32 Productions Presents…
A Teen Titan Fan Fiction The Teen Titans in…"A Fractured Mind"
Chapter Two
Underground Lair
Ashley was strapped to a table. Ravager prepared a needle to take a blood sample. They would look everywhere to find the source of the girl's power…even if they had to kill her and perform an autopsy to do it. Thorn stood next to her, watching with sadistic interest.
Ashley: What…what do you want?
Ravager: Your power, I'm afraid. I won't lie. This won't be pleasant for you.
Ashley: You could have lied!
Ravager shrugged and stuck the needle into her arm.
Ravager: I'll try and make this as painless as possible. Don't tense up. It'll only hurt more. There. Not so bad, was it?
Ashley: …you didn't use the cotton and the bad smelling stuff.
Ravager: Eh. The needle's clean, trust me. Besides, disease is the least of your worries.
Ashley gulped.
Ashley: You're not very good at reassuring people are you?
Ravager: Why should I be? Nobody reassured me. Nobody ever cared enough to tell me everything was going to be okay. Then again…
Ravager lifted her mask off and lifted her eye patch, exposing the disfigured orb that was once a functioning eyeball.
Ravager: I guess things WEREN'T going to be okay anyway.
Ashley shrieked. Ravager covered her eye and put her mask back on.
Ravager: Oh god…I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me. Look, just go along with this and we'll send you back to the hospital, okay?
Ashley nodded, too scared to speak. Ravager felt extremely guilty. She swore at herself for not being able to control herself. She reached down and gentle stroked the child's head with a gloved hand, trying to calm her down.
Ravager: I really am sorry about all this. My…mentor requires your abilities…but would rather not have to make those he wants to use them on have to come into contact with you for it to work. It's not practical.
Ravager started a scanning device.
Ravager: Don't look into the light or you'll go blind.
Ashley closed her eyes as the scan began. Still feeling bad, Ravager decided to try and engage in conversation.
Ravager: So…how long have you had these powers?
Ashley: Four years.
Ravager: Did something happen to give you them?
Ashley: Don't think so.
The scan finished.
Ravager: Okay, open your eyes now.
Ashley opened one eye, then the other.
Ravager: What? Don't trust me?
Ashley: No.
Ravager: (shrugging) At least your honest. Other people would be too scared to tell the truth. Good for you. …I'm afraid this is where it gets…unpleasant.
Ravager held up a device. She pressed a button on it and it glowed brightly.
Ravager: Tilt your head back. This goes in your nose. Move suddenly and I might jab your brain.
Thorn snickered in her ear.
Thorn: She's right, you're ability to reassure people is lacking.
Outside Hospital
A search of the area revealed nothing. The tracks seemed to disappear. Ashley's scent vanished from the air. They were running low on options. Raven sat down and went into a meditative trance.
Terra: What are
you…?
Shade: Shh. She needs quiet. She's going to find Ashley
through her thoughts..
Raven concentrated on the nearby emotions. She looked for signs of distress, fear, pain, anything that a captive would feel. She was suddenly bombarded with emotions fitting that description. She snapped out her trance with a gasp, her breath coming in gasps.
Cyborg: That's bad, right?
Raven: Bad? She must be being tortured from what I'm sensing! I'll track her down.
Raven sent her soul self out to find Ashley. It wasn't long before she came into contact with her.
Raven: Ashley. Don't speak. Don't let whoever has you know I'm here.
Ashley: Where's "here"?
Raven: I'm inside your mind. We're looking for you, but we don't know where to go. Think back to how you got there. Let me see what you saw.
Flashes of images told Raven what she needed to know. There was an entrance hidden in the nearby forest.
Raven: Be strong. We'll be there soon.
Raven recalled her soul self. When she snapped back out of it she groaned and tried to stand up. Her body wasn't responding normally.
Starfire: What is wrong?
Raven: I…don't know. I guess she's further away then I thought. It must have been a strain.
Shade helped her to her feet. She wobbled a bit and she wound up having to lean on him.
