Titans: Elemental

Chapter 97: Birthmark, Part 2

Jack stands in front of Raven.

Jack, "get away from Raven, you sadistic freak of nature!"

Jack fired a huge blast of ice at Slade. Slade simply raises his hand to form a wall of fire that instantly evaporates the blast into steam.

Slade shoots a plume of fire that sends Jack flying back. He groans as he slowly stands up next to Raven.

Raven gathers her powers in one hand and projects a huge black claw that seizes Slade and carries him high over the machine room. It smashes him into a spot high on one wall; she and Jack fly up to survey the damage and sigh with relief upon seeing all the smoke.

Slade emerges from the haze, "I have a message for you."

Raven gets ready to let him have it again, but five steel-clad fingers lock around her left wrist and startle her out of it. White light flashes around her straining face, red light burns steadily around his, and she stands before him, unable to move due to the blinding pain caused by his iron grip.

Jack, "Raven!"

Finally, Slade let's go, and she tumbles down to land on a gear wheel. Jack quickly flies after her. As she sits up and looks herself over, her eyes go wide at the realization that her sleeve has been torn. Behind her, Slade floats in midair, wreathed in crackling blue-white sparks. We see the exposed forearm; whose skin now sports a glowing red mark identical to the one on Slade's forehead.

Jack gasps as he stands proactively near Raven.

Slade is illuminated by both this crimson aura and a new shower of sparks.

Slade, "it has begun."

The energy flashes all over the room, blowing out machines in clouds of smoke; some of it flows through his outstretched hand, then hits the shaft of a piston and snaps it. As Vic and Bryan come to, they have to back up very quickly to avoid the falling debris. More explosions rip through the rest of the stilled shafts and drop the huge gears free from their elevated mountings near where Dick and Rose have lighted. On the floor catwalks, Changeling has resumed human form and is still badly dazed by his hard landing; Kom' and Starfire sweep past, pulling him toward the exit, and Vic and Bryan cut out after them. Dick and Rose swing down a second later as the framework under Dick's feet starts to blow apart.

While the others flee for their lives, flames boil up from the levels beneath the floor and the wall pistons tumble like rows of pine trees. A terrific blast brings down more of the gears and their framework; one colossal wheel slams down and rolls after Dick, whose feet are already doing triple time toward the door. The catwalk buckles under the vast weight, leaving him on a slope too steep to climb, and he stares bug-eyed toward the advancing shadow. Raven and Jack watch, horrified, from their vantage point among the few intact gears for a second or two and then Raven finds her voice.

Raven, "STOP!"

A black wave radiates out from her body and washes over the entire machine room; as it passes, the lights dim and the tumult slows to a dead stop. When she looks up, totally bewildered, she finds that the place has become a full-scale freeze frame; this is an exercise of her powers that we have never seen.

We see Kom' and Starfire flying out, Changeling partway through a transformation, Vic and Bryan running like mad, Rose in a rolling dodge, then stop on the huge rolling gear. We see its teeth. Dick has fallen onto his back and will surely be flattened if time gets itself sorted out.

Raven gasps in shock and looks around the frozen tableau, her arms wrapped around her body as if for warmth. Her eyes stop on the levitating Slade and a frozen Jack, Slade is plastered back first against a wall with arms spread wide and head tilted upward.

Raven, "how did I-?"

Raven quickly flies to Jack and touches his shoulder.

Jack springs to life. He groaned as Raven helped him stand for a moment.

Jack, "what happened?"

Raven, "long story."

Slade, "you might be able to stop time, birthday girl, but you can't stop me", unfreezing, he glows red, "you can't stop any of it, really."

Raven and Jack start to retreat slowly.

Slade, "I have to say, Raven, when I found out the truth, I was very impressed", he walks in midair and gestures rubble away, "all this time, I had no idea. The power lurking inside you. The glorious destiny that awaits. It's always the quiet ones, isn't it?"

Raven clasps both hands to her head and groans as if trying to tear this experience out of her mind through her scalp. As Slade continues, she runs in search of a place to hide. Jack races after her, shooting ice at Slade as he does so.

Slade dodged as he said, "but honestly, did you think you could just blow out the candles and wish it all away?"

Raven and Jack run up a collapsed beam and stop at its elevated end.

Slade, "today is the day it begins."

Slade steps leisurely after them.

Slade, "you've known this all your life", he leans into Raven's face, "it is going to happen. And no matter what you wish", she turns away, "no matter where you go, no matter how you squirm…. There is nothing you can do to stop it."

