Hey! Welcome to Chapter 5... The Reckoning! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and I hope you enjoy reading it.
Before I begin, I have to say that I don't own the Teen Titans, etc. etc. etc. And with that out of the way... Voila!

Chapter 5: The Reckoning

"So, uh, what is it again?" Came the ever-so curious voice of the resident changeling, Beast Boy. He held in his hands a clear glass box with a tiny blue crystal in the centre. He brought it up to his ear and began to shake it before Cyborg wrenched it from his grip. Beast Boy smiled sheepishly, remembering what the General had told them.

"It is a piece of pure Bindalorf, friend Beast Boy. A very, very valuable substance back on my planet." Starfire snatched it from Cyborg's hands effortlessly, causing the mechanical teen to do a double take, scratching his head at the ease with which she stole it from him. She began to wander around the room with the box, staring deeply at the faintly glowing blue hue.

"On earth, we call it Kryvinovium, after the man who discovered it. Dr. Arkady Kryvinov." rattled off Robin, removing the box from Starfire's hands as she walked by. She stopped and turned to watch him as he kept walking.

"But... how can something be 'discovered' if my people were already aware of it?" asked the orange-skinned girl, perplexed.

"Well, he discovered it for humans, Starfire. This material doesn't exist naturally on earth. From what the General told me, a Tamaranian reconnaissance craft crashed near the city some years ago, and this was one of the things they managed to retrieve from the wreckage." Robin explained.

Beast Boy and Cyborg had grown tired of the lecture and made their way into the TV room to play some video games. The sound of Beast Boy crying was heard within a matter of seconds, followed closely by a very loud "BOOYA!" Robin and Starfire turned towards the noise and smiled at the sound before continuing their discussion.

"And what of the Tamaranians inside of the craft?" Starfire asked finally, a look of complete seriousness possessing her. "Did they... cease to exist?"

"Well, the General was kind of vague, but from what I understood of what he said, they basically wound up taking jobs within the government. Physics, developing weapons, things like that. They didn't trust humans completely, though. He said none of the Tamaranians would work on the Kryvinovium project. I got the impression they were afraid we would use it to blow ourselves to pieces. Which, of course, was what the General wanted to do in the first place. And most likely what Grendel and his master want to do with it now." Bitterness entered Robin's voice when he spoke Grendel's name. Not only had this man evaded his capture twice--although Robin was proud he was able to disarm him without anybody getting injured--he had driven a wedge between himself and a member of his team. An ordinarily loyal and trustworthy member of the team.

"I do hope friend Raven will return soon, Robin." offered Starfire, almost reading his mind. "I have no idea where she could have vanished to..."

"Same here, Starfire. I hope she comes back, too. We miss her." Robin bit his lip. He missed her especially. He hated to fight with anyone in his team... 'I just wish we'd been on the same page the whole time.' He thought, cursing himself. 'Maybe I should have just listened to her. But I did what I felt was right, and I don't regret that. This will all work itself out in the end. I know it will.' He noticed the Tamaranian staring at him with an odd look in her eyes. His eyes widened. "What is it, Star?"

"Friend Robin... are you in need of the earth hug?" she asked, smiling. Robin smiled back.

"Sure, why not?" he admitted, and they embraced. The previous two days had taken their toll on everybody, physically, mentally, and emotionally. Maybe they just needed an evening to forget about things, relax, and let Raven cool down.

"Shall we place the Bindalorf in a secure location?" asked Starfire, letting him go.

"The General didn't entrust us with this just so we could leave it lying around." he replied, and they made their way to the security vault in the basement.

When the crystal was finally safely locked away, Starfire and Robin made their way back to the TV room. Beast Boy seemed to be on the verge of another classic defeat, his teeth clenched together almost permanently. Cyborg had a grin a thousand miles wide spread out across his face. It seemed like any other night. Except...

Except for Raven's absence.

