Raven, still posing as the Joker, and Veronica Cale appear in the shack, Raven on her feet, Cale suspended in black energy.

"Don't blame those two, considering what I could have done, they lasted a good while." Raven says in her normal voice as she uses her powers to open the straps on the table and tears off Cale's jacket and the top underneath leaving her in her bra before being slammed onto the table and strapped in.

"Who are you?!"

"That's really not important to you." Raven says flatly as she changes into her wingless form and her leotard as she moves over to the two terrariums. "You have three options now; the first is you can tell me willingly where you keep Adam. The second is that let these little critters out for a walk." Raven says as she turns around holding her hands out with a scorpion in her left palm and a large tarantula in the other. "Last option is that I forcibly break into your mind and get the information that I want, what happens to you is something that is debatable."

"You're crazy, have you any idea how poisonous they are?!" Cale says as she squirms to get free.

"The scorpion's sting will kill you eventually if left untreated, the spider is practically harmless, but most people don't like them. So what's it going to be Veronica?" Raven asks while fixing Cale with a stare who just stares back defiantly.

"Do your worst." Cale growls before giving up the staring contests, Raven had noticed no one really seemed to know which of her eyes they are supposed to stare into when she's in demon from.

"Your choice." Raven sighs, as she puts the scorpion back into its box. The spider however is deposited on Cales bare stomach, she instantly begins squirming to get it off, but the large arachnid seems quite content with sitting where it is. "What too much already?" Raven asks as she walks to stand at Cale's head. "Now if you relax, this may not hurt." She continues before leaning over Cale as she begins.

"Will she be ok?" Wally asks as Raven puts the spider back in its box a few moments later.

"Depends." Raven sighs as she looks at Cale, who is hyperventilating while staring holes in the ceiling with wide eyes. "I didn't mean for it to end up like that." She continues as she unties Cale and puts her next to the other two before wrapping her jacked around her.

"She was warned." Batman mentions. "And she will be fine when the shock passes, unlike Dr. Light, Cale never had a mental history."

"But how long will that take?" Superman asks him.

"A week or two."

"Based on my 'victims' in Gotham?" Raven asks as she pours some water for herself before pouring some for Cale.

"Yes." Batman replies dryly. "Did you get what you needed?"

"Yes, a Dr. Shivana is working on him; unfortunately we have to go through several other labs on foot to get to him, including Niles Caulders." Raven sighs knowing who will be standing against her.

"You can teleport there?" J'onn suggests.

"No, one of Cales memories say that the labs are shielded from teleportation and other types of dimensional walks, mostly due to you by the way, except one." Raven halts for a second. "But I am pretty sure I don't want to go to a place called Apokolips?"

"Better let Clark know what that's about." Shayera mentions quickly, Raven agrees as the usually calm man spikes with anger at the mention.

"Project Boomtube; Cale's own idea, she figures if she can create a bridge to Apokolips, then she will have access to technology beyond anything ever seen here on Earth. It's what's pulling most of the power off the island."

"That idiot." Bruce grumbles.

"Raven, you have a new priority in this; that project has to be stopped. We don't know what happened to him after the invasion, but with Luthor back, Darkseid will be as well." Superman says with a little more urgency than usual.

"Understood, unfortunately it's in the most heavily guarded area of this place, I am not sure if I have the energy to maintain camouflage and fight half the island."

"Go without, if the rest of the League finds out about this, much less the world, people are going to come looking." John adds.

"Agreed, this will be a sanctioned event." J'onn continues.

"Yeah, inter-dimensional conquerors are bad." Wally adds as well, even if he never saw the new god.

"Raven, considering your, status, can you bring reinforcements?" Batman asks.

"I don't know, I am not even sure if I can control anything I might be able to bring…"

"Fine." Batman cuts her off. "First priority will be the primary power lines, you remember where they are?"

"Of course." Raven replies confidently before teleporting away.

"Seems she has arrived." Beastboy notes over the blinking lights, the alarm having been turned off several minutes ago.

"Someone is definitely here, Cale is missing." Mento notes, otherwise busy listening into the security channel of the communicator in his ear.

