Chap. 4

Catch and Release?

"They've been in there a long time." Bart commented as he looked towards the door. He'd been doing that in fifteen-minute intervals, waiting to see Beast Boy fly through them and into the wall at superhuman speed. He also wanted the time to dodge an angry Raven, if that was the case. The others had not taken such an interest, but for Bart, having survived several strangulation attempts by his father, wanted to be careful. "You know it is possible that BB can actually apologize." Robin said. "True, but the problem is that the apology gets lost in the stream of thought." Bart argued back. "He can never think before he speaks and he doesn't have much to think with. Now you know that's a fact." "Beast Boy is capable and if he sets his mind to something, he'll get it done." "Yeah, but he never stops joking about it. He can't take anything seriously." "He could though." Brett said thoughtfully. "Beast Boy has a lot of potential, and when he's focused…. Still Bart has a point. Nobody jokes that much, unless they have something to hide." "What are you talking about?" Robin asked incredulously.

But before the bat could give an answer, the doors suddenly popped open and Beast Boy sped into the room. "Speak of the devil." Bart said. A second later, Bart realized that Beast Boy's entrance could be do to more then coincidence. Beast Boy was out of breath and his green skin was a slightly pale hue. "Dudes, we've got a serious problem!" the green one panted. "Oh dear God, you've done something stupid haven't you?" Bart asked. "Huh? No this isn't my fault." "Oh God, you really screwed up and broke one of Raven's items?" "No, this isn't my fault!" "Oh Lord, you've killed someone haven you?" "IT"S NOT ME!" Beast Boy screamed with frustration. "Then what's going on? And what part did you have in it?" the young boy asked calmly.

Before Beast Boy's head could explode with rage, Raven entered the room and said, "It isn't him this time. Dad, we've got a problem. It's the book." "This is about a book?" Robin asked from the kitchen. "Then we never should've blamed BB. Sorry dude." Milhouse said. "Enough." Brett said. "Raven, please tell me this isn't the book I think it is." "I wish I could." Raven answered, as BB quietly steamed. The bat sighed and said, "OK guys, its dragon fighting time again." "What? You two let him out again?" Milhouse cried in surprise. "And I have not been able to finish repairing the Tower walls since the last time." Starfire added.

The others added similar complaints, but since all of them were so far off the mark, Raven decided to get the topic back on focus herself. "Will you guys please listen to me, so maybe I can tell you what actually happened?" she said, in that subtle, quietly angry way that Raven had been able to do since day one. "OK." Bart answered, not wanting to make this any worse. "So what is this?" "The book is active again. Someone's talking through it, but it isn't Malichor. It's the person who put him there." "Wait, doesn't that mean…" "Right. If this is the truth, then Rorek is trapped inside, and he wants out." The group was quiet a minute, then Robin said, "Get the others and meet in Raven's room. We need to figure out what to do here."

Thankfully, everyone remembered Malichor well enough so that they were in the room in less then five minutes. "Whoa. You weren't kidding." Nelson said as he looked at the floating book. "How do we know it's not Malichor?" Cyborg asked. "I mean, just because it's floating there…"

Have faith friend. I mean you no harm.

"Who said that?" the bionic Titan said as he looked around for the source of the voice. "The book did. Raven said it could speak remember?" Nelson said. "Well it doesn't sound like Malichor." Starfire said thoughtfully. "True, but he probably knew more then enough magic to disguise his voice if needed." Robin said. "Brett, you and Sara are the magic experts here. Is there any way you can tell what's going on here?" "We'll give it our best try." Brett answered, as he and the fox stepped forward. Facing the book, both stretched forth their right hands, stopping within a few inches of the books cover. Their outstretched hands began to glow, as their respective magics scanned the book, examining for any signs that would lead to a discovery. Finally, Brett spoke. "I can sense Malichor, but he's not at the forefront here. It's like he's been pushed further back into the book." "And I don't sense any dragon magic coming from this one." Sara added. "There's always some kind of evil aftertaste with dragons, and there just isn't anything like that from this guy. But there is something wrong here. It's like the magic's been tainted somehow, but that could be from Malichor." "Can you figure out anything without magic?" Raven asked. "We can try." Brett said.

Looking directly at the book, Brett and Sara began to speak. "Are you Rorek, war-wizard and jailer of Malichor?" Brett asked.

Yes, I am he.

"What can you tell us to prove it?" Sara asked.

I struggled long against the early temptations of the magic, but I overcame them, and used my powers to collect the great artifacts of magic, to be used for the greater good.

"How did you obtain the golden rings of Chrick the minotaur?"

By using my magics to remove his horns.

"And why did Chrick have the rings?

He had stolen them from the priests of Roter, to use for the purpose of shaking the land around his lair and destroying the humans that lived there.

"Why are you in the book?"

I do not know. I only remember fighting the dragon. He must have pulled me into the book with him when I trapped him. ("That's convenient." Beast Boy muttered.

"You say something?" Nelson asked. "No." the green one replied.)