Robin couldn't stop thinking about it. It ran through his mind, the same words, the same conversation, over and over again. He kept thinking about tossing the concussion grenade, about stealing the crystal from Grendel. He kept trying to picture himself doing anything differently. As much as he hated to admit it, he couldn't. "It had to be done." he mumbled.

"What'd you say, man?" asked Cyborg absently, his attention devoted to the humiliation of his green-skinned friend.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it."

"Man, I'm worried about us. Everybody. You and Raven fighting, the team just shouldn't be like this..." Cyborg turned to face Robin, one hand on his game controller, randomly pushing buttons.

"Uh, playing a game here, dude..." Blurted Beast Boy, annoyed.

"I know, I agree with you, Cyborg. I wish I knew what I could do to bring her back." Continued Robin, ignoring the anxious green teen's words.

Cyborg placed a second hand on his controller, but continued to face his leader. "I don't think there's anything you can do, man. Just let her cool down. Maybe you two can work on your communication skills when she does come back." He grinned at that. The Boy Wonder allowed himself a small smile, too.

"Maybe you're right, Cyborg. Which proves that there's a first time for everything." At that, they both began to laugh. Within seconds, victory music could be heard from the television. Robin and his metallic companion turned to see Beast Boy's character lying on the ground in a pool of blood, Cyborg's electronic representative hovering over his corpse in a victory stance. Beast Boy's personal expression could only be described as a mixture of surprise and total outrage. He shot Cyborg the strongest glare of evil he could.

"I hate you so much right now." he hissed.. With that said, Cyborg laughed even harder. Their tranquility was shattered by the blare of the alarm.

"The crystal!" shouted Robin, and the group made their way to the nearest elevator, destined for the vault.

A few moments later, they arrived to the Tower's basement, hearing only silence, with the exception of the slight hum of an air exchanger. The new situation, however, made the quiet that much more eerie. The added knowledge that a dangerous magician was lurking somewhere waiting for them made their hearts beat just a little bit faster. Beast Boy took the opportunity to turn into a tiger. Cyborg's hand morphed into his sonic cannon as Starfire's eyes began to glow an ethereal green.

"Be ready for anything, team..." warned their leader as they made their way down the hall. They finally arrived to the security vault.

"You guys stand guard out here, the room just isn't big enough for all of us to fit in. If you see him, let me know. We're going to have to work closely together if we're going to stop him." Robin explained as he inserted the proper keycard into the security slot. After a few moments, the slot beeped and the steel door slid open. Robin walked inside the tiny little room to behold a single computer panel, the door sliding closed behind him. Pressing a few buttons in a certain sequence, the panel beeped and the wall directly across from him lit up, revealing itself to be the vault door. The gigantic steel door rolled open slowly, revealing... the clear box with the tiny blue crystal inside it. Just where they had left it.

"What? This has to be a trick..." mumbled Robin aloud, walking past the panel into the vault, ducking his head as he entered. He picked up the clear box, examining it. From what he could tell, it was the real deal.

"What's going on?" he asked rhetorically, placing the crystal back on the shelf where he found it. Suddenly, the crystal was enveloped in dark energy, and within seconds it flew past his head. Turning quickly, the Boy Wonder found Grendel standing a few feet in front of him, his hands tightly grasping the box. Robin began to move, but an unseen forced shoved him against the wall.

"I am so sorry to do this to you. But I have no choice." droned the cloaked figure in a monotone, a hint of despair in his voice. Finishing his words, the vault rolled shut, locking Robin inside.

Grendel flicked the intercom button on the computer panel. "According to my calculations, you have approximately two or three hours of air inside the safe. But you most likely knew that already. Regardless... Good-bye, strange young lad. You have fought well. But not well enough. I just hope the other three make it this easy." With a burst of static, Grendel's voice was gone. Robin grit his teeth and punched the steel wall as hard as he could.

"No! How could I be that stupid?" he shouted, running forward and banging on the door. He paused, rubbing his head. "Okay, no, this isn't helping. Focus, Robin, focus. There's got to be a way out..."