Raven swivels her head to face him, her eyes flaring white, and passes through the wall that has blocked her path. Jack quickly flies after her as she emerges from the opposite surface, having assumed the form of her "soul-self," and both take flight. As they gain altitude, she resumes her normal appearance and casts an eye over the motionless tumult at ground level. Down they go, stopping by Dick; Raven places a hand on Dick's chest. Energy washes over the dimly lit Titan, his normal color and motion resume. He gasps and looks up at her and Jack.

Dick, "Raven? Jack?"

All three turn their attention briefly to Slade, who has not left his spot near the wall Raven traversed, and are then carried away in a black burst.

….

We see a street in Jump City; the light here has assumed that same dim tinge, indicating that Raven's time-stopping has worked on a very large scale indeed. Her "soul-self" rises from the pavement and glides through the urban still life, and Dick and Jack are ejected to the street when it has moved a safe distance from the underground machine room. Raven sorts herself out a moment later and eyes Jack and Dick ruefully, as they're less frozen, gasping for breath. A cathedral stands at the end of the block.

Dick and Jack stand.

Dick, "what is going on? Why is Slade back? Where did he get those powers? How did you stop time?"

Jack, "dude, calm down. Give Raven a moment."

Several birds have been caught in mid-flight, their wings visible only as high-speed blurs. A look across the area reveals people frozen in the middle of their daily business and cars' arrested momentum. There's a football hanging in air, a game in progress at a stadium; players form a tableau of rushing, blocking, and tackling on the gridiron.

Raven, "I…. I'm not sure."

Raven raises her torn left sleeve and sees the luminescent rune on her forearm fade out.

Raven, "I never wanted this day to come. And when it did, I just wanted it to stop. I guess I got my wish."

Dick, "what is happening?"

Raven looks briefly to the rooftops.

Raven, "it's my birthday."

A small black figure appears at one edge and dives toward them; it resolves into Slade once he has come close enough. Raven takes a few steps back toward Dick and Jack as the foe lands.

Jack and Dick, "Raven, run!"

She does so. Jack and Dick slide over to put themselves between her and Slade, who just eyes them as if their presence is of no importance whatsoever. The pair goes up for a series of flying kicks that rock the steel-masked head back and forth like a speed bag; the last one sends him sliding far down the block. Despite the ferocity of this assault, Slade is able to straighten up, but his head is twisted at an impossible angle on his neck. He slowly works it back into proper alignment, the sound of crackling vertebrae making itself quite clear.

Jack and Dick stare in total disbelief at this piece of skeletal legerdemain. Around Slade's feet, two tongues of flame erupt and entwine into a huge fireball that rockets toward the pair. It gets them bang in the faces!

….

We see the end of the block opposite the cathedral, where their yells of pain are heard and a car is blasted into the intersection. Raven catches sight of this and flies in to help, only to find a solid sheet of flame blocking the approach to the place of worship. Slade steps easily out of the inferno.

Slade, "I have a message for you, and I will deliver it, whether you like it or not."

The panicked Titan backs up slowly. Her fear gives way to rage in a twinkling, and she raises her hands to bring a loop of sewer pipe up from underground to snare him.

Slade, "skies will burn", he breaks free, "flesh will become stone."

Raven levitates mailboxes and parking meters and throws them at him.

Slade, "the sun will set on your world….", a box smashes harmlessly against his body, "... never to rise again."

His form turns to pure flame and explodes in all directions, wiping out the area for a second. When it clears, Raven's eyes dart up and down the street as she tries to figure out where Slade went. The movement stops when he rematerializes behind her; she turns to him with a gasp, and he seizes both upper arms in an unbreakable hold. As in the machine room, white light flashes around the gray face, drawn in a sudden, silent contortion as if she were being electrocuted, and she is hurled to the street on her back. When she starts to rise, she is shocked to find that the fabric of her outfit has torn away where he touched it; she hastily covers the exposed skin, which now displays red marks.

Slade, "time won't wait forever. You can't run away from who you are."

Raven, "I can try!"

Two huge slabs of asphalt crack loose under her influence and flip up, crushing him. She then sets off running toward the cathedral and the flaming chaos that fills the street near it.

Raven, "Dick! Jack!"

She pushes one chunk of rock aside and levitates a few others out of the way, but fails to uncover her teammates. She looks around here; she sees one particular slab, which falls away to reveal them pushing it. They are barely able to draw breath after the hurt Slade dumped on them, so she helps them up and steers them toward the cathedral.

