Brotherhood

Chapter 14: Necessary Evil

Beast Boy flew back up to confront Malchior, turning himself into a dragon to match the black monstrosity that was currently trying to burn Raven alive.

"Raven," he spoke into her thoughts, "go give Terra some first aid. I can handle this guy until you're done."

The confidence in his voice gave the empath's spirits a boost, but she was still uncertain.

"Are you sure?"

"Terra's dying," Beast Boy said bluntly, even as he weaved and dodged around blasts of flame. "I can't help her, but I can fight Malchior while you do."

Raven couldn't ignore the undercurrent of pain running through Beast Boy's voice, but she stopped her attacks in spite of her own anxiety. Flying back down to the ground, she knelt beside Terra. The severity of the wound made Raven sick to her stomach, but she steeled herself and stayed focused. Feeling the life force ebbing out of her former teammate, the empath put as much of her energy as she could into stemming the flow of blood. The wound had cut a line almost straight down Terra's chest; Raven saw it had only been a matter of inches between her heart staying in one piece and being completely destroyed.

The jolt of energy snapped Terra back to consciousness, and she drew in a shaky gasp of air.

"Try to stay calm," Raven told her as levelly as she could, struggling not to panic. If Terra went into shock, she could die no matter how successfully she'd been healed. "I know it hurts, but you have to stay in control."

Terra's eyes were wide and glazed and clearly terrified, with nothing but strangled, half-formed sounds coming out of her mouth in the place of words.

"Don't," Raven said gently, placing a hand on Terra's forehead and giving her a soothing ripple of energy. "It'll all be fine."

Malchior glanced down at the pair of young women and chuckled, before a blast of flame from Beast Boy compelled him to swerve out of the way.

"She's going to die, you know," he growled, answering his enemy's attack with a blast of his own. "Not even someone as powerful as Raven can save her from an injury like that."

"Shut up," Beast Boy hissed at him, even as his own fears were gnawing at the corner of his mind. "She's going to make it. She always does."

Malchior said nothing, suddenly vanishing from sight. By the time Beast Boy realized that the dragon had simply changed back into his humanoid form, he was already getting pelted by a storm of fireballs. Faced with no other choice, he abandoned his shape and transformed into a large eagle instead.

"You care for her, don't you?" Malchior said, flickering in and out of view as he moved at impossible speeds, hurling attacks almost nonstop. "I wouldn't have thought you'd be the two-timing type, Beast Boy."

The changeling bit his tongue, swallowing his anger and doing nothing more than attempting to stay alive. The intensity of the attacks was becoming too high to avoid, forcing Beast Boy to abandon a defensive strategy and fly right at Malchior. Flying around a few predictably-aimed fireballs, he stuck his talons out in front of him and aimed at Malchior's eyes.

"Enough of this."

The demon stuck his hand out, and Beast Boy suddenly found himself frozen in place.

"You didn't honestly think someone like you ever stood a chance against someone like me, did you?" Malchior sneered, while Beast Boy could only watch in mute terror while the demon brought a spike of dark energy flaring to life in his free hand.

"How idiotically human."

The pain as Malchior stabbed the spike through Beast Boy's gut was so agonizing that the changeling's scream froze in his throat. He could hear Raven crying out as he slipped back to his human shape and fell to the ground, bitterly reminded of their new bond's reciprocal strength.

If I die, she dies, Beast Boy reminded himself, trying desperately to find the will to resist; to survive. I can't let that happen.

"That should make the rest of this little errand rather painless," Malchior mused as he floated slowly downwards, before he began to walk toward Raven. The empath was hunched over in pain, devoting all of her concentration just to staying aware.

"Stop fighting, Raven," the demon said as he came to within arm's length of his prey. "That will only make it hurt even worse."

Reaching down, Malchior grabbed the empath by her shoulder and hauled her up into the air. Flexing his free hand, the demon took a moment to relish the fear in Raven's eyes before pulling his arm back and aiming for her heart. One simple thrust, and this errand of his would be all but complete.

Arella stood stock-still as the High Council's words echoed in her ears, unwilling to believe what she'd just heard.

"You can't be serious."

