Hunters of Justice

by trestwho

Remnant has fallen, its cities captured and its greatest defenders defeated at the hands of the alien conqueror, Brainiac. In the aftermath of his victory, the people of Remnant's last hope lies in the hands of two teams of students, whisked away to another world. A world where Gods walk among them.

21. The Dam Breaks

Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC)

Chapter 15: The Dam Breaks

[~][~]

It was the morning after the showdown at the docks, and the teenage heroes sat assembled once again inside the conference room, looking over the gathered evidence with a fine-toothed comb. The table's built-in holographic projector had constructed a recreation of the dockyard, showing everything that occurred from all possible angles. Every hero, villain, and more was displayed in crisp detail.

For the eight Remnantians, however, they were focused on one and only one thing.

"Play it again," Ruby ordered, staring at the windowless cage. Victor promptly complied, rewinding the footage to when the object first appeared. They saw the nervous and, for some, outright terrified expressions of the mercenaries, how they all kept their weapons ready to fire at a moment's notice, how the creature inside the cage appeared to respond to said fear. When it began to go berserk, Ruby couldn't help but quickly shoot her eyes towards a still tired looking Raven before refocusing.

When the reconstructed mercenaries fired their weapons, Ruby and her teammates focused on the cage, trying to ascertain what was inside. All they could see was a mass of pitch-black flesh with bone-white claws and red eyes peering out into the outside world. A frown crossed Weiss' face, which only deepened once the firing stopped and black smoke billowed out of the ruined cage.

Victor paused the recording then turned to regard the Remnantians, a worried look on his face.

"Well?" he asked. "What do you think?"

Teams RWBY and JNPR looked among themselves then back at the Titans and the activated television monitor. They saw Batman's face looking at them with stoic concern yet also expectant. Finally, after a moment, Weiss sighed and leaned forward across the table.

"Let's start from the beginning," she said. "This…creature Blood had imported was clearly not alive. There were no heat signatures, no heartbeat, nothing but a black void. Victor, if you please?"

Victor nodded and adjusted the display, showcasing the cage only. Ren continued for Weiss, "The cage itself was heavily insulated, meaning we can't tell exactly what it is through a silhouette. Glimpses reveal that the creature was black and white in color, with red eyes. Raven, through her scrying, detected no higher brain functions, simply a desire to destroy everything around itself. It also apparently reacted strongly to the intense negative emotions inside the dockyard. Upon death, it disintegrated into smoke, leaving no trace of its existence other than the archival footage."

Ren paused, deep in thought. After a moment, Batman spoke up, "Your thoughts?"

Ruby took a deep breath before looking back at the detective, "There's three options. One, it's a brand-new bioweapon. Two, a demon of some sorts. Or three," Ruby took another breath then steeled her face. "Or three, it's a Grimm."

Ruby could feel the air being sucked out of the room. The tension was palpable, only broken once Dick started to speak.

"How certain?" he asked.

"Almost one-hundred percent. It fits all the criteria: rapid decomposition into smoke upon death, highly aggressive and destructive, black and bone-white physical appearance, and no real capacity for thought," Pyrrha rattled off. "If it's anything but a Grimm, I'd be surprised."

"Wait, wait," Garfield interjected, holding his hands up slightly. "Grimm aren't native to Earth, and the only ones ever encountered here were destroyed by the Justice League when you guys arrived in Metropolis. Right?"

Everyone looked at Batman, who was rubbing his chin as he thought over the implications. "It's possible that, in the chaos and confusion, a few samples might have been misplaced or missed entirely. Just a few samples of tar could possibly allow for more to spawn."

"Weren't Grimm civilization-ending threats back on Remnant?" M'gann asked, and Jaune nodded.

"From what I remembered in history class, nearly half of all civilizations in Remnant's history were destroyed by Grimm. We molded everything around keeping them back. Walls, military strategies, weapons, even agriculture and trade. As much as we hated it, our society revolved around the Grimm," he revealed.

"And yet, despite all of that, we know next to nothing about them," Weiss clarified. "There were no scientific explanations towards their origin. The most we could figure out was their behavior and that, as Metropolis showed, spawn from those pools of tar. We didn't even know about that last part until Metropolis."

"That's not the most pressing issue," Blake added, pointing to the cage. "That cage tells me, assuming this is a Grimm as we all expect, it was captured almost immediately after it spawned. Otherwise it would have killed itself. If Blood's been bringing in multiple shipments, that can only mean…"

"They're being manufactured?" Raven suggested, and Blake nodded. Frowning, Raven brought her fingers together while resting her elbows on the table. "That would explain why Blood was buying it. Someone, somehow, managed to grab hold of samples from Metropolis and has begun to manufacture Grimm and sell them. I can think of a lot of people who can use such a terror weapon."

R'as al Ghul and his League of Shadows immediately sprang to both Dick Grayson's and Batman's mind, but they refocused themselves on who'd be responsible for making the Grimm in the first place.

"Luthor. It has to be," Dick suggested. "He's the only one crazy enough to consider it and has the resources to even attempt it successfully."

"As much as I hate to admit it," Batman cut in, "Luthor is many things, but he is not crazy. Everything he does is for a reason, often self-advancement. This has his fingerprints written all over it. I'll notify the rest of the League immediately, put them on high alert and monitor LexCorp more closely. In the meantime, how close are you to deciphering the data pad you recovered?"

"Just a few hours, Batman," Victor revealed. "There's a lot of stuff in here. Stuff that can put a lot of very bad people away for a very long time, and not just Blood. I'm talking smugglers, cartels, illegal arms dealers, human traffickers. The White Portuguese is just one part of a multinational smuggling ring, and this connects to all of them. That is the only reason why we aren't jumping in right now."

"I assume you've taken the necessary precautions?" Batman asked. The fact that such a detailed shipping manifest was found on the White Portuguese was an immediate cause of concern and raised so many red flags that it was almost comical. For his part, Victor looked almost offended that the question even had to be asked.

"It's been isolated to a server offsite for decryption. It won't even connect to Titans Tower or any other system until it is verified and secure from any viruses using the best anti-virus software I can make."

Batman nodded. "I'll have Mister Terrific assist you with the decryption. In the meantime, continue to monitor Blood. As soon as you have everything, take him down. I'll get to work setting up surveillance on Luthor. Batman out."

The young heroes nodded as the Dark Knight signed off. Everyone released a breath that they didn't know they were holding then looked back at each other.

"So, what happens now?" Yang asked, rubbing her hand across her knuckles. "Personally, I say screw it and charge straight in, kick his ass and stop him here and now."

"We do that, and we'd not only be charging in blind, we'd run the risk of tipping off his entire network that we're onto them. Even more than what we've already done," Dick pointed out. "And that's ignoring the potential for civilians getting caught in the crossfire. As much as I agree with you, if we wait just a few hours, we stand to get a lot more."

"Every hour we wait is another hour for things to go horribly wrong," Jaune said. "The safer option is to go in. Besides, if Blood's as smart as you say he is, he's likely already figured out we're onto him. Waiting now is just giving him more time to escape. Or worse."

Dick hummed and nodded. Truth be told, he agreed with what Jaune and Yang were saying. Their present course of action was highly risky, almost stupidly so. He had half a mind to just drop everything and charge straight in, damn the consequences.

But, at the same time, he remembered the times when he and others did just that to try and stop something or rescue someone they cared about. That almost always played straight into the villain's hands. Jason Todd himself died doing just that, lured into a trap by the Joker and beaten to death with a crowbar. Sure, he was alive now, but that was thanks to a dip in a Lazarus Pit. There was no guarantee of that happening to them.

"You're certain that waiting will allow us to get more, right?" Ruby suddenly asked. Dick looked back up at Ruby in slight surprise and nodded.

"Almost as certain as you guys are of that thing being a Grimm," he answered. Ruby hummed contemplatively at his answer, nodding to her thoughts before standing up. She looked at the holographic table display before turning around to address all three teams.

"Right now, our biggest concern should be getting people out of danger. Regardless of whether we can finish deciphering the data in time, a fight will go down and I'm comfortable waiting more than a few hours. How soon can we get the immediate area around the Church evacuated without tipping Blood off?"

"I can get in touch with the JPD and city hall to get the ball rolling," Victor responded. "Last time they did something like this for us took about six hours."

Ruby nodded and hummed at his answer, rubbing her fingers across her chin in thought. "And how long will it take for the data pad to be fully decrypted?"

"At most, ten."

Ruby frowned. That would be far too long for her liking, and the faces on the rest of the heroes told her they felt the same way. She stood up straighter and began to speak.