Raven: I don't understand. It never felt like this before…I'm usually just tired…not weak like this.
Robin: Will you be okay?
Raven nodded.
Raven: Either way, I'm the only one who knows where to go. Let's go back to the hospital. I'll be able to retrace the robots' steps.
Underground Lair
Ravager was about to perform another test when Thorn's head snapped up. She sensed something. Something very familiar to her was close by.
Thorn: Rose, something is wrong. I can feel something. Something very close and very dangerous.
In the corner of the room four eyes opened in the darkness. Thorn noticed immediately. Something in her mind clicked and she knew what it was she was looking at.
Thorn: By Trig…er…oh shit. Rose, watch out!
With a thunderous cry a large black bird-like creature swooped at her. She flipped out of the way. It passed through the wall without damaging anything.
Ravager: What the hell!
Thorn: It's Raven's soul form! She must have tried to make contact with the girl and it split in two! It's pure evil and driven by an inhuman urge to kill! If it manages to get to you, it will tear your soul in two!
Ravager: (sarcastic) Fantastic.
Ravager dodged another swoop. Luckily the creature appeared mindless. Ravager pressed her communicator.
Ravager: We have a problem.
Slade: What sort of problem?
The soul self screeched loudly, echoing throughout the base.
Ravager: A very big one.
Suddenly the creature paused, as if sensing something. With another scream, it took off, ignoring Ravager. It flew out of the room, past a rather startled Slade and out of the base. It sensed its counterpart. The urge to destroy it was overwhelming.
Forest Near Hospital
Raven breathed heavily. Something was very wrong and it was worrying everyone. She was riding on Cyborg's back.
Beast Boy: Raven, you don't look so good.
Raven's head turned to face him. Sweat trickled down her face and her hair was matted to her head.
Raven: …don't feel so good.
Shade frowned. A perfect time for a sarcastic comment wasted. She must not be well at all. Even with the flu, she was capable (and more then willing) to be sarcastic. Suddenly the forest was filled with activity. Animals ran in huge groups right past them, ignoring them completely.
Starfire: What is going on?
Shade: They're scared…very scared.
The soul-self emerged from the ground, screaming. Raven was so out of it she didn't notice. She just kept breathing, her head on Cyborg's shoulder.
Terra: What the hell is that!
Robin: Raven!
Raven looked up.
Raven: …my soul self…
Cyborg: Aw, shit. When it touched Ashley it must have split like everyone else.
Shade: That means we've got a purely destructive beast here and the only way to fix it is to have Raven's half of the soul self touch Ashley when that one is!
It attacked Cyborg, aiming for Raven.
Raven: (muttering) Through those trees…the entrance…
Cyborg took off running, the thing in close pursuit. It was stopped by a larger, uglier bird. Shade closed his eyes in concentration. Making a shadow solid was one thing, making it on the same spectrum as Raven's soul self was another. In other words, a lot harder. It tried to get past him, but he called forth his shadow beast form and it attacked, smacking the soul self aside.
Shade: Go! I'll hold it here until you find Ashley!
Robin: You heard him, let's move!
Raven felt herself drifting, despite the danger she knew she was in. She slipped into unconsciousness.
Raven's Soul
Red, Orange, and Brown lay lifeless on the ground. Green leaned against Pink for support. The others were fine.
Green: This ain't my day.
Yellow: It certainly is more peaceful.
Purple: Yeah. Without Red yelling at us, Orange grossing us out, or Brown making lewd comments, it's quiet around here.
Gray sniffled.
Gray: This is our fault. We should have known this would happen or at least guessed. The others are in danger.
Yellow: I'm more concerned about how we'll be getting ourselves back together again. Shade can handle it.
Purple: Shade can handle anything.
Purple sighed dreamily. Pink squatted next to Red, poking her face.
Pink: Come on Red…get up. Say something…make fun of me. Attack me so I can dodge it and humiliate you. …does anyone have a marker? I wanna doodle on her face.
Green: Give her a moustache for me.
Reality
Raven groaned as she was snapped awake again.
