Raven turned to leave. "Go talk with Rachel, but whatever you decide, do what's right for you."
As the sorceress walked away, he called out to her. "Raven, wait!"
She stopped but did not turn around. "What?"
"What about what's right for you?"
He saw her tense up, and after a brief pause she finally turned around.
"Does it matter?" She asked; her voice more gravelly than usual.
"What? What kind of question is that? Of course it matters."
She gave him a sad look.
"You're wrong, it doesn't. No one really cares … you know what, Gar? At the end of the day, the truth is I am alone. I remember what you told me, after Malchior broke my heart … but you were wrong. And please don't take it the wrong way, there is a bitter truth, and that truth is that I'm messed up girl, a girl who has a monster bottled up inside her, and I have to fight to keep it locked up. I'm different, Gar, I'm really different. It doesn't mean that I don't love or don't want to be loved, but that doesn't matter and that's why whatever is right for me also doesn't matter."
"Raven …"
"Gar, all I ask of you is that you never forget me."
A tear dripped down his face.
"I promise … I'll never forget you. How could I?"
Raven sighed.
"After enough time passes you'll only associate my face with her, and that's how it should be since she is your mate and will someday be your spouse."
"Raven, believe me, I wish this could have turned out differently."
"So do I, I wish I could have confessed the deep and burning love I feel for you when we were in that restaurant, but instead I had to suppress it and break your heart, and I did it front of Robin and Starfire, who are now engaged."
"Engaged? When did that happen?"
"Earlier today in my room, they were waiting for me to wake up after that whiff of Robin's knockout gas. They didn't notice me wake up. Robin was clueless as ever, I had to tell him to just do it."
"Wow … hey … were you OK with … you know … learning that?"
"I was jealous at first, but I am genuinely happy for them."
The changeling nodded.
"Yeah … of course … Rave … are you also happy for us? Or at least for me?"
She frowned upon hearing the question. "Which do you prefer? A pleasant lie or the truth?"
Before Beast Boy could answer, their alarms went off. The buckle on his belt and the clasp on her cape began to flash. Raven grabbed the flashing clasp.
"Trouble!"
-( scene break )-
Raven and Beast Boy came charging into the common room, where the extended team was congregated. Robin typed away at the mission console while Bumblebee watched over his shoulder. Starfire, Pantha and Cyborg were staring at the screen, which highlighted the lone Lexcorp facility in the city. A facility that had an ample inventory of Xenothium, ripe for the taking.
Rachel was also studying the map displayed on the giant screen and noticed when Raven and Beast Boy arrived. Much like her original did so well; the clone erased any traces of displeasure from her face when she saw them arrive together. She also concealed the self satisfaction she felt when the green Titan parted from Raven and ran to her side.
"What's happening?" He asked her.
"Slade's broken into a Lexcorp facility to steal some more Xenothium. It doesn't make sense, he stole plenty from Sivana Industries the day we rescued Raven. He stole 50 kilograms that day. That's ten times as much as Professor Chang stole to power his laser cannon."
"Slade's up to something. The Xenothium heist has to be a decoy."
"Maybe not." She replied. "There's 100 kilograms in the vault at Lexcorp. It's worth over 2 billion dollars. Lex Luthor makes a killing selling small portions to legitimate customers … imagine how much Slade could sell it for to not so legitimate customers."
Beast Boy shivered, as Rachel had a "Raven moment", when she was so similar to Raven that it was uncanny. Both girls were brainy and clever, and Rachel deduced things with a flair he associated with Rave.
Robin turned from the console and faced his troops.
"OK Titans, the reports coming in saying that at least 200 Slade-bots are attacking the Lexcorp facility and have already overwhelmed the armed security Luthor has in place. They also say that they are breaching the vault as we speak. We have to get there as fast as we can and not let them get away with the Xenothium."
"200 Slade-bots, this will be difficult. They do not have to fight us, just run away. How do we stop so many of them?" Pantha asked.
"We also need to be very careful." Raven added. "Xenothium is highly unstable. If a single canister is damaged it could explode. If those 100 kilograms have a chain reaction, half of the city will be destroyed."
