A/N: This chapter is almost disgustingly short compared to the last one. But when not compared, I'll say it's pretty decent. Not, the best chapter I could have written…it could be tweaked some but that would have taken some time I really don't' think I have. Anywho, this chapter has a bit of action, and I'm afraid I haven't lived up to the show. The show has awesome action sequences. They do things you wouldn't have thought them capable of…hey now that I think about it, they almost always wreck the city. I wonder how Jump City puts up with them. Honestly, after they go through building and Raven throws cars and stuff, you would think that they killed at least one person. But anyway, ignore my rambling, I tend to do that a lot…so responses to the lovely reviews! I'm kinda was in a hurry to get this out because it was so late,so if there are any mistakes, then please forgive me!
Thanks to: CelticHeiressFiona, Miruro, Personwithnoname, Softballtitan009 and Bookworm J!
Mysti-eyed:: Thanks, glad you approved of my tactics, I was thinking the same thing as I was writing it…and yeah, the humor was a big aspect of it too.
Cygnus de hielo:: Thanks grins insanely. Actually I have to smile myself every time I read that part myself.
renderedvoice: These are the kind of reviews I wanna see! I mean the other reviews are quite flattering, and I get this goofy smile every time I read a really awesome one but I LOVE getting creative criticism, as weird as it sounds. I just want for fic to be the best, for all of you and so that you don't have to read crap. But that, in no shape, way or form, gives you guys permission to flame me!looks around nervously I really didn't notice that myself,scratches head…but thank you for pointing it out! I'll have to make sure it doesn't happen again. And don't worry about leaving such a long review…I love 'em! The longer, the better in my view. And I have noticed I've made a couple of references to Robin's crotch, lol looks sheepish not intentionally of course…and as for Slade being a love machine, lol…uhhh, to each their own I say!
Wrathchild: I had to smile when I read your review…and as I was typing this response. Honey, you made my day and everyone deserves to be spoiled once in a while winks
Jedi Zea: Lol, yeah writing the humor part was my favorite…I'd like to think I'm pretty good at it. As for the evil…we will see how you feel about Slade later on…not this chapter but in a future one (a little foreshadowing there)
Peace215: Now this review was probably one of my favorites…and I am properly humbled, although I'm grinning hard enough to blind Stevie Wonder…again. You…don't stop with the reviews!
Jordan: Thanks, I was hoping I wouldn't have to eat my computer monitor.
PixieGirl13: bows repeatedly Wow, thanks for the awesome review! And don't worry, your fic is great and will only get better in time. As for the new s/n, out of all of the ones you chose I think Fire Titan might be the best but I don't see anything wrong with the one you currently have. But, that's not my decision to make.
Red Room Flare:: I am actually honored that the Red Room Flare has reviewed my fic and actually said it was good. Hearing that from someone with the amount of talent you possess is just…awesome, for lack of a better word. Thank you for this awesome review! Oh yeah, I hope this chapter solves your plot-related anxiety.
Chica De Ojos Café:: I really appreciate you taking to time to send that email to tell me how much you loved my story. I loved reading it, almost as much as I loved getting this chapter out to you are fast as I could.
Drowninginthoughs: Thanks for the review, and I hope I meet your demand for another chapter as fast as I could…it's kind of a late chapter for this story but I've been swamped with homework…it's crazy.
Morgannia: Hmmm, good questions. But I'm afraid you must ask the right questions. Lol, I loved I,Robot (Will Smith is my concubine!) But seriously, you'll find out later…you'll just have to continue to read and review!
The Wings of a Raven: Awww yeah. "Butterfly" was one of the first songs if not the first that ever inspired one of my stories…but of course that was a different fandom. But I still love that song.
Karen Marie Lightnhart: Actually, I haven't seen that episode yet, damn! Yeah, I know and I call myself a Raven fan. I have yet to see Nervermore but that's only because Cartoon Network gets off by pissing me off.A lot of stuff will be revealed next chapter.
Thanks for all the reviews…I loved them all!
Disclaimer: You Starfire/Robin and Raven/BB fans are soooooo lucky that I so do not own that show….so damn lucky.
Hell's Fury: The Beginning
Chapter four: Evil Resurfaced
By: Amber Myst
Don't turn away
(Don't give in to the pain)
Don't try to hide
(Though they're screaming your name)
Don't close your eyes
(God knows what lies behind them)
Don't turn out the light
(Never sleep never die)
-Evanescence
Raven was awaken from her first painless dream in weeks by the alarm flaring, loudly. The first thing she noticed when she awoke besides the blaring and flashing red, was the fact that she didn't have a headache.
