-Passing Judgment: Playing by the Rules-
-Mind Games-
"Where is it!"
"Like I'd tell you."
"Taciko, tell me where the book is or so help me I'll –"
"What? You'll kill me? Go ahead, you never had the gull to do so when we were kids, what makes now any different!"
"Because you don't know what's going on! Damn it brother, I'm actually on your side if you can only see that!"
"What I see is just another greedy prince after the throne, no brother of mines plots to kill his own father!"
"… Wha … wait … when did you hear that?"
"So you admit to conspiracy."
"No, I admit nothing, because that's a ludicrous accusation! You should be the one accused of conspiracy!"
"I'm not the one after the power within the Trove, Zak."
"Taciko, you test my patience –" SLING! "– the book or I'll run you through!"
Sling! "On guard."
Walking down the darkened hallway, Raven gulped when she heard the sound of swords drawn and a pregnant pause between the two brothers. Back down the hall she glanced, wanting to see if there was anyone else around to witness the princes' argument. She snapped her attention back to the throne room when she heard the sound of clashing swords.
Worried, book in hand she raced to the room and threw the large doors open to see the dueling brothers. Opening her mouth she ran to stop them, but was suddenly jerked back and slammed against one of the large doors. Knocked hard enough to fog out her vision and black out her mind, the last thing she saw was piercing feminine brown eyes that snickered at her misfortune.
"Well now … wouldn't you know," the female grinned deviously and bent over to pick up the white book. The brothers in the background too engrossed with each other to even realize that the servant girl loyal to their father and Raven had entered the vicinity. The servant girl giggled and looked up when she saw her master enter the throne room, eyes locked on his sons, she got back to her feet and bowed, "Lord Kain, the Rexxez Chronicles is now in our possession. What do you wish of it milord?"
"Hold it, Reign," Lord Kain narrowed his eyes on his sons, "I have to finish this once and for all."
"Yes milord," bowing obediently, Reign stepped aside as her lord walked further into the throne room and pulled out his sword, silently he snuck up behind Zak and with a simple flip of his sword he thrust forward to stab his eldest in the back. However underestimated his move and frowned when Tac and Zak suddenly switched places and Tac was the one to feel the blade pierce his back and see it come jutting out of his chest.
"TAC!" Zak nearly dropped his sword in shock when he saw the blood on the sword and his younger brother look up at him with confused eyes before they went void and he hung limp on the blade. With a sickening thud and the grotesque sound of the sword that had killed his brother being ripped from his dead body.
Zak gritted his teeth and glared into the eyes of his own father who started down at his dead son with no emotion at all. Using a cloth the leader of Azarath wiped off the blood and looked up at his eldest son with a dry shrug said with a sigh, "Well … not exactly how I planned it, but not everything can go as planned."
"You … bastard!" with renewed vigor, Zak charged his own father, Kain braced and raised his sword to block all his son's aggressive moves, just now remembering that Zak was the one with exceptional skill with a blade.
Kain side-stepped another swift swipe, and moved in to drive his blade into Zak's rib-cage, but Zak spun away, and grabbed his father's wrist flipping his sword at the right angle he aimed to run his sword through his father's chest. But instead found much to his great surprise his father's foot smashed into his back. Throwing him forward and once again nearly loosing his sword, he rolled and stopped in a crouch. When he turned to see Kain, he barely had anytime to duck and roll when the blade came close to cleaving his head clean off his shoulders.
In mid-roll Zak pushed off with his hands and broke into a series of flips to avoid his murderous father. Landing a good few feet form Kain, he spun around and opened his left palm and slammed it on the ground shouting only one word, "Jalhex!"
The ground shook violently, knocking the servant girl off her feet, causing her to drop the book as for Kain, he struggled to stay on his feet and gritted his teeth when his son charged through the violet shaking. His sword raised, Zak brought it down to end his father's life, but instead found himself locked when Kain brought his own sword up and pushed against him. The ground stopped shaking, and when it did, Raven slowly came through and the first thing she saw was Tac in a pool of his own blood … dead!
