The Stone Chest

Chapter 7

"A Rescue Operation and Something More"

Seven people were running at full speed towards a destination known only by one of them. By seeing how agitated was the wizard, the titans deducted that whoever was that person described by Connor, she was in great danger. A few minutes later, Blackwood asked Terra, who was very uncomfortable by taking him along in her flying stone, to land; the blond girl was still afraid to what the sorcerer could do to her. Definitely, she is going to need a long period of time to get rid of Connor's gaze back in the cave. The other heroes landed aside the first two and quickly Blackwood step forward to talk to his battle partners.

"The Order's headquarter is located in that building over there in the next block" – said Connor pointing with one of his fingers towards one of the main structures ahead.

"Well, well, I think that place could use some painting…" – said Beast Boy.

"Actually, that lack of care that you're talking about is not casual, but now is not the time to discuss it; I'm not completely sure, but I think that the Order's leader has locked Jessy in one of the cells in the dungeons… if that is true we'll have to go to the basement and check the entire place…"

"And what are we waiting for?" – asked Terra while interrupting Connor.

"In the Order there are people who can detect any kind of presence and energy so in the very moment we put a foot inside that building everybody will know we're there" – Added Connor trying to keep the annoyance for being interrupted.

"Ok, that cancels Metal Gear kind of approach I think" – answered Robin while analyzing the possibilities.

"You're right so the only strategy we can use is the open confrontation; however, when they realize that we're inside Jessy's lifespan will be pretty short which imply that we need to act fast and that is the main purpose of this chat time. Taking into account that I'm the only one that know the place I'm intending to use your strength so please buy me all the time you can to find her" – begged Connor in the most formal tone he could use.

"Given the current situation, that strategy sounds right. If that guy wants to harm your friend I'm pretty sure that he is not going to waste time when he knows about our arrival" – answered Robin.

"I disagree with that scheme" – sentenced Raven, her voice being laconic.

"That does it! I'm really starting to piss off with you not trusting in me. I do not know what the hell you have passed through in order to have that enormous paranoia about spies and traitors, but I will definitely not tolerate those kind of comments anymore" – yelled Connor without noticing that Terra lowered her face completely ashamed because of his words – "I am forcing you to nothing, it were you who offered by yourselves to come and help me so far I am concern; but, if you just cannot stop thinking of me as some kind of Judas that's fine with me… farewell"

"If you just stop behaving as your stomach tells I could explain why I disagree with the scheme… I just think is not a good idea that you alone fight against the leader of the Order, he must be a powerful wizard and I'm sure that he will have some warriors at his side… so I think it is convenient that one of us help you out with that fight; in fact, I was going to offer myself for that job" – concluded Raven solemnly while hiding a tiny smile behind her hood.

Connor and the other get frozen and their mouths were wide open after hearing those words; in fact, the wizard couldn't avoid falling backwards along with Beast Boy. It was amazing to see Raven wanting to help Connor and beyond that, she was offering to fight at his side. Definitely, everyday anybody can learn something new…

"Eh, he, he, he, well, sure, it is a great idea what you just said, I mean, well, you know, I'm sorry for being upset before" – started to said Connor visibly ashamed while trying to remove with his right hand several drops that appeared in his head.

"Well, if everybody is ok with Raven's suggestion let's get going" – concluded Robin.

The 7 heroes stood in front of the main door of that base in no time; Connor, Raven and Robin step forward and the other were just right behind. All of them had a lot of expectation for the incoming battle, but the most worried, and by a huge difference, was Terra, the girl have had none sparring since being liberated from the statue and she was afraid of loosing control of her powers while fighting against the wizards… fortunately, Beast Boy noticed that and quickly told her to calm down because he was going to be at her side all the time… those words increased the self confidence of the blond girl.

Connor waved his hand to point the direction that the others must follow once inside and almost immediately, Robin gave the order to begin the rescue operation. The wizard went through a living room kind of place and the other followed him… a few minutes later they were in one of the main corridors, Blackwood turned right and kept walking, this time in a wider corridor with several doors each side none of them attracted the sorcerer attention though. The only thing in the wizard's mind was to complete the mission in time by securing his friend's safety. Finally, the entire group turned again in another corner, but this time they had to stop walking due to the wizard team that was standing in front of them.

"Well, well, so the killer decided to came back to the crime scene and this time he have friends" – said one of the mages with a voice full of irony – "Ok guys, we have to finish this quickly… I have a poker party which is going to start at any moment and I do not want to miss it" – concluded while facing his partners.