"Do you think we would joke about something this important?" one of the five mages at the semi-circular table asked, her elaborate robes signifying her office as one of Azarath's select rulers. "Our decision is final, human."

Arella barely kept herself from flinching at the pejorative use of her race: she hadn't been talked down to like that since the first week she'd arrived in Azarath, all those years ago. Desperate, she looked to her staunchest ally on the Council with pleading eyes.

"Wanax," she said, "I know you don't think this is the right thing to do."

The old man gave Arella a sad gaze in return, shaking his head.

"Trigon's defeat is of the utmost importance, Arella," Wanax replied. "It is clear now, beyond all doubt, that the lives of Trigon and your daughter are linked. The only way to ensure the demon does not regain his lost powers is to let Malchior kill her."

The declaration knocked the wind out of Arella's gut, and it took every ounce of her poise not to reel backwards.

"How… how can you say that?" she breathed, staring at Wanax. "You've known Raven her entire life. You've always supported her in the past. You delivered her into the world with your own hands. She's not someone you can just put down, like a sick animal. She's my daughter!" Arella finished, her voice risen to a shout as her hands clenched into fists at her sides.

"Calm yourself," another one of the Council members said, her voice just shy of threatening. "I understand the power of a mother's love for their child. But you must understand that Raven had her chance to destroy Trigon once before, and she failed. The best she could do was to leave him trapped in a semi-mortal state, and that is simply not enough to ensure the safety of Azarath and its people."

"Once Malchior has possession of Raven's heart," the first Council member who had spoken rejoined, "we will make sure that he is obliterated, and the heart along with him. Trigon will be permanently trapped in his weakened incarnation, and from there it will only be a matter of time before we can deliver his punishment."

Wanax brought his gavel down a few moments later, signaling the end of the meeting. The other four members of the Council got up and filed out through the front door, leaving Arella alone with the man she had thought was her benefactor.

"Malchior is already here," Wanax spoke up before Arella could say anything, his voice serious enough to demand her attention. "We have very little time, and I won't waste it. Come with me."

The Council member stood and walked toward the back of the room. Arella was puzzled by the sudden change in Wanax's demeanor, but was left with little choice but to follow him.

"I apologize for my earlier conduct," Wanax said gravely at last. "It was cruel, but the only way I cold keep the Council from suspecting me. I cannot imagine how painful it was for you to hear that. Forgive me."

Arella felt a weight roll off of her chest at the apology, relieved to know that she wasn't alone after all.

"There's nothing to forgive," she said. "I just can't believe the rest of the Council honestly thinks Raven should die."

"They hold that her first victory over Trigon had more to do with luck and coincidence than skill or effort," Wanax answered, "and they don't feel comfortable entrusting the fate of Azarath to chance. I pity them for their lack of faith, but their stance is understandable."

Arella bit her tongue and said nothing, continuing to follow the Council member further down into a tunnel that started to look more and more like a catacomb passageway with each passing minute.

"Where are we going?" she asked at last, after Wanax's silence became too much for her curiosity to bear.

"To do something that will likely get me permanently exiled," he answered. "But there are many other places I might be able to call home, and Trigon's defeat is far more important than my own standing on the High Council."

They kept walking, moving on in tense silence until the pair finally reached a wall of solid, glass-smooth obsidian.

"A dead end?" Arella said. Wanax smiled.

"To some, perhaps," he replied, touching the stone, "but not to me."

The mage spoke words in the native language of Azarath, his tone hushed to a whisper that his companion could not interpret. The stone began to ripple impossibly out from each of Wanax's fingertips, the disturbance spreading until it covered the entire barrier. The rippling intensified, getting faster and faster, until it became hard for Arella to tell whether or not the stone had been turned into water.

And then, right as the waves reached their peak, the slab of stone vanished entirely. In its place was a simple door of iron, its surface covered with symbols that had been carved deeply into the metal. Arella could recognize some of the runes as characters in the Azarathian alphabet, but others were completely indecipherable.

""Seventeen years ago," Wanax said, "when Trigon came here with his legions in search of your daughter, we managed to drive him off. But it was at great cost to us, and to the High Council in particular. Many of its members perished in the fight against Trigon's armies."