….

We see inside the structure, the double doors swing open to show the three Titans on the threshold; as they slowly move into the silent expanse, the doors slam shut behind them. They walk up the center aisle. About halfway to the altar, Dick can go no further and collapses to the floor, dragging Raven and Jack down as deadweight.

Raven, "I shouldn't have dragged you two into this. Any of you. But you're in, and you need to know. I need to tell you. When I was born, they looked into my future. On this day, the anniversary of my birth, something is supposed to happen. Something very bad. That's why I-I didn't want to celebrate."

….

Outside….

Slade's boots step past, his shadow following well behind.

….

Raven, "but just because you don't have a party doesn't mean it's not your birthday."

Dick groans and stands up.

Dick, "the symbol…. On his forehead…. What does it mean?"

Behind him, the door is blown in off its hinges and the wearer of said mark stands amid the clearing smoke. He puts his hands together and sweeps them apart, throwing out a sea of fire that sets all three heroes tumbling. Dick crashes bent-backed across a pew, while Raven and Jack end up on the floor. Standing up, they look about and find the pyromaniac villain crouching by his handiwork.

Slade, "it's just you and me now, kid."

Jack snarls as he starts shooting a stream of ice at Slade. Slade easily shoots fire that evaporated the ice and then ran forward and punched Jack right through one of the windows!

Raven, "Jack!"

Raven quickly starts running as Slade approaches….

….

We see the full moon hanging low in the light-tinted nighttime sky. The view is between buildings; a flock of motionless birds sit above an alley. Raven bursts out of a door that gives onto this passage; the cathedral's rear entrance, and beats feet at Slade's jet of fire hisses out after her. He steps out a moment later, taking his time.

Slade lifts his burning hand, "you're making this much more difficult than this needs to be."

He throws a fireball that unfolds into a blazing barrier to cut off Raven's escape; she turns back, shielding her face, and finds him ambling up.

Slade, "the message must be delivered."

Almost without thinking, Raven manifests her "soul-self" and flies through the flames. She resumes her usual form on its other side and continues her flight, but Slade is zooming right up after her. Every move she makes, he copies without even a hint of stress or effort, even a thread-the-needle dive that carries both through a stilled busy street. Raven brings several cars up from the curbs and slings them back at her pursuer; he dodges one, smashes the others in two with a string of burning punches, and continues his approach.

Several blocks later, he warms up and displays his pyrotechnic abilities in a new way, stretching out two blistering arms that send Raven diving every which way as they grab for her. She machine-guns one of them with black shots, then hits the gas to stay ahead when these do no good. Her course carries her into a narrow alley between two buildings; the fiery arms hit the architecture on either side and dissipate, but Slade charges straight in.

Raven, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

Her powers extend over two structures and pull them toward each other until their facades grind together. Now in open air, Raven stops to look back at the trap she has sprung on Slade; probably the world's biggest trash compactor. Thick dust clouds waft slowly up from the shifted foundations and ruined masonry.

She dips her head sadly, thinking now of the destruction caused by her desperate gambit, but is rudely interrupted when the upper stories partially blow out and Slade emerges unscathed. The shock of seeing him roots her to the spot and leaves her wide open for him to get in a flying tackle. Both crash into the roof of the building Dick first burglarized when he was forced to work for Slade; circular design, observation deck set a story or two down, walkway leading off from this. As the smoke clears, Raven hustles away from the impact site and Slade stands erect, his masked face showing more single-minded determination

Slade reaches into view, and grabs Raven's cloak

Slade, "what you have concealed, you shall become!"

He rips the entire cape off of her. Raven now lies prone, the back of her outfit split all the way down to her belt, and a pattern of glowing scarlet inscriptions has appeared on her bare skin. With some effort, she turns over to face up at him.

Slade, "you have no other choice."

Raven's eyes blaze; she swirls up into a charge.

Raven, "no!"

Black energy surrounds her entire body, but dissipates the instant he gets his left fingers locked around her right forearm.

Slade, "the message will be delivered."

She swings with her left; Slade grabs it, too.

Slade, "your destiny shall be fulfilled."

She swiftly makes the connection between his words and the voice that spoke when her room caught fire in

Her face contorted with horror at this realization, the mark on Slade's forehead superimposing itself over the gem on hers, she backs up and voices a series of tortured groans as white light pours from both eyes. Her costume begins to shred away, exposing red marks that have appeared on her arms, legs, and midriff. The remnants on one arm tear apart, revealing extended marks there as well. Sun and moon cycle rapidly through the sky, which darkens and lightens through the passage of many days.