"Any dead?" Negative Man asks; Mento huffs.

"None, guards didn't hear a thing but a female guard named Jennifer Hale was admitted to her office before the alarm sounded, the others have orders to shoot and kill her if she is seen along with some guy called Joe."

"Thought you said this girl was the quiet sort?" Cliff asks while looking at Beastboy, having calmed down enough to return.

"She was the quiet sort, four years ago." Beastboy shrugs.

"Assuming it's her that is, which I am currently ruling out." Mento says.

"Based on?" Beastboy asks.

"Well your old account of her as an almost unbalanced fruitcake with magical powers." Mento continues ignoring the glare he receives from his adoptive son.

"You give her too much credit Garfield." Elasti-girl says.

"No I'm not; for once I've not exaggerated anything about her." Garfield sighs. "Guy's I'm going to ask you to please walk away from this, Raven as she is now is just not someone you want to stand in the way of."

"And we told you we aren't budging for her!" Robotman says angrily. "She's your friend, not mine!" He continues as the normal lighting begins fluttering before dying out.

"That would be her." Beastboy adds.

"Only whatever backup generators they have should be running now." John notes at the crater in the ground and the severed cables in it.

"Which will be formidable. None of the scientists here trust anything they haven't built themselves." Batman continues.

"At least they will be inconvenienced." Raven says as she teleports to the flat roof of the building containing Project Boomtube, summoning her sword and armor before sinking into the shadows.

"Just a bunch of white-coats." Shayera shrugs at the milling team of scientists running around in the huge room trying to get over the power fluctuations.

"Most of the guards are at the doors." Raven notes, from her place in the shadows at the ceiling, the room looks like a rats maze with the numerous computer banks and other systems creating several long one way corridors, all leading to a stair case leading up to a large green metal box that overlooks the obvious test area, a vacant spot at the far wall with two rods sticking out of the ground with a large circle suspended between them. "I have to get these people out before I can wreck this."

"Hit the box first." Batman says, Raven moves to hang just above the center of the roof before dropping down the short drop is enough for her to us her powers to blast a sizeable hole in the structure before she drops through, landing gracefully inside, the look on the faces of the people inside is one of complete shock as Raven gets up.

"And now you run." Raven says as she draws the sword from her back and is completely surrounded by flames before she lunges at a computer next to one of the scientist, her sudden movement has the desired effect and the men and women react like scared animals and begin stampeding out of the box with much yelling coming from them.

Raven turns to face those trapped in the back and begins to walk towards them, dragging her sword through the consoles to her left, the remaining scientist almost try squeezing themselves into the far wall from Raven to get past her, but they manage. With them out of the box, Raven focuses on the computers, letting her powers seep into them before violently tearing them apart from the inside, expanding her focus, the computers on the floor below begin to go through the same motions one by one. At the entrance the security forces are pouring inside, trying to get past the panicking scientists, some carrying heavy weaponry.

"I've noticed them." Raven says as she continues to break apart everything within reach.

"You are clear if you can do this faster." John mentions, Raven nods and focuses harder, letting her powers reach into everything connected to this room before turning it to shrapnel, causing several explosions inside the room, and a boom from somewhere far off.

"Backup servers, keep working." Batman says right before a deafening explosion sends Raven and the box crashing to the floor, landing upside down on its roof.

"Should have anticipated that." Raven grumbles as she teleports out, knowing the portal is now little more than a crater and melted metal. Reappearing next to the wreckage she sheathes her sword, killing the flames around her, spotting the guards also getting to their feet again.

"Look out!" Diana yells as Raven also spots the man with the shoulder mounted rocket launcher as he fires his weapon at her, Raven throws up both hands and strains as her powers grab hold of the projectile gradually slowing it to a halt a meter before her.

"That was harder than it looked." Raven heaves, before quickly having the missile move back to its owner hanging it nose down over his head. The man and the others quickly get the idea and scatter to all sides before the missile is dropped, sending fragments of floor flying in every direction. As Raven lifts off from the ground, she is met by a hail of bullets and plasma blasts, there are only a few impacts on her as she throws up a shield in front of her. In retaliation several black snakes race out from her steering towards the dug in guards, violently pushing smoking machines out of the way before they send men flying into the back wall.

