"Even if she does break free, we're still talking serious damage here, Gar." Raven replies, calmly. "Damage to her, biologically and psychologically. It's nothing she won't be able to handle. She's been through worse." Now, Beast Boy realizes that she has been through worse. She was a puppet. Beast Boy looks over at the clock; ten after nine. Nothing odd about that.
"She can fight it, but she'll fail..." Beast Boy remembers, trailing off. "She's not strong enough..."
"She kicked Slade's ass. Seems pretty strong to me." Kid Flash interjects, concernedly, but obviously not grasping the severity of the situation.
"If anyone's going to do anything, they'd better do it now." Supergirl suggests. "Her heart is beating erratically, she's not breathing properly. If we don't do something now, we run the risk of losing her forever." Beast Boy sighs. He had hoped that it would not come to this. Raven puts her hand on his shoulder, sensing his emotional pain.
"You have to do it, Gar." She comforts him, her dark eyes staring at him. "It's the only way you can save her."
"But she could die, and I really don't want to have that on my conscious. Raven, you're the only one who knows her as well as I do. Why isn't there another way?" Beast Boy asks, staring at Terra. Her skin is pale; her breathing shallow. He curses Trigon for doing this to her; though he curses himself for loving her. If he did not love her, and she did not love him, she would not be here, and she wouldn't be fighting for her very soul against a demon. He shudders; the arm wrapped around his neck is growing colder by the second. He wraps his arms around her in a loving embrace, but her soul is already gone.
It exists on another plane - a torturous one of pain and hellfire. She resides on a stone above a pool of lava. She attempts to clear her mind, but is frightened at the prospect that she might find something that she does not want to. She remembers those key words that Raven had told her; that none of this is real. Knowing the risk, she places her finger into the lava. It is cold, like... water. She dives in, hoping and wishing that she survives -
And wakes up, water soaking her face and her clothes. She finds herself lying under the tap in the bathtub, water rushing out and running off her face and hair. She gasps for air; her lungs ache, and her stomach feels sick. She reaches up and turns off the water, and she grabs a towel from the air. She dries herself off, then looks up to see Beast Boy, staring down at her.
"It's alright now, Tara." He comforts her, smiling.
"What happened?" She asks, drying her hair.
"I'll tell you later. Right now, you should get some sleep."
"Why can't you ever tell me anything at the moment I want to know it?" Terra replies, hostilely. Beast Boy just stares at her. "Well?" Beast Boy just continues to stare. Terra stands up and storms out of the room. Beast Boy just stares at where she just stood. He tries to make sense of what just happened. He decides on the most likely situation and turns it over in his head.
"Raven!" He yells, quickly exiting the room. Raven meets him in the hallway. "Terra's not herself. I think she might still be... well, possessed."
"It's unlikely, but it's still possible." Raven replies. "Is there anything that happened to support your claim?"
"She was acting abrasive."
"Kind of like what happened to you?"
"Yeah... kind of like what happened to me."
"Where is she now?"
"I don't know, but probably in her room."
"Well, if it is true, and she still is possessed by Trigon, she'll be extremely hostile, and she'll try to make use of her powers to her powers to their full potential, but Trigon does realize that by possessing her, he's only as strong as..."
"A fourteen year old girl."
"Exactly. Trigon doesn't pose much of a risk inside of her, but if we can get him out and Terra still acts the way she does, then he might have gotten to her."
"So, then what do we do?"
"We'll have to drug her."
"No, not again..."
"Look, Gar. You had no problems with using a potentially lethal poison on her. Why should drugs be any different?"
"Because I diluted the poison, and just because I did it doesn't mean that I don't have any regrets." Raven sighs.
"You know, you can be pretty stubborn."
"It's who I am." Beast Boy looks past Raven's shoulder, down the hallway. He thought he had heard something, but apparently, everything was alright. "Look, Raven, I know what you're trying to do, but... well, Tara's not exactly the most calm and emotionless person. You know how passionate she can get about things. We're all different. To stop Trigon, we can't all be like you."
"I know."
"So let me go in there and talk to her. If anything bad happens, I'll give the signal."
"What signal?"
