Raven's Rage
(The Briefing Room)
Just as Batman was about to continue the story, Raven politely interjected; insisting that she had something she "desperately needed to get off her chest." At first, everyone thought the request sounded a little forward of her; considering how reserved she often was. But from the look on her face alone, Jim could sense she was in dire need of relief and decided to allow it.
"Okay...here it goes" she murmured with a deep sigh, "while the boys were off pursuing the Joker; me, Star and Elasti-Girl were trying our best to get Beast Boy back." Upon hearing this, Commissioner Gordon presumed the task was easy for them; considering that Harley was the only one standing in their way. "You're half right, Sir" Cyborg muttered, "but when the fighting started...that chick, surprisingly enough, managed to put up quite a fight; even for our girls and Elasti-Girl."
Intrigued by this, Gordon asked the team to share more with him. "That is...if you feel up to it, of course" he said calmly, "I don't want to pressure you all or anything." After a while, Raven let out a cleansing breath and agreed to continue.
(Back to the Story)
While the boys gave chase to the Joker, the ladies chose to remain behind; eager to get their hands on Beast Boy and take him home. With this in mind, Raven made an attempt to fly over and get him. But just as she got within range, she was struck in the face with a pie; causing her to fall over backwards.
"Back off, you demon bitch" Harley growled, "I'm not letting you take my lil' baby boy away!" The moment this statement was made, Rita suddenly felt a burning fire of rage swell up inside of her. Not long after that, she grew so large that her head was mere inches away from crashing through the ceiling.
"He is not your baby boy, lady" she seethed venomously, "he is mine and I will take him back...EVEN IF I HAVE TO KILL YOU TO GET TO HIM!" With that declaration, Elasti-Girl charged forward like a raging bull; causing the room to quake with her every step. But despite her opponent's gargantuan size, Harley didn't appear all that worried.
"You may be big, lady" she said while dodging Elasti-Girl's swiping hands, "but you know what they say...the bigger they are, the funnier the sound they make when they fall." After saying this, she drew out her comically-sized hammer and slammed it hard against Elasti-Girl's large shin; causing her to almost topple over and hit the ground. The resulting collision then caused Elasti-Girl's form to quickly shrink back down to human size.
Despite this however, Rita appeared relatively unharmed; save for the sore spot where Harley struck her. While taking a moment to massage the sore spot, Harley spat a raspberry in her direction and cartwheeled a few feet away. Meanwhile; Beast Boy, in his current mental state, could only cackle madly at the scene before him.
He watched with blind glee, as his friends and adoptive mother gave chase after Harley. At one point, she turned towards Beast Boy and asked him to get "Mommy's toy" and he had no choice but to obey. "STOP TELLING HIM WHAT TO DO" Raven shouted while blasting Harley in the face with magic, "he takes orders from no one but Robin...and sometimes me."
After being in a daze from the attack for a few seconds, Harley shook her head vigorously and glared at Raven. "No fair" she cried in a bratty voice, "no black magic while fighting, them's the rules!" At first, Raven knew that the clown girl was only saying these things to get under her skin and considered ignoring her.
But with the life of her friend being at risk, these thoughts were immediately ignored and were replaced by the unrelenting desire to get her friend back. Then, at that moment; Starfire suddenly flew overhead and unleashed a flurry of her star bolts down upon Harley. But just as she did before, Harley managed to maneuver her way away from each of the princess' attacks as well.
"Sheesh, you guys call yourselves heroes" she called out mockingly, "I've seen drunken Storm Troopers who have bettuh aim than you!" Infuriated with her opponent's insults, Star bellowed out a vicious battle cry and fired out lasers from her eyes. Alarmed by this sudden surprise attack, Harley moved away as quickly as she could before the beams struck where she stood.
The explosion then sent her flying backward a few feet, causing poor Harley to land unceremoniously against the medical equipment at the edge of the room. When he saw this happen, Beast Boy laughed madly while crying out the words "MOMMY FELL DOWN...MOMMY FELL DOWN" in a mad child-like voice. "Don't laugh at Mommy's pain, Lil J" Harley groaned scoldingly, "did you get my toy like I asked?"