"Yes, I know," Arella said, her voice heavy. "And I am sorry for what I caused."

"You have no need to be sorry," Wanax replied. "No blame for any of that rests on your shoulders. What Trigon did to you was unforgivable, and you will never be punished for it as long as I have the strength to prevent such a thing.

"I didn't bring the past up to indict you," he continued, as the door in front of them swung open with a groan, "but rather as a way to shed light upon the present. After we drove off Trigon's invasion, the Council decided that our defenses had proven to be pathetically inadequate for hindering his assault. We argued for some time to find a solution to our problem, but the High Council was hopelessly divided.

"Eventually," Wanax finished as they continued forward, "I decided to take matters in to my own hands."

By now, the torchlight had grown bright enough that Arella could see a young man sitting beneath it, perfectly still and calm in meditation. The odd familiarity of his face sent a shiver cutting right though to Arella's bones, a shiver that only worsened when he opened his mouth and spoke.

"Azarath is burning," he said in a voice that pulled Arella back to that horrible night she had hoped to forget forever, "and you're wasting your time telling a story that doesn't matter. Typical."

The young man rose to his feet, opening his eyes as he did so to reveal a pair of bright orange irises. He smiled sharply, his fanged canine teeth glinting faintly in the dim light.

"I was wondering how long it would take you to make your way down here, father," he continued, turning to face Wanax. "Does the Council know about this?"

"They have no idea you exist, Rhan," the mage answered seriously, "and they never will."

"Oh, really?" Rhan replied, the smile on his face now bright with vicious glee. "Does that mean I have your permission to kill them all, when they realize their plan's gone south and they show up to finish what Malchior started?"

"No," Wanax said sternly, "you do not. And hopefully, it will not come to that."

"Trusting to hope at a time like this is foolish," Rhan countered, before turning to look at Arella. "If the sight of me pains you," he said with a shocking level of civility, "you have my apologies."

"I—" she stammered, caught completely off-guard. "I beg your pardon?"

Rhan stared at her, the look in his orange eyes sympathetic.

"Trigon destroyed your life," the young man answered plainly. "I assume the sight of me brought some of those memories rushing back to you."

Arella took a moment to regain her mental balance, before she glanced over at Wanax with confusion still lingering in her eyes.

"But… he can't be…"

"It's a sad story," Rhan cut her off, "and one that we don't have time for right now. Did you break the seal, old man?"

"Yes," Wanax answered. "You are free to leave. Keep Raven alive, and I won't force you to return."

Rhan nodded, turning back to regard Arella.

"We should get going," he said, holding out his hand. "Come on."

Arella placed her hand in Rhan's, and a heartbeat later four red eyes flared to life on the young man's face.

Before she could scream, the world had gone completely dark.

Rhan took in the scene in front of him as soon as his soul-self had dissipated, seeing that Malchior was only inches away from murdering Raven. He began to move without a moment's hesitation, charging towards the demon and lashing out with a powerful crescent of black energy. Malchior shifted his focus and batted the attack away with his free hand, letting Raven go and jumping to the side as he turned to face the unexpected new arrival.

"Who're you, then?" the dragon asked, before he winced in pain and looked down at his hand. It was charred black, the fingers misshapen.

"Wha—?" Malchior began to say, before another blast of energy slammed into his chest and sent the demon careening backwards. Rhan hurried over to where Raven was lying in a heap on the ground, reaching out with his senses and cringing as he felt how weak and drained she was.

"Wake up," he said softly, placing his forefinger gently against the gem in the middle of her forehead. "I need your help, sister."

A quick jolt of energy was all it took for two pairs of red eyes to open on Raven's face, the empath taking in a rattling breath as her Rage surged to the forefront of her mind. She looked up at Rhan, the confusion that clouded her eyes replaced in a blink by stunned recognition.

"How…?"

"I'll tell you later," Rhan said, as he heard Malchior roar in anger. "Get up and get ready to fight."

Rage was on her feet in an instant, and Rhan reached inward to tap into his own dark side as well. Four red eyes appeared on his face once again, and he greeted Malchior's burst of fire with an equally powerful wave of black energy.

