'Without you, I don't need to explain. There's no one to answer to, when I got no one to blame' - Lucie Silvas
CHAPTER 4 - FINDING
Robin was staring at Raven's back. Covering most of it was the spider web that had been causing her pain for the past two days. The web was black and the spider was red. Cyborg looked confused.
"When did Rae get a tattoo?" Cyborg asked.
"She wouldn't, she's afraid of needles." Robin said, slowly reaching out towards the spider.
"So… this is what's been making Raven faint this whole time? A tattoo?" Cyborg said. "There has to be more to it."
"Cyborg look!" Robin said, moving his hand away quickly. The spider came to life and continued to spin the web around Raven's back. The web was glowing silver as it covered almost her whole back. Although she was unconscious, Raven tensed up and started to sweat. Robin ran over to face her and comfortingly stroked her hair and squeezed her hand.
"It's okay Raven." Robin said, although she couldn't hear his soothing words.
After a minute, the spider remained still and the web stopped glowing. Raven relaxed but her breathing had gotten quite heavy. Robin put an oxygen mask over her mouth and watched as her breathing slowly returned to normal.
"Did it just move?" Cyborg observed looking closer.
"Yeah, but what is it?" Robin said.
"I'll search the database for villains famous for harmful tattoos. But what kinda villain has that power?" Cyborg questioned.
Robin stared at Raven and once again, reminisced events of the past two days…
Raven persevered and placed her hand on Starfire's arm. She clenched her teeth and was trying not to scream. She knew her priority was to heal Starfire's arm. Robin could tell that Raven was suffering, and by that time Beast Boy and Cyborg had realised. Raven's hand stopped glowing and she let go of Starfire's arm.
"Raven?" Robin said walking towards Raven. The empath collapsed into his arms.
"Raven!" he shouted into her ear while holding her against him.
"Take her to the infirmary! Something is seriously wrong with her." Cyborg said.
Robin sighed and suddenly had a better thought, and a possible lead…
"Are you hurt friend?" Starfire asked, holding out a hand and helping her to her feet. Raven stood up but lost her balance and fell into Robin's arms.
"Can you walk?" Robin asked looking at Raven worryingly.
"I think so. Urgh my head." Raven moaned, putting her fingers to her head and seeing the blood.
"What happened?" Beast Boy asked her.
"We had a fight, he pinned me up against the wall… then he… urgh, I can't remember but he banged my head. Then everything went black." she explained.
"It was Tarot!" Robin shouted. "That son of a bitch!"
Cyborg looked up from the computer. "How do you know?" he asked as the computer continued its search for villains.
"Remember when we found Raven in the alleyway after her encounter with Tarot and she couldn't remember what happened to her?" Cyborg nodded in reply to Robin's question, "Well that could be what she forgot!"
Raven murmured in her sleep. Robin kneeled beside her.
"Raven?" he whispered. He got no reply. "I don't what this tattoo means or why it's causing you so much pain. But I promise you that Cyborg and I are going to find out what Tarot did to you. You have my word."
Cyborg looked at him and smiled. In his eyes, Robin was a great leader and loved his compassion. And he was right, they were going to get to the bottom of this. The computer beeped, and Tarot's profile came up.
"Robin." Cyborg said. "We have him." Cyborg read the profile out loud.
'Tattoo Tarot aka Tarot. Arrested for one of the biggest illegal tattoo heists in 2004. Released in December 2005 (last month). Rumoured to use magic to bring tattoos to life but there was no evidence to convict him. Place of birth - Vanaveah. Nationality - Vanaveian.'
(A.N. Vanaveah is pronounced Va-Na-V-Ah. Just in case anyone can't say it :P)
"It has to be him then. It all adds up Cyborg. Raven told me a while back that Vanaveah was a realm very close to Azarath. I'm going to give that bastard a piece of my mind! Lets go!" Robin ordered.
"Hold it!" Cyborg said back. "First, I need to check Raven over. Then we'll leave."