"Which is why we will be extra careful." Robin retorted. "Let's move, time isn't on our side."
"Titans, Go!"
-( scene break )-
"Wilson, are you sure this is a good idea?"
Slade paced around in yet another hidden lair. Giant view screens hung overhead, showing the battle scene at Lexcorp.
"What if there is an accident? The Lexcorp canisters are not as sturdy as the ones Sivana used. There could be an explosion; we'd lose everything … the Xenothium … the robots."
"There won't be an accident, Wintergreen. And if there is, all of the Titans will be wiped out."
"Along with half the city. If that happens we won't be able to hide, we'll be hunted down like animals … and killed."
"Relax, Wintergreen, the robots are going to spread out. Many will be captured, but not all of them. Whatever Xenothium we can acquire will sell for a handsome price in the Middle East. But that objective is secondary."
Wintergreen looked up at one of the screens. One of the sorceresses was already at the scene, blasting the Slade-bots, while her twin and the changeling collected the freed canisters, taking them back to the vault. Slade pointed at the witch that worked with the changeling, taking turns returning the canisters to safety. The remaining Titans appeared on other screens, performing the same task in other parts of the building. They were separated and operating independently.
"According to the computer, at the current rate of recovery by the Titans we should have 60 kilograms of Xenothium in our possession by the time this is over … but that is only the icing on the cake."
Slade pointed at a screen, a screen where Rachel appeared, collecting yet another recovered canister.
"The clone, she will pay for her treachery."
"The trap is set, Wilson."
"Excellent; when this day is over Robin will finally understand that there is a price to be paid for defying me."
-( scene break )-
The battle scene was fast paced and intense. There were several passageways that led out from the center of the building, where the vault was housed. As Slade anticipated, about half of his robots were able to escape with a canister full of the deadly compound. This literally drove Robin batty, the thought of Slade getting away with so much Xenothium literally made him feel ill. Slade was one of a select few enemies the Titans had never been able to capture. And to make things worse, their one eyed nemesis seemed to have an unhealthy interest in the Titans.
The Titans of course had many enemies. Some, like Control Freak, were legends in their own minds and provided comic relief. There were higher caliber opponents, like Brother Blood and the Brotherhood of Evil. Deadly foes who deserved to always be taken seriously.
But Slade, he was in a league of his own. Slade Wilson was the result of a botched experiment by the US Army to create a super soldier. Slade, who was an officer, actually volunteered for the program, which enhanced both his brain and his body, giving him superhuman abilities. Slade used these abilities, in a direct violation of orders, to rescue Wintergreen who had been captured by enemies and was abandoned as a casualty of war. That was the turning point in Slade's life, when he transitioned from hero to villain, rejected by the very military that created him. He lost his eye at the hands of his own wife, who later abandoned him. William Randolph Wintergreen was the only person who remained loyal to him. Slade guarded Wintergreen, keeping him hidden and secret from the Titans. Neither Terra nor Robin learned about Wintergreen when they served as Slade's apprentices, though he was often just a few steps away from them.
And Wintergreen's loyalty to Slade was unquestioned. Even though he had no personal quarrel with the Titans he considered them to be every bit his enemies as they were Slade's.
And that included the clone. Wintergreen found her to be detestable, having betrayed her father, the man who brought her to life. He was personally looking forward to seeing her head on a pike.
And thus the trap was set.
It wasn't a convoluted trap. Slade was a firm believer in Occam's Razor, and thus believed that simplicity was always superior to unnecessarily convoluted complexity.
Slade watched on the high def monitor as Raven flawlessly intercepted the droids as they emerged from the corridor. She would fire a group of dark energy spears, which would impale the escaping droids, destroying them on the spot. Rachel and Beast Boy would collect the Xenothium canisters and take them to a safe drop off point.
Slade watched patiently, waiting for the right moment, which didn't take too long to arrive.
