Chapter 21
Raven had come face to face with her tormentor…
…The Mad Hatter.
Raven leapt into the air and landed a fierce blow to Tetch's jaw. His decrepit old body fell to the floor in a heap.
Just as Raven was about to finish him off, he held up his hand in a motion of stop.
"Don't!" he whimpered, "Don't forget your son!"
"What!?!" Raven screamed.
Tetch stood up, grinning but short of breath.
"He's not dead."
Raven's eyes opened wide, she was so confused.
"It was all a lie," Tetch added.
"Where is my son?!" Raven shouted as she grabbed Tetch by the collar.
He grinned, "He's in a soundproof, vacuum chamber, somewhere within this complex. The upshot is that even your telepathic senses will not be able to detect him. The downshot is simple physics, really. You see, in order to construct the soundproof chamber, I needed to create the vacuum. And in order to create the vacuum, I needed to eliminate air. The chamber has thirty minutes of oxygen."
Raven's face was white hot with rage.
"Activated when you entered this building, my dear. Waste any more time beating on me, and you sign your son's death warrant. I can take you there, if you'll but spare my life."
Raven raised her fist as if to strike, hesitated, and then lowered it.
"Good girl. A wise choice. Maintain that judicious decisiveness, and I vow – I shall spare your son's life."
He tapped the top of his cane, which reacted to his fingerprint, and a door in the wall shhhppped open.
"In the meantime, I wonder if you wouldn't mind accompanying me as I make my rounds. There are a few plot threads that need to be tied up before this is over."
It takes what little control I have left to stay my hand, but I can't pick up any hint of Constantine. If he's still alive, my only chance of saving him is to indulge this twisted animal.
If he's alive.
The Mad Hatter turned around, "Thirteen minutes left. In case you were wondering."
Raven followed him through the door. They entered a corridor with screens on both sides, lining it. Raven was surprised where the cameras were stationed. The monitors and screens showed surveillance in her apartment, office, the Chapel, various places in Gotham, and many more she couldn't even recollect. It occurred to her that the Mad Hatter did indeed look somewhat like Mad Mod, and she wondered if the two were related… or even the same person.
In spite of Raven's silence, Tetch spoke, "I suppose it'd be too audacious to assume you know much about me – beyond your most recent discoveries, of course.
"No one's really ever given me much thought, I'd wager. When all's said and done, I'm nothing more than the bucktoothed, old man with a funny hat, impersonating someone out of a fairy tale book. Typical.
"You've heard of the greatest villains of all time, yes? Lex Luthor? The Joker? Count Dracula? Ra's Al Ghul? Hades?
"How about The Mad Hatter? Or Jervis Tetch?"
Raven remained silent.
"No. I thought not. You see, I've been categorized as a 'Second Stringer.' Time and time again I tried to best the almighty and ever-cunning Batman at a game of magic and illusion. I had even convinced the World's Greatest Detective that he was in a perfect world, which turned out to be a dream. But time and time again I was defeated – either solo, or with other misfits to accompany me."
They past down a flight of stairs. Broken computers and conveyor belts littered the room.
"But rather than drone on and on with tales about how I became a bad egg, I'm sure you'd much rather like to hear how I became your bad egg.
"It all started with a visit to the physician at Arkham Asylum. The prognosis indicated something rather sickly. As a result from the mind-control devices and having my brain as the master, an impression was left on my innards. I was diagnosed with a brain tumor, completely inoperable. And I was given a year… maximum.
"They began my paperwork to release me almost immediately. I was declared sane, and based on my current condition, seen as a menace to society no longer. Then I had an epiphany: Jervis Tetch would not succumb to some pedestrian disease, not after a life of misery and failure. Instead, I would face my undoing in a suitably dramatic battle to the finish with my most hated foe.
"Alas – in my absence, the world had come to know a Batman I was unfamiliar with. Based on articles I read in Gotham's papers, this was not my Batman. How poetic could it be to take final arms against some kind of… of… for lack of a better description… Bat-fake?