The questions continued like this for a bit longer, and then the Knights cemented the voice's identity. Brett suddenly spoke in a high, bitter sounding language, his tongue cracking over every word. When he finished, the voice replied in the same ancient tongue. When he finished, Sara nodded and turned back to the others. "We let him out." "Are you sure?" Robin asked. "That was the Armenog language. No one has spoken it in five thousand years, and the last one who did know it was Rorek, last son of Aremenog." "All right. So how do we do it?" "The same way as before." Raven answered.

The heroes quickly got to work, and under Raven's instruction, recreated her room as it had been the night she had accidentally released Malichor. The candles burned brightly and the smell of incense was strong, so strong that Martin and Robin actually began to cough under the odor of it. "Are you sure we need all this?" Nelson asked. "It has to be exactly like last time, it's the only way I know to get him out." Raven replied. "Not totally." Brett said. "This opens a portal into the book, but it isn't selective. The dragon could get as easily as Rorek. I want to make sure we take every precaution against Malichor escaping." Brett explained. "And I think I know how to do it." "Care to illustrate then?" Bart asked. "Malichor is by his nature, a being of evil magic. It makes him a threat, but it also makes him susceptible to good magic. The only problem is, any spell to keep him in the book would also work against Rorek." "Then what are we talking about?" Ralph asked, with more then a hint of impatience. He had never been good with taking precautions, and frankly, Ralph was eager for the show of magic that was going to surely occur. "What we're talking about is creating a shield, no; a filter of magic that would both keep Malichor locked up and allow Rorek to come forth." Brett finished. "But how do you make something like that?" Cyborg asked. "I don't know much about magic, but it sounds like you'd need something composed of good and evil and there isn't anybody who can do…. Oh." He realized, as Brett and Sara nodded at his statement, and then looked at one another.

"Go for it." Ralph said, once again eager for a show of magic. And there was no show bigger then what the two Elementals were about to do. Slowly, bat and fox raised up their right hands, hands that glowed with the energy of shadow and light. The two held their hands apart for a few seconds, letting the power within them build. Then finally, when the energy had reached its zenith, they slammed their hands together, merging the two forces. Black and gold energy began to swirl around the two Elementals, a blanket of power that covered them with its magnificence. For a moment, the energy retained the shape of the two Knights. But then, it began to grow and change, as the figures inside went through their metamorphosis.

From two shapes, one began to form, as a huge body developed underneath the blanket. It was a strange sight, as the figure appeared both grand and disjointed. Its body seemed uneven, unsymmetrical to any form that was known on Earth. As it continued, it seemed that the blanket would have to tear rather then hold its cargo. Yet, the energy blanket continued to grow, covering its hosts until their transformation was complete. And soon it was. As the figure inside finished it's transformation, the energy blanket began to drain away, into the essence of the being it had created. As the Titans watched the last of the blanket fade, the figure opened its eyes. Standing on its mismatched feet, the Alamagan, the warrior of Light and Dark, spoke in its voice that was both male and female; "We are ready. Let the spell commence."

"God I love that trick." Ralph breathed as the Almagan walked over to the book. The being was truly awe-inspiring; a mix of opposites, it was a female angel on it's left side and a male demon on the other. Eight feet tall, it had to crouch a bit to move in Raven's room. From its back sprouted a feathered wing and a black scaly bat wing. A diagonal mask covered its face; the angel's lower face showed, as did the demon's upper face. Looking down on the book, it said, "Rorek, we are preparing to release you. When you feel the pull of Raven's magic, latch onto it and let it pull you out."

Gladly. But how do you plan to deal with Malichor?

"Let us deal with that." The Almagan answered. Turning back to Raven, it asked, "Is all in readiness?" "Yes. All we need is your magic as a filter." Nodding, the Almagan said to the others, "You had best leave. This is a dangerous spell, and even Raven and we may not be able to fully control it." "Dude, you should both know that wouldn't work." Cyborg said stubbornly. The angel face grinned and said, "We had to try." Turning back to Raven, the grin vanished, as the warrior motioned for her to begin the spell. Closing her eyes, the empath began to chant, the words flowing from the page to her mouth. As she continued to speak, the other books began to glow, as the magic spilled forth from them again. It gathered in the center of the room, and then shot into the floating spell book. As the magic poured into it, it popped open; it's pages flipping wildly from one to the other. Finally, it stopped at the book's center, the pages blank, but glowing all the same. Seeing this, the Almagan spread it's hands and the golf-and-black energy came forward. It covered the pages, lamenting them in magic. As the two forces continued their work on the book, sounds began to issue forth from it. One was a guttural roar of frustration, the other a cry of joy.

Suddenly, the pages stretched forward, being pulled like rubber. As the strain increased, the pages began to rip and tear, revealing something within. Suddenly, the magics reached their peak, and a huge tearing sound filled the room. The pages exploded in a wave of paper, covering everything and negating all view of what was happening. But before anyone could even begin to get through them, the paper vanished, and everyone stared at the figure that stood by the book.