"That was too easy." Batman notes as Raven finishes off the last guards.

"Agreed." Raven sends back. "Perhaps the alarm drew some of them away?"

"Possible, but seems unlikely." J'onn adds.

"Who cares, will make the rest of the road easier?" Flash notes.

"No, this was Cale's project alone, all the crazy stuff will be stuck in their creator's laboratories. Even Cale didn't know exactly what they were, but some of the tests she's seen, they seem interesting." Raven says as she lands before the door she needs to get through to get to Adam.

"Jeez, did someone mix the wrong chemicals?" Robotman ask as he gets off the floor along with the rest of the Patrol.

"Well, someone's gonna be in a heap of trouble." Negative Man notes, an explosion like that was sure to have disrupted a great many delicate experiments.

"Mento, what they hell is going on out there?! I swear to God if this is one of you…" Caulder's angry outburst from the speaker in the wall near is cut off by Mento.

"Easy Niles that wasn't any of us." He sighs.

"Better hope not." Caulder replies before shutting the link closed.

"Why do you put up with that guy?" Beastboy asks, shocked that anyone talks to Mento like that and even more shocked Mento just rolled with it.

"Because we have to." Cliff sighs, right as several scientists can be seen at the other end of the corridor running past. "Heads up, I think we have incoming."

"Beastboy get back here!" Mento yells as Garfield walks calmly up to the mouth of the corridor, before stealing a peek around the corner before he walks cautiously around it.

"Rae, is that…you?" Beastboy asks out of surprise as the figure comes towards him, he can see the four eyes, but it's his animal instincts that tell him he is not in danger.

"Unfortunately, this is apparently what I am supposed to look like." Raven replies as she stops before him.

"Jeez…do the others know?" He asks while trying to take in the changes as she towers over him.

"Yes, they walked in on me while I was trying to learn how to move like this." She replies while poking on her legs.

"Yeah, it's not easy to learn how to move new muscles." Beastboy says before, remembering something.

"The Doom Patrol is standing around the corner?" Raven asks.

"Yeah, they bough Niles' gig." Beastboy sighs.

"I see, how about you?"

"I am not going to stand against you, heck; I doubt I'd be any use if I tried."

"We have a mutual friend who will be happy hear that." Raven nods, giving Beastboy a smirk. "She made me promise I wouldn't harm you." Beastboy just stares at her as if she had just announced he had won the lottery, before shaking his head.

"Uh, could I ask you to do the same for the others?" He asks a little timidly while thumbing in the Patrols direction.

"I will try, but I have to get to Adam and that is through Caulder's lab. The walls in this place are shielded from teleportation."

"I know what you have to do." Beastboy sighs. "Just don't hurt them too badly." He continues as he steps aside.

"I won't." Raven says as she pat's him on the shoulder before walking past him and around the corner. "Patrol! Stand down!" She yells at the group at the other end of the corridor.

"Jesus Christ…" Negative Man gasps.

"Patrol! Defend the door!" Mento yells as he begins to focus. Cliff thunders forwards as Rita grows to twice her normal height and Negative Man slumps in his seat to send his Negative Spirit forwards.

"They were warned." Diana says as Robotman comes closer.

"I ain't gonna risk my chance for a normal life for ya!" He yells.

"Niles and his project isn't my concern." Raven replies flatly as he comes within striking distance, she dodges out of the way of Cliffs raised fist that swings past her before grabbing hold of his back and pushing him into a depression in the wall with a hollow boom. Turning around quickly she sees Negative Man's shade in time to let her soulself out. The two shades, one in the shape of a man's upper body with a flowing stream for legs and a huge shadow bird, end up dancing in front of each other, seemingly not wanting to come into contact with each other.

"You don't know what you are ruining for us." Rita says as she breaks into a run, before aiming to kick Raven down the hallway, Raven stops the huge limb with one hand on the shin before it can make contact, getting a pained yelp from Rita.