"My grand scheme of a swan song seemed like a pipedream – until I remembered you… and your son. He and I had clashed once; your son had ruined one of my grandest plots. He had cost me too much… and I begrudged him. After I'd discovered your history, I was surprised by your… unabridged power. But there was something more about you, Raven, that appealed to me.
"You weren't regarded much outside of the Teen Titans. Unlike Batman, yours was not a reputation that was known the world over. I liked that."
He approached another door, and pressed the button to unlock and open it. The two proceeded through.
"You were like me."
Raven found it very difficult to understand everything Tetch made reference to, but she listened on.
"A second stringer," he went on. "And so I set about investigating the girl whose room no one was allowed.
"Like any mastermind, I'd done my homework. I'd researched your past, from what government files allowed – I'd accessed Cadmus archives. But I needed more than just classified biographies and date-of-births, I needed something more tangible. Slade considered you a useful facet. But meeting with the half-masked man and engaging him in conversation proved to be most difficult. But if you put the money in all the right places, you'd be astounded how desperate one needs cold, hard cash.
'Speak, Tetch. I don't have much time.'
'I'm looking to barter for any and all information you have on the Teen Titan, Raven. I understand you've often clashed with her. It would help me immensely in my endeavors if you could provide me with data I can use to strategize against her and her son in my latest campaign.'
'Go home, Tetch. You're not in the girl's league.'
'No. I do not seek to best her at a power struggle. No, I seek to drive her mad.'
It was an idea that appealed to him. For a million dollars, he told me everything he knew."
He pressed his thumb on top of the cane. A million images projected.
"EVERYTHING," he hissed.
Images of Trigon, Arella, Dr. Light, the four-eyed birds, Terra, Slade, Jeff, Robin, Starfire, Beast Boy, Cyborg, Dracula, Etrigan, Rampage, Overload, Control Freak, Wicked Scary, Constantine, Father Thomas, Raven as a mother, Raven as a Titan, and Raven as a little girl.
"You'd be surprised how much he actually knew about you."
The images vanished.
"Raven, with every hero there must be a nemesis, or archvillain – someone who drives them over the edge. Batman unfortunately had the Joker. Superman had Lex Luthor. Nightwing had Slade. Cyborg had Brother Blood. And so on and so forth. But you? Who have you had? Yes, you've had Trigon, your father, has a menace in the deep reaches of your mind. But really? You hardly clashed with him enough for it to even matter! I needed a hero to torture, and you needed a villain. Don't deny it. We're meant for each other.
"And so I began to plot the greatest undoing of a human being there ever was. Especially with the brain tumor now putting me in check, mind control was either just not an option or should be used lightly. So I had to turn to other villains to weave this intricate thread. It is often said that the greatest villain is thrown together from each of them. But, rather than assembling a team to join me, I took what I wanted. And I took it with no resistance whatsoever. Fifty years into the future, Raven, all the big guns will have retired and no longer have any use for their weapons and doohickeys. I had stolen Control Freak's remote, Mad Mod's cane, Slade's controllers, Warp's time-traveler, Luminus' technology, Jon Crane's toxins, and The Riddler's gadgets and puzzles.
"I've always been fascinated with the mind. Such an enigma, a mystery. I wanted to know how it worked, and what made a mind what it is. Eventually, I became so obsessed with the human mind that I sought to manipulate it. At first, I could only get as far as mind control, but I wanted more. I wanted to be able to project images into others' minds. Not illusions, mind you, even though that's ultimately what they were, but make the thinker believe they were real. The events that I was controlling, the person would believe this was all actually happening. Then take it all away, and destroy the mind. It was the greatest scheme anyone had ever conceived of.
"Now all I needed were my players. First came the twist of making your son look like the Antichrist. He had already carried a dislikable reputation with him, so I didn't need to do much. But I needed the whole world after him. But as my daddy always said, 'Start small.'