Beast Boy nodded his head obediently, walked over to the table in the center of the room and brought over Harley's trick bazooka; earning a light pat on the head from her. The sight of this display utterly infuriated Rita, despite of the pain she still felt in her leg. With all the strength she could muster, at the moment; she speed-hobbled her way over to Harley and shoved her back roughly.
While this didn't really hurt her opponent, it did push Harley within range of Raven and Star; who proceeded to unleash a barrage of attacks on her. With this going on, it granted Elasti-Girl the perfect opportunity to try and get through to Beast Boy...if any part of him still remained. "Beast Boy, snap out of it...please" she begged while shaking the boy's shoulders, "sweetie...please, snap out of it; it's me...Rita."
Again and again, she tried her darndest to get Beast Boy to answer him; only to be met with the same response...mad giggles. "Garfield...please" she begged again with tears in her eyes, "it's Mom, honey...don't you remember me?" The moment she said this, BB's giggling suddenly died down a little and he looked at Elasti-Girl with a sort of confused stare; like the kind a puppy would give its owner.
Poor Rita couldn't help but give a hopeful smile, believing that she may have gotten through to her former ward. Then, ten seconds later; Beast Boy placed his hand beside the flower on his jacket and smiled. "Ha-ha-ha...Sme-he-hell the flo-ho-ho-hower...Mommy" he asked between some faint giggles, "you...want...to sme-he-hell the flower?"
In that moment; poor Rita's mind was so distraught, she couldn't think straight and see that Beast Boy was trying to trick her with something. So, by the power of some kind of "unseen force," she found herself leaning in towards the boy's corsage. At the same time; Raven could clearly understand what was about to happen and, at the second to last moment, placed a barrier between the two of them.
The moment this happened, Rita could then see what looked like toxic fluid spew out of the flower's center hitting against the barrier. While this would normally cause normal materials to burn or melt, the magical barrier remained fully in-tact; much to Harley's annoyance. "NO FAIR" she screeched bitterly, "earlier, I said no Black Magic...wasn't anybody listenin'?!"
After this, she was prepared to fire off her bazooka at Raven...but decided against it. "Ya know...I've been hoggin' all the fun this whole time" she sighed, "I think it's time for my lil' boy to have a try." With that said, she tossed the bazooka into Beast Boy's unsuspecting arms and smiled at him.
"Go ahead, sweetie" Harley said while kissing his forehead, "blast that freak to Kingdom Come; just like Mommy would do." Once again, Elasti-Girl fumed at the sight of Harley showing "motherly affections" towards Beast Boy and readied herself into attack position. "Get away from him, you clown whore" she cried venomously, "touch him again and so help me, I'll..."
Before she could finish her rant, an explosion rang out and Elasti-Girl's face was suddenly enveloped by a long piece of red fabric. At first, she tried to rip it off with her bare hands but she could barely make even the smallest on it. "Damn it all" Elasti-Girl thought bitterly, "this is the same thing that tied up Batman and Robin earlier, isn't it?"
With this thought in mind, she realized that there was no way she could simply rip it off. That was when she considered growing super large again, thinking the band would tear in the process. But as she attempted to do so, she could feel the pain in her shin surging slightly; causing her to fall to her knees.
As if sensing her pain, Raven made an attempt to hurry over to Elasti-Girl's side; while also channeling a sort of white healing aura in her hands. But just as she was within range of her comrade, Raven heard a shot ring out behind her. Just before she could create a barrier to shield herself, Raven's entire body was cocooned in the red bands; the same kind that covered Elasti-Girl's mouth.
Once wrapped up, Raven fell to the ground and skidded across the floor before she crashed against the side wall of the kitchen stage; almost toppling it over. With a dazed groan, Raven rolled over and tried to get a good look at whoever attacked her. Much to her surprise however, it wasn't Harley holding the bazooka; it was Beast Boy.
"Why the heck did you shoot me, Gar" she shouted, "I'm your friend!" The moment she said this, Raven could hear the echoes of her common sense screaming inside her head. It wasn't B's fault that he shot her, he was still under Joker's twisted influence and had no control over his actions.
