Author's note: Chapter Seven reposted with a few minor spelling corrections, nothing major.
Chapter Eight: …And The Rain Poured On
Lightning flashed, thunder deafened.
And Cyborg laughed.
"It's alive!" he exulted, the flashing lightning lending him an eerie black and white cast. "IT'S ALIVE! AAAHAHAHAHAHAAA!"
"What happened to 'booyah'?" Blackfire asked dryly, before continung, "I still say it's overrated. It's definitely not worth all this mess and work- or the excitement," she added, wiping her face and body armour clean of grease stains.
"Come on, Blackfire, you were having as much fun as I was making this thing," Cyborg retorted, as he looked around for a suitable container to house his newest invention.
"That is beside the point," Blackfire said mischievously. "Besides, aren't you celebrating a little early? You don't even know if they're going to work."
"Oh, they'll work all right, they'll work," Cyborg said confidently, before looking out the window and sighing. "Man, I hate this weather. I could be out there and testing these babies out right now."
"Look on the bright side," Blackfire said, yawning, "at least now we'll be able to get some sleep."
"You go on ahead, Blackfire," Cyborg replied, as he surveyed the garage, "I'll just take a few minutes to clean this place up a bit."
"You do that Cyborg," Blackfire said, heading upstairs to her room.
And found its door wide open.
Instinct took over. Blackfire leapt back into the outside corridor, eyes and fists blazing with starbolt energy, before ducking back into her doorway. "Whoever you are," she snarled, "you picked the wrong time-"
"It's me," a lone figure lying down on her bed said in a flat voice.
"Raven?" Blackfire asked hesitantly. "Raven, is that you? What are you doing in my room? And where's Beast Boy?"
"I asked Starfire and Robin to look for him," Raven replied, and Blackfire was struck at how… fragile she sounded.
"Raven, what's- what's wrong?" Blackfire said urgently as she moved towards the Azerath, all other concerns pushed from her mind.
It was then that she noticed Raven trembling. It was slight, but even in the darkness of Blackfire's room, it was noticeable. "Raven, what happened?" Blackfire whispered, as she closed the door behind her. "Who did this to you?" she asked, her eyes beginning to glow.
"Me," Raven whispered back, before telling a bewildered Blackfire what had happened earlier that night.
(scene change)
Lightning flashed, thunder deafened.
The rain was steadily getting worse as Raven looked up from her silent communicator and scanned the horizon anxiously, raindrops steadily pattering upon the shield she had erected above her. Beast Boy, where are you? she wondered. Their communicators were working, she knew that; Robin and Cyborg had checked them just a few days before during a routine maintenance check, and yet there wasn't any answer when she tried to reach Beast Boy.
She landed on top of one of Jump City's many 'rebuilding projects' a small distance away from the Tower, seeking shelter; she wasn't about to risk what she was about to do with her shield still up. Ever since she received her new power, even that act of creating a simple shield to protect against the rain had threatened to overwhelm- no, tear her apart. It was as if there was a massive beast within her, held in by the flimsiest of cages, ever looking for the slightest crack through which it would break through.
It was so unfair, Raven thought, that she had to work almost her whole life to learn to control her powers, and when she thought she finally had the hang of it, to almost lose control of them again.
Raven breathed slowly and deeply, trying to clear her mind. She needed a supreme effort of control for what she was about to do, and a troubled mind wasn't going to help, nor was being wet going to make it any easier. Settling down underneath an unfinished floor of the building, Raven carefully brought down her shield, relaxing a bit as with the shield down, she was able to concentrate better on restraining the power within her.
Then, she hesitated, looking out the unfinished building to the skyline ahead. Considering what she was about to do; was it worth the risk? The amount of energy she would have to release for her locator spell was undoubtedly far more than what a simple shield would have required, and the results could be unpredictable, to say the least.
Then, seemingly unbidden, an image of a serpentine demon, a black blade in each clawed hand flashed through her mind. It was then that Raven realized that she didn't have a choice. Legion was out there, somewhere, and Beast Boy was alone. She sat down, cross legged, and began reaching out, searching for Beast Boy…
Azerath Metrion Xinthos…
Azerath Metrion Xinthos…
Azerath Metrion Xinthos…
Even prepared as she was, the sheer amount of power released during her spell still surprised her, and it took several tense moments for Raven to bring her wayward energies under control, to restrain them and focus them-
Find Beast Boy, she commanded/thought.