After those words, a true rain of energy attacks was thrown towards the incoming group and the titans had to move very quickly to avoid it; however, the wizards didn't have the intentions of letting them go so they cut the way of the intruders. Connors created an energy shield to protect his friends, but he knew that it wouldn't stand long so it was necessary to think fast. The wizards of the order started to join forces to create a powerful attack in order to destroy Connor's defense; and to complete the picture, the titans started to hear footsteps behind and the noise was becoming bigger each second passed. Blackwood realized that he had to act now or never so he pointed the others a door located to the right of the corridor and a few seconds later everybody had entered to some kind of room just in time to lose their enemies. Afterwards, the wizard used one of his most powerful spells to seal the door they had just used and the noise of energy attacks hitting it was heard right after.

"That will slow them down a little, but we don't have much time" – said Connor while taking some air.

"I don't mean to be rude, but this room does not have another exit" – pointed a worried Cyborg.

"That is not entirely true" – answered Connor while moving one of the statues located in the office.

A part of the floor started moving and a few moments later some stairs could be seen.

"Welcome to my office, I'm sorry I don't have the proper time to show it to you, but I think we have more important things to do right now" – said Connor while indicating the others to go down by the stairs – "As you may notice, there is more than one route to go anywhere inside this facility and luckily I have had the time to check almost all of them"

Once everybody was in the lower room, Connor went to one of the walls and activated another statue to close the door used after walking the stairs; afterwards, the titans and the wizard arrived to a wider corridor and resume their quest for Jessy. Blackwood guided them through a complex networks of corridors and secret passages and some time later they arrived to a very narrow passage (the same one used to take Jessy to her prison cell) the member of the Order of the Darkness didn't bother to hide his fear because in that very instant they were extremely vulnerable to an open attack so he indicated the others to hurry in order to arrive to the dungeons. Unfortunately, the worst fears of the wizard became true when a huge explosion, caused by an energy ball, shook the walls making clear that the enemies were getting close. Connor and the titans knew that it was pointless to face them in that place since they could get trapped very easily, but when they tried to move forward, their way was closes by a bunch of wizards. The battle was inevitable.

Many energy waves were shot towards Connor and the titans who threw themselves to the ground in order to avoid them. The wizard, Raven and Robin ran forward to face the bunch of enemies in the front, while Beast Boy, Cyborg and Terra went backwards to fight the other group. At the same time, Starfire raised all that she could to cover her friends. Beast Boy transformed into a mongoose and moved quickly throughout the energy attacks and them jumped towards them while transforming into a big bear to push them far away. Cyborg took advantage to the confusion just created and hit several wizards with his arm canon; nevertheless, another group of warlocks came and one of them used a powerful jinx to knock out the green titan who didn't see that coming. Terra, after seeing the other falling to the ground, used her internal energy to move the floor causing a huge wall to appear between Garfield and the warlocks who almost immediately started to cast several spells in order to destroy it. The blond girl didn't hesitate and went to help Beast Boy; and, after making him to regain consciousness, the two titans along with Cyborg ran to catch their friends.

Robin threw several darts to one of the wizards who stopped them by creating an energy field with his right hand; and, one of his partners counterattack with an icy wave which was blocked by one of Starfire's star bolts. Afterwards, Connor created a powerful storm wind that neutralized the warlocks in front and Raven took advantage of it; the 'crow girl' used her energy to remove some pieces of some of the walls nearby and threw the blocks to the confused enemies.

"Well, well, I really thought this would be more difficult" – said Cyborg when caught the others.

"Considering that we just fought the Order's apprentices, and the bad ones if you ask me, I'd say it has been way too hard" – answered a worried Connor.

"Did you just say apprentices? Why your leader would send inexperienced wizards to face us? – Ask Robin.

"I'm just asking myself that and I only see two reasons so far: either Jack has underestimated us, which I doubt because I know him, or he's trying to set us up" – commented Blackwood gravely.

Robin was about to ask something more when the wall created by Terra was destroyed and that only meant one thing: the other group was ready to attack. Wasting time in chatting was no longer an option and less if they really wanted to rescue the girl. A few moments later, everybody got down by some stairs and arrived to a wide room; the dungeons could be seen in the other side of it. However, in the very moment they entered that dark room, it got illuminated and a large group of warlocks, the experienced ones, could be clearly seen. Connor and the titans froze themselves and one of the warlocks started talking.

