After almost six hours of sleep, Raven wakes up with a note on her table from Diana, saying that she would wish her luck with the training and that both she and Bruce appreciated her choice to leave the house last night. And that Diana had returned to the embassy, with her clothes, to ease Ferdinand. Raven smiles after reading this, after a short lunch and a phone call to Jump City she heads down to the cave, dressed in her training outfit.
"Good you are here." Bruce says, also dressed in his training outfit sitting at the computer. "When are you meeting him?"
"In four hours." Raven replies as she stops. "So what is up first?"
"Testing, I need to know precisely what your capabilities are in a number of fields. Some of these tests may prove humiliating to you, and some may seem like outright torture, but I want you to know what you are getting into." He just gets a short nod without hesitation. "But first you need a proper introduction to the suit." He says as he gets up, motioning for her to follow him inside the wardrobe where the suits are deposited when not in use, stopping at hers. "Alfred should have mentioned this is a prototype. The cowl is hardened Kevlar with padding underneath, it won't stop a bullet at close range, but it will protect you against clubs. Built into it is a communicator, but if you have decided to remain mute when out, we can remove it and save weight?"
"Leave it, in case something major happens; besides I guess you have some non-verbal way of communication?"
"That we do. Also the cowl has a special scanner installed." Bruce says as he takes the mask from the rack and hands it to her for her to put on. "The scanner is activated by pressing the area over your left ear, the communicator over the right. Remember, whatever you say into the communicator will be stored here in case no one replies." He says while she tries pressing her right ear, getting a little static as she holds it down, she jumps slightly in surprise when she pressed her left as numerous bits of information about her surroundings and a green night vision filter appears over her eyes. "You need to press it again to turn it off, everything you see with it on is relayed back here as well and any information you see is sent back to you, like faces, warrants and that as long as the connection remains."
"Your own doesn't have this?" Raven asks.
"Not yet, I was going to install it when you showed up and so far I am not sure how resilient the system is to blunt strikes." Bruce admits while she takes the mask off again. "Now as you have noticed, the rest of the suit is light, but it does have padding over the most crucial areas, the rest is left out due to weight issues, I am sure you can carry the extra padding if you want it?"
"I'd rather rely on myself than on something that might fail if you start depending on it. Something I can't blame someone else for at least." Bruce nods at this.
"The wrist guards and scallops are reinforced so they can take a regular sword blow if needed also you can use them break or disarm your opponent, they aren't knives, but keep them away from eyes and throats. Inside the right index finger is a lock picking tool that I guess you aren't familiar with?" She shakes her head at this, but she did know Richard used to have one in his old gloves. "There is also one in the right boot in a compartment on the inside." He says, showing her the concealed compartment that she should be able to reach without take the boot off. "Other than that, the boot has an armored toe, so I would suggest you don't change while wearing them, unless your feet can take it."
"Hopefully I won't ever have to." She says. "But I will remember it."
"Good. The cape is the most resilient part of the suit, tear resistant, almost bullet proof, insulated against heat and cold. Now the last part is the utility belt, it contains every tool you can be expected to use regularly and you will need to know where everything is even if blind." He says before proceeding to pick out the various pieces starting from the front and moving to the back where there is an empty compartment. "Gas mask, we will have to mold one for you, has a limited air filter on its own, good for 30minutes, doubles as a diving mask when attached to the…?"
"The gill-box in the 4th compartment from the right." Raven replies as she pulls out the small green box and the hoses needed.
"Yes, and that concludes the suit." Bruce says. "Now, I want you to see the schedule I have made for you." He says as she follows him out to the computer where he brings the sheet up. "It is likely to change depending on your performance."
"So if I do bad in one area, there will be more of it."
"In favor of the area's you excel in." He continues. "Richard's and Tim's looked different with more emphasis on combat training, but you have proven that you can do that without showing your true strength, from the file you made last night and from the police rapport."
"Various education?" Raven asks at the subject.
"As far as any of us know, you studied on Azarath, but not exactly what." Bruce says as he turns towards her.
"Monastic mainly, I learned seven languages and how to read, calculate and write before Azar took over and my education became mystical. After I came to Earth I read that I would have been considered an intellectual around 500 years ago." Raven admits.
"Hmm, we will have to dig up some of Richards and Tim's old assignments for you. Also, since you will be living here, you will need to decide on an education, this is for show mostly because people will wonder what you do during the day and where you came from." Raven nods at this.
"And in case I one day retire." She adds.