"Then here's what I suggest: we notify the JPD to issue a discrete evacuation. Once that is done, even if the data isn't fully decrypted, we move in and bring Brother Blood to justice and kill any Grimm we find."

The others thought it over for a few moments, then nodded. "I'd be a lot more comfortable fighting in the city knowing everyone else was safe," Blake admitted, remembering both the Breach of Vale and Brainiac's Invasion. The last thing she needed right now was innocent people getting injured when they could prevent it.

"I'll send the word," Dick declared. "Get the JPD to evacuate everyone within ten blocks of Blood's cathedral. While we wait, we'll continue as planned. Then, when everything's ready, we kick his ass."

---

"Mr. Blood, I wanted to thank you for having me on such short notice," Lois Lane began as she sat across from Sebastian Blood.

"Please, Ms. Lane, call me Sebastian. Mr. Blood was my father, and his father, and his father before him." He chuckled, seemingly amused with himself. "You get the idea."

"Isn't Sebastian part of that naming tradition, as well?"

"You are very astute, Ms. Lane. May I call you Lois?"

"Ms. Lane will be fine, thank you," Lois replied, her eyes boring into Brother Blood's. His face was calm, amused and jovial without a care in the world. It was like he didn't even care why they were having this hastily thrown together interview in the first place.

"A shame. I always prefer a person's given name. Makes a more powerful connection between people, in my opinion. But I can understand why a reporter of your caliber would prefer a more professional distance."

Lois saw the hidden meaning behind his flattery instantly: a classic attempt to ingratiate the interviewer with the interviewee, casting a better light on himself in the process. Better men had tried, and Lois had to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"Be that as it may, we're not here to talk about my connections with people." For a split second, Blood's demeanor broke. His face showed a different set of emotions: annoyance, disdain, rage, and many more. Then they were gone as he shifted back towards his calmer persona.

"Yes, it's a shame we had to meet like this. It's been a truly terrible state of events here in Jump City. Crime hasn't been this bad in years."

"Of which there are serious allegations, with supposed evidence and credibility to back them up, that you are responsible for," Lois pointed out. "I received documents and footage showing an illicit smuggling operation was working inside the Jump City dockyards. Last night, police seized high-tech weapons and drugs from a damaged cargo freighter, and according to my sources, they were supposed to go to you."

Sebastian Blood chuckled. "Please, Ms. Lane. Don't tell me you believe that? What need of weapons and drugs does my church have? We are a peaceful flock, devoted to spiritual enlightenment and not needless and senseless violence."

"So you say, yet your church openly worships a Highfather many have compared to Trigon. I don't think I need to remind you of what that being has done in the past."

"Ms. Lane, I assure you that the Highfather is separate from the being known as Trigon." Blood was lying through his teeth, Lois could tell, but let him continue. "Trigon desires subjugation and dominance, while the Highfather only desires that His followers embrace themselves and not be held back by societal norms. I've repeatedly stressed this over the years."

"And yet, the allegations keep coming year after year. That, despite your reassurances, the Highfather and Trigon are one and the same. In addition, I have other sources that tell me your church has, for centuries, ritualized heinous practices including abuse, forced starvation and isolation, torture, and human sacrifice among others."

"I will admit that, in times long since passed, our church had conducted heinous acts in the name of our Lord," Blood admitted, "But then again, which religion hasn't? Witch trials, religious persecution, forced conversion, acts of violence and many more were done in the name of religion all over the world, before and now. We've moved past them, and to hear misguided people assert that we still do breaks my heart."

"Then explain why several of your followers have been linked to various crimes across Jump City these past few weeks?" Lois pulled out several pictures of hooded cultists, and Blood's eyes darted towards them. "This one was taken several hours before an apartment complex was burned to the ground in an act of arson. Someone sabotaged the gas lines, and the inferno killed twenty people while leaving dozens of families destitute. One of the victims was a member of your church and recovered security footage showed that he conveniently disappeared from all cameras prior to the tampering."

"Are you accusing that Brother Jonathan was responsible for that tragedy?" Blood asked, anger seeping into his voice. "I will not stand for this insult to his memory. He was a loving father and husband, one whom we all mourned. To say that he was responsible for this arson…"

"I'm not accusing anything," Lois clarified, "merely pointing out the coincidence."

"I should hope not, Ms. Lane. My church doesn't take too kindly to false accusations."

"Yes, l am aware of your church's reputation. Sue anyone who tries to talk negatively about your church, correct?"

"Those attacks," Blood began, pointing his finger accusingly at a still calm Lois Lane, "are directly infringing upon our constitutionally granted rights. We will not stand for such lies, and only wish for the truth to come out."

"So, threatening to sue every media outlet and individual who even thinks about reporting on your church outside of a fluff piece counts as such? It creates the impression that your church has more lawyers than worshippers. If I remember correctly, didn't your church finally achieve federal recognition after years of constant lawsuits?"

"Unfortunately, as this 'interview' clearly shows, my church is still misunderstood and vilified. If I don't fight back, the slander and libel would continue."

"Well, you can be happy to know that the Daily Planet only wants to report the truth and will go to any lengths to ensure it's brought to light." Loise smiled and the two locked eyes for several moments. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, Brother Blood rose to his feet and dusted his ceremonial robes off.

"I'm afraid I must cut this discussion short, Ms. Lane," he declared with no justification.

"A shame," Lois said as she rose to shake his hand, a formality more than anything. "Thank you for taking the time to sit with me today. I know we'll be seeing each other shortly."

Sebastian Blood said nothing as he turned and walked away, closing the interview room door behind him. Lois and Jimmy Olsen stared at the door for a few moments before Lois smiled and turned to face her cameraman.

"I think that went rather well."

---

'Damn that woman,' Brother Blood thought as he entered his limousine, beckoning the driver towards his cathedral. Deep down, he knew how an interview with the famous Lois Lane of the Daily Planet would go, but he still hoped he could have swayed her to his side. Doing so would have been a powerful boon, but it was ultimately a fool's hope. Frankly, she outmaneuvered him, plain and simple. Got him riled up, countered his points with expertly crafted rebuttals, and in the end, he simply got up and left. She'd be sure to note that little detail in her report, and given her tone, he figured she knew more than what she was letting on. After all, it was no secret just how close Lois was to the rest of the superhero community, especially Superman.

The walls were closing in. He could feel it in his bones.

The limo finally arrived at his cathedral, and his driver opened the car door and escorted him inside the building. He was greeted by all his followers, hundreds of them, garbed in their ceremonial hoods and kneeling in prayer. They did this every time the more sordid details of their faith sprung to light, praying to their Highfather, to Trigon, that the nonbelievers would turn away. This time, however, Blood knew it wouldn't be enough.

"My brothers and sisters," Blood declared as he walked up to the podium, entering his familiar priestly façade, "what has you so upset?"

"Father," one of them answered, "nonbelievers and heretics threaten to tear down this hall. We pray for salvation."

Brother Blood nodded at the answer, having expected it. "Wise words, for our enemies are at our door. But, do not lose hope, for this is all part of the Highfather's plan."

"What do you mean?" another asked, confusion seeping through her voice.

"I communed with the Highfather," Blood revealed to audible gasps. "He informed me of our current path, and rest assured, salvation is at hand."

More gasps, and Blood couldn't help but grow a toothy grin.

"You don't mean…?" someone asked, unable to finish their sentence.

"I am. Prepare the ritual. Salvation for all is nigh," Blood commanded. At once, scores of cultists rose to their feet and bowed before heading into their sacred ritual chamber. Only one remained, and Blood beckoned him forward once they were alone.

"What news do you have?" he asked, and the cultist bowed reverently before answering.

"The police have started to order an evacuation of the surrounding city, saying there's been a toxic gas leak, scheduled maintenance, and other excuses. A ruse, no doubt. They're encircling us, trying to cut off routes of potential escape."

"Let them come; we can handle the police," Blood remarked as he walked to his desk and poured himself a glass of chardonnay. "And the Titans?"

"Resting for the final battle, from what we can tell. I believe they intend to attack as soon as the area is evacuated, to try and avoid collateral damage."

"One can't help but admire their dedication to protecting the innocent," Blood admitted. It was, truly, an admirable quality. Shame that their efforts frequently came into conflict with his own. "Let them rest, for now. It'll be much sweeter when they fall that way."

He could almost imagine the looks on their faces, and he smiled wickedly.

"Of course, father," the cultist bowed again, then looked up at his face. "But what of Raven? We need her for the ritual to succeed."

