Um, I feel really bad about how long it's taken me to write this chapter. Sorry? I could give you a very detailed account of why I wasn't able to write anything the first three and half weeks since my last chapter, but you'd probably get bored. As for the last week and a half, every time I sat down at the computer, I just ended up staring at a blank screen. Darn writer's block. Curse you!
But if anyone's still interested in this story, I now give you chapter 16. Enjoy!
After a few hours of uneasy sleep, Raven woke up and walked into the main room, hoping that the others were back from their search for Dr. Light. She was disappointed, however, when the door slid open to reveal an empty room.
They've been gone for a while now. Shouldn't they be back already?
Raven turned to look at the clock. -Just past four hours since they left. Maybe they were just having trouble tracking the man down; there was no need to be concerned yet. But even though Raven knew that a job like this could take several hours to do, and sometimes still couldn't be done, she still couldn't help but be nervous. Her friends were doing this for her, and she wasn't even there to help them in case they got into trouble.
To help take her mind off of the quiet tower and its missing inhabitants, Raven walked over to the chair where Starfire had left her most recent fairytale book: Little Red Riding Hood. It definitely wasn't her style of literature, but right now she didn't really have a preference, so she picked up the small book and began reading.
She had just gotten to the part where Little Red Riding Hood was talking to the wolf dressed in her grandmother's clothes (Wow this girl's stupid, Raven thought. Can't she even tell the difference between her grandmother and a wild animal?), when the door opened and the other four Titans entered.
"…but we still do not know why he did it," Starfire told Beast Boy as they walked through the door.
Raven set down the book and looked up at her friends. "How did it go?"
Cyborg sat down in a chair near where Raven was sitting, while the others all went over to the sofa.
Her half-robotic friend looked up at her tiredly. "It wasn't quite as helpful as we hoped it would be, but we did get some information out of Dr. Light."
A small ray of hope had suddenly appeared on the situation, and Raven couldn't help but feel a little relieved. "So, you were able to find Dr. Light?"
"Yeah, he was hiding out in some abandoned motel near the bay," Robin answered from the couch. "And you were right about that Archimage guy being responsible for whatever's going on with you."
Raven had about a million different questions running through her mind that she wanted to ask, but she could only have one answered at a time. Better to start with the more important questions. "What did he say about the Archimage?"
"Well," Cyborg began, leaning forward in his chair, "when we first started questioning him, he said he didn't know anyone by that name. But after a little bit of persuasion, we got him to start talking, but he still wasn't telling us everything."
"But what we did find out," Robin continued, "is that the Archimage and him were working together, but not very closely. They made some kind of deal where the Archimage helped Dr. Light fight against us, but we don't know what he got from the deal in return. So far, our only guess is that the Archimage helped Dr. Light in hopes that we would lose in a fight, and then we'd be out of the way for whatever he was planning to do."
Raven was listening intently, taking in all of this information. "But what does this have to do with what's happening with me?"
This time it was Starfire who answered her question. "It seems that the Archimage placed some manner of spell on Dr. Light's light cannon. The spell was created to only take effect on you, so it did not affect any of us."
Starfire was staring at Raven with a look of unmistakable guilt on her face. She didn't think it fair that she was fine, while her friend was not.
"So…" Raven began, "this spell just hurt me then?"
Robin shifted on the couch and turned to face her. "We don't know why, but for some reason this guy's main target was you. He's obviously got some kind of a plan here… but what?" The last part was said more to himself than anyone else.
"Maybe he saw Raven as the biggest threat?" Beast Boy offered, speaking up for the first time in the conversation.
Everyone looked thoughtful for a moment, but the silence was soon ended when Starfire responded. "Perhaps. Raven is quite powerful…"
"Tell me about it," said Beast Boy. "You do not want to be on the other end of one of her attacks. Take it from someone who knows."
Ignoring the green Titan's remark, Robin stood up and began pacing. "I understand if Dr. Light wanted Raven out of the way, because he's terrified of her. But something still seems off…"
"Yeah," added Cyborg, "like why someone we've never met would single one of us out. He's definitely got something in mind."
"Perhaps he is merely trying to-" Starfire was cut off mid-sentence as the large computer screen began flashing, alerting them of an incoming message.
Everyone turned toward the screen as Robin hit the "ACCEPT " button, and a man's face appeared on the large glass, long and pale, and half-hidden in shadow.
"Who are you?" Robin asked, though he had a feeling that he already knew who the man was.
A smirk suddenly appeared on the man's ominous face. "I'm the one you've been looking for recently. Word spreads quickly in this city, Titans. Did you think I wouldn't know when someone was going around mentioning my name?"