"Well, well," Malchior said as he transformed back into a dragon, "what do we have here? Another one of Trigon's rebellious scions? That might at least make this interesting."

"I don't suppose I have to tell you," Rhan spoke to Rage, "not to hold back?"

The emotion snorted in derision.

"Please."

Malchior took to the sky, both of his opponents following him.

"That shock you gave me won't last for very long," Rage grit out as she felt a lingering spike of pain. "Make this quick."

Rhan nodded, sending out several crescent-shaped blades of energy that cut deeply into Malchior's body.

"Of course."

The dragon barely had enough time to scream in pain before thick walls of black energy slammed into him his left and right sides simultaneously, crushing several of his bones beneath their force. Looking down, he saw the creature who had once been Raven chanting something— words Malchior vaguely recognized as ones he had taught her himself.

"No," he groaned, shortly before a massive spear of energy ripped through his flesh, tearing him apart.

Rhan looked over at Rage in the wake of her attack, his red eyes wide with surprise.

"Where did that come from?" he asked, drawing a satisfied smirk from his half-sibling.

"Jealous?" Rage said, before a fresh wave of pain broke her focus and she struggled against it.

Rhan exhaled and closed his eyes, the top pair vanishing a moment later. He opened them again, restored to their normal orange color, and placed a gentle hand against Rage's forehead.

"Sleep."

Rage opened her mouth to protest, but her eyes closed before she could say anything. Her body went slack, and Rhan braced it with energy before quickly descending back down to the ground. Laying Raven's unconscious body next to the dying blonde-haired young woman, the half-demon knelt down and placed one of his hands on each of their hearts.

"This is going to hurt," he said softly. "Sorry."

Taking a deep breath, Rhan channeled as much of his energy as he could into both Raven and the other young woman. The drain exhausted him, but seeing both of them jolt back to awareness was worth it. The vicious gash across the chest of the woman with the blonde hair—her name was 'Terra', Rhan had seen—had closed up, the immediate danger to her life successfully warded off. He staggered backwards, feeling cold, hot, light-headed and sick to his stomach all at the same time.

Why he went out of his way to help people when this was the kind of thanks he got from karma, Rhan would never know.

"Are you all right?" he vaguely heard Arella asking him a few moments later, as the half-demon braced himself against a nearby wall and tried to catch his breath.

"I'll be fine," Rhan forced out, attempting to overcome his nausea through sheer willpower and not quite succeeding. "And so will they."

"Thank you."

Rhan shrugged, the show of gratitude making him slightly uneasy.

"Don't mention it," he said, before pushing off of the wall and steadying himself on his own two feet. "We need to get the hell out of Azarath, though. If the rest of the Council finds us here, we're all as good as dead."

Arella nodded in agreement, before she saw something over Rhan's shoulder and smiled.

"You're awake," she said, sounding immensely relieved. "How do you feel?"

Rhan saw Arella's eyes narrow in concern, and every hair on the back of his neck stood up on end.

"Raven?" Arella asked. "Are you all right?"

Rhan was too tired to even try and dodge the blast of dark energy that slammed into him, hurling his body back into the nearby wall. Raven followed up her attack a moment later by pinning Rhan to the wall with an unexpectedly strong grip around his throat, staring hard into the half-demon's eyes.

"Who are you?" she demanded, sounding both angry and slightly afraid. "How did you do that to me?"

"That doesn't sound like 'Thank you so much for saving my life,'" Rhan shot back, his voice barely higher than a whisper. "Let me go."

"Not until you answer my questions," Raven persisted, tightening her choke-hold.

"Raven, stop it," Arella insisted. "We don't have time for this right now."

"You saw what he did!" the empath practically snarled, turning to face her mother. "He brought her back! I could have killed all of you!"

"But you didn't," Arella said, softening her voice as she saw tears running down her daughter's cheeks. "Rhan made sure of that. The least you can do is let him explain himself, after you've all gotten out of here."

"Unfortunately," a new voice broke in, "he won't be going anywhere."

Raven barely had time to react to the unexpected arrival before she was gripped by a spell and forcefully pulled away from her captive.

"Wanax?" Arella asked, puzzled at the sight of her friend advancing on Rahn with such coldness in his eyes. "What are you doing?"