"I've had fights against Dr. Light that went easier than this" Raven moaned mentally, "how am I supposed to fight one of my own teammates?" While lost in thought, Harley sauntered over to Beast Boy's side and patted his head "lovingly;" congratulating him on his good shot. Then, she turned towards Raven and glared down icy daggers at her.
"I told ya before...no black magic" she murmured in a scolding voice, "and after that third strike, I say it's time for Mommy to lay down the law." With that thought in mind, she drew out her hammer and held it high over her head, ready to slam it down upon Raven. But then, a blast of green energy disintegrated the hammer head; leaving only a partially burnt stick in its place.
"HEY! That was my favorite hammer" Harley shouted, "one of youse is gonna pay for the replacement!" In response to this demand; a star bolt suddenly slammed into her, sending her flying sideways. Not long after, Starfire hovered over towards the fallen criminal; her eyes blazing green with righteous fury.
Raven smiled slightly with delight; knowing that, at least one of them was still left standing. "You hurt my friends, stole another from me and turned him into a freakish giggling imp" the Tamaranean princess seethed, "now, you shall pay!" Upon saying this, Star's fists began to glow a bright shade of green; which to Raven, meant that things were going to get messy soon.
But just as Star prepared to attack Harley with her star bolts, she was suddenly struck in the face by something...sweet. Like a mad jackrabbit, Beast Boy came bounding over towards his former friend/teammate and slammed a pie square into her face; blinding her. "Hope you like the pie, Princess" he cackled madly, "it's Mommy's specialty...lemon meringue with whipped napalm crème!"
The moment he said this, both Elasti-Girl and Raven gasped in alarm; urging Starfire not to charge up her eye beams. But their pleas came too little too late; with a fierce growl in her throat, the crème from the pie that covered Star's face slowly started to boil. As a result, the napalm swiftly ignited and the pie (quite literally) blew up in Star's face; sending her flying through a wall.
"Nice job, baby" Harley said with pride, "Mommy and Daddy taught you well these past few months." Beast Boy, still in his mad state, only giggled gleefully in reply to her words; which further infuriated the three heroines. "Stop treating him like he's your child" Raven growled, "we will stop you and we will take him back home with us!"
Harley simply giggled in reply, proclaiming that the heroes have all "lost the fight already." "Mistuh J will make short work outta Bat-Brain, Bird Boy and the other mooks; soon" she decreed, "and as for you three...well, it's not like you're much of a threat to us now." With her "victory" presumably close at hand, Harley continued to prance about and brag to her fallen opponents.
"Just think...once we're done here, Mistuh J and I will be home free" she giggled mockingly, "I can't wait to teach Lil J all the fun stuff I've got planned." Much to the heroes disgust; this "fun stuff" (as she called it) consisted mainly of crimes like larceny, theft, arson and general mayhem. "Beast Boy would never do anything of the sort" roared Starfire after recovering from her collision earlier, "he is a hero!"
Harley simply wagged her finger in the princess' direction, while also clicking her tongue in disapproval. "Weren't you and your friends listenin' earlier" she murmured, "your lil' pet, Beast Boy is gonzo; Lil' J is here now and there ain't no goin' back for him." Upon hearing these words, Beast Boy let out another mad laughing fit; much to the ladies horror.
But as Raven got a good look at him, she saw something that made her blood boil. In the corners of his eyes, she could see painful tears welling up; in spite of the laughter he was making. It was then that she realized just how much pain Beast Boy was currently in. Then, at that moment; Raven swore she heard the sound of his voice calling out to her; albeit softly.
As she took another look at her giggling friend and teammate, the young empath saw him coughing out his laughs this time around. Naturally, she knew this would happen; given how much he had been cackling already. But every moment or so, she thought she heard him croaking out something to her.
After a while, Elasti-Girl and Starfire could hear this as well and wondered what Beast Boy was trying to do or say. Finally, after letting out one final cough (the kind one gives out when their throat is sore;) everyone could see his tears flowing more freely down his pale face. At this point, his giggling sounded softer and more restrained.