"Let me pass and nothing gets broken." Raven replies before putting her other hand under Rita's foot and lifts the limb quick enough to have her fall on her back as Raven begins to feel a niggling sensation in the back of her head. Raven growls in annoyance as the niggling turns to a mild headache. "Steve, stop before I return the favor."

"No." The man says, as he focuses further and Raven's headache becomes slightly worse as her eyes pulse once as Steve is sent flying back into the wall.

"Damn it!" Negative Man growls before trying to leap through Ravens soul self, only to be embraced by it, getting a few pained moans out of the man. Elasti-girl lashes out at Raven with her foot, catching her unaware this time and backs away a few steps after catching the heel.

"You're strong, I'll give you that." Robotman's voice says from behind Raven right before she is knocked into the wall.

"Don't hold back, they can take it." Batman's voice filters into her mind, as she receives another blow to the head.

"Right." Raven growls as she looks up, using her powers to slam Robotman into the wall again, creating another impression before she rolls away to avoid a kick to the gut from Elasti-girl. Raven's soul-self unwraps itself from Negative Man and drops the man's shade onto his body before it jumps onto the back of Elasti-girl where it sticks to her like oil.

"Hey! Get off!" The woman complains as she tries to get hold of it, only to spread it further over her hands and arms as it crawls up to the base of her head.

"Sleep Rita Farr and fight no more." Raven says quietly and the huge woman seems to become drowsy at first before falling over like a tree trunk, fast asleep, before the shade returns to Raven.

"Fall, damn you!" Cliff yells as he tries with another swing, this one getting stopped by an open palm.

"No." Replies flatly before she gives way and grabs the stumbling man, crushing the bronze plates at his neck and waist, and lifts him clear over her head before slamming him head first into the ground, making a third impression, as she picks him up again she notices his neck joints have gone loose, making his head loll around as if his neck had been broken. Raven worries for a second if she has over done it.

"He once made it a few days without his body." Beastboy says as he appears besides her, taking in the damage. "Thank you." This has Raven look at him in surprise.

"For what?"

"For not harming them too much." The green changeling smiles at her.

"Still wish I didn't have to." Raven sighs as she puts Cliff down at the wall. "Makes me feel like I'm…Terra."

"You're not. Unless the League is really Slade in disguise and you plan on taking over the city." Raven gives him a sad smile as she changes back to her wingless appearance as she walks to the door, grunting only slightly in pain. "It's a pain to do that."

"Yeah, but it's been worse." She says while studying the door as Beastboy picks up Mento's helmet that has fallen off his head. "I remember a story where you put that on." Raven notes as he turns the purple helmet around in his hands to look at the insides.

"Hey, what's this?" He asks as he spots a silver chip inside the otherwise purple interior.

"Isn't that supposed to be there?" Raven asks after casting a quick look, not sure what she was looking at.

"No, Mento always paints any new parts. But this isn't supposed to be there, he's never changed the original design, said it was too dangerous." Beastboy continues.

"Let me see it." Raven says as she takes it from him. "Bruce?"

"I can't tell you what it is, Mento made a point of keeping his design of the helmet a secret."

"Batman can't tell us anything." Raven sighs. "Did Mento always do his own repairs?"

"Yeah, except once." Raven's stare tells him to go on. "We were fighting Plasmus, Mento got some goop into his helmet and decided to let Caulder help him clean it up, since he was in the area…wait, are you saying the Caulder could have put this in here?!"

"I wouldn't put it past him; Caulder has a manipulative streak a mile wide." Batman mentions.

"Ok, we need to solve this now."Raven says as she leans down to Mento before placing a blue glowing hand on his head. "It's bad, there's something wrong with his mind." Raven says as the man groans.

"Wha..what?" Mento blinks a few times, looking up at the two people standing over him. "Garfield?"

"Mento, you need to see something." Beastboy says as he helps his adoptive father to his feet.

"What? Is that my hat?" Mento asks still a little confused.

"Steve, what is this." Raven says as she hands him the device, pointing at the chip. Steve seems surprised to see it as well as he looks at it closer.