"This is the end of the road. I frankly did not expect our apprentices could delay you this much" – pointed one of the bosses.

"We didn't want to be rude with them, they are just beginning in this job, and you know, their self-esteem and that stuff" – answered Connor with irony.

"Well, well, it's good to see that you have not lost your sense of humor; and now that we're having this 'friendly' talk, would you mind to tell me why are you here? You have nothing to do in here and to be honest I expected a cleverer move from you. Did you really thought that entering in our base along with that bunch of losers you would be able to defeat us? – said the boss - If you really wanted to take over our organization you chose the worst time and the worst way to do it – added the warlock.

"I have no intentions to take over the order, if I have come it has been due to personal reasons" – said Blackwood.

"Ok, since you obviously do not want to cooperate I'm afraid that we will have to use more persuasive methods. You were to foolish by killing Joseph and now it's time to pay the price of that lack of judgment" – concluded the other while ordering his followers to capture the intruders.

One of the sorcerers threw a rain of arrows towards Connor who created a shield to stop it, but then another warlock threw an energy beam towards Blackwood who didn't have time to block it so he was thrown against one of the walls after receiving the hit. Beast Boy transformed into a T-Rex in order to charge against some of the wizards but one of them quickly created a tornado that trapped and knocked out the green titan. Terra and Raven used their powers to remove some bricks of the walls and floor in order to throw the parts to the warlocks but one of the bosses cast a spell that turned all the pieces into dust while other of the sorcerers made a move with his arm that pulled put the girls against one of the walls. Robin and Cyborg joined Starfire in order to prepare some strategies for round two since they were the last men standing.

"Not even Connor is match for us, much less you… you're just second class fighters" – said one of the warlocks laughing ironically.

"Well you could be surprised by this second class fighters" – answered Robin showing some guts.

The leader of the titans threw several darts against the wizard who was talking before, but he stopped them and made them go back towards Robin with more speed. The boy wonder was not able to avoid two of them and they stuck in his left arm. Cyborg and Starfire started to throw energy beams towards two of the sorcerers who easily blocked the attacks and afterwards, the warlocks cast a powerful curse that petrified the titans, but when they were about to finish them, a fire attack hit the two wizards throwing them against one of the walls.

"Hey, don't forget about me, I'm not defeated yet" – said Connor facing the other warlocks.

"So you've decided to fight seriously" – said the boss of the wizards.

"I know you won't believe me but I have been framed by Jack. He killed Joseph not me. You have to trust me Dominic" – added Connor hoping his friend to believe him.

"You're just right… I don't believe you. I think you came here trying to take over our base by surprise and since your plan has failed you invented that absurd story to buy some time" – replied Dominic.

"Logical as usual, I expected no less from you. I probably didn't believe me if I were you. But I cannot let you capture me, not right now at least. I need to find the truth behind all this first and you know me when I get stubborn with the truth thing" – sentenced Blackwood ready to continue the battle.

Since hearing the conversation between Dominic and Connor distracted all the warlocks, none of them realized that the titans were recovered; in fact, they were planning the strategy for round three. Dominic ordered the others to capture Connor, but Blackwood almost immediately cast a powerful shadow spell and the entire room was covered by total darkness.

"Azarath Mythrion ¡Zynthos!" – said Raven right after.

The ceiling above the warlocks started to fall and afterwards Terra focused her energy and made the ground collapse so almost all the enemies ended one floor down beneath the titans. However, neither the titans nor Connor noticed that two sorcerers were standing with clear intentions of kill them, but luckily the wizards were beaten by an energy attack from Cyborg.

"¡¡¡Boo-Yaa!! Those idiots do not know who they are fighting" – said the half human half robot while joining the others.

"Now that is having the sense of opportunity" – pointed Connor – "Thanks a lot girls, preparing that attack by using telepathy was a brilliant idea" – concluded the young wizard.

Robin, who had removed the darts from his arm to confirm that the wounds were not important, Beast Boy and Starfire stood up and a few moments later, the seven fighters ran at full speed towards the dungeons. Almost immediately, a horrified Connor could see Jessy; she was tied to a chair and her body showed clear signs of being tortured. She had lost consciousness and her face indicated that she had suffered a lot before getting shocked. The young wizard tried to remain calmed and without wasting time he teleported inside the cell in order to free his friend and after doing that he teleported back with the titans.