"I began this plot by using Warp's timeline to go back all the way to the birth of dear old Connie, and jump from certain points in your life. Etrigan? He didn't need much convincing. Tell the guy a few made-up ghost stories, and he thinks a little baby will end the world. The monster was too paranoid anyway. But he served his purpose.
"Getting a hologram inside the White House would be flat-out impossible, so I had to hire an assassin – a look-alike to your son in that mask of his. The Phantasm was perfect. But Andrea Beaumont was long gone, and needless to say, had no motivation for ever coming back. Assembling the suit and paying a desperate junky to storm into the White House and kill everyone in his path went much more smoothly than expected – and all for a thousand dollars! Next I double crossed him, sent him on a wild goose chase if you will, to bring him and lure Connie out into the open (and get himself killed). Knowing Constantine like I do, he would want to catch the imposter and clear his name. The Phantasm was stupid enough to fall for it.
"Then there was Skelmar. Simple really, an android. Rickety robot. State-of-the-art, but still rickety." He paused to show Raven several models of Skelmar, along with the control seat that operated him.
"Using the technology stolen from Warp, I attempted to kill your son by sending him back into the past to undo his own future. But when this failed me, I had to send Skelmar back to either dispose of Constantine or the one who spawned him. Ingenious? Yes, I know.
"Then there was dear Terra. Still petrified in God knows where, but she served her role. With a nice little camera in the Chapel, I was able to project what a 'mature' Terra would have looked like, using Luminous' light technology. His, of course, made it so light could turn solid, and thus kill that pathetic blind man.
"Darkseid was real, and once he heard news of the President's demise, he had to come and conquer the earth. Although when he planned to destroy half of the planet, well…
"I had to stop that, didn't I?"
He gave a mischievous grin at Raven.
"It's strange, actually. Everything after your scuffle with Terra was an illusion – under my control and command. How? Slade had manufactured certain command-discs which he had implanted once on Cinderblock, Plasmus, and Overload. I had abducted Constantine, plastered two extra eyes atop his forehead, and used Slade's same technology to control him unconsciously for my personal bidding. Making it a tad bit more subtle, even you couldn't tell Constantine was being manipulated. I could have made a solid light projection of Constantine, but only his body housed all that power that allowed him to unleash such fury.
"To control him, I simply took away his free will. Yes, it was a basic issue of choice – one that would result in a positive or negative command. It's that simple, really. Instead of Constantine making his own decisions whenever a choice would arise, I would. That is why he was unconscious. When the person is not deciding what course of action they take, they are not aware.
"That's how Slade's controllers worked: he did the same thing with those oversized brutish monsters. A choice would come up: 'Attack?' and I would input the simple command of either positive or negative, yes or no, on or off. 'Kill Darkseid?' Yes. 'Attack the Teen Titans? Fight back?' Yes. Then his body would react to my command almost instinctively, mechanically, or automatically. 'Attack Raven?' No. And he didn't. But he followed suit very well. Remember those kind words of 'I'm not the antichrist, mom. Don't hurt me!'"
Then the Mad Hatter chuckled to himself, that last remark amused him.
"I say that it's strange because the greatest battle ever seen was all fake, all my doing. I was at the controls the whole time. You have to admit it was like watching a movie."
"Was it all a lie?" Raven asked, thinking of Jeff and her… experiences.
"No, don't worry, Raven. It wasn't all fake. All of your memories of Jeff are truly authentic, and everything between the two of you happened. Did I have you concerned? I dared not go back far enough in time to meddle with your relationship with Jeff. No, I needed you to form that attachment, that bond. Because now that affection toward Jeff and Constantine made all of this interesting.
"Moving on to Otto Oz, man of a vast fortune, who comes from a society that studies the paranormal. He had been long dead, and I believed I was taking a huge risk by donning his face. I surely thought you had noticed his name in the obituaries, but I thought wrong… fortunately. How does it feel, Raven, to know that your tormentor was right under your nose? I'd even slipped you a card, for God-sake."
Raven clinched her fist, and made to strike. The Mad Hatter held up a finger.
"Ah-ah, I urge you to remember your son's welfare."