Robin leaned against the wall and waited for Cyborg to finish checking Raven. He adjusted the oxygen levels in the mask, hooked up a heart rate monitor and nerve impulse machine.
"What's all that for?" Robin asked looking worried.
"Her heart rate's dropped and her oxygen intake is slowing down slightly. I set this all up so BB or Star will know if something's wrong with her. You better tell BB where we're going while I finish up here. I'll see ya in the garage." Cyborg smiled in a comforting way.
Robin nodded and ran to Beast Boy's bedroom. He knocked and saw a very hungry Beast Boy standing there.
"Pleasssssssse tell me that the Chinese is here!" Beast Boy begged.
"Is that seriously all you can think about Beast Boy!" Robin joked before turning serious. "Me and Cyborg have a lead about who's harming Raven so we're going to check it out. I need you and Starfire to stay here in case something happens to her."
Beast Boy had a load of questions that Robin didn't have time for.
"What do mean who? I thought she was just ill?" Beast Boy said confused.
"We found something. I'll tell you later, but I need you to keep an eye on her. If she wakes up then make sure she stays in the infirmary and doesn't move." Robin ordered.
"Why? What's wrong?" Beast Boy asked.
"Cyborg said her heart rate is lower than normal and her breathing isn't that good. I don't want her in any more pain than she appears to be in." Robin said looking at the floor, feeling a little guilty that Raven was suffering.
"Got it. I won't take my eyes off her. Go! Catch the guy!" Beast Boy said putting a comforting hand on Robin's shoulder. "She'll be fine Robin."
And with that, Beast Boy ran to the infirmary and Robin ran to the garage where Cyborg was supposed to meet him. He wasn't there. Robin's mind went racing. Oh my God, has something happened? Is she breathing? His mind went clear again when he saw Cyborg appear beside him. Cyborg could see Robin was anxious.
"Raven's body temperature decreased so I added some fluids. Nothing too serious." Cyborg reassured Robin, who didn't seem too reassured.
They both jumped into the T-Car and Cyborg sped over the bridge. He had a lock on Tattoo Tarot. He was in the same place as their previous fight, the alleyway circuit, downtown. Cyborg picked up speed and tightly swerved into the alleyway, where indeed, Tattoo Tarot was standing looking very relaxed.
"Teen Titans. How did I know you'd be here?" Tattoo Tarot laughed evilly.
Robin and Cyborg got out of the car and stared coldly at the villain, Robin especially.
"What did you do to her?" Robin shouted making his hands into fists.
Tattoo Tarot moved closer to them. Cyborg held up his sonic cannon as a threat.
"You know, I knew you were coming to confront me, when Raven was at the peak of pain. It's only a matter of time before the spider takes over her." Tattoo Tarot said slowly and quietly.
"Why Raven? What has she ever done to you?" Cyborg shouted.
"She was vulnerable." he replied quickly.
Robin stared even more coldly at him. He wanted to attack him, or worse, kill this guy, but knew that they needed to interrogate him first in order to help Raven.
"Don't make me ask you twice!" Robin shouted.
"What did I do to her? What did I do to her? Umm, that's a tough one. I don't know if I should tell you." he laughed, not realising that Cyborg was running towards him. Cyborg pinned him against the wall with his face against it.
"How ironic. This was the exact same position Raven was in when I carved the tattoo into her. Ah, her screams were like music to my ears."
Cyborg had had enough of this shit. He held his sonic cannon right up against Tattoo Tarot's head. "Talk bitch! Don't make me do it!" he shouted.
"And what if I don't feel like it?" he answered casually.
"THEN YOU'RE HAVE ME TO FUCKING ANSWER TO!" Robin shouted out of nowhere as he came charging up next to Cyborg. "Tell us what you did to Raven, or I'll kill you!"
Cyborg stared into Robin's eyes. Even through the mask, Cyborg could see his anger, and he could tell that Robin was serious in what he'd just said.
"You really want to know? Fine. I'll let you in on a little secret. But, just to let you know, she's gonna die!"