Four Slade-bots emerged from the hallway and once again Raven fired at them. This time one of the droids was prepared and it separated from the group which was destroyed. It headed down a second corridor, dashing past Rachel, who also fired her dark energy at it. The droid leaped and performing a mid air flip it dodged Rachel's volley as well and disappeared down another corridor which led outside. Meanwhile, Beast Boy collected the canister from the three destroyed robots, taking them to the drop off, leaving the two witches alone in the room.
"No way is he getting away!" Rachel shouted as she took off after the rogue droid.
"Rachel! Wait! I need you here!" Raven shouted, too late, as Rachel vanished into the corridor.
Raven frowned as she redirected her attention to the next group of droids that arrived. This time she was prepared and the robots evasion tactics failed. Another group arrived and met the same fate. Meanwhile Beast Boy was nowhere to be found. Raven reached out to him with her senses and detected that he was fighting, but was not in any distress.
"Damn you, Rachel, why haven't you returned?"
Suddenly, Raven winced. She felt a searing pain, as if she had been shot with a laser pistol. She instinctively checked her body where she felt the pain, just above her left hip, but there was no wound. At first she was puzzled but within a split second it clicked: She had felt Rachel's pain through her empathic senses and since their bodies were identical, Raven actually felt the pain as if it was her own.
Raven took off flying into the corridor where she last saw Rachel, using her empathic senses to locate her clone. As she flew she could tell she was getting close and slowed, finally stopping and hiding in a doorway.
From her hideout she saw Rachel slumped on the floor, and the air smelled of burned flesh. The clone was surrounded by three Slade-bots and it was perfectly clear that the young woman had been led into an ambush. Raven realized that while the clone had all her knowledge and experience Rachel was also far more impulsive than she was, and thus was also more reckless.
Raven examined the scenario, analyzing the best way to quickly rescue Rachel without exposing her to more harm. One of the Slade-bots had a laser pistol in its hand, which it holstered; unaware they were being watched by Raven. One of the droids picked Rachel up bridal style. Raven's eyes grew wide … they were going to take her back to Slade, where after having her memories downloaded into a computer, she would no doubt meet a grisly end.
But Raven didn't make a move. Deep in Nevermore, she could hear Rage roaring. She was saying: "Let them have her, they're doing you a favor."
Raven slipped into a trance like state and she saw the future being played in a fast forward mode.
First, they recovered Rachel's destroyed body. Beast Boy screamed in anguish and wailed uncontrollably.
The vision switched to the funeral, where she consoled him, offering him a shoulder to cry on.
Then the mourning was over, and Raven resumed her dinner dates with him. They progressed slowly, but eventually they began to kiss on a regular basis. Slowly, over time, they became more intimate, with groping sessions and after about two years she was able to control her emotions enough to have intercourse with him. The wedding soon followed.
Raven snapped back into reality. The Slade-bots were leaving. All she had to do was look the other way and do nothing, just stand by and let the droids escape with the wounded Rachel. It would be perfect. She could claim the she went to search for Rachel; but never found her. No one would know the truth.
"I would know the truth." She muttered to herself.
Dark bolts of obsidian power leaped from her hands, like black lightning, striking the three droids, immediately disabling them. Raven then caught Rachel with her dark energy, gently lowering her to the ground. Rachel suddenly regained consciousness and gasped in pain.
"Don't move. They got you good, that laser blast burned you deep."
Rachel began to shake. "It hurts." She gasped between shallow breaths.
Raven pulled a small syringe from her belt.
"I have a single shot of morphine. I'm gonna give it to you before I try to heal you."
"OK." Rachel nodded as Beast Boy caught up with them.
"Rachel! Oh my god! What happened!?" He shrieked in panic.
"She ran into an ambush and was shot."
"Raven! Will she be OK, please tell me she'll be OK."
"I'm sorry, Gar, I was reckless." Rachel rasped at him.
"Don't talk, just relax … don' worry Gar, she'll recover. The wound is painful, but not life threatening. Slade was trying to kidnap her."
"And you saved me … thank you … sister."
Raven did a double take upon hearing Rachel name her as kin.
"Rave, I … I don't know how I can ever thank you." Beast Boy began to blubber. "You saved my Rachel."
Raven focused on Rachel's wound and the healing blue light appeared. Rachel moaned as the healing power did produce some discomfort, even with the morphine. Raven closed her eyes.