Outside, Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy continued their watch.

"He has been inside for far too long. I think one of us should go in after him." asked Starfire, a worried tone coating her voice.

"Yeah, you're right, I don't like the looks of this. I'm going in..." began Cyborg, but before he could finish his actions, the door slid open and out stepped the same tall, thin man that had now bedeviled them for three days straight. "What the--" uttered the robotic teen before dark energy wrapped around his body and he was thrown violently against the wall.

"This is not an admission that I am going to enjoy this..." stated Grendel simply while tossing the green tiger down the hall and deflecting Starfire's bolts back in her direction. "But after the pain and suffering you have put me through in our prior meetings, I am beginning to forget that I am a pacifist."

"Now try to forget MY fist!" shouted Cyborg, surprising Grendel with a quick tackle. Knocking him to the ground, he was able to give the gaunt figure a quick punch before he dematerialized beneath him, only to reappear behind him.

"How droll..." Grendel muttered before blasting his assailant in the back with a fireball. Cyborg slid across the floor from the attack, crashing through a door across the hall. The cloaked man's distraction proved costly when several of Starfire's bolts finally made it past his mental shield, slamming violently into his head and forcing him to the ground. Before he could return to his feet, an emerald kangaroo jumped on his back before morphing into a gorilla. The gorilla proceeded to twist Grendel's arms into a painful hold. Starfire landed in front of the wrestling duo.

"Surrender, Grendel! I know you are under duress and would not normally behave this way." ordered Starfire, hands and eyes glowing brilliantly.

Grunting, Grendel disappeared beneath the gorilla in a blue cloud, only to reappear behind the red haired teen, grabbing her with his black aura and tossing her into Beast Boy, knocking them both down the hall.

"And what would you know about my normal behaviour? None of you know me! You just--." his rant was interrupted by a sonic blast to his side. Stumbling, Grendel lost control and tumbled to the floor.

"BOOYA! I've been waiting too long to do that!" shouted Cyborg, readying another blast. Grendel waved his hand, and the second blast changed its path skywards, blowing a hole in the ceiling and raining debris down upon his attacker. As the half-robot tried to dodge the chunks of concrete and steel, Grendel levitated over him into the air, poking his way through the hole and onto the next floor.

"After him! C'mon, guys!" shouted Cyborg, and Starfire flew through the hole, attacking Grendel as he landed, taking him by surprise and knocking him through a wall. A green owl flew through the gap in the floor before transforming back into its most familiar shape.

"Didja get him?" The changeling asked. Starfire looked at him and shrugged. They cautiously advanced on the pile of rubble that the thin man had disappeared beneath. Beast Boy quickly changed into an elephant and began to remove the shattered blocks of concrete. Much to their distress, there was nothing underneath. Switching back, the changeling groaned.

"He could be anywhere!" exclaimed Starfire, worry in her voice. Cyborg entered the room and noticed Grendel's absence.

"Awwwwww! How could he get away again?" he lamented, moments before one of the chunks of rubble collided into his stomach, sending him flying. The others turned in time for similar chunks to slam into them, tossing them across the room. Moments after landing, all three were grabbed once again by dark energy and tossed against the wall. Struggling against the weight, the trio found themselves pinned by the supernatural force. Grendel floated down from the ceiling, a numb look on his face.

"I hope you believe me when I tell you that I do not want to do this. But I have to. And you have left me little choice in the matter..." came his malicious words.

Cyborg stared straight into his eyes, continuing to struggle. "C'mon, man! I heard what Raven said! You've been put up to this! Let us go and we can help you!"

"We tried that. Then one of you tried to kill me. Now I do things the way my..." he paused, a look of disgust sweeping over his features. "...the way my master wants them to be done." He finished, closing his eyes and sighing.

"C'mon dude! We're not your enemies!" pleaded Beast Boy, attempting, with little luck, to shapeshift into something that would not be held by Grendel's grip.

"We wish only to stop this destructive cycle!" added Starfire.