"Leave that to me," Blood replied. "Go, join the others. Soon, my child, we will be saved."

The cultist bowed once again then hurried away. Blood watched him leave, downed the rest of his glass, then walked towards a far, decrepit door. He opened it with a loud creek, lighting a candelabra waiting for him on a nearby desk while grabbing a suitcase with his free hand, and walked down the stairs. Blood entered a cold, damp dungeon, the walls lined with moldy stone and rusted iron bars. They were all empty, save for one lit by a pair of candles. A single man, bare to the world and exposing his plentiful cuts and bruises, was held up by iron shackles to the wall. His head hung down and he stared at his feet, utterly defeated and broken.

"Oh, Arthur. Dear Arthur," Blood began, causing the broken man to slowly turn his gaze towards him. His expression was blank, devoid of meaning. Blood smiled and caressed the captive's bearded face.

"I…I…" Arthur began, but Brother Blood silenced him.

"Hush now, child. Save your strength. You will need it soon, for I have a mission for you."

Arthur gulped then nodded his head. "Of course, father. Anything for you."

"I'm glad to hear that." Blood replied while freeing the captive man. Arthur rubbed his wrists together. Even now, after months of confinement, Blood couldn't help but note his muscular appearance. He would need that soon.

Blood opened the case, presenting its contents to his captive. Arthur looked inside to see a familiar black and silver uniform, with yellow orbs embedded into the hands, helmet, and chest. He looked back up at Brother Blood in surprise, with a hint of jubilation mixed in.

"My dear Doctor Light," Blood began, "how would you like to be the one to break Raven?"

Doctor Light stared at him for a moment, then smiled.

---

"Trick or treat!" the trio of costumed children announced as Koriand'r opened the door.

"Oh, you are the adorable!" she cooed, crouching down to get a closer look. "And who are you supposed to be?"

"I'ma vampire!" one of them shouted, spreading his arms wide and causing his short, black cape to billow.

"How fearsome!" Kori declared, causing the young boy to smile. She then looked towards a young girl and smiled. "And you?"

"I'm a mermaid," she replied bashfully, looking down towards her blue-scaled fin covering her legs and feet. The Tamaranean could easily see the seam where the tail split, allowing her to walk, and nodded her head.

"You're a very pretty one." The girl smiled shyly, swaying from side to side, and only then did Koriand'r turn to face the last girl. She recognized the costume immediately, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and jubilation at her choice of attire. "Well, well, well! Do we have ourselves a fellow Tamaranean here?"

The girl, dressed as Starfire, smiled brightly and held up two neon green glowsticks in response. Seeing this, Kori couldn't help but smile and laugh while clapping her hands.

"Well done, well done!" she cheered before reaching back inside Titans Tower and pulling out a large plastic bowl filled with candy. She gleefully placed several handfuls into each child's waiting bags, keeping sure to make each allocation equal, then waved them off. The children waved back and rejoined their parents, and Kori watched them leave with a warm smile on her face before closing the door. She sighed contently, then turned to face Weiss, who was watching the trick-or-treaters leave from a side window.

"Oh my god, that was adorable!" Weiss squealed, an unexpected action from the former heiress. At least it was before the Halloween participants first arrived. Starfire had quickly found out something the other members of team RWBY were already aware of: Weiss had an extreme weakness to anything she considered cute, puppies chief among them. Costumed children asking for candy had become another cute thing for her to obsess over.

It ended up becoming sort of a problem after Weiss decided to make it rain candies to the first group of children she had. She went through an entire bucket before Yang could stop her. At the very least those were some very happy children. Seeing how there were no other children nor families now, the two girls headed back towards the main room of Titans Tower. There, instead of the usual sight of teenagers crowding around the flat screen, they saw everyone checking their gear, preparing for the upcoming fight.

"Rubber bullets or real?" Ren asked as he cleaned Stormflower, one of the machine pistols fully disassembled.

"Real," Ruby answered as she continued her maintenance of her sniper-scythe. "Rubber bullets won't do anything to a Grimm."

"What about the cultists?" Dick asked as he checked a few of his wing-dings. He felt that he already knew the answer, but he wanted them to say it. Ruby was silent for a moment, pondering what to say, but Yang spoke first.

"Far as I'm concerned," Yang declared, "there's a significant possibility that they've been trying to smuggle Grimm into the city and undoubtedly caused everything that's happened to us in the past few weeks. Plus, they might have been trying to turn our friend into a WMD, so I'm not much in the mood to show them mercy."

Dick looked around to the rest of the Remnantians. The looks on their faces told him that they fundamentally agreed with Yang's assessment of their situation. It wasn't hard to understand why, given how they were trained and the experiences that led up to this moment. Seeing his and the other Titan's apprehension, Ruby's expression softened.

"Yang, we're not killers. We're better than that, and we'll use rubber bullets on them," she declared. Yang looked at her for a moment, then sighed.

"Fine, but if something happens, I'm not losing any sleep over it."

Dick nodded at this answer then went back to work. Just as he could understand their reasons why they might consider using lethal force, he'd understand them choosing to employ it. It was their decision to make, and although he himself didn't intend to kill any of the cultists, even after everything they'd done, he wouldn't force that on everyone else.

"Victor, how are we looking?" Weiss asked as she carefully refilled Myrtenaster with vials of fuel. There was a silvery powder in one of the vials, Nth metal if Dick remembered correctly. She had been practicing utilizing the substance with her Semblance during her off-hours, and he was curious to see how it might perform on the field.

"Decryption's still five hours out. You wouldn't think that so much information would be inside a tiny data pad, and you'd be right. Apparently, Gizmo's little gadget allowed us to tap into the smuggler's entire network."

"So that's why it was taking so long!" Nora exclaimed as she carefully tinkered with a few grenades, the distance between herself and the rest of the heroes much more pronounced and noticeable. The hard light barrier Cyborg had erected around her also helped to ease everyone's concerns about the grenadier.

"Yep," Victor replied. "Also, just got word from Donna. She's on her way right now. ETA's about three hours. A little miffed at what Blood's done, and I swear I heard her sharpening her sword over the phone."

"What about the evacuation?" Jaune asked, and Victor nodded.

"Going well. North and west-sides of the cathedral have been evacuated, and south and east portions should be ready in a few hours."

"I want us on site before the evacuation is over," Dick commanded, his reasons for wanting to go unsaid but no less understood. "What about Blood?"

At this, Victor frowned. "Hard to say. Guy's beefed up his security, but from what I can see, he and his entire church are held up in that cathedral. That worries me. Either our plan worked perfectly…"

"Or he knows exactly what we're doing, and he's preparing for a fight," M'gann finished. Victor nodded at her assessment, and the White Martian frowned. She then looked at Dick, who himself was frowning in thought. He quickly came to a decision.

"We can't risk it," he said. "Everyone, as soon as you're ready, we're heading out. Gar, go get Raven, please."

"On it, dude," Garfield replied as he walked out of the room and up the stairs. The voices and sounds of his friends disappeared behind him, and the corridors he quickly found himself walking through were silent. He couldn't help but allow his thoughts to ruminate.

They were taking a big risk, practicing restraint like they were. It felt as though both sides of this entire conflict were planning around the other's plans multiple times, at the same time. Like a giant game of chess, with the city itself as the board. Garfield knew they'd win, as they always did, but he still felt that if Blood's plans came to fruition, the results would be disastrous.

'He's not going to win,' he thought as he reached his destination: Raven's room. It was marked by a stylized dark purple raven, its wings tucked in on itself. The expression fit Raven's demeanor almost perfectly. She was so focused on keeping herself contained, practicing discipline. Garfield couldn't help but think that part of Dick's desire to show restraint was to help keep Raven's emotions in check. Give her time to decompress.

"RaeRae, it's me," Garfield announced as he gently knocked on the door. He waited for a response, only for the door to open automatically. He saw Raven's room was dark, lit only by a few scattered candles. Books and tomes were neatly stacked across wooden desks and bookcases, and the room had enough gothic imagery to fill a Hot Topic.

At the very least, he could take solace that her room remained intact. The only thing he couldn't find was Raven herself. She was nowhere to be seen, and for a moment he was alarmed until he saw a small, handheld mirror resting on a pillow. He recognized that object instantly, and he liked to think it was the start of him and Raven becoming friends.

"Now, should I stay, or should I go?" he wondered, tapping his finger across his chin. Garfield looked back into the hall, pondering his options. On the one hand, Raven wouldn't necessarily appreciate him using the mirror to go into her mind once again – as she'd made abundantly clear after the first and only time – yet time was of the essence. He decided to make a compromise, walked over to it, and sat down on her bed.