And like a wild beast arduously tamed and chastised, the powers within her obeyed.
Like a pack of ravenous bloodhounds, they raced through Jump City, sniffing within each alley, each street, within each building. So powerful had they become, everywhere they went, shadows lengthened and grew darker, the wind and rain colder. They passed by the waking and left them looking over their shoulders for something that growled silently, they passed by the sleeping and woke them with- not nightmares, but memories, memories of monsters under the bed, monsters that ate children, naughty or nice, naughty and nice…
But Raven did not know any of this, she could not afford to. It was all she could do to control her powers, make sure they did not break free of her weakened leash as they searched for
Beast Boy.
Raven sighed with relief, as she felt the presence of Beast Boy's mind nearby, near the ruined district. Although she knew where he was, she wanted to make sure he was all right, see if he was safe, and with that in mind, she nudged her energies just a bit further, right to where Beast Boy was-
MEDDLER INTRUDER INTERLOPER VIOLATOR WHO WHAT ARE YOU HOW WHY ARE YOU TRESSPASSING NO MATTER I WILL TAKE YOU BURN YOU CUT YOU DESTROY YOU NO WAIT THIS IS NOT SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN GET OUT GET OUT THE PAIN THE PAIN NO MORE PLEASE-
Raven's back arched as she fell backwards screaming, her head filed with blinding pain. She wished for merciful unconsciousness to bring her away, make the pain stop, but no such luck. Instead, she endured several more agonizing moments as her powers came rushing back into her, rebounding off… whatever they had encountered.
After what seemed like an eternity, the pain ebbed to a dull ache, felt through her exhausted body. Gasping slightly, she picked up her communicator, and signalled Robin. In retrospect, she should have done this first; but between his tentative recovery and a concerned Starfire, Raven didn't want to add to his troubles.
Now, however, it appeared that she had no choice- she was in no shape to find Beast Boy on her own. It would be all she could do to limp back to the Tower.
Maybe not even that-
Oh no.
Something was happening.
Something bad.
Within her, Raven could feel her dark energies, the beast reawaken. Whatever had happened out there, it had not deterred her powers.
It fed them.
And now, they wanted more-
"Robin here," she suddenly heard Robin ask, startling her from her thoughts.
Robin, I need a favour," Raven said, trying to keep the exhaustion, and the terror, from her voice.
(scene change)
"…and then, I came back here," Raven said simply, her head in Blackfire's lap.
For some time, they didn't know nor care how long, there was only silence, broken only by the occasional rumble of thunder and the whisper of breath.
Then Blackfire spoke. "Is there anything I could do?" she whispered, wishing she could say more, wanting to rid herself of the feeling that it was her fault all this happened, all her fault, all this was just because she wanted to annoy Beast Boy…
Raven didn't say anything; instead she turned over and placed her arm tightly around Blackfire's waist.
Blackfire got the hint; pausing only to take off her arm plating, she lay down in front of Raven and held her close. "If you tell anyone I did this, Raven…"
"Don't worry, Blackfire," Raven replied, smiling lightly, "I won't."
"Good."
And lulled by the sound of raindrops falling against the window of Blackfire's room, they soon fell asleep.
(scene change)
"Beast Boy?" Starfire called out. "Beast Boy, you're all wet!"
Startled out of his reverie, Beast Boy looked up from the abandoned bus stop he had been sheltering under to see what would have been an absurd sight under other circumstances: Starfire holding Robin to herself with one arm and carrying an umbrella in the other hand.
"Hey guys," Beast Boy said, but without much camaraderie in his voice. "Er, what's with the…?" his voice trailed off as he indicated the sight before him.
"I did not wish Robin catching a cold," Starfire told him determinedly, while shooting Robin a 'don't argue with me' look. Not that Robin seemed inclined to disagree, judging by the look he gave in return.
"O-kay," Beast Boy said, uncomfortable (and more than a little jealous) at this show of affection. "So, how'd you guys find me?" he asked ruefully, trying to change the subject.
"Well," Robin began, "Raven said-"
"Huh? Raven was here?" Beast Boy said, a dull, terrible cold running through his spine and chilling his heart. "She followed me? She saw me?"
"What? No, Beast Boy," Robin replied, surprised by Beast Boy's sudden outburst. "She said she used a locator spell to find you; she thought since your communicator was off, you were in some kind of danger. Is something wrong, Beast Boy?"