"Unless you return to Themyscira that is." Burce notes. "Now, while I am sure Richard is quite happy to furnish and fund you, I am also sure you don't want him following you around every time you need something. So I have taken the liberty of setting up a small fund for you to spend at your leisure, the card will arrive in a few days. While I won't pry into what you use money on, I don't want to come home to carpenters coming out of your room without me knowing about it beforehand."
"My budged in the Tower was minimal as I remember it." She says, hoping Bruce wasn't thinking of dumping a huge pile of dollars on her.
"It was." Bruce agrees. "That's why it's the size it has." For some reason Raven finds that smirk he puts on, worrying.
"How much?" She asks dryly.
"It's set up so you are technically receiving a monthly wage of 100.00 dollars." Bruce says, intently watching her gasp in shock.
"I… I can't accept that… and for what?" She stammers while wondering how on Earth she could even spend that amount.
"Ours is a very dangerous occupation Raven, and I am so fortunate that my parents set me up like this, earning more money than anyone could ever hope to spend for the rest of my life on normal things. See it like this, this way you will never need to worry about mortgages, food or taxes, allowing you to focus on the important thing; saving lives. But don't think I am doing this to keep you here, that fund will go with you, even if you one day decide to leave Wayne Manor, the only catch is that as long as you are here I expect you to perform when in uniform and never back down while wearing it, if a hundred thugs want to rob a homeless bum, then you defend him against them, even if you should fail to, you will never back down. Am I clear?" He asks sternly.
"I will die for the homeless bum if needed." Raven replies as the flat tone in her voice returns.
"I expect you won't." Bruce says firmly. "Now, you need a proper tour of the cave and let me know how much of everything you know of."
They just manage the entire tour of the cave and its many sections in the left over time, including revealing the back cave that contained all the retired vehicles before Raven has to go change for her appointment with Harold. Since it wasn't a League related event, she had to transport herself after changing clothes.
Appearing over Jump city, she wonders briefly how she will be received by the people below, would they pretend she wasn't there, would she get crowded by people with questions or would she cause a stampede with people trying to get away from her. Landing on the side-walk just outside her destination, she has an answer provided, the morning pedestrians all stop in surprise at her landing and stares at her as she opens a portal to let Cerberus out, but they all part before her as they walk the rest of the way inside of Mario's Pizza Parlour, getting a few more surprised gasps from the few morning customers. She notes that one of the desk clerks quickly disappears into the back rooms and emerges a few seconds later with Mario in tow, who smiles and waves her over.
"Raven, welcome back to my humble shop, I had hoped last time wasn't going to prove a deterrent?" He asks with a knowing smile.
"Not at all, I hope the clean-up wasn't too much of a problem?" She replies, she likes Mario, he seemed to treat everyone equally and had not once acted differently towards her or the other Titans, which happened to them a few times, some thought they were a magnet for trouble, others thought they were free PR.
"Not at all, sadly they came back after a week." He sighs. "I know, I should have called the police for letting them harass my customers."
"But they are customers themselves." Raven nods, reading the older man's mindset. "Do you mind the dog if I take him upstairs?" She asks.
"Technically, he should have stayed outside." Mario says as he looks at the bulldog that regards him as well. "But what the heck, it's early morning and if the food inspectors show up I hope you will make him vanish."
"Don't worry, they will never know he was here." Raven replies confidently. "Think I better order a Raven Special, been hours since I had lunch."
"Ah, it will be on the house." Mario smiles before sending the order to the cook in the back room. "Same spot as last time?"
"Yeah, hopefully without punks this time." She replies. "Nice seeing you again Mario."
"You too Raven." The old man replies as she walks up to find her seat, finding an expected man waiting up there, sitting in a black pin striped suit with a brown trench coat over his shoulders and brown hat on his head. "Harold?" As he turns his head from looking at the morning traffic and looks over his sunglasses at her before taking them off and rises.
"Raven, good to see you again, thought I thought it was some prankster in my office that had made that call." He says as they shake hands before sitting down.
"But you came anyway; I must be the scoop of the day?"
"Ha, scoop of the last four years would be more accurate." He says while smiling broadly. "So what changed your mind about all of this?"
"Allowed myself to get cornered by Lois Lane, Linda Park-West and Clark Kent in a park, thought that since you should have your interview as well since you waited so long for it." The man just smirks at the mention.
"Figured it had to be Ms. Lane, she's a wolf when it comes to stories."
"So what do you want to know? Those four years can't have been spent on thinking about an interview?" Raven asks.
"Oh, I got tons, some very much outdated I think. But let's start at the beginning." He says as he gets out a Dictaphone and a pen and a pad of paper. "How did you take it when the other Titan's left?"
"At first I was shocked and disappointed, but it turned to worry when I saw Robin's announcement outside the Tower, Gary being the main one."