"Rae, it's me again," Garfield called out. "I know you're meditating and all, but—"

A swirl of magical energy, reaching out from the mirror, interrupted him. Before he could even shriek, the magic pulled him inside. A dark, swirling mass enveloped him, and the next thing he knew he was inside a strange yet familiar landscape. The sky was a deep, dark purple, with black clouds chasing across the void. There were no plants, nor any signs of life at all, yet at the same time it felt peaceful and serene. He looked at the structure he found himself in, and found it was an open-air temple complex, white pillars forming a circle on top of a floating mass of rock. The center of the temple was a white spiral of stone, raising up from the outer end into a floating ring a few feet above him.

Rather than simply flying up, Garfield calmly walked up the floating staircase, where he found Raven floating in the very center, deep in her mediation. Around her were eight different colored copies of Raven, each one representing a different emotion – Emoticlones, as he and Cy liked to call them. Admittedly, the green-skinned boy couldn't quite wrap his head around why Raven's head was a living Pixar movie, or if everyone's personality could be split apart like this, but he wasn't going to question it further.

"Rae, sorry for barging in," Beast Boy called out quietly. "It…kinda pulled me in."

"… I know," Raven replied, still meditation. "I'm the one who pulled you in."

"Oh… Thank you?" Garfield was unsure, and the pink Emoticlone giggled at his response. The real Raven ceased her meditation, righting herself and standing up on two legs. One by one, the rest of the Emoticlones blinked away, back to their separate domains. Pink and Purple regarded him the most fondly, while Red was tellingly restrained even as she disappeared.

"You can relax," Raven told him, and Garfield let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"Phew, that's good to hear. You know, cuz last time I was here…things didn't go well."

"It wasn't all bad," Raven admitted with a shrug. "You and I became friends because of it."

"… True," he replied, then both teenagers smiled. After a moment, Beast Boy snapped back to reality. "Oh, yeah! Nightwing wanted me to get you. We're pushing up our timetable. Blood might be expecting us, and he wants to reduce the risk."

Before Raven even said anything, he could see – no, feel how she thought about the news. The calm purple gave way to a roaring tempest. Strong winds threatened to rip him from the ground, but almost as soon as it appeared it was gone. Again, she was restraining herself, and Beast Boy hated the fact that Raven had to do this at every waking moment of her life.

"I see," Raven calmly said. "Then I guess we should get going." She prepared to open a portal, but Garfield stopped her with an outstretched hand resting on her shoulder.

"Raven, wait," he began, and Raven stopped herself. "Are you alright, really?"

"I'm fine, Garfield," Raven insisted, but he kept his hand on her shoulder.

"You don't have to play strong to me, Rae," he declared, and both teenagers stared into the other's eyes. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Raven sighed and sat back down.

"I hate this," Raven declared, hunched over. Beast Boy sat down next to her and allowed her to continue. "Every minute, every second of every day in my life I have to keep myself bottled up, fearing that if I lose control for an instant, the people I love would pay the price."

"Raven," Garfield quietly began, "you don't have to bottle yourself up on our account. We're your friends, and no matter what, we're here for you."

"That's the thing, though. I do know that, fundamentally. But at the same time, the fear just keeps…creeping in, clawing at me. Especially now. Everything that Blood has done lately – the crime wave, the Grimm, Mumbo, all of that was for me. He's trying to make me lose control, I know it."

"Then don't let him," Garfield suggested. "I said it once and I'll say it again: you are the strongest person I know, Raven. Anyone else in your position could have simply hidden away or run. Instead, you not only stood against your father, on multiple occasions, you've actively worked to ensure nothing he does can get to you. You took those powers, ones you once described to me as being evil, and turned them into forces of good. I can't even count how many people you've saved. So, don't count yourself out, Raven. You have always been stronger than you think."

Raven looked at him for a long pause. Then, she smiled, and the world around them grew just a bit brighter.

"Thank you, Garfield. I needed that," she admitted as she rose to her feet, helping Garfield up to his. "You know, I think M'gann's rubbing off on you a bit."

"Don't tell her that," he chuckled as Raven prepared to teleport them away. "You didn't hear it from me, but she has a bit of an ego."

Raven laughed at the joke, the world becoming even brighter as they finally teleported back to her room. Calming herself, Raven carefully placed the mirror inside the nightstand's drawer, then turned to face her friend once again. The two looked at each other, wondering what to say next.

"Garfield, I…" she began, emotions swirling inside of her. Garfield looked at her with his ever present, cheerful expression. She moved to speak, only for her senses to scream at her. Garfield noticed this change in her and moved to ask what was wrong.

He never got the chance as Raven suddenly encased the both of them in a protective sphere of magic, and then everything exploded into a white ball of light.

---

The world was spinning. A loud, incessant ringing bounced around Ruby's ears, and she was confused. What had happened? One moment, she was finishing putting together Crescent Rose. The next, she was flying, propelled by an unseen force that was accompanied by a loud bang and a flash of heat. She opened her eyes and groaned, taking in her surroundings.

Titans Tower was now in ruins. Multiple large holes were torn through the walls, fire and smoke billowing out from broken windows. It was a miracle the building was still standing, which Ruby chalked up to Cyborg's exceptional engineering skills. Her friends were groaning, Starfire protectively covering Nightwing's body with her own as the rest tried to recover themselves. Ruby tried to stand up, only to sway and fall back down.

'Definitely a concussion,' she thought as she looked around for her weapon. It had landed a few feet from her, and as she made her way towards it, she saw a trio of armored men and women enter the Tower from the blasted holes. They were wearing blood-red makeshift armor, not professional looking in the slightest yet having an intimidating appearance.

They were also holding large rifles, telling Ruby everything she needed to know about who they were. With a burst of her Semblance, Ruby grabbed Crescent Rose and quickly fired it at the first man she saw, hitting his head and causing him to collapse to the floor while forcing the others into cover. Her friends, startled by the sudden sound, shot up as quickly as they could. A few staggered from the sudden change in position, a testament to their wounds, but they just as quickly recovered.

"How are they still alive?!" one of the men shouted as he broke cover, aiming his rifle at Yang's back, but suddenly another shot rang out. A rubber bullet slammed into the man's helmet, knocking his head back and causing him to clutch it in pain. Yang shot around, her eyes turning red as she charged towards the gunman, gripping him by the throat and hefting him upwards with one arm. She punched the man in the stomach, causing him to double over, and as a woman raised her gun at Yang she turned and threw her captive at the woman. The two collapsed in a heap, but before they could even attempt to pick themselves up, a large Glyph was formed underneath them. They were then encased in ice, immobilized them and allowing the heroes to finally take a moment to catch their breath.

"What the hell happened?!" Jaune asked as he tore Crocea Mors out from underneath a chunk of concrete.

"Did Blood attack us?!" Blake asked, moving to take cover alongside the hole. Peeking out, she got her answer as scores of men and women raced down the bridge towards Titans Tower, carried in armored personnel carriers and repurposed helicopters. A few more were coming over in small boats, and each were heavily armed. "Where did they get all of this?!"

"They must have been planning for this longer than we thought!" Nightwing surmised as Starfire helped him to his feet. Seeing the size of the small army, he cursed. "Dammit, I should have seen this coming!"

"No time for regrets now," Yang countered as she found Ember Celica and strapped them on. The others were doing the same for their weapons, and she took a moment to look around.

"Where's Raven and Beast Boy?" she asked, not seeing the two among them. Nightwing then looked up towards Raven's room and again cursed.

"I sent Beast Boy to get Raven!" he declared, preparing to run up the stairs, but M'gann stopped him.

"I'll go," she said. "Keep them busy!"

"You got it, Miss Martian," Nora saluted as M'gann turned intangible and phased through the ceiling. The heroes then refocused themselves and looked out across the small island their home resided in, and collectively frowned.

"Today was supposed to be a relaxing day," Ruby surmised, loading a round into her gun.

"Yep," Nora agreed as she hefted her hammer up high. As the heroes readied themselves, Nightwing snarled and thrust his arm forwards.

"Titans, go!"

---

Beast Boy pushed himself off the ground with a deep groan. The room he was in was presently on fire, spreading from a hole in the outside wall. He could hear gunshots and sirens coming in, and a quick look outside showed a veritable army of mercenaries assaulting not only Titans Tower, but also the immediate city on the other side of the connecting bridge. From his intercom, still miraculously working, he could hear policing frantically calling for reinforcements as the armed men assaulted them.