"It's not something that's supposed to be there…Caulder!" Steve almost snarls as he seems to realize something. "Where are we? Who are you?" Raven and Beastboy look at each other as Steve looks questioningly at Raven, who changes back into her human form.

"Steve it's Raven, don't you remember what just happened?" Beastboy asks clearly worried about him.

"It…it's like a dream, its coming back now. We are on Oolong…Raven asked us to stand aside…and she kicked us into next week." The man says while rubbing his eyes with one palm. "I'm thinking clearly now. You're trying to save the League?" He realizes.

"Steve, I'd suggest you don't wear that helmet again." Raven says. "How long have you been wearing it?"

"Uhm…about 15 years now, but I've never felt like this before. Wait, I began feeling strange when I took it off after Caluder had his hands on it, so I left it on."

"Steve that was three years ago!" Beastboy exclaims. "You never took it off?"

"No, I felt better when I had it on." Steve sighs.

"Steve, when I brought you back, I sensed something in your head." Raven says, getting his attention. "I don't know what it is, but it's not supposed to feel like it did. When you get out of here, you need to see a doctor."

"Rae, you have a hunch." Beastboy asks.

"I won't dare second guess something like that." Raven almost snaps.

"Tell me." Mento says calmly. "It's my head."

"It felt like dementia." Raven sighs. "I am not sure that was what it was, but…" She stops when she see's Steve isn't listening anymore.

"But, I'm 42 years old." He sighs to no one, sounding like a lost child at the realization.

"Steve, you put away that hat now and go wake Cliff, Raven you get the others back up and we are going to find out what exactly Caulder is doing!" Beastboy barks, the two moves to comply.

"I sense a growing dislike for Caulder in your friend." J'onn notes. "We Martians have no concept of the word dementia, could you enlighten me?"

"It's a terrible disease of the mind without a cure I am afraid. The sufferer will gradually loose memory, loose attention span and problem solving skills, usually it only inflicts the elderly but it can affect younger adults." Rave explains.

"That's terrible. We had a concept on Mars, called Mind Rot, where the symptoms were the same; we had a cure for the mildly affected but alas I never saw it." J'onn sighs.

"Rita, wake up." Raven commands, instantly bringing the woman back.

"Ow."

"Come'on Cliff, get that bucked of bolts moving." Mento says as he crosses a few wires in an open hatch in the man's chest, the wires spark once and Cliff lurches to his feet, making Stave fall backwards.

"Who? What…? Steve? And without the fancy hat…whoa!" Cliffs says as his head falls forwards. "Oh not the neck joints again!" He complains as he uses both hands to hold his head on straight.

"Larry, get up." Beastboy says as he turns over Negative Man.

"Gar, I've told you numerous times I don't like it when you draw on the bandages." The man growls as he apparently wakes up to Garfields face.

"Patrol, we are going to have a little chat with Caulder." Steve says as he gets up.

"Steve, why aren't you wearing your helmet?" Rita asks as she shrinks and gets up.

"What about her?" Cliff says motioning at Raven.

"I want to know what this chip is doing in my helmet." Mento says, holding it up for the others to see.

"But Caulder he promised us." Cliff whines.

"Cliff, I was the only one of you who got to go inside his lab and I can't remember anything other than a sense of feeling better. Right now I am thinking clearly, and if Caulder really is working on something for you, fine, but I think you deserve to see what exactly he is making for you, don't you?" Mento asks as he looks at the others.

"I think that would be a good idea." Beastboy mentions.

"Good, let's go see." Mento says as he walks over to the speaker in the wall. "Caulder, open this door."

"I seem to have told you several times that my work is too delicate you have you people running around in here." Comes the tired reply.

"Hey, I want to see what you are cooking up for me in there. I don't want to spend the rest of my life as a girl!" Cliff says loudly, receiving no reply.

"Raven, break it down." Beastboy says, getting a nod from his friend.

"Stand back." She says before transforming back into her winged shape before drawing her sword.

"Jeeze, girls on fire!" Larry complains as his bandages almost catch fire from his proximity to her.