Shocked wide awake, Raven gasped and saw Tac's book on the ground, reaching for it and holding it close, she looked away from Tac's body when she heard more swords clashing. What she saw was Zak battling with his own father! Well, they were actually locked with Zak on top, his father growled, "You insufferable whelp! Why must you always be so defiant!"
"Because someone has to put you in your place," Zak sneered, "and it might as well be me!"
Kain swept the floor from under Zak and quickly got up to end the battle, but unfortunately for him, he wasn't going to be ending anything. Zak was just too quick on the uptake and without even second guessing himself he thrust his sword through his father's chest and shuttered when the blood dropped on his face. Pushing Kain off and getting to his feet at the same time pulling his sword out of his father's body, he let him drop to the ground as he panted for breath, and watched his father die slowly.
The servant girl screamed in horror and rushed out of the throne room to get help. Raven sat … in total shock and watched as a tired Zak looked amongst all the carnage and closed his eyes and bowed his head. Confused … and for the first time in her life, afraid, Raven got to her feet and ran for her life with the Rexxez Chronicles in her arms …
--
With a violet shutter, Raven shook herself awake and yelped in slight fear when the plane she was in shook under the turbulence. Gritting her teeth and getting a hold of reality, she gulped and bowed her head, putting a hand to her forehead; she closed her eyes and took three deep breaths. Calming herself down she was just coming down from dream-land when she felt a hand placed upon her shoulders, "You okay?"
Raven jumped away from the touch and gave the hand an evil glare and followed it up to Trenton's concerned face, her glared turned to a look of annoyance and she shrugged his hand off. Looking away she sighed and got herself together again, "Ye-yeah … I'm fine … just another nightmare …"
"You kind a get that a lot," Trent moved form standing to sitting next to her, she eyed him wearily, but in the end figured that it wasn't worth arguing with him right now so she sighed in defeat.
"Yeah … I'd rather prefer it if I don't dream … so I won't have to suffer waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and restless for the rest of the night." Why did I tell him that? He didn't need to know … Raven thought to herself, but let it go as Trent scoffed and leaned back on his chair.
Having only this to say, "Sucks to be you."
Raven shot him a dry look, "Thanks, I needed that."
The thief chuckled and shrugged nonchalantly, "What do you want me to say? I'm not a shrink and I sure as hell don't know what you're going through."
"You know what, X, just stop talking, for both our sakes."
His chuckle turned into a laugh, drawing Raven into his carefree smile and sparkling silver eyes. He just seemed so … free … so relaxed that she had to wonder how in all the hells he could pull off that look when he was a wanted criminal and talking to a Titan that'll no doubt turn him in later. Raven frowned at the thought … it depressed her so much that she couldn't find the courage to look Trent in the eye anymore, but instead looked out her small window to the pitch-black night sky.
She was going to turn him in.
It could be said in so many words … so many languages, reworded in so many different ways … but in the end … it all meant one … thing … she was going to betray him and it hurt her to even think of it like that. How can I be betraying him when I'm not his friend or … He's still Red X … no matter how I look at him … I can only see the criminal … she was lying to herself, but then again, she's done it before, but this was somehow different.
She was running away.
"Hey …" Raven gulped and closed her eyes, turning back to Trent she reopened her eyes and saw him with that trademark smirk of his, "unless it's a life threatening premonition, forget about it. Repeat after me: Trent is right, forget all about it."
Raven rolled her eyes, but humored him and repeated, "X is right, forget all about it."
Trent nodded in satisfaction, but raised a curious brow, "Why don't you ever use my name?"
"Because I know it's not your real name."
He grinned and leaned closer to her to whisper secretively, "I take it you want to know my real name then … don'tcha Princess?"
Raven slowly blinked and ignoring the prissy nickname and nodded, "I wouldn't mine being enlightened."