"N-no," Beast Boy stammered. He swallowed, and said with a little more confidence in his voice, "No, nothing's wrong, heheh. Um… did- did Raven sense anyone… else, here?"
"I… don't think so," Robin said hesitantly. "If she did, she didn't tell me. She just said that you might have been in danger."
"Yeah, but did she say anything else?" Beast Boy asked urgently.
"No," Robin said, becoming suspicious. "Beast Boy, what's wrong?"
"Like I said, nothing's wrong," Beast Boy said hastily.
But even he could see that neither Robin nor Starfire were convinced. A sudden sense of self-preservation took over, an instinct that compelled him to tell Robin, "Well, actually, that's not really true."
"What do you mean, Beast Boy?" Starfire asked.
"Well, um, me and Blackfire… we had a fight," Beast Boy said while rubbing his head and trying to look bashful and rueful at the same time. "And I needed some time to cool off, that's al."
"You sure you're okay?" Robin asked, still not really convinced. "Raven seemed pretty sure she sensed danger."
"What can I say, maybe she made a mistake, you know. I mean, I was pretty mad," Beast Boy replied. "But I'm not mad anymore, honest. At least, not as mad as I was before," he added, with as much sincerity as he could muster.
"If you say so, Beast Boy," Robin replied. He still sounded unsure, but at least he wasn't giving Beast Boy funny looks anymore. "Anyway, fights or not, you have to get back to the Tower; it's not safe to be out alone like this."
"Robin's right, Beast Boy," Starfire added. "Legion is still out there," she said, staring into the darkness of the ruined district in front of her, "and it would be very dangerous indeed if he managed to catch any of us alone."
Too late, an unbidden thought told Beast Boy. Pushing it out of his mind, Beast Boy forced a smile and nodded. "Yeah, you guys have a point. Sorry if I scared any of you."
"No problem, Beast Boy," Robin said, placing a companionable arm on Beast Boy's shoulder. "Come on, let's get back to the Tower."
(scene change)
"Hey man, you all right?" the bum asked drunkenly.
"I'm…I'm fine," Legion croaked out as he knelt in his corner of the rubble, clutching his chest coughing.
" hic You don't s-sound all all all right," the inquiring drunk slurred. "Here," he said, offering his bottle, as the fumes spurred him on to charity, "thish'll make you fell all better-"
"I said I'm all right!" Legion rasped out angrily, and as he watched Legion stalk off, the now suddenly-sober bum decided that he had drunk enough for that night. It wasn't the blood the other guy coughed up and was now trailing out his mouth that bothered him; he'd seen enough people with 'the Teeb' to become desensitized it, nor was it that the other guys teeth seemed to have been sharpened into points ('cos God knows what people do when they're young and stupid).
It was his eyes, the ones that seemed to shimmer and turn into snakes' eyes for a moment, before changing back. These weren't normal snakes' eyes either; he wasn't a 'Christer', as he liked to call 'em, but he'd be damned if what he saw weren't the eyes of…
The eyes of…
Yep, he'd definitely had enough.
In normal circumstances, Legion would have swelled with pride had he known he'd been compared someone even his Master would have considered superior; however, these weren't normal circumstances. All Legion was concerned with now was to find a nice, quiet place where he could regenerate in peace.
It had started out harmlessly enough; he had felt something probe at the magical defences he had erected to keep his location secret. Even the strongest mortal magics would not have sensed him; their locator spells would have washed over his hiding place without ever knowing he was there.
But what happened tonight was not by any mortal hand.
At first, judging by his first impression of the magic involved, it was his Master, Trigon, who had cast the locator spell, which of course made no sense; his Master would not have needed any such thing to find Legion.
Which only left one possibility: his prey.
But before he could even allow himself the simple, sadistic pleasure of informing Raven that he had found her, something happened.
Legion had lived for many thousands of years.
But tonight was the first time he felt- not fear, he knew how it felt whenever he thought there was a chance he might fail his Master- but sheer, mindless terror, as whatever forces raven unleashed tore at his spell, and since like all demons, the essence he used for his spell was as kin to him as flesh and blood and organs were to humans…
He fell to his knees and coughed again, his blood splattering on the dusty concrete beneath him. Even though with the internal damage he had suffered, he would survive (a demon had no use for the frailties of mortals), he was definitely in no shape to continue his mission. Even after his regeneration, he was sure that Raven would find it more than easy enough to tear him apart.
It looked like Beast Boy, far from being an amusing diversion, was becoming far more important to Legion than he had anticipated…