Cyborg: Where to now?
Raven: Nnn…there…that tree…it's fake.
Raven raised a shaking arm toward a tree before passing out again. It was fake, but it didn't want to move. Starfire grabbed the "tree" and pulled. It came off, revealing a tunnel.
Forest
Shade hissed as the soul self clawed at his shadow beast. The shadow beast was the closet thing to himself. It represented the source of his powers in his mind. If angered enough, it will emerge from him and cover his body, essentially transforming him into it. Thus when it was scratch by the soul self's talons, he began to bleed. He was getting tired. His concentration wouldn't hold much longer. He never had to do something like this before.
Shade: Come on guys, hurry up…
Underground Lair
Slade entered the room. Ravager looking over the data from her tests.
Slade: Apprentice, report.
Ravager: …nothing. It's probably magic in origin. Our machines can't detect that.
Slade's reply was lost as the Titans broke in. Apparently the soul-self had damaged the security measures on its way out. It must have the power to destroy mechanical objects without visibly damaging them.
Robin & Terra: Slade!
Starfire: Again with the name…
Ravager: We're having one of those days.
Slade clenched his fists.
Slade: Kill the girl.
Ravager: Pardon!
Slade: She's of no use to us. Kill her.
Ravager shrugged and drew her sword. Raven lifted her head up weakly.
Raven: …ill-adviced…unless you want to contend with my soul-self forever. That thing…will never go away…not even if I die. The only way…to get rid of it…is for my soul-self to become whole again.
Ravager: Sir?
Slade gave this thought. Before he could come to a decision, Shade appeared, bleeding in numerous places and generally looking like shit. When he saw what was going on he winced. At least the soul self hadn't shown up yet. He had passed out and woke up rather concerned.
Shade: This…doesn't quite look like "got her" to me. I was hoping for a "got her" status when I woke up.
Ravager cut the straps on Ashley.
Ravager: You'd best help them or we're all dead.
Ashley gulped and nodded. The soul-self flew into the room, screaming. It dove toward Raven. She closed her eyes and, using all of her will power, summoned the portion of her soul-self she still had. It flew toward Ashley. Not being interested in Raven, the other soul-self followed. They collided and reformed into a single white eyed bird. It flowed back to Raven. She sighed in relief and slid off Cyborg's back. She wobbled a little, but her strength was quickly returning.
Raven: That's better.
Raven's Soul
Red: WHAT'S EVERYONE LAUGHING AT! WHAT'S SO FING FUNNY!
Pink hid the marker behind her back. The cat whiskers made Red almost appear cute.
Reality
Slade: Now that that's out of the way…Ravager, kill her.
Ravager: As you wish.
Ravager leapt toward Ashley, sword drawn. Robin got in front of her and blocked the strike with his bo-staff.
Robin: Ashley, get out of here!
Ashley: This has been a really bad day for me.
Ashley ran for the exit, but it sealed shut.
Slade: Not just yet my dear.
Ashley: …really really bad.
Shade: Tell me about it.
There was a tear in Ravager's glove. She had done it herself, claiming that it happened when she was dodging around. She gave herself other tears in her costume to make it more believable.
Thorn: Touch the girl. Give me a physical form and we'll crush them all here and now. Just make sure it looks like an accident.
Ravager managed to get herself thrown in her general direction. Her hand brushed Ashley's face and there was a flash of light. Strangely, Ravager felt no different. Thorn cackled and drew her own sword.
Thorn: Schizophrenia is an amazing thing, isn't it? Thank you, young Ashley. You may die now.
Thorn may not be able to see the girl anymore, but she had a general idea of where she was. She swung her sword, getting Ashley across her chest. She fell, bleeding heavily.
Thorn: Ravager, be so kind as to deal with the Titans. I've my own target to deal with. You know you can't resist me.
Ravager decided to appear to have no will of her own. She simply attacked, mindlessly and silently. Thorn turned her attention to Slade.