Oh Gar, if only you knew how close I came …
-( scene break )-
More fodder for you to hate Rachel. I must say, while I wasn't expecting Rachel to be popular, I never expected you to collectively hate her so much, even more than Terra!
So Raven stared into the abyss. It would have been so easy for her to look the other way. But had she done that, she wouldn't be able to live with herself.
And now, mail bag time. I'm also surprised by how much you look forward to it. I must say, these are some of the most thoughtful reviews I've ever seen.
The Cretin
Dude, people are gonna go postal if you keep chuckin the mailbag XD
Alrighty...enough jokes. I'm not gonna lie. This story has me tied in knots. I'm hopin I don't look like a pretzel at the end of this story. I like it because as usual, you haven't disappointed me. Not once has your storytelling been anything less than superb to me. However, I do find it really hard to sympathize with Rachel and Gar. More so because of their decisions. On one hand, they truly have done nothing wrong. There is no shame in falling in love. However, their decision has ripped Rae's heart out although part of it is her own fault. It's hard for me to decide because Gar is my favorite DC hero of all time. Gar does come off as an a**hole at times in this story. Other times, he has a legitamate point. Hallmarks of good storytelling though ;)
It's hard for me to review this story without feeling bias against Rachel. Harder still because she doesn't deserve it. In a way, it makes me question myself. I have a rather unusual view of cloning as it is. Perhaps the one I should really look at is Gar. I really do hope he thinks to himself, thinks long and hard about all that's transpired and all the decisions he's made. This is one love triangle I would not want to be in the middle of. Thank you for writing it. Peace. Keep rockin
Poor Rachel, she never asked to be Raven's clone. Though now she sees Raven as her sister. The question that begs to be asked is how does Raven feel?
Curse you Perry the Platypus
No mail! Every time I have a satisfactory review you say no mail bag! WTP! ( what the poop)
You are quite right, I apologize. It was getting late yesterday, as I was out all day, and I was rushing to finish.
Cyllan Anassan
Well, that's a hard desicion to make. And I don't know wich side to be on. In one hand we have Beastboy: it's unfair he has to leave becuase he has a new girlfriend, and if he leaves, the team will be lacking of one of their more important members. Sure, he will still be a Titan, but the team will not be the same. And in the other hand, we have Raven: her departure is probably the less perjudicial in this hole ordeal. With Rachel taking her place it'll be like she never left (they didn't notice the difference before... so aparently she fits just well) and they won't have to deal with her "problems" anymore. But I can't stop thinking about the time Starfire went to the future. Raven have always needed the Titans, not only not to be alone, but because somehow, they were her strength against the darkness inside her. I don't think new people can fill that void, even if she tried.
I'm very anxious to know who'll be the one to leave.
At the same time, I want to believe this isn't closing to an end. Slade's still out there with plans we yet don't know about. I used to think that after he made Raven leave the team he may try to corrupt her, but that doesn't seem to be case, and I have the impresion that I may be missing something else in all this drama. Or that's just me expecting more XD.
Until next time.
I know, it really is a no win scenario. As Beast Boy asked Raven "What about what's right for you?"
purpleraven23
I love this story but its so sad. Homestly im very unemotional but in some parts i almost creied. I hate rachel but i know i shouldnt but shes that charachter in a show that most people love and she had some rough times but lifes now perfect. I always root for the underdog who has a tough time and thats raven for me. Like have you watched Les Miserables. I liked eponine better than cossette(amanda seifred). Well this is Lonngggg... But keep up the good work:)
While it isn't my intention to make you suffer, I am honored that I was able to touch you that way.
raeofshimmeringsunshine
Okay, so I'm trying EXTREMELY hard to see the good in Rachel. And, well, it:s just not coming to me. Her so-called "modest" personality just makes me want to punch her in the face, and I'm usually not a very violent person. She isn't Raven, she's this whole other girl that stole Raven's memories (okay, so she didn't STEAL them, but still...) that I think I hate more than Terra...and that's saying something. And I'm really biased, but it's not fair that Raven loses Beast Boy, and possibly the only place she can really call home, just because of an "unbroken" version of her. Gosh, just go away, Rachel! I feel like if Rachel leaves, though, Raven still won't have a chance with Beast Boy, just because of the Rachel. But I've gotta say, I do love the story, no matter how much I might not like Rachel. It's a really original idea, and a great storyline. Update soon!