'That's…unusual.' She quickly threw off the blanket and dressed, before melting into the shadows and ending up in the control room where the rest of the titans were already assembled.
"What's the problem?" She asked in her normal monotone voice. Everyone but Robin jumped at having the dark sorceress just appear out of thin air. Robin had somehow just felt her there.
"There's been a break-in at a nearby warehouse. We have to go check it out…Titans, move out!" Robin ordered and everyone responded within no time, all using their own methods of traveling: Cyborg had the T-car, Robin the R-cycle and the other three flew, Beast Boy transforming into a pterodactyl. They soon arrived at the scene of the crime, yet nothing seemed out of place. Except for the foreboding shiver that ran down Raven's spine. As she looked up, she saw that the sky was alive with the fervent promise of rain.
It was a moonless night; the sky overcast with furious, churning clouds as they all stood in front of a huge, looming warehouse. The lack of moon did not help assuage the seeming unnaturally darkness; it was as if the darkness seemed to emanate from the building itself and not from the lack of light. The warehouse was two floors high; the first floor was the height of an average warehouse, about forty feet or so. It second floor was the size of a floor you would find in an office building, around seven feet tall. The second floor was most likely used for paperwork and every aspect of the warehouse that was not used for storing or manufacturing.
The dark windows seemed to glare menacingly at them, as they ventured forth.
"This doesn't feel right." Raven muttered to Robin.
He nodded, his perceptive intuition picked up the same foreboding feeling. "Titans, don't let your guard down." They entered the warehouse quietly, and worry began to settle in as they realize nothing appeared out of sorts.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say this was a set up or something." Beast Boy said, scratching his head confused.
"How right you are." A hauntingly familiar voice lilt out from the darkness. Slade stepped out from the darkness like a nightmare and everyone tensed, all forming a barrier in front of a slightly unsettled Raven. "Hello Raven dearest."
She growled as she glared at him with hatred shining brightly in her eyes. "Go back to Hell Slade!"
"If you want to get to Raven you'll have to go through us!" Robin hissed at Slade dangerously as he branded his Bo staff. Never before had Robin been so furious at Slade. How DARE he show his face again!
A chorus of furious agreement rang out around him as Cyborg's arm transformed into a cannon and Starfire's eyes began to glow. Beast Boy began to growl viciously as he morphed into a ferocious sabertooth tiger, fangs dripping menacingly with the promise of pain to anyone who tried to get past him.
Raven looked at her friends all poised in front of her, ready to defend her until the end and she choked up, her emotionless façade almost going up in smoke. 'My friends.' She felt tears prick her eyes and she blinked rapidly, to clear her stinging eyes.
"So be it." At that, a stream of fire that flew from his hands. They evaded the attack with the fluid grace of a move that has been done over million times and counter-attacked.
Raven summoned her aura hands that clasped around him tightly, pinning his arms to the side and effectively making him open for attack. "Now! Starfire, Cyborg!"
They understood and Starfire fired the most powerful starbolts she could muster and Cyborg blasted him with his sonic cannon. Both attacks created explosions on impact, causing smoke to engulf their target, and quickly fill the warehouse.
Beast Boy transformed into a pterodactyl and with a cry, he used his wings to blow the smoke into a whirlwind and away from their intended target. Raven narrowed her eyes and Starfire gasped when they saw that Slade was no long in Raven's tight grasp.
"Titans, split up. Raven, you're with me. Don't engage Slade if you can help it, contact the other." Robin ordered before slipping into the dark, as he searched for Slade, Raven close behind him. The others did the same.
Cyborg didn't say anything as he used his mechanical eye to execute a thermal scan of the area, although he did not find anything it didn't fool him for a second. There was no way in hell he would let his guard down, not if Raven was at stake.
Suddenly a helix of flames surrounded him and he cried out in shock as the twisting flames closed in around him, holding him prisoner. He swore and glared at the laughing figure above him. "Slade!"
"One down, three to go." Slade cackled before disappearing once more. Cyborg cursed again. "Hey guys," He said into his communicator. A three-way split screen appeared, revealing the serious faces of his fellow titans, Raven peering disinterestedly over Robin's shoulder. "I'm outta commission for now."