The mage said nothing, reaching out and taking hold of the half-demon with his powers before hauling him up a few feet off the ground.

"Ridding Azarath of this monster," Wanax replied, before clenching his outstretched hand into a fist. Rahn's back arched as his hands and feet seemed to be drawn to a point behind him, and it was only a few seconds before the onlookers heard the sound of bones breaking.

Rahn screamed in pain, four red eyes appearing reflexively on his face.

"Stop struggling," Wanax said, not bothering to hide his scorn. "Your power is useless against mine. I created you, after all— did you really think I hadn't prepared for this?"

"We had a deal!" Rahn shouted, before screaming in pain again as his entire body was bent sharply in the other direction, forcing him into the fetal position as even more of his bones snapped under the strain.

"Yes, we did," Wanax answered, "and you performed admirably, as to be expected of a puppet. But now that Raven is no longer in danger, I'm considering our contract to be at an end."

The mage formed a dense sphere of energy in his free hand, and Raven could feel the sheer amount of power radiating off of it.

Beast Boy and Terra rushed forward at the same time, only to find themselves immediately encased in thick, unbreakable bands of energy. A quick shock hit them, and they fell to the ground.

"Before you blindly try to save the life of an abomination," Wanax said, "you should think about whom you're fighting."

"If you let our brother die," Rage spoke from within Raven's soul, sounding as angry as the empath had ever heard, "You will never know another day of peace in your life. I promise you that."

Raven felt confusion and fear cloud her mind, but the fog lifted in a surge of focus as she saw Wanax prepare to hurl the sphere at Rhan.

She loosed a few darts of energy at his arm, enough to throw off the mage's aim and send the orb smashing into the wall. Rhan fell to the ground as the hold around him broke down, gasping for breath. Wanax whirled on Raven with fury in his eyes, while Beast Boy and Terra scrambled to their feet as soon as the bands around them had shattered.

"Tell me what's going on," Raven demanded, unfazed by Wanax's anger. "Who is he?"

"An experiment," the mage snapped back. "Nothing you should be concerned with."

"Yeah, like I'm gonna believe that," Terra broke in, tearing two large chunks of rock up from the ground. "Whoever he is, I owe him for saving me. Answer her question, asshole."

Beast Boy turned into a large Amur tiger, growling threateningly at Wanax. Seeing himself surrounded by forces that could easily become hostile, the mage backed down. He opened his mouth to speak, but Rahn preempted him.

"What he said about creating me was the truth," the half-demon explained. "After Trigon got driven out of Azarath, Wanax salvaged some of his body from the battlefield. He used it to imbue an infant— his own son — with the demon's power."

Raven stared at Rhan, stunned by the implications of what she'd just been told. Suddenly, everything that had happened made perfect, horrifying sense.

"You… you did this on purpose?" the empath asked, turning to face Wanax. "To your own child?"

"I did what was necessary to defend Azarath," the Council member answered stubbornly. "Don't presume to judge me."

"Y'know, five minutes ago I would've been willing to bet a fortune that Slade was the scummiest person alive," Terra said, her voice seething with barely-controlled anger as the rocks she was holding up in the air began to quiver. "But I think you just took that spot."

"Challenging me," Wanax grit out, "would be most unwise."

Terra said nothing, letting her boulders fly with a shout. The mage broke them apart with a blast of energy, shifting into an offensive stance.

"This is regrettable," he said, "but certainly not unpredictable."

Wanax made to fire another burst of energy at Terra, but Beast Boy's tiger jaws had clamped down tight around his arm before the attack could be launched. The mage shouted in pain, retaliating a moment later by hitting the changeling with an attack unleashed at point-blank range.

Beast Boy roared in pain and flew backwards, skidding across the ground as he reflexively shifted back to his normal appearance. Raven took up the offensive, covering her fist in black energy and smashing it into Wanax's jaw. The mage slid back under the force of the blow, but stayed on his feet.

"I'm not your enemy here," the mage insisted, pushing Raven backwards with a concussive burst as he wiped a trickle of blood away from his mouth. "Just let me finish this, and then I'll send you and your friends back home safely."

