Another shortish chapter today, nicely filled with intrigue and needling. Perhaps a little more of Harbinger's motives are brought to light, too.

Mdizzle999872 was curious to know if Vivian will remember what Harbinger did to BB. Good question! You'll likely find out next chapter.

Thanks again for all the reviews! I hope you enjoy the newest installment.

Chapter 10: Strange Eons

Harbinger walked through the empty halls of the Titans Tower, red eyes observing everything. Cameras swiveled to watch her form as she walked, a smirk rising on her features. "Dedicated little avian, aren't you?" she murmured to herself as she passed one of the bathrooms in the tower.

"Having fun?" a voice suddenly broke through the darkness. Or, rather, a chorus of voices; male, female, young old... a disjointed and slightly out of synch cascade of voices seeming to come from all around. Harbinger stopped suddenly and smiled wryly, tilting her head. "We're being observed, you know," she said to the air, "And likely recorded."

"Do you think such primitive trinkets are beyond my abilities to obscure?" the voices replied, low and menacingly, "Find a mirror."

Again, Harbinger smiled wryly and turned towards the bathroom, stepping inside and leaning against the basin and peering into the mirror above it. The surface of the mirror began to glow a soft blue, before a translucent object appeared stared out from inside. It was a mask, seemingly made of wood, covered in a multitude of carved eyes. Two glowing yellow orbs throbbed sickly from where eyes would normally be, glaring with malevolence at Harbinger. "You will stop pushing the Progeny of Trigon."

Harbinger sighed, rolling her red eyes, "I was just having a bit of fun."

"Your 'fun' almost ruined our plans," the mask's disjointed voice replied coldly, "I don't want to prevent Ba'Cthuga from taking this planet only to have Trigon usurp command. He can use her as a gateway to this world."

"I know what I'm doing," Harbinger replied with an upraised eyebrow, "I know exactly how much I can push."

"I hope for your sake that you are correct."

Harbinger laughed softly, "Come now... in all these strange eons in which I've been your Harbinger, have I ever failed?"

"If you had," the multitude of voices chorused sharply, "Then you wouldn't be there right now."

"Exactly,"Harbinger replied with a vicious grin, "I always get the job done."

"Have you found an appropriate sacrifice?" the mask abruptly asked.

"Well, I was going to use my host," Harbinger replied, tapping her chin thoughtfully, "But I've grown rather attached to her. You know, it's amazing that one so young could be possessed of such delicious hate, sadness, and anger. There's enough for me to feed on for decades."

"That is not what I asked," the voices stated in irritation.

"Yes, yes," Harbinger replied with a dismissive wave of her hand, "I found the perfect sacrifice." She paused briefly then tilted her head to one side, peering curiously at the disembodied mask floating in the mirror, "But I wonder... why are all the Elder Gods interested in this pathetic watery rock? You, Trigon, Ba'Cthuga... all are spending quite a lot of energy and time jocking for this place. For being normally concerned with conquering universes, why so much effort for just one planet? What's so special about it?"

The eyes in the mask brightened for a moment, "That is none of your concern. Just serve me as you have. That is your only duty."

"Fine, fine, keep your scary secrets," Harbinger sighed, shaking her head, "They don't concern me anyway."

"Correct. Never forget your place," the mask's disjointed voice replied harshly, "Now then... how many of the artifacts have you obtained?"

"None," Harbinger stated innocently.

"What?!" the voices bellowed, "We need those artifacts!"

Harbinger chuckled softly, "Don't worry. I know where the last one is. I just let Ba'Chuga's followers do all the work. They'll bring them to me... and I'll even have Trigon's daughter's help. Fitting, no?"

"His followers are powerful," the mask stated lowly, "Are you sure you can handle them?"

"Positive," Harbinger stated with a smile, "As I said, this host has quite powerful emotions. She'll give me all the power I need. And besides which, I'll have the help of the Teen Titans. There won't be any problem."

"Good," the chorus of voices murmured before the mask faded away without ceremony.

Harbinger smirked slightly as she turned around and walked from the bathroom, "I love you too, boss."

Raven brought the steaming cup to her lips and drank deeply of the soothing fluid. She needed to calm her nerves after the verbal fencing with Harbinger. In truth, she also wanted to apologize to Beast Boy, but the green titan was no where to be found; he had probably gone back to his room once he saw the coast was clear. Harbinger's words cut deep into her, and she can only imagine what she said to Beast Boy before she happened along. Suddenly, she winced, bringing a hand to her head. Once more, Raven felt that vaguely familiar yet disturbing pang of something, stronger than ever. The feeling went away a few moments later, but the gloomy teen still felt uneasy. She moved to sit down on the couch and clear her thoughts.

It was then that Harbinger walked into the living room, arching her black eyebrows at the brooding Raven. She chuckled to herself and moved to sit down, crossing her legs, Raven's eyes twitching towards the dark woman and narrowing suspiciously.

"I'm not here to argue," Harbinger stated with an upraised hand, "I'm just going to sit here and wait until morning like a good girl. Bird boy ordered it so."

Raven simply glared silently, sipping at her tea.

"Tell me... do the others know about your father?"

"I thought you were just going to sit there quietly?" Raven retorted dryly.

Harbinger shrugged, "Suit yourself. I wonder how much of your father you have in you, though."

Raven growled deep in her throat, rising and turning to leave.

"You know," Harbinger stated quickly, "Trigon might be the newest Hound of Tindelos in the pack, but he's not top dog yet. There are other beings much more experienced and powerful than he is."

Raven paused and looked over her shoulder at the dark figure. "What's your point?"

Harbinger smiled thinly and shrugged her shoulders, "No point really. Just making conversation. And maybe saying you should think about where your loyalties lie."

Raven narrowed her eyes again before speaking, her voice low, "My loyalties lie with my friends." Having said that, she turned and headed back to her room.