"You'll know it when you hear it." Raven steps aside, and Beast Boy walks past her. For a split second, they both are thinking the same thing: what if Terra can't be saved? They both push the thought from their minds, and are filled up with remorse. A solitary tear rolls down Beast Boy's cheek as he knocks on the door to Terra's room. "Tara? Tara, are you in there?" He waits for a response, but there is none. He opens the door, and he sees her. She is lying on her bed face-up, head in her hands. The only noise in the room is the whirring of the ceiling fan. He begins to move towards her, walking as slowly as he can, as if not to alarm her.
"What's wrong with me, Gar?" Terra asks, breaking the silence. "What's wrong with me?"
"Tara, I..."
"I tried to fight him, but he was too powerful. He pushed my consciousness aside like it was nothing."
"You can still fight him. You can win."
"It's too late."
"Tara, it's never too late." Terra looks up at Beast Boy, tears starting to run down her cheeks.
"It's never too late..." Tara reaches up and hugs Beast Boy, beginning to sob. Beast Boy holds her tightly and pats her on the back.
"It's going to be all right. Things will be just like before. You won't have to worry about anything. Not anymore. I promise, Tara."
"How can we get him out?"
"Be strong." A voice answers. They both look over to see Raven standing in the doorway. "Don't be angry. Don't be scared. You'll be alright." Terra nods. "Get some rest. You'll need it."
"But what if..."
"He can't take over when you sleep. Come on, Gar." Beast Boy hugs
Terra, then gets up and walks through the door. He stops and turns
around.
"I love you, Tara."
"I love you too, Gar." Beast Boy closes the door. Terra sits up and rubs her head. It hurts. She looks over at her clock; ten O'clock. She starts to feel drained all of a sudden. She puts her head back down on her pillow and closes her eyes. Overhead, the ceiling fan whirrs, parting the air, and this sound brings her to sleep. Outside the door, Beast Boy and Raven watch, then slowly close it, as not to make a noise.
"Well, it's been an interesting night, wouldn't you say?" Raven asks. Beast Boy nods.
"Definitely. The night's nowhere near over, though." As soon as Beast Boy finishes saying this, the alarm goes off, spreading through Titans tower like a contagious disease. Beast Boy looks at the door to Terra's room.
"She can't hear anything." Raven assures him. "Vic blocked it out. Come on." Raven grabs Beast Boy by the arm, and they both run towards the main area of the tower. When they get there, Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, Kid Flash, Wonder Girl, Superboy and Supergirl are waiting for them.
"Now that the team's all here, what's the problem?" Superboy asks.
"It's... impossible." Robin replies, furiously tying away on a keyboard. "He's back"
"Slade? We know that." Wonder Girl answers.
"No, not him. Brother Blood."
"Blood's back? I thought I put him away!" Cyborg replies, a small intonation of frustration in his voice.
"Calm down, Vic. Though we do not know how he was able to escape, I am confident that we will be able to catch him again." Starfire comforts him.
"Titans, move out!" Robin yells, and they all head towards the entrance. Beast Boy watches them go. Raven and Robin notice that he's not coming, and turn around.
"Gar, come on!" Robin orders.
"I'm not going." Beast Boy replies.
"Why not?" Raven questions.
"I have to stay with her."
"Gar, she's asleep. She'll be fine." Robin comforts him.
"No, I have to stay. You guys go chase down Blood. Don't you remember what happened the last time we left her alone here?" Raven and Robin did, all too well, in fact. "Besides, Vic was able to put down Blood single-handedly. Me staying here won't change a thing." Robin can see the sincerity in his eyes.
"Alright, I'll allow it, but just this once."
"Good luck, Dick." Raven and Robin run to catch up to the rest of the team. Beast Boy sighs, and makes his way down the opposite hallway. He didn't think that she deserved this. He scoffed at the notion of fate and luck. After all, what had either gotten him? They had gotten his parents killed, him stuck with an incurable disease that lead to him originally getting his powers. He reaches her room, but rather than knocking, he just enters. He finds her asleep on her bed, curled up and facing the window. He can hear her breathing; slow and shallow. He slowly moves over to her, trying as hard as he can not to make any noise. He comes face-to-face with her, and brushes her hair out of her eyes. She moans slightly, and he kisses her on the cheek. She grabs his arm, and he is no longer in the room.