Robin swore under his breath. "Give us your coordinates."
Cyborg transmitted them each a copy and Beast Boy was the first to emerge from the shadows of the warehouse. Soon he was in the same predicament as Cyborg. "DUDE!" He yelled as his arm touched the wall of flames. He cradled his burnt arm to his chest whimpering.
"BB, you okay?" Cyborg asked, concerned.
Beast Boy shot his metal companion a withering glare. "DO I LOOK OKAY?" He roared.
"Jeez. Don't expect me to ask you anymore." Cyborg rolled his eyes.
"This thing fried my communicator." Beast Boy muttered.
"FRIENDS?" Starfire shouted, her eyes glowing green as she entered the area. How DARE Slade? If he harmed one hair on her friends' heads, then Slade will NOT like the consequences of his terrible actions!
"DON'T STAR!" Cyborg and Beast Boy yelled together, a tad bit too late as Starfire was engulfed in flames that formed burning bars to keep her hampered.
"Damn!" Cyborg swore once again that night.
"I have a feeling that this was a trap." Beast Boy said worriedly.
Both of his trapped comrades shot him heated glares more scorching than the flames that held them confined. "You wanna tell us something we don't know genius!"
Starfire looked around worriedly. "Shouldn't we inform Friends Robin and Raven that this is a trap?"
"Good idea Star." Cyborg tried his communicator, but it refused to work. He heaved a long, suffering sigh and briefly entertained the thought of tossing the, now useless, contraption into the surrounding flames. "It's no longer working."
"Was it not working before?" Starfire asked Cyborg, confusion evident in her voice.
"Slade probably just let it work long enough to lure the rest of us here." Beast Boy said sourly still cradling his arm to his chest.
"Let us just hope that Raven and Robin are both okay." Starfire announced anxiously as she looked into the looming darkness that stood outside the circle of flickering light the bright flames created.
Robin crept along silently with stealth that rivaled a panther's, followed by a desolate, floating Raven.
She sighed dismally to herself, before following even closer to Robin. And she actually thought she was free of him. She pulled her hood up over her head; it had slipped off during their evasion of Slade's attack. She retreated further within it and herself, blocking everything out but at the same time she managed to keep a sharp eye out for Slade or any surprises.
She wondered mildly what her punishment would be once she drifted to sleep that night. Obviously, Slade had come to back to fix whatever it was that allowed him to harm her when she slept. She was tired of it all, the pain, the hiding, lying to her friends, not being able to have a comfortable night's sleep, sick of it. Sometimes she wished she never existed; sometimes she believed it would have been better if she just…died.
She was shaken from her revelry when Robin halted and she ran into him, almost knocking him over, but his acute reflexes prevented it; the same ones stopped her from hitting the floor.
"Raven?" Robin said worriedly, as he looked into Raven's dull violet eyes. "Raven what's wrong?"
When he did not receive a reply, he looked around and satisfied he could not see anyone, he pulled into a dark corner among tall crates. He placed both of his hands on her shoulders and pulled her so she faced him and looked deeply into her listless eyes, hoping for something...anything.
"Raven…" He started softly. "Slade won't hurt you…I won't allow it. I couldn't stop him last time but-"
He was stopped by Raven's derisive snort. "Robin." She paused before sighing heavily. "Don't make any promises you can't keep…" She let her head fall down, and she gritted her teeth harshly, as a vicious pain spiked in her head.
"She's right Robin." A voice cut in from above.
"Move!" Robin shoved Raven out of the way and he rolled to the side, coming into a crouch as a column of flames crashed into the spot they were just occupying.
"Slade." Robin growled before brandishing and throwing four exploding bird-a-rangs. He followed those up with three more for good measure and clasped Raven's pale hand within his own as he started to sprint. "We have to find the others." He told her as they ran. So far from what Robin could tell, Slade was not following them. However, he knew that his bird-a-rangs did not finish him off, not even close. He needed some time to get to Raven, something was really wrong with her and he had to find out how to bring her out of whatever slump she was apparently in.
But as she followed him docilely, not even protesting as he touched her he worried even more, not even sure if he could bring her back out of whatever dark place she had descended to.
At that moment, his communicator beeped and flashed at his side and he quickly opened it. "Yeah?"
"Hey guys." It was Cyborg, and in the background Robin could make out a wall of flames. "I'm outta commission for now.