"Okay," Trent looked around seriously, and glanced back at Malchior to find the dragon on the airplane floor curled up and sleeping. He wasn't going to ask, but as long as he was sleeping and not listening in, he was cool with it and inched closer to Raven. Who – with surprising anticipation – leaned even closer when he beckoned her with his finger, "no one … not even Lance knows this … but I wasn't adopted by the Castillos because I had a cute face … I'm actually a long lost royal of some hidden kingdom, and seriously … my name … is Prince Charming, here to find and rescue my long lost Princess."
He said it with such a serious face Raven almost believed him, but when she saw that mischievous glimmer in his eyes she glared in annoyance and shoved him back, grumbling in embarrassment for even hoping he'd tell her his real name, "You little ass." Trenton cracked up and placed his forehead on her shoulder, trying to stop his laughing fit; Raven gritted her teeth and growled, "It's not that funny."
"You should have seen your face," he sputtered in between laughs, Raven rolled her eyes and sighed, crossing her arms over her chest in a pout. Trenton slowly calmed down and when he did he kept his head on her shoulder and sighed, giggled here and there he glanced up at the serious sorceress and scoffed, "oh come on, don't be that way, princess, what? I'm sure Beast Boy's done worse than me."
Raven glared down at him, "Yeah, but he's cute when he does it, you're not."
Trenton pulled away from her and eyed her teasingly, "Ooo … is that a confession? You know the tabloids wants to know if there's a little sumthin' goin' on there, eh?"
"Are you kidding me?" Raven scooted away from Trent and propped her chin on her palm, "I can't see Beast Boy being serious enough to stay still for a proper conversation and even then … he's hung up on Terra."
"Cyborg?"
"Obsessed with his creations," Raven shuttered, "and he kisses his car before he goes to sleep."
Trenton chuckled at the observation, but then his grin slowly diminished when he brought up, him, "Robin?"
"… With Starfire …"
"Doesn't mean you don't got what it takes to fight for him."
Raven raised a brow and shot Trenton a deadpanned look, "Robin's smooth, but he's not all that … I don't fight over a guy … no matter how much I want him … it's degrading and not worth it."
"Now that's a shame," Trenton shook his head, "what if he is worth it."
"No … he's not … no one is."
Trent narrowed his eyes, and argued, "So … let me get this straight, you'd die for a guy you barely even know as a teammate, but not die for a guy that you love?"
"That's different," Raven corrected, "I'd die for my love, but I won't fight with another woman over him. If he's loyal he'll stay with me … if he's not … then oh well …"
"That's a lot of trust." Trent raised his arms and laced his fingers behind his head as he leaned back and stared up at the ceiling of the jet.
Raven snorted, "I don't even know why I told you that."
"Because I'm cool like that."
"Sure you are Prince Charming." Raven rolled her eyes and side-glanced the thief who smirked lightheartedly coaxing a small glimmer of amusement in her violet eyes and the tiniest of smiles at the corner of her lip. So tiny, in fact, that it wasn't even noticeable unless someone had the power to see passed her Ice Princess demeanor. The cute demonic sorceress that could pull off a coy smile as smooth as the average girl next door … the point being, Raven, even if she is a demonic sorceress … she was still a girl.
Trent's smirk turned playful, "You know … I think I could really get use to this bond thing, it's got its perks."
"Our bond … that's right …" Raven was reminded about the book she was reading at the hotel … it was a solution to their problem.
Actually she knew about it all along, she was just unsure if she was powerful enough to perform the ritual … however … with Malchior with them … Raven was pretty sure she could borrow some power from him. It wouldn't hurt to try … and as a matter of fact … she got up out of her seat and walked to the middle of the plane and sat cross legged on the floor. Gesturing for a skeptical Trent on follow her, he got up anyway and followed her command when she gestured for him to sit in front of her.
"What are you up to?" Trent tilted his head and watched as she closed her eyes and meditated quietly to herself. Taking multiple deep breaths she reached out a hand and from behind her, Malchior, in a deep slumber whined and scratched at the floor when a slip of energy gently floated off him and sank into Raven through her hand.