"Stop speaking! You are making this harder than it already is!" And with that, he used his psychokinesis to seal their mouths shut. "I... I am sorry." He said finally, and the Titans found the energy pinning them to the wall begin to constrict, crushing them. Grendel looked on, tears in his eyes, as he focused his powers.

His concentration was disrupted suddenly when something small and metal collided with his head, causing him to drop the three teens and slowly float to the ground. Rubbing his head, he turned around to find Robin standing defiantly before him, bostaff extended, positioning himself in a combat-ready stance.

"But..." began Grendel, only to notice a dark figure hovering above Robin's head. "Oh. Of course." he finished, sighing.

"I want to help you Grendel. I really do. But trying to kill my friends is a great way to lose my sympathy." shot Raven, her eyes glowing, her face carved into a mask of anger.

Grendel sighed, realizing his new situation. He stood slowly, panning around the room. The Titans had him completely surrounded. Behind him, Cyborg was prepared to blast him, Starfire was ready defend her friends, and a hungry green velociraptor was waiting to strike. Before him, a Kung Fu whiz and a mystical mistress were anxious to put him down. Simply put, they had regrouped, and the odds were no longer with him.

"If we must battle... let it be mano a mano." He gestured to Raven.

The Titans all stared at Raven. The pale woman didn't even blink.

"Let's end this." she muttered, and the two of them disappeared in dual blue flashes.

The dark dimension welcomed them once more. A larger grey rock floating in the void, about as large as a football field, was found to play host to their final showdown. They stood about ten feet away from each other, eyes locked, bodies stiff with anticipation, expressions completely devoid of emotion.

"I am sorry it had to come to this, Raven. As I have said before, you have been a worthy opponent."

"I still am, Grendel." she said, a grin flashing on her face as she made her move. The jet black silhouette of a raven erupted from behind her and and swiftly descended on Grendel. A look of surprise briefly flickered on his face, and Grendel began to focus, a swirling dark force like a melting cobweb eminating from behind him and moving to counter the attack. The two forces met and connected, meshing into one another. The looks on the two mystics' faces had changed to intense concentration, each side trying as hard as possible to overwhelm the other's magic. Now and again the cobweb would surge forward, threatening to overtake the raven, but the raven would fight back, throwing itself back from the brink to continue the stalemate. Occasionally, the cobweb would be surprised by the black shadow and find itself overwhelmed, only to reorganize and rectify the danger.

Raven's eyes were locked on the violet orbs of her adversary. She noticed absently that she seemed further away from Grendel than when they started. There were small grooves in the ground in front of Grendel (and her as well, she assumed) denoting that the force of their energy battle was driving the two of them further and further back. She could believe it. She hadn't had to focus this hard against an enemy in a long time. Sweat began to pour off the two fighters, their faces grimly frozen in expressions of concentration and pain.

Grendel's already great admiration of the girl's abilities had risen even further since the beginning of their battle. 'She cannot be older than 16, and she has held out this long. Her spirit reminds me...' His thought trailed off, attempting once more to break her will and finish her, with little success. Desperation began to rise within him. 'Regardless, she is still inexperienced.' he thought, moments before spreading his hands and launching a large fireball in her direction.

Shouting in surprise, Raven was able to dodge the large projectile, at the cost of her concentration. As she tumbled to the ground, the black cobweb advanced, attempting to swallow her. Her eyes glowing red, the black silhouette emerged once more from the prone girl's body, charging forward and clashing with the dark entity.

"Amazing..." whispered Grendel before increasing his efforts. His features became as pale as bone, his hands bound tightly, every muscle in his body locked.

Raven felt herself being overpowered. The cobweb slowly began to edge closer and closer to her, her own powers fading in the face of Grendel's experience and greater strength. As valiant as her effort was, it seemed that all was lost. 'Come on, what kind of thinking is that?' she thought. Lines from a poem began to trickle to the front of her mind as the black entity crept forward... 'We'll face the murderous, cowardly pack/ Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!'

