READ THIS: I do not belong to an organized religion. I've called myself Neo-Pagan/Wiccan on many an occasion. I do not view organized religion as "sacred", and this story is going to borrow elements of many different religions and beliefs as long as they fit with my story. For those of you who do belong to an organized religion, yes, I'm going to fuck with your beliefs. This isn't a personal attack on you, It's merely the way this story is going.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

I speak in verses, prophecies, and curses

This storm of thorns is growing

There's no end in sight

Chaos claws my jaw

And incites a mental riot

I'm in the mouth of madness

With a tongue of poetry

I ate the spine of Atlas

Now the world is crushing me

-Buried Alive, Otep (House of Secrets, 2004)

The room was concrete, painted a pale blue-grey with an old mattress in one corner covered by a red and brown afghan and a metal lamp next to it. In the opposite corner of the tiny room, a blonde-haired figure clothed in pure white cradled its arms in the fetal position, its face covered by the robes. The body was vaguely male-the definition in the arms contrasted with the small, almost feminine stature. The bottom of the robe was coated with mud and grass stains, and all in all the figure looked defeated. What was most disturbing, however, was his back. Deep gashes ran from his shoulder blades to his mid-back, bright red blood seeping from the bandages. Tattered white feathers clung desperately to the strange exposed bone that jutted from the from his shoulders, many of them stained red. When the Titans entered, the figure flinched violently, then raised his head slightly to look at them through clear blue eyes. He was obviously very frightened, but he managed a small, pained smile.

"We tried to make him as comfortable as possible," the lieutenant said. "But without access to proper medical care for fear that we would panic the city, there's not much we can do."

"Excuse me," he apologized softly, and tried to stand, but his knees buckled underneath him.

"Do not get up," Starfire implored, moving to him. She knelt down next to him and placed a gentle hand on his back, finding a place where the blood didn't reach. "What is your name?"

"Gabriel," he replied, smiling genuinely at her. "You have a beautiful heart," he whispered. "So full of love and gentleness."

Starfire blushed, and Raven could feel Robin tense slightly beside her. She glanced at him quickly, and he relaxed, a little embarrassed.

"Thank you," Starfire replied.

The lieutenant cleared his throat and said good bye to the group, and that he hoped the Titans would help the new unit become revolutionaries in their field. The door slammed shut behind him.

"May I ask who-or what-did this to you?" The alien princess asked when he had gone.

Gabriel looked around the red haired alien to stare straight at Raven. "Demons," he answered.

Raven took a step back, but didn't let any emotion show outwardly. She had been well-trained, and honestly-demons attacking what looked like an angel wasn't that shocking. The only shocking thing was that this one survived. Granted, he was badly beaten, but he was still alive-or in that semi-alive state that supernatural beings gained when they walked the Earth.

"Demons?" Starfire asked, her brow crinkling in thought. "Well, that's ridiculous. My friend is-"

"Half-demon, I know." He interrupted. He winked, which unnerved Raven a bit instead of comforting her, which she supposed was its purpose. "I could sense it, even before you had walked in."

He shook his head. "Nevertheless, demons did it. They are increasing in number, and that is unbalancing the scales-good and evil have to exist together, but while it's fine for good to outweigh evil in most respects, it could be damaging if evil outweighs good."

"The scales were an old theory that most practitioners of magic abandoned long ago," Raven said, crossing her arms at her chest.

Gabriel tried to wave his hand in a "pish-posh" gesture, but the pain in his shoulder prevented him. "It's a solid base for practicing magic." His voice left no room for argument. Raven sighed.

"I need your help," Gabriel pled.

"Of course!" Starfire immediately leapt at the chance.

Beast Boy and Cyborg looked to Robin before voicing their own opinions. Robin was getting jealous of Gabriel, what with his ability to gain Starfire's worry and attention so easily, but he couldn't let that overrule his sense of duty.

"What do you want us to do?" Cyborg asked him, taking over Robin's designated reply before the Boy Wonder could say something he'd regret.

"A storm is coming. Bigger than anything this world has ever seen, anything it's ever survived before. I'm just the first of many angels to leave his place and attempt to fight. The tides are turning, and we can't let the darkness win."

I think he just used every American cliché he could think of, Raven thought to herself. As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she received a sharp glare from the angel. Something bothered her about this guy, but she chalked it up to her demonic heritage's natural distaste for angels.

"That still doesn't tell us exactly what our part in this is," Beast Boy chimed in, ever the instigator. Gabriel's blue eyes flashed.

"We need to beat back the demons. I have many friends who can help, but our power weakens when we come to Earth. Demons, however, only get stronger. The only ones who can help us are the humans who live here." He glanced at Starfire. "And the alien visitors."

"How did you know-" Starfire began, but was cut off.

"Please tell me you'll assist us in our cause," The words were directed at Robin, but Gabriel kept his focus on Starfire.

"We will," Robin agreed grudgingly.

"Thank you," Gabriel let his head fall back into the crook of his arm. "Is there any chance…" he said, turning his neck to look at them again. "That you all could get me out of here?"

\\\

Two hours later, the five Titans sat around their kitchen table, speaking about their new guest, who had retired to the spare room.

"If there's really such a battle brewing, we want to be ready," Cyborg offered, placing a big hand on the table.

"Very true," Robin nodded. "But there's only so much we can do in a cosmic war."

"We have defeated demons before!" Starfire exclaimed, lifting her head from its perch on her palm.

"One demon, Star. One," Beast Boy reminded her, sparing Raven a look of what seemed to her like sympathy. The mentions of their battle with Trigon didn't bother her, she had told herself time and time again. Not at all. He was just another villian they had defeated.

A villian they wouldn't have had to face if it weren't for her, another voice in her head sneered.

And now I'm arguing with myself, she thought. Great. Isn't that one of the ways you can tell if you've gone mad?

"An especially powerful one, though," Raven said, disrupting herself from her thoughts. "I've read a lot about a major battles between 'the above and below'. A lot of seers have written about it."

The violet-haired girl inwardly rolled her eyes. Here we go again, she thought. Back to the prophecies.

"Isn't there something in the Bible about this? Raven, could you check?" Robin asked.

"Yeah," she said mockingly. "The Bible will totally have the answer to this. Do you know how many cultures and religions have the same stories about 'agents of the Gods'-like angels-and evil beings? Besides, I don't own a Bible."

She could tell the others were shocked, but they hid it well and continued their discussion about the latest threat to the world they were facing. Raven shifted uncomfortably in her chair, tucking her legs underneath her body. While they bantered back and forth about theories and game plans, they didn't notice the black cat-like creature creeping silently around the kitchen, taking note of each and every one of them. When the inevitable alarm rang loudly about the Tower, everyone rose from their seats and waited for Robin to give the order. The creature melted into the shadows and was gone, without anyone even knowing it was there.