Jump City had turned into a warzone, and all Beast Boy could ask himself was just how in the world did this happen? How did they miss all these men and women? They didn't just pop up overnight.

Another groan from beside him broke Beast Boy out his thoughts, and he turned to see a barely conscious Raven lying on the ground. He immediately went to her, carefully trying to rouse her.

"Rae, come on! Get up, we gotta move!" he said, quickly glancing behind him. He began to hear his friends repelling the assault, relieving him somewhat, but until the criminals were fully pushed back from the island, he wouldn't allow himself to feel a sense of relief.

Although, Raven finally coming to did cause that sense to flood through him.

"Wha…what happened?" she asked as Beast Boy helped her to her feet. Together, the two of them walked to the hole in Raven's room, where they watched out over the battle below. Their friends, the Titans and teams RWBY and JNPR had emerged from the bottom floor of Titans Tower, directly engaging with the criminals and their assault weaponry. Upon seeing the red-armored uniforms of the enemy forces, Raven snarled.

"Blood…"

"Yeah, I figured," Beast Boy concurred. "Come on, we gotta get down there."

Raven nodded, dark energy beginning to swirl around them, only for yet another explosion to ripple behind them. Turning around, the two ran out of Raven's room and into the hallway, where they saw a group of armed men had broken in from the upper floors and were attempting to encircle the Titans. Seeing them, the men shouted and opened fire, but Raven immediately erected a shield between both groups. The bullets bounced harmlessly off the arcane energy, and Raven began steadily walking forward. The cultists continued to fire, even as the wall grew closer and closer. Their continued calm demeanor unnerved Raven greatly, but once the two of them got close enough, she and Beast Boy struck.

Turning himself into a gorilla, Beast Boy pounded one of the gunmen into the ground. Hoisting him up by his leg, he slammed him repeatedly in the walls beside him before tossing him away in a crumpled heap. Two other cultists attempted to fire at him, but Raven snatched their weapons away and broke them in half. Enraged, she wrapped tendrils of magic around their bodies, hoisting them high into the air, then slammed both against each other repeatedly. The last man hefted his shotgun, only for him to suddenly spasm as a green hand was thrust through his back and out his chest. M'gann phased back into reality behind him, a calm rage filling her face as she leaned in close to the man.

"Big mistake," she warned as the man went still, falling into unconsciousness. With the immediate area secure, the three Titans converged on one-another, M'gann carefully inspecting both for any injuries.

"Sis, I'm fine. Really," Beast Boy insisted. "You should be checking Raven; she took most of the blast."

"I can do both at the same time, you know that," M'gann insisted. Finding that neither of them had major injuries, just a few cuts and bruises, she relaxed away from them.

"What's the situation?" Raven asked, and M'gann frowned.

"Not good. We've got cultists staging simultaneous attacks all over the city, attacking key choke points and spreading the police thin. We've got over a hundred men attacking Titans Tower itself, supported by makeshift gunships, APCs, and gunboats."

"How the hell did we miss this?!" Beast Boy shouted.

"I want to know how they got past our defenses?" Raven more pointedly asked, but M'gann shook her head.

"We shut them off to allow trick-or-treaters to the island. We didn't anticipate someone actually attacking us, and the damage sustained to the tower is preventing us from turning them back on."

"Of course, he'd be the type of guy to take advantage of families wanting to fun," Beast Boy groaned with a deep frown, which Raven and M'gann echoed.

"Yeah, but right now that doesn't matter," M'gann insisted. "What does matter is kicking these guys out of our home. Then we can kick Blood's shit in for ruining Halloween for everyone."

Raven and Beast Boy looked at each other for a moment then back at M'gann. They nodded, but before they could move to join the battle, a helicopter rose up from beside the Tower. Its side door was open, and to their horror a minigun was being aimed right at them, already spinning. M'gann turned intangible as Beast Boy and Raven dove for cover, the heavy caliber bullets tearing into the structure. Fragments of wood, metal, and concrete sprayed out across the room, but M'gann remained unaffected as she flew through the hail of fire and tackled the gunner. Turning tangible once again, she punched the man in the head a few times and kicked the other right out of the aircraft. He screamed as he plunged into the water below, but she paid him no heed as she turned to attack the pilot. He reached for a pistol and fired it at her, but the bullet bounced harmlessly off her green skin, and she regarded him with an unamused look.

"Really?" she asked him. He didn't get the chance to answer as she socked him across the jaw, knocking him unconscious and causing the helicopter to begin to spiral out of control. Grabbing the unconscious criminals, she flew out of the aircraft and rejoined her younger brother and Raven. To her surprise, she saw more gunmen had rappelled up to them, firing their guns from all angles.

Much to her satisfaction, they weren't having much luck. Raven had surrounded herself with orbs of magic, deflecting the bullets away from her and, by extension, Beast Boy. Garfield himself was turning into a multitude of animals, one after another, to both evade gunfire and attack. One moment, he was a mouse, scurrying across the floor. The next, he was a lion, pinning a man to the floor and swiping at another with his claws.

When a group of cultists attempt to fire their rifles at him, M'gann flew forth and dragged them with her into the wall. She phased herself through while they were slammed at full force, bouncing off and crumpling to the floor. M'gann flew back out and uppercutted a man, dragging another into the ceiling along with her.

Beast Boy turned towards another group of cultists, turning himself into a crocodile and charging towards them. Their bullets did nothing to his leathery hide as he turned around and swiped them into a wall with his tail. One was able to jump over it and tried to fire again, only for Beast Boy to turn back and clasp him into his jaws. He thrashed about, careful to keep the man relatively unharmed, then threw him into the wall.

Raven, meanwhile, wrapped one criminal in a tendril and whipped him about the room repeatedly. Several were hit as well, and when the whipped man was fully she unconscious the threw him into another. The last group of cultists attempted to fire their weapons at Raven, but she threw a swath of magic into them. They shrieked in pain as the magic coursed through their bodies, and then they fell the floor unconscious. The Titans looked around, trying to see if any more cultists were about, but found none.

"We good?" Beast Boy asked, and Raven nodded. The three prepared to rush down and rejoin their compatriots, but flickering lights stopped them cold. Slowly and apprehensively, they turned to face a suddenly darkened hallway, the light being sucked into a small orb held out in a man's hand. His head was looking down, and they only managed to get a glimpse of his face when he looked up to regard them with a wicked smile.

"Raven. It's so good to see you again," the man said as he drew the light into himself, his costume lighting up with the photonic energy.

"Doctor Light…" Raven mused, her cloak billowing in the wind as dark energy enveloped her hands.

"Dude, where have you been? You've been missing for six months!" Beast Boy exclaimed. The man had previously gone straight, only to suddenly drop off the face of the Earth half a year prior. To see him here and now, clad in this old costume, was certainly a shock to the teen hero, who had genuinely thought he'd managed to reform himself. Rather than respond, he laughed. Beast Boy and Raven looked at each other, only for M'gann to suddenly recoil in shock.

"What did they do to you?" she asked, her voice filled with horror. Doctor Light smiled and raised his hand upwards.

"Brother Blood and his church showed me the light."

Then, without saying another word, he attacked.

---

Ruby dived as yet another rocket flew over her, striking a piece of rubble behind her. The Battle for Titans Tower, as she had begun to dub it, had been going on for nearly thirty minutes at this point. The scores of heavily armed cultists just never seemed to end. She'd take down one with a well-placed shot or strike, nonlethal of course, and two more would take their place. Like a hydra, spread over the entire small island.

And armed with a lot of guns, and vehicles, and other things that made Ruby slightly rethink her analogy.

"Gaagh!" Ruby grunted as she fell to her back, a rocket exploding in front of her. A cloud of dirt and rubble shot up into the air, falling back down and forcing Ruby to cover her face in an attempt to shield her eyes. As bits of rock and concrete bounced off her Aura-protected flesh, Ruby heard a heavy shuffle of boots. Immediately she burst away with her Semblance, Crescent Rose trained onto the armored soldier. He was surprised at her sudden movement, and before he even had a chance to fire his weapon, Ruby fired hers. The rubber bullet slammed into his chest, slightly cracking the armored plate, and sending him back onto the ground with the air thrown from his lungs. Ruby chambered another round as she ran up and smacked him across his head with the blunt end of her scythe, then took stock of the surrounding area.

The battle was fully raging, even now. Men and women wearing blood red armor aimed their powerful guns at her friends, carefully trying to maintain a distance from them. They must have figured that distance gave them the edge, but the fact that teams RWBY and JNPR were firing back were apparently throwing them for a loop. Ruby figured it must be since most heroes on Earth simply don't use guns. The only people she'd met so far who did were Red Hood and Vigilante.