"Ever mention this to the others before they left?"
"Yes, Robin knew, but at the time, I couldn't see myself going anywhere like they did." She replies.
"So what was it like living out there?"
"Lonely, very quiet, but I found things to do so I never got bored. Of course, it didn't help I felt besieged." She replies.
"Hmm, I can understand that. So then the dragon came, there's still a lot of people who wonder about him."
"Malchior, as was his name. Was once a tyrannical ruler of a forgotten kingdom, who was toppled by a wizard called Rorek who imprisoned Malchior in a book. Rorek, I suspect rewrote this book into a tale of his exploits. Over the years of imprisonment, Malchior changed the writing of the book, namely by swapping names with Rorek, making him seem like the dragon. This book, by chance, ended up in my hands. I was reading it when I was at a moral low point when he suddenly spoke up, I was blinded by his words and he very much had me believe he felt something for me, eventually leading me to release him. He quickly discarded all feeling he claimed to have for me, after that I did the same to him before sending him back into his book."
"So his boasting wasn't just fabricated?" Harold asks.
"No, unfortunately not, but it was a one sided affair, sadly with him luring me to release him." Raven sighs.
"So the last fight, what did that end up with the results it had?"
"You mean why I killed him?" Raven asks, getting a nod. "After our initial encounter, I locked his book away in my room, but while we were abroad and expanding the Titans, someone broke into the Tower and stole it. We saw him again as a member of a large gathering of villains called the Brotherhood of Evil, before Herald, one of the honorary Titans, sent him to a different dimension. We went looking for him, but we couldn't find him."
"But he found you?" Harold notes.
"Slade, one of the few not in on the Brotherhood thing, wanted revenge on me for turning down his offer on becoming his lackey and for the things that happened with my father and sent Malchior after me, guessing the dragon would be sufficient since I didn't have the book anymore. I was out buying groceries when I saw the Tower detonate."
"And so you fought as we all know, but something happened to you?"
"Malchior was a powerful wizard in his own right, but like others, he didn't know that certain spells would affect me differently because I am a half breed. And yes, I am a half demon, Malchior wanted to torment me before killing me, so he cast a spell that reversed the way I looked. Where I used to appear human, but with a demon hiding under the surface, it was suddenly the other way around."
"So instead you were a human hiding under the guise of a demon." Harold finishes. "But you didn't have wings and horns back then?"
"A later development, but as you know, I vanished after killing Malchior, with the damage done and the Tower gone I couldn't stay. So I left in search of a way to reverse the spell."
"You sought out the League? I hear they have some powerful mages on the reserve sheet?"
"No, I couldn't. Before the Titans were formed I sought their aid in combating my father, a very powerful demon, but was chased off due to the bad vibrations the present mage was getting from me. So that limited the people I could go to, because I thought they were still after me. But I succeeded as you can see, with a little help."
"So what did you do then?" Harold continues.
"Took me half a year to do it, living in the wilds and of what I could. When I got it done, I sat down and thought about what to do with the rest of my life. Coming to the conclusion that I would continue as I had before, but I chose another city to do it in, but I can't tell you where."
"Jump City seemed hostile to you?" She nods at him. "And then out of nowhere you end up with the League and the Amazons, of all people?"
"Yeah, the guise I had chosen to operate under spooked a few of the wrong sort of people and the League came crashing down on me. Because of my heritage and powers, they couldn't decide if I was good or bad so they had me jump through hoops for them, after one of their number was revealed to be scared that I had shown up to supplant the individual. Now when I change into that other shape, my physical powers increase a lot, and Wonder Woman tried coaxing a truth from me with her lasso I had promised never to tell, much to their surprise I could resist it to a degree, but when she pressed too hard, something just clicked and I lost it. When I came to my senses, Wonder Woman was drifting off into on unconsciousness."
"You beat up Wonder Woman?" Harold asks with a raised eyebrow.
"She was caught off guard, I was restrained at the time and kept in a special cell that should have suppressed my powers, but yes, I did. But she didn't take ill to it, her mother did however."
"Uhu." Harold says, apparently not really believing it.
"You can always call the embassy for confirmation." Raven adds.
"Forgive me, but it just sounds a little weird, think most people down here on Earth consider Wonder Woman the most powerful woman in the world."
"I know, but it's true. Anyways, Wonder Woman was the first I had to spend time with. But let's just say things over there didn't go as planned, first by Wonder Woman's chosen test was sidelined by wishes of her mother the Queen and by the appearance of one of Wonder Woman's adversaries; Ares, who had seen fit to take an interest in me. After that encounter, I was sort of welcomed as one of them, but I was offered a place over there first after Wonder Woman got her chance for revenge in a fair fight and won."