After a moment she reopened her eyes to show they were pure white and she opened her mouth to speak in a droned deadpanned tone, "I'm going to try and sever our bond once and for all … I just needed the right amount of power to help me control you."
Trent blinked, "Control me?"
"Yes … I found out that you – literally – have a fighting spirit," Raven bowed her eyes and sighed preparing herself for another link, "and without any mental training to control your panic means it's terribly hard to possess you, and it becomes a nuisance for cases such as ours … so I'm going to walk you through this, step by step, ready?"
Trent sighed and leaned back shaking his head slowly he looked into Raven's glowing white eyes and asked, "What if we don't have to do this?"
Raven slowly blinked her eyes closed, only to reopen them to reveal solid violet orbs; she frowned and responded quietly, "We don't have a choice."
"Yes we do," Trent argued, "I mean … what bad has come out of it? If my skill is good enough to kick Robin's ass and you're picking up on it, isn't that a good thing?"
Raven held up a hand to silence him, "X … stop … you know we can't keep this up."
"What are you so afraid of." Trent more demanded than questioned, frustration building he ran his fingers through his hair as Raven narrowed her eyes.
"I'm not afraid of anything … I'm just doing what's right."
"But this doesn't feel right."
"What would you know …?" Raven challenged, and knew the next words that'll come out of her mouth would be a grave mistake on her half, "… You're a criminal …"
Trent pulled back and raised a brow, slightly bowing his head and eyeing Raven trying to see if she was being serious, he ended up nodding and eventually giving into the sorceress's point of view, but to Raven. It seemed a little too easy as he gestured for her to continue, "Whatever … you're the Titan."
I'm a Titan … Raven repeated in her head and settled into her meditative state, putting their latest conversation into the back of her mind she took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, "Azarath …" she breathed in again, "… Metrion …" another last deep breath and a last exhale, "… Zinthous …"
In that last breath she slowly opened her glowing blue eyes halfway as her black soul smoothly and rather gracefully floated out above her head, its white eyes centered on Trenton. Who's mouth fell open when he saw the black bird and it's intimidating stature, it neither screamed or screeched. However without warning it hovered over his head and slipped itself into his body, the alien feeling of being taken over made Trent shutter. Closing his eyes and gritting his teeth he instinctually fought against the possessor, but stopped when he heard her voice, "X … I need you to relax …"
Tilting his head back face contorted into struggle, he dropped his head till his chin was touching his chest, taking deep breaths trying to relax. He eventually felt use to the alien feeling of being possessed, but when he took deep breaths to calm down he tried opening his eyes and much to his surprise he could still see his point of view. But it was funny, Raven sitting across from him, didn't look so good, she looked ready to sweat bullets from her brow at the amount of power it was taking to "control" him.
He heard her in his head again, "X … you have to given in … stop fighting me and trust me."
X scoffed and unconsciously spoke back, "Trust you? I'm a thief, remember? I'm not supposed to trust anyone … but you're a problem, whenever I do show I trust you, you show me you're afraid of me."
Her face relaxed into a face of confusion as her head slightly tilted to one side and her question was head in his head, "… What do you mean …?"
"… How the hell can someone so smart be so goddamned stupid? I don't have to explain it to you … but I can show you."
Confusion turned to fear when Raven felt his body moving, fighting against her grip, desperately trying to control him, X heard her straining to keep him still, but it was hopeless. He was relentless, sitting right in front of her, she told her body to move back, but it couldn't respond, she had put all her power in keeping X still that she couldn't send a message back to her body. The best she could do was weakly plea to X when he sat up and lifted a hand up to run it through her hair leaning closer to her, Raven felt completely helpless when he ignored her pleas, "X … please … don't do this!"
"Watch me."
In one fatal swoop X stole the sorceress's first kiss and it was – quite literally – explosive. A burst of power violently shook the plane and woke Malchior from his slumber, snarling he jumped to his hands and knees and glared all around him to see what the danger was. Only to be thrown to the back of the plane when another burst of power stronger than the first shattered the plane's windows!
