I don't own Teen Titans. I wonder what would happen if I did...
12
"Azareth, the place of your birth?" asked Starfire.
"Know any other Azareths, Starfire?" replied Raven, monotonously. Starfire smiled at her own stupidity.
"Woah, back up. This is your home..." said Cyborg.
Raven nodded.
"It's in ruins..."
Raven nodded again.
"And it's a billion light years from Earth," said Cyborg.
"It's an alternate dimension, it can be as close or as far away as you want it to be," Raven told him.
"Yeah, OK. So how did we get here?''
"And where's Slade?" interrupted Robin.
Raven took a deep breath.
"The small ball Slade was holding was created by the my mentor, Azar. It allowed my Mother to teleport anywhere she wanted on Azareth. Since she was a human and couldn't fly or fight, she mainly used it when my Father's henchmen came looking for me,"
"Then how did Slade get his hands on it?" asked Robin.
"On my 7th birthday, we, my Mother, Azar and me, were attacked. My Mother tried to use the ball to allow me and herself to escape, but a shadow demon, my Father's main and most dangerous henchmen, got it. Slade is working for my Father, and that shadow demon was also working for him, so Trigon must have given it to him. The shadow demon killed my Mother and Azar, but I got scared, then angry, and...lost control,"
"You went DR Light on their butts?" giggled Beast Boy.
Raven glared at him. He was sweet, but this was not the time for jokes.
"I ran away from Azareth and fled to Earth, knowing it would be the next place my Father would attack, and there I met you guys," finished Raven, looking at the sky.
"Then, where is Slade?'' asked Robin.
"He was in control of that ball, he could be anywhere he wants to be,"
"Then, why are we here?'' asked Starfire.
"Because...this is where I used to live," said Raven, and she ran towards the nearest home, smaller then the others, and the most dilapidated.
The four other Titans looked at each other, then ran after Raven.
Raven looked at her old room. She had a small, wicker bed in the corner. There was a small rock next to it, where an old book lay next to a small candle.
Raven sat on the bed and picked up the book. Tears came to her eyes as she remembered her last moments with her Mother.
"...And they lived Happily Ever After," said Arella.
"And one day, Raven, we'll live happily ever after too. We'll live in a cottage in the country, like the three bears, and you can play with the other children. And we wont have to worry about Daddy, ever,"
"When will we go, Mother?" asked the seven year old Raven.
"I don't know, but it will be quite soon," Arella kissed her daughter's forehead, and started to leave the room.
Then, she turned around.
"How could I forget?" she smiled, and brought out a small, red box. She gave it to her child.
"Happy Birthday, sweetheart," she smiled.
Raven slowly opened the box. Her Mother had never given her a present before, Azar said Raven might get emotional.
"We dont have to tell Azar," smirked Arella.
Inside the box was a beautiful silver chain, with a saphire raven as a pendant. The raven was entwined in beautiful crystal vines.
"Mother! It's beautiful!" cried Raven.
"Shhh! Dont let Azar hear!" urged a beaming Arella.
Suddenly, Raven's candle was blown out. Arella and Raven heard a scream from down the corridor, Azar's scream. Arella, panicing, grabbed a small wooden ball from under Raven's bed.
"Hesperith In Nominee Sapereth..." Arella started to chant, but the orb was suddenl enveloped in a black shadow and it flew to the claw of the shadow demon standing at Raven's door.
"Raven! Run!" screamed Arella. The shadow demon lashed it's tail at Arella, and she fell to the ground, forehead bleeding and stone cold. The poison of a shadow demons sting was fast working.
"Mother!" Raven jumped out of bed and ran to her Mother's side.
"Mother, please wake up! Mother...Mommy!" Raven started to cry.
"She cant hear you, child," came the rasping voice of the shadow demon, "Now come with me, Trigon has need of you,"
But Raven could not hear, she could not see. All she could see was red, then black. Then, all she could hear was crashing and screaming. Then all she could remember...was pain.
Raven looked at the book on her lap. It was torn, and very old. It had been Arella's when she was a child.
"Raven, are you OK?" said Beast Boy, cautiously.
Raven ignored him. She had seen something.
She got up and went to the cracking marble shelf she had once used as a dressing table. There, was a mirror. It was cracked in one corner, but she could still make out her reflection. Raven picked it up.
"What is it?" asked Beast Boy, entering the room.
"My old mirror. Azar said one day I would be able to see my reflection in it,"
"Then what do you see now?"
Raven looked into the mirror. It was her looking back, but it wasn't her looking back.
The Raven staring back at her had long white hair, four red eyes and ruby red lips. Raven put the mirror back on the dressing table.
"I see nothing," she said, pushing past Beast Boy and out of the room.
Beast Boy was about to turn and follow her, but something caught his eye. Something had glinted in the little light that there was. He bent down and saw a small saphire pendant under Raven's old bed. It had been smashed, but broken things could always be fixed.
Raven ran out the back door, a thought hitting her.
If I couldn't save Azareth, how am I going to save Earth?
Starfire saw her running and went after her.
"Friend Raven, why are you running? This is a new place for us all, and we need your guidence," she said.
Raven stopped running, Starfire was right. Her friends needed her now.
Beast Boy walked up to one of the old trees. Sap was running down it. He dipped his finger into the sap, he had to be careful not to take too much, it would make the end result look weird.
Raven, Starfire, Beast Boy, Robin and Cyborg all gathered in a circle, Robin trying to make a fire out of dead twigs.
"Allow me," said Starfire, and she shot the pile of twigs with a stabolt. Robin was blown backwards, but it started a fire.
"Robin! I am sorry, are you injured!" cried Starfire.
"I'm fine, Star," smiled Robin, smoking.
Raven smiled, the noticed Beast Boy struggling with his pocket.
"What is it?" she asked him.
"It's just..." he pulled out a small saphire pendant from out his pocket.
Raven gasped.
"I know it's not great, but..." he started to say.
"No, it is," smiled Raven, tears welling up in the back of her eyes.
"Aww, it was nothing...well,it was something, a bit. You know, with the finding the pieces and trying to fit them all together and stuff," he smiled, "It's still not perfect though,"
Raven shook her head.
"No...it's better then perfect," she swng her arms around Beast Boy and hugged him.
He smiled, he was glad she appreciated his work.
Raven pulled away, smiling, then her eyes darted to the flickering fire. There was an un-natural breeze blowing it around.
"Oh no," she whispered, "Duck!"
The five Titans ducked as a huge black dragon flew right above them.
It landed infront of them. The Titans didn't move, frozen with fright.
"Raven, what is that thing?" whispered Robin, his eyes not moving off the massive figure infront of him.
"A Vraal," she murmered.
"What do we do?" muttered Beast Boy.
The Vraal took a deep breath.
"RUN!" screamed Raven, as a jet of black fire came hurtling at the Titans.
Just to repeat myself, I don't own the word Vraal. That is used by Emily Rodda in her Deltora series. I'm not saying the monsters look the same, I just think that Vraal is a very demonic name.