"Well they are warriors from what I hear."
"That they are and they are not people you want to insult, because they will take it personally." Raven remarks with a slight smile.
"So are you on the same line as them?"
"Sometimes." Raven says giving him a smirk.
"Heh, ok. So is this a thing anyone could have done?" He asks. "Becoming an Amazon?"
"I am not sure, but how I did it, was not easy or pleasant, the gentlest way of explaining it without details would be to say there are shared bonds between us that others simply don't understand. Besides, Themyscira still has closed borders and I was only allowed over due to Wonder Woman and Queen Hippolyta's acceptance."
"Ok, so you became an Amazon and returned, how did the others take it?" He continues, though she can see it annoys him a little that she is being vague.
"At first they didn't know, we chose to keep it a secret so that the other's would form their own opinion without thinking about them possibly making Wonder Woman mad. But the general reaction has been shock and awe. So after I got back, I went through a number of trials with the others, including a trip into deep space before they give me the all clear."
"I heard from Beastboy, Cyborg and Starfire you were instrumental in retrieving Starfire from her home planet?"
"I wouldn't call it that, but I am the only other Titan that speaks Taramanese, but yes, during my deep space adventure with the Green Lantern I made certain arrangements to make sure we could get clear of Tamaran in one piece."
"And helped them out at one point?" He continues.
"My role was minor in my own opinion, but yes, I did help. After several weeks, we managed to restore the senses Starfire had been robbed off during her captivity. Shortly after that, the event's here in Jump City occurred with the President and all that."
"I hear you had a special role in that too?"
"I was underestimated as a 'regular' Amazon for some reason, meaning my better known powers was not taken into account and I managed to break out. I can't go into details, but what I did down there was not pretty."
"Heard a rumor you encountered Dr. Light again?"
"You heard correct and it was not a happy reunion." Raven replies flatly. "Anyways, after everyone was safe again. I was sent on a task to do something special for the League, meeting an aging wizard with a presumptuous nature along the way who decided to show me I wasn't enough of a monster and turned me into that shape I was seen in last time I was in Jump."
"Presumptuous?"
"He thought I'd feel better when I looked like that, but to me it really is like waking up to you wearing the face of your worst enemy. Again my powers seemingly increased, and it was needed for some of the stuff I had to do afterwards."
"We saw that confirmed, those Tamaranians were flying like rag dolls. So we arrive at today, so are you only with the League?"
"I am, when not called to other tasks."
"Ok, so now I got a few questions that may seem a little old. You have mentioned his nature, but who is your father?" Raven is quiet for a few moments as they notice a boy arriving with her pizza.
"It is a touchy subject and you wouldn't recognize the name, but he wasn't a nobody in mystical circles."
"You speak of him in past tense." Harold notes as he helps himself to a slice after a nod.
"No one remembers it besides the Titans and a few mages, because everyone else was turned to stone the day he came to this plane, through me. I was only born so that he could do that. With help I managed to beat him, and ultimately destroy him."
"Superman and the League didn't arrive?"
"They were most likely turned to stone as well if they were on the planet, my father was that powerful."
"Even Superman?" Harold asks, playing into the perception that Superman was functionally immortal.
"Even Superman, the Amazons noticed the event before they were turned as well, but can you remember what happened on August the15th five years ago?" Raven asks.
"Hmm, I remember that day as a strange one, I was writing an article for the noon edition when I suddenly realize it's four in the afternoon." He says after a few moments thought. "Was that it?"
"That was it, if you want to, I can show you how the world looked while you were out, but it will be as I saw it."
"Sure." Harold says, Raven gets up and puts her fingers on his temple, slowly feeding him her memories of the day. "Jeez, and the whole world was like that?" He asks after she is done.
"It was, the Titans were only spared the fate because I shielded them as a farewell present, I didn't think I would live past the summoning. You saw Slade as well, but he was in my father's employ but fell out of grace with him."
"Did you ever meet him again?"
"Slade? Once, through a robot communication where he wanted me to join him in taking over the 'ungrateful city' as he called it." Raven replies as she finger quotes to underline it.
"Well, that's all I got to the important stuff, but I got a few off shots." Harold says, looking at his list.
"Shoot." Raven shrugs, the talk with Sam had been a lot worse for her than this.
"Is there a connection between you and the 'Amazing voice girl' video circulating the internet these days?" She smirks at this.
"I wouldn't know, I have been told we share similarities but I haven't seen it."
"Ah, and the woman seen in the company of a Richard Wayne Grayson in Gotham?"