"Fuck." He said quietly. Raven was slightly surprised at Robin's lack of control but she did not show nor mention it. He was entitled to it after all. Slade was stressing them all out.
Raven's lips curved upwards wryly. Well for her, stressed wasn't the word.
"We have to find the others Rae." As he turned towards the coordinates that Cyborg gave, Raven grabbed his arm, holding him back. He looked at her a bit impatiently. "What?"
She pointed at the ceiling of the direction Robin was headed. It was alive with the illumination from flickering flames. "Maybe we should be a bit more careful. We don't want to run into a setup or anything." Raven said dryly, in her emotionless dialogue.
Robin nodded towards her. "Right."
They crept along, at steady pace although they kept to the shadows. "Hey guys!" Robin was in the lead and therefore was the first on the scene.
Raven saw the flames a second too late as she screamed at Robin. "STOP!"
However, it was to no avail as Robin cried out in alarm as he was swept into a whirlwind of flames and heat, pushing him towards the others. He tried to avoid the inferno as it coerced him with one ugly ultimatum: move or burn. Robin was singed, part of his costume burning away as it pushed at him and the other titans. Soon, the flames of all the traps melded into one huge, fiery prison. The trapped superheros gathered towards the middle of their blazing cell as they waited with apprehension for Slade to appear.
They didn't have to wait long, as Raven stood staring helplessly at her friends and the raging blaze, unsure at how to get them free or douse the flames holding them captive.
A pair of hands reached out from the darkness, closing in around Raven as she continued her contemplation on how to free her fellow Titans.
"RAVEN! LOOK OUT!"
Before Raven could comprehend the hidden threat and react accordingly, she was trapped by two hands firmly gripping her upper arms, almost bruising with their intensity.
She growled and lashed out, kicking behind her wildly and trying to move her arms. "LET ME GO!" She yelled as she struggled against his iron grip.
"You've seemed to have forgotten your place Raven." He admonished her mockingly with more than a hint of malice as he tightened his steel grip. Her impertinent attitude would not do. His eyes narrowed, not at all. His face drifted closer to hers and when the cold, metallic of his mask brushed hers almost tenderly she froze. "And you thought you were free."
His hands began to glow, burning with the intensity of the flames that were now burning through the upper arms of Raven's leotard and charring her flesh.
"NO!" She screamed in pain and denial before trying to lash out at him with her powers this time. They vanished as they encountered the bright orange that surrounded his body. A symbol appeared and began to burn on her forehead brightly, the same symbol that appeared on her forehead when Slade first delivered the message sent to her from the depths of Hell; the same one that was currently burning on Slade's.
Suddenly Raven stopped struggling, as if Slade's touch drained her dark energy. As she slumped into his arms, Slade threw her from him with a sneer and her head hit the floor with a sickening thud. That's when the heavens opened and let loose their fury.
"RAVEN!" Robin screamed, his face a contorted mask of emotions: rage, hatred, anguish, concern…love? Robin managed to tear his eyes from Slade despicable face and they traveled swiftly to Raven. As he took in the sight of her barely moving figure and her waxen face he began a mantra in his head. He hoped-no prayed, that Raven was alright, that she would just pop up and say that she was ok…but it never happened.
"Slade you won't get away with this!" Robin shook with barely controlled rage. He would kill Slade for this and a part of him was appalled at the thought... but it did not change how he felt. Suddenly, he felt a white-hot pain in his head and it almost drove him to his knees.
"Oh, I do believe I will," and he extended his splayed hands out in front of him and curling his fingers slightly. As he did so their prison of flames closed inward. The titans tensed and moved closer, with their backs pressed tightly to each other as they watched Slade and the blazing walls warily. "Die."
Slade's contemptible laughter rang out, grating on the ears of all that could hear, as he curled his fingers inward some more, the walls of conflagration doing the same. To all extents, it seemed that the Titans were doomed to a fiery grave. Raven was unconscious, who knew what state her mind was in, and the other titans' predicament was becoming more despairing and perilous by the second…
DUN DUN DUN! I wanted something like a comic book ending…you know how they go…who will save our heros? Who was rescue the world from this fiendish foe? Tune in next time for the stunning conclusion! And yadda yadda blah blah who ha.
Anywho, hoped you guys enjoyed…from this point out the story gets…weird. A new character will be introduced, some or you may know who it is, others won't. Some may have even used this character in their own fanfiction…you never know, so stay tuned for the next astounding chapter!
Spread your wings and fly…Butterfly