Thorn: Surprised? You really shouldn't be. You knew how harmful the effects of your blood could be, didn't you? All you cared about was making a better apprentice out of us.
She swung at Slade. He jumped back.
Slade: Am I supposed to be afraid? She can't beat me…neither can you.
Thorn: You'll find I'm considerably more dangerous then her. She still cares about you. I despise you. My lost eye is your fault! EVERYTHING IS YOUR FAULT!
Faster and faster she swung. Suddenly her tongue shot out of her mouth and impaled Slade through the shoulder. Slade staggered back as his vision began to swim. Thorn's tongue snaked back in like she was slurping a ramen noodle.
Thorn: What you're feeling is an acute toxin. It causes brief numbness through out the body. You won't live long enough to recover from the effects, I'm afraid.
Suddenly she began to feel a pull. With a scream she found herself flying across the room and into the oncoming Ravager. They hit with a flash of light. Ravager stood there, staring at herself in confusion. She looked back up to Ashley. She was holding herself up with one arm, the other arm point at her. She fell back to the ground.
Ravager: …Master? Master!
Ravager helped her wounded father. She hoped she played her part well. If she had, he wouldn't blame her for not helping earlier. She helped him over to another spot in the room.
Terra: It's over, Slade!
Robin: Aw…I wanted to say that.
Terra: You get to say it every time. Besides, every time you do, he gets away.
Ravager hit a button and the wall flipped around. Terra's jaw dropped and Robin crossed his arms.
Robin: Happy now?
Terra: (weakly) No.
Before they could pursue, the base began to fall apart.
Robin: Everybody out! Beast Boy, grab Ashley, but be careful!
Beast Boy grabbed her and they ran out the tunnel. They took her back to the hospital. She stitched up, bandaged, put into bed, and everyone hoped for the best. It was their only option. Raven looked down at the girl in the hospital bed. She wanted to help, but knew she couldn't risk trying to heal her. Ashley never opened her eyes again.
Titan Tower: Main Room
The funeral was short and barely anyone attended. The girl was an orphan with no friends. Who would show up besides the Titans? They put the body in the ground, a few words were said and that was it. The heroes (though they weren't feeling like heroes at the moment) sat in silence in the main room.
Starfire: …that was depressing.
Raven: And not in the good way.
Beast Boy: She didn't deserve that. She was a brave girl cursed with a terrible power.
Terra: Terrible and completely uncontrollable.
Robin: I wouldn't say that.
Everyone looked at Robin.
Robin: You saw what happened. You saw how the two Ravagers just suddenly flew at each other and fused together again. Ashley was still alive when that happened. She willed them back together.
Cyborg: You're saying she might have learned how to control her power someday?
Robin: We'll never know. Maybe she learned just then.
Beast Boy: …that just makes it worse.
Shade: What I don't understand is, why did Ravager touch the Ashley in the first place?
Starfire: What do you mean? She was thrown into her.
Robin shook his head.
Robin: No, he's right. I noticed it too. Ravager let herself be thrown and touched the girl on purpose. I think she wanted to split in two.
Raven: …the other Ravager didn't attack the first.
Terra: And the first Ravager was still willing to fight.
Beast Boy: So what the hell happened?
Cyborg: Only Ravager knows.
OTHER Underground Lair
Slade has a lot of these. Ravager sat in her room, brooding. Thorn paced in front of her, shouting obscenities.
Thorn: That miserable bitch! She ruined everything! I almost had the dirty shitheaded bastard! We were so close! With Slade out of the way, I could have helped you with the Titans and our revenge would be complete!
Ravager: …why'd you cut her?
Thorn looked at Ravager in disgust.
Thorn: What do you care? She was an obstacle. She could have pulled us back together again. Hell, she DID pull us back together again.
Ravager: …she was just a little girl. She wasn't involved.
Thorn: Don't be weak. People die. It happens. Sometimes in order to succeed others must fail. It's the way of the universe.
Ravager didn't reply. For the first time since she met Thorn, she was having doubts. Thorn ignored her and started pacing again. She needed a new plan. A better one.
THE END