"We have to get out of here as soon as possible" – pointed Connor gravely while seeing Jessy.

"I'm sorry we arrived here late" – said Robin.

"It doesn't matter. It has been my entire fault. I have been too naïve from the beginning, but we'll have time to think later. Now, we need to escape from here" – answered the wizard.

Connor and the titans was about to return to the wide room when terra said that she was able to built an exit from the place they were standing. The blond girl used all her forces and a golden shine surrounded her hands, afterwards, one of the wall started to move and seconds later a stone stair was built by melting the wall and the rocks behind. Nevertheless, when the group was about to escape a bunch of warlocks found them, but in that very instant, Terra raised her right arm and pointed her right hand towards the sorcerers; the next thing happening was a huge wave of fire emerging from the hand of the titan. The warlocks did not expect the attack and failed to avoid it and therefore they ended lying in the ground and loosing their consciousness. Robin and the others were amazed due to the blond girl attack, but Connor brought them back to reality by reminding them that they still needed to escape. But before they could even move, one of the sorcerers cast an ancient curse against the titans. Robin and Starfire were able to avoid it, but Raven received the attack fully. In that moment, the 'crow girl' lost control of herself and several energy attacks emerged from her. Blackwood quickly considered his options and, after letting Jessy resting in the floor, cast the same spell he used against Terra back in the cave were she was took in the first place; the difference was that his target this time was Raven. Some minutes later, Robin had Raven in his arms while the group was arriving to the street.

"We have to get back to the tower now" – urged Beast Boy.

"That girl needs a doctor, she doesn't look well" – said Starfire.

"Going to the tower is not a good idea; I'm sorry for saying this, but I think that Jack will send several warlocks to destroy the place considering what happened in the order" – pointed Connor feeling miserable.

"I expected something like that so don't worry. I think we all knew the risks of this mission and we decided to take our chances" – said Robin.

"I don't think this is the best place to have this conversation" – said Cyborg making the others realized that they were still to close to the Order's base.

"Please follow me, I know a place where we can be save for some time" – added Connor rising in the air while holding Jessy in his arms.

"Can you fly?" – asked Beast Boy amazed.

"I can do a lot of things, but now it's not the moment for explanations" – cut the wizard.

"You should say that earlier" – said Terra reminding that it had been Connor's idea to share her flying stone.

"And you also have a lot to explain, since when you are able to control fire? – asked Beast Boy, this time to Terra.

"You just heard Connor, now it's not the moment for explanations" – replied Terra nervously.

A few moments later, the titans were flying far away from the order and heading again to a destination known only by the wizard.

PPPPPPPPPPPP

Our heroes kept crossing the sky with several questions in their minds; it had passed a lot of time since they crossed the city limits and a dense forest was just below them. The 6 titans were following Connor and none of them had spoken during the trip, which was remarkable considering all the things they had seen so far. Finally, the wizard gave some indications to the others and the entire group started the landing process. As soon as they landed, the titans were very impressed by seeing a house in front of them. The place was certainly not a mansion but the decoration was pretty cool. The house had two floors and a beautiful garden surrounded the construction. The main entrance was clearly visible and a road, which went through the garden, was the way to enter. All the walls were white painted and the contrast with the red roof was just perfect. The titans along side with Connor walked slowly towards the main entrance and some minutes later everybody was inside the place. The living room was very cozy and some good items lied there, the Home Theatre and the Stereo were pretty modern and considering that the house was in the middle of nowhere, the titans didn't expect to find such techno stuff in there. Keeping with the contrasts, a fireplace was right in the middle the room, definitely, the owner of the place preferred the old fashioned ways of warming.

"Welcome to my shelter" – said Connor smiling.

"Shelter? Wow, I don't want to imagine your house them" – said Beast Boy.

"This house belonged to my family but nobody, except me, seemed to like it so I decided to make it my property. In the Order nobody knows about this place so we can rest here safely for some time. Jack has access to a lot of resources now that he's the leader of the order and I think sooner or later he will find our whereabouts. That's why we need to use this time wisely" – concluded the wizard.

"We also need to take care of the injured ones; your friend does not look well and we still don't know what happened to Raven" – said Robin gravely.

"Jessy is going to be fine, her worst injuries are magical rather than physical and I do have the means in here to cure her. Regarding Raven, I really want to be wrong, but considering her reaction and the curse she received I think she has lost control of her emotions" – replied Blackwood.