As Raven strains against the mastermind's inflexible grip and time continues in fast-forward, her hair lengthens until it is almost to her waist. Finally, she is let go and drops to her knees against the night sky, wrapping her arms around her body as if trying to ward off a soul-freezing chill. She unfolds them after a moment and looks down in shock at the markings that have now covered almost every square inch of her body. The remaining pieces of her black outfit resemble a raggedly cut halter top and briefs, and her wrist guards and bands have gone, but her belt is still askew on her hips.

Raven looks up, still horrified; we look across the Jump City skyline, or rather, what remains of it. Every building stands in ruins under a blood-red sky, with the sullenly still bay as their backdrop. The Tower is standing at a crazy angle offshore. We are now close enough to see that the bay has filled not with water, but with molten lava, and the Tower has fallen into such disrepair that it ought to be condemned and razed.

A large black raven screeches into the sky. Flames lick up from the broken pavement and among the derelict cars and buildings; elsewhere, more of these birds; the four-eyed ones that menaced Jack, Changeling and Vic in Raven's mind, caw harshly and take flight. Behind the trailing edges of their wings, the view changes to stone statues that depict Vic, Changeling, Kom', Rose, Bryan, Dick and Starfire. Each is being dragged down by a horde of small creatures with drawn, ghoulish faces and long arms, and a look up at the base of a final figure shows Jack in the same dire situation. Behind each one, a fragment of the machine room wall still stands erect, suggesting that these are not statues of the Titans, but the Titans themselves, petrified like gargoyles by some unearthly enchantment. Overall, the prediction Slade made has been dead on target.

Behind the trailing edge of a wrecked skyscraper, Slade stands. Raven finally gets to her feet.

Raven, "no!"

Slade, "yes. Look at it. Drink it in. Behold, the world you are destined to create."

A towering humanoid silhouette stands up among the once-proud structures. No features can be discerned at this distance except for a pair of antlers that sprout from either side of the head. The mouth opens for a thundering roar and the head turns to put its eyes in view; two pairs of them, burning bright red.

Raven's father has crossed over into our world.

Raven, "no", she puts her hands to her head, "I won't do it! This is just a vision. This can't be real!"

Slade reaches into view from behind and clasps Raven's upper arms.

Slade, "this is the future", he leans in over her shoulder, "your future. It began the day you were born, and nothing can stop it. This will come to pass. I will make sure of it. You're going to destroy the world, Raven. It's written all over your face."

Raven eyes are wide, blazing, "NOOOOOOOOOO!"

Bursts of white light play over her agonized visage during this long scream, and black rings wash up from the roof over her "soul-self" as we look up to frame the yowling winged apparition. It disintegrates into shreds while the sky restores itself to normal night coloration, and the time-stopping effect has ended in this area. The buildings are back in order now, her apocalyptic vision has ended.

Throughout Jump City; at each location, Raven's energy sweeps across the area and everything is instantly set right. People go about whatever they were doing, completely unaware that anything out of the ordinary has put their lives on hold for a while. A flock of birds scatters past the roof on which Raven and Slade are still standing; she is utterly spent by the night's experience and slumps wearily backward in his arms. We see her midsection and slowly look up to the bowed gray head whose unkempt violet strands wave slightly in a chance breeze. During this movement, all the inscriptions on Raven's body fade away. Slade releases his grip on her arms and lets her tumble over the edge.

Slade, "we'll be in touch. Oh…. And happy birthday."

The unconscious Titan plummets toward the street below, ready to start a new career as a very interesting piece of roadkill. Before she can hit the blacktop, however, Jack flies in on a slab of Earth with Dick behind him and makes a very neat one-armed catch. They land on a rooftop, Jack cradling her as gently as a 55-gallon drum of old nitroglycerin. She groans weakly and starts to come around; the first sight that greets her are Jack and Dick's faces, fixed in warm smiles.

Dick, "let's go home."

….

We once again see the alarm clock in Raven's room. Sitting on one of the corner bookshelves, it is ticking off the final seconds before 1:00 AM; a new day has started. We see the jagged-edged wall mirror to the sound of snipping scissors; she stands at it and finishes cutting her hair back to its usual length. She has changed into a fresh set of clothes, and she regards her reflection somberly before looking down toward the surface of the dresser set before the mirror. She extends her hands into view, palms up, and surveys their unadorned gray surfaces for a moment. A loud knock at the door startles her out of the reverie.