She recoiled.
"Where was I? Oh yes. After I suggested that you see your father for confirmation of Constantine's demonic situation, I knew you'd want to see Dr. Fate. He was the only person who could safely create a temporary link between Earth's realm and Trigon's pit. I killed the good doctor months ago and took his place. Once I had impersonated Dr. Fate, I was able to project the image of your dear old Dad right in front of you. Manipulate the image to make him say what I want, make it seem so real… and lo! You have an Azarathian one-hundred percent convinced!
"Ha! You actually thought that your son would end the world! How did it feel Raven? Thinking the child you gave birth to was the antichrist. How did it feel? I must know. Ha ha! It must have felt terrible watching your son getting the snot kicked out of him by Trigon. Oh wait, that was an illusion. It must feel worse now to know it never happened! I drove you mad, dear Raven. You were practically suicidal. Once I removed your son at the last second, I set off some fireworks, making it look like Constantine blew himself up. You were in agony. But now, knowing that you suffered that agony and anguish for no reason…
"…it's delicious."
At this, Raven could bear no more. She attacked the old man, grabbing him fiercely by the neck, taking away his cane, and snapping it in two. A weak smile crossed over his face.
"And here we are," he gagged triumphantly.
"Tell me where my son is," Raven screamed, anger steaming from her eyes, "or so help me God, I will kill you."
Finally… after more loss then I've ever known… I have my demon in my grasp.
"Here… we are…" he mumbled, "The final act… the one… I've been… plotting for the last year. I've destroyed everything you hold dear… and spilled innocent blood all over the world.
"Do it, Raven… kill me."
Raven's eyes calmed, and lowered. She remembered Jeff. She remembered his loss. She remembered all of the death she's seen in the past two weeks. Her gripped loosened.
She let him go.
"I'm not going to give you the satisfaction," Raven hissed coldly.
He fell to floor, half dazed and surprised.
"You think you can break me? You're a joke. Give me my son," Raven said, "and let's end this."
"What?!" he protested, "A joke?! I'm an artist! A genius! I drove you insane!"
"Nearly, but not. You tricked me and killed people. There's no talent in that… just savagery."
"But… but… but the Nightmare I put you through…?"
"Was nothing more than cheap parlor tricks, smoke-and-mirror gimmicks, B-villain material, and fancy light shows.
"Think you're like Count Dracula? You're not even close.
"All this is a wasted attempt to drive your arch-nemesis—or, in this case, adopted arch-nemesis—insane. You used Luminous' light projectors half the time. Where was your material? You cheated and used other villains' ideas to do what you could not. You're not a Scarecrow, not a Riddler, not a Mad Mod."
Then she added in a grim tone, "You shouldn't even be called a super villain."
Jervis Tetch lowered his eyes, and began to weep.
I could have killed him. But with a few choice words, I've taken his life… and watch as a man dies before me.
She asked again, "Where is my son?"
Tetch pulled out a one-button remote and pressed it. A part of the wall behind Raven opened up, gas steaming out. There lay Constantine on a bed, sound asleep. His face was calm, like he had been sedated for a long time. Raven walked over to Constantine and picked him up gently, fixing her eyes on the sleeping face of Jeff.
Raven was glad her son had not really self destructed.
She heard a voice behind her, "You're not going to want to miss this, Raven."
She turned around. The Mad Hatter reached into his inside coat pocket with his right hand, and pulled out a 9mm square pistol. He aimed at Raven.
"I don't know who's going to derive more satisfaction from this – me or you."
"Why's that?" Raven asked, holding Constantine in her arms.
"Because this is the end. Whether I stole it or created it… it's the end. It's mine."
The gun roared and Raven winced. There was a spray of blood.
Par for the course, she thought
Raven glanced down at her son; the sharp sound did not awaken him. He breathed steadily.
She walked away from the smoking gun barrel, the blood stained floor, and the top hat without a home.
For the first time in a long time, Raven continued thinking to herself...
I didn't shed a tear.