Again, I never really intended for Rachel to be so hated. But who am I to argue with my readers? Only you know how something will make you feel.
Dezarulordoftwilight
THis was a good chapter especially the end, I like how you had him say the line from spellbound about malchipr breaking her heart ht instead "I'm sorry... 'I' broke your heart. That was really good. Keep ot up force.
Yup, that's exactly what I was thinking when I borrowed that line, which I thought was perhaps the most touching line in the entire show.
bluedog197
im speach less that so sad but guss what in the show he said he would never do that but he did break hreat and went with the more simple one no fair but good story
Thanks, I think that the best stories are the ones that make us feel the most uncomfortable.
RobRae4Ever
Unfortunately that was the only answer. But can be something temporary like Cyborg did. I think Raven should stay, after everything she went through if she goes would be like she was being expelled from home.
I agree that Raven should stay in Jump. But will she?
WGSS 3
Please don't take this wrong way, my friend, but I believe that this is very fair and constructive criticism. Ok, I am having a very hard time believing that Beastboy is really in love with Rachel. He's been with her for, what? Three weeks? Is this really love or is this him picking up where him and Raven left off? More importantly Rachel has not demonstrated having any differences from Raven besides minor things on a superficial level. Beastboy and Starfire both went on and on about how different she is from Raven, but if hadn't said anything I would've no idea what they were. It is very easy for readers, as I'm sure many of us have, to misinterpret Beastboy's emotions as, like Raven said, him finding an "unbroken" of her. This makes it difficult for the reader to empathize with Rachel, which it is clear or implied that we are supposed to. We are told that Rachel is better for Beastboy, and that she is does possess Raven's rage but we are shown something totally different when she engages Raven in that fight and when she says all of those mean things to Raven.
If you really want to sell the whole Beastboy and Rachel thing we should get to really how she differs Raven, besides her ability to have sex. But who knows maybe this is exactly what you intended?
There is more to Rachel than sex. BB has said so himself. As for feeling conflicted about Rachel, isn't that how real life is? It's never tidy and easy.
MelonLord28
I won't lie, I don't like bbxrach even nearly as much as bbrae, but short of a stray meteor I don't see Rachel going away. She's a great character and all, I just happen to be biased. Whatever happens, its a compelling drama you've woven if a stray meteor does fall from the sky, let's just say I could be more sad.
I'll bet you guys were all saying, "Raven, don't save Rachel, don't save Rachel! Let Slade have her!"
Katwizzle
awww... I dont want anyone to leave! I just want Rachel to go away... D:
She almost did. Had you been Raven, what would you have done? Would you have saved Rachel?
FelynxTiger
At least she could have a kiss from him TT, idk why but this fic makes me cry a lot v.v, well i can't wait to heard Beast Boy's decision w
We're going to have to wait a bit longer, I'm afraid.
shaylove
I don't like BB and Rachelll :( but I still love this story XD
Nobody likes BB and Rachel!
Headphones
Actually,Raven shhould go she needs to leave the tower that so much reminded her about Gar.
Raven can make new friends and possibly a new love,Zacary Zatara he actually didnt care about her demonic side he liked it. Amazing Chapter though I hate that beastboy picked Rachel it actually..sucks.
I know, but to be fair, Raven rejected him, though she now regrets it
titanfan45
Poor Beast Boy, he's finally got a great girlfriend but at the price of losing either his home and friends or his very closest friend. I wouldn't envy him in making this decision. At least Raven let him see just why they could never be together so he doesn't ever have to wonder about that.
Life can be like that, full of difficult choices.
gabylokita41
Awwe thats sad but i still think the one whos ganna end up leaving is ganna be Rae-Rae but poor of her anyways great chap loved it :)
We'll find out eventually who leaves.