"What do you mean by that?" – asked Robin looking the 'crow girl' who was resting in one of the couches after he took her there.

"The curse they used is a very ancient one and the person who receives it lose control of his/her emotions completely. You lose your reason and become an irrational being, an animal if you know what I mean. Obviously you become pretty vulnerable at that state and your opponent can easily defeat you" – pointed Connor.

"But that is even more disastrous for Raven" – said Cyborg starting to worry.

"She depends completely of controlling her emotions to use her powers, friend Connor" – added Starfire fearing the worst.

"That explains why she acted that way after receiving the attack and why you were able to put her in a trance" – said Robin speaking his thoughts.

"Exactly, and breaking that curse won't be easy. We'll have to go in depth inside her mind in order to do it and trust me, entering in someone's mind is not a nice experience" – said Blackwood.

"And you don't even know Raven's mind yet" – said Beast Boy with fear.

"That place is very complex and dangerous" – added Cyborg.

"You speak like you've been there before" – said the wizard.

"Yes, we have… and to tell the truth that is something we don't want to repeat" – said Beast boy.

"I don't understand how you were able to go inside her mind; you need pretty advanced magic to do it… well that's not important now, if I am going to help her you need to tell me what I am going to find there" – said Blackwood.

"Are you planning to go there alone?" – asked Cyborg.

"Every person who goes inside her mind is going to disappear of this astral plane so if we all go Jessy and Raven would lay helpless in here… besides, if something happens to Raven while any of us is inside her mind, that person would be destroy immediately" – sentenced the wizard.

"I see your point but it's still to risky to go alone" – pointed Cyborg.

"I'll go with him, after all, that attack was intended to hit me" – said Robin – "She received the impact because I avoided it"

"But you are also hurt, friend Robin. You shouldn't go" – said Starfire.

"This is nothing" – said the leader of the titans while pointing the marks left by the darts in his arm – "Don't worry, I'll be fine"

"So it's settled then. But let me show you the house before leaving. Besides, I need to start the healing process with Jessy. Afterwards we'll prepare for the long journey that waits. In the mean time, Beast Boy and Cyborg can tell Robin and me what are we going to find in Raven's mind when we pay her this social visit" – said Connor in a lame intent of a joke.

The titans, except Terra who was sat in a chair absorbed in her thought and Raven who was still in a trance, followed Connor all around the house. Beast Boy and Cyborg told the others their adventures in Nevermore trying to be as accurate as possible. Connor made an effort to show his guests all the rooms of his shelter while trying to hear every detail of the story. After the 'tour', the guys went back to the living and then realized that Terra hadn't taken part of it. The blond girl continued completely absorbed without even notice the presence of the others. Beast Boy quickly got near her and tried to bring her back to reality.

"What happened? Why you did not come with us?" – asked the green titan.

"I'm sorry, I was day dreaming" – said Terra slowly.

"Well, you just showed some skills back in the Order's base, didn't you? I didn't know you were able to control fire" – said Cyborg.

"Neither did I" – answered Terra.

"Oh come on, don't be mean. How were you able to perform such an attack without knowing how to do it?" – said Beast Boy.

"You seemed to confident when you used that technique" – added Starfire.

"But I'm telling you the truth. That's way I was daydreaming before. I was trying to find a logical explanation for that. I don't even know what I did to use that technique. In fact, if I'd want to do it again I couldn't" – said Terra skeptical.

"Well, that's weird. It's not an easy thing to control fire in that way. I don't mean to be rude but are you sure that Slade didn't teach you that?" – said Robin with extreme caution.

"Yes, I'm sure. I never learnt to control fire when I was his apprentice" – replied Terra trying no to think too much of those times.

"Maybe that incident with the lava gave you those powers" – said Cyborg.

"That would be pretty unlikely. Swimming in lava does not give you such powers… or any powers at all" – sentenced Robin.

"Maybe Terra is part of an ancient prophecy and she has more powers yet to discover and…"

"SHUT UP BEAST BOY!!!!!" – cut the others except Terra who preferred to smile silently.

"Maybe when the members of both Orders performed the ritual to free you from the stone some residual magic was absorbed by you, but that would be very rare too" – added the wizard.