But in-between giggles, the ladies could hear him whispering two simple words to them; "he-he-he-help...me-he-he-he-he." That did it; after seeing Beast Boy crying and hearing his murmur of distress, Raven was finally pushed over the edge. Soon, her normally beautiful violet eyes shifted into four slits; each one blazing red with rage.
Afterwards; she bellowed out a vicious roar and, with her rage now enhancing her magic, broke free from her binds. Now, over the years working as Joker's "sidekick;" Harley had faced off against powerful metahumans before. She squared off with Black Canary, Wonder Woman and even managed to survive a tussle with Superman on one or two occasions.
But she had never held her own against a super-powerful, rage induced half-demon sorceress before. Thus, there was only one course of action she knew she had to take in a situation like this...RUN LIKE HELL! After snatching up the broken handle of her beloved hammer, she was determined to try and get as far away from her opponent as she could.
"C'mon, sweetie; it's time to go" Harley murmured while taking Beast Boy's hand in hers, "we'll try our luck in Metropolis next." The poor lad could only offer up a mad Cheshire cat-like grin and nod in silent reply. But before she could move even the slightest inch, a black tendril suddenly lunged forward and snatched Harley by her ankles; pulling her away from her "son."
With a fearful yelp, she braved a look over her shoulder to see what was happening. What she found next was a sight so horrifying, it almost made her heart stop. Looming overhead of her was Raven, her eyes blazing with fury and dozens of strange magical tendrils seeping out from beneath her cloak.
"What the...WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON" Harley shrieked in horror, "WHAT ARE YA GOING TO DO WITH ME?!" Before the poor girl could speak any further, four more tendrils coiled themselves around Harley; making absolutely sure she could not escape. Then, they proceeded to drag her forward to what looked like a shadowy void beneath Raven's cloak.
"C'MON, YA FREAK" she cried desperately, "KNOCK IT OFF WITH THE TRICKS, THIS AIN'T FUNNY!" Much to Harley's horror, Raven simply glared down at her with an icy stare. Then, she eased herself down to the clownish girl and growled in her ears. "The time for jokes is over, mortal" Raven said in a voice that was a mix of her own and a demon's, "you hurt my friend and now...you will suffer!"
With that said, she resumed in dragging poor Harley forward; ignoring all the screams of surrender she let out. At one point, she turned towards Beast Boy and begged him to save her. But due to his current state of mind, he could only laugh maniacally; as if this were all a game.
Slowly but surely, Harley could feel the coldness of the black void enveloping her body. Meanwhile; Starfire, upon seeing what was about to happen, flew forward and cried out for Raven to stop herself. At first, the young sorceress ignored her friend's calls; choosing only to relish in her enemy's suffering.
But then, a green star bolt suddenly slammed against her body; briefly shocking her out of her angry state. "STARFIRE...WHAT THE HELL" Raven shouted, "why did you blast me like..." Before she could finish her tirade, Raven suddenly heard the sound of wild whimpering and crying.
She looked down and saw Harley lying facedown on the floor. Alarmed, Raven suddenly came to realize just what was about to happen and hovered over to Harley's side. As if thinking the same thing, Star and Elasti-Girl rushed over to join her.
For a moment or so, the ladies simply stood over Harley's form; listening to the whimpers she would let out. Then, after taking in a nervous gulp; Raven reached towards her shoulder and flipped Harley over on her back. Much to the trio's horror, the poor girl looked as though she had been gripped by the fingers of Death himself.
Her face appeared drained of life, her body shivered like it had just walked through a winter storm and her eyes had a mad look of fear in them. To Starfire; she had only seen one other villain with this kind of look, after experiencing one of Raven's "episodes..." Doctor Light. After a while, the ladies suddenly heard Harley mutter out mad babbling of some kind.
But upon listening more closely, they could hear her clearly murmuring "s-s-so dark...make it stop, p-p-please...I want my mommy!" Needless to say, it looked as though Harley was down for the count. But after what happened, it didn't quite feel like a victory to the ladies.