"I'm not going to let you murder him," the empath shot back, unleashing another attack. Wanax crossed his arms in front of him to block it, the energy leaving his flesh burned and smoking in its wake.

"Why do you even care?" the mage asked, punching Raven in the gut hard enough to take the wind out of her, sending the empath to her knees. "You'd never even meant him before today. He's a symbol of everything you hate about yourself; everything you fear! Do you think some artificial bond of kinship matters? Rhan is my son! His life is mine to control, however I choose! He survives only because I allow it!"

The last statement sent a wave of hatred surging through Raven, and she felt her Rage rushing up from the pit of her stomach.

This time, she didn't even try to control it.

"Someone told me that once," she growled, staring at Wanax with four red, burning eyes. "In those exact words, actually. Do you know what I did to him?"

Wanax tried to attack again, but found that he couldn't move any of his muscles. His eyes widened in fear as Raven grew taller before his eyes, a dark aura spreading larger and larger at her feet.

"Please…" he said, his voice only slightly more dignified than a whimper. "Spare me."

"Don't worry, old man," a low voice whispered in Wanax's ear as the mage felt a sudden, stabbing pain in his chest. "She's not going to kill you. I am."

The shocked mage looked down slowly, and he could vaguely see an arm sticking out through his chest as agony made his vision swim and cloud.

"You…" Wanax rasped weakly. "Why…?"

"Are you serious?" Rhan asked, his voice cutting with mockery. "That's a stupid question to waste your last few breaths on. There aren't words in any language that could express how much I hate you."

The mage's body fell forward with a dull thud, and Rhan looked up calmly at Rage.

"It's done," he said. "We need to go. Now."

Rage looked surprised at the unexpected turn of events, but quickly mastered her expression and lowered herself back down to the ground. She looked closely at Rhan, who remained unflinching even as blood dripped slowly from his hand.

"You really aren't afraid of me," she asked, "are you?"

"No," he answered simply. "Why would I be scared of looking into a mirror?"

Rage's eyes widened slightly, her surprise at the unexpected answer great enough to give Raven control once more. She blinked at Rhan.

"I really need to know how you do that," she said, sounding distracted. Her half-brother nodded.

"I'll do my best to teach you."

The silence held for a heartbeat, until Terra's insistent voice broke it.

"Look, the sibling stuff is really touching and all," she said, "but we need to split. The cavalry's on its way."

True to Terra's word, four portals were opening in the sky above their heads. Raven looked over at her mother, her dark violet eyes panicking.

Arella smiled sadly and shook her head.

"I'll be fine," she said. "The Council won't charge me with anything, once they hear about what happened. But I can't speak for the four of you, and that's not a chance I want to take. Go."

Raven rushed over and gave her mother a quick, wordless embrace, before stepping back and looking over at Rahn.

"Can you open a portal?"

"Not by myself," he answered. "I can help you open one, though."

The pair quickly got to work, repeating the same chant that Terra had heard Malchior use back on Earth. The four portals above them widened, and the remaining members of the High Council began their descent as Arella looked on nervously. When the mages saw what was going on, they increased their speed and were almost on the ground when the exit portal tore open the air in front of Raven and Rahn.

The four unlikely allies raced into the portal, but one of the Council members shot a beam of magic energy through the opening just before it shut completely.

In the maelstrom of space-time within the portal, Beast Boy, Raven, Terra and Rahn were barely managing to keep their grip on one another when the attack hit them, shattering their focus and sending them hurtling blindly through the void. Raven barely managed to keep them all together, but she was forced to give up concentrating on steering them to their destination.

Trying to imagine Gotham in her mind as clearly as she could, Raven had no choice but to hope for the best.

A few moments later, the void disappeared in a bright flash of light, and the four travelers found themselves sprawled out on the ground in disarray.

"Ugh," Beast Boy groaned, the first one in the group to recover as he forced himself into a sitting position. "I feel like…"

The rest of his words died on his tongue, the changeling's eyes widening in surprise as he saw what was all around them.

Specifically, a swarm of police in riot gear leveling shotguns at their faces.

"Don't move," one of them said, "or we'll shoot."

"This is the absolute last thing I need right now, man," Beast Boy said, too exhausted to resist as the group of security officers quickly restrained the group, pinning them to the tiled floor.