Up front the pilot and the co-pilot worked desperately to keep the jet in the air, but it wasn't to be the co-pilot looked to his captain and shouted over the many warning alarms blaring, "Sir! We have to ditch, the pressure in the cabin's dropped and we're loosing altitude!"
The pilot gritted his teeth and fought against the jerking plane's will to crash, with the headset on and the mouth piece to his mouth he announced their emergency, "Mayday! Mayday! This is flight –"
Jeeves yelped when the door leading from the cockpit to the cabin opened and Malchior came through, "We have to go! NOW!"
Jeeves and his co-pilot glanced at once another, the co-pilot looked back up at Malchior, "We're in the middle of goddamned nowhere! Where the hell were you suggesting!"
Malchior growled, "Unless the continents on this bloody planet grew legs and walked themselves to different locations, as far as I'm concerned, I know exactly where we are! Now stay here and perish, or come with me!"
With that the dragon stumbled out of the cockpit, leaving the pilots to once again glance at once another, looking at their controls then looking back at Malchior. They immediately jumped out of their seats and headed for the back where they saw their employer and the violet haired girl knocked out on the cabin floor. With no time to ask what happened, Jeeves walked up to the door of the plane and told Malchior to stay back. Without further ado Jeeves performed the steps open the door and leaned against the wall of the plane when the strong winds ripped it off.
Malchior grabbed a hold of both Raven and X the co-pilot narrowed his eyes in confusion and shouted over the roaring winds, "What are you planning to do! Jump?"
"Exactly, you two first!"
"WHAT!"
Malchior snarled, "JUST JUMP!"
Unsure, but not ready to die … Jeeves just shrugged and took his chance, being the first one to jump, without a parachute, the co-pilot screamed when he followed and without hesitation Malchior went after them. Quickly morphing into his true form, Malchior caught Raven and X within his claws, but spinning away from the helpless plane, he went after the pilot and co-pilot in the middle of the pitch-black night. Spotting their white uniforms, he flew close to the co-pilot and had him take a hold of his spines. When he was sure the human was secured on his back he flew for Jeeves and found him falling too close to the water.
Malchior snorted and whipped his tail around to capture the pilot and plop him on his back, and before coming around to continue towards their location he made sure everyone was secure. Sucking in a deep breath he prepared himself for a long flight with four passengers. Two of them knocked out and a lot of questions they needed to answer once they finally came through, but for now, this dragon was just focused on staying awake.
--
"AAAHHH!!!"
Like Alice in Wonderland, Raven fell through the dark void and landed right on her bottom in the middle of … of … wide-eyed and confused; she looked around and recognized that she was in some sort of … office cubical. A very messy … office … cubical … with paperwork falling from the pitch-black ceiling like snow, covering the ground with piles and piles of papers stacked from the ground up or from a table up.
It was all a mess … but it was the last thing she expected to see in X's mind … slowly, carefully getting to her feet. She nearly slipped on a few pieces of paper, but immediately balanced herself out and stood tall in order to observe her surroundings more closely, "Well … not exactly what I had in mind for X's head to look like … but okay."
"Technically this is your very own simulation on what my mind is supposed to look like Miss Raven," Raven jumped and spun around to come face to face with X … well … not really him … just a part of him. In a white shirt, black pants, black and white sneakers and a tear shaped X upon his right eye in the color of white instead of red. His silver eyes glowed with respect and wisdom … however he still held that same air of arrogance as the primary X, "for in a world that breaks all physiological sense I don't exist within my very own mind … but since you're brain tells you to see what makes sense, you have created a world within my own nonexistent sanctuary."
Raven looked around at all the papers, the office room, and then glanced back at the "White X" with a raised brow, "Let me guess … you're Intellect."
This X shrugged and leisurely waved his hand around in dismissal, "I rather prefer the term Reason, you know, the little angle that sits on the right side of your shoulder telling you to do the right thing? Yeah."
Raven blinked, "No offence, but your terrible at that job."
"Yes, well, I do what I can and I accept the consequences of my actions."