Still, it was too bad for the criminals that none of the heroes were content to let them remain behind cover for very long. Yang, shouting at the top of her lungs, rocketed towards an emplacement, using her gauntlets to shield herself from small arms fire. When she got close enough, she leapt high into the air, the hail of bullets following her, then she threw herself down as hard as she could. She punched the ground with enough force to create a cascading wave from the rubble, sending the criminals flying upwards. As they flailed, Blake jumped in and wrapped them with her ribbon. She then spun them like a massive flail, slamming the captives into another group of gunmen and knocking both groups away like ragdolls.

"Nice job, Nightshade," Yang joked as she fired off a few shotgun rounds at the enemy.

"You, too, Golden Dragon," Blake responded as she fired Gambol Shroud at the same time. Both girls, their backs against each other, fought on as the enemy encircled them. Yang would take the damage head on, letting her Semblance slowly charge, while Blake was dancing between her shadow clones that caused the bullets, rockets, and grenades to shoot well past her. Each dodge was punctuated by a shot from Gambol Shroud, the nine-millimeter rounds boosted by an electrical implant embedded into each round. As more men spasmed from the electricity, falling the ground in a heap, Blake couldn't help but smile to herself.

'Gonna have to thank Ruby for finishing those,' she thought as she dodged a sniper shot. Blake turned to fire back, only to hear the crack of Crescent Rose firing. A moment later, she saw the sniper fall out of a rapidly escaping helicopter, and Blake flashed a thumbs up towards her leader.

"You're welcome!" Ruby called out as she dodged a sudden charge from a group of cultists. They tried to hit her with the butts of their rifles, but Ruby riposted, using the hook of her scythe to rip the guns from their hands and throw them to the side. For a moment, they were confused, but soon recollected themselves and pulled out knives of their own. They swiped at her, trying to get past her Aura, but Ruby was too fast and nimble. She bobbed and weaved, countering each attack with one of her own, and before long the four men laid sprawled at her feet. She didn't allow herself time to bask in her victory, however, as a helicopter containing a gunner flew towards her.

Ruby ran as the minigun began to fire, a trail of bullets following her rose petals. The hail suddenly stopped, however, as a rain of starbolts stuck the aircraft from above. Ruby looked to see Starfire, her eyes blazing green, continuing to fire her energy blasts at the enemy, shouting a wordless scream full of indignant rage. As for the crashing helicopter, Ruby saw the men hastily jump out, landing in the water, but paid them no further heed.

"Reaper, watch out!" Nightwing shouted as he threw a wing-ding at a cultist taking position behind her. Ruby spun around just as the thrown projectile bounced off the man's head, knocking him back and leaving him helpless to Nightwing's quick vaulting over to him. The vigilante then threw multiple jabs into the man's face, only stopping once he slipped into unconsciousness. Nightwing turned to face Ruby, and it was then that the Red Reaper took note of the sheen of blood running down his face and onto his shoulders.

"Oh my god, you're bleeding!" she exclaimed as she quickly tried to tend to it, but Nightwing stopped her.

"I'm fine, trust me," he told her as he pulled out a compress and attached it against his headwound. With the bleeding stemmed, Nightwing took cover behind a chunk of concrete. He turned to face the heavily damaged Titans Tower and scowled. "Damn, Cy's going to be pissed."

"I think he already is," Ruby noted as she finally saw Cyborg. The man was in a full state of rage, charging after several groups of criminals with his sonic cannons firing at full blast. Several of them were running away, but Cyborg refused to let them get far.

"HOW DARE YOU BREAK MY HOME?!" he shouted, his voice loud enough to carry over the sound of intense battle. Ruby couldn't help but feel amused, only to refocus herself on Nightwing. True to his word, the bleeding had been stemmed, but the fact remained that he was still seriously hurt. His uniform was torn in places, exposing the soft flesh underneath. Cuts and bruises crossed his body, from what little she could see, and Ruby wouldn't be surprised if the rest of his body was in a similar state. He was also breathing heavily while clutching his chest, likely denoting a broken rib.

It really went to show the young Huntress just how vulnerable most of the people here were, and yet the sight of Nightwing continuing the fight inspired her in turn. She supposed that was one of the reasons why he, the only non-superpowered individual of the Titans, remained their leader.

When another group of criminals reared their heads, Ruby and Nightwing reacted almost instantly. Nightwing threw a wing-ding at them, which managed to curve and knock their weapons from their hands before returning to his own. Meanwhile Ruby, firing her sniper rifle in quick succession, managed to knock all of them down before they even had a chance to dive for cover.

"Nice," Nightwing complimented her, and Ruby smiled.

"Thank you!" she replied before the two of them broke cover and ran towards the next group of cultists.

On the other side of the island, team JNPR and Weiss contended with the other half of the invading force. Rather than attacking from the ground and air like with their comrades, this group appeared content to strafe them from the water while soldiers attacked up close. The heroes didn't care, instead they remained focused on the task at hand.

"Lightning, take out the boats!" Jaune ordered. Nora saluted before firing several grenades at passing boats. Most swerved away, but one was unfortunate enough to be caught in the grenade's explosion. Rather than an explosion of fire and concussive force, however, an electromagnetic pulse forcibly shut down the watercraft. Its engine died and, moving off inertia, it crashed upon the beach. The driver and copilot hopped out, pulling out their pistols while the gunner turned her heavy machine gun towards them. For a moment, Jaune hoped the EMP would have affected the gun as well, only for it to reveal itself as being an analog controlled weapon and thus completely unaffected.

Jaune hastily raised his shield to protect himself, only for a large Glyph to erect in front of him and form a wall. The bullets bounced off the silvery-gray Glyph, and Jaune turned to smile at Weiss.

"Thanks, Ivory," he said. Weiss, visibly straining under the effort of combining Nth Metal with her Semblance, nodded.

"Take out that gun," she grunted through heavy breaths. "I don't know how long I can hold this up."

Jaune nodded and turned to face the gunner. She was still firing the fifty-caliber towards them, each bullet pinging off the Nth Metal-infused Glyph, but Jaune steeled himself. Raising his shield in front of him, he charged through the Glyph in full sprint. The gunner immediately turned her attention towards the charging Huntsman, firing her weapon at Crocea Mors' shield half. The bullets ricocheted off the titanium-alloy frame, its structural integrity boosted by Jaune's considerable Aura reserves, but he could feel each impact regardless.

As he drew closer and closer, the gunner began to panic. She was starting to scream, but Jaune paid her no heed as he leapt onto the boat, slamming his shield into her. She flew back into the bay, water splashing wildly. The air was knocked out of her lungs, but before she could recover, Jaune hoisted her out of the water and back onto the boat, then slammed his shield into her head, knocking her out.

"Good job, fearless leader!" Nora shouted as she fired yet more grenades at the invaders, a mixture of EMP and concussion. One gunman, wielding a rocket launcher, fired towards Nora, hoping his heavy ordinance would finish her off. Nora, with a manic smile on her face, shifted Magnhild into its hammer configuration and quickly batted it to the side. Both sides watched as it careened wide into the air, just as helicopter flew past as it tried to flee from Starfire. The rocket struck its tail, causing it to swerve out of control and crash into the water.

"YEAH!" Nora cheered, thrusting her hammer upwards in celebration as the initial attacker sheepishly tossed his weapon to the side and Starfire rescued the downed pilots. His compatriots were giving him the stink eye even as they continued their assault, but Jaune's friends refused to give up ground. Ren, running around the perimeter, fired Stormflower into their ranks. A cultist attempted to get close, only for Ren to shift gears and engage him in a quick melee. He sliced apart his rifle, cutting off the straps of his armor at the same time, then kicked himself into the man's chest. Staggered, the cultist was helpless as Ren quickly kicked himself off the man, knocking him back while Ren backflipped into the air, firing his weapons at yet more enemies to his side.

'He's clearly got a handle of things,' Jaune noted as he searched for his partner, slicing his sword at a cultist who got too close. He quickly found her, and as he expected, she was right in the middle of the fray. Here was in her element, expertly bobbing and weaving between overlapping fields of fire, Akoúo̱ orbiting her to block bullets while she stuck with Miló. Occasionally she'd turn Miló into its semi-automatic rifle configuration and fire rubber bullets into the horde before her, each shot striking against the head or chest without fail. As one would go down, she'd shift targets to another, only to just as quickly turn her weapon back into a sword and strike a man down.