Beast Boy was sat by Raven's bedside. She looked like a science experiment with all the wires connected to her and the monitors beeping away in the background. He sighed. He never knew she'd gotten this bad. He remembered back to earlier that morning when she'd fallen off the roof. She didn't scream at all. She'd no idea what was happening. And now, she was here.
"God I hope they get back soon." he said aloud, adjusting Raven's pillows.
"Who friend Beast Boy do you wish to return soon?"
Beast Boy turned around and saw Starfire standing in the doorway.
"Hey Star?" he replied.
"Is friend Raven on the road to betterness?" she asked looking at Raven.
"Yeah Star, she's fine. Cy and Robin found something and went to investigate. They asked us to keep an eye on Raven while they were gone." Beast Boy informed the Tamaranian.
Raven started to stir. She'd been out like a light for just over an hour now. She could hear distant voices talking but she couldn't make them out. She could also hear the beeping from the monitors around her. She slowly attempted to open her eyes, and finally they were fully open. She let out a moan, which made Starfire and Beast Boy jump. Beast Boy removed her oxygen mask.
"Raven? Can you hear me?" he said.
Raven let out another moan. "What?"
"Friend, you collapsed while healing my broken bones. You have been asleep ever since." Starfire informed the empath.
"Robin?" Raven managed to whisper. She felt so weak.
"He just popped out but he'll be back soon." Beast Boy said smiling, moving a hair out of Raven's eyes.
"I… just… wanna… sleep." Raven stuttered.
"Go back to sleep Raven. I'll be here. Don't worry." Beast Boy put the oxygen mask back on Raven and heard her take a few deep breaths before she fell back asleep.
"What are you talking about?" Cyborg shouted charging up the sonic cannon.
"You see… I have the ability to create real life tattoos that can only be described as… deadly." Tattoo Tarot informed the shocked duo in a sly and calm tone. "When we first met, Raven proved to be a tough competitor. But as I said, she was vulnerable and I soon had her pinned. She was an open target with her bare back showing… her elegant back…"
"DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT RAVEN LIKE THAT YOU SICK BASTARD!" Robin shouted getting angrier by the second.
"… It's rude to interrupt young one, especially when the information I'm telling you could potentially save Raven's life. Now, be good boys and listen. As I was saying, she was an open target and I took my shot and carved the tattoo into her back and mentally brought it to life. It was an advantage that both Raven and I are from similar realms, Azarath and Vanaveah, but of course you knew that from my prison profile didn't you?"
"What does this tattoo do?" Cyborg asked.
"Well, this is the best bit you see! It drains life! And every time Raven used her powers, the spider came to life and spun that wondrous web on her back, causing her to suffer!"
Robin now saw how everything fitted into place. It started off small, Raven's backache when summoning her book. Then collapsing off the roof while chanting an incantation. And finally, ending up in basic intensive care after healing Starfire's arm. The bigger the power, the bigger the pain.
"So every time she used her powers, the web expanded?" Robin asked trying to take it all in.
"Clever boy. Eventually, Raven will use her powers and the web will be complete. And, well, lets just say that I hope you don't find it too painful letting her go."
The Titans didn't know how to feel. Angry? Afraid? Worried? Sad? What they did know was that Tattoo Tarot was going to pay. But Robin had one more question.
"Why are you telling us all this?" he asked.
Tattoo Tarot paused while thinking up an answer to satisfy Robin's needs.
"I'm going to jail. She's going to perish soon. I have nothing to gain or lose. I might as well let you know so you can waste your time preventing this tragedy. But you can't stop it Titans. Raven's going to die, and you have to spend the next few days watching her every move. The web is almost complete and I think one last use of her powers will do it. You're going to suffer as well, metally… just not as much as her, physically!"
Robin punched Tattoo Tarot hard in the face and kicked his stomach. Cyborg fired his sonic cannon. Cyborg rang the police while Robin thought over what he'd just heard.
"Raven's dying. No one can stop it. She'll have to use her powers eventually. How am I gonna tell her? My precious Raven? I must stop this… but how do I stop it?"
And that fellow writers was chapter 4. Please read on... Love Hollie xoxox