"Just like the consequences of what happened on the plane?" Raven glared, "That was a very stupid move, you could have killed us in more ways than one!"
Reason glanced over his shoulder to the sorceress when he had turned his back and proceeded to another corner of the office room. Forcing Raven to follow him, he stayed silent for a moment, but then sighed in defeat and confessed – he wasn't Deceit. "Actually … I supported that idea …"
Raven stopped dead in her tracks and eyed Reason in disbelief, "What? Wait, I thought you said you were Reason? That was not reasonable!"
"Maybe," Reason turned around and leaned on a door that led to god-knows-where, staring at Raven he said serious, "but I'm still an emotion, and since you're a sorceress that often keeps close tabs on her emotions you can hardly understand what it feels like to exhaust yourself emotionally. Miss Raven … you've exhausted my efforts to try and understand the facts that you have given me about our predicament … and to be quite frank, you're the one not being reasonable." With a click he opened the door and gestured for her to leave down the on going hallway of an office building, Raven glanced at Reason when he continued, "I can no longer explain any further for you to understand what I think I was rather blunt about earlier."
So took a step out, but stopped to give Reason one last thought, "How can you say I'm not being reasonable when you know it's wrong …"
Reason smiled and reached out a hand to remove a strand of hair that had fallen over her face, "Because you never even gave us a chance."
Raven looked away, and then walked out of the office, she never even heard the door click shut when she looked up and found herself in a dark … dank … and surprisingly freezing cold cave. Shivering ever so slightly by the lack of warm clothing, Raven wrapped her arms around her body and looked around wondering what part of X's mind she could possibly be in. Walking deeper into the cave, she stopped when she heard something odd … something … loud and roaring. Suddenly the ground started to vibrate, and a bad feeling crawled up her spine when the roaring grew louder and it came from behind where the door into Reason's section had vanished!
Turning around, Raven stared at the bend and braced for anything so imagine her shock when another of X's personalities rounded the bend with a wide grin on his face. A bright Red X over his right eye and a bright red shirt to match his black pants and black and red sneakers. He spotted Raven and grabbed her elbow, "Come on! It's comin'!"
He looked more excited than scared when the vibrations grew more violent, Raven followed in confusion and dared to glance back, "What are we running fro – AAAHHH!"
Without warning the two were caught by surprise when a whole opened up on the floor and they dropped down, Raven looked up to see a giant boulder had just rolled over the tiny whole she fell in. Looking down, she gasped when the X she was with held her close and whispered in her ear, "Hold on tight."
Just that single warning he gave before she felt them begin to slide down the slippery tunnel in a speed that seemed almost impossible to accomplish. Holding on to X Raven saw the white light at the end of the tunnel coming up fast. Before she knew it she was spat out and air-born, landing upon a trampoline and bouncing her brain out of whack. She heard X start laughing and hollering, cheering as if he won some kind of game, she shook her hair out of her face and sat back when this X did flips on the trampoline, ending with a twirl to land feet first on the stabled ground.
His silver eyes looked at her and winked as he held out his hand to help her off, "Had fun?"
"Is that a trick question?" Raven grabbed his hand and felt herself being pulled weightlessly off the trampoline onto the ground, adrenaline still pumping she nearly lost her balance, this "Red X" caught her and chuckled.
"I guess the adventure thing isn't your type huh."
Raven pulled herself away from him and supported herself on the trampoline, giving this X a scrutinizing glare she guessed, "Hyper?"
He smirked, "Try Thrill Seeker."
Raven's glare grew darker, "Junky."
He shrugged, "Thrill Junky, Risk Taker all the same smell to me."
"Well it isn't to me; part of your character is blending with my personality and I want you gone. Now."
"What's wrong with a little of me?" Risk snickered and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her near him, "I kind a like me."
Raven shoved him off, "Well I don't."
"I beg to differ."
"Don't push me," Raven growled and held out her right palm for him to press his own palm against hers, "my patience is thinning and I'm tired of worrying when you'll take over my mind at the wrong time."