Jaune, running through the field, joined with his partner after leaving a trail of fallen and groaning cultists in his wake.

"White Knight," Pyrrha welcomed him as she turned Miló into a spear and pinned a man to the beach, throwing Akoúo̱ like a discus into several heads at the same time.

"Crimson Guardian," Jaune replied as he violently kicked a man in the chest back several feet, the man's body bowling over several others. Ahead of him, he saw Weiss dancing between enemies of her own, immobilizing them with Freeze Gas or scattering them with Firefly Gel. With pointed stabs and strikes, she continued to knock her opponents down, then formed a series of Glyphs beneath her. The trail extended far down the beach, and soon she was racing down them with increasing speed, knocking men and women high into the air. When she stopped, she twirled around and shifted Myrtenaster to Freeze Gas, forming a Glyph underneath all of them, then stabbed down. As she did, ice jettisoned out of the Glyph, entrapping all the criminals at the same time, then she collapsed to her knees from the strain. One of the last remaining boats attempted to seize upon the opportunity, only for Starfire to suddenly swoop in, lift the boat out of the water, then hurl it far out into the sea.

Jaune took a moment to look around, scanning for any more attackers, and to his relief, found none.

"I think we're good," he mentioned as he and his team ran over to check on Weiss. Starfire was already there, helping the former heiress to her feet.

"I'm fine, thank you," she mentioned, still swaying slightly. Jaune, cursing the fact that he wasn't able to put his helmet on in time, pulled out his scroll to check her Aura levels, finding them to be in the yellow.

"That really wore you out, huh?" he mentioned as he pocketed the device.

"Yes, it's still hard for me to combine my Semblance with non-Dust materials."

"You are getting much better, though!" Starfire noted jubilantly, and Weiss couldn't help but smile at her infectious energy.

"Ivory Mage, are you okay?" Weiss heard Ruby's voice emit out of her earbud. Pressing her finger to her ear, Weiss began to reply.

"We're fine. Everything's clear on our end. What about you?" she asked.

"Same here. Nightwing's a little banged up, but he insists he's fine."

Starfire frowned at this news, clenching her fists in anger at the same time, but remained silent. Then, her expression changed, going from righteous anger to worry.

"Nightwing, are friends Beast Boy, Raven, and Miss Martian with you?" she suddenly asked, and the others around her gave their full attention.

"I thought they were with you?" Nightwing replied, worry seeping into his voice as well. Slowly, the heroes turned to face Titans Tower, just as a large explosion rippled out from the top floor.

---

Raven grunted as the beam of light struck against her barrier, gritting her teeth as Doctor Light's assault continued. A manic smile was spread wide across his face, and he didn't seem to regard the fact that he was facing off against three veteran Titans at one time with much apprehension. In fact, he seemed elated.

"Do you know what kept me going after all this time?!" he yelled out as M'gann flew towards him, only for a bubble of light to form around him and repel her violently. "Each and every day, torture after torture, revelation after revelation! What kept me going was what I would do to all of you!"

"You're sick, Arthur!" Beast Boy insisted, turning himself into a mouse to avoid a beam of light. "You need help!"

"What I need is to kill you!" Doctor Light responded, sucking in the ambient light from the building's dwindling fixtures. Before he could strike once again, Raven threw swaths of dark magic towards him. He swatted them aside with beams of light then retaliated, sending a horizontal beam that knocked Raven back.

"Oof!" she grunted as she bounced off a wall. Rising to her feet, she couldn't help but note the familiar feeling the attack sent coursing through her. "That was my father…"

"You recognized that, didn't you?" Doctor Light replied. "Brother Blood provided many gifts in return for submission."

"He's using you!" M'gann shouting, trying to get him to see reason. "They both are! Please, let us help you!"

"Where was that help when I needed you most?!" Doctor Light suddenly shouted as he shot M'gann with a wide beam. She turned intangible, only for her to still recoil away thanks to Trigon's influence on Light's abilities. "I know they're using me, but better to be a tool than a victim!"

The light around the supervillain's body increased before emitting a powerful pulse, sending the three heroes back and igniting a gas line inside Titans Tower. A large, powerful explosion shot out of the front of the building, and Beast Boy heard M'gann scream as she was engulfed in flames. A moment later, a white form flung herself out of the tower, desperate to try and escape, and crashed into the water below.

"M'GANN!" Beast Boy shouted as he looked out over to the ripples in the water where she had landed. He could see the other heroes below, looking up at the Tower in worry as Yang, the closest to where M'gann had crashed, dove into the water to fish her out.

"Beast Boy, look out!" Raven shouted as she pushed him out of the way from Light's attack. Beast Boy fell to the floor with a huff and propped himself off his knees, only for his eyes to widen as he took note of a collection of floating orbs hanging above them.

"Ah, crap," he muttered as Doctor Light, with a mad grin, threw them all down. Scurrying away, Beast Boy flailed around as he attempted to dodge. He succeeded as many times as he failed, each impact hitting him like a rock, only for Raven to quickly encase them in a bubble.

"He's completely lost it," she noted as she struggled to keep the shield up, visibly buckling after each impact. She could hear her friends racing up the tower, trying to get to them as Doctor Light dealt with them in turn.

"Yeah, I noticed," Beast Boy replied with a wince. "How do we stop him?"

"If we subdue him, I can remove my father and Blood's influence from his mind like we did for Jinx."

"Do we have time for that?"

"We'll make time!" Raven grunted as her shield began to crack. "I can't hold it for much longer. You ready?"

Beast Boy nodded and patted her shoulder, then braced himself. Raven breathed in and out, steadying her mind and clearing her thoughts, before yelling a wordless scream. Her shield shattered like glass, sending shards flying out in all directions and breaking apart most of the remaining orbs. Beast Boy, turning himself into a tiger, lunged at Doctor Light at the same time, bounding from side to side in an effort to dodge the remaining orbs of light. He managed to make it through relatively unscathed, pinning the man to the floor after shattering the remains of a table during their descent.

"Mangy beast!" Doctor Light shouted as he tried to pry the green tiger off. Beast Boy refused to relent, grabbing Doctor Light's arm with his mouth while pushing the other down with this paws. With the villain completely pinned, Raven rushed over and knelt behind his head.

"Hold him still!" she shouted as she placed her hands to the sides of Doctor Light's head. Wisps of magic were emitted from Raven's hands, spreading into Doctor Light's head and causing dark purple veins to spread across his skin.

"AAHH!" Doctor Light screamed as he thrashed from side to side, intense pain coursing through him.

'I'm sorry, dude! It's for your own good!' Beast Boy thought as he continued to pin the supervillain to the ground. At the same time, he couldn't help but note the presence of dark veins spreading across Raven's face in turn. She seemed to notice his sudden concern and shook her head at him.

"I have no other place to put it! I'll dispel it later!" she shouted as she continued to remove Trigon's corruption. Doctor Light's thrashing, meanwhile, grew more and more prevalent as his attempts to keep the other Titans at bay subsided.

"STOP! STOP! IT HURTS!" he shouted while continuing to thrash about in utter agony, and both Titans felt shame and pity course through their bodies at his state.

"Raven, we're coming!" Starfire's voice screeched into the microphone. From the distance, they could see the Tamaranean racing towards them, and Raven allowed herself to smile.

"GET! AWAY! FROM ME!" Doctor Light suddenly shrieked as his body glowed with increasing intensity. Surprised, Raven could do nothing but close her eyes as Doctor Light's body shone ever brighter. His body shimmered, then a large pulse erupted out of him, throwing both Titans off to the side. They crashed into opposite walls, collapsing into a heap, but Light's body continued to pulsate. He screamed in agony, a dark aura enveloping his head, before he turned to face Raven.

"Just die!" Doctor Light shouted, a dark voice echoing behind his own as he attacked with a wave of light. Starfire screamed as the attack sent her flying back while Raven immediately responded with her own wave of magical energy. The two waves collided with each other in the center of the room, sparks of energy cascading from the collision and causing the roof and floor to crack.

"Ah, come on!" Raven heard Cyborg wail as the crack spread throughout Titans Tower, but she paid him no heed. Instead, she poured more of her focus into stopping Doctor Light, pushing his light further and further back. Grunting, the supervillain attempted to force her back, only for Raven to snarl and increase her efforts. As the magic prepared to overwhelm him, Raven began to step forward, each step intensifying the pressure on him. Finally, once she face to face, Doctor Light's efforts broke and his light ceased. He was flung back, striking the wall with a dull thud, then fell to the ground.