"Door seems to be made of several pieces, carving an X into should open it sufficiently." Batman mentions. Raven pulls back and delivers a powerful strike, carving a long line into the steel door, before repeating the motion, causing it to collapse, letting Raven step over the wreckage into a small lab with gurney in the center and several workstations at the walls. On the gurney is a half assembled box of some kind, next to it on the ground sits a grey haired man wearing a lab coat in a wheelchair, he looks halfway frightened and angered at Raven's appearance.

"There are a group of people out here who wants to talk to you." Raven says as she sheathes her sword again as she walks into the lab followed by the others.

"That doesn't look like a body." Beastboy notes to Cliff who snaps his metallic jaw.

"Caulder, you are our science expert, care to tell me what this is?" Mento asks before tossing his helmet onto the gurney. The man puts down the screwdriver and puts on a pair of glasses before picking up the helmet eying the chip.

"It's a chip I installed, to help you control your powers." He says flatly.

"He's lying." Raven mentions off handedly as she looks at the door barring her way into Shivana's lab.

"Who is she?" Caulder grumbles, ignoring the stare Mento sends him.

"Raven, one of my friends." Beastboy replies.

"Another freak." Caulder sighs under his breath, right before a hand closes around his throat and lifts his out of his chair.

"This 'freak' has a very good hearing, and a very short temper right now little man." Raven hisses into Caulder's ear before dropping him back into his seat.

"And why did you put this chip into my helmet without telling me?" Mento asks.

"It's not really there to assist in controlling his powers, is it?" Raven asks.

"Start talking Chief or Larry is going to give you a big radioactive hug." Cliff grumbles as the bandaged man cracks his knuckles. "Where's that damn body you promised me!"

"Mento, you should look at this." Beastboy says having spotted a computer and begun browsing through it, finding a file marked Doom Patrol.

"Stay away from that!" Caulder snaps as he tries to wheel forwards, only to find his wheels locked in place.

"Let them." Raven says before pulling him towards herself. "Do you have access to this?" She asks.

"I don't even know what's on the other side." Caulder grumbles as he crosses his arms in front of him. "How did you end up like that?" He asks.

"And so he begins." Raven sends inwards. "My dad was a demon."

"Don't you get lots of stares looking like that?" He asks.

"Oh, plenty. But I rarely choose to look like this, why?"

"I was just thinking, maybe I could help you?" Caulder asks, trying to sound sincere.

"I really doubt you can offer me anything." Raven replies flatly.

"Family, I can offer that, I'm sure the Patrol could use you and your…abilities."

"Why? So you can degrade and run her down too?!" Steve asks with barely contained fury in his voice. "Will you call her a freak, say that she is better off with whatever you can put her on while she runs off to do your chores?!"

"Steve he isn't worth it." Rita says holding back the tears in her eyes.

"You're right Rita." Mento sighs. "Caulder, I don't want to see you ever again. And if you ever talk like you have done to my wife again, I will destroy your mind." He growls before walking out of the lab followed by Rita, Larry just throws an angry wave with both hands at Caulder before walking out as well. Robotman walks over to Caulder, turning him around to face him.

"I am beginning to see why Brain hates you so much." The huge metal man says. "I really thought you were a friend here to help us, and now I learn that it was you who sabotaged my car all those years ago!" He growls.

"Please…hurk!" Caulder is cut off as Robotman's huge hand closes like a vice around his throat.

"You even wrote down the damn details about how you sabotaged my car!" Cliff seethes, before dropping Caulder into his chair again. "I am inclined to paint the room with you, but I am not angry." Cliff continues with a forced calm entering his voice. "I just think we need to be even, injury for injury, wheels for wheels." Caulder eyes go wide for a second before he is hoisted into the air and hurled at the far wall with sickening crunch before drops down on the table and rolls off down to the ground. "Consider us even. Sorry it had to be like this we met again Raven." Cliff sighs before he walks out as well, leaving Raven and Beastboy alone with Caulder.

"I knew he was a slimebag." Beastboy sighs. "Need any help?"

"I can't receive any, or the deal I made will be void." Raven sighs. "Sorry about this."

"It wasn't your fault, good luck Rae." Beastboy says before he picks up Mento's helmet and leaves the lab.

Author's Notes: Almost there.