Risk gave her hand a look and slid his hand over hers, weaving his fingers and clasping her hand, he smirked and gave her a little spin, allowing her to fall, only to catch her and dip her in a classic dance step. Raven gritted her teeth and controlled her anger when he chuckled, "As much as I'd like to make your life a little easier doll-face, that's not my department … you're gonna have to see the other guy for that."
"What other guy?"
"You'll know him when you see him …cuz' he ain't apart of me … he came from you," Risk winked and let her go, dropping her to the ground, Raven braced for the fall, but gasped when darkness enshrouded her and she was once again tumbling into the abyss.
However, instead of falling on her butt, she floated to her feet and touched down upon a rusted steel catwalk. Thin to, just wide enough to hold one person, but connected from one side of a dark, dimly lit room to the other and a stairway leading down into what Raven observed to be a prison. Two stories with a control room on either side of long narrow prison. Gulping she carefully trekked her way to the stairs, keeping her hands on the rails taking it step by step, listening in for any surprises.
Raven reached the bottom, but went still when she heard an odd sound … chains rattling … and it was coming from one of the prison cells that were all dark and hard to see anything inside. Following where the sound originated, Raven tried to guess what would be in a prison that X didn't want out … she figured a bad memory, but she was meeting emotions … so … maybe she was going to meet up with a nasty side to X.
After all … he was a villain.
Looking into each of the empty cells, she stopped in the middle of the prison when she spotted movement in the cell to her left, with second glance she saw the chains she heard slither into the darkness. Away from the light … she took a step close to the cell and asked carefully, "… Who are you?"
"I'm X …" responded the voice with a sort of casual tone, as if she was supposed to know already who he was, but there was something else about it. It was a distorted voice … from the Red X.
Raven narrowed her eyes, "… What are you?"
"… Didn't Reason tell you? I'm a figment of your imagination."
Now she was getting annoyed, "Are you Mischief … or … Troublemaker?"
He laughed lightly and mocked her, "Mischief … Troublemaker … that's putting it lightly …"
Raven sneered, "Bad Karma."
"Now that's funny … you're a funny girl … I like that."
"All jokes aside …" Raven scowled, "… who are you really."
"…"
Silence … until the rattle of the chains caught her attention, observing the fist thing that came to the light, his black pants – as every other emotion she's meet had – but black and gray sneaks, the chains on his ankles. Then two that dragged on the ground leading up to his wrists and the gray shirt leading up to the chain around his neck and finally the face of what X would look like. If he hadn't slept in days, the raccoon eyes that were bloodshot, tired and worn out, but his silver eyes burned with … what many would have believed it to be … insanity.
With the gray tear shaped X over his right eye, he smirked and bowed politely to introduce himself as, "I'm known as Disorder … I'm every bad habit or rather mental disorder I have been diagnosed with by the ten shrinks I've seen in my lifetime. The dumb fucks can't figure out whether I'm up or down, goin' right or dodgin' to fuckin' left field, but all shrinks aside. Welcome to my humble abode, please, make yourself comfortable and I'm sure the other guy will make himself known soon."
"The other guy?" Raven looked around, "You mean you share your sector of the mind with … someone – er – something else?"
"Yeah, no thanks to you," Disorder scoffed and leaned against the bars tiredly, but snickered and snorted, "this is just another goddamned reason to prove I'm crazy … but shit, I gotta be, I broke into the Titan Tower and stole the Red X suit all in one night … not to mention I'm talking to myself … no surprise there."
Raven raised a brow, an old question she had been meaning to ask resurfaced and with Disorder, this seemed like a good enough time to ask and get a truthful answer, "What made you want to steal the suit?"
Disorder glanced up at the sorceress and smirked, "Ah … ha, ha, ha … it was Thrills idea … he just needed me to overpower Reason."
That's right … Disorder … X could be a kleptomaniac … Raven thought to herself, but shook her head inwardly, he doesn't show it … must not be so strong …
"So you did it just for the thrill?"