Raven stared at him for a long pause, breathing heavily while prepared to strike at a moment's notice. When Doctor Light didn't move a muscle, she relaxed and stood up straight. A groan then caught her attention, and she spun to see Beast Boy laying across the remains of the sofa.

"Garfield!" Raven shouted as she raced towards him. He groaned as she helped him up to his feet.

"Uggh, what hit me?" he mumbled while clutching his head, a thin trail of blood running down its side.

"A crazed supervillain," Raven responded dryly.

"Is it Tuesday again? I honestly lost track," Beast Boy quipped as he rose to his feet. Raven smiled along with him, and they heard the sound of the automatic door being pried open by their friends' strength. The half-demon prepared to turn around and finish Doctor Light's purge, only for Beast Boy's eyes to widen.

It happened so fast she was unable to blink nor comprehend the pinging sound as a suddenly recovered Doctor Light shot a thin beam straight towards her heart. Beast Boy, acting on pure instinct, pushed her out of the way, losing his balance as he did so and falling straight into the beam's path. He felt a sharp, piercing pain as the photons shot through his chest and out of his back. Raven watched in disbelief as Beast Boy's hands clutched at his wound, dark red blood seeping out of it just as the rest of the Titans sans Ruby and Yang ran out onto the floor. He stumbled back to the edge of the Tower, the others stunned into silence as they were too shocked to do anything, and he fell. Raven watched as Garfield's limp body crashed against the rocks, bouncing up a bit before landing in a heap.

He didn't get up. Her heartbeat quickened as she stared at his seemingly lifeless body. She saw Ruby, waiting at the water's edge with her sister, race towards him while throwing Crescent Rose to the side, only to hear a dark laugh.

"Hehheheh," Doctor Light chuckled, blood dripping from his mouth, "at least I got one."

Raven slowly turned her head to regard him, saw his mad grin, and felt something within her snap.

"You… MURDERER!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, her hair and cloak whipping out at all sides as dark tendrils erupted out of her. Raven's body elongated, her eyes turned red and splitting into two pairs as she gazed upon the suddenly terrified Doctor Light with fury. The front of her cloak opened, revealing a dark and vast void, and before anyone could react, a dark tentacle thrust out and grabbed Doctor Light's body.

"No, no! Not the dark, not the dark!" Doctor Light screamed as Raven pulled him completely inside, encasing him in the darkness. The other Titans could only watch in horror as they heard his screams, the shattering of bone, tearing of flesh, and other sounds they couldn't even begin to describe. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, the sounds ceased, and Raven shrunk back down to her normal size.

But Doctor Light did not return. Raven's back was facing the rest of the Titans, who were unsure of what to do. Starfire, having recovered, slowly flew up to her from the outside of the building, unable to see Raven's face from the dark shadow of her cloak.

"Friend Raven…?" Starfire began as she slowly floated up to her. Raven said nothing, her head continuing to face down. Apprehension spread through everyone, but Starfire continued to press on. She gently placed her hand on Raven's shoulder, who visibly flinched at the sudden contact.

"Raven…" Starfire continued, forcing back tears, "I promise you that friend Beast Boy will be alright. Please, calm down."

Raven continued to remain silent as her shoulders began to quickly shake. Starfire quickly grasped her in a tight hug while rubbing Raven's back, attempting to sooth her, only for the hairs on the back on her neck to stand on end as she finally began to hear the sound Raven was emitting, one that was not filled with grief.

It was laughter.

Starfire quickly ejected herself from Raven as the half-demon finally tilted her head upwards to face the Tamaranean, shadow no longer cloaking it. To Starfire's horror, she was not greeted by the tear-stained face of Raven. Instead, four red eyes glared at her as Raven's grey skin gave way to blood red, and then she spoke.

"You failed," Raven declared through a distorted voice, her outfit warping into a dark and twisted mockery as her possessed body floated upwards. The sky turned dark red as black clouds consumed it. The sea turned to molten magma and lightning began to flash as flaming meteors rained down. As one passed it illuminated all of their shadows, and to everyone's horror, Raven's was not her own.

Instead, it was that of a muscular figure, with two horns erupting out of the side of his head, and four red eyes glaring at them all.

"Trigon…" Blake muttered, and her possessed friend laughed.

[~][~]

Hello, everyone, and welcome to the next chapter of Hunters of Justice! Special thanks to NaanContributor and Jesse K for all their help in bringing this story to life.

We are now entering the finale of the Titans Arc, and as you can see, it got real. How will our heroes get past this to defeat Trigon and Brother Blood? You'll have to wait and see, but know that the next chapter is already halfway done, so the wait should be lower.

Now, onto the Q&A:

Guest (1): Thank you, I'm glad that you're enjoying the story. We love writing it as well. To answer your question regarding Harley Quinn, I do have plans for her. What they are, you'll have to wait and see. Just because I mentioned Brother Eye does not mean that I'm using Injustice continuity. Brother Eye is something that Batman's always had, so him having it here felt appropriate.

Guest (2): Depending on who he does it to, he might regret it instantly. For example, him pulling that on an Amazon. Yeah, they wouldn't take that very well, and would make their displeasure known.

Supermonaman: Yeah, it was pretty obvious, which RWBY and JNPR recognized it as a very significant possibility. Unfortunately, Blood struck first when they weren't expecting it. I'm glad that you enjoyed the Titans working together. Part of this story is that RWBY and JNPR are held at the same importance as the rest of the DC Universe. Part of that entails having chapters where the DC side of things take the focus. This was one of those chapters. Plus, we wanted to showcase the therapy RWBY and JNPR were undgergoing to show that yes, they are getting help for their issues. It was better to show that than to constantly say that it was happening, only in the background.

I'm glad that you enjoyed the fight scenes as well. I'm proud of those, but the emotional scenes are what make the core of this story. The sing off at the end of Chapter 16 was a fun thing for me to write as well. I'm glad you like the outfits. We tried to incorporate the canon RWBY aesthetic with a modern superhero aesthetic, hence why they look like armored versions of their canon outfits. Same with their choice of superhero name, reflecting the characters' culture and not their meta real-world inspirations. And yes, the battle against Darth Vader was something I really enjoyed.

I Am The Prophet: Yeah, the HIVE Five aren't the most professional bunch, are they? You'll have to see exactly what was in the cage, though.

GXY-2013: In regards to them going to a Renaissance Fair, I admittedly haven't really thought of that. Given how them going to one isn't really the focus of the story, we probably won't find out unless myself and my co-writers determine a possible reason to. Same with a Civil War reenactment. Our focus is on them dealing with superhero issues mixed with more mundane concerns.

Guest (3): I'm sorry that you feel that way. However, I do feel that you misconstrued Yang's spar against Nightwing. They never fought Robin, and Yang was only doing a friendly spar against the Titan leader. She did not want to seriously hurt him, so she was significantly holding back. Think of her Aura being turned off for the spar, and instead they were focusing on pure fighting ability. I know fully well that, when RWBY and JNPR (with the possible exception of Jaune) are going all out they would smoke much of the non-powered DC cast, but even then, you are taking calcs over everything else. Power Levels, for lack of a better term, are a detriment to a story. If you only focus on them, your story suffers. That being said, I do pay attention to things to make it so that the encounters/fights make sense. If I make it so that RWBY and JNPR breeze through everything with ease, how is that an interesting story? The answer is that it's not.

So yes, I'm sorry that you don't like the story. However, I feel that you misconstrued what was going on with that spar.

BLADE OF ILLUSIONS: RWBY and JNPR certainly think so.

Guest (4): Possibly. You'll have to wait and see. If anything, it would be another Batcomputer File.

Cloud-0: I'm happy you liked the chapter. Lots of good things are in story.

darkvampirekisses: Again, RWBY and JNPR certainly think so.

Jacob9594: Arrowverse, probably not anything overt. I haven't watched those shows, so I don't want to take inspiration from them, you know?

mastergamer14: You'll have to wait and see.

Vein Bloodborne: They were so close to celebrating it, too, but alas. Brother Blood crashed the party.

MadTitan9: No, that is not the case at all. In fact, I will definitively say that Salem is not in league with Trigon and she is not more powerful than him. He is much more powerful, as he is a god while she is just a really, really, really old human cursed with immortality and a Grimm complexion.

Hey It's That Guy: You'll have to wait and see what we have planned with the Brothers. As for Doomsday being in the Phantom Zone, Earth threw him into it after he killed Superman and Superman killed him.

Dracus6: Salem is not on Earth.

That's it for this chapter. We hope you guys enjoy!