"Archimage…" Starfire seemed to growl the name. The man then turned his attention to her and smiled as he saw her eyes narrow in anger.
"Ah, so you do know who I am. I'm very pleased."
"You hurt my friend, and for that I assure you that you will pay dearly."
Raven couldn't help but look over at Starfire. She was always so happy and positive. Raven had never seen her take on such a dark, loathing tone.
"What are you planning Archimage?" Robin asked, returning to leader-mode. They needed to get the facts first.
"Well, I was hoping that we could have a sort of get-together later tonight."
Beast Boy stepped forward and cocked an eyebrow. "Dude, we're not stupid. We know a trap when we see one. You must be new to the whole 'super villain thing' if you think we'd fall for that one."
This only made the pale man grin even wider. "I never had any intention of tricking you into coming. Of course it's a trap. That's perfectly obvious."
The other Titans stared silently at the screen, confusion evident on their faces.
"Then… why did you think we would go if we knew it was a trap?" Cyborg asked, stating the question that his teammates all had on their minds.
"Because if you don't come, then your friend's problem will only get worse." The Titans broke their gaze away from the man's face and turned to face Raven, as if expecting her to have another 'episode' right then. She merely glared back at the man, wishing that he were in front of her at that very moment so that she could get even with him. So this was all just some sort of game?
The teenage heroes remained silently staring at their blue-cloaked friend until the Archimage spoke up again, drawing their attention once again to him.
"You have noticed that your attacks have become more intense, haven't you Raven?" Raven thought back to just earlier that evening at dinner, as did the rest of the team.
- Robin looked at her concerned. "Do you always bleed when this happens?" It took her a moment before she was able to respond. "No, this is the first time… It's never hurt like that before." -
Raven was pulled out of her thoughts when the Archimage scoffed at the pensive looks on their faces.
"What good will this meeting do?" Robin asked, once again returning to business.
"It will give you a chance to take me down and possibly save your friend before she gets any worse." This sentence caused everyone in the room to tense up instantly. Was their friend really in that much danger?
Robin crossed his arms over his chest as he thought about everything the man had said, and decided what needed to be done. "When and where?"
"Meet me in half an hour at the old run-down stadium on the south side."
Robin turned his head and looked at the members of his team, then turned back to the screen. "We'll be there."
Without saying another word, the Archimage reached down and hit a button, ending the transmission. Once the screen had shut off Robin lowered his head and sighed, and the others all stared at him waiting for a command.
"You guys up for a midnight battle?" Robin asked, an exhausted tone in his voice.
"Oh yeah, so ready," Beast Boy spoke up for the team. "This guy's going down."
"All right then," their leader continued. "Starfire, I want you to fly a little bit ahead of us so you can warn us if you see anything suspicious, while Beast Boy, Cyborg and I go in the T-car."
"And where do I fit into all of this?" Raven asked, noticing that she wasn't included in his plan.
"I want you to stay here, out of harm's way."
Raven simply stared at him as if he were delusional. The others began to look uncomfortable and shifted slightly.
"Yes Raven, perhaps it would best if you did not accompany us tonight."
Raven now turned her incredulous look to her alien friend. "Are you kidding me? You expect me to just sit here while you guys go after this person?"
"Raven-" Cyborg was cut off by Raven before he even got the chance to say what he was thinking.
"No. I already stayed here today while the rest of the team went after Dr. Light. I'm not missing out on another fight."
The entire team was now looking at Robin for a decision.
"Raven, we don't even know what exactly this spell of his did to you. It's not safe for you to go with us."
Raven took a few steps toward the masked Titan. "Robin, if the circumstances were switched, and it was you that had the spell on you, would you stay at the Tower?"
Several seconds passed as the two Titans stared silently at each other, both stubborn and not wanting to back down.
"Well," Beast Boy suddenly said, "looks like Raven wins. Let's go."
The masked teen looked at Beast Boy and let out an irritated sigh. "Fine, Raven can come. Titans go!"
All right, there you have it. Chapter 16. Again, it'll be awhile before I post the next chapter (although I seriously doubt it will be as long as it was for me to get this one posted), because in a week I'm going to be out of state for a few days, and then I have a ton of major group projects. (What is it with my teachers and group projects? And at the END of the school year?) Sorry for the same old excuses and stuff, but I swear they're the truth.
But enough of this stuff. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I'd love it if you reviewed. Here's a tip: If I get a review, it really does encourage and motivate me to write. Thank you :)