"Fuck yeah," Disorder grabbed a hold of the bars that imprisoned him and leaned back, letting his head hang to look up at his dark ceiling, he rolled it back and sighed heavily with a big grin on his face, "once I was free of Jylin, I decided to have little bit of fun and proved to my third shrink that my acute paranoia was just another bunch of horse shit observations."
Raven raised a brow, "Does that mean that you do what you do … just to quench your boredom?"
Disorder blinked, his grin falling ever so slightly as he shrugged, "Never heard it put like that before … but if that's the way you can now understand what makes me tick … then believe what you want to believe, princess."
So it really is all about the thrill … Raven frowned in disappointment, Disorder saw it and chuckled.
"Don't look so grim slim, I do what I do for the thrill, but I became this way through life when I figured out it's not all about the sugarcanes and lollypop kisses … you have to do what needs to be done and grow a hard shell to defend yourself from life and all its "splendors". Of all people, you should know this better than even myself."
A chain rattled …
But it wasn't coming from Disorder …
It was coming from a cell across from him, but behind Raven, the sorceress turned her attention toward the sound and backed up when she saw hot white eyes of a mask staring at her. She gulped … for some strange reason, this one didn't feel like it belonged here … even if being behind bars suited the beastly aura this … one gave off. Raven looked over her shoulder to Disorder who frowned and slowly sank back into his shadowy cage, but before disappearing Raven asked, "Is this the other?"
"…Yes …"
"If he's so dangerous … why hasn't he consumed you yet? Disorder?" Raven tried to squeeze in another question, but Disorder was gone and the prison was left empty except for her … and the Other.
The chains shuffled across the metal floor, and Raven narrowed her eyes when this force of the mind revealed himself with the top of the Red X mask, masking his eyes and a Black X going over the left eye. He tilted his head, he grinned, and his canines grew out to fangs; he lifted up a clawed hand and wrapped it around the bars. Staring down Raven with great interest he chuckled … and he didn't sound human at all, "Well … I heard someone was looking for me … I just didn't think it be you … the pleasures all mine."
"You'll know him when you see him …cuz' he ain't apart of me … he came from you." Raven shuttered at the memory of what Risk had told her, it was tall-tale sign that the portal linking from her mind to X's was very strong, "You're my demonic half … what are you doing here?"
"Strolling the nearby neighborhood," Demon leaned his forehead on the bars, but he still kept his eyes on Raven, his prime, "you're hardly any fun at all … you barely use me and I'm bored."
Raven narrowed her eyes, "This is not a case of boredom, I want you to return to me and show me the portal you came from so I can seal it and sever this bond."
Demon growled low, non-threatening, just growled and pulled away from the bars, "Now you see … that's a problem, because I didn't plan on leaving."
"Well change of plans … where's the portal." Raven demanded and Demon actually narrowed his masked eyes.
"The mind is a powerful thing … are you sure you want to mess with me?"
"You're part of me … I know everything about you."
"If that's so, then you should know I never go down without a fight."
Raven jumped back when Demon whipped the chains on his wrist and demolished the cage that held him back. Shattering the illusion of the prison compound and bring them into a setting awfully similar to her own mind. A forest of dead black trees, a dark black sky with red stars everywhere, but the ground … it was splattered with dry blood here and there and the stench of death was everywhere. This … was the true domain for Demon … and Raven could tell that he was in the middle of creating it because off in a far distance she saw white tunnels in various places.
But the portal to her mind … it was behind Demon.
Demon glanced back at it, then turned to grin at Raven, "There it is … here we are … what do you want to do?"
"Up to you …" Raven took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, inwardly chanting her mantra and making sure to gather what little energy she had after the knockout. She hoped it'll be enough to weaken Demon and drag him back with her … he had to be the link that held Junky and Temptress within her realm. So she asked, in a last ditch effort to settle this smoothly, "Easy way or hard way?"
Demon chuckled …
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Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans
A/N: Ah-HA! Ain't I a stinka? Review and we'll see if I have the heart to update soon enough for you guys.
L8r daez!