"I'm...I'm sorry, girls" Raven murmured shamefully, "I just...after seeing how Quinn was manipulating Beast Boy and seeing him cry just moments ago, something inside me just...snapped!" After hearing what she had just said, it made poor Raven feel even more disgusted with herself. But before she could sink any deeper into her shame, Raven suddenly felt Starfire envelop her into a hug.
Unlike her usual embraces, this one felt softer yet still filled with great love. "Do not despair, friend" murmured Starfire, "I was close to letting my own rage get the best of me...as was Friend Elasti-Girl." Upon hearing them mention her hero name, Rita suddenly let out a muffled cry of distress; while also gesturing at the wrappings still tied around her face.
"Hold on, Elasti-Girl" Raven murmured, "we've got you covered." After that, the girls went over to her side and proceeded to gingerly remove the bands from Elasti-Girl's mouth. Once free, she let out a few dry and harsh coughs; desperate to get some air into her lungs again.
Once she recovered, fifteen seconds later; Rita cast a stoic gaze over towards Raven. The two of them remained locked in a stare-down for a couple of seconds, until Rita broke the silence in asking "does that kind of thing happen a lot with you?" It didn't take long for Raven to understand what she meant, which led her to respond with a "so-so" hand gesture.
"Do not be too harsh with Raven, Ma'am" Star pleaded softly, "due to being half-demon, her father's influence cursed Raven's powers to destroy anything around her; should her emotions become unruly." At first, Elasti-Girl said nothing in response; which made Raven all the more nervous. After a while, the elder female looked her square in the eye and asked one thing from her; "have you ever used your powers on Garfield in the same way you just did with Harley?"
For a moment or so, Raven didn't know how to respond; fearing that whatever she said would cause Rita to fear her...or worse, hate her. But after a while, she decided to come clean and admitted that Beast Boy did upset her on one or two occasions. "But all I've mostly done to him is give him wedgies, blow up his tofu eggs in his face and...maybe tossed him out a window from the tower, on rare occasions" she revealed hesitantly, "but I'd never do this to him!"
Alas, all Raven's defense seemed to do was make Rita feel rather suspicious of her. Of course, she couldn't blame her; even she herself found her own behavior questionable at times. But before she could think any more on that topic, Raven suddenly heard Starfire give out a shrill whistle; snapping her out of her daze.
"My friends, I know you are both quite shaken from this battle" she said frantically, "but I fear I must inform you that...BEAST BOY HAS GONE MISSING!" Upon hearing this news; the two ladies turned towards the side and saw that Beast Boy had indeed, scurried away. At the same time, they realized just what he might be doing; Beast Boy intended to tell the Joker about Harley's defeat.
"We have to find him before he gets to that crazy clown" Elasti-Girl ordered, "hopefully, the boys have found him first." With that, she urged the two female Titans to follow her lead; each of them desperate to find their friend before anything worse would happen. But little did they realize; soon, in another area of the asylum...things would soon become quite grim.
(First AN: The battle against Harley has been won; now, comes the final battle with Joker. Will our heroes be able to stop him and save Beast Boy or will the latter two have the last laugh, in the end? Tune in for the next chapter, to find out)
(Second AN: I confess, I'm not much of a comic reader; be it DC, Marvel, Dark Horse or whatever else. I mostly know of these characters from their animated and live-action incarnations. But in spite of that, I do believe Harley has squared off against super-powered beings before.
If I'm wrong, I'm sorry; this is just my interpretation on how she would fight against such heroes)
(Third AN: Speaking of Harley, her crying out "no Black Magic" against Raven was loosely inspired by what someone says when they jinx a friend. I figured it would've been the kind of thing someone like Harley would say, if she were up against a magic-based hero)
(Final AN: Most of you may already have a clear understanding on why Harley calls herself Mommy, when she speaks to Beast Boy. But for anyone who's confused, the reason Rita/Elasti-Girl does it is because she's his adoptive mother; back when he was part of the Doom Patrol. Of all the members of the team, she was the only one to treat him like a person; which makes Beast Boy's situation with Joker all the more painful for her.
Sorry if this feels like I'm stating the obvious; I just thought I'd point it out, in case anyone got confused)