Outside, the door slides open and she steps into the hall. No one is here, but a tilt to ground level reveals some cards laid out, each marked with an arrow that points off down the way. Not sure what to make of this, Raven moves off in this direction and out of sight around a corner.

We see just inside the closed door of the darkened living room; it opens to admit her, and she is immediately showered with confetti as the lights blaze up and she shields her eyes. A clamor of party favors and noisemakers is heard.

We see the "Happy Birthday" banner the other Titans hung up during their first attempt at a surprise party. It has been taped back together and put back in place. Vic has baked a new eight-layer cake, while Changeling wears a party hat.

Changeling, "um…. Surprise?"

Vic, "look. We know you didn't want a party, but after…. Today…."

Bryan, "and all the…. Stuff that happened…."

Starfire, "... we hope that you might reconsider?"

Jack walks over to Raven and holds her hands, "you may not like your birthday, but we're all glad you were born."

Jack gives a small smile, not noticing the uneasy expressions that have suddenly popped up on the faces of the other party conspirators. Raven grimaces, then speaks after a long silence.

Raven, "we're going to need ice cream."

Jack smiles at his girlfriend. Stars pop in Changeling's eyes as Starfire giggles, Kom' simply smiles, Bryan and Rose high five and the other two boys smile in relief at her mood change.

Changeling, "coming right up!"

He runs to the kitchen.

Vic, "I'll cut the cake!"

He heads for the tables.

Starfire, "and I shall fetch the throknar!"

Starfire flies to the side door.

Kom' flies after her, yelling, "no you are not! That thing is nasty!"

Raven approaches Dick and Jack.

Dick, "you're sure you're okay?"

Raven, "I will be."

Behind her, the green joker zips past, his arms loaded with ice cream cartons. Starfire is not far behind, once again carrying that crown of meat on its special pillow. Kom' tries to grab it in order to throw it away.

Rose and Bryan approach as Dick said, "what you told us about your destiny; that something bad was supposed to happen, I guess it did. I'm sorry I couldn't stop it."

Raven, "no one could."

Jack pulls Raven close as Dick socks one fist into the other palm.

Dick, "we will find Slade."

Rose, "we'll figure out how he did what he did."

Bryan, "and why he was after you."

Jack, "but right now…. You're safe."

Jack hugs Raven close.

The sound of gobbling draws their attention to the kitchen tables. Changeling is wolfing down ice cream straight from the cartons, Vic wears the throknar and holds two plates loaded with cake, and Starfire beams in the middle of it all while Kom' cringes at the throknar.

Dick, "you're here with friends. It's over."

He, Bryan and Rose join the party, but Raven and Jack stand where they are and Raven raises her hands for another look. Red marks appear on both of them.

Raven, "no. This was just the beginning."

Jack once again hugs Raven close, kissing the gemstone on her forehead to comfort her.

It does…. But only a little.

…

We see the subterranean cavern from which Slade emerged. His silhouette stands at a distance; a ring of fire laces up through the stone around his feet, and light shines from down there as he speaks.

Slade, "the first task is complete, Master", he kneels/bows, "he message has been sent", a flaming sign begins to trace itself out on the ceiling, "the inscriptions are in place. She knows what she must do. The prophecy will be fulfilled."

The sign on his forehead has been traced out very large on the ceiling. The next voice tells right away whose mark it is, and who set this plot in motion and gave Slade a new lease on life to help with it.

"And the world of mortals shall soon be ended."

Trigon was coming….

….

Reviews:

raven 2012: I'm glad you enjoyed this chapter so much.

Canadude2029: yep. Things are gonna get crazy!

Bailey Radcliff: thank you so much. Yeah, this arc always made me feel for Raven. Glad your story is going well.

pokemonking0924: yeah, this episode is a very intense one. The start of the Trigon arc. And yeah, the scene where the team wants to throw a nice party for Raven is nice. I'm glad you liked the little changes I made. And yeah, the 5th birthday disaster involved a clown getting punched by Bryan when everyone jumped out to surprise him.

….

Man, the show went all out with this arc, didn't it? The Trigon arc gets more and more epic with each episode.

Also, if anyone hasn't already voted on my newest Ben 10 poll to decide the love interest/interests of the main OC, please do. And choose 7 of the options.

(I'm hoping the harem option wins.)