"Please, you should know my personality well enough to know that I wouldn't fall for a guy like that one." She says, this last part is turning into a lie feast on her part.
"Figured." Harold smirks. "Now going over the League sheet, I see you are in the company of Dr. Fate, Zatanna, another demon called Etrigan and a reputed angel called Zauriel, what's all that like?"
"Etrigan jumped me initially as he is really hostile towards demons from other realms than his own, Zauriel and I have yet to get to know each other properly, but he is suspicious of me. Dr. Fate is a decent man and I hope I can study magic with him later on. I had an initial conflict with Zatanna but I hope to be able to work with her later on."
"Ok, do you know where she is these days? It appears she's just sort of vanished?" Harold continues though Raven has a sneaking suspicion that he had figured it out.
"I know what she is doing, but I don't know where."
"Anything you can talk about."
"No, it's personal to her." Raven replies flatly as a commotion is heard from down below. "Here we go again." She sighs as she looks to the staircase as the motley crew that jumped her and Richard the last time appears, the girl with the broken nose still with bandages over her face, the group freezes instantly when they see her. "You again?" Raven growls before getting up.
"Holy shit, it's her." One of them whispers.
"Are you going to behave, or do I have to lose my temper?" Raven asks.
"I… eer… we were just leaving actually." The leader says, the others quickly nod in agreement before turning around and storms down the stairs.
"I will be right back." Raven says to Harold, feeling a commotion from down below.
"Take your time." The man wave as he takes another slice.
Arriving down at the room, Raven finds one girl crying behind the desk with a red area on the side of her cheek and Mario tries to comfort her while the serving boy looks in confusion from her and of the two. "What's going on?"
"That girl whose nose you broke?" The boy says. "She is collecting pay for her medical bill from us, third time now, Carina tried to stop her… but." He says looking at his colleague.
"Cerberus, we have work to do." Raven says before heading out of the shop with the dog storming after her.
"Phew, we got clear." The group leader says in a nearby alley to his crew. "Do you think she knows?" He asks the broken nosed girl.
"Too late for her to do anything about it." The girl spits, as the world goes dark around them.
"No it's not, and you lot are coming with me." Raven says as she appears at the deep end of the alley. "Last time was the only warning." She says as she changes shape, the group just pales visibly.
"There, there Carina. It's ok, you did the right thing." Mario says trying to comfort his employee. As the bell announces someone entering followed by a few gasps.
"Sorry for the disturbance, but this young woman has something to say." Raven says as Mario looks over his desk, seeing the transformed Raven standing with the girl with the broken nose on the other side.
"Mama Mia." Mario whispers before standing up, helping his employee to her feet as they notice the utterly terrified look on the girls face.
"And?" Raven growls to the girl, shaking her slightly with the grip she has in the back of the girl's jacket.
"I…I…am sorry…h-here…is… your money." The girl stammers, shaking while she places the stolen money on the counter.
"Good." Raven says as she turns the woman around, it is at this Mario and Carina notice that the girls feet are actually not touching the ground. "Now, I don't want to come back here and hear you doing this again, if I do, then I am going to come looking for you, got it?" Raven asks while boring holes in her with her eyes, getting a frightened squeak and a nod from the girl. "Good, now go sit in the pen till the cops show up." Raven continues as she puts the girl down and shoves her in the direction of the door. Quickly the girl gets out and joins her friends sitting around a lamppost where a big dog sits growling at the slightest movement. "Sorry to disturb your meals." Raven says before teleporting to the floor above, finding Harold watching the group from the railing, chewing on a slice.
"Well if they didn't get it the first time, they do now." He says. "Where did you get the dog?"
"Picked him up along the way, he is good company, but tends to break wind and snore. So did you have any more questions?"
"Only one, are you comfortable with what you are?"
"Absolutely not." Raven replies flatly. "Being born what I am may have brought many good things about, but I would not wish my life on anyone else."
"You'd rather be normal?" He asks a little surprised.
"Yes I would, look at me, I am a freak that stands out everywhere I go. But I know that if it had not been me, it would have been some other poor unfortunate, so I live with what I am, but I don't like being my own worst enemy."
"I can understand that." Harold says. "Well, thank you very much for the talk Raven; maybe if you help save the world again we can talk again?" He says as he picks up his items from the table.
"Well, you would have to find me to ask." Raven says with a smirk. "But it was nice."
"I can call the Themysciran embassy or the League." Harold says with a smirk of his own. "Oh one last thing, will the Titans reunite again?"
"Maybe." Raven replies getting another smile from the man before he says his goodbyes and leaves Raven to watch the group below till the police shows up.
Next Chapter: More testing.