All the guys continued the deliberations about the sudden ability of Terra to control fire; but none of them found a clear explanation to that; so they decided to rest the subject in order to start the preparations for the healing process of both Jessy and Raven. Connor took Jessy to one of the rooms upstairs and let her resting in the bed while he started to prepare a healing potion. Robin and Starfire went to a small library located in the lower floor searching for some books needed in the ritual to go inside Raven's mind. Beast Boy and Terra had decided to go outside and have a walk in the garden trying to spend some time alone; since that kiss they gave in the tower, they hadn't had time for them. Meanwhile, Cyborg stayed in the living watching for Raven.

"It's a nice place, it's been a long time since I could see such a cozy landscape" – said Terra watching all the contrasts between the garden and the forest behind.

"It's definitely an amazing shelter. This guy is full of surprises"

"I don't think he's evil, maybe he's too cautious with his feelings, but I see no evil in him"

"I hope you're right. Another betrayal wouldn't be convenient right now" – said Beast Boy before realizing how rude he just had been.

"I understand" – said Terra lowering her voice and trying to bury her face in her chest.

"I'm sorry Terra, it wasn't my intention to remind you that. I'm just saying that if he betrays us, well, you know, remember that you came with him, so, well, the guys will start…"

"Why of course, everybody would point their finger at me again, right?" – cut Terra starting to get angry – "Maybe I haven't changed at all, maybe Connor is my new master. Maybe we are waiting for the right moment to wipe you out. I bet you're just thinking that right now" – added the blond girl with tears in her eyes – "I think is better for everybody that I just leave this place. I don't want to be an issue and I certainly don't need my mistakes being reminded every five minutes" – concluded the girl walking towards the forest.

"Wait" – said Beast Boy grabbing her hand like that day in the tower – "I'm really sorry for what I said… and I didn't speak on behalf of the others. It was a crazy thought that crossed my mind that's all. I'm really sorry; besides… are you really leaving? Are you going to leave me alone again?" – asked the green titan.

"Sometimes I forget how stupid you can be" – said Terra sighing resigned – "And no, I'm not leaving… well if you behave of course" – ended the blond girl with mischief.

"Hey! What do you mean by that?" – protested the boy.

"You don't ask that kind of things to a girl… watch your manners" – said Terra making the ground below Beast boy to shake.

"Where are you going? Come back" – said Beast boy after falling to the ground due to the little earthquake and starting to chase the girl who was running towards the forest, but this time with no intentions of leaving.

Connor had finished the healing potion and he was along with Jessy trying to make her drink it, the wizard knew that the recovery time would take some time due to her magical wounds. The torture she suffered had to be brutal since her body still showed the marks of the curses received. Only an extreme skilled wizard could have borne that kind of punishment without dying. Definitely, Jessy had more potential than she always thought, but they'd have time to discuss that later. Now she needed to recover fully and then he was going to teach her some stuff. In addition to that, the story told by Cyborg and Beast Boy about Nevermore had amazed Blackwood. He knew about some wizards who controlled their powers by controlling their emotions; but the way Raven did it was remarkable and interesting. The young wizard was pretty anxious to break the curse, but mainly to go inside Raven's mind. Although he was a little bit nervous with the idea. No matter how hard he had tried to avoid it, Connor had started to have some feelings towards the 'crow girl'. She was clever, cunning, smart, powerful, but above all she was a witch and Connor was afraid of find something in Raven's mind that could change his life forever. Nevertheless, there was not turning back at that point, he can't leave Raven the way she was and going inside her mind was the only way to help her. So, after taking a real deep breath, Blackwood went to the living to begin the journey.

Robin and Starfire were still looking for the books but they couldn't find them. There were a lot of texts in that small library not to mention the several scrolls lying in every shelf. The red-haired girl had a wide smile on her face while the wonder boy had a serious expression on his. The Tameranian noticed that and very carefully walked towards him in order to have a little fun. In no time, Starfire was centimeters away of the leader of the titans then…

"Boo!" – whispered the girl in the guy's ear.

Robin got scared to death and fell to the ground while the red-haired girl was laughing very loud. The leader of the titans didn't want to miss his chance to get back and quickly moved one of his legs to bring down the Tameranian. But the girl fell aside him and their faces got just inches apart. What happened next was just the result of the feelings that lied inside them; the boy moved his face and their lips touched, then the two titans melted in an endless kiss. In no time they were hugging without stopping the kiss. Then Robin got a little apart from her and started to caress very softly her left cheek with his right hand. It was like they were in some kind of trance. But seconds later, the buy realized what just happened and her face acquired an intense red color.

"Well, I, eh" – tried to talk the leader of the titans.