With those final words echoing inside her head, she lunged forward, leaping to her feet and pressing the cobweb with as much power as possible. Her silhouette exploded forward, colliding viciously with Grendel's familiar. The impact was astounding. The two energy forces detonated from the reaction, dissapating into colours of red, orange, blue and purple in the air, the sky above them a permanent shade of midnight. The two magicians were thrown backwards from the blast, rolling along the ground as if they were stones skipping across a pond. Moments later they finally stopped, their bodies lying limply on the ground. Raven was face down, her heart racing, her lungs burning, using all of her strength to stay conscious. Thoughts began to race through her mind, not the least of which was, 'Did I kill him?'

Minutes later, her question was answered. "Get up." came a voice through a haze of white noise, her ears ringing from the explosion. She rolled over slowly, a blurred image unravelling before her.

"No." she said in a soft hush, narrowing her eyes. She lay there, splayed upon the ground like a ragdoll, immovable. Defiant to the end. The image in front of her eyes began to take on Grendel's form. His own eyes were a furious crimson.

"Get. Up." he ordered, menace in his voice.

"Why? Isn't it easier to kill me this way?"

"That... does not matter. Get up. Now."

"You don't want to kill me, do you?"

"Shut up."

"You respect me too much, don't you? Or is it something more than that?"

"Shut up!"

"I didn't find Aeschere, did I? She... found me, didn't she?"

"You shall not speak her name!" he bellowed, a spark of electricity illuminating between the two as Raven was violently tossed through the air. She collapsed back on the ground with a dull thud.

The ashen heroine slowly began to rise to her knees, coughing. "She's gifted too, isn't she?" she asked, looking him straight in the eye.

"I... Stop this at once." he ordered. "You are nothing like her. Now... prepare to die." He raised his right hand and it began to glow a shade of blue, enveloped in fire. The heat rippled from the ends of his fingers.

"Fine, go ahead. Kill me. Lower yourself to the level of a man who has tried to eradicate your reason for being for his own personal gain. Let yourself become a slave."

Grendel paused, blinking. His hand still glowed, white hot now, but nothing came from it.

"If he does keep his end of the bargain, and I doubt he will, can you really live with yourself knowing that her safety was paid for in blood? Can you live with yourself knowing that you had to murder innocent people to save her life?" Raven began to stand at this point, shaky at first, but finally bringing herself to her true height.

The fire from his hands began to fade into a dull orange. He continued to stand, immobile. He looked like some kind of warped scarecrow.

"Is this even what she would want you to do?" She began to step towards him, her own hands outstretched.

His eyes broke from her's, staring at the grey stone beneath him. "No." Came his admission. The flames went out. Grendel's hand fell to his side.

"We gave you a choice, Grendel. Our offer still stands. I know this was never what you wanted to do. You're just a man pushed to the breaking point. Please... let us help you."

Grendel's eyes moved from the ground to look at Raven once more. His face was sullen. "Yes... I would like that." he said finally. Hesitating, he continued. "Can you forgive me for my actions?"

Raven smiled. "That wasn't the real you, Grendel. I know it wasn't."

Grendel returned the smile. "You know... I did lie to you earlier."

A curious look overcame the cloaked teen. "Oh? How so?"

"My wife... is an empath. You are almost certainly correct... it is most likely that she found you."

She smiled again, putting her hood up. "I knew it."

"And... for what it is worth... I can see elements of her within you, Raven."

The smile never fading, she began to open up a portal to return them back to the Tower. She gazed directly into his eyes before replying.

"I knew that, too."

And so Chapter 5 comes to a close. Buahahaha... The tide is turning for the Mysterious Voice(tm). The poem Raven references during the battle with Grendel is 'If We Must Die' by Claude McKay, by the way. It's an inspiring bit of work.
Once again, comments and reviews are much appreciated! The thrilling conclusion to Debts No Honest Man Can Pay is coming very soon in... Chapter 6: The Retribution!