"They're metahumans," one of the police said. "And I've definitely seen this one before," he specified, pointing at Terra. "She's a mercenary. Tranq 'em."

Beast Boy could barely squirm against the arm-lock, and a second later the warm prick of a needle was followed closely by a rush of sedative shot into his neck.

"I don't know how you all managed to get past our guards," the changeling heard them say hazily as he began to pass out, "but whoever hired you to help them escape picked a pretty horrible crew."

"We didn't…" Beast Boy tried to protest, and then the drugs overtook him.

Robin felt his communicator vibrate in his pocket, and stood up from his chair in surprise. Starfire was asleep on the bed nearby, but didn't wake up at the sudden sound. She burrowed further into the mattress, mumbling something incoherent. Taking out the small device and cradling it in the palm of his hand, Robin flipped the top open and looked at the read-out.

What he saw on it made him smile for the first time since before Starfire had learned about her parents' deaths… until he saw where Raven's signal was coming from, and his smile faded just as quickly as it had appeared.

"Star," he said loudly, hoping to rouse his girlfriend. "Starfire, wake up. We have a problem."

"Problem…?" the Tamaranean said hazily, sitting up slowly. "What is wrong?"

"It's Raven and Beast Boy," Robin answered gravely. "They're in big trouble."

Starfire snapped to alert in an instant at the mention of her friends being in danger, and was quickly up and out of bed.

"What is wrong?" she asked, but Robin didn't answer right away. He left the room and walked down the hall, Starfire following at his side.

"Robin?" she pressed. "What is wrong?"

"I don't know how it happened," he replied, "but they managed to wind up somewhere bad. Really, really bad."

"But, where?" Starfire asked. "Is it not somewhere on Earth?"

Robin shook his head.

"They got back to Gotham, all right," he answered, stopping as he got to the door of Damian's room. "It's where they wound up in Gotham that's the problem."

Robin knocked hard on the door, provoking a few muffled, hurried sounds from within the room. The door opened a minute later, and the pair stepped back to let Damian and Blackfire join them out in the hall. Starfire could see that her sister's face was slightly flushed, but made no comment.

"What's up?" Damian asked, immediately seeing the agitation on his brother's face.

"Beast Boy and Raven are back in Gotham," Robin explained, "but they're in danger."

"That doesn't surprise me, if they learned from you," Damian said. "How bad's the danger?"

Robin's eyes hardened.

"They're in Blackgate Prison."

Damian's expression turned into a rare display of open shock at the name.

"Oh, shit."

"Pretty much."

"And you're going to ask us to help spring them, right?"

Robin nodded.

Damian took a breath, settling himself as he closed his eyes for a moment. When they opened back up, they were bright with intensity.

"Then what're we waiting for?"

…

…

A/N: Well hey, that one didn't take nearly as long as I was afraid it might. I figured you guys could use a larger than normal chapter after such a long hiatus, so I made sure this one was especially action-packed. I had to re-write the scene where Rahn gets introduced about ten times, though: I couldn't figure out what I wanted that OC to be for the longest time, since he'll turn into a fairly important character in the future. So I hope he turned out likeable, at least!

Next chapter will probably also turn out to be something of a doozy, since prison breaks almost never go smoothly. There'll also be some more Terra goodness, since I both love writing her, and she and Beast Boy have a lot to talk about. I would have given them some time this chapter, but there wasn't really space for much dialogue when everything was busy exploding.

Now, I want to take some time to give shout-outs to those four awesome people who reviewed last chapter, because they are awesome! Many thanks to 2-shadows, DarknessPwns0.o, Jasmine (who called that Beast Boy would wind up turning into a dragon, so props to them for that), and last but most certainly not least, to long-time reviewer Wolvmbm. Thanks for sticking around, buddy.

I really appreciate you reading this far, and I hope you enjoyed it! I would say that I'll stop naming chapters after tracks on the "Dark Knight Rises" soundtrack, but that might make me a liar.

Also, if you review and I take a while to reply, it's just because I'm somewhere with really bad internet right now. I'll get back to you as soon as I can!

See you next time!

- Jazz