"We're boyfriend and girlfriend now, aren't we? I've always watched on TV that only a couple can kiss like that. Are we in love? We have to be, otherwise that kiss would be a mistake… and I don't want that to be a mistake…"

Many water drops started appearing on Robin's head while he listened the endless speech of the girl. The boy tried desperately to escape from that situation and fortunately for him, the help came in the form of a very interesting book he saw just behind Starfire. The title of it was 'Biographies of the Most Important Families in the History of Magic' which gave the wonder boy an idea so he quickly took the book from the shelf and after showing it to the Tameranian, which made the trick of stopping her speech, he started to read it quietly. The book was about the biographies of almost all the magical families that ever existed. The wonder boy and the Tameranian soon realized that the Orders of Darkness and Chaos were not the only ones, but were among the most important ones. Many of the magical families were from Europe and most of them came to America in the last years of the XVIII century. And, among them was the Blackwood family, which was defined as one of the most powerful of the remaining magical families in America. But what captured Robin's attention were neither the origins of that family nor its importance, but the fact that it was considered an evil one. Apparently, since they were living in Europe, the Blackwood family was pretty famous due to the atrocities they performed and the crimes they committed. Torturing and killing innocent people along with wiping out their rival families was a common thing for them; and, according to the book, those manners hadn't changed a bit over the years. In that very instant, Connor entered in the library and saw the two titans shocked while reading the book. Robin tried to hide the chapter they were reading by closing the book, but the wizard was able to see it before they could even think to make their move.

"Considering what I'm seeing I'd bet that you must know my entire family tree right now" – said Connor smiling – "I should kill you for this invasion of my privacy" – added the wizard joking, but Robin quickly prepared himself for battle – "Come on, is not that bad really. It's true that my family has a very bad reputation these days (most of my relatives really deserve it) but it's also true that there are members of the Blackwood dynasty who don't follow its way of living" – concluded the wizard.

"You have a lot of secrets" – said Robin keeping his guard.

"Have you asked yourselves why I am a member of the Order of Darkness while the rest of my family are members of the Order of Chaos?" – asked Blackwood – "I see you haven't reached that part of the biography yet. Well, in that book is written all the information you may want to read about my family and me. You're free to read it anytime you want. There are neither banned nor forbidden books in my library. But right now we have more important things to do. The clock is ticking and the more time Raven spends in that state, the more difficult it will be to break the curse. If you want it, later I'll answer all the questions you may ask" – said Connor grabbing the books the titans were looking for.

Robin studied his options and concluded that he had no choice but to trust the wizard. Connor was the only one who appears to know how to break the curse that wizard had put on Raven; and, leaving her I that state was not an option. A few minutes later, everybody were around the 'crow girl' while Connor was casting a spell. The living soon became dark and a shining light started to emerge both from one of the books Connor had grabbed in the library and from Raven's forehead. In that moment, Blackwood asked Robin to get close and seconds later both guys were suck into Raven's mind and the darkness that was covering the room vanished. The other titans were amazed for what they just see and decided to remain alert waiting for news.

"I really hope they can break that curse" – said Beast Boy.

"Me too. But something tells me that his time it's going to be harder" – said Cyborg worried.

What kind of dangers wait for Connor and Robin in Nevermore? What will happen with Jessy? Will Jack be able to find the titans whereabouts? Why Terra could control fire back in the Order's base? Will Starfire speak another of her embarrassing speeches? Don't miss the next chapter.

Author's Notes: First of all, for those readers who have the opportunity of reading this chapter… I'm sorry, I really am. The time between the last chapter and this one is so big that is ridiculous. I promise I'll try to update sooner from now on. In fact, the Spanish version of this story is completed so I only have to rewrite it in English, which takes me less time than writing from square one.

Well, speaking of this chapter… you could see many things, action, romance, mystery, etc. I really wanted to make the waiting time worthy so I hope you like it. Please R reading your comments (good or bad) is really great for me and that is my main motivation for writing. Ah, I almost forget it… I didn't have much time to check the spelling and all that stuff so if you find any weird thing while reading just let me know it please.

Well, things started to get complicated. Connor and Robin will have a very hard task and let's hope they could fulfill it. Jack must be very angry for what happened in the Order's base and I'm sure he really wants to find Connor and the others. Starfire will continue to push Robin and after that kiss I bet the wonder boy will have even more embarrassing scenes ahead. Suspense, intrigues, action and more romance wait in the next chapter so keep reading and see you in next part.