"Tara!" He yells, not knowing where she is.
"Gar, I'm over here!" She yells back. He stumbles in the darkness, following her voice, trying to find her.
"Tara, what's going on!" He shouts.
"I have no idea! I was asleep, and then I just ended up here! Keep yelling, I'll try to find you!" There is a whirring noise, and lights turn on overhead, temporarily blinding both of them. Their eyes adjust, and find that they are close to each other. It appears that they are in a warehouse; boxes are stacked high, and conveyer belts litter the ground. There is a sputtering noise, and everything instantaneously catches fire. "Don't be afraid, Gar. It isn't real."
"How can you tell?"
"I just know, okay? Try your communicator." Beast Boy opens it up, but all he can hear is static.
"Hello? Hello, is anyone there!" Beast Boy sighs and goes to close it, but then they both hear a familiar voice.
"Gar? Gar, where are you? The reception's horrible."
"Vic, can you transfer me to Raven?"
"She's a little tied up at the moment, but... just hang on." Cyborg replies, practically screaming. Though he is, Beast Boy and Terra still find it hard to hear him over the static.
"Gar? What's wrong?" Another voice replies. In the background, Beast Boy can hear the sounds of a battle raging on.
"Rae, it's me. We're trapped inside a vision. How do we get out?" Terra screams into the communicator.
"Find some water. Water is a conduit!" Raven replies, having to raise her own voice. Beast Boy and Terra look around; no water in sight.
"Thanks, Rae! Over and out!" Terra yells, and shuts the communicator. "Well, Gar, let's find some water."
"I think there is none to find." A voice calls from overhead. Beast Boy and Terra look up.
"Slade... how the fuck did you get in here!" Terra screams at him, before enveloping her hands in a yellow aura and causing a section of the ceiling to fall. Slade moves, and leaps some fifty feet down to where Beast Boy and Terra are standing.
"Oh, come now children, I just want to talk. There's a demon in your mind, true, but an even greater one in your heart."
"What are you saying?" Terra asks, stepping backwards, a bit of fear, a certain solemn tone beginning to show in her voice.
"Love is such a human emotion, Tara. Join me and my master, and we could give you everything that you ever wanted. Riches. Power. Incorruptable friends..."
"No, Slade, I've had it with you! You can take your deal and shove it up your ass!" Terra replies hostilely. Beast Boy wonders if Terra's just being Terra, or if the demon has already started to take over.
"Tara, cool it. Calm down. You don't want to let..."
"Let what, Garfield? Let the demon out? Let the monster out? You already know a fair bit about that, don't you?" Slade replies coolly. Terra clutches her head, a look of extreme pain on her face. She thinks it hurts, it hurts so badly. She wonders what's causing it. "By the looks of things, it's already started to happen." Slade laughs, then places an open-palmed hand on Terra's neck. There is a burning sound, and she screams in pain. Slade pulls his hand away, and she falls to the floor. "We'll be in touch, Tara." Slade vanishes in a burst of flame. Beast Boy stoops down to check on Terra, and finds, to his horror, what he had never hoped to see on her skin: Slade has burned a rune onto her neck. Just like the ones Raven has. He hears a bird, and the room is suddenly enveloped in darkness. Despite his best attempts to fight it, Beast Boy slips into unconsciousness.
"They are coming back." Beast Boy opens his eyes, and sees Starfire looming over him, smile on her face.
"Kory... where's Tara? Where's Raven?"
"I'm right here, Gar." Raven steps out from behind Starfire. Beast Boy reaches up... and grabs Terra's arm.
"Man, my spine is killing me. What time is it?"
"It is a quarter after eleven. You have been unconscious for a while."
"What about Blood?"
"Vic was able to take care of him. Now, after the wild night I'm sure you've had, I recommend that you get some sleep. Tomorrow's a big day."
"Tuesday? What's going on?" Beast Boy asks.
"It's the day we save Tara's soul."
