackened blood. One was pure white and feathered while the other was dark ruby and sinister, leathery like a bat's. Raven stretched her hands out and the black heart in her grasp fell forward, out of her hands. It seethed and twisted, growing to immense size. Winds whipped through the planet, sweeping Raven's already flying hair back from her face. The empath's body went abruptly limp with another cry of pain and plummeted to the earth. Trigon dropped as well, landing with a booming thud on the ground, his feet leaving giant impressions in the soft clay. Raven's bleeding body fell to the ground and a splintering crack snapped through the blustering air. The dark girl jerked to her feet, blood slipping rapidly from a gash in her head. The wound on her chest was wide and gaping. Raven clutched her chest and sucked in a pained breath. One of her lungs had been punctured in the fall.
"RAVEN!" Beast Boy yelled. The girl's eyes darted briefly to the boy before flashing away and back up to the looming face of Trigon. Her eyes narrowed. Once and for all. This would end now. Raven stumbled forward and brought her hands away from her wound. She took another staggering step forward, only to scream in pain as the dagger she had dropped pierced her foot. Raven vomited from the searing pain, her eyes fluttering.
Reaching deliberately down, she pulled the dagger from her foot and clutched in her hand. Her arms flew out to either side and she began to yell, bloody tears still running down her face. "AZERATH! METRION! ZINTHOS!" she screamed. Huge black tendrils leapt from her hands and snaked out, flashing towards Trigon. The demon laughed and holding out his own monstrous hands, he seemed to absorb the energy. Raven gritted her teeth, blood trickling down her lips. Time. It was time. She had to do this now. Raven flung herself towards the alter and locked eyes with Beast Boy. Her gaze danced down to the dagger and back to Beast Boy.
"This is why you're here," she rasped. Beast Boy's eyes widened.
"R-Raven… Capria… why are you…" his face was stricken with the sense of immense betrayal and insurmountable pain flashed across his features. Raven's resolve faltered. No. She would do this… now.
"Because this is the only way for me to live," she growled, poising the dagger above the only person she'd ever loved. Beast Boy hung his head.
"I love you. If this is the only way, than… I want to die for you…" he spread himself across the alter, leaving his heart vulnerable to her weapon. Raven shut her eyes and with a cry, plunged the dagger deep into the changeling's heart. She pulled the dagger free and covered her hands in his blood.
"AZERATH! METRION! LATSIERE! ZINTHOS!" she screamed. Ebony magic consumed both the girl and Trigon. With an enraged roar, Trigon thrashed to be free of his dark binds. A large portal ripped open and wails pierced the planet. Trigon was engulfed by the portal and it disappeared with a deafening hiss. The black magic warped up into a large black bird and disappeared into Raven. She gave a moan of pain before collapsing to the ground. She lifted her head weakly and saw Beast Boy's limp hand dangling over the edge of the alter. Raven fainted.
The winds died down and finally stilled, the planet becoming shrouded in fog. Raven's wounds began to rapidly heal themselves. Her limp form gave no signs to life save the shallow rise and fall of her chest. Her hair was damp with sweat and lay plastered against her face. Her mother's dress hung in tatters over her body, and Beast Boy was dead. Twin trails of glassy tears slid down her face. Beast Boy was dead. And now she could feel. But all she felt… was pain. Guilt. Sorrow. Anguish.
Her violet eyes opened slowly and she stared up into nothing. What had she done? How could she have been so selfish as to take the life of the one she loved? Raven swallowed tentatively. She quietly pushed herself to her feet and shivered. The girl refused to look at the alter behind her. Far off, she heard a whisper. It echoed across and came to her mind.
Was it worth it?
"No."
Why did you do it, Capria?
"No."
No? No what?
"Raven. I'm Raven."
Are you… alone?
"Yes. I'm alone. I feel pain." She brought a hand to her heart.
Now that it's done, would you have changed your decision?
"No. I didn't have a choice. I didn't choose. Fate did."
It was your choice. Fate is what we make it to be. You chose him to die long ago.
"The day I first loved him."
Did you really love him? To let him die?
"…yes… but I am selfish. I killed him. I loved him. It is possible."
Indeed. Do you want him back?
"Yes. I want him back. I am the one who deserves death, not him. He is selfless."
That's why you love him. He is pure. Like you were.
"Were."
Are. Can be… Do you want a second chance?
"Yes. But even the purest of hearts could not forgive this."
He would never remember dying.
"He is dead. He remembers nothing now."
You can have him back.
Raven blinked. She tore herself around to look at the alter. Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. She was such a terrible person… to kill him for her own betterment… "How?"
What would you do?
"Anything."
Trigon? Would you take him back?
"…yes…" Raven touched her lips. She would do anything. Absolutely anything. Even take back Trigon.
Then, so be it. Arella's voice began to fade and Raven's pulse quickened. She opened her mouth to call out to her mother but before a sound could be uttered, a brilliant flash blinded the girl.
Take me back,
Don't make stay
In this world so full of hatred.
Allow me call,
Upon your heart,
And bring you back to breathe.
Give me one final chance,
To show eternity;
I can love.
Let me feel your touch,
Encircle me again,
Allow my heart
To soar.
In the depth of your kiss.
Author's Note: okay, I'm not sure what to say about this chapter. I think I'll be wrapping the story up in two or three more chapters so... yeah. Either way, I hope you'll drop off a little review. I also wanna make sure you all realize the italicized conversation towards the end was Raven and her mother's spirit... but yeah